18 Songs About Money to Distract You From Impending Doom

As of closing bell yesterday, the TSX was down almost 850 on the day, and has lost 18% of its value in the past month. That’s just brutal. While my optimistic side sees a buying opportunity, my frosted, jaded side sees my retirement date pushed back from July 2045 to about November 2045. Those could be a long few months…

I’m not actually too worried at all- while my portfolio is down a fair bit, I’ve got no plans of pulling anything thing out, and will likely be going on a little bit of a post-carnage shopping spree when things settle a little bit. Even so, it’s hard not to keep my portfolio tracker open and constantly check how much I’m up or down. As a distraction from these troubled times, here’s my list of my favourite 18 songs about money. That’s one song for every percentage point that the TSX has dropped in September.

1. Dire Straits, Money for Nothing - The classic, unquestionable king of money songs. “That ain’t working, that’s the way you do it / Get your money for nothing and your chicks for free.”
2. Notorious B.I.G., Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems - How true, Biggie, how true…
3. Pink Floyd, Money - From the soothing sounds of cold, hard cash to the cutting lyrics, this is Pink Floyd at its best. “Think I’ll buy me a football team…”
4. Hall and Oates, Rich Girl - “You’re a rich girl and you’ve gone too far, but you know it don’t matter anyway. You can rely on the old man’s money…”
5. Jay-Z, Dead Presidents II - “I’m out for dead presidents to represent me”.
6. Janis Joplin, Mercedes Benz - A catchy and tongue-in-cheek commentary on materialism.  
7. ODB, Baby, I Got Your Money - A crude and flamboyant look at how people with more money and hoes than I manage their finances.
8. Billy Joel, Movin’ Out - “And he’s trading in his Chevy for a Cadillac-ac-ac-ac-ac-ac / You ought-a know by now / If he can’t drive with a broken back / At least he can polish the fenders”.
9. Bing Crosby, Pennies from Heaven - Optimism and exuberance from a simpler time. Was also featured in the movie “Elf”, which is a big plus.
10. Snoop Dogg, Gin n’ Juice - “With my mind on my money and my money on my mind”.
11. Abba, Money Money Money - “In my dreams I have a plan / If I got me a wealthy man / I wouldn’t have to work at all, I’d fool around and have a ball”. Not a bad plan at all!
12. AC/DC, Dirty Deeds, Done Dirt Cheap  - A song that’s really about frugality. Why pay full price for dirty deeds when you can get them done for cheap?
13. Bing Crosby, Brother Can You Spare a Dime? - Pretty much the polar opposite of Pennies from Heaven. Wasn’t featured in “Elf”, but has been used in The Simpsons. That’s just as good.
14. Aerosmith, Eat the Rich - A rational and reasoned approach to corporate greed in uncertain economic times.
15. Madonna, Material Girl - “Some boys romance, some boys slow dance / That’s all right with me / If they cant raise my interest then I / Have to let them be”. Madonna should totally check out Icici Bank of Canada- they’ve got some of the highest interest rates around.
16. Puff Daddy, All About the Benjamins - I really have no idea what this song is about, but it has something to do with money. I think.  
17. Pet Shop Boys, Opportunities - “I’ve got the brains, you’ve got the looks /Let’s make lots of money / You’ve got the brawn, I’ve got the brains /Let’s make lots of money”.  
18. The Beatles, Can’t Buy Me Love - Money can buy an awful lot of things, but love isn’t one of them. Neither is happiness. Neither is good health. And neither is a dinosaur.

Any tunes that I’ve missed?

Photo by DavidDMuir

• Save Your Money – Five Places NOT to Spend...
• I Kick Little Girls for Money...
• Money or Sex?...
• A Quick Money Saving Tip for Pet Owners...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.