Edgar Allan Poe is arguably one of the most widely known American writers in history. In fact, Shareranks.com places Edgar Allan Poe as the #4 Greatest American Writer of all time, with only Mark Twain, William Faulkner and Ernest Hemingway beating him out for the top three spots.

Poe did a lot of different things with his writing during his short 40 year life, but he is most remembered for his stories of mystery and the macabre. He left an impression on generations of readers who have explored the dark side of mankind through his works.

Edgar Allan Poe's life was almost as troubled as some of his writings. Death and failure surrounded him, and he fought alcohol and drug abuse for most of his adult life. Could it be that the best art comes from the most troubled souls? Edgar Allan Poe certainly supports the notion.

Poe's work has had a huge influence on popular culture. Books and films inspired by his work are easy to come by, but he's also inspired generations of musicians who have been attracted to his melancholy writings.

This playlist includes songs inspired by the work and life of Edgar Allan Poe.

What would you add to your Edgar Allan Poe playlist?

Here's a great Valentine's Day playlist for us old folk.

As classic rockers are swelling the membership roles of the AARP I thought I would create a playlist to help take them back in time. Aging rockers still need some lovin' and classic rock love songs are just as appealing today as when teenagers first lost their virginity in the back seats of cramped Camaros before the Internet, or even MTV.

This playlist includes classic love songs by Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Elton John, The Doors, Foreigner, Fleetwood Mac, Eddie Money, Journey, Styx, Dire Straits, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Peter Frampton, Heart, Boston, Asia, Foghat and many more.

Well my friends, Valentine's Day is right around the corner. So you can expect a lot of love-related music around here during the month of February.

There is probably no holiday that holds more great playlist opportunities than Valentine's Day. Love is, by a wide margin, the biggest inspiration for song. A songwriter in love can tap its power and ride right to the top of the charts. And so can a songwriter with a broken heart.

Out of great joy or great pain springs the best music. Music, after all, has always been a way to connect emotionally with an audience.

For this playlist I've decided to explore the cliché device of "two hearts". You don't have to dig to deep in order to find a plethora of songs that use it to describe being in love.

This one is just a start and it includes both popular songs and high quality songs.

There are many sexual oddities to be found in the world, some are considered tame, some of them we would rather not think about, and some of them are just plain weird. And no matter what fetish or sexual deviancy you care to investigate, there are songs to tell the story.

Paraphilia is a proclivity to sexual arousal by things outside of the norm, like inanimate objects or situations. One such paraphilia is mechanophilia, which is having a specific sexual attraction to machines. Things like cars or motorcycles.

I was not too surprised to find a large number of songs that paint machines as sexual objects. After all, rock n' roll can be strange like that.

For this playlist I've found songs that seem to love a machine a bit too much, if you know what I mean.

So if you find yourself alone with nothing but your vacuum cleaner this Valentine's day, why not give this playlist a spin?