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The 100 greatest friggin' rock and pop songs ever, Part 1.May 09 '02 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line My attempt at a comprehensive list of the greatest songs ever made... in five installments.
Getting right down to it, here's the first 20... 100. "Won't Get Fooled Again" - The Who Who's Next The Who's rockin' synthesizer-laden protest song was originally conceived as the grand centerpiece to Pete Townshend's rock opera, Lifehouse. When Lifehouse was scrapped, "Won't Get Fooled Again" made it onto the album that resulted from those sessions, Who's Next. It promptly staked out a spot in the annals of rock history as one of the most rousing anthems of the 1970's. Check out the defining moment--Roger Daltrey's scream a little more than halfway through the track. 99. "When Doves Cry" - Prince Purple Rain This one from Prince really proved that his art was much more than 1980's synth-pop. Prince infused his music with funk, soul, and rock, as well as a great deal of balls. This ode to a tumultuous love has an absolutely irresistable melody and vivid imagery. 98. "I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)" - Meat Loaf Bat Out Of Hell II: Back Into Hell Meat Loaf heralded his comeback with the 1993 song "I Would Do Anything For Love". The Jim Steinman masterpiece was an instant hit, but at six minutes in length, the radio single was trimmed down far too much to really digest it. The full-length album version clocks in at 12 minutes. Meat's voice is in perfect form, and the twists, dips, and orchestration of the composition are performed to the 'T'. 97. "Pour Some Sugar On Me" - Def Leppard Hysteria Def Leppard's infectious, sex-crazed blend of pop and metal made "Pour Some Sugar On Me" a wonderful poppy confection that both metalheads and mass record buyers could digest easily. One of THE best pop songs to come out of the 1980s. 96. "Jeremy" - Pearl Jam Ten "Jeremy," with its accompanying MTV video, would prove to be Pearl Jam's commercial breakthrough. To date, it's one of the most powerful, vivid, and disturbing songs to ever be put in regular radio rotation. The tale is one of a child driven to commit suicide in front of his peers. Lead singer Eddie Vedder based "Jeremy" on the true tale of a suicidal Texas boy. The whirl of rhythmic, hellish noise that the band delves into after the second chorus or so perfectly orchestrates the turbulence of the boy's mind, and winds down with an amazing instrumental depiction of Jeremy's suicide. 95. "Bohemian Rhapsody" - Queen A Night At The Opera Queen's commerical breakthrough was an unlikely radio single, a six-minute mini-opera featuring several different movements. The song segues effortlessly from piano ballad to operatic breakdown to raging rocker. Though the song has been pounded to death relentlessly in the three decades since its release, it remains a wonderful, quirky, and oftentimes hilarious illustration of Queen's remarkable versatility. 94. "You Shook Me All Night Long" - AC/DC Back In Black This crunchy, bluesy, hard-rock take on one night with a girl is as lascivious, dirty, and ROCKIN' as they come. Check out Angus Young's wailing solo, or Brian Johnson's lecherous, raspy squeal in the chorus. 93. "Roxanne" - The Police Outlandos d'Amour Spearheaded by Sting's wailing vocal and the plaintive backup singing from his bandmates, "Roxanne" was this trio's most prominent--and arguably best--song. The tale of love and prostitution hit an obvious chord with mainstream listeners, and it vaulted the Police to superstardom. 92. "Fat Bottomed Girls" - Queen Jazz Freddie Mercury proves once and for all that Sir Mix-A-Lot is his next of kin with Queen's blushingly playful ode to the large rump, "Fat Bottomed Girls". The simple D chord that carries most of the song keeps the tune just that--simple. It's more than just the predecessor to "Baby Got Back"--it's an inoffensive tribute to the large fanny that more than a few males can relate to. 91. "Jump" - Van Halen 1984 Eddie Van Halen proves himself somewhat of a synth, as well as a guitar, virtuoso with this poppy, keyboard-laden hit from the year displayed in the album title. David Lee Roth contributes some great vocal touches ("Roh-whoa-oll with the punches" is priceless) and Eddie's keyboard solo rocks. Getting with the times never sounded this good. 90. "Somebody To Love" - Queen A Day At The Races "Somebody To Love" was the centerpiece of Queen's follow-up to Night at the Opera, and the biggest single from Races. It's a beautiful song--Freddie Mercury contributes wonderful vocals and the "gospel choir" in the chorus is merely tons and tons of overdubs at work. The choir is, amazingly enough, made up of the voices of the band members. And before you ask, it bears no resemblance to the Jefferson Airplane song of the same name. 89. "Under The Bridge" - Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik Still the most self-confessional and plaintive of 1990s hits, the Chili Peppers had their biggest single in this slow, soulful, almost ballad-ish song from their 1992 album BloodSugarSexMagik. The beautiful song was written from a poem documenting lead singer Anthony Keidis' battle with drug addiction. The haunting outro makes the song. 88. "Don't Stop Me Now" - Queen Jazz Queen's avant-garde party anthem of sorts, "Don't Stop Me Now," is the unsung masterpiece of pop music that provided one more great song for their underrated 1978 outing, Jazz. As with many Queen songs, Freddie Mercury's vocals are showcased to near perfection, and that guitar solo is scorching. 87. "Turn the Page" - Bob Seger/Metallica Travelin' Man/Garage Inc. Bob Seger's one true masterpiece, "Turn the Page" was a soft, spooky confessional of life on the road. The wailing saxophone line that runs through the song gives it extra character. In 1998, Metallica turned it into a semi-hit of their own, giving it a hard-rock revamp. Surprisingly enough, the song was almost as effective as the original--one could argue that it's even better. Either way, the haunting song deserves its due. 86. "Should I Stay Or Should I Go" - The Clash Combat Rock Coming from the hit-riddled Combat Rock album, The Clash's "Should I Stay Or Should I Go" proved to be the ultimate pop-punk anthem--from the humorous Spanish background vocals to the simple riff that makes up the whole song, it's a perfect slice of radio confection infused with just a little bit of rock n' roll attitude. Sure, the Clash had much more harder-rocking and artistically viable material, but they never made anything as purely fun as "Should I Stay Or Should I Go". 85. "For Nancy ('Cos It Already Is)" - Pete Yorn musicforthemorningafter Pete Yorn's soaring rocker "For Nancy" showcases the incredible range of this new singer-songwriter. It's also a great song, one of the only truly great rock songs to grace our eardrums in 2001. If "Life On A Chain" didn't hook you, this HAS to do something for you. 84. "Otherside" - Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication RHCP's sordid ballad "Otherside" remains one of the best damn singles of the latter part of the 1990s. Built from a simple guitar line and a plaintive vocal from Anthony Keidis, "Otherside" was far more imaginative than anything saturating the airwaves in 1999. Regret, sadness, drugs, and sex are all addressed in the confessional lyrics, and the background vocals soar to inexplicable heights. 83. "6th Avenue Heartache" - The Wallflowers Bringing Down the Horse This gorgeous song, bolstered by organ and slide guitar, is really brought home by Adam Duritz's backing vocals. Duritz took a break from his day job as the lead singer of the Counting Crows to lend some vocals to this track, and the duet between Duritz and Wallflowers lead singer Jakob Dylan is beautiful. To this day, the best song the Wallflowers have ever written. 82. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" - the Rolling Stones Out Of Our Heads The instantly recognizable riff. The breathless, tongue-in-cheek lyrics. The anthemic power of the title credo. Everything about "Satisfaction" screams classic, and it remains the Stones' most revered rocker to date. 81. "Honky Tonk Women" - the Rolling Stones Hot Rocks 1964-1971 Queen likes their fat bottomed girls, and the Stones like their honky tonk women. This country-fried ode to southern gals provided the foundation for that later Queen hit, and it gives Keith Richards some opportunities to show off, too. Thanks for reading numbers 100-81. With any luck, 80-61 will come tomorrow. Check back here, same Andrew-time, same Andrew-place.  |
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