I
really don't like to choose a band's signature hit as their best song,
especially a band like the Talking Heads who are definitely not a
"greatest hits only" band. But well sometimes that song simply deserves
to be the signature hit that it is. For me it was between this and
"Born Under Punches" that I was bound to include, both off of Remain In Light,
one of the greatest things ever to listen to. "Once In A Lifetime" got
the distinguished honor basically for one reason. This song has one of
the best choruses of all time, for which we have that crazy studio
scientist Brian Eno to thank. In fact much of the song and album's
brilliance, as is the case with most things he is involved in, is due to
Eno's superb influence. Eno's oblique strategies method of working
with musicians produced a jumbled set of conflicting rhythms and
melodies on top of each other, giving the entire Remain album
it's unique sonic backdrop. And "Lifetime's" spoken and sung lyrics
dealing with complacency and conformity via a mid-life crisis fit the
off-kilter musical goings on just exquisitely.
The ole "sucker for a ballad" cliche of my own creation once again takes firm hold where this one is concerned. Three albums into her career, Sara Bareilles has a laundry list of ballads that are exceptional, but none of them so far can top "Hold My Heart". Kaleidoscope Heart, which this song comes off of, is likewise her best at this writing and from the very first time I heard it, "Heart" even made the song that made me a fan of her's "Gonna Get Over You" disappear from my memory briefly. I could easily make a "100 Favorite Ballads" list but so much of this list you're currently reading is dedicated to songs like this and ergo, that would ultimately be an underwhelming read. Not to name drop yet another list of mine, but as I said in my "100 Favorite Singers", Bareilles' knack for composing exquisite melodies and then singing them like some angelic super heroine is what makes me a fan of each and everything she does. Couldn't possibly pick a better example than this.
68. "Heroes" - David Bowie
Since
I've oddly never wondered what any songs I listen to are really
about, it wasn't until I actually looked this one up that it became
quite obvious that even being coked out of his gourd for much of the
recording of the "Heroes" album and his Berlin period in general
with Brian Eno, David Bowie was still able to come up with some
beautifully poetic stuff here. Bowie secretly at the time wrote it
about producer Tony Visconti's affair he was having, witnessing he and
backup singer Antonia Maaß making-out "by the wall", meaning the Berlin
Wall of course. The title itself came simply from the "heroic" sound
that the track had when it was still an instrumental, Bowie later
incorporating it into his tale of two lovers. The sound of the song
itself is a whole other mess of brilliance. All the tweaking with
guitars, vocals, drums, and layers of synths give it that famous "wall
of sound". I particularly love the story of how they got Bowie's vocal,
by utilizing three different mics at various distances away from him and
turning on and mixing certain ones the louder Bowie sang.
I had a hard time picking Journey songs for this list since at least four of their biggest hits should've made it. Journey is one of those bands where for the most part I agree that the singles were the best shit they had, whereas most of my favorite band's radio hits I never listen to or in some cases even loathe. I have all the classic Steve Perry era Journey albums everyone who knows what good singing sounds like should own, and yeah, they pretty much picked the right singles for each and every one. "Faithfully" off Frontiers was written solely by keyboardist Jonathan Cain and it's damn near the quintessential power ballad. And coming from this band, that is indeed saying something. Boyce Avenue does a spectacular version of this as well since anybody who can nail a Steve Perry vocal certainly gets my approval.
First but obviously not the last appearance of my favorite thing ever that just so happens to be a band, the Mighty Beatles. As you can see, I'm cheating a bit here by including technically three songs together as one. But not since Abbey Road came out has a single person on earth listened to just one of these songs and not the entire piece. As we all should know I hope, the second side of Abbey Road contains a sixteen minute medley of full and mini-songs, all of which conclude with the "Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End" trilogy. When listening to the Beatles catalog in order of when they were recorded, and not counting "Her Majesty", "The End" trilogy is the absolute perfect ending to the greatest band in history's body of work. The one and only recorded Ringo drum solo as well as the one and only John, Paul, and George duel lead guitar solo, on top of the amazingness the rest of it all is, is simply delectable icing on ze cake.
It pains me to have only one Faith No More song on this list, but I could say that about twenty other bands or more. And that's not counting the ones that didn't even get A song on the list. King for A Day...Fool For a Lifetime kinda creeped up on me as my favorite FNM album. It was the last of the four Mike Patton fronted albums I got and I had already listened to the other three countless times. Quickly though I found myself almost only listening to this one and the album's closer "Just A Man" just kills me. Most of my liking of KFADFFALT so much is that even more than usual for the band, they simply go all over the place on it, breaking down a number of styles. "Just A Man" is the album's gospel tune more or less. By the time the back up singers, or choir I should say, come in at the end, I's get the full-on chills. Where Mike Patton is concerned, goddamn that boy can sang.
Holy fucking balls does this song whoop-ass. Coming off the Slow Hole to China compilation full of b-sides and unreleased songs, obviously the question begged upon hearing "Hoodoo Operator" is "What? How the dick was that previously un-released?". Certainly colors me confused at least. But anyway, yeah, if aliens came down to earth and told me "Play us something from this band called Clutch we keep hearing so much about", this is the song I would play them. From that funky-ass marching drum groove, to that sweet swinging riff, and of course to that monstrous chorus riff and ze silly-ass lyrics, this song just makes me grin ear to ear. I would've previously never thought that the blues could make me headbang so goddamn hard but well, here we are. Hail these bearded torch-bearers of the mighty riff!
And here we are at the sexiest song ever recorded. There's a reason, besides simply it's title, that this jam played for comedic effect in every single trailer or scene in a movie depicting people about to engage in penetration. The first four wah-wah played notes of this song sliding right into Marvin Gaye's panty moistening voice is enough to make any woman's knees buckle instantaneously. And yeah who am I kidding, I have to change my shorts after listening to it as well. Amazingly, the musical track for "Let's Get It On" was recorded when the song had completely different lyrics that, gasp, weren't at all about fucking. It was originally a political song, collaborated upon by Gaye and producer Ed Townsend. Gaye had changed some of the lyrics around before Townsend intervened and informed Gaye that in fact yes, it was all supposed to be about "gettin it on". I, as I'm sure you all agree, could scarcely imagine hearing this song now with lyrics more akin to "What's Going On?".
Once again we have a band who should have at least five songs on this list but instead criminally only have one. Though never released as a single, "Love On the Rocks With No Ice" has kinda become a signature tune for the band, at least since their reforming in 2011, (thank the gods for btw). For the tour I finally got to see them on last year, they closed their set with this beast, which was the one I was screaming for the entire night. What can you say about this song and the Darkness in general except A) Justin Hawkins is fucking awesome and B) they fucking rock. Permission To Land, the band's debut and the album "Love On the Rocks" stems from, is a pretty much flawless offering, (their second album One Way Ticket To Hell...and Back even more flawless, IMO). AC/DC riffage, except better and Hawkins bansheeing away with a ridiculously scorching chorus, this song just has all the ingredients that make this band kick ass for Satan except more so. If I could sing like this guy, every band I was in from now till I died would cover this song.
I love Enslaved's Monumension through Isa period. One of the best three-album runs from any metal band. The final song off Isa, and therefor the final song in this trilogy of albums I guess, is the monstrous "Neogenesis". Though this statement makes not a lick of sense, I liken this band during this time and especially this song to what Pink Floyd would sound like if they were an extreme metal band. Yeah I know, try and figure that one out. Well actually, if you haven't already, just listen to this haunting beast. Eerie clean vocals give way to amazing riff after amazing riff, culminating with one of my absolute favorites at the 8:40 mark. The slow, somehow again Floyd-esque stoner riff that closes this song, as well as that fantastically building guitar solo over it, is just ungodly epicness. If I had the Infinity Gauntlet, one of my very first tasks would be to simply go back in time and make that part last at least ten minutes. Then have Enslaved play it at my kids birthday parties every year.
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