I thought it might be nice to take a break from all the happy news, dangerous games, and general trash talk. Being a liberal, however, I can't get to far away from such things. What could possibly unite those important concepts with delight and fun? Rock 'N Roll, baby. The stuff that moved a generation.
I, therefore, comprised my top 10 Rock songs of all time. In order of greatness, even. You may ask how I determined these to be the all time best. Well, to quote Don Henley (in The Garden Of Allah), "I am an expert. Because I say I am."
If it's good enough for Satan...
There are a few things you should know about my musical criterions. 1st, I'm mostly a lyrics nut. I think music, especially Rock, to be the last refuge of popular poetry. We didn't read much of Cummings but we did strain our ears to catch the lyrics in Money. "What's that last verse? 'But if you have to...' what?" (it's, "But if you ask for a raise there aint no surprise they aint giving none away.") So, lyrics are more important, to me, than melody. Songs that have strong political content, sexual conotation (this is Rock, after all), or try to convey that feeling of teenage Blues and restlessness. 2nd, a hot guitar riff. Douglas Adams said, of Mark Knopfler's guitar, that "Mark Knopfler has an extraordinary ability to make a Schecter Custom Stratocaster hoot and sing like angels on a Saturday night, exhausted from being good all week and needing a stiff beer." But guitar work needs to bring out the emotion of the lyrics to make it truly stand out. 3rd, and last, is an exceptional beat. Something so catchy, so distinctive, that it stands on its own and stays in your head (regardless of the songs lyrics).
So, here's my Top 10. Vote on your favorite and post your own. You ready, Paul? Heeeere we go:
#10; Kashmir (Led Zeppelin). That drum beat could make you stumble through the jungle for days to find the source.
#9; Keeping The Faith (Billy Joel). Mixing Gospel with lyrics about nostalgia (then in full vogue) was brilliant. He equated the culture of music, Rock especially, as being its own religion.
#8; Human Wheels (John Mellencamp). While burying his love, the song's character consider the Earth's mortality along with his own. Time eventually reclaims everything.
#7; The Pretender (Jackson Browne). Does any song better explore the bitter disappointment of age and constant struggles between love and money. Which one have you opted for? Browne is my favorite poet and I could have filled this list with his songs. Before The Deluge is especially poignant with Global Warming but not well known enough to make the list.
#6; Give Me Shelter (Rolling Stones). The woman who sang the chorus (Merry Clayton) was pregnant and didn't want to do the song. Jagger talked her into it, though, and she sang with such force that she miscarried. Sad, but her vocals are haunting.
#5; L.A. Woman (The Doors). Jim Morrison's crowning poem of his own angst on the streets of Los Angeles. Personal and raw.
#4; Hotel California (The Eagles). The starting place of the '60's free love movement. The very heart of Rock's rise. Song chronicles that movement's death without escape. "You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave." A prequal to Boys Of Summer.
#3; Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd). The Wall is a concept album detailing a man's descent into madness. We start with him as a boy in order to best understand this descent. Comfortably Numb is the moment when that man's attempts to fight off his psychosis fails. He's gone. Gilmore's guitar perfectly captures the sorrow, and coldness, that exist within the character as a Dr. tries to sedate him enough to still perform onstage. The riff never fails to bring the tingle of goosebumps.
#2; Synchronicity 2 (The Police). The singular Synchronicity sucked but this one was brilliant. Ties a killing by the Loch Ness Monster with the killing of a man's family when modern stresses drive him insane. When there's a "shadow on the door of a cottage on the shore of a dark, Scottish lake," my nape's hair tingles.
#1; Revolution (The Beatles). The last word in socio-political songs. "When you talk about destruction, don't you know that you can count me out." Changing the world is fine but only through Peacefull means. It also requires pure intentions. "If you want money for people with minds that hate, all I can tell you is Brother you have to wait." In 1980 we lost our generation's greatest warrior. This was his first real battle song.