The 100 Greatest Rock Songs Ever: #'s 60-41
Mar 05 '03 (Updated Apr 10 '05)
The Bottom Line N/A
No need for an intro, let's just continue, shall we?
60.Van Halen: Dreams: Before Sammy Hagar, Van Halen was all about partying and good times. With Sammy, they got a little bit of substance. This is one of the most cathartic sing along songs ever written, it just makes you feel alive.
59.Red Hot Chili Peppers: Higher Ground: In terms of cover songs, there are few that rival the intensity and energy of RHCP's cover of this Stevie Wonder tune. In one four minute blast, everything that was to be loved about the Chilis was revealed, and rock music was all the better for it.
58.Pearl Jam: Alive: Alive is one of the few songs from the band's "Ten" era that still feels every bit as vital as it was when it was released. It's original meaning has gone through 2 major changes (a song about incest became a song about being truly Alive, and then it became a tribute to 9 people who no longer were Alive), but the inspiration it creates with just the opening notes has never wavered.
57.Cheap Trick: I Want You To Want Me: This is the pre-eminent power pop song. Perhaps no other song has influenced as many bands in terms of sound than this one...a bold statement? Sure. But true? Prove me wrong.
56.Radiohead: Paranoid Android: This song is a complete and total mindf*ck. It certainly doesn't have a "classic" song structure, but it doesn't matter. Just listen to the fine musicians playing this song, and how good it sounds, and you'll see what I mean.
55.Led Zeppelin: Whole Lotta Love: Jimmy Page is, even more than Hendrix, the quintessential guitar god hero, and he sounds it every bit on this track. That chugging guitar riff has been often imitated, and never duplicated.
54.AC/DC: Back in Black: In terms of plain ole "meat and potatoes" rock and roll, not much beats this song. It is at once a tribute and an anthem, and with the opening crunches of those power chords, you can't help but play your air guitar along with it.
53.The Who: 5:15 Despite the really corny lyrics, this song is just a great old school type of rock and roll song. Oh yeah, it also has the greatest bass solo in history. It is this song that cemented bassist John Entwistle's nickname of "Thunderfingers," and deservedly so.
52.Smashing Pumpkins: Today: With Today, Billy Corgan and friends created a power pop masterpiece. While the loud/soft dynamic that was used so masterfully here became overused in no time, this song still stands as one of the songs that used it almost perfectly.
51.Live: Lightning Crashes: This simple chordal ballad was probably the best ballad to come out in the 1990s by any band. It's tone was dark yet hopeful, both lyrically and musically. The song and words were made into one, and it was something most people could truly feel: that swelling of happiness that comes when you hear a truly great song.
50.Metallica: Master of Puppets: Plain and simply, this was one of the most ambitious tracks ever recorded by a heavy metal band, and in many ways, it helped make experimentation "ok" for metal acts. It's an 8 minute long epic that, quite frankly, makes November Rain look positively weak in comparison.
49.Rolling Stones: (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction: What does it say about a song that even when you feel it's over-rated, you still can't place it any lower than #49 on a list like this?
48.Tom Petty: I Won't Back Down: What does it say when a song becomes a singer's true motto? Honesty speaks volumes, and this song speaks volumes about the man who sings it.
47.Led Zeppelin: Heartbreaker: In my mind, the guitar riff to this song is even better than WLL, and not only that, but the guitar solo makes most other Page solos seem almost inferior.
46.Tool: Stinkfist: Technically, Tool is better than 95% of the band's found on this list. They are all amazing musicians, but in terms of "hooks" and such, they don't have many, if any at all. But Stinkfist is just such an amazingly orchestrated song, the way its put together and everything. It honestly blows my mind every time I hear it.
45.Neil Young: Rockin in the Free World:: While most people just sing the chorus as if it's some mindless generic rock song, this song actually has a lot to say. And if it weren't for the terrible NY guitar solo, I'd put it a bit higher.
44.Stone Temple Pilots: Big Empty: Musically, I think this is one of STP's best works. Lyrically, it's only so-so, but it has a great vocal line on the chorus that absolutely, positively makes this song so damn great. (This reminds me, I need to review "Purple" soon)
43.Nirvana: Sliver: Ahhhh, you Nirvana people were getting worried weren't you? Kurt loved pop music, and he loved punk music. While some people would claim he mixed the two a lot more than he liked to admit, I don't think he ever came up with a mix that was as satisfying as Sliver, probably the simplest song he ever wrote musically, and the most ridiculous song he ever wrote lyrically. And yet, it's one of the best he ever wrote. Weird how that works out huh?
42.U2: Pride (In the Name of Love): This, along with two other songs that were given to me on a mixed tape, are what got me into U2 more than anything else the band had done up through the Rattle and Hum era. I love Edge's ringing guitar, and Bono gives an impressive vocal performance that is truly awe-inspiring.
41.The Band: The Weight: Probably one of the most under-appreciated groups ever, The Band were a little bit of rock, folk, and country all rolled into one. The Weight, with it's well known chorus, is a sweet mix of the latter two, and I absolutely adore it.
THE LIST:
Songs 100-81
Songs 80-61
Songs 60-41
Songs 40-21
Songs 20-1
Related Reviews:
The Fifty Greatest Rock Albums of the 1990s Part One: #'s 50-41
The Fifty Greatest Rock Albums of the 1990s Part Two: #'s 40-31
The Fifty Greatest Rock Albums of the 1990s Part Three: #'s 30-21
The Fifty Greatest Rock Albums of the 1990s Part Four: #'s 20-11
The Fifty Greatest Rock Albums of the 1990s Part Five: #'s 10-1
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