My 100 Favorite Tracks of All Time (20-11)

Alright. We're down to the last couple entries here. Feel encouraged to let me know if you want .mp3s of any of this.

And we're off... again:
100. Stuck in America - Sugarcult
099. History Lesson - Part II - Minutemen
098. To Clean (Acoustic) - Woods
097. Furr - Blitzen Trapper
096. At the Chime of a City Clock - Nick Drake
095. Search and Destroy - The Stooges
094. Scott Farcas Takes It On The Chin - Less Than Jake
093. Ruby Soho - Rancid
092. B.O.B. - Outkast
091. Monk Time - The Monks
090. Waiting Room - Fugazi
089. Ain't That Peculiar - Marvin Gaye
088. (I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone - Minor Threat
087. Daylight - Aesop Rock
086. In the New Year - The Walkmen
085. Judy is a Punk - Ramones
084. I'm the Man Who Loves You - Wilco
083. My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down (Bonzo Goes To Bitburg) - Ramones
082. White Riot - The Clash
081. Many Rivers to Cross - Jimmy Cliff
080. Lived In Bars - Cat Power
079. Venus - Television
078. In The Neighborhood - Tom Waits
077. Losing My Edge - LCD Soundsystem
076. Vitamin C - Can
075. International Player's Anthem - UGK (feat. Outkast)
074. Someday - The Strokes
073. These Days - Nico
072. All Falls Down - Kanye West
071. Debaser - Pixies
070. Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley
069. Goodbye Stranger - Supertramp
068. For Once In My Life - Stevie Wonder
067. Leaves That Are Green - Simon & Garfunkel
066. Mr. Pitiful - Otis Redding
065. Four Winds - Bright Eyes
064. Forks and Knives (La Fete) - Beirut
063. If Looks Could Kill - Camera Obscura
062. People Got A Lotta Nerve - Neko Case
061. You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb - Spoon
060. Newsflash - Windmill
059. Rose Parade - Elliott Smith
058. Into the Mystic - Van Morrison
057. You Can Call Me Al - Paul Simon
056. Waterloo Sunset - The Kinks
055. Losing Out - Black Milk (feat. Royce Da 5'9")
054. The Boy with the Thorn in His Side - The Smiths
053. Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)? - Buzzcocks
052. All I Need - The Temptations
051. God Only Knows - Beach Boys
050. Elephant Gun - Beirut
049. Skating Away - Jethro Tull
048. Man Out Of Time - Elvis Costello
047. Brother Run Them Down - Constantines
046. M79 - Vampire Weekend
045. The Wind - Cat Stevens
044. Constructive Summer - The Hold Steady
043. Reinventing the Wheel to Run Myself Over - Fall Out Boy
042. I'll Be Your Man - The Black Keys
041. A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke
040. Landslide - Smashing Pumpkins
039. Here Should Be My Home - No Age
038. Metal Firecracker - Lucinda Williams
037. So Far Around the Bend - The National
036. Shakey Dog - Ghostface Killah
035. I Only Want to Be With You - Dusty Springfield
034. July, July! - The Decemberists
033. I Want You - Bob Dylan
032. No Rain - Blind Melon
031. Answering Machine - The Replacements
030. Let's Not Shit Ourselves (To Love and Be Loved) - Bright Eyes
029. Throwing It All Away - Genesis
028. Street Fighting Man - Rolling Stones
027. Disney Girls (1957) - Beach Boys
026. Incident On 57th Street - Bruce Springsteen
025. This Will Be Our Year - The Zombies
024. Life on Mars? - David Bowie
023. Don't Mug Yourself - The Streets
022. I'm A Cuckoo - Belle & Sebastian
021. Mama's Pearl - Jackson 5

Getting close to home!

020. 11:59 - Blondie (http://is.gd/a9NGn)
And we're back to CBGB! Who would have thought cute little Debbie Harry would have been such a genre-bridging music icon? "11:59" is just a damn fine New Wave track, and (along with #18, as you will see) is just a testament to how diverse the scene at CBGB was in the late 70s. It's a deeper cut off of Parallel Lines, their most well-known album, and it was written by Jimmy Destri, probably their least-known songwriter. I love the transition from the intro to the verse. And the consonace in the opening lines is awesome.

019. Ain't Too Proud to Beg - The Temptations (http://is.gd/a9Oap)
Of course this is the culmination of the "Erik is a pussy" theory. But more importantly, David Ruffin just kills it. I love how the drums are like a little warning before that monster, soulful voice comes in. I also have a special relationship with this song on account of The Temptations made-for-TV movie where Leon as Ruffin steals the mic after quitting the group. Just Perfect.

018. Once in a Lifetime - Talking Heads (http://is.gd/a9Oy3)
AGAIN with the CBGB! This song is so fantastic! The break beat, that funky bassline, the hook, and David Fucking Byrne being totally batshit brilliant. One thing that separates the Talking Heads from someone like Paul Simon (and concordantly, today, Vampire Weekend from Dirty Projectors) is the difference between using a style (like Graceland and Vampire Weekend S/T being essentially afropop albums) and blending influences to create your own style (like Remain in Light and Bitte Orca using afropop and hip-hop and everything else and melding it together). I personally love all of the aforementioned albums, but I admire the latter style a bit more. This track just does it for me. I love the last verse especially.

017. Come On! Feel The Illinoise!: Part I: The World's Columbian Exposition/Part II: Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream - Sufjan Stevens (http://is.gd/a9P3K)
It's odd that this set has 3 of the 5 or so songs on the list in different time signatures (this one being 5/4, #17 being 3/4 and #13 being 3/4, I think?). This song goes along with the same reason I love Beirut so much: cultivating an aesthetic. Just the instruments and everything makes me feel like I'm at the Chicago World's Fair. The lyrics are so the reason why Sufjan is an incredibe songwriter: the ability to squeeze emotional meaning and broader signficance out of history and places and things. Then the turn into part 2 is so beautiful. "Are you writing from the heart?"

016. Fake Empire - The National (http://is.gd/a9Pyj)
Once again we have The National. Everything that's good about them is on display here: the slow unfurling culminating with the brilliant horn cacophony at the end, the drums and bass (my god when the drums synch with the groove of the piano!), and the lyrics. The National, like a lot of my favorite bands, write about America. And this song in particular I think captures the jaded-ness (?) and disaffection a lot of us feel about being in this country.

015. Honey In The Sun - Camera Obscura (http://is.gd/a9PYN)
OK! Going along with what I previously said about Camera Obscura: I don't care if you only do one thing if that one thing is write beautiful, catchy pop songs. Now, I heard criticism of this song being too long, which I will refute with my theory of the "Knock-out Verse." One of my favorite musical devices is when an artist loads a song with words (when the words are good, obviously). A knock-out verse is a verse thrown in at an obvious ending point in a song. My favorite example is in "Born to Run" (at 3:00), but this song uses it effectively and wonderfully. I guess my whole love of Camera Obscure is based on "too much of a good thing."

014. Nightswimming - R.E.M. (http://is.gd/a9Qwz)
This song is just so basic and beautiful. That powerful circular piano riff coupled with those gorgeous, nostalgic lyrics. It always enthralls me.

013. The Way Young Lovers Do - Van Morrison (N/A)
I hate how this song isn't available online (aside from my 8tracks list!). Astral Weeks is maybe my favorite album of all time, and this song is my favorite on it. The bass is incredible (interesting side note, the man, Richard Davis, who played bass on this album, also contributed bass on Born to Run. He's also a professor at the University of Wisconsin, which is cool.) The vocals are Van Morrison, so they're nuts. And throw on top of it those championship horns?! This song is unbelievable. My favorite moment(s) is the transition into the "Then we sat on our own star..." So jazzy and funky.

012. Train in Vain - The Clash (http://is.gd/a9Swv)
The Clash are so versatile. And, it may be a bit of a slight to pick one of their most popular songs as a favorite; but, The Clash were as much a pop group as they were a punk band. Sure, they wrote unbelievable songs about the disenfranchised underclasses, but they also wrote excellent pop songs. And their are fewer better pop songs than "Train in Vain." Joe Strummer just sings this song with such passion. "Stand by me/Or not at all."

011. Wait, Wait, Wait - The Format (http://is.gd/a9STp)
Once again, this song is a prime testament to the "Greatest vs. Favorite" list concept. The Format is/was an (now-defunct) underappreciated indie-pop band from the early/middle part of the decade. I don't understand how these guys didn't catch on; Interventions + Lullabies (the album this song is off of) is full of the same type of well-crafted pop songs as the much-praised Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, just with slightly rougher production. "Wait, Wait, Wait" is full of amazing one-liners, a flawless melody, great harmony and an excellent hook. Do yourself a favor and listen to it if you've never heard it. And read the lyrics: http://is.gd/aaSbu

8tracks: External:


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