Every Tuesday morning I make a brief appearance on 101.9 RXP, a local radio station that serves up a remarkably fresh mix of classic rock, alternative rock and contemporary hits. You're probably familiar with the station's morning-show host, Matt Pinfield, essentially the face of alternative rock on MTV during the late 1990s as the host of 120 Minutes and its successors.
I've always admired Matt for his encyclopedic knowledge of popular music and his unbridled enthusiasm, so working with him has been a serious treat. I've also come to hugely dig his co-host, RXP program director Leslie Fram (a radio vet whose amazing track record earned her the nickname "First Lady of Modern Rock"), and cool-headed, efficient producer Matt Ianni.
In my capacity as Time Out New York music editor, most Tuesdays I shout out the week's biggest shows, and also mention a few newly announced bookings for which tickets will soon be available. This week was different: The station is currently asking its listeners to submit their lists of the top 20 rock songs of all time; during Labor Day weekend they'll be counting down the top 1,019 picks. They asked me to submit a list, then had me come in and reel it off this past Tuesday, where I turned up between a live performance by Dolores O'Riordan (who seized the moment to announce a Cranberries reunion) and a chat with Imogen Heap.
Pulling my list together over the weekend was surprisingly easy, since I tailored it to RXP's format; had it been open to pop (hello, Thompson Twins), R&B (Stevie, Diana, Marvin, Michael, ad infinitum) and hip-hop (Run-DMC, Public Enemy, De La Soul, Jay-Z...), I'd probably still be wrestling with it. RXP's rules made it even easier: You couldn't repeat an artist, and six iconic acts -- Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, the Rolling Stones (pre-Sticky Fingers), the Beatles (pre-Rubber Soul) and Bob Dylan -- could be set apart as "Legacy Artists," the equivalent of bonus cuts.
Compiling my list required 10 minutes of flow -- what are the songs I absolutely can't get out of my head, the ones I'll drop everything to hear any time they're playing -- plus about 30 minutes of finessing and a quick consult with Dr. LP, who pointed out a few glaring omissions.
So here, for your delectation or dismissal, is my admittedly very personal countdown:
Top 20 Rock Songs
1. Kiss, "Detroit Rock City"
2. Cheap Trick, "Surrender"
3. Thin Lizzy, "The Boys Are Back in Town"
4. Joy Division, "Love Will Tear Us Apart"
5. Bram Tchaikovsky, "Girl of My Dreams"
6. Public Image Ltd., "Public Image"
7. Black Sabbath, "Paranoid"
8. Talking Heads, "Life During Wartime"
9. The Clash, "London Calling"
10. Electric Light Orchestra, "Telephone Line"
11. Bruce Springsteen, "Born to Run"
12. Steve Forbert, "Romeo's Tune"
13. Yes, "Your Move/I've Seen All Good People"
14. Living Colour, "Cult of Personality"
15. Queen, "You're My Best Friend"
16. Romeo Void, "Never Say Never"
17. Aerosmith, "Dream On"
18. Squeeze, "Tempted"
19. Paul McCartney and Wings, "Live and Let Die"
20. R.E.M., "(Don't Go Back to) Rockville"
Legacy Tracks
Elvis Presley, "Blue Suede Shoes"
Chuck Berry, "Roll Over Beethoven"
Buddy Holly, "Not Fade Away"
The Rolling Stones (pre-Sticky Fingers), "Gimme Shelter"
The Beatles (pre-Rubber Soul), "If I Fell"
Bob Dylan, "Sweetheart Like You"
Kudos to Matt Ianni for having "Girl of My Dreams" ready to play on the air as my spiel ended. It killed me to cut Michael Penn's "No Myth," the Moody Blues' "Nights in White Satin" and, yes, Kansas's "Carry On Wayward Son." Other almost-rans included "Suite Judy Blue Eyes," "(Don't Fear) The Reaper," "Touch of Grey" and "Barracuda." And "Killer Queen" threatened to replace "You're My Best Friend" right up until the moment I hit send.
Still, overall I'm plenty happy with this tally. Comments? Criticisms? Bring it. Then go cast your own vote and see if you still feel so tough.
No Hendrix? No Elvis Costello? No Prince? Steve, I hardly knew ye.
Posted by: DJA | August 27, 2009 at 02:17 AM
Darcy, truly do I feel thee. I was born too late to parse Hendrix among the hit paraders; he exists as a totality to me, too monolithic to be reduced to a hit single (though "Machine Gun" would have been the pick).
Same holds true for Led Zep. More outrageously, I almost consigned the Sabs to the same fate, until Dr. LP reminded me how stupid it would be for a confirmed metalhead to deny the fount from which all things flowed. (Shteamer argued for "War Pigs," but for me, "Paranoid" was the money shot.)
Costello, yeah, yeah. I do seriously admire him, but there were 20 songs I wanted to hear more. Besides, the greatest song he ever wrote ("Shipbuilding") doesn't rawk.
Prince -- ahh, there's the rub, since he's on my all-time-genius list to the extent that I still listen to his crappier albums on a semi-regular basis. There's no denying that "When You Were Mine," "Let's Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry" are superb rock songs, and there are many more where those came from. On that point, and that point alone, I completely deferred to a sense of RXP's playlist and clientele.
Finally, I've got to add that if I'd been asked to bet money on which of my regular circle of correspondents would call me out on omissions in a manner that would make me feel it, you'd have just filled my pockets. That's meant as a compliment.
Posted by: Steve | August 27, 2009 at 02:53 AM
Hi Steve,
I keed, I keed. I hear you on all of the above. RE: Hendrix, "Machine Gun" is a good one -- if the criteria is sheer balls-out kickassitude, I think I'd have a hard time deciding between that one, "Fire," "I Don't Live Today," and "Crosstown Traffic."
RE: Costello, "Shipbuilding" is a fantastic piece of songcraft. "Alison" is better. But my choice would be "Pump It Up," which belongs on anyone's list of top rock songs.
RE: Prince, when I was growing up, the local (Vancouver) rock radio stations played the shit out of "Let's Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry." I know things were probably different on the East Coast, but that's my frame of reference.
Obviously I'd also want Led Zep ("Kashmir," I think) and The Who (something from Live at Leeds, most likely) in there somewhere. Probably Television's "See No Evil" if that's not pushing the format too far. Maybe "I Wanna Be Sedated." Definitely "Heroes." Definitely "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic."
From your list, I'd keep Sabbath, Talking Heads, The Clash, Springsteen, Living Color, and Queen for sure (though not necessarily those songs). REM, Yes, ELO, Thin Lizzy, and Public Image Ltd. would be stricken instantly. I admire your inclusion of Romeo Void, Steve Forbert, and Bram Tchaikovsky, though obviously those wouldn't be on my list.
Other than that, my own personal skew is necessarily late 80's/early 90's: "Paradise City," "Lithium," and "Black Hole Sun," for sure. Perhaps "Even Flow" and "Enter Sandman." A few more from that time, surely.
Also: "Paranoid Android," clearly.
In a just world I feel I should be able to get away with "Bombs Over Baghdad" on a rock list.
Posted by: DJA | August 27, 2009 at 04:26 AM
Nothing by Fats Domino?
Posted by: Chris Becker | August 27, 2009 at 09:41 AM
I have a special place in my heart for any man who is committed to listing Cheap Trick on his money shot list. I thought about them, for sure, but wasn't brave enough to keep them on.
What we share: T Heads, Springsteen, Queen.
Where I strayed: The Who, Pink Floyd, The Police, U2.
Born in the '60s. Product of the '80s.
Posted by: Holly | August 27, 2009 at 10:00 AM
"Knights in White Satin," Steve? Really?! I have no words.
Posted by: Eric Skelly | August 27, 2009 at 01:20 PM
True confession, Darcy and Holly: I'm not especially a Who fan. Don't get me wrong, I don't detest them the way I do the Doors—far from it. I just never really warmed up to them. But I can respect anyone who'd include them.
Among the songs cut from my initial, first-draft list were "Comfortably Numb," "Heroes" and "Where the Streets Have No Name."
No disrespect to Fats, Chris, but in my personal top 20, no.
And yes, I know, Eric…I'm appalled that I had to cut the Moody Blues, too. That is what you meant, right?
Posted by: Steve Smith | August 27, 2009 at 05:52 PM
Okay, here’s my racially biased geographically inspired list for the evening…
Fats Domino – Ain’t That A Shame
Irma Thomas – Time Is On My Side
Jean Knight – Mr. Big Stuff
Little Richard – Lucille
Ike & Tina Turner – River Deep Mountain High
King Floyd – Groove Me
Lloyd Price – Stagger Lee
The Isley Brothers – Shout
The Wild Magnolias – Smoke My Peace Pipe
James Booker – Junco Partner
Aaron Neville – Tell It Like It Is
Professor Longhair – Tipitina
Sly & The Family Stone – Everyday People
Funkadelic – Maggot Brain
John Lee Hooker – Boom Boom
Bo Diddley – Hey, Bo Diddley
24-7 Spyz – Don’t Break My Heart
Fishbone – It’s a Wonderful Life
Bad Brains – I Against I
War – Cisco Kid
Bill Withers – Lean On Me
Whoops…that’s 21. Better stop.
Define for me rock and roll (cue the sound of crickets chirping...) It ain't personal...I'd just like to offer another...slant on rock, its history, and its creative lifeblood.
Posted by: Chris Becker | August 27, 2009 at 09:50 PM
No Steve, that's not what I meant at all. I'm horrified that you were even considering that song.
Posted by: Eric Skelly | August 28, 2009 at 03:22 PM
Hmm...we (me included) seem to be forgetting that women rock too!
The Pretenders, Bonnie Raitt, Sister Rosetta Tharp, Pat Benetar, Exene Crevenka, Janis Joplin, Grace Slick, Betty Davis, Roberta Flack, Joni Mitchell...
...whoo boy this is embarrassing :(
Posted by: Chris Becker | August 30, 2009 at 06:30 PM
Chris, please cue up Romeo Void.
That said, having just one pick out of 20 feature a woman's voice did in fact bother me a little for a minute. As I mentioned at the end of my piece, Heart's "Barracuda" (or "Magic Man," for that matter) stood a chance at making my list. If I'd been asked for a Top 40, it might very likely have included one of those two, plus the Pretenders' "Brass in Pocket," X's "The World's a Mess (It's in My Kiss)." Maybe -- maybe -- a Pat Benatar song, too, though that's a stretch for me. (I'm actually a huge Bangles fan, too -- but my sappy favorites among their songs aren't the ones that rock, even though they're indisputably a rock band.)
But there's a point that ought to be made here: Should anyone really be expected to aim for objectivity in compiling a Top 20 list? Are we genuinely aiming to find a common mean, to somehow "prove" though consensus that there are 20 songs incontrovertibly greater than all others?
Not in my viewpoint. Lists like these involve playing favorites, pure and simple.
In my previous comments I admitted to not caring for the Who, and flat-out detesting the Doors. Want more heresy? I'm lukewarm on Grace Slick (though "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" are terrific songs), and I have never, ever, even for a moment been a Janis Joplin fan. I don't know Sister Rosetta Tharp's work well enough for it to displace any of my adolescent-fanboy favorites, and I don't personally hear Roberta Flack and Joni Mitchell -- both very great singers -- as being "rock" performers per se.
Everything about this exercise deals in personal memory, perception and nostalgia; to suggest otherwise seems misguided. In creating a list like this, there's nothing in any way embarrassing about proclaiming exactly who and want you love -- what it was that truly moved you, what lingered.
Put another way: What so-called "expert" in his or her right mind would objectively select Bram Tchaikovsky's "Girl of My Dreams," a power-pop blip by an obscure one-hit wonder?
Looking for objectivity, seeking to achieve some sort of historic ideal, striking some golden formula of parity among all -- these are noble goals. But I'd like to see the individual whose personal purview is genuinely so broad that everything for which you're demanding an accounting is genuinely encompassed in a mere 20 songs out of the thousands that have been sung since Fats and Chuck invented the style.
P.S. Wanda Jackson beats nearly everyone either one of us named above, BTW.
Posted by: NightAfterNight | August 30, 2009 at 11:14 PM
"Everything about this exercise deals in personal memory, perception and nostalgia; to suggest otherwise seems misguided."
Well, hang on, Steve. I think the "exercise" "rules" are so vague that you could approach the challenge from at least a few different angles. You took it as an opportunity to indulge in a "fan boy" trip which is cool. But while you and D'arcy got into a lighthearted non-debate about whether or not Prince should be on the list, I found myself thinking (remembering, perceiving - with a bit of nostalgia) about how little the general public actually knows about rock and roll.
Some context may be necessary: This weekend marked the four year anniversary of the disaster that was hurricane Katrina. I lived in New Orleans for five years before relocating to NYC. This month, I decided to spend a great deal of time reading and thinking about New Orleans (as well as posting an interview I did with author Ned Sublette about his new book The Year Before The Storm: A Story Of New Orleans on my blog.) Rock and roll, race, and how history is not only forgotten but erased are all things that were weighing on my mind. Hence, my comment and lists. My own "personal" take on the exercise.
Also, I am a composer. When creating music, I work a lot with rock musicians. Some of my collaborators are founding or current members of the Black Rock Coalition. Many are women who also play rock and roll. And yes, some of us get pissed off at how music - even when its meant to be lighthearted - is presented and spoon fed to the public.
Well - maybe at first I was irritated, but then I thought this could be an opportunity to share with a handful of readers some joyous, rockin', history.
So I threw up a few comments. I even submitted my race centric list to RXP. I guess I could submit several!
Finally, thank you for allowing me to comment and I guess "vent" like this on your blog - and no I'm not being sarcastic or ironic - I do appreciate it!
Posted by: Chris Becker | August 31, 2009 at 08:17 AM
I can't believe it took me this long to read this post! If the criteria is, "Songs I always always always listen to and bop along to when they come on the iPod or radio," then my list would include X's "Los Angeles," the Go-Gos' "We Got the Beat," the B-52s' "Rock Lobster," Blondie's "Hanging on the Telephone," the Motels' "Total Control," Abba's "Dancing Queen" (does this count as rock?), David Bowie's "Suffragette City," BTO's "Takin' Care of Business."
Too bad I can't include disco and 70s Philly Sound/Salsoul type things...
Posted by: Elisabeth Vincentelli | September 09, 2009 at 01:02 PM
Didn't mean to leave your last comment dangling for so long, Chris, and hope you didn't think my silence implied some kind of rejection. You're always welcome and indeed encouraged to post here, debate and dissent included. That's why I opened the comments in the first place.
Thanks for stopping by to comment, Elisabeth. I agree that "Dancing Queen" is a tough call in the rawk/non-rawk divide; I'd probably have omitted it for the same reason I left out two of my own all-time favorite songs, the Bangles' "Eternal Flame" (yes, really) and Fairground Attraction's "A Smile in a Whisper."
Interestingly, I finally had occasion to slap my head hard over what might have been a glaring omission last night; I was watching the Julien Temple Sex Pistols documentary, The Filth and the Fury, and was vividly reminded of what a powerful song "God Save the Queen" was and still is. That one probably got edged out by PiL's "Public Image" purely for sentimental reasons.
Posted by: Steve | September 12, 2009 at 04:06 PM
And say, Elisabeth, how do we convince you to sign up for Twitter?
Posted by: Steve | September 12, 2009 at 04:31 PM