25. The Grudge - Tool
Probably since some time in high school I would have easily said “Eulogy” was Tool’s best song. Edging it out just barely though would be the opening track from Lateralus. Sure there’s that alternate order of the album that places this somewhere in the middle, but let’s not get into just how meticulously insane Tool can be. “The Grudge” is that song that can make you instantly forgive Tool for making you wait 5 years for new music. By 2001 they fully embraced their prog-rock tendencies and rarely a beat of this song or album is in 4/4 time. Just perfection plain and simple.
24. Mayonnaise - Smashing Pumpkins
Another in a long list of old time favorites. In Jr. High School I listened exclusively to classic rock, and the Smashing Pumpkins. Not sure exactly why they were the lone exception, but they were my one tangible link to contemporary music. Well Siamese Dream was the album where I first got into them and this song in particular emerged as an instant favorite. Over two decades later my opinion hasn’t changed, it’s simply wonderful.
23. Far Beyond the Sun - Yngwie Malmsteen
1984 might forever be associated with George Orwell, but it was also the year Yngwie J. Malmsteen unleashed Rising Force on an unsuspecting world. Eddie Van Halen raised a high bar for guitar playing, Randy Rhoads brought a neo-classical feel to metal, but Yngwie was a freak who blew them both out of the water. The first two tracks on his debut album remain his signature tunes and over the years I have loved each equally. “Far Beyond the Sun” however is the one that always slightly edged “Black Star”. It is relentless, and it shows that Yngwie could go from light speed to ludicrous speed, and when he does there isn’t a face left that hasn’t been melted.
22. Child in Time - Deep Purple
Yngwie had many influences, but I’d wager few were as inspirational as Richie Blackmore. Deep Purple is one of those bands I always loved but never as much as they deserved. “Child in Time” appeared on the first outing of the Mach II line up, and I can think of no better song to sum up how excellent that classic group was. It is an insanely simple epic, that builds to a ridiculous crescendo not once but twice. Along the way Ian Gillan shows off his god-like vocal range and Blackmore delivers some of his finest work.
21. Little Secrets - Passion Pit
Ever have someone make you a mix cd? I suppose nowadays people just whip up a lazy playlist on Spotify or it’s non-union Mexican equivalent, but for years it was all about that CD, or for the Gen-Xers a mix tape. Well someone made me a mix and I can’t for the life of me remember a single track on it, except for “Little Secrets”. I nearly lost my mind hearing this for the first time thinking I had heard the catchiest song ever written. I’ve heard it about a hundred times since and have become quite a fan of Passion Pit’s other music, but few bands will ever top this greatness.
20. White Walls - Between the Buried and Me
Colors might run like one continuous song and it is one of the glorious high points in prog-metal. The final section “White Walls” is the most massive conclusion you could ever ask for. Specifically the end of it is possibly the greatest thing ever, and I know I say that a lot but it’s true this time. It’s hard to describe how insane the rest of the song is and really the entire album for that matter. This is pure musical masturbation of the highest order, but better done than nearly anyone else.
19. Always With Me, Always With You - Joe Satriani
Perhaps more than any other guitarist Joe Satriani proved that instrumental guitar music needed no vocalist. His playing was it’s own melody, and it wasn’t always just a relentless shred-fest. This was the requisite ballad on Surfing With the Alien and I’d wager it is the finest guitar based instrumental ever recorded. Simply beautiful playing throughout and proof positive that a man and a guitar could be their own band.
18. With or Without You - U2
It seems a cliche to say this is the best U2 song, but it is dag nabbit, magic chord progression be damned. Not entirely sure how to describe this song since every single person reading this has probably heard it several dozen times. It’s that type of ballad that even if you hate U2 you still have to tip your cap to. It’s so simple, so beautiful, and it features Bono’s finest vocal performance in my opinion.
17. River - Joni Mitchell
I love me some odd tuning Joni Mitchell guitar, but that woman could do something really special when she sat down at a piano. “River” begins like it might be a Christmas carol, but if it is, then it’s the saddest Christmas carol ever recorded. I suppose I should say there are some people who don’t seem to appreciate how great Mitchell is, and for them I’m sad they can’t fully enjoy the wonder that is Blue. It should come as no surprise I do love me some ballads and this song is good enough to have once resided in my all time top ten.
16. Second Coming/Ballad of Dwight Fry - Alice Cooper
In my more juvenile years I had a lot of passing favorite songs. Some times they might seem embarrassing today, but in a few instances I’ve just swapped out one song for another. Alice Cooper will forever be associated with these two songs to me. “Ballad of Dwight Fry” became a concert staple of AC still to this day, but for some reason “Second Coming” arguably the better half did not. What is interesting about is that Alice wrote “Second Coming” by himself, which would have been a reat adition to his live set in his solo years. Whether writing about religion or how creepy Renfield from Dracula is, Alice the man and the band were never better.
15. Thunder Road - Bruce Springsteen
When Born to Run took it’s place as my second favorite album of all time, this was one of the biggest reasons. Every day in school or at work I would think about how much I wanted to listen to “Thunder Road” then I’d get home and inevitably play the entire album. Repeat this process for about a year and you start to see how much this means to me. To me it is the perfect introduction to new piano player Roy Bittan, whose playing is simply wonderful here. Lyrically this sums up what made the album so special. It’s simply about moving on, hitting the road, and finding a better life for yourself. Fitting for the man who had outgrown the first incarnation of his E Street Band, a rock masterpiece.
14. Lover, You Should Have Come Over - Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley only gave us one official album during his life, but that was enough. Perhaps the finest vocal performance on it might only be topped by the song that comes one track before it on Grace. Musically and lyrically the song is pretty straightforward, simply a man jonesing for some action. What makes this song transcend beyond any generic “ooh baby” type of song is Buckley’s divine vocals. He sells the song, and makes it an all time classic.
13. Hallowed Be Thy Name - Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden had a tendency to end their albums with an epic. Steve Harris would always try to come up with some fitting send off to top everything off, and there was none better than the one to close out Number of the Beast. It has classic riff after classic riff and is full of guitar harmonies and cryptic lyrics. Bruce Dickinson however made every early Maiden fan instantly forget about Paul Di’Anno sometime during the first two minutes of this song. This is relentless and flawless and simply everything that made Maiden one of the greatest metal bands of all time.
12. Nevermore/March of the Black Queen - Queen
Well in case you were wondering, this is the highest Queen song(s) on the list. Queen II is my favorite album of theirs and there’s a solid 10 reasons why. As Brian May had the “White Queen” side, Freddie Mercury allowed his most extravagant excess to run wild on the second “Black Queen” side. Pretty much the entire second side plays like an extended suite so it is tempting to simply put all of it on here, but I’m choosing instead the strongest section. “Nevermore” is barely over a minute and is as simple and beautiful as it gets before plunging right into “March of the Black Queen”. “Black Queen” can best be described as a tour-de-force. Mercury seemed to have a hundred different and brilliant ideas he tried to cram into the 6 minutes of this song. It is everything but simple and reason #1 Queen is the greatest band of all time.
11. Shine a Light - The Rolling Stones
I feel like every time I listen to some classic Stones my second favorite song changes, the first one however never does. Recruiting Billy Preston to help play some sexcellent black gospel style piano was a wise move, and I can’t imagine anyone else on here. Although they had given up their attempts at sounding like the Beatles, it isn’t hard to consider this song their “Let it Be”. I’ll let you debate which group did it better, but for the Stones this is as good as they ever got.
10. Since I’ve Been Loving You - Led Zeppelin
I’ll be perfectly honest, I didn’t even know I’d have this song this high when I started this list. In fact it was in the process of making this list that I decided it was my favorite Led Zeppelin song. It’s always been one of my favorites, but for the last several years I’ve been very partial to “The Girl I Love”. Somehow though after hearing all of their albums more times than I could count I just started to think about how absolutely perfect this is. I’m tempted to say Jimmy Page owns this and his playing has probably never been better, but the wonderful thing about Zep is that they were the perfect rock band. Everyone had their role, and they all performed superbly. This is just a slow burner, but it’s simply better than any other.
9. Burn - Deep Purple
Three seconds into my brother playing me this song for the first time I said “Hmm that sounds like Richie Blackmore”. About halfway through the song I started to kick myself for not listening to Burn sooner. Everyone told me it was a great album, but I was always stuck on the second incarnation of Deep Purple. DP always seemed like the train could fall off the tracks at any moment, and everyone could have a tendency to play really fast but they miraculously kept it together. Maybe it is the mix of over the top awesomeness, borderline insanity, but brilliant musicianship that makes it the perfect concoction of rock supremacy. “Burn” is Neo-classical as fuck, with insane drumming, and twin lead vocals courtesy of new additions David Coverdal and Glenn Hughes. There isn’t a second of this I would change.
8. Hallelujah - Jeff Buckley
The first half to the greatest one-two punch in music history is Jeff Buckley’s cover of “Hallelujah”. I’ll be honest, I don’t get Leonard Cohen. I own several of his albums and at best I just shrug my shoulders and say “eh ok”, but in Buckley’s hands this defines musical masterpiece. Stands to reason that everyone who has covered the song since Buckley has preferred his arrangement. I am somewhat running out of ways to say Jeff Buckley had the greatest voice this side of Freddie Mercury but it’s impossible to talk about him or this song in particular without mentioning it. Haunting, beautiful, and absolutely devastating, no amount of shitty open mic covers will ever make me love this song any less.
7. Bold as Love - Jimi Hendrix
Have you ever heard of Jimi Hendrix? Wow really you haven’t, that’s crazy he’s super famous. Well then I suggest you put on his second album Axis: Bold as Love. There’s a song at the end of that album called “Bold as Love” that you should hear. Lyrically it’s some hippie shit about emotions being colors because drugs, but then Hendrix plays his guitar and it’s pretty special. Not sure if you knew this but he was pretty good at playing guitar, I mean probably not as good as Taylor Swift, but different times I guess. Anyways check it out, I think you’ll like it.
6. How Blue Can You Get? - B.B. King
B.B. King was a man among boys. There were some great blues singers and they could play, they could sing, but the self proclaimed King of the Blues made them all look like amateurs. He had several classic songs, and a couple dozen live albums, but Live at the Regal was his absolute peak. Before things get going he even tells the audience to pay attention to the lyrics on this one, and it’s impossible not to. I’ve mentioned a few times before that a song has one of the greatest vocal performances of all time, but this is the greatest. By the time he belts “I gave you seven children, and now you want to give ‘em back” I’m dead. Contest over, B.B. King wins, he’s better than all of us, the blues will never be better.
5. Jungleland - Bruce Springsteen
It might seem silly to compare Iron Maiden to Bruce Springsteen but for a time both liked to end their albums with an epic. “Jungleland” closes out the eight songs of perfection that comprise Born to Run and I can’t find enough adjectives to tell you how great it is. This crosses the 9 minute mark and that final chord progression could go on for another 20 minutes. It is a sprawling epic of colorful characters and serves as that ultimate send off to Springsteen’s early boardwalk days. He’s giving them a beautiful eulogy and in turn delivering his masterpiece.
4. The Big Ship - Brian Eno
There are some artists who are so singular and influential that they seem to spawn their own genre of music. Brian Eno was an extremely busy man throughout the 70s, fathering ambient music and creating the sub-style of Eno-esque. For my money nothing says “Eno” quite as loudly and brilliantly as “The Big Ship”, a blink and you’ll miss it instrumental diamond on Another Green World. This song seems like it’s almost designed to be listened to on repeat, it fades in and out in a way that makes you feel like it might have been going on forever. For a brief couple of minutes we’re allowed to hear the greatest instrumental ever written before it fades back into the ether.
3. Mississippi Queen - Mountain
Not every great classic rock track needs to be a power ballad or an epic. Sometimes you just need to get in, do your thing, and sign off before anyone knows what hit ‘em. Mountain very well could have never recorded another song and their contribution to rock wouldn’t be diminished. I may throw around the word perfection but "Mississippi Queen" is it. It rocks far heavier than anything of it’s time, and arguably anything since, with wailing vocals, great leads, thunderous drumming, and fuck it let’s put it on right now and blow out our speakers.
2. Let it Be - The Beatles
Funny how as long as I can remember this has been my second favorite song. #1 hasn’t always been the same but as long as I thought about ranking my favorite songs “Let It Be” has been carved in stone as the second. It has been my favorite song from the fab four since I first started listening to them in 4th grade and I don’t see it changing ever. For the record I prefer the version that appeared on the album Let It Be simply because it has the superior George Harrison solo, but Paul’s lullaby to his dead mother is the best song from arguably the world’s greatest band.
1. A Change of Seasons - Dream Theater
Here it is folks, the end of the list. For those that know me, I’m prone to say this is the greatest song ever, and I usually follow it up with a “No, for real this is #1, I’m not just saying that.” It’s 23 and a half minutes and so god damn perfect it needed it’s own EP to get released. Written during the Images and Words sessions, which you may recall was my #1 album, it didn’t get finished and properly recorded for another couple of years. The lyrics were written by Mike Portnoy after he was particularly inspired by Dead Poet’s Society and it served as the official debut of keyboardist Derek Sherinian. It’s a grand prog-rock epic in the tradition of “Close to the Edge”, “2112”, or “Thick as a Brick” but because Dream Theater is better than all of those bands it’s superior. In fact it’s superior to anything anyone ever recorded and that’s why it tops my list.
So there you have it, argue, bitch, whine that’s where my favorite songs sit at this moment in time.
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