Лучшие/Худшие... Есть мнение

2 karp&papan***
И все же, все возвращается к "нравится-не нравится"... Тема начиналась со списков и заканчивается списками. Если не считать некоторых коллизий в теме типа "а ты кто такой", то все равно... в итоге "нравится-не нравится"... Жаль, что автор темы забы(и)л окончательно на свое творение, он ведь имел в виду нечто иное...

2papan:
>Вообще списки,похожие на первый взгляд,всё же
>существенно различаются
ну да. потому и напомнил.

2tch:
>в итоге "нравится-не нравится"...
Вот в этом никаких сомнений...
Но бывают списки прикольные (привет jlh) и интересные (привет троице из kyi)
Вот таких бы списков побольше :-)

2tch:

>Жаль, что автор темы забы(и)л окончательно на
>свое творение, он ведь имел в виду нечто иное...

Ну, пчамужэ, и это тожэ он имел...


2karp:

>Но бывают списки прикольные (привет jlh) и интересные
>(привет троице из kyi)
>Вот таких бы списков побольше :-)


И Вам здрайствуйте...


10 фиговеньких песенок от крутых перцеф:
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When Badasses Go Soft: The 10 Weakest Songs by Badass Bands
By Clive Bannister

Like athletes, comedians and dungeon-porn actors, time takes its toll on badass musicians. And inevitably, you'll catch your favorite crew of leather-clad/whiskey-swilling/vagina-liking sons of bitches cranking out a song that' suitable for the closing montage of a Grey' Anatomy episode. Here are the 10 most disappointing examples of badass bands playing nice-and subsequently looking like douchebags.


#10."Until It Sleeps" - Metallica


Prior Interests: Riding the lightning, killing 'em all, not being treaded on


By the time the kings of metal reached critical mass in the years following 1991' The Black Album, they were old enough to be their fans' dads, and had developed more pressing interests, presumably involving minivans and youth soccer games. The first "hit" of their vag-tastic 1996 album, Load, sounds more like a bad Soundgarden impression than the satanic, alcoholic thrashing that America had come to know and love. Worst of all, newly short-haired lead singer James Hetfield pleads, "hold me," in the song' lyrics, ensuring that if the crowd that wore that "Metal Up Your Ass" T-shirt back in high school ran across the eye-liner-wearing stooges in the "Until It Sleeps" video, a Master of Puppets-style bloodbath would ensue.

#9."Christmas in Hollis" - Run-D.M.C.


Prior Interests: Rocking rhymes, walking that way, discarding shoelaces

When Run-D.M.C. released the 1983 album Raising Hell, they established themselves as groundbreaking musical artists, and also as three young men you might think twice about fucking with. Songs like "Proud to Be Black" and "Walk This Way" solidified their reputation and paved the way for rap artists from Tupac to the Chicago Bears. And then they went and pissed their street cred away with a song about how they saw Santa Claus one night. If that isn't enough to convince you of the song' lameness, try this: D.M.C. rhymes "yule log" with "egg nog." (Apologies for the baby in the video, but the fact that a baby fits nicely into it pretty much confirms that "Christmas in Hollis" blows.)

#8."All of My Love" - Led Zeppelin


Prior Interests: Rocking the fuck out, going to California, squeezing lemons till the juice ran down their legs


The band that made it cool to play like disproportionately talented mental patients laid down some of the most face-punching, awesome classic rock the world' ever known-that is, until 1979, when this incoherent, saccharine, nail-in-the-coffin tune was released. Once the purveyor of seductive, grammatically incorrect threats of sexual assault ("You need coolin' / Baby, I'm not foolin' / I'm gonna send you back to schoolin'"), Zeppelin was reduced to a synthesizer-laced, ball-less love song whose chorus lazily and unimaginatively stated, "All of my love, all of my love, all of my love to you." Little known fact: After one live performance of "All of My Love," the Village People beat the living piss out of Zeppelin backstage with minimal effort.

UPDATE: Several commenters on digg have pointed out that this song was written about Robert Plant's late son. One digger implied that this mistake "makes the author a douche." We would like to issue a correction: As one of our readers notes below, this mistake in fact makes the author "a complete idiot," not a douche, and the article "in bad taste."

#7."Gimme Three Steps" - Lynyrd Skynyrd


Prior Interests: Fighting people who don't like Alabama, drinking, fighting people who don't like drinking


Someone with a better thesaurus than us once described Skynyrd' music as, "the overdriven power of blues-rock with a rebellious, Southern image and a hard rock swagger," and that' generally the vibe they put out with songs about how they'd de-tooth anyone who talked shit about Alabama. But these rednecks took a turn to Celine Dion territory with "Gimme Three Steps," a song that explains how frontman Ronnie Van Zandt (a former boxer) shakes "like a leaf on a tree" as soon as a "lean, mean, big and bad" jealous husband sticks the barrel of a .44 in his face. Now for most of us, that' an understandable response, but for the band that made it cool to model your life after the bad guys in Deliverance, it' about as acceptable as Patrick Swayze fleeing the Double Deuce in the first five minutes of Road House.

#6."Mama, I'm Coming Home" - Ozzy Osborne


Prior Interests: Biting bats' heads off, drinking other peoples' spit, ingesting all the drugs within one square mile


Granted, the power ballad craze overtook metal in the late '80s, but when Ozzy Osbourne fell victim to it, the result was nauseating-like, catching-your-parents-fucking nauseating. When the Prince of Darkness started singing, "You made me cry," in this 1991 turd, the first act of his career (bat-decapitating, etc.) ended, and the second act (pathetic self-parody, etc.) officially began. The first time fans saw this video, they no doubt waited anxiously for the seemingly endless intro to end and for guitarist Zakk Wylde to fly through a wall of flames and douse Ozzy in chicken blood. Alas, the never-ending intro turned out to be the whole song.

#5."Follow Me" - Uncle Kracker


Spinning beats for tit aficionado Kid Rock, looking like he could kill you

Kid Rock' tattooed, gold-grilled DJ came entirely incorrect when he embarked on a solo career that baffles the mind in 1999. After playing a large part in creating Rock' fight-inducing rap-rock hits like "I Am the Bullgod" and "Bawitdaba," Uncle Kracker put out a top-40 shitbomb that was as far away from his Detroit hip-hop roots as John Goodman is from the 150-pound mark. In his first hit, "Follow Me," the man-titted clown' biggest Kid Rock-style boast is that he'll "be the one to tuck you in at night." And with that, Uncle Kracker went from the shady criminal behind Kid Rock' turntables to the sensitive man-boy you'd like to drill in the teeth with a pitching wedge.

#4."I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" - Aerosmith


Prior Interests: Fucking in elevators, making their daughters strip in their music videos

When Aerosmith was contacted by the producers of slow-motion-whore space adventure, Armageddon, they should've just reprised their shtick from the late '80s, written a song about fucking in a spaceship and called it a day. But instead-apparently touched by Ben Affleck' deft performance in the film-they wrote a soft rock mini-opera that would've been more at home on a Richard Marx album. "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" officially marked the former hard rockers' transformation into old creepy skinbags when Steven Tyler sang about how he wanted to kiss someone' eyes-an unnatural sexual act that, frankly, is terrifying.
#3."Game of Love" - Carlos Santana (with Michelle Branch)


Prior Interests: Taking acid, shredding in a distinctly Mexican manner, taking acid

It' easy enough to forgive the master of the Latino rock guitar for collaborating with the inexplicably popular Rob Thomas on the 1999 hit "Smooth." Sure, it was a musical abortion, but it still kind of counted as rock, and Santana worked in an okay solo or two. But as soon as Santana caught a whiff of late-career commercial success, he sprinted back into the studio and crapped out another album of collaborations. Only this time, they were with singers even worse than Rob Thomas, and the songs had all the allure of an inside-out puppy. The most high-profile single from that album (2002' Shaman), was his collaboration with whiney non-star Michelle Branch, and quite frankly, it stinks.
#2."Hot Hot Hot" - Buster Poindexter


Prior Interests: Freaking out squares, helping invent punk rock

Heroin-loving punk rockers The New York Dolls made it cool to look like insane transvestites long before performers like Poison or Kelly Clarkson. But after the Dolls split in the mid-'70s, frontman David Johansen was left with a lot of time-and, presumably, a lot of smack-on his hands. He returned to the limelight in 1987, but this time, as annoying party-boy Buster Poindexter, the rotten son-of-a-bitch who came up with that "Hot Hot Hot" song that' infected every wedding, prom, bar mitzvah and key party you've ever been to. Johansen' transformation from a terrifying punk icon into the cartoonish, family-friendly Poindexter is roughly the same as DMX becoming a florist-a really, really flamboyant florist.


#1."Dancing in the Streets" - Mick Jagger (with David Bowie)


Prior Interests: Group sex with models, street-fighting, resisting the pull of wild horses

The frontman of arguably the greatest rock band ever assembled had a lot of explaining to do in 1985 when he released this cover of Martha and the Vandellas' G-rated Motown anthem, "Dancing in the Streets," with David Bowie. A far cry from the Stones sex- and drug-fueled glory days, the song-and particularly its homoerotic video-left a lot of fans asking if Jagger had been referring to a man' no-no spot when he sang about "Brown Sugar." (In contrast, this is the most badass thing David Bowie had ever done.) There' literally nothing we can write that'll adequately describe the sheer, utter non-badass-ness of Jagger' foray into bubble gum pop, so please watch for yourself. And make sure you have a wooden spoon handy to bite down on.

The Top 10 Corporate Moments In Rock
By: David Schultz
_______________________________________
More than 25 years ago, John Mellencamp began his career under the name John Cougar, a name he claimed was foisted upon him in a calculated A&R move to boost album sales and increase radio airplay. Once he had achieved a modicum of success, Mellencamp secured the return of his true surname, spending the next decade releasing material as John Cougar Mellencamp. In 1991, Mellencamp finally shed the Cougar, seemingly regaining every ounce of his artistic integrity. Given Mellencamp's tireless efforts to rid his populist work of any corporate influence, the ultra-ubiquitous use of his latest single "Our Country" in conjunction with the promotion of the Chevy Silverado bears every indicia of "corporate sellout." Long gone are the days when PETA member Chrissie Hynde goes to a Gap outlet and knifes a bunch of leather jackets simply because the shopping mall mainstays requested her consent to use one of her songs in a Gap commercial.

To say that the profitable nature of the record business has skyrocketed since the days of Buddy Holly and "Rock Around The Clock" would be an understatement of gargantuan proportion. The evolution of the "music business" has oftentimes seen the focus placed more on business than music. Basic corporate concepts such as skillful marketing plans, profit maximization and good old Gordon Gekko greed, once inimical to the artistry of the music profession, are now commonplace. On one hand, debuting "Our Country" as a placard for the automotive industry could be considered good marketing, but it also qualifies as just another moment in the uncomfortable marriage between art and commerce . . . and not even one of the more egregious ones. What follows are the ten most severe instances of the artistic vision coming under attack by the corporate mindset.

10. Ed Sullivan Tells The Rolling Stones and The Doors To Keep It Clean

Given Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" at the 2004 Super Bowl, it seems almost quaint that CBS and Ed Sullivan once worried about suggestive lyrics being sung on The Ed Sullivan Show. In 1967, The Rolling Stones were slated to make an anxiously anticipated appearance on the legendary variety show and sing "Let's Spend The Night Together." Concerned that the lyrics, tame by today's standards, could prove offensive, CBS censors asked Mick Jagger to change the words. Under threats of being taken off the air if he sang the "offensive" lyric, Jagger complied, rolling his eyes while warbling "let's spend some 'time' together." [The BBC wasn't as prudish] Later that year, the Sullivan show made a similar request to another high-profile artist, but with much different results, Worried that the line, "Girl, we couldn't get much higher," from The Doors' "Light My Fire" promoted drug use, CBS asked The Doors to change the lyric. Playing live without a delay - ah, the trusting pre-wardrobe malfunction era - Jim Morrison got right up into the camera and, much to the dismay of CBSand Sullivan, not only delivered the line unedited, accentuated "higher." The network's crusade to protect tender sensibilities from suggestive rock and roll lyrics didn't succeed. In the aftermath, the two songs went on to be played on classic rock radio a few hundred thousand times without corrupting the nation's youth. However, the same Puritan attitudes exhibited by CBS and those that monitor and oversee network television persist today; Janet Jackson's left breast has not been seen in public since 2004 (at least not without a hand covering it) and the repercussions of her "wardrobe malfunction" are still being felt on network TV and commercial radio.

9. Sony Infects Its Customers' Computers In The Name Of Combating Illegal Copying

In 2005, according to the New York Attorney General, BMG Music placed XCP and MediaMax DRM copy restriction software on a number of CDs, including releases by Trey Anastasio and the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. The software installed its own CD playback software and prevented the music from being downloaded onto the purchaser's computer in an iPOD compatible format. While Sony portrayed their effort as an ideological blow against the illegal copying and exchanging of copyrighted music, it seemed more of a thumb in the nose to the increasingly popular proliferation of Apple's iTunes. In making sure that their programs went undisturbed and iPOD unfriendly, Sony installed cloaking software that not only rendered them undetectable, it interfered with the way Windows played compact discs, opened security holes that permitted viruses to enter the user's system and transmitted certain data to Sony/BMG from the user's computer. When the problems became known to Sony, they acted arrogantly and denied culpability, drawing the ire of Attorney Generals in New York and Massachusetts. By the time Sony was finished making sure no one publicly or privately duplicated their music, they ceased implementing the software, had to offer "patches" the fix the damage done to their customers' computers and faced a class action lawsuit.

8. The Fan Club Pre-Sale Goes Corporate

Many artists have made a practice of allowing registered members of their fan club to purchase tickets for their shows in advance of the general public. For most fan clubs, membership is free and takes only a minute to complete the online form. Savvy marketers that they are, The Rolling Stones were one of the first artists to take the concept one step further, charging a hefty membership fee for inclusion in their fan club. Other bands like The Who, U2 and recently The Police picked up on the practice, which amounts simply to a premium payment of usually $60 or more, for the right to buy advance tickets. Sad enough that bands found a new way to extract money from their fans' wallets, corporate marketers have recently latched on to this trick. For the recent Best Buy sponsored reunion of The Police, members of Best Buy's Rewards Program had the opportunity to purchase tickets even before The Police's fan club, whose membership fee is $100. Norah Jones' recent concert at the Theater at Madison Square Garden was practically sold out through the Target pre-sale by the time tickets were made available to the rest of her non-Target shopping fans. Corporate sponsorship has become an accepted practice within the touring world, but when purchasing preference of quality concert tickets becomes a Best Buy, Target or any other corporate benefit, it's the fans who will truly suffer.

7. The Grateful Dead Removes Their Soundboards From the Live Music Archives

Inherent to The Grateful Dead's mystique was their willingness to permit their fans to bootleg and trade their live shows. Long before other bands would recognize the benefits to be reaped from the free exchange of live music, The Dead created the model from which they would work. With the advent of the Live Music Archives at archive.org, Deadheads entered the digital age, flooding the site with multiple copies of nearly every Dead show ever played; all with the permission and consent of the venerable San Francisco band. The Grateful Dead were not the first band to change their mind about the availability of their shows on the Archives, but their about-face stung their fans the most.





Citing the detrimental effect on present and future archival CD and DVD releases, the Grateful Dead, upon the initiative of Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart, revoked the consent that permitted the Archives to act as a conduit for the exchange of the Dead's shows, denying fans the opportunity to obtain the music for free so that it could be sold to them in the future. "When the music was given away for free to trade, the band was making so much money touring that the music was not as valuable to them," explained Marc Schiller, who assists the Dead with their online marketing. "Apple iTunes has made digital downloads a business." The Dead underestimated the angry, aggrieved response from their fans: like dire wolves they howled vociferously, adamantly pointing to Jerry Garcia's numerous statements that the music belonged to the fans. Bassist Phil Lesh even chimed in to express his bewilderment over the entire issue. Ultimately, a compromise was reached: fans would still be able to freely download shows recorded by their peers but the better-quality soundboard recordings would remain available as streaming audio only - that is, until the Dead decide to release the show commercially and remove it from circulation.

6. John Fogerty Gets Sued For Plagiarizing Himself

In 1985, John Fogerty, the most identifiable member of Creedence Clearwater Revival, released Centerfield, the album that marked the high-water mark of his post-Creedence recording career. As Fogerty had assigned the copyrights to his CCR material to Saul Zaentz' Fantasy Records as part of a deal to get out of his contract, he was loathe to play his old material lest he generate royalties for Zaentz, a man he despised. Once Centerfield, which contained the scathingly derogatory "Zanz Can't Dance" (ultimately changed to "Vanz Kant Danz"), became a certified hit for Warner Bros., Zaenz retaliated as only a scorned corporate mogul can. In a fit of pique, Zaentz sued Fogerty for infringing the copyrights he held on Fogerty's Creedence Clearwater Revival material. Claiming that Fogerty's hit single "Old Man Down The Road" sounded too similar to Creedence's "Run Through The Jungle," Fantasy Records sued Fogerty, marking the first time in history that a label sued a musician for sounding like themselves. Although the Court declined to set a precedent that a musician cannot plagiarize from himself, Fogerty did win at trial. With guitar in hand, Fogerty took the witness stand and took the jury through the songwriting process of each song, showing that a musician can have an archetypal sound without borrowing from past successes. As Fogerty hadn't played Creedence songs in years, seats for the gallery were filled for his performance/testimony. "I was accused of ripping off myself," Fogerty later marveled. "The little boy in me envisions the day I'll actually segue from 'Old Man' right into 'Run Through the Jungle.'"

5. EMI Sees Things In Black And White – Not Grey

Before DJ Danger Mouse became a household name as the skinnier half of Gnarls Barkley, he stood poised to become a highly publicized defendant to a copyright infringement suit at the hands of EMI. Mixing Jay-Z's raps from The Black Album with musical snippets from The Beatles' White Album, Danger Mouse, nee Brian Joseph Burton, created the cleverly-named The Grey Album. Danger Mouse pressed only 3000 copies: none of which he sold, giving them away to his friends instead. However, in the age of the Internet, The Grey Album became a digital success story with copies being downloaded in record numbers. By exposing Beatles fans to Jay-Z and vice versa, Danger Mouse's 2004 venture transcended the lines that usually bracket musical genres, creating an interpretive work to be enjoyed by everyone . . . except EMI Records. While Sony Music/ATV Publishing, a venture between Sony Music and Michael Jackson, own the publishing side of The Beatles catalog, EMI controls The Beatles' sound recordings on behalf of Capitol Records, Inc. At the peak of The Grey Album's success, the hyper-vigilant EMI sent cease-and-desist letters to Danger Mouse and independent retail outlets carrying the album, effectively ceasing distribution of one of rock's most inventive musical works. The concept of reworking Beatles music and vocals in fresh combinations wouldn't be forgotten though. Two years later, EMI would release Love, a recombination of Beatles music overseen by producer George Martin and his son Giles.

4. Ticketmaster Crushes Pearl Jam

At the apex of their early 90s success, Pearl Jam got the bizarre notion in their head that tickets prices for their shows should be kept reasonable, somewhere around $20. Raining on the grunge rockers parade, Ticketmaster's service charges rendered such a dream relatively impossible. When Ticketmaster proved to be killjoy, remaining inflexible on Pearl Jam's demands that they soften their policies on excessive service fees, Pearl Jam refused to play any arena that sold tickets through Ticketmaster. Quickly, they learned that practically every arena in the United States had an exclusive ticket sales agreement with Ticketmaster and that the corporate behemoth threatened lawsuits against any promoter or arena that breached it by using another distributor. Left with no method of selling tickets, Pearl Jam cancelled their 1994 summer tour and brought an antitrust suit alleging that Ticketmaster used a monopolistic domination of the ticket distribution industry to secure a near 30% markup on tickets sales. In the band's view, Ticketmaster was taking unfair advantage of adolescent passion while unreasonably exploiting a marketplace in which they had no competition. Pearl Jam may have won a fleeting battle when Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard testified before Congress but ultimately Ticketmaster would win the war. By 1995, Congress decided against further investigating Ticketmaster's business practices and Pearl Jam's antitrust lawsuit proved unsuccessful. In 1998, heeding the complaints of their fans, who had difficulty acquiring tickets through alternative distributors, the grunge godfathers returned to Ticketmaster arenas. A true victory in every sense of the word for Ticketmaster, their service charges have doubled since the conflict ended.

3. Geffen Sues Neil Young For Not Sounding Like Neil Young

In 1983, David Geffen enticed Neil Young to sign with Geffen Records for considerably less money than Shakey was being offered elsewhere. The incentive that brought Young into Geffen's fold was the assurance that he could make whatever records he wanted without commercial restraint. Right off the bat, Young explored the new found territories of his freedom, testing the patience of his new label by experimenting with computer generated synth-rock and recording Trans, which gave the world an opportunity to hear what might have happened had "Mr. Soul" been recorded by robots. For his next effort, Young recorded Everybody's Rockin', an album of middling Fifties-style rockabilly tunes. Despite the fact that Young was exerting the exact creative freedom promised to him, Geffen wondered exactly they were getting out of their deal and sued Young for making "uncharacteristic music with no chance of commercial success." Even though Trans and Everybody's Rockin' peaked respectively at #19 and #46 on Billboard's album charts, Geffen seemed miffed that they didn't sound like Harvest or Tonight's The Night and demanded the return of $3 million dollars advanced to Young. In response, Young countersued for $21 million, the value of the entire deal. Although the matter ultimately settled, Geffen Records lost some credibility as a label with a commitment to fostering artistic creativity. Backtracking from the allegations of the suit, Geffen later tried to justify it, "The truth is I fought with [Young] because I wanted him to do better work."

2. The "Special Edition" CD

When music fans worldwide embraced compact disc technology in the Eighties, record companies salivated over the ability to sell them music they already owned, albeit in a higher-quality medium. Over the past 25 years, practically every major, minor and obscure album has been released on CD, leaving the labels with the quandary of having to come up with new music for the public to purchase. From this dilemma sprung the insidious creation of the "special edition" CD. Relying on fans' obsession to own the highest quality version of their favorite album, labels "remastered" them, tacked on a couple outtakes and re-released it in an effort to seek an additional $13.99. Already purchased Aqualung on CD? Well, too bad, because now you missed out on the "special edition" containing an interview with Ian Anderson and alternate versions of three songs off their earlier albums. The practice has pervaded practically any new re-issue. For example, although long available on CD, Arista re-released Patti Smith's Horses as a remastered special edition containing one solitary bonus track ("My Generation") and a "legacy edition" containing a second disc with a live performance of Horses. While nicely packaged and presented, the practice smacks of charging full price for an already available product with little fresh material. The practice has spread to Greatest Hits reissues as well. What better way to boost sales for Aerosmith's fourth Greatest Hits collection than to add on a couple rushed together new songs? Even when the re-issue does it right, like the "special edition" of Bruce Springsteen's Born To Run, the labels use the bona fide extras (e.g. concert footage, classic photos and copious liner notes) as an excuse to obscenely jack up the price.

1. Woodstock 99

Raping their own legacy and sinking to deplorable depths of capitalistic corporate behavior, Woodstock's organizers tried one last time to milk a dollar out of 3 more days of peace love and music. To counteract the storied legions of festival-goers who crashed the gates at the original Bethel, NY concert and its 1994 Saugerties, NY sequel, Woodstock 99 took place at the well-defended Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome, NY. The fenced in, concrete covered space not only kept anyone without a $150 ticket (a steep price at that time) outside the gates, it also trapped in the 90 degree heat. Bringing life to the grizzly yet surefire marketing concept of selling water in the desert, the festival's organizers were more than happy to hydrate the sweltering fans - for $6 a bottle. Contrary to the spirit of brotherhood fostered at the original Woodstock, everything at Woodstock 99 was for sale, with corporate tents and ATMs set up throughout the grounds. By Sunday night, the breaking point had been reached. Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff" seemed to inspire many in the crowd to recklessness and by the time the Red Hot Chili Peppers launched into Jimi Hendrix' "Fire," rowdy, lawless fans had attacked numerous booths, ruined a great deal of merchandise and destroyed the Woodstock myth beyond repair. Woodstock 99's desire to wring every last cent out of their franchise, to the point of turning the crowd into a dehydrated, captive mass of marketing targets for food, water and merchandise, created the circumstances that led to the perfect storm of revolt against the "noble" corporate goal of maximizing profits at the expenses of the most communal, anti-commercial festival in rock and roll history.

Ближе к форуму, ближе к народу

10-КА САМЫХ-САМЫХ ЛУЧШИХ ПЕСЕНОК БИТЛЗ
(версия сообщества www.music.ign.com)

Top 10 Beatles Songs
We come up with our dyno-supreme mix tape list.
by Spence D.
July 26, 2007 - Before anybody starts foaming at the mouth, we're quite aware of the utterly ridiculous undertaking that a Top 10 Beatles Songs list ultimately is. I mean how do you even set about coming up with a mere 10 songs that represent the best that one of the most seminal rock bands of all time ever penned? Without question it's the sort of endeavor that heated barroom debates are made over, pints flying in the air amidst flurries of verbal sparring as you throttle the bloke next to you over whether or not Paul was really the walrus and why Ringo didn't get to write more tunes.

In fact we here at IGN Music got into more than a few scuffles over the eventual contents of this list, with the office being divided into four corners—the Ring stalwarts on one side, the Paul supporters on another, the George converts lurking in the corners, the John faithful standing in the middle of it all. Blows were narrowly averted as we hashed out the top cedes, ending up with an "Honorable Mentions" section that is 10-times longer than the final 10. But that's how it goes.

Our choices came about for a variety of reasons, the most common being just the wonderful nature of the songs themselves. We looked for melodic overtones, catchy vocal harmonies, rich lyrics, and in the end just that lingering sense of emotional bliss; transcendence, if you will.

We know that our list will generate a fair amount of backlash and controversy, but then that's the eventual fallout of any list like this. To this end we urge you to submit your own lists here.

Enjoy and let the debate begin!

IGN Music's Top 10 Beatle Songs

10. "Dear Prudence"


Culled from their 1968 album The Beatles (aka The White Album). This Lennon/McCartney track features the Fab Four deep in their pop tinted psychedelic expansiveness. To this degree, the song is teeming with wonderfully shimmering jangly guitars and hypnotically swirling vocal harmonies.

9. "A Hard Days Night"


1964 was the year and The Beatles had now become much more than household names. They kicked everything up several notches with this, the official soundtrack to their first foray into the world of motion pictures. The lyrical juxtaposition of blue collar work ethics against true romance is simplistically brilliant as the doldrums of the work day get washed away by the love of a good woman.

8. "Strawberry Fields Forever"

By 1967 The Beatles' overall sound had pretty much bridged the gap between classic rock 'n roll and the emerging Summer Of Love psychedelic stylings that were wafting through the air. They'd begun experimenting with such stylings back in 1965, but by this time they were full-blown into the swirling sonic mysticism that resulted from impeccable melodies and interwoven guitar ambiance. The end result is a song that feels like it should have been the defining musical moment from the poppy field scene in The Wizard of Oz.

7. "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"


Sitar played a prominent part on this Lennon/McCartney gem found on the group's 1965 release Rubber Soul. The album more or less marks a turning point in the group's musical evolution, both in terms of their style (musically and fashion wise, as evidenced by the cover photo), bridging the gap between their classic rock 'n roll beginnings and the more progressive sounds that would follow.

6. "Hey Jude"


A 7-minute-plus magnum opus that spent a whopping nine weeks in the Number 1 slot on the U.S. charts after its release. The song features an orchestra consisting of 10 violins, 3 violas, 3 cellos, 2 flutes, 1 contra bassoon, 1 bassoon, 2 clarinets, 1 contra bass clarinet, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 2 horns, 2 string basses, and percussion; and because of this symphonic embellishment it remains one of the quartet's more epic songs.

5. "A Day In The Life"

Speaking of epics, one cannot deny the lyrical and musical depth of "A Day In The Life," the closing track on the group's seminal Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band from 1967. The song's vivid lyrics (from bits about a "lucky man who made the grade" after he "blew his mind out in a car") coupled with the back and forth lyrical exchanges of Lennon and McCartney, and the all too famous cacophonous ending have made this a perennial classic.

4. "Taxman"
There's a certain air of snide malevolence buried underneath George Harrison's bouncy lead-off track to the band's 1966 album Revolver. The vibe of this song, which is wickedly witty, is somewhat akin to what John Entwistle would unfurl on his Who composition "Boris The Spider" that very same year. The sheer joy in Harrison's track, however, comes not only from the biting social commentary, but also from the bubbly basslines and intertwined guitar mystique.