Patchen's Top Ten

Hey all! It's your Saturday Guy here, reminding you to get your Top 10 Greatest Songs of All Time votes in.

My list may come as a shock to those who think of me as a straight-ahead indie and folk rocker. I am, but that doesn't mean I don't like big ballads or musical proficiency. And part of what makes indie vital and necessary is the long shadows cast by some of these artists. Needless to say, this music (and the bushels of songs I was forced to leave out) just thrills me.

Honorable Mentions: It causes me physical pain not to have Jane's Addiction’s "Been Caught Stealing" and anything—anything—by Smashing Pumpkins on the following list (especially since Stephen Perkins and Jimmy Chamberlin are among the best drummers of all time, behind Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham and Rush’ s Neil Peart).

10. "King of Carrot Flowers" – Neutral Milk Hotel
The sweetness and rawness of indie rock in one lovely three-movement piece that starts soft, becomes a prayer, and then cascades into rock. Let this song stand in for indie rock, especially all the Death Cab for Cutie that should be on this list.

9. "One Night in Bangkok" – Murray Head
Great ’80s music and even a proto-rap. I stop whatever I'm doing when this song comes on. If I see the Chess soundtrack on a friend's shelf, I commandeer their stereo. I'll also let this song stand in for Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, and The Who's Tommy. I love rock opera with a shameful, burning passion.

8. Pictures at an Exhibition – Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Can an album be a song, since all the individual songs are really movements? ELP does Mussorgsky with superhuman proficiency. Let this song also stand in for "Karn Evil 9," Iron Butterfly’s "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," and anything by Mozart, Beethoven, or Shostakovich.

7. "Magic Man" – Heart
The female Led Zep.

6. "99 Luftballons" – Nena
In German. I cannot stress this enough. If I hear it in English I actually get upset, except as part of the amazing Jay-Z/Nena mashup "99 Luft Problems." Let this song stand in for all of '80s pop.

5. "Carrie-Anne" – The Hollies
Let this track stand in for all of '60s pop. A coy, charming tune. (If I had room on this list for '60s psychedelica, Donovan’s "Epistle to Dippy" would be somewhere near here, too.)

4. “What I Got” – Sublime
I was a senior when this song almost became the next "Smells Like Teen Spirit." It helped launch a ska/punk craze the took the industry by surprise for the next few years (note how without Sublime 311 and No Doubt might have been one-hit wonders with "Don’t Stay Home" and "Just a Girl"; instead they were putting out singles like "Down," "All Mixed Up," and "Spiderwebs" a year later). If the greatness of a band could be measured by the number of its imitators, Sublime would top The Beatles.

3. "Over the Hills and Far Away" – Led Zeppelin
Of course I almost typed "Stairway to Heaven." It’s a toss-up. Start soft and folky, then explode: the formula for outstanding rock.

2. "F--- and Run" – Liz Phair
A splash of cold water in the face of male rock. Phair delivers the "shocking" (please note the ironic quotes) revelation that women have an interiority, too.

1. "Molly’s Lips" – Nirvana
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" may be one of the most important songs of all time for changing the musical landscape. But "Molly’s Lips" is the greatest. Nirvana takes an already spare Vaselines song and pares it down even further. The result is rock haiku where an entire story takes place in a mere two lines and a refrain:

She said, she'd take me anywhere, she'd take me anywhere, as long as she stays with me / She said, she'd take me anywhere, she'd take me anywhere, as long as I stayed clean / Kiss kiss Molly's lips (x4)

This song is delightfully plastic: it can clock in at under a minute, or repeat ad infinitum, getting more raw and desperate each time. Pure poetry.

Thanks for reading! And don’t forget to vote…

Andrew's Top 10 Songs

hey everyone,
when making this list I decided to go with my personal all time greats from my time, I do have knowledge and love for music made before my time but I didn't know how to include songs that should be an all time great when I couldn't really vouch for. But maybe some of these songs are an all time great because despite being from before my time they still make my list. With that said here's my top 10

1. Dave Matthews Band - "Ants Marching"
As a follower of DMB it was hard for me to pick my favorite song, however since I was 12 years old I have been listening to this song consistently. Experiencing this song live a few years back was an all time high. DMB is also one of my all time greatest live experiences as well, seeing them 12 times now each show is unique and provides a natural high.

2. Third Eye Blind - "Semi-Charmed Life"
This song came out when I was in middle school and hasn't stopped, I heard it again at my high school dances and still today in college.

3. Sublime - "What I Got"
This song takes me back a few years to high school, off-roading and wheeling in my buddys Jeep Wrangler with the top down in the Maryland humid heat.

4. Pink Floyd - "Wish You Were Here"
Of the numerous Pink Floyd songs "Wish You Were Here" is my personal all time great.

5. Foo Fighters - "Everlong"
I debated between a Foo song and a Nirvana song, I went with my personal favorite, the Foo Fighter's. Having just listened to the new live semi-acoustic version of this song it is simply incredible.

6. Jane's Addiction - "Jane Says"
This song has been a favorite of mine for years, and a favorite of my friends, apparently there is a game played when hearing "Jane Says"...when Perry says "she can't hit" you apparently punch your buddy three times in the arm, not that I'm encouraging violence.

7. Jimmy Buffett - "Margaritaville"
Who doesn't love Margaritas? I experienced Buffett Live for the first time this summer twice in one week, what a colorful experience. Oh ya, and who doesn't love cheeseburgers?

8. Sister Hazel - "All For You"
One of my middle school love songs...definitely an all time great in my book. This is a song that I can relate to and I think other guys can as well.

9. Aersomith & Run DMC - Walk This Way
The combination of rock and hip hop has come a long way since this song came out. For the initial start of this combination this song wins a vote in my top 10!

10. Barenaked Ladies - "One Week"
When I first got hooked on this band I was in middle school, like most of my all time greats, and I couldn't stop listening to it for years. BNL ended up being my first concert unsupervised and first band to see numerous times in a short span of time.