top 5...

Well it hurts, but I have to admit it, my Album Collection Rating System is dated.

After posting my rating system for all the world to see, a friend pointed out the simple fact that it does not take into account MP3 technology. Like many of you, I too have an MP3 player. So, with playlists in mind, I post the following. My top 5 rock songs of all time, counting down from 5!

My Generation – The Who – Not only a great song with great guitars, but it perfectly sums up the angst of youth that should be found in any great rock song. My one great gripe about this song is simply the stuttering. While it totally lends to the overall sound of the song, if you know the reason behind the stuttering, you can’t help but wish it weren’t in there.

Johnny B. Good – Chuck Berry – Possibly the first air guitar anthem, lender to one of the greatest scenes in Back to the Future, and a song that I would love to see a modern band cover. Killer guitar, killer piano, and a song about rock & roll! How can you go wrong?

Revolution – The Beatles – In my opinion, this is nearly the first metal song of all time. In fact, if it weren’t for the vocals, I’d straight up call it a metal song. From the first lick on the guitar you know exactly what this song is about. The title itself sums up the spirit of rock & roll. Another song that I can’t believe a modern band hasn’t tried to cover.

Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana – Number two of all time? Well, maybe I’m a little biased, but I can remember what this song sounded and felt like when it was released. Most good rock songs are about putting the establishment in it’s place, the establishment being the world outside of rock & roll and it’s politics. THIS song, however, put the rock establishment in its place! This song single handedly put six-dozen bands out of work! This song is both a guitar AND a drum anthem and, like Louie Louie, is so good that you scream along with it despite the fact that you don’t know what any of the lyrics are!

Travelin’ Band – Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR) – To me, CCR is the epitome of classic rock and no song better sums it up than this. The song opens with Fogerty screaming “737 comin’ out of the sky!” and while he goes on to complain about the hardships of being in a successful rock band (a theme that I have a hard time feeling much compassion for) the opening grabs hold of you so quickly that all you can do is listen to it wide eyed and with your jaw on the floor. A rock song that is actually pretty minimalistic as far as instruments go, but with the heavy drums and screaming vocals leading the way, you really don’t need much else than background noise. This is one of those rare songs that appeals to people of all ages. You can dance to it, scream to it, or just sit back and wish you understood the hardships poor John Fogerty was enduring at the time.

You’ll notice that there are several glaring leftouts on this list but keep in mind that this is a list of pure rock songs. Some of the greatest so-called rock songs of all time are nothing more than blues songs, with a little more guitar, sung by white people. Among my favourites are Jumpin’ Jack Flash, all of The Doors hits, and Jailhouse Rock.

I took this picture in the Camdon area of London. The Hot Rock Cafe? Is this guy serious? I'm going home to Oklahoma City for Christmas where there's a little known convenience store just outside the downtown area called 7 Elephant. Coming to America called and wants it's idea back.