This is a project I threatened to do months ago, but never did the bloody thing justice. The way I figure it, today's as good of a time as any.
To recap:
Rolling Stone is marking the Fiftieth Annivesary of Rock this year, noting that Elvis Presley's Sun Studios sessions were in July 1954. Something I've always toyed with was taking the last fifty years to task and making my list of the "Fifty Best Songs of the Last Fifty Years" for the site, and the first batch of those songs is listed below.
Here are the guidelines: Wholly objective. You will not have heard of quite a few of them, and I'll try my best to have links to them through the iTunes Music Store. There will also be ample lobbying for your favorite songs, but it will do no good. Make your own damned list. The list will piss me off. I hope it pisses you off as well.
Hey! Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley
Rock musicians owe so much to Bo Diddley, and I would be amazed if a quarter of 'em know it. From the beat to the rhyme structure, it's like listening to rock's family tree.
That’ll Be The Day, Buddy Holly & the Crickets
Like so many in this part of the list, Holly did his part to change music... from his garage. This and "Oh Boy" will never sound dated to my ears.
Wipeout, Surfaris
Surf rock was a burgeoning form of rock, but this simple paean to bustin' waves and bustin' ass was a revelation.
Maybelline, Chuck Berry
Unparalleled. Berry was the real deal then, as he is now.
Money (That's What I Want), Barrett Strong
You've heard so many versions of this song, but Strong had a real fire behind him. I'm thinking there was a heartbreak somewhere in there.
Crazy, Patsy Cline
A ballsy broad the likes of which we'll never see again. I'm certain she could kick Faith Hill's ass.
Ain’t That A Shame, Fats Domino
A bridge between the blues and rock, Domino's rollicking piano was rock before the term had been invented.
Rock Around The Clock, Bill Haley & the Comets
Do you have to ask?
Blue Suede Shoes, Carl Perkins
Hound Dog, Elvis Presley
Long Tall Sally, Little Richard
Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin' On, Jerry Lee Lewis
I'll think of these four songs as the cornerstone upon which the last 50 years of rock was constructed. I'll cheat here, since these are not one song, but part of the whole.
Discuss!
