Levon grabs the win
Votes due by Wednesday at 5:00 PM: Apologies for the late post- had a whirlwind weekend including a stop in Indiana to see some old friends. Without further filler, the results of the last match:
I Was Made To Love Her (Stevie Wonder) over Wanton Song (Led Zeppelin), 98.2-94.7
Big Balls (AC/DC) over I’m Sticking With You (Velvet Underground), 88.2-71.9.
Spirit of the Radio (Rush) over Lift Her Pull Her (Atmosphere), 101.8-84.4.
The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (The Band) over Kokomo (Beach Boys), 125.3-90.5.
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For (U2) over Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden), 120.75-97.6.
You Wreck Me (Tom Petty) over Don’t Keep Me Wonderin’ (Allman Brothers), 92.6-92.3 (Squeaker!)
In this next round, both Led Zeppelin (1-3) and Velvet Underground (0-3) face elimination. Link is here, and good luck to all.
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder)
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground)
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden)
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys)
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers)
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere)
Living the Dream 
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) 8 : 7
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 7 : 8
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 7 : 8.5
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) N/A
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 6 : 6.5
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 7 : 6
I went back and forth about which version of As to include and went with the original even though it’s a little long. I actually think the crescendo at the end is what makes the song great, but for those of you with limited attention spans, here’s the radio version:
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/As/ljnia?src=5
Wait! I take it back. I just listened to it and what was listed as the album version is actually the radio cut. Guillermo, can you post the seven minute version? I should have specified the length since a lot of these grooveshark links are faulty:
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/As/3xI04A?src=5
fixed
OMG – Some of you may be interested in this. I know I am!:
http://www.littlefieldnyc.com/event/116187?utm_source=MEL&utm_medium=8683
That’s a cool venue- just saw the Kraftwerk tribute there!
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder)
Back In Black (AC/DC) 5 This is a great riff that’s suffered terribly from radio overplay. I wonder if anyone has done the math and figured out the odds of hearing either this or You Shook Me All Night Long at any given moment on a classic rock radio station. My guess is that it’s somewhere between 1:10 and 1:20. A real shame considering that AC/DC has a lot of good stuff, much of which is better than these two offerings.
vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 8 Also has a great riff, not nearly as overplayed.
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) 4
vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 4
Ophelia (The Band) 7 I knew this pairing would lead to some tough choices
vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 9
The Waiting (Tom Petty)7
vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 8
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) 4
vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 6
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) = 6.5 to 6
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) = 9.5 to 5.5
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) = 6 to 9.5
Kinda liked the U2 song, didn’t like it when it was around. Very un-U2, and this is coming from someone whose favorite album of theirs is Achtun Baby. But as for Soundgarden, THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKIN ABOUT!!!! It’s gonna be too dark to sleep again.
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) = 8.5 to 9
Ouch. Tough one.
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) = 6.5 to 7
I never thought I’d say this, I liked that Allman Brothers song.
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) = 4 to 3.5
As a big fan of Rush and a bigger fan of Ween, this sounds like a Ween song. Including the lyrical content. I’ve never heard this before. It gets a couple extra-points for the ballsy intro verse.
Applebee’s?
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin): 7
As (Stevie Wonder): 9
I see Jacob wanted us to vote on the album cut of As (great decision by the way, it’s the only way to truly get the full emotion of the song). One of my favorite Stevie tracks. Immigrant Song is what I would consider the epitome of Led Zeppelin. Robert Plant’s howling compared with Jimmy Page’s and John Paul Jones great riffs and John Bonham going to town on the drums. This IS Led Zeppelin to the core. As is just a beautiful song about something that can never be put into the right words. I’ve gotta go with the Wonder.
Back In Black (AC/DC): 9
Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground): 2
Sorry, this is one of those few amazing AC/DC songs. Bon Scott is sadly gone, but this didn’t hold AC/DC back they resurrected themselves with an opus of a rock album. Brian Johnson is just a monster on lyrics, Phil Rudd with some catchy ass drumming and Angus on guitar kills it again, this song does not miss a step. I know it’s played a lot, but it’s for a good reason. The last round was fun, it seems Joe went for the jugular here to end this series and boy do I think he nailed it. Femme Fatale might have been a big hit for Velvet Underground, but I see nothing here that can compete musically with Back In Black.
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2):4
Rusty Cage (Soundgarden): 7
This was the Soundgarden I was hoping we would get to. Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me might have been a big track for U2 fans, but it just doesn’t hit the right chords with me. I like it when groups try to go out and experiment with new sounds, this just isn’t one of those songs that worked for U2. The only real positive is that the Edge actually gets to step out and let loose a little more here than usual. Chris Cornell and crew are back at their punk/grunge roots here, thank you Kim Thayil for some nasty guitar licks. This one goes to Soundgarden easily.
Ophelia (The Band): 5
Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys): 9
The tracks off of Pet Sounds are almost always going to win, another classic. Beautiful arrangements, amazing harmonies, great lyrics, catchy riffs, damn near perfect. Ophelia never stood a chance, not to hate on The Band. Ophelia is a fun song that I thoroughly enjoy. I really dig on those horns. If you can put a smile on my face it can’t be a bad song. It’s just when compared to a near perfect song it just doesn’t have a chance.
The Waiting (Tom Petty): 4
Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers): 7
Gregg’s great tribute to his recently deceased brother. I don’t need no gypsies telling me why either, let’s just get high. Allman Brothers all the way.
Nobody’s Hero (Rush): X
Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere): X
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) 8 – 6
I love the imagery that Immigrant Song evokes. The song is pretty far out. I really didn’t want to sound like a hippy there, but it happened. The music and lyrics combine to create a picture in my head and sets a mood that just works for me and always has. Solid Stevie song with incredible harmony, as usual. But Immigrant Song does something more for me.
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 9 – 2
I agree with Greg all the way on this. If Back in Black isn’t as driving a song as any other in rock n’ roll, then I’m at a loss.
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 5 – 8.5
U2 gets bonus points for getting on the Batman Forever soundtrack. Just kidding. U2 has its moments here but it just doesn’t have the drive like Rusty Cage. I’ll take this Soundgarden song over pretty much any other. If there ever was a guitarist/drummer tandem that could make a song sound like a freight train, it’s Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron.
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 5.5 – 6
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) n/a
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere): 2 – 7
I don’t know what to say. I love RUSH. But I couldn’t take this song. I like the Atmosphere song. Reminds me of Big L School days, which is one of the few hip hop songs I really love. This was no contest.
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) 8-6.5
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 7 – 2
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 5.5-6.5
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 7 – 6.5
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 7.5
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) N/A
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder)
7.5 – 6
Stevie usually gets it right, but it seems he got a little carried away with this one. And it was just no match for Page shredding it on his Gibson Les Paul.
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground)
8.5 – 3
The only thing “Back in Black” was missing was me in my car with the windows down and my stereo cranked up to 11.
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden)
5 – 4.8
I grew up in a house that was ever-filled with the sounds of War, Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, and the lesser known Zooropa. While my fanhood has fallen off with their more recent releases, I still find it hard not to love most anything I hear from this foursome. While not the best in their catalog, “Hold Me, Thrill Me” is a fun and cheeky song that almost pokes fun at the movie for which it was written, and its full sound delivers courtesy of the Edge’s signature sound juxtaposed with classical violins. When I queued up “Rusty Cage,” however, it felt like Kim Thayil’s opening riff was meant to follow. My only critique for Soundgarden is that I wish the song ended as strongly as it began.
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys)
5 – 6.8
Although Levon considered “Wheels on Fire” to be one of his favorite albums with The Band, this track just didn’t do it for me. While instrumentally well constructed, the New Orleans tempo in “Ophelia” somehow didn’t feel genuine. And I agree with Greg…I’ve been digging the “Pet Sounds” tunes.
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers)
N/A
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere)
4.5 – 8
While I do appreciate that Rush decided to put out something that was just a straight up rock song, “Nobody’s Hero” was no match for “Millie.” The lyrics painted a clear picture of a tragic scene, and the beat was just so funky. And when the song was over, I was disappointed it ended so soon.
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) = 8.5 to 5.5
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) = XXX
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) = 5 to 5
It’s like, i think i get it. the dude’s gonna break his rusty cage. Probably the highest I’m going to rate U2– would be several points higher if these were early 2000’s
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) = 8 to 7
I was prepared to let this be a blowout from recent associations with Wouldn’t It Be Nice but nice to know Drew Barrymore didn’t totally ruin this song.
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) = 8 to 4.5
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) = 6.4 to 8.1
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) 8.2
As (Stevie Wonder) 6.9
Back In Black (AC/DC) 7.6
Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 4
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) 4
Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 5
Ophelia (The Band) 6.5
Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 8
The Waiting (Tom Petty) 8.5
Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 7.2
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) 8
Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 6.8
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) 6.5
As (Stevie Wonder) 7
Back in Black (AC/DC) 8
Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 1 (I just don’t get it??)
Hold Me, Thrill Me (U2) 5.5
Rusty Cage (Sound Garden) 4
Ophelia (The Band) 5
Wouldn’t It Be Nice (The Beach Boys) 7.5
The Waiting (Tom Petty) 2… zzzzz
Ain’t Waistin Time No More (Allman Brothers) 10 …CLASSIC
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) 3
Millie Fell Off the Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 4.5
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) 9
As (Stevie Wonder) 5.5
I’m super crushed with work – it’s end of classes and exams time. Hopefully I’ll have time to do the rest tomorrow, sorry!
Back In Black (AC/DC) 8.5
Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 4
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) 5.5
Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 6
Ophelia (The Band) 6
Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 7
The Waiting (Tom Petty) 5
Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 6.5
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) 7
Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 6.5
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) 6.0 to 5.5
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 3.0 to 5.0
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 4.0 to 5.0
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 7.5 to 8.2
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 8.0 to 7.0
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 4.0 to 4.8
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) vs. As (Stevie Wonder) 6.5 to 5.5
Back In Black (AC/DC) vs. Femme Fatale (Velvet Underground) 2.5 to 5.5
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me (U2) vs. Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 4.0 to 5.5
Ophelia (The Band) vs. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (Beach Boys) 8.25 t0 6.0
The Waiting (Tom Petty) vs. Ain’t Wasting Time No More (Allman Brothers) 5.0 to 7.0
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) vs. Millie Fell Off The Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 3.5 to 3.0
Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) 8.5
As (Stevie Wonder) 9
Sorry Team Zeppelin. I love Led Zeppelin. I LOVE Led Zeppelin. I love the lyrics of the Immigrant Song, I love the idea of a song about Viking exploration. The guitar and rhythm in this song are awesome. This is a lyrical and musical foundation of so many amazing, and well also terrible heavy metal songs (for lyrics see: Amon Amarth, for music see: everyone else that isn’t Black Sabbath), but it can’t win against As. This is a magnificent song. I’ll be some cheesy shithead, but sometimes a song about love and faith can trump a song about Viking conquest.
Back in Black (AC/DC) XX
Femme Fatale (The Velvet Underground with Nico) XX
I haven’t commented on any song that I’ve played, but I want to on this occasion, and I figure by posting towards the end of our voting period it shouldn’t sway anybody, since I hope everyone would have already voted. I just want to say that Back in Black, both song and album, for those who don’t know, is a eulogy. The idea was beautiful, the original singer, Bon Scott died, the new singer came in and helps pen a song that for better or worse became a massive hit, and at the same time celebrated the singer who died. Yes the lyrics are simple, and nonsensical, but AC/DC is about attitude, and well, attitude is to be maintained.
Hold Me, Thrill Me (U2) 4
Rusty Cage (Soundgarden) 8
FINALLY, a Soundgarden song I love. Oh man I’ve needed some 90’s angst. Chris Cornell is screaming his ass off, and I love it. If I have a flaw with this song, it’s really with the entire album, the drums sound terrible. Matt Cameron’s drums should sound like Godzilla is smashing your house to pieces, not as if he was recorded over a landline telephone connection. This U2 song is just not good.
Ophelia (The Band) 8
Wouldn’t it Be Nice (The Beach Boys) 8.5
I love both of these songs. Levon singing about lost love is awesome. This is the Beach Boys at the apex: four way harmonies, a horn section, a hammond organ, and who knows what else. I love lyrics about hope, love, and the promise of something better. The Beach Boys gets the edge.
The Waiting (Tom Petty) 7
Ain’t Wasting No More Time (The Allman Brothers) 8.5
I love both Tom Petty, and the Allman Brothers. Tom is so good at writing songs about being unlucky at love, and while this is old theme in modern music, this resonates with me. Again I love songs about hope, and while some of the lyrics are really trite here, I like the sentiment, I like that again the song is a eulogy of sorts, and the music is awesome.
Nobody’s Hero (Rush) 3
Millie Fell off the Fire Escape (Atmosphere) 6.5
This is a terrible Rush song, and I’m a Rush fan. This Atmosphere has a cool beat, and cool vibe. It’s not the best song, but I like it.