RESULTS:
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) defeats “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven) 133.4 to 93.1 (7.8 to 5.5 average)
When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin) defeats “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) 114.2 to 83.3 (6.7 to 4.9 average)
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) defeats “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger) 111.8 to 100.7 (6.6 to 5.9 average)
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) defeats “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey) 116.5 to 76.2 (6.9 to 4.5 average)
The love for Ben E. King remains strong though looking perhaps less indomitable than in ’11. On to Division D!
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We are on to our 3rd set of matchups. Some pretty epic songs here, so buckle up. Also the return of the King (Ben E.), who won nine straight matchups en route to victory in 2011.
Folks have until midnight on Wednesday to vote in the comment section. Unlike past tournaments, we are posting the results of the previous vote in the original post – so for Division B results, look at the original Division B post.
Here’s the Spotify link.
And without further ado:
Round 1 Division C
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
Stories from the vault…
“Stand By Me” (automatic entry): The winner of the 2010-2011 grand 600-song tournament that Guillermo and Janos ran together. Over a hundred people participated.
“When Doves Cry” (nominated by Joe): Guillermo and I both spent meaningful portions of our life in Minnesota. Somehow, despite being at different points in our lives, and our residencies being separated by several years, we still found the same home away from home—a small, grungy coffee shop tucked away in an unassuming corner of St. Paul. He and I had no particularly shared history tied to “When Doves Cry”, but as another proud son of Minnesota, Prince felt like the right choice to honor this shared experience.
“Paradise by Dashboard Lights” (nominated by Kate Gage): Guillermo and I had EXTENSIVE conversations about this being included in a previous tournament (I think 2011?) and while I think I ended up submitting something else for that roud, someone else nominated it and thus began internal organizing to vote this up. We also would go to this record store up by his place in Greenbelt and I can’t remember what we bought there but that might have bee where I got this as a single on vinyl (which I TREASURE mostly because it has both the short version AND the 12:$% minute version with the baseball narrative) Also one time after going to that record store Guillermo and I went to a FANCY DINNER at Red Lobster which remains the only time I’ve ever been and will ever go to Red Lobster. I refuse to go without Guillermo.
“Levee breaks” (nominated by the Catholic): Played this song on repeat driving around Biloxi and Plaquemines
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (nominated by Karissa, version adjusted by Janos): G used to blast it as a wake up song for all the balcony dwellers at the Hands On warehouse.
“One Sweet Day” (nominated by Chelsea): At the risk of either end of the spectrum of cheesiness or intense emotion, Guillermos love of 90s music made this song coming on the radio a few days after I found out Guillermo died cemented this song’s cathartic powers for me.
“Devil Makes Thee” (nominated by Adrock): In 2014 after numerous tournaments, Janos organized a series of weekly populated playlists – not competitive just what you were hearing. Guillermo posted this one and it’s become a permanent feature in playlists and tournaments of mine ever since. It even strikes the right feel these days, so an added bonus.
Living the Dream 
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) 7 vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven) 5
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) 6 vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin) 8
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) 6 vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger) 6
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) 8 vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey) 5
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
9.5 to 4
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
5 to 9
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
5.5 to 7
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
7 to 5
Legitimately got into the first couple Mariah records the past few years – the eye opening moment for me was her performance of ‘Vision of Love’ on SNL which is maybe a perfect song and maybe a perfect performance (her ownership of every note, the goddamn bass line…the fat Italian pianist who probably wrote it…the coked out rocker on guitar). Strip away all the terrible 90s pop production and the filler dance songs and there are some just killer r&b songs written and played by real musicians and her voice, obviously, is all that (but can’t touch Whitney). That being said, I’m not big on this song, I was too old for this by the time it came out – I wasn’t going to school dances anymore.
Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven): 6 – 6
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin) 5 – 8
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger) 6 – 6.5
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey) 4 – 2
Nature Valley Crunch Bars – 0
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
8.5/7.8
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
I couldn’t finish my Meatloaf tonight.
1/9
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
8.5/6
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
8/2
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)- 7.5/5
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)- 2/7
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)- 7/6
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)- 8/5
8 – “Stand by Me” (Ben E. King)
7 – “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
6 – “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf)
7.5 – “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
8 – “Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole)
6.5 – “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
8 – “When Doves Cry” (Prince)
3 – “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
sorry for the late join!
8 – “Stand by Me” (Ben E. King)
5 – “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
9 – “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf)
3 – “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
i’m probably going to be alone in this, particularly given the crowd, but i have to give the w to meatloaf bc this song always reminds me of him and isn’t that the whole point of this anyway?
8 – “Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole)
5 – “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
8 – “When Doves Cry” (Prince)
7 – “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
at least two of the points to mariah here are on behalf of schitts creek but prince(/baz luhrmann’s romeo and juliet) still take it
7.9 – “Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) Usually higher.
6.1 – “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven) I dropped .5 for name dropping a liquor brand so many times. It feels like this a way around radio advertising regulation.
7.8 – “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) Hated parts and and am constantly amazed by parts. Technical points for complex, catchy song writing even if I really disliked aspects.
7.2 – “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin) Zepplin rarely does it for me, but it hit my mood today, but at 7 minutes I don’t feel engaged and actively listening the whole time.
8.3 – “Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole)
9.2 – “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger) I am happy with either of these moving forward. I give the edge to Bob due to the lyrics, which ring truer and truer- it’s nostalgia cheese but I am not above it. Even though my inclination is to dislike its chevy truck commercial appeal, I simply can’t find fault in the lyrics or the productions. It works and is finely crafted, written, and recorded.
7.5 – “When Doves Cry” (Prince) – Good track. Changed of mood.
4.7 – “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey) Really understand the quality of the production on this–enjoyment and points come from a purely technical level- otherwise not my jam at all.
Stand By Me – 8.5
Old No 7 – 3.5
Paradise – 5.5
Levee – 4.0
Both way too long but I’ll take the Meatloaf.
Somewhere – 8.0
Against the Wind – 8.5
When Doves Cry – 6.0
One Sweet Day – 7.5
Sarah says:
8 – “Stand by Me” (Ben E. King)
3 – “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
7.5 – “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf)
6.5 – “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
5 – “Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole)
4 – “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
7.5 – “When Doves Cry” (Prince)
2 – “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
Danny says:
8 – “Stand by Me” (Ben E. King)
3.5 – “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
5 – “Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf)
7 – “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
4.5 – “Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole)
5 – “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
4.5 – “When Doves Cry” (Prince)
1 – “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
Aiko: 8 to 8.2
Ian: 8 to 5
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
Aiko: 2.5 to 1.5. Together, this was over a 15 minute match up. We made it through about 3 minutes of each. I would change the channel pretty quickly if either of these came on. I gave Meatloaf the edge because I appreciate he knows he’s ridiculous.
Ian: 2 to 8. Ian learned to drum to Levee so it holds a special place in his heart.
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
Aiko: 6 to 1. Didn’t make it more than a minute into the Seger. Just not something that is my style at all.
Ian: 2 to 2
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
Aiko: 8 to 6.5. I appreciate that One Sweet Day is unapologetically sentimental in the same way Guillermo was.
Ian: 5 to 2.
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) – 9
“Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven) – 5
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) – 6
“When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin) – 7
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) – 8
“Against the Wind” (Bob Seger) – 7
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) – 7
“One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey) – 7.01
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)- 8/6
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)- 5/8
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)- 9/9
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)- 6/9
“Stand by Me” (Ben E. King) vs. “Devil Makes Three” (Old Number Seven)
7 : 5
Still not sure how Stand By Me won 9 straight, but I didn’t know then…
And I agree that Old Number Seven sounds like a radio commercial. A decent commercial, but still.
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
6 : 7.5
The baseball interlude killed me this time around, though I’ll always have a soft spot for meatloaf. We saw the tribute musical last year. Short-term visitors would always play “Levee” on the juke in biloxi, and it drove me crazy.
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
7 : 7.5
I’m with Grant, found myself really feeling Bob out of somewhere.
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
7.5 : 5.5
lost power last night and wasn’t able to do this, but i’ll throw in some late votes since i don’t see results posted yet!
stand by me – 6.5
old number seven – 9
paradise – 2
levee – 6
rainbow – 5
against the wind – 4.5
doves – 6.5
one sweet day – 2
Sent this one in over email since WordPress wasn’t working for me, but sharing here too:
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Ratings (and commentary) again by me and my parents!
Stand By Me vs. Old Number Seven
Brynna: 8.1/5 – Stand by me—so good. I’ve never heard Old Number Seven before but I like it!
Patti: 8/4
Bob: 7.5/2
Paradise by the Dashboard Light vs. When the Leavee Breaks
Brynna: 6/5 – Meatloaf narrowly wins due to my mom’s spirited rendition.
Patti: 7/2 – On Paradise by the Dashboard Light: “This song was huge in high school!” On When the Levee Breaks: “I find this song agitating.” My mom does not like Led Zeppelin.
Bob: 7/6 – “Not the best Led Zeppelin song, but probably the best Meatloaf song”
Somewhere Over the Rainbow vs. Against the Wind
Brynna: 8.3/4 – This song reminds me of the first time I went to Hawaii. We were on the Big Island and in the middle of a sunny day, it started raining as we drove through a forest right as this song came on. We stopped after to get snowcones. A pretty perfect day.
Patti: 7.5/6
Bob: 8/7
When Doves Cry vs. One Sweet Day
Brynna: 8.5/5.5
Patti: 8.5/5 – “When Doves Cry takes me back to when we saw Purple Rain in DC”
Bob: 9/1 – “Maybe a 1.5 for Boyz II Men”
I know I am late here, but in the interest of participating I’ll leave my votes….
“Paradise by the dashboard lights” (Meatloaf) vs. “When the levee breaks” (Led Zeppelin)
4 vs 7; I absolutely hate this meatloaf song and can’t for the life of me understand the appeal. This Zeppelin song has obvious Hurricane implications, and its pretty good as is so it gets a 7..
“Somewhere over the rainbow/Wonderful world” (israel kamakawiwo’ole) vs. “Against the Wind” (Bob Seger)
8 vs 8; my first tie in the tournament. These are both solid and sentimental songs for me. Somehow this Israel mashup song on the ukulele never gets old. I have it inexplicably tied to an ex-girlfirend in a way Gmo would have his music intertwined in his love life. Seger song is terrific too. If I bothered to look I would find some Bob Seger song that I remember Gmo sang in a packed karaoke club in Denver with Elizabeth, JP and I. Its that “know when to fold ’em” tune.
“When Doves Cry” (Prince) vs. “One Sweet Day” (Mariah Carey)
6.5 vs 6
This Prince song is pretty played out to me but it deserves a decent score, but I was definitely feeling the Mariah vibes today. I may even lister to it once or twice more. LOl
Ryan Q
Whoops missed a couple…
stand by me – 6.5
old number seven – 8
Never before heard the latter track and loved it
Ryan