The 31 Days of Rocktober Part III: 1999-2009

Hard to believe Rocktober is coming to a close. Why, it seems like only yesterday we were celebrating Part 1: 1979-1988. And who can forget Part 2: 1989-1998? Well, on to the last 11 "days," each representing one of the last 11 years of power-chorded goodness. The opening act is done, the deli platter in your dressing room is looking a bit worse for wear, and the crowd is chanting your name, so let's head for the stage ...

1999: "Bawitdaba" - Kid Rock
It's a little known fact that "Bawitdaba" is actually the Swahili word for "white trash." Okay, I made that up. Hey, for a guy who started his career looking like a geekier Vanilla Ice, this song rocks. And who can resist a lyric like: "Bawitdaba da bang a dang diggy diggy diggy said the boogy said up jump the boogy?" I actually tried to buy this song on iTunes, but the only way to get it is to buy an entire album of 2000 Grammy nominees, which means you're also paying for "Mambo No. 5" and "Hit Me Baby One More Time." No thanks.

Runners Up: "Guerilla Radio" - Rage Against the Machine; "Around the World" - Red Hot Chili Peppers; "The Chemicals Between Us" - Bush; "Lit Up" - Buckcherry; "Freak on a Leash" - Korn; "Nookie" - Limp Bizkit

In case you forgot, his name is Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiid ROCK!


2000: "I Disappear" - Metallica
Both this and "Take A Look Around" were featured on the Mission:Impossible II soundtrack. I'm giving the edge to Metallica, even if pictures like this do significant damage to their rock cred. The ode to Bullitt with James careening around San Francisco in the video helps make up for it (even if it is in a Camaro and not a Mustang).

Runners Up: "When It All Goes Wrong Again" - Everclear; "The Everlasting Gaze" - Smashing Pumpkins; "Grievance" - Pearl Jam; "Take A Look Around" - Limp Bizkit

Hey, hey, hey, let's watch them sing it live ...


2001: "Renegades of Funk" - Rage Against the Machine
Many people call me a "renegade of funk." Well, one person. And that's me. But still, I feel a certain affinity for RATM, even if our political views are, shall we say, divergent. A cover of an Afrkia Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force song, Rage broke up before the official release of "Renegades of Funk" and never performed it live until they reunited in 2007.

Runners Up: "Dig In" - Lenny Kravitz; "Smooth Criminal" - Alien Ant Farm; "Original Prankster" - Offspring; "Fat Lip" - Sum 41; "Alive" - P.O.D. "Crawling" - Linkin Park

No doubt because they were never one to kowtow to "The Man," I can actually embed their official music video, which is a shout out to various "activists" (Richard Pryor?) and musicians, a list of which can be found here.


2002: Tie: "All My Life" - Foo Fighters & "No-One Knows" - Queens of the Stone Age
Cop out! I really like both of these songs, and so I'm once again invoking blogger's privilege. And Dave Grohl from the Foos has been known to sit in on drums for the Queens, so they're sorta-kinda related. Fine, I don't really have a good justification. But you get two videos, so what are you complaining about?

Runners Up: "I Stand Alone" - Godsmack; ; "Aerials" - System of a Down; "She Hates Me" - Puddle of Mudd; "By the Way" - Red Hot Chili Peppers

It's two, two, two videos in one ... year.




2003: "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" - Jet
While not exactly AC/DC, Jet was still able to bring the thunder from down under (I can't imagine that I'm the first one to use that phrase). Reminds me a bit of the very first band named in the 31 Days of Rocktober, The Knack.

Runners Up: "Bring Me To Life" - Evanescence; "Show Me How To Live" - Audioslave; "Go With the Flow" - Queens of the Stone Age; "St. Anger" - Metallica; "Did My Time" - Korn; "Just Because" - Jane's Addiction

So, are you gonna?


2004: "Whiplash" - Motorhead
How can you say no to Motorhead covering Metallica in a song that won them a Grammy for "Best Metal Performance?" And 24 years after Lemmy and the boys released "Ace of Spades." Well done, lads, well done. Watching and listening, you also understand why you never see a fat heavy metal drummer. And not just because of the drugs.

Runners Up: "Slither" - Velvet Revolver; "Some Kind of Monster" - Metallica; "Duality" - Slipknot; "Lady" - Lenny Kravitz

This isn't so much a video as a still frame with the music playing, so feel free to close your eyes.


2005: "The Hand That Feeds" - Nine Inch Nails
I suppose this veers somewhat into "industrial," but Mr. Reznor's music certainly has the energy and anger essential for much of rock n' roll, particularly the "harder" iterations. If you think you could have done a better job with this particularly song than Trent, you actually could have given it a shot, as his website released a multi-track Garageband version of the song, allowing anyone with a Mac to remix it.

Runners Up: "B.Y.O.B." - System of a Down; "Doesn't Remind Me" - Audioslave; "Little Sister" - Queens of the Stone Age; "Remedy" - Seether; "Best of You" - Foo Fighters

So, just how deep do you believe?


2006: "Woman" - Wolfmother
If Jet is "thunder from down under," then this song from Wolfmother is ground zero of a nuclear blast from the past, channeling a whole Zeppelin's worth of 70s rock gods. You can also hear it on the soundtracks of no fewer than four video games from MotorStorm to Madden NFL 07, plus various iterations of Guitar Hero and Rock Band.

Runners Up: "Gin and Milk" - Dirty Pretty Things; "World Wide Suicide" - Pearl Jam; "Your Touch" - The Black Keys; "Tell Me Baby" - Red Hot Chili Peppers

Check out this performance from Bonnaroo 2007. You can almost smell the hippies.


2007: "The Pretender" - Foo Fighters
I'm sure Dave and the boys will be thrilled with their solo "win" after sharing 2002's selection. Or they would be if they had time to read the 10,174,385th most-popular blog in the world (though I'm likely a bit optimistic with that ranking). If you want to try and match the Foo's rendition that won a Grammy for "Best Hard Rock Performance" in 2008, you can try on Guitar Hero, or as of next week, Rock Band.

Runners Up: "Icky Thump" - The White Stripes; "Threshold Apprehension" - Black Francis; "I Don't Wanna Stop" - Ozzy Osbourne; "Fake It" - Seether

Now hurry up and watch the video before those nasty music companies disable its embedding ...


2008: "I Got Mine" - Black Keys
It's still amazing to me how much sound two dudes can put out with just a single guitar and set of drums (and likely a few Marshall amps). But Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney manage it. I suppose this song is almost too bluesy for this list, but the mega-crunchy dirty guitar sound rocks more than enough for me.

Runners Up: "Wax Simulacra" - The Mars Volta; "Inside the Fire" - Disturbed; "Saints of Los Angeles" - Motley Crue; "Rock 'N Roll Train" - AC/DC; "They Say" - Scars on Broadway

Here are the dynamic duo performing "I Got Mine," with a little interview intro thrown in.


2009: "Know Your Enemy" - Green Day
And here we are at the end of the road. While I guess it's still possible that Metallica may yet release a hard rocking version of "Silent Night," I think it's safe to name a track for this yet-to-be-completed year. And for that we turn to Green Day, pumping out the rock n' roll for the last two decades. This one's a bit political for my taste, but that driving snare off the top just sucks me in.

Runners Up: "Check My Brain" - Alice In Chains; "The Fixer" - Pearl Jam; "You're Going Down" - Sick Puppies; "Savior" - Rise Against; "Whisky Hangover" - Godsmack; "Ignorance" - Paramore; "Sounds of Madness" - Shinedown; "Feel Good Drag" - Anberlin

At least I can bid you farewell with a real official music video for a change. And until next Rocktober, remember this rock n' roll maxim: if you can't tune it up, turn it up. Rock on.

The 31 Songs of Rocktober Part Two: 1989-1998

Rocktober: it's the most wonderful, earsplitting time of the year. After Part One: 1979-1988, we're continuing to celebrate with another 10 of an eventual 31 hits—one for each of the last 31 years.

So grab your Strat and your leather codpiece as we get ready to turn it up to 11.

1989: "Dr. Feelgood" - Motley Crue
While I would never elevate a band like Poison or Cinderella into a position of representing a year, Motley Crue has enough musical cred to hold down a spot on the list. While "Dr. Feelgood" definitely rocks, this is also kind of a "Lifetime Achievement" award. Plus, one or more members of the band may have actually worn a leather codpiece, always a plus.

Runners Up: "Paradise City" - Guns N' Roses; "One" - Metallica; "Runnin' Down a Dream" - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers; "Fire Woman" - The Cult; "A Girl Like You" - The Smithereens; "Once Bitten Twice Shy" - Great White; "Higher Ground" - Red Hot Chili Peppers

Now here's the video that will make you feel alright ...


1990: "Epic" - Faith No More
Before a tidal wave of plaid shirts and distorted guitars took over rock n' roll in 1991, Faith No More pounded out their epic Epic. While the video managed to soak the band in a man-made monsoon, there apparently wasn't enough water left for a poor goldfish left flopping around on the floor, raising the ire of animal rights groups. However, the band claimed the fish was shot in slow motion, and was safely returned to its bowl. And that may in fact be true given the fish's provenance: it was allegedly either stolen from—or given as a gift by—Bjork (depending on which version of the legend you believe).

Runners Up: "Blaze of Glory" - Bon Jovi; "Black Velvet" - Alannah Miles; "Cherry Pie" - Warrant

Let's check out the famous fish and the song ...


1991: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
Honestly, never really been a fan of this grunge anthem, or grunge in general (though I have a bit of soft spot for Soundgarden). But obviously this song signaled a huge shift in rock n' roll, including the mainstreaming of so-called "alternative" music. And yes, Nevermind really hit big in 1992, but this single was released in September of 1991.

Runners Up: "Enter Sandman" - Metallica; "Moneytalks" - AC/DC; "Alive" - Pearl Jam; "Give It Away" - Red Hot Chili Peppers; "Jesus Built My Hotrod" - Ministry

Here purportedly is the first live performance of Nirvana's signature song ...


1992: "Remedy" - Black Crowes
Since I didn't want to go back to back with Nirvana, and I've never cared for Pearl Jam, the Black Crowes win '92 by default. But I'm so unexcited by this pick, I'm not even going to look up any info about it. It's sung by that really skinny guy who was married to Kate Hudson.

Runners Up: "Come As You Are" - Nirvana; "Rest In Peace" - Extreme; "Evenflow" - Pearl Jam; "Let's Get Rocked" - Def Leppard; "Life Is A Highway" - Tom Cochrane

I suppose in keeping with the format, I should show some video. At least I can embed the actual music video. Hurray.


1993: "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" - Lenny Kravitz
Ah, now here's a song worth getting excited about. This is another of my all time favorites, with a great riff and a cool video (which, of course, EMI won't let me embed). This was one of the first CDs that I bought (post cassette tape and pre-mp3). VH1 had it as #78 on their "100 Greatest Songs of the 90s," but I would likely have gone at least 30 or 40 places higher.

Runners Up: "Plush" - Stone Temple Pilots; "Livin' On The Edge" - Aerosmith; "Stick It Out" - Rush; "Pride and Joy" - Coverdale & Page

I got to got to know, are you gonna watch the video?


1994: "Vaseline" - Stone Temple Pilots
I came very close to declaring this a tie between this song and "Black Hole Sun." But that seemed too much of a cop out. But a tough call, especially given that both STP and Soundgarden both had two great songs this year (see "Runners Up" below). I'm just glad they got to write and record this song in between Scott Weiland's many stints in rehab.

Runners Up: "Black Hole Sun" - Soundgarden; "Spoonman" - Soundgarden; "Daughter" - Pearl Jam; "Interstate Love Song" - Stone Temple Pilots; "Cannonball" - Breeders

Before you go blind and this video is out of reach, give it a look.


1995: "More Human Than Human" - White Zombie
I had actually awarded this year to the Smashing Pumpkins before I discovered that this was the year Rob and friends put out this extremely hard-rockin' song. Is it as "cerebral" as "Bullet With Butterfly Wings?" Nope. But when you listen, you just want to keep turning it up ... and up ... and up—until your windows shatter and the bass puts you into cardiac arrest.

Runners Up: "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" - Smashing Pumpkins; "J.A.R." - Green Day; "If I Wanted To" - Melissa Etheridge; "Better Man" - Pearl Jam

Haven't you always thought this song would go great with an ultra-violent anime about vampire hunters? Hey, so did someone who was posting to YouTube! (I said "ultra-violent," right? Consider yourself warned.)


1996: "Machinehead" - Bush
Another year that I'm fairly ambivalent about. I did get married in June of '96, and maybe the fact that our DJ played "Celebrate" despite our explicit instructions not to soured me on music for the whole year. But, hey, somebody's gotta win, so why not Mr. Stefani and company?

Runners Up: "Santa Monica" - Everclear; "Trippin' On A Whole In A Paper Heart" - Stone Temple Pilots; "In The Meantime" - Spacehog; "Stinkfist" - Tool

I've got a video for Machinehead, it's better than the rest (except for the real one, which I'm not allowed to embed).


1997: "Song 2" - Blur
Woohoo! This not very imaginatively titled hit from Blur squeaked out a win over the Foos and the Bosstones (technically ska?). One of the things I like about this song is how compact it is, at right about two minutes even. A little rock nugget. Reminds me of when I went to see the Ramones, who packed about 73 songs into a 90-minute set.

Runners Up: "The Impression That I Get" - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones; "Everlong" - Foo Fighters; "Pink" - Aerosmith; "Gone Away" - The Offspring

Now get your head checked by a jumbo jet and check out the video of this live performance at Wembley Arena.


1998: "Fly Away" - Lenny Kravitz
Hey, a repeat winner! Honestly, nothing really jumped out at me this year. Well, musically. 1998 saw the birth of my first child, so maybe that's why I wasn't paying as much attention. I was already retuning my ear for the Wiggles and Barney.

Runners Up: "Given To Fly" - Pearl Jam; "Blue on Black" - Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band; "Turn The Page" - Metallica; "Psycho Circus" - Kiss; "Most High" - Jimmy Page & Robert Plant

Well, I leave you and Part Two with Lenny rockin' Rio ...

Shouldn't that make him Dr. T?

The 31 Songs of Rocktober Part One: 1979-1988

31 days hath Rocktober, and what better way to celebrate than by providing a most-excellent example of rock 'n' roll for each and every one of them. To add a level of temporal confusion and complexity, I'm picking one song from each of the last 31 years.

And we're not going to play the whole "What's rock 'n' roll?" game. It's gotta have lots of guitars and drums, the more and louder the better. While not mandatory, long hair and leather apparel definitely are worth bonus points.

I believe I'll be able to track down video for each song, though the helpful folks at the record labels have decreed that virtually every official music video can't be embeddable, so most songs will be live performances.

Now, if you can answer "yes" to the musical question "ARE YOU READY TO ROCK?!!!" we'll begin.

1979: "My Sharona" - The Knack
Well, we're certainly off to a great start, with one of rock's most recognizable riffs. If lead singer and guitarist Doug Fieger and Wikipedia are to be believed, a Ms. Sharona Alperin was the little pretty one, pretty one, who made his motor run, motor run.

Runners Up: "I Want You To Want Me" - Cheap Trick; "Renegade" - Styx; "I Was Made For Lovin' You" - Kiss

Here are Doug and the boys live from Carnegie Hall with what ended up as the #1 song on Billboard's Pop Singles Chart for '79.


1980: "Heartbreaker" - Pat Benatar
As you can see from the runners up below, there were a lot of very strong contenders this year. But I'm going to go a little more "pop" and recognize the five feet and 95 pounds of rock 'n' roll fury formerly known as Patricia Andrzejewski.

Runners Up: "Refugee" - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers; "Ace of Spades" - Motorhead; "You Shook Me All Night Long" - AC/DC; "Crazy Train" - Ozzy Osbourne; "And The Cradle Will Rock" - Van Halen

Watch and see why you don't mess around with Ms. Benatar, no-no-no!


1981: "Back In Black" - AC/DC
Was there really any question for this year? (Okay, it did pain me not to go with "Tom Sawyer".) But you can't argue with another of rock's most recognizable riffs kicking off a tune that VH1 ranked as the fifth greatest hard rock song of all time and that Rolling Stone ranked number 29 on "The 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time."

Runners Up: "Tom Sawyer" - Rush; "Another One Bites The Dust" - Queen; "The Stroke" - Billy Squier; "Start Me Up" - Rolling Stones

Now, without further ado, show us what you got Angus.


1982: "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Hard to pass on a title like that. And America found it hard to pass on the song (segue!), as it finished the year as the #2 hit on Billboard's Top 100. And here's a little piece of trivia that at least I didn't know: a pre-Blackheart-backed Ms. Jett first recorded this song two years earlier with two members of the Sex Pistols, Steve Jones and Paul Cook.

Runners Up: "Don't Stop Believin'" - Journey; "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" - Judas Priest; "Juke Box Hero" - Foreigner; "Run to the Hills" - Iron Maiden; "White Wedding" - Billy Idol

Now let's put another dime in the jukebox, baby ...


1983: "Twilight Zone" - Golden Earring
Also (erroneously) known as "When The Bullet Hits The Bone," this song did reach #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Top Tracks chart. But, along with the band's other big hit, "Radar Love," it's also proven to be an enduring radio track that has aged much better than, say, "Cum On Feel the Noize."

Runners Up: "Gimme All Your Lovin'" - ZZ Top; "Cum On Feel the Noize" - Quiet Riot; "Photograph" - Def Leppard; "Bark at the Moon" - Ozzy Osbourne

So, what time is it? It's two a.m. (it's two a.m.) ...


1984: "Rock You Like A Hurricane" - Scorpions
Speaking of songs that don't age particularly well ... Actually, I think "Rock You Like A Hurricane" perfectly encapsulates the somewhat cheesy hard rocking sounds of the mid-80s (Ratt, Poison, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, etc.). And I say "danke" to the boys from Hanover for showing us that not all hard rockin' music from Germany is that really scary death metal.

Runners Up: "Jump" - Van Halen; "Owner of a Lonely Heart" - Yes; "Legs" - ZZ Top; "Rebel Yell" - Billy Idol; "We're Not Gonna Take It" - Twisted Sister; "I Can't Drive 55" - Sammy Hagar

C'mon, c'mon' c'mon, let's watch a live performance.


1985: "She Sells Sanctuary" - The Cult
While not nearly as big a hit as any of the runners up, "She Sells Sanctuary" has always been a personal favorite of mine, and so I'll invoke blogger's privilege. It's one of those songs I forget how much I enjoy until it comes up in my iTunes playlist, I (rarely) hear it on the radio, or it shows up somewhere unexpected, like the movie Layer Cake.

Runners Up: "Money For Nothing" - Dire Straits; "Some Like It Hot" - Power Station; "Smokin' in the Boys Room" - Motley Crue

Let's enjoy it together, shall we?


1986: "You Give Love A Bad Name" - Bon Jovi
Bit of a sparse year for hard-rockin' hits, as you can tell by this selection and the runners up (John Cougar Mellenkamp?). Though I suppose the list would be a little longer if I didn't refuse to acknowledge Van Halen as a band after Diamond Dave left. Anyway, this isn't a bad song by the boys from Jersey.

Runners Up: "R.O.C.K. in the USA" - John Cougar Mellenkamp; "Addicted to Love" - Robert Palmer; "Tuff Enuff" - Fabulous Thunderbirds

You're shot through the heart and this song's to blame ...


1987: "Welcome to the Jungle" - Guns N' Roses
Love 'em or hate 'em, there was no question GNR was a rock and roll band when they exploded onto the scene, with all the drama, destruction, and volume that entailed. You couldn't ignore Axl Rose's voice, or Slash's guitar. "Welcome to the Jungle" was actually the first song that Axl and Slash wrote together. And as a title and a song, it certainly was a fitting announcement of their debut.

Runners Up: "Pour Some Sugar On Me" - Def Leppard; "Girls, Girls, Girls" - Motley Crue; "Love Removal Machine" - The Cult; "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" - Georgia Satellites

Watch this and it will bring you to your n-n-n-n-n-n-n-knees ...


1988: "Cult of Personality" - Living Color
Since I already gave GNR 1987, there really wasn't another contender for this year other than Living Color's biggest hit. Given that it won the Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance the next year, I guess I'm not alone in that opinion.

Runners Up: "Sweet Child O' Mine" - Guns N' Roses; "I Hate Myself for Loving You" - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts; "Beds Are Burning" - Midnight Oil

Here are Corey, Vernon and the rest of the guys from another classic bit of late-80s culture: the Arsenio Hall Show.


Tune in next week as we spin the stax o' wax of Rocktober hits from 1989-1998.