Top 100 songs from 1977 to now

Ugh, just went through the top 30.

Conspiracy theory time: they only put "How Soon Is Now?" in there to keep The Smiths from breaking into the top 5. 🙂

"Summer baba" sitting at number 20... 👍
"Teenage Riot." 👍 But where the hell is "Freak scene"?

And why "Radio Free Europe" when that band had at least fifteen better singles?

Why "Fool's Gold" when The Stone Roses had at least ten better ones?

Why "Radio Radio" when Elvis Costello had five or six better singles?

Just why? Seriously, why?

🙂 🙂 😁

Tufir ii said:Maybe Dire Straits 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Dire Straits certainly 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

When it comes to punks and their actual musical ability—specifically how they handle their instruments—it’s just mediocre. I’ve been playing guitar for three years, not that I’m bragging, but I honestly play better than any of them; punk is essentially one giant musical hoax. I'll admit there are some decent songs in there, but the whole thing is full of holes, and I always find myself wondering why there are no solos in punk. Every punk will try to tell me it's because they aren't necessary or because that's just the nature of the genre, but the real answer is simply that they didn't know how to play them;... 👎

And Dan Luka can get lost, everyone else here is just sucking up to him, but I certainly won't 👎

Almost every punk track The Clash ever wrote features a guitar solo, kid.

I’ve been playing guitar for three years now—not trying to brag or anything—but honestly, I think I play better than any of them.

Give it another minute and you'll be just like 😁Slash

Kevin Chavez3 said:Almost every punk song The Clash ever wrote features a guitar solo, kid.

Sure, they do, but the real question is what kind of solos we’re actually talking about... take that "solo" in Bankrobber, for instance, and please, just try to explain to me what that actually was... look, I enjoy listening to various punk bands here and there, but sometimes their attempts can feel almost comical, much like the example mentioned above. It isn't that all punk musicians are like this; I generally appreciate the playing style of East Bay Raya, and "Holiday in Cambodia" is actually a well-structured track with some fairly complex elements, plus you need decent alternative picking just to nail some of their riffs, so I have to give The Kennedys their due respect 🙏; but my point was specifically about The Clash and The Sex Pistols since they both appear on this list, and I recall reading somewhere that the most famous punk solo from GSTQ was actually played by a session guitarist rather than Steve Jones, because he wasn't experienced enough at the time to pull something like that off, and whether that's true or not, I really don't know, but those are just things I've heard. Anyway, I won't keep rambling with my pointless comments since I'm still just an eighteen-year-old kid who hasn't quite reached the age where I can claim to be an authority on punk... 🙂

Jason Rogers said:And just like that, he's practically becoming Slash... 😁

Slash picked up the guitar back in '79, and by '87 he was already a household name, which really shows that you don't necessarily need a whole lifetime to reach that level of mastery if you have the drive... the trick was that the guy would pull twelve-hour sessions every single day, so you have to give him his due, he truly is one of the great players... 👍

Slash started playing guitar back in '79 and by '87 he was already a household name globally. Honestly, when you look at it that way, it wasn't even like he needed a whole lifetime to become a top-tier guitarist. The secret sauce was just the sheer grind—the guy used to pull 12-hour sessions every single day. You have to respect that level of dedication; he really is one of those truly great players.

So, basically, if you spend the next three years practicing for 18 hours a day and keep that same energy, you can pretty much expect to be a world-class guitarist by next year. 👍

Jason Rogers said:Basically, if you spent three years playing eighteen hours a day and kept up that kind of grind, you could pretty much expect to emerge as some world-renowned guitarist by next year... 👍

I was just laying out some facts about Slash, so there's really no need to get personal with me... 🙄

I couldn't force myself to read this or any other top list if my life depended on it—but honestly, this whole debate is something else entirely. It’s actually pretty interesting reading. Just look at what everyone is fighting about and you'll see which event has actually shaped music since '77. Personally, I don't care one bit that only one track by The Smiths made the cut—assuming I interpreted coastalpanther43's post correctly—but it really bugs me when I realize how eighteen-year-olds today have zero clue how much punk actually changed the world they’re living in so ignorantly. Then again, some people here are clearly still stuck in '75... damn you, Mark Knopfler, my parents have more modern taste in music than you do...

It wasn't really meant for me, but here we go...

redcrane28 says:

even my parents have more modern tastes in music than you do

which just goes to show that my great-grandparents probably had more contemporary musical tastes than I do, considering I spend my time listening to Mozart...🙄

coastalpanther43 said:Why the hell is "Radio Free Europe" being pushed when they had at least fifteen better singles?

And why "Fool's Gold" when The Stone Roses had at least ten superior tracks?

Why, just why?

🙂 🙂 😁

Total agreement here. Why "Song 2," arguably one of Blur's weakest offerings?
And why only "Where It's At" from Beck instead of "Loser"?
Or why just "Blue Monday" over "Regret" or "True Faith"?
We could keep this list going until tomorrow.

For instance: Massive Attack - "Daydreaming"

coastalpanther43 said:Maybe I'm leaning a little too hard into the British scene.

Not really. If anything, there should probably be even more British bands on the list.🙂

redcrane28 said:screw you and Mark Knopfler, my old men have much more modern tastes in music than you do...

I'm not really sure what point you're trying to make here, because frankly, I couldn't care less about having "modern" musical tastes, since if that were actually the goal, I'd just be listening to Britney Spears or Justin Timberlake 👎

man... honestly, I couldn't care less about all these lists. I’m just gonna listen to whatever hits right for me, while everyone else can go ahead and argue until they're blue in the face. eMpTyV is a joke... everything musical these days seems to revolve around him anyway. It feels pretty pointless trying to debate the quality of modern music, though I guess there are always those rare exceptions that just end up proving the rule :<<

Ethan Perez97 said:Dire Straits definitely 🙏 🙏 🙏 🙏

Wait, seriously? Are you telling me not a single one of their tracks even cracked the chart?!
I mean, "Sultans of Swing" is an absolute classic...

Ethan Jones42 said:Look, I honestly think Kurt Cobain totally deserves that top spot. I haven't even bothered looking at the full list, but if I did, he’d be number one for me too. And honestly, what kind of uncultured idiots are you guys to call him anything less than a legend? You should all be bowing down! You clearly have zero clue what real music sounds like. Sure, Zeppelin is good, but who in their right mind puts some American folk-rockers at the very top? It’s just the same old stuff—whining about eternal love, metaphor, love, metaphor, the scent of love, metaphor, guitar solos, metaphor, the sound of love, solos, metaphors, eternal love, beautiful women, metaphors, more solos. Kurt started something huge—he's the king of everything—and you guys aren't even worthy. You just don't get it. Even Deep Purple and AC/DC are better than Zeppelin.

Yeah, well, I’d put him at number one too... if he wasn't so overhyped. Honestly, that song deserves a higher spot than some artists who didn't even make the list at all!
AC/DC better than Zeppelin? Hey, they can be your favorite, but calling them *better*... that's a stretch...

Ethan Perez97 said:Take that solo from Bankrobber, for instance (...) generally, I’m a fan of how East Bay plays; "Holiday in Cambodia" is a well-structured track with some surprisingly complex elements, and you really need solid alternative picking to nail their riffs, so I have to give credit where it's due to the Kennedys 🙏; but I was mostly referring to The Clash and Sex Pistols since they're actually on this list. I think I read somewhere that the most famous punk solo from GSTQ was actually played by a studio guitarist rather than Steve Jones..."

Ah, there it is—that "see, I actually know what I'm talking about" moment. 🙄 Fine, fine. Keep your opinions to yourself then. Your loss.

Sure... Dire Straits are perfectly fine by me, as long as I distance myself from the massive hype surrounding them.

like Hüsker Dü - Ice Age

Yeah, redcrane28, there are two by Schmidt. I think it’s "How Soon Is Now?" and "This Charming Man".

It seems a bit silly to me that they chose "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones; it isn't even particularly great or significant. While my favorite Ramones album is actually "Road to Ruin", they really should have picked something from their debut...

maybe something like Hüsker Dü - Could You Be the One?

Kevin Chavez3 said:Right, so we've reached that "you see me, we're on the same page" stage... 🙄 Fine, fine.

Glad we finally see eye to eye... 😛

Hey, wait—you’re telling me there’s no Red Hot Chili Peppers - Otherside?! Are you kidding me? That track is an absolute legend!

Gary Wilson5 said:It’s not even that pro-British. Honestly, if you ask me, there should be way more British bands on here.🙂

Actually, it's just too much of the wrong kind of British. They could have mixed those UK acts together much better.

As for The Smiths, there are two songs on the list, but I wrote that post after looking through the first 30 spots.

Dire Straits aren't bad.

That whole thing about punk being against good guitar playing is, obviously, massive bullshit. Like JAMC so perfectly put it: "You should have your first concert the day you pick up a guitar."

Technical skill—which is just a craft—doesn't equal inspiration. Most of the best guitarists in the world play like crap.

I don't know what you're trying to prove here. I don't care about having "modern" views on music; if that were the case, I'd be listening to Britney Spears or Justin Timberlake.

Well, you probably would listen to them, but only because you clearly have no clue what actually good stuff is happening in modern music.🙂