The 100 greatest songs of all time!

(above) Look at that crazy SOB in the Tux!


The 100 greatest songs of all time! Let me prelude this little list by telling you that this was by no means a small undertaking, nor did I take the ranking of these tunes lightly. I sifted through countless mounds of CD’s, records, and the Internet and left no stone unturned in my quest not to forget anything. Naturally there will be disagreements, but let me explain a little bit about my methods, and what I used to qualify a “great” song. My own personnel tastes naturally play a role in all of this, I love music that is different and creative. I absolute detest hallmark drivel. I like songs that are written from unique angles, and creative perspectives. I also considered music that changed music, musicians, and styles that redefined their generation or genera. Last but not least, music that sticks in our heads. Songs that are played on the radio constantly, and always pop up in movies or on T.V shows can’t be ignored. I did exclude special occasion music like White Christmas or Proud to be an American, which are great songs, but that’s a different list. That said here we go….

100) Bent by Matchbox 20. Year: 2000 Album: Mad Season Label: Atlantic Among the most recent songs on this list. Matchbox has a great sound, with great writing.
99) Bad Medicine by Bon Jovi. Year:1986 Album: Cross Roads Label: Polygram
98) Too Much Tim on my Hands by Styx. Year: 1980 Album: Paradise Theatre Label: A &M super cool song, everyone knows people like this.
97) Smugglers Blues by Glen Fry. Year: 1984 Album: The All nighter Label: MCA 80’s drugs, Miami Vice…come on.
96) Kiss From a Rose by Seal Year: 1994 album: Seal (2nd album) Label: Warner Brother and others. Beautiful and underrated song.
95) Private Eyes by Hall and Oats Year: 1981 Album: Private Eyes Label: BMG
94) Respect by Aretha Franklin Year: 1969 Album: Aretha’s Gold Label: Rhino
93) Proud Mary by Credence Clearwater Revival. Year: 1968 Album: Credence Clearwater Revival Label: Fantasy
92) Good Golly Miss Molly by Little Richard. Year: 1957 Album and Label: Unknown
91) Push by Matchbox 20. Year 1996 Album: Yourself or Someone Like You Label: Lava This group has a chance to really be special if Rob Thomas stops making bad solo albums. I guess he’s not the good writer of the group.
90) Life on Mars by David Bowie. Year: 1971 Album: Hunky Dory Label: Virgin America.
89) Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg. Year: 1981 Album: The Innocent Age Label: Epic All his vocals are outstanding and this classic is no exception.
88) Sister Christian by Night Ranger Year: 1983 Album: Midnight Madness Label: MCA this is the definitive Night Ranger song, but this group had several songs that could have been on this list.
87) She’s a Beauty by The Tubes. Year: 1983 Album: Outside Inside Label: Capitol often mislabeled as one in a million girls.
86) Mandolin Rain by Bruce Hornsby. Year: 1986 Album: The Way it is. Label: RCA. Writes a beautiful song when he’s not trying to save the world.
85) The Great Beyond. By R.E. M. Year: 2000. Album: Man on the Moon Soundtrack. Label: Warner Brothers. A brilliant and subtle tribute to Andy Kaufman.
84) 867-5309 (Jenny) by Tommy Tuntone. Year: 1981. Album: Tommy Tuntone 2. Label: Columbia. How many times has this song been stuck in your head, good lord!
83) The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and the News. Year: 1985. Album: Back to the Future Soundtrack. Label: unknown.
82) Believe it or Not by Joe Scarbury. Year: 1981. Album: America’s Greatest Hero. Label: Rhino/Electra. This was the theme song for Greatest American Hero the T.V show, a pretty funny one too.
81) Hit me with your Best Shot by Pat Benatar. Year: 1980. Album: Crimes of Passion. Label: Chrysalis. Often gets lost in discussions of great 80’s music, but she had a ton of good songs.
80) Once in a Lifetime by The Talking Heads. Year: 1984. Album: Stop Making Sense. Label: Sire. You may ask yourself, what was that beautiful song?
79) Keepin The Faith by Billy Joel. Year: 1983. Album: Innocent Man. Label: Columbia. Maybe no one artist has ever done so many good things with so many different genera’s. Unparalleled talent.
78) Any Way You Want It by Journey. Year: 1981. Album: Captured. Label: Columbia.
77) Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding. Year: 1968. Album: The Dock of the Bay. Label: Atlantic. Amazing Vocal.
76) Wildest Dreams by Moody Blues. Year: 1986. Album: The Other Side of Life. Label: Polydor/Thershold.
75) Love in an Elevator by Aerosmith. Year: 1989. Album: Pump. Label: Geffen. Pump is one of the greatest rock and roll albums of all time. Tail to tail great songs.
74) Roll With the Changes by Reo Speed wagon. Year: 1978. Album: You can Tune a Piano but you can’t Tune a Fish. Label: Epic.
73) Take me Home Tonight by Eddie Money. Year: 1986. Album: Can’t Hold Back. Label: Columbia. Under appreciated artist. Not a lot of great songs, but a hell of a lot of good ones.
72) Every Breath You Take by The Police. Year: 1983. Album: Synchronicity. Label: A &M.
71) Photograph by Def Leopard. Year: 1983. Album: Pyromania. Label: Mercury. Had a nice sound for having a one armed drummer. That’s loyalty!
70) Look Away by Chicago. Year: 1982. Album: Love Songs. Label: Rhino.
69) We Built this City by Starship. Year: 1985. Album: Knee Deep in the Hoopla. Label: RCA. Gotta love that traffic report.
68) Good Night Saigon by Billy Joel. Year: 1982. Album: The Nylon Curtain. Label: Columbia. The most brilliant and stirring Vietnam tribute of all time.
67) Centerfold by J. Giles Band. Year: 1981. Album: Freeze-Frame. Label: EMI America. My Blood runs cold…is any song as recognizable in the first 3 seconds?
66) Here I Go Again by White snake. Year: 1982. Album: Saints and Snakes. Label: EMI.
65) 100 Years by Five for Fighting. Year: 2004. Album: The Battle for Everything. Label: Columbia. This is the most Recent song to make this list.
64) Butterfly Kisses by Bob Carlisle. Year: 1997. Album: Butterfly Kisses and Bedtime Stories. Label: Diadem. Never to be heard from again, the definition of one hit wonder. What a beautiful song though.
63) The Waiting by Tom Petty. Year: 1981. Album: Hard Promises. Label: MCA. A great artist, Tom Petty also fought hard to keep the unit cost of his albums down. At the time he thought $9.99 was too much, and threatened to leave his label if it wasn’t reduced to $8.
62) Welcome to the Jungle by Guns n’ Roses. Year: 1987. Album: Appetite for Destruction. Label: Geffen. Played at every sports stadium in the world.
61) Blue Collar Man by Styx. Year: 1978. Album: Pieces of Eight. Label: A&M. Truly one of the greatest bands of all time, vocals and music.
60) Like a Prayer by Madonna. Year: 1989. Album: Like a Prayer. Label: Sire. Good very rarely meets controversial, when it does It’s something special.
59) Man in Motion by John Parr. Year: 1985. Album: St. Elmo’s fire Soundtrack. Label: Atlantic.
58) Rock you like a Hurricane by The Scorpions. Year: 1984. Album: Love at First Sting. Label: Mercury. Great rock and Roll.
57) Africa by Toto. Year: 1982. Album: Toto IV. Label: CBS.
56) Eye of the Tiger by Survivor. Year: 1982. Album: Eye of the Tiger. Label: Volcano. Yo Adrian!
55) Video Killed the Radio Star by The President of the United States. Year: 1998. Album: Pure Frosting. Label: Columbia. The video for this song was hilarious.
54) Sometimes When We Touch by Dan Hill. Year: 1977. Album and Label: Unknown. Really brilliant song
53) Glory of Love by Peter Cetera. Year: 1986. Album: Solitude and Solitaire. Label: Warner Brothers. There is life after Chicago Mr. Miage.
52) Foreplay/longtime by Boston. Year: 1976. Album: Boston. Label: Epic. So many great hits, they could have their own list.
51) All Out of Love by Air Supply. Year: 1980. Album: Lost in Love. Label: Arista
50) Come To My Window by Melissa Etheridge. Year: 1994. Album: Come to my Window. Label: Island. Great love song, who would have thought she was singing to Ellen Degeneres.
49) Queen of Hearts by Juice Newton. Year: 1981. Album: Juice. Label: One Way. One of few crossover success stories. Juice was primarily a country and western singer.
48) You Can Do Magic by America. Year: 1982. Album: Views From the Ground. Label: unknown.
47) Bat Out Of Hell by Meat Loaf. Year: 1977. Album: Bat Out Of Hell. Label: Epic. To say that this rock was ahead of its time would be a mammoth understatement.
46) Stop in the Name of Love by Diana Ross and the Supremes. Year: 1965. Album and Label: unknown.
45) (I can’t get no) Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones. Year: 1965. Album and Label: Unknown. You’ll see them at the super bowl this year, but now they look more like the California Raisins than anything else.
44) The Wanderer by Dion. Year: 1960. Album: King of the New York Streets. Label: Right Stuff.
43) Let’s Twist Again by Chubby Checker. Year: 1961. Album: Let’s Twist. Label: unknown. No, not the one with the Fat Boys.
42) It’s All Coming Back to Me by Celine Dion. Year: 1996. Album: Falling into You. Label: Columbia. This song was written by Jim Steinman who wrote both Bat out of Hell Albums for Meatloaf.
41) Yankee Rose by Davis Lee Roth. Year: 1986. Album: Eat em’ and Smile. Label: Warner Brothers. Awesome Rock!
40) Born To Be Wild by Steppenwolf. Year: 1968. Album: SteppenWolf. Label: Geffen.
39) Silhouettes by The Rays. Year, Album, and Label: Unknown. Great imaginative song.
38) California Girls by The Beach boys. Year: 1980. Album: California Girls. Label: Capitol. I wasn’t a big fan, but enough people were to give them their due.
37) Nobody’s Perfect by Mike and the Mechanics. Year: 1988. Album: Living Years. Label: Atlantic. Not many people have heard this song, but they should.
36) Don’t Stand So Close To Me by The Police. Year: 1980. Album: Zenyatta Mondatta. Label: A&M.
35) My Thanksgiving by Don Henley. Year: 2000. Album: Inside Job. Label: Warner Brothers. If you haven’t heard this, do so. I’m warning you bonehead out there it’s active listening!
34) Drift Away by Doobie Gray. Year: 1973. Album: Drift Away. Label: MCA. Anything that gets copied as many times as this has been copied is good.
33) Second Chance by .38 Special. Year: 1998. Album: Rock N’ Roll Strategy. Label: A&M
32) Juke Box Hero by Foreigner. Year: 1981. Album: 4. Label: Atlantic. This could have easily been Hot Blooded.
31) Glory Days by Bruce Springstein. Year: 1984. Album: Born in the USA. Label: Warner Brothers. It takes talent to make a great song about something other than love.
30) Ain’t Talkin Bout Love by Van Halen. Year: 1978. Album: Van Halen. Label: Warner Brothers. Only Eddie Van Halen can make a rock song this good. Not just noise, calculated and brilliant.
29) Purple Haze by Jimi Hendrix. Year: 1967. Album and Label: Unknown. Paved the way for our friend Eddie.
28) I will always Love You by Whitney Houston. Year: 1992. Album: The Body Guard Soundtrack. Label: Arista. I usually like my love songs more creative than this but the vocal is so powerful, and unbelievable that it cannot be denied.
27) Dreams by Van Halen. Year: 1986. Album: 5150. Label: Warner Brothers. Are any other musicians talented enough to survive a change of lead singers?
26) Unforgettable by Nat King Cole. Year: 1952. Album: Penthouse Serenade. Label: Capitol Jazz.
25) One More Night by Phil Collins. Year: 1985. Album: No Jacket Required. Label: WEA.
24) Old Time Rock and Roll by Bob Seger. Year: 1978. Album: Stranger in Town. Label: Capitol. Who could forget Risky Business? Of course that was before Tom Cruise went totally loco.
23) Jail House Rock by Elvis Presley. Year: 1956. Album and Label: Unknown.
22) The End of the Innocence by Don Henley. Year: 1989. Album: The End of the Innocence. Label: Geffen.
21) The Flame by Cheap Trick. Year: 1988. Album: Lap of Luxury. Label: Epic.
20) Great Balls of Fire by Jerry Lee Lewis. Year: 1956. Album and Label: Unknown. The first to use rock piano.
19) You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling by The Righteous Brothers. Year: 1968. Label: Specter. Album: Unknown.
18) Brown eyed Girl by Van Morrison. Year: 1967. Album: Blowin Your Mind. Label: Epic/Legacy. How many times have you heard this song, and it almost wasn’t. Van Morrison originally wrote ‘Brown Skinned Girl’ which was changed dramatically because no one would use it.
17) Earth Angel by The Penguins. Year: 1954. Album: Earth Angel. Label: ACE.
16) Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams. Year: 1985. Album: Reckless. Label: A&M.
15) Tiny Dancer by Elton John. Year: 1971. Album: Madman Across the Water. Label: ocket. This is another artist that could have a list to himself. Lots of great songs, but to me Tiny Dancer is the best.
14) Jack and Diane by John Cougar Melloncamp. Year: 1982. Album: American Fool. Label: Riva. A little ditty… well you know.
13) Oh Pretty Woman by Roy Orbison. Year: 1964. Album and Label: Unknown. Also remade pretty well by Van Halen.
12) True Companion by Marc Cohn. Year: 1991. Album: Marc Cohn. Label: Atlantic.
Sadly only Walking in Memphis really gained popularity from this great album.
11) What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong. Year: 1968. Album: Hello Dolly. Label: Unknown. Another tremendous vocal, a pioneer in his genre.
10) Johnny B Goode by Chuck Berry. Year: 1959. Album: Chuck Berry is on Top. Label: Unknown. Among the first artists to see the electric guitar as the star of the show.
9) Paradise By The Dashboard Light by Meatloaf. Year: 1977. Album: Bat Out of Hell. Label: Epic. You never heard anything like it. Theatre meet Rock and Roll.
8) In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel. Year: 1986. Album: So. Label: Geffen. John Cusack with that boom box over his head, you remember.
7) Fast Car by Tracy Chapman. Year: 1988. Album: Tracy Chapman. Label: Elektra. Unbelievable song, extraordinarily written and performed.
6) Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond. Year: 1969. Album: Sweet Caroline: Brother love Sweet Salvation. Label: MCA. This is probably a little high, I’m not a big fan of Diamonds but I can’t deny this songs popularity.
5) Carry on My Wayward Son by Kansas. Year: 1976. Album: Leftoverture. Label: Epic. This is an epic, epic song with unbelievable musicians.
4) Unchained Melody by The Righteous Brothers. Year: 1965. Album: Unknown. Label: Specter.
3) Scenes From an Italian Restaurant by Billy Joel. Year: 1977. Album: The Stranger. Label: CBS. See Ballads can be upbeat and fun.
2) Making Love Out Of Nothing At All by Air Supply. Year: 1983. Album: Greatest Hits. Label: Arista. This brilliant song was also written by Jim Steinman.

1. For Crying Out Loud by Meatloaf. Year: 1977. Album: Bat Out of Hell. Label: Epic. Simply the greatest song ever performed. Touching, great vocals, and the amazing lyrics written by Jim Steinman.

Honorable mention: Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne. Angel of the Morning by Juice Newton. A Matter of Trust by Billy Joel. Snowblind by Styx. Play the Game tonight by Kansas. Leningrad by Billy Joel. Run for the Roses by Dan Fogelberg. Everything is different now by Don Henley. The best of both worlds by Vah Halen.