Pink Floyd, Wish You Were Here: Before this band went on to mega success with Dark Side of The Moon, their lead singer Syd Barrett disappeared into a haze of paranoid schizofrenia, and recently died of natural causes. With this 1975 title track, the sense of Barrett's loss couldn't be more obvious. Boasting some of the best lyrics I've ever heard, this stands as a quiet and stunning tribute to a fallen comrade. Some critics suggest the band never got past this loss (elements of paranoia and insanity filled the band's latter works, including The Wall), but its a great song nevertheless.
Bob Dylan, Knockin' On Heaven's Door: This little ditty came from a rarely seen Western (Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid) from Wild Bunch director Sam Peckinpah that Dylan appeared in. But this tune managed to inspire several covers from Eric Clapton to Guns N' Roses. However, nothing beats the original.
The Psychedelic Furs, Heartbreak Beat: Nice eighties pop, epic and grandiose in scope. And I dig the dirty saxophone too.
New Order, Bizarre Love Triangle: Nice and cool syntheizer music. Gets me in the groove every time.
Massive Attack, Unfinished Sympathy: One of the first really good trip-hop tunes ever. And the album it comes from (Blue Lines) isn't bad either.
The Ramones, Blitzkrieg Bop: Two minutes of high-speed classic punk rock that refuses to slow down in case you feel like its about to run you over. It's just not done like this anymore.
Marc Bolan and T. Rex, (Bang-A-Gong) Get It On: A solid rock tune from the seventies that only hinted at what could have been if its lead singer didn't die tragically.
To be continued another time...
(There's a lot of dead people on this list. A bit depressing. Next time I need to show favorites from artists still breathing...)
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