The Problem With Lists

I'll spare you the "ESPN is running a program tonight called The Decision where Jim Gray will sit down with St. Peter to find out if George Steinbrenner is going up or down"-type jokes to bring you the problem with lists. I enjoyed the states and movies projects, but as you get into more and more things, the universe you're pulling from gets so large that you're bound to miss stuff. So, it's much easier to do things like, "So, LeBron, where are you headed?" "Well, and this is tough to say, I'm going to take my talents to--" "Wait, LeBron, and I'ma let you finish, but I had the most narcissistic moment of all time!"

I want to do something on my favorite songs, but how do you possibly narrow it down? So here, off the top of my dome, are my five favorite what-I'd-consider classic rock songs of all time. I'm sure I'm leaving something even out of these:

5. "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival


4. "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" by The Police


3. "Little Wing" (Stevie Ray Vaughan cover): There are live videos on YouTube, but I'm specifically talking about this album version. It's the most raw, pure tone I've ever heard anybody get out of an electric guitar on a recording. Yes, it's better than even Hendrix's original. If you've ever touched an electric guitar, this recording is practically a religious experience.


2. "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by The Beatles: The lead guitar (played by Clapton) is amazing on this song, considering how The Beatles revolutionized electric music, but the bass line is almost equally amazing. There's an urgency to it that makes it feel very heavy for a band not thought of as particularly heavy in a time, 1968, when heavy music was still relatively new.


1. "Brown Sugar" by The Rolling Stones: When you say, "Rock and Roll," I think this song.