Top 5 Songs With Religious Subject Matter

I went through a lot of possible titles for this post: Top 5 Songs That Are At Least Vaguely About Christianity [rolls right off the tongue, right?], Top 5 Songs About Christianity, Top 5 Songs With Christian Subject Matter.  I came up with this idea after seeing the song "Jesus is Just Alright" by The Doobie Brothers on XM.  In essence, here's how I'm applying the ground rules for myself: songs that include Christian subject matter, with a little more importance in the song than just a throwaway line.  This excludes songs like "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" by The Smiths, as it just includes the word "heaven" and nothing else.

Go with me on this one.

Ryan's Top 5:

1. John Lennon - "God" - The song that really solidified his split from The Beatles.  In that context, this song can be really depressing to listen to, but it is, still, perfect in my mind.  Key religious lyric: "God is a concept by which we measure our pain."

2. The Rolling Stones - "Sympathy for the Devil" - I'm pretty firm on this being my favorite Rolling Stones song.  Key religious lyric: "And I was 'round when Jesus Christ / Had his moment of doubt and pain / Made damn sure that Pilate / Washed his hands and sealed his fate."

3. Morrissey - "I Have Forgiven Jesus" - I still feel vaguely sacrilegious listening to this song.  Key religious lyric: "I have forgiven Jesus / For all the desire / He placed in my heart when there's nothing I can do / With this desire" [this among many lines].

4. Billy Bragg & Wilco [lyrics by Woody Guthrie] - "Christ for President" - Satire at its finest.  I might try teaching this next year...every discussion I have with kids seems to get onto the subject of religious hypocrisy and the need for socialism, so it'd fit.  Key religious lyric: Well, all of it.  But my favorite is: "The only way we can ever beat / These crooked politician men / Is to run the money changers out of the temple / Put the Carpenter in."

5. Kanye West - "Jesus Walks" - This narrowly edged out Neutral Milk Hotel, mainly because it very definitely fits the criteria.  Anyway, this song kicks ass, and modern raps that actually have social/religious relevance are rare indeed.  (I'm sorry, there aren't nearly as many good popular rappers now.  It's okay, there are probably fewer good mainstream rockers.)  Favorite lyric [they're all religious]: "To the hustlers, killers, murderers, drug dealers, even the strippers / (Jesus walks with them)."


Honorable Mentions - Number 6 is "King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 2" by Neutral Milk Hotel, Number 7 is probably "Number of the Beast" by Iron Maiden, number 8 is "Big Sky" by The Kinks, and the rest I considered in no order are: "Spirit in the Sky," Norman Greenbaum, "Highway to Hell," AC/DC, "Devil Went Down to Georgia," Charlie Daniels Band, "Straight to Hell," The Clash, "God Knows I'm Good" and "Modern Love," Bowie, "Imagine," Lennon, "Vicar in a Tutu," The Smiths (bit of a stretch), "My Sweet Lord," George Harrison, "Personal Jesus," Depeche Mode.

Ashley’s Top 5: 

1. Norman Greenbaum – “Spirit in the Sky” – I’m a sucker for handclaps.  For all of the hokey lyrics and goofy rhymes in this song, it’s still so awesome.  I love the guitar, the handclaps, the background singers, and every time I hear it I get a huge smile on my face. Greenbaum is apparently a practicing Jew (strange, considering the Jesus references abound) and this song is almost enough to convert me.

2. The Clash – “Death or Glory” – One of my favorite songs by The Clash, this one makes the list mostly because it’s awesome and because it contains one of the best biting commentaries about religion: “And I believe in this—and it’s been tested by research—he who fucks nuns will later join the Church!”

3. Violent Femmes – “Jesus Walking On The Water” – Penned by devout Baptist (and son of a Baptist minister) Gordon Gano (who knew?) this song is such a jam by such a great band.

4. Modest Mouse – “Styrofoam Boots/It’s All Nice on Ice, Alright” – This is the song that made me want to learn the banjo years ago.  From The Lonesome Crowded West, this song is apparently a crowd pleaser, according to YouTube, which I guess I never realized, and when I saw Modest Mouse in 2003 I really wanted them to play this jam but Isaac Brock was too drunk and too busy yelling at sailors at The Norva in Norfolk (they did play my other favorite, “Trailer Trash”).  It’s filled with religious references (feet floating like Christ’s, Saint Peter, etc.) and it segues into its companion song, which is also great.

5. Brian Jonestown Massacre – “The Ballad of Jim Jones” – The first time I watched Dig! I fell in love with this song, which has a dope harmonica and really gorgeous lyrics.  It’s a bit of a downer (compared to the rest of the list, I guess) but it’s been one of my favorites for years.

Honorable mentions: I was committed to putting my favorite gospel song on the list but decided against it at the last minute because it wasn’t quite fair to pull something from that genre; anyway, it is this version of “I Can't Feel At Home In This World Anymore,” by Edith & Sherman Collins (“This world is not my home, I’m just a-passin’ through, my treasures and my hopes are all beyond the blue...”) Other runners-up are: Neutral Milk Hotel–“King of Carrot Flowers pt. 2,” and The Vaselines–“Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam”.

Tim's Top Five:

1) I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - U2 - the song is entirely about Jesus, but you don't really even think about it that way. That's a feat in and of itself that warrants its placement atop the list. But most of all, it was the ship that launched a thousand good songs -- the first two reputable albums I ever owned were U2 - The Joshua Tree and R.E.M. - Out of Time (though I will defend my choice to buy the Spin Doctors - Pocketful of Kryptonite to the day I die). It's simple, it's quiet, and it's powerful stuff, and it's songs like this that make U2's concerts almost as spiritual as Springsteen's -- and when this one's absent, you feel you've lost something.

2) O Mary Don't You Weep - Bruce Springsteen (or Pete Seeger, if you prefer) - this song epitomizes just how phenomenal an achievement Springsteen's Seeger Sessions album was. I had never considered buying it, why would I? Then you hear the kind of fun they're having on the album, a real big band sound, and the fact that it's "Seeger Sessions" that sound like the exact opposite of Pete Seeger -- explosive and potent.

3) Jesus Christ - Big Star - One of the real revelations of the mostly unnecessary Big Star box set was the stereo version of this song, which completely reinvents it and makes it the kind of perfect power pop that laced their first two albums that is lost in the brooding and haunting nature of Third. It gleams brand new, like the last thing Alex Chilton ever recorded. The original (which is captured on youtube here) is still fantastic (though marred by the circus intro for 20 seconds), but the song really makes the best use of an echo chamber I've heard post-Buddy Holly without being Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes-level indulgent.

4) She Left Me For Jesus - Hayes Carll - Well, ignore the cheesy music video that interrupts the song repeatedly, but this is what country music should be, alcohol-soaked, bitter and funny from start to finish.

The chorus really does it justice: She left me for Jesus/And that just ain't fair/She says that he's perfect/How could I compare/She says I should find him./and I'll know peace at last/But if I ever find Jesus/I'm kickin' his ass.

5) Spooky Mormon Hell Dream - Book of Mormon - Well, congratulations, Ryan. You've made me look like I'm a touch flamboyant, since this is my second straight list involving Broadway musicals. For those unfortunate enough to have not seen The Book of Mormon, there are at least a couple songs worthy of mention here, but Spooky Mormon Hell Dream is the winner here for its inclusion of Johnny Cochran. You lose most of it when you don't actually see it on stage, particularly Jesus telling Elder Price that he's a dick, but it's fantastic.

Honorable Mention: Gotta Serve Somebody - Bob Dylan - really the highlight of his brief born-again period, Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton, Knockin on Heaven's Door - Bob Dylan, Light Up Ahead - Further Seems Forever, Living Proof - Bruce Springsteen, I Believe - Book of Mormon - it's not as good a song as Spooky Mormon Hell Dream, but it has the greatest line in musical theater history -- all I will say is that it refers to 1978; All-American Prophet - Book of Mormon; Spirit in the Sky - Norman Greenbaum - loses points because I spend my time wondering why Norman has a friend in Jesus, given that he's Jewish?

Top 5 Songs to Blast While Driving

Note that this is not just "Top 5 Driving Songs," which would be harder. Songs like "Low Rider," "Little Green Bag," and "1979," for example, strike me as great driving songs, but not ones that you can blast or really rev your engine to. There's a specific feeling of power intended in this list. So without further ado...

Dan's Top 5:

1. Van Halen - "Panama" - I think this is an ideal choice for #1, because it was invented to be a driving song. After the band read a review criticizing them for writing songs about partying, women, and cars, they realized that the last bit was inaccurate. Thus, "Panama" was written. Coincidentally, also the first Van Halen song I was exposed to.

2. Stellastarr* - "My Coco" - I know this primarily as my "baseball-season-is-starting" song, but really, it's a good choice for driving as well. I tend to want to jump off of furniture when the first snare hit comes along, so acceleration is a good substitute for that.

3. Spencer Davis Group - "Gimme Some Lovin'" - An amazing driving song, even if you've never seen Days of Thunder. The hairs on my arm stand on end when the organ kicks in, as I always imagine playing this song live in front of a thousand screaming people.

4. Styx - "Come Sail Away" - not an obvious choice, but it became our true-to-life "Bohemian Rhapsody" (which I would include if it weren't for Wayne's World) when our car full of people all sang along. It's got both a vocal-intensive soft part, and a rocking out part. Try it next time it comes on the radio. The more people that join in, the better.

5. Muse - "Stockholm Syndrome" - It's hard to pick just one Muse, song so I picked the most suitable one that wasn't on Black Holes and Revelations, to show that I actually know Muse well enough to make the call. This is in my Top 5 Muse songs for sure (ahem).

Honorable Mentions, in no particular order: Bon Jovi - "Livin' On A Prayer," Sammy Hagar - "I Can't Drive 55," Iron Maiden - "Run To The Hills" (a serious contender for #5), Keane - "Everybody's Changing," Queen - "Hammer To Fall"

Ryan's Top Five

1. Muse - "Knights of Cydonia" - I love all of these songs (and all of my honorable mentions), putting them in order was difficult. That said, I don't know of a safer route than Muse, and you cannot go wrong with "Knights of Cydonia." I spent my 2006 fall travel season blasting this song, speeding, and shirking work at Baker.

2. Queen - "Don't Stop Me Now" - This song is like a tour de force. Freddie Mercury never slows down, for a good three minutes. You don't either. Or I don't, anyway--I have to yell every word. "I'm a rocketship on my way to Mars, I'm a satellite, I'm out of control, I'm a sex machine ready to reload, like an atom bomb, I'm about to woah woah woah EXPLODE!" Sheer brilliance. Bonus points for its association with "Shaun of the Dead."

3. Badly Drawn Boy - "Born in the U.K." - Damon Gough's obvious homage to his hero, Bruce Springsteen. This song is so fucking rocking, and opening with "Pomp and Circumstance" and piano? Ah, yes.

4. Journey - "Don't Stop Believin'" - This song is cheese-tastically brilliant. I adopted it as my own personal anthem in 2003 when the Royals lucked their way into playoff contention. I have never looked back. (Though it has gotten considerably harder to "believe" in the Royals.) Anyway, I will not ever be able to say No to this song after this: http://youtube.com/watch?v=CzEIcWm5Lmg&feature=related . They cut the video off but I swear to God he is going to scream "Don't stop! Believin'!" exactly at 0.0 in the game.

5. Van Halen - "Panama" - Damn it, I can't say no to this one either. I tried to write something for "Livin' on a Prayer" (which I don't even really like, except at max volume speeding in a car), but my heart wasn't in it. This song deserves another Top 5 nod. Was also great in "Superbad."

Honorables, in no order: "Zero," Smashing Pumpkins (the ultimate anger song), "Stockholm Syndrome," "Helter Skelter," "Run," Gnarls Barkley, "Baba O'Riley," "Rebel, Rebel," "London Calling" and "London Burning," "My Coco," "Mr. Brightside," "Take Me Out," Franz Ferdinand, "Invincible," Muse, "Search and Destroy," Iggy & the Stooges, "Bohemian Rhapsody." Phew.

Tim's Top 5:
1. "Thunder Road" by Bruce Springsteen – Like #2, this isn’t because the song begs to be played loud, it’s because it just begs to be played constantly, and if I play it loud enough, I can hear the piano intro and Clarence Clemons’ saxophone for several minutes after it’s over.

2. "Tangled Up In Blue" by Bob Dylan – On the list solely because I did this on Friday driving to work. I just about never turn my stereo up loud, but it’d been a long time since I’d heard this (which is on my short list of favorite songs ever). It’s not exactly a rocker, but it’s satisfying and is right on the list with Thunder Road of songs where I’m impressed that I actually manage to know nearly all of the words, despite the fact that they are both biblical in length.

3. "Free Fallin’" by Tom Petty – Ok, yeah, this is because of Jerry Maguire. You know what, screw you. You’re not cool either if you’re reading this.

4. "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse – Why this Muse song? Because I listen to XM, this is what they play with far more frequency. I have, however, decided that Knights of Cydonia is my favorite song to run to, having listened to it three times consecutively while I was wrapping up my five mile jaunt last week. Still, the sound of this song just gets better with astounding volume.

5. "All These Things That I’ve Done" by The Killers – It’s a long song with a lot of parts to it, and the extra volume adds even more depth to it. When the drums roll in at 52 seconds in, it demands to be blared.

Honorable mention: "Sugar, We're Going Down" by Fall Out Boy - I hate me too, but when you can hear the second guitar coming in at the beginning of the song, it's worth it; "Zoo Station" by U2 - This is entirely because of About a Boy. More people need to make movies so that I can more fully enjoy music.

Top 5 Bruce Springsteen songs

Tim's Top 5:
I've had this list partly composed for ages, but I figured I needed to put it down before I actually listened to the three new albums I've acquired in the last two days (in my defense, they're albums I regarded as totally inessential, and I'm probably only wrong about Tracks -- In Concert/MTV Plugged; Human Touch; and Tracks).
Just because I think it informs you about where I'm coming from, my interest in Springsteen has taken a circuitous path. I bought Greatest Hits and The River in probably 2000, The Rising in 2002, Devils & Dust in 2005, Greetings from Asbury Park; Wild, Innocent; and Darkness On the Edge Of Town in 2006 before getting everything else (except Lucky Town and Chimes of Freedom) last year, courtesy of a lot of trips to the library, a couple to amazon, and yesterday's trip to Pathmark. Yeah. Pathmark.

1. Thunder Road - I thought Nick Hornby was really odd when I read his Songbook entry on Thunder Road five years ago. I mean...Born to Run, right? That's the song. Thunder Road is just a good song. Sigh. I hate 5-years-ago me. Thunder Road is one of the best novels ever written, it just also happens to be a song. Three or four lines from Thunder Road should have just been songs on their own. After several attempts, I've decided I'm incapable of describing it in sentences. If it weren't for the line "You ain't a beauty, but hey you're alright", I think I'd probably actually waste hours of my life attempting to convince Sarah to make this our wedding song. But because of that line, I know better. Thanks, Bruce.

2. No Surrender - This is a great song, made even better because it's about the only song from Born In The USA I hadn't heard before getting the album. It's much more of a frenzied pace than most of Springsteen's work, but it's worth it. The fact that this song was actually used in an attempt to dethrone Bush, well, all the better. It's also a good motivator in attempting to prepare for the Philly Marathon.

3. Atlantic City - This song leads to research, that's how good it is. Ah, the chicken man. The amount of desperation and rationalization crammed into 3:57 is astounding, even for an album that makes several references to the electric chair.

4. The Ties That Bind - It's pure pop-rock joy, but it's a great opening track for an amazing first disc. The stuttering is lifted directly from Buddy Holly, solely for my satisfaction. I'd doubt there's a whole lot of fans who would put it on their top 100 list, but I'll enjoy it.

5. Land of Hope & Dreams - I have no patience. None. Particularly not with songs over seven minutes songs. But Springsteen has several I could easily put in this list without lying to myself. Jungleland, American Skin, Rosalita (Come Out Tonight). But Land of Hope & Dreams has the kind of emotion that I don't think anyone but Bruce can generate, a song telling you that the world's a total disaster of a mess overrun with shattered hopes, crushed dreams, whores and gamblers but still strikes you as life-affirming.

Honorable mention: Born to Run - I've gone through periods in my life where I would have contended it was one of the greatest rock songs ever. It still didn't make this list; The Promised Land - it indulges a little too much in 1970s Bruce mumbling, but it just rings of triumph, and it ought to; From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come) - it's on the Essential Bruce Springsteen, and that's exactly how I'd describe it. He opened a concert in Philly with it in 2003 and I'm still in disbelief that I could have been there; American Land - Much like everything on The Seeger Sessions, it's way too good. Way too good. It's an amazing pro-America song that still rings totally dark; Lonesome Day/The Rising - both amazing songs, though I preferred Worlds Apart when I first got the album; Brilliant Disguise - I'm really coming around on this song, it strikes me as an exceptionally mature song that you can only appreciate once you've experienced adult relationships, but it still has a drum machine. Hence, no top 5; Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) - you can have the other 6:30 if you want, but "Tell him this is last chance to get his daughter in a fine romance
Because a record company, Rosie, just gave me a big advance" is the most euphoric moment in a rock and roll song.

Dan's Top 5:

Let's see, "Born To Run," "Dancing in the Dark," "Born in the USA"... Nope, I can only stand three Bruce Springsteen songs. Granted, that's from the pool of songs I've heard on the radio. Until someone challenges my belief that the man can't sing, I don't see myself liking Bruce Springsteen.

Ryan's Top Five

I like Bruce Springsteen but I've never been able to really get into him. I do have enough favorites for a Top 5, however.

1. "Born to Run" - Cliche I'm sure, but there's a reason many people consider it his best song. I am in that group.

2. "Thunder Road" - Excellent.

3. "Streets of Philadelphia" - I honestly love this song, but I think more than that I like wearing a hoodie when it's cold and we're outside, getting Cortney's attention ("Look, Cortney!) and somberly, Springsteenily singing, "Streets of Philadelphia..." as I saunter along with my hands in my pockets. It's one of my longest-running jokes and I'm fairly sure it's only funny to me, and maybe Tory.

4. "Dancing in the Dark" - One of my favorite songs from the '80s.

5. "Born in the USA" - Good stuff.

In retrospect, I went with what I'll call a "Now This Is What I Call Springsteen!" list...one that would make record compilers and boring People Magazine Top 5-makers happy. Yikes. I defer to Tim.

Top 5 Songs of 2007

Tim mentioned this topic last time, and since I'm bored at the moment, digesting some lasagna, I guess I'll go ahead and try starting it. Since it's just songs, I imagine there will be a lot more feedback since I'm pretty sure everything we can think of putting here will be easily accessible. There's always Youtube.

Dan's Top 5:

1. Duran Duran - Falling Down - I had a really tough time trying to determine the #1 spot, which for some reason isn't normally the case. I decided to play it safe and go with a pop song. The masters of pop really came through on Red Carpet Massacre, and this is by far the best song on the album, and ranks up there with "Come Undone" and "Ordinary World" in terms of songwriting quality. I doubt I'll ever get tired of hearing this one.

2. Panda Bear - Comfy in Nautica - I talked a lot about this song in the last post, and it was really the only other contender for #1. I figure it's safer to put it at number two, but really, it's a virtual tie. Who knows, the Duran Duran song may even get old. Now, maybe Panda Bear loses some points because the vocals are just so reminiscent of Brian Wilson and his insane reverb that it almost seems a touch unoriginal. But no, this is just a damn good song.

3. Paul McCartney - Dance Tonight - A-ha, you had forgotten about this single, hadn't you? Shame on you, since it was the epitome of Paul McCartney songwriting. A short, simple-as-hell song. And it gets bonus points for featuring the mandolin. And it's catchy. Look it up on Youtube, and it will be in your head for the next week. Bonus points for Mackenzie Crook being in the music video.

4. Radiohead - Videotape - Not my favorite song off of In Rainbows, but probably the best objectively speaking. It's a good end-of-life retrospective piece, perfect as the last song on the album. I liked the earlier live bootlegs so much better, though.

5. LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends - The music behind this lengthy song is the definition of repetitive, but it gives it almost a "Heroes" kind of feel. I just started listening to it today, and I guess this is my way of saying, "hey, check it out - now I'm listening to LCD Soundsystem." But honestly, this song seems really special. Or maybe it isn't and just seems new to me.

Honorable mentions: All the other Radiohead songs on In Rainbows, The Good, The Bad, & The Queen - Herculean, The Bravery - Believe, The Bravery - Time Won't Let Me Go, Editors - An End Has a Start

Tim's Top 5:
This list is loaded with horns...sorry, KC and the Sunshine Band, this just about had to be your year.

1. Spoon - The Underdog - This is classic Spoon, an understated song that has no basis for ever reaching the radio. The song's even got a horn section, something not you're going to hear out of Austin, TX that often. Britt Daniel is in rare faux British form, and it's a brisk and catchy song with an infinitely memorable chorus moment that you will carry around with you weeks at a time. It's one of the best songs of 1966, which easily makes it the best song of 2007.

2. The Shins - Phantom Limb - It's hard to knock this from #1, since it's the song from 2007 that I've listened to the most obsessively, but for a long time I actually didn't even like it, so I suspect that there had to be something that turned me off initially. It's not all about the vocals here, because the simplistic and constant drumming carries more than its share of the weight, but there's more depth and direction in James Mercer's voice for one second in this track than Scott Stapp will have experienced in his entire life.

3. Jay-Z - Roc Boys (and the winner is...) - Ok, American Gangster is not a great album on par with The Black Album, but this is Jay-Z in rare form. And it's got its own horn section that really carries the flow. It mixes Curtis Mayfield-R&B, the unmatched rap stylings of Shawn Carter, and a pure pop chorus. Rolling Stone called it the number one song of the year, I'm sad to say, but even a broken clock is right twice a day. Their inclusion of Kanye's "Stronger" at #13 on the list just shows that they are also quite wrong on a frequent basis.

4. The Bravery - Believe - I don't quibble with someone who would choose Time Won't Let Me Go as the better of the singles on this album, and part of me almost chose Fistful of Sand as the best track on the album. But if you're listening to it on the album, including the 29 second intro that begins the album, I don't think there's much choice. It's a more modest track than Time Won't Let Me Go, that really just sounds "big", but the guitar - drums - guitar - vocals lead-in in the first ten seconds of the song grabs me every time. It's also apparently on Madden 2008, but despite my hours and hours of playing the game, it didn't catch my attention until I got the album. Well done, The Bravery. With respect to 2007, I choose you in the feud with The Killers. In 2005 and 2006, uh...yeah, well, this album was amazing.

5. Arctic Monkeys - Fluorescent Adolescent - This is what an amazing day in London sounds like. This is the song that will forever place "daft" in my lexicon of words that will be useful in a pinch. It has a lo-fi sound, but you can also tell that all 8 tracks on the recorder were getting used before this went in the can. The real hook here is Alex Turner's vocal work and rapid tempo shifts, ranging from frenetic at the beginning of the verses and slowing down into the breaks -- it's perhaps the only song I can think of that builds up to slowing down, but it works masterfully...until it sprints to the finish. It's a 3 minute pop song, but it does it right.

Honorable Mention: The White Stripes - You Don't Know What Love Is (You Do As You're Told); Travis - My Eyes; The Bravery - Fistful of Sand; Bruce Springsteen - American Land (no one else could capture another era's music any better); Bruce Springsteen - Last To Die (probably the best lyrical song of 2007); Fall Out Boy - Carpal Tunnel of Love (just the "woo hoo hoo" almost pushed it into the Top 5); The Arcade Fire - Keep the Car Running; Maroon 5 - Makes Me Wonder (the lyrics really made the difference, just knowing that the 18 year old girls who wanted to run out and buy the album didn't notice what Adam Levine is saying makes me love this song)

Ryan's Top Five

1. "The Good Life" - Kanye West - I love, love, love this song. This is the ultimate backyard party song.

2. "An End Has A Start" - The Editors This song rules. I love this sound, whatever particular genre this is.

3. "Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors" - The Editors - I thought about ranking this one above song #2, but then I'd just be being cheeky.

4. "Listen!!!" - Talib Kweli - He and Kanye are the two best rappers out there, says I. That'd be an interesting Top 5...

5. "Flashing Lights" - Kanye West - Well, this pick evidences how much music I heard last year. That said, I do love this song. A great driving song.

Top 5 Albums of 2007

We're going to jumpstart this thing...maybe we'll make it to weekly posts by the end of March or April.

Tim's Top 5:
2007 wasn't a bad year for music. It wasn't great, it brought disappointing albums from Kanye West, Jay-Z, an awful live album from Guided by Voices, and Fountains of Wayne, who managed to cash in on their fame by going into total hiding and not even getting their middling album promoted.

1) Eddie Vedder - Into The Wild -- Wow. There are a lot of bands that are such figureheads that their lead singer could branch off and create a great album on his own that's basically indistinguishable from the band's own work. Well, that's not what this album is. It's exceedingly brief, with a number of songs that are barely even long enough to be Robert Pollard-written, but it's mastery of the stripped-down musical ambience that a story like Into the Wild demands. I just can't envision how a story as magnificent as Into the Wild, merged with a soundtrack that's so perfect that even the book should be read to it, could be anything but the best film of 2007 (or, with little hyperbole, the best film in a decade), but that remains to be seen. "Hard Sun" is a great song, "Far Behind", "Society", "No Ceiling" and "Setting Forth" are all its peers or superiors. It took a second listen before I started to really enjoy it, it took me starting to read the book before I fell in love with it, but it's now an absolute essential to my playlist.

2) Bruce Springsteen - Magic -- I didn't notice that Radio Nowhere really did appear to be Springsteen channeling Eddie Vedder's voice until reading it in someone else's review, but it does seem true. The album as a whole is coherent, tight, and pretty even. It has definite highlights -- "Last to Die" and "Livin' in the Future" are among the best in recent years, but most of all it proved that The Rising was not a one-off, Springsteen's still more than capable of rocking out ("Radio Nowhere", "Last To Die"), but still has the ability to write evocative and emotional songs ("Terry's Song"). Perhaps most importantly, Clear Channel has refused to play anything from it, because it apparently commits the sacrilege of not giving George W. a big, sloppy kiss (though it's not necessary to treat it as a political album).

3) The Bravery - The Sun and the Moon -- Well, you can't write a band off just because their first album was disappointing. Granted, I only found out it was disappointing because I was so enamored with The Sun and the Moon that I bought the debut off ITunes a day later, but it is. The Sun and the Moon, on the other hand, has fed XM Radio two of the most pleasantly overplayed songs in Believe and Time Won't Let Me Go. The songs in between the two on the album fit in perfectly and capture the faux British sound that I clearly am totally susceptible to (let's be honest, Guided by Voices spawned it, Spoon is an obvious offspring of it, and The Bravery doesn't fall far from that tree, and neither do the Killers. Then about 75% of the other bands I like are British)

4) Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions - American Land Edition -- I can't even begin to describe how much I thought the Seeger Sessions sounded like an awful idea. I wouldn't have ever listened to a single track from the album had I not landed tickets to see Springsteen at Giants Stadium in July. When I saw he was playing American Land to close out every show, I felt like I just about had to hear it and acquire it. That led to ITunes...which led to me buying the album. Now I can only say it's a shame that I'm ranking this behind Magic, because I think on so many levels this might be a better album, it's just not one you can just turn on and listen to in the same way. But what it surrenders in accessibility it makes up for in overwhelming greatness. This is one of those experiments that could have and probably should have gone horribly wrong. It didn't.

5) Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare -- Fluorescent Adolescent is one of my songs of 2007, Brianstorm is the most annoying single Arctic Monkeys have put out, and it's still great, it's just a totally listenable album that I think matches or exceeds the promise of their first album, even if this one pretty much stayed under the radar in both the United States and the U.K. (comparatively, it was still a #1 album in the UK, but it sold considerably less). This is what cements Arctic Monkeys in the "must buy" list. Now I just need to get back to the UK to get Who The F*** Are Arctic Monkeys for the price it should sell for.

Honorable Mention: The Shins - Wincing the Night Away -- It took me way too long to really enjoy anything on the album, and so much is wrapped up in the fact that Phantom Limb is the catchiest song of 2007 that I can't really say I'm a fan of the album as a whole; Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga -- Initially a disappointment, but it's a great album and The Underdog is definitely a rival with Phantom Limb for the song I'm most likely to listen to eight times in a row; The Arcade Fire - Neon Bible -- This is penalized for me having only listened to it once thus far (I bought it on a whim with The Sun and The Moon three weeks ago), but I think it could join a serious conversation for #5; lastly, Jay-Z - American Gangster -- Yes, I described it as disappointing, but I'm starting to appreciate it, and it has a couple tracks for the canon. I just don't want to pull a Sam's Town and look back a year later in disbelief that I didn't consider it an elite album.

The only album I know of that I feel like I need to hear from 2007 that's not on this list is Interpol, which I just got from the library. For now, it warrants an asterisk.

Take it away, other people, knowing full well that the Top songs of 2007 (where I really make my love for poppy, commercial music obvious) looms in the immediate future.

Dan's Top 5:

1. The Good, The Bad & The Queen – The Good, The Bad & The Queen – When Damon Albarn (Blur, Gorillaz) does anything, odds are it's going to be good. Add to that Paul Simonon (The Clash), Simon Tong (The Verve) and Tony Allen (Africa 70), and you have the definition of a supergroup. Oh, and Dangermouse produced it, too. The thing is, most supergroups have traditionally put out crappy music. Or so I'd assume. I imagine everyone involved would be overplaying their parts and egos would be clashing. Not the case here. And hey, it's British and it sounds British. There's a definite London motif about the album, to the point where it makes me wonder if I'm missing out on what they're singing about.

2. Panda Bear – Person Pitch – If it's possible that one song can carry an album, it would be the opener to this little masterpiece, "Comfy in Nautica." It's one of the best and most addicting musical pieces I've heard, and apparently I'm not alone in thinking so. Rolling Stone called it the #74 best song of the year. If nothing else, it earns you points when you listen to it because no one is listening to it either. Unless they pay attention to Pitchfork, which called it the best album of the year. Then again, they take the art of being a pretentious music snob to another level.

3. Radiohead – In Rainbows – Alright, maybe I have rose-colored glasses on when it comes to Radiohead, but I'd argue against that. To this day, I still don't like Pablo Honey, Kid A or Amnesiac. The rest of their discography, however, is fucking brilliant. That being said, I'd say that this album isn't as good as Hail to the Thief was. It's very chill, and with the exception of "Bodysnatchers," it stays that way the whole way through and offers not much else to listen to. It could have been better, but it's still amazing.

4. Gogol Bordello – Super Taranta! – Gypsy Punk Music. That's a pretty accurate description. And if that's not enough to get you interested in listening to this album, I don't know if the rest of the words that follow will do much else. I had the privilege of seeing the band live, and it's something else entirely. If you like taking into account a band's originally, then this band is one of the most original you could ask for. What is helpful is that I believe any thirty-second clip of the tracks from this album will give you a pretty accurate indication of what they sound like. So check it out.

5. Duran Duran – Red Carpet Massacre – This last spot was tough, but I have to go with my old favorite. I had already heard that Justin Timberlake and Timbaland had done a good job making pop music. They both collaborated with the Fab Five on "Falling Down," resulting in one of the best songs I've ever heard. That song and the rest of the album prove that Duran Duran can still sound fresh and original, and they haven't done that since The Wedding Album.

Honorable Mentions: Porcupine Tree – Fear of a Blank Planet, The Bravery – The Sun and the Moon (didn't make the top 5 since Tim already mentioned it.), The Go! Team – Proof of Youth

Ryan's Top Five

I will attempt to make a credible list despite my lack of albums from last year. That said, the only stuff I've heard has to be the best, right? Right?

1. Various Artists - "The Darjeeling Limited" Soundtrack - OK, I am cheating here but still, this was the best album I bought last year. Awesome songs from The Kinks, et. al.

2. Kanye West - "Graduation" - Not nearly as good as College Dropout, but miles better than Late Registration. I love "Good Life" and "Flashing Lights."

3. Various Artists - "Hot Fuzz" Soundtrack - Cheating again. "The Village Green Preservation Society" is one of my all-time favorites.

4. The Editors - "An End Has A Start" - OK, this is probably better than #4 on this list, but I haven't listened to it enough to slot it any higher.

5. Talib Kweli - "Eardrum" - Talib Kweli is like a poet who raps--literally, he references Shakespeare, Langston Hughes, and others in songs from this album.

Top 5 Lyricists

Lyrics are what compels me more than music, and this list is to honor those who have realized that lyrics are important and not to just be shoved in between the catchy instruments. I will give one example of their writing, though all of these definitely have much more to offer.

Tory's Top 5:

1. Conor Oberst - The front man for Bright Eyes who started writing music when he was about 13, and put out about 20 songs written from the time between age 13 and 15, all showing the technique of an established poet. It isn't so much cleverness of the lyrics, but the use of rhyme along with half-rhyme, assonance and alliteration to make lines fit together. Has also established about 4 other bands."There's a dream in my brain, that just won't go away, it's been stuck there since it came a few nights ago / and i'm standing on a bridge, in the town where i lived as kid with my mom and my brothers / and then the bridge disappears and i'm standing on air / with nothing holding me."

2. Damien Rice - Simply an incredible writer. Pairs music with his songs perfectly, and writes what some could say are the most depressing songs in existence, but always sings them with an incredible beauty. "Cheers darlin, I got years to wait around for you / Cheers darlin, I got your wedding bells in my ear / cheers darlin, you gave me three cigarettes, to smoke my tears away."

3. Maynard - Fronting Tool, Maynard James Keenan writes some of the most enigmatic lyrics to ever be written, but they still hold the ability to be poignant at least in meaning. He's also appeared in A Perfect Circle and has another band he's put together Puscifier. "Some say a comet will fall from the sky / followed by meteor showers and title waves / followed by faultlines that cannot sit still / followed by millions of dumb-founded dipshits / some say the end is near / some say we'll see armageddon soon / certainly hope we will /i sure could use a vaction from this / stupid shit, silly shit, stupid shit."

4. Roger Waters - I am an immense Pink Floyd fan, so much that they are one of my favorite bands, as fandom goes. One of the whole points behind Pink Floyd is obviously the trippy lyrics. "Oh, how I wish, how I wish you were here / we're just two lost souls swimmin in a fish bowl, year after year / runnin over the same old ground, and hav you found / the same old fears / wish you were here."

5. Cedric Bixler-Zavala - This may be premature, or a current bias, but these lyrics are some of the most awkward things I've ever read, and that's all there is to say about it. Oh, he sings for The Mars Volta, but stared with the band At the Drive-in. "You must have been phlegmatic in stature / the gates of thanos are spread-eagle wide / you let the shutters make sackcloth and ashes / out of a blind man's picaresque heart."


Ryan's Top 5:

This is a good idea for a list, but I'm feeling a bit boring, as you'll see, so all my answers would probably make the editors at Rolling Stone happy--which means, of course, that my list sucks.

1. John Lennon - For me it was a close call between Lennon and Simon, but I'm going to have to go with the walrus on this one. I don't believe that songs are simply poetry put to music. Occasionally, Paul Simon can write songs that, while great, are more poetic than musical (see: The Dangling Conversation, which is like a poem with background music. Good, though). Anyway, not much sense trying to explain Lennon's greatness, so here's a random quote: "Always know sometimes think it's me / But you know I know when it's a dream / I think I know I mean, ah yes / but it's all wrong / that is I think I disagree / Let me take you down..."

2. Paul Simon - Not to discount Garfunkel's contribution to the band--namely, big hair--but Simon has an amazing way with words. You want examples, I mean, take your pick--The Boxer, I Am A Rock, Sound of Silence, Mrs. Robinson, America, etc. etc. etc. "Hello darkness, my old friend / I've come to talk with you again / Because a vision softly creeping / Left its seeds while I was sleeping / And the vision that was planted in my brain / Still remains / Within the sound of silence." Bonus points for never burning out and producing crap (see: McCartney, Paul), and also solving apartheid in South Africa with Graceland.

3. David Bowie - "I'm an alligator, I'm a mama-papa coming for you / I'm the space invader, I'll be a rock 'n' rollin' bitch for you / Keep your mouth shut, you're squawking like a pink monkey bird / And I'm busting up my brains for the words." I think that pretty much says it all.

4. Harry Nilsson - There were rumors in 1970 that if Paul left the band, Nilsson could've stepped in. That, of course, would have led to Nilsson, Lennon, and Ringo all dying of liver failure by 1973, but it's still neat to think about. "Have you ever watched a moonbeam / As it slid across your windowpane / Or struggled with a bit of rain / Or danced about the weathervane / Or sat along a moving train / And wondered where the train has been..."

5. Paul McCartney - Has done just about everything possible to soil his musical record as of late, but he wrote some of the best songs ever recorded: Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday, Hey Jude, etc. As we've all heard these songs nine-hundred times, I'll forego the lyrics.

Honorable mentions: I won't try to sneak these guys in this time around, but I do think, given some more time, they could be on this list: Sufjan Stevens, Damon Gough (Badly Drawn Boy).

Dan's Top 5:

1. David Bowie - I think that if I have to explain Bowie to you, you're not worth talking to. A candidate for being overlooked lyrically, though, since the music is so strong. "And you / You can be mean / And I / I'll drink all the time / 'Cause we're lovers / And that is a fact / Yes we're lovers / And that is that."

2. Warren Zevon - Songwriting with sardonic dark humor? Sign me up. Honestly, Werewolves of London, though his greatest hit, isn't very indicative of his true talent. "I'm very well aquainted with the seven deadly sins / I keep a busy schedule trying to fit them in."

3. Damon Albarn - Blur, Gorrilaz, The Good The Bad and The Queen. They're all good. "She says theres ants in the carpet / Dirty little monsters / Eating all the morsels / Picking up the rubbish."

4. Paul Simon - It still astounds me that with all he did in Simon and Garfunkel, he still had enough left in him for a very good solo career. That rarely ever happens. "When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school it's a wonder I can think at all / And though my lack of education hasn't hurt me none, I can read the writing on the wall."

5. Colin Meloy - The Decemberists are, according to Colbert, "hyper-literate prog rock," and that couldn't be possible without Colin Meloy. Though I've had their music in my possession for quite some time, I truthfully have only been listening for the last few days. But their specialty for morose sea shanties and upbeat songs about myriad fictional characters lands them a spot in the Top 5. "And they tell her not to say a thing to cousin, kindred, kith or kin or she'll end up dead / And they throw her thirty dollars and return her to the harbour where she goes to bed, and this is how you're fed."

Honorable Mentions: Harry Nilsson, John Lennon, and Paul McCartney, excluded as they've been named by Ryan, who did them adequate justice.

Tim's Top 5:
1. Bob Dylan - No question here. Stuck Inside of Mobile (With the Memphis Blues Again), Idiot Wind, Tangled Up in Blue, All Along the Watchtower, It Ain't Me Babe, all great songs...and he would win for My Back Pages alone if it really came down to it. Time Out of Mind's tracks like Love Sick and Not Dark Yet continue the tradition, even if his last two albums aren't really worth mentioning. Who else could have written The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll and actually turned it into a decent song?

2. Bruce Springsteen - Few artists could have put together an album like The Rising without coming off as a dreadfully trite assemblage of flag-waving garbage. But it's just the sheer volume of great songs that Springsteen has written that involve characters without making them as repetitive as things like Ben Folds' solo work where nearly every song has to have named characters. Born to Run, Thunder Road, Brilliant Disguise, American Skin -- this is great stuff.

3. John Lennon - He does lose some for his all-too-sentimental period around Double Fantasy, but he wrote the Beatles' best material. Imagine, Tomorrow Never Knows, Happiness is a Warm Gun, Instant Karma...McCartney is good, but not on this level...and seriously, McCartney wrote a song called Biker Like an Icon.

4. Elliott Smith - He picked up the John Lennon introspective torch, but took it way farther. Ballad of Big Nothing is one of the best written songs I've heard even though it's extremely simple. Figure 8 may have been his lyrical peak with Stupidity Tries, Son of Sam, but Either/Or isn't far off and From a Basement on A Hill has some great stuff.

5. Noel Gallagher - Sure, I was in high school when (What's the Story) Morning Glory came out, but it had some songs that really struck me as well-crafted -- Don't Look Back in Anger, Some Might Say, really everything except for She's Electric and Chapagne Supernova. And I prefer Definitely Maybe with Rock n' Roll Star and Cigarettes and Alcohol, which really warrants (by itself) a spot higher than 5th.

Honorable mention: Bernie Taupin (hard to admit, but in the 1970s, Elton John actually recorded decent music); Neil Young, Adam Schlesinger/Chris Collingwood (since they're two people, I had to settle for honorable mentioning them), Billy Corgan.