Some More of My Feelings

It's that time of year, when the summer rainstorms rumble and people take the Blue Line out to Revere Beach and women waiting to get BerryLine go absolutely apeshit if they run out of strawberries...but most of all it is the time of year when Rolling Stone tells us what they think are the 500 best songs...of all time.

I know...why should I even enter into this fray? Why should I stand in front of the newstand, reading this Rolling Stone issue without paying, audibly cheering and jumping around when true greats appear on the list, then grunting and muttering when they PUT THE BEATLES ON THE LIST THREE HUNDRED FRIGGIN' TIMES? I'm gonna go ahead and say this, Beatles, and you know I'm not the first...you're fucking overrated.


(Except you, Ringo. We're cool.)

So I will go straight to the heart of the problem here: in their self-obsession, Rolling Stone chose "Like a Rolling Stone" by Bob Dylan and "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones as the two greatest songs...ever. I have no problem with being into yourself, Rolling Stone, but the atrocity of giving the Rolling Stones' version of Satisfaction this much credit cannot go unpunished.* Case in point:



Suck it, Mick Jagger.


But two of my dearest favorites are in the top 25, so I won't hate too hard:

at 12: A Change is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke
at 24: People Get Ready - The Impressions

Though we could go deep about the history this list reveals especially around white musicians "borrowing"/co-opting black musical styles or songs...but that's another (long-ass) post for another day.

*The 500 Greatest list considers covers as their own songs -- i.e., Aretha's version of "Respect" is listed even though Otis wrote it.