Brackets...we’ve got brackets.

Ballots are due at midnight on Saturday, July 14. New voters should check out Bracketology Central for the lowdown on the tournament and the rules. And, a reminder: voting is still open for Week 4 today and tomorrow.

Incidentally, I’ll be out of town next weekend and might not have internet access (I’ll be in Amish country, and no I’m not kidding), so results for these brackets might not be posted until late Monday.

BRACKET 17
45. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)
84. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)
173. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)
212. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)

BRACKET 18
20. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)
109. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
148. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)
237. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)

BRACKET 19
52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)
77. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
180. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)
205. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)

BRACKET 20
13. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)
116. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
141. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
244. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)

and….go.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” - My aunt got my into this song, and boy is it great. Prince's talent is definitely coming out in this masterpiece, where he plays all the instruments! Amazing.
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) - Cooke's answer to Blowin' In The Wind, and what an answer it is. Timeless.
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) - You really can't get this out of your head, even though you want to sometimes. It's getting a little annoying, don't know why.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) - This song just doesn't do it for me. Overrated.

BRACKET 18
1. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) - The very first funk hit perhaps, and I love it. This is a hit!
2. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) - Now this is a good Beatles song, in my opinion one of the very few.
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) - A lot of unknown songs for me this week, or reasonably unknown. I thought I didn't know this one, but I recognized it as soon as it started. Great beat, but a distant third in this bracket.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) - Not that special.

BRACKET 19
1. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) - The Turner-version is more wellknown, but this one is so much better. Keep on rollin'!
2. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) - I love Simon and Garfunkel, among my top 10 performers ever. Mary rolls right over Sounds of Silence though.
3. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) - I'm not particularly fond of the song, but it's better than FtP.
4. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) - I guess I just don't get it.

BRACKET 20
1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) - The only 'rap' song I absolutely love. Fantastic, easy #1.
2. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) - The greatest Motown act in my not so humble opinion. Not easy to compete with Dylan though, sorry Papa.
3. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) - Tough competition for Ronny in this bracket, a great song in my opinion but not as great as the previous 2.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) - It seems like every bracket has one song that I don't get this week, so yeah.. I don't get it. What's so special about this?

My first contribution to Bracketology. Here it goes...

BRACKET 17
1. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)
Number one with a bullet. Brilliant social commentary; one of Cooke’s best, by far.
2. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry”
Great song; love Prince, but this one takes second to Mr. Cooke.
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)
Catchy, but that’s about all it has to offer. Meh.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)
A staple on top 40 radio back in the day. Didn’t like it then, still don’t like it now.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)
Amazing ending to one of the greatest albums of all time. Two words: the chord. If this was any other song off Sgt. Peppers, I’d still put it at #1.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
Holy funk. Love it.
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)
Mediocre at best.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)
Never was a huge fan.

BRACKET 19
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)
This is some dark shit, yo! The lyrics are bleak and gorgeous at the same time. Not as good as some of Simon’s later work, but still deserving of #1 here.
2. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)
John Fogerty sure knew how to write a pop song.
3. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
Not my favorite, but you have to admire it for it’s balls.
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)
Sure.

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)
Wall of Sound + girl group = delicious pop nugget. Not tainted by Dirty Dancing OR Eddie Money (well, in my head anyway).
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
I can feel the wrath coming for putting Zimmerman at #2 here. And I hate to do it, but….
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
Not their best. Deserving of #3 here.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
An easy #4. Just doesn’t do anything for me.

Bracket 17
1. SAM COOKE, “A CHANGE IS GONNA COME”: I cannot overstate how great this song is. It’s epic and sweeping, but there’s not an ounce of fat on it. It’s in the best tradition of gospel blues. It’s the best song about a difficult time that ended in my country’s proudest achievement of the last 50 years (that would be the Civil Rights movement). Oh, and, by the way, it’s the greatest soul song ever.
2. PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, “WHEN DOVES CRY”: Sorry, Moonbeam—I would have put it first in most brackets. I think most people have forgotten how flat out WEIRD this sounded in 1984…and it went to #1. Further proof that Prince can do anything.
3. DEEE-LITE, “GROOVE IS IN THE HEART”
4. KYLIE MINOGUE, “CAN’T GET YOU OUT OF MY HEAD”
These two songs are both agreeable pieces of fluff, but I have to give the nod to Deee-Lite for having Bootsy Collins.

Bracket 18
1. THE BEATLES, “A DAY IN THE LIFE”: I have a feeling this is the Beatles song everyone’s been waiting to vote for…like “A Change Is Gonna Come,” this song has grandeur but it earns it (which is sadly rare in songs that aim this high). Might be John Lennon’s finest moment…it’s certainly the best thing about Sgt. Pepper.
2. JAMES BROWN, “PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG”: He’s The Hardest Working Man in Show Business because he makes funk this hot sound sooo easy…
3. THE EVERLY BROTHERS, “CATHY’S CLOWN”: Definitely the least of the three Everly songs we’ll be voting on…I’m kind of surprised it’s here.
4. FRANKIE LYMON AND THE TEENAGERS, “WHY DO FOOLS FALL IN LOVE”: We don’t have much doo wop in the tournament, but I can’t put this any higher…I just have a bias against children as rock singers—they almost NEVER sound good (see also: Jackson 5, Hanson).

Bracket 19
1. PUBLIC ENEMY, “FIGHT THE POWER”: In an era when rap was mighty, PE was the mightiest of all, and this is their best. Yeeeaah, boyyyyyyyyy.
2. SPENCER DAVIS GROUP, “GIMME SOME LOVIN’”: I didn’t realize until this morning that that’s Steve Winwood singing…damn, I didn’t think I liked him. Ironclad rule: if the Blues Brothers cover it, it’s good.
3. SIMON AND GARFUNKEL, “THE SOUND OF SILENCE”: I’m not happy about putting this here, because it’s beautiful and includes one of my favorite lyrics (“the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls”). I might be taking off points because it was in the most overrated movie in history (The Graduate).
4. CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL, “PROUD MARY”: I’ve never been able to get into Creedence; I think they’re the John Mellencamp of their day (Tina Turner nailed this song, though).

Bracket 20: Brutal choices here.
1. BOB DYLAN, “SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK BLUES”: Concentrated Dylan. Often imitated, never matched (though “It’s the End of the World As We Know It” performed honorably). Might be the first rap song…definitely had the first music video.
2. THE RONETTES, “BE MY BABY” Man, I hate to do this to Ronnie…and to Brian Wilson, who said this was the perfect pop song.
3. ISAAC HAYES, “THEME FROM SHAFT”: Best movie theme ever? You damn right.
4. THE TEMPTATIONS, “PAPA WAS A ROLLING STONE” A fine song, but it’s a little long and never quite reaches the boiling point.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)- My favourite Prince-song. Heard it already 10000 times, but still there's something special about it.
2. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)- Great one. I remember that I lived in Rome when this song came out and it was one of the very rare times that I really digged a song listening to it for the very first time.
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)- Normally I don't like that style of music, but this one will remain a dance-classic forever. Could have been No.1 in many other brackets easily.
4. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)- I feel ashamed that I put this one on the last place, but what can I do? Close call though!

BRACKET 18
20. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)- John Lennon's part is enough to secure the No.1-spot here, but because of Macca this song isn't one of my favourite Beatles-songs. Such a contrast! I wished, John would have sung the whole song.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)- That one is moving my feet. I never really got into James Brown, but in this case: Hell yeah!!!
148. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)- Annoying... really!!!
237. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)- The Everly Brothers again and again and again and again and again and again...

BRACKET 19
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)- Great atmosphere. Would have been No.1 even without the "power-part", but this climax makes it one of the all-time greatest.
2. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)- This one is on point. Message matches production, great song.
52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)- Strong bracket, so only third place for this nice song.
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)- Not bad, a decent song; but I can't stand the voices.

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)- THE wall of sound! Paired with some great vocals, I never get tired of listening to it. And once again I like the clapping...
2. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)- Great voice, the song captures the Blaxploitation-Feeling perfectly.
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)- Too long? Kind of true, but still something original.
141. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)- Doesn't deserve to be on the last place (compared to other brackets), but it's a cruel world...

Week weak...or the other way around.

BRACKET 17
1 Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) - Sprawling and minimalist, two things I hate about Prince, but this is a tight, smart song. The lyrics also have some of that often-missing (in Prince's material at least) emotional depth.
2 Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) - It was a tough call between 60's (really 50's) soul and 80's electro-soul (above), especially since this is Cooke's swan song, but if I was honest with myself I'd have to admit that I'll always prefer to hear WDC before ACIGC. It's just more up-to-date, which is a funny thing to say about Prince. I never bought Sam Cooke the sage as much as Sam Cooke the partier anyways.
3 Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) - Simple dancey fun.
4 Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) - Simple dancey trash.

BRACKET 18
1 The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) - Really, does this position need to be justified? Despite the proliferation of Beatle-resenters in this competition I doubt anyone could give this song anything but top spot. I've been to lectures where the professors spent entire classes analyzing this song.
2 James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) - I'd hate to be one of the backing musicians to something like this, The performances are more rigid than Tipper Gore. Mr. Dynamite is also Mr. Self-Absorbed.
3 Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) - Lymon's voice may be more annoying than a dog in heat but this is song has energy.
4 The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) - Stupid little pop song.

BRACKET 19
1 Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) - I like Tina Turner's version better but this one's strong too.
2 Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) - Chuck D announces rap as a viable podium for social change.
3 Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) - Did I mention that Paul Simon's a lyrical genius? I didn't need to. Just listen to one line, any line, of this song. The tacky production is a little off-putting though.
4 Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) - Cool call and answer but other than that and some cool organ there's not much behind this song.


BRACKET 20
1 Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) - Beat poetry meets blues rock. I can't imagine a funner song to perform. Thanks to "Don't Look Back" this track is also responsible for the birth of the modern music video.
2 The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) - I was prepared to give this a reluctant second place, then I saw a video performance on youtube. I forgot how powerful this tune is. Very unstandard Temptations fare. Not pop, but socially-conscious funk.
3 The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) - Over-reverbbed Spectorized teen-sploitation. This is the music that murderers make.
4 Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) - Orchestral funk. Cool ideas but doesn't hold a candle to the other three.

Now, now, jonmarck, the trial is still ongoing...

The guy does have some killer production credits. You can't argue it.

#17

1. "Groove Is in the Heart" - This song never gets old! I remember enjoying this song compiling my first 1990s poll list, and am glad this song was a fresh sounding bright spot for that year.
2. "A Change is Gonna Come" - Powerful, along the same lines of sweeping ballads as Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World
3. "When Doves Cry" - I know it's supposed to be an innovative song because it doesn't have a bass line, but compared to other Prince songs it sounds tinny and weak, like the treble on your stereo was turned way up.
4. "Can't Get You Out..." - Fine for this decade, nothing memorable in the light of older songs.

#18
1. "A Day in the Life" - Epic and unique, opened my mind to boundary-pushing creativity being part of parcel of big name music stars.
2. "Cathy's Clown" - I've got to download tons of Everly Brothers now that I've seen this bracket and the last one.
3. "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" - Very good as well, but with all JB songs, the hook dominates. If I think hard, I can remember how the rest of the song without the horn lick goes.
4. "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" - Great oldie, but no memorable star power to give the song a full musical history.

#19
1. "The Sound of Silence" - Beautiful, along with Beach boys, a little Beatles, the first artists to present beautiful harmonies.
2. "Gimme Some Lovin" - Swingin' and Rockin' I of course remember the Blues Brothers version better, but I'll give props to this one.
3. "Proud Mary" - One of the less interesting of CCR's hits, kind of lumbers and drags.
4. "Fight the Power" - My lack of relative enthusiasm for hip-hop bumps this classic down.

#20
1. "Be My Baby" - Wall of Sound galore, I don't know why this Phil Spector song is huge and 'He's a Rebel' 'Da Doo ron ron' aren't just as high, but I'll take it.
2. "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" - These aren't the happy soul-bearing Temptations! A dark element injected into their slick sound makes this own special.
3. "Theme from Shaft" - I'm definitely not the type to hum this song while walking down the street, but it's still groovy.
4. "Subterranean Homesick Blues" - One of those Dylan songs where is lack of traditional vocal ability allows me to forget the melody, lyrics, or anything else to remind me how this tune goes.

BRACKET 17

1. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) - Not one of my favorite Cooke tracks but still extremely powerful and tops in this bracket.
2. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) - Great song, my favorite by Prince, but comes 2nd to Cooke.
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) - Don't really understand it's high placement, never really got into it.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) - Extremely overplayed and overrated.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967 - One of the greatest songs by one of the greatest bands tops this very tough bracket.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) - The Godfather of Soul delivers the goods .
3. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) - Very catchy pop song but falls to 3rd in this bracket.
4. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) - Hadn't heard this one in ages. Decent but nothing memorable.

BRACKET 19

1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) - The opening line, "Hello darkness, my old friend" sets the mood to this incredibly powerful song and lyrical masterpiece.
2. 180. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) - Love this song, still here it all the time on television and in movies.
52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) - Decent song though they've had many songs better than this.
77. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) - I appreciate what Public Enemy has done for rap but I'm just not a big fan.

BRACKET 20

1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) - Easy #1, I could listen to it 1000 times and not get tired of it.
2. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) - One of the most influential pop songs ever but falls to 2nd against Dylan.
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) - A classic soul song although a bit long at nearly 7 minutes.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) - Liked the movie, not crazy about the song.

BRACKET 17
1. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) - Great groove - counts a lot with me. Overplayed because so catchy.
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) - Close call but falls to second.
3. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) - Great song but third.
4. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) - Easily the fourth here.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) - This classic trounces the competition here.
2. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) - Probably won't get a lot of votes, but this song is super catchy, with is worth a lot to me.
3. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) - Great JB hit.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) - I'm not an Everly Brothers fan, I guess, but a lot of critics must be.

BRACKET 19
1. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) This song is a statement. In your face. Bold. Great sound to boot.
2. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) - First nine notes make it a classic. That's saying something.
3. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) - An American musical treasure, but third here.
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) - Generic Rock 1966 style.

BRACKET 20
1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) - Super innovative. Great sound. Like the best of Beck, but in 1965.
2. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) - Great groove. Worth much.
3. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) - Phil Spector is a bad person.
4. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) - I like this one, but this is a tough bracket.

Wow...brackets are coming fast today! I hope you'll forgive me a slight digression...

I notice that, after last week’s fifties extravaganza, this week over half of the songs are from the 1960s (although each of the last six decades is represented this time).

Last week I posted a list of all the artists with two or more songs in the tournament; today I thought I’d give you a breakdown of the top 256 songs by decade:

1930s: 1
1940s: 2
1950s: 35
1960s: 97
1970s: 48
1980s: 35
1990s: 24
2000s: 14

There’s at least one song for every year between 1954 and 2006.

1965 has more songs than any other year, with 18. The median year is 1969.

Which irritates me, by the way. The sixties were a great era, and you can make the case that it should be the decade with the most songs…but to have more than TWICE as many as any other decade? That’s BBNG (Baby Boomer navel-gazing).

Well I'm not a baby boomer and I think the 60's was the decade with the best singles. 70's and 90's were ok but they were more about albums than songs. I'm also wondering if I really do like When Doves Cry better than A Change is Gonna Come. That was a tough one.

Alright

#17

1)Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come:The best singer of all time sings the greatest soul song of all time
2)Prince - When Doves Cry:Well maybe only about my 3rd or 4th favourite song on 'Purple Rain' but innovative can't deny it
3)Kylie Minogue - Can't Get You Out Of My Head:Catchy but kitschy - won't be in the top 256 in many years time I wouldn't expect
4)Deee-Lite - Groove Is In The Heart:Ditto as for #3 - way overacclaimed - a bit of cheese

#18

1)Beatles - A Day In The Life:Well blew me away(maybe one of the few Beatles songs that did) - their best
2)James Brown - Papa's Got a Brand New Bag:Innovative as hell - should be higher than #109
3)Frankie Lymon/Teenagers - Why Do Fools Fall In Love:A cheesy bit of pop from the 50s but enjoyable all the same
4)Everly Brothers - Cathy's Clown:I love the Everlys and their harmonies but this one is pretty pedestrian for me

#19(Tough,tough bracket - I'd endorse all four)

1)Public Enemy - Fight The Power:Really powerful lyrics,and music to match
2)CCR - Proud Mary:A radio staple - know it note for note
3)Simon & Garfunkel - Sound of Silence:A really different song by this pair
4)Spencer Davis Group:Great vocals by Winwood,that organ sound may have dated but this is still a classic

#20

1)Ronettes - Be My Baby:Can't fault this song - maybe Brian Wilson was right
2)Temptations - Papa Was A Rolling Stone:Innovative song,don't care about the length - it's great
3)Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues:I guess an innovative song for the time but not really one of my favourites from this artist
4)Isaac Hayes - Theme From Shaft:Well enjoyable enough but sort of boring

You make a good point, jonmarck, about the importance of albums compared to singles. Rock shifted its main emphasis from singles to albums somewhere in the 1965-67 period.

I acknowledge how good the music of the sixties was--it just seems to me that a lot of pretty mediocre 60s/early 70s stuff is highly ranked (Buffalo Springfield, say), when a lot of good stuff from the late 70s and 80s is not (I realized yesterday that there is NO Elvis Costello in the tournament).

But then, iirc, you're not an 80s fan. Oh, well--vive la difference.

BRACKET 17
1. When Doves Cry, A very good Prince song! And that means GOOD!
2. A Change Is Gonna Come, Classic song will be listened to after lots of years.
3. Groove Is in the Heart, I like it, funny song. But not really special.
4. Can’t Get You Out of My Head, not to be compared with the rest in this bracket.

BRACKET 18
1. A Day in the Life
2. Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag, Funky! But on great distance from no.1.
3. Why Do Fools Fall in Love, Didnt know this one. But Nice!
4. Cathy’s Clown, Not very bad. But also not very great. Number 4.
I guess you all understand no.1. needs no comment.

BRACKET 19
I like CCR a lot, but also S&G. Tough choice. But..
1. The Sound of Silence, This is so beautiful. Good text too.
2. Proud Mary, Very good song. Creedence has a few better ones though.
3. Gimme Some Lovin’, This tune stays in your head!
4. Fight the Power, I understand the importance, but I really dislike it.

BRACKET 20
1. Subterranean Homesick Blues, Dylan is brilliant.
2. Papa Was a Rolling Stone, Temptated to put it on first place.
3. Be My Baby, Nice love song.
4. Theme From Shaft, So outdated.

BRACKET 17
One of the tougher brackets so far…
1. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965): if I should stick to the all-time list I’ve send to Sonofsamiam in 2005 for the AM Forum Top Songs I should put Kylie above. But, as we say in Spain, “rectificar es de sabios” (that I could translate as “wise men rectify”). This song belongs to #1 in this bracket, not only for the social significance but because of lines like “I’m afraid to die, I don’t know what’s up there beyond the sky” (odd for a gospel singer).
2. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001): brilliant dance pop, one of the few cases that equals popular and critical acclaim.
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990): irresistible and infectious beat, can’t get any funnier. Groovy!
4. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984): I really can’t believe that I could put this masterpiece on #4. You can hit me, Moonbeam!

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967): it can be said a lot of things about this song, but I’ll only say one: it was the well deserved #1 on AM Forum Poll. That’s enough I think…
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965): papa’s got a brand new style, funk.
3. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960): nice harmonizing, nice drum roll.
4. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956): energetic (but a little silly) doo-wop.

BRACKET 19
1. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969): the essence of American classic rock.
2. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965): one of the most instantly recognizable intros ever, and a terrific lyric about alienation and isolation.
3. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989): well, Chuck D, maybe Elvis never meant a shit to you and maybe he was a racist. But he was the one who introduced the black music to huge white audiences around the world.
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966): maybe dated, but what a Hammond riff!

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963): an immortal teenage-pop symphony, with an incredible association of talented people: a fantastic Greenwich-Barry composition, a delicious Ronnie Bennett vocal performance, a terrific Hal Blaine drum intro, an exquisite Jack Nitzsche arrangement and, of course, Phil Spector wall of sound. I’ll get really angry if this song won’t win the bracket.
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965): all in this song was (is) revolutionary: the free-associative lyrics, the electric backing and the groundbreaking video.
3. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
4. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
Two wah-wah based songs: I prefer Hayes one for the smart orchestral arrangements.

Oh man, this is definitely the most difficult week so far.

BRACKET 17
84. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) This song gives me chills and the countless covers it inspired makes me even happier for its existence. Plus, is it just me or is society on the edge of another 60s-like cultural revolution? Maybe that's why I find this song just as relevant today.

45. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) Most other brackets and this song would be an easy #1, but honestly, of late I've loved "A Change is Gonna Come" more.

173. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) A good boundy pop song.

212. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) Never liked it.

BRACKET 18
109. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) Funk yeah! My favorite JB song because of that long saxaphone solo.

20. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) One of the first songs that uses dissonance to its advantage. The lyrical premice is great as well

237. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) A great song, but it can't compete with the two above it.

148. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) Because everyone's a fool? Gasp!


BRACKET 19 The last two brackets suck because every song is so awesome and it's hard to decide.

205. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) Maybe it's because I love the Graduate like few other movies, but this was Simon and Garfunkel's greatest moment. I've heard the electric guitar parts were added by the producer, and I love that because they really do stand on their own and provide a sense of urgency that contrasts the vocal delivery. This tension makes the song for me. Plus, the imagery in the lyrics is amazing. This is one of the best lyrics ever: "And the people bowed and prayed/to the neon god they made."

77. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) Another song linked to a fantastic movie. It's hard to deny the urgency this song creates. You feel that if you're not fighting the power (whatever it may be...probably white people) you're screwed so stand up and do something now.

180. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) This song has an unbelievable energy that I love. It's a shame it has to compete with some heavyweights.

52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) Love CCR, but this has never been my favorite song though most people would give their left leg to come up one song this good.

BRACKET 20
141. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) Well, I'm a huge Bob Dylan fan, what can I say?

116. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) This song oozes so much funk that it starts sticking to you. I also like how it grows up from the naivity of "My Girl."

13. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) Why were the girl groups in the 60s so much better than the ones in the 90s? This song is pretty damn awesome even though it's horribly cheezy, I just can't deny its greatness.

244. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) There's a part of me that wants to put this song at #1 just because it's so cool, but as far as a personal listening preference, I'd rather hear all the other songs.

BRACKET 17
1. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)- Just an amazing song. I love Otis Redding's version also.
2. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)- Not my favorite Prince song but it beats the other two
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)- But, I do like this song. Once in awhile
4. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”(2001)- I think this song is horrible.


BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)- As much as I love Cathy's Clown you have to give this to The Beatles.
2. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)- One of my favorite pop songs pre-Beatles.
3. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
4. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)


BRACKET 19
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)- Definitely the best S+G song
2. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
3. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)


BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)- Overrated. This song doesn't get mentioned without Brian Wilson in the same breath, and probably is loved for it's influence on him, rather than it's own merits. But, it's still a really good song and it's still the top of this bracket.
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)

17:
1. Groove is in the heart - partyyy!
2. A change is gonna come
3. Can't get you out of my head - well made pop
4. When doves cry - good song, tough competition

18:
1. A Day in the life - amazing song
2. Why do fools fall in love
3. Cathy's Clown
4. Papa's got a brand new bag - hopelessly overrated

19:
1. Sound of silence
2. Proud Mary
3. Gimme Some Lovin'
4. Fight the power - uurgh, utterly terrible

20:
1. Be my baby
2. Papa was a rolling stone
3. Theme from shaft
4. subterranean homesick blues

Harold Wexler’s comment on the Week 4 thread about Bracket 14 got me thinking—yes, Harold, it is a coincidence that some brackets (like that one) seem to be overloaded with great songs while others aren’t.

You made me realize that I’ve never actually explained how I seed the songs and arrange them in groups of four. Lest anyone think that there’s a conspiracy, or, worse, personal whim behind the matchups, I’ll try to explain this briefly. If you don’t care—and I couldn’t blame you if you don’t—please feel free to ignore this post; I just want this on the record.

This is complicated, and I’m not sure how well I can explain it, even though the math is actually pretty basic (it better be, as I was a literature major):

Imagine for a moment that this tournament was single-elimination—in other words, song-vs.-song (rather than song-vs.-song-vs.-song-vs.-song). In that case, when putting together the tournament, I would make the assumption that the final matchup would be between the #1 seed and the #2 seed. For the final four, I would match #1 with #4, and #2 with #3.

The logic here is that higher-ranked songs should get easier opponents, and lower-seeded songs more difficult opponents. Again, to carry it a bit further, the Sweet 16 matchups in single elimination would be:

1-16
8-9
4-13
5-12
2-15
7-10
3-14
6-11

This process goes all the way to the round of 256, where #1 would match up with #256, and #128 with #129. The assumption here is that—again, in a single-elimination tournament—#1 and #128 would win and then face each other in the next round, where #128 would be the lowest-seeded song IF all the higher seeds won, and #1 would (natch) be the highest-seeded song. Of course, upsets are possible, but the structure of the tournament is fixed, so if those two matchups were upsets, #129 would face #256 in the next round.

(By the way, those four seeds, #1, #256, #128, and #129 would be “Like a Rolling Stone” vs. “Jeremy,” and “Don’t Worry Baby” vs. “Once in a Lifetime.” If that looks familiar, it should—those four songs made up the legendary Bracket 8.)

Now, here’s where it gets complicated—as I said on Day One, I decided it wouldn’t be a single-elimination tournament. Would have been too boring, would have taken too long. So I put the songs in groups of four—like Bracket 8 above—in which each song is matched against the song it would have faced in the first round of a single-elimination tournament, PLUS the two songs it could potentially have faced in the second round of such a tournament.

Then I move the brackets around so that, for instance, the four brackets in the Sweet 16 “should” be:

Bracket 1: 1-8-9-16
Bracket 2: 4-5-12-13
Bracket 3: 2-7-10-15
Bracket 4: 3-6-11-14

Now, of course, there’s no way that all of the top 16 seeds will actually make it that far. In fact, one of them has already been eliminated—“My Generation,” ranked #16. But all that means is that whichever song advances that far INSTEAD of “My Generation” will be placed in the spot which was “reserved” for the Who in the Sweet 16.

I have no idea if that’s clear, and I realize that half of you don’t care, which is fine—believe me, your enjoyment of bracketology, if any, does not depend on you paying attention to any of this. Probably the main thing to take away from all this is that the system “tries” to give each song a fair deal, in the sense of appropriately difficult opponents (even if in practice some brackets turn out to be way tougher than others).

Bracket 17
45. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry”
- One of the best from Prince.
84. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come”
- I'm not such a fan, but the last two are annoying, and this isn't.
212. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart”
- I don't hate it, but I don't like it either.
173. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”
- I just can't get it out of my head, and that's annoying.

Bracket 18
20. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life”
- The Beatles are great.
148. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love”
- It's a pleasant melody.
109. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag”
- One of my fav JB songs. Still, I don't like him all that much.
237. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown”
- I still don't like EB.

Bracket 19
77. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power”
- One of the absolute best hiphop songs ever.
205. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence”
- Love S&B. This one is marvelous.
180. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’”
- This is a really cool song.
52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary”
- I've heard it a few times too many. Never my favourite.

Bracket 20
141. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues”
- Great BD tune. I love it.
13. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby”
- This is always excellent at parties.
244. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft”
- Hot song! This was a really strong heat.
116. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”
- I don't really like it.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) Not my choice for Prince’s greatest song (Little Red Corvette owns my heart forever), but it’s an astonishing sonic creation, one of the most striking and unique #1 singles of all time.
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) simple, elegant and timeless.
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) It’s gonna kill moonbeam to have When Doves Cry and this track in the same bracket. Personally, I’ve never quite understood why some folks wet themselves over this song to such an extent. It’s a fairly predictable melody over an obvious dance beat. I’ve really liked some of her other songs, but this one doesn’t lift my skirt at all.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) Fun to dance to, but heard outside of a club this is way too cheerful for me.

BRACKET 18

1.The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) Sunshine-y guitar pop that never ages.
2. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) As much as I love the Beatles, I’ve never loved this song – the one that’s often held as their highest achievement. Both parts of it feel slight to me.
3. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) Immortal as far as these things go, but I am just not a James Brown person.
4. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) My pre-Beatles bias comes into effect again. It’s pleasant, but it doesn’t mean anything to me.


BRACKET 19
1. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) One of rock’s MOST PERFECT MELODIES – it manages the rare trick of feeling both completely familiar and fresh. No matter where or when I encounter this song, it’s always a delight.
2. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) A brilliant rocker, and steve winwood in his prime may be the greatest white british soul vocalist.
3. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) Full respect to them, of course, but this is not and never will be music for me.
4. . Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) Oh, it’s very pleasant and nice but I do find this particular track to be a bit of a snooze.

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) One of the prime reasons why the sixties were such a miraculous time for pop music. Perhaps the greatest marriage of sound and melody ever.
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) I would probably rate this as one of the lesser Dylan singles from his peak era, but it was incredibly influential and a new way of thinking about language and singing in pop music. Good old Bob.
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) I’m a four tops man, myself.
244. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) I like the wah-wah, but otherwise this really isn’t much of a song I think.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) Excellent stuff. As Chapelle showed, Prince has got game, then he'll serve you pancakes afterwards, bitches!
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) It kills me to put this 2nd, but I guess Prince has made more of a mark on my life than this classic response to Blowin In The Wind.
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) I could never get this song out of my head in 2001 and when I hear it today I have the same response which means it's either genius or catchy like the McDonald's jingle, can't decide.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) Doesn't compete with the other three. Nice slice of nostalgia.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) Favorite Sgt, Pepper's moment, and probably Beatles moment. The interplay between Lennon and McCartney's verses is the two at their best. Dreamy, ambitious and breath taking.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) I really wish this one was in another bracket. Any chance of getting a late Hot Pants or Try Me entry for another bracket?
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) Doo-wop classic, very influential to 60's R&B but not catching me enjoying this on a daily basis on the I-Pod.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) Marks the 1st time in my life I've had to comment about 3 Everly Brothers songs in 7 days, and I'm a bit tired of it. Liked last weeks offerings a little more.

BRACKET 19
1. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) PE at their peak, I'll save praise for their next round, that's how sure I am they're moving on.
2. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) When Fogerty was in his groove he wrote an incredible amount of sturdy pop singles in CCR's heyday and Proud Mary was one of CCR's best. What's so wrong with Mellencamp, that's heartland rock baby. This is OUR country.
3. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) Little Stevie Winwood wails more than he ever did with Traffic or on "The Finer Things". Good song, and organ playing.
4. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) When's Bridge coming up? I'll be voting it all the way to the final 4. Earlier S & G kinda bores me.

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) THE best 60's girl group song. Period. Phil Spector coaches the Ronettes to the 2nd round.
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) There's a couple other Dylan songs I'd like to see move on, but the committee is killing me: SHB vs. Be My Baby in the 1st round, man.
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) Great 70's R&B tune that's just not going to get out of this bracket.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) The best soundtrack song to ever describe a film character, perhaps. A strong bracket 4th.

1. Groove is in the heart - Instantly enjoyable and great.
2. Can't get you out of my head - Nope
3. A change is gonna come - Boring
4. When doves cry - Maybe there is a good song hidden somewhere beneath the layer of 80s suckyness.

18:
1. A Day in the life - Excellent. It even has a sound inserted to annoy the listeners dog. What more can you want from a song?
2. Why do fools fall in love - 50s energetic pop music is great.
3. Papa's got a brand new bag - These last two songs don't really belong in the top 260. I guess I'll put this one on top though.
4. Cathy's clown

19:
1. Sound of silence - With or without added guitar parts? Doesn't matter, a sure number 1.
2. Proud Mary - Next time, I want a hit song about a tractor.
3. Gimme Some Lovin' - Repetitive. Especially the bassline.
4. Fight the power - Only listened to this song due to acclaimedmusic, and I won't do it again.

20:
1. Be my baby - Pop brilliance.
2. Papa was a rolling stone - It has a good atmosphere.
3. Subterranean homesick blues - Cue card: Only third place
4. Theme from shaft - "Who's the black private dick, that's a sex machine to all the chicks? (Shaft!) You're damn right." Lol.

Loved the comments, sweedishchef (particularly the Chappelle reference). You asked for some previews, and I guess I'll give some hints:

-James B. has two more songs to go (though not the ones you mentioned). Looks like one's in a fairly easy bracket, but the other one's a killer.

-"Bridge"...looks like its bracket will be a tough two-song contest, but then I didn't expect S&G's strong showing this week.

And you'll be happy to know we'll be done with the Everlys after this week.

Bracket 17:

1 - When Doves Cry - one word - genius
2 - A Change is Gonna Come - great voice, great message, great song
3 - Can't Get You Out of My Head - gotta love Kylie, and this is a top pop song
4 - Groove Is in the Heart - like the Kylie song, very infectious (in a good way)

Bracket 18:

1 - A Day In The Life - surely this one will break the Fab 4's losing run?! Two great songs rolled into one and possibly the greatest end to an album ever.
2 - Why Do Fools Fall in Love - love the harmonies and the way this makes you nostalgic for a time when you weren't even born!
3 - Papa's Got a Brand New Bag - JB is great but this is not one of his greatest (in my opinion)
4 - Cathy's Clown - surprise this is ranked so high - not a classic for me

Bracket 19:

1 - The Sound of Silence - manages to be beautiful and terrifying at the same time
2 - Proud Mary - great song, but I prefer Tina's version
3 - Gimme Some Lovin' - another good song but I prefer other versions of it
4 - Fight the Power - I do like rap but it is hard for me to rank this as high as these classic 'songs'

Braket 20:

1 - Be My Baby - a pop masterpiece - even Dirty Dancing couldn't ruin it!
2 - Subterranean Homesic Blues - this would win most of the other brackets so far for me but just pipped by a true classic
3 - Papa Was A Rolling Stone - another great song in by far the toughest bracket of the week
4 - Theme from Shaft - except this one!

Bracket 17
45. Prince and the Revolution, "When Doves Cry" - That this is SO great and not even close to his best song is enough to make Prince worship mandatory
173. Kylie Minogue, "Can't Get You Out of My Head" - God bless Kylie
84. Sam Cooke, "A Change Is Gonna Come" - Otis sings it better
212. Deee-Lite, "Groove is in the Heart" - Cute, but...

Bracket 18
20. The Beatles, "A Day in the Life" - Genius
109. James Brown, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" - Can't beat "A Day in the Life"
237. The Everly Brothers, "Cathy's Clown" - I love the Everlys
148. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" - Nice song

Bracket 19
77. Public Enemy, "Fight the Power" - Cos it still sounds revolutionary
180. Spencer Davis Group, "Gimme Some Lovin'" - The way Steve Winwood sings the verses gives me goosebumps
52. Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Proud Mary" - A Classic, but it can't compete
205. Simon and Garfunkel, "The Sound of Silence" Hardly trancsendental, but lovely all the same

Bracket 20
13. The Ronettes, "Be My Baby" - The eternal teen anthem
141. Bob Dylan, "Subterranean Homesick Blues" - Dylan invents alternative music
116. The Temptations, "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" - This bracket is really hard!
244. Isaac Hayes, "Theme From Shaft" - This totally appeals to my baser pop instincts

Bracket 17

1) Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) (Because the greatness of Bootsy completely overrides one of Q-Tip's worst raps ever)
2) Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) (If it had Bootsy on bass, instead of no bass, it might have won)
3) Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) (wow this is a strong bracket, this is one of the best pop-dance songs of it's kind, as good as the best of Madonna)
4) Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) (overrated. I prefer Curtis Mayfield for similar styles of song.)

Bracket 18

1) The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) (because James Brown has recorded much better songs than Papa..., but this really is one of the Beatles finest songs)
2) James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) (as influential and important as A Day in the Life, but he got much funkier later on)
3) Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) (cute song, that's it)
4) The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) (bland)

BRACKET 19
1) Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) (a fine pop song)
2) Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) (not my favorite by PE, but good)
3) Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) (great melody, ridiculous lyrics. Almost any other Paul Simon song is better)
4) Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) (those Gentworth Financial commercials with Dennis Hopper annoy me)

BRACKET 20
1) Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) (Another great bracket. This song is my 2d favorite by Dylan (after Don't Think Twice, It's Alright), and it is great.)
2) The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) (Makes me wish I was Ronnie Spector's boyfriend... until I hear the Shangri-Las, when my allegiance transfers to Mary Weiss)
3) The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) (A little overrated, but only a little)
4) Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
(Like with Sam Cooke, I prefer Curtis Mayfield's contribution to the blaxploitation film theme genre, but Shaft is very good)

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” - Prince banged this out in one night when the director of "Purple Rain" asked him for a song to go with a sequence of clips in the middle of the movie. Damn!
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” - Heartfelt and touching.
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” - Lightweight but fun. A catchy groove.
4. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” - More like, Kylie Mi-noooooooooooooooooooooo. Just kidding, she's OK.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” - Everything that's good about "Sgt. Pepper's" in a one-song capsule.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” - And it's full of funk and soul goodness.
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” - A peak in '50s harmonizing.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” - Not a peak of any sort.

BRACKET 19
1. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” - How did these guys from San Francisco sound so Bayou?
2. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” - One of the greatest rap songs and statements ever. In most brackets it would be No. 1.
3. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” - Nothing comes to mind for this song other than it's very good.
4. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” - Pretty song, but full of youthful pretension as well. They got better.

BRACKET 20
1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” - Love the stream of concsiousness lyrics, and his delivery almost sounds like a hip-hop flow.
2. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” - One of the best girl band songs ever. This bracket is almost like 1a and 1b rather than 1 and 2.
3. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” - The Temptations try for some social relevance and pull it off.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” - It's a cool song, but way out of its league here.

Bob Dylan's got a fightin' chance yet...Here's hoping Proud Mary beats out Sound of Silence and When Doves Cry beats A Change is Gonna Come too! I think A Day in the Life is a shoo-in though.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984) - Much as I love #2, this is one of the easiest choices for me in this whole competition. It’s simply one of the greatest records ever made - and the single version was, at the time, probably the freakiest thing ever to become that big a hit.
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965) - A brilliant, beautiful song, arrangement and vocal performance that has the extreme misfortune to be in the same bracket as #1.
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990) - A terrifically goofy dance number. One of my favorites from that year.
4. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001) - A good pop single, but severely outclassed here.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967) - Another easy #1. Justifies everything ever said about PEPPER all by itself.
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) - The birth of modern funk. It ain’t no drag.
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956) - Doo-wop in its purest form, from one of rock’s most tragic cases.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960) - This song never really did much for me. Their biggest hit, but it lacks the crystalline simplicity of the Cadence hits and was just a harbinger of worse to come.

BRACKET 19
1. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989) - One of these things is not like the others, and the modern classic trumps the three oldies. I will admit that part of my affection for this record is how brilliantly Spike Lee used it at the beginning of DO THE RIGHT THING. But it takes balls to call out both Elvis and John Wayne in the same verse.
2. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965) - Haunting and enduringly powerful, with production so seamless most people probably don’t even realize the electric band was overdubbed onto Paul & Artie’s acoustic original months later.
3. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969) - A great song by a great band, but I confess to being a little tired of it. There are many Creedence songs I would rank higher.
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966) - Again, a timeless record with extraordinary vocal and organ work by 17(!)-year old “Stevie” Winwood, but I don’t really need to hear it again for a while.

BRACKET 20
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963) - Again, its use under the credits of a favorite film (MEAN STREETS) earns it bonus points. But it’s such a perfect distillation of the Wall of Sound that it probably would win the bracket regardless.
2. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965) - Not much to say here - Dylan’s first recorded electric blast set the stage for so much of what would follow. I just like #1 more.
3. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971) - You have to love that this won an Oscar. You just kind of have to love it, period. Damn right. Shut your mouth!
4. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972) - A great minimalist groove, with incisive lyrics. But even the single version goes on a little longer than it needs to.

BRACKET 17:
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)
3. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)

"When Doves Cry" is one of the catchiest songs of all time - always guaranteed to get my ass shaking and my mouth singing away - while "A Change Is Gonna Come" is a very moving, stirring number.

"Can't Get You Out Of My Head" is fun, while "Groove Is In The Heart" is not.

BRACKET 18:
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)

ADITL is just extraordinary - more-or-less the pinnacle for experimental pop-music. Inventive as nuts.

"Papa's Got A Brand New Bag" is some heavy-duty funk, and WDFFIL is very pretty. CC doesn't do much for me.

BRACKET 19:
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)
2. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
3. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)
4. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)

"The Sound Of Silence" is a gorgeous, poetic piece. "Fight The Power" -- good advice. "Gimme Some Lovin'" is rockin' enough, while CCR have never really done it for me.

BRACKET 20:
1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
2. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)
3. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
4. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)

SHB is a wonderful slice of Dylan's incredible imagination, in terms of both content and delivery. "Be My Baby" is a beautiful pop song. Chef's "Shaft" boasts some sound funk, while PWARS is the runt of the litter for me.

B17
1. A Change Is Gonna Come
2. When Doves Cry
3. Groove Is In The Heart
4. Can't Get You Out Of My Head

B18
1. A Day In The Life
2. Cathy's Clown
3. Papa's Got A Brand New Bag
4. Why Do Fools Fall In Love

B19
1. Fight The Power
2. Gimme Some Lovin'
3. Sound/s Of Silence
4. Proud Mary

B20
1. Subterranean Homesick Blues
2. Be My Baby
3. Papa Was A Rolling Stone
4. Theme From Shaft

I'll vote for Bracket 17 now and come back to the others later.

1. Kylie Minogue- "Can't Get You Out of My Head": I know it's going to shock people that Prince isn't number 1 for me here, but "Can't Get You Out of My Head" is the "I Feel Love" of this generation- an irresistible, chugging, hypnotic dance classic for the ages. It single-handedly resurrected my interest in dance music (and music by artists that weren't already established favorites in general), and I still get shivers when I hear it.

2. Prince- "When Doves Cry": In any other bracket, this song would have won. Prince's most acclaimed track is suitably one of his most bizarre. The message of lamenting the propagation of negative qualities from his parents is timeless and wonderfully executed. The edit does not do the song justice- the wails and cries toward the end are the parts that really grab me.

3. Deee-Lite- "Groove is In the Heart": Another song that would have won nearly every other bracket. It's unfortunate that this bracket is so strong for me. This funky dance cut speaks volumes about the deterioration of music today. Lady Kier had more talent, charisma, and star power than virtually any pop starlet that has come out in the past 10 years, and yet she failed to find a consistent mainstream audience. A true classic.

4. Sam Cooke- "A Change Is Gonna Come": Another decent song that suffers from the strength of the bracket. For me, I love the top 3 songs so much that you could probably put every other song we've assessed in this slot.

BRACKET 17
1. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)
3. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)
4. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)


BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
3. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)
4. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)


BRACKET 19
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)
2. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)
3. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)


BRACKET 20
1. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
2. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)
3. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
4. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)

Moonbeam, when I saw the songs in Bracket 17, I thought of that one as your bracket. I know those weren't easy choices for you...

...by the way, it looks like "my" bracket is Bracket 24. It'll post tomorrow and I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with it. Why? You'll see...

please tell me giuseppe's and netjade's votes count even without the comments. We need as much Dylan love as possible!

BRACKET 17
This is not only Moonbeam's bracket, but mine too.
1. Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” (2001)
It's just impossible to sit still. Second best disco song of all time and the best song of this decade (all categories). Was my number 13 of all time in the forum top 200 poll a while ago.
2. Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1965)
One of the most beautiful songs ever written. Was my number 9 in the forum poll. Just slightly overtaken by Kylie...
3. Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry” (1984)
Wonderfully sparse. Most magic part: when the synth comes in. My number 106 of all time.
4. Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart” (1990)
Fun, but it doesn't have a chance here.

BRACKET 18
1. The Beatles, “A Day in the Life” (1967)
The hit parade continues. Number 6 in my top 200 ballot!
2. James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
As groovy as it gets. Must have been just outside that 200...
3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love” (1956)
Not bad, but nothing special to me either.
4. The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown” (1960)
I always forget how it goes. Is there something wrong with me?

BRACKET 19
1. Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence” (1965)
So good to see all the love for S&G here. Let's push it to the next round!
2. Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary” (1969)
Great song, although it's no coincidence several people here are a little tired of it.
3. Public Enemy, “Fight the Power” (1989)
Not quite as good as the best from "It Takes".
4. Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’” (1966)
Awesome groove, but still number four.

BRACKET 20
It feels like this is my bracket too...
1. The Ronettes, “Be My Baby” (1963)
Back to the hit parade again. My all-time number 7. One Brian Wilson can't be wrong.
2. The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” (1972)
My number 27 of all time. Too long? I wouldn't mind if this groove took up a whole LP. Great lyrics!
3. Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues” (1965)
As great and inventive as it is, it can't match the top duo.
4. Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft” (1971)
Love the wah-wah, but no Isaac points in this competition.

jonmarck, sadly, no, without explanations they won't count. I'm rooting for Bob myself, and I wish they did. (but...c'mon, the Ronettes? that's not the end of the world...it's not like it's DeBarge or something)

Bracket 18:

1. James Brown- "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag": classic funk at its best- that groove is DEEP.

2. The Everly Brothers- "Cathy's Clown": my Mom used to play them all the time. It's sugary sweet, but their harmonies are NOT to be fucked with.

3. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers- "Why Do Fools Fall in Love": Definitely a precursor to the J5 sound later. Again, sweet.

4. The Beatles- "A Day in the Life": I know I'm the one missing out by not liking the Beatles, but I can't get past the voices. :(

Bracket 19:

1. Public Enemy- "Fight the Power": raw, energetic song that is THE soul of hip hop. Songs like this really pay tribute to the true meaning and purpose of hip hop and serve reason to rail against the contemporary schlock that passes for it these days.

2. Spencer Davis Group- "Gimme Some Lovin'": GREAT buildup to the chorus! If more 60s songs were like this, I may appreciate the decade more.

3. Simon and Garfunkel- "The Sound of Silence": I'm not a fan of them in general, but this song is utterly lovely.

4. Creedence Clearwater Revival- "Proud Mary": I like quite a bit of CCR's catalogue, but Tina OWNS this song.

Hi

Brackets : good idea !

OK, lets' get started. In addition to the charts, I'll give each song a certain numer of * (maximum :5)
Excuse my broken English reviews

Bracket 17
General comments : a hard choice for number one; the two others are way behind.

1. SAM COOKE, “A CHANGE IS GONNA COME”: ****
What a song ! God, what a voice ! It's a bit over-orchestrated, that's why it gets only 4*. I knew the (brilliant)Neville Brothers version before; Of course it deserves rank 1 partly thanks to the lyrics

2. PRINCE AND THE REVOLUTION, “WHEN DOVES CRY”: ****
Not my favorite Prince song (that would be either from Parade or Sign o the time) , although it's a tour de force musically speaking. Excellent mix of funk, pop and psychedelic rock. Specially in 1984, when there was so few good music to hear

3. DEEE-LITE, “GROOVE IS IN THE HEART” ***
A good piece of dance-pop, groovy, funny, great samples. A killer during dance parties (I'm dj-ing sometimes but after a while there's always someone coming and telling me "WHY DON'T YOU PLAY SOMETHNIG NEW ?"

4. KYLIE MINOGUE, “CAN’T GET YOU OUT OF MY HEAD” *
Sorry, I hate that song, I hate that sound. Reminds me of 2002 when I was doing loosy jobs (writing wasn't enough) and all those silly girls at the office dancing to that piece

Bracket 18

1. JAMES BROWN, “PAPA’S GOT A BRAND NEW BAG” *****
I've been listening to it on my MP3 player on my way to work yesterday and I had the thrills : what a number ! It sounds so simple, but listen to that bass line, to the way he sings... A miracle of groove

2. THE BEATLES, “A DAY IN THE LIFE” ****
I take full responsability for giving it only 4 stars : it's a great song, totally Lennon song, but how can I say it, it's a little bit artificial in its making. Lennon must have told himself : let's make a psychedelic song. It lacks the raw energy of Papa's got...

3. FRANKIE LYMON AND THE TEENAGERS, “WHY DO FOOLS FALL IN LOVE”***
Good early R&B, really sounds like the Jacksons would 15 years later

4. EVERLY BROTHERS "CATHY'S CLOWN" **
I think this song is a waste. What a difference with their Cadence recordings (Bye bye Love, Suzy). Everything is gone to my mind. How, like they did for Presley, music managers took a excellent post-country duet (in the tradition of closed harmony that would influence Simon & Garfunkel) and turned them into inoffensive teenage idols

Bracket 19
1.SIMON AND GARFUNKEL, “THE SOUND OF SILENCE”*****
Great, magical song. beautiful harmony, lyrics, guitar and this great overdub made by Tom Wilson, Dylan's producer. A perfect match of pop and folk music.
2. CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL "PROUD MARY" *****
Creedence is one of my favorite bands. This is not my favorite song, but it gets 5 * stars anyway; everything is already there
3. SPENCER DAVIS GROUP, “GIMME SOME LOVIN’”***
good 60's rock song, big sound, big pulse, and Winwood's voice and organ
4. PUBLIC ENEMY "FIGHT THE POWER”: ***
I'm not a rap expert. I like rap but I don't love this song. Lyrics are too violent, whatever the context may be
And I dont hink Elvis was racist

Bracket 20
When I saw it, I knew it would be a tough one.
1. BOB DYLAN, “SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK BLUES”*****
Musically speaking, it's not number one : sounds a bit messy. But it's historically so important that it deserves number one. Great lyrics; and a pleasant mix of folk, rock and hillbilly blues. This song is frustrating because it ends a bit abruptly to my mind.
2. THE TEMPTATIONS, “PAPA WAS A ROLLING STONE”*****
Some might find it too long, but I love this song : listen to those twin guitars, bluesy in the left speaker, wah-wah in the right, and the choir of the singers coming one after the other, like in gospel; and the lyrics are great traditional black poetry : the tale of the absent father. More Stax in its sound that Motown.
3. ISAAC HAYES, “THEME FROM SHAFT”*****
A perfect soundtrack : very visual music, very evocative for anyone who grew up watching 70s soap TV serials. (As you might note it, I love blaxpoitation music)
4. THE RONETTES "BE MY BABY" ***
Yes, it's Spector, but well, I don't love that song as much as the others, that's all.

OK, we're done

Muchas gracias Honorio por la traducción. Thanks to Honorio by the translation.

BRACKET 17
1,- Prince and the Revolution, When Doves Cry (1984), a song filled with a thousand details, it fascinated Patti Smith.
2,- Deee-Lite, Groove Is in the Heart (1990), amusing, contagious, danceable: perfect. Great look: happily elegant.
3,- Sam Cooke, A Change Is Gonna Come (1965), Cooke is "The Voice", not Frank Sinatra.
4,- Kylie Minogue, Can’t Get You Out of My Head? (2001), pretty but monotonous.

BRACKET 18
1,- James Brown, Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag? (1965), powerful, tireless, provocative.
2,- Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1956), they were inventing pop music along with others bands, probably without knowing it.
3,- The Beatles, A Day in the Life (1967), this song will be for sure on of the final four of Bracketology, but I prefer "Strawberry fields forever"
4,- The Everly Brothers, Cathy’s Clown? (1960), scarce offering: voices, melody and little more. The only one of this 16 songs that I’m not particularly interested.

BRACKET 19
1,- Public Enemy, Fight the Power (1989), the best song from the best black band in history.
2,- Spencer Davis Group, Gimme Some Lovin (1966), the best achievement of Steve Winwood: precious psychedelic sound.
3,- Creedence Clearwater Revival, Proud Mary (1969), they’ve got better ones.
4,- Simon and Garfunkel, The Sound of Silence (1965), maybe the lyrics are the worse (or the better, I don’t really understand it?).

BRACKET 20
1,- The Ronettes, Be My Baby (1963), one of my candidates for the final.
2,- The Temptations, Papa Was a Rolling Stone (1972), the beginning of the song announces already big things.
3,- Bob Dylan, Subterranean Homesick Blues (1965), Dylan invented rap too.
4,- Isaac Hayes, Theme From Shaft (1971), symphonic soul.

When doves cr - Best Prince song if you ask me
A change is gonna come - Didn't know this one but it is a great song. So this is also a good opportunity to get to know some good songs
Groove is in the heart - Sounds more special to me than Kylie
Can't get you out of my head - Not bad but also nothing special

A day in the life - This is one of the songs that proves that the beatles are really great
Papa's got a brand new bag - Great soul song
Cathy's clown - Just good
Why do fools fall in love - Easily the weakest song in the bracket

Sound of silence - One of my first acquaintances to music. And it has only become more beautiful since then
Proud Mary - Difficult choice but thanks to the Turners ist beats the Spencer Davis group
Gimme some lovin' - Not really my kind of music but I can understand this is fun
Fight the power - I just don't like rap

Papa was a rolling stone - A song with one of the greatest intro's ever.
Subterranean homesick blues - Just another great Dylan song
be my baby - I just can't understand why this is a top-10 song. It's good but no more than that
Theme from shaft - Good song but not good enuogh to get higher in this bracket

BRACKET 17
1- Deee-Lite, “Groove Is in the Heart”
2- Prince and the Revolution, “When Doves Cry”
3- Kylie Minogue, “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”
4- Sam Cooke, “A Change Is Gonna Come”

BRACKET 18
1- James Brown, “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag”
2- The Beatles, “A Day in the Life”
3- The Everly Brothers, “Cathy’s Clown”
4- Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, “Why Do Fools Fall in Love”

BRACKET 19
1- Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Proud Mary”
2- Public Enemy, “Fight the Power”
3- Simon and Garfunkel, “The Sound of Silence”
4- Spencer Davis Group, “Gimme Some Lovin’”

BRACKET 20
1- Isaac Hayes, “Theme From Shaft”
2- The Temptations, “Papa Was a Rolling Stone”
3- Bob Dylan, “Subterranean Homesick Blues”
4- The Ronettes, “Be My Baby”