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Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

ROUND 3, WEEK 1

Here are this week's brackets. Remember, you can also view the brackets on this site. Voting is now open, and you have until 11:59 PM Pacific time on this upcoming Saturday to vote. Vote either in this thread or e-mail me.

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles


REMINDER: You must comment on ALL the songs in order for your ballot to count.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1. Television - Marquee Moon
I know it probably won't win, but this truly is one of my favourite songs ever. I really can get lost in that middle period.
2. Outkast - B.O.B.
My favourite song from my favourite rap album. Everything about it is a mindfuck to the mind, and that's why i love it. It's the LSD of music.
3. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
I like this song, but there's just something about Nirvana which puts me off.
4. Four Tops - Reach Out
Quite an easy pick for #4. I mean it's a nice song, but this is the final 128. It's not special enough.


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. Pulp - Common People
Anthem or what?
2. Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit
It's an incredibly evocative song, and it's nice to think that such an evocative song could be released in 1939.
3. Derek & The Dominoes - Layla
The second half is about 30 times better than the first. Eric Clapton really does overuse the power chord, I liken it to eating too much chocolate. It's sickly sweet. The second half is glorious though, and gains respect from being in Goodfellas, in the scene where they show all the people, in very different places, but all very much dead.
4. The Kinks - You Really Got Me
While I don't deny the importance of this song (birth of heavy metal?), I much prefer the more quaint restrained Kinks. There are probably 10 songs on the Village Green Presevation Society that I prefer.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
The beginning of the magnificent end of Bowie's greatest album. To hear this followed by Suffragette City and then Rock n Roll Suicide is pure bliss.
2. The Who - Baba O Riley
I just really really like this song.
3. R.E.M. - Losing My Religion
I'm a bit puzzled that this is considered R.E.M.'s greatest song. There's probably at least 5 which are more worthy of that title. Nonetheless it's a good song and just beats...
4. Led Zep - Stairway To Heaven
There's something inherently annoying about this song. I don't exactly know what it is, but I don't feel I really connect to the song.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. The beatles - Tomorrow Never Knows
While searching for this song on spotify, I came across dozens of covers, of varying excellence. This is the original, and the best.
2. David Bowie - "Heroes"
It's tight betweeen this and #3, I pu this slightly ahead because I listened to this recently and it sounded awesome.
3. Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime
What a brilliant song. It's a shame it comes across 2 giants in it's bracket.
4. Jimi - Purple Haze
Quite easy to put this last, it doesn't strike me the way the others do.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops (One of my favorite ever, the flute intro is irrististable and the pain in his voice makes the song.)
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana (4th? All Time? Yes, that's right. It's a forever classic in my book.)
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast (I hate Outkast, but yesterday was 9/11, so I'll give 3rd place to them.)
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television (Nice guitars, but it's not up to the competition with the first 2.)

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes (The song is like 2 for one: A blazing guitar masterpiece and an epic piano ending. Plus, it's off one of my favorite albums)
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks (Another guitar perfection, this one doesn't have the piano though.)
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday (It amazes me that this song, from the 30's has made it this far. But, jus tlistening to it reminds me why.)
#50. "Common People" - Pulp (The clear 4th here. I don't really like the song to begin with and the first 3 are all amazing.)

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin (In what is by far the best bracket of the week, I vote a my favorite song of one of my favorite albums. And stop beating up this song because it's "overplayed by radio stations" not only is that not their fault, it's not a good excuse. If you don't like the song for the song, that's fine, but don't blame the radio when you can easily change the station.)
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who (Is it the lowest ranked song still in the competition? I'm not sure. Either way, one of my favorite Who songs, and it provided me with a good nickname for the mall.)
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie (Another great song off another favorite album of mine.)
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. (This is the definition of SH2B4.)

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#91. "Sweet Child O' Mine" - Guns N' Roses (My favorite song of all time. Oh wait it didn't get through.)
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles (This bracket is stacked with LSD songs, but the backwards guitar solo on this song is irrisitable.)
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience (I'm still mad at this song for beating Sweet Child O' Mine, but It's still a great song.)
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads (Is it posable not to dance to this?)
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie (Probably will win, but I don't see why. I preffer at lest 10 Bowie songs to this one.)

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

In the good thread this time :

Chopin has an awesome final bracket, Handel a great one, the other 2 not that much.

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast : relatively easy pick, even though I really like the 4 songs here. That one sounds so special and galvanizing that not much can compare with it
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television : another personal favourite, and a milestone, sort of gave birth to much of the music I like
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana : an all-time great classic, it took 2 personal favourite to beat it
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops : one of my Motown fav, SH2B4


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#50. "Common People" - Pulp : one of the best example of crescendo in modern music (with All My Friends of course), constantly gaining intensity and power
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks : not really the Kinks I enjoy the most but a good song anyway
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday : as I said previously, I find the vocal performance astonishing but the overall music not much interesting
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes : might be Clapton less irritating song, still it is Clapton and it bores me to death

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET :
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin : I was going to put it third... but then I realized it has most of the qualities I liked in the 3 other songs
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who : incredible intro and outro, I guess nothing sounded like that back then
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie : I hate to put 3rd today's song I would most likely chose in a karaoke, the guitar part is almost perfect... but it fights with 2 other guitar legends
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. : a great song, but clearly below the 3 others

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles : easy winner, the only song here I really enjoy
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads : a band I don't get much over 2 of my all time fav, it's just that it's one of their best while I don't think that's the case for the following 2
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience : far from being my favourite Hendrix song
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie : and far from being my favourite Bowie song either

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

The songs are all pretty much all great at this point, but my 3 favorites of the week are somehow in the same bracket!


CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Marquee Moon" - Television The very end of Marquee Moon's lengthy solo is still probably the most amazing non-Loveless guitar tone I've ever heard.
2. "B.O.B." - OutKast An absolute jam, with far more experimentation than virtually all other popular rap songs.
3. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana Should be getting old by this point, but it still imposes its greatness on me with every listen.
4. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops A fantastic, emotional vocal performance, but it's up against heavyweights.


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Common People" - Pulp I think I might prefer "Disco 2000" now, but this one's still deserving.
2. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks The group would reach far greater heights, but this song is still excellent thanks to its much-copied riff.
3. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes One of the best songs among typical the classic rock favorites. The vocal performance is a negative, but the guitar performance is emotionally spot-on.
4. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday I respect this more than I like it, but I can see that changing.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. Everyone's favorite R.E.M. song, except for R.E.M. fans. It squeaks by in a close bracket with no personal favorites.
2. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who I don't care much for The Who, but the intro to this song is thrilling even though I've heard it hundreds of times. By far the best song on Who's Next.
3. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie I don't understand why this is the most acclaimed song on the album, but even the 5th or 6th best song on Ziggy is better than most songs.
4. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin I haven't heard this so far in 2010, but I don't really mind. I think it's a good song, but I no longer care about hearing it.



TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads About as good as a pop song can get. Amazing chorus, unique instrumentation, and true lyrical meaning.
2. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles I find it amazing the the best song of the most popular band in the world is virtually unknown to the general public. I'm really glad they had the ability and vision to make this masterpiece.
3. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie A top 60 song for me ends up in third in this incredible bracket. I find new sounds in this song with every listen.
4. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience Easiest call for fourth place this week. Not only are the songs ahead of it amazing, but this is Hendrix's most overrated song. I wouldn't even put it in his top 20.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
Sublime guitar work, perhaps the greatest guitar solo ever. This is the song that pushed and broke all the boundaries of punk rock. It's a shame almost nobody else bothered to explore the new found territory this song created, but then again, who else but Television could pull off exploring it?
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
What else is there to say about this song that hasn't been said before? It changed music as we know it for the next 19 years, for better (the rise of alternative rock in the mainstream) or for worse (Nickelback, Daughtry, Creed, et al.)
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
This song is an explosion of furry, energy, excitement, and yes, psychedelia in hip hop. From the jungle beats to the guitars to the nearly impossible to understand rhymes to the incomprehensible lyrics to the choir at the end belting out "POWER MUSIC, ELECTRIC REVIVAL", everything fits together so perfectly. It was really tough to put this song third, but this bracket is very very very strong.
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
A really really good song, and it's a prime example of motown at its best, but SH2B4.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
One of the first times I made my way to acclaimedmusic.net, I found myself looking over the top song list and jotting down the highest ranked songs I have never heard. When I got around to listening to this song, I made the mistake of hearing the 4 minute radio edit as opposed to the 6 minute album version. I thought to myself "Well this is a good song and all, but is it really one of the top 100 greatest songs ever made?" Then a few months later I stumbled across the full 6 minute version and thought I'd give that a listen instead. Holy shit. The radio edit cut out everything incredible about the song. As soon as Jarvis got all quiet and started singing "like a dog lying in a corner..." I could feel the energy building up. Jarvis's whisper grows to a scream about the lives of the common people as he cries "you will never understand, how it feels to live your life..." and then the crescendo peaks, the instruments go into overdrive, the song becomes every epic moment in every movie trailer ever, it becomes a disco with everyone's life at stake, Jarivs screams out the chorus again and any last pent up energy is released.
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
An absolute classic guitar riff, perhaps the first true proto punk song out there. It pretty much laid the blueprint for all punk to come, and it's a pretty awesome song too.
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
I've heard people call the second half boring, but I think it's much better than the first part. Whoever mentioned Goodfellas before was totally right, seeing that movie really made me appreciate this song a whole lot more. (Sidenote, Goodfellas is one of the greatest movies ever made, and I strongly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of crime movies)
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
Good, but overrated. It really doesn't have anything on the top 3.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
There's just something about this song that hits me hard. The raw emotion Stipe's voice conveys, the mandolin, everything about it is really, really emotional to me.
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
Yeah yeah yeah, its cliche to say it's Zeppelin's best, but it is. Pompous? Maybe. Slightly overrated? Probably. Could it do without the flute? Yeah. Is it one of the greatest songs ever regardless? You bet.
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
When people talk about classic keyboard riffs in songs, there's a reason that this song is always mentioned. I haven't a clue what it's about. Vietnam maybe. Who cares, it's freaking epic.
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
Slightly overrated in terms of Bowie songs, but still great. All together now- "Ziggy played....Guuuuuitaaaaarrrr!!!"

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
Bowie's best song, Eno's production has never been better. It's a grand sweeping statement of a song that few can compare to. Easily a top 10 song of all time for me. Those guitars are just heavenly.
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
Damn, it's really close between this and Heroes. Both are easily top 20 songs of all time in my opinion, but Heroes just edges it out. Anyways, Once in a Lifetime is probably one of the most poignant songs out there, a great ode to middle age and the shallowness of contemporary values.
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Not his best song, but it's up there. Such a great guitar riff, this is definitely a top 100 song for me.
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
One of The Beatles very best songs, but this is a damn strong bracket so SH2B4.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
My favorite song from the top artist of the 90's. Gets a 5 on my scale.
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
My favorite Four Tops song. Gets a 6 on my scale.
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
Very good song. But, not in one of my favorite genres. Gets a 10 on my scale
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
Not a difficult call for me to put this if fourth, even in this unexceptional bracket.


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
Great album, great song. Duane Allman and Clapton are great on this track.
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
Excellent song, but not a close call for me compared to Layla.
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
Nice track, but not spellbinding.
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
I agree with the sentiment that I respect this song much more than I enjoy it.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
My all time favorite (therefore a 1 on my scale). Plenty of great music in this song - vocal, guitar, transitions - this song has it all. Many of you may have heard it too many times; but I love listening to it anytime.
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
Awesome start to one of the best albums ever (a five on my scale). This bracket is ridiculously strong. I would have likely placed this song at the top of two of the four brackets in this round.
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
A great song and easily my favorite R.E.M. song
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
SHTB4. One of my top 5 favorites from Bowie - a 9 on my scale.


TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Jimi's guitar works fine for me on this song.
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
Not my favorite Beatles track despite all the raving by others.
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
Solid track, but not nearly as good as Ziggy to my ear.
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
Talking Heads never really did as much for me as they did for so many others.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Listyguy
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who (Is it the lowest ranked song still in the competition?)


No, Daft Punk's "One More Time" (ranked #824) is the lowest still around.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

I'll give my songs ratings out of 10.

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. Television- "Marquee Moon" 9: This is a really close bracket, and I'm not sure why I'm picking this song other than that it feels right at the moment. There are tracks I prefer on Marquee Moon, but the title track deserves its love.
2. OutKast- "B.O.B." 9: Bombastic hypergalactic rap at its best! If Prince had been born 20 years later, this is what he may have sounded like.
3. Nirvana- "Smells Like Teen Spirit" 8.5: I always preferred the other singles from Nevermind, but this still has a lot of power.
4. The Four Tops- "Reach Out (I'll Be There) 8": Great song in the wrong bracket.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1. The Kinks- "You Really Got Me" 8.5: Whenever I feel that I don't like pop/rock from the 60s, I'm reminded that I need to get a Kinks album.
2. Billie Holiday- "Strange Fruit" 8: It's hard to compare this to the others, but it's terrifying and wonderful at the same time, and that's some achievement.
3. Pulp- "Common People" 8: Britpop isn't really my thing, but I have a lot of time for songs like this.
4. Derek and the Dominos- "Layla" 6.5: I've never been big on Clapton, but I do enjoy this song from time to time.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1. David Bowie- "Ziggy Stardust" 7: Yeah, this is the weakest bracket by far. I enjoy this song well enough, but it's just about my least favorite on its parent album.
2. R.E.M.- "Losing My Religion" 3: This song drove me nuts at the time, and while I can understand why it gets love, it just doesn't do it for me.
3. Led Zeppelin- "Stairway to Heaven" 1: Yikes. This is 3rd?!
4. The Who- "Baba O'Riley" 0.5: I'm puzzled as to why this song made it this far. Is it that overhyped synth intro?

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1. David Bowie- "'Heroes'" 8.5: I never really took to this song until I heard the full-length version. The slower buildup is key to my enjoyment of it!
2. The Jimi Hendrix Experience- "Purple Haze" 8: Tough loss for Jimi, especially seeing how he would have easily taken the previous bracket. Still, his #2 finish in UMT should make his fans happy.
3. Talking Heads- "Once in a Lifetime" 3.5: I thought I disliked Talking Heads for a long time, and this song is the reason why. This seems to be the week of widely acclaimed songs I don't really care for by artists I generally like. Every single song on Remain in Light tramples over this for me.
4. The Beatles- "Tomorrow Never Knows" 0: Those vocals jar me to no end! I appreciate that they were trying to stretch boundaries, but I just don't like the way it sounds- at all.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Moonbeam
I'll give my songs ratings out of 10.

1. The Kinks- "You Really Got Me" 8.5: Whenever I feel that I don't like pop/rock from the 60s, I'm reminded that I need to get a Kinks album.


The Village Green Preservation Society or Arthur would start you out right. They sound nothing like "You Really Got Me" though, so you might want to listen to the singles first to see what you're getting into. You could like the Kinks though, as they sound completely different from the Beatles.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Moonbeam
I'll give my songs ratings out of 10.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1. David Bowie- "Ziggy Stardust" 7: Yeah, this is the weakest bracket by far.


I really enjoy the contrast in our tastes.

For me the Handel Bloc was the strongest bracket by far.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
2. "B.O.B." - OutKast
3. "Marquee Moon" - Television
4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana

Man, this is a killer bracket, from top to bottom. Each one of them gets five stars on my iTunes. For a bracket like this, any "faults" that I would point out would truly be nitpicking, and on any other day, I could see myself putting the top three here in a different order. (Unfortunately, I can't justify putting Nirvana above the #4 spot here. A terrible case of SHTB4.)
I'm going with this order simply because I've been familiar with "Reach Out" the longest. I just have a lot of good memories with this song stretching all the way back to my childhood. STANKONIA was the first real rap CD I ever bought (I'm not counting anything by Will Smith), and it was solely because of "B.O.B." "Marquee Moon" is absolutely brilliant, and the extended middle section is nothing short of breathtaking. As for Nirvana... Yes, it's a great song, but I just prefer the other three more.

MOPS: "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
(Incidentally, I had "B.O.B." getting knocked out in the first round by Fatboy Slim's "Rockafeller Skank".)


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
For a long time, the only version of "Layla" I knew was the super-slow version off of Clapton's "Unplugged." When I finally heard the original version, I was just blown away. I don't really understand the anti-Clapton sentiments on this board, but then I guess I'll never understand the love for songs like "Losing My Religion" either...
2. "Common People" - Pulp
It drives me up the wall that the U.K. was getting brilliant songs like this in the mid-'90s, but my local radio stations were too caught up in shit like Ginuwine's "Pony" to notice. "Too British," is what I imagine they said upon hearing it. IF the powers that be ever got around to actually listening to it. Truly one of the best songs of the '90s. (Okay, full confession: I actually really like Ginuwine's "Pony".)
3. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
Man, does it kill me to put this here. If this were a poll of the most important songs, there isn't a song in all of Bracketology that could possibly measure up to this one. Unfortunately, I'm going with which song I'd rather hear, and Lady Day falls to #3.
4. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
SHTB4, but this is a fairly easy pick for that coveted #4 spot. It's nice and trashy (and I mean that in a good way, I swear), but it doesn't have the scope of "Layla," the fist-pumping anger of "Common People," or the gravitas of "Strange Fruit."

MOPS: "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes


HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
Wow, what an easy bracket. This is the only song of the four that I would say is "great." I could listen to this one over and over and over again and not get tired of it. A great opener to a great album.
2. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
This whole time, I've been waiting for "Stairway" to come across some truly quality competition so I can put it in 4th where it belongs. But once again, it comes up against even more undeserving songs.
This is, without a doubt, the most overrated song ever, and every time I see it on "best of" lists, I can only assume that it's there because it's expected to be there. As far as tracks off LZ4 go, it's not even in the top half. Oh, and it's overplayed too. (Oops, I guess it's verboten for me to say that...)
3. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
WOW. I did not expect to EVER be putting this song above the #4 spot, but c'est la vie. I've expressed my ambivalence toward this song before, and I can only pray that I won't have to express it again in Bracketology.
4. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
Speaking of songs that I just couldn't care less about... I've heard people talk before about albums that they just "couldn't get into." For my buddy, it's VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO, but for me it's ZIGGY STARDUST. Just not my cuppa.

MOPS: "Little Red Corvette" - Prince


TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
2. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
3. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
4. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles

I debated over this bracket for a while, and finally had to go with this order, but the top two could easily be switched, as could the bottom two. For now, Bowie gets the edge here because that song is just so grandiose and epic. I've said before that good songs can't last long enough while bad songs can't end soon enough. If Bowie added another verse to the end, I wouldn't complain. It's that good.
On the other hand, "Purple Haze" is like a sonic blast, short and to the point. Hendrix's guitar work is obviously otherworldly, but at this moment I'm just more into an extended jam over a short burst of energy.
Then there's the bottom two. By no means are these two bad; in fact, I'd rate all four songs here five stars on my iTunes. I just can't justify putting them in the same echelon as "'Heroes'" or "Purple Haze." I'll give the edge to Talking Heads because "Tomorrow Never Knows" knocked out "Nothing Compares 2 U," and I had Sinéad in the Final 4. Yes dammit, I'm holding a grudge.

MOPS: "Nothing Compares 2 U" - Sinéad O'Connor

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Matt Schroeder

2. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
This whole time, I've been waiting for "Stairway" to come across some truly quality competition so I can put it in 4th where it belongs. But once again, it comes up against even more undeserving songs.
This is, without a doubt, the most overrated song ever, and every time I see it on "best of" lists, I can only assume that it's there because it's expected to be there. As far as tracks off LZ4 go, it's not even in the top half. Oh, and it's overplayed too. (Oops, I guess it's verboten for me to say that...)


I often read the trash talk about STH and wonder whether there is any correlation to the age of the writer. My wild speculation is that the folks who despise STH the most are the ones who were finding their way into music in (or after) the late 70's and had to have some standards against which they could demonstrate their "evolved" view. I sympathize with the folks that heard STH far too many times and have grown weary of it. This would be especially annoying because the song is so dang long.

I wonder whether younger (say less than 18-19 years old) listeners are more accepting of STH because it is no longer as overplayed and we are now much more inclined to listen to our own songs than be subject to a radio station's constrained play list.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Jackson

1. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. Everyone's favorite R.E.M. song, except for R.E.M. fans. It squeaks by in a close bracket with no personal favorites.

That and "Happy Shiny People". Must be the album.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Henry
Matt Schroeder

2. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
This whole time, I've been waiting for "Stairway" to come across some truly quality competition so I can put it in 4th where it belongs. But once again, it comes up against even more undeserving songs.
This is, without a doubt, the most overrated song ever, and every time I see it on "best of" lists, I can only assume that it's there because it's expected to be there. As far as tracks off LZ4 go, it's not even in the top half. Oh, and it's overplayed too. (Oops, I guess it's verboten for me to say that...)


I often read the trash talk about STH and wonder whether there is any correlation to the age of the writer. My wild speculation is that the folks who despise STH the most are the ones who were finding their way into music in (or after) the late 70's and had to have some standards against which they could demonstrate their "evolved" view. I sympathize with the folks that heard STH far too many times and have grown weary of it. This would be especially annoying because the song is so dang long.

I wonder whether younger (say less than 18-19 years old) listeners are more accepting of STH because it is no longer as overplayed and we are now much more inclined to listen to our own songs than be subject to a radio station's constrained play list.


It's an interesting theory. I'm 28 and have been "into" music for the better part of the last thirteen years, but I've heard STH so many times that I have, as you said, grown weary of it. And frankly, I'd rather listen to "Black Dog," "Rock and Roll," "Misty Mountain Hop," "Four Sticks," or "When the Levee Breaks" before STH.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

For once I don't need to go re-listen to everything before I vote.

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
Perfect production, truly a great song.
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
Another great song. Nirvana are the victim of oversaturation, so it's easy to be tired of the song, but there's really nothing wrong with it.
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
Anyone who hates on all rap automatically should listen to Outkast. I think they're the one rap band who would appeal to people raised on classic rock. B.O.B. has everything that makes rap fun and nothing that makes it annoying.
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
I like Television but I'm not a huge fan of them, and this song is really way too long and against way too strong competition.


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
@Matt: I have a lot of anti-Clapton sentiment, but none of it applies to the Layla album. On that whole album he's bluesy and he rocks. Which is not something I can say about the rest of his work.
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
Between Layla and Common People, it was a very hard decision. A few months ago I would have easily picked Common People. At this point, I think maybe the novelty of the narrative has worn off a bit and I've got to go with Layla.
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
Good song against two giants.
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
I like the song but it's too hook-oriented.


HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
Wow, what a tough bracket. I've got to go with Stairway To Heaven. It might have one of the best epic guitar parts ever. And it hasn't been any more overplayed than Zep's other songs for me.
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
It's a tough call between these two for second and third. The Who's early stuff is good but it's always just a little bit cute. Who's Next is the album that really shed that aspect of their sound and really make The Who a bona fide rock band, and with Baba O'Reilly's famous piano opening, you know it within the first few seconds.
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
I like the comment 'Everyone's favorite REM song except for REM fans'. I think REM fans like them firstly for their college rock days, whereas Losing My Religion drives home an emotional story with a beautifully executed hook. It's a great song, but with none of the qualities that hooked their original fans.
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
Another example of a very good song against three great songs. Also one of those Bowie songs that's a little quirky for quirky's sake.


TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Another one of the greatest guitar parts ever. This song is pure energy.
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
Zen this!
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
I love the synthy ambiance and the whole surreal sense of questioning whether all the things you built up in your life actually mean anything to you.
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
The second time I'm putting Bowie in 4th this week, and the second time it's with a very good song against three great songs. I can't fault anything about this song. I just like the other three more.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

I'm 16, and only really heard Stairway to Heaven this year. The first time I heard it, I thought "magical", and then by the second I felt like skipping ahead to Misty Mountain Hop (I didn't, because I never do). I don't know why it just doesn't do anything for me, I just know that if I'm looking for a Led Zep epic, I could always go to When The Levee Breaks.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Well it's the beginning of a new round, so I guess I can join now. I should have voted in the first two rounds but only took note of it half way through the second one. I'll vote in the next UMT as well.

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
Just that riff, and the chaotic vocal. Does it every time. Such a great song to empty your head to.
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
A scintillating yet serene ballad which I'd probably put above Teen Spirit had I heard of it before this year's song poll.
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
More manic than the Outkast of Speakerboxx that I knew first, can't really comment on the rap beyond it being a really enjoyable listen.
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops]
An accomplished Motown cut which is so inferior to its contemporaries, such as Uptight and My Girl, that its AM ranking is beyond me.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
More authentic that all the lo-fi and punk it spawned, with a tune to match.
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
The voice and the words inevitably blacken any mood I'm in, but in a good way. The most chilling thing I've ever heard.
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
Not even the best song on the album, but then it is an incredible album.
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
Really clever song. Not my favourite Pulp song, and Pulp are by no means my favourite band, but its not a disservice to finish below these other three.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
Having heard this countless times it still sounds ethereal to me (which it should, given its title). I do think that it is one of those songs which blows you away on first listen, and then loses some of its magic after that. Also I don't appreciate some of the Tolkien-inspired lyrics. And I'm 18 and definitely would not consider myself a Zeppelin fan.
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
One of Bowie's best ideas for a song, I'm growing to love this one.
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
Great instrumentation, even better song.
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
I see Man on the Moon as vastly superior to this. Despite this it remains brilliant and a really good singalong too.


TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
This song can, at times, take me somewhere else. But often overlooked highlights are George's guitar and Ringo's drums.
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
An overrated song in my opinion, but you've got to love the wall of sound guitars.
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
Probably the most interesting song in these brackets. I haven't given it enough chance so far.
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Until a couple of weeks ago, this song was all about the Hendrix chord/riff, which was always immediately destroyed by the superb Voodoo Child. More recently I've started to get the song as a whole more, but I still don't understand why it's more acclaimed than All Along the Watchtower.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Three quick things:
1. I'm 14, I've been listening to Stairway for 3 years, and I still love it.

2. Is it my imagination or does this forum hate post-Cream Clapton? And if so, why?

3. MOPL: Sweet Child O' Mine, Stairway to Heaven, Bohemain Rhapsody (With This Charming Man close behind), and The Message.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. #36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops /
I like the intro especially. The rest of the song is really fine, but it's not that great. Guess it's not a very tough bracket, even at this stage.
2. #4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana /
Could have been on the first spot as well. Maybe I've heard this once too often, or maybe I'm a kind of tired of the grunge-sound these days. It's a good song though.
3. #356. "B.O.B." - OutKast /
Quite interesting song, but a little too hard-hitting for my taste. Has some really good parts, but also parts that don't really resonate with me.
4. #324. "Marquee Moon" - Television /
Although I now like it better than some time ago, I still don't like it very much. The song is just too long for all it's repetetiveness and it's typical sound.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. #47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes /
Although I like the whole song, it's still the piano-part that does it for me.
2. #114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday /
Not only is this song important, it also sounds good. Better than the next two, even if it's only about the music. And then there's the lyrics and the delivery of them...
3. #18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks /
A little too simple to be a truly great song. I like this one, but I don't want to hear it very often. I prefer the more mature Kinks.
4. #50. "Common People" - Pulp /
This song is acually quite fine, but I don't like it very much. The voice, the accent, the song in general. The lyrics are kind of nice though.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. #10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin /
Still great and still different from a lot of other music out there. Yes this one is played too much, yes I have heard it too often and yes, I still like it a lot. Don't care too much for the lyrics if the music is this epic.
2. #151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie /
This one has a though round. It's true that this song is not the best of the fantastic album, but it doesn't bring it down either, not at all.
3. #42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. /
I guess I am one of those people who don't dig the early years of R.E.M. very much and therefor prefer songs like this and as heard on Automatic for the People. No mumbling, no dated bass and altogether just a good sound. This would have topped the first bracket.
4. #695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who /
Another epic rock song. I like it, but just not as much as the other three in this bracket. The celtic-like ending is funny.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. #59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie /
This is a very though bracket, as I like all the songs more or less equally. The music of this one is great, but the lyrics really give it the final touch.
2. #38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience /
Not my favorite Hendrix song, but really good nonetheless. And the guitar-playing is magnificent, again, or, as always. Could have been first as well.
3. #123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads /
A highly danceable and really fun Talking Heads song. Probably the best track on Remain in Light. Could have been second as well.
4. #230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles /
Used to be one of my favorite Beatles songs and I guess it still is. But it's not as much of a real 'song' as the other three. Could have been third as well. Or second probably. Or maybe even first.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Listyguy


2. Is it my imagination or does this forum hate post-Cream Clapton? And if so, why?


Listyguy, I don't hate post-Cream CLapton. In fact, I think he did his best work with Derek and the Dominos and Layla and Other Assorted Songs is one of my favourite albums. I do, however, think that Layla (still a great song) is overrated and should not be put on its own as the standard bearer of the album when there are so many other brilliant tracks like Bell Bottom Blues, Andyday and Thorn Tree in the Garden to name three.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Guy
Listyguy


2. Is it my imagination or does this forum hate post-Cream Clapton? And if so, why?


Listyguy, I don't hate post-Cream CLapton. In fact, I think he did his best work with Derek and the Dominos and Layla and Other Assorted Songs is one of my favourite albums. I do, however, think that Layla (still a great song) is overrated and should not be put on its own as the standard bearer of the album when there are so many other brilliant tracks like Bell Bottom Blues, Andyday and Thorn Tree in the Garden to name three.


While I think Duane Allman's brilliant slide guitar is displayed beautifully on Layla, I am also quite fond of "I Looked Away" and "Why Does Love Have to Be So Sad"

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

I'll include my general placement in my own all-time Top 2000 list (which is currently under revision, so I can't be precise)...

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. (Top 20) "B.O.B." - OutKast: Best song of the '00s, and one of the most exciting mish-mashes of genres I've ever heard.
2. (250-300) "Reach Out (I'll Be There)": The Four Tops: Levi Stubbs' vocal, that bass line, those strings, perfect Motown.
3. (700-800) "Marquee Moon" - Television: I don't break out the album and listen to it much anymore, but this is still astonishing.
4. (1100-1200) "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana: It's a classic 'cause it really really rocks, even though I still think the lyrics are mumbo-jumbo (and among Cobain's weakest), and that arguments that this is the point are sort of a cop-out.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. (#1) "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday: Most moving song ever.
2. (1700-1800) "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks: Pure snottiness, sort of templatizing punk (and even metal) before they did an about-face and made some of the most amazing pastoral pop of the era.
3. (1900-2000) "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes: Great duelling guitars, great coda, perhaps a bit too much of both? (Oh, and post-1970 Clapton, aside from 1 or 2 songs, sucks because he became extremely boring and limp.)
4. (Just outside top 2000) "Common People" - Pulp: I really like a lot of Pulp, but this has never resonated with me the way I know it's supposed to. Gimme We Love Life anyday.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. (700-800) "Baba O'Riley" - The Who: Barely the winner of a pretty mediocre bracket for this late in the game. Anyway, yeah, the synth (and later the violins) are great, but I love minimalism and Terry Riley so I'm cool with the juxtaposition with the normal Who power chords and spastic drums. But they really really would've been better as a power trio -- the more I listen to them, the more I can barely take Daltrey's histrionics.
2. (800-900) "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie: Great rockin' glam, and while I've tired of a lot of the album, this still kicks some ass.
3. (Just outside top 2000) "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.: Beautifully constructed of course, but again doesn't much resonate with me. I guess I'm an '80s R.E.M kinda guy.
4. (Outside top 2000) "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin: Tried listening to this with open ears the other day, and yeah, the general build-up is masterful and the end quite glorious. But the verses? Ugh. Plant's vocals are actually a bit precious, the lyrics are patently ridiculous in places, and the lilting recorder is just a bit much to stomach. So, it was an easy 4th, despite the undeniable guitar 'n' drums that pay us off for the waiting.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. (Top 100) "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles: The winner of a very tough bracket, this just blows my mind from a pure sonic perspective. It still sounds very very modern, and Ringo just bashes the hell out of it.
2. (200-250) "'Heroes'" - David Bowie: His best vocal, and wonderful build-up and amazingly undated production (Robert Fripp is really the man on this).
3. (900-1000) "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: I love the general vibe of Remain in Light (even though it really isn't any better than the best African music it's influenced by), so this is actually an outlier track in that regard. But still, a great single, with lyrics that paint a picture and make a point extremely well.
4. (900-1000) "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience: SHTB4. This is such an iconic song, and it still sounds good, but it's in pretty tough company now.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

sonofsamiam

3. (900-1000) "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: I love the general vibe of Remain in Light (even though it really isn't any better than the best African music it's influenced by)


What's are some examples of this? I know the album has African influence but I don't know any specific artists/albums.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

I know Paul Simon's Graceland was extremely African influenced, if that's what you mean.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Listyguy
I know Paul Simon's Graceland was extremely African influenced, if that's what you mean.


I didn't mean other African-influenced albums, I meant the actual African albums that caused the influence.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Aha! Things are going to get really fun now...

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television ~ I'm a huge fan of the CBGB sound. It's the sound of good taste. The sound of not giving a damn about whether you'll get on the radio or not, and whether that means cutting your song down to a measly 3 minutes or getting out of here. Funnily enough, Marquee Moon became a Top 40 UK single even at full length; flabbergasting second half and all. I guess something that climactic and spiritually euphoric shouldn't ever be kept back from the masses, no matter who's handling it.
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops ~ This is seriously close to matching the emotion that Maruquee Moon can deliver. The lyrics are just so sympathetic that "reach out" seems to be said to anyone who's listening to it. And when the chorus of "I'll Be There" erupts out of the speakers, suddenly you can hear every last drop of anguish, and sorrow from the lead singer, it just hits you. He'll be there, but only when you are in so much desperate pain, that you truly need him.
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast ~ It's some seriously prophetic psychadelic rap-rock, with some amazing guitar work, plus OutKast's blistering tongue-twisting phrases. Unfortunately, it just isn't as emotional for me as the first two, but what can you expect in the third round?
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana ~ This, on the other hand, should just quit while it's ahead. It's 4th in this bracket, sure, but if you thought the rest are the 3 best songs of all time, you'd be mistaken. The lyrics aren't all that, and you can't hear them anyway, so you just have that grunge chord progression. Over. And over. And over. Hello. Hello. Hello.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes ~ This was actually a reeeeally close bracket. Constant rearranging went through my mind throughout the week, but more often than not, Layla persisted to stay on top. That piano coda is simply beautiful, and easily outweighs the reduncancy of the riffs and the lyrics of the first half.
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday ~ Is this the oldest song still in the competition? If it is, then deservedly so; it's haunting, yet assertive and powerful at the same time. The instrumental intro goes on for longer than expected, but that just builds up even further towards the hard-hitting lyrics.
#50. "Common People" - Pulp ~ I did have this at the top on some days. That said, whenever I listen to it, I always see the marring face of Jarvis Cocker Cocky-Cock in my mind from having found this song via the video. His sprechstimme is a plague on both your houses ears.
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks ~ It's a fairly good song, but there's nothing really interesting about it, really. Plus I don't care if even Jimmy Page played that solo - he would go on to do MUCH, much better relative to this.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who ~ Oh no... my... my favourite song of all time... IS UP AGAINST STAIRWAY!!!
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin ~ That doesn't necessarily mean I dislike Stairway. Reluctantly, I'm playing by the rules and putting Stairway where it rightfully belongs, but I'm going to be gutted if that means Baba O'Riley is kicked out at this point.
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie ~ Then we have some nice songs which could never rival the top two in the slightest! I really like this, mind, and unlike most songwriters, Bowie forms lyrics which no one could ever really understand, but which the same people could easily sing at the drop of a hat.
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. ~ Compared to other R.E.M. songs, I don't exactly mind this song, but it's not something I'd go to great lengths to defend it against the stalwarts that occupy this bracket.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads ~ Another one of my favourite songs of all time. The music is utterly enthralling: at once combining exhilirating African rhythms with soothing, electronic ambience. It's the perfect backing track on which to drizzle Byrne's existential surrealistic words. No matter how famous it has become outside of Remain In Light, it's just one of the tracks which make it one of the most cohesive and greatest albums of all time.
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie ~ I care a lot more for Bowie's 'Berlin' peroid more than any other point in his career, and "Heroes" is almost certainly one of the reasons. The build-up is so subtle and constant that when it actually hits you half of the way through, it really hits you hard. The lyrics aren't necessarily deep, but the subject and execution is truly grand, and as is the music that propels Bowie's vocals forward. It's not as great as anything on Low, but with help from Brian Eno, it's still pretty amazing.
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles ~ And so The Beatles become The Chemical Brothers. Whodathunkit. Only The Beatles could have the minds to think it up, I suppose; add to that the practically infinite time they now gave themselves to record at the time of Revolver, and you have something pretty genius, especially for its time.
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience ~ There was a time when I listened to Are You Experienced, and just as it reached the last minutes of the title track, I realised that the songs were good right up until Hendrix decided to lay his greasy, pretentious, and nowadays fairly primitive effects all over it. That said, Purple Haze is still a pretty great song, but I'd rather have Hey Joe, The Wind Cries Mary or anything on Axis: Bold as Love/Electric Ladyland any day.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Jackson
sonofsamiam

3. (900-1000) "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: I love the general vibe of Remain in Light (even though it really isn't any better than the best African music it's influenced by)


What's are some examples of this? I know the album has African influence but I don't know any specific artists/albums.


Fela Kuti mainly, from all that I've heard. Maybe a bit of Thomas Mapfumo in there too.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

sonofsamiam
Jackson
sonofsamiam

3. (900-1000) "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: I love the general vibe of Remain in Light (even though it really isn't any better than the best African music it's influenced by)


What's are some examples of this? I know the album has African influence but I don't know any specific artists/albums.


Fela Kuti mainly, from all that I've heard. Maybe a bit of Thomas Mapfumo in there too.


interesting. didn't know mapfumo was even recording stuff that early on.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN
1. B.O.B. In 1991, “Teen Spirit” explosively expanded the possibilities of what pop could be. Eight-and-a-half years later, Andre and Big Boi’s masterpiece did the same thing, only more explosively and with even wider possibilities. I’m forced to conclude—somewhat to my own surprise—that OutKast’s song is better.
2. SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT. That said, “Bob your head, rag top” hasn’t entered the lexicon the way “Here we are now, entertain us” has.
3. MARQUEE MOON. This bracket requires horrible choices. Television’s first album goes up in my estimation every time I hear it, but it’s hard for me to put the title track *too* far ahead of the other 7 brilliant songs on the album.
4. REACH OUT (I’LL BE THERE). One of my favorite tracks from the 60s, but we’re in the final 64 now and the competition’s tough. The clear #4.

LISZT
1. COMMON PEOPLE. Pitchfork just picked this as the #2 song of the 1990’s. I think they may be lowballing it. It's even been dignified with a Shatner cover, I think.
2. STRANGE FRUIT. One of the finest performances ever on record, in any genre. It’s “strange fruit” in the tournament as well, since it’s (I think) the only jazz track we have left. I feel kind of bad not picking it first.
3. YOU REALLY GOT ME. It’s unfashionable to say so, but this remains my favorite song of theirs. I prefer the Neanderthal Kinks of ’64 more than the Cromagnon Kinks of ’66-‘67
4. LAYLA. “Hate” is too strong, listyguy, but yes, I dislike post-Cream Clapton (not to mention Cream). Clapton is a blues guitarist, but he always sounds to me like some kind of savant who can play Leadbelly riffs with technical proficiency but zero feeling (your mileage may vary). But even I have to acknowledge how rockin’ the first two minutes of this song are.

HANDEL
1. LOSING MY RELIGION. Yes, I’m predictable, and yes, this isn’t my favorite R.E.M. song. But look, this week’s other three brackets feature four masterpieces each. This Handel final features one (1) masterpiece, two good songs, and “Stairway.” What the hell else am I gonna pick?
2. ZIGGY STARDUST. Sometimes I think I’m getting sick of this song. Then I manage to catch the wretched Bauhaus cover again and I appreciate the real thing anew.
3. BABA O’RILEY. If they’d released this in 1979, the Who might have been classed alongside Blondie, the Cars and Talking Heads for bravely incorporating disco loops. Guess that’s the price you pay for being eight years ahead of your time.
4. STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN. We don’t really need to revisit this again, do we? OK, OK, my take, for those coming in late: I have learned to appreciate Zeppelin, but this song represents everything I don’t like about them. It has nothing to do with how often I’ve heard it…although I do have to smile a bit when I read posters (and there’s been more than one…I’m not singling out listyguy) who say they have yet to get sick of it after THREE WHOLE YEARS of listening to it!*

TCHAIKOVSKY
1. ONCE IN A LIFETIME. I went back and forth several times, but decided this was my #1—barely—over “Heroes.” You ever notice how quotable David Byrne is? Most of you can probably recite the lyrics to this verbatim…the T-Heads are like the Monty Python of music geeks.
2. “HEROES.” Might be the most famous, and effective, use of scare quotes in history.
3. TOMORROW NEVER KNOWS. The Beatles’ third- or fourth-best song, and the best song on their best album. That tells you how highly I rate this bracket’s top two.
4. PURPLE HAZE. OK, Jimi, you certainly got your props in the UMT, so I don’t feel *too* bad about putting your most famous song last here. Which is not to say it isn’t killer.



* - We’ve all noticed this, but I still don’t get it: why do this Forum’s teenagers love “classic rock,” when old farts like me (exactly 3 times listyguy’s age) are championing Television, the Beastie Boys and Radiohead?

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

schleuse

4. LAYLA. “Hate” is too strong, listyguy, but yes, I dislike post-Cream Clapton (not to mention Cream). Clapton is a blues guitarist, but he always sounds to me like some kind of savant who can play Leadbelly riffs with technical proficiency but zero feeling (your mileage may vary). But even I have to acknowledge how rockin’ the first two minutes of this song are.

Henry's comments/questions -
1) Why not comment about Allman's contribution to Layla?

2) Do you place Duane in the same unfeeling "savant" category as Clapton.

3) Please tell us about your view of Clapton's adventure with Winwood in Blind Faith.

This Handel final features one (1) masterpiece, two good songs, and “Stairway.” What the hell else am I gonna pick?
4. STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN. We don’t really need to revisit this again, do we? OK, OK, my take, for those coming in late: I have learned to appreciate Zeppelin, but this song represents everything I don’t like about them. It has nothing to do with how often I’ve heard it…although I do have to smile a bit when I read posters (and there’s been more than one…I’m not singling out listyguy) who say they have yet to get sick of it after THREE WHOLE YEARS of listening to it!*

Henry's comments: I've been listening to STH since it first came out, and I have not tired of it yet. Perhaps my play lists have been sufficiently diverse over the years that I wasn't exposed to STH more than 6 times a year or so after 1980, and that could explain why I still love it. When I went to undergrad (1973-1977) almost all of the "dorm guitarists" where playing STH (Zeppelin) and Allman Brothers riffs, so this probably also helped me to have a more enduring affection for these artists.

* - We’ve all noticed this, but I still don’t get it: why do this Forum’s teenagers love “classic rock,” when old farts like me (exactly 3 times listyguy’s age) are championing Television, the Beastie Boys and Radiohead?


I've provided similar conjectures about this before, but let's have at it again.

Teenagers and others who have not spent a tremendous amount of time consuming contemporary music have a target rich environment for accessible music that nonetheless can transport them over a wide range of emotions and be interesting musically.

For many of us who have invested a large amount of time listening to music, the appeal of these accessible songs tends to diminish - especially if they start to sound derivative or similar to other songs crafted in the past. It is at this juncture that folks start to seek out music that may have slipped under their radar otherwise, and they start hitting upon performers such as Radiohead, Beastie Boys, and Television.

I've been listening extensively to Radiohead and the Beastie Boys for the past three or more years with an earnest prospect of moving them into my favorite performer status (along with so many classic rock faves).

These earnest attempts have not yet succeeded for the Beastie Boys (likely because of their musical genre and my relative distaste therefor).

Radiohead has been a great find for me and they have cracked my top ten faves. But, as much as I admire, enjoy and appreciate their talent; it seems to me that they are not likely to become widely viewed as one of the greatest acts ever unless they can provide a wider range of emotions in their songs. To clarify I ask rhetorically (yet hoping for some examples) - Have the performers in Radiohead ever provided us with an unambigouously upbeat song? If so, it has escaped my aural sensibilities to date.

Finally, I have not yet heard enough Television to make a judgment regarding their prospects for becoming a fave (but I tend to doubt that they will make the cut).

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

I'm not sure whether it's me to whom you're referring, but I am a teenager, who does visit this forum. And, superficially anyway, I HATE what appears to fall into the category of Classic Rock!!! The image of greasy-locked shirtless wonders and effervescent guitars on MTV drives me nuts; when people at school brought out Black Dog or Sweet Child o' Mine to show their knowledge of music pre-last week, it made me wonder about them as people; when TheTopListsGuy mentioned Bon Jovi as his favourite artist, I had to physically restrain myself in my chair (and anyone about to say that Bon Jovi and "classic rock" are not the same thing, to me they are).

But then, that is all image, artifice. I have to admit to liking a lot of the "classic rock" music with which I'm familiar (excluding the 80s wave apparently headed by G'nR and the afforementioned). I voted Stairway to Heaven first in its bracket because it is among the best songs written by a pretty decent songwriter, and, as has already been said, it's a relatively weak bracket for this stage.

At the same time, I much prefer punk, art punk, protopunk and other rival umbrella terms, and do think that in between Abbey Road and Raw Power was largely one of the weakest half-decades in music history purely because the likes of Zeppelin were the headliners (I'm talking about stereotypes, not specific albums). And is it just me, or does the Hendrix era of guitar heroes seem much more intriguing and rebellious than the School of Rock which followed it (Page onwards)?

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Guy
When people at school brought out Black Dog or Sweet Child o' Mine to show their knowledge of music pre-last week, it made me wonder about them as people; when TheTopListsGuy mentioned Bon Jovi as his favourite artist, I had to physically restrain myself in my chair (and anyone about to say that Bon Jovi and "classic rock" are not the same thing, to me they are).

At the same time, I much prefer punk, art punk, protopunk and other rival umbrella terms, and do think that in between Abbey Road and Raw Power was largely one of the weakest half-decades in music history purely because the likes of Zeppelin were the headliners (I'm talking about stereotypes, not specific albums). And is it just me, or does the Hendrix era of guitar heroes seem much more intriguing and rebellious than the School of Rock which followed it (Page onwards)?


Clearly your opinion is in line with many others that post on AM. But, opinions by definition vary.

I am a bit taken aback by the strength of your reaction to another's musical preferences. Consider how you would feel if someone stated that he/she wondered about you as a person because you prefer punk, art punk, protopunk.

I would posit that Hendrix himself was more intriguing and rebellious than many of the guitarists that followed. But, it seems a bit too generous to attribute Hendrix's attributes to others just because they created music in the same era. There are plenty of intriguing guitarists from all eras. In my view, innovation and skill typically trump attitude (rebelliousness) when I assess musical genius.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

schleuse


* - We’ve all noticed this, but I still don’t get it: why do this Forum’s teenagers love “classic rock,” when old farts like me (exactly 3 times listyguy’s age) are championing Television, the Beastie Boys and Radiohead?


Cause you've had the time to explore.

Here's my progression in the exploration of music.

--->Discover mainstream pop, like mainstream pop
--->Start to hate mainstream pop
--->Discover the Beatles and Dylan, love the Beatles and Dylan
--->Come to the conclusion that all newer music is terrible, listen exclusively to 'classic rock' for a while
--->Discover newer music that I love
--->Fill in the missing links in the middle

If you're on this board, chances are you've gotten to the being tired of mainstream pop phase. So, the younger you are, the more likely you are to only have discovered classic rock. Also, paradoxically, 'classic rock' is closer to mainstream pop than the links in between. So I would suggest, if you haven't spent a lot of time listening to and digesting the classic rock that inspired it, post-punk and related genres are far less approachable.

Regarding Clapton, I think he *plays* with emotion, but I think his songwriting not on the Layla album is incredibly boring and tacky. It's his songwriting that's really the problem.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

schleuse


* - We’ve all noticed this, but I still don’t get it: why do this Forum’s teenagers love “classic rock,” when old farts like me (exactly 3 times listyguy’s age) are championing Television, the Beastie Boys and Radiohead?


Hey! I'm 19 and my top 100 artists has an almost 50/50 split between pre-1977 music and post-1977 music!
Though had you asked me to make a top 100 list when I was 14....

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Henry
Guy
When people at school brought out Black Dog or Sweet Child o' Mine to show their knowledge of music pre-last week, it made me wonder about them as people; when TheTopListsGuy mentioned Bon Jovi as his favourite artist, I had to physically restrain myself in my chair (and anyone about to say that Bon Jovi and "classic rock" are not the same thing, to me they are).

At the same time, I much prefer punk, art punk, protopunk and other rival umbrella terms, and do think that in between Abbey Road and Raw Power was largely one of the weakest half-decades in music history purely because the likes of Zeppelin were the headliners (I'm talking about stereotypes, not specific albums). And is it just me, or does the Hendrix era of guitar heroes seem much more intriguing and rebellious than the School of Rock which followed it (Page onwards)?


Clearly your opinion is in line with many others that post on AM. But, opinions by definition vary.

I am a bit taken aback by the strength of your reaction to another's musical preferences.


That wasn't meant to sound serious. I was actually talking about one of my best friends, and music never comes up too much when we talk anyway. When I attack anything on this forum it's usually tongue-in-cheek; partly because it's all subjective, and partly because I'm likely to by out of my depth a lot of the time with people who've obviously gone much further into music than I have. It's okay, I'm not a sociopath

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Why does it seem like we've been down this road before?
Anyway, yes, my main musical preference is rock. (What is "Classic Rock", who knows.) BUT- THat does not mean I do not like other types of music. I enjoy Television, The Beasties and Radiohead. I will admit to bashing Rap on occassion, but if you listen to crap like "Not Afraid" before knowing who The Beaties Boys are, it may warp your opinion on rap.

One last thing - since arriving at the forum, I have gone from completely hating Outkast to barely hating them.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Listyguy


One last thing - since arriving at the forum, I have gone from completely hating Outkast to barely hating them.


Our mission is complete.

Also, anything Eminem did after 2002 is complete shit.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" – Nirvana: NOW it gets difficult – from here on out, more often than not it’s going to SH2B 2, 3, -and- 4, and that’s certainly the case here. I’d say that Cobain’s anti-anthem gets the nod for its influence, over and above how brilliant it is, but the truth is I’d probably put it at #1 even if NEVERMIND had sold as many copies as BLEACH.
2. "Marquee Moon" – Television: One of the few 10-minute tracks that justifies its length, and a perfect encapsulation of everything that made this band and this album so great.
3. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops: A masterpiece of melodrama – probably Holland-Dozier-Holland’s crowning achievement, and possibly Motown’s as well.
4. "B.O.B." – OutKast: It hurts, almost physically, to put a recording as extraordinary as this in last place. Welcome to Round 3.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Common People" – Pulp: The first time I ever heard this song was on a local Chicago music-video show called JBTV; I had vaguely heard of the band, knew their new album was getting critically praised, figured I’d be as underwhelmed by their music as by most of the Britpop I’d heard. By the time the video was over I was shaking with excitement and muttering, “I have to get this album, like, immediately.” I still feel that way every time I hear it.
2. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday: It’s thrilling to see a record this singular, this commanding, this goddamn -important-, and yes, this OLD make it this far in the competition; if I didn’t love #1 so much I’d be cheering it on to the next round. There is no other record on earth remotely like it.
3. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes: A lifelong favorite, great enough to earn Clapton a free pass for all the less-than-stellar work he’s done since. The fact that it’s down here at #3 is further testament to how tough this round is.
4. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks: Another one I’ve loved for decades, and objectively the most influential record in this bracket. But a pretty easy #4.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.: Is it coincidence that the three greatest singles of the 1990s are all in this week’s brackets? Nothing but classic-rock staples (yes, that includes R.E.M. and the Heads), and terrific ones, in these last two groupings, but the choice here is easy: sometimes an artist’s most popular and/or most acclaimed track really IS their best, and for me that’s the case with the boys from Athens.
2. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who: I can understand how some – OK, many – people may have gotten tired of this song from decades of overplay. I’m not one of them. I still get a surge of excitement from everything about it.
3. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin: See #2 above, but to a lesser extent. I feel comfortable turning it off if I’ve got something better to do. Unless it’s already past Bonham’s entrance.
4. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie: As I’ve said repeatedly, couple it up with “Suffragette City,” the way most CR stations in my experience do, and I might rank it higher. By itself, it’s obviously a wonderful song, but just as obviously #4.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie: Calling any one track Bowie’s masterpiece is a tall order, but this one fits the bill better than most. Again, a lot of people miss the irony and complexity – I guarantee that plenty of people hearing Kidman and McGregor singing “You will be mean/And I’ll drink all the time” in MOULIN ROUGE thought, “Wait, are those lyrics actually in that song?” – but it’s so soaring and beautiful it couldn’t have -not- been intended as an anthem.
2. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: I initially had this at #4, but the more I thought about it the higher it climbed. Again, Byrne’s written a lot of great songs, but if you had to sum up his art and worldview in one track, this would be it (despite the fact that I think its album is quite overrated). And, again, kudos to Jerry Harrison for bringing things down to earth in the coda by resurrecting his Modern Lovers organ sound.
3. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles: Second for second, probably the most original and innovative track they ever recorded. It ends their best album on the ultimate look-into-the-future note, but it’s arguably more “out-there” than anything that followed – well, maybe not “Revolution 9,” but it packs an equal amount of experimentation into a third of the time, and thanks to Ringo, it’s also got a funky beat and you can bug out to it.
4. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience: The opposite of what happened with #2 occurred here: the more I thought about #2 and #3, the farther Jimi’s relatively straightforward blast dropped. That’s absolutely no reflection on Hendrix, though – it’s just SH2B4, Round 3 style.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "B.O.B." - OutKast - This song is to hip-hop what "Like a Rolling Stone" is to rock: the song that proves that anything is possible. (It isn't quite in the same league as "LaRS", but it's up there.)
2. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana - For all its acclaim, I have never thought that "SLTS" was particularly special or catchier than the rest of Nevermind. But Nevermind is a top 20 or 30 album for me, and "SLTS" rocks pretty hard once it gets going.
3. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops - Not the perfect Motown song, but a darned good one.
4. "Marquee Moon" - Television - I may or may not have said this before, but Marquee Moon is one album I just cannot get into. Having said that, I relistened to this song before ranking this bracket, and for the first time, I liked it.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Common People" - Pulp - When I first heard about this song (and its quite high ranking on this site) I was unimpressed. Many listens later I love it. Thanks, AM(F)!
2. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes - The piano outro is kinda lame, but the riffs are killer and Duane Allman does his thing even if Clapton doesn't.
3. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks - Extremely catchy, but I can't help but feel it's a little insubstantial.
4. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday - I feel like I should almost feel guilty for not liking this song. But the melody and arrangement don't do much for me, and neither does Billie's rendition of the superb lyrics.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin - This forum loves the "extended build-up and climax" form of songwriting. Yet "Stairway" is the archetypal rock build-up, and on here it's viewed as mediocre. People, it has the most thrilling guitar solo in rock! John Bonham goes nuts on those fills!
2. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who - I second all the praise that's been heaped on it above.
3. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. - SH2B3. It's an utterly amazing song, as deep and brooding a pop smash that there ever was.
4. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie - An easy #4, it didn't deserve to make it this far.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

I would rate all four songs as four and a half out of five stars. I could not for the life of me decide on on an order, it was just far too hard.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Guy
And is it just me, or does the Hendrix era of guitar heroes seem much more intriguing and rebellious than the School of Rock which followed it (Page onwards)?


Well, to me, the early 70s refined what was Hendrixesque guitars. And, of course, rock n roll isn't meant to be refined and polished, it should be rough and wild.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

An appropriate time to return to the game. Wow, it's been around a year this is being happening, isn't it?

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1) "B.O.B." - OutKast: Impressive the amount of inventive and interesting elements they put together here. It even manages to be the most intense song in a bracket like these!
2) "Marquee Moon" - Television: The double-guitar arrengements of the group at its best. It's perfect at its first minutes, and the solo is great, of course, although a bit too-long.
3) "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana: Good, but all time number 4? Even this group of four shows two tracks that are better!
4) "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops: First time I heard it and it was quite a deception. Let's see if it grows with time.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1) "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks: Underrated by this community. I consider this track a cousin of "She Loves You". Not so celebrative and echoing as the other, but still shows how that simplistic and almost silly rock genre could be taken to these heights. I love that guitar hook and it's compass change with the introduction of the drums. And, more than anything, love the "crescendo" structure of the parts. Gradative songs like this always get me.
2) "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes: Perfect song from the beginning to the end, although I'm one of the few who prefer the first part. There's emotion spread everywhere in this track.
3) "Common People" - Pulp: Overrated by this community. At first auditions it really blows minds, but for me it's gone losing the "magic" with time. I continue liking it, specially the electronic introduction, but there's lots of Britpop tracks better than this. Hey, what did I say about gradative songs before?
4) "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday: Other deception at the first listening, being this even bigger, given my expectations to it.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

1) "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.: Yes, not my favorite of the group too, but I understand why it's considered the best. Apparently a monotonous song, it goes unveiling the beauty and complexity of it's arrangement and structure every time you listen to it. The mandolin is the cherry on the top of all. And I'm another one who immediately thinks of this track when you talk about songs that are simultaneously considered the best, and the most famous in a bands catalogue. Why it's considered worst than Common People here I don't know.
2) "Baba O'Riley" - The Who: I won't tell about the intro again, this song is all great. I need to listen more to it, cause given that everybody here whose taste is similar to mine loves The Who, the chances of this becoming a favorite are great.
3) "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin: Would have been 4th in all the other 3 brackets. Still, I appreciate it's epicness though.
4) "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie: Is there anything I hate more than Ziggy Stardust the album? Easy, Ziggy Stardust the song. I don't have time to explain why, but there's a zillion elements Bowie tries to bring here, but to me he fails in all of them.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
1) "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads: Maybe the best song of the week. One of my favorites out of one of my favorite bands. A tribal chorus that is catchy and out-of-pop at the same time. Byrne singing/talking like a preacher. Watery synthesizer arrangement. Everything works perfectly here.
2) "'Heroes'" - David Bowie: I've talked many times how much I dislike David Bowie, and this is all due to his soft and glam phase. Now this one shows him at his greatest. It reminds me why Low and Heroes are in my need-to-get list for so much time.
3) "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles: Not my best Beatles here, although still nice.
4) "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience: It's growing in me but I still need more time.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Alex D
1. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin - This forum loves the "extended build-up and climax" form of songwriting. Yet "Stairway" is the archetypal rock build-up, and on here it's viewed as mediocre. People, it has the most thrilling guitar solo in rock! John Bonham goes nuts on those fills!


You are completely right. I've noticed a couple of people say the love the buildup in Common People, then turn around and say they hate Stairway. Makes no sense.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Okay, since we're still having this debate:

First of all, if you're going to compare Common People and Stairway to Heaven, you have to compare the lyrics. Lyrics-wise, Stairway to Heaven doesn't have a leg to stand on. Common People, while not one a song I love (a song which paints so artfully the war between working class and pretentiousness that it comes across as pretentious itself), is a high concept piece built around a cutting observational lyric.

Stairway to Heaven is anything but; it's a song which draws you away from its lyric on the first few listens, and with good reason. I initially noticed the title in there, the bit about the lady, and wondered what Robert Plant was saying about her and the stairway to heaven. If you read the lyrics without knowing who Led Zeppelin were, you might at first mistake it for a comment on the Capitalist version of Christianity disguised in lush imagery. Even if they were as sincere and politically minded as that, such a lyric would not fit well with the music at all. Instead, it's a throwaway verse which manages to mix Middle Earth with 'the stores' being 'closed'. Weaknesses like this, if picked up, can pull down any surface grandiosity to the piece so spectacularly that they can put you off the song altogether. Yes, thousands of songs have throwaway lyrics; but few are as conflated in idiom as this, and even fewer have such an intentionally extravagant soundtrack. And, from the sequence stolen from Spirit to the guitar solo, Page was going for grandiosity.

All reasons to detest the song, still I really like it, and find it hard to see how anyone who ignored their quibbles with its flaws and the deja vu caused by commercial radio could disagree too much. It has one of the best guitar hooks I've ever heard, while when you get past Jarvis Cocker's own shallow rage at the superficial in London's student community, and get tired of the charmless-man-style conversational lyric, Common People doesn't have as much.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Voting for this week is now over.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Guy

Stairway to Heaven is anything but; it's a song which draws you away from its lyric on the first few listens, and with good reason. I initially noticed the title in there, the bit about the lady, and wondered what Robert Plant was saying about her and the stairway to heaven. If you read the lyrics without knowing who Led Zeppelin were, you might at first mistake it for a comment on the Capitalist version of Christianity disguised in lush imagery. Even if they were as sincere and politically minded as that, such a lyric would not fit well with the music at all. Instead, it's a throwaway verse which manages to mix Middle Earth with 'the stores' being 'closed'. Weaknesses like this, if picked up, can pull down any surface grandiosity to the piece so spectacularly that they can put you off the song altogether. Yes, thousands of songs have throwaway lyrics; but few are as conflated in idiom as this, and even fewer have such an intentionally extravagant soundtrack. And, from the sequence stolen from Spirit to the guitar solo, Page was going for grandiosity.


I don't really care for the lyrics either, but for me the instrumental is so unbelievably fantastic that I can put up with a little nonsense in the text.

On a more superficial level, I guess the lyrics have the whole "That sounds so deep, what does it even mean?!?!" factor going for it too.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Alex D

On a more superficial level, I guess the lyrics have the whole "That sounds so deep, what does it even mean?!?!" factor going for it too.


Yes, they call that the 'Final Fantasy effect'.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Can I vote...please ?

CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#4. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana
#324. "Marquee Moon" - Television
#36. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops
#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
With Honesty, only the first song is incredible, the three others are just excellent.

LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#18. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
#50. "Common People" - Pulp
#114. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday
#47. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes
Like the first bloc, the first is the only chef d'oeuvre. The other are just excellent.

HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#151. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie
#42. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M.
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
#695. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who
The hardest bloc, I love a lot the three one. The fourth is overrated for me.

TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
#38. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience
#123. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
#230. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
The first and second songs are incredibles when the other are listenable.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

This week drew more voters than any other week in a while! Yet despite the larger-than-average turnout, no song managed to get more than 47 points! Really speaks to the parity of the songs here! Let's get to the...


RESULTS


CHOPIN BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

It came down to the wire, with Nirvana, Television and OutKast all moving into the lead at some point during the week. In the end, the victory goes to the lowest-rated song of the group, and "B.O.B." becomes the first song to advance to the semifinals. Let all of Atlanta rejoice.

1. "B.O.B." - OutKast (47 points, 5 first-place votes)
2. "Marquee Moon" - Television (43, 5)
3. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Nirvana (43, 3)
4. "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" - The Four Tops (37, 4)


LISZT BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

Pulp jumped out to a quick lead in this bracket, but some anti-"Common People" votes in the middle of the week allowed "Layla" to catch up and overtake the boys from Britain. However, three of the last four ballots put Pulp in first place. This was enough to give "Common People" the last push into Round 3.

1. "Common People" - Pulp (47, 7)
2. "Layla" - Derek & the Dominoes (45, 6)
3. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks (40, 3)
4. "Strange Fruit" - Billie Holiday (38, 1)


HANDEL BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

The Who didn't get any first-place votes until I voted (and I was the eighth person to vote!), and yet "Baba O'Riley" still managed to stay tied for first place! As the week wore on, Led Zeppelin inched forward, only to have the Who inch back. By the end of the week, the two songs finished tied on points, but "Stairway to Heaven" advances because of more first-place votes.

1. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin (47, 7)
2. "Baba O'Riley" - The Who (47, 3)
3. "Losing My Religion" - R.E.M. (41, 5)
4. "Ziggy Stardust" - David Bowie (36, 2)


TCHAIKOVSKY BLOC, FINAL BRACKET

The Beatles jumped out to a quick lead in this bracket, getting the first three first-place votes. But after I cast my ballot, the Fab Four had lost all their ground to David Bowie. In the end, "Tomorrow Never Knows" slipped all the way to third place, as Talking Heads squeaked into second. Bowie, despite only getting 5 first-place votes, moves on.

1. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie (45, 5)
2. "Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads (42, 4)
3. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles (41, 5)
4. "Purple Haze" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience (32, 2)





Romain, I'm sorry. I didn't include your ballot because time had run out to vote for this week. If it's any consolation, your ballot would not have changed any winners.

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Just to give you an idea of what the semifinals look like at this time...

SEMIFINAL 1

Winner, Beethoven Bloc
Winner, Mahler Bloc
Winner, Rachmaninoff Bloc
Winner, Sibelius Bloc


SEMIFINAL 2

#356. "B.O.B." - OutKast
Winner, Wagner Bloc
Winner, Verdi Bloc
Winner, Brahms Bloc


SEMIFINAL 3

Winner, Mozart Bloc
#59. "'Heroes'" - David Bowie
Winner, Schubert Bloc
Winner, Vivaldi Bloc


SEMIFINAL 4

Winner, Bach Bloc
Winner, Haydn Bloc
#10. "Stairway to Heaven" - Led Zeppelin
#50. "Common People" - Pulp

Re: Bracketology, Round 3, Week 1

Wow, They were all epic this week. I wasn't expecting Stairway to make it! At least I have one song from my top 10 in round 4. (Ironically, Stairway will now face Common People, which it was literally compared to this week.)