Top 20 songs from The Boss

 

One of the most difficult assignments ever was cutting my original rough draft list of 60-plus songs down to 20. 

Bruce Springsteen

Top 20

1. Thunder Road - Perhaps the greatest opening verse in the history of music

2. Jungleland - An epic concert song that made Clarence Clemons the king of the saxophone

3. The Promised Land - "Mister, I ain't a boy, no, I'm a man. And I believe in the Promised Land." Enough said

4. Land of Hope and Dreams - Beautiful song that becomes more meaningful every day and sounded perfect at Biden's Inauguration

5. Born to Run - Powerful signature anthem from the Boss that could easily be No. 1

6. Rosalita - A rollicking tune that can be put in so many categories and never gets old

7. My City of Ruins - Haunting song about 9/11 that could work at a church ceremony

8. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out - Sometimes we forget how good this song was. Rewatched his Super Bowl show and this one batted leadoff. It worked perfectly

9. The Rising - Title track from one of his best albums makes you scream the words.

10. Badlands - Seemed to be one of the first songs at most of his concerts

11. Dancing in the Dark

12. Out in the Street

13. Bobby Jean

14. Point Blank

15. Brilliant Disguise

16. The River

17. Streets of Philadelphia

18. Janey don't you lose heart

19. Racing in the Street

20. If I was the Priest

Joe Lunardi's first eight out

She's the One

Prove it all night

If I should fall behind

Incident on 57th Street

Spirits in the night

I'm Goin Down

No Surrender

Downbound Train

Eliminated because made more popular by other artists

Blinded by the Light

Talk to Me

Because the Night

The top 20 songs for the Beatles, REM and U2

 

By Mark Pukalo

I have joined a 12-person facebook group rating great artists' top 20 songs. The Beatles were first on the list and here's my effort, followed by REM and U2

It was not easy, because 100 could have made the grade for the Beatles, and I acquired additional respect for Bono, the Edge, Michael and the boys as I examined their impressive libraries. 

The Beatles top 20

1. I Saw Her Standing There - The first track on the Fab Five's debut album "Please Please Me"

2. Revolution - Used to love hearing it booming out of the speakers at the end of New England Revolution games in Foxboro

3. She Loves You - I'm told this was the first song I liked when I was in my second year on the Earth

4. I Wanna Hold Your Hand - Just classic early work from the Fab Four

5. The Long and Winding Road - Just a haunting melodic song from the Let it Be album

6. All You Need is Love - Ended the under-rated movie "Across the Universe" with style

7. Yesterday - I agree with the movie by the same name. One of the best written songs of all time

8. While My Guitar Gently Weeps - There's quite a story behind this incredible song written by George Harrison

9. Hey Jude - Paul McCartney wrote this song about John Lennon's son Julian after John left his mom for Yoko Ono

10. Back in the USSR - Paul did not write it as a political song. The Ukraine girls really do knock you out

11. Ticket to Ride

12. Penny Lane

13. A Hard Day's Night

14. Help!

15. Something

16. I'll Be On My Way

17. Across the Universe

18. Here Comes the Sun

19. Can't Buy Me Love

20. Twist & Shout (ok, it's a cover)

Joe Lunardi's first four out

A Day in the Life

Michelle

Let it Be

We Can Work it Out

R.E.M. Top 20

1. Losing my Religion - It's a southern phrase about losing yourself in pursuit of something

2. Man on the Moon - Cheeky tune with tremendous lyrics performed well at Live 8

3. Radio Free Europe - The first song by the group I heard

4. Electrolite - Love this melodic tune from under-rated album "New Adventures in Hi-Fi" 

5. South Central Rain - One of the first hits for the Georgia band

6. At My Most Beautiful - Made to sound like a Beach Boys tune. Well written

7. It's the End of the World as we Know it - I feel fine after listening to this song

8. Everybody Hurts - Emotional song about avoiding suicide

9. Man-Sized Wreath - Under-rated tune from the "Accelerate" album

10. What's the Frequency, Kenneth? - Hard to keep from from humming this song from "Monster" after you hear it

11. Country Feedback

12. The One I Love

13. Nightswimming

14. Pretty Persuasion

15. Imitation of Life

16. Find the River

17. Drive

18. Begin the Begin

19. Bang and Blame

20. Until the Day is Done

Joe Lunardi's first six out

The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight

Radio Song

Try not to breathe

Stand

Leaving New York

Fall on Me

U2 Top 20

1. Walk On - I think it's a masterpiece. The song was written about Aung San Suu Kyi, who was jailed for her pro-democracy efforts in corrupt Burma - where the tune was banned

2. Sunday Bloody Sunday - Bono stepped out on the stage at 1985's Live Aid in London and boomed out the song about British troops killing unarmed civil rights protesters in Northern Ireland. The 70,000-plus fans were with him

3. Bad - The tune is about heroin addiction and it was never sung better than at Live Aid

4. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Just a beautiful song about "spiritual yearning"

5. Pride (In the Name of Love) - A historic song about the great Martin Luther King

6. Beautiful Day - The uplifting tune is definitely suited for big stadium concerts

7. Stay (Faraway, So Close) - Love this song, especially Bono's performance, from the Zooropa CD

8.. With or Without You - The group's first No. 1 in both the U.S. and Canada. It spent three weeks atop the Billboard chart

9. The Unforgettable Fire - Haunting, beautiful title track from their fourth album

10. One Tree Hill - Written in memory of Bono's friend Greg Carroll and the group's roadie, who died in a motorcycle accident in 1986

11. One  

12. Angel of Harlem  

13. Red Hill Mining Town 

14. I Will Follow

15. New Year's Day 

16. Vertigo

17. Where the Streets Have No Name 

18. Wild Honey

19. The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)  

20. Acrobat 

Joe Lunardi's first six out

A Sort of Homecoming

Until the End of the World

All I Want is You

Every Breaking Wave

Magnificent

Gloria