# Rolling Stone Magazine's Top 500: As Cutting Edge As The Saturday Evening Post **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 17, 2004, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282 "2004-11-17T16:12:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/41 "2004-11-19T16:05:30Z")
So what are we supposed to take away from this? That Rolling Stone is with “isn’t it”, and what’s it seems strange and scary to them? Hell, I’ve known that my entire adult life. ---
**Author:** ![Jurph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/50afbb/32.png) [@Jurph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jurph)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/42 "2004-11-19T16:39:50Z")
Alright, in the spirit of revisionist history, you’re the editor in chief of Rolling Stone magazine. Besides “sell it all and establish a libertarian rock’n’roll commune in the South Pacific,” what do you do? What if the shareholders come back and tell you “no, five of those songs have got to stay”? In short: revise the Rolling Stone Top 20. Keep at least five songs from the list and place them where you think they belong; fill out the rest with your picks. 1. Satisfaction - The Rolling Stones 2. Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin 3. Paranoid Android - Radiohead 4. Black - Pearl Jam 5. Respect - Aretha Franklin 6. Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys 7. Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry 8. Hey Jude - The Beatles (first release on Apple - told the label to stick it, added in “nah nah nah,” and made a ton of money proving 3 minutes was a glass wall) 9. Rocket - Smashing Pumpkins 10. Basket Case - Green Day (performed CPR on the corpse of punk+pop; fans may prefer other tracks, but this was the breakout hit) 11. Won’t Get Fooled Again - The Who 12. London Calling - The Clash 13. Wave of Mutilation - The Pixies (die hards can pick a better tune; this is just my favorite of theirs) 14. Head Like a Hole - Nine Inch Nails (for its novelty at the time, I rate it “greater” than many arguably better tracks from Downward Spiral) 15. Crossroads - Eric Clapton 16. Space Oddity - David Bowie 17. Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix 18. When Doves Cry - Prince 19. Hound Dog - Elvis Presley 20. Like a Prayer - Madonna (just edged out “Desire” or “Sunday Bloody Sunday” by U2). ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/43 "2004-11-19T17:10:45Z")
> [@](#): > > 1. Hey Jude - The Beatles (first release on Apple - told the label to stick it, added in “nah nah nah,” and made a ton of money proving 3 minutes was a glass wall) Isn’t this one of the reasons why Rolling Stone made the 6’13" “Like a Rolling Stone,” released three years earlier, their number one? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/44 "2004-11-19T17:16:10Z")
1. “Good Vibrations,” The Beach Boys 2. “Billie Jean,” Michael Jackson 3. “Yesterday,” The Beatles 4. “London Calling,” The Clash 5. “Who Are You,” The Who 6. “Back in Black,” AC/DC 7. “Stayin’ Alive,” The Bee Gees 8. “Every Breath You Take,” The Police 9. “Insane in the Brain,” Cypress Hill 10. “Pride,” U2 11. “Corduroy,” Pearl Jam 12. “Black Dog,” Led Zeppelin 13. “Fortunate Son,” CCR 14. “Respect,” Aretha Franklin 15. “Everything is Everything,” Lauryn Hill 16. “Cordelia,” The Tragically Hip 17. “Cecilia,” Simon and Garfunkel 18. “Born in the U.S.A.,” Bruce Springsteen 19. “Gimme Shelter,” The Rolling Stones 20. “Once in a Lifetime,” The Talking Heads ---
**Author:** ![theunknown1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@theunknown1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theunknown1)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/45 "2004-11-19T17:46:07Z")
[Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest songs of all time](http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6596661/500songs) ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/46 "2004-11-19T20:41:05Z")
A somewhat different tack, from National Public Radio: [The 100 most important American musical works of the 20th century](http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/vote/list100.html) In alaphabetical order so as not to give a #1 slot to anyone, and including all genres. (Granted, “Rapper’s Delight” is as far as it goes down the hip-hop trail, but for NPR it’s a start.) Includes links to RealAudio commentaries on all 100 pieces; it’s a pretty interesting series. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/47 "2004-11-19T21:01:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Hey Jude - The Beatles (first release on Apple - told the label to stick it, added in “nah nah nah,” and made a ton of money proving 3 minutes was a glass wall) …thus making Hey Jude the abolutely most overrated song, ever. ---
**Author:** ![JohnBckWLD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d6d6ee/32.png) [@JohnBckWLD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnBckWLD)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/48 "2004-11-19T21:40:52Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > So what are we supposed to take away from this? Not really much. It’s just a thread serving like bookmark sandwiched in between a whole host of Star Wars & LOTR threads. ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/49 "2004-11-19T22:50:05Z")
Missing In Action: What?!? Where the Hell is… “Money”, “Time” - Pink Floyd “Sultans of Swing”, “Brothers In Arms”, “Money For Nothing” - Dire Straits “One” - Metallica Just one damn song from Garbage ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/50 "2004-11-19T22:54:42Z")
> [@Yeticus Rex](#): > > Just one damn song from Garbage Garbage is barely even remembered now outside their fanbase. Why would they deserve a spot on the list? ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2004, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/51 "2004-11-19T23:44:30Z")
Eminem and Dr. Dre saved hip-hop and pop music from becoming like classical music: inoffensive dinosaurs. Not a single song on the list from either of them? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/52 "2004-11-20T00:06:08Z")
> [@capacitor](#): > > Eminem and Dr. Dre saved hip-hop and pop music from becoming like classical music: inoffensive dinosaurs. So now hip-hop and pop music are _offensive_ dinosaurs? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/53 "2004-11-20T00:33:43Z")
> [@capacitor](#): > > Eminem and Dr. Dre saved hip-hop and pop music from becoming like classical music: inoffensive dinosaurs. Not a single song on the list from either of them? [#160](http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6596011/sort/artist?pageid=rs.RS500&pageregion=blob) [#290](http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6596135/sort/artist?pageid=rs.RS500&pageregion=blob) [#419](http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/_/id/6596264/sort/artist?pageid=rs.RS500&pageregion=blob) ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/54 "2004-11-20T00:40:47Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > Garbage is barely even remembered now outside their fanbase. Why would they deserve a spot on the list? Out of 500, one of these songs: “Special”, “Only Happy When It Rains”, “Stupid Girl”, “I think I’m Paranoid” (well engineered songs) would have been in there if they didn’t have such a crappy distribution of people to sample with, let alone missing 2 big Pink Floyd songs and totally missing Dire Straits all together. ---
**Author:** ![Already\_in\_Use](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@Already\_in\_Use](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Already_in_Use)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/55 "2004-11-20T02:45:07Z")
There are too many ridiculous choices on that list for me to bother commenting on any of them. However, my list would definitely have started with Frank Zappa’s “Watermelon in Easter Hay,” followed by the Beatles’ “Across the Universe.” And I would have included some Devo, and some spastic Japanese stuff like the Ruins’ exquisite [Praha in Spring](http://www.skingraftrecords.com/mp3/LP%20MP3%27s/ruins_prahainspring.mp3) and “Cucumber Surrender” by [eX-Girl](http://www.alternativetentacles.com/product.php?product=737&sd=jINIc7R0W1RRai@SKaw), surely one of the greatest bands of the past decade. My list would be heavy on the Beatles, perhaps more so than the _RS_ one. But hey, it would be heavy on every band I like. Attempts to water these lists down so they’re “objective” are always half-assed and pathetic. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/56 "2004-11-20T07:32:46Z")
Of course, arguing about these lists is as useful as… well, arguing on the internet ( 😃 ), but it’s still damned fun! The two things that struck me most about this list (I bought the magazine to help me through a 3 hour layover today) was: 1. How they completely ignored funk (had plenty of rap, hip-hop, country (even Dolly Parton made the list!) and even disco, but no (or very, very little) funk). 2. Elton John’s first listing was at _#136_. :rolleyes: And yes: it’s overplayed and overhyped and everybody gets sick of it after the 500th hearing, but “Stairway to Heaven” really is a top-20 song. To see it behind “Let It Be”, “Be My Baby” and “God Only Knows” is… silly. And SOMEBODY obviously turned in a list comprised fully of Al Green songs… how else to explain the fact that he has as many listed as Marvin Gaye? And, speaking of Marvin, where’s “Mercy, Mercy, Me”? ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/57 "2004-11-20T07:37:55Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > Garbage is barely even remembered now outside their fanbase. Why would they deserve a spot on the list? They’re still around – next album slated for release in April of next year. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/58 "2004-11-20T07:39:35Z")
They asked the respondents to list their 50 _favorite_ songs of all time… which is a bit different from having them list what they think are the _greatest_ songs of all time. I really don’t have a problem with the top-10, though I would remove “Imagine” and “Hey Jude” and replace them with “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” and “Stairway to Heaven” (or “Jailhouse Rock”) respectively. ---
**Author:** ![vl\_mungo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc8723/32.png) [@vl\_mungo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vl_mungo)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/59 "2004-11-20T11:00:08Z")
> [@Jurph](#): > > Alright, in the spirit of revisionist history, you’re the editor in chief of Rolling Stone magazine. Besides “sell it all and establish a libertarian rock’n’roll commune in the South Pacific,” what do you do? What if the shareholders come back and tell you “no, five of those songs have got to stay”? > > In short: revise the Rolling Stone Top 20. Keep at least five songs from the list and place them where you think they belong; fill out the rest with your picks. > > 1. Respect - Aretha Franklin > 2. Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry > 3, London Calling - The Clash > 3. Wave of Mutilation - The Pixies (die hards can pick a better tune; this is just my favorite of theirs) > 4. Purple Haze - Jimi Hendrix I’ll give the first five songs to the songs on the list, but afterwards… 6. I Wanna Be Sedated - Ramones 7. Respectable - Rolling Stones 8. Cop Killer - Body Count 9. Bad Guy Reaction - Rezillos 10. Living For The Depression - Flipper 11. Sex Beat - Gun Club 12. Tunnel of Love - Wanda Jackson 13. Within You Without You - Beatles 14. God Of Thunder - Kiss 15. One Reporter’s Opinion - The Minutemen 16. Dissipate - Flop 18. Kiss of Death - Split Lip Rayfield 19. Ace of Spades - Motorhead 20. Ode To Joy - Beethoven but only because I’m it’s 3:10 am and I’ve been drinking. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282/60 "2004-11-20T16:16:59Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > They’re still around – next album slated for release in April of next year. Never said they were gone, but for a lot of people, they are forgotten. I’ll be looking forward to the new album. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rolling-stone-magazines-top-500-as-cutting-edge-as-the-saturday-evening-post/275282.md?page=4)