Tag: Top Ten

It’s beer-soaked. It’s shamrocked. It’s the only day of the year when it’s socially acceptable to wear green on green on green. St. Patrick’s Day holds a very special place in the heart of the average university student — the one day of the year where it’s absolutely expected, no excuses, to drink yourself silly into fall-off-your-chair inebriation and act like an absolute animal. From the crucial moments of pre-gaming for the pub-goers, weighed down with Mardi-Gras-inspired plastic jewellery and Dollar Store bauble headbands, having a playlist of drinking anthems on repeat is part of a successful and complete St. Paddy’s Day experience. This mixtape offers – as a homage to losing your balance, hooking up with your childhood neighbour, having severely decreased depth perception, and being unable to enunciate – a slew of hard-hitting drinking songs.

SIDE A: The Pre-Drink

1. Kanye West – “Drunk and Hot Girls” – Graduation

2. Oasis – “Cigarettes and Alcohol” – Definitely Maybe

3. Franz Ferdinand – “Take Me Out” – Franz Ferdinand

4. AC/DC – “Have A Drink On Me” – Back in Black

5. Queen – “Don’t Stop Me Now” – Jazz

6. The Champs – “Tequila” – Train to Nowhere

7. Azealia Banks – “212” – Broke With Expensive Taste

8. Bon Jovi – “It’s My Life” – Crush

9. Beastie Boys – “Fight for your Right” – Licensed to Ill

10. J-Kwon – “Tipsy” – Single

SIDE B: On the Pub Speakers

1. The Gourds – “Gin and Juice” – Shinebox

2. Dead Kennedys – “Too Drunk to Fuck” – Single

3. Flogging Molly – “Irish Pub Song” – Drunken Lullabies

4. Dropkick Murphys – “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” – The Warrior’s Code

5. Kid Rock – “All Summer Long” – Rock n Roll Jesus

6. Chumbawumba – “Tubthumping” – Tubthumper

7. Journey – “Don’t Stop Believing” – Escape

8. The Pogues – “Streams of Whiskey” – Red Roses for Me

9. Gary Portnoy – “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” – Single

10. The Dubliners – “Whiskey in the Jar” – Single

10. Trainspotting (1996)

With a film as raw and twisted as Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting, it’s necessary to have a matching soundtrack. Boyle combines classic rock tracks from David Bowie and Lou Reed with funky electronic music to create a chaotic score that highlights the harsh reality of drug addiction in Scotland during the ‘80s.

9. Wayne’s World (1992)

It’s almost impossible to dissociate this Mike Myers comedy with its soundtrack; the film is fueled with monster hits like Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Jimi Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady”. From the classics to the characters’ own musical creations, we can’t help but sing along every time we watch.

8. RockNRolla (2008)

Guy Ritchie’s gangster pic has got one slick, edgy score: with fast-paced head-bangers like The Subways’ “Rock and Roll Queen” and mellow mood-setters like Lou Reed’s “The Gun”, Ritchie handcrafted a perfect soundtrack for his Cockney crime film.

7. 500 Days of Summer (2009)

This summer hit was packed with awesome jams; the film features tracks from the likes of Feist, Regina Spektor, the Temper Trap and The Smiths and not a single song seems out of place in any scene. This smorgasbord of great artists makes for one killer soundtrack.

6. PS I Love You (2007)

This film adaptation of Cecilia Ahern’s novel by the same title makes us laugh and sob uncontrollably not only because of the heartbreaking story, but because of the beautiful soundtrack. It combines tearjerkers from James Blunt with folksy Irish tracks to create a completely heart-wrenching yet uplifting soundtrack.

5. A Night at the Roxbury (1998)

It’s hard to tell what the best part of this movie is: the genius comedic combination of Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan, or the perfect retro dance soundtrack. Every single song makes us wish we were at the Roxbury circa 1998 in some tacky monochromatic outfit with sky high, matching platform shoes.

4. Pulp Fiction (1994)

Quentin Tarantino is known for having amazing music in his films, but Pulp Fiction definitely takes the cake for soundtracks. Every song blends perfectly with each scene, making it as essential to the film as any dialogue between characters. Try picturing the dance scene with any song other than Chuck Berry’s “You Never Can Tell”, I dare you.

3. Inception (2010)

In true Hans Zimmer fashion, the German composer delivers a soundtrack of epic proportions. Each track is designed to send shivers down our spines and succeeds in doing so, propelling us into an eerie dreamlike state of our own.

2. Blow (2001)

This amalgamation of musical genres makes Blow’s soundtrack incredibly entertaining. Disco, rock and mariachi — this soundtrack leaves literally no genre untouched. The film spans several decades, each of which is represented musically, resulting in an extremely well-crafted soundtrack.

1. Snatch (2000)

The genius story and cinematography of Guy Ritchie’s Snatch is rivaled only by its epic soundtrack. Each song enhances its respective scene, even stealing the limelight on some occasions. With tracks covering every musical genre, the soundtrack for Snatch is quirky, captivating and just plain awesome.

10. Mumford and Sons – Babel 

Not the worst, but definitely the most disappointing album of 2012. Unfortunately Mumford failed to live up to fans’ expectations. Only a handful of songs stand out on this album and very little progress was made from their hit debut, Sigh No More.

9. Muse – 2nd Law 

Muse’s dubstep feel on this album was quite disappointing. They kept some of their original space rock/new prog sound that fans loved on Black Holes and Revelations but 2nd Law had many fans crying out “WHY Matt Bellamy, why???”

8. The Killers – Battle Born 

Battle Born was a big upset compared to Hot Fuss and Sam’s Town. Singer Brandon Flower’s vocals have turned from soft and enchanting to lackluster. The band’s overall new sound was unimpressive.

7. Lana Del Rey – Born To Die 

Del Rey’s whiny vocals and moody lyrics make this album seem more forced than effortless or natural. Her album overall was uninspired and unimpressive and lacked the follow-through needed to deliver a true hit.

6. Fun. – Some Nights 

We all loved their single “We Are Young” but after 20 listens we all got higher than the Empire State and forgot that we knew the whole song by heart. Aside from the fact that the lead singer looks like a Who from Whoville, the band’s talent and image feels stale and rehashed.

5. Cannibal Corpse – Torture 

Anything by Cannibal Corpse is a definite miss. With disgusting lyrics, terrible music and frightening album covers, this band uses the same shock tactics from its last album to the point where critics throw their hands up in air and say “Next!”

4. Maroon 5 – Overexposed 

With “Moves Like Jagger” Maroon 5 took a page out of Ke$ha’s book when it comes to referencing and exploiting musicians their audience base doesn’t know or care about. At this point, the band’s only redeeming quality is lead singer Adam Levine’s striking good looks.

3. Carly Rae Jepsen – Kiss 

It’s impossible not to include this artist when looking back at the worst of 2012. We all suffered brutal torture when “Call Me Maybe” went viral and was played over and over again until our ears were bleeding. Jepsen’s tunes are generic, overused and have no real creativity or lasting power.

2. Nicki Minaj – Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded

Minaj’s sophomore album featured a slew of irritating hip-hop/dance-pop anthems and shallow collaborations. As proved at this year’s American Music Awards, Minaj’s talent as a rap artist is indisputable. Unfortunately this album does not showcase her true talents, especially with songs like “Stupid Hoe”.

1. Madonna – MDNA 

Madonna’s relevance as a musician expired a while ago — three albums ago to be exact. With songs like “Girls Gone Wild”, “ Gang Bang” and “I’m a Sinner”, Madonna has moved past the point of being provocative and entered the realm of “OMG, please shut up.”

10. “Moon River” – Henry Mancini & Johnny Mercer

“Moon River” first appeared in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, performed as an acoustic version by its star Audrey Hepburn. It went on to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song and a Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1961. Check out The Smiths’ frontman Morrissey’s version of “Moon River.”

9. “Eleanor Rigby” – Paul McCartney & John Lennon

Despite its relative obscurity, “Eleanor Rigby” boasts a huge number of covers. It appears on at least 62 studio albums, in addition to countless live versions. Written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon for The Beatles’ 1966 album Revolver as a departure from the band’s ‘pop’ aesthetic, this song is powerful because it relates to humanity’s fear of loneliness and death.

8. “Imagine” – John Lennon

Written by John Lennon in 1971, “Imagine” is the best-selling single of his solo career.

Representing Lennon’s statement about collectivist positivism and inspired by poems from Yoko Ono and the idea of positive prayer, this song has had international success and touched generations. Noteworthy covers by Elton John, Madonna and Neil Young.

7. “Body and Soul” – Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour & Frank Eyton 

First introduced in the 1930 Broadway musical, Three’s a Crowd, “Body and Soul” has become a jazz standard covered most famously by tenor saxophone legend Coleman Hawkins and recently interpreted by Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse. Though considered relatively challenging, the song allows for quite a bit of improvisational freedom, which has added to its success.

6. “Over the Rainbow” – Harold Arlen & E.Y. Harburg

This Academy Award winning ballad, was written in 1939 for The Wizard of Oz, where it was famously sung by actress Judy Garland. The song has received the top spot on many influential lists as “the song of the century.” Many covers have been performed, but none as significant as Hawaii-native Israel Kamakawiwoʻole’s ukulele version in 1993.

5. “Yesterday” – Paul McCartney

With more than 2,200 covered versions, “Yesterday” is a modern pop masterpiece! Written by Paul McCartney, for The Beatles’ 1965 album, Help!, the lyrics are simple and relatable, lamenting a break-up. This song was covered by an eclectic mix of artists, including Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles and Marvin Gaye.

4. “St. Louis Blues” – W.C. Handy 

Praised as the first blues songs to succeed as a pop song, “St. Louis Blues” is a fundamental jazz classic, notably performed by Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith and Stevie Wonder.

At the time of his death in 1958, composer W.C. Handy was earning royalties upwards of $25,000 annually for the song.

3. “Greensleeves” – Traditional

This traditional English folk song, first registered in 1580, could be a reference to the way grass stains might be seen on a woman’s dress if she had engaged in sexual intercourse outdoors.

It first appeared in print in Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor in 1602. The character Mistress Ford exclaims: “Let the sky rain potatoes! Let it thunder to the tune of ‘Greensleeves’!”

2. “Summertime” – George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin & DuBose Heyward 

With more than 33,000 covers, this song originally hails from the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. 

Following the style of the African American folk music of the period, American soprano Abbie Mitchell first sang “Summertime.” Since then, the song has been reinterpreted as a jazz standard and famously covered by Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Janis Joplin.

1. “Happy Birthday to You” – The Time-Warner Corporation?

Here’s something to consider next time you gathered around a birthday cake:

According to copyright registration, The Time-Warner Corporation has owns the rights to “Happy Birthday to You” since 1935, an ownership that is not set to expire until 2030. Any unauthorized public performances of the song are technically illegal unless royalties are paid to Warner.

In 2008, Warner profited about $5,000 per day ($2 million per year) for the song.