The 11 Best Bright Eyes Non-Album Tracks

Some people think Bob Dylan is a genius. Some people think he's master song writer. Others think he's the voice of a generation. According to Bob Dylan, he's none of the above. Through-out Dylan's career, he fought the labels that were thrust upon him. When he was folk music's savior, he recorded an album with electric guitars. When he was labeled as the chosen Jew, he became a Christian. When he was a washed out has-been, he recorded Time Out of Mind. It was as if, Dylan sought out a challenge with every new album. He never let himself get comfortable or complacent in his role. Even in the 80s, when the world accused him of going downhill and becoming a shell of his former self, he helped put together one of the most energetic acts of the entire decade with the Traveling Wilburys. Every decade brought us a new version of Dylan. A new sound to cherish and enjoy. In 3 years, Dylan will enter his 6th decade as a musician. When Johnny Cash entered his 6th decade, he gave us the brilliant American Recordings. If Cash is any indication of what Dylan has in store for us then we are a lucky lucky bunch.

Cassadaga marks the 10th year of Connor Oberst's career. Whether we will be talking about him in 40 years is a long way off but unitl then we can appreciate what he has given us thus far. Here's an different look at his career so far...

The 11 Best Bright Eyes Non-Album Tracks (prior to Four Winds):

1. Well Whiskey (Lua)
2. Loose Leaves (There Is No Beginning To The Story)
3. I Woke Up With This Song In My Head (Lua)
4. One Foot In Front Of The Other (Saddle Creek 50)
5. When The President Talks To God (Free iTunes download)
6. Oh, You Are The Roots That Sleep (Oh Holy Fools)
7. Messenger Bird's Song (There Is No Beginning To The Story)
8. True Blue (Lua)
9. We Are Free Men (There Is No Beginning To The Story)
10. Going For the Gold (Oh Holy Fools)
11. Burn Rubber (Take It Easy)

Buy The album here and get a FREE 3-inch CD with an excellent new Non-Album Track!!

The 11 Best Alice in Chains Songs

You know what sucks? Having the stomach flu. Not because you spend a good three days kneeling before a mildew infested porcelain wading cesspool...that part is bad, don't get me wrong. What really sucks about being sick is the lost time. A good chunk of your life is ripped away from you. Projects that are due pile-up in Eiffel-style stacks on your desk, so the moment you sit down, you feel like they're about to go Pisa and explode in a wild array of multi-colored paper like Rip Taylor dropped by to take your lunch order. Things that were due are now late. So you spend all your time on the "late" projects while the "now due" projects become late and you look like just the worst employee on the floor and your spot in the corner cubicle is severly threatened.

Last week was the anniversary of the death of Layne Staley, singer of the rock band Alice in Chains. Strangely...both Layne and Kurt Cobain died on the same day. Wow, that really is strange. Layne had one of the greatest voices in rock. A voice that will never be matched. And a voice that is severly missed.

Here are the 11 Best Alice in Chains songs:

1. Would? - Dirt
2. Rooster - Dirt
3. Nutshell - Jar of Flies
4. A Little Bitter - Last Action Hero Soundtrack
5. Man in the Box - Facelift
6. Sea of Sorrow - Facelift
7. Right Turn (featurning Chris Cornell and Mark Arm) - Sap E.P.
8. Heaven Beside You - Alice in Chains
9. Sickman - Dirt
10. Damn That River - Dirt
11. Brother - Sap E.P.

The 11 Hard-To-Find Nirvana Songs

I know I'm a few days late with the post. I blame it on this terrible cough/cold that's been running around. I've been stuck in bed all weekend unable to move. How bad was it? Well, I was so tired...I couldn't even gather enough energy to change the channel on my TV's remote control. I ended up watching all five hours of The Ten Commandments...and LIKED it. Heston was one sexy man...wait, did I just say that out loud? Anyway...13 years ago...Kurt Cobain supposedly killed himself. But most of us know that he is really off on some island in Fiji with Tupac, Bradley Nowell, and Eazy-E helping Axl Rose write the mythical "Chinese Democracy." A few years back, a collection of Nirvana unreleased tracks was officially released. Though exhaustive...it left out a few gems.

Here are the 11 Hardt-To-Find Nirvana Songs:

1. Paper Cuts - Ed, Ted, and Fred Demos
2. Talk To Me - Unreleased Live
3. My Best Friend's Girl - Outcesticide 5
4. Spank Thru - Subpop 200 version
5. Seasons in the Sun - Rio Session
6. About A Girl (Live) - Sliver E.P. UK
7. Spank Thru (Live) - Sliver E.P. UK
8. Turnaround - John Peel Session
9. Divine and Bright - Earth and Kurt Cobain
10. Down in the Dark - Mark Lanegan and Kurt Cobain
11. Opinion (with intro) - same song as the box set only this include the infamous intro

I've just realized I have scores of other Nirvana gems that I've never uploaded to my computer...so more to come.

The 11 Best Ozomatli Songs

In elementary school, my favorite baseball player was Wally Joyner of the Anaheim Angels or the California Angels as they were known back then. And what wasn't to like about this guy? In his rookie season, he batted .290, hit 22 home runs, 100 RBIs and 27 doubles. He side-stepped the sophomore slump by hitting 34 home runs, 117 RBIs, and 33 doubles. He was a superstar in the making. I collected all his baseball cards. In fact I had dozens of copies of each card for that one day he would be inducted into the hall of fame and I would cash in and get rich. Unfortunately, no one told Wally what I expected of him. Over the next 14 season he would only hit over 20 homers one other time and never again reach the 100 RBI plateau. I was bummed. I had hooked my trailer to a player that I thought would have a long and illustrious career. 18 years is nothing to shake a stick at but the guy hit less home runs in the last ten years of his career than Barry Bonds did in a single season. Though Wally continued to keep his batting average at a steady .289 and habitually stayed in on the leader board for doubles, he failed to turn into the player I hoped he would be. Now, I still like the guy. He was about as nice and friendly as professional ball players get. But as a kid, this was one of my first lessons in disappointment. As I grew older, I learned that this was just a part of life. As in ball players, directors, and musicians....everyone's human and nobody is perfect. And sometimes bands make awesome debut albums, making you their new #1 fan...only to release nothing but boring material for their rest of their careers.

Here are the 11 Best Ozomatli Songs:

1. Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli)
2. Eva (Ozomatli)
3. Como Ves (Ozomatli)
4. Who's To Blame? (Embrace The Chaos )
5. Oh Le Le (Ozomatli)
6. Saturday Night (Street Signs)
7. Believe (Street Signs)
8. Mi Gente (Coming Up)
9. Super Bowl Sundae (Ozomatli)
10. Cumbia De Los Muertos (Ozomatli)
11. Embrace The Chaos (Embrace The Chaos )

Buy their new album Don't Mess With The Dragon.

Tracks from Ozomatli's first EP Ya Llego!...

1. Eva
2. Cut Chemist Suite

The 11 Best Unreleased Nirvana Cover Songs

What many people don't know is how prolific Nirvana was. Not only did Kurt Cobain write incredible original songs, he was also astute at taking other people's songs and making intense but unique versions of them. There are supposedly thousands and thousands of hours of tapes of Kurt just sitting around the house covering other people's songs. Rumor is, he would turn on the radio and cover the song on the radio at the moment, whether it was Tupac, Pearl Jam, or Madonna. The guy could do anything. A few years ago, I stumbled on a great bootleg that had some of the better covers. Hope you enjoy them all...

The 11 Best Unreleased Nirvana Cover Songs...

1. Fortunate Son (CCR Cover)
2. Welcome To The Jungle (GNR cover)
3. More Than A Feeling (Boston Cover)
4. For All The Cows (Foo Fighters Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
5. This Is A Call (Foo Fighters Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
6. I'll Stick Around (Foo Fighters Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
7. Doll Parts (Hole cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
8. Violet (Hole Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
9. One Step Closer (Linkin Park Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
10. Last Nite (The Strokes Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)
11. I Fell In Love With A Girl (The White Stripes Cover - Kurt Cobain acoustic original)

The 11 Best Insane Clown Posse Songs

Have any of you ever had Faygo soda? It's disgusting. It's the sweetest substance on the planet. Basically, some wacky scientist in the middle of Nebraska came up with some magic formula to carbonate cane sugar. The result is a drink so potent, you can get a cavity just by being in the same room as it. My one experience with Faygo came in my visit to Detroit, where they had an entire wall dedicated to the 400 flavors of Faygo soda. Hey, guys...400 flavors of crap is still crap! Granted it was only 33 cents for a 3-liter bottle of the stuff. Yes, you heard me right...3-liter bottle. Is there no shame? So to get this delicacy, you had to purchase it from a fat man, reading porn while seated by a 2-foot thick wall of bullet-proof glass. Note to store owners, if you need bullet-proof glass thick enough to stop a cruise missile, then you might want to change locations. Getting British soldiers out of Iran isn't as complicated as liquor security is in Motown. (oh sorry, too soon?) You need two forms of ID just to pay with cash. Eventually, I walked out of the store with not one...not two...but three bottles of this famous potion. I drank until my bladder crawled out of my ass and slapped me in the face, causing me to stop. It tasted like I was drinking a popsicle that had been sitting under a heat lamp for one hour too long. Basically, it was like eating escargot. You're not supposed to like it. But once in your life, you just have to try it.

A new Insnae Clown Posse CD is in stores this week.

Here are the 11 Best Flavors of Faygo: (oh, come on, you really wanted an Clown Posse list?)

1. Black Cherry
2. Redpop
3. Rock and Rye
4. Root Beer
5. Peach
6. Moon Mist
7. Dr. Faygo
8. Pineapple
9. Raspberry/Blueberry
10. Twist
11. Grape

The 11 Best Good Charlotte Songs

A little known fact is that Ray Kroc of McDonald's once approached Walt Disney about fusing Disneyland and McDonald's. The two had been in the same army platoon. Walt apparently scoffed at the idea...there's no way McDonald's will ever be as popular as Disneyland. Ironically, the only name brand restaurant at Disneyland today is McDonald's. But there's something else besides history that McDonald's and Disneyland have in common...Filet O Fish and the canoes. Both are items that both companies have had since the beginning of time, yet for the life of me, I've never met anyone who has tried either of them. I have seen Filet O Fish wrappers on the ground, so I know someone has taken the feared plunge. And I have seen canoes floating in the green water, so there are crazy people out there. But seriously, who goes to Disneyland and says, "You know what would be really fun right now, if I could bust my ass rowing a tiny boat around a dirty lake?" On the same note, who goes to McDonald's and says, "Hmmm...I could really go for some chewy fried fish with sticky white sauce?" How have these items survived, I will never know. But there they are. The McDLT bites the dust but frozen fish survives. And Inner Space gets a pink slip but the freaking canoes are still going strong.

This week a new Good Charlotte CD will arrive in stores.

Here are the 11 Best Good Charlotte Songs:

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The 11 Best Modest Mouse Songs

You know what kills me? You know when you're watching a basketball game on TV and your favorite player is in the game and for some reason, the announcer can't get the player's name right? The annoucer keeps pronouncing the name with a silent E that isn't silent or accents a vowel that is supposed to be more on the soft side? And there's no way you can tell the announcer that they are screwing up the name. You just have to sit there and listen to the butchering. The same thing is bothering when it comes to the newest Modest Mouse release.

For some reason, no one knows how many albums Modest Mouse has released. How come every article I read can't get the number right. Seriously, do any of you reviewers own a computer with an internet connection? Are you still writing your reviews on binder paper? Do some research before you publish. The newest album, We Were Dead Before The Ship Sank, is their official 6th full-length album. Though it is never counted, Sad Sappy Sucker was the Mouse's first official album. And if you want to include all the releases (Eps and rareities comps) then we're looking at 10 albums. I don't know why it's been annoying me so much. But I had to say something. So I said it. Now here's...

The 11 Best Modest Mouse Songs

1. Trailer Trash (The Lonesome Crowded West)
2. Breakthrough (This Is A Long Drive For Someone)
3. Doin' The Cockroach (The Lonesome Crowded West)
4. Float On (Good News For People Who Love Bad News)
5. A Different City (The Moon and Antarctica)
6. The View (Good News For People Who Love Bad News)
7. Trucker's Atlas (The Lonesome Crowded West)
8. Bukowski (Good News For People Who Love Bad News)
9. Bankrupt On Selling (The Lonesome Crowded West)
10. Whenever You Breathe Out (Building Nothing Out Of Something)
11. Tundra-Desert (This Is A Long Drive For Someone)

Songs will be coming back soon...I promise.

The 11 Teams that Have The Best Chance of Winning March Madness

It's the greatest time of the year for a sports fan. 48 of the best college basketball games all crammed back-back over the course of a 4-day period. For all you music fans who are disappointed that this list has nothing to do with music...think about it like this...Imagine that you got to hear 48 brand new albums by 48 of your favorite bands, all played in a row. Now you know why it's called March Madness. In honor of this illustrious institution known as the NCAA tourney, I'm taking a break from my music lists for one day. Tomorrow I promise to be back with more music lists than you can shake a stick at. Not that shaking a stick actually means anything. Not sure why anyone would want to shake a stick in the first place. Maybe for a dog. But if you wanted to shake a stick then tomorrow your opportunity will come.

The 11 College Basketball Teams That Have The Best Chance of Winning The Tournament

1. Florida - This is basically an NBA team. On the right night, they might even be able to take out a Golden State Warriors squad. The problem with this team is that they don't always play like it. Some games they've played like they expect to win rather than playing like they need to earn it. They don't have the same hunger that they had last year. They still are the most talented team in the country. But are they the team who wants it the most? Player To Watch: Al Horford.
2. Georgetown - Despite having a 7 foot 2 inch center, the star of this team is Green, who outscores and outrebounds his taller counterpart. This squad is a defensive giant...don't even think about going inside on these guys. They can keep you from scoring for long long periods, their only flaw is they tend not to run up the score when they can and have given teams the ability to sneak in a quick few baskets down the stretch. Still rock solid and practically unbeatable. Player To Watch: Green.
3. Kansas - Scoring, rebounding, defense. They have it all. Their only downfall is their tremendously cursed tournament history. Probably the only team in the NCAA to enter the tourney more times as the number 1 team in the nation and not retrieve the title. Player to Watch: Brandon Rush.
4. Ohio St. - This team reminds me of last year's Ohio St. squad. Young, hungry, and playing some of the best ball of any team in the country. Down 9 to Xavier with only minutes left to go in the game, this team didn't give up and fought back to send the game to overtime. It takes a certain caliber team to never say die. The only thing that might stop this team from winning it all is the lack of experience. And that is the only thing. Player to Watch: Cook.
5. North Carolina - This team is the full package. They can score at will. They can defend tighter than a hangman's noose. They rebound faster than Jennifer Lopez. They play tight team ball and they don't turn it over. They only way to beat them is to hit them on an offnight. Over the past month, this team has had a few more "off" nights then they wanted. Especially, coming against teams they should have beaten with their eyes closed. The team is vulernable...and if you're going to beat them, you have to play flawlessly. Player to Watch: Wright.
6. Pittsburgh - Like Georgetown, they have a beast of a center. Only this squad's outside players do not have the same talent as the Hoyas. When they're on, they're a monster of a team. But when they have a mediocre game, they can get beat by 20. Player to Watch: Fields.
7. Memphis - The team lacks free throw shooting like Courtney Love lacks integrity. They can score at time they feel like it and no defense on the planet can stop them. Their only problem is their lack of good wins. Their best win of the season is against Nevada which happened today. They have to feel like they want to score and sometimes mental lapses this season have kept them from doing it. Player to Watch: Douglas-Roberts
8. UCLA - Despite losing the last two games of the season (a stat that no NCAA champion has ever had), this bag of Bruins is more talented than the team that went to the championship game. One of the best defenses in the game. If you can't score against this team then you can't win. Their biggest deficit, is they can for long periods of time without scoring themselves. Player to watch: Collison.
9. Texas A&M - An extremely similar team to UCLA. Loaded with defense and a star offensive player in Acie Law. This team can beat anyone in the nation but can they beat everyone in the nation? With the next two games in their home city, the odds are stacked in their favor. Player to Watch: Acie Law IV
10. Oregon - The constant downpour in the Pacific Northwest may be the main reason why this school is very skilled at raining 3s on their opponents. This is a team that can score 20 points in a mere 4 minutes. They are also a team that can score 1 point over the course of 10 minutes. No to mention that their defense is suspect. It's hard to say which Oregon squad will show up at the Sweet 16. When they're on, they are unstoppable. When they're off, they may as well not even be in the building. Player To Watch: Porter.
11. USC - Had they not beat Texas and Kevin Durant in an impressive and convincing thrashing, I might have given this spot to UNLV. But playing for their teammate who was killed last summer, this team has nothing to lose. Like LMU back in the late 80s, they're wearing their hearts on their sleeves. And as anyone who faced that squad knows how dangerous that can be. Player to Watch: Taj Gibson.

The 11 Worst Van Halen Albums

I discovered 1984 at the age of 11. At that time in my life, it was the greatest album I had ever heard. Of course, running a close second was Quiet Riot's Mental Health, which illustrates the brevity of my musical catalog. Living in a small town, there was no way to see the band without traveling a few hundred miles. And my skateboard just wouldn't handle the distance. By the time, I was old enough to drive to see the band, David Lee Roth was already out of his Gigolo stage and onto living in Paradise. Meanwhile, Van Hagar was already onto their clever album titles with OU812. Seeing David Lee Roth with the Van Halen brothers had become nothing more than a pipe dream. But then one day, came a glimmer of hope...

In an interview, Eddie Van Halen was asked if he would ever play with DLR. Eddie said "No way." But then the interviewer brought up a rather good point...what if they were ever inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame? Would they play together then? Eddie pondered..."Good point," he said. And went on to agree, if the band was ever voted into the Hall of Fame, he would play with DLR for one night...and one night only. This was about 1987...twenty years ago. And for the last twenty years, I've been waiting patiently for that night to come.

Monday night, March 12th, 2007. Van Halen are inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. The only members to show up are Michael Anthony (currently not in the group) and Sammy Hagar (also currently not in the band). Eddie's in rehab. David is somewhere being crazy. And Alex just stood us up. Instead of the reunion that we were all waiting for, we got a horrendous Velvet Revolver cover of "Ain't Talking 'Bout Love" and Sammy Hagar and Paul Schaffer doing...actually I don't know what song they were doing. I turned it off.

Screw you, van Halen. I've been good. I've been patient. In return for the lavish life or riches and fame we've given you, you could have given your loyal fans back something you didn't like for one night. I've lost all respect for the band. I hope you all die...well, except Michael.

The 11 Worst Van Halen Albums:

11. 1984
10. Van Halen 2
9. Van Halen
8. Diver Down
7. 5150
6. Fair Warning
5. OU812
4. Balance
3. F.U.C.K.
2. Women and Children First
1. 3