Classic Rock Mega-Knockout: Finals!

Vote for your favorite song

  • Total voters
    21
  • Poll closed .
Pretenders are fun. When my brother was 1-2 years old, we could only get him to nap in the afternoon by playing Clash's Train In Vain or Pretenders' greatest hits CD :D So I involuntarily memorized all their best songs.
 
"Wish You Were Here".
This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no fooling around. "Life During Wartime" is probably the best song this round (though like most Heads songs, it's way better live).
Both songs are rather dull, but Zep is Zep.
Can't beat Cream.
 
I really hate Wish You Were Here. It bores me to death. Don't really love The Pretenders, but it gets my vote.

The Stroke is just too stupidly good not to vote for it.

Miller.

Cream for sure.
 
Now match one has some worthy Floyd. No contest.
Squier on principal. He's great. Too bad this game will see his lesser work.
Like both songs in match three. Abstaining
White Room is an excellent song against a decent song.
 
Floyd, Billy Squier, Zeppelin, U2. Finally, another song from a U2 era I like, and hardly anyone else likes it :p
 
It's an OK song, but it's up against a longer-established giant. It's currently 10-4, and I think that's quite respectable for U2 given the opposition.
 
Classic Rock Mega-Knockout: 512 to 256, Round 64 of 64

This round introduces the #1 seed and its challengers...

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"Bohemian Rhapsody" (Queen) [1] vs. "Stand By Me" (Ben E. King) [512]
"Bohemian Rhapsody" (Queen) - 1975 - #1 UK, #9 US
Ranked by 12 of 13 radio stations, highest in Australia: #3

"Stand By Me" (Ben E. King) - 1961 - #4 US, #1 UK (UK in 1987)
Ranked by 4 of 13 radio stations, highest in New York City: #140

"(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay" (Otis Redding) [256] vs. "Heart Of Gold" (Neil Young) [257]
"(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay" (Otis Redding) - 1967 - #1 US, #3 UK
Ranked by 4 of 13 radio stations, highest in Pittsburgh: #12

"Heart Of Gold" (Neil Young) - 1971 - #1 US, #10 UK
Ranked by 5 of 13 radio stations, highest in Philadelphia: #108
 
"Killer Queen" (Queen) [128] vs. "Heartbreaker" (Pat Benatar) [385]
"Killer Queen" (Queen) - 1974 - #2 UK, #12 US
Ranked by 7 of 13 radio stations, highest in Philadelphia: #47

"Heartbreaker" (Pat Benatar) - 1979 - #23 US
Ranked by 5 of 13 radio stations, highest in Tampa: #110

"Rock'n Me" (Steve Miller) [129] vs. "Come Together" (Aerosmith) [384]
Remember: this match is for the Aerosmith version of "Come Together". The original Beatles song already won its own first round match.
"Rock'n Me" (Steve Miller) - 1976 - #1 US, #11 UK
Ranked by 7 of 13 radio stations, highest in Tampa: #86

"Come Together" (Aerosmith) - 1978 - #23 US
Ranked by 5 of 13 radio stations, highest in Ontario: #161

One day left for Round 61
Also open: Round 62 , Round 63
 
OK maybe not that tough.

Queen
Otis ( This was the hardest, but Heart of Gold does drag out a bit towards the end whereas I feel Sittin' holds the magic throughout. Also Young has so many other fantastic songs that I don't feel bad giving the victory to Otis.
Queen again.
Steve Miller (Yes I love Miller band, old childhood nostalgia. But Aerosmith covering Beatles? As bad as it sounds.)
 
The top ten seeds:
1. Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen)
2. Stairway To Heaven (Led Zeppelin)
3. Hotel California (The Eagles)
4. Comfortably Numb (Pink Floyd)
5. Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd)
6. Hey Jude (The Beatles)
7. Imagine (John Lennon)
8. Sweet Child O' Mine (Guns 'n Roses)
9. All Along The Watchtower (Jimi Hendrix)
10. Layla (Derek & the Dominoes)

I was quite pleased with this top ten when all the data came together. Seems pretty strong to me...

Six of these songs are no-brainers and must be here. For example, a top ten without Stairway isn't right. Wish, Layla and Watchtower are all worthy - but they're in a second tier. I wouldn't have complained about seeing (for instance) Won't Get Fooled Again up here either. Sweet Child is probably the most "controversial" top seed, but it's my favorite song in the game, and I love it getting a high seed.

My votes:

The 800-lb. gorilla just walked in the room. Bohemian Rhapsody
(I wish Stand By Me had gotten a higher seed. One of the first basslines I ever learned, as I picked up the bass about the same time as the 80s movie came out.)
Soul power over hipster-folk rock. (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay
The Queen song is perfectly constructed. Killer Queen
This Aerosmith song is not a good cover version IMO. When did it become popular? It wasn't showing up on top 500 radio lists a few years ago when I did the first clue game. This Steve Miller song may be "average" but at least it's a catchy groove. Rock 'n Me
 
As brilliant as Bohemian Rhapsody is in its complexity, Stand By Me is equally brilliant in its simplicity. Ultimately, Stand By Me is a better song.

Dock of the Bay, for sure.

Killer Queen.

Steve Miller.
 
Purely in terms of the seeding, it's mildly humorous that Otis is kicking the crap out of Neil. This is supposed to be the closest match in the entire first phase: it's 256 vs 257.
 
Heart of Gold is one of my least favorite of the supposedly classic Young tunes.. I much prefer Old Man, The Needle....Vampire Blues, Out On the Weekend, Cortez The Killer..
 
Ever since I heard that "Bohemian Gravity" parody, the lyrics are messed up in my head. ("Ooooh Kähler!").
Nice to see Otis Redding here.
"Killer Queen" is perfect.
Steve Miller. The Aerosmith cover is terrible.
 
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