William David Lee, ESQ.

So it's 3AM and I can't sleep and I don't have anything to do. I decided to make a new playlist for my iPod with all my favorite cover songs. Didn't realize I'd have so many Dylan tunes on there, but I digress. Not saying any of these are better than the originals though there are a few covers I prefer (Johnny Cash's "Hurt" and GNR's "Live and Let Die," for example). But, what do I know? I prefer The Magnificent Seven to Seven Samurai.

Of course, any additions are more than welcome. Always on the look out for more music.

COVER SONGS

1. The Adolescents - House of the Rising Sun (The Animals)
2. AFI - Halloween (The Misfits)
3. Aimee Mann & Michael Penn – Two of Us (The Beatles)
4. Bauhaus - Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie)
5. The Black Keys - The Wicked Messenger (Bob Dylan)
6. Bruce Dickinson - The Zoo (The Scorpions)
7. Cannibal Corpse - Zero the Hero (Black Sabbath)
8. Circle Jerks w/ Debbie Gibson - I Wanna Destroy You (The Soft Boys)
9. The Clash – I Fought the Law (Sonny Curtis)
10. The Clash - Police and Thieves (Junior Murvin)
11. The Cramps - Faster Pussycat...Kill! Kill! (The Bostweeds)
12. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Susie Q (Dale Hawkins)
13. David Bowie - China Girl (Iggy Pop)
14. Dead Kennedys - Rawhide (Frankie Laine)
15. Devo – Satisfaction (The Rolling Stones)
16. The Dickies - Paranoid (Black Sabbath)
17. Eagles of Death Metal - Stuck in the Middle (Steeler's Wheel)
18. Echo & the Bunnymen - People Are Strange (The Doors)
19. Elvis Costello - What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding (Nick Lowe)
20. Erasure – Take a Chance on Me (ABBA)
21. Eric Clapton - Cocaine (JJ Cale)
22. Face To Face - In-Between Days (The Cure)
23. Faye Wong - In Dreams (The Cranberries)
24. The Flying Pickets – Only You (Yaz)
25. Foo Fighters - Down in the Park (Gary Numan)
26. Frontline Assembly w/ Tiffany - New Year's Day (U2)
27. The Goops - Build Me Up Buttercup (The Foundations)
28. Gnarls Barkley – Gone Daddy Gone (The Violent Femmes)
29. Guns 'n Roses - Black Leather (The Professionals)
30. Guns 'n Roses - Hair of the Dog (Nazareth)
31. Guns 'n Roses - Knockin' on Heaven's Door (Bob Dylan)
32. Guns 'n Roses - Live and Let Die (Paul McCartney & Wings)
33. Guns ‘n Roses – Since I Don’t Have You (The Skyliners)
34. Hole - Gold Dust Woman (Fleetwood Mac)
35. Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)
36. Jimi Hendrix - All Along the Watchtower (Bob Dylan)
37. Joan Jett - Crimson and Clover (The Shondells)
38. John Doe - Pressin' On (Bob Dylan)
39. Johnny Cash - Hurt (Nine Inch Nails)
40. Johnny Cash - Personal Jesus (Depeche Mode)
41. Johnny Cash - Rusty Cage (Soundgarden)
42. KMFDM – She Moves in Mysterious Ways (U2)
43. Korn - Wicked (Ice Cube)
44. Lauryn Hill - Can't Take My Eyes Off You (Frankie Valli)
45. Local H - Toxic (Brittney Spears)
46. Marie LaForet - Paint It Black (The Rolling Stones)
47. Marilyn Manson - Sweet Dreams (The Eurythmics)
48. Metallica - Am I Evil? (Diamond Head)
49. Metallica - Die, Die, My Darling (The Misfits)
50. Mike Ness - Don't Think Twice, It's All Right (Bob Dylan)
51. Ministry - Lay Lady Lay (Bob Dylan)
52. Nine Inch Nails - Dead Souls (Joy Division)
53. Nirvana - The Man Who Sold the World (David Bowie)
54. Pennywise - Astro Zombies (The Misfits)
55. Placebo - Running Up That HIll (Kate Bush)
56. Queens of the Stone Age - Never Say Never (Romeo Void)
57. Run DMC – Walk This Way (Aerosmith)
58. Santana - Black Magic Woman (Fleetwood Mac)
59. Seether - Careless Whisper (Wham)
60. The Sex Pistols - Substitute (The Who)
61. She & Him - You Really Got a Hold On Me (Smokey Robinson)
62. Sid Vicious - My Way (Paul Anka)
63. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Dear Prudence (The Beatles)
64. Skinny Puppy - Tainted Love (Soft Cell)
65. Slayer - In-a-Gadda-Da-Vida (Iron Butterfly)
66. Smith - Baby, It's You (The Shirelles)
67. Social Distortion - Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash)
68. Social Distortion - Under My Thumb (The Rolling Stones)
69. Sonic Youth - Superstar (The Carpenters)
70. Soundgarden – Girl U Want (Devo)
71. Spiderbait - Ghost Riders in the Sky (Vaughn Monroe)
72. Unwritten Law - Goody Two Shoes (Adam Ant)
73. The White Stripes - Conquest (Patti Page)
74. Willie Nelson and Calexico - Senor (Bob Dylan)

It begins! My annual, super duper deluxe year in movies review is upon us. I'll be posting my 'best of' lists in various categories such as Best Actor, Best Director, etc. It all culminates in my Top 25 of 2008. This is a new category for me. These are my picks for 2008's Best Original Songs (written for a film). I was actually going to do just a Top 5 list, but had a bunch of honorable mentions so I said, 'What the Hell,' I'll just do a Top 10 Countdown.

10. "Chromaggia," written by Darren Smith & Terrence Zdunich. Performed by Sarah Brightman (Repo!: The Genetic Opera)


9. "Dracula's Lament," written & performed by Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall)


8. "Little Person," written by Jon Brion. Performed by Deanne Storey (Synecdoche, New York)


7. "I Didn't Know I Loved You So Much," written by Darren Smith & Terrence Zdunich. Performed by Alexa Vega & Anthony Stewart Head (Repo!: The Genetic Opera)


6. "I Love Tha P****y," performed by Alpa Chino (Tropic Thunder)


5. "Uh Huh," Written & Performed by Munchausen By Proxy (Yes Man)


4. "Rock Me Sexy Jesus," written by Phoebe Strole. Performed by The Cast of Hamlet 2 (Hamlet 2)


3. "Gran Torino," written by Clint Eastwood, Kyle Eastwood, Jamie Cullum & Michae Stevens. Performed by Clint Eastwood & Jamie Cullum (Gran Torino)


2. "The Wrestler," written & performed by Bruce Springsteen (The Wrestler)

And my number one song...

1. "The Little Things," written & performed by Danny Elfman (Wanted)

The list is compiled based on the quality of the song rather than the film it was featured in. For the majority of these selections, I preferred the soundtrack over the actual movie. That’s the case for Repo!: The Genetic Opera, a twisted Gothic sci-fi rock opera that sounded like a way cooler idea than it ended up being. Still, Repo!’s soundtrack featured a diverse array of sounds and musical talents and is represented twice on my list. Don’t worry; I didn’t pick any songs featuring Paris Hilton. Both songs are from the film’s Grand Guignol finale, the first is an operatic number sung by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s former wife and muse, Sarah Brightman. The second (at No. 7) is a melancholy duet by Anthony Stewart Head (Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Alexa Vega (Spy Kids). You can read my review for Repo!: The Genetic Opera at DVD Town or Blogspot.

What can I say about, “Dracula’s Lament,” other than how awesomely awesome an idea of a Dracula musical is? And it’s made even more awesome when it’s sung by puppets. “Little Person,” a jazzy torch song that plays into the film’s themes of loneliness and disconnect. “I Love Tha P****y,” how can you not love a song with the words ‘booty sweat’ in it?

I loves me some Zooey Deschanel which is why She & Him’s Volume One was my favorite album of 2008 and which is why I went to see a lame, second-rate Jim Carrey comedy. On the bright side, it gave us Munchausen By Proxy featuring Miss Deschanel and electro group Von Iva. Their retro, New Wave-y sound had shades of Missing Persons in it and their best number was, “Uh Huh,” a catchy diatribe about a douchebag ex-boyfriend (“Happy networking, asshole!”). “Rock Me Sexy Jesus,” a Grease-style number about Jesus, a sexy Jesus, no less? Like it’s not gonna make the list.

My next two picks aren’t nearly as peppy with both songs encapsulating their respective films’ and their lead characters. “Gran Torino” stands as an ode, not so much to a car, but to the working class Joe who no seems to exist in the today’s society. The same can be said for “The Wrestler,” a tribute to the man beaten down by the world, yet still manages to dust himself off and go on.

Wanted was also about the little guy beaten down by the world, except this time, he busts a cap in the world’s ass and says, “Fuck you.” I dare you to listen to the song and not want to go postal on all the fools pissing on your day.

1. She & Him - Volume One
Actors getting into music is almost never a good idea. Shall I remind you of Don Johnson's "Heartbeat" or Eddie Murphy's "Party All the Time"? 2008 wasn't any different as evidenced by Scarlett Johansson's ill-conceived Tom Waits cover album. But, Zooey Deschanel proves she's no one-joke novelty act by teaming with musician M. Ward as She & Him. The innocuously titled Volume One features a majority of songs written by Miss Deschanel herself. She & Him mixes indie flavor with sweet bubblegum pop for tracks like "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here" and "This Is Not a Test." When Deschanel belts out the sad country-esque tune, "Change is Hard," her voice sounds somewhere in between Patsy Cline and Tammy Wynette. I mean that in the best possible way.


2. Be Your Own Pet - Get Awkward
Hyper skater punk sound built around the rocker grrl lead vocals of Jemina Pearl. And how can you not love a band that references Beyond the Valley of the Dolls ("The Kelly Affair") and Robocop ("Bitches Leave") in the same album.


3. Ladytron - Velocifero
I'm a recent convert to Ladytron mostly because there's a comic book character also named Ladytron. Most albums, no matter how good they are, will have a track or two that I tend to skip over. Velocifero doesn't have any songs I'd pass over. The album opens with the driving electronic sound of "Black Car" followed up by the...well...ghostly vocals of "Ghosts." Other highlights include "I'm Not Scared," "The Lovers" and "Runaway."


4. Nine Inch Nails - The Slip
Nine Inch Nails? Awesome. Free Nine Inch Nails? Even better. I probably listened to "Discipline" about a dozen times in a row when I first downloaded The Slip.


5. Metallica - Death Magnetic
Okay, sue me, I have a bit of a soft spot for Metallica. Most of the album is that same generic metal sound that's plagued the band since Load. However, they still manage to bust out a few great tracks like "The Day That Never Comes," "Cyanide," "All Nightmare Long," and "The Unforgiven III."

Honorable Mentions: Day and Age by The Killers, Honeysuckle Weeks by The Submarines

Being a total insomniac led me to browse through iTunes and the celebrity playlists. I mean, I just had to know what Jerry Bruckheimer and Ashlee Simpson were listening to. Anyways, still not able to sleep and after getting some halfway decent writing done, I decided to try to make my own little playlist.

I knew I wouldn't be able to narrow it down to 25 songs, I tried to shoot for 50 and wound up with 80. I cut it down a little and came up with 53. Yeah, I know weird number, but I just couldn't do 50. I tried to create something that would be a good definition of my wide tastes, though it's a little heavy in punk. But, whatever. I'm sure I can come up with a different, and much longer, list that would be better. Just barely making the final cut were The Beatles, Madonna, Richard Hell, Judas Priest, Prince, Iron Maiden, REM, Pearl Jam, and Pat Benatar. Hey, variety is the spice of life...

( Will's Playlist )