Top 10 Worst Covers Part 1.

10. Behind Blue Eyes by Limp Bizkit
09. These Boots Are Made For Walkin' by Jessica Simpson
08. American Pie by Madonna
07. All By Myself by Celine Dion
06. I Love Rock 'N' Roll by Britney Spears
05. Stairway To Heaven by Dolly Parton
04. Sweet Child O' Mine by Sheryl Crow
03. Dirty Laundry by Lisa Marie Presley
02. Another Brick In The Wall by Korn
01. Bringing On The Heartbreak by Mariah Carey

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Toby Keith - Hope On The Rocks

The very busy Toby Keith drops yet another album of country influenced pop and rock. Not often is he pure country but he is more so than some of the others peddling their fake twangs from Cashville USA. On Hope On The Rock Keith as usual has hits and misses. This album is fairly consistent for a Keith album considering there have been many that just can't be listened to front to back.

The title track opens the album and is barely passable but I didn't want to vomit so that's good. He picks it up with "The Size I Wear" about finding a hot chick he wants and does his best dancing to pick her up and his wing-man is jealous. Typical Toby Keith song that we have come to enjoy more often than not. Don't forget she's round where she's supposed to be round and that's all that matters.

The first single "I Like Girls That Drink Beer" is a country song that should have great success moving asses on the dancefloor. Catchy, good verses and well sung by deep voiced country star. The derivative junk like "Scat Cat", "Get Got" and the ugh! ballad of cheesy goo "Missed You Just Right" make me really hate modern country. All three songs are plain not even vanilla just plain old boring.

But with Keith he does that crap songs to fill up the record and repays us with songs like "Cold Beer Country" that is almost worth listening to that filler. "Haven't Had A Drink All Day" is another uptempo cooker that makes me like this guy enough to continue to pay attention. He does a great Glen Campbell sound on the decent "You Ain't Alone" but I never cared much for Glen Campbell so this song is a take it or leave it one.

There is a bunch of bonus material in way of remixes of "Red Solo Cup" and "Beers Ago" both completely unnecessary and two live renditions of past hits as well. "Whiskey Girl" and the excellent "Get Out Of My Car" shows the guy can do it live so I guess this is more of an advertisement to come see him live than anything else. Overall Hope On The Rocks is the same as the last few Toby Keith albums nothing better or worse than what we already have heard just more of the same.

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Miss Li - Tangerine Dream

Finally the new album has appeared! This is such a good thing because artists like the affecting Miss Li are no where near plenty enough for my liking. She's crazy cool with more charisma and talent than most of the artist currently on the pop charts combined. I say most because there is usually a few good artists selling pop records at any given time.

The album opens with the distinguished and all things Brit Pop "Teenager For Life" that introduces you to a whole new way of thinking when it comes to indie music. Her lyrical envelope is busting at the seams with whimsical cynicism of that guy who's middle aged and still pretending he's hip and young. She follows that up with a scathing paddling to the culture of the world while longing to get away from it all but somehow unable with "Plastic Faces"

One of the albums most catchy and memorable tunes is the magnificent "Golden Retriever" that immediately became a favorite of mine after my initial listen. The very Sam Cooke inspired "All Those Men" is another song that has everything slotted into their ideal places. She creates a perfect love song without any of the gooey bullshit that permeates much of the love songs that are forced upon our ears. As Linda gets personal with the marvelous gift titled "A Darker Side Of Me" she reminds me of days past artist at the top of their game like Dusty Springfield, Karen Carpenter, Joni Mitchell and even Jackie Ross or Barbra Mason. She attains those spirits in her creation but never steals their sound she is inspired by the ebb and flow of it and creates something all her own. Kinda like what Amy Winehouse and Duffy attempted to do.

The first single from the album is buried quite deep in the tracking order which is the effervescent jar of lightening she captured in the studio "My Heart Goes Boom" once again Miss Li writes the closet thing you can get to a perfect song. From the catchy and memorable chorus to the glorious production on the supreme instrumentation, this song is the type of composition that really gets into my soul.

The albums second to last song "Throw It In The Trash Can" has some great lines and one of my favorite verses on the album "We don’t need a preacher man, We will never be a part of your plan.
So take your list of demands and throw it in the trash can." and I couldn't have said it better myself, nice job Miss Linda Carlsson nice job!

So since I've completely raved about one of the most underrated and awesome artists of this current era of excellent music coming out of Europe this time Sweden to be exact it is time for you to do your part and buy this album. Creativity on this level should be rewarded and you don't get this sort of quality everyday so jump on the Miss Li train and make her the biggest star in the world instead of the no talent bunk that continues to be forced upon our youth.

Now to sing on my way out "I got a red little house with a yellow door, I got my television every time I’m getting bored, I got a Golden Retriever and a Labrador, And I don’t need you anymore." Man I love this song!

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10 Songs That Should Be On Your I-Pod

A batch of tunes that should add some dimension and dynamics to your I-Pod


10. Why Can't I Touch It by Buzzcocks
09. Easier Said Than Done by Essex
08. The Refreshments by Banditos
07. Dancing The Night Away by Motors
06. So You Ran by Orion The Hunter
05. The Salt In My Tears by Martin Briley
04. Hot Summer Nights by Walter Egan
03. You Don't Want Me Anymore by Steel Breeze
02. Mutual Surrender (What A Wonderful World) by Bourgeois Tagg
01. Crazy Talk by Chilliwack

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Burton Cummings - Massey Hall

Considering Burton has been apart of my listening rotation since my birth and I've grown up a fan of his musical musings I'm a little excited to hear and see a new released of him live. He's one of the very few artists that I can without malice say a live recording is going to be good. He's a solid performer and a great actually lets go there he's an absolutely brilliant singer on a live stage.

The Massey Hall release is a classic run through of all things Burton related and the playlist is undeniably awesome. You can't find songs better than the material that has been included on this album because some of these songs are the greatest rock or pop tunes in the history of music. Sure there are some that we roll our eyes at and that's fine but when you get to a songs like "These Eyes" which is in the top ten or twenty of greatest musical compositions in music my statement is easily proven as an absolute truth.

The album opens with "No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature" that still has all the charming charisma and shine it had back in 1970 when I was only two years old and I'm positive my parents were cranking up and rocking the house to daily with it. This version has Burton singing it a little lower in key but the presence of his voice and the songs incredible melody dances in my ears and I can't help but sing a long with huge Canadian pride.

The album progresses along through some more Guess Who classics to the Burton Cummings ballad "Stand Tall" that is not only a slice of pure songwriting genius it's probably Burton's single greatest solo hit single. In 2012 at 65 years old you get this guy singing as if he's half or less his age. He sounds great and hits the notes and keeps the melody. A very impressive reading of one his very best moments on vinyl. A few more songs and we get to the Randy Bachman jazz number from 1969 "Undun" a song I wasn't big as a kid but once I grew into a teenager this song really began to come into focus for me and I couldn't get enough of Gary's drumming and Randy's soloing on the original which was really killer stuff especially for me being into drums.

Burton does up "I'm Scared" that the band just hits perfectly here it sounds almost exactly like the album release and Mr. Cummings sounds once again as good he did back in 1977 when the song was originally released on his debut solo album. His duck out of the cold being lost in New York a story I had the personal experience of hearing in total one night while he was sitting on the sofa in our living-room. See my mother dated one of his best friends from childhood and road managers back in the 80's for the better part of a decade. Another reason why I'm such a fanboi of him, I'm sure is that personal connection. Come to think of it I wonder if Marty still works with him today? Anyway back to the music!

The reading of "These Eyes" is a still top flight on the Massey Hall album but I've heard him hit this one out of the park live a few times that I've captured in my memory that will never be touched so this time around as good as it is there are better ones out there. The most overplayed Guess Who track "American Woman" rips it up near the end of this excellent live album. Burton's voice is still the only voice that sounds right singing this song and it's been covered by Kravitz and Krokus to varying degrees of success. I don't care for the Kravitz version and I've never heard anyone do it better the man that wrote it and here on this album it still kicks the ass of all the covers by others.

My one complaint here is that there is no "Bus Rider" and a complete absence of his two rocking solo hits "Your Backyard" along with "My Own Way To Rock" as well as missing is the 80's classic "Fine State Of Affairs" which could have replaced easily "Timeless Love", "Guns Guns Guns" and "Above The Ground" plus he could have finally pulled "Fame Junkie" from obscurity or even his minor hit "Love Dreams" from the excellent 1984 album Heart. Again I'm a huge fan so I can always want for more or different tunes from such a large back catalog of great material.

In the end this is a less spirited version of Burton Cummings given his advanced age but he still has it and the crowds that show up are getting a great performance from a legend. Now only if those moron's and idiots at the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame would induct someone deserving instead these wastes of space like the Beastie Boys and Run DMC who aren't even rock and or roll and didn't come close to earning those spots like the talent that was known collectively as the Guess Who!

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Check Out: Big Wreck - The Oaf Live

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50 Best Heavy Metal Albums Of All-Time

There are so many sub genre's of Heavy Metal that I'm going to keep this list open as to what genre's I include being all of them. Now these are my opinion and not the typical crap you see on nearly every list out there.

50. HellYeah! 2012 - Band Of Brothers
49. L.A. Guns 1991 - Hollywood Vampires
48. Overkill 1989 - The Years Of Decay
47. Jetboy 1988 - Feel The Shake
46. King Diamond 1988 - Them
45. Quiet Riot 1983 - Mental Health
44. Trivium 2006 - The Crusade
43. Metallica 1983 - Kill 'em All
42. Pretty Boy Floyd 1989 - Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz
41. Great White 1987 - Once Bitten

40. Black Sabbath 1980 - Heaven & Hell
39. Roxx Gang 1990 - Things You've Never Done Before
38. Mötley Crüe 1981 - Too Fast For Love
37. Slaughter 1990 - Stick It To Ya
36. Helix 1984 - Walking On The Razors Edge
35. Dope 2001 - Life
34. Warrant 1990 - Cherry Pie
33. Poison 1988 - Open Up And Say Ahh
32. Halford 2000 - Resurrection
31. Marilyn Manson 2003 - The Golden Age Of Grotesque

30. Slayer 1988 - South Of Heaven
29. Megadeth 1992 - Countdown To Extinction
28. Judas Priest 1984 - Defenders Of The Faith
27. Kix 1988 - Blow My Fuse
26. Metallica 1984 - Ride The Lightning
25. Helloween 2007 - Gambling With The Devil
24. Whitesnake 1984 - Slide It In
23. Scorpions 1982 - Blackout
22. Cinderella 1986 - Night Songs
21. Iron Maiden 1982 - The Number Of The Beast

20. Ozzy Osbourne 1989 - No Rest For The Wicked
19. Skid Row 1990 - Skid Row
18. Kiss 1983 - Lick It Up
17. Anthrax 2011 - Worship Music
16. Ratt 1985 - Invasion Of Your Privacy
15. Iron Maiden 1988 - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
14. Guns N' Roses 1987 - Appetite For Destruction
13. Dokken 1984 - Tooth & Nail
12. Mötley Crüe 1983 - Shout A The Devil
11. Led Zeppelin 1969 - II

10. Def Leppard 1983 - Pyromania
09. Black Sabbath 1973 - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
08. Testament 1999 - The Gathering
07. Suicidal Tendencies 1990 - Lights, Camera, Revolution
06. Deep Purple 1972 - Machine Head
05. ACDC 1980 - Back In Black
04. Fight 1993 - War Of Words
03. Megadeth 1994 - Youthanasia
02. Nazareth 1973 - Razamanaz
01. Led Zeppelin 1971 - IV

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