ChrisCThe ten best ever Rock intro's
July 28th 2008 03:26
This is a list, in no particular order, of rock tracks that demand you to pull out your air guitar or sit down at your air drum kit right from the opening note. Or beat. Or scream. These are the songs that need to be played if you’re leaving for work in four minutes and can’t bare the thought of walking out the front door, or if you want to go and burn off those Tim Tams and simply cannot haul your big backside out of bed.
The rules for assessing the ten best ever rock intro's…
1) Can only be 10 songs. Any more and no-one would be bothered reading it.
2) Can only be 10 songs. Any more and I can’t be bothered writing it.
3) Must be made up of half Australian acts and half not.
4) Must be made up of half live stuff and half studio stuff.
5) As it turns out, the live stuff must be made up of stuff I have seen live. Coincidentally, as it turns out.
6) I must be able to find a suitable You Tube clip of my selected top ten rock intro.
7) Can not have more than seven (7) rules in assessing the top 10 intros.
And before I continue: the irony of it all…I know rock n’ roll is supposed to be all about freedom of expression, breaking the rules and basically “sticking it to the man,” (Jack Black told me). And so trying to create a rock n’ roll list, and give it some rules and prerequisites appears to fly entirely in the face of what rock, according to legend, is all about. Enjoy that thought as long as you like, but I’ve gotta get going and start playing some tunes.
(In booming announcer’s voice)
“And so…without further ado, in conjunction with Funky and The Jazzman productions, give it up for the biggest, baddest, bestest rock intros of oorrrrrrrrrlllllll Tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimmmme!”
Kicking off the studio stuff with two giants of the hair-band era, I'm talking Motley Crue and Guns n’ Roses.
Kick Start My Heart gives nothing less than that heart-pounding vibe of being trackside at a Formula One Grand Prix. A massive adrenalin surge that is required before any car race or before you have to clean the skid marks off your share-house toilet. No I’ve never been to a car race.
You Could Be Mine takes me back to the days where The Digger and myself used to drive up to Blackbutt Reserve to do some cross country running. Playing the start of this song in the car before you go for a run is almost exactly the same as injecting cow’s blood into your thighs before playing a game of footy. Ooh yeah!
The next selection needs no real introduction or description. Just press play on the vid here…
Got it? Good.
And now, please welcome to the microphones, a couple of top Aussie studio-recorded rock n’ rollers. Firstly I’d like to introduce The Divinyls who take great delight in sticking it to the man with their track Hey Little Boy. The drums, the guitar – this intro lets you know what you’re in for…
And next we have the mighty Spiderbait. Who in the world (of Australia) didn’t pull their air guitar out for this one?!!
Feeling pumped? Good, because in the words of immortal rocker Mark Gasnier, it’s time to ‘fire up bitch’ and face up to the top 5 LIVE!
I’ll kick-off with a classic rock intro, a little bit of guitar solo that is instantly recognisable right around the world. Did somebody just whisper the word “iconic”? Why not?!!
Sticking with the Aussie theme for the moment, the lads from The Living End are back from their internal squabbles and self-loathing to release a new album. Whatever happens with this album or in future, there can be no denying that with Prisoner of Society, they came up with one of the all-time greatest Oz rock songs. Have a look at this live version – what a way to intro a song and fire up a crowd.
Moving to a couple of bands from abroad now and onto the first live big gig I ever saw. In fact (in showing my age) I had to leave a HSC exam early to catch a train down to Sydney to see these guys. The result? Thanks to Dire Straits for putting on was is still one of the maddest concerts I have ever seen, and (as I’m sure you were wondering) I scored my highest mark in this particular HSC exam! God bless General Studies. And the power of rock.
Having seen U2 twice in Sydney, (and, from what I’m told, shrewdly deciding to not fork out the big bucks to see them last time they toured), I consider myself a bit of a fan. This song was always the biggest of them all for me. In fact, I’ve been calling it my ‘funeral song’ for a long while now, so for those in the know, there’s no surprises that this song makes the cut. This particular clip comes live from Slane Castle in Ireland (I think). The power and the beauty of Where the Streets Have No Name…
And finally, saving my personal favourite till last…
Classic Australian rock to me is all about the Oils. They got me through my high school years and watched over me in the years thereafter. This particular clip, of The Dead Heart, is not an out and out rock intro like most of the others here, but I find it does the same thing: it gets the chest pounding and the soul stirring. If you can’t be bothered watching any of the other You Tube clips, have a quick click on this and tell me you don’t feel - something!
Remember: stay alert – not alarmed, and chow4now.
The rules for assessing the ten best ever rock intro's…
1) Can only be 10 songs. Any more and no-one would be bothered reading it.
2) Can only be 10 songs. Any more and I can’t be bothered writing it.
4) Must be made up of half live stuff and half studio stuff.
5) As it turns out, the live stuff must be made up of stuff I have seen live. Coincidentally, as it turns out.
6) I must be able to find a suitable You Tube clip of my selected top ten rock intro.
7) Can not have more than seven (7) rules in assessing the top 10 intros.
And before I continue: the irony of it all…I know rock n’ roll is supposed to be all about freedom of expression, breaking the rules and basically “sticking it to the man,” (Jack Black told me). And so trying to create a rock n’ roll list, and give it some rules and prerequisites appears to fly entirely in the face of what rock, according to legend, is all about. Enjoy that thought as long as you like, but I’ve gotta get going and start playing some tunes.
(In booming announcer’s voice)
“And so…without further ado, in conjunction with Funky and The Jazzman productions, give it up for the biggest, baddest, bestest rock intros of oorrrrrrrrrlllllll Tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimmmme!”
Kicking off the studio stuff with two giants of the hair-band era, I'm talking Motley Crue and Guns n’ Roses.
Kick Start My Heart gives nothing less than that heart-pounding vibe of being trackside at a Formula One Grand Prix. A massive adrenalin surge that is required before any car race or before you have to clean the skid marks off your share-house toilet. No I’ve never been to a car race.
You Could Be Mine takes me back to the days where The Digger and myself used to drive up to Blackbutt Reserve to do some cross country running. Playing the start of this song in the car before you go for a run is almost exactly the same as injecting cow’s blood into your thighs before playing a game of footy. Ooh yeah!
The next selection needs no real introduction or description. Just press play on the vid here…
Got it? Good.
And now, please welcome to the microphones, a couple of top Aussie studio-recorded rock n’ rollers. Firstly I’d like to introduce The Divinyls who take great delight in sticking it to the man with their track Hey Little Boy. The drums, the guitar – this intro lets you know what you’re in for…
And next we have the mighty Spiderbait. Who in the world (of Australia) didn’t pull their air guitar out for this one?!!
Feeling pumped? Good, because in the words of immortal rocker Mark Gasnier, it’s time to ‘fire up bitch’ and face up to the top 5 LIVE!
I’ll kick-off with a classic rock intro, a little bit of guitar solo that is instantly recognisable right around the world. Did somebody just whisper the word “iconic”? Why not?!!
Sticking with the Aussie theme for the moment, the lads from The Living End are back from their internal squabbles and self-loathing to release a new album. Whatever happens with this album or in future, there can be no denying that with Prisoner of Society, they came up with one of the all-time greatest Oz rock songs. Have a look at this live version – what a way to intro a song and fire up a crowd.
Moving to a couple of bands from abroad now and onto the first live big gig I ever saw. In fact (in showing my age) I had to leave a HSC exam early to catch a train down to Sydney to see these guys. The result? Thanks to Dire Straits for putting on was is still one of the maddest concerts I have ever seen, and (as I’m sure you were wondering) I scored my highest mark in this particular HSC exam! God bless General Studies. And the power of rock.
Having seen U2 twice in Sydney, (and, from what I’m told, shrewdly deciding to not fork out the big bucks to see them last time they toured), I consider myself a bit of a fan. This song was always the biggest of them all for me. In fact, I’ve been calling it my ‘funeral song’ for a long while now, so for those in the know, there’s no surprises that this song makes the cut. This particular clip comes live from Slane Castle in Ireland (I think). The power and the beauty of Where the Streets Have No Name…
And finally, saving my personal favourite till last…
Classic Australian rock to me is all about the Oils. They got me through my high school years and watched over me in the years thereafter. This particular clip, of The Dead Heart, is not an out and out rock intro like most of the others here, but I find it does the same thing: it gets the chest pounding and the soul stirring. If you can’t be bothered watching any of the other You Tube clips, have a quick click on this and tell me you don’t feel - something!
Remember: stay alert – not alarmed, and chow4now.
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