86. What is Life by George Harrison

"What is Life" by George Harrison

Written by George Harrison
Produced by George Harrison and Phil Spector
Released on All Things Must Pass (November 27, 1970)
Released as single on February 15, 1971
Peaked at #10 on Billboard Hot 100
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My top 100 contains no Beatles songs, no Paul McCartney songs, and no John Lennon songs, but it does contain this one George Harrison song. I'm sorry if this offends anyone. (The list does include two Lennon/McCartney compositions covered by other artists, if that is any sort of consolation.) There were a couple of Beatles songs and a couple Lennon solo tunes I considered for the list, but ultimately, I ran out of space. It's just 100 songs.

As great as the Beatles were, and as much as I love a lot of their music, there wasn't one song of theirs that stood above the rest and merited inclusion here. That happened with a few other bands that I really love. Radiohead, the Allman Brothers, the Black Crowes, Bon Jovi, TV on the Radio, and the Beatles are great bands, who produced great albums, but ultimately none of them have that one song that I had to have on my list. (There are more bands I could mention here, that are missing from my list, but I can't list everyone.) Sometimes lists like this become less about what made the list and more about what is missing. I certainly feel that way about a number of songs and artists.

I was first introduced to George Harrison in the late 1980's when his cover of "Got My Mind Set on You" hit #1. I really hate that song, but it was everywhere, and the music video was played constantly on MTV. I don't know when I learned that Harrison had been in the Beatles, but it was certainly around this time. Eventually I found tunes of his that I actually liked, including quite a few of his Beatles compositions.

"What is Life" rocks. The opening guitar lick exudes fire and energy. While I'm not always a fan of Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" production, here it brings even more exuberance to a melody that is already pure joy and wants everyone else in the room to shout and sing and feel that joy too. It's impossible to hear this song and not want to get up and do something. I'm pumped right now just thinking about it.

Right now "What is Life" by George Harrison is (probably) my 86th favorite song of all time.

87. Ghostwhirl (feat. MF Doom) (Remix) by Jonathan Toth from Hoth

"Ghostwhirl (Remix)" by Jonathan Toth from Hoth feat. MF Doom

Written by Jonathan Getzchman and MF Doom
Produced by DJ Crucial
Released on Ghostwhirl (single) (2005)
Warning: Explicit Lyrics
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Jonathan Getzchman (aka Jonathan Toth from Hoth or J-Toth) went to my high school. He's older than me, so I didn't know him then, but I got to know him after college when he started rapping. I was introduced to him by two of his collaborators (who I did know in high school): an artist named Peter Seay (aka Calc2) and another rapper named Tucker Booth (aka Tucker Booth). After college, I spent most of the next five years as a camp counselor, working at a few different camps throughout the year in Missouri and Michigan. When I wasn't working, I would try to find time to come to St. Louis to visit friends and family. During many of those trips, I would end up attending one or more local hip hop shows with Calc2, Tucker Booth, and J-Toth. It was a fun time in my life.

I really enjoyed being around a ton of cool, talented, driven people trying to make a go of it as musicians and artists, and J-Toth was squarely in the middle of it all. He had his own home recording studio and record label called the Frozen Food Section. Quite a few artists used his studio and label to record and produce their records. It was all sweat, spit, and Pro-Tools.

Something that really set J-Toth apart was that he had real goals. He actually had a big poster made listing his goals like tracks on a CD. It sat right in the middle of his apartment/recording studio. One of those goals was to collaborate with quite possibly the biggest name in underground hip hop, MF Doom.

Looking back, it's hard to believe that J-Toth actually made it happen. This was a big deal, and not only did he make it happen, but he managed to produce a pretty darn good track out of it. It's a great song, and I feel strongly that I would feel that way even if I didn't know J-Toth. The original version of the song is on his Lovecycle album, which is a concept album about John's love life. While the album version is excellent, it's almost impossible to not enjoy DJ Crucial's remix more. (Using one of the most iconic guitar intros of all time as a sample is kind of unfair.) Jonathan Getzchman had a dream, made it a goal, put in the work, and made that dream a reality.

Right now "Ghostwhirl (Remix)" by Jonathan Toth from Hoth feat. MF Doom is (probably) my 87th favorite song of all time.

88. I Wonder by Chris Isaak

"I Wonder" by Chris Isaak

Written by Chris Issak
Produced by Erik Jacobsen
Released on Baja Sessions (October 8, 1996)
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I heard this song for the first time while watching the movie Tin Cup. Up until that point the only Chris Isaak song I knew was "Wicked Game" because of its somewhat scandalous music video that had enjoyed heavy rotation on MTV in the early 1990's. I loved "I Wonder" from the moment I heard it, and as a result, I will always associate it, for better or worse, with Tin Cup.

I really enjoyed Tin Cup the first few times I saw it. It features peak Kevin Costner and some noteworthy supporting players. Kevin Costner's character, Roy "Tin Cup" McAvoy, is a near perfect film character: He's easy to love and just as easy to hate. He is the noble loser, who has grown comfortable with the fact that the world doesn't really need him anymore. We are given the illusion that maybe he could have been and maybe still can breakthrough and find greatness, but just when it looks like he actually managed to change and find salvation, we are given one of the most devastatingly satisfying losses in sports movie history. McAvoy's near capture of the US Open is magical. Many moments like that are directed and portrayed in a way that force me to want to look away. Not here. Here I cannot help but watch McAvoy's unraveling. 

Tin Cup has a problem though. As great as Costner's McAvoy is, the female lead, Dr. Molly Griswold, played by Rene Russo, is the absolute worst type of female character. The sad thing is, I wasn't able to figure this out on my own. A friend who was watching the movie with me had to wake me up to it. Tin Cup is a movie was made by men, about men, and for men. Dr. Molly Griswold is the biggest wet-blanket love interest ever written. We are given the briefest moment of hope when her character is first introduced, that she will be the strong woman that McAvoy needs to turn his life around and finally realize the potential that is locked up inside of himself. After that first brief interaction, however, it is just as quickly revealed that she is the most helpless and love-lost woman of them all. Of course she is in love with a jerk but can't see it. Of course she lets herself get talked into an ethically compromising "professional" relationship with another man. Of course she needs a man to help her find meaningful success both personally and professionally. It's shameful.

Everything is centered around Roy. He never has to change. The final sequence fits right in with who he is and will always be. He cannot literally or figuratively lay up, even when it is clearly the best path to victory. We, as viewers, get to bask in his inability to change and his need to prove himself as he stoically throws away personal glory. Molly just gets to be the weak woman who finally finds empowerment through her man.

Tin Cup is not a unique movie. There are probably thousands of female characters in all types of media who fit this mold. Dr. Molly Griswold is just another woman who can't see that her significant other is a jerk, when it is obvious to everyone else. She's just another woman who finally lets go of her inhibitions because she finds the right man. She's just another woman trying to help others put their lives in order, when she's the one whose life is a mess.

If you think I might be off base in my critique of Tin Cup (I'm not), give it a watch (or a re-watch) and let me know what you find out.

Of course, the only reason I care so much about this movie is because of the song. "I Wonder" is fantastic, in the movie and anywhere else it chooses to be heard. Chris Isaak wrote a perfect song. It manages to be both sad and hopeful. Isaak's lyrics and melody paint a picture of pain and regret. Will things ever be the same? Will they ever be as good as they once were? Sometimes we can only wonder and hope and pray. I'm not sure how he found that perfect lyrical balance, but he did. Then he wrapped those lyrics in a melody that is just as hopeful and just as sad.

Right now "I Wonder" by Chris Isaak is (probably) my 88th favorite song of all time.