These Top 5 lists were supposed to
be the center piece of this blog, but I’ve strayed completely away from. I’ve gotten way to lazy… or busy with things
that actually pay bills… all depends on how you look at it I guess. Anyway, I’m going to try to get more focused
and try to make these lists more regular, but in all honesty don’t hold your
breath. In the mean time, I’m bringing
back my top 5 lists with Top 5 Songs About Alcohol. I’ve paired things down quite a bit by
outlawing crappy country and anything written by Jimmy Buffet. Between the two there must be hundreds of
songs about booze, but all of them suck.
So, here’s my top 5…
5) One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer – George Thorogood
Best lyric: “Now by this time I’m
plenty high, you know when your mouth a-getting dry you’re plenty high”
Ok, I know this one is slightly blasphemy. I know it’s a John Lee Hooker song, but this
is the version I grew up listening to, so it’s the one I’m putting on the
list. It’s a great example of a song
telling a great story. And also deals
with one of our favorite reasons to drink… wash away our sorrows.
4) Brass Monkey – Beastie Boys
Best lyric:
“We’re offered Moet- we don’t mind Chivas- wherever we go we bring the monkey
with us”
This is a great party song as well
as a great alcohol song. Nothing gets
the ladies on the dance floor quicker then old school Beasties and this is one
of the best. Brass Monkey is a drink
that is one part dark rum, one part vodka, one part orange juice. It’s also a great song about alcohol.
3) Drinkin – Reel Big Fish
Best lyric:
“I’ve got a friend. He’s in my
hand. He understands. He said everything won’t be so bad”
There is
many a teenager that will argue with me that this isn’t Reel Big Fish’s best
song about alcohol, but they are wrong.
Yes, I’ve been to the shows. I’ve
heard all you underage kids call out endlessly for “Beer” but the thing is that
song isn’t about alcohol as much as it is an ex-girlfriend. “Drinkin” on the other hand is a quality song
about drinking your sorrows away. Reel
Big Fish has a bunch of alcohol songs but in my opinion this is the best.
2) Plastic Cup Politics – Less Than Jake
Best lyric:
“Hello Mr. six pack of confidence, glad to see you’ve already met Ms. twelve
ounces of loneliness”
Ska music
is filled with beer songs, is seems to go with the up-beat party atmosphere the
music brings with it. This one tries to
tackle the subject with a little more sobriety.
As with many third wave tunes, the happy music belies a much darker
message about the effect alcohol has on how we interact with one another. Some may find it heavy handed, but I think
it’s clever.
1) Alcohol – Barenaked Ladies
Best lyric
“But know I know that there’s a time and there’s a place where I can choose to
walk the fine line between self-control and self-abuse”
This is by
far the greatest song about alcohol ever written. Is it a homage to booze? Is it a tongue-in-cheek attack on people who
lose control drinking? Does it really
matter because it’s a great song no matter how you interpret it? The Barenaked Ladies are one of the cleverest
lyricists out there and this is just another example of how great they
are. And, no matter what else the song
may be saying, it’s a song that makes you want to get up and sing at the top of
your lungs. And any song that does that
every time you hear it is a fantastic song.
Honorable mentions: Red, Red Wine – UB40, Tequila – The
Champs, Girls Against Drunk Bitches – Big D and The Kids Table
What are your top 5?
Interesting blog you have. I did a post about this same topic about a month ago. It looks like good minds think alike.
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