Your "favorite" versus "the best" ?

clairequilty · Post by **clairequilty** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 12:32 am

Here's a little game some might find interesting.

Pick two songs by an artist, one which you would consider their best song, and the other which you would consider your favorite song. Confused? Let me start the ball rolling.

Hey Jude - The Beatles. I consider this to be the best song of theirs. A universal appeal that kind of forced the world to sing along together during a time when neither the world, not the Beatles, for that matter, could stick together on much of anything else.

Strawberry Fields Forever - The Beatles. I am put in a trance by this song to this day. The wizardy of welding two versions of a song together, in two different keys, no less, has rarely been matched. thanks to the genius of Lennon and George Martin. I could listen to this song forever.

Is this a stupid thread? Somebody please at least entertain me a little.

Bob And Charlotte · Post by **Bob And Charlotte** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 6:49 am

nice thread clairequilty.

Exile on Main St. might be the Stones greatest record, but i always rank Let it Bleed and Beggars Banquet as their best and secord best albums...

pophead2k · Post by **pophead2k** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 8:27 am

I'll play, using Elvis' albums. This Year's Model is probably his best, but its never been my favorite. My favorite is probably Brutal Youth.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 10:22 am

ALBUMS...
With Elvis, my favorite is Armed Forces, but his best is probably Brutal Youth.

Bob And Charlotte · Post by **Bob And Charlotte** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 12:32 pm

WHAR: Brutal Youth his best? Never heard such thing... As pophead2k pick, BY might be a fave. but i never saw it ranked in the top!

Dare i ask why do you think its his best?

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 12:47 pm

Bob, dont judge Elvis's records on the opinions of this board. Think for yourself, and listen to the albums.

You may not have read it before, but you're reading it now.

Brutal Youth contains the best vocal tracks Elvis has ever laid, not to mention the best lyrics he's ever written. That's enough for me.

Bob And Charlotte · Post by **Bob And Charlotte** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 12:52 pm

i´ll listen to it this weekend.

and what about you and your Blonde on Blonde listening?

cosmos · Post by **cosmos** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 12:58 pm

Steve Earle....Guitar Town is widely regarded as his best, but I'll take El Corazon instead any day.

clairequilty · Post by **clairequilty** » Fri Jun 18, 2004 9:55 pm

cosmos wrote:Steve Earle....Guitar Town is widely regarded as his best, but I'll take El Corazon instead any day.

I've always been partial to "I Feel Alright".

Maybe cuz I don't.

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 12:51 am

I've always been interested in the "favorite" versus "best" or greatest dichotomy.

In movies, I have lots of favorites that aren't neccessarily bests, though they are often pretty greats, if you follow me. For example, "King Kong" is a favorite, but arguing that it's a best is a real stretch. On the other than, "The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp" and "Rear Window" are both favorites and bests. "Citizen Kane", "Weekend" and "The Seven Samurai" are more bests for me, though they have their favoritish moments. John Ford and Steven Spielberg are usually trying for "bests" while Howard Hawks and Quentin Tarentino are pretty much exclusively concerned with "favorites" and so on.

"The Sopranos" or "Homicide: Life on the Street" are probably the best TV shows of recent years that I've seen, but "Buffy" and "Firefly" are far and away my favorites.

I think you probably see what I'm getting at....

-----

My favorite Elvis album is probably "Trust"; His best might be "Imperial Bedroom", "Get Happy" or "This Year's Model" or maybe "Blood and Chocolate".

My favorite Beatles album might actually be "Help", despite a teensy bit of filler, the best is clearly "Revolver." I actually think that "Strawberry Fields" is arguably their best ever song....don't think much at all of "Hey Jude," sorry.

clairequilty · Post by **clairequilty** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 1:33 am

I know I've stated this before, but as far as The Beatles I'd have to go with:

Beatles White: My clear favorite.
Abbey Road: The Best

clairequilty · Post by **clairequilty** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 1:38 am

This is a rehash, but in the sprit of the thread I'd say:

Elvis Costello: Best modern pop songwriter of the 20th century.

Elliott Smith: My favorite modern pop songwriter of the 20th Century.

wehitandrun · Post by **wehitandrun** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 4:52 am

Elliot Smith favorited over Elvis? Why does that offend me?

Post by **BlueChair** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 8:32 am

Though most consider Transformer to be the best Lou Reed solo album, I've always preferred New York

While Ziggy Stardust is considered Bowie's best, my favourite has always been "Heroes"

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 10:34 am

John Grisham -
Best: A Painted House
Favorite: The Firm

Guy Ritchie -
Best: Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels
Favorite: Swept Away (blows Wertmuller out of the friggin' water! Or should I say into the water considering the film in question?)

Train (just focusing on singles here) -
Best: Drops of Jupiter
Favorite: Meet Virginia

Shane Black (screenwriter) -
Best: Die Hard
Favorite: The Last Boyscout

Avril Lavigne (albums) -
Best: Let Go
Favorite: Let Go

Shannon Tweed -
Best: Scorned
Favorite: Body Chemistry 4: Full Exposure

laughingcrow · Post by **laughingcrow** » Sat Jun 19, 2004 2:25 pm

Led Zeppelin - best probably 'symbols' but fave is Led Zep 3, the rootsy one!

Radiohead best probably The Bends, but I prefer Hail to the Thief.

King Hoarse · Post by **King Hoarse** » Sun Jun 20, 2004 5:38 pm

Of course, most of my favourites are also the best ones, but here's more than a few that's not:

AC/DC
Best: Back In Black
Favourite: Powerage

Bowie
Best: Ziggy Stardust
Favourite: Hunky Dory

Leonard Cohen
Best: Songs Of Love And Hate
Favourite: Various Positions

Alice Cooper
Best: Billion Dollar Babies
Favourite: Killer

Costello
Best: Imperial Bedroom
Favourite: Get Happy!! / The Juliet Letters

Johnny Dowd
Best: Wrong Side Of Memphis
Favourite: Pictures From Life's Other Side

Dylan live
Best: 1966 Bootleg series
Favourite: Hard Rain, especially the B-side. Never heard anyone so torn.

Steve Earle
B: El Corazon
F: Transcendental Blues

Steve Forbert
B: Jackrabbit Slim
F: Alive On Arrival

The Hard-Ons
B: Dickcheese
F: Dateless Dudes Club

Nick Lowe
B: Jesus Of Cool
F: The Convincer

Bob Marley
B: Natty Dread
F: Rastaman Vibration

Joni Mitchell
B: Blue
F: Hissing Of Summer Lawns

Willie Nelson
B: Red Headed Stranger
F: Teatro

Randy Newman
B: Sail Away
F: Bad Love (My Country HAS TO be on Songbook vol.II)

Tom Petty
B: Damn The Torpedoes
F: She's The One

John Prine
B: John Prine
F: Common Sense

R.E.M.
B: Automatic For The People
F: New Adventures In Hi-Fi

Ramones
B: Rocket To Russia
F: End Of The Century

Lou Reed
B: Transformer
F: Berlin (his new live one is great too, btw)

SNFU
B: And No One Else Wanted To Play
F: The One Voted Least Likely To Succeed

Nina Simone
B: 'Nuff Said
F: & Piano

Sinatra
B: Sings For Only The Lonely
F: Watertown

Patti Smith
B: Horses
F: Radio Ethiopia

Bruce Springsteen
B: Born To Run
F: The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle

Velvet Underground
B: & Nico
F: White Light/White Heat

Loudon Wainwright III
B: More Love Songs
F: History / Album II

Tom Waits
B: Rain Dogs
F: Bone Machine

Weezer
B: Weezer
F: Pinkerton

Neil Young
B: Rust Never Sleeps
F: On The Beach

(Oops! I overdid it again)

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Mon Jun 21, 2004 10:34 pm

Another Johnny Dowd fan! Pictures From Life's Other Side is one of the greatest albums I have ever heard. Temporary Shelter and The Pawnbroker's Wife are also terrific. I don't go back to Wrong Side of Memphis as much save for John Deere Yellow and especially First There Was.

Interesting take on Prine. In Spite of Ourselves would be my favorite but I have to give "best" to The Missing Years. I agree wholeheartedly with what you said about Hard Rain's side B. You're A Big Girl Now, I Threw It All Away and Idiot Wind.....what an amazing summation of how everything that matters falls apart.

Copenhagen Fan · Post by **Copenhagen Fan** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 6:19 am

laughingcrow wrote:Led Zeppelin - best probably 'symbols' but fave is Led Zep 3, the rootsy one!

whaaaaaaaaaat? you smokin' crack again baby??!!!!!!! No Physical Graffti or Presence????

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 6:49 pm

Costello -
Best: This Year's Model
Favorite: Imperial Bedroom

Wilco -
Best: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Favorite: Mermaid Avenue w/ Billy Bragg

Johnny Cash -
Best: At Folsom Prison
Favorite: American Recordings II: Unchained

Graham Parker -
Best: Squeezing Out Sparks
Favorite: Howlin' Wind

Alejandro Escovedo -
Best: Gravity
Favorite: A Man Under The Influence

Lucinda Williams -
Best: Car Wheels On A Gravel Road
Favorite: Essence

Waylon Jennings -
Best: Honky Tonk Heroes
Favorite: Dreaming My Dreams

Merle Haggard -
Best: Same Train, A Different Time: My Tribute To Jimmie Rodgers
Favorite: If I Could Only Fly

Warren Zevon -
Best: Warren Zevon
Favorite: Life'll Kill Ya

John Hiatt -
Best: Slow Turning
Favorite: The Tiki Bar Is Open

Leonard Cohen -
Best: Songs of Love & Hate
Favorite: Songs of Leonard Cohen

btw, I meant to write "Another Johnny Dowd fan!" in my previous post. It has been corrected.

King Hoarse · Post by **King Hoarse** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 7:25 pm

I may have misunderstood the concept here, language barrier and whatnot.

The "best" on my post above isn't necessarily the records I think are the most accomplished, but the ones people I've read, listened and talked to seem to rank highest.

I'd say Pictures Of Life's Other Side is Johnny's best too, but of course his later ones are wonderful as well. Do you know why Kim doesn't sing on Cemetery Shoes, El Vez? (Writing of which, Wedding Dress has been playing on my mental jukebox for weeks, which is sorta disconcerting, seeing as I'm unemployed, my dad was a butcher and I was strangely drawn into a weird reality show I accidentally saw on TV the other night where these guys battle for the heart of a lady who they don't know isn't one.)

I just got In Spite Of Ourselves last week, and I'm hoping it's not just a crush. When I bought The Missing Years, though, the guy at the store told me Howie Epstein just died, and I can't listen to the record without missing him a little. Silly, I know, but the best of the so-called New Bob Dylans of the seventies (Prine, Forbert & Wainwright) are so unapologetic about sentimentality without getting maudlin I can't help myself.

On the unsentimental (B-)side, I read somewhere that Sara's in the wings at one of the shows that make up Hard Rain. I'm glad those songs (Shelter From The Storm > Idiot Wind) wasn't played in that order at the shows, 'cause it would have killed me if I were her.

I agree on Merle Haggard and Wilco. b.t.w. The song I heard from their new one was incredible too, so here's to hoping.
My Cash favourite is Solitary Man.
Marianne Faithful fave: 20th Century Blues (Broken English best)
Led Zeppelin III is the only one I'd buy.
Beatles best: Revolver. Fave: White Album