MY FAVORITE SONGS OF 2012 (OR, THIS IS WHERE I MENTION FRANK OCEAN)

Over the past few days, I've posted about some of my favorite albums of the year. But there were a lot of great songs that weren't on any of them, so I'm gonna do one more quick list. Ready?  Here we go:

Frank Ocean - "Thinkin' 'Bout You": I kind of feel like I have to justify why Ocean wasn't on my top albums of the year.  So here it is:  I really wanted to like his album. A vote for him seemed to equal a vote for a world where being gay is no big deal. I'm all about it. But I just don't love the album, it doesn't keep my interest at all.  And that said, "Thinkin' 'Bout You" might be the best song I heard all year. It's so moving, it gets me every time.  Just based on this song, I'll pick up his next album.  The guy is clearly talented as hell.

Solange - "Losing You": My boss turned me on to this song, and he's a tough crowd, so I checked it out. What an amazing song.  If it's possible for her to get out of her sister's shadow, this is the song that should be able to do it.  

M.I.A. - "Bad Girlz": Unfortunately, the headlines M.I.A. made in 2012 were all about her little moment of  giving the finger to the camera at the Super Bowl. It was dumb and goofy.  But at least she put out a great song, and the video for this was pretty cool too.

Santigold - "Disparate Youth": She's always interesting. This song is a bit more "new-wave-y" than her prior songs.  It actually reminds me of New Order for some reason.

The Chris Robinson Brotherhood - "Let's Go Let's Go Let's Go": I'm not very familiar with Chris Robinson's solo stuff, although I have certainly enjoyed his music with The Black Crowes. But wow, what a great song, it sounds like something that would have been on a Sam Cooke record or a very early Motown single.

Ryan Shaw - "Morning Noon And Night": Actually, I need to check out his album.  I heard his song in Starbucks, Shazam-ed it, and downloaded it.  It's one of the best things I've heard all year and also kind of Sam Cooke-ian.

Leonard Cohen - "Going Home": I can't really get into entire Leonard Cohen albums, but I do love some of his songs, and this one is a classic.

Willie Nelson - "Just Breathe": I liked Willie's album, Heroes, but not enough to include it in my top albums of 2012.  But this Pearl Jam cover was incredible.

The Beach Boys - "That's Why God Made The Radio" I'm fascinated that it even got made. And I love the fact that there's no acknowledgement of anything current.  This is a 100% authentic Brian Wilson creation.

Van Halen - "Stay Frosty": This was also an unlikely, and solid, reunion.  David Lee Roth had lots of great lines, Ed Van Halen sounds inspired and Alex and Wolfgang are solid. This song is the highlight, and actually can stand up next to some of their earlier stuff. 

The Rolling Stones - "Doom And Gloom"/"One More Shot": Basically, they kicked everyone's ass with these songs.  

Led Zeppelin - "Good Times Bad Times (live)": I could have picked any song from Celebration Day, really.  But this is the first song on the album and the excitement is tangible.  I have to do a separate post about this album, I can't believe how great it is. 

Aerosmith - "Oh Yeah": I wish I liked their album, Music From Another Dimension, more than I do.  We had to wait so long for it! But "Oh Yeah," which Joe Perry wrote, is 100% classic Aerosmith. 

Paul McCartney/Dave Grohl/Krist Novoselic/Pat Smear - "Cut Me Some Slack": Rocking.  

The Wallflowers featuring Mick Jones - "Reboot The Mission": Basically a Clash tribute.  In the best way. 

Joey Ramone - "New York City": It holds up to the greatest Ramones songs.  I love it. 

Gaslight Anthem - "45": I thought this should have been the song to bring them to the "next level." 

Iggy Pop and Bethany Cosentino - "Let's Boot And Rally": a great song from True Blood, written by the show's music director, Gary Calamar. Calamar wrote the song for them, and he told me about it. And this is where I get to include Best Coast (the band Ms. Costentino sings for; I like them, but not enough to include them on this list). 

THIS YEAR'S ROCK HALL INDUCTION CEREMONY

I've already written about being a bit mystified about the significance of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees The Dave Clark 5. Although Steven Van Zandt makes a good case for them, I daresay that Tom Hanks really brought the point home at tonight's induction ceremony. The country was in a dark place in the early '60s, and The Dave Clark 5 (among other great British bands) helped to bring a smile to peoples faces. That might be a simpistic way to look at it, but Mr. Hanks seemed to feel passionately about it. Sometimes non-musicians show up at these events because they have a movie to promote, or just because it makes them look cool. But you get the impression that Tom actually took the time to write his own speech and that the DC5 really meant a lot to him. It's just so sad that singer Mike Smith died just a few days ago. And I didn't realize, until tonight, that sax player Denis Payton died earlier this year. It's too bad that people can't really hear their music anymore: it's out of print, and you can't even download it (legally). Mr. Van Zandt and Wicked Cool Records, I'm looking at you!

Billy Joel made a great speech about John Mellencamp: he didn't tip-toe around John's reputation as being difficult, but also pointed out that, more importantly, John is a voice of discontent that just won't be shut up. Mellencamp is often compared to Bruce Springsteen. I found it interesting that, a few years ago, Bruce stood on that same stage, pointing out that there have been so many horror stories in the music industry, many told in prior years on that same stage. He was grateful that he hadn't experienced too much of that kind of thing. Mellencamp, on the other hand, has had a much more difficult ride. I'm glad to see that he's still on it, and as he pointed out, he still has work to do. And his performance was (as usual) great.

It was cute that they got Justin Timberlake to make the speech for Madonna, but let's face it, the minute she got on stage, you forgot all about it. It was really interesting to hear her speak. Without saying so much, it was sort of her "goodbye" to Warner Brothers, the label where she has spent her entire career. But her next album will be her last for them, after that she's signed to Live Nation, which isn't a record label (at least not in the way that we think of them). The Stooges' performance of "Burning Up" was brilliant, "Ray Of Light" less so. But come on Hall of Fame, these guys deserve their due!

Lou Reed's speech about Leonard Cohen was cranky and rambling, but Mr. Cohen was classy and elegant. I loved his line, "Jon Landau said, 'I've seen the future of rock and roll and it isn't Leonard Cohen!'" He recited the lyrics to "Tower Of Song" after that.

John Fogerty's speech about The Ventures was cool, and it was nice to see that they're still performing.

Ben Harper looked a bit nervous at the podium during his speech about Little Walter, and I thought it was sad that no one accepted on Little Walter's behalf. After that, Ben performed with James Cotton and the Letterman band. When they did "My Babe," Ben killed it.

And it was great to see Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, who don't seem to get their due credit, be inducted .

Oh yeah, and Joan Jett's peformance of the DC5's "Bits And Pieces" was great, and made me want to find the original.

P.S. To the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: stop embarassing yourselves, and elect The Stooges next year. While you're at it: Jeff Beck, Alice Cooper, KISS, Dr. John, The Meters, The Faces, Tom Waits and Peter Gabriel haven't been inducted yet. And neither has Bill Withers.

ROCK HALL PRESENTERS ANNOUNCED

It's always fun to try and figure out who will be presenting at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's induction ceremony. Often, they try to keep it a secret up until the event, but this year they've announced it.

Billy Joel will be doing the honors for John Mellencamp. I would have thought that they would have gotten one of his Farm Aid homeboys - Neil Young, Willie Nelson or Dave Matthews. Or Bruce Springsteen. But Billy is a good choice, and in fact, I think Mellencamp was asked to do the speech for Billy Joel a few years, but when Ray Charles agreed to do it, John bowed out (as Ray Charles is an obvious huge influence on Billy Joel). Billy and Mellencamp are both artists of the people: regular-seeming guys, with lots of talent and tons of unforgettable songs, who never seemed to get their due respect from critics.

Justin Timberlake will induct Madonna. He's working on her album, and is an ambitious pop artist like Madonna. I was thinking they'd try to get one of her influences, but Justin is a good pick for that. He and his bandmates did a decent speech for Michael Jackson a few years ago. But now Justin has proved he at least has staying power.

Lou Reed will be making the speech for Leonard Cohen. Makes sense to me. Ditto for John Forgerty and The Ventures. Ben Harper will be doing the honors for Little Walter, which I think is great - just that the Hall is acknowledging Ben as an important enough artist for the event. I was thinking it would be Clapton, but I'm glad to see Ben getting some shine. He belongs in the Hall one day.

Tom Hanks will be bringing some star power, as he'll be inducting The Dave Clark 5. Apparently, this makes sense because of a role he played in the film That Thing You Do. That's cool - although I don't see how it isn't Little Steven, who has campaigned on the band's behalf for years. Maybe Bruce has a gig that night though.

CONGRATS TO JOHN MELLENCAMP

I've previously complained about The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's ballot for this year. Today, they announced the inductees for this year, and the one artist who I thought was a lock - The Beastie Boys - didn't make the cut. Then again, the genres they represent - hip-hop, punk and funk - don't get a ton of love from the Hall. It took Grandmaster Flash and George Clinton years on the ballot before being voted in. 

But I am happy to see John Mellencamp being inducted.  I've been a fan forever.  He just has so many classic songs - and there's lots of great things he's written that never got airplay for some reason: I'd cite "Minutes To Memories," "Between A Laugh And A Tear," "Life Is Hard" and "French Shoes" as some songs that deserved more radio time than they got. I think that "Walk Tall" from his greatest hits album is one of his finest moments. I know he loves his current band, but man, it would be cool if he played at the ceremony with his current band, but also some of the guys from his earlier days, like drummer Kenny Aronoff and violinist Lisa Germano. 

Like I mentioned earlier, I don't have a problem with Madonna getting in, I just might not have voted for her. Leonard Cohen? I know he's influenced some of my favorites, like U2 and R.E.M.  but I don't know.  Great poet/lyricist, no question. But I wouldn't have voted for him either. I think someone like, say, Willie Nelson or Peter Tosh is more deserving, if you want to go outside the rock and roll norm. 

I once did a long interview with Little Steven about why The Dave Clark 5 deserve to be in. In fact, I bet his ceaseless campaigning is why they finally got voted in. I don't know enough about them or The Ventures to really comment on them.  Other than to say that you can't really overstate the value and influence of the artists who were forging the path in the early days.  

I'm also glad to see Philly songwriters/producers Gamble & Huff and the amazing blues harmonica player Little Walter being inducted. 

It doesn't seem like the most exciting induction class, but I'll be watching spinner or whoever airs the ceremony.  Meanwhile, I remain hopeful that these voters get a clue and induct The Stooges at some point.  (And KISS, and Alice Cooper, and Motorhead, and The Beastie Boys, and Run-DMC and Metallica...)