GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY!!!
My wife had knee replacement surgery yesterday. We spent so much time and energy getting ready for it and now so much attention to her recovery that time is just racing by me.
But I'm working from home today, so there's a bit of a timeout to finally do my catch up post.
30. Beyond This Life - Me #4
It's no secret that I have LONG held that this is the greatest song from SFAM. I absolutely ADORE this track and especially the "Zappa" instrumental section that seems to be so controversial. What's more is that I think the extended version from LAB might be DT's greatest live moment of all time. I'm just sad that it didn't rank even higher. (although I was a bit surprised that at least one person rated it higher than I did...good call)
29. Under a Glass Moon - Me #13
Still IMO JP's greatest ever guitar solo...studio or live. I think it's the "backsweep" near the middle that nails it for me. But the entire thing is just pure gold. I don't often pay attention to guitar solos, but that particular one is just jaw-dropping from beginning to end. The main body of the song is a perfect balance of groove and off-kilter timing that sucked me into DT fandom almost instantly
28. The Spirit Carries On - Me #66
It's such a beautiful ballad. And it's perfectly placed in the story of SFAM. I probably should have placed it higher...but it almost seems a bit overplayed and maybe even a bit "kitchy" at times. I have to be in the mood for it.
27. Pull Me Under - Me #17
It's hard to forget your first love. This is still a great goto song when trying to introduce someone to Dream Theater. I have to admit that the drum sound does sound a bit "dated" on IAW these days...but the songs are there, and they are what they are...because the non-triggered version on the greatest hits album (which I thought would be an improvement) just didn't sound right at all.
26. Take the Time - Me #9
I think this song was THE moment that I knew I was listening to something especially special.
Because my buddy while I was working at Tower Records was hyping this album to the hilt. When I heard PMU, I loved it and I knew they could bring the "balls and chunk", then AD showed that they were very dynamic and could go from "metal" to "smooth jazz" in a single song, so that was cool. But then when TTT kicked in and it had a completely different vibe from the first two tracks, I immediately thought "Ya...*this* album is definitely a keeper. And this band is going to be the next band I fall in love with."
25. In the Presence of Enemies - Me #70
On my first two attempts, this song didn't even rank at all. But I re-listened before my third try and remembered how really fantastic Part 1 is. It's really just part 2 that brings it down. It is still by far their worst epic.
24. Strange Deja Vu - Me #27
Perfect proper beginning to one of the greatest concept albums in prog rock history! I'll never forget when I *FINALLY* got my in-store play copy after playing the 4-song pre-release for weeks. I hardly got any work done because I was just completely blown away. After already following the band for over 6 years, and knowing the crap they had been through over the previous 3, to hear them hit it out of the park like this was a listening experience I will never forget.
23. Illumination Theory - Me #21
Such a gorgeous track. To some, it is disjointed. But I think that, given the theme, it is perfectly crafted. I would love to see DT do another show with an orchestra JUST so we could see the beautiful string section recreated live. I get why they did the tape thing on the tour, but it would be cool to see it completely live someday.
22. Blind Faith - Me #97
This is a really solid song. Just doesn't strike me the way so many other DT songs do. I guess I'm in the minority in feeling like SDOIT is a "solid but flawed" effort. TGP and the title track both made my top 11. But out of the other 4 songs, 2 are in the 90s and the other two didn't rank at all. But I still consider Blind Faith and Misunderstood to be rock solid DT tunes.
21. Space Dye Vest - Me #64
LOVE this song and I'm surprised it didn't make my top 50. To me, it's the perfect introduction to KM's solo material. (Dead Air For Radios is without a doubt on my "desert island album" list) And the idea that it would have been left off Awake if they had known Kevin was leaving is just ludicrous to me. Awake just ending on Scarred fading out? Can't picture it at all. This makes a perfect "soliloquy" to an amazing album.
20. At Wit's End - Me #40
Certainly a standout from Distance Over Time. Even though I've been back and forth on the pros and cons of TA...it was nice to hear DT be DT again. This is a bit of an uneven album in retrospect, but the highs are very high, and this is one of those highs.
19. The Mirror - Me #16
I usually say that this is my favorite song from Awake, but that's probably just me overhyping the underdog. Because when it came right down to it, I ranked Scarred and Voices a bit higher. But I still say this is definitely the most underrated song from Awake. It's only flaw is that is intrinsically tied to the worst song from Awake (Lie). I much prefer the version from LSFNY that combines the song and the "Lie-outro" into a single piece, omitting Lie completely. I used Audacity to make a studio version of the exact same thing, and burned it as an intro track to my 12SS mix CD.
18. Fatal Tragedy - Me #15
Everytime I burn a mix CD to introduce a friend to DT, this is always an immediate goto track. It's got a great mix of styles (love the Brian May-nod) and yet the song is fairly short and easily digestible while still showing off what talented musicians they all are. A great example of "everything DT is about" in a slightly smaller than usual package.
17. Lines in the Sand - Did not rank...came in at #105
Definitely one of the most overrated songs in DT's history. The intro is pretty cool, but never cared for that chorus at all. I'm a BIG Doug Pinnick fan, so when I heard he was making a guest appearance, I was really hyped. But some ideas sound better on paper than they turn out to be in real life. This is just not one of DT's better songs, and the entire album would have been much improved if they had subbed out Raise the Knife instead.
16. Bridges in the Sky - Me #26
I wish they would have kept the original title (Shaman's...something...was it Shaman's Dance?) because I think that fits the feel of the song better. But nevertheless, this song is spectacular and having it open the set on the ADTOE tour was PERFECT.
15. Surrounded - Me #38
Love the main beat of this song. Heck, just going through this top 100 reminds me every time of how giddy I was about every single song from IAW. It's like falling in love with that album all over again. Probably one of my favorite moments is how the second verse is so different in delivery from the first verse. And the "light to dark, dark to light, light to dark, dark to light" just gives me goosebumps every single time. What a beautiful way to close out the first half of that album.
WHEW!!! I did it!!
Topic: Top 100 Dream Theater songs countdown (Top 2 revealed!!) (Read 53301 times)
