Top 100 Dream Theater songs countdown (Top 2 revealed!!)

[TAC]

Once In A Livetime is disappointing for many reasons but one big one is that while it finally contained a live version of Scarred, it completely skipped past the outro.

That's not the issue I have with it. In fact, I love the way MP had it flow right into the Darkest of Winters.

See, this is one of the reasons why I don't care for the FII touring cycle. I hated how ACOS was spread across different parts of the show. I hate that kind of thing.

Imagine JP chopping up Illumination Theory across the upcoming tour setlist? No.. of course not.

[Setlist Scotty]

Imagine JP chopping up Illumination Theory across the upcoming tour setlist? No.. of course not.

Given that JP is anti-medley schmedley, no that ain't gonna happen. But quite frankly, I would love it if he did. I love the way that MP found clever ways to juxtapose sections of different songs together and blend them smoothly. Some he did better than others, but in any case I welcome the difference from simply playing something exactly as it is on the album. If I wanted that, I can just listen to the album itself.

[Cool Chris]

I love Finally Free. #8 for me. I am not a huge concept album guy. I want good music, and just because it's a concept album doesn't necessarily mean the music is going to be any better. The story of Scenes is good, but I don't know how much it makes the whole greater than the sum of its parts. Finally Free is both a fantastic song, but also a solid finale to the Scenes story.

I love Scarred as well, #11 on my list.

[Ben_Jamin]

10 Finally Free  #7

About 10 years ago this was among my top 5 songs. Now it's been bumped down to number 7 with the release of the Mangini albums. I love everything about this song, the guitar intro and the strings enhance that ending feel, that the story is coming to a close, and we are witnessing the truth of what really happened. We get a lot of the themes being resolved, and the reprise of the One Last Time section is excellent in how it's used in an entirely different context than what it's meaning is in One Last Time. I prefer the live ending on Live Scenes From New York as that I feel really summarizes the album and brings it to a close musically. This is one of the biggest reasons I went to the Distant Memories tour, I was not going to miss seeing this song live, and in the context of the album, which made this song have an even bigger impact overall.
 
9  Scarred #1

My all-time favorite Dream Theater song. I got into this song when I discovered my father had Awake in his cd collection. The bass tapping intro drew me in, and the atmosphere of the keyboards and guitars added to my enjoyment of the song. As I grew older, this song became more clearer. I view it as a song about learning from your misery, learning from your mistakes and past, and facing the dissent of others for the beliefs and perceptions you stand for. I actually enjoy the added section with JR before the "do you feel..." section on Breaking The Fourth Wall. Unfortunately, I was unable to go to the Along For The Ride tour, but I do hope that one day I will get to see this song live. Scarred and Voices are two of my top 5 songs I have yet to see live.

[HOF]

Imagine JP chopping up Illumination Theory across the upcoming tour setlist? No.. of course not.

Given that JP is anti-medley schmedley, no that ain't gonna happen. But quite frankly, I would love it if he did. I love the way that MP found clever ways to juxtapose sections of different songs together and blend them smoothly. Some he did better than others, but in any case I welcome the difference from simply playing something exactly as it is on the album. If I wanted that, I can just listen to the album itself.

Yeah, I went back to OIALT for the first time in a while recently, and I had honestly forgotten that they had interspersed the different sections of ACOS throughout, but it was a really cool approach to a show IMO, and probably a better way to present ACOS than to just play the whole thing straight through in one setting (I realize they didn’t play all of it, which you could quibble with I guess). The transition from Learning to Live to The Crimson Sunset was especially effective IMO.

[jammindude]

Fascinating how radically different some opinions can be even this deep into the top 20. 

And I'm not immune as we shall see...

14. The Count of Tuscany - Me #42

This is certainly one of the highlights of the otherwise ho hum of BCSL.   I just wish the "sucking on his pipe" line didn't make me laugh so hard.   Definitely takes me out of what is supposed to be a very serious and ominous setup to a situation where JP was apparently very anxious.   But the music is beautiful and I'm happy I got so see one of the very few shows where this was played live. 

13. The Glass Prison - Me #11

What a freaking FANTASTIC rocker!  Some people have said they don't like the breakdown and that just blows my mind because that (to me) is where the song really hits its sweet spot.  That whole "RUN....fast...through the wreckage of the past" was my ringtone back when that came out.   And it gets even better when they get to that "INTO THE DARK....DESPERATE!!!!" etc etc.    I can't get enough of that whole section.  Actually, the entire "Restoration" section may be one of my all time favorite DT sections.

12. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence - Me #7

Glad to see that my two favorites from SDOIT were also the highest rated by the masses.  So many of my opinions are so far removed from the rest of the fanbase, that it actually comes a bit of a surprise when I actually agree with the crowd.     But that being said, I definitely feel a "flow" to this song.  It's structured very much the same way that different movements of a single symphony flow into a single larger piece.   My favorite is still when the guitar kicks in on the ATC Reprise.   It gave me goosebumps when I saw it at the Score show, and I think I even got a bit weepy when JLB hit the reprise of the chorus.   Just a fantastic song.   Disc 2 WAAAYYY outshines disc 1 on this album.  (the controversy/debate continues  )

11. In the Name of God - #87

One of my biggest divergences from the crowd.   I'm a full 76 places lower.   Just never really connected with this song much.   I even like TOT quite a bit, I just feel like this is one of the weaker tracks from that album.  There are some decent parts, but it's a bit noodly and overlong. 

10. Finally Free - #8

Don't know what I could say that hasn't already been said.   SFAM is so beautifully rock solid from start to finish that it's tough to find a flaw.   Finally Free is one of the best concept album closers in history.   I know that Operation:Mindcrime was in "inspiration corner" when they were making the album, and people always glow over Eyes of a Stranger.  But I was never quite as high on that particular song as most people were, and I think that Dream Theater FAR outdid QR with the "masterful closing piece of a monster progressive metal concept album masterpiece"

9. Scarred - Me #6

This appears to be another controversial piece in some ways.  I've heard a few naysayers and it blows my mind (but then again, my opinion of ITNOG probably is blowing someone else's mind too sooo...  ) I especially like JLB's rough and gritty delivery which is just perfect for the frustrating feel of the song.  Definitely the best song from Awake.

[Revenge319]

I'll try to get the writeups for #12-#9 done soon, but for now I'm just here to say that Scarred was my other guess as to that Top 5 song that didn't appear on everyone's list; it didn't appear on my Top 100, but I'll say more on that at a later time.

[devieira73]

Those songs as Top 10 totally surprised me.
Although I think Finally Free (#88 to me) closes Scenes in a very satisfactory way, it's one of the songs that I like least on the album - just because almost the entire album is so amazing.
As for Scarred, I LOVE the intro and the outro and I like very much the song as a whole, but I do think it's a bit disjointed instrumentaly. Sure it deserved to be in my Top 100, maybe something between #70 and #90, but I FORGOT to include this song in my ranking!

[KevShmev]

Speaking of the One Last Time reprisal, that has always puzzled me about the credits as far as lyrics go.

LaBrie is credited as writing the lyrics to One Last Time.

Portnoy is credited as writing the lyrics to Finally Free.

But, since that section of Finally Free has lyrics directly from One Last Time, shouldn't LaBrie have received a co-credit for the lyrics on that one as well?

[TAC]

The Glass Prison is fun on a certain level, and it came in at 69. In my mind though it started the trend of DT going heavier and more over the top with each release. The 12 Step Suite was frustrating for me n general. It took up space on five different releases, and was a big contributor to my loss of interest in the band in that period.

I wanted to go back to this. Seems a lot of people love The Glass Prison. Hell, I love This Dying Soul, but a lot of people don't. The thing about The 12 Step Suite is that for the most part, they are all mediocre songs. They're all long and as you say, they "took up space" on their respective albums. I would have ZERO desire to sit through all five tracks in a row.

[HOF]

The Glass Prison is fun on a certain level, and it came in at 69. In my mind though it started the trend of DT going heavier and more over the top with each release. The 12 Step Suite was frustrating for me n general. It took up space on five different releases, and was a big contributor to my loss of interest in the band in that period.

I wanted to go back to this. Seems a lot of people love The Glass Prison. Hell, I love This Dying Soul, but a lot of people don't. The thing about The 12 Step Suite is that for the most part, they are all mediocre songs. They're all long and as you say, they "took up space" on their respective albums. I would have ZERO desire to sit through all five tracks in a row.

It was a decent idea for a song or even a suite of songs. But couldn't it have been pulled off in two or three tracks maybe? I don't know, just felt like a huge commitment to do 5 separate pieces. Not sure how much MP had it mapped out to start, but it just felt like it overstayed it's welcome in terms of showing up on every album. I get how big of a deal the subject matter was for MP, and I don't begrudge him writing about something that important and life changing for him. It just wasn't that interesting to me personally.

[TAC]

The Glass Prison is fun on a certain level, and it came in at 69. In my mind though it started the trend of DT going heavier and more over the top with each release. The 12 Step Suite was frustrating for me n general. It took up space on five different releases, and was a big contributor to my loss of interest in the band in that period.

I wanted to go back to this. Seems a lot of people love The Glass Prison. Hell, I love This Dying Soul, but a lot of people don't. The thing about The 12 Step Suite is that for the most part, they are all mediocre songs. They're all long and as you say, they "took up space" on their respective albums. I would have ZERO desire to sit through all five tracks in a row.

It was a decent idea for a song or even a suite of songs. But couldn't it have been pulled off in two or three tracks maybe? I don't know, just felt like a huge commitment to do 5 separate pieces. Not sure how much MP had it mapped out to start, but it just felt like it overstayed it's welcome in terms of showing up on every album. I get how big of a deal the subject matter was for MP, and I don't begrudge him writing about something that important and life changing for him. It just wasn't that interesting to me personally.

My biggest gripe was that, on the whole, they were weak tracks.

[jammindude]

I disagree entirely.   The first three songs IMO are top DT material.  And songs 4 & 5 work better as part of the whole than on their own.    I love my 12SS CD, although I haven't listened to it in a long time. 

The Mirror (remixed to include the Lie outro) followed by the 5 songs blended with their intended transitions seamlessly.    I was pretty proud of that mix.   

[TAC]

    I was pretty proud of that mix.

[Cool Chris]

It was a decent idea for a song or even a suite of songs. But couldn't it have been pulled off in two or three tracks maybe? I don't know, just felt like a huge commitment to do 5 separate pieces. Not sure how much MP had it mapped out to start, but it just felt like it overstayed it's welcome in terms of showing up on every album. I get how big of a deal the subject matter was for MP, and I don't begrudge him writing about something that important and life changing for him. It just wasn't that interesting to me personally.

My biggest gripe was that, on the whole, they were weak tracks.

I agree with all of this. Though I still rank Root of All Evil pretty high. That is the most concise, straightforward track of the bunch (though that isn't a high bar to reach...). I get how they wanted a common musical theme throughout, since there is a common theme in the narrative, but it ultimately bogged down each subsequent track.

[425]

I had to wait for the weekend to do these, because a certain someone is 42 minutes long.

Also, something interesting I noticed while listening: #12-10 are all last tracks on parts of the meta-album, so their endings flow into the beginning of the next album. Should've been Octavarium at #9 to keep it going!


12. Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence
My ranking: #19

I know that even the very structure of this song is controversial here (some would even dispute my use of the word "song" in this sentence). I'm a huge fan of the ambition. And I think it hangs together as well as a lot of other well-liked prog epics, thanks especially to some recurring themes. I don't think it's any less cohesive than, say, 2112. It's just a lot longer.

I'm convinced that this works a lot better as a whole piece rather than a bunch of separate parts. And I never regret the 42 minutes I dedicate to listened to the whole thing—it's an excellent experience that exceeds the sum of its parts. I do think a few of those parts are a bit weaker than the others—particularly the back-to-back duo of War Inside My Head and The Test That Stumped Them All. These aren't bad at all, but there's a dip in quality there, which is why it falls to #19.

Goodnight Kiss through the end, on the other hand, is excellent. The transition into About to Crash (Reprise) is a song highlight, and I'm a big fan of Losing Time/Grand Finale as a finisher. Really caps off the quasi-symphonic feeling of a lot of the piece.

Also, with all the people expressing surprise about how high or low this one is, I'll just say that this is exactly where I expected it to finish. Beloved enough by some to get a lot of high votes, held in high enough regard by most to have a lot of middle-high votes, but disliked by enough to keep it out of the top 10.


11. In the Name of God
My ranking: #11 (exactly the same as the consensus)

There are approximately 12 songs that feel like top 10 songs to me, and this is one of the odd two out (the other is Only a Matter of Time, my #12).

In the Name of God just has almost everything I like in Dream Theater all in one song. It's melodic and epic, yet heavy. It has a technical section that adds intensity. Its lyrics deal pretty well with a serious issue. It's a wonderful piece of music. I love the methodical, crushing riffs, the abundance of piano, the mid-song drop and build-up ("Hundreds of believers..."), the blistering unison, the grandiose ending with the Battle Hymn of the Republic... It's all awesome. Great song.


10. Finally Free
My ranking: #13

This is just barely outside of that tip-top echelon of songs, which still means I like it very, very much. This song is a masterful conclusion to one of their best albums in terms of music, in terms of storytelling, and in terms of the integration of the two. It goes through a lot of different sections, each one logically connected musically and storywise, and each one fitting the events that are being described.

My favorite is how the chilling first verse, with the line "Friday evening, the blood still on my hands" over the piano is made even more tragic by the fact that the next verse begins "Feeling good this Friday afternoon." I think that was an absolutely brilliant bit of lyricism by Mike, and the happier-sounding music on this part makes it highly effective.

But really, this whole song is fantastic. There are so many emotional moments on it if you're at all invested in the story, in particular, of course, the One Last Time reprise. Though I think the next verse ("As their bodies lie still and the ending draws near / Spirits rise through the air / All their fears disappear, it all becomes clear") is also really powerful.

I could go on and on, but this is simply one of the best songs they ever wrote and a perfect ending to one of their best albums.


9. Scarred
My ranking: #7

I love this song very, very much, and I'm glad to see it in the top 10. Scarred is just brimming with excellent moments, and it all comes together into an astounding piece with a lot of power and a clearly defined emotional arc. Petrucci is absolutely incredible here, from the obvious parts like the jazzy intro and the heavy riffs to some of the subtler touches, like the playing under the first verse. I've said before and I'll say again that I love Kevin Moore's approach on Awake to adding melody over the heavier parts, and he also makes the moments where the heaviness pulls back lovely ("What if the rest of the world").

And then there's James LaBrie. This has got to be a top five JLB song, at least. He adapts so well to all the different moods and textures at play on this song. The same guy is singing "I never bared my emotion, my passion always strong" and "Do you feel you don't me anymore" in the same song. And he carries that gorgeous "Do you feel" part from that soft, breathy beginning to "My soul exposed, it calms me to know that I won't."

This is just one of the songs that I never get tired of hearing. It really has it all. And... I have six songs above it.

[DragonAttack]

10. Finally Free (#66)
It would be hard for anything to follow my #1.  Perhaps I just needed something shorter to end the story. 
 
9.  Scarred  (#45)
It’s my ‘Awake’ closer, and I think quite highly of it. Man, I would love to hear JM out front a few more times, like he was at the beginning of this.

[wolfking]

Finally Free - I had it at 49.  I always thought it was a great song and an epic closer, but overrated in my book.

Scarred - #8.  Yeah, it's just too good.

[Wim Kruithof]

I disagree entirely.   The first three songs IMO are top DT material.  And songs 4 & 5 work better as part of the whole than on their own.    I love my 12SS CD, although I haven't listened to it in a long time. 

The Mirror (remixed to include the Lie outro) followed by the 5 songs blended with their intended transitions seamlessly.    I was pretty proud of that mix.

Could not agree more. The Mirror followed by the Twelve Step suite is Dream Theater at their very best. Heck, it might - to me - be the very best composed pieces of them all. If I am allowed to bring only one hour of Dream Theater to an island, it would be this suite for sure.

I can only imagine what it would like to wait for Octavarium, when The Glass Prison and This Dying Soul were already released... or what it was like to desirely wait for Black Clouds & Silver Linings, when al those steps were already released before. I must have been obsessed by this suite, if I knew of them back in those days.

[TAC]

So your Desert Isle hour of Dream Theater would be...

The Mirror
The Glass Prison
This Dying Soul
The Root Of All Evil
Repentence
The Shattered Fortress


WOW!


And where did each of these songs rank in your DT Top 100?

[Wim Kruithof]

So your Desert Isle hour of Dream Theater would be...

The Mirror
The Glass Prison
This Dying Soul
The Root Of All Evil
Repentence
The Shattered Fortress


WOW!


And where did each of these songs rank in your DT Top 100?

The Mirror #10
The Glass Prison #5
This Dying Soul #7
The Root Of All Evil #41
Repentence #-
The Shattered Fortress #12

This suite to me is so much more than the sum of its parts. The way they weaved in The Glass Prison at the end of The Root of All Evil... The Mirror-lyric that reflects Awake... The This Dying Soul-riff that's been heard in The Root of All Evil... the melodic reflection of This Dying Soul... the prayer at the end of The Shattered Fortress, it's all sheer perfection and I love every minute of it.

[TheCountOfNYC]

The way they weaved in The Glass Prison at the end of The Root of All Evil...

Wait where is The Glass Prison in The Root of All Evil?

[KevShmev]

Here comes numbers 8 and 7, both of which are the highest ranked from their respective albums!

8 Home
Appeared on 25 of 26 entrees
Top 10 finishes: 6
Highest Ranking: 4 (geeeemo)

I had this at 7, which is right around where I usually put it.  This is one of those songs that I never get tired of hearing.  Pure greatness from start to finish.


7 Trial of Tears
Appeared on 26 of 26 entrees
Top 10 finishes: 7
Highest Ranking: 1 (toro)

I don't listen to this one as much I used to, but I still love enough to have to put it at 20.  The atmosphere in this song is so good, Sherinian's solo might be the best keyboard solo in any DT song, and JLB delivers with a great vocal performance.

[Lonk]

I had home at 15 or 16, can't remember. Trial of Tears I had at 62. It's a fine song but it has not aged well for me.

Side note: I cannot hear the phrase "it's raining" because I immediately follow it with "On the streets of NYC" 

[Ben_Jamin]

8 Home #12

This is the one song I first enjoyed from SFAM. My friend showed it to me one day at school, and I was like, this is amazing. Later on, he had created a forum for our group and others who wanted to join. He posted the lyrics to the album and this began my journey to hearing the entire SFAM album. If SFAM was made into one long epic song, Home would be the song used for it's lyrics and verses and musicality. The music recalls a lot of Metropolis Pt.1. I love how it does, because the concept of 'home' is part of the story...."She carried her gift from her home", "She's taken you to your home", "it's calling me back to my home." I for one do not mind the moaning samples, because think about it and it's significance to how "Home" is symbolized in this story. While Victoria is home, Julian is not home and gambling away his habits. This is why Victoria chose to cheat on him with his brother, and is the main cause of the entire situation of the story, and hence bringing the story home.

7 Trial of Tears #10

A lovely song. This is one that I really enjoyed also on L@B. It's funny because when I hear this song, I just imagine the video for Hollow Years and the band, only it's also raining. I like how it starts off slow and ambient, as if the sun is starting to rise, that early morning freshness and dew. It does remind me of a cloudy, rainy morning, and it progresses into the type of day where it's raining all day, not hard but a light rain. It's neat how even though the song does get a bit heavy, it still remains calm, with the bassline and drums keeping a steady pace, while the keyboards create a soothing atmosphere as the guitars present the emotion. The build-ups are also amazing, and work well in a live setting, taking the audience on a ride. This is another song I was sad to have missed out on. But, I do hope they bring it back again someday. It's a great song that if DT were a band that had stapled setlist songs, this one would be up there.

[Setlist Scotty]

8 Home
Appeared on 25 of 26 entrees

....and I know who didn't have it make their top 100 (hi Jammindude!) 

[Cool Chris]

Home is #21, Trial of Tears is #23. Two great songs, just a little out of the elite category for me.

[HOF]

I have Home at 32. A really strong track, one of the stronger individual songs on SFAM (if taken alone apart from the concept). The middle section with the moaning holds it back for me a bit, but there is the single edit without it.

Trial of Tears was my number 3 track. What more can you say about it? It’s a beautiful track from start to finish. John Myung is all over this one. JP’s solo is exquisite. Great drumming, great keyboards, great lyrics. Top notch DT through and through. Everything just comes together so well.

[Dream Team]

Can’t believe someone left Home out of the top 100.

[TAC]

Can’t believe someone left Home out of the top 100.

Must be a real asshole..

[KevShmev]

Or someone with historically weird taste in music.

And that is not the last song to be featured that didn't make all 26 lists... (but let's not guess, as we do not need any more spotlighting issues today)

[jammindude]

8 Home
Appeared on 25 of 26 entrees

....and I know who didn't have it make their top 100 (hi Jammindude!) 

CLOSE!

But it wasn’t me. Although I will probably be almost as chastised as whoever it was, because I put it at #74.

[wolfking]

Can’t believe someone left Home out of the top 100.

Yeah, gotta be taking the piss. 

[TAC]

8 Home
Appeared on 25 of 26 entrees
Top 10 finishes: 6
Highest Ranking: 4 (geeeemo)


I'm the guilty one! I didn't rank Home. It's honestly one of my least favorite DT songs.
Firstly, I hate the intro. I do not like a Middle Eastern influence in my music. It's a huge turnoff.
This song is way too long and the verses are a mid tempo slog.
The sex scene...please, it's might be OK for Rocket Queen, but not Dream Theater.

2 positives though... The outro part is freaking awesome.
I actually don't mind the 2010 live version, where they skip the intro and go right into the song. Plus it feels like it's played a bit faster. That version gives a pretty lifeless and dull song some life.



7 Trial of Tears
Appeared on 26 of 26 entrees
Top 10 finishes: 7
Highest Ranking: 1 (toro)


I have Trial Of Tears at #24. A great song.  FII was and always will be a three song EP for me, with Peruvian Skies/Lines In The Sand/Trial Of Tears.

[The Realm]

Can’t believe someone left Home out of the top 100.

Exactly! But to me this applies to a number of songs. Haven't there only been a couple that have been on everyone's list? That is the most mind blowing thing to me.