932. Creep by Radiohead (1992)

"Creep" broke Radiohead. Not bad for the band's debut single. "Creep" is about a drunk twentysomething that feels inadequate in the company of women. The character's self loathing and self consisciousness leads him to question why he's even in their company to begin with because he's "a creep" and "a weirdo." Radiohead has gone on to be one of the most critically acclaimed popular acts in music history.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFkzRNyygfk&ob=av2e

933. It Don't Come Easy by Ringo Starr (1971)

"It Don't Come Easy" was not Ringo's first post-Beatles single. He released "Beaucoups of Blues" in September, 1970. "It Don't Come Easy" came seven months later and reached #4 on the charts. George Harrison cowrote the hit and played guitar. Badfinger members Pete Ham and Tom Evans sang backup.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpxGD1YAUi8

934. The Logical Song by Supertramp (1979)

Supertramp takes on conformity and the education system in "The Logical Song." At the beginning of the song, the character is young and innocent. Then, the public school system gets its hands on him. The character is taught to conform and loses his creativity. Additionally, he's afraid to speak out for fear of being labeled or ostracized. The pressure to conform conflicts with his natural inclinations and he is left to beg people to "please tell me who I am." The confusion brought on by his education leaves our hero disillusioned at the end. His innocence and idealism lost.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQfjIw3mivc

935. Great White Buffalo by Ted Nugent and the Amboy Dukes (1974)

Ted Nugent gives a history lesson in "Great White Buffalo." He accurately details the relationship between Native Americans and the environment and how white encroachment onto Indian lands decimated the buffalo. Hunting buffalo became fashionable for easterners and the federal government adopted a policy of extermination in order to pacify Indian lands. Without the buffalo, the natives lacked food and raw materials for survival. The demise of the buffalo ended the plains way of life for native peoples.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMZwS0ZonEU

936. Smells Like Nirvana by Weird Al (1992)

Weird Al outdoes himself...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FklUAoZ6KxY&ob=av3e

937. Charlie Brown by The Coasters (1959)

Although Charlie Brown first appeared in 1950, this has nothing to do with the Peanuts character. The song follows the antics of a school kid that is something of a Bart Simpson. He's disrepectful and goofy, but not malicious. After getting in trouble, he wonders "Why is everybody always pickin' on me?"  Lieber and Stoller wrote the #2 hit. They wrote some of music's greatest hits including "There Goes My Baby", "Hound Dog", and "Stand By Me."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UnPzp2lmNk

938. Sheep by Pink Floyd (1977)

Pink Floyd critiqued the socioeconomic and political conditions in England during the seventies with their concept album Animals. The album was loosely based on Orwell's Animal Farm and could easily be applied to the industrial west as a whole. The album's critique of capitalism ventures from traditional European leftist thought and into communism. In the end, the people (the sheep) rise up and overthrow the capitalists and gain control of the means of production. "Sheep" contains a cynical reworking of Psalm 23 in which the workers plot their revolution.

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me down to lie, Through pastures green, He leadeth me the silent waters by. With bright knives, He releaseth my soul. He maketh me to hang on hooks in high places. He converteth me to lamb cutlets. For lo! He hath great power and great hunger. When cometh the day we lowly ones, Through quiet reflection and great dedication, Master the art of karate, Lo! we shall rise up And then we'll make the bugger's eyes water."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5mJQGMqJvw