Rock & Roll Playlist: Oktoberfest!
The holiday may be over, but we’re keeping it going with a soundtrack for the ultimate brew-soaked bacchanalia, courtesy of the folks at MySpace Music.
Maxim Oktoberfest Mix from My Mixes on Myspace.
1. Beck – “Beercan”
“Loser” is the track that put the King of the Slackers on the map, but it’s this other track off Mellow Gold that shows Beck at his weirdest, catchiest best. Do the lyrics make sense? Does it really matter?
2. Ramones – “Blitzkrieg Bop”
The first track off the Ramones’ first album – incidentally, one of the best first songs on any band’s first album – is as fast and dangerous as the German military tactic after which the song is named.
3. Johnny Cash, “I Hardly Ever Sing Beer Drinking Songs”
The Man in Black clearly made an exception with this ditty about the kind of beer-drinking songs he hardly ever sings about. Confused? Us, too.
4. People Under the Stairs – “Beer (Colt 45 Remix)”
On this celebration of the glories of the almighty 40, the L.A.-based hip-hop duo sample LandoCalrissian himself, Billy Dee Williams: “Remember, when you want to have a good time, rule number 1: never run out of Colt 45.”
5. The Replacements – “Beer for Breakfast”
Few bands were as boozily brilliant as the ‘Mats; guitarist Bob Stinson could allegedly walk down the street while simultaneously chugging a 40 and taking a leak. Now that’s talent.
6. Nena – “99 Luftballons”
The highest-charting German song in Billboard history is far catchier than, say, “DeutschlandUber Alles.” Also, less Hitler-y.
7. Chumbawamba – “Tubthumping”
“He drinks a Whiskey drink, he drinks a Vodka drink/He drinks a Lager drink, he drinks a Cider drink.” It seems safe to say that “he” is going to have one hell of a hangover.
8. Tom Waits – “Warm Beer and Cold Women”
Far be it for us to argue with the great Tom Waits, but we kinda prefer our beer cold and our women hot. At least the drinks are on him tonight!
9. The Doors – “Riders on the Storm”
How’s this for a depressing piece of Doors trivia: This track entered the Hot 100 chart on July 3, 1971 – the very day Jim Morrison died. Oof. That calls for a stiff one.
10. Sublime – “40 Oz. to Freedom”
The ska-punk title track off of one of the best-selling independent albums in history is, like the aforementioned “Beer,” an ode to malt liquor. Sublime indeed.
11. Janis Joplin – “What Good Can Drinkin‘ Do“
“Oh, gimme whiskey, give me bourbon, gimme gin/’Cause it don’t matter what I’m drinkin’, Lord, as long as it drown this sorrow I’m in.” Okay, this shit is starting to get dark.
12. Lou Reed – “Berlin”
While “Munich” would have been a more appropriate title for a celebration of Oktoberfest, it just doesn’t have quite the same ring to it. And truth be told, Berlin has pretty good beer too, which makes Lou’s insistence on drinking “Dubonnet on ice” all the odder.
13. Jefferson Airplane – “Never Argue with a German if You’re Tired or European Song”
. . . And never start a land war in Asia.
Photos by Johannes Simon/ Getty Images | Licensed to Alpha Media Group 2013
Read This Next
