Perhaps Patsy Cline's biggest hit, Crazy was written by Willy Nelson and first released by him as a single in October 1961 . Patsy died in a plane crash in 1963 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame 10 years later.

Patsy Cline

Willy Nelson

Turn the Page

Written and originally recorded by Bob Seger in 1973, Turn the Page was about life on the road. The song was recorded by several artists over the years, but it went to #1 when Metallica released their version in 1998.

Bob Seger

Metallica

The Man Who Sold the World

The man who sold the world was the title song of David Bowie`s third album, released in 1970. Years later the song became a huge hit for Nirvana. Although both Bowie and Nirvana had huge success with The Man Who Sold the World, I chose a cover that was done by an unknown. Jordis Unga won hearts with her version of the song on television's Rock Star INXS.

David Bowie

Jordis Unga

Me and Bobby McGee

Written by Kris Kristopherson , Me and Bobby McGee was first recorded by Roger Miller in 1970. Kristopherson re-released it on his first album later that same year. Kris dated Janis Joplin until she died in October 1970. Janis also recorded a version of the song, but it was not released on her Pearl album until after her death. Me and Bobby McGee is truly one of the greatest songs ever.

Kris Kristopherson

Janis Joplin

Working Class Hero

Probably John Lennon`s most political songs ever, it was later covered by everyone from Cyndi Lauper to Mariyln Manson. In July 2007 it was released by Green Day (I know I know) who`s version I think would have made John proud.

John Lennon

Green Day

I Will Always Love You

Although the song was made hugely popular by Whitney Houston, it was written and released by Dolly Parton in 1974.

Dolly Parton

Whitney Houston

Roll Over Beethoven

Chuck Berry wrote and released Roll Over Beethoven in 1956. It had always been a favorite of The Beatles and they went on to record it themselves in July 1963 for their second album.

Chuck Berry

The Beatles

While My Guitar Gently Weeps

Written by George Harrison and released on The White Album, While My Guitar Gently Weeps was ranked #7 on Rolling Stone Magazine`s 100 top guitar songs. It was later recorded by Canadian musician Jeff Healy. Healy performed regularly at his club Jeff Healy`s Roadhouse in Toronto until his recent death due to cancer.

George Harrison/The Beatles

Jeff Healy

Honky Tonk Man

Known for such hits as Sink the Bismark and North to Alaska, Johnny Horton wrote Honky Tonk Man in 1956. It was later recorded by country singer Dwight Yoakam on his debut album Guitars and Cadillacs.

Johnny Horton

Dwight Yoakam

You've Got a Friend

Named one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame`s 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll, You`ve Got a Friend was first released on Carole King`s Tapestry album. Carole`s good friend James Taylor later released it as a single. It was to be his only number one hit.

Carole King

James Taylor

I dismissed his ego and most of his opinions as soon as he admitted to enjoying Barbra Streisand. The fact that her records line every thrift store bin I've ever shuffled through is proof enough for me, I'm not gonna listen to that. But he has, and he digs it. The justification is populist with no real discrimination, Christgau's got a little bit of everything in him including whatever demographic actually listened to Streisand in 1967. His website archives reviews that also find redeeming qualities in Limp Bizkit and N' Sync.

But I digress, the old dude's on his way out anyway. My real point of interest is the idea of the art critic as a populist justifying the tastes of the masses. In a transcribed conversation with a couple of his peers, Xgau looked down his nose at a fellow critic for applauding Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation even though he admitted that it was a fantastic record. His issue was that his colleague's wholehearted approval of the record in spite of its limited popularity constituted solipsism. Xgau argued that Sonic Youth's movement towards conventional song and distribution structures didn't make the music more accessible, it made it better by eliminating idiosyncracy. In other words, creating deviant independent music is selfish and represents a refusal to deliver the goods to a highly sophisticated and discerning public that knows what it wants. Christgau is an optimist in a profession that attracts cynics like flies to a corpse: the flies being the hi-fidelity hipster types that make a living off of their musical tastes, the corpse being the public that wants to consume the aesthetic without having to sort through the amalgam of music to find what they like.

The optimism is not problematic to me, nor is the populist stance. I would love to somehow reconcile my cynical viewpoints with the idea that "the flock" is actually critically discerning and intelligent. However my own personal experience as someone who enjoys music and art a great deal conflicts with Christgau's basic critical assumptions in more ways than one. Firstly the distribution system, which in this case consists of major labels signing artists which then gain more access to the traditional promotional tools associated with a music artist, has to be taken into account. There is a tendency for the infrastructure of music in all situations to favor the artist who has access to a major label level of promotions over an indie band. In my experience really great music is not exclusive to major labels at all, especially because the people behind major labels are businessmen and are therefore not especially susceptible to risk-taking with regards to new music. Labels will always go for a sure bet over an experimental band. This leads me to what I feel is the heart of the conflict, record labels are designed to make money by promoting bands. They aren't designed to sign the best talent, only the most profitable talent. Although good music and profitable music aren't mutually exclusive, in the event that aesthetic value and profit don't coincide the label will opt for profit one hundred percent of the time. Bands that are lucrative but have little or no aesthetic value are accepted as popular on the foundation of the marketing behind them. With the ever increasing sophistication of modern marketing and the monoculture that is pop radio I hardly think this is coincidence.

Oh well, that's all old news to most people who are paying attention even a little. Genres and subcultures are no more than niche markets nowadays. I guess the real reason I embarked on this diatribe is that as much as I disagree with Xgau and his pseudo-authority, I like the idea of an intelligent consuming public more than the flock of sheep I have invented to justify my eccentric and strange musical tastes. At some point, we all have to come off our high horses and reconcile our personal views with the world outside and Christgau's model has provided some insight into how I might do that, even if my method is reactionary to the fact that his taste sucks. Only squares like the Beatles more than the Stones and Streisand is a heap of garbage no matter how many platters she moves.

What may follow are my attempts at criticism as an exercise, focusing on art (not just music) that I enjoy and consume for my own reasons. Somewhere in between the lines I hope to find out more about my world-view and reform it a little as well as examine more closely why I like the things I like. I guess I don't really care as long as it at least attempts to transcend mental masturbation.

Otis Day & The Knights was his opening act. Remember the movie “Animal House” with John Belushi? Will, there's a band that plays in that movie. This was that band (although in the movie the band members were fictional people - Otis Day was the only real person). They came onto the stage at 8:00 and they did an hour show. They did all cover songs, but boy were they good And most of them were done to their style. They covered people from the stones, to the kinks (“Jumpin' Jack Flash”, “Can't Get No Satisfaction”, “You Really Got Me”) - and than would go straight into soul and do “Soul Man” that I know Sam & Dave and The Blues Brothers have made really popular and than would get funky with a cover of Sly & The Family Stone's “Thank You For Letting Me Be Myself Again”. And than go on to do a couple of numbers from the “Animal House” soundtrack. “Shout” and “Shama Lama Ding Dong”. Talk about a mixture of styles of music. It was like watching a Blues Brothers concert, and it might as well be - Otis Day starred in “Animal House” with John Belushi, and John Belushi was one of the Blues Brothers, so there's the connection.

20 minutes or so into their show, they had an American Flag come down onto the stage. Otis Day and the rest of the band, except for one of his guitarists, leaves the stage. His guitarist than starts playing an exact - note for note - copy of Jimi Hendrix's cover of our National Anthem. Now, I'm not much for complete note for note covers, but that guitarist was good! He was more than good, he was great!

On an interesting side note, I have read somewhere that when Hendrix started playing his version of the national anthem, some folks, mainly from the older generation, were cursing him and saying he was putting down the national anthem when he played it that way. And saying it's disrespectful. But I don't care what they think. I think Hendrix did an awesome interpretation of the song. His rendition of our national anthem was the most unique and most creative interpretation I have ever heard, and I love it. Hendrix wasn't being disrespectful when he played his version. He played the anthem much like why people sing it before sports events, but he did it with his own style. It didn't mean he respected the song any less. And to this day, 40 years after he first recorded his rendition of the song, I still respect it and feel it's the best rendition of the song.

Otis Day & The Knights finished their show around 9:10. At about 9:20, Chuck Berry took the stage wearing a Red shiny jacket and no teeth, and of course his famous Gibson ES-355 that you always see him with. He played songs from “School Days” “Sweet Little 16” to “You Never Can Tell”. He also did a blues number “It Hurts Me Too.” He had his son with him, Chuck Berry Jr. who is now 45 years old and has been playing with Chuck for 5 years now.

30 minutes into his show, he has his piano player playing a solo. Chuck Berry decides he would do a solo of his own, so he does this great solo. After playing all these great songs, and only doing his infamous “duck walk” at least twice, he tells the audience, “Now that we're all tuned up, It's time to start the show.” That was when he broke into his classic “Johnny B. Goode” - everyone in the audience stood up, and I swear he did the duck walk more than two times in that performance, he did it about 6 times! It was awesome, too bad I couldn't video any of it. IMHO, that was the best performance out of all of them.

I was actually hoping he would do “My Ding-A-Ling”, his famous novelty song from the 1970s (and according to what I have read somewhere, his only #1 pop-chart hit). In fact, I was anxious for that song - but he didn't play it. However, I did think it was cool at the end of the show he had people from the audience come onto the stage and dance when he did a little boogie jam. He even went offstage (stage-right) and played his guitar, where you couldn't see him (ahh, the amazing powers of technology) during the last performance.