On Canada Day, 2007, I listed what I believed to be the top 100 Canadian songs of all time. It was a 1.5 month endeavour to assemble that list, and I was pretty proud of it.
A new book by Bob Mersereau has reignited this great debate. Bob lists the top 100 Canadian singles. Here's Bob's list. I've made the choices we agreed on bold.
1. The Guess Who — "American Woman"
2. Neil Young — "Heart of Gold"
3. The Band — "The Weight"
4. Bryan Adams — "Summer of '69"
5. Leonard Cohen — "Hallelujah"
6. Steppenwolf — "Born to Be Wild"
7. Gordon Lightfoot — "If You Could Read My Mind"
8. Bachman Turner Overdrive — "Takin' Care of Business"
9. Ian and Sylvia — "Four Strong Winds"
10. Anne Murray — "Snowbird"
11. Joni Mitchell — "Big Yellow Taxi" / "Woodstock"
12. Rush — "Tom Sawyer"
13. Blue Rodeo — "Try"
14. Tragically Hip — "New Orleans is Sinking"
15. Gordon Lightfoot — "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"
16. Leonard Cohen — "Suzanne"
17. Tom Cochrane — "Life is a Highway"
18. The Guess Who — "These Eyes"
19. Gordon Lightfoot — "Sundown"
20. Sloan — "Underwhelmed"
21. The Band — "Up on Cripple Creek" / "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down"
22. Maestro Fresh Wes — "Let Your Backbone Slide"
23. The Diodes — "Tired of Waking Up Tired"
25. Rush — "The Spirit of Radio"
25. Crowbar — "Oh What a Feeling"
26. Rough Trade — "High School Confidential"
27. Martha and the Muffins — "Echo Beach"
28. Stampeders — "Sweet City Woman"
29. Arcade Fire — "Wake Up"
30. Barenaked Ladies — "If I Had $1,000,000"
31. Robert Charlebois — "Lindberg"
32. The Pursuit Of Happiness — "I'm an Adult Now"
33. Ugly Ducklings — "Nothin' "
34. Sloan — "Coax Me"
35. Rush — "Closer to the Heart"
36. Teenage Head — "Picture My Face"
37. Guess Who — "Shakin' All Over"
38. Five Man Electrical Band — "Signs"
39. Blue Rodeo — "Lost Together"
40. Ron Hynes — "Sonny's Dream"
41. Men Without Hats — "The Safety Dance"
42. Rheostatics — "Claire"
43. Lighthouse — "One Fine Morning"
44. A Foot In Coldwater — "(Make Me Do) Anything You Want"
45. Corey Hart — "Sunglasses At Night"
46. Loverboy — "Working For The Weekend"
47. Trooper — "Raise A Little Hell"
48. Parachute Club — "Rise Up"
49. Alannah Myles — "Black Velvet"
50. Terry Jacks — "Seasons in the Sun"
51. Malajube — "Montreal -40C"
52. Neil Young — "Cinnamon Girl"
53. Alanis Morissette — "You Oughta Know"
54. Feist — "1234"
55. Arcade Fire — "Rebellion (Lies)"
56. k.d. lang — "Constant Craving"
57. Neil Young — "Rockin' in the Free World"
58. Michel Pagliaro — "Lovin' You Ain't Easy"
59. Bruce Cockburn — "Lovers in a Dangerous Time"
60. Tragically Hip — "Bobcaygeon"
61. Joni Mitchell — "A Case of You" / "California"
62. The Demics — "New York City"
63. Bryan Adams — "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You"
64. Tragically Hip — "Ahead by a Century"
65. Blue Rodeo — "Five Days in May"
66. Hank Snow — "I'm Moving On"
67. Harmonium — "Pour un instant"
68. Steppenwolf — "Magic Carpet Ride"
69. Sloan — "Money City Maniacs"
70. Celine Dion — "My Heart Will Go On"
71. k-os — "Crabbuckit"
72. The Kings —"This Beat Goes on/Switchin' to Glide"
73. Neil Young — "Old Man" / "Needle and the Damage Done"
74. Jean Leloup — "1990"
75. Payola$ — "Eyes of a Stranger"
76. Blue Rodeo — "Hasn't Hit Me Yet"
77. Bachman Turner Overdrive — "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet"
78. Bruce Cockburn — "Wondering Where the Lions Are"
79. April Wine — "You Could Have Been a Lady"
80. Teenage Head — "Let's Shake"/ "Somethin' On My Mind"
81. Joni Mitchell — "Help Me"
82. Trooper — "We're Here For A Good Time"
83. Lighthouse — "Sunny Days"
84. Jean-Pierre Ferland — "Le petit roi"
85. Bryan Adams — "Cuts Like A Knife"
86. Stompin' Tom Connors — "The Hockey Song"
87. Tragically Hip — "Wheat Kings"
88. Gilles Vigneault — "Mon pays"
89. Spirit of The West — "Home For a Rest"
90. New Pornographers — "Letter from an Occupant"
91. Guess Who — "No Time"
92. Mashmakhan — "As the Years Go By"
93. Neil Young — "Hey Hey My My"
94. Paul Anka — "Diana"
95. Daniel Lanois — "The Maker"
96. The Spoons — "Nova Heart"
97. Beau Dommage — "La complainte du phoque en Alaska"
98. Ron Sexsmith — "Secret Heart"
99. Bryan Adams — "Run to You"
100. Wintersleep — "Weighty Ghost"
Pretty similar... I didn't have any French songs on my list, and opted for different Rheostatics, Feist and New Pornographers, but we're pretty close... especially in the top 25.
Heck, I'll save you a click and just reprint my list below.
The Tragically Hip - New Orleans Is Sinking
Neil Young - Helpless
The Band - The Weight
Joni Mitchell - Big Yellow Taxi
Gordon Lightfoot - Canadian Railroad Trilogy
Stan Rogers - Northwest Passage
Sloan - Underwhelmed
The Guess Who - American Woman
Leonard Cohen - Suzanne
Neil Young - Heart of Gold
Blue Rodeo - Try
Leonard Cohen - Hallelujah
The Tragically Hip - Courage
Barenaked Ladies - Brian Wilson
Cowboy Junkies - Misguided Angel
Arcade Fire - Wake Up
Gordon Lightfoot - Early Morning Rain
Neil Young - Rockin' In The Free World
Rush - The Spirit of Radio
The Guess Who - Share the Land
Blue Rodeo - Lost Together
Death From Above 1979 - Romantic Rights
Our Lady Peace - Naveed
Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)
Blue Rodeo - Diamond Mine
Bruce Cockburn - Lovers in a Dangerous Time
Gordon Lightfoot - If You Could Read My Mind
Five Man Electical Band - Signs
Bachman Turner Overdrive - Takin' Care Of Business
Gordon Lightfoot - Sundown
The Guess Who - These Eyes
Blood, Sweat and Tears - Spinning Wheel
Hayden - Bad As They Seem
Neil Young - Cinnamon Girl
Ian and Sylvia - Four Strong Winds
Joni Mitchell - Woodstock
Rush - Closer to the Heart
Joni Mitchell - Both Sides, Now
Our Lady Peace - 4am
Maestro Fresh-Wes - Let Your Backbone Slide
k.d. lang - Constant Craving
The Tragically Hip - Bobcaygeon
Neil Young - Old Man
Dream Warriors - My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style
Sarah Harmer - Silver Road
Jeff Healey - Angel Eyes
The New Pornographers - Mass Romantic
I Mother Earth - So Gently We Go
Our Lady Peace - Clumsy
Joni Mitchell - The Circle Game
The Pursuit of Happiness - I'm An Adult Now
The Lowest of the Low - Henry Needs A New Pair of Shoes
Ashley MacIsaac - Sleepy Maggie
Robbie Robertson - Somewhere Down the Crazy River
Tom Cochrane - Big League
Rush - Tom Sawyer
Moist - Push
Billy Talent - Nothing To Lose
Rusty - Wake Me
The Northern Pikes - Teenland
Sarah Harmer - Basement Apartment
Sarah McLachlan - Hold On
The Tragically Hip - Wheat Kings
Sloan - Coax Me
Spirit of the West - Home For A Rest
Steppenwolf - Born To Be Wild
Crash Test Dummies - Superman's Song
Stars - Ageless Beauty
The Tragically Hip - Ahead By A Century
The Demics - New York City
Barenaked Ladies - If I Had $1,000,000
54-40 - I Go Blind
Bryan Adams - Summer of '69
The New Pornographers - Use It
The Watchmen - All Uncovered
Treble Charger - Red
Sam Roberts - Brother Down
Randy Bachman - Prairie Town
Sarah McLachlan - Angel
Tom Cochrane - Boy Inside The Man
Alanis Morissette - You Oughta Know
Skydiggers - I Will Give You Everything
Men Without Hats - Safety Dance
Rough Trade - High School Confidential
Hot Hot Heat - Bandages
Corey Hart - Sunglasses at Night
Loverboy - Working For The Weekend
Metric - Combat Baby
Rusty - Misogyny
k-os - Heaven Only Knows
Tokyo Police Club - Nature Of The Experiment
Stars - Your Ex-Lover Is Dead
Rheostatics - Record Body Count
Odds - Heterosexual Man
The Gandharvas - The First Day of Spring
The Diodes - Tired of Waking Up Tired
Feist - Mushaboom
Gowan - A Criminal Mind
Grapes Of Wrath - All The Things I Wasn't
Max Webster - A Million Vacations
Any glaring omissions from both lists?
