Top 40 Opening Tracks of All Tme

The inspiration for this list came mostly from my lack of classic rock intake in recent years. My life has been so cluttered with new music for the last few years that making a list like this was therapeutic for me. Making this brought me back to some records I haven't listened to in quite some time. That being said, a great deal of this list is made up of older records (21 are from before 1980), but that doesn't mean I completely negated newer records on purpose. I just think that older records (the classic rock years) were conceived in such a way that gave a lot more thought to opening tracks. This isn't to say that music in general was better then, but rather that music was labored over in a much different nature than today. The opening track was (and should still be) the mission statement of a band. A good opening track shouldn't just be a good song; rather it should also be an opus for the rest of the record. A good opening track should change the mood your in and most importantly it should make you want to listen to the rest of the record from beginning to end.

40.) The Clash -- "Clash City Rockers" --- The Clash

39.) The Bad Plus -- "Big Eater" --- These Are The Vistas

38.) Coldplay -- "Don't Panic" --- Parachutes

37.) Nick Drake -- "Pink Moon" --- Pink Moon

36.) The dB's -- "Black and White" --- Stands For Decibels

35.) Damien Jurado -- "Ohio" --- Rehersals For Departure 

34.) Dusty Springfield -- "Just A Little Lovin'" --- Dusty In Memphis

33.) Neutral Milk Hotel -- "The King of Carrot Flowers Part One" --- In the Aeroplane Over the Sea

32.) Elvis Costello -- "No Action" --- This Year's Model

31.) The Clash -- "London Calling" --- London Calling

30.) The Flaming Lips -- "Race For The Prize" (Mokran Remix) --- The Soft Bulletin

29.) Radiohead -- "Airbag" --- OK Computer

28.) Bill Callahan -- "Jim Cain" --- Sometimes I We Were An Eagle

27.) XTC -- "Summer's Cauldron" --- Skylarking 

26.) Bob Dylan -- "Tangled Up In Blue" --- Blood On The Tracks

25.) Chicago -- "Introduction" --- Chicago Transit Authority

24.) King Crimson -- "21st Century Schizoid Man" --- In The Court of the Crimson King

23.) The Strokes -- "Is This It" --- Is This It

22.) Boston -- "More Than A Feelin'" --- Boston

21.) Marvin Gaye -- "What's Going On" --- What's Going On

20.) Funkadelic -- "Maggot Brain" --- Maggot Brain

19.) John Lennon --  "Mother" --- Plastic Ono Band

18.) Arcade Fire -- "Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" --- Funeral

17.) The Beatles -- "Come Together" --- Abbey Road

16.) Pink Floyd -- "In The Flesh?" --- The Wall

15.) Elton John -- "Captain Fantastic And The Brown Dirt Cowboy" --- Captain Fantastic And The
Brown Dirt Cowboy

14.) U2 -- "Where The Streets Have No Names" --- Joshua Tree

13.) The Beatles -- "Back In The U.S.S.R." --- The Beatles (The White Album)

12.) The Doors -- "Break On Through (To The Other Side)" --- The Doors

11.) Prince -- "Let's Go Crazy" --- Purple Rain

10.) Sonic Youth -- "Teen Age Riot" --- Daydream Nation


9.) The Rolling Stones -- "Gimme Shelter" --- Let It Bleed


8.) Wilco -- "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" --- Yankee Hotel Foxtrot


7.) The Who -- "Baba O'Riley" --- Who's Next


6.) Led Zeppelin -- "Whole Lotta Love" --- Led Zeppelin II


5.) Radiohead -- "Everything In It's Right Place" --- Kid A


4.) Bob Dylan -- "Like A Rolling Stone" --- Highway 61 Revisited


3.) Nirvana -- "Smells Like Teen Spirit" --- Nevermind


2.) The Beach Boys -- "Wouldn't It Be Nice" --- Pet Sounds

1.) Bruce Springsteen -- "Thunder Road" --- Born To Run