Song of the Day: Main Title Theme From Scarface by Giorgio Moroder

Posted on April 25, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Why not? It is Al Pacino’s birthday, after all!

Song of the Day: Black Hole Sun (by Soundgarden)

Posted on April 24, 2026 by Arleigh

“Black Hole Sun” is one of those songs where Chris Cornell’s voice feels like the main character of its own little surreal movie. The way he drags out phrases, bends notes, and shifts between soft intimacy and howling power makes the whole thing feel heavy and hazy at the same time. You can almost feel the song stretching out like a long, strange afternoon in a half‑real town, and for a lot of people it became the entry point that pulled them headfirst into the Soundgarden rabbit hole with the Superunknown album.

Kim Thayil’s guitar work is what keeps that dream from ever feeling safe. His riffs throughout the track are already weird and slightly off‑kilter, but when the solo hits at 2:56, things get properly discordant. Instead of a neat, singable melody, the lead line feels jagged and uneasy, like the song is momentarily glitching out and refusing to sit in one place. That solo gives the song its signature discordant sound, almost like light and matter being pulled down into the black hole the title hints at.

The solo only lasts a little over 20 seconds, but it’s perfectly placed: it erupts right when the song’s tension peaks, then fades just quickly enough to let Cornell’s voice regain control and pull you into the next verse. The contrast between Thayil’s warped, dissonant lead and Cornell’s smooth, almost crooning delivery is what makes the track feel both beautiful and unsettling at the same time.

If you’re trying to get into Soundgarden, “Black Hole Sun” is a great entry point not just because it’s catchy, but because it shows how perfectly Cornell and Thayil balance each other. Cornell gives the song its soul and mystery, while Thayil’s discordant guitar solo reminds you that there’s something quietly wrong under the surface — and for countless fans, it was the hook that dragged them deep into the rest of Superunknown and the band’s wider catalog.

Black Hole Sun

In my eyes
Indisposed
In disguises no one knows
Hides the face
Lies the snake
And the sun in my disgrace
Boiling heat
Summer stench
Neath the black, the sky looks dead
Call my name
Through the cream
And I’ll hear you scream again

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain?
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come
Won’t you come

Stuttering
Cold and damp
Steal the warm wind, tired friend
Times are gone
For honest men
Sometimes, far too long for snakes
In my shoes
Walking sleep
In my youth, I pray to keep
Heaven send
Hell away
No one sings like you anymore

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain?
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come

(guitar solo @2:56)

Hang my head
Drown my fear
Till you all just disappear

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain?
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come

Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain?
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come (Black hole sun, black hole sun)
Won’t you come
Won’t you come

Great Guitar Solos Series

Song of the Day: The Adventures of Robin Hood Suite, composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, performed by the John Wilson Orchestra

Posted on April 23, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

How about a little adventure?

Today’s song of the day, from 1938’s The Adventures of Robin Hood:

Song of the Day: Main Title Theme From The Shining, composed by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind

Posted on April 22, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Shining (1980, dir by Stanley Kubrick, DP: John Alcott)

For today’s song of the day, we have the title tune to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. The Shining is a classic horror film and features one of Jack Nicholson’s most iconic performances.

Enjoy the greatest road trip music ever recorded.

Song of the Day: Maria, performed by the UNT One O’Clock Lab Band

Posted on April 21, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Texas Flag, by Erin Nicole

Since today is San Jacinto Day, it seems appropriate that today’s song of the day should come from Texas!

Here is the University of North Texas’s One O’Clock Lab band performing Maria at the Addison Jazz Festival.

Song of the Day: Sharp Dressed Man (by ZZ Top)

Posted on April 20, 2026 by Arleigh

When I first heard Sharp Dressed Man and saw the video, I knew there was real wisdom in not looking like a slob. ZZ Top basically lays it out in the coolest way possible: looking sharp isn’t about vanity, it’s about presence. That opening riff alone feels like a wake-up call—like, hey, maybe ditch the wrinkled shirt and step into something that actually fits. It’s not preachy, it’s just smooth persuasion backed by undeniable groove.

The whole track just struts with confidence. Billy Gibbons’ guitar tone is razor-clean, every note hitting like it’s been polished before being sent out into the world. Then the solo kicks in around 1:30, and that’s where everything locks into place. Instead of going for the harder, heavier rock sound that dominated the ’70s and ’80s, Gibbons leans into the song’s bluesy DNA, keeping it tight, expressive, and full of swagger. It’s not some over-the-top shred fest—it’s controlled, stylish, and full of attitude, exactly like the kind of guy the song is talking about.

What makes the song stick is how simple the message is. You don’t need a complete lifestyle overhaul—you just need to care a little. Clean shoes, a pressed shirt, maybe a jacket that actually fits. ZZ Top turns basic effort into a full-on identity upgrade. Suddenly, getting dressed isn’t a chore, it’s a move. And once you feel that shift, it’s hard to go back.

That’s why Sharp Dressed Man feels timeless. It’s more than just a blues-rock hit—it’s like a three-minute style intervention for guys who didn’t know they needed one. It may have helped men of all ages figure out how to dress well, but don’t go calling it “becoming metrosexual”—this is ZZ Top, not a spa day. And sure, being sharp dressed gets you most of the way there, but rolling up in a customized candy-apple red ’33 Ford three-window coupe doesn’t exactly hurt the overall look either. Style matters, but style with attitude—and maybe a little horsepower—is what really seals it.

And if you’re gonna get pulled over because Deep Purple’s Highway Star made you push the speedometer a little too far, you might as well be sharp dressed when you get your speeding ticket—I say that from experience, having been pulled over not in a ’33 Ford coupe but in a maroon 1991 Mitsubishi Galant while sporting a rented long-tail tuxedo… but hey, close enough.

Sharp Dressed Man

Ah
Yeah
Ow

Clean shirt, new shoes
And I don’t know where I am goin’ to
Silk suit, black tie (black tie)
I don’t need a reason why

They come runnin’ just as fast as they can
‘Cause every girl crazy ’bout a sharp dressed man

Gold watch, diamond ring
I ain’t missin’ not a single thing
Cufflinks, stick pin
When I step out, I’m gonna do you in
They come runnin’ just as fast as they can
‘Cause every girl crazy ’bout a sharp dressed man (uh huh)

Uh huh

(guitar solo @1:30)

Top coat, top hat
But I don’t worry ’cause my wallet’s fat
Black shades, white gloves
Lookin’ sharp, lookin’ for love

They come runnin’ just as fast as they can
‘Cause every girl crazy ’bout a sharp dressed man
(Oh-huh, you can’t lose with the dress I use)
(That’s right, real fine)

Great Guitar Solos Series

Song of the Day: Highway Star (by Deep Purple)

Posted on April 19, 2026 by Arleigh

If you’ve never heard Highway Star by Deep Purple, you’re honestly missing one of the purest shots of adrenaline rock music has to offer. This isn’t just a song—it’s basically a speeding ticket set to music. From the second that opening riff kicks in, it feels like you’re already going 90 mph with the windows down, even if you’re just sitting still. It’s loud, fast, and unapologetically obsessed with the thrill of the road.

What really hooks you is how everything in the song feels like it’s racing forward. Ian Gillan’s vocals don’t just ride the music—they chase it. The lyrics are simple but perfectly on-brand: cars, freedom, speed, and that reckless confidence that makes you want to push things just a little further than you probably should. It’s not trying to be deep; it’s trying to make you feel like you’re behind the wheel of something dangerous, and it absolutely nails that vibe.

And then there’s the guitar solo—starting around 4:04—which is where the song goes from great to legendary. Ritchie Blackmore doesn’t just shred; he constructs this wild, almost classical-sounding run that somehow still feels like it belongs on a straight highway at full throttle. It’s precise but still raw, like controlled chaos. You can practically hear the engine revving in every note. It’s the kind of solo that makes you rewind the track immediately just to hear it again.

Honestly, it wouldn’t be surprising if Highway Star has indirectly helped highway patrol rack up thousands—maybe millions—of speeding tickets since it came out. It doesn’t matter what you’re behind the wheel of—a Honda Civic, a Pontiac GTO, a Ford F-150, or even an AMC Gremlin—once this song kicks in, it burrows into your brain like a worm and suddenly you want to become an avatar of speed on the blacktop. This is not a song you play if you’re trying to drive responsibly—it practically dares you to press harder on the gas. And I’ll admit, even I wasn’t immune; once it started blasting through my car’s stereo, I ended up becoming one of those statistics myself. So yeah, if you’re checking it out for the first time, maybe don’t listen to it on your commute… unless you’re cool with funding your local police department.

Highway Star

Nobody gonna take my car, I’m gonna race it to the ground
And nobody gonna beat my car, it’s gonna break the speed of sound
Ooh, it’s a killing machine
It’s got everything
Like a driving power, big fat tires and everything

I love it and I need it, I bleed it

Yeah, it’s a wild hurricane
Alright, hold tight, I’m a highway star

Nobody gonna take my girl, I’m gonna keep her ’til the end
And nobody gonna have my girl, she stays close on every bend
Ooh, she’s a killing machine
She got everything
Like a moving mouth, body control and everything

I love her, I need her, I see her

Yeah, she turns me on
Alright, hold on tight, I’m a highway star

And nobody gonna take my head, I got speed inside my brain
And nobody gonna steal my head now that I’m on the road again
Ooh, I’m in heaven again
I’ve got everything
Like a moving ground, an open road and everything

I love it and I need it, I’ve seen it

Eight cylinders, all mine
Alright, hold on tight, I’m a highway star

(guitar solo @4:04)

I love it and I need it, I bleed it

Yeah, it’s a mad hurricane
Alright, hold on tight, I’m a highway star
I’m a highway star
I’m a highway star

Know Your Enemy

Huh
Yeah, we’re comin’ back in with another bombtrack
Think ya know it’s all of that, huh
Ayo, so check this out, yeah

Know your enemy
Come on

Born with insight and a raised fist
A witness to the slit wrist
As we move into ’92
Still in a room without a view
Ya got to know, ya got to know
That when I say go, go, go
Amp up and amplify, defy
I’m a brother with a furious mind
Action must be taken
We don’t need the key, we’ll break in
Something must be done
About vengeance, a badge and a gun
‘Cause I’ll rip the mic, rip the stage, rip the system
I was born to rage against ’em
Fist in ya face in the place and I’ll drop the style clearly
Know your enemy

Know your enemy
Yeah
Ayo, get with this, ugh

Word is born
Fight the war, fuck the norm
Now I got no patience
So sick of complacence
With the D, the E, the F, the I, the A, the N, the C, the E
Mind of a revolutionary, so clear the lane
The finger to the land of the chains
What? The “land of the free”?
Whoever told you that is your enemy
Now something must be done
About vengeance, a badge, and a gun
‘Cause I’ll rip the mic, rip the stage, rip the system
I was born to rage against ’em
Now action must be taken
We don’t need the key, we’ll break in

I’ve got no patience now
So sick of complacence now
I’ve got no patience now
So sick of complacence now
Sick of, sick of, sick of, sick of you
Time has come to pay

Know your enemy

(guitar solo @3:52)

Come on
Yes, I know my enemies
They’re the teachers who taught me to fight me
Compromise, conformity
Assimilation, submission
Ignorance, hypocrisy
Brutality, the elite
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams
All of which are American dreams

Great Guitar Solos Series

Song of the Day: Down & Out In New York City by James Brown

Posted on April 18, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Oh, New York. Best of luck to you.

Today’s song of the day comes from the soundtrack of 1973’s Black Caesar. Here is James Brown with Down & Out In New York City.

Song of the Day: Know Your Enemy (by Rage Against the Machine)

Posted on April 17, 2026 by Arleigh

Rage Against the Machine’s “Know Your Enemy” from their self-titled debut album is basically the band’s mission statement turned into a grenade. From the opening riffs, it’s all tension and rebellion — Zack de la Rocha warning you that conformity isn’t accidental. The way the track builds is pure RATM: pounding drums from Brad Wilk, Tim Commerford’s bass grinding underneath, and Tom Morello teasing distortion like he’s revving an engine that’s about to explode. If “Bulls on Parade” was about militarism meeting consumerism, “Know Your Enemy” feels like its philosophical origin — the moment the band first decided to flip the system the finger.

There’s something timeless about how direct Zack’s lyrics are. He’s not dressing it up or hiding behind metaphor. Instead, he’s confronting the listener with raw contradictions — America’s promise versus its reality. It’s one of those songs that sounds angrier the more you listen to it, especially when you start catching the subtler digs at political hypocrisy. And when Maynard James Keenan from Tool shows up for a brief vocal cameo in the bridge section, it turns into a call-and-response of defiance — like a friend lending backup in a street fight. Much like how Neil Young’s “Southern Man” has found renewed resonance in today’s social and political atmosphere, Rage Against the Machine has never really lost its relevancy since its release — if anything, time has only magnified what they were shouting about.

Then comes the real highlight: Tom Morello’s solo at around 3:52. It’s one of those moments that remind you why guitarists worldwide still study every flick of his wrist. He doesn’t just shred — he makes the guitar squeal, squeak, and snarl, using those killswitch stutters and wah pedal manipulations that became his signature. It’s funky but chaotic, calculated but wild — exactly what the song’s message is about: controlled rebellion. You can hear him bending sound itself to match Zack’s rage, turning pure technique into expression.

As a companion to “Bulls on Parade,” “Know Your Enemy” is Rage in its rawest form — the blueprint before the refinement. It’s less groove-driven and more ideological, but the fire’s the same. If “Bulls on Parade” is the anthem you blast while staring down the machine, “Know Your Enemy” is what you play while figuring out how it works — and how to dismantle it. Listen to them back-to-back and you’ll hear the evolution of rebellion itself, one riff at a time.

Know Your Enemy

Huh
Yeah, we’re comin’ back in with another bombtrack
Think ya know it’s all of that, huh
Ayo, so check this out, yeah

Know your enemy
Come on

Know your enemy
Yeah
Ayo, get with this, ugh

I’ve got no patience now
So sick of complacence now
I’ve got no patience now
So sick of complacence now
Sick of, sick of, sick of, sick of you
Time has come to pay

Know your enemy

(guitar solo @3:52)

Great Guitar Solos Series

Song of the Day: Southern Man (by Neil Young)

Posted on April 16, 2026 by Arleigh

For the latest “Song of the Day,” Southern Man is one of those Neil Young songs that lands like a blunt, uncomfortable truth-telling moment. It’s not a feel-good Southern rock anthem or a nostalgic postcard; it’s a pointed protest song aimed at racism and the legacy of oppression in the American South. What makes it hit so hard is that Young doesn’t soften the message much. He comes across like a songwriter who’s less interested in being liked and more interested in saying something that needed to be said.

Musically, the song has that raw Neil Young edge that fans love: restrained at first, then emotionally rougher as it builds. His guitar work is a huge part of why the song sticks in your head. The solo kicks in around $2{:}56$ , and rather than being polished or technically showy, it feels almost off-the-cuff—like a burst of emotion caught in real time. There’s a looseness to it, closer to jazz improvisation than to rock precision, and that gives the solo a spontaneous, restless energy that mirrors the song’s anger and urgency.

The track also became a major flashpoint with Lynyrd Skynyrd. They took issue with how Young seemed to generalize the South, and that tension helped inspire Sweet Home Alabama, which famously pushes back at Young’s criticism. It’s one of rock’s most iconic call-and-response moments: one artist sending out a challenge, another answering with proud defiance. Despite the seemingly heated exchange, both parties had mutual respect—and the dialogue between their songs ended up fueling one of the most fascinating cultural conversations in rock.

What makes Southern Man resonate now is how its spirit of confrontation still feels fresh. Over fifty years later, its themes of racial injustice and accountability hit even harder against the backdrop of today’s social and political climate. The song sounds less like a relic of its time and more like a warning that we’re still living through the same struggles Young was shouting about. In that sense, Southern Man hasn’t just aged well—it’s become more relevant than it’s been in the last quarter-century.