Rolling Stone names 500 greatest songs of all time, including 6 with Upstate NY ties: Buzz

Singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey performs on stage at Rogers Arena on September 30, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Andrew Chin/Getty Images)
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Rolling Stone names 500 greatest songs of all time, including 6 with Upstate NY ties

Rolling Stone has released a new list of the top 500 songs of all time, featuring big names like Bruce Springsteen, Queen, Michael Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Marvin Gaye, The Beatles, Beyonce, Tom Petty, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Madonna, Prince, Outkast, Bob Dylan, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Cash, Kanye West, Taylor Swift, Missy Elliott and Elton John. Updated from 2004, the best-of list also includes newer songs like Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy,” Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts,” Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” BTS’ “Dynamite,” Eric Church’s “Springsteen,” Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” and Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.”

But the top five greatest songs remain classics: No. 1 “Respect” by Aretha Franklin, No. 2 “Fight the Power” by Public Enemy, No. 3 “A Change is Gonna Come” by Sam Cooke, No. 4 “Like a Rolling Stone” by Bob Dylan, and No. 5 “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana.

Six songs with Upstate New York ties also made the cut: Buffalo native Rick James is No. 153 with “Super Freak”; Lana Del Rey, who grew up in Lake Placid, ranked 456th with “Summertime Sadness”; The Band’s “The Weight,” recorded at “Big Pink” in Woodstock, was 58th; and Syracuse University alumnus Lou Reed made the list with The Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane” and “I’m Waiting for the Man” at No. 294 and No. 81, respectively, plus his solo hit “Walk on the Wild Side” at No. 180.

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