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Roger's Jack Bauer Power Year-End 2006 (Recap + Films Now Posted)
ATRL Senior Member
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woooooo for BSS, Metric, and the like.
really great set.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
Posts: 14,726
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wooo
Top 25 Albums of 2006 (cont)
5. The Subways - Young For Eternity
The Subways are flash in the pan brilliance. They will probably never release as good an album again (or possibly just an album in general), and I barely listen to the album now. Although it is important for an album to sustain some sort of relevance, a few do come and go that glorify and symbolize a particular aspect or period of time in one's life, or even within society. The Subways were discovered in 2004 by the Glastonbury festival coordinator who gave them a coveted spot on the lineup for that year, completely blowing away the audience with their remarkable take on Nirvana-inspired adrenaline and the power pop anthems of The Ramones. The essential ingredient is frontman Billy Lunn's girlfriend, Charlotte Cooper, who takes rock bitch to the next level with her grimey and 2-dollar hooker voice to stunning heights and like I've said before, upstages her leading man boyfriend. The album comes full circle with it's telling tales and fast-paced lyrics of love, lust, frustration, and all things adolescene in tunes that barely clock in over 3 minutes. One of the shortest albums on this year-end is truly one of the best for it's time - to the Subways, you did something great for the time in which you did it.
Key Tunes
1. I Want To Hear What You Got To Say
2. No Goodbyes
3. Oh Yeah
4. The Kooks - Inside In / Inside Out
Continuing to ride along on the flash in the pan British grime indie trend, The Kooks were able to accelerate their rise to fame after Arctic Monkeys made it cool to like rock that's so catchy its almost pure pop. The Kooks actually have 14 songs on their debut disc, so there is a lot of material in comparison to a band like The Subways, but not everything works. However, what does work is pure magic. The band are able to exploit their dirty British accents (no offense, seriously) to make all of their thrashing head bangers like "See The World" or "Sofa Song" extra sleazy and enjoyable. They also make more acoustic and mellow offerings such as "Seaside" and "She Moves In Her Own Way" incredibly sincere and surprisingly amusing. The Kooks rank higher than Arctic Monkeys because even though their foundation is based on the success of another band, The Kooks did not ride a wave of hype to fame. And yeah, jumping on what's hot in musical society is not necessairly "sticking it to the man" either, but these chaps have a serious dosage of UK rock that can't be ignored.
Key Tunes
1. Naive / Seaside
2. See The World
3. Jackie Big ****
3. My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade
Even though "Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge" was #2 on last year's albums list, this is by far and away the better of the two. The pretentious frontman Gerard Way hyped up the album very similarly to Branden Flowers (who we will talk about later) saying it was something of epic proportions, something we may not quite understand when we hear it. The album dropped to some seriously sexy results chart wise, but besides commercial success, the band have finally seemed to transcend the "emo" label and catapulted to legitimate rock stardom. With throngs of critical acclaim and fan support, MCR unleashed a Bohemian Rhapsody-size monster in "Welcome to the Black Parade", which is by no means the best song on this album, and that truly says something. It's song such as "Famous Last Words", "The Sharpest Lives", and "House of Wolves" where Gerard Way's impressive vocals mingle with fire rock, glam and glitter dramatic interpretation lyrics, and not to mention a serious dosage of kick ass rock since the entire band is right on cue the whole time. There is a certain "dread" associated with this album as it almost serves as a soundtrack to living in a post 9/11 world, and inevitable concept album comparisons to "American Idiot" only solidify the album's respected place as one of the most important for rock in a very long time.
Key Tunes
1. Famous Last Words
2. Disenchanted
3. Dead!
Tunes #10-5 coming later today, and maybe album #2.
Both tunes and albums list will finish tomorrow, January 2nd, 2007!
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 5/9/2003
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nice to Disenchanted #2! It doesn't really get a lot of hate, but hasn't got the the love it deserves.
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Member Since: 9/7/2004
Posts: 3,871
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MCR ^_____^ Great list so far!
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ATRL Administrator
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Haven't heard #5 and #4... I should listen to MCR's some more, I haven't fully appreciated it yet
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
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The top 10 has begun.
Top 100 Tunes of 06 (cont)
10. The Killers - Bones
| Sam's Town |
But I don’t really like you
Apologetically dressed in the best, but on a heartbeat glide.
Without an answer, the thunder speaks for the sky
And on the cold, wet dirt I cry. And on the cold, wet dirt I cry.
Don’t you wanna come with me? Don’t you wanna feel my bones
On your bones, it’s only natural
Despite not quite being the big second hit the band would hope for, "Bones" established itself as a national indie shag anthem in the UK quickly becoming a fan favourite immediately following the release of their sophmore album. The quick wit lyrics, and the "ba ba ba" brass and horns big band background in the chorus help the song acquire a new feeling of catchy and novelty with every subsequent listen. As simple as it is enjoyable, the cheesy production highlights the sexual undertones making this song a perfect way to get into someone's knickers in a humorous, non-perverted manner.
9. AFI - Miss Murder
| Decemberunderground |
The stars that pierce the sky, he left them all behind
We're left to wonder why, he left us all ... behind
Hey Miss Murder can I? Hey Miss Murder can I?
Make beauty stay if I, take my life? (Whoa oh oh)
"Miss Murder" is by far and away one of the guiltiest rock pleasures of 2006. A rather unsuspecting radio station couldn't keep their hands off this track due to it's monstrous catchy power-chord chorus and throbbing vocals. Even though the "goth" elements are turned down and the dose of rock theatrics is revved right the f--- up, even pop radio was able to embrace this one despite removing the entire "screamo" bit at the end. The thing about "Miss Murder" is that it commands your attention, it centres all thoughts and ideas around the song's concept, and the video's dictatorship undertones highlight the song's capability to achieve such authority impressionably.
8. All American Rejects - Move Along
| Move Along |
When all you got to keep is strong
Move along, move along like I know you do
And even when your hope is gone
Move along, move along just to make it through
It seemed like everyone and their dog liked this song. It was that anthemic pop-rock tune that kind of spanned musical tastes and preferences and kind of made it feel good just to like something that was so easy going. The All American Rejects were able to capitolize on people's doubts and insecurities and capture the attention of many with their uplifting and catchy power pop chorus, and an acapella "move along move along" sing along right before the final chorus. This song kind of reminds you why music is so good in the first place and that songs don't need to be complex and difficult to figure out in order to have an impact. In this case, it's the simplest of messages that resonates with an audience. And thats the message of hope.
7. Arctic Monkeys - I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor
| Whatever People Say I Am, That Is What I'm Not |
Oh there ain't no love no,no Montague's or Capulets
Just banging tunes in DJ sets and dirty dancefloors and dreams of naughtiness!
Well, I bet that you look good on the dancefloor
I don't know if you're looking for romance or I don't know what you're looking for
I said I bet you look good on the dancefloor
Dancing to electro-pop like a robot from 1984
Yeah, From 1984!
Arctic Monkeys know what every guy goes through when a stupid spoiled ***** (South Park reference) is truly busting their balls (another SP reference). The Sheffeild lads manifest here a true dancefloor number for the ages. There is no way in hell that this song doesn't get you off your feet when your several beers deep and drinking away thoughts of an ex-flame. The cocky arrogance coincides well with the song's electric opening and follow up chorus, where guitars and drums are used at high volumes to elicit the most ecclectic of audience responses. This song gives new meaning to energy, and hype - boy there was a lot of both those things.
6. Justin Timberlake - SexyBack
| FutureSex / LoveSounds |
Dirty babe, you see these shackles baby I'm your slave
I'll let you with me when I misbehave
It's just that no one makes me feel this way
Take 'em to the chorus
Justin Timberlake put a cap on the return of pop in 2006 as "SexyBack" followed up the already established smashes of "Promiscuous" and "Hips Don't Lie". The multi-faceted Timberlake helped put cool back into the genre, and this lead single off his monstrous sophmore disc was able to transcend gender lines and was just as big a hit with the ladies as it was with the chaps. Even though the merit of the song itself is questionable with it's choppy lyrics and electro driven beat, mastermind production of Timbaland helps make the song work extremely well with the repetetive chorus that oddly enough, doesn't get tired as fast you'd think. His erratic and high pitched vocals make the song even more of a odd but a necessary commodity. It's been said before, but this totally brought sexy back to the clubs, and it made "sexy back" a cultural term. He just hit everything right with this one.
5. Panic! At The Disco - The Only Difference Between Martyrdom & Suicide Is Press Coverage
| A Fever You Can't Sweat Out |
Applause, applause, no wait wait
Dear studio audience, I've an announcement to make:
It seems the artists these days are not who you think
So we'll pick back up on that on another page
And I believe this may call for a proper introduction, and well
Don't you see, I'm the narrator and this is just the prologue
Does anyone else hear the Juicy Fruit jingle in the opening to this song, "sit tight..". Regardless if you do or not, this has always been the standout on the Vegas natives impeccable debut disc. It's innane and top notch songwriting help it stand out above the rest of the disc because the tale is so meticulously choreographed and outlined that it's delivery just seems over the top. Throw in that crazy dance break disco number that mingles with the brilliant "swear to shake it up", and you got a hit boys and girls. I also love that this song completely outlines why Panic! shouldn't be lumped in the unfortunate emo category since their objective as a band is clear; they want to shake up the foundations and conventions of power-pop rock music, and if only more people weren't so narrow minded to take a listen, Panic! would have completely succeeded in making more believers in good music than the 2 million people who have already been swiftfully convinced.
4. Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars
| Eyes Open |
All that I am, all that I ever was
Is here in your perfect eyes, they're all I can see
I don't know where, confused about how as well
Just know that these things will never change for us at all
If I lay here, if I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?
It's a shame that it took the ridiculous show Grey's Anatomy to give this band the deserved exposure they were lacking in the United States and Canada. However, a hit is a hit and "Chasing Cars" is easily the pop-rock anthem of 2006. It has that monumental, simple, and resonating chorus. And remember my bit on how Snow Patrol convey the difficult things in life with relative ease? If i lay here, if i just lay here, would you lie with me and just forget the world - seriously now, who would have ever come up with that if it wasn't for Lightbody and co. Their mellow and contemporary rock stylings woo the ladies and their overall kick-assness as a UK outfit made them initially popular with the chaps, and now they make it 10x easier for us guys to win over the girls who previously wouldn't have given a damn. A much-needed and well deserved hit for these guys.
Tomorrow! #3-1 Tunes, and #2-1 Albums.
Exciting.
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Member Since: 4/30/2002
Posts: 3,522
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uh oh..i see a good top 10 because 2 of those are comin up in my top 10!
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ATRL Administrator
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Member Since: 9/7/2004
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The Killers, AFI, Snow Patrol and the rest ^_________^, Fantastic Top 10!
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Member Since: 9/24/2001
Posts: 4,028
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Niiiice.. Ev at #20, Snow Patrol, Killers, AFI, and Panic ^_^_^_^
Awesome countdown.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 5/9/2003
Posts: 3,779
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panic! so good <3333333 I only put 3 Panic songs on mine cause I didn't wanna completely clog it with them. Matyr and Time To Dance are the most brill songs on the album.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
Posts: 14,726
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You are right. "Time To Dance" was #52 on my year-end last year.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 7/24/2004
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#10-#5 are awesome. I know your top 5 will be great, Roger. =]
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 1/20/2004
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Nice top 10 so far
Bones, Miss Murder, I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor, SexyBack & Chasing Cars ^_______^
I hope When You Were Young is at #1
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Banned
Member Since: 12/29/2002
Posts: 19,803
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oh my god! i usually hate your taste but there's only one horrible song (Arctic Mokeys) in this last set and now i'm really curious about what your top 3 will be
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Member Since: 6/21/2005
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 6/9/2002
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great set, roger!
the top 3 should be dope.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
Posts: 14,726
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Thanks everybody. Alright so I'm gonna do #3-2 tunes, #2 album, and then #1 tune-album together.
Top 100 Tunes of 2006 (almost done)
3. Metric - Poster Of A Girl
| Live It Out |
Satisfy myself, avoid beginners
Who long to shut my mouth, till I take one of them home
'Cause I know how it feels, filling in the blanks
Looking on the bright side, when there is no bright side
******* in your pants, for the off chance
With a poster of a girl
Je déteste dormir sans une présence
Les surprises semblent alléger ma solitude
Alors je ramène quelqu'un dans mon lit, afin de découvrir comment je me sens
Comme un bébé, portrait d'une femme
Affiche d'une fille, portrait d'une femme
The ability of Emily Haines to switch between english and french vocals both convincingly and seeminglessly is what makes "Poster Of A Girl" come across ultra mysterious and f---ing sexy. Bearing in mind that the song is 1/2 french, Metric combine a very sleek underground club sound with pulsating bass and the fantastic guitar driven chorus where "Poster of a Girl" is chanted perfectly. Metric themselves embody the image of very glossy, 50's pin-up, uber-cool types of people, and their music and especially "Poster Of A Girl" reflects that imagery perfectly. It's pretty hard to describe why this song is so amazing - it just is, and there's not much else I can say about it but that if you haven't heard it, do yourself a favor and get on it.
2. Nelly Furtado f/ Timbaland - Promiscuous
| Loose |
T:Wait! I don't mean no harm
I can see you with my t-shirt on
N:I can see you with nothing on
feelin' on me before you bring that on
T: Bring that on?
N: You know what I mean
T:Girl, I’m a freak you shouldn't say those things
N:I’m only trying to get inside of your brain
To see if you can work me the way you say
T:It's okay, it's alright
I got something that you gonna' like
N:Hey is that the truth or are you talking trash
Is your game M.V.P. like Steve Nash
Probably the most unlikely #2 single of the year ever, but in all fairness, this was the song to beat in 2006. The duel between Nelly and Timbaland provided for an original concept that led to the most club sing-along chorus of 2006. This was kind of the first time we ever saw Nelly Furtado in a "hot" way - I remember when people first heard this song and saw the video they were shocked. I mean, the girl was always cute, but now she's a 10/10 smokin hot chick. But back to the song; Furtado finally discovered her ability to command the clubs with the song's hip-shaking and repetetive beats, and the verbal ping pong match that goes on between Nelly and Timbaland that let's both guys and girls alike chime in. There was nothing quite like hearing Promiscuous girl, wherever you are.. in the clubs this year - so she has it, the club banger of 2006, and quite possibly the best club banger of the last few years.
Top 25 Albums of 2006 (almost done)
2. Continuum - Music By John Mayer
Let me first just point out that I really like how this album is represented as "Music by John Mayer". I think it places a very important emphasis on the amount of effort and consideration this fantastic musician puts into every ounce and drop of his work, and that he is truly the real deal. "Continuum" is such a fitting name for the title of this album; after showing impressive growth on "Heavier Things" after a very pop-orientated "Room For Squares", John Mayer's third studio album establishes him as two things; a Grammy staple for as long as he makes music, and a credible rock musician. His simplistic lyrics flow like poetry on this album as they are accompanied by his sincere vocals and incredibly impressive guitar playing ability (probably some of the best instrumental work I heard on an album this year). What makes this album stand tall above the rest of his already impressive resume is his willingness to make bold and mature statements; feelings of agony and angst run wild through "Stop This Train" while emotions run extremely high on songs like "In Repair" and "I'm Gonna Find Another You". It's not to say Mayer's gone all serious on us and that he's reached his peak. Take one listen to one of the album's many standouts, the Hendrix cover "Bold as Love", and it shows that his admiration for the rock legends prove the guy is well aware he can still improve upon his already immense and budding talent. One final note to tackle is the brilliance of "Slow Dancing In A Burning Room". Everyone might think that "Your Body Is A Wonderland" or "Daughters" will always be John Mayers trademark song, but if "Slow Dancing" ever got a release, the music world wouldn't know what hit it. It's simply magic.
Key Tunes
1. Slow Dancing In A Burning Room
2. Bold As Love
3. Stop This Train
4. Belief
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 10/1/2002
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#1 Tune & Album of 2006
#1 Tune: The Killers - Enterlude/ When You Were Young
We hope you enjoy your stay
And it's good to have you with us, even if its just for the day
We hope you enjoy your stay
Outside the sun is shining, seems like heaving isn't far away
And it's good to have you with us, even if its just for the day
(killer piano leads into rocking guitar riff opening)
You sit there in your heartache
Waiting on some beautiful boy to save you from your old ways
You play forgiveness, watch it now, here he comes
He doesn't look a thing like Jesus
But he talks like a gentleman
Like you imagined when you were young
Can we climb this mountain, I don't know
Higher now than ever before
I know we can make it if we take it slow
Let's take it easy, easy now, watch it go
We're burning down the highway skyline
On the back of a hurricane that started turning
When you were young
Along with many others, I have always said that The Killers are the best British band from America. But the super-ego of Branden Flowers seems to completely attest such British band comparisons and wanted to make it suprisingly clear that they were a good ol' American band who drew influences from Big Bruce Springsteen and stadium kings U2. So everyone got a little worried that the one band who never took themselves seriously, were starting to take themselves a little seriously; and the sophmore slump dread became a looming possibility. But the reason why "Hot Fuss" sold 6 million albums worldwide and none of those other "it" bands even came close to that mark is because The Killers have the capability to create choruses and stadium sing-alongs that capture their fans and music listeners alike.
And that's where "When You Were Young" comes in.
On the album "Sam's Town", WYWY follows a stunning "Enterlude" track that establishes a rather clever hotel theme for the album where we are wished an enjoyable stay. The simple piano medley leads perfectly into the rocking tune. Sure the elements of synth-rock are there, albeit a lot less prominent and sleek, but the rock edge has been amped up as the song propagates into it's explosive opening guitar riff before Branden Flowers chimes in completely on cue shifting from his comfortable position of singing about boyfriends from february of last year - to a homegrown native storyteller proud of his Las Vegas heritage and upbringing. Everything "American Dream" is here; las vegas strip, hurricanes, and Jesus not-so look a likes, all of which makes this absolutely amazing return to the music scene a more emotionally and "raw" driven effort from the guys than anything they've ever done before. The good thing about all of this is that The Killers dont lose any of their charisma or likeability, all of their enjoyable elements and personas are still kicking around but now they have grown a serious set of balls and took a big risk by adapting this larger than life, expansive, and big screen approach to their music.
For being one of the biggest "growers" of 2006 and still being one of the most kick ass singles to listen to on any day of the week, When You Were Young is without a doubt the #1 single of 2006.
#1 Album: The Killers - Sam's Town
We've covered the sophmore slump being avoided, and we've covered the ditching of Duran Duran-esque new order and synth influences in favor of the Big Boss homegrown pride and U2 stadium sing along anthems for the ages. Although met with mixed reviews in North America, "Sams Town" seems like it was only fully understood on the International scene where its almost as if people actually listened to the album more than once. This is not "Hot Fuss" where everything is so externally and blatantly coated in catchy beats and lyrics that it becomes instantly appealing. There is a lot more going on in "Sams Town" that it took many people a few listens for it to all finally make sense. It's a grow on you sort of album.
Although people make a lot out of Springsteen influences on the album, they're fairly meek and pretty subtle when you really listen to the album hard. All the Killers have truly done is traded in their pink blazers and eyeliner for a pair of denim chaps and grew some facial hair; big freakin' woop. Brendan Flowers' vocals are still as perfectly suited for the synth-rock genre as they've ever been and they flourish perfectly on soon to be stadium anthems "Read My Mind" and "Bones". There's a lot of David Bowie, Queen, and even Muse on here - check out "For Reasons Unknown" or "Uncle Johnny" and you'll get that instant black & white disco rock sound you know they're trying to get at.
"Sam's Town" is by no means a serious record; the Vegas natives are still fun, enjoyable, and put on one of the best rock shows in town. The lyrics are more daring and adventurous and the choruses seem even larger than life before (albeit not as instantly catchy); but these guys established an album that has at least 5 bonafide smashes; When You Were Young, Read My Mind, Sam's Town, Bones, and Bling. The new approaches they've adapted, as I mentioned before in the #1 single commentary, have not made their previous witty, charismatic personas become absent. "Sams Town" just incoroporates the bigger picture in rock music - and that would explain why the Killers avoided the sophmore slump, and bands like Kasabian and Jet didn't.
Key Tunes - The Essentials
1. Read My Mind
2. Enterlude / When You Were Young
3. Sam's Town
4. Bones
5. Bling (Confessions of a King)
Key Tunes - Still Incredible
6. For Reasons Unknown
7. My List
8. Uncle Johnny
Jack Bauer and I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my tunes and albums chart. It's been fun to post it.
The show's not FULLY over quite yet, I still plan on posting my top 20 best and worst movies of '06. So look out for that.
Thanks again, and have a happy new year.
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Member Since: 4/30/2002
Posts: 3,522
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Great list Rog. The duel between timb and nelly is hotter than the duel on MTV right now! Great #1 choice too...i prob shouldve ranked when you were higher on my countdown
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