The story
of the All-American Rejects
begins in the sleepy town
of Stillwater, Oklahoma,
where a couple of kids named
Tyson Ritter (vocals/bass)
and Nick Wheeler (guitars/programming)
bonded over their mutual
love of catchy melodies
and monster guitar licks.
Flash forward to 2005: Tyson
and Nick, aided and abetted
by Mike Kennerty (guitar)
and Chris Gaylor (drums),
are making a splash with
their Interscope Records
debut, Move Along.
So what does a bored kid
from Oklahoma with a guitar
and a Walkman grow up listening
to? Nick gave us a pretty
good idea with this 15-song
mixtape.
1. Def Leppard - "Promises"
- "This is the perfect
song: perfect guitar riff,
perfect melody, perfect
backing vocals in the choruses...it's
perfect!"
2. Bon Jovi - "Born
To Be My Baby" - "This
is the best chorus ever
written! And the best use
of the 'Na Nas'!"
3. Thin Lizzy - "Jailbreak"
- "Great riff to soundcheck
with...I always do!"
4. Poison - "Fallen
Angel" - "Another
great guitar riff, followed
by a mouth-solo-worthy,
90210-esque lead!"
5. Huey Lewis & The
News - "Stuck With
You" - "Proving
my theory once again that
a triplet feel will give
you a hit song every time.
His other major hits are
in 6/8...don't even get
me started! Anyway...this
is the song I remember hearing
in the car when I was little,
and I still can't get it
out of my head!"
6. Afghan Whigs "66"
- "This is a beautiful
song that only this voice
can pull off. Reminds me
of the now-defunkt college
radio station in Stillwater,
OK."
7. Rod Stewart - "Every
Picture Tells A Story"
- "One of the jukebox
songs I played every single
night at the Righteous Room
in Atlanta after the long
days of pre-production for
our new record. The only
thing that could make this
gem any better would be
a little mandolin!"
8. Tesla - "Caught
In A Dream" - "I'm
a big fan of Five Man Acoustical
Jam so you can imagine my
excitement when I heard
Tesla was putting out a
new album! This song is
the perfect mix of The Black
Crowes and Aerosmith. And
of course that classic Tesla-ish
stuff, too!"
9. Genesis - "No Son
Of Mine" - "I
love this song. I used to
call the radio station and
request it, wait hours for
it to come on, and tape
it on my AM/FM Cassette
Walkman. Stealing music
has sure come a long way,
hasn't it?!"
10. Journey - "Don't
Stop Believin'" - "It's
pretty rediculous how good
this song makes you feel!
Even if you hate Journey,
or Steve Perry, or goofy
lookin' keyboard players,
or corporate rock in general
(which I don't), this song
is one of the best!"
11. The Nixons - "Happy
Song" - "Check
out these guys from Oklahoma!"
12. Butch Walker - "My
Way" - "This is
a great song to wake with
to and start your day!"
13. The Outfield - "Your
Love" - "Just
a good frickin' song to
sing along with!"
14. Queen - "Somebody
To Love" - "This
is probably one of my favorite
Queen songs, and being as
I just got their crest immortalized
on my body in tattoo form,
I felt they definitely had
to be on my list. (This
song is in 6/8 time...and
of course it's great!)"
15. Tears For Fears - "Everybody
Wants To Rule The World"
- "Also in 6/8, and
very Huey Lewis & The
News-esque might I add,
this is great song with
a great hook, and a synth
pan flute! Good for driving,
too."
