5 Songs to Get You Through the Week #77

5 Songs to Get You Through the Week is a feature I run on Young Ears, Fresh Perspective on Sundays/early hours of Monday morning where I pick out 5 tunes that I think are notable and tell you a bit about them. The point is to give you some rocking music to help you deal with your weekday blues. You can either listen to one each day, listen to them all at once, or any other combination that you feel. As long as you can get through the week without the man getting you down, that's all I care about. Without further ado, here are the 5 tracks I've picked out for this week:

1. Thundering Voices, by Rival Sons

Californian British blues infused rockers Rival Sons just put out a new album called Hollow Bones a couple of days ago! The whole thing sounds pretty big and rumbling and this track is no exception. This song has those big fuzzy catchy riffs that many have come to associate Rival Sons with. It actually does have a rather noticeable Led Zeppelin vibe in certain places, but overall it's still very much it's own thing. You really ought to check it out. It's a unique new rock n' roll experience that you haven't heard on the radio hundreds of times yet.

2. Crying in the Rain (1987), by Whitesnake

This is a redo of a song Whitesnake recorded on their 1982 album Saints & Sinners, but this time around with John Sykes on guitar it has a much bigger, crunchier, heavy metal feel to it while still keeping the bluesy soul of it alive. The guitar solo is also one of the best things on the Whitesnake/1987 album. It's like a whole song in itself. If you're covering it and you don't play it note for note then you aren't really doing the song justice. That said, if you have a broken heart and you want to weep and moan, then this is right up your alley.

3. Lit Up, by Buckcherry

This is the defining Buckcherry song. It's the first song of the first album, and right from the get-go you know exactly what kind of band this is. It's all sex, drugs, and rock and roll. This is straight up no frills attached rock n' roll with serious attitude. The guitars punch, the vocals are powerful, and the rhythm just pounds the ever living crap out of you in all the best ways possible. There is no real lyrical depth to it, but let's face it. That's not why you listen to Buckcherry. You crank them up just to rock out. This song helps you do just that.

4. Knockin' on Heaven's Door, by Bob Dylan

This is probably American singer-songwriting legend Bob Dylan's most iconic tune. Also the simplest too. Despite the fact that throughout the song it's just the same four chords played over and over again it has a heavy impact and unlike the previous song on this list has some profound lyrical meaning to it. It's rather haunting if you put on some headphones and just let yourself get caught up in the ambience of it. Definitely for those of you who are interested in a good ballad that in some ways really did change the songwriting game.

5. Now Mary, by The White Stripes

I like that while this is very much a rock song, it has some flavors of country thrown into it. It's a very nice balance of the two genres. It's one of those tunes you can just let yourself sway and move to one moment while the next you're banging your head for a bit. You wouldn't think that such a thing could work, but it actually flows along quite nicely. The only thing I DON'T like about the song is the fact that it clocks in at only 1:46. Another verse, chorus, or both would have done quite nicely. Regardless, it's still some fine music.