Why It Matters

Oh, don’t give me that look.  I’m not the only one here who has stolen something.  You didn’t tell that waiter he forgot to add your cheesecake to the bill, or you slipped into a second movie on a single ticket.  You’ve gambled on an expired parking meter, didn’t ‘fess up when you were handed a grande rather than a tall, and let your younger looking child order off the kid’s menu.  You’ve stolen hearts, glances, jokes.  It’s just a simple fact:  When you want something, man, you don’t wanna pay for it.

Musicians understand.  Thievery is a common theme in rock and roll, an art form built on stolen riffs.  Here are some deep cuts about stealing:

“Rhymin and Stealin,” The Beastie Boys.  From their worst album, which of course is their best-selling album.  Go figure.

“Steal Away,” Guitar Slim, Jr.  This is a pure YouTube find.  I was looking for a version of Zappa’s “Steal Away” and stumbled across this nugget.

“Stealing Fat,” The Dust Brothers.  First rule of stealing fat?  Yeah, you know the punchline already.

“Stealin’ Time,” Gerry Rafferty.  City To City was one of Hal the Drummer’s favorite albums when we were kids.  Not the best cut on the album, but not bad.

“Steal Away the Night,” Ozzy Osbourne.  The vocal sounds canned, but the performance is from the immediately post-Randy Rhoads line-up featuring Brad Gillis and Rudy Sarzo.

“Whacko Jacko Steals the Elephant Man’s Bones,” Fall Of Troy. Best title ever?

“Stolen Prayer,” Alice Cooper.  Alice stealing some grunge mojo courtesy of Chris Cornell.

“I Stole Your Love,” KISS.  Forget your deep-seated KISS hatred for a moment and listen to that riff.  That’s a tasty as they come, and Liza knocks out a pretty sweet vocal here, too.  This footage is from 1977, the year that KISS peaked.  Come on!

***Bonus Evil Earworm***