Hello Jettheads! I’ve been making you wait long enough… Here’s #35 to #26 in the top 55 best “non-I Love Rock ‘N Roll” Joan Jett songs of all time, as voted on by you!

#35 Little Liar

I’m sure this song, and “Do You Wanna Touch Me”, would have ranked higher if we had more voters. “Little Liar” was a huge hit for The Blackhearts, and the fans are deliriously happy to have it back in the live set.

Joan did not like the original concept version of this video, so they shot a performance video to replace it. The concept version gave us Joan in white leather, and the performance version gave us Joan in red leather, so I really can’t pick a clear winner. 🙂 Here’s both, and if you get a chance, look up one of their recent live performances on YouTube. Stunning.

Original version: Watch on YouTube
Performance version: Watch on YouTube

#34 Oh Woe Is Me

When I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll was first released in November 1981, the last track was “Little Drummer Boy.” Joan and Kenny knew a Christmas song would only make sense for a short period of time, so later copies of the album contained “Oh Woe Is Me” in its place. Check out this live performance from 1980:

Watch on YouTube

#33 Roadrunner

It feels like Joan did about 1,000 different versions of this cover tune by The Modern Lovers, each featuring a different city, but there were only 48 (source). I’ve heard two: the New York version on Good Music, and “Roadrunner USA” on The Hit List. What versions have you heard? Here’s the Good Music version:

Watch on YouTube

#32 Secret Love

Classic Blackhearts–catchy tune, open lyrics, simple concept. From 1983’s Album.

Watch on YouTube

#31 Someday

I think this may be the mother of all F-U songs. NO ONE knows how to tell someone where to go better than Joan–and she always backs it up with a killer riff. Dig it: “Listen to me, you son of a bitch…”

Watch on YouTube

#30 Spinster

Another killer F-U song, bled straight from the Riot Grrrl vein on 1994’s Pure and Simple. Here are The Blackhearts performing it live for a National Organization for Women rally in 1995–as broadcast by C-SPAN!

Watch on YouTube

#29 Teenage Sex Machine

Where the heck did this one come from? 🙂 The Blackhearts performed this one live in the early ’80s, but to my knowledge, a recorded version has never been released. Am I right?

Watch on YouTube

#28 Torture

It feels like we’ve put all of Pure and Simple on this list, but I promise you, that album has more gems than we touch on here. Before “Fetish,” we had “Torture.” These lyrics just suck me in.

Watch on YouTube

#27 Victim of Circumstance

Many veteran Jettheads remember when this song used to be a staple in The Blackhearts’ live shows, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard it live. Another Jett/Laguna gem, from I Love Rock ‘N Roll.

Watch on YouTube

#26 Wait for Me

Joan wrote this in The Runaways, and they recorded it on 1977’s Waiting for the Night. The Blackhearts re-recorded it for 1991’s Notorious, and it’s a bonus track on the reissue of Album. LOVE the screaming at the end, in both bands’ versions. Pure, raw, power.

Watch on YouTube

♥

Stay tuned for part 4!

Part 1: #55 through #46
Part 2: #45 through #36

(A reminder of how I am handling ties: All songs with the same number of votes are listed alphabetically in that group. I wanted to give each song its moment in the sun.)