The Top Ten Best Songs by Ryan Star

If you watched the last season of Rockstar: Supernova, I’m sure you ‘re familiar with Ryan Star, also known as The Dark Horse of the competition, as he was dubbed by Dave Navarro.  But what some people might not know is that Ryan, who has also gone by the names R. Star and Ryan Stahr, has a large catalogue of music recorded prior to the show.  He released an album on Maverick records with his band Stage, and also released his solo debut Songs from the Eye of the Elephant on his own record label, Stone Crow Records.  His music is some of the best music I have heard in years.  These are my favorites, from both his solo album and his band.

10. I Don’t Know (Stage)
This is a very folky tune with an emphasis on it’s lyrics.  To me, it sounds like almost like a poem set to music.  It sounds as if he’s dead and he’s looking down at his loved ones.  It’s a unique concept for a song, one that I’m surprised more songwriters don’t use. They lyrics are great, and the phrasing and rhyming fit perfectly.

9. The One You Know (SFTEOTE)
Ryan’s songs are what I call “quotable” meaning you’re motivated to type a line or two on your MySpace page, or in your MSN display name, which is credit to his exceptional lyrical skills.  This song is no exception, I especially like the line “the fire is a feeling, the more you turn away”.  The One You Know has a totally different sound and feel from the other songs on Ryan Star’s solo album and the album with his band.  It is played with a full band, instead of being piano driven like most of his solo music.  And it has this really unique groove and a very sexy sound to it that is just addicting.