I've told the story before, about wanting a drum set for my 12th birthday. My parents ended up instead getting me drum books, sticks, and practice pads. They said if I practiced, they'd think about a kit.

The practice sessions lasted a week. I mean...what kid wants that? I needed to hit the bass drum with my left foot, while smashing a high-hat with the tree trunk in my right hand.

It goes down as the worst gift I've ever received. But their hearts (and ears) were in the right place.

I decided, instead of all these news stories I blog, why not make a list. Lists are fun (unless it's a list the wife leaves you of things to do around the house on Saturday).

I was in the car today and heard the song "Lowrider" by War. I laughed, thinking of a funny bit The Daily Show did a few weeks ago that used it.

I then realized how great that song was percussion wise. Not just the cowbell (which gets way too much love now, thanks to Will Ferrell). But it had so much more going on.

And it made me want to rank my favorite drum songs of all-time.

Here it goes:

LED ZEPPELIN -- Good Times, Bad Times. The first song on the first Zep album. Perhaps the greatest intro ever. Others might choose a song like Moby Dick, which probably has more difficult things to play. That song just doesn't do much for me. The song "Four Sticks" would be second by Zeppelin.

GENE KUPRA -- Sing, Sing, Sing. Why this song wasn't called "drum, drum, drum" is beyond me. This may be the only song that both my grandmother and I loved.

THE SURFARIS -- Wipe Out. This song would also make it on the list of songs with the least vocals. My friend Joe, a drummer, told me he once saw a drummer play this with only one arm (insert your own Def Leppard joke here). So, maybe it's not difficult for drummers to play. But come on, the song rocks! And we're in San Diego. Any surf song you can put on a list, you should.

IRON BUTTERFLY -- In A Gadda Da Vida. Again, it's a San Diego band, so I have to put them on the list. It's the quintessential 60s tune. And, in one of the rare Gary Larson comics that was funny...he drew a picture of an old lady at a drum set with a caption that said something about how when they encouraged Mildred to take up a hobby, learning the drum solo of In A Gadda Da Vida wasn't what they had in mind.

THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE -- Fire. Boy, that Mitch Mitchell could really play. There are probably 10 other songs that he's also amazing on, but I'll stand next to my pick of Fire on this list.

THE DOORS -- Break on Through/When the Music's Over. It was a tie with my favorite band. Break on Through was the first song, on the first album. And starting a song with drumming, and the interesting choice of a bossa nova beat, makes this a great choice from the Summer of Love. But on their second album, things close with When the Music's Over. Densmore punctuates all Morrisons screams and cryptic lyrics perfectly.

THE POLICE -- Message in a Bottle. Stewart Copeland, who was briefly The Doors drummer a few years back. I'm not the biggest Police fan, but he's one of my favorite drummers.

EMERSON, LAKE, AND PALMER -- Karn Evil #9. You don't know the song? Sure you do. You just don't know the title (it's the "welcome back my friends/to the show that never ends/we're so glad you could attend/Come inside, come inside). The only band on this list that has a drummer in the name of the band. Congrats, Carl Palmer. (I always wondered, when they reformed with the late Cozy Powell on drums, did they do that just so they could keep the ELP abbreviation?)

CREAM -- Toad. Again, not my favorite song by the band, but it's showcasing Ginger Baker nicely.

RUSH -- 2112. It was tough picking something from Neil P. The guy is amazing behind the skins (and he's also their main songwriter). This song just barely beat out Tom Sawyer and YYZ.

PAUL SIMON -- 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover. Yeah, I know. Kinda weird putting an acoustic singer/songwriter on the list for drumming, but this drum fill (or whatever the word is for what that dude is playing) was so imaginative and fun. And it did would all drummers should do. It added to the song. Drummers every where sometimes need to learn, that less is more.

EDGAR WINTER -- Frankenstein. I've seen Edgar play parts of the solo in concert (what instrument doesn't he play?). I love the electric drums. They add a nice element.

QUEEN -- Keep Yourself Alive. As a fan of the band since I was a kid, I always loved Roger Taylor's playing.

IGGY POP -- Lust for Life. What a great song, and a great opening to the movie "Trainspotting." The drums on this are played by Soupy Sales son Hunt (who I believe ended up joining his brother and David Bowie in the hard-rock band Tin Man).

THE WHO -- Won't Get Fooled Again. Now this is tough, because I'd take anything Keith Moon did live. He's so much fun to watch, as he stands up to hit symbols, made weird faces, blew stuff up. Although, for keeping a steady beat, I'm sure it drove Townshend mad.

Honorable mention goes to The Steve Miller Band for giving us Swing Town, Soundgarden's Spoonman, ZZ Top's sexy La Grange, and The White Stripes Fell in Love With a Girl.

Not so much for the drumming on that track, but because Meg White probably never makes it on any drum lists. And she just got married. It's my wedding gift to her.