While mainstream rock has its pantheon (from the Beatles on down), alternative rock has a set of heroes all its own. And even the shortest list of alterna-rock heroes includes the Replacements. The Minneapolis group featuring singer, songwriter and guitarist Paul Westerberg started out as a hardcore punk outfit, but over time the group bridged the gap between its shamobolic, high-energy approach and the more tuneful side of its artistry.<\/p>\n
Tasked with putting together a five-best list, the most dedicated \u2018Mats fans might cite tracks from the group’s earliest releases. But a rundown of the Replacements\u2019 most enduring and accessible songs \u2013 the tunes that helped expand the audience for alternative rock \u2013 might well include the songs enumerated below. On the 40th anniversary of the release of the band\u2019s provocatively-titled breakthrough album Let it Be, here are five great Replacements tunes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI Will Dare\u201d from Let it Be<\/em> (1984)<\/strong>
\nAfter a pair of great (if modestly-selling) albums \u2013 1981\u2019s Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash<\/em> and 1983\u2019s Hootenanny<\/em> \u2013 the Replacements released their final album on Minneapolis\u2019 Twin\/Tone Records. Playfully named after the Beatles\u2019 final LP, Let it Be<\/em> displayed the group\u2019s creative growth, a development made without sacrificing the qualities that made the \u2018Mats great to begin with. As testimony to the enduring appeal of the album\u2019s standout cut \u201cI Will Dare,\u201d the track was featured on the soundtrack of Guardians of the Galaxy 3<\/em>.<\/p>\n