Otis Redding, "Love Have Mercy"
Man, Otis was really a force of nature.
The Presidents of the United States of America, "Froggie"
This insistent fever dream of a tune is an excellent example of why the Presidents were so much fun. It keeps barreling forward with on its rhythm section, and the lyrics don't make any sense at all, but it takes those elements and transforms its nonsense into...not sense, but into something that rhymes with sense. It's weird, but not for the sake of being weird. It's weird because that's how weird it needed to be to tell the story of a frog ruined by rock stardom. No weirdness is wasted.
Helmet, "Taken"
Before Strap It On set the world on fire (relatively speaking) and Helmet found themselves in a major label bidding war, they released the "Born Annoying" single. And it totally rules, a worthy companion to their debut record. This single, that album, and a Peel session single were all Helmet produced before setting off into the big leagues, but I love all their Amphetamine Reptile releases.
The Coup, "Hip 2 tha Skeme"
One of the (many) ways the Coup stood out is that their authorial voice was relentlessly focused on the reality of not being part of the ruling class in America. The storytelling was always focused on the struggle of regular people, and was vividly filled with details that brought it all home.
Andrew W.K., "Party Hard"
Andrew W.K. has a very good bit, I enjoy this album occasionally, but it does wear me out pretty quickly. A little bit goes a long way.