420, 24/7: Top 10 Joints for Your Listening Pleasure

No, your internet connection is not slower than usual today.

Today is the annual non-holiday, but perhaps future holiday (hey, beer drinkers have Super Bowl Sunday, right?) of 4/20, the national smoke-a-ton-and-get-blasted day.

Without work in the way, there’s a good chance that you are strictly looking to zone out for a few hours, and I have got just the 4/20 soundtrack to help keep you company.

Cypress Hill, “Hits From the Bong”

The Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacherman” sample that drives this joint almost gives it the air of spirituality, but who are we kidding — it’s just an ode to medicine, right?

Peter Tosh, “Legalize It”

Thank you, Peter Tosh, for giving me the right words to sing to my parents while causing a ruckus when I was living at home.

Bob Dylan, “Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35”

This one makes the list if not for the ambiguous lyrics, then for the fact that is sounds like a damn stoner party in the studio. From the lazy harmonica to the at-times off-beat horns, it wins.

Devin the Dude, “Doobie Ashtray”

If there was a genre of music called marijuana blues (there should be!), then this masterpiece would be the exemplary specimen.

Rick James, “Mary Jane”

As if this song couldn’t get any tighter, Redman even spit over it for the timeless ‘Smoke Buddha.’ Back up, back up, ain’t nobody hitting for free.

Louis Armstrong, “Muggles”

Way back in the day, before pot was even illegal in this country, it had a bunch of other crazy nicknames, among them muggles, the name of this Armstrong instrumental with pianist Earl “Fatha” Hines.

Black Uhuru, “Sinsemilla”

In Spanish, sinsemilla means “without seeds.” And if you know anything about smoking, you know that means that you don’t want no seeds in that bud. To this day, Jamaicans refer to quality herb as sinsemilla, a throwback to the lingo they picked up while the island was briefly ruled by the Spanish. This is one of the all time reggae odes to the leaf.

Three Six Mafia, “Where’s da bud?”

Years before the Mafia Six were known for giving themselves props for winning an Academy Award, they made weed anthems like this over DJ Paul’s signature dark piano loops.

The Toyes, “Smoke Two Joints”

You know that Sublime song that you played that made you feel so rebellious back in the day? Yep, that was a cover. This original version has all the goodies from that version, and even a few extra lines to confuse your karaoke session.

Black Sabbath, “Sweet Leaf”

A few decades before he became America’s favorite brain dead transplant dad, Ozzy Osbourne actually made music. Starting with lead guitarist Tony Iommi’s cough after he took a toke off a joint, the song released into a heavy, all-out dedication to the sweet ganja plant. “Straight people don’t know, what you’re about/They put you down and shut you out/You gave to me a new belief and soon the world will love you sweet leaf,” Osbourne sings at the end.

Daniel Rivero is a producer/reporter for Fusion who focuses on police and justice issues. He also skateboards, does a bunch of arts related things on his off time, and likes Cuban coffee.