Countdown: Women Who Rock - #4, Courtney Love

#4 - Courtney Love

of Hole

Courtney Love claimed today that she had sex with Kate Moss sometime in the 90s. Two weeks ago she told Howard Stern that she had an affair with former Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale, husband of Gwen Stefani. She's lost and regained custody of daughter Frances Bean enough times that most people have stopped counting. At one time she was the most hated woman in music since Yoko Ono. These days it would appear that she's the most pitied, as the world watches her desperately try to cling to whatever lingering threads of fame she has left. Public feuds have dominated her life in the past decade, notably with Billy Corgan, Dave Grohl, Fred Durst and current enemy numero uno, Twitter.

Pissing all over Kurt Cobain's legacy would appear to be one of her favourite hobbies. Love made a neat $50 million in 2006 when she carelessly sold a quarter of Nirvana's publishing catalogue, much to the disgust of Dave Grohl. She allowed her daughter to have a suicide themed party for her 16th birthday. I will repeat that, she allowed her daughter, KURT COBAIN'S DAUGHTER, to have a suicide themed party for her 16th birthday. Apparently one of the games at the party was who can look the most dead. You stay classy Frances Bean. Stints in rehab are almost like a yearly vacation for Love, oops sorry Michelle, that's Courtney Michelle. Because that Courtney Love part of her life is just over. No, wait. She wants to be called Courtney Love again.

I could go on for quite some time about everything that's wrong with Courtney's life but that's not the point of this countdown is it. This countdown is celebrating 20 of the most amazing women who rock. Women who captivate us with their attitude, style, music and passion for it. Take away all of the crap that Courtney Love has become associated with other than her music and it should be quite easy to see that she belongs here. A talented songwriter and musician with kick ass vocals made her one of the most amazing women to ever front a band. That band of course, was Hole.

Hole released three studio album throughout the 90s, Pretty on the Inside, Live Through This and Celebrity Skin. Last month, Nobody's Daughter was released with Love the last original member still standing. All four albums offer a different sound and have been received positively, with only Nobody's Daughter attracting some major critical reviews. Live Through This, released only days after Cobain's suicide, is the standout album of the bunch. It's pure 90s rock, combining elements of grunge with pop. Celebrity Skin contained more of a pop rock sound and went on the become the bands most commercially successful album. Love would release a solo, America's Sweetheart, a commercial and critical failure. Lead single 'Mono' was pretty amazing though.

Love won a legion of fans with her crazy onstage antics and don't give a flying f*** attitude. She spent most of the 1999 Big Day Out flashing the crowd and taunting co-headliner Marilyn Manson and everyone loved her for it. 'Celebrity Skin' would place at #4 on the 1999 JJJ Hottest 100. Courtney was even a critically acclaimed actress for awhile, with her role in The People vs. Larry Flynt garnering her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In the late 90s everything seemed so promising for Courtney Love. The first decade of the 2000s saw her undo everything and her reputation now lies in tatters. Let's hope she spends the next decade rebuilding it to its former glory.

Fun Fact: Rolling Stone named her the most controversial women in the history of music.

Key Tracks: 'Teenage Whore' (Pretty on the Inside), 'Violet,' 'Miss World,' 'Doll Parts,' 'Jennifer's Body' and 'I Think That I Would Die' (Live Through This), 'Celebrity Skin,' 'Malibu,' 'Awful,' 'Hit So Hard' and 'Playing Your Song' (Celebrity Skin), 'Mono,' 'Hold On To Me' and 'Never Gonna Be the Same' (America's Sweetheart), 'Skinny Little Bitch' and 'Samantha' (Nobody's Daughter).