THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

10-Beatles-A Day in the Life.

1967-It has never been released as a single in the UK.

Best Bit-At 2.16. As I have stated previously, regardless of whether a song was written by either John Lennon, (Strawberry Fields Forever) or Paul McCartney, (Yesterday) they were contractually obliged to share the writing credit ‘Lennon/McCartney,’ but on this song they both really did have input.

‘A Day in the Life’ is the last of the 13 tracks on the Beatles (see also best songs 599-456-319-238-218-141-80-51 and 5) eighth studio Album ‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ from May 1967, the song and the Album were produced by the Beatles long term collaborator George Martin (1926-2016.) The personnel who played on ‘A Day in the Life’ were John Lennon, (lead vocal, and acoustic guitar) Paul McCartney, (lead vocal, piano, and bass guitar) George Harrison, (1943-2001) (see also best songs 737 and 726) (maracas) and Ringo Starr (drums, and congas.) Also playing on the song was George Martin, (harmonium) the Beatles road manager Mal Evans, (1935-1976) and a 40 piece orchestra.

The initial inspiration for ‘A Day in the Life’ came from John Lennon, (1940-1980) (see also best songs 927-473-456-168 and 20) after he had been reading two separate articles in the British newspaper the ‘Daily Mail’ on January 17th, 1967. One of the articles was a report about the Irish socialite and heir to the ‘Guinness’ fortune Tara Browne, (1945-1966) who Lennon had previously met, and had just been killed after recklessly driving his Lotus car through traffic lights into a stationary van, this is the subject that forms the first two verses of the song. The fifth and final verse was inspired by the headline ‘The holes in our roads,’ which told of how the ‘Blackburn Road Surveyor’ had counted 4,000 holes in the roads of Blackburn, in Lancashire, England. Lennon sarcastically tells us that they now know how many holes it takes to fill the ‘Albert Hall.’ Verse three also written by Lennon is about the unhappy experience he had while filming for his role in ‘How I Won the War,’ between September and October 1966, while all four Beatles were on hiatus.

It was Paul McCartney (see also best songs 646 and 107) who provided verse four. Lennon had nothing for the middle part of the song, and McCartney had lyrics written (‘Woke up, fell out of bed’) but no complete song to put them to. McCartney’s lyrics are a recollection of his younger years in Liverpool, which included riding on the number 82 bus to school, smoking, and going to class. McCartney also provided the line ‘I’d love to turn you on,’ which concludes two of the verses, McCartney has said,’This was the time of Tim Leary’s (1920-1996) ‘Turn on, tune in, drop out,’ and we wrote, ‘I’d love to turn you on.’ John and I gave each other a knowing look: ‘Uh-huh, it’s a drug song. You know that, don’t you?’ Prior to the recording of the ‘Sgt. Pepper’s’ Album, McCartney was the only member of the Beatles who wasn’t using the drug ‘LSD,’ but after being introduced to it he claimed that he and Lennon were working together as a team better than ever. George Martin commented that he had always suspected that the line ‘Found my way upstairs and had a smoke’ was a drug reference, recalling how the Beatles would ‘disappear and have a little puff’, presumably of marijuana, but not in front of him.

The idea of using a 40 piece orchestra was also the idea of Paul McCartney, initially he had asked for a 90 piece orchestra but that proved logistically impossible. The orchestra part was recorded on February 10th, 1967, in Studio One, at EMI Studios at a cost of £367, which in the 2020’s is equivalent to over £7,000. George Martin and Paul McCartney conducted the orchestra who were told to attend the session dressed formally. When they got there, they were presented with party novelties, such as false noses, party hats, and gorilla-paw gloves to wear, as the idea was to record the session for a future documentary, which never came about, although parts of the session were added to the songs promotional video.

‘Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head. Found my way downstairs and drank a cup, and looking up, I noticed I was late. Found my coat and grabbed my hat, made the bus in seconds flat.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

11-Donna Summer-I Feel Love.

1977-Number 1 single. In 1982 the Patrick Cowley remix reached Number 21, and in 1995 following the song being remixed by Rollo & Sister Bliss, it once again charted, this time making Number 8.

Best Bit-At 0.10. Even at the age of 16 with a very limited knowledge of Pop Music, I knew on first listen, I was hearing something that had never been done before, and was ground breaking. It appears I was in good company as according to David Bowie who at that time was in Germany recording his ‘Berlin Trilogy,’ his collaborator Brian Eno came running in and said,’I have heard the sound of the future,’ he puts on ‘I Feel Love.’ He said,’This is it, look no further, this single is going to change the sound of club music for the next 15 years.

Donna Summer (see also best songs 78) was born LaDonna Adrian Gaines on December 31st, 1948, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, she died from lung cancer on May 17th, 2012, at the age of 63. It was predominantly this song that went a long way to earning her the honorific title of the ‘Queen of Disco.’ The discography of Donna Summer includes 17 studio Albums released between 1974-2008, and 89 singles issued between 1968-2020. In America on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart she has achieved 20 top 40 hits, with four of those songs making Number 1, while in the UK she has charted in the top 40 on 17 occasions, with this song being her only chart topper.

‘I Feel Love’ was co-written by Donna Summer, Giorgio Moroder, and Pete Bellotte, with the production by Moroder and Bellotte. ‘I Feel Love’ was the second of five singles released from Donna Summer’s fifth studio Album ‘I Remember Yesterday’ from May 1977. The Album was a concept Album, with each track meant to evoke the sound of a different decade, for example ‘I Remember Yesterday,’ represented the ‘Swing’ of the 1940’s. and ‘Love’s Unkind’ was the sound of a 1960’s girl group. Moroder and Bellotte also wanted to create a track that would supposedly represent the future of ‘Disco’ music to close the Album, and that was how ‘I Feel Love’ came about.

Before ‘I Feel Love’ most ‘Disco’ music was played by orchestras, but Giorgio Moroder who had been experimenting with Synthesizers for years borrowed a ‘Moog Modular 3P’ from the Classical composer Eberhard Schoener, aided by Schoener’s assistant Robby Wedel, and together they would create something unique for it’s time. It is impossible to state the importance of this song, as it has gone on to influence many genres including ‘House Music,’ Electronic Dance Music,’Techno,’ ‘Trance,’ and ‘New Wave.’ One of the songs co-writers Pete Bellotte has said,’We used a Moog synthesizer to give the song this futuristic feel, and discovered a new way to layer level upon level of sound on to the track in perfect sync. We had no idea it was going to sound so special. Donna was one of those phenomenal one-take artists, she could just come in, sing the song and go. She was always spot on.’

Giovanni Giorgio Moroder was born on April 26th, 1940, in Urtijei, South Tyrol, Kingdom of Italy, due to his work in the field of Electronic Dance Music’ he is known as the ‘Father of Disco.’ Moroder has released 16 solo studio Albums between 1969-2015, and 41 singles between 1965-2016, he is also the co-composer or co-producer of 11 soundtrack Albums including ‘American Gigolo,’ (1980) and ‘Flashdance’ (1983.) Giorgio Moroder is also the writer, or co-writer of three UK Number 1 singles, ‘Chickory Tip’ ‘Son of My Father’ in 1972, ‘Blondie’ with ‘Call Me’ in 1980, and ‘Berlin’ with ‘Take my Breath Away’ from 1986, of which Moroder has stated is the song he is most proud of.

Also well worth mentioning is the Patrick Cowley remix of ‘I Feel Love.’ Patrick Cowley was born on October 19th, 1950, in Buffalo, New York, United States, he was an early victim of AIDS, and died on November 12th, 1982 at the age of 32. In 1978 Cowley created a 15.43 remix of ‘I Feel Love’ which became an ‘underground classic,’ and a collectors item, until receiving an official release in 1982. Along with Giorgio Moroder, Cowley is recognised as a pioneer of Electronic Dance Music, he also worked closely with the American singer/songwriter Sylvester (1947-1988) (see also best songs 162.)

‘Ooh it’s so good, it’s so good it’s so good, it’s so good, it’s so good. Ooh I’m in love, I’m in love, I’m in love, I’m in love, I’m in love.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

12-Lynyrd Skynyrd-Free Bird.

1973-In the UK the song didn’t chart until 1979, when reaching Number 43. It charted again in 1982, this time peaking at Number 21.

Best Bit-At 4.43. Whenever Lynyrd Skynyrd performed this song live it would end up becoming a ‘jam’ that would go on forever and ever. It has become a humorous tradition for audience members at any type of concerts that they are attending to shout ‘Play Free Bird,’ so next time you’re at the latest ‘Westlife’ re-union, and someone shouts out ‘Free Bird,’ you’ll know why.

Lynyrd Skynyrd (see also best songs 204) were formed in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, in 1964, starting out life as ‘My Backyard,’ before becoming ‘The Nobel Five,’ then ‘One Percent,’ before finally settling on ‘Lynyrd Skynyrd’ in 1970. The name was chosen in part a reference to a character named ‘Leonard Skinner’ in Allan Sherman’s novelty song ‘Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh,’ (1963) and in part a mocking tribute to their P.E. teacher Leonard Skinner (1933-2010) at Robert E. Lee High School, where some of the bands members had attended. Skinner was notorious for strictly enforcing the school’s policy against boys having long hair. On October 20th, 1977, a chartered airplane carrying the band and their roadies crashed after running out of fuel, killing band members Ronnie Van Zant, (1948-1977) and Steve Gaines, (1949-1977) along with backup singer Cassie Gaines, (1948-1977) who was Steve’s older sister. Three others were also killed including the pilot, with everyone else on board suffering serious injuries. Lynyrd Skynyrd reformed in 1987, with five members of the pre crash band, now being led by Ronnie Van Zant’s younger brother Johnny, who took over as lead singer, and chief songwriter. At the time of writing Lynyrd Skynyrd remain active with only Gary Rossington being the bands one constant. The discography of Lynyrd Skynyrd includes 14 studio Albums released between 1973-2012, and 30 singles issued between 1973-2020, in America they have sold in excess of 28 million Albums.

‘Free Bird’ was the second of two singles released from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s debut studio Album ‘(Pronounced ‘Leh-nerd ‘Skin-nerd’) from August 1973, and was written by band members Allen Collins, (1952-1990) and Ronnie Van Zant, the song and the Album were produced by Al Kooper. Kooper was born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt on February 5th, 1944, in Brooklyn, New York, United States, he was a co-founder of the American Jazz/Rock band ‘Blood, Sweat & Tears,’ and has also released 11 solo studio Albums between 1969-2008. Kooper has also played on numerous tracks for dozens of different artists including playing the Hammond organ on Bob Dylan’s ‘Like a Rolling Stone,’ (1965) (see also best songs 7) and the piano, French horn, and organ on The Rolling Stones ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want'(1969.)

‘Free Bird’ has three guitarists all dueling with each other on the studio version for the final four minutes of the song, they were the band members Allen Collins, Gary Rossington, and Ed King (1949-2018.) It was Collins who had been working on the song for over two years who accidently fell upon the tracks opening line, after his girlfriend Kathy (later his wife) asked him,’If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?’ Ronnie Van Zant thought the song had too many chords to write lyrics for, about which Gary Rossington has commented,’But after a few months, we were sitting around, and he asked Allen (Collins) to play those chords again. After about 20 minutes, Ronnie started singing, ‘If I leave here tomorrow,’ and it fit great. It wasn’t anything heavy, just a love song about leavin’ town, time to move on. Al (Kooper) put the organ on the front, which was a very good idea. He also helped me get the sound of the delayed slide guitar that I play, it’s actually me playing the same thing twice, recording one on top of the other, so it sounds kind of slurry, echoey.’

‘Free Bird’ is a song about a man explaining to his girlfriend why he can’t settle down and make a commitment. Ronnie Van Zant has said that the song is ‘What it means to be free, in that a bird can fly wherever he wants to go. Everyone wants to be free, that’s what this country’s all about.’

‘If I stay here with you, girl things just couldn’t be the same. ‘Cause I’m as free as a bird now, and this bird you cannot change. Oh, oh, oh, oh, and the bird you cannot change, and this bird, you cannot change.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

13-Neil Diamond-Sweet Caroline (Good Times Never Seemed So Good.)

1969-It did not chart in the UK until 1971, when reaching Number 8. In 2021 the song re-entered the chart and this time made Number 20.

Best Bit-At 1.03.Forget ‘We Will Rock You,’ We are the Champions,’ Three Lions, or ‘Eye of the Tiger,’ when attending a sporting event around the world, this is the anthem you are most likely to hear.

Neil Leslie Diamond (see also best songs 536 and 426) was born on January 24th, 1941, in New York City, United States, in January 2018 he announced that he would stop touring after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, but he would continue to make music in the studio. Neil Diamond had his first chart success as a solo artist in 1966 when ‘Cherry Cherry’ reached Number 6 on Billboard in America, and this was followed later the same year when his song ‘I’m a Believer’ made Number 1 on both sides of the Atlantic when recorded by the ‘Monkees’ (see also best songs 121.) The discography of Neil Diamond includes 32 studio Albums released between 1966-2020, and 94 singles issued between 1962-2016, there are also 35 official compilation Albums, eight live Albums and two Soundtrack Albums that have been released, for further reading see best songs 536.

‘Sweet Caroline’ was written by Neil Diamond, who also co-produced the song along with Tommy Cogbill, (1932-1982) and Tom Catalano, and was released as a stand alone single, and first appeared on an Album in 1970, as track 2 on side 2 of Diamond’s first live Album ‘Gold.’ Neil Diamond is well known for teasing interviewers as to what his songs are about.Reading between the lines Diamond appears to have taken inspiration for the songs title after seeing a magazine cover photo of President John F. Kennedy’s (1917-1963) daughter Caroline as a young child on a horse, with her parents. Diamond has said,’It was a picture of a little girl dressed to the nines in her riding gear, next to her pony. It was such an innocent, wonderful picture, I immediately felt there was a song in there.’ In 2007, Neil Diamond performed the song via satellite at Caroline Kennedy’s 50th birthday party, and said that the song was about her. He told the media, ‘I’ve never discussed it with anybody before intentionally, I thought maybe I would tell it to Caroline when I met her someday. I’m happy to have gotten it off my chest and to have expressed it to Caroline. I thought she might be embarrassed, but she seemed to be struck by it and really, really happy,’ but then in 2014 Diamond said that the song was about his then wife Marcia, but he needed a three syllable name to fit it’s melody.

Neil Diamond has said that ‘Sweet Caroline’ was one of the fastest songs he ever recorded, he was due in the studio the next day for a three hour session but he only had two songs to record, so the night before in his hotel room he quickly wrote ‘Sweet Caroline.’ The song has many cover versions but Neil Diamond has said that the ‘Big Band’ version by Frank Sinatra (1915-1998) (see also best songs 877-567-469-120 and 73) is his favourite, he explained,’He did it his way. He didn’t copy my record at all. I’ve heard that song by a lot of people, and there are a lot of good versions, but Sinatra’s swinging, big band version tops them all by far.’

‘Sweet Caroline’ reached Number 4 on the American Billboard Hot 100 singles chart when first issued in 1969, but as the years have past the song continues to build in popularity as each new generation is introduced to it, and this can be explained by it’s use at sporting events around the world. It was first used to ‘whip’ the crowd up in the mid 1990’s in America at Football and Baseball games, and grew over the next decade as more teams also jumped on board. In the UK the fans of the Northern Ireland National Football team adopted the song as an anthem after it was played in the post-match stadium celebrations after defeating England in 2005. In 2021 it was the England fans who sang the song at Wembley stadium after beating Germany, it has also since been adopted by the England Women’s football team. The song has also been heard at many other sporting events including boxing, cricket, and darts matches.

‘Look at the night and it don’t seem so lonely, we filled it up with only two, And when I hurt, hurting runs off my shoulders, how can I hurt when holding you.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

14-Snow Patrol-Chasing Cars.

2006-Number 6 single.

Best Bit-At 2.49. The phrase ‘Chasing Cars’ came from the songs writer Gary Lightbody’s father, in reference to a girl Lightbody was infatuated with, he said,’You’re like a dog chasing a car, you’ll never catch it, and you just wouldn’t know what to do with it if you did.’

Gareth John Lightbody was born on June 15th, 1976, in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. In 1994 while studying English literature at the University of Dundee in Scotland he formed a band called ‘Shrug’ with two others. ‘Shrug’ was soon changed to ‘Polarbear,’ before ‘Snow Patrol’ was finally settled upon. In total there has been eight different members come and go since 1994, and at the time of writing the band remain active. The line up who played on ‘Chasing Cars’ were Gary Lightbody, (lead vocals, and guitar) Nathan Connolly, (guitar) Paul Wilson, (bass) Jonny Quinn, (drums) and Tom Simpson (keyboards.) The discography of Snow Patrol includes seven studio Albums released between 1998-2018, and 35 singles issued between 1998-2020. In the UK 13 of those singles have reached the top 40, with ‘Signal Fire’ from 2007 charting the highest at Number 4. In America on Billboard three of their Albums have achieved top 10 status, while ‘Chasing Cars’ remains their only entry on the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 singles chart, when making Number 5 in 2006.

‘Chasing Cars’ was the second of six singles released from Snow Patrol’s fourth studio Album ‘Eyes Open’ from May 2006. The song writing credits are shared amongst all five band members at that time, although Lightbody wrote the lyrics. ‘Chasing Cars’ and it’s parent Album ‘Eyes Open’ were produced by Garret ‘Jacknife’ Lee, who has produced, mixed, and written for numerous artists since 1997, including all of the last five Snow Patrol Albums.

Gary Lightbody has said that he wrote ‘Chasing Cars’ in the garden of producer Garret ‘Jacknife’ Lee’s garden, after drinking lots of wine the night before, he said that he wrote around 10 songs that night, and when he looked at them the next day nine of them were terrible, but ‘Chasing Cars’ stood out like ‘A diamond in the s–t.’ Lightbody has also said,’It’s the most pure and open love song I’ve ever written.’ Snow Patrol had already had success in the UK prior to ‘Chasing Cars,’ but they were relatively unknown in the States until the song was chosen as the music to be played during the second season finale of the American medical drama ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ bringing them to the attention of a very large audience.

‘Chasing Cars’ can brag of several accolades including being the most played song on UK radio in the 21st Century according to the musical licencing body ‘PPL.’ In December 2006 it was voted the ‘Best Song of All Time’ by listeners to the UK radio station ‘Virgin Radio’, and also at around the same time it was voted the ‘Best Song of the Decade’ by viewers of the UK television channel, ‘Channel 4.’ On a less prestigious note it is the highest placed song of the 21st Century on this ‘1000 Best Songs in the World Ever’ list. ‘Chasing Cars’ was also the very last song played live on the UK BBC long running music programme ‘Top of the Pops,’ on July 30th, 2006.

‘Chasing Cars’ is a love song. It is about being emotionally very close to someone, and feeling that together you can achieve anything that you want to.

‘All that I am, all that I ever was is here in your perfect eyes, they’re all I can see. I don’t know where, confused about how as well, just know that these things will never change for us at all.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

15-Oasis-Wonderwall.

1995-Number 2 single.

Best Bit-At 0.22. Noel Gallagher has been quoted as saying that the best song he has ever written is ‘Live Forever,’ he is wrong. He has also stated that his favourite version of ‘Wonderwall’ is the 2003 recording by the American singer Ryan Adams, he is wrong again, it is not a patch on Liam Gallagher’s mesmerising vocal.

‘Oasis’ (see also best songs 1006 and 758) were formed in 1991 by Paul Arthurs, (guitar) Paul McGuigan (bass) and Tony McCarroll, (drums) this trio along with singer Chris Hutton, who was replaced by Liam Gallagher (vocals) were first known as the ‘Rain.’ Liam’s brother Noel would join them later that year making them a quintet, and in total there have been nine different members come and go, until the band spit in 2009. It was Liam who suggested that the band change their name to Oasis, which was inspired by an ‘Inspiral Carpets’ (English Rock band formed in the 1980’s) tour poster in the childhood bedroom he had shared with his brother Noel, which listed the Oasis Leisure Centre in Swindon as a venue.

The discography of Oasis includes seven studio Albums released between 1994-2008, and 28 singles issued between 1994-2009. In the UK all of those Albums have reached Number 1, and they have also achieved 27 top 40 singles, of which eight of those made the Number 1 spot.In America on Billboard their highest charting Album was their third release ‘Be Here Now,’ which reached Number 2 in 1997, while their only top 40 hit single on Billboard is ‘Wonderwall,’ which peaked at Number 8 in 1995. In total Oasis have sold in excess of 70 million records worldwide.

‘Wonderwall’ was the fourth of six singles released from (‘What’s the Story) Morning Glory?’ which was the second studio Album by Oasis from October 1995. At the time of writing the Album is the fifth best selling Album of all time, and third best selling studio Album ever in the UK, with sales in excess of 5 million copies. ‘Wonderwall’ which is also Oasis’ best selling single was written by Noel Gallagher, and produced by him along with Owen Morris. Morris who is now retired, had previously worked as an engineer on Oasis’ debut Album ‘Definitely Maybe’ in 1995, and he also went on to produce the next Oasis Album ‘Be Here Now’ in 1997. Other major Albums that Morris went onto produce include the ‘Verve’ Album ‘A Northern Soul,’ (1995) and the ‘Ash’ Album ‘1977,’ in 1996.

Noel Gallagher has never hidden the fact that he has always been heavily inspired by the music of the Beatles, (see also best songs see also best songs 599-319-238-218-157-141-51-10 and 5) and this songs title was also the title of George Harrison’s (1943-2001) (see also best songs 737 and 726) debut studio Album ‘Wonderwall Music,’ from 1968, which was also the first solo Album issued by any of the four Beatles. ‘Wonderwall Music’ is an instrumental Album, and was written as the soundtrack to the 1968 film ‘Wonderwall,’ starring the English actress Jane Birkin (see also best songs 467.)

Prior to deciding on ‘Wonderwall’ as the songs title, Noel Gallagher was going to call the song ‘Wishing Stone,’ after a girl he had once dated who had a stone in her pocket that she insisted he had. Gallagher has said,’I thought what a great title, and the song came out of that.’ When Gallagher first recorded ‘Wonderwall’ the press assumed that it was written about his future wife Meg Mathews, Gallagher has explained,’The meaning of that song was taken away from me by the media who jumped on it. And how do you tell your Mrs. it’s not about her once she’s read it is? It’s about an imaginary friend who’s going to come and save you from yourself.’ Gallagher had also given the press a different story when saying,’It’s about my girlfriend. She was out of work, and that, a bit down on her luck, so it’s just saying, ‘Cheer up and f—in’ get on with it.”

‘Today is gonna be the day that they’re gonna throw it back to you. By now you should’ve somehow realised what you gotta do. I don’t believe that anybody feels the way I do, about you now.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

16-Motorhead-Ace of Spades.

1980-Number 15 single. After the death of Lemmy in 2015 the song re-entered the chart on downloads, and this time peaked at Number 13.

Best Bit-At 0.01. If you asked a ‘Punk Rock’ fan, and a ‘Heavy Metal’ fan what they had in common, it would probably be an appreciation of this song.

By 1980 ‘Punk Rock’ had thrown the majority of it’s best music at us, and then ‘Ace of Spades’ came along with all the energy of Punk, although essentially it was very much in the Heavy Metal genre, but with a twist. ‘Ace of Spades’ was different, it was faster and louder, and would help push forward the genre of music that is ‘Speed Metal,’ and influence a whole new generation of bands.

‘Motorhead’ were formed in London, England, in 1975, and remained active until 2015, in total there have been 10 different members come and go, but the classic line up, and also the three who played on ‘Ace of Spades’ were Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister, (1945-2015) (lead vocals, and bass) Phil ‘Philthy Animal Taylor, (1954-2015) (drums) and ‘Fat’ Eddie Clarke (1950-2018) (guitar.) The discography of ‘Motorhead’ includes 23 studio Albums released between 1977-2015, and 29 singles issued between 1977-2018, with five of those singles reaching the UK top 40, with their 1981 live version of ‘Motorhead’ charting the highest at Number 6. They finally charted on the Billboard Album chart in America with their final two studio Albums,’Aftershock,’ (2013, made Number 22) and ‘Bad Magic,’ (2015, made Number 35) Motorhead have sold in excess of 15 million records worldwide.

Ian Fraser Kilmister, better known as ‘Lemmy’ was born on December 24th, 1945, in Stoke-On-Trent, Staffordshire, England, he was a heavy drug user, drinker, and smoker for much of his life, and died from prostrate cancer, cardiac arrhythmia, and congestive heart failure on December 28th, 2015, at the age of 70. He acquired the nickname ‘Lemmy’ while at school, he has said that he doesn’t know the origin of his nickname, but it has been suggested that the name originated from the phrase ‘lemmy (lend me) a quid ’til Friday,’ because of his alleged habit of borrowing money from people to play slot machines.’ After being fired from his previous band ‘Hawkwind’ (see also best songs 577) for his use of drugs in 1975,’Lemmy’ went onto form the band ‘Bastard’ in the same year with Larry Wallis, (1949-2019) and Lucas Fox, but after being informed that it might be difficult to get their songs played on the radio with that name, Lemmy chose the name ‘Motorhead,’ which had been the title of the last song he had written as a member of Hawkwind, ‘Motorhead’ is the slang term for the stimulant, and recreational drug ‘Amphetamine.’

‘Ace of Spades’ was co-written by Eddie Clarke, Lemmy, and Phil Taylor, and was the only single released from Motorhead’s fourth studio Album ‘Ace of Spades’ from 1980. The song and the Album were produced by Vic Maile (1943-1989) who had previously worked as the sound engineer with the Animals, (‘We Gotta Get Out of This Place’ 1965) and was also partly responsible for the recording of the 1970 live Album ‘Live at Leeds’ by the Who. Lemmy has credited Maile for freshening up the clarity of the ‘Motorhead’ sound, he said,’Vic’s strength was that he understood Rock and Roll. He wasn’t like a lot of producers who simply rely on the readings from the meters on the desk, he was instinctive and he had the same sense of humour as me.’

‘Ace of Spades’ is a song about gambling and it’s risks. Lemmy has said,’Writing it was just a word exercise on gambling, all the cliches. I’m glad we got famous for that rather than for some turkey, but I sang ‘the eight of spades’ for two years and nobody noticed.’ The playing card the ‘ace of spades’ had become synonymous in the game of ‘Poker’ as the ‘dead man’s hand,’ as that was one of the cards the ‘Wild West’ legend ‘James Butler ‘Wild Bill’ Hickok’ (1837-1876) was holding when he was shot in the back of the head at point blank range while sat at the Poker table.

In my own personal opinion, I see the gambling references as a metaphor for a reckless lifestyle, fuelled by drugs and alcohol. Lemmy knows he is gambling with his life, and he will eventually be dealt the ‘Ace of Spades,’ the card of death.

‘You know I’m born to lose, and gambling’s for fools, but that’s the way I like it, baby I don’t want to live forever, and don’t forget the joker.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

17-Sugarhill Gang-Rapper’s Delight,

1979-Number 3 single.

Best Bit-At 0.34. This is ‘Old-School Hip-Hop,’ there was no bad language to try to make you sound ‘cool,’ there were no derogatory words spoken about women, there was no use of the ‘N’ word, there was no homophobia, and you could make out the lyrics, because there was no mumbling.

The Sugarhill Gang were formed in Englewood, New Jersey, United States, in 1979, and remained active until 1985, they reformed in 1994, releasing one more Album, and at the time of writing the remaining living members still tour the world. All three group members, Michael ‘Wonder Mike’ Wright, Henry ‘Big Bank’ Hank Jackson, (1956-2014) and Guy ‘Master Gee’ O’Brien were all from Englewood, New Jersey, and were brought together by Joey Robinson Jr. (1962-2015) who was the son of the legendary Sylvia Robinson, (1935-2011) (see also best songs 597-523-466-290 and 87) who was the co-founder of ‘Sugarhill Records.’ The ‘Sugarhill Gang’ would go on to release five studio Albums between 1980-1999, and 15 singles between 1979-2009.’Rappers Delight’ remains their only major hit single on either side of the Atlantic, where it became the first ever ‘Rap’ song to break into the Billboard Hot 100 singles top 40 when reaching Number 36 in 1979, and it was also the first ever Billboard hit to only be available in 12 inch format in America.

‘Rap’ had been performed in and around New York City since the early 1970’s but record labels didn’t see it as something which would sell in recorded form to the masses, it was seen as only a fad that was performed live at social events where young people would get together. It was Sylvia Robinson, later to become dubbed as ‘The Mother of Hip-Hop’ who had the foresight, she discovered Rap music through her children, and used her business experience and industry contacts to promote it.

‘Rapper’s Delight’ has eight names credited as the songs writers including Sylvia Robinson who was the songs producer. It was the first of two singles released from the Sugarhill Gang’s self titled debut studio Album, which is also considered to be the first ‘Rap’ Album. The songs ‘beat’ is an interpolation of ‘Good Times’ by the American Disco band ‘Chic,’ (see also best songs 175) which was co-written by Nile Rogers and Bernard Edwards (1952-1996.) On hearing ‘Rappers Delight’ Rogers threatened a lawsuit, and things were settled with his name and Edwards added to the writing credits. The other musical sample on the track is the songs intro, which is also repeated at 4.37, this is an interpolation of the 1979 Disco track ‘Here Comes That Sound Again’ by ‘Love De-Luxe,’ which was a studio group assembled by the Leeds, England, born music producer Alan Hawkshaw (1937-2021.) Hawkshaw worked with many of the worlds top artists, including playing keyboards for David Bowie, (Bowie at the Beeb) and Donna Summer, (Once Upon a Time) in the UK he would be best remembered for writing the theme tunes to the children’s television show ‘Grange Hill,’ and the game show ‘Countdown.’

There was controversy as to who wrote the lyrics performed by the late ‘Big Bank’ Hank on the track. It is claimed by the Hip-Hop performer Curtis Brown, who is better known by his stage names ‘Grandmaster Caz,’ or ‘Casanova Fly’ that Hank’s lyrics were written by him, and that Hank stole them. According to Brown, Hank had used Brown’s lyrics without his permission, and he never received royalties, while according to Hank, Brown had gladly gave him his notebook.

‘Rapper’s Delight’ is one of the most ground breaking songs in the history of ‘Popular Music,’ opening the door to a whole new genre, which has become the best selling type of music in the late 20th, and early 21st Centuries, especially in America where ‘Hip-Hop’ and ‘Rap’ dominate sales. On a personal note, my one claim to fame is having seen the three original members of the Sugarhill Gang perform ‘Rapper’s Delight’ live in Leeds in 1980.

‘Everybody go, hotel, motel, whatcha gonna do today? (Say what?) Yes, I’m gon’ get a fly girl, gonna get some spankin,’ drive off in a def OJ. Everybody go, hotel, motel, Holiday Inn, you say if your girl starts actin’ up, then you take her friend.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

18-Bobbie Gentry-Ode to Billie Joe.

1967 Number 13 single.

Best Bit-At 3.11.Sometimes it’s more fun if the reason why something has happened always remains a mystery, rather than find out, and have all the mystique removed.

Bobbie Gentry (see also best songs 740) was born Roberta Lee Streeter on July 27th, 1942, near Woodland, Mississippi, United States, she took her stage name from the character ‘Ruby Gentry’ in the 1952 film of the same name. In the film, Ruby was a poor but beautiful girl from the backwoods, who ended up marrying the town tycoon. Bobbie Gentry was one of the first female artists in America to write and produce her own material, having signed with ‘Capitol Records’ in 1967.The last time she officially appeared in public was in April 1982 when attending the ‘Academy of Country Music Awards,’ she was 39 years old at the time, and since then she has not recorded, performed, or done any interviews. A report in 2016 stated that she now lives in a gated community near Memphis, Tennessee. According to another report, it was stated that Gentry lives in a gated community in Los Angeles.

The discography of Bobbie Gentry includes seven studio Albums released between 1967-1971, which includes a 1968 duets Album with fellow Country singer Glen Campbell. (1936-2017) (see also best songs 846 and 197) She also issued 31 singles between 1966-1978, of which four of those made the Billboard Hot 100 top 40 singles chart in America, with ‘Ode to Billie Joe’ making Number 1, and selling in excess of 3 million copies in that country. In the UK, she has also charted on four occasions, with her 1969 cover version of ‘I’ll Never Fall in Love Again’ reaching Number 1 (see also best songs 740.)

‘Ode to Billie Joe’ was written by Bobbie Gentry, and produced by Kelly Gordon, (1932-1981) and Bobby Paris, (-2009) although Gentry did later take legal action claiming that she was the songs sole producer. On the track Gentry played the acoustic guitar, with the strings, comprising of four violins and two chellos, being arranged by Jimmie Haskell (1926-2016.) ‘Ode to Billie Joe’ tells the story of Billie Joe McAllister who commits suicide by jumping off the ‘Tallahatchie Bridge, in Money, Mississippi. The songs narrator had been observed on the bridge previously with McAllister, and they had been seen throwing something in to the water below. This incident captured the imagination of the general public so much to the extent that ‘Warner Bros.’ commissioned the author Herman Raucher to expand on the songs story, and adapt it into a novel and a screenplay in 1976. Bobbie Gentry when asked for input once again answered by saying that she didn’t know why the couple were stood on the bridge, or what was thrown into the water, which left Raucher free to write his own adaption. In the film and the book McAllister has a homosexual encounter which he enjoyed, but later on he was overcome with guilt. Raucher also revealed that it was a rag doll that the couple had been seen throwing from the bridge to the water, signifying the narrators transformation from a child into an adult.

Bobbie Gentry has been quoted as saying that most people miss the really important messages in the song. She has said,’The song revolves around the nonchalant way the family talks about the suicide, the song is a study in unconscious cruelty, Second, the obvious gap between the girl and her mother is shown when both women experience a common loss, (first Billie Joe, and then Papa) and yet Mama and the girl are unable to recognise their mutual loss or share their grief.’ Bobbie Gentry has also said that what is thrown over the bridge isn’t important, and to fixate on that is to miss the point of the song. The real message is that ‘We often respond to tragic events with cruel dissociation.’

‘And mama said to me, child, what’s happened to your appetite? I’ve been cookin’ all morning, and you haven’t touched a single bite. That nice young preacher, Brother Taylor, dropped by today, said he’d be pleased to have dinner on Sunday, oh, by the way. He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Choctaw Ridge,
and she and Billie Joe was throwing somethin’ off the Tallahatchie Bridge.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

19-Frankie Goes to Hollywood-Two Tribes. (Carnage Mix.)

1984-Number 1 single. When it was re-issued in 1994 it reached Number 16, and again in 2000 it made Number 17.

Best Bit-At 4.11.The late Patrick Allen (1927-2006) frightened the life out of us with his talk of imminent nuclear destruction, before jumping back in his helicopter to sell more Barratt Homes.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood (‘FGTH’) were formed in Liverpool, England, in 1980, and remained active until 1987, with two of the original line up joining two others for the bands reformation between 2004-2007. The classic line up who played on ‘Two Tribes’ were Holly Johnson, (vocals) Paul Rutherford, (vocals, and tambourine) Mark O’Toole, (bass) Brian Nash, (guitars) and Peter Gill, (drums) in total there have been eight official members at various points. The band took their name from a ‘Pop Art poster’ by Guy Peellaert (1934-2008) that was featured in the American magazine ‘The New Yorker,’ which featured a newspaper headline saying ‘Frankie Goes Hollywood,’ above an image of a young Frank Sinatra being mobbed by his fans.

At the time of writing Frankie Goes to Hollywood have recorded two of the top 30 best selling singles of all time in the UK, with ‘Relax,’ (Number 6) and ‘Two Tribes,’ (Number 30.) In 1984 they became only the second act ever to have three UK Number 1 singles with their first three releases when ‘The Power of Love’ topped the chart. The first act to achieve the fete was fellow Liverpool group ‘Gerry and The Pacemakers’ 21 years earlier in 1963 (see also best songs 60.) The discography of ‘FGTH’ includes two studio Albums released in 1984 and 1986, and seven singles issued between 1983-1987, all seven of those singles reached the UK top 40, but on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in America, only ‘Relax’ has charted in the top 40, when making Number 10. Between 1993-1994 their first four singles were re-issued and they all charted again within the UK top 20.

‘Two Tribes’ was co-written in 1982, two years before it became a hit in 1984, by ‘FGTH’ members Peter Gill, Holly Johnson, and Mark O’Toole, the song was produced by Trevor Horn, (see also best songs 676 and 455) and released on ‘ZZT’ records, the label Horn had co-founded in 1983. A version of ‘Two Tribes’ was originally recorded for a ‘BBC John Peel’ Radio 1 session in October 1982, clearly showing that the songs structure and arrangement were already in place, before Horn worked his magic on the final production. ‘Two Tribes’ was the second of four singles released from the ‘FGTH’ debut studio Album ‘Welcome to the Pleasuredome’ from October 1984, it went on to spend nine consecutive weeks at Number 1 in the UK, and had the longest stay at the top for any single in the 1980’s.

‘Two Tribes’ is an anti-war song. In the early 1980’s tensions ran very high between The United States and the Soviet Union, and people were very worried of a potential Nuclear War. The song’s title derives from the line ‘Two mighty warrior tribes went to war,’ from the 1981 film ‘Mad Max 2.’ Other lyrics include ‘Working for the black gas,’ which according to Holly Johnson is ‘About oil surpassing gold, how you might as well be paid in petrol,’ and the line ‘Are we living in a land where sex and horror are the new gods?’ was inspired by the 1959 British film ‘Cover Girl Killer,’ Johnson has said,’The TV was on in the background while I was doing me ironing and suddenly this character came out with that statement.’ The actual dialogue, which occurs in the film, is ‘Surely sex and horror are the new gods in this polluted world of so-called entertainment?’

‘Two Tribes’ was heavily marketed with slogans appearing on T-shirts, in the same way as ‘Relax’ had been previously promoted. There were six original mixes of the track released in 1984, including the ‘Carnage,’ and the ‘Annihilation’ versions, and the song also has a very memorable video, which was directed by Kevin Godley and Lol Creme (see also best songs 663 and 154.) The video depicts a wrestling match between the then United States President Ronald Reagan, (1911-2004) and Konstantin Chernenko, (1911-1985) who was then Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, in front of Frankie Goes to Hollywood group members, and an assembly of representatives from the world’s nations. The match eventually degenerates into global destruction.

‘When two tribes go to war a point is all that you can score. We got two tribes, we got the spunk, we got the spunk, yeah, yeah. Sock it to me biscuits.’