THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

615-Queen-Seven Seas of Rhye.

1974-Number 10 single.

Best Bit-At 1.36. At the very end of the track, Queen sample a song from 1907. That is what you call a proper ‘Golden Oldie.’

Queen (see also best songs 918-208-126-47 and 3) were formed in London, England, in 1970, with the classic line up being Freddie Mercury (1946-1991) (lead vocals, piano) Brian May, (guitar, vocals) Roger Taylor (drums, vocals), and John Deacon, (bass) they remain active at the time of writing, with the current members being Brian May, and Roger Taylor. It was Freddie Mercury who suggested the name ‘Queen,’ the others were uncertain, but Mercury assured them, ‘It’s wonderful, dear, people will love it.’ It was also around that time that he decided to change his surname to Mercury, inspired by the line ‘Mother Mercury, look what they’ve done to me,’ from the song ‘My Fairy King,’ written by Freddie, and first appearing on Queen’s self titled debut studio Album, from 1973.

Queen are one of the best selling artists of all time, with sales in excess of 250 million records sold worldwide. The discography of Queen includes 15 studio Albums released between 1973-1995, and 73 singles issued between 1973-2023, there are also 16 official compilation Albums, and 10 live Albums available. In the UK they have had 55 top 40 singles, which includes two extended plays, (EP’s) and also being the featured artist, or with re-issues, with six of those tracks reaching the Number 1 position, including ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ in 1975, and then again in 1991, when it was re-issued as a double ‘A’ side with ‘These Are the Days of Our Lives.’ In America on the Billboard Hot 100, they have had 12 top 40 hits, with both ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love,’ (1979) and ‘Another One Bites the Dust,’ (1980) both reaching Number 1.

‘Seven Seas of Rhye’ was the only single released from ‘Queen II,’ the second studio Album released by Queen, from March 1974, the song was written by Freddie Mercury, with the production credited to John Anthony, Roy Thomas Baker, and Queen. ‘Seven Seas of Rhye’ had first appeared in instrumental form, at just 1.25 seconds, as the final track on Queen’s debut studio Album ‘Queen,’ from 1973, and when Freddie Mercury added lyrics, it was once again issued as the closing track, this time on ‘Queen II.’ At the very end of the track, the group break in to the old music hall song ‘I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside,’ which was written in 1907 by John Glover-Kind, (1880-1918) and first recorded by the English music hall comedian and singer Mark Sheridan, (1864-1918) in 1909. At the start of the opening track ‘Brighton Rock,’ from Queen’s third studio Album ‘Sheer Heart Attack, from 1974, someone can be heard whistling ‘I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside,’ over the opening bars of that song. ”I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside’ was probably used tongue in cheek by the band, as ‘Rye’ is a small town in East Sussex, England, with a beach near by.

Freddie Mercury let his imagination run wild on ‘Seven Seas of Rhye.’ He wrote the lyrics, basing them on a fantasy world he called ‘Rhye,’ that he had created with his younger sister ‘Kashmira Bulsara.’ Mercury and his sister had been brought up on the African island of Zanzibar, and had been educated in the ‘Zoroastrianism’ religion, which was founded in Iran, and this fuelled Mercury’s flights of fancy. The fantasy land of ‘Rhye’ was a theme running through other early recordings of Queen, including ‘Lily of the Valley,’ ‘My Fairy King,’ and ‘The March of the Black Queen.’

‘Seven Seas of Rhye,’ was the third single released by Queen, and their breakthrough hit, convincing Freddie Mercury, who had been working on a stall in London’s Kensington Market, that he could quit his day job and become a full time Pop star. Although Freddie Mercury is the only one given songwriting credit on ‘Seven Seas of Rhye,’ Brian May did actually write the guitar parts.

‘Fear me you Lords and lady preachers, I descend upon your earth from the skies. I command your very souls you unbelievers, bring before me what is mine, the Seven Seas of Rhye.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

616-Lloyd Cole and the Commotions-Perfect Skin.

1984-Number 24 single.

Best Bit-At 2.05. ‘Nivea’ missed a wonderful advertising opportunity, and Lloyd Cole missed out on loads of potential royalties.

Lloyd Cole was born on January 31st, 1961, in Buxton, Derbyshire, England, he is a singer, songwriter, and a musician, who plays guitar, synthesizers, piano, harmonica, bass guitar, and banjo. After a year studying law at ‘University College London,’ England, he moved to the ‘University of Glasgow,’ Scotland, where he studied philosophy, and English, which is where he, and Blair Cowan, (keyboards) Laurence Donegan, (bass guitar) Neil Clark, (guitar) and Stephen Irvine, (drums) formed ‘Lloyd Cole and the Commotions’ in 1982. The quintet remained active until 1989, but reunited in 2004 for a month, to tour and promote the release of the 25th anniversary of the deluxe edition of the ‘Rattlesnakes’ Album. Following the breakup of the ‘Commotions,’ Lloyd Cole has continued to record and tour as a solo artist, and he remains active at the time of writing.

The discography of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions includes three studio Albums released between 1984-1987, and 10 singles released between 1984-1988, there are also three official compilation Albums available. In the UK five of their singles have reached the top 40, with ‘Lost Weekend,’ from 1985, charting the highest at Number 17. Their three studio Albums all reached the top 20 in the UK, and Sweden, while their first two Albums both made the top 30 in Australia. They also found chart success on the singles chart in Ireland, with five top 40 hits in that country. The solo discography of Lloyd Cole includes 13 studio Albums released between 1990-2023, and 16 singles released between 1990-2016, there are also four official compilation Albums, and three live Albums available. In 1997, and 1998, Lloyd Cole played with some New York musicians, under the name the ‘Negatives,’ releasing one studio Album called ‘The Negatives,’ in 2000, and one single called ‘Impossible Girl,’ also in 2000. In the UK, as a solo artist Lloyd Cole has had one top 40 hit single, with ‘Like Lovers Do,’ which reached Number 24 in 1995.

‘Perfect Skin’ was the first of three singles released from ‘Rattlesnakes,’ the debut studio Album from Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, from October 1984, the song was written by Lloyd Cole, and produced by Paul Hardiman, who also produced the Album. Paul Hardiman found his greatest commercial success in 1986, when producing the British/Irish singer Chris de Burgh’s eighth studio Album ‘Into the Light,’ and it’s UK Number 1, and American Billboard Number 3 hit single ‘The Lady in Red.’

Lloyd Cole was 23 years old when he wrote all of the lyrics, and the majority of the music for ‘Lloyd Cole and the Commotions’ critically acclaimed debut Album ‘Rattlesnakes,’ in 1984. Cole wrote the Album in the basement of the Glasgow Golf Club, where his parents lived and worked, and Cole has said that it was the impact of studying ‘English,’ and ‘Philosophy’ at University that influenced his lyrics. Musically Lloyd Cole was inspired by Bob Dylan, (see also best songs 792-621-358-103-36 and 7) and Booker T & the MGs, (see also best songs 906) Lloyd Cole has said,’I would say that ‘Perfect Skin’ is just a few ideas linked by a title. It’s just like ‘Michelle, ma belle’, wee verses that I thought sound good, the literal meaning of the words didn’t have a lot to do with it.’ Cole has also said, ‘It was a whole atmosphere. If I hadn’t listened to ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues,’ (see also best songs 792) I could never have written ‘Perfect Skin’. I was totally drunk on Dylan at the time I wrote that song, and all the imagery is deliberately Dylanesque. I thought why not be blatant? The only difference is, Dylan would have written a song like ‘Perfect Skin’ in an hour, it took me a week!’

‘Perfect Skin’ can be filed under the musical genre of ‘Jangle Pop,’ which is a sub-genre of ‘Pop/Rock,’ that emphasises jangly guitars, and 1960’s style ‘Pop’ melodies. The term ‘Jangle Pop’ originated from the Bob Dylan’s song Mr. Tambourine Man,’ whose 1965 rendition by the ‘Byrds’ (see also best songs 621) is considered one of the genre’s representative works. The term ‘Jangle Pop’ was not used during the original movement of the 1960’s, but was popularised later, during the 1980’s, as a reference to the lyric ‘In the jingle jangle morning, I’ll come following you,’ from the Byrds’ 1965 rendition of Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ as well as the chiming sound of the 12-string ‘Rickenbacker’ guitars upper-register strings. Other groups in the early 1980’s to popularise the ‘Jangle Pop’ sound included ‘R.E.M.’ and the ‘Smiths.’

‘Up eight flights of stairs to her basement flat, pretty confused huh, being shipped around like that. Seems we climbed so high, now we’re down so low. Strikes me the moral of this song must be, there never has been one.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

617-Fats Domino-The Fat Man.

1949-It has never charted in the UK. There was no UK chart until 1952.

Best Bit-At 1.08. There are a number of songs in this countdown which can claim to be the first ever ‘proper’ ‘Rock ‘N Roll’ record, but this one may have the best claim, as it was recorded in 1949, even so the term ‘Rock ‘N Roll’ hadn’t even been invented then.

Fats Domino (see also best songs 272) was born Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. on February 26th, 1928, in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, he died of natural causes, on October 24th, 2017, at the age of 89. It has been said that Fats Domino’s humility and shyness, is the reason why his contribution to ‘Rock ‘N Roll’ has been to a point overlooked, with the Beatles, stating they were influenced by him, and Elvis Presley (1935-1977) saying that he was a ‘Huge influence on me when I started out,’ and when they first met in 1959, Presley described him as, ‘The real king of Rock ‘N Roll.’ Fats Domino began learning his trade, and performing in New Orleans bars at the age of 14, then in 1947 the New Orleans bandleader Billy Diamond, (1916-2011) after hearing Domino perform at a backyard barbecue, hired him to play the piano in his band for $3 a week. It was Diamond who nicknamed him ‘Fats,’ because Domino reminded him of the pianists Fats Waller (1904-1943) (see also best songs 412) and Fats Pichon, (1906-1967) but also because of his large appetite. Fats Domino signed to ‘Imperial Records’ in 1949, and would go on to record in excess of 60 singles for the label, and although he never had a Billboard Number 1 single, five of his singles went on to sell in excess of one million copies, including ‘The Fat Man.’ Fats Domino was among the first ‘R&B’ artists to gain popularity with white audiences, with both black and white youths attending his concerts wherever it was permitted, and their shared appreciation of his music, was said to be a factor in the breakdown of racial segregation in the United States. The music of Fats Domino was popular in Jamaica, where New Orleans radio stations signals could sometimes be heard, and this has been cited as a seminal influence on what would later emerge as ‘Ska’ and ‘Reggae’ music.

‘The Fat Man’ was co-written by Fats Domino, and his long term collaborator Dave Bartholomew, (1918-2019) and was released in December 1949 as the ‘B’ side to Fats Domino’s debut single, ‘Detroit City Blues,’ which was also his first release on ‘Imperial Records,’ The melody to ‘The Fat Man’ is a variation on the traditional New Orleans tune ‘Junker Blues,’ which also provided the melody for the Lloyd Price (1933-2021) song ‘Lawdy Miss Clawdy,’ from 1952, which was produced by Bartholomew, and had Fats Domino playing the piano on it. ‘The Fat Man’ is semi autobiographical, and finds Fats Domino standing on the corner of Rampart and Canal Street in New Orleans, watching the Creole girls go by, but he decides to leave because,’Women and a bad life’ are ‘Carrying this soul away.’

Dave Bartholomew was born Davis Bartholomew, on December 24th, 1918, in Edgard, Louisiana, United States, he died of heart failure, on June 23rd, 2019, at the age of 100. Bartholomew started his music career as a trumpet player, becoming active in many musical genres, including ‘Rhythm and Blues,’ ‘Big Band,’ Swing,’ and ‘Rock ‘N Roll.’ On his induction into the ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’ in 1991, he was cited as a key figure in the transition from ‘Jump Blues,’ and ‘Swing,’ to ‘R&B,’ and as ‘One of the Crescent City’s greatest musicians, and a true pioneer in the Rock and Roll revolution.’ Bartholomew, who was also a musical arranger, producer, and bandleader, composed, or co-composed many well known songs of the 1950’s, including his co-write of ‘Ain’t That a Shame,’ with Fats Domino, which when covered by Pat Boone, reached Number 1 on Billboard in 1955. Dave Bartholomew is also responsible for writing three UK Number 1 singles. In 1970 Dave Edmunds covered ‘I Hear You Knocking,’ in 1972 Chuck Berry (1926-2017) covered ‘My Ding-a-Ling,’ and Elvis Presley (1935-1977) covered ‘One Night,’ which was Number 1 in 1958, and then when re-issued in 2005, it became a UK Number 1 for a second time, as well as becoming the 1000th UK Number 1 single, since that charts inception in 1952.

‘They call, they call me the fat man, ’cause I weight two hundred pounds. All the girls they love me, ’cause I know my way around. I was standin’, I was standin’ on the corner of Rampart and Canal, I was watchin,’ watchin,’ watchin’ all these creole gals.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

618-Bob Marley and the Wailers-Exodus.

1977-Number 14 single.

Best Bit-At 5.01. In no other musical genre is one single artist so well known. When you think of Reggae, the first name that springs to mind is Bob Marley.

Bob Marley was born Robert Nesta Marley, on February 6th, 1945, in Nine Mile, Saint Ann Parish, Colony of Jamaica. In July 1977, he was diagnosed with a type of malignant melanoma under the nail of his right big toe. Marley rejected his doctors’ advice to have his toe amputated, citing his religious beliefs, and instead, the nail and nail bed were removed. By the autumn of 1980 his health had deteriorated further, as his cancer had spread throughout his body. Marley decided to undergo an alternative cancer treatment called ‘Issels’ treatment, partly based on avoidance of certain foods, drinks, and other substances. After eight months of this treatment having failed to effectively treat his advancing cancer, which had now spread to his lungs and brain, he succumbed to the illness, and died on May 11th, 1981, at the age of 36.

The earliest incarnation of Bob Marley and the Wailers, were formed in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1963, by Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, (1947-2021) Peter Tosh, (1944-1987) Junior Braithwaite, (1949-1999) Cherry Smith, (1943-2008) and Beverley Kelso. They originally called themselves the ‘Teenagers,’ before becoming the ‘Wailing Wailers,’ and eventually ‘The Wailers.’ By 1974 all of the original Wailers had gone their own way, and Marley set about forming a new group, with his wife Rita becoming one of his three female backing vocalists. The ‘Wailers’ who played on ‘Exodus,’ and it’s parent Album of the same name were, Junior Marvin, (guitar) Aston ‘Family Man’ Barrett, (1946-2024) (bass) his brother Carlton Barrett, (1950-1987) (drums) Tyrone Downie, (1956-2022) (synthesizer) and Alvin ‘Seeco’ Patterson, (1930-2021) (percussion.) For the discography of Bob Marley and the Wailers (see also best songs 56.)

On December 3rd, 1976, two days before the ‘Smile Jamaica’ free concert, which Bob Marley and the Wailers were to play at, which was organised by the Jamaican Prime Minister, Michael Manley, (1924-1997) in an attempt to ease tension between the two warring political groups in Jamaica, an assassination attempt was made on Bob Marley. Marley, his wife Rita, and the groups manager Don Taylor, (1943-1999) were wounded in an assault by an unknown gunmen inside Marley’s home. Taylor and Rita sustained serious injuries, but later made full recoveries. Bob Marley received minor wounds in the chest and arm.The attempt on his life was thought to have been politically motivated, as many felt the concert was really a support rally for Manley. Nonetheless, the concert proceeded, and an injured Marley performed as scheduled, two days after the attempt, with members of the Jamaican Reggae group ‘Zap Pow’ performing as his backing band in front of an 80,000 crowd, because members of the Wailers had gone in to hiding. The concert was concluded peacefully. After a month recovering from his injury, Marley left Jamaica for England, where he spent the next two years in self imposed exile, writing and recording his next two Albums ‘Exodus, (1977) and ‘Kaya (1978.)

‘Exodus’ was the first of six singles released from Bob Marley and the Wailers’ ninth studio Album of the same name, from June 1977, and was written by Bob Marley, with the songs production credited to Bob Marley and the Wailers. ‘Exodus’ is Bob Marley’s most critically acclaimed Album, with five of the songs also appearing on ‘Legend,’ the 1984 posthumously released Bob Marley and the Wailers Album, which is the best selling ‘Reggae’ Album of all time, with sales in excess of 25 million copies sold worldwide.

‘Exodus’ may have been partly inspired by that assassination attempt, as the song ties in with the Biblical story of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt, in the hope that one day the Rastafarians will also be led to freedom. Although the song is probably not about any certain race or religion, as that would contradict the message Marley is sending us, the song is probably about man’s struggle with trying to find God.

‘We know where we’re going, we know where we’re from. We’re leaving Babylon, we’re going to our father land. Exodus, movement of Jah people.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

619-Joy Division-Love Will Tear Us Apart.

1980-Number 13 single. When it was re-released in 1983, it reached Number 19, and when re-released for a second time in 1995, it once again made Number 19.

Best Bit-At 0.14. Ian Curtis knew of the song ‘Love Will Keep Us Together,’ by the ‘Captain & Tennille,’ and with that in mind, he wrote about his own experiences of love.

Joy Division were formed in Salford, England, in 1976, with the classic line up consisting of Ian Curtis, (1956-1980) (lead vocals, and guitar) Bernard Sumner, (guitar, and keyboards) Peter Hook, (bass) and Stephen Morris (drums.) They initially called themselves ‘Warsaw,’ taking the name from the David Bowie (1948-2016) song ‘Warszawa,’ from his 1977 Album ‘Low,’ but in order to stop confusion with another group called ‘Warsaw Pakt,’ they renamed themselves Joy Division in early 1978, borrowing the name from the sexual slavery wing of a Nazi concentration camp mentioned in the 1955 novel ‘House of Dolls,’ by the author ‘Ka-tzetnik 135633.’ When first forming, they were greatly influenced by the then current ‘Punk Rock’ scene, especially after some of the band members had seen the ‘Sex Pistols’ (see also best songs 576-92 and 27) play live in 1976, but over time they began to develop their own ‘Post Punk’ sound. After Ian Curtis committed suicide in 1980, the three remaining members dropped the name ‘Joy Division,’ and re-formed later that year as ‘New Order’ (see also best songs 885.) Despite their short career, Joy Division have still become regarded as a major influence on many other acts, with the music critic John Bush of the American online music database ‘AllMusic,’ arguing that they, ‘Became the first band in the Post-Punk movement, by emphasising not anger and energy, but mood and expression, pointing ahead to the rise of melancholy Alternative Music in the ’80’s.”

The discography of Joy Division includes two studio Albums ‘Unknown Pleasures,’ released in 1979, and ‘Closer,’ released in 1980, there are also 12 official compilation Albums, and four live Albums available. Joy Division issued five singles between 1979-1980, which were all issued before appearing on either studio Album. In the UK, ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart,’ is their highest charting single, when peaking at Number 13 in 1980, with their only other hit being the 1988 re-issue of ‘Atmosphere,’ (1980) and ‘She’s Lost Control,’ (1979) as a double ‘A’ sided single, making Number 34. Joy Division had their biggest chart success in New Zealand, where their debut studio Album ‘Unknown Pleasures,’ reached Number 1, and two of their singles, including ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart,’ also made the Number 1 spot.

‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ was written by all four members of Joy Division at that time, with the production credited to Joy Division, and Martin Hannett, who was born James Martin Hannett, on May 31st, 1948, in Manchester, England. Hannett’s career declined in his later years due to his heavy use of alcohol and drugs, especially heroin. He died on April 18th, 1991, as a result of heart failure, at the age of 42. Martin Hannett was a prolific music producer, who helped shape the sound for acts, including Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and Happy Mondays, for the other songs that he produced in this ‘Best 1000 Songs,’ (see also best songs 1016 and 816.) His headstone which is at the ‘Southern Cemetery,’ Manchester, pays him tribute, as the creator of ‘The Manchester Sound.’

Ian Kevin Curtis was born on July 15th, 1956, in Stretford, Lancashire, England, he died by committing suicide, by hanging on May 18th, 1980, at the age of 23. Curtis had written the lyrics to ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ based on his own personal experiences, he had recently ended his marriage, and had been diagnosed with epilepsy, causing him to have fits when performing on stage. Bernard Sumner has spoken about Ian Curtis,’He’d got married very, very young. And by the time of that song, he’d come to a fork in the road, relationship-wise. His life had changed enormously, and he had to make a choice. We thought his head space was OK. But Ian had two faces, the public face for the band, and the private troubles he had at home, and the way they came out through his lyrics. We didn’t really listen to the lyrics. Joy Division was four people on pedestals, and we didn’t communicate with each other about what the songs are about.’ The title of this song ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart,’ are the words inscribed as an epitaph on Ian Curtis’s tombstone.

‘When routine bites hard, and ambitions are low, and resentment rides high, but emotions won’t grow, and we’re changing our ways, taking different roads. Love, love will tear us apart again.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

620-The Vaccines-If You Wanna’.

2012-Number 35 single.

Best Bit-At 0.48. When they first chose their name, they could not possibly have known that it would become one of the most important words in the English language.

The Vaccines are an ‘Indie Rock’ band who were formed in West London, England, in 2010, by Justin Hayward-Young, (lead vocals, and guitars) Freddie Cowan, (lead guitar, and backing vocals) Árni Árnason, (bass guitar, and backing vocals) and Pete Robertson (drums, percussion, and backing vocals.) In 2016 Robertson left the group, and the bands touring musicians, Timothy Lanham, (keyboards) and Yoann Intonti, (drums) both became full time members. In 2023, Freddie Cowan left the group, having just become a father, stating that he didn’t want to tour all of the time.

The Vaccines who have sold in excess of two million records worldwide to date, have released six studio Albums between 2011-2024, and 26 singles between 2010-2023, there is also one official live Album available. In the UK, all of their studio Albums have reached the top 5 on the Album chart, with their second release ‘Come of Age,’ in 2012, making the Number 1 spot. Four of their singles have also reached the UK top 40 singles chart, with ‘Post Break-Up Sex,’ peaking the highest at Number 32, in 2011.

‘If You Wanna” was the third of six singles released from The Vaccines debut studio Album ‘What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?’ from March 2011, with the writing credits shared amongst all four group members at that time, and the production being by Dan Grech-Marguerat. In 2014 ‘If You Wanna” was used in a television advertisement for the Spanish beer ‘Estrella Damm,’ and due to that, the song reached Number 9 on the ‘Productores de Música de España,’ the Spanish singles music chart, giving The Vaccines their only significant chart hit outside of the UK.

‘If You Wanna” was produced by Dan Grech-Marguerat, who was born Daniel James Grech-Marguerat, on July 11th, 1981, in Bedford, England, he is renowned for his audio mixing of recorded music. Dan Grech has worked with many of the top artists of the 21st Century, including mixing the ‘Scissor Sisters’ second Album ‘Ta-Dah,’ and it’s UK Number 1 single ‘ I Don’t Feel Like Dancin.” Other notable work from Dan Grech includes, the mixing of George Ezra’s second studio Album, ‘Staying At Tamara’s,’ (see also best songs 355) in 2018, and producing eight of the 12 tracks on Liam Gallagher’s debut solo Album As You Were, in 2017. Gallagher has said on working with Grech, ‘I’ll play him a tune very badly and he’ll go, ‘Yeah, I get where you’re coming from,’ and get the acoustics down, and away we go.’

”If You Wanna” is a song about a break up, with the narrator trying to come to terms with the fact that his girlfriend doesn’t want to be with him anymore. Justin Haywood-Young has said,’As with a lot of the lyrics on the record, I’ve tried to be as direct as possible. Sometimes when you want to say something it’s best to not be too clever about it. The lyrics are pretty defeatist, maybe even slightly pathetic. But we’ve all been there. I wanted us to have a song with really downbeat lyrics, juxtaposed with a poppy and upbeat melody.’ Haywood-Young has also said that the song had a different chorus before he came up with a new one,’I thought it was like super cheesy, and I kind of got shivers down my spine like, ‘Eww, I feel dirty,’ and everyone in the room was like, ‘No, that was really cool. That’s a much better chorus.’ I think that was a real turning point for the band, because I think it was like me accepting that I write really cheesy pop songs, and so I should embrace that as a writer.’

The Vaccines, most notably on their earlier Albums, had a retro sound, dating back to the ‘Punk’ era of the mid to late 1970’s, and ‘If You Wanna,” particularly to my ear, sounds like something ‘The Ramones,’ (see also best songs 707 and 102) would have been proud of. Perhaps The Vaccines would have been even more successful had they been born 40 years earlier.

‘Well I don’t want to wake up in the morning, but I’ve got to face the day. That’s what all the friends I do not like as much as you say.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

621-The Byrds-All I Really Want to Do.

1965-Number 4 single.

Best Bit-At 0.20. Using the lyrics of Bob Dylan, and heavily influenced by the harmonies of the Beach Boys, and arranged in a ‘Beatlesque’ manner, ‘Folk Rock’ had just been invented.

The Byrds were formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1964, and remained active until 1973, they then reformed between 1989-1991, and again for a final time in 2000, after which the band name was retired. The Byrds one constant was Roger McGuinn, (lead vocals, and guitar) who was known as Jim McGuinn until mid 1967. The other four original members were Gene Clark, (1944-1991) (rhythm guitar, and vocals) David Crosby, (1941-2023) (rhythm guitar, and vocals) (see also best songs 417) Michael Clarke, (1946-1993) (drums) and Chris Hillman (bass guitar, and vocals.) There were a further six members come and go, including Gram Parsons, (1946-1973) (rhythm guitar, piano, and vocals.) Initially the group called themselves ‘The Jet Set,’ but in late November 1964, two weeks after signing with ‘Columbia Records,’ they decided to rename themselves as ‘The Byrds,’ a moniker that retained the theme of flight, and also echoed the deliberate misspelling of the ‘Beatles.’

The discography of The Byrds includes 12 studio Albums released between 1965-1973, and 29 singles released between 1964-1973, there are also a massive 47 official compilation Albums, and three live Albums available. In America on the Billboard Hot 100, seven of their singles made the top 40, with their cover of the Bob Dylan song ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ reaching Number 1, while in the UK they had five top 40 hits, with ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ also making the Number 1 spot.

‘All I Really Want to Do’ was the second of two singles released from The Byrds’ debut studio Album ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ from June 1965, the song was a cover of a Bob Dylan (see also best songs 792-358-103-36 and 7) song, and was produced by Terry Melcher (1942-2004.) Bob Dylan had recorded ‘All I Really Want to Do’ for his fourth studio Album ‘Another Side of Bob Dylan,’ in 1964, with the lyrical content being a departure from his normal topical political songwriting, to a more personal one. The song was inspired by Dylan’s recent separation from his girlfriend Suze Rotolo, (1943-2011) although some have speculated that the song is a message to his fans, that regardless of any change in musical style, he will always be there for them. Bob Dylan had been an acoustic artist up until this point, but was now wanting to experiment with electric instruments, something some of his loyal fan base didn’t want to comprehend.

‘All I Really Want to Do’ was the second cover version of a Bob Dylan song by The Byrds to be released as a single, following on from ”Mr. Tambourine Man,’ which had reached Number 1 on both sides of the Atlantic. The Byrds had not wanted to do another Dylan cover, but Columbia Records had insisted, thinking a follow up hit was a certainty, but the American singer Cher, (see also best songs 672) also released her version of ‘All I Really Want to Do’ at the same time, which was produced by Sonny Bono, (1935-1998) as her debut solo single. A chart battle ensued, with Cher winning in America, when her version reached Number 15 on Billboard, with The Byrds only reaching Number 40, but in the UK, it was the other way around, with The Byrds winning the battle, by peaking at Number 4, while Cher stalled at Number 9.

The Byrds recording of ‘All I Really Want to Do’ was produced by Terry Melcher, who was born Terrence Paul Jorden, on February 8th, 1942, in New York City, United States, he was the son of the American singer, and actress Doris Day, (1922-2019) (see also best songs 333) he died on November 19th, 2004, after a long battle with melanoma.Terry Melcher, has been credited with helping to shape the sound of 1960’s ‘Surf Music’ in California, forming the vocal duo of ‘Bruce & Terry,’ with Bruce Johnson, who would later on join the Beach Boys. It was while working on the staff at Columbia Records’ that Melcher met The Byrds,’ and he went on to produce both of their first two studio Albums, and receive critical acclaim for helping to shape the new genre of ‘Folk Rock.’ In 1966 Melcher played tambourine on three tracks on the Beach Boys classic Album ‘Pet Sounds,’ including ‘Good Vibrations’ (see also best songs 180.) In 1988, Melcher was one of the four co-writers of the Beach Boys fourth and final Billboard Number 1 single ‘Kokomo.’

The term ‘Folk Rock’ refers to the blending of elements of Folk music and Rock music, the term ‘Folk Rock’ was first coined by the American music press to describe the music of The Byrds. The commercial success of The Byrds’ cover version of Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ along with Dylan’s own recordings with Rock instrumentation, on Albums such as ‘Bringing It All Back Home,’ (1965) and ‘Blonde on Blonde,’ (1966) encouraged other Folk acts, such as ‘Simon & Garfunkel,’ to use electric backing on their records. Bob Dylan’s controversial appearance at the ‘Newport Folk Festival,’ on 25 July, 1965, where he was backed by an electric band, was also a pivotal moment in the development of the genre.

‘I ain’t lookin’ to compete with you, beat or cheat or mistreat you. Simplify you, classify you, deny, defy or crucify you. All I really want to do, is, baby, be friends with you.’

THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

622-Fleetwood Mac-Everywhere.

1988-Number 4 Single. It also re-entered the chart on downloads in 2013, when reaching Number 15.

Best Bit-At 0.01. I don’t mean to be rude, but if you would rather ‘Jack’ than listen to Fleetwood Mac, then I feel sorry for you.

Fleetwood Mac have a long and turbulent history. They were formed in London, England, in 1967, by Peter Green, (1946-2020) (guitar) who then recruited Mick Fleetwood, (drums) Jeremy Spencer, (vocals and guitar) and Bob Brunning, (1943-2011) (bass) with John McVie (bass) replacing Brunning a few weeks after their first public appearance. Danny Kirwan, (1950-2018) (vocals and guitar) joined the group in 1968, with Christine McVie, (1943-2022) (vocals and keyboards) joining in 1970, shortly after Peter Green had left the band. This first edition of ‘Fleetwood Mac,’ who took their name from the surname of Mick Fleetwood, and from ‘Mac’ being short for McVie, was very different musically to the later incarnation of the mid 1970’s onward, with the first lineup playing a mixture of ‘Blues Rock,’ and ‘Folk Rock.’ Their musical style changed radically in 1975, to a more commercially sounding ‘Pop Rock,’ and ‘Soft Rock’ influence, with the arrival of Lindsay Buckingham, (guitar) and Stevie Nicks, (vocals) in total there have been 18 different members come and go, and at the time of writing they remain active, with Mick Fleetwood being the groups longest serving member.

The discography of Fleetwood Mac, who have sold in excess of 120 million records worldwide, includes 18 studio Albums released between 1968-2003, and 62 singles released between 1967-2013, there are also 23 official compilation Albums, and 10 live Albums available. Their 11th studio Album, ‘Rumours,’ from February 1977, is currently the eighth best selling Album worldwide of all time, with sales in excess of 40 million. In the UK, 16 of their singles have reached the top 40, with their 1968 instrumental track ‘Albatross,’ making the Number 1 spot, while in America on the Billboard Hot 100, 18 of their singles have made the top 40, with ‘Dreams,’ from 1977, reaching Number 1, and ‘Everywhere,’ peaking at Number 14.

‘Everywhere’ was the fourth of seven singles released from ‘Tango in the Night,’ which was the fourteenth studio Album from Fleetwood Mac, from April 1987. The song was written by Christine McVie, with the production being by Richard Dashut, who was a long term collaborator with Fleetwood Mac, and produced some of their other Albums, including ‘Rumours.’ Dashut also produced solo Albums for the Fleetwood Mac group members as well.

Christine McVie was born Christine Anne Perfect, on July 12th, 1943, in Greenodd, Lancashire, England, she died of a stroke on November 30th, 2022, at the age of 78, having been suffering from metastatic cancer of an unknown primary origin. Prior to joining Fleetwood Mac, McVie had been the vocalist, and keyboard player with the British ‘Blues’ band ‘Chicken Shack,’ and had sung lead vocals on their 1969 UK Number 14 hit single ‘I’d Rather Go Blind,’ She had married John McVie in 1968, and joined him in Fleetwood Mac in 1970, the couple were married until divorcing in 1976, but remained friends, and working colleagues. Christine McVie released four solo studio Albums between 1970-2017, and seven solo singles between 1969-2022, including the Billboard Hot 100 Number 10 hit ‘Got a Hold on Me’ in 1984. She also appeared on 14 Fleetwood Mac Albums, and two Chicken Shack Albums. Following her death Fleetwood Mac issued a statement saying that she was ‘The best musician anyone could have in their band, and the best friend anyone could have in their life.’ Stevie Nicks said that McVie had been her ‘Best friend in the whole world.’

One of the striking things about ‘Everywhere’ is the songs unusual ‘intro.’ Richard Dashut who produced the track has said,’That’s a half-speed acoustic guitar and electric combined.’ Christine McVie has also spoken about the song’s intro, Lindsay Buckingham slowed the tape down, really slowly, and played the parts slowly, and then when it came to the right speed, it sounded bloody amazing.’ ‘Everywhere’ is a song about being completely lost in love. Christine McVie wrote the song around the time that she married her second husband Eduardo Quintela in 1986.

‘Can you hear me calling out your name? You know that I’m falling, and I don’t know what to say. I’ll speak a little louder, I’ll even shout,
you know that I’m proud, and I can’t get the words out.’