Showing posts with label God Only Knows. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 5, 2023

The Bridge 90.9: The Top 909 Songs of All Time

The Bridge 90.9:

The Top 909 Songs of All Time

Over the fourth of July holiday in 2023, Kansas City radio station 90.9 The Bridge did a countdown of the top 909 songs of all time, as determined by listener votes. I’ve attempted to make this list as accurate as possible, which includes correcting mistakes such as incomplete titles. I’ve also added the years of the songs’ releases. Below are the top 100.

Click here to check out other countdowns done by the Bridge over the years.

Click here to see other lists from publications and/or organizations.

1. Prince & the Revolution “Purple Rain” (1984)
2. The Beach Boys “God Only Knows” (1966)
3. Queen “Bohemian Rhapsody” (1975)
4. Dolly Parton “Jolene” (1973)
5. Marvin Gaye “What’s Going On” (1971)
6. Led Zeppelin “Stairway to Heaven” (1971)
7. The Beatles “A Day in the Life” (1967)
8. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit “If We Were Vampires” (2017)
9. Queen with David Bowie “Under Pressure” (1981)
10. Nirvana “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (1991)

11. The Rolling Stones “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” (1969)
12. Led Zeppelin “Kashmir” (1975)
13. The Beatles “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” (1968)
14. Sam Cooke “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1964)
15. John Lennon “Imagine” (1971)
16. Talking Heads “This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody)” (1983)
17. Stevie Wonder “Superstition” (1972)
18. The Beatles “Here Comes the Sun” (1969)
19. Peter Gabriel “In Your Eyes” (1986)
20. David Bowie “Life on Mars?” (1971)

21. The Beach Boys “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” (1966)
22. The Beatles “Hey Jude” (1968)
23. Aretha Franklin “Respect” (1967)
24. The Band “The Weight” (1968)
25. Louis Armstrong “What a Wonderful World” (1967)
26. Talking Heads “Once in a Lifetime” (1980)
27. Fleetwood Mac “Landslide” (1975)
28. Bill Withers “Lean on Me” (1972)
29. Bob Dylan “Tangled Up in Blue” (1975)
30. The Beatles “Let It Be” (1970)

31. Bonnie Raitt “Angel from Montgomery” (1971)
32. The Cure “Just Like Heaven” (1987)
33. The Flaming Lips “Do You Realize?” (2002)
34. Bruce Springsteen “Born to Run” (1975)
35. Fleetwood Mac “The Chain” (1977)
36. U2 “Where the Streets Have No Name” (1987)
37. Pink Floyd “Time” (1973)
38. Neil Young “Harvest Moon” (1992)
39. Leonard Cohen “Hallelujah” (1985)
40. The Pixies “Where Is My Mind?” (1988)

41. Joy Division “Love Will Tear Us Apart” (1980)
42. Lauryn Hill “Doo Wop (That Thing)” (1998)
43. The Rolling Stones “Paint It Black” (1966)
44. Massive Attack “Teardrop” (1998)
45. The Shins “New Slang” (2001)
46. Bob Dylan “Like a Rolling Stone” (1965)
47. Joni Mitchell “A Case of You” (1971)
48. The Beatles “Strawberry Fields Forever” (1967)
49. Pretenders “Brass in Pocket (I’m Special)” (1979)
50. Elton John “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” (1973)

51. Patsy Cline “Crazy” (1961)
52. Bill Withers “Lovely Day” (1977)
53. Pink Floyd “Wish You Were Here” (1975)
54. Whitney Houston “I Wanna Dance with Somebody Who Loves Me” (1987)
55. The Who “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (1971)
56. David Bowie “Heroes” (1977)
57. The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations” (1966)
58. Billie Holiday “Summertime” (1936)
59. Johnny Cash “I Walk the Line” (1956)
60. The Breeders “Cannonball” (1993)

61. The Smiths “How Soon Is Now?” (1984)
62. Van Morrison “Into the Mystic” (1970)
63. Tracy Chapman “Fast Car” (1988)
64. U2 “Beautiful Day” (2000)
65. The Rolling Stones “Sympathy for the Devil” (1968)
66. The Replacements “Can’t Hardly Wait” (1987)
67. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “All Along the Watchtower” (1968)
68. New Order “Ceremony” (1981)
69. Santana “Black Magic Woman” (1970)
70. The Beatles “All You Need Is Love” (1967)

71. The Ronettes “Be My Baby” (1963)
72. Led Zeppelin “Immigrant Song” (1970)
73. Nina Simone “Feeling Good” (1965)
74. Pink Floyd “Comfortably Numb” (1979)
75. James Taylor “Fire and Rain” (1970)
76. Modest Mouse “Float On” (2004)
77. Bruce Springsteen “I’m on Fire” (1984)
78. The Rolling Stones “Brown Sugar” (1971)
79. The Beatles “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” (1967)
80. Procol Harum “A Whiter Shade of Pale” (1967)

81. Tom Petty “Wildflowers” (1994)
82. Cyndi Lauper “Time After Time” (1983)
83. The Kinks “Waterloo Sunset” (1967)
84. Pink Floyd “Us and Them” (1973)
85. Elton John “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding” (1973)
86. The Beatles “I Am the Walrus” (1967)
87. The Beatles “With a Little Help from My Friends” (1967)
88. Queen “Somebody to Love” (1976)
89. Don McLean “American Pie” (1971)
90. Mumford & Sons “The Cave” (2010)

91. Johnny Cash “Folsom Prison Blues” (1955)
92. David Bowie “Space Oddity” (1969)
93. Prince “When Doves Cry” (1984)
94. The Verve “Bitter Sweet Symphony” (1997)
95. Alanis Morissette “You Oughta Know” (1995)
96. U2 “Bad” (1984)
97. David Bowie “Starman” (1972)
98. Led Zeppelin “Whole Lotta Love” (1969)
99. Buddy Holly & the Crickets “That’ll Be the Day” (1957)
100. Paul Simon “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” (1986)

101. Guns N’ Roses “Welcome to the Jungle” (1987)
102. A-ha “Take on Me” (1985)
103. Bob Marley & the Wailers “Three Little Birds” (1977)
104. Steve Miller Band “Fly Like an Eagle” (1976)
105. The Miracles “The Tracks of My Tears” (1965)
106. Avett Brothers “Head Full of Doubt, Road Full of Promise” (2009)
107. The Clash “Spanish Bombs” (1979)
108. Derek & the Dominos “Layla” (1971)
109. Janelle Monáe “Make Me Feel” (2018)
110. Sarah McLachlan “Possession” (1993)

111. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Under the Bridge” (1992)
112. The National “Bloodbuzz Ohio” (2010)
113. Roxy Music “Avalon” (1982)
114. U2 “New Year’s Day” (1983)
115. Portishead “Glory Box” (1994)
116. Little Feat “Dixie Chicken” (1973)
117. Led Zeppelin “Over the Hills and Far Away” (1973)
118. Florence + the Machine “Shake It Out” (2011)
119. Meat Loaf “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” (1978)
120. Johnny Cash “Hurt” (2003)

121. The Who “Who Are You?” (1978)
122. Booker T & the MG's “Green Onions” (1962)
123. Cat Stevens “Father and Son” (1970)
124. Elton John “Bennie and the Jets” (1973)
125. The Beatles “Penny Lane” (1967)
126. Bob Dylan “The Times They Are A-Changin’ “ (1964)
127. Foo Fighters “Monkey Wrench” (1997)
128. Bill Withers “Ain’t No Sunshine” (1971)
129. The Beatles with Billy Preston “Get Back” (1969)
130. U2 “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (1987)

131. Hank Williams “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” (1949)
132. The National “Don't Swallow the Cap” (2013)
133. Prince & the Revolution “Raspberry Beret” (1985)
134. Tina Turner “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” (1984)
135. Wilco “Jesus Etc.” (2002)
136. Ike & Tina Turner “River Deep, Mountain High” (1966)
137. Ben E. King “Stand by Me” (1961)
138. Eagles “Hotel California” (1976)
139. The Beatles “The Long and Winding Road” (1970)
140. Traffic “Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys” (1971)

141. The Cranberries “Zombie” (1994)
142. Beastie Boys “Intergalactic” (1998)
143. The Beatles “Yesterday” (1965)
144. The Smiths “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out” (1986)
145. Steely Dan “Aja” (1977)
146. The Clash “Train in Vain (Stand by Me)” (1979)
147. John Coltrane “Naima” (1959)
148. Carole King “You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman” (1971)
149. The Beatles “Eleanor Rigby” (1966)
150. Simon & Garfunkel “Bridge Over Troubled Water” (1970)

151. The Clash “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” (1982)
152. Glen Campbell “Wichita Lineman” (1968)
153. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)” (1968)
154. Billie Holiday “Strange Fruit” (1939)
155. Michael Jackson “Rock with You” (1979)
156. Led Zeppelin “Going to California” (1971)
157. Bonnie Raitt “Something to Talk About” (1991)
158. Sturgill Simpson “Turtles All the Way Down” (2014)
159. Smashing Pumpkins “Mayonaise” (1993)
160. Lenny Kravitz “Let Love Rule” (1989)

161. U2 “Pride (In the Name of Love)” (1984)
162. Little Richard “Tutti Frutti” (1955)
163. Brandi Carlile “The Story (I Was Made for You)” (2007)
164. Pearl Jam “Jeremy” (1991)
165. Dire Straits “Romeo and Juliet” (1980)
166. Willie Nelson “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” (1975)
167. Ike & Tina Turner “Proud Mary” (1971)
168. The Raspberries “Go All the Way” (1972)
169. Nick Drake “Pink Moon” (1972)
170. Jackson Browne “Take It Easy” (1973)

171. The Doors “Riders on the Storm” (1971)
172. Patsy Cline “Walking After Midnight” (1957)
173. Otis Redding “Try a Little Tenderness” (1966)
174. Alice in Chains “Would?” (1992)
175. Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard “Pancho and Lefty” (1983)
176. The Clash “Rock the Casbah” (1982)
177. Marvin Gaye “Got to Give It Up” (1977)
178. Radiohead “Karma Police” (1997)
179. Elvis Presley “Jailhouse Rock” (1957)
180. Soundgarden “Black Hole Sun” (1994)

181. Lucinda Williams “Car Wheels on a Gravel Road” (1998)
182. Jeff Buckley “Last Goodbye” (1994)
183. The Postal Service “Such Great Heights” (2003)
184. The Miracles “The Tears of a Clown” (1967)
185. Robyn “Dancing on My Own” (2010)
186. Billie Eilish “Bad Guy” (2019)
187. The Supremes “Someday We'll Be Together” (1969)
188. John Lennon “Instant Karma (We All Shine On)” (1970)
189. Frank Ocean “Thinkin’ ‘Bout You” (2012)
190. Jason Isbell “24 Frames” (2015)

191. Pixies “Here Comes Your Man” (1989)
192. Buffalo Springfield “For What It’s Worth” (1967)
193. De La Soul “Me, Myself, and I” (1989)
194. The Rolling Stones “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” (1965)
195. Massive Attack with Tracey Thorn “Protection” (1994)
196. Petula Clark “Downtown” (1964)
197. Nina Simone “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” (1969)
198. Elvis Costello “What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding” (1979)
199. U2 “One” (1991)
200. Aretha Franklin “Think” (1968)

201. Tom Tom Club “Genius of Love” (1981)
202. Pretenders “Stop Your Sobbing” (1979)
203. Gil Scott-Heron “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” (1970)
204. The Rainmakers “Let My People Go Go” (1984)
205. Janet Jackson “That’s the Way Love Goes” (1993)
206. Elton John “Rocket Man (I Think It’s Gonna Be a Long Time)” (1972)
207. Johnny Cash “Ring of Fire” (1963)
208. Kate Bush “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” (1985)
209. Eric B. & Rakim “Paid in Full (Seven Minutes of Madness)” (1987)
210. John Prine “Sam Stone” (1971)

211. David Bowie “Rebel Rebel” (1974)
212. The White Stripes “Seven Nation Army” (2003)
213. Public Enemy “Fight the Power” (1989)
214. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Higher Ground” (1989)
215. Depeche Mode “Personal Jesus” (1989)
216. The Beatles “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End” (1969)
217. Whitney Houston “I Will Always Love You” (1992)
218. Prince & the Revolution “Kiss” (1986)
219. A Tribe Called Quest “Can I Kick It?” (1991)
220. Radiohead “Creep” (1992)

221. Kraftwerk “Computer Love” (1981)
222. The Beatles “In My Life” (1968)
223. Tina Turner “The Best” (1989)
224. Blues Traveler “Run Around” (1994)
225. Little Richard “Good Golly Miss Molly” (1958)
226. Nancy Sinatra “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’” (1966)
227. Patti Smith “Because the Night” (1978)
228. Madonna “Like a Prayer” (1989)
229. R.E.M. “Losing My Religion” (1991)
230. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five “The Message” (1982)

231. Adele “Rolling in the Deep” (2010)
232. Beck “Where It's At” (1996)
233. Simon & Garfunkel “The Sound of Silence (aka “The Sounds of Silence”)” (1965)
234. Brandi Carlile “The Joke” (2017)
235. Stone Temple Pilots “Interstate Love Song” (1994)
236. Jeff Buckley “Hallelujah” (1994)
237. Bob Marley & the Wailers “No Woman, No Cry” (1974)
238. The Strokes “Last Nite” (2001)
239. The Temptations “My Girl” (1964)
240. OutKast “Hey Ya!” (2003)

241. Yeah Yeah Yeahs “Maps” (2003)
242. Janis Joplin “Move Over” (1971)
243. U2 “With or Without You” (1987)
244. Fats Domino “Blueberry Hill” (1956)
245. Tom Petty “Free Fallin’” (1989)
246. Foo Fighters “Everlong” (1997)
247. Stevie Wonder “Sir Duke” (1976)
248. Bright Eyes “First Day of My Life” (2005)
249. Daft Punk “One More Time” (2000)
250. Crowded House “Don’t Dream It’s Over” (1986)

251. Velvet Underground “Sweet Jane” (1970)
252. The Staple Singers “I’ll Take You There” (1972)
253. Donna Summer “I Feel Love” (1977)
254. Dolly Parton “I Will Always Love You” (1974)
255. Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
256. Frogpond “Be” (1996)
257. Big Mama Thornton “Hound Dog” (1953)
258. Talking Heads “Burning Down the House” (1983)
259. Amy Winehouse “Rehab” (2006)
260. Van Morrison “Brown-Eyed Girl” (1967)

261. Creedence Clearwater Revival “Fortunate Son” (1969)
262. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Purple Haze” (1967)
263. Big Star “Thirteen” (1972)
264. U2 “Sunday Bloody Sunday” (1983)
265. Jackson Browne “Running on Empty” (1977)
266. The Undertones “Teenage Kicks” (1978)
267. The Kinks “Lola” (1970)
268. Lou Reed “Walk on the Wild Side” (1972)
269. Counting Crows “Round Here” (1993)
270. Black Sabbath “Black Sabbath” (1970)

271. Peter Gabriel “Solsbury Hill” (1977)
272. Cat Stevens “Wild World” (1970)
273. Marvin Gaye “Let’s Get It On” (1973)
274. Oasis “Wonderwall” (1995)
275. Sex Pistols “God Save the Queen” (1977)
276. The Greeting Committee “Run for Your Money” (2018)
277. Weezer “Undone (The Sweater Song)” (1994)
278. The Beatles “Twist and Shout” (1963)
279. Bob & Luna Walkenhorst “For Tomorrow” (2018)
280. Lizzo “Juice” (2019)

281. Tori Amos “Cornflake Girl” (1994)
282. Dolly Parton “9 to 5” (1980)
283. The Rolling Stones “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” (1968)
284. Tori Amos “Crucify” (1992)
285. Eminem “Lose Yourself” (2002)
286. The Beatles “Revolution” (1968)
287. The Police “Roxanne” (1978)
288. Beyoncé “Formation” (2016)
289. M.I.A. “Paper Planes” (2008)
290. Janis Joplin “Me and Bobby McGee” (1971)

291. Jayhawks “Blue” (1995)
292. Marvin Gaye “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” (1968)
293. Guns N’ Roses “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (1988)
294. Norah Jones “Don't Know Why” (2002)
295. Otis Redding “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” (1968)
296. Phil Collins “In the Air Tonight” (1981)
297. Judy Garland “Over the Rainbow” (1939)
298. Alicia Keys “Fallin’” (2001)
299. Dave Brubeck “Take Five” (1959)
300. Lorde “Royals” (2013)

301. The Notorious B.I.G. “Hypnotize” (1997)
302. Prince & the Revolution “Let’s Go Crazy” (1984)
303. R.E.M. “So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)” (1984)
304. Stevie Wonder “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing” (1973)
305. New Order “True Faith” (1987)
306. Nirvana “Come As You Are” (1991)
307. Patti Smith Group “Dancing Barefoot” (1979)
308. Carl Perkins “Blue Suede Shoes” (1956)
309. Aretha Franklin “You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman” (1967)
310. Wet Leg “Chaise Longue” (2021)

311. Badfinger “No Matter What” (1970)
312. Muse “Uprising” (2009)
313. Thin Lizzy “The Boys Are Back in Town” (1976)
314. The Clash “London Calling” (1979)
315. James Brown “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud” (1968)
316. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit “Dreamsicle” (2020)
317. Sam & Dave “Soul Man” (1967)
318. Bonnie Tyler “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (1983)
319. PJ Harvey “Down by the Water” (1995)
320. The Beatles “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964)

321. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds “Red Right Hand” (1994)
322. Smashing Pumpkins “Today” (1993)
323. Paul McCartney & Wings “Jet” (1973)
324. Norah Jones “Come Away with Me” (2002)
325. Sam Cooke “Wonderful World” (1960)
326. Missy Elliott “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” (1997)
327. Green Day “Basket Case” (1994)
328. The Church “Under the Milky Way” (1988)
329. Coldplay “Yellow” (2000)
330. The Doors “Light My Fire” (1967)

331. Soul Asylum “Runaway Train” (1993)
332. Chuck Berry “Johnny B. Goode” (1958)
333. Frightened Rabbit “The Woodpile” (2013)
334. Wu-Tang Clan “C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)” (1994)
335. Black Sabbath “War Pigs” (1970)
336. Elvis Costello “Alison” (1977)
337. Kraftwerk “The Model (Das Modell)” (1978)
338. Steely Dan “Kid Charlemagne” (1976)
339. Greg Kihn Band “The Breakup Song” (1981)
340. The Traveling Wilburys “Handle with Care” (1988)

341. Dave Matthews Band “Crash into Me” (1996)
342. Brandi Carlile “That Wasn’t Me” (2012)
343. Foo Fighters “Times Like These” (2002)
344. Television “Marquee Moon” (1977)
345. Gary Numan “Cars” (1979)
346. Earth, Wind & Fire “September” (1978)
347. Paul Simon “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” (1972)
348. Matthew Sweet “Girlfriend” (1991)
349. Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” (1995)
350. Manchester Orchestra “The Gold” (2017)

351. The Velvet Underground “Pale Blue Eyes” (1969)
352. The White Stripes “Fell in Love with a Girl” (2001)
353. Bruce Springsteen “Born in the U.S.A.” (1984)
354. Kendrick Lamar “Alright” (2015)
355. Rod Stewart “Maggie May” (1971)
356. The Specials with Rico Rodriguez “A Message to You Rudy” (1979)
357. Aerosmith “Sweet Emotion” (1975)
358. Ritchie Valens “La Bamba” (1958)
359. America “A Horse with No Name” (1971)
360. Kendrick Lamar “Humble” (2017)

361. The Rolling Stones “Ruby Tuesday” (1967)
362. The Byrds “Mr. Tambourine Man” (1965)
363. Stevie Wonder “Living for the City” (1973)
364. Beyoncé “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” (2008)
365. Van Morrison “Moondance” (1970)
366. Dusty Springfield “Son of a Preacher Man” (1968)
367. Norman Greenbaum “Spirit in the Sky” (1970)
368. Simple Minds “Don’t You Forget about Me” (1985)
369. Björk “Human Behaviour” (1993)
370. Childish Gambino “This Is America” (2018)

371. TV on the Radio “Wolf Like Me” (2006)
372. Metallica “Enter Sandman” (1991)
373. Elvis Costello “The Angels Wanna Wear My Red Shoes” (1977)
374. Etta James “At Last” (1960)
375. Big Country “In a Big Country” (1983)
376. The Waterboys “The Whole of the Moon” (1985)
377. Chaka Khan “I’m Every Woman” (1978)
378. Jane's Addiction “Been Caught Stealing” (1990)
379. Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott “Get Ur Freak On” (2001)
380. Carole King “I Feel the Earth Move” (1971)

381. Sinéad O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U” (1990)
382. Fiona Apple “Criminal” (1996)
383. Fugees “Killing Me Softly” (1996)
384. Patsy Cline “I Fall to Pieces” (1961)
385. Amy Winehouse “You Know I'm No Good” (2006)
386. The Jam “That’s Entertainment” (1980)
387. New Order “Age of Consent” (1983)
388. Elvis Costello & the Attractions “Radio Radio” (1978)
389. The Clash “I Fought the Law” (1979)
390. Bob Marley & the Wailers “Waiting in Vain” (1977)

391. Spoon “Hot Thoughts” (2017)
392. The Beatles “Can’t Buy Me Love” (1964)
393. David Bowie “Golden Years” (1975)
394. Tom Petty “Runnin’ Down a Dream” (1989)
395. My Chemical Romance “Helena (So Long and Goodnight)” (2004)
396. Lady Gaga “Bad Romance” (2009)
397. Devo “Whip It” (1980)
398. Tori Amos “Silent All These Years” (1991)
399. Bo Diddley “Bo Diddley” (1955)
400. Michael Jackson “Billie Jean” (1982)

401. Beastie Boys “Sabotage” (1994)
402. Ramones “Blitzkrieg Bop” (1976)
403. Dr. Dre with Snoop Dogg “Stil D.R.E.” (1999)
404. The Jesus & Mary Chain “Just Like Honey” (1985)
405. Daft Punk with Pharrell Williams “Get Lucky” (2013)
406. David Bowie “Modern Love” (1983)
407. A Tribe Called Quest with Busta Rhymes “Scenario (remix)” (1992)
408. The Killers “Somebody Told Me” (2004)
409. Yazoo “Situation” (1982)
410. Psychedelic Furs “Love My Way” (1982)

411. The Beta Band “Dry the Rain” (1999)
412. Alabama Shakes “Hold On” (2012)
413. Echo & the Bunnymen “The Killing Moon” (1984)
414. Leonard Cohen “Everybody Knows” (1988)
415. Blind Melon “No Rain” (1992)
416. Fanny “Let's Spend the Night Together” (1974)
417. XTC “Dear God” (1986)
418. TLC “Waterfalls” (1994)
419. Prince “Little Red Corvette” (1982)
420. Boston “Foreplay/Longtime” (1976)

421. The Cars “You’re All I’ve Got Tonight” (1978)
422. Elvis Costello & the Attractions “Pump It Up” (1978)
423. Arrested Development “Tennessee” (1992)
424. Stevie Wonder “Master Blaster (Jammin’)” (1980)
425. Ray Charles “Georgia on My Mind” (1960)
426. Avett Brothers “I and Love and You” (2009)
427. Steely Dan “Rikki Don't Lost That Number” (1974)
428. Toad the Wet Sprocket “Walk on the Ocean” (1991)
429. Depeche Mode “Enjoy the Silence” (1990)
430. Death Cab for Cutie “Soul Meets Body” (2005)

431. James Brown “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965)
432. Live “Lightning Crashes” (1994)
433. David Bowie “Changes” (1972)
434. David Gray “Babylon” (1998)
435. Ramones “I Wanna Be Sedated” (1978)
436. Blondie “Call Me” (1980)
437. Arctic Monkeys “Do I Wanna Know?” (2013)
438. Beck “Loser” (1993)
439. The Replacements “I'll Be You” (1989)
440. En Vogue “Free Your Mind” (1992)

441. New Order “Blue Monday” (1983)
442. Prince & the Revolution “Sign 'O' the Times” (1987)
443. Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers “Why Do Fools Fall in Love?” (1956)
444. Blondie “Heart of Glass” (1978)
445. Vampire Weekend “Diane Young” (2013)
446. Death Cab for Cutie “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” (2005)
447. R.E.M. “Man on the Moon” (1992)
448. Prince “7” (1992)
449. Muddy Waters “Mannish Boy” (1955)
450. Sex Pistols “Anarchy in the U.K.” (1976)

451. Crosby, Stills and Nash “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes” (1969)
452. New Order “Regret” (1993)
453. Smashing Pumpkins “1979” (1995)
454. Elliott Smith “Miss Misery” (1997)
455. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Give It Away” (1991)
456. Hüsker Dü “Could You Be the One” (1987)
457. Public Image Ltd. “Rise” (1986)
458. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers “Learning to Fly” (1991)
459. New Order “The Perfect Kiss” (1985)
460. Nina Simone “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” (1960)

461. Pulp “Common People” (1995)
462. Rage Against the Machine “Bulls on Parade” (1996)
463. Courtney Barnett “Pedestrian at Best” (2015)
464. The Swell Season (Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova) “Falling Slowly” (2007)
465. The Cure “Friday I’m in Love” (1992)
466. The Replacements “Left of the Dial” (1985)
467. David Bowie “Let’s Dance” (1983)
468. Queen “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” (1979)
469. The Kinks “You Really Got Me” (1964)
470. Iggy Pop “Lust for Life” (1977)

471. Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble “Cold Shot” (1984)
472. Supertramp “Give a Little Bit” (1977)
473. Damien Rice “Volcano” (2005)
474. Motörhead “Ace of Spades” (1980)
475. Amos Lee “Windows Are Rolled Down” (2011)
476. Radiohead “Everything in Its Right Place” (2000)
477. Neko Case “Hold on Hold On” (2006)
478. Al Green “Let’s Stay Together” (1971)
479. Alice in Chains “Rooster” (1992)
480. Green Day “American Idiot” (2004)

481. The Replacements “Achin’ to Be” (1989)
482. The Byrds “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)” (1965)
483. Paul Simon “Kodachrome” (1973)
484. The Cure “Love Song” (1989)
485. Curtis Mayfield “Move on Up” (1970)
486. Indigo Girls “Closer to Fine” (1989)
487. Funkadelic “One Nation Under a Groove” (1978)
488. Nirvana “Heart-Shaped Box” (1993)
489. Buzzcocks “Ever Fallen in Love?” (1978)
490. 2pac “Changes” (1998)

491. Talking Heads “Life During Wartime” (1979)
492. The English Beat “Save It for Later” (1982)
493. The Kinks “All Day and All of the Night” (1964)
494. The Kingsmen “Louie Louie” (1963)
495. Pavement “Cut Your Hair” (1994)
496. Queen Latifah “U.N.I.T.Y.” (1993)
497. George Harrison “My Sweet Lord” (1970)
498. Talking Heads “Take Me to the River” (1978)
499. Gordon Lightfoot “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” (1976)
500. Collective Soul “December” (1995)

501. The Black Keys “Gold on the Ceiling” (2011)
502. Dr. Dre & Snoop Doggy Dogg “Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang” (1992)
503. Gorillaz “Feel Good Inc.” (2005)
504. Bob Marley & the Wailers “Redemption Song” (1980)
505. Bob Dylan “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” (1963)
506. John Lennon “Mind Games” (1973)
507. Hum “Stars” (1995)
508. The Modern Lovers “Roadrunner” (1975)
509. José González “Heartbeats” (2006)
510. Big Head Todd & the Monsters “Bittersweet” (1993)

511. Paul Simon “Graceland” (1986)
512. Depeche Mode “Just Can't Get Enough” (1981)
513. First Aid Kit “My Silver Lining” (2014)
514. Bob Marley & the Wailers “Could You Be Loved” (1980)
515. Romeo Void “Never Say Never” (1982)
516. Tracy Chapman “Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution” (1988)
517. Govt Mule “Soul Shine” (1998)
518. The Beatles “Day Tripper” (1965)
519. The Cars “Drive” (1984)
520. Liz Phair “Polyester Bride” (1998)

521. Kanye West with Jamie Foxx “Gold Digger” (2005)
522. Vampire Weekend “Harmony Hall” (2019)
523. Death Cab for Cutie “I Will Possess Your Heart” (2008)
524. Bob Dylan “Blowin’ in the Wind” (1963)
525. Tears for Fears “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” (1985)
526. Judas Priest “Living After Midnight” (1980)
527. The Everly Brothers “Bye Bye Love” (1957)
528. Mountain Goats “This Year” (2005)
529. Jake Bugg “Two Fingers” (2012)
530. Empire of the Sun “Walking on a Dream” (2016)

531. Nine Inch Nails “Closer” (1994)
532. Pearl Jam “Corduroy” (1994)
533. Ben Folds “The Luckiest” (2001)
534. The Cure “Boys Don’t Cry” (1979)
535. Dire Straits “Skateaway” (1980)
536. Tallest Man on Earth “Sagres” (2015)
537. Blue Öyster Cult “Don’t Fear the Reaper” (1976)
538. Lake Street Dive “Hypotheticals” (2021)
539. Martha & the Vandellas “Heat Wave” (1963)
540. Cake “The Distance” (1996)

541. The Animals “The House of the Rising Sun” (1964)
542. Miley Cyrus “Party in the U.S.A.” (2009)
543. Echo & the Bunnymen “Bring on the Dancing Horses” (1985)
544. The Plimsouls “A Million Miles Away” (1982)
545. Warren G with Nate Dogg “Regulate” (1994)
546. Pixies “Hey” (1989)
547. Arctic Monkeys “Flourescent Adolescent” (2007)
548. Vampire Weekend “This Life” (2019)
549. Daft Punk “Beyond” (2013)
550. 4 Non Blondes “What’s Up?” (1992)

551. Veruca Salt “Seether” (1994)
552. Dead Boys “Sonic Reducer” (1977)
553. Jamiroquai “Virtual Insanity” (1996)
554. Frank Sinatra “My Funny Valentine” (1954)
555. Jurassic 5 “What's Golden” (2002)
556. Paul McCartney & Wings “Silly Love Songs” (1976)
557. Ben Folds Five “Brick” (1997)
558. Berwanger “Cities” (2020)
559. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” (1993)
560. The Stooges “I Wanna Be Your Dog” (1969)

561. Matthew Sweet “Sick of Myself” (1995)
562. Radiohead “No Surprises” (1997)
563. Steely Dan “Pretzel Logic” (1974)
564. The Eels “Fresh Feeling” (2001)
565. Linda Ronstadt “You’re No Good” (1974)
566. AC/DC “You Shook Me All Night Long” (1980)
567. The Rolling Stones “Happy” (1972)
568. Fleet Foxes “Helplessness Blues” (2011)
569. Sturgill Simpson “Mercury in Retrograde” (2019)
570. The Offspring “Self Esteem” (1994)

571. Lynyrd Skynyrd “Free Bird” (1973)
572. Creedence Clearwater Revival “Run Through the Jungle” (1970)
573. Des'ree “You Gotta Be” (1994)
574. The Flys “Got You Where I Want You” (1998)
575. The Beatles “Yellow Submarine” (1966)
576. Adele “Hello” (2015)
577. Ween “Ocean Man” (1997)
578. Counting Crows “Anna Begins” (1993)
579. R.E.M. “It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” (1987)
580. My Bloody Valentine “When You Sleep” (1991)

581. X-ray Spex “Oh Bondage! Up Yours” (1977)
582. Steely Dan “Peg” (1977)
583. Yes “Owner of a Lonely Heart” (1983)
584. George Michael “Freedom '90” (1990)
585. Björk “It’s Oh So Quiet (Blow a Fuse)” (1995)
586. Richard & Linda Thompson “Shoot Out the Lights” (1982)
587. Allman Brothers Band “Ramblin’ Man” (1973)
588. Led Zeppelin “Hey Hey What Can I Do” (1970)
589. Wilco “Impossible Germany” (2007)
590. T-Rex “Cosmic Dancer” (1971)

591. The Beatles “Hello Goodbye” (1967)
592. Amos Lee “Arms of a Woman” (2005)
593. Ray Charles “I Gotta Woman (aka "I’ve Got a Woman")” (1955)
594. Veruca Salt “Volcano Girls” (1997)
595. LCD Soundsystem “Daft Punk Is Playing at My House” (2005)
596. US3 “Tukka Yoots Riddim” (1993)
597. The Cranberries “Linger” (1993)
598. Gotye with Kimbra “Somebody That I Used to Know” (2011)
599. John Fogerty “Centerfield” (1985)
600. Lizzo “About Damn Time” (2022)

601. 10,000 Maniacs “These Are Days” (1992)
602. Talking Heads “Wild Wild Life” (1986)
603. Jane's Addiction “Jane Says” (1988)
604. Radiohead “Fake Plastic Trees” (1995)
605. Joy Division “Disorder” (1979)
606. The Rolling Stones “Honky Tonk Women” (1969)
607. Sweet “Ballroom Blitz” (1975)
608. Edie Brickell & New Bohemians “What I Am” (1988)
609. Ike & Tina Turner “Sexy Ida (Part 1)” (1974)
610. No Doubt “Just a Girl” (1995)

611. Billy Bragg & Wilco “California Stars” (1998)
612. Big Star “September Gurls” (1974)
613. Snail Mail “Heat Wave” (2018)
614. Richard Thompson “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” (1991)
615. Phosphorescent “Song for Zula” (2013)
616. Tool “Schism” (2001)
617. The Rolling Stones “Wild Horses” (1971)
618. The Police “Message in a Bottle” (1979)
619. R.E.M. “Radio Free Europe” (1981)
620. James “Laid” (1993)

621. Midnight Oil “Beds Are Burning” (1987)
622. Carole King “It’s Too Late” (1971)
623. Sharon Van Etten “Seventeen” (2019)
624. Radiohead “Reckoner” (2007)
625. Chicago “25 or 6 to 4” (1970)
626. The Jackson 5 “I Want You Back” (1969)
627. The White Stripes “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground” (2001)
628. The Stooges “Gimme Danger” (1973)
629. T-Rex “Jeepster” (1971)
630. Gary Clark Jr. “When My Train Pulls In” (2001)

631. Little Feat “Fat Man in the Bathtub” (1973)
632. Nirvana “All Apologies” (1993)
633. Frightened Rabbit “I Wish I Was Sober” (2016)
634. The Who “Love Reign O’er Me” (1973)
635. The Killers “All These Things That I've Done” (2004)
636. Squeeze “Black Coffee in Bed” (1982)
637. Stevie Nicks “Edge of Seventeen” (1981)
638. Dada “Dizz Knee Land” (1992)
639. Kurtis Blow “The Breaks” (1980)
640. INXS “Don’t Change” (1982)

641. Jeff Buckley “Lover You Should've Come Over” (1994)
642. Len “Steal My Sunshine” (1999)
643. The Rolling Stones “Shattered” (1978)
644. James Brown “The Payback (Part 1)” (1974)
645. Roxy Music “Love Is the Drug” (1975)
646. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Hey Joe” (1966)
647. Journey “Don’t Stop Believin’” (1981)
648. Iron Butterfly “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” (1968)
649. The Knack “My Sharona” (1979)
650. Joseph Arthur “Saint of Impossible Causes” (2013)

651. Beastie Boys “You Gotta Fight for Your Right to Party” (1986)
652. Joni Mitchell “Carey” (1971)
653. Le Tigre “Deceptacon” (1999)
654. Jack's Mannequin “The Mixed Tape” (2005)
655. Bob Dylan “Lay Lady Lay” (1969)
656. Tegan & Sara “Walking with a Ghost” (2004)
657. Radiohead “True Love Waits” (2001)
658. Aretha Franklin “I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You” (1967)
659. Incubus “Drive” (2001)
660. Foo Fighters “All My Life” (2002)

661. The Youngbloods “Get Together” (1967)
662. The Faces “Ooh La La” (1973)
663. Jason Isbell “Last of My Kind” (2017)
664. The Doors “Roadhouse Blues” (1970)
665. Bee Gees “How Deep Is Your Love” (1977)
666. Vance Joy “Riptide” (2014)
667. Pet Shop Boys “West End Girls” (1985)
668. Psychedelic Furs “Pretty in Pink” (1981)
669. Johnny Cash “I’ve Been Everywhere” (1996)
670. Etta James “I’d Rather Go Blind” (1967)

671. The Style Council “My Ever Changing Moods” (1984)
672. Roxy Music “Do the Strand” (1973)
673. The English Beat “Mirror in the Bathroom” (1980)
674. Frou Frou “Let Go” (2002)
675. Neil Young “Powderfinger” (1979)
676. Old Crow Medicine Show “Wagon Wheel” (2004)
677. David Bowie “Fame” (1975)
678. Modern English “I Melt with You” (1982)
679. The Everly Brothers “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958)
680. The Shins “Phantom Limb” (2007)

681. Weezer “Say It Ain’t So” (1994)
682. Feist “My Moon My Man” (2007)
683. Sisters of Mercy “This Corrosion” (1987)
684. The Beatles “Come Together” (1969)
685. Radiohead “Just” (1995)
686. The Trashmen “Surfin’ Bird” (1963)
687. John Cougar Mellencamp “Jack and Diane” (1982)
688. New Pornographers “Challengers” (2007)
689. Bauhaus “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” (1979)
690. The Who “I Can’t Explain” (1965)

691. MGMT “Kids” (2008)
692. Neil Young & Crazy Horse “Cortez the Killer” (1975)
693. Mike Oldfield “Tubular Bells” (1974)
694. Black Sabbath “Iron Man” (1970)
695. INXS “The One Thing” (1982)
696. Joni Mitchell “Both Sides Now” (1969)
697. Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This” (1983)
698. Sweet “Fox on the Run” (1975)
699. Lucinda Williams “Essence” (2001)
700. The Who “My Generation” (1966)

701. Alice in Chains “Heaven Beside You” (1995)
702. Kevin Morby “This Is a Photograph” (2022)
703. Ride “Vapour Trail” (1990)
704. Styx “Mr. Roboto” (1983)
705. Johnny Cash “Personal Jesus” (2002)
706. Lady Gaga “Poker Face” (2008)
707. Jim Croce “Bad Bad Leroy Brown” (1973)
708. Pixies “Gigantic” (1988)
709. The Beatles “Don’t Let Me Down” (1969)
710. New Order “Bizarre Love Triangle” (1986)

711. The Beach Boys “Sloop John B” (1966)
712. Lin-Manuel Miranda “My Shot” (2015)
713. Salt-N-Pepa “Shoop” (1993)
714. Rage Against the Machine “Killing in the Name” (1992)
715. R.E.M. “Don’t Go Back to Rockville” (1984)
716. Houndmouth “Sedona” (2015)
717. Sheryl Crow “Leaving Las Vegas” (1993)
718. America “Sister Golden Hair” (1975)
719. Led Zeppelin “The Song Remains the Same” (1973)
720. Pixies “Wave of Mutilation” (1989)

721. The B-52’s “Love Shack” (1989)
722. Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians “So You Think You’re in Love” (1991)
723. The Rolling Stones “Emotional Rescue” (1980)
724. Ultravox “Vienna” (1980)
725. Lizzo “Truth Hurts” (2017)
726. Split Enz “I Got You” (1980)
727. The Buggles “Video Killed the Radio Star” (1979)
728. Bruce Springsteen “Hungry Heart” (1980)
729. Violent Femmes “Blister in the Sun” (1983)
730. R.E.M. “Fall on Me” (1986)

731. Counting Crows “Omaha” (1993)
732. Band of Horses “The Funeral” (2006)
733. Elton John “Philadelphia Freedom” (1975)
734. The Kinks “A Well Respected Man” (1965)
735. L7 “Pretend Were Dead” (1992)
736. The Beatles “Something” (1969)
737. Train “Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)” (2001)
738. Sly & the Family Stone “Everyday People” (1968)
739. Portishead “Sour Times (Nobody Loves Me)” (1994)
740. Frank Ocean “Lost” (2012)

741. Radiohead “Paranoid Android” (1997)
742. Revivalists “Wish I Knew You” (2015)
743. Squirrel Nut Zippers “Hell (The Afterlife)” (1996)
744. The Rolling Stones “Under My Thumb” (1966)
745. Steppenwolf “Magic Carpet Ride” (1968)
746. Cyndi Lauper “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” (1983)
747. Elton John “Madman Across the Water” (1971)
748. Britney Spears “Toxic” (2003)
749. The Beatles “Ticket to Ride” (1965)
750. The Police “Driven to Tears” (1980)

751. Blur “Song 2” (1997)
752. Bruce Springsteen “Thunder Road” (1975)
753. The Kinks “Come Dancing” (1983)
754. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers “The Waiting” (1981)
755. Run-D.M.C. “It’s Tricky” (1986)
756. Jason Isbell “Alabama Pines” (2011)
757. Janis Joplin “Cry Baby” (1971)
758. Duran Duran “Rio” (1982)
759. Spoon “The Way We Get By” (2002)
760. Cat Power “The Greatest” (2006)

761. Prince “Soft and Wet” (1978)
762. Public Enemy “Bring the Noise” (1987)
763. The Walkmen “The Rat” (2004)
764. Van Halen “Jump” (1983)
765. Beck “The New Pollution” (1996)
766. My Chemical Romance “Welcome to the Black Parade” (2006)
767. Jay-Z with Alicia Keys “Empire State of Mind” (2009)
768. Kim Wilde “Kids in America” (1981)
769. Pixies “Motorway to Roswell” (1991)
770. UB40 “Here I Am (Come and Take Me)” (1990)

771. Tina Turner “Acid Queen” (1975)
772. Daft Punk “Giorgio by Moroder” (2013)
773. Bananarama “I Heard a Rumour” (1987)
774. Aretha Franklin “I Say a Little Prayer” (1968)
775. Salt-N-Pepa “None of Your Business” (1993)
776. R.E.M. “Can’t Get There from Here” (1985)
777. Uncle Tupelo “Graveyard Shift” (1990)
778. Queen “Keep Yourself Alive” (1973)
779. Genesis “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” (1974)
780. The B-52's “Dance This Mess Around” (1979)

781. Redbone “Come and Get Your Love” (1974)
782. Peter Frampton “Do You Feel Like We Do” (1973)
783. Golden Earring “Radar Love” (1973)
784. Bee Gees “More Than a Woman” (1977)
785. Aerosmith “Back in the Saddle” (1976)
786. Camper Van Beethoven “Pictures of Matchstick Men” (1989)
787. Sigur Rós “Hoppipolla” (2005)
788. Eve 6 “Here’s to the Night” (2000)
789. Audioslave “Like a Stone” (2002)
790. The Dead Milkmen “Bitchin’ Camaro” (1985)

791. Canned Heat “Going Up the Country” (1968)
792. Tapes N Tapes “Insistor” (2005)
793. Foo Fighters “Best of You” (2005)
794. Van Halen “Little Guitars” (1982)
795. Rick Springfield “Jessie’s Girl” (1981)
796. Little River Band “Reminiscing” (1978)
797. Talking Heads “Born Under Punches” (1980)
798. The Replacements “Bastards of Young” (1985)
799. Paul Simon “You Can Call Me Al” (1986)
800. Eric Idle “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” (1979)

801. James Taylor “Shower the People” (1976)
802. The Velvet Underground & Nico “All Tomorrow’s Parties” (1967)
803. Daft Punk “Something About Us” (2001)
804. The The “This Is the Day” (1983)
805. Kate Bush “Cloudbursting” (1985)
806. Ramones “Rockaway Beach” (1977)
807. Robert DeLong “Long Way Down” (2014)
808. Bay City Rollers “Saturday Night” (1975)
809. Billy Idol “White Wedding” (1983)
810. Marcy Playground “Sex and Candy” (1997)

811. Boston “More Than a Feeling” (1976)
812. Fall Out Boy “Sugar Were Going Down” (2005)
813. Pavement “Gold Soundz” (1994)
814. Morphine “Cure for Pain” (1993)
815. Cocteau Twins “Heaven Or Las Vegas” (1990)
816. Shocking Blue “Love Buzz” (1969)
817. Daryl Hall & John Oates “You Make My Dreams” (1980)
818. The Weeknd “Blinding Lights” (2019)
819. Electric Light Orchestra “Mr. Blue Sky” (1978)
820. Radiohead “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” (2007)

821. Blondie “Dreaming” (1979)
822. Beastie Boys “Paul Revere” (1986)
823. Steely Dan “Do It Again” (1972)
824. Taylor Swift & Bon Iver “Exile” (2020)
825. Love & Rockets “So Alive” (1989)
826. Duran Duran “Ordinary World” (1993)
827. A Tribe Called Quest “Electric Relaxation (Relax Yourself Girl)” (1994)
828. Ultravox “Dancing with Tears in My Eyes” (1984)
829. Queen “Stone Cold Crazy” (1974)
830. Butthole Surfers “Pepper” (1996)

831. Abba “Take a Chance on Me” (1977)
832. Fountains of Wayne “Stacy’s Mom” (2003)
833. Led Zeppelin “Dazed and Confused” (1969)
834. Jane's Addiction “Mountain Song” (1988)
835. Alabama 3 “Woke Up This Morning” (1997)
836. Von Bondies “C’mon C’mon” (2004)
837. Radiohead “Exit Music (For a Film)” (1997)
838. Arctic Monkeys “R U Mine?” (2012)
839. Coldplay “Swallowed in the Sea” (2005)
840. Garbage “I Think I’m Paranoid” (1998)

841. They Might Be Giants “Birdhouse in Your Soul” (1990)
842. Billy Joel “Piano Man’ (1973)
843. Temper Trap “Sweet Disposition” (2009)
844. Lumineers “Ophelia” (2016)
845. Mike Doughty “Busting Up a Starbucks” (2002)
846. Cracker “Low” (1993)
847. Alice Merton “No Roots” (2017)
848. Frightened Rabbit “Get Out” (2016)
849. The Replacements “Unsatisfied” (1984)
850. Modest Mouse “Lampshades on Fire” (2015)

851. Franz Ferdinand “Take Me Out” (2004)
852. Jack White “Love Interruption” (2012)
853. Of Monsters and Men “Little Talks” (2012)
854. Mitski “Your Best American Girl” (2016)
855. Iron & Wine “Naked As We Came” (2005)
856. St. Vincent “Los Ageless” (2018)
857. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Are You Experienced?” (1967)
858. Bob Dylan “Visions of Johanna” (1966)
859. Me Like Bees “The River Divides” (2018)
860. David Bowie “Ziggy Stardust” (1972)

861. The White Stripes “My Doorbell” (2005)
862. Joe Jackson “Steppin’ Out” (1982)
863. Buddy Holly & the Crickets “Everyday” (1957)
864. Keane “Everybody’s Changing” (2004)
865. Jason Mraz “I’m Yours” (2008)
866. Social Distortion “Ring of Fire” (1990)
867. The Replacements “Alex Chilton” (1987)
868. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros “Home” (2009)
869. Talking Heads “Psycho Killer” (1977)
870. David Bowie “Moonage Daydream” (1972)

871. Todd Rundgren “I Saw the Light” (1972)
872. Lana Del Rey “Video Games” (2011)
873. Better Oblivion Community Center “Dylan Thomas” (2019)
874. Van Morrison “Crazy Love” (1970)
875. The Beatles “The Ballad of John & Yoko” (1969)
876. The Beatles “Paperback Writer” (1966)
877. The Flaming Lips “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song” (2006)
878. Bright Eyes “Land Locked Blues” (2005)
879. Arlo Guthrie “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” (1967)
880. Joan Jett & the Blackhearts “Bad Reputation” (1980)

881. Garbage “Only Happy When It Rains” (1995)
882. MGMT “Time to Pretend” (2007)
883. Kacey Musgraves “Rainbow” (2018)
884. Tears for Fears “Head Over Heels” (1985)
885. Interpol “Evil” (2004)
886. Screaming Trees “Nearly Lost You” (1992)
887. Soul Coughing “Super Bon Bon” (1996)
888. Nirvana “Something in the Way” (1991)
889. Semisonic “Closing Time” (1998)
890. The B-52’s “Rock Lobster” (1979)

891. Modest Mouse “Ocean Breathes Salty” (2004)
892. Elton John “Honky Cat” (1972)
893. Camper Van Beethoven “Take the Skinheads Bowling” (1985)
894. Grateful Dead “Touch of Grey” (1987)
895. Queen “Don’t Stop Me Now” (1978)
896. Blondie “Rapture” (1980)
897. Don Henley “The Boys of Summer” (1984)
898. Information Society “What’s on Your Mind (Pure Energy)” (1988)
899. Dexy’s Midnight Runners “Come on Eileen” (1982)
900. L7 “Andres” (1994)

901. Elastica “Connection” (1994)
902. The Donnas “Take It Off” (2002)
903. Tears for Fears “Sowing the Seeds of Love” (1989)
904. The Chemical Brothers “Block Rockin' Beats” (1997)
905. Elton John “Your Song” (1970)
906. James Brown “Living in America” (1985)
907. Nirvana “Lake of Fire” (1993)
908. Mazzy Star “Fade into You” (1993)
909. George Michael “Careless Whisper” (1984)

Resources/Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “Lists from other publications and/or organizations”
The Bridge 90.9 (7/4/2023). “Top 909 of All Time”

First posted 7/4/2023; last updated 7/4/2025.

Friday, June 7, 2019

The Beach Boys: Top 100 Songs

The Beach Boys

Top 100 Songs

Pop/rock vocal harmony group (and initiators of surf-rock) formed in Hawthorne, California. 1961-. Known in high school as Kenny & the Cadets, Carl & the Passions, then The Pendletones. Brothers Brian Wilson (leader/composer/producer/b/k: 61-85,96,12), Carl Wilson (g; died in 1998), and Dennis Wilson (g: 61-83; drowned in 1983) with cousin Mike Love (v/sax: 61-), Al Jardine (g: 61-)

Jardine was briefly replaced by David Marks (g: 62-63). Brian quit touring in December 1964 to focus on developing music in the studio. He was replaced on tour by Glen Campbell (k: 64-65) and then Bruce Johnston (k: 65-). Campbell and Johnston were also members of Sagittarius. After Carl’s death in 1998, Mike Love continued to helm a touring group billed as the Beach Boys. In 2012, Love reunited with Brian and Jardine for an album and tour.

For a complete list of this act’s DMDB honors, check out the DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry.

Click here to see other acts’ best-of lists.

Awards:

Top 100 Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists, appearances on compilations and live albums by the featured act, and songs’ chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards. Songs which hit #1 on various charts are noted. (Click for codes to singles charts.)

DMDB Top 1%:

1. Good Vibrations (1966) #1 US,CB
2. God Only Knows (1966)
3. California Girls (1965)

DMDB Top 5%:

4. I Get Around (1964) #1 US,CB,CN
5. Surfin’ U.S.A. (1963) #1 CB
6. Kokomo (1988) #1 US,CB,AU
7. Wouldn’t It Be Nice (1966)
8. Don’t Worry Baby (1964)
9. Sloop John B (1966)
10. Help Me Rhonda (1965) #1 US,CB,CN
11. Fun, Fun, Fun (1964)

DMDB Top 10%:

12. Barbara Ann (1965) #1 CB
13. In My Room (1963)
14. Surfer Girl (1963)
15. Little Deuce Coupe (1963)
16. Surfin’ Safari (1962)

DMDB Top 20%:

17. Heroes and Villains (1967)
18. Dance, Dance, Dance (1964)
19. Do It Again (1968) #1 UK,AU
20. Rock and Roll Music (1976)

21. When I Grow Up to Be a Man (1964) #1 CN
22. The Beach Boys Medley (1981)
23. Be True to Your School (1963)
24. I Can Hear Music (1969)
25. Come Go with Me (1978)
26. Getcha Back (1985)
27. Wild Honey (1967)
28. Wipe Out (with the Fat Boys, 1987)
29. California Dreamin’’ (1986)

Not in DMDB Top 20%:

30. Good Timin’ (1979)
31. Peggy Sue (1978)
32. It’s O.K. (1976)
33. Darlin’ (1967)
34. Break Away (1969)
35. Caroline, No (1966)
36. Do You Wanna Dance? (1965)
37. Surf’s Up (1971)
38. Ten Little Indians (1962)
39. Friends (1968)
40. Bluebirds Over the Mountain (1968)

41. Shut Down (1963)
42. Don’t Worry Baby (w/ the Everly Brothers, 1988)
43. Here Comes the Night (1967)
44. Catch a Wave (1963)
45. Sail on Sailor (1973)
46. Don’t Worry Baby (w/ Lorrie Morgan, 1996)
47. 409 (1962)
48. California Saga (On My Way to Sunny Californ-i-a (1973)
49. Why Do Fools Fall in Love? (1964)
50. The Warmth of the Sun (1964)

51. Long Promised Road (1971)
52. Add Some Music to Your Day (1970)
53. The Little Girl I Once Knew (1965)
54. Wendy (1964)
55. Cotton Fields (1969) #1 AU
56. Fun, Fun, Fun (w/ Status Quo, 1996)
57. Lady Lynda (1979)
58. Please Let Me Wonder (1965)
59. Hot Fun in the Summertime (1992)
60. Still Cruisin’ (1989)

61. That’s Why God Made the Radio (2012)
62. Then I Kissed Her (1965)
63. Rock and Roll to the Rescue (1986)
64. It’s Gettin’ Late (1985)
65. Little Honda (1964)
66. Surfin’ (1962)
67. I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times (1966)
68. Kiss Me Baby (1965)
69. Goin’ On (1980)
70. Little Saint Nick (1963)

71. You’re So Good to Me (1965)
72. I Can Hear Music (w/ Kathy Troccoli, 1996)
73. She Knows Me Too Well (1964)
74. Marcella (1972)
75. She Believes in Love (1985)
76. Problem Child (1990)
77. Crocodile Rock (1991)
78. Sumahama (1979)
79. Happy Endings (w/ Little Richard, 1987)
80. Let Him Run Wild (1965)

81. Cool, Cool Water (1970)
82. All Summer Long (1964)
83. Little Deuce Coupe (w/ James House, 1996)
84. Long Tall Texan (with Doug Supernaw, 1996)
85. Girl Don’t Tell Me (1965)
86. This Whole World (1970)
87. Disney Girls (1957) (1971)
88. ‘Til I Die (1971)
89. The Trader (1973)
90. It’s a Beautiful Day (1979)

91. San Miguel (1970)
92. Hang on to Your Ego (1966)
93. Frosty the Snowman (1964)
94. Girls on the Beach (1964)
95. Long Tall Texan (1964)
96. Louie, Louie (1964)
97. Spirit of American (1963)
98. Pet Sounds (1966)
99. From There to Back Again (2012)
100. You Still Believe in Me (1966)

Resources and Related Links:

DMDB Encyclopedia entry for The Beach Boys
Dave’s Music Database: “Acts’ Profile Pages and Best-of Lists”

Last updated 6/5/2022.

Monday, July 18, 2016

Today in Music (1966): The Beach Boys released “God Only Knows”

God Only Knows

The Beach Boys

This post has been moved here.

Monday, May 16, 2016

Today in Music (1966): The Beach Boys released Pet Sounds

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

Released: May 16, 1966

Charted: May 28, 1966

Peak: 10 US, 2 UK, 40 CN, 42 AU

Sales (in millions): 1.6 US, 0.3 UK, 1.9 world (includes US and UK)

Genre: surf pop

Tracks:

Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to charts.

Wouldn’t It Be Nice [2:25]
You Still Believe in Me [2:31]
That’s Not Me [2:28]
Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) [2:53]
I’m Waiting for the Day [3:05]
Let’s Go Away for Awhile [2:18]
Sloop John B [2:58]
God Only Knows [2:51]
I Know There’s an Answer [3:09]
Here Today [2:54]
I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times [3:12]
Pet Sounds [2:22]
Caroline, No [2:51]

Total Running Time: 35:57

The Players:

Al Jardine (vocals)
Bruce Johnston (vocals)
Mike Love (vocals)
Brian Wilson (vocals, producer, various instruments)
Carl Wilson (vocals, guitar)
Dennis Wilson (vocals, drums)

Rating:

4.718 out of 5.00 (average of 39 ratings)

Quotable:

“This is more than just an album by a great American band; it’s THE great American pop album.” – CD Universe

Awards:

(Click on award to learn more).

About the Album:

The Beach Boys released their debut single, “Surfin’,” in 1961. They quickly established themselves as “the definitive voice of surf music” ^CS and one of America’s greatest pop bands with eight top-ten albums between 1962 and 1965. They could have continued in that vein forever and would still have been a shoo-in for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. However, their leader, Brian Wilson, had a breakdown on tour in late 1964 and retreated to the studio to finish the band’s half-recorded Today! album with hired studio musicians. It was a precursor to 1966’s Pet Sounds, which elevated Wilson “from talented bandleader to studio genius.” ^CS

The album has been celebrated as “a pop milestone” ^SP and is “considered by many to be one of the most influential albums ever.” ^SM British magazines New Musical Express, The Times, and Uncut have all proclaimed it “the greatest album of all time.” ^WK It also is rated the top album of all time by Acclaimed Music, which aggregates all-time album lists.

“In everything written about this album, ‘genius’ and ‘masterpiece’ are two words that invariably appear.” ^SP “Of course, the former is applied to the album’s creator and spiritual avatar, Brian Wilson,” ^SP who had humbly “set out to construct the greatest pop record ever made.” ^SP By general accounts, he succeeded; it is his “evolutionary compositional masterpiece” ^RS and “a sea of pure sonic joy.” ^MF “This is more than just an album by a great American band; it’s THE great American pop album.” ^CD

More Than Surf ‘N’ Sand

“Fans loved the band because they released consistently fun surf music while detractors despised how basically all of Wilson’s songs had the same stolen Chuck Berry riff and themes.” ^RV “The Boys could have cruised forever on surfin' safaris and little deuce coupes; instead, they dove into the deep end of the Pacific (and into Brian Wilson's often-untethered psyche) on this impeccably layered, gorgeously woebegone pop masterwork.” ^EW’12

Pet Sounds was a shift away from the Beach Boys’ surf-music roots and familiar material about “fast cars and cute girls to something much more intangible.” ^JM “This masterpiece revealed the melancholic undertow that had always pulled at Brian Wilson’s numerous paeans to surf ‘n’ sand.” ^VB He “had grown sick of the make-believe playworld of fun and sun, perhaps as a result of the eye-opening experience of taking acid for the first time.” ^JSH

“This was Brian Wilson's autocratic attempt to recreate the noises in his head.” ^TL “Who could have known how strange and intimate his music would turn out – or how doubly lush it would sound?” ^EW’93 Initially, Pet Sounds “was panned by critics [and] met with confusion by listeners.” ^PM “Nobody was prepared for anything so soulful, so lovely, something one had to think about so much.” ^RS “No one ever expected that Brian Wilson could produce the acute level of artistry evident in…Pet Sounds.” ^RV

The Album As Art

It “proved to be a watershed moment in the evolution of the album as art.” ^JM Blastitude’s Jim Harrington proclaims it “the first album truly conceived as something greater than the average pop slop.” ^JSH It really “was the first rock record that can be considered a ‘concept album,’” ^RS largely because it broke with the approach of the day which dictated surrounding a few hits with filler. It was a “carefully planned recording that attempted to present an album as a unified work and not merely a collection of singles.” ^NRR

Brian aspired to make “a complete statement,” similar to what he considered the Beatles to have done on their 1965 Rubber Soul album. ^WK He reportedly said to his wife after hearing the album, “Marilyn, I’m gonna make…the greatest rock album ever made!” ^CM

Brian also took a cue from John Coltrane’s jazz classic A Love Supreme but ultimately “Wilson painstakingly crafted his own genius, resulting in a sound that had simply never existed before. Pop became baroque, rock became orchestral, a psychedelic grandiosity swirling around some of the most gorgeously lovelorn songwriting and impossibly sweet harmonies in history.” ^CQ

Brian’s Retreat to the Studio

Brian Wilson was the band’s leader, but decided to retire from touring after a panic attack on a flight from Los Angeles to Houston on December 23, 1964. ^WK He focused his attention on writing and recording in the studio while the rest of the band hit the road. Music journalist David Wild called the moment when Brian “intuitively decided he was going to be an artist” ^LS “one of the most profound moments in rock history.” ^LS

His efforts reflected his “preoccuapation with pure sound.” ^RS “Brian didn’t use studio trickery in so much as he simply knew how to use the studio. He knew where to place a microphone and which microphone to use…All good record engineers…know these things [but] Brian wasn’t really a producer or an engineer.” ^AD He learned the craft from “watching trusted lieutenant Chuck Britz in the control room” ^AD while cutting those early Beach Boys’ records.

He “mastered producer Phil Spector’s legendary Wall of Sound, saturating each track with echo, studio tricks and a cornucopia of gorgeous music.” ^RV He “plundered orchestra pits for new instruments and obsessed over the layering of what may be the most perfect harmonies in rock history.” ^TL “Conventional keyboards and guitars were combined with exotic touches of orchestrated strings, bicycle bells, buzzing organs, harpsichords, flutes, theremin, Hawaiian-sounding string instruments…barking dogs” ^RU and “even used a coke bottle on a guitar to make it sound ‘slidish.’” ^GSCQ

Brian had full song arrangements worked out in his head and in the studio would break down how each instrument should sound, starting with keyboards, then drums, and then violins. ^WK In contrast to Spector’s Wall of Sound recording technique of using three-track recorders, Brian used four-track and eight-track recorders. ^WK These flourishes were expensive – more than $70,000 in total production cost, the equivalent of over half a million dollars today. ^WK

Lyrics and Themes

Although Brian “carefully aligned the famous Beach Boy harmony” ^SP with those “recording techniques and orchestral flourishes,” ^PF this is “effectively a Brian Wilson solo album.” ^BL “Pet Sounds was all about staking out a more personal vision.” ^JSH “Many of the songs…revealed deep insecurities within Brian’s psyche.” ^JSH USA Today called Pet Sounds “Brian Wilson's intensely personal tour de force.” ^UT

Wilson intended Pet Sounds “to be an offering to God and an inspiration for man to love and heal one another.” ^RV As such, there is also a somewhat unified theme through its “melancholy meditation on adulthood, desire, and failed romance.” ^SS The end result “has the emotional impact of a shatteringly evocative novel.” ^RS

Wilson co-wrote most of the album with Tony Asher, a 26-year-old copywriter working on jingles for an advertisting agency. Through discussions about women and relationships, Asher helped Brian turn his feelings into words, crafting “lyrical themes which evoke both the intensity of newly born love affairs and the disappointment of failed romance (add in some general statements about loss of innocence and modern-day confusion as well).” ^RU Pet Sounds reflects “Brian’s sense of discomfort in a world where he lacks the control that he has in the recording studio.” ^JF-69

Nick Kent called the album an attempt at Brian’s “attempts at coming to terms with himself and the world about him.” ^WK Author Scott Schinder described it as a “song cycle that surveyed the emotional challenges accompanying the transition from youth to adulthood.” ^WK He broke down some of the specific songs, showing how they “encompassed the loss of innocent idealism (‘Caroline, No’), the transient nature of love (‘Here Today’), faith in the face of heartbreak (‘I’m Waiting for the Day’), the demands and disappointments of independence (‘That’s Not Me’), the feeling of being out of step with the modern world (‘I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times’), and the longing for a happy, loving future (‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’).” ^WK

Add in “some of the group’s most stunning melodies” ^RU and “some of the most gorgeous upper-register male vocals (especially by Brian and Carl Wilson) ever heard on a rock record” ^RU and this is “the most complete statement of Wilson’s musical and lyrical aesthetic.” ^NRR

The Band’s Response

When the rest of the band returned from a three-week tour, Brian presented them with a substantial portion of the album. The new direction caused friction with the band. Some of them considered it too arty, too much of a change from the formula that had brought them success – and they weren’t sure how they could perform the new material live. Al Jardine said, “We were a surfing group when we left the country, and…we came back to this new music. It took some getting used to.” ^CS

According to Jardine, Mike Love was “a formula hound – if it doesn’t have a hook in it…he doesn’t want to know about it.” ^WK Love told writer Tom Nolan it was “Brian Wilson’s ego-trip music.” ^JF-112 Asher has said Love was never critical of the album, he just though “it wasn’t right for the Beach Boys.” ^WK

The rest of the band did, however, eventually decide it was better to put the Beach Boys’ stamp on the record instead of it being a Brian Wilson solo effort. Brian sat down at the piano with each member individually to teach them their parts. ^WK April 13, 1966 marked the final vocal overdubbing session, capping a ten-month recording period that began with “Sloop John B” in July 1965. ^WK

The Cover and Album Title

Capitol’s working title for the album was Our Freaky Friends. The label arranged a cover shoot at the San Diego Zoo with goats representing the “freaky friends.” When the group started playing with the name Pet Sounds (based on nothing more than a few animal sounds on the record), Asher thought “it was a goofy name for an album – I thought it trivialized what we had accomplished.” ^WK Jardine initially thought “pet” was a reference to the slang term for making out. ^WK Love has said he came up with the title, but Carl believed it came from Brian as a reference to his collection of his “pet” sounds. ^WK

Commercial Reception

“Pet Sounds was…Brian’s first attempt to confront his demons—but when Beach Boys fans waxed indifferent, it shattered him and he never fully recovered.” ^JSH Capitol Records wasn’t sure how to promote the album in the United States, “largely because it broke from the unadulterated chirpiness of the Beach Boys’ early work.” ^TL It “was a relatively low seller compared to their previous LPs” ^RU and “the label rush-released a best-of to shore up the band’s career.” ^BL

However, the album spent six months in the top 10 in the UK. ^WK “The Rolling Stones took out an ad in the British music papers urging everybody to buy it” ^SS and The Who’s Keith Moon promoted the album as well. ^JF-111 “The Beatles adored it” ^SS – “John Lennon and Paul McCartney…were both inspired to expand their songwriting and recording skills.” ^AD McCartney has said it is his favorite album ^NRR and that it inspired Sgt. Pepper’s. ^VB The Beatles’ producer George Martin confirmed the latter, saying that “Without Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper wouldn’t have happened.” ^JF-110

Influence on Rock Music

Pet Sounds “changed the rules of rock & roll.” ^CD by offering complex sounds not generally heard on a rock album. It marked “the first time a group departed from the usual small-ensemble electric rock band format for a whole LP.” ^WK In regards to the detailed orchestral influence of the album, arranger Paul Pertens said, it “is not that Brian was trying to introduce classical music into rock & roll. Rather, he was trying to get classical musicians to play like rock musicians.” ^WK

Composer/journalist Frank Oteri called the album “a clear precedent” to album-oriented rock and progressive rock. ^WK Author Bill Martin saw the Beach Boys and Beatles as transforming rock from dance music into a genre for listening to. ^WK The album also introduced elements of psychedelic music, thanks to the eclectic mix of instruments and Brian’s experimentation with LSD. ^WK

“At his core, Brian Wilson is a sad pop geek. He wasn’t cool like Dylan or cynical like Lennon or priapic like Jagger. Luckily for him, most music critics are sad pop geeks, too. He couldn’t have fully realized it at the time, but he made a record just for them.” ^EK

The Songs

Here’s a breakdown of each of the individual songs.

Wouldn’t It Be Nice

The Beach Boys

Writer(s): Brian Wilson, Tony Asher, Mike Love

Released: 7/18/1966 (single), Pet Sounds (1966)

Peak: 8 BB, 7 CB, 9 GR, 5 HR, 58 UK, 4 CN, 2 AU, 5 DF Click for codes to charts.

Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 1.0 radio, -- video, 739.44 streaming

Awards:

(Click on award to learn more).

About the Song:

This is “an up-tempo, impossibly sophisticated pop song” ^AD – a “little slice of perfection.” ^MF It “is a perfect choice to open Pet Sounds;” ^JF-41 it “defines The Beach Boys’ sound, with its bopping rhythm, bright melodies…layered harmonies” ^RV and “radiant choruses” ^GS “teeming with rich instrumentation -- saxophones, bicycle bells, tympanis, violins, accordions and French horns.” ^SP “Brian is showing a bit of his humor as well as his awareness of the impact of a clever, sophisticated arrangement.” ^JF-41 Jerry Cole’s twelve-string guitar that kicks off the song “sounds like…a child’s toy, making a statement of innocence, of unbridled happiness.” ^JF-41

(Click on award to learn more).

About the Song:

“The only track that sounds like a Beach Boys song is ‘Sloop John B.’” ^JSH Bandmate Al Jardine brought the traditional Caribbean folk song to Brian, who radically rearranged it. ^JF-17 It was recorded in July 1965, ^JF-15 some ten months before the release of Pet Sounds. It wasn’t intended for the album, ^RU but in following industry practice at the time, it was included since hit singles drove album sales. ^JF-16

The song “set the standard for the use of harmonies in rock & roll.” ^MF It “features exciting piano, rock rhythms and impossibly simple sounding yet complicated melodies” ^AD alongside “thickly interwoven vocals.” ^CD The “chiming guitars, Lyle Fitz doubling Kaye on bass, [and] the staccato rhythm under the last verse” ^JF fit musically with the album, but “disrupts the thematic flow.” ^JF As “the album’s only cover,” ^SP this “sea chantey with its orgins in the Bahamas” ^JF-16 is “anything but a reflective love song, a stark confession or a tentative statement of indendence like the other songs on the album.”^JF-16-7

God Only Knows

The Beach Boys

Writer(s): Brian Wilson, Tony Asher

Released: 7/18/1966 (single), Pet Sounds (1966)

Peak: 39 BB, 38 CB, 32 GR, 38 HR, 2 UK, 6 CN, 17 AU, 4 DF Click for codes to charts.

Sales (in millions): --

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 2.0 radio, 39.65 video, 368.17 streaming

Awards:

(Click on award to learn more).

About the Song:

Paul McCartney called “God Only Knows” “the greatest song ever written.” ^SF U2’s Bono said the string arrangement was “proof of angels.” ^WK In American in the Sixties, John Robert Greene calls it “one of the most complex – and beautiful – songs in the annals of American popular music.” ^WK The song has also been called “transcendent,” “awe-inspiring,” ^JF-99 and “one of the most beautiful songs ever, of any genre.” ^MF Music journalist David Wild said it was “where rock and roll becomes a religious experience.” ^LS

Brian Wilson said he was striving “to write a song that would last forever.” ^TC He “attributed the impetus for the song to [co-writer Tony] Asher’s affinity for standards.” ^WK Asher said it was the pair’s most effortless collaboration. ^WK “God Only Knows” confirms what the listener suspects about the album thus far: “that Pet Sounds is extraordinary.” ^JF-99

About twenty session musicians were enlisted to play drums, sleigh bells, clarinets, flutes, strings, French horn, accordion, guitars, upright bass, harpsichord, a tack piano, and even the bottoms of two plastic orange juice bottles. ^WK Initially Brian sang lead on the song but he thought his brother Carl would do better at singing the “loving, introspective lyric” ^JF-103 so Carl took on lead vocal duties – only his second time doing so on a Beach Boys’ record. ^AD He said, “I was looking for a tenderness and a sweetness which I knew Carl had in himself as well as in his voice.” ^SF According to Carl, Brian said, it fit his “beautiful spirit.” ^WK Of course, Carl is still backed by what Charles Granata described as “the most thrilling Beach Boys harmonies on record.” ^JF-103

Both “God Only Knows” and “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” “reflect an innocent time of yearning post-adolescence” ^CD as they “teeter on the edge between adolescent euphoria and adult lament.” ^TL “The lines, ‘If you should ever leave me / Though life would still go on believe me / The world could show nothing to me / So what good would living do me / God only knows what I’d be without you’ were the most magnificent lyrics Wilson and Asher would ever compose.” ^RV

The lyrics have been interpreted as demonstrating a suicidal inclination on the part of the narrator citing lines such as “what good would living do me?” but Asher says that was not his or Wilson’s intention. ^WK However, the song does reveal how conflicted Wilson was an artist and in his relationships, suggesting his “apparent helplessness in dealing with the other forces in his life.” ^TC

Referencing God in song lyrics and titles was considered taboo at the time. Asher says he and Wilson had long discussions about it, concerned the song wouldn’t get airplay. He believes Wilson agreed to the title because it would be far out and generate controversy. ^WK Still, out of fear that American radio stations wouldn’t play it, the song was released as the B-side of “Wouldn’t It Be Nice.” It still managed to crack the top 40.

I Know There’s an Answer

The Beach Boys

Writer(s): Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Terry Sachen

Released: Pet Sounds (1966)

Peak: -- Click for codes to charts.

Sales (in millions): --

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 8.37 streaming

The “ridiculously joyously silly” ^AD title track is a “brassy…blaring” ^JF-64 and “bizarre, richly crafted orchestral instrumental.” ^JA It is a “curious, historic relic” ^GP which is “overly busy and lacks a focus” but “the inventiveness of the arrangement makes it worthy.” ^JF-65 It was “pretty daring and mind-blowing for the time: the weird time signatures and time changes, the zillions of different instruments used, the ‘heavenly mood’…was perfect ‘ambient music’ for 1966, and with not a single Brian Eno in sight.” ^GS

Originally titled “Run James Run,” Brian wanted to give the song to the producers of the James Bond films, but decided to put it on the album when he realized he wasn’t going to get it to the “James Bond people.” ^JF-65

Caroline, No

Brian Wilson

Writer(s): Brian Wilson, Tony Asher

Released: 3/7/1966 (single), Pet Sounds (1966)

Peak: 32 BB, 38 CB, 31 HR, 23 DF Click for codes to charts.

Sales (in millions): --

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 20.16 streaming

About the Song:

Technically, this was released as a solo song by Brian prior to the album. Asher originally wrote the line “Oh Carol, I know” as a reference to an ex-girlfriend, but Brian like the sound of “Caroline, No.” ^JF-109 The resulting song became a testimony in which he’s asked multiple questions to which the answer is always “no.” ^JF-110 “Could I ever find in you again / Things that made me love you so much then / Could we ever bring ‘em back once they have gone / Oh, Caroline no.” This is “three minutes of heartbreaking pathos, a haunting ballad” ^RS that “deals with the loss of innocence and fading beauty with utter poignancy.” ^RV This and “God Only Knows” are “undeniably some of the more beautiful songs of the rock era.” ^MF

Writer Nik Cohn called Pet Sounds a collection of “sad songs about happiness.” ^JF-107 One could consider “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” and “Here Today” “happy songs about sadness,” ^JF-107 but “there’s not a trace of happiness in “Caroline, No.” Brian sings from the perspective of a boy wondering if he and his love will ever resume their relationship. ^JF-108 Brian’s father, Murry, convinced Capitol to speed up the recording so that Brian’s voice sounded higher and more boyish. ^JF-105

Resources/References:

^AM AllMusic.com review by Richie Unterberger
^BN Barnes & Noble review by Steve Simels
^JSH Blastitude (2003). “A Loaded Proposition: Joe S. Harrington Picks the All-Time Top 100 Or…Who Pulled the Trigger?” by Joe S. Harrington
^BL Blender (10/08). “100 Greatest American Albums”
^CD CdUniverse.com
^LS Classic Albums documentary series (2010). The Beach Boys: Pet Sounds. Directed by Matthew Longfellow and Martin R. Smith.
^CR ClassicRock.About.com review by Shawn Perry
^CQ Consequence.net (9/12/2022). “The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time”
^TC Toby Creswell (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time. Pages 96-7.
^CM Toby Creswell & Craig Mathieson (2012). 100 Best Albums of All Time. Hardie Grant Books. Page 58.
^DV Daily Vault review by Jeff Clutterbuck
^AD Adrian Denning (3/30/2007). “Adrian’s Top 100 Albums, So Far”
^EW’93 Entertainment Weekly (10/29/1993). “100 Greatest CDs: A Love-It-Or-Loathe It Guide to the Essential Disc Library”
^EW’12 Entertainment Weekly (9/27/2012). “Top 100 Albums”
^JF Jim Fusilli (2005). 33 1/3: Pet Sounds. Bloomsbury Academic: New York, New York.
^JM Jason Mendelsohn, PopMatters’ Counterbalance series (2010-2012)
^NRR National Recording Registry
^PM PasteMagazine.com (6/3/2024). “The 300 Greatest Albums of All Time”
^PK Pop Kulcher/Marc Fagel Greatest Rock & Roll Albums of All Time
^RV The Review (Oct./Nov. 2001). “The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time” by Clarke Speicher
^RS Rolling Stone
^CS Chris Smith (2009). 101 Albums That Changed Popular Music. Oxford University Press. Pages 36-8.
^SF Songfacts page for “God Only Knows”
^TL Time Magazine (11/13/2006). “All-TIME 100 Albums” by Josh Tyrangiel and Alan Light
^UT USA Today (12/5/2003). “Top 40 Albums – the USA Today Way”
^VB Vibe (Dec. 1999). “100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century,” pages 154-164.
^WK Wikipedia page for “God Only Knows”
^WK Wikipedia page for Pet Sounds

Related DMDB Pages:

First posted 5/16/2012; last updated 9/13/2026.