Top 3 Most Played Songs of the Week

Sorry for the delay, again, but I usually find myself starting this thing on Sunday nights and only being able to cover three songs, so I have to finish it on Mondays. However, I'm going to start posting only 3 songs per week so as to ensure a regular (and Sunday-ish) update!

1. The Rolling Stones - Jigsaw Puzzle

 

Album: Beggars Banquet (1968)

Not a hit, not a single, in fact, it has never been performed live, as far as I know, but one of the strongest, definitely most underrated Rolling Stones songs. It's a long song, but it doesn't have the same "epic" quality as the other (very) long song from the same album, "Sympathy for the Devil". Amazing guitar sound and beautiful, soft and wonderfully soothing vocals by Mick Jagger. I'm not really sure what it's about but it's such a relaxing song and the chorus, although it implies having to wait for something to happen, is strangely reassuring and quite uplifting. Shame that it isn't more well-known.

2. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Red Light

 

Album: Kaleidoscope (1980)

This is the period when John McGeoch (guitar) and Budgie (drums) joined the band and the band's sound took a new direction. It was in this album when Siouxsie started experimenting with electronic sounds and this is perhaps one of the best exponents of those experimentations. Oddly enough, the rhythm of the song is basically set by the sound of a camera clicking. Siouxsie's vocals are dark and creepy as she sings about voyeurism and (porno) photoshoots. Eerily atmospheric and one of the album's strongest highlights.

3. Blondie - Kung Fu Girls

Album: Blondie (1976)

From their debut (and quite fantastic) album, this is one of the best representations of the original Blondie sound. Their punk roots are at full display here, but also their New Wave-ish sound and their old-fashioned Pop references. Destri's organ is rocking and Debbie Harry was at her prime here delivering edgy, strong, powerful vocals. The lyrics are kind of silly, but they are hilarious and full of attitude, much like everything Debbie Harry produces..., or used to produce, anyway.

Top 5 Most Played Songs of the Week

1. Dusty Springfield – I Only Want to Be with You

 

I recently got a compilation album with her greatest hits and I fell in love with her powerful voice and her catchy, beautiful songs. This was her first solo single (1963) after having been with The Springfields for a while and one of the first hits of the British Invasion in the US. It’s strange to think this is usually labeled as Pop, putting it in the same category as most of the appalling Pop outings nowadays, when this is so enthrallingly soulful and honest. Beautiful song and what a voice Dusty had!

2. Joao Gilberto and Caetano Veloso - Garota de Ipanema

 

Music by the wonderful Tom Jobim and written by the hand of a poet (Vinicius de Moraes), this is one of the all-time classics and one of the primary exponents of Bossa Nova. The authors attributed the song’s composition to Helô Pinto, a striking woman they watched pass by as they sat in a now famous bar, which was fittingly renamed “A Garota de Ipanema” after the song’s success. This song has such an intangible sadness, and yet it is so gorgeous: a simple, understated arrangement with beautifully dreamy lyrics.

3. Amy Winehouse – Tears Dry on their Own

Album: Back to Black (2006)

My favourite track on this incredible album and her second most successful single (after the unstoppable “Rehab”). This song combines Amy’s unique, jazzy, soulful voice singing melancholy lyrics and the upbeat, cherry music from Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”. The lyrics speak to me about a woman in a sexual relationship who unwisely falls in love with the man, who quite obviously is not interested in having a serious relationship with her. Amy's lyrics reflect her uncertainty, seeming at times hopeful and at other times defeated. It just sounds honest and incredibly humane, as everything Amy produces. 

4. Billy Joel – My Life

Album: 52nd Street (1978)

Peaking at #3 in Billboard’s Hot 100, this song is a single from one of Joel’s best albums and it’s a fine representation of the quality present in the album. It’s just perfect for those moments when someone is pestering you with advice and telling you how to live your life, when you would just rather be left alone. Contagious beat, great vocals (I love the little growls) and fantastic lyrics, as always.

5. Siouxsie – Into a Swan



Album: MantaRay (2007)

First single out of Siouxsie’s first solo album, after years fronting the bands Siouxsie and the Banshees and later The Creatures. Magnificent beat, I loved it instantly, and every time I listen to it my body just wants to dance. It actually reminded me a lot of Goldfrapp, and interestingly enough, I recently discovered that one of Goldfrapp’s producers worked in this album. Just like the lyrics constantly repeat, “Into a Swan” feels so much like the unstoppable force Siouxsie describes and I can totally identify with those kinds of strong feelings and the passion with which Siouxsie sings them. And I just love it when she goes: “do-do-do-do”…!