London Loves

The Top 20 songs from London. We have done Manchester with it's Acid House, Indie Rock and timeless Dance Anthems. Then we went to Liverpool and it's illusive songwriters, and tales from the most important band in history. The capital has had it's fair share of brilliant bands, wonderful solo artists and records that changed the world. So in no particular order. Here we go. 

1. Blur-The Universal, I have made no secret that I am a huge Blur fan. 'The Universal' is one of the bands most famous songs, from their 1995 album 'The Great Escape' it has that timeless feel to it, and it has been the song to end Blur gigs for years. A call to arms for fans, with a really powerful chorus. Along with Pulp's 'Common People' it is the song I most associate with Britpop. It is the sound of that time. 

2. David Bowie- Let's Dance, I feel like this both a really obvious choice but also a bit of a curve ball. 'Let's Dance' is one of Bowie's most popular songs (for good reason) yet if you ask people about Bowie, and what they think his best is, I doubt many will say this song. However it has to make this list it was the song that got me into David Bowie, and even today it still sounds contemporary and modern. Like it could have been recorded tomorrow, a timeless and beautiful piece of music. 

3. Queen- Hammer to Fall, Queen are one of the most famous bands ever and there was an abundance of songs I could have picked. I didn't want to over complicate it though. 'Hammer to Fall' is in simple terms a brilliant song, that lets all of Queen's members shine. With a brilliant vocal from Freddie Mercury, Roger Taylor's pulsating drums, John Deacon holding it all together with a clever bass line and Brian May's guitar solo. The song was given extra praise when it was performed at Live Aid in 1985 in front of over 1 billion people. It would go on to be a mainstay in Queen set lists. 

4. Pink Floyd- Wish You Were Here, the title track of Pink Floyd's 1975 album, I was always going to pick a Pink Floyd song, and I have always loved this one. Written by both Roger Waters and David Gilmour and centered around a twelve string guitar with layering acoustic guitars above. It is unlike anything else in the bands eclectic discography. A rather simple affair with soulful and meaningful lyrics about loosing someone close to you. It is not some grandiose concept, it's about friendship and the power that it holds. 

5. The Libertines- Music When the Lights Go Out, I am enjoying curve balls on this list. The Libertines are usually known for loud brash punky efforts 'Music When the Lights Go Out' is an acoustic ballad about the end of a relationship. A stark change of pace, from a band. It also has the best lyrics of any Libertines song. A 2000's classic. 

6. Kate Bush- Cloudbusting, I absolutely love this song, the way it builds and builds. Kate Bush is one of the most unique artists the UK has ever produced, and this song often gets overlooked because it is on her best album 1986's 'Hounds of Love' and the title track is so iconic and special. 'Cloudbusting' flies under the radar, but there is a part of me that likes that, because that is what makes it so special. Give it a listen, I promise you won't be disappointed. One of the very best songs of the 1980s. 

7. Florence & The Machine- Queen of Peace, another one of Britain's female music icons, this time with a more recent affair. Released in 2015 from Florence's album 'How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful' it helped propel her to a Glastonbury Headline set, and to the British public. 'Queen of Peace' is an epic piece of music, with a brilliant vocal that dips in and out of octaves effortlessly. With a pulsating beat that keeps listeners engaged and brass sprinkled throughout. A modern masterpiece. 

8. Jamie T- Sticks & Stones, I wrote a post recently about how much I love this song https://www.beyond-the-grooves.co.uk/blog/cradle-to-grave-i-know-we-always-misbehave
It is the perfect tale of friendship with lyrics we can all relate to. A proper noughties indie anthem, with a chorus made to be belted out with your mates. Jamie T was always going to make this list. 

9. The Jam- Thick as Thieves, Another song about friendship, this time a friendship coming to an end. Paul Weller had really matured as a songwriter by the time he was writing this song, and the song and album it was on 'Setting Suns' saw The Jam enter a new era, where they would become unstoppable. If you want to hear more about The Jam, them you can give this post a read. https://www.beyond-the-grooves.co.uk/blog/about-the-young-idea 

10. The Kinks- Big Sky, the oldest song on this list, released in 1968. From an album that was slated at the time, but has gone to be considered a classic. 'The Kinks are The Village Green Preservation Society.' The song itself has a very English feel to it, but tackles the surreal, what is up in the 'Big Sky' this song almost has a Britpop feel at times. The Kinks really were ahead of there time and they have really influenced a few people on this. I am looking at you Mr Albarn, and you Mr Weller. 

11. Sex Pistols- Anarchy in the UK, A record that changed everything. It brought punk to the forefront to the public's conscience. A glorious, a cry of dissent that inspired a generation. This song really is a summary of the UK in the 70s and was a call to arms for the disenfranchised youth. People were scared of this band because no one had ever come along who was remotely like them. Nothing would ever be the same again after the Sex Pistols. They came, they imploded but the impact they had was undeniable and this was the song that started it all. 

12. Blur- Chemical World, I chose one of Blur's biggest songs earlier in the list. This time I have gone with a crimminaly underrated piece of music. From the bands best album 'Modern Life is Rubbish' with references to British life at the time. This was almost the tester for what Albarn would do to great effect on Parklife. There is also a belief that 'Chemical World' is reference to acid or magic mushrooms as life is so much simpler in a 'Chemical World. Who knows, one thing I do know is that it is a hidden gem in Blurs brilliant discography. 

13. The Jam- Going Underground, another really important record, The Jam's first Number One single and one of the most important British Protest Songs. Lyrically the song was an attack on Margaret Thatcher's newly elected Tory Government and the public's obsession with the needs of the military and industry. Which in turn saw them neglect the needs of each other. It has gone on to become one of the most popular Jam songs, and one of the most popular songs of the 80s. 

14. David Bowie- Heroes, there was never going to be just one Bowie song on this list. 'Heroes' is another of the great man’s popular songs. A song about the power of human beings, written about a couple he saw kissing under the Berlin Wall when he was living in the city. Bowie himself has described the song as one of the most emotional he has ever written. I’d have to agree with him. It really is one of his best. 

15. Queen- You’re My Best Friend, a 70s effort from the band, the first song written by John Deacon. What a first song though. Written about Deacon’s wife, it’s a beautiful love song, something again we don’t always associate with Queen. It has gone on to become a fan favouirite and an album highlight of arguably the bands best album, ‘A Night at the Opera’. 

16. Pink Floyd- Time, another effort by the rock legends. This time a much more experimental affair. Taken from the bands 1973 album ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ ‘Time’ is a rather dark and sinister affair about the passing of time, and how we waste it. Lyrically the song is one of the bands best, and the instrumentation makes us feel as if time is passing fast. Especially the use of clocks chiming at the start. The whole listening experience is breathtaking. 

17. Bloc Party- This Modern Love, another 00s effort. From Bloc Parties 2005 debut ‘Silent Alarm’ ‘This Modern Love’ has a real soundtrack feel to it, with call and response vocals throughout it’s verses with a repeated guitar line. When we get into the choruses though the song builds and builds into a sprawling epic. One of the bands very best, and an underrated gem from the 2000s 

18. Wolf Alice- Silk, an absolute masterpiece from start to finish. For a band to record a song this good for their debut album is testament to just how good Wolf Alice are. A sprawling epic that sees Ellie Roswell’s lyrics at the forefront of the song. It is also the song that made fall in love with the band, there is not a band in the world that are like them at the moment, and the songs they have written are unbelievable. Three brilliant records, with ‘Silk’ being the bands crowing jewel. 

19. George Michael- Freedom! 90, a song that saw one of Britain’s most important Male Artists reinvent himself (again!) The lyrics in this song see George come to terms with just where he has been, and how he got to where he was writing ‘Freedom! 90’ it is also the sound of a man who has accepted who he is, and the sound of someone who doesn’t care what people think of him. The most important song he ever wrote. 

20. Elton John- Rocket Man, ending the list is one of the most popular British artists ever. With the song that launched his career. A real spine tingling tune, that flips the love song concept into something very different. The song has become a cornerstone of British music now in the same way something like Hey Jude has, its part of the furniture. 

So that brings the list to an end. We’ve had some revolutionary pieces of protest pop, love songs about space, psychedelic efforts about wasted lives and anthems of hope. Thank you for reading x