851. Let It Go? - Midge Ure (1991)

 

 

Am I strong enough to stand my ground

Lift my head and show the strength I've found

 

From Midge's third solo album 'Pure',this is a six minute epic that starts slowly but builds up with the guitars,drums and backing vocals.

 

Really like All Together Now! A nice upbeat track, didn't know it was based on the Christmas truce though :o

 

I think War Stories was one of the first albums I bought, Restless isn't a standout for me but I do like the sound.

850. Ladybird - Tears For Fears (2005)

 

 

Your friends have gone

Porcelain portraits and silver medallions

 

From 'Everybody Loves A Happy Ending',the first Tears For Fears album to feature both Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith since 1989's 'The Seeds Of Love'. It wouldn't really sound out of place on that album. They've had a bit of a revival recently with a new single,a concert on the BBC and a greatest hits collection charting in the top 20 but still no album of new songs since 2005.

 

849. Jarrow Song - Alan Price (1974)

 

 

Come on follow the Geordie boys,they'll fill your heart with joy

They're marching for their freedom now

 

Based on the Jarrow march of 1936,when over 200 people marched from Jarrow down to Parliament in London to protest against poverty and unemployment in the North of England. I love the brass band,piano and xylophone on this.

 

848. The Sun Also Rises - Delphic (2013)

 

 

Give me another day to mend my ways

And always pretend we're young again

 

From Delphic's second album which is not as good as the first but this is the standout track. An instrumental version was used as background music by Sky Sports for a while.

 

I didn't expect to see this in your Top 1000..

Yeah I never really understood why it failed to take off in the UK. My memories of this are from TimePiece nightclub in Exeter which used to play it quite a lot in summer '07, particularly loved the Tiësto's Trance Mix of this.

 

Maybe because trance was no longer that popular in the UK by this stage :(

 

Don't recalling 'In The Dark' before but on listen there it sounds like a great tune.

 

As for Midge Ure, 'If I Was' is his best solo track that I have heard imo! I trust it will be much higher on your top 100 songs of all time, appearing in the top 500 of your countdown maybe?

Edited February 9, 20187 yr by The Snake

'If I Was' is still to come but it might not be that high.

'If I Was' is still to come but it might not be that high.

 

:(

 

It's one of my favourite 80s tracks imo, certainly my favourite song from 1985. But I suppose the really well known songs like it might not chart as highly as I think in your top 1000 because they have a lot of competition in your charts from less well known album tracks you might like, and maybe the fact they are well known and have been overplayed perhaps counts against them! ;)

Edited February 9, 20187 yr by The Snake

847. Where Do I Begin - The Chemical Brothers (1997)

 

 

Sunday morning I'm waking up

Can't even focus on a coffee cup

 

Featuring Beth Orton on vocals,this is one of the Chemical Brothers' more laid back tunes until it goes off in a different direction after five minutes with some strange mechanical sounds.

 

846. The Trip To Bountiful (When The Rain Comes Down) - The Adventures (1988)

 

 

Her heart is yearning for her home town

Still burning when the rain comes down

 

The Adventures were from Belfast and are best known for their only top 40 hit,'Broken Land' from a fine album called 'The Sea Of Love'. Also from that album is this track with Terry Sharpe on lead vocals and some beautiful backing vocals from Eileen Gribben.

 

845. Feelin' Good - Faithless featuring Dido (2010)

 

 

I want the view from the top of the hill

 

It's the 7 minute album track that I have chosen but this is the shorter single version. The whole video is also an ad for the Fiat Punto Evo and it occupied the whole of the advert break during an episode of Big Brother when it was first shown. After that,a 30 second clip was shown in other commercial breaks.

 

844. Byebyeland - Guillemots (2012)

 

 

This is a nine minute dreamy instrumental from the 'Hello Land!' album. In 2012,Guillemots were supposed to release four albums,one for each season. 'Hello Land!' was the Spring album but six years later,I am still waiting for the other three. Their website hasn't been updated since 2012 and there is nothing on their wiki page to indicate that they have split up.

 

843. Dust - Mr Mister (1987)

 

 

And when we leave,we leave our dust

We slap our clothes,we shake it off

 

Mr Mister are best known for 'Broken Wings' which is still to come. I bought the album it was from and the next one as well,from which this song comes. During the Vietnam War,many children were born with Vietnamese mothers and American fathers who they never got to meet. They were considered by the Vietnamese to be "lower than the dust".

 

842. Woman - Archive (1999)

 

 

And I never quite seem to understand

Why a woman never needs a man

 

Archive's second album 'Take My Head' has a different direction to their other ones. Most of the songs have a pop sound and they are all sung by a female singer,Suzanne Wooder. I like the 60s influence on this track with the string section.

 

841. The Plastic Age - Buggles (1980)

 

 

Hello doctor lift my face

I wish my skin could stand the pace

 

This was Buggles' follow up to their no.1 single,'Video Killed The Radio Star'. It got to no.16.

 

840. Walls - Yes (1994)

 

 

Another shout,another cry

And the walls come tumbling down

 

From the 'Talk' album,Trevor Rabin and Jon Anderson share the vocals on this one. They co-wrote the song with Roger Hodgson from Supertramp.

 

839. Sordid Affair - Royksopp (2014)

 

 

Clouding the truth,both of us knew

this sordid affair is ending in tears

 

With Ryan James on vocals,this is from Royksopp's most recent album 'The Inevitable End' which they say is their last. While they will continue to put out new music,it won't be as a full album.

 

 

 

838. Dick Around - Sparks (2006)

 

 

Tailored to the maximum,I send another fax to them

A parking place,a new Corvette,a manicure,a private jet

 

This is a very fast paced song with lots of lyrics. Its title led to it being banned by the BBC but I do remember them performing the song on the Jonathan Ross show when he was still on the BBC.

 

837. We Let The Stars Go - Prefab Sprout (1990)

 

 

Fan the embers long enough

I sometimes catch her flame

 

Produced by Thomas Dolby,'Jordan:The Comeback' is one of my favourite albums from the 90s. This is one of the two singles released from the album but it didn't quite make the top 40. Beautiful song though.

 

I can see why Dick Around was banned, that title! :o Great tune though!