517. The Meeting - Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe (1989)

 

 

Surely I could tell

If you ask me Lord

To board the train

My life my love would be the same

 

After Jon Anderson left Yes for the second time,he got together with other former members of the group to record an album from which this song comes. As 'The Meeting' has no guitars or drums,it's more of a Jon Anderson/Rick Wakeman duet. Jon and Rick are both churchgoers and this beautiful song has a religious theme to it.

 

516. Fade To Grey - Visage (1980)

 

 

One man on a lonely platform

One case sitting by his side

 

One of the best known synth pop songs,this was groundbreaking at the time. Midge Ure was involved in writing and producing the track while Godley & Crème directed the video.

 

Fade to Grey is great for the time! I like how it all builds up and how atmospheric it is.

 

That and 'The Damned Don't Cry' are my faves from Visage.

Edited May 13, 20187 yr by The Snake 🐍

515. Child Come Away - Kim Wilde (1982)

 

 

They thought the light had gone out of her eyes

And no one thinks she'll ever be right

 

The third and final song in my chart by Kim Wilde. After five consecutive top 20 singles,this was a flop,only reaching number 43. This can partly be explained by the dark lyrics,it's not exactly a light pop song. They loved it in Denmark where it got to number 3. Kim has this year released a new album 'Here Come The Aliens',inspired by her UFO encounter in 2009. One of the songs from it was entered into the last BJSC but the voters were unimpressed and I was in the opposite semi-final.

 

514. Last Supper - Howard Jones (1989)

 

 

This tug of war has weakened our purpose and

pulled us apart from beginning to end

 

A mid tempo break up ballad from Howard's fourth album 'Cross That Line'. I like the piano arrangement on this one.

 

513. Round & Round - New Order (1989)

 

 

I don't care about what you do

'cause if you mess with me I'll get rid of you

 

The second single from New Order's number 1 album 'Technique'. It's slightly different to the album version. The lyrics are about the tension between the group and Tony Wilson,the owner of Factory Records.

 

512. A Person Isn't Safe Anywhere These Days - The Chameleons (1983)

 

 

What kind of times are these

As they drive you to your knees

 

The Chameleons were a post-punk band formed in Manchester in 1981. This is from their debut album 'Script Of The Bridge'. It got some airplay in the evenings on Radio 1. I like the layered guitar sounds,Mark Burgess' vocals and the drums towards the end of the song.

 

511. Love Of My Life - Queen (1975)

 

 

Don't take it away from me

Because you don't know what it means to me

 

A lovely ballad from 'A Night At The Opera' written by Freddie Mercury with Brian May playing the harp. The song has become a favourite at Queen concerts and a live version reached number 1 in Brazil and Argentina in 1981,spending a full year on the Argentinian chart.

 

510. Motorcycle Emptiness - Manic Street Preachers (1992)

 

 

Culture sucks down words

Itemise loathing and feed yourself smiles

 

This is my favourite song from the Manics. It's from when Richey Edwards was still in the group. His disappearance three years later has never been solved and it wasn't until 2008 that he was declared dead.

 

509. Secret Messages - ELO (1983)

 

 

The messages across the atmosphere

They whisper in your ear

 

The title track from ELO's tenth album with a more compact pop sound to it. It just missed the top 40 here but was a top 5 hit in Poland.

 

 

508. Weekender - Flowered Up (1992)

 

 

You pay the price coz Monday sure does hurt

Tell at work your weekend tale

 

Flowered Up were a London band formed in 1989 by Liam and Joe Maher. Although the 'Weekender' single is 13 minutes long,it still made the top 20. They refused to release a radio edit version. In the lyrics,a weekender is someone who only partys at the weekend. The full video is 18 minutes long and is not on youtube,only the audio version is on there so I have included a link to the video on Vimeo as this is the longest music video that I am aware of,it's more of a short film. Sadly,partying seven days a week took its toll on the Mayer brothers and they were both dead by 2012.

 

https://vimeo.com/28895526

 

507. Across The River - Peter Gabriel (1982)

 

 

An instrumental with an African/Asian sound to it. It features Stewart Copeland on drums and L Shankar on violin and comes from the 1982 WOMAD album. I know it as one of the bonus tracks on Peter's 1986 'Big Time' single.

 

 

506. Maid Of Orleans (The Waltz Joan Of Arc) - Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (1981)

 

 

She cared so much

She offered up her body to the grave

 

One of two tracks from the 'Architecture & Morality' album about Joan Of Arc. As they were both called Joan Of Arc and both released as singles,the title of this one was changed for the single release. I like the strange noises at the start and the drum sound later on. It got to number 4 here and was the best selling single of 1982 in Germany.

 

505. Hurry Home (Song From The Pleiades) - Jon Anderson (1988)

 

 

They call it the cleansing of the loneliest soul

It's an honour just to be alive,from this love we'll never fall

 

An anthemic song with Jon's usual positive lyrics and the backing of The Cathedral Choir. It's taken from his fifth solo album 'In The City Of Angels'.

 

504. Turn It On Again - Genesis (1980)

 

 

You're just another face that I know from the TV show

I have known you for so very long,I feel you like a friend

 

Genesis' second top 10 single which became a live favourite. The lyrics are very similar to ELO's 'Mr Radio' which was number 536 on my chart,with the TV instead of the radio.

 

503. Human Racing - Nik Kershaw (1984)

 

 

So look behind you

There's the man you're chasing

 

The fourth and final song on my chart by Nik Kershaw. Or is it? He may be back as a featured singer. It was also the fourth single to be taken from his debut album of the same name. I have never seen this video before.

 

502. The Space - Marillion (1989)

 

 

Everybody lives and loves and laughs and cries

And eats and sleeps and grows and dies

 

Another track from 'Seasons End',the lyrics inspired by H as a child seeing a tram in Amsterdam plough into the side of a car which was parked too close to the tramline. The tram driver didn't notice and kept going (there was no one in the car). I particularly like the powerful coda which takes up the last two minutes of the song.

 

501. Come Back - Depeche Mode (2009)

 

 

Gathering up the fear

 

Taken from the 'Sounds Of The Universe' album,this is one of only a few Depeche Mode songs not written by Martin Gore. It was written by Dave Gahan with two other people who are not in the band.

 

 

 

500. Take It Back - Pink Floyd (1994)

 

 

All this temptation,it turned my faith to lies

Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide

 

From their number 1 album,'The Division Bell',this was Pink Floyd's highest charting single since 'Another Brick In The Wall' in 1979,reaching number 23. It's their take on global warming.

 

499. Fugue State - Nero (2011)

 

 

A dubstep instrumental from Nero's number 1 album 'Welcome Reality'. It needs to be played loud to be fully appreciated.