Find a song that everybody on ILM likes

Hey, I've got one. Throwing Muses, 'Counting Backwards'. No-one's going to nix this. They were sort of Orphic unheimlich domestic poetesses. From Amherst.
Pinefox I can't tell if this is sarcasm or fuckin what.

I also don't like "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face".

"Counting Backwards" gets yes vote here :) As does 'God save the Queen' and 'Nightclubbing' although I prefer the Grace Jones version.

Patrick, thoughts on Sly Stone?

Omar - No complaints against the Sly Stone songs, I love all the ones suggested so far.

'Virginia Plain' - Roxy Music

OR

'I Say a Little Prayer' - Dionne Warwick

I fucking hate Sly Stone. I fucking hate "Common People" as well.

I venture: The Banana Splitz Theme Tune. Something so cheesy, how can you not love it?

the theme tune to quincy?

The Banana Splitz theme tune is rubbish. All theme tunes are rubbish.

this is a really funny thread idea. kudos patrick!

I've liked most of the songs mentioned except "You Shook Me All Night Long." SERIOUS redneck song where I come from.

How can anyone not like "Waterloo Sunset?" Or "ABC?" You haven't an ear for melody if you don't like those songs (unless you have something personal against them, as I with "You Shook Me...").

How about "Ziggy Stardust?" It has the pop hooks for the people who like that, plus it's really wierd for the people that like that.

Ah well, goodbye to Sly it is :(

Virginia Plain: yes, of course.

Gareth...is that by Nightmare on Wax? Already I hear Patrick complain Nightmare on Who? In that case: yes.

Roxy: yes. 'I Say A Little Prayer': nein danke.

omar, quincy as in the late 70s medical drama/detective show starring jack klugman. i was unaware of any nightmares on wax record with a similar title (but then i only know aftermath).

tom, while many theme tunes are indeed rubbish, banana thing included, quincy is most certainly not rubbish. the phrase you are most surely looking for is "dude, that quincy music rocks"

B-b-but even the Quincy theme pales beside the majesty that is The Rockford Files theme!

Hey, I'll put my vote on Virginia Plain. Ziggy would be good, too.

And even the cRockford Files theme had not a patch on the utter and complete BLOCKBUSTER that was the Dallas theme. Oh, the glitz, oh the glamour shining in the sunlight with those horns!

I also nix early rock 'n' roll I'm afraid. But how's about Mercury Rev's 'Frittering', Flaming Lips' 'Race for the Prize', Smith's 'How Soon Is Now?' or Pearl Jam 'Alive'? Probably not going to get very far these suggestions.

No problem here with Virginia Plain. Surprised Pinefox doesn't like Say A Little Prayer. Other Bacharach? "Walk On By"? "The Look Of Love"?

Pearl Jam: dud. Mercury Rev: can't remember so not one of their best. Flaming Lips: dud dud dud dud dud dud. How Soon Is Now: yes but we've vetoed it already.

to be honest i think you'll have a hard time convincing anyone of the merits of (spits out name) pearl jam.

although surely the ironic rehabilitation of grunge is set for great eastern st/curtain rd soon? after all, that stuff has kitsch value n'est pas?

You know what? I think 'Virginia Plain' has it! If it can create an entente cordiale between the mighty and disparate minds of Omar, the Pinefox and Kate, I think it is clearly SUR L'ARGENT!

Virginia Plain seems to be doing well. It gets my vote.

i cannot disagree with virginia plain because i, *gulp*, have never heard roxy music

Gareth - quick, go out & get a Roxy Music record now!

A Few Suggestions:

Shake Your Booty - KC & the Sunshine Band/Death Disco - PIL/Sh-Boom - The Chords/Boogie Wonderland - Earth, Wind & Fire/Jump Around - House of Pain/Surf City - Jan & Dean/I'm A Boy - The Who/Goin' Back - The Byrds/Higher & Higher - Jackie Wilson/Tighten Up - Archie Bell & the Drells

But would happily settle for Virginia Plain or the Rockford Files theme tune or God Save the Queen

Gareth!!! No Roxy Music!!! I'm SHOCKED!!! Shocked and HORRIFIED!!! Do it! Now! Don't make me come over there and box your ears!

No disco. Any and all disco will immediately be rejected by me. Only genre I hate worse than wibbling twee is disco.

Anthony suggested "Please Mr Postman" earlier, but it's by the Marvelettes, not the Ronettes and thus falls under Omar's no-Motown veto.

Ha, I feel like the Soviet Union in the U.N. back in the days :)

As a sign of good will I'll free 'Papa was Rolling Stone' by Tempations from the veto.

So NOT ONE person here dislikes any of these ?

Let's Stay Together (Al Green)
Don't You Want Me
Ace Of Spades
Unfinished Sympathy
Surfin' Bird
Cum On Feel The Noize (Slade)
Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Saint Etienne)
These Boots Are Made For Walkin'
Back In Black
Buffalo Stance
Sign O' The Times
A New England (Kirsty MacColl)
Pablo Picasso (Modern Lovers)
I'm Only Sleeping (Beatles)
Surrender (Cheap Trick)
Honky Tonk Women
God Only Knows
Souvenirs (OMD)
Word Up
Transmission
Cherry Bomb (Runaways)
Crazy (Patsy Cline)
Be My Baby
Brown Sugar (Rolling Stones)
People Get Ready (C. Mayfield)
Leader Of The Pack
Nightclubbing (Iggy)
Blackbird (Beatles)
God Save The Queen
Virginia Plain
Ziggy Stardust
Death Disco
Sh-Boom (The Chords)
Jump Around
Surf City
I'm A Boy (The Who)
Goin' Back (Byrds)
Higher And Higher (J. Wilson)
Tighten Up (Archie Bell)

I would suggest tearing down a couple of these before making any new suggestions :)

Also,

a. "Buffalo Stance" is being dismissed on the Neneh Cherry thread, but other threads don't count, so it stays.

b. Anthony wasn't clear about whether he thinks "Honky Tonk Women" is a dud, so it stays.

c. Surely "Death Disco" is too weird to fall under the many disco vetoes.

Also not yet dismissed : "Walk On By" and "The Look Of Love".

Virginia Plain does it for me.

Oh, boy.

Junk the following: Ziggy, House of melon-farming Pain, Cameo (!?!?!), all the Stones songs mentioned to this point, Sex Pistols, Lemmy, Ms. Sinatra, "Pablo Pisacco".

I'd shoot down more, but I didn't want to be a ballhog. (Or a tugboat, for that matter.)

Tim Curry's Sweet Transvestite....bitchslap that, and I'm calling up Meatloaf.

No "Sweet Transvestite" for me, sorry, and that goes tenfold for "Time Warp", in case anyone gets any funny ideas.

Howzabout "Ghost Town" by The Specials ?

Is that the Stranglers version of 'Walk on By'? If so then no nix, if not then big nix. As for 'Look of Love'...pfffff! Thats a veto by the way.

Unfinished Symphony's a drag.

damn, I was thinking of the Verve's Bittersweet Symphony. Unfinished Symphony's the Massive Attack one isn't it. I like that one.

Huey Lewis and the News - Heart & Soul?

Only a curmudgeon would knock out "Unfinished Sympathy"!

Speaking of curmudgeonly, "God Save The Queen" = completely useless song. No sir, I don't like it!

I'm asserting myself: no to "Cum on Feel the Noize," "Back in Black," "Sign o' the Times," "Brown Sugar," "Nightclubbing," "Blackbird," and "Jump Around."

I'd like to note that as of yet, no one has typed a single negative syllable about "Be My Baby," which my hopes here are pinned on. Honestly: how could you not like "Be My Baby?"

And well done to whoever suggested "People Get Ready," which I think will fare better here than Cat Stevens' similarly-themed "Peace Train."

kirsty mccoll, nein danke.

all the other songs in patrick's list i either like (to some extent) or haven't heard. hope that helps ...

Stevie: good on for you for suggesting the Roxy. Hope it wins.

Tom E: just don't like that song somehow... and there's other 'classic' Bacharach that doesn't do it for me either (inc. the ones you mention). BUT I'm not knocking him in general, not at all.

Patrick C: since when did anyone knock out Lloyd? Once again: foul.

Dismiss: Motorhead, Massive Attack, 'Jump Around' (aargh!).

Meta-issues of nature of this thread not yet discussed. Will return to this.

Would those Lloyd Cole songs really be known to most of ILM's posters, or even a large number of them, Pinefox ? Maybe I'm wrong about this and he has attained a level of exposure and fame in Europe that I'm unaware of, but I doubt it.

I'd love to hear about the meta-issues of the nature of this thread.

I got to admit to not reading this whole thread (I'm at work at can't waste ALL my time...) but have to cast a vote for "Be My Baby".

Or what about "Respect" by Aretha?

Respect is one of the most irritating songs of all-time, so begone!

Be my baby = yes, just makes it because of Scorcese.

Lloyd Cole: it's bye-bye to you.

So for the guy who just checked -- exactly *what* is left, anyway? Is there an actual candidate pool or random lists?

I'm going to nix the Runaways, Byrds and Huey Lewis which by my reckoning leaves;

Let's Stay Together (Al Green) Don't You Want Me Surfin' Bird Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Saint Etienne) Buffalo Stance I'm Only Sleeping (Beatles) Surrender (Cheap Trick) Honky Tonk Women God Only Knows Souvenirs (OMD) Transmission Crazy (Patsy Cline) Be My Baby People Get Ready (C. Mayfield) Leader Of The Pack Virginia Plain Death Disco Sh-Boom (The Chords) Surf City I'm A Boy (The Who) Higher And Higher (J. Wilson) Tighten Up (Archie Bell) Ghost Town

Ned - These are the songs that no one has a problem with so far :

Let's Stay Together (Al Green)
Don't You Want Me
Surfin' Bird
Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Saint Etienne)
Buffalo Stance
I'm Only Sleeping (Beatles)
Surrender (Cheap Trick)
God Only Knows
Souvenirs (OMD)
Transmission
Cherry Bomb (Runaways)
Crazy (Patsy Cline)
Be My Baby
People Get Ready (C. Mayfield)
Leader Of The Pack
Blackbird (Beatles)
God Save The Queen
Virginia Plain
Death Disco
Sh-Boom (The Chords)
Surf City
I'm A Boy (The Who)
Goin' Back (Byrds)
Higher And Higher (J. Wilson)
Tighten Up (Archie Bell)
Ghost Town (Specials)

(Huey Lewis' "Heart And Soul" nixed for having worst guitar solo ever, tied with "Power Of Love", also by Huey)

Feel free to shoot down the ones you dislike - you're just the man for the job ;) - and nominate other candidates for universally loved- by-ILM songs :).

Uh, minus the ones that Billy Dods nixed while I was typing that.

Whoops, try again (forgot I can't stand the Stones)

'I'm going to nix the Runaways, Byrds and Huey Lewis which by my reckoning leaves;

Let's Stay Together (Al Green) Don't You Want Me Surfin' Bird Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Saint Etienne) Buffalo Stance I'm Only Sleeping (Beatles) Surrender (Cheap Trick) God Only Knows Souvenirs (OMD) Transmission Crazy (Patsy Cline) Be My Baby People Get Ready (C. Mayfield) Leader Of The Pack Virginia Plain Death Disco Sh-Boom (The Chords) Surf City I'm A Boy (The Who) Higher And Higher (J. Wilson) Tighten Up (Archie Bell) Ghost Town '

Ah, I nixed by band name, not by song!

Begone, you damn "Buffalo Stance" & "God Save the Queen". And "Leader of the Pack". And "Crazy".

Nix those particular Al Green, St Etienne, Beatles tracks.

Since Rasputin was nixed on the grounds — both specious AND untrue — that it was "silly", I propose JOAN JETT and the BLACKHEARTS, and the unimpeachable yea epoch-making cover-version of the Arrows' "I Love Rock'n'Roll": in hommage to the thread we inhabit and (let's face it) the air we breathe. Who nixes this has not heart, nor brains, nor lungs.