Could we please be objective cause the other POLLS are queuing up behind us - Artist Poll #94 - Belle & Sebastian - RESULTS

Thanks for running this poll, Nag Nag Nag, it's been something more than wonderful

My votes (bold for didn't place in top 60)

Tracks

The State I Am In
Slow Graffiti
The Loneliness of a Middle Distance Runner
Put the Book Back on the Shelf/Songs for Children
Electronic Renaissance
I Could Be Dreaming
Lazy Line Painter Jane
Me and the Major
Expectations
This Is Just a Modern Rock Song
Stay Loose
Le Pastie de la Bourgeoisie
Photo Jenny
Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Seeing Other People
The Blues Are Still Blue
My Wandering Days Are Over
Your Cover's Blown (Miaoux Miaoux Mix)
You're Just a Baby
Play For Today
Step Into My Office, Baby
We Are the Sleepyheads
She's Losing It
Dirty Dream Number Two
The Boy With the Arab Strap
Black and White Unite
Judy Is a Dick Slap
Women's Realm
I Didn't See It Coming
I'm a Cuckoo

Albums

Tigermilk
Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Push Barmaid To Open Old Wounds
Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance
The Life Pursuit

EPs

3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light
Lazy Line Painter Jane
This is Just A Modern Rock Song
Books
Dog on Wheels

Song I think I most regret not giving a vote to, given the results: Storytelling. It's such a delight.

sorry to miss the end of the poll, thanks so much for running it Nag!

Albums

1. If You’re Feeling Sinister
2. Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
3. The Life Pursuit
4. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
5. Tigermilk

Tracks

1. If You’re Feeling Sinister
2. Slow Graffiti
3. The Loneliness of a Middle Distance Runner
4. The State I am In
5. Your Cover’s Blown
6. The Fox in the Snow
7. Step into My Office Baby
8. Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying
9. If You Find Yourself Caught in Love
10. I Fought in a War
11. String Bean Jean
12. Dog On Wheels
13. Like Dylan in the Movies
14. Funny Little Frog
15. To Be Myself Completely
16. The Stars of Track and Field
17. There’s Too Much Love
18. Me and the Major
19. Dress Up in You
20. Don’t Leave the Light on Baby
21. Expectations
22. Seeing Other People
23. I Know Where the Summer Goes
24. The Boy with the Arab Strap
25. Women’s Realm
26. Le Pastie de la Bourgeoisie
27. This is Just a Modern Rock Song
28. Cat With the Cream
29. Belle & Sebastian
30. Allie

my unplaceds: "Play for Today," "Cat With the Cream," "Same Star," "God Help the Girl," "Family Tree," "Mornington Crescent"

You’re Just A Baby
Don’t Leave The Light On Baby
The State I Am In
Like Dylan In The Movies
Dog On Wheels
Electronic Renaissance
Seeing Other People
A Summer Wasting
If You’re Feeling Sinister
The Rollercoaster Ride
I Could Be Dreaming
Piazza, New York Catcher
She’s Losing It
I Fought In A War
I Don’t Love Anyone
Mayfly
Women’s Realm
Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying
I Want The World To Stop
Sleep The Clock Around
String Bean Jean
Stay Loose
Le Pastie De La Bourgeoisie
Your Cover’s Blown
The Boy With The Arab Strap
Lazy Line Painter Jane
There’s Too Much Love
Poor Boy
Write About Love
Wrapped Up In Books

Tigermilk
If You’re Feeling Sinister
Fold Your Hands Child You Walk Like A Peasant
The Boy With The Arab Strap
Dear Catastrophe Waitress

Dog on Wheels
Lazy Line Painter Jane
3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light
Jonathan David
Legal Man

My non-top 60 tracks: Your Secrets, I Love My Car, Mornington Crescent, We Are The Sleepyheads

Re "Mayfly," I love the line "I don't mind the sight of you" so much -- the way he takes a standard phrase ("I can't stand the sight of you") and then reasons, what would be the mild, Belle and Sebastian version of this?

Was surprised to see that 9 other people voted for "I Love My Car", but cheers to you all:
"I love my Carl / I love my Brian my Dennis and my Al / I could even find it in my head to love Mike Love"

Looks like my poll entries that didn't place are mostly from Storytelling:
6. Big John Shaft
20. Marx and Engels
24. Fuck This Shit
25. Mornington Crescent
29. Scooby Driver
30. I Love My Car

Incidentally, I was the only person to vote for this song, which tells me that most people probably haven't heard it.

Fuck This Shit just missed my top 30, it is lovely though

107 Roy Walker DCW 23 2 0

also i'm glad this delightful song often singled out as the worst dcw track got two votes

"Marx & Engles" was my #2, and "I Love My Car" my #12. I probably listen to the I'm Waking Up to Us EP more than anything else by this band.

Thanks for this poll. It was nearly 20 years ago upon first hearing "The Stars of Track and Field" that immediately knew I had a new favorite band.

ALBUMS
1. If You're Feeling Sinister
2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
3. Tigermilk
4. The Boy With The Arab Strap
5. Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance

EPs
1. I'm Waking Up To Us
2. Lazy Line Painter Jane
3. This Is Just A Modern Rock Song
4. Jonathan David
5. 3..6..9..Seconds of Light

TRACKS
1. Seeing Other People
2. Lazy Line Painter Jane
3. Nobody's Empire
4. I'm A Cuckoo
5. The Stars Of Track and Field
6. Slow Graffiti
7. Dress Up In You
8. Marx and Engels
9. The State I'm In
10. Stay Loose
11. Judy and the Dream of Horses
12. I Didn't See It Coming
13. Sleep The Clock Around
14. I Love My Car
15. I Know Where The Summer Goes
16. The Fox In The Snow
17. The Boy With The Arab Strap
18. I'm Waking Up To Us
19. We Rule The School
20. This Is Just A Modern Rock Song
21. Don't Leave the Light On Baby
22. Dirty Dream Number Two
23. Piazza, New York Catcher
24. Expectations
25. Seymour Stein
26. The Party Line
27. Mornington Crescent
28. I Don't Love Anyone
29. There's Too Much Love
30. Enter Sylvia Plath

thanks Nag!

The Boy With The Arab Strap
Another Sunny Day
Mayfly
Nobody's Empire
Dress Up In You
Me and the Major
I'm a Cuckoo
Seeing Other People
Lazy Line Painter Jane
Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
She's Losing It
The Blues Are Still Blue
Judy and the Dream of Horses
The Stars of Track and Field
This Is Just a Modern Rock Song
If She Wants Me
The State I Am In
White Collar Boy
The Fox in the Snow
Is It Wicked Not To Care?
We Rule The School
Susie in the Graveyard
Seymour Stein
Piazza, New York Catcher
If You're Feeling Sinister

this seems like damning with faint praise, but I really love how Mayfly ties the sequencing together of IYFS. I don't think you can overlook it's pop value in an album that could have come across as fairly bitter. I suppose one of the downsides of a tracks poll is that somewhat slight songs don't hold up that well in the sunlight, but it's hard for me to imagine that album without it.

TRACKS
Lazy Line Painter Jane
Dirty Dream Number Two
If You're Feeling Sinister
The Stars of Track and Field
Beautiful
Judy and the Dream of Horses
A Century of Fakers
Le Pastie de la Bourgeoisie
A Summer Wasting
The State I Am In
Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
String Bean Jean
Nobody's Empire
The Loneliness of a Middle Distance Runner
She's Losing It
Lord Anthony
Seeing Other People
The Model
The Fox in the Snow
The Boy With the Arab Strap
Your Cover's Blown
Photo Jenny
Expectations
Mary Jo
Wrapped Up in Books
The Cat With the Cream
Sukie in the Graveyard
Pocketbook Angel
Slow Graffiti
The Ghost of Rockschool

ALBUMS
If You're Feeling Sinister
Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
Tigermilk
The Boy with the Arab Strap
Dear Catastrophe Waitress

this seems like damning with faint praise, but I really love how Mayfly ties the sequencing together of IYFS. I don't think you can overlook it's pop value in an album that could have come across as fairly bitter

it's kind of a perfect album track tbh, it pulls you right out of the sadder and more expansive mood of the title track and you don't really notice it happening

I suspect my ballot is slightly heavier on later stuff compared to others.

1. Nobody’s Empire
2. The Boy With the Arab Strap
3. I Didn’t See it Coming (Richard X remix)
4. Judy and the Dream of Horses
5. Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John
6. Lazy Line Painter Jane
7. This is Just a Modern Rock Song
8. I’m a Cuckoo (Avalanches remix)
9. The State I’m In
10. Is it Wicked Not to Care?
11. The Stars of Track and Field
12. Write About Love
13. Me and the Major
14. Seymour Stein
15. Step Into My Office Baby
16. Chickfactor
17. Come on Sister
18. Fox in the Snow
19. Ease your Feet in the Sea
20. Piazza, New York Catcher
21. Wrapped up in Books
22. Photo Jenny
23. I’m Not Living in the Real World
24. Like Dylan in the Movies
25. Legal Man
26. Calculating Bimbo
27. I Want The World To Stop
28. Funny Little Frog (GHTG)
29. Seeing Other People
30. The Party Line

Albums:
1. The Boy With The Arab Strap
2. If You’re Feeling Sinister
3. Write About Love
4. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
5. God Help The Girl

The part of "Mayfly" is when the drums switch to double time, all the way through to "you know it's a crying shame" is ace.

Is there a Spotify link to the results?

yep - it's in the first post

I wasn't going to vote. I'm going through a difficult life transition rn, and all my B&S CDs are in storage for the time being. But I went for it on memory alone.

TRACKS:

1. The Stars of Track And Field

2. The Wrong Girl

3. Lazy Line Painter Jane

4. Another Sunny Day

5. Like Dylan In The Movies

6. To Be Myself Completely

7. Seeing Other People

8. Don’t Leave The Light On Baby

9. Step Into My Office, Baby

10. Sleep The Clock Around

11. Write About Love

12. Act of The Apostle (I)

13. I Fought In A War

14. Me & The Major

15. A Century of Fakers

16. Photo Jenny

17, La Pastie de la Bourgeoisie

18. Put the Book Back On The Shelf

19. I Love My Car

20. Your Cover’s Blown

21. Funny Little Frog

22. Jonathon David

23. The Blues Are Still Blue

24. White Collar Boy

25. Dirty Dream Number 2

26. I’m Waking Up To Us

27. The Model

28. Legal Man

29. (My Girl’s Got) Miraculous Technique

30. A Century of Elvis

ALBUMS:

1. Push Barman To Reopen Old Wounds

2. The Life Pursuit

3. Write About Love

4. If You’re Feeling Sinister

5. The Boy With The Arab Strap

Songs:
The Model
The State I Am In
Dirty Dream Number Two
The Stars of Track and Field
Lazy Line Painter Jane
Electronic Renaissance
Play For Today
Dress Up In You
If She Wants Me
I Want the World To Stop
Seeing Other People
I'm A Cuckoo
Women's Realm
She's Losing It
Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
String Bean Jean
There's Too Much Love
The Fox In the Snow
Sleep the Clock Around
White Collar Boy
I'm Waking Up to Us
Dog On Wheels
To Be Myself Completely
Legal Man
Belle and Sebastian
I Could Be Dreaming
Put the Book Back On the Shelf/Songs For Children
The Boy With the Arab Strap
Mary Jo
Beautiful

Albums:
Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant
If You're Feeling Sinister
Tigermilk
The Life Pursuit

EPs:
Dog On Wheels
3...6...9 Seconds of Light
Lazy Line Painter Jane
I'm Waking Up to Us
Books

Here's the known B&S tracks from the other thread that didn't receive a single vote. (Hopefully there'll be no "b-b-but, I did vote for that--you screwed up." :) )

Hurley's Having Dreams	                    DEMO
London Has Let Me Down Again	            DEMO
Are You Coming Over For Christmas?          XMAS
Paper Boat	                            OUTTAKE
Nothing in the Silence	                    BBC 5/01
Here Comes the Sun (Harrison)	            BBC 12/01
I'm Waiting for the Man (Reed)              BBC 12/01
Fiction	                                    STORY
Freak                                       STORY
Night Walk                                  STORY
Consuelo                                    STORY
I Don't Want to Play Football               STORY
Consuelo Leaving                            STORY
Wandering Alone                             STORY
Fiction Reprise                             STORY
Final Day (Young Marble Giants)             RT 25
Love on the March                           SIMOB
Stop, Look and Listen                       IAC
Act of the Apostle II                       TLP
Meat and Potatoes                           FLF
I Took a Long Hard Look                     FLF
The Eighth Station of the Cross Kebab House FLF
Cassaco Marron (Trio Esperança)             LNT I
The Life Pursuit                            TBASB
Mr. Richard                                 TBASB
Whiskey in the Jar (Trad)                   TBASB
Long Black Scarf                            WCB
Baby Jane (Stewart)                         WCB
The Monkeys Are Breaking Out the Zoo        COMP
Read the Blessed Pages                      WAL
I Can See Your Future                       WAL
Last Trip                                   WAL+
Blue Eyes of a Millionaire                  WAL+
Crash (Primitives)                          LNT II
Today (This Army's for Peace)               GIPWTD
Born To Act                                 GIPWTD+
Two Birds                                   GIPWTD+
Piggy In The Middle                         GIPWTD+
A Politician's Silence                      GIPWTD+
Olympic Village, 6am                        DIGITAL. SING
Everything is Now                           HTSOHP 1
Show Me the Sun	                            HTSOHP 2
I'll Be Your Pilot                          HTSOHP 2
A Plague on All the Other Boys              HTSOHP 2
Too Many Tears                              HTSOHP 3
There is an Everlasting Song                HTSOHP 3 

These must be the only things I voted for that we didn't appear yesterday. Clearly I should have expanded the countdown out to 70. #TeamSimpleThings

95   Shoot the Sexual Athlete                 BBC 5/01       33        2        0
81   The Cat With the Cream                   GIPWTD         61        6        0
70   Act of the Apostle                       TLP           119       10        0
63   Simple Things                            TBWTAS        140        9        0
62   You Made Me Forget My Dreams             LLPJ          141        7        0

"the cat with the cream" forever

OTM.

Could have sworn someone voted for "Today (This Army's for Peace)" too. Hopefully it was just my own provisional list that I'm thinking of. *has panic attack*

"today" is a great song but i can see how it could've missed every ballot

Great poll, I hadn't really listened to B&S in a long time and it's been great fun remembering how much I was into this band when I was just out of my teens.

TRACKS
Like Dylan in the Movies
Dog on Wheels
The Loneliness of a Middle Distance Runner
Slow Graffiti
The State I Am In
The Fox in the Snow
Simple Things
You Made Me Forget My Dreams
Lazy Line Painter Jane
I Could Be Dreaming
Electronic Renaissance
The Model
Me and the Major
Dirty Dream #2
You're Just a Baby
Seeing Other People
A Summer Wasting
Sleep the Clock Around
Le Pastie de la Bourgeoisie
The Stars of Track and Field
She's Losing It
My Wandering Days Are Over
Wrapped Up in Books
Photo Jenny
Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying
Belle and Sebastian
Women's Realm
Mayfly
I Know Where the Summer Goes
The Boy With the Arab Strap

ALBUMS
If You're Feeling Sinister
Tigermilk
The Boy With the Arab Strap
Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant

EPs
Lazy Line Painter Jane
This Is Just a Modern Rock Song
Dog on Wheels
3..6..9 Seconds of Light
Jonathan David

Ah sad, I love "You Made Me Forget My Dreams" and wish it'd placed higher.. surprised that "Lazy Line Painter Jane" is so popular! great song

Surprised these ones didn’t quite make it:

67 Belle & Sebastian
64 Legal Man
63 Simple Things
62 You Made Me Forget My Dreams

The Cat with the Cream is underrated, as are Lord Anthony and Belle & Sebastian, I think

OTM.

And I totally share #TeamYouMadeMeForgetMyDreams's sorrow.

But the biggest shock for me remains the utter unpopularity of "Boy Done Wrong Again". Didn't vote for it, but hadn't anticipated a conspicuously (near-)empty row in a spreadsheet, something that was overwise reserved for the likes of "A Space Boy Dream".

I was thinking of including “Today” on the ballot I didn’t submit, relistening I think it’s great. “Ever Had a Little Faith” is fantastic too. Sure is a long album though.

One more stat and then I'll shut up. I was vaguely alluding to it a couple of days ago, but couldn't really reveal it.

The conventional studio albums ranked by the sum of their constituent track scores. IYFS's dominance is even scarier here:

IYFS        5569
Tigermilk   3531
TBWTAS      3377
DCW         2990
FYHCYWLAP   1584
TLP         1569
GIPWTD       782 
WAP          647

Where does PBTOOW place?

I'm glad you asked. I'd wondered myself but had been too lazy to do the extra fiddling.

It's an impressive score, even with "The State I Am In" excluded:

DOW       823 
LLPJ     1344
369SOL    944
TIJAMRS  1079
LM        247
JD        640
IWUTU     470
=
PBTOOW   5547

Many thanks to Mr. Nag! for running this. It's been a blast, and it will live forever in the funny little frog of my heart.

My ballot:
Tracks
1
Me and the Major
Lazy Line Painter Jane
I Don’t Love Anyone
Nobody’s Empire
I’m Waking Up to Us
String Bean Jean
Piazza, New York Catcher
Sukie In the Graveyard
If She Wants Me
Seeing Other People
The Stars of Track and Field
Photo Jenny
If You’re Feeling Sinister
Dress Up In You
Ease Your Feet in the Sea
Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying
Sleep the Clock Around
Jonathan David
The Rollercoaster Ride
The Boy with the Arab Strap
Allie
Another Sunny Day
Act of the Apolstle
She’s Losing It
You’re Just a Baby
The State I Am In
I Love My Car
Wrapped Up In Books
The Blues Are Still Blue
Stay Loose
30

Albums
Push Barman to Open Old Wounds
If You’re Feeling Sinister
Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Tigermilk
The Life Pursuit

I’ve been thinking about why Lord Anthony stands out for me

I wasn’t bullied too much in high school, although I can remember being imprinted with the shame and fear of it. I also remember looking on and not stepping in as other kids were savagely harassed, and it’s been in the back of my mind since

it’s amazing to me that their music can so easily convey childhood feelings like this song does

Great poll! I didn't have time to listen to everything to prepare for voting but my main takeaway is I need to listen to FYHC, which I foolishly skipped. Also it's hard to believe that just three weeks ago I had never heard "The State I Am In". Instant classic from the first listen, I probably put it on a dozen times in that time. It's a little strange to rank it over songs I've loved for 15 years but it's just that good

1. Stay Loose
2. The Fox in the Snow
3. The State I Am In
4. Seeing Other People
5. She's Losing It
6. If She Wants Me
7. A Summer Wasting
8. Seymour Stein
9. Like Dylan in the Movies
10. Step Into My Office, Baby
11. Ease Your Feet Into the Sea
12. Get Me Away from Here, I'm Dying
13. The Boy With the Arab Strap
14. If You're Feeling Sinister
15. Piazza, New York Catcher
16. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
17. It Could Have Been a Brilliant Career
18. Enter Sylvia Plath
19. The Stars of Track and Field
20. If You Find Yourself Caught in Love
21. I'm a Cuckoo
22. Belle and Sebastian
23. The Blues are Still Blue
24. Play for Today
25. The Party Line
26. Dress Up in You
27. The Loneliness of a Middle Distance Runner
28. Asleep on a Sun Beam
29. To Be Myself Completely
30. We Are the Sleepyheads

Top Albums
1. If You're Feeling Sinister
2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress
3. Boy From the Arab Strap
4. Tigermilk
5. Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance

also Belle & Sebastian wasn’t the first song of theirs I heard but it felt like it explained them somehow, as a central diorama of their world

1. The Boy With The Arab Strap
2. A Summer Wasting
3. This Is Just A Modern Rock Song
4. Pocketbook Angel
5. Ease Your Feet In The Sea
6. String Bean Jean
7. Slow Graffiti
8. Big John Shaft
9. Lazy Line Painter Jane
10. Beautiful
11. I'm A Cuckoo
12. Simple Things
13. The State That I Am In
14. Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying
15. If You Are Feeling Sinister
16. Electronic Renaissance
17. Like Dylan In The Movies
18. Storytelling
19. Sleep The Clock Around
20. Funny Little Frog (God Help The Girl)
21. She's Losing It
22. Fox In The Snow
23. I Don't Love Anyone
24. The Model
25. Expectations
26. Seeing Other People
27. Dirty Dream Number Two
28. Belle & Sebastian
29. Photo Jenny
30. My Wandering Days Are Over

Albums
1 The Boy With The Arab Strap
2 Tigermilk
3 If You're Feeling Sinister
4 Push Barman To Open Old Wounds
5 Storytelling

Eps
1 This Is Just a Modern Rock Song
2 Lazy Line Painter Jane
3 Dog on Wheels
4 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light
5 Jonathan David

Voted Belle & Sebastian track

I think if Pocketbook Angel wasn't a rough demo it would be looked on as fondly as Photo Jenny.. maybe not String Bean Jean. Those 3 are very similar in a way.

I remember reading an interview with Stuart Murdoch where he said that every song was written by either Belle or by Sebastian, it was up to us to figure out which, that has always stuck with me

great poll, thanks for the winter wooskie shoutout! :)

I like the pop songs.
The Life Pursuit is my favorite album.
"Funny Little Frog" was my #2.
"Mornington Crescent" is the worst song on TLP.
"Seeing Other People" was my #1 to a large extent because it sounds like Charlie Brown music.

I think what I'm trying to say is, I'm not a proper Belle & Sebastian fan.

01. Seeing Other People
02. Funny Little Frog
03. Dirty Dream Number Two
04. Don't Leave the Light On Baby
05. I'm a Cuckoo
06. Act of the Apostle
07. Lazy Line Painter Jane
08. Another Sunny Day
09. Write About Love
10. Like Dylan in the Movies
11. If She Wants Me
12. This Is Just a Modern Rock Song
13. Wrapped Up in Books
14. The Blues Are Still Blue
15. I Want the World to Stop
16. If You're Feeling Sinister
17. Step Into My Office, Baby
18. You Don't Send Me
19. Sweet Dew Lee
20. The State I Am In (Tigermilk version)
21. Legal Man
22. The Stars of Track and Field
23. Winter Wooksie
24. I'm Waking Up to Us
25. Nobody's Empire
26. The Boy with the Arab Strap
27. To Be Myself Completely
28. Best Friend
29. Expectations
30. Song for Sunshine

"Seeing Other People" was my #1 to a large extent because it sounds like Charlie Brown music.

Can't deny there's something to this

just want to say i enjoyed the warmth exhibited throughout this poll even if this band doesn't do much for me.

Great poll thanks, never seen any of these 'outtake'/alternate-cover images before.

I only possess a Vince Guaraldi record because a Charlie Brown vibe was also noted on, presumably, the Sinister list back in the day!

Anyone who voted for "Act of the Apostle" and "Song for Sunshine" (I missed the latter when listing the unpopular things on my ballot} may actually be the best kind of B&S fan.