Time for me to do one of those heinous millenial lists now. Sometimes I feel that my life has been a quest for the perfect pop song (among other things). So here’s a list. If it seems a bit heavy on the 1970s and 1980s, that’s because that’s when I did the most looking.
Keep in mind that these are not necessarily my all-time favorite songs and arists of all time. They’re just a bunch of really bitchin’ up-tempo, often over-produced pop songs. Whiny love ballads and metal masterpieces don’t count. The songs are also in no particular order other than alphabetical, except as categorized.
Let’s just say they’d make an amazing tape or CD compilation. Call ’em lightweight, if you will. I don’t care…
The Winner:
- “Starry Eyes” – The Records
The Runners-Up:
- “Glass Onion” – Beatles
- “You Say You Don’t Love Me” – Buzzcocks
- “Downtown” – Petulia Clark
- “Boys Don’t Cry’ – The Cure
- “Every Word Means No” – Lets Active
- “Georgy Girl” – The New Seekers
- “Cruel to Be Kind” – Nick Lowe
- “Driver’s Seat” – Sniff & the Tears
- “New Romance” – Spider
- “I Only Want to Be with You” – Dusty Springfield
- “Pulling Mussels from a Shell” – Squeeze
- “Incense and Peppermints” – Strawberry Alarm Clock
The Rest:
- “I Beg Your Pardon” – Lynn Anderson
- “Hello Dolly” – Louis Armstrong
- “Every Time I Think of You” – The Babys
- “Saturday Night” – Bay City Rollers
- “Norwegian Wood” – Beatles
- “One Way or Another” – Blondie
- “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” – Blue Oyster Cult
- “There’s No Other Way” -Blur
- “Take Five” – Dave Brubeck
- “What Do I Get” – Buzzcocks
- “Fame” – Irene Cara
- “Just What I Needed” – Cars
- “Ring of Fire” – Johnny Cash
- “Seven Year Ache” – Rosanne Cash
- “Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves” – Cher
- “Street Life” – Crusaders
- The Love Cats” – The Cure
- “Happenstance” The dB’s
- “Mack the Knife” – Bobby Darin
- “Punk Rock Girl” – Dead Milkmen
- “Sausalito Summer Night” – Diesel
- “Europa and the Pirate Twins” – Thomas Dolby
- “Hello, I Love You” – Doors
- “Girls on Film” – Duran Duran
- “Morning Train (Nine to Five)” – Sheena Easton
- “Stand or Fall” – The Fixx
- “Hey Saint Peter” – Flash and the Pan
- “New York Groove” – Ace Frehley
- “One Last Kiss” – J. Geils
- “Somebody’s Knockin'” – Terry Gibbs
- “Our Lips Are Sealed” – Go-go’s
- “Hold On” – Ian Gomm
- “Live for Today” – Grass Roots
- “Midnight Confessions” – Grass Roots
- “Let Me Go” – Heaven 17
- “Don’t You Want Me” – Human League
- “Things that Dreams Are Made of” – Human League
- “Whisper to a Scream” – Icicle Works
- “You’re One” – Imperial Teen
- “I Want you Back” – Jackson 5
- “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” – Elton John/Kiki Dee
- “Wives and Lovers” – Jack Jones
- “The Break-up Song” – Greg Kihn
- “Detachable Penis” – King Missile
- “Good Girls Don’t” – The Knack
- “Lotta Love” – Nicolette Larson
- “Room with a View” – Lets Active
- “Funkytown” – Lipps Inc.
- “Ways to Be Wicked” – Lone Justice
- “Summer in the City” – Lovin’ Spoonful
- “One’s on the Way” – Loretta Lynn
- “Into the Groove” – Madonna
- “Cliche” – Male Model
- “Gemini Dream” – Moody Blues
- “Right Back Where We Started From” – Maxine Nightingale
- “Everybody’s Talkin'” – Harry Nilsson
- “Flash Light” – Parliament
- “I Wanna Be Your Lover” – Prince
- “Wolves Lower” – REM
- “Send Me an Angel” – Real Life
- “Talking in Your Sleep” – Romantics
- “Neck on Up” – Todd Rundgren/Utopia
- “Set Me Free” – Todd Rundgren/Utopia
- “My Ex” – Sex Execs
- “Homosapien” – Pete Shelley
- “Strangers in the Night” – Frank Sinatra
- “Might as Well Be Walking on the Sun” – Smashmouth
- “Tainted Love” – Soft Cell
- “I Got You” – Split Enz
- “The Fez” – Steely Dan
- “Breakfast in America” – Supertramp
- “The Happening” – Supremes
- “Ballroom Blitz” – Sweet
- “Let’s Stay Together” – Tina Turner
- “They Don’t Know” – Tracey Ullman
- “Cantaloop” – Us 3
- “Gone Daddy Gone” – Violent Femmes
- “Do You Know the Way to San Jose” – Dionne Warwick
- “Lovely Day” – Bill Withers
- “Change Gotta Come” – X-Teens
- “Senses Working Overtime” – XTC
- “Generals and Majors” – XTC
- “For Your Love” – Yardbirds
