It seems that the Unacclaimed Song Game drew the most interest in the thread I posted asking for opinions about various games and projects.

Well, I thought I'd get the ball rolling!

The game will consist of 2 stages as follows:

Nomination

Users will submit a song that is totally unrepresented on this site. That means no bubblers, and no songs from acclaimed albums, even if they don't appear as individual songs! You want to nominate an album track from OK Computer? This isn't the place for that. The idea is to uncover real lost gems. You should also provide a link to a place (Youtube, etc.) where the song can be heard for free, and a description of why you chose the song in the first place!

I'd posit a period of perhaps a week for the nomination process. I'd say we should try to reach 32 songs on a first come, first serve basis. I choose 32 because it makes sense in a bracket style. If a week has passed and we haven't reached 32 songs, users who have already submitted one song will have a chance to submit another.

Voting

Here's what we have to decide- a bracket format or the +/- game?

If we settle for a bracket format, I'd have to randomly assign songs to brackets. This lends itself to a double elimination tournament. We all know that it offen happens that a song/album/artist goes up against a really tough opponent and loses despite being better than others that win their matchup. It's entirely possible that the 2 songs AM users like most are paired up in the first round, but a double elimination tournament assures every song a second chance. To see what a bracket might look like, check this out.

Alternatively, we could go for the +/- option and start each song with maybe 3 points. What do you think?

I'll update this page with nominations and links. Let's put the initial deadline at a week from now for nominations, and we'll take it from there.

List of Nominated Songs:

1. Prince- "Crystal Ball": Nominated by Moonbeam
2. Ten Years After- "I'd Love to Change the World": Nominated by Brad
3. Van Halen- "And the Cradle Will Rock": Nominated by Listyguy
4. The Who- "Eminence Front": Nominated by Stephan
5. Wendy Rene- "After Laughter": Nominated by ako
6. The White Stripes- "The Big Three Killed My Baby": Nominated by BillAdama
7. Serge Gainsbourg - "Cannabis": Nominated by Romain
8. Lal Waterson & Oliver Knight- "Flight of the Pelican": Nominated by pauldrach
9. OK Go- "A Million Ways": Nominated by Nick
10. Carly Simon- "Why": Nominated by Greg
11. Rob Dougan- Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Remix): Nominated by Gillingham
12. The Shirelles- "Baby It's You": Nominated by Guy
13. Luke Kelly- "Scorn Not His Simplicity": Nominated by Beans
14. Streetlight Manifesto- "A Better Place, A Better Time": Nominated by Penguin
15. The Stones Roses- "Elephant Stone": Nominated by Midaso
16. Jack Johnson- "Flake": Nominated by Slick
17. Tori Amos- "Flying Dutchman": Nominated by HRS
18. Utopia- "The Ikon": Nominated by Henry (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4)
19. Yann Tiersen- "La valse de Monstres": Nominated by Henrik
20. Lupe Fiasco- "Hip-Hop Saved My Life": Nominated by Alex D
21. Robert Randolph & The Family Band- "Going in the Right Direction": Nominated by VanillaFire1000
22. The Format- "The First Single (You Know Me)": Nominated by Chris
23. Newsboys- "Entertaining Angels": Nominated by Daniel
24. Cardiacs- "Dirty Boy": Nominated by Fred
25. Nirvana- "Do Re Mi": Nominated by Jonathon
26. Faces- "Ooh La La": Nominated by Jackson
27. Super Furry Animals- "Happiness Is a Worn Pun": Nominated by Schwah
28. M. Ward- "Rave On": Nominated by Toni
29. Dressy Bessy- "California": Nominated by Tim E
30. Architecture in Helsinki- "Heart It Races": Nominated by Nassim
31. Curtis Mayfield- "Right on for the Darkness": Nominated by sonofsamiam
32. No Doubt- "New": Nomiated by santi29
33. The Fiery Furnaces- "Here Comes the Summer": Nominated by Jonah
34. OK Go- "This Too Shall Pass": Nominated by Zorg
35. Georges Brassens- "La Marine": Nominated by nicolas
36. Nick Nicely- "Hilly Fields": Nominated by Mindrocker
37. Jars of Clay- "Liquid": Nominated by Larry
38. The Jayhawks- "Will I Be Married": Nominated by John
39. The Bellrays- "Footprints on the Water": Nominated by BillAdama
40. Shudder to Think featuring Jeff Buckley- "I Want Someone Badly": Nominated by Schwah
41. Bang Bang Machine- "Geek Love": Nominated by Midaso
42. Game Theory- "Erica's Word": Nominated by Harold Wexler
43. Visage- "Fade to Grey": Nominated by Henrik
44. Siouxsie and the Banshees- "Dazzle": Nominated by Moonbeam
45. The Alan Parsons Project- "Old and Wise": Nominated by Stephan
46. M (Mathieu Chedid)- "Je dis aime": Nominated by Romain
47. Joanna Newsom- "Colleen": Nominated by HRS
48. Mando Diao- "Dance With Somebody": Nominated by Alex D
49. Nina Simone- "Sinner Man": Nominated by Gillingham
50. UFO- "Rock Bottom": Nominated by Jackson
51. Stereophonics- "Local Boy in the Photograph": Nominated by Slick
52. Liz Phair- "What Makes You a Slave": Nominated by Joan
53. Brazilian Girls- "Homme": Nominated by Nick
54. The Verlaines- "Death and the Maiden": Nominated by Brad
55. Lindsey Buckingham- "Trouble": Nominated by Greg
56. The Walker Brothers- "The Electrician": Nominated by sonofsamiam
57. Nino Rota- "The Godfather Waltz": Nominated by Honorio
58. Genesis- "Behind the Lines": Nominated by Henry
59. Stereolab- "French Disko": Nominated by Nassim
60. Nirvana- "Rainbow Chaser": Nominated by nj
61. Deerhoof- "Milk Man": Nominated by Jonah
62. Lisa Germano- "Puppet": Nominated by Joan
63. Mark Joseph- "Lady Lady": Nominated by Guy
64. The Decemberists- "Record Year": Nominated by ako

I'll submit my favorite song that fits the bill. Of course it's by Prince! The track is called "Crystal Ball" and it can be heard here.

I'll quote myself in an earlier thread in explaining why I chose this song:

If I could sum up Prince with one song, this would be it. Prince’s magnum opus, if you will, it features a strange synth flute intro as a heartbeat-like rhythm fills the speakers. As Clare Fisher’s lush orchestral strings chime in, the tension mounts. Sung in Prince’s Camille voice, the song then wanders into stark synth-funk territory while Prince revisits the theme of desiring carnal pleasure in the midst of decaying and turbulent society. A behemoth of a song, it meanders into spiritual territory while covering jazz, rock and even contemporary classical, leaving nothing in its wake. The segment from 7:31-8:11 may be my favorite 40 seconds of music ever. Giant, sprawling, and bursting with inspiration, it sees Prince at the very zenith of his talent.

Ok moonbeam, excellent idea (and excellent choice for your song). Just one question, how to put a link to youtube or other, like you are doing yourself ?
Thanks.

I prefer the bracket format, because I think that way people are way more inclined to really listen to songs they don't know, compared to a +/- format.

I'll think about a song to propose now.

I'm glad we're doing this, but I think there should be 64 or 128 songs instead of 32. If there are at least 64, then every regular on the forum could definitely nominate a song, or maybe two.

My nomination:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPEWwZ7o57I

Ten Years After - I'd Love To Change The World

Great idea!

OK... this could be fun. I'm in. Although I have pimped for hurt/heal often in the past... that is much better when you've got a set of entries that everyone is familiar with. Tournament bracket is definitely the way to go on this one. I'd just suggest we space the voting out to give everyone the opportunity to listen to the entries.

I'll make my suggestion later... gotta give this one some thought.

"And The Cradle Will Rock", Van Halen[/url}
I was debating wether to nominate this song or Foriegner's "Cold As Ice", and I figured this one would have a much better shot at going places.

I don't know if I should go for my favorite unacclaimed song, which is quite well known and should definitely be on the AM list or for another one which is not that well known and totally different, a less 'classic' song.

Brackets would be better, for reasons explained by Schwah.

My nomination is Marillion - Kayleigh. The album it is on is on AM, but this song is one of my all-time favorites. A perfect song about past loves and regrets. My favorite line, which just conjures beautiful images every time I hear it: "Do you remember/Dancing in stilettos in the snow".

One other thing. Just what passes for Unacclaimed is questionable for songs from 2009 and 2010. Let's say that for 2009 songs, they can't be in the top 100 in the spreadsheet, nor can their parent album. I think we should leave 2010 songs off for now, as it's impossible to tell what will be included once the year-end lists come in.

Ah, missed that rule.

In the case I'm gonna go with something Moonbeam will enjoy a lot less; a song off the pretty awful 1982 "It's Hard" album by The Who. One song is fantastic though, and towers above the rest of the album (Daltrey agrees) and that is Eminence Front. The second best intro The Who ever did with some fantastic guitarplay is followed by a song that consistently lightens up my day when it comes on and concluded by a great ending; "Dress yourself to kill!"

I like to nominate Wendy Rene - After laughter. A song that has been sampled frequently by hip-hop artists. A lot of artists have tried to make good covers. None has come close to deliver this pearl for song with the same feeling as in Wendy´s beautiful original. It deserves far more acclaim and love. This is STAX records at its finest.

Wendy Rene -After laughter
Wendy Rene -After laughter


For Spotify users:
http://open.spotify.com/track/1IXa70EPedlpafPL7Ood2z

Matthew Good Band - Apparations:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEgxy3sBFmE

Come oooooon, no songs from top 500 albums seems logical but below that... I wanted to put Built to Spill - Velvet Waltz as my choice =o(
I will have to find another one, boooooh...

Flight of the Pelican - Lal Waterson & Oliver Knight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vl0RsfKP6zY

Sends shivers down my spine every time I listen to it. The lyrics are as amazing as the song's minor key mood and Oliver Knight's guitar arrangement. The vocals provided by aging British folk legend Lal Waterson (who died about two years after this was released in 1996) may not be technically perfect but fit the general tone of the recording perfectly. Definition of a lost gem in my opinion.

My nomination-

OK Go- A Million Ways

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bav63MWNUKg

I may be the only one here who likes this band, but we'll see.

god, so many! but have to start with this one. unbelievably sick beat produced by rodgers & edwards (chic). and great vocal by...carly simon?! yup. WHY DOES YOUR LOVE HURT SO MUCH? the video is fantastic but i'd actually recommend listening sans visual first...

Carly Simon - "Why".

I'll go for the odd one:

Rob Dougan - Clubbed to Death (Kurayamino Remix)

Ok, I'm gonna go with something Irish and one of my all time favourite songs, "Hanging Around" by the gorgeous Gemma Hayes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IktgyKAcCBI

And for the spotify generation:

http://open.spotify.com/track/1fVW6KG0FfGsSykIgGfaec

My nomination:

Streetlight Manifesto - A Better Place, A Better Time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2yeNzL7rTU&feature=related

Ska is a pretty hated genre (even hated by fans of the genre), but I'm a big fan of ska-punk. This is my favorite song off of one of my favorite (and underrated) albums, "Everything Goes Numb." Sure, the musicianship isn't brilliant (the drums in particular are pretty loose), but I wish I could replicate the energy.

Oh, and I have to say that I'm in favor of a bracket, double elimination tournament - sounds like a lot of fun.

Also, it might be interesting for us to all create and compile lists of these songs and see what comes out on top in such a fashion. I'd be willing to compile the results for that one.

Go with The Stone Roses - Elephant Stone

Bit surprising that it has received so little acclaim,as it was really the single that launched them...

I'm happy to see so much participation already! Keep the nominations coming!

This was a tough call, I had about 16 songs in my most played songs on iTunes that could be considered and I have been on a Toad The Wet Sprocket kick so I was about to introduce "All I Want" which I think would be an excellant addition, but I am electing to go another way. There is an underrated song from 2001 that I would have thought would have been critically acclaimed and it wasn't. That song is:

Jack Johnson ~ "Flake"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lphghSeOKHU

Question, are we allowed to add tracks if they're bonus tracks on special releases of albums in the top 3000?

There's a few songs in the bonus tracks of The Who Sell Out that are totally awesome.

Tori Amos - Flying Dutchman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPgtq4EU-qs

This one strikes deep to me, one of the most underrated songs of a terrific singer/songwriter, back in the good ol' days when tori's b-sides could be a brilliant album highlight, the sound quality on this video isn't a 10, but it's good enough

a bracket game would be nice, it would be nice to see if people agree with yo, not so much if they don't, but that's life

My nominee is Utopia's "The Ikon" - the song is divided into four parts on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwBDz3Hh4fA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBOkIjQmCzI&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y56I77sTYXM&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KW2rts95LE&feature=related

Lots of movements, transitions and expositions. It may drag on for some, but the melodic themes change often enough to keep me interested.

I have lots of songs I want to include, mostly in other genres than rock. My pick is "La valse des monstres" by Yann Tiersen. It was included in the "Amelié" movie, but it was originally released as the title track of his first album in 1995.

Yann Tiersen - La valse des monstres
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqgXHBsXD_E

I had to think about it for a little while, but I've decided on Lupe Fiasco's "Hip-Hop Saved My Life". It's Lupe at his peak, with the story-telling ability on par with Biggie and a depiction of the ghetto that manages to be real and non-gangsta at the same time.

Lupe Fiasco - Hip-Hop Saved My Life

Spotify link

If I had to pick just one song...I would go with this.

Robert Randolph & The Family Band - Going in the Right Direction

A southern rock song with a pedal steel lead. You just don't hear modern music like this anymore.

I've got a song from a bubbling under album...is that ok?

Ride - Cool Your Boots

A 6 minute beast of a song, by a British "shoegazing" band. It's like a merge of MBV and Sonic Youth (both of whom are massive influences) but slightly poppier.

The Format - "The First Single (You Know Me)"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDvLsC9fCGc&feature=fvw"

This song has the highest play count on my iTunes that is unacclaimed. Needless to say, it's a great song.

Newsboys - "Entertaining Angels"

This 1998 song ranks on my all-time favourites at #16, and the Australian-based Newsboys rank at #7 on my all-time favourite artists list, neither of which appear anywhere on Acclaimed Music.

So, are songs from bubbling under albums allowed ?
If so my pick would logically be a song from Elliott Smith's self titled, but I will make an effort and pick one of the songs I listen to the most right now :

Souls of Mischief - 93 'till Infinity

Nomination: Cardiacs - Dirty Boy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-dd4fMUhAY

Zorg and Nassim, songs from bubbling albums aren't allowed.

I nominate "Do Re Mi", Kurt Cobain's final song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqGzyPn6Idw

It has a roughness to it, but also an aching lilt, a vulnerability. Some of the more casual fans will be turned off by the fidelity of this recording, but the song itself feels like a continuation of the Unplugged concert.

This competition has taken a different direction than I thought it would. I expected only songs from the top 3000 and, say, the top 500 albums to be excluded, not anything with even remote acclaim. Taking away the AM3000 albums is hard enough, and bubbling unders makes it even harder (no "When the Sun Hits" by Slowdive).

However, given the constraints of the game, I'll choose this:

Faces - Ooh La La

No songs from bubbling under ALBUMS, correct?

I put together a list for the AM songs poll 2-3 years back on iTunes... it would be interesting to see what makes the cut with these rules!

And BTW, why did your original post already have 24 songs nominated? Did I miss a thread somewhere? I haven't been very active in recent months but I don't want to be too late to the party!

My top-rated song that would fit this bill is the Chic's "Everybody Dance," which I consider their masterpiece, above "Le Freak" and "Good Times," and far and away the greatest disco song off all time. But I have a feeling that Chic would not get as much love in the tourney. Frankly it's not all that dissimilar from "Good Times," so let's go with something else.

My next highest rated would be Blossom Dearie's "Surrey with the Fringe on Top," which I've already pimped on this site before. Let's move on.

I've got two that I'm excited about proposing. I'm going to pass over Cake's "Italian Leather Sofa," which is not as strong musically (but tells an evocative story of two upwardly mobile people in something that will pass for love).

No, I'm going with a fantastically driving rock n' roll rave-up from the great Super Furry Animals. It's a b-side from the "Rings Around the World" period, and features a cameo from the Sasquatch.

My nomination: "Happiness is a Worn Pun" by Super Furry Animals

Jonah, you didn't miss anything, it's just that every song added by someone here is put in that list by Moonbeam (although I don't now how to edit a page after 1 hour of the post has passed).

Well, if songs from bubbling albums were permited, my highest rated possible entry would be the funky Virtual Insanity by Jamiroquai (#19). Anyway, when we do a best video clips poll I surely vote for this!

So my entry is my #26, M. Ward's cover of the Buddy Holly song Rave On.

M. Ward - Rave On (feat. Zooey Deschanel)

I don't recommend to watch the clip while listening to the song, though, cause it takes away all the bucolic climate, at least for me. This track makes me feel like I'm calmly sit next to a river, and that's not where the video takes me.

Lot to chose from, I was thinking Whipsmart by Liz Phair or bubblers would be The Cedar Room or Life in a Northern Town but I'll go with a band that has absolutely nothing, no songs and no albums even bubbling on the site. I'll go with California. It's summer, it's where I live and it's a big screw you to Neutral Milk Hotel. Same label but totally the opposite sounding.Seems like the right choice at the moment.
http://tinysong.com/xP9c #musicmonday #nowplaying

So I don't think that will stand more chance but my nomination goes to :
Architecture in Helsinki - Heart it Races

I imagine we're going to extend this game to include 64 songs!

I am in favour of keeping the number of songs limited, 32 or maximum 64, this first time to really test this game out. I´m sure we have alot of songs we would like to see in a game like this. They will have there chanse if this game will be as fun as i suspect. If we keep the number of songs down. There will be more time to listen to every song, and the game will not take to long.

Maybe the next time it would be interesting to accept songs below top 1000 (moderately acclaimed songs), but for now I find it nice to work only with totally unacclaimed tracks. As Jackson pointed out, it becomes quite an unpredictable game and lets us to more discoveries.

And I agree with extending only to 32 or, at the maximum, 64 songs, cause it will give us more time to listen to all them and let the growers appear.

One more thing!

I prefer bracket format. Two songs head to head. We could use some sort of double elimination system to be fair against songs that ends up with a tough first round draw.

4 of my all-time Top 10 have no acclaim here at all, so my difficulty is selecting one for the game.

I've plugged Curtis Mayfield's "Right on for The Darkness" and Lou Christie's "Paint America Love" enough, so here's my vote for The Walker Brothers' "The Electrician", and amazingly beautiful yet extremely dark and disturbing song:

The Electrican

This is Scott Walker's greatest track, and I think it loses out on acclaim because it's been obscured on a rather oddly-constructed album, released in between all of his more famous work.

Oh, and incidentally, my 4th Top 10er getting no acclaim here is The Shangri-La's "Past, Present, and Future". If anyone thinks I should nominate one of the other 3 over the Walker Bros., let me know. They're all utterly brilliant.

Is there a link or something to the top 3000 albums and songs and bubblers (in alphabetical order)?

64 is probably a good limit, at least for the first go-around. Although I imagine we'll be doing this more than once, and if 64 works well with no problems, we can expand next time.

Is it too late to change my pick? I keep thinking of much better ones to include than the one I did. The Who - Early Morning Cold Taxi, White Stripes - The Big Three Killed My Baby, Weird Al - Albuquerque, Soundgarden - Burden In My Hand, or anything from the most recent Bellrays or Bruce Peninsula albums to name a few.

Another question. What's your stance on alternate versions of songs? I ask because there's a lot of songs on the bootleg Basement Tapes that are better than the commercial release versions.

Okay, then: The White Stripes - The Big Three Killed My Baby.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht64qlnOus8

How long until the second round of nominations opens to people?

this is going great guys.
I'm gonna stick with one of my favourite songs, which is "New" by No Doubt. Hear it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIvAx8oHUrM
Being their most underrated single, from their unnaclaimed "Return of Saturn"(even though it is their best rated album in allmusic.com). Basically, not sounding like anything they had done in the past, New managed to remain true to the layback feeling of the band; helped by its amazing music video and obvious New Wave inspiration, this is trully No Doubt at their best.
Sorry if I make some grammar mistakes, but English is not my native language. JAJA

OK, here is my submittal. I was battling over deciding between a few songs, with the pressure to pick one that might have more universal appeal.

So I choose the underheard perfect quirky indie pop tune.

Fiery Furnaces - Here Comes the Summer

from the 2005 record "EP", which contains more gems, a little tighter and more melodious that the ambitious sprawling Blueberry Boat recorded around the same time.

Ok then, I'll join the Ok Go bandwagon and post -

Ok Go - This too shall pass

I'm not a massive fan of the song, I just love the music video!

Just over a day and I'll open up nominations to everyone again!

OK, I'm changing my nomination, Jackson is right.

Moonbeam, I'm going with Curtis Mayfield's incredible "Right on for The Darkness":



Why is this song not so acclaimed? My guess is its inclusion on the somewhat spotty and very hard to find Back to the World album. If this were on Superfly (and it would fit PERFECTLY, as it's probably the most cinematic of Curtis' many cinematic songs), I think it would be considered the all-time classic epic it deserves to be.

A French song ? Georges Brassens' "La Marine" (1953)

Why I love this song ? God, I don't know. Can you tell why you love somebody ? You can always find objective reasons but you'll never get to the core, to the mystery of love. Why this one and not another ?
This song brings back childhood memeories of listening to that song in my granfather's office with the smell of the cold pipe smoke (Brassens was also a pipe smoker). I was lying on a blue couch, the very same couch in which my son slept this summer (and in which my grandaddy passed away last winter).
The lyrics are about the swift love affairs of sailors, and the melancholy that ensues. We did that song with Honorio, but here is Georges' version (far better of course)

Interesting game, Moonbeam. Here´s my nomination:
Nick Nicely-Hilly Fields.

Nick Nicely was an inventive soundwizard from the early 80s, recording in tiny studios and constructing his songs all by himself, layer upon layer. He only released two 45´s, but sometimes that´s just enough. On the four sides he cut there´s going on more than in the entire catalog of many-a better known artist.
Hilly Fields is his masterpiece. A Strawberry Fields Forever for the New Wave generation. Psychedelic it certainly is, but no mellotrons or other retro-60s sounds here. Instead, it´s all drum machines, primitive synths, crazy noises and there´s even some scratching on it (in 1982!). Best of all is the soaring chorus.
Although Nick Nicely´s singles weren´t huge sellers they triggered reasonable attention. Producer Trevor Horn was interested in working with him, EMI wanted to do an album, and XTC´s Andy Partridge was a huge fan (Hilly Fields without doubt gave him some ideas for his own Dukes of Stratosphear project).
Shortly after however, Nick fell ill which lasted for the rest of the 80s. When he finally emerged he was nothing more than a forgotten name. And Hilly Fields remains a cult-song still in waiting for its cult.

I nominate:

Jars of Clay, "Liquid"

I got to see Jars of Clay at an Atlanta music festival (Atlantafest) around 1994, before they had achieved any level of success. They were on the "underground" stage, and "Liquid" was their opening song. The sheer force of the song blew me away, all the more amazingly because it's acoustic!

Side note: "Liquid" was produced by Adrian Belew (King Crimson)

By the way, make sure you have good speakers...there's a lot going on in this song.

I nominate: Why?- These Few Presidents



I love the mood, humor and tone of this song. I don't like much else by Why? but this is one of the best songs of the past 10 years.

Alopecia is 2437 on AM, so that's not eligable.

I'm happy to announce that nominations are open to everyone again! Keeping a spot for John, that means that there are 38 spots in the books, and another 26 to be filled!

I know which one I want, The Bellrays - Footprints On The Water, but I'm having trouble finding a link to it. The only thing I can find on Youtube is a live show with poor audio quality. Anyone know other good places I can look?

If no good link can be found for it my second choice is The Tallest Man On Earth - The Gardener.

Found it on Youtube. Whoever put it up misspelled it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja4LalRkCtU

Alright, new nomination

The Jayhawks- Will I Be Married (Blue Earth)

One of my favorite Jayhawks songs off an album I can't believe isn't a bubbler considering everything else of theirs during their peak is there. Best country band... ever.

I forgot that I've got a top-20 favorite song that would fit the bill, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' "(I'll Love You) Till the End of the World." But Nick Cave gets enough love here.

I want to highlight a band I think is somewhat slighted on AM. Shudder to Think only have a single bubbling album, the difficult and fantastic Pony Express Record. In the late 90's, they did some amazing work on the soundtracks for three movies: High Art, Velvet Goldmine, and First Love, Last Rites. The last two showcased an incredible talent for creating songs in the styles of other artists. They contributed two Ziggy Stardus-esque originals for Velvet Goldmine, including the incredible "Hot One."

But for First Love, Last Rites, they took pastiche to another level. They were asked by the director to create a set of original songs that might sound like they were singles from the 1960's. They wind up aping a variety of different styles. A number of guest vocalists were recruited, including Billy Corgan, Nina Persson, Liz Phair, Robin Zander, and John Doe. The best song on the album featured Jeff Buckley:

My 2d nomination: Shudder to Think (feat. Jeff Buckley) - "I Want Someone Badly"

Ok,this song is probably well-known among British indie fans(it was voted the #1 single of '92 in John Peel's influential festive 50 list) but generally they are pretty overlooked:

Bang Bang Machine - Geek Love

Gotta get a plug in for my beloved Game Theory. Here's "Erica's Word", the single from 1985's THE BIG SHOT CHRONICLES:



FUN GAME: After listening to "Erica's Word," listen to "You Gotta Feel It," track 11 on Spoon's KILL THE MOONLIGHT. You just might be surprised.

OK, I add what I think is the strangest omission by the critics...

Visage - Fade to Grey
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgd9ycdOsIw&feature=related

I have a lot of candidates for my second pick, ranging from another Prince song to favorites by artists I regularly trumpet around here, but I'm going to go with something else. My pick is "Dazzle" by Siouxsie and the Banshees. For as much as The Cure are appreciated around here (and justifiably so, might I add!), it surprises me how little attention Siouxsie and the Banshees get. I think they're viewed as a fun punk band, but they had such a breadth of sound and talent and weren't afraid to stretch themselves.

"Dazzle" is the most roaringly beautiful sound of triumph that I've ever heard. When Siouxsie sings "Pull some strings, let them siiiiiing", the song just soars! With a lush string orchestration and unrelenting power, its story sort of belies the sound. Says Siouxsie: "The sentiment behind it is of lying in the gutter but still looking up at the stars. I’d seen ‘Marathon Man’, and I was really intrigued by the guy swallowing diamonds to keep them, and then realising it was like swallowing glass - that they would pass through his system and tear him apart. So that’s the line - ‘Swallowing diamonds, cutting throats’." Oh, and the music video is pretty ace, too!

For my second nomination I'll go with a song from my favorite album that's not on AM, The Alan Parsons Project's "Eye In The Sky". It has several great songs, but the standout track is the fantastic ballad Old and Wise. First heard it at a funeral of all places, where it does fit perfectly, but it's amazing at any occasion.

Moonbean, my first choice is Cannabis, not Cannibas.

And my new choice is :
M (Mathieu Chedid)- "Je dis aime".

Thank you. I really hope these new polls continu a long time...So good songs to discover.

My second nomination is Joanna Newsom's Colleen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZKzApyyERw

Damn - I wish I'd downloaded these as they came in. The list is getting big now...

My second nomination is Mando Diao's "Dance with Somebody". Mando Diao are a third-rate Strokes knock-off, but their first single off Give Me Fire was ubiquitous in Sweden when it came out and it's been stuck in my head since I first heard it a year and a half ago.

Mando Diao - Dance With Somebody

Spotify link