# Best #1 single of the year retrospective: 1984 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 16, 2014, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479 "2014-10-16T11:24:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2014, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/101 "2014-10-18T18:15:03Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Whoa now, son, that’s just crazytalk! For goodness sake, I like Billy Bremner okay, but it didn’t even include James Honeyman-Scott! > [@Eddie\_F](#): > > It’s quite good, but a number of tracks from their first album pretty much demolish this song. > [@WordMan](#): > > I love this. So true. I am a huge fan of Middle of the Road, too, and the song with the Big Country guys on it, Ohio, no - My City Was Gone. But it’s not The Wait, or Mystery Achievement, or Tattooed Love Boys, or… > > I worship at the altar of Chrissie Hynde. That is all. > [@pulykamell](#): > > Agreed. Pretty much the whole first album, in my opinion. This is not to take away from “Back on the Chain Gang.” It’s to show how fricking awesome that first album is. Hey, I’m not saying it’s their rocking-est song, but it’s the one I like the most. It has a good country-ish lead part, the bass pulls the song along, and the bridge is fantastic. That bridge is really what makes the song, though. The first record has its high points, but it also has my least favorite Pretenders song on it. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2014, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/102 "2014-10-18T18:50:27Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > Hey, I’m not saying it’s their rocking-est song, but it’s the one I like the most. It has a good country-ish lead part, the bass pulls the song along, and the bridge is fantastic. That bridge is really what makes the song, though. Bah! Neargh! Hmm! Bah! She yowls like a cat before that harmonica break. 🙂 > [@scabpicker](#): > > The first record has its high points, but it also has my least favorite Pretenders song on it. Brass in Pocket? Stop Sobbing? Going back to JH-S, this is a guy who played with a ridiculous amount of self-confidence and sophistication at 23 years old. I realize we’re veering way off topic, but if I could magically change my clumsy guitar playing into someone else’s, it might be his. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2014, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/103 "2014-10-18T19:31:47Z")
“Jump” wins. I’d like to vote for “When Doves Cry” to acknowledge Prince’s greatness, but this particular song is one I just hate. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2014, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/104 "2014-10-18T19:42:53Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > “Jump” wins. > > I’d like to vote for “When Doves Cry” to acknowledge Prince’s greatness, but this particular song is one I just hate. Well, Let’s Go Crazy was there too! ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2014, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/105 "2014-10-18T21:35:39Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Bah! Neargh! Hmm! Bah! She yowls like a cat before that harmonica break. 🙂 Heheh, I was meaning the bridge in “Back on the Chain Gang”, the backing vocals in “Middle of the Road” kind of ruin that song for me. > [@](#): > > Brass in Pocket? Stop Sobbing? “Brass in Pocket”. The chorus was ok the first couple of times, I could make it through. After that, the backing vocals in it just made me want to smash anything and everything at hand, just to make a noise to cover them up. I like some backing vocal arrangements, but neither of those. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2014, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/106 "2014-10-19T02:34:04Z")
Could’ve picked as many as 9 songs off your list. ---
**Author:** ![notquitekarpov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@notquitekarpov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notquitekarpov)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2014, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/107 "2014-10-20T11:58:03Z")
Easy one for me. Cyndi Lauper - “Time After Time” - still sounds a fresh as a daisy. I recognise Prince as a very talented musician, it is just I cannot stand anything he actually released. ---
**Author:** ![Moonchild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@Moonchild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonchild)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2014, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479/108 "2014-10-22T18:25:00Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > I think it’s interesting how, If I look at a top 20 from a given year in the 70’s and 80’s, I can find several good and interesting picks…but from a list of number ones? Not so easily. Yes, absolutely. Interesting how I seem to dislike (to put it mildly) quite a few #1’s from the '80’s, but like a majority of songs that didn’t make it to #1. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-1-single-of-the-year-retrospective-1984/701479.md?page=5)