# Best songs from bands or singers.....that only you think is their best song **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [February 4, 2023, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305 "2023-02-04T16:58:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/1 "2023-02-04T16:58:19Z")
I actually tend to agree with the overall assessments on bands/artists and their songs. For example, while Smells Like Teen Spirit might not be Nirvana’s best song, it is certainly one of the best and I get why it was their biggest hit. Today, I was listening to The Downward Spiral by Nine Inch Nails and was reminded that I actually think a rather obscure song from them(him?) is the best one. It is on Downward Spiral and it is: Reptile [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/4d64sKlm-Wo/maxresdefault.jpg "Reptile") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d64sKlm-Wo) It’s not just a deep cut favorite; I actually think it could have been the most popular and biggest song from Nine Inch Nails, I love it that much. Do you have any “this should have been the biggest song” type experiences? Kind of like, “In an alternate universe, this would have been the massive hit,” type experience. Edit: Post the song if you can! ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/2 "2023-02-04T17:24:54Z")
Totally overshadowed by their subsequent Rock Opera projects, The Who’s **Rael (1 and 2)** was their first. It was also kinda cannibalized for those later projects. It was even given the showcase position (last track, side two) on _The Who Sell Out_, with “I Can See for Miles” relegated to last track, side one. It’s a beautiful, if lyrically confounding song that must have sounded like a whole new kind of music pre-Tommy. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JyjxciOiOdI/maxresdefault.jpg "Rael (Pt.1 & Pt.2)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyjxciOiOdI) ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/3 "2023-02-04T17:26:45Z")
While Elton John’s double album _Blue Moves_ released in 1976 was considered a let down compared to his earlier double album _Goodbye Yellow Brick Road_, it had one song that has stuck with me all these years. _Crazy Water_ received virtually no airplay in the US that I can remember. It was released as a single in the UK and reached No. 27 in the UK singles charts. I personally think it’s one of Bernie’s best lyrics, although everyone I know disagrees with me. Paul Buckmaster adds a wonderful orchestral arrangement to Elton’s piano. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/WXh6LB8FQIg/maxresdefault.jpg "Crazy Water") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXh6LB8FQIg) ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/4 "2023-02-04T17:35:53Z")
This seems as good a place as any to post Tom Bissell’s take on “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window”: > **[Short Essays on Favorite Songs, Inspired by Nick Hornby’s Songbook: On “She...](https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/on-she-came-in-through-the-bathroom-window)** > > It may be the best song on the finest album by the greatest rock group of all time. Does this that make it the best song of all time? Unlikely, as ... ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/5 "2023-02-04T17:37:26Z")
This is Queen’s best song, by far better than “Bohemian Rhapsody” from the same album: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/iZjjsrn9FY4/hqdefault.jpg "Queen - The prophet's song (1975)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZjjsrn9FY4) ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2023, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/6 "2023-02-04T18:42:30Z")
Probably my favorite song by the White Stripes is their cover of Son House’s ‘Death Letter’. Since it was on one of their earlier albums before they hit it big with ‘White Blood Cells’ I’d say it’s an underappreciated gem. At least I don’t think I’ve ever heard it played on the radio: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ba0IunweO5Q/maxresdefault.jpg "Death Letter") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ba0IunweO5Q) ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/7 "2023-02-05T01:00:35Z")
I mentioned that song in the “first songs to listen to on your new headphones” thread. That whole album, but _especially_ “The Prophet’s Song”, needs to be listened to on headphones and cranked up to 11. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/8 "2023-02-05T01:07:19Z")
So many options. For instance, I think “In a Broken Dream” is one of Rod Stewart’s best. But it was as a guest vocalist, so few have heard of it. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/dcLlq_DXpY8/hqdefault.jpg "Python Lee Jackson - In a Broken Dream (1972)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcLlq_DXpY8) ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/9 "2023-02-05T01:11:34Z")
Spanky and Our Gang had a couple of big hits, but I always liked their version of a real oldie: Stardust [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bjuKyVwIxJ0/maxresdefault.jpg "Stardust") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjuKyVwIxJ0) ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/10 "2023-02-05T06:50:32Z")
I’ve always felt that [Toulouse Street](https://g.co/kgs/6MXk95) was one of The Doobie Brothers’ best songs (to me, ymmv). (I’m also partial to Black Water but it was so overplayed on the radio that it seems most people are sick of it. I’m a sucker for contrapuntal melodies.) ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/11 "2023-02-05T17:34:26Z")
Pink Floyd’s Fearless is a perfect gem of a song ahead of their time, that would have been one of the best songs on any of their later albums. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/12 "2023-02-05T19:17:07Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > take on “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window” Speaking of the Beatles, my contribution is “Hey Bulldog”. It’s probably not the best, and definitely not the most popular song, on just _Yellow Submarine_, but when it comes up in the shuffle, “Hey Bulldog” is the one where I turn up the volume and listen, instead of just letting it float in the background. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/13 "2023-02-05T19:17:15Z")
I love Madonna’s song “Love Profusion”. But it was one of her few singles that didn’t chart at all on the Hot 100. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/14 "2023-02-05T19:22:45Z")
> [@GargoyleWB](#): > > Pink Floyd’s Fearless is a perfect gem of a song ahead of their time, that would have been one of the best songs on any of their later albums. Good one, probably also my favorite Floyd song (from my favorite Floyd album). ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/15 "2023-02-05T19:28:02Z")
My contribution: I don’t quite think it’s their very _best_, but it’s my favorite Clash song: “Broadway”, which is buried deep in the mess that was “Sandinista”. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/sgnlSJGFO5E/maxresdefault.jpg "The Clash - Broadway (Remastered) [Official Audio]") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgnlSJGFO5E) ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/16 "2023-02-05T19:30:13Z")
**“Got A Feeling”** The best song the Mamas and the Papas ever recorded, by far. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2023, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/17 "2023-02-05T23:39:29Z")
Boston’s “Can’tcha Say (You Believe In Me)/Still In Love” is one of my picks. Yes, it is very reminiscent of his earlier songs and severely overwrought…but I think it is the best. The Cars’ “Dangerous Type” is the other. Loved it the first time I heard it. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/18 "2023-02-06T00:07:41Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > > [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > > > take on “She Came in Through the Bathroom Window” > > Speaking of the Beatles, my contribution is “Hey Bulldog”. It’s probably not the best, and definitely not the most popular song, on just _Yellow Submarine_, but when it comes up in the shuffle, “Hey Bulldog” is the one where I turn up the volume and listen, instead of just letting it float in the background. _Hey, Bulldog_ has been a favorite of mine since it first came out. It’s getting more recognition, especially since they released a video of them performing it. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/M4vbJQ-MrKo/maxresdefault.jpg "The Beatles - Hey Bulldog (Promo video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4vbJQ-MrKo) ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/19 "2023-02-06T05:06:35Z")
Bob Dylan’s “Girl From the North Country” from his Freewheelin’ album. Yeah, I’m a folkie at heart. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JncbFS5ek74/maxresdefault.jpg "Girl from the North Country") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JncbFS5ek74) ---
**Author:** ![sb1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@sb1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sb1953)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305/20 "2023-02-06T19:41:23Z")
“Don’t Call on Me” …This is the only Monkees song i ever listen to. I have all their albums bought with my own money and I only play this one song from the Pisces Aquarious album. I do not understand why I like this song but there it is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-songs-from-bands-or-singers-that-only-you-think-is-their-best-song/979305.md?page=2)