Continuing the discussion from Is there any movie we ALL would agree is good (if not great)?:
As we can’t agree on a movie, perhaps we can agree on a song? Not a singer, a group, an album, but a simple single song?
I’ll suggest for a start:
Suzanne, by Leonard Cohen
Child in Time, by Deep Purple
A Day in the Life, by The Beatles
I can get behind “Suzanne,” but I’ll insist that it be done by Judy Collins. I never liked Leonard Cohen’s vocals, but Collins does this one perfectly, in my opinion.
And nothing wrong with “A Day in the Life.” Migosh, that one cannot be improved upon.
ETA: Ask a Mod to modify your title. I’m sure that you meant “is” instead of “id.”
I think the previous thread about movies suggests that no, there is no song everyone will agree is good.
@Dewey_Finn is probably right but, for the sake of discussion, I submit, “America the Beautiful”
I don’t know, just want to find out. Songs could be easier as, for instance, they can be heard in a couple of minutes to check whether the song passes the test (if someone puts a link to it is even easier), while whith the movies proposed, if you had not seen it, it would not be easy to find and watch them. Not only are movies longer than (most) songs, but they are behind higher paywalls.
Not gonna veto that one, but I sure did not expect this as the first submission.
I expect objection to god shedding his grace on thee.
Does that make the song not good? To some it probably does.
mmm
The first three songs from the top of my head:
Beach Boys, “God Only Knows”
Frankie Valli, “Beggin’”
Bill Withers, “Lean on Me”.
I think this question is a lot more complex than the similar question about movies. I suspect that many people “judge” popular songs by the circumstances in their lives they associate with the song. Was I hearing this type/genre of music for the first time? Was I very happy because I just got a new car and I’m riding around in it listening to the radio in 1976? Was this “our” song? Do I dislike this song because my mother passed away and it was in constant rotation at the time? Have I heard this song so many times (e.g., “Stairway to Heaven”) that I can’t possibly be objective?
I may see a specific movie once or twice, but hear a certain song/recording dozens, if not hundreds, of times in just a few years.
An interesting question overall.
BTW, Alessan, good call on “God Only Knows.” It’s gorgeous.
Who doesn’t like Bob Marley?
Build Me Up Buttercup. I like the version done by The Foundations, but there are others who have done a good rendition of it, too.
Done.
My nominations:
Rhapsody in Blue Musical composition by George Gershwin
Sing Sing Sing by Louis Prima
But I’ll object to Suzanne. I don’t really like it, sorry.
Your arguments have merit too, we shall see. If nothing else this thread may remind me of good songs that I have not heard in a long while. Listening to them in YouTube should at least improve the taste of my personal algorithm.
Thanks!
Ach, Scheiße! I mean: OK, no problem.
I’m Not In Love - 10cc “Why”, you may ask. Because for its time, it was a production giant, using recording techniques that had never been tried before. The layering of the backing vocals was hailed as a breakthrough in recording technique at the time. And it holds up well today for a 70s recording.
Blowin’ In The Wind - Bob Dylan For obvious reasons, I think.
Nights In White Satin - The Moody Blues The melding of rock music and symphony orchestra was an ambitious effort that made a big impact on rock music.
And I agree about Rhapsody In Blue, a masterpiece by the Gershwins.
Boston’s “More Than A Feeling.”
I also happen to think this is the best pop single of the 20th century, but only because I give it extra points for the circumstances surrounding it. The recording is quite an impressive accomplishment.
Except for racists and misogynists, how can someone not like Aretha Franklin’s version of “Respect”?
I agree, except that’s it’s not a song, it’s a classical musical piece - a rapsody in a blues scale. Also, it has no vocals.
But Gershwin is good. He has plenty of great songs - I’d go with Armstrong and Fitzgerald’s “Summertime”:
Elevator music.
A great song, but not everyone’s a fan of Dylan’s singing.
This, I’ll give you. One of the all-time greats.
I love that song, especially the live version on “Made In Japan”, it’s the best screaming ever done in rock, but I can see that some people wouldn’t like that kind of singing, just like I can’t stand opera.
My answer to the OP is “probably not.”
My reasoning: I have a friend who doesn’t like Billie Holiday. He is the only person I have ever met who doesn’t like Billie Holiday.
So, if out of the 30 or 40 people I know, one of them doesn’t like Billie Holiday, I don’t see how the diverse members of this board are going to agree.
(That being said, I will nevertheless nominate “Here Comes The Sun” by the Beatles.)