# Which lesser known songs do you think are better than the greatest hits? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [August 26, 2025, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494 "2025-08-26T14:36:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/1 "2025-08-26T14:36:45Z")
Which lesser known songs do you think are better than the well known greatest hits? Let’s consider all genres of pop music (I don’t want to get into classical music in this thread), and any solo artist or group you enjoy listening to. As far as which song is considered a “greatest hit”, I don’t want to restrict it to just the best selling single for any given artist. Let’s instead go with the standard of the greatest hits being the songs that are on the regular rotation for mainstream radio stations. In other words, which “deep cuts” do you think are better than the greatest hits? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/2 "2025-08-26T14:44:26Z")
While it’s technically one of their greatest hits, I’ve never heard _Paper Sun_ by Traffic until a couple of years ago when it came up on my YouTube recommendations. I prefer it to the ones that got the most radio play in the preceding decades, _Mr Fantasy_ and _Low Spark of High Heeled Boys_. It’s a straight ahead psychedelic song and there’s nothing wrong with that. I just don’t like Mr Fantasy for some reason. _Low Spark_ has the makings of a classic rock epic, but never gels into one. If all of its good parts were condensed into a shorter song, it might be more equal in my mind to Paper Sun. ---
**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:** [August 26, 2025, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/3 "2025-08-26T14:46:03Z")
Arguably, the Beatles’ most ground breaking song, “Tomorrow Never Knows” has never found its way onto a compilation of their greatest hits and is largely unknown outside of the Beatles fan base. ---
**Author:** ![xtenkfarpl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c2a13f/32.png) [@xtenkfarpl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xtenkfarpl)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/4 "2025-08-26T14:49:39Z")
I always thought Hey Bulldog is an under-appreciated song. Perhaps because it didn’t appear on any of the ‘canonical’ albums…. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/5 "2025-08-26T14:55:46Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Tomorrow Never Knows Excellent one. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/6 "2025-08-26T15:01:53Z")
I was too young to hear the Beatles the first time around but in the late 70s they still played all of their radio hits on the radio in almost hot rotation. Then, during the early 80s the “oldies” format really took off, but the late Beatles stuff wasn’t old enough to fit the format, so they only played the stuff from their first few albums along with only _some_ of their later stuff. For some reason the stations my mom listened to were fond of “Get Back” and “Michelle” but hardly any other post-Hard Day’s Night ones. I’m still not 100% sure I’ve heard Eleanor Rigby, Nowhere Man, Got To Get You Into My Life, Baby You’re a Rich Man, or Yellow Submarine on the radio since the 70s, when they used to be played all the time. So they feel to me like deep cuts even though they aren’t. For any other artist, I would say that they were deep cuts, but it’s the Beatles. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/7 "2025-08-26T15:09:19Z")
Tomorrow Never Knows was included in the 2023 re-issue of [1962-1966](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1962%25E2%2580%25931966#2023_edition) (_aka_ the “Red Album”) ---
**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:** [August 26, 2025, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/8 "2025-08-26T15:10:39Z")
“The Prophet’s Song”, from Queen’s _A Night At The Opera_ album, is far superior to either “Bohemian Rhapsody” or “You’re My Best Friend”, the two better known cuts. Although honestly that entire album kicks ass from start to finish. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/9 "2025-08-26T15:13:21Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > “The Prophet’s Song”, from Queen’s _A Night At The Opera_ album, is far superior to either “Bohemian Rhapsody” or “You’re My Best Friend”, the two better known cuts. That’s a good one. For me, “'39” has become my favorite song from that album, and “Love of My Life” is an amazing song – it’s probably better-known among fans because of sing-along of it at concerts, but it was never a single (save for a live version, which was mostly popular in South America) and doesn’t often get airplay. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/10 "2025-08-26T15:33:58Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Arguably, the Beatles’ most ground breaking song, “Tomorrow Never Knows” has never found its way onto a compilation of their greatest hits and is largely unknown outside of the Beatles fan base. Sometimes I prefer covers to the originals. Case in point - Junior Parker’s version: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/z1YKfu5sD24/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AH-CYAC0AWKAgwIABABGGUgTShQMA8=&rs=AOn4CLBLnF0C5yggs6w09Emt01DXW2RMHg "Tomorrow never knows - Junior parker") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1YKfu5sD24) > [@xtenkfarpl](#): > > I always thought Hey Bulldog is an under-appreciated song. Perhaps because it didn’t appear on any of the ‘canonical’ albums…. It did make it into the **Yellow Submarine** film, but again I prefer the 1972 version by the band Fanny: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/KQU7qqSXTO8/maxresdefault.jpg "Hey Bulldog") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQU7qqSXTO8&t=15s) On Paul Simon’s album _The Rhythm of the Saints_ the big single was “The Obvious Child”, but I find “Can’t Run But” to be a much more interesting song. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/znfNpN6rfoM/maxresdefault.jpg "Can't Run But") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znfNpN6rfoM) ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/11 "2025-08-26T15:47:12Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > “Can’t Run But” Wonderful - thanks. To the OP, where to begin? I’ll just throw out a few that come to mind: R.E.M.: Flowers of Guatemala Led Zeppelin: The Rover Jethro Tull: One Brown Mouse Rolling Stones: Moonlight Mile Beach Boys: Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/12 "2025-08-26T16:11:05Z")
The Rolling Stones: Live with Me David Bowie: Look Back in Anger Jimi Hendrix: Who Knows The Grateful Dead: New Speedway Boogie ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/13 "2025-08-26T16:16:25Z")
For some of my favorite bands (I’ve already mentioned my Queen picks upthread): Electric Light Orchestra: Fire on High, So Fine, Nightrider, Poker The Moody Blues: The Voice Yes: South Side of the Sky ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/14 "2025-08-26T16:18:10Z")
For ABBA, I really like “Sorry, Cassandra.” ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/15 "2025-08-26T16:21:23Z")
“Mutiny” by Greg Kihn. Quite different stylistically from his “hits” and very much a lesser-known song. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/16 "2025-08-26T16:28:49Z")
“Sing Our Own Song”, by UB40. I’m not really a fan of this group, but this song I love. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/17 "2025-08-26T16:35:05Z")
Yes’s _Heart of the Sunrise_ is much better than _Roundabout_. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/18 "2025-08-26T16:43:10Z")
Back in the days of teeny-bopper, radio-oriented, singles–heavy artists, any decent rock and roll band put out stuff which was better than the hits that worked their way up the charts. The Turtles covered the Clark/McGuinn _You Showed Me_, a far better composition than _Happy Together_ or _Eleanor_. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2025, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/19 "2025-08-26T17:04:38Z")
[Me And Magdalena](https://youtu.be/ZWBZJQmzRi4?feature=shared) won’t be found on any Monkees “greatest hits” or compilation albums, but it’s arguably the most beautiful song they ever released. ---
**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:** [August 26, 2025, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494/20 "2025-08-26T17:06:46Z")
Tom Bissell makes the case for “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 ... [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-lesser-known-songs-do-you-think-are-better-than-the-greatest-hits/1022494.md?page=2)