Jimcs50
07-30-2007, 10:52 AM
Saving the best song until last
An album's final tune isn't always an afterthought; sometimes it's a gem
By ANDREW DANSBY
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle
The Plain White T's Hey There Delilah took a peculiar path to being a hit, starting with the fact that it was a Last Song. The infectious summer tune wrapped up the band's 2005 release All That We Needed.
"It made sense to close out a record with an acoustic lullaby kind of song," said singer Tom Higgenson. "You can go out with a big bang or you can go out with something quieter and maybe a little melancholy. We thought it was a nice little breath at the end of the record."
The song drew a strong reaction from fans at concerts but didn't find a home on radio.
Another T's album, last year's Every Second Counts, was released, but Delilah didn't go away. Two years after its release, it became a radio hit, prompting the band to reissue Every Second with it tacked on the end. That made Delilah a Last Song twice, both times the 13th song or "lucky 13" as Higgenson called it.
But Last Songs aren't often so lucky.
Michael Jackson's Thriller is as hit-laden as any album of the post-45 RPM, pre-iPod era, with six of its nine songs breaking the pop Top 40. Yet it ends not with a thriller, but with a wimper: Lady in My Life is a lush, forgettable coo.
On the flip side there's Tom Petty's American Girl, the last track on his debut album, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. It never charted, but it's a vital song in Petty's discography, an FM mainstay for 30 years.
Brian Wilson said Caroline, No, one of his most tender songs, was tucked away at the end of his masterpiece Pet Sounds to pull listeners through the album. "That song came straight from my soul," he said. "That's exactly what it was: a payoff at the end."
The Last Song is often viewed as bad real estate. Who, especially today, flips to the end of a record for a favorite song?
Digital downloads aren't solely responsible for making the Last Song an endangered species. The CD could hold nearly twice as much music as LPs; that's a long trip to get to a Last Song. Worse, the CD facilitated "hidden tracks," where goofy throwaways created a cloudy sense of when a record was truly over.
Occasionally Last Songs squeak through as hits, but mostly these songs are considered favorites only among more dedicated fans.
So with all apologies to the Kinks (Waterloo Sunset), the Band (I Shall Be Released), Wilco (Reservations), Old Crow Medicine Show (Wagon Wheel), Dire Straits (Brothers in Arms) and Otis Redding (Ole Man Trouble) and the dozens of others, here are just 20 great Last Songs:
• 1. American Girl from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1976), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: A great Last Song that could function as a great first song, with its sprightly riff.
• 2. Train in Vain from London Calling (1980), the Clash: Technically a hidden track since it wasn't listed on the LP jacket. Regardless, it's as good as a Last Song gets and showed great pop chops.
• 3. A Day in the Life from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), the Beatles: A true Lennon/McCartney collaboration, two parts are stitched into a strange, psychedelic Frankensong.
• 4. Find the River from Automatic for the People (1992), R.E.M.: The best Last Song by a group that has all but perfected Last Songs (notable exception: Superman).
• 5. Caroline, No from Pet Sounds (1966), the Beach Boys: This pretty ditty got usurped as a Last Song on later versions of the albums, but it's a perfect, plaintive closer.
• 6. Goodnight, Hollywood Blvd from Gold (2001), Ryan Adams: Parts of Adams' ambitious second album live up to its title. The gentle, pretty final song is one of them.
• 7. You Can't Always Get What You Want from Let It Bleed (1969), the Rolling Stones: Mick Jagger's voice sounds great during the spare acoustic intro. The Stones' Soul Survivor is also a great closer.
• 8. To Live Is to Fly from Black Eyed Man (1992), Cowboy Junkies: This soaring song is one of the best Townes Van Zandt covers of all time.
• 9. Glad Tidings from Moondance (1970), Van Morrison: La-la-la's, perky as they are, are typically a first-song phenomenon. But here they provide an almost celebratory conclusion.
• 10. The Good Times Are Killing Me from Good News ... (2004), Modest Mouse: It teeters close to ramshackle cast-off, but a singalong melody rises above the sloppy delivery.
• 11. Smooth Criminal from Bad (1987), Michael Jackson: From the original Bad, not the subsequent version that was inexcusably saddled with the whining, loathsome Leave Me Alone.
• 12. Last Call from The College Dropout (2004), Kanye West: Like others (see No. 19), this one is a lengthy indulgent closer. But it proves an exception to the hip-hop rule of frontloading albums with the good stuff.
• 13. All Apologies from In Utero (1993), Nirvana: Pretty, somewhat restrained, a little resigned and a very sad studio epitaph. Had they flipped it with closer Where Did You Sleep Last Night, the Unplugged version would be here.
• 14. Purple Rain from Purple Rain (1984), Prince: Admittedly this one's a bit contrived since it was designed to be the film-closing corker. Still, it has one of his baddest guitar solos.
• 15. Is This Desire? from Is This Desire? (1998), PJ Harvey: Harvey also has a stock of great Last Songs, but this one is smoldering, and it caps her most underappreciated album.
• 16. Effigy from Willy and the Poor Boys (1969), Creedence Clearwater Revival: CCR's next album closed well with the suitably somber Long As I Can See the Light. But the red-hot agitation in Effigy is gutsier.
• 17. Lawyers, Guns and Money from Excitable Boy (1978), Warren Zevon: Zevon was a king of Last Songs: This one, Desperados Under the Eaves, Mutineer and the sniffle-inducing Keep Me in Your Heart chief among them.
• 18. Hey There Delilah from All That We Needed (2005), Plain White T's: So good it's been a Last Song twice.
• 19. Cowgirl in the Sand from Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (1969), Neil Young: At 10 minutes long, it's an indulgent Last Song, but Young's and Danny Whitten's fidgety, intertwined guitars pull you through.
• 20. Let Him Fly from Fly (1999) Dixie Chicks: The Chicks are a double anomaly: A contemporary act and a country band that are big on Last Songs. This is the better of two great Patty Griffin closers.
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An album's final tune isn't always an afterthought; sometimes it's a gem
By ANDREW DANSBY
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle
The Plain White T's Hey There Delilah took a peculiar path to being a hit, starting with the fact that it was a Last Song. The infectious summer tune wrapped up the band's 2005 release All That We Needed.
"It made sense to close out a record with an acoustic lullaby kind of song," said singer Tom Higgenson. "You can go out with a big bang or you can go out with something quieter and maybe a little melancholy. We thought it was a nice little breath at the end of the record."
The song drew a strong reaction from fans at concerts but didn't find a home on radio.
Another T's album, last year's Every Second Counts, was released, but Delilah didn't go away. Two years after its release, it became a radio hit, prompting the band to reissue Every Second with it tacked on the end. That made Delilah a Last Song twice, both times the 13th song or "lucky 13" as Higgenson called it.
But Last Songs aren't often so lucky.
Michael Jackson's Thriller is as hit-laden as any album of the post-45 RPM, pre-iPod era, with six of its nine songs breaking the pop Top 40. Yet it ends not with a thriller, but with a wimper: Lady in My Life is a lush, forgettable coo.
On the flip side there's Tom Petty's American Girl, the last track on his debut album, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. It never charted, but it's a vital song in Petty's discography, an FM mainstay for 30 years.
Brian Wilson said Caroline, No, one of his most tender songs, was tucked away at the end of his masterpiece Pet Sounds to pull listeners through the album. "That song came straight from my soul," he said. "That's exactly what it was: a payoff at the end."
The Last Song is often viewed as bad real estate. Who, especially today, flips to the end of a record for a favorite song?
Digital downloads aren't solely responsible for making the Last Song an endangered species. The CD could hold nearly twice as much music as LPs; that's a long trip to get to a Last Song. Worse, the CD facilitated "hidden tracks," where goofy throwaways created a cloudy sense of when a record was truly over.
Occasionally Last Songs squeak through as hits, but mostly these songs are considered favorites only among more dedicated fans.
So with all apologies to the Kinks (Waterloo Sunset), the Band (I Shall Be Released), Wilco (Reservations), Old Crow Medicine Show (Wagon Wheel), Dire Straits (Brothers in Arms) and Otis Redding (Ole Man Trouble) and the dozens of others, here are just 20 great Last Songs:
• 1. American Girl from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1976), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: A great Last Song that could function as a great first song, with its sprightly riff.
• 2. Train in Vain from London Calling (1980), the Clash: Technically a hidden track since it wasn't listed on the LP jacket. Regardless, it's as good as a Last Song gets and showed great pop chops.
• 3. A Day in the Life from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), the Beatles: A true Lennon/McCartney collaboration, two parts are stitched into a strange, psychedelic Frankensong.
• 4. Find the River from Automatic for the People (1992), R.E.M.: The best Last Song by a group that has all but perfected Last Songs (notable exception: Superman).
• 5. Caroline, No from Pet Sounds (1966), the Beach Boys: This pretty ditty got usurped as a Last Song on later versions of the albums, but it's a perfect, plaintive closer.
• 6. Goodnight, Hollywood Blvd from Gold (2001), Ryan Adams: Parts of Adams' ambitious second album live up to its title. The gentle, pretty final song is one of them.
• 7. You Can't Always Get What You Want from Let It Bleed (1969), the Rolling Stones: Mick Jagger's voice sounds great during the spare acoustic intro. The Stones' Soul Survivor is also a great closer.
• 8. To Live Is to Fly from Black Eyed Man (1992), Cowboy Junkies: This soaring song is one of the best Townes Van Zandt covers of all time.
• 9. Glad Tidings from Moondance (1970), Van Morrison: La-la-la's, perky as they are, are typically a first-song phenomenon. But here they provide an almost celebratory conclusion.
• 10. The Good Times Are Killing Me from Good News ... (2004), Modest Mouse: It teeters close to ramshackle cast-off, but a singalong melody rises above the sloppy delivery.
• 11. Smooth Criminal from Bad (1987), Michael Jackson: From the original Bad, not the subsequent version that was inexcusably saddled with the whining, loathsome Leave Me Alone.
• 12. Last Call from The College Dropout (2004), Kanye West: Like others (see No. 19), this one is a lengthy indulgent closer. But it proves an exception to the hip-hop rule of frontloading albums with the good stuff.
• 13. All Apologies from In Utero (1993), Nirvana: Pretty, somewhat restrained, a little resigned and a very sad studio epitaph. Had they flipped it with closer Where Did You Sleep Last Night, the Unplugged version would be here.
• 14. Purple Rain from Purple Rain (1984), Prince: Admittedly this one's a bit contrived since it was designed to be the film-closing corker. Still, it has one of his baddest guitar solos.
• 15. Is This Desire? from Is This Desire? (1998), PJ Harvey: Harvey also has a stock of great Last Songs, but this one is smoldering, and it caps her most underappreciated album.
• 16. Effigy from Willy and the Poor Boys (1969), Creedence Clearwater Revival: CCR's next album closed well with the suitably somber Long As I Can See the Light. But the red-hot agitation in Effigy is gutsier.
• 17. Lawyers, Guns and Money from Excitable Boy (1978), Warren Zevon: Zevon was a king of Last Songs: This one, Desperados Under the Eaves, Mutineer and the sniffle-inducing Keep Me in Your Heart chief among them.
• 18. Hey There Delilah from All That We Needed (2005), Plain White T's: So good it's been a Last Song twice.
• 19. Cowgirl in the Sand from Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (1969), Neil Young: At 10 minutes long, it's an indulgent Last Song, but Young's and Danny Whitten's fidgety, intertwined guitars pull you through.
• 20. Let Him Fly from Fly (1999) Dixie Chicks: The Chicks are a double anomaly: A contemporary act and a country band that are big on Last Songs. This is the better of two great Patty Griffin closers.
[email protected]