Album tracks which really should have been released as singles

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1. "Humble Mumble" by OutKast, off Stankonia

2. "Stone the Crows" by Roots Manuva, off Run Come Save Me

3. "Roads" by Portishead, off Dummy

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 15:36 (twenty-one years ago)

Not exactly controversial this, but

4. "This is a Low" by Blur, off Parklife

― Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:07 (twenty-one years ago)

5. I Wanna Be Adored by the Stone Roses

Okay it was rereleased years later but surely that doesn't count

― holojames (holojames), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:17 (twenty-one years ago)

Fairly sure I saw a video for it on 120 Minutes around the time it was brand new ('89?).

― Johnny Fever (johnny fever), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:18 (twenty-one years ago)

6. "Grace" Jeff Buckley

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:23 (twenty-one years ago)

7. "Complexity" The Roots ft. Jill Scott

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:24 (twenty-one years ago)

8. "Better Things" by massive Attack, off Protection

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:25 (twenty-one years ago)

Again, saw the video for it on 120 Minutes.

Perhaps this doesn't equate to being "a single."

x-post Buckley

― Johnny Fever (johnny fever), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:25 (twenty-one years ago)

I think I object to the notion behind this thread -- some songs are best left alone as album tracks, in that they don't seem pop enough (you can't imagine them blasting from a radio or car stereo) or they're epic-sounding album openers or closers. They may be the best tracks on the album, but that doesn't mean they should be singles.
Examples : "This is a Low", "Plainsong", "I Am the Resurrection", "Mysterons" ...

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:27 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, maybe you're right.

― Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:33 (twenty-one years ago)

I knew someone would say something like that.

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:34 (twenty-one years ago)

I think some tracks just deserve greater exposure, is all.

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:35 (twenty-one years ago)

9. I always thought "Doing The Unstuck" should've been the follow-up single to "Friday I'm in Love". It would have sounded much better on the radio than "A Letter to Elise" and the video could have been great too.

― Seb (Seb), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:37 (twenty-one years ago)

led zep to thread

― Snapper, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:39 (twenty-one years ago)

I certainly wouldn't apply that reasoning to all albums. For instance, the first Strokes album doesn't contain anything that should be left as an album track.
It's the Blur example that got me to write that stuff ... I know everyone always says that "This is a Low" should have been a single, but I disagree. You've got this hit album, and you want to release a ballad, well "Low" might be the better song, but "To The End" makes a better single.
(I think "Badhead" also sounds more like a single than "This is a Low")

(xpost, carry on)

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:42 (twenty-one years ago)

OK then...
4. Badhead by Blur from Parklife

― Jamie Fake (the pirate king), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:48 (twenty-one years ago)

thx, i am happy now

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:50 (twenty-one years ago)

my stock answer to this :

SLIDE AWAY - oasis

― piscesboy, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 16:58 (twenty-one years ago)

Cure songs that should have been singles:

10:15 Saturday Night
M
Other Voices
A Strange Day
Just One Kiss
Lament
Birdmad Girl
Piggy In The Mirror
The Baby Screams
Six Different Ways
A Night Like This
How Beautiful You Are...
All I Want
The Perfect Girl
Untitled
Doing The Unstuck
Cut
Trap
Round And Round And Round
Out Of This World
The Last Day Of Summer

Tracks that SHOULD be singles off the new album:

Before Three
Taking Off
alt.end
Fake
(I Don't Know What's Going) On

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 17:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Nirvana "Territorial Pissings"

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 17:03 (twenty-one years ago)

Oooh, good one Dan, I'll do the same with Depeche Mode :

Something to Do
But Not Tonight (how did they miss this one??)
The Things You Said
Nothing
Blue Dress
Sea of Sin (way too good to be a b-side)
Judas
Insight

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 17:16 (twenty-one years ago)

if we're talking nirvana, I always thought "Lounge Act" was a great tune.

― Wooden (Wooden), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 18:41 (twenty-one years ago)

The Cure also have many b-sides that could have been singles such as "The Upstairs Room", "The Exploding Boy", "A Japanese Dream", "To the sky", "2 Late", "This Twilight Garden" and "Signal to Noise".

― Seb (Seb), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 19:05 (twenty-one years ago)

"Blood On your Hands" by Killing Joke from Killing Joke [2003]

"Fight From the Inside" by Queen from News of the World

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 19:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Age of Consent - New Order

― Guymauve (Guymauve), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 19:52 (twenty-one years ago)

"Entertain Me," "Me, White Noise"- Blur
"Vanishing Point" - New Order
"Denmark" - The Chemical Bros.

― The Good Dr. Bill (Andrew Unterberger), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 19:56 (twenty-one years ago)

Peter Murphy - "Crystal Wrists," "Deep Ocean Vast Sea"

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 20:14 (twenty-one years ago)

The Notwist - "Pilot"

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 20:15 (twenty-one years ago)

Denmark is a fine suggestion. god I'd love to hear some remixes of that.

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 20:16 (twenty-one years ago)

No idea why we got fucking "The Test" instead of that. No shame.

― The Good Dr. Bill (Andrew Unterberger), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 20:30 (twenty-one years ago)

Good call on "Age of Consent".

― David A. (Davant), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 20:52 (twenty-one years ago)

prodigy 'mindfields' (it was lined up to be but then cancelled)
broadcast 'before we begin'
audio bullys 'the snow'
leftfield 'space shanty' (as worthy as 'denmark')
ladytron 'discotrax'

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 21:39 (twenty-one years ago)

I thought "Y Control" was the catchiest song on the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Fever to Tell." Or maybe that WILL be the follow up to "Maps."

― Softly Weeping at the Oki Dog (Ben Boyer), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 21:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Yes, Age of Consent is an excellent call, but I wonder if Age Of Consent had been a single if it would have been overplayed to death by everyone and their mother's uncle's cousin, kindof spoiling the experience?

Come to think of it, if Blue Monday hadn't been a single...
actually, maybe the whole idea of singles should be banned. People should be force fed albums.

― Bimble (bimble), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:00 (twenty-one years ago)

"she's leaving" by OMD. actually, it very nearly was. apparently there are some test pressings knocking about. but then they decided that four singles from an album was silly. and they were right.

which is why they shouldn't have released souvenir. ah well.

as for new order: age of consent shouldn't have been a single. vanishing point should. can't explain why, though. gut feeling.

simon

― grimly fiendish, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:14 (twenty-one years ago)

"Pilot" has been released as a single before "Neon golden" came out.

"I heard it through the grapevine" off "Cut" by the Slits (it has been a b-side but that counts)

"Tits on the radio" off "Scissor sisters"
"Junkie" off "Wanderland" by Kelis

― Sami (Sami), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:19 (twenty-one years ago)

yes to 'tits on the radio' - the way it plods along reminds me of Moby's 'We Are All Made Of Stars' mind

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Pet Shop Boys - "The End of the World", "One in a Million", "Up against it", "Closer to Heaven", "Home".

David Bowie - "Starman"

― Seb (Seb), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:42 (twenty-one years ago)

i agree with both "age of consent" and "she's leaving". brilliant songs. actually i think "leave me alone" would also have made a good single.

― purple patch (electricsound), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 22:48 (twenty-one years ago)

Pet Shop Boys - The Theatre

― tipustiger, Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:17 (twenty-one years ago)

yo la tengo "cherry chapstick"

― purple patch (electricsound), Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:25 (twenty-one years ago)

"debaser" should have been the first single from "doolittle" instead of releasing it years later to promote "death to the pixies"

― Neil FC (Neil FC), Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:30 (twenty-one years ago)

also "love vigilantes" would have been a cracking single.

― Neil FC (Neil FC), Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:30 (twenty-one years ago)

...Trail of Dead - "Baudelaire"
Interpol - "Evil"
XTC - "Earn Enough For Us", "Rocket From a Bottle"

― Simon H., Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:44 (twenty-one years ago)

"Rock Hard, Ride Free" - Judas Priest, Defenders of the Faith.

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Thursday, 12 August 2004 01:37 (twenty-one years ago)

I am the thread-kill-er / This! Is! THE thread-kill-er

― the music mole (colin s barrow), Thursday, 12 August 2004 02:01 (twenty-one years ago)

On the New Order "Subculture" tip, I prefer the album version over the single mixes (nice keyboard preamble on the lp version). How many singles can people think of that were worse off than their album versions? Best to leave well enough alone and all that?

― Guymauve (Guymauve), Thursday, 12 August 2004 10:53 (twenty-one years ago)

1963 - New Order (again)

― holojames (holojames), Thursday, 12 August 2004 11:59 (twenty-one years ago)

the album version of "Disco 2000" is far better than the version released as a single. The album version sounds sparkly - the re-recorded version sounds flat and neuteured by comparison.

― Neil FC (Neil FC), Thursday, 12 August 2004 12:24 (twenty-one years ago)

TOTALLY AGREED on "End Of The World"! Other PSB "should have been singles":

Why Don't We Live Together?
Two Divided By Zero
King's Cross
One More Chance
I Want To Wake Up
This Must Be The Place I've Waited Years To Leave
One And One Make Five

― VengaDan Perry (Dan Perry), Thursday, 12 August 2004 13:35 (twenty-one years ago)

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