Best examples of how to start a song

Really obvious, but Teen Spirit is immense. The bit where the drums come in and Kurt jumps on the fuzz pedal is the suckerpunch rock 'n roll moment from heaven. It changed my life. (Oh the melodrama!)

Flipper on "Nothing"

Yeah, but as much as I like Hart & The Huskers, those snare-rolls that begin nearly every single song on Candy Apple Grey become more and more annoying as the years roll by.

"Six million ways to die/Choose one"

Ringo: "Do we have to?"

Paul: "Yeah."

Mr. Diana Krall's "Oh, I just don't know where to begin..." has its charms as well.

Janis Martin (the female Elvis) started off with "Well, I'll try my bestest" and then she did.

Also, "Is this thing on?" has help up throughout the ages.

but for me, the perfect intro is - honestly - she's leaving by OMD. it's so perfectly precise: nothing is wasted. since i first heard it (on headphones, on a coach, on a school trip to france, in 1989), nothing has beaten it.

kennedy comes close, though :)

x-post: which one is the "new order mix" of regret? the fire island mix RULES; i can't remember which one the NO mix is.

'this is not a take is it...?'

You Nought Me

Also: those soft organ chords just before "You Dropped a Bomb on Me" kicks in.

Worst way to start: Countoff by clicking drum sticks.

-As an alternatve to clicking drumsticks to set the tempo - 4 guitar notes, as in "Primary"

Guitar/GT sounds at the start of Todd Rundgren's "Little Red Lights"

"Now, now be CAREFUL a-what you say 'cause your MOUT' is gon' to get you into someting your ass ain't gon' to be ABLE to take you out of it...."

Worst way to start: Countoff by clicking drum sticks.

-- Hurting (Hurtingchie...), October 7th, 2004.

Yeah; that often feels like, as a listener, you've come in the door while they're still vacuuming or something.

Harry Nilsson wrote that after he kept getting a busy signal on his telephone.

\\m//

also, I really like the 30 seconds of feedback before "Super Unison" by Drive Like Jehu.

Any song that starts with with a guitar, but you can hear everything else going on in the room with it, sounds great. 2 examples being 8 miles high where you can hear the bass rattling the drumkit, and "ROck 'n' Roll Ain't Noise Pollution" where during the opening riff you can hear a drumkit being tuned or played with or something, and someone takes a drag, before real noise begins.

The Marvelettes - Please Mr. Postman

WAIT!

Pink Floyd - Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk

CCR - Commotion

"What you gon' play now?"

"Bobby, I don't know but whatever I play, it's got to be funky. ONE, TWO, THREE"

Queen "One Vision". (The album version)
A lot of strange sci-fi-noises getting louder and louder, and then suddenly, a killer guitar riff from Brian until the rest of the band kicks in and Freddie starts singing. Perfect!

Roxy Music's Do the Strand is pretty f-in' killer

Roxy Music's Do the Strand is pretty f-in' killer

As is "Remake/Remodel."

As is "Out of the Blue".

MOTORING

actually, Van Halen's cover of Pretty Women has the best opeing.

Some idiot screaming YOU WANTED THE BEST YOU GOT THE BEST THE HOTTEST BAND IN THE WORLD: KISS...over shitloads of well-miked audience screamers...then it's all downhill.

well, until the song's over and the between song "banter" begins....

Mama Tried. First 10 seconds are perfection. Well, the whole song is, but the intro pretty much sums up the song.

The slow build:
Moscow Nights - the Feelies
Low Spark of High Heeled Boys - Traffic
Reckless Burning - Jesse Sykes
Teen Age Riot - Sonic Youth

The riff start:
Slow Death - the Flamin' Groovies
The Ocean - Zeppelin
Leaving Trunk - Taj Mahal

Just cos it's a great intro:
California Dreamin'

and my nomination: 1 2 3 4 5 6 Roadrunner Roadrunner....

The Stooges, "TV Eye."

Blood Brothers - Devastator
You know how some songs do that thing where they start all "lo-fi" but then go widescreen, either suddenly or gradually? This is the best-ever use of that approach, with Johnny Whitney's unearthly death yodel accompanied by accordion and handclaps before the typical onslaught.

Blur - This Is A Low
That little bit of atmospheric tone-setting followed by a lovely little intro riff that never reappears.

Mclusky - Falco Vs the Young Canoeist
That two-chord oscillation, interrupted by violent hi-hat n' bass attack, then boom. One of their best aw-fuck-yeah-here-it-comes intros.

Morrissey - Tomorrow

it's basically like this:
outro > intro > song > outro

"Mbgate" by Max Tundra. Really off-kilter rocking intro, the main vocal loop starts creeping halfway through, and then phasing synth fanfare into the main part of the song. It's really like 1:01 of intro and 1:26 of song.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, live, at least during the late 80's-early 90's:

1. Puts foot on monitor
2. Points at audience
3. Says "I want to tell you about a girl"
4. Rimshot
5. From Her To Eternity starts.

I can't believe grimly has posted on this thread and this hasn't been mentioned:

"DUR-DUR ... hissssssss ... okay, ready, let's do it"

I also have a soft spot for:

"What number is this, Jim?"
"7A!"
"OK... don't get excited man... just 'cos I'm short, I know..."