the abridged Sugar Ray singles poll

My opinion: by cravenly following the "Fly" formula over and over, they actually improved on it every time, so "When It's Over" is the best.

Are we talking pop radio version of "Fly" or rock radio version?

"Someday."

and I wish their cover of Eno-Cale's "Spinning Away" had been a single.

The only difference between them is the Super Cat vocals, right? Never really mattered to me, but then I never much liked the song. (xpost)

I remember the summer that "Someday" was constantly on the radio I worked in a kitchen with this Irish guy, and the one time he sang along with that "so far, so long, so far away" bridge in his thick accent and made it sound so much more sad and full of longing and that's still how I hear the song now. I like it a lot, just not as much as "When It's Over."

"Falls Apart" should probably be on here, but it sucks so who cares. "Fly" gets my vote for not having the "sugar ball baby, don't say a word" part from "Every Morning."

"sugar ball"? I always heard it as "shut the door." either way, never really understood or liked that part of the song either.

thought about including "Falls Apart" (although I think the whole time it was a hit I had no idea it was by Sugar Ray), since it was technically as big a Modern Rock hit as the others, but I didn't want to muddy up the aesthetic criteria. favorite SR single not in this poll is "Answer The Phone."

my first thought: "wait a minute, they definitely had more big hits than that!" then I realized I was thinking of Everclear. I'm gonna go with "Fly", because I was fairly young when it came out, and it was one of the first songs I remember paying attention to every time it came on the radio so that I could figure out all of the lyrics.

"Fly" anyway is the most fun to sing along to... when he finally belts out the recurring "ALLLL AROUND THE WOOORLD statues crumble for me..." - that's pretty good right there.

It's also a lot weirder lyrically than the others, less self-consciously trying to write a easy-going summer jam about love and more half-baked introspection - I mean, "Twenty-five years old, my mother god rest her soul" is a little out of character for this sort of thing. When I realized it was a lift from "Alone Again, Naturally" it kind of elevated Sugar Ray in general for me.

Mainly, this song reminds me of ActiveWorlds.

Oh, and in high school I remember somebody thinking it was "Twenty five years old, my mother died, rest her soul," which still cracks me up.

"Falls Apart" should probably be on here, but it sucks so who cares.

I was gonna say, where's "Falls Apart?" But no one would vote for it because it's pretty bad, so yeah..

i remember seeing an interview w/the sugar ray guy on tv when this song came out. he said something like, "yeah we've been wanting to work with supercat for a long time." I mean, I also want to work with supercat.

-- Dominique, Friday, February 22, 2008 8:16 AM (Friday, February 22, 2008 8:16 AM) Bookmark Link

^^^I also want to work with supercat.

i never knew there were 2 versions of fly, that was the anthem when i was like 12 or something

I now feel very ashamed for liking "Falls Apart." Don't think I'd have voted for it over "Fly," though.

i never knew there were 2 versions of fly, that was the anthem when i was like 12 or something

-- deeznuts, Monday, 4 August 2008 22:50 (Yesterday) Link

There's just one with Supercat and one without.

why would you want the no-supercat version

shit don't make no sence

ALL AROUND THE WORLD STATUES CRUMBLE FOR ME

im voting fly

SUGAR RAY & SUPERCAT FLY TRIBUTE THREAD

"when it's over" definitely. nice song.

"Falls Apart" is good!

Also, the Sugar Ray single that made me giggle the most is "RPM". I WILL LET YOU DOWN!!!!! Yes, quite. I guess "Every Morning" out of that lot because Mark McGrath looked awkward playing the gee-tar when he steps outside.

what an awful band

i guess i'm in the wrong company hating this band but i do. i hated it at the time as an angry teenager and i don't hear enough good reasons to stop.

I went with "Every Morning" for the "Suavecito" nick.

'every morning' for it being about dude being a dick to his gf

with a breezy melody!

There's something really cool and summery about the vox/mix on "Fly." And yeah, the "all around the world" part owns.

'someday' was played into the ground somehow more than the others in my memory.

'when its over' sounds the most 90S ALTERNATIVE ROCK CLICHE, in the worst way - like the hook is too much vertical horizon where 'every morning' got by on, like, island vibes that made it stand out, and fly got by on out-of-nowhere novelty

also wtf 'shut the door baby dont say a word' part is awesome

Don't like any of the songs, really, but am voting "Every Morning" because of McGrath with a mullet and dirtbike.

"Falls Apart" was actually a pretty good single, but I get why it's not in the poll.

every morning, easy. the last two are pretty generic and fly somehow annoyed me more than every morning.

well, someday is ok

This is going to be one of those days where "ALLL AROUND TEH WORRRRRLD" is stuck in my head all day, I just know it.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

I have a many of those days.

fly, i think

the dj scratches are tite

all of these are 10/10 classics though

everything made before u were born is not a 10/10 classic :D

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

lol deej

every morning has the best verses out of these i think

these songs are 4 in the group of shit that makes me think "they just don't make songs like this anymore", musicianship and production are impeccable

i really hope that all the dudes in this band have cake for like off these songs

are any of their albums classic?

I hate to be that guy, but every one of these songs makes me want to jam an icepick into my ear. Complete, total, utterly irrational hatred for everything associated with Sugar Ray and Smashmouth.

are any of their albums classic?

-- J0rdan S., Wednesday, August 6, 2008 6:14 PM (21 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

my understanding is that they were some cheesy-ass hardcore band or something that had one hit w/ breezy summer jam 'fly' and decided to reproduce that sound until they vanished

haha well now that the poll's over let's just talk about their goofy hard rock singles. MEAN MACHINE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gjb7UD7jPqM

i'm pretty sure that video would still be pretty wtf if they'd never made "Fly" or anything else ever after that.

I'M LOOKIN' FOR LOVE LIKE REVENGE OF THE NERDS
BUTT MY ASS NOW YA PLAY ON WORDS

holy shit, pre-Mean Machine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJMi5qKlZq8

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3294/2848976801_d517183170.jpg

even worse, they'll be playing live from the back of a tricked-out custom Sugar Ray model Scion buggy, roving around the Anaheim Convention Center interior

...why do I worry you are not joking.

"Fly" has so much more going on than these other songs

also, the power-pop single they released after "When It's Over" was p. good iirc

"someday" was easily the best of the lot for me. the tinge of sadness does it.

'fly' really annoys me - totally dig the other 3 + 'falls apart'

d-_-b

if I were voting today, 'when it's over'

great videos too

me 2 -- yeah classic wkiw party vids

if i had to rank them now id go

1 when it's over
2 every morning
3 fly
4 someday

1 when it's over
2 every morning
3 falls apart
4 someday
5 fly

thought about doing a sugar ray v. 3eb poll today actually

there's an 8 year old vs. thread where people said some stuff that they probably wouldn't say today

it's possible that "jumper" & "semi-charmed life" are better than the 4 sugar ray singles, but i'd have to sleep on it

i guess it kind of depends on what mood you're in too

wish u would step back from that poll my friend

I was thinking about it tho - we've surely reached the point that a decent % of jr. high school kids have no idea who these bands are

that's totally possible

i would say it's probable? junior high kids would've just been born when sugary ray/3eb were big

lol sugary

also, the power-pop single they released after "When It's Over" was p. good iirc

"Answer the Phone"! It is pretty good, but definitely not the exact same song as "Fly"/"Every Morning"/"Someday"/"When it's Over."

By which I mean is it inherently lesser.

The "it" and "is" in that previous statement should be reversed, and I should not rely on coffee and smoke to keep me coherent this late.

yeah, it is lesser, but still pretty good

1 when it's over
2 someday
3 fly
4 every morning

^^^^^backwards

God, I had compleeeeeetely forgotten "When It's Over." I remember being on a road trip with a friend and it was like every fifth song that got played on the radio, and us riffing on the hook with stuff like "If they! play this song a-gain / we'll drive off a bri-idge." It's aged nicely though. Love the harmonies.

oh god though, the video is one of those "hey, let's think up some kooky ideas for a video!" things, except the ideas aren't very kooky

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqr4ouQ3Uf8&feature=related

someone do a poll on which 'billy don't lose that number' sugar ray scenario they prefer. i do like that at the end they settle on 'let's make a cliched sugar ray late 90s mcg style video'. also definitely would've voted either that or 'fly'.

Yeah, honestly when I first watched that last night I couldn't tell if the last video was supposed to be a straight "normal" video or if it too is a parody nestled somewhere between "Semi-Charmed Life" and, I dunno, "Miami" by Will Smith.

that's their last hit too so i like to imagine them literally trapped in their cliche moment, like agent cooper in the black lodge

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZb6_7RGTwM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKOtgSrrVCM

really feeling "When It's Over" much moreso than when I posted above, although the "favorite TV shows" line is kinda a clunker. Love, love love the harmonies on the last choruses.

I mean, it's still no "Fly," but...

haha i was just looking at this thread yesterday, seeing it on new answers i was like "i didn't revive it did i?"

I always thought it was Shaggy who guested on "Fly"!

Now I realize it sounds nothing like him!

although the "favorite TV shows" line is kinda a clunker.

I love the honest banality of it. Another song on the album opens with "I'll always remember Run-DMC/and all of the good times we had on the beach."

"I remember the culture club, the clash and men without hats"

Yeah, honestly when I first watched that last night I couldn't tell if the last video was supposed to be a straight "normal" video or if it too is a parody nestled somewhere between "Semi-Charmed Life" and, I dunno, "Miami" by Will Smith.

― Doctor Casino, Saturday, September 25, 2010 11:52 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

that's their last hit too so i like to imagine them literally trapped in their cliche moment, like agent cooper in the black lodge

― balls, Saturday, September 25, 2010 11:57 AM Bookmark

^^^ one of my favorite ILX posts even though it effectively spoiled that show for me, what a wonderful movie this could have made