1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die - 1973

Search and Destroy

Stevie.

My all-time favourite album is represented here with one track. Yet, I am not voting for it. "I Know What I Like" is no bad song, but still too much of a conventional pop song, and rather unrepresentative for the album. Would have voted for "Firth Of Fifth" or "Dancing With The Moonlit Knight" without blinking for a second (probably my two favourite tracks of 1973), but in this case, I am rather going for "Desperado", which is a bloody fine song from a bloody fine album.

But if it had been "Looking For A Kiss," I would've voted Dolls.

FUCK this is a tough one!

Dolly vs. Stooges vs. Genesis vs. Ann Peebles and maybe Elton.

"I Know What I Like" is no bad song, but still too much of a conventional pop song, and rather unrepresentative for the album.

This poll is about songs, not albums. Strip it of that context and vote on its merits.

Easily "Personality Crisis" from what's there, but "Ballroom Blitz," "Search and Destroy," and "Living for the City" are great. Favourite omissions: Big Star's "September Gurls," Dylan's "Knockin' on Heaven's Door," Eno's "Needle in the Camel's Eye" (assist to Todd Haynes), John Cale's "Hanky Panky Nohow," Zeppelin's "Over the Hills and Far Away," Mott's "I Wish I Was Your Mother," Neil's "Love in Mind" and "Journey Through the Past," Slade's "Merry X'mas Everybody." This is the first year where my favourite stuff tends to be non-charting music I discovered later in life. My two favourite pure Top 40 songs from '73 are probably Three Dog Night's "Shambala" and Chicago's "Feelin' Stronger Every Day."

Between '65 and '72, my media player has a low of 4.6 hours of music ('69) and a high of 8.5 hours ('65). I've got 6.7 hours from '72 on there. In '73 it drops to 2.4 hours, and I'm down to 99 minutes for '74.

Solid Air

Is this just which we like the best or which we really do think is the most essential listening material?

The one that most validates Geir's tastes.

"Jolene"

Stevie Wonder

This poll is about songs, not albums. Strip it of that context and vote on its merits.

Which is exactly why I didn't vote for it. Because there are a couple other songs here that are better. None of those are even close to "Firth Of Fifth" though.

Also would have gone for "September Gurls" rather than "Desperado" (or "Close To The Edge", but, again, the editors of this book obviously don't like symphonic rock epics, more or less constantly picking shorter, unrepresentative songs to represent symphonic rock acts).

Ballroom Blitz with Jolene at a strong #2

By the way, you're a year off on your graphic; Nixon resigned in '74.

Easy, stevie

i can't stand the rain over jolene, rock on, future days

Would have voted for "Paris 1919" tho, favorite song ever

Elton vs Dolly vs Sweet . . . Not an easy choice. Is Sweet represented later on in the book as well? If so, than in a two-way race I'll probably go for Elton.

The one that most validates Geir's tastes.

― frogbs went a-courtin' (WmC), Sunday, June 26, 2011 7:50 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Ha well my fav is Ballroom Blitz so I'm going with that.

20th Century Boy would have been 2.

The only good thing about "Desperado" is that episode of Seinfeld.
Voted 20th C Boy!

I mean, if "Fox On The Run" appears In the 1974 or 1975 poll, that's an automatic vote from me,

Livin' For The City

Slade, followed by Dolly & Sweet with barely a hair between the three.

Stevie vs. Can, in both songs and context

Stevie track should be Golden Lady tho.

Tuffest choice, between Stevie and Dolls.

Went "Personality crisis"

My inner soccer mom made me vote Elton.

The only good thing about "Desperado" is that episode of Seinfeld.

Wasn't it "Witchy Woman"? Maybe it was both. I haven't seen it in a long time.

Both. "Witchy Woman" (Jerry: "Oh...Wit-chay Woman") was Elaine's desperate attempt to get a song of her own that could compete with her boyfriend's protectiveness towards "Desperado." I often wish I didn't remember such useless information in such detail.

Ann Peebles a bit played out for me so comes down to Stooges v Dolls v Sweet. I'll leave it in that order and give a vote to The Stooges. Lets get em over the line.

Voted Can but hope Stevie wins!

voted stooges but hope anything but desperado wins

voting "Rock On" because it is massive.

particularly when performed by danny romalotti

this list is the worst yet, so many missed opportunities. first how does this list not include "Love Train?" other major omissions include El Chicano "Tell Her She's Lovely," Jerry Jacks "Seasons In The Sun," Vicki Lawrence "The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia," Gladys Knight & The Pips "Midnight Train To Georgia", Stealers Wheel "Stuck in the Middle with You," Todd Rundgren "Hello It's Me" or Hollies "The Air That I Breathe."

what a fantastic year!

Jolene, Jolene, Jolene. Some competition from Peebles, but c'mon, most heartbreaking song ever.

Jolene or Search & Destroy

No reggae, once again >:-(

.. and between 1969 and 1973 was some of the best Reg.

I guess nowt will, until (and possibly only) Bob Marley.

New York Dolls: Personality Crisis
Sweet: Ballroom Blitz
Dolly Parton: Jolene
T.Rex: 20th Century Boy
Iggy & The Stooges: Search and Destroy
Eagles: Desperado
Slade: Cum On Feel The Noize
Stevie Wonder: Living For The City
Elton John: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Can: Future Days

man, this is fucking tough. feel like i should vote for "jolene", like that's the only morally responsible choice, but heart runs away with glam: "personality crisis", "20th century boy" and "ballroom blitz". went with the blitz, one of my all time favorite songs, and like "superstition" last time around, a song i've loved helplessly since i was a kid, since the first time i ever heard it.

It's certainly the shortest list yet.

Stevie vs. Can vs. Stooges (with apologies to NYD, SAHB and Cale). Dammit, Can wins for being beautiful.

Sensational Alex Harvey Band

No reggae, once again >:-(

Reggae got better later, it benefited from Chris Blackwell's polish.. :)

It's certainly the shortest list yet.

Some of the 50s lists were shorter. But 1973 is very underrated here, as it was actually a fantastic year. However.... the authors don't like prog....

Although this is a fine poll and several of the choices are very good (Slade, Stevie, Eagles, Dolly), "Search and Destroy" was a surprisingly easy choice for me.

Voted for Can but kind of regretting not going for SAHB.

Solid Air.

I went for Rock on, still one of the strangest top 10 singles I can think of.

this list seems like a massive jump forward in time compared to the last few. a bunch of these songs i tend to think as coming closer to the end of the 70s.

hmmm... this year seems weaker than the previous few to me, which is strange since I love all of these artists

Everything that is on here: 1973: Look Over Your Shoulder (a CDR 700 Go! by Elvis Telecom)

^^that's more like it. write-in vote for "behind close doors"

Another good list. Voting Can - probably my favorite song of theirs.

nixon resigned in 1974

the Dolls over Dolly and Peebles

It says so on that newspaper.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

I Can't Stand the Rain

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

once again the lurkers have spoken!

Seems like people posted about Stooges as much or more than any of the songs?

3 or 4 mentions from a cursory glance, maybe not so different from usual

I knew I should've voted for Stevie ;_;

I don't really like Raw Power..."Search and Destory" is f'in incendiary though.

"once again the lurkers have spoken!"

Thats a lame comment.

i was referring to another poll thread where someone made that statement, how the poll results are always surprisingly different from the thread comments. I apologize for the comment

no, it was me, this is my fault. in the Southern Man vs. Sweet Home Alabama thread, i brought up the idea that poll results sometimes seemed to reflect differences between posters and lurkers, so that the eventual differed surprisingly from what the thread contents might suggest. didn't mean it as a diss towards one group or the other. (don't think it applies itt, tbh.)

I agree with these results. The Top 10 would pretty much be my own top 10 if I had to chose from this list.

Right. OK then. Good, thanks for being so polite and up front.

I try.

Tee he.

I'd forgotten (or never knew) Jolene was an 'oldie' when it hit in the UK in 1976 (ref: TOTP reruns)