Their first single is their best single...

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or at least your favourite....this seems to be a common occurrence - at least with me - it seems more to do with the fact that you love the song because it represents the beginning of your 'relationship' with the band rather than the quality of the song itself - tho with these examples below, these are the songs that best define the band and their sound and are perhaps the ones you first think of when you think of the band...or are they? not 'first single' may also mean 'big breakthrough single that attracts everyone's attention'

The Strokes 'The Modern Age'
Pet SHop Boys 'West End Girls'
De La Soul 'Me Myself & I'
808 State 'Pacific'
Sugababes 'Overload'
EMF 'Unbelievable'

i need help with this list as you can see, esp. as i'm now thinking of a million and one miles for whom this does not apply (e.g. all the big rock acts - Radiohead, Smiths, Nirvana, Manics etc.)

― blueski, Monday, 7 October 2002 11:49 (twenty-three years ago)

B*Witched!

― Tom (Groke), Monday, 7 October 2002 11:53 (twenty-three years ago)

Not knocking their later stuff, but "Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus sprung immediately to mind.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 7 October 2002 12:51 (twenty-three years ago)

The Sugarcubes: "Birthday".

― OleM (OleM), Monday, 7 October 2002 13:25 (twenty-three years ago)

BABYLON ZOO!

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 7 October 2002 13:29 (twenty-three years ago)

Orbital - Chime

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Monday, 7 October 2002 13:46 (twenty-three years ago)

That's something to think about; is "Chime" better than "Satan", "Lush", "Halcyon", "Are We Here?", "The Box" and "Funny Break"?

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 7 October 2002 14:03 (twenty-three years ago)

This'll probably invite a hail storm of rocks, garbage, rancid fruit and excrement, but howabout Birdland? I thought "Paradise" (their first single) was pretty promising.....while, of course, the rest of their stuff was pretty light in the quality department.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Monday, 7 October 2002 14:20 (twenty-three years ago)

Suede-"The Drowners"

― Arthur (Arthur), Monday, 7 October 2002 15:02 (twenty-three years ago)

elvis?

I tell you, he died the day they put drums on his records....

― adam b (adam b), Monday, 7 October 2002 15:08 (twenty-three years ago)

arab strap - "the first big weekend"

― gygax!, Monday, 7 October 2002 15:11 (twenty-three years ago)

my fave b*witched songs were "blame it on the weatherman" and "2 u I belong"!

number one cup - divebomb

― jel -- (jel), Monday, 7 October 2002 16:15 (twenty-three years ago)

I was gonna say Suede too!

Guy called Gerald 'Voodoo Ray'

― Robin Goad, Tuesday, 8 October 2002 07:34 (twenty-three years ago)

Deee-Lite 'Groove Is In The Heart'

― blueski, Tuesday, 8 October 2002 10:04 (twenty-three years ago)

The classic example: R.E.M. "Radio Free Europe"

― Lee G (Lee G), Tuesday, 8 October 2002 14:12 (twenty-three years ago)

Oasis - Columbia
[i think was their first, before Cigarettes and Alcohol...]

― michael (michael), Tuesday, 8 October 2002 14:17 (twenty-three years ago)

Oasis - Columbia
[i think was their first, before Cigarettes and Alcohol...]

That's a bit tricky. Columbia was issued as a white label in demo form, but Supersonic was their first official single. Which, actually, fits the thread just fine thank you.

― Aaron W., Tuesday, 8 October 2002 14:26 (twenty-three years ago)

The Knack -- and don't you *DARE* try to tell me that "Good Girls Don't" is in *ANY* way superior to "My Sharona"!!!

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Tuesday, 8 October 2002 18:07 (twenty-three years ago)

so solid!

― michael wells (michael w.), Wednesday, 9 October 2002 07:18 (twenty-three years ago)

spice girls: wannabe
they never even came close to touching that song after it came out. i'd take it over all the slo-jams in the world

― ddd, Wednesday, 9 October 2002 18:52 (twenty-three years ago)

The Who, "Can't Explain"

TMFTML
http://intonation.blogspot.com

― TMFTML (TMFTML), Wednesday, 9 October 2002 19:11 (twenty-three years ago)

two years pass...

phlar

― phlar, Saturday, 23 April 2005 20:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Pere Ubu - "30 Seconds Over Tokyo"/"Heart of Darkness"
LCD Soundsystem - "Losing My Edge"/"Beat Connection"
The Cure - "Killing An Arab"
Duran Duran - "Planet Earth"
Mudhoney - "Touch Me, I'm Sick"
Dizzee Rascal - "I Luv U"

― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Saturday, 23 April 2005 21:39 (twenty-one years ago)

Supergrass - Caught By The Fuzz

― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Saturday, 23 April 2005 21:52 (twenty-one years ago)

Pylon - "Cool" (debatably...some might consider "Crazy" to be better)
The Past Seven Days - "Raindance" (it was their only one!)

― Ian Riese-Moraine has a grenade, that pineapple's not just a toy! (Eastern Mantr, Saturday, 23 April 2005 22:00 (twenty-one years ago)

bearsuit - hey charlie hey chuck

― shine headlights on me (electricsound), Sunday, 24 April 2005 00:00 (twenty-one years ago)

The Creation- "Making Time"
Roxy Music- "Virginia Plain"

― D. Bachyrycz, Sunday, 24 April 2005 00:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Mission of Burma: Academy Fight Song/That's When I Reach For My Revolver

― kornrulez6969 (TCBeing), Sunday, 24 April 2005 00:41 (twenty-one years ago)

That's when I reach for my revolver is from the Signals, Calls and Marches EP. The B-side to Academy Fight Song is Max Ernst.

It is a great single, but they didn't do any others (pre-reunion) did they? So it doesn't really count for this I suppose.

― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Sunday, 24 April 2005 01:03 (twenty-one years ago)

MEKONS "Never Been in a Riot" b/w "32 Weeks" & "Heart & Soul"

DINOSAUR "Repulsion"/ "Bulbs of Passion"

― Mike McGonigal, Sunday, 24 April 2005 03:35 (twenty-one years ago)

Stardust "Music Sounds Better With You"

― billstevejim, Sunday, 24 April 2005 05:49 (twenty-one years ago)

their ONLY single...

― $V£N! (blueski), Sunday, 24 April 2005 08:42 (twenty-one years ago)

"I Predict a Riot"

― Mr Deeds (Mr Deeds), Sunday, 24 April 2005 17:40 (twenty-one years ago)

xpost Mission of Burma released a second single (Trem Two/OK No Way), which I prefer to the first

― todd (todd), Sunday, 24 April 2005 18:42 (twenty-one years ago)

Thank you todd. I knew my mom had at least two singles by MOB before "Dirt" buy couldn't remember what the second one was.

― Aja (aja), Sunday, 24 April 2005 18:53 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, I was gonna say "Academy Fight Song" but I'm a "Trem Two" sort of boy.

― Ian Riese-Moraine has a grenade, that pineapple's not just a toy! (Eastern Mantr, Sunday, 24 April 2005 18:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Trem Two rules, but I like Tremolo more. Too bad that wasn't a single.

― Aja (aja), Sunday, 24 April 2005 19:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Nelly - Country Grammar

Before moving to Philly I lived on a street mentioned in the song...how can it not be my fav of the Lou's recent claim to musical fame?

― mono.mono (mono.mono), Sunday, 24 April 2005 22:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Orchestral Manouevres in the Dark - Electricity

― Zach S, Sunday, 24 April 2005 22:30 (twenty-one years ago)

Public Image Limited - "Public Image"

― Yngwie AlmsteenMay (sgertz), Sunday, 24 April 2005 22:37 (twenty-one years ago)

Zager and Evans
Terry Jacks
Gerry & The Pacemakers
Babylon Zoo

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 24 April 2005 23:35 (twenty-one years ago)

The Drowners EP rules this but how about;

Jesus and Mary Chain - Upside Down
Elastica - Stutter
Shanks and Bigfoot - Sweet Like Chocolate (not entirely sure about that one thou...)
and just about ever indie band to emerge this century Hope of The States, Hot Hot Heat, The Vines, The Hives etc all released rather fun debuts then slid into deep pits of rubbishness.

― elwisty (elwisty), Sunday, 24 April 2005 23:57 (twenty-one years ago)

terence trent darby,bros,transvision vamp.

― matt and luke, Monday, 25 April 2005 05:48 (twenty-one years ago)

New Order - Ceremony. head and shoulders above.

― Lee F# (fsharp), Monday, 25 April 2005 08:26 (twenty-one years ago)

eleven years pass...

I was sure the was a similar thread about bands whose entire career had been downhill since their debut single, but I can't find it. Help?

― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 24 August 2016 06:22 (nine years ago)

This one? It's about bands who never bettered their first song on their debut album, so not quite what you were looking for, but maybe.

All Downhill from Here...instances where an artist peaked with the first song on their first album

― heaven parker (anagram), Wednesday, 24 August 2016 07:49 (nine years ago)

Aye, that's what I was thinking of. I must have conflated that one and this one in my head.

Anyway, in that "all downhill from the debut single" conflation, I was going to mention Doves; The Cedar Room came on at home yesterday and I just thought wow, this is still amazing, still gives me shivers, still doesn't really sound like anything else anyone else has done, let alone anything else Doves have done, and I'm sad they couldn't / didn't ever mine that vein any further.

― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 24 August 2016 08:22 (nine years ago)

I'm surprised it took that long to get to Elastica, "Stutter"

― Mark G, Wednesday, 24 August 2016 10:30 (nine years ago)

Sultans Of Swing

― PaulTMA, Wednesday, 24 August 2016 10:38 (nine years ago)

'Another Girl, Another Planet' The Only Ones

― Bloody Snail, Thursday, 25 August 2016 00:47 (nine years ago)

I'm surprised it's taken this long to mention this, but: 'Me, Myself & I' was not De La Soul's first single.

Shite song, in any case.

― Austin, Thursday, 25 August 2016 03:33 (nine years ago)

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