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westlife
Guest
Whatever happened to songs that would practically reach out of the radio and grab you, with a chorus that you just couldn't help but sing, hum, or whistle along with?
Going through my collection, here are a few AC hits which I think have especially powerful hooks... feel free to add your own nominations:
A-Ha - Take On Me
Crowded House - Don't Dream It's Over
Del Amitri - Roll To Me
England Dan & John Ford Coley - We'll Never Have To Say Goodbye Again
Frankie Valli - Can't Take My Eyes Off You [the original power ballad... Frankie asked his producer to "write the greatest love song of all time", and I think it comes close]
George Harrison - Got My Mind Set On You [an incredible #1 hit which has been COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN... I have literally not heard this one on the radio in over a DECADE!]
James Taylor - Your Smiling Face
Jeffrey Osborne - On The Wings of Love
Jesse McCartney - Beautiful Soul [this one is just breaking through to AC, and I say it's about time!]
John Mayer - No Such Thing [admit it... you want to run through the halls of his high school, too!]
John Waite - Missing You
Joshua Kadison - Jesse
Looking Glass - Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)
Los Lobos - La Bamba [proof that a good hook transcends language boundaries -- see also "Feliz Navidad"]
Mary Chapin Carpenter - Passionate Kisses
Mr. Big - To Be With You
Neil Diamond - America
No Doubt - It's My Life
OMD - If You Leave
Orleans - Still The One
Roy Orbison - You Got It
Simple Minds - Don't You (Forget About Me)
Spiral Starecase - More Today Than Yesterday
Toto - Africa
And a few honorable mention from outside the AC genre:
O-Town - Liquid Dreams (normally, a song in which teenage boys sing about their wet dreams would be enough to make even Paris Hilton cringe, but it's saved by great instrumentation and a very catchy melody)
John Michael Montgomery - I Swear (All-4-One popularized this song on AC radio, but I prefer the original version -- which I think is equally well suited to any AC station who wants to freshen up their playlist a bit)
George Strait - One Night At a Time (another country song that could fit right in, just based on the strength of its hook)
Fastball - Out of My Head [I've never heard this one played on AC radio, but it's similar to "Roll To Me" -- a short but sweet two-minute pop nugget, with a classic Hammond B-3 + Leslie wailing along!]
And finally, here's my nomination for "best hook of all time":
Paul Simon - Kodachrome
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Going through my collection, here are a few AC hits which I think have especially powerful hooks... feel free to add your own nominations:
A-Ha - Take On Me
Crowded House - Don't Dream It's Over
Del Amitri - Roll To Me
England Dan & John Ford Coley - We'll Never Have To Say Goodbye Again
Frankie Valli - Can't Take My Eyes Off You [the original power ballad... Frankie asked his producer to "write the greatest love song of all time", and I think it comes close]
George Harrison - Got My Mind Set On You [an incredible #1 hit which has been COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN... I have literally not heard this one on the radio in over a DECADE!]
James Taylor - Your Smiling Face
Jeffrey Osborne - On The Wings of Love
Jesse McCartney - Beautiful Soul [this one is just breaking through to AC, and I say it's about time!]
John Mayer - No Such Thing [admit it... you want to run through the halls of his high school, too!]
John Waite - Missing You
Joshua Kadison - Jesse
Looking Glass - Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)
Los Lobos - La Bamba [proof that a good hook transcends language boundaries -- see also "Feliz Navidad"]
Mary Chapin Carpenter - Passionate Kisses
Mr. Big - To Be With You
Neil Diamond - America
No Doubt - It's My Life
OMD - If You Leave
Orleans - Still The One
Roy Orbison - You Got It
Simple Minds - Don't You (Forget About Me)
Spiral Starecase - More Today Than Yesterday
Toto - Africa
And a few honorable mention from outside the AC genre:
O-Town - Liquid Dreams (normally, a song in which teenage boys sing about their wet dreams would be enough to make even Paris Hilton cringe, but it's saved by great instrumentation and a very catchy melody)
John Michael Montgomery - I Swear (All-4-One popularized this song on AC radio, but I prefer the original version -- which I think is equally well suited to any AC station who wants to freshen up their playlist a bit)
George Strait - One Night At a Time (another country song that could fit right in, just based on the strength of its hook)
Fastball - Out of My Head [I've never heard this one played on AC radio, but it's similar to "Roll To Me" -- a short but sweet two-minute pop nugget, with a classic Hammond B-3 + Leslie wailing along!]
And finally, here's my nomination for "best hook of all time":
Paul Simon - Kodachrome
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