Why do the songs of the 1960s still have such a dominant hold on our collective aural memories, even for those of us too young to have heard them when they were new? There are a few clues in Pitchfork’s newly completed list of the 200 best songs of the ’60s. Which, by the way, is a pretty well-thought out compilation, so far as these massive, arbitrary lists go.
It’s not all peace, love, flowers, and Motown chirpiness, though there are plenty of those elements on the list. It’s also about dread, horror, regret, and loss of innocence. (Look at the top 20, which includes such anthems of paranoia, frustration, and unresolved longings as ”God Only Knows,” ”A Day in the Life,” ”Like a Rolling Stone, ” I Can’t Explain,” and ”Gimme Shelter.” Even the Jackson 5’s exuberant ”I Want You Back,” featuring a weirdly mature and rueful 11-year-old lead singer, is a desperate plea for ”one more chance.”)
I can’t wait to see a similar Pitchfork take on the maligned songwriting eras known as the 1970s and ’80s. Meanwhile, you can find MP3s of all 200 songs on this list here.
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Has anybody else asked or is it just me…Where is Slezak?!
I never thought I’d enjoy reading one of these lists, but this one is as good as I’ve seen. It is as all inclusive as it could be (with the limit of 200, of course) with its representation of Cash to Hendrix.
Is it perfect? What could be under such constrictions of numbers and subjectivity, but it certainly succeeds (IMHO) where so many others have failed.
This is fantastic! The list is great. These are true memories for so many of us. Jackson Five, CCR, I love John Fogerty! Aretha Franklin’s “Think” is still a great song. The Beach Boys were without question prolific musicians. The Shangrila’s “Long live our love” is my favorite song. The Beatles have had so many great hits, I own a huge collection of their music. Thanks for the list.
I am a child of the sixties, there will never be music like that again.
Can anyone ever forget “DARLIN” by the Beach Boys?
John Fogerty and CCR defined the 60’s in my opinion. “Heard it Thru the Grapevine” is a great song done by any artist but CCR”S version and, of course, the one by the late,great Marvin Gaye were at the top of my hot 100 list.
That’s cause there is no “real” music today. Most entertainers today can’t actually write music, just sample better music that came before them.
Look at the hip hop scene (I have nothing against Hip hop at a club) but the Hip hop revolution is about dancing, drinking and screwing. Whereas songs of the 60’s revolution were about being an individual, not trusting the machine, and speaking out against percieved evils.
Today the biggest evil in music is if they get Dom instead of Crystal.
Pitchfork has already done their lists for the 70s and 80s. These two lists were equally great or better if possible. There is also a greatest records of the 90s as well.
I was very much into Motown back in the day.
Loved the Temps, Four Tops, Smokey and the GIRLS as well. Always loved MARTHA and the VANDELLAS.
Mark:
You don’t have to apologize for not liking hip hop. It was fun and playful when it first came on the scene, but now it is about everything you said. I personally hate it. The sixties music was about beauty, love, and important issues to society at large. I will always prefer the old music, because it was the best ever.
I agree with Nancy and Mark re Hip Hop. Also want to add that the LOVE SONGS from that era will never be equaled.
I would like to know where Selazk is?
Slezak must be on extended leave……..haven’t seen any articles by him in quite some time.
Back to the 60’s…….Etta James’ “At Last” is a powerful song………Celine even does a credible job with it.
Pardon my ignorance, but is HipHop the same as Rap? I cannot abide Rap in any fashion, but the kids I work with ALL love it!
My son and daughter-in-laws wedding song!! See even some of the young people have good taste.
I was always more into the sounds of CCR and like bands than the Beatles or the Stones. But groups like the Four Tops and the Temps appealed to me much later than the era in which they were truly popular.
Mark from NYC, have you been talking to Bob Dylan?
Hip hop is like a lifestyle and the music belongs to it.
I think you are 100% right Nancy!!
“I wanna be your dog”. That’s an interesting, and intelligent choice. It seems that this critic is going for some underground songs here which is very cool.
This is an interesting list, but missing a lot. I appreciate the inclusion of some great jazz tracks. The 60’s was the last decade when jazz still entered the popular mainstream. But, only one Sam and Dave hit and a couple of James Brown represent the great Atlantic R & B catalog. Where is Wilson Pickett?, where are the Coasters? In addition, Sinatra was still recording in the 60’s, some of his best work. How about Streisand? Lou Rawls? Not to mention that they left off the entire “San Francisco Sound” of the late 60’s. How can you leave any of those off, and include “The Association”? I find it an interesting list, but hardly representative of the music of the 60’s.
Big Momma:
You get the picture. I onced liked Rap when it was clean. Curtis Blow, Sugar Hill Gang, Run DMC, and a few others, but then it changed; and I don’t care for it at all. With that said, the sixties music is without equal.
There are so many great songs from the 60s. The Beatles had great songs like All Too Much, Yes,It Is, Something, I’m So Tired, I Am The Walrus, etc. I like r and b songs like What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted, Your Love Takes Me Higher, My Girl, etc. I like the Buckinghams “Kind Of A Drag”. I like early 60s songs like “Stand By Me”. The Hollies “Bus Stop” is very catchy. “Sounds of Silence” is one song that really represented the mid-60s. Then the 60s ended with Chicago Transit Authority’s First Album. This was one of the great rock-jazz albums. I like that Who tune “I Can See For Miles”. It should have gone number one.
any artist that his name begains with (B):
BEATLES
BEACH BOYS
BOB DYLAN
>>>> THEY RULES !!!!
Yes, The Beatles are the best band of the sixties, but Hey Jude is far too overrated. Better alternatives are Penny Lane, Hello Goodbye and even Eleanor Rigby is better.
I am looking for a song called something like Quiet Nights, but had little birds chirping in the background with orchestra, or strings. It was very romantic and I just can’t think of the correct name. Help please. Thankyou—it was from the 60’s and 70’s