Worst hit songs

The Beatles?
 
 
I keed I keed.

KahMahn - Jack Brittledick

OK, so I'm 'that guy' for downloading a wikipedia page into a forum post.
Sue me! It's the price you pay for becoming educated.
 
You Freudian types with post-midlife-crisis libidoes might want to skip immediately to the "Controversies" section . . . and those of you who like to poke fun at the mind-scrambledness of psychadelic songwriters won't want to miss where she explains her "inspiration" for the song. Too good!
 
 
Brand New KeyFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
 
"Brand New Key"Single by Melaniefrom the album Gather MeReleasedOctober 1971GenreFolk, popLength2:26LabelNeighborhoodProducer(s)Peter SchekerykCertificationGold"Brand New Key" is a pop song written and sung by folk music singer Melanie (Melanie Safka-Schekeryk), which became a novelty success during 1971–72. Initially a track of Melanie's album Gather Me, it was known also as "The Rollerskate Song" due to its chorus. It was her greatest success, scoring No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart during December 1971 and January 1972. Billboard ranked it as the No. 9 song of 1972.[1] It also scored No. 1 in Canada and Australia and No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart. Melanie's version of the song was featured in the 1997 movie Boogie Nights as well as the 2010 movie Jackass 3D and an episode of Helix.
The single was produced by Melanie's husband, Peter Schekeryk.
 

Overview[edit]

The song is sung from the viewpoint of a girl with roller skates trying to attract the attention of a boy:
I got a brand new pair of roller skates,You got a brand new key.I think that we should get together and try them out, to see ...The roller skates in question would have been old-style children's quad skates, which were clamped to the soles of ordinary leather-soled shoes. The clamps were tightened with a special "key" that was basically a very simple socket wrench. If the key was lost or misplaced, a pair of pliers (preferably needle-nosed) or other tool could usually substitute, though at some inconvenience. Although the lyrics claim that the roller skates are "brand new", the girl has presumably either lost her key, or the boy of the song is now in possession of it, the key being "brand new" as well:
I roller skated to your door at daylight [...]I'm okay alone, but you got something I need.In an interview with rock music journalist Ray Shasho on July 22, 2013, Melanie described what she claimed was the inspiration of "Brand New Key": "I was fasting with a 27-day fast on water. I broke the fast and went back to my life living in New Jersey and we were going to a flea market around six in the morning. On the way back …and I had just broken the fast, from the flea market, we passed a McDonald's and the aroma hit me, and I had been a vegetarian before the fast. So we pulled into the McDonald's and I got the whole works … the burger, the shake, and the fries … and no sooner after I finished that last bite of my burger …that song was in my head. The aroma brought back memories of roller skating and learning to ride a bike and the vision of my dad holding the back fender of the tire. And me saying to my dad …“You’re holding, you’re holding, you’re holding, right? Then I’d look back and he wasn’t holding and I’d fall. So that whole thing came back to me and came out in this song."[2]

Controversy[edit]

Many listeners detect sexual innuendo in the lyrics, with the key in its lock thought to symbolize sexual intercourse, or in phrases such as "I go pretty far" and "I've been all around the world".
Melanie has acknowledged the possibility of detecting sexual innuendo in the song, without confirming or denying the intent:
“"Brand New Key" I wrote in about fifteen minutes one night. I thought it was cute; a kind of old thirties tune. I guess a key and a lock have always been Freudian symbols, and pretty obvious ones at that. There was no deep serious expression behind the song, but people read things into it. They made up incredible stories as to what the lyrics said and what the song meant. In some places, it was even banned from the radio.My idea about songs is that once you write them, you have very little say in their life afterward. It's a lot like having a baby. You conceive a song, deliver it, and then give it as good a start as you can. After that, it's on its own. People will take it any way they want to take it.[3]

Do you really want to hurt me - Boy George
 
 
nuff said....

This one is easy!  Friday by Rebecca Black.
 

Walk of life. When that comes on in the grocery store my hands grip the cart just a little tighter.
 
 
 
 

My old cover band played "Walk of Life" in the '90's. I was in charge of the cheesy organ riff. Whenever it came on, boom! the dance floor filled.
 
Go frickin' figure.
 
I still like everything ELSE that knopfler and Dire Straits ever did.
 
 

Wow, I like both Walk of Life and Too Shy.  Oh well, different strokes I guess... 

Leadfoot
I remember when Wham first hit the scene with "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go." I thought it was the stupidest song I ever heard. Then shortly after I started seeing all kinds of people in my high school wearing "Choose Life" sweatshirts. It was a mystery to me why this band was such a hit. Still is...

I love the waky me up song. It is soo joyful and positive and simply good melodies. My dream would BE to write sumthin as good.

Ok, mine is going to be completely unpopular from most of your perspectives.  Most of you will like this one I'm going to list.
 
"Old Man Down the Road" - John Fogherty
 
can't stand it even now just thinking about it to write it here! "he got da hiiiiii deee hiiiii deee hoooo!"
 
WT heck???
 

Hi,
 
 
In the odd place ... Ralph Lundsten ... has an album where one robot is asking a robot out ... to his place for a drink during a dance. It is funny, if not silly! Another band "Supersister" did an Alvin satire that was funny, and this time they were stoned!
 
I can dig it out if anyone wants it badly.
 
Other than that ... The Clams -- "Close to You" ... or .... (don't know the band) ... let's take a trip down whittier boulevard! ... with Bapu on bass?  The Clams song has a "history"!
 
Amon Duul 2 does not fit here, since they were not interested in hit songs! And Renate would have given you a lashing and then some Net!

A couple BIG hits just came to me that surprised me. These selections will not win me any fans because they are works by very popular artists:
 
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" Nirvana. At the time, I just never understood why anybody liked this song. I guess I was just getting too old for this style of song. In retrospect, it was a change in musical style and a new upcoming generation looking for their own identities instead of having to like what my generation offered. Funny thing, as time has progressed I kind of learned to like this song. It is very raw and emotional which gives it that something.
 
"All I Wanna Do" Sheryl Crow.  A mediocre song at best (I thought). Went on to become the 1995 Grammy Song of the Year. Who wooda figured. A somewhat catchy tune but blasé. I never figured it to go on to attain what it did. Maybe a bad year for new songs perhaps?

bitman
Walk of life. When that comes on in the grocery store my hands grip the cart just a little tighter.

Charlie Mann's accordion-driven version is much superior to the original, has a really upbeat feel to it. Possibly helped by Mann, according to an interview with him, not really understanding what on earth the song was trying to say.

I liked the original single version of "Sultans of Swing", which was released some time before the album and in the UK only John Peel was playing it. The album, including the reworked "Sultans" was a real disappointment.