It's time for instalment n°129 of the Classics Chart, where YOU get to nominate and vote for the best songs ever in a tournament to the death ! Only the cream of the crop will go through the grueling EIGHT weeks of charting.
Nominations will follow the rules below
- only one of the first top 1000 AM songs can be nominated each week.
- A maximum of six of the top AM 1001-10000 songs can be nominated each week.
- that leaves a minimum of 3 places each week reserved for un-acclaimed songs (if you want more than 3, the fourth + unranked song will take the spot of a second tier one)
- No ranked song can be nominated twice. Ever.
The top 10 songs by votes (then by most recent nominations) will move on to the next week. In case of equal votes and starting weeks, more songs can advance to the next week. The 10 (or less) new nominations will be added to the pool for the next contest. In case there are less than 20 songs to compete, a randomised song from the 10000 AM songs will be added.
After 8 weeks in the top 10, the song will move to the Hall of Fame.
129 votes last week (+13)
Here Comes Your Pixies at the top of their game.
3 new entries - Nirvana / The Stone Roses / Nina Simone
Kicked out this week : Neutral Milk Hotel / Garbage
Talking Heads reach the Hall of Fame.
Built around an unforgettably simplistic guitar riff, Here Comes Your Man is a sunny track that sits somewhere between The Beach Boys, The Beatles and The Kinks. In fact, the strummed open chord at the very beginning of the song is strikingly similar to that heard at the start of A Hard Day's Night.
Framed by easy going, lush acoustic guitars, the song is backed by a very danceable beat and the playful jangling of a tambourine. Vocally, Francis gives one of his best performances on this track. The inclusion of Kim Deal's carefree voice gives the song a unique feel, creating a fun male/female duet at times. Santiago contributes cheeky, squeaky clean guitar breaks which add to the track's catchiness.
Black Francis wrote Here Comes Your Man when he was around the age of 15, which gives the song a sweet naivety. Initially, it was recorded for the band's demo tape in 1987, but never made it onto the early albums. Reportedly, Francis was embarrassed about the song, but in 1989 producer Gil Norton heard the demo and liked it so much that he insisted it appear on the Doolittle LP. The result is one of the most light hearted and welcoming Pixies songs ever committed to tape.
Lyrically, Here Comes Your Man could, upon first listen, be taken as a simple relationship-based song. However, Francis claims that the lyrics were written about Californian earthquakes. Lines such as, "Big shake on the box car moving, big shake to the land that's falling down," conjure imagery of natural destruction. Juxtaposed with the upbeat nature of the track, there is something quite comical and absurd about the way Francis chooses to address the topic of uncontrollable loss.
The amount of happiness and joy that Here Comes Your Man brings to the listener is far more overwhelming than an Act of God. Ultimately, the Pixies save the day, with the listener emerging triumphant and smiling!
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
— MK
The Pixies are one of those bands that manage to appeal to an extremely diverse cross section of society. As time passes, they claim an even greater entitlement to their reputation as one of the coolest American indie/alternative bands in history. Referenced openly by contemporary acts such as Placebo and Nirvana, and featured in the soundtracks to groundbreaking films such as Fight Club, this Boston band formed in Massachusetts in 1986. Members Black Francis, Joey Santiago, Kim Deal, and David Lovering succumbed to a spiraling demise of post 80s excess in 1993. The group disbanded for a time, before reuniting in 2004.
Here Comes Your Man (Lyrics)
Outside there's a box car waiting
Outside the family stew
Out by the fire breathing
Outside we wait 'til face turns blue
I know the nervous walking
I know the dirty beard hangs
Out by the box car waiting
Take me away to nowhere plains
There is a wait so long
(So long, so long)
You'll never wait so long
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Big shake on the box car moving
Big shake to the land that's falling down
Is a wind makes a palm stop blowing
A big, big stone fall and break my crown
There is a wait so long
(So long, so long)
You'll never wait so long
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah
There is a wait so long
(So long, so long)
You'll never wait so long
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man....
Listen to all 20 songs and enjoy voting for your favorite 10 songs... You can change your mind until the end of the 7 day period.
The AMF WC Classics Hall of Fame playlist :
Top Chart (number of weeks as n°1)
Nirvana - The Man Who Sold The World (1)
Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come (6)
Portishead - Wandering Star (1)
The Velvet Underground & Nico - Sunday Morning (8)
Radiohead - No Surprises (1)
Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five (2)
Fleetwood Mac - The Chain (3)
Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime (1)
Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah (4)
Talking Heads - This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) (2)
Depeche Mode - Never Let Me Down Again (1)
The Cowboy Junkies - Sweet Jane (1)
Pixies - Here Comes Your Man (1)