What does it take to get desis moving?
Well, in the pubs I frequent, it could be any one of four songs; until any one of these songs is played, we’re all there, staring into our drinks and minding our own business, or talking to other members of our group. But when the song begins, we feel this incredible urge to join in – even if we only know the refrain. Some may even want to make a few moves, and there’s a lot of foot-stompin’, clapping, shaking and a horribly out-of-tune chorus that invariably accompanies these songs.
And it’s always one of these four songs:
I personally don’t rate any one of these songs very highly.
Take Another Brick in the Wall. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why this song is preferred to other fantastic songs in the same album – Mother, Goodbye Blue Sky and Comfortably Numb among them. But everyone, without exception, perks up when this number is played, and starts mouthing the lyrics.
Similarly with I Want to Break Fee. Many other brilliant songs to choose from – Don’t Stop Me Now, It’s a Hard Life, Bohemian Rhapsody, We are the Champions, Man on the Prowl – and this is the song that brings the house down.
Money for Nothing has to be the worst song ever from the Dire Straits stable. Brothers in Arms wins top honours in that particular album – though Why Worry and So Far Away are also very good. OK, so they’re not exactly pub songs, but what’s wrong with Walk of Life? And if I have to go across albums, why not Sultans of Swing, or even something like Heavy Fuel? And let’s not even talk Shakespeare or go down the Telegraph Road.
I have saved the Doors for last because I always seem to rub people the wrong way when I tell them that, in my humble opinion, this is the most overrated band in history. And they still managed to come up with songs better than Roadhouse Blues. So, if someone must play the Doors, play another number instead! How about Light My Fire?
What do you think? Do you have a list of songs that you are absolutely sick and tired of hearing?
August 21, 2009 at 3:43 pm
You forgot Hotel California!!
August 21, 2009 at 3:52 pm
Another Brick in the Wall , rocks ! Though that is not the extent of Floyd . Comfortably numb is so hauntingly beautiful . Have you heard the cover by Marilyn Mansion ? I like that one as well .
Queen does have better songs than “I want to break free” . Haven’t heard a lot of it though .
Roadhouse blues is good , but I Riders on the storm and Light my fire are even better . What about the Alabama Song ?
But what about Maiden and Metallica ?
And have you heard RiverSide ? You should listen to Second Life Syndrome , it is good .
August 21, 2009 at 4:21 pm
Will never tire of classic rock! Ever!
What I am sick of hearing is Britney, Beyonce’s HALO and that Miley Cyrus candy syrup songs
August 21, 2009 at 6:26 pm
Actually, I’m too much of a desi to like any of these songs… A few times whn I’ve gone to the clubs here, the only firang songs that play these days are AKON or ‘My dream is to fly’ which lights everybody up 🙂
But yeah, I like Hotel California! I hope I’m just normal 🙂
August 21, 2009 at 8:21 pm
oh i m sick of hearing Brazil!
August 23, 2009 at 10:02 am
Brazil??? Does that song still exist?
August 21, 2009 at 9:17 pm
QI:
You need to hang out with different people. As for your various questions:
1. Another Brick In The Wall is _not_ a song. It is part of extant piece of music. I don’t see who, except the most uncouth people, think it is a dance number though. In general I find it difficult to understand why people in Bangalore insist on calling Roger Waters’s son et lumiere show a “Pink Floyd concert”. There is no Pink Floyd and I am afraid David Gilmour has made some good music on that small island of his, post-Floyd. And he has aged better, much better than Waters.
2. May be they never heard Radio GaGa, the song that made Britain forgive Freddie & Co for performing in apartheid-stricken S Africa.
3. Walk of Life probably reminds people of their simian ancestors; Sultans of Swing is _not_ a dance number (nor is Water Of Love; if you mention Twisting By The Pool then we are talking but I am certain most people haven’t heard of the song!) Why do you pick Heavy Fuel? Haven’t you heard My Parties on the same album? Oh and I have seen grey-haired, seasoned Knopfler fans get impatient and clap at the wrong points in the long riff in Telegraph Road. Safe to say it is _not_ a dance number either. Oh and he brings his entire repertoire of guitars with him on stage (yes, seen him live 5 times in the last few years; he now plays with his reading glasses on).
4. As for Doors, well I agree it is an over-rated band, usually swung to by those who have never done drugs but have a bizarre fantasy of a life that comes after doing drugs. Never mind the age at which Morrison died. But seriously, Light My Fire over Break On Through? I mean at least the latter is over quickly, isn’t it? 😉
August 21, 2009 at 9:22 pm
QI:
Forgot to add: You know why people mouth words for Another Brick In The Wall? Because other lyrics are more complicated to remember and I have lost count of how many people mishear lyrics. 😉 Somebody has reported hearing “Let’s pee in the corner, let’s pee in the spotlight” on REM’s Losing My Religion.
Back to PF: Think Time. How many people can sing it entirely without any support from a CD? Or Us And Them? Or On The Turning Away? These are meaningful songs with outstanding melody but you can scarcely listen to or hum them without pondering what they mean. Too much introspection. So back to Brick In The Wall. Quelle ironie!
August 22, 2009 at 12:25 am
Apart from ‘I want to break free’, I don’t want to hear ‘Summer of ’69’ and ’18 Till I Die’. Thank God the DJs lost the sound track of Macarena!
August 22, 2009 at 7:54 am
These songs still get young desis moving? They used to get us moving in the early 90s…
I love these songs…
August 22, 2009 at 3:20 pm
I have seen people dancing with Richard Marx’s Hazard..
August 22, 2009 at 6:08 pm
I don’t know a thing about Firang songs..unless you can include Nursery Rhymes in the list. Or Boney M. Other than that, my knowledge in this (as in most other subjects) is zero!!
August 22, 2009 at 7:00 pm
I guess we just get hooked to some songs, not necessarily very nice 🙂
Add Cocaine (Eric Clapton) to the list! I don’t mind ‘We will rock you’ by Queen though…
August 23, 2009 at 9:22 am
good one 😛 but I actually love the first song in the list…………
suits my “Ordinary Guy” status 😛
I am sick and tired of hearing “another day in paradise” even though it does not come in the same genre…………..
August 23, 2009 at 12:20 pm
QI,
Pink Floyd is magic and no stain on their name…
August 23, 2009 at 12:27 pm
QI,
Pink Floyd is magic and no stain on their name…
… A legend…
August 24, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Summer of 69?
August 25, 2009 at 1:58 am
Comfortably Numb is something I would rate very high… Highest amongst all the ones you mentioned.
Tired of? Oh yes, there are gazillion such: On top of head, ‘We will rock you’, ‘Hotel California’, of course ‘Breakfree’. I get peeved to an extent when I hear ‘Nothing else matters’ as well but I get more peeved when someone shouts Once more and the Dj does the needful.
August 25, 2009 at 5:43 pm
Yeah, I tend to agree with Shefaly that songs with easy to remember lyrics are sometimes the most ‘popular’
Personal favourites of mine across all these bands are hardly played at any of these popular hotspots.
August 27, 2009 at 6:12 pm
You are complaining about Pink Floyd and Doors being played? I would kiss the store manager if they played these songs in the shops these days.
When you walk into a Barista or any retail store IN 2009 you hear Enrique, Backstreet Boys and Dr Fucking Alban! IN 2009!!
http://www.flyyoufools.com/store-music-sucks
I pray people would play more Floyd. I am sick of listening to “backstreet’s back!” Alright?
September 1, 2009 at 5:30 pm
I swear I will chew off my own fingers so that I will have something to stuff into my ears the next time i hear “Barbie Girl” by Aqua. It is such a facourite at kid’s parties, I wonder if folks have actually bothered to listen to the lyrics which are totally unsuitable for kids, btw.
September 2, 2009 at 9:28 am
🙂
You took me back ages. Let me just resist my opinions on those numbers and just revel in good memories…
Roadhouse Blues had a “cousin”, and I can’t recollect that number – not the same band (in fact I wonder if there was any common thread at all…but they were cousins nevertheless.) Damn, what was it?! 😦
g
PS: Thanks for bringing this up 🙂
September 2, 2009 at 1:47 pm
i’ve come to realize that disturbingly, ganpati bhakts like vengaboys. that is, if the playlist during visarjan is anything to go by.
September 3, 2009 at 3:42 am
The list you compiled, none of these are standard DJ fare. Yes, in Calcutta (where I live) most band gigs would cover these songs, true enough. DJs are fonder of Shakira n bubble-gum pop. Lets just say they tend to play safe. Anyway, on the dance floor, the songs I am sick of are:
1) Gasolina (never did like it much)
2) Anything to do with Britney Spears
3) Anything remotely resembling music (for lack of a polite term) by Vengaboys.
Yeah, I pretty much hate everyone and everything, I’m not fond of DJ business anyway.
September 3, 2009 at 3:44 am
PS: Bryan Adams too.
September 3, 2009 at 11:12 am
I assume you already know this, but the lead singer of Queen (Freddie Mercury) was of Indian descent, Parsi – and was born “Farrokh Bulsara” so maybe you’re not too desi to like ’em after all!
September 6, 2009 at 12:36 am
Anything from the classic rock era makes my day. Floyd is more than a band to me, a philosophy, a way of life. Wall is something very special with Comfortably Numb, Mother, Hey You standing out. But some of the very good songs are from the Division Bell album that was post Water era (Lost for words, Coming back to life, High hopes)
Also the songs from DSOTM, Animals, Wish you were here are class apart too. Not sure why these songs are never played.
Dire Straits had some great songs too. If you leave out Money for nothing, there are lot many – Sultans of swing, Telegraph road, Walk of Life, Heavy fuel, So far away, tunnel of love, the bug, ride across the river or even romeo and juliet and few of Knopfler’s solo works (What it is, etc)
As for Doors, I agree that they end up playing Roadhouse blues and never play riders of the storm or light my fire.
People now a days talk only about the nu-metal, thrash metal stuff or kid rock stuff like Linkin Park,etc. Nobody talks about the legends – The Purples, the Zeppelins, AC/DC, Dire Straits, Black Sabbath, et. al.
Aah, and I am sick of people playing all that rap crap, remixes and pop stuff. All those – backstreet boys, enrique, britney, christina augilera, shakira and the related stuff. Such music makes me sick. Try listening to the “back in black” cover by Shakira (I saw it once on you tube) and you’ll puke for sure.
I was in Hyderabad once and tried a pub named Outswinger. Would you believe, they played Iron Maiden followed by some Punjabi stuff and people danced like weirdos. That was the end of the story for me.
September 8, 2009 at 10:39 am
You must go to some pubs with half-decent music.
From my experience, it’s the more upbeat, dance pop stuff that gets Indians going. People have even turned 10 year old eurodance rubbish like the venga boys and aqua into classics.
September 8, 2009 at 5:40 pm
@Anita: I did, indeed! 🙂
@Kislay: I am a huge Maiden fan. Like Metallica too. And the point of this post was that there are so many better songs….why do people like these ones? I personally can’t stand any one of them!
@YehHaiLife: Classic Rock (a genre that has very diverse songs) is great. But as far as I am concerned, these songs are the pits! And I haven’t ever heard Britney, Miley or Beyonce. I saw her in that awful Pink Panther film, though.
@Rakesh: I have no idea who AKON is….I guess I’m not normal!
@Reema: I haven’t heard that song in years! Shukra hain!
@Shefaly: Ha ha….no, I am a Floyd, Straits and Queen fan myself. I can’t stand these particular numbers, though. And these are the only places I can hang out in and retain some sanity, as there is some consolation in at least recognising the numbers. Most places, I have no effing clue what’s playing… As for your specific points on the numbers:
1. Another Brick is listed in the CDs as a separate track…and yes, it’s not a dance number by any stretch of the imagination. But you try telling the hordes of Indians who start moving to this number every time it is played! And Dark Side of the Moon has some phenomenal numbers….apart from the ones you mention, I am awed every single time I listen to Great Gig. As for contemplation, have you heard Echoes?
2. They haven’t heard Radio GaGa, or any of the other songs I mentioned. For them, Queen is synonymous with Break Free. Sad, as they have some brilliant songs.
3. Hmmm…I just understood why I like Walk of Life….it appeals to my simian sensibilities! 🙂 You’re right about Twisting by the Pool….it’s a good number that completely slipped my mind. My Parties is another fabulous song – I love the laconic lyrics – but is just not a dance number, in the same way that Sultans isn’t.
I think Telegraph Road is brilliant, as is Romeo and Juliet. I love the Alchemy versions…..
4. The Doors – don’t really like them. And the only song that I find half-way tolerable is Light My Fire. Not Break on Through!
@D: Bryan Adams – can’t stand the guy. Another Indian hot favourite….
@Bones:They have been overplayed…seriously.
@Manish: Who? What? 🙂
@Pal: 🙂 Well, you could try listening to some of these bands. Most numbers are quite good.Definitely better than Boney M.
@IHM: I forgot about Cocaine….yes, definitely part of the list!
@OG: At least we know from your nightclub posts you’re not the dancing types.;-)
@Francois: I like Pink Floyd….but not that number!
@Which Main? What Cross?: Absolutely. The entire Bryan Adams collection.
September 8, 2009 at 6:07 pm
@Vee: Comfortably Numb is good. But not sure if it’s the best. In agreement about the other ones!
@Mannina Maga: Yes, there is a strong correlation between the popularity of the song and the ‘simplicity’ of the lyrics. 🙂
@Flyyoufools: Regardless of how much one likes Floyd, Another Brick is a disaster. On the other hand, I manage to avoid places that play the Backstreet Boys, so I guess I am lucky.
@Dreamer: Welcome and thanks for the comment. Barbie Girl at kid’s parties? Wow!
@Gauri: I am sure you have a list of similar songs…so what are they? And you’ve made me curious….which ‘cousin’ is this? Have you managed to remember the name of the song?
@Sonaljhuj: The Vengaboys…another addition to the list. And these mandals love to take popular tunes and write bhajans to those tunes.
@Saurabh: Calcutta always had a better music scene than the other cities….Bangalore has some good music these days. I am in complete agreement with your list.
@GoriGirl: Oh yes, his Indian connections have been bandied about for a while now. But Queen’s one of my favourite bands….and Break Free is near the top of my hate list as far as songs go. That’s the irony.
@Nischaya: I love Purple, Led Zep, Rainbow, Sabbath, Whitesnake, AC-DC and the lot….those were the days. It’s all Crap now.
@Indian: Believe you me, these are the pubs that play half-decent music. The other places play some strange stuff kids call music!
September 13, 2009 at 11:34 pm
I’ll tell you what gets me going – Living on Prayer! And Hotel California!
December 23, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Great post/topic and nice additions via comments.
My contributions (hopefully no repeats):
– “Wind of Change” by Scorpions. Still can’t figure out why this one by the Scorpions was so exceedingly popular. Maybe desis have a thing for (sadly) power ballads!
– And that friggin’ “Alice, Who the f*** is Alice?” song. I admit it was funny once. But, man did they overkill it or what at college festivals and such!? Wouldn’t be surprised if its still being played in some college in India somewhere.
February 5, 2010 at 1:16 pm
Hi ,
Atleast you live somewhere ,where going to a pub is an option. Unfortunates like self and spouse have to grin and bear the likes of “Kajrare”(played at different bpm,20 times over,the first time I heard it) the moment someone says “ladies and gentlemen, the dance floor is open” at ANY party. The only firang songs barely tolerated at said parties are the Shakira/Beyonce/Britney spears kind.
So , much as I love Sultans of Swing, I’d jump for joy IF I heard ANY of these four songs IF I ever went to a pub !