New Order - world in motion, 1990

"World in Motion..." is the nineteenth single by British band New Order (performed with the England national football team, credited as ENGLANDneworder). The song is New Order's only number-one song on the UK Singles Chart. It was produced for the England national football team's 1990 FIFA World Cup campaign and features a guest rap by England footballer John Barnes and additional vocals by several members of the English team of 1990 and comedian Keith Allen, who co-wrote the lyrics. Singer Bernard Sumner described the single to NME as "the last straw for Joy Division fans", noting how its upbeat sound had inverted their former band's famously gloomy image. The song was originally to be called "E for England", with lyrics that ran "E is for England, England starts with E / We'll all be smiling when we're in Italy", but the Football Association vetoed the title, realising that it sounded suspiciously like a reference to the drug ecstasy."

Boygenius - true blue, 2023

"True Blue" employs lyrical minimalism, using everyday imagery to express complex emotions. References to worn-out t-shirts or empty bench seats add a nostalgic edge, while the refrain's plea for acceptance transforms into a poignant acknowledgment of an irreconcilable past and present."

America - three roses, 1972

"The album went to the top of Billboard's album chart in the United States and stayed there for five weeks. It produced two hit singles, with "A Horse with No Name" which spent three weeks on top of the Billboard singles chart in 1972, and "I Need You" hit the ninth position on the Billboard singles chart.[5] Several other songs received radio airplay on FM stations, including "Sandman" and "Three Roses". The album was certified platinum by the RIAA for sales in excess of one million units in the United States."

The Rolling Stones - ruby tuesday, 1967

"It's just a nice melody, really. And a lovely lyric. Neither of which I wrote, but I always enjoy singing it."

Saint Etienne - shoot out the lights, 2001

"Music is foregrounded here, and almost all of it comes from two male pop intellectuals languidly manipulating synths and samplers."

The Beatles - hold me tight, 1963

"Hold Me Tight" was composed principally by Paul McCartney in 1961, and was part of the Beatles' stage act until 1963. They attempted to record it for their debut Please Please Me but the 13 takes recorded were deemed unsatisfactory, and the tape was destroyed. Seven months later, they recorded a further nine takes, and the final version is an edit of the sixth and ninth takes from the second attempt, varispeeded up a semitone to F major."

Pink Floyd - echoes segment one, 1970

"Echoes" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, and the sixth and last track on their 1971 album Meddle. It is 23+1⁄2 minutes long, the second longest of their discography, eight seconds shorter than Atom Heart Mother Suite, and takes up the entire second side of the original LP. The track evolved from a variety of different musical themes and ideas, including instrumental passages and studio effects, resulting in the side-long piece. The music, credited to all the band, was mainly written by Richard Wright and David Gilmour, while Roger Waters' lyrics addressed themes of human communication and empathy, to which he returned in later work."

Stars - the first five times, 2004

"When does a band shed its cult status to become a genuine mainstream contender? For Canada's Stars, it may be on a night like tonight, when queues and touts jostle outside the venue three hours before showtime, and the club is so sardine-packed that breathing in and out requires prior negotiation with your neighbour."

Neil Young - heart of gold, 1972

"The song, which features backup vocals by James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt, is one of a series of soft acoustic pieces which were written partly as a result of a back injury. Unable to stand for long periods of time, Young could not play his electric guitar and so returned to his acoustic guitar, which he could play sitting down. He also played his harmonica during the three instrumental portions, including the introduction to the song."

Moby - dream about me, 2005

"Dream About Me" is a song by American electronica musician Moby, released as the fourth single from his 2005 studio album Hotel. As the follow-up single to "Spiders", it was released in the UK on August 8, 2005, by Mute Records. Singer-songwriter and MoveOn cultural director Laura Dawn is featured on lead vocals alongside Moby himself."

The Flaming Lips - placebo headwound, 1995

"I was not really familiar with The Flaming Lips until all the hullabaloo surrounding 1999’s The Soft Bulletin and that moment I listened, speechless, to ‘Race For The Prize’. But signs of greatness were there before. Quickly catching up with their back catalogue, as you do, it was evident the album had built on the inspirational psychedelia of Clouds Taste Metallic. The opening track ‘The Abandoned Hospital Ship’ would not sound out of place on The Soft Bulletin. But, as so often is the case on a long player, the real highlight is track 3, ‘Placebo Headwound’. The acoustic guitar, the full bass, the chaotic backdrop and Wayne Coyne’s evident fascination with noggin trauma."

James - surprise, 1999

"Surprise is track nine on the 1999 James album Millionaires. It was one of the first Millionaires tracks to be played live, debuted at Oxford and Glastonbury in June 1998. The track is about a friend of Tim’s who contemplated suicide and is intended as a message to prevent such thoughts."

Beirut - port of call, 2011

"'Port of Call' sums up best the conflict in living up to others' hopes for you, and the pressure that in itself brings: "May you have hope for me now/I danced all around it somehow".

Of Monsters And Men - slow and steady, 2011

"Of Monsters and Men formed through the collaboration of singers Nana Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir and Ragnar Þórhallsson in 2010. Within a year of its inception, Of Monsters and Men had both secured a slot in and won Iceland’s national battle of the bands, Músiktilraunir. Around this time Seattle radio station KEXP caught wind of the group and released a video of the group performing the song “Little Talks” acoustically. Of Monsters and Men had a foothold in the U.S."

Pet Shop Boys - girls don't cry, 2006

"The song is a story about a girl who I think is maybe a lesbian, but actually we don't know what's happened really. She's running away. She's possibly killed her boyfriend, she's possibly leaving town because they've discovered she's having a lesbian affair, she's possibly pregnant and her boyfriend's rejected her. We just don't know…."

Camel - the snow goose, 1975

"When in the early seventies progressive rock really started to rise on the wings of its most successful advocates, among which were Genesis, Yes, Pink Floyd, and Emerson Lake & Palmer, it was only natural for other, new bands to try to make a name for themselves in the wake of their big time contemporaries. One of those bands, formed in 1972 in Surrey in England, had released two albums by 1974, which hadn't attracted a lot of attention. Not giving up, they sat down to create their third album and it was this album that propelled them into international fame. The band was Camel and the album was The Snow Goose."

Del Amitri - breaking bread, 1985

"Del Amitri was one of those mid-'80s bands that were constantly on my stereo and those countless hours of exposure mean Justin Currie's voice is instantly recognizable to my ears. The thing is I probably hadn't listened to a Del Amitri in a decade ... My loss."

The Postmarks - slaughter on tenth avenue cover, 2008

"The array of songs the group has chosen to cover is quite eclectic and far reaching. Aside from the above noted artists, they hash out new versions of tunes by championed artists like David Bowie, The Ramones, The Ventures, Blondie, and Jesus and Mary Chain. Not a small feat. Not small at all."

Paul McCartney - magic, 2001

"This is about meeting Linda – ‘it must have been magic the night that we met’. I met Linda in a club and I always thought years after, particularly after she died, that if I hadn’t stood up that night in a club we might never have met again. It was something I never normally did; I wouldn’t normally stand up as someone was about to leave and say ‘Er, excuse me, hello…’ I didn’t do that. It was a bit embarrassing for a young guy to do that. I didn’t normally do that but it was just one of those things that I felt I just had to do that night – ‘Hi, um, I’m Paul, who are you?’ And she sort of smiled and said ‘Linda’. I said ‘Er, we’re going onto another club. Are you going home? Shall we meet up at this other club?’ We were in the Bag O’Nails and we said we’d meet up in the Speakeasy. Which we did. So ‘Magic’ is a song about that; it must have been some sort of magic that made me do that. Because if I hadn’t done that I might not have met her again."

Travis - follow the light, 2001

"This was the last song to be added to the tracklisting of The Invisible Band. It began life in February 2001 just before I went to LA write. The melody came first and was memorable within one listen. The tempo was sluggish and the verse was totally different from what it turned into. What it turned into didn't happen until we were in the studio. The chorus melody began with the words,"But its alright..." but I couldn't seem to get the words to the rest of the chorus. It wasn't until I stumbled upon an interesting melody one night when I stayed behind in Ocean Way that flowed really well into the chorus that began " But it's alright.." The tempo was alot more up than the chorus melody had been originally but as soon as I put the new verse with the older chorus the lyrics started to come. The hook line started out as ... " But its alright, just shadows and light.." but neil said there was a Joni album by the same name so it changed to, "...But its alright, you're travelling light..." and then became " ... Follow the light.." and then that was that. The lyric in the chorus dictated what the verse was about, just how, when you don't know what you're doing or where you're going you've just got to follow that light. The light being whatever you want it to be."

realidade virtual

"What's "reality" anyway? Just another virtuality, plus pain"

The Go-Betweens - love goes on, 1988

"Love Goes On" is a song by the Australian indie rock group The Go-Betweens, issued as the third and final single from their 1988 album 16 Lovers Lane. The song was released in January 1989 by Beggars Banquet Records in the UK, with "Clouds" as the B-side. "Love Goes On" was the last single issued by the band before their split in December 1989."

Marillion - heart of lothian, 1985

"Heart of Lothian" is a song by British neo-prog band Marillion. It is the fifth track on the 1985 concept album Misplaced Childhood. The song was released as the third single from Misplaced Childhood on 18 November 1985 in the UK, the Netherlands, West Germany, Canada (on Capitol Records), South Africa and Australia. "Heart of Lothian" became the third Top 30 UK single from Misplaced Childhood, peaking at number 29. The song also peaked at number 51 on the German singles chart."