Bee Gees - you win again, 1987

"When we get together and write, it's not like three individuals ― it's like one person in the room. Usually, we have a book of titles and we just pick one. I loved 'You Win Again' as a title, but we had no idea how it might turn out as a song. It ended up as a big demo in my garage, and I recorded stomps and things. There was just one drum on there. The rest was just sounds. Then, everybody tried to talk us out of the stomps at the start. They didn't want it. 'Take it off. Too loud! Can we have them not on the intro, just when the music starts?' All this stuff, but as soon as you hear that 'jabba-doomba, jabba-doomba' on the radio, you know it's us. It's a signal. So, that's one little secret ― give people an automatic identification of who it is."

Paul McCartney - through our love, 1983

"The string part contains a message in Morse code. The violins play the high notes in the intro, from start to 6 seconds, spelling out P-E-A-C-E."

The Flaming Lips - mr ambulance driver, 2005

"The Flaming Lips have the uncanny ability to create music that finally lets my life accept some kind of positivity. Even in a sadder song such as Mr.Ambulance Drive, I recognize the morbidness of the situation, but at the same time feel an inspirational power infuse my soul. As the lyrics amalgamate with the sounds I feel introspectivley energized and ready to finally crawl out from underground and embrace the beautiful blue sky. The Flaming Lips are a magical source of musical serenity."

Fleet Foxes - a sky like i've never seen, 2022

"I was inspired by how the film employed unconventional means to arrive at something universally moving, and was struck by all the collisions inherent in the film’s conceit—between species, between hemispheres, between individuals, between the psychological and the natural. In hotel rooms and in borrowed studios, on time stolen from a world tour, I put this song together. It was an honor to be asked to make a song that could serve as an end-cap to this unique and affecting story and to collaborate with Tim again."

Cat Stevens - wild world, 1970

"Wild World" is a song written and recorded by English singer-songwriter Cat Stevens. It first appeared on his fourth album, Tea for the Tillerman (1970). Released as a single in September 1970 by Island Records and A&M Records, "Wild World" saw significant commercial success, garnering attention for its themes of love and heartbreak, and has been covered numerous times since its release. Maxi Priest and Mr. Big had successful cover versions of the song, released in 1988 and 1993."

The Thrills - nothing changes around here, 2007

"Nothing Changes Around Here" is the first single taken from The Thrills' third album Teenager. The band sang the track live on the RTÉ One television show "Saturday Night With Miriam" on Saturday 14 July 2007."

Rádio Macau - amanhã é sempre longe demais, 1989

"Rádio Macau is a Portuguese pop rock band, formed in the early 1980's. Their greatest hit is "O Anzol", which was released as a single in 1988. The song is taken from their 1987 album, O Elevador da Glória. "O Anzol" was compared to the The Cure's "Just Like Heaven", released in October 1987."

The Beatles - hello goodbye, 1967

"The song originated when, in response to a question from Beatles aide Alistair Taylor about songwriting, McCartney sat down at a harmonium and asked Taylor to say the opposite of whatever he said. The completed song includes a musical coda, which was improvised by the Beatles when they were recording the track in October 1967. Unimpressed with the composition, Lennon pushed for "I Am the Walrus" to be the single's A-side, before reluctantly accepting that "Hello, Goodbye" was the more commercial-sounding of the two sides. The Beatles produced three promotional films for the song, one of which was shown on The Ed Sullivan Show in America. Due to the regulations against lip-syncing on British television, none of the clips were aired there."

Genesis - it, 1974

"it is that thing that gives something a true meaning. When you cook a very good dish, you've done it perfectly, with lot of effort, creativity, mojo, that dish has it, you've done it. Or when you do an excelent task at work, with lots of dedication, it has it. The lamb has it. The lyrics talk about a lot of things that have it."

William Fitzsimmons - futile devices cover, 2022

"Some of the songs remind me of my childhood. Some of the songs are low-key messages to individuals from my past—and they’re not necessarily positive. Some of the songs are just pure joy. Ultimately, they are all songs I love and respect from artists I think are incredible.”

Surf Rock Is Dead - show me the world, 2022

"Kevin Pariso and Joel Witenberg will tell you they don’t take themselves too seriously. Hence the name of their band, Surf Rock Is Dead (SRiD for short). This playfulness informs their music, a hybrid of surf rock, shoegaze, goth, and new wave, through which the duo meditates on the paradoxes of modern life."

The Beautiful South - from under the covers, 1989

"It's about somebody who stays in bed every morning, not so much because of laziness, but in order to cheat the capitalist system. Listen to an even better song Heaton wrote on this theme: 'We're Not Deep' by the Housemartins."

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - anymore, 2017

“Pains was a distinct moment in my life. I started the group when I first moved to New York and completed our last record, The Echo Of Pleasure, shortly before my daughter was born and I moved to Princeton, NJ. From that time forward, I never really felt the same – and the music I was creating didn’t feel the same either.”

Jens Lekman - your arms around me, 2007

"a perfect description of love, with the sweetness shining through in a time of distress, and urging you to look past the difficulties life offers and focus on the positive experiences"

The Radio Dept - falafel, 2002

"Taking their name from a petrol station come radio repair shop in Lund whose sign simply reads 'Radioavdelningen' (The Radio Department in Swedish, no less), Johan Duncanson and Martin Larsson founded the band a few years back and have added Kim Sjolander and Daniel Tjader to the band along the way.Already cherished in their home country, XL Recordings are now ready to unleash their quiet storm on the rest of the world. Their debut album, 'Lesser Matters', is a beautiful record which uses delicate songwriting and distorted white noise in equal measure. They are unlike anything else around, and the better for it, as anyone from Sweden will tell you."

Pet Shop Boys - the lost room, 2023

“It also seems to represent a sort of larger, philosophical or political point, where there’ve been times recently where the world feels a bit lost in terms of the direction it’s going in.”

Castlebeat - wish, 2022

"The end results of all of my albums so far have been like a home-made pie. Maybe a little rough here and there but at least you know that it’s all coming from one person. I don’t think a polished studio sound would suit my music style – I like to blur things with reverb & FX which I’ve found allow me to get away with some more poppy melodic ideas."

Marillion - chelsea monday, 1983

"The lyric idea was spun by seeing a number of people walking about Chelsea on a very, very early Monday morning. And it was these sort of actors that you don't know their names... And they were going down buying the morning Daily Expresses, it was a ritual, and they were looking at themselves in the window, as if to buy the paper was actually a take, it was part of some formal play they were in. It was also about young ladies, who often, sort of like me, live in their bedsit apartments, and they've got their Marks & Spencer's duvets and their collections of books and things. We put the two ideas together and confirmed that with the dreamers that you often get down in London that think that the paths are actually paved with gold. And we came up with this, again typical Marillion depressive vibe thing, where you've got the girl in the bedsit. She'd love to be an actress, but she's never got the guts to sort of make that jump from standard 9-5 into the great big world of entertainment industry."

Bee Gees - wish you were here, 1989

"Musically, the Bee Gees are known for their distinctive harmonies and emotive songwriting, which are both present in 'Wish You Were Here.' The song's melancholic tone is complemented by the music, creating an atmosphere that allows listeners to feel the weight of the narrator's emotions."

Pet Shop Boys - the resurrectionist, 2006

"The song takes its title from a darkly humorous nickname given to nineteenth-century graverobbers who supplied medical schools with cadavers: "resurrectionists". Neil's lyrics assume that same darkly humorous tone, reveling in perverse wordplay, including some rather macabre puns. For example, when two gentlemen in the same trade talk shop, the narrator notes, "We talked the same body language."