Author: wamdines

It’s 1974, and the members of Sweet are fed up. On paper their string of hits, including the previous year’s UK chart-topper Block Buster! and a run of No.2s (Hell Raiser, The Ballroom Blitz and Teenage Rampage) appears enviable, but the band are increasingly walled-in by a perception of them as just puppets of their songwriters Mike Chapman and Nicky Chin and producer Phil Wainman; indeed until Wig Wam Bam a couple of years earlier they’d had to battle to play on their own singles.

Having written the B-sides of those singles, Sweet were enjoying success as credible hard rockers in Germany, where their 1974 album Sweet Fanny Adams had briefly outsold Deep Purple’s Burn, but at home they remained viewed, as drummer Mick Tucker once put it so memorably, as “four dissipated old whores, mincing about on Top Of The Pops and churning out computerised pop”.

Tired of being fed inferior songs and tumbling down the pecking order on Chin and Chapman’s roster (which included Suzi Quatro and Mud), dissatisfaction boiled over as the songwriting pair, who were also Sweet’s managers, spent more and more time in California.

“They’d tried to pass us off with a couple of [sub-par] offerings, including Dyna-mite,” guitarist Andy Scott, remembers, referring to a song that Mud took into the top five, “but we needed something more in the vein of what we used to call ‘German marching songs’.”

The ditty that enabled Sweet to break free from ChinniChap (as the writers were known collectively) and also elude Wainman’s clutches already languished as an album track on Desolation Boulevard, the follow-up to Sweet Fanny Adams. Their record label, RCA, had recognised the potential of Fox On The Run, which, as Scott observes, “had been recorded [by Wainman] in the style of a live band”.

Although Sounds magazine later hailed Sweet Fanny Adams as “perhaps the finest collection of glam-metal mayhem ever laid down on vinyl”, the album – written mostly by the band – did not add to their tally of hits, so pressure was building.

“Just before Christmas [1974],” Scott recalls, “everybody just happened to be at my house when the managing director of RCA called to say: ‘We’re not getting the right answers from Mike and Nicky, but we really believe that Fox On The Run could be a hit’. And a week later we were in Ian Gillan’s studio, where nobody knew us; keeping things cloak and dagger was vital.”

Although the song is credited to the entire group, really it was Scott’s baby. The subject matter was an unspecified groupie, hence the couplet: ‘You talk about just every band/But the names you drop are second-hand’.

“Those lyrics were hastily written in the pub before recording the song for the album, hence the fact that it lacked a final verse,” Scott says, laughing. “We vowed that when we re-recorded it we would re-write the words, but never did.”

As a “budding producer”, Scott oversaw the session (but again the label said: ‘Produced by Sweet’). His primary goal was to sex up the track for radio. In the end, however, the guitarist actually added an element that would prove crucial: “The rest of the band had gone to the pub when I incorporated that pulse-type synthesiser sound at the start and stuck it onto the end as well,” he remembers. “Everyone loved it.”

RCA rush-released the reboot of Fox On The Run without bothering to notify Chinn and Chapman, who promptly jumped onto a plane back to England.

“Mike’s words: ‘Well, you’ve finally done it, haven’t you?’ were the best compliment anyone could have paid me,” a smiling Scott says now.

Subsequent albums would see Sweet relish their independence, and despite upping the hard rock quota the flow of hits continued for quite a while, although singer Brian Connolly’s growing alcoholism led to him being fired in 1979.

Fox On The Run has been covered by, among others, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Girlschool, Sweet Savage and the Scorpions (in German). Thanks also to exposure in films, Sweet’s singles are now enjoying a dramatic upturn in popularity. In 2016 The Ballroom Blitz featured in the film Suicide Squad, and Fox being even in just a trailer for Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 generated such a surge in online sales that it topped the iTunes Top 40 US Rock Song chart.

The original version of this feature appeared in Classic Rock in 2017.

In 2022 Manic Street Preachers frontman James Dean Bradfield told Prog he’d come late to the progressive music party – but after exploring Rush, Pink Floyd and Russian Circles, he discovered Man’s 11th album The Welsh Connection, and became a fan after having previously dismissed the band.

“For me prog starts with Rush, when I was about 17. [Manics bassist] Nicky Wire and his brother were already gigantic fans, and – like a lot of people coming late to them – my in was The Spirit Of Radio, the album Moving Pictures and songs like Limelight, where they were almost at an interface with The Police.

Pink Floyd’s Meddle had a little influence on our 1998 album This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours. I’m a big fan of Russian Circles, Chicago Transit Authority and John McLaughlin – especially on Mahavishnu Orchestra’s The Inner Mounting Flame.

And then there’s Man. I was working as a barman in the Newbridge Miners Institute in the 80s, and a version of Man played there. I remember it being a big deal. I’d bought Rhinos, Winos And Lunatics [1974] and liked some of the songs, but I wasn’t sure.

Then a couple of years later I was flicking through the racks at HMV and saw the cover of The Welsh Connection [1976]. I thought it was maybe a compilation of obscure Welsh bands; then realised it was by Man, so I thought I’d give them another go. I took it home, put it on, and bam!

This album’s definitely a slam-dunk lost classic. It was their 11th, so they were way down the line – they were never going to get any bigger at this point in historical terms, and they’d started steering away from the more blues-based stuff.

It was the first record for a new label so there was change in the air. They had John McKenzie on bass, and he and drummer Terry Williams locked into something nimble, nuanced and absolutely gorgeous.

The title track and Love Can Find A Way had lots of Steely Dan in it, big time, but The Welsh Connection came out a year before Aja, so that’s a bit of a coup for Man! The Ride And The View has more of a groovy, trippy, Little Feat vibe. And Something Is

Happening is so beautiful: at one point it’s like Herbie Hancock, so articulate and dextrous. The whole album was a departure for them. Man never quite hit the heights; I suppose they were almost too versatile. I like a lot of tracks from their other albums, but this is the one I put on and don’t take off.”

Ted Nugent will celebrate the 50th anniversary of his guitar anthem “Stranglehold” with a series of concerts in Michigan and Texas this spring and summer.

You can see Nugent’s current tour schedule below.

The Motor City Madman concluded his Adios Mofos farewell tour in 2023, but told UCR at the time that he would still perform live as long as he could avoid staying in hotels, which he likens to jails.

“My life revolves around my wife, my kids, my grandkids and my dogs,” he explained. “I will never leave home to do a tour now. I can do gigs, if I can hub out of my Michigan cabin, which could include Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan – and maybe eventually, Ontario again. But I’m never going to go on another ‘tour’ tour.” Nugent also owns a home in Texas, which should help with the April and May dates.

Read More: Ted Nugent Says Unreleased Damn Yankees Album Had ‘Great Moments’

In a 2024 interview, Nugent revealed that his label wanted to keep “Stranglehold” off his 1975 debut album, expressing concern over its eight-minute length and unconventional, guitar solo-heavy structure. “I said, ‘I love you guys, but that’s insane!,” recalled Nugent. “Since when is there a rule: ‘A song has to have a chorus’? It doesn’t have to have a chorus. It’s a movement, it’s a song. …By the way, we have a recording session that starts in one hour. Let’s go to the studio because I have a song to record. The first one’s gonna be fucking ‘Stranglehold.'”

Ted Nugent Launching Online ‘Nuge Vault’ in March 2025

Nugent will launch the online Nuge Vault in March. The subscription-based site will give fans access to previously unreleased concert audio and video. Or as he explains it, “Nearly six decades of never-before-seen and never-before-heard Nugified treasures are finally unlocked!” You can learn more at NugeVault.com.

Ted Nugent 2025 Concert Schedule:

April 5: St Jo, TX – Red River Station,

April 25: Orange Grove, TX – Post OG

April 26: Cristoval, TX – Coopers Live

May 10: Buda TX – Bucks Backyard

May 17: Eldorado AK – TBA

May 24: Salado TX – Johnny’s Place

Aug. 29: Ludinginton, MI – STIX
Aug. 30: Paw Paw, MI – Warner Vineyards

This list explores ten of the best songs with “do” in the title, each one showcasing the versatility of the word and the energy it brings to rock and roll. The Beatles laid the foundation for this list with “Love Me Do,” a harmonica-driven debut that introduced the world to their signature sound. Peter Frampton turned the phrase into a euphoric, extended jam on “Do You Feel Like We Do,” a live track that captured the essence of ‘70s arena rock. Steely Dan fused jazz sophistication with sharp lyricism on “Do It Again,” crafting a song about self-destruction disguised as a smooth groove. Hall & Oates took a more introspective route with “Do What You Want, Be What You Are,” delivering a soulful meditation on authenticity. The Police injected their signature reggae-infused rock into “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da,” using nonsense lyrics to critique the manipulation of language.

ABBA’s “I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do” leaned into old-school romance, channeling the charm of 1950s pop with layered harmonies and sweeping melodies. The Temptations brought effortless soul to “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” using playful metaphors to turn a love song into a masterclass in vocal harmony. Billy J. Kramer put a British Invasion spin on “Do You Want to Know a Secret,” giving a Lennon-McCartney composition a fresh, heartfelt delivery. Led Zeppelin stripped away the bombast for the acoustic-driven “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do,” a rare B-side that told a melancholy tale of love gone wrong. B.T. Express, meanwhile, used funk as a command with “Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied),” a dancefloor staple that left nothing to the imagination.

# 10 – Do What You Want, Be What You Are – Hall & Oates

Hall & Oates released “Do What You Want, Be What You Are” as the lead single from their fifth studio album, Bigger Than Both of Us, in 1976. The song was recorded at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood, California, with Christopher Bond serving as producer. The album, which arrived in August of that year, would later be best remembered for the duo’s first No. 1 hit, “Rich Girl,” but “Do What You Want, Be What You Are” played a pivotal role in showcasing their evolving sound—a blend of rock, blue-eyed soul, and introspective songwriting.

Read More: Top 10 Hall & Oates Songs

# 9 – De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da – The Police

The Police recorded “De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da” for their third studio album, Zenyatta Mondatta, which was released on October 3, 1980. The track was recorded at Wisseloord Studios in the Netherlands and produced by Nigel Gray alongside the band. Featuring Sting on bass and lead vocals, Andy Summers on guitar, and Stewart Copeland on drums, the song became one of The Police’s most recognizable hits. It was released as the second single from Zenyatta Mondatta and achieved commercial success, reaching No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart.

Read More: Complete List Of The Police Songs From A to Z

# 8 – Do It To You Satisfied – B.T. Express

“Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied)” is a funk and disco track by B.T. Express, released on August 27, 1974, as the lead single from their debut album of the same name. The song was written by Billy Nichols and produced by Jeff Lane and Trade Martin. It features a distinctive handclap intro and a spoken interlude, contributing to its suggestive theme of indulgence and satisfaction. The track achieved significant commercial success, reaching number one on the U.S. R&B singles chart and number two on the Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at number eight on the disco/dance charts. The album itself was certified Gold by the RIAA on March 6, 1975, for selling over 500,000 copies in the United States. “Do It (‘Til You’re Satisfied)” has been featured in various media, including the 2006 film “Invincible,” and was sampled in the 2002 song “Addictive” by Truth Hurts featuring Rakim

# 7 – The Way You Do The Things You Do – The Temptations

“The Way You Do the Things You Do” is a 1964 hit single by The Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. Written by Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Bobby Rogers, the single was the Temptations’ first charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking in the Top 20 at number eleven; it also went to number one on the Cash Box R&B chart. The song was recorded at Hitsville USA (Studio A) on January 9, 1964, and released on January 23, 1964. It features Eddie Kendricks on lead vocals, with Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Otis Williams, and David Ruffin providing background vocals. The instrumental backing was provided by Motown’s house band, The Funk Brothers.

Read More: 10 Essential Temptations Songs

# 6 –  I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do – ABBA

How could we leave this one off the list? It’s five Do’s for the price of one. The track was recorded on February 21, 1975, at Glen Studio in Stockholm. It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, and Stig Anderson, with production handled by Andersson and Ulvaeus. The song features Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad on lead vocals, Björn Ulvaeus on guitar and backing vocals, Benny Andersson on keyboards and backing vocals, Lasse Wellander on guitar, Mike Watson on bass, Roger Palm on drums, and Ulf Andersson on saxophone.

Upon its release, “I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do” achieved significant international success. It topped the charts in Australia, Switzerland, and South Africa, and reached the top five in countries like Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Austria. In the United States, the song peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in early 1976. However, it had a more modest performance in the United Kingdom, reaching only number 38 on the charts. The song’s popularity was notably boosted in Australia due to a promotional music video aired on television, which played a significant role in igniting “ABBA-mania” in the country.

Lyrically, the song revolves around themes of love and commitment, with the repetitive “I do” in the chorus emulating wedding vows. This romantic theme, combined with its upbeat melody, has made it a popular choice at weddings and celebratory events. The song’s enduring appeal is evident, as it was prominently featured in the 1994 film “Muriel’s Wedding,” underscoring its lasting impact on popular culture.

Read More: Complete List Of ABBA Songs From A to Z

# 5 – Hey Hey What Can I Do – Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin recorded “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do” during sessions for Led Zeppelin III in 1970. The song was released on November 5, 1970, as the B-side to “Immigrant Song”, making it the only non-album track the band released during their active years. It was recorded at Headley Grange using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio and later completed at Olympic Sound Studios in London. While Led Zeppelin III featured a more acoustic, folk-inspired direction compared to their earlier records, “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do” was left off the final album and initially only available as a single in the U.S.

Read More: ‘Becoming Led Zeppelin’ Film Review

# 4 – Do It Again – Steely Dan

“Do It Again” was released in November 1972 as the lead single from their debut album, Can’t Buy a Thrill. The track was recorded in August 1972 at The Village Recorder in Santa Monica, California. Written by band members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, and produced by Gary Katz, the song features Donald Fagen on lead vocals and electric piano, Denny Dias on electric sitar, Jeff Baxter on guitar, Walter Becker on bass guitar, Jim Hodder on drums, and Victor Feldman on percussion. Upon its release, “Do It Again” achieved significant commercial success, reaching number 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1973.

Read More: Complete List Of Steely Dan Songs From A to Z

# 3 – Love Me Do – The Beatles

“Love Me Do” stands as a significant milestone in The Beatles’ illustrious career, marking their debut single released on October 5, 1962. This track not only introduced the world to the songwriting prowess of John Lennon and Paul McCartney but also set the stage for the band’s meteoric rise in the music industry.

The song’s origins trace back to 1958 when a young Paul McCartney, then around 16, composed it during his school years. John Lennon later contributed to the middle eight section, enriching its harmonic structure. Musically, “Love Me Do” is characterized by its straightforward three-chord progression and the prominent harmonica riff played by Lennon, which became a distinctive feature of the track. The vocal harmonies between Lennon and McCartney, combined with the song’s bluesy undertones, showcased a fresh sound that differed from the mainstream pop tunes of that era.

The recording history of “Love Me Do” is particularly noteworthy due to the involvement of three different drummers. The initial session on June 6, 1962, featured Pete Best on drums; however, this version remained unreleased until it appeared on the “Anthology 1” compilation in 1995. Following Best’s departure from the band, Ringo Starr took over the drums during the September 4, 1962, recording session. Producer George Martin, seeking a more polished sound, enlisted session drummer Andy White for a subsequent session on September 11, 1962, relegating Starr to tambourine duties. The version with Starr on drums was used for the initial UK single release, while the take featuring White was included on the debut album “Please Please Me” and later pressings of the single.

Upon its release, “Love Me Do” achieved modest success in the UK, peaking at number 17 on the charts. Its reception, however, was a catalyst for The Beatles’ burgeoning popularity. When the track was released in the United States in 1964, amidst the height of Beatlemania, it soared to the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, underscoring the band’s international appeal.

The song’s enduring legacy is evident, as it has been covered by numerous artists over the decades and remains a staple in The Beatles’ discography. Its raw and authentic sound continues to resonate with audiences, symbolizing the humble beginnings of a band that would go on to revolutionize music.

Read More: Complete List Of The Beatles Songs From A to Z

# 2 – Do You Want To Know A Secret – Billy J Kramer

Every world famous artist had to start somewhere. For Jimi Hendrix, that somewhere was Seattle where he started his six-string journey with an old ukulele.

As the story goes, a teenage Hendrix was helping his father clear out the home of an older woman one day. Among the rubbish was a ukulele with only one string that the woman told Hendrix he could have. One string was evidently all the 15-year-old needed to start learning songs like “Hound Dog” by Elvis Presley by ear.

Roughly a year later, Hendrix finally got his hands on his first real guitar, an acoustic that cost him $5 (about $55 in 2025), the exact make and model of which is unclear. “When I first started playing guitar [was] way up in the Northwest, in Seattle, Washington,” Hendirx said in a 1967 interview, citing people like Muddy Waters, Elmore James and Robert Johnson as influences. “They don’t have too many of the real blues singers up there.”

It was around this time, Feb. 20, 1959 to be exact, that Hendrix made his live debut in the basement of a synagogue, Seattle’s Temple De Hirsch, where he had been invited to audition for a local band. But Hendrix’s style proved too animated for their taste and his audition was over just as quickly as it began — the band thought he was too much of a show off.

Before long, Hendrix formed his own group, the Velvetones, but soon figured out that his acoustic guitar wasn’t going to cut it.

Jimi Hendrix Plugs In

“When I was 17 I formed this group with some other guys, but they drowned me out,” he would say to Guitar Player in 1968 (via The Guardian). “I didn’t know why at first, but after about three months I realized I’d have to get an electric guitar. My first was a Danelectro, which my dad bought for me. Must have busted him for a long time. But I had to show him I could play first.”

Hendrix, of course, wound up doing exactly that.

“Dear Dad, I still have my guitar and amp and as long as I have that, no fool can keep me from living,” he wrote in a letter to his father in 1965. Hendrix was then living in New York City and playing guitar in various bands. “There’s a few record companies I visited that I probably can record for. … I just wanted to let you know I’m still here, trying to make it. Although I don’t eat every day, everything’s going all right for me. It could be worse than this, but I’m going to keep hustling and scuffling until I get things to happening like they’re supposed to for me.”

READ MORE: 60 Best Jimi Hendrix Songs

Hendrix’s collection would expand to include a myriad of guitars, most notably his signature Stratocaster. In 1968, he offered some words of advice to aspiring musicians, guitar players especially: “You have to stick with it. Sometimes you are going to be so frustrated you want to give up the guitar, you’ll hate the guitar. But all of this is just a part of learning, because if you stick with it you’re going to be rewarded.”

Watch Jimi Hendrix Performing in 1965

Paul McCartney entered the 21st Century while in his late 50s, an age when most people are coasting toward retirement. The former Beatles star had certainly earned it.

He’d been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Beatles more than a decade earlier. He’d just joined them as a solo act, celebrating a blockbuster era that already spanned some 30 years. Wings had been broken up for 20. The legacy was set in stone.

Yet, since 2000, McCartney has issued another seven rock albums – including Electric Arguments, his 2008 collaboration with Martin “Youth” Glover as the Fireman. All but one of his solo records (2001’s patchy Driving Rain) reached the U.S. Top 10.

READ MORE: Top 10 Wings Songs

In 2018, Egypt Station became McCartney’s first Billboard charttopper since the early ’80s. McCartney III just missed at No. 2 in 2020. Both 2005’s Chaos and Creation in the Backyard and 2007’s Memory Almost Full were certified gold. McCartney even scored yet another multi-platinum single a couple of years after 2013’s New with “FourFiveSeconds” alongside Rihanna and Kanye West.

Laurels? What laurels?

Along the way, McCartney added 15 key tracks to a list of keepsake gems that already stretched back several decades. Here’s a list of the best Paul McCartney songs from the 21st Century:

No. 15. “I Can Bet”
From: New (2013)

McCartney makes a very successful pass at Wings’ sound but within a fizzy new musical context: As with most of New, he heavily treats his vocal; there’s also programming and some patched-on loops. In truth, however, McCartney had been appending things to “I Can Bet” for a while. He started with a solo-recorded multi-overdubbed demo, then had touring-band members Rusty Anderson and Wix Wickens contribute guitar and Hammond organ, respectively. But McCartney’s final passes – as he dialed up classic Wurlitzer and a Moog sounds, presumably with producer Giles Martin at Hog Hill Studios – brought this modern construction back around to those mullet-sporting, polyester-wearing days of yore.

No. 14. “Dominoes”
From: Egypt Station (2018)

An endearing career travelogue, “Dominoes” finds McCartney going even further back to reclaim his own considerable legacy in the Beatles. He starts with a lithe acoustic riff that would have been at home on the White Album, then continues to flip through his back pages: There’s the crackling cadence of his ’80s albums, the enveloping background vocal style of his ’70s work, a backward guitar straight out of the ’60s. His lyric, about how one thing can unexpectedly lead to another, underscores this stirring musical journey. “Dominoes” then ends with a delicately conveyed, note-perfect line: “It’s been a blast.“

No. 13. “Spinning on an Axis”
From: Driving Rain (2001)

Driving Rain found McCartney struggling to combine two parts of his craft – a natural inclination toward ornate pop and an interest in lengthier forms. McCartney was also trying to balance the loss of wife Linda with the arrival of a new love. He didn’t get there. In fact, “Spinning on an Axis” became the best thing on this strangely inhibited project by attempting to put all of that aside. McCartney shucks his occasional penchant for overthinking, opening with a loose rumination and then catching – and keeping – a plucky little groove. That gives the song a first-take freshness. Unfortunately, that’s not enough to break the logjam on this often-impenetrable LP. It seems there was simply too much going on inside McCartney’s head.

No. 12. “Fine Line”
From: Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (2005)

You get the sense that McCartney could write catchy songs like this in his sleep. (And maybe he does?) But that doesn’t make “Fine Line” any less charming – and there’s a cool little quirk buried beneath its radio-ready hook. But first, the Top 20 U.K. hit opens with a telling lyric: “There’s a fine line between recklessness and courage.” McCartney knew something about that, having thrown out his entire way of working for this aptly named LP. The biggest change was hiring Nigel Godrich, best known for producing Radiohead. He’s the one who encouraged McCartney to continue building “Fine Line” around that wrong bass note.

No. 11. “New”
From New (2013)

Maybe the thing that was newest about New was how comfortable McCartney seemed in his own skin again, after a brief period spent singing the Great American Songbook. There are next-gen flourishes, principally in the production style, but thankfully this title track doesn’t feature anything too outside McCartney’s basic musical framework. Rambling along like a tougher “Penny Lane” or a less refined “Got to Get You into My Life,” “New” doesn’t particularly live up to its name — but that’s better than creating a quickly forgotten modern-day curio.

No. 10. “Deep Down”
From: McCartney III (2020)

McCartney still doesn’t know what “Deep Down” is about. He didn’t have to, not with this title-earning groove. Recorded in the maddening isolation of a pandemic-inspired lockdown, III offers McCartney an opportunity to stay within himself in a way that his most recent albums weren’t always brave enough to attempt. Instead of bringing in hired-gun producers to give things a hip new feel, he just rolled tape. That conjures up the unconscious abandon of deep cuts from the White Album and his first solo record, something an artist of his vintage – after so many PR campaigns, so many A&R meetings, so much BS – usually struggles mightily to achieve. Instead, McCartney just lets “Deep Down” discover its truest, freest place. It’s a wonder to hear.

No. 9. “How Kind of You”
From: Chaos and Creation in the Backyard/em> (2005)

Chaos and Creation in the Backyard started out with the producer from McCartney’s last album and a studio setup involving his touring band, before Nigel Godrich arrived and blew it all up. Good thing. Otherwise, we might never have experienced the gorgeous drone of “How Kind of You.” Largely a studio creation, the track began in typical jangle-pop territory as McCartney offered a starkly vulnerable thank you to those who stuck with him through difficult times. Godrich oversaw its transformation, creating an involving music bed that sounds something like an underwater harmonium.

No. 8. “Queenie Eye”
From: New (2013)

What if the Beatles never broke up? By the ’10s, they might have sounded something like “Queenie Eye.” The ruminative orchestral opening, fizzy wordplay, nervy groove and processed vocal point like a streaking arrow back to late-’60s successes with producer George Martin. Yet the production feels completely of the moment. When “Queenie Eye” comes to a momentary pause, it’s as if the dream-state reverie is complete. Then McCartney does what every Beatles trope says he should do: Start all over again, with a swirling chorus of vocals, a banging piano and a second sudden stop.

No. 7. “Anyway”
From: Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (2005)

There’s a consistency in tone – of quietness, really – about this decidedly serious, mostly solo project that might lead to distraction for those enamored with McCartney’s more obvious quirks. The album-closing ballad “Anyway” solves this issue, ending things on a more expected, orchestral-laden note. Everything feels familiar again, from a refrain that seems to recall the earlier “Little Willow” to a piano signature straight out of “People Get Ready.” That puts a bow on one of the very best McCartney LPs of any era.

No. 6. “Vintage Clothes”
From: Memory Almost Full (2007)

“Vintage Clothes” seemed to tap into the hippie narratives of McCartney’s lengthy first marriage to the late Linda McCartney – and no one could blame him for feeling wistful for that era. Linda died after a cancer battle in the late ’90s, and his next marriage was falling apart by the time McCartney set about completing Memory Almost Full. Certainly, the setup is vintage: McCartney navigates the song’s unusual tempo changes behind a Mellotron, liberated from Abbey Road Studio. In fact, he used the same setting from the “Strawberry Fields Forever” sessions.

No. 5. “Jenny Wren”
From: Chaos and Creation in the Backyard (2005)

This Grammy-nominated track recalls the finger-picking triumphs of “Blackbird” and “Calico Skies,” allowing McCartney to explore his still-strong upper range on a lyric born of nature. Seems he found himself with a guitar overlooking this picturesque canyon scene. McCartney made an interesting sound, then recalled a character from Charles Dickens – one who shared the name of his favorite bird, a tiny, quite shy species – and allowed the instrument to guide him the rest of the way. “Jenny Wren” was completed later with the addition of an Armenian woodwind called a duduk.

No. 4. “Sun Is Shining”
From: The Fireman’s Electric Arguments (2008)

The Fireman records don’t represent McCartney’s first solo forays into experimental pop; it’s just that the others were typically unfocused vanity projects, self-involved noodlings or simply half-finished demos. Electric Arguments boasted a frisky, yet more controlled spontaneity, as if the original “Get Back” idea had been brought into the indie era. Everything – even a song like “Sun Is Shining,” which in many ways is your typical light-filled McCartney song – feels as if it’s been cuffed around some.

No. 3. “See Your Sunshine”
From: Memory Almost Full (2007)

A canny Wings redo, this is the kind of pure pop that McCartney parlayed into a soundtrack for the decade immediately following the Beatles’ breakup. That’s fitting since he was enduring another split, this time from second wife Heather, during the sessions for Memory Almost Full. In truth, “See Your Sunshine” is part of an ardent project known for its striking musical variety. But let’s face it, McCartney is supposed to sound like this song. That he once again meets that standard during a period of crushing adversity is part of his charm. It always has been.

No. 2. “I Don’t Know”
From: Egypt Station (2018)

McCartney’s first No. 1 album since 1982 opens with this looming sense of doubt, a most surprising emotion from the world’s most famous progenitor of silly love songs. You expect him to be glib, but he instead uncovers something far more revealing in the all-too-rare expression of his own thoughts. These verses, perhaps the bleakest McCartney has ever penned, eventually give way to a gorgeous, more typically consoling chorus. His piano figure is there to guide you along, tracing this brilliant juxtaposition perfectly.

No. 1. “Only Mama Knows”
From: Memory Almost Full (2007)

Embroiled in a very public divorce, Paul McCartney might have been expected to do what Paul McCartney does: hide behind a pastiche pop facade and/or a series of homespun character studies. Certainly, that’s what he did in the aftermath of splits with the Beatles and then Wings. Instead, McCartney plugged in for “Only Mama Knows,” simply bulling his way through gauzy nostalgia. This muscular track went on to become a concert staple for McCartney’s long-standing backup band.

Was Paul McCartney’s ‘Broadstreet’ Doomed to Fail?

Former Yes drummer Bill Bruford reflected on his return to the band for 1991’s Union album, telling Rolling Stone the experience was, simply, “no good.”

Bruford cofounded Yes and played with the band from 1968 to 1972, leaving after they released the landmark Close to the Edge (which is getting a deluxe reissue next month). He went on to play with King Crimson and Genesis that decade, and he formed the jazz group Earthworks in 1986. Bruford reunited with some of his Yes bandmates in the late ’80s for Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, which joined the then-current Yes lineup (Tony Kaye, Chris Squire, Trevor Rabin and Alan White) to write and record Union.

Sound like a lot of cooks in the kitchen? Bruford agrees. “Too many people. Too artificial,” he told Rolling Stone. “It’s a kind of Hollywood idea. It was a mad idea, I think, seven or eight odd people [playing at once]. It was a kind of fantasy that a record executive would dream up. So it wasn’t a great place to be. But on the other hand, if you’re overpaid for doing very little, as I was there, you can often take that money and inject it into some other project you’re working on like Earthworks, which is a band I ran for 20 years and feed the money into that. So that worked well.”

Bruford also took part in the ensuing Union tour, sharing drumming duties with White. When asked how they divided the parts, Bruford replied: “Pretty badly, I think. Mostly, I was on electronic drums and playing percussion to his heavy rock drums. Occasionally, I think I played maybe ‘Heart of the Sunrise’ alone, something like that. One critic I thought put it really well. They wrote that ‘Bill Bruford was Hollandaise sauce to Alan White’s meat and potatoes,’ which I thought was really nice. It was about right.”

READ MORE: Top 50 Progressive Rock Artists

Bill Bruford Has No Desire to Reunite With Yes

Bruford left Yes for the second and final time in 1992, going on to briefly rejoin King Crimson and then reform Earthworks. He announced his retirement from drumming in 2009, though he returned to much humbler stages in 2022 with the Pete Roth Trio.

Despite returning to music, Bruford has no desire to play with Yes again. “I think I’m asked that twice a week, and have been for about 15 years,” he said. “And the answer remains, ‘No, thanks. I’m fine. I’m not going to do that.'”

He’s also not holding his breath for Yes guitarist Steve Howe and former singer Jon Anderson, who now performs with the Band Geeks, to reconcile. “No, I don’t hope for those things at all,” he said. “Funnily enough, Jon and I have something in common. I think we’ve both returned in a way. Jon had a lot of time away from Yes, and he’s returned with this fresh thing and a new album. He’s putting new miles under his belt, which I think is great. And I feel kind of the same way.”

Phish is off to a very strong start after one week of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame fan voting.

The jam band kings have gotten 101,157 fan votes since they were announced as one of 14 nominees for the class of 2025. This is the first time the group has been nominated for the honor.

Billy Idol is in second place with 58,673 votes. Soundgarden is right behind him with 57,084, followed by Cyndi Lauper (50,308), Bad Company (47,582), Joe Cocker (47,004) and Chubby Checker (42,803.)

The Black Crowes lead the back half of the list with (39,184), followed by Mariah Carey (36,876), Outkast (35,563), Oasis (32,445), Joy Division / New Order (31,927), The White Stripes (31,055) and Mexican pop-rockers Mana (12,177.)

Read More: Rock Hall’s 2025 Nominees Roundtable: Snubs, Surprises and More

Fans can vote for up to seven artists once a day until April 21, at the Rock Hall of Fame’s official website. All fan votes are combined to make one ballot, which will be tallied along with those of 1,200 artists, historians, and music industry professionals to select the inductees.

Dave Matthews Band won the fan vote in 2024, earning 586,745 votes according to Future Rock Legends. Peter Frampton, Foreigner, Ozzy Osbourne and Cher rounded out the top five. All five of those artists were inducted into the Hall last year.

This year’s inductees will be announced in late April, along with the artists and industry leaders entering the hall under the Musical Influence, Musical Excellence and Ahmet Etregun Non Perform Award honors.

This year’s ceremony will be held in Los Angeles, with venue, date and ticket information details expected to be revealed shortly.