103. The Mighty Lemon Drops, “Inside Out” Other bands that started plying their tunes in the nineteen-eighties had the advantage of fertile local scenes. That wasn’t the case for the Mighty Lemon Drops, who hailed from Wolverhampton. “When we started out in early 1985, there wasn’t much going on locally,” said guitarist Dave Newton. “Not even in nearby Birmingham, with a few exceptions, such as the Nightingales and Pigros. As for Wolverhampton, there was absolutely nothing of note.” But a band as good as the Mighty Lemon Drops is going to draw attention, no matter the geographical limits. They wound … Continue reading CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 103 – 101

106. New Order, “Bizarre Love Triangle” When New Order got down the business of creating their fourth full-length album, Brotherhood, they wanted it to have a sonic schism. That approach naturally had an impact on the songwriting and recording process for every track, including the album’s sole official single. “‘Bizarre Love Triangle’ is a brilliant track, but it was kind of done in a schizophrenic mood that we were trying to do one side synthesizers and one side guitars,” drummer Stephen Morris later explained. “I don’t know. It didn’t quite work.” Built around one of the band’s very best hooks, … Continue reading CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 106 – 104

109. Heaven 17, “Let Me Go” While many bands are dogged by comparisons to other acts while they try to make their way in the wild of the music business, Heaven 17 endured an especially sharp version of that burden. Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, two thirds of Heaven 17’s most enduring lineup, were both founding members of the Human League. They left that band and ceded the name to lead singer Philip Oakey after the creative relationship became unendurably fractious. “Sometimes it’s hard to give us something that appears to be your entire life, but we all knew … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 109 – 107

112. The Jam, “Start!” “Thinking back on that period between 1980 and 1982, it was pretty relentless,” the Jam drummer Rick Buckler wrote in his autobiography. “We were literally being swept along by the momentum of the success that we were having. And the more success we achieved, the more demanding everything became. All we could was allow ourselves to go with the flow. Much of that period is simply a blur. But we were doing exactly what we wanted to do, and it was great.” According to the band’s lead singer, lead guitarist, and chief creative force, Paul Weller, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 112 – 110