College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 28 – 26

28. Big Country, “In a Big Country” When trying to introduce a band to an international audience, there are worse strategies that releasing an anthemic single that has the group’s name right there in the title. “In a Big Country” wasn’t the first single from the Scottish band Big Country, but it was the first to get them significant attention in the U.S. (Its predecessor, “Fields of Fire (400 Miles),” was a Top 10 hit in the U.K., a level “In a Big Country” didn’t reach.) Officially considered the third single from the band’s 1983 debut album, The Crossing, the … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 28 – 26

College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 31 – 29

31. Adam and the Ants, “Antmusic” “We name our music ‘antmusic’ to prevent classification and bracketing from other people,” Adam Ant told Tom Snyder when he appeared on Tomorrow to promote the 1980 album Kings of the Wild Frontier. “I don’t think that’s pretentious considering it’s taken four years to get the sound.” Besides the stretch of time identified by the singer, Adam and the Ants had gone through quite an ordeal on the way from their first to their second album, including the collapse of the band itself. Following a first flush of minor success — and some pigeonholing … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 250 Songs, 1979 – 1989, 31 – 29