Henry’s Music Blog

In my opinion, nothing destroys anything faster than overplay. Many otherwise fine movies have been destroyed by overplay, such as Borat or Mean Girls. But this blog is not about movies. It’s about songs. And that’s why today I’m giving my Top 10 Songs Destroyed by Overplay.

Some guidelines before we begin:
    1.    No Christmas Songs.
    2.    Songs must be good in the first place.
    3.    No Beatles. We would be here forever.

10. F**k You - Cee Lo Green

Despite having been played to death in just a few years, I put it near the bottom of the list due to how recent it is compared to the rest of the songs here. But I still remember the first time I heard it. It was soulful, it was cool, and most importantly, it was funny. But now, it barely elicits a reaction from me. And with the rest of the album barely getting airplay, we’ll have this on for a while.

9. Enter Sandman - Metallica

As Metallica’s first hit with mainstream charts, that needed to show what they could do to a mass audience. And for a while, they did, with one of the songs defining the early 90s rebellion against Hair Metal and 80s pop. And then Metallica turned into what they are today. I admit some of the reason for why this song is on here is for what it did to Metallica. But listen to it again. It’s nowhere near as exciting as it was the first time you heard it, and you realize it’s the same riff repeated over and over again. Add in the lyrics that are just sadly funny now, and you realize what overplay does to a band like Metallica.

8. Whip It - Devo

Devo is one of the most Punk bands that has ever lived. I’m not kidding. Look at what they stood for, and their early music, and you realize just how groundbreaking they were. And this includes “Whip It”, which came out before most bands jumped on the synthesizer craze. But after becoming Devo’s only hit, and everyone else’s synth machines taking fame, the song has become just another song in a bygone era, standing with songs like “Tainted Love” and “99 Luftballoons”. Even the lyrics referencing Gravity’s Rainbow stand now as a simple ode to masturbation.

7. Another Brick in the Wall Pt. 2 - Pink Floyd

The Wall is one of greatest albums ever written. And with two of Pink Floyd’s greatest hits on the album, this and “Comfortably Numb”, it’s easy to see why it’s one of the highest selling albums ever (that and every copy technically counted as two). But while “Numb” stands the test of time as an eerie masterpiece, “Brick in the Wall” shows its age,  as a disco song by a rock group. But the fact that it’s a disco song is why it’s overplayed. Pink Floyd before this made Prog Epics, and Dark Side of the Moon. After this, Roger Waters made one last album, than split off. I believe this song is why.

6. Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin

How overplayed is this song? Even Led Zeppelin fans wish that this song was pushed outside for others. Compared to most of their other hits, “Stairway” is far too light to truly rock until the end, which for radio standards, is a long time. You couldn’t get a song this long on the radio today. So how can a song said to be overplayed by the band’s own friends not be higher on the list? Because that’s part of the charm. The song is absolutely hilarious, and seeing people take it this seriously is always a laugh.

5. My Generation - The Who

A song like this should not have been overplayed. This is the original Punk song, showing how The Who were different from all the other Mod groups at the time. While they had already shown through with “I Can’t Explain”, “My Generation” broke new ground in music, with punchy chords and the angry vocals of Roger Daltrey. That’s what it was then. Now, it’s the most generic song you can use for a rebellious character, with the members now in their 60s. Oh how the mighty have fallen.

4. Go Your Own Way - Fleetwood Mac

In my opinion, Rumours is the most overrated album of all time. But honestly, I would still say “Go Your Own Way” is the most tolerable song on the album, probably for not having Stevie Nick’s horrible voice on the forefront. But next to the tedious “Don’t Stop” and “Dreams”, it’s the song you’re most likely to hear on the radio. While the song itself is very good, it’s made almost intolerable not only by Classic Rock stations playing it endlessly, but by being right next to “Dreams”, which I absolutely hate. I’m tired of Fleetwood Mac.

3. More than a Feeling - Boston

Next to Rumours, Boston’s self-titled album has been overplayed. Every song on the album is a staple of Classic Rock stations, played to the end of time. But if you were asked to name a Boston song, “More than a Feeling” would be the first song to come to mind. And as the epitome of silly Arena Rock, the song, and the rest of the album for that matter, is extremely cheesy fun. But this isn’t how radio sees this. Radio sees these as genuine powerful songs, meant to give you an actual emotion. No. These are just silly. Let them be that.

2. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana

Oh dear god. I will admit, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is one of the greatest songs ever written. It sums up what Nirvana was, in a 5 minute span. It was the perfect example of the whole typical 90s attitude. But this should not have been a hit. Nirvana wasn’t expecting a hit from this, because they were a Punk band.  “Drain You” is what Kurt wanted as a hit. When I first heard this song, it blew my mind. Now, it does nothing.

1. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

Oh Jesus Christ this song. Originally, this article started as a rant about how this song needs to die. And now it is again. I am not bashing the song. “Bohemian Rhapsody” is a fantastic song. But it needs to step out. I’m tired of this and “We Will Rock You” being the only two Queen songs that people actually care about. There’s an entire catalog of Queen songs out there, and every single one of them is excellent (My personal favorite is The Show Must Go On). Let “Rhapsody” step out gracefully, it’s had its time to shine.