B-sides are considered song that simply didn’t make the cut-but that’s not always the case. Eoghan Lyng disproves the common fallacy…
These five examples are what B-sides should not sound like. B-sides should sound like throwaway songs to accompany their far superior A-side. B-sides should be the type of song that ought to be forgotten about as soon as it is played. These five B-sides deserve to be listened to, outshining many of the other songs in the respective artists back catalogue including their A-sides. Let`s All Make Believe (2000): Oasis fans will not be surprised to hear that Noel Gallagher placed many of his best songs as B-sides, often to the detriment of their record company. Considering that Standing on the Shoulder of Giants was not exactly jam-packed with great songs, it seems extraordinary that Gallagher chose to include this as the other side of Go Let It Out, rather than include it on the L.P. As for the lyrics, they may be the finest Noel Gallagher has churned out to date. In fact, the track that many Oasis fans would pinpoint as their finest moment, ‘The Masterplan’, was also a B-Side. Check out their B-Side album of the same name for many, many more examples of their lesser known brilliance.Maggie May (1970): Who knew the B-side to Reason To Believe would become Rod Stewart`s best loved song? A jangly acoustic number about a man entrapped to the sexual desires of an older woman, the lyrics of the song must have raised an eyebrow or two at the time of its release. Stewart`s vocals had the soulful resonances that he has struggled to match since. Faces band mate Ronnie Wood provided the acoustic and electric guitar solos, the type that he rarely produced on the best of The Rolling Stone`s future material. Though Reason To Believe was produced as the A-side, radio DJs tended to play the five minute B-side instead, instantly turning Stewart into a national icon. Lucky With Disease (2001): Before Elbow turned into a stadium monster, they were obscure pop geniuses. Their frivolously sparse instrumentation has rarely been as perfect a counterpart to Guy Garvey`s esoteric style of singing as it does on this transient beauty. Never one to believe that B-sides should be throwaway tracks, Garvey admitted to Hot Press in 2012 that Lucky With Disease has always been a favourite of the band`s and has been an influence on many of the band`s later songs. Listening to this track now, it stands up with the best of The Seldom Seen Kid majestically. Dear God (1986): XTC were never a band to shy away from controversy, but this track received such an unwarranted backlash from American audiences that songwriter Andy Partridge claimed it was “medieval”. The lyrics may be somewhat political for many listeners, but they are so poetically articulated that it is hard not to be anything other than impressed. Amazingly for the band, the song became so popular that it warranted re-releasing as an A-side. Rain (1966): The Beatles were not averse to writing killer B-sides (‘I Am the Walrus’ anyone?), but this gem trumped all of them. Relocated to the other side of the more commercial Paperback Writer, the song had the distinction as being one of the first to feature backward guitars. Before everyone from The Stone Roses to Madonna used backward techniques, The Beatles revealed their original recording techniques to an astounded audience. Turning John Lennon`s British satire into an unequivocal tour de force was no easy task, but they succeeded by inverting George Harrison`s jangly riff on top of itself, giving the song an Eastern feel. The fab four unveiled a master track to a world that raced to catch up. And in many ways, they never did…See Also: ‘Suffragette City’ (David Bowie), ‘Talk Show Host’ (Radiohead), ‘The Sweetest Thing’ (U2), ‘Get Rhythm’ (Johnny Cash), ‘Unchained Melody’ (The Righteous Brothers), ‘How Soon Is Now?’ (The Smiths)
