Songs so bad even the artists hate singing them

It's a good song with shitty lyrics. They don't sing nearly every song they recorded written by outside writers. I get it, the record company forced them to get those hits, but they were hits. And I'd rather hear them play "All I Wanna Do.." than any of the 4 Zeppelin songs they cover nearly every show.

As for the topic, "We Built This City" was my first thought.

It truly breaks my heart that Chrissy Hynde despises Brass in Pocket, it remains one of my favorites of the Pretenders.

That’s the least of what should bother you about Chrissy Hynde

Helen Reddy hated, "Leave Me Alone".

Why does she hate it, R2?

All I wanna do is have sex with you.

Come fuck my brains out, I want you to.

Kelly Clarkson hates “A Moment Like This” and refuses to sing it, even during the audience request parts of her live show. The song blows, it’s like the soundtrack to a fibromyalgia medication commercial.

R5 .

One hopes Debby Boone would hate that Debby Boone song, but who can say?

[quote] Kelly Clarkson hates “A Moment Like This” and refuses to sing it,

Imagine how I feel!

Don't bite the song that feeds you.

Cher famously hates "Just Like Jesse James", saying it has "too many words", that it's "kind of crap", and that she was surprised it was a hit. She sings it anyway, because it's a fan favorite.

That’s interesting, that’s one of my favorite Cher songs

I was a huge Heart fan in the 80s but I always hated "All I Wanna Do..." It was played to death on the radio and the lyrics were so awful. It was like one of those story songs from the 60s/70s completely devoid of the camp factor.

I'm sure I remember reading that Kylie Minogue was embarrassed by "I Should Be So Lucky" by the 90s, but had to keep performing it as it was one of her biggest hits.

Frank Sinatra famously loathed "Strangers in the Night".

You brought the woman in meee, so many times- easily!

Suzanne Vega does not like Luka.

Anything written by Diane Warren?

Didn’t Rod Stewart HATE Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?

Steve Winwood hates most of his '80s songs and will only do Higher Love and When You See a Chance in concert.

R13 It's one of my favorites as well. She expresses her opinion regarding the song, during the linked clip.

Rod Stewart does hate DYTIS, but he knows he can’t skip it because the frau fans go crazy for it even though he’s got a decent sized catalogue of other songs he could sing instead.

Sinatra hated Strangers in the Night

Bruce Springsteen hates most of the “Born in the USA” album. I saw him in concert awhile back and he performed none of those tracks. Zip. I thought it was kind of cool that he didn’t give a shit if the audience wanted “Dancing in the Dark” and “Glory Days” — he wasn’t having it.

Sheena Easton dislikes “Morning Tran (9 to 5)”. Her favorite recording is “101” written/produced by Prince.

R24, I don’t think that’s true. I’ve heard him perform those songs in different concerts many times. But he changes his set lists constantly. Some times he prefers emphasizing different albums.

Sheena Easton dislikes “Morning Tran (9 to 5)”. Her favorite recording is “101” written/produced by Prince.

Morning Tran? Lmao!

R26 Good to know. I thought I’ve read before that he considers that album way too pop-ish.

Rod Stewart also wrinkled his nose in an interview when discussing “Love Touch” and how he did it just for the money. That song is pretty silly anyway, way too lightweight for someone like Rod who has done such classic rock songs.

The Bangles and ""Walk Like an Egyptian". They still did it in concerts for the fans anyway, though.

^^^ another BAD song foisted upon a group who couldn’t say no. Sure made then money though

The cringe factor of the All I Wanna Do lyrics is so high that radio stations were making fun of it back when it was released too. Its narrative is so creepy too - a woman seducing a man in order to get pregnant without his consent or involvement. I would rather hear them cover Led Zeppelin's entire discography too.

Walk like you’ve just been fucked.

I wonder if ONJ hates this turd of a duet?

[Quote]The Bangles and ""Walk Like an Egyptian".

I admit to loving that silly song, along with the video.

Anyway, Dionne Warwick dislikes her hit song "Do You Know The Way to San Jose," but still sings it to please her fans.

Dionne doesn’t like anything

^^Watch yourself, hussy

OP, I haven't thought of that song in a long while, and I hope to hell this thread doesn't get it stuck in my head.

I cannot stand listening to it. Worst fucking song...

Dionne sings it right after takes a break and smokes an entire pack of Virginia Slims.

Dionne’s hair color is called “cigarette smoke blonde”

Heart could simply do “All I Wanna Do..” as a sing-along, the summer shed crowds love that. But I guess they have to pay a royalty to the songwriter to sing it on tour.

Alison Moyet will NOT sing Invisible for you!

She said she can't relate to it any more - and isn't being mean to fans, appreciates that they like it but just won't perform it live.

R42, she’s UGLY!

R40, LMFAO!

R43 Thanks for your nuanced commentary

Rosemary Clooney claimed you could hear how much she hated singing “Come on-a My House.”

r36 Incorrect. She loves me.

She despised it even though it was a big hit. She tried to avoid singing it at concerts.

I don’t think Doris Day liked Que Sera at all but became totally stuck with it.

And me!

I saw Pat Benatar a few years ago in concert, and when she got ready to sing "Hit me with your best shot" she said, "I'm not singing that stupid line - (Before I put another notch in my lipstick case) - so you feel free to" and when that line came up, she just held the mic out to the audience.

Doesn’t Madonna hate Like A Virgin?

Tina Turner did not care for "What's Love Got To Do With It?", but was stuck with it when it won the Grammy for Record of the Year and became her biggest seller. In concert, she would only do an abbreviated version of it.

Sammy Davis Jr - The Candy Man

Michael Stipe can't stand R.E.M.'s song Shiny Happy People. He feels it's a "fruity pop song written for children."

I’m sure Judy hated one of her big hits, what was it eldergays?

Denny Doherty of The Mamas and The Papas did not like "Monday, Monday," calling it "a dumb song about a day of the week." But he gamely sang lead on it and it became their only #1 hit.

Barbra doesn’t like and doesn’t understand Stoney End and any of the disco/Guilty songs.

I thought R54 was full of shit but indeed, Stipe apparently said that.

Barbra......she went down the Stoney End. She never wanted to go down the Stoney End, but somebody forced her down the Stoney End. We miss you, Barbra. Come back to the Five and Dime, Barbra Streisand, Barbra Streisand.

R51 Yep...and "Material Girl"

it's funny that metallica's enter sandman keeps coming uo in the best metal thread because they (metallica) HATE that song and won't play it.

Dionne also didn't like Heartbreaker. Clive told her to sing it because she'd get a hit, but she never really cared for it.

Linda Ronstadt grew to despise singing You're No Good and Heatwave.

Barbra did a few lines of “Stoney End” at one of her concerts, she doesn’t get it at all. The audience was thrilled to hear it but all she did was mug and joke and it was over in less than a minute. Instead of embracing an Earthy rock tune that was a big pop hit in the 70s, (and written by a woman!) she’d rather sing Sondheim or Hamlisch.

OY!

[quote]Linda Ronstadt grew to despise singing You're No Good and Heatwave.

Linda didn't like most of her singles. The deep cuts on her albums, that's the good stuff.

Hard to believe that Linda doesn't like You're No Good. It was her only Number One record, and the song fits her like a glove. I think you're mixing that up with her debut hit, Different Drum, which she truly hated.

California dreamin went to number one as well r56.

Are you the Billboard Hot 100 queen, r65? Linda's albums are what mattered, not her dreadful singles.

Dusty Springfield had mixed feelings about You Don't Have to Say You Love Me.

On the one hand, she'd found the song at an Italian music festival and arranged to have English lyrics written.

On the other hand, it sort of overshadowed earlier songs and became a bit of an albatross musically. The dramatic parts of the song are also ripe for parody.

Linda hated that You're No Good and Heatwave became hits, because she didn't think she sang them very well, and because the crowd would request them at every concert (especially Heatwave). She was a ballad singer first and foremost.

Madonna never sings Material Girl in concert, right? She didn't write the lyrics, but perhaps it is too representative of who she really is.

Michael Stipe also hates "Stand." At an REM concert in the early 90s he said something like "Now here's the stupidest song I've ever written" before performing it.

Brendon Urie used to say he hated "I Write Sins Not Tragedies," then he said it was a joke. I still think he kind of hates it, but knows he'll soon need that song for his Millennial nostalgia tours.

"Suzanne Vega does not like Luka."

Why not? She wrote the damn thing. I didn't like it either. A song with a cheery, upbeat melody about...child abuse? And I always hated that line "they only hit until you cry." Child abusers keep hitting even AFTER a child keeps crying.

Even the biggest Heart fans (I'm one of them) will tell you that “All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You” is a real turd of a song. The only song of theirs I can't listen to. At least they got a huge hit and made a ton of $$$ off of it, though.

R74 They didn't write that song, so I wonder how much they actually make from it? I know the songwriters make the most - but I wonder how much the performers actually make from a specific song?

Yes, Madonna hates "Material Girll" and regrets that she ever did it. She's said that if she had known that forever after she would be called "The Material Girl" she never would've done the song.

Oh well, at least she got a really cool video out of the song.

The prospect of being forced to keep singing Smells Like Teen Spirit was one of the reasons Kurt Cobain killed himself

Just don’t tell me Dame Shirley hated Goldfinger....

I think any artist who receives early hit success has a love/hate relationship with that music. I've seen Cyndi Lauper in concert a few times and she always makes clear she's not very enthused about singing her 80s hits but does them because that's what the fans want. And I remember an interview with the Flock of Seagulls guy where he got pissed about having to keep singing I Ran So Far Away.

Jimmy Buffett hates performing “Margaritaville.” (As he should, because it sucks.) But he also knows it’s his meal ticket.

R73 We didn’t like Luka either.

Cyndi only had hits in the 80s r79 and that’s I Ran was A flock of seagulls only hit.

Van Morrison hates "Brown Eyes Girl". He said he was literally starving when he wrote it and refuses to sing it.

Everyone hates Brown-Eyed Girl.

Can’t he just change her eye color and pretend it’s a whole new song?

all britney spears songs

"Ebony and Ivory"

Ann sings All I Wanna Do all the time. She said she reconciled with it or some bullshit like that. I thought Halestorm did it better anyways.

Lucky for Britney that she now only needs to mouth along while recordings are played

Michael Stipe hates Shiny Happy People

A great example: Don't Worry Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin. You'd never know he was a legit talent after hearing this piece of shit and McFerrin is embarrassed by it.

Shiny Happy People feel Michael Stipe is a Dreary Depressed Complainer.

Don't Worry Be Happy is music torture

"Jimmy Buffett hates performing “Margaritaville.” (As he should, because it sucks.) But he also knows it’s his meal ticket."

It didn't "suck." If he doesn't like singing it it's probably because he's tired of it, nto because he "hates" it. Although he was a good songwriter it wasn't until "Margaritaville" that he had any real success.

Sinead O'Connor will not sing Nothing Compares 2U in concert. She has disowned that awesome song!

I thought Van Morrison was dead!

[Quote] "...She never wanted to go down the Stoney End, but somebody forced her down the Stoney End..."

Thanks for the laugh R59 - I heard/read Sandra Bernhard's delivery of that joke from from her show 30 years ago (gawd)...

[quote]It didn't "suck."

Speak for “yourself,” R94.

R90 yes, we covered that upthread

Sting and Stewart Copeland hated the Andy Summers composition “Behind My Camel” and refused to play on it. It went on to win a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

The lead singer (Kevin Rowland) of Dexy's Midnight Runners hates Come On Eileen. I learned that from "I Love the '80s - 1982". He's such a sourpuss.

Don Ho always made a big deal about how much he hated Tiny Bubbles.

R102 Then he should stay away from Champagne.

"All I wanna do is make love to you

Hop aboard, and lets screw, screw, screw......."

“and what he couldn’t give meh, ohhh oh whoah oh, is the ONE little thing that you caaaaaan....”

I remember the music video

R50, I saw her back in the early aughts, and people were singing out "hit me with a cum shot".

Radiohead hates Creep

r52 your input is really off topic.

R59 thanks Sandy!

DL icon Connie Francis hates Who's Sorry Now, the song that made her a STAH! It was her father who made her record it.

[quote] Well, it was written in 1923, and this was 1958. I didn’t think the kids on American Bandstand would appreciate the song. It was ‘square’. I didn’t like the melody, I didn’t like the lyrics, there was nothing about it that I liked, or that my father suggested putting ‘triplets’ behind it. I didn’t like anything about it and I did it under duress as the fourth song of my session.

[quote]Flock of Seagulls guy where he got pissed about having to keep singing I Ran So Far Away.

Funny because the one time I saw them live, they opened AND closed with it.

It's always funny at a concert when an act starts singing songs from a new album or a cover and the audience gets quiet, sits down, goes the bathroom. Then when they perform a hit, they jump back to life.

[quote] And I'd rather hear them play "All I Wanna Do.." than any of the 4 Zeppelin songs they cover nearly every show.

Why? It’s positively bizarre, lyrically. I can’t imagine what would possess someone to write it.

Britney hates 'Sometimes'

[quote] In concert, she would only do an abbreviated version of it.

That isn’t true about Tina and “What’s Love?”

She didn’t like the song when it was presented to her, as she didn’t see herself as a pop singer. Also, from what I understand, the demo was far less interesting than the fully produced version ended up being.

I’m sure it was never her favorite, but she warmed up to it and certainly did not perform an abbreviated version of it. On the contrary, it was a centerpiece of her concerts and she would invite the audience to sing along with her.

[quote] It's always funny at a concert when an act starts singing songs from a new album or a cover and the audience gets quiet, sits down, goes the bathroom.

Artists HATE this, and I totally get why. As Lindsey Buckingham (of Fleetwood Mac) once put it (quite undiplomatically, but truthfully), “people only want to hear what was playing when they were fucking in the back of a car in 1977.”

Get a Ouija board and ask Lennon what he thinks about doing McCartney's "Your Mother Should Know."

[quote]I Ran was A flock of seagulls only hit.

I remember Space Age Love Song being played a lot on MTV - plus it was used almost in its entirety in a gay film last year.

Sinitta hates her song GTO and has been known to refer it as GTFOH.

She has frequently refused to perform it live, even though it's her 4th biggest chart succes, saying "It was one of Mel & Kim's rejects. I shouldn't have to sing anyone's rejects, especially Mel & Kim".

Well smell Sinitta!

The Reynolds Girls hated I'd Rather Jack so much they retired from the music industry so they didn't have to perform it.

World class problems. Be grateful you even have a following who remembers you for anything .

Yoko Ono hates “Don’t Worry Kyoko (Mummy’s Only Looking For Her Hand in The Snow)” but her fans demand she perform it in concert so she obliges.

Yoko is 87 and shitting her diapers so requests for that song are the least of her worries.

[quote]Why? It’s positively bizarre, lyrically. I can’t imagine what would possess someone to write it.

Because I like it musically and whether they wrote it or not, I'm seeing Heart for Heart songs, not flat-out covers. Nothing irks me more than a band with a deep catalog playing more than one cover song in their set.

But buying a ticket to a concert does not entitle you to stomp your feet like Violet Beauregarde and DEMAND that the artist play what you want. They are not human jukeboxes. They can play whatever the fuck they want.

The records released often have more input or control for the label, so they sell. The artist has much more freedom over a performance.

Michael Stipe apparently detests 'Shiny Happy People'

Some of these reek of ingratitude. I actually agree that some of the songs themselves are not so great, but we wouldn’t even know the names of many of the artists had they not been fortunate enough to have these hits.

[quote] Because I like it musically

I can’t ignore lyrics. I know that some people can, but not me. Especially if they’re that nutty.

It’s literally a song about some woman deliberately getting knocked up by a stranger, and it’s presented (without a hint of irony) as profoundly meaningful when it’s really the height of insanity.

I can’t deal with it.

R127 I think you mean Veruca Salt

R129, I don’t think artists should have to brown-nose their fans. I find the ones who do fairly shallow. When I like a band or musician, I’m interested in hearing what they’re interested in doing. I may or may not like it, but usually I’ll respect that that’s what they wanted to explore.

I’m not sure that most people share that view, though.

R17 Why? That's a great song

I have respect for the artists that don't want to do old songs. It disappoints me, but I respect it.

I see the wisdom in thinking that a song one wrote at 25 may not resonate with a musician at 50.

I'm a big fan of Everything But The Girl as a band (and each of them solo, too) but part of the reason they put EBTG on ice was that they just didn't want to become a oldies/nostalgia act, and I get it. I'm sad I'll never see them live, but it is what it is.

With "Luka," I wonder if it's because people misunderstand the song?

The lyrics are dark but the music is so...NOT dark.

All I Wanna Do is that song about the woman fucking some guy who turns out to be the son she gave up for adoption 20 years earlier?

The song's twisted enough r136 without having to make it into a song about a woman giving birth to own grandchild

If Ann is a feminist it makes sense to hate AIWDIMLTY since the song is about doing something sexually without consent.

All I wanna do is eat tons of food

Some buffalo wings and some Ding Dongs too

All I wanna do is eat tons of food

I've got a turkey leg to hold on to

R139 Chrissy Metz has a new single?

Sinead doessing NC2U in concert after avoiding it for years. She does not love it, but again, it's her hit and the audience loves it and does the aaah aaaaah aaaaaaahs.

David Cassidy did not like singing Partridge Family songs but he finally gave up and did a club tour singing all the PF hits. I saw him, right up against the stage, in 1991 at DV8 in San Francisco and it was a 2nd grade dream come true!

Except, he got sweaty and brown hair dye dripped from his temples. His p/leather in the front, lycra in the back, lace-up rock n roll pants split at the crotch and scrotal flesh pressed through the hole. The small hairs were backlit by stage lights. I died laughing and took photos. He left without signing my PF lunchbox. Still one of the best concerts evah! (Still have the albums, too.)

Walk Like an Egyptian has GOT to be one of the worst songs ever. It's too bad because I quite liked the rest of the Bangles music.

I loved the Bangles but it's funny that the three biggest singles on the Different Light album were covers and/or written by others (Manic Monday, Egyptian, If She Knew What She Wants)

[quote]Walk Like an Egyptian has GOT to be one of the worst songs ever. It's too bad because I quite liked the rest of the Bangles music.

It's completely unrepresentative of the rest of their music, plus the cunty producer David Kahne made them audition for parts on the song. Not only did Debbie not get to sing, her drumming was replaced by a machine and she had to lip synch whistling in the video.

She must have been fuming when Hoffs picked David Kahne to produce her first album, but secretly thrilled it bombed so badly.

I loved that Bangles album but I don't think any members liked Kahne.

I also loved All Over The Place which was much more of a true Bangles album.

Ann says she's a feminist but her behavior regarding her grifter husband says differently.

Bangles also had a pretty big hit with Hazy Shade of Winter. Love Susanna and co but maybe their best songs were written by others. I'd be a little bitter too. I saw them a few years ago and they were super fun. Played all the hits.

R128 I do too!

[quote]Stipe: "fruity pop song written for children."

He's not wrong.

"Why? It’s positively bizarre, lyrically. I can’t imagine what would possess someone to write it."

Mutt Lange wrote it - ask him what possessed him to write it

R84 that scat song again?!

R87 she does dance music now.

Hanson said if they hear mmmmbop one more time they’re gonna commit incest.

R45, Rosemary hated singing all of those novelty songs that Mitch Miller made her record.

Flock of Seagulls also had Wishing.

[quote]Walk Like an Egyptian has GOT to be one of the worst songs ever. It's too bad because I quite liked the rest of the Bangles music.

I agree. It's a shitty novelty song. Manic Monday is a great song, and their cover of Hazy Shade Of Winter is fantastic.

my favorite Bangles song is “Be With You” which was sang by one of the Peterson sisters, who really should have had more opportunities to sing lead since they had interesting voices. Actually they all had nice voices and all very distinct.

Eternal Flame sucks dongs too!

r158 I have no idea what Eternal Flame is, but what, exactly, is wrong with sucking dongs?

Eternal Fame is a fucking Bangles hit. Since this thread turned into one.

All I Wanna Do makes sense to have been written by a man because it's the sort of weird fantasy that a guy would think of.

Close your eyes

Gimme your hand job

Do you feel my farts beating?

Dooooo you understand

Ann Wilson can't fucking sing to save her life anymore. She lost her voice years ago. I've seen Heart twice opening up for or sharing a bill with other bands who I was there to see and her voice is just excruciating. Not only does she not even get close to the original key, she can't even handle the transpositions to the easier keys. She's a fucking mess. Nancy, however, still sounds good. They should just let her sing everything.

Barry Manilow apparently hates Copacabana because he's ALWAYS referred to by that song, even though he had several other songs that were much bigger hits (like the #1s Mandy and I Write the Songs). Copa only hit #8 in the U.S.

Speak for “YOURself", R98. There's nothing wrong with "Margaritaville." If you don't like it I guess that's your problem.

I don’t think Michael Bolton likes Love is a Wonderful Thing no more

I could imagine the B52s only begrudgingly performing “Love Shack” but who knows, maybe they do like it.

In 1991, Stevie Nicks recorded a few new songs for her upcoming greatest hits release, 'TimeSpace.' The first single was to be "Listen To The Rain," but the record company interjected and demanded that Stevie record a song co-written and produced by Jon Bon Jovi: "Sometimes It's A Bitch."

Stevie hated the song, hated singing the word "bitch" (even though she loves to curse), hated being forced to do something period.

Therefore, when her 'TimeSpace' tour started in Houston in July 1991, predating the album's release by almost two months, Stevie refused to sing the album's first single, "Sometimes It's A Bitch," in concert. She could have used that tour to promote her new single but she hated the whole experience with "Sometimes It's A Bitch" that badly.

Does Sheryl Crow hate "All I Wanna Do?"

[quote] There's nothing wrong with "Margaritaville."

I'm sorry about the accident that destroyed your hearing and every bit of taste you ever had.

too bad about “Sometimes It’s a Bitch” because it wasn’t a bad single, I liked it. I liked “Desert Angel” too, but I didn’t care for “Love’s a Hard Game To Play” as much.

She had balls to not promote her own single, the lyrics were even printed in the tour book!

Don Ho hated "Tiny Bubbles" and always made his audiences sing it while he and his band played the music. But it was insane because it was his ONLY hit, so why would you go see him if you didn't want to hear that song?

Donny Osmond hates "Deep Purple," which was a popular song from the 20s repurposed as a minor hit for him and his sister. He won't let them perform it now.

It's funny how several of these songs (like "Who's Sorry Now") were old hits that the performers were asked to sing in new arrangements when they were young, and they hated them then because they were old-fashioned--and that hatred has lasted into old age.

Even though Madonna disliked "Like a Virgin," she was still willing to do it for later tours. I don't think she's ever done "Material Girl" since the mid80s on tour though--she will go on and on about how she dislikes it because "that's not at all who I am." What so funny is that it's EXACTLY who she was then and who she still is: materialistic, calculating, money-mad.

John Mellencamp hates Jack and Diane.

Must be all the chili dogs he sucked down behind the Tastee Freeze. They make for some heinous farts.

Lorde hates Royals and the less we hear of THAT atrocity, the better

Lorde is so 2016

When it came time for the second single for 'TimeSpace,' Stevie was happy to sing it for a special radio concert as well as perform it on the Arsenio Hall Show in November 1991.

"Love's A Hard Game To Play" was written by Bret Michaels of Poison. In Summer 2001, Poison were in Dallas for a concert, so I called up the talk radio show they were on and asked Bret what it was like working with Stevie.

Bret said that they went out to dinner, drank a lot, laughed a lot, and had a great time. He said she is a very funny lady. In the studio, Bret revealed, Stevie changed several of the lyrics but she refused a co-writing credit, happy to let the younger guys get all of the songwriting royalties.

When 'TimeSpace' was released in 1991, I preferred "Love's A Hard Game To Play" but, over the years, I much prefer "Sometimes It's A Bitch." Stevie sings the Hell out of it!

Lots of stars oddly enough hate their songs that are among their biggest hits:

Radiohead - "Creep" (Thom Yorke privately refers to it as "Crap")

Kate Perry - "I Kissed a Girl"

Led Zeppelin - "Stairway to Heaven" (Robert Plant calls it "that bloody wedding song")

Beastie Boys - "Fight for Your Right (to Party) (they intended it to be ironic, and were appalled people took it as a serious party anthem)

Lady Gaga - "Telephone"

Both throw a way tracks from Stevie

It seems that often the songs artists hate the most are among their earliest songs, so it might be a song pushed on them by labels, producers, etc. that was a hit, but maybe not their thing. Or, like the Alison Moyet example upthread, they evolved and the song doesn't work for them any longer.

Helen Reddy's hatred for "Leave Me Alone" must be because of the tricky, hard-to-remember lyrics.

"Leave me alone, won't you leave me alone

Please leave me alone, now leave me alone

Oh leave me alone, please leave me alone, yes leave me (leave me!).

Leave me alone, won't you leave me alone

Please leave me alone, now leave me alone

God leave me along, just leave me alone, oh leave me (leave me!)."

Wasn't Tugboat Annie a lez for 5 minutes? It wasn't as lucrative as it was for Melissa Etheridge, I guess.

Men back on land!

"Does Sheryl Crow hate "All I Wanna Do?"

I do.

I hate the way the line 'Until the sun comes up on the Santa Monica Boulevard" scans. You have to sing it "SAN-ta Mon-i-CA Boul-e-VARD" to fit the tune, which is of course not the way those words scan at all--it should be "SAN-ta MON-i-ca BOUL-e-vard." That's crappy songwriting.

R181, and yet, Helen so clearly enjoys performing it on The Tonight Show in 1974.

R184, you're not even hating the correct lyrics:

"Until the sun comes up OVER

Santa Monica Boulevard"

Carol Channing needs to set all of these losers straight!!

Helen sure sang a stupid song, r185

"I'm sorry about the accident that destroyed your hearing and every bit of taste you ever had."

I'm sorry an inoffensive song has tied your frilly knickers in such a knot.

R124, she should just let the B52s have it then.

R189 Frilly knickers?

Keep you FILTHY paws off mah silky drawers!

R132, I'm with you. It does seem to be a minority opinion though, as you say. I've often heard people complain after going to a concert that so-and-so didn't play a certain hit.

I remember seeing an interview with Diamanda Galas where she said that the music an artist plays is only a fragment of what they know or are interested in. It must be so frustrating for a lot of people who get into music for the love of it, and are constantly having to fight against others (the record company for example) to do what they love. I do respect those that just go in the direction they want to, and I love the surprise of going to a concert and not being able to say definitely what will crop up beforehand.

I've always thought if I had the talent to be a musician there are so many different styles I'd want to do, I wouldn't know where to start.

Diamanda Galas - 🤮

Concerts are such a mixed bag to begin with. And audiences are part of the problem, because they DO insist on basically having the exact same experience they do when they listen to the recording.

It's rare to find artists that really transcend that "hell, for all this I coulda just lip synched" feeling. Either extreme talent, extreme creativity in rearranging and reimagining songs, or a strong visual element to a show can help take it to the next level.

I personally loathe most concerts these days. The last several I attended were dreadful. People go to talk to each other and act like morons. I sat behind people at a show that Facebook Live'd their entire experience, blocking my view. One of those women (it's almost always women) danced like a developmentally disabled penguin the whole night.

[quote] Bret revealed, Stevie changed several of the lyrics but she refused a co-writing credit, happy to let the younger guys get all of the songwriting royalties.

That was very generous of Stevie, a lot of artists never would've done that.

[quote]they evolved and the song doesn't work for them any longer.

Grace Slick has said in interviews that this was a big reason why she retired from the music business. She said that she felt ridiculous singing the 60s songs about sex and drugs and revolution as a middle-aged person in the 1980s. That time had long since passed, she was much older and she was no longer in that place in her life anymore, it just felt inauthentic so she quit the business.

[quote]"Does Sheryl Crow hate "All I Wanna Do?"

I know I hated that fucking song the first time I heard it. And it was so overplayed.

[quote] "Does Sheryl Crow hate "All I Wanna Do?"

She should hate all of her music--I know I do.

Tina Turner hated What's Love Got to Do with it

Jane Curtin hated the Kate and Allie theme song. "Just when you think..."

That’s interesting, r168. I recognize it’s got cheesy lyrics and isn’t Stevie’s finest moment but that song got me through a rough time in my life so I’ve always had a soft spot for it. I’d say it holds up as good or better than her other 90s output.

Elton John should really hate Don't Go Breaking My Heart.

R201 I’m sorry but those songs are low n the Stevie Nicks totem pole.

Depeche Mode didn't hate Just Can't Get Enough, but disliked that even after multiple albums, this first/early single was what they were identified with. Plus, it was a Vince Clarke song and he left after the first album. Definitely a song they had to do live rather than wanting to. This was how DM felt in the 80's and early 90's. I think after another 30 years and with bigger hits like Enjoy the Silence, JCGE is no longer DM's defining song.

Dusty Springfield was supposed to do Don't Go Breaking My Heart with Elton but something happened and she couldn't. Pity, it would've been a better song with Dusty.

R205 That was being recorded during a stretch where Dusty kind of lost her shit. It is sad, it would have been a much earlier comeback for her.

R202 He couldn’t if he tried.

R207, DIE!

CHER also hates her story songs from the 70s. Gypsies, Half Breed, and Dark Lady. She does extremely truncated versions of them in her show. It's like why even bother bitch

Tina Turners' recording of Let's Stay Together is better sung and better produced than What's Love Got to do with It.

Her voice is perfect and the production/back up by Heaven 17 is awesome.

I would hate the light weight What's Love also.

Tina's "Let's Stay Together" is perfect from start to finish. She fucking killed it on that song.

The Go-Go's only do "Head Over Heels" once in a great while on their concert tours.

I played the album to death & wish that they would do the other 9 songs on their FINAL closing tour date.

Belinda Carlisle also has problems with this mid 90s album so it's rare for her to perform these songs in a concert show as well.

I hope she performs the remaining batch in public at some point down the line...

What's Love Got to Do With It is a decent song, it just goes on forever. I can see why Turner would perform it abbreviated.

Why is DL obsessed with Helen Reddy ? Most of us don’t know her.

The trick is, if you don't like your famous song and your fans came to hear it, just sing part of it in a medley.

Good idea r216.

Cher's two favorite songs she's ever recorded are "I Paralyze" and "Save Up All Your Tears" yet she never performs them in concert.

R216 she was a star.

I love Save Up All Your Tears

When I saw Natalie Merchant, not only was she rude and uninterested to be singing, she didn't sing a single 10,000 Maniacs song. No one in the audience had a clue about any song she sang. I guess she doesn't like any of those great songs? She also barely spoke the whole time, and just mumbled, "This Song is called Whiney Bitch Mumbles."

Carol Channing shaded Leslie Uggams to make a very good point.

“One of those women (it's almost always women) danced like a developmentally disabled penguin the whole night.“

LOL

I went to a concert people went up and took group photos with their back to the artist while he was performing. Bizarre.

Extreme would refuse to sing "More Than Words" for a while. It's a great song, but it was way overexposed.

R224 that song sucks shit.

Wouldn't Leslie Uggams be played on to the stage with "My Own Morning"? It was the most famous song from "Hallelujah, Baby," even if no one but a new Broadway queens remember it.

Emma Thompson said she got so sick of "The Lambeth Walk" during her first West End show ("Me and My Gal") that she wanted to kill herself.

R221, years ago I saw Natalie Merchant open for REM in support of her first solo album. I had loved 10,000 Maniacs and had looked forward to the concert but was so disappointed in Merchant’s dull, lifeless stage persona and solo music. Even when she came out to do some songs with Stipe during REM’s set she was very subdued. A shame she doesn’t want to acknowledge her roots from 10,000 Maniacs

[quote]years ago I saw Natalie Merchant open for REM in support of her first solo album. I had loved 10,000 Maniacs and had looked forward to the concert but was so disappointed in Merchant’s dull, lifeless stage persona and solo music.

That must have been one hell of a dull show. Michael Stipe is one of the most boring performers I’ve ever seen, and I love — looooove — REM.

Petula Clark hated "My Love" even though it was her second #1 hit.

[quote] Why is DL obsessed with Helen Reddy ? Most of us don’t know her.

There are people here obsessed with Helen Twelvetrees.

Cyndi Lauper hates "The Goonies..." She refused to sing it for decades but fans like it so she does now.

Madonna said she never would have sang "Material Girl" if she'd known she'd be stuck with that name forever.

R225 is delusional.

Has any one wondered about Material Girl?

If Jimmy Buffett hates "Margaritaville" so much, then why did he allow it to become the centerpiece of his marketing and restauranting empire? There's a whole store full of that stuff in Las Vegas. They do for alcoholism what Disney does for emotional eating.

Because money, R235. Duh.

R235 Not to mention the a broadway musical!

[quote]Steve Winwood hates most of his '80s songs and will only do Higher Love and When You See a Chance in concert.

Good riddance, really. Lucky for us prog rock fans, he continues to do much of his very old catalog with Traffic, Spencer Davis Group and Blind Faith. That shit's amazing.

God, I've always fucking hated Jimmy Buffet.

Steve Winwood is still around? I thought he retired ages ago.

But you obviously like every other kind of buffet, R239.

Does she ever perform her greatest song, "Train of Thought"?

R212 The Go-Go's always do Head Over Heels.

But yes, they have bad memories of their breakup over the recording process and tour for Talk Show and refuse to be grownups and play the music. They are still, 36 years later, sore about one particular song on the album (Forget That Day).

Why are the Go-Gos sore about Forget That Day? I just to it for the very first time (on YouTube).

R244 Jane wrote the lyrics about a relationship and the band members loved it, but refused to let Jane sing on it, and it started a rift in the band that continues to this day. They're all petty ass bitches so they still won't play it all these years later.

^^^l just listened to it...

I remembered Steve Winwood recently....but only because Kygo released that Whitney version of Higher Love. She enunciates his words better than he ever did.

[quote] Why is DL obsessed with Helen Reddy ? Most of us don’t know her.

She had more than a dozen top 40 hits in the early 70s, including three #1s ("I Am Woman," "Angie Baby," and "Delta Dawn"). Believe it or not, she was a huge star in her day. If you grew up in the early 1970s, boy did you ever know who she was.

[quote]That must have been one hell of a dull show. Michael Stipe is one of the most boring performers I’ve ever seen, and I love — looooove — REM.

LOL, REM was actually fine. They were the headliner and Stipe hadn't been completely overtaken by morose boredom yet. But it was an outdoor concert in Austin, TX in August and by the time they went on we were all so exhausted from the heat and lame opening acts that I didn't really enjoy it.

R248 because she is woman hear her roar!

One of my guilty pleasures featuring Helen Reddy

R251, great song and show.

I loved her hair on Arsenio. It was the first time I remember seeing the long silky hair and bangs look, and she looked thin and happy to perform. The arrangement of Stand Back was great and the audience was very enthusiastic! Who was the singer with Sharon Celani, was that Lyn Mabry? They show her so quickly i can’t tell.

Yes, Lynn Mabry was there with Sharon. I think that was Lunn's last performance with Stevie, but there might have been a few private shows she was at afterwards.

Stevie let her hair go straight in 1991 after the 'Behind The Mask' tour ended in December 1990. However, she permed it again in July 1991 for the 'timeSpace' tour. Her hair was straight again by The Arsenio Hall Show in November. That was Stevie's LAST perm!

Her hair was straight all through 1992 to 1994, and she used nightly tight braids to give her hair the big permed look on the 1994 'Street Angel' tour.

If you've seen her hair curly since 1992, it's from hot rollers or some other curling method, even those frizzy 2003 'Say You Will' photos.

Wasn't Stevie Klonopined out during this era as well?

she told CBS that straight hair is a lot of work, but it seems like it’s worth it to her because she’s been pretty loyal to that hairstyle for decades now.

I loved her frizzy braided mess hair during the Street Angel tour, I thought it looked so cool!

How did this thread get derailed into a thread about Stevie Nicks’ hair?

R257, better that than a toaster oven.

I don’t think Heart likes “These Dreams” either and resents that these third-party penned songs were big hits for them. Yet it’s a chance for Nancy to sing lead so I guess they’ll keep doing it. Whenever i’ve seen them live I always thought “These Dreams” was a lovely interlude and as much a I love Ann it’s nice to get a little break.

“These Dreams” was offered to Stevie Nicks first!

[quote]I don’t think Heart likes “These Dreams” either and resents that these third-party penned songs were big hits for them. Yet it’s a chance for Nancy to sing lead so I guess they’ll keep doing it.

I remember reading that Ann hates that song precisely because Nancy sings lead. She was crazy jealous.

Michael Bolton prefers this song

Bryan Adams wants to be your underwear 🤮

Not a bad song, quite the contrary but Stevie Nicks hated singing Go Your Own Way due to "shacking up is all you want to do". She said she didn't shack up and he would look at her everytime he sang the line and she was pissed.

Stevie was still on Klonopin until she detoxed in Late 1993.

Although she was at her heaviest during the 'Street Angel' tour of 1994, she was clear and her voice was at its strongest.

In 1995, Stevie lost the weight on the Atkins Diet.

Here's Jay Leno creepily touching Stevie's hair when he asks her how she gets that permed look without perming:

[R255] Yes - the timeline of the Klonopin years is somewhat fuzzy due to the warping effects of "Stevie time" - Stevie's often contradictory recollections. She got on Klonopin roughly in 1986 and was on it until 1994. Even though she looks fantastic on Arsenio her eyes have that dead look that characterize the Klonopin years. As for Stevie's hair, the Tusk period was her low point in my opinion - all loopy, messy curls and two-tone color. Very unflattering. Thank god her hair recovered for Bella Donna and Mirage.

R263, in this interview clip from 1996, Stevie is pretty funny about the subject of your post.

"Don't look at me when you say that! That tender love song you wrote for for me, you know. How mean."

[quote]I don’t think Heart likes “These Dreams” either and resents that these third-party penned songs were big hits for them. Yet it’s a chance for Nancy to sing lead so I guess they’ll keep doing it. Whenever i’ve seen them live I always thought “These Dreams” was a lovely interlude and as much a I love Ann it’s nice to get a little break.

Heart didn't write any of their big hits!

These Dreams - Bernie Taupin/Martin Page

Nothing At All - Mark Mueller

Alone - Steinberg/Kelly

Who Will You Run To - Diane Warren

I Want You So Bad - Steinberg/Kelly

All I Wanna Do Is Drain Semen From You - Robert Mutt Lange

I Didn't Want To Need You - Diane Warren

Stranded - Harrington/Kyle

Secret - Golde/Robert

Will You Be There In The Morning - Robert Mutt Lange

The Woman In Me - Clark/Bettis

[R259] True. And I understand why Stevie turned it down because it sound like a ripoff/parody of one of her own songs, minus the quirky and distinctive elements. Songwriting hack Bernie Taupin tries his hand a soggy female mysticism ("perfume on my wrist").

[R268] Which is why they're still doing the bus and steakhouse circuit?

Apparently, Stevie dislikes most of the material on Street Angel as well because she was at her worst in terms of her Klonopin addiction. I think she's referred to 87-94 in general as her "lost years".

Melissa Manchester wasn't overly fond of most of her pop material either. She stopped performing "You Should Hear How she talks about You" in concert for several years. She gave an interview a year or two back promoting a reissue of Mathematics, and while she's very diplomatic about it, it's clear that she recorded it because MCA was pushing her hard to compete with the current pop artists of that period.

[R271] "You Should Hear How She Talks About You" is sooooo contrived - and I remember thinking it before I knew what "contrived" meant. It's so generic and obviously intended to be a "catchy" hit single - even though it's not all that catchy. Too many words.

the Street Angel album and tour are tragically under-appreciated, imo

R272, really? I love that song. Great pop tune.

R271, in very recent years, Stevie has softened her opinion on 'Street Angel,' talking very positively about it in an interview with Lana del Rey two years ago.

I LOVE 'Street Angel,' the album and the tour, R273!

My favorite of the unreleased songs from 'Street Angel' -

[R271] Stevie got off Klonopin after the recording of Street Angel but before its release. When she heard the record with a clear head she hated it and redid some of the vocals and mixes but it was too late in her opinion. Too much money had be spent to shelve it and a tour was booked. People totally forget the lead single - "Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind" - a ditty which Stevie did not write and which stalled out at #57 on the Pop chart. She should have released Blue Denim first - a much stronger single. By this time Stevie had gained a lot of weight and had lost much of the sex appeal that helped her ride to superstardom. She wouldn't get her act together until Fleetwood Mac's THE DANCE - one of the greatest comebacks ever.

'Street Angel' is full of great songs like:

Greta

Blue Denim

Listen To The Rain

Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind

Rose Garden

And I LOVE "Docklands," which so many fans hate.

Another unreleased fave from 'Street Angel' -

“this will NEVER come again!!!”

that’s probably my favorite MM too.

If I may interrupt the Stevie Nicks Admiration Society thread with the actual topic at hand....Radiohead hated “Creep.” They tried to screw up the recording in studio, only to have it become a huge hit.

I saw The Replacements live decades ago and they practically spat on the fans for cheering loudly for their radio hit “I’ll Be You”

Ringo Starr can't do "You're Sixteen" anymore, because he's old enough to be her great-grandfather at this point...and there are some things even a Beatle can't get away with.

Maybe if he changed it to "You're Sixty"...

R278,

"This will leave you HAUNTED in your mirror!"

Stevie also quit smoking around the time she quit Klonopin and that's when her weight really ballooned.

It's hard to think of an artist more disconnected to one of his hits than David Bowie and "The Laughing Gnome".

It was one of those instances where a former record company re-issued a song that flopped years earlier to cash in on the artist's current success.

"The Laughing Gnome" was a silly, stupid novelty song from 1967, the pre-"Space Oddity" period when Bowie was trying to be Anthony Newley. He actually did have some decent songs from that era, but this wasn't one of them.

After Bowie became the biggest thing in Britain, Decca reissued it in 1973, and the thing actually made the top 10 over there. Bowie was absolutely horrified.

Needless to say, he never performed it live.

"Ringo Starr can't do "You're Sixteen" anymore, because he's old enough to be her great-grandfather at this point...and there are some things even a Beatle can't get away with."

It's funny to watch all those oldies concerts on PBS where the 70-something singers are still singing all those songs about the joys of being a teen

Chastity Bono absolutely refuses to sing "Could've Been Love" anymore.

For some reason, she finds it difficult to hit the high notes these days.

Even though I've always despised it, at this point I will sing "I Was Made For Dancin'" for a Happy Meal. Or a booty bump.

I guess it didn't.

Ow! My cunt bone!

I can’t imagine Madonna singing Like A Virgin these days

[quote]It's funny to watch all those oldies concerts on PBS where the 70-something singers are still singing all those songs about the joys of being a teen

See the Grace Slick quote above. She retired from performing because she felt ridiculous singing songs of young angst and rebellion as an older woman.

“he said SEE YA!”

"Here's Jay Leno creepily touching Stevie's hair when he asks her how she gets that permed look without perming:"

Permed look without perming? Stevie NIcks permed the fuck out of her hair. Look at her hair on the cover of the "Buckingham/Nicks" album; that was her natural hair, which was kind of limp and stringy. She eventually started perming the hell out of it in the 80s (Ann and Nancy Wilson did the same thing) until it looked like a big Barbie doll blonde haystack.

Dionne Farris hates I Know,

R293, Stevie's hair was not permed in 1994. Watch the video as Stevie explains to Jay how she got that look.

Her last perm was in 1991.

Sia was embarrassed of the songs she wrote for other artists like “Titanium” and “Wild One” and was initially against her vocals being used.

Kelly Clarkson hates “Breakaway”

Natalie Maines of the Chicks hates “There’s Your Trouble”

[quote] Sia was embarrassed of the songs she wrote for other artists like “Titanium” and “Wild One” and was initially against her vocals being used.

All of her songs are horrible, she should be ashamed.

"Heart didn't write any of their big hits!"

Well, Ann Wilson DID write "Magic Man" and "Barracuda." "Magic Man" is considered Heart's signature song, but I always thought it was a piece of shit; boring and long and tedious. "Barracuda" derived from an incident where some music flack approached Ann Wilson asked "Hey Ann, how's your lover?" She said fine; she thought he meant Mike Fisher (he was the "Magic Man" in that awful song). Then he said "No, your LOVER. Your SISTER." Seems their record company used an ad campaign that featured Ann and Nancy looking nude (they were photographed teasingly with bare shoulders) with the caption "It was only our first time!, which led some people to speculate that Ann and Nancy were lesbian sister lovers. Oh well, that's the music business.

Ann and Nancy also wrote “Crazy on You” and the three versions of “Dreamboat Annie” (their best songs) on their debut album.

Men Without Hats hate The Safety Dance. Um, tell me, what exactly is a safety dance? Been wondering since I was a pre-teen in 1983.

R300 I always thought it was a euphemism for safe sex, but what do I know.

Well, some of these are disturbing.