Many famous music artists generally have released multiple songs that have sold extremely well and received plenty of radio airplay. That being said, commercial success or chart performance aren’t always factors in how songwriters and musicians feel about the tunes that they’ve created. In fact, many classic rock stars have singled out some of their deep cuts and lesser-known songs as among their favorite tunes from their catalogs.
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Here’s a look at four songs by legendary artists that were not hits. However, they are considered by the composers as some of their best work.
“Here, There And Everywhere” by The Beatles (1966)
“Here, There And Everywhere” is a love song that appeared on The Beatles’ classic 1966 album Revolver. The harmony-rich tune certainly is beloved by fans, although it wasn’t released as a single by the Fab Four.
Paul McCartney wrote the song and sang lead on the track, although John Lennon is credited with co-writing the tune. In his 2021 book, The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present, McCartney admitted, “[I]f pushed, I would say that ‘Here, There And Everywhere’ is my own favourite of all my songs.”
McCartney also noted that the song was “influenced most immediately by The Beach Boys’ ‘God Only Knows.’”
In addition, Paul talked about his favorite line in the song—“Changing my life with a wave of her hand”—and reflected on its meaning.
“I look at that line now and wonder where it came from,” he wrote. “What was it? Was I thinking of the queen waving from the royal carriage? Or just the power of the little thing. The power of doing hardly anything. She waves her hand and she changed my life. It summons up a lot. So now when I sing it, I look back at it and think, ‘The boy’s not bad.’”
“Moonlight Mile” by The Rolling Stones (1971)
“Moonlight Mile” is the last track on The Rolling Stones’ acclaimed 1971 album Sticky Fingers. Frontman Mick Jagger wrote the introspective ballad with help from then-Stones guitarist Mick Taylor, although the song is credited to Jagger and Keith Richards.
Jagger discussed his affinity for the tune in a May 2015 interview with the Wall Street Journal, shortly before the release of a deluxe reissue of Sticky Fingers.
Mick explained that he wrote “Moonlight Mile” while on tour with The Stones in Europe during the summer of 1970.
“I was growing road-weary and homesick then,” he recalled. “I’m sure the idea for the song first came to me one night while we were on a train and the moon was out. … The feeling I had at that moment was how difficult it was to be touring and how I wasn’t looking forward to going out and doing it again. It’s a very lonely thing, and my lyrics reflected that.”
Jagger also noted, “What makes ‘Moonlight Mile’ special is that it’s a song and a recording at once… they all came together to produce a feeling of vulnerability and loneliness.”
He added, “When I hear ‘Moonlight Mile’ now, I really like it. I think it’s a good piece of music. It’s unusual, and it’s still accessible and delicate and has a climax and comes back down and ends quite well. I suppose I’ve also grown a little more accustomed to touring.”
“Racing In The Street” by Bruce Springsteen (1978)
“Racing In The Street” is a track on Bruce Springsteen’s 1978 album, Darkness On The Edge Of Town. The tune was inspired by the Boss’ youthful recollections of witnessing street racing in and around Asbury Park, New Jersey.
In a 2016 interview on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Bruce chose “Racing In The Street” as one of the five favorite songs he’s written.
Springsteen talked about the song during a fan Q&A that aired on SiriusXM radio in November 2010, coinciding with the release of the Darkness At The Edge Of Town reissue.
“‘Racing In The Street’ sums up a lot for me,” Springsteen said. He added that he’d want his children to be able to understand the sadness that he wrote about in the song. Bruce also explained that he’d hope his kids would be resilient enough to overcome such sadness, while noting that he’d never want them to actually experience it.
“Darling Lorraine” by Paul Simon (2000)
“Darling Lorraine” was a track on Paul Simon’s 10th solo studio album, You’re The One, which was released in 2000. The folk-rock legend also reworked the song for his 2018 album, In The Blue Light.
“Darling Lorraine” tells the story of the long, imperfect relationship of a couple, from their meeting until the wife’s death.
In a 2018 interview with Mojo magazine, Simon talked about the updated version of the song he recorded on In The Blue Light. The album featured sonically reimagined renditions of a selection of lesser-known tunes from his back catalog.
“We tried to make the arrangement a bit simpler so that the story would come through,” he explained. “I always thought ‘Darling Lorraine’ was one of my best songs.”
(Photo by Central Press/Getty Images)
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