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The History of Modern Pop is a weighty tome stretching right back to the early fifties, the first seven inch single and the first UK chart based entirely on sales. In this new age of forensic focus, niche interests and the microgenre mythomania of the net, such grand narratives should be a thing of the past, but they are still necessary if only to make sense of pops mutually indifferent secret pleasures, the songs we hate to love!

   Obviously there are those amongst us who believe that when it comes to music there shouldn’t be any such thing as a guilty secret pleasure, but that’s somewhat idealistic. In the real world, each successive generation comes up against social pressures, signals that communicate preconceived notions of what music we can and can’t like. How these break down can tell us a lot about ourselves.

   Many of the reasons why we end up feeling guilty about certain types of music involve seemingly arbitrary external constraints, whereas they’re actually tied up in the conversations we have on a regular basis about race, gender, sexuality, class, elitism and education. What makes a song ‘respectable’, and who is responsible for making it so? Whichever way you cut it, we're all a product of our environment. The trick is to think about why, without getting too deep just because you like a Paris Hilton song.

   As our regular visitors know only too well, here at Green Inc we are self-confessed music snobs. And yet as children of the seventies and nineties, we love our secret pleasures. If nothing else they provide a bit of light relief from the darker, more challenging stuff we tend to gravitate towards. That’s not to say that the songs here are lightweight fluff. Far from it. I think we've all experienced driving along minding our own business, when all of a sudden ELO, A-Ha, Girls Aloud or Harry Styles start playing on the radio and in an instant you’re singing along and groovin’ like a loon. High on their sticky sweet rush, they make you feel amazing.

   So here’s 150 more of the pesky little blighters from the past six decades to sing along to; our own populist anthology of the best, catchiest and most outrageous secret pleasure’s still left to find. Sure, it’s only pop, but we think you’ll agree, it’s pop of the most brilliant kind!

 

1. HOLLYWOOD ARGYLES ‘Alley Oop’ (July 1960)

2. BOBBY RYDELL ‘Sway’ (November 1960)

3. DEL SHANNON ‘So Long Baby’ (September 1961)

4. JET HARRIS ‘Besame Mucho’ (May 1962)

5. DION ‘Ruby Baby’ (January 1963)

6. MAJOR LANCE ‘Um Um Um Um Um Um’ (January 1964)

7. DUSTY SPRINGFIELD ‘You Don’t Own Me’ (April 1964)

8. GOLDIE & THE GINGERBREADS ‘Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat’ (January 1965)

9. GEORGIE FAME ‘Like We Used To Be’ (July 1965)

10. TWINKLE ‘Poor Old Johnny’ (September 1965)

11. BOB LIND ‘Elusive Butterfly’ (February 1966)

12. ROY C ‘Shotgun Wedding’ (April 1966)

13. ROBERT PARKER ‘Barefootin’ (July 1966)

14. SANDIE SHAW ‘Run’ (August 1966)

15. NANCY SINATRA ‘Sugar Town’ (January 1967)

16. LOVIN SPOONFUL ‘Darling Be Home Soon’ (February 1967)

17. THE MONKEES ‘A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You’ (March 1967)

18. DONOVAN ‘There Is A Mountain’ (October 1967)

19. SIMON DUPREE & THE BIG SOUND ‘For Whom The Bell Tolls’ (March 1968)

20. SMALL FACES ‘Lazy Sunday’ (April 1968)

21. BRUCE CHANNEL ‘Keep On’ (May 1968)

22. THE TURTLES ‘Elenore’ (September 1968)

23. JIMMY CLIFF ‘Wonderful World, Beautiful People’ (October 1969)

24. STEAM ‘Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye’ (October 1969)

25. BLUE MINK ‘Melting Pot’ (October 1969)

 

26. CAT STEVENS ‘Lady D’Arbanville’ (June 1970)

27. C.C.S. ‘Whole Lotta Love’ (September 1970)

28. DIANA ROSS ‘Remember Me’ (March 1971)

29. COLIN BLUNSTONE ‘Say You Don’t Mind’ (January 1972)

30. JOHNNY NASH ‘Stir It Up’ (April 1972)

31. LABI SIFFRE ‘Watch Me’ (July 1972)

32. MANFRED MANN’S EARTHBAND ‘Joybringer’ (August 1973)

33. CHI-LITES ‘Homely Girl’ (March 1974)

34. KC & THE SUNSHINE BAND ‘Sound Your Funky Horn’ (April 1974)

35. ACE ‘How Long’ (September 1974)

36. BEE GEES ‘Jive Talkin’ (May 1975)

37. PETE WINGFIELD ‘Eighteen With A Bullet’ (June 1975)

38. ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA ‘Strange Magic’ (June 1976)

39. SHERBET ‘Howzat’ (August 1976)

40. HALL & OATES ‘She’s Gone’ (October 1976)

41. YVONNE ELLIMAN ‘Love Me’ (October 1976)

42. STEELY DAN ‘Haitian Divorce’ (November 1976)

43. THE EAGLES ‘Hotel California’ (April 1977)

44. HOT CHOCOLATE ‘So You Win Again’ (May 1977)

45. RAYDIO ‘Jack And Jill’ (February 1978)

46. THIRD WORLD ‘Now That We’ve Found Love’ (September 1978)

47. SUPERTRAMP ‘The Logical Song’ (March 1979)

48. DOOBIE BROTHERS ‘Minute By Minute’ (April 1979)

49. THE KORGIS ‘If I Had You’ (May 1979)

50. JON & VANGELIS ‘I Hear You Now’ (December 1979)

 

51. HAZEL O’CONNOR ‘Eighth Day’ (August 1980)

52. SPLIT ENZ ‘I Got You’ (August 1980)

53. ROBERT PALMER ‘Johnny And Mary’ (September 1980)

54. LANDSCAPE ‘Einstein A Go-Go’ (February 1981)

55. GODLEY & CREME ‘Under Your Thumb’ (August 1981)

56. TRIO ‘Da Da Da’ (July 1982)

57. WILL POWERS ‘Kissing With Confidence’ (August 1983)

58. CHINA CRISIS ‘Wishful Thinking’ (January 1984)

59. BLANCMANGE ‘The Day Before You Came’ (July 1984)

60. MALCOLM MCLAREN ‘Madam Butterfly’ (August 1984)

61. STEPHEN ‘TIN TIN’ DUFFY ‘Icing On The Cake’ (May 1985)

62. ART OF NOISE FEAT. MAX HEADROOM ‘Paranoimia’ (June 1986)

63. ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK ‘(Forever) Live And Day’ (August 1986)

64. THE ALARM ‘Rain In The Summertime’ (September 1986)

65. COMMUNARDS ‘So Cold The Night’ (November 1986)

66. ERASURE ‘The Circus’ (September 1987)

67. BREATHE ‘Hands To Heaven’ (December 1987)

68. THE MISSION ‘Tower Of Strength’ (January 1988)

69. A-HA ‘Stay On These Roads’ (March 1988)

70. PREFAB SPROUT ‘The King Of Rock’n’Roll’ (April 1988)

71. HOTHOUSE FLOWERS ‘It’ll Be Easier In The Morning’ (September 1988)

72. ROACHFORD ‘Cuddly Toy’ (January 1989)

73. HUE AND CRY ‘Violently’ (April 1989)

74. CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT ‘Name And Number’ (September 1989)

75. FINE YOUNG CANNIBALS ‘I’m Not The Man I Used To Be’ (November 1989)

 

76. JESUS JONES ‘Real Real Real’ (March 1990)

77. SOUP DRAGONS ‘I’m Free’ (July 1990)

78. SCRITTI POLITTI FEAT. SHABBA RANKS ‘She’s A Woman’ (March 1991)

79. CROWDED HOUSE ‘Fall At Your Feet’ (October 1991)

80. JAMES ‘Born Of Frustration’ (January 1992)

81. THE SHAMEN ‘L.S.I.’ (July 1992)

82. URBAN HYPE ‘Trip To Trumpton’ (July 1992)

83. STEREO MC’S ‘Step It Up’ (December 1992)

84. CHARLES & EDDIE ‘NYC (Can You Believe This City)’ (February 1993)

85. THE BELOVED ‘Sweet Harmony’ (June 1993)

86. TERENCE TRENT D’ARBY & DES’REE ‘Delicate’ (June 1993)

87. STAKKA BO ‘Here We Go’ (August 1993)

88. EAST 17 ‘It’s Alright’ (November 1993)

89. CRASH TEST DUMMIES ‘Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm’ (April 1994)

90. NO DOUBT ‘Just A Girl’ (September 1995)

91. DUBSTAR ‘Not So Manic Now’ (December 1995)

92. GARBAGE ‘Stupid Girl’ (February 1996)

93. NENEH CHERRY ‘Woman’ (August 1996)

94. FUN LOVIN’ CRIMINALS ‘Scooby Snacks’ (August 1996)

95. SWEETBOX ‘Everything’s Gonna Be Alright’ (September 1997)

96. PF PROJECT ‘Choose Life’ (November 1997)

97. TIN TIN OUT ‘Here’s Where The Story Ends’ (March 1998)

98. ALL SAINTS ‘Bootie Call’ (August 1998)

99. THE TAMPERER ‘If You Buy This Record’ (October 1998)

100. GROOVE ARMADA ‘I See You Baby’ (November 1999)

 

101. MOLOKO ‘Pure Pleasure Seeker’ (March 2000)

102. SAMANTHA MUMBA ‘Body II Body’ (October 2000)

103. THE SUPERMEN LOVERS ‘Starlight’ (September 2001)

104. ONE GIANT LEAP FEAT. ROBBIE WILLIAMS ‘My Culture’ (April 2002)

105. ROBYN ‘Keep This Fire Burning’ (November 2002)

106. CHRISTINE MILTON ‘Superstar’ (January 2003)

107. KELLY CLARKSON ‘Miss Independent’ (April 2003)

108. BRITNEY SPEARS ‘Everytime’ (May 2004)

109. RACHEL STEVENS ‘Some Girls’ (July 2004)

110. JEM ‘They’ (March 2005)

111. GWEN STEFANI ‘Hollaback Girl’ (March 2005)

112. GIRLS ALOUD ‘Biology’ (November 2005)

113. CHRISTINA AGUILARA ‘Ain’t No Other Man’ (January 2006)

114. PINK ‘Stupid Girls’ (February 2006)

115. PARIS HILTON ‘Nothing In This World’ (August 2006)

116. FERGIE ‘Fergalicious’ (October 2006)

117. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE ‘My Love’ (November 2006)

118. MASON & PRINCESS SUPERSTAR ‘Perfect (Exceeder)’ (January 2007)

119. LADY GAGA ‘Just Dance’ (April 2008)

120. SAM SPARRO ‘Black & Gold’ (April 2008)

121. DIZZEE RASCAL & ARMAND VAN HELDEN ‘Bonkers’ (May 2009)

122. OWL CITY ‘Fireflies’ (July 2009)

123. DRAGONETTE ‘Gone Too Far’ (July 2009)

124. KESHA ‘Tik Tok’ (August 2009)

125. PEACHES ‘I Feel Cream’ (November 2009)

 

126. KYLIE MINOGUE ‘All The Lovers’ (June 2010)

127. MARINA & THE DIAMONDS ‘Oh No!’ (July 2010)

128. KATY PERRY ‘Teenage Dream’ (July 2010)

129. FOSTER THE PEOPLE ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ (September 2010)

130. BIRDY ‘Skinny Love’ (January 2011)

131. NICOLA ROBERTS ‘Beat Of My Drum’ (June 2011)

132. GOTYE ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ (January 2012)

133. ELLIE GOULDING ‘Anything Could Happen’ (August 2012)

134. AMELIA LILY ‘You Bring Me Joy’ (September 2012)

135. ICONA POP ‘I Love It’ (June 2013)    

136. MILEY CYRUS ‘We Can’t Stop’ (June 2013)

137. THE 1975 ‘Girls’ (November 2013)

138. LILY ALLEN ‘Hard Out Here (November 2013)

139. COLDPLAY ‘Magic’ (March 2014)

140. TAYLOR SWIFT ‘Style’ (February 2015)

141. TWENTY ONE PILOTS ‘Stressed Out’ (April 2015)

142. YEARS & YEARS ‘Shine’ (July 2015)

143. JUSTIN BEIBER ‘Love Yourself’ (November 2015)

144. DAYA ‘Sit Still, Look Pretty’ (March 2016)

145. TOVE LO ‘Cool Girl’ (August 2016)

146. BRIDGIT MENDLER ‘Atlantis’ (August 2016)

147. LORDE ‘Green Light’ (March 2017)

148. HARRY STYLES ‘Sign Of The Times’ (April 2017)

149. JULIA MICHAELS ‘Uh Huh’ (June 2017)

150. CHARLI XCX ‘Boys’ (July 2017)