| 45 | |
He Is Cola | No massive surprise here, as one of Saint Etienne's two singles released under the Cola Boy moniker lands at the bottom of our chart. Surely the least known of Saint Etienne's singles, only 5 of you thought it was worth points, with its highest vote being a score of 5, from two of you. A shame, it's a nice little hidden gem for me, but understandable... |
| 44 |  |
52 Pilot | A limited release from the "Places to Visit" EP, released only on 7" in the US, this is another that probably hasn't attracted much attention due to it not being known as well as others. Two of you thought it worthy of 6 points, with 9 of you ranking it at all. |
| 43 |  |
Boy Is Crying | This was the one that took ages to get any points at all- it looked for a long time like "Boy Is Crying" was going to have a shot at a Eurovision style "Nil Points", but it came through at the end, with 9 votes and two of you thinking it was worthy of 8 points. It’s certainly one of the Saint Etienne singles I play least and I remember some fans thinking the single remix was something of a misstep at the time. It duly lands towards the bottom of your list. |
| 42 |  |
Jungle Pulse | Back to rarity time, this collaboration with French megastar Etienne Daho was a French release back in 1995 that came from the “Reserection” EP and is another overlooked gem from the band’s vast catalogue of oddities! Scored as highly as 10 points, with 7 of you thinking it worthy of a ranking. |
| 41 |  |
Speedwell | Part of a double-a side with the much better known “Nothing Can Stop Us”, “Speedwell” didn’t receive any real promotion and is another of the forgotten gems littering the bottom of your chart. 13 of you gave it points, with a high vote of 7. |
| 40 |  |
Angel | Part of the “Casino Classics” sessions and originally earmarked as a full single, “Angel” ended up being a promotional release alongside “Burnt Out Car” in 1996. The “Way Out West Mix” that opens the second disc of “Casino…” remains my favourite, upping the “crazy wig out factor” to ten, and I’m hoping it’s this which encouraged 11 of you to rank the song, with a high vote of 10 points. |
| 39 |  |
Saturday | Another flirtation with the band’s obvious love for the format, this was Saint Etienne’s third 7” release in a row, on the Amberley Records label back in 1999. Taken from the soundtrack to “The Misadventures of Margaret” (vinyl re-release, please!), it’s one of the more obviously commercial songs from that project, but its limited release leaves it languishing in 39th place here, 1 of you scoring it 8 points and only 16 of you thinking it was deserving of any points at all. |
| 38 |  |
Heather | And so we reach the first song that I gave points to in the countdown. The sinister, brooding “Heather” was released to radio as a promotional single for the “Home Counties” project but, as far as I’m aware, has never actually featured as a physical single or promo- interestingly, the only track here for which this is the case. Whilst “Magpie Eyes” and “Dive” were chosen as the official singles for the project, this was the world’s first look at “Home Counties” and 22 of you were impressed enough to award it points. It is also the lowest ranked single which someone gave a full mark of 12 to. |
| 37 |  |
Cool Kids Of Death | Released as a promo single in its Underworld Remix form, “Cool Kids Of Death” was never a “proper” Saint Etienne single and suffers down the nether regions of this list as a result. 22 of you gave it a vote, though, with its highest mark being a 10. Wonder how many voted based on the album version from “Tiger Bay”…? |
| 36 |  |
Soft Like Me | The group’s penultimate top 40 hit (to date!), “Soft Like Me” was the final (and most successful) single from the “Finisterre” album, it’s not going to provide much of a spoiler to say it’s not the highest song that doesn’t feature Sarah’s vocals, but it is the first song in our survey to get every single score from 12-1 at least once. 25 of you liked it enough to put it in your top 10. |
| 35 |  |
Tell Me Why (The Riddle) | Saint Etienne’s only top ten hit under that name, this was a collaboration with superstar DJ Paul van Dyk which crept to #7 back in 2000 and was a sizeable success across Europe. A proper, hands in the air banger, it was out of sync with what the band were doing at the time, but loved enough by 19 of you to get it in here, with 6 of you scoring it 10. |
| 34 |  |
Magpie Eyes | A promo-only physical release, this was the first single proper from the most recent “Home Counties” album. Just one of you thought this was Saint Etienne’s best single ever and, of their main albums, it’s the lowest of the “proper” lead singles. |
| 33 |  |
Seven Ways To Love | Saint Etienne’s other top ten hit, “7 Ways To Love” hit number 8 at the start of the group’s career, in 1991. Released under the Cola Boy name because the band felt it didn’t fit the Saint Etienne brand- which this #33 placing seems to suggest was the right choice! The song was sung by Janey Lee Grace rather than Sarah (though check out the Sarah fronted version on “Nice Price”) and its success provoked a follow-up but the project was ultimately short-lived, with a mere 32 of you bothered enough by its existence to give it some points. It’s also the highest song here without scoring a 12, just one of you scoring it 10 as its highest mark.. |
| 32 |  |
This Is Tomorrow | Released as a double a-side with “Method of Modern Love”, this was originally mooted as being the lead single on its own from the “London Conversations” project. Also the title of the group’s film about the history of the South Bank Centre, where they were artists in residence at the time of its release, the song first appeared commercially as a 7” single given away with The Illustrated Ape magazine in 2007, before being remixed by Richard X and making its appearance on “London Conversations” and as a single. Pretty much a live staple for a period, for some reason, it’s probably my least favourite Saint Etienne single here. Just so you know! 30 of you disagreed enough to give the song points, with just 1 score of 12. |
| 31 |  |
Lover Plays The Bass | The final single of the 1999 7” trilogy I mentioned earlier, “Lover Plays The Bass” was a limited edition, one off single for the Kung Fu Recordings label, released only in France. The release was individually numbered (what’s yours?) and for many years was a much sought after release by fans, given that it wasn’t available anywhere else. It’s since turned up on the deluxe editions of “London Conversations” and “Continental”, but I’ve always lumped it in with the “Good Humor” era- not least because of its cover art resembling the singles from that period. Just one 12 pointer, with 24 of you giving it points at all. |
| 30 |  |
The Bad Photographer | The second single from “Good Humor” has always suffered from not being “Lose That Girl”, which was most fan’s choice for the follow up to “Sylvie”, back in the day. The band seemed to agree as it was lost from their live set for many years, albeit recently making a comeback. The video is also one of my personal favourites. Anyway, only 1 of you gave this 12 points and it only just scrapes into the top 30. |
| 29 |  |
Stars Above Us | The first US single from “Tales From Turnpike House”, this was the group’s most recent major hit on the US Dance Chart, where it peaked as high as number 6. The song’s only commercial release came as the curiously titled “Dance Remixes Volume 1” maxi single, which made it sound like an album, but actually only featured 7 mixes of the song itself, and was only released in the US. |
| 28 |  |
Side Streets | The lead single from the aforementioned “Tales From Turnpike House”, but this time in the UK, “Side Streets” is the band’s most recent foray into the UK Top 40, where it peaked at #36. It also has the curious distinction of being the last video of the band in which they feature. The song takes a familiar theme, with its ode to living in London and was something of a strange lead single choice- it certainly isn’t the most commercial thing on “Turnpike House” and is quite atypical of the sound of the album overall. Anyway, two of you awarded this twelve points. |
| 27 |  |
Filthy | Five of you thought “Filthy” was Saint Etienne’s greatest moment, but overall the promo only single from 1991 scored points with only 39 voters- consider the song above it scored with 65- and showed that this is one of the most divisive of the Saint Etienne singles in our survey. Largely forgotten outside fan circles, the Q-Tee featuring single has had some more exposure through its inclusion on the compilation “London Conversations” in recent years. |
| 26 |  |
Dive | Saint Etienne’s most recent single, “Dive”, is the highest ranking of all of the “Home Counties” efforts, landing in our survey at #26. The song scored only 1x12 and 1x10 but was, as mentioned, sufficiently popular with 65 of you and duly just misses the top 25. The glorious, sunshiney video might have something to do with its popularity, even though its distinctly Latino vibe is somewhat at odds with the rest of the “Home Counties” project. |
| 25 |  |
A Good Thing | The highest placed of the “Turnpike House” singles, “A Good Thing” charted in the UK at #70, but could have done so much better- a mistake at the record company meant that all three chart formats were limited to 1000 copies, when the intention was only to limit the 7” single. The year after its original release, “A Good Thing” took on a new lease of life as it was included in Pedro Almodovar’s (quite magnificent, if you ask me…) film “Volver”, in a key scene with Penelope Cruz. As a result, it may well be one of their best known tracks amongst the wider public. Anyway, 5 of you gave it 12 points and 65 of you in total placed it in your lists. |
| 24 |  |
Lose That Girl | And now to the highest, non-commercially released single in our survey. The album cut “Lose That Girl” qualifies for this survey as a promotional only single, with the ultimate single release for the intended third single from “Good Humor” being pulled and the project abandoned. It’s a pity- like many others (well, 61 of us!), “Lose That Girl” is one of the band’s career highlights for me. The lyrics are typically Saint Etienne and the recent live revivals have shown what a great live number it is with a proper band too. I just wish it had gotten a video… |
| 23 |  |
Action | The first single from “Finisterre” is narrowly beaten as the highest from that album in this survey. “Action” narrowly missed the UK top 40, peaking at 41, and was the band’s last significant chart entry outside the UK, making the top 75 in Australia and top 30 in Canada- strangely, in both places, it is their biggest hit. 76 of you thought it worthy of points, but only 2 gave it the full 12, meaning it lost out to… |
| 22 |  |
Shower Scene | The highest of the “Finisterre” singles, the “Shower Scene” single is a sought after CD and 12” for Saint Etienne collectors as it appeared only in Spain back in 2002, not troubling the charts there or anywhere else. The dance-driven affair was, unusually for Saint Etienne at the time, not subject to any official remixes or exclusive tracks, as the two “Soft Like Me” bsides, “Shock Corridor” and “Time and Tide”, were recycled here. 7 of you thought this as their favourite Saint Etienne track ever. Bonus points to anyone who can tell what the lyrics are in their entirety. |
| 21 |  |
People Get Real | A double A-side with “Join Our Club”, legend has it that “People Get Real” was originally written as “Kenny Get Real”, about the somewhat dubious soul credentials of early 90s pop singer Kenny Thomas. A whopping 80 of you managed to put this in their list, with 6 of you giving it full marks. The song has not had a live outing in many years and appears largely forgotten by the band. |
| 20 |  |
Method Of Modern Love | Proving far more popular than the flip of its double a-side, “Method of Modern Love” hits the top 20 by managing to gain votes from 71 of you, but only 5 12 points. The single has the credit of being the Et’s last singles chart entry to date, reaching #56 a full ten years ago. Personally, I always thought it was a victim of its era- had it been around in a chart environment kinder to Saint Etienne, it surely would have been a massive hit, not being far removed from what the likes of Kylie were doing at the time. |
| 19 |  |
Burnt Out Car | Originally set to be released in 1996, “Burnt Out Car” became the single that never was, appearing solely as a promo release with “Angel” in promotion of the “Casino Classics” remixes project. It took until 2006 and the “Nice Price” demos fan club CD before the release of the original version, often known as the “X-Files version”, a slower, ethereal track than everyone had come to know in its “hands in the air” Balearico mix that was highlighted by a stunning Sarah vocal. It took until 2008, and the release of the “London Conversations” Greatest Hits set before the song resurfaced again, this time re-recorded with Xenomania and released as a single, but one that sadly missed the charts and caused the band to rethink the release of the album entirely (and, indeed, add additional new recordings- including “Method of Modern Love”, which we’ve just mentioned). The song has the lowest number of 12 points in the top 20, with just 4, but 84 of you thought it worthy of points nonetheless. |
| 18 |  |
How We Used To Live | The lead single from 2000’s “Sound of Water” album, “How We Used To Live” is a sprawling epic of a song, inspired, according to the band, by “Macarthur Park” and the antithesis of what radio was playing at the time, especially given its length. A radio edit was made, but it got little airplay but this was not the main reason for the song’s poor chart performance in the UK, where it became the first full Saint Etienne single to miss the chart entirely, peaking outside at #155. The reason? The CD single was too long for chart regulations at the time and disqualified from counting. A shame, as it’s a highlight of the era for me, and clearly for lots of you, scoring 6 12 points and getting points from 89 of you. Sail away… |
| 17 |  |
Kiss And Make Up | Another with 89 of you giving it points, “Kiss and Make Up” has a much higher score overall due to getting 8x12 and 8x10 points off you all. The lowest of the three singles in the top 20 without Sarah on lead vocals, albeit that she re-recorded it later down the line, the club classic narrowly missed the top 75 when it charted at number 80 back in 1990. With lead vocals by Donna Savage, the song is a cover of a Field Mice album track, released a year earlier. |
| 16 |  |
I've Got Your Music | I’m still upset I never got put in the fan-featuring video for this despite sending a video in and I’m still too sore to talk about it. Sod you all! |
| 15 |  |
I Was Born On Christmas Day | Ah, see, the only reason I delayed this for so long was because of this song. I wanted it to be time appropriate. HONEST! Ok, maybe not, but THE definitive Christmas anthem, and the one that has surely kept our intrepid trio in fags and beer more than any other of their records once you count the airplay and the compilations in, crashes into our charts at #15, with 7x12s but a huge 117 of you counting it amongst your top 10 Et tracks. Given its name after Bob, whose birthday is on the titular day in question, the song is a raucous tête-à-tête between Sarah and Charlatans lead singer Tim Burgess. Officially the song is part of the “Xmas 93” EP, but only the lead song attracted mainstream attention and overall peaked at #37 in the chart, though it should have done so much better. I just wish it could get on a few more Spotify playlists and be discovered by the young’uns. It’s a Christmas classic in waiting if you ask me. |
| 14 |  |
Pale Movie | Famously rumoured to have been recorded as a Latin disco stomper just so they could go film a video in Spain, “Pale Movie” was chosen as the lead single from 1994’s “Tiger Bay” project, but was about as atypical as a preview of that album could be. All Spanish guitars and castanets, the song remains divisive amongst fans- only 5 of you gave it 12 points- and the band too, with Pete saying he felt it was a “bit of a failure”. Personally, it’s right up there for me with their very best and “In the bed where they make love, she’s in a film on the sheets. He shows dreams like a movie, she’s the softness of cinema seats” is their second best lyric ever for me (more on that to come!) It wasn’t the big hit the record company was obviously hoping for, making #28, but returned them to the top 30 after “I Was Born On Christmas Day”. The song was also clearly a favourite with Steps’ team of writers- go listen to 2000’s “Summer of Love” single. |
| 13 |  |
Hug My Soul | Almost following on chronologically from the last two entries, “Hug My Soul” is the other proper stab at a pop smash from “Tiger Bay” and enters our chart with a massive 12x12 points, but only 107 votes overall- the lowest in the top 15. Talking of, ahem, “inspiration”, this clearly takes its lead from the Andrea True Connection’s disco classic “More More More” and I’ve always thought paled (pun intended) next to “Pale Movie”, but is clearly more popular with the band, given its live performances over the years. Having said that, I love the video. Just don’t watch what Sarah’s up to at the end too closely… |
| 12 |  |
Join Our Club | According to the band, “Join Our Club” only came into being when “People Get Real” was rejected by Heavenly and the band went away to “write the most commercial song we possibly could”. It worked- it was the biggest hit Saint Etienne had had under their own name to that point, narrowly missing the top 20 and peaking at #21. Something of a rallying call to the ever-increasing numbers of Saint Etienne devotees, it was released between the group’s first and second albums but has remained ever popular with 129 of you, at least, albeit with only 6 thinking of it as their favourite ever single. |
| 11 |  |
Heart Failed (In The Back Of A Taxi) | The haunting, brooding “Heart Failed” is often considered the true lead off single to “Sound Of Water” and is, in fairness, probably more representative of the sound of that album than “How We Used To Live”. A minor hit in the UK, where it spend a week at #50, the song gained 8 12 point votes and scored with 123 of you but is, in fairness, quite a gap away from the top 10, with over 100 points in total separating the top 10 songs from the more tightly squeezed singles below it. |
| 10 |  |
Tonight | Opening up “Division One” of this chart, “Tonight” is the highest placed single from the 2000s, the only one after 1996 and the only one that doesn’t feature on “Too Young To Die”, the group’s first hit compilation. Released as the lead single from the well received “Words and Music by Saint Etienne” album, the song’s lyric revolves around going to see your favourite band live and, appropriately, has become a live staple over the years. The perfect lead single for the project, its announcement was something of a surprise, not least as many had thought that “DJ” would take that honour, having been debuted as such on live dates earlier in the year, or “I’ve Got Your Music” which had been previewed with a clip on the band’s website or social media (my old mind forgets exactly where), but that hasn’t stopped it storming into the top 10, with 12 of you giving it the full 12 points and a total of 129 of you thinking it worthy. Personally, it’s far from my favourite on the album, but then none of my favourites were singles (“Heading For The Fair”, “When I Was Seventeen” and “DJ”, for those of you interested) and that’s not to moan about “Tonight”- it just shows what a fantastic album “Words and Music” was, and still is. |
| 9 |  |
Sylvie | I remember rushing from university to buy Sylvie on both its CD formats on the day of release. I was convinced it was going to finally be Saint Etienne’s uber- megahit, having been all over the radio as the lead single to their “Good Humor” album. Sadly, it just missed the top 10, becoming their second biggest hit under their own steam, peaking at #12. For some reason, I always think of it as a continuation of “Pale Movie”, possibly because of the Latin-esque video shot in Cuba, but maybe that’s just me. Still a constant live staple, the song’s disco stomping chorus makes it an excellent addition to any setlist and also to the top ten here, being the highest charter from the “Good Humor” project with 21 12 points and a total of 156 votes. |
| 8 |  |
You’re In A Bad Way | Originally conceived as a b-side, thankfully, the powers that be decided it was far too good, and pushed this for inclusion on the band’s second album “So Tough” and, in remixed form, for single release. And a good choice it was, as it gave the band their first top 20 hit, peaking at #12 in early 1993. Heavily influenced by 60s music, an era Saint Etienne would return to, the song’s second video hits the point home more heavily, with the band performing in a mock 60s TV show and was primarily used in the US market. It’s also returned to the group’s live sets of late, where it usually sits around the end or encore to a rousing reception. Although “only” 17 of you thought it was their favourite Saint Etienne single, it scored with 178 of you, securing it a top ten place. |
| 7 |  |
Avenue | Ah, now this is interesting. Avenue scored 12 points with 32 of you, giving it the highest average score when dividing total points by numbers of voters (and by a long way!), with those of you giving it a score giving it an average of 7.14 points. Overall, though, it managed 153 votes, far down on the songs above it, and it finds its overall position at #7. Buoyed by the chart success of “Join Our Club”, their biggest hit to date, the group decided a 7 and a half minute single was the best choice to launch their sophomore album but, sadly, even a 3 minute radio edit couldn’t push this beyond #40 in the UK (albeit that the edit remained a promo-only release until 2005). It remains one of the biggest injustices of the group’s career- this sweeping, ethereal epic is, for me, one of the greatest moments of music in the 90s and deserved so much more. It was also a forerunner for all the longer length Saint Etienne cinematic epics that followed and stands up today as one of their best. All these years later, though, two questions remain- who was Maurice, and why was that clown no good? |
| 6 |  |
Who Do You Think You Are? | With only 17 12 points, “Who Do You Think You Are?” manages to outperform some of the songs below it by the sheer amount of fans it has overall, with 196 of you putting this into their top ten. Still not the highest song without Sarah on lead, the track was originally conceived as a solo single for the group’s “fourth member” Debsey and became a top 30 hit in May 1993. A cover of a 1973 single by Candlewick Green, the winners of TV talent show Opportunity Knocks, the song peaked two places lower in its Saint Etienne form, but saw the group get to appear on Top of the Pops. It was also the group’s final entry on the US Dance Chart top ten until “Stars Above Us” thirteen years later, peaking at #5, where it was released as a standalone single, as opposed to the in the UK, where it was released as a double a-side. Talking of which… |
| 5 |  |
Hobart Paving | I need to tell you a bit of personal stuff about “Hobart Paving”. It can make me cry. Actually scratch that, it pretty much always makes me cry. When it’s live it ALWAYS ALWAYS makes me cry. When I got married, I briefly considered the song as my first dance but then thought I’d probably cry. So, when the band started in the evening (after our first dance had happened), my husband had arranged for them to play this. Which they did. And we danced again. And I cried. Lots. Anyway, enough about me, “Hobart Paving” starts off the top 5 with a total of 177 votes, but a whopping 34 12 points, the second highest total of the list. The song, seemingly based around a woman’s reminisces of loves long lost, drips with sweeping melancholy but is somewhat randomly named after a construction company in West Sussex. You should have seen the excitement I had the day I came back to my car in Brighton and found one of their vans parked next to me. But again, enough about me. Ignore the dreadful US album remix (surely one of the worst ever?) and go for the single mix, which is the best, and the alternative mix on “Nice Price” is a nice little curio. To finish, though it changes periodically between them, “Hobart Paving” is, alongside “Avenue” and another song still to come, my favourite Saint Etienne song of all time. Still, as I said before, enough about me… |
| 4 |  |
Like A Motorway | Actually, not quite enough about me, as the final song in my trio is this, probably the one that wins most often for me, and the one that got awarded my 12 points, along with 31 of you. It scored on 205 of the top ten lists, giving it more than a 100-point cushion over the number 5 single. “Like A Motorway”, based on the folk song “Silver Dagger” is Saint Etienne at their most maudlin. Sarah sounds detached, defeated, as she looks back in grief on the loss of a friend, yet somehow delivers her most emotional vocal. It’s also the song with the best Saint Etienne lyric ever for me; “He said her skin smelled just like pebbles, said stupid things he knew she’d like” sums up that joy of a new relationship so well- and don’t try and tell me it’s “petals” as it is often misheard as and I’ve often argued. Petals doesn’t make sense because it does make sense! That wouldn’t be stupid! ARGGHHHHH! Anyway, another of the great Saint Etienne injustices saw this miss the top 40 completely, which must have been a massive disappointment at the time, but I guess it wasn’t the most commercial of singles. Still, very pleased to see it this high in the list. |
| 3 |  |
He’s On The Phone | An English language cover of French superstar Etienne Daho’s 1984 track “Weekend à Rome”, this originally has its origins in the “Reserection” EP mentioned earlier, where it started life in a very different version to the one everyone knows, titled “Accident”. A remix by top pop mixer of the day Motiv8 was requested in order to put a new song on “Too Young To Die” and, according to Motiv8 himself, the band only used “Accident” because they had nothing else ready to go! The song features a spoken section from Daho, albeit from a different track on the EP, and would go on to be Saint Etienne’s biggest ever single under their own moniker, hitting #11 in the chart dated 11/11 in 1995. Still most often the final song when they play live, “He’s On The Phone” actually “only” managed 24 12 points, but a total of 207 of you scored it and, indeed, it remains (arguably) the band’s best known song, in the UK at least. |
| 2 |  |
Nothing Can Stop Us | The first song Bob and Pete ever wrote. The first song to feature Sarah Cracknell on vocals. The group’s first UK chart entry. The group’s first double a-side (with the oft-forgotten “Speedwell”, 41st in this chart). But only second in this list.
Not that that isn’t something to shout about- “Nothing Can Stop Us” was actually the only track to ever really challenge our number one (albeit not for long!), with 31 12 points and 213 of you ranking the song. Another live staple, the song is sadly largely forgotten by the general public, despite being a US Dance number one, but has gone through a renaissance recently thanks to its use in a major Marc Jacobs perfume commercial this year. In 1994, the song was covered by Kylie Minogue and heavily rumoured to be the lead single from her “Kylie Minogue” album, but eventually it was relegated to the b-side of the “Confide In Me” single and Kylie’s other collaborations with the band remain unreleased. The cover version is worth a listen, but not a patch on the original, the beauty of Sarah’s vocal shining through, even after all these years. |
| 1 |  |
Only Love Can Break Your Heart | To be fair, it was never really a competition. “Only Love Can Break Your Heart” led from the very first set of votes and then just went further and further away. 43 of you counted it as your number one of all time and a ridiculous 248 of you gave it some love, totalling 1672 points, over 250 more than “Nothing Can Stop Us”. A landslide victory for one of the greatest debut singles of all time. Instantly recognisable from the first plinkety-plonk of the piano, “Only Love” is a dance classic, regularly cited amongst the greatest of all time, another US Dance chart topper (and the group’s only US singles chart entry, at #97. But it wasn’t an instant success- it flopped upon release in 1990 and it took a reissue with “Filthy” on the flip side for it to broach the top 40, where it made #39 a year later, having grown in reputation on the UK club scene. Featuring Moira Lambert, it seems crazy to think a song without Sarah should top this list, but in fairness subsequent live performances have seen her more than make the song her own and, indeed, she even is the “singer” in the 1991 video, lipsyncing to Lambert’s original vocal. |