1988 Modern Rock Year-End Chart Rankdown (finished)

[Troy]

I'm "SO EXCITED" (even more so than Ranking Roger) to move into the realm of PRE-BILLBOARD alternative music!  I've spent countless hours doing research (but i considered it fun instead of work), pulling songs, lists, charts, etc from so many sources.  I had to use different sources nearly every year it seems, but I feel strongly that I have compiled the 2,250 most played songs on alternative, college, new wave, modern rock & progressive pop radio stations from 1980 thru 1988.  I will present 250 songs per year (the 100 we rank plus an additional 150 extras).  First up is...




HERE ARE THE RULES:

1) PM me (tomsullivanusa) the top 100 Modern Rock songs of 1988, all ranked to your preference. (e.g. if you like a song the most, rank it the highest and vice versa).

2) The points a song has will be totaled up based on an inverse point system. So if you rank a song #100, it gets 1 point, and if you rank a song #1, it gets 100 points. All the points from the participants will be totaled up.

3) The TENTATIVE due date for submission is Friday, April 3rd . The deadline time is Midnight PT.  (i suspect i will end up pushing the due date back some)

4) ALL songs must be ranked.

5) To avoid posting with duplicate lines when you PM me, click BBCode below the text box before pasting your list.

6) While not a requirement, it would be appreciated if you sent your list in the Artist - Song format and kept the artist and song names as they are displayed here.

7) All your rankings will be posted when I post a song in this thread.

8) You are allowed to make changes to your list, as long as you do so before the deadline.  If you do, please reply to the same message thread.

9) I have blatantly ripped off the format for the intro & rules from Gates - so thanks to Gates!

10) Songs for this list were gathered from three sources:
        a) Billboard Modern Rock Chart (starting with its debut on 9/10/1988)
        b) Hard Report Alternative Tracks
        c) R&R/CMJ Alternative Charts (courtesy of Verisimilitude )

11) Songs are ordered as follows:
        a) by "known" peak (there are charts for some weeks that i was not able to find)
        b) by weeks at #1
        c) by source (giving advantage to songs that charted on Billboard, then Hard Report, then CMJ)
        d) then alphabetically by artist & song

*NOTE* REM's "Orange Crush" would've been the top song of the year as it spent EIGHT weeks at 1, but it is omitted since it was part of the 1989 rankdown...other songs omitted for the same reason are:

• Killing Jar - Siouxsie & The Banshees
• Great Commandment - Camouflage
• Angel Of Harlem - U2
• In Your Room - Bangles
• Way Behind Me - Primitives
• When Love Comes To Town - U2

Here are the top 100 Alternative songs of 1988:

1 U2 - Desire
2 Siouxsie & The Banshees - Peek-A-Boo
3 Talking Heads - (Nothing But) Flowers
4 Sugarcubes - Birthday
5 Psychedelic Furs - All That Money Wants
6 Church - Under The Millky Way
7 Peter Murphy - All Night Long
8 Love & Rockets - No New Tale To Tell
9 Midnight Oil - Beds Are Burning
10 Ziggy Marley - Tomorrow People
11 Camper Van Beethoven - Eye Of Fatima
12 Godfathers - Birth School Work Death
13 Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
14 Big Audio Dynamite - Just Play Music
15 Eurythmics - I Need A Man
16 Graham Parker - Get Started, Start A Fire
17 Morrissey - Suedehead
18 Robyn Hitchcock - Balloon Man
19 Sinead O'Connor - Mandinka
20 Cocteau Twins - Carolyn's Fingers
21 Bangles - Hazy Shade Of Winter
22 Jesus & Mary Chain - Sidewalking
23 Smithereens - Only A Memory
24 Swans - Love Will Tear Us Apart
25 Thomas Dolby - Airhead
26 Escape Club - Wild Wild West
27 Jon Astley - Put This Love To The Test
28 Primitives - Crash
29 Flesh For Lulu - Postcards From Paradise
30 House Of Love - Christine
31 Mighty Lemon Drops - Inside Out
32 Patti Smith - People Have The Power
33 Edie Brickell - What I Am
34 UB40 - Breakfast In Bed
35 Jerry Harrison - Rev It Up
36 Ziggy Marley - Tumblin Down
37 Dave Wakeling - She's Having A Baby
38 Echo & The Bunnymen - Bed Bugs & Ballyhou
39 Mission UK - Tower Of Strength
40 Sisters Of Mercy - This Corrosion
41 Sun & The Moon - Peace In Our Time
42 T-Bone Burnett - Killer Moon
43 Erasure - Chains Of Love
44 Love & Rockets - Mirror People
45 Soul Asylum - Sometime To Return
46 Tracy Chapman - Talkin Bout A Revolution
47 Feelies - Away
48 Hunters & Collectors - Back On The Breadline
49 Jane's Addiction - Jane Says
50 Patti Smith - Up There Down There
51 Shriekback - Intoxication
52 Woodentops - Wheels Turning
53 Firehose - Sometimes
54 Hothouse Flowers - Don't Go
55 INXS - Devil Inside
56 Wire - Kidney Bingos
57 Screaming Tribesmen - I've Got A Feeling
58 Big Pig - Breakaway
59 Firehose - For The Singer Of REM
60 Iggy Pop - Cold Metal
61 Bears - Aches & Pains
62 Sisters Of Mercy - Dominion
63 Timbuk 3 - Rev Jack & His Roamin Cadillac Church
64 Sinead O'Connor - Jump In The River
65 10,000 Maniacs - What's The Matter Here?
66 Transvision Vamp - Tell That Girl To Shut Up
67 U2 - Jesus Christ
68 Bryan Ferry - Kiss And Tell
69 Christians - Forgotten Town
70 Close Lobsters - Just Too Bloody Stupid
71 Joe Strummer - Trash City
72 Shona Laing - Soviet Snow
73 Wire - Silk Skin Paws
74 Information Society - What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)
75 Sugarcubes - Motorcrash
76 Church - Reptile
77 Depeche Mode - Route 66
78 Prefab Sprout - Golden Calf
79 Robbie Robertson - Sweet Fire Of Love
80 Sting - Be Still My Beating Heart
81 Woodentops - Maybe It Won't Last
82 Bible - Crystal Palace
83 Big Audio Dynamite - Other 99
84 Fall - Victoria
85 Meat Puppets - Paradise
86 Pixies - Where Is My Mind?
87 Rave-Ups - When The End Comes Before
88 Robert Plant - Heaven Knows
89 Big Country - King Of Emotion
90 They Might Be Giants - Ana Ng
91 Voice Of The Beehive - I Say Nothing
92 Sinead O'Connor - I Want Your Hands (On Me)
93 They Might Be Giants - Don't Let's Start
94 Hugh Cornwell - Another Kind Of Love
95 Billy Bragg - Help Save The Youth Of America
96 Railway Children - Pleasure
97 Shriekback - Go Bang
98 Hothouse Flowers - I'm Sorry
99 Ranking Roger - So Excited
100 Robyn Hitchcock - Globe Of Frogs

[Troy]

not on Spotify:

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Sorry to break everyone's heart but my playlist was not the one you get to rank.


Most of these songs look new to me. I was still too much into Pop radio which is where you could hear more Glam Rock, but I do see  Transvision Vamp so  as always count me in.

[Troy]

Please let me know if you'd like to be added to (or removed from) this tag list.  Potential for due date to be pushed if people need more time.       

SPOILER: Click to show

{Tags}
Albie
Alex1901
alexcuse
American Idiot
Daryl the Beryl
House Lannister
campbellssoup
craziaskowboi
Doc Indie Party Rock
singingrulebritannia
Geometrical
gonecountry
newpower
@humanshazam
Sambalada
janinho
Leo ✔
born
Juanca
peacebone
Walking Contradiction
MoD
Red
rowellfarm490
@slipperyslope
somelikeitwhen
Mirago
walt91
wheatsquares33
willapted33

[wheatsquares33]

Oh hadn't seen this till now but very exciting!

[somelikeitwhen]

What did you use to make this? The only magazines I can think of that had any alternative charts were FMQB and CMJ although only the former listed songs. There might've been some publications that logged airplay but I can't think of any back then.

[Verisimilitude]

Mar 12, 2020 20:09:32 GMT -5 somelikeitwhen said:

What did you use to make this? The only magazines I can think of that had any alternative charts were FMQB and CMJ although only the former listed songs. There might've been some publications that logged airplay but I can't think of any back then.

The Top 20 Alternative Tracks chart from The Hard Report magazine and Radio & Records magazine published the bi-weekly CMJ Top 20 College Radio Cuts charts in 1988 as well.

[Troy]

Mar 12, 2020 20:09:32 GMT -5 somelikeitwhen said:

What did you use to make this? The only magazines I can think of that had any alternative charts were FMQB and CMJ although only the former listed songs. There might've been some publications that logged airplay but I can't think of any back then.

see #10 from the original post

[singingrulebritannia]

FWIW, the version of "Forgotten Town" in the playlist is a 2017 re-record. This is the original

[Troy]

Mar 16, 2020 13:47:36 GMT -5 singingrulebritannia said:

FWIW, the version of "Forgotten Town" in the playlist is a 2017 re-record. This is the original

i'd never heard any version of this song before compiling this list

i have removed the old version from the playlist & replaced it with the original...now to listen to it to see if i'm going to need to adjust my ranking

[Troy]

I'm going to handle Extras differently for this rankdown.  I'm going to reveal ALL of the Extras BEFORE we begin counting down our Top100.  I plan on revealing (at least) 5 Extras per day until the real reveals begin.  Feel free to comment on what you like & don't like among the video extras along the way while you prepare your ranking of our Top100.  

SPOILER: Click to show

{Tags}Albie
Alex1901
alexcuse
American Idiot
Daryl the Beryl
House Lannister
campbellssoup
craziaskowboi
Doc Indie Party Rock
singingrulebritannia
Geometrical
gonecountry
newpower
@humanshazam
Sambalada
janinho
Leo ✔
born
Juanca
peacebone
Walking Contradiction
MoD
Red
rowellfarm490
@slipperyslope
somelikeitwhen
Mirago
walt91
wheatsquares33
willapted33

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  TODAY's EXTRAS}
1969 - Pretenders (featuring Johnny Marr on guitar):



40 Years - House Of Freaks:



853-5937 - Squeeze (sadly for Angela, she was not nearly as popular as Jenny):



All Day & All Of The Night - Stranglers (yup, a Kinks cover):



All I Wanted - In Tua Nua:

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  TODAY's EXTRAS}
Alphabet Street - Prince (this is where Arrested Development sampled the title of their first hit...but you don't steal even ONE word from Prince & get away with it...it cost them $100K):



Always On My Mind - Pet Shop Boys (always the groomsmen & never the groom - PSB have the most Extras this year w/o making the big list):



America - Killing Joke (we'll get to MUCH better material by this band as we move back in time):



Anchorage - Michelle Shocked (back when she was adored by lesbians, way before she became a homophobe for jesus):

[it seems all traces of this video have been scrubbed from the internet, oh well...too bad because the song is quite good, even if the artist is now persona-non-grata]


Apron Strings - Everything But The Girl (clearly better than the other SHaB soundtrack song we're actually ranking):

[House Lannister]

Ooh, I liked Always on My Mind.

Rankdowns will be touch and go for a bit, but I'd like to tackle this one (as well as the 1992 one for reasons to be revealed later).

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to TODAY's EXTRAS}

Baby Doll - Devo (not close to their best, but hey, it's still Devo!):



Baby's Got Rockets - Dancing Hoods (never heard of these guys):



Back To The Wall - Divinyls (RIP Christina):



Beat On The Brat - Sonic Youth (yup, the Ramones song...I didn't realize SY ever did cover songs):



Been There, Done That - Jon Astley (i always figured i was the only person that ever liked this guy, but he charted, so there must be some other fans out there too):

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Oh my three songs into the list (I skip around), and I just previewed a song that made me laugh so hard I farted. I won't tank it cuz its fun, but its also one of the fruitiest, cheesiest "mambo train fests" I ever heard. 


also can we rank this version of "I Want Your Hands On Me". It's a difference of +30 or -50 on my list.

[Daryl the Beryl]

Hate to be that guy, but will there be an extension?

[Troy]

Mar 26, 2020 8:36:50 GMT -5 Daryl the Beryl said:

Hate to be that guy, but will there be an extension?

yup, I went into this expecting to extend the deadline. But don’t let that stop you from starting now!

[Troy]

Mar 26, 2020 16:52:45 GMT -5 Troy said:

Mar 25, 2020 22:10:04 GMT -5 Doc Indie Party Rock said:

also can we rank this version of "I Want Your Hands On Me". It's a difference of +30 or -50 on my list.

You may choose to rank the album version or the single version (w/MC Lyte)...use the one you prefer to decide on your ranking

I can tell you that my college station played the album version exclusively & I never knew the other version existed until well over a decade later.

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to TODAY's EXTRAs}

Beethoven (I Love To Listen To) - Eurythmics (love this video!):



Better Be Home Soon - Crowded House :



Beyond The Pale - Mission UK :



Big Hollow Man - Danielle Dax (an acquired taste, but i kinda dig it):



Blind - Talking Heads (I find it odd this missed since their other single was one of the top of the year...& in my mind, they are similar in quality):

[Doc Indie Party Rock]

Mar 26, 2020 16:53:36 GMT -5 Troy said:

Mar 26, 2020 16:52:45 GMT -5 Troy said:

You may choose to rank the album version or the single version (w/MC Lyte)...use the one you prefer to decide on your ranking

I can tell you that my college station played the album version exclusively & I never knew the other version existed until well over a decade later.

Fair Enough and thanks. I didn't know either existed until last night.  ;)

[Troy]

Official ONE-WEEK notification!  But as i said, i fully expect to extend the deadline (probably another week).  We've got 3 submissions so far, & several others are still working on their lists - if you haven't started, now is the time to start!

Most of us are stuck at home for awhile, so there's no excuse for not enough time.  In fact, you should have time to review all of the Extras on here.  Be sure to leave your comments regarding which of the Extras you like, hate, or are ambivalent about.  Also, anything that surprises you for missing the list of 100?

Wash your hands!  Wash your ears (you know who you are) & stay safe out there!

SPOILER: Click to show

{Tags}Albie
Alex1901
alexcuse
American Idiot
Daryl the Beryl
House Lannister
campbellssoup
craziaskowboi
Doc Indie Party Rock
singingrulebritannia
Geometrical
gonecountry
newpower
@humanshazam
Sambalada
janinho
Leo ✔
born
Juanca
peacebone
Walking Contradiction
MoD
Red
rowellfarm490
@slipperyslope
somelikeitwhen
Mirago
walt91
wheatsquares33
willapted33

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to  YESTERDAY's EXTRAs}


Blind Hearts - Xymox:



Bone Machine - Pixies :



Boom! There She Was - Scritti Politti :



Broken Heart - Red Flag (those who followed my Underground 80s rankdown will recognize this one):



Broken Land - Adventures:

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to TODAY's EXTRAs}


Bubblemen Are Coming - Bubblemen (i think this had more exposure on Beavis & Butthead than in any other way):



Bubblemen Rap - Bubblemen (in case you didn't know, this is a Love & Rockets side project...say what you will about the music, but the videos are GENIUS!):



Cars And Girls - Prefab Sprout:



Cartoon - Soul Asylum (I saw Dave & Wynona in my neighboorhod park once back in '96):



Coldsweat - Sugarcubes (is Einar the Icelandic Fred Schneider?):

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to   EXTRA EXTRAs}


Dead Heart - Midnight Oil (i'm SHOCKED that this did not make the list of 100):



Def Cone One - Pop Will Eat Itself (i was obsessed with this band for a short while back in the late 80s):



Delicious Demons - Sugarcubes:



Deus - Sugarcubes (& still more from Bjork & co):



Dignity - Deacon Blue (named themselves after a Steely Dan song):

[Troy]

SPOILER: Click to show

{click here to listen to TODAY's EXTRAs}

Disco Dancer - Devo (i love all things De-Evolution):



Doctorin The TARDIS - Timelords (aka The JAMs, aka Justified Ancients of Mumu, aka The KLF, aka Kopyright Liberation Front...TARDIS = Time & Relative Dimension In Space for all you non-Whovians):



Domino Dancing - Pet Shop Boys (this one has a heavy Miami Freestyle influence):



Don't Let It Break You Down - Graham Parker (not to be confused with the superior "Break Them Down" from his previous album):



Don't Sniff Coke - Pato Banton (this song always puts a smile on my face):

[Red]

Mar 28, 2020 22:42:01 GMT -5 Troy said:

Dead Heart - Midnight Oil (i'm SHOCKED that this did not make the list of 100):

It did make the Mainstream Rock/Active top 100, though. Go figure.

[Troy]

Mar 29, 2020 10:31:35 GMT -5 Red said:

Mar 28, 2020 22:42:01 GMT -5 Troy said:

Dead Heart - Midnight Oil (i'm SHOCKED that this did not make the list of 100):

It did make the Mainstream Rock/Active top 100, though. Go figure.

well, if you consider that many of the stations on the Modern Rock panel (once it started) were probably reporting to the Mainstream panel before that, I guess it’s not too much of a shock it made that list

[peacebone]

Can you please hide the extra clips under a spoiler? It would place a lot less strain on loading this page.

(also dang, I would have loved to watch the reactions to Def Con One)

[Troy]

Mar 29, 2020 12:50:39 GMT -5 peacebone said:

Can you please hide the extra clips under a spoiler? It would place a lot less strain on loading this page.

(also dang, I would have loved to watch the reactions to Def Con One)

I never considered that, will do