1001 Songs Challenge #478: Ever Fallen in Love…(with Someone You Shouldn’t’ve) (1978)

On 11 February 2019 I set myself the challenge of reading 1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die by Robert Dimery (ed.) and following the book’s advice to the letter. I’ve previously read 1001 Films… and started 1001 Albums… but felt 1001 Songs… would be a sensible place to start for what I have in mind here.

My challenge is to read about one song per day and listen to it (YouTube and Spotify, I need you tonight!) before sharing my own thoughts. Some songs I will love, others I’ll hate, and I’m sure there will be those that leave me perplexed but listen to them I shall.

I’ll also try, and most likely fail, to pinpoint the best song from the 1001 on offer but I’m nothing if not foolhardy. Instead of one song, I’m predicting I’ll have about 100 favourites by the end and may have to resort to a Top 10 so far to maintain any semblance of sanity.

So long as I post every day (including Christmas) then this challenge should come to an end on Wednesday 8 November 2021. Staying with the Barney Stinson theme I am hoping that the whole experience will prove to be… legendary!

 

Buzzcocks – Ever Fallen in Love…(with Someone You Shouldn’t’ve) (1978)

It’s been quite a stay in the US, dear reader, but now we must take to the skies and head back across the Atlantic Ocean to the UK. We’re in the north of England, we’re in Bolton and we’re checking in with Buzzcocks. We saw them previously in 1977 with Orgasm Addict which proved to be an interesting addition to our list thus far. It’s now 1978 and Buzzcocks have released what is perhaps their best known song – Ever Fallen in Love…(with Someone You Shouldn’t’ve). 

Written by Pete Shelley, Ever Fallen in Love… was inspired by a chance glance at a television while Buzzcocks were staying at Blenheim Guest House and drinking alcohol. Playing that night was the 1955 musical, Guys and Dolls, and Shelley heard a line about falling in love with someone you shouldn’t have and the song soon followed. This is a song for all of those, and there are many, who have developed feelings for someone and they haven’t been reciprocated. You might fall head over heels in love and imagine being with this person but unfortunately they just don’t feel the same way. It’s not personal but it does feel that way. Reactions to this can vary from anger to emotional turmoil. Buzzcocks’ song is all about the confused array of feelings one is party to when love does not go their way. 

My knowledge of Buzzcocks is minimal but I do, of course, know Ever Fallen in Love… It landed just outside the UK Top 10 in 1978 and would prove to be the group’s biggest hit. Deservedly so because it’s a classic. Blending fast-paced punk rock with the theme of lovestruck and fragile young hearts, the track remains as fresh and as relevant as ever, even though it is now more than 40 years old. Wow. I can recall a time when this song wasn’t so old, which must mean I am also old and…I don’t want to talk anymore.

 

Favourite songs so far:

The Animals – House of the Rising Sun (1964)

Simon & Garfunkel – The Sounds of Silence (1965)

The Doors – The End (1967)

The Beatles – A Day in the Life (1967)

Rod Stewart – Maggie May (1971)

Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody (1975)

Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here (1975)

Fleetwood Mac – Go Your Own Way (1977)

David Bowie – “Heroes” (1977)

Meat Loaf – Bat Out of Hell (1977)