My Top 30 Best Deep Tracks/Non Singles

 

By Mark Pukalo

I spent a lot of time listening to the radio when I was a teenager, and as time went on my hand started to turn the dial toward rock stations.

Sometimes WPLR from New Haven was on, but most days and nights it was WAAF out of Boston - "The Rock and Roll Air Force."

WAAF was apparently sold in 2020 after 50 years of rocking New England. It's been a long time since then, but I can remember the station's album countdowns where you would hear many of the non singles.

Before then, I would listen to the pop surveys on local radio or Casey Kasem's "American Top 40." Oh, those long distance dedications often made me tear up.

Aerosmith's "Toys in the Attic" was probably the first rock album I owned before my collection grew in those wooden crates. Over the years, I have appreciated the albums from the 70s and 80s even more. I wish I kept them.

Nothing against some of today's popular music, but I don't really pay attention to the singles charts anymore. When I listen to my multiple mixed tapes, there are so many great songs that were not released as singles. For years, I have thought about putting together a list of the best "deep tracks."

It's not an easy project. There are several songs that were never singles, but are iconic just the same. Jungleland from Bruce Springsteen is a perfect example. I tried to keep those types of songs off this list while going a little deeper and off the board.

No doubt, you have heard many of these songs. I just find them under-appreciated in some ways. I will probably dip in here and add more to the honorable mention list. However, this is what I have now along with 3-30. The top 2 will be added soon. 

Put the needle down.

Honorable mentions

Such a Good Girl - Cheap Trick (EP Found All the Parts); After the Thrill is Gone (One of These Nights), Saturday Night (Desperado) and Pretty Maids (Hotel California) - The Eagles; My Thanksgiving - Don Henley (Inside Job); Disco Apocalypse - Jackson Browne (Hold Out); Cologne and Kylie from Connecticut - Ben Folds (Way to Normal); Goodnight California - Kathleen Edwards (Asking for Flowers); Black Cow - Steely Dan (Aja), Little Paradise - Pat Benatar (Crimes of Passion); How It Is - Rush (Vapor Trails), Driven to Tears - The Police (Zenyatta Mondatta); Let Me Roll It - Paul McCartney & Wings (Band on the Run); Transformer Man - Neil Young (Trans); Winding Road - Bonnie Somerville (Garden State soundtrack), Edge of Desire - John Mayer (Battle Studies), 4th of July - Aimee Mann (Whatever), Silent House - Crowded House (Time on Earth) and Dixie Chicks (Taking the Long Way), She's Electric - Oasis (What's the Story, Morning Glory), Critical Times - Quarterflash (Quarterflash), Under the Gun - The Killers (Hot Fuss), Man-Sized Wreath - REM (Accelerate), She Moves On - Paul Simon (Rhythm of the Saints), Crawling Back to You - Tom Petty (Wildflowers), Little Darlin - Poco (Legend), Target - Joe Jackson (Night and Day).

30. Let Me Take You Home Tonight - Boston (Boston) ... This different kind of song from the wall of sound band ends their debut album with a little softer edge. The "pickup" tune was written by the original Boston lead vocalist Bradley Delp.

"You must understand this, I've watched you for so long

That I feel I've known you, I know it can't be wrong

If we just get together, I wanna make you see

I'm dreaming of your sweet love tonight, so mama let it be

Let me take you home tonight."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6inZCMnpVo

29. Shoot to Thrill - AC/DC (Back in Black) ... This one got some good album-rock station play while others like the title track, Hell's Bells and You Shook Me All Night Long reached the singles charts. It is about a local drug pusher for bored housewives.

"All you women who want a man of the street

But don't know which way you wanna turn

Just keep a-comin', and put your hand out to me

'Cause I'm the one who's gonna make you burn."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRQnJyP77tY

28. Slit Skirts - Pete Townshend (All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes) ... Pete didn't have any hit singles on this second solo album like he did on the debut (Empty Glass), but this song about a painful breakup and the perils of middle age is the best and last on the LP.

"Slit Skirts

Jeanie never wears those slit skirts.

I don't ever wear no ripped shirts

Can't pretend that growing older never hurts

Knee pants. Jeanie never wears no knee pants

Have to be so drunk to try a new dance

So afraid of every new romance."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAL7RYHKrlA

27. Spaced - Aerosmith (Get Your Wings) ... Terrific tune on my favorite album from Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and the band. It has a science fiction edge and rocks when it needs to.

"Spaced in time, child of nine, Doin' twenty years on the way

Fire and steel earth unreal, find another planet to stay

Papa died, Ma survived, tellin' me about her ordeal

And the Soul she could not feel.

'Cause they made her so unreal."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w-pF_LJx3o

26. Child of Vision - Supertramp (Breakfast in America) ... Roger Hodgson wrote this to be critical of materialism and it ends one of the greatest albums of all time. It was made for rock radio at 7 1/2 minutes long with some beautiful piano/organ/synthesizer sections. The leadoff song on the album "Gone Hollywood" would be another option here, but we like the latter.

"I've heard it all before, you're saying nothing new

I thought I saw a rainbow, but I guess it wasn't true

You cannot make me listen, and I cannot make you hear

So you'll find your way to heaven and I'll meet you when you're there."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wohgwABTpa8

25. Another Horsedreamer’s Blues - Counting Crows (Recovering the Satellites) ... Haunting song about a woman going through depression and addiction while trying to keep her head above water in life and please the people she needs to please.

"So she takes her pills, careful and round. 

One of these days she’s gonna throw the whole bottle down. 

But she’s trying to be a good girl and give’em what they want

Margery's dreaming of horses."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU3tWL79bgE

24. She Can't Let Go - Glen Frey (No Fun Aloud) ... A beautiful melodic tune co-written by Jack Tempchin and Frey for his debut solo LP. It's an old-style song about a man waiting for his girlfriend to forget her previous lost love.

"I've tried everything, but know there's only waiting

For the last dying embers to fade

Oh, she wants to be free, but when she's holding me

That's when I know, she can't let go.

I love her so

But she can't let go."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjm3lFPvCLY&list=RDkjm3lFPvCLY&start_radio=1

23. Help Me Mary - Liz Phair (Exile in Guyville) ... There are many other songs that come up first when talking about the New Haven-born, Chicago girl's edgy and brilliant debut album. However, this one has some really neat lyrics about young woman whose house is taken over by some thieving dudes.

"I'm asking you, Mary, please

Temper my hatred with peace

Weave my disgust into fame

And watch how fast they run to the flame."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHRvYsXvS8M&list=RDxHRvYsXvS8M&start_radio=1

22. Shed a Little Light - James Taylor (New Moon Shine) ... Tough choice between this one and the slower "Another Day" on Hourglass. This song is a bit more moving, though, as a tribute to Martin Luther King and a push for racial equality.

"There is a feeling like the clenching of a fist

There is a hunger in the center of the chest

There is a passage through the darkness and the mist

And though the body sleeps the heart will never rest."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBetQvXS4a4

21. Even the Losers - Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (Damn the Torpedoes) ... The epic album that I bought in a NYC record store in 1980 started with hits "Refugee" and "Here Comes my Girl," but this under-rated piece of music does not let the LP lose its momentum.

"Two cars parked on the overpass

Rocks hit the water like broken glass

I shoulda known right then it was too good to last

God, it's such a drag when you live in the past

Baby, even the losers get lucky sometimes."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0el_8ZKw7w

20. When Will I See You? -- The Pretenders. (Packed!) .... From an under-rated 1990 album comes a beautiful song with Chrissie Hynde's voice shining through. This love song was co-written by Hynde and Johnny Marr, a former guitarist for The Smiths. They write "Demand the Impossible. Everyone will be free."

"When the days are getting longer

And the people come out on the streets at night

I'll be among the starry eyes

I'll be among the wishful sighs

I'll be among the fools forever fantasizing."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9T0_MZEVCE

19. Sunshine - World Party (Bang!) - I've always said this British band was sort of a cross between the Rolling Stones and The Beatles, with the genius of the late Karl Wallinger stirring the drink. They had several great songs on Goodbye Jumbo in 1990 and, for my money, this simple tune is the best on their next LP in 1993.

"I keep getting caught in the rain

Fooled again and again

I start acting like there's no tomorrow

Drowning in a sea of pain and sorrow."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcpDLiyJTrc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBHd9glUJXY

18. Open Your Eyes – Doobie Brothers (Minute by Minute) ... Michael McDonald’s voice soars in this little-known tune that leads off side two of the iconic album. Hey Yacht Rock? Add this one to your playlist.

"We were lost in a whirling dance

Never slowing down

Long enough to give truth a chance

To come out. ...

So that the light could shine in.

Open your eyes."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBVB7a94O_4

17. Honey Hi – Fleetwood Mac (Tusk) ... Nifty little piece of music from an inventive album that tends to get forgotten. The late Christine McVie wrote and sings this sweet 2 minute, 43-second song basically about good times.

"Lord it's good to talk to you.

Even sweeter than wine

Don't take the love light away

'Cause I'm far away from home."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz4ixHvXl5g

16. Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want - The Smiths (Hatful of Hollow) ... The final song on the 1984 compilation album runs for just 1:50, but is pure Smiths. It was the B-side of the single "William, It was Really Nothing," but I probably heard it first in the movie "Pretty in Pink." Wish they had done one more verse.

"Haven't had a dream in a long time

See, the life I've had can make a good man. ... bad

So for once in my life, let me get what I want

Lord knows, it would be the first time."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3qPMe_cCJk

15. Rosalinda’s Eyes – Billy Joel (52nd Street) … Wonderful Latin-flavored song from the 1978 album that spawned hit singles "Honesty" and "Big Shot." The song was apparently inspired by Billy's mom Rosalind Nyman Joel. 

"Crazy Latin dancing solo down in Herald Square

Oh Havana, I've been searching for you everywhere

And although I'll never be there, I know what I would see there

I can always find my Cuban skies

In Rosalinda's eyes."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB-tkHD4uXU

14.  All I Want to Be is (By Your Side) – Peter Frampton (Frampton Comes Alive) ... Simple love song that graces the greatest live album of all time and appears on the Brit's debut LP "Wind of Change."

"Run me over. Or pick a four-leaf clover

Now they cut the lights down, this record's going slower.

Can't you see what it's doing to me

All I wanna be be is by your side

I don't care if they cut my hair

All I wanna be is by your side."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ShsVwIAOfo

13. Do What You Like - Foreigner (Head Games) ... Always liked this simple breakup song better than the singles (Head Games, Dirty White Boy, Women) on the album. Lou Gramm's tremendous voice is on full display with a song he co-wrote with band mate Ian McDonald.

"I'll do anything to make you stay

I'd be a fool to let you get away

They say true love never runs smooth

When it's gone, what can you do?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0M6CeFrAPs

12. Man in the Wilderness - Styx (The Grand Illusion) ... The great Tommy Shaw wrote and sings this beautiful 5 minute, 50-second song on the group's best album. It is about the loneliness of sudden fame. He has done great versions of this with the Children's Orchestra. This is not the best, but it is one.

"Sometimes I feel like a man in the wilderness

I'm a lonely sailor out to sea

Drifting with the tide

Never quite knowing why.

Sometimes it makes no sense at all."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WBX4WK49Js

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq-3taHByPU&t=9s

11. The Other End of the Telescope - Til Tuesday (Everything's Different Now) … Aimee Mann performed this song at a concert in a Providence club I attended and stopped after a few lines to start over. “There’s too many damn words in this song,” she joked, shaking her head. She co-wrote it with Elvis Costello. Lots of words. But so good.

"I know it don't make a difference to you

But oh, it sure made a difference to me

When you find me here at the end of my rope

When the head and heart of it finally elope

You can see us off in the distance ... I hope

At the other end

At the other end of the telescope."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYsCI6zGDpk

10. I’ll Be On My Way – The Beatles (Live at the BBC) ... You wonder why it was not on a studio album or a single. But the song, primarily written by Paul McCartney, was covered by Billy J. Kramer with the Dakotas, who took it to No. 2 in the UK.

“Just one kiss and I'll go. Don't hide the tears that don't show.

As the June light turns to moonlight, I’ll be on my way.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8ZVRT90R8Y

9. Fantastic Planet of Love - Marshall Crenshaw (Life's Too Short) ..."Better Back Off" was the lone single of Marshall's under-rated final studio album, but I think this catchy song would have had a chance on the charts with air play. It's about how love can get you through daily struggles.

"What new battle will this day bring

Just this morning I felt like trouble's plaything

Believe me darling this is true

It's only when I'm next to you that I ever dream of

A fantastic planet of love."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkBKIzJcugs

8. Love Will Come to You - The Indigo Girls (Rites of Passage) ... Amy Gray and Emily Sailers have a bundle of great songs, especially on this 1992 album. I'm surprised this hopeful love song was not released as a single.

"The wide world spins and spits turmoil

And the nations toil for peace

The paws of fear upon your chest

Only love can soothe that beast."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ypv2huXWa8

7. All Mixed Up – The Cars (The Cars). … The last two songs that close out the Boston group's debut album are kind of linked. Everyone knows "Moving in Stereo," but that iconic song (for many reasons) leads naturally into this under-rated album closer that was later beautifully covered by The Red House Painters.

"She tricks me into thinkin'

I can't believe my eyes

I wait for her forever

But she never does arrive.

... It's all mixed up."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZhfFXEMMI4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQSUIRDs6VE

6. Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters – Elton John (Honkey Chateau) ... From the masterful album, which spawned some big hits. It was used wonderfully in my favorite movie "Almost Famous," and works as an album rock staple. It was also a B side to the single "Harmony" in the UK.

"While Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters, sons of bankers, sons of lawyers

Turn around and say 'Good morning to the night,'

For unless they see the sky, but they can't, and that is why

They know not if it's dark outside or light."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDhTLl8_Ynk

5. Janey Don’t You Lose Heart – Bruce Springsteen (Tracks) … Never was a single. Never made a studio album. You can catch it on the box set compilation album only. Just love the smoothness of this song, "na na na na na." It was a B-side to "I'm Goin Down" from Born in the USA.

"Well, you say you got no new dreams to touch

Oh, you feel like a stranger, babe, who knows too much

When you come home late and get undressed

You lie in bed and feel this emptiness

Well, listen to me

Janey don't you lose heart. ..."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKIPdOVWTjU

4. Bait & Switch - The Shins (Port of Morrow) .... The pounding anthem "Simple Song" was the single on The Shins' brilliant album. But this one is my favorite, about a man set on being single for a while before being lured out of peace and quiet by a beautiful woman who drives him nuts. The Shins are under appreciated and this is an under appreciated, stylishly-written song.

"I'm just a simple man, cursed by an honest heart

Why'd she go and tear it all apart."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po0NF2HssIk

3. Your Number or Your Name – The Knack (Get the Knack) … Wild music take? I don't put the iconic "My Sharona" in the top five songs on this smash debut album. No doubt, "Good Girls Don't" is the catchiest (and crudest) song, but I love this Beatles-style non single almost as much. 

"It's hard to do, it's such a shame

I can't get through without your number or your name."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YF8dv9NjXIk

Big Decisions For This Lightning Offseason

 

By Mark Pukalo

Where do the Tampa Bay Lightning go from here?

The narrative of four straight seasons losing in the first round of the playoffs is a bit overblown. They outplayed Toronto in 2023, but couldn't hold a few late leads. They lost to the eventual Cup champions Florida Panthers in 24 and 25. This time, the Bolts were beaten by two bad bounces in Game 7 versus Montreal.

The run caused several ridiculous comments on twitter after the season. Yes, going deep in the playoffs is a standard the franchise has built. Still, Lightning fans have become quite spoiled. There are 31 other teams in the league. Some of them do most things right like the Bolts.

Let's look at the overall numbers. It's nine straight trips to the playoffs with two Stanley Cups, three trips to the finals and four Eastern Conference finals. The 106 points total this season was their most since the last Cup run in 2021 and they were ravaged with injuries. Yes, Buffalo, Jon Cooper sure deserved the Jack Adams!

Many franchises would kill for that nine-year stretch. 

That all being said, this offseason could be different. In the past three, it was cap issues and tweaks for the most part. Sure, the Steven Stamkos decision was a big one. But Jake Guentzel for Stammer is - at the very worst - a wash. 

Does GM Julien Brisebois have something big up his sleeve or just a few smart additions to keep this group in the hunt? 

This is the first time the team probably needed a serious autopsy. There are some very big questions to answer for 2026-27.

Will Point Return to Form?

Brayden Point scored just 18 goals in 63 games during the regular season and one in the first round of the playoffs on 12 shots.

In the previous three seasons, the speedy center averaged 46.3 goals.

Brisebois will have to answer the question of whether Point can rebound from an off season. Was this an aberration or is it injury related? Point certainly looked like he was skating alright near the end of the season and in the playoffs. He just wasn't producing anywhere near the same level.

The Lightning brass may just have to see next season with four years at $9.5 million left on a contract that would be hard to move at this stage. I'm sure Brisebois will listen if someone blows him away with an offer, though.

Can Hedman Be a Factor Again?

We found out after the season that captain Victor Hedman was dealing with mental health issues the last few months. 

Victor is one of the best professional athletes I have dealt with in 40+ years of journalism. It took a lot of courage to do what he did. While they make a lot of money, athletes are people, too. I am confident he will be back at 100 percent next September.

Hedman is 35 and Ryan McDonagh is 36. They are winners. They are leaders. I expect them to return close to their 2024-25 form when Hedman had 66 points and McDonagh was +43. Heck, Ryan was good in 48 games this last season.

I'm predicting Heddy would win Comeback Player of the Year. ... if there was one. Maybe the Masterson instead?

Who Plays The Right Side On D?

Darren Raddysh is gone and that was predictable. Raddy had a great season, but it was just one and that does not make him worth $68 million the next eight years.

That leaves Eric Cernak and Max Crozier as the only right-handed defensemen on the NHL roster. Lefties JJ Moser and Emil Lilleberg have played the right side and did the job, but you wonder if JB goes big or just adds depth.

Veteran righty John Carlson has been prominently mentioned and it sounds like a decent idea with Raddy's power-play ability in Toronto. I'm not against bringing him in, but not at the numbers being reported. I'm a fan of Crozier, and Chucky D'Astous can team with Victor Hedman on the power play. 

The feeling is Brisebois is going to do something, though. If anyone is traded, it would probably be Lilleberg to loosen up the crowded left side of the defense corps.

Who Are the Centers Of Attention?

Like the glut of lefty defensemen, the Lightning have many players whose best forward position is center.

You have Point, Anthony Cirelli, Dominic James, Yanni Gourde, Nick Paul and maybe Conor Geekie. Then, you add rookie Sam O'Reilly to the mix. O'Reilly, who was acquired from Edmonton for Isaac Howard, is expected to push for a spot in training camp.

No doubt, some of them can play the wing. But you may need to deal a center to get another scoring winger. While Gage Goncalves emerged in the second half of the year, ancient Corey Perry was playing in the top six during the Montreal series. Oliver Bjorkstrand won't likely be back. Another scoring winger would help.

You need to improve your faceoff percentage as well. Those guys don't grow on trees, though. O'Reilly has been good on the dot in juniors, but he is 20. 

I might consider moving Geekie or Paul, but the return must be worthy. 

Would love to get Robert Thomas from St. Louis somehow, but that might be too expensive. Not really interested in Dylan Larkin. We'll see what happens.

In Conclusion, What Do You Do?

It's hard to tell. I just wouldn't make panic moves and I'm confident Brisebois won't do that.

There have been some interesting off seasons in the past, but this may be the most important for the future. You wonder what prospects can emerge? Is Dylan Duke ready for full-time duty in the bottom six or can he be used in a deal? 

Four straight first-round losses? I don't want to hear about it anymore. I will try to block out the national hockey media.

Here's three things that won't happen. Jon Cooper, Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy are going nowhere. I don't expect Hedman and Cirelli will be traded. Brandon Hagel and Jake Guentzel will end their careers here.

Have faith Lightning fans. I think a 10th straight trip to the playoffs is less than 12 months away. After that, as always, anything can happen.