My Top Ten Gloria Songs

The climax of my Glorious Trilogy, with thanks to Kelloggsville for suggesting it (kind of). I'll be honest, I could think of only three off the top of my head (and two of those were kind of the same song) but I did manage ten and there were some pleasing surprises along the way...

Special mentions to Gloria Jones, Gloria Gaynor and Gloria Estefan.


10. U2 - Gloria

I make no secret of the fact that I have very little time for Bonio and chums, and this really is only here to make up the numbers. Sorry, U2 fans. I do quite like the guitar, and if I close my eyes I can at least pretend it's not Mr. Vox on vocals.

9. McIntosh Ross - Gloria

A beautiful Scottish-country ballad from the voices of Deacon Blue. Gorgeous harmonies, as you'd expect, but I can't track down a link to it anywhere online I'm afraid.

8. Jon Gomm - Gloria

An amusing little ditty about a love Jon can't forget...

I remember your dad, 
Cos he had a skinhead
And he had a tattoo, 
That the years had turned blue, 
It said “don’t fuck with me”

7. Green Day- ¡Viva La Gloria!

Much as I like Green Day, they're at their least successful when they try to be deep.

Eternal youth is a landscape of a lie

(Also - you try and type an upside down exclamation mark.)

6. Brand New - Sic Transit Gloria Glory Fades

Die young and save yourself

 Excellent storytelling from the Brand New Boys. Their lead singer reminds me of Eddie Munster.

5. Lambchop - Gloria Leonard

Classic Kurt Wagner, from the album Thriller. (No, not that one.)

4. Bruce Springsteen - Gloria's Eyes

Not content with making Number One on my Top Ten Glory Songs, here's Bruce again with Gloria. Not a patch on the aforementioned, but better than I remembered it being. Great guitar.

3. Patti Smith - Gloria

I reckon this is sufficiently different from the Van Morrison version (see below) to get a separate entry. All Patti keeps is the chorus, everything else is hers.

Jesus died for somebody's sins
But not mine

2. Laura Branigan - Gloria

Children of the 80s, rejoice... although the video may spoil your enjoyment. I'm not sure I've ever seen Laura Branigan before, but she looks like a barmaid doing karaoke in your local on a Friday night.

1. Them - Gloria

How do you spell teenage lust, Van?

She comes around here
Just about midnight
Ha, she make me feel so good, Lord!

See, I'm getting to the age now where if she came round about midnight I'd tell her to bugger off. What's wrong with half past seven? Some of us have to get up and go to work tomorrow morning.

You may prefer the Doors' somewhat X-rated version... though in the current moral climate, there's probably a Newsnight investigation being planned into that as we speak.





So - which of the Top Three is your glorious Gloria?

(I'll be amazed if anyone prefers any of the lower seven.)