Great album openers get the listeners to keep on listening. They can do this in any number of ways. Some openers set the tone by easing us in. Others jump right in and blow our minds from the very beginning. A great album opener isn’t an easy thing to create. More than a great song, it’s all about the sequence. Track 1 has to be the perfect starter. This month, I’m highlighting my favorites. #AlbumOpeningSongs
Kick was an album to devour. The cover delivered the intrigue. The singles were massive. From beginning to end, the album just flowed – the right amount of hits, diversions, deviations, and intermittent explorations. Some of the band’s biggest singles were contained on this record: “New Senation”, “Need You Tonight”, “Never Tear Us Apart”, “Mystify” and “Devil Inside”. It also houses one of my favorite INXS songs of all time: “Mediate”. But one of the undisputed standouts is Track One: “Guns in the Sky”.
It’s far from one of the band’s best songs, but it demonstrates INXS’ know-how with sequencing. In many ways, “Guns in the Sky” is the quintessential opening track. It draws the listener in, sets the mood and doesn’t bite off more than it can chew. Its repetitive refrain isn’t lazy, it’s brilliant. In a baseball analogy, this song is the leadoff hitter. It’s not looking to hit a home run. But it finds a way to get on base, advance to scoring position, and get driven home by the big guns. On a track list that’s stacked with hits, “Guns in the Sky” is perfectly composed and marvelously placed.
“I'm running late, da da da. Love your hair, da da da. Lend me a ten, da da da. Love your big house, da da da.”