54: Are You Ready Steve?

54. "Ballroom Blitz" by Sweet {#5; 6/75} [Video: Ballroom Blitz.]

Here we have four young lads from England, with their long hair, makeup, sequins, blouses, capes, and tight shiny pants who ask the age-old musical question, "Are you ready Steve?"

This song gets major points in a lot of different areas:
*Great rock and roll guitar and drums.
*Some really good "Yeah, yeahs."
*A great sense of humor.
*Some fun lyrics.
*Flamboyant vocals.
*A band roll call. (Andy? Steve? Mick?)
*Flare!

You know, as I think about it, almost everything I mentioned above could also be used to describe the group Queen. It makes me wonder how much of an influence Sweet had on the formation and function of Queen.

Sweet had a couple of other songs that got serious consideration for the HondoJoe Top 200. "Fox On the Run," and "Love Is Like Oxygen" are both some pretty amazing songs.

But, it's "Ballroom Blitz" that earns the top Sweet spot. It's got some great lyrics, such as: "Reaching out for something, but touching nothing's all I ever do."

The song also features two main characters, The Man In the Back and The Girl In the Corner. Let's compare and contrast:

The Man In the Back
Eyes are as red as the sun
Said, "Everyone attack."
Is ready to crack.
Raises his hands to the sky.

The Girl In the Corner
Let no one ignore her.
Thinks she's the passionate one.
Said, "Boy, I want to warn you it'll turn into a ballroom blitz."
Is everyone's woman.
Could kill you with the wink of her eye.

COMING UP NEXT: Hey there, mister.