15 of the best lesser known tracks by great bands and artists!

It is a moment of delight for a music lover, when you come across an amazing song by a band you love that you haven't heard before. Whether a B Side, a live performance, or a radio station cover, sometimes these rarely heard tracks can be some of the best an artist has to offer. Indeed on occasion, these rarities can be as good as, or better, than a band or artist’s well known tracks. Ear to the Ground has been poring through the archives and have collected 15 of the best for you to enjoy below (all tracks are available on Spotify other than those for which a Youtube link is provided). 

The Beatles – Bad to Me (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvO-5Ga4Hso) – It is hard to believe that any Beatles song could be lesser known. How on earth could the biggest band the world has ever known (with the billions of fans they have worldwide) have any song that have not been thoroughly enjoyed and played over and over? To be fair ‘Bad to Me’ only exists in demo form and never made it on to any of the Beatles’ LP’s (it was actually given to Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas who released a version) but it’s a shame it didn’t because it matches up to the best tracks on their first 2 albums. A classic Beatles riff and chord progression soundtrack John Lennon pleading with a girl not to be “bad to me”.

Rolling Stones – Play with Fire – You won’t ever find the brilliant ‘Play with Fire’ on any of the Rolling Stones greatest hits collections, but this understated track finds Mick Jagger’s lyrics as cutting as ever with the song warning a well-heeled girl that he will not be her play thing and not to “play with me because you’re playing with fire”.

Simon and Garfunkel – Fakin' It – Simon and Garfunkel are rightly remembered for their mastery of melody and harmony and never did that come together better than on their most famous album ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’. Their previous album, ‘Bookends’, found them willing to be a little looser with their experimentation and the hazily psychedelic ‘Fakin' It’ is one of that album’s best moments – look out for the bizarre interlude in the middle.

The Beatles – Hey Bulldog – We are sneaking the Beatles in here twice (no apology required, it’s the Beatles for goodness sake)! Perhaps not the most obscure of their back catalogue, but ‘Hey Bulldog’ is included here because it is one of their finest tracks and deserves to be far more widely known. Recorded for, and included on, the soundtrack to ‘Yellow Submarine’, the piano melody and guitar riff combination are electric and the lyrics are a perfect example of Lennon’s unique British surrealism. The track ends with Lennon howling at the moon like a deranged hound – incredible stuff.

David Bowie – Velvet Goldmine – Not included on any of Bowie’s studio albums, 'Velvet Goldmine' was recorded in the sessions for 'Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars' and it’s glam rock rattling could easily have sat comfortably on that collection.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Miles Away – (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zflzYAbuRk) – The New York group spearheaded that city’s re-invention of garage rock alongside the Strokes in the early noughties, but this track did not make it on to their debut LP (although John Peel in his wisdom caught it on session here). Moody and threatening from the outset, the song pushes Karen O’s vocals to the edge as she screams “you’re more beautiful than ever miles miles miles away”.

The Strokes – Hawaii –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSSfcjAfC9w - Released as the B Side to 2003’s 'Juicebox' single, this nonsensical garage rock and roll riot is a fantastic thing. Sounding the bridge between ‘Is This It’ and ‘Room on Fire’, it is one of the group’s most upbeat tracks and finds Julian Casablancas sounding almost joyous as he sings of his favourite place “Hawwwwaaaiiii”.

The Libertines – Seven Deadly Sins – (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX7hPW_KyFU) – When a band has a back catalogue of non-studio recordings, demos and acoustic ramblings as broad as the Libertines do, it is almost an impossible task to name their best lesser known track but this one would be in the running. Ignore the polished studio version (included with the deluxe edition of 2015’s ‘Anthems for Doomed Youth’), and instead listen to this older version. A twirling guitar riff powers along this good old knees up and finds the Libertines clearly having fun in the process.

The White Stripes – Good to Me – The B-Side to the group’s most famous hit ‘Seven Nation Army’, this is a cover of White’s friend (and later Raconteurs bandmate) Brendan Benson’s early hit. It translates perfectly to the White Stripes’ sleazy garage rock treatment and could easily have been a Jack White original.

The Cribs – It Happened so Fast – This song (originally released around sophomore album ‘The New Fellas’ and latterly included on comprehensive collection ‘Payola’) finds the lo-fi indie heartache of the Wakefield indie darlings at it’s best. The jagged guitar led verses lead up to an emotional chorus with the classic Crib backing vocals complimenting perfectly.

The Coral – It Was Nothing – Recorded for the War Child charity album ‘Help’ in 2005, this song was clearly composed at the time of the recordings for third album ‘The Invisible Invasion’ as it matches the aesthetic of that record completely. A classic Coral track with the sixties inspired verses building to perfectly melodic choruses and a completely understated yet classic guitar solo.

Vampire Weekend – Boston (Ladies of Cambridge) – This early single was released before their self titled debut album, and finds the New York group full of energy, rattle and preppy charm as Ezra Koenig sings “if you leave I just don’t think I could take it” over swirling strings.

Richard Hawley – Sheffield on Sea – The Sheffield bard is so well known for his smoky baritone , that it can be easy to forget just how great a guitar player the man is. This reverb heavy daydream of an instrumental was the B-Side to ‘Valentine’, and transports the listener to the wash of the ocean on the shore just in time for an afternoon snooze. A tranquil thing of beauty.

Fleet Foxes – In the Hot Hot Rays – Recorded prior to the release of their classic self titled debut album, this is Fleet Foxes sounding amazing but not as you’ll have heard them before. Gone are the medieval folk leaning melodies and harmonies, and in is an ice cold guitar riff and Robin Pecknold’s gently weary vocal the perfect counterfoil. Based on this, Fleet Foxes could have gone in a totally different direction and ended up having a brilliant career. We can be glad they went the way they did but this is a reminder of the guitar band that hides behind their facade.

Arctic Monkeys – Da Frame 2R – On this limited edition 2007 release, the Monkeys take the ‘Inspector Gadget’ soundtrack and turn it inside out with their stunningly tight guitar and drums combination (some of Helder’s best drumming can be found here). This is the perfect backdrop to Turner’s lyrical fantasy creation of a new superhero in town “007 and Brucie Wayne are shitting themsens because there’s another name coming to claim what is his to claim 10% faster with a sturdier frame”.