Canon-forming and pop

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

On today's poll thread Cis raises the spectre (which may be a benign spectre, and may not be spectral at all) of a 'pop canon'.

I have a couple of questions which may or may not relate to it:

Are there any very well-known (and ideally well-loved) pop songs that weren't especially popular when first released?

Are there any very well-known and well-loved pop songs that have never actually been hit singles?

Comments

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

With indie albums I can think of a fair few non-singles which "got people talking" and so on - and in some cases they're well-known precisely because of their unsuitability as a single. Er I can think of no actual examples right now though.

I think 'Ring The Alarm' counts as a single! The internet has broken global boundaries when it comes to this sort of thing.

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

I don't think Ring The Alarm counts in the Pop Canon though - not next to Crazy In Love or Irreplaceable anyway. I'm assuming it's singles or individual songs that make the canon, not artists.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

I think it should, there's an increasing trend for popstars to release different singles in different territories but all of them get...known, in the end. eg Britney's 'Anticipating', or Nelly F's 'No Hay Igual'.