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

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

I think anything that's been used in a hugely popular film counts actually. Although amazingly nothing comes to mind right now.

[damnspynovels.livejournal.com]

Yeah like i said, Little Green Bag... in fact almost any of the big Tarantino songs... Jungle Boogie, Hooked on a Feeling, You'll Be A Woman Soon...

Although i admit they might be reserved for the indie dancefloors of the 90s...

[bengraham.livejournal.com]

I was trying to think of these... Goo Goo Dolls' 'Iris' mentioned above... 'I Don't Want To Miss A Thing' by Aerosmith did better than I remembered in the charts by reaching #4, Bon Jovi's 'Blaze Of Glory' only made it to 13 in the UK but was #1 in the US, ah, I've got it... the Top Gun theme, never released as a single, yet barely a person in the Western World who can't hum it!!

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

erm, meaning of "Top Gun theme" to me = "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin, a #1 single in the UK. Am I missing something here? (I have never seen the movie, by the way.)

[justfanoe.livejournal.com]

Presumably meaning "Danger Zone" which made no impact in the UK but was massive in the US, so maybe fits.

[bengraham.livejournal.com]

No, not meaning 'Danger Zone' by Kenny Loggins, nor 'Take My Breath Away' by Berlin, but the actual theme (I believe it was called 'Top Gun Anthem' on the soundtrack)... ah, look, here's a YouTube video with it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCTJmXrgsFg).