Sometimes a song has as much if not more cultural significance in its title and melody riff than the song itself, and this is one of those songs.  Still, the song is a great tune by two incredible songwriters and remains a classic and very relevant to this day.  Our #12 1982 song is Ebony and Ivory by Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder.

Now we come to a song in this countdown that may not be entirely well known, but upon realizing it was released this year, hearing it again, and still being amazed by the track, it somehow made its way into this countdown.  I remember being amazed that the bassist for Styx originally co-wrote this track and it was a huge hit back in 1992.  The #12 song in this countdown is Sometimes Love Just Ain’t Enough by Patty Smyth and Don Henley.

While Alive was this band’s coming out song, it was this song that made them a house-hold name in the new Grunge era.  It also spawned controversy by both the subject matter and the censored video that made them no longer want to do videos at the peak of MTV.  It still remains to this day one of the band’s biggest hits, and it arrives at #13 in this 1992 countdown – Jeremy by Pearl Jam.

Our next song in the top 20 countdown of songs turning 40 years old is a song that would have sounded fresh by in the 1950s, sounded fresh the 1980s, and would still sound fresh today.  Were it not for the success of this track, the Brian Seltzer Orchestra might not have been made, and it’s still one of my favorites of this era. Coming in at #13 is Rock This Town by The Stray Cats.

If people didn’t know who Prince was by 1982, they surely would now.  Never had a song made people so anticipate a future year like this one did, and for someone like me who discovered Prince at this time and made him one of my favorite artists ever, this track was the starting point of that fandom.  Entering the top songs turning 40 years old countdown is 1999 by Prince.

Known primarily for their funk/rock anthems, like a lot of other groups this group’s biggest early 90s hit is a ballad.  But rather than a love song, it’s a song about loss and acknowledgment of how that loss came to be and the fact that you don’t want to feel again like you did that day.  A phenomenal track, and it comes in at #14 – Under the Bridge by Red Hot Chili Peppers.