1997 Modern Rock 500

WOXY

The most important songs in Modern Rock, as determined by WOXY staff in 1997.

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1 Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
2 U2 - New Years Day
3 REM - Radio Free Europe
4 Smiths - How Soon is Now
5 Cure - Boys Dont Cry
6 Elvis Costello - Whats So Funny Bout
7 Ramones - I Wanna Be Sedated
8 David Bowie - Space Oddity
9 Nails - 88 Lines About 44 Women
10 Nine Inch Nails - Head Like a Hole
11 Smashing Pumpkins - Today
12 Talking Heads - Psycho Killer
13 Cure - Just Like Heaven
14 Violent Femmes - Blister in the Sun
15 Alanis Morissette - You Oughta Know
16 Janes Addiction - Jane Says
17 Cracker - Teen Angst
18 Psychedelic Furs - Pretty in Pink
19 REM - Losing My Religion
20 Depeche Mode - Route 66
21 New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle
22 Talking Heads - Once in a Lifetime
23 Sex Pistols - Anarchy in the UK
24 Pearl Jam - Jeremy
25 Velvet Underground - Pale Blue Eyes
26 Green Day - Longview
27 Elvis Costello - Alison
28 U2 - Sunday Bloody Sunday
29 Breeders - Cannonball
30 Squeeze - Tempted
31 Janes Addiction - Been Caught Stealing
32 Jim Carroll Band - People Who Died
33 Royal Crescent Mob - Get on the Bus
34 Midnight Oil - Beds are Burning
35 Yaz - Situation
36 Nirvana - All Apologies
37 Beck - Loser
38 XTC - Dear God
39 Wall of Voodoo - Mexican Radio
40 New Order - Blue Monday
41 B52s - Rock Lobster
42 Adam Ant - Goody Two Shoes
43 Smashing Pumpkins - Disarm
44 Soft Cell - Tainted Love
45 Offspring - Gotta Get Away
46 Beck - Where Its At
47 Police - Roxanne
48 Depeche Mode - Never Let Me Down Again
49 Peter Gabriel - In Your Eyes
50 Oingo Boingo - Dead Mans Party
51 Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper - Elvis is Everywhere
52 Joe Jackson - Is She Really Going Out With
53 Talking Heads - Take Me to the River
54 Tori Amos - Caught a Light Sneeze
55 10000 Maniacs - Candy Everybody Wants
56 REM - Dont Go Back to Rockville
57 Counting Crows - Mr Jones
58 Squeeze - Black Coffee in Bed
59 Pearl Jam - Even Flow
60 Clash - Train in Vain
61 Devo - Whip It
62 Modern English - I Melt With You
63 Soul Asylum - Runaway Train
64 Dead Milkmen - Bitchin Camaro
65 Frankie Goes to Hollywood - Relax
66 Icicle Works - Whisper to a Scream
67 New Order - Love Vigilantes
68 Gary Numan - Cars
69 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Under the Bridge
70 Pretenders - Brass in Pocket
71 Camper Van Beethoven - Take the Skinheads Bowling
72 Kate Bush - Running Up That Hill
73 Green Day - Brain Stew
74 Simple Minds - Dont You Forget About Me
75 Tears For Fears - Everybody Wants to Rule The
76 Jonathan Richman Modern Lovers - Dodge Veg O Matic
77 Midnight Oil - Blue Sky Mine
78 Ministry - Everyday is Halloween
79 Pearl Jam - Daughter
80 Romeo Void - Never Say Never
81 10000 Maniacs - These Are Days
82 Talking Heads - Life During Wartime
83 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Give it Away
84 Psychedelic Furs - Love My Way
85 Dave Matthews Band - What Would You Say
86 Clash - Rock the Casbah
87 Cranberries - Dreams
88 REM - Its the End of the World
89 U2 - One
90 B52s - Love Shack
91 INXS - Devil Inside
92 Porno For Pyros - Pets
93 Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way
94 Proclaimers - Im Gonna Be 500 Miles
95 Dexys Midnight Runners - Come On Eileen
96 Eurythmics - Would I Lie to You
97 Siouxsie and the Banshees - Cities in Dust
98 Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart
99 Madness - Our House
100 Depeche Mode - People are People
101 Cure - Lets Go to Bed
102 REM - Man on the Moon
103 Thomas Dolby - She Blinded Me With Science
104 Talk Talk - Talk Talk
105 Echo and The Bunnymen - Bring on the Dancing Horses
106 Lou Reed - Walk on the Wild Side
107 Pearl Jam - Alive
108 Pretenders - Message of Love
109 Police - Message in a Bottle
110 Clash - Lost in the Supermarket
111 Smiths - Queen Is Dead
112 Blind Melon - No Rain
113 Alarm - 68 Guns
114 Replacements - I Will Dare
115 Elvis Costello - Radio Radio
116 Blondie - Call Me
117 Nirvana - Come As You Are
118 Nails - Things You Left Behind
119 REM - Superman
120 Depeche Mode - Strangelove
121 Cracker - Low
122 Tears For Fears - Shout
123 Devo - I Cant Get No Satisfaction
124 Violent Femmes - American Music
125 Peter Gabriel - Steam
126 Radiohead - Creep
127 Vapors - Turning Japanese
128 Men Without Hats - Safety Dance
129 Bow Wow Wow - I Want Candy
130 Social Distortion - Ball and Chain
131 The - This is the Day
132 Sex Pistols - God Save the Queen
133 Talking Heads - Burning Down the House
134 Ben Folds Five - Battle of Who Could Care Less
135 Bauhaus - Bela Lugosis Dead
136 Depeche Mode - Personal Jesus
137 Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams
138 Concrete Blonde - Joey
139 Cure - Why Cant I Be You
140 Smashing Pumpkins - Drownedit
141 English Beat - Save it for Later
142 Plimsouls - A Million Miles Away
143 Soul Asylum - Somebody to Shove
144 Public Image Limited - Rise
145 Peter Murphy - Cuts You Up
146 Pretenders - Talk of the Town
147 REM - One I Love
148 Duran Duran - Girls on Film
149 Cure - Pictures of You
150 They Might Be Giants - Dont Lets Start
151 Live - Lakinis Juice
152 Afghan Whigs - Gentlemen
153 Toad the Wet Sprocket - All I Want
154 Peter Gabriel - Red Rain
155 Love and Rockets - No New Tale to Tell
156 Smiths - Ask
157 Matthew Sweet - Girlfriend
158 Cake - Distance
159 Clash - Should I Stay or Should I Go
160 Boomtown Rats - I Dont Like Mondays
161 Depeche Mode - Policy of Truth
162 Talking Heads - Crosseyed and Painless
163 Smithereens - Blood and Roses
164 English Beat - Mirror in the Bathroom
165 Blondie - Rapture
166 Gin Blossoms - Hey Jealousy
167 Shriekback - Nemesis
168 Cure - Friday Im in Love
169 Belly - Feed the Tree
170 James - Laid
171 Jesus Jones - Right Here Right Now
172 Elvis Costello - Pump It Up
173 Bob Marley - Jamming
174 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Higher Ground
175 Living Colour - Cult of Personality
176 Smiths - Girlfriend in a Coma
177 Crowded House - Chocolate Cake
178 Peter Gabriel - Shock the Monkey
179 U2 - Pride In the Name of Love
180 Sugarcubes - Birthday
181 Afghan Whigs - Rebirth of the Cool
182 REM - Orange Crush
183 Lou Reed - Dirty Blvd
184 Church - Under the Milky Way
185 Kate Bush - Wuthering Heights
186 Sinead OConnor - Mandinka
187 David Bowie - Lets Dance
188 Cranberries - Zombie
189 Big Country - In a Big Country
190 Dada - Dizz Knee Land
191 Charlatans UK - Only One I Know
192 David and David - Welcome to the Boomtown
193 Adrian Belew - Oh Daddy
194 Stereo MCs - Connected
195 INXS - Dont Change
196 Cure - Lovecats
197 Clash - London Calling
198 Peter Gabriel - Digging in the Dirt
199 U2 - Mysterious Ways
200 Ramones - Do You Remember Rock N Roll
201 Tori Amos - Silent All These Years
202 Pretenders - My City Was Gone
203 Hüsker Dü - Makes No Sense At All
204 Time Zone - World Destruction
205 Morrissey - Tomorrow
206 Cult - Love Removal Machine
207 Smashing Pumpkins - Bullet With Butterfly Wings
208 Nirvana - Heart Shaped Box
209 Tears For Fears - Change
210 REM - Pretty Persuasion
211 Missing Persons - Words
212 Godfathers - Birth School Work Death
213 10000 Maniacs - Trouble Me
214 Foo Fighters - Winnebago
215 Blur - Song 2
216 Sinead OConnor - Last Day of Our Acquaintance
217 Too Much Joy - Crush Story
218 Offspring - Self Esteem
219 Hoodoo Gurus - Miss Freelove 69
220 The - Infected
221 Echo and The Bunnymen - Killing Moon
222 Indigo Girls - Least Complicated
223 B52s - Private Idaho
224 Billy Bragg - Waiting for the Great Leap Forward
225 Sting - All This Time
226 Simple Minds - Alive and Kicking
227 Peter Schilling - Major Tom Coming Home
228 Guadalcanal Diary - Always Saturday
229 Stone Roses - Fools Goldedit
230 Talk Talk - Its My Life
231 Jam - Thats Entertainment
232 Pixies - Monkey Gone to Heaven
233 Pretenders - Middle of the Road
234 Erasure - Chorus
235 Stan Ridgway - I Wanna Be a Boss
236 Fine Young Cannibals - She Drives Me Crazy
237 Mighty Mighty Bosstones - Someday I Suppose
238 Joe Jackson - Sunday Papers
239 Smithereens - Behind the Wall of Sleep
240 Peter Gabriel - Sledgehammer
241 Psychedelic Furs - Heaven
242 Suzanne Vega - Luka
243 Depeche Mode - Blasphemous Rumours
244 Pretenders - Stop Your Sobbing
245 The - Uncertain Smile
246 10000 Maniacs - Whats the Matter Here
247 Eurythmics - Love Is a Stranger
248 Everclear - Santa Monica
249 Love and Rockets - So Alive
250 Screaming Trees - Nearly Lost You
251 Til Tuesday - Voices Carry
252 Cure - Close to Me
253 Call - Walls Came Down
254 Indigo Girls - Galileo
255 Bjork - Human Behaviour
256 UB40 - Red Red Wine
257 U2 - Lemon
258 Smiths - Is It Really So Strange
259 Police - King of Pain
260 Patti Smith - Gloria
261 Soup Dragons - Im Free
262 Barenaked Ladies - Be My Yoko Ono
263 Sundays - Heres Where the Story Ends
264 Peter Gabriel - Biko
265 Erasure - A Little Respect
266 Billy Bragg - Sexuality
267 Toad the Wet Sprocket - Walk on the Ocean
268 Bodeans - Dreams
269 XTC - Senses Working Overtime
270 Jesus and Mary Chain - Head On
271 Clash - Police and Thieves
272 They Might Be Giants - Istanbul Not Constantinople
273 Human League - Dont You Want Me
274 Cure - Never Enough
275 Pretenders - Time the Avenger
276 Talking Heads - And She Was
277 Police - Dont Stand So Close to Me
278 Morrissey - November Spawned a Monster
279 REM - Stand
280 Alarm - Rain in the Summertime
281 Midnight Oil - Forgotten Years
282 Urge Overkill - Sister Havana
283 INXS - Original Sin
284 Roxy Music - Love is the Drug
285 U2 - With or Without You
286 Toad the Wet Sprocket - One Wind Blows
287 B52s - Good Stuff
288 Guadalcanal Diary - Watusi Rodeo
289 Lenny Kravitz - Always on the Run
290 Paula Cole - Where Have All the Cowboys Gone
291 Violent Femmes - Prove My Love
292 Bodeans - Black White and Blood Red
293 Oasis - Wonderwall
294 Siouxsie and the Banshees - Kiss Them For Me
295 Go Gos - We Got the Beat
296 Replacements - Alex Chilton
297 Beastie Boys - So Whatcha Want
298 Peter Gabriel - Games Without Frontiers
299 Killing Joke - Eighties
300 Buffalo Tom - Taillights Fade
301 Live - Pain Lies on the Riverside
302 Talk Talk - Lifes What You Make it
303 Red Hot Chili Peppers - Show Me Your Soul
304 Joe Jackson - Look Sharp
305 Katrina and The Waves - Walking on Sunshine
306 Toad the Wet Sprocket - Hold Her Down
307 Velvet Underground - Sweet Jane
308 INXS - New Sensation
309 Adam and The Ants - Antmusic
310 U2 - I Will Follow
311 Blondie - Heart of Glass
312 Smiths - Bigmouth Strikes Again
313 Lemonheads - Mrs Robinson
314 Iggy Pop - Candy
315 Duran Duran - Hungry Like the Wolf
316 Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
317 Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls
318 Sting - If I Ever Lose My Faith in You
319 Erasure - Oh Lamour
320 Patti Smith Group - Dancing Barefoot
321 Green Day - Welcome to Paradise
322 B52s - Planet Claire
323 Wallflowers - One Headlight
324 Sinead OConnor - I Want Your Hands on Me
325 Ass Ponys - Earth to Grandma
326 Jam - Town Called Malice
327 BT - Blue Skies
328 Wilco - Box Full of Letters
329 Timbuk 3 - Futures So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades
330 David Bowie - China Girl
331 Devo - Jocko Homo
332 Judybats - Saturday
333 GoGos - Our Lips are Sealed
334 Sarah McLachlan - Into the Fire
335 Paul Westerberg - Waiting for Somebody
336 Juliana Hatfield - My Sister
337 Split Enz - I Got You
338 Heads - Damage Ive Done
339 Love and Rockets - Kundalini Express
340 Human League - Things That Dreams Are Made Of
341 Specials - A Message to You Rudy
342 Matthew Sweet - Ive Been Waiting
343 Housemartins - Happy Hour
344 Enya - Caribbean Blue
345 Arrested Development - Mr Wendall
346 Police - Wrapped Around Your Finger
347 Single Gun Theory - From a Million Miles
348 Seal - Crazy
349 Beastie Boys - Sabotage
350 Siouxsie and the Banshees - Peek a Boo
351 Depeche Mode - Just Cant Get Enough
352 Judybats - Being Simple
353 Primus - Jerry was a Race Car Driver
354 Frankie Goes to Hollywood - Two Tribes
355 Cure - Hot Hot Hot
356 Suzanne Vega - Toms Diner DNA mix
357 REM - Bang and Blame
358 Talking Heads - Stay Up Late
359 Smithereens - A Girl Like You
360 Waterboys - Whole of the Moon
361 Elvis Costello - Angels Wanna Wear
362 Bogmen - Suddenly
363 Bears - Fear is Never Boring
364 Soul Asylum - Black Gold
365 Clash - Police on my Back
366 World Party - Is It Like Today
367 Big Head Todd and the Monsters - Broken Hearted Savior
368 Marshall Crenshaw - Someday Someway
369 Breeders - Divine Hammer
370 EMF - Unbelievable
371 XTC - Making Plans for Nigel
372 B52s - Summer of Love
373 Farm - Groovy Train
374 Stranglers - Skin Deep
375 Kirsty MacColl - Walking Down Madison
376 Ministry - Stigmata
377 Sugar - If I Cant Change Your Mind
378 INXS - What You Need
379 Del Amitri - Always the Last to Know
380 Presidents of the United States of America - Lump
381 Police - So Lonely
382 Berlin - Sex Im a
383 Los Lobos - I Got Loaded
384 They Might Be Giants - Birdhouse in Your Soul
385 XTC - Mayor of Simpleton
386 Peter Gabriel - Big Time
387 Hothouse Flowers - Im Sorry
388 Hole - Doll Parts
389 Brian Setzer Orchestra - Hoodoo Voodoo Doll
390 Love and Rockets - Ball of Confusion
391 Buggles - Video Killed the Radio Star
392 B52s - Dance This Mess Around
393 X - Hungry Wolf
394 Replacements - Here Comes a Regular
395 Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
396 Over The Rhine - How Does It Feel
397 MC900FT Jesus - City Sleeps
398 Depeche Mode - Walking in My Shoes
399 Adrian Belew - Pretty Pink Rose
400 Cowboy Junkies - Murder Tonight in the Trailer Park
401 Cranberries - Linger
402 Bob Mould - See a Little Light
403 U2 - Gloria
404 Pixies - Here Comes Your Man
405 Blind Melon - Tones of Home
406 Yaz - Dont Go
407 David Bowie - Modern Love
408 Eurythmics - Whos That Girl
409 Primus - Tommy the Cat
410 Tones on Tail - Go Club Mix
411 Pearl Jam - Crazy Mary
412 Squeeze - Cool for Cats
413 Butthole Surfers - Pepper
414 Blues Traveler - Hook
415 Royal Crescent Mob - Happy at Home
416 Concrete Blonde - God is a Bullet
417 Son Volt - Drown
418 Ministry - Work For Love
419 Charlatans UK - Weirdo
420 Sinead OConnor - Emperors New Clothes
421 Crash Test Dummies - Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm
422 Dinosaur Jr - Start Choppin
423 Afghan Whigs - Debonair
424 Peter Gabriel - Solsbury Hill
425 Adam Ant - Desperate But Not Serious
426 Oingo Boingo - Weird Science
427 Psychodots - Big Love Now
428 Camper Van Beethoven - Pictures of Matchstick Men
429 Ben Folds Five - Underground
430 Meryn Cadell - Sweater
431 Enigma - Sadeness
432 Dead Milkmen - Youll Dance to Anything
433 Urban Dance Squad - Deeper Shade of Soul
434 Smashing Pumpkins - Siva
435 Howlin Maggie - Alcohol
436 Liz Phair - Supernova
437 Elvis Costello - Everyday I Write the Book
438 Devo - Through Being Cool
439 Blur - Theres No Other Way
440 Los Lobos - Will the Wolf Survive
441 Alice in Chains - Would
442 Sisters of Mercy - This Corrosion
443 Joe Jackson - Im the Man
444 Ass Ponys - Little Bastard
445 Living Colour - Elvis is Dead
446 Electronic - Get the Message
447 REM - Cant Get There from Here
448 INXS - Never Tear Us Apart
449 DBs - A Spy in the House of Love
450 Screaming Trees - Dollar Bill
451 U2 - Bad Live
452 Ramones - Sheena is a Punk Rocker
453 Goo Goo Dolls - We Are the Normal
454 Firehose - Sometimes
455 Fishbone - Party at Ground Zero
456 Pogues - Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah
457 L7 - Pretend Were Dead
458 Connells - Slackjawed
459 Ultravox - Reap the Wild Wind
460 Midnight Oil - Power and the Passion
461 Soho - Hippychick
462 Reverend Horton Heat - Its Martini Time
463 Julian Cope - World Shut Your Mouth
464 INXS - Need You Tonight Mediate
465 David Bowie - Changes
466 X - See How We Are
467 Flaming Lips - She Dont Use Jelly
468 Bob Mould - Sunspots Wishing Well
469 Weezer - Buddy Holly
470 Warren Zevon - Angel Dressed in Black
471 Replacements - Ill Be You
472 Trip Shakespeare - Slacks
473 REM - Driver 8
474 U2 - Fly
475 Tori Amos - God
476 They Eat Their Own - Like a Drug
477 Dada - Dorina
478 Smiths - Panic
479 Ramones - Pet Sematary
480 Soup Dragons - Divine Thing
481 Sheryl Crow - All I Wanna Do
482 Iggy Pop - Real Wild Child Wild One
483 Haircut 100 - Love Plus One
484 Soul Coughing - Super Bon Bon
485 Gin Blossoms - Found Out About You
486 Fishbone - Everyday Sunshine
487 Joe Jackson - Five Guys Named Moe
488 Geraldine Fibbers - Dragon Lady
489 Too Much Joy - Donna Everywhere
490 Fixx - One Thing Leads to Another
491 Special AKA - Free Nelson Mandela
492 Peter Gabriel - I Dont Remember
493 Rancid - Time Bomb
494 Wilco - Outtasite Outta Mind
495 Style Council - My Ever Changing Moods
496 Trio - Boom Boom
497 Happy Mondays - Step On
498 Poi Dog Pondering - Be the One
499 U2 - Staring At the Sun
500 Machines of Loving Grace - Butterfly Wings
Other Modern Rock 500 countdowns by year

Note the station did not broadcast a Modern Rock 500 in 2004.

Credit to WOXY listener Craig Froehle for providing the underlying source materials for these yearly lists.

Combinations

Here is one massive combined countdown with all songs from every year of the countdown, ranked by average position (1394 songs in all).