After our initial trove through songs about 1, we move on to the number 2. You would assume that this would be an easy task as two is the number of relationships, however it initially proved more difficult than I first imagined.
“It Takes Two” is a hit single recorded in late 1965 by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston for Motown’s Tamla label. Produced by Weston’s then-husband, longtime Gaye collaborator William ‘Mickey’ Stevenson, and co-written by Stevenson and Sylvia Moy, “It Takes Two” centered on a romantic lyric that depicted many things in life (dreams, love, wishes, etc.) being better with two people instead of one. Gaye and Weston’s duet peaked at #14 on the Billboard Pop charts and #4 on Billboard′s Soul Singles chart in January 1967. “It Takes Two” was also Gaye’s first major hit in the UK, where it peaked at #16 on the British singles charts in the spring of that same year.
“Love Me Two Times” is a song by the American band the Doors. It first appeared on their second studio album Strange Days. It was edited to a 2:37 length and released as the second single from that album, and reached number 25 on the charts in the United States. “Love Me Two Times” was considered to be somewhat risqué for radio airplay, being banned in New Haven for being “too controversial,” much to the dismay of the band.
“Goody Two Shoes” is the debut solo single by Adam Ant, released in May 1982. There are two versions of the cover. The first has Adam and the Ants across the top of the sleeve and the later version just Adam Ant. This is probably due to the confusion around the timing of Ant going solo, particularly as the song was performed by three fifths of the band Ant, Pirroni and Hughes.There are also two different studio versions of the song. The UK 7″ single version is notably different from the re-recorded version which appears on Friend or Foe. The single version has a different, more reverberating drum track. The Friend or Foe version, instead of Hughes on drums, features Bogdan Wiczling, drummer on the rest of the album.
“Two Hearts Beat as One” is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the seventh track on their 1983 album, War, and was released as its second single in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia in March 1983. The music video was directed by Melert Avis and was filmed on Montmartre in Prais in March 1983 and portrays the band performing the song, intercut with scenes of an acrobat and other scenes featuring Peter Rowen (the boy who appears on the album cover). Unlike the other videos from the album, it has never been included on any of the band’s video compilations.
“Two Tribes” is an anti-war song by Frankie Goes to Hollywood released in the UK in June 1984. The song was later included on the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome. Presenting a nihilistic, gleeful lyric expressing enthusiasm for nuclear war, it juxtaposes a relentless pounding bass line and guitar riff inspired by American funk and R&B pop with influences of Russian classical music, in an opulent arrangement produced by Trevor Horn. The single was a phenomenal success in the UK. It entered the charts at number one in June 1984, where it stayed for nine consecutive weeks. It was the longest-running number-one single in the UK of the 1980s.
“2 Minutes to Midnight” is a song by the British band Iron Maiden, featured on their fifth studio album, Powerslave (1984). It was released as the band’s tenth single, and first from the album in August 1984. It rose to number 11 in the UK and number 25 on Billboard Top Album Tracks. The band’s first single to exceed five minutes in length.
“Song 2” is a song by Blur. The song is the second song on their eponymous fifth studio album. Released in April 1997, “Song 2” peaked at number two in the UK and number six in the US. At the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, “Song 2” was nominated for Best Group Video. At the 1998 Brit Awards, the song was nominated for Best British Single. In 1998, BBC Radio 1 listeners voted “Song 2” the 15th Best Track Ever.
