Ranking Every Single Camel Song

Welcome to the second day of ranking every Camel song! We're still in the section of the list where i'm not incredibly keen on the songs, but soon we'll be getting into the more personally favorable stuff! Lets go:

107: End of the Line (Dust and Dreams)

I haven't heard too many other Camel fans opinion on this track, but it's somewhat of a live staple for the band in recent years. I've just never liked it, not even the live version of the album off "Never Let Go" which i'll talk about more in the future (Long story short: I think it blows the studio version out of the water). There's a lot of guitar playing, but very little of it is actually memorable and in turn the song just kind of drags on for me. I know it's somewhat of a centerpiece of the album, but its generally a skip for me.

106: Neon Magic (I Can See Your House From Here)

This one is kinda a bouncy pop rock tune. It's got a decent instrumental in the middle but I think the vocal performance is pretty weak and honestly like some other tracks on the album, it just doesn't satisfy what I want to hear from Camel. At least it reprises the main melody from Rhayader towards the end. If i'm in the right mood this can be a fun song, but it's a bit of a far cry from even the highlights on its own album.

105: Manic (The Single Factor)

Just somewhat of a forgettable song and I think that can be attributed to lack of a memorable hook or melody throughout the song. There's a sort of soft and whimsical interlude a little over halfway through that's a nice little change of pace, but it's not enough to save the track for me.

104: Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little River and Little Rose (Dust and Dreams)

My issue with this is less the music than it is the context. It really felt like we were building momentum with the previous 3 tracks on the album and in turn, these tracks just feel like an intermission to the album. These are all very mellow and somewhat pretty, I actually quite like Sheet Rain but as a whole these three tracks just don't have anything all that great going for them.

103: Heroes (The Single Factor)

I actually think the instrumental on this song is kinda nice but the vocals and main hook sort of lack for me. There's nothing terrible I can say about this one, but similarly to manic, it's just kinda plain.

102: After Words (Stationary Traveller)

A short, alright instrumental that serves its purpose of kinda painting a dreary and hopeless feeling atmosphere that is somewhat of a constant on its respective album. I got nothing overly negative to say about it but it just sorta comes and goes without leaving too much of an impression.

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The List So Far:

(Best)

After Words

Heroes

Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little Rivers and Little Rose

Manic

Neon Magic

The End of the Line

Hearts Desire/End Peace

Rain Dances

Rainbows End

The Homecoming

Your Love is Stranger Than Mine

Remote Romance

(Worst)

Welcome to the third day of ranking every single Camel song worst to best. This probably the last day of the kinda "meh" songs for me, after these songs I think things start getting progressively and quickly better. Anyways:

101: Todays Goodbye (The Single Factor)

An alright tune from The Single Factor with some nice harmonies going for it as well as a decent hook. Doesn't quite knock my socks off or leave much of an impression however.

100: Fingertips (Stationary Traveller)

I find this to be a bit of an Adult Contemporary dud that sort of overstays its welcome. I can enjoy it if i'm in the right mood but its never a highlight for me. Mel Collins guests here but I think his saxophone playing just gives it more of a kinda wimpy Adult Contemporary feel.

99: Eye of the Storm (I Can See Your House From Here)

A really sort of average Camel instrumental that never really has any sort of payoff. It just kinda does its thing and fizzles out without much of cling onto. I don't have too much else to say about it, nothing inherently bad about this track, but its subpar when they got instrumentals like First Light and the Sleeper not far removed from this album.

98: Pressure Points (Stationary Traveller)

A nice little opener to the album with piercing guitars and a steady synth rhythm. It's more here on the low end because its pretty short and simply serves its purpose as opening the album. However, the live version off the album "Pressure Points" extends this instrumental out to 7 minutes and it's definitely my preferred version. It has some awesome fretless bass and generally more breathing room.

97: Please Come Home (Nude)

A very short track meant to sort of advance the concept of the "Nude." It really doesn't work as a standalone track in turn, but in the context of the album it's a nice little emotional song in between two more in a similar ethereal and kinda atmospheric vein.

96: Camelogue (The Single Factor)

A pretty decent track with a memorable hook that sticks with me as well as some nice guitar playing. It doesn't perhaps blow me away, but it ends up leaning more towards the best of the Single Factor.

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The List So Far:

(Best)

Camelogue

Please Come Home

Pressure Points

Eye of the Storm

Fingertips

Todays Goodbye

After Words

Heroes

Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little Rivers and Little Rose

Manic

Neon Magic

The End of the Line

Hearts Desire/End Peace

Rain Dances

Rainbows End

The Homecoming

Your Love is Stranger Than Mine

Remote Romance

(Worst)

Here we are on Day 4, quickly getting into the songs I tend to favor!

95: Selva (The Single Factor)

This is a pretty nice, pleasant soft and spacey instrumental, I don't have too much to add on top of that.

94: Who We Are (I Can See Your House From Here)

I know this song has its fans but i've always had some very mixed opinions on it. I think the intro is really good and always gets the head bobbing with a nice punchy bass and upbeat playing from the rest of the band. However, once we get into the verse and chorus it just takes a very sappy turn with cheesy lyrics, kinda lame adult contemporary orchestration and a really corny hook. I can see it as a guilty pleasure song, but it just doesn't have enough grit for me.

93: Reflections (Nude)

This is a somewhat short subtle and ambient instrumental with a guitar melody similar to the main melody from the verse of "You Make Me Smile" off breathless. Overall its pretty pleasent but it only really works in the context of the album.

92: Pomp and Circumstance (Nude)

This is similar to reflections where its a very meditative and delicate piece with some really nice synths and flute playing. It's very short though and once again is more of an album song ending with the sound of gun shots which is Nude fulfilling his military obligations from the island he's stranded on.

91: Highways of the Sun (Rain Dances)

This song is kinda clearly an attempt at a hit and it sort of misses the mark a bit in that department. It's very steady and can get a little stale quickly but I like the striking electric piano during the pre-chorus. Peter Bardens saves the day with his really cool synth soundscape in the middle accompanied by some pretty groovy drumming. The hook is catchy enough, but unfortunately this song isn't a highlight from it's respective album.

90: Mother Road/Needles (Dust and Dreams)

This is another live staple for the band and its in the live environment where I feel like it gets dragged out to its full potential, with that said, I don't think its the most essential Camel track. The verse and hook are decent enough, but this song reaches a pretty satisfying peak when the main guitar melody really kicks in around the 2:24 mark. I think it could use a little more power and intensity on the studio version but in general I really like this section of the song along with the vocals that accompany it. Needles is an alright mellow instrumental, not the most memorable thing on the album but it's pleasant to listen to.

89: The Hour Candle (Harbour of Tears)

I'm a big fan of Harbour of Tears, but I feel like there's something kinda missing from this song and I can't put my finger on it. It does a very fine job of painting a picture of someone staring out at the ocean from the shore, but I can't help but feel that songs like Ice and Stationary Traveler just do this type of song better. I think there could've been some kind of better lead up into the solo, coming straight out of Coming of Age into this track isn't the most satisfying conclusion for me. Overall though, its a pretty nice song. I will say though, the 20 minutes of Ocean Sounds at the end is total overkill, but I won't count that against it.

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The List So Far:

(Best)

The Hour Candle

Mother Road/Needles

Highways of the Sun

Pomp and Circumstance

Reflections

Who We Are

Selva

Camelogue

Please Come Home

Pressure Points

Eye of the Storm

Fingertips

Todays Goodbye

After Words

Heroes

Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little Rivers and Little Rose

Manic

Neon Magic

The End of the Line

Hearts Desire/End Peace

Rain Dances

Rainbows End

The Homecoming

Your Love is Stranger Than Mine

Remote Romance

(Worst)

Here's our next batch of Camel songs for the ranking!

88: Down On The Farm (Breathless)

Well here it is, to many Camel fans its "that song," so where do I stand on it? I actually quite like it, its very upbeat, goofy and fun. I like the somewhat subtle flute playing during the chorus and throughout. The actual verse and vocal performance is very nice and catchy. I think the intro motif that is repeated throughout might be a bit too in-your-face, but I think this song is good and fits the vibe of Breathless.

87: Rose of Sharon/Milk and Honey (Dust and Dreams)

This song is conflicting for me, if I was ranking the version off "Never let Go," it would likely be in my top 20, its that good. Matter of fact, the song here is still very good but the female vocals just really miss the mark on the studio cut. Nothing against female vocals, but her voice and the effect put on it just don't sound good to my ears. When Latimer and Colin Bass sing this song together its magic. I love when it kicks into that spacey middle section bringing us into the "Oh Rose You'll Never Know..." part. It's very emotional, but the explosive guitar solo towards the end steals the show. However, this is a rare case in the Camel discography where the vocals really bother me and hinder my enjoyment of a song. Milk N' Honey is another very mellow, spacey inoffensive filler track on Dust and Dreams.

86: One Of These Days I'll Get an Early Night (Rain Dances)

I really did not like this song for the longest time. Coming off of the first 4 albums when I heard that jazz-funk groove open the song I remember asking myself what band I was listening to. However, it's sorta revealed itself to be a bit of a slowburn and one with a good amount of replay value for me. It's Camels attempt at a Jazz Fusion song, yes, this is what they kicked Doug Ferguson out for. With a steady and constant rhythm throughout, the stage is set for Peter Bardens, Andy Latimer and Mel Collins to trade off solos and play off of each other. Peter Bardens has some very nice electric piano playing that sometimes feels a tad bit long winded. Mel Collins and Andy Latimer come in next and Latimer has a really nice and impressive guitar solo closing out the track with a backwards tape loop effect. Overall, I quite enjoy this track and it gets better with time and familiarity. I find it to be a very strange song in the Camel canon and it was very jarring to me at first.

85: West Berlin (Stationary Traveler)

This track is very dark and moody. It packs a pretty memorable chorus with some nice instrumentation to back it up. In the middle there's a pretty cool delay guitar section which comes again and expands in the final minute of the track. There's nothing particularly earth shattering about this track, but all in all its a good, memorable song.

84: Missing (Stationary Traveler)

Very interesting song here, its one of those classic Camel instrumental jam tracks, but done with the instrumentation and production value seen throughout Stationary Traveler. The whole song is in 7 with a keyboard groove kinda reminiscent of the song Lost and Found off of Rajaz. Andy Latimer absolutely tears it up on guitar. After a somewhat brief 80s keyboard solo Andy Latimer hops back in going even more ham on his guitar while the instruments around him progressively build up the soundscape accompanying him. The 80s piano comes back in and the track slowly fades out. It's a pretty strong instrumental, perhaps not the most dynamic or explosive of its sort, but its among the more exciting and fast paced parts of Stationary Traveller.

83: End of the Day (Harbour of Tears)

This a very soft, low-key and somber track with acoustic guitar playing and Latimer vocals as well as a nice main melody in the middle. This leads us into soft melodic flute playing which seamlessly flows into a guitar solo that interestingly works as a continuation of the flute solo. Overall this track is pretty short and works as a nice softer contrast to the following track "Coming Of Age."

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The List So Far:

(Best)

End of the Day

Missing

West Berlin

One Of These Days I’ll Get an Early Night

Rose of Sharon/Milk and Honey

Down on the Farm

The Hour Candle

Mother Road/Needles

Highways of the Sun

Pomp and Circumstance

Reflections

Who We Are

Selva

Camelogue

Please Come Home

Pressure Points

Eye of the Storm

Fingertips

Todays Goodbye

After Words

Heroes

Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little Rivers and Little Rose

Manic

Neon Magic

The End of the Line

Hearts Desire/End Peace

Rain Dances

Rainbows End

The Homecoming

Your Love is Stranger Than Mine

Remote Romance

(Worst)

Here we are on day 6 with another set of 6 tracks! Thank you to everybody who has been throwing in their two cents on these tracks and the rankings!

82: Lies (Nude)

A pretty decent track, its got a nice guitar solo and some heavy hitting organ work in the middle. Overall it doesn't blow my socks off but its an alright track for the latter half of Nude.

81: Wait (I Can See Your House From Here)

Pretty good track, the opening always makes me feel like i'm booting up Super Smash Brothers. The song has a really smooth and fast paced flow from section to section. The verse almost kinda sounds like something Dire Straits would do, I can't say the verse or chorus are my favorites, but the jam it kicks into at 2:04 is sick and unfortunately ends up being one of the only times Kit Watkins is allowed to let loose on the album. He is originally from US prog band Happy the Man and his keyboard work on their first two albums is not only incredibly impressive, but it's just dripping in creativity and originality. Now back to the song, I really enjoy the melodic guitar stretches towards the end which expand on the intro riff. All in all, one of the highlights from its respective album.

80: You Make Me Smile (Breathless)

A little on the cheesy side, with perhaps a hint of disco, but I shamelessly really enjoy this track. It's got a pretty neat synth and drum groove. Corny lyrics aside, you're never gonna catch me NOT singing along to the chorus. Bardens works some of his synth magic later in the song with some really tasty tones and all in all, while it's not the most challenging or dense Camel song, it's a very pleasant and upbeat song on a very pleasant and upbeat album.

79: Dust Bowl/Go West/Dusted Out (Dust and Dreams)

I really like this opening suite and specifically "Go West" as I see it as the centerpiece of this set of songs. To start off. Dust Bowl kicks things off with a kinda derelict vibe with some really nice instrumentation. It's the intimate and minimalist Go West that really sticks with me with soft and subtle instrumentation, vocals as well as a nice hook with clear lyrics throughout that properly introduce the concept. I will once again plug the "Never Let Go" version of this track as it stretches most the tracks to their full potential. Dusted Out is a more heavy hitting spin on the first two tracks introducing some of the albums main motifs in a less developed and more subtle way. Dust and Dreams (Studio) is probably in my bottom 3 Camel albums, but it really does a fine job with its conceptual elements and reoccurring musical motifs throughout.

78: No Easy Answers (The Single Factor)

I had always heard that The Single Factor was the bottom of the barrel for Camel. When I first put it on I went in with low expectations but this track came on and it kinda caught me off guard because I really enjoyed it. Is it a pop song? Yes, but so what? It's catchy and well written. Don't let reviews or general consensus skew your perception on an album before hearing it yourself. Because lots of times it comes down to the first few people who put their opinions out there ultimately determining the end game general opinion on albums. I know many of the tracks here rank low, but I think it's always a nice listen. Right out the gate this track kicks off with some really catchy vocal lines. I love the "La La La" section with clapping and some really clean acoustic guitars accompanying it. The ending of this track is great as well with some nice synths and a really uplifting guitar solo. Just a really well written and performed pop song.

77: Cloak and Dagger Man (Stationary Traveler)

Another track that was very jarring to me at first but it gets better with every listen for me. It has a very frantic feel with lead vocals from Chris Rainbow. It's hard to explain what it is I like about this track but I just find the all the vocal lines and delivery to be extremely catchy. Towards the end there's these piercing synths that are just fired at you like a machine gun and I think it's just awesome. There's no turning baaaaaacccckkkkk!

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The List So Far:

(Best)

Cloak and Dagger Man

No Easy Answers

Dust Bowl/Go West/Dusted Out

You Make Me Smile

Wait

Lies

End of the Day

Missing

West Berlin

One Of These Days I’ll Get an Early Night

Rose of Sharon/Milk and Honey

Down on the Farm

The Hour Candle

Mother Road/Needles

Highways of the Sun

Pomp and Circumstance

Reflections

Who We Are

Selva

Camelogue

Please Come Home

Pressure Points

Eye of the Storm

Fingertips

Todays Goodbye

After Words

Heroes

Sheet Rain/Whispers/Little Rivers and Little Rose

Manic

Neon Magic

The End of the Line

Hearts Desire/End Peace

Rain Dances

Rainbows End

The Homecoming

Your Love is Stranger Than Mine

Remote Romance

(Worst)