Rain – most of us don’t like it, especially here in Dhaka where we often get more than our fair share. Here the rain comes with a plethora of pain which takes the form of chaos when rain water collapses the city’s traffic system and inundates the major thoroughfares. Hence, rain in Dhaka city has become more of a curse than a blessing especially for those who need to commute amidst it. Yet it’s amazing just how many songs have been inspired by droplets of cloud wee. Some love it (Prince), some hate it (Travis), and, yes, many use it as a metaphor for something else, but either way, there are more bangers about being soggy than you might have thought.
‘November Rain’ - Guns N’ Roses
Even dad-rock favourites get soppy (and soggy) now and then. Power ballad ‘November Rain’ has broken a ton of records – it’s the longest song to get into the Billboard Top 10 and the first video from the twentieth century to hit a billion views on YouTube, for example. But it’s also broken a lot of hearts and tear ducts with its soaring solos and symphonic sounds.
‘Rain’ - The Beatles
Preceding ‘Revolver’ with its psychedelic undertones, this song and lyrics might be cryptically simple – but hey, it’s definitely about rain. Like plenty of the Beatles’ best mid-to-late-period tunes, it was (allegedly) inspired by LSD and weed (now that’s a rainy day in!) and its cleverly reversed vocals give it a fittingly woozy quality that’s both trippy and drippy.
‘Kiss the Rain’ - Billie Myers
Playing this song will automatically make you feel like you’re in an episode of ‘Dawson and Creek’. It’s a shame, then, that it’s not remembered a bit better – despite being a UK Top 10 hit – because of its singer, Billie Myers, and the rapid evaporation of her career. Still, it’s a ’90s dream if there ever was one.
Fool in the Rain-Led Zeppelin, 1979
It’s probably appropriate that the final single released by rock legends Led Zeppelin in the United States is about a man being stood up on a rainy street corner. A rhythmic and emotional song which features a samba beat, supposeldy inspired by the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, Fool In The Rain was never even performed live by the band after its release. Led Zeppelin officially broke up in 1980.
Purple Rain by Prince, 1984
Among the most iconic pop ballads ever written, Prince’s Purple Rain is a love song with beautiful saxophone melodies, impassioned vocals, and shimmering keyboard lines that create a brooding mental image. The song builds to a guitar solo climax in the middle of its almost nine-minute run time — a long, slow form that simulates a massive dark storm passing overhead.
Have you ever seen the rain, Creedence
Fame, money, and success don’t always lead to happiness, or so posits John Fogerty on CCR’s hit single. “Have You Ever Seen The Rain, a song Fogerty wrote when the band was at the top of the charts, and yet somehow every member felt unhappy. “Have you ever seen the rain/Coming down on a sunny day” sings Fogerty in the song, using the metaphor to describe the struggle of discontent, even when you’re at the top.
I wish it would rain by the temptations, 1967
Among the most melancholy singles ever released by iconic Motown group The Temptations, I Wish It Would Rain is the story of a heartbroken man who wants to hide his sadness. The song features samples of an actual thunderstorm, and paints a musical image of rain with elegant, descending strings.
Let It Rain- Eric Clapton
One of Clapton’s first hit singles, this 1970 song about love is most notable for its use of both “rain” and “reign” in the lyrics. It’s a clever vocal interplay that helps draw you into the intensely groovy and upbeat song — a perfect track to throw on at the end of a long, dry summer.
Raindrops keep fallin’ on my head --BJ
Part of the acclaimed soundtrack of late-’60s film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, this light and jovial hit reached number one on the charts in the United States in 1970, and also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song that year. In the film version, the acclaimed lyrics about dealing with inclement weather sound a bit hoarser than on the studio version, because Thomas was recovering from laryngitis, and was required to do seven back-to-back takes by an unsatisfied Burt Bacharach (who wrote the song).
