The Best Songs of 1963 - Nos. 15 to 11

15. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) – Darlene Love (A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector)

This is the greatest Christmas song of all time. In November of 1963, Phil Spector released an album of Christmas songs recorded by several of the artists who he regularly worked with. It didn’t attract much notice at the time, but the song found new life after U2 covered it on 1987’s A Very Special Christmas album. Since the late 80’s, Darlene Love has regularly performed the song on the final new episode of David Letterman’s show before Christmas.

14. Can I Get A Witness? – Marvin Gaye (Can I Get A Witness?)

Marvin Gaye makes his first appearance on the list with this gospel-influenced track. It made it to number 22 on the pop charts and helped Marvin on his way to becoming the quintessential Motown artist of the 60s. The song may have a gospelly sound but the story of a man whose woman treats him wrong is definitely of a more secular sentiment. Marvin was really in top form here and his vocal was incredible.

13. Back In Baby’s Arms – Patsy Cline (Sweet Dreams)

Back in Baby’s Arms was the B-side of the Sweet Dreams single and is one of Patsy’s best songs. Her vocal was amazing and I love the beat of this track. It really grew on me after it was included on the soundtrack for Natural Born Killers. It’s a wonderful story of a couple reconciling after a fight and Patsy’s interpretation was just about perfect.

12. In My Room – The Beach Boys (Surfer Girl)

1963 is a really big year for the debuts of major artists. Besides Beatles, Stones, Dylan, and Marvin, The Beach Boys make their first appearance with In My Room. This was one of Brian Wilson’s great introspective songs. I can relate. When I was a kid, I spent a lot of time in my room and it truly was a sanctuary for me. The song is quite beautiful. It’s hard to believe that it was originally released as a B-side.

11. All My Loving – The Beatles (With The Beatles)

All My Loving, the third track on With The Beatles, was the song that they chose to open with when they debuted on The Ed Sullivan Show in February of 1964. It’s a splendid little love song that Paul McCartney originally envisioned as a country song. This explains the countrified flavor of George Harrison’s guitar work. It’s a really exceptional entry in the McCartney catalog.


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