10 Best Songs From Men At Work

Best Songs from Men At Work are popular songs like Down Under, Who Can It Be, and Overkill. They are also known for their pop-reggae music.
They are an Australian rock band who have sold over 30 million albums worldwide. They are one of the selling artists from Australia.
After their debut as the Best New Artist, the band also won the Grammy Award of 1983. Melbourne-based band was also inducted into the ARIA in 1994.
During the height of their popularity, they worked together with the bands like Fleetwood Mac and Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr.
They are one of the global personalities who successfully pushed pop-rock music in Australia. The band is still active and is performing in concerts and music festivals.
10 Best Songs From Men At Work
Song Name/ Album Name | Spotify Streams |
Down Under (Business as Usual) | 638 million |
Who Can It Be Now (Business as Usual) | 232 million |
Overkill (Cargo) | 71 million |
It's a Mistake (Cargo) | 34 million |
Be Good Johnny (Business as Usual) | 13 million |
Everything I Need (Two Hearts) | 7 million |
I Can See It In Your Eyes (Business as Usual) | 7 million |
Underground (Business as Usual) | 4 million |
Down By The Sea (Business as Usual) | 4 million |
Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive (Cargo) | 3 million |
You May Like:
1. Down Under
Down Under is the best-selling song by Men At Work. It is the most successful single of the band from their debut album Business as Usual (1981).
The track peaked the chart in the #1 position on Billboard Hot 100 (1983).
This Colin Hay-penned track describes an Australian man traveling abroad. It is based on his own experience.
It is a song about freedom, which appealed to the audience globally, as it was during the 80s after the Vietnam War thus the influence of pop, disco, and funk music was quite popular during this era.
The song also popularized their debut album and helped them attain their first Grammy award for Best New Artist in the same year.
2. Who Can It Be Now
Who Can It Be Now is among the Men At Work greatest hits. The track is also from their first album "Business as Usual."
According to the Australian singles chart, the track peaked at #2.
Similarly, it also became a big hit in the countries like New Zealand, Canada, Brazil, and America. It also became the no. 1 song in the US in October 1982.
They also performed in Saturday Night Live in 1982. The artists also won Best Debut Single awards in "the 1981 Countdown Australian Music Awards."
Notably, the song was certified Gold by ARIA, after it sold more than 50,000 certified units in the country. Rolling Stone praised the band for using sax, chorus voices, and symphonic presentation of string instruments.
3. Overkill
Overkill is high on the best of Men at Work. Billboard Hot 100 featured the song at # 3 during its peak.
Song's reggae style was influenced by the singer Bob Marley who has released the best reggae songs of all time.
Frontman of the band Colin Hay wrote the song describing his experience of stepping into the unknown and getting out of a comfortable space.
Cargo the band's second studio album was responsible for the release of this single topped the Australian Kent Music Report charts. It also remained in the 55 position in the Top 100 chart in Canada.
4. It's a Mistake
It's a mistake is a great example of Men At Work Music. It is an anti-war song that peaked at the #6 position on Billboard Hot 100.
The band also performed the song in "Saturday Night Live."
It is about a military man across the world in the 1980s, it is about the tension between NATO and communist states Warsaw Pact's cold war.
It is one of the sentimental, harsh, and hard-hitting songs that speaks the truth about the consequential impact of war on the lives of people.
5. Be Good Johnny
Be Good Johnny by Men At Work is the best song to sing at a talent show. The single made it into the top 3 on U. S Billboard Top Tracks list.
Australian bands were also able to secure 67th position in their home country according to Kent Music Report. The premise of the song is according to the viewpoint of 9 year old.
Johnny the child in the song prefers to daydream rather than concentrate in class or play sports. He completely misunderstands the world of adults. The singers imitate the voice of 9-year-olds and their parents.
6. Everything I Need
Everything I Need is a peculiar song by Men At Work. It is a lead single from the band's album "Two Hearts."
Billboard listed the track at #37 during its peak on the Hot 100.
It is a rhythmic pop-rock song that captures the quirky melodic charm of Australia. The track has an awesome guitar solo produced by powerful guitar strings.
However, this lead single was unable to capture the magic of their debut album "Business as Usual" but they were able to capture the hearts of multiple artists throughout the world.
The band's career has already spanned more than two decades. Colin Hay is the current member of the band. The 69-year-old Scottish singer still performs in concerts and festivals.
7. I Can See It In Your Eyes
I Can See It In Your Eyes is a romantic track from Men At Work songs list. It is also written by the lead vocalist and guitarist Colin Hay.
It is from the band's greatest hit album "Business as Usual." During its release, the album went on to remain number one in US Billboard 200 for 15 weeks.
Similarly, it is also one of the highest-selling Australian albums in the 80s, grossing over 6 million copies in the US. The album won four awards in 1981 and 1982 over four different categories in the "Countdown Music and Video Awards."
That said, the album's one of the best songs "I Can See It in Your Eyes" lyrics goes like this:
Be your leave, I think that I'll be going now
I think I've stayed a little long
I Looked up all my mother's recipies
8. Underground
Underground is one of the top ten hits of Men At Work. The song is derived from its first album which brought the funk and new wave of music.
This 1982 track was among the top five songs of the side one standard edition of the first album of the Australian band. It is only three minutes long but packs a powerful rhythmic punch with different musical apparatus and lyricism.
Underground's message is about uplifting and empowering people and bringing new aspirations to lead a new generation of dreamers. It has remained a powerful anthem in the hearts of the natives of the country.
The beautiful song's lyrics are as follows:
Don't take the fire from your eyes
Must make them feel the heat
They build castles underground for the rich and politic elite
9. Down By The Sea
Down By The Sea by Men At Work is a beautiful song about sailors. It is a catchy track with a short and sweet chorus.
The songwriters of the track include artists like Hay, Strykert, Ham, and Jerry Speiser. It is one of the few collaborative tracks of the band.
All Men at Work members contributed to the writing and composition process of the track. Hay worked on guitar and vocals, Ham performed flute, keyboard, and saxophone duties in addition to background vocals.
Ron Strykert, Rees, and Speiser worked on guitar, bass, and drums respectively. It is a symphonic track that is appreciated by both critics and audiences.
10. Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive
Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive is a popular song from their album Cargo released in 1982. It is a pop lead single of their second debut album.
As per Billboard Hot 100 list, the song peaked at 28th position. It charted at countries like Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the U.S., and the U.K.
It is one of the best pop songs from the band. The song is about a mad scientist Dr. Heckyll, the story of the song is similar to the 1963 movie "The Nutty Professor."
That said, the song's lyrics are as follows:
Dr. Heckyll works late at the laboratory
Where things are not as they seem
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