Music: Near Misses 61-65

Failure list number 5 of 7...

Rio - Duran Duran: Very strong chorus but the verse sections don't have quite enough and the instrumental break/bridge isn't sufficiently interesting to carry it through to the top 40. Better than 'Hungry Like The Wolf' in my view though.

12 Days of Christmas - Bill Barclay: One of the funniest songs you'll ever hear - provided you can decipher the accent - a favourite but not as good as those above it musically, lyrically, emotionally or anything else-ally. Perfect for what it does, though.

Something Good - Bic Runga: Very personal choice - Bic Runga herself has done technically better songs - but will always take me back to working in the mandarin orchards of New Zealand, and that is a very happy place to be taken to.

Kingston Town - UB40: Overall not strong enough to break into the top 40 but will always be a favourite.

Obsession - Delirious: Guitar solo that builds and builds is the clear strongest point, although the lyrics and interesting bass-based verses are also very strong. Could easily have made the list but didn't seem to have the beating of others from 30-40 and missed out in the end.