Album · Old 97's
Fight Songs by Old 97's
Fight Songs is an album by Old 97's, released in 1999. 2 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 12 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “Murder (or a Heart Attack)”, on 9 lists with a best position of #39.
Fight Songs, the fourth album from Dallas alt-country crew Old 97's, came out on April 27, 1999, their second for Elektra, and it's where the band traded some of the twang for shine. Rhett Miller, the lead singer and chief songwriter, likes to call what they play "loud folk", and here the loud part wears a pop sheen, a direction they would keep chasing on Satellite Rides.
The songs are tight and hooky, the guitars jangle and snap, and Miller's lovelorn, wisecracking lyrics sit front and center. The standout is "Murder (or a Heart Attack)", a bouncy little romp that Miller wrote with a cat belonging to his Los Angeles roommate in mind; Blender later placed it at 176 on its list of the 500 greatest songs from 1980 to 2005. "Jagged" is the other tune that's kept turning up on the countdowns.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Fight Songs on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murder (or a Heart Attack) | 9 | #39 | – | 1999–2026 | |
| 2 | Jagged | 3 | #516 | – | 2009–2026 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.