“Radiation Vibe” by Fountains of Wayne

"Radiation Vibe" was the song that got Fountains of Wayne going in the first place: by Adam Schlesinger's account, Chris Collingwood wrote it one day, played it for him, and the band grew from there. It became their first single in 1996, from their self-titled Atlantic debut, a sugar rush of power pop with fuzzed-up guitars, a big goofy grin and a chorus you can't shake.

Schlesinger produced it, it was recorded at the Place in New York City from January to April 1996, and Chris Shaw and Eric Tew mixed it at Greene Street. It got to 14 on American alternative radio's airplay chart and 32 in the UK, and in 2021 Rolling Stone slotted it in at 380 on its 500 Greatest Songs list.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.