The final track on an album can define how we remember the whole record. Rank these iconic British album closers by which one hits hardest when the needle lifts.
Put the items in your preferred order.
A Day in the Life
That final orchestral crescendo and crashing piano chord remains one of the most ambitious endings ever committed to tape. It still feels like the end of an era every time.
Champagne Supernova
Seven and a half minutes of swaggering Britpop grandeur that perfectly bookended the mid-90s. Few closers feel this anthemic without trying too hard.
The Tourist
A weary, waltzing comedown after the album's paranoid sprint, ending on a single ringing triangle. It's the sound of being told to slow down.
This Is the Last Time
Wait, that's not the closer β but Bedshaped is, and its swelling piano outro feels like a goodbye letter set to music. A proper lump-in-the-throat finish.
Bike
Syd Barrett's whimsical tale collapses into a clattering, mechanical fever dream of clocks and laughter. Strange, unsettling, and utterly unforgettable.
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