The best Arctic Monkeys songs

As the song that catapulted Arctic Monkeys into the ‘overnight sensation’ category way back in 2005, I Bet That You Look Good on the Dancefloor couldn’t not be on this list. Thankfully, it still stands up as an indie dancefloor filler, perfectly encapsulating the winning blend of cheeky youth culture lyricism and driving riffs that defined the early Arctics.

It’s a song that could really only have been created by a gang of teenagers with their lives, million-selling albums, and gossip rag relationships ahead of them.

It’s easy to forget now that the band has taken its place as a globe-straddling lounge-rock behemoth, but part of the initial appeal of Arctic Monkeys was the regional specificity of their lyrics.

Consider Mardy Bum, one of the highlights from the band’s debut album, which takes a piece of distinctly northern English slang (the titular phrase) and builds a charmingly lolloping indie pop song around it. It’s not the smartest song in the band’s roster, but it never fails to make a crowd smile.

A Certain Romance proved to be a fitting full stop to the band’s debut album. After a crunching false start, the track eases back onto a wave of wistful, chiming guitars, clearly showing off the influence of UK indie darling predecessors The Libertines.

Lyrically, A Certain Romance somehow manages to thread the needle through condemnation of and affection for the parochial lives and attitudes that these young Sheffield lads were about to leave well behind. It’s arguable that the band has never released anything quite so affecting since.

One of those bouncy, catchy early-period Arctic Monkeys hits that prompted many to think that Britpop might just be back for another run around a block. The evidence that the band were far more than mere ’90s revivalists was already right here, however, in the shape of Fluorescent Adolescent’s insightful lyrics about an aging partier.

Arctic Monkeys would set sail from here for waters rockier and jazzier, but Fluorescent Adolescent will always remain as a tribute to the band’s formative sound.

As the lead single of the band’s landmark AM album, R U Mine? effectively sets the hard-driving rock and roll tone with its Black Sabbath riffs and thunderous drums. The lyrics, meanwhile, seem to be spilling forth from a hip hop star who’s been temporally displaced to somewhere in the 1950s.

Besides sounding great, R U Mine? heralded in a commercial purple patch for the band, with global success and headliner status practically assured from here on out.

Latest album The Car isn’t exactly laden with obvious singles, but Body Paint stands out among an oddball bunch with its insistent keyboard hook, sparingly applied orchestration, and Alex Turner’s sweet falsetto.

Body Paint is a song that genuinely takes you on a journey, too, with the band gently applying the gas after a stop-start opening. It’s a low key and deeply unlikely anthem, no doubt, but an anthem nonetheless.

Crying Lightning positively rocks and roils with menace. Nick O’Malley’s tempestuous bassline, Alex Turner’s muttered vocals, and a backing of haunted house guitar licks set a distinctly unsettling tone that creeps and rocks in equal measure.

Viewed from 2023, it certainly speaks to the influence of Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme, who produced the track as well as the band’s third album, Humbug. Homme lends both backing vocals and a typically swampy edge to the song.

One of the band’s loveliest and downright dreamiest moments, Cornerstone adopts a swooning ’60s crooner vibe, as Alex Turner’s lovelorn protagonist tours the pubs looking for an old flame. The combination of well-observed everyday lyrics, sweet melody, and a glorious guitar solo prove pretty much irresistible every time you hear it.

It’s certainly one of the softer and more universally loved moments from the band’s gnarly third album Humbug, which saw the band starting to explore a more expansive, widescreen sound.

The almighty riff that kickstarts Do I Wanna Know? also serves as the starting point to AM, which was the album that broke Arctic Monkeys beyond English indie upstart status to genuine global rock superstars. In other words, this is the song that helped them well and truly break America.

Do I Wanna Know? is suitably potent stuff, reflecting the newfound confidence of a band that was really starting to enter its stride after a decade of existence. Practically guaranteed to be positioned deep in the setlist come Friday night on the Pyramid stage.

After third and fourth albums that proved somewhat divisive with the band’s initial followers, Arctic Monkeys won a whole new and greatly expanded fanbase with AM, showcasing a fresher, heavier sound.

Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High is a fine example of the album’s magic formula at work. With its winning combination of lolloping classic rock swagger and mid–90s R&B swing, it managed to hit that cross-over sweet spot that gains an artist mainstream US airplay and inspires unlikely cover versions.