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20 Great Songs by Tears for Fears

Including a new song released in October 2021

It was announced in early October 2021 that the duo Tears for Fears would be releasing a new studio album, their first since 2004, in February of 2022.

This announcement came along with the release of the album’s first single, “The Tipping Point,” which is also the name of the new album.

As a big fan of Tears for Fears since the 1980s, I’ve been anxiously awaiting new music from them for a very long time.

I have to say, even though I’ve only heard it three times so far, I like “The Tipping Point” quite a bit. I think it’s remarkable how great Tears for Fears’ members Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith still sound.

Their voices have barely changed at all. And this song has a very similar sound to some of their earliest music. I listened to it today right after I played their debut album The Hurting from 1983. To me, “The Tipping Point” sounds like it could have easily fit right in with the other songs on that first album.

So, yes — I like the song a lot.

I also like several other songs by Tears for Fears a lot, so I decided to make a new Spotify playlist featuring my favorites from them. Originally, the list was going to include 10–12 songs, but that just wasn’t enough.

I decided on 20. I could have added more, but we’ve all got other things to do later on today, don’t we?

We can’t just sit around and listen to music all day long, can we?

Eh, I’m just kidding. Sure, we can! Go ahead and listen to music all day long if you want to.

Rock on, my friends!

My 20 Great Songs by Tears for Fears playlist is at the bottom of this article, but before I get to that, I want to spotlight some of my favorites from it:

Mad World

“Mad World” is from The Hurting album. It features Curt Smith on lead vocals and it’s one of my all-time favorite songs that he sings.

I recently wrote an article called 20 Cover Songs I Prefer Over The Originals. In it, I asked readers to comment and share their own favorite cover songs. A few replied and said they preferred Gary Jules’ cover of “Mad World” over the original by Tears for Fears.

To each their own, of course, but I prefer the original by Tears for Fears. Gary Jules does a great version of it, but I’ll always choose this one over that one.

Everybody Wants To Rule The World

This is one of the duo’s most famous songs and I’d be surprised if any of you reading this aren’t already familiar with it.

It came from the 1985 album Songs From The Big Chair, which is (at least at the time of this writing) Tears for Fears’ best-selling album.

In addition to “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” being a huge hit on radio stations when it was released, the music video for it was also incredibly popular on MTV and other places that showed music videos back then.

Even though I’ve heard “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” approximately 7,336 times, I still love it and have never gotten tired of it.

In fact, I’m already looking forward to the next 7,336 (or so) times I’m going to hear it.

Shout

Shout.

Shout.

Let it all out.

These are the things I can do without.

Come on. I’m talking to you.

Come on.

(There are no other comments necessary for this legendary song.)

Woman In Chains

“Woman In Chains” is from the 1989 album The Seeds of Love. Roland Orzabal sings lead on this one and he’s accompanied by guest vocalist Oleta Adams, who performed on several of the songs on The Seeds of Love.

I’ve heard and read varying definitions and theories over the years regarding what this song is about. The most frequent one I’ve seen is that it’s about the repression of a woman (or women, plural.) I’ve also read that it may be about men repressing the feminine parts of themselves because society tells them they should be “manly.” Those repressed/hidden parts are actually the “women in chains.”

So…who knows?

It really doesn’t matter. It’s a truly wonderful song, either way.

The music in it has sort of a soft, hypnotizing sound to it. As for the vocals…Roland Orzabal’s and Oleta Adams’ voices sound absolutely amazing together throughout the entire song.

I especially love the very passionately performed “so free her” lines that are repeatedly sung towards the end of the song.

“Woman In Chains” contains a perfect mixture of great vocals, music, and lyrics. It’s probably my favorite song by Tears for Fears.

I’d actually rank it among my Top 20 Favorite Songs by anyone.

It’s that good.

The video’s really good too. Check it out.

Break It Down Again

“Break It Down Again” was from Tears for Fears’ fourth studio album, Elemental in 1993. By this point, Curt Smith had left the duo and this was essentially a solo album by Roland Orzabal.

Despite that, it was still a fantastic Tears for Fears album.

I like every song on Elemental quite a bit, but “Break It Down Again” has always been my favorite from it. It’s a fantastic pop/rock song.

Me And My Big Ideas

“Me And My Big Ideas” is from the 1995 album Raoul And The Kings of Spain. Like on the previous album, Elemental, Roland Orzabal was without Curt Smith once again.

Raoul And The Kings of Spain is probably my least favorite Tears for Fears album, but there are several great songs on it — including “Me And My Big Ideas,” which features Oleta Adams returning and singing with Roland again.

Like they had years earlier on The Seeds of Love album, the two of them sounded fantastic together on “Me And My Big Ideas.”

Secret World

Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith reunited in the year 2000. Four years later, they recorded and released their great album Everybody Loves A Happy Ending.

There are several fantastic songs on it, but “Secret World” is my favorite. I think if this one had been released as a single and promoted properly, it could have been a huge hit for them.

Goodnight Song

Other than the new song, which is the first one on my playlist, I’ve listed all of these Tears for Fears songs in the order they were released. However, I’m going to make a second exception here and go back to the Elemental album for “Goodnight Song.”

It’s a fantastic song and it’s one of my favorites from Elemental. Given that its title is “Goodnight Song,” it seemed like a perfect choice to be the final song on my playlist.

Here is my 20 Great Songs by Tears for Fears playlist on Spotify. Enjoy!

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