Welcome to another edition of Ranked and this time I’m rewinding to the good ol’ days of the early 2000s to rank the ten singles released by British pop punk (according to Wikipedia) band Busted.

Despite being a McFly girl – can of worms: opened – I have to admit that I love all of the following ten songs and ranking them has not been an easy process. Some notes to bear in mind; I’ve split the double A-side Thunderbirds and 3am as these songs had enough individual airtime to merit an individual ranking. I’ve also decided not to include the God-awful Hurra Hurra Die Schule Brennt which I hope was released as a joke, and finally, I’m not including any of their releases since their reunion because they don’t have the same nostalgic feel to them (despite one being all about the nineties).

As a side note, Busted are clearly so old-school I barely found enough GIFs for this post – so enjoy some recent GIFs from their Nineties video.

So without further ado – let’s get ranking!

10. What I Go to School For

Busted’s first ever single, whilst a banger just doesn’t hold up quite as much compared to the rest. Sure, the chorus is catchy and everyone remembers the music video but the verses aren’t particularly memorable. That said, what a song to debut with!

9. Sleeping with the Light On

The closest thing to a traditional boy band ballad, Busted were always better at their more tongue in cheek songs with this one being a bit of a drag in places. Still, it’s an overly-dramatic pop song that makes for a good laugh when singing along.

8. 3AM

A somewhat lesser known Busted single, possibly because the success of Thunderbirds overshadowed the release somewhat, this is a rockier and moodier number compared to their usual fare. It’s a solid song but if I’m honest…I preferred the McBusted version.

7. She Wants to be Me

Busted’s last single until their reunion. Another often forgotten song that is in fact a real gem. Very typical in that it’s a fast paced, punk-esque number with stupid but fun lyrics about a girlfriend mimicking everything about her boyfriend. Interestingly, although released as a single it was ineligible to chart since it was issued as a 3-inch CD (or mini CD – remember those?).

6. You Said No

Busted’s first UK number one was and still is a total banger. This is one song that’s guaranteed to get all 20-somethings on the dance floor regardless of how cool they pretend to be. This is one of those choruses that everyone knows the lyrics to even if they know absolutely nothing else about the song or band – a classic.

5. Air Hostess

Spring/Summer 04 is an absolute beast for nostalgic music – Britney released Toxic, we were all doing the Cha Cha Slide, Gwen Stefani became the 00s Madonna (until Madonna became the 00s Madonna) and Shapeshifters had the sound of the summer with Lola’s Theme. Somewhere amongst all this Busted released Air Hostess. Fun, cheeky and with an iconic misheard lyric (throwing what down the aisle?!) Air Hostess is a classic Busted song that suffers only from a slightly repetitive chorus.

4. Crashed the Wedding

One of Busted’s most iconic songs, Crashed the Wedding felt nostalgic even when it was first released. They managed to make a pretty awful thing to do seem soppy and romantic. Another number one, it strangely didn’t get as much radio play as some of their lower charting songs.

3. Who’s David

From a purely musical point of view I might have put this as my number one, the chorus is made for singing along to but importantly the verses and middle eight section are great too. This song reached number one and deservedly so too, the harmonies and instrumentals in this song are just a level above the rest of Busted’s singles. It falls down just because it’s not quite as memorable as what’s left to come.

2. Thunderbirds (Are Go)

This won song of the year back when that was a thing. Written for the 2004 film Thunderbirds this song is all most people remember about the film (and all for the better, I saw the film and it was trash). High energy, fast paced and incorporating the iconic Thunderbirds theme tune without being obnoxious, it’s also – weirdly – able to make everybody dance like a complete lunatic whenever it gets played at parties.

1. Year 3000

Come on, was this ever really in doubt? Year 3000 is the best Busted song. Ridiculous concept? Check. Naff lyrics? Check. Catchy tune? Check. And best of all it never takes itself too seriously. This song was everywhere when it first came out and never really went away. After Busted split and faded away songs like 3AM, Air Hostess and Sleeping with the Lights On all disappeared with them but Year 3000 remained, with those opening notes the cue for everyone to start singing and bouncing with their air guitars just like they did when they were 10 years old.

So, do you agree? How would you rank Busted’s first ten singles? Has this list changed your mind? Leave your comments in the box below!