Title Fight: "You Are the Light"

Photograph titled "White Rhinoceros taken in Faradje, Congo Belge by Herbert Lang, 1912

Today's Title Fight sees Sweden's #1 tweebadour facing off against Australia's second-best-known Beatles imitators. The Easybeats' "You Are the Light" comes from their second album, It's 2 Easy, and it's one of their best songs. Recalling the Hollies or early Zombies more than the Beatles, it has a moody folk-rock verse that transitions nicely into a surprisingly rousing chorus with some cool handclaps. Stevie Wright's lead vocal is pleading and a little creepy, especially when he sings, "You took away my heart / you are the light that I can see / please come with me." And, best of all, "You Are the Light" is under two minutes long, with two short verses and just enough chorus repetition to get the melody stuck in your head for the rest of the day. It's not a well-known song, but it shows that the Easybeats are more than a one-hit wonder.

Jens Lekman's "You Are the Light" is a different animal entirely. First, I know that the song's full title on the When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog album is "You Are the Light (by which I travel into this and that)", but it was originally released as a single in August 2004 under the original shorter title. Starting with a great brass fanfare, Lekman rolls out a pop song heavily influenced by Northern Soul sounds with a busy arrangement of horns, harmonica, strings, flute samples, and female backup singers. Where the Easybeats went the "creepy desperate stalker" route, Lekman is all giddy and starry-eyed, even though his girl has apparently landed him in the clink. The song is a lot of fun, if a little fluffy, and is a welcome upbeat song on the relatively understated When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog. But I have trouble with the repeated line, "You are the light by which I travel into this and that" in the chorus - it's clunky and more than a little jarring in such a smooth-flowing number. I still like the song a lot, but a minor point reduction for a clumsy chorus melody is enough to give this one to the Easybeats.

Winner: THE EASYBEATS

"You Are the Light" by the Easybeats

"You Are the Light" by Jens Lekman