What makes a song good?

beat and music do more for a song than the words at least for me

personally i think that its the lyrics that make a song good
but bands like air, pink floyd,etc. have proved me wrong with just plain music

First of all ...I love music. All kinds of music. A great song is one I want to hear over and over. It might be for the sound...the music is great or maybe it is great to dance to....or maybe the lyrics remind me of a special time. When I hear a special song I am reminded of a special time in my life. The memories will start to form pictures in my mind, and I am taken back to that special time everytime I hear the song.

UNPREDICTABILITY can be a big factor (as in, being surprised by what happens next, be it section by section, or note by note -- which of course lessens over time as you hear the song again, but still has an initial impact, and keeps it interesting in repeats)

ACCESSIBILITY (which is balanced with the uniqueness, as above) - this makes it listenable, like you can follow it, and catchy, like you can sing it back (or at least imagine it in your mind's ear)

MELODY, HARMONY, LYRICS, RHYTHMS, TIMBRES (the kinds of sounds involved - instrumentation or vocal qualities) .... all play an important role.

the artistic combination of those elements can make any one or some or all more important in any given song. i think it's about making aesthetic choices that communicate in some way to people - be it interesting, exciting, pleasant-feeling (ie, nostalgia), making you want to move around, or something else.....

that's not comprehensive, but those are my thoughts at the moment!

Endless repetition on Top 40 radio stations?

The song that seems to be on every radio station and is played every other song. Right now that song seems to be hey there Delilah.

theare indeed a lot of factors
one is that it has to appeal to a lot of people
the lyrics are an example can i have a profound impact on the way the listener interperets the meaning. look at bob dylan, most of his songs are rather simple folk chord progressions yet his lyrics inspire and talk to people on a much more deeper level.

Bass and mass amounts of drums!

i realize i left out another important element -- the ENERGY the performers give out. that they put all of their emotion/power/physical capacity into producing the music. this is something that listeners are often not consciously aware of, but if you think of a song sung like one normally does while washing dishes (half-energy) and contrasted that to a good recording/performance (all-out, complete focus), you suddenly realize that major difference. it doesn't have to mean loud - this applies to any type of song.

there are still more elements... dynamic contrast, the overall shape of the song (typically an 'arch', but there can be others)..... and this isn't even mentioning obvious things like singing/playing in tune or in rhythm....

but i'm still thinking that the creativity/newness/uniqueness and complexity of a song are central to me - putting all the elements together in a way that's enjoyable to listen to but still does something new or unexpected. tradition and innovation - so you can communicate with people and bring them to a new place.

Everything positive mentioned above :-)
Seriously. I like ska. Much. I think you come into the song, and just dance 'till you're tired. Then I go playing with my Wii. :-)

I am a music-student, and one of the reasons I got into music is because I was born with it. As a baby (and that's not far back in time :-)) I danced and danced with my Fisher Price cassette player in my hands. Good joung days...

Amazing lyrics, beautiful melody lines, haunting riffs and just that something that you really can’t put your finger on. Something amazing about it that makes you just sigh and go…

*Yeah, like that.