Told you yesterday I was gonna do this. All musicians owe a major debt to whoever first thought of collapsing the common phrase “I am going to” into a simple sharp duosyllabic utterance.
1. Operation Ivy, “Gonna Find You.” Not to be confused with Joe Jonas’ “Gotta Find You,” from Camp Rock.
2. “Camptown Races,” Stephen Foster. Because “gwine” is just another form of “gonna.”
3. “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall,” Bob Dylan.
4. Glen Campbell, “I’m Not Gonna Miss You.” This was Campbell’s swansong, released this past October but originally recorded in Jan. 2013 shortly before Campbell retired due to his continuing issues with Alzheimer’s.
5. “You’re Gonna Miss Me,” Roky Erickson and the Third Floor Elevators, one of the nuggetiest tracks on the influential Nuggets compilation.
6. “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” Lenny Kravitz. He’s still going “gonna,” in his new record “Stand,” where he keeps saying “Are you gonna run again?”
7. “Cups,” Lulu and the Lampshades. Aka “The Cup Song” performed by Anna Kendrick in the movie Pitch Perfect. It contains the classic blues refrain “You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone.”
8. “Never Gonna Dance,” Fred Astaire. From the Fred & Ginger opus Swing Time.Post-Ramon
9. “Gonna Wanna Tonight,” Chase Rice. This country tune, released this past summer, sets some kind of record for slang contractions.
10. “A Change is Gonna Come,” Sam Cooke. One of the all-time finest pop protest anthems is a gonna song.
11. “You’re Going to Lose That Girl,” The Beatles. Technically it’s titled “You’re Going to Lose That Girl,” but that’s not how they sing it. Other fab “gonnas”: “Nothing’s gonna change our world” from Across the Universe, “They’re gonna crucify me” from “The Ballad of John & Yoko” and “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Cry.”
12. “Dem Bones Gonna Rise Again.” Greatest gonna song of all time. Incorporates life, death and knowing things.
13. Taylor Swift, “Shake It Off.” “It’s like I got this music in my mind, saying it’s gonna be all right, ’cause the players gonna play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate. Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake it off.”
14. Laurie Berkner, “I’m Gonna Catch You.” A kiddie-song classic. During her live sets, Berkner is actually chased about the stage by other band members.
15. “Mail Myself to You,” Woody Guthrie. “I’m gonna wrap myself in paper, I’m gonna daub myself with glue, stick some stamps on top of my head; I’m gonna mail myself to you.”
16. Shocking Blue, “Gonna Sing Me a Song.” The lesser hit by the Netherlands band responsible for “Venus.”
17. The Fantasticks Original Cast Soundtrack, “Soon It’s Gonna Rain.” Not a lot of “gonna” show tunes out there.
18. The Proclaimers “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles).”
19. Anne Johannsen, “Baby, I’m Gonna Leave You.” Famously covered by Led Zeppelin.
20. Buddy Holly, “I’m Gonna Love You Too.” Covered by Blondie.
21. Joe Turner, “Flip Flop & Fly.” “When I get the blues, gonna get me a rockin’ chair.” Revived in the ‘70s by the Blues Brothers.
22. The Go-Go’s, “I’m Gonna Spend My Christmas With a Dalek.” Not the ‘70s New Wave Californian Go-Go’s. This is a ‘60s British act of that name, featuring the childlike lead vocals of Sue Smith.
23. Ray Parker Jr., “Ghostbusters.” Who is that you are going to call? Steve Wynn’s wondrous band Dream Syndicate made live hay of this song on a 1984 world tour; seven varied versions of Dream Syndicate jamming on the tune can be found at the Dangerous Minds site here: http://dangerousminds.net/comments/sevens_cover_versions_of_ghostbusters_from_the_dream_syndicates_1984_tour
24. The Ramones, “It’s Gonna Be All Right.” The other Ramones “gonna” song is “You’re Gonna Kill That Girl.” This one’s more optimistic. Post-Ramones, bassist C.J. Ramone did a solo number called “What We Gonna Do Now.”
25. Small Faces, “Whatcha Gonna Do About It.” Infamously covered by The Sex Pistols on The Great Rock ’n’ Roll Swindle soundtrack. Neither Faces nor Pistols correctly enunciate “What are you going to do about it?”
26. The Shangri-Las, “Give Him a Great Big Kiss.” “I’m gonna walk right up to him…” or her, in the case of the New York Dolls cover.
27. “Gonna Buy Me a Dog,” The Monkees. From the first Monkees album, in 1966. Peppered with ridiculous vaudeville jokes. Micky misses a cue because he’s giggling and vamping.
28. “Kansas City.” The legendary Lieber & Stoller songwriting duo crafted this R&B staple which relies on both “gonna” and “going to” in its lyrics. The singer is “going to” Kansas City, but he’s “gonna” get him a crazy way of lovin’ (or a crazy little woman), plus he’s gonna be standing on the corner of 12th Street and Vine.
29. “God’s Gonna Cut You Down.” Folk standard covered by everyone from Odetta to The Blind Boys of Alabama to Moby.
30. “Gonna Gonna Go!,” Rainbow. Aka “Gana Gana Go!” That’s the South Korean girl group Rainbow, not the Ritchie Blackmore band Rainbow. Blackmore’s “gonna” song would be his cover of Gene Vincent’s “Gonna Catch Me a Rat.”