POPSUGAR UK

These 10 Underrated One Direction Songs Were Paid Dust and Deserve Better

15/07/2020 - 11:25 PM

One Direction has a pretty lengthy discography — they put out five albums in five years before going on hiatus in 2015 [1]. In fact, July 23 marks 10 years since the band was formed on The X Factor UK [2], and while everyone probably knows their biggest hits — ahem, "What Makes You Beautiful" — there are so many bangers that you probably never heard. Whether it's because you didn't know any better (I forgive you) or you wrote 1D off because they're a boy band (we'll talk later), there's still time to go back and check out some of One Direction's most underrated songs.

For those of you who have become fans of Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik as solo artists, do yourself a favour and acknowledge and appreciate where they came from [3]. They wrote music for the band to sing, and you can hear their styles come out even in this music from years ago.

In honour of their 10 years as a band [4], I picked 10 songs that I really love that were never singles but deserve a listen. Scroll through to check them all out and thank me later.

"Walking in the Wind" by One Direction

The only way to play "Walking in the Wind" is at full volume. It's a damn shame that this song was on the last album and the band never toured it, because in my opinion, it's the best song Harry Styles ever wrote as part of One Direction.

"Where Do Broken Hearts Go" by One Direction

Sigh. "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" is probably the #1 One Direction song that should have been a single but never was. It was classified as a promo single, but it never got a music video or anything. The band performed it on tour and at some promo events, but it should have been on the radio, because this is a certified jam. Harry Styles cowrote this one with other popular songwriters RuthAnn and Teddy Geiger.

"Home" by One Direction

Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne cowrote this powerful song that shows off all the guys' vocals — and dropped it on fans out of nowhere. For that reason, it's dear to the fandom but it wasn't a song that many people heard otherwise. It's worth a listen, though.

"Tell Me a Lie" by One Direction

Fun story about "Tell Me a Lie" from the band's first album, Up All Night: it was cowritten by Kelly Clarkson [6]. You can definitely hear her influences in it, though it's much more boy-bandy than anything else she ever did, of course.

"She's Not Afraid" by One Direction

This song was paid dust, and I'll never get past it. "She's Not Afraid" was merely a bonus track on Take Me Home but fully deserved to be on the standard album. The song is so damn fun and was a delight to watch live. Just try listening without dancing a little bit, I dare you.

"Don't Forget Where You Belong" by One Direction

Full disclosure: I cried the first time I heard this song, but that is neither here nor there. Niall Horan teamed up with Tom Fletcher, Danny Jones, and Dougie Poynter, better known as the band McFly to write this heartwarming song about remembering your roots.

"Better Than Words" by One Direction

This fun little ditty, cowritten by Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson, is unique because the lines in the verses are all song titles. Give it a listen to see if you can pick out all the different songs.

"18" by One Direction

"18" is well loved by One Direction fans as the "chonce" song (if you know, you know), but if you've never heard it before, it's worth a listen. Especially if you're an Ed Sheeran fan — he penned this one — you need to hear this sweet song. Sheeran actually cowrote a few 1D songs, but this one is easily the best.

"Stockholm Syndrome" by One Direction

Harry Styles originally cowrote "Stockholm Syndrome" for Four, but he reworked it to sing as a solo artist as well. If you like his new version, make sure you listen to the original that's a little more poppy and includes more voices.

"Temporary Fix" by One Direction

If you love Niall Horan now, go back and listen to "Temporary Fix." He cowrote this track on Made in the A.M. and is featured heavily on the admittedly sexy song with a fun beat. Harry Styles fans will also appreciate this one, as it feels like it could fit in with what he's doing now — just picture him running around the stage in his superwide flares singing this one.


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https://www.popsugar.co.uk/entertainment/underrated-one-direction-songs-47619862