Been listening intently to Mental Notes and am fully convinced that "Maybe" should have been a major hit. Who can resist that melodic verse? And how it becomes a fantastic instrumental break?

But there's a good case for "Next Exit" which was a minor hit. There's nothing wrong with the song but radio in Australia didn't really get behind it. I always wondered why that was since it was in their golden era of radio singles (ok, towards the end but still in there).

Personally I'm going for "Maybe" as a track that begs rediscovery. What does anyone else think?

Mental Notes is one of my favourite albums of all time!
Maybe certainly is a great track, but I'm not too good at Enz songs...which album is Next Exit on?

it was released as a stand-alone single, but also as a bonus track on the remastered see ya round

Of those two songs I would prefer "Maybe", but I would add "Another Great Divide" to that list!
Although I don't know if it was a hit at its time, at least it wasn't on one of the "regular" albums. In my opinion it's a perfect mix of the earlier and the later Enz and could be a hit even now instantly.

When i first took the time to listen to Mental Notes, with dedication, a year or two ago, Maybe mezmerized me instantly. I was also angry at myself for not discovering its' greatness beforehand because I had already owned the record for some time before really hearing the song.
I still get a great feeling inside when i play it.

Maybe is such an amazing Song. Very catchy and very nice melody

I'm a fan of the Neil/Nigel-infused Split Enz, so I haven't paid much attention to the band's output before they were members. That said, "Maybe" is the one song from that time I really like quite a lot. Very good song.

"Next Exit" is a favorite of mine, too, so I"m not sure I could say one was better than the other. If I had to pick one song forever, though, it would probably be "Next Exit". Great bass. Brotherly harmonies. You know... Neil and Nigel.

As much as I love 'Next Exit', I believe that 'Maybe' should have done better. It was one of the first Enz songs I got into when I picked up the Spellbound best of.

I think that "Next Exit" is definitely the better song. I have nothing against "Maybe" but it just doesn't compare to "Next Exit" which was a new wave hit just waiting to happen.
What on earth is as catchy as the chorus, as eerie as those truck horn effects, as ethereal as ethereal as the opening piano bit, or as downright awesome as the music video?!

I like both songs, but was really taken by surprise when I first heard Maybe. I couldn't get it out of my head for weeks it was so good, and still is.

Woah,that's an impossibly tough choice.Both of them are criminally underrated songs that are as good as any pop song released from that era.Maybe is slightly more quirky with the exaggerated vocals and odd meter in the chorus.Both have such strong melodies too.Who knows?With the right production and promotion either one of these songs could have been hits.

Tim and Neils harmonized verse in Next Exit is hard to beat.

then again so is Tim's "hoping is not enough to live upon" segeuway in Maybe.

I love "Maybe", especially since my last NZ Tim experience. It was stuck in my skull for hours after souncheck -and hearing it live reminded me of what a great song it is. I love it's vivacity and freedom of melody. And it contains the classic line, I'm just a country boy. Can't you see that I'm still green? re-visited in "Fall From Grace" on The Conversation. "Next Exit" never did it for me in the same way.
Radio play has always been in bed with politics and pocket p!ssing. I have long lost faith in popular music. Things were only better in the 70s and 80s, because the economy was healthier. That is my theory. Then again, I was born in '76, so what would I know?

I can only speculate what might have been if John Leckie and the Enz had really found each other. What did happen there?

I don't know if Next Exist would have been a hit but it could have been a fine album track. With a more sympathetic producer and a less haphazard song selection at about the time of the lootin tapes could have resulted in an absolute classic. What happened in the time between Evelyn, Carried Away and the likes of What's the Matter With You I don't know. The latter is a decent little song but it seems a bit backward in the song-writing stakes. It's a little like the difference Between a song like Status Quo's When my mind is Not Live and that band's later 'boogie' stuff.

I've heard Next Exit only once or twice, so I can't say anything about it.

But I also love the Mental Notes album, personally I think that's their best work. Maybe is one of my fave track of all time, maybe not best from this album (hudge fan of Stranger Than Fiction), but it's very high!

I also liked the sound of Maybe when I first heard it. It certainly is the best song on Mental Notes. The reason it did not become a hit is because of that "boogie crap" that was happening in the 70's.

As for Next Exit, I quite love this song. It is quite catchy. It always surprised me as to why this song has never been included on any Greatest Hits package delivered by the Enz. I know it appears on the History - Reject Cover issue but it should have made it onto Spellbound.
It also should have made it onto a studio album in the 80's. I know some people are going to hate my next comment, but I reckon it would have blended in very well on Time & Tide, who knows, it could have gone better commercially as a single with all the hype surrounding one of the Enz's best albums.

Malmsbury Villa should have made it

Quite a few factors why MAYBE didn't make it.

I bought it around the 2nd week of release, in my school uniform at Wilsons record bar Wollongong. They had one copy! The band performed it on several Tv shows, but remember too Split Enz were only new in Australia and apart from places like the Reefer Cabaret and the UNI shows they hadn't crossed over (and stoners and uni students didn't have money way back then to splurge on singles *GRIN*). It sold 1425 copies and that was over time... radio gave it a few plays but nothing major.

Next Exit did around 8000 units, which I'd say 99% were bought by Frenz of the Enz club members. very little radio play plus an odd time overall, not on an album , zero promotion, and there were a few problems between the record company and management. EXIT just made the National Top 50 in Australia.

Gryph

I like both songs a lot. Maybe was the most accessible song (eg. in terms of commercial appeal) on Mental Notes and one of the most concise. It also suffered least from the muddy mix. I don't remember hearing it at the time however.

Exit, the single, I like quite a bit but at the time it seemed a retro move after the change in musical landscape that was Time and Tide. What I adore is the version of Exit that came with Luton. Much superior and yes, a bit of a lost song.

Maybe is timeless.. the single version of Next Exit is very dated.. Im with titus in saying that the luton one is way better..

I personally think that "No Bother To Me" should have been the single that broke the enz...

I've loved 'Next Exit' ever since I first heard it.

BTW, what was the deal with Eddie editing it for the latest remasters? Has anyone ever mentioned why this was done? It certainly had nothing to do with space limitations on the CD.