Song Of The Year
1. “Rehab,” Amy Winehouse
The song wasn’t ironic at first, but the Brit soul singer lived up to her art – and it turned into a Britney and Lindsay singalong.
2. “I’m Not Going to Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You,” Black Kids
Poppy Jacksonville, Fla., “kids” song makes you feel like being 15 again – without all that pesky angst.
3. “We Used To Vacation,” Cold War Kids
Choppy piano, art-punk/blues vocals and desperate lyrics.
4. “Drivin’ Me Wild,” Common featuring Lily Allen
Triple threat: This Common and Allen track was produced by Kanye.
5. “I Wanna Have Your Babies,” Natasha Bedingfield
Hyper, silly, contagious ode to what women are really thinking. Pregalicious fun.
6. “Fluorescent Adolescent,” Arctic Monkeys
“You used to get it in your fishnets, now you only get it in your nightdress” – the best first line, ever.
7. “Gimme More,” Britney Spears
Art in the form of a miracle production team. It’s not Britney, bitch.
8. “Watch Me Fall Apart,” Hi-Fi
Staccato strings add drama to this pitiful pop tale.
9. “Don’t Let Him Waste Your Time,” Jarvis Cocker
Pulp frontman goes retro, retreats to the ’60s.
10. “Ludlow Street,” Suzanne Vega
Strings and sadness.
11. “What Would Jay-Z Do?,” Ben Lee
Thank God for skinny white indie rockers.
12. “Charmer,” Kings of Leon
High-impact, with minimal lyrics, punk guitar and howls.
13. “15 Step,” Radiohead
Closest thing to a single from a band that obviously doesn’t care about singles.
14. “Thou Shalt Always Kill,” Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip
Lo-fi dance track with “Just a band” lyrics. Assaults rock idols; rants against stupidity.
15. “Hljomalind,” Sigur Ros
More moodiness from the Icelandic masters of the sonic landscape. Sigur Rad.
16. “Closer,” Travis
Melancholy-but-catchy tune.
17. “Fake Empire,” the National
Baritone vocals, building piano lines, evolving beats added to a touch of horns.
18. “This Is a Song,” the Magic Numbers
Sweet throwback full of harmonies from a brother-sister rock duo.
19. “Rest My Chemistry,” Interpol
Dark rockers deliver dynamic guitar riffs. Like a really good one-night stand.
20. “Feel Good Inc. (Stanton Warriors Remix),” Gorillaz
A thumping seven-minute-plus redo of the animated group’s biggest hit.
21. “Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors,” Editors
Dark, melodic rock with one of the year’s better drumbeats. Light it up.
22. “Falling Slowly,” Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglov
Heartfelt Irish ballad from the movie “Once.” Gushy goodness.
23. “Mary, Mary,” Velvet Revolver
Ex-Gunner Slash’s guitar riffs are among his best. Axl who?
24. “Stronger,” Kanye West
Boasting over a Daft Punk song never sounded so cool. Almost justifies Kanye’s ego.
25. “Northern Whale,” the Good, the Bad & the Queen
Catchy piano-anchored song
courtesy of ex Blur frontman Damon Albarn’s supergroup.
26. “Is There a Ghost,” Band of Horses
Melodic, guitar-driven rock with three lyrical lines.
27. “It’s Not Your Fault,” Athlete
Coldplay-esque earnest Britpop kicked up a notch.
28. “Welcome Ghosts,” Explosions in the Sky
Another epic instrumental from the Texas guys behind the “Friday Night Lights” soundtrack.
29. “Be Good or Be Gone,” Fionn Regan
Irish indie genius meets the challenge.
30. “Taken Man,” Andy Friedman
Devastatingly honest, brilliantly written. Every married man alive will relate.
31. “Spare-Ohs,” Andrew Bird
Tortured, catchy and way too clever. Just the way we like it.
32. “Holiday,” Albert Hammond Jr.
Yes, it’s that Strokes guy. Chill out and swoon.
33. “Not Half Right,” Elliott Smith
Perfectly sad acoustic gem.
34. “Watch Us Work It,” Devo
The past seven years prove that de-evolution is real.
35. “Are You Sensation,” Tigercity
Like dancing all night and developing a designer drug habit, but cheaper.
36. “Someone To Love,” Fountains of Wayne
Vignette of lonely would-be lovers and a fateful NYC taxi.
37. “Apologize,” Timbaland featuring OneRepublic
The hip-hop producer’s beats give the (mildly cheesy) song a whole new spark.
38. “Lights On,” the Pierces
Southern sisters don’t want to do it in the dark.
39. “Energy,” Apples in Stereo
Sunny Oasis-ish pop from Stephen Colbert’s faves. Like Pop-Tarts covered in honey.
40. “Tears Dry on Their Own,” Amy Winehouse
A Motown-fab ode to a sleazy affair.
41. “Father Forgive Me,” Ja Rule
Update to a Fab Four track – by sampling strings, rhyming “Eleanor Rigby” and “Father Forgive Me.”
42. “Rich Woman,” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
On this odd-couple duet the pair are slitheringly sexy.
43. “Slow Train,” Shooter Jennings
Oak Ridge Boys harmonize behind Shooter’s vocals.
44. “Magnolia Soul,” Ozomatli
1975-vintage Earth Wind & Fire garnished with a touch of hip-hop. Essential.
45. “Holy Diver,” Killswitch Engage
A most excellent screamo cover of the overly dramatic Dio classic.
46. “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town,” the Killers
New life for wounded-vet/cheating wife tale.
47. “Stop Me,” Mark Ronson featuring Daniel Merriweather
Smiths classic overlayed with the Supremes’ “You Keep Me Hangin’ On.” Better than sex and chocolate.
48. “Gimme Shelter,” Patti Smith
Patti swaggers like Mick in a bra.
49. “I Want To Walk You Home,” Paul McCartney featuring Allen Toussaint
The ex-Beatle sings “I want to hold your hand” again in this Fats Domino tribute.
50. “Hey Lupe,” Los Straitjackets
South of the border version of rock ‘n’ roll oldie “Hang On Sloopy” makes you want to pick up a guitar – and learn Spanish.
51. “Phenomena,” the Section Quartet
Strings shriek instead of Karen O in this Yeah Yeah Yeahs cover. Same diff.
52. “Highway 61 Revisited,” Karen O & the Million Dollar Bashers
From the “I’m Not There” soundtrack, O joyfully speeds and hums her way through these organ-drenched blues.
53. “Umbrella” (acoustic), Rihanna
The pop star covers herself in this slow take of the club anthem, displaying the depth of her vocals. Really.
54. “Umbrella,” Mandy Moore
Surprisingly sultry and soulful from the girl who brought you “Candy.” Really.
55. “I Don’t Know How To Love Him,” Sinead O’Connor.
Exhausting, emotional and, from “Jesus Christ Superstar,” seasonal, too.
56. “King of Pain,” Mudvayne
A Police classic with a metal wallop, sting and some ouch.
57. “You Know I’m No Good,” Arctic Monkeys
The cheeky Brits’ take on Amy Winehouse, the druggy diva of the year. Bye-bye slinky horns. Hello bass line.
58. “Roc Boys,” Jay-Z
Wherein he says “This is black superhero music right here, baby,” and we couldn’t agree more.
59. “Who Taught You To Live Like That?” Sloan
Canned Heat could only dream of writing songs this cool – and catchy.
60. “Don’t Make Me a Target,” Spoon
Angular, minimalist guitar-rock sneer at Orwellian politicians.
61. “I Got It (What You Need),” Galactic
And what you need is powerful and funky.
62. “Dance Back From the Grave,” Marc Cohn
Swamp-funk song for NOLA.
63. “Intoxication,” Shaggy
NYC dancehall star answers Amy Winehouse with a toast to being sauced.
64. “Retarded In Love,” Say Anything
Emo band stretches with a song that recalls ’50s doo-wop. So crazy it works.
65. “Dirty Old Man,” Neil Young
Cranky Grandpa Granola gets amped and fuzzy on this lullaby to debauchery.
66. “Sensual Seduction,” Snoop Dogg
Cali rapper gets pimpadelic on retro smooth ballad.
67. “Broken Harp,” PJ Harvey
Ethereal rainy-day music. Get out the black nail polish, kids.
68. “All Summer Long,” Kid Rock
“Werewolves of London” plus “Sweet Home Alabama” equals this monster track.
69. “How Far We’ve Come,” Matchbox Twenty
A smooth ‘n’ catchy Top 40 rocker that moves forward by looking back.
70. “Keep the Car Running,” Arcade Fire
Jangly departure is so good even Springsteen has covered it. Boss.
71. “New York I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down,” LCD Soundsystem
Piano beauty sans the band’s trademark dance groove.
72. “Kiss,” Korn
Hard-rocker singer Jonathan Davis gets mad about bad love. You go, Korn.
73. “Hate That I Love You,” Rihanna featuring Ne-Yo
We hate that we love this song, but we do. A lot.
74. “Don’t Stop Believin’,” Journey
Power ballad from 1981 revived by “The Sopranos.” Onion rings are Christ.
75. “Do It Well,” Jennifer Lopez
“Pregnant” or not, this Bronx beauty knows how to shake her moneymaker. And she does it well.
76. “Work,” Kelly Rowland
Contemporary funk hits its stride on the Destiny’s Child-like jive. Beyoncé-free.
77. “Tears of Gold,” Ryan Adams
The Dead live on. Unfortunately. We’re just kidding. Calm down.
78. “Rag and Bone,” White Stripes
A little Canned Heat, more John Lee Hooker, a lot ZZ Top.
79. “Big Dog Daddy,” Toby Keith
A rock shaker with plenty of Chuck Berry influence.
80. “Change Up,” Fabolous
Top Fab/Akon duet asks if it’s going to be “hugs or slugs.” We choose both.
81. “That Was Me,” Paul McCartney
Sir Paul makes music instead of gossip.
82. “When Did Your Heart Go Missing?” Rooney
A breakup filtered through peppy beach-ready tunes.
83. “She’ll Never Be Your Man,” Chris Cornell
Syncopated funk with emotional R&B vocals.
84. “D Is for Dangerous,” Arctic Monkeys
Three minutes and three chords to Britpop greatness.
85. “Year Zero,” Nine Inch Nails
Trent Reznor’s daydream about the end of the world.
86. “Strange Behavior,” Macy Gray
Neo-soul that’ll make you bump ‘n’ grind.
87. “Henrietta,” Fratellis
Groupie love through a cougar’s eyes.
88. “Don’t Wait Up For Me,” the Donnas
Eighties Joan Jett-edge for this hooks ‘n’ looks band.
89. “Someday,” John Mellencamp
Political commentary where surf guitars rage.
90. “Two Hearts,” Kylie Minogue
Perky dance-pop. Makes you want to get your slut on.
91. “Beautiful Liar,” Beyoncé & Shakira
Divas learn to divide and conquer with one hip-shakin’ song. We surrender.
92. “Am I Wry? No,” Mew
Because you’ve got to love a song with the lyrics “Oh my! Fallacy! Fallacy in my words!”
93. “Beautiful Girls,” Sean Kingston
The sweet-boy version of Alanis’ “You Oughta Know.” Sock-hop-rrific
94. “I Feel It All,” Feist
Playful, yet sensual.
95. “Society,” Eddie Vedder
Hauntingly beautiful anthem from the film “Into the Wild.” Film tanked, song soars.
96. “Lifeline,” Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Undeniably romantic.
97. “Day Too Soon,” Sia
Ex Zero 7 Aussie singer brings sexy back, will make you want to disrobe. Now.
98. “LDN,” Lily Allen
Horns and a bouncy beat good for a singalong/break-down/freakout.
99. “Bamboo Banger,” M.I.A.
Sri Lankan Brit turns dance music on its head. Ouch.
100. “The Story,” Brandi Carlisle
Calm, soothing, gentle, pretty … then totally badass and angry. Like good sex.
101. “Call It Off,” Tegan & Sara
Like sweet, innocent middle-schoolers who got the solo in chorus recital. A-dorable.
102. “Thrash Unreal,” Against Me!
Junkie-alkie daughter tale in humming punk-pop package.
103. “Thrash Unreal,” Ben Lee
Lo-fi acoustic cover displays another side of sadness.
104. “D.A.N.C.E.,” Justice
A Casio string sample, the return of “PYT” as an acronym and a “living T-shirt” video. Try to fight it.
105. “Perfect (Exceeder),” Mason and Princess Superstar
Europop trash. “You see what I can do on this microphone, so guess what I’m gonna do to you at home.”
106. “This Is Why I’m Hot,” Mims
Because it’s fly. And you ain’t cause you’re not.
107. “Heart of Hearts,” !!!
Get down!!!
108. “Leyendecker,” Battles
Dance music for robots.
109. “Hunting for Witches,” Bloc Party
One of the few overtly political songs of the year (a sad commentary on rock).
110. “Girls,” Calvin Harris
Typical Bravado from Brit who called his album, “I Created Disco.”
111. “Walked Her Way Down,” Crowded House
Band returns after 20 years, sounds exactly the same.
112. “Ruby,” Kaiser Chiefs
“Know what you’re doing to me?” Times infinity.
113. “Black Helicopter,” Matthew Good
Paranoid, catchy rock from the Great White North.
114. “Scratch Your Name,” Noisettes
Charismatic singer Shingai Shoniwa tears it up in a plea to live life to the fullest.
115. “Air Aid,” Menomena
Math rock gets a little sax.
116. “Radio Nowhere,” Bruce Springsteen
The boss is still driving around at night, still rocking.
117. “Natural Thing,” John Fogerty
Proves Fogerty is as vital now as when he started.
118. “Sunrise,” Yeasayer
Like David Byrne watched way too much “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Awesome.
119. “Fernando Pando,” the Virgins
Luscious vocals. Thoughtful lyrics. Arcade Fire-esque urgency. This is love.
120. “Air India en Route to Shanghai,” Head of Femur
Just the right amount of angst, just the right amount of booty shake.
121. “When Your Mind’s Made Up,” the Frames
Good song to play breaking up with your no-good bf.
122. “When I Say Go,” the 1900s
Like the hookiest parts of the Cardigans with a hipster Hello Kitty edge.
123. “Aspidistra,” the Scotland Yard Gospel Choir
Belle & Sebastian and Supergrass had a beautiful baby with this toe-tapper.
124. “That’s That,” Cass McCombs
Dreamy Velvet Underground fairy tale that makes you want to throw things.
125. “Adelita,” O’Death
Mosh pit, bitches!
126. “Last Night’s Party,” Man in Gray
Sleater-Kinney meets Bikini Kill meets you rocking out.
127. “L’Amour,” Mancino
Silly, goofy and utterly serious all at once. Part Queen, part Muppets.
128. “Early in the Morning,” Papa Mali
Kids, if you like “Jungle Boogie,” you’ll love this.
129. “Boy With a Coin,” Iron & Wine
Delicate, whispery crooning.
130. “Saturday Waits,” Loney, Dear
As if The Beatles were recording their early tunes in a low-fi Swedish bedroom.
131. “You Turned My Head Around,” Dean & Britta
Luna fans rejoice. This Lee Hazlewood cover will blow you backward.
132. “You’re a Wolf,” Sea Wolf
Sexy and dreamy, it’s the soundtrack to your life – if you’re a wolf.
133. “(This Is for the) Better Days,” A Band of Bees
Disco, baby, without all those terrible parts of disco.
134. “Weapon of Choice,” Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
“I won’t waste my love on a nation.”
135. “Keep Forgetting,” the Cinematics
New New Wave, still making the boys in the back dance.
136. “I Am Somebody,” DJ Mehdi featuring Chromeo
The “do you know who I am?” for nerdy white boys.
137. “Lip Gloss,” Lil’ Mama
It’s poppin’.
138. “Tick Tick Boom,” the Hives
From “Whatever happened to those guys?” to “Oh, they still rock!”
139. “Golden Skans,” Klaxons
Infectious anthem off one of year’s most inventive discs.
140. “Bodysnatchers,” Radiohead
Vintage Radiohead:crunchy guitar and Thom worrying about being an invalid.
141. “The Moneymaker,” Rilo Kiley
The dark side of the “Girls Next Door.”
142. “The River,” Good Charlotte featuring Synyster Gates and M. Shadows
Energetic, guitar-riffed comeback from the band that brought you Nicole Richie’s babydaddy.
148. “Burn My Shadow,” Unkle
So good it made Goran Visnjic explode (at least in the video).
149. “Drive,” Client
An ode to the joys of night driving down the freeway; “I’m alive, I’m alive.”
150. “No One,” Alicia Keys featuring Junior Reid remix
Keys’ power love ballad gets a hot reggae makeover, Jamaican-style.
151. “Down the Line,” Jose Gonzalez
For the “don’t let the darkness eat you up” stanza alone.
152. “Big Girl (You Are Beautiful),” Mika
Skinny chicks aren’t the only ones who deserve to feel the love.
153. “Earth Intruders,” Bjork
Icelandic pixie howls over tribal drums, electro swirls and sinister bass line.
154. “Screen Door,” Illinois
A head-bopping, folksy, retro-sounding ditty with bittersweet lyrics.
155. “100 Days, 100 Nights,” Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings
Jones – plus old-school, horns-loaded R&B band – whips us into frenzy with her tale of woe about men.
156. “Hot Thing,” Talib Kweli
So damn smooth you will melt and melt some more. Oh fo’sho.
157. “Rise Above,” Dirty Projectors
Dig melodic punk? Want a “re-imagining” of Black Flag? Here you go.
165. “Ain’t Gonna Worry No More,” Peter Case
In the digital age, sometimes all you need is a great singer-songwriter in a room with an acoustic guitar.
166. “Heal Yourself,” Ruthie Foster
Explosive, empowering, Aretha-ish soul.
167. “River of Soul,” Wild Deer
NYC rockers turn one part Stax, one part Jam into hard-grooving strut.
168. “Polite Dance Song,” the Bird and the Bee
Straight-up hilarious. Dance clichés filtered through “Grey’s Anatomy” pop.
169. “Flyentology,” El-P
Just a working example of faith versus physics.
170. “City of Immigrants,” Steve Earle
The NYC transplant country-folk singer tells us how immigrants make us great.
171. “Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On),” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
A delightful track from the pop-abilly Sonny and Cher.
172. “Ah Mary,” Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Beware of Mary: “She’ll make you cookies, then she’ll burn your town.”
173. “What’s a Girl to Do?” Bat for Lashes
Phil Spector-ish drumbeats, harpsichord and Natasha Khan, who sounds like she’s on a Shangri-Las record.
174. “The Pretender,” Foo Fighters
Remember when Dave Grohl was in another band? Yeah, neither do we.
175. “Not Big,” Lily Allen
Payback is a bitch as indicated by this sassy track about an Allen ex.
176. “Dangerous Game,” Mary Weiss
Shangri-Las’ leader of the pack makes a comeback.
177. “Left Bank,” Air
Ethereal acoustic Britpop from French electronic duo
178. “Blue Balloon,” Ween
Ween sounds very, very high – and a little like Robyn Hitchcock.
179. “Pull Shapes,” the Pipettes
A hand-clapper titled after British slang for dancing, from retro-mod girl group.
180. “Ice Cream,” Michael Hearst
Sparkling delight from an album of songs for ice cream trucks.
181. “Unguided,” the New Pornographers
The supergroup is bigger than its parts as the artists collide in power-pop beauty.
182. “Australia,” the Shins
Thought-provoking jangly pop track is a bold change of mind.
183. “SW,” Blonde Redhead
Lush, layered, shoe-gazing art rock with electronic horns and strings.
184. “Committed to Parkview,” Porter Wagoner
Johnny Cash wrote this chilling track about a sanitarium in Nashville where they both stayed.
185. “Impossible Germany,” Wilco
Gorgeous guitars sparkle and – gasp – jam as Jeff Tweedy sings metaphorically about WWII enemies and love.
186. “A Little Piece of Heaven,” Avenged Sevenfold
A demented, creepy, circus-like song about necrophilia and other dark things.
187. “Every Word Is a Knife in My Ear,” the Bravery
There’s no escaping the divisive NYC band’s dance beat in this track.
188. “The Sweet Escape,” Gwen Stefani featuring Akon
Who could resist – or escape – this inescapable hook? Who’d want to?
189. “Snuff on Digital,” Blaqk Audio
A sexy, emo-driven, techno song for the millennial generation.
190. “The Bird and the Worm,” the Used
LI band brings drama with pretty and dramatic track.
191. “Hip Hop Police,” Chamillionaire
The Houston-born artist takes on the media’s love-hate relationship with rap.
192. “Bleed It Out,” Linkin Park
A rabble-rousing party song based on the un-fun idea of rewriting the song 100 times.
193. “Shoulda Known Better,” Unwritten Law
Punk-rap-rock fairy tale about the down and out.
194. “When I Get Home You’re So Dead,” Mayday Parade
The ultimate (non-wussy) reminder that sometimes girls make boys cry, too.
195. “Lie,” Black Light Burns
An industrial-lite headbanger from ex-Limp Bizkit-er Wes Borland’s new band.
196. “Four Winds,” Bright Eyes
Good enough to make haters change their mind.
197. “Life Is Beautiful,” Vega4
Perfect blend of uplifting and heartbreaking lyrics.
198. “Big Casino,” Jimmy Eat World
Emo-rockers sing about Jersey success stories.
199. “Whine Up,” Kat De Luna
The perfect beach song.
200. “Electric Worry,” Clutch
Ideal song for Southern rock and blues fans.
201. “The Way I Are,” Timbaland
We ain’t got no money either, and we’ve never felt better about it.
202. “Girlfriend,” Avril Lavigne
Going retro for obnoxious but irresistible cross between Rubinoos and Toni Basil.
203. “Girlfriend,” Avril remix with Lil’ Mama
Avril earns some street cred with the Brooklyn baby’s rhymes.
204. “Of Montreal,” The Past Is a Grotesque Animal
Hypnotic 12 minutes.
205. “I Get Money,” 50 Cent
You’re rich. We get it. And now you have our 99 cents, too.
206. “I Don’t Feel Like Dancing,” Scissor Sisters
Funky glam rockers will change your mind.
The Final Note
207. “Umbrella,” Rihanna
Ella, ella, ella. Eh, eh, eh. It’s all we think about.
Contributors: Dan Aquilante, Mackenzie Dawson, Chris Erikson, Billy Heller, Mary Huhn, Sara Lieberman, Danica Lo, Stephen Lynch, Raakhee Mirchandani, Maxine Shen, Mandy Stadtmiller, Reed Tucker