assuming I stop being such a Grade A slack-ass and post more often than once every 6 months or so. Anyway, I am planning to do three of these (songs, movies, albums) to reflect the end of the current decade, which still hasn't been "named" (the zeros? the aughts? the ohs? anyway...)
So, the "best songs" of the decade? I dunno. "Favorite"? Probably. "Songs that I would make damn sure someone else has heard if we're gonna talk about best or favorites of the decade"? That sounds about right, so:
The STIWMDSSEHHIWGTABOFOTD, songs list -
7) Seven Nation Army - White Stripes: Anyone who is reading this now knows it already, but to anyone who wanders this way should know now that I'm into the White Stripes. Most important band of the decade as I see it, and it's not even close. Pretty good for a band with two members, one of whom was only really learning to drum at the beginning of this decade, huh? Anyway, I hear that this song helped clue people in to the Stripes, because it was off of their biggest album to date (more on this in a later post, to be sure), Elephant. Yeah, I was already there. Other lists I have seen also talk about this guitar riff being one of the "new classics". Okay, that works.
6) Clocks - Coldplay: Okay, go ahead and abuse me for picking one of the most overplayed songs of the decade. However, one, it was several years ago and some of you might not have immediately screamed when you read this. Two, if I still leave it on every time it comes on, that's gotta be a good sign, right? Honestly, I didn't get as inundated at the time because I think it was right around then that I discovered the crack candy that was iTunes. At any rate, it holds up very nicely, since I'm listening to it right now. I promise to get a little more esoteric later.
5) Steady, As She Goes - The Raconteurs: Yeah, this might get turned into a big love letter for Jack White. Don't care. So this was the first notable side project for White that involved something other than acting or producing Loretta Lynn. This song was a collaborative effort between White and Brendan Benson, which led to an album that is pretty darned good in its own right (Broken Boy Soldiers). Further, if the band hadn't formed off of this song, I wouldn't get treated to the Youtube video of them playing Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" at Lollapalooza.
4) Lion Thief - The Beta Band: I haven't really managed to get anyone to embrace TBB as a group, or any whole album of theirs, but they seem to get positive responses when I play a couple of songs of theirs. "Dry The Rain" sparks the memory of those who then get told about that part in High Fidelity where John Cusack says he's gonna sell 5 albums by The Beta Band. 2000 movie including a 90's song, so that song can't go here. This one can, off of the last album this group made (Heroes To Zeros) before they broke up. Pity. Would like to have seen where they went from here.
3) Seven Times Closer Than Fire - T Bone Burnett: Burnett, producer extraordinaire (O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack, et al) released his first album in 14 years in 2006 and this song justified the wait all by itself. When I first heard it, I tried to get lots of people around me to listen to it and tell me what it sounded like, and I got different stuff from every person. It's an interesting song to try and swing dance to, as well. Actually, if you're me, nearly any song I try to swing dance to becomes an "interesting" experience, but I digress. It appeals on a visceral level.
2) Fell In Love With A Girl - The White Stripes: Probably the only surprise here was that it wasn't number one. That crazy Lego video from 2001 set the whole thing in motion for me. I've gone on ad nauseum in an earlier post (about karaoke) about how much I love to sing this song, with his garage rock sensibilities and short but powerful strokes. Doesn't need to be any longer to do its job perfectly. One of my all-time favorite songs, though so is....
1) Pink Bullets - The Shins: Yeah, Natalie Portman was right in Garden State though I am perversely happy to say this song wasn't in that movie. Found it on my own on a mixed CD a woman at work loaned me back in around 2003 or so, and it was interesting to me from the get-go. But it was one of those things like Nick Drake was for me, the kind of thing I kept coming back to and listening. And listening. And you get the idea.
Honestly either of the last two songs could have been #1, and then there was a huge fall down to #3. The rest of this list was kind of bunched up there, and in fact I might consider Seven Nation Army as high as #5 (big surprise, I know). However, here are the "honorable mention" songs that I just didn't have room for, and at different points of the decade would have probably been somewhere on this list:
Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova
Lose Yourself - Eminem
Somebody Told Me - The Killers
Clint Eastwood - Gorillaz
Flame - Bell X1
Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car - Iron & Wine
Heavy Soul - The Black Keys
American Idiot - Green Day
Indian Ocean - Yusuf Islam
Rehab - Amy Winehouse
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
.jpg)
I don't like the White Stripes, I'm afraid (and I fear much of it's down to Jack White), despite a brief flicker of interest around the time of "Red Blood Cells" (I actually managed to sell it at a garage sale for $5, which I thought was a miracle). Maybe it has something to do with living in Michigan, too. I don't think I ever liked the Shins, but some of that may have been down to "Garden State," which would have been total crap had it not been for Peter Sarsgaard. A friend of mine really liked the Beta Band, and I keep meaning to get into their stuff. I liked a couple of Coldplay songs, but I think they were from the late 90s (maybe?). Taking my cue from you, I just posted a list of albums (though I can't bring myself to do songs, somehow, apart from a single best of the decade, strangely enough). BEFORE THIS MONTH IS OUT I WILL SEND YOU MIX CDs, DAMMIT. Really been dragging my feet on that, I know.
ReplyDelete