Best songs of 2010

After consuming all lists I've come across and giving a shot to some of the songs I hadn't heard until the best of lists, I've come up with my own twisted version of 2010's best. As with most years, I disagree with a good majority of the lists although at least this year the consensus number one isn't something as bland as Animal Collective was in 2009. I still don't see how people stayed awake during "My Girls" much less thought it was the song of the year.



While Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend, Gorillaz, and Elizabeth Cook all released albums I really liked, none of their individual songs made the cut. Worshiping at the altar of Springsteen, I of course found The Promise a great listen, but since most of the stuff on there was recorded in the late 70's, it doesn't really apply. The list goes to 11 because I couldn't decide which one I wanted to cut.



11. "Congratulations" - MGMT



While their sophomore album of the same name was quite a disappointment overall compared to the electric feel of their debut album, this song captured me from the very beginning. It almost sounds like a 70's era John Lennon song.



10. "Swim Til You Can't See Water" - Frightened Rabbit



This is a band I would love to see get more recognition. I can't quite put my finger on why I like their stuff so much, but I do. I don't really have much else to say about this song. It's not the greatest song ever written, but in a fairly weak 2010 crop it stands out simply because it's the best song of an album by one of the best bands around.



9. "Good Enough" - Tom Petty



Geezers made quite a strong showing last year. The previously mentioned Bruce Springsteen scraping tracks from the vault of his period as the best artist ever was the highly publicized event, but Neil Young had a great album and Tom Petty, again with the Heartbreakers, came back with a raw bluesy sound similar but yet different from anything they've released before. At almost 60 years old he still puts on a fantastic live show too. It's a shame they picked "First Flash of Freedom" as the lead single to Mojo because it's one of the worst songs on the entire album. This spot was going to Petty, but it was a toss up between this or "I Should've Known" off one of the secretly best albums of the year.



8. "Bang Pop" - Free Energy



The name of this song pretty much says it all. It is essentially a brash unabated pop song with one of the catchiest guitar licks I've heard in a while. The production quality on this is superb, making the guitar lick in the chorus almost sound "underneath" the main hook. I'm really looking forward to hearing more of this band. Everything I've heard has been catchy and well produced.




7. "Harlem River Blues" - Justin Townes Earle



This guy must have learned something from growing up on Copperhead Road. The son of great Americana artist Steve Earle delivers quite possibly the most upbeat song ever about committing suicide. It reminds me of old Johnny Cash gospel tinged music and in a dark way, I suppose it is.



6. "The Diamond Church Street Choir" - The Gaslight Anthem



If I weren't limiting myself to one song per artist, I'd probably just put the track list for this whole album. Why do 2nd albums always get referred to as "sophomore albums" but 3rd albums never as "junior albums"? Well this junior album American Slang from The Gaslight Anthem builds immensely on the first two. They have now released 3 very distinct, yet all very good albums growing closer to the mainstream with every one. Again I picked the best song off what was my favorite album of 2010.



5. "Macon" - Jamey Johnson



If more country music sounded like this, I might be swayed back to mainstream country even though if this song were released 35 years ago it'd be called Southern Rock. An ex-marine turned country singer, Johnson delivers his normal baritone voice to a rocking country number about getting back home to see his girl.



4. "Infinity Guitars" - Sleigh Bells



Sometimes a song comes along that is so far out of left field and so good it just blows my mind. This is one of those songs from last year from the Sleigh Bells debut. Brash female punk has always been a soft spot for me and this is one of the best song titles I've ever heard as well as doubling as what would be a great name for a southern rock band. It starts out with a punk rhythm and goes into overdrive at the end as the "infinity" guitars kick in. Very recommended.

3. "Bloodbuzz Ohio" - The National

This band is very unique. I've been hearing about them for a few years now, and they've always been on the fringe of my musical taste. I could appreciate it, but it didn't jump out at me. Their newest album High Violet has really stepped it up a notch. The more I listen to this song, the more I love it. The lead singer has a very deep baritone voice and his singing style reminds me somewhat of Johnny Cash adapted into an alternative style.

2. "Runaway" - Kanye West

I'm not sure if putting a hip hop song second is a condemnation of 2010 as a whole or justification that arrogance leads to brilliant music that can cross genre comfort zones. No matter what you think of him as a person, Kanye is very talented as a songwriter and especially producer. This song is so beautifully layered and textured and proves a single piano note can be very powerful. The end of this epic song is almost symphonic. My girlfriend who is a classical music aficionado even requests to hear this song every time we're in the car. Another song that gets better every time I hear it.

1. "Fuck You" - Cee Lo Green

I have to admit, even though I'd heard of this song in the summer, it took me quite a while to actually listen to it. Once I saw the title, I just assumed it was another half baked annoying rap song which is about as far from the truth as it could be. Again I learned to never judge a book by its cover. Had I known who Cee Lo Green was, it probably would've been another strike against it although I've learned I apparently hate Danger Mouse because I couldn't stand Gnarls Barkley, but quite enjoy the Cee Lo Green half of that duo.

This is a classic break-up song with a modern twist. I hate censorship and often curse words used in songs are completely unnecessary, but they don't detract from the song here. How many of us have wanted to say the same thing after a particular nasty breakup before? What makes this song fantastic is the soulful singing of Cee Lo. If I ignore the lyrics, I could slip this in a compilation cd of great motown hits and it would sound perfectly in place.

I'm already making a mental list of new releases from this year that have been on my playlist, but what I really hope is more songs come out of the blue to me that are fantastic as I discovered last year.