Thirty musical highlights of 2012, a year that produced too few musical highlights.
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Records of the Year
The Grammy Awards are being presented tonight. Woo. It’s billed as “music’s biggest night,” just as May 7 through May 16 is billed as “the biggest week in American birding,” if only because ten days is a lot for one week. Birders. Am I right, people? Performers at this year’s Grammys include Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak doing their new song, because what better way to celebrate the music of 2020 than with a single that was released last week? Performers I’m looking forward to include Miranda Lambert, Cardi B, HAIM, Megan Thee Stallion, Brittany Howard, Doja Cat, Dua Lipa, and Billie Eilish, whose “Everything I Wanted” is up for Record of the Year. That’s my favorite of the nominees, though I think the award will go to Beyoncé for “Black Parade,” and I have no problem with that. However, if the award goes to that record I never heard of until I started typing this sentence, sneakers will be thrown at my television (though that record may be good for all I know). For Album of the Year my vote goes to Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Bolt Cutters, as it was handily the best album of 2020. It probably won’t win, seeing as it wasn’t nominated. What was nominated over Apple’s album? That Coldplay album you forgot about and the Jacob Collier album you never heard of until you started reading this sentence (though that album may be good for all you know). Of the albums nominated, I’d pick HAIM’s. It’s very good. Not Fetch The Bolt Cutters good, but very good nonetheless. If HAIM win I hope they hand their award to Fiona Apple live on the telecast, which would be super impressive, seeing as they won’t be in the same room. I’m sure tonight’s show will include a tribute to dead people done by living people who are no match for said dead people. I’d rather want a montage of clips of the dead people performing when they were living people. <Fill in the blank> screaming is not representative of what made Aretha Franklin amazing. No disrespect to <fill in the blank>, but there’s more to being the Queen of Soul than having a mic and ovaries.
It’s easy to shit on the Grammys, as they are so shittable, but to be fair, not every Record of the Year is as terrible as 1988’s recipient, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.” Here are thirty of the better winners:
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Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (3-10-21)
Inspired by the March 10 birthdays of Neneh Cherry, Timbaland, Boston’s Tom Scholz, The Jayhawks’ Gary Louris, Jan & Dean’s Dean Torrence, Edie Brickell, Robin Thicke, Beverly Bremers, Lemon Pipers’ Ivan Browne, and Carrie Underwood.
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My Top Songs Of 2020
I’m not going to write an essay about 2020. That’s been done elsewhere and I have nothing to add to the conversation. Though the three words that best describe you are as follows, and I quote, “stink, stank, stunk,” there were some bright spots. Here are 85 things that brought me joy. Happy New Year, everyone!
- everything i wanted – Billie Eilish
- WAP – Cardi B feat. Megan Thee Stallion
- deathbed (coffee for your head) – Powfu feat. Beabadoobee
- Savage – Megan Thee Stallion feat. Beyoncé
- Stay High – Brittany Howard
- Dynamite – BTS
- Shameika – Fiona Apple
- Tap In – Saweetie feat. Post Malone, DaBaby & Jack Harlow
- Delete Forever – Grimes
- Mariners Apartment Complex – Lana Del Rey
- Polyaneurism – of Montreal
- Didn’t Want To Be This Lonely – Pretenders
- Stupid Love – Lady Gaga
- Call My Phone Thinking I’m Doing Nothing Better – the Streets feat. Tame Impala
- Surrender – Will Butler
- JU$T – Run the Jewels feat. Pharrell Williams & Zack De La Rocha
- BLACK PARADE – Beyoncé
- Lifetime – Romy
- Fool’s Gold – Lucy Dacus
- Identical – Phoenix
- ilomilo – Billie Eilish
- Hallelujah – HAIM
- Quarantine Boogie (Loco) – Walter Martin
- Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America – the 1975
- Texas Sun – Khruangbin and Leon Bridges
- Ghosts – Bruce Springsteen
- Settling Down – Miranda Lambert
- He Loves Me – Brittany Howard
- Pictures of Flowers – Jess Williamson feat. Hand Habits
- The Valley of the Pagans – Gorillaz featuring Beck
- my future – Billie Eilish
- hot girl bummer – Blackbear
- Drinks – Cyn
- I disappear in your arms – Christine & the Queens
- Say So – Doja Cat
- Sea Salt & Caramel – Dent May
- Gaslighter – The Chicks
- 4 American Dollars – U.S. Girls
- No Time to Die – Billie Eilish
- Murder Most Foul – Bob Dylan
- Lockdown – Anderson .Paak
- When the Way Gets Dark – Lucinda Williams
- Straight to the Morning – Hot Chip feat. Jarvis Cocker
- Sleep at Night – The Chicks
- Jason – Perfume Genius
- Black Qualls – Thundercat feat. Steve Lacy & Steve Arrington
- Smiley Face – Duck Sauce
- Blinding Lights – the Weeknd
- Country Radio – Indigo Girls
- One and Done – Bright Eyes
- Hole in the Bottle – Kelsea Ballerini with Shania Twain
- Bluebird – Miranda Lambert
- FTP – YG
- You Can’t Rule Me – Lucinda Williams
- Don’t Wanna – HAIM
- Rager teenager! – Troye Sivan
- SUGAR – BROCKHAMPTON
- Bad Decisions – the Strokes
- Miracle of Life – Bright Eyes feat. Phoebe Bridgers
- Dora – Thierra Whack
- On the Floor – Perfume Genius
- Don’t Stop – Megan Thee Stallion feat. Young Thug
- Front Lines – Conway the Machine
- xanny – Billie Eilish
- On My Own – Shamir
- Without You – Perfume Genius
- Why I Still Love You – Missy Elliott
- The Streets Where I Belong – Annie
- Leader of the Delinquents – Kid Cudi
- Song 33 – Noname
- Anthem – Father John Misty
- Lilacs – Waxahatchee
- Body Memory – Jess Cornelius
- Come Thru – Summer Walker with Usher
- Aries – Gorillaz feat. Peter Hook & Georgia
- Riding Solo – Hinds
- Cool Off – Missy Elliott
- Sweeter – Leon Bridges feat. Terrace Martin
- Video Game – Sufjan Stevens
- Love Is a Drug – Empress Of
- Kyoto – Phoebe Bridgers
- ATM – Too Free
- Momentary Bliss – Gorillaz feat. Slowthai and Slaves
- Harlem River Blues – Steve Earle
- In My Bones – Jacob Collier feat. Kimbra & Tank and the Bangas
Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (12-13-20)
Inspired by the season and the December 13 birthdays of Blink 182’s Tom DeLonge, Morris Day, Taylor Swift, Ted Nugent, Dick Van Dyke, Jamie Foxx, Television’s Tom Verlaine, John Anderson and Steve Forbert.
Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (11-10-20)
Inspired by the November 10 birthdays of Miranda Lambert, Jimmy Eat World’s Jim Adkins, Ennio Morricone, Eve, Ben L’Oncle Soul, The Beautiful South’s Jacqui Abbott, Diplo, Warren G, Donna Fargo, Greg Lake, Tracy Morgan and Atlanta Rhythm Section’s Ronnie Hammond.
Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (11-2-20)
Inspired by the November 2 birthdays of k.d. lang, Nelly, Maxine Nightingale, The Cadillacs’ Earl Carroll, Mobb Deep’s Prodigy, J.D. Souther, Keith Emerson and Jay & the Americans’ Jay Black.
Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (11-1-20)
Inspired by the November 1 birthdays of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Anthony Kiedis, Stereolab’s Mary Hansen, Lyle Lovett, The Clovers’ Billy Mitchell, Geto Boys’ Willie D, The Five Satins’ Bill Baker, The Feelies’ Glenn Mercer, Sophie B. Hawkins, Ssgt. Barry Sadler, Tina Arena, Big & Rich’s Big Kenny and Beat Happening’s Calvin Johnson.
Your (Almost) Daily Playlist (10-14-20)
Inspired by the October 14 birthdays of Cliff Richard, Usher, The Moody Blues’ Justin Hayward, The Chicks’ Natalie Maines, All Saints’ Shaznay Lewis, Boney M’s Marcia Barrett, Thomas Dolby, Nazareth’s Dan McCafferty, Robert Parker, Bill Justis and Karyn White.