My Top 25 Singles of 2009

A few days late, and a bit over-thought. Nevertheless, I still hope Rolling Stone's reading...

***These are in no particular order***

SONGS OF THE YEAR

"Pretty Girls" -- Wale and Gucci Mane
This track smells like a house party. The hook sounds like your friend who's drank too much warbling some obscure mid-90's soul jam at a divey karaoke bar. The drums sound like your favorite street drummers. The synths are lazily punctuated, and the lyrics smoothly slither out of their authors' mouth. The entire song feels a little tipsy. Even down to the part where Wale tells all the ugly girls to be quiet...

"Uprising" -- Muse
I hear this song and think of acned middle schoolers planning a Dungeons and Dragons revolt. Paranoia, mind control, revolution, flag-raising -- it could be the perfect theme song for an ABC miniseries about aliens coming to quietly overtake Earth via a complicit government. Oh wait, it is.

Click here for the other 23...



Chalie Boy -- "On My Momma (I Look Good)"
It's seldom the South gets any dirtier than this. With the sound of a sped-up, hyped-out Big Mo, Chalie Boy makes this year's self-congratulatory anthem. The usual boasting, bragging and brand-name dropping annoys me, but when Chalie rap/sings it, and punctuates it with churchy soul growls, it just feels right. And the way he says "On My Momma," you just know he means business. And yes, it's spelled "Chalie" Boy...

Mary Mary - God In Me
Mary Mary consistently makes contemporary gospel music with the production quality of contemporary R&B. And when you hear this song, you really can't tell which of those two genres it falls into -- which might be the point. The best gospel crossovers are the ones you don't even know are talking about God (think Switchfoot). Besides having the ability to inspire you with club-friendly grooves and an uplifting message, it's also just good to hear an R&B song without AutoTune these days.

"Blame It" -- Jamie Foxx
Artists like Jamie Foxx don't have to make songs like this one. He can really sing, and play the keys as well -- he could write an introspective ballad or something, and at least lay off the AutoTune. But sometimes it takes someone as musically gifted as Foxx to make a song as base as "Blame It" actually work. It's completely silly, even down to the strange, strange video. But for what it is, it's close to flawless: the club banger you rock out to all night, and still end up humming the next morning.

"Party In The USA" -- Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus, in her own right, might have absolutely no redeeming qualities. But her production team makes minor miracles on a regular basis. Exhibit A: "Party In The USA." Sparse, catchy, and effervescent, the song works, even if you know it's completely contrived. The lyrics name-drop Jay-Z, and Cyrus admits she's never even heard a Jay-Z song. Oh well, we're all still "nodding our heads like, Yeah." Teen pop was never supposed to be real anyway.

"I'm Good" -- Clipse
The 2000s, if anything, were an all-out war between the two greatest hip-hop producers of their day: Timbaland and Pharell. I dare say Pharell won. Timbo may have ended up with more hits, more ubiquity, even more money. But as he became formulaic and overexposed, Pharell kept getting better. "I'm Good" is another winner from the producer, and honestly, the Clipse's rhymes on the song are secondary to the breathing synths and steady snare. Who needs vocals on a track this good?

"Sweet Dreams" -- Beyonce
Any of Beyonce's singles could make my top 25 cut this year, but the one that really should have hit radio, ironically called "Radio," wasn't even released. We're forced to settle with "Sweet Dreams," which really isn't settling at all. It's an amazing Jim Jones track, and in the song, we hear why Beyonce's still on top -- she actually grows as an artist. She's replaced the dramatic, winding melisma of her early, Destiny's Child days with a subdued, controlled and technically adept singing style. She stopped warbling and hollering and just started singing the songs, more simply, more gracefully. Beyonce's grown into herself, and it sounds really good. Rihanna, Lady GaGa, please take notes.

"It's Only You, Pt. 2" -- Salem
Hands down, the most exciting, polished, and memorable song I've heard this year -- even if I did find it in a Volvo commercial. Salem is the best Swedish import you've never heard of. A well established jazz/pop crooner overseas (and even in Canada), most of the US has yet to discover his absolute genius. And that is not an understatement. Listen to this song, and then prepare to play it non-stop for a week. And then check out his EP of the same name. I promise you'll like it. Really I do.

Phoenix -- 1901
Another song from a commercial makes the cut. I sincerely hope that automakers start releasing their own iTunes playlists in 2010. Phoenix is like the sound of bubble gum and skinny jeans and walk signs at busy crosswalks on a warm day -- inviting, if ephemeral. The entire album felt a little too much like this single, which is why it didn't make that list. But 1901 is a treat. Thanks for the heads-up, Cadillac.

"I Know You want Me" -- Pitbull
Spanglish-Euro-poppy-techn

o-dance-hip-hop is fun. Really fun. And Pitbull's growl is surprisingly addictive. I've been told this song is played in Zumba classes all over the country. I may need to start checking said classes out.

Duck Sauce -- "aNYway"
Watch the YouTube video for this single, which isn't yet available for purchase in the States, and be amazed. But don't be confused. Duck Sauce is actually two DJs, Armand Van Helden and A-TRAK. The vocals for "aNYway" come from an obscure R&B song called "I Can Do It [Anyway You Want]" from Final Edition. Wherever it's from, it's a mix made in house music heaven, and clearly, heaven doesn't live in the US just yet. Damn you iTunes...

"Paparrazi" -- Lady Gaga
I refuse to fawn over Lady GaGa. But I will respect a good song. Paparrazi is that, if nothing else. What makes it stand out for me, compared to all of GaGa's other singles, is its understatement, save for the out of place spoken word/rap in the middle. Songs like Bad Romance and Love Game and Poker Face were too outsized to really be appreciated. But here, GaGa slows down, breathes, and tells a story. The pyrotechnics are put away long enough for her songwriting to shine. And it works.

Grizzly Bear -- "Two Weeks"
For me, the album wasn't worth the hype. Art rock never really caught on with me. But this song meanders its way to classic.

"Empire State Of Mind" -- Jay-Z and Alicia Keys
Did we even need Jay-Z on this song? For once, Alicia Keys habit of screaming her words fit the song perfectly. This is a hook that deserves to be bellowed. It swallows you whole and spins you around and before you know it, you can't stop singing along. Some call it New York' new anthem. I won't go that far, but I will admit that, for me, it was Ms. Key's post-"No One" redemption.

Mario, Gucci Mane and Sean Garrett -- "Break Up"
Bangladesh is a weird guy. He produced "Break Up", as well as Lil Wayne's 2008 uber-smash, "A Milli, and the womanly sequel, Beyonce's "Diva" These three songs are completely unlike anything you've ever heard before, as is "Break Up." With all three of them, Bangladesh's booming bass drum makes three tracks with the tempo of a ballad wallop hard enough to make you go hyphy. And on "Break Up" particularly, the artist actually sings. It's an added treat and the perfect ending to this trio of Bangladesh's new brand of crazy.

"Turn My Swag On" -- Souljah Boy
You don't know how many times I've have literally "hopped up out the bed" to this song and danced around my room for more than just a few minutes. No matter what you say about Souljah Boy (Tell 'Em), we all have to admit that he makes songs we never listen to just once. The track on this single is monstrous, demanding the volume be turned all the way up. And Souljah's out-of-tune sing-song flow lets any and everyone join in. Whether they fess up to it or not...

"Rockin That Thing" -- The Dream
Over the last few years, R&B has stealthily sped itself up, techno-fied, and gone a little bit Euro. But as the rest of the genre went off to a rave, The Dream stayed right where he wanted, in a mid-tempo wonderland. His style is completely relaxed, entirely modern R&B. Even if the smashes he's written for others (Rihanna's "Umbrella" and Beyonce's "Single Ladies) are anything but chill, "Rockin' That Thing" feels completely relaxed, like the weekend before you have to go back to school, when it's not as hot as it was in July, and all you have to do is roll down the windows in your car and drive a little slower, because you're in no rush to get anywhere.

"Daylight" -- Matt & Kim
Perfected Hipster-dom. In song.

The Sa-Ra Creative Partners -- "Space Fruit" (ft. Debi Nova)
This is the cosmic sequel to "The Boy From Ipanema", scat singing and all. It's lush and intricate and beautifully executed. Unfortunately, the album this single comes from doesn't live up to the hype this track inspires.

Calvin Harris -- "The Rain"
Calvin Harris is yet another import America is turning its head to. More people need to hear his music. This is the lead track from his latest album, which receieved massive play on my earphones this year. Harris' production channels Prince, the Basement Jaxx, 80's synth-pop, all at the same time. This track builds, and by the end of it, you end up pumping your fist in the air like an extra from "Jersey Shore." The saxophone solo doesn't hurt either.

Kid Cudi -- "Day and Night"
I remember hearing this single for the first time and being blown away, becoming more anxious than I should have been for the complete album's release. I was let down. "Day and Night" was the only saving grace on Kid Cudi's absolutely dismal debut. And quite a saving grace it was. Who didn't dance along to thi at some point in 2009? But in the words of Tyra, "We're were rooting for you (Cudi)! We were all rooting for you." This single set up the biggest let-down of year, that let-down being Cudi's debut. "Lonely stoner", please sit down.

Chester French -- "Sleep"
I still don't get why more people don't know about Chester French. They're the like the trendy offspring of the Beach Boys, only they've traded the beach for the Ivy League. These Harvard-trained crooners made a debut with flashes of brilliance, one of them being "Sleep." It's a simple premise -- this guy needs more shut-eye, and he writes a song about it. But the execution is flawless. Sweepingly orchestrated, all the bells and whistles make the song soar. The vocals have just a tinge of youthful, preppy revolt and the last minute or so goes off on a Miles Davis tangent. This is brave music.

Passion Pit -- "Little Secrets"
You'll either love the lead singer's yelping falsetto or hate it. You'll either love the children s choir's backing vocals or hate them. You'll either love the bubbly, poppy production or hate it. I love all of these things. And the entire album sounds this good.

"Fire Bomb" -- Rihanna
Most will look back on Rihanna's 2009 and only see what she was wearing. Post-Chris Brown she vamped it up -- the clothes fell off as Rihanna shed all vestiges of victimhood. But the bigger, albeit underlying story, is the maturation of her music. Her vocals still leave something to be desired, but her latest album is a gem. I'm sure she didn't write it, but "Fire Bomb," is one of the smartest ballads I've heard in a while. When you first hear it, you don't really understand what she's talking about, but around the fourth listen, you realize she's singing about an ex, and the revenge she's about to exact on him. She's driving a gunshot-riddled, burning car into the home of a former lover. All while exclaiming, "I just want to set you on fire, so I don't have to burn alone." As she warns once again, "All the lovers need to clear the road," you slowly realize that Rihanna is a lot more pained, and introspective, than we ever thought.