I am going to avoid that default-curmudgeon position and say that music didn’t suck in 2010. There was a lot of great music. Too bad it was drowned out by the truly awful music that topped the charts.
Anyway, ‘tis the season of “Best-of” lists. There are many comprehensive ones out there, and I recommend you check out my colleague Paul Ryan’s detailed take on the best songs of 2010 here.
My list is shorter, but these were my indispensible songs for 2010.
1) Harlem River Blues – Justin Townes Earle. This comes from his breakout album of the same name. Old school country with an indie sensibility. Yes he’s Steve Earle’s son but he is making a name for himself all on his own. He actually played in Saint John, NB (!!) this summer and was fantastic. You should also check out his cover of The Replacements’ “Can’t Hardly Wait”.
2) Valkyrie in the Roller Disco – The New Pornographers. Hard to choose just one song from the excellent Together album but this song stands out for me. I never buy full albums anymore but I bought this one. You should too. This wasn’t a single, but listen to any of their songs and you won’t be disappointed.
3) Fuck You – Cee Lo Green. High-fructose pop perfection. Yes you’ve heard it (or the clean version) a million times. But Cee Lo makes transcendental pop music, like Marty McFly went back in time to the dawn of Soul with Autotune and a MacBook Pro.
4) I Walked – Sufjan Stevens. This extraordinarily prolific singer/songwriter could be a superstar if he wanted to be. But he gets wonderfully weirder with each album. Not as haunting as songs like Casimir Pulaski Day, but this tune takes him in a new direction.
5) Down By The Water – The Decemberists. Not exactly rocking out, but this excellent band is pumping up the volume a bit with its last few releases. This song brings to mind some early days REM. And everyone should have “O New England” on their iPod.
6) Venus In Furs – Beck. Beck brings the weird with his Record Club and their cover of the Velvet Underground classic. I also love the cover of the syrupy-sweet INXS classic “Never Tear Us Apart”.
7) The Fourth-Night of My Drinking – Drive By Truckers. Alt-Country heroes tell stories of beautiful losers. Imagine Charles Bukowski waking up hung over in an Alabama truck stop with a broken heart, a STD and a guitar.
8 This Tornado Loves You – Neko Case. I love Neko Case. That is all.
9) North Shore – Tegan and Sara. Pure pop for now people. One of the great Canadian acts. They should really be in an iPad ad.
10) Magic – B.o.B. featuring Rivers Cuomo. Fun and smart rap with the great voice of Rivers Cuomo. Best Weezer-related song since Weezer turned into a curious inside joke, making derivative music for A&F clad frat boys.