Greatest Songs Ever - Part 12 (The Ladies II)
Its time to roll out yet another Greatest Songs Ever list. I still don’t have enough female artists on here, so this part is dedicated to the ladies and might I say this list is packed tight with hot and steamy bangers, enjoy.
2015 “Roman Holiday“ - Halsey
Halsey has three or four tracks that could have been included on this one and I might revisit her catalog in a future installment, but for now, let’s roll with an under-appreciated track from her debut album, “Roman Holiday”. There’s a lot of value in straightforward singer-songwriter poetry and Halsey is one of the best in the business right now. This song is the perfect mixture youthful spirit and both hope and despair. She couches the inevitably of abandonment in the warm arms of familiarity. Lyrically “Roman Holiday” is a masterpiece, and musically, its subtle pop tinges make it work perfectly in 2015 and beyond.
2007 “Valerie” - Mark Ronson feat. Amy Winehouse
This one’s a bit weird, as it’s technically a dude song, written by the Zutons, and credited to Mark Ronson. The real star of this cover is Amy Winehouse. Winehouse wraps her trademark soulful voice around this mid-tempo bop and colors in what would otherwise be a bland lounge track. There’s no need to change the pronouns or name, or even the general tone of the song, Amy’s presence, like always, simply elevates the potential of this now classic track. Her voice sits in the pocket of this song and marinates to the point that any writers or producers responsible for making it happen just disappear into the darkened stage lights. This song is Amy’s.
2012 “New Horizons” - Flyleaf
As a big fan of Lacey Sturm’s sound, it’s disheartening that so many of her best songs have Jesusy stuff woven into them. As I age I’ve grownless tolerant of Christian Rock, but I’ve got to give Flyleaf credit where it’s due. “New Horizons” still hits hard nearly a decade after its release and a lot of that is due to Sturm’s fantastic vocals and the universal appeal of its core theme, hope. It’s not the Flyleaf song you know, but its definitely the Flyleaf song you should be listening to.
1997 “Torn” - Natalie Imbruglia
2019 stands as the year that I learned Natalie’s Imbruglia’s “Torn” is a cover. Originally by Ednaswap, “Torn” took on a whole new sound and life when covered by British singer Imbruglia for her debut album. Nothing she would do would come close to the impact of this iconic cover. Combine the song’s cliche 90′s alt rock feel with Imbruglia’s almost exotic British beauty, in what might be the most genre-perfect video of its generation, “Torn” took on a life of its own and 24 years later the song is still infectiously singable and on the right night it’s emotion can even render a tear.
2012 “Weatherman” - Dead Sara
Girls don’t get to rock that often. I mean they absolutely can and do rock, but major labels don’t throw around too much cash when it comes to hyper-talented dirty female rock stars and that’s exactly what Dead Sara are dirty fucking Rock Stars…in the best way. Live they put on a show that will rival any dude band you have ever seen and frontwoman Emily Armstrong commands both venues and recordings. “Weatherman” was their breakout track, and while being a breath of fresh air it also felt like a call back to the grunge age of the early 90s. Dead Sara’s entire first album sounds like Nirvana if Kurt was a woman. With a ferocity typically reserved for a hardcore song, “Weatherman” is a standout on any playlist on which it finds itself.
1996 “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” - Celine Dion
Yes, I’m including a Celine Dion song on this list, and anyone that disagrees with it can eat my ass. While I fully acknowledge that this might be the first time Dion’s name has ever been in the same sentence as anal-lingus, the gravity of this song’s grandiose expression cannot be ignored. “It’s All Coming Back To Me Now” pre-dates Dion’s explosive Titanic track, yet still fully capitalizes on her knack for dynamic and epic vocal delivery. From the whisper quiet lulls to its earthshaking climax, “It’s All Coming Back To Me Now” is a song that can live comfortably in a drag show, a soundtrack, or a playlist at a state fair. If you choose to throw shade at this classic, just know, you’re wrong.
2014 “Break Free” Ariana Grande feat. Zedd
Ari has many songs that could make this list and before all is said and done others will probably make it, but for her first entry I chose her collaboration with EDM artist ZEDD. Ari always has the best producers in her corner. It comes with the territory when you are an icon, but Zedd has a knack for bringing tracks with a punch. He has a signature sound and even when an artist is singing over his work, his beats are unmistakable. With that said, Grande more than holds up her end of the equation here. Together Zedd and Grande meld into a machine that can’t help but produce a perfect pop song. On top the technical prowess of this track, the meaning that it carries in Grande’s career can’t be ignored. With her My Everything album, she was breaking free of the Disney friendly, teeny bopper image she had been boxed into and as a coming out party, “Break Free” is perfect.
2011 “California King Bed” - Rihanna
Rihanna is a international treasure that should be protected by all means necessary. As president I would authorize a nuclear attack if that attack would guarantee the safety of this under-rated Barbadian song-stress. “California King Bed” is her most singable and cross-over friendly song. I dare a country artist to record this and it not be a hit. I dare metal cover bands to cover this track live and it not bring down the house. It’s polished, it’s emotional and it slaps like nothing else in this queen’s library. Eventually RiRi will grace us with a new album, but until then having “California King Bed” on repeat is 100% acceptable.
2004 “My Happy Ending” - Avril Lavigne
Here’s another artist that could have had two or three tracks on this list. Lavigne has a library full of genre defining songs that no-one else could have recorded. “My Happy Ending” is her most well-rounded and solid anthem. The message of the song is universal and it sits in a pocket between pop and punk that few artists can occupy. The emotion in her voice helps this song resonate 17 years later and ultimately is the reason it beat out the many other tracks I was inclined to include.
1995 “I’m Only Happy When It Rains” - Garbage
First off, no one is as cool as Shirley Manson, no one. With that out of the way, “Only Happy When It Rains” may not be the ultimate proto-emo song, but it existing a full 10 years before the height of the movement only serves to justify how bleeding edge most of Garbage’s career has been. Garbage’s debut album was a pillar of a genre that lived no longer than a brief moment of the 90s, but somehow it still sounds edgy. Maybe that means its timeless, I don’t know, but this track is the perfect depiction of what the future of music was from the perspective of 1995. Like a sci-fi movie in the 60s, much of the tangible details of the future seem dated, but there’s a soul in this song that I feel bands are still trying to catch up to.
That’s it! 120 songs in the books. I’m in a mood to do some more of these so maybe it won’t be years before I get back around to publishing another list…or I’ll read this note 3 years from now and mumble, “So, that was a fucking lie.” Only the future knows.
