MICHAEL JACKSON
‘Hollywood Tonight’
from the album Michael
This is one of the tracks from the new album that could, in theory, have been a hit single were it to be released while Michael was alive. ‘Hollywood Tonight’ opens with a dark churchy type sample thing that makes you think this is going to be a distressing ballad like ‘Who Is It?’, but it then explodes into a beat that is more like ‘Can’t Let Her Get Away’ or ‘She Drives The Wild’. A classic MJ chorus is present here, even if it isn’t lyrically adventurous, and though there are some missteps – that monologue – you can feel that this really might have been mindblowing if it had been properly finished (i.e. with Michael involved). But all we can do is appreciate the fact that it still sounds so good in this state.
JANET JACKSON
‘Nothing’
from the album Why Did I Get Married Too?: Original Soundtrack
As much as I love Janet’s filth, I had been mourning the lack of proper, big ballads on her albums from the last decade. There were slow songs – way too many of them, even – but none of them had a strong melody or memorable lyrics. I might even go out on a limb and say that ‘Nothing’ is the best Janet ballad since ‘Again’, almost twenty years ago. A slight, uncomplicated production and a gentle vocal performance make ‘Nothing’ such a nice, easy listen, and I can’t help but notice the lyrics that coincide with ‘Nothing’ being one of Janet’s first releases since the death of her brother. From “the past is something I can’t change/It’s a brand new day” to “cherish every moment like it’s our last” – it becomes there is more to ‘Nothing’ than just a song quickly recorded for a soundtrack.
ROBBIE WILLIAMS & GARY BARLOW
‘Shame’
from the album In And Out Of Consciousness: The Greatest Hits 1990-2010
I don’t really care about the Robbie/Gary saga – boring – but ‘Shame’ is a great song even removed from its real-world implications. A slightly countrified ballad with light acoustic guitar and perfectly blended vocals, Bob and Gaz trade slightly awkward pleasantries, occasionally joining the other to emphasis a wise word or two. The opening line about the versions of the truth is one of my favourite lyrics of the year, the lyric about Toys-R-Us was misunderstood, I love the chorus and the video was amazing.
JANELLE MONÁE ft. BIG BOI
‘Tightrope’
from the album The ArchAndroid: Suites II & III
From the wail at the start you know ‘Tightrope’ is going to be something else, and with its sister ‘Cold War’ it forms the nucleus of The ArchAndroid. Big Boi steps in to give Janelle a hand but it becomes apparent she doesn’t need it. She commands the horns, struts all over the beat, and grabs you by the face and doesn’t let go until the song is over. And, as a bonus, “we call that classy brass” is surely one of the top 100 spoken word bits of 2010.
KANYE WEST ft. PUSHA T
‘Runaway’
from the album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Starting with a plink-plonk piano and developing into a dark, claustrophobic beat, Kanye West’s ‘Runaway’ is the centrepiece of Dark Twisted Fantasy, running for nine minutes. It is the child of sprawling epics like ‘Say You Will’ from the last album, but this is more inclusive, a singalong rather than a lament (though ‘Say You Will’ is still better). Thousands upon thousands of words have been written about ‘Runaway’ already, and there’s not much more I can add rather than saying that I didn’t think much of ‘Runaway’ when it debuted, but now hearing it within the album in its extended version, it all makes sense. ‘Power’ might be the “superhero theme music” but ‘Runaway’ is the dissection of the superhero mindset.
PINK
‘Raise Your Glass’
from the album Greatest Hits… So Far!!!
Yes, ‘Raise Your Glass’ is simple and plays into the fact that everybody likes to think of themselves as an outsider, as “wrong in all the right ways”. But when it sounds so good, who cares how transparent it is? Like a summation of the persona that made Pink the Queen of Australia and one of the biggest popstars in the world. From “dealio” to the bit where pretends to fuck up the lyrics, ‘Raise Your Glass’ is a hell of a lot of fun, made for blanket radio play and yet it still manages to feel like a secret thing just for Pink fans – ignoring the fact that everybody and their Nana is a Pink fan. So grab your Nana, raise your glass and play up any aspect of yourself you can find that goes a bit against the mainstream.
MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS
‘Hollywood’
from the album The Family Jewels
For those outside the country, especially those interested in the entertainment industry, America can look like a whole other world. Here, Marina deconstructs that obsession through storytelling and massive choruses, which is what she does best. “Hollywood infected your brain” she sings to a character in the verse, but then in the next few lines the tables are turned: it is, in fact, Marina who has been infected. The explosion of the chorus makes this more than just an intelligent pop song, it makes it a really fun one as well, and of course this has to be one of the greatest moments of the year: “Oh my god, you look just like Shakira/No, no, you’re Catherine Zeta/AKSHULLEE my name’s Marina”.
CHER
‘You Haven’t Seen The Last Of Me’
from the album Burlesque: Original Soundtrack
What a thrill it is to hear Cher singing like this after almost a decade without any new songs. The best thing about ‘You Haven’t Seen The Last Of Me’ is the obvious real-world significance it has: at 64 and still working in an industry where 40 is considered over the hill, lines like “don’t count me out just yet” mean just as much to the queen of comebacks as it does to her character in Burlesque. There is a hint of vulnerability (“I am far from over” is a little shaky, as if she isn’t so sure herself) but it is that balance between uncertaintly and strength that makes this a classic, powerful Cher ballad that is fit to stand alongside ‘After All’, ‘The Way Of Love’ and ‘Just Like Jesse James’ in her catalogue. The dance remixes are incredible too.
KANYE WEST ft. RIHANNA, KID CUDI, TONY WILLIAMS, THE-DREAM, CHARLIE WILSON, JOHN LEGEND, ELLY JACKSON, ALICIA KEYS, ELTON JOHN, FERGIE, RYAN LESLIE, DRAKE, ALVIN FIELDS & KEN LEWIS
‘All Of The Lights’
from the album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Starting off with a haunting piano interlude, ‘All Of The Lights’ has received a lot of attention due to the ridiculous amount of artists credited (of which only like three or four are actually audible), but the real story is how good the song is despite all signs pointing to it being a mess. Rihanna leads the chorus, but Kanye steals his own show, exploring the problems of a questionable character not unlike the ones he explored back on The College Dropout. Using Michael Jackson’s death as the beginning of a spiral into darkness, ‘All Of The Lights’ is much darker that the title or family singalong vibe would allow you to believe.
TRACEY THORN
‘Oh, The Divorces!’
from the album Love And Its Opposite
Tracey described Love And Its Opposite as an exploration of “real life after forty”, and ‘Oh, The Divorces!’ was the first single and mission statement. Over a simple, sad melody, we hear internal conversations, public gossiping, investigations into missing text messages and finger pointing. The blame game is presented as a sport for groups of friends: “that one was his fault, and this one is her fault” – but the depressing reality beyond the initial shock is not ignored. “The honeymoon/The wedding rings/The afternoon handovers by the swings” might be the most depressing lyrical imagery I’ve heard in a long time.
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