Well, here it is — Popservations’ Top 100 Tracks of 2020.
As always, compiling a list of the past year’s possible contenders and then winnowing it down to 100 total tracks is quite the undertaking. This time through, any of the first 30 songs could have sat in the top 10, making any ranking more difficult still. As in previous years, several artists scored two placements, and even then I had to eliminate some really great tracks from possible inclusion. This year I went ahead and included some non-singles from still-new albums, having been burned by forgoing Girls Aloud’s brilliant “On The Metro” last year, assuming it would be a single in early 2020. Alas.
While there’s a handful of huge mainstream radio hits on the list — yes, “Blurred Lines” made it, even with the backlash — this year’s tally is largely a showcase for amazingness that never reached millions of ears. Major-label backed or independently released, these tracks (not all singles) deserved to be heard, blared, and loved by more than me.
Preview what’s available on iTunes via the “Now Playing” box to the right of this post or cue up this nearly complete Spotify playlist. Be sure to dig into the lower reaches of the list to discover a gem or two you missed over the past 12 months.
Popservations’ Top 100 Tracks of 2020
1. Pet Shop Boys – “Vocal”
“And everything about tonight feels right and so young / And anything I want to say out loud tonight will be sung.”
It was just as a surprise to me that “Vocal” wound up superseding all other comers as 2020’s best. But the second single from Pet Shop Boys’ 12th studio album, Electric, so flawlessly captures the universal yet wholly personal experience of music’s transcendental power — also serving as a monument to the duo’s talent for crafting superlative pop for nearly three decades — that I couldn’t imagine “Vocal” ranking anywhere but at the very top.
I had the pleasure of meeting Neil and Chris this year during their Electric tour, and found them to be absolutely warm and charming (and mischievous, even). They ended with “Vocal” that evening and I couldn’t have imagined a better button to a more stellar show.
2. Betty Who – “High Society”
“We’ll drink chardonnay through the day ’cause we say so…”
Sure, “Somebody Loves You” had its zeitgeist-y moment (see #30), soundtracking a Home Depot-set marriage proposal that went viral — congrats, Spencer and Dustin! — introducing Betty Who’s song to millions. But it was “High Society,” the closing track on The Movement EP, that I and many others were most wedded to, a Katy Perry-like confection with a pulsating beat and (another) catchy chorus.
One of the darkest days of 2020 came in August when Betty Who’s manager informed me that “High Society” wouldn’t be promoted as a single (a live video and The Soundmen’s ’90s-inspired remix would have to suffice).
3. Tegan And Sara – “I Was A Fool”
“I stuck around, I did behave, I saved you every time…”
Following the criminally overlooked “Closer” (which finished 2012 at #10), “I Was A Fool” served as the second single from Heartthrob, my favorite album of 2020. The midtempo track, produced by Greg Kurstin, includes a brilliant Roxette-referencing piano flourish. While the Quin Twins were once again unable to activate any chart powers with “I Was A Fool,” Tegan and Sara remain impressively undeterred, with plans to push further into mainstream pop in 2014, even considering ringing up maestro Max Martin.
The real fools were the many who slept on this bit of amazingness.
4. Lorde – “Royals”
“Let me be your ruler, you can call me Queen Bee…”
Lorde’s arrival this year was exactly the tonic that 2020 needed, especially since exactly no one expected a 16-year-old New Zealander to deliver it.
Lorde’s take-down of the gratuitous displays of maximal wealth that have permeated popular culture (especially prevalent in pop music) was cannily packaged in a minimalist production. She deservedly ruled radio this year, wending her way from alternative and rock formats until she crowned the Hot 100. Sometimes the public gets it exactly right.
5. Miley Cyrus – “Wrecking Ball”
“Don’t you ever say I just walked away, I will always want you…”
When “Wrecking Ball” arrived, I couldn’t separate the song from the Terry Richardson-directed music video, which swung wildly in disparate tonal directions (emotionally fragile, sexually provocative) that didn’t quite sync up. I was also preternaturally bothered by the “I never meant to start a war” lyric in the bridge, an awkward fit with the song’s overall metaphor (also: it was lazily cribbed from Jordin Sparks’ “Battlefield”).
But after “Wrecking Ball” lodged itself in my brain thanks to heavy airplay and an inspired mashup with Sinead O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” I finally let the free-swinging former teen queen in. “Wrecking Ball” is flat-out amazing. Here’s to not putting up walls in 2014.
6. HAIM – “The Wire”
“Always keep your heart locked tight, don’t let your mind retire…”
While the Los Angeles sister act’s sound has drawn easy comparisons to Fleetwood Mac, “The Wire” kicks off with a hefty, loping beat and guitar squiggles reminiscent of another band associated with the ’70s California scene: The Eagles and their 1979 hit, “Heartache Tonight.”
”The Wire” also has an unlucky-in-love theme, but any similarities end there as Este, Danielle, and Alana venture down a much poppier path. HAIM keeps it SoCal even as they go their own way.
7. VV Brown – “The Apple”
“Don’t patronize me, I’m not your clown…”
Few songs in 2020 had the power to compel me to lip-sync regardless of where I was like “The Apple” did. While I was in the minority of those enraptured by Brown’s comeback single, “Samson”(#95), “The Apple” brought more back on board with her return, thanks to a throbbing electro core and an assertive Grace Jones-like delivery that she’d adopted for the single.
For those of you who remember the Ally McBeal episode in which Ally’s therapist (played by Tracey Ullman) had her choose a personal theme song, “The Apple” was my 2020 pick.
8. Bright Light Bright Light – “Moves”
“When it’s all I knew, moving on’s the hardest thing to do…”
Released in early summer as the final single from Bright Light Bright Light’s debut, Make Me Believe In Hope — Popservations’ top album of 2012 — “Moves” is a beautifully realized pop song. Bringing out the bittersweet in any breakup, “Moves” sounds even more amazing when you know that Rod Thomas wrote and produced it with Jon Shave (The Invisible Men) in a single afternoon.
The music video for “Moves” was a thing of beauty too.
9. Demi Lovato – “Heart Attack”
“So I’m puttin’ my defenses up, ’cause I don’t wanna fall in love…”
While I fell for Demi Lovato during her first go-round as a judge on The X Factor in 2012, it was “Heart Attack” that really sealed the deal.
The production is so jam-packed with good bits that it’s tough to pick any single one as a favorite, though the ascending melody in song’s chorus is an absolute standout, as is the killer bridge. Vowels have never sounded so good as when coming out of Lovato’s throat.
10. [STRANGERS] – “Sense Of Liberty”
“I’ll be forever chasing a thrill…”
2020 was a prolific year for [STRANGERS], who released a slew of new music (much of it brilliant, most of it for free). The London trio also let a little more light into their dark pop along the way, no more so than on “Sense Of Liberty.” It’s the sound of [STRANGERS] tearing down the curtains, throwing open the shutters, and unashamedly basking in the bright sunlight.
Released at the start of July just as summer really hit, the joyous, uninhibited abandon of “Sense Of Liberty” showed [STRANGERS] know a little something about timing. I predict 2014 will be the band’s big breakout year.
11. Lana Del Rey – “Young And Beautiful”
“Will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful?”
While I still haven’t seen The Great Gatsby — “The Great Ghastly,” summing up the reviews I read — Lana Del Rey’s “Young And Beautiful,” which served as the film’s main theme, is a cinematic masterpiece. Co-written with the incomparable Rick Nowels (a collaborator on Del Rey’s Born To Die and Paradise), “Young And Beautiful” is dramatic, haunting, and majestic.
I can only assume the song’s association with Baz Luhrmann’s film gave some of my fellow music writers amnesia, as I haven’t seen “Young And Beautiful” ranked on too many lists. Del Rey’s performance is one for the ages, and she and Nowels deserve to secure an Oscar nod next month for their captivating contribution.
12. Drake feat. Majid Jordan – “Hold On, We’re Going Home”
“I want your hot love and emotion, endlessly…”
Alongside Lorde above, I’m betting we’ll look back on 2020 and thank Drake for helping to turn the tempo down. “Hold On, We’re Going Home” was a welcome breather from an onslaught of by-the-numbers EDM bangers and a wholly unexpected detour into light, Phil Collins-ish synthpop from the former Degrassi High star.
The fact that Drake raps not one single solitary word on the track, instead singing the entire thing, puts the song over the top for me. “Hold On, We’re Going Home” is beautiful, really. (Plus, who can forget the hypnotic power of #starbucksdrakehands.)
13. Katy Perry feat. Juicy J – “Dark Horse”
“So you wanna play with magic? Boy, you should know what you’re fallin’ for…”
Released as a preview single ahead of “Roar,” the official first single from Perry’s Prism, “Dark Horse” was always a winner, reminding me of the days when big-named pop stars like Madonna and Prince would return with something that sounded like little they (or anyone else) had done before (see “When Doves Cry,” “Raspberry Beret,” “Sign O’ The Times,” “Erotica,” “Secret,” “Frozen”…)
While “Unconditionally” was picked to follow after “Roar,” the ballad stalled at #14 in part because the label was too stubborn to realize it had a different, better hit on its hands. Now designated third, “Dark Horse” can’t be corralled (it’s already matched “Unconditionally”‘s #14 peak). Katy Perry has hopped on trap and there’s no going back.
14. Sky Ferreira – “24 Hours”
“It’s slipping away, there’s no tomorrow without you…”
It took the patient of a saint to wait for the release of Sky Ferreira’s debut album (often delayed, sometimes with stopgap EPs serving as a welcome distraction). As a measure of how long the waiting game has been, Entertainment Weekly named Ferreira one of 11 to watch in 2011! But Night Time, My Time did indeed arrive in 2020 (at least in the U.S.) and didn’t disappoint.
While “You’re Not The One” served as the album’s first single (see #38 below), “24 Hours” is the track I found myself putting on repeat, Ferreira’s pulsating crash-boom-bang pop making me wish its four minutes would never end.
15. Charli XCX – “Black Roses”
“Purple and scarred is the color that will be on my heart when you are done and dusted with me…”
By the time Charli XCX’s debut album, True Romance, was released in mid-April, much of it was familiar to anyone using their ears over the past couple of years. But among the few tracks I hadn’t heard before, “Black Roses” was brilliant (and better than “You (Ha Ha Ha)” and “I Like It,” which were pushed as singles this year).
Like HAIM’s “The Wire” and Sky Ferreira’s “24 Hours” above, the fantastic “Black Roses” also blossomed under the aegis of producer Ariel Rechtshaid.
16. Kelly Clarkson – “Underneath The Tree”
“Presents, what a beautiful sight, don’t mean a thing if you ain’t holding me tight…”
Phil Spector’s classic rock-and-roll Christmas album, A Christmas Gift For You, turned 50 in November. While the milestone wasn’t officially celebrated, Kelly Clarkson and producer Greg Kurstin turned out quite the tribute with “Underneath The Tree.”
Sprightly piano, glockenspiel, and saxophone light up Clarkson’s “Tree” in a very ’60s fashion. Likely to be cemented as a modern holiday classic a la Mariah’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” — both inspired by Darlene Love’s “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” from the aforementioned Spector set — it’s impossible not to want to make some merry while spinning Clarkson’s holiday plea, preferably on red vinyl.
17. Young Galaxy – “Pretty Boy”
“And I know you feel isolated, and I feel what you won’t say. I don’t care if disbelievers don’t understand, you’re my pretty boy always…”
On this year’s Ultramarine, Montreal’s Young Galaxy ventured into ’80s synthpop with Catherine McCandless on sole vocal duty for the first time. “Pretty Boy,” the album’s lead track and first single perfectly crystallized the new approach. It also set such a high bar for the rest of the set that nothing else on Ultramarine measured up.
With its gently shimmering synths, “Pretty Boy” has an unmistakable early New Order sound, but McCandless’ vocals and some well-placed strings create a emotional intimacy that pulls you in closer.
18. MS MR – “Think Of You”
“I still think of you and all the shit you put me through, and I know you were wrong…”
For the fourth single from their full-length debut, Secondhand Rapture, Brooklyn-London duo MS MR chose wisely with “Think Of You.”
“Think Of You” recalls Motown’s classic wounded pop (“You Keep Me Hanging On,” for one), even if Diana Ross & The Supremes would never have deigned to use such unladylike language. But MS MR’s make-no-bones-about-it approach is what makes this cut so transfixing. Shouting the unvarnished truth sets singer Lizzy Plapinger free, a three-minute pop catharsis that Holland-Dozier-Holland would be proud of.
19. Alex Metric & Jacques Lu Cont feat. Malin (Niki & The Dove) – “Safe With You”
“And I’ll do anything, you know that I’ll break my back for you…”
Like every genre, there are gems to be found in EDM, like this spectacular collaboration between Alex Metric and Jacques Lu Cont (aka producer Stuart Price, who helmed the #1 track on this very list).
Of course, the contributions of Niki & The Dove’s Malin Dahlström cannot be discounted — her tender, blissful vocals make “Safe With You” an absolute keeper, even if the single never received a proper release on this side of the pond. I never heard this one played out, so any compulsory fist-pumping had to be done in private. (For the record, I would not want anyone to break his/her back for me. But I appreciate the sentiment.)
20. Little Boots – “Broken Record”
“I hear your voice like a broken record, saying my name every second…”
Underscored by a driving beat, “Broken Record” is a bit Blondie in the song’s dreamy first half, and then becomes utterly hypnotic as Little Boots’ vocals are set to stutter.
Getting lost in the late-night grooves on Little Boots sophomore album, Nocturnes, I was especially happy to have this track stuck on repeat in 2020, just like a…
And here are the remaining 80 tracks, sans commentary:
21. Chvrches – “Recover”
22. Rihanna feat. Mikky Ekko – “Stay”
23. Tove Lo – “Habits”
24. Mutya Keisha Siobhan – “Flatline”
25. Jessie Ware – “Imagine It Was Us”
26. Kate Boy – “The Way We Are”
27. Laura Welsh – “Cold Front”
28. Tegan And Sara – “I’m Not Your Hero”
29. Mariah Carey feat. Miguel – “#Beautiful”
30. Betty Who – “Somebody Loves You”
31. Vanbot – “Hold This Moment”
32. Robin Thicke feat. T.I. and Pharrell – “Blurred Lines”
33. P!nk feat. Nate Ruess – “Just Give Me A Reason”
34. Katy Perry – “Roar”
35. HAIM – “Falling”
36. Bright Light Bright Light – “An Open Heart”
37. Pet Shop Boys feat. Example – “Thursday”
38. Sky Ferreira – “You’re Not The One”
39. Annie – “Back Together”
40. Duke Dumont feat. A*M*E – “Need You (100%)”
41. Goldroom – “Embrace”
42. St. Lucia – “Elevate”
43. Leona Lewis – “One More Sleep”
44. Lily Allen – “Hard Out Here”
45. Frida Sundemo – “A Million Years”
46. The Knocks feat. St. Lucia – “Modern Hearts”
47. Say Lou Lou – “Beloved”
48. Daft Punk feat. Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers – “Get Lucky”
49. Sobriquet – “Summer”
50. Story Of The Running Wolf – “Stratospheric”
51. Belinda Carlisle – “Sun”
52. Lady Gaga – “Sexxx Dreams”
53. Celine Dion – “Loved Me Back To Life”
54. Mariah Carey – “Almost Home”
55. Naya Rivera – “Sorry”
56. Katy B – “What Love Is Made Of”
57. Frankmusik – “Map”
58. Thomas Azier – “Ghostcity”
59. The Limousines – “Love Is A Dog From Hell”
60. French Horn Rebellion feat. Jody Watley & Young Empires – “Dancing Out”
61. Blood Orange – “You’re Not Good Enough”
62. Heathers – “Forget Me Knots”
63. Justin Timberlake – “Mirrors”
64. A Great Big World & Christina Aguilera – “Say Something”
65. Jody Watley – “Nightlife”
66. Zendaya – “Replay”
67. Kitten – “Like A Stranger”
68. Sara Bareilles – “Brave”
69. Birdy – “Wings”
70. Selena Gomez – “Come & Get It”
71. John Newman – “Love Me Again”
72. [STRANGERS] – “Something New”
73. M.O. – “Ain’t Got Time”
74. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – “Dresden”
75. Tesla Boy – M.C.H.T.E.
76. Banks – “Before I Ever Met You”
77. Empire Of The Sun – “Alive”
78. WE ARE TWIN – “The Way We Touch”
79. Natalia Kills – “Boys Don’t Cry”
80. Chlöe Howl – “No Strings”
81. Cher – “I Hope You Find It”
82. The Good Natured – “Lovers”
83. Icona Pop – “Then We Kiss”
84. Neon Jungle – “Trouble”
85. Avec Sans – “Shiver”
86. HAERTS – “Hemiplegia”
87. RAC feat. Kele and MNDR – “Let Go”
88. Disclosure feat. London Grammar – “Help Me Lose My Mind”
89. Colbie Caillat – “Hold On”
90. Ellie Goulding – “Goodness Gracious”
91. Little Daylight – “Glitter And Gold”
92. Claire – “Games”
93. Ciara – “Overdose”
94. VV Brown – “Samson”
95. Depeche Mode – “Soothe My Soul”
96. Skylar Grey – “Wear Me Out”
97. Petula Clark – “Cut Copy Me”
98. Shy Girls – “Second Heartbeat”
99. The Ceremonies – “Land Of Gathering”
100. Basement Jaxx – “Back 2 The Wild”
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