240. Michael Jackson — “Black or White” — A classic riff, and the song has an interesting subtext because it came out during the time that MJ’s skin color was changing from black to white due to a rare medical condition.
239. Filter — “Hey Man, Nice Shot” — This is the first heavy, scary-sounding song that I actually found myself liking.
238. Ash — “Girl from Mars” — One of the rockingest songs about loving a girl from afar (so far, in fact, that you don’t even know her name).
237. Ben Folds — “Not the Same” — The beat(s) of this song get into your brain and never let up, and it’s done entirely with piano and vocals by one man, the talented Mr. Folds.
236. Sixpence None the Richer — “Kiss Me” — It turns out that it is possible to want to cuddle with a piece of music.
235. Michelle Branch — “Goodbye to You” — If you’ve ever had someone take an exit from your life for any reason, facial tissues might be in order while listening to this.
234. Oleander — “Are You There?” — Just a straight-up, unapologetic groove monster.
233. Camera Obscura — “French Navy” — When I first popped in the “My Maudlin Career” album and heard Tracyanne’s “Spent a week in a dusty library …,” I suspected I might have a new favorite band on my hands. Eleven tracks later, I did.
232. Four Star Mary — “Pain” — This is the sound of The Bronze (on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) right here.
231. TLC — “Waterfalls” — A fresh, anecdote-driven way of sharing the message “If it sounds too good to be true, it is.”
Comments
french navy is probably my favourite CO track# Posted By chance | 7/10/10 12:12 PM
“French Navy” barely made the cut for me. Being the first track on the disc, it got overplayed in my Jeep last year. A good song, but I’ll have better CO stuff coming up on my list.# Posted By John Hansen | 7/10/10 1:39 PM
I can’t hear ‘Hey Man Nice Shot’ without picturing you “Rocking Out” at the High School senior party.. good times 🙂# Posted By Shaune | 7/15/10 3:19 PM
Shaune–
That is interesting. You forgot that you introduced me to Tabitha’s Secret, but I had forgotten that I was obsessed with “Hey Man, Nice Shot” in June 1996. I don’t remember rocking out, but I’m glad you were entertained by it. I remember a bunch of girls dancing to the Macarena (which, rest assured, will not be in my top 300) at the senior party and wondering when they had time to learn all those dance moves. It was pretty impressive. Also, I remember it was just a bunch of us dudes hanging out, plus Danielle, the token girl. Just a bunch of guys having a good time, having a good time, having a good time.# Posted By John Hansen | 7/16/10 1:13 AM
Love love love that second Ash record. I think I listened to Goldfinger and Girl From Mars a million times when that came out. It was so good you almost forgot they were a bunch of kids. Tim Wheeler writes some pretty catchy tunes.# Posted By Matt | 7/17/10 12:10 AM