At serious risk of missing out a December banger, I have put together my top 50 songs of 2020 slightly prematurely. I found it pretty hard to narrow this down and had to whittle it down from a long list of about 100. As with all of these things, there's probably some great songs that I've missed here. But in some ways that's a good thing otherwise all of these lists would be identical.
Anyway, I've written a little bit about the top 15 tracks on this list, and then listed the remaining (16-50) below that. Tl;dr; I've chucked them all on a Spotify playlist and embedded at the bottom of this post.
- Jessie Ware –
Spotlight
This is a completely irresistable disco throwback and has such a clear identity; something that perhaps you could say had been missing from some of Jessie Ware's music before now. Whenever parties are a real thing again, this is going to be the first song on the playlist. - Angel Olsen –
Chance (Forever Love)
Technically, although featured this year on Angel Olsen's new album 'Whole New Mess', this is just a re-working of a song that was the closer of last year's 'All Mirrors'. But I would use absolutely any excuse to squeeze this song onto this list. The vulnerability and heartache are so tangible, and there is a vintage quality to the vocals that I haven't heard Olsen do in the past. In truth, I think the 'All Mirrors' version is even better than this, but I love this version too. - Grimes –
Delete Forever
This song, as an acoustic ballad with 90s pop leanings, is a bit of a diversion for Grimes, but nonetheless is easily the best of her new album (and maybe one of her best ever) in my opinion. The acoustic element fits surprisingly well with the synths that we're used to hearing from Grimes. - Phoebe
Bridgers – Savior Complex
Bridgers' second album really needs listening to as a whole to fully appreciate its darkness and lyrical themes- but I think this song encapsulates the feel of the album the best. The strings on the bridge of the song are perfectly placed and Phoebe's vocals have a fragile and breathy effect that fits the mood brilliantly. - Jorja Smith –
Rose Rouge
I've played this song to death this year and I still haven't got bored of it. I think Jorja's voice adds such a level of class to this song (actually a St Germain cover), and makes me wonder whether she'll embrace her jazzy side going forwards. This is the highlight of the whole Blue Note Re:imagined project for me. - Khurangbin –
Pelota
To be truthful I think 'Mordechai' was one of the biggest disappointments of this year, but perhaps that was due in part to the fact that all three teaser tracks released prior to the album were just so good, and set unrealistically high expectations. This was the standout for me, and I loved the Spanish vocals and funky vibe. - Charli XCX –
claws
To be honest I think I could have picked any one of the songs on 'how I'm feeling now', and my favourite song on the album keeps changing. I really love the creative, glitchy electronic production on this one (and much of the album), but at the heart of it, it's just a really well written pop banger and sometimes we all need that. - Dehd – Loner
This just has all of the elements of a perfect indie song. I don't know this band particularly well, and wasn't particularly in love with the rest of the album ('Flower of Devotion'), but there's something about this song that really clicked with me. The vocals have just enough querkiness to set it apart from the rest. It's one of those songs that impacts so much on first listen that you remember exactly where and when you first heard it (in the car on the way to a bat survey whilst the sun was setting in case you're interested!). - Kurt Vile
& John Prine – How Lucky
On the evidence of this song, I don't think any two voices belong together better better than Kurt Vile and John Prine. I'm so glad that they were able to record this before Prine sadly passed away from complications caused by Covid-19 earlier this year, but it makes the song a somewhat emotional experience to listen to. - Gorillaz – Pac-Man
feat. Schoolboy Q
If you'd have told me that this had been recorded during the Demon Days-era, I wouldn't have questioned you- the bass beat is just so recognisable. But equally this doesn't sound like a tired throwback either, especially since it sits in an album with so much variety. - Adrianne
Lenker – two reverse
I think this song encapsulates Lenker's new album as much as any. I think her talent as a lyricist and songwriter was already pretty well known, but the guitar work on this (and the rest of the album) is just so pretty too, and makes for a brilliant album opener. - IDLES – Mr.
Motivator
Idles just have a knack for writing instantaneous classics for singles. I couldn't help myself but smile at the lyrics to this one. "Like Tracey Emin in her unmade bed listenin' to The Fall, Like Flava Flav in the club ridin' on the back of John Wayne, Like David Attenborough clubbin' seal clubbers with LeBron James". Come on! Stick this on top of the driving drums and it's just brilliant. - Porridge
Radio – 7 Seconds
This band had already struck gold with their album earlier this year, so I couldn't believe they still had this one in the tank. Perhaps there's more of a straightforward, classic indie structure to this one (and maybe this is why it didn't fit into the framework of the album), but as a standalone song, it doesn't miss the mark. - R.A.P. Ferreira
– Leaving Hell
This song (and album as a whole) really comes into its own after a few listens once you've actually had a chance to catch up with the complexity of his lyrics which are, to me, on another level really. I love his ability to weave in conversational elements into the wider messages of his songs. "Here I am pullin' spectacles for the uninitiated voyeurs, But, bein' piss poor corrupted the discourse, As power functions on a sliding scale, so you might as well, So you might as well, you know what I'm sayin'". - Billie Eilish
– my future
This was one of the better surprises of 2020 for me. As much as I enjoyed Billie's debut album last year, I was curious to see how her relatively 'minimal' sound would evolve next. I loved the honest lyrics on this one in the first half, and then the transition to the funky bass and guitar about half way through just sounded so classy. I can't wait to hear her album.
And the rest of the list...
- Bananagun – People Talk Too Much
- Ezra Collective – Dark Side Riddim
- Nubya Garcia – Pace
- Kevin Morby – The Valley
- Squid – Sludge
- Lianne La Havas – Paper Thin
- Tkay Maidza – My Flowers
- CHAI & Hinds – United Girls Rock’N’Roll Club
- Roisin Murphy – Narcissus
- Eve Owen – After The Love
- Black Country, New Road – Science Fair
- Pan Amsterdam – Carrot Cake (feat. Guts)
- Run The Jewels - Ju$t (feat. Pharrell Williams & Zach de la Rocha)
- Dan Deacon – Become a Mountain
- JAF Trio - Ninth Row of the Fifth Floor
- Alex Kapranos & Clara Luciani – Summer Wine
- Jayda G – Both of Us
- U.S. Girls – 4 American Dollars
- Aluna – The Recipe (feat. KAYTRANADA, Rema)
- Touché Amoré – Come Heroine
- Kelly Lee Owens – Melt!
- Marie Davidson – Renegade Breakdown (feat. L’OEil Nu)
- Marlowe – Future Power Sources (feat. L’Orange, Solemn Brigham, DJ Trackstar)
- Fontaines D.C. – A Hero’s Death
- Megan Thee Stallion – Savage Remix (feat. Beyonce)
- Laura Marling – Song For Our Daughter
- Jamie xx – Idontknow
- Miley Cyrus – Midnight Sky
- Nikitch & Kuna Maze – Hey, This Must Be Deep
- Caribou – You and I
- Mary Lattimore – Sometimes He’s In My Dreams
- The Strokes – Eternal Summer
- Bishop Nehru – In My Zone
- Sufjan Stevens – Video Games
- Hen Ogledd – Trouble
You can listen the rest of the playlist on Spotify here:
I'm hoping to put together my Albums of the Year list in the next few weeks, which I think will prove to be even more difficult this year compared to any other, because of the number of quality releases.
