E-Verse Radio

Ernest Hilbert’s Top Two Hundred Songs of the Decade, 2000-2009

by Ernie on 23/12/09 at 1:27 pm

Note: I’ll feature each of the top twenty-five of the two hundred in its own post over the next month, you can go ahead and see the full list now!

Ernest Hilbert’s Top Two Hundred Best Songs of the Decade

Two hundred? Strange number, right? Yes, I suppose. Here’s the story. I sat down last night after dinner to sketch out a few of the songs from the past decade that have moved me (physically, that is!), made me laugh, saddened me, or for some reason or other stayed with me. I initially intended a top one hundred, but before the hour was up I had nearly two hundred. I decided I’d be at five hundred before I knew it, so I stopped at two hundred. Any more than that would merely warrant a skim by readers. I wanted to assemble a persuasive list of songs I recommend and which I entrust you to locate and hear for yourself. Note: no artist appears more than once on the list, though two singers appear twice in different bands.

As with any list of this kind, it is essentially idiosyncratic. In fact, by nature a list like this is little more than a highly personal selection made with little forethought and no afterthought (well, I went back and added a song by the Strokes; “You Only Live Once” displaced a song by Plants and Animals; sorry, guys). I am not a music professional, nor am I a music critic of any kind. This list will surely frustrate some, perhaps engross or intrigue others. Some will think me dastardly, others dimwitted, still others downright daffy. Rather than being peevish just write in to add to this already ample sampling with your own favorites. And just remember: of course I “missed” some of the songs you love. That’s why you should let us know what they are.

In addition to songs, I have taken the liberty of including two poems and two comedy skits. The first poem is by Franz Wright and appeared on his very good 2009 album Readings from Wheeling Motel, produced by Daniel Ahearn. The second poem is by Philip Larkin, from the album Sunday Sessions. The poems were recorded in 1980 by Larkin’s friend John Weeks. The recordings were only discovered in 2006 by Weeks’s son and issued in 2009 by Faber and Faber. The two comedians are David Cross and Patton Oswalt, both of whom came to prominence as stand-up performers in their own rights during the decade (though both did much before then, such as Cross’s Mr. Show). There are also two “new music” or “concert music” contributions to the list. The first is composer Ken Ueno’s reworking of “Cars” (after Gary Numan) for piano, performed by the prodigy Andrew Russo on his album Mixtape. The other is Daniel Felsenfeld’s trademark early work “Smoking My Diploma.”

Only the first twenty-five songs should be considered ranked in any way. After that, they are all really equal in my opinion. Here you will find hip-hop and heavy metal, mash-ups and masterpieces, twee-core and tender ballads, hard rock and hardly audible new folk. I supply brief notes on the top twenty-five in the hopes of dispelling some of the bafflement many will surely experience when they see my selections. Hear that popping sound across Europe and North America? That’s all the heads exploding. Enjoy!

1. “Blood And Peanut Butter” by BC Camplight
2. “I’m on the Road” by Billie The Vision And The Dancers
3. “How a Resurrection Really Feels” by The Hold Steady
4. “Albion” by Babyshambles
5. “Los Angeles, I’m Yours” by The Decembrists
6. “Punches” by Collin Herring
7. “Carol Brown (Stick Around)” by Flight of the Conchords
8. “Soul Suckers” by Amos Lee
9. “Heads Will Roll” by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
10. “99 Problems” by Jay Z mashed with the Beatles” by Danger Mouse
11. “The World is Full of Crashing Bores” by Morrissey
12. “Squatters” by Jakk Frost
13. “Despicable Heroes” by Arch Enemy
14. “Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)” by Peter Sarstedt
15. “Fuck The People” by The Kills
16. “I Love The Unknown” by Clem Snide
17. “In The New Year” by The Walkmen
18. “Jesus Of Suburbia” by Green Day
19. “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse
20. “She’s a Rejector” by Of Montreal
21. “Strange Overtones” by David” byrne & Brian Eno
22. “The Great Salt Lake” by Band Of Horses
23. “The Poor House” by The Boxmasters
24. “Walcott” by Vampire Weekend
25. “What Katie Did” by The Libertines
26. “The Night Descending” by Iron and Wine
27. “100 Days, 100 Nights” by Sharon Jones
28. “8 AM Departure” by The Perishers
29. “Afterlove” by East Hundred
30. “Afternoon Sister” by Air
31. “Agenda Suicide” by The Faint
32. “All Cut Out” by The Figments
33. “Antarctica” by The Weepies
34. “Anti-Anti” by Snowden
35. “Australia” by The Shins
36. “Available” by The National
37. “Bear” by The Antlers
38. “Beautiful Day” by U2
39. “Big Chief Pt.2” by Sweetwater Abilene
40. “Big Noise” by Didi
41. “Black Swan” by Thom Yorke
42. “Blackout (Featuring Lox & Jay-Z)” by DMX
43. “Blush” by The Raveonettes
44. “Broken Toy” by Keane
45. “Brooklyn Bound” by The Black Keys
46. “Bruises” by Chairlift
47. “Bully of New York” by Ana Egge
48. “You Only Live Once” by The Strokes
49. “Canadian Boyfriend” by All Girl Summer Fun Band
50. “Cars” by Ken Ueno (after Gary Numan) performed by Andrew Russo
51. “Cartoon Music for Superheroes” by Albert Hammond, Jr.
52. “Catch The Sun” by the Doves
53. “Clint Eastwood” by Gorillaz
54. “Clocks” by Coldplay
55. “Cocaine and Ashes” by Son Volt
56. “Collapsing at Your Doorstep” by Air France
57. “Complainte De La Butte” by Rufus Wainwright
58. “Cripple & the Starfish” by Antony And The Johnsons
59. “Dear Chicago” by Ryan Adams
60. “Defiling the Gates of Ishtar” by Nile
61. “Dig, Lazarus, Dig” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
62. “Dirt Off Your Android” by Jaydiohead (Jay-Z mashed with Radiohead)
63. “Disasteroid” by Blaster The Rocket Man
64. “Disco Down” by Kylie Minogue
65. “Don’t Cry Out” by Shiny Toy Guns
66. “Elmo Delmo” by Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks
67. “Expensive Tastes” by Cold War Kids
68. “Fine Is Fine” by Peasant
69. “For Emma” by Bon Iver
70. “For The Price Of A Cup Of Tea” by Belle And Sebastian
71. “Foundations” by Kate Nash
72. “Fuck This… I’m Leaving” by The American Analog Set
73. “Generation” by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
74. “Golden Age” by TV on the Radio
75. “Grocery Robots” by Patton Oswalt
76. “Hard Livin’” by Railroad Earth
77. “Have To Have Everything” by Milton & The Devils Party
78. “He Doesn’t Know Why” by Fleet Foxes
79. “Head Crusher” by Megadeth
80. “Heaven” by The Klezmatics
81. “Hercules Theme” by Hercules and Love Affair
82. “Hit the Heartbreaks” by the Black Kids
83. “How Am I To Be” by The Watson Twins
84. “How Can I Love You (if You Won’t Lie Down?)” by The Silver Jews
85. “How It Ends” by DeVotchKa
86. “Hyperion and Sunset” by Grant Lee Buffalo
87. “I Called You Back” by Bonnie “Prince” Billy
88. “I Have Space” by Mates Of State
89. “I Might Be Wrong” by Radiohead
90. “I Wish I Was in New Orleans” by Scarlett Johansson
91. “I Wonder” by Kanye West
92. “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me” by The Jayhawks
93. “Icky Thump” by White Stripes
94. “In The Mausoleum” by Beirut
95. “Intake Interview” by Franz Wright
96. “Je Sais Que Tu Sais” by Iggy Pop
97. “Jihad” by Slayer
98. “Kill All Hippies” by Primal Scream
99. “Laisse Tomber les Filles” by April March
100. “Lasso” by Phoenix
101. “Last to Die” by Bruce Springsteen
102. “Let The Cool Goddess Rust Away” by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
103. “Level” by The Raconteurs
104. “Librarian” by My Morning Jacket
105. “Lived in Bars” by Cat Power
106. “Lover’s Spit” by Broken Social Scene
107. “Machine Gun” by Portishead
108. “Meantime” by Noogie
109. “Mother Knows Best” by Crystal Castles
110. “Mover” by The Verve
111. “Mr. Writer” by Stereophonics
112. “Must Tell You Tonight” by Scissor Sisters
113. “My Heroes Have Always Been Crazy” by the A-Sides
114. “My Little Japanese Cigarette Case” by Spoon
115. “National Talk Like a Pirate Day” by Lambchop
116. “Nightmare Girl” by Aimee Mann
117. “No Cars Go” by Arcade Fire
118. “Numbered!” by The Devin Townsend Project
119. “Ocarina” by Birds & Batteries
120. Okay” by Venice Is Sinking
121. “Orange” by The Filthy Youth
122. “Out of Egypt, into the Great Laugh of Mankind, and I Shake the Dirt from My Sandals as I Run” by Sufjan Stevens
123. “Pandering To The Locals!” by David Cross
124. “Past In Present” by Feist
125. “Percussion Gun” by White Rabbits
126. “Play Your Part (Pt. 2)” by Girl Talk
127. “Poor Places” by Wilco
128. “Pulling On A Line” by Great Lake Swimmers
129. “Rental Car” by Beck
130. “Return to Me” by Sparklehorse
131. “Richland Women Blues” by Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
132. “Riding to Vanity Fair” by Paul McCartney
133. “Rock Your Body” by Justin Timberlake
134. “Run This Town (feat. Kanye West & Rihanna)” by Jay-Z
135. “Run to Your Grave” by The Mae Shi
136. “Sad Robot” by Pornophonique
137. “Sadder Side” by Patty Hearst Shifter
138. “Scraped” by Guns N’ Roses
139. “Scythian Empire” by Andrew Bird
140. “She Purred While I Grrrd” by Wild Beasts
141. “Shot in the Back of the Head” by Moby
142. “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” by Beyoncé
143. “Slime & Oxygen” by the Black Lips
144. “Slow Car Crash” by Headphones
145. “Slow Talkers” by Kurt Vile
146. “Smoking My Diploma” by Daniel Felsenfeld
147. “So Many Nights” by The Cat Empire
148. “Songs that We Sing” by Charlotte Gainsbourg
149. “Space and the Woods” by Late of the Pier
150. “Special Cases” by Massive Attack
151. “Stella Was A Diver And She Was Always Down” by Interpol
152. “Still Alive” by Lisa Miskovsky
153. “Stillness Is The Move” by Dirty Projectors
154. “Suicide & Redemption” by Metallica
155. “Summertime Girlfriend” by A.M. Sixty
156. “Sunlight” by Harlem Shakes
157. “Sweet Chicago” by The Greyjacks
158. “Sweet Love for Planet Earth” by the Fuck Buttons
159. “Take Me Out” by Franz Ferdinand
160. “That’s Coke” by La Coka Nostra
161. “The Bridge” by Clinic
162. “The End Is Near” by The Fiery Furnaces
163. “The Greater Good” by Nine Inch Nails
164. “The Man the Myth the Wreck” by Mustasch
165. “The Mess We’re In” by P.J. Harvey (Live, Paris L’Olympia 2001)
166. “The Reeling” by Passion Pit
167. “The Very Merry Un-Birthday Song” by Mercury Radio Theater
168. “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song” by The Flaming Lips
169. “Things The Grandchildren Should Know (Live At Town Hall)” by Eels
170. “Thinking About You” by Norah Jones
171. “This River is Wild” by The Killers
172. “Those Dancing Days Are Gone” by Carla Bruni
173. “Three Dimes Down “ by Drive” by Truckers
174. “To Live and Die in LBI” by Lifter Puller
175. “Toads, Revisited” by Philip Larkin
176. “Train Under Water” by Bright Eyes
177. “Transcendental Blues” by Steve Earle
178. “Turn of the Screw” by Heaven and Hell
179. “Two Miles An Hour” by Ludacris
180. “Vampire” by Antsy Pants
181. “Vertebrae” by Vertebrae” by Björk
182. “Walt Whitman Bridge” by Marah
183. “Waltz (Better Than Fine)” by Fiona Apple
184. “Warsaw or The First Breath You Take After You Give Up” by Them Crooked Vultures
185. “Way Of Life” by Lil’ Wayne
186. “We Ain’t” by The Game
187. “We Were Sparkling” by My Brightest Diamond
188. “We Will Become Silhouettes” by The Postal Service
189. “What If” by Lucinda Williams
190. “When I’m Gone” by Vivian Girls
191. “Where We’ll Never Grow Old” by Anonymous 4
192. “White America” by Eminem
193. “White Lies” by Paolo Nutini
194. “White Mystery” by Minus The Bear
195. “Why Did We Ever Meet” by The Promise Ring
196. “Wicker Chair” by The Kings Of Leon
197. “Willing” by The BoDeans
198. “Wolf Down the Earth” by Gojira
199. “World Ablaze” by Killswitch Engage
200. “You, Me and the Bourgeoisie” by The Submarines

Extra: “Mississippi” by Bob Dylan (This song appears on Love and Theft, an album with the distinctly unfortunate release date of September 11th, 2001. It contains one of my favorite Dylan lines (and that’s saying something), the conventional, quiet line “I been in trouble ever since I set my suitcase down.” Yeah, I know, Bob, I know. I’ve been there, and I’ll be there again. This was a convincing return to his style of original, countrified pop song, and it’s one of many excellent songs he put out over the naughts, his fifth decade of recording!)

Ernie

Ernest Hilbert is founder of E-Verse Radio.

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