Let me rank these alphabetically.
Always Be My Baby: Legitimately the best thing to come from the
Daydream album. Mariah sounds near-perfect, but the most amazing thing is how this song works structurally. EVERYTHING works - the intro, the verses, the bridges, that chorus, that middle eight, and the end-chorus/outro. Just really a well-done pop song. Also - how else is going to introduce a whole generation to words like indefinitely and inevitably? ONLY MARIAH.
Better the Devil You Know: Maybe some context is needed for full appreciation. This is Kylie's
Slave 4 U - her full coming out into her Sex Kylie persona. This song was originally relatively sedate; it was Kylie who insisted that the production match the trends of the 1990 club world.
And it does. Those tambourines at the beginning! The heavy bass. Slightest hints of industrial. YES.
And all secured by Kylie's most confident and strong vocal she had delivered up to that point. Truly a work of art.
(Side note - probably the most depressing and sad lyrics I've ever heard in a four on the floor number. Perfectly balanced by the vocal, which eschews interpretation for full power.)
Celebrity Skin: I can see supa's point that the bridges lack the full gutteral power of the verses and chorus, and I understand it. But I think the song needs that downtime to fully work at its loudest points. Not their best, but man, Courtney had one hell of a rock voice on her. Shame it all faded away. Also, without the bridges - we wouldn't have those counter-harmonies. Best part of the song.
**** and Run: The best song of the week. Sorry, I was wavering, but the first three lines alone paint such a vivid picture ... nothing else can compete. One of the great things about so many of the songs on
Exile in Guvyille is that they don't lag .. they hit every structural goal post so effortlessly.
Go West: Their last big American hit. How funny is that?
Neil Tennant's voice is an ...
acquired taste, but it really works here. Only PSB could find seas of emotion in a Village People song, and rearrange it so that it honors the frivolity of the original without sacrificing resonance.
Karma Police: Maybe the best bridge of the week? The beginning of Radiohead challenging conventions, and making music that was/is deliberately hard to embrace. But once "for a minute, I lost myself" kicks in, there's no hiding. The end bit of noise, as if the protagonist is being sucked into the machine, is actually brilliant.
Mysterious Ways: It's such a kick to hear Bono's relatively young voice! Very good, but in a week like this ...
Save the Best for Last: I can't front with this song. I legit can't. Before I knew anything about love, or crushes, I felt this song. Felt the **** out of it. I was five/six when it was released, and it moved me like no pop song had ever before. It's so early 90s gross, but not as gross as it could be. Her vocal is so delightful; she makes so many unusual and unexpected choices in her delivery. It was such a hit that it set her down a path of mommyhood in cardigans that erased all of the hard-hitting R&Dance music she'd been doing, but I'm trying to ignore that and concentrate on the feeling. THE FEELING.
But YouTube reminded me that they made a Christmas version of this.
Stop: Love how this is an obvious tribute to Motown/Northern Soul, but still sounds distinctly Spice. Love that all five get parts to shine. Love ESPECIALLY how Emma gets the best parts.
Summer Babe (Winter Version): A lot of people aren't getting this.
It takes a while, but I totally understand the concept of the song, and yes, Stephen Malkmus' detached vocal. It's hard to put into context, but he was one of the first to sing this way. I love how the band is KICKING it - there's a looseness here that no other rock band that's played in this game has had. Supa is right - that guitar solo is some next level ****. Damn, how is this not going to be my number ten? Oh, right - this week is disgusting.
