The 100 Best Songs of the 2010s (91-100)

10 years ago, I listed the best songs of the decade, 2000 to 2009.

Now I'm doing it again: the best songs of the decade that's coming an end, 2010 to 2019.

(Click here for the whole list so far, with a Spotify playlist.)

The rules:

• I'm using the traditional definition of "song," meaning it has to be sung — no instrumentals.

• The song had to be released in 2010 or later. No covers of old songs.

All the usual caveats apply: that this kind of ranking is inevitably arbitrary, that the list is based on my opinions and tastes, etc. For instance, I'm not a big hip-hop fan, so don't expect to see that genre well-represented here (though my 2000-2009 list did include a hip-hop song at #22).

Check out some of these other song lists for different perspectives.

I'll roll out 10 songs per post, counting down from 100 to 1, and I should have the whole thing up before Christmas.

Here goes!


100. The Lumineers — "Ho Hey"




99. Jukebox the Ghost — "Jumpstarted"

Remind you of anyone?




98. CHVRCHES — "Never Ending Circles"

I like how it sounds like the singer's breath is incorporated into the instrumental backing.




97. Vampire Weekend — "Unbelievers"




96. David Byrne & St. Vincent — "Who"

A collaboration by two wonderfully weird musical geniuses.




95. Soundgarden — "Been Away for Too Long"

Full disclosure, this video stars my second cousin, Ariane Rinehart.




94. The National — "The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness"

The best song title of the decade?




93. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings — "I Learned the Hard Way"

Sharon Jones died in 2016, but her soul music lives on.

The song starts at 1:15 in this video.




92. Mumford & Sons — "I Will Wait"




91. The Zombies — "Chasing the Past"

It's still the time of the season for the Zombies.




81 - 90 —>

Still more music I've been listening to: Psapp, the Chromatics, Beirut, Sharon Jones

Now that we're done with the grunge all-time top 40, here are some more snapshots of bands I've been listening to lately. (If you want to catch up with earlier editions of this feature, try this link.)

As usual, each "youtube" link goes to one of their songs (in extra-large format -- click on the screen if you want the regular format), and each "myspace" or "website" link goes to their official profile with free streaming songs.

Psapp -- "toytronica" by spousal duo

[youtube - Hi]

[myspace]

The Chromatics -- like Blondie on tranquilizers

[youtube - In the city]

[myspace]

Beirut -- like Rufus Wainwright leading a boisterous singalong at some party in the 19th century

[youtube - Elephant gun]

[myspace]

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings (photo) -- like the last 3 or 4 decades never happened

[youtube - 100 days, 100 nights]

[myspace]