10 (or 20) Awesomely Awesome Summer Joints
Okay so here is my list, in no certain order (the numbers are just there for reference) of songs that are making the end of the 2007 summer worth while.
- J*Davey- LazyDaze
There is something funky and fun about this song, its upbeat and pop-y and maybe there is something that gets to me about the fact that the tempo of the song is so opposed to the lyrics. But then I listen and it completely captures in the span of a song, what I’ve spent a great deal of my summer doing and enjoying.
Ps. If you haven’t heard J*Davey at all, it’s a good time to get with the program.
- Christina Aguilera- On our way
Yep I said it. If you haven’t given Back to Basic a try because of a natural aversion to Aguilera’s annoyingly overdone singing technique, I can’t say that I blame you. But the piano rift in this song exudes fatness. I’m not above the law of cheesiness and sentimentality so the fact that it’s a song about friends and my best friend just moved here, might, maybe have something to do with this pick.
“Still Dirty” ain’t so bad either.
- Common- I Want You
No, Common, it is I who wants you. The way this song opens up is great in and of itself. Its got this sort of ebb and flow in the beat which they slowly becomes slightly more complex. The whole collaboration with Will.i.am is hot, and the thing about Will.i.am is sometimes you hate him (Chrisette Michelle’s Be Okay is a great example), and sometimes, as with this track you wonder where he tucks the little genius that lives in his head sometimes. Common’s voice is so smooth its unbelievable and the rhyme doesn’t disappoint.
Other favorite track “Misunderstood”
- Curtis Mayfield-Pusherman
There is honestly nothing new I can say about this track. YOU know why it’s fat. I know why it’s fat. Let’s just all hail it’s fatness and thank Mr. Mayfield for keeping me sane.
Also see “Move on Up”
- Jill Scott- Gotta Get Up
This song has gotten me through every summer since the first time I heard it. There is nothing better then waking up in the morning and actually having a song that matches your mood so completely you wonder if you wrote it yourself. Jill has this ability to sing about the mundane in a way thats very poetic and beautiful in and of itself.
“Slowly Surely” has been my joint as well for the past few years.
- Peter Bjorn and John-Young Folks
Um. Thanks 344 Greene. See the vids here. Without those vids I would never have discovered this song, without this song I would not have effectively annoyed 50% of the people in the office by putting it on repeat for hours at a time.
I’m a fan of remixes as well, so Kanye’s “Young Folks” makes me just as happy.
- Amy Winehouse-Me and Mr. Jones
I think everyone is up on their Winehouse this summer. It is, first of all, impossible to escape her since she has been on the cover of every magazine since summer began. This song never gets old because it has this blues-y, jazzy, reggae thing going on that I think is a perfect mix of new and old sounds. The thing that makes her so amazing is that she stays true to an old school vibe without coming off as a knock off; it’s still completely her own songs. She owns it.
- Janelle Monae-Lettin Go
THE song of the summer. At least in my circle. Janelle Monae is like Sarah Vaughn meets Chuck Berry meets Andre 3000. She’s exactly what pop music needs right now, with style and substance to boot. The solidness of her voice is apparent in songs like “Peachtree Blues” which lets you know that she’s a talent in a league of her own. This song (Lettin go) has the type of vibe that makes you wish you were riding down the street with the windows rolled down singing like your life depended on it. L-E-T-T-I-N-G-O!
“Violet Stars Happy Hunting” was like a gateway drug for my new obsession.
- Rihana/Fergie-Umberella/Glamorous.
These songs are both of the same ilk. They’re the songs I heard the first time and hated a little, heard again and hated a little less. And then suddenly I was hanging out on my friends stoop and realized that I actually kind of loved them a little. No wait, A LOT. Summer is about ice cream and bubble gum and playing outside with chalk and these songs make me think of all of that. They’re also good for dancing.
- John Legend- Anything (that’s not a song title)
Best listened to crossing the Williamsburg Bridge at 5am with the sun rising as the backdrop.
Enough said.
*Honorable Mentions
-Nina Simone- Sinner Man
-Feist-My Man, My Moon
-Dwele-Day at a time
-Ciara-Promise
-Chrisette Michelle-Mr. Radio
