Usher—“Good Kisser”
#70
I’ll admit to never being much impressed by Usher. He’s made some great records (including this one), but, much like Beyonce, you can hear how hard he’s working, the calculation and ambition behind every moment. I know that for some people this is part of his appeal; we live in a time where people are given more praise for the quantity of their work, for the amount of time and energy they put into it, than the quality. Even a record as lascivious as this sounds devoted more to a puritan work ethic than to sex. Or perhaps it’s closer to say that the sex itself seems more like work, a practiced skill rather than a libidinous release. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great record (the way Usher’s vocal echoes the bassline may be the best thing he’s ever done), but it comes from a world I’m fairly sure I’d never want to live in.
Josh Kaufman—“I Can’t Make You Love Me”
#71
Sia—“Chandelier”
#75
After hearing this, I feel as if I should apologize for all the times I’ve said a record was overwrought or overdone. “Chandelier” is the sort of record those words are meant for, and even they can’t do it justice. It’s almost impossible to convey how over the top this record is, from its booming drums to Sia’s screaming vocals. There’s a song in the maelstrom somewhere, but good luck finding it, and when you do you won’t find much. Even Rihanna, who Sia imitates in her phrasing, shows more restraint than this. Hell, Demi Lovato shows more restraint than this.
Chistina Grimmie—“How To Love”
#79
Sara Bareilles—“I Choose You”
#81
This is what her haters have been waiting for, the love song she swore she’d never write. But guess what? It’s also her best record since “Love Song”, emotionally glowing but astringent in approach, all pizzicato tippy-toeing around the emotions she’d like to shout about. The lyrics get sentimental, and occasionally fall into cliché, but the music saves everything. What with this and Ingrid Michaelson’s “Girls Chase Boys”, this is turning into a pretty good year tor adult contemporary. I wonder what Colbie Caillat is doing.
Pharrell—“Come Get It Bae”
#82
AKA “Blurred Lines Redux: Blur More”
Brad Paisley—“River Bank”
#88
I don’t buy the idea that this is a reaction to the controversy over “Accidental Racist”. Paisley has always balanced his genre-stretching and challenges to the philosophical narrowness of country music with simpler, more relaxed, and more humorous takes on country life. Besides, “River Bank” is easily as genre-stretching, at least musically, as anything he’s ever done. The sound is familiar enough to lovers of pop, but for the country audience it’s close to revolutionary, and since Paisley is one of the better songwriters of the last decade, this is a good deal better than most of the pop it’s influenced by. The first verse alone demonstrates such mastery of craft it’s almost awe-inspiring. Paisley can, I suppose, be partly credited with the invention of bro-country, and for that he should take his lumps, but he’s also far beyond it. He works on so high a level no one else in country can touch him.
Tinashe featuring Schoolboy Q—“2 On”
#89
Reminiscent of early Ciara, only DJ Mustard’s production is less defined, to say nothing of Tinashe’s vocal. “Make money like an invoice” may be one of the dumbest lines I’ve heard all year, and that’s saying something. Schoolboy Q is on here, too, though I find it hard to remember just where.
Brantley Gilbert—“17 Again”
#90
On his last record to chart, “My Baby’s Guns ‘n’ Roses”, Gilbert rhymed “pretty” with “Paradise City”. On “17 Again” he rhymes “pretty” with “Panama City”. But wait! Last time “pretty” came before “city. This time it comes after. Is there no end to the man’s inventiveness?