The Top 100 from 1997-2002: No. 41-60
No. 60: -blink-182- Adam's Song
Very similar in style to Papa Roach's "Last Resort", this song, also about suicide, was more radio friendly, but, at the same time, explored the emotional side a little deeper than Roach did. Whereas Roach sought to look at someone contemplating suicide, -blink- choose to write a song about someone who's already made that decision, making the lyrics jump right back at you every time you hear them. Well done.
No. 59: Big Wreck- Blown Wide Open
When frontman Ian Thornley isn't preoccupied with that hairball caught in his throat (which happens more often than I'd like), he can belt out solid tunes and this was one of them. It's an emotional track about a man standing on the edge, trying to figure out just what went wrong. By far the band's deepest and best tune.
No. 58: Avril Lavigne- Complicated
Yeah, the song's a tad overplayed but that won't stop it from making this chart, an excellent song about a boy that causes Avril so much grief for being two-faced. Lavigne does an excellent job of cutting into the guy, digging as far as she can go without angering her listeners. Well done.
No. 57: Outkast- Da Art of Storytellin'
When rap duo Outkast isn't stinking up the joint with pathetically squeaky songs ("So Fresh So Clean" anyone?) they can be pretty good storytellers and they display that form in fine fashion in this rarely played hit. This song details the story of a troubled girl the group met at a show who eventually committed suicide, with the group lamenting the entire situation. Very deep and well written.
No. 56: Limp Bizkit- Nookie
Before Limp turned pop and threw musical and lyrical quality out the window, they were writing excellent angry rock tunes that helped ease the pain of anyone seething in red too much (that's why they head the "Anger Management" tour), and this was one of them. This song details a story about frontman Fred Durst's experiences with a two-timing girlfriend, displaying a confused Durst and wonderfully laced lyrics. The only problem: Durst's yelling. At least it doesn't take too much away from the track, unlike many of Limp's other songs.
No. 55: The Rascalz f/Barrington Levy & K-OS- Top Of The World
There's a reason why I've always loved The Rascalz and that's because they always provided a different sound from standard hip-hop. This song has an almost all-world vibe, with several different instruments that usually fit better for world artists than hip-hop mixed so expertly by DJ Kemo into one great vibe. It also doesn't hurt that emcees Red-1 and Misfit of The Rascalz and K-OS expunge great raps, as well as Barrington Levy's great Caribbean voice giving the track a finishing touch. One of hip-hop's better tracks.
No. 54: Eagle-Eye Cherry- Save Tonight
Back in 1998, a New Yorker-turned Swede burst onto the scene with a catchy but deep acoustic folky pop rock song, and this was it. Expertly written, Eagle-Eye displays a story where he tells his girlfriend he has to leave, despite his best intentions. Hey, he may not be the best guitarist, but he's one of the few artists who can twist his shortcomings into excellent pop tunes, as was the case here. Too bad he one-hit: he definitely deserved better.
No. 53: Tara MacLean- If I Fall
Before Michelle Branch, Avril Lavigne, Vanessa Carlton and Jennifer Love Hewitt was another teenager strumming a guitar from Canada that wrote a song in 1999 that could rank with the best of them. It's not as compelling musically as later "guitar girl" songs, but it was deep and very well written, with lyrics that only Branch has topped. It's a shame she didn't establish herself: she was very promising and definitely could have stopped the Pop Explosion before it had a chance to start. Sigh: at least we still have today's girls.
No. 52: 2PAC- Changes
I've long considered Tupac Shakur to be the best rapper ever and this song was a fine example. The lowdown is simple: 2PAC can deliver like no other and, at the same time, say something smart, like this track about how the world has gone too far away from its morals and needs to get back onto its feet. It's not his best work- that would have to be "California Love", released in 1995- but definitely among his best.
No. 51: The Rascalz f/Notch & Sazon Diamonte- Crazy World
Call this one "Top of The World: The Sequel", The Rascalz provide a track where they tell the world "don't mess with Canada", but, at the same time, display frustrations over failing to hit it big outside of Canada. It's one of the few surviving tracks featuring Diamonte, who unfortunately passed away before the album hit stores in July 2002, and it is a shame he is gone, since he certainly had promise.
No. 50: Maestro Fresh Wes- Stick To Your Vision
His biggest hit in over seven years when it came out in 1999, "Stick To Your Vision" is an uplifting rap track that professes strength in hard times. "I've seen a lot of valleys/Seen a lot of peaks/Been the centre of victory and defeat/Sometimes I fell but a voice kept saying 'son, stick to your vision, keep the composition' ", Maestro expertly raps, displaying his excellent rap skills. I'd argue this tune's better than "Let Your Backbone Slide", his previous big hit (of 1992, no less) since it is smarter and a lot better done, an achievement since the latter song is also an exceptional tune.
No. 49: Bryan Adams- On A Day Like Today
Featuring a thought-provoking puzzle in it's video, "On A Day Like Today" was Adams' most thoughtful and best track in his later career. Although Adams is getting a little long in the tooth, he's still able to pen great hits twenty years after his career started. If he doesn't get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame�no wait, there's no way he can't get in considering his amazing talent.
No. 48: Goo Goo Dolls- Slide
"Don't you love the life you've killed/The priest's on the phone/Your father hit the wall/Your mom disowned you" sings Goos frontman John Rzeznik on the follow-up single to the band's smash "Iris". Whoa. Rzeznik's style has always been "in-your-face" and here he's on display at full force, providing why he's one of the best songwriters in music today. Here's the good part: he's still writing good tunes, and what a joy they are to hear.
No. 47: Matchbox 20- 3AM
Rob Thomas, the frontman for the band, has always touted himself as an extraordinary songwriter and why not? He won a Grammy for penning Santana's "Smooth" in 1999, and offers up this intelligent storytelling tune. He's definitely a good songwriter, but later Matchbox 20 works never really had the same energy as earlier tracks like "Push" and this track did. As for this 1998 song, it's about a guy frustrated with a good-for-nothing girl that builds to a wonderful finish sonically. Definitely one of rock's better tunes.
No. 46: Crazytown- Butterfly
These guys one-hit with this song (and deservedly too, I might add), but at least they gave us this track before exiting. It's a very uplifting "rock-hop" (rock and hip-hop cross) song about a guy who's been saved by the love of his girlfriend. "I used to think happy endings happened only in the books I read/But you made me feel alive when I was almost dead," raps Epic, using enough lyrical power to uplift without being silly. This song is part of the definition of what a feel-good track should be: uplifting but with enough spice that it stays away from being silly, something the Los Angeles boys nailed here.
No. 45: The Red Hot Chili Peppers- Otherside
Somehow, from jamming at their homes, the Peppers came up with an amazingly deep, dark and very artistic track, something that you'd think requires more effort (I'd argue that to pull off any type of song- be it simple or poetic- needs a lot of work anyway, however). Still, in the end, this song, a combination of energetic and mellow (the two sides of rock music the Peppers have experimented with in the past) was worked to perfection, giving the Peppers easily their best song ever.
No. 44: McMaster & James- Thank You
Of all the songs ever done about how satisfying a feeling it is to be forgiven, I think this piece- exactly what the song is about- certainly ranks among the best. A smarter and deeper tune than "Love Wins Every Time" (the Winnipeg pop duo's first single), "Thank You" showed that McMaster & James had continuing promise, but, unfortunately, the music world in 2000 was too focused on the Backstreet Boys to even pay attention to how much better these guys were.
No. 43: Ghetto Concept f/Ray Smoove, Angel Duss & In Essence- Rest In Peace
Very rarely does a hip-hop tune ever carry a smart and emotional undertone, but, when it does, it's usually done very well (as is the case with P. Diddy's "I'll Be Missing You" and this track). This song, about fallen friends, is a touching and emotional lament, very well written, and, to top it off, it features one of the few female rappers who can actually be smart- Angel Duss, who throws in a reference to the late Notorious B.I.G. The other? Canada's own Michee Mee, whose work didn't make this chart, partly because Duss' work on this track is much more compelling.
No. 42: Great Big Sea- Guilty Conscience
The Newfoundland folk pop band have always excelled at what they do, providing a refreshing and vibrant sound to pop radio while still staying true to their Newfoundland roots. This song is one of the best examples of what they do best, and, at the same time, is a smart track about frontman Alan Doyle's bothersome conscience. I can't remember the exact words, but Doyle, at one point, sings that he doesn't want to be Catholic because he's tired of "feeling guilty all the time", a line that's stuck with me for quite a while. Is it true? Well, I won't start the debate, at least not here
No. 41: Mary Mary- Shackles (Praise You)
One of the more uplifting and better written gospel tunes ever done, the song comes off as a prayer, but, at the same time, avoids getting too preachy. I've long held Christian music is too preachy for mainstream markets- what the music should be reaching- and, if they ever needed a benchmark, they need to look no further than this song, as the girls proved that Christian music can work mainstream.
-DG
The Top 100: Nos. 60-41
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