I thought it would be fun to take a look at my Top 10 most-listened to songs in 2008.

My Top 10 for 2008 was compiled based on a Smart Playlist that I created in iTunes:

I decided to limit the Top 10 only to songs that I’ve rated between 3 and 5 stars. My rating system is that if I can stand a song but don’t ever really want to listen to it, I give it 2 stars. If it’s a song that I never want to listen to but don’t want to delete (for various reasons), I give it 1 star. So 3-5 stars means only songs that I actually want to listen to. I also limited it to my “Music” playlist, which excludes podcasts, audio books, and anything related to Disney. Not that there isn’t plenty of great Disney music… I just don’t want to hear it mixed in with Nirvana and Tom Petty.

When available, each song below is accompanied by a link to buy it on iTunes and/or Amazon, an embedded 30-second sample (using Quicktime), and a link to the music video. I also wrote few sentences about each. While the songs are numbered, they’re all within 2 play counts of each other, so the numbers don’t really mean anything.

With all that out of the way, here we go:

My Top 10 Most-Listened-To Songs in 2008

 

1. “#1 Crush” by Garbage from Romeo + Juliet

Amazon – iTunes

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Garbage is one of my favorite bands (or at least they were until their pop-induced third album came out), but I’m surprised that out of all of their songs, this song from a movie soundtrack made it onto my most-played list.

 

2. “20 Ghosts III” by Nine Inch Nails from Ghosts I-IV

Amazon

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No shock that Nine Inch Nails made it to this list twice. In fact, I would have guessed that the entire top 10 would have been all Nine Inch Nails songs since they released two free albums in 2008 (Ghosts I-IV and The Slip) and I saw them when they came to Orlando on their “Lights In The Sky” tour. They’ve been a favorite of mine since middle school and continue to entertain me often. What I don’t know why I listened to this particular song from Ghosts I-IV more times than any of the other 36 instrumental songs.

 

3. “Plastic Passion” by The Cure from Boys Don’t Cry

iTunes

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I’ve been an on-and-off fan of The Cure for many years. Sometimes I enjoy Robert Smith’s emotion-filled singing, sometimes it annoys me. I suppose it depends on my mood. This song has always been one of theirs that regularly got stuck in my head.

 

4. “A Forest” by The Cure from Greatest Hits – The Cure

Amazon – iTunes – Music Video

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Honestly, I don’t even recognize this song. This must be one that iTunes chose for me on shuffle and I just let it run because it’s not bad… but not memorable either.

 

5. “Space Oddity” by David Bowie from The Best Of David Bowie 1969

Amazon – iTunes – Music Video

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Out of the 66 David Bowie songs in my iTunes library, this is easily my favorite. It’s easy to play on guitar, fun to sing along with, and has no relatable meaning in everyday life. It’s just a good song.

 

6. “The Twistinside” by Everclear from Sparkle And Fade

Amazon – iTunes

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You could substitute this for almost any Everclear song and not realize it. I like the band’s sound but have never really paid attention to the music beyond a casual listen. I’m guessing that iTunes chose this one as well.

 

7. “Queer” by Garbage from Garbage

Amazon – iTunes – Music Video

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This is one of Garbage’s best songs and their first hit single. I remember seeing the innuendo-filled black-and-white music video on MTV many years ago (when they still played music) and immediately wanting to know more about the band. I was instantly hooked. The combination of Shirley Manson’s sultry voice and Butch Vig’s knowledge of music production created a fantastic and unique sound.

 

8. “Guns In The Sky” by INXS from Kick

Amazon – iTunes – Music Video

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It’s impossible not to rock out to this first track on the ultimate INXS album. The new singer the band found on the recent “Rock Star: INXS” reality show is good, but just doesn’t have the same presence that Michael Hutchence did.

 

9. “I Do Not Want This” by Nine Inch Nails from The Downward Spiral

Amazon – iTunes

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While The Downward Spiral marked Nine Inch Nails’ biggest mainstream success with songs like Closer and Hurt, I personally prefer the lesser-known tracks like this one. Listening to Trent Reznor belt out its anger-filled chorus over an unrelenting and distorted backbeat generally makes me feel better when I’m frustrated or annoyed.

 

10. “A Nightmare On My Street” by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince from He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper

Amazon – iTunes

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He’s the DJ, I’m The Rapper was the very first CD I ever owned. Will Smith, then known as The Fresh Prince (pre-television), appealed to my then eight-year-old ears with his easy-going style and comedic lyrics. Even at that young age, I was a fan of Freddy Krueger and A Nightmare on Elm Street, so this song was perfect for me. But even today, I still can’t figure out what Freddy says in this part of the song:

I went downstairs to grab some juice or a coke
Flipped the TV off, and then I almost choked
When I heard this awful voice comin from behind
It said, “You __________________ now you must die!”

I always thought it sounded like “You turned off David Letterman” and a Google search tells me that I’m not the only one, but also offers alternatives like “You got my favorite letter” and “You are my favorite rapper”. Anyone know the correct lyric?

 

So fire up your iTunes, recreate the Smart Playlist above, and post your Top 10 for 2008 in the comments below.

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