The Top 20 Of 2003

I do this every year.

Usually I keep it to 15 and do some random honorable mentions here and there, but this year I'm going to 20 mostly because of the disturbing and possibly appalling lack of across-the-board quality. There's more hip-hop than ever on this list, which is either a statement about my evolving tastes or a statement about the condition of the rock scene. In an odd set of circumstances, the beginning and end of the year were goldmines, while the middle, especially the summer, was almost a wasteland. Gah.

I LOVE YOU... JUST NOT QUITE LIKE A FAT KID LOVES CAKE

Norah Jones - "Don't Know Why"
Killer Mike - "AKshun (Yeah!)", "A.D.I.D.A.S."
Beyonce feat. Jay-Z - "Crazy In Love"
DMX - "X Gonna Give It To You"
The White Stripes - "The Hardest Button to Button"
Outkast - "Bust"
Foo Fighters - "Times Like These"
Chingy feat. Snoop Dogg & Ludacris - "Holidae Inn"

AWAY WE GO

#20 - OutKast (feat. Big Boi & Sleepy Brown), "The Way You Move"
Here's what kind of year 2003 was music-wise: Two groups have two songs in this year's countdown (one has three), and two others easily could have joined them. Here's one now. This was a hard pick just because it's the last one and there were several other songs that could've gone here. I guess making a used car lot look like a fun, hip place got it the nod. Plus, I like the way it moves. :)

#19 - Jet, "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?"
It's the iPod anthem! This sounds like something you?d expect to be played by a garage band. Sometimes that's a good thing.

#18 - Snoop Dogg (feat. Pharrell & Uncle Charlie Wilson), "Beautiful"
If nothing else, 2003 will be remembered as the year the unthinkable happened - Snoop went mainstream. This song never would have happened 10 years ago. Hell, five years ago. From celebrating an illicit house party with loose women, tight weed, and flowing booze to singing the praises of a longtime love. The Dogg's come a long way.

#17 - t.A.t.U., "All The Things She Said"
Some of us were first introduced to this allegedly-lesbian Russian duo through wrestling, of all things - remixed, it is the entrance theme for Victoria, a psychotic, obsessive female grappler. The band's since broken up, but she's still using the song. Hey, maybe this is why she's NUTS.

#16 - Eminem, Obie Trice & DMX, "Go To Sleep"
Last year's #1 teams up here with one of his boys from Detroit and a New York rap legend. Full of vitriol and defiance, these are not three guys I want to meet in a dark alley after pissing them off. Em KILLS on this.

#15 - Queens of the Stone Age, "Go With The Flow"
Dave Grohl's endorsement (and drumming on their first single) put this group on the map. They were good enough on their own to take it from there.

#14 - Radiohead, "There There"
These Brits have a habit of sneaking up on people, and they've been doing it for a decade. I like this song because of the way the music layers and builds behind and with the lyrics until it explodes... then settles down as if nothing happened.

#13 - Coldplay, "The Scientist"
I'm gonna save my words because I'm just getting started with this group. This right here is one of those "roll down sleeve, put heart on it" songs that they do so well.

#12 - Evanescence, "Bring Me To Life"
It was about 25 years ago when soundtracks or "music from the motion picture" albums started evolving from collections of throwaway singles to a way for popular artists to crank out the occasional new song between albums. They also became ways for new bands to break out. Case in point. I can't listen to Amy Lee's voice enough.

#11 - Staind, "Price To Play"
Why can the WWE only pick good theme songs for Vengeance and none of its other PPVs? Regardless, this group turned up the tempo and broadened its palette, and found more and different things to say as a result, turning this song from a departure to the beginning of an evolution. You'd think more rock bands would, y'know, try that.

#10 - Coldplay, "Clocks"
One of the most musically melodic songs of recent years. I dare you to get it out of your head.

#9 - Outkast (feat. Andre 3000), "Hey Ya"
The other half of this Southern hip-hop outfit's half of their double disc took a risky trip off the hip-hop path, creating a sound that was completely unique this year. Bonus points for the Lyric of the Year.

#8 - Foo Fighters, "All My Life"
At the other end of the spectrum, these guys know what works for them, and they do it well enough that they can stick to it and still be successful. I always liked that drummer Nirvana had. I wonder whatever happened to him?

#7 - The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"
Are they brother and sister? Are they ex-husband and wife? Are they possibly certifiable? Does it matter when they can keep putting out such offbeat yet clever songs?

#6 - Coldplay, "Moses (live)"
Yeah, they're Band of the Year. I'm out of words.

#5 - 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
Typical story: boy grows up in Queens, boy aspires to be a rapper, boy gets shot nine times, boy survives getting shot nine times, boy goes on to simultaneously counter and enhance gangsta image with club anthem that'll be bumping 40 years from now. Like I said, typical story.

#4 - Fountains of Wayne, "Stacy's Mom"
The band took its name from a New Jersey statuary shop, this album's name from a hotel billboard, and the idea for the song from THE ENTIRETY OF TEENAGE MALE EXISTENCE. I don't remember who had the hot mom among my group of friends. The next unattractive Stac(e)y I meet, however, will be the first. The song single-handedly saved a barren summer, while the video single-handedly revived the career of Rachel Hunter, both of which are Good Things.

#3 - The Roots (feat. Cody Chesnutt), "The Seed [2.0]"
This revolutionary Philadelphia rap band (Yes, a band. With instruments and everything) either dug up or stole a flat-out unreal rock hook and do their best Stones impression while making infidelity sound funky and not quite so bad. The lesson: USE PROTECTION. Unless, of course, you're trying to be a baby daddy like this guy.

#2 - Jason Mraz, "The Remedy (I Won't Worry)"
Probably the best song this year you never heard. Proof that "pop" isn't always a four-letter word, this well-crafted, complex yet catchy piece actually has a very simple theme.

#1 - Talib Kweli, "Get By"
He has been at the forefront of the New York hip-hop underground for years. His collaborations with Hi-Tek and Mos Def have played to critical acclaim. In 2003 he struck out on his own and brought a thoughtful consciousness to the game, a brutal honesty without the brashness.

THAT'S IT! THAT'S the list!