Is Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars' really the best song of the decade? – Telegraph Blogs

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Lucy Jones

Lucy Jones writes about music. She joined The Daily Telegraph in 2008. She can be emailed at lucy.jones@telegraph.co.uk and is @lucyjones on Twitter.

Is Snow Patrol's 'Chasing Cars' really the best song of the decade?

The people have spoken and they have chosen Snow Patrol’s "Chasing Cars" as the song of the decade and James Blunt’s Back to Bedlam as the album of the decade. "Chasing Cars" didn’t even make the top five in the charts but has been downloaded by millions ever since. And James Blunt’s "You’re Beautiful" – a song so irritating that it is almost impossible to type its name without breaking out in facial welts – sold more than three million copies in the UK. The people have a lot to answer for.

My interaction with Snow Patrol has been minimal since the day they ruined my 21st birthday party.  I had carefully and lovingly prepared a night-time of playlists for my friends. I nipped out as the party was in full swing – I can’t remember why – and returned to find some twerp had decided to put on this beastly song by Snow Patrol. I walked into a room of lachrymose, slack-jawed faces, beaten by Gary Lightbody’s maudlin ballad. Nothing could gee them up (not even Prince) and everyone gradually sloped off. Nothing clears a room like Snow Patrol.

Tim Silver, head of music reporting at PPL, the company who compiled the ‘most widely played song’ chart said this:

"The noughties has been a decade for great new music and which has been listened to by ever growing numbers of people. "

Unfortunately his chart reads like a list of the dullest, most forgettable musical droppings of the decade. Are we really going to be listening to "Love it When You Call" by The Feeling and "About You Now" by The Sugababes in 20 years? Certainly not. So here’s an alternative:

1. Crazy by Gnarls Barkley

With a pounding soulful bass, a head-nodding melody and Cee-Lo Green’s melifluous vocals, this song became the summer of 2006. And then it quickly became the song of the decade. Rambunctious and life-affirming.

2. Paper Planes by M.I.A

It shot to notoriety with its inclusion in the soundtrack to Slumdog Millionaire but that’s not to say it won’t be here to stay. And everyone’s a winner when the DJ plays it at a party.

3. Ms Jackson by Outkast
Though "Hey Ya" was a more commercially successful single, "Ms Jackson" has more to it. Its strange beat – paralleled by the oddness of the music video – accompanied by a catchy rap and a cracking vocal chorus was made all the more poignant once we knew that “Ms Jackson” is the mother of Erykah Badu, the mother of Andre 3000’s son and a former girlfriend.

4 15 step by Radiohead

Oh Radiohead. You reel us out and then you cut the string. If I really had my way this list would have been weighed down with tracks by the band – "Everything in Its Right Place" missed it by a whisker – but I try not be excessive, especially with New Year around the corner. Anyway: this song is perfect. You can dance to it, smile to it, cry to it – and listen out for the children.

5. Fix Up, Look Sharp by Dizzee Rascal

Dizzee Rascal announced himself in 2003 with his audacious debut Boy in Da Corner and he released this track as his second single. It’s loud, funny and clever.

6. Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes

Jack White’s vocals trip eerily over the famous riff and Meg White’s stern drums. Fantastic video too.

7. Crazy in Love by Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z

Beyoncé and Jay- Z’s 2003 single pullulates with energy and joy. The line “ got me hoping you’ll page me right now” shows how dated it already is but I think this perfect package of a song will keep it on dance floors.

8. I Was a Lover by TV on the Radio
The Noughties were TV on the Radio’s decade. They formed in 2001 and since then have produced four incredible albums. This song from Return To Cookie Mountain with its fractious rhythm and soul-touching vocals distills their out-of-the-ordinariness.

9. Last Nite by The Strokes

This lollops around like an energetic young hipster before breaking into its angsty chorus. Enlivening and euphonious.

10. Rehab by Amy Winehouse

This list wouldn’t be complete without Amy Winehouse. Every time I listen to this song I’m blown away. It will be interesting to see what she does next.

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