The final member of my list of the ’30 Greatest Living American Songwriters’ is in a category all his own. I guess you could call this my ‘Musical Theater’ section, but the truth is I don’t pay any attention to musical theater.
I do pay attention to Lin-Manuel Miranda, though. And he is one of the few living songwriters I will comfortably call a genius.
Miranda could have no credits other than Hamilton and he’d still make this list. The fluidity and intricacy of his lyrics combined with the genre-hopping creativity of his music turned the story of an unheralded founding father into a pop culture phenomenon. It’s a singular achievement that earned him multiple Emmys, Grammys, and Tonys, not to mention a Pulitzer Prize.
Throw in his first musical, In the Heights, which has a similar crackerjack “hip-hop meets the Great White Way” energy. And a sprinkle of Encanto, with a soundtrack inspired by the music of Colombia and a glorious mega-hit in ‘We Don’t Talk About Bruno.’
Finally, there’s Moana, perhaps my favorite Miranda work. He sets the table beautifully in ‘Where You Are,’ makes a credible rapper out of The Rock in ‘You’re Welcome,’ and delivers one of Disney’s great “I want” songs in ‘How Far I’ll Go.’ His brilliant songs form the backbone of my favorite animated film.
So that wraps up my very personal take on The New York Times‘ much-debated list. Following are all 30 of my picks in one list. I’d love to hear your own additions in the comments.
Fiona Apple
Beck
Beyonce
Brandi Carlile
Counting Crows
Lana Del Rey
Bob Dylan
Ben Folds
Jason Isbell
Billy Joel
Carole King
Miranda Lambert
Lyle Lovett
Madonna
Aimee Mann
John Mayer
James Mercer
Tift Merritt
Lin Manuel Miranda
Randy Newman
Brad Paisley
R.E.M.
Smokey Robinson
Josh Rouse
Paul Simon
Bruce Springsteen
Talking Heads
Taylor Swift
Rufus Wainwright
Lucinda Williams
The battle of Yorktown
1781
[LAFAYETTE]
Monsieur Hamilton
[HAMILTON]
Monsieur Lafayette
[LAFAYETTE]
In command where you belong
[HAMILTON]
How you say, no sweat
[LAFAYETTE]
Heh
[HAMILTON]
We’re finally on the field, we’ve had quite a run
[LAFAYETTE]
Immigrants:
[HAMILTON & LAFAYETTE]
We get the job done
[HAMILTON]
So what happens if we win?
[LAFAYETTE]
I go back to France
I bring freedom to my people, if I’m given the chance
[HAMILTON]
We’ll be with you when you do
[LAFAYETTE]
Go, lead your men
[HAMILTON]
I’ll see you on the other side
[LAFAYETTE]
‘Til we meet again, let’s go
[HAMILTON & ENSEMBLE]
I am not throwin’ away my shot
I am not throwin’ away my shot
Ay, yo, I’m just like my country
I’m young, scrappy and hungry
And I’m not throwin’ away my shot
I am not throwin’ away my shot
[HAMILTON]
‘Til the world turns upside down
[ENSEMBLE]
‘Til the world turns upside down
[HAMILTON]
I imagine death so much it feels more like a memory
This is where it gets me
On my feet, the enemy ahead of me
If this is the end of me, at least I have a friend with me
Weapon in my hand, a command, and my men with me
Then I remember my Eliza’s expecting me
Not only that, my Eliza’s expecting
We gotta go, gotta get the job done
Gotta start a new nation, gotta meet my son
Take the bullets out your gun
[ENSEMBLE]
What?
[HAMILTON]
The bullets out your gun
[ENSEMBLE]
What?
[HAMILTON]
We move under cover and we move as one
Through the night, we have one shot to live another day
We cannot let a stray gunshot give us away
We will fight up close, seize the moment and stay in it
It’s either that or meet the business end of the bayonet
The code word is “Rochambeau,” dig me?
[ENSEMBLE]
Rochambeau!
[HAMILTON]
You have your orders now, go, man, go
And so the American experiment begins
With my friends all scattered to the winds
Laurens is in South Carolina, redefinin’ bravery
[HAMILTON & LAURENS]
We’ll never be free until we end slavery
[HAMILTON]
When we finally drive the British away
Lafayette is there, waiting
[HAMILTON & LAFAYETTE]
In Chesapeake Bay
[HAMILTON]
How did we know that this plan would work?
We had a spy on the inside, that’s right
[HAMILTON & COMPANY]
Hercules Mulligan
[MULLIGAN]
A tailor spyin’ on the British government
I take their measurements, information
And then I smuggle it
[COMPANY]
Up
[MULLIGAN]
To my brother’s revolutionary covenant
I’m runnin’ with the Sons of Liberty and I am lovin’ it
See, that’s what happens when you up against the ruffians
We in the shit now, somebody’s gotta shovel it
Hercules Mulligan, I need no introduction
When you knock me down, I get the fuck back up again
[LAURENS]
Let’s go
[MULLIGAN]
Hahaha, woo!
[COMPANY]
Left, right, hold
Go
What? What? What?
[HAMILTON]
After a week of fighting, a young man in a red coat stands on a parapet
[LAFAYETTE]
We lower our guns as he frantically waves a white handkerchief
[MULLIGAN]
And just like that, it’s over
We tend to our wounded, we count our dead
[LAURENS]
Black and white soldiers wonder alike if this really means freedom
[WASHINGTON]
Not yet
[HAMILTON]
We negotiate the terms of surrender
I see George Washington smile
We escort their men out of Yorktown
They stagger home single file
Tens of thousands of people flood the streets
There are screams and church bells ringing
And as our fallen foes retreat
I hear the drinking song they’re singing
[ALL MEN]
The world turned upside down
[COMPANY]
The world turned upside down
The world turned upside down
The world turned upside down, down
Down, down, down
[LAFAYETTE]
Freedom for America, freedom for France
[COMPANY]
Down, down, down
[HAMILTON]
Gotta start a new nation, gotta meet my son
[COMPANY]
Down, down, down
[MULLIGAN]
We won
[LAFAYETTE]
We won
[MULLIGAN, LAFAYETTE & LAURENS]
We won
[MULLIGAN, LAFAYETTE, LAURENS, HAMILTON & WASHINGTON]
We won
[COMPANY]
The world turned upside down
Meet Me In Montauk 