Continuing my countdown of 2024 notable album releases by women…
The Ladies of 2024
#5 – Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard and Soft
At just 22 years old, Billie Eilish already has a slew of Grammys, two Oscars, and two best-selling albums. So what does one do as a follow-up to all that success?
Based on Eilish’s third album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, the answer is whatever the hell she wants.
On June 22, 1964, the #1 song in the U.S. was ‘A World Without Love,’ the first single by British duo Peter and Gordon. The song also reached #1 in their native UK.
This song was written by a 16-year-old Paul McCartney, and given to Peter Asher because Paul was dating his sister Jane. Paul apparently didn’t think the track was good enough for The Beatles, but its success for this previously unknown duo suggests it would have likely been another chart-topper for the Fab Four had they opted to record it.
Throwing back to the week of June 19, 1954, we find Kitty Kallen still topping the charts with ‘Little Things Mean a Lot,’ in the middle of its nine-week run at #1.
In the second spot was pop quartet The Four Aces with ‘Three Coins in the Fountain.’ This was the group’s first #1 hit. Their second would come a year later with ‘Love is a Many Splendored Thing.’ Interestingly, both tunes won the Best Song Academy Award for movies that share their titles.
Continuing my countdown of 2024 notable album releases by women…
The Ladies of 2024
#6 – Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department
I spent 12 days last month walking through my preferred version of this album, so I won’t go too deep into the official release now.
Swift is a talented enough songwriter and performer to guarantee anything she releases will be at least good and often great. And Tortured Poets has plenty of great moments. The problem is that this is truly a case of “less is more.”
Continuing my countdown of 2024 notable album releases by women…
The Ladies of 2024
#7 – Kacey Musgraves – Deeper Well
I really wanted to love this album, having been firmly on the Kacey Musgraves bandwagon since her 2013 debut, Same Trailer Different Park. That album was such a breath of fresh air, and might still be the best thing she’s done.
Sophomore effort Pageant Material offered more sharp songwriting, and 2018’s Golden Hour was a revelation, crossing genre boundaries on its way to a well-deserved Album of the Year Grammy.
Meet Me In Montauk 