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Song of the Day #4,168: ‘Avalanche’ – Walk the Moon

Today is the second day of the final month of the decade. How fast the 2010s flew by! I clearly remember compiling my ‘Best of the 00s’ album list, which went live on New Year’s Day 2010.

Looking back on that list now, I see a lot of the same artists who will appear on this one. Makes sense. I also see some albums I haven’t revisited as often as their rankings suggest, and some that would be much higher or lower if I were to revisit that decade’s music today. For one example, I now consider Josh Rouse’s Nashville one of my favorite albums of all-time, yet it came it at #8 on that list.

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Song of the Day #4,167: ‘Forgive Them Father’ – Lauryn Hill

Tomorrow I will start a countdown of my favorite albums of the decade. If this were 20 years ago — 1999 instead of 2019 — that list would include Lauryn Hill’s ’97 classic The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill somewhere near the top.

This blend of hip hop, soul and R&B sounds as bold and vital today as it did when it made such a splash 22 years ago. It is even more special for remaining the only solo studio recording Hill ever released (her one follow-up record was a live recording of an MTV Unplugged appearance).

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Song of the Day #4,166: ‘Crazy’ – R.E.M.

Today’s radom track come from R.E.M.’s 1987 collection of B-sides and rare tracks titled Dead Letter Office.

Often, albums like this can be a bit of a drag — a simple cash grab or an easy way to satisfy a contract. That may well have been the purpose of this one, too, but it’s a great collection of songs nonetheless, providing a glimpse into the band’s burgeoning creativity as well as their playful side.

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Song of the Day #4,165: ‘10,000 Hours’ – Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber

We close out the latest installment of ‘What the Kids Are Listening To’ with a mellow love song by the country duo Dan + Shay, featuring Justin Bieber. ‘10,000 Hours’ is a good fit for #10 this week, as pretty much the whole Top Ten has been low-key and positive.

Maybe it’s the time of year? Or have musical tastes mellowed after the hip-hop domination of the past few years? Is this a phase or a lasting trend? Guess we’ll check back in early 2020 to learn the answer.

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Song of the Day #4,164: ‘Memories’ – Maroon 5

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! Hope you are all able to enjoy this day with family and friends.

Today’s song lines up nicely with the holiday, as the #9 Billboard hit this week is Maroon 5’s ‘Memories,’ a gentle tune about holding on to the memories of the people we’ve loved. It’s in keeping with the band’s shift into more mellow territory on recent releases. Its chorus even nods to Pachelbel’s classical staple ‘Canon in D.’

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