181. Cryin’ (Aerosmith)
“Cryin'”– written by Aerosmith lead Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Taylor Rhodes–is a 1993 power ballad by American rock band Aerosmith; it debuted as a single for the album Get a Grip. The song begins with a bluesy guitar-oriented intro. It then becomes stripped down during the first verse, before going into a heavier arrangement for the first chorus. The song picks up in even more steam during the second verse before mellowing out during the third verse. A sampling of the famous chord progression from Pachelbel’s Canon, its chorus repeats several times throughout the song.
The song also features a music video with Alicia Silverstone, Stephen Dorff and Josh Holloway. It features the first appearance of Alicia Silverstone in Aerosmith’s videos, plus the band’s debut performance at the Central Congregational Church in Fall River, Massachusetts.
Meaning of the Song: This song is about a a roller coaster relationship that seemed great at first but then turned a lot worse. It can also be seen as a metaphor for Steven Tyler’s drug use.
Accolades: Peaked at No. 12 on Billboard‘s Hot 100, No. 1 on its Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart; No. 60 on Billboard‘s 1993 Year-End chart; reached No. 17 in the U.K.; RIAA-certified gold.
182. Whole Lotta Love (Led Zeppelin)
The first U.S. single (and only Top 10 hit in the U.S.) by rock band Led Zeppelin, “Whole Lotta Love” is featured as the opening track on Zeppelin’s second album, Led Zeppelin II, and was initially released in the U.S. and Japan as a single. The U.S. debut of “Whole Lotta Love” became the band’s first (and only) hit single there and was certified gold in April of 1970 due to selling over a million records.
Like other Led Zeppelin songs, no single was released in the U.K., but they were released in Germany (where it reached No.1), the Netherlands (No. 4), Belgium and France. A famous show closer at Led Zeppelin concerts, since mid-1970 “Whole Lotta Love” has been performed as a medley of blues and R&B interpolations, notably from classics by the likes of Eddie Cochran and Elvis Presley.
Meaning of the Song: While the band/vocalist Robert Plant was accused of ripping off blues-singer Willie Dixon’s lyrics from “You Need Love” (they eventually settled), the original meaning “Whole Lotta Love” remains dubious.
Accolades: RR/HoF-induction; 2007 Grammy Hall of Fame-induction; entered the U.S. Hot 100 chart in November of 1969, remaining there for 15 weeks and peaking at No. 4; RS/500, No. 75; No. 3 on Q magazine’s 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks list; named third-greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1.
183. Bitter Sweet Symphony (The Verve)
Debuting in 1997 by British rock band The Verve as the lead track from the album Urban Hymns, Richard Ashcroft (writer) based “Bitter Sweet Symphony” on music from Andrew Loog Oldham’s interpretation of the Rolling Stones song entitled “The Last Time”. “Bitter sweet” is generally regarded as The Verve’s signature song and one of the defining tracks of the ‘Britpop era’. While its popularity gained steam gradually in the U.S. throughout late 1997 and early 1998, it finally peaked No. 12 on Billboard‘s coveted Hot 100 chart, and made it all of the way to No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart.
Meaning of the Song: Considered a lyrical masterpiece by many authorities, “Bitter Sweet Symphony” arguably means that life resembles a symphony, but a bittersweet one where people have rules, laws, societal norms, etc. imposed on it and that they’re, bitter sweetly, generally only as successful as the amount of money they make. In contrast, it may also simply convey ‘carpe diem’, not allowing material things–sex, money, etc.–to define one’s life ambitions.
Accolades: Peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100; nominated for Best British Single at the 1998 Brit Awards, and for Video of the Year, Best Group Video, and Best Alternative Video at the 1998 MTV Video Music Awards; Grammy-nominated for Best Rock Song (1999); RS/500, No. 392; No. 18 on NME magazine’s list of the “50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever”; placed in the the Australian Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time compilation.
184. Hey Ya! (OutKast)
“Hey Ya!” is a 2003 rock-hip hop song written and produced by André 3000 for his album The Love Below, itself a component of OutKast’s double album, Speakerboxxx (Big Boi)/The Love Below (Andre 3000). Along with “The Way You Move” (recorded by OutKast’s Big Boi), the very upbeat “Hey Ya!” became a massive commercial success, topping several U.S. charts and others from around the world and garnering nearly universal praise by music critics. Further, Stylus magazine identified it as one of the best songs in OutKast’s history, beat only by OutKast’s own “B.O.B.” An equally popular, Beatles-inspired music video to “Hey Ya!” was also produced, which featured André 3000 portraying eight different people in a variety show-type sequence. Fun fact: The s breakdown to “Hey Ya!” coined and popularized the phrase “shake it like a Polaroid picture”, an erroneous “technique” that Polaroid camera users formerly used to speed up film development.
Meaning of the Song: “Hey Ya!”, roughly interpreted, is about a couple that stays in a relationship, even though they realize they’ll probably, inevitably break up.
Accolades: Won the Grammy for Best Urban/Alternative Performance; reached the top five of most charts it entered, topping the Billboard Hot 100 and the ARIA Singles chart, among others; named the 20th-most successful song of the 2000s decade on Billboard’s Hot 100 Songs of the Decade; No. 15 on Blender‘s 2005 “The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born” list; No. 2 on Pitchfork Media‘s The Top 100 Singles of 2000-2004 feature (2005); NME placed it at No. 3 on its list “150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years”; topped the Billboard Hot 100 for nine weeks, its digital sales topping the Billboard Hot Digital Tracks for 19 weeks; topped the Top 40 Mainstream and Top 40 Tracks.
185. Your Cheatin’ Heart (Hank Williams)
Country singer/songwriter Hank Williams is usually best known for his 1952 song, “Your Cheatin’ Heart.” Although it wasn’t even released until 1953, just after Williams’ death, it’s often considered not only one of his greatest songs, but one of the all-time greats in country music history. It was released the following year, shortly after he died, by MGM Records. Several performers have recorded the song since Williams released it, notably: Patsy Cline, Nat King Cole, Gene Vincent, Ray Charles, D Shannon, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Van Morrison.
Meaning of the Song: A “slow blues” ballad, the lyrics to “Your Cheatin’ Heart” try to persuade an unfaithful lover of the guilt that she’ll feel for being unfaithful to the singer. Williams allegedly wrote the song when he thought about his first wife, Audrey Williams, while driving around with his second, Billie Jean Jones.
Accolades: RS/500, No. 213; occupied the No. 1 slot on the US country music chart for six weeks; the biggest hit version of “Cheatin” was by Joni James, which rose to No. 2 on the Billboard pop chart in 1953.
186. You Be Killin Em (Fabolous)
Is a 2010 hip hop song–written and produced by DJ Clue, Ryan Leslie, and Fabulous–by American rapper Fabolous, released as the first and only single from his 2010 extended play There Is No Competition 2: The Grieving Music EP album. Recorded at the Tainted Blue Studio in New York City, “You Be Killin ‘Em” was also remixed as “Look at Her (Killin ‘Em Pt. 2)” (Rico Beats Records) and features Fabolous, Leslie and new lyrics from singer Ne-Yo.The latter is the fourteenth and last track of Fabolous’s 2011 album The S.O.U.L. Tape. The song also features an Aristotle (By Any Means LLC)-directed music video companion, which features appearances by Amber Rose and Ryan Leslie himself.
Meaning of the Song: Although open to interpretation, “You Be Killin ‘Em” seems to imply a sexy woman that all the guys want her, but can’t have her; that, or she breaks guys’ hearts.
Accolades: No. 8 on US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard); No. 6 on Billboard‘s Rap Songs chart, and No. 63 on the Hot 100.
187. Are You That Somebody (Aaliyah)
“Are You That Somebody?” is a Grammy-nominated single performed by the late American singer Aaliyah at only 19 years old, and was recorded for the Dr. Dolittle soundtrack. The song was written and composed by Static Major, who also sang backing vocals, and Timbaland, who, in addition to writing the song, produced and performed a guest rap for it. The song was sent to U.S. Pop radio stations on September 29, 1998 (see 1998 in music). The song samples the sound of a baby cooing from Perrey and Kingsley’s 1966 hit “Countdown at 6” and D. Train’s 1982 dance classic “You’re the One for Me”.
In its album guide, Rolling Stone commented that the song “remains one of ’90s’ R&B’s most astounding moments.”
Meaning of the Song: The lyrics alone to “Somebody” are pretty standard ‘love song’ fare.
Accolades: Peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, at No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart; No. 5 on The Village Voice‘s 1998 Pazz & Jop critics’ poll; ranked No. 18 on Spin magazine’s Top 20 Singles of the 90’s; No. 387 on Blender magazine’s The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born compilation; Grammy-nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance; No. 8 on Pitchfork Media‘s Top 200 Tracks of the 90s chart.
188. Pony (Ginuwine)
“Pony” is the debut single of American R&B singer Ginuwine (Elgin Baylor Lumpkin), released as a single from his first LP, Ginuwine…The Bachelor, in 1996. The song was written by Ginuwine with Swing Mob associates Static Major and Timbaland, who produced the recording. Timbaland’s production was unique among R&B releases of the day: “Pony”‘s instrumentation features a start-stop rhythm pattern similar to drum and bass music, a bassline and melody formed by vocoded vocal samples, and a cartoon slide whistle. Along with his concurrent work for Aaliyah’s One in a Million LP, “Pony” and Ginuwine…the Bachelor marked the emergence of Timbaland as a successful R&B producer. The beat was also used for a remix of Jodeci’s song “Freek ‘N You”.
Meaning of the Song: The song’s lyrics describe a blatantly sexual come-on, hence “If you’re horny, let’s do it / Ride it; my pony.”
Accolades: Peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks for two weeks, starting November 16 of 1996 and ending November 30, 1996; reached No. 6 on Billboard’s Hot 100 on November 23, 1996.
189. Losing My Religion (R.E.M.)
“Losing My Religion” is a hit 1991 song by the American alternative rock band, R.E.M. Released as the first single from the album Out of Time, it was an unlikely hit for the group, receiving heavy radio airplay as well as on MTV due to its popular music video counterpart. “Losing” subsequently became R.E.M.’s highest-charting hit in the United States, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for several Grammy Awards. It (and its music video) won the two Grammys for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Short Form Music Video.
Meaning of the Song: “Losing my religion” is a southern U.S. expression that means losing one’s temper or being “at the end of one’s rope.” According to lead singer Michael Stipe (via the The New York Times), “Losing” was about romantic expression, later telling Q magazine that “Losing My Religion” describes “someone who pines for someone else. It’s unrequited love, what have you.” Stipe also compared the song’s theme to The Police’s 1983 song, “Every Breath You Take”.
Accolades: Became R.E.M.’s highest-charting hit in the United States, reaching No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100; nominated for several Grammys, winning two for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Short Form Music Video.
190. What Goes Around (Justin Timberlake)
Written and produced by Justin Timberlake, Nate “Danja” Hills, and Timothy “Timbaland” Mosley for Timberlake’s second studio album, FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006), “What Goes Around” has been thought by many to be a “sequel” to his 2002 song, “Cry Me a River”. Nonetheless, it marked the singer’s third consecutive No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and made the top ten in countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Germany, and Australia. The song was later certified two-times platinum in Australia, platinum in the United States and gold in New Zealand. A 2007 music video counterpart—directed by Samuel Bayer and featuring actress Scarlett Johansson playing Timberlake’s love interest—was also released to huge acclaim.
Meaning of the Song: What Goes Around…/…Comes Around” is about betrayal and forgiveness. Although Justin claimed that the song was written based on an emotional experience his friend went through, the public and many musical authorities interpreted its lyrics, also claimed to be a sequel to “Cry Me A River”, as pertaining to Timberlake’s relationship with his former girlfriend, pop star Britney Spears.
Accolades: Became Timberlake’s third No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100; No. 24 on Rolling Stone‘s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007; twice Grammy-nominated, winning Best Male Pop Vocal Performance; charted on Hot 100 for 25 weeks; certified platinum by the RIAA; became the first male artist since Usher in 2004 to have three or more consecutive number-one hits from one album; its music video received the Best Direction award at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards and was also nominated for Video of the Year.
