Excitingly, I turn 30 in a couple of days’ time!
So, naturally, I put my nerdy music hat on and decided to (foolishly) collate a list of thirty songs that I love dearly and/or hold a special significance.
This was no easy feat and took me quite a while… There are many favourite bands, artists and songs missing from here. But it’s proved 30 isn’t that big a number (not that I particularly feel old!) I also think I’ve settled on 30 songs that perfectly capture my music tastes and key moments in my life so far.
So, without further ado, let’s dive in! Songs are in no particular order.
As always, thanks so much for visiting/reading. Here’s to the great Three Oh!
Shanice – I Love Your Smile
I think this is one of the happiest songs in the world; it certainly brings me a lot of joy when I hear it. A glorious R&B track abundant with cheese, an infectious “Doo-doo-doo” hook, and gorgeous silky-smooth vocals.
Talking Heads – Once In A Lifetime
I’ve always loved the kooky, off-kilter nature of this new wave classic by Talking Heads. Documenting a mid-life crisis over swirling synths, intoxicated drums, and funky guitar riffs, it’s gloriously weird in classic Talking Heads style.
George Michael – Fastlove
Despite being a huge George fan, selecting just one of his songs was pretty easy for me. I’ve loved this for as long as I can remember. It still sounds slick and fresh all these years later with a hip-hop groove, jazzy brass elements, and a funky bass line. There’s so much attention to detail in the production (shout out to one of my favourite producers ever – Jon Douglas) and a cheeky “Forget Me Nots” sample at the end. It took me YEARS to realise that this was a song about hook ups! One of George’s best – I never tire of it.
Bobby Caldwell – Until You Come Back To Me
I came across Bobby Caldwell due to a John Legend cover many years ago. Bobby had a bit of a cult following and was hugely sampled by hip-hop artists, yet remained largely unknown commercially. He sadly passed away last year but left a brilliant discography. I think this Aretha Franklin cover is probably one of my most-played tracks on Spotify. I adore the arrangement, the live-band feel (which is comforting and nostalgic), and Bobby’s wonderful vocals.
Mark Morrison – Return of the Mack
Another ’90s bop with mega hip-hop beats, smooth keyboards, and Mark Morrison’s distinctive vocals. Every time this comes on, the volume is always cranked UP! It’s also a song that makes me feel super confident, which is always great!
Lighthouse Family – Super 8
A ‘little’ album track by the easy-listening duo and one that should have been released as a single, as it truly stands up with their most famous work. Featuring Tunde’s signature soulful vocals over sweeping strings, pretty piano chords, and a driving beat, it’s uplifting and magical in a way only The Lighthouse Family can achieve. Plus, both my boyfriend and I love it, so I guess it’s doubly special!
Alexander O’Neal – What Can I Say To Make You Love Me
I inherited my love of ’80s soul from my mum. Alexander O’Neal is one of my all-time favourites, and his work with legendary producers Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis is iconic. This song still sounds huge with its cheerful keyboard chords, euphoric brass instruments, punchy bass lines, and mechanical drum track. I always lose my mind at the way the beat kicks in 15 seconds in – pure joy! Plus, Alex’s powerful vocals remind us just how brilliant a singer he is. This always makes me smile and wanna dance!
Earth, Wind and Fire – September
This song has had a resurgence in recent years for various reasons. It’s my going-out song and has been since my uni days. There is SO much joy in this song, and it brings me so much joy in turn. I adore the disco vibes, the instrumentation, and the falsetto vocals. Euphoric, joyful, and simply wonderful!
Nat King Cole – Orange Coloured Sky
Nat King Cole is one of my favourite vocalists of all time. His voice is smooth like butter, and I always feel so warm and comforted listening to him. I can’t remember how I got into this song, but it’s been a firm favourite of mine for the last decade.
Nathan East and Sara Bareilles – I Can Let Go Now
An exquisite cover of a Michael McDonald ballad (whom I also happen to love). Sara Bareilles is a wonderful artist in her own right and simply shines on this gorgeous version, included on American bassist Nathan East’s self-titled 2014 album. Stunning.
Whitney Houston – Step By Step
I could have opted for a few Whitney tracks, but this song has come to mean a lot to me in the last decade or so. Written by Annie Lennox, this dance-pop arrangement was taken from 1996’s The Preacher’s Wife, a film I love a lot. Aside from loving the song’s dance-pop feel, the lyrics about taking it “step by step, day by day” are, while nothing revolutionary, a reminder to keep going. This song has been with me during low days and during bouts of ill health. A truly uplifting and special song.
SG Lewis – Lifetime
I fell in love with this song when it was released in 2022, which happened to be a transformative year for me in many ways. I adore the yacht-rock, electronic hybrid on this, plus me falling in love with this coincided with me falling in love with my now-boyfriend, so many special memories with this one.
Fred again… and Obongjayar – adore u
I ahem adored this (badum pshh) from my first listen on Radio 1 and have never looked back. I love Fred again… anyway and think he’s a huge talent, but this song is so special and uplifting. It’s more commercial than some of Fred’s other work and was hugely overplayed, but everything from its repetitive house piano chords to Obongjayar’s unique, quivering vocals is joyful and magical.
Ronan Keating – Life Is a Rollercoaster
And suddenly I’m 7 years old again! Wonderful memories of a simpler time and school discos. Ronan’s solo career was brilliant and hugely propelled by brilliant songwriter Gregg Alexander. This dizzying pop-rock track always makes me smile. It’s uplifting and honest (life really IS a rollercoaster), and I particularly love the fact that the rhythm track feels like it emulates a rollercoaster on a track.
The 1975 – I like it when you sleep for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it
It could have been a nightmare selecting just ONE song by my favourite band, The 1975, yet surprisingly this came quite easily. This long, electronic instrumental wasn’t a single and perhaps isn’t an obvious choice, but it holds huge significance for me. I remember the day this album came out, and me lying on my bed at uni, devouring it. This song immediately stood out to me with its twinkly synths, weird electronic elements, and murmured “Before you go, turn the big light out” vocals. There’s something hugely magical about this track, its journey from start to finish, evolving from a twinkly electronic track into a house banger. I’ve listened to this song before many huge, nerve-wracking experiences in my life, and it’s always boosted me up and given me a dose of confidence.
The Blue Nile – The Downtown Lights
Scottish band The Blue Nile are one of my favourite bands of all time. A little-known band with a cult following, they are known for their cinematic, multi-layered songs, with frontman Paul Buchanan’s Frank Sinatra-like vocals aching with sincerity. This is one of the band’s signature tracks, a song that perfectly captures the loneliness and beauty of late nights. A truly special song with a brilliant climax.
John Mayer – If I Ever Get Around To Living
Choosing just one John song was a nightmare, to be honest. I settled on this moody and reflective track taken from John’s 2012 album, ‘Born and Raised’, which drew inspiration from folk, Americana, and country music. There have been many moments in my life where I have felt like I’m not “living” enough. Sometimes those feelings have perhaps been valid, and sometimes it’s just been because of “compare and despair”. For me, this song captures those feelings perfectly. I also love the three different musical segments it goes through, particularly the final one which contains the lyrics:
“You are hiding in your mind,
Working all the time
Trying to make it better than you got it.”
Michael Jackson – Human Nature
No contest for my favourite MJ song. I don’t post about it much, but I’m a die-hard Michael fan. This smooth R&B track from his iconic ‘Thriller’ album is simply gorgeous, with its earworm “Why, why, tell ’em that it’s human nature” chorus, stunning falsetto “why’s”, shimmering synths, and warm, comforting feel. Just gorgeous.
Charlie Puth – BOY
I’ve posted about my love of this song on here before, and it remains! I love the late 1980s R&B vibes on this, with its bouncy keyboard chords, funky bass line, and meandering falsetto lyrics.
Before You Exit – We’re Gonna Be Alright
This song is so, so special to me. It was released just when I needed it, as I first began struggling with ill health. The warmth of this song, the repeated affirmation of “we’re gonna be alright”, the soft guitar strums, and eerie electronic elements are reassuring, and this song has been a huge comfort to me during many difficult days.
Take That – Higher Than Higher
Again, how do you go about choosing a song by one of your favourite bands, especially from a 30-year career? I settled on this uplifting pop track from 2015’s ‘III’ album. I instantly fell in love with the warmth of this song, the meticulous and glitchy electro production, Gary Barlow’s smooth vocals, and the lovely melodies in the chorus when I first heard it. This song got me through a low point at uni and remains a huge source of comfort for me. Special mention to the final minute of the song, during which Mark Owen’s layered vocals somehow emulate a gospel choir. A gorgeous and underrated song.
Robbie Williams – If I Only Had a Brain
There are many Robbie tracks I could have chosen, as he has soundtracked a lot of my life. This gorgeous jazzy arrangement of The Wizard of Oz’s “If I Only Had a Brain” (inspired by a version by Harry Connick Jr.) is gorgeous, and Robbie suits the genre so well. He opted to record this, loving the original and finding the lyrics equated to him finding school hard and leaving without any GCSEs. Gorgeous version.
Frank Ocean – Nights
Frank’s ‘Blonde’ album soundtracked and got me through a rough patch. I adore it. This two-part track is atmospheric and reflective, with a perfect switch-up in the middle that transitions the song from an up-tempo, pitch-modified, guitar-led song to a down-tempo, late-night sombre one. The latter half is my favourite part of the song, feeling reflective and perfectly capturing late-night vibes.
Joni Mitchell – A Case of You
I adore Joni, especially her ‘Both Sides Now’ album, on which she performs some of her classic tracks among some covers with a luscious orchestral backdrop. It was hard to choose between this and Both Sides Now, but I opted for this. It’s deeply romantic and poetic in true Joni style. Recorded almost thirty years after the original, Joni’s voice is raspy and husky, which adds extra emotion to this classic track. Gorgeous.
Paramore – Running Out of Time
I love Paramore’s work from the past decade. I have included this track because, musically, it captures paranoia and angst perfectly, but lyrically, I regret to say that this is absolutely me. I have terrible time management and am always late. It’s not something I’m proud of, but it’s nice to see that I’m not the only one. I’ve never related to a song so much… every lyric!
Kendrick Lamar – Feel
Kendrick isn’t always for me, but I enjoy some of his work. I was first introduced to this song when he performed it at the BRITs (albeit with technical issues!) A song that documents a range of feelings, particularly isolation, confusion, and frustration over jazzy instrumentation—this is a truly great song and one I have identified with on not-so-great days.
D’Angelo – Untitled (How Does It Feel)
A sexy slow jam by the immensely talented D’Angelo. Inspired heavily by Prince, evident in the provocative lyrics, jazzy flavours, and D’Angelo’s silky smooth falsetto vocals over a slow, syncopated beat. It swoops and swirls before culminating in a climax of wailing vocals and guitars. It’s just glorious.
Thomas Newman – American Beauty
I had to include Thomas Newman here somewhere. Many people have Hans Zimmer as their favourite film-score composer. Mine is Thomas Newman. Responsible for some of the most beautiful, eerie, and atmospheric scores to some of the best films, his minimalist approach to American Beauty remains a favourite. A stunning and haunting piece of music.
Simply Red – You’ve Got It
Mum has forever been a huge Simply Red fan, which then naturally drip-fed into me. There were so many brilliant songs to choose from, but this perhaps lesser-known soul ballad from the late 1980s, a co-write with iconic R&B songwriter Lamont Dozier, has always been a firm favourite. Smooth and sultry in a way only Mick Hucknall knows how, it’s simple, soulful, and brilliant.
S Club 7 – Sunshine
S Club 7 hold a special place in my heart, and I still love them to this day. I could have gone for an obvious single release, but you know me—I always like the obscure tracks! This song, taken from the album of the same name, is sung beautifully by Jon and captures an optimism in S Club’s classic way over an Isley Brothers’ Harvest for the World-like backing track. Perfect, summery feel-good vibes.
You can check out the whole playlist below:
the-music-box.co.uk 