Steve Azar
Best Country Singles of 2009, Part 1: #40-#21
Here’s hoping you haven’t gotten completely burned out on countdowns yet. 2009 was hardly a favorite musical year for many of us, but amid each year’s glut of throwaway items, there’s always a good’un or two (or forty). The following is the first installment of our Best Singles of 2009 list, which will conclude tomorrow morning. Best Albums will follow next week.
As with the Singles of the Decade feature, this countdown has been compiled through combination of four equally weighed Top 20 lists by Kevin, Leeann, Tara and myself. An inverted point system was applied to the individual rankings (#1 on a list meant 20 points, while #20 on the list meant 1 point). The songs were then ranked together by number of total points, greatest to least. The final result is another rather stylistically diverse set.
As always, we hope you enjoy the countdown, and welcome all the feedback you can muster. Happy New Year!
#40
Lady Antebellum, “Need You Now”
The trio puts a country spin on an old school pop sound, but without forsaking raw emotion. The highlight of the song is Hillary Scott’s smoky performance, which draws out all the anguish and regret you’d expect from a desperate, 1 AM lover’s call. – Tara Seetharam
Steve Azar, "Moo La Moo"
I can only assume that this song is titled “Moo La Moo” to avoid being confused with the old Billy Hill hit “Too Much Month at the End of the Money.” It’s a shame that choice was made, since “Too Much Month…” is the hook of the song and an eye-catching title to boot.
It would be even more of a shame for this song to be overlooked. Easily the strongest release of Azar’s career, it perfectly captures an experience that countless Americans can relate to: living paycheck to paycheck.
That it manages to do so with dark humor instead of somber commentary is refreshing. It’s a lot closer in spirit to “9 to 5” and “Busted” than it is to “If We Make it Through December.”
He sings, “I don’t know why I’m laughing ’cause it sure ain’t funny,” but it’s hard not to crack a smile at the lyrical wordplay throughout the song. “My checks ain’t bouncing but they sure is shaking. I ain’t broke yet but I sure am breaking. My BLT’s just waitin’ on the bacon.”