Top 30 Songs for December 24-30, 2023

Photo by Emmie America

We’ve arrived at the final week of 2023, and though it would be nice to have a sweet song at the top of my chart to bring us a bit of Christmas cheer, alas, that’s not to be. Instead, Green Day‘s boisterous protest anthem “The American Dream Is Killing Me” ascends to the #1 spot. The black and white video they made for the song is pretty violent and dark, with Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool made up as zombies, performing the song amidst hordes of zombies rioting in the streets and attacking people. Some scary stuff indeed!

In other chart developments, Brittany Howard‘s “What Now” is once again the biggest climber of the week, jumping eight spots to #7. The song is now #1 on the Billboard AAA chart. After spending three weeks at #4 in November, “Loving You” by Cannons reverses its downward course and moves back up five spots to #13, followed by “Wild” by Brian Lambert, Harmoni Kelley & Marc Schuster, “All I Die For” by SWiiMS, and “Cool About It” by boygenius, all of which advance five spots. Bleachers‘ “Modern Girl” moves up six spots to #17. Making their debut are the bluesy “Lose Control” by the gruff-voiced Georgia singer-songwriter Teddy Swims (born Jaten Collin Dimsdale), at #29, and “Winter Cowboy” by silky-voiced British artist Frank Joshua, at #30. It’s Frank’s second song to appear on my chart, the first being his beautiful “Bluebell Wood”, which peaked at #6 this past Spring.

  1. THE AMERICAN DREAM IS KILLING ME – Green Day (2)
  2. DARLING – Western Jaguar (1)
  3. NOW AND THEN – The Beatles (3)
  4. MORE THAN A LOVE SONG – Black Pumas (4)
  5. HONEY (ARE U COMING?) – Måneskin (5)
  6. ONE MORE TIME – blink-182 (6)
  7. WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard (15)
  8. ATTRACTION – Wild Horse (9)
  9. MY LOVE MINE ALL MINE – Mitski (11)
  10. ATOMIC CITY – U2 (8)
  11. THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND – Bad Omens (7)
  12. RUN AWAY WITH ME – Cold War Kids (15)
  13. LOVING YOU – Cannons (18)
  14. WILD – Brian Lambert, Harmoni Kelley & Marc Schuster (19)
  15. ALL I DIE FOR – SWiiMS (20)
  16. COOL ABOUT IT – boygenius (21)
  17. MODERN GIRL – Bleachers (23)
  18. GOOD OLD DAYS – The Revivalists (17)
  19. THE SHAMEFUL – Amongst Liars (10)
  20. WHITE HORSE – Chris Stapleton (22)
  21. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (12)
  22. YOUR SIDE OF TOWN – The Killers (14)
  23. HOW DID YOU GET HERE? – Antony Szmierek (25)
  24. ANGRY – The Rolling Stones (16)
  25. HOUDINI – Dua Lipa (27)
  26. BLAME BRETT – The Beaches (28)
  27. PRETTY VICIOUS – The Struts (29)
  28. NOTHING MATTERS – The Last Dinner Party (30)
  29. LOSE CONTROL – Teddy Swims (N)
  30. WINTER COWBOY – Frank Joshua (N)

Top 30 Songs for December 17-23, 2023

We’re now into the home stretch of 2023 with just two weeks left in the year, and though the Billboard Hot 100 is dominated by vintage Christmas songs, my chart says ‘no’ to that! Accordingly, the delightful love song “Darling” by Canadian artist Western Jaguar holds onto the top spot for a second week. Green Day moves into second place with their rousing protest anthem “The American Dream is Killing Me”, while The Beatles‘ nostalgic “Now and Then” climbs three spots to #3. (The song is #1 for a second week on the Billboard AAA chart.) “THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND” by American hard rock band Bad Omens spends a fourth week at #7.

British pop-rock band Wild Horse enter the top 10 with their sweet song “Attraction”, moving up four spots to #9, and Brittany Howard‘s wonderful “What Now” is this week’s biggest climber, leaping 10 spots to #15. The lone debut this week, entering at #30, is “Nothing Matters” by British all-female indie rock band The Last Dinner Party. Although the song’s been a sizable hit on the Alternative charts, and seems to be almost everyone’s favorite, it’s taken a while to grow on me.

  1. DARLING – Western Jaguar (1)
  2. THE AMERICAN DREAM IS KILLING ME – Green Day (3)
  3. NOW AND THEN – The Beatles (6)
  4. MORE THAN A LOVE SONG – Black Pumas (2)
  5. HONEY (ARE U COMING?) – Måneskin (4)
  6. ONE MORE TIME – blink-182 (5)
  7. THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND – Bad Omens (7)
  8. ATOMIC CITY – U2 (9)
  9. ATTRACTION – Wild Horse (13)
  10. THE SHAMEFUL – Amongst Liars (10)
  11. MY LOVE MINE ALL MINE – Mitski (16)
  12. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (8)
  13. RUN AWAY WITH ME – Cold War Kids (15)
  14. YOUR SIDE OF TOWN – The Killers (12)
  15. WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard (25)
  16. ANGRY – The Rolling Stones (11)
  17. GOOD OLD DAYS – The Revivalists (18)
  18. LOVING YOU – Cannons (19)
  19. WILD – Brian Lambert, Harmoni Kelley & Marc Schuster (20)
  20. ALL I DIE FOR – SWiiMS (21)
  21. COOL ABOUT IT – boygenius (22)
  22. WHITE HORSE – Chris Stapleton (23)
  23. MODERN GIRL – Bleachers (24)
  24. UNDER YOU – Foo Fighters (14)
  25. HOW DID YOU GET HERE? – Antony Szmierek (26)
  26. EVICTED – Wilco (17)
  27. HOUDINI – Dua Lipa (28)
  28. BLAME BRETT – The Beaches (29)
  29. PRETTY VICIOUS – The Struts (30)
  30. NOTHING MATTERS – The Last Dinner Party (N)

Top 30 Songs for December 10-16, 2023

One of my favorite indie artists is Western Jaguar, the music project of Canadian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jeffrey Trainor. Based in the eastern outskirts of Vancouver, British Columbia, Western Jaguar was born in 2012 when Trainor turned to music to get him out of a low point in his life. With the help of an evolving lineup of musicians, he released three EPs and several singles between 2013 and 2019, including the excellent “Disappear”, which went to #1 on my Weekly Top 30 in 2019. After experiencing a creative slump that began during the Covid pandemic, when he all but gave up on Western Jaguar, he later resurrected the project and completed an outstanding album of new and previously-written songs. The album, which he named Oblivion, was released in July (you can read my review here).

Though many of the album’s tracks deal with loss, Trainor is in fact a happily-married man, which he celebrates on the sweet love song “Darling“. Calling it the poppiest song he’s ever written, it’s definitely the most upbeat track on the album, with a bouncy melody, sunny guitar lines, plucky bass, cheerful xylophone and exuberant hand claps, accompanied by Trainor’s earnest and pleasing vocals. It’s a perfect little pop song, and I’ve grown to love it. Accordingly, it ascends to the top spot on my latest Weekly Top 30, becoming Western Jaguar’s second song to top my chart. The endearing video was filmed in the beautiful Fraser River valley of British Columbia.

Otherwise, not many changes from last week, and there are no new debuts.

  1. DARLING – Western Jaguar (4)
  2. MORE THAN A LOVE SONG – Black Pumas (1)
  3. THE AMERICAN DREAM IS KILLING ME – Green Day (5)
  4. HONEY (ARE U COMING?) – Måneskin (2)
  5. ONE MORE TIME – blink-182 (3)
  6. NOW AND THEN – The Beatles (9)
  7. THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND – Bad Omens (7)
  8. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (6)
  9. ATOMIC CITY – U2 (10)
  10. THE SHAMEFUL – Amongst Liars (11)
  11. ANGRY – The Rolling Stones (12)
  12. YOUR SIDE OF TOWN – The Killers (13)
  13. ATTRACTION – Wild Horse (14)
  14. UNDER YOU – Foo Fighters (8)
  15. RUN AWAY WITH ME – Cold War Kids (16)
  16. MY LOVE MINE ALL MINE – Mitski (19)
  17. EVICTED – Wilco (15)
  18. GOOD OLD DAYS – The Revivalists (18)
  19. LOVING YOU – Cannons (20)
  20. WILD – Brian Lambert, Harmoni Kelley & Marc Schuster (21)
  21. ALL I DIE FOR – SWiiMS (22)
  22. COOL ABOUT IT – boygenius (23)
  23. WHITE HORSE – Chris Stapleton (24)
  24. MODERN GIRL – Bleachers (25)
  25. WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard (26)
  26. HOW DID YOU GET HERE? – Antony Szmierek (27)
  27. SUMMER OF LUV – Portugal. The Man ft. Unknown Mortal Orchestra (17)
  28. HOUDINI – Dua Lipa (28)
  29. BLAME BRETT – The Beaches (29)
  30. PRETTY VICIOUS – The Struts (30)

Top 30 Songs for December 3-9, 2023

Formed in 2018, Black Pumas is an American band based in Austin, Texas, fronted by singer/songwriter Eric Burton and guitarist/producer Adrian Quesada. Their music has been described as psychedelic soul, R&B and neo-soul, with strong blues and funk influences, and their distinctive sound alternates between a visceral rawness and smooth soulfulness, and everything in between. They’ve already earned six Grammy nominations over a three-year period for Best New Artist, Record of the Year, American Roots Performance, Album of the Year, Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Album. Their beautiful soulful single “More Than a Love Song”, from their second album Chronicles of a Diamond, takes over the top spot on my Weekly Top 30, after spending four weeks at #3. The song, which has an arresting gospel quality, recently spent six non-consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard Adult Alternative Airplay chart.

“Now and Then” by the Beatles (which has dropped completely off the Billboard Hot 100 after just two weeks, but is #2 on the AAA chart) and “Atomic City” by U2 enter my top 10. Two high-energy songs make their debut this week: “Blame Brett” by Toronto, Canada-based all-female indie rock band The Beaches, at #29, and “Pretty Vicious” by British glam rock band The Struts, at #30.

  1. MORE THAN A LOVE SONG – Black Pumas (3)
  2. HONEY (ARE U COMING?) – Måneskin (1)
  3. ONE MORE TIME – blink-182 (2)
  4. DARLING – Western Jaguar (5)
  5. THE AMERICAN DREAM IS KILLING ME – Green Day (8)
  6. MY KINDA GIRL – The 23s (6)
  7. THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND – Bad Omens (7)
  8. UNDER YOU – Foo Fighters (4)
  9. NOW AND THEN – The Beatles (11)
  10. ATOMIC CITY – U2 (13)
  11. THE SHAMEFUL – Amongst Liars (14)
  12. ANGRY – The Rolling Stones (15)
  13. YOUR SIDE OF TOWN – The Killers (16)
  14. ATTRACTION – Wild Horse (18)
  15. EVICTED – Wilco (10)
  16. RUN AWAY WITH ME – Cold War Kids (17)
  17. SUMMER OF LUV – Portugal. The Man ft. Unknown Mortal Orchestra (9)
  18. GOOD OLD DAYS – The Revivalists (19)
  19. MY LOVE MINE ALL MINE – Mitski (20)
  20. LOVING YOU – Cannons (12)
  21. WILD – Brian Lambert, Harmoni Kelley & Marc Schuster (22)
  22. ALL I DIE FOR – SWiiMS (23)
  23. COOL ABOUT IT – boygenius (24)
  24. WHITE HORSE – Chris Stapleton (26)
  25. MODERN GIRL – Bleachers (27)
  26. WHAT NOW – Brittany Howard (28)
  27. HOW DID YOU GET HERE? – Antony Szmierek (29)
  28. HOUDINI – Dua Lipa (30)
  29. BLAME BRETT – The Beaches (N)
  30. PRETTY VICIOUS – The Struts (N)