Emma's Favourite Songs, 2016.

Influences: Taylor Swift breakup songs, Quentin Tarantino movies, songs covered in Glee, tracks frequently used in Sky Sports football montages and basically anything I can turn my swag on conduct terrible karaoke to.

1. Homecoming (Kanye West ft. Chris Martin)
2. Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
3. Alison (Elvis Costello)
4. What Makes You Beautiful (One Direction)
5. Rocky Raccoon (The Beatles)
6. Hallelujah (Rufus Wainwright)
7. Sinnerman (Nina Simone)
8. I Knew You Were Trouble (Taylor Swift)
9. Sexy! No No No… (Girls Aloud)
10. Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie (Joanna Newsom)
11. Off to the Races (Lana del Rey)
12. Fancy (Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX)
13. November Has Come (Gorillaz)
14. Samson (Regina Spektor)
15. Romeo and Juliet (Dire Straits)
16. Stuck in the Middle with You (Stealers Wheel)
17. Run this Town (Rihanna, Jay-Z and Kanye West)
18. Power (Kanye West)
19. Untouchable (Girls Aloud)
20. This is What Makes Us Girls (Lana del Rey)
21. Paper Planes (M.I.A.)
22. Talk Show Host (Radiohead)
23. Lullaby (Dixie Chicks)
24. All These Things that I've Done (The Killers)
25. Angie Baby (Helen Reddy)

26. 22 (Taylor Swift)
27. Wild Boys (Duran Duran)

28. Love the Way You Lie Part II (Rihanna ft. Eminem)
29. Head over Heels (Tears for Fears)
30. Boys Don't Cry (The Cure)
31. Problem (Ariana Grande ft. Iggy Azalea)
32. Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy (Queen)
33. We Are Never Getting Back Together (Taylor Swift)
34. Glory Box (Portishead)
35. Empire State of Mind: Broken Down (Alicia Keys)
36. How Do You Like Me Now? (The Heavy)
37. 2am (The Saturdays)
38. Adia (Sarah McLachlan)
39. Tiny Dancer (Elton John)
40. Baba O'Riley (The Who)
41. Wildwood Flower (June Carter Cash)
42. The Loving Kind (Girls Aloud)
43. California Dreamin' (The Mamas and the Papas)
44. Cat People (Putting Out Fire) (David Bowie)
45. Chelsea Dagger (The Fratellis)
46. My Father's Gun (Elton John)
47. What I Go to School for (Busted)
48. Bang Bang (Jessie J ft. Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj)
49. When She Loved Me (Sarah McLachlan)
50. Royals (Lorde)

51. Cell Block Tango (Chicago OST)
52. Hey Jude (The Beatles)
53. Brandy Alexander (Feist)
54. Don't Stop Believin' (Journey)
55. Defying Gravity (Idina Menzel)
56. Sueños (Diego Torres)
57. Love Affair (Regina Spektor)
58. Video Games (Lana del Rey)
59. I Don't Want to Go to Chelsea (Elvis Costello)
60. Dragon Queen (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
61. Under Pressure (Queen ft. David Bowie)
62. Brown Eyes (Lady Gaga)
63. See You Again (Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth)
64. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference (Todd Rundgren)
65. Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears)
66. Underneath Your Clothes (Shakira)
67. Blank Space (Taylor Swift)
68. Travelin' Soldier (Dixie Chicks)
69. Numb Encore (Jay Z ft. Linkin Park)
70. Lovely Head (Goldfrapp)
71. Bad Girls (M.I.A.)
72. Fucking Problems (A$AP Rocky ft. 2 Chainz, Drake & Kendrick Lamar)
73. I Wish I Knew How it Feels to Be Free (Nina Simone)
74. Shout (Tears for Fears)
75. Good For You (Selena Gomez ft. A$AP Rocky)

76. She (Elvis Costello)
77. Vincent (Don McLean)
78. As Long as You Love Me (Justin Bieber ft. Big Sean)
79. Golden Slumbers (K.D. Lang)
80. Lullaby (The Cure)
81. Picture to Burn (Taylor Swift)
82. All Along the Watchtower (Devlin ft. Ed Sheeran)
83. Ay Vamos (J. Balvin)
84. Waka Waka (Shakira)
85. Pennies in my Pocket (Emilio Estefan)
86. Wonderwall (Oasis)
87. Airplanes part 2 (B.o.B, Hayley Williams & Eminem)
88. The River (Joni Mitchell)
89. Hey Mama (Kanye West)
90. 6 Inch (Beyonce ft. The Weeknd)
91. O Saya (A.R. Rahman ft. M.I.A)
92. Baby (Justin Bieber ft. Ludacris)
93. Take a Bow (Rihanna)
94. Work (Kelly Rowland)
95. Ignition (Remix) (R. Kelly)
96. Notorious (Duran Duran)
97. Call the Shots (Girls Aloud)
98. Shake it Off (Taylor Swift)
99. Let Me Love You (Ariana Grande ft. Lil’ Wayne)
100. White Horse (Taylor Swift)

To prove I’m right, I put it in a song.

Every August, Bung lists her top 100 or so songs, every year, there’s some good, some bad, some ugly (mostly ugly). Every year, she remains staunchly faithful to her Kanyes, her Rihannas and her Nina Simones, whilst bunging in some new tunes she’s become with over the past year (this year’s: One Direction & Lana, obviously). Every year, the people reading the list shake the head and think “oh dearrrrr.” And repeat.

1. Homecoming (Kanye West ft. Chris Martin)
2. Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
3. Angie Baby (Helen Reddy)
4. Rocky Raccoon (The Beatles)
5. Hallelujah (Rufus Wainwright)
6. Alison (Elvis Costello)
7. Sinnerman (Nina Simone)
8. What Makes You Beautiful (One Direction)
9. Sexy! No No No… (Girls Aloud)
10. Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie (Joanna Newsom)
11. Paper Planes (M.I.A.)
12. Off to the Races (Lana del Rey)
13. November Has Come (Gorillaz)
14. Samson (Regina Spektor)
15. Adia (Sarah McLachlan)
16. Run this Town (Rihanna, Jay-Z and Kanye West)
17. Power (Kanye West)
18. Untouchable (Girls Aloud)
19. This is What Makes Us Girls (Lana del Rey)
20. Talk Show Host (Radiohead)
21. Lullaby (Dixie Chicks)
22. All These Things that I've Done (The Killers)
23. Charmaine (Plan B)
24. Love the Way You Lie Part II (Rihanna ft. Eminem)
25. Romeo and Juliet (Dire Straits)

26. Head over Heels (Tears for Fears)
27. Boys Don't Cry (The Cure)
28. One Thing (One Direction)
29. Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy (Queen)
30. Defying Gravity (Idina Menzel)
31. Work (Kelly Rowland)
32. Glory Box (Portishead)
33. Hey Stephen (Taylor Swift)
34. Empire State of Mind: Broken Down (Alicia Keys)
35. 2am (The Saturdays)
36. Fix Up Look Sharp (Dizzee Rascal)
37. Tiny Dancer (Elton John)
38. Baba O'Riley (The Who)
39. Wildwood Flower (June Carter Cash)
40. My Love (Sia)
41. The Loving Kind (Girls Aloud)
42. California Dreamin' (The Mamas and the Papas)
43. Chelsea Dagger (The Fratellis)
44. My Father's Gun (Elton John)
45. Riding in Cars with Boys (Lana del Rey)
46. Seasons of Love (Idina Menzel)
47. What’s My Name? (Rihanna ft Drake)
48. Hey Jude (The Beatles)
49. Brandy Alexander (Feist)
50. Don't Stop Believin' (Journey)

51. Love Affair (Regina Spektor)
52. Video Games (Lana del Rey)
53. I Don't Want to Go to Chelsea (Elvis Costello)
54. Dragon Queen (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
55. Under Pressure (Queen ft David Bowie)
56. Brown Eyes (Lady Gaga)
57. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference (Todd Rundgren)
58. Clothes Off! (Gym Class Heroes)
59. Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears)
60. Underneath Your Clothes (Shakira)
61. Breathe (Taylor Swift)
62. Travelin' Soldier (Dixie Chicks)
63. Jesus Walks (Kanye West)
64. Numb Encore (Jay Z ft. Linkin Park)
65. Lovely Head (Goldfrapp)
66. I Wish I Knew How it Feels to Be Free (Nina Simone)
67. Shout (Tears for Fears)
68. She (Elvis Costello)
69. Rio (Duran Duran)
70. Vincent (Don McLean)
71. Love will Tear us Apart (Joy Division)
72. Lullaby (The Cure)
73. While My Guitar Gently Weeps (The Beatles)
74. Sunshowers (M.I.A.)
75. Pennies in my Pocket (Emilio Estefan)

76. Jackson (Johnny and June Carter Cash)
77. Wonderwall (Oasis)
78. Stand Up (One Direction)
79. Airplanes part 2 (B.o.B, Hayley Williams & Eminem)
80. The Killing Moon (Echo and the Bunnymen)
81. Momentum (Aimee Mann)
82. The River (Joni Mitchell)
83. Golden Slumbers (K.D. Lang)
84. Hey Mama (Kanye West)
85. Braille (Regina Spektor)
86. Back to Black (Amy Winehouse)
87. O Saya (A.R. Rahman ft. M.I.A)
88. Baby (Justin Bieber ft Ludacris)
89. Work it (Missy Elliot)
90. Chillin' (WALE ft Lady Gaga)
91. Take a Bow (Rihanna)
92. Lean on Me (Bill Withers)
93. Ignition (Remix) (R. Kelly)
94. Machine Gun (Portishead)
95. Strict Machine (Goldfrapp)
96. Notorious (Duran Duran)
97. Too Young (Phoenix)
98. No More (3LW)
99. Call the Shots (Girls Aloud)
100. She Said (Plan B)

A Look Ahead to Best Original Song, 2010.

Hiya, I thought it’s high time I got my finger out and actually did some proper film blogging, haha. And what better way than to analyse each of the Oscar nominated categories? So, whilst I brush up on watching the remaining 2010 Oscar nominated movies that I need to watch, I thought I’d analyse the one category wherein I don’t need to watch the movies to analyse the category: best song. Of course, the whole aim of a song is that it’s supposed to epitomize the film, and in that case, having seen the film might improve my appreciation of the song, so in that case, 127 Hours and Toy Story 3 might be at a (dis)advantage. But I’mma try to analyse these songs from a purely aural point of view, ignoring context.

Oh yeah, and if you're wondering what the frick this is, it's basically me pretentiously rambling on about the things I love, the things I hate and everything in between in all the Oscar nominated categories (or just the ones I can be arsed with). Past examples: costume 2007 / score 2006 / supporting actress 2007 etc etc

The nominees are:
127 Hours: A.R. Rahman, Rollo Armstrong, Dido- "If I Rise"
Country Strong: Tom Douglas, Hillary Lindsey, Troy Verges - "Coming Home"
Tangled: Alan Menken, Glenn Slater- "I See the Light"
Toy Story 3: Randy Newman - "We Belong Together"

My rankings and grades:
01. Coming Home/Country Strong

A country music ballad as good as they used to make ‘em, Gwyneth Paltrow’s surprisingly mellifluous voice (check her out in her performance in Glee, covering “Forget You”, he sass and swagger gave me a newfound appreciation of the song and cemented its place as my favourite song of 2010) sings about finding love and one’s place in the world. Standard topics, then, but her belting out “H-oooome” in the chorus is so powerful that it almost evokes the nostalgia-type emotions that I get in listening to my personal favourite song about homecomings, Kanye West’s Homecoming. A.

02. We Belong Together / Toy Story 3
“When we're together/Gray skies are clearer./And I'll share them, till where I'm less depressed./And it's sincerely, from the bottom of my heart/I just can't take it when we're apart” go the sweet but very Disneyfied lyrics of Randy Newman’s Oscar nominated Toy Story 3 entry. Whilst not quite touching the heart quite as much as “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” did, it’s still an adorable song which can bung a smile or two on my face with its unapologetically uplifting lyrics. B+

03. I See the Light/Tangled

A very pretty song, but emotionally, it doesn’t really do anything for me. It starts with the female lead singing a verse, then the male lead singing a verse, then, surprise surprise, the two of them fusing into a harmony. Musically, it’s hardly revolutionary, and, as with Randy Newman’s Toy Story 3 song, the lyrics are so massively Disney that it borders on tedious. The guitars, strings and piano chords are all very nice though. C.

04. If I Rise/127 Hours
Urgh. I’ll be analyzing Best Original Score tomorrow, wherein I’m not gonna bother hiding my disdain for 127 Hours bagging a nomination for its joke of a score. But yet another travesty is that it stained the Best Song category, when there really were many other more deserving songs that should have been nominated. Dido, on seeing how successful M.I.A. got with her super-swaggerous “O Saya” in Slumdog Millionaire, teams up with A.R. Rahman to wail away on this crappy song. I quite like Rollo’s vocals in the chorus, but Dido’s caterwauling and the bland lyrics are just disgraceful. E.

Who should win: Coming Home
Who will win: I legit have no idea! Um, If I Rise from 127 Hours?

Who should have been nominated: “Sticks and Stones” from How to Train Your Dragon, and that ain’t even a fucking question!!!!! Such a good song that it’s already been employed in a bunch of “2010: a retrospect” type montages, it sums up the film perfectly; highs, lows, and loving life. Terrifically fast-paced and with more life than an energiser bunny, this really is an adorably sweet song. I was also a fan of “Never Say Never” from The Karate Kid, though that is hugely due to Jaden Smith’s “no pun intended, raised by the power of Will” line. Lawlzswagger.

But yeah, “Sticks and Stones” from How to Train your Dragon is literally sublime. And that's an Emmabung kind of literally, not a Redknapp kind of literally. ;) Me and my bro spent all Christmas dancing around our house to it like the nerds we are. You’ll hear it on lots more awards shows and montages, mark my words, so you best download it here now so when your mates say “I wonder what song that is, it’s nice”, you can wow them with your trivia. ;)

Every year, the list must be done.

2009's and 2008's, if you're interested. A bit of a bizarre list, I'm afraid, an ecclectic mix of modern RnB/hip-hop and old-school choons. Anything that tickles my fancy, really, and a lot of things tickle my fancy, so.

1. Angie Baby (Helen Reddy)
2. Homecoming (Kanye West ft. Chris Martin)
3. Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
4. Rocky Raccoon (The Beatles)
5. Hallelujah (Rufus Wainwright)
6. Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie (Joanna Newsom)
7. Alison (Elvis Costello)
8. Paper Planes (M.I.A.)
9. November Has Come (Gorillaz)
10. Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy (Queen)
11. Sinnerman (Nina Simone)
12. Run this Town (Rihanna, Jay-Z and Kanye West)
13. Romeo and Juliet (Dire Straits)
14. Happy Hour (Cheryl Cole)

15. Samson (Regina Spektor)
16. Adia (Sarah McLachlan)
17. Empire State of Mind: Broken Down (Alicia Keys)
18. Boys Don't Cry (The Cure)
19. Talk Show Host (Radiohead)
20. Defying Gravity (Idina Menzel)
21. Glory Box (Portishead)
22. Head over Heels (Tears for Fears)
23. Hey Stephen (Taylor Swift)
24. Fix Up Look Sharp (Dizzee Rascal)
25. Lullaby (Dixie Chicks)
26. Tiny Dancer (Elton John)
27. Baba O'Riley (The Who)
28. Wildwood Flower (June Carter Cash)
29. My Love (Sia)
30. California Dreamin' (The Mamas and the Papas)
31. Chelsea Dagger (The Fratellis)
32. My Father's Gun (Elton John)
33. Seasons of Love (Idina Menzel)
34. Hey Jude (The Beatles)
35. All These Things that I've Done (The Killers)
36. Brandy Alexander (Feist)
37. Don't Stop Believin' (Journey)
38. Love Affair (Regina Spektor)
39. I Don't Want to Go to Chelsea (Elvis Costello)
40. Dragon Queen (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
41. Under Pressure (Queen ft David Bowie)
42. Brown Eyes (Lady Gaga)
43. It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference (Todd Rundgren)
44. Clothes Off! (Gym Class Heroes)
45. Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Tears for Fears)
46. Underneath Your Clothes (Shakira)
47. Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell)
48. Breathe (Taylor Swift)
49. Travelin' Soldier (Dixie Chicks)
50. Jesus Walks (Kanye West)
51. Numb Encore (Jay Z ft. Linkin Park)
52. Lovely Head (Goldfrapp)
53. I Wish I Knew How it Feels to Be Free (Nina Simone)
54. Shout (Tears for Fears)
55. She (Elvis Costello)
56. Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz)
57. Vincent (Don McLean)
58. Love will Tear us Apart (Joy Division)
59. Lullaby (The Cure)
60. While My Guitar Gently Weeps (The Beatles)
61. Redemption Song (Bob Marley)
62. Sunshowers (M.I.A.)
63. Pennies in my Pocket (Emilio Estefan)
64. Jackson (Johnny and June Carter Cash)
65. Dream on (Aerosmith)
66. Wonderwall (Oasis)
67. Sexy! No No No... (Girls Aloud)
68. Don't Stop Me Now (Queen)
69. Friday I'm in Love (The Cure)
70. Make You Feel My Love (Adele)
71. Airplanes part 2 (B.o.B, Hayley Williams & Eminem)
72. The Killing Moon (Echo and the Bunnymen)
73. Can't Speak French (Girls Aloud)
74. Momentum (Aimee Mann)
75. The River (Joni Mitchell)
76. Golden Slumbers (K.D. Lang)
77. Hey Mama (Kanye West)
78. Braille (Regina Spektor)
79. Back to Black (Amy Winehouse)
80. Dance wiv Me (Dizzee Rascal ft Calvin Harris)
81. On to the Next One (Jay-Z)
82. O Saya (A.R. Rahman ft. M.I.A)
83. Fix Me Up (Girls Aloud)
84. Bossy (Kelis)
85. Chillin' (WALE ft Lady Gaga)
86. Remedy (Little Boots)
87. Lean on Me (Bill Withers)
88. Ignition (Remix) (R. Kelly)
89. The Call (Regina Spektor)
90. Machine Gun (Portishead)
91. Twentyfourseven (Artful Dodger)
92. The Way I Are (Timbaland)
93. Strict Machine (Goldfrapp)
94. Too Young (Phoenix)
95. The Next Messiah (Jenny Lewis)
96. Heartbreaker (Will.i.am ft Cheryl Cole)
97. You've got the Dirtee Love (Florence and the Machine ft Dizzee Rascal)
98. Born Free (M.I.A.)
99. No More (3LW)
100. Feel Goold inc (Gorillaz)

She had colgate on her teeth and Reebok classics on his feet.

Am loving M.I.A.'s style, even when she was pregnant-