Today on the blog, I continue on with my listing of the Top Ten Summer Hits from years past. I’ve already gone over both 1987 and 1997. If you missed those entries, you can find them here:
https://toddmthatcher.com/2017/07/07/top-ten-summer-music-hits-of-1987-a-look-back/
https://toddmthatcher.com/2017/07/11/top-ten-summer-music-hits-of-1997-a-look-back/
On this Throwback Thursday, we travel back a decade to 2007 to find what was burning up the charts in a summer where comedies like Knocked Up and Superbad were making us laugh, the Transformers franchise was just beginning, and Spider-Man 3 was overwhelming us with too many villains and Tobey Maguire dancing.
As I have with these posts before, I’ll rank them on my own (not exactly refined) musical scale of 1 (summer bummer) to 10 (summer fire) and let you know whether or not said song resides on my Apple Music playlist.
Let’s get to it!
10. “Make Me Better” – Fabolous feat. Ne-Yo
Brooklyn MC Fabolous starting making hits in 2001 and this Timbaland produced and string heavy track featuring Ne-Yo is one of his biggest. Timbaland always delivers good beats. It’s decent, though nothing too memorable.
My Rating: 6 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
9. “Bartender” – T-Pain feat. Akon
Like many of Mr. Pain’s tracks, this is made for careless nights at the club and in that sense, it’s perfect acceptable. Like some of those nights, however, you may have forgotten it by morning.
My Rating: 6
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
8. “Makes Me Wonder” by Maroon 5
The first single from Maroon 5’s long-awaited second album, this was actually their first #1 hit (a bit surprising considering the smashes from their debut release). It’s a catchy as heck pop concoction with Adam Levine’s fine vocals.
My Rating: 8 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: Yes
7. “Beautiful Girls” by Sean Kingston
Jamaican artist Kingston scored a huge one hit wonder here with this reggae tinged ode to a girl he loves. The lyrics are really quite disturbing if you think about them at all, but summer songs are all about enjoying them with the top down and this pretty much delivers.
My Rating: 6 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
6. “The Way I Are” by Timbaland feat. Keri Hilson
Grammatical issues aside, the second single from mega-producer Timbaland’s Shock Value album is a synth heavy standout jam. My goodness – this man was on fire in the mid 2000s.
My Rating: 8 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: Yes
5. “Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin’)” – T-Pain feat. Yung Joc
And now for the lead single from Mr. Pain’s second smash album. It’s another club anthem meant for quick consumption on a night out and it’s a notch above #9 “Bartender”.
My Rating: 6 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
4. “Hey There Delilah” by Plain White T’s
The signature tune from these Illinois rockers, this track was inescapable a decade ago. The ballad’s rating here perhaps suffers from its overexposure, but it does get in your head.
My Rating: 7
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
3. “Party Like a Rockstar” by Shop Boyz
The first and only hit from these Atlanta rappers, “Rockstar” merged the sounds of hip hop and rock that first gained exposure two decades earlier with Aerosmith and Run DMC. It’s the most downloaded ringtone of 2007. It’s not “Walk This Way”, but it’s fun.
My Rating: 6 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
2. “Big Girls Don’t Cry” by Fergie
The fourth single off her debut album and the third #1 from it, Black Eyed Peas songstress Fergie slowed it down here with this ditty. Truthfully, it was never among my favorite tracks that were singles but maybe I just gravitated toward other hits like “London Bridge”, “Glamorous”, and “Clumsy”. Still it’s solid. By the way, if that guy Fergie is romancing in the video looks familiar – that would Milo Ventimiglia or Jack from TV’s “This Is Us”.
My Rating: 7 and a half
Is It On My Apple Music?: No
1. “Umbrella” by Rihanna feat. Jay-Z
Now we’re talking! One of Rihanna’s best cuts, this was actually rejected by Britney Spears. Oops. With a fine assist from Mr. Shawn Carter (who co-wrote), “Umbrella” features a towering beat and is one of the endlessly played tracks that somehow doesn’t get old. It deserves its accolades.
My Rating: 10
Is It On My Apple Music?: Yes
Well, that does it folks! The last ten, twenty, and thirty years of summertime hits. Next summer – get ready for 1988, 1998, and 2008. And hitting the blog within days will be reviewing the movie summers of 1987, 1997, and 2007. Stay tuned!
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