twostepcubchart's Best of 2013: Part Seven: #40-#31...

Hey gang, I'm up to the top-40 of my year-end recap of the songs that made my weekly personal charts in 2013. You can check out the sixty songs I've gone through so far by clicking here....

#40 - Walk Off The Earth - "Red Hands"
from the album R.E.V.O. (2013)
twostepcubchart peak: #6 (one week)
weeks on the chart: 22

Canadian indie-rock band gets huge following from doing a five-guy-one-guitar version of the biggest song of last year, "Somebody That I Used To Know". Same indie-rock band makes amazing debut album with single that had awesome video. American acceptance ensues.

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#39 - Pink - "Try"
from the album The Truth About Love (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #1 (one week)
weeks on the chart: 18 (in 2013)

Pink's second single from her Truth About Love album showed off her amazing dance chops in the video, but it's her pipes that really carry the angst-filled song.  The first of three songs by Billboard's woman of the year on my recap.

#38 - Bruno Mars - "Treasure"
from the album Unorthodox Jukebox (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #2 (two weeks)
weeks on the chart: 19

I really thought Pink's album deserved the Pop Album Grammy last February, and I feel the same for Bruno's sophomore effort for the upcoming ones in 2013. Here he goes full-Michael Jackson in this retro-post-disco number that seems transported by time machine from 1982.

#37 - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton - "Can't Hold Us"
from the album The Heist (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #1 (two weeks)
weeks on the chart: 20

After conquering America with their ode to the thrift shop, the rapper/producer duo showed they were nobody to reckon with lightly with this throwdown with Ben Haggerty's amazingly quick flow like a verbal AK47 and Ray Dalton's teddy-bear of a voice to carry the chorus. Epic, epic video to boot.

#36 - Mumford & Sons - "I Will Wait"
from the album Babel (2012)
twostepcubchart peak in 2013: #10 (two weeks)
weeks on the chart: 22 (in 2013)

Another holdover from 2012, where it appeared at #40 on my year-end chart (it would've been top-5 if the points were together), the British folk-rockers fit right into the mainstream with the first of their two songs on my year-end top-100. This track even crossed over to country radio stations this year. (Also the second year-end hit to be filmed at Red Rocks)..

#35 - Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko - "Stay"
from the album Unapologetic (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #23 (two weeks)
weeks on the chart: 34 (in 2013)

There were two big hits by major artists this year that clearly attempted to match the thunder of Adele's piano/vocals only record "Someone Like You". Rihanna's dirgeful ballad includes songwriter Ekko to the mix. For Rihanna, her best track from Unapologetic if just for the naked vulnerability in her performance. Stripped of her skittish hip-hop grooves, this was her big pop moment, and she milked it.

#34 - Kelly Clarkson - "Catch My Breath"
from the album Greatest Hits: Chapter One (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #6 (two weeks)
weeks on the chart: 20 (in 2013)

Clarkson has made herself into the self-help queen of pop music, with this, the second of her two entries on the recap, her cathartic single even incorporated the "I ain't got time for that" meme....

#33 - Pink featuring Lily Allen (Cooper) - "True Love"
from the album The Truth About Love (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #2 (six weeks)
weeks on the chart: 20

I thought this was gonna be much bigger on pop radio this year, but it still managed to rule my world for quite awhile, only missing out on the top spot because of a certain Royal.

#32 - The Lumineers - "Ho Hey"
from the album The Lumineers (2012)
twostepcubchart peak in 2013: #5 (one week)
weeks in the chart: 23 (in 2013)

For the second year, indie-folk-rock had an amazing year, and it carried over to the charts, as songs crossed over from Triple-A to Alternative to Mainstream Rock to Adult-Top-40 to pop radio and even to country, as did this carry-over from 2012 that was #10 on last year's recap. All told the simple song spent a solid year (52 weeks) on my personal chart, proving once again that less is more. This year's success was due to its finally making it on mainstream pop and country radio...

#31 - Swedish House Mafia featuring John Martin - "Don't You Worry Child"
from the album Until Now (2012)
twostepcubchart peak: #1 (one week)
weeks on the chart: 21 (in 2013)


The other genre that enjoyed long chart success was dance music, with club favorites making big waves on pop, adult, and even in some cases rock radio. This supposed swan song from the massively popular Swedish DJ trio who will be concentrating on their respective solo careers was #77 on last year's list, as it was already in the top-ten when the new year started. The closest pure-club music got to being spiritual, as even gospel stations got in on the positive message of the lyrics...

I'll return tomorrow with two more repeaters from the 2012 recap, as well as two more from a Hawaiian hitmaker, Swedish party girls, the singer from the highlight of the last Olympic ceremonies, and dance meets folk, Reese's style.