twostepcubchart's Best of 2014: Part Seven - #40 to #31...

We've made it to the top forty on my recap of the songs racking up the most points on my weekly chart for 2014. You can catch up with the other installments (plus my Xmas "bubbling under" bonus 25) by clicking here...

#40 - "Play It Again" - Luke Bryan
          from the album Crash My Party (2013)
          twostepcubchart peak: #2 (two weeks)
          weeks on the chart: 20

Country A-lister Luke Bryan, who also appeared here this year at #51 with "Roller Coaster", had the #60 song of last year with "That's My Kind Of Night", and #82 with "Crash My Party". This time he "crashes" the top-40 with the top country song on my recap this year, "Play It Again"...

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#39 - "Bad Blood" - Bastille
          from the album Bad Blood (2013)
          twostepcubchart peak: #10 (two weeks)
          weeks on the chart: 25

It took awhile for the British modern rock act to overcome the juggernaut that was "Pompeii" (which will come up later), but finally got an audience in the States with this pseudo-reggae track that went top-5 on both the rock and dance charts.

#38 - "Don't" - Ed Sheeran
          from the album x (2014)
          twostepcubchart peak: #1 (one week)
          weeks on the chart: 19 (so far in 2014 - still charting)

English singer/songwriter Sheeran, who was at #45 for 2013 with "Lego House", censors the "fuck" out of his kiss-off break-up song but still gets his point across with just as must venom...

#37 - "Cool Kids" - Echosmith
          from the album Talking Dreams (2013)
          twostepcubchart peak: #7 (two weeks)
          weeks on the chart: 21 (so far in 2014 - still charting)

This single, reminiscent of the dream-pop of the 90s, was originally released back in May of 2013, but took a whole year to catch on with pop radio, followed by rock stations. Triumph of the youth vote who gravitated to this non-sugary track.

#36 - "Counting Stars" - OneRepublic (also #41 in 2013)
          from the album Native (2013)
          twostepcubchart peak (in 2014): #12 (seven weeks) (peaked at #4 in 2013)
          weeks on the chart (in 2014): 20

Another one of the five holdovers from last years top 100, this song spent a total of 43 weeks on my chart, reinvigorating the pop/rock act, who's been a fixture on my list since their debut with "Apologize"...

#35 - "Sleeping With A Friend" - Neon Trees
          from the album Pop Psychology (2014)
          twostepcubchart peak: #3 (two weeks)
          weeks on the chart: 21

The Utah modern rock band's third album was a coming out expose for lead singer Tyler Glenn, and his real-life confessions on this single are a good match for the video's over-the-top 80s camp.

#34 - "Problem" - Ariana Grande featuring Iggy Azalea
          from the album My Everything (2014)
          twostepcubchart peak: #2 (two weeks)
          weeks on the chart: 22

It's telling that in this age of endless Auto-tune that this more nasal Mariah Carey study is the "big voice" in pop music today, but the loose lite funk of this jam was inescapable in the summer of this year. Also, the #1 exhibit of white people co-opting hip-hop's sound without the history, since Iggy is extra credit on this.

#33 - "Waves (Robin Schulz Mix)" - Mr. Probz
         from the Robin Schulz album Prayer (2014)
         twostepcubchart peak: #27 (so far in 2014 - still climbing)
         weeks on the chart: 37 (so far in 2014 - still charting)

The second international hit on my recap redone by German neo-house wiz Schulz (Lilly Wood & The Prick's "Prayer In C" is at #46), Dutch R&B/hip hop artist Mr. Probz (aka Dennis Stehr) is the real star of the show, as his gravelly soulful voice serves as the base for the cocktail-lounge-friendly beat laid beneath. Credit Schulz for not overwhelming the original records with sound effects.

#32 - "Maps" - Maroon 5 
          from the album V (2014)
          twostepcubchart peak: #3 (one week)
          weeks on the chart: 22

 When the pop/rock band returned for their fifth album, lead singer Adam Levine had already been declared People magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive" the previous November, and his presence on The Voice had overshadowed anybody who had appeared as a contestant on the show, including whoever won the last season that was on his team. Of course their first song's video is a mini-movie featuring lots of angsty Levine, because do we really want to see just a performance clip?

#31 - "Love Runs Out" - OneRepublic
          from the album Native (2013)
          twostepcubchart peak: #5 (one week)
          weeks on the chart: 24

  With Maroon 5 and OneRepublic the current standard-bearers for pop-oriented bands, its only fitting that fate landed these two next to each other on the list. This thumper, belatedly added to the re-release of the group's Native album, was one of those times I'm glad an artist padded the set.

I'll be back on Monday with five boys growing up, trap music going mainstream, and a walk through Brooklyn.