Twostepcub's "Best Hits" of 2019: Part Two - #90 to #81...

Well folks, we're up to round two of my recap of the biggest hits on my weekly music hitlist. You can catch up on part one by clicking here. And away we go....

#90 - "Look What God Gave Her" by Thomas Rhett
          from the album Center Point Road (2019)
          Highest Rank: #20 (one week)
          Weeks on the chart: 19
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #32
          Billboard Country Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Thomas Rhett, Rhett Akins, Julian Bunetta, Josh Ryan, Jacob Kasher, Ammar Malik

You can tell legacy country singer Thomas Rhett wasn't even pretending to be "country" anymore with this lead single from his fourth album. I mean, the song was co-written by the guy behind "Moves Like Jagger" and "Payphone" and "Maps" all from Maroon 5, so it isn't surprising that this song sounds more like a Maroon 5 record than a Maroon 5 record. Also, it took six people to come up with this, including Rhett's own dad, so it does seem a bit crowdsourced. Luckily, Rhett has an affable enough personality and smooth voice to carry it, and in this world of lower standard that's sometimes enough. But it is telling how this went to #1 on country radio then immediately fell out of the top ten. On last year's list, Rhett had two song on last year's year-end chart (matching this year), with "Marry Me" at #47 and "Life Changes" at #89.

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#89 - "Rumor" by Lee Brice
          from the album Lee Brice (2017)
          Highest Rank: #20 (one week)
          Weeks on the chart: 19
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #25
          Billboard Country Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Lee Brice, Ashley Gorley, Kyle Jacobs

The big "slow burner" of the country scene this year, this single was released in July of 2018 as just the second single from his self-titled album from 2017. But persistence paid off, as Lee's understated plea to make a love public grew and grew until it lingered in the pop Hot 100 with actual airplay from non-country stations.

#88 - "I Don't Care" by Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber
          from the album No. 6 Collaborations Project (2019)
          Highest rank: #19 (one week)
          Weeks on the chart: 23
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2
          UK Singles chart peak: #1
          Adult Top-40 peak: #1
          Songwriters: Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, Max Martin, Shellback, Poo Bear, Fred Gibson

Yes, this is the song that actually surprised me by being on my year-end list. I mean, Bieber. But that only proves the immense weight Sheeran adds to anything, and the relatively light time in the charts (it came in the middle of Lil' Nas X's 20-week reign with "Old Town Road") with little quality competition among the "hits" at that time, and its longevity put it here. This is the first of two tracks from his collaborations project to make my year-end, and I guess their voices are so alike that I sort of forgot about Justin here. Still, it's a muted year for Ed, who had the #3 song of 2018 with "Perfect".

#87 - "Stay High" by Brittany Howard
          from the album Jaime (2019)
          Highest rank: #8 (two weeks)
          Weeks on the chart: 15
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: DNC
          Billboard Triple-A Rock peak: #1 
          Songwriter: Brittany Howard

Taking a break from the blues-rock band Alabama Shakes,  whose last album was out in 2015, vocal powerhouse Howard released her sublime Jaime this year, led by this lyrically simple yet beautifully complex swirl of emotion. One of the best albums of the year. Additional Terry Crews a bonus, and a whisper of a more somber "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" vibe going.

#86 - "This Life" by Vampire Weekend
          from the album Father Of The Bride (2019)
          Highest rank: #17 (two weeks)
          Weeks on the chart: 18
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: DNC
          Billboard Triple-A rock chart peak: #1
          Songwriters: Ezra Koenig, iLoveMakonnen

Cribbing Van Morrison's guitar riff from "Brown Eyed Girl" rather blatantly, this breezy rock reminiscing is still quite a bit of fun on its own. despite the quite dour lyrics (like their other year-end track "Harmony Hall" at #100) about cheating and indifference, it's quite "California" in its attitude. The second song on my list from their Grammy Album of the Year contender.

#85 - "Burning Man" by Dierks Bentley featuring the Brothers Osborne
          from the album The Mountain (2018)
          Highest rank: #5 (one week)
          Weeks on the chart in 2019: 12 (was on for three weeks in 2018)
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #45
          Billboard Country Airplay peak: #2
          Songwriters: Bobby Pinson, Luke Dick

Last year Dierks made the year-end list at #86 with "Woman, Amen", the female-affirming lead single from the country singer's ninth studio album. The follow-up, which describes the dichotomy within every man, did a notch better. The country-rock hybrid is helped by the addition of the Brothers, whose own Port Saint Joe album was criminally overlooked.

#84 - "Here Tonight" by Brett Young
          from the album Ticket To L.A. (2018)
          Highest rank: #20 (three weeks)
          Weeks on the chart: 16
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #42
          Billboard Country Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Brett Young, Charles Kelley (Lady Antebellum), Ben Caver, Justin Ebach

Country pretty boy Young, who was on last year's list with the final two singles from his debut album, "Like I Loved You" (#60) and "Mercy" (#94), took a lot of time for his sophomore disc to catch on with this slow-burn mid-tempo number about the pleasures of not going out tonight.

#83 - "Please Me" by Cardi B and Bruno Mars
          from the upcoming album Tiger Woods (2020)
          Highest rank: #19 (two weeks)
          Weeks on the chart: 16
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #3
          Billboard R&B/Hip Hop Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Cardi B, Bruno Mars, James Fauntleroy, the Stereotypes (Jonathan Yip, Ray Romulus, Jeremy Reeves, Ray McCullough II)

Rapper Cardi B and Bruno Mars attempt to recreate the nostalgic magic from their retro collaboration from last year, "Finesse", which landed as the #23 song of 2018. "Please Me" is much more direct and vulgar in its intentions, but both know their strengths. While many people turn off this because it seemed "product",  again the bar is lowered comparably.

#82 - "Natural" by Imagine Dragons
          from the album Origins (2018)
          Highest rank (in 2019): 6 (four weeks) (was #1 for four weeks in 2018)
          Weeks on the chart (in 2019): 15 (was on for 18 weeks in 2018)
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #13
          Billboard Rock Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Imagine Dragons (Dan Reynolds, Wayne Sermon, Ben McKee, Daniel Platzman), Matt Larson, Robin Fredrikssen, Justin Drew Trantor.

There are only three singles on this years top 100 that were on last years top 100, and this is not only one of the three but the one that was the highest last year. "Natural" was #1 for a month last year, and it was so non-threateningly edgy that their lead stuck around just enough to make this years list by tenacity alone.

#81 - "Sixteen" by Thomas Rhett
          from the album Life Changes (2017)
          Highest Rank (in 2019): #15 (four weeks)
          Weeks on the chart (in 2019): 15 (was on for 3 weeks in 2018)
          Billboard Hot 100 peak: #42
          Billboard Country Airplay peak: #1
          Songwriters: Thomas Rhett, Sean Douglas, Joe Spargur

The fifth #1 country airplay hit from Rhett's Life Changes album was a cool bit or perspective over aging, running through the numbers with memories that at least do not sound like a "list song". A fitting promo end to Rhett's best album so far.

Well there's the end of part two...next up I've got a lot more country, as well as a bearish British singer songwriter, indie-rock heroes, and reliable pop-rock hitmakers.