TOP 20 TRACKS OF 2010 COUNTDOWN tracks 4 - 2

Here we are folks, we've reached the absolute creme de la creme. The countdown of the finest songs of 2010 reaches number four...

4. THE ARCADE FIRE 'we used to wait'
The Arcade Fire concocted the best song intro of 2010 on 'We Used To Wait'. A simple, insistent piano line chimes in like an alarm clock, then fixes itself in your brain before leading you through the rest of this magical song. The lyrics are nostalgic; a reflection on a simpler time that was actually not that long ago ("It seems strange how we used to wait for letters to arrive. But it was stranger still how something so small could keep you alive"). 'We Used To Wait' works on so many levels: a social observation, an emotive lament and - perhaps most importantly - utterly captivating music. Listen to it here.
Read about the amazing video clip here.

3. LITTLE RED 'rock it'
When Little Red released 'Coca Cola' on their first record, you couldn't help but fear for their future. The Melbournian fivepiece had produced one of the finest pop songs of the decade. The rest of their career would surely be an exercise in futility; trying and failing to match that early success. Two years later, the sense of surprise was almost palpable when 'Rock It' breezed onto our airwaves. The cheeky little scamps had managed the impossible: eclipsing 'Coca Cola'. The fact that 'Rock It' sounded absolutely nothing like 'Coca Cola' was even more impressive; moving seamlessly from 1950s rock n' roll to 1980s pop funk. Listen to it here.
Read the 2010 ShoutAboutMusic live review of Little Red.
Read the ShoutAboutMusic review of Homebake 2008, featuring Little Red.

2. GORILLAZ 'stylo'
Damon Albarn could do no wrong in 2010. Reform Blur and take Glastonbury by storm? No problem. Release the third (and best) Gorillaz album? Easy. Unite a bunch of disparate musicians to record 'Stylo', one of the finest tracks by anyone, anywhere in the entire year? Piece of piss. Yep, 'Stylo' had everything: Bobby Womack's soulful vocal; Mos Def's hip hop smarts; Albarn's own haunting vocals; all wrapped up in the Gorillaz signature electronic glitz. And to top off Albarn's perfect year, Oasis split up too.
Listen to it here.


Tantalisingly close to announcing the top track of 2010 now. Tune in tomorrow to find out which artist has scooped the big one...