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The Essential Beck

Entertainment Weekly is offering a special list of their 10 Favorite Beck Songs (you need to use the current webaccess code [] or be a subscriber).

It's a good list, but here's a better one, in chronological order:

Loser (Mellow Gold, 1994) // the song that made him a strong candidate for one-hit wonder status is still his most infectious pop composition. "Soy un perdedor!"
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Beercan (Mellow Gold, 1994) // bouncier and slightly less lyrically perplexing than "Loser," this sample-heavy track compels you to "shake your boots and let it all get loose."
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The New Pollution (Odelay, 1996) // from the opening notes, this herky jerky mix of electro, sixties pop and jazz (that wonderful saxophone sample) grabs your attention and doesn't let go.
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Jack-Ass (Odelay, 1996) // this ballad is like nothing else on Beck's remarkable "sophomore" album (at least not until the last minute), and hints at the East-meets-West sound of 1998's Mutations
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Deadweight (A Life Less Ordinary - Soundtrack, 1997) // light, airy and seemingly disposable, this summery psychedelia was the best thing from a pretty good soundtrack, and the video, directed by Michel Gondry, was better than the forgettable movie

Nobody's Fault But My Own (Mutations, 1998) // this dirge reintroduced Beck as a folkie with a broken heart; it was his most naked vocal and lyrical performance to date and holds its own against the similarly themed Sea Change
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Debra (Midnite Vultures, 1999) // a kitschy, cheeky disco/funk/soul album that has detractors and admirers of equal intensity, Vultures is best remembered for this comic slice of Princely soul (Jimmy Fallon, eat your heart out).
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The Golden Age (Sea Change, 2002) // full of scorn and pain, this song somehow remains hopeful in bleak times; the perfect album opener, it sets the stage for Beck's second masterpiece
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Already Dead (Sea Change, 2002) // sparse drums and layered guitar take this rueful and morose kiss-off in the vein of Alanis Morrisette's "You Oughta Know" or Green Day's "Time of Your Life (Good Riddance)" to a place of unexpected honesty and beauty
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Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime (Eternal Sunshine - Soundtrack, 2004) // It may sound like a Sea Change b-side, but this track, the theme from my favorite movie of 2004, stands apart with an attitude less tortured and vindictive, more at peace with the reality of a breakup
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Earthquake Weather (Guero, 2005) // breezy but never slight, this is the standout of many excellent tracks on Beck's newest; the shimmering guitar and driving beats belie lyrics like "we've been driving through a desert looking for a life to call our own"
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And since no list would be complete without 13 items, here are my three favorite Beck songs not written or recorded by Beck:

Lonesome Whistle (Sounds Eclectic, 2001) // written by Beck favorite Hank Williams, this slice of old country reminds you of Beck's days as a folk singer on One Foot in the Grave and makes you wish he'd record a country album someday...I mean, why not?

Frontin' On Debra (DJ Reset Mashup/iTunes exclusive, 2004) // Jay-Z and Pharrell join Beck to reimagine this gem as a straightforward (if playful) love song for all ages
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True Love Will Find You In the End (The Late Great Daniel Johnston - Discovered Covered, 2004) // quite simply one of the greatest covers I have ever heard; Johnston was a talented songwriter and off-the-wall performer, but even he couldn't express the simultaneous hope and melancholy of this song like Beck can
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Posted by Queuetipp at March 30, 2005 11:54 AM

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