2001: #2- "Ms. Jackson"

Ten times out of nine, a songsmith who chooses the heartfelt route will falter not necessarily by way of lyrical sentiment but in the arena of not-being-shitty. Who really wants to listen to a guy pouring his heart out apologizing for being misunderstood unless the beats and the rhymes are dope? With "Ms. Jackson", like a swirling pop-rap/funk combination of say, Prince and 2Pac, Outkast gets the tone totally right.

The layers of synths create drama but not melodrama, and the layers of imagery within the words evoke more than vague, simplistic angst - for the most part, we're listening in on the sincere, thoughtful, witty and painful musings of two grown men who just want to make good with their babies' mamas' mamas, using some of the more unique imagery in hip hop's history of course.

Favorite lines? We like the idea of apologizing "a trillion times", as if the quantity would help the futile situation; "I love your mom and everything, but..."; rhyming divided with invited with despite it; "puppy love" vs. "full grown" love; the house with the tire swing; the knee pads line; and of course the whole thing about the picnic.

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2001: #3 - "Lick Shots"

Maybe it pales in comparison, as far as creative genius goes, to some of the bigger and more well-known Missy/Timbaland singles of the past two decades, but very few rap songs were as tight and hard (seriously) as "Lick Shots". It starts off with a well-put half-boast, half-taunt, that the "haters... made us more creative", and goes off on a spiky, staccato old school funk-rock, post-punk vibe that to us recalled Gang of Four as much as it did Prince. If "Get Ur Freak On" made us say, "Hmmm...", this one had us saying, "Yeah!"

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2001: #4 - "What's Your Fantasy?"

Before he became a rap music stereotype, Ludacris could be counted on not only for silly, misogynistic party rap songs like "What's Your Fantasy?", but also for exquisitely stupid sex rhymes like "How about up in the library / On top of books". Seriously, I think this made it to #4 solely because of that line.

Well, to be completely fair, the beat is also pretty top notch. The percussion - skittering hi-hats and busy snares, a perfect complement to Luda's all-over-the-place hyperspeed vocalizing, especially effective as a lead-in to that one ruthless bass and kick drum blast which punctuates every measure - is note perfect, and the synths - a neverending and slightly overdone labryinth of dissonant yet catchy hooks of all flavors and textures - only add to the cartoonish fun.

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2001: #5 - "Get Ur Freak On"

As inescapable as it was in late 2001, and as inescapable it was in late 2009 on Songs of the Decade lists, "Get Ur Freak On", with only 700,000 YouTube views to date, seems to have been slightly forgotten over the years. Perhaps modern music fans have all forgotten, after she became a Top 40 princess for the first half of the 00's, then experienced a half-decade of obscurity, how bad-ass Missy could be on the mic as a legitimate rapper.

Or maybe music fans grew tired of the once innovative but now mildly grating hook, especially after the bhangra style had been used and abused so heavily in the early part of the decade. That's hard to believe though, because even in hindsight, even after all the imitators, it still sounds far, far from passe.

Looking back, it's hard to believe it was a hit at all, being that its main percussion is the tabla, and the only Western instrumentation are keys that sound like cartoon laser guns - not exactly the type of stuff that'll typically get car stereos thumping. It was all very unique stuff to be sure, even for Timbaland, but it's Missy who really keeps us coming back, even after nearly 9 years, after the crazy oddness of the beat had wormed its way into our brains forever, for better or worse.

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2001: #6 - "Rock the Boat"

The quintessential 00's slow jam, "Rock the Boat" enjoyed a somewhat inflated profile at the time of its release, due to Aaliyah's untimely death on a return trip from filming the song's video, and has since been relegated to the occasional spin on lite-soul radio.

Admittedly, after preparing to write about the 80's, where there were several standout electro-funk jams of this ilk every year, "Rock the Boat"'s status has been somewhat diminished in our minds as well.

But there was something about the incessant urgency of the vocal hook, literally repeated for four straight minutes, and the truly creamy, dream-like sound of the heavily phased guitars that made it feel more monumentally sexy than it deserved to be.

File under maximum make out music.

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2001: #7 - "Rollout"

Is this really the first Ludacris sighting on DOTY? Did he, after 2001, suddenly abandon everything that made him worth paying attention to as a pop-rap singles artist? Not exactly. Luda's wit - which on the beefy, quintessentially Timbaland "Rollout" veered precariously between clever, unfunny, and self-parody - became so tediously stereotypical and outright dumb over the years that we weren't sure that it wasn't all a parody, until he started doing those hilariously bad PSA-type, serious songs in addition. Sadly, we're not likely to hear another like this from him again - the beat is accessible and dancey but not totally cheesed out, and it's strong enough to outweigh any of the lyrical silliness.

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2001: #8 - "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against The Wall)"

Mystikal's vocal style can be a little grating (a cross between Busta Rhymes and Tom Waits?), which kept "Bouncin' Back" out of the DOTY Top 5 but he's got loads of personality; when his rhymes fail him, you can be sure that some sort of grunt or growl will be there to pick him up. He also benefited early on from some ingenious production by The Neptunes. As far as we can tell, they managed to recreate a perfect sweaty 60's soul/rock vibe without the use of any James Brown samples (or any samples at all), so they get this really eccentric-sounding version of golden era hip hop, which of course relied heavily on James Brown-esque samples.

The squealing trumpets that fade in and out sound like something Public Enemy or DJ Premier would have used. The snycopated horn melody in the chorus sounds like something from Eric B. & Rakim. And we're not the types of dudes who think live drums are better than drum machines, far from it in fact, but the one real benefit of live instrumentation here is the cool, snare mini-fill that precedes each chorus, right when Mystikal barks, "You keep". It really sets up your anticipation for the chorus and helps stands out from the rest of the song.

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2001: #9 - "Is That Your Chick?"

Back when every rap hit sounded pretty much exactly like this, it was kind of easy to lose Memphis Bleek's masterwork "Is That Your Chick?" in the shuffle. Sadly, to our ears, this is one that should still be in rotation, as it's probably the most overstuffed, fast-paced version of a Timbaland/Missy collaboration you could ever imagine.

Maybe Timbaland was trying to outdo all the imitators and put this sound to rest. His beat stutters all over the place, with off-beat drums, cash registers, funky clav stabs, and a wide variety of bells, whistles and other synth squiggles.

Memphis Bleek brings his A-game, coming fast and furious with multi-layered rhymes like: "Damn Bleek, can't speak / Uh-huh, okay, what's up, SHUT UP / And close the door / Act like you been in the drop top / On the open road before / Fix your weave, then fix me / Ever gave head doing 160? / Ever seen a pair of kicks this crispy / How you love how the white wife beater fit me?"

Then it's Twista, who's not all that gifted lyrically but fine in small doses, who comes in and does his speedy thing.

Finally, on top of all that, Jay-Z and Missy show up to provide star power, with both icons doing their best to emulate Twista's style. Whew.

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2001: #10 - "Hard to Explain"

We've already ranted about the hyperbole thrown at The Strokes' debut album Is This It?, so we won't begrudge them that here (much). "Hard to Explain" wasn't the coolest song on the album (that honor goes to the verrrrry retro-sounding "The Modern Age"), nor was it the catchiest (the Petty-esque "Someday" takes that title), but overall we think it was the most unique. Not that it was innovative in any way; it simply blended all the forerunners to The Strokes' brief run as band du jour into the best compact distillation of what they were all about - jittery Feelies/Talking Heads-style New York faux-punk/new-wave, lock-step radio-friendly pop-punk drumming straight out of cash-grab-era Ramones albums, simple yet effective Television-cum-indie-rock guitar leads, and vocals and lyrics that emulate typical post-punk, college rock self-flagellation and loathing at one moment, and post-modern self-awareness the next.

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2001: 19-11

19. "Fiesta" - R Kelly
18. "Break Ya Neck" - Busta Rhymes
17. "One Minute Man" - Missy Elliott
16. "Ante Up (Remix)" - M.O.P.
15. "7 Days" - Craid David
14. "Ghost Showers" - Ghostface Killah
13. "I'm A Slave 4 U" - Britney Spears
12. "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" - Jay-Z
11. "Let Me Blow Ya Mind" - Eve

In a very strong year, it'd be hard not to mention everything great we heard - the laid-back, pre-party-funk of "Fiesta"; "Break Your Neck" and "Ante Up", two old school New York headbangers, both featuring Busta Rhymes; Missy's catchy and conventional (for her) "One Minute Man"; Craig David's cute Brit-dance-popper "7 Days" featuring the cheeky line "...We chilled on Sunday" (they'd made love Wednesday through Saturday, needed a break); the first of many appearances on DOTY thus far by any Wu-Tang Clan member (Ghostface's "Ghost Showers"); and the last by Kanye (he produced Jay's "Izzo").

We'll leave you to ponder 2001 with the important R&B/hip hop makeovers of two very disparate artists - Britney Spears and Gwen Stefani. Britney used The Neptunes' slinky late-80's Prince-lite beat to establish herself as a sexy, adult solo artist. Too bad a forthcoming single negated all that.



On the other hand, Gwen managed to ride Eve's coattails into some unexpected hip hop and R&B cred, becoming more of a Madonna-esque shape-shifter over the next half-dozen years than Britney ever was.



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2002: 20-1

Almost finished with the 00's!

18. "The Whole World" - Outkast
17. "Underneath It All" - No Doubt
16. "Dilemma" - Nelly
15. "Oh Boy" - Cam'ron
14. "No One Knows" - Queens of the Stone Age
13. "When the Last Time" - Clipse
12. "Girlfriend" - *NSYNC
11. "Hella Good" - No Doubt
10. "Nothin'" - Noreaga
9. "Provider" - N.E.R.D.
8. "Like I Love You" - Justin Timberlake
7. "Hate To Say I Told You So" - The Hives
6. "8 Mile" - Eminem
5. "Oops (Oh My)" - Tweet
4. "More Than A Woman" - Aaliyah
3. "Grindin'" - Clipse
2. "Work It" - Missy Elliott
1. "Lose Yourself" - Eminem

Artist of the Year: Eminem
Producer of the Year: The Neptunes

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2002: #1 - "Lose Yourself"

Two other things Eminem did right in 2002 - very right, almost to the point of making them his own art form - were the use of unique meters in his rhymes, often syncopated with the beat; and in "Lose Yourself" what was perhaps the apex of "bending" the phonetic pronunciation of words in order to match many syllables in a rhyme scheme. It starts out: "His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy / There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti / He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready" and never lets up.

Rakim and Big Daddy Kane started it all with polysyllabic rhymes on tracks like "Follow the Leader" and "Ain't No Half Steppin", and Nas and AZ took it to the next level on "Life's A Bitch", but here, Em takes those influences and carries rhyming not only to its next logical step but almost to the breaking point of what hip hop and language are capable of.

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2002: 20-2

Guess #1 and win the mix disc. If you were paying attention, you will win (we literally gave it away).

18. "The Whole World" - Outkast
17. "Underneath It All" - No Doubt
16. "Dilemma" - Nelly
15. "Oh Boy" - Cam'ron
14. "No One Knows" - Queens of the Stone Age
13. "When the Last Time" - Clipse
12. "Girlfriend" - *NSYNC
11. "Hella Good" - No Doubt
10. "Nothin'" - Noreaga
9. "Provider" - N.E.R.D.
8. "Like I Love You" - Justin Timberlake
7. "Hate To Say I Told You So" - The Hives
6. "8 Mile" - Eminem
5. "Oops (Oh My)" - Tweet
4. "More Than A Woman" - Aaliyah
3. "Grindin'" - Clipse
2. "Work It" - Missy Elliott

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2002: #2 - "Work It"

While we're on the subject of songs that heavily borrow from classic hip hop without being a tired retread... "Work It" was the song that prompted many (well, three or four) people to ask me, "Hey, what's that sample?" Usually they were referring to the "Peter Piper" loop (itself a sample of "Take Me To the Mardi Gras" by semi-obscure jazz-fusion artist Bob James), but there's also a nearly unrecognizable Blondie hook in there, too.

"Work It" also has the official distinction of being Billboard's longest running #2 song that never reached #1. Oddly, it's kept out of the DOTY top slot by the same song that stifled it on the charts. Unofficially, it's one of the top five oddest sounding #2 song in chart history, and the strangest of all Missy's hits, which is certainly saying something. It's basically a bunch of very subtle percussion elements, siren wails, deep keyboard rumbles, onomatopeia, lyrical non sequiturs - the most noteworthy of which often punctuated by stops and starts in the rhythm track - and backwards vocal hooks, all thrown together, and then wrapped up in the end by the aforementioned Run D.M.C. sample, but, thanks to Timbaland and Missy, it works.

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2002: #3 - "Grindin"

It's fitting that the highest ranking Neptunes song on DOTY thus far is a track that sounds the least like typical Neptunes. There are no funk guitars, the drum sound is more robotic than live, and the synths are minimal - they still represent the biggest musical hook, but they're strangely percussive and faded way in the mix. If you weren't aware of the lyrical trends in hip hop (or Clipse's cocaine metaphors), you might think this had come out in 1988 or so. All that's missing is some scratching. Even Pharrell's falsetto is limited to a moment that is far more Kool Keith or Biz Markie than his usual Curtis Mayfield via boy band.

What makes it more than another retro rehash is the super punchy and oddly brutal drum sound that comes in on the offbeat late in each measure - amidst the typical crisp snares and handclaps you have this triple gunshot blast that comes out of nowhere. Put that in the mix with the cold, spaced-out synth hook and an eerily whispered refrain and you have a minimalist song that makes you feel like you're right there with the Clipse crew, without really glorifying their supposed profession with too much flash and bling.

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2002: #4 - "More Than A Woman"

Aaliyah, with the help of Timbaland, has been lauded in the pop music community and beyond for her willingness to experiment. Never gimmicky or fussy, sometimes, if you blink, you'll miss what all the fuss is about, like on the ultra-smooth soul throwback "More Than A Woman". The beat stops and starts, building to climaxes and comedowns every measure. The musical hook is an appropriated melody straight out of India, but it doesn't feel intrusive like a lot of more recent Bhangra-influenced songs are. There are layers and layers of different synths, from heavy, "dark" sounds to electro-funk bells and blurts - they almost bury the vocal non-hook, which is an afterthought sung by a chorus of backup Aaliyahs, as if it goes without saying that Aaliyah is what she says she is.

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2002: #5 - "Oops (Oh My)"

Why Timbaland decided to use one of his All-Time Top Five Beats on someone who calls herself Tweet we'll never know, but frankly, Tiny Tim could have sung this song and it would have been a huge hit. For the record, Tweet gets the job done here for the most part - her voice is just not as sexy Aaliyah's, or even as confident as Missy Elliott's (who co-wrote). Over acid-trip pitch-shifted vocal synths, a very subtle yet very effective rhythm section, keyboard blips, and slithery post-punk funk guitar riffery - all of which are perfectly panned in the mix, and brought in and out at well-timed moments, creating tension as the jittery beats and bleeps continue until the fade out - she's singing something about taking off her clothes and it kind of makes us want to do the same, but not because of anything she's saying. It's the beat that does us in.

P.S. - We thought this would be an appropriate post to start sharing our Twitter feed. Tweet away.

2002: #6 - "8 Mile"

We never liked Eminem much.

It has nothing to do with his shock-jock antics; we could probably deal with all the homophobia and mysogyny - awful stuff of course, but nothing the world of pop music hadn't accepted before - if the songs had been any good.

Don't get us wrong - his rapping is always technically stellar and when he works with Dr. Dre the beats tend to be above-average, but he's got the vibe all wrong. The cartoon-rap goof stuff is neither fun nor funny, sort of an idiot's version of Weird Al parodying The Geto Boys, and the serious stuff just sucks. Seriously, the funniest Eminem song to date is "Stan", only because it's laughably bad.

Anyway, to make a long story short, he kind of got it all together on this 8 Mile soundtrack, where he blunted most of the dumb violent stuff, but still left enough grit to keep things slightly dangerous, and most of all, kept the beats crisp and the hooks catchy. What good are serious rap songs if no one wants to listen to them?

2002: #7 - "Hate to Say I Told You So"

On "Hate To Say I Told You So", The Hives were unwittingly compared to The Who and The Kinks by out of touch rock journalists, desperate to fling some organic-sounding, familiar comparisons around (and attach some critical importance to a modern band not named Radiohead).

To us, however, the riff in "Hate To Say I Told You So" sounded more like a semi-calculated, stripped-down faux-garage reboot of Nirvana's "Stay Away", and being compared to a canonical 90's alternative band is no better or worse than being compared to a canonical 60's hippie bands, it's just the truth.

On their records at the time, The Hives seemed more like a glossy, Swede version of midwestern 90's punk-revival band - New Bomb Turks, Gaunt, Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments. They later adapted some more new-wavey and pop-punk elements, quite welcome to our ears, but disliked intensely by fair-weather fans and critics alike.

We don't know which comparisons the faux-punk Hives would dig less - they seem to fashion themselves as kind of a mod-influenced Stooges, though the only similarities there are that the frontman screams a bit and wears a suit - but we think they'd agree with us that the tune rocks pretty hard despite all its glossy baggage and the critical handwringing that that leads to.