The 10 Best Pop Singles Of 2012

Let's face it — 2012 was one dark year as far as pop was concerned. In fact, my trusty sidekick in all things chart rigging Moogaboo and I shouldn't have had as much fun and ease assembling our Worst Singles Of 2012 list, alas...

That said, there were a some bright moments, like diamonds in the sky, even if we had to go digging to find them. And dig we did; this is actually probably the most unconventional Best list since I started doing them annually here on Chart Rigger back in 2005!

Below you'll find what the two of us consider to be the 10 Best Pop Singles of 2012, along with our usual colorful write-ups on just why these songs deserve several more listens. As usual, the singles listed need only have reached their peak chart position within 2012, even if they were technically released the year prior.

10. Stooshe, "Black Heart"

D'luv says: "I'm going to go out on a limb and project that these British broads probably peaked with their '60s girl group homage 'Black Heart.' 'Still, what a great footnote."
Moogaboo says: "I love a good girl-group homage, especially one that’s confident enough to leave out the cliché sax solo and include a somewhat dark lyric about 'falling for a monster.' Stooshe may not be the new Supremes (or even TLC), but for three minutes they swing with the best of them."
Charts: UK #3

9. Swedish House Mafia, "Don't You Worry Child"

D'luv says: "Childhood innocence, the lifelong steel grip of a first heartbreak and, eventually, the loss of youth somehow are perfectly portrayed in three-and-a-half minutes here. This really was a standout year for dance-pop that packed an emotional punch."
Moogaboo says: "I feel like this blast of hands-in-the-air house music could sit alongside 'Carry On My Wayward Son' or 'Cat’s in the Cradle' on any classic rock station. And I mean that as high praise! Big-DJ Power Pop is the new classic rock!"
Charts: UK #1, AUS #1, SWE #1, US #12

8. Miguel, "Adorn"

D'luv says: "I don't know how Marvin Gaye doesn't get a writing credit on this remake of 'Sexual Healing.' Regardless, 'Adorn' plays when I watch the 24/7 Max George showercam forever streaming in my mind. So it's a no-brainer for the Best list."
Moogaboo says: "Call me naïve, but I think Miguel is genuinely artsy, and not in the 'funny sunglasses' way that most pop stars pretend to be. Atop 'Adorn’s idiosyncratic arrangement, there’s a deeply soulful (and, ironically, unadorned) voice that I can’t wait to hear more from."
Charts: US #17

7. Jessie Ware, "Wildest Moments"

D'luv says: "Quite frankly, I'm most smitten with 'Taking In Water' off Devotion, already a classic pop album upon its arrival. That said, the whole LP hits every correct mark. And if we're talking strictly singles, 'Wildest Moments' is truly one of 2012's best."
Moogaboo says: "I was mostly smitten with '110%' until this jam hit me unexpectedly in a Macy’s changing room. Nothing makes you think deeper about life, kids, than an exquisitely executed power ballad timed with the moment you’ve accepted you no longer have a 31" waist."
Charts: BEL #3, UK #46

6. Calvin Harris feat. Example, "We'll Be Coming Back"

D'luv says: "Along with 2009's 'Flashback,' this is one of Calvin's best moments. When dance music touches you on a thoughtful level, it's few and far between. This is one of those times."
Moogaboo says: "Even though the LOLDance boom (LMFAO, Ke$ha) has yielded a lot of dumb hits about vodka, vomiting and vomiting vodka all night, it’s also opened up radio to the occasional electronic gem. Along with Sia’s entry, this is a perfect of example (pun intended) of dance music that sounds great outside the club."
Charts: BEL #1, UK #2, SWE #5

5. Tensnake feat. Syron, "Mainline"
D'luv says: "This makes me feel like 1991. That was a good hair year for me."
Moogaboo says: "When I hear this, it’s like I’m shopping for vests at Dejaiz all over again."



4. Rihanna, "Diamonds"

Moogaboo says: "Is this the beginning, middle, or end of Rihanna’s imperial phase? In any case, this showstopper sounds like a mission statement and a pop star at her peak: defiant, fearless, and forever young."
D'luv says: "Well, I would have guessed she peaked with 'We Found Love.' But then along came this beautiful, emotional mid-tempo number. Though it's undeniably a knockoff of M83's 'Midnight City' — go ahead, play the intro to both back-to-back — Sia's lyrics hit you in the gut, and Rihanna now has her third modern day classic."
Charts: US #1, UK #1, CAN #1

3. David Guetta feat. Sia, "Titanium"

Dluv says: "I never tire of this song, and I don't care if Guetta is overrated — pairing up with Sia proved to be the perfect pop stabilizer he needed. 'You shoot me down, but I won't fall.' Simple and brilliant."
Moogaboo says: "I was instantly mesmerized by this slice of blockbuster techno-drama, a truly uplifting anthem that rises above the pack of trite 'empowerment' exercises glutting the radio since Katy Pussy's "Firework." Sia, all is forgiven re: 'Oh Father'."
Charts: UK #1, SWE #3, US #7

2. Bright Light Bright Light, "Waiting For The Feeling"

Dluv says: "I was really irked that Alphabeat didn't carry on with their retro '90s house pastiche following their superb 2009 album The Spell. Thankfully Rod Thomas — aka Bright Light Bright Light — is here to pick up where the Danish band left off. Again, dance-pop with depth is tricky to pull off, but here you go."
Moogaboo says: "This is a non-stop twirler in the classic sense, with verses of romantic turmoil giving lift to a chorus that practically flies you to the moon. I want Bright Light Bright Light to be the new Erasure."

1. Icona Pop feat. Charli XCX, "I Love It"

Dluv says: "We knew this was an unconventional year for pop (read: most of the mainstream releases sucked), so that made for this bratty treat coming out of left field and capturing our hearts and ears. These broads deserve to at least have one hit in the States — and this is it."
Moogaboo says: "There’s a big, bruised heart behind the gleeful destruction of "I Love It," a resigned you-done-me-wrong song masquerading its vulnerabilities behind a tough-as-fuck bassline and revving synths. It burns out almost as quickly as it starts, but not before it can carve its notch as the most exhilarating Pop Moment of the year."
Charts: SWE #2, AUS #6



ALSO SEE:
* The 10 Worst Singles Of 2012
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2011
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2010
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2009
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2008
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2007
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2006
* The Best Pop Singles Of 2005
* The Top 40 Pop Singles Of The '00s

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US Chart Roundup: Carly Rae Is Still #1, Grouplove Rise & Matchbox Twenty Return

With Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" in its second week at #1 on the Hot 100, Billboard points out that this marks the first time three consecutive artists — in this case Jepsen, Gotye and fun. — have seen their debut US singles hit the top of the chart since 1977. Unfortunately, this means that every time you flip on the radio, one of those damn songs is on. I just might officially be completely over all three.

A quick check-in on the latest British invastion: Ellie Goulding's "Lights" inches up to #12 this week, while One Direction's second single "One Thing," another one getting constant radio play these days, is up to #47. Meanwhile, Cher Lloyd debuts at #75 with the Shellback-produced "Want U Back," and The Wanted jump 10 positions to #81 with "Chasing The Sun."



Other trash: David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium," which might just be my favorite single of the year so far, is up to #15, and that iPod commercial song "Tongue Tied" by Grouplove is all over the place on radio, a fact that has the single moving up to #60.

On a final note, Matchbox Twenty return with their first Hot 100 entry in five years, "She's So Mean," which debuts at #91. Their last hit came in the form of 2007's "How Far We've Come." It peaked at #11.



The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen *2 weeks*
2. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "Wide Awake" - Katy Perry
5. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
6. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
7. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
8. "Where Have You Been" - Rihanna
9. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
10. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber

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US Chart Roundup: Carly Rae Jepsen Closes The Deal With "Call Me Maybe"

The inevitable has happened — Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" is the new #1 song on the Hot 100, and it only took me stepping out of the country for this feat to happen. Well, not really — the 26-year-old (!) Canadian bimbette has been hovering at #2 for weeks, and it was only a matter of time before "Somebody That I Used To Know" finally ran out of steam. Meanwhile, look out Bieber: my prediction about your pop protege is coming true.

"Call Me Maybe", which has been certified three-times Platinum in the US alone, is now the eighth single to top the Hot 100 in 2012. Of those, it's the fifth to be fronted by a female solo artist.

Elsewhere, Ellie Goulding's "Lights" is up one position to #13, David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium" cracks the Top 20 and moves to #18, One Direction bound seven notches to #54 with "One Thing" and Calvin Harris and Ne-Yo's "Let's Go" climbs to #58. And as for The Wanted, whose breakout US hit "Glad You Came" drops out of the Top 10 this week, their follow-up tune "Chasing The Sun" creeps up to #91.

Over on the Top 200 album chart, Adele's 21 is #1 for a 24th non-consecutive week, and now ties the runs at the top of both the Purple Rain and Saturday Night Fever soundtracks. Only five albums have spent more weeks in the peak position. Think Adele has the chops left to beat at least a few of them? Her next hurtle is 31 weeks, which Fleetwood Mac racked up with Rumours, Harry Belafonte achieved with Calypso and the South Pacific soundtrack also spent on top.

Meanwhile, Scissor Sisters' fourth album Magic Hour, which I'm finding myself quite hooked on, has plunged from its debut spot at #35 to #160 in its second week.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen *1 week*
2. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
5. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
6. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
7. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
8. "Where Have You Been" - Rihanna
9. "Wide Awake" - Katy Perry
10. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber

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US Chart Roundup: Phillip Phillips Has A Classy Week

Just when you thought the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 couldn't get any more stagnant, positions 1 through 9 remain the same this week as they were last. This means Gotye and Kimbra's "Somebody That I Used To Know" is #1 for a seventh week, thus making it the longest-running chart-topper of the year to date. (Kimbra's debut LP Vows debuts at #14 this week on the Top 200.)

The song that dropped out of the Top 10 is Train's "Drive By", which gets bumped from #10 to #12 by the debut of American Idol winner Phillip Phillips and his coronation song "Home." This marks the first time an Idol champ has landed a winner's song in the Top 10 since David Cook hit #3 with "The Time Of My Life" in 2008. Absolutely thrilling stuff.

Elsewhere, Ellie Goulding cracks the Top 20 and moves up to #17 with "Lights," while David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium" climbs to #25.

And that, folks, is that.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *7 weeks*
2. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
3. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
4. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
5. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
6. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
7. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
8. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
9. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
10. "Home" - Phillip Phillips *new*

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US Chart Roundup: Gotye Still Rules, Train Climbs And The Wanted Sink

Gotye and Kimbra rack up a fifth straight week atop the Billboard Hot 100 with "Somebody That I Used To Know", which puts the song just behind "We Are Young" by fun. and Janelle Monae as far as the most weeks spent at #1 this year (six). And unfortunately for both of these tunes, they've now reached the point where I want to take a baseball bat and smash the radio every time each of them come on (which, really, is like every two minutes).

Meanwhile, Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger" — another one I never want to hear again in my life — finally drops out of the Top 10, making way for Train's "Drive By" to zip up to the #10 position.

Elsewhere, Calvin Harris' "Feel So Close" is stuck at #12 yet again, Adele's "Rumour Has It" is still at #16, Rihanna's "Where Have You Been" jumps 11 rungs to #18, Karmin's "Brokenhearted" cracks the Top 20 (at #20) and Ellie Goulding's "Lights" moves up to #26. A bit further down, David Guetta and Sia's "Titanium", a previous #1 single in the UK, is up to #46.

Over on the Top 200 album chart, where Carrie Underwood's Blown Away is #1 for a second week, Keane's Strangeland debuts at #17, while Nicki Minaj's Roman Reloaded drops out of the Top 20 (at #21) in its sixth week, The Wanted flop all the way down to #61 in their third week on the chart with their self-titled EP and Madonna's MDNA sinks to #71 in its seventh week.

At this point people aren't even going to realize which album Madge is touring for by the time her tour hits America.

The U.S. Top 10:

1. "Somebody That I Used To Know" - Gotye feat. Kimbra *5 weeks*
2. "Payphone" - Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa
3. "We Are Young" - fun. feat. Janelle Monae
4. "Call Me Maybe" - Carly Rae Jepsen
5. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida feat. Sia
6. "Starships" - Nicki Minaj
7. "What Makes You Beautiful" - One Direction
8. "Glad you Came" - The Wanted
9. "Boyfriend" - Justin Bieber
10. "Drive By" - Train

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