It was later recorded by the likes of Elvis Presley and The Sex Pistols. Alexia Avina. Big drum beat, female vocals, people just dig it.” – SL, “Legal Age Life at Variety Store” is one of several standout tracks from Rheostatics’ 1992 record, , which stands among the best Canadian rock records ever released. Google's Top Hummed Songs 2020; All Year-End Charts; DECADE-END . – SL, Based off the Walt Whitman poem of the same name (minus the “k”), Wintersleep reinterpret Whitman’s positive imagery 100 years later and the result is amazing. – SL, Arguably Mitchell’s most popular song, thanks in large part to covers over the years courtesy of Amy Grant, Counting Crows, and others, “Big Yellow Taxi” first appeared on her 1970 album, A moderate hit on both sides of the border, Kim Mitchell struck gold with “Patio Lanterns,” which was initially a single and later released on his 1986 album, Often imitated, “Hallelujah” first appeared on Cohen’s 1984 record, . Despite its rollicking nature, complete with a righteous organ and a chorus that begs to be sung along to, “True Patriot Love” is a pretty melancholy piece of work, with Plaskett mourning a lost love with some sentiments we can all relate to, like “getting into bed seemed easy enough, getting out’s a little harder to do.” Truer words ain’t never been spoken. It tells the story of an over-boozed, immature, aimless dirtbag whose girlfriend is fed up with his shit. – SL, Push and Pull can be seen as the thesis statement for one of the most interesting alternative bands in the last 5 years, Canada or otherwise. – PM, At their storytelling best, “Nautical Disaster” is suspenseful and exciting with a tense musical buildup that complements the The Tragically Hip’s lyrical genius. . – PM, With close to 100 million views on YouTube, this is one of the most popular songs in Canadian hip-hop history and it stands up today as a beyond solid track. “Willow Tree” helped VanGaalen land a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year and was also shortlisted for the 2009 Polaris Music Prize. – SL, Neil Young’s breezy front-porch tune has maybe one of the most appropriate videos in music history—Neil and the band playing this swaying melody as scores of hippies and hicks and general good-timers dance around an old country bar. 1 single. Downie’s vocals are powerful and the rest of the band provide is revving engine that propels the music. Its third single, “Ready to Start,” is a helluva album opener, not to mention the song a certain Liberty Village-based radio station used as its introduction to the airwaves in 2013. Feature. With singer Stefan Babcock screaming lines like, “I’d rather be dead!,” it’s pretty damn dark, but it’s also really, really fun. One of the best, most sing-along worthy tracks off The Hip’s incredible 1998 record Phantom Power. – PM, Perhaps one of the most underrated Canadian songs of all time, “Political” is basically perfect. That certainly doesn’t stop the song from rocking, though, and it’s one of Roberts’ most memorable melodies, laid atop some very CanRock guitar riffs and bluesy solos. The 10 Best Canadian Songs of the Month: September 2020. With “Red” Treble Charger reached great heights and the song still stands up to this day – PM, The Weakerthans enjoyed a spike in popularity upon the release of their fantastic 2003 record Reconstruction Site. The song was famously covered by the Barenaked Ladies on a 1991 Cockburn tribute album. But if you’ve ever played a show there, you know his line wasn’t off the mark. Black Emperor are hardly a conventional outfit. – SL, “The Spirit of Radio” from Rush`s 1980 album, is one of their best-performing songs in terms of popularity in the U.K. It’s also one of five songs the band had inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and it was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. – SL, One of the most celebrated songs of the 1980s, Loverboy released “Working for the Weekend” as the second single off their 1981 record Get Lucky. Her song “A Case of You” is believed to be one of many songs about her breakup with English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. “From the Back of the Film,” the opening cut from their 1999 record Clayton Park is commonly still performed by Plaskett to this day while touring his solo work. – PM, With this folksy stomp, Halifax’s Wintersleep had a bona fide hit. Still, despite lines like, “oh, mama, actin’ like my life’s already over,” it’s a summery ride. It melds the personal, political and the spiritual in 13 tracks with some of Whiteley’s best songs and best … 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. – SL, With an irresistible, bass-heavy drive and a Strokes-esque groove, “Your English Is Good” is a party from start to finish. It’s a breezy tune about small-town life (specifically the titular Nova Scotia community not too far from Leslie Feist’s birthplace of Amherst) that ticks along joyfully with a wistful vocal melody. View Charts Legend. Canada Top 20 on Top40 Charts. They include rap, country, and pop. – PM, “You said you didn’t give a fuck about hockey, I never saw someone say that before”, could be easily reduced to jock-rock. We handed it over to you, our readers and listeners to help us determine the greatest Canadian song of all-time. “Grace Too” immediately calls to memory Gord Downie’s trademark theatrical performance style. When Young got up on stage at The Last Waltz to celebrate fellow (mostly) Canadian boys The Band, he had a big cocaine booger in his nostril, and his manager demanded that it be edited out with special effects if the song was to stay in the film. It even earned them a slot on tour with Duran Duran. – Scott Lewis, To sum up this song in one word: Iconic. Which is a pretty special talent. 1 U.S. single with “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” from their 1974 record Not Fragile. It’s a banger. – MW, When Halifax was briefly viewed as the next Seattle, Joel Plaskett-fronted outfit Thrush Hermit were at the forefront with the likes of Sloan. – PM, The Tragically Hip is undoubtedly one of the most unique Canadian artists in our rich history. The second single was “Sweet Surrender,” which helped the Halifax, Nova Scotia native take home a Juno Award for Album of the Year. The melodic six-string lines sparkle all the way throughout, diving in and out of left-of-the-dial pop that bounces along with jangly tambourine. – SL, Cockburn’s only single to crack the Top 40 south of the border was “Wondering Where the Lions Are” off his 1979 album Dancing in the Dragon’s Jaws. A roots music icon delivers 13 new thoughtful & uplifting songs! There is a dangerous amount of crunch on the guitars here, as Young invokes the name of legendary Sex Pistols mouthpiece Johnny Rotten. Drake’s “Toosie Slide” topped the list for the ten fastest songs to reach one billion video views on the platform. – SL, Steven Page takes on mental health issues in this dark, beautiful number that ranks high in BNL’s impressive discography. 1970’s Biggest Canadian Hits 1970’s biggest hit in Canada was Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. Most importantly, he reminds us all of that One True Thing: “rock ‘n’ roll will never die.” – MW, Man, way to get to the point. – SL. It’s a weird and charming song with left-of-the-dial heart, as Chris Murphy addresses a crush he seems a bit too lethargic to really go after. – SL, Often imitated, “Hallelujah” first appeared on Cohen’s 1984 record Various Positions. Twelve years on, it makes no less of an impression, rising into its crescendo like an unstoppable collision, as Spencer Krug sings, “and now I’ll believe in anything, and you’ll believe in anything, because nobody knows you, and nobody gives a damn, anyway.” – MW, You’ve Been Missing This Hidden Cards Against Humanity Card All Along, This artist drew self-portraits on 50 different drugs (Photos), The 25 Most Iconic Music Videos of the ‘90s. – SL, Co-written by Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, “These Eyes” also featured backing vocal efforts from Gordon Lightfoot. Stars in the making watched their dreams be put on pause. Tom Cochrane’s 1991 album, was a complete smash with “Life is a Highway” leading the way. It even throws out a little reference to the Trans-Canada: “you try to find a love that’ll see you through your darkest days/and her soft brown hair is as long as the Canadian highway.” – MW, The song that propelled Harmer into the spotlight in 1996 from her stunning and heartbreaking release “You Were Here”. Downie’s vocals are powerful and the rest of the band provide is revving engine that propels the music. – SL, “The Spirit of Radio” from Rush`s 1980 album Permanent Waves is one of their best-performing songs in terms of popularity in the U.K. It’s also one of five songs the band had inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame and it was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. – MW, With the backdrop of a Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, deemed “four blocks of hell” by a local newspaper, Tegan Quin made a metaphor for unrequited love in this rollicking song, with a swirling, hooky chorus and dangerous sounding guitars. – SL, The first single off their second album, Sounding a Mosaic, Bedouin Soundclash landed a breakthrough in 2004 with the release of “When the Night Feels My Song.” The video for the song reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 upon its 1998 release, claiming the No. Steve Bays’ youthful, ‘tude-heavy vocals recall a less slurry Julian Casablancas as he sings over punchy guitar hooks about a breakup. – MW, Originally released in 2003, The Dears’ second full-length record No Cities was such a success for the band that an extended version was released in 2005. Still, many fans widely consider “The Time is Here,” the record’s penultimate track as their finest work. In addition to referencing the statue of its namesake, the song also contains nods to Toronto’s Kensington Market, the now defunct Silver Dollar Room, and Nathan Phillips Square. Anka even recorded an Italian version of the song a year after its initial release, with lyrics written by Mario Panzeri. – MW, It’s not like you’ve never heard of a double record. Joni Mitchell provides some backing vocals from backstage in the same performance. – SL, Arguably Mitchell’s most popular song, thanks in large part to covers over the years courtesy of Amy Grant, Counting Crows, and others, “Big Yellow Taxi” first appeared on her 1970 album Ladies of the Canyon. to top Entertainment LISTEN: 24 holiday songs on the Canadian Christmas Playlist. It also delivered us one of CanRock’s best-ever lines: “it’s not the band I hate, it’s their fans.” – MW, The ramshackle, DIY energy of “Deeper Than Beauty” recalls Sloan’s East Coast roots, with a jangly, repetitive guitar and simple beat providing pretty much all of the music. Another cut from The Band’s second album, “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” is a classic in the sense that it’s often in the discussion among the greatest rock songs of all-time. – SL, Originally a poem and first recorded as a song by Judy Collins, Cohen later released “Suzanne” as the lead single off his 1967 record Songs of Leonard Cohen. “Bad as they Seem” stands out as one of several noteworthy moments in his career as one of Canada’s best talents. Paul Murphy’s vocals are effortlessly powerful and the rest of the band deliver a pure banger, proving that Wintersleep is still one of Canada’s greatest alternative bands. Bry Webb growls over reckless guitar like he’s about to be torn apart, as he yells, “make your love too wild for words/stumblin’ through the city with the ordinary birds.” It’s a song built for back alleys and endless nights. The White Stripes didn’t even put synths on theirs. The duo of Mike O’Neill and drummer Dave Ullrich spun songs with undeniable hooks and great harmonies. Kissing Other People By Lennon Stella Lennon Stella was born in Ontario. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. From Céline Dion to Garou, if you don’t know a lot about French Canadian culture, you’ll be enchanted by these 15 popular French Canadian songs from the 2000s that topped the charts. Its lead single “You Oughta Know” earned two Grammy Awards in 1996 for Best Rock Song and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. (But it slayed way before it was a staple in every arena). Mitchell recorded various versions of the songs over the years, and it has been recorded and/or performed by artists like Frank Sinatra, Dolly Parton, and Hole. – MW, Nothing quite gets at what it’s like to get trashed in high school with your pals than the Duke of Dartmouth’s “Drunk Teenagers.” From his concept record, Ashtray Rock, the song lays out a night of pre-adult debauchery on the weekend in the Halifax suburbs, nailing the feeling of being young and dumb and raising hell with lines like, “you can pick your poison—the city or the country, we just wanna make some noise.” – MW, “Love This Town” is almost certainly the sweetest song ever written about Halifax, capturing the gorgeous, vibrant port city’s friendly nature and laid back attitude as Plaskett sings, “there’ll be drinks on the house, if your house burns down—there’s a reason why I love this town.” This tune is a bit infamous for taking a shot at a certain hippie bro haven in B.C. Experimental folk singer/songwriter Alexia Avina doesn’t just make music for the ears, … “Drinking in L.A.” was a massive hit in this country, as well as in the U.K. and in pockets across Europe and Scandinavia. However, this song has a lot more going on – the idea that love can be so consuming that it can make you forget about everything else. – SL, Probably best known performed by Frank Sinatra in 1969, Paul Anka wrote the lyrics. 1 on Canadian country charts. That’s how magical this song is. The 10 Best Canadian Songs … – SL, The title track from The Guess Who`s sixth studio album was certified gold in the U.S. – SL, “Down By The Henry Moore,” the fourth single from Murray McLauchlan’s 1984 album, , hit No. This list has benefitted from input by music professionals like songwriter Gene Williams, drummer Sammy Kohn (of the Watchmen), Toronto Mike's similar list (begun with my cajoling), plus many other Canadian music fans. Renditions by John Cale, Jeff Buckley, K.D. Tegan & Sara’s original is way better than the White Stripes version, by the way. Calm In The Eye Of The Storm is Canadian folk legend Ken Whiteley’s first album in four years and it’s a great one. – SL, One of the biggest Canadian songs of the nineties period. “Don’t Forget Me When I’m Gone” was a major hit for the Newmarket, Ontario-born rock group, hitting No. Young wrote it for CSNY bandmate Graham Nash after Nash and Joni Mitchell broke up. – SL, Reckless sold upwards of 12 million copies worldwide, five million in the United States, and was upon its release in 1984 the highest-selling record in Canada of all-time. Good luck getting this one out of your head. It’s been covered by the likes of Prince, James Blake, and Sloan. The Top 100 Canadian Songs of All Time. The Guess Who had the most successful Canadian hit, “American Woman” (5th of the year). It’s a punchy, bare bones indie rock tune filled out by bright synths about leaving someone behind. Their second album, On Record, featured what would go on to become one of their biggest hits and a staple on Canadian classic rock stations for decades, “You Could Have Been a Lady.” – SL, Arcade Fire’s outstanding 2010 record The Suburbs launched the band into another stratosphere in terms of popularity. This is a Greg Keelor song, and when his opening vocals float on top of Bob Wiseman’s organ, you are compelled to listen. There basically isn’t a single facet of the music industry that hasn’t been completely disrupted, thwarted, or upended this year. The dichotomy inherent in July Talk’s music – whether it’s the stark contrast between vocal leads, the loud-quiet dynamic, or their black and white visual aesthetic – is all present in Push and Pull. in 1964, it wouldn’t become a hit until 1965 when it was covered by Donovan. – PM, This isn’t just music. It may not be the most positive song to be written about Canada but when you think of Canadian songs this is always top of mind. You can hear an early version of it, before the song was ever recorded in studio, on Live at Massey Hall 1971. – Matt Williams, “Adult Diversion” kicks off with a promising bass rumble and swirling, clean guitar that gives way to a driving verse and subsequently a hazy, blissful chorus. The song also won a Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Spirit of the West – Home for a Rest. Torquil Campbell and Amy Milan playing off each other over those sparkling soundscapes is oh, so sweet. 10 in Canada and No. From their second record Departing, “Stamp” is ‘The RAA’ at their frenetic best. – SL, Toronto hip hop pioneers Dream Warriors sampled Quincy Jones’ “Soul Bossa Nova” on their 1991 hit “My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style.” The single captured a Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year in 1992. – SL, The second single from The Weeknd’s 2015 record Beauty Behind the Madness, “Can’t Feel My Face” earned the Toronto artist a pair of Grammy nominations, not to mention a spot in Best of 2015 lists across the universe and even comparisons to Michael Jackson. Still, we thought it would be easier to come up with a best Canadian songs. – SL, Mac DeMarco might have made a name for himself by being King Goof, but “Salad Days” is a pretty low down tune. “It’s got a big drum beat,” Newman told Pitchfork in a 2001 interview. – SL, First released Lightfoot’s 1970 album Sit Down Young Stranger, “If You Could Read My Mind” was such a success that it led to the record adopting its name shortly after the initial release. Songs that could have torn up the charts floundered. Most musicians spent the year like the rest of us, staying cooped up inside their houses or apartments—some even recorded new music there. – MW, The jaunty toe-tapper “Mushaboom” was the song that introduced many people to Feist. – MW, Have you ever been to a hockey game? You were loosening my grip on Bobby Orr”? 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