The Songs canon

Sourced and sung.

Every song chosen by hand, with the recording to play it.
Browse all 2,393 songs or filter by genre, subject, artist, and year.
This Is Your NightAmber

This Is Your Night

1996

Dutch singer, German producers, and a Gilbert Montagne sample underneath; the Roxbury soundtrack later handed it a second life.

★ 1.5

Thong Song

1999

Bruce Dukov's violin line, modelled on Wes Montgomery's Eleanor Rigby, over a track first built for Michael Jackson.

★ 3.2

Down in Mexico

1956

Leiber and Stoller's first single for the group, Stoller himself at the piano, climbed to number eight R&B.

★ 3.4

Smack That

2006

Akon met Eminem at an Obie Trice session, flew to Detroit's 54 Sound, and left with five weeks at number two.

★ 3.5

Bartender

2007

Fourth straight top ten for T-Pain, who produced it himself and made Auto-Tune sound like a choice, not a fix.

★ 4.1

OMG

2010

will.i.am wrote and produced it at Chung King, and the three-syllable hook gave Usher a ninth number one.

★ 4.1

Naughty Girl

2004

Scott Storch built it on a Donna Summer interpolation, and Beyonce turns a club come-on into pure command.

★ 5.3
Self ControlLaura Branigan

Self Control

1984

Raf's Italo-disco original topped Italy's chart first; Friedkin directed Branigan's video and MTV demanded cuts before airing.

★ 5.3

Lollipop

2008 · From Tha Carter III

Deezle and Jim Jonsin's synth crawl, Static Major's hook recorded before his February 2008 death, and Wayne's first number one.

★ 6.4

Last Dance

1978

Jabara reportedly locked Summer in a hotel bathroom with a cassette until she agreed; it won the Academy Award.

★ 6.4

Hot in Herre

2002

The Neptunes flipped Chuck Brown's "Bustin' Loose," and Nelly rode it to number one and the first male solo rap Grammy.

★ 6.6

Rapture

1981

Two weeks at number one, the first chart-topper with a rap verse, and Basquiat cameoing in the video.

★ 6.7

Hot Stuff

1979

Moroder's four-on-the-floor, Jeff Baxter's rock guitar solo bolted on, and the first female rock vocal Grammy.

★ 7.2
Ignition (Remix)R. Kelly

Ignition (Remix)

2003

A remix that swallowed its own original: number two in America five weeks, four at Britain's top.

★ 7.3
Piano ManBilly Joel

Piano Man

1973 · From Piano Man

A lounge gig, a fake name, Bill Martin, and every regular at the Executive Room written into a verse.

★ 7.5
Yeah!Usher

Yeah!

2004

Arista wanted a ballad; Lil Jon leaked his crunk&B beat to DJs and got twelve weeks at number one.

★ 7.5

Marquee Moon

1977 · From Marquee Moon

Ten minutes captured in one take; Ficca thought it was a rehearsal and Verlaine refused Andy Johns another go.

★ 7.5

Midnight City

2011

Gonzalez built that shrieking hook from his own distorted voice, then let James King's saxophone close the record.

★ 7.5

Le Freak

1978

Turned away from Studio 54 on New Year's Eve, Chic went home and rewrote the doorman's brush-off into Atlantic's biggest single.

★ 7.6