I kicked off the year 2000 by falling madly in love for the first time, so titles like “I’m Outta Love” and “Leavin’” seem somewhat ironic now (or perhaps just a then-dormant harbinger of what was to come in 2001-2002). I’ve left out most of the top 40 hits I strongly associate with this time because I no longer go out of my way to listen to many of them (although hearing BBMak’s “Back Here” on supermarket radio never fails to make me smile.) Apart from the flop Madonna single, very little of this got any radio airplay, at least in the US—“The Time is Now” hit number two in the UK, “Bohemian Like You” was also huge there thanks to its inclusion in a mobile phone ad, while “Tell Me Why” is still Saint Etienne’s only top ten hit in their homeland.
As usual, in a perfect world so many of these songs would’ve been hits—The New Pornographers’ clarion call (greatly assisted by the incomparable Neko Case), Sleater-Kinney’s peppy, hipster-bashing anthem, PJ Harvey’s irresistibly primal stomp, even weirdo duo Ween’s straightest pop song ever. Speaking of weirdos, they’re well represented here too: Bjork’s Dancer in the Dark duet with the lead singer of Radiohead (who themselves that year released possibly the weirdest album to debut at number one), The Avalanches’ sui generis cut-and-paste extravaganza, Goldfrapp’s overtly eerie music for an imaginary film (at least not yet for a few years).
It’s worth noting that in 2000, I spent a lot more time clubbing than I have before or since, hence the inclusion of the epic Toni Braxton remix with its unusual but masterful extended flamenco breakdown. This exact version instantly brings back many a Saturday night spent dancing at the now torn down Man Ray in Cambridge’s Central Square, sipping sugary cocktails and shamelessly making out with my new love on the dancefloor. Oh, I was so young and innocent back then…
Go here to listen to my favorite tracks of 2000 on Spotify:
- The Dandy Warhols, “Bohemian Like You”
- Anastacia, “I’m Outta Love”
- Shelby Lynne, “Leavin’”
- Aimee Mann, “Satellite”
- Moloko, “The Time is Now”
- Sleater-Kinney, “You’re No Rock N’ Roll Fun”
- Paul van Dyk with Saint Etienne, “Tell Me Why (The Riddle)”
- Bjork and Thom Yorke, “I’ve Seen It All”
- Ween, “Even If You Don’t”
- Madonna, “What It Feels Like For a Girl”
- Toni Braxton, “Spanish Guitar (HQ2 Club Mix)”
- Blur, “Music is My Radar”
- Yo La Tengo, “You Can Have It All”
- Belle and Sebastian, “Don’t Leave the Light On Baby”
- Bebel Gilberto, “August Day Song”
- Nelly Furtado, “Party”
- PJ Harvey, “This is Love”
- Badly Drawn Boy, “Bewilderbeast 2”
- Goldfrapp, “Lovely Head”
- The Avalanches, “Frontier Psychiatrist”
- The Weakerthans, “My Favourite Chords”
- k.d. lang, “When We Collide”
- The 6ths feat. Katharine Whalen, “You You You You You”
- The New Pornographers, “Letter From an Occupant”
- Jill Sobule, “Rock Me to Sleep”
Haunted Jukebox 