My Top 15 Favorite Hit Songs of 2003

 

15. Harder To Breathe - Maroon 5 

The first hit Maroon 5 ever had. And it sticks out to me as one of their best. Adam Levine sells how angry he is so goddamn well. Especially with how he literally sounds like he is running out of breath during the chorus. And the guitar and drum lines compliment him very well. Such a fantastic opener to Songs About Jane as well. Opens that album up with a bang. But also a killer song in itis own right. 

14. It's Five O'clock Somewhere - Alan Jackson, Jimmy Buffet 

Despite the fact that I am not that much of a beach person despite being a Californian, I have a big soft spot for a lot of beach music. And this is one such song. Alan Jackson's warm deep voice fits the beach sound so well. And that guitar line is just so damn comforting. Jimmy Buffet's part is kinda pointless imo, but it's still enjoyable. Like if there is a nitpick I have with this song it's that he is all wondering what would Jimmy Buffet do in a moment like this, only for Jimmy to tell him to do exactly what he was already doing. Like the feature just feels kinda forced. But the song is still a vibe. 

13. No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems - Kenny Chesney

Speaking of beach music. This one I have actually heard at the beach before. And I can confirm that it goes hard at the beach. Kenny Chesney is an artist where I do not understand how he has been so popular in the country scene for so goddamn long given his music is so goddamn middle of the road and not very interesting to me, but here I do understand the hype, for at least one song. Well and Come Over. That guitar line, piano, and especially the strings just make me feel so relaxed. And Kenny Chesney sounds the best I have ever heard him. 

12. Clocks - Coldplay 

Some of you might be surprised this didn't make the top 10. This song is very much beloved. And like I get it. I like it a lot too. But it does drag a bit, is a bit longer than it needs to be. But despite that, it is still amazing. That iconic piano riff is beautiful even if it gets a bit old by the end of the song because of how much it is repeated. Chris Martin sounds incredible and the atmospheric sound is great. And the lyrics about how we rush through life too fast instead of slowing down and really enjoying what we have while we have it are great. Great song, and if it didn't drag a bit in places for me it would have easily made the top 10. 

11.  Here Without You - 3 Doors Down 

This one is a childhood classic that I heard a lot as a kid, but didn't know the name of the song or artist for years and years. And then finally rediscovered 2 years ago when listening to the 2004 year end. And got very nostalgic. This has a lot of elements that are just an easy way into my heart, beautiful strings, , a beautiful vocal performance where the singer sells his struggle with a breakup so goddamn well, an incredible climax, final chorus that brings it all home with a bang. 

10. Why Don't You And I - Santana, Chad Kroeger

Yes Yes I know. The version that charted was technically the remix with Alex Band of The Calling replacing Chad Kroeger. Because Nickelback's label at the time thought that Chad Kroeger being on a big single would interfere with the sales of their new album for some reason? But this is the version I remember hearing a lot as a kid and it's the version I prefer and this is my list so just deal with it. If I were to stick with the Alex Band version it would only be a honorable mention and everything below this would be moved up a spot. Anyway on some days I would tell you I prefer this song to Smooth. That guitar line gives me so much goddamn nostalgia. It's just so goddamn cool and bouncy. The drums are great too. And Chad Kroeger sounds incredible. That chorus just brings back so many childhood memories. 

9. Are You Happy Now? - Michelle Branch

I was surprised I didn't end up putting this higher. Cause this song is absolutely incredible. Michelle Branch is an artist I heard a lot growing up, but didn't know her name, and rediscovering her recently was so incredible. Both her albums I have listened to are so good. If Good 4 U is the You Oughta Know of the 2020s, this is the You Oughta Know of the 2000s. Not quite as good as You Oughta Know, but that is a high bar and this song is still incredible. I love Michelle Branch as a vocalist so much, she has such a great tone to her voice and she uses her range very effectively here. And she sounds incredibly angry, selling the lyrics about heartbreak so well. And the guitar line is excellent. I especially love the intro of piano I think? And how it persists through the first chorus with her singing alongside it. 

8. Like A Stone - Audioslave

I am like 90 percent sure this would make a list of my dad's top 100 favorite songs ever. He is a classic rock fanatic. And I don't often love hard rock as much as him but I have always had a deeper love for this song than most in the hard rock lane. I generally, and there are people who will be so mad at me for saying this, don't personally like the sound of Chris Cornell's voice very much. He sounds too gravelly for me usually. And he kinda sounds gravelly here too. And honestly I still don't like his voice on this song that much. It's like the only thing holding this song back from being like top 3 on the list. And why it would no longer make my favorite songs ever. But the content of a old man just waiting for death and regretting things he has done just hits for me right now. My grandpa just passed away a few weeks ago, his memorial was last Saturday at the time of writing. The day of his death, my dad told me that he could tell that his dad regretted a lot about his life, especially that when my dad was in his teenage years, grandpa moved to Oregon to be with a new woman and took my uncle with him, while my dad and his sister were with their mom. He was away from my dad for several years in one of the most important times of any person's life to have their parents around. And he ended up divorcing that woman and she was able to get almost everything he owned. So he had to return to my dad in California with almost nothing. Hearing the lines "And I sat in regret of all the things I've done
For all that I've blessed and all that I've wronged
In dreams until my death, I will wander on
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there like a stone
I'll wait for you there alone, alone" Makes me think of grandpa. How dad told me that his regrets had been eating at him for years, even though my dad literally told him several times that he forgave him for that. I can't help but wonder if grandpa might still be alive if his regrets hadn't been eating at him like this. I'm gonna stop talking about grandpa so I don't start crying. Oh and also this has possibly my favorite guitar solo of all time? 

7. The Way You Move - Outkast, Sleepy Brown/ Hey Ya - Outkast

The double lead single from the double album, each a solo album from one member of Outkast, The Way You Move being from Big Boi's album and Hey Ya! being from Andre 3000's. Putting these songs on here separately is not something I wanted to do, so I put them in a tie here, even though I do like The Way You Move a bit more honestly. But both are absolute classics. The Way You Move has very lowkey verses and an iconic bouncy chorus that has so much goddamn nostalgia. Hey Ya! has too many iconic lines to count, and is over the top the whole way through. Both songs are just an absolute blast to listen to. Both members have so much charisma in their songs it is hard not to feel happy listening to either song.           

6. All The Things She Said - t. A.T. u.

I frankly, can't believe that this was a top 20 hit. In many, many countries. A song about a lesbian relationship by a band of two women from Russia, hitting the top 20 in America in a time when queerness was not as accepted as it is now. To say the least. I mean, it was probably the controversy that helped it do so well. Well, and also that it was in a similar sound to artists like Avril Lavigne who were doing very well at the time. But I digress, it's a fucking kickass song. Incredible guitar line, the chanting sounding vocals are so goddamn addictive, the harmonies are ear candy, and like the song never feels boring or grating despite how much "all the things she said, running through my head" is repeated ad nauseum. 

5. Sing For The Moment - Eminem

This is my favorite Eminem song I have heard. And one of the reasons I think there's a decent chance I would think the Eminem Show would be my favorite album of his if I listened to his discography. The sample of another of my dad's favorite songs, Dream On by Aerosmith fits the song perfectly and works amazingly as the chorus to the song. And Eminem's flows are incredible. He sounds incredibly focused. And genuinely incredibly angry. But the real star of the show are the lyrics. He raps about the effect of both his and other's music on people's lives. How a fan of his is thought by his parents that he has been brainwashed by rock and rap, music with cussing, not the fact that he feels sad that his dad walked out. And how his music where he portrays a horrible person is not true, but people in the industry make him out to look like he really is that evil. He rants about how much the lyrics artists put out get inspected by millions of people. Every single thing they say gets commented on for years afterwards. And he mentions the double edged sword that is fame, that it often comes with hate. People attacking you. Eminem is just so tired of people taking his music where he portrays his alter ego and is a horrible person so goddamn seriously. And I know this might sound weird coming from me since I have literally done that with Love The Way You Lie (which I still stand by and I don't want to further open that can of worms right now).  But my favorite line is "That's why we sing for these kids who don't have a thing, except for a dream in the fucking rap magazine." Famous musicians sing or rap about things happening in their lives because they want to help their fans by finding comfort in their music, and then get criticized by others for anything they do. Just such a well written song. 

4. I'm With You - Avril Lavigne

And this is my favorite Avril Lavigne song I have heard. And possibly the song of hers I have the most nostalgia for? Idk, I mean I remember hearing songs like Complicated and Girlfriend a lot growing up, but this one gives me the much nostalgia for whatever reason. But anyway, this song is so goddamn amazing. Avril sounds fucking phenomenal on this track, giving by far my favorite vocal performance I've heard from her. Especially during the phenomenal bridge. I think part of my love for this song has to do with me being an absolute sucker for ballads from the late 90s/early 2000s that build up. The instrumental track is also beautiful, creating the mood of this cold lonely night perfectly. And Avril just sounds so lonely and depressed trying to figure out her life, and just wanting someone, anyone to come help her out. And as I said, that bridge is fucking phenomenal. And especially with that explosive final chorus that just drives the song home so goddamn well. 

3. Calling All Angels - Train

I believe I have talked on here before about how much I love Train, how they were like my first favorite band. How I heard the entirety of their first four albums all the time for years and years. But I haven't talked much if at all about the songs from those albums, it has mostly been later period stuff from them like Hey, Soul Sister and 50 Ways To Say Goodbye. While I like some of their newer stuff, their early music has a special place in my soul. Anyway, Calling All Angels. The biggest hit from their third (and in my opinion best) album, My Private Nation. And this was for many years as a kid one of my favorite songs of theirs. It's not quite on that high level for me anymore but like it's still so good. This song just sounds absolutely celestial, angelic (no pun intended). Pat Monahan's vocals just sound so heavenly to me. The piano and guitar are just so goddamn beautiful. I especially love how during the pre-chorus how it echoes in and out. I also adore how Pat Monahan's vocals echo. The lyrics about desperately wanting some hope are frankly a little bit underwritten, but still serviceable. And this is a song that is about how it sounds to me. And it sounds absolutely incredible. Oh and this is not even in my top 5 from the album I think. Also When I Look To The Sky deserved to be bigger than it was. Go listen to that song (specifically the superior imo radio edit) if you haven't. 

2. Unwell - Matchbox Twenty 

Matchbox Twenty are another band I heard so goddamn much growing up. Most of the songs from their first three albums are so goddamn nostalgic for me. And they are my current favorite band after I recently rediscovered them after not knowing what most of the songs I know by them were called or who they were by. This one I rediscovered a few years ago though. And I absolutely adore it. The banjo on this song is just such an awesome touch, and also makes you first think it's a country song when it comes on if you don't know the song super well. But no, it's a 2000s alt rock tune. And a damn phenomenal one at that. I think Rob Thomas is a super underappreciated songwriter who does not get enough credit for how good at it he is. And this song is a prime example of why. Rob Thomas has said that he wrote this song as a metaphor for humanity in general, how we all feel messed up and like the world is out to get us at times. And it's so well written. It says so much without being incredibly detailed. Like you could argue that this song and many others by this band are a bit underwritten, but I would argue that Rob Thomas makes incredible use of every single word. And he is so goddamn good at selling the panic and anxiety of the lines here, and throughout a lot of Matchbox Twenty's music. But I have a deeper personal connection to this song because of the lines "I'm not crazy I'm just a little unwell. I know right now you can't tell. But stay a while and maybe then you'll see a different side of me". That line from the chorus is just so goddamn beautiful to me. Because I have autism, and because of that social anxiety. And like, I have at many points in my life been discriminated against because of my autism, people looking at autism as if it makes me like mentally insane or something, not that you know it makes me different and innately worse at some things but better at others. People with autism are not crazy they're just a little unwell. And they should be treated as such. I also relate to the lines about social anxiety. This song is a true classic. And not even in my top 5 songs by this band currently somehow? But still exceptional. So what beat it? Before we find out, some honorable mentions. 

HM. What Was I Thinkin' - Dierks Bentley 

I have a lot of nostalgia for this one because in elementary school there was a substitute teacher I had often who would perform songs for us on his guitar and this was one of the songs he would play. And he was pretty good too. It also just slaps. 

HM. Intuition - Jewel 

This is the song I alluded to when I talked about Rock Your Body. I have seen this song at #1 on multiple people's worst lists for this year. And like I totally get it. This song is an absolute mess of chaos. It's just so goddamn chaotic that I just fucking love that about it. This is my so bad it's amazing song of the year. I get so much enjoyment from this disaster lol. 

HM. Damn! - Youngbloodz, Lil Jon

Unpopular opinion: I like this song more than Get Low. This has a much less iconic and not quite as incredible chorus as that song, but has in my opinion better verses and is not overlong. 

HM. Get Low - Lil Jon & The Eastside Boyz, Ying Yang Twins

This has the better and more iconic hook though. But I don't enjoy the verses of this song very much causing it to drag a bit and causing me to turn the song off after the first hook often. The hook alone got it an honorable mention though. 

HM. Cry Me A River - Justin Timberlake 

Don't love this song anywhere near as much as a lot of people do, but I can't deny this one. Although frankly this song is a mix of incredibly flat and boring parts and incredible parts for me. Which is why it's only here. 

HM. Where Is The Love? - Black Eyed Peas 

This one's here for the message, it's a song I don't listen to often because it makes me feel depressed as fuck listening to it. 

HM. Someday - Nickelback 

Still have that soft spot for Nickelback, and this is another song I really like by them. The production on this one is a bit dated, holding it back from making the list, but I still really like it. 

Alright, time for #1...

1. Bright Lights - Matchbox Twenty 

Okay, this song is technically not on either year end list  I normally use for legality. And if I had made this list even like a month ago, this would likely not be here. As I had yet to rediscover this song and the album it's from. In fact, I listened to that album two weeks ago for the first time in around a decade at least? I think? And it completely blew me away upon rediscovering it. And I immediately checked if this song was caught between years. And it turns out, by my calculations it was. So I decided it was eligible. And then I went to my grandpa's memorial a few days later, causing my grief at his death to resurface after I had tried to just not think about it and carry on with my life. Listening to this song on the drive home from that was just more special than I can put into words. And caused this song to have an incredibly deep personal connection to this song. Because this song makes me think of grandpa. Not because he loved the song or anything, I doubt he even knew it well, I don't think he listened to modern music. No, the line in particular "She got out of town, on a railway New York bound. Took all except my name". As I mentioned before, my dad has told me about how my Grandpa left my father to move to Oregon for a relationship that ended in the woman taking almost everything he owned from him. And he was away from my dad for some of the most important years of my dad's life, when he really needed his father. And because of that, my grandpa felt that my dad held a grudge against him or something, that dad wouldn't forgive him for abandoning him. And that regret lingered with him throughout his later years. I imagine Grandpa felt similarly to Rob Thomas in this song in regards to his relationship with both the Oregon woman and my dad. And because of that, whenever I hear this song I feel like crying because of how much it reminds me of him. But also because, I fucking feel the same way about not having Grandpa in my life anymore. I'm just gonna post a few of the gut punch lines here. 

"There's some things in this world
You just can't change
Some things you can't see
Until it gets too late"

"Some things in this world
Man, they don't make sense
Some things you don't need
Until they leave you
And they're things that you miss, you say"

These lines hit so goddamn hard because I hadn't spent time with Grandpa for like 2 years or so before he passed, and when Grandpa first entered his final trip to the hospital I think a week or so before he passed, my parents drove to Sacramento to visit him, but I didn't go with them. Which I regret so much. And also I never spent that much time to get to know him in general, and now I will never get the opportunity to speak with him, get to know him, laugh with him, see him enjoying his Cheddar Sour Cream Ruffles and Dr. Pepper, and more with him again. Also I never knew until he passed about his regrets that seemed to be eating him up inside. 

"And baby, baby, baby
When all your love is gone, who will save me
From all I'm up against out in this world?"

And this line makes me think of how my dad probably feels right now without his dad, who has spent so much time guiding him throughout his life. Which makes me feel even more sad about his death. 

"But if the bright lights don't receive you
You should turn yourself around and come on home"

"I got a hole in me now
Yeah, I got a scar I can talk about
She keeps a picture of me
In her apartment in the city"

"Let that city take you in (come on home)

Let that city spit you out (come on home)
Let that city take you down
For God's sake, turn around"

Rob Thomas hopes that this woman will change her mind and come back to him, but deep down he accepts that she probably never will. Just like how I wish so much that Grandpa would come back to life, but I have to accept that he never will. All that's left of him are memories I have of him. I miss him so much. Grandpa Don, you will be missed. Rest In Peace. Anyway, back to Bright Lights. I should also mention that this is one of the most beautiful sounding songs I have ever heard. Rob Thomas sounds so goddamn sad and sells it perfectly. This is one of my favorite songs of all time, my favorite Matchbox Twenty song, and by far my favorite hit song of 2003!

Thanks for reading! I'll see you next time!