Unsurprisingly, the best songs off her debut have the least amount of Southern accent. That’s a shame because you could see a real winner here.
Even Swift can barely be bothered to write out verses as she repeats “Today was a fairytale” constantly. This one-off single for the terrible ensemble romantic comedy is all about the chorus. Single from Valentine’s Day Soundtrack (2010) She was still searching for her own lane. It’s a catchy, light-hearted country song that could’ve belonged to many other female country stars at the time. This is the most popular song from Swift’s debut album, and it’s obvious why. She’s adept at phrasing clichés into compelling melodies - “Don’t you worry your pretty little mind / People throw rocks at things that shine.” It’s one of the weakest moments on the spotty back half of Red.īeing the last single from Speak Now, “Ours” is a sweet end of an era - one where Swift could still be considered an underdog, America’s sweetheart, etc. This is a big ‘ol slice of sentimentality with a thumping slow burn that is never quite convincing.
Critically-speaking, she would step up her songwriting on future endeavors. It’s an ode to young love and country stardom that presented an endearing portrait of the next big name in country. This is her very first single, and it was still a top-40 Billboard hit. The second reputation single has some interesting elements that expanded Swift’s sonic and melodic landscapes, but overall, it never coalesces into an exciting song worthy of opening an album. Other than that, she hits her mark with ineffectual lyrics. It was also her first top-ten hit before Fearless’ reign. This is the heaviest guitar found on any Swift single. Single from AT&T Team USA Soundtrack (2008) This song’s Hunger Games context limits the potential readings, but it still ends up being a decent pop rock offering on self-worth and perseverance. Single from The Hunger Games Soundtrack (2012) “The Story of Us” just kinda innocuously flies by. Tales of princesses and pages was a perfect avenue for Swift to relate to the innocence within us…and to convey her own down-to-earth innocence. The subjects of storytelling and fairytales are all over Fearless and Speak Now. Listen around the 1 minute mark for “A38. On her first album, Swift’s affable spunk came with a fake Southern accent it does not hold up well. It’s not a Taylor Swift album if it doesn’t have flaws - on Red, you get this half-baked duet with the Red-Haired King of Banality. It’s decent work, but with it coming after Red, Swift was already way beyond this.Ĥ0. This is one of those one-off, heap-of-nothing singles that nobody will remember. This is by far the worst of her #1 Billboard hits. The song gets pretty lazy with that repetitive two-syllable hook, and Kendrick Lamar makes no impression with his verses. Of all the songs off the great 1989, “Bad Blood” is the most skip-worthy. “Safe & Sound” is a perfect fit for The Hunger Games as it’s slow, forgettable, and very popular. One of Swift’s best traits is that she gets to the point it takes most of her songs about 10 seconds to get going, if that. Single from The Hunger Games Soundtrack (2011) It feels incredibly minor for a first single. The greatest sin here is the percussion which drags the song into animated-movie-power-ballad territory. I like the chorus here, and among people who have featured with Taylor Swift, Brendon Urie actually holds his own somewhat. She tries something different with “You Need to Calm Down” by making a LGBTQ anthem that’s too cute to ever take seriously. Swift is such a great songwriter when she blends small personal struggles with that universal sentiments all pop songs go for. Here, Future is on default mode, and Ed Sheeran is basically rapping. A trend in Taylor Swift’s worst singles is that the spotlight gets taken off her. Enjoy reading and please leave a nasty comment if you disagree with the ranking.
That puts her in a league with Beyoncé and Kanye, even though I’m sure she would not want to be in the same space as them again…even metaphorically. Overall though, many of her singles are great and ingrained into the minds of multiple generations. It also maybe shines a better light on her newer material which takes a little more risk (keyword: “maybe”). The thing about listening to her singles altogether is that her songwriting template is unavoidable and a little fatiguing. Taylor Swift’s seventh album, Lover, is here, and to commemorate Swift, I went back and listened to all of her official singles and ranked them.