Okay, just one more list to close out 2016; then it’s on to the new year. I don’t frequent the cinema nearly as much as many bloggers out there, so I rarely feel confident enough to make an end-of-year best-of list when there’s so much I have yet to see. But while a movie could run up to two hours or longer, songs are much faster and easier to digest, and we hear them on the radio or online throughout the year often without even trying.

So here are the musical highlights of the year for me. When I first thought to compile this list, I expected it to look quite different until I found out that many of the best songs I heard this year were actually released in 2015. So I didn’t’ feel I should include favorites like Adele’s “Hello,” DNCE’s “Cake by the Ocean,” Lukas Graham’s “7 Years,” or Mark Posner’s “I Took a Pill in Ibiza,” even though some of them were nominated for Grammies this year. I don’t know all the nomination rules there, but I drew solely from songs released as singles in 2016. My musical tastes may not be everyone’s, since they so clearly diverge from most of the recently announced Grammy nominees. I’m not a fan of rap, hip hop, or much mainstream pop so you won’t find any Twenty One Pilots, Beyoncé, or Drake here.

Several of these were also included in films of the past year so at least there’s the movie connection I always try to work into these lists. I’m sure I’ll hear more winners from last year in the months ahead, but right now, here are my favorite songs of 2016.

12. “How Far I’ll Go” – Moana

I still have yet to see Disney’s Moana, but as with Frozen’s “Let It Go,” I got to hear its music even before I watch the film itself. This Golden Globe-nominated tune sung by Auli’i Cravalho as Moana and by Alessia Cara during the end credits is a beautiful ballad of longing for the unknown.
 

11. “Handclap” – Fitz and the Tantrums

I first heard this song when Fitz and the Tantrums appeared on a float in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and while it gets off to a so-so start, it’s pretty darn catchy by the end, even if it’s not quite as good as “The Walker” from their previous album.
 

10. “Make You Mine” – High Valley

While I used to be a more devoted listener, I only listen to country music occasionally these days, and luckily I had the radio on a country channel at the right time to hear the feel-good romance of “Make You Mine.” This may be a cheat since High Valley first released the song in Canada in 2014, but it had its first American release this year.
 

9. “Gunned Down” – Nicco & Solid&Sound

I discovered this obscure electronic tune more or less by accident, as part of a compilation music video, and it stuck in my mind as worthy of much more attention. The more I hear it, the more I like it.
 

8. “Birds” – Coldplay

Again, “Birds” may be from Coldplay’s 2015 album A Head Full of Dreams, but it just barely made the cut by being released on January 2, 2016. It’s less widely played than the singles on the album, but its subdued high-speed energy is infectious, despite the sudden ending.
 

7. “Happy Birthday” – Kygo, featuring John Legend

This might be considered a cooler alternative to the more traditional birthday song. I love the prominent piano riff, and with John Legend’s vocals, it’s an underrated gem of a song.
 

6. “Good Grief” – Bastille

Bastille improved on their earlier hit “Pompeii” with this outstanding single with a much more serious undertone than its catchy tune and risqué video would suggest. And for movie buffs, see if you can identify the movie line embedded in the bridge.
 

5. “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” – Justin Timberlake (from Trolls)

For pop music stations and sales, this was the #1 song of the year. Also nominated for a Grammy and Golden Globe, this upbeat dance hit from DreamWorks’s Trolls sounds a lot like a Michael Jackson song and may be Timberlake’s best work.
 

4. “Something Wild” – Lindsey Stirling, featuring Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness (from Pete’s Dragon)

The musical high point for me last year was attending a Lindsey Stirling concert in the summer. Not only did she play all my favorite songs of hers, but included a few from her new album Brave Enough, particularly this Celtic-sounding addition to the soundtrack of Pete’s Dragon.
 

3. “Drive It Like You Stole It” – Sing Street

This also made #3 for my list of 2016 movie scenes. Sing Street was made special by its nostalgic soundtrack of original tunes that actually sounded like they could have been unreleased hits from the 1980s, and “Drive It Like You Stole It” is the best and most toe-tapping of the bunch.
 

2. “Too Much Is Never Enough” – Florence and the Machine

If this song had been in a movie, it would have the Best Song Oscar written all over it. Instead, it was written for the game Final Fantasy XV, as was the song “I Will Be,” and while I’m not a gamer, this song is exceptional. 2016 was the year that introduced me to Florence and the Machine, now one of my favorite bands by their sound alone, and after the fantastic album released in 2015, even the smaller singles from 2016 carry on the uniquely majestic style.
 

1. “Wherever I Go” – OneRepublic

While it hasn’t gotten nearly the airplay of their other hits, “Wherever I Go” is OneRepublic at their catchiest. I may have been a little obsessed with this song after first hearing it on the radio, but I’d say its frenetic, funky rhythm warrants it. I doubt it will win any awards, but I love it nonetheless. This is one song during which I just can’t stay still.
 
 

And here are other great songs of 2016, loosely ranked from best to least, ending with four radio hits that aren’t really my cup of tea but there’s something I like about them anyway.

“Riddle of the Model” – Sing Street

“It Don’t Hurt Like It Used To” – Billy Currington

“Work This Body” – Walk the Moon

“The Arena” and the rest of the Brave Enough album – Lindsey Stirling

“She Sets the City on Fire” – Gavin DeGraw

“Up&Up” and “Hymn for the Weekend” – Coldplay

“Scars” – Tove Lo (from The Divergent Series: Allegiant)

“It’s Nothing” and “Sparkle” – Radwimps (from Your Name.)

“Water under the Bridge” – Adele

“Try Everything” – Sia and Stargate, sung by Shakira (from Zootopia)

“Quicksand” – Feenixpawl with APEK

“In the Blink of an Eye” – Paul McCartney (from Ethel and Ernest)

“My Wonder” – Dan Winter and Ryan T., featuring Damae

“Scars to Your Beautiful” – Alessia Cara

“In the Name of Love” (Syzz remix) – Martin Garrix and Bebe Rexha

“Cold Water” – Major Lazer

“Rockabye” – Clean Bandit, featuring Sean Paul and Anne-Marie

“What About the Love” – Sam Feldt

“Send My Love” – Adele

“Closer” – The Chainsmokers, featuring Halsey

“Treat You Better” – Shawn Mendes

“My House” – Flo Rida

“Starving” – Hailee Steinfeld and Grey, featuring Zedd

What songs did I miss this year? I’m sure there are quite a few so feel free to tell me your favorites!

My VC also suggested I end this music post with a mournful mention of the musical greats lost in 2016 as well. Rest in peace, David Bowie, Maurice White, Keith Emerson, Merle Haggard, Prince, Christina Grimmie, Leonard Cohen, George Michael, and Debbie Reynolds, alongside many others. Let’s remember them at their best, like George Michael in one of my VC’s favorite songs of his.
 
 

Who else loves fast songs? I don’t mean fast music necessarily since there are quite a few guitar solos that are anything but slow; I’m talking about lyrics that roll off a singer’s tongue faster than the Flash after an espresso. I always marvel at the practice it must have taken to learn such lyrics by heart, and I often take it as a challenge to see how well I can memorize those musical tongue twisters.

So here are my picks for the top twelve songs sung fast, based on both the relative speed at which they exit the singer’s mouth and how well I enjoy the song. (Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” for example, may be fun to learn and one of my favorites, but it’s not really that fast. “Sam” by the Meat Puppets, on the other hand, might be the fastest song I’ve heard, but its catchiness suffers.) Let’s see how fast I can list these speed demons off.

12. “Got the Time” – Joe Jackson

Fans may prefer the Anthrax cover version, which is even more sped up, but Joe Jackson’s original is fast enough for me.
 
 

11. “Sold” – John Michael Montgomery

Drawing inspiration from the auctioneer’s chatter that goes “a mile a minute,” this country single is just pure fun to sing along to and isn’t too hard to keep up with.
 
 

10. “I Really Don’t Hate Christmas” – Phineas and Ferb

Disney Channel’s Phineas and Ferb had a song in every episode, and quite a few had a breakneck pace. These were the ones I most enjoyed memorizing, like “I’m Me,” “Mom, Look,” and “The History of the Tri-State Area.” The swiftest tongue-twister, though, came from the Christmas special where the evil scientist Dr. Doofenshmirtz complains about not despising Christmas. I know this song is hard to sing, and I’m impressed the voice actor kept up even with that annoying accent.
 
 

9. “One Week” – Barenaked Ladies

Any number of rap songs could be faster than the ones on my list, but as a non-rap fan, this awesome, rambling song is as close as I get, thanks to the catchy tune surrounding the verbal gymnastics. By the way, I always try to incorporate a movie tie into these lists, and “One Week” has lyrics mentioning Harrison Ford in Frantic and Kurosawa’s samurai films.
 
 

8. “Cloudburst” – Barry Manilow’s version

This speedy jazz favorite was also performed by Miles Davis and the Pointer Sisters, but I prefer Barry Manilow’s version, especially for how he ends the breathless tune with “I don’t believe I really sang this song!”
 
 

7. “Nations of the World” – Animaniacs / “The New Periodic Table Song” – AsapSCIENCE

Remember what I said about fast songs being almost like a dare to learn them? Well, some took that idea and wrote educational songs that were made fun for kids with their zippy lyrics and familiar tunes. Animaniacs was a favorite show of mine as a kid and helped me learn the state capitals, U.S. Presidents, and nations of the world, while AsapSCIENCE is a science-focused YouTube Channel with an especially fast-paced way to learn the Periodic Table of Elements.
 
 
 

6. “Getting Married Today” from Company – Stephen Sondheim

I cannot imagine the stress on the poor actresses who have had to perform this rapid-fire song from the musical Company live on stage over and over. I’ve barely been able to learn the lyrics myself, but it’s a true challenge that’s strangely satisfying when it all blurts out correctly. Sondheim, you rascal!
 
 

5. “Goin’ Down” – The Monkees

This upbeat, mumbly rocker showing off Micky Dolenz’s talented tongue is probably the hastiest single from the Monkees, a dreamboat group for my mom back in the day.
 
 

4. “Life Is a Rock” – Reunion

Just as “We Didn’t Start the Fire” was like a musical overview of the ‘50s through the ‘80s, Reunion’s “Life Is a Rock” is a blistering recap of pop music history, even incorporating other famous songs like Three Dog Night’s “Celebrate” and Sly and the Family Stone’s “I Want to Take You Higher.” For the record, this is my VC’s favorite fast song.
 
 

3. “Get Out of Denver” – Bob Seger

One of my favorite classic rock songs, this pell-mell earworm is among Bob Seger’s very best.
 
 

2. “The End of the World As We Know It” – R.E.M.

I couldn’t possibly leave this song out. R.E.M.’s oddly feel-good anthem is a go-to soundtrack for alien invasions, Mayan apocalypses, and presidential elections.
 
 

1. “Hardware Store” – “Weird Al” Yankovic

You want a fast song? Well, this is it. In addition to his hilarious parodies, “Weird Al” writes some of his own songs too, including this ridiculously fast-paced paean to the local hardware store. I’m proud to say I know it by heart, except for the absurdly long list of hardware items that seems impossible to sing in one go. Supposedly this is the only song “Weird Al” refuses to sing live, and I see why.
 
 

Here are some runners-up as well. What other fast songs do you like?

“Subterranean Homesick Blues” – Bob Dylan
“Johnny B. Goode” – Chuck Berry
“Johnny McEldoo” – The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem
“A Story Told” – The Count of Monte Cristo musical
“Turn to Stone” – ELO (one fast part toward the end)
“Ain’t Going Down” – Garth Brooks
“I’ve Been Everywhere” – Hank Snow
“Just Leave Everything to Me” – Hello, Dolly! (another movie reference)
“Thank God I’m a Country Boy” – John Denver
“The Auctioneer Song” – Leroy Van Dyke
“Once Was a Time I Thought” – The Mamas and the Papas
“Airegin” – Manhattan Transfer
“Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” – Mary Poppins (and another)
 “Sam” – Meat Puppets
“Again” – Yui

Here’s a final shout-out to the original super-fast patter song from Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance, the hard-to-sing “Major-General’s Song.” (It’s performed by the late, great George Rose, and yes, that’s also Kevin Kline and Linda Ronstadt in the 1983 film adaptation.)

I recently had the great pleasure of attending a Lindsey Stirling concert promoting her new album Brave Enough, and it was awesome! For those who don’t know, Lindsey Stirling is a world-famous violinist who often combines her wicked fiddling with hip hop/dubstep influences and choreography. She was a quarter finalist on “America’s Got Talent,” and though the judges said her performances weren’t “enough to fill a theater in Vegas,” she has gone on to huge success. For the record, the arts center where she performed was sold out. Take that, judges!

In addition to movies, I love music fusion, especially combining classical with electronic pop, and Lindsey Stirling does it beautifully. Aside from the fact that she’s lovely and probably my first celebrity crush, I admire her as a person far more than most of the stars out there. That’s why I had to see her live in what was honestly my first concert. With the availability of music nowadays, there aren’t many music acts I’d pay to see, but Lindsey Stirling was worth it and put on a fantastic show. Not to oversell it, but it’s probably one of the new high points in my life.

Still giddy from the show, I wanted to offer my Top Twelve of her songs. She’s collaborated with quite a few other artists (“Radioactive” with Pentatonix, for example), but I’m excluding collaborations and cover medleys, though they are awesome too (especially those for “Lord of the Rings” and “Phantom of the Opera,” the latter of which ended the concert as a great encore). Her dancing and violin playing are impressive enough, clearly the result of relentless practice, but the fact that she can also create original music both beautiful and dance-worthy just confirms how amazing she is. Can you tell I like her?

12. “Song of the Caged Bird” from Lindsey Stirling (self-titled album)

Like the video, this track has a growing magic and beauty.

11. “Take Flight” from Shatter Me

An enchanting song for one of her most visually arresting videos.

10. “Anti Gravity” from Lindsey Stirling

A great title for such a swirling beat that ranges across the musical spectrum.

9. “Spontaneous Me” from Lindsey Stirling

They’re all beautiful, but I’m more partial to the upbeat tracks like this one and most of what follows.

8. “Electric Daisy Violin” from Lindsey Stirling

Lively and vibrant – classic Lindsey.

7. “Minimal Beat” from Lindsey Stirling

This one may start out sounding like any number of her songs, but it becomes more dynamic as it continues.

6. “Transcendence” from Lindsey Stirling

Lindsey played this at the concert right after discussing her battle with anorexia, and her encouraging honesty lent its high-speed strains even more power than the symbolic video.

5. “Shadows” from Lindsey Stirling

Probably the purest example of her talent and one of her catchiest tunes.

4. “Something Wild” from Brave Enough and Pete’s Dragon (2016)

You know I never compile a list without some kind of movie reference, and during the concert, Lindsey mentioned how Disney reached out to her for a song for the remake of Pete’s Dragon. Not only does it feature Andrew McMahon for vocals, but it also boasts inspiring lyrics and a gorgeous Celtic-inspired melody that instantly became a new favorite of mine. I wish the Academy would give this a nod for Best Song.

3. “Stars Align” from Lindsey Stirling

Going into the concert, I already knew what my top 3 were, and I was thrilled that she played them all. “Stars Align” may not be one of her most popular tracks, but its dubstep mixture is toe-tapping and almost otherworldly. One of the few to feature Lindsey’s vocals too.

2. “Roundtable Rival” from Shatter Me

Many of her videos place the power of her violin against, say, video game thugs or giant monsters, and this Old West string battle against a guitar-wielding outlaw is nothing short of spectacular. This was easily the most energizing song of the night and got the crowd pumped. I remember three guys in the front rows jumping around going nuts (fun to watch, not so much to sit behind), but who could blame them with such an awesome song?

1. “Moon Trance” from Lindsey Stirling

I have loved this song and video since the first time I saw it, and it was the second song she played! Not-so-great acting in the music video aside, it’s a jamming homage (not a rip-off) to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” with vigorous choreography and a spirited, memorable tune to boot. Violin vs. zombies? Violin wins every time.

It was really hard narrowing down her songs to these twelve, so here are several others undoubtedly worth a listen. As a well-deserved YouTube phenomenon, Lindsey Stirling already has a devoted fan base (me included), and I only hope that her popularity continues to grow. Thank you for a fantastic experience, Lindsey, and God bless!

“The Arena”
“Ascendance”
“Celtic Carol” (This may be a Christmas medley, but it feels like its own song.)
“Crystallize” (my VC’s favorite)
“Elements”
“Master of Tides”
“Mirror Haus”
“Night Vision”
“Prism”
“River Flows in You”
“Shatter Me”
“V-Pop”
“We Are Giants”
“Zi-Zi’s Journey”