Best Songs of 2005 - Part I

Last year I did a post on the top 10 singles of 2004, and in it I mentioned how 2004 was the year I truly discovered and fell in love with house music. Well, 2005 was not a great year for dance music, a decent one, but not great. The year was mainly saved by a late fall entry that would land its place as my single of the year, and what a single, but more on that later. I've expanded my list to 20 this year. Here comes numbers 16 to 20 :

20. Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone

This was arguably the breakthrough year for Ms Clarkson, especially here in the UK. TheAmerican Idol label was quickly forgotten with this track, a song that sounds like it could have been by recorded by Heart in the 80s, if Heart was fronted by Pink that is. A great empowering track to rock out to, especially after a messy break-up.

19. Kelly Osbourne - One Word (Chris Cox Remix)

Not in a million years did I expect to place Ms. Osbourne on this list, but she managed to come up with a greatl electro track to dance to. Ok, so I have no idea what the hell she's on about in the song but it doesn't matter. Although a great song in its own right, its the Chris Cox remix that elevates this single to one of the best of the year.

18. Faith Evans - Mesmerized (Freemasons Remix)

The Freemasons take over from the Shapeshifters as the hot dance producers of the year, and their genius is evident on this re-working of this very funky minimalist Faith Evans track, turning it into a dance floor stomper.

17. Shapeshifters - Back to Basics

Speaking of Shapeshifters, the act that had last years best single in the shape of Lola's Theme, come back with that oh so difficult follow-up single. They partly succeeded with this track, with a full orchestra backing, the same lead singer and a similar structure, Back to Basics suffered from sounding too much like its predecessor, but without as good a chorus. Still, without the Lola comparison, this song stands on its own as a very good dance song. Best remix is the Beginnerz mix, which takes the fairly fluffy sounding song and gives it a chunky bassline and a much tougher sound. The Shapeshifters didn't quiet manage to strike lightning twice in a row, but they deserve an A for effort.

16. Juliet - Avalon

The other big producer of the year has to be Jaques Lu Cont (aka Stuart Price) who produced this gem of a single. Juliet has a beautiful voice thats a cross between Dido and Sheryl Crow(honestly). She has given us an electro-influenced, haunting and beautifully melodic track that will stay in your head for hours on end.