Showing posts with label adult alternative. Show all posts

Sunday, May 9, 2021

Adult Alternative Songs, Top 250+: 1990-2021

Adult Alternative:

Top 250+ Songs, 1990-2021

In 1996, Billboard magazine lanched the adult album alternative (AAA) chart. The radio format is a spinoff of the album-oriented radio stations focused on classic rock from the ‘60s and ‘70s. While artists like Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, and Bruce Springsteen are staples of classic rock, their current material was largely neglected by those stations. Alongside these heritage acts, AAA played mainstream-rock-oriented alternative acts like the Gin Blossoms, Goo Goo Dolls, Hootie & the Blowfish, Matchbox 20, Dave Matthews Band, and Alanis Morissette.

In 2017, the DMDB compiled a chart of the top 100 adult alternative songs based on the most weeks at #1, which has since been updated. The ranking includes all songs which spent at least 5 weeks atop the chart.

In 2020, the DMDB created a second top 100 list focused on songs from 1990 to 1996 which preceded the adult alternative chart, but which fit the format.

In 2021, in honor of the adult alternative chart’s 25th anniversary, Billboard published its list of the top 100 adult alternative songs based on chart performance. The list on this page combines those three lists, ranking the songs based on their overall Dave’s Music Database status.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

1. R.E.M. “Losing My Religion” (1991)
2. Adele “Rolling in the Deep” (2010)
3. Gotye with Kimbra “Somebody That I Used to Know” (2011)
4. Oasis “Wonderwall” (1995)
5. Gnarls Barkley “Crazy” (2006)
6. U2 “One” (1992)
7. Santana with Rob Thomas “Smooth” (1999)
8. Jason Mraz “I’m Yours” (2008)
9. Coldplay “Viva La Vida” (2008)
10. Goo Goo Dolls “Iris” (1998)

11. Radiohead “Creep” (1993)
12. Lorde “Royals” (2013)
13. Pearl Jam “Jeremy” (1991)
14. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Under the Bridge” (1991)
15. Alanis Morissette “You Oughta Know” (1995)
16. Beck “Loser” (1993)
17. Green Day “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” (2004)
18. No Doubt “Don’t Speak” (1995)
19. Eric Clapton “Tears in Heaven” (1992)
20. U2 “Beautiful Day” (2000)

21. Seal “Kiss from a Rose” (1994)
22. Oasis “Live Forever” (1994)
23. Sam Smith “Stay with Me” (2014)
24. Alanis Morissette “Ironic” (1995)
25. Coldplay “Clocks” (2002)
26. Soundgarden “Black Hole Sun” (1994)
27. Snow Patrol “Chasing Cars” (2006)
28. Sheryl Crow “All I Wanna Do” (1994)
29. The Lumineers “Ho Hey” (2012)
30. Train “Hey, Soul Sister” (2009)

31. Kings of Leon “Use Somebody” (2008)
32. Pearl Jam “Alive” (1991)
33. R.E.M. “Everybody Hurts’ (1992)
34. Bruce Springsteen “Streets of Philadelphia” (1994)
35. Silverchair “Tomorrow” (1994)
36. Train “Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)” (2001)
37. Oasis “Don’t Look Back in Anger” (1995)
38. Live “Lightning Crashes” (1994)
39. Stone Temple Pilots “Interstate Love Song” (1994)
40. Stone Temple Pilot “Plush” (1992)

41. Collective Soul “Shine” (1993)
42. Smashing Pumpkins “1979” (1995)
43. Green Day “Basket Case” (1994)
44. Oasis “Champagne Supernova” (1995)
45. Pearl Jam “Black” (1991)
46. Eric Clapton “Change the World” (1996)
47. Jewel “You Were Meant for Me” (1995)
48. Pearl Jam “Daughter” (1993)
49. U2 “Vertigo” (2004)
50. Green Day “Longview” (1994)

51. The Wallflowers “One Headlight” (1996)
52. Matchbox 20 “Bent” (2000)
53. Portugal, the Man “Feel It Still” (2017)
54. Pearl Jam “Better Man” (1994)
55. Weezer “Buddy Holly” (1994)
56. Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories “Stay (I Missed You)” (1994)
57. Alanis Morissette “You Learn” (1995)
58. Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” (1995)
59. Smashing Pumpkins “Today” (1993)
60. Smashing Pumpkins “Disarm” (1993)

61. The Rembrandts “I’ll Be There for You” (1995)
62. Joan Osborne “One of Us” (1995)
63. Smashing Pumpkins “Bullet with Butterfly Wings” (1995)
64. Collective Soul “December” (1995)
65. Mumford & Sons “I Will Wait” (2012)
66. The Cranberries “Zombie” (1994)
67. Shawn Colvin “Sunny Came Home” (1996)
68. Sting “Fields of Gold” (1993)
69. Sarah McLachlan “Building a Mystery” (1997)
70. Green Day “When I Come Around” (1994)

71. Alanis Morissette “Head Over Feet” (1995)
72. Radiohead “Fake Plastic Trees” (1995)
73. U2 “Mysterious Ways” (1991)
74. Soul Asylum “Runaway Train” (1992)
75. Jewel “Foolish Games” (1995)
76. The Verve Pipe “The Freshmen” (1996)
77. Primitive Radio Gods “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand” (1996)
78. Goo Goo Dolls “Name” (1995)
79. The Black Keys “Lonely Boy” (2011)
80. Beck “Where It’s At” (1996)

81. Live “Selling the Drama” (1994)
82. The Black Crowes “Hard to Handle” (1990)
83. Counting Crows “Mr. Jones” (1993)
84. U2 “Night and Day” (1990)
85. The Fray “You Found Me” (2008)
86. Matchbox 20 “3 A.M.” (1996)
87. KT Tunstall “Black Horse & the Cherry Tree” (2004)
88. Lenny Kravitz “Are You Gonna Go My Way?” (1993)
89. Lorde “Team” (2013)
90. Eric Clapton “Layla” (Unplugged version, 1992)

91. John Mayer “Waiting on the World to Change” (2006)
92. Fastball “The Way” (1998)
93. U2 “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own” (2004)
94. Bonnie Raitt “Something to Talk About” (1991)
95. Phillip Phillips “Home” (2012)
96. Coldplay “Paradise” (2011)
97. Hootie & the Blowfish “Only Wanna Be with You” (1994)
98. Dave Matthews Band “Crash into Me” (1996)
99. X Ambassadors “Renegades” (2015)
100. R.E.M. “Man on the Moon” (1992)

101. Imagine Dragons “It’s Time” (2011)
102. Alanis Morissette “Hand in My Pocket” (1995)
103. Crowded House “Weather with You” (1991)
104. The Cranberries “Linger” (1993)
105. Smashing Pumpkins “Tonight Tonight” (1995)
106. Coldplay “Speed of Sound” (2005)
107. David Gray “Babylon” (1998)
108. New Radicals “You Get What You Give” (1998)
109. INXS “Suicide Blonde” (1990)
110. Sheryl Crow “Soak Up the Sun” (2002)

111. Blues Traveler “Run Around” (1994)
112. Florence + the Machine “Dog Days Are Over” (2008)
113. R.E.M. “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?” (1994)
114. Spin Doctors “Two Princes” (1991)
115. Milky Chance “Stolen Dance” (2013)
116. Sting “If I Ever Lose My Faith in You” (1993)
117. Bonnie Raitt “I Can’t Make You Love Me” (1991)
118. Hootie & the Blowfish “Let Her Cry” (1994)
119. Goo Goo Dolls “Slide” (1998)
120. Bonnie Raitt “Love Sneakin’ Up on You” (1994)

121. Seal “Crazy” (1990)
122. Hootie & the Blowfish “Hold My Hand” (1994)
123. Elle King “Ex’s and Oh’s” (2014)
124. The Black Keys “Fever” (2014)
125. Jack Johnson “Upside Down” (2006)
126. R.E.M. “Drive” (1992)
127. Sting “All This Time” (1990)
128. John Mayer “No Such Thing” (2001)
129. R.E.M. “Shiny Happy People” (1991)
130. Sheryl Crow “Everyday Is a Winding Road” (1996)

131. Death Cab for Cutie “Soul Meets Body” (2005)
132. Train “Calling All Angels” (2003)
133. George Ezra “Budapest” (2013)
134. Sarah McLachlan “I Will Remember You” (1995)
135. Sting with Cheb Mami “Desert Rose” (1999)
136. U2 “Electrical Storm” (2002)
137. Sheryl Crow “If It Makes You Happy” (1996)
138. Radiohead “High and Dry” (1995)
139. Beck “Dreams” (2015)
140. John Mellencamp & Me’Shell Ndegeocello “Wild Night” (1994)

141. Eric Clapton “My Father’s Eyes” (1998)
142. U2 “Even Better Than the Real Thing” (1991)
143. U2 “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me” (1995)
144. Sheryl Crow “My Favorite Mistake” (1998)
145. The Cranberries “Dreams” (1992)
146. Collective Soul “The World I Know” (1995)
147. Paula Cole “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” (1996)
148. Melissa Etheridge “I’m the Only One” (1993)
149. The Black Keys “Lo/Hi” (2019)
150. Gin Blossoms “‘Til I Hear It from You” (1995)

151. U2 “Staring at the Sun” (1997)
152. Bruce Springsteen “Human Touch” (1992)
153. Bruce Springsteen “Secret Garden” (1995)
154. Pearl Jam “Just Breathe” (2009)
155. Hootie & the Blowfish “Old Man & Me (When I Get to Heaven)” (1996)
156. Sheryl Crow “Strong Enough” (1993)
157. Matchbox 20 “Push” (1996)
158. Death Cab for Cutie “I Will Possess Your Heart” (2008)
159. Gin Blossoms “Follow You Down” (1996)
160. Kings of Leon “Radioactive” (2010)

161. Jewel “Who Will Save Your Soul?” (1995)
162. Beck “Up All Night” (2017)
163. U2 “You’re the Best Thing About Me” (2017)
164. Jack Johnson “Sitting, Waiting, Wishing” (2005)
165. Rag ‘n’ Bone Man “Human” (2016)
166. Coldplay “Adventure of a Lifetime” (2015)
167. Paula Cole “I Don’t Want to Wait” (1996)
168. Alice Merton “No Roots” (2016)
169. The Lumineers “Ophelia” (2016)
170. Dave Matthews Band “Stay (Wasting Time)” (1998)

171. Hootie & the Blowfish “Time” (1994)
172. Arcade Fire “Everything Now” (2017)
173. The Killers “Read My Mind” (2006)
174. Jack Johnson “If I Had Eyes” (2007)
175. R.E.M. “The Great Beyond” (1999)
176. Kings of Leon “Waste a Moment” (2016)
177. Mumford & Sons “Believe” (2015)
178. John Mellencamp “Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)” (1996)
179. Coldplay “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” (2011)
180. U2 “Window in the Skies” (2006)

181. Jack Johnson “You and Your Heart” (2010)
182. Duncan Sheik “Barely Breathing” (1996)
183. Sheryl Crow “A Change Would Do You Good” (1996)
184. Vampire Weekend “Harmony Hall” (2019)
185. Jack Johnson “Flake” (2001)
186. The Lumineers “Stubborn Love” (2012)
187. Counting Crows “Accidentally in Love” (2004)
188. The Wallflowers “6th Avenue Heartache” (1996)
189. The Black Keys “Go” (2019)
190. O.A.R. “Shattered (Turn the Car Around)” (2008)

191. Mumford & Sons “Guiding Light” (2018)
192. Counting Crows “Hanginaround” (1999)
193. Collective Soul “Run” (1999)
194. Michael Franti & Spearhead “The Sound of Sunshine” (2010)
195. Sarah McLachlan “Fallen” (2003)
196. Dave Matthews Band “Funny the Way It Is” (2009)
197. Dave Matthews Band “Where Are You Going?” (2002)
198. Blues Traveler “Most Precarious” (1997)
199. The Lumineers “Gloria” (2019)
200. Paolo Nutini “New Shoes” (2006)

201. Natalie Merchant “Kind and Generous” (1998)
202. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats “You Worry Me” (2018)
203. Beck “Uneventful Days” (2019)
204. John Mellencamp with India.Arie “Peaceful World” (2001)
205. Of Monsters and Men “Mountain Sound” (2011)
206. Dave Matthews Band “Everyday” (2001)
207. Norah Jones “Sunrise” (2004)
208. The Head and the Heart “All We Ever Knew” (2016)
209. Jack Johnson “Good People” (2005)
210. The Revivalists “Wish I Knew You” (2016)

211. R.E.M. “Supernatural Superserious” (2008)
212. Bruce Hornsby “Gonna Be Some Changes Made” (2004)
213. David Gray “The One I Love” (2005)
214. Dave Matthews Band “I Did It” (2001)
215. Sheryl Crow “Anything But Down” (1998)
216. Fitz & the Tantrums “Out of My League” (2013)
217. John Mayer “Bigger Than My Body” (2003)
218. Spoon “Hot Thoughts” (2017)
219. K.T. Tunstall “Hold On” (2007)
220. Snow Patrol “Just Say Yes” (2009)

221. John Mayer “Who Says” (2009)
222. Tracy Chapman “Telling Stories (There Is Friction in the Space Between)” (2000)
223. The Avett Brothers “Ain’t No Man” (2016)
224. The Lumineers “Life in the City” (2019)
225. David Gray “You’re the World to Me” (2007)
226. The Strokes “Bad Decisions” (2020)
227. The Head and the Heart “Lost in My Mind” (2011)
228. Snow Patrol “Crack the Shutters” (2008)
229. David Gray “Fugitive” (2009)
230. Death Cab for Cutie “You Are a Tourist” (2011)

231. White Reaper “Might Be Right” (2019)
232. One Eskimo “Kandi” (2009)
233. Death Cab for Cutie “Gold Rush” (2018)
234. Bakar “Hell N Back” (2019)
235. Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs “Beg, Steal or Borrow” (2010)
236. Family of the Year “Hero” (2012)
237. Norah Jones “Chasing Pirates” (2009)
238. Nathaniel Rateliff “And It’s Still Alright” (2020)
239. Serena Ryder “Stompa” (2013)
240. Norah Jones “Thinking About You” (2006)

241. Pete Yorn “Life on a Chain” (2001)
242. Dave Matthews Band “You and Me” (2009)
243. Leon Bridges “Bad Bad News” (2018)
244. Kings of Leon “The Bandit” (2021)
245. Ray LaMontagne “Strong Enough” (2020)
246. George Ezra “Blame It on Me” (2014)
247. Gomez “See the World” (2006)
248. Caamp “Officer of Love” (2020)
249. Snow Patrol “Shut Your Eyes” (2006)
250. John Butler Trio “Better Than” (2007)

251. Milky Chance with Jack Johnson “Don’t Let Me Down” (2020)
252. Dave Matthews Band “Oh” (2003)
253. My Morning Jacket “Feel You” (2020)
254. James Morrison “Nothing Ever Hurt Like You” (2008)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “Other Genre/Category Song Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Adult Alternative, 1996-2020” (top 100+ list)
Dave’s Music Database: “Adult Alternative, 1990-1996” (top 100 list)
Billboard: “Greatest of All Time: Adult Alternative Songs” (top 100 list, 1996-2021)
Dave’s Music Database: “Top 100 Adult Alternative Albums”

First posted 2/26/2021; last updated 5/9/2021.

Saturday, May 8, 2021

Adult Album Alternative (AAA): Top 100+ Songs from 1996 to 2021

Adult Alternative, 1996-2021:

Top 100+ Songs

In 1996, Billboard magazine lanched the adult album alternative (AAA) chart. The radio format is a spinoff of the album-oriented radio format rooted in music from the ‘60s and ‘70s. AAA includes some of that genre’s most noted acts (Eric Clapton, John Mellencamp, Tom Petty, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen), but expands to include a variety of genres generally broader than most other radio formats, encompassing alternative rock, alt country, folk, jazz, and blues.

Here are the top 100+ AAA songs based on most weeks at #1. Songs with the same number of weeks on top are ranked based on most points in Dave’s Music Database. All songs spending five or weeks on top have been included on this list.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

16 weeks:

U2 “Beautiful Day” (2000)
15 weeks:
Coldplay “Clocks” (2002)
Kings of Leon “Waste a Moment” (2016)
14 weeks:
Adele “Rolling in the Deep” (2010)
The Wallflowers “One Headlight” (1996)
Matchbox 20 “Bent” (2000)
Matchbox 20 “3 A.M.” (1996)
13 weeks:
Gotye with Kimbra “Somebody That I Used to Know” (2011)
Santana with Rob Thomas “Smooth” (1999)
Jack Johnson “Upside Down” (2006)
Pearl Jam “Just Breathe” (2009)
12 weeks:
Train “Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)” (2001)
Beck “Dreams” (2015)
Dave Matthews Band “Funny the Way It Is” (2009)
11 weeks:
Coldplay “Viva La Vida” (2008)
Portugal, the Man “Feel It Still” (2017)
Mumford & Sons “I Will Wait” (2012)
The Lumineers “Ophelia” (2016)
Jack Johnson “You and Your Heart” (2010)
KT Tunstall “Hold On” (2007)
10 weeks:
Sarah McLachlan “Building a Mystery” (1997)
George Ezra “Budapest” (2013)
The Black Keys “Fever” (2014)
Death Cab for Cutie “Soul Meets Body” (2005)
Jack Johnson “If I Had Eyes” (2007)
Jack Johnson “Good People” (2005)
David Gray “Fugitive” (2009)
9 weeks:
U2 “Vertigo” (2004)
Coldplay “Speed of Sound” (2005)
Train “Calling All Angels” (2003)
Hootie & the Blowfish “Old Man & Me (When I Get to Heaven)” (1996)
The Black Keys “Go” (2019)
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats “You Worry Me” (2018)
8 weeks:
Lorde “Royals” (2013)
Green Day “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” (2004)
Snow Patrol “Chasing Cars” (2006)
The Lumineers “Ho Hey” (2012)
Coldplay “Paradise” (2011)
Milky Chance “Stolen Dance” (2013)
R.E.M. “The Great Beyond” (1999)
Michael Franti & Spearhead “The Sound of Sunshine” (2010)
Counting Crows “Hanginaround” (1999)
The Lumineers “Stubborn Love” (2012)
The Head and the Heart “All We Ever Knew” (2016)
Norah Jones “Sunrise” (2004)
Tracy Chapman “Telling Stories (There Is Friction in the Space Between)” (2000)
Death Cab for Cutie “You Are a Tourist” (2011)
Death Cab for Cutie “Gold Rush” (2018)
David Gray “You’re the World to Me” (2007)
Serena Ryder “Stompa” (2013)
Nathaniel Rateliff “And It’s Still Alright” (2020)
7 weeks:
The Fray “You Found Me” (2008)
The Black Keys “Lonely Boy” (2011)
New Radicals “You Get What You Give” (1998)
Sheryl Crow “Soak Up the Sun” (2002)
Eric Clapton “My Father’s Eyes” (1998)
U2 “Staring at the Sun” (1997)
U2 “Window in the Skies” (2006)
Coldplay “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” (2011)
Kings of Leon “Radioactive” (2010)
Dave Matthews Band “Stay (Wasting Time)” (1998)
Vampire Weekend “Harmony Hall” (2019)
U2 “You’re the Best Thing About Me” (2017)
Dave Matthews Band “Where Are You Going?” (2002)
Natalie Merchant “Kind and Generous” (1998)
Dave Matthews Band “Everyday” (2001)
Spoon “Hot Thoughts” (2017)
Snow Patrol “Crack the Shutters” (2008)
John Butler Trio “Better Than” (2007)
Ray LaMontagne “Strong Enough” (2020)
6 weeks:
Gnarls Barkley “Crazy” (2006)
Sam Smith “Stay with Me” (2014)
Phillip Phillips “Home” (2012)
John Mayer “Waiting on the World to Change” (2006)
Goo Goo Dolls “Slide” (1998)
John Mellencamp “Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)” (1996)
Arcade Fire “Everything Now” (2017)
U2 “Electrical Storm” (2002)
Sheryl Crow “A Change Would Do You Good” (1996)
The Killers “Read My Mind” (2006)
Jack Johnson “Sitting, Waiting, Wishing” (2005)
Mumford & Sons “Guiding Light” (2018)
Blues Traveler “Most Precarious” (1997)
Norah Jones “Chasing Pirates” (2009)
David Gray “The One I Love” (2005)
Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs “Beg, Steal or Borrow” (2010)
Pete Yorn “Life on a Chain” (2001)
Kings of Leon “The Bandit” (2021)
Caamp “Officer of Love” (2020)
5 weeks:
The Verve Pipe “The Freshmen” (1996)
Primitive Radio Gods “Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand” (1996)
U2 “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own” (2004)
Death Cab for Cutie “I Will Possess Your Heart” (2008)
Coldplay “Adventure of a Lifetime” (2015)
Rag ‘n’ Bone Man “Human” (2016)
Gin Blossoms “Follow You Down” (1996)
Mumford & Sons “Believe” (2015)
Sheryl Crow “My Favorite Mistake” (1998)
The Black Keys “Lo/Hi” (2019)
Counting Crows “Accidentally in Love” (2004)
Sarah McLachlan “Fallen” (2003)
Collective Soul “Run” (1999)
The Lumineers “Gloria” (2019)
John Mellencamp with India.Arie “Peaceful World” (2001)
R.E.M. “Supernatural Superserious” (2008)
Shery Crow “Anything But Down” (1998)
Dave Matthews Band “I Did It” (2001)
John Mayer “Bigger Than My Body” (2003)
The Avett Brothers “Ain’t No Man” (2016)
Beck “Uneventful Days” (2019)
Paolo Nutini “New Shoes” (2006)
John Mayer “Who Says” (2009)
Leon Bridges “Bad Bad News” (2019)
My Morning Jacket “Feel You” (2020)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “Other Genre/Category Song Lists"
Dave’s Music Database (4/24/2020). “Adult Alternative, 1990-1996”
Wikipedia.org “List of Billboard number-one adult alternative singles of the 2000s”
Wikipedia.org “List of Billboard number-one adult alternative singles of the 2010s”
Wikipedia.org “List of Billboard number-one adult alternative singles of the 2020s”

First posted 12/10/2017; last updated 5/8/2021.

Friday, February 26, 2021

Top 100 Adult Alternative Albums

First posted 2/26/2021.

Adult Alternative:

The Top 100 Albums, 1990-2021

In 1996, Billboard magazine launched its adult alternative chart, which was tracked radio stations focused on playing rock-oriented heritage artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, and John Mellencamp, as well as newer artists like Counting Crows, Dave Matthews Band, Hootie & the Blowfish, and Matchbox 20.

This list reflects albums which charted at least 3 songs on the adult alternative chart or, in the case of pre-1996 releases, albums which likely would have accomplished the feat based on those artists’ accomplishments on the post-1995 charts. More than 150 albums made the criteria. The top 100 have been ranked here, based on their overall status in Dave’s Music Database.

Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here.

1. R.E.M. Automatic for the People (1992)
2. Adele 21 (2011)
3. Alanis Morissette Jagged Little Pill (1995)
4. Pearl Jam Ten (1991)
5. U2 Achtung Baby (1991)
6. Oasis (What’s the Story) Morning Glory (1995)
7. Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)
8. Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
9. Green Day Dookie (1994)
10. Adele 25 (2015)

11. Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994)
12. R.E.M. Out of Time (1991)
13. Santana Supernatural (1999)
14. Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream (1993)
15. Smashing Pumpkins Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995)
16. U2 All That You Can’t Leave Behind (2000)
17. Coldplay X & Y (2005)
18. Coldplay Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends (2008)
19. Hootie & the Blowfish Cracked Rear View (1994)
20. Bruce Springsteen The Rising (2002)

21. Live Throwing Copper (1994)
22. Sheryl Crow Tuesday Night Music Club (1993)
23. U2 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb (2004)
24. Counting Crows August and Everything After (1993)
25. Kings of Leon Only by the Night (2008)
26. Keane Hopes and Fears (2004)
27. Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication (1999)
28. Mumford & Sons Babel (2012)
29. Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium (2006)
30. Matchbox 20 Yourself or Someone Like You (1996)

31. David Gray White Ladder (2000)
32. Jack Johnson In Between Dreams (2005)
33. U2 No Line on the Horizon (2009)
34. Mumford & Sons Sigh No More (2009)
35. U2 Songs of Innocence (2014)
36. Jewel Pieces of You (1995)
37. Imagine Dragons Night Visions (2012)
38. U2 Zooropa (1993)
39. Sarah McLachlan Surfacing (1997)
40. Lorde Pure Heroine (2013)

41. Sarah McLachlan Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (1993)
42. Jack Johnson Sleep Through the Static (2008)
43. Vampire Weekend Father of the Bride (2019)
44. Sting Ten Summoner’s Tales (1993)
45. Dave Matthews Band Under the Table and Dreaming (1994)
46. R.E.M. Monster (1994)
47. Florence + the Machine Ceremonials (2011)
48. R.E.M. New Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996)
49. Snow Patrol Eyes Open (2006)
50. John Mayer Continuum (2006)

51. Dave Matthews Band Crash (1996)
52. Alabama Shakes Sound & Color (2015)
53. Sting Brand New Day (1999)
54. Sheryl Crow Sheryl Crow (1996)
55. Coldplay Mylo Xyloto (2011)
56. The Wallflowers Bringing Down the Horse (1996)
57. U2 Pop (1997)
58. Bonnie Raitt Luck of the Draw (1991)
59. Melissa Etheridge Yes I Am (1993)
60. The Black Keys El Camino (2011)

61. Beck Colors (2017)
62. Sherly Crow The Globe Sessions (1998)
63. Sting The Soul Cages (1991)
64. Florence + the Machine How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (2015)
65. Kings of Leon Come Around Sundown (2010)
66. Steely Dan Two Against Nature (2000)
67. KT Tunstall Eye to the Telescope (2004)
68. John Mayer Room for Squares (2001)
69. U2 Songs of Experience (2017)
70. The Black Keys Turn Blue (2014)

71. fun. Some Nights (2012)
72. Shery Crow Detours (2008)
73. Tame Impala The Slow Rush (2020)
74. Bonnie Raitt Longing in Their Hearts (1994)
75. Third Eye Blind Third Eye Blind (1997)
76. The Decemberists The King Is Dead (2011)
77. Matchbox 20 Mad Season (2000)
78. Feist The Reminder (2007)
79. Dave Matthews Band Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King (2009)
80. The Raconteurs Help Us Stranger (2019)

81. Cage the Elephant Social Cues (2019)
82. Jack Johnson To the Sea (2010)
83. Dave Matthews Band Before These Crowded Streets (1998)
84. Goo Goo Dolls Dizzy Up the Girl (1998)
85. The Lumineers The Lumineers (2012)
86. Gin Blossoms New Miserable Experience (1992)
87. Alabama Shakes Boys & Girls (2012)
88. Shawn Colvin A Few Small Repairs (1996)
89. Train Drops of Jupiter (2001)
90. Hozier Hozier (2014)

91. Death Cab for Cutie Plans (2005)
92. Fiona Apple Tidal (1996)
93. Paula Cole This Fire (1996)
94. John Mayer Heavier Things (2003)
95. Toad the Wet Sprocket Fear (1991)
96. One Republic Native (2013)
97. Of Monsters and Men My Head Is an Animal (2011)
98. The Fray How to Save a Life (2005)
99. Joan Osborne Relish (1995)
100. Dave Matthews Band Everyday (2001)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: other best-of-genre lists
Dave’s Music Database: “Adult Alternative Songs, Top 250+: 1990-2021”

Thursday, February 18, 2021

Adult Album Alternative (AAA) Acts: Top 100

Adult Album Alternative:

Top 100 Acts

On December 10, 2017, a top 100 list was published on Billboard. A top 50 list was updated on February 18, 2021. The list below reflects the top 50 from 2021 and then the remaining artists from the 2017 top 100 list.

See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre.

Dave Matthews Band

1. Dave Matthews (solo and with band)
2. U2
3. Coldplay
4. Jack Johnson
5. Sheryl Crow
6. John Mayer
7. Mumford & Sons
8. Counting Crows
9. Death Cab for Cutie
10. Snow Patrol

11. Beck
12. The Wallflowers
13. R.E.M.
14. Ray LaMontagne
15. The Lumineers
16. David Gray
17. The Head & the Heart
18. Train
19. The Black Keys
20. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats

21. Norah Jones
22. Cage the Elephant
23. Florence + the Machine
24. Hozier
25. Of Monsters & Men
26. Matchbox 20
27. Adele
28. Ryan Adams
29. Imagine Dragons
30. Kings of Leon

31. Red Hot Chili Peppers
32. Tom Petty (solo & with Heartbreakers & Mudcrutch)
33. Sting
34. John Mellencamp
35. Eric Clapton
36. Pearl Jam
37. KT Tunstall
38. Ben Harper
39. Goo Goo Dolls
40. Spoon

41. The Fray
42. Leon Bridges
43. Sarah McLachlan
44. The Killers
45. Pete Yorn
46. The Decemberists
47. Bruce Springsteen
48. Green Day
49. Chris Isaak
50. Keane

51. Collective Soul
52. Wilco
53. Barenaked Ladies
54. Lenny Kravitz
55. Tracy Chapman
56. Melissa Etheridge
57. The Avett Brothers
58. Guster
59. Jason Mraz
60. Michael Franti

61. Bonnie Raitt
62. The Rolling Stones
63. Matt Nathanson
64. Alanis Morissette
65. Indigo Girls
66. Blues Traveler
67. Mark Knopfler
68. Tori Amos
69. Shawn Colvin
70. Jonny Lang

71. Amos Lee
72. Phish
73. Shawn Mullins
74. Brandi Carlile
75. Van Morrison
76. Robert Plant
77. Dawes
78. Arcade Fire
79. Foo Fighters
80. Neil Young

81. Grace Potter
82. John Hiatt
83. Lorde
84. Alabama Shakes
85. Pretenders
86. Mat Kearney
87. Natalie Merchant
88. Phillip Phillips
89. Santana
90. Paul Simon

91. Fitz & the Tantrums
92. Jewel
93. Michael Kiwanuka
94. Ingrid Michaelson
95. Brett Dennen
96. Paolo Nutini
97. Jackson Browne
98. John Bulter Trio
99. Old 97’s
100. Feist

101. Vance Joy
102. One Republic

Resources/Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: Lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre
Billboard (2/18/2021). “Greatest of All Time: Adult Alternative Artists”

First posted 12/10/2017; last updated 2/18/2021.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

The Lumineers’ “Ho Hey” charted

Ho Hey

The Lumineers

Writer(s): Wesley Schultz, Jeremy Fraites (see lyrics here)

Released: June 4, 2012

First Charted: April 21, 2012

Peak: 3 US, 2 RR, 1⁸ AC, 1⁸ A40, 1⁸ AA, 1² MR, 8 UK, 2 CN, 3 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 0.89 UK, 7.69 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 388.6 video, 1038.34 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

The late 2000s saw a mini-folk-rock revival led by groups like Fleet Foxes and Mumford & Sons, capped by the latter’s Album of the Year Grammy win for 2012’s Babel. It was then that the Lumineers came riding onto the scene with arguably the most successful song of the movement – “Ho Hey.”

The song first emerged in December 2011 when it was used in a television episode for Hart of Dixie. It was released as a single the next February. ^SF It gained another push in June because of its appearance in the Bing “Discovering Hawaii” commercial. ^SF It was also used in promoting the Oscar-winning film Silver Linings Playbook and in the United Kingdom for a television advertising campaign for E.On energy. ^SF

Not only did the song reach #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, but hit #1 on the alternative, adult pop, and adult alternative song charts. The song’s 62 weeks on the Hot 100 was of the longest chart runs ever. ^WK Outside of the U.S., the song was a top 10 hit in Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, France Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK. It hit #1 in Poland and Portugal.

The band wrote the song as “a kiss-off to disinterested concert-goers,” punctuated by the famous “ho hey” shouts of the song to get attention. ^SF That gave the song a campfire sing-a-long vibe. Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio said “It’s darn refreshing to sit back and take in some genuine, straightforward music that comes from the heart.” ^WK

Resources:

DMDB encyclopedia entry for The Lumineers
^SF Songfacts
^WK Wikipedia

First posted 2/28/2021; last updated 7/23/2023.

Saturday, June 3, 2006

Snow Patrol chart with “Chasing Cars”