In Memoriam: "Daydream Believer" The Monkees

The year is young, but we've already lost a number of music legends, including Davy Jones, who died from a heart attack earlier today at the age of 66. Jones is best known as a member of the Monkees, the sunny bubblegum rock band created as a response to Beatlemania for an eponymous (and Emmy-winning) 1960s sitcom. For five years, the group experienced its own brand of teenage hysteria—and a surprising amount of critical drubbing for its perceived lacked of authentic talent (including the nickname "the Pre-Fab Four"). But great music can come from any source, and the Monkees' legacy has been rewritten by enduring classics like "Daydream Believer," the group's third and final #1 hit. Featuring Jones on lead vocals, "Believer" is a sweet love song that explodes into a chorus of blissful noise and anthemic harmonies. It's the type of feel-good pop that's sure to put a smile on your face—even on a sad day like this one. A-

"Girl Gone Wild" Madonna

Sigh, Madonna... I was ready to give you the benefit of the doubt about your upcoming twelfth album, MDNA, after its highly calculated lead single, "Give Me All Your Luvin'," won me over with a cheeky surf rock guitar riff. But this limp new song, "Girl Gone Wild," seems to confirm my worst fears: you're officially trying too hard. I know it's difficult to pull in that elusive youth demographic, but maybe you could try reminding them what an exciting musical innovator and boundary-pusher you used to be, instead of turning yourself into an afterthought to the latest hot fad. (Remember how well that worked on Hard Candy?)

This pulsating electro beat certainly isn't going to cut it. It's oddly reminiscent of Usher's underwhelming 2010 hit "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love Again," which either means you got stuck with Benny Benassi's least inspired work ever, or the dance-pop wave is really starting to show signs of strain. And your overly processed vocals totally get lost behind the thumping synths, until it's a little too Ke$ha for comfort. (Also, what's with calling yourself a girl? I said it before, and I'll say it again: You're a 53-year-old mother; it's not cute anymore.) "Girl" feels very been-there-done-that—not just in the grand scheme of pop star trend-hopping, but even in comparison to 2005's Confessions on a Dance Floor, which saw you do Eurobeats in a much more inventive and convincing fashion. I can promise, Madge, this will not be the hit that you're so desperately seeking. B-

"Man or Muppet" Jason Segel and Walter

As the Oscar for Best Original Song fades ever further into oblivion, "Man or Muppet" from November's The Muppets tonight became the struggling category's latest winner. This year seemed to sound a bit of a death knell for the once-prestigious award—only two nominees, with zero performance slots during the telecast—and this humorous power ballad is, unfortunately, not the savior that it needs. Written by Bret Mackenzie, of the New Zealand comedy rock duo Flight of the Conchords, "Man" is meant to be a comically poignant examination of self-identity. But with Jason Segel's strained vocals and lyrics that are almost Dr. Seuss-ian in their repetitive simplicity, it comes across as more silly-sweet and kind of slight. It's not a bad song, but if this is really the best of what movies had to offer in 2011, then we need some pop stars back in the soundtrack game stat! B

"Good Girl" Carrie Underwood

"I like all kinds of music—except country." It's probably a statement you've heard many times before, as though the hearty guitars and endless sorrows of the genre are somehow a foreign species, instead of merely the twangier cousin of rock 'n' roll and R&B. On her new single, "Good Girl," Carrie Underwood blurs those lines effortlessly and fantastically, using sassy hand claps, divalicious belts and a shredding electric guitar to underscore her acerbic takedown of boys who are bad in love and the foolish girls who fall for them. Even the more traditional country chorus turns a banjo riff into a punchy hook. It's an irresistible three-and-a-half minutes power pop—perhaps the best song so far of 2012. I dare those pretentious cosmopolitan folk who fear any association with bumpkins and hillbillies to deny its powerhouse charms. A

Throwback Thursday: "Creep" TLC

For their second album, CrazySexyCool, the sassy, funny b-girls of TLC—famous for wearing their hats to the back and their pants down real low—turned up the R&B sensuality and took their success to new heights. The transformation began with lead single, "Creep," a slinky hip-hop soul jam about returning the favor to a cheating lover. The song is dripping with sex appeal, especially in the seductive ease of its jazzy horn line, which conveys everything furtive and tempting about the ladies' down-low lovin'. Singing the verses, T-Boz—who was nothing if not one of the most unique voices in '90s urban music—sounds a bit of a mess, but something about her low, full rasp also works perfectly with the track's sultry vibe. Regardless, all doubts are immediately erased once that flawless chorus kicks in; it's undoubtedly one of the highlights of TLC's vastly impressive catalog. A

17 years ago this week, "Creep" was the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100.

"So Good" B.o.B

Rapper B.o.B broke out in a major way in 2010 with a trio of excellent hip-pop hits, including mega-smash "Airplanes" and "Nothin' On You," a Record of the Year nominee at the Grammys. Unfortunately for Bobby Ray, it was the songs' ear-catching hooks that became the real stars, particularly the Hayley Williams-sung "Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars?," which will surely inspire teenage girls' Facebook statuses for years to come. Thus, when the titular lead single of his upcoming second album, Strange Clouds, dropped last fall, the urban-leaning stoner anthem—lacking a soaring chorus that demanded radio sing-alongs—failed to make much of an impact. Thankfully, B.o.B has rectified that mistake on his latest release, "So Good," an ode to luxurious living that's got the enormous sound of an arena rock anthem. The rapturous la la las of the refrain already promise to be a contender for the year's most blissed-out pop music moment. As usual, his distinctively deliberate rhymes hold just enough interest to keep listeners engaged between choruses. A-

"Birthday Cake (Remix)" Rihanna ft. Chris Brown

Last week, Rihanna set the blogsophere buzzing when she tweeted news that she was collaborating with someone "shocking" on a remix to her song "Birthday Cake." Would it be ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, everyone wondered. Conspiracy theorists said yes; sane people said it would never happen in a million years. And then the crazy did occur: When Rihanna released the "Birthday Cake" remix earlier today, it was indeed Brown—the man who savagely beat her on the eve of the 2009 Grammys during an argument over his text messages to another woman—featured alongside the pop star.

For those who remember the shock and horror they felt upon first hearing reports of the incident, seeing the pair back together creating new music is jarring. For those who tried to use the event to create a useful public discourse about domestic violence, Rihanna's return to her abuser is disappointing. And for those still waiting, over three years later, for any sign of contrition from Brown, hearing him coo lines like, "Girl, I wanna fuck you right now/Been a long time, I've been missing your body," feels like nothing short of a betrayal. It may be Rihanna's choice to forgive Brown, but to so blatantly exploit their past controversy for a little bit of attention and a hit song is just wrong. "Birthday Cake" and its 81 glorious seconds of naughty, hand-clapping fun may have been my favorite song from last November's Talk That Talk, but this remix is, quite simply, disgusting. For all that it represents, it deserves a big, fat F.

"What Makes You Beautiful" One Direction

Quickly following in the footsteps of The Wanted comes another British boy band seeking the hearts and dollars of America's tween girls. (One more and it's a full-on invasion!) One Direction was last year's second runner-up on the U.K. edition of The X-Factor and their first single, "What Makes You Beautiful"—which recently hit the top ten on iTunes—sounds straight out of the bubblegum era that spawned a sea of male vocal groups. Full of sunny guitars and puppy-dog platitudes, it's such an idyllic and innocent picture of young love that it might be too square to fly anywhere but Radio Disney. Nevertheless, it's relentless cheeriness bludgeons you into submission; any sarcastic eye-rolling will become instinctive head-bobbing by song's end. A-

Throwback Thursday: "I Knew I Loved You" Savage Garden

Back when boy bands ruled the earth, the sensitive Australian twosome of Savage Garden scored a smash with the cheesy pop ballad "I Knew I Loved You." Its soft, swoon-inducing promises of soul mates and eternal love ("I think I dreamed you into life," admits vocalist Darren Hayes) play over a pleasant acoustic guitar-and-percussion loop melody, creating an aura of heavenly splendor—or, at least, a really nice open mic night at the local coffee shop. Looking back from this age of seizure-inducing synths and defensive irony, it's almost hard to believe that such a simple, earnest song (it's even got an epic key change after the middle eight!) could hit the top of the charts. Clearly, one should never underestimate the irresistible power of a little sincerity. B

12 years ago this week, "I Knew I Loved You" was the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Starships" Nicki Minaj

How do you solve a problem like Nicki Minaj? When she burst onto the music scene two years ago, stealing every song on which she was featured with her maniacal, inspired rhymes and endless alter egos, she was hailed as the savior of female rap. Then, last summer, the much poppier "Super Bass" became her biggest, most acclaimed crossover hit and suddenly everyone was asking whether she had turned into a Lady Gaga wannabe. Even for serious fans, it's become increasingly difficult to defend Minaj from those accusations; her last guest turn, for example, was as a hook girl for David Guetta. And the transformation seemed practically complete at the Grammys Sunday night, as she was escorted down the red carpet by a man dressed as the Pope before performing an exorcism-themed set that felt eerily similar to Gaga's "Paparazzi" production from the 2009 VMAs.

Now comes "Starships," the first "official" single from Minaj's forthcoming Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded. It's a perfectly fun dance track that will fit perfectly well on pop radio playlists this spring—but it represents an utterly unnecessary move for an artist like Minaj. Produced by RedOne (who helmed Lady Gaga's first album, The Fame), this club banger about, well, living it up at the club is reminiscent of Ke$ha's "Tik Tok" gone to a rave. It's not necessarily a bad combination, but it could be a song by anyone. Does Minaj really want to be the next disposable pop princess? Has she simply been fooling us all along? Right now, it seems like she could use some inspiration to get her career back on track, and she should start by taking a page from Missy Elliott, arguably the greatest female emcee of all time. Elliott was renowned for her innovative, mind-bending catalog and visual artistry, both of which still seem ahead of their time years later. "Starships," for all its pandering to current trends, is merely B-level work, though it deserves a C- for wasted potential.

"Brokenhearted" Karmin

Seemingly in an effort to up its reputation as a hip cultural tastemaker, Saturday Night Live has booked a number of musical guests this season so green that they might not even qualify as "up-and-coming" yet. Last month featured a now-infamous fiasco from the controversial Lana Del Rey, but Saturday night saw a more low-key performance by the quirky pop group Karmin, which debuted its new single "Brokenhearted." The duo—vocalist Amy Heidemann and pianist Nick Noonan met at Berklee College of Music and are now engaged—shot to viral fame last year with a peppy cover of Chris Brown's "Look At Me Now," which garnered attention for Heidemann's deft mix of rapid-fire rhymes and skilled singing, and earned them a major label deal. Unfortunately, the move seems to have robbed Karmin of much of its originality. "Brokenhearted" sounds like a dedicated disciple of the Dr. Luke school of dance-pop: the syncopated rhythm guitar is left over from "Domino," the sing-talk vocal style is all Ke$ha, and the chorus is an anthem waiting to happen (it doesn't). There's almost a moment of genuine fun when Heideman sort of starts rapping during the middle eight, but mostly, this particular brand of deliberately constructed Top 40 drivel is getting boring. B-

"Part of Me" Katy Perry

Perhaps sensing that her cultural cachet will never be greater than it is at this moment, Katy Perry—who last summer tied Michael Jackson's record of five #1 hits from the same album—seems intent on milking her twentysomething dream for all its worth. Thus comes "Part of Me," the lead single from her unnecessary Teenage Dream rerelease The Complete Confection. Perry debuted the track during the Grammys last night, but stripped away from the pyrotechnics and distracting blue hair, it's even more underwhelming than her performance initially made it seem. "Part" is yet another Dr. Luke-Max Martin production—practically its own genre of increasingly generic and diminishing returns at this point—but it's missing the kind of euphoric spark that made prior efforts like Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" (and even Perry's own "Teenage Dream") such instant classics. The song simultaneously goes for too much and too little: The lyrical kiss-off to a no-good lover (recent ex-husband Russell Brand?) wants to be taken seriously, but feels slight over blaring synths, while the production is too oppressively grim to let the song be the fun dance anthem that might actually suit its self-empowerment intentions. Knowing Perry, it will probably still be a #1 smash. C+

In Memoriam: "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" Whitney Houston

In a shocking bit of news, Whitney Houston's publicist announced earlier today that the pop legend had died at the age of 48. Though the cause of death is still unclear, Houston's struggles with drug abuse were well documented, and mostly overshadowed her successful music and film career during the last decade of her life. But what an amazing career it was: Her album Whitney Houston was the best-selling debut of all time, and in the late 1980s, she became the only artist to ever send seven straight singles to the top of the charts. At Houston's early '90s peak, the iconic Bodyguard soundtrack went on to sell over 44 million copies worldwide and spawned the massive smash "I Will Always Love You," which spent a record-breaking 14 weeks at #1 and became her signature song. My personal favorite Whitney classic is the buoyant "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)," in which she lets her massive pipes loose on an energetic, horn-filled dance track. Instead of constrained technical showmanship, it's an infectiously free performance of pure joy—and yet she sounds as magnificent as ever. It's no wonder they called her The Voice. A

"Somebody That I Used To Know" Gotye ft. Kimbra

In this era of a crumbling music industry, major labels have abandoned innovative acts for safe investments, radio has been homogenized by corporate playlists and global superstars are trend-hopping like their lives depended on it. Fortunately, consumers looking for something different can still rely upon hipster blogs, television music supervisors and aspiring musicians on YouTube for exciting new tunes—and every once in while, they find something so undeniable that it crosses over into the mainstream.

The latest discovery is Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know," a moody New Wave ballad that sounds like a lost track from The Police. Posted on the Australian singer-songwriter's YouTube channel last summer, the strikingly artistic music video has quietly garnered over 67 million views, and the song jumped into the iTunes top ten this past week after a performance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" The simple rhythm section and haunting harmonies with New Zealand songstress Kimbra are melancholy stunners—all the more so in an age dominated by hyperkinetic dance mixes and name brand producers. (Canadian indie rock outfit Walk Off the Earth's gorgeous acoustic cover, a viral hit of its own, is also not to be missed.) Sometimes, it's these sort of out-of-left-field surprises that make being a music fan such a pleasure. A

Throwback Thursday: "Open Your Heart" Madonna

When critiquing music, it can be all too easy to get bogged down in the minutiae of composition or vocal performance or lyricism trying to find an explanation for one's reaction to a song. Then there are those tracks that hit you with a wave of such pure emotion that looking any deeper than the big picture becomes completely unnecessary. The exuberant desire of Madonna's "Open Your Heart" holds that kind of power. Despite some gloriously dated '80s production, the song's hook has an irresistible feel-good vibe that is timeless. Forget the weird, high-pitched keyboard flourishes; this one's all about joy. A

25 years ago this week, "Open Your Heart" was the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Bad Girls" M.I.A.

In the aftermath of her Super Bowl bird-flipping controversy, the news that M.I.A. was back with new music of her own got lost in the shuffle. Unfortunately, the appropriately titled "Bad Girls"—the lead single from the rapper's upcoming fourth studio album—is not the kind of game-changing masterpiece (à la "Paper Planes") that will shift popular conversation surrounding her anytime soon. But this midtempo banger, in which M.I.A. celebrates lady rebels over a seductive snake charmer beat, is brimming with enough of her signature swagga to satisfy those fans who have been eagerly awaiting the eclectic emcee's next move. B-

"It All Belongs To Me" Brandy and Monica

Yes, 1998 just called and it's back to PARTY! At least, that would have been a fair assumption following the news that Brandy and Monica were reuniting for another musical collaboration, 14 years after their #1 smash "The Boy Is Mine." The resulting song, "It All Belongs To Me," which dropped today, does sound like a bit of a throwback—at least in part because this strain of contemporary R&B has been largely absent from radio since Lady Gaga hit the scene. There's not a synth to be found—it's all piano, soft strings, drum machine and a little bit of electric guitar—a courageous decision in this day and age for any act aiming for mainstream success. But the lyrics are equally tried-and-true: Aside from a few awkward updates for this plugged-in generation ("That Macbook [...] belongs to me/So log off your Facebook"), the tale of kicking a cheating boyfriend to the curb and taking back the stuff that's yours comes straight from the Beyoncé playbook. Nevertheless, the ladies sell the sentiment with such full-throated conviction (Brandy sounds especially strong) that it's hard not to feel a warmly welcome sense of nostalgia at their return to the music scene. B

"Give Me All Your Luvin'" Madonna ft. M.I.A. and Nicki Minaj

What to make of Madonna in 2012? At 53, is there still a place for her in a pop music scene so dominated by twentysomething sex kittens (ironically, a product of her own great influence)? Does she even have the goods to compete with these new girls on the block? It's not the first time in her career that Madonna has faced these questions, but 30 years on, there are still no clear answers, as she flits across the musical landscape between genres, personas and taste levels. Her last two studio albums have presented opposing extremes of that spectrum: On 2005's Confessions on a Dancefloor, Madonna was at her techno-diva best; the Neptunes and Timbaland productions of 2008's Hard Candy, by comparison, felt like a desperate bid for youthful relevancy (look, a Kanye West feature!), though it was not without its merits.

Madonna's latest single, "Give Me All Your Luvin'," seems to be stuck somewhere in between. The surf-rock guitars and subtle '60s mod vibe are fierce and inspired, bringing something fresh to a Top 40 format now saturated with dance sounds. But the dubstep breakdown and guests verses from M.I.A. and Nicki Minaj feel obviously calculated, even when they offer their own lesser pleasures. And at times, the lyrics can feel awfully juvenile for a woman with a nearly-grown daughter of her own. Clearly, Madonna is concerned about winning over those radio listeners just born when Ray of Light came out and heard that this is what the kids are listening to these days. So is "Luvin'" the song that will put the Her Madgesty back on top? The jury's still out on that one. But she's certainly made a valiant attempt. A-

Throwback Thursday: "Irreplaceable" Beyoncé

Before she had the whole world throwing its hands up for the joys of singlehood, Beyoncé dumped that trifflin' fool in another iconic smash: the bouncy, brazen "Irreplaceable," which went on to become the biggest song of 2007. Though its midtempo acoustic groove doesn't exactly scream "club anthem," there's nothing that's impossible with a great hook, and "To the left, to the left!"—a break-up line so snappy and fierce it became a zeitgeist-y rallying cry of female empowerment—is among the best of them. Nothing about "Irreplaceable" is innovative, or even strikingly original, but any good pop star knows that personality is what counts, and in this coming-out party of sorts, Beyoncé proved that she just might be the baddest chick in that game. B+

5 years ago this week, "Irreplaceable" was the #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Princess of China" Coldplay and Rihanna

After sweeping, stadium-ready anthems like "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall" and "Paradise," Coldplay gets grittier and clubbier on "Princess of China," the fourth single from Mylo Xyloto. With its moody synths, booming bass and screeching guitar, it's a track that would sound much more at home on collaborator Rihanna's latest release, Talk That Talk—which is just as well, considering Chris Martin's vocal all but drops out from the mix after the first minute. Nevertheless, it's a combination of styles that doesn't seem to fit comfortably in either artist's wheelhouse, and the result is uninspiring. On the lackluster chorus, for example, we're deprived of the emotional climaxes normally found in Coldplay's U2-ish theatrics and Rihanna's ear-candy hooks. Only the lovely melding of voices in the song's outro truly makes itself felt. B-