My Favorite Songs Of 2025

  1. Messy – Lola Young
  2. DENIAL IS A RIVER – Doechii
  3. Love Me Not – Ravyn Lenae
  4. Everyday – Celeste
  5. Young – Little Simz
  6. catch these fists – Wet Leg
  7. Pussy Palace – Lily Allen
  8. luther – Kendrick Lamar with SZA
  9. Tears – Sabrina Carpenter
  10. Pretrail (Let Her Go Home) – Fiona Apple
  11. Spike Island – Pulp
  12. squabble up – Kendrick Lamar
  13. Ring Ring Ring – Tyler, the Creator
  14. Eatin’ Big Time – Tyler Childers
  15. Anxiety – Doechii
  16. Lover Girl – Laufey
  17. Tough Luck – Laufey
  18. Chains & Whips – Clipse featuring Kendrick Lamar
  19. APT. – ROSÉ and Bruno Mars
  20. Bitin’ List – Tyler Childers
  21. Flood – Little Simz featuring Obongjayar and Moonchild Sanelly
  22. Don’t Leave Too Soon – Little Simz
  23. Fuck Me Eyes – Ethel Cain
  24. BMF – SZA
  25. Orlando in Love – Japanese Breakfast
  26. Sugar On My Tongue – Tyler, the Creator
  27. Sports car – Tate McRae
  28. Incomprehensible – Big Thief
  29. Free – Little Simz
  30. Rein Me In – Sam Fender with Olivia Dean
  31. mangetout – Wet Leg
  32. peekaboo – Kendrick Lamar feat. AZ Chike
  33. Everybody Scream – Florence + The Machine
  34. Catching feelings – Cerrone, Christine and the Queens
  35. Madeline – Lily Allen
  36. tv off – Kendrick Lamar
  37. Mr. Eclectic – Laufey
  38. Still Bad – Lizzo
  39. Bonnet of Pins – Matt Berninger
  40. The Subway – Chappell Roan
  41. What Is The Reason For it? – David Byrne with Ghost Town Orchestra and Hayley Williams
  42. PIRATE RADIO – Genesis Owusu
  43. Love in Real Life – Lizzo
  44. End of the World – Miley Cyrus
  45. Picture Window – Japanese Breakfast
  46. Only One Laughing – Hatchie
  47. Clean Heart – Perfume Genius
  48. Headphones On – Addison Rae
  49. i used to live in england – supermodel*
  50. Everybody Laughs – David Byrne with Ghost Train Orchestra
  51. Relationships – HAIM
  52. CPR – Wet Leg
  53. Mother, Pray For Me – The Beths
  54. What Was That – Lorde
  55. Man Of The Year – Lorde
  56. A BUG’S LIFE – Sudan Archives
  57. Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World – Destroyer
  58. Devotion – Hot Chip
  59. All Night All Day – Big Thief
  60. Illegal – Pink Pantheress
  61. Human Mind – Mavis Staples
  62. 30 For 30 – SZA with Kendrick Lamar
  63. Which One – Drake & Central Cee
  64. Wreck – Neko Case
  65. Rusty Mountain – Neko Case
  66. Drift Away – Orville Peck
  67. Manchild – Sabrina Carpenter
  68. All Over Me – HAIM
  69. Hello, Hi – Little Simz
  70. All I Can Say – Kali Uchis
  71. Pale Song – Dove Ellis
  72. Apple – Charli xcx
  73. Drive – SZA
  74. Suzanne – Mark Ronson & RAYE
  75. Run Free – Soulwax
  76. Hit My Head All Day – Dry Cleaning
  77. Sunshine & Rain… – Kali Uchis
  78. wacced out murals – Kendrick Lamar
  79. Best Guess – Lucy Dacus
  80. Stay In Your Lane – Courtney Barnett
  81. Bigger in Texas – Megan Thee Stallion
  82. HOTBOX – Lil Nas X
  83. Dream Night – Jamie xx
  84. Letter From An Unknown Girlfriend – The Waterboys feat. Fiona Apple
  85. Snow White – Laufey
  86. So Easy (To Fall In Love) – Olivia Dean
  87. Time Will Tell – Celeste
  88. When Did You Get Hot? – Sabrina Carpenter
  89. Archbishop Harold Holmes – Jack White
  90. Tie You Down – HAIM and Bon Iver
  91. Neverwannago – Shamir
  92. Childlike Things – FKA twigs with North West
  93. Perfect Stranger – FKA twigs
  94. Man I Need – Olivia Dean
  95. Oscar Winning Tears – RAYE
  96. Nice Shoes – Steve Lacy

Follow Tunes Du Jour on Facebook

Follow me on Bluesky

Follow me on Instagram

Tunes Du Jour Celebrates Bastille Day

Happy Bastille Day!

On this date in 1789, the French people stormed the Bastille Prison in Paris to shout “No More Kings!” They probably shouted that in French. I can’t say for sure as I wasn’t there that day. Anyhoo, it worked! How’ bout that? This uprising ultimately led to the birth of democracy in France.

To celebrate, I compiled a Bastille Day playlist. I’ll be the first to tell you that there are far more accurate Bastille Day playlists out there. I’m using the holiday as an excuse to compile tracks from French artists, songs sung in French, songs with French titles, and one song by Chicago-born 60s song parodist Allan Sherman. I learned more from that three-minute record, baby, than I ever learned in school about the French Revolution.

Follow Tunes Du Jour on Facebook

Follow me on Bluesky

Follow me on Instagram

Tunes Du Jour Presents 2025 Thus Far

Call me old-fashioned, but I operate on a twelve-month calendar. That might be a controversial take, considering that outlets like Rolling Stone dropped their “Best of the Year So Far” lists back in June, apparently under the impression that 2025 is only ten months long. I thought I’d wait for half of the year to pass before I declare that half of the year has passed. For those of us who believe in a twelve-month cycle—not a ten-month one—here are 30 songs that have made my year in music great so far.

Follow Tunes Du Jour on Facebook

Follow me on Bluesky

Follow me on Instagram

Your (Almost) Daily Playlist: 10-8-24

“The idea (for ‘Celebration’) originated while I was reading the Quran. I came across a passage describing God creating Adam, and the angels were rejoicing and singing praises. That led me to compose the basic chords and the line, ‘Everyone around the world, come on, let’s celebrate.’”

– Ronald Bell (a/k/a Khalis Bayyan) of Kool & the Gang

Robert “Kool” Bell (a/k/a Muhammad Bayyan), the only surviving original member of Kool & the Gang, was born on this date in 1950. Let’s celebrate!

Follow Tunes Du Jour on Facebook

Follow Tunes Du Jour on Twitter

Follow me on Instagram

Your (Almost) Daily Playlist: 11-19-23

Inspired by an unhoused woman who would sing gospel songs in front of a Washington, DC hotel, the familiar refrain of “la da dee la da da” in Crystal Waters’ “Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless)” was meant as a temporary placeholder until the real lyrics were written. Here’s to writers block!                                                                                                                                                                           Crystal Waters was born on this date in 1961. A couple of her tracks are included on today’s playlist.

Follow Tunes du Jour on Facebook

Follow Tunes du Jour on Twitter

Follow me on Instagram

Your (Almost) Daily Playlist: 7-15-23

Norma Jean Wright, who sang lead vocals on Chic’s first smash single “Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah),” was born on this date in 1956 in Ripley, Tennessee, which is not far from the town of Nutbush, from where Tina Turner hails. Wright’s dad attended the same church as Tina. Besides her work with Chic, most notably on the aforementioned single and its follow-up, “Everybody Dance,” Wright has released solo records and sang backup on albums by Aretha Franklin, Madonna, Luther Vandross (who sings backup on “Dance, Dance, Dance”) and Sister Sledge.

Tunes du Jour celebrates the birthday of Norma Jean Wright with a playlist that includes her two biggest hits with Chic.

Follow Tunes du Jour on Facebook

Follow Tunes du Jour on Twitter

Follow me on Instagram

Ringo + Umberto

It’s Umberto Tozzi’s Birthday And I Need To Dance!

Who is Umberto Tozzi? Is that what you just asked?

Born in Italy in 1952, Umberto Tozzi is a singer-songwriter who has sold over 70 million records throughout the world. In 1979 he released a single of his composition “Gloria,” which became a big hit in his home country, remaining in the top ten for 16 weeks, six of those at #2. The song also went top ten in Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, South Africa and Spain.

Ringo + Umberto
In 1982, singer Laura Branigan collaborated with Trevor Veitch on English-language lyrics set to the original’s melody. Her recording of “Gloria,” co-produced by Greg Mathieson, arranger and keyboardist on the Tozzi version, reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Friday is dance day at Tunes du Jour. Our weekly party kicks off with the track for which Umberto Tozzi is best-known in the United States.


Click here to like Tunes du Jour on Facebook!
Follow me on Twitter: @TunesDuJour

Winston + Ini

It’s Ini Kamoze’s Birthday And I Need To Dance!

I’m reading NLP: The Essential Guide to Neuro-Linguistic Programming, subtitled Creating the Person You Want to Be, by Tom Hoobyar and Tom Dotz with Susan Sanders. The book teaches one how to think, as opposed to what to think.

Of the many exercises in the book is one the authors call “Creating a Well-Formed Outcome.” You list things you want and answer six questions related to each want. Within those six questions is an exploration of “meta-outcomes.” To explore the meta-outcomes, one must keep asking what will happen if I achieve this goal.

For example, one of my goals is to have a leaner physique. Using this exercise, I say “When I am leaner, I’m more confident. When I am more confident, more guys will be attracted to me. If more guys are attracted to me, I’ll date more often. If I date more often, I’ll end up with a boyfriend. If I have a boyfriend, I’ll have someone with whom to watch movies, dance, and share other activities I enjoy. If I do more activities I enjoy, I’ll be “in the flow” more often. If I am in the flow more often, my happiness will increase.

Another goal I have is to work with more clients. If I work with more clients, I’ll make more money. If I have more money, I can partake more often in the activities I enjoy. If I partake more often in the activities I enjoy, I’ll be in the flow more often. If I am in the flow more often, my happiness will increase.

Now you try it. What is a goal you have? Keep asking yourself what will happen if you achieve each part. If you don’t end with me being happier, you’re doing it wrong. Start over!

Winston + Ini
Something that makes me happy is dancing. Friday is dance day at Tunes du Jour. Today happens to be the birthday of John Lennon. As he never hit the Billboard dance charts, we’ll kick off this week’s party with someone else whose birthday is today, Ini Kamoze. More accurately, today is the 58th birthday of Cecil Campbell, who later changed his name to Ini Kamoze. Here are twenty songs you can hotstep to.


Click here to like Tunes du Jour on Facebook!
Follow me on Twitter: @TunesDuJour

dogs + Chas 008

It’s Friday And I Need To Dance!

dogs + Chas 008

The number one song on Billboard’s dance chart on this day in 1982 was “Glad to Know You,” performed by Chas Jankel, a member of Ian Dury’s Blockheads. The Jankel record, which was listed alongside two other cuts from Jankel’s Questionnaire album – “3,000,000 Synths” and “Ai No Corrida” – remained at #1 on this chart for seven weeks, becoming the biggest club hit of the year, though it didn’t cross over onto the pop charts. (Quincy Jones had a big hit with his version of “Ai No Corrida,” a Jankel composition, the previous year.)

With Ian Dury, Jankel co-wrote the post-punk classics “Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll,” “Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick” and “Reasons to be Cheerful, Part 3,” all originally recorded by Ian Dury & the Blockheads.

Jankel’s sister Annabel is the co-creator of the character Max Headroom.

Today’s dance playlist kicks off with “Glad to Know You.” Why not comment? I would be glad to know you enjoyed this. 