Bob Boilen's Top 40 Songs Of 2016

By Bob Boilen
Published December 26, 2016 at 11:05 AM EST
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Fantastic Negrito, Angel Olsen and Iggy Pop made some of Bob Boilen's favorite songs of the year.

I could call this list "The Songs I Love To Drive Around With." More often than not, these 2016 songs set you up for a brilliant climax, often an unforgettable chorus. And I found a wide variety of artists that made songs with that memorable character, artists ranging from barely 20 years old to a reflective 82, from Niger to Nashville, from British hip-hop to yearning falsetto. I'd be thrilled to turn on a radio and hear this broad world of sound represent the Top 40.

Bob Boilen's Top 40 Songs Of 2016

  • The 1975, "I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it"

  • Aurora, "Conqueror"

  • Jaye Bartell, "Tuesdays"

  • Big Thief, "Masterpiece"

  • Bombino, "Timtar (Memories)"

  • Bon Iver, "22 (OVER S∞∞N)"

  • David Bowie, "Blackstar"

  • Charles Bradley, "Changes"

  • Car Seat Headrest, "The Ballad of the Costa Concordia"

  • Leonard Cohen, "You want it darker"

  • Lucy Dacus, "I Don't Wanna Be Funny Anymore"

  • Fantastic Negrito, "In the Pines (Oakland)"

  • Free Cake For Every Creature, "First Summer in a City"

  • Angelica Garcia, "Orange Flower"

  • Margaret Glaspy, "You and I"

  • Heron Oblivion, "Beneath Fields"

  • Iggy Pop, "Gardenia"

  • Japanese Breakfast, "In Heaven"

  • King Creosote, "You Just Want"

  • Cate Le Bon, "What's Not Mine"

  • Let's Eat Grandma, "Rapunzel"

  • Mitski, "Your Best American Girl"

  • Kevin Morby, "Singing Saw"

  • Mothers, "Too Small For Eyes"

  • Agnes Obel, "Stretch Your Eyes"

  • Conor Oberst, "Tachycardia"

  • Frank Ocean, "Pink +White"

  • Angel Olsen, "Never Be Mine"

  • Parquet Courts, "Dust"

  • Radiohead, "Burn The Witch"

  • River Whyless, "Baby Brother"

  • L.A. Salami, "The City Nowadays"

  • Sturgill Simpson, "Welcome To Earth (Pollywog)"

  • Adam Torres, "Juniper Arms"

  • Adia Victoria, "And Then You Die"

  • Weaves, "Tick"

  • Weyes Blood, "Used To Be"

  • John Paul White, "Black Leaf"

  • Wilco, "Normal American Kids"

  • The Wild Reeds, "Everything Looks Better (In Hindsight)"

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    Bob Boilen
    In 1988, a determined Bob Boilen started showing up on NPR's doorstep every day, looking for a way to contribute his skills in music and broadcasting to the network. His persistence paid off, and within a few weeks he was hired, on a temporary basis, to work for All Things Considered. Less than a year later, Boilen was directing the show and continued to do so for the next 18 years.
    See stories by Bob Boilen