Weekend Diversion: Favourite songs from 2018

My Weekend Diversion posts about music have (mostly) been about sharing music that I’ve recently run across and that has struck a chord with me. This post is about that, though somewhat different than what I usually post. This one is about songs that I heard for the first time in 2018, regardless of when they were actually released, and that I came to love.

Now, “Arthur’s Law”, and all that, I know that other people may very well totally disagree with my choices, and even that I or anyone “should” like these songs. That’s fine. The point of this list is that it’s entirely personal—they’re songs that I connected with in a personal way because they spoke to me emotionally, and I was sometimes even tearful listening to them. A song that can make me feel like that always gets my respect and usually makes my list of awesome songs.

My original plan was for this to be a “Top Five for 2018”, but after reviewing the songs I shared this year, there were few that I heard for the first time this year, and of those, only a few that spoke to me in the way I described. So, this list is my Top Five Minus One. Hey, my list, my rules.

I’m including a link to the post where I originally talked about the song, because it will provide a fuller explanation of why the song is on my list, but I also have a brief one-sentence reason, too.

1 Mitch James: "21", which I originally talked about in July:



I think this is a pretty much perfect pop song—well-crafted, well-sung, and the video is well done.

2 Passenger: “When we were young”, from April of this year:



I love this song for its sound and lyrics, but mostly because, between health stuff and my impending “Big Birthday”, I’m keenly aware of getting older.

3 Tom Walker: “Leave a light on”, from October:



I love the sound of this song, the lyrics, the message, and the video.

4 Shawn Mendes: “In My Blood”, from August:



I think this is Shawn’s best performance to date, with the spare sound of the song, Shawn’s vocal performance, and the video all combining to make this one of my favourites for this year.

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Well, that's it, my Top Five Minus One for 2018. In order to to this next year, I'll have to share more songs so I have more to choose from. Such a burden.