1. “You Belong With Me”She wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts, Taylor wrote an absolute banger, and we want to see this in concert. This song is absolutely iconic, from the music video, to sing-along lyrics, to the controversy it caused with Kanye, to so much more. It encapsulates everything that we love about Taylor Swift, and really does belong with us on the top of this list.2. “Love Story”As a modern day Shakespeare, it was only a matter of time before Taylor created her version of Romeo and Juliet. The strings, background vocals and layered guitars create an incredible backdrop for a great melody and lyrics that are meant to be shouted. “Love Story” is one of the tracks that make “Fearless” truly fearless, and Taylor’s discography uniquely hers. It’s a classic love story, so how could we not say yes?3. “New Romantics”In an incredible tribute to the ‘80s, Taylor enraptures us with one of the most underrated songs in her catalog. “New Romantics” shows Taylor celebrating the joys of youth and those things that make life so good, wrapped in another incredible hook. Maybe the best things in life really are free, or at least however much it costs to stream this song. 4. “The Way I Loved You”We’re not exactly sure which one of the two authors Taylor whists for in this song, but we do know that it is one of the greatest songs in her catalog. An incredibly memorable hook details the conflict Taylor has between her current “perfect” boyfriend and her former problematic love interest, who she is still interested in. The song truly is a roller coaster kinda rush, and one that easily makes the top half of our list.5. “Mine”Hidden behind another memorable hook is one of Taylor’s deepest and most powerful songs. Written for “Speak Now,” “Mine” describes the trials and tribulations of a young couple trying to make their own way in an unforgiving world. While “Speak Now” may have some shallower songs, “Mine” clearly demonstrated that Taylor was a serious songwriter and a musical force to be reckoned with.6. “Tell Me Why”Perhaps Taylor’s greatest country song, “Tell Me Why” comes off of “Fearless.” The opening violin melody immediately captures the listener, and it contains an impeccable hook that makes Taylor’s music so accessible. Tell me why you love Taylor’s music, and I can show you something to love in this song.7. “All Too Well”For those of you who like Taylor for her sad songs, there is perhaps no greater sad Taylor song than “All Too Well.” Taylor wrote this about Jake Gyllenhaal, and it details how she appreciates the memories of her former relationship, while not necessarily wanting to do it over again. Some of you bigger Taylor fans may know that feeling all too well. 8. “Story of Us”Written after being seated next to ex-boyfriend John Mayer at the 2010 CMT Awards, “The Story of Us” is one of the most fun tracks off of “Speak Now.” There is definitely a pop-punk feel to some of these songs off of the album, which we love to see. And regarding the lack of love and mentions for Speak Now on many of the other top Taylor Swift songs lists, we’ve never heard silence quite this loud (kind of a bad line). 9. “Shake it Off”Returning to the lead single off “1989,” we find ourselves with the hot girl anthem of 2014. After being known for longing love songs and tragedy at the 2009 VMAs, it was great to see Taylor have some fun and shake it for the fella with the hella good hair. Taylor shook off the haters and embraced who she really is. Speaking of Taylor’s true personality, she hand-selected 100 fans for the end of this music video, showing how she truly cares for her fans. 10. “Wildest Dreams”We start this track with the sound of Taylor’s heartbeat as the baseline, but we get fully immersed by the captivating synthesizer and string combination. We also fully appreciate the Lana del Rey influence on this song, which demonstrated how Taylor was expanding her musical influences in the “1989” era. Taylor impresses us here by displaying serious range on her vocals, and some of the more suggestive lyrics can’t help but remind us of Carroll Hall’s own Paul Skorcz (pskorcz@nd.edu). We may not ever be able to meet Taylor, but she’ll always be in our wildest dreams. If anyone has any qualms with the rankings, please contact Matt Carranza at mcarran2@nd.edu and he will explain why your opinion is wrong.
Matthew Carranza
senior
Brian Conlon
senior
Nov. 11
