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5. Scott McKenzie: “San Francisco (Be Positive to Put on Some Flowers in Your Hair)”
Written by the Mamas & the Papas’ John Phillips to drum up pleasure for the 1967 Monterey Worldwide Pop Competition, this tune by the people musician Scott McKenzie shortly grew to become an era-defining anthem — though the Coachella era appears to have heeded its sartorial recommendation, too.
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6. Hurray for the Riff Raff: “Rhododendron”
Alynda Segarra shouts out some imaginatively named flora — “rhododendron, night-blooming jasmine, lethal nightshade” — on this rollicking monitor from their 2022 LP “Life on Earth.” (If you happen to’re into this tune and new to Segarra’s venture Hurray for the Riff Raff, I put collectively a whole playlist of their honor earlier this yr.)
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7. Radiohead: “Lotus Flower”
Sure, that is the Radiohead tune with that video of Thom Yorke dancing. And don’t get me improper: Dancing Thom Yorke perpetually. However I believe that extremely meme-able video makes individuals neglect what tune that is — stealthy, hypnotic and clearly a spotlight of the band’s 2011 album, “The King of Limbs.”
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8. Billie Eilish: “Wildflower”
An ex haunts a present relationship on one of the vital subdued, and wrenching, tracks from Billie Eilish’s new album “Hit Me Exhausting and Gentle.” “I see her behind my thoughts on a regular basis,” Eilish sings, buying and selling in her signature, understated cool for a extra impassioned supply. “Seems like a fever, like I’m burning alive.”
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9. Jamila Woods that includes duendita: “Tiny Backyard”
I believe I’ve really useful this tune earlier than, however so be it — it all the time places a smile on my face. On this single from her 2023 album “Water Made Us,” the musician and poet Jamila Woods likens dwelling and loving to the continual work of tending to a small backyard. Her power is so vivid that the tune itself seems like nourishing sunshine.
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10. Outkast: “Roses”
And at last, we’ve one of many extra pessimistic pop songs ever to be named after a flower. Most love songs take with no consideration that roses scent candy, however in Stankonia they scent like … properly, .
