Top 10 and Top 30 Taylor Swift Songs

This was hard because Taylor has written so many great songs at this point! I'd say my Top 10 are pretty solidly my favorites of all time, but the last 20 could change around a lot depending on the day and my mood.

Top Taylor Swift Songs

1. All Too Well (Original and 10 Minute Version)
2. Daylight
3. I Know Places
4. Suburban Legends
5. State of Grace

6. Would've, Could've, Should've

7. Blank Space (this was my previous #1)

8. Come Back, Be Here

9. Is It Over Now?

10. Last Kiss

11. You're Losing Me

12. Death By a Thousand Cuts

13. Exile

14. The 1

15. Getaway Car

16. Superman

17. So Long, London

18. Hits Different

19. Ready For It?

20. Fearless (previously a top 10 song)

21. Mr. Perfectly Fine

22. Wildest Dreams (previously a top 10 song)

23. The Prophecy

24. Ivy

25. Cardigan

26. Our Song

27. All You Had To Do Was Stay (previously a top 10 song)

28. King of My Heart

29. My Tears Ricochet

30. Now That We Don't Talk

Top Albums
1. 1989

2. Red

3. Folklore

4. Lover

5. Reputation

Taylor Swift: Best Songs From Each Album

It was a rainy dreary Saturday yesterday, and I ended up listening to a lot of Taylor Swift songs. I was inspired to list my favorites, but she has SO many songs now, it gets difficult to even remember them all. I decided to go album by album and remember my favorites from each era.

It was fun going back and listening to some old favorites to see what songs I still love! Some are so nostalgic for me, and others weren't instant favorites, but grew on me over time. I'm listing only the songs that I think are 10/10, or the best on each album. Honorable mentions are close, maybe 9/10.

Taylor Swift- Debut

1. Our Song - The first song that made me fall in love with Taylor! I love the innocence and optimism of young love and making your own special moments your soundtrack.

2. Should've Said No - One of her first break-up songs. Catchy.

3. I'm Only Me When I'm With You - This could be about a romantic relationship, but it always makes me think of friendships - the people that you can be yourself around. 

Honorable Mention: Tim McGraw - so bittersweet.

Fearless

1. Fearless - My favorite song from Fearless. I love the idea of love making you brave. I think this song gets overlooked because "Love Story" and "You Belong With Me" were such big hits. Those two songs are hard to even rate because I got tired of them quickly with how much they were overplayed.

I do like Tell Me Why and The Way I Loved You, but feel like they sound similar to each other and also to "Forever and Always". Going back to the Fearless album, I don't like as many songs as I thought. She's just written so many better songs since then.

Fearless - Taylor's Version - Vault Tracks

1. Mr. Perfectly Fine - I was obsessed with this when she released it as a Vault track. It took me back to the early Taylor days.

Honorable Mention:  You All Over Me - Love this one too.

Speak Now

1. Last Kiss - This is so beautifully tragic. She recalls all the last moments with someone, back before she knew they were the last. It's foreshadowing "All Too Well".

2. Superman - Love the line "I loved you from the very first day".

Honorable Mention: Long Live, Mine, Story of Us - it's funny because I loved Speak Now when it came out, but now the only song that's still a top song for me is Last Kiss.

Red

1. All Too Well - A masterpiece. From the "autumn leaves falling down like pieces into place" to "you call me up again just to break me like a promise" to "time won't fly, it's like I'm paralyzed by it", the lyrics are top notch. Some of her best work.

2. State of Grace - This one wasn't one of my initial favorites, but it grew on me and now I love it. So many good lines like "I've loved in shades of wrong" and "mosaic broken hearts".

3. Come Back, Be Here - I was obsessed with this song and it was in my head throughout my first marathon, so it has a special place for me.

Honorable Mention: Everything Has Changed - love this song about the hopeful beginning stages of new love.

Red - Taylor's Version - Vault Tracks

1. All Too Well (10 Minute Version) - I thought the original couldn't be improved upon, but I was wrong. Lines like "you kept me like a secret, but I kept you like an oath" just added more layers to this already incredible song.

2. Better Man - Love this one. It's about reflecting on the end of a relationship and wondering if it could've worked had a few things been different, but knowing there were good reasons it had to end.

Honorable Mention: Message in a Bottle, The Very First Night - good catchy fun

1989

1. I Know Places - One of my favorite Taylor Swift songs. I think this one is underrated only because there are so many bangers on 1989.

2. Blank Space - Iconic. Taylor's satirical take on how the media portrays her romantic relationships is genius. So many great lyrics, and the music video is incredible too.

3. All You Had To Do Was Stay - I was obsessed with this in the 1989 era, and although I don't love it as much as I once did, I still have to rank it as one of my faves.

4. Wildest Dreams - Love this one, it's kind of ethereal.

Honorable Mention: Style, New Romantics - there are too many good songs on 1989!

1989 - Taylor's Version - Vault Tracks

1. Suburban Legends - I don't know why I love this one so much, but I do.

2. Is It Over Now? - This one really embodies 1989, down to the bird sounds in the background.

Honorable Mention: Now That We Don't Talk - I really like all of the 1989 vault tracks!

Reputation

1. Getaway Car - This one's upbeat and fun, very catchy.

2. ...Ready For It? - One of her best track one songs, love the way she says I-I-I see...

3. King of My Heart - sweet song about the kind of love where someone appreciates you for you, not "fancy stuff".

Honorable Mention: Delicate, Don't Blame Me

Lover

1. Daylight - This is one of my all time favorites! Since it's the last track, it took me a little time to discover how much I love this song. Love the bridge.

2. Death By a Thousand Cuts - Such great analogies and I love the bridge!

3. Cruel Summer - Should have been a single when this album came out!

Honorable Mention: London Boy, Paper Rings - These songs get hated on, but I like them. These were some of my initial favorites until the others eclipsed them. They're such fun songs about being in love and enjoying simple things with your partner.

Folklore

1. Exile - Hauntingly beautiful. Her best duet, I would say.

2. The 1 - This song was so perfect for the Covid era - lines like, "It's another day waking up alone" hit so hard in 2020.

3. Cardigan - I think this song sets the tone for the entire Folklore album.

4. My Tears Ricochet - The title itself is perfect, a throwback to "Teardrops on My Guitar". It's about the pain of betrayal from someone you knew and trusted.

Evermore

1. Ivy - My favorite song on Evermore. I was a little crushed when I realized it likely referred to an affair. I love the line, "My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand".

Honorable Mention: Marjorie, Tolerate It (such a heartbreaking song), Evermore

Midnights

1. Hits Different - This bonus song is better than the rest of the album!

Honorable Mention: Karma, Midnight Rain, Maroon

Midnights - 3am

1. Would've, Could've, Should've - This is a Top 10 song for me! Why it only got added to the album later is a mystery, because it's better than every single song on the original track list.

2. You're Losing Me - Another masterpiece. This one is so tragic, because it's about how a relationship that's not working is slowly killing you, long before it's officially over.

Honorable Mention: High Infidelity, Bigger Than The Whole Sky

The Tortured Poets Department

1. So Long, London - This song goes along with "You're Losing Me". It's about trying to save a relationship that's slowly dying, and finally letting go. The bridge is gut wrenching!

2. Down Bad - This song grew on me. I love how she sings, "For a moment I knew cosmic love"

Honorable Mention: My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys

TTPD- The Anthology

1. The Prophecy - Another heart wrenching song. Taylor wonders when it's her turn to find a forever love and is begging to change her fate of doomed relationships.

2. So High School - This one's just catchy and fun.

Honorable Mention: The Bolter

The Life of a Showgirl

1. Elizabeth Taylor

2. The Fate of Ophelia - Taylor has a habit of trying to re-write tragic love stories. Here she imagines she's saved from a death of grief and heartbreak by finding new love just in time.

Honorable Mention: Ruin the Friendship

The Life of a Showgirl - The Encore

1. Babylon - So far my favorite of the Encore tracks. It's about learning to appreciate the moment you're in before it's gone.

Honorable Mention: Pink Clouding

Wonderland Day 1

I wanted to start my hike early at 7am since I was originally supposed to hike 16 miles the first day, but I didn't realize that the ranger station didn't open until 7:30! Robin and I went inside the National Park Inn to stay warm, then went back to the ranger station at 7:30 to pick up my camping permits. The rangers took 30 minutes to explain where water sources, rockslides, and detours were and asked a bunch of questions regarding my bailout plan, water filtration method, etc. They suggested I book South Puyallup instead of Klapatche Park, making it a 12 mile first day instead of 16. I agreed since I'd already lost an hour. (Although I've heard Klapatche is awesome!)

A few miles into the hike, there were some sketchy water crossings at Klautz Creek. Luckily there were two guys hiking behind me who happened to catch up to me at the last water crossing and helped me across a fallen log. It was a godsend! I didn't see many other hikers the whole day. I passed a group of three girls, then two couples hiking the opposite direction but that's it!

I stopped at lunch at mile 6 by a little pond and a duck came by and put on a show for me! He was swimming around and cleaning himself.

A mile or so after lunch I came to the Tahoma Creek suspension bridge. It was a bit scary and wobbly and some wooden planks were missing!

The Indian Henry cabin had a nice view of Mt Rainer. When I was trying to get some pics, I dropped my phone straight into a little creek about a foot deep. Luckily I was able to fish it out and dry it off pretty quickly but there was water in the charger port for a while.

Miles 7-10 felt the hardest. Lots of uphill climbing and not much scenery. Then after mile 10 I came to an alpine meadow where I heard and saw whistling marmots! They were so cute!

Mile 11-12 was downhill to South Puyallup campsite. I got the group campsite overlooking the river! There was a huge stump that I sat on to cook my dinner. I had to hike an extra half mile round trip to fetch water to filter for dinner. The pit toilet was also a bit of a hike! I have to admit it was nice to have extra time to set up camp tonight since I only had to hike 12 miles! I used bear poles for the first time too.

Day 1: 12.5 miles. Camped at South Puyallup

8am to 4pm

Total time 8 hours

6:30 hiking time

Highlight: whistling marmots; view near Indian Henrys patrol cabin

Low: Dropped my phone in a creek

Midnights is a Sleeper

I've been a Taylor Swift fan since her debut album. I've bought every single album since Speak Now on the day it was released, even when I had to drive over an hour to Target for RED (had to get the deluxe edition of course!) or when my first stop in Maui was at Target so I could pick up Reputation. I have favorite eras obviously (hello Red and 1989), but there are lots of songs I like on every single album. Except possibly this one. Midnights is just... not good.

The three opening songs are average. Not amazing, but they're the ones that might grow on me later. Unfortunately it gets worse from there. I read a review that called Midnights "electro-pop melancholia" and it's a fitting description. It's slow and kind of depressing.

Anti-Hero, the lead single, is good and bad. I can sympathize with the struggle she faces of trying to come to terms with her fame while still trying to be a "normal" person. Lines like "Sometimes I feel like everybody is a sexy baby, and I'm a monster on the hill" kill me, because while I understand the concept she's trying to convey, I hate the way she phrases it. I get it- there are so many celebrities who are shiny and new, and sexier than Taylor ever was. Taylor is not only older and  literally much taller than most of these pretty young things, but she's been around a while. Is she still relevant? How can she compete with all that?

"I'm the problem, it's me," is both an admission that her own insecurities are to blame, and a sarcastic wink at the media narrative, which portrayed Taylor as a crazy psycho who couldn't hold on to a man. When people get the "tea" at tea time, everyone agrees - she's the problem. It must be exhausting always waiting for an anti-hero to take our heroine down.

"Did you hear my covert narcissism I disguise as altruism" refers to times she actually got criticized for surprising fans with gifts. Although Taylor was incredibly generous (and the fans LOVED it) the media said it was merely a publicity stunt.

Taylor is most relatable in the line, "I wake up screaming from dreaming one day I'll watch as you're leaving and life will lose all its meaning". No matter how big she gets, she still has the same basic fear all of us have - losing someone we love.

When she says "everybody agrees-s-s, dragging out the "s", she sounds exhausted by it all. As she later admits on Sweet Nothing, maybe she is "too soft for all of it" - the constant criticism, unfair media narrative, and speculation on every aspect of her life. She wants to write about specifics because that's how she connects to her art and her fans, but she also lives under a microscope. It would be one thing if that microscope revealed her authentic vulnerable self, but the media lens always distorts the truth.

Snow on the Beach is annoying because it could've been better. I hate the way she describes snow on the beach as "weird but f*ckin beautiful". I can think of so many better ways to describe it. How about " unusual but magical". Then there's the fact that Lana Del Rey is on the track but barely sings!

The jury's still out on You're on Your Own, Kid.

I hate Question... ? with all the endless questions.

Ok Vigilante Shit - "Draw the cat eyes sharp enough to kill a man" ? Hard eye roll. I do like "while he was doing lines and crossing all of mine" but that isn't enough to redeem the rest of the sing.

Bejeweled is like a worse version of Mirrorball. Another hard eye roll at "don't put me in the basement when I want the penthouse of your heart", although I do like the lyric "I did all the extra credit then got graded on a curve".

I can't remember a single lyric in Labyrinth, so I guess it's pretty forgettable.

I do like Karma because it's the only bop on the album, and it's fun, but I anticipate getting tired of it quickly. However I still think it's funny and it reminds me of This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things.

I like the sentiment of Sweet Nothing, but can't get past the cheesy sing-song nursery style rhymes.

Mastermind is annoying because it re-writes the heart-warming story of fate in Invisible String to a tale of conniving and scheming. Taylor takes a little too much credit here.

Favorites:

Maroon - She reminisces on that love that was "Red", but now it's all different shades -  burgundy wine, scarlet cheeks, rust that grew between telephones, and lips she used to call home.

Midnight Rain - It's hard when a relationship ends because the timing's not right. Sometimes you're moving towards your own goals in life and just end up going in a different direction from someone else's path, and you wonder what could've been. You can never make a choice without giving up something else.

Karma - at least it's upbeat and fun

Hits Different - the bonus track is better than most of the songs on the album.

Overall, it's a weird mash-up of Reputation and Folklore, but not as good as either. I feel like she tries to be too clever with the lyrics, and the music is too over-produced. It seems like Taylor and Jack Antonoff went too deep into their own rabbit hole and no one else was around to rein them in to say, "this is actually not good music anymore". We still remember All Too Well and Blank Space, so we know what she can do. Midnights just ain't it.

Better Off

Before I met you,
I was doing just fine

I was out having fun

My decisions were mine

I was having adventures

All my pictures are proof

Who cares if I had

Anxiety through the roof

You promised me purpose

You promised me peace

So I turned from my sin

And I tried to believe

I thought, "Things will be good now"

My motives are pure

Then came the loneliest season

I've had to endure

God, what are you doing?

Why are things getting worse?

I thought following you

Was a blessing, not curse!

The past way was easy

I was better off then!

Why is your way harder

Why don't I have friends?

God said, "You can trust me

I know this is tough

But what I offer you

Is more than enough"

There's eternity waiting

A new life ahead

Are you better off living

Or better off dead?

Live Fearlessly

For Josh, written at Joshua Tree national park

Verse 1:

You should be here, you'd light up the room
You'd be on the dance floor with your crazy moves

We'd talk about our past adventures and you'd make your niece laugh loud

As she's throwing flowers down the aisle, you'd be standing up there proud

When your little sister says, "I do"

Here and now we remember you

Chorus:

We'll never forget: you had the biggest grin

No matter the stakes, you were all in

You were diving in, you were flying high

You were racing past on a motorcycle ride

But you'd always stop to lend a hand

Cause that's the kind of friend we had

A fearless life, an intense love

That's the man we're so proud of

Verse 2:

You'd talk a lot, and knew some things

But what we remember most was the way you lived:

Love intensely, don't hold back

Offer forgiveness when you can

Dream big, and work hard

That's the only way to make it far

Live fearlessly and take some risks

From you, we remember this

Chorus

Bridge:

You know the craziest pl-a-a-a-ans make the best stories

And without some pa-a-a-a-ain, there's no glory (there's no glory)

Love intensely, don't hold back

Offer forgiveness when you can

Live fearlessly and take some risks

From you, we remember this

December 28, 1991 - June 21, 2019

Bulletproof

I need to be alive, to feel
The threat of danger at my heel
To hurtle towards a worthwhile cause
The task's the goal, not the applause

At every summit there will be

A new horizon calling me

I never stop, I must confess

My energy is limitless

I'm bulletproof, I'll have you know

So far I've knocked down every foe

Who couldn't keep a steady pace

I'll die before I'll quit the race!

Then I met you, we were a team

You made me hope, you made me dream

Of joint adventure, races run

Together, we'd have much more fun

We'd conquer all the darkest nights

Then you decided not to fight

For me, and I learned this hard truth:

I've never been that bulletproof