For this week’s Top 10 Tuesday we are counting down the top 10 Carrie Underwood songs (so far). Choosing just 10 songs from this legend was a very task and we did the best we can.
Let’s Get To It!
10) Last Name (Carnival Ride) (Carrie Underwood, Hillary Lindsay, Luke Laird)- This upbeat track features Underwood belting about getting drunk in Vegas and the next morning being completely unsure of what happened the night before so much so that she doesn’t “even know (my) last name”. The attitude with which Underwood sings this song makes it such a fun and intriguing listen.
9) Cowboy Casanova (Play On) (Brett James, Carrie Underwood, Mike Elizondo)- Cowboy Casanova is set around a conversation between Underwood and another woman who is either interested in or is currently dating Underwood’s ex. During the upbeat track Underwood is warning the girl to run as while the on the surface he might look like a good idea Underwood knows from experience that he is not.
8) Undo It (Play On) (Kara DioGuardi, Carrie Underwood, Luke Laird, Marti Frederiksen)- Undo It is centered around Underwood in the aftermath of a relationship wishing that she could “undo it”. Underwood laments that her ex “stole (her) happy” and “made (her) cry” and she just wishes there was a delete button she could hit and return to where she was before they ever got involved. Once again Underwood’s big voice shines on this upbeat track.
7) Good Girl (Blown Away) (Ashley Gorley, Carrie Underwood, Chris DeStefano)- Much like Cowboy Casanova, Good Girl features Underwood warning another girl that know all that glitters is gold and even though the boy’s “lips are dripping honey” he’ll leave her broken hearted just like every other girl before. Once again Underwood’s huge voice shines and delivers this message expertly.
6) Wasted (Some Hearts) (Hillary Lindsey, Marv Green, Troy Verges)- The double use of the word Wasted is what makes this song so special. Wasted is used both in the context of a girl getting out of a relationship because she doesn’t want to waste her life sitting around and becoming “jaded”, and then in the second verse we turn to an alcoholic man who realizes that he is wasting his life while being “wasted” all the time. The powerful meaning of this song is conveyed beautifully by Underwood’s tender vocal and her signature high notes.
5) Blown Away(Blown Away) (Chris Tompkins, Josh Kear)-The title track off my favorite Underwood album, Blown Away features a girl from Oklahoma hoping a tornado shatter all of her haunted childhood memories. The twisted metaphor of a ‘twister’ coming to cleanse passed misdeeds is songwriting genius on the part of Tompkins and Kear. Underwood as always delivers a stellar vocal that fits this song so well.
4) All American Girl (Carnival Ride) (Ashley Gorley, Carrie Underwood, Kelley Lovelace)- All American Girl features Underwood at her storytelling best. All American Girl starts off with a husband hoping for a baby boy so that he could teach him about football and his son could take in the glory of a state championship ring, yet when the baby turns out to be a girl “all those big dreams changed”. We then flash forward 16 years when the girl is in high school and is falling for the star of the football team, reminiscent of the way her parents got together. The song comes full circle when a few years later she is pregnant as asks her husband whether he wants a boy or a girl and he ironically answers that he wants an “all American girl” someone just like her. The beautiful songwriting and evolving chorus make this one of my favorite Underwood songs.
3) See You Again (Blown Away) (Carrie Underwood, David Hodges, Hillary Lindsey)- My favorite song off my favorite Underwood album, See You Again is a song about loss and the connection we still feel to those that we’ve lost. Underwood beautifully explains that all though physically they may not be together she knows that she’ll “never be lonely” as they’ll always be with her whether she can see it or not. Underwood’s tender and big vocal once again delivers a beautiful message in a way that few others can.
2) So Small (Carnival Ride) (Carrie Underwood, Hilary Lindsey, Luke Laird)- The most underrated Underwood song, So Small is a song about the little victories in life and finding the inner strength to conquer our fears, which are often overstated as a result of our hyper anxious state. Underwood’s ability to hold the note Small at the end of each chorus is an added touch to this incredibly beautiful song.
1) Before He Cheats (Some Hearts) (Chris Tompkins, Josh Kear)- As if there was any doubt? Before He Cheats is Underwood’s signature song and for good reason. Underwood sings about being done wrong by her ex and seeking retribution throughout this fiery song and then snidely remarks at the end of each chorus “maybe next time he’ll think before he cheats”. The combination of feisty and humorous is what sets this song apart from so many other great Underwood songs.
Worlds Of Country 