This is the second installment of my series ranking the songs on every Taylor Swift album, and today we are ranking Lover. The 2019 album contains some of Swift’s best jams as well as some unmemorable tunes that just don’t live up. Here is the definitive ranking of Lover:
18. ME! (feat. Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco) Most Swifties can agree that this is not one of Swift’s best songs… The first single released from Lover debuted well, especially since it features Urie, but falls short, in well, everything. While I can admit this song is meant to be playful and fun, the song fails to accomplish much of anything else.
17. You Need To Calm Down The second single of the album has a fun music video with a star-studded cast, but similar to “ME!,” doesn’t compare lyrically or musically to some of the other songs on the album. However, the song has a great message and is one of Swift’s many political clapbacks.
16. London Boy One of Swift’s many songs inspired by her current boyfriend Joe Alwyn, London Boy contains a fun intro with her Cats (2019) co-stars James Corden and Idris Elba and cute lyrics and references to the UK. However, the song isn’t a standout on the album.
15. It’s Nice To Have A Friend A dreamy tune and background vocals are the standout features of this song about two childhood friends that eventually fall in love. Overall, the song is one dimensional compared to the rest on the album.
14. Miss Americana And The Heartbreak Prince This song inspired the title of Swift’s Netflix documentary Miss Americana and has an electro-pop feel to it. This politically charged song that presents itself as a song about a high school romance is one you want to sing along to, but some other tunes on the album are just more memorable.
13. I Think He Knows A bubbly, upbeat love song most likely inspired by Alwyn, “I Think He Knows” is straightforward and predictable, but contains a great beat drop and bridge which just exudes classic Swift.
12. I Forgot That You Existed This song is the first track on the album and does a great job setting the tone for the rest of the tracks. It’s fun, carefree, uptempo, and all about love. Plus, some sassy moments from Swift make this song a perfect pick for the opening track.
11. False God One of the more mature tracks on the album, “False God” features religious imagery to an R&B-infused pop sound. This song is lyrically more impressive than the ones ranked lower and features a dreamy saxophone.
10. The Archer This track is the fifth on the album and is the first break from the consistent bubbly sound of most of the songs. This song is lyrically beautiful with self-aware lyrics and dreamy vocals, but is a little too meditative for my personal taste.
9. Afterglow About self-sabotaging relationships, the angelic sound of this song juxtaposes its purpose and story. Another break from some of the distinctively peppy songs, “Afterglow” gives the listener a much needed break as track 15 on the album, coming in right after “You Need To Calm Down.”
8. The Man With an iconic music video inspired by The Wolf of Wallstreet (Leonardo Dicaprio is even name-dropped in the song), “The Man” is probably my favorite sexist clapback of Swift’s with a synth-pop sound and lyrics that take on double standards.
7. Soon You’ll Get Better (feat. The Chicks) About her mother’s recurrence of cancer, Swift’s acoustic, country-leaning ballad is beautiful, heart wrenching, and moving. You can hear the desperation in her voice. This song, featuring the iconic group formerly known as The Dixie Chicks, is one of my personal favorites on the album.
6. Paper Rings This lively song is Swift’s declaration of love and devotion to Alwyn. What I love most about this song is that it simply just makes you want to jump up and dance. With one of my favorite bridges on the album, this song quickly became one of my favorites.
5. Cruel Summer This song is straight up serotonin. A fan-favorite of most Switfies, “Cruel Summer” feels like it came off of 1989 and features maybe the best bridge and outro on the whole album. I don’t know about you, but I can’t help but scream “I love you ain’t that the worst thing you ever heard?” everytime this song comes on. I think most of us can agree, this should have been the lead single on the album.
4. Daylight This dreamy conclusion to “Lover” is a cathartic tune about moving on from past, damaging relationships. The song concludes with a spoken word piece in which my favorite Swift quote is derived (“You are what you love”) and a 13 second silence (Swift’s lucky number). This has become one of my personal favorites on the album and provides an overall great message: “Step into the daylight and let it go.”
3. Lover The titular song on the album is romantic, endearing, and feels like a waltz. Of course inspired by Swift’s relationship with Alwyn, it’s impossible to not love this song. In all its tenderness and sweetness, the song remains real, grounded, and lovely. It truly is the perfect single for the album.
2. Death By A Thousand Cuts Inspired by the 2019 Netflix rom-com Someone Great, this song is probably one of the most compelling songs lyrically on the album. Backed with great vocals and a plucky guitar, it’s hard not to simply jam out to this upbeat break-up song. I will admit, this is so high on the ranking because it’s one of my personal favorites, but let’s be real, that second verse? This song is written extremely well.
1. Cornelia Street This enchanting song speaks to the memories Swift and Alwyn made while she actually lived in an apartment on Cornelia Street in New York City. This song is a lyrical masterpiece (i.e. “Sacred new beginnings/that became my religion listen) as well as being musically and vocally compelling with some great dreamy choices from Swift. The verses hold up well next to its iconic bridge and outro making this an all-around great song. I can tell this one came straight from Swift’s heart.
Overall, Lover touches on all different aspects of relationships and romance and continues to showcase Swift’s talent. Listen to the album ranked in this order here.