Mix Tape of the Day: March 6, 2015 - The Best of 2006

It's interesting chronicling hit songs of the years past in reverse.  The first batch of mixes all seemed fairly similar as artists would reappear again and again.  But then you hit years like this before any of today's big artists came into being and it's like the whole criteria of what was considered "popular" has changed completely.  I remember having many of these songs on my iPod back in 2006, but I didn't realize that they were all charting hits as well.

1. Call Me When You're Sober - Evanescence (2006) If you need raw emotional and musical power in your songs, Evanescence is your medicine.  For some reason, I feel like no one really "counts" this band when it comes to great alt. metal bands, but I've yet to encounter a song of theirs that didn't give me chills.

2. Black Horse and the Cherry Tree - KT Tunstall (2004) By taking a page from older musical styles like blues and psychobilly, Tunstall created a song that just feels like it existed far longer than it actually has.

3. Walk Away - Kelly Clarkson (2004) Kelly Clarkson really got a lot of mileage out of her Breakaway album.  It was still going strong two years later and I know I listened to my share of Clarkson's hits during 2006 thanks to shared iTunes libraries in the college dorms.

4. Temperature - Sean Paul (2005) I have no idea what is actually being said during this song.  I think it's about general dance floor romance.  And things being hot and cold.  But it's irresistible.

5. I Write Sins Not Tragedies - Panic! at the Disco (2005) This song just mesmerizes me.  And confuses me.  I'm not sure if we are supposed to be happy or sad by the end of it.

6. Dance, Dance - Fall Out Boy (2005) Wait, Fall Out Boy and Panic! at the Disco are different bands?  Oh... okay.  Well, they did collaborate and influence each others sound.  This was the year of pop punk bands, I guess.

7. Dirty Little Secret - The All-American Rejects (2005) Remember when PostSecret was a huge thing?  Nowadays, we don't have secrets.  Shame.

8. Who Says You Can't Go Home - Bon Jovi (2005) Does anyone else hear the Psych theme song whenever they hear this song?  Just me?  Great.

9. What Hurts the Most - Rascal Flatts (2006) Hmm...looks like I'm including a Rascal Flatts song...but it's a cover, so that makes it okay?  I do like this song a lot, though.  2006, man.

10. Over My Head (Cable Car) - The Fray (2005) Okay, it was a tough call between this and "How to Save a Life."  I decided that in 2006, this was the song I listened to most often and I can save the other song for a more appropriate mix.

11. Do I Make You Proud - Taylor Hicks (2006) American Idol has had it's fair share of successful artists.  Some fade into obscurity while others remain strong to this day.  Taylor Hicks was definitely the strongest of all the winners.  Okay, maybe he's not had the same string of hits as your Kelly Clarksons or Carries Underwood, but he had "Do I Make You Proud," which I can't help but enjoy.  The Idol songwriters knew how to craft a hit.

12. Bad Day - Daniel Powter (2005) Everyone must have had a terrible 2006, because this was the number one song of the year.  I certainly contributed to the demand for this song, but hey, I was a teenager!  Of course every day was a bad day!

13. Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol (2006) While 2006 may have been over-saturated with melodramatic white boy songs, that meant it was focused enough to create the best one ever.