Top 10 Jan. - June 2006

Well, everybody's doing it, so here's my Top Ten for first half of 2006, not too much thought given to either the order or whom to include/exclude. My guess is that numbers 1 and 2 fend off all comers for the rest of the year but that anyone else could be superseded come Pazz & Jop day. I define a single to include "stuff the artist lets you download from her MySpace page" and "stuff that I sent to everyone I could." I go an extra four deep 'cause there are four whose eligibility is questionable owing to my not knowing what year they were released. Those four are in brackets, and I would appreciate any info that you could supply. Mark? Jerry? Others? (Surely for foreign and alien U.S. nonhits, a release in 2005 would be sufficient to qualify for my P&J ballot.)

1. Veronicas "4ever"
2. Aly & AJ "Rush"
[3. Mahshar "Vase Chi"]
4. Lillix "Sweet Temptation"
5. Lily Allen "LDN"
[6. Cansei de Ser Sexy "Let's Make Love and Listen Death from Above"]
7. Girl Authority "Hollaback Girl"
[8. Wir Sind Helden "Von Hier an Blind"]
9. Snook "Snook Svett Och Tarar"
10. Beyoncé f. Slim Thug "Check On It"
11. Young Jeezy "Trap Star"
12. Marion Raven "End of Me"
13. Jena Kraus "Both Dads R Dead Dogs"
[14. DJ BC f. Phillip Glass and Dizzee Rascal "Stand Up and Dance"]

also could have made the list if my mood had been slightly different (not in order):
Amy Diamond "What's In It For Me?"
Morningwood "Nth Degree"
Bebe "Malo"
t.A.T.u. "Friend or Foe" ("Cosmos (Outer Space)" would have made the top 10 if it had been a single)
Marit Larsen "Don't Change Me" ("Only A Fool" would have made the top ten if it had been a single)
Flyleaf "I'm So Sick"
Flyleaf "Breathe Today"
Marie Serneholt "That's the Way My Heart Goes"
Velvet "Mi Amore"
Dixie Chicks "Not Ready to Make Nice"
[Light Beat "Nhary Liel"]
Jessica Simpson "A Public Affair"
Paris Hilton "Stars Are Blind"

Hip-hop and country haven't been getting as much attention from me as they should.