A YouTube playlist of my favorite videos and/or songs released in 2012. I generally prefer the studio tracks, but a few of these are live versions, mainly because there is no official studio version on YouTube. Also, in some cases, I enjoy the official video better than the song itself, and vice versa.

A few of these YouTube videos will not play on mobile platforms. I’ve attempted to make the same list on Spotify (also embedded below), although not all the songs are available there, either!

A “Best Albums” post (which requires a lot more thought) is forthcoming by the end of the month.

• 2CELLOS (Sulic & Hauser) – “Hurt”
• Bat for Lashes – “Laura”
• Bjӧrk – “Mutual Core”
• Bonnie Raitt – “Right Down the Line”
• Chilly Gonzales – “Train of Thought”
• David Guetta – “She Wolf (Falling to Pieces) [feat. Sia]”
• David’s Lyre – “Only Words” (Live)
• Diplo – “Express Yourself (ft. Nicky Da B)”
• Django Django – “Introduction” / “Hail Bop”
• Ellie Goulding – “Anything Could Happen”
• Epic Rap Battles of History – “Mitt Romney vs. Barack Obama”
• Fiona Apple – “Every Single Night”
• Florence + The Machine – “Spectrum”
• Gary Clark, Jr. – “Numb”
• Gotye – “Easy Way Out”
• Gregory Porter – “Be Good (Lion’s Song)”
• Hot Chip – “Night & Day”
• Jesca Hoop – “Born To”
• Jessie Ware – “Wildest Moments”
• Kaci Battaglia feat Ludacris – “Body Shots”
• Kimbra – “Come Into My Head”
• Mr. Gnome – “House of Circles”
• Muse – “Madness”
• Neil Young with Crazy Horse – “Ramada Inn”
• No Doubt – “Push and Shove (ft. Busy Signal, Major Lazer)”
• P!nk – “Try”
• Paul McCartney – “My Valentine”
• PSY – “Gangnam Style”
• Pussy Riot – “Punk Prayer: Mother of God Drive Putin Away”
• Rodriguez – “Crucify Your Mind” (on Letterman)
• Rufus Wainwright – “Out of the Game”
• Scissor Sisters – “Let’s Have a Kiki”
• Sigur Rós – Fjögur píanó” (See the entire valtari mystery film experiment)
• Silversun Pickups – “The Pit”
• Solange – “Losing You”
• tUnE-yArDs – “My Country”
• Y.N.RichKids – “Hot Cheetos & Takis”

Embedded playlists after the jump… Read more Best Songs of 2012 ›