It’s been awhile. It seems about time. Time to do a redux of My Top Ten Fiona Apple songs. Yes, this is a tough one. Very. But, I am determined to put the list together and can keep in my heart and music-soul that I will most likely come back around and do another new Top Ten at some point. I almost always do.

Fiona Apple is one of my forever favorite singer-songwriters. Her music came into my life in the 90’s, when I was in my twenties. It was during that tumultuous time that I needed Fiona the most. She and Tori Amos made me feel seen, less alone, and gave me a lot of strength to keep going on.

Tidal, Fiona’s first album, is full of my favorites. Pretty much, it’s one of those perfect/no-skip albums that I will never get enough of. Her second album, When The Pawn…, is also one of those records to me. Perfect. No skips. I can’t get enough. Both albums still resonate with me, and I often find myself connecting to parts and pieces that I hadn’t before. The albums are full of memories for me, too. Listening to them can bring on a mental and emotional rewind, often accompanied with tears. Fiona’s music sometimes feels like a sonic postcard sent to my heart and music-soul from the me in my twenties.

If I could, I wonder what Fiona songs I would send from me in my fifties to me in my twenties?

What are your favorite Fiona Apple songs? What would your Top Ten look like?

Here’s mine…

Fiona Apple – My Top Ten
A Top Ten Songs Redux
June 1, 2021

Song 1: “Sleep To Dream”
from the album, Tidal (1996)

“I tell you how I feel but you don’t care.
I say tell me the truth but you don’t dare.
You say love is a Hell you cannot bear.
And I say gimme mine back and then go there,
for all I care.”

Song 2: “Paper Bag”
from the album, When The Pawn… (1999)

“Hunger hurts,
and I want him so bad –
oh, it kills,
’cause I know I’m a mess he don’t wanna clean up.
I got to fold ’cause these hands are too shaky to hold.
Hunger hurts,
but starvin’ works,
when it costs too much to love.”

Song 3: “I Know”
from the album, When The Pawn… (1999)

“And you can use my skin,
to bury your secrets in –
and I will settle you down.”

I also love this version with Fiona, and King Princess:

Song 4: “Shameika”
from the album, Fetch The Bolt Cutters (2020)

“I’m pissed off, funny and warm.
I’m a good man in a storm.
And when the fall is torrential,
I’ll recall –
Shameika said I had potential.”

I also love this version:

Song 5: “Container”
from the intro to HBO’s ‘The Affair’ (no album track)

“I have only one thing to do and that’s,
to be the wave that I am and then,
sink back into the ocean.”

Song 6: “Fast As You Can”
from the album, When The Pawn… (1999)

“And I’ll be your girl,
if you say it’s a gift,
and you give me some more of your drugs.
Yeah,
I’ll be your pet,
if you just tell me it’s a gift.
‘Cause I’m tired of whys,
choking on whys –
just need a little because, because.”

Song 7: “Never Is a Promise”
from the album, Tidal (1996)

“You’ll say you understand,
but you don’t understand.”

Song 8: “Tymps (The Sick In the Head Song)”
from the album, Extraordinary Machine (2005)

“Why did I kiss him so hard late last Friday night,
And keep on letting him change all my plans?
I’m either so sick in the head,
I need to be bled dry to quit,
or I just really used to love him.
I sure hope that’s it.”

Song 9: “Shadowboxer”
from the album, Tidal (1996)

“Once my lover,
now my friend.
What a cruel thing to pretend.
What a cunning way to condescend.
Once my lover,
and now my friend.”

Song 10: “Sullen Girl”
from the album, Tidal (1996)

“Is that why they call me a sullen girl,
sullen girl?
They don’t know I used to sail the deep and tranquil seas.
But he washed me ashore,
and he took my pearl,
and left an empty,
shell of me.”