I agree with DaTilt that Don’t is the least bad of that Sheeran era, though Lego House is really the only one I actually like from Ed!

Thinking Out Loud is sickly sweet and cloyingly boring, but it’s such a massive song, so who am I to judge?!

Love your ‘extras’ here Jester. Some great recommendations, especially alt-j and Metronomy, thanks!

39 minutes ago, Jaz13music said:

I agree with DaTilt that Don’t is the least bad of that Sheeran era, though Lego House is really the only one I actually like from Ed!

Thinking Out Loud is sickly sweet and cloyingly boring, but it’s such a massive song, so who am I to judge?!

Love your ‘extras’ here Jester. Some great recommendations, especially alt-j and Metronomy, thanks!

Lego House was the first Ed song I loved, so hear hear.

Glad you like the extras!

I adore Thinking Out Loud, it's such a classic, even if it rips off another classic to achieve that effect. A far better track than Perfect, which became his other big ballad (but sounds more Westlife than anything).

I don't think Ed did actually date Taylor Swift, but Ellie Goulding he did (which is what Don't is rumoured to be written about I think).

Edited October 12Oct 12 by gooddelta

'She Looks So Perfect' is fun I s'pose, but I did prefer 'Don't Stop'

'Thinking Out Loud' is everything I should hate in an Ed Sheeran song, but I inexplicably love it. Although it probably set the blueprint for the utter horror of 'Perfect' later on...

Rita Ora's track I don't mind actually, one of her better records, but I wouldnt call it a fave as such, and I agree about Anywhere being her best song. Bang Bang got on my nerves so much I didnt even bother charting it. So that would be lower end of this list for me. I'd forgotten that Aloe Blacc track - it's no I Need A Dollar. As an Elton re-write-ish-nick it's OK though, if not quite up there with the original Your Song.

5 Seconds is another one I've forgotten! And again it's OK, I didn't mind it in a sort of "peaking at 65 in my charts" way, but it's a bit better than that now I play it again in a McFly sort of way. Ed Sheeran's sloppy ballads all make me react the same way. Overly-gooey for my tastes, but I can see he appeals to more romantically-inclined folk. Not really my thing and it got one week at 71 in my charts, which is why I always forget the title in pub quizzes. He's got so many forgettable big hits in the same way Westlife do. That said the greedy Gaye estate went on one trip too many to the copyright well on this, it bears very little resemblance to Let's Get It On, whereas the Got To Give It Up rip-off was obvious instantly.

Oops didn't realise how behind I was!

I quite liked 'I Will Never Let You Down' at the time but I haven't really gone back to it much in subsequent years, it's alright.

I can't stand 'Bang Bang' though! Every aspect of it is a total racket. The OCC never seem to include it in Ariana's best-selling lists due to her feature being credited as just 'Grande' in their database. I'm not keen on 'The Man' either, pretty corny and what a non-#1 after genuinely impactful moments in 'I Need A Dollar' and 'Wake Me Up'. 'Thinking Out Loud' is cheesy as well although has a timeless sound.

I loved 'She Looks So Perfect' at the time, I think it came at a point when I was feeling nostalgic for pop-punk. The lyrics have not aged well for me but I can still appreciate its sound.

That interlude section 'Midnight' is one of my favourite Coldplay songs nowadays.

“She Looks So Perfect” isn’t bad really but fairly basic.

I do really like “Thinking Out Loud” and think it’s one of Ed’s very best. It has a pace and charm to it that totally works. I don’t like “Perfect” much though, which is cut from the same cloth but I find much more cloying and missing the charm.

I liked that 5sos song at the time, throught they were better than 1D because they played their own instruments.

At least 5 Seconds of Summer is a band with 'seconds' in their name you can listen to without negative connotations.

Edited Thursday at 20:444 days by TheSnake

20. David Guetta ft. Sam Martin – Lovers On The Sun

Chart run: 1-3-7-14-15-21-31-38-45-47-47-54-62-68R(2)-70R(5)-74 (16 weeks)

Sales at number 1: 71,165

Year End: 60

Number 2 peaks behind the chart topper: None

David Guetta continued his rent-a-singer rampage into 2014, this time with relatively unknown Sam Martin. Having previously reached the top of the charts with Kelly Rowland, Akon, Flo Rida and Sia, all big names, it made a change to see a collaboration with someone new to the UK charts. This was Guetta’s 5th number 1 (but not his last).

Lovers On The Sun was co-produced with Avicii, merging two of the biggest dance producers together into one track – though oddly for the time this was a very country sounding song inspired by Spaghetti Western films, not something was that was in vogue at the time and the video leans into this. Of course there is a big EDM element to it, as expected from La Guetta.

So who is Sam Martin when he’s at home? For a start, he wrote Want You To Want Me which was covered by Jasooooooon Derulo, Daylight for Maroon 5 and another Guetta track, Dangerous. He has also collaborated with One D, Pitbull, The Chainsmokers and Nick Jonas. Clearly not just a background producer and writer, but also a singer that likely gained new fans once the spotlight had been shone on him. Or should that be the sun shining?

I pondered at the time at the strangeness of the song title – Lovers On The Sun? Is this not too hot? Lovers fried to a crisp? The video doesn’t help, it has a wild west theme understandably given the sound of the song. I assume the sun is a metaphor for hot passion and devotion to a lover. I am awful at interpreting lyrics though.

I do like this, when Guetta teams up with someone new its worth a listen, plus the DOUBLE DJ POWER!! of Avicii here elevates it and the cowboy country vibe was ahead of its time and made it stand out a bit. But, its not a Guetta classic by any means and is fairly forgotten now in the rush of 2014 number 1s and it makes this pretty mid for me.

Oh I forgot to comment on 5SOS, yes it's decent for a boyband pop rock song, could easily have come out in the early 00s.

Lovers In The Sun isn't bad and it clearly inspired the following year's Eurovision winner Heroes.

'Thinking Out Loud' is a timeless track. I may have gotten a little tired of it like everyone but not quite as much as a lot of his other songs. 'Don't' is great too.

'Lovers On The Sun' is decent too but yeah Guetta obviously has much better stuff over this one.

From your interlude picks I quite like 'Midnight' and really liked 'Do It Again'!

It's passable, but incredibly generic and forgettable.

banger. love the cowboy vibes via Spaghetti Western music whistles and it still holds up well. My top to drop out so far I think.

Yeah Lovers On The Sun and similar follow up Dangerous are very good.

The 5SOS one is a fun bit of power pop, and had quite the chart run for something that started out with a 1-10 drop.

'Thinking Out Loud' would be my #1 - I just think it's beautifully arranged with that lilting balladic sound that gives it a classic R&B feel. I still have my #2 & #3 in this rate, so I hope they're nice and high.

'Lovers On The Sun' works in the spaghetti Western elements quite well, a good swerve from Guetta and (perhaps mostly) Avicii there.

I like Lovers On The Sun , slightly different stuff for Guetta with the Avicci influence apparent. Love the spaghetti western stuff that others have mentioned

Yeah - Lovers On The Sun is a decent banger. Very catchy. In a strong field this is my #11.

02. Sam Smith - Money On My Mind (34)

04. Meghan Trainor - All About That Bass (32)

05. Rixton - Me And My Broken Heart (27)

11. David Guetta ft. Sam Martin – Lovers On The Sun (20)

12. Cheryl Cole - I Don't Care (29)

17. DVBBS & Borgeous ft. Tinie Tempah – Tsunami (Jump) (28)

18. Sam Smith - Stay With Me (31)

22. Magic! - Rude (33)

26. Rita Ora – I Will Never Let You Down (25)

27. 5 Seconds of Summer – She Looks So Perfect (22)

28. Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud (21)

29. Cheryl Cole ft. Tinie Tempah – Crazy Stupid Love (30)

30. Aloe Blacc - The Man (23)

33. Ariana Grande ft. Iggy Azalea – Problem (26)

34. Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj – Bang Bang (24)

35. Gareth Malone’s All Star Choir – Wake Me Up (36)

36. Will.i.am ft. Cody Wise – It's My Birthday (37)

37. Ben Haenow – Something I Need (38)

38. Band Aid 30 – Do They Know It's Christmas? (35)

19. Nico & Vinz – Am I Wrong

Chart run: 72-58-53-52-1-1-2-5-10-11-13-14-20-28-29-29-32-39-42-52-33-42-49-52-41-43-49-49-46-55-57-64-62 (33 weeks)

Sales at number 1: 106,370; 62,750

Year End: 21

Number 2 peaks behind the chart topper: None

It irks me that this obvious enquiry doesn’t have a question mark. Explain yourselves Nico & Vinz!

The questioning duo are from Oslo, making them Norwegian much to my surprise. Before performing under their names, they were known as Envy but rebranded in 2012 once they signed with Warner to avoid confusion with bands of a similar name.

Interestingly, Am I Wrong only made number 2 in their homeland (and in Denmark and Sweden) and I would have assumed it was a Billboard chart topper as well given how omnipresent it was at the time, but only made number 4 stateside. At least they got a UK number 1 then.

Nico and Vinz’s parents are from the Ivory Coast and Ghana so naturally their music has a reggae/west African feel to it and combined with a poppier sound results in the musical feel of Am I Wrong.

I quite like this, despite it being less of my kind of thing. It has actually grown on me a fair bot over the years and it’s a fair earworm with the yeah yeah yeahs in the chorus. I would probably have this higher in less competitive years. The reggae feels more authentic here as well, which really contrasts with MAGIC!’s cod-reggae.

Great emotive track and that style of riff has been used in other songs since.

Am I Wrong, is pretty good, I suspect I’ll rank it at a similar position as you. Really catchy and great guitar melody.