First of all, it’s not meant to be definitive. At all.
Secondly, quite a few of the artists on the list are not of the power pop persuasion, but their entries here most definitely are. By my definition, at least. Which brings us to…
Power pop, as I see it, is a balance of both factors. This gets me in trouble with purists who, for instance, love The Shoes, who I consider too much pop and not enough power. But thems the breaks.
Also, these 25 tracks are all, with 2 exceptions, from the ‘90s and beyond. Make of that what you will.
Finally, I have omitted such power pop touchstones as Badfinger, Big Star, Jellyfish, The Posies, Raspberries, and Matthew Sweet but have included songs by some former members of their ensembles. Often, the mothership gets (all) the love and I wanted to spread it around.
And so, in alphabetical order by artist...
RYAN ADAMS “PS”
He has covered plenty of ground, so a bit of power pop is no surprise.
JON AUER “The Perfect Size”
The Posies’ co-frontman goes completely solo with the exception of the late Darius Minwalla on drums and it’s a more than worthy excursion.
CHRIS BELL “I Am the Cosmos”
The defining solo statement from the late Big Star co-leader.
BRENDAN BENSON “I’m Blessed”
Best known as a Raconteur, his catalog is rich in melodic, rocking gems. This one is from his debut album and was co-written by Jason Falkner.
CAFE TACUBA “53100”
Since it was Pete Townshend who coined the term “power pop”, it’s more than apropos that Mexico City’s premiere art rockers appear here with a Who-influenced tune.
WES CUNNINGHAM “Only You Know”
A gifted songwriter whose lack of commercial success led him to stop making records and turn to jingles instead. A music biz crime if there ever was one.
JASON FALKNER “I Live”
A talented multi-instrumentalist and former Jellyfish guitarist with a respectable solo career of his own.
FASTBALL “Emily”
Tasty slice of punky power pop from these Texas rockers.
GIGOLO AUNTS “Mr. Tomorrow”
Another coulda/shoulda/woulda…their key members are now songwriters for Hollywood films. This is from their final album, released in 2002.
JOE JACKSON “Tonight and Forever”
Like Adams, he’s covered a lot of musical ground, albeit in slightly different directions. This one is par for the course, tho.
JUMBO “Siento Que”
A powerful anthem of longing and love on its last sighs that would subsequently come to define the Monterrey, Mexico rockers' sound.
KARA’S FLOWERS “Myself”
The initial, commercially failed version of Maroon 5 before they changed their name and added another guitarist. I prefer this incarnation.
THE KATIES “Noggin’ Poundin’”
Without a doubt the hardest rocker on this list but its Cheap Trick-influenced vibe won it a spot.
THE LEMONHEADS “Poughkeepsie”
Evan Dando knows his way around a melody and he’s been known to rock out. Here he does both.
MATERIAL ISSUE “Diane”
Power pop lovers know this long gone beloved Chicago outfit quite well but, like all of the artists listed here, they should be even better known.
THE MERRYMAKERS “Troubled Times”
Produced by Jellyfish honcho Andy Sturmer, this one is simply Swedish ear candy bliss.
MYRACLE BRAH “Eleven”
Andy Bopp is a master at crafting hooks and melodies and deserves to be a household name, damn it!
NADA SURF “Happy Kid”
Brooklyn in the house! They went from almost MTV one-hit wonders to one of indie rock's most reliable purveyors of guitar pop and this is why.
OWSLEY “Oh No, The Radio!”
William Reese Owsley [1966-2010] was simply a brilliant popsmith who left us way too soon. It’s a point of personal pride that I have turned into a fan everyone I’ve played his music for over the years. But it’s way more about how awesome he was than my hard sell.
THE SHAZAM “Getting Higher”
Underground power poppers from Nashville with a string of great but unknown albums under their belt.
SUMMERCAMP “Should I Walk Away?”
Think Descendents with Beach Boys harmonies. Um, yeah.
LOS TRES “Feria Verdadera”
Chile’s premiere cult band have been rock royalty in their homeland and in Mexico—Café Tacuba paid tribute by recording an EP of their songs—for decades.
12 RODS “Marionette”
Produced by Todd Rundgren, the band’s third release got itself hammered by Pitchfork, who gave their terribly overrated debut a 10.0 rating. It’s all good, sometimes great and P4K was wrong both times. What else is new?
VELVET CRUSH “Hold Me Up”
Started by longtime Matthew Sweet drummer Ric Menck in 1989, with a similar sound to that of Menck’s on-and-off boss (who produced their debut album), they have been on hiatus since 2004 but reunited briefly in 2019.
THE WRENS “Dance the Midwest”
A different batch of New Jersey misfits with a taste for chaos. In this case, the angular power pop of this tune.
