Try your best to make it through the day

I am so done with this week. In celebration of the approaching weekend (which cannot get here soon enough), here are some weekend-themed songs.

Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter released a solo album, Now Or Never, in 2002, after the release of Black and Blue. Now Or Never has more rock influence than any of the BSB albums did up to that point, though it's still definitely pop. It didn't do too well (at least compared to expectations), which is a shame, because it's good; the mid-tempo and fast songs on it, though nothing revolutionary, are totally worth listening to.

Is It Saturday Yet?--pop with some guitars, though less "hard" than the Backstreet Boys' most recent album. The verses here aren't that great, but the chorus is pretty good and, though its lyrics are simple, it totally sums up my feelings right now--is it Saturday yet? It needs to be.

I'm not even going to attempt to give a comprehensive history of Loverboy, because I don't know that much about them or their music and, when a band has as long a career as they do, I think I'd just end up showing how little I know. '80's rock, basically.

Working For The Weekend--although not their highest charting song, I think it's probably the most well-known. Fun, but then, you probably already know this song and know if you like it or not. A good energy-booster.

Daniel Bedingfield, most famous in the U.S. for his ballad "If You're Not The One," is a pretty divisive figure. I really like his faster songs, though, and would've loved more songs like "Gotta Get Thru This" and "James Dean (I Wanna Know)" on his second album, but even that has grown on me. Today's song, though, is from his first album, Gotta Get Thru This.

Friday--OK, so this song doesn't totally fit the theme because it's about waiting to see a girl again, but it is about desperately looking forward to Friday. Its beat is more pounding, repetitive, and insistent than that of "Gotta Get Thru This" or "James Dean," with Daniel singing (or talking, depending on your point of view) at a rapidfire rate over the top. It all adds up to a sense of desperation that fits perfectly with the song's subject.

S Club 8 were a spin-off of the S Club 7 concept made up of, as you might have guessed, 8 people instead of 7. Its members were all young--roughly around age 12, maybe?--but they had a good amount of chart success, especially with their first album, Together.

Sundown (2006 Flamefly Supreme Burn Wings Club Mix)--I'm pretty sure I snagged this from Dïgï†al €ä®gäsm, so full credit to that great site for this song, but it's good enough that I wanted to share it again. Once again, I'm cheating a bit in terms of theme, but they do say "Friday twilight in the big town/Party people getting ready now," so that's close enough. It's not really ominous, but then again, in a way, it is--it's less fluffy than the orginal version, at least (though fluff isn't a bad thing!).

McFly are a four-person group that do pop-rock, though that generalization doesn't even begin to sum up their two albums. Their first, Room On The 3rd Floor, shows a lot of '60's influences and has a great summery-beachy-vibe. Their second, Wonderland, loses that beachy '60's vibe in favor of songs that run the gamut from piano-based ballads to upbeat rocky pop. Room On The 3rd Floor is probably the more fun of the two albums, but Wonderland is amazing as well (especially when listened to on good quality speakers, not tiny headphones; it improves with age, too).

I'll Be OK--the opening to this song is epic (despite being simple and not that loud)--I can totally picture the band playing this on stage in a giant stadium, and I bet it's phenomenal when they do. This song isn't really about the weekend, but it is about just trying to make it through the day. It is from Wonderland, so it's not really summery sounding, but it is fun--more mature fun, I suppose (though mature fun isn't necessarily better than other sorts of fun).

To buy Nick Carter's album Now Or Never, go here (physical) or here (digital; you'll have to search for "Nick Carter"); to buy Loverboy's greatest hits album Loverboy Classics, go here (physical) or the song "Working For The Weekend" here (digital; you'll have to search for "Loverboy"); to buy Daniel Bedingfield's first album, Gotta Get Thru This, go here (physical; you might want to consider the UK version, though, which has the extra song "Never Gonna Leave Your Side") or here (digital); to buy S Club 8's Sundown (which does not have today's remix on it), go here (physical); to buy McFly's second album, Wonderland, go here (physical) or here (digital).

Next up: to fulfill a request, McFly!

nick carter loverboy daniel bedingfield s club 8 mcfly