Think of a beautiful sea with wind blowing gently through the air, the sun whispering a melody from the sky, its rays hitting the water. Such a beautiful view, some may say that’s even paradise, but to me, Paradise is something that can not be seen but heard.
Paradise, the album by Lana del Rey, is one of the greatest albums of all time, and by far del Rey’s best album in her discography. It is simple to say that the album is great, but it must be evaluated completely in order to see why. Below I have ranked all of the songs from Paradise, as well as why I love them so much. I hope you enjoy this album just as much as I do! 🙂
- “Ride”
Yes, I know this song is the introduction song to the Paradise album, so technically it is #1, but in terms of ranking, it is del Rey’s best song. Out of all the songs del Rey has written, Ride is a song that speaks to me, has the best vocals and has the best lyrical composition. Besides that, the beat of this song has the tone of an introduction song. This song definitely allows you to feel the patriotic American feeling del Rey wants to portray in this album. This tone is seen visually in the Ride music video as well as in the Tropico* short film. Overall, Ride is del Rey’s best song and is for sure, #1 in the album Paradise for all of the emotion that is portrayed through the song.
#2 “Yayo”
Yayo is probably one of del Rey’s only songs that references her life before the Born to Die era. This song has so much emotion not only because it is linked to her life prior to fame, but it is also a love song about desiring and needing someone so badly that it hurts. Through the slow pace beat of this song, del Rey is able to showcase her emotions through this song. It is easy to infer that she is sad as she sings this song not only because of the lyrics but also her tone. With so much sadness, this song shows del Rey’s style and hooks listeners to want to hear more.
#3 “American”
Again, this song is so amazing because of the amount of emotion put into this song. Not only can you feel that del Rey wants to give off the patriotic Americana vibe, but it is also a love song. The song is so catchy and it instantly becomes a favorite from the album. There is not much to say about this song. It is so great and one of del Rey’s best songs.
#4 “Bel Air”
Although Bel Air is the last song on this album, it is one of the best. The entire Paradise album circulates over the idea that del Rey must move around from place to place because she does not belong to anyone or anywhere. Bel Air is the perfect song because it talks about her meeting someone that she has wanted to meet for so long. Likewise, the short film, Tropico, gives a visual representation of del Rey meeting this perform. As well, in this short film, as this song plays, there is more light and happiness displayed. Bel Air is a love song that is amazing because it gives the perfect closure to the album.
#5 “Blue Velvet”
Blue Velvet is a great song, don’t get me wrong, but it could be better. It is great because it’s different from what del Rey usually sings and gives her more of a push and she obviously is great at it. Her sadness is very much heard as she sings this song and such emotion really gets the listener to connect with the music, but the song really could’ve been longer and could’ve had a bit more.
#6 “Body Electric”
The first time I heard this song was in Tropico. It is an amazing song and the actual visual of the song is great, but it also could’ve been more.
#7 “Gods & Monsters” and #8 “Cola”
For both of these songs, I have the exact same thing to say. All of del Rey’s songs are great in their own way and are all amazing. These two songs in particular are great because of their uniqueness, but that’s about it. They are catchy and do have a story to tell, but they could’ve been better or could have been replaced with another song (Lana del Rey should’ve added “4th of July” and “I talk to Jesus” but that’s just my opinion).
Paradise is such a great album and it was hard to rank the songs, but since I really had to, that is how I ranked them,and if I am being completely honest, the ranking changes almost every month.
* Tropico is a short film directed by Anthony Mandler starring singer-songwriter Lana del Rey in 2013. It is considered to have a modern day concept on Adam and Eve in which del Rey plays Eve. The soundtrack for this Short film consists almost entirely of the album, Paradise.