We are beautiful no matter what they say/
Words won’t bring us down.

Since this is a celebration of the top 500 songs of all-time, I don’t spend much time at all critiquing the songs. I like to celebrate the strengths of the songs. Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful” has a couple weaknesses that makes it difficult to ignore. One is the over-exposure. That is no fault of the song. I feel I have heard it too many times. This is minor.

The main thing is Aguilera’s vocal. She has a great voice but her runs are SO over the top that they are distracting. If you have ever watched a singing competition on TV this is one of the worst aspects. They seem to equate “singing with emotion” with “doing a bunch of vocal runs”. This is one of the songs that inspired that trend.

Let’s talk about the good aspects of this song. Linda Perry wrote a song with a beautiful message and an even better melody. You might remember her from 4 Non-Blondes. That gives her two songs on this list. The piano is simple yet somehow is able to anchor the song.

The topic the song describes in the first verse is basically a panic attack. The narrator is feeling fine and then all of the sudden she can’t breathe—she feels ashamed and insecure. The remedy to this is to remember that she is beautiful. Awesome. I would love to hear a cover of this song.

Beautiful Lyrics

Don’t look at me…
Everyday is so wonderful,
Then suddenly,
It’s hard to breathe.
Now and then I get insecure,
From all the pain
I’m so ashamed.

I am beautiful.
No matter what they say,
Words can’t bring me down.
I am beautiful.
In every single way,
Yes words can’t bring me down.
Oh no,
So don’t you bring me down today.

To all your friends you’re delirious,
So consumed,
In all your doom, ooh.
Trying hard to fill the emptiness,
The pieces gone,
Left the puzzle undone.
Ain’t that the way it is…

You are beautiful.
No matter what they say,
Words can’t bring you down.
Oh no
You are beautiful
In every single way.
Yes words can’t bring you down
Oh no
So don’t you bring me down today.

No matter what we do (no matter what we do).
No matter what we say (no matter what we say).
We’re the song inside the tune (yeah, oh yeah).
Full of beautiful mistakes.

And everywhere we go (and everywhere we go),
The sun will always shine (the sun will always, always, shine).
And tomorrow we might awake,
On the other side.

‘Cause we are beautiful
No matter what they say,
Yes words won’t bring us down.
Oh no
We are beautiful
In every single way.
Yes words can’t bring us down.
Oh no,
So don’t you bring me down today.

Oh, oh oh
Don’t you bring me down today, yeah.
Don’t you bring me down, ooh
Today.

Songwriters: Linda Perry