Reader, I was all set to give you a crackpot theory post today, to let my theorizing mind go wild and come up with some radical, crazy, conspiracy theory about Reign by Cora Carmack. But then, I checked Goodreads and discovered that the release date of Reign has been pushed back until September. So I will keep polishing that conspiracy theory and save it for another couple months.
In the meantime, I thought it might be fun to rank another musical, since that’s always popular so I started puzzling over what might be a good musical to rank. And then the obvious choice hit me, and I realized we needed to talk about In The Heights.
In The Heights is one of the buzziest musicals around right now, because the movie just came out and because it was created by Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of Hamilton, the buzziest musical of all time. Although I have not seen In The Heights, either the movie or the original stage show, I am a huge fan of the original cast recording so I feel qualified to rank the songs. However, since I haven’t seen any performances of this show, this ranking has nothing to do with how a particular song fits into the story and everything to do with how much I like just listening to the song.
So let’s dive right into it!
17. “Inutil”, “Attention,” and “Alabanza”
I rank these three songs together because I listen to them an equal amount, which is to say, not at all. Now I do objectively think these are good songs, they’re well-written, probably powerful character moments that would most likely bring me to tears if I was in an actual theatre watching them being performed. And that’s great, but it’s not what I’m looking for when I’m just jamming on the way to school. These are just too sad for casual listening.
16. “Paciencia y Fe”, “Hundreds of Stories,” “Enough”, and “Finale”
These next grouping of songs I listen to more frequently than the previous one, but I’d be lying if I said I listened to them a lot. These are all songs I have to be in a very specific mood to enjoy. I would never skip them, but I probably wouldn’t actively seek them out either (except for “Paciencia y Fe”. That’s a pretty awesome song).
15. When the Sun Goes Down
Now we’re getting into the individually ranked songs, and we’re starting off with Nina and Benny’s final duet. Of their three duets, this is probably my least favourite, simply because it’s the shortest and it doesn’t cover any real new ground. It’s a very sweet button for their relationship, but that’s really it.
14. It Won’t Be Long Now
I have mixed feelings about this song. On the one hand, I really like the development of Vanessa’s character. It’s a classic “I want” song, and it does that job ably. On the other hand, I just don’t really like it. And I’m not even sure why. It’s a good song. I don’t even dislike it. I just don’t really like it, and I can’t pin down my feelings more concretely than that.
13. Piragua and Reprise
I had to put this song and its reprise together, because they’re basically the same song. This is pure comic relief, and it works great. It makes me chuckle everytime I listen to it, so job well done.
12. Sunrise
Moving on to our next Benny and Nina duet, this one I like quite a bit more. You probably can’t tell how much, because they’re quite close together on this list, but trust me, it’s a lot. This is actually one of my favourite romantic duets. The sexy Spanish lesson works really well to bring Nina and Benny’s different cultures together, and it’s a gorgeous song to boot.
11. Everything I Know
Much like the earlier “Attention” and “Alabanza”, this is quite a sad song but unlike those other songs, this is one I listen to a lot. I think it’s possibly because while those earlier songs are more plain grief, this one moves into a more inspirational, uplifting stage where there’s hope mixed in with the grief and it’s hard to not get invested in that, whether you’ve seen the show or not. I put this on my top 5 saddest songs list for a reason.
10. When You’re Home
And now we reach the final Benny and Nina duet (which is the first chronologically), which is by far my favourite of the three. It’s such a sweet, comfortable song, that perfectly establishes their chemistry and relationship, sets the scene for what’s to come, while also providing a nostalgic look back about why this corner is important to characters besides Usnavi. That’s a lot to ask of one duet, but this one carries it off, helped mainly by how amazing Mandy Gonzalez and Christopher Jackson sound together.
9. No Me Diga
“No Me Diga” is another good comic relief song, but unlike “Piragua”, it also provides some fun character dynamics. I love this extremely realistic look at the ladies from the salon, which so neatly mixes the humor with the character beats to provide a snapshot of the way they all work together and which paints them as believable women.
8. Blackout
“Blackout” is a pretty awesome Act 1 closer. It gives you a quick rundown of pretty much every single character and where they stand in about three minutes, while also providing a really catchy tune so that you don’t even realize you’re being caught up. It’s a really clever trick (one Lin-Manuel Miranda excels at), and a superb way to close out Act 1.
7. The Club
All that being said though, I like “The Club” better than “Blackout.” It’s a really fun catchy song, and it does a really good job intersplicing the various couples less-than-ideal dates throughout the pretty awesome dancing. And I adore Usnavi’s incredibly dweepy but really long monologue-rap-thing that he uses to pick up the girl who doesn’t even speak English, and the way Lin performs the “Jealous? I ain’t jealous, I can take all these fellas, whatever” line with absolutely zero chill. It’s cute.
6. Carnaval Del Barrio
Lin-Manuel Miranda really excels at writing giant group numbers that give everyone a chance to shine, and although this one gets overshadowed by a couple other songs that are coming up, I think it’s a pretty awesome jam regardless. I love how it gives the salon ladies a chance to let loose and lead a song instead of Usnavi, and I love the pride everyone has in their home and their community, and it’s just a really fun and really beautiful number that keeps the energy super high midway through Act 2.
5. Champagne
I may prefer the Nina/Benny pairing as having a more complex storyline, I have to admit my favourite romantic duet from In The Heights is “Champagne.” It gets the vibe just right, adding enough humor to lessen the tension after several heavy numbers in a row, but it still keeps the emotions front and centre, allowing Usnavi’s grief the respect it deserves, while also using it for some of the great humor in the song, as he’s so distracted by getting the champagne bottle opened he just doesn’t get Vanessa’s increasingly obvious attempts to flirt with him.
4. Benny’s Dispatch
Just like I couldn’t explain why I don’t really like “It Won’t Be Long Now”, I can’t really explain why I like “Benny’s Dispatch” as much as I do. I guess it’s just he’s so happy when he sings it, and happy guys are attractive. That’s probably what it is.
3. Breathe
“Breathe” is one of those songs that’s taken on a life outside of the musical, and for good reason. It’s a very powerful character developing song, that immediately gets you on Nina’s side and helps you appreciate what her struggles will be going forward. It’s also just a really pretty song. Seriously, I urge you to go listen to it right now if you’ve never heard it before. It’s gorgeous.
2. 96,000
These final two songs were very tricky to place, because I love them both a lot, and pretty much equally, but in the end, I decided “96,000” had to go in second place. It’s an excellent song, that pretty much functions as an “I want” song for every single character, and each character’s desires for the winning lottery ticket are specific, both in content and style, yet they all come together to make a cohesive whole that is a total bop. All of that is true and it all contributes to a completely awesome song, but my number one song is still…
1. In The Heights
That’s right, I’m going with the title song as my number one pick. It’s just such a good song and possibly a perfect opening number. It introduces every single major player quickly, succinctly, and specifically, without confusion, with humor and immediate development, and with heart, and also, once again, it’s a total bop. You listen to this song and you know immediately you are getting a show full of fun, catchy music, and lots of love. That’s In The Heights in a nutshell, and this song sums that up beautifully, making it number one on this list.
And there you have it, those are my rankings of all the songs from In The Heights. You guys should let me know your rankings, stay safe, wear a mask, get vaccinated, and I’ll see you on Saturday.
Until the next time.
The Phantom of the Bookshelf 
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