Uh, depends on what you mean by \u201cwell known\u201d - I\u2019d tend to think of that as being \u201con the base version of one of the (multiplatinum) albums\u201d, as vs. from the bonus tracks, LPs, soundtracks or the stuff she\u2019s covered live. So, uh.
I\u2019m not too fond of the songs that were clearly written for father/daughter dances - The Best Day and Never Grow Up - but that\u2019s cause they\u2019re clearly not even trying to speak to me and for what they\u2019re doing they\u2019re pretty well done. The duets are all kinda shit - she really is a singer/songwriter, and at her best writing for her voice only and only singing her own words, so let\u2019s say The Last Time.
Now if by \u201cwell known\u201d you mean \u201cone of the radio singles\u201d\u2026 huh. Apparently The Last Time was released as a single. Didn\u2019t chart though, so let\u2019s not count that.
Shake it Off. I hated it at first, but it\u2019s inescapably catchy and it\u2019s been stuck in my head this last week, same as everyone. \u2018cause it\u2019s like 100% hook, which is why it\u2019s my least favorite. Like, I like Swift enough that I can recognize her songwriting quirks? I like Max Martin, too, and I can do the same thing with him. There\u2019s been a few times when I heard one of his songs on the radio and I recognized him long before (if ever) the \u201cartist\u201d.
Like, Katy Perry, Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson? No, it\u2019s a Max Martin song. And Shake it Off is a Max Martin song. Red had a lot of pop production on it but you could hear the Swift songwriting underneath, particularly in the lyrics. Shake it Off has some - the \u201cI keep crusin\u2019/can\u2019t stop won\u2019t stop groovin\u2019\u201d is clearly developed from the same place The Way I Loved You got \u201cyou were wild and crazy/just so frustrating\u201d (and I\u2019m probably not giving enough credit to her vocal distinctiveness - she doesn’t have great range, projection, or endurance but she’s excellent at varying affect, for example the subtle hiccuping in the chorus), but it\u2019s thin fucking gruel, man.