Song · Fleet Foxes
“Helplessness Blues” by Fleet Foxes
From the album Helplessness Blues (2011)
“Helplessness Blues” by Fleet Foxes appears on 27 radio countdowns from 16 stations between 2011 and 2026. It was first released in 2011 on the album Helplessness Blues. Its best result is #5 on the WRSI Top 93 Songs of 2011. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #133 alternative song of 2011.
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"Helplessness Blues" is the title song of Fleet Foxes' 2011 album, and it's Robin Pecknold's show: he wrote the words and the music, and Phil Ek co-produced, engineered and mixed it. It starts as a hurried acoustic strum with Pecknold's voice out front, then opens into a wide, sun-dappled second half where the band's harmonies bloom around him. It feels like a songwriter talking himself through big questions, and landing somewhere warmer than he started.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 16 | WTMD Baltimore, MD | WTMD Top 89 Songs of 2011 | 89 |
| 2011 | 24 | KFOG San Francisco Bay Area, CA | KFOG Foghead Favorites of 2011 | 50 |
| 2011 | 49 | 92.3 WTTS Indianapolis-Bloomington, IN | WTTS Top 50 Songs of 2011 | 50 |
| 2011 | 13 | 107.1 The Peak Westchester County, NY | WXPK Top 107 Songs of 2011 | 107 |
| 2011 | 6 | WBER Rochester, NY | WBER Listener Countdown 2011 | 111 |
| 2011 | 5 | WFUV New York, NY | WFUV Top 90 Songs of 2011 | 90 |
| 2011 | 19 | WXPN Philadelphia, PA | WXPN Year in Review: Top 100 Songs of 2011 | 100 |
| 2011 | 15 | 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH | 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2011 | 88 |
| 2011 | 16 | 93XRT Chicago, IL | WXRT Listener Poll: Top 25 Songs of 2011 | 25 |
| 2011 | 87 | Exit 97.7 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | WEXT Top 97 of 2011 | 97 |
| 2011 | 19 | WRNR 103.1 Annapolis, MD | WRNR Top 103.1 Songs of 2011 | 104 |
| 2011 | 5 | WRSI 93.9 The River Northampton / Pioneer Valley, MA | WRSI Top 93 Songs of 2011 | 93 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 333 | WYEP | WYEP Top 500 Songs Countdown | 500 |
| 2013 | 98 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Greatest Songs of the New Millennium (2013) | 885 |
| 2014 | 534 | WXPN | WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2014) | 885 |
| 2018 | 638 | The Current | The Current's 893 Essential Songs | 892 |
| 2018 | 152 | WTMD | WTMD Listeners' Top 897 Songs, 2003-2018 | 896 |
| 2019 | 356 | KEXP | KEXP Listeners' Favorite Songs of All Time | 627 |
| 2019 | 146 | WYEP | WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 | 1099 |
| 2019 | 146 | WYEP | WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 | 1017 |
| 2022 | 368 | KEXP | KEXP Top Songs of the Last 50 Years (1972-2022) | 491 |
| 2023 | 568 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time | 909 |
| 2024 | 96 | WXPN | WXPN The 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century (2024) | 885 |
| 2025 | 744 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century | 909 |
| 2025 | 298 | The Current | 893 Essential Songs of The Current: 2005 to Now | 893 |
| 2025 | 325 | WYEP | WYEP Best Songs of the 21st Century (So Far) | 714 |
| 2026 | 835 | WYEP | WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time | 1180 |
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