'1989 (Taylor's Version)' by Taylor Swift: Best and Worst Songs

"Clean" has been an overlooked gem in Swift's discography for too long.

The closing track on "1989" plays an essential role in the album's story, tasked with providing catharsis, closure, and a whisper of longing that keeps you coming back for more.

Thankfully, "Clean" achieves all of the above; I previously ranked it as the fourth-best breakup song in Swift's discography.

Cowritten and produced by Imogen Heap, "Clean" is an outlier on the tracklist in the best possible way. Heap used unique instruments to achieve the rippling, rain-like production: a mbira (a thumb piano) and "these things called boomwhackers, which are for the percussion," Swift explained in a Grammy Pro video.

Heap also provides backing harmonies throughout the song, which give "Clean" a haunting quality. Where most of the songs on "1989" live in the limbs, urging you to dance and feel the music on your skin, "Clean" lives in the soul.

Due to its scaled-back sound and late tracklist placement, "Clean" has never gotten as much attention as the album's bigger, more boisterous songs. But true Swifties know how special it is. 

"Clean (Taylor's Version)" manages to recapture the magic, while also making space for a few extra flourishes. The new version sounds more luxurious and opaque — wiser, somehow. Maybe it'll finally get the recognition it deserves.

Best lyrics: "Ten months sober, I must admit / Just because you're clean, don't mean you don't miss it / Ten months older, I won't give in / Now that I'm clean, I'm never gonna risk it."

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