THE BEST ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
For people who always ask, "What are your favorite albums?" here's the answer. I start with my top pick from each year as a starting point. No, it's not "the most important albums" period, just the album that meant the most to me from each year; usually that means the album I play the most. Some years the choice was obvious, other times a few battled it out. But you could do worse as a music buff than making sure you listen to all my #1 picks. I follow this list with a breakdown of my favorite albums year by year.
THE BEST ALBUMS OF ALL TIME (MY #1 PICK FROM EACH YEAR 1924 TO THE PRESENT)
THE 2020s
THE 2010s
iLe -- Alamdura (2019)
BOBBIE GENTRY -- The Girl From Chickasaw County: The Complete Capitol Masters (2018)
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- Dreams And Daggers (2017)
DAVID BOWIE -- Blackstar and Lazarus ep / LEONARD COHEN -- You Want It Darker (2016)
SUFJAN STEVENS -- Carrie and Lowell (2015)
KAISER CHIEFS -- Education, Education, Education and War (2014)
JANELLE MONAE -- The Electric Lady (2013)
RUMER -- Seasons Of My Soul/Boys Don't Cry (2012)
FLEET FOXES -- Hopelessness Blues (2011)
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- The Wild Hunt (2010)
THE 2000s
THE AVETT BROTHERS -- I And Love And You (2009)
WILLIE NELSON AND WYNTON MARSALIS -- Two Men With The Blues (2008)
SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- 100 Days 100 Nights (2007)
GREEN DAY -- American Idiot (2004)
THE WHITE STRIPES -- Elephant (2003)
NORAH JONES -- Come Away With Me (2002)
MANU CHAO -- Proxima Estacion: Esperanza (2001)
EMINEM -- The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)
THE 1990s
DAVID GRAY -- White Ladder (1999)
BILLY BRAGG AND WILCO -- Mermaid Avenue (1998)
RADIOHEAD -- O.K. Computer (1997)
BECK -- Odelay (1996)
THE MAVERICKS -- Music For All Occasions (1995 -- tie)
ALISON KRAUSS -- Now That I've Found You: A Collection (1995 -- tie)
JOHNNY CASH -- American Recordings (1994)
CASSANDRA WILSON -- Blue Light 'Til Dawn (1993)
kd lang -- Ingenue (1992)
NIRVANA -- Nevermind (1991)
MADONNA -- The Immaculate Collection (1990)
THE 1980s
BEASTIE BOYS -- Paul's Boutique (1989)
PUBLIC ENEMY -- It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
DOLLY PARTON, LINDA RONSTADT, EMMYLOU HARRIS -- Trio (1987)
PAUL SIMON -- Graceland (1986 -- tie)
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Volume One (1986 -- tie)
BARBRA STREISAND -- The Broadway Album (1985 -- tie)
PREFAB SPROUT -- Steve McQueen aka Two Wheels Good (1985 -- tie)
U2 -- The Unforgettable Fire (1984)
R.E.M. -- Murmur (1983)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN -- Nebraska (1982)
QUEEN -- Greatest Hits (1981)
JOHN LENNON AND YOKO ONO -- Double Fantasy (1980)
THE 1970s
THE CLASH -- London Calling (1979)
WILLIE NELSON -- Stardust (1978)
STEELY DAN -- Aja (1977)
STEVIE WONDER -- Songs In The Key Of Life (1976)
BOB DYLAN -- Blood On The Tracks/The Basement Tapes (1975)
RICHARD AND LINDA THOMPSON -- I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight (1974)
BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS -- Catch A Fire/Burnin' (1973)
SIMON AND GARFUNKEL -- Greatest Hits (1972)
JONI MITCHELL -- Blue (1971)
RANDY NEWMAN -- 12 Songs (1970 -- tie)
HARRY NILSSON -- Nilsson Sings Newman (1970 -- tie)
THE 1960s
THE BEATLES -- Abbey Road (1969)
VAN MORRISON -- Astral Weeks (1968)
ARETHA FRANKLIN -- I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You) (1967)
THE BEACH BOYS -- Pet Sounds (1966 -- tie)
THE BEATLES -- Revolver (1966 -- tie)
BOB DYLAN -- Bringing It All Back Home/Highway 61 (1965)
STAN GETZ AND JOAO GILBERTO -- Getz/Gilberto (1964)
PATSY CLINE -- The Patsy Cline Story (1963)
RAY CHARLES -- Modern Sounds In Country and Western Music Vol 1 and 2 (1962)
BILL EVANS -- Sunday At The Village Vanguard/Waltz For Debby (1961)
ELLA FITZGERALD -- The Intimate Ella (1960)
THE 1950s
MILES DAVIS -- Kind Of Blue/Workin'/Porgy and Bess (1959)
ELVIS PRESLEY -- Elvis' Golden Records Vol. 1 (1958)
LERNER AND LOEWE -- My Fair Lady Original Broadway Cast (1957)
ELLA FITZGERALD -- Sings The Cole Porter Songbook (1956)
FRANK SINATRA -- In The Wee Small Hours (1955)
DINAH WASHINGTON -- Dinah Jams (1954)
PEGGY LEE -- Black Coffee (1953)
VARIOUS ARTISTS/HARRY SMITH -- The Anthology Of American Folk Music (1952)
HANK WILLIAMS -- 40 Greatest Hits (1951)
BILLIE HOLIDAY -- The Complete Decca Recordings (1944-1950) (1950)
THE 1940s
DJANGO REINHARDT -- Djangology 49 (1949)
HANK WILLIAMS -- 40 Greatest Hits (1948)
WOODY GUTHRIE -- Songs To Grow On: Nursery Days aka For Mother And Child (1947)
BING CROSY AND THE ANDREWS SISTERS -- Their Complete Recordings Together (1939-1951) (1946)
BING CROSBY -- Merry Christmas (1945)
RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN -- Oklahoma! (1944)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943 (1943)
FRANK SINATRA AND TOMMY DORSEY-- The Song Is You! 1940-1942 on RCA Victor (1942)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Blanton-Webster Band (1941)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Blanton-Webster Band/1937-1940 on Classics Label (1940)
THE 1930s
GLENN MILLER -- The Essential Glenn Miller (1939)
BENNY GOODMAN -- Benny Goodman At Carnegie Hall (1938)
BILLIE HOLIDAY -- The Quintessential Billie Holiday Vol 3-4 1936-1937 (1937)
ROBERT JOHNSON -- King Of The Delta Blues Singers Vol. 1 (1936)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Decca 1934-1954] (1935)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Brunswick 1931-1934; Decca 1934-1954] (1934)
BESSIE SMITH -- The Collection (1933)
THE MILLS BROTHERS -- The 1930's Recordings (1932)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Brunswick 1931-1934] (1931)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The OKeh Ellington 1927-1930/1924-1930 on Classics Label (1930)
THE 1920s
CHARLEY PATTON -- King Of The Delta Blues (1929-1934) (1929)
MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT -- Avalon Blues: The Complete 1928 Okeh Recordings (1928)
HENRY THOMAS -- Bull Doze Blues (1927-1929)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1927)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1926)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1925)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- 1924-1930 on Classics Label (1924)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2022 (work-in-progress)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2021
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2019
iLe -- Almadura
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nostalgique Porto Rico (Puerto Rican Roots 1940-1960)
BAD BUNNY -- X100PRE (out Dec 2018)
BAD BUNNY AND J BALVIN -- Oasis
LIZZO -- Cuz I Love You
ARI LENNOX -- Shea Butter Baby
BRANFORD MARSALIS -- The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul
SOLANGE -- When I Get Home
NICK CAVE -- Ghosteen
ANDY BURROWS AND MATT HAIG -- Reasons To Stay Alive
DORI FREEMAN -- Every Little Star
TINARIWEN -- Amadjar
MDOU MOCTAR -- Ileana (The Creator)
WEYES BLOOD -- Titanic Rising --
JOHN LUTHER ADAMS -- Become Desert
ANDREW NORMAN -- Sustain
TANYA TUCKER -- While I'm Living
JUDY COLLINS -- Winter Stories (w Jonas Fjeld and Chatham County Line)
MANSION HARLOTS -- All Around A Fairground --
TYLER, THE CREATOR -- IGOR --
CAROLINE SHAW -- Orange
DEREK BERMEL -- Migrations --
STURGILL SIMPSON -- Sound & Fury --
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood --
MARIACHI LOS CAMPEROS -- De Ayer Para Siempre --
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- I Love You. It's A Fever Dream
BILLIE EILISH -- When We All Fall Asleep
VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Father Of The Bride --
LAKOU MIZIK -- HaitiNola
CHRISTIAN SCOTT ATUNDE ADJUAH -- Ancestral Blues
ANGELIQUE KIDJO -- Celia --
NEIL YOUNG -- Colorado --
FRANK TURNER -- No Man's Land --
STILE ANTICO -- In A Strange Land: Elizabethan Composers in Exile --
BECK -- Hyperspace --
MICHAEL KIWANUKA -- Kiwanuka --
ALLISON MOORER -- Blood --
DAVE MALLOY --- Octet (Original Cast Recording) --
THE GARIFUNA COLLECTIVE -- Aban --
WILCO -- Ode To Joy
JOE JACKSON -- Fool
JEFF LYNNE'S ELO -- From Out Of Nowhere --
PAUL KELLY -- Songs From The South: Paul Kelly's Greatest Hits 1985-2019
JULIA JACKLIN -- Crushing
KEVIN MORBY -- Oh My God --
LOS LOBOS -- Llegó Navidad
STILE ANTICO -- A Spanish Nativity
ROBBIE WILLIAMS -- The Christmas Present
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2018
BOBBIE GENTRY -- The Girl From Chickaswaw County boxed set
JANELLE MONÁE -- Dirty Computer
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- Heaven And Earth
ANGELIQUE KIDJO -- Remain In Light
BAD BUNNY -- X100PRE
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Pray For The Wicked
BRANDI CARLISLE -- By The Way, I Forgive You
THE JOHN SALLY RIDE -- Nothing Doing
NELLIE MCKAY -- Sister Orchid
BETA RADIO -- Transition
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Black Panther
For people who always ask, "What are your favorite albums?" here's the answer. I start with my top pick from each year as a starting point. No, it's not "the most important albums" period, just the album that meant the most to me from each year; usually that means the album I play the most. Some years the choice was obvious, other times a few battled it out. But you could do worse as a music buff than making sure you listen to all my #1 picks. I follow this list with a breakdown of my favorite albums year by year.
THE BEST ALBUMS OF ALL TIME (MY #1 PICK FROM EACH YEAR 1924 TO THE PRESENT)
THE 2020s
TK (2023 work-in-progress)
ELVIS COSTELLO -- The Boy Named If /The Resurrection of Rust (2022 work-in-progress)
FLOATING POINTS AND PHAROAH SANDERS -- Promises (2021)
A GIRL CALLED EDDY -- Been Around (2020)
THE 2010s
iLe -- Alamdura (2019)
BOBBIE GENTRY -- The Girl From Chickasaw County: The Complete Capitol Masters (2018)
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- Dreams And Daggers (2017)
DAVID BOWIE -- Blackstar and Lazarus ep / LEONARD COHEN -- You Want It Darker (2016)
SUFJAN STEVENS -- Carrie and Lowell (2015)
KAISER CHIEFS -- Education, Education, Education and War (2014)
JANELLE MONAE -- The Electric Lady (2013)
RUMER -- Seasons Of My Soul/Boys Don't Cry (2012)
FLEET FOXES -- Hopelessness Blues (2011)
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- The Wild Hunt (2010)
THE 2000s
THE AVETT BROTHERS -- I And Love And You (2009)
WILLIE NELSON AND WYNTON MARSALIS -- Two Men With The Blues (2008)
SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- 100 Days 100 Nights (2007)
CORINNE BAILEY RAE -- Corinne Bailey Rae/ JAMES HUNTER -- People Gonna Talk (2006)
SUFJAN STEVENS -- Illinois (2005)GREEN DAY -- American Idiot (2004)
THE WHITE STRIPES -- Elephant (2003)
NORAH JONES -- Come Away With Me (2002)
MANU CHAO -- Proxima Estacion: Esperanza (2001)
EMINEM -- The Marshall Mathers LP (2000)
THE 1990s
DAVID GRAY -- White Ladder (1999)
BILLY BRAGG AND WILCO -- Mermaid Avenue (1998)
RADIOHEAD -- O.K. Computer (1997)
BECK -- Odelay (1996)
THE MAVERICKS -- Music For All Occasions (1995 -- tie)
ALISON KRAUSS -- Now That I've Found You: A Collection (1995 -- tie)
JOHNNY CASH -- American Recordings (1994)
CASSANDRA WILSON -- Blue Light 'Til Dawn (1993)
kd lang -- Ingenue (1992)
NIRVANA -- Nevermind (1991)
MADONNA -- The Immaculate Collection (1990)
THE 1980s
BEASTIE BOYS -- Paul's Boutique (1989)
PUBLIC ENEMY -- It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
DOLLY PARTON, LINDA RONSTADT, EMMYLOU HARRIS -- Trio (1987)
PAUL SIMON -- Graceland (1986 -- tie)
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Volume One (1986 -- tie)
BARBRA STREISAND -- The Broadway Album (1985 -- tie)
PREFAB SPROUT -- Steve McQueen aka Two Wheels Good (1985 -- tie)
U2 -- The Unforgettable Fire (1984)
R.E.M. -- Murmur (1983)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN -- Nebraska (1982)
QUEEN -- Greatest Hits (1981)
JOHN LENNON AND YOKO ONO -- Double Fantasy (1980)
THE 1970s
THE CLASH -- London Calling (1979)
WILLIE NELSON -- Stardust (1978)
STEELY DAN -- Aja (1977)
STEVIE WONDER -- Songs In The Key Of Life (1976)
BOB DYLAN -- Blood On The Tracks/The Basement Tapes (1975)
RICHARD AND LINDA THOMPSON -- I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight (1974)
BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS -- Catch A Fire/Burnin' (1973)
SIMON AND GARFUNKEL -- Greatest Hits (1972)
JONI MITCHELL -- Blue (1971)
RANDY NEWMAN -- 12 Songs (1970 -- tie)
HARRY NILSSON -- Nilsson Sings Newman (1970 -- tie)
THE 1960s
THE BEATLES -- Abbey Road (1969)
VAN MORRISON -- Astral Weeks (1968)
ARETHA FRANKLIN -- I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You) (1967)
THE BEACH BOYS -- Pet Sounds (1966 -- tie)
THE BEATLES -- Revolver (1966 -- tie)
BOB DYLAN -- Bringing It All Back Home/Highway 61 (1965)
STAN GETZ AND JOAO GILBERTO -- Getz/Gilberto (1964)
PATSY CLINE -- The Patsy Cline Story (1963)
RAY CHARLES -- Modern Sounds In Country and Western Music Vol 1 and 2 (1962)
BILL EVANS -- Sunday At The Village Vanguard/Waltz For Debby (1961)
ELLA FITZGERALD -- The Intimate Ella (1960)
THE 1950s
MILES DAVIS -- Kind Of Blue/Workin'/Porgy and Bess (1959)
ELVIS PRESLEY -- Elvis' Golden Records Vol. 1 (1958)
LERNER AND LOEWE -- My Fair Lady Original Broadway Cast (1957)
ELLA FITZGERALD -- Sings The Cole Porter Songbook (1956)
FRANK SINATRA -- In The Wee Small Hours (1955)
DINAH WASHINGTON -- Dinah Jams (1954)
PEGGY LEE -- Black Coffee (1953)
VARIOUS ARTISTS/HARRY SMITH -- The Anthology Of American Folk Music (1952)
HANK WILLIAMS -- 40 Greatest Hits (1951)
BILLIE HOLIDAY -- The Complete Decca Recordings (1944-1950) (1950)
THE 1940s
DJANGO REINHARDT -- Djangology 49 (1949)
HANK WILLIAMS -- 40 Greatest Hits (1948)
WOODY GUTHRIE -- Songs To Grow On: Nursery Days aka For Mother And Child (1947)
BING CROSY AND THE ANDREWS SISTERS -- Their Complete Recordings Together (1939-1951) (1946)
BING CROSBY -- Merry Christmas (1945)
RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN -- Oklahoma! (1944)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943 (1943)
FRANK SINATRA AND TOMMY DORSEY-- The Song Is You! 1940-1942 on RCA Victor (1942)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Blanton-Webster Band (1941)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The Blanton-Webster Band/1937-1940 on Classics Label (1940)
THE 1930s
GLENN MILLER -- The Essential Glenn Miller (1939)
BENNY GOODMAN -- Benny Goodman At Carnegie Hall (1938)
BILLIE HOLIDAY -- The Quintessential Billie Holiday Vol 3-4 1936-1937 (1937)
ROBERT JOHNSON -- King Of The Delta Blues Singers Vol. 1 (1936)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Decca 1934-1954] (1935)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Brunswick 1931-1934; Decca 1934-1954] (1934)
BESSIE SMITH -- The Collection (1933)
THE MILLS BROTHERS -- The 1930's Recordings (1932)
BING CROSY -- Bing Crosby: His Legendary Years (1931-1957) [Brunswick 1931-1934] (1931)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- The OKeh Ellington 1927-1930/1924-1930 on Classics Label (1930)
THE 1920s
CHARLEY PATTON -- King Of The Delta Blues (1929-1934) (1929)
MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT -- Avalon Blues: The Complete 1928 Okeh Recordings (1928)
HENRY THOMAS -- Bull Doze Blues (1927-1929)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1927)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1926)
LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- The Complete Hot Five And Seven Recordings (1925)
DUKE ELLINGTON -- 1924-1930 on Classics Label (1924)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2022 (work-in-progress)
ELVIS COSTELLO -- The Boy Named If /The Resurrection of Rust
HARRY STYLES -- Harry's House ESLABÓN ARMADO -- Nostalgia
WET LEG -- Wet Leg
TOMMY MCLAIN -- I Ran Down Every Dream
CHARLIE GABRIEL AND THE PRESERVATION HALL Jazz BAND -- 89
BARBRA STREISAND -- Live At The Bon Soir
iLe -- Nacarile
ALTAMEDA -- Born Losers
BAD BUNNY -- Un Verano Sin Ti
WEYES BLOOD -- And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow
ROLLING STONES -- Live At The El Mocambo
MIRANDA LAMBERT -- Palomino
JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON -- Drone Mass
LADY BLACKBIRD -- Black Acid Soul
NOORI & HIS DORPA BAND -- Beja Power! Electric Soul & Brass From Sudan's Red Sea Coast
DR. JOHN -- Things Happen That Way
THE LICKERISH QUARTET -- Threesome
SILVANA ESTRADA -- Marchita
JOEL ROSS -- The Parable Of The Poet
VARIOUS Artists -- Gotta Get A Good Thing Goin': Black Music In Britain In The Sixties
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Before The Day Is Done: The Story Of Folk Heritage Records 1968-1975
ASHLEY MCBRYDE -- Presents Lindeville
IAN NOE -- River Fools and Mountain Saints
JULIA BULLOCK -- Walking In The Dark
STEVE LACY -- Gemini Rights
JUDY COLLINS -- Spellbound
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Music From And Inspired By
COLIN HAY -- Now and The Evermore OUMOU SANGARÉ -- Timbuktu
DUNCAN SHEIK -- Claptrap
BINKER & MOSES -- Feeding The Machine
GOGOL BORDELLO -- Solidaritine
MADONNA -- Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones
VIGÜELA -- A La Manera Artesana
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Viva Las Vengeance
THE MOVERS -- Vol. 1: 1970-1976
LONE BELLOW -- Love Songs For Losers
MEGHAN TRAINOR -- Takin' It Back
MIDLAKE -- For The Sake Of Bethel Woods
ALEC BENJAMIN -- (Un)Commentary
RENÉE FLEMING -- Voice Of Nature: The Anthropocene
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2021
FLOATING POINTS AND PHAROAH SANDERS -- Promises
THE CORAL -- Coral Island
C. TANGANA -- El Madrileño
ROBERT PLANT AND ALISON KRAUSS -- Raise The Roof
BRANDI CARLILE -- In These Silent Days (In The Canyon Haze edition out 2022)
AIMEE MANN -- Queen Of The Summer Hotels
JOHN MAYER -- Sob Rock
ALLISON RUSSELL -- Outside Child
CHEAP TRICK -- In Another World
THE JOHN SALLY RIDE -- Now Is Not A Good Time
JEREMIAH FRAITES -- Piano Piano / FLEET FOXES -- A Very Lonely Solstice
DORI FREEMAN -- Ten Thousand Roses
JUSTIN BIEBER -- Justice
MIRANDA LAMBERT, JACK INGRAM, JON RANDALL -- The Marfa Tapes
CARÍN LEON -- Inédito
BILLIE EILISH -- Happier Than Ever
IKE REILLY -- Because The Angels
ALICIA KEYS -- Keys
MICKY DOLENZ -- Dolenz Sings Nesmith
ASHE -- Ashlyn
EMILE MOSSERI -- Minari soundtrack
LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM -- Lindsey Buckingham
NATALIA LAFOURCADE -- Un Canto por México, Vol. II
LORD HURON -- Long Lost
SAULT -- Nine
CARLY PEARCE -- 29: Written In Stone
MON LAFERTE -- Seis
POKEY LAFARGE -- In The Blossom Of Their Shade
ST. VINCENT -- Daddy's Home
BOB DYLAN -- Shadow Kingdom
WILLIAM TYLER -- First Cow soundtrack
AROOJ AFTAB -- Vulture Prince
SELF ESTEEM -- Prioritize Pleasure
LUCY DACUS -- Home Video
NICK CAVE AND WARREN ELLIS -- Carnage
MANDY BARNETT -- Every Star Above
MARGO TIMMINS -- The Ty Tyrfu Sessions
RODRIGO AMARANTE -- Drama
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Things Take Time, Take Time
COLIN HAY -- I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself
THE FLATLANDERS -- Treasure of Love
ABBA -- Voyage
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2020
A GIRL CALLED EDDY -- Been Around
BEASTIE BOYS -- Beastie Boys Music
FIONA APPLE -- Fetch The Bold Cutters
BAD BUNNY -- YHLQMDLG/Las Que No Iban A Salir/El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo / THE MAVERICKS -- En Español
LINA RODRIGUEZ -- Lina_Raul Refree
CHUCK PROPHET -- The Land That Time Forgot /MIKE VIOLA -- Godmuffin
RUMER -- Nashville Tears: The Songs Of Hugh Prestwood
IMMANUEL WILKINS -- Omega
TEYANA TAYLOR -- The Album / SAULT -- Untitled (Black Is) and Untitled (Rise)
CLARICE JENSEN -- The Experience Of Repetition As Death/ OLAFUR ARNALDS -- Some Kind Of Peace
NEIL YOUNG -- Homegrown (recorded in 1975)
ELLA FITZGERALD -- Ella: The Lost Berlin Tapes (Live) (recorded in 1962)
BRANDY CLARK -- Your Life Is A Record
GREEN DAY -- Father of All Motherfuckers
DUA LIPA -- Future Nostalgia
SHARHABIL AHMED -- The King Of Sudanese Jazz /ONENESS OF JUJU -- African Rhythms 1970-1982
MARIA MCKEE -- La Vita Nuova
MOSES SUMNEY -- grae
PHOEBE BRIDGERS -- Punisher / HAIM -- Women In Music III
ROBERT CRAY -- That's What I Heard /ERROL LINTON -- No Entry
TEDDY THOMPSON -- Heartbreaker Please
TAMI NEILSON -- Chickaboom!
BARRY MANILOW -- Night Songs II
LIANNE LA HAVAS -- Lianne La Havas
HAROLD LOPEZ-NUSSA -- Te Lo Dije
THE STRUTS -- Strange Days
BOB DYLAN -- Rough and Rowdy Ways
HAROLD BUDD AND ROBIN GUTHRIE -- Another Flower / BRIAN ENO AND ROGER ENO -- Mixing Colours
FLEET FOXES -- Shore
GROUPE RTD -- The Dancing Devils Of Djibouti
BOB MOULD -- Blue Hearts
PHILIP GLASS -- Music In Eight Parts / TRISTAN PERICH -- Drift Multiply
STEVE EARLE -- Ghosts Of West Virginia
CARLA BLEY -- Life Goes On / JIMMY HEATH -- Love Letter
THE JAYHAWKS -- Xoxo
MICHAEL HARRISON W ROOMFUL OF TEETH -- Just Constellations
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- Quickies / SPARKS -- A Steady Drip Drip Drip
JOHN BEASLEY -- MONK'estra Plays John Beasley
JAKE BLOUNT -- Spider Tales
TONY ALLEN AND HUGH MASEKALA -- Rejoice!
PAUL WELLER -- On Sunset
ALEC BENJAMIN -- These Two Windows / ELLIOTT BROOD -- Keeper
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2019
iLe -- Almadura
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nostalgique Porto Rico (Puerto Rican Roots 1940-1960)
BAD BUNNY -- X100PRE (out Dec 2018)
BAD BUNNY AND J BALVIN -- Oasis
LIZZO -- Cuz I Love You
ARI LENNOX -- Shea Butter Baby
BRANFORD MARSALIS -- The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul
SOLANGE -- When I Get Home
NICK CAVE -- Ghosteen
ANDY BURROWS AND MATT HAIG -- Reasons To Stay Alive
DORI FREEMAN -- Every Little Star
TINARIWEN -- Amadjar
MDOU MOCTAR -- Ileana (The Creator)
WEYES BLOOD -- Titanic Rising --
JOHN LUTHER ADAMS -- Become Desert
ANDREW NORMAN -- Sustain
TANYA TUCKER -- While I'm Living
JUDY COLLINS -- Winter Stories (w Jonas Fjeld and Chatham County Line)
MANSION HARLOTS -- All Around A Fairground --
TYLER, THE CREATOR -- IGOR --
CAROLINE SHAW -- Orange
DEREK BERMEL -- Migrations --
STURGILL SIMPSON -- Sound & Fury --
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood --
MARIACHI LOS CAMPEROS -- De Ayer Para Siempre --
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- I Love You. It's A Fever Dream
BILLIE EILISH -- When We All Fall Asleep
VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Father Of The Bride --
LAKOU MIZIK -- HaitiNola
CHRISTIAN SCOTT ATUNDE ADJUAH -- Ancestral Blues
ANGELIQUE KIDJO -- Celia --
NEIL YOUNG -- Colorado --
FRANK TURNER -- No Man's Land --
STILE ANTICO -- In A Strange Land: Elizabethan Composers in Exile --
BECK -- Hyperspace --
MICHAEL KIWANUKA -- Kiwanuka --
ALLISON MOORER -- Blood --
DAVE MALLOY --- Octet (Original Cast Recording) --
THE GARIFUNA COLLECTIVE -- Aban --
WILCO -- Ode To Joy
JOE JACKSON -- Fool
JEFF LYNNE'S ELO -- From Out Of Nowhere --
PAUL KELLY -- Songs From The South: Paul Kelly's Greatest Hits 1985-2019
JULIA JACKLIN -- Crushing
KEVIN MORBY -- Oh My God --
LOS LOBOS -- Llegó Navidad
STILE ANTICO -- A Spanish Nativity
ROBBIE WILLIAMS -- The Christmas Present
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2018
BOBBIE GENTRY -- The Girl From Chickaswaw County boxed set
JANELLE MONÁE -- Dirty Computer
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- Heaven And Earth
ANGELIQUE KIDJO -- Remain In Light
BAD BUNNY -- X100PRE
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Pray For The Wicked
BRANDI CARLISLE -- By The Way, I Forgive You
THE JOHN SALLY RIDE -- Nothing Doing
NELLIE MCKAY -- Sister Orchid
BETA RADIO -- Transition
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Black Panther
YOUNG GUN SILVER FOX -- AM Waves
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- The Window
ARCTIC MONKEYS -- Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino
KASEY CHAMBERS -- Campfire
BENJAMIN JAFFE -- Oh, Wild Oceans Of Love
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- African Scream Contest 2
SHAKEY GRAVES -- Can't Wake Up
ESPERANZA SPALDING -- 12 Little Steps
ELVIS COSTELLO -- Look Now
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Tell Me How You Really Feel
TONY BENNETT AND DIANA KRALL -- Love Is Here To Stay
BIRCH PEREIRA -- Western Soul
TRACEY THORN -- Record
SCOTT MATTHEWS -- The Great Untold
MACY GRAY -- Ruby
JASON ALDEAN -- Rearview Town
MADELEINE PEYROUX -- Anthem
DRAKE -- Scorpion
JAMES HUNTER -- Whatever It Takes
TROYE SIVAN -- Bloom
RICK SPRINGFIELD -- The Snake King
LINDA THOMPSON -- My Mother Doesn't Know I'm On The Stage
FALL OUT BOY -- Mania
ROSEANNE CASH -- She Remembers Everything
BUDDY GUY -- The Blues Is Alive And Well
GORILLAZ -- The Now Now
MANDY PATINKIN -- Diary: January 27, 2018/April May 2018
JOSH ROUSE -- Love In The Modern Age
THE VINES -- In Miracle Land
JEFF TWEEDY -- Warm
BOZ SCAGGS -- Out Of The Blues
ELLA FITZGERALD/LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- Cheek To Cheek: The Complete Duet Recordings
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2017
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- Dreams And Daggers
CHRIS STAPLETON -- From A Room, Vol. 1
ORCHESTRA BAOBAB -- Tribute To Ndiouga Dieng
SZA -- Ctrl
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Hadestown Original Cast Album (Off Bway)
JOHN MORELAND -- Big Bad Luv
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- 50 Song Memoir
SIA -- Everyday is Christmas
THE JOHN SALLY RIDE -- A New Set Of Downs
COURTNEY BARNETT AND KURT VILE -- Lotta Sea Lice
KASEY CHAMBERS -- Dragonfly
BOB DYLAN -- Triplicate
DANIEL CAESAR -- Freudian
JASON ISBELL -- The Nashville Sound
MARGO PRICE -- All American Made
KENDRICK LAMAR -- Damn
KRONOS QUARTET AND TRIO DA KALI -- Ladilikan
STANTON MOORE -- With You In Mind
AIMEE MANN -- Mental Illness
JAKE XERXES FUSSELL -- What In The Natural World
LORDE -- Melodrama
DON BRYANT -- Don't Give Up On Love
ROBERT CRAY AND HI RHYTHM -- Robert Cray and Hi Rhythm
CURTIS HARDING -- Face Your Fears
CHARLY BLISS -- Guppy
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Sunday in The Park With George (Bway 2017)
THE NATIONAL -- Sleep Well Beast
MOSES SUMNEY -- Aromanticism
SAMPHA -- Process
WESLEY STACE'S JOHN WESLEY HARDING -- Wesley Stace's John Wesley Harding
DORA FREEMAN -- Letter Never Sent
ANNA TIVEL -- Small Believer
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- Harmony of Difference
CHEAP TRICK -- We're All Alright!
SAZ'SIO -- At Least Wave Your Handkerchief At Me
RON SEXSMITH -- The Last Rider
INDIA.ARIE -- Songversation: Medicine
LARRY CAMPBELL AND TERESA WILLIAMS -- Contraband Love
KHALID -- American Teen
ZULI -- On Human Freakout Mountain
LEWIS CAPALDI -- Bloom
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Southern Soul Crate
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Baby Driver OST
RODNEY CROWELL -- Close Ties
JOHN MELLENCAMP -- Sad Clowns and Hillbillies
OZUNA -- Odisea
LIAM GALLAGHER -- As You Were
DAVID RAWLINGS -- Poor David's Almanack
JUANES -- Mis Planes Son Amarte
FAIRPORT CONVENTION -- Come All Ye -- The First Ten Years (1968-1978)
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO -- Songs Of Peace and Love
HOBO JOHNSON -- The Rise Of Hobo Johnson
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2016
DAVID BOWIE -- Blackstar + Lazarus EP
LEONARD COHEN -- You Want It Darker
MAXWELL -- blackSUMMERnights
CHANCE THE RAPPER -- Coloring Book
JOSHUA REDMAN AND BRAD MEHLDAU -- Nearness
EMMYLOU HARRIS, DOLLY PARTON, LINDA RONSTADT -- Trio: The Complete Collection
TEDDY THOMPSON AND KELLY JONES -- Little Windows
SOLANGE -- A Seat At The Table
JAMES HUNTER -- Hold On!
STURGILL SIMPSON -- A Sailor's Guide To Earth
KANYE WEST -- The Life Of Pablo
THE MONKEES -- Good Times!
REGINA SPEKTOR -- Remember Us To Life
KENNY BARRON -- Book Of Intuition
RADIOHEAD -- A Moon Shaped Pool
MIRANDA LAMBERT -- The Weight Of These Wings
GREEN DAY -- Revolution Radio
BOB DYLAN -- Fallen Angels
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Death Of A Bachelor
MAHALIA JACKSON -- Moving On Up A Little Higher
DORI FREEMAN -- Dori Freeman
MARGO PRICE -- Midwest Farmer's Daughter
A TRIBE CALLED QUEST -- We've Got It From Here...Thank You For Your Service
PET SHOP BOYS -- Super
MUDCRUTCH -- Mudcrutch 2
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- The Window
ARCTIC MONKEYS -- Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino
KASEY CHAMBERS -- Campfire
BENJAMIN JAFFE -- Oh, Wild Oceans Of Love
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- African Scream Contest 2
SHAKEY GRAVES -- Can't Wake Up
ESPERANZA SPALDING -- 12 Little Steps
ELVIS COSTELLO -- Look Now
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Tell Me How You Really Feel
NAS -- Nasir
TONY BENNETT AND DIANA KRALL -- Love Is Here To Stay
BIRCH PEREIRA -- Western Soul
TRACEY THORN -- Record
SCOTT MATTHEWS -- The Great Untold
MACY GRAY -- Ruby
JASON ALDEAN -- Rearview Town
MADELEINE PEYROUX -- Anthem
DRAKE -- Scorpion
JAMES HUNTER -- Whatever It Takes
TROYE SIVAN -- Bloom
RICK SPRINGFIELD -- The Snake King
LINDA THOMPSON -- My Mother Doesn't Know I'm On The Stage
FALL OUT BOY -- Mania
ROSEANNE CASH -- She Remembers Everything
BUDDY GUY -- The Blues Is Alive And Well
GORILLAZ -- The Now Now
MANDY PATINKIN -- Diary: January 27, 2018/April May 2018
JOSH ROUSE -- Love In The Modern Age
THE VINES -- In Miracle Land
JEFF TWEEDY -- Warm
BOZ SCAGGS -- Out Of The Blues
ELLA FITZGERALD/LOUIS ARMSTRONG -- Cheek To Cheek: The Complete Duet Recordings
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2017
CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- Dreams And Daggers
CHRIS STAPLETON -- From A Room, Vol. 1
ORCHESTRA BAOBAB -- Tribute To Ndiouga Dieng
SZA -- Ctrl
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Hadestown Original Cast Album (Off Bway)
JOHN MORELAND -- Big Bad Luv
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- 50 Song Memoir
SIA -- Everyday is Christmas
THE JOHN SALLY RIDE -- A New Set Of Downs
COURTNEY BARNETT AND KURT VILE -- Lotta Sea Lice
KASEY CHAMBERS -- Dragonfly
BOB DYLAN -- Triplicate
DANIEL CAESAR -- Freudian
JASON ISBELL -- The Nashville Sound
MARGO PRICE -- All American Made
KENDRICK LAMAR -- Damn
KRONOS QUARTET AND TRIO DA KALI -- Ladilikan
STANTON MOORE -- With You In Mind
AIMEE MANN -- Mental Illness
JAKE XERXES FUSSELL -- What In The Natural World
LORDE -- Melodrama
DON BRYANT -- Don't Give Up On Love
ROBERT CRAY AND HI RHYTHM -- Robert Cray and Hi Rhythm
CURTIS HARDING -- Face Your Fears
CHARLY BLISS -- Guppy
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Sunday in The Park With George (Bway 2017)
THE NATIONAL -- Sleep Well Beast
MOSES SUMNEY -- Aromanticism
SAMPHA -- Process
WESLEY STACE'S JOHN WESLEY HARDING -- Wesley Stace's John Wesley Harding
DORA FREEMAN -- Letter Never Sent
ANNA TIVEL -- Small Believer
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- Harmony of Difference
CHEAP TRICK -- We're All Alright!
SAZ'SIO -- At Least Wave Your Handkerchief At Me
RON SEXSMITH -- The Last Rider
INDIA.ARIE -- Songversation: Medicine
LARRY CAMPBELL AND TERESA WILLIAMS -- Contraband Love
KHALID -- American Teen
ZULI -- On Human Freakout Mountain
LEWIS CAPALDI -- Bloom
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Southern Soul Crate
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Baby Driver OST
RODNEY CROWELL -- Close Ties
JOHN MELLENCAMP -- Sad Clowns and Hillbillies
OZUNA -- Odisea
LIAM GALLAGHER -- As You Were
DAVID RAWLINGS -- Poor David's Almanack
JUANES -- Mis Planes Son Amarte
FAIRPORT CONVENTION -- Come All Ye -- The First Ten Years (1968-1978)
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO -- Songs Of Peace and Love
HOBO JOHNSON -- The Rise Of Hobo Johnson
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2016
DAVID BOWIE -- Blackstar + Lazarus EP
LEONARD COHEN -- You Want It Darker
MAXWELL -- blackSUMMERnights
CHANCE THE RAPPER -- Coloring Book
JOSHUA REDMAN AND BRAD MEHLDAU -- Nearness
EMMYLOU HARRIS, DOLLY PARTON, LINDA RONSTADT -- Trio: The Complete Collection
TEDDY THOMPSON AND KELLY JONES -- Little Windows
SOLANGE -- A Seat At The Table
JAMES HUNTER -- Hold On!
STURGILL SIMPSON -- A Sailor's Guide To Earth
KANYE WEST -- The Life Of Pablo
THE MONKEES -- Good Times!
REGINA SPEKTOR -- Remember Us To Life
KENNY BARRON -- Book Of Intuition
RADIOHEAD -- A Moon Shaped Pool
MIRANDA LAMBERT -- The Weight Of These Wings
GREEN DAY -- Revolution Radio
BOB DYLAN -- Fallen Angels
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Death Of A Bachelor
MAHALIA JACKSON -- Moving On Up A Little Higher
DORI FREEMAN -- Dori Freeman
MARGO PRICE -- Midwest Farmer's Daughter
A TRIBE CALLED QUEST -- We've Got It From Here...Thank You For Your Service
PET SHOP BOYS -- Super
MUDCRUTCH -- Mudcrutch 2
JUDY COLLINS -- Silver Skies Blue
SHIRLEY COLLINS -- Lodestar
NICHOLAS KRGOVICH -- The Hills
JANE SIBERRY -- Ulysses' Purse
CAR SEAT HEADREST -- Teens Of Denial
JACK WHITE -- Acoustic Recordings: 1998-2016
DUNCAN SHEIK -- Legerdemain/American Psycho
JOE LOVANO -- Classic! Live At Newport
DWIGHT YOAKUM -- Swimming Pools, Movie Stars
KING CREOSOTE AND MICHAEL JOHNSTON -- When I Was A Thief
LUCKY PETERSON -- Long Nights
PJ HARVEY -- The Hope Six Demolition Project
COMMON -- Black America Again
LED ZEPPELIN -- The BBC Sessions
CALYPSO ROSE -- Far From Home
ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM -- Dear Evan Hansen
BRIAN ENO -- The Ship
PSYCHIC TEMPLE -- Plays Music For Airports
THE STRUTS -- Everybody Wants Some
case/lang/viers -- case/lang/viers
CONOR OBERST -- Ruminations
HOUSTON PEARSON AND RON CARTER -- Chemistry
CHARLIE PUTH -- Nine Track Mind
BRENNEN LEIGH -- Sings Lefty Frizzell
THE LUMINEERS -- Cleopatra
LAURA MVULA -- The Dreaming Room
ESPERANZA SPALDING -- Emily's D-evolution
CORINNE BAILEY RAE -- The Heart Speaks
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2015
SUFJAN STEVENS -- Carrie and Lowell
JILL SCOTT -- Woman
KENDRICK LAMAR -- To Pimp A Butterfly
CHRIS STAPLETON -- Traveller
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- Dark Bird Is Home
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Sometimes I Just Sit And Think And Sometimes I Just Sit
TONY BENNETT AND BILL CHARLAP -- The Silver Lining: The SongsOf Jerome Kern *** 1/2
THE FRATELLIS -- Eyes Wide Tongue Tied
IRIS DEMENT -- The Trackless Woods
IKE REILLY -- Born On Fire
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- The Epic
BOZ SCAGGS -- A Fool To Care
KACEY MUSGRAVES -- Pageant Material
LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA -- Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast)
ORANGE HUMBLE BAND -- Depressing Beauty
COWBOY JUNKIES -- Notes Falling Slowly
TINARIWEN -- Live In Paris, 2014
CARRIE UNDERWOOD -- Storyteller
TAME IMPALA -- Currents
LARRY CAMPBELL AND TERESA WILLIAMS -- Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams
AMY LAVERE AND WILL SEXTON -- Hallelujah I'm A Dreamer
DRAKE -- If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
WYNTON MARSALIS/JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER BIG BAND -- Big Band Holiday
SARA BAREILLES -- What's Inside: Music From Waitress
JASON ISBELL -- Something More Than Free
VINCE STAPLES -- Summertime '06
VERUCA SALT -- Ghost Notes
LOS LOBOS -- Gates Of Gold
LINDI ORTEGA -- Faded Gloryville
SHAKEY GRAVES -- Nobody's Fool
STEVE EARLE -- Terraplace
FALL OUT BOY -- American Beauty/American Psycho
GARNET MIMMS -- Looking For You: The Complete United Artists and Veep Singles /
CONNIE CONVERSE -- How Sad, How Lovely
PATTY GRIFFIN -- Servant Of Love
LADY LAMB THE BEEKEEPER -- After
BONES -- Powder
DWIGHT YOAKAM -- Second-Hand Heart
DANIEL ROMANO -- If I've Only One Time Askin'
ADELE -- 25
THE MAVERICKS -- Mono
ANDERSON EAST -- Delilah
DON HENLEY -- Cass County
CAGE THE ELEPHANT -- Tell Me I'm Pretty
ERIC CHURCH -- Mr. Misunderstood
BOB DYLAN -- Shadows In The Night
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2014
KAISER CHIEFS -- Education, Education, Education and War
STURGILL SIMPSON -- Metamodern Sounds In Country Music
SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- Give The People What They Want
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Double EP: A Sea Of Spilt Peas
JOHN LUTHER ADAMS -- Become Ocean
BONES -- Skinny and Rotten and Seabed et al
BECK -- Morning Phase
THE FEELING -- Boy Cried Wolf
AMY LAVERE -- Runaway's Diary
BETTY BUCKLEY -- Ghostlight
BRIAN ENO AND KARL HYDE -- Someday World
BETA RADIO -- Colony Of Bees
BEN L'ONCLE SOUL -- A Coup de Reves
JIMMER PODRASKY -- The Would-Be Plans
CHUCK PROPHET -- Night Surfer
HENRY BUTLER AND STEVEN BERNSTEIN -- Viper's Drag
ARIANA GRANDE -- My Everything
TINARIWEN -- Emmar
THE VINES -- Wicked Nature
BENJAMIN BOOKER -- Benjamin Booker
DAMON ALBARN -- Everyday Robots
MARY J BLIGE -- The London Sessions
J COLE -- 2014 Forest Hills Drive
HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF -- Small Town Heroes
ROSANNE CASH -- The River And The Thread
HAMILTON LEITHAUSER -- Dark Hours
DYLAN GARDNER -- Adventures In Real Time (tie) and
PETE MOLINARI -- Theosophy '14 (tie)
COMMON -- Nobody's Smiling
KELLY WILLIS AND BRUCE ROBISON -- Our Year
LEONARD COHEN -- Popular Problems
GREG ASHLEY -- Another Generation of Slaves
STANTON MOORE -- Conversations
THE GHOST OF A SABER TOOTH TIGER -- Midnight Sun
SKATERS -- Manhattan
TOM PETTY -- Hypnotic Eye
BEN HOWARD -- I Forget Where We Were
RUMER -- Into Colour
ROBBIE WILLIAMS -- Under The Radar, Vol. 1
JOHN HIATT -- Terms Of My Surrender
SHE AND HIM -- Classics
THE VERONICAS -- The Veronicas
OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW -- Remedy
tUnE yArDs -- Nikki Nack
TIM MCGRAW -- Sundown Heaven Town
NEIL DIAMOND -- Melody Road (tie)
BARRY MANILOW -- Night Songs (tie)
THE LIVING SISTERS -- Harmony Is Real: Songs For A Happy Holiday
MARGO GURYAN -- 27 Demos
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2013
1-10ish
JANELLE MONAE -- The Electric Lady
DAVID BOWIE -- The Next Day
PAUL MCCARTNEY -- New
FRANK TURNER -- Tape Deck Heart
BOMBINO -- Nomad
LINDA THOMPSON -- Won't Be Long Now
ARCTIC MONKEYS -- AM
VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Modern Vampires Of The City
JAMES COTTON -- Cotton Mouth Man
KEITH JARRETT -- Somewhere
PATTY GRIFFIN -- American Kid and Silver Bell
11-20
BOB DYLAN -- Another Self Portrait
CECILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- WomanChild
THE LONE BELLOW -- The Lone Bellow
DAFT PUNK -- Random Access Memories
LORDE -- Pure Heroin(e)
EMINEM -- The Marshall Mathers LP2
JOHN MAYER -- Paradise Valley
KELLY WILLIS AND BRUCE ROBISON -- Cheater's Game
KODALINE -- In A Perfect World
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Too Weird To Live, Too Rare To Die
MAVIS STAPLES -- One True Vine
21-30
THE WATERBOYS -- Fisherman Box
RICHARD THOMPSON -- Electric
RHYE -- Woman
LAURA MVULA -- Sing To The Moon
BRAD PAISLEY -- Wheelhouse
THE MAVERICKS -- In Time
RON SEXSMITH -- Forever Endeavor
KING KRULE -- 6 Feet Beneath The Moon
MIDLAKE -- Antiphon
31-40
HOLLY WILLIAMS -- The Highway
KACEY MUSGRAVES -- Same Trailer, Different Park
LITTLE GREEN CARS -- Absolute Zero
41-49
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG AND NORAH JONES -- Foreverly
ALICE RUSSELL -- To Dust
WILLIAM TYLER -- Impossible Truth
JASON ISBELL -- Southeastern
JOHN MORELAND -- In The Throes
LINDI ORTEGA -- Tin Star
VAN DYKE PARKS -- Song Cycled
THE CIVIL WARS -- The Civil Wars
PREFAB SPROUT -- Crimson Red
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Inside Llewyn Davis
TIM CHRISTENSEN -- Pure McCartney
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2012
1. RUMER -- Seasons Of My Soul/Boys Don't Cry (70s pop perfection)
2. BRANFORD MARSALIS -- Four MF's Playin' Their Tunes (hard-driving jazz; faultless)
3. THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- There's No Leaving Now(inspiringly good Dylanesque rock)
4. FRANK OCEAN -- Channel Orange (state of the art soul)
5. PAUL BUCHANAN -- Mid Air (emotionally intense, late night confessions)
BILL FAY -- Life Is People (age+wisdom+piano+God)
6. JOHANN JOHANNSSON -- The Miners' Hymns (the film score of the year)
7. FIONA APPLE -- The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw And Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do (pop artist at peak of her powers)
8. JAMEY JOHNSON -- Living For A Dream: A Tribute To Hank Cochran (all-star country hoedown)
9. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN -- Wrecking Ball (life in them old dogs yet)
BOB DYLAN -- Tempest
10. DR. JOHN -- Locked Down (triumphant New Orleans music)
TRACEY THORN -- Tinsel and Lights (Christmas, sadly)
11. KASEY CHAMBERS AND SHANE NICHOLSON -- Wreck And Ruin (world class folk-country-blues)
12. NAS -- Life Is Good (rap for grown ups)
13. LEONARD COHEN -- Old Ideas (magisterial pop)
14. JOSEPHINE -- Portrait (two English lasses with talent to burn)
LIANNA LA HAVAS -- Is Your Love Big Enough
15. GRANT LEE-PHILLIPS -- Walking In The Green Corn (acoustic gem)
16. ANTIBALAS -- Antibalas (Fela Kuti lives!)
17. IRIS DEMENT -- Sing The Delta (comeback of the year)
BOO HANS WITH DON FLEMONS -- Buffalo Junction
18. VIJAY AYER TRIO -- Accelerando (jazz piano)
BRAD MEHLDAU -- Where Do You Start/Ode
19. THE HIVES -- Lex Hives (rock, by god)
JAPANDROID -- Celebration Rock
THE DOUGHBOYS -- Shakin' Our Souls
20. MUMFORD AND SONS -- Babel (flowering of Americana)
THE LUMINEERS -- The Lumineers
PIGPEN THEATRE CO. -- Bremen
THE AVETT BROTHERS -- The Carpenter
21. CHRIS SMITHER -- Hundred Dollar Valentine (blues master)
22. DIANA KRALL -- Glad Rag Doll (digging deeper jazz talent)
23. ED SHEERAN -- + (thoughtful British pop)
24. KENDRICK LAMAR -- good kid, mA.A.d city (rap smarts)
25. MELODY GARDOT -- The Absence (singular voice heads to Brazil)
26. FATHER JOHN MISTY -- Fear Fun (Fleet Foxes redux, in a good way)
DAMIEN JURADO -- Maraqopa
LORD HURON -- Impossible Dreams
BOY AND BEAR -- Moonfire
27. THE TIME JUMPERS -- The Time Jumpers (Western swing)
28. NEIL YOUNG AND CRAZY HORSE -- Psychedelic Pill/Americana (still kicking, still stinging)
29. WILLIAM TYLER -- Impossible Truth (guitar instrumental) (officially out March 2013)
30. BETTYE LAVETTE -- Thankful N' Thoughtful (soul survivor)
31. BILLY BRAGG AND WILCO -- Mermaid Avenue Volume 3 (unexpected gem from vault)
32. MICHAEL KIWANUKA -- Home Again (70s soul circa Bill Withers)
MIGUEL -- Kaleidoscope Dream (70s soul circa Marvin Gaye)
33. REGINA SPEKTOR -- What We Saw From The Cheap Seats (quirky pop)
NORAH JONES -- Little Broken Hearts (leaving jazz behind)
34. JACK WHITE -- Blunderbuss (eclectic; electric)
35. TAME IMPALA -- Lonerism (psychedelica redefined)
36. GREEN DAY -- Uno!/Dos!/Tres! (purging punk pop)
37. BRANDI CARLILE -- Bear Creek (an indie voice in the wilderness)
38. RAVI COLTRANE -- Spirit Fiction (jazz royalty, wearing the crown well)
39. JOHN MAYER -- Born And Raised (skip the interviews, play the music)
40. PUNCH BROTHERS -- Who's Feeling Young Now?/Ahoy (bluegrass expanded)
JASON ALDEAN -- Night Train (country demanded)
DWIGHT YOAKUM -- 3 Pears (rebel remanded)
41. BRIAN ENO -- Lux (genius in solo instrumental mode)
42. BRUNO MARS -- Unorthodox Jukebox (Michael Jackson's heir apparent)
43. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close Up Vol. 4: Songs Of Family (revealing catalog)
44. JAKE BUGG -- Jake Bugg (promising UK folkie)
45. BAND OF HORSES -- Mirage Rock (career best for rockers)
46. THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- Love At The Bottom Of The Sea (miserablist pop)
47. BRYAN FERRY -- The Jazz Age (left turn instrumentals)
48. DAVID BYRNE AND ST. VINCENT -- Love This Giant (a rock giant shows signs of life)
49. DAMON ALBARN -- Dr. Dee (pastoral concept album about English eccentric)
50. KRIS KRISTOFFERSON -- Feeling Mortal (one foot in the grave country)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2011
1. FLEET FOXES -- Helplessness Blues (CSN rocks out)
2. TOM WAITS -- Bad As Me (bohemian troubadour in top form)
3. KING CREOSOTE AND JON HOPKINS -- Diamond Mine (quirky concept album, gorgeously done)
4. GILLIAN WELCH -- The Harrow and the Harvest (simple, straightforward, striking folk)
5. TEDDY THOMPSON -- Bella / kd lang Sing It Loud
RON SEXSMITH -- Long Player, Late Bloomer (pure pop by pure pros)
6. WYNTON MARSALIS AND ERIC CLAPTON -- Play the Blues
BRANFORD MARSALIS AND JOEY CALDARAZZO -- Songs of Mirth and Melancholy (trad jazz)
7. GLEN CAMPBELL -- Ghost on the Canvas (haunting country pop)
8. BOMBINO -- Agadez (Tuareg rocks!)
BOUBACAR TRAORE -- Mali Denhou (gentle African guitar)
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO -- Songs From a Zulu Farm (ecstatic and playful children's music)
9. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- This May Be My Last Time Singing: Raw African American Gospel on 45 RPM (1957-1982) (lo-fi, high flying gospel that's so good you'll convert)
10. ADELE -- 21 (unstoppable soul diva)
***
11. GROUPLOVE -- Never Trust a Happy Song (raucous LA pop-rock)
12. PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Vices and Virtues (sterling but overlooked pop-rock)
13. NICK LOWE -- The Old Magic (vintage wine, vintage bottle)
14. WILD FLAG -- Wild Flag (giving super groups a good name)
15. BRAD MEHLDAU -- Modern Music (dependably adventurous jazz trio)
COLIN VALLON -- Rruger (bold EU trio following in Mehldau's wake)
16. JAY-Z AND KANYE WEST -- Watch the Throne (braggadocio taken to new heights)
17. BON IVER -- Bon Iver (stares down success with quiet confidence)
18. BALLAKE SISSOKO AND VINCENT SEGAL -- Chamber Music (delicate instrumentals)
19. PAUL SIMON -- So Beautiful or So What (mortality, musically)
20. BETH HART AND JOE BONAMASSA -- Don't Explain (the blues, thumpingly good)
***
21. PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND AND DEL MCCOURY BAND -- American Legacies (an institution finds new life via collaboration)
22. AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE -- When the Heart Emerges Glistening (quietly probing jazz)
23. JAMES BLAKE -- James Blake (trippy pop)
24. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Live From the Old Town School (folk's beating heart)
25. GIRLS -- Father, Son, Holy Ghost (interesting identity crisis)
26. TINARIWEN -- Tassili (bluesy, distinctive, campfire sing-alongs)
27. JOY FORMIDABLE -- The Big Roar (noisy pop)
28. DARI0 MARINELLI WITH JACK LIEBECK -- Jane Eyre soundtrack (the year's best score)
MATTHEW COOPER -- Some Days Are Better Than Others (the year's best untraditional score)
29. THE CORAL -- Butterfly House
THE MAGIC NUMBERS -- Runaway (pop, unimported, unrecognized)
30. PISTOL ANNIES -- Pistol Annies
MIRANDA LAMBERT -- Four The Record (country's top gal and friends)
***
31. THE LOW ANTHEM -- Smart Flesh (brainy Americana)
32. CHARLIE HADEN AND QUARTET WEST -- Sophisticated Ladies (female singers, jazz swingers)
33. THE BLACK KEYS -- El Camino (rock, no fuss)
34. M83 -- Hurry Up, We're Dreaming (ambient pop)
35. ALISON KRAUSS AND UNION STATION -- Paper Airplanes
JOHN HIATT -- Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns (old dogs, old tricks, happily so)
36. BEASTIE BOYS -- Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two (feisty hip-hop from the old-timers)
37. BEN HOWARD -- Every Kingdom (gentle pop)
MIKE BLOOM -- King Of Circles (warm singer-songwriter vibe for this solo debut)
ALEXI MURDOCH -- Towards The Sun (Nick Drake reincarnation)
38. VINICIUS CANTUARIA AND BILL FRISELL -- Lagrimas Mexicanas (two great guitars, one great voice equal haunting Latin music)/
39. THE GOURDS -- Old Mad Joy (rootsy celebration)
MARC BROUSSARD -- Marc Broussard (bluesy rock)
40. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close-Up Volume 3: State Of Being (acoustic songs, electric songwriting)
***
41. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Those Shocking, Shaking Days: Indonesia Hard, Psychedelic, Progressive Rock and Funk (1970-1978) (rock and roll knows no borders)
42. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Book of Mormon Original Cast Album (religiously funny)
43. DRAKE -- Take Care (emo-rap)
SHABAZZ PALACES -- Black Up
44. BRAD PAISLEY -- This Is Country Music (yes it is)
STEVE EARLE -- I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive (determined, focused country)
45. MEGAFAUN -- Megafaun ('70s-ish rock)
46. FATOUMATA DIAWARA -- Fatou (Malian guitar talent combined with impeccable vocals) KHAIRA ARBY -- Timbukto Traab (country to Diawara's city sound; not locale so much as the gritty, rawer feel)
47. HOUSTON PERSON -- So Nice (late period capper for understated jazz blower)
48. REAL ESTATE -- Days -- (shimmering indie pop)
49. EILEEEN JEWELL -- Queen of the Minor Key (sneakily impressive)
50. FRANK OCEAN -- nostalgia/ultra (backward/forward looking moody pop)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2010
1. THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- The Wild Hunt/Sometimes The Blues Is Just A Passing Bird (Dylanesque folk-rock)
2. PETER WOLF -- Midnight Souvenirs (raucous career peak)
3. ALI FARKA TOURE AND TOUMANI DIABTE -- Ali And Toumani (transcendent world music)
4. ARCADE FIRE -- The Suburbs (state of the art rock)
5. JANELLE MONAE -- The ArchAndroid
ERYKAH BADU -- New Amerykah Part Two: Return of The Ankh (Prince-like funky soul pop craziness)
6. BUDDY GUY -- Living Proof (ferocious blues)
7. EMINEM -- Recovery
KANYE WEST -- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (rap comebacks)
8. JOHN GRANT -- Queen Of Denmark
MIDLAKE -- The Courage Of Others (gorgeous rock; British folk)
9. KEITH JARRETT AND CHARLIE HADEN -- Jasmine (sublime, beautiful jazz)
10. MUMFORD AND SONS -- Sigh No More (literate rock)
***
11. SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- I Learned The Hard Way (soul -- not retro, just timeless)
12. SUFJAN STEVENS -- All Delighted People EP (nutty rock)
13. ROBERT PLANT -- Band Of Joy (folk-rock, Fairport Convention via Nashville)
14. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Afrocubism (Buena Vista Social Club spliced with Malian pop)
15. MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE -- Danger Days (anthemic rock)
16. TRACEY THORN -- Love and Its Opposite (adult pop)
17. PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND -- Preservation (an all-star album that actually works)
18. BRUNO MARS -- Doo-Wops And Hooligans
ROBYN -- Body Talk (irresistible pop)
19. GORILLAZ -- Plastic Beach (genre-jumping rock)
20. NEIL YOUNG -- Le Noise (stomping folk)
***
21. CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS -- Genuine Negro Jigs (trad, modern, country, folk, blues, unclassifiable)
22. ELIZABETH AND THE CATAPULTS -- Other Side Of Zero (promising debut)
23. BEACH HOUSE -- Teen Dreams (alterna-pop)
24. JAMEY JOHNSON -- The Guitar Song (no fuss country)
25. BEST COAST -- Crazy For You (lo-fi Beach Boys pop)
26. BRENDAN JAMES -- Brendan James (a career peak)
27. THE BLACK KEYS -- Brothers (smart rock)
28. HOLE -- Nobody's Daughter (Courtney Love doesn't get any respect but deserves it)
29. CYRUS CHESNUTT - Journeys (trad jazz done with class)
30. SADE -- Soldier Of Love (smooth pop, never misses a beat)
***
31. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Classic Appalachian Blues (a rich vein of folk blues)
32. THE NATIONAL -- High Violet (moody rock sounds more like the Swans every day)
33. THE ROOTS -- How I Got Over (hip-hop for adults)
34. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close Up Vol 1: Love Songs (folk-pop)
35. ELTON JOHN AND LEON RUSSELL -- The Union (old friends, strong new music)
36. SHE AND HIM -- Volume 2 (girl group pop)
37. FOXES IN FICTION -- Swung From The Branches (swirly, headphone rock)
38. LIL BAND O' GOLD -- Lil Band O' Gold (New Orleans gem)
39. ELIZABETH MITCHELL -- Sunny Day (infectious kids' music)
40. LIONEL LUEKE -- Mwaliko (sophisticated jazz)
***
41. TOM JONES -- Praise And Blame (joyful gospel)
42. WILLIAM TYLER -- Behold The Spirit (terrific instrumental a la Fahey)
43. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Sound of Siam (eye-opening Asian pop)
44. VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Contra (world pop)
TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB -- Tourist History (if Vampire Weekend had a kid brother)
45. ELVIS COSTELLO -- National Ransom (rootsy rock from the genre-hopping savant)
46. 3 FERVENT TRAVELERS -- Time For Three (bluegrass taken out of the museum)
47. CORINNE BAILEY RAE -- The Sea (dark, vulnerable pop)
48. MEAGHAN SMITH -- The Cricket's Orchestra (refined pop)
49. DENNIS BROWN -- The Crown Prince Of Reggae: Singles 1972-1985 (incomplete but still great anthology)
50. CASSANDRA WILSON -- Silver Pony (jazz vocals, classy)
BRIAN ENO -- Small Craft On A Milk Sea (electronic noodling)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2009
1. THE AVETT BROTHERS -- I And Love And You (Americana)
REGINA SPEKTOR -- Far (quirky pop via Russian kitsch)
2. ELLA FITZGERALD -- Twelve Nights In Hollywood (swinging jazz vocalese)
KEITH JARRETT -- Somewhere
3. MAXWELL -- BLACKsummers'night (Seventies soul)
4. WILLIE NELSON -- American Classic (Stardust II)
ROSANNE CASH -- The List (the Great American Songbook, country style)
5. MADELEINE PEYROUX -- Bare Bones
MELODY GARDOT -- My One And Only Thrill
KRISTINA TRAIN -- Spilt Milk (songbirds, via Paris and Memphis)
6. MARK OLSON AND GARY LOURIS -- Ready For The Flood (Jayhawks redux)
7. MAYER HAWTHORNE -- A Strange Arrangement (blue eyed soul)
8. LOUDON WAINWRIGHT -- High, Wide And Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project (hilarious, heartfelt blues)
9. THE XX -- The XX (boy-girl dynamics)
GIRLS -- Album (quietly ambitious rock)
10. DUNCAN SHEIK -- Whisper House (the real twilight soundtrack)
***
11. NELLIE MCKAY -- Normal As Blueberry Pie: A Tribute To Doris Day (effortless old-fashioned pop)
12. THE BLACK CROWES -- Before The Frost...Until The Freeze (roots rock enlivened by a live audience)
13. BRAD PAISLEY -- American Saturday Night (country with a dash of humor)
14. ALLEN TOUSSAINT -- The Bright Mississippi (casual jazz brilliance)
SHIRLEY COLLINS -- Lodestar
NICHOLAS KRGOVICH -- The Hills
JANE SIBERRY -- Ulysses' Purse
CAR SEAT HEADREST -- Teens Of Denial
JACK WHITE -- Acoustic Recordings: 1998-2016
DUNCAN SHEIK -- Legerdemain/American Psycho
JOE LOVANO -- Classic! Live At Newport
DWIGHT YOAKUM -- Swimming Pools, Movie Stars
KING CREOSOTE AND MICHAEL JOHNSTON -- When I Was A Thief
LUCKY PETERSON -- Long Nights
PJ HARVEY -- The Hope Six Demolition Project
COMMON -- Black America Again
LED ZEPPELIN -- The BBC Sessions
CALYPSO ROSE -- Far From Home
ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM -- Dear Evan Hansen
BRIAN ENO -- The Ship
PSYCHIC TEMPLE -- Plays Music For Airports
THE STRUTS -- Everybody Wants Some
case/lang/viers -- case/lang/viers
CONOR OBERST -- Ruminations
HOUSTON PEARSON AND RON CARTER -- Chemistry
CHARLIE PUTH -- Nine Track Mind
BRENNEN LEIGH -- Sings Lefty Frizzell
THE LUMINEERS -- Cleopatra
LAURA MVULA -- The Dreaming Room
ESPERANZA SPALDING -- Emily's D-evolution
CORINNE BAILEY RAE -- The Heart Speaks
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2015
SUFJAN STEVENS -- Carrie and Lowell
JILL SCOTT -- Woman
KENDRICK LAMAR -- To Pimp A Butterfly
CHRIS STAPLETON -- Traveller
THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- Dark Bird Is Home
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Sometimes I Just Sit And Think And Sometimes I Just Sit
TONY BENNETT AND BILL CHARLAP -- The Silver Lining: The SongsOf Jerome Kern *** 1/2
THE FRATELLIS -- Eyes Wide Tongue Tied
IRIS DEMENT -- The Trackless Woods
IKE REILLY -- Born On Fire
KAMASI WASHINGTON -- The Epic
BOZ SCAGGS -- A Fool To Care
KACEY MUSGRAVES -- Pageant Material
LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA -- Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast)
ORANGE HUMBLE BAND -- Depressing Beauty
COWBOY JUNKIES -- Notes Falling Slowly
TINARIWEN -- Live In Paris, 2014
CARRIE UNDERWOOD -- Storyteller
TAME IMPALA -- Currents
LARRY CAMPBELL AND TERESA WILLIAMS -- Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams
AMY LAVERE AND WILL SEXTON -- Hallelujah I'm A Dreamer
DRAKE -- If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
WYNTON MARSALIS/JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER BIG BAND -- Big Band Holiday
SARA BAREILLES -- What's Inside: Music From Waitress
JASON ISBELL -- Something More Than Free
VINCE STAPLES -- Summertime '06
VERUCA SALT -- Ghost Notes
LOS LOBOS -- Gates Of Gold
LINDI ORTEGA -- Faded Gloryville
SHAKEY GRAVES -- Nobody's Fool
STEVE EARLE -- Terraplace
FALL OUT BOY -- American Beauty/American Psycho
GARNET MIMMS -- Looking For You: The Complete United Artists and Veep Singles /
CONNIE CONVERSE -- How Sad, How Lovely
PATTY GRIFFIN -- Servant Of Love
LADY LAMB THE BEEKEEPER -- After
BONES -- Powder
DWIGHT YOAKAM -- Second-Hand Heart
DANIEL ROMANO -- If I've Only One Time Askin'
ADELE -- 25
THE MAVERICKS -- Mono
ANDERSON EAST -- Delilah
DON HENLEY -- Cass County
CAGE THE ELEPHANT -- Tell Me I'm Pretty
ERIC CHURCH -- Mr. Misunderstood
BOB DYLAN -- Shadows In The Night
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2014
KAISER CHIEFS -- Education, Education, Education and War
STURGILL SIMPSON -- Metamodern Sounds In Country Music
SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- Give The People What They Want
COURTNEY BARNETT -- Double EP: A Sea Of Spilt Peas
JOHN LUTHER ADAMS -- Become Ocean
BONES -- Skinny and Rotten and Seabed et al
BECK -- Morning Phase
THE FEELING -- Boy Cried Wolf
AMY LAVERE -- Runaway's Diary
BETTY BUCKLEY -- Ghostlight
BRIAN ENO AND KARL HYDE -- Someday World
BETA RADIO -- Colony Of Bees
BEN L'ONCLE SOUL -- A Coup de Reves
JIMMER PODRASKY -- The Would-Be Plans
CHUCK PROPHET -- Night Surfer
HENRY BUTLER AND STEVEN BERNSTEIN -- Viper's Drag
ARIANA GRANDE -- My Everything
TINARIWEN -- Emmar
THE VINES -- Wicked Nature
BENJAMIN BOOKER -- Benjamin Booker
DAMON ALBARN -- Everyday Robots
MARY J BLIGE -- The London Sessions
J COLE -- 2014 Forest Hills Drive
HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF -- Small Town Heroes
ROSANNE CASH -- The River And The Thread
HAMILTON LEITHAUSER -- Dark Hours
DYLAN GARDNER -- Adventures In Real Time (tie) and
PETE MOLINARI -- Theosophy '14 (tie)
COMMON -- Nobody's Smiling
KELLY WILLIS AND BRUCE ROBISON -- Our Year
LEONARD COHEN -- Popular Problems
GREG ASHLEY -- Another Generation of Slaves
STANTON MOORE -- Conversations
THE GHOST OF A SABER TOOTH TIGER -- Midnight Sun
SKATERS -- Manhattan
TOM PETTY -- Hypnotic Eye
BEN HOWARD -- I Forget Where We Were
RUMER -- Into Colour
ROBBIE WILLIAMS -- Under The Radar, Vol. 1
JOHN HIATT -- Terms Of My Surrender
SHE AND HIM -- Classics
THE VERONICAS -- The Veronicas
OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW -- Remedy
tUnE yArDs -- Nikki Nack
TIM MCGRAW -- Sundown Heaven Town
NEIL DIAMOND -- Melody Road (tie)
BARRY MANILOW -- Night Songs (tie)
THE LIVING SISTERS -- Harmony Is Real: Songs For A Happy Holiday
MARGO GURYAN -- 27 Demos
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2013
1-10ish
JANELLE MONAE -- The Electric Lady
DAVID BOWIE -- The Next Day
PAUL MCCARTNEY -- New
FRANK TURNER -- Tape Deck Heart
BOMBINO -- Nomad
LINDA THOMPSON -- Won't Be Long Now
ARCTIC MONKEYS -- AM
VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Modern Vampires Of The City
JAMES COTTON -- Cotton Mouth Man
KEITH JARRETT -- Somewhere
PATTY GRIFFIN -- American Kid and Silver Bell
11-20
BOB DYLAN -- Another Self Portrait
CECILE MCLORIN SALVANT -- WomanChild
THE LONE BELLOW -- The Lone Bellow
DAFT PUNK -- Random Access Memories
LORDE -- Pure Heroin(e)
EMINEM -- The Marshall Mathers LP2
JOHN MAYER -- Paradise Valley
KELLY WILLIS AND BRUCE ROBISON -- Cheater's Game
KODALINE -- In A Perfect World
PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Too Weird To Live, Too Rare To Die
MAVIS STAPLES -- One True Vine
21-30
THE WATERBOYS -- Fisherman Box
RICHARD THOMPSON -- Electric
RHYE -- Woman
LAURA MVULA -- Sing To The Moon
BRAD PAISLEY -- Wheelhouse
THE MAVERICKS -- In Time
RON SEXSMITH -- Forever Endeavor
KING KRULE -- 6 Feet Beneath The Moon
MIDLAKE -- Antiphon
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Divided and United: Songs Of The Civil War
31-40
ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE ROOTS -- Wake Up Ghost
CAGE THE ELEPHANT -- Melophobia
CAGE THE ELEPHANT -- Melophobia
GUY CLARK -- My Favorite Picture Of You
BASTILLE -- Bad Blood
ALLEN TOUSSAINT -- Songbook
DANNY BROWN -- Old
THE AVETT BROTHERS -- Magpie and the DandelionHOLLY WILLIAMS -- The Highway
KACEY MUSGRAVES -- Same Trailer, Different Park
LITTLE GREEN CARS -- Absolute Zero
41-49
BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG AND NORAH JONES -- Foreverly
ALICE RUSSELL -- To Dust
WILLIAM TYLER -- Impossible Truth
JASON ISBELL -- Southeastern
JOHN MORELAND -- In The Throes
LINDI ORTEGA -- Tin Star
VAN DYKE PARKS -- Song Cycled
THE CIVIL WARS -- The Civil Wars
PREFAB SPROUT -- Crimson Red
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Inside Llewyn Davis
TIM CHRISTENSEN -- Pure McCartney
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2012
1. RUMER -- Seasons Of My Soul/Boys Don't Cry (70s pop perfection)
2. BRANFORD MARSALIS -- Four MF's Playin' Their Tunes (hard-driving jazz; faultless)
3. THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- There's No Leaving Now(inspiringly good Dylanesque rock)
4. FRANK OCEAN -- Channel Orange (state of the art soul)
5. PAUL BUCHANAN -- Mid Air (emotionally intense, late night confessions)
BILL FAY -- Life Is People (age+wisdom+piano+God)
6. JOHANN JOHANNSSON -- The Miners' Hymns (the film score of the year)
7. FIONA APPLE -- The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than The Driver Of The Screw And Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do (pop artist at peak of her powers)
8. JAMEY JOHNSON -- Living For A Dream: A Tribute To Hank Cochran (all-star country hoedown)
9. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN -- Wrecking Ball (life in them old dogs yet)
BOB DYLAN -- Tempest
10. DR. JOHN -- Locked Down (triumphant New Orleans music)
TRACEY THORN -- Tinsel and Lights (Christmas, sadly)
11. KASEY CHAMBERS AND SHANE NICHOLSON -- Wreck And Ruin (world class folk-country-blues)
12. NAS -- Life Is Good (rap for grown ups)
13. LEONARD COHEN -- Old Ideas (magisterial pop)
14. JOSEPHINE -- Portrait (two English lasses with talent to burn)
LIANNA LA HAVAS -- Is Your Love Big Enough
15. GRANT LEE-PHILLIPS -- Walking In The Green Corn (acoustic gem)
16. ANTIBALAS -- Antibalas (Fela Kuti lives!)
17. IRIS DEMENT -- Sing The Delta (comeback of the year)
BOO HANS WITH DON FLEMONS -- Buffalo Junction
18. VIJAY AYER TRIO -- Accelerando (jazz piano)
BRAD MEHLDAU -- Where Do You Start/Ode
19. THE HIVES -- Lex Hives (rock, by god)
JAPANDROID -- Celebration Rock
THE DOUGHBOYS -- Shakin' Our Souls
20. MUMFORD AND SONS -- Babel (flowering of Americana)
THE LUMINEERS -- The Lumineers
PIGPEN THEATRE CO. -- Bremen
THE AVETT BROTHERS -- The Carpenter
21. CHRIS SMITHER -- Hundred Dollar Valentine (blues master)
22. DIANA KRALL -- Glad Rag Doll (digging deeper jazz talent)
23. ED SHEERAN -- + (thoughtful British pop)
24. KENDRICK LAMAR -- good kid, mA.A.d city (rap smarts)
25. MELODY GARDOT -- The Absence (singular voice heads to Brazil)
26. FATHER JOHN MISTY -- Fear Fun (Fleet Foxes redux, in a good way)
DAMIEN JURADO -- Maraqopa
LORD HURON -- Impossible Dreams
BOY AND BEAR -- Moonfire
27. THE TIME JUMPERS -- The Time Jumpers (Western swing)
28. NEIL YOUNG AND CRAZY HORSE -- Psychedelic Pill/Americana (still kicking, still stinging)
29. WILLIAM TYLER -- Impossible Truth (guitar instrumental) (officially out March 2013)
30. BETTYE LAVETTE -- Thankful N' Thoughtful (soul survivor)
31. BILLY BRAGG AND WILCO -- Mermaid Avenue Volume 3 (unexpected gem from vault)
32. MICHAEL KIWANUKA -- Home Again (70s soul circa Bill Withers)
MIGUEL -- Kaleidoscope Dream (70s soul circa Marvin Gaye)
33. REGINA SPEKTOR -- What We Saw From The Cheap Seats (quirky pop)
NORAH JONES -- Little Broken Hearts (leaving jazz behind)
34. JACK WHITE -- Blunderbuss (eclectic; electric)
35. TAME IMPALA -- Lonerism (psychedelica redefined)
36. GREEN DAY -- Uno!/Dos!/Tres! (purging punk pop)
37. BRANDI CARLILE -- Bear Creek (an indie voice in the wilderness)
38. RAVI COLTRANE -- Spirit Fiction (jazz royalty, wearing the crown well)
39. JOHN MAYER -- Born And Raised (skip the interviews, play the music)
40. PUNCH BROTHERS -- Who's Feeling Young Now?/Ahoy (bluegrass expanded)
JASON ALDEAN -- Night Train (country demanded)
DWIGHT YOAKUM -- 3 Pears (rebel remanded)
41. BRIAN ENO -- Lux (genius in solo instrumental mode)
42. BRUNO MARS -- Unorthodox Jukebox (Michael Jackson's heir apparent)
43. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close Up Vol. 4: Songs Of Family (revealing catalog)
44. JAKE BUGG -- Jake Bugg (promising UK folkie)
45. BAND OF HORSES -- Mirage Rock (career best for rockers)
46. THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- Love At The Bottom Of The Sea (miserablist pop)
47. BRYAN FERRY -- The Jazz Age (left turn instrumentals)
48. DAVID BYRNE AND ST. VINCENT -- Love This Giant (a rock giant shows signs of life)
49. DAMON ALBARN -- Dr. Dee (pastoral concept album about English eccentric)
50. KRIS KRISTOFFERSON -- Feeling Mortal (one foot in the grave country)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2011
1. FLEET FOXES -- Helplessness Blues (CSN rocks out)
2. TOM WAITS -- Bad As Me (bohemian troubadour in top form)
3. KING CREOSOTE AND JON HOPKINS -- Diamond Mine (quirky concept album, gorgeously done)
4. GILLIAN WELCH -- The Harrow and the Harvest (simple, straightforward, striking folk)
5. TEDDY THOMPSON -- Bella / kd lang Sing It Loud
RON SEXSMITH -- Long Player, Late Bloomer (pure pop by pure pros)
6. WYNTON MARSALIS AND ERIC CLAPTON -- Play the Blues
BRANFORD MARSALIS AND JOEY CALDARAZZO -- Songs of Mirth and Melancholy (trad jazz)
7. GLEN CAMPBELL -- Ghost on the Canvas (haunting country pop)
8. BOMBINO -- Agadez (Tuareg rocks!)
BOUBACAR TRAORE -- Mali Denhou (gentle African guitar)
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO -- Songs From a Zulu Farm (ecstatic and playful children's music)
9. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- This May Be My Last Time Singing: Raw African American Gospel on 45 RPM (1957-1982) (lo-fi, high flying gospel that's so good you'll convert)
10. ADELE -- 21 (unstoppable soul diva)
***
11. GROUPLOVE -- Never Trust a Happy Song (raucous LA pop-rock)
12. PANIC! AT THE DISCO -- Vices and Virtues (sterling but overlooked pop-rock)
13. NICK LOWE -- The Old Magic (vintage wine, vintage bottle)
14. WILD FLAG -- Wild Flag (giving super groups a good name)
15. BRAD MEHLDAU -- Modern Music (dependably adventurous jazz trio)
COLIN VALLON -- Rruger (bold EU trio following in Mehldau's wake)
16. JAY-Z AND KANYE WEST -- Watch the Throne (braggadocio taken to new heights)
17. BON IVER -- Bon Iver (stares down success with quiet confidence)
18. BALLAKE SISSOKO AND VINCENT SEGAL -- Chamber Music (delicate instrumentals)
19. PAUL SIMON -- So Beautiful or So What (mortality, musically)
20. BETH HART AND JOE BONAMASSA -- Don't Explain (the blues, thumpingly good)
***
21. PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND AND DEL MCCOURY BAND -- American Legacies (an institution finds new life via collaboration)
22. AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE -- When the Heart Emerges Glistening (quietly probing jazz)
23. JAMES BLAKE -- James Blake (trippy pop)
24. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Live From the Old Town School (folk's beating heart)
25. GIRLS -- Father, Son, Holy Ghost (interesting identity crisis)
26. TINARIWEN -- Tassili (bluesy, distinctive, campfire sing-alongs)
27. JOY FORMIDABLE -- The Big Roar (noisy pop)
28. DARI0 MARINELLI WITH JACK LIEBECK -- Jane Eyre soundtrack (the year's best score)
MATTHEW COOPER -- Some Days Are Better Than Others (the year's best untraditional score)
29. THE CORAL -- Butterfly House
THE MAGIC NUMBERS -- Runaway (pop, unimported, unrecognized)
30. PISTOL ANNIES -- Pistol Annies
MIRANDA LAMBERT -- Four The Record (country's top gal and friends)
***
31. THE LOW ANTHEM -- Smart Flesh (brainy Americana)
32. CHARLIE HADEN AND QUARTET WEST -- Sophisticated Ladies (female singers, jazz swingers)
33. THE BLACK KEYS -- El Camino (rock, no fuss)
34. M83 -- Hurry Up, We're Dreaming (ambient pop)
35. ALISON KRAUSS AND UNION STATION -- Paper Airplanes
JOHN HIATT -- Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns (old dogs, old tricks, happily so)
36. BEASTIE BOYS -- Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two (feisty hip-hop from the old-timers)
37. BEN HOWARD -- Every Kingdom (gentle pop)
MIKE BLOOM -- King Of Circles (warm singer-songwriter vibe for this solo debut)
ALEXI MURDOCH -- Towards The Sun (Nick Drake reincarnation)
38. VINICIUS CANTUARIA AND BILL FRISELL -- Lagrimas Mexicanas (two great guitars, one great voice equal haunting Latin music)/
39. THE GOURDS -- Old Mad Joy (rootsy celebration)
MARC BROUSSARD -- Marc Broussard (bluesy rock)
40. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close-Up Volume 3: State Of Being (acoustic songs, electric songwriting)
***
41. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Those Shocking, Shaking Days: Indonesia Hard, Psychedelic, Progressive Rock and Funk (1970-1978) (rock and roll knows no borders)
42. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Book of Mormon Original Cast Album (religiously funny)
43. DRAKE -- Take Care (emo-rap)
SHABAZZ PALACES -- Black Up
44. BRAD PAISLEY -- This Is Country Music (yes it is)
STEVE EARLE -- I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive (determined, focused country)
45. MEGAFAUN -- Megafaun ('70s-ish rock)
46. FATOUMATA DIAWARA -- Fatou (Malian guitar talent combined with impeccable vocals) KHAIRA ARBY -- Timbukto Traab (country to Diawara's city sound; not locale so much as the gritty, rawer feel)
47. HOUSTON PERSON -- So Nice (late period capper for understated jazz blower)
48. REAL ESTATE -- Days -- (shimmering indie pop)
49. EILEEEN JEWELL -- Queen of the Minor Key (sneakily impressive)
50. FRANK OCEAN -- nostalgia/ultra (backward/forward looking moody pop)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2010
1. THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH -- The Wild Hunt/Sometimes The Blues Is Just A Passing Bird (Dylanesque folk-rock)
2. PETER WOLF -- Midnight Souvenirs (raucous career peak)
3. ALI FARKA TOURE AND TOUMANI DIABTE -- Ali And Toumani (transcendent world music)
4. ARCADE FIRE -- The Suburbs (state of the art rock)
5. JANELLE MONAE -- The ArchAndroid
ERYKAH BADU -- New Amerykah Part Two: Return of The Ankh (Prince-like funky soul pop craziness)
6. BUDDY GUY -- Living Proof (ferocious blues)
7. EMINEM -- Recovery
KANYE WEST -- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (rap comebacks)
8. JOHN GRANT -- Queen Of Denmark
MIDLAKE -- The Courage Of Others (gorgeous rock; British folk)
9. KEITH JARRETT AND CHARLIE HADEN -- Jasmine (sublime, beautiful jazz)
10. MUMFORD AND SONS -- Sigh No More (literate rock)
***
11. SHARON JONES AND THE DAP KINGS -- I Learned The Hard Way (soul -- not retro, just timeless)
12. SUFJAN STEVENS -- All Delighted People EP (nutty rock)
13. ROBERT PLANT -- Band Of Joy (folk-rock, Fairport Convention via Nashville)
14. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Afrocubism (Buena Vista Social Club spliced with Malian pop)
15. MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE -- Danger Days (anthemic rock)
16. TRACEY THORN -- Love and Its Opposite (adult pop)
17. PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND -- Preservation (an all-star album that actually works)
18. BRUNO MARS -- Doo-Wops And Hooligans
ROBYN -- Body Talk (irresistible pop)
19. GORILLAZ -- Plastic Beach (genre-jumping rock)
20. NEIL YOUNG -- Le Noise (stomping folk)
***
21. CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS -- Genuine Negro Jigs (trad, modern, country, folk, blues, unclassifiable)
22. ELIZABETH AND THE CATAPULTS -- Other Side Of Zero (promising debut)
23. BEACH HOUSE -- Teen Dreams (alterna-pop)
24. JAMEY JOHNSON -- The Guitar Song (no fuss country)
25. BEST COAST -- Crazy For You (lo-fi Beach Boys pop)
26. BRENDAN JAMES -- Brendan James (a career peak)
27. THE BLACK KEYS -- Brothers (smart rock)
28. HOLE -- Nobody's Daughter (Courtney Love doesn't get any respect but deserves it)
29. CYRUS CHESNUTT - Journeys (trad jazz done with class)
30. SADE -- Soldier Of Love (smooth pop, never misses a beat)
***
31. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Classic Appalachian Blues (a rich vein of folk blues)
32. THE NATIONAL -- High Violet (moody rock sounds more like the Swans every day)
33. THE ROOTS -- How I Got Over (hip-hop for adults)
34. SUZANNE VEGA -- Close Up Vol 1: Love Songs (folk-pop)
35. ELTON JOHN AND LEON RUSSELL -- The Union (old friends, strong new music)
36. SHE AND HIM -- Volume 2 (girl group pop)
37. FOXES IN FICTION -- Swung From The Branches (swirly, headphone rock)
38. LIL BAND O' GOLD -- Lil Band O' Gold (New Orleans gem)
39. ELIZABETH MITCHELL -- Sunny Day (infectious kids' music)
40. LIONEL LUEKE -- Mwaliko (sophisticated jazz)
***
41. TOM JONES -- Praise And Blame (joyful gospel)
42. WILLIAM TYLER -- Behold The Spirit (terrific instrumental a la Fahey)
43. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Sound of Siam (eye-opening Asian pop)
44. VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Contra (world pop)
TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB -- Tourist History (if Vampire Weekend had a kid brother)
45. ELVIS COSTELLO -- National Ransom (rootsy rock from the genre-hopping savant)
46. 3 FERVENT TRAVELERS -- Time For Three (bluegrass taken out of the museum)
47. CORINNE BAILEY RAE -- The Sea (dark, vulnerable pop)
48. MEAGHAN SMITH -- The Cricket's Orchestra (refined pop)
49. DENNIS BROWN -- The Crown Prince Of Reggae: Singles 1972-1985 (incomplete but still great anthology)
50. CASSANDRA WILSON -- Silver Pony (jazz vocals, classy)
BRIAN ENO -- Small Craft On A Milk Sea (electronic noodling)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2009
1. THE AVETT BROTHERS -- I And Love And You (Americana)
REGINA SPEKTOR -- Far (quirky pop via Russian kitsch)
2. ELLA FITZGERALD -- Twelve Nights In Hollywood (swinging jazz vocalese)
KEITH JARRETT -- Somewhere
3. MAXWELL -- BLACKsummers'night (Seventies soul)
4. WILLIE NELSON -- American Classic (Stardust II)
ROSANNE CASH -- The List (the Great American Songbook, country style)
5. MADELEINE PEYROUX -- Bare Bones
MELODY GARDOT -- My One And Only Thrill
KRISTINA TRAIN -- Spilt Milk (songbirds, via Paris and Memphis)
6. MARK OLSON AND GARY LOURIS -- Ready For The Flood (Jayhawks redux)
7. MAYER HAWTHORNE -- A Strange Arrangement (blue eyed soul)
8. LOUDON WAINWRIGHT -- High, Wide And Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project (hilarious, heartfelt blues)
9. THE XX -- The XX (boy-girl dynamics)
GIRLS -- Album (quietly ambitious rock)
10. DUNCAN SHEIK -- Whisper House (the real twilight soundtrack)
***
11. NELLIE MCKAY -- Normal As Blueberry Pie: A Tribute To Doris Day (effortless old-fashioned pop)
12. THE BLACK CROWES -- Before The Frost...Until The Freeze (roots rock enlivened by a live audience)
13. BRAD PAISLEY -- American Saturday Night (country with a dash of humor)
14. ALLEN TOUSSAINT -- The Bright Mississippi (casual jazz brilliance)
IRMA THOMAS -- The Soul Queen Of New Orleans 50th Anniversary Celebration
15. PEARL JAM -- Backspacer (the sound of veterans waking up)
GREEN DAY -- 21st Century Breakdown (worthy successor to American Idiot; really)
16. BASSEKOU KOUYATE -- I Speak Fula
VIEUX FARKA TOURE -- Fondo (world class world music)
17. CONOR OBERST AND THE MYSTIC VALLEY BAND -- Outer South (Americana)
ELLIOTT BROOD -- Mountain Meadows (Canadiana)
LOW ANTHEM -- Oh My God, Charlie Darwin (evolutiona)
18. ALICIA KEYS -- The Element Of Freedom (tougher beats; same talent)
19. M WARD -- Hold Time (faithful pop)
20. RZA -- Afro Samurai: Resurrection
RAEKWON -- Only Built For Cuban Linx...Part II (keeping the lights on for hip-hop)
***
21. JAMES HAND -- Shadow On The Ground (honky-tonk to its bone)
22. MONSTERS OF FOLK -- Monsters Of Folk (a super supergroup)
23. BRENDAN BENSON -- My Old, Familiar Friend (power pop)
24. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Ghana Special: Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds AND Ghanaian Blues 1968-1981 (Soundways, the world music label du jour, delivers again)
25. MATTHEW SWEET AND SUSANNA HOFFS -- Under The Covers Vol. 2 (Seventies power pop done to perfection)
26. MIRANDA LAMBERT -- Revolution (a Nashville star)
CLAIRE LYNCH -- Whatcha Gonna Do (bluegrass heaven)
27. PHOENIX -- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (college rock, but still good)
28. SUFJAN STEVENS AND OSSO -- Run Rabbit Run (instrumentals a la Glass)
29. ST. VINCENT -- Actor (quiet/loud/quiet/strange)
30. JAY-Z -- The Blueprint 3 (luxury hip hop)
***
31. JESSE WINCHESTER -- Love Filling Station (journeyman troubadour delivers)
CONNIE CONVERSE -- How Sad, How Lovely (late 1950s recordings)
32. PREFAB SPROUT -- Let's Change The World With Music (lost in the vaults gem)
33. GERAINT WATKINS -- In A Bad Mood (Randy Newman and Tom Waits' love child)
34. ELVIS COSTELLO -- Secret, Profane And Sugarcane (elder statesman can still deliver)
35. CHIP TAYLOR -- Yonkers NY (story-song oddity)
36. TORI AMOS -- Midwinter Graces (a holiday album for the ages)
37. DIANA KRALL -- Quiet Nights (Elvis's better half delivers again)
38. THE BLACK HOLLIES -- Softly, Towards The Light (psychedelic nuggets)
39. MIKA -- The Boy Who Knew Too Much (pure pop, with swagger)
40. RICKIE LEE JONES -- Balm In Gilead (return to form)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2008
1. WILLIE NELSON AND WYNTON MARSALIS -- Two Men With The Blues
WYNTON MARSALIS -- Standards and Ballads
2. FLEET FOXES -- Fleet Foxes
PETER BRODERICK -- Home
3. MAVIS STAPLES -- Live: Hope At The Holdout
4. TEDDY THOMPSON -- A Piece Of What You Need
kd lang -- Watershed
5. DEL MCCOURY BAND AND VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Moneyland
6. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nigeria Special: Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds And Nigerian Blues 1970-1976
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nigeria Disco Funk Special: The Sounds Of The Underground Lagos Dancefloor 1974-1979
7. KAISER CHIEFS -- Off With Their Heads
THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS -- The Age Of The Understatement
8. BOZ SCAGGS -- Speak Low
9. ERYKAH BADU -- New Amerykah (4th World War) Part One
10. BON IVER -- For Emma, Forever Ago
BON IVER -- Blood Bank
***
11. B.B. KING -- One Kind Favor
12. Q-TIP -- The Renaissance
NAS -- Nas
13. PAUL WELLER -- 22 Dreams
14. JENNY LEWIS -- Acid Tongue
15. SAM ROBERTS -- Love At The End Of The World
16. KASEY CHAMBERS AND SHANE NICHOLSON -- Rattlin' Bones
17. SHE AND HIM -- Volume One
18. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- New Orleans Funk Volume 2
19. NEIL DIAMOND -- Home Before Dark
JOAN BAEZ -- Day After Tomorrow
20. SANTOGOLD -- Santogold
***
21. SONNY ROLLINS -- Road Show Vol. 1
22. SOUTSIDE JOHNNY WITH LABAMBA'S BIG BAND -- Grapefruit Moon: The Songs Of Tom Waits
23. THE FRATELLIS -- Here We Stand
24. INARA GEORGE -- An Invitation with Van Dyke Parks
25. AL GREEN -- Lay It Down
26. LIONEL LOUKE -- Karibu
27. THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM -- The '59 Sound
28. CHARLIE HADEN -- Family And Friends: Rambling Boy
29. JAMES HUNTER -- The Hard Way
30. MARTHA WAINWRIGHT -- I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too
***
31. RICKY IAN GORDON AND MICHAEL KORIE -- The Grapes Of Wrath
32. VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Vampire Weekend
33. OTIS TAYLOR -- Recapturing The Banjo
34. THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- Distortion
35. SHELBY LYNNE -- Just A Little Lovin'
36. BLACK MOUNTAIN -- In The Future
37. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The George Mitchell Collection Volumes 1-45
38. BILL HENDERSON -- Live At The Vic
CASSANDRA WILSON -- Loverly
39. AIMEE MANN -- @#%&*! Smilers
40. JONAS BROTHERS -- A Little Bit Longer
***
41. THE CURE -- 4:13 Dream
42. DAVID BYRNE AND BRIAN ENO -- Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
DAVID BYRNE -- Big Love: Hymnal
43. CONO OBERST -- Conor Oberst
44. NICK CAVE -- Dig Lazarus Dig!!!
SIGUR ROS -- Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
RON SEXSMITH -- Exit Strategy Of The Soul
45. ELBOW -- The Seldom Seen Kid
46. THE REAL TUESDAY WELD -- The End Of The World (Live)
47. THE RACONTUERS-- Consolers Of The Lonely
48. ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS -- Another World EP
49. SUGARLAND -- Love On The Inside
JAMEY JOHNSON -- That Lonesome Song
50. DANIELA COTTON -- Rare Child
THE WHIGS -- Mission Control
CORY CHISEL AND THE WANDERING SONS -- Cabin Ghosts
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2007
1. SHARON JONES AND THE DAP-KINGS -- 100 Days 100 Nights (classic soul)
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Great Debaters Soundtrack (juke joint music)
2. AMY WINEHOUSE -- Back To Black (bruised retro soul)
3. RADIOHEAD -- In Rainbows (the world-conquering pop they were born to make)
4. TINARIWEN -- Aman Iman: Water Is Life (desert rock)
5. ROBERT PLANT AND ALISON KRAUSS -- Raising Sand (adult pop)
6. THE WHITE STRIPES -- Icky Thump (bluesy, stomping rock n roll)
7. TERENCE BLANCHARD -- A Tale of God's Will (a requiem for Katrina) (melancholic jazz
JONNY GREENWOOD -- There Will Be Blood (spooky, spine-tingling score)
8. PATTY GRIFFIN -- Children Running Through (career-capping Americana)
9. STEVE EARLE -- Washington Square Serenade
SUZANNE VEGA -- Beauty and Crimes (country and folk pop triumphs both, but don't call it a comeback)
10. JAMIE T -- Panic Prevention
LIVESAVAS - Gutterfly (Brit rap; Seventies funk fantasia)
***
11. ARCADE FIRE -- Neon Bible (art rock a la Talking Heads)
12. ANDY BEY -- Ain't Necessarily So (searching jazz vocals)
13. FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE -- Traffic and Weather (pure pop)
RON SEXSMITH -- Time Being (purer pop)
14. TABU LEY ROCHEREAU -- The Voice Of Lightness (floating, Al Green-like world music)
15. THE FEELING -- Twelve Stops and Home (Seventies AM radio)
THE FRATELLIS -- Costello Music (raucous rock)
16. TEDDY THOMPSON -- Upfront and Down Low (dignified country classics)
RICHARD THOMPSON -- Sweet Warrior (sterling rock)
LINDA THOMPSON -- Versatile Heart (delicate folk pop)
17. BASSEKOU KUYATE AND NGONI BA -- Segu Blue (irresistible world music for people mourning Ali Farka)
18. HERBIE HANCOCK -- River: The Joni Letters (Mitchell done proud via jazz))
19. WILLIE NELSON, MERLE HAGGARD, RAY PRICE -- Last Of The Breed (country summit) LEVON HELM -- Dirt Farmer (Lazarus-like revival)
PORTER WAGONER -- Wagonmaster (classy send-off)
20. ARCTIC MONKEYS -- Favourite Worst Nightmare (jagged Brit pop)
KAISER CHIEFS -- Yours Truly, Angry Mob (spiky but smooth Brit pop)
***
21. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Roots Of Chica - Psychedelic Cumbias Fro
15. PEARL JAM -- Backspacer (the sound of veterans waking up)
GREEN DAY -- 21st Century Breakdown (worthy successor to American Idiot; really)
16. BASSEKOU KOUYATE -- I Speak Fula
VIEUX FARKA TOURE -- Fondo (world class world music)
17. CONOR OBERST AND THE MYSTIC VALLEY BAND -- Outer South (Americana)
ELLIOTT BROOD -- Mountain Meadows (Canadiana)
LOW ANTHEM -- Oh My God, Charlie Darwin (evolutiona)
18. ALICIA KEYS -- The Element Of Freedom (tougher beats; same talent)
19. M WARD -- Hold Time (faithful pop)
20. RZA -- Afro Samurai: Resurrection
RAEKWON -- Only Built For Cuban Linx...Part II (keeping the lights on for hip-hop)
***
21. JAMES HAND -- Shadow On The Ground (honky-tonk to its bone)
22. MONSTERS OF FOLK -- Monsters Of Folk (a super supergroup)
23. BRENDAN BENSON -- My Old, Familiar Friend (power pop)
24. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Ghana Special: Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds AND Ghanaian Blues 1968-1981 (Soundways, the world music label du jour, delivers again)
25. MATTHEW SWEET AND SUSANNA HOFFS -- Under The Covers Vol. 2 (Seventies power pop done to perfection)
26. MIRANDA LAMBERT -- Revolution (a Nashville star)
CLAIRE LYNCH -- Whatcha Gonna Do (bluegrass heaven)
27. PHOENIX -- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (college rock, but still good)
28. SUFJAN STEVENS AND OSSO -- Run Rabbit Run (instrumentals a la Glass)
29. ST. VINCENT -- Actor (quiet/loud/quiet/strange)
30. JAY-Z -- The Blueprint 3 (luxury hip hop)
***
31. JESSE WINCHESTER -- Love Filling Station (journeyman troubadour delivers)
CONNIE CONVERSE -- How Sad, How Lovely (late 1950s recordings)
32. PREFAB SPROUT -- Let's Change The World With Music (lost in the vaults gem)
33. GERAINT WATKINS -- In A Bad Mood (Randy Newman and Tom Waits' love child)
34. ELVIS COSTELLO -- Secret, Profane And Sugarcane (elder statesman can still deliver)
35. CHIP TAYLOR -- Yonkers NY (story-song oddity)
36. TORI AMOS -- Midwinter Graces (a holiday album for the ages)
37. DIANA KRALL -- Quiet Nights (Elvis's better half delivers again)
38. THE BLACK HOLLIES -- Softly, Towards The Light (psychedelic nuggets)
39. MIKA -- The Boy Who Knew Too Much (pure pop, with swagger)
40. RICKIE LEE JONES -- Balm In Gilead (return to form)
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2008
1. WILLIE NELSON AND WYNTON MARSALIS -- Two Men With The Blues
WYNTON MARSALIS -- Standards and Ballads
2. FLEET FOXES -- Fleet Foxes
PETER BRODERICK -- Home
3. MAVIS STAPLES -- Live: Hope At The Holdout
4. TEDDY THOMPSON -- A Piece Of What You Need
kd lang -- Watershed
5. DEL MCCOURY BAND AND VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Moneyland
6. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nigeria Special: Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds And Nigerian Blues 1970-1976
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- Nigeria Disco Funk Special: The Sounds Of The Underground Lagos Dancefloor 1974-1979
7. KAISER CHIEFS -- Off With Their Heads
THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS -- The Age Of The Understatement
8. BOZ SCAGGS -- Speak Low
9. ERYKAH BADU -- New Amerykah (4th World War) Part One
10. BON IVER -- For Emma, Forever Ago
BON IVER -- Blood Bank
***
11. B.B. KING -- One Kind Favor
12. Q-TIP -- The Renaissance
NAS -- Nas
13. PAUL WELLER -- 22 Dreams
14. JENNY LEWIS -- Acid Tongue
15. SAM ROBERTS -- Love At The End Of The World
16. KASEY CHAMBERS AND SHANE NICHOLSON -- Rattlin' Bones
17. SHE AND HIM -- Volume One
18. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- New Orleans Funk Volume 2
19. NEIL DIAMOND -- Home Before Dark
JOAN BAEZ -- Day After Tomorrow
20. SANTOGOLD -- Santogold
***
21. SONNY ROLLINS -- Road Show Vol. 1
22. SOUTSIDE JOHNNY WITH LABAMBA'S BIG BAND -- Grapefruit Moon: The Songs Of Tom Waits
23. THE FRATELLIS -- Here We Stand
24. INARA GEORGE -- An Invitation with Van Dyke Parks
25. AL GREEN -- Lay It Down
26. LIONEL LOUKE -- Karibu
27. THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM -- The '59 Sound
28. CHARLIE HADEN -- Family And Friends: Rambling Boy
29. JAMES HUNTER -- The Hard Way
30. MARTHA WAINWRIGHT -- I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too
***
31. RICKY IAN GORDON AND MICHAEL KORIE -- The Grapes Of Wrath
32. VAMPIRE WEEKEND -- Vampire Weekend
33. OTIS TAYLOR -- Recapturing The Banjo
34. THE MAGNETIC FIELDS -- Distortion
35. SHELBY LYNNE -- Just A Little Lovin'
36. BLACK MOUNTAIN -- In The Future
37. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The George Mitchell Collection Volumes 1-45
38. BILL HENDERSON -- Live At The Vic
CASSANDRA WILSON -- Loverly
39. AIMEE MANN -- @#%&*! Smilers
40. JONAS BROTHERS -- A Little Bit Longer
***
41. THE CURE -- 4:13 Dream
42. DAVID BYRNE AND BRIAN ENO -- Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
DAVID BYRNE -- Big Love: Hymnal
43. CONO OBERST -- Conor Oberst
44. NICK CAVE -- Dig Lazarus Dig!!!
SIGUR ROS -- Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust
RON SEXSMITH -- Exit Strategy Of The Soul
45. ELBOW -- The Seldom Seen Kid
46. THE REAL TUESDAY WELD -- The End Of The World (Live)
47. THE RACONTUERS-- Consolers Of The Lonely
48. ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS -- Another World EP
49. SUGARLAND -- Love On The Inside
JAMEY JOHNSON -- That Lonesome Song
50. DANIELA COTTON -- Rare Child
THE WHIGS -- Mission Control
CORY CHISEL AND THE WANDERING SONS -- Cabin Ghosts
THE BEST ALBUMS OF 2007
1. SHARON JONES AND THE DAP-KINGS -- 100 Days 100 Nights (classic soul)
VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Great Debaters Soundtrack (juke joint music)
2. AMY WINEHOUSE -- Back To Black (bruised retro soul)
3. RADIOHEAD -- In Rainbows (the world-conquering pop they were born to make)
4. TINARIWEN -- Aman Iman: Water Is Life (desert rock)
5. ROBERT PLANT AND ALISON KRAUSS -- Raising Sand (adult pop)
6. THE WHITE STRIPES -- Icky Thump (bluesy, stomping rock n roll)
7. TERENCE BLANCHARD -- A Tale of God's Will (a requiem for Katrina) (melancholic jazz
JONNY GREENWOOD -- There Will Be Blood (spooky, spine-tingling score)
8. PATTY GRIFFIN -- Children Running Through (career-capping Americana)
9. STEVE EARLE -- Washington Square Serenade
SUZANNE VEGA -- Beauty and Crimes (country and folk pop triumphs both, but don't call it a comeback)
10. JAMIE T -- Panic Prevention
LIVESAVAS - Gutterfly (Brit rap; Seventies funk fantasia)
***
11. ARCADE FIRE -- Neon Bible (art rock a la Talking Heads)
12. ANDY BEY -- Ain't Necessarily So (searching jazz vocals)
13. FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE -- Traffic and Weather (pure pop)
RON SEXSMITH -- Time Being (purer pop)
14. TABU LEY ROCHEREAU -- The Voice Of Lightness (floating, Al Green-like world music)
15. THE FEELING -- Twelve Stops and Home (Seventies AM radio)
THE FRATELLIS -- Costello Music (raucous rock)
16. TEDDY THOMPSON -- Upfront and Down Low (dignified country classics)
RICHARD THOMPSON -- Sweet Warrior (sterling rock)
LINDA THOMPSON -- Versatile Heart (delicate folk pop)
17. BASSEKOU KUYATE AND NGONI BA -- Segu Blue (irresistible world music for people mourning Ali Farka)
18. HERBIE HANCOCK -- River: The Joni Letters (Mitchell done proud via jazz))
19. WILLIE NELSON, MERLE HAGGARD, RAY PRICE -- Last Of The Breed (country summit) LEVON HELM -- Dirt Farmer (Lazarus-like revival)
PORTER WAGONER -- Wagonmaster (classy send-off)
20. ARCTIC MONKEYS -- Favourite Worst Nightmare (jagged Brit pop)
KAISER CHIEFS -- Yours Truly, Angry Mob (spiky but smooth Brit pop)
***
21. VARIOUS ARTISTS -- The Roots Of Chica - Psychedelic Cumbias Fro
