After two-and-a-half years here, I’ve moved much of the operations of Music4Sativa over to Instagram — @djay3_magilicutty . Less writing, more graphic options, instant feedback to quench my insatiable ego. Anyway, this site will continue to upload Top 10 Lists through history (my history). Check out the link above and see if your faves made the list.
8/14/22
First time I’ve ended up picking a record of the year by an artist I hadn’t heard of beforehand. Which is really my fault because I’ve been listening to his work on other artists’ records for years.
Stuart Price (aka) Les Rythmes Digitales is an English DJ and record producer who’s most recent notable work was on four Dua Lipa cuts on Future Nostalgia.
In 2001 he was Madonna’s musical director for her Drowned World Tour and worked extensively on her tenth studio album, Confessions on a Dancefloor. His other credits include production work for The Killers, New Order, Kylie Minogue, DMA’s, to name a few of my faves.
Some incredible retro dance beats here on Darkdancer. Those familiar with the late ‘90s dance scene agree this record was way before it’s time, and stands up nicely even after twenty-plus years of technical advancements in electronic music.
LRD isn’t the only new discovery for me after going back and listening to a ton of records from 1999. The all-female group Le Tigre hailed from New York in the late ‘90s and included Kathleen Hanna formerly of Bikini Kill. A mix of punk, pop and lo-fi electronics, there’s a bunch of tasty nuggests here (“Deceptacon,” “Hot Topic”, “Slideshow”).
Also familiarizing myself with Basement Jaxx, a great English electronic duo who got their start in the underground house sense. As much as I like this record, their followup Rooty (2001) is even better!
At the time in 1999 the two discs I was spinning from this list were Fly and the Hank Williams III record, the latter standing up more today for me than The Chicks’ (although it’s still a great collection of country tunes).
Finally, I’ll mention Supernatural by Santana. I’m not completely familiar with his entire catalogue, but this feels like the ultimate Santana collection. Collaborations with some big names here, like Dave Matthews, Rob Thomas, Lauryn Hill and Eagle-Eye Cherry. To hear Carlos at his pinnacle might I suggest “Primavera.”
1. Les Rythmes Digitales (Stuart Price), Darkdancer
2. Le Tigre, Le Tigre
3. Travis, The Man Who
4. Santana, Supernatural
5. The Chicks, Fly
6. Red Hot Chili Peppers, Californication
7. Hank Williams III, Raisin’ Outlaw
8. Foo Fighters, There Is Nothing Left to Leave
9. Basement Jaxx, Remedy
10. The Chemical Brothers, Surrender
HONORABLE MENTION: Death In Vegas, The Contino Sessions; Flaming Lips, The Soft Bulletin; Beck, Midnite Vultures; Blur, 13; Julie Miller, Broken Things; Sigur Ros, Agotis Byrun; Wilco, Summer Teeth; Shelby Lynne, I Am Shelby Lynne; Sting, Brand New Day; Steve Earle and Del McCoury Band, The Mountain; The Beta Band, The Beta Band and 3 Eps; Suba, Sao Paulo
7/1/22
7/1/22
It took me forty years to truly appreciate the charm of this Haircut One Hundred album. Back in the day, I didn’t venture much beyond “Love Plus One” and
“Favourite Shirts.” Having finally done so, I find so much more to love here, like “Milk Film,” “Lemon Firebrigade,” and “Fantastic Day.” In many ways it feels like an album way before it’s time. The harmonic blend of voices and extensive use of horns and percussion make this entire collection irresistible. Interestingly, these Brits released only one other album (Paint and Paint, 1984) which must be a total dud since it’s not available on streaming. The fact that Pelecan West is their only album of note makes it that much more incredible … Fleetwood Mac could have been forgiven, had this album been a little weak. Afterall, it followed three of the great albums of all time (self-titled, Rumours and Tusk). But Mirage ranks (miraculously) right up there with Mac’s best work! “Gypsy” and “Oh Diane” being the real standouts … The biggest surprise in reviewing 1982 records was the Yaz disc. I was familiar with the two hits (“Don’t Go” and “Situation”), but the rest of it delivers big time, as well. It’s made me revisit Alison Moyet, who didn’t make much of an impact on my back then … The Roxy Music album contains one of my favorite songs of all time (“More Than This”) which always brings to mind the delightful scene in Lost In Translation where Bill Murray sings it in a karaoke lounge … Of course, any mention of Michael Jackson comes with a caveat regarding his much-publicized creepiness. Personally, I distinguish and artist’s work from their personal lives, legal problems and politics. I prefer to judge their artistic ability and not their moral failings. Thriller is, at the end of the day, a brilliant collection of music which I have no trouble enjoying without guilty or feeling sick to my stomach. In the Honorable Mention group I highly recommend (both new to me) the records from Mission of Burma and The Gun Club.
1. Haircut One Hundred, Pelecan West
2. Fleetwood Mac, Mirage
3. Donald Fagan, The Nightfly
4. Michael Jackson, Thriller
5. Yaz, Upstairs At Eric’s
6. Duran Duran, Rio
7. Prince, 1999
8. Roxy Music, Avalon
9. Billy Idol, Billy Idol
10. Joe Jackson, Night and Day
HONORABLE MENTION: Mission of Burma, Vs.; Paul McCartney, Tug of War; Brian Eno, Ambient: On Land; The Alan Parsons Project, Eye in the Sky; Dire Straits, Love Over Gold; The Cure, Pornography; Bad Brains, Bad Brains; Stray Cats, Built For Speed; Crosby, Stills & Nash, Daylight Again; Adam Ant, Friend or Foe; Elvis Costello, Imperial Bedroom; The Gun Club, Miami; The Clash, Combat Rock; Grandmaster Flash, The Massage
6/15/22
6/10/22
There’s normally an obvious choice for album of the year. Sometimes it’s a coinflip. But for 2000, I could make an argument for nine of the ten … Ever since its release
I’ve loved this Sade album. It may be the sexiest album ever recorded. If there’s ever a need to set the “mood,” you can’t go wrong with Lovers Rock … This U2 album marks the peak of my interest in the Celtic lads. I really like Atomic Bomb (four years later), but All That You Can’t Leave marks the end of their twenty-year dominance, imo. And it’s magnificent … “Go Let It Out” from Oasis ranks right up there with other great Oasis songs (like “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova”). There’s so much more to love here, too, like “Who Feels Love” and “I Can See A Liar” … The Doves came to my attention recently when I discovered their amazing album from 2002, The Last Broadcast. Lost Souls is every bit as strong … Finally, this Smashing Pumpkins album is new to me, and absolutely mind blowing.
Since so many of these albums qualify for the top spot, I needed some kind of tiebreaker. Steely Dan’s Two Against Nature is such a great album it’s no wonder it won the Grammy for Album of the Year, so I’ll full heartedly go along with that! Not many bands put out their best work at the end of their careers. Like so many professional athletes, musicians and bands don’t always know when to bow out gracefully. This, along with the follow-up (Everything Must Go), were the last two albums Donald Fagen and Walter Becker would release as Steely Dan. And two of their best!
I’m so stoked that 2000 turned out to be such a strong year in music. Half my life (give or take) happened before 2000. Call me nostalgic but sometimes I long for the pre-2000 days, before the internet, before militant polarization, before home-grown terrorism and mass shootings became routine, before the weather itself started to fuel infernos. I thought I was nostalgic for pre-2000 music, too. But it turns out I just hadn’t listened to enough music from this century to know there’s so much talent out there, you just have to sift.
1. Steely Dan, Two Against Nature
2. The Smashing Pumpkins, Machina/The Machines of God
3. Sade, Lovers Rock
4. U2, All That You Can’t Leave Behind
5. The Cure, Bloodflowers
6. Oasis, Standing on the Shoulders
7. Doves, Lost Souls
8. Green Day, Warning
9. Madonna, Music
10. The Avalanches, Since I Left You
HONORABLE MENTION: Radiohead, Kid A; Coldplay, Parachutes; Phoenix, United; Yo La Tengo, And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out; Bebel Gilberto, Tanto Tempo; Eryka Badu, Mama’s Gun; Panchiko, D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L; Air, The Virgin Suicides; Sleater-Kenney, All Hands on the Bad One; Badly Drawn Boy, The Hour of Bewilderbeast; Emmylou Harris, Red Dirt Girl; Eminem, The Marshall Mathers; PJ Harvey, Stories from the City, Stories From The Sea; Ryan Adams, Heartbreaker; D’Angelo, Voodoo; Death Cab For Cutie, We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes
5/18/22
5/14/22
3/24/22
Looking back, I remember listening to Lucinda Williams’ deeply moving Essence for months after its release in the summer of 2001, which means it was on heavy rotation in the aftermath
of 9-11. I’m not sure how I did it, because this is such an achingly emotional album and, like everyone else with a soul, I was devastated and saddened by the loss and tragedy of 9-11. The idea of listening to this album in that state of mind seems almost overwhelming now. At times you can hear her surrender to sadness (“You can count on your blessings/I’ll just count on blue”). On the album’s final cut, she paints a picture of butterflies nourishing themselves on spilled blood so they can be healed and set free. One of Williams’ many gifts is a voice that sounds like it was marinated in grief, making her songwriting that much more gripping. This is a brilliant collection of songs and perhaps my favorite record ever in Miss Williams’ incredible career.
Several debut albums make this list. Bob Schneider may not now be the household name that John Mayer has become, but both men launched their careers in 2001 and, in my opinion, it’s Schneider who proved to be the more gifted songwriter, even though Mayer gets more attention. In a show of just how far the world has come since Mayer’s debut, the song “3×5” seems almost quaint today, the underlying gist being his refusal to waste precious moments looking through a camera (to eventually print 3×5 photographs), so he instead is traveling without a camera, to capture the beauty around him, through his own eyes. A generation ago, the now-ubiquitous use of a phone as a camera hadn’t occurred to Mayer, or anyone else. The Ben Folds record is also his debut after stepping away from the Ben Folds Five. Some awesome tracks here, particularly “Gone,” Folds’ unapologetic prerogative to cut superfluous people out of his life.
Spoon’s appearance on this list marks the fourth time they’ve cracked my Top Ten, which I guess makes them one of my favorite bands ever! Finally, a really nice discovery by the French trio Gotan Project, who combine Argentinian street music with nouvelle electronica for a super slick sound.
1. Lucinda Williams, Essence
2. Ben Folds, Rockin’ the Suburbs
3. John Mayer, Room For Squares
4. Bob Schneider, Lonelyland
5. Gotan Project, La Revancha Del Tango
7. Ryan Adams, Gold
8. Spoon, Girls Can Tell
9. Jay-Z, The Blueprint
10. The Beta Band, Hot Shots II
HONORABLE MENTION: Sparklehorse, It’s A Wonderful Life; Destiny’s Child, Survivor; Dave Matthews Band, Everyday; Bob Dylan, Love and Theft; Avalanches, Since I Left You; Daft Punk, Discovery; Redd Volkaert, No Stings Attached; Royksopp, Melody A.M.; Pete Yorn, musicforthemorningafter; Bjork, Vespertine; Radiohead, Amnesiac
4/20/22
DISCLOSURE @ Santa Barbara Bowl, photo by DJay3
4/13/22
It pains me to say 1981 has been the least enjoyable year in my ongoing project to rank the best albums from
every year I’ve been alive (32 years completed so far). It’s sad because 1981 is one of those years that otherwise brings only happy memories for me. It’s the year I graduated from high school, so any reference to 1981 always perks my ears. I was very much into music at the time, yet little did I know that 1981 would be one of the lamest years in modern music. There are really only two records that excite me, from The Blasters and Joe Jackson. The Blasters debut was my introduction to rockabilly, a frenetic take on standard rock chord progressions which few bands have perfected and none better than The Blasters. New waver Joe Jackson threw everyone for a loop when he released this big band record. It turned out to be a masterpiece in the tradition of Louis Jordan and Cab Calloway. The Muddy Waters record is the third and last in a series produced by Johnny Winter. All three all phenomenal but, as is indicative of all things blues, they started sounding like each other. East Side Story by Squeeze makes this list, although in a stronger year it probably wouldn’t have. It’s among their weaker efforts, aside from what could be described as the best Squeeze song of all time, “Tempted.” Men at Work made the cut because, well, it’s one of a couple albums that define my early college days. It doesn’t hold up that well today, but damn we sure had fun with it at the time. The nicest discovery going back and listening to 1981 records came courtesy of Grace Jones. I’d never listened to an entire album of hers before, and it was way better than I expected. Normally I don’t comment on albums in the honorable mention category but I’ll make an exception in the case of the Jimmy Buffett record. I’ve confessed in previous posts that yes, I am a fan, but only up to a point. And that point, as it turns out, was this record in 1981. It’s okay. Non fans would probably say it’s insufferable. As it turned out, Coconut Telegraph was the last JB record I cared about, because his next LP had only two good cuts (both with China in the title) and the album after that (One Particular Harbor) is absolutely abysmal. And with that, JB’s great decline had begun. It’s amazing to think he strung together four more decades of records and has released nineteen albums since Cocunut. I haven’t heard most of them, but I’d bet dollars to doughnuts they’re all lame. I realize many people would say that about his entire catalogue, but they would be wrong.
1. The Blasters, The Blasters
2. Joe Jackson, Jumpin’ Jive
3. Muddy Waters, King Bee
4. Prince, Controversy
5. Men at Work, Business As Usual
6. Grace Jones, Nightclubbing
7. Genesis, Abacab
8. Squeeze, East Side Story
9. X, Wild Gift
10. Brian Eno and David Byrne, My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
HONORBLE MENTION: U2, October; Rickie Lee Jones, Pirates; Soft Cell, Non-Stick Erotic Cabaret; The Rolling Stones, Tattoo You; Willie Nelson, Somewhere Over the Rainbow; Jimmy Buffett, Coconut Telegraph; Stevie Nicks, Bella Donna; Tom Tom Club, Tom Tom Club; The Gun Club, Fire Of Love; The Go-Gos, Beauty and the Beat; The Replacements, Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash; Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Trust; Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Hard Promises; The Cure, Faith; Penguin Café Orchestra, Penguin Café Orchestra; The J. Geils Band, Freeze Frame; Pretenders, Pretenders II
3/31/22
3/25/22
It was forty-two years ago but I still recall which friends turned me on to my favorite records of 1980. My high school bestie Jim was way more adventurous than me when it came to music. Without him, The B-52’s never would have permiated my sheltered high school
days. Wild Planet was as foreign as anything I’d ever heard, not pop, not rock, just irresistible as hell. A few years later in college I spent untold hours on the local dance floor getting manic to “Strobe Light” and “Private Idaho.” It was, of course, “Rock Lobster” from the previous year that set the stage for this second album to explode on college campuses. There’s not a weak song in the bunch. A couple years later my college friends turned me on to a couple others here. Mike from Virginia introduced everyone in our dorm to the genius of Argybary by Squeeze, while Brent from Denver was a big fan of the J. Giles classic Love Stinks (an album which, I have to say, doesn’t hold up that well, but makes this list mostly for sentimental reasons). At the time in 1980, I was not familiar with Stevie Wonder’s Hotter Than July, which is every bit as incredible as Songs in the Key of Light from 1977, where I’d left off with Stevie a few years earlier. Listening to it today is nothing short of captivating. From there, I’m left feeling like 1980 was a bit of a downer year. The records on the second half of this list are all good, but not great. To be honest it was a struggle to find ten albums that even qualified.
1. The B-52s, Wild Planet
2. Stevie Wonder, Hotter than July
3. Squeeze, Argybargy
4. Steely Dan, Gaucho
5. The Cure, Seventeen Seconds
6. Van Morrison, Common One
7. Pretenders, Pretenders
8. The Psychedelic Furs, Psychedelic Furs
9. Talking Heads, Remain in Light
10. The J. Geils Band, Love Stinks
HONORABLE MENTION: The Rolling Stones, Emotional Rescue; The Police, Zenyatta Mondatta; Steve Winwood, Arc of a Diver; The English Beat, I Just Can’t Stop It; XTC, Black Sea; John Prine, Storm Windows; Joy Division, Closer; Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band, Against The Wind; Joan Armatrading, Me Myself I; The Feelies, Crazy Rhythms; Pete Townshend, Empty Glas; Bruce Springsteen, The River; Prince, Dirty Mind; Elvis Costello, Get Happy!; Dire Straits, Making Movies; Roxy Music, Flesh and Blood
3/20/22
3/17/22
3/1/22
Only a couple of these were getting heavy rotation in my world at the time, particularly Wilco’s legendary record and the brilliant Steve Lillywhite-produced album by
the Dave Matthews Band. Patty Griffin’s LP was (and still is) one of the most beautiful and sad records I’d ever heard. Whenever I needed a good cry back in the day, I’d listen to “Rain” or “Stolen Car” or “Nobody’s Crying” and somehow feel better. Home by the band formerly known as the Dixie Chicks was also a frequent go-to. From there, the 2002 pickings got a bit slim. I struggled to find anything that wowed me, until noted LA disc jockey Nic Harcourt enlightened me. A deep internet search found his picks for best records of 2002, of which three finished off the list nicely. Lemmon Jelly is one of the most deliciously quirky bands I’ve ever heard. Not sure I’ve ever laughed so hard at the lyrics of a song as I did with “Nice Weather for Ducks.” By the end of it I was expecting a Monty Python skit to break out. Doves out of Manchester, England, offer terrific harmonies and slick songwriting (particularly “Words” and “Satellites”). The find of the year for me, though, is the incredible group Kinky out of Monterrey, Mexico. In the late Nineties there was something called the Avanzada Regia musical movement following a battle of the bands contest which had historically been won by Mexico City bands but took a different direction in 1995 when Monterrey band Zurdok won the contest. Following the unexpected contest outcome, record companies swarmed into the region and among the local talent they found Kinky, which for my money is a way better band than Zurdok, but who am I to argue with the results of a talent show almost thirty years ago? My comprehension of Spanish is not great but it hardly matters because the musicianship among the four Kinky members is so wonderful I don’t need to really know what they’re singing about.
1. Kinky, Kinky
2. Lemon Jelly, Lost Horizons
3. Dave Matthews Band, Busted Stuff
4. Red Hot Chili Peppers, By the Way
5. Wilco, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
6. Patty Griffin, 1000 Kisses
7. Dixie Chicks, Home
8. Doves, The Last Broadcast
9. Steve Earle, Jerusalem
10. Jason Mraz, Waiting For My Rocket To Come
HONORABLE MENTION: Beck, Sea Change; Neko Case, Blacklisted; Norah Jones, Come Away With Me; Tom Waits, Alice; The Decemberists, Castaways And Cutouts; Coldplay, A Rush of Blood To The Head; Justin Timberlake, Justified; Damien Rice, O; Bob Schneider, The Galaxy Kings; Aimee Mann, Lost in Space; Bruce Springsteen, The Rising; Angelique Kidjo, Black Ivory Soul; Shania Twain, Up!; Johnny Cash, American IV; Maroon 5, Songs About Jane
1/8/22
For the longest time it seemed 2021 would be a complete bore of a year in music. Hard as I tried, I couldn’t find much that excited me. Then suddenly the
flood gates opened. It helped being snowbound for four days in Seattle over the holidays. It’s amazing how long 24 hours is when you can’t leave the house. So, I spent untold hours listening to music from the past year. Throughout the twelve months I perused 192 titles total. Obviously, I didn’t hear every cut, just enough to make a decision to continue listening or not. The end result is one of my all-time favorite playlists of top ten records of a year. Woman ruled 2021 for me. Japanese Breakfast put out the best album of their young career. I also connected with a couple new female artists, including Amythyst Kiah, who is absolutely incredible. For those old enough to remember she might be reminiscent of the great Tracy Chapman. Kiah’s dark “Tender Organs” encapsulated the entire year for me. A haunting opening line sets the stage: “Sometimes, when I wake up, I feel like, I feel like, dying.” Faye Webster offers some heavy emo vibes with wonderful results. As for Celeste, I can’t help but hear Adele’s influence. Upright bassist Melissa Carper served up some good ol’ fashioned hillbilly tunes on this her third album. Finally, the remarkable Flight Facilities album is greatly enhanced by guest female vocalist like Via Rosa (“Move”), Georgia Josiena Nott (“What I Want”) and Caroline Smith (“Heavy”).
Without question this is the mellowest of my playlist yet. But maybe that’s fitting; 2021 was a maddening second year of the pandemic. Some (like me) might even call it the most absurd year in history. It didn’t feel like a time for cheery, updeat music. With the one exception of the Disclosure record. Once again, these English masters treated us with some incredible electronic groove. But otherwise, these records are the perfect soundtrack for what seemed like a lost year. When I think about what’s involved with creating an album, it makes sense. The year 2020 was (in my opinion) one of the greatest years ever in music with way more than just ten phenomenal albums. Which seems strange for a year remembered for not much other shutdown, virus and death. But those records were mostly conceived and created during 2019, long before anyone knew about Covid. Just as the music from 2021 was mostly created during the lockdown of 2020. And when you take that into consideration, the mood of these records starts making sense. For me, the record of the year was delivered by The War on Drugs. At times achingly beautiful (“Living Proof”) and other times delightfully infectious (“Harmonia’s Dream”). A memorable record in a year otherwise best forgotten.
1. The War On Drugs, I Don’t Live Here Anymore
2. Amythyst Kiah, Wary+Strange
3. Japanese Breakfast, Jubilee
4. Celeste, Not Your Muse
5. Flight Facilities, Forever
6. Disclosure, Never Enough
7. Aaron Frazer; Introducing Aaron Frazer
8. Faye Webster, I Know I’m Funny haha
9. Melissa Carper, Daddy’s Country Gold
10. Nation of Language, A Way Forward
HONORABLE MENTION 1: Ya Tseen, Indian Yard; Yu Su, Yellow River Blue; Eris Drew, Quivering In Time; Jungle, Loving In Stereo; Sleaford Mods, Spare Ribs; Adele, 30; Khruangbin, Mordechai Remixes; St. Vincent, Daddy’s Home; R.A.P. Ferreira, Bob’s Son; Arlo Parks, Collapsed In Sunbeams; Claud, Super Monster; Lake Street Drive, Obviously; Lana Del Rey, Chemtrails over the Country Club; Kacey Musgraves, Star-Crossed; Rufus du Sol, Surrender; Lucy Dacus, Home Video; Erika de Casier, Sensational; Dodie, Build a Problem; Kondi Band, We Famous; Casandra Jenkins; An Overview of Phenomenal Nature; Joy Oladokun, In Defense of My Own Happiness; Cleo Sol, Mother; Lakou Mizik & Joseph Ray, Leave The Bones; Engelwood, Jacuzzi Jams; Mustafa, When Smoke Rises; Gillian Moss, Gillian Moss
12/16/21
Hard to believe it’s been two years. But time gets away from everyone, or so I’ve heard. I launched this blog on January 1, 2020 as a distraction from that year’s presidential election. I couldn’t handle a repeat of the atrocity that was 2016. I hoped music would drown out the election noise. Turns out it did that and more. It also kept me company during an unpredictable pandemic. How could I possibly quit something that brought me joy and sanity? So here I go, off on another year of discovery as my self-guided tour through the years in music continues. So far, twenty-six years are in the books. My goal of reviewing records for every year I’ve been alive seems almost doable now. If you’re new here the format is simple. I started with albums from what was then the current year (2020) and went backwards in time, while also reviewing albums from 1971 and progressing forward in time (at some point the two trains will meet, my guess is somewhere in the early Nineties; also, no, I was not born in 1971. I will someday go back and pick up the years prior to that, years which don’t seem all that interesting to me, but I may be wrong). For each calendar year I pick my ten favorite albums, then cherry pick the best cuts to create playlists found on Spotify under the name DJay3. Think of it as an historic tour of modern popular music, albeit based entirely on my personal tastes.
Which brings us to the current years up for consideration: 2003 and 1979. I was familiar with “Are You Going to Be My Girl” from Jet’s album Get Born, but had never heard anything else from them. These Australian rockers aren’t everybody’s cup of tea. They don’t offer anything musically complex, but I’m a sucker for their hard-edged bangers. So much so that it’s my album of the year for 2003, followed closely by Rufus Wainwright’s record, which was on repeat play for me at the time. The most underrated LP of the year is Diamonds on the Inside by Ben Harper (the peak of his career, imo). Lucinda Williams is a perennial favorite of mine, and this album has some incredible cuts (“Righteously” in particular), but also several duds uncharacteristic of her typical genius. The Dave Matthews solo album won’t be found on anyone else’s top ten list, but as a (nearly) life-long fan of DMB (the band’s life, not mine), my bias shows here.
1. Jet, Get Born
2. Rufus Wainwright, Want One
3. Goldfrapp, Black Cherry
4. Ben Harper, Diamonds on the Inside
5. The Strokes, Room On Fire
6. Kings of Leon, Youth & Young Manhood
7. Death Cab For Cutie, Transatlanticism
8. Dave Matthews, Some Devil
9. Lucinda Williams, World Without Tears
10. Drive-By Truckers, Decoration Day
HONORABLE MENTION: Damien Rice, O; The Postal Service, Give Up; The Decemberists, Her Majestry the Decemberists; Joss Stone, The Soul Sessions; The Shins, Chutes Too Narrow; Lightning Bolt, Wonderful Rainbow; The Thrills, So Much For the City; The Black Keys, Thickfreakness
As for 1979, I’ll just go out on a limb and say this was one of the great years in music history. Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours is considered one of the legendary records of all time and the ultimate Mac album. But it was also overplayed. For my money, Tusk is the best Mac album, without question my favorite album of 1979. But it was also the year the incomparable B-52s emerged from Athens, GA, to become the hottest dance band of the moment. “Rock Lobster” was a dancefloor must, but it’s just the beginning. Everything cut on this debut LP is unforgettable. Funny thing about the Gary Newman record. I always confused the song “Cars” as being by the band of the same name, arguably my least favorite band of all time. But when I calmed down and let myself hear it without thinking of that horrendously awful band, I actually liked it. Then I heard the rest of this album and was utterly blown away. Newman was breaking some serious ground here on synthesizer.
1. Fleetwood Mac, Tusk
2. The B-52s, The B-52s
3. Gary Newman, The Pleasure Principle
4. Dire Straits, Communique
5. The Cure, Three Imaginary Boys
6. Electric Light Orchestra, Discovery
7. Elvis Costello and The Attractions, Armed Forces
8. The Police, Reggatta de Blanc
9. Van Morrison, Into the Music
10. The Clash, London Calling
HONORABLE MENTION 1: Rickie Lee Jones, Rickie Lee Jones; The Knack, Get The Knack; Joy Division, Unknown Pleasure; Iggy Pop, New Values; Prince, Prince; James Brown; The Original Disco Man; Japan, Quiet Life; Roxy Music, Manifesto