2011 Top Ten Albums; 1 Through 5

Here are my top 5 albums for the year, plus the album I found that lived at the top of my playlist all year..

Album - Artist

5 - A Creature I Don't Know - Laura Marling - Enchanting is the word that comes to mind for this album. While Mumford and Sons and Noah and the Whale seem to get all the attention, Laura Marling is the best of the British nu-folk movement.  Quiet and creative, it is always engaging.
4 - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two - Beastie Boys - I took my time getting to this album.  It was recommended to me over the summer, but I didn't get to it until the end of the year.  They are highly skilled and make great music.  It is very much a Beastie Boys album.  Big, bright beats with inventive rhymes.
3 - 21 - Adele - This came out in January.  I assumed it wasn't very good, otherwise, they would have held it out until later in the year, so it wouldn't be forgotten in the awards.  It owned summer radio. 
2 - build a rocket boys! - Elbow - They are probably the best band in the world.  I watched their streamed performance from Coachella and it was captivating.  The previous album dealt with large issues and emotions.  This album captures the smaller day to day pieces of life.  It was going to be my first choice until November and Ceremonials.
1 - Ceremonials - Florence + The Machine - I heard the first single and I thought it sounded good, but, no way was it going to be as good as the first album.  Then I heard the next song and the next.  They did it. They took a really good debut and made a better album.  They have harnessed the power of her voice and made an album of surprising depth.

1372 Overton Park - Lucero - Last year, I mentioned Rebel, Rogues and Sworn Brothers as an album from a few year's back that I enjoyed.  This came out in 2009 and it is their first major label release. They have added horns to the mix which has rounded out their Memphis sound.  This album lived at the top of my iPod all year.  The show in Bellingham was spectacular and I plan to see them when they come through in March.  They aren't ever going to be big, but they might be the best bar band in the country. My apologies to the Hold Steady, but, I've found someone else.

2011 Top Ten Albums; 6 Through 10

When I pulled the albums that I bought this year, I was surprised by how many of them I thought were exceptional.  The expanding market place for music between iTunes, eMusic and Amazon allows me to buy more music for less money per album.  My subscription to Rdio allows me to listen to the music before I decide to buy it.


The top tier of recording artists and the record companies are seeing a decline in revenue due to this new model.  I think you can make a case that the industry has never been better for the small recording artist who makes there money from touring.  It is so much easier to get your music out and for people to hear it, that you are no longer at the mercy of the recording companies.  The market is still changing and I am interested in seeing where it ends up.

I decided to split this year's list in two. 

Album - Artist

Honorable Mentions:

Beirut - The Rip Tide
Robbie Robertson - How To Become Clairvoyant
White Lies - Ritual


10 - Within and Without - Washed Out - Of all the electronic music that seemed to be out there this year (The Horrors,White Lies, The Joy Formidable) this was the ablum that seemed to have warmth and emotion at its core.
9 - For True - Trombone Shorty - I guess it's jazz, and 70's funk.  At its core, it's just fun.
8 - Anna Calvi - Anna Calvi - I had to give this album a chance.  In this age of frontloaded albums designed for iTunes, it is completely backloaded.  The first two songs try to get you in the mood.  The third song grabs and it builds from there  It is grand and cinematic with textures of 60's Henry Mancini.
7 - Never Trust a Happy Song - Grouplove - Bright, exuberant pop music.  Don't hate them because they decided to take the Apple money.
6 - Rome - Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - Danger Mouse takes on Italian movie scores.  I don't understand how you take Jack White and Norah Jones and make an album this easy to listen to, but it works.

Last Year's Candidates

I'm working on my top ten list for the last year.  I'm not fully to the streaming model of music, yet.  If I like it, I buy it.  Bands need to make a living.

Here are the albums that I bought this year. The list will come from here.


Artist - Album
Adele - 21
Anna Calvi - Anna Calvi
Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two
Beirut - The Rip Tide
Bombay Bicycle Club - A Different Kind Of Fix
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Hysterical
Colbie Caillat - All of You
Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - Rome
Elbow - build a rocket boys!
Ellie Goulding - An Introduction to Ellie Goulding EP
Ellie Goulding - Lights
Florence + The Machine - Ceremonials
Foo Fighters - Wasting Light
Garland Jeffreys - The King Of In Between
Grouplove - Never Trust a Happy Song
Imelda May - Mayhem

Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know
Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
Lucero - 1372 Overton Park
Manchester Orchestra - Simple Math
Marina & the Diamonds - The Family Jewels
Miles Kane - Colour Of The Trap
Noah and the Whale - Last Night On Earth
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds
Other Lives - Tamer Animals
Real Estate - Days
Robbie Robertson - How To Become Clairvoyant
Smith Westerns - Dye It Blonde
Spokes - Everyone I Ever Met
The Dears - Degeneration Street
The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar
The Lonely Forest - Arrows
The Script - Science & Faith
The Vaccines - What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
Those Dancing Days - Daydreams and Nightmares
Trombone Shorty - For True
Wakey! Wakey! - Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said The Last Time I Saw You...
Washed Out - Within and Without
White Lies - Ritual
Yuck - Yuck

2011 Playlist

Every year I make a playlist of the songs from the year that I really liked. This year's list reflects the following:

• Heavy rotation in my car, these are the songs the girlies like - Ellie Goulding, Adele, Florence and the Machine
• Our trip to Italy - Martin Solveig, Jovanotti, Vasco Rossi
• Albums I loved - Lucero, Elbow
• An inspired cover - Andrew Bird

Also, this year, I am able to share the list on Spotify and Rdio.  Here's the Rdio link.

2011 Playlist - Rdio

So, here's the list.

Title  - Artist  - Album
Shake It Out  - Florence + The Machine  - Ceremonials
Desire  - Anna Calvi  - Anna Calvi
Rumour Has It  - Adele  - 21
We Sing In Time  - The Lonely Forest  - Arrows
jesus is a rochdale girl o; - Elbow  - build a rocket boys!
Buckjump  - Trombone Shorty  - For True
I Am Not a Robot  - Marina & the Diamonds  - The Family Jewels
Hello (Single Edit)  - Martin Solveig & Dragonette  - Hello
Il Più Grande Spettacolo Dopo Il Big Bang  - Jovanotti  - Ora
Manifesto futurista della nuova umanità  - Vasco Rossi  - Vivere o niente
Starry Eyed  - Ellie Goulding  - An Introduction to Ellie Goulding EP
Post Break-Up Sex  - The Vaccines  - What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?
345  - Spokes  - Everyone I Ever Met
Bigger Than Us  - White Lies  - Ritual
Smoke  - Lucero  - 1372 Overton Park
Waiting For My Chance To Come  - Noah and the Whale  - Last Night On Earth
A Candle's Fire  - Beirut  - The Rip Tide
How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep  - Bombay Bicycle Club  - A Different Kind Of Fix
Itchin' on a Photograph  - Grouplove  - Never Trust a Happy Song
Same Mistake  - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah  - Hysterical
Almost Everything  - Wakey! Wakey!  - Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said The Last Time I Saw You...
Get Away  - Yuck  - Yuck
Bein' Green - Andrew Bird   - Muppets: The Green Album

Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert

Everyone has a musical history. You have the first songs you enjoyed when you were little and your parents supplied your music. Then you moved on to your own tastes, which were derived from that initial experience.

You branch out into your own music that seemed to suit you best. Then, if you are fortunate, you continue to experience new music and your taste evolves over time.

From the time I was 15 until I was 19 or 20, I loved the music of Eric Clapton. I particularly liked Cream and Derek and the Dominoes. Then he made Backless, and I moved on to Springsteen, the Clash, and the Replacements.

I still enjoy some of the older music, pausing to watch the Cream concert on PBS or the Concert for George when it is on. He's a good guitar player, I just don't share his current taste for the past 30 years.

I was watching Scorcese's George Harrison documentary on HBO and they mentioned the Rainbow concert. The mythical show where Clapton emerged from his heroin exile to perform with Steve Winwood, Ron Wood and Pete Townsend. I had never heard the album, so I fired up the Rdio account and gave it a listen.

It is the Clapton of my youth. All the songs I loved. It has the messiness of a live show that makes this type of music exciting. Plus, it is before he started messing reggae and country and western, which just mucked everything up.

It's not the music I listen to now. I won't be going back for regular visits. But, it was a nice nostalgic visit to my past.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad