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| From | "Christopher Kouzes" <Christopher.Kouzes@btol.com> |
| Subject | Top 2006 of 2006 |
| Date | Thu, 18 Jan 2007 17:15:03 -0500 |
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Not quite, but here you go
1. Hellacopters/Rock and Rock is Dead
Fun, high energy, melodic rock from Sweden
2. Nines/Calling All Stations
If there's new Nines album out, I'll bet the farm it'll on
my list. Love his brand of power pop
3. Bruce Springsteen/Seeger Sessions
Probably the most fun album I've heard all year. As good as this is, his
live shows have been even better. Playing his catalog in this ragtag
style is a blast to listen to.
4. Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint/River in Reverse
Neck and neck with Springsteen in terms of fun. Love hearing Toussaint
sing again. The new live DVD from them is well worth picking up.
5. Bob Dylan/Modern Times
For me, a major improvement over "Love and Theft" (though I know they're
similar in sound). Dylan sings better than he has in years.
6. Feeling/Twelve Stops & Home
Sure they get lots of Supertramp, Jellyfish et al comparisons. But
they've got the goods to back it up. Can't wait to see what they do
next.
7. Cloud Eleven/Sweet Happy Life
More mellow than past releases, but that doesn't mean it's
any less essential.
8. Neko Case/Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
Not many sing like Neko Case. I hear new things every time I listen to
this CD. Her secret weapon is Kelly Hogan on backing vocals. If Kelly
can finally pick the project that will make her shine, it'll be amazing.
9. Cheap Trick/Rockford
Welcome back. Many have said it's the best thing since Dream Police.
Those folks apparently skipped their self released album on Red Ant.
That being said, it's really excellent.
10. Tom Wait/Orphans
Why? It's Tom fucking Waits.
11. Willie Nelson/Songbird
I'm probably in the minority, but Willie is one of my favorite guitar
players of all time. His originals are strong here as are all the
unexpected covers. But he and Ryan Adams and his Cardinals pull them all
off quite well.
12. Who/Endless Wire
I can't believe anyone had high expectations for this one. Maybe that's
why it's so impressive. Definitely an older and more mature Who, but
it's great to hear Roger and Pete sing together again. The biggest shame
here is that Zak Starkey is only on 2 tracks. And since I'm admitting to
what I'm in the minority of, I really liked the "It's Hard" album.
13. Butch Walker/Rise and Fall of Butch...
The Rise and Fall of Butch Walker. Fun, catchy, and glammy.
14. Lindsey Buckingham/Under the Skin
What a beautiful album this is. Hopefully this will remind everyone what
an incredible guitarist Buckingham is. Now only if he'd release the
original version of "Gift of Screws" as a companion.
15. Keene Brothers/Blues and Boogie Shoes
Tommy Keene's melodies and Robert Pollards vocals and lyrics. The best
album either has made in awhile.
16. Format/Dog Problems
17. Innocents/Pop Factory
I was late on this one and it's wonderful to hear this Australian band
back together releasing music as good as anything they put out in the
`80's.
18. Jon Auer/Songs from the Year of Our Demise
Add this to the list of great break up albums. Nice to see Jon bounce
back so strongly after so-so Posies and Big Star albums.
19. Green & Yellow TV/Sinister Barrier
Darker than their other poppier output, but quiet good.
These guys should be bigger in the pop world.
20. Figgs/Follow Jean Through the Sea
No wonder why Graham Parker has worked with them for 10 years. Since it
seems NRBQ is on hiatus, are The Figgs the Best Bar Band in the country?
Other fine albums that could easily have slide up into the Top 20:
Hold Steady/Boys & Girls in America
Raconteurs/Broken Boy Soldiers
Roger Manning Jr./Land of Pure Imagination
Tickets/Tickets
Josh Ritter/Animal Years
Robyn Hitchcock/Ole Tarantula
Arctic Monkeys/Whatever People Say I Am...
Sloan/Never Hear the End of It
Minus 5/Gun Album
Badly Drawn Boy/Born in the UK
Alejandro Escovedo/Boxing Mirror
Sails/Sails
Dixie Chicks/Taking the Long Way
LEO/Aplacas Orgling
Los Lobos/Town and the City
Honeydogs/Amygdala
Doug Powell/Four Seasons
Editors/Back Room
Destroyer/Destroyer's Rubies
Favorite Song of the Year
Christina Aguilera/Ain't No Other Man
Far from Power Pop, but damn if this thing doesn't drip with swagger. I
don't want to hear shit from any one on this choice. This song kicks ass
all over the place.
Reissue of the Year/Website of the Year
Not sure if this really counts, but the Power Pop Lovers website
(http://powerpoplovers.blogspot.com
<http://powerpoplovers.blogspot.com/> ) completely flipped me. Tons of
rare and long out-of-print (and usually never available on CD before)
power pop/new wave albums that have been delicately transferred to
320kbps mp3 (and complete with artwork). They don't make downloading
easy (all files are zipped as .rar files and which needs a provided
password to unlock), though a piece of cake once you've mastered it. I
was able to download dozens of great albums that either I've been
looking for for years or have on LP and never digitized.
If I have to pick a physical CD, then that's easy:
Waterboys/Fisherman's Blues
This is the forth time material from these sessions have been released.
I wish Mike Scott would just make everything else available through
iTunes.
Favorite Sirius Channels
Who Channel- Loved hearing so many deep album cuts that I had forgotten
about. For about 6 months I kept on hearing "The Good's Gone" and
thought it was on their new "Endless Wire" CD. Totally forgot that it
was actually released 41 years (wholly shit!!) ago on "Who Sings My
Generation."
Little Steven's Underground Garage- This channel alone is worth the $12
a month. Simply awesome.
CDs Praised By Others That I Just Don't Get
Sean Lennon- Straddles not good and awful IMO.
Decemberists- I like this better than their other CDs, but I just don't
understand the avalanche of love for these guys.
New York Dolls- With exception of a song or two, I've never gotten these
guys. I've tried. I like their story much better than their music.
Beck- I like Beck and at times, love Beck. While his newest one is
probably the best representation of all the styles of music he's
released over the years, the songs don't come close to matching any of
the highs of those styles.
Chris
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