The 10 Best Things I've Heard All Year
Hey Soul Mates,
it's the end of 2006. Time to review my favorite records of the year. As usual, my choices are not meant to be a compendium of the "best" releases, but the ones that resonated most with me. Anyone who knows me will not be surprised by many of the selections. One is flat out biased. I'll freely admit it. A couple may astonish. Several were discovered as a direct result of our trip to the UK (one has seen no U.S. release at all). Anyway, I heartily recommend all of these listening experiences as they all enriched my life this year. May the music reach your ears and satisfy your soul.
This year, due to the lack of outstanding LPs, I mixed it up with singles and entire CDs. In descending order.
#10. Jay-Z - "Kingdom Come." This chopped up single featuring a wicked Rick James sample is the cream of Hova's otherwise o.k. comeback album.
#9. The Lightyears - Mission Creep and the cyber single "Miles Away." These genial guys played at IPO in Liverpool with us. Mission Creep is technically a 2005 release, but it's my list! As a tight trio (keys, guitar and small drum kit), they put on a fantastic live show filled with fun tunes, wit, synchronized stage moves and uniforms! Their music mingles Supergrass cheek with Coldplay earnestness. Sounding very much the new millennium Britpop on tracks like "We Keep The Beat Alive," "Brother" and "You Are Wrong, " they churn out very memorable songs. "Miles Away" was a new song when I saw them, not included on the CD. The rising, yet melancholy coda played in my head for days after seeing the Lightyears. Tonight, Dec. 30, the band will celebrate its release on their new EP Phoenix.
#8. Christina Aguilera - "Ain't No Other Man." Several artists tried to do this '30s retro thang in '06. No one succeeded like the former Xtina. This brassy single is mesmerizing, once you realize that she belting that melody with no instrumentation behind her. Also a very fun and eye-catching video.
#7. The Beatles - Love. It's the Beatles, in 5.1 surround. That is all.
#6. Keane - "Is It Any Wonder?" Yes, to answer a debated question, U2 would be signed in this day and age. And they'd be called Keane. The lead single from Under The Iron Sea is a dizzying pop/rock track featuring one of my favorite couplets of the year: Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm stranded in the wrong time/Where love is just a lyric in a children's rhyme.
#5. The Feeling - 12 Stops and Home. This album was the soundtrack of the month of June for me. It was released in the UK while we were there and I couldn't stop listening to it. The Feeling bring back classic British pop sounds of the '70s (10cc and E.L.O.) with harmony laden songs likes like "Sewn," "Love It When You Call," and the utterly unstoppable piano-stomp of "Fill My Little World." The latter will forever remind me of the finish of our tour. Apparently, this CD will be released here in February. Wow. Behind the times.
#4. Tie: Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSounds; Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere. Here is where my predicament lies. Two great dance albums on the surface. Each one with a couple of monster hits. Ubiquitous "Summer of '06" jams "SexyBack" and "Crazy" are singles for the ages. I'm not tired of either of them. But the messages are 180 degrees apart.
Justin's FSLS is a paean to dancing the night away, fighting halfway through followed by the make-up sex and more sex. "My Love," "Damn Girl" and the album closer "All Over Again" make it an instant pop classic. Here, Justin aims for Prince as well as Michael. "Until The End of Time" even borrows that sick 1985 drum beat and string arrangement. There's only one misstep, the first-person crackhead lament/stab at King of Pop territory "Losing My Way." But even that has one of the strongest choruses on the album. You can put this CD on and do your best moves and feel sexy; I hope you got the version with the bonus track "Pose" featuring Snoop. Timberlake and main producer Timbaland are as simpatico on this disc as MJ and Quincy Jones in the '80s. And it's a groove.
On the other side of the psyche, Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo put us into the cranium of one Gnarls Barkley as "he" works his way through a long dark tea-time of the soul. St. Elsewhere is a concept album chock full of mental unrest, which can be devastating and uplifting simultaneously. As one who's dealt first-hand with depression and mental health issues, St. Elsewhere is a stark reminder of how quickly one can lose one's mind and where to find solace in the fact that we are all subject to the caprices of our brain's mysterious power (There is a disco-light at the end of this tunnel). Perfect examples are the hyperactive "Transformer" and the duality of "Who Cares?" Although my favorite number on the disc is the brief and concise rap (appropriately) "Feng Shui." Quality lyric: A plant a pet and books on the shelf/And a frame on the wall/where you can picture yourself/And you're welcome to stay but even/Your company must compliment the feng shui. This album is part hip-hop, part gospel, part Spaghetti Western. Entirely original. God, I hope they can follow it up. I hope I can choose!
#3. Prince - 3121. The hottest newest from the Purple Genius featured the years most scintillating single "Black Sweat." A most wonderful return to form and an explosion of preconceptions, this whole album tilts and boogies. The title track is as sonically adventurous as you'd expect Prince to get. "Satisfied" is the best vintage R&B number of the past 30 years. The album keeps pace from start to finish with the rousing James Brown-esque jam "Get On The Boat" rounding out your visit to 3121.
#2. Bob Dylan - Modern Times. The other Minnesota Genius checked in with the year's best collection of songs. The live show simply confirmed that Dylan is as fly as ever. Modern Times rocks. And it's in turns tough and thoughtful. Spirited blues like "Rollin' And Tumblin'" and "Someday Baby" fit perfectly with the tender Western number "When The Deal Goes Down" and the shuffle of "Beyond The Horizon." And I haven't even mentioned the killer cuts: "Thunder On The Mountain" and "Workingman's Blues #2." Lastly, the ballad "Nettie Moore" ranks as one of the finest compositions by anyone in 2006. The whole album is a clinic on songwriting and the power of understated production. Why oh, why didn't this get nominated for Album of the Year!?
#1. Rush Hour Soul - "A Talent For Loving." Not officially a commercial single release for 2006, so I expect to be voting for it next year for the Grammy's. Look for it on our forthcoming album (title tba) in May 2007!
Honorable mentions: (singles) Raconteurs - "Steady, As She Goes;" Oakenfold featuring Brittany Murphy - "Faster Kill Pussycat;" George Michael - "An Easier Affair;" John Mayer -"Waiting On The World To Change;" (albums) Orson - Bright Idea, it was released in the UK while we were there, but it made my list last year (and, technically in 2004); Nelly Furtado - Loose.
Happy Listening. Have a great weekend.
Love, Power, Peace
it's the end of 2006. Time to review my favorite records of the year. As usual, my choices are not meant to be a compendium of the "best" releases, but the ones that resonated most with me. Anyone who knows me will not be surprised by many of the selections. One is flat out biased. I'll freely admit it. A couple may astonish. Several were discovered as a direct result of our trip to the UK (one has seen no U.S. release at all). Anyway, I heartily recommend all of these listening experiences as they all enriched my life this year. May the music reach your ears and satisfy your soul.
This year, due to the lack of outstanding LPs, I mixed it up with singles and entire CDs. In descending order.
#10. Jay-Z - "Kingdom Come." This chopped up single featuring a wicked Rick James sample is the cream of Hova's otherwise o.k. comeback album.
#9. The Lightyears - Mission Creep and the cyber single "Miles Away." These genial guys played at IPO in Liverpool with us. Mission Creep is technically a 2005 release, but it's my list! As a tight trio (keys, guitar and small drum kit), they put on a fantastic live show filled with fun tunes, wit, synchronized stage moves and uniforms! Their music mingles Supergrass cheek with Coldplay earnestness. Sounding very much the new millennium Britpop on tracks like "We Keep The Beat Alive," "Brother" and "You Are Wrong, " they churn out very memorable songs. "Miles Away" was a new song when I saw them, not included on the CD. The rising, yet melancholy coda played in my head for days after seeing the Lightyears. Tonight, Dec. 30, the band will celebrate its release on their new EP Phoenix.
#8. Christina Aguilera - "Ain't No Other Man." Several artists tried to do this '30s retro thang in '06. No one succeeded like the former Xtina. This brassy single is mesmerizing, once you realize that she belting that melody with no instrumentation behind her. Also a very fun and eye-catching video.
#7. The Beatles - Love. It's the Beatles, in 5.1 surround. That is all.
#6. Keane - "Is It Any Wonder?" Yes, to answer a debated question, U2 would be signed in this day and age. And they'd be called Keane. The lead single from Under The Iron Sea is a dizzying pop/rock track featuring one of my favorite couplets of the year: Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm stranded in the wrong time/Where love is just a lyric in a children's rhyme.
#5. The Feeling - 12 Stops and Home. This album was the soundtrack of the month of June for me. It was released in the UK while we were there and I couldn't stop listening to it. The Feeling bring back classic British pop sounds of the '70s (10cc and E.L.O.) with harmony laden songs likes like "Sewn," "Love It When You Call," and the utterly unstoppable piano-stomp of "Fill My Little World." The latter will forever remind me of the finish of our tour. Apparently, this CD will be released here in February. Wow. Behind the times.
#4. Tie: Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSounds; Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere. Here is where my predicament lies. Two great dance albums on the surface. Each one with a couple of monster hits. Ubiquitous "Summer of '06" jams "SexyBack" and "Crazy" are singles for the ages. I'm not tired of either of them. But the messages are 180 degrees apart.
Justin's FSLS is a paean to dancing the night away, fighting halfway through followed by the make-up sex and more sex. "My Love," "Damn Girl" and the album closer "All Over Again" make it an instant pop classic. Here, Justin aims for Prince as well as Michael. "Until The End of Time" even borrows that sick 1985 drum beat and string arrangement. There's only one misstep, the first-person crackhead lament/stab at King of Pop territory "Losing My Way." But even that has one of the strongest choruses on the album. You can put this CD on and do your best moves and feel sexy; I hope you got the version with the bonus track "Pose" featuring Snoop. Timberlake and main producer Timbaland are as simpatico on this disc as MJ and Quincy Jones in the '80s. And it's a groove.
On the other side of the psyche, Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo put us into the cranium of one Gnarls Barkley as "he" works his way through a long dark tea-time of the soul. St. Elsewhere is a concept album chock full of mental unrest, which can be devastating and uplifting simultaneously. As one who's dealt first-hand with depression and mental health issues, St. Elsewhere is a stark reminder of how quickly one can lose one's mind and where to find solace in the fact that we are all subject to the caprices of our brain's mysterious power (There is a disco-light at the end of this tunnel). Perfect examples are the hyperactive "Transformer" and the duality of "Who Cares?" Although my favorite number on the disc is the brief and concise rap (appropriately) "Feng Shui." Quality lyric: A plant a pet and books on the shelf/And a frame on the wall/where you can picture yourself/And you're welcome to stay but even/Your company must compliment the feng shui. This album is part hip-hop, part gospel, part Spaghetti Western. Entirely original. God, I hope they can follow it up. I hope I can choose!
#3. Prince - 3121. The hottest newest from the Purple Genius featured the years most scintillating single "Black Sweat." A most wonderful return to form and an explosion of preconceptions, this whole album tilts and boogies. The title track is as sonically adventurous as you'd expect Prince to get. "Satisfied" is the best vintage R&B number of the past 30 years. The album keeps pace from start to finish with the rousing James Brown-esque jam "Get On The Boat" rounding out your visit to 3121.
#2. Bob Dylan - Modern Times. The other Minnesota Genius checked in with the year's best collection of songs. The live show simply confirmed that Dylan is as fly as ever. Modern Times rocks. And it's in turns tough and thoughtful. Spirited blues like "Rollin' And Tumblin'" and "Someday Baby" fit perfectly with the tender Western number "When The Deal Goes Down" and the shuffle of "Beyond The Horizon." And I haven't even mentioned the killer cuts: "Thunder On The Mountain" and "Workingman's Blues #2." Lastly, the ballad "Nettie Moore" ranks as one of the finest compositions by anyone in 2006. The whole album is a clinic on songwriting and the power of understated production. Why oh, why didn't this get nominated for Album of the Year!?
#1. Rush Hour Soul - "A Talent For Loving." Not officially a commercial single release for 2006, so I expect to be voting for it next year for the Grammy's. Look for it on our forthcoming album (title tba) in May 2007!
Honorable mentions: (singles) Raconteurs - "Steady, As She Goes;" Oakenfold featuring Brittany Murphy - "Faster Kill Pussycat;" George Michael - "An Easier Affair;" John Mayer -"Waiting On The World To Change;" (albums) Orson - Bright Idea, it was released in the UK while we were there, but it made my list last year (and, technically in 2004); Nelly Furtado - Loose.
Happy Listening. Have a great weekend.
Love, Power, Peace
posted by Norman K at 9:50 PM
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