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1. SOUTHERN CULTURE ON THE SKIDS – At Home With Southern Culture On The Skids: This fired on all cylinders hitting on bar rock, surf music, hillbilly and a Nancy Sinatra cover. How could you possibly go wrong?
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2. THE WAR ON DRUGS – I Don’t Live Here Anymore: Anthemic psych rock.
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3. THE CONNELLS – Steadman’s Wake: Always a favorite of mine from back in the day. This is their first album in 20 years and there is no rust or fatigue that you might expect after such a layoff.
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4. DJANGO DJANGO – Glowing In The Dark: Stepping back from the club music of the last album to a more pop sound and resurrecting Charlotte Gainsbourg for a cameo to boot.
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5. THE DIRTY KNOBS – Wreckless Abandon: I’m not sure when this came out but I wasn’t aware of it until early last year. The decades Campbell spent in the Heartbreakers was hardly an apprenticeship as he was also an able composer and collaborator with Petty. He carries that experience into this band.
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6. JAMES McMURTRY – The Horses and The Hounds: It’s been a number of years since I checked on McMurtry but this one seemed to get a lot of airplay. McMurtry supposedly was invoking the ghost of Zevon for this album so maybe that’s the attraction.
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7. TEENAGE FANCLUB – Endless Arcade: Another favorite, they have been remarkably consistent for the past 30 years even with personnel changes.
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8. GREEN DIESEL – After Comes The Dark: Perhaps the most surprising things about this album are that the band was not founded by Ashley Hutchings and this was not recorded in the early 70s. But it sure sounds like it.
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9. MDOU MOCTAR – Afrique Victime: Finally getting some recognition for his serious musical chops on guitar that gives their music a harder edge than the other bands from that area.
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10. JAY TAUSIG – Ancient Roots, Modern Branches: A self-described experimental multi-instrumentalist specializing in space and prog, he thankfully leaves the pretentiousness behind in this appreciation of the British folk music of the of the 70s, especially the music of Pentangle.
11. THE DAPTONE SUPER SOUL REVUE – Live At The Apollo: I had seen the Revue when it had passed through Poughkeepsie a couple of years before this was recorded and loved the show. It was close as I was ever going to get to the rock and soul reviews of the 60s.
12. STEVE EARLE & THE DUKES – J.T.: I can’t even begin to comprehend how difficult this must have been for Earle to record. A moving tribute to the music of his son.
13. RICHARD THOMPSON – Bloody Noses & Serpent’s Tears: The two EPs released by Thompson since the pandemic which when put together would make up a new album. There are some songs that would definitely have benefited from a full band treatment but for primarily a solo effort, it’s impressive.
14. THE GRIP WEEDS – Dig Deluxe Edition: The one thing that you could not escape last year were cover albums. This was my favorite one from last year. If I had a band for the most part, these were the songs I would have chosen.
15. LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM – Lindsey Buckingham: I don’t know if this was recorded before or after his health issues but he’s in strong voice and still has some of the best pop sensibilities this side of McCartney.
16. THE DROPKICK MURPHYS – Turn Up That Dial.
17. LORD HURON – Long Lost: Their albums have become more complex and confident.
18. MATTHEW SWEET – Catspaw: Other than a drummer this is Sweet’s one man “wizard – a true star” album. He knows his way around a hook.
19. JASON ISBELL & THE 400 UNIT – Georgia Blue: Recorded for the best of reasons as he had promised to do a tribute album to the artists and music of Georgia if the state turned the Senate blue.
20. MICK FLEETWOOD & FRIENDS – Celebrate The Music of Peter Green: Usually albums like these are pretty superfluous but there was a lot of heart and genuine admiration that went into this concert.
21. ROBERT PLANT & ALISON KRAUSS – Raise The Roof: No real departure from the Raising Sand formula but they get extra credit for covering both Anne Briggs and Bert Jansch.
22. THE RUMJACKS – Hestia: Celtic rock a la the Dropkicks but with a Fosters instead of a Sam Adams.
23. PEAT & DIESEL – Live At The Barrowlands 2020: Because they make me laugh.
24. WILLIE NILE – The Day The Earth Stood Still: He’s consistent to the extent that perhaps he is getting too predictable.
25. ALICE COOPER – Detroit Stories: His love letter to the music of Detroit of the 1970s. The pedigree of the musicians on the record from the Detroit Wheels, MC5, Grand Funk and the original Alice Cooper is damn impressive.
REISSUES
THE WHO – Sell Out: One of my all-time favorite albums.
NEIL YOUNG – Archives Vol. II
JONI MITCHELL – Archives – Volume 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971)
BEACH BOYS – Feel Flows
Duncan Clark