The best thing I heard during 2001 was that many record companies were going to lower CD prices in order to compete with Napster and other similar music sharing websites. The best music I heard is listed below.

The following is not in any particular order.

Pete Yorn: Music for the morning after – A really nice record from beginning to end.

Coldplay: Parachutes – – A good record (and they are better live). This may have been released at the end of 2000.

Lucinda Williams: Essence – – I liked many of her songs in the past, but I found her albums a little inconsistent. This is her most consistently good record.

Josh Joplin Group: Useful Music – – A nice record (a notch or two below Pete Yorn).

Live: V – – A very good rock album. Their best since “Throwing Copper”

Linkin Park: Hybrid Theory – – BEWARE: This is loud, screaming, banging noise, but there is enough melody to win me over.

Jess Klein: Draw Them Near – – A pleasant folk singer and this record shows some promise.

Better Than Ezra: Closer – – Another good album from these guys.

Honorable mentions

Staind: Break the Cycle – – Primarily a hard rock record, but there is some nice stuff on this.

Tori Amos: Strange Little Girls – – This is an album of covers and Tori’s style works really well with a few of the tracks (The Stranglers’ “Strange Little Girls”, Lloyd Cole’s “Rattlesnakes” and Tom Waits’ “Time”). However, there are several tracks that are downright painful to listen to. I would not recommend this album unless you are a big fan of Tori’s style.

Kevin Ferris