January 2024
Dear POOPsters:
The 37 th Annual POOPlist now lights up your screens. Despite the tenuous state of the world (and this country’s inglorious contribution to it), we musical know-it-alls meet in the shadows once again to share our POmpous and OPinionated thoughts and ramblings. If nothing else compiling lists of the records that brought us joy and solace sure beats assembling lists of, I dunno, the most horrible climate disasters or the vilest actions on the world stage. The (only) 16 of us who contributed this year have decided that wildfires, droughts, floods, global hostilities and human atrocities be damned. It’s time to POOP.
I’ve once again employed the longstanding tabulation system, using the customary Do-You-Believe-This-Guy-or- What? methodology. As always, I’ve given 2 points to each pompoid’s Top 10 choices and 1 point to each title beyond a Top 10 or in the variously designated ‘honorable mention’ categories (up to 25 titles in all; more than 25 means half-points). NEW WRINKLE: Because we all seem to treat historical releases differently, I awarded 2 points to an archival title in someone’s Top 10 and 1½ points if the title was listed apart from the person’s main list. Know in advance that all results were entirely rigged.
Submitted for your approval, the results of the 37 th Annual POOPlist. Because only 16 lists were submitted this year, one vote more for any of these or the many ‘bubbling under’ titles would have upended these numbers. With that in mind, scroll away.
1 – THE REPLACEMENTS – Tim (Let It Bleed Edition) 10½ points (appearing on 6 of 16 lists)
2 – YO LA TENGO – This Stupid World 10 (5)
3 – ROLLING STONES – Hackney Diamonds 8 (5)
4 – CAT POWER – Sings Bob Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert 6½ (4)
BOB DYLAN – Fragments: Time Out of Mind Sessions 6½ (4)
OLIVIA RODRIGO – Guts 6½ (4)
NEIL YOUNG – Chrome Dreams 6½ (4)
8 – PJ HARVEY – I Inside the Old Year Dying 6 (3)
LANKUM – False Lankum 6 (3)
RATBOYS – The Window 6 (3)
Thanks once again to Mark Zip, Executive Coordinator of Digital POOP, for the creation and maintenance of the wonderful pooplist.net webpage. POOP continues to exist thanks to Zip and his prodigious efforts to harvest all our musings and then put a pretty bow on it. Please show some love to our digital facilitator by hitting the ‘DONATE’ button at the top of the homepage. This helps offset some of his web fees so be a good POOPster and drop a few coins in the tambourine (and thanks to the many who have already contributed). Thanks, Mark Z. Be well, all. Strap in ‘cause 2024 is gonna be a bumpy ride.
Mark Rosen
Ringmaster
THE CONTRIBUTORS
Richard Allen – Centerport, NY
Duncan Clark – Milton, NY
Don Cohen – New York, NY
Eric Fine – New York, NY
Jim Finnigan – New Hamburg, NY
Michael C. Hodgkiss – Amity Harbor, NY
Mike Jurkovic – Wallkill, NY
John Lefsky – New Paltz, NY
Jim Meyers – Kingston, NY
Matt Nerney – Grafton, NH
Mark Rosen – New Paltz, NY
Andrew Stewart – Rhinebeck, NY
Jay Stewart – Bloomington, NY
Bill Still – Kingston, NY
Dan Wilmer – Jersey City, NJ
Mark Zip – Woodstock, NY