I know some of you are sick 'best of' lists, but every year I compile a list of favorite music, film, books, etc for the year, so here it goes:
In My Room
Kevin’s best of 2003
Music-
1.) Damien Rice-"O" Technically this CD should not be in this year’s list, because it was released last year in Ireland/UK and I purchased it at year’s end,2002. This record took me numerous listens to get in to. I put it away for a few months and came back to it this year with a vengeance. It was also released in the States this year, thank god!
2.) Emmylou Harris-"Stumble into Grace" Title says it all. This woman seems to be getting better as she ages. Her last three studio albums could be argued her finest in her long and lustrous career.
3.) Kristin Hersh-"The Grotto" Subtle and delicate recording, which bears amazing, results upon further listens. Kristin’s finest hour to date.
4.) Lucinda Williams-"World Without Tears" (See Emmylou Harris above)
5.) Clem Snide-"Soft Spot" Eef Barzelay is the best lyric writer in Indie pop today. Quirky and catchy as hell!
6.) Sinead O’Connor-"She Who Dwells…" If this is Sinead’s swan song, then what a way to go out. This is mainly a collection of B-sides and rarities, new recordings, demos, etc. that for some reason works as a great album. Plus there’s a fab live recording on the second disc.
7.) Patty Griffin-"A Kiss In Time" This women is fast becoming my favorite female songwriter. Can’t wait for new one early next year.
8.) The Thrills-"So Much For The City" Mix a little Burt, a little Brian and whole lot a sun- soaked fun. These guys should be on Top 40/MTV heavy rotation, great pop music for the masses.
9.) The Innocence Mission-"Befriended" Just like Damien, I had a hard time with this delicate recording, but nonetheless, Karen and Co. enchanted me under their simple spell for the 7th time.
10.) Travis-"12 Memories" OK, so Fran Healy is no Dylan, but he sure does know how to write pop songs that stick in your head. Not their strongest effort, but a nice progression into more adult sounds and themes.
11.) Josh Ritter-"Hello Starling" At first I thought this toped his second recording. Upon further listening, it just didn’t have the lasting power of ‘The Golden Age Of Radio". Still, this is another fine recording by a young man who is well on his way to becoming something great.
12.) Natalie Merchant-"The House Carpenter’s Daughter" A super, fine collection of traditional and contemporary folk songs done amazingly well by Natalie and her band.
13.) Denison Wittmer-"Recovered" Most people would say, "Who the feck does this kid think he is recording these songs" Somehow Denison pulls it off with much sincerity, honor and respect to his elders before. Lovely "covers only" collection.
14.) Joe Henry-"Tiny Voices" Joe finally merges that jazz thing with that pop thing, to make his strongest recording since "Trampoline". Rich, warm, dark yet hopeful record with many layers that unfold with each new listen.
15.) Rufus Wainwright-"Want One" Now I can’t wait for "Want Two". WOW! what a bizarre recording, yet somehow by throwing everything in but the kitchen sink, he pulls it off. This one’s going to grow on me, big time!
16.) Annie Lennox-"Bare" Well sonically and production wise, the title need not apply. Lyrically it’s painful as hell. A little to over-polished; otherwise it could have been my favorite recording of the year.
17.) Ocean Colour Scene-"North Atlantic Drift" I love Simon Fowler’s voice and Steve Cradock’s hooks. Not the most original band on the planet, but I’ll take this retro sounding band over The Stills, Jet, The White Stripes, etc. any day.
18.) Sarah McLachlan-"Afterglow" Sarah’s weakest album in ages; but then again, her weakest was still a breath a fresh air for me of late.
19.) The Lilac Time (Stephen Duffy &)-"Keep Going" Keep going indeed. A strong return to form for the Duffy bros. More heavenly pop sounds from this great English band.
20.) The Shins-"Chutes Too Narrow" Just like Clem Side, this Indie band is a wee bit quirky. Now if only James Mercer could write lyrics even close to those of Eef Barzelay’s then this band would be great.
Honorable Mention: Roseanne Cash-"Rules Of Travel", Dido-"Life For Rent", Cesaria Evora-"Voz D’Amor", Four Tet-"Rounds", Ruth Gerson-"Wake To Echo", Shelby Lynne-"Identity Crisis", Maria McKee-"High Dive", Virginia Rodrigues-‘Mares Profundos", Jess Stone-"The Soul Sessions", Gillian Welch-"Soul Journey"
Two albums I should have purchase much earlier! Both were released in the UK in 2002. Both are shamefully available as import-only:
1.) Kathryn Williams-"Old Low Light"
2.) Tom Mcrae-"Just Like Blood"
Best re-issues, best of’s etc.
1.) The Frames-"The Roads Outgrown" b-sides from Irish band, previously available only on import singles.
2.) Kate Rusby-"10" A collection of re-recorded tunes, come to think of it, this is basically a new album. This should be in my top 20 list, in fact it’s one of me favs of the year.
3.) You Am I- "The Cream & The Crock" Rock Rock, Rock till ya’drop! Excellent band from down-under, who are largely ignored in the States. Forget Jet and The Vines, these guys were first and are still kings of the garage/pub sound down-under!
4.) Jeff Buckley-"Live At Sin-e"(Legacy Edition) Finally!!! something worth releasing after Jeff’s unfortunate, early passing. Though something tells me more is on the way.
5.) Billy Bragg-"Must I Paint You A Picture"(The Essential Billy Bragg) Billy gets his long over due proper best of' collection, plus an extra disc of rarities. Only complain; should have been priced cheaper. I bought the import at a better price then the domestic.
6.) Beth Orton-"Pass In Time"(The Definitive Collection) Great intro to lovely and talented English bird. Can’t wait for her next. She’s working with Four Tet as producer. Finally back to those gorgeous electronic leanings!
7.) R.E.M.-"The Best Of R.E.M. In Time 1988-2003(Limited Edition version) R.E.M. prove that they were still a very relevant band even though their mass popularity shrank in the US. Did you know that they are most likely the most popular American band outside the US?
Best Album Art/Packaging:
The Shins- "Chutes Too Narrow" Fun "South Park"- like, Die cut cartoon cover.
Travis- "12 Memories" Excellent black and white photography from Anton Corbijn
Film-
I only saw a handful of films this year and only one will stand the pass of time. (Grant it, I haven’t seen "The Return of The King" yet.)
"Lost In Translation" I think Sofia can finally shake off that damn tag of being Francis Ford Coppola’s daughter. And we can finally forgive her for trying to be an actress. Also, can we finally hand Mr. Murray an Oscar? Also best use of contemporary music in a film since "Transpotting".
Books:
Was there any great books written this year? I’m serious; there wasn’t one book this year that I wanted to buy, let alone read. So I have been re-reading some of my Classics from High School days, since I didn’t really read them the first time.
DVD:
"The Lord Of The Rings-The Two Towers"(Special Extended Edition) Peter Jackson is a master of not only bringing this massive collection to the screen, but also a master of DVD releases, packaging and extra’s.
TV:
"The Wire" (HBO) is the best show on television, period! AND WORTH THE TEN BUCKS I PAY FOR IT EVERY MONTH! "Sonic Cinema" on Sundance is the most refreshing music video program I’ve seen in ages. So sad MTV 2 has fallen into the R &’feckin B/Hip-Hop trap! What a nightmare that channel has turned in to. WE NEED A MUSIC TELEVISION CHANNEL FOR ADULTS! NOW!
That’s all folks! , sorry I pulled a Kent (of old), with the mile-long posting. I hope everyone had a thankful Turkey Day and my best wishes for a wondrous Holiday Season!!!
Cheers, Kevin(fromAZ)
