1. When I was An Eagle – Laura Marla – Jungian archetypes meet boy-gods and all are punished to a melody you can sing in the shower.
2. Mother – Natalie Maines – Country girl embraces her inner alt rocker, becomes modern country girl and the better for it.
3. Side Effects Of You – Fantasia – She has gone through a lot to get here, a nigh on perfect soul record, mixing dance and ballads to equal effect and sounding very much like the woman who has survived the life she has, indeed survived.
4. Love Is Everything – George Strait – Superior country album by the numbers.
5. Modern Vampires Of The City – Vampire Weekend – God and man reconciled
6. m b v – My Bloody Valentine – Decades later and this is nearly exactly the album you had hoped, guitar modulations and bruised melodies aplenty.
7. Paramore – Paramore – The great reunion album of 2013. The great return of 2013. A shockingly good album
8. Save Rock And Roll – Fall Out Boy – As above only the second best.
9. Shellshag Forever – A band that have survived and thrived by building a romance and a musical environment that suits them and here they manage to share it in perfect melody and harmony
10. Claire’s Diary – Claire’s Diary – A sonic surf and pop debut album so fresh and bitingly alive.
11. Based On A true Story – Blake Shelton – Astoundingly, consistently tuneful country album.
12. In Time – The Mavericks – 1990s country band add anything they damn well feel to the main ingredients and come out with near perfect country rock.
13. Without A Net – Wayne Shorter – It is, of course, all about the horn. But he plays it often and the music is unlike what we rockers are even slightly used to
14. Beautiful – Teena Marie – Ivory snow r&b old school. A magnificent album filled with strong songs, great vocals and, well, naff lyric kinda comes with the territory but a fine farewell from the great dance diva.
15. Fourth Corner – Trixie Whitley – Highly ambitious, somewhat polished, blues pop from a new master on her debut album.
16. Time – Rod Stewart – has his mojo back for the first time in decades.
17. The Elvis Club – The Del Lords – Americana garage rockers as great as ever.
18. Wakin On A Sunny Daze- Kurt Vile – Like Neil Young in mellow mode with a better guitarist but weaker songs.
19. My Shame Is True – Alkaline Trio – Not just the funniest album title, the smartest pop punk.
20. Reasons To Live – Hilly Eye – Another debut album, another soundscape folkie feminist masterpiece.
21. The 20/20 Experience – Justin Timberlake’s worst solo effort is overstuffed in every imaginable way include length of songs, song suites and hooks.
22. Fade – Yo La Tengo – High melodic quotient stories of monogamy.
23. I Got A Boy – Girls Generation – Nice piece all girl band throws everything they’ve got at K-Pop and watch a lot of it stick.
24. Fidlar – Fidlar – Punky rock and roll from L.A.
25. Adam Ant is marrying The Gunner’s daughter – Adam Ant – A sprawling mess of a rock and roll album.
26. My True Story – Aaron Neville – His back pages, produced by Keith Richards.
27. Cheaters Game – Kelly Willis And Bruce Robison – Songs for swinging married couples.
28. Honeys – Pissed Jeans – Way out there punks come noise merchants come hardcore guys.
29. Less Radio – The Normal Living – Spector meets Springsteen at Penn Station
30. Random Access Memories – Daft Punk – French disco, sometimes more than French disco.
31. IV Play – The-Dream – The 21st century’s Babyface.
32. The Next Day – David Bowie – the hangover part IV
33. One Big Particular Loop – Polysenso – Jazzy, experimental, obtuse, catchy. From the Mid-West.
36. Jamie Lidell – Jamie Lidill – Blue eyed soul goes hi-tech.
37. Face The Music – Avant – Classic r&b
38. Tinvulva – Tinvulva – Rioting grrrls
39. The Bronx IV – The Bronx – Hard rocking album.
40. Memphis – Boz Scaggs – Includes Mink de Ville’ covers.
41. She – Alice Smith – Excellent old fashioned r&b except not rally old fashioned.
42. Afraid Of Height – Wavves – Eccentric surf punk experimental stuff.
43. Mosquito – Yeah Yeah Yeah – Their worst album is still pretty awesome
44. Wolf – Tyler, The Creator – Rich but still bumming
45. True Believers – Darius Rucker – Solid country album
46. Same Trailer, Different Park – Kacey Musgrove -You can take the girl outta the trailer park…
47. A State Of Trance – BT – More melodic than the live DJs tend to play it.
48. Bankrupt – Phoenix – Not bad but a bit bland in the middle.
49. True Romance – Charlie XCX – Betetr pop than you imagine it will be
50. Right Place, Right Time – Bruno Mars – Right on
51. Strike Gently – The Virgins – It took awhile to kick in but moves forward from their Some Girls meets First Impressions vibe.
52. Vanishing Point – Mudhoney – They’re back!
53. Trouble will Find Me – The National – Depressed songs about happy things.
54. A – Agnethea Faltskog – 70s superstar return
55. Wheels – Laura Stevenson – Pounds even when it ponders
56. Everybody Loves Sausages – The Melvins – Dream covers go to hell.
57. The Messiah – Sizzla – Rastaman
Best reissue:
Rumors (Super deluxe) – Fleetwood Mac.
Wings Over America
Best Over 50
Love Is Everything – George Strait – Superior country songs made simple
Without A Net – Wayne Shorter – It is, of course, all about the horn. But he plays it often and the music is unlike what we rockers are even slightly used to
Adam Ant is marrying The Gunner’s daughter – Adam Ant – A sprawling mess of a rock and roll album.
My True Story – Aaron Neville – His back pages, produced by Keith Richards
Memphis – Boz Scaggs – R&B stuff from a past master.