Best of 2009

The songs in your head are now on my mind; You put me on pause, I'm trying to rewind and replay... (U2 - No Line on the Horizon)

2009 will go down as a very good year in music for me. There were some fantastic CDs released, some really top notched songs, and I saw several really good shows. Let's start with my top 10 CDs of the year:


1. U2 - No Line on the Horizon - U2 completed the trifecta with their 3rd great album of the 00's. The cd was loaded with classic U2 sounds like the title track, the terrific Unknown Caller, I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight, Breathe, and some new twists: the soulful Moment of Surrender, the dance floor number Magnificent and the dreamy Fez-Being Born.


2. Wilco - Wilco (The Album) - Wilco continued in the vein of Sky Blue Sky and another outstanding batch of new songs; the great tune I'll Fight, the powerful One Wing, the paranoia meltdown of Bull Black Nova, the George Harrisonesque You Never Know to the fun lead off single Wilco (The Song).



3. Bruce Springsteen - Working On a Dream - Bruce and the gang recorded as was described as his White Album. Highlights include the Ennio Morricone influenced The Outlaw Pete, the River-like My Lucky Day, the Byrdsy Life Itself, the Beach Boysesque This Life, the inspiring title track and the sequal to Wild Billy's Circus Story and tribute to Danny The Last Carnival.


4. Rhett Miller - Rhett Miller - One of the suprise cds of the year was Rhett Miller's 3rd cd. After last year's Old 97's fine release of Blame It On Gravity, Rhett came back with another solid CD featuring: one of the best songs of the year Happy Bithday Don't Die, solid songs in Caroline, Like Love, If It's Not Love, the quieter Sometimes and Bonfire.


5. Brendan Benson - My Old Familiar Friend -Brendan Benson fresh off
duites with The Raconteurs recorded a fresh sounding pop CD: the should have been a hit single A Whole Lot Better, Misery, Eye on the Horizon, Garbage Day, Gonowhere with it's Wings era synthesiser, etc.

6. Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Now and Then
7. The Smithereens - The Smithereens Play Tommy
8. Steve Earle - Townes
9. Buddy & Julie Miller - Written In Chalk
10. John Fogerty - The Blue Ridge Rangers Ride Again

My favorite songs of the year are as follows:

1. U2 - Unknown Caller
2. U2 - Fez Being Born
3. U2 - Magnificent
4. Rhett Miller - Happy Birthday Don't Die
5. Wilco - I'll Fight
6. Wilco - One Wing
7. Brendan Benson - A Whole Lot Better
8. Bruce Springsteen - Life Itself
9. U2 - No Line On the Horizon
10. U2 - Moment of Surrender
11. Brendan Benson - Misery
12. U2 - I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight
13. Wilco - Bull Black Nova
14. Bruce Springsteen - My Lucky Day
15. Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Santa Monica
16. Bruce Springsteen - The Last Carnival
17. Wilco - Wilco (The Song)
18. Bruce Springsteen - Working on a Dream
19. Wilco - You Never Know
20. Buddy & Julie Miller - Memphis Jane

My favorite show of the year was the Kings of Leon in Rupp Arena, Lexinton, KY on 10/10/09.