r d e R e c o s P r e s S i d e n t B - s : Best of the Year 2020 Jimmy 2020 Pandemic and Cancer - thank God for music Liv’s List XOXO by The Jayhawks Beach Bunny - Honeymoon Fetch the Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers Crack Cloud - Pain Olympics Women in Music, Pt. III by HAIM Disq - Collector Song For Our Daughter by Laura Marling Fontaines D.C. - A Hero’s Death Homegrown by Neil Young Ghostpoet - I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep Shore by Fleet Foxes Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - Alfredo Beyond the Pale by Jarv Is... Lianne La Havas - Lianne La Havas My Echo by Laura Veirs Jyoti - Mama, You Can Bet! Good Souls Better Angels by Lucinda Williams Mary Lattimore - Silver Ladders Even in Exile by James Dean Bradfield Liv.E - Couldn’t Wait To Tell You… Midnight Manor by The Nude Party Agnes Obel - Myopia Sun Racket by Throwing Muses Okay Kaya - Watch This Liquid Pour Itself England Is a Garden by Cornershop Angel Olsen - Whole New Mess On Sunset by Paul Weller The Orielles - Disco Volador Reunions by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit Protomartyr - Ultimate Success Today Alphabetland by X Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever - Sideways To New Italy Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was by Bright Eyes Run The Jewels - RTJ4 Let It All In by Arboretum Slow Pulp - Moveys Sideways to New Italy by Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever Shannon sez Squirrel Flower - I Was Born Swimming Collector by Disq Moses Sumney - græ Never Not Together by Nada Surf Bladee - 333 Tobin Sprout - Empty Horses The Unraveling by Drive-By Truckers Slow Pulp - Moveys TORRES - Silver Tongue The Universal Want by Doves Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters Yves Tumor - Heaven To A Tortured Mind Mordechai by Khruangbin Lil Uzi Vert - Eternal Atake Neil Young - Homegrown What's New, Tomboy? by Damien Jurado The Garden - Kiss My Super Bowl Ring Made Of Rain by The Psychedelic Furs The Main Thing by Real Estate Serpentine Prison by Matt Berninger Muzz by Muzz MTV Unplugged [Live at Hull City Hall] by Liam Gallagher These Most Artful Disqs Have Graced My Senses Migration Stories by M. Ward This 2020 by Dave Thin Mind by Wolf Parade I Am Not a Dog on a Chain by Morrissey Disq - Collector That’s me, wholeheartedly Moveys by Slow Pulp Dungen - Live Swashbuckling Swedes shred the night fantastically HAZY by Squarewave Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl - Artlessly Falling The Waterfall II by My Morning Jacket Virtuosic guitarist & poet leaves the singing to notable voices… Live by Dungen Robyn Hitchcock - The Man Downstairs G is for Go-Betweens Vol 2 by The Go-Betweens What’s he building down there? Texas Sun by Khruangbin and Leon Bridges Khruangbin - Mordechai Citizens of Boomtown by Boomtown Rats Dub-infused etc. power trio shenanigans Mission Bells by Proper Ornaments Stephen J. Malkmus - Traditional Techniques Live at the Royal Albert Hall, 1974 by Bryan Ferry The Scrabble master scrambles on w/ non-Jick collaborators Dias Raros by Melenas Laura Marling - Song for Our Daughter Richard by Joe Pernice Mekons - Exquisite X-quisitely perfect for a dampenic or any Teenage Wildlife: 25 Years of Ash by Ash other time and arguably their weirdest yet, fittingly Surrender Your Poppy Field by Guided by Voices Pat Metheny - From This Place Another epic masterpiece from Tuscaloosa by Neil Young the guitarist/composer well suited to these times &, wait for it, b-yond Ruiner by Wilsen Bob Mould - Blue Hearts “Anger can be power” A Small Death by Samantha Crain Slow Pulp - Moveys Gorgeous pop, plus - and w/ Madison roots Printer's Devil by Ratboys Squarewave - HAZY More beauticity from the Badger State, etc. Foothills by The Bats So looking forward to the live versions! Most spins: Jayhawks, Wilsen, Bright Eyes, Pernice, Throwing Muses - Sun Racket Kristin, Bernard & Dave crank it up Jurado, X, Weller, Squarewave, Ferry X - Alphabetland The Original! Just in time for these times - exquisite... Steve’s 20 Most Loved Albums of 2020 Jazz + Instrumental (alphabetical order) A Girl Called Eddy - Been Around Jeff Parker & The New Breed - Suite for Max Brown Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher Gil Scott-Heron / Makaya McCraven - We’re New Again Samantha Crain - A Small Death Pat Metheny - From This Place Disq - Collector Irreversible Entanglements - Who Sent You? Kathleen Edwards - Total Freedom Wolfgang Muthspiel - Angular Blues Madeline Kenney - Sucker’s Lunch Helen Money - Atomic Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter Sir Richard Bishop - Oneiric Formulary Melenas - Dias Raros Tony Allen / Hugh Masekela - Rejoice Okay Kaya - Watch This Liquid Pour Itself Bill Frisell - Valentine Chuck Prophet - The Land That Time Forgot Roger Eno + Brian Eno - Mixing Colours Ratboys - Printer’s Devil Redman/Mehldau/McBride/Blade - RoundAgain Nadia Reid - Out of My Province Syneva - Star Taker Slow Pulp - Moveys Jim White + Marisa Anderson - The Quickening Soccer Mommy - Color Theory Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids - Shaman! Squarewave - HAZY Gunn-Truscinski Duo - Soundkeeper The Third Mind - s/t Goldmund - The Time it Takes This Is the Kit - Off Off On Mary Lattimore - Silver Ladders Jeff Tweedy - Love Is the King Ron Miles - Rainbow Sign Wilsen - Ruiner Kahil El’Zabar - America the Beautiful Winter - Endless Space (Between You & I) Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl - Artlessly Falling Loads More to Love From 2020 Ben Wendel - High Heart The Nels Cline Singers - Share the Wealth (chronological order, sort of) Rob Mazurek Exploding Star Orchestra - Dimensional Stardust Alexandra Savior - The Archer Wilder Deitz - Y’All Bonny Light Horseman - s/t Not Enough Shows Recreation Station - Fish In Heat (chronological order) Andy Shauf - The Neon Skyline Slow Pulp / Disq / Interlay @High Noon Saloon The Deer - Do No Harm Syneva / Rairie @Communication Destroyer - Have We Met Jon Langford + Sally Timms + John Szymanski @Kiki’s HoRM Drive-By Truckers - The Unraveling Woke Up Crying / Seafoam In My Swimsuit / Dash Hounds (solo) Agnes Obel - Myopia @Communication Isobel Campbell - There Is No Other… Nester @The Venue on Winnebago Deserta - Black Aura My Sun Wilco / Kacy & Clayton @Sylvee Post Animal - Forward Motion Godyssey Lower Lakes Trio @Garver Feed Mill En Attendant Ana - Juillet Frazey Ford - U Kin B the Sun Postcards - The Good Soldier Wire - Mind Hive B-Side Frances Quinlan - Likewise Eyelids - The Accidental Falls Khruangbin + Leon Bridges - Texas Sun (EP) Best of the Year Dan Deacon - Mystic Familiar Tan Cologne - Cave Vaults On the Moon in New Mexico Nada Surf - Never Not Together Jim Noir - A.M Jazz 2020 Honey Cutt - Coasting Califone - Echo Mine Sorry - 925 Norris Court - Imposter Syndrome Mekons - Exquisite Tanya Donelly and the Parkington Sisters - s/t Lanterns on the Lake - Spook the Herd Joe Pernice - Richard Bright Eyes - Down in the Weeds,... Dropkick - The Scenic Route Muzz - s/t Bully - Sugaregg Stephen J. Malkmus - Traditional Techniques Khruangbin - Mordechai Damien Jurado - What’s New, Tomboy? The Proper Ornaments - Mission Bells Deerhoof - Future Teenage Cave Artists Young Fresh Fellows - Toxic Youth Close Lobsters - Post Neo Anti Holy Wave - Interloper Rose City Band - Summerlong Jonathan Wilson - Dixie Blur Malojian - Humm Bill Callahan - Gold Record Dungen - Live Kelley Stoltz - Hard Feelings Molly Tuttle - ...But I’d Rather Be With You Bill Fay - Countless Branches Pretenders - Hate For Sale Throwing Muses - Sun Racket Cornershop - England Is a Garden The Homesick - The Big Exercise Widowspeak - Plum Gena Rose Bruce - Can’t Make You Love Me The Jayhawks - XOXO Cults - Host Porridge Radio - Every Bad The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers Fenne Lily - Breach Lucinda Williams - Good Souls Better Angels Rolling Blackouts C.F. - Sideways to New Italy Bob Mould - Blue Hearts Wax Machine - Earthsong of Silence Shabazz Palaces - The Don of Diamond Dreams Naked Giants - The Shadow Shmu - Pure Bliss Gillian Welch & David Rawlings - All the Good Times Sylvie Simmons - Blue on Blue The Strokes - The New Abnormal Girl Friday - Androgynous Mary Supercrush - SODO Pop Margaret Glaspy - Devotion X - Alphabetland Mint Field - Sentimiento Mundial Julian Cope - Self Civil War Coricky - s/t Matt Berninger - Serpentine Prison David Dondero - The Filter Bubble Blues Courtney Marie Andrews - Old Flowers Helena Deland - Someone New Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud Becca Mancari - The Greatest Part Hannah Georgas - All That Emotion Supermoon - Half Country Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters Chris Smither - More From the Levee Cowboy Junkies - Ghosts Psychedelic Furs - Made of Rain The Mountain Goats - Getting Into Knives James Elkington - Ever-Roving Eye Fontaines D.C. - A Hero’s Death Loma - Don’t Shy Away Johanna Warren - Chaotic Good Land of Talk - [Indistinct Conversations] Elvis Costello - Hey Clockface Christian Lee Hutson - Beginners Lianne La Havas - s/t Eels - Earth to Dora Anna Burch - If You’re Dreaming Soft Palms - s/t Marika Hackman - Covers Squirrel Flower - I Was Born Swimming Ohmme - Fantasize Your Ghost Jennifer Castle - Monarch Season Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways Jenny O. - New Truth Laura Veirs - My Echo Hinds - The Prettiest Curse Dean & Britta - Quarantine Tapes Lambchop - Trip Ghostpoet - I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep Mike Polizze - Solace Find The Bats - Foothills The Orielles - Disco Volador Thompson Springs - Undertones The Flat Five - Another World Jess Williamson - Sorceress Jeff Kelly - When the World Was Younger Leo Kottke / Mike Gordon - Noon ALEX BEST 2020 Ralph’s Favorites The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers (Top ten; random order) Courtney Barnett - MTV Unplugged