My birthday is in a little less than three weeks. My wishlist contains one item.
This, my friends, is a G&L ASAT Special, semi-hollow body, big-flake silver sparkle paint with matching headstock, mirror pick guard, Bigsby tremolo and locking tuners.
I’m sure that most of that means nothing to most of you folks…but I love it. I played it tonight on my way home from work over at Anderson Guitar Gallery.
I used to play in a band that did fairly well in the Dallas area called Next 6 Exits. This may just be my personal bias coming through here, but we were very good. We had the best drummer in Dallas, one of the best bassists I’ve had the privilege to play with, a fantastic songwriter who had and outside-the-box way of approaching the craft of writing, and for a short time a skilled keyboardist. Then there was me. I’m not going to toot my own horn, but I think I’m halfway decent on my guitar.
Sometimes I really miss playing with these guys and this becomes even more so when one of our tunes comes up on my iPod. Today while I was at work, one of our tunes came up on my iPod. One Friday night back in March ‘03 when we were first starting out, we had a gig on the mainstage at the Door in Deep Ellum. Ryan had come up with a little instrumental jam right before the gig that none of us had heard before. We played it anyhow and it effing rocked! It segued into another tune we had called What If. The tune later became known as Seal which was shortened because of the crowd we played for from it’s original name, Ass Seal (hey…it was an internal band joke having nothing to do with what your nasty mind is thinking of…cut us some slack).
I heard it today and it caused me to reminisce and wish that we could get back together again. Those were some of my best years, sharing the stage with those guys. Good times.
Thanks for the HT, Wayne. I especially liked this part:
Patrick and Raquel from GM … a refreshing breath of reality! Patrick plays on the praise team and Raquel does a bunch of stuff … one of which is Greeting and Marketing at the church. I like this couple because … if they tell you something … they will do it. Now that’s a novel idea in the church today.
While I’m here, I just thought I’d say that this weekend of doing nothing pretty much ruled. I love wannabe ice storms. I haven’t been out of my pajamas all day. Sonya has been here since yesterday. Nick joined us today. Carrie came over with Jordan and Titus. All of us remained in our pajamas.
The Patriots beat the Chargers. Didn’t see that one coming. Good stuff, though.
And just as a side thought…it really kills me to see high-caliber people who I immensely admire…like, really, a lot…go through crap that they don’t deserve and is of no fault of their own.
This time last year I blogged about the Top 10 Albums of 2005. Well, it’s been a year with some great releases and of course, I acquired quite a few of them and have carefully considered my list. As a whole, the music of 2006 didn’t come anywhere near close to what was put out in 2005…or at least I wasn’t as moved by it as I was by last year’s music. But that didn’t keep me from carefully considering what was great about it.
So, once again, here it is, folks. The Top 10 Albums of 2006 as selected by me. Once again the list reflects my rather eclectic taste in music ranging again from some pretty heavy stuff, some more jazz, some kickass bluegrass, and some fantastic musical jams. I used the same rules I did last year in my selections. In order to be eligible for selection, the album’s original release date had to be between January and December 2006. If it was released in another country in 2005, it didn’t count (not that this mattered with my final selections). Also, live releases weren’t considered, nor were anything other than complete albums.
Last year I linked to the iTunes Music Store locations for each of my albums. I’m not going to do that this time around. That was way too much work. Instead, a new feature where you will be able to listen to my favorite cut from each album…at least until the RIAA jumps all over my case. Click on the player underneath each selection. I challenge you who might be unfamiliar with these artists to give these cuts a listen, even if you think you might not like it. I’d like to know your thoughts.
So…without any further ado.
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10. Stavesacre – How To Live With A Curse
Stavesacre has been one of my favorite bands for many years. I love the way they have been able to put some passionate lyrics to some great hard music. The vocal prowess of Mark Salomon is matched by few people, the lyrical compositions he produces, and the all around heavy-but-intricate musical performance reminiscent of Tool comes together to make some outstanding performances. The problem is, their last two full albums (prior to HTLWAC) were terrible production-wise. The were very hollow sounding and hard to listen to making the band sound like a bunch of amateurs. So, when they tapped Matt Hyde (Slayer, Sum41, Porno for Pyros) to produce the album, I was excited about having this great band back to sounding awesome on record. The end result was a good album with some great songs. Admittedly, it’s not a great album, but sonically, it sounds amazing. And I like it better than some other stuff from this year. There are some great cuts on this album including, A Reason To Beleive, Grace, and the standout track from which the album title comes, Kill My Darlings. If you’re into some good, hard music, with some quality tunes about faith and belief, pick this one up.
Track: Kill My Darlings
9. Medeski, Martin, Scofield & Wood – Out Louder
What do you get when you combine what is arguably the best working modern jazz trio with one of the best modern jazz guitarists of our time? Medeski, Martin & Wood with John Scofield working out what is just a fantastic instrumental album. This is a great album from top to bottom. For those of you who aren’t familiar with MM&W’s style of jazz, this might be a bit of a departure from what you might have conceptualized as “jazz” music. But it is so good.
Check out this cut, Little Walter Rides Again.
8. Paul Simon – Surprise
Speaking of departures from conceptions of what you might expect, Paul Simon’s lastest is one that will find longtime listeners of his cocking their heads a little bit. For this album, Simon brought in legendary producer Brian Eno best known for being the father of modern ambient music and there are hints of his touch all over this album. The outcome is yet another sonically amazing album of crisply produced Paul Simon songs. Paul Simon is a legend and this album is fitting of his legendary status.
Track: How Can You Live In The Northeast
7. The Appleseed Cast – Peregrine
I used to know a couple of the guys in this band pretty well but it’s been years since I’ve seen them and frankly, I’d be surprised if they remembered me. This band has gotten increasingly better over the years since they first began. They’ve gone through lineup changes and their sound has dramatically changed and this has apparently all been good. Peregrine is nothing short of a great album.
Track: February
6. Béla Fleck and the Flecktones – Hidden Land
Okay…so…I’m having a little difficulty writing about this one. The Flecktones…quite possibly the oddest combination of musicians out there…on paper. You have a drum machine, sax, electric bass (played by about the world’s best electric bassist) and a banjo. This is about as good as it gets when it comes to funky, jazz-infused, bluegrassish, jammy, instrumental music. I’m sure I’ve just done everything I can do to keep you from listening to this, but I must say…this band is one that I’ve been continually blown away by since I was 13 years old. This album rivals some of the best music I’ve ever heard. It’s fun, it’s beautiful, it’s odd, and above all, intricately performed. Worth your time.
Track: The Whistle Tune
5. Tool – 10,000 Days
Dude…this album just flat effing rocks! Best hard rock album in years! Enough said.
Track: Jambi
4. Chris Thile – How To Grow A Woman From The Ground
In the same way that Tool’s album rocks, former Nickel Creek founder, Chris Thile’s How To Grow A Woman From The Ground is a stunning work. I suppose my selection of this album being number 4, in front of Tool and the Flecktones is a testament to my truly eclectic taste in music. It’s hard to get any more bluegrass than this. But I’m not talking about your backwoods, Deliverance, cowpoke, twangy type bluegrass. I’m talking…you take the best mandolin player to ever pick up a stringed instrument, and give him a backing band of some amazing virtuoso musicians who are no slackers in the arena of bluegrass music. I can’t say enough about the greatness of this album. It’s just really, really good.
Track: Watch ‘at Breakdown
3. Dan Radmacher – In The Space Between
It was not planned that this year’s number three would go to a worship album in the same fashion that last year’s album did (David Crowder* Band – A Collision). It just kinda happened that way.
Regular readers of this blog know how I feel about Dan Radmacher. As a close personal friend of mine, I consider him to be one of my favorite people in this world. His influence on me as a person, as a worship leader, as a theologian, is unmatched. But this isn’t about Dan…entirely…it’s about the album he put out in February last year.
From my review of the album at iTunes:
Beautifully composed lyrics that reflect a true heart of worship toward a big, loving Creator backed by intricate musicianship, well-crafted, theologically-sound songwriting, and thoughtful vocal harmonies. This album sets the standard that all other worship artists should follow when charged with musically leading people into the presence of God. Key tracks to check out include, In Silence, Behind the Curtain, and the pinacle of the entire album…containing perhaps the single most beautiful lyrical composition I’ve ever heard in a worship song…Such Beauty. Get this album. You won’t be disappointed.
Really…get it. You can find it at CD Baby or on iTunes. If you only pick up one worship album from 2006, this is it, right here.
Nice work, Dan.
Track: Such Beauty
There is no number 2 album this year. I had a really hard time deciding which of these albums deserved the number 1 slot, so…I gave it to both of them. Hey…it’s my list…I can do that.
1. Umphrey’s McGee – Safety In Numbers
This band has quickly risen to the top of my current list of favorite bands, and sealed that position with the April release of Safety In Numbers. This is simply an amazing album. Incredible instrumentation, fantastic songwriting, and just some flatout kickass rock and roll to the highest degree. There are some amazing tracks on this album, so I’ll just give you the leadoff track, Believe The Lie.
1. John Mayer – Continuum
Hands down, this is simply the best album John Mayer has put out. Gone are the pretention, the cocky attitude, the lousy pop songs geared towards 14 year old girls being performed by a guy who is far more talented than his artwork conveys. The real John Mayer is here, folks, securing himself as this generation’s go-to guitarist carrying the banner carried before him by the likes of Clapton, Vaughn, Hendrix, and King, crafting songs that are well written, both lyrically and musically. Top to bottom, this album is incredible. If you pick up one album released in 2006, let it be this one. Or the Umphrey’s McGee one.
Track: Belief
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So then…there it is folks. My top ten. Feel free to debate me on this, or even better, share your own top ten.
Here’s to another great year of music in 2007. Once again, I have already started thinking about who we might see on this list next year. We’ll see what develops.
