My Favorite Music of '06

I've been trading this list with Bob-san for a few years.

For a start, this was the year of the iPod for me. I bought one and immediately understood why the CD format is largely dead. I always thought that I wanted a CD as a tangible object to have, and because of that was willing to wade through a lot of filler to get those 5-or-6 must have songs. With a MP3 player and access to a music service like iTunes or whatnot, you can pay for exactly what you want, and leave the contractual obligation stuff behind. Whether that's going to have a chilling effect on music in the future is an open question. Certainly what it means is that I'm going to download songs from any future British Sea Power, Franz Ferdinand, Killers, and any other bands that came blasting out with dynamite debuts followed by poor sophomore efforts.


What makes sense to me this year is to list the songs that really knocked me out as well as my records of the year.

My Song list:

Crazy -- Gnarls Barkley - Hands down, the song of the year. It's great pop music expertly done.

Devil Town -- Tony Lucca - This is a really cool cover that was played over an emotional scene in NBC's "Friday Night Lights." It's a Daniel Johnson song and I haven't found a recording, but this is an excellent tune.

Mount Wroclai(Idle Days) -- Beirut - A 19 year old American takes an Eastern-European folk-song and recasts it as a waltz with a choral overdub with accordian and tamborine and skittery percussion. It's admittedly a "What The Hell?" experience, but in a good way. Oh yes, a very good way.

Songbird -- Willie Nelson - I love Willie, but I would have to say that he may not be able to write those killer songs anymore. Is it the dope or that he's over 70 now? Never mind. He still can get it done by covering this Fleetwood Mac chestnut. Sorry Christine McVie, Willie's version is now the standard.

Throw It All Away -- Zero 7 - A great swingy and warm late night electronic frolic.

Such Great Heights -- The Postal Service - Once in a while, when your 14 year-old is watching something on the WB, you stop and say "hey, what's that playing in this scene?" Warm and approachable emo. It's a guilty pleasure as is...

Someone Great -- LCD Soundsystem - Opens like Kraftwerk and turns into Belle and Sebastian.

Put Your Records On -- Corinne Bailey Rae - This has the same addictive quality that Nelly Furtado's "I'm Like A Bird" had. You'll play this over and over.

Honorable mentions go to Zuco 103 for "Love Is Queen Omega", Apollo Nove for "86", Sukhwinder Singh for "Chaiyya Chaiyya", Regina Spektor for "Fidelity", Belle Orchestre for "Throw It On A Fire", The Flaming Lips for "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah Song", and the Raconteurs for "Steady As She Goes."

There are still artists doing things that I want to reward by buying the whole cd. But they are becoming fewer and fewer as I get (sigh) older and older.


Cibelle -- The Shine Of Electric Dried Leaves -- Here's why. Cibelle put out the most interesting debut Brazilian record assisted by her Serbian producer Suba. Suba then dies in a horrific apartment fire in Sao Paolo and she moves to London. Her sophomore effort has less of a Brazilian Electro-Bossa flavor and more of a Massive-Attack feeling that really works. She did a free show in Washington that was spell-binding.

Marisa Monte -- Infinito Particular and Universo Ao Meu Redor -- Another Brazilian. She's a very established and celebrated artist who's been taking off some time with her new baby. But evidently, she's been writing all that time and had a back-log of songs. And at the same time, she was listening to classic Brazilian tunes from the 30's-40's-and-50's and has released a record of her covers of these songs.

Bill Frisell -- Unspeakable -- A departure of sorts for Bill. His new band is harder, funkier, and though some of these are new versions of old Frisell songs, they're reborn in these new arrangements.

Booker T and the MGs -- Stax Profiles(Selected by Elvis Costello) -- You've heard "Green Onions" enough times for a lifetime, but not a live version from some sweaty dump of a club. And I bet you've never heard the Indian Stomp that is "Fuquawi." Costello has the nous and taste to pick just the right recordings to ensure a fresh experience.

Trojan Ska Revival Box -- Bad Manners, The Selector, The Coventry Automatics who became The Specials doing live and up-tempo versions of those classic songs. Huge nostalgia for those of us who lived through that late seventies revival.

Konono #1 -- Congotronics -- These guys play trance music on thumb pianos, home-made xylophones, and masses of drums all played through PA systems powered by car batteries. It's indescribably weird and their show in DC was probably my favorite concert of the year.


I was able to complete a "Holy Grail" quest this year when I finally tracked down the definitive collection of Sparks tunes called Profile. It has been o-o-p for about 7 years and any time it showed on Ebay, nutter collectors like me swarmed on it and unlike me, bid the 2-disc set above $100. Finally, a set with water damaged inserts finally showed up and stayed in my price range.

The most interesting development that I've seen this year is the International Mix-Tape Project. There's a guy here in DC that's organizing an international swap of music. The concept is once a month, he emails you an address of someone in the system somewhere. Your job is to burn a cd with what's interesting to you and then send it to that address. In return, someone in the system is sent your name and is charged with burning a mix for you. I'm waiting for my first assignment and I'll let you know how this works out.

Another tip is to sign up for WFMU's email "A Blast Of Hot Air." It's a monthly guide to the odd and weird, but how else are you going to find 9-year-old Troy, the Electric Boy's "Electro 1000" or a song from Brian Eno's early band The Winkies called "The Paw-Paw Negro Blowtorch?" The latter sounds like Brian Ferry on speed.

That's enough from me. I'm interested in what you're listening to and what your teenagers are listening to. Let's be having ya.