If I limited selections from my favorite albums of the year to as many as I could fit on a CD it would look something like this. The journey starts with the always energetic Eli “Paperboy” Reed. Somewhere in the middle you hear the genius songwriting by Caleb Stine and Justin Townes Earle. All to be capped off by John Legend & The Roots. That’s right, a little hip-hop fused with some Philly soul. As the kids say, “that’s just how I roll”.
- “Explosion” by Eli “Paperboy” Reed
- “St. Mark’s Sunset” by Jesse Malin and The St. Marks Social
- “Lonely is a Town” by Glossary
- “The Smidge” by The Hold Steady
- “Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk” by The New Pornographers
- “Straight Edge Of The Blade” by Jenny and Johnny
- “Ghost Town” by Cary Brothers
- “Freight Train” by Taylor Carson
- “Too Many Rainy Days” by Leeroy Stagger
- “She Wears a Smile” by Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights
- “The Eternal Present” by Caleb Stine
- “Rogers Park” by Justin Townes Earle
- “Roll Away Your Stone” by Mumford & Sons
- “Lydia” by Two Cow Garage
- “Speak Plainly, Diana” by Joe Pug
- “Protest Song (aka P.S. / The Acoustic Version)” by Matthew Ryan
- “Something, Somewhere, Sometime” by Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore
- “Animal” by Jenny and Johnny
- “Love Is A Murder (Feat. Cee-Lo)” by Constellations
- “Hard Times (feat. Black Thought)” by John Legend & The Roots
The Video Companion
About the author: Washington, D.C. area creative by day. Music is my muse. I host Twangville’s weekly Readers‘ Pick.