Some years it’s easier than others to pick my favorite albums of the year. Â (I’ll refrain from calling them the best since I know there’s a lot of good music I didn’t hear.) Â This year wasn’t really one of them; the top 5-6 were still on top of my playlist, some of them for the better part of the entire year.
 1. Jason Isbell – Southeastern  It didn’t take much thinking to realize this was going to be on the top of my list.  It’s not always easy to listen to–there’s a lot of pain and turmoil in the songs.  Frankly, I started to hit play a few times over the last several months and decided I just wasn’t up to the emotions in the album.  But it’s high praise when a record can evoke that kind of reaction in me.
 2. Holly Williams – The Highway  There’s plenty of emotion on this album, too, but it’s a little more refined and melodic.  Until this came out in the spring, I didn’t realize the Williams progeny included anyone except Hank II and III.  With The Highway, Holly vaulted to the top of the family in my book with some songs that would have done her granddad proud.
 3. The Mavericks – In Time  It’s been 8 years since Raul Malo and his bandmates put out an album and it was worth the wait.  The songs, the musicianship, the production, it’s all great.  You sit back and Malo’s voice takes you to another time and place.  Superb.
 4. Marshall Chapman – Blaze Of Glory  The opening cut, Love In the Wind, was definitely my favorite song of the year.  As expected, the guitar work on the album is awesome and a reminder of why Chapman was hailed as one of the next great guitar gods early in her career.  On this record the guitar ranges from surf punk to Les Paul-style jazz riffs.  The songwriting is good, as well.  There’s not a clunker in the batch.
 5. The Sadies – Internal Sounds  The brothers Good put out the best rock and roll album I heard this year.  Lots of jangly, searing electric guitar parts to keep you banging the table in front of you.  While the band got a lot of its early notoriety backing up more famous names, they’re clearly worthy of headlining on their own.
 6. Neko Case – The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight.  The Harder I Fight, the More I Love You.  Case brings back some of her punk roots, with several songs featuring NSFW lyrics.  She can sing anything live that she records, so the overproduction on some of the vocals is all that marred an otherwise fantastic album.
 7. Son Volt – Honky Tonk  Uncle Tupelo co-founder Jay Farrar gets back to his country music roots.  It’s the best thing he’s done in a decade.
 8. The Wood Brothers – The Muse  Blues and jazz with a healthy dose of twang is how I’d describe the effort from Oliver and Chris Wood.  Plenty of attitude, too.
 9. I See Hawks In L.A. – Mystery Drug  One of the most under-the-radar bands in the country, the Hawks continue their stories about life in modern California.  In addition to perhaps the best song ever written about paying your dues as a musician, We Could All Be In Laughlin Tonight, the boys have several tales of suburban blight on this record.
 10. Elephant Revival – These Changing Skies  Cerebral folk with soaring harmonies and jazzy instrumental licks are the hallmark of this Colorado band and their latest album keeps up the good work.
Honorable Mention  A few other records missed the top 10 cut by a hair and are well worth checking out if you haven’t already.  In no particular order: Donna the Buffalo – Tonight, Tomorrow, And Yesterday; Shinyribs – Gulf Coast Museum; Melody Walker & Jacob Groopman – We Made It Home; Nicki Bluhm & the Gramblers – Nicki Bluhm & the Gramblers; Della Mae – This World Oft Can Be.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.