Following up my post on the top 10 albums of 2008, here is a mix CD of my favorite songs of 2008. This mix will fit on a regular blank CD, hopefully everyone will find something they enjoy on here.
1. Tie My Hands- Lil' Wayne (feat. Robin Thicke)
2. What If I Leave- Rachael Yamagata
3. Keep Faith- Billy Bragg
4. Learning As We Go- Leona Naess
5. The Healer/Hip Hop- Erykah Badu
6. Warwick Avenue- Duffy
7. Can It Be- Murs
8. When She's Gone- Brett Dennen
9. In Love With A Girl- Gavin DeGraw
10. Yesterday- Atmosphere
11. Heavy Orange- Ryan Adams
12. You Don't Know Me- Ben Folds (feat. Regina Spektor)
13. I'd Rather Be With You- Joshua Radin
14. Walkin' After Midnight- Eva Cassidy
15. Morning After Midnight- Adam Green
Download Here
Here are my top 10 albums of 2008. It was really a stretch to put some of these on here, looking back on 2008 made me realize how disappointing it was for music. Not a lot of great, or even good albums. The top few on my list here I think will be some of my favorites for years to come, but the rest are just average at best in my mind. I'm hoping for a better year in 09, I've been listening to the new Ben Kweller, which is due to be released in Feb., and it is bound to end up on next years top 10 list here. Hopefully it will be a sign of a great musical year to come. If you're interested, click HERE for a look at my 2007 picks. Anyways, on with this years list.
#10.
Duffy- Rockferry
#9.
Erykah Badu- New Amerykah, Pt.1-4th World War
#8.
Eva Cassidy- Somewhere
#7.
Atmosphere- When Life Give You Lemons...
#6.
Bob Dylan- Tell Tale Signs- The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8
#5.
Joshua Radin- Simple Times
#4.
Lil' Wayne- Tha Carter 3
#3.
Brett Dennen- Hope For The Hopeless
#2.
Leona Naess- Thirteens
#1.
Rachael Yamagata- Elephants/ Teeth Sinking Into Heart
Ok, so I know I just blogged about Brett a short while ago, but I feel the need to do so again. I caught his show at The Fine Line here in Minneapolis on Wednesday, and he blew me away. I had never seen him live before, and it was such a treat to finally get a chance to. He has such stage presence, you don't want to take your eyes off of him because you're afraid you'll miss something amazing. He played an array of songs from his three albums, and improvised on a lot of them, ranging from some amazing guitar battles with his band members to encouraging members of the crowd to make some crazy sounding noises during the chorus of a song. The venue was great, there was only about 200 people there so it was an intimate setting, which I think fits him well because he has songs that just really connect with people. All in all, it was a night I'll never forget and I can't wait to see him come around again, although I have a feeling it will be much harder getting a ticket by then.
These songs are from an EP titled "More From So Much More", a compilation of live songs from his album "So Much More" (other than the song "Could You Be Loved", which has not been officially released).
Occasionally, one comes across a male vocalist who has a very female style of singing and actually sounds like he could be a woman -- and that can be an artistic plus. It has certainly worked well for Jimmy Scott, one of the finest male jazz vocalists of all time. And having a female-sounding voice is also a positive for singer/songwriter Brett Dennen, whose So Much More demonstrates that he shares Scott's strong appreciation of Billie Holiday. But unlike Scott, Dennen is not a jazz singer; his turf is folk-rock, and Tracy Chapman is as strong an influence--or an even stronger influence--than Lady Day. The Holiday influence asserts itself in his vocal phrasing but not stylistically or genre-wise; Chapman, however, has influenced Dennen's songwriting in addition to influencing his soulful phrasing. The feminine quality that Dennen brings to his introspective, sometimes melancholy performances doesn't mean that he is devoid of male influences; discerning listeners will also hear traces of Bob Dylan and Dave Matthews in his material (Dennen clearly shares Matthews' appreciation of African pop). And none of these influences--either female or male--are people Dennen goes out of his way to emulate; it's clear that Dennen is his own person whether he is reflecting on romantic matters or sociopolitical concerns. Gratefully, Dennen avoids being preachy on his more sociopolitical lyrics; his approach is understated and subtle, and he doesn't come across as someone who is getting on a soapbox and beating listeners over the head with his beliefs. So Much More isn't quite as consistent as it could have been--some of the tracks are excellent, others not as memorable--but overall, this 2006 release shows Dennen to be an intriguing and expressive part of folk-rock.
