My Favorite Albums of 2010

Here is my annual list of favorite albums.  2010 was a great year for new music, as it feels like anything goes. That is proven by the variety of music on this list. It's a little longer list than last year, and hopefully it's not too overwhelming that I put it all into one post.

30. Jason Boland & The Stragglers - High In The Rockies: This is the sound of one of the best bands in country music today doing what they do best. Boland always sounds better live to me, and he's never sounded better than he does right here. "Comal County Blue" is one of the best country songs ever recorded, and the version here doesn't disappoint.

29. Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz: This album was a strong departure from Steven's previous work, as it's more electronica than banjo-featuring folk songs. It's still an intriguing album, and I have a feeling I'll enjoy it more as I have more time to take it in.

28. The Roots - How I Got Over: This album has the vibe of a classic jazz album.  As a matter of fact, I could imagine Miles Davis or (especially) John Coltrane stepping in and taking over on many of these songs. It's a hip-hop record, but it's also the sound of a group of talented musicians getting together in a room and making brilliant music. It's also one of the best hip-hop albums lyrically that I've heard in recent years. "Walk Alone" is outstanding as is "Dear God 2.0" featuring the original song's writer Jim James.

27. Mavis Staples – You Are Not Alone: Soul/gospel legend and national treasure Mavis Staples teamed up with Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy to create the best album of the latter stage of her career. Tweedy’s production here is perfect for the song selection. It’s worth hearing this album if just for the bluesy guitar flourishes that weave in and out of the songs. With a perfect mix of gospel and secular material, the real showcase here is Staple’s voice. Given the right backdrop, she can still wring more emotion from a song than 95% of the artists out there. “Losing You” is a perfect example of her power, but the Tweedy-penned “You Are Not Alone” is the real highlight for me.

26. Widespread Panic – Dirty Side Down: It’s easy to be critical of Widespread and lump them into the jam-band category as one of the bands you should enjoy only if you are an avid noodle dancer. However, like the Dead before them, these guys know how to write and record quality studio albums. As a matter of fact, I actually prefer the studio albums to their live work. This is definitely their best album since Houser left the band, and it feels like a return to form for the guys. “Visiting Day” and “Clinic Cynic” won’t sound out of place among any of their older work.

25. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings – I Learned The Hard Way: This album doesn’t sound retro. It literally sounds like an album that was released during the 60’s. If retro refers to a throwback style released today, this is like a vintage store find. It’s the real deal. These songs could have easily been released in Motown’s heyday, and the band and production flawlessly capture that sound. It doesn’t hurt that Jones is such a powerhouse vocalist who was born for this style.

24. The Black Crowes – Croweology: There’s nothing new here, but almost all the songs sound better here than they do in their original form. Recorded live and acoustic, the real star here is Chris Robinson. He shows why he will go down as one of the top vocalists of all time and sings his heart out. Songs like “Soul Singing” that were pretty mediocre in their original form are even fantastic here and classics like “Sister Luck” will hit you like never before.

23. Shooter Jennings – Black Ribbons: Sounding like a cross between Waylon, Nine Inch Nails and Pink Floyd, this album sometimes feels forced, but you have to respect Shooter for taking a shot at something this ambitious. It’s a good album that at times flirts with greatness. The title track is the best song he’s ever recorded, and “Wake Up!” “God Bless Alabama,” Summer of Rage,” and “California Via Tennessee” don’t disappoint either. Just don’t expect Electric Rodeo part two and you’ll deeply enjoy this. I suspect this album may have more of an impact on his career as the years go by, as he finally turned his back on a Nashville scene that didn’t want him.

22. Gorillaz – Plastic Beach: Blur front man Damon Albarn somehow manages to create a cohesive album with one of the most diverse arrays of contributors this year, including Snoop Dogg, Lou Reed, Bobby Womack, and De La Soul. Although the album gets kicked off with a song featuring Snoop Dogg, this is not a hip-hop record, and there’s no “Feel Good Inc.” here. Albarn has created an album that focuses more on atmospheric landscapes than beat-heavy tracks. The humor is still there on tracks like “Superfast Jellyfish”, but my favorite track on the album is “Melancholy Hill,” a beautifully strummed acoustic number.

21. New Pornographers – Together: While disguised as an indie-rock record, this is the best pop album in years. Why this isn’t the stuff on top 40 radio, I’ll never know. As always, A. C. Newman knows how to craft a hook with the best of them, and Neko Case has one of the most powerful voices out there. Try to listen to “Crash Years” and not hum and whistle along.

20. Tom Petty & the Heatbreakers – Mojo: Petty’s new album is more of a Heartbreakers showcase than his past albums. Though, I tend to prefer his solo albums over his work with the Heatbreakers, this is easily his best album with the band in over a decade. As with everything he releases, it’s an excellent album and “Running Man’s Bible” ranks among the best songs in his catalog.

19. Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy: The latest album from the controversial Kanye West may be his masterpiece. There isn’t a bad song on the album, and it touches on the best styles from all of his previous works (especially in combining the stylistic departure of 808s & Heartbreak with the power of his earlier work). The title is fitting as this one is all over the map, but it somehow avoids being a jarring listen. For an example of the array of styles this one covers, check out “Monster” and “Blame Game.” I really don’t want to like Kanye’s music (as he seems to compete for the biggest douche in music award on a daily basis), but when an artist releases work this good it’s hard not to take notice.

18. Ryan Adams & the Cardinals –III/IV: III/IV is made up of leftover tracks recorded during the Easy Tiger sessions. The double disc set contains one disc that sounds like a fully formed album, and another that sounds much like a rarities compilation. Disc one plays out like a combination of Rock & Roll and Love Is Hell, and the second disc is such a genre exercise that I find it hard to really judge it as an album. The album only seems to have a few of throwaway tracks (mostly from disc two). Current favorites are “Happy Birthday” (disc one) and “Gracie” (disc 2.)

17. John Legend & The Roots – Wake Up!: When the best band in hip-hop/soul (and late night TV) teams up with one of the only members of the current crop of R&B/Soul musicians that could comfortably sit on stage with the forefathers like Gaye, Green and Redding, the results are bound to be good. Here, John Legend and The Roots take on (mostly) a set of classic protest songs from the 60s and 70s and the results are stellar. Surprisingly, the normally mellow John Legend tackles these powerful songs in stride and shows a different side of his talents. These songs are about love and making the world a better place. The most powerful song for me is the Bill Withers classic “I Can’t Write Left-Handed.”

16. Old 97’s – The Grand Theatre Volume 1: Front-man Rhett Miller continues to prove that he should be considered among the premier songwriters of our generation. They start off the album sounding like The Clash on the title track and reconnect with their old sound a bit on “Every Night is Friday Night Without You” and “The Magician.” I particularly like the slight departure of “Let The Whiskey Take The Reins,” with the lines: I had a terrible vision/Of a world outside of this bar/But she keeps talkin' about walkin'/Away from where we are/And it's so easy/To be a man in pain/Turn off your heart/And let the whiskey take the reins.

15. Jakob Dylan – Women & Country: Like most everybody in the roots music world this year, Jakob Dylan teamed up with producer T-Bone Burnett (producer of classic albums like the Counting Crows debut and the Oh Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack as well as Dylan’s band The Wallflowers’ second album). With guest vocals by some of the most powerful female artists in the “Alt-Country” community in Neko Case and Kelly Hogan, and Burnett’s “quietly bombastic” production, Dylan feels right at home here. He’ll never have the credibility of his famous pops Bob, and rightfully so, but over the course of his last two albums he has perfected this style and found his groove. The younger Dylan has always been best when his music falls in the Americana genre (see the Wallflowers’ Bringing Down The Horse and his excellent 2008 solo album Seeing Things) so it comes as no surprise that Women & Country would be this good. I recommend starting out with “We Don’t Live Here Anymore.”

14. Bob Dylan – The Whitmark Demos: 1962-1964 (The Bootleg Series Volume 9.): While not technically a new release (see the title), this is still one of the best releases of the year. The opportunity to hear Dylan accompanied only by his own guitar and harmonica when he was still a kid is incredible. These songs were recorded as demos for other artists to hear and hopefully record. Many of these songs would go on to become classics. A few of these songs have never been released before, and it’s incredible to think he did all this before the age of 25.

13. Mumford and Sons – Sigh No More: It’s a London folk-rock hoe-down…or something like that. This album will definitely grow on you. Acoustic guitars and banjo are the prevailing instruments here, and these guys know how to craft a perfect song. It’s easy to imagine these guys in an English pub tearing it up on a Saturday night. They’ve mastered the art of the slow building epic, as these songs tend to start out mellow and before you know it, you’re stomping along. It’s weird that music this traditionally oriented can sound so modern. “White Blank Page” could join the ranks of classic folk songs.

12. Band of Horses – Infinite Arms: The third album by Band of Horses is more of the same…moody atmospheric rock music. These songs seem tailor made for movies as they generally seem to be more about mood than anything. Ben Bridwell and his band have perfected a style, and as long as the songs are this good, I see no reason to change. “Dilly,” “Laredo,” and “NW Apt” are among the best songs they’ve released.

11. The Black Keys – Brothers: Ohio blues-rock duo The Black Keys released their most accessible album to date, and commercial success has followed. This album is made up of what they do best, but with better, catchier songs. Highly influenced by the stomp of Mississippi Hill Country Blues, it’s strange that it took a couple of guys from Ohio to figure out how to successfully modernize this style.

10. She & Him – Volume 2: This album came out in the spring, just as we got our new windows installed in our house. With the near perfect weather we had this spring, we spent many weekend mornings at home with the windows open listening to this album. Actress Zooey Deschanel and musician extraordinaire M. Ward team up again and improve on their first collection. There’s something so sweet and unpretentious about her songs that his old school arrangements bring to life. I’m sure this is the only album on this list that my wife likes more than I do.

9. Eminem – Recovery: They say a good wide receiver can appear much faster by running at less than full speed and then using a burst to fly past defenders. Maybe that’s what makes this album seem so good. By all accounts, Marshall was at less than half speed on his last two albums while he battled prescription drug addiction (and an addiction to an Insult the Comic Dog accent). After the dud that was Relapse, this return to form seems like his best album to date. Regardless of perceptions, it’s a fantastic album by one of the best rappers of all time. Nobody can detail an unhealthy relationship like Eminem, and “Love the Way You Lie” proves that. If you think his skills or penchant for controversy have diminished, listen to “On Fire.”

8. Drive-By Truckers – The Big To-Do: I thought their last album; Brighter than Creations Dark was one of their best, due in large part to the wide range of styles included. The Big To-Do turns that on its head and becomes their most cohesive and straightforward set to date. Patterson shines as usual and Shonna has her best batch of songs as well (though she’s no replacement for ex-hubby Jason Isbell). Cooley was a little below par on this album and the last few songs don’t generally hold my attention, but those are minor complaints when the rest of the album is this good. Their time spent last year with Booker T has improved them musically and it shows (they served as his band on his instrumental album Potato Hole and toured with him in support of the album). “After The Scene Dies” is probably the highlight for me.

7. Vampire Weekend – Contra: Eccentric, catchy, smart and sunny. Contra picks up where their debut ended, but does everything better. Most people either love them or hate them, but I can’t think of a better summertime album released all year (for some reason, their music sounds like a vacation to me). Single sting guitar runs pop out of nowhere, just when you thought a song might just consist of drums and bass and space is used as an asset. These guys know what they are doing, and they know not everyone is going to like it. What makes them so good is that they don’t care.

6. Dierks Bentley – Up On The Ridge: After the disappointment of Feel That Fire, I was excited when I heard that Bentley would be releasing a bluegrass influenced album. This is the music he was born to make and his passion for bluegrass shines through. He got together with some of his friends (coincidentally some of the most talented musicians in modern bluegrass) and recorded some of his favorite songs, threw in with a few originals and the results are spectacular. “Draw Me a Map” is the best love song of the year and Miranda Lambert turns in her best vocal performance to date on “Bad Angel” (also featuring Jamey Johnson). Kristofferson’s “Bottle to the Bottom” is probably my favorite song on the album. When Crystel and I saw Bentley in The Grove in 2003 (the same week his first single when #1), we knew we were seeing someone that had the potential to be more than just the standard country radio artist. He’s proving it now.

5. Big Boi – Sir Lucious Left Foot…The Son of Chico Dusty: It’s not much of a shock that a member of Outkast would release an album to remind us they can still be relevant. What is a shock, is that it was Big Boi and not Andre 3000 that would be the one to do it. This is an 80’s funk inspired album by a man who realizes all the themes from the 90’s (the golden age of hip-hop) are still relevant today. Just like the best hip-hop albums from the 90’s, Sir Lucious Left Foot touches on Southern staples like Cadillacs, sub-woofers, strip clubs, crack-heads, “sticky green,” police, and women, and it’s a party from start to finish. This album is a reminder of how progressive southern hip-hop was and still can be, and is instantly one of the best hip-hop albums of all time.

4. Jamey Johnson – The Guitar Song: At 25 songs, Johnson’s latest album is probably a little bit too long. However, I can’t think of more than a couple of songs I’d have left off. Once again, he retreats into his head and comes up with a batch of songs that are both classic and current, both simple and complex. He continues to be commercially successful without bowing to the standard radio template, and we’re all lucky he’s still here to remind us what good country music should sound like. For a couple of perfect examples of what Nashville should be striving for, listen to "Front Porch Swing Afternoon" and "That's Why I Write Songs."

3. Broken Bells – Broken Bells: This side project from The Shins’ James Mercer and producer Danger Mouse is essentially just a Shins album. Danger Mouse’s production takes a back seat to Mercer’s songs, and at its core, Broken Bells isn’t that different from The Shins 2007 album Wincing the Night Away (though not quite as good, and with a bit more ear candy). Like all of The Shins’ previous work, I seem to never get tired of this album, and “The Mall and Misery” is probably better than anything Mercer has done before.

2. Arcade Fire – The Suburbs: In all honesty, I’ve never been a huge fan of Arcade Fire’s previous albums. I guess part of the reason I like this album so much more that their previous work is relatability. What’s more relatable to a modern American that suburbs and sprawl? However, I think the biggest reason I’m so fond of this album is that it’s just better than their previous work. Many times albums with a central “theme” have songs that suffer for the greater good of sticking to that theme (see Arcade Fire’s previous two albums). That’s not the case here, as almost every song could stand on its own. “Modern Man” is a heavy contender for my favorite tune of the year.

1. Justin Townes Earle – Harlem River Blues: I can’t fathom how Earle can continue to make albums this good and go largely unnoticed by most music fans. This is his third home run in a row, and it’s as good as anything his dad ever released. Like his previous two releases, this one finds strength in being concise, clocking in at around 30 minutes. The title track is probably the happiest suicide song you’ll ever hear, and “Christchurch Woman” might be my favorite song he’s recorded. He even manages to outdo Ryan Adams at his own game with the Adams co-write “Rogers Park.” Every song on here deserves to be a classic, and Harlem River Blues is good enough that it might just remain my favorite album of 2011 as well.

So there it is, my favorite albums of 2010. What were your favorites?

This Year's Listening: Albums That Were Released In Past Years

While getting ready to compile my favorite albums of 2010 list, I noticed I'd been listening to and discovering a lot of albums from past years.  These might be albums I was late discovering, albums I enjoyed but had forgotten about or albums I heard a little bit late that were released in 2009 and didn't make my previous lists.

Here are some albums that were in heavy rotation this year that were released prior to 2010:

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes (2008): I actually got this album in 2009 while I was in London.  For some reason it took a while to really get into it, but now it's one of my favorites.  The harmonies, the beautiful acoustic guitar work and superb songwriting all contribute to making this one of my favorite albums.

Jay Farrar and Benjamin Gibbard - One Fast Move Or I'm Gone (2009): This is an album based on a documentary for the book Big Sur by Jack Kerouac. For the documentary, former Uncle Tupelo and current Son Volt frontman Jay Farrar was asked to provide the music.  Armed with one of the most lyrical books of all time, he mostly just set various lines from the book to music, but the results are spectacular.  He invited Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard, a huge Kerouac fan himself, along for the ride and the results are spectacular. Much like a Kerouac book, the songs mostly feel like a trip across America.  I recommend the album and the book from which it was drawn.

Bon Iver: For Emma, Forever Ago (2008): This is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've heard in a long time. Indie-folk songwriter Justin Vernon retreated to a cabin in Wisconsin to regroup after the break-up of his band and his relationship with no intention of writing or recording any music.  While there in isolation and battling mono, he wrote and recorded all the instruments for the songs on For Emma, Forever Ago while singing wordless melodies.  He went back and listened to the songs and wrote lyrics to replace the hummed melodies. Both mellow and catchy, this album is a grower, so be sure to give it several listens to pick up on the intricacies before making a final judgement.

The New Pornographers: Twin Cinema (2005): This record was released while I was still in college and for some reason, I largely ignored it.  Featuring Neko Case, A.C. Newman and a whole host of other members, The New Pornographers are a supergoup of sorts.  The first thing you will notice listening to this album is how catchy these songs are.  One listen is enough to have you singing them in your head all day long.  Repeated listens reveal the excellence of the album, and I'm actually glad it took me this long to get into it.  It's sort of like finding an unopened Christmas present in July.

Sufjan Stevens - Illinoise (2005): Like the previously mentioned Twin Cinema, this one came out while I was still an undergrad.  It was a little bit too weird for me back then.  I finally went back this year and gave it another chance, and now I see why it was so praised upon it's release.  Illinoise was the second (and so far the last) of a proposed 50 albums depicting the States.  This one is all over the map, so be prepared for a wild, slightly jarring ride while listening, and if you only hear one song, make it "Chicago."

Otis Redding - The Very Best of Otis Redding (1992, but recorded in the years leading up to his death in 1967): Don't ask me why I never noticed that Otis Redding was one of the finest artists in history.  Sure, I always liked "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay" and "These Arms of Mine," but it wasn't until I picked this up in a bargain bin this year that I began to truly realize how incredible Otis was.  It doesn't hurt that he recorded right here in Memphis, and worked heavily with Steve Cropper (who, thanks to my father-in-law, I had to opportunity to meet). Regardless of geography though, Otis was a powerhouse vocalist who wrote many of his own songs (which was rare in those days).  I'm not sure I've ever heard anyone convey as much emotion as Otis Redding, and he was still on his way up in the music world and beginning to grow as an artist ("Dock of the Bay" was much different from any of his previous work and was recorded just days before his death) when a plane crash took him way too soon.

Band of Horses - Everything All The Time (2006) & Cease to Begin (2007): It took me way too long to enjoy Band of Horses.  I think it's because they are often erroneously compared to My Morning Jacket, and taken in that context, they can sound like a second rate imitator.  However, thinking of Band of Horses as more of The Shins with a Southern drawl puts them in a much better context.  Whatever the reasons for me passing on this band in the past, I'm glad I've discovered them now and I'm sure you will be too.  Their atmospheric songs are perfect for soundtracks, and you've likely heard them and just don't know it. Catchy and well-written, these songs should stand among the biggest hits on the radio

R. L. Burnside - A Ass Pocket Of Whiskey (2005): What do you get when you pluck one of the original Hill Country Bluesmen out of Holly Springs, Mississippi, pair him with modern blues band The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, probably provide liquor, put them in a studio and record?  You get one of the finest, most explicit and raw representations of many of the things that make Hill Country Blues unique. A Wikipedia article describes this album as "lo-fi storytelling garage punk-blues rock with explicit lyrics," and listening to the album reveals this to be pretty accurate.  Oxford, Mississippi-based Fat Possum records was instrumental in getting some of the original blues men into the studio before it was too late, and this is a perfect example of why we are lucky they did. If you can get your hands on You See Me Laughin' you can see a very entertaining, sometimes shocking look at how all this came together.

There are surely other albums I've greatly enjoyed this year that weren't released during 2010, but these are the ones that had the biggest impact.

In a week or so, I'll start posting my favorite albums of 2010. 

Do you have any favorites from past years that you've just discovered?

Why I Like Albums, And Why I'd Like To Keep Them Around

As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m prefer full albums over individual songs. There’s something about the feeling I get when I listen to a great album that shuffling songs on the iPod can’t replicate (not that the random smattering of music doesn’t have its place...I generally listen this way at the gym). It’s not just about the music either. The packaging of music used to be an art form. The digital age has made it too easy to buy (or steal) songs on the fly without having to worry about the context they fit into the album.

Over the last couple of years, I’ve read about the “death of the album” as an art form. Music industry prognosticators predict that soon, all of our music will be released in a singles-only format. I guess it makes sense, though I think a lot of those predictions are because much of the music that is gaining attention now doesn’t fit into the “album music” category. As we are starting to see an abundance of year-end best albums lists hitting the internet, I thought it was a good time to write a post to convince anyone who cares to read this, how important it is that artists continue to make albums.

My first reason for fighting to keep the album alive is this: songs may be the soundtrack to people’s lives, but albums can change people’s lives. I remember where I was and what I was doing the first time I heard “Stairway to Heaven,” but when I listened to Led Zeppelin’s IV (ZOSO), it changed my life. Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” turned the music world upside down, but Nevermind showed a lot of kids that felt like outcasts in their towns that maybe there was a place for them in the world.

Another reason is some of my favorite songs are album tracks that probably wouldn’t get many listens in a singles-only environment. “Going to California” from the aforementioned Zeppelin album is an example (it isn’t on the most recent “hits” package and it’s only the band’s 25th most popular song on Itunes). The song isn’t exactly rock and roll bombast, but nestled between “Four Sticks” and “When the Levee Breaks,” it becomes an album standout (and one of my 5 favorite Zeppelin songs). Most people probably wouldn’t hear that song for the first time by itself and think ”that’s a hit,” but in the context of the album, it's incredible. Same goes for Radiohead’s album OK Computer. None of those songs would make me think they are one of the greatest bands in the world, but the album does (so does In Rainbows).

Here’s a good reason to keep the album around. Have you noticed that a great band will sandwich a mediocre EP between two fantastic album releases? I think much of this stems from the fact that some bands need an extended time together in a recording environment to make something special. Just getting together to record a song now and then doesn’t allow a band to find the same cohesive sound and vision that spending time creating an entire album does. Bands have been known to do some pretty interesting things to create the perfect artistic environment to make an album (rent a beach house/farmhouse, try different producers, hire a spiritual advisor, grow beards, etc.), and I just don’t see them going to all that trouble to make a song or two (hey, a beard takes a while).

An album is the perfect length for focused listening. Songs are meant to be played, while albums are meant for listening; active listening. Active listening implies putting the album on with the sole intention of listening to that album. Are you going to make yourself a drink, get a comfortable chair and kick back just to listen to a song or a playlist? Probably not, but you might for a great album. Great albums are like movies, with a sequencing and cohesiveness that makes prefect sense.

What about the benefit to songwriters an album provides? In genres that heavily rely on outside songwriters (pop, country, etc.), an album of 10 songs may only have 2 or 3 potential singles. Without the album format, those 2 or 3 songs may be the only ones to be recorded (and certainly the only ones to achieve any commercial success). Many of these songs are really good, and may become fan favorites, but just don’t fit in with radio. Getting a song on a successful album helps songwriters pay the bills while they continue their craft.

For the most part, when I use the term “album,” I’m referring to a group of songs released together, not a vinyl record. An album can be digital, on CD, a cassette, or on vinyl; the medium is irrelevant. Here’s one area of my argument that demands a physical product; packaging. After all, they do give a Grammy for packaging. Whether it contains lyrics, an essay or pictures, the packaging can add to the album listening experience. Some of the best albums have a record sleeve or booklet that you want to sift through as you listen. One trend I've noticed lately that I really like is selling a vinyl version of an album with a code included that allows the purchaser to download an MP3 copy of the album at no extra charge.  This gives you the best of both worlds; the portability of an MP3 with the superior sound and excellent packaging of vinyl.
I predict (hope) that the best artists will continue to make albums well into the future, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see. Although the music industry is rapidly changing, the fact that an album is still the best way to hear music won't change. An album is the perfect length for focused listening, and for true music fans, and the quality of their albums is the true measure of a band.

What do you think? Do you ever take the time to evaluate an entire album, or do you prefer your music in single serving packets? What are some of your favorite albums?

I'll be following in in the coming weeks with a few posts about my favorite music of the past year.

Turn off the TV? It's Easier When You Don't Have 78 Channels.

Around seven or eight months ago, Crystel and I got the idea to have our cable turned off. This decision was partially a cost cutting move, but it was mostly to help pry ourselves away from the endless channel surfing. We wanted to spend more time doing other things, and if we did sit down in front of the TV it would be to watch a movie. Comcast offered a package that included around 13 channels for only $15, so we did it. The only problem was the channels never went away.


That all changed last weekend when we returned from a road trip to find ESPN had disappeared (apparently the change took effect when we unhooked our TV last week to have some cabinet work done). At first I was a little depressed that I couldn’t catch football highlights, but I remembered why we had the cable turned off in the first place, and read a book for a while instead.

Something else happened the same night that we became cable-free. I finally got in touch with one of my two best friends from high-school. I’d spent the weekend in my hometown and tried to look him up while I was there. I got his number from a mutual friend and sent him a message, and he called me back the next day. We talked for over an hour just catching up. Anyone who knows me will understand how hard it is to keep me on the phone for over five minutes, so this was quite a feat. Of course, not watching TV had nothing to do with this occurrence, but if you believe in signs, it was a pretty strong one. The conversation I had that night with my high school friend was one of the best I’d had in quite some time.

So in one day, I freed up more time for important things in life by removing much of the distraction of TV and I also did something more important; I reconnected with an old friend. It had been at least 6 years since we’d spoken and while so much had changed in our lives, it still felt like I was having the conversation circa 1997. It’s funny how time doesn’t take away the things that made you friends with someone in the first place. I’m not sure why I’ve been so distant from some of my best friends, but I am making it one of my personal goals to change that. As I look back over the past 10 years, I can’t pinpoint a time when I stopped hanging out with some of my best friends, but it’s definitely happened. Much of the problem stems from my own selfishness, and not making time for people.

My point in all this is that you should occasionally make time do something besides sit in from of the TV. Reconnecting with someone whose friendship you may have neglected is just an example of one of the many things you could do. It’ll make you feel much better than an hour (or four) of ESPN. The excuse that you don’t have time is just that, an excuse. Make time, even if you have to cut off your cable. Having your cable turned off is a bit extreme, but if we would all pull ourselves away from the TV more often and genuinely interact with people, I wonder how differently we would see the world. What if people spent more time reading books, going for a walk or even doing something creative? I’m not one of those people who thinks the TV is evil, but I do think it is one of the many crutches that serves to keep us all isolated from other people…even when we are in the same house together. How many times have you spent hours with someone and not had a conversation because you were both engrossed in the TV?

So does this sound crazy to you? Would you ever consider turning off your cable or at least limiting you TV viewing? Do you have any friends you’ve reconnected with after a long absence? What about any ways you’ve managed to carve out more free time for the important things in life? What are those more important things?

Travel Rituals: The Little Things that Keep Me Sane on the Road

In my profession, auditing, I’ve spent a great deal of time on the road. It’s pretty common to work away from home for a week at a time; flying out on Sunday and home on Friday evening. With all of the time I’ve spent in hotel rooms, a few OCD-like traits have become part of my routine.


First of all, before every trip, I update the music on my iPod. My music tastes change pretty often, and I like to use travel time to really dive into albums I want to dedicate some listening time to (I’m an album person by the way. I like to hear an album in its entirety and judge the music in that context. With the shift to digital music, many people today don’t even grasp the idea of listening to an album. Sure, every track won’t be a standout, but it puts a new perspective the individual songs…maybe a future blog post…I digress). I can spend hours changing the music on my iPod. Most of that time is spend poring over which songs to eliminate to make room. On my most recent trip to the Kansas City area, I finally dove into the classic Weezer album (and their last good album) Pinkerton. For some reason, I never liked the album when it was new but now I finally get it (again, future blog post).

Next on my list of strange travel habits is that I like to get to the airport more than two hours before my flight. For domestic flights out of Memphis, most people I have traveled with shoot for a maximum of an hour (and usually less). I actually like being in the airport for a while before my flight. It’s some of the best people-watching anywhere, as you can literally “watch the world go by.”

If I’m traveling alone, I always opt for a compact car like the one pictured above I drove on my most recent trip (hey, when it comes to compact cars for me, the nerdier the better…I did mention I listened to Weezer on this trip, right?). I don’t opt for the monster car like a lot of people I have traveled with in the past. Why? Well, the first reason is that I don’t need anything bigger if I’m traveling alone. Compact cars are always cheaper. Whether I’m paying or it’s on the company dime, it seems foolish to pay for something I don’t need. Second, it’s easier to maneuver in unfamiliar places. Third, with today’s compact cars, you have a better shot at getting something “cooler” (like the Prius Crystel and I got in L.A. last year) than you do with a mid-size sedan (usually an Impala or something equally as exciting). Most of the compact cars always have the features I want, like the MP3 player input. The last reason is that it’s just better for the environment. While I’m not completely sold on the idea that our “carbon footprint” is causing global warming, I do know that the less oil we can use, the better. Oil is not a renewable resource and using it puts money into the hands of some pretty shady people.

Yet another travel habit I have picked up is that I try to completely unpack my suitcase as soon as I get to the hotel. I learned this from Jimmy Buffett when I read his book, A Pirate Looks at Fifty. He always unpacks, even if he’s only there for one night. I’ve found that unpacking my bags and ironing a few things when I first get to the hotel helps ease some of the chaos of traveling. It allows me to put the suitcase away, and I feel much more settled. Along with this trait, I like to fold my dirty clothes and put them back in the suitcase as I’m finished with them. Putting the clothes in the suitcase helps keep the hotel room cleaner, and I like to fold them because it’s makes me feel like I’m taking better care of my things. Since I pay my hard-earned cash for my clothes, I don’t like the idea of wadding them up and stuffing them in a suitcase…hey, it’s the little things.

So there you have it, just a few of my somewhat strange travel habits. Does anything here strike you as incredibly odd? What about you? Do you have certain things you do when you travel that are outside the norm?

When Grunge Took Over

I don’t remember any music genre or movement having the profound effect on me that “grunge” had in the early 90s. I mentioned in a previous post my feelings about a photograph of Kurt Cobain I viewed at a recent art exhibit. We’d been through a pretty long stretch in the late 80s and early 90s where mainstream music mostly consisted of regurgitations of what had been successful previously and formulaic reinterpretations (much like a lot of today’s mainstream country). A glance at the charts before and after the grunge movement helps to validate this opinion. While I understand that music trends tend to be cyclical, grunge was the first major music movement of my generation. It completely changed the musical landscape. It didn’t last, but a lot of the doors grunge kicked open are at least still unlocked today.

A lot of grunge’s success is attributable to timing. Grunge didn’t kill hair metal as is so widely reported. Rather, hair metal killed itself, and grunge just moved into the vacant house. With the exception of a handful of bands, the music of this time wasn’t even that great when compared to previous music explosions (see the music of the late 60s for another, much higher quality game changer). What grunge did, however, was bring passion back to music. Most of the early grunge pioneers were just doing it because they couldn’t really see themselves doing anything else. In the beginning, it wasn’t about the money or the success (although it eventually became more focused on these things, and the music suffered).

Music meant something again when Nirvana came around, and for kids like me, it helped to ignite my passion for music. Grunge was the first music to hit the mainstream that truly belonged to my generation and was completely foreign to our parents. I suppose hip-hop could fall right in with grunge, but I didn’t run and pick up a guitar because of Doggystyle or The Chronic. When I heard Nevermind and my cousin taught me to play "Come as You Are," it wasn't long before I bought my first guitar. A lot of other kids did the same thing.

So what made grunge so successful? I only consider a few of the albums “classic.” Dirt, Jar of Flies, Nevermind, In Utero, Superunknown, Temple of the Dog, Purple by STP, Siamese Dream and pretty much any Pearl Jam album (this last one is certainly a personal preference and not the view of most people) instantly come to mind. Of course there were other albums I enjoyed, but these were the big ones. As I mentioned earlier, it was largely because of timing. Most of the best grunge bands were hitting their peak at the perfect time and, for the most part, all at the same time.

Of course, grunge’s stranglehold on the music world didn’t last, and soon we had the often tragic breakups of many grunge bands, a thousand grunge imitators (see Creed), the boy band movement (which actually brought better music than most of the grunge imitators) and generic Hip-Hop (I don't consider all Hip-Hop to be generic, just most of what became popular in the latter half of the 90s into the 2000s). Grunge’s lasting influence is that “fringe” artists that don’t fit the perception of mainstream can be successful. Green Day probably wouldn’t have become mega stars without Nirvana kicking in the doors open. Countless other bands would have never gotten their time in the spotlight either.  Artists like Beck who had little in common with grunge (and probably would have been laughed out of the building had they made a pitch to a record company while the Warrant posters were still on he wall) were given opportunities by the majors.

Today, this movement wouldn’t be so profound. The internet has taken a lot of power away from the people who used to control what we see and hear. In the early 90s, a kid like me from small town Mississippi only had access to the music of MTV and the radio, which were controlled by a lot of people who focused only on how much money they could make from the music. It was the same way for most people back then. Now the internet allows me to get music recommendations from people I don’t even know, quickly go and check out that music, and if I like it, allows me to make an instant purchase. This environment hasn’t really been good for the traditional music industry (especially the large labels), but it has vastly improved the music available to most people.

Here are a few videos of my favorite performaces from the grunge era:

My favorite Soundgarden song, "Fell on Black Days."



And my favorite Nirvana song, "Lithium."



Here's Alice in Chains doing "Rooster" unplugged.



And finally, here's Smashing Pumpkins' video for "Cherub Rock"...I reallize they weren't from Seattle, and neither were STP (mentioned above), but like it or not, they were part of the grunge scene.



What are your impressions of the grunge movement? Do you think its ultimate influence has been good for music? What music movements most influenced you?