#4 – The Life Pursuit – Belle & Sebastian
The most-represented year in this little reconsideration of top ten lists past is 2006, with four albums. And the top-ranked among those four seven years ago remains the top-ranked today.
At the time, I made a case for Belle & Sebastian’s The Life Pursuit as the best album in the band’s catalog. Today I stand by that assessment with even more confidence.
It’s tempting to go with If You’re Feeling Sinister, in many ways the quintessential Belle & Sebastian album, and it’s certainly a close second, or maybe a 1(a). But the musical and lyrical confidence on display throughout The Life Pursuit makes this record stand out.
Those of you paying attention to the trend here have probably noticed that my lists haven’t shifted much at all since I first compiled them. To be honest, I expected a lot more movement than I’ve seen.
What I have noticed is that the albums making up the 6-10 spots each year have in many cases fallen off of my radar, but the records in the top spots have remained favorites.
I get to be myself and I get to sing
I get to play at being irresponsible
I come home late and I love your soul
I never forget you in my prayers
I never have a bad thing to report
You’re my picture on the wall
You’re my vision in the hall
You’re the one I’m talking to
When I get in from my work
You are my girl, and you don’t even know it
I am living out the life of a poet
I am the jester in the ancient court
You’re the funny little frog in my throat
My eye sight’s fading, my hearing’s dim
I can’t get insured for the state I’m in
I’m a danger to myself, I’ve been starting fights
At the party at the club on a Saturday night
But I don’t get disapproving from my girl
She gets all the highlights wrapped in pearls
You’re my picture on the wall
You’re my vision in the hall
You’re the one I’m talking to
When I get in from my work
You are my girl, and you don’t even know it
I am living out the life of a poet
I am the jester in the ancient court
You’re the funny little frog in my throat
I had a conversation with you at night
It’s a little one sided but that’s all right
I tell you in the kitchen about my day
You sit on the bed in the dark, changing places
With the ghost that was there before you came
You’ve come to save my life again
I don’t dare to touch your hand
I don’t dare to think of you
In a physical way
And I don’t know how you smell
You are the cover of my magazine
You’re my fashion tip, a living museum
I’d pay to visit you on rainy Sundays
I’ll maybe tell you all about it someday
Meet Me In Montauk 
I suspect part of the reason for the lack of reshuffling on the list in the lower spots is that, whatever flaw or annoyance bothered you on initial listens has made you less willing to pop that cd in later over the higher ranked ones with which you had less criticism.
I am curious if you went back and played each of these lower albums if you would greater appreciate the virtues over the faults, which might then lead to a higher ranking or, alternatively, if those faults would bother you all the more or at least the same as before so as to validate your ranking or send the album even further down your list.
Just love these lyrics.