This was a pretty solid year for new music — many established artists put out great CDs and several newcomers made a very strong first impression. Following are my top ten album releases of the year, counting up from Number Ten:
Category Archives: 2007 music reviews
Coming up: Best albums of 2007
As with the movies, I have a few CDs left to hear before compiling my year-end list. Specifically, I have the Allison Krauss/Robert Plant duets album and Rufus Wainwright’s Judy Garland concert album on the way from Amazon.com and I have to give another listen or two to Arcade Fire’s acclaimed Neon Bible, which I picked up last week.
Large and in charge
I’m straying a bit from the topic of this blog to examine the latest album release of a certain Mr. Lyle Lovett. Perhaps I’m not too far afield, as Mr. Lovett has acted in several films and provided music for many more. Regardless, such a talent deserves to be reflected upon, and this is as good a place as any.
This is an important release for Lovett, arriving 11 years after what I consider his best work, The Road to Ensenada. His output since then has been spotty — a live album, a collection of covers, a soundtrack and, in 2003, the album I consider his worst… My Baby Don’t Tolerate. That work had the sheen and musicianship he’s known for, but the songs were standard country rock numbers that felt like they could have been written by anyone.
So would this be a return to form, or another disappointment?
The short answer: It’s a return to fom. But I’ve never been one for short answers. So here’s a track-by-track breakdown of Lovett’s latest opus.
Meet Me In Montauk 