Having just counted down my top 20 albums of the 2010s, my plan is to next shift to my top 20 movies. However, I still have several key titles to catch up on in 2019 and I don’t want to jump the gun on that list.
So I will pause this week to ring in 2020 by offering up five versions of the classic ballad ‘Auld Lang Syne.’
Enjoy, Happy New Year, and see you next decade!
Here’s a real Random Weekend treat: a clip from Jonathan Demme’s 1984 Talking Heads concert film Stop Making Sense. This movie, and the accompanying soundtrack album, make up one of the greatest live performances ever captured on film or tape.
The creativity and energy of David Byrne and company are at an all-time high in these performances, captured over four nights at the Hollywood Pantages Theater.
Happy Birthday to my lovely wife!
It’s a Random Weekend, so you know the drill. I spin the wheel and see what song shall forever be associated with her special day. Here we go…
Well, OK. ‘Love/Hate’ is a deep cut from Liz Phair’s 2003 self-titled album, which itself was something of a love/hate affair (probably tilting a bit more toward hate).
It should come as no surprise that the greatest album by my favorite artist would end up as my #1 album of the decade.
I spent a lot of time thinking about the makeup and order of this list, but Miranda Lambert’s The Weight of These Wings was cemented in place before I even began.
Lana Del Rey’s Norman Fucking Rockwell is the newest album on this list, having come out only a few months ago. I suppose that opens it up to potential recency bias, but its greatness is so undeniable I couldn’t stop myself from placing it this high.
Del Rey truly belongs to the past decade. Her hard-to-find self-titled debut dropped in 2010, and she’s released five brilliant albums about every other year since then, culminating in her finest work to date with Rockwell.
Meet Me In Montauk 