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As part of my Decades project, I counted down my own favorite albums of the year then explored other notable releases with which I was less familiar.

The year 2006 was a good one for brassy British women, and it also offered a late-career triumph for Bob Dylan, Neko Case’s gothic Americana masterpiece, and one of Belle and Sebastian’s best.

Originally published: 2026 | Song of the Day posts featured: 20

My top ten albums of 2005:

#1. The Life Pursuit – Belle and Sebastian

#2. Fox Confessor Brings the Flood – Neko Case

#3. Modern Times – Bob Dylan

#4. Subtitulo – Josh Rouse

#5. Continuum – John Mayer

#6. Back to Black – Amy Winehouse

#7. Alright, Still – Lily Allen

#8. Ganging Up on the Sun – Guster

#9. Highway Companion – Tom Petty

#10. The Information – Beck

Other notable albums of 2006…

Back to Basics – Christina Aguilera

The View from the Afternoon – Arctic Monkeys

Everything All the Time – Band of Horses

The Greatest – Cat Power

The Crane Wife – The Decemberists

Taking the Long Way – Dixie Chicks

St. Elsewhere – Gnarls Barkley

Boys and Girls in America – The Hold Steady

Ys – Joanna Newsom

Corinne Bailey Rae – Corinne Bailey Rae