20+21 Favorites and Then Some More (The 2021 Grampies)

 I'm not really doing the "Grampies" anymore like I used to, as it simply requires too much time and energy to be constantly tracking the new music coming out, giving it a fair and adequate listen, and then trying to figure out how to categorize everything by genre, to say nothing yet of determining my favorites. After this past year, concluding the second decade of the twenty-first century, I posted the Final Countdown and resolved henceforth to focus on a far more limited number of favorite artists.

Even so, there were lots of great albums released this year by those artists I already know and love, and I've been tracking and enjoying all of that for its own sake. As this Year of Our Lord 2021 is drawing to a close, I'm not anticipating that there will be any more new albums coming out between now and January 2022 (although I could be caught by surprise, as I have been a time or two in the past). So, rather than waiting until I'm up to my eyeballs in the Christmas Season to compile a list of my favorite albums of the year, I've done so in a low-key way this evening.

My favorite new releases of 2021, hands down, were my new baby grands: Belteshazzar Stuckwisch (19 April), Evelyn Sams (29 April), Jerome Harrison (28 November), and Henrietta Stuckwisch (1 December). But as for new music albums, here are some lists of those that caught my attention and brought joy and gladness to my year:

My Top Twenty Favorite Albums of 2021:

Eric Church - Heart & Soul

Joe Bonamassa - Time Clocks

Mammoth WVH - Mammoth WVH

Mat Kearney - January Flower

NF - Clouds (The Mixtape)

Tremonti - Marching in Time

Cody Jinks - Mercy / None the Wiser (Caned by Nod)

Demon Hunter - Songs of Death and Resurrection

Inglorious - We Will Ride / Heroine

Myles Kennedy - The Ides of March

NeedToBreathe - Into the Mystery

Black Veil Brides - The Phantom Tomorrow

Accept - Too Mean to Die

Daughtry - Dearly Beloved

Cody Johnson - Human: The Double Album

The Steel Woods - All of Your Stones

Volbeat - Servant of the Mind

Foo Fighters - Medicine at Midnight

Santana - Blessings and Miracles

Dream Theater - A View from the Top of the World

Twenty-One More Favorite Albums of 2021:

Iron Maiden - Senjutsu

Watchhouse - Watchhouse

Brandi Carlile - In These Silent Days

Lady A - What a Song Can Do

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - Raise the Roof

John Mayer - Sob Rock

Smith/Kotzen - Smith/Kotzen

Switchfoot - Interrobang

Kacey Musgraves - Star-Crossed

Keuning - A Mild Case of Everything

Night Ranger - ATBPO

The Black Keys - Delta Kream

Sunstorm - Afterlife

Joel Hoekstra’s 13 - Running Games

Travis Tritt - Set in Stone

Passenger - Songs for the Drunk and Broken Hearted

Metalite - A Virtual World

Parker Millsap - Be Here Instead

OneRepublic - Human

The Neal Morse Band - Innocence & Danger

Imagine Dragons - Mercury - Act 1

And 20+22 Albums from ‘21 to Grow On in ‘22:

Black Label Society - Doom Crew Inc.

KK’s Priest - Sermons of the Sinner

Temperance - Diamanti

Flatland Cavalry - Welcome to Countryland

Zac Brown Band - The Comeback

George Lynch - Seamless

Sammy Hagar & The Circle - Lockdown 2020

Dori Freeman - Ten Thousand Roses

ABBA - Voyage

Blackberry Smoke - You Hear Georgia

Heavy Water - Red Brick City

Steve Lukather - I Found the Sun Again

The Doobie Brothers - Liberté

Liquid Tension Experiment - LTE3

Thunder - All the Right Noises

Kings of Leon - When You See Yourself

Mayday Parade - What It Means to Fall Apart

Gus G - Quantum Leap

Jimmy Barnes - Flesh and Blood

Beast in Black - Dark Connection

Joanne Shaw Taylor - The Blues Album

Ally Venable - Heart of Fire

Gary Hughes - Waterside / Decades

Voodoo Circle - Locked & Loaded

Damon Johnson & The Get Ready - Battle Lessons

Eclipse - Wired

The Night Flight Orchestra - Aeeromantic II

Trivium - In the Court of the Dragon

Times of Grace - Songs of Loss and Separation

Peter Frampton Band - Peter Frampton Forgets the Words

Sirenia - Riddles, Ruins & Revelations

Twenty-One Pilots - Scaled and Icy

Greta Van Fleet - The Battle at Garden’s Gate

Kristian Bush - Troubadour

Sturgill Simpson - The Ballad of Dood & Juanita

Wolfmother - Rock Out

Nancy Wilson - You and Me

Toby Keith - Peso in My Pocket

Trace Adkins - The Way I Wanna Go

Adele - 30

Lilly Hiatt - Lately

The Dead Daisies - Holy Ground

My Twenty-One Favorite Album Covers of 2021:

A View from the Top of the World (Dream Theater)

Time Clocks (Joe Bonamassa)

Seamless (George Lynch)

Innocence & Danger (The Neal Morse Band)

Songs of Death and Resurrection (Demon Hunter)

We Will Ride (Inglorious)

In the Court of the Dragon (Trivium)

All the Right Noises (Thunder)

Human (OneRepublic)

Mammoth WVH (Mammoth WVH)

A Virtual World (Metalite)

NIRATIAS (Chevelle)

Diamanti (Temperance)

Aeromantic II (The Night Flight Orchestra)

Senjutsu (Iron Maiden)

The Phantom Tomorrow (Black Veil Brides)

Riddles, Ruins & Revelations (Sirenia)

Too Mean to Die (Accept)

Afterlife (Sunstorm)

Escape of the Phoenix (Evergrey)

Blessings and Miracles (Santana)

Eighty-Four Favorite Songs of 2021:

“The Heart That Never Waits” (Joe Bonamassa - Time Clocks)

“The Loyal Kind” (Joe Bonamassa - Time Clocks)

“Time Clocks” (Joe Bonamassa - Time Clocks)

“Notches” (Joe Bonamassa - Time Clocks)

“Circles” (Mammoth WVH - Mammoth WVH)

“Distance” (Mammoth WVH - Mammoth WVH)

“Clouds” (NF - Clouds: The Mixtape)

“Paid My Dues” (NF - Clouds: The Mixtape)

“Story” (NF - Clouds: The Mixtape)

“Lost” (NF & Hopsin - Clouds: The Mixtape)

“Just Like You” (NF - Clouds: The Mixtape)

“I Will Fail You” (Demon Hunter - Songs of Death and Resurrection)

“The Heart of a Graveyard” (Demon Hunter - Songs of Death and Resurrection)

“Crazyland” (Eric Church - Heart)

“Stick That in Your Country Song” (Eric Church - Heart)

“Russian Roulette” (Eric Church - Heart)

“Through My Ray-Bans” (Eric Church - &)

“Doing Life with Me” (Eric Church - &)

“Break It Kind of Guy” (Eric Church - Soul)

“Bright Side Girl” (Eric Church - Soul)

“Hell of a View” (Eric Church - Soul)

“All it Cost Me Was Everything” (Cody Jinks - Mercy)

“How It Works” (Cody Jinks - Mercy)

“Mercy” (Cody Jinks - Mercy)

“Dying Trying” (Caned by Nod - None the Wiser)

“Briefcase” (Walker Hayes & Lori McKenna - Country Stuff)

“'Til You Can't” (Cody Johnson - Human: The Double Album)

“I Always Wanted To” (Cody Johnson - Human: The Double Album)

“By Your Grace” (Cody Johnson - Human: The Double Album)

“God Bless the Boy: Cori’s Song” (Cody Johnson - Human: The Double Album)

“I Wanna Remember” (NeedToBreathe & Carrie Underwood - Into the Mystery)

“Chances” (NeedToBreathe - Into the Mystery)

“What I'm Here For” (NeedToBreathe - Into the Mystery)

“They Don’t Make ‘Em Like That No More” (Travis Tritt - Set in Stone)

“Smoke in a Bar” (Travis Tritt - Set in Stone)

“In Between” (Parker Millsap - Be Here Instead)

“The Best Is Yet to Come” (Accept - Too Mean to Die)

“No Ones Master” (Accept - Too Mean to Die)

“No Time for Toxic People” (Imagine Dragons - Mercury: Act 1)

“Wake Me When It’s Over” (Myles Kennedy - The Ides of March)

“The Ides of March” (Myles Kennedy - The Ides of March)

“Love Hurts” (Jimmy Barnes & Jane Barnes - Flesh and Blood)

“Happy Birthday America” (Toby Keith - Peso in My Pocket)

“Move” (Santana, Rob Thomas, American Authors - Blessings and Miracles)

“Joy” (Santana & Chris Stapleton - Blessings and Miracles)

“All of Your Stones” (The Steel Woods - All of Your Stones)

“Pontiac” (Mat Kearney - January Flower)

“Grand Canyon” (Mat Kearney - January Flower)

“Anywhere With You” (Mat Kearney - January Flower)

“Workin’ on This Love” (Lady A - What a Song Can Do)

“Worship What I Hate” (Lady A - What a Song Can Do)

“What a Song Can Do” (Lady A - What a Song Can Do)

“Let That Be Us” (Tremonti - Marching in Time)

“Marching in Time” (Tremonti - Marching in Time)

"Better Days" (The Doobie Brothers - Liberté)

"Just Can't Do This Alone" (The Doobie Brothers - Liberté)

"Cry for Help" (Daughtry - Dearly Beloved)

"Asylum" (Daughtry - Dearly Beloved)

“Where We Call Home” (Wade Bowen - Where Phones Don’t Work)

“Be You” (Wade Bowen - Where Phones Don’t Work)

“Little Things” (ABBA - Voyage)

“I Can Be That Woman” (ABBA - Voyage)

“Hookup Scene” (Kacey Musgraves - Star-Crossed)

"Lose Somebody" (OneRepublic & Kygo - Human)

"Bring Me to Life" (Inglorious & Jeff Scott Soto - Heroine)

“Time After Time” (Inglorious - Heroine)

"We Will Ride" (Inglorious - We Will Ride)

"Shotgun Blues" (Volbeat - Servant of the Mind)

"Dagen Før" (Volbeat - Servant of the Mind)

“Simple Things” (Elton John & Brandi Carlile - The Lockdown Sessions)

“Nothing Else Matters” (Miley Cyrus, Elton John, et al. - The Lockdown Sessions)

“Stubborn Pride” (Zac Brown Band & Marcus King - The Comeback)

“Endless Running Out of Time” (The Secret Sisters - Quicksand EP)

“Sinners, Saints and Fools” (Brandi Carlile - In These Silent Days)

“Some People” (Smith/Kotzen - Smith/Kotzen)

“Brothers of the Road” (KK’s Priest - Sermons of the Sinner)

“Belly of the Beast” (Watchhouse - Watchhouse)

"Troubadour" (Kristian Bush - Troubadour)

“Last Train Home” (John Mayer - Sob Rock)

“Careful Girl” (Trace Adkins - The Way I Wanna Go)

“Live It Lonely” (Trace Adkins - The Way I Wanna Go)

“Empty Chair” (Trace Adkins - The Way I Wanna Go)

“Young Man” (Thunder - All The Right Noises)

“Grateful” (Lori McKenna - Christmas Is Right Here)

My Favorite Century from the Second Decade of the Final Millennium

Ten years ago, in January 2011, I posted a list of my favorite 100 albums from 2001 through 2010. At the time, I resolved that I would continue tracking my favorite releases over the course of the new decade that had just begun. It is largely for that reason that I have continued to process and publish my annual "Gampies" list up through this past year. And now, finally, having completed the second decade of what will hopefully (surely?) be the final millennium of this fallen and perishing old world, I can fulfill my resolve and here at last identify my favorite 100 albums from 2011 through 2020.

As compared to my prior "best of the decade" list, I altered the criteria somewhat. My listening has become more consistent, deliberate, intentional, and selective over these past ten years, and I have increasingly focused on a smaller number of favorite artists, rather than trying to monitor and keep up with the constant influx of new music acts. So, in this case, I did not limit myself to only two albums by any one artist, but allowed myself to include as many as three or even four albums from a single act. I did make sure to include at least eight albums from each year of this past decade; but one year, in particular, 2016, has managed to contribute almost twice that number (15) to the list, so I guess that was a great year.

I've attempted to list these 100 albums in order of preference, but that ordering would likely fluctuate at any given time. Aside from the fact that different albums strike me and engage me differently from one listen to the next, depending on my mood and all kinds of other circumstances, it's a challenge to know how best to compare albums from such diverse musical genres with each other. Whether I want to listen to Megadeth, Shinedown, Lori McKenna, Tim McGraw, or Taylor Swift, for example, at any given time will obviously depend on the occasion and its context (as well as any other people who may be with me). Any one of those artists (and any number of others) might be my "favorite" at one time or another. Similarly, there are times when I want to listen to an "old favorite," and times when I want something fresh and new.

Well, caveats aside, I've completed the decades-long task I set for myself, I've sifted and sorted my favorite albums from each of the past ten years — some of which did not really catch my attention or endear themselves to me until several or more years after they were first released — and I here present my 100 overall favorite albums (across all genres) from 2011 through 2020. Take a look and take a listen, and see what you think. Who knows? You may discover something new-to-you to enjoy in this third decade of the present millennium.

My Favorite Century from the Second Decade of the Final Millenium

1. Shinedown - Threat to Survival (2015)

2. Joe Bonamassa - Redemption (2018)

3. Lori McKenna - The Balladeer (2020)

4. Shinedown - Amaryllis (2012)

5. Lori McKenna - The Tree (2018)

6. Train - California 37 (2012)

7. Daughtry - Break the Spell (2011)

8. Linkin Park - One More Light (2017)

9. Black Stone Cherry - Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea (2011)

10. Theocracy - As the World Bleeds (2011)

11. Will Hoge - Small Town Dreams (2015)

12. Taylor Swift - evermore / folklore (2020)

13. Cody Jinks - After the Fire / The Wanting (2019)

14. All That Remains - The Order of Things (2015)

15. Megadeth - Th1rt3en (2011)

16. Theocracy - Ghost Ship (2016)

17. Tim McGraw - Sundown Heaven Town (2014)

18. Eric Church - Chief (2011)

19. Shinedown - Attention Attention (2018)

20. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour (2018)

21. The Decemberists - The King Is Dead (2011)

22. Volbeat - Seal the Deal & Let’s Boogie (2016)

23. Lifehouse - Almeria (2012)

24. Sister Hazel - Lighter in the Dark (2016)

25. Bon Jovi - What About Now (2013)

26. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound (2017)

27. Switchfoot - Vice Verses (2011)

28. Ashley McBryde - Girl Going Nowhere (2018)

29. Kenny Chesney - Welcome to the Fishbowl (2012)

30. Alter Bridge - The Last Hero (2016)

31. Will Hoge - Tiny Little Movies (2020)

32. Little Big Town - Nightfall (2020)

33. Eric Church - Mr. Misunderstood (2015)

34. Mat Kearney - Young Love (2011)

35. Alter Bridge - Walk the Sky (2019)

36. Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man (2020)

37. Uncle Kracker - Midnight Special (2012)

38. Lori McKenna - The Bird & the Rifle (2016)

39. Brandi Carlile - By the Way, I Forgive You (2018)

40. Cody Jinks - Lifers (2018)

41. Andy Black - The Shadow Side (2016)

42. Tim McGraw - Two Lanes of Freedom (2013)

43. Judas Priest - Firepower (2018)

44. All That Remains - A War You Cannot Win (2012)

45. Joe Bonamassa - Blues of Desperation (2016)

46. Train - a girl a bottle a boat (2017)

47. Myles Kennedy - Year of the Tiger (2018)

48. Mat Kearney - Just Kids (2015)

49. Black Veil Brides - Vale (2018)

50. The Avett Brothers - True Sadness (2016)

51. David Nail - The Sound of a Million Dreams (2011)

52. Miranda Lambert - Platinum (2014)

53. Train - Bulletproof Picasso (2014)

54. Black Stone Cherry - The Human Condition (2020)

55. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Reunions (2020)

56. Kid Rock - First Kiss (clean version) (2015)

57. Alter Bridge - Fortress (2013)

58. Ten - Gothica (2017)

59. Amaranthe - Amaranthe (2011)

60. Imagine Dragons - Night Visions (2013)

61. Dream Theater - The Astonishing (2016)

62. Sturgill Simpson - High Top Mountain (2013)

63. Will Hoge - Anchors (2017)

64. Jorn - Heavy Rock Radio II - Executing the Classics (2020)

65. Bon Jovi - This House Is Not for Sale (2016)

66. Redlight King - Something for the Pain (2011)

67. Volbeat - Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies (2013)

68. Cody Jinks - I’m Not the Devil (2016)

69. Joe Bonamassa - Royal Tea (2020)

70. Slash - Apocalyptic Love (2012)

71. Saxon - Call to Arms (2011)

72. Sturgill Simpson - Metamodern Sounds in Country Music (2014)

73. Brothers Osborne - Pawn Shop (2016)

74. Parker Millsap - The Very Last Day (2016)

75. Jason Isbell - Something More Than Free (2015)

76. Zac Brown Band - Jekyll + Hyde (2015)

77. Rob Thomas - Chip Tooth Smile (2019)

78. Andy Black - The Ghost of Ohio (2019)

79. Sabaton - The Great War (2019)

80. Daughtry - Baptized (2013)

81. Taylor Swift - Lover (2019)

82. The Black Keys - “Let’s Rock” (2019)

83. Better Than Ezra - All Together Now (2014)

84. Volbeat - Rewind, Replay, Rebound (2019)

85. The Steel Woods - Old News (2019)

86. Smith & Myers - Volume 1 & 2 (2020)

87. Ten - Illuminati (2018)

88. Tesla - Simplicity (2014)

89. Eric Church - Desperate Man (2018)

90. Gavin DeGraw - Make a Move (2013)

91. Joe Bonamassa - Driving Towards the Daylight (2012)

92. Tim McGraw - Damn Country Music (2015)

93. Zac Brown Band - Welcome Home (2017)

94. Kacey Musgraves - Pageant Material (2015)

95. Accept - The Rise of Chaos (2017)

96. Black Stone Cherry - Kentucky (2016)

97. Taylor Swift - 1989 (2014)

98. Brian Fallon - Painkillers (2016)

99. All That Remains - Madness (2017)

100. Kenny Chesney - The Big Revival (2014)

The 2020 Grampies (It's the Final Countdown)

Several years ago, I resolved to continue determining and sharing the annual "Grampies," that is, the listing of my favorite albums of the year (by genre and across genres), through the conclusion of the decade (2011-2020). Now that we're already into February of 2021, the first year of the new decade, it's high time I publish this "Final Countdown," the 2020 Grampies, thus fulfilling and concluding my resolve.

As in the past, there is a listing of my top 40 favorite albums of 2020 (across genres), and then separate listings of my favorite albums of 2020 according to a variety of categories, primarily determined by genre. Given that live concerts were largely cancelled for the bulk of 2020, I've included a list of 40 significant live albums that were released over the past year (from concerts performed in prior years, obviously). I've also included a list of my top 10 favorite cover albums of 2020. Most of the other genre or category lists include my top 20 albums, though there are a few deviations from that typical number of entries.

In almost every case, I've listed the albums that especially stood out for me in order of preference — numbered accordingly. Beyond those initial entries in each genre or category, I've listed the rest of the albums alphabetically by artist, rather than attempting to rank each list in its entirety.

Though it could easily be assumed, I'll state the matter plainly, that my hands-down favorite new releases of 2020 were my two most-recently born baby grands, Johann Jacob Stuckwisch and Clarence Sebastian Job Harrison. We also gained a new son-in-law, David Sams, and a new daughter-in-law, Moreah (Ritzman) Stuckwisch, for whom we are likewise deeply grateful. Those were the highlights of an otherwise largely discouraging year. Of course, our Lord has remained gracious and generous in giving His good gifts, even in the midst of sin and death, in spite of pandemics and lockdowns, and for this above all we give thanks. But with that, I am also appreciative of the good music with which He blesses my life, not least of all including the following albums released over the course of A.D. 2020.

D. Rick’s Album Top 40

1. Lori McKenna - The Balladeer

2. Taylor Swift - evermore / folklore

3. Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man

4. Black Stone Cherry - The Human Condition

5. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Reunions

6. Will Hoge - Tiny Little Movies

7. Little Big Town - Nightfall

8. Cody Jinks - Live at Red Rocks

9. Jorn - Heavy Rock Radio II - Executing the Classics

10. Joe Bonamassa - Royal Tea / A New Day Now (20th Anniversary Edition)

11. Smith & Myers - Volume 1 & 2 {odd-numbered tracks}

12. Chris Stapleton - Starting Over

13. AC/DC - Power Up

14. Larkin Poe - Kindred Spirits

15. Joe Satriani - Shapeshifting

16. Sturgill Simpson - Cuttin’ Grass, Vol. 1 & 2

17. Larkin Poe - Self Made Man

18. The Cadillac Three - Country Fuzz / Tobasco & Sweet Tea

19. The Avett Brothers - The Third Gleam

20. The Secret Sisters - Saturn Return

21. Tim McGraw - Here on Earth

22. Delain - Apocalypse & Chill

23. Mipso - Mipso

24. Liliac - Queen of Hearts

25. Dawes - Good Luck with Whatever

26. Marty Friedman - Tokyo Jukebox 3

27. Sons of Apollo - MMXX

28. Smith & Myers - Volume 1 & 2 {even-numbered tracks}

29. Bon Jovi - 2020 (Deluxe)

30. Nick Perri & The Underground Thieves - Sun Via

31. Lilly Hiatt - Walking Proof

32. The War and Treaty - Hearts Town

33. Hailey Whitters - The Dream

34. Needtobreathe - Out of Body

35. Sonny Landreth - Blacktop Run

36. Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown - Pressure

37. Revolution Saints - Rise

38. Ruston Kelly - Shape & Destroy

39. Firewind - Firewind

40. Trivium - What the Dead Men Say

Modern Mainline Country

1. Little Big Town - Nightfall

2. Tim McGraw - Here on Earth

3. Kenny Chesney - Here and Now

4. The Shires - Good Years

5. Maddie & Tae - The Way It Feels

6. Gone West - Canyons

Cam - The Otherside

Carly Pearce - Carly Pearce

Caylee Hammack - If It Wasn’t for You

Dustin Lynch - Tullahoma

Eric Paslay - Nice Guy

Gabby Barrett - Goldmine

Granger Smith - Country Things

Ingrid Andress - Lady Like

Kelsea Ballerini - kelsea

Lee Brice - Hey World

Luke Bryan - Born Here Live Here Die Here

Muscadine Bloodline - Burn It at Both Ends

Russell Dickerson - Southern Symphony

Tenille Townes - The Lemonade Stand

Retro and Traditional Country

1. Chris Stapleton - Starting Over

2. Garth Brooks - Fun

3. Tessy Lou Williams - Tessy Lou Williams

4. Gabe Lee - Honky Tonk Hell

Charley Crockett - Welcome to Hard Times / Field Recordings, Vol. 1

Clint Black - Out of Sane

Collin Raye - Scars

Colter Wall - Western Swing & Waltzes and Other Punchy Songs

Daniel Donato - A Young Man’s Country

Elijah Ocean - Blue Jeans & Barstools

Josh Abbott Band - The Highway Kind

Josh Turner - Country State of Mind

Joshua Ray Walker - Glad You Made It

Mo Pitney - Ain’t Lookin’ Back

The Panhandlers - The Panhandlers

Randy Rogers & Wade Bowen - Holy My Beer, Vol. 2

Reckless Kelly - American Jackpot / American Girls

The Steeldrivers - Bad for You

Willie Nelson - First Rose of Spring

Zephaniah Ohora - Listening to the Music

Edgy and Alternative Country

1. The Cadillac Three - Country Fuzz / Tobasco & Sweet Tea

2. Lilly Hiatt - Walking Proof

3. Ward Davis - Black Cats and Crows

Ashley McBryde - Never Will

The Band of Heathens - Stranger

Brothers Osborne - Skeletons

The Chicks - Gaslighter

Corb Lund - Agricultural Tragic

Cory Marks - Who I Am

Elizabeth Cook - Aftermath

Emily Zuzik - Torch & Trouble

Hardy - A Rock

Jaime Wyatt - Neon Cross

Margo Price - That’s How Rumors Get Started

Old 97's - Twelfth

Rachel Brooke - The Loneliness in Me

Ray Wylie Hubbard - Co-Starring

Tennessee Jet - The Country

Waxahatchee - Saint Cloud

The Wood Brothers - Kingdom in My Mind

Americana, Roots Rock, and Country-Blues-Folk Rock-n-Soul

1. Lori McKenna - The Balladeer

2. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Reunions

3. Will Hoge - Tiny Little Movies

4. The War and Treaty - Hearts Town

5. Hailey Whitters - The Dream

6. Ruston Kelly - Shape & Destroy

7. Brian Fallon - Local Honey

8. American Aquarium - Lamentations

9. Donovan Woods - Without People

10. John Moreland - LP5

11. Brandy Clark - Your Life Is a Record

12. Kip Moore - Wild World

13. Drive-By Truckers - The Unraveling / The New OK

14. Logan Ledger - Logan Ledger

Arlo McKinley - Die Midwestern

Ashley Ray - Pauline

Blitzen Trapper - Holy Smokes Future Jokes

Bob Lefevere & the Already Gone - Bob Lefevre & the Already Gone

Brent Cobb - Keep ‘Em on They Toes

Brett Eldredge - Sunday Drive

Bruce Springsteen - Letter to You

Cordovas - Destiny Hotel

Delta Rae - The Light

Dustbowl Revival - Is It You, Is It Me

Early James - Singing for My Supper

Futurebirds - Teamwork

James Taylor - American Standard

The Jayhawks - Xoxo

Jeff Tweedy - Love Is the King

Kathleen Edwards - Total Freedom

The Lone Bellow - Half Moon Light

Lucinda Williams - Good Souls Better Angels

Nathaniel Rateliff - And It’s Still Alright

Ryan Adams - Wednesdays

Sarah Siskind - Modern Appalachia

Steve Earle - Ghosts of West Virginia

When Rivers Meet  - We Fly Free / Innocence of Youth

The White Buffalo - On the Widow’s Walk

Whitney Rose - We Still Go to Rodeos

Will Kimbrough - Spring Break

Folk and Bluegrass (Traditional and Modern)

1. Sturgill Simpson - Cuttin’ Grass, Vol. 1 & 2

2. The Avett Brothers - The Third Gleam

3. The Secret Sisters - Saturn Return

4. Mipso - Mipso

5. Courtney Marie Andrews - Old Flowers

6. Passenger - Patchwork

Adrianne Lenker - songs / instrumentals

Aoife Nessa Frances - Land of No Junction

Bill Callahan - Gold Record

Brennen Leigh - Prairie Love Letter

Clem Snide - Forever Just Beyond

Gillian Welch & David Rawlings - All the Good Times

Jake Blount - Spider Tales

Jimmy Buffett - Songs You Don’t Know by Heart

Mary Chapin Carpenter - The Dirt and the Stars

Molly Tuttle - . . . but I’d rather be with you

Nadia Reid - Out of My Province

Sarah Jarosz - World on the Ground

Steep Canyon Rangers - Arm in Arm

William Prince - Relievers

Singer-Songwriter Pop-Rock

1. Taylor Swift - evermore / folklore

2. Smith & Myers - Volume 1 & 2  [odd-numbered tracks]

3. Dawes - Good Luck with Whatever

4. Bon Jovi - 2020

Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways

Bruce Hornsby - Non-Secure Connection

Huey Lewis & The News - Weather

Jason Mraz - Look for the Good

Jill Andrews - Thirties

Lisa Loeb - A Simple Trick to Happiness

Lomelda - Hannah

Mandy Moore - Silver Landings

Morgan Myles - Therapy

Norah Jones - Pick Me Up Off the Floor

Paul McCartney - McCartney III

Ray LaMontagne - Monovision

Richard Marx - Limitless

Sara Bareilles - More Love - Songs from Little Voice Season One

Shawn Mendes - Wonder

Vanessa Carlton - Love Is an Art

Contemporary Pop

1. Haim - Women in Music Pt. III

2. Katy Perry - Smile

Ava Max - Heaven & Hell

Carly Rae Jepsen - Dedicated Side B

Jessie Ware - What’s Your Pleasure?

Kylie Minogue - Disco

Lady Gaga - Chromatica

Meghan Trainor - Treat Myself

Miley Cyrus - Plastic Hearts

Salena Gomez - Rare

Classic and Retro Radio Rock

1. Revolution Saints - Rise

2. The Struts - Strange Days

3. The Nigh Flight Orchestra - Aeromantic

4. Deep Purple - Whoosh!

The Allman Betts Band - Bless Your Heart

Blue Öyster Cult - The Symbol Remains

Cats in Space - Atlantis

Dennis DeYoung - 26 East, Vol. 1

DeVicious - Phase Three

East Temple Avenue - Both Sides of Midnight

Gathering of Kings - Discovery

Imperium - Heaven or Hell

King King - Maverick

Lionville - Magic Is Alive

Palace - Rock and Roll Radio

Perfect Plan - Time for a Miracle

Robert Jon & the Wreck - Last Light on the Highway

Rob Moratti - Paragon

Stardust - Highway to Heartbreak

Tokyo Motor Fist - Lions

Modern Rock

1. Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man

2. Arctic Rain - The One

3. Collateral - Collateral

4. Smash Into Pieces - Arcadia

5. Heartwind - Strangers

Asking Alexandria - Like a House on Fire

Brother Firetribe - Feel the Burn

FM - Synchronized

Gotthard - #13 / Steve Lee - The Eyes of a Tiger: In Memory of Our Unforgotten Friend!

Grand Design - V

Grey Daze - Amends

Harem Scarem - Change the World

House of Lords - New World - New Eyes

Jeff Scott Soto - Wide Awake (In My Dreamland)

Khymera - Master of Illusions

A Life Divided - Echoes

One Desire - Midnight Empire

Sevendust - Blood & Stone

Storm Force - Age of Fear

Vega - Grit Your Teeth

Hard Rock / Heavy Metal

1. Black Stone Cherry - The Human Condition

2. AC/DC - Power Up

3. Liliac - Queen of Hearts

4. Firewind - Firewind

5. Trivium - What the Dead Men Say

6. Biff Byford - School of Hard Knocks

7. Stryper - Even the Devil Believes

8. Primal Fear - Metal Commando

9. Amaranthe - Manifest

10. Black Swan - Shake the World

Armored Saint - Punching the Sky

Dirty Shirley - Dirty Shirley

Dynazty - The Dark Delight

Girish and the Chronicles - Rock the Highway

H.E.A.T. - H.e.a.t. II

Iron Savior - Skycrest

A Perfect Day - With Eyes Wide Open

Raven - Metal City

Seether - Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum

Shakra - Mad World

Symphonic and Epic Power Metal

1. Delain - Apocalypse & Chill

2. Beyond the Black - Hørizons

3. Temperance - Viridian

4. Serenity - The Last Knight

Adamantis - Far Flung Realm

Ad Infinitum - Chapter 1: Monarchy

Allen/Olzon - Worlds Apart

Apocalyptica - Cell-O

Demons & Wizards - III

Falconer - From a Dying Ember

Illumishade - Eclyptic: Wake of Shadows

Legendfire - Sunchasers

Lords of Black - Alchemy of Souls, Pt. 1

Memories of Old - The Zeramin Game

Moonlight Haze - Lunaris

Seven Spires - Emerald Seas

Unleash the Archers - Abyss

Vanishing Point - Dead Elysium

Volturian - Crimson

Warkings - Revenge

Progressive Rock & Metal

1. Sons of Apollo - MMXX

2. Vanden Plas - The Ghost Xperiment - Illumination

3. Oceans of Slumber - Oceans of Slumber

4. Neal Morse - Sola Gratia

Caligula’s Horse - Rise Radiant

Deftones - Ohms

Derek Sherinian - The Phoenix

DGM - Tragic Separation

Fates Warning - Long Day Good Night

Fish - Weltschmerz

Haken - Virus

Kansas - The Absence of Presence

Octavision - Coexist

Pain of Salvation - Panther

Paralydium - Worlds Beyond

The Pineapple Thief - Versions of the Truth

Protest the Hero - Palimpsest

Psychotic Waltz - The God-Shaped Void

Teramaze - I Wonder

Thought Factory - Elements

Alternative Pop-Rock

1. Needtobreathe - Out of Body

2. Twin Atlantic - Power

3. The Killers - Imploding the Mirage

4. Redlight King - Moonshine

Awolnation - Angel Miners & The Lightning Riders

Catholic Action - Celebrated by Strangers

Ellie Goulding - Brightest Blue

Fleet Foxes - Shore

Hayley Williams - Petals for Armor

Jack Hues - Primitif

Mt. Joy - Rearrange Us

Native Harrow - Closeness

Pearl Jam - Gigaton

Pretenders - Hate for Sale

The Smashing Pumpkins - Cyr

Soul Asylum - Hurry Up and Wait

Sparta - Trust the River

Stone Temple Pilots - Perdida

The Strokes - The New Abnormal

Tame Impala - The Slow Rush

Guitarists

1. Joe Bonamassa - Royal Tea / A New Day Now (20th Anniversary Edition)

2. Joe Satriani - Shapeshifting

3. Larkin Poe - Self Made Man

4. Marty Friedman - Tokyo Jukebox 3

5. Nick Perri & The Underground Thieves - Sun Via

6. Sonny Landreth - Blacktop Run

7. Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown - Pressure

8. Reb Beach - A View from the Inside

9. Kiko Loureiro - Open Source

10. John Petrucci - Terminal Velocity

11. Paul Gilbert - Werewolves of Portland

12. Little Albert - Swamp King

13. Marcus King - El Dorado

14. Andy James - C.S.I.L / Arrival Leftovers

15. Christian Muenzner - Path of the Hero

16. The Sleep Eazys (Joe Bonamassa) - Easy to Buy, Hard to Sell

17. Neal Schon - Universe

18. Lindsay Ell - heart theory

Alastair Greene - The New World Blues

Al Di Meola - Across the Universe

Al Joseph - Labyrinth

Dave Alvin - From an Old Guitar: Rare and Unreleased Recordings

Diesel - Sunset Suburbia

Dion - Blues with Friends

Eric Johnson & Kelly Donnelly - EJ Vol. II

Intervals - Circadian

Keith Urban - The Speed of Now, Part 1

Magnus Karlsson’s Free Fall - We Are the Night

Mike Zito - Quarantine Blues

Orianthi - O

Paul Wardingham - Day Zero: Rise of the Horde

Plini - Impulse Voices

Ramos - My Many Sides

Richie Kotzen - 50 for 50

Robby Krieger - The Ritual Begins at Sundown

Thorbjørn Risager - Come On In

Tinsley Ellis - Ice Cream in Hell

Tommy Emmanuel - The Best of Tommysongs

Vandenberg - 2020

Walter Trout - Ordinary Madness

Cover Albums

1. Jorn - Heavy Rock Radio II - Executing the Classics

2. Larkin Poe - Kindred Spirits

3. Smith & Myers - Volume 1 & 2  [even-numbered tracks]

4. Ronnie Dunn - Re-Dunn

5. Wesley Schultz - Vignettes

6. Sara Evans - Copy That

7. Chris Cornell - No One Sings Like You Anymore

8. Ellefson - No Cover

9. Ace Frehley - Origins Vol. 2

10. George Lynch & Jeff Pilson - Heavy Hitters

Live Albums

1. Cody Jinks - Live at Red Rocks

2. Volbeat - Rewind, Replay, Rebound (Live in Deutschland)

3. Metallica - S&M2

4. Dream Theater - Distant Memories - Live in London

5. Iron Maiden - Nights of the Dead, Legacy of the Beast: Live in Mexico City

Albert Castiglia - Wild and Free

Ayreon - Electric Castle Live and Other Tales

Blue Öyster Cult - Live at Rock of Ages Festival 2016

David Grissom - Trio (Live)

Def Leppard - Hits Vegas (Live)

Delta Rae - Coming Home to Carolina - Live

Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors - Live at the Tennessee Theatre

Eagles - Live from the Forum

Eclipse - Viva La Victouria (Live)

Garth Brooks - Triple Live Deluxe

Gary Moore - Live from London

HammerFall - Live! Against the World

Jeff Scott Soto - Live & Loud in Milan 2019

Jimi Hendrix - Live in Maui (1970)

John 5 - Live Invasion

Johnny Cash - And the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Judah & The Lion - Pep Talks Live

Kamelot - I Am the Empire (Live from the 013)

Kenny Wayne Shepherd - Straight to You: Live

Margo Price - Perfectly Imperfect: Live at the Ryman

Thy Mystery - Caught in the Whirlwind of Time

Neal Morse Band - The Great Adventour - Live in BRNO 2019

Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets

Pretty Maids - Maid in Japan - Future World Live 30 Anniversary

Redemption - Alive in Color (Live 2018)

Riverside - Live in Tilburg

Roger Waters - Us & Them

Rolling Stones - Steel Wheels Live

Sing Me Back Home: The Music of Merle Haggard (Live)

Stevie Nicks - Live in Concert: The 24 Karat Gold Tour

The Teskey Brothers - Live at the Forum

Tesla - Five Man London Jam (Live at Abbey Road Studies, 6/12/19)

Visions of Atlantis - A Symphonic Journey to Remember

Willie Nelson: American Outlaw (Live)

Yes - The Royal Affair Tour (Live in Los Vegas)

The 2019 Grampies

It's high time (and past time) for the posting of the 2019 Grampies, identifying the most significant albums of this past year across a wide diversity of musical genres. It was a different year in many ways. Whereas 2018 featured numerous new releases from a great many of my favorite artists, 2019 was predominated by a greater number of less familiar acts. The fact is, I was also more preoccupied with other priorities. By way of example, my three most favorite new releases in 2019, hands down, were my three most-recently-born baby grands, Benedict, Philippa, and Augustin. My father's departure from this vale of tears in 2019 also put the transience of popular music into perspective, especially considering that my Dad also avidly followed and charted music across the years. Now his collection of music sits without its owner, and his many lists and notes will go undeciphered. Even so, for the time that we are given in this body and life on earth, music of all kinds is part and parcel of our Lord's good creation, a beautiful gift of His grace, and a joy that gladdens the hearts of His dear children. And I give thanks for that blessing.

As always, my enjoyment and tracking of music have been aided and abetted by Amazon, Spotify, the St. Joseph County Library, the Rate Your Music and Album Of The Year websites, my good friend and colleague, Rev. Erich Fickel, and my own children. Often as not, I stumble upon great new music almost by accident. (I've concluded that, beginning with this New Year, I'm going to have to limit my exploration of new music and rather stick to my tried and true favorite artists; but here, for now, my focus of attention is on what I discovered and enjoyed in 2019.)

In addition to my "Album Top 40" (across all genres) for the year, I've included lists of the most significant albums within each of seventeen different "genres." Within those categories, I've listed the albums in more-or-less my order of preference (though that is likely to vary from day to day). In many cases, trying to determine the precise genre of a given album is a challenge, and I'm sure there are those who might well quibble with some of my decisions in that regard. So be it. This is all a matter of my own tastes and opinions, obviously, and one and all are free to disagree with me. That's part of the fun in posting such lists, and I welcome friendly discussion and debate. I should note that I have normally not included live albums as contenders in the annual Grampies, but I've made one exception (sort of) for this past year. Especially having had the privilege and pleasure of seeing Joe Bonamassa live in South Bend with my wife and a couple of good friends, I simply could not overlook his "Live at the Sydney Opera House" album, released in October. It is an exquisite album and a joy to listen to. So I've listed it as the first album in the "Guitarists" genre, and as a "Special Honorable Addendum" to my "Album Top 40."

Alright, then. Without any further ado, herewith are awarded the coveted Grampies for 2019:


D. Rick’s Album Top 40 (Across Genres)

1. Alter Bridge - Walk the Sky

2. Sabaton - The Great War

3. The Black Keys - “Let’s Rock”

4. Rob Thomas - Chip Tooth Smile

5. Andy Black - The Ghost of Ohio

6. Cody Jinks - After the Fire / The Wanting

7. Lonerider - Attitude

8. Opeth - In Cauda Venenum

9. The Head and the Heart - Living Mirage

10. Jamestown Revival - San Isabel

11. Avantasia - Moonglow

12. Jimmy Barnes - My Criminal Record

13. Black Star Riders - Another State of Grace

14. Terra Nova - Raise Your Voice

15. Flatland Cavalry - Homeland Insecurity

16. Skillet - Victorious

17. Miranda Lambert - Wildcard

18. Age of Reflection - A New Dawn

19. Kenny Wayne Shepherd - The Traveler

20. Battle Beast - No More Hollywood Endings

21. Scott Stapp - The Space Between the Shadows

22. Metalite - Biomechanicals

23. Inglorious - Ride to Nowhere

24. Switchfoot - Native Tongue

25. Beth Hart - War in My Mind

26. Iron Savior - Kill or Get Killed

27. Dream Theater - Distance Over Time

28. Damon Johnson - Memoirs of an Uprising

29. Volbeat - Rewind, Replay, Rebound

30. The Steel Woods - Old News

31. Taylor Swift - Lover

32. Majestica - Above the Sky

33. The Avett Brothers - Closer Than Together

34. Kiefer Sutherland - Reckless & Me

35. Cyhra - No Halos in Hell

36. Tanya Tucker - While I’m Livin’

37. Rival Sons - Feral Roots

38. Bayside - Interrobang

39. Lady Antebellum - Ocean

40. Rhapsody of Fire - The Eighth Mountain

Special Honorable Addendum: Joe Bonamassa - Live at the Sydney Opera House


Pop

Taylor Swift - Lover
Sheryl Crow - Threads
Céline Dion - Courage
James Blunt - Once Upon a Mind
Maggie Rogers - Heard It in a Past Life
Sara Bareilles - Amidst the Chaos
Dean Lewis - A Place We Knew
Walk Off the Earth - Here We Go!
Sabrina Carpenter - Singular Act II
Ingrid Michaelson - Stranger Songs
The Script - Sunsets & Full Moons
Jonas Brothers - Happiness Begins / Music from Chasing Happiness
Backstreet Boys - DNA
Dido - Still on My Mind
Carly Rae Jepsen - Dedicated
Norah Jones - Begin Again
Parachute - Parachute
Andy Grammer - Naive
Camila Cabello - Romance
Zac Brown - The Controversy

Alternative and Progressive Folk

The Head and the Heart - Living Mirage
The Avett Brothers - Closer Than Together
The Highwomen - The Highwomen
Neyla Pekarek - Rattlesnake
The Wild Reeds - Cheers
Joseph - Good Luck, Kid
Jessica Pratt - Quiet Signs
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Ghosteen
Lula Wiles - What Will We Do
Dylan LeBlanc - Renegade
Glen Hansard - The Wild Willing
Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors - Dragons
The Lumineers - III
Bailen - Thrilled to Be Here
Better Oblivion Community Center - Better Oblivion Community Center
Belle & Sebastian - Days of the Bagnold Summer
Shovels & Rope - By Blood
Steve Gunn - The Unseen In Between
Ida Mae - Chasing Lights
Son Volt - Union

Folk and Americana

Jamestown Revival - San Isabel
Flatland Cavalry - Homeland Insecurity
J.S. Ondara - Tales of America
Sister Hazel - Earth / Fire
Allison Moorer - Blood
Molly Tuttle - When You’re Ready
Emily Scott Robinson - Traveling Mercies
Eilen Jewell - Gypsy
Ian Noe - Between the Country
Vince Gill - Okie
Joy Williams - Front Porch
Bruce Springsteen - Western Stars
Carrie Newcomer - The Point of Arrival
Buddy & Julie Miller - Breakdown on 20th Ave. South
Mandolin Orange - Tides of a Teardrop
Patty Griffin - Patty Griffin
Dori Freeman - Every Single Star
Over the Rhine - Love & Revelation
Hayes Carll - What It Is
Kelsey Waldon - White Noise / White Lines
John Paul White - The Hurting Kind
Josh Ritter - Fever Breaks
The HawtThorns - Morning Sun
Joshua Radin - Here, Right Now
Rhiannon Giddens - There Is No Other
Passenger - Sometimes It’s Something, Sometimes It’s Nothing at All
Justin Townes Earle - The Saint of Lost Causes
Andrew Combs - Ideal Man
The Talbott Brothers - Ghost Talker
Leonard Cohen - Thanks for the Dance

Modern Mainline Country

Miranda Lambert - Wildcard
Lady Antebellum - Ocean
Ward Thomas - Restless Minds
Christie Lamb - Broken Lines
Maddie & Tae - One Heart to Another / Everywhere I’m Goin’
Michaela Anne - Desert Dove
Lauren Jenkins - No Saint
Luke Combs - What You See Is What You Get
Brooks & Dunn - Reboot
Jason Aldean - 9
Austin Jenckes - If You Grew Up Like I Did
Clay Walker - Long Live the Cowboy
Hunter Hayes - Wild Blue, Part I
Hootie & The Blowfish - Imperfect Circle
Jon Pardi - Heartache Medication
Justin Moore - Late Nights and Longnecks
Kevin Fowler - Barstool Stories
Jake Owen - Greetings from . . . Jake
Maren Morris - Girl
Brooke White - Calico
Cassadee Pope - Stages
Tracy Lawrence - Made in America
Rodney Atkins - Caught Up in the Country
Thomas Rhett - Center Point Road
Zac Brown Band - The Owl
Sarah Darling - Wonderland
Old Dominion - Old Dominion
Chris Janson - Real Friends
Danny Gokey - Haven’t Seen It Yet
Dean Brody - Black Sheep (EP)

Retro and Traditional Country

Cody Jinks - After the Fire / The Wanting
Tanya Tucker - While I’m Livin’
Kendell Marvel - Solid Gold Sounds
Sunny Leigh Shipley - Out of the Sky
George Strait - Honky Tonk Time Machine
Tyler Childers - Country Squire
Trisha Yearwood - Every Girl
Erin Enderlin - Faulkner County
Randy Rogers Band - Hellbent
Cody Johnson - Ain’t Nothin’ to It
Reba McEntire - Stronger Than the Truth
Yola - Walk Through Fire
Willie Nelson - Ride Me Back Home
Midland - Let It Roll
Mike and the Moonpies - Cheap Silver and Solid Country Gold
Casey Donahew - One Light Town
Ronnie Milsap - The Duets
Dee White - Southern Gentleman

Alternative & Edgy Country & Americana

The Steel Woods - Old News
Kiefer Sutherland - Reckless & Me
Paul Cauthen - Room 41
Pony Bradshaw - Sudden Opera
Adrian - Desert Dwelling Mama
Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real - Turn Off the News (Build a Garden)
Ryan Bingham - American Love Song
Lillie Mae - Other Girls
Jason Hawk Harris - Love & the Dark
Chris Knight - Almost Daylight
Steve Earle - Guy
Kalie Shorr - Open Book
Aaron Lewis - State I’m In
Brantley Gilbert - Fire & Brimstone
Randy Houser - Magnolia
Frank Turner - No Man’s Land
Montgomery Gentry - Outskirts (EP)
Micky & The Motorcars - Long Time Comin’
Dillon Carmichael - I Do for You (EP)
Jack Ingram - Ridin’ High . . . Again

Pop and Heartland Rock

Rob Thomas - Chip Tooth Smile
Jimmy Barnes - My Criminal Record
Beth Hart - War in My Mind
Keuning - Prismism
The Goo Goo Dolls - Miracle Pill
Avril Lavigne - Head Above Water
Grace Potter - Daylight
Don Felder - American Rock ‘n’ Roll
Wilder Woods - Wilder Woods
The Cranberries - In the End
Jimmy Eat World - Surviving
Bryan Adams - Shine a Light
Electric Light Orchestra (Jeff Lynne’s ELO) - From Out of Nowhere
Kevin Griffin - Anywhere You Go
Fastball - The Help Machine
Ringo Starr - What’s My Name
American Authors - Seasons
Stray Cats - 40
Alan Parsons - The Secret
Allen, Mack, Myers, & Moore - Let It Roll

Classic Rock

The Black Keys - “Let’s Rock”
Lonerider - Attitude
Black Star Riders - Another State of Grace
Inglorious - Ride to Nowhere
Rival Sons - Feral Roots
Tesla - Shock
The Allman Betts Band - Down to the River
The Raconteurs - Help Us Stranger
Thunder - Please Remain Seated
Wolfmother - Rock ‘n’ Roll Baby
Melissa Etheridge - The Medicine Show
The Magpie Salute - High Water II
Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown - Truth and Lies
Whiskey Myers - Whiskey Myers
Laura Cox - Burning Bright
Caleb Johnson - Born from Southern Ground
Black Stone Cherry - Black to Blues, Vol. 2 (EP)
The Who - Who
The Drugstore Gypsies - Easy Access
Reese Wynans and Friends - Sweet Release
The Glorious Sons - A War on Everything
John Mayall - Nobody Told Me

Retro Radio Rock

Terra Nova - Raise Your Voice
Age of Reflection - A New Dawn
The Brink - Nowhere to Run
Trishula - Scared to Breathe
Rob Moratti - Renaissance
Gathering of Kings - First Mission
Restless Spirits - Restless Spirits
The Defiants - Zokusho
Danger Zone - Don’t Count on Heroes
Danny Vaughn - Myths Legends and Lies
Wake the Nations - Heartrock
First Signal - Line of Fire
Work of Art - Exhibits
Find Me - Angels in Blue
DeVicious - Reflections
Viana - Forever Free
Hardline - Life
Cats in Space - Day Trip to Narnia
Toby Hitchcock - Reckoning
Jim Peterik and World Stage - Winds of Change

Modern Rock

Alter Bridge - Walk the Sky
Andy Black - The Ghost of Ohio
Skillet - Victorious
Scott Stapp - The Space Between the Shadows
Volbeat - Rewind, Replay, Rebound
Eclipse - Paradigm
Takida - Sju
Saint Asonia - Flawed Design
Ray Alder - What the Water Wants
The Darker My Horizon - Seize the Day
Buckcherry - Warpaint
Art of Dying - Armageddon
Art Nation - Transition
Torndown - Out of the Darkness
Cold - The Things We Can’t Stop
Puddle of Mudd - Welcome to Galvania

Progressive Rock & Metal

Opeth - In Cauda Venenum
Dream Theater - Distance Over Time
Queensrÿche - The Verdict
Evergrey - The Atlantic
Arch/Matheos - Winter Ethereal
The Neal Morse Band - The Great Adventure / Jesus Christ the Exorcist
Steve Hackett - At the Edge of Light
Insomnium - Heart Like a Grave
Vanden Plas - The Ghost Xperiment - Awakening
Sweet Oblivion - Sweet Oblivion
Darkwater - Human
Hollow Haze - Between Wild Landscapes and Deep Blue Seas
Pattern-Seeking Animals - Pattern-Seeking Animals
Avandra - Descender
Sifting - The Infinite Loop
Teramaze - Are We Soldiers
Lance King - ReProgram
Richard Henshall - The Cocoon
Flying Colors - Third Degree
Jordan Rudess - Wired for Madness
TOOL - Fear Inoculum
Baroness - Gold & Grey

Hard Rock / Heavy Metal

Sabaton - The Great War
Battle Beast - No More Hollywood Endings
Beast in Black - From Hell with Love
Liliac - Chain of Thorns (EP)
Spirits of Fire - Spirits of Fire
The End Machine - The End Machine
Sammy Hagar & The Circle - Space Between
Mind Key - MK III - Aliens in Wonderland
Starbreaker - Dysphoria
Michael Sweet - Ten
Pretty Maids - Undress Your Madness
Alchemy - Dyadic
Lazy Bonez - Kiss of the Night
Whitesnake - Flesh & Blood
Last in Line - II
Blacktop Mojo - Under the Sun
Stargazer - The Sky Is the Limit
KXM - Circle of Dolls
SOTO - Origami
Overkill - The Wings of War

Epic Power Metal

Iron Savior - Kill or Get Killed
Majestica - Above the Sky
Signum Regis - The Seal of a New World
Tanith - In Another Time
Timo Tolkki’s Avalon - Return to Eden
Gloryhammer - Legends from Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex
The Ferrymen - A New Evil
Eternity’s End - Unyielding
Frozen Crown - Crowned in Frost
Rexoria - Ice Breaker
The Raven Age - Conspiracy
Vision Divine - When All the Heroes Are Dead
Hammerfall - Dominion
Sonata Arctica - Talviyö
DragonForce - Extreme Power Metal
Metal De Facto - Imperium Romanum

Symphonic Metal

Avantasia - Moonglow
Rhapsody of Fire - The Eighth Mountain
Chaos Magic - Furyborn
Turilli / Lione Rhapsody - Zero Gravity (Rebirth and Evolution)
The Dark Element - Songs the Night Sings
Moonlight Haze - De Rerum Natura
Visions of Atlantis - Wanderers
Within Temptation - Resist
Edenbridge - Dynamind
Imperia - Flames of Eternity
Delain - Hunter’s Moon
Blind Guardian Twilight Orchestra - Legacy of the Dark Lands

Alternative Metal

Metalite - Biomechanicals
Cyhra - No Halos in Hell
In Flames - I, The Mask
Of Mice & Men - Earth & Sky
Amon Amarth - Berserker
Lacuna Coil - Black Anima
Rage of Light - Imploder
Freedom Call - M.E.T.A.L.
Killswitch Engage - Atonement
As I Lay Dying - Shaped by Fire
Edge of Paradise - Universe
Starset - Divisions
Myrath - Shehili
Jinjer - Macro / Micro (EP)
Voyager - Colours in the Sun
Nemesea - White Flag

Ambiguous Alternatives

Switchfoot - Native Tongue
Bayside - Interrobang
Collective Soul - Blood
Sleeping with Sirens - How It Feels to Be Lost
Judah & the Lion - Pep Talks
NF - The Search
The Hold Steady - Thrashing Thru the Passion
Weezer - Weezer (Black) / Weezer (Teal)
The Claypool Lennon Delirium - South of Reality
Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride
Sunset Sons - Blood Rush Déjà Vu
little hurricane - Love Luck
Of Monsters and Men - Fever Dream
Sharon Van Etten - Remind Me Tomorrow
Tegan and Sara - Hey, I’m Just Like You
Alice Merton - Mint
Sturgill Simpson - Sound & Fury
Bastille - Doom Days
blink-182 - Nine
Jenny Lewis - On the Line
Pixies - Beneath the Eyrie
Ed Sheeran - No. 6 Collaborations
James Blake - Assume Form
Swervedriver - Future Ruins

Guitarists

Joe Bonamassa - Live at the Sydney Opera House
Kenny Wayne Shepherd - The Traveler
Damon Johnson - Memoirs of an Uprising
Diana Rein - Queen of My Castle
Michael Schenker Fest - Revelation
Steve Dadaian - Follow the Light
Tommy Emmanuel - Heart Songs
Tedeschi Trucks Band - Signs / High & Mighty (EP)
Joanne Shaw Taylor - Reckless Heart
Gary Clark, Jr. - This Land
Billy Strings - Home
Soren Andersen - Guilty Pleasures
Morano - Incognito
Joe Stump - Symphonic Onslaught
Gary Hoey - Neon Highway Blues
Santana - Africa Speaks
Peter Frampton Band - All Blues
Yngwie Malmsteen - Blue Lightning
Eric Gales - The Bookends
Mark Morton - Anesthetic
John 5 & The Creatures - Invasion

The 2018 Grampies

To welcome the New Year, I here publish the eagerly anticipated and highly coveted 2018 Grampies, identifying my favorite albums from this past year across a variety of genres. I've worked on further refining my categorizations, and (for the time being) I'm fairly settled on what I've come up with. Even so, I have no doubt that some readers might quibble with my classification of certain albums (not to mention disagreeing with my assessments of their quality). So be it. With thanks, as always, to Amazon, Spotify, and my local library, to my children who both share and tolerate my interests in music, and to my friend and colleague, Rev. Erich Fickel, for his willingness to swap suggestions and discuss discoveries from the music world with me. In my estimation, music is alive and well, and I'm grateful that so many of my favorite artists (including some new favorites) released great albums in 2018.


D. Rick’s Album Top Eighty (Across All Genres):


1. Lori McKenna - The Tree

2. Shinedown - Attention Attention

3. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

4. Joe Bonamassa - Redemption

5. Myles Kennedy - Year of the Tiger

6. Ten - Illuminati

7. Judas Priest - Firepower

8. Poets of the Fall - Ultraviolet

9. Eric Church - Desperate Man

10. Greta Van Fleet - Anthem of the Peaceful Army


11. Brian Fallon - Sleepwalkers

12. The Poodles - Prisma

13. Phillip Phillips - Collateral

14. Parker Millsap - Other Arrangements

15. Brandi Carlile - By the Way, I Forgive You

16. Tremonti - A Dying Machine

17. Wade Bowen - Solid Ground

18. Black Veil Brides - Vale

19. The Devil Makes Three - Chains Are Broken

20. Devin Dawson - Dark Horse


21. Mayday Parade - Sunnyland

22. Ashley McBryde - Girl Going Nowhere

23. Mat Kearney - Crazytalk

24. Kenny Chesney - Songs for the Saints

25. Rosanne Cash - She Remember Everything

26. The Record Company - All of This Life

27. Sister Hazel - Water / Wind

28. Angra - Omni

29. Saxon - Thunderbolt

30. Cody Jinks - Lifers


31. Treat - Tunguska

32. The Revivalists - Take Good Care

33. Kamelot - The Shadow Theory

34. The Temperance Movement - A Deeper Cut

35. The Night Flight Orchestera - Sometimes the World Ain’t Enough

36. Joe Satriani - What Happens Next

37. The Struts - Young & Dangerous

38. Amorphis - Queen of Time

39. Jesse Kinch - I’m Not Like Everybody Else

40. George Ezra - Staying at Tamara’s


41. Jason Eady - I Travel On

42. Brothers Osborne - Port Saint Joe

43. Disturbed - Evolution

44. Slash - Living the Dream

45. Riot V - Armor of Light

46. Dillon Carmichael - Hell on an Angel

47. State of Salazar - Superhero

48. Owl City - Cinematic

49. The Radio Sun - Beautiful Strange

50. Paul Cauthen - Have Mercy


51. Dierks Bentley - The Mountain

52. Three Days Grace - Outsider

53. Mipso - Edges Run

54. The Clarks - Madly in Love at the End of the World

55. Donovan Woods - Both Ways

56. Breaking Benjamin - Ember

57. Tommy Emmanuel - Accomplice One

58. Of Mice & Men - Defy

59. Good Charlotte - Generation Rx

60. Audrey Horne - Blackout


61. Courtney Marie Andrews - May Your Kindness Remain

62. Beyond the Black - Heart of the Hurricane

63. Ruston Kelly - Dying Star

64. Joshua Hedley - Mr. Jukebox

65. Black Label Society - Grimmest Hits

66. Montgomery Gentry - Here’s to You

67. Ruby Boots - Don’t Talk About It

68. Thrice - Palms

69. Holter - Vlad the Impaler

70. Uriah Heep - Living the Dream


71. Adam Hood - Somewhere in Between

72. The Brother Brothers - Some People I Know

73. Jason Mraz - Know

74. Pistol Annies - Interstate Gospel

75. Imagine Dragons - Origins

76. Black Stone Cherry - Family Tree

77. Carrie Underwood - Cry Pretty

78. Kodaline - Politics of Living

79. Airrace - Untold Stories

80. FM - Atomic Generation



Pop 2018

Phillip Phillips - Collateral

Mat Kearney - Crazytalk

George Ezra - Staying at Tamara’s

Owl City - Cinematic

The Clarks - Madly in Love at the End of the World

Jason Mraz - Know

Kodaline - Politics of Living

Ben Rector - Magic

Elle King - Shake the Spirit

Plain White T’s - Parallel Universe

Matt Nathanson - Sings His Sad Heart

David Cook - Chromance

Kylie Minogue - Golden

Dawes - Passwords

Daughtry - Cage to Rattle

James Bay - Electric Light

RSO - Radio Free America

Lake Street Dive - Free Yourself Up

Rita Ora - Phoenix

Camila Cabello - Camila



Modern Mainline Country

Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

Ashley McBryde - Girl Going Nowhere

Kenny Chesney - Songs for the Saints

Dierks Bentley - The Mountain

Montgomery Gentry - Here’s to You

Pistol Annies - Interstate Gospel

Carrie Underwood - Cry Pretty

Jason Ingriselli - The Miles North

Hilary Williams - My Lucky Scars

Sugarland - Bigger

Maggie Rose - Change the Whole Thing

Jeff Hyde - Norman Rockwell World

Kane Brown - Experiment

LANCO - Hallelujah Nights

Jordan Davis - Home State

The Shires - Accidentally on Purpose

Jason Aldean - Rearview Town

Ashley Monroe - Sparrow

Scotty McCreery - Seasons Change

Morgan Evans - Things That We Drink To

Levi Hummon - Patient

Morgan Wallen - If I Know Me

Jimmie Allen - Mercury Lane

Thompson Square - Masterpiece



Folk and Americana

Lori McKenna - The Tree

Brandi Carlile - By the Way, I Forgive You

The Devil Makes Three - Chains Are Broken

Rosanne Cash - She Remembers Everything

Mipso - Edges Run

Donovan Woods - Both Ways

Courtney Marie Andrews - May Your Kindness Remain

The Brother Brothers - Some People I Know

American Aquarium - Things Change

The Wild Feathers - Greetings from the Neon Frontier

The Black Lillies - Stranger to Me

Jamie Lin Wilson - Jumping Over Rocks

Trampled by Turtles - Life Is Good on the Open Road

The Jayhawks - Back Roads and Abandoned Motels

Lera Lynn - Plays Well with Others

Amos Lee - My New Moon

Passenger - Runaway

Paul Kelly - Nature

John Hiatt - The Eclipse Sessions

Mary Chapin Carpenter - Sometimes Just the Sky

I’m With Her - See You Around

Old Crow Medicine Show - Volunteer

John Prine - The Tree of Forgiveness

Joan Baez - Whistle Down the Wind

First Aid Kit - Ruins



Retro and Traditional Country

Wade Bowen - Solid Ground

Cody Jinks - Lifers

Jason Eady - I Travel On

Dillon Carmichael - Hell on an Angel

Paul Cauthen - Have Mercy

Joshua Hedley - Mr. Jukebox

Adam Hood - Somewhere in Between

Sam Morrow - Concrete and Mud

Brent Cobb - Providence Canyon

Carson McHone - Carousel

Whitey Morgan and the 78s - Hard Times and White Lines

Casper McWade - Hello Lonesome

Shooter Jennings - Shooter

Stryker Brothers - Burn Band

Willie Nelson - Last Man Standing

Loretta Lynn - Wouldn’t It Be Great

Colter Wall - Songs of the Plains

Kyle Park - Don’t Forget Where You Come From



Alternative & Edgy Country - Folk - Americana

Eric Church - Desperate Man

Parker Millsap - Other Arrangements

Devin Dawson - Dark Horse

Sister Hazel - Water / Wind

Brothers Osborne - Port Saint Joe

Ruston Kelly - Dying Star

Ruby Boots - Don’t Talk About It

William Clark Green - Hebert Island

Hawks and Doves - From a White Hotel

Ben Danaher - Still Feel Lucky

Amanda Shires - To the Sunset

Becky Warren - Undesirable

Blackberry Smoke - Find a Light

Frank Turner - Be More Kind

David Nail and the Well Ravens - Only This and Nothing More

Nathaniel Rateliff & The Nightsweats - Tearing at the Seams

Davisson Brothers - Fighter

Ray LaMontagne - Part of the Light

Mumford & Sons - Delta

Lindi Ortega - Liberty

Neko Case - Hell-On

Caitlyn Smith - Starfire

The Decemberists - I’ll Be Your Girl / Traveling On

Belle & Sebastian - How to Solve Our Human Problems

Erin Rae - Putting on Airs



Classic Rock

Greta Van Fleet - Anthem of the Peaceful Army

Brian Fallon - Sleepwalkers

The Record Company - All of this Life

The Temperance Movement - A Deeper Cut

Jesse Kinch - I’m Not Like Everybody Else

Black Label Society - Grimmest Hits

Uriah Heep - Living the Dream

Black Stone Cherry - Family Tree

Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa - Black Coffee

The Magpie Salute - High Water I

Rod Stewart - Blood Red Roses

Nazareth - Tattooed on My Brain

Walking Papers - WP2

Paul McCartney - Egypt Station

John Mellencamp - Other People’s Stuff



Retro Radio Rock

The Poodles - Prisma

The Night Flight Orchestra - Sometimes the World Ain’t Enough

State of Salazar - Superhero

The Radio Sun - Beautiful Strange

Airrace - Untold Stories

FM - Atomic Generation

W.E.T. - Earthrage

Gioeli - Castronovo - Set the World on Fire

Sunstorm - The Road to Hell

DeVicious - Never Say Never

Steve Perry - Traces

Bonfire - Temple of Lies



Modern Rock

Shinedown - Attention Attention

Myles Kennedy - Year of the Tiger

Treat - Tunguska

Disturbed - Evolution

Three Days Grace - Outsider

Breaking Benjamin - Ember

Audrey Horne - Blackout

Red Sun Rising - Thread

Nordic Union - Second Coming

Voodoo Circle - Raised on Rock

Smash Into Pieces - Evolver

Alice in Chains - Rainier Fog

Halestorm - Vicious

Clutch - Book of Bad Decisions

Red Dragon Cartel - Patina

Godsmack - When Legends Rise

Beartooth - Disease

Stone Temple Pilots - Stone Temple Pilots (2018)



Progressive Rock / Symphonic Metal

Ten - Illuminati

Angra - Omni

Kamelot - The Shadow Theory

Amorphis - Queen of Time

Beyond the Black - Heart of the Hurricane

Holter - Vlad the Impaler

Borealis - The Offering

Last Union - Twelve

Redemption - Long Night’s Journey

Stratovarius - Enigma: Intermission II

Spock’s Beard - Noise Floor

A Perfect Circle - Eat the Elephant

Temperance - Of Jupiter and Moons

Riverside - Wasteland

The Sword - Used Future

Sirenia - Arcane Astral Aeons

Royal Hunt - Cast in Stone

Dynazty - Firesign

Seventh Wonder - Tiara

Ghost Ship Octavius - Delirium

Leah - The Quest

Haken - Vector

Kingcrow - The Persistence

Visions of Atlantis - The Deep & The Dark

Visigoth - Conqueror’s Oath

Ashes of Ares - Well of Souls

Kalidia - The Frozen Throne

The Pineapple Thief - Dissolution

Shattered Skies - Muted Neon

Jon Schaffer's Purgatory - Purgatory



Hard Rock / Heavy Metal

Judas Priest - Firepower

Black Veil Brides - Vale

Saxon - Thunderbolt

Riot V - Armor of Light

Of Mice & Men - Defy

Primal Fear - Apocalypse

Striker - Play to Win

Praying Mantis - Gravity

All That Remains - Victim of the New Disease

Bullet for My Valentine - Gravity

Amaranthe - Helix

Dream Child - Until Death Do We Meet Again



Alternative (Pop - Rock - Metal)

Poets of the Fall - Ultraviolet

Mayday Parade - Sunnyland

The Revivalists - Take Good Care

The Struts - Young & Dangerous

Good Charlotte - Generation Rx

Thrice - Palms

Imagine Dragons - Origins

Houndmouth - Golden Age

Thirty Seconds to Mars - America

The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus - The Awakening

You Me at Six - VI

Alkaline Trio - Is This Thing Cursed

Dashboard Confessional - Crooked Shadows

Clean Bandit - What Is Love?

Twenty One Pilots - Trench

Florence + The Machine - High As Hope

Panic! At the Disco - Pray for the Wicked

The Smashing Pumpkins - Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1

Fall Out Boy - M A N I A

U.S. Girls - In a Poem Unlimited

Lucy Dacus - Historian

Edie Brickell & New Bohemians - Rocket

AWOLNATION - Here Come the Runts

blessthefall - Hard Feelings

Muse - Simulation Theory



Guitarists

Joe Bonamassa - Redemption

Tremonti - A Dying Machine

Joe Satriani - What Happens Next

Slash - Living the Dream

Tommy Emmanuel - Accomplice One

Michael Schenker Fest - Resurrection

Gus G - Fearless

Lindsay Ell - The Continuum Project

Impellitteri - The Nature of the Beast

Paul Gilbert - Behold Electric Guitar

Andy James - Arrival

Al Di Meola - Opus

Ana Popovic - Like it on Top

Billy F. Gibbons - The Big Bad Blues

Ace Frehley - Spaceman

Jason Becker - Triumphant Hearts

Mark Knopfler - Down the Road Wherever

Keith Urban - Graffiti U

Jack White - Boarding House Reach

Kurt Vile - Bottle It In



18 Live Albums of Note from the Past 18 Months

Linkin Park - One More Light Live

Alter Bridge - Live at the Royal Albert Hall

Volbeat - Let’s Boogie (Live from Telia Parken)

Accept - Symphonic Terror - Live at Wacken 2017

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Live from the Ryman

Black Sabbath - The End (Live)

Joe Bonamassa - British Blues Explosion (Live)

Kenny Chesney - Live in No Shoes Nation

John Mellencamp - Plain Spoken - From the Chicago Theater

Iron Maiden - The Book of Souls: The Live Chapter

Mr. Big - Live from Milan

Amon Amarth - The Pursuit of Vikings: Live at Summer Breeze

Electric Light Orchestra - Jeff Lynne’s ELO - Wembley or Bust

Jeff Beck - Live at the Hollywood Bowl

Opeth - Garden of the Titans (Live at Red Rocks Amphitheater)

Beth Hart - Live at the Royal Albert Hall

Alice Cooper - A Paranormal Evening at the Olympia Paris

Bruce Springsteen - Springsteen on Broadway

The 2017 Grampies

It's that time once again. The coveted 2017 Grampies are herewith awarded. It's a more modest endeavor than recent years have seen, because I frankly don't have the time or energy to keep up with all the new music that appears across genres every year. Besides, I've been rediscovering the joys of simply savoring the music I already know and love from the past. Nevertheless, good things do continue to happen across the musical landscape, and these are my favorites from the past year. I've included a larger number of categories, but only my top ten in each (with one exception to that rule, because I simply couldn't narrow it down any further). In any case, I commend the following to your listening pleasure:


D. Rick’s Album Top 40 (across all genres)

1. Linkin Park - One More Light

2. Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit- The Nashville Sound

3. Train - a girl a bottle a boat

4. Accept - The Rise of Chaos

5. All That Remains - Madness

6. Zac Brown Band - Welcome Home

7. The Talbott Brothers - Gray

8. Lindsay Ell - The Project

9. The Steel Woods - Straw in the Wind

10. Ed Sheeran - ÷

11. Black Country Communion - BCCIV

12. Will Hoge - Anchors

13. Sunny Sweeney - Trophy

14. The Show Ponies - How It All Goes Down

15. Beyond the Black - Lost in Forever

16. The Waifs - Ironbark

17. Ten - Gothica

18. Inglorious - II

19. Chris Tapp - The Gospel Blues and Southern Gothic Companion

20. Black Star Riders - Heavy Fire

21. Smash into Pieces - Rise and Shine

22. Quinn Sullivan - Midnight Highway

23. Jorn - Life on Death Road

24. The Ferryman - The Ferryman

25. Brantley Gilbert - The Devil Don’t Sleep

26. Wolfpakk - Wolves Reign

27. Imagine Dragons - Evolve

28. Revolution Saints - Light in the Dark

29. Sara Evans - Words

30. Jamie Wyatt - Felony Blues

31. Signum Regis - Decennium Primum

32. Greta Van Fleet - From the Fires

33. Night Ranger - Don’t Let Up

34. The Dustbowl Revival - The Dustbowl Revival

35. Thunder - Rip It Up

36. The Drugstore Gypsies - The Drugstore Gypsies

37. Army of Bones - Army of Bones

38. Serenity - Lionheart

39. Sammy Berell - Passion Dreams

40. Electric Guitars - Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio


Pop

Train - a girl a bottle a boat
Ed Sheeran - ÷
Bryan Lanning - Us
HAIM - Something to Tell You
Grace VanderWaal - Just the Beginning
The Script - Freedom Child
Sheryl Crow - Be Myself
Lindsey Buckingham - Lindsey Buckingham & Christine McVie
Rachel Platten - Waves
Andy Grammar - The Good Parts


Country Pop

Lindsay Ell - The Project
Rascal Flatts - Back to Us
Lauren Alaina - Road Less Traveled
Brad Paisley - Love and War
Hunter Brothers - Getaway
RaeLynn - WildHorse
Eli Young Band - Fingerprints
Michelle Branch - Hopeless Romantic
Sarah Darling - Dream Country
Luke Bryan - What Makes You Country


Modern Mainline Country

Zac Brown Band - Welcome Home
Brantley Gilbert - The Devil Don’t Sleep
Little Big Town - The Breaker
Trace Adkins - Something Going On
Gretchen Wilson - Ready to Get Rowdy
Lady Antebellum - Heart Break
Blake Shelton - Texoma Shore
Big & Rich - Did It for the Party
Darius Rucker - When Was the Last Time
Tim McGraw & Faith Hill - The Rest of Our Life


Folk and Americana Country

The Talbott Brothers - Gray
The Show Ponies - How It All Goes Down
The Waifs - Ironbark
David Luning - Restless
Jason Eady - Jason Eady
Honest John - Honest John
Worry Dolls - Go Get Gone
Travis Linville - Up Ahead
Amanda Anne Platt - Amanda Anne Platt & The Honeycutters
little hurricane - Same Sun Same Moon
Blitzen Trapper - Wild and Reckless
Rhiannon Giddens - Freedom Highway
Drew Holcomb - Souvenir
The Wild Reeds - The World We Built
Tunrpike Troubadours - A Long Way from Your Heart
Offa Rex - The Queen of Hearts
Allison Pierce - Year of the Rabbit
Andrew Combs - Canyons of My Mind
John Moreland - Big Bad Luv
Applewood Road - Applewood Road


Retro and Traditional Country

Sunny Sweeney - Trophy
Sara Evans - Words
Jamie Wyatt - Felony Blues
Norma Jean Martine - Only in My Mind
Chris Stapleton - From a Room
Margo Price - All American Made
Luke Combs - The One’s for You
The Secret Sisters - You Don’t Own Me Anymore
Alison Krauss - Windy City
Ray Scott - Guitar for Sale


Edgy and Alternative Country

Chris Tapp - The Gospel Blues and Southern Gothic Companion
The Dustbowl Revival - The Dustbowl Revival
Son Volt - Notes of Blue
Steve Moakler - Steel Town
Angealeena Presley - Wrangled
Dan Auerbach - Waiting on a Song
Tyler Childers - Purgatory
Gwen Sebastian - Once Upon a Time
Charlie Worsham - Beginning of Things
Nikki Lane - Highway Queen


Country Rock

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit- The Nashville Sound
The Steel Woods - Straw in the Wind
Will Hoge - Anchors
The Drugstore Gypsies - The Drugstore Gypsies
The Band of Heathen - Duende
The Cadillac Three - Legacy
Bad News Band - Drive Anywhere
Kid Rock - Sweet Southern Sugar
Danny Worsnop - The Long Road Home
Chris Shiflett - West Coast Town


Classic Rock

Black Country Communion - BCCIV
Inglorious - II
Black Star Riders - Heavy Fire
Greta Van Fleet - From the Fires
Thunder - Rip It Up
Black Stone Cherry - Black to Blues
Walk on Fire - Mind Over Matter
Royal Blood - How Did We Get So Dark?
Bob Seger - I Knew You When
Rex Brown - Smoke on This


Retro Radio Rock

Jorn - Life on Death Road
Revolution Saints - Light in the Dark
Night Ranger - Don’t Let Up
Coldspell - A New World Arise
Harem Scarem - United
Fastball - Step Into Light
Europe - Walk the Earth
One Desire - One Desire
Nick Douglas - Regenerations
Jimi Anderson Group - Longtime Comin’


Modern Rock

Ten - Gothica
Smash into Pieces - Rise and Shine
Wolfpakk - Wolves Reign
House of Lords - Saint of the Lost Souls
Hell or Highwater - Vista
Eclipse - Monumentum
Brother Firetribe - Sunbound
Mr. Big - Defying Gravity
Place Vendome - Close to the Sun
Sweet & Lynch - Unified


Progressive Rock / Symphonic Metal

Beyond the Black - Lost in Forever
Serenity - Lionheart
Signum Regis - Decennium Primum
Xandria - Theater of Dimensions
Unleash the Archers - Apex
Pinnacle Point - Winds of Change
Pyramaze - Contingent
Mindmaze - Resolve
Sons of Apollo - Psychotic Symphony
Styx - The Mission


Hard Rock / Heavy Metal

Accept - The Rise of Chaos
All That Remains - Madness
The Ferryman - The Ferryman
Striker - Striker
Battle Beast - Bringer of Pain
Trivium - The Sin and the Sentence
Firewind - Immortals
KXM - Scatterbrain
Iced Earth - Incorruptible
Bonfire - Byte the Bullet


Alternative

Linkin Park - One More Light
Imagine Dragons - Evolve
Army of Bones - Army of Bones
Black Map - In Droves
Never Say Die - Destroy + Rebuild
Sleeping with Sirens - Gossip
You Me at Six - Night People
Paramore - After Laughter
U2 - Songs of Experience
Robert Plant - Carry Fire


Guitarists

Quinn Sullivan - Midnight Highway
Sammy Berell - Passion Dreams
Electric Guitars - Rock ‘n’ Roll Radio
Aaron Keylock - Cut Against the Grain
Thorbjørn Risager - Change My Game
Ash Wilson - Broken Machine
John 5 & The Creatures - Season of the Witch
Andy James - Exodus
Marty Friedman - Wall of Sound
Richie Kotzen - Salting Earth