THURSDAY MORNING MIX
January 21, 2010
Scott Foley

"Finding worth in this world from inside a rental car ..." ~ Son Volt

My Favorite Albums of the Decade

A rental car full of remarkable music on today's Episode of TMM. And the only chance for the next ten years to put together such a list.

I could have assembled a list of Buddy Millers and Todd Sniders and Robert Earl Keens, and would've been perfectly happy with it, I'm sure. Still, they can't stir my heart like the broken beauty of Felice Brothers' "Wonderful Life". I won't find the same joy as I do with Rusty Truck's "Everytime" or "Lonesome Valley" by Magnolia Electric Co.

In short, I had to stay true to my heart. My radio flirtations surely wouldn't have lasted as long if I wasn't able to play what moved me. That's why Steve Earle's mega-mericana Transcendental Blues can live here beside the sparse, open land beauty of Roger Dean Young's "Keremeos". That thrill is what music is about for me; it's what I listen for. Once your favorites list starts looking too much like the bestseller list, it's time to hand over the headphones. Today's show was a treat for me.

In order of play, but not preference:

* Solomon Burke, "Vicious Circle" Nashville (Shout, 06)
* Over the Rhine, "Show Me" Ohio (Back Porch, 03)
* Rusty Truck, "Everytime" Broken Promises (Coda Terra, 03)
* Hayes Carll, "Long Way Home" Little Rock (Hwy 87, 04)
* Southern Culture On the Skids, "I Want a Love" Mojo Box (Yep Roc, 04)
* Son Volt, "Roll On" American Central Dust (Rounder, 09)
* Tift Merritt, "Diamond Shoes" Bramble Rose (Lost Hwy, 02)
* Alejandro Escovedo, "Castanets" Man Under the Influence (Bloodshot, 01)
* Josh Ritter, "Bright Smile" Hello Starling (Signature Sounds, 03)
* Samantha Crain, "The River" Confiscation EP (Ramseur, 08)
* The Jayhawks, "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" Smile (American, 00)
* Drive-by Truckers, "Perfect Timing" Brighter Than Creation's Dark (New West, 08)
* Whiskeytown, "Bar Lights" Pneumonia (Lost Hwy, 01)
* M Ward, "To Go Home" Post-War (Merge, 06)
* Brandi Carlile, "Someday Never Comes" Brandi Carlile (Columbia, 05)
* Magnolia Electric Co, "Lonesome Valley" Sojourners Box Set (Secretly Canadian, 07)
* Felice Brothers, "Wonderful Life" Felice Brothers (Team Love, 08)
* AJ Roach, "Revelation" Revelation (Waterbug, 06)
* Mando Saenz, "Julia" Watertown (Carnival, ,05)
* Roger Dean Young & the Tin Cup, "Keremeos" Threshold (Copperspine, 07)
* The Gourds, "Jesus Christ With Signs Following" Bolsa de Agua (Sugar Hill, 00)
* Ryan Adams, "My Winding Wheel" Heartbreaker (Bloodshot, 00)
* Steve Earle, "All My Life" Transcendental Blues (Artemis, 00)

Favorite Album of the Decade: Steve Earle, Transcendental Blues (Artemis, 00)
Favorite Artist of the Decade: Alejandro Escovedo
Favorite Song of the Decade: "Keremeos" by Roger Dean Young
Favorite Label of the Decade: Bloodshot Records
Favorite Lyric of the Decade:
"Hank Williams might've been a lovesick drinker / But bein' a lovesick drunk don't make you Hank" ~ Sons of Bill, "Broken Bottles"

"Keremeos so long, leavin' has little chance of pleasin' / When you've finally found a plot where you belong / Peaches stone free and I can see me livin' in a / Doublewide by the river / With a walnut tree, a retriever with no leash ..." ~ Roger Dean Young, "Keremeos"
Favorite Box Set of the Decade: Johnny Cash, Cash Unearthed
Favorite Blog of the Decade: Songs:Illinois
Favorite Magazine of the Decade: No Depression (RIP)
Other Favorite Artists of the Decade, not mentioned above: Calexico, Richmond Fontaine, Old 97s, Dolorean, Avett Brothers, Lucero