The YouTube playlist is ready now at THIS LINK.
Tomorrow at 9 a.m. on Radio Cobra Detroit, you can stream a one hour highlights version of the list. That same show can be heard at 10 a.m. on Sonic Coast if you don’t wake up in time. Miss them both? Later on Sunday you can catch it on Mixcloud.
THE
BEST OF 2023 IN THE WORLD ACCORDING TO JOHN BOMMARITO
It’s that
time of year again where I look back at all the releases I heard (key word
there, heard) in 2023. It’s not possible
for me to hear all the records I would like to hear. Especially since my access
to previewing albums for airplay has essentially disappeared. Most of these
records had to be purchased – NOT THAT I AM AGAINST THAT – in fact I wish more
people purchased an album from their favorite artists. It might help bring
ticket prices back to earth.
Per usual, I
spend time listening to each record and rate each song on a 1-10 scale.
Sometimes a song gets a plus (i.e. 6+ which I suppose is equivalent to a half a
point), I suppose I should account for
that somehow in the future. Anyway….sometimes
the math reveals that two or more albums have the same score. In case of a tie,
that results in the next position on the chart being eliminated. For example,
if two records have the same score at the number 8 spot that means there is no
number 9 album of the year. Sensible, right?
Turns out this whole process and compiling this is rather time
consuming!
I also tend
to break things down into categories because all new releases are not created
equal. First off, my favorite reissues. These were best of collections I acquired
that were released this year:
1-BEATLES-1962-1966
(2023 EDITION)
2-BEATLES-1967-1970
(2023 EDITION)
3-HOWARD
JONES-JAPANESE SINGLES COLLECTION-GREATEST HITS
4-HUEY
LEWIS & THE NEWS-JAPANESE SINGLES COLLECTION-GREATEST HITS
5-ONEREPUBLIC-JAPAN
PARADISE
6-BEATLES-ONE-DAY
SESSION FEB 11TH, 1963
7-BRUCE
SPRINGSTEEN-JAPANESE SINGLES COLLECTION-GREATEST HITS
8-WHAM!-ECHOES
FROM THE EDGE OF HEAVEN
9-SPINNERS-THE
COMPLETE ATLANTIC SINGLES 1972-1979
Next up is
the tricky category of COVERS albums. Tricky because this year because there are
so many records where an artist covered themselves. U2 re-recording 40 songs, John Wesley Harding
re-recording his entire catalog (you needed to subscribe to this series to get
these ones and more are coming), Switchfoot and Passenger celebrating the
anniversary of a particular album by re-recording it. Duran Duran mixing covers with redone versions
of their own songs. So, unfortunately
this list isn’t a true “covers” record list:
1-U2-SONGS
OF SURRENDER (DELUXE)
2-EVA
CASSIDY WITH THE LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA-I CAN ONLY BE ME
3-DURAN
DURAN-DANSE MACABRE
4-STRAIGHT
NO CHASER-YACHT ON THE ROCKS
5-TAYLOR
SWIFT-1989 (TAYLOR'S VERSION)
6-PIANO
GUYS-UNSTOPPABLE
7-SWITCHFOOT-THE
BEAUTIFUL LETDOWN (OUR VERSION)
8-HOUND
+ THE FOX-STAR SONGS - LULLABIES FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
8-PASSENGER-ALL
THE LITTLE LIGHTS (ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
10-OLIVIA
VAN GOOR-DON'T BE MAD AT ME
11-JOHN
WESLEY HARDING (WESLEY STACE)-WHY WE FIGHT (SECRET SERIES VERSION)
12-TEDDY
THOMPSON-MY LOVE OF COUNTRY
13-TRANS-CANADA
HIGHWAYMEN-EXPLOSIVE HITS VOL. 1
14-PAUL
CARRACK & THE SWR BIG BAND-DON'T WAIT TOO LONG
15-VARIOUS-MORE
THAN A WHISPER: CELEBRATING THE MUSIC OF NANCI GRIFFITH
16-VAN
MORRISON-ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE
17-AMOS
LEE-HONEYSUCKLE SWITCHES- TRIBUTE TO LUCINDA WILLIAMS
18-CHRIS
BOTTI-VOL. 1 (JAPANESE BONUS TRACK EDITION)
19-JOHN
WESLEY HARDING-HERE COMES THE GROOM (SECRET SERIES VERSION)
20-JOHN
WESLEY HARDING-THE CONFESSIONS OF ST. ACE (ACOUSTIC)
21-VAN
MORRISON-MOVING ON SKIFFLE
22-MARC
BROUSSARD-SOS VOL 4- BLUES FOR YOUR SOUL
22-JAKE
SHIMABUKURO-GRATEFUL
22-WESLEY
STACE-WESLEY STACE'S JOHN WESLEY HARDING (SECRET SERIES)
25-JOHN
WESLEY HARDING-WHO WAS CHANGED & WHO WAS DEAD (SECRET SERIES VERSION)
26-RYAN
ADAMS-NEBRASKA
27-STEWART
COPELAND-POLICE DERANGED
And two covers
Eps (6 or fewer songs):
1-MATT
NATHANSON-THE LEXINGTON EP
2-JUDITH
OWEN-UNAPOLOGETICALLY
Next
it was Christmas albums, which are usually full of covers too.
1-HALLEY
NEAL & SAM ROBBINS-YOU & ME ON CHRISTMAS EVE
2-GREGORY
PORTER -CHRISTMAS WISH
3-DAVID
FOSTER & KATHATINE MCPHEE-CHRISTMAS
SONGS (TARGET EDITION)
4-STRAIGHT
NO CHASER-STOCKING STUFFER
…And
Best Christmas EPs:
1-SAMARA
JOY -A JOYFUL HOLIDAY
2-FOREST
BLAKK -WAKE UP (IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME)
3-GAVIN
DEGRAW -A CLASSIC CHRISTMAS
Regarding
Best Live albums of 2023, I didn’t hear that many and as it turns out and two
of them were only available to fans who subscribed to that artists Patreon of
fan club (Matt Nathanson and NEEDTOBREATHE respectively):
1-NATHANSON,
MATT-LIVE IN UNCASVILLE CT
2-NEEDTOBREATHE-THE
INSIDERS VOL X
3-DAVID
FORD & ANNIE DRESSNER-10 DAYS (LIVE)
An
finally, the best albums I heard in 2023. In regards to everything you see
here, I am sure there are more I would have enjoyed hearing, other reissues or
covers albums or whatever that might have been higher up than some of the things
I did hear, but this represents what I had time to hear and what I may have
purchased throughout the year. In time, some of these records will go up and
down in the ratings as I hear them more (some I owned for less than a week, so
I didn’t to sped much time with them).
Unusual stuff this year in my opinion just looking at it on “paper” but
it is what it is:
1-LEWIS
CAPALDI-BROKEN BY DESIRE TO BE HEAVENLY SENT (TARGET EDITION)
2-MATCHBOX
TWENTY-WHERE THE LIGHT GOES
3-TROUSDALE-OUT
OF MY MIND
4-ED
SHEERAN-AUTUMN VARIATIONS FAN LIVING ROOM SESSIONS
5-MAY
ERLEWINE-THE REAL THING
6-ED
SHEERAN-SUBTRACT (DELUXE EDITION)
7-CIAN
DUCROT-VICTORY
8-NEEDTOBREATHE-CAVES
8-CAITLYN
SMITH-HIGH & LOW
10-BRANDY
CLARK-BRANDY CLARK
10-WILDER
WOODS-FEVER/SKY
12-LORI
MCKENNA-1988
13-ELEVADO-THIRTEEN
PAPER CRANES
13-DELTA
RAE-NEVER LOST
15-ROUGH
AND TUMBLE-ONLY THIS FAR
16-SOUNDTRACK-DUELERS
17-LYNN
MILES-TUMBLE WEEDY WORLD
18-ELLIS
PAUL-55
18-JESSE
YOUNG-SOMETHING TO SAY
20-DREW
HOLCOMB AND THE NEIGHBORS-STRANGERS NO MORE
20-VERONICA
SWIFT-VERONICA SWIFT
22-ED
SHEERAN-AUTUMN VARIATIONS
23-LAUREN
DIAGLE-LAUREN DAIGLE
23-FOO
FIGHTERS-BUT HERE WE ARE
25-JOY
OLADOKUN-PROOF OF LIFE
26-ADAM
LABEAUX-BRAVE FACE
26-EMILI
SANDE-HOW WERE WE TO KNOW (DELUXE)
26-DEATH
CAB FOR CUTIE-ASPHALT MEADOWS (ACOUSTIC)
29-NOAH
GUNDERSEN-IF THIS IS THE END
30-MARK
ERELLI-LAY YOUR DARKNESS DOWN
30-TARA
MACLEAN-SPARROW
30-MISTY
LYN & THE BIG BEAUTIFUL-NARROWS
30-LOGAN
LEDGER-GOLDEN STATE
34-PETER
GABRIEL-I/O (DELUXE EDITION)
35-MATTEO
BOCELLI-MATTEO (TARGET EDITION)
36-FRANCES
LUKE ACCORD-SAFE IN SOUND
36-LINDSAY
LOU-QUEEN OF TIME
38-JOANNA
STERLIN-QUEEN OF WANDS
38-JASON
ISBELL AND THE 400 UNIT-WEATHERVANES
40-SAM
SMITH-GLORIA (TARGET EDITION)
41-HOLLER
CHOIR-SONGS BEFORE THEY WROTE THEMSELVES
41-JOSEPH-THE
SUN
41-NATALIE
MERCHANT-KEEP YOUR COURAGE
41-GOOD
LOVELIES-WE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME
41-HOZIER-UNREAL
UNEARTH
46-JUDY
BANKER-BONAFIDE
47-RODRIGO
Y GABRIELA-IN BETWEEN THOUGHTS…A NEW WORLD
48-MATT
ANDERSEN-THE BIG BOTTLE OF JOY
49-GOLDPINE-TWO
49-MEG
HUTCHINSON-ALL THE WONDER/ALL THE BEAUTY
51-ROLLING
STONES-HACKNEY DIAMONDS (BONUS TRACK)
51-OLIVE-4,000
MILES AWAY
53-NATIONAL-FIRST
TWO PAGES OF FRANKENSTEIN
53-JOE
JACKSON-MAX CHAMPION IN WHAT A RACKET!
53-NIELDS-CIRCLE
OF DAYS
56-THE
NATIONAL-LAUGH TRACK
57-BEN
FOLDS-WHAT MATTERS MOST
57-DAVID
WILCOX-MY GOOD FRIENDS
59-WILLY
PORTER-THE RAVINE
59-STEVE
TAYLOR-DEJA VUDU
59-RICK
SPRINGFIELD-AUTO
62-GLEN
HANSARD-ALL THAT WAS EAST IS WEST OF ME NOW
63-ALISON
BROWN-ON BANJO
63-EVERYTHING
BUT THE GIRL-FUSE
65-RAUL
MALO-SAY LESS
65-MIKE
WARD PSYCHOSONGS-LOVE NEVER RESTS
67-DEPECHE
MODE-MOMENTO MORI
67-NICKEL
CREEK-CELEBRANTS
69-BARENAKED
LADIES-IN FLIGHT
70-MICHAEL
FRANTI & SPEARHEAD-BIG BIG LOVE
71-RECORD
COMPANY-THE FOURTH ALBUM
71-JOSH
RITTER-SPECTRAL LINES
73-BAILEN-TIRED
HEARTS
74-JON
MCLAUGHLIN-(MOOD)
74-COWBOY
JUNKIES-THE BARN DEMOS
74-SLEEPING
AT LAST-MOTHER
74-COWBOY
JUNKIES-SUCH FEROCIOUS BEAUTY
74-PRETENDERS-RELENTLESS
