2020's Greatest Hits & the Limits of Lists
Fave albums, singles, reissues for a crappy year otherwise- the Substack edit
Along with a lot of good Xmas music this past year, there was just a lot of good music, period. That can’t be a coincidence that it happens at the same time of a pandemic. We might rightfully be disappointed that we didn’t hear enough music that reflected our foggy mood but just the fact that we had a big volume of good music should hopefully be some kind of balm for us.
As someone who’s new to Substack, I’m leaning and finding out one limitation here is length. Technically, you could do a post here as lengthy as you like, but the editing tool warns you when you’re getting near the limit for some email services that get this, or any, newsletter. As such, you won’t see my whole listings here but I do have the links below for where you can see that elsewhere, on the ol’ Blogger service, which includes 150 albums, over 350 singles and over 60 archive/reissues.
I get it- brevity can be a good thing, especially when writers wants people to actually read their work. But, when you do have a lot to share, then a tool like this does fall a little short. I’ll keep using Substack but I’m glad that there’s other publishing tools out there when I can dish out more, especially if it’s a lot of musical goodies to share. Even with an expanded list, you still have the same problem that you do when you submit year-end lists to publications- by only listing a certain number of albums (usually 10 for magazine polls), you make it look like you don’t like or don’t know about a lot of other good music that came out otherwise, whether that’s true or not. Having the problem of too much good music to listen to is a good thing, but having a way to share that info the right way is a real problem and a challenge that needs to be worked out.
As for the question of publishing two forms of the same list on different platforms, there’s questions of ego and desperation to be seen. And there’s also the question of how we go back and evaluate/re-evaluate which song or album rates better than others. But those discussions will have to happen at to a place where there’s more room…
ALBUMS
Run the Jewels RTJ4 (Jewel Runners)
Childish Gambino 3.15.20 (mcDJ Recordings)
Margo Price That's How Rumors Get Started (Loma Vista)
Dua Lipa & the Blessed Madonna Club Future Nostalgia (DJ Mix) (Warner)
Tami Neilson CHICKABOOM! (Outside Music)
Idles Ultra Mono (Partisan)
Alma Have U Seen Her? (PME/Sony)
Yves Tumor Heaven To A Tortured Mind (Warp)
International Teachers of Pop Pop Gossip (Desolate Spools)
Sault Untitled (Rise) (Forever Living Originals)
Drunken Kong Where We Start (Tronic)
Dueling Experts Dueling Experts (Mello Music)
Aesop Rock Spirit World Field Guide (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
X Alphabetland (Fat Possum)
Andre Akinyele Uniqlo Boy (Andre Akinyele)
Diabla Diezco Memento Mori (Mord)
Marquis Hill Soul Sign (Black Unlimited Music Group)
Ratboys Printer's Devil (Topshelf)
Eminem Music To Get Murdered By (Aftermath)
Christopher Hollyday Dialog (Christopher Hollyday)
Collocutor Continuation (On the Corner)
James Solace Mind Music (Hot Creations)
The Bombpops Death in Venice Beach (Fat Wreck Chords)
Esme Patterson There Will Come Soft Rains (BMG)
Kyle Nix Lightning on the Mountain & Other Short Stories (Bossier City)
Marcus King King (Marcus King)
Fiona Apple Fetch the Bolt Cutters (Epic)
Bully Sugaregg (Sub Pop)
Cable Ties Far Enough (Merge)
Jeff Rosenstock No Dream (Polyvinyl)
Mars Williams An Ayler Xmas Vol.. 4: Chicago Vs. New York (Astral Spirits)
Teenage Halloween Teenage Halloween (Don Giovanni)
Luke Vibert Luke Vibert Presents: Amen Andrews (Hypercolour)
Maita Best Wishes (Kill Rock Stars)
Moodymann TAKEN AWAY | KDJ-49 (Kenneth Dixon)
Oumou Sangaré Acoustic (No Format)
Lydia Loveless Daughter (Honey, You're Gonna Be Late)
John Legend Bigger Love (Columbia)
Bad Moves Untenable (Don Giovanni)
Sports Team Deep Down Happy (Bright Antennae)
Pretenders Hate For Sale (BMG)
Dua Saleh Rosetta (Against Giants)
The Beths Jump Rope Gazers (Carpark)
Pup This Place Sucks Ass (Pup/BMG)
Baba Zula Hayvan Gibi (Night Dreamer/Gulbara)
Siul Hughes Hueman (Fake Four)
Moonchild Sanelly Nüdes (Transgressive)
Neek, Blazer Sound System NMX004: Sanctuary Mixtape (Noods Radio)
Sven Wunder Eastern Flowers (PIANO PIANO)
Diet Cig Do You Wonder About Me? (Frenchkiss)
SINGLES
iMarkkeyz x DJ Suede The Remix God "Lose Yo Job" (Pivnet Emery) ***
Terrace Martin "Pig Feet (feat. Denzel Curry, Kamasi Washington, G Perico & Daylyt)" (Sounds of Crenshaw) ***
Mr. Raoul K "Bara (feat Ahmed Sosso - M&R Action mix)" (Compost)
Doja Cat "Boss B*tch" (Atlantic)
Chaka Khan "National Anthem (Live at NBA All-Stars Game)" (no label)
Bob Dylan "Murder Most Foul" (Columbia)
Lady Gaga "Stupid Love" (Interscope)
Megan Thee Stallion & Normani "Diamonds" (Atlantic)
Tundra ft. B.U.H, Gaffa Tape Sandy, Kulk, and Seymour Quigley "They Want Us To Die" (Repeat) *
Moodyman "Do Wrong" (Kenneth Dixon)
Van Vuuren Bros "Bye Bye Donny" (no label)
Goodie Mob feat. Chuck D "Are You Ready?" (Goodie Mob)
Tyga x Curtis Roach "Bored In The House" (Last Kings) *
Hayley Williams "Simmer" (Atlantic)
Dua Saleh's "body cast" (AGAINST GIANTS)
Meek Mill "Otherside Of America" (Mayabach) ***
DJ iMarkkeyz/Cardi B "Coronavirus" (Atlantic) *
K' Alexi Shelby & Tony Loveless featuring Tamika Mallory "State Of Emergency" (Break the Silence) ***
Miranda Writes "The Don (feat. DJ Mary Mac) (Club Royale Remix)" (LPD Entertainment)
Randy Newman "Stay Away" (Nonesuch) *
Wiley "Eediyat Skengman (Stormzy Send)" (Wiley)
Cable Ties "Sandcastles" (Merge)
Jeffrey Lewis "Keep it chill in the East Vill/Kid You're Grounded" (Jeffrey Lewis) *
Awich "Shook Shook" (Universal)
Rich Aucoin "How It Breaks" (Haven Sounds)
Todrick Hall "Mask, Glove, Soap, Gloves" (frtyfve) *
SAINt JHN "Roses (Imanbek Remix)" (Godd Complexx)
Thorn1 "Snow Covers Everything at Least Six Months in a Year" (Silber)
Brooke Bentham "Control" (AllPoints)
Apollo Brown, Che Noir "Freedom" (Mello Music) ***
Lil Wayne "Mahogany" (Young Money)
Aretha Franklin "Never Gonna Break My Faith ft. The Boys Choir of Harlem" (RCA) ***
Nana "Heaven & Hennessy" (no label)
Sacre "05:00AM JUNGLE CHASE" (Palmtree Hotel)
Marlowe, L'Orange "Otherworld" (Mello Music)
Juice WRLD & Marshmello "Come & Go" (Interscope)
Archie Shepp & Jason Moran "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child" (Archieball)
R.A. the Rugged Man "DRAGON FIRE (FT. GHOSTFACE KILLAH, MASTA KILLA, & KOOL G RAP)" (Nature Sounds)
Diana Ross "Love Hangover (Eric Kupper Remix)" (Motown)
Dua Lipa "Hallucinate" (Warner Bros)
* COVID songs
*** BLM related
Also see a Spotify playlist that has almost all of the songs from the full list:
REISSUES/ARCHIVES
Duke Ellington Orchestra Big Bands Live-Liederhalle Stuttgart 1967 (SWRMusic)
Various Artists LÉVE LÉVE: Sao Tomé & Principe sounds 70s-80s (Bongo Joe)
Silkworm In The West (Comedy Minus One)
Various Artists Spring Soul NYC (Ace)
John Coltrane Joe Brazil Bootleg (Detroit, 1958) (no label)
Various Artists Uzelli Elektro Saz (1976-1984) (Uzelli)
Sun Ra Celestial Love (Modern Harmonic)
Shoes Elektrafied: The Elektra Albums 1979-1982 (Warner Music)
Damily Early Years: Madagascar Cassette Archives (Bongo Joe)
Various Artists Ready Or Not - Thom Bell's Philly Soul Arrangements & Productions 1965-1978 (Ace)
Pylon Pylon Box (New West)
Rage Against the Machine The Battle of Mexico City (Epic)
Fugazi Fugazi at The Edge in Palo Alto CA (no label)
Lil Wayne Free Weezy Album (Young Money)
Pere Ubu By Order of Mayor Pawlicki (Cherry Red)
Big Youth DJing live on the radio (1981) (no label)
Various Artists 1978 The Year The UK Turned Day-Glo, (Cherry Red)
Tom Ze Raridades (Warner Bros)
Leyla McCalla Vari-Colored Songs: a Tribute to Langston Hughes (Smithsonian Folkways)
The Chi-Lites (For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People (Brunswick)