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My Favorite Album For Every Year I’ve Been Alive

July 8, 2008 by Jim Connelly

I’m stealing this concept from the AV Club, who stole it from Idolator: pick your favorite album for every year you’ve been alive.

Even for someone like me, who’s been obsessively making lists for just about ever, this wasn’t easy. For one thing, I’d never really done it for anything pre-1980, and for another, I was born just a couple of years prior to the British Invasion, which pretty much kicked off what I consider the music that I love.

I decided to use my previous lists as a guide, but if something I thought was aces in 1989 hasn’t really held up, I’ve gone with something else that I still love every time I hear it.

While I was doing this, other things came to mind: my favorite years were 1967, 1980, 1987, 1991 & 1994; years where any of the top 4 or 5 records I love more than the top record from years like 1974, 1990 or 1999 or 2004. Also, apparently, 1962, was the worst year ever for music, because I think that Dylan’s debut is way way way down in his canon.

Most frustrating was a year like 1975, where epochal records like Physical Graffitti or Born to Run — absolute all-time classics which I still love — get edged out when they would have stomped either the year before or the year prior.

That said, as the digital encroachment and reissue dates made the actual year something was released a bit amorphous, I was able to cheat a bit to cover up a weak-ass 2000 and leverage a strong 2001.

And finally, I’ve resisted the temptation to use the U.K. release date (December 1979) of London Calling just to get Boy, or Pretenders — both of which I loved more at the time — not to mention I Just Can’t Stop It or Underwater Moonlight, which have never gotten old, even for a second, on this list.

But, you know, London Calling.

In any event, here is my list:

  • 1962: Bob Dylan – Bob Dylan
  • 1963: James Brown – Live at the Apollo
  • 1964: John Coltrane – A Love Supreme
  • 1965: Bob Dylan – Highway 61 Revisited
  • 1966: Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde
  • 1967: The Velvet Underground & Nico – The Velvet Underground and Nico
  • 1968: The Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet
  • 1969: The Rolling Stones – Let it Bleed
  • 1970: The Kinks – Lola Vs. Powerman & The Moneygoround Pt 1
  • 1971: The Who – Who’s Next
  • 1972: The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
  • 1973: The Who – Quadrophenia
  • 1974: Bob Marley & The Wailers – Burnin’
  • 1975: Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks
  • 1976: Led Zeppelin – Presence
  • 1977: The Sex Pistols – Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols
  • 1978: The Clash – Give Em’ Enough Rope
  • 1979: The Clash – The Clash
  • 1980: The Clash – London Calling
  • 1981: X – Wild Gift
  • 1982: The Dream Syndicate – The Days of Wine and Roses
  • 1983: R.E.M. – Murmur
  • 1984: The Replacements – Let it Be
  • 1985: Bob Dylan – Biograph
  • 1986: The Jesus and Mary Chain – Psychocandy
  • 1987: Hüsker Dü – Warehouse: Songs & Stories
  • 1988: Public Enemy – It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
  • 1989: The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses
  • 1990: The Pixies – Bossanova
  • 1991: Nirvana – Nevermind
  • 1992: R.E.M – Automatic For The People
  • 1993: Smashing Pumpkins – Siamese Dream
  • 1994: Hole – Live Through This
  • 1995: Oasis – What’s The Story, Morning Glory?
  • 1996: Beck – Odelay
  • 1997: Whiskeytown – Strangers Almanac
  • 1998: Billy Bragg & Wilco – Mermaid Ave.
  • 1999: Magnetic Fields – 69 Love Songs
  • 2000: Whiskeytown – Pneumonia (Napster Version)
  • 2001: Bob Dylan – “Love & Theft”
  • 2002: Drive-by Truckers – Southern Rock Opera (reissue)
  • 2003: The Wrens – The Meadowlands
  • 2004: The Arcade Fire – Funeral
  • 2005: The Hold Steady – Separation Sunday
  • 2006: The Hold Steady – Boys & Girls in America
  • 2007: The Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
  • 2008: Drive-by Truckers – Brighter Than Creation’s Dark

Filed Under: Actual Mileage, Music

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. will (betheboy) says

    July 8, 2008 at 1:00 pm

    I was making my own version of this earlier and I used 1979 as the release for London calling. Otherwise I followed the rules except for 2004 which I skipped

    1974: Brian Eno, Here Come The Warm Jets
    1975: Bob Dylan, Blood on the Tracks
    1976: Station to Station, David Bowie
    1977: Television, Marquee Moon
    1978: The Jam, All Mods Con
    1979: The Clash, London Calling
    1980: AC/DC, Back in Black
    1981: X, Wild Gift
    1982: Bruce Springsteen, Nebraska
    1983: R.E.M., Murmur
    1984: The Replacements, Let it Be
    1985: The Replacements, Tim
    1986: Run DMC, Raising Hell
    1987: REM, Document
    1988: Sonic Youth, Daydream Nation
    1989: The Jesus and Mary Chain, Automatic
    1990: Public Enemy, Fear of a Black Planet
    1991: Nevermind, Nirvana
    1992: Harvest Moon, Neil Young
    1993: Nirvana, In Utero
    1994: Let Love In, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
    1995: Get Lost, Magnetic Fields
    1996: Murder Ballads, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
    1997: Bob Dylan, Time Out Of Mind
    1998: Lucinda Williams, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road
    1999: Magnetic Fields, 69 Love Songs
    2000: PJ Harvey, Songs From The City Songs From the Sea
    2001- Bob Dylan, Love and Theft
    2002 – Flaming Lips – Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
    2003- Grandaddy – Sumday
    2004 – Omited Due to Apathy
    2005 – The Hold Steady – Seperation Sunday
    2006 – Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
    2007 – Anything But that Arcade Fire record

  2. Jim says

    July 8, 2008 at 1:39 pm

    It’s amazing how we can be so in sync with so much music, but then disagree wildly on things like The Arcade Fire and Nick Cave . . .

  3. will (betheboy) says

    July 8, 2008 at 2:11 pm

    For the record I don’t like all Nick cave, but those are especially good.

  4. Tim G. says

    July 9, 2008 at 3:51 pm

    I can go with Jim’s list, mostly. However, I strongly favor Dylan’s first, rather than give it a grudging nod.

    Exceptions:
    1970: Derek and the Dominoes – Layla
    1985: The Replacements – Tim
    1994: Pavement – Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
    1996: Beck tied with Manic Street Preachers – Everything Must Go
    2003: Grandaddy – Sumday
    2006: My Chemical Romance – The Black Parade
    2008: R.E.M. – Accelerate [so far–still early]

  5. Jim says

    July 11, 2008 at 11:49 am

    Layla was in my original draft, and of course, if I hadn’t gone with Biograph, either Tim or Fables of the Reconstruction of the Fables for 1985.

    And I totally forgot about Rocks for 1976.

  6. john r says

    July 12, 2008 at 11:57 pm

    Wonderful post! 1962 wasn’t all that bad, it was the year of “Green Onions”. Great lists so far , but here is my list.
    1963: Sam Cooke – Live at Harlem Square
    1964: Elmore James – Original Folk Blues
    1965: The Byrds- Mr. Tamborine Man
    1966: Bob Dylan- Blonde on Blonde
    1967: The Kinks- Something Else
    1968: Van Morrison- Astral Weeks
    1969: Creedence : Willy and the Poorboys
    1970: The Stooges: Fun House
    1971: The Who: Meaty Beaty Bouncy
    1972 Rolling stones: Exile on Main St.
    1973 New York Dolls: New York Dolls
    1974 Big Star : Radio City
    1975 Toots & the Maytals: Funky Kingston
    1976 The Modern Lovers: Modern Lovers
    1977 The Ramones: Rocket To Russia
    1978 Wire: Pink Flag
    1979 The Clash: The Clash
    1980 X: Los Angeles
    1981 Elvis Costello: Trust
    1982 Dream Syndicate: Wine & Roses
    1983 R.E.M.: Murmur
    1984 The Replacements: Let It Be
    1985 Husker Du: Flip D Wig
    1986 Moving Targets: Burning N Water
    1987 Sonic Youth: Sister
    1988 Cat Heads: Submarine
    1989 The Mekons: Rock’n Roll
    1990 Yo La Tengo: Fake Book
    1991 Superchunk: No Pocky For Kitty
    1992 Pavement: Slanted and Enchanted
    1993 Polvo: Todays Active lifestyles
    1994 Sebadoh: Bake Sale
    1995 Luna: Penthouse
    1996 Wilco: Being There
    1997 Steve Earle: El Corazon
    1998 Billy Bragg&Wilco: Mermaid Ave
    1999 Sleater-Kinney: The Hot Rock
    2000 The White Stripes: De Stijl
    2001 Old 97’s: Sattelite Rides
    2002 Neko Case: Blacklisted
    2003 Drive by Truckers: Decoration Day
    2004 Black Keys: Rubber Factory
    2005 Spoon: Gimme Fiction
    2006 Yo La Tengo:I’m Not Afraid of You…
    2007 Apples in Stereo: New Magnetic Wonder
    2008 Baseball Project: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails

  7. Jim says

    July 14, 2008 at 8:30 am

    John,

    Great list, naturally. A lot of those are in my top 5 of that year.

    Just downloaded the Baseball Project from emusic, so I haven’t listened to it all the way, yet.

    Oh, and if you don’t have a copy of Submarine, I found one in an mp3 blog.

  8. john r says

    July 16, 2008 at 5:03 am

    Thanks for the Submarine link! I have it on vinyl, but I have never seen it on cd.

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