This year didn’t feel so prolific, at least until I started assembling the candidate roster. Not only was the list fairly long, but there was simply a lot of really good music. As you’ll see in my comments below, a couple of albums were strong Early Admission applicants, which made things tight. Of course, there are also late-year releases that can elicit an “oh, no” and an “oh, yes” simultaneously.
Why do I do this list every year? The Soul Show was primarily a back-in-the-day program back in the day, but that left TSS out of its original station’s annual album rankings. I wanted to be a part, so the playlist started pushing into the present. Classic and Old School is a familiar and comfy temple. Discovery is juicy.
Here we go, and enjoy the broadcast.
| Album | Artist | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Son Of A Broken Man | Fantastic Negrito | This is the third consecutive album by Negrito that made the list. Its theme is cathartic and a bit dark. Its final track, “This Little Light,” is an uplifting closer. | |
| Biscuit and Buddy | James “Biscuit” Rouse | long overdue, but worth the wait. Parallels to Lakecia See my interview | |
| Milton + esperanza | Esperanza Spalding, Milton Nascimento | ||
| Metamorphosis | Infinity Song | ||
| Kaeru | Eki Shola | Eastern overtones, early admission | |
| Adjust Brightness | Bilal | Favorite track: “The Story Goes” | |
| The Loop | Jordan Rakei | ||
| Mustard N Onions | Ghost-Note | ||
| Symbiont | Jake Blount & Mali Obomsawin | neo-spiritual | |
| Culture Today | Edy Forey |