Villager Journal

Best music of 2008? Here's my list - let's see yours
Posted Sunday, December 21, at 1:57 PM

Trying to put together any kind of a "best of" list can be both frustrating and confusing.

But what the heck, here's my list of the music that caught my short attention span in 2008. These are CDs and DVDs that were actually released in the year of 2008 only. I didn't include things that came out late in 2007 on my lists.

A lot of the stuff on here never had any kind of major distribution or promotion, and by and large, most of this stuff didn't come close to cracking the national conscious on any kind of level. Not to mention the fact that little of these dented the Billboard Hot 100 over the course of 2008.

But that's OK.

It's just stuff that I dig.

I've broken it down into several categories because I have never had the ability to concentrate on just one particular form of music.

However, I don't want to stop with just my list. I'm sure I have forgotten about, or just plain overlooked, some cool stuff that came out in 2008, so I want your list.

Just log on to the comment section at the bottom of this blog and let me know what got you movin' and groovin' in 2008.

Do it however you want to. Break it down by categories (include as many or as few as you like) or just come up with one big, catch-all kind of list.

Bottom line- just have fun with it.

And by the way, I hope everyone has a happy and prosperous new year!

Peace

Now, on to my best of 2008:

BEST MUSIC-RELATED DVDS OF 2008

1. Steve Miller Band - Live From Chicago

2. Zappa Plays Zappa - Zappa Plays Zappa

3. Rush - Snakes & Arrows Live

4. Deep Purple - Around The World Live

5. Rolling Stones - Shine A Light

6. The Who - Amazing Journey

7. Spock's Beard - Live

8. Gov't Mule - A Tail Of 2 Cities

9. Warren Haynes - Benefit Concert Volume 8

10. Various Artists - All Your Need Is Love

BEST ROCK OF 2008

1. Rush - Snakes & Arrows

2. Black Stone Cherry - Folklore & Superstition

3. Metallica - Death Magnetic

4. Black Keys - Attack & Release

5. Uriah Heep - Wake The Sleeper

6. Back Door Slam - EP

7. Steve Winwood - Nine Lives

8. Rose Hill Drive - Moon Is The New Earth

9. Kings X - XV

10. Black Angels - Directions To See A Ghost

BEST SOUL/R&B OF 2008

1. JJ Grey & MOFRO - Orange Blossoms

2. Steve Cropper & Felix Cavaliere - Nudge It Up A Notch

3. Eddie Floyd - Eddie Loves You So

4. Duffy - Rockferry

5. Lalah Hathaway - Self Portrait

6. Al Green - Lay It Down

BEST BLUES OF 2008

1. Buddy Guy - Skin Deep

2. Taj Mahal - Maestro

3. Susan Tedeschi - Back To The River

4. Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band - The Whole Fam Damnily

5. Moreland & Arbuckle - 1861

6. Little Freddie King - Messin' Around Tha House

7. Sonny Landreth - From The Reach

8. Elvin Bishop - The Blues Rolls On

9. Scrapomatic - Sidewalk Caesars

10. Homemade Jamz Blues Band - Pay Me No Mind

BEST JAZZ OF 2008

1. McCoy Tyner - Guitars

2. Will Bernard - Blue Plate Special

3. Stanton Moore Trio - Emphasis On Parenthesis

4. David Sanborn - Here And Gone

5. Robert Walter - Cure All

6. Roy Hargrove - Ear Food

7. Herbie Hancock - Then And Now

8. Pat Methany - Day Trip

9. Return To Forever - The Anthology

10. Medeski, Martin & Wood - Zaebos

BEST COUNTRY OF 2008

1. Glen Campbell - Meet Glen Campbell

2. Hank Williams - Unreleased Recordings

3. Waylon Jennings - Waylon Forever

4. Little Big Town - A Place To Land (came out in 2007, re-released on new label in 2008)

5. Ashton Shepherd - Sounds So Good

6. George Jones - Burn Your Playhouse Down

7. Lady Antebellum - Lady Antebellum

BEST REISSUES OF 2008

1. Kansas - Two For The Show

2. Genesis - 1970-1975 (box set)

3. Tommy Bolin - The Ultimate: Redux

4. Sun Ra - Secrets Of The Sun

5. Black Oak Arkansas - The Knowbody Else '69

6. Cheap Trick - Budokan!

7. CCR - Green River, Bayou Country, Cosmo's Factory, 40th anniversary editions

8. Free - Fire And Water (Deluxe Edition)

9. Otis Redding - Otis Blue

10. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Street Survivors (Deluxe Edition)

BEST LIVE ALBUMS OF 2008

1. Joe Bonamassa - Live From Nowhere In Particular

2. Jeff Beck - Live At Ronnie Scott's

3. Clash - Live At Shea Stadium

4. Thin Lizzy - UK Tour 1975

5. Tab Benoit - Night Train To Nashville

6. Otis Redding - Live! in London And Paris

7. Mavis Staples - Live: Hope At The Hideout

8. Gov't Mule - Holy Haunted House

9. ZZ Top - Live From Texas

10. Neil Young - Sugar Mountain Live At Canterbury House 1968

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No Cheap Trick; Budokan! better than ever
Posted Wednesday, November 12, at 11:02 AM

Nineteen-hundred and seventy-nine was the year that everything changed for Cheap Trick. That was the year the band, who called America's heartland home at the time, morphed from a regionally-successful act into international superstars. The key to that amazing transformation? An album that was recorded and released as almost an afterthought...

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Encyclopedia of punk rock
Posted Thursday, November 6, at 9:41 AM

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This GravelRoad leads to deep south
Posted Wednesday, October 29, at 1:59 PM

Had it not been for the fact that I got an "A" in my high school geography class, I'd swear that Seattle, Washington must be nestled somewhere between Memphis, Tennessee and Holly Springs, Mississippi. And while I do know that's not true - my eyes looking at a map tell me so - somehow my ears continue to be deceived...

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The Clash hit home run at Shea Stadium
Posted Friday, October 24, at 8:53 AM

They were saddled with the burden of being "The only band that matters," in the late seventies and despite being shackled with such exaggerated expectations, darned if The Clash didn't manage to live up to that grandiose tag. Especially on a rainy Oct. 13, 1982 night, thousands of miles from their native England home...

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Job well done, Horseshoe Bend
Posted Friday, October 3, at 8:40 AM

Chuck McNeight, Bob Barnes and the whole city of Horseshoe Bend, take a bow. A well-deserved bow. Chuck McNeight, PGA golf pro at The Course on Turkey Mountain, Horseshoe Bend Mayor Bob Barnes and a legion of dedicated volunteers did a superb job in bringing The Legends Tour to their fine city for a memorable late September weekend of golf, good times and money for Arkansas Children's Hospital...

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Doing the right thing
Posted Friday, September 19, at 10:00 AM

Nineteen years of good, honest, hard work can go down the tubes quicker than the time it takes to say, "I'm sorry." Just ask Ed Hochuli. One of the National Football League's most respected referees for almost two decades, Hochuli, whose athletic physique is such that he is often called "Ed Hercules" saw his world come crashing down in a scant few seconds on the afternoon of Sept. 14...

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English no issue on Turkey Mountain
Posted Wednesday, August 27, at 8:54 AM

There was no subtlety to this one. No, sir. The four-word statement said it all and got right to the point. "LPGA sets language requirement." First reported by Golfweek magazine a little over a week ago, the Ladies Professional Golf Association made it official this week...

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Rev. Peyton brings Whole Fam Damnily
Posted Saturday, August 2, at 11:05 AM

Don't be fooled by the name. The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band is not a traveling tent revival, nor is it really a big band at all. Or at least it's not a big band, size-wise. Sound-wise, yes. But with just three members, size-wise, no. What Rev. Peyton's Indiana-born-and-bred outfit is, however, is one big Slip-N-Slide of spicy, hot-rodded acoustic blues...

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When will I learn?
Posted Monday, July 14, at 7:50 AM

You think I'd have learned my lesson by now. But no, I guess I haven't. I pretty much have tried to shy away from attaching myself in a personal way to professional athletes the past 20 years or so. Not because I don't care about the games I grew up loving, because I still do...

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Nothing Fail, but a try

Terry Mullins, Sports Editor

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Since my own high school sports career fizzled out before it really reached its zenith, I have managed to live vicariously through the student/athletes of the 16 high schools I've covered for Areawide Media since 2001. I've witnessed the highest of highs in the form of state championships. I have also seen first-hand the sting of disappointment when the ultimate prize was within reach, but still eluded the grasp of its pursuer. But through all the ups and downs associated with high school sports, my respect for the young competitors that suit up each night, along with the men and women who guide them, remains unwavering. Blog mission: With my passion for music, especially live music, running second only to my passion for sports, I'll try to devote this space to both. Especially when it concerns our region and what's happening around it. Look for commentary and features on area sports figures and musicians, along with things to get out and do in the beautiful Spring River/Ozarks area. But I'll not totally ignore the outside - I'll also hit on some national happenings in the wide worlds of sports and music.

Hot topics

Best music of 2008? Here's my list - let's see yours
(0 ~ 1:57 PM, Dec 21)

No Cheap Trick; Budokan! better than ever
(0 ~ 11:02 AM, Nov 12)

Encyclopedia of punk rock
(0 ~ 9:41 AM, Nov 6)

This GravelRoad leads to deep south
(0 ~ 1:59 PM, Oct 29)

The Clash hit home run at Shea Stadium
(0 ~ 8:53 AM, Oct 24)