Favorite Albums?

As the band was gearing up to perform last night for the Cleveland Independent Christmas Bash, we got to chatting about our favourite albums. It was an interesting and fun conversation with a few surprises all over!

So Im posing the question to you. What are your favourite 8 albums? (And itd be great if you could say a little something as to why you've chosen what you've chosen).

Im not sure I can put mine in a numerical order, but I can list 8 for sure.

1. The Cardigans - Long Gone Before Daylight
This record leads off with "Communication" my theme song, and i think one of the very best songs ever written. There is a lot of emotion and beauty in this record. I listen to it often, and have it on me at most times.

2. Trevor Hall- Trevor Hall
Trevor is one of the best lyricists today. His spiritual lyrics and insights are enlightened and deeply moving. This record takes the best of what he does and is well-produced as well. One of the best records of the decade.

3. U2 - All That You Can't Leave Behind
This record really turned a new passion on in me. The first time I heard "Beautiful Day" i was hooked. It was different and big. Moving from there to "Walk On." The whole record has a beautiful intimacy to it even with the huge anthems on it. This is the record that made me want to be Bono :)

4. Jewel - Pieces of You
This record is the reason I am singing today. I still have yet to hear a record with such honesty and emotion in every song. She flat out cries on "Painters." I found this record in high school when it first came out and i listened to it for about 3 years straight. I wanted to do that - convey that kind of emotion thru music. And Im still trying.

5. Tom Petty - Into the Great Wide Open
Tom Petty was a huge influence on me as a kid and as a budding singer/songwriter. Of course Mary Jane's Last Dance and Dont Come Around Here No More made me a life-long fan, but this record really speaks to me. Im not really sure why. It has the hits "Into the Great Wide Open" and "Learning to Fly" but the rest of the record is really well written and classic Tom Petty.

6. Michael Jackson - Thriller
I grew up on this record.

7. Speaking in Tongues - Talking Heads
David Byrne's brilliant. "Naive Melody" is one of my favourite songs of all time. His quirky style and lyrics have always been a huge inspiration to me.

8. Prince - Purple Rain
The best and possibly only Prince record good all the way through. Every song is great. And "Purple Rain" is the best song written. Ever. I also grew up on this record. And will be trying to write a Purple Rain my whole life im sure.

9. John Lennon - Walls and Bridges
This isnt the activist John or the lover John. Its a bit more introspective for Lennon and though it was his only solo No. 1 record, it isnt filled with a lot of hits. But songs like "Old Dirt Road," "Steel and Glass," "Nobody Loves You (When You're Down and Out)" are some of my favourite Lennon tunes. I have always been a Lennon fan, even before I realized it.

10. Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
This record really moved me. It got me thinking in a new way about music, recording, and conveying emotion. "Skinny Love" would be on my top songs of all time list as well. I love records that can transport you to another time and place, and this is a quintessential example of that.


My best of 2009 (again in no particular order):
1. Trevor Hall - Trevor Hall
2. Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
3. David Byrne/ Brian Eno - All That Happens Happens Today
4. Fun - Aim and Ignite
5. Kings of Leon - Only by the Night
6. Bell XI - Blue Lights on the Runway
7. Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below
8. What I Meant to Say - Zach (a little biased here)