Number 18: Plus or Minus 10 Of My Favorite Albums

I'm chronically indecisive so it feels safer to say that if you were to take a handful of albums out of the latte stained messenger bag that I keep them in, these would be at the top. I'll do them one at a time, with the exception of this time.

These first two (well I'm doing them in descending order so make it last two) were difficult for me to decide between so my editor allowed me to include them both.

10. Ray LaMontagne - Till The Sun Turns Black

I never learned to count my blessings

I choose instead to dwell in my disasters

The cover of Ray LaMontagne's follow up to Trouble is enough to make it obvious that one album was not enough to purge him of his demons. Common is the artist with ten songs worth of heartache. But after listening to Till The Sun Turns Black it is abundantly clear that LaMontagne's misery is no gimmick. In fact, one gets the distinct feeling that he would rather not be sharing the depths of his sadness with 20 somethings who see sadness as recreation. The tragic quality of Ray LaMontagne is that he doesn't want to sing about these things, but he must. Its this internal dissonance that seems to leave LaMontagne feeling isolated. He says as much in the aptly titled Empty when he sings, his voice accented by years of finding solace in cigarettes, "Will I always feel this way, so empty and estranged?" While songs like Can I Stay and Three More Days do lighten the mood, it is a light which is hazy at best. Still, Can I Stay is absolutely beautiful and Three More Days is infectious. In fact, I dare you not to play air horn along with this one. Ray LaMontagne makes misery, longing and the depths of human sadness and desire beautiful.

Favorite Song - Empty

10. Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska

Everything dies baby thats a fact, maybe everything that dies someday comes back Put your makeup on and your hair up pretty and meet me tonight in Atlantic City

I don't like Born in the U.S.A. And while I can appreciate The Boss' habit of giving concert performances twice the length of most touring bands, if I'm honest my favorite part of Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band is Max Weinberg. But Nebraska is different. If you ask me, The Boss earned his name when he followed up The River with an acoustic depiction of American life that is decidedly dark. Written during a bout with depression, this is not the patriotic, purveyor of Dad-Rock you saw at the Super Bowl. The first five tracks are nearly flawless and the entire album features the kind of guitar-harmonica interplay that you know you'd lose your girlfriend to. The narrative lyrical style fits the scarce instrumentation, and a raw production quality fits Springsteens gravelly vocal delivery. Once again, the album's artwork betrays its grim content. Seeing a trend yet?

Favorite Song - Atlantic City