After almost a week, I too have my list of my favorite albums from each year that I have been alive. I kept to the spirit of this exercise by only choosing albums that I know and not repeating an artist (with one notable exception, 2008… since the year isn’t over, I think I’m in the clear). Also, each of my choices fluxuates between stuff I used to listen to a lot (that is you, Mr. 1978 Van Halen) and stuff that I listen to now (1981, Signals, Calls, and Marches).
This was a far more exhausting process than I would’ve initially imagined hence, the week-long delay with the post. Like Mike and Travis there were definitely some years that had far too many viable choices, but my biggest surprise was that I never listened to many albums in the 80’s (and the Mid-80’s to be specific) and to this day, haven’t really made a decent effort to revisit some of the music from those days, so that’s my next task, right next to finishing all those books I’ve been meaning to read….
Without further ado, here’s the list:
1978 – Van Halen – Van Halen
1979 – Rust Never Sleeps – Neil Young
1980 – Zenyatta Mondatta – The Police
1981 – Signals Calls And Marches – Mission Of Burma
1982 – Tie: Signals – Rush, Thriller – Michael Jackson
1983 – Genesis – Genesis
1984 – Double Nickels On The Dime – The Minutemen
1985 – No Jacket Required – Phil Collins
1986 – Graceland – Paul Simon
1987 – The Joshua Tree – U2
1988 – Day Dream Nation – Sonic Youth
1989 – Full Moon Fever – Tom Petty
1990 – Ah Via Musicom – Eric Johnson
1991 – Fear – Toad The Wet Sprocket
1992 – Gordon – Barenaked Ladies
1993 – August And Everything After – Counting Crows
1994 – Superunknown – Soundgarden
1995 – The Bends, Radiohead
1996 – Tiny Music From A Vatican Gift Shop – Stp
1997 – The Colour And The Shape – Foo Fighters
1998 – Moon Safari – Air
1999 – The Unauthorized Biography Of Reinhold Messner – Ben Folds Five
2000 – Parachutes – Coldplay
2001 – Take Offs And Landings – Rilo Kiley
2002 – Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots – The Flaming Lips
2003 – Such Great Heights Ep – The Postal Service
2004 – A Ghost Is Born – Wilco
2005 – Be – Common
2006 – Everything All The Time – Band Of Horses
2007 – Ga Ga Ga Ga – Spoon
2008 – In Rainbows (Cheating A Bit, But The Year Isn’t Over)