Sarah Rodman
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, "Raising Sand" Krauss has lent her beautiful voice to many worthy duet partners over the years. But in Plant she has found not only a harmonizer, but also an ideal playmate to traverse the dark, hypnotic, and mischievous soundscapes of simpatico roots-music producer T Bone Burnett.
Lori McKenna, "Unglamorous" This homegrown singer-songwriter has always been able to locate the cosmic in the mundane, so it was exciting to watch McKenna receive, and deserve, national recognition for a major-label debut that didn't dare mess with her penetrating and tuneful observations.
Fountains of Wayne, "Traffic and Weather" Stacy's mom might not have been around to drive this one into the mainstream, but the pop quartet's fourth collection - dealing with planes, trains, automobiles, and the people who become entangled during transit - has got it going on.
Rilo Kiley, "Under the Blacklight" A little time off to explore solo projects proved beneficial to the Cali critical darlings. From Muscle Shoals to Studio 54, from skinny ties to skinny jeans, Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett, and friends expanded their musical reach and scored in every genre they attempted on this danceable but often dark delight.
Ryan Adams, "Easy Tiger" Adams doing what he does best: ambling rock 'n' roll with tasteful country, folk, and pop garnishes. Add in a great band, terrific singing, and lyrics you can relate to even when you don't know what he's talking about, and you've got a record that lives up to its name: simple but ferocious.
Crowded House, "Time on Earth" One of the year's quietest reunions also produced some of the year's most deliciously bittersweet fruit. Following the untimely death of drummer Paul Hester, singer-songwriter Neil Finn, bassist Nick Seymour, and multi-instrumentalist Mark Hart regrouped - along with new drummer Matt Sherrod - to detail life's passages with music that is by turns brooding and ecstatic.
Spoon, "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga" Slow and steady wins the race. Just as stardom appears to be catching up with them, these veteran pop-rockers continue to shine, synthesizing disparate influences and austere production techniques into songs that alternately haunt and shimmy, embedding themselves into your brain.
Amy Winehouse, "Back to Black" Yes, she's a mess. But her relative state of togetherness has no bearing on the enjoyment of this cohesive set of soul music indebted to Motown and Lauryn Hill but also sounds as vibrant as it does vintage.
Dan Wilson, "Free Life" Almost a decade after "Closing Time," the Semisonic frontman finally embarks on a new beginning but doesn't scrimp on the appealing melodies, gentle vocalizing, and inventive songwriting that made that band so irresistible.
Andy Palacio & the Garifuna Collective, "Wátina" Can't afford a tropical vacation? Let this gorgeous album of lilting Afro-Latin and Caribbean rhythms transport you. From the group vocals and percussion to the silky electric and acoustic guitars, this is the kind of gauzy back-porch music that happens when your back porch abuts a clear blue sea. 