Herewith, I submit my 10 favorite albums of 2001
Beginning with honorable mentions: Gotohells, Rock 'n' Roll America (Vagrant), straight outta St. Pete, more than true to its title; Jason Moran, Black Stars (Blue Note), left-of-center pianist continues to amaze, Sam Rivers on sax; Orlando Cachaito Lopez, Cachaito (Nonesuch), the most adventurous album ever from the Buena Vista Social Club franchise; Buddy & Julie Miller, Buddy & Julie Miller (Hightone), pure country-rock for now people.
10. Olu Dara: Neighborhoods (Atlantic) — Once a force on the avant-garde jazz scene, vocalist/cornetist/guitarist Dara has lately forged a wholly unique sound that's both country and urban, antique and now. Backed by a consummately organic band, Dara lays vocal riffs (in a brassy bellow) over sinewy R&B, blues, jazz, funk and African grooves. The music is sublimely celebratory, with mojo to burn.
9. Blind Boys of Alabama: Blind Boys of Alabama (Realworld) — Formed in 1939, and still sporting two original members, The Blind Boys put a swampy, contemporary spin on their timeless gospel sound. Backed by ace players like David Lindley, John Hammond, Danny Thompson and Charlie Musselwhite, the quartet ladles its gritty lead vocals and earthy harmonies onto gospel traditionals as well as material by Tom Waits, Ben Harper and Mick Jagger. Getchaself sanctified and funky all at once.
8. Buddy Guy: Sweet Tea (Silvertone) — The legendary Chicago bluesman adds an exhilarating new chapter to a storied career with his scorching take on the Mississippi hill-country blues of Fred McDowell, R.L. Burnside et al. Guy chucks the 12-bar format in favor of droney, one-chord riffs, over which he kicks out screaming, open-ended solos. The disc is all fever dreams and sweaty sex. Guy opens the album with a hushed acoustic lament, "Done Got Old," then proceeds to show that, at 65, he's feelin' pretty damn frisky.
7. Nikka Costa: Everybody Got Their Something (Virgin) — A punchy blend of funk and rock by this newcomer. You can hear shades of Prince, Rufus-era Chaka Khan, Funkadelic, Bonnie Raitt bluesiness, even touches of hip-hop, psychedelia, gospel and other feels in this consistently catchy collection. Costa has a powerful, lusty voice, and occasionally grandstands on the mic. A bit more seasoning should bring maturity, though. She's one to watch.
6. Bill Frisell: With Dave Holland and Elvin Jones (Nonesuch) — Twenty-some years of doing Top 10s and this is the first time I recall one artist having two albums make my list. I guess it's safe to say that, right about now, Frisell is my favorite instrumentalist. Working with two unimpeachable veterans, the guitarist issues a low-key jazz album that's colored, as usual, with strokes of folk, rock and ECM-style chamber flavor. No purist, Frisell overdubs acoustic and electric parts throughout, weaving them together handsomely.
5. Laura Nyro: Angel in the Dark (Rounder) — In the late '60s, Nyro was a fountainhead of woman singer-songwriterdom. These tunes, recorded a couple of years before she died in 1997, show that, despite a couple decades of relative obscurity, her talent had not diminished. In fact, Nyro's vocals are more refined and potently emotional here than on her early recordings. Angel is split between new originals and personalized covers of classics like "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow," "Embraceable You" and "Walk on By." Some songs are outfitted with a band, others with just Nyro at her piano.
4. The Coup: Party Music (75 Ark) — Just your average everyday commie rap act. Boots Riley and DJ Pam the Funkstress are card-carrying revolutionaries who fight the good fight with words, beats and hooks. Although Party Music rarely strays from its political message, the rhymes are cleverly didactic; plus, the whole thing's real musical (you don't have to buy into The Coup's radicalism to dig this stuff). The Oakland-based duo is kinda like a West Coast answer to Outkast.
3. Chris Whitley: Rocket House (ATO) — Good thing for Whitley that there have always been folks who recognize his slightly demented brand of genius. After a disastrous run on Sony, and a handful of low-budget albums on tiny labels, the singer/songwriter/guitarist resurfaced this year on Dave Matthews' ATO imprint with a fully produced effort that shows the iconoclast charting yet another course. Built around Whitley's blues-laced songwriting, Rocket House is a tantalizing melange of loops, licks and whack sonics, anchored by his black cat moan of a voice. Eerie, freaky, catchy — a real head trip.
2. Joe Henry: Scar (Mammoth) — The one-time country-folk artist has transformed himself into a cosmic troubadour who you could envision playing a twisted Blue Velvet club on the outskirts of town. Scar is moody, jazzy, at times scary. Just to prove he's coming at us from a different pop astral plane, Henry enlisted Ornette Coleman to blow alto sax on the disc's lead track (which, by the way, is titled "Richard Pryor Addresses a Tearful Nation"). Fuckin' Ornette, man! For all its exotic sonics and out-there attitude, Scar is an accessible effort.
1. Bill Frisell: Blues Dream (Nonesuch) — A masterful balance of composition, arrangement and improvisation, Blues Dream has the added virtue of being unclassifiable. Guitarist Frisell has managed to evoke Americana through a sort of refracted, kaleidoscopic lens. Seemingly disparate elements dovetail beautifully: Frisell's warble-and-wail six-string work meshes with the slurry slide/pedal steel of Greg Leisz; a trumpet/sax/trombone section oozes spectral ensemble parts that bolster melody and add color. The grooves tend to smolder. Solos are integrated rather than thrust out front; they peek up and slither away, joining hands with other instruments in a sublimely integrated sound — which might be (shakily) described as swamp-jazz.
Contact Associate Editor Eric Snider at 813-248-8888, ext. 114, or e-mail him at snider@weeklyplanet.com.
This article appears in Jan 3-9, 2002.