A L A B A M A
S H A K E S
ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!
Nevermind those suburban-angst
'Best Music' lists that taste like paste!
These tunes will divine your mind
and shake your goodness sakes!
Shortcut to Music Players:
• BEST ALBUMS: 2015
• COOL SONGS: 2015
• BEST RE-ISSUES: 2015
B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 1 5
BEST ALBUMS 2015
by Tym Stevens
This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.
This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.
• Jacco Gardner, "Hypnophobia"
Dreamy Psyche.
Mellotron swirls, hypnotic harmonies, and alternate consciousness.
(See also: Syd Barrett, Spitualized, Dungen, Morgan Delt)
• Liz Vice, "There's a Light"
Gospel Soul.
Everything forthright and moving about American spiritual musics.
(See also: Staple Singers, Aretha Franklin)
• Diane Coffee, "Everybody's a Good Dog"
Glamtastic.
Shaun Fleming (Foxygen's drummer) brings us ambitious Glam Rock with some serious Classic Rock kicks.
(See also: David Bowie, Foxygen, GUM, Uni)
• Alabama Shakes, "Sound And Color"
Blues Rock.
Brittany Howard and crew snap into sharp focus with this timeless, soulful Classic Rock.
(See also: Led Zeppelin, The Bellrays, The Black Keys)
• Bop English, "Constant Bop"
Pop Collage.
James Petralli's (White Denim) side-project harmonizes every great sound in one bracing collage.
(See also: Constant Bop, BC Camplight, Jim Noir)
• The Sonics, "This Is The Sonics"
Garage Rock.
The quinessential mid-'60s Garage band returns, as brutal and fierce as ever.
(See also: The Stooges, DMZ, The Gories, The Courettes)
• Anderson East, "The Muscle Shoals Sessions"
Southern Soul.
Unvarnished Soul, tapped right at the source.
(See also: Soloman Burke, Robert Palmer, Curtis Harding)
• La Luz, "Weirdo Shrine"
Girl Group Surf.
Wistful harmonies and whitecap guitars charm you on a dreamy coastline.
(See also: The Shangri-Las, The Aqua Velvets, The Neptunas, Khruangbin)
• J.D. McPherson, "Let The Good Times Roll"
Rockabilly and Soul.
Licks of fire, tongue of honey, stride of pride.
(See also: The Johnny Burnette Trio, James Hunter, Kyle Lacy)
• BC Camplight, "How To Die In the North"
Art Pop.
Brian Christinzio goes for Baroque with his complex arrangements and tuneful melodies.
(See also: Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren, Jeff Lynne, White Denim)
• Peach Kelli Pop, "Peach Kelli Pop III"
Power Pop.
Allie Hanlon makes perfect sunshine guitar pop.
(See also: Nikki And The Corvettes, Colleen Green, La Sera)
• Django Django, "Born Under Saturn"
Electro Indie.
A perfect album. Surf guitars, Wilson harmonies, Gore synth textures, A.C. Newman versatility, and sonic curveballs from all bases.
(See also: The Ventures, Depeche Mode, The Beta Band)
• Barrence Whitfield And The Savages, "Under the Savage Sky"
Garage Soul.
Barrence is still beltin' it out like fire alarms, gruff and raw and vital.
(See also: Little Richard, The Sonics, The Dirtbombs)
• Pond, "Man It Feels Like Space Again"
Funky Psyche-Prog.
Aggressively eclectic Electrodelia from Australia, shaking preconecptions and asses.
(See also: Tame Impala, Guerlilla Toss, Unknown Mortal Orchestra)
• Leon Bridges, "Coming Home"
New Soul.
Grounded in classic mid-'60s Soul with sheenier production and radio overtures.
(See also: Sam Cooke, Anthony Hamilton, Myron And E)
• Thee Tsunamis, "Saturday Night Sweetheart"
Garage Grrrl.
A trio out to punch barflys and rip dance cards.
(See also: The Trashwomen, The Coathangers, Baby Shakes)
• Father John Misty, "I Love You, Honeybear"
Alt Folk.
On his honeymoon, J.Tillman goes surprisingly romantic while characteristically wary and contemplative.
(See also: Randy Newman, Glen Campbell, Fleet Foxes)
• Mahalia Barnes And The Soul Mates, "Ooh Yea!: The Betty Davis Songbook"
Soul Funk.
The songs of Funk Rock goddess, Betty Davis, roaring like Sly and the family brimstone.
(See also: Ann Peebles, Rufus + Chaka Khan, Joi)
• Destination Lonely, "No One Can Save Me"
Garagedelic.
Acidhead bikers scorching tarmac and flailing chains.
(See also: Link Wray, The Lime Spiders, The Go)
• The Arcs, "Yours, Dreamily,"
Dreamy Soul.
Dan Auerbach goes trippy and warmly ethereal.
(See also: The Delfonics, The Black Keys, El Michels Affair)
• Erase Errata, "Lost Weekend"
PostPunk.
The politics are as barbed as the guitars in this welcome reunion.
(See also: Wire, Gang Of Four, Deerhoof)
• The Pop Group, "Citizen Zombie"
Noize Funk.
The politics are as barbwired as the beats in this welcome reunion.
(See also: Tackhead, Public Enemy, Flying Lotus)
• Public Enemy, "Man Plans God Laughs"
Conscious Rap.
The politics are as ballistic as the funk in this ongoing union.
(See also: Beastie Boys, Consolidated, The Coup)
• Delaney Davidson, "Rough Diamond"
Moody Roots.
Like a New Zealand cousin of Tom Waits, Davidson lives in some haunted highlands of ghostly Rockabilly, Folk, and cinema scores.
(See also: Nick Cave, Rev. Beat-Man, Graham Lindsey)
• Devo, "Hardcore Live!"
Neo Wave.
Devo remakes their harder-edged, pre-label material like they are livewired.
(See also: Suicide, Polysics, Autoramas)
• Groovy Uncle, "Life's a Gift"
Baroque Pop.
Mid-'60s Beatlesque inspiration, gliding on the belting Soul voice of Suzi Chunk.
(See also: Fabienne DelSol, Pugwash, The Moons)
• Mbongwana Star, "From Kinshasa"
Afro Rock.
Combining traditional Congalese instruments with ones cobbled from the scrapyard, along with driving percussion and chorals.
(See also: Tinariwen, Kasai Allstars, Jupiter Bokondji)
• Holly Golightly, "Slowtown Now!"
Garage and Soul.
Holly is more expansive this time, with some soulful jaunt and lively arrangements.
(See also: Billy Childish, The Delmonas, Thee Headcoatees, Ludella Black)
• Paul Weller, "Saturns Pattern"
Souladelic.
Melodic soulfulness, blasts of guitar, and sonic trippiness.
(See also: Small Faces, The Jam, Blur)
• Ty Segall, "Mr. Face"
Psyche Pop.
Less brutal fuzz and more acoustic and melodious tunes on this 4-song EP.
(See also: The Zombies, Mikal Cronin)
• Le Butcherettes, "Cry Is For the Flies"
Garage Punk.
Teri Suarez Cosío is aflame with inspiration and indignation on this fistpuncher.
(See also: PJ Harvey, The Kills, Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
• Lianne La Havas, "Blood"
Alt Folk.
The acoustic songwriter blossoms outward in this lush and metropolitan suite.
(See also: Nina Simone, Corinne Bailey Rae, Marques Toliver)
• The London Souls, "Here Come The Girls"
Classic Rock.
The best late-'60s album that should have happened; timeless catchy tunes, carousing vocals, and organic swagger.
(See also: "Disraeli Gears", "The White Album", "Traffic", "Let It Bleed", "Let Love Rule")
• Dengue Fever, "The Deepest Lake"
Cambodian Rock.
Channeling early-'70s Cambodian Psychedelia into new vistas of Prog and Indie.
(See also: Ros Sereysothea, Cambodian Space Project, Khruangbin)
• Panda Bear, "Panda Bear Meets The Grim Reaper"
Electro Pop.
Noah Lennox (Animal Collective) zeros in with shining harmonies, upbeat electronica, and spacey textures.
(See also: Brian Wilson, Steward Copeland, Madlib)
• Silencio, "She's Bad"
Twin Peaks.
The collective's moody and mysterious second album gives us more alternative soundtracks to '
Twin Peaks'
>, in the style of Angelo Badalamenti's scores.
(See also: Angelo Badalamenti, Bookhouse, Ghost Of Wood)
• Promised Land Sound, "For Use And Delight"
CountryRockSoftPsyche.
A more roots-savvy Psyche band brings us hickory-smoked highs.
(See also: The Band, Graham Parsons, The Black Keys)
• Toro y Moi, "What For?"
Classic '70s Pop.
Chaz Bundick, an experimental chameleon, ramps it up with hooky tunes, arena chords, and warm grooves.
(See also: Todd Rundgren, Beck, Cornelius)
• The Mighty Mocambos, "Showdown"
Funk.
Propulsive groove that moves and smooths and soothes.
(See also: Bacao Rhythm And Steel Band, Brownout, The Soul Rebels)
• The Bright Light Social Hour, "Space Is Still The Place"
Hard Rockadelic.
A positive and epic album that rocks and grooves on a communal party plateau.
(See also: Hawkwind, Dr. Dog, The Arcs)
C O O L
S O N G S :
2 0 1 5
All the
REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!
Nevermind Gloss Pop, Stepford Idols, Karaoke Choruses ("woh-oo-oh"), Ego Brats, Emo Prats, Plinky Folk, Brittle Bombast, Vegas Country, Smug Thug, Mope Noodling, De-mixed Throb, and Robot-o-Tune schlock! >
Here's the
D R E A M
J U K E B O X !
Careen and cavort
with more leaps than an airport!
COOL SONGS 2015
by Tym Stevens
This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.
*(This Player is limited to the first 200 songs.
Hear the unlimited Playlist here.)
This jukebox is sequenced into groups of sound, instead of randomly.
All the songs elasticize their genres.
Get your groove on in this sonic order.:
Rockabilly! Surf! Beat! Garage!
Psyche! Classic Rock! Glam! Blues!
Alt-Roots! Soul! Funk! World!
Riot Grrrl! Alt-Rock! Electro!
Alt-Rap! Cinematic! RESIST!
Cover Songs! Happy Holidays!
Dengue Fever; Gary Clark, Jr;
Motobunny; Young Fathers
12 hours of unblind-mind, fasttrack-ass music, featuring the following fine folks in this exact order!:
• Rockabilly! • Horst With No Name, Los Mambo Jambo, The Hillmans, and Du Blonde
• Surf! • Shannon And The Clams, The Cavernarios, La Luz, and Marietta
• Beat / Garage! • Ringo Starr, Suzi Chunk, The Beatophonics, Baby Shakes, Dance Cleopatrat, Sonny Knight And The Lakers, noonday underground, The Most, Cola Jet Set, Ultimate Painting, Pugwash, Holly Golightly, Palmyra Delran, Barrence Whitfield And The Savages, King Automatic, That's a NO NO!, Le Butcherettes, Thee Tsunamis, MotoBunny, Sister Paul, and Heaters
• Beatlesque / Psyche! • Groovy Uncle, LOVEBYRD, The Smoking Trees, Jacco Gardner, Death and Vanilla, Bop English, Yorick van Norden, Tess Parks And Anton Newcombe, Wilco, Destination Lonely, Dungen, Deep Cotton, The Moonlandingz, Serpent Power, of Montreal, The London Souls, Electric Light Orchestra, Matthew E. White, and Tobias Jesso Jr
• Classic Rock / Glam! • Alabama Shakes, The Bright Light Social Hour, Paul Weller, Parlor Snakes, Sam Cohen, Wavves, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Mikal Cronin, Uncle Acid And The Deadbeats, Ty Segall, Fuzz, Coke Weed, Diane Coffee, Hanni El Khatib, Faux Ferocious, and Chris Spedding
• Blues! • Gary Clark Jr, The Future Shape Of Sound, Keith Richards, Sister Sparrow, The Delta Saints, Patty Griffin, and Fantastic Negrito
• Alt-Roots! • Anielle Reid, Dave Rawlings Machine, Lianne La Havas, Father John Misty, and Liz Vice
• Soul! • Dustbowl Revival, JD McPherson, Saun And Starr, The Soul Surfers, Son Little, Monophonics, Bettye LaVette, Speedometer feat. James Junior, Leon Bridges, BC Camplight, Lee Fields And The Expressions, Anderson East, Toro y Moi, Luca Sapio, JJ Grey And Mofro, Chicano Batman, The Arcs, and Nathaniel Rateliff And The Night Sweats
• Funk! • D'Angelo, ROXY ROCA, Lucky Brown, El Michels Affair, Bilderbuch, Pond, Caboose, Sonny Knight And The Lakers, Orgone, whysowhite, Mark Ronson feat. Kevin Parker), Dokkerman And The Turkeying Fellaz, The New Mastersounds, Allen Stone, and The Mutants
• World! •The Lions, Jr Thomas And The Volcanos, Mbongwana Star, Zun Zun Egui, Fantasma, The Mighty Mocambos with Afrika Bambaataa, Warsaw Afrobeat Orchestra, Kanaku y El Tigre, Calexico, Red Baraat, and Dengue Fever
• Riot Grrrl! • Becky Lee and Drunkfoot, Las Robertas, Colleen Green, Courtney Barnett, Death Valley Girls, Peach Kelli Pop, Speedy Ortiz, My Brightest Diamond, and Rose Windows
• Alt-Rock! • The Dead Weather, Low, Blur, Made Violent, Ezra Furman, Wire, Savages, PINS, and LoneLady
• Electro! • Django Django, V V Brown, Jamie xx, Moon Duo, Betty Black, EL VY, Panda Bear, and Shamir
• Alt-Rap! • Public Enemy, Kae Tempest, The Pop Group, Blackalicious, Beat Detectives, Young Fathers, and Ghostpoet
• Cinematic! • Cara Stacey, Satanique Samba Trio, Mary Halvorson, Deradoorian, Silencio, Florence Joelle, Tracy Bonham, The Chamanas, Lera Lynn, Ennio Morricone, Nadine Shah, Calibro 35, Delaney Davidson, The Arcs, Amason, Sam Smith, Thomas Newman, and John Williams
• RESIST! • Erase Errata, Childbirth, Bill Fay, Sleater-Kinney, Promised Land Sound, Public Enemy, The Sonics, and The Sheepdogs
• Cover Songs! •
List = Original By / Cover Artist
Songs are sequenced in the chronological order of the Originals.
Frank Sinatra /
Bob Dylan •
Nina Simone /
Lana Del Rey •
Bob Dylan /
Willie Nelson And Merle Haggard •
Doris Troy /
Akane And The Neatbeats •
Aretha Franklin /
Spooner Oldham •
The Beatles /
The Grip Weeds •
The Beatles /
Bernard Fowler •
100 Proof Aged In Soul /
The Woggles •
Nick Drake /
Tim Amukele •
Bill Withers /
My Brothers And I •
Stevie Wonder /
Analog Son •
Betty Davis /
Mahalia Barnes and The Soul Mates •
DEVO /
DEVO •
Donna Summer /
Fingathing + Jesca Hoop •
The Kinks /
The Sonics •
Yoko Ono /
Yoko Ono + Death Cab for Cutie •
New Order /
Autoramas •
Depeche Mode /
Lotte Kestner •
Prince /
Chris Cornell •
Nirvana /
La Grima + Jimetta Lewis •
Portishead /
Skydive Trio •
Yoko Ono /
Yoko Ono + Portugal. The Man
• Happy Holidays! • Lez Zeppelin, and Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings
B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 1 5
Quality is timeless.
BEST REISSUES 2015
by Tym Stevens
This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.
This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.
• 1930s and '40s •
• Lead Belly, "The Smithsonian Folkways Collection" ⇧
The essential Folk Blues musician and his repertoire.
• 1950s •
• The "5" Royales, "Think" ⇧
The former Gospel quintet swung some hard Rock'n'Roll, and forecast the coming of Soul.
• Various Artists, "Tam...Tam...Tam...!" (1958) (Brasiliana revue show)
A collection of forward-thinking Bossa Nova acts.
• 1960s •
• The Kinks, "The Anthology 1964-1971"
The core works of the British Invasion's
> stealth champions.
• The Staple Singers, "Freedom Highway Complete" (1965)
The classic Gospel protest album, restored in its recorded entirety.
• Bob Dylan, "The Cutting Edge 1965-1966" ⇧
The Bootleg Series continues with unreleased rarities from Dylan's most celebrated period.
• Curtis Knight And The Squires (w/ Jimi Hendrix), "You Can't Use My Name" (1965, 1967)
In the mid-'60s, Jimi Hendrix was sideman to many touring R'n'B artists. The proto-Garage Soul of these rare and remastered sides hint at the maelstrom about to come.
• 1970s •
• Jimi Hendrix, "Freedom: Atlanta Pop Festival (Live)" (1970)
A full recorded concert (and coveted bootleg) finally released officially to the public.
• Fadoul, "Al Zman Saib" (Moroccan funk-rock, 1970)
A Morrocan funker who sounds like Free jamming with James Brown.
• The Rolling Stones, "Sticky Fingers (Deluxe)" (1971)
Arguably THE record that defines the band at its toughest, tightest best. Welcome, Mick Taylor.
• Gloria Ann Taylor, "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing" (1971-'77)
Gloria got a few singles and little love. This compilation of all her Soul works rectifies that.
• Led Zeppelin, "Physical Graffiti (Deluxe)" (1975) ⇧
The remastering campaign continues, with additional early versions and rough mixes.
• Alessandro Alessandroni, "Industrial" (1976)
Sandro was the guitarist, whistler, and choral leader on Spaghetti Western soundtracks
>. And a fine composer, as this library album of urban-inspired instros attests.
• Led Zeppelin, "Presence (Deluxe)" (1976)
The remastering campaign continues, with additional early versions and rough mixes.
• Various Artists, "Ork Records: New York, New York" (late '70s Punk)
New York's first Punk label recorded valuable debuts by the Punk and New Wave underground.
• Fleetwood Mac, "Tusk (Deluxe)" (1979)
The contentious and experimental double-album, a clash of languid ballads and punky demos, grows more complex with copious alternate versions added.
• Lizzy Mercier Descloux, "Press Color (Deluxe)" (1979)
The most cosmopolitan and eclectic member of the New York underground, charting the musical future we now live in while no one was looking.
• 1980s •
• The Mothmen, "Pay Attention" (1981)
PostPunk, Dub, and politics, just as arresting as when it was first spat.
• Various Artists, "Sherwood At the Controls, Vol. 1: 1979-1984" (On-U Sound dub mixes)
The most radical Dub producer of the '80s was Adrian Sherwood (Tackhead, African Dub Charge), spinning the chaos into tracks by The Fall, Medium Medium, Shreikback, and Maximum Joy.
• Led Zeppelin, "Coda (Deluxe)" (1982)
The remastering campaign culminates, with additional early versions and rough mixes.
• Paul McCartney, "Tug Of War (Deluxe)" (1982)
The
"Abby Road" of the '80s. Produced by George Martin, perfect in every way.
• Rodion G.A., "Behind the Curtain: The Lost Album" (c. 1980-83) ⇧
Additional rare tracks from the Romanian home auteur, electronic Prog with harsh bite.
• Various Artists, "Trevor Jackson Presents: Science Fiction Dancehall Classics" (mid-'80s dub mixes)
Extreme tracks curated from the Adrian Sherwood label, On-U Sound, favoring the industrial and experimental.
• 1990s •
• A Tribe Called Quest, "People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm" (1991)
The Native Tongues movement (Tribe, Jungle Brothers, De La Soul) was the Afrocentric pothead cousin to Public Enemy's agitprop, vibing good times while blissing heady rhymes.
• Kurt Cobain, "Montage of Heck" (early-'90s)
A solo overview of the Nirvana leader, culling home demos into a unique and intimate portrait.
• Pops Staples, "Don't Lose This" (unissued 1999 album) ⇧
The leader of the legendary Staple Singers, Pops' chiming guitar, sweet voice, and easy charm shine on this lovely unreleased album.
• 2010s •
• Ty Segall, "Ty Rex" (2011) ⇧
A loving tribute to T.Rex by the modern king of fuzz rock.
©
Tym Stevens
"A splendid time is guaranteed for all!"
©
Tym Stevens
See also:
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2025
• BEST MUSIC: 2025
• BEST COMICS: 2025
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2024
• BEST MUSIC: 2024
• BEST COMICS: 2024
· BEST MOVIES + TV: 2023
• BEST MUSIC: 2023
• BEST COMICS: 2023
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2022
• BEST MUSIC: 2022
• BEST COMICS: 2022
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2021
• BEST MUSIC: 2021
• BEST COMICS: 2021
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2020
• BEST MUSIC: 2020
• BEST COMICS: 2020
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2019
• BEST MUSIC: 2019
• BEST COMICS: 2019
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2018
• BEST MUSIC: 2018
• BEST COMICS: 2018
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2017
• BEST MUSIC: 2017
• BEST COMICS: 2017
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2016
• BEST MUSIC: 2016
• BEST COMICS: 2016
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2015
• BEST COMICS: 2015
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2014
• BEST MUSIC: 2014
• BEST COMICS: 2014
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2013
• BEST MUSIC: 2013
• BEST COMICS: 2013
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2012
• BEST MUSIC: 2012
• BEST COMICS: 2012
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2011
• BEST MUSIC: 2011
• BEST COMICS: 2011
• BEST MOVIES + TV: 2000-2010
• BEST MUSIC: 2000-2010
• BEST COMICS: 2000-2010
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