Best Albums of the Decade, 101-90

This was a big funky decade for music; walls crumbled all over the place, meaning that we could listen to anything in the whole world we wanted at just about any time, if we were smart or sneaky enough. It also meant that everyone could share their CDs — or their opinions — just by touching a few buttons. Pretty cool, in most ways, but kind of crappy in others. Hey, it’s a tradeoff.

It was also pretty clearly the last decade where THE ALBUM really meant anything. I’m not saying people won’t make albums in the future, I’m just saying…well, I don’t know what I’m saying. We’ll see how it all shakes out.

Anyway, there were a lot of great records that came out from 2000-2009. Here are 101 of them, delivered in manageable multiple chunks over the next week or so. Okay, actually, as you will see, there are a lot more than 101 albums on this list. We find it impossible to choose between different albums by the same musical artist, so we figured we don’t have to choose. So if someone released multiple kick-ass albums in the decade, they’re all listed together, with the first one representing either the “best” or the one with the coolest name or awesomest album cover or whatever. It’s not an exact science.

Other rules: no compilations, but soundtracks are okay; order determined by heavily tweaking a randomized list; nothing ranked that we haven’t heard and loved during the last decade; no automatic bids for albums just because they ended up on a year-end list in the past; no strategic ranking; no thrall held to stuff that other websites or critics loved just for Zeitgeist factor. Just 101 albums (or so).

Also: don’t hold your breath waiting for Radiohead to show up on this list. I like them just fine, but Kid A was pretty clearly a plea from the band to stop ranking them among other groups like prize steers at an FFA fair; we called it that way at the time on another website, and we haven’t reviewed any of their other records since. They wanted off the bus, we let them. You also might not see your favorite album or your favorite genre represented, because our tastes are pretty inscrutable, even to us. Go ahead and hate, if you must, in the comments section.

 101. Macy Gray, The Trouble With Being Myself (2003)
She has a weird voice and unusual persona, so it’s pretty easy to dismiss Miss Gray, unless you have actually heard her albums, which are strong and brave and funky. This one uses a few hip musicians (Beck and his band, etc.) to help her rock out a little more than usual, and her lyrics finally seem true and real instead of calculatedly quirky.
Other albums that could go here instead: Big (2007), The Id (2001).

 100. Meg & Dia, Here, Here, and Here (2009)
These young sisters talk too much, think too much, feel too much–but their album kept us happy all summer long, and their nimble band is no joke. Prolix pop-metal-disco explosion “Are There Giants, Too, in the Dance?” and the gothy “Black Wedding” (sample lyric: “got my vows off the Internet”) are standouts, but it’s all gravy.

99. ZZ Top, Mescalero (2003)
This record rocks from beginning to end, wobbling all over the road from southern boogie to electro-pop to dirty filthy blues. A late-period triumph for the aged Texas rockers! Bonus points were awarded for the best Spanish-language drinking song ever sung by non-Spanish dudes, the tequila-fueled “Que Lastima.”

98. Tego Calderón, El Subestimado / The Underdog (2006).
Here is where Tego, one of the brightest talents in Puerto Rican music, laid it all on the line and combined reggaetón with all the other music he loves: bomba, plena, salsa, hip-hop, the blues, funk, electropop, and even some moody rock stuff. Truly a triumph, even if he didn’t find that his audience was willing to follow him there.
Other albums that could go here instead: El Enemy de los Guasibiri (2004).

97. Stella Chiweshe, Talking Mbira: Spirits of Liberation (2002)
No one in the world can touch Zimbabwe’s top mbira player on her instrument, an expressive thumb piano that sounds like electric wind chimes. But this record showed that she knows her hooks and how to tell a story, even if very few people outside the Shona can understand her.
Other albums that could go here instead: Double Check (2007).

96. Tenacious D, Tenacious D (2001)
Okay, if you don’t love the D, then you might not love life, or fun, or metal riffs played on acoustic guitars, or songs imbued with a huge amount of surrealism. This record is a really good soundtrack for bad behavior, or a really good excuse for it, or both. I guess I could have done without Dave Grohl’s overly thumpish drums, but it’s all good.
 

 
95. Amerie, Touch (2005)
Everyone wants to talk about Rich Harrison’s BIG FAT DRUM TRACKS on songs like “1 Thing,” but I think we might not be giving enough credit to Amerie herself — her voice and her charisma could still make her into the massive star she deserves to be. (And I have “friends” who broke into tears just looking at her pictures in the CD booklet.)
Other albums that could go here instead: In Love and War (2009).

94. Loretta Lynn, Van Lear Rose (2004)
Older hipsters were already on the Loretta Express from way back, knowing her to be a loopy excellent songwriter with a mean streak. But the fact that Jack White produced this album let younger folks shrug aside their “ew, no, country music” inhibitions and learn to love LL’s charmingly ruined voice and her sense of storytelling economy.

93. Chingo Bling, The Tamale Kingpin (2004)
Chingo is the most underrated rapper in the U.S., probably because he is better known for being funny and for pissing off anti-immigrationists. But his flow is impeccable, his songs are deceptively deep, and characters like Naseem the Freestyle Dream (“me and Osama got the same baby mama”) are actually well-observed if you listen. So LISTEN!
Other albums that could go here instead: They All Want Him But Who Can Afford Him (2006), America’s Favorite Wetback: The Mextape (2006), They Can’t Deport Us All (2007), Me Vale Madre (2009).

92. Julieta Venegas, Bueninvento (2000)
She’s a border girl like Paulina Rubio, shuttling between San Diego and Tijuana for most of her childhood and absorbing all kinds of crazy influences from both cultures. This was her big avant-garde move, but although the songs gained interesting textures they never strayed from her amazing gift for pop hooks. And her voice is WHOA.
Other albums that could go here instead: Sí (2003), Limon y Sal (2006).

91. Al Green, Lay It Down (2008)
Al Green is untouchable, okay? Don’t even think about messing with Al Green, because he will take a simple song and slay you with his perfect gospel phrasing, his idiosyncratic attack, and his sense of humor. He made two great R&B albums in the 2000s, but this one gets the nod because it’s less pretty damned sexy.
Other albums that could go here instead: I Can’t Stop (2004).

90. Every Time I Die, The Big Dirty (2007)
These guys are from Buffalo, New York. That’s a tough funny town, full of tough funny people, and ETID is very Buffalo in their sound, as you can tell from song titles like “Rendez-Voodoo,” “INRIhab,” and “Pigs Is Pigs.” But the best title of all belongs to the best song: “We’rewolf” is what they play every year at Satan’s prom.
Other albums that could go here instead: Hot Damn! (2003), Gutter Phenomenon (2005), New Junk Aesthetic (2009).