Jeff Tweedy rediscovers melody. Beautiful songs, great guitar work, and heartfelt vocals. "Impossible Germany" is worth the price of admission alone.

...speaking of great songwriters...the Boss reunited with Spectorian grandeur, the E Street Band, and most importantly, Rock and Roll. Magic indeed.

This is first and foremost a country soul album. The songs are quite good, the production (by the always reliable T-Bone Burnett) is excellent, the singing is spectacular. Comparisons to Patsy Cline and Janis Joplin are not out of line. She's that good.

He is impossibly egotistical, doesn't rap all that well, and cops huge chunks of old records for hooks. He's also a genius. Nearly every track has ended up on a mixtape for the road. I surrender.

Stars are certainly not the first act to use love and war as metaphors for each other, but few have done it better. This is stellar indie pop with great arrangements and girl/boy vocals.

Another great album from dependable Austin group. They have evolved into a more radio friendly band over the years without selling out one whit. Catchy songs still go in unexpected directions and no one sounds quite like them.

The Bends and OK Computer are two of my favorite albums of all time. Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief are not. This is a great return to form. Mostly mellow (though as usual, darkly so) and accessible, it still sounds like no one but Radiohead. For me, one of the most pleasant surprises of the year.

There were a number of really good new adult oriented pop vocalists this year and Ms. Bareilles is one of the best. Not a bum track on the disc, her songwriting even outshines her voice.

Criminally underappreciated songsmith and producer, and one of the few lyricists working who is worth reading. Though not his strongest album start to finish, it does contain his best song, the utterly brilliant "Our Song". You owe it to yourself to give it a listen and then start purchasing each of his dozen or so discs. You can thank me later.

Disco/House/Electro dance pop is certainly not something I spend much time listening to. If there is more out there as good as this I will have to rethink that philosophy. As infectious as dance music gets and dazzlingly creative. Ms. Murphy is the former lead vocalist for Moloko.

The album cover is awful, the title (it's her third disc) is silly, and she's certainly not going to win any awards for poetry. Nonetheless, despite her tender age, this woman has charisma, soul, and one of the finest voices on the planet.

Only Kanye released a better hip hop disc this year. Incredibly dramatic,this is a concept album based on the movie of the same name. While I am really tired of listening to the same old "hard life being a drug dealer" gangsta raps, this is several cuts above. Impeccably produced and delivered, it is truly cinematic.

Uber producer enlists friends for a great party disc of unlikely covers. Most of them are really good to brilliant. The best is Amy Winehouse covering the Zutons' "Valerie" which ends up sounding like a long lost Motown classic.

I always respected this critically acclaimed singer-songwriter more than liked him, as his hushed delivery and spare production just didn't hold my interest from track to track. These rich arrangements make all the difference in the world. I still respect him, but now I regularly listen to him.

Awe inspiring polyrhythmic instrumental funk workout. Great organ and horn charts, and an afrobeat groove that won't quit. Downright dangerous to listen to in the car.

Huge voiced singer-songwriter drops a timeless lush pop classic. Cass Elliot crossed with Roy Orbison and produced by Phil Spector?

Melodic and quite retro sounding (think The Byrds, The Monkees, and the Zombies all collaborating in a modern studio), this is the second disc in a row on this list produced by Mark Nevers. Each track is well written and many would be huge hits if there was any justice. Listening start to finish can be a bit too caloric though.

Yet another gem in the canon of this most gifted of songwriters. This one falls somewhere in the middle of his many discs (all are worth checking out, Words and Music is my favorite), and that is high praise indeed. "God Told Me To" is one of the best political songs of the year.

While all of the attention and praise was heaped on the latest discs from Bettye Lavette, Candi Staton, and Mavis Staples, Chaka Khan flew under the radar with this treat. It is certainly not perfect, but when she kicks into "Foolish Fool" it becomes apparent that she is the only one of the bunch who can still compete with her former self.

Sure, vocally she is a ringer for Lily Allen, and some of her lyrics are snarky for the sake of being snarky. "Foundations" is still one of the best singles of the year and several other tracks are just as good. Overall this is a highly promising debut.