John Mayer is one of the few true musicians left in a world full of dolled-up musical "entertainers" today. He seems to be someone who makes music, not for the money he can make from it, but because it is truly his passion. Being a great songwriter and gifted guitar player doesn't hurt things, either. He just keeps getting better with each album.

Rick Rubin didn't finish building the music around Mr. Cash's final vocal tracks until two years after Mr. Cash had died. The result is a sparse, haunting, and beautiful recording. It's not exactly the feel good album of the year, as Mr. Cash sings about his impending mortality. It is, however, a beautiful final movement in a long and illustrious life. God bless Johnny Cash...

I'd never really listened to The Brand New Heavies before this album came out, but the funk is thick on this album. They also do a phenomenal cover of "I Don't Know Why (I Love You)," an obscure song that was co-written by Stevie Wonder and recorded by David Ruffin in 1969, that I could listen to all day long.

It's unusual for me to put a holiday album on the list, but Sarah McLachlan has forced me to make an exception. It is darker and more introspective than most holiday albums, and makes for a beautiful listen. Except for her arrangement of "What Child is This" that really doesn't do much for me, the album is strong, and definitely makes my list of top five holiday albums...

One of my favorite purchases of '06 was Danger Mouse's "The Grey Album," a brilliant 2004 mash-up of Jay-Z's black album with elements of The Beatles' white album. Gnarls Barkley is DM's most successful project yet, and while it doesn't quite match up to the creative genius of "The Grey Album," it's still a solid (if unorthodox) album. Plus, I really wanted to mention DM on here...