Best Albums of 2017

There was an awful lot of good music this year.  More than I remember in recent years past, actually.  It was hard for me to whittle down this shortlist.  There are a LOT of great albums that I didn’t include – most of them simply because I haven’t been able to spend enough time with them.  

FAVORITE ALBUM OF 2017 (THREE WAY TIE, IN ORDER OF RELEASE)

Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives – Way Out West [Superlatone]
Sarah Shook & the Disarmers – Sidelong [Bloodshot]
Kesha – Rainbow [Kemosabe/RCA]

THE REST OF THE BEST (ALPHABETICAL BY ALBUM TITLE)

R.E.M. – Automatic For the People: 25th Anniversary Edition [Craft]
Scott H. Biram – Bad Testament [Bloodshot]
Bloodshot Records’ 13 Days of Xmas [Bloodshot]
Lydia Loveless – Boy Crazy and Single(s) [Bloodshot]
Chuck Berry – Chuck [Dualtone]
Kendrick Lamar – DAMN. [Top Dawg Entertainment/Aftermath Records/ Interscope]
The Hooten Hallers (self-titled) [Big Muddy]
Mavis Staples – If All I Was Was Black [Anti/Epitaph]
The Darts – Me.Ow [Dirty Water]
The Edgefield C. Johnston Duo – Mixtape 1: Saying Goodbye [self-released]
Other People – Other Songs By Other People + Summer High (single) [self-released]
Singles Soundtrack: Deluxe Edition [Epic/Legacy]
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings – Soul of a Woman [Daptone]
ZZ Ward – The Storm [Hollywood]
Bob Dylan – Triplicate [Columbia]