At the end of each year, my friend James and I make ordered lists of the twenty albums we enjoyed the most. To be eligible, a record has to be of album length (at least ~30 mins), and contain entirely (or almost entirely) new material: live albums, cover records, and compilations are ineligible.
This has been an annual tradition since 2000. It’s always a highlight of the holiday period for me to draw up my list, and then meet with James over coffee to tell him he listens to too much prog-rock.
Complete versions of the most recent lists can be found below:
2022; 2021; 2020; 2019; 2018; 2017
2016; 2015; 2014; 2013; 2012; 2011; 2010
Summary versions of my lists for the years 1993-2009 can be found here.
Apple Music playlists for each year can be found here.
An archive of James’s lists can be found via this site ⧉
