It all began on January 1, 2017, with Rare & Unissued, by Muddy Waters. Come December 31, it was all over. 365 albums, 365 days. I’d made a promise to myself, and I’d kept it.
Your comments and shares along the way made it all worthwhile. Together, we know these albums mean something. They freeze us in time, and they free us from time.
Are we a lost generation? Will our children listen to entire albums from start to finish? Will musical artists still sequence their tracks?
I have learned more about the music that moves me from liner notes than from any other source.
If this list moved you to listen to but one new album, I will have done something meaningful for you. Simply making this list meant meaning for me.
Thank you for reading, thank you for listening. Deep bows to the makers who made these albums.
Here, finally, is the complete list.
- Muddy Waters – Rare & Unissued
- Skip James – She Lyin’
- Albert King – I’ll Play The Blues For You
- Dave Van Ronk – Folksinger
- Robert Pete Williams – Louisiana Blues
- The Best of Nina Simone
- Johnny Winter Progressive Blues Experiment
- Don’t Mess With Miss Watkins
- Lightnin’ Hopkins – Autobiography in Blues
- Howlin’ Wolf – His Best – Chess 50th Anniversary Collection
- Chris Whitley – Dirt Floor
- Bo Diddley
- Janis Joplin – I Got Dem Ol Kozmic Blues Again Mama
- Stevie Ray Vaughan – Couldn’t Stand The Weather
- Kelly Joe Phelps – Shine-Eyed Mister Zen
- Gil Scott-Heron – Pieces of a Man
- Oliver Nelson – The Blues and the Abstract Truth
- The Victoria Spivey Collection 1926-1937
- Phil Ochs – All The News That’s Fit To Sing
- Joseph Spence – Good Morning Mr. Walker
- Clara Smith – The Essential Clara Smith1924-1929
- Mazzy Star – So Tonight That I Might See
- John Mooney – Comin’ your Way
- The Pretenders – Learning to Crawl
- Manifesto Mix Tape Vol. 1
- Robert Johnson – King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol I & II
- Jimmy Smith – Back at the Chicken Shack
- Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath
- Greg Brown – Slant 6 Mind
- Tim Buckley – Dream Letter, Live in London, 1968
- Muddy Waters – Folk Singer
- Bukka White – Sky Songs
- The Brothers Johnson – Look Out For #1
- Ivie Anderson – It Don’t Mean A Thing
- Oscar Levant – Levant Plays Gershwin
- Blind Willie McTell – Last Sessions
- Leon Redbone – On the Track
- Guitar Slim – I Got Sumpin’ For You
- Soul Coughing – Ruby Vroom
- Fred McDowell – Levee Camp Blues
- John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers – Crusade
- Angelique Kidjo – Oremi
- At Home With Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
- Bobby Rush – Porcupine Meat
- Miles Davis – Sketches of Spain
- Horace Silver and The Jazz Messengers
- Stray Cats – Built for Speed
- Charley Patton – The Complete Recordings 1929-1934 (Disc 1)
- Lonnie Johnson – Vol 1. 1937-1940
- The Electrifying Aretha Franklin
- Chuck Berry – After School Session
- Junior Kimbrough – Sad Days, Lonely Nights
- Mississippi John Hurt – 1928 Sessions
- Stevie Nicks – Bella Donna
- Jelly Roll Morton – Oh, Mister Jelly
- The Mississippi Sheiks – Complete Recorded Works in Chronological Order, Vols 1-3
- Kokomo Arnold – Restored and Remastered Hits
- Roy Rogers – Chops Not Chaps
- Irma Thomas – Wish Someone Would Care
- Woody Guthrie – The Asch Recordings, Vol 1-4
- James Brown’s Funky People (Part 3)
- Doc & Merle Watson – Down South
- Dolly Parton – The Grass Is Blue
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – Green River
- Albert Collins – The Complete Imperial Recordings
- Dolores Keane – May Morning Dew
- Bessie Smith – The Complete Recordings Vol. I
- Lyle Lovett – Joshua Judges Ruth
- The Modern Lovers – The Modern Loves
- Robert Petway – Catfish Blues
- B.B. King – Live in Cook County Jail
- The Waterboys – Fisherman’s Blues
- Grant Green – First Session
- Son House – Father of the Folk Blues
- Alvin Youngblood Hart – Big Mama’s Door
- The James Cotton Blues Band
- The American Graffiti Soundtrack
- Willie Dixon – I Am The Blues
- Memphis Minnie – All The Published Sides 1929-1937
- Charlie Christian & Dizzy Gillespie – After Hours
- Blind Lemon Jefferson – The Complete Classic Sides Remastered Chicago 1926 Disc A
- Bob Dylan – Bob Dylan
- The Yardbirds For Your Love
- Bukka White – Mississippi Blues
- Hank Mobley – Workout
- Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band – Safe as Milk
- Rickie Lee Jones – Rickie Lee Jones
- Mance Lipscomb – Texas Sharecropper & Songster
- The Beat Farmers – Van Go
- Sleepy John Estes – I ain’t gonna be worried no more
- Eric Dolphy – Outward Bound
- Cowboy Junkies – The Trinity Sessions
- Rev. Gary Davis – At Newport
- Bob Dylan – Bringing it all back home
- Robert Wilkins – The original Rolling Stone
- Edwin Starr – War & Peace
- Ma Rainey – Mother of the blues
- Jessie Mae Hemphill – She-Wolf
- Little Jimmie Dickens – Raisin’ The Dickens
- Tom Waits – Swordfishtrombones
- Grant Green – The Complete Quartets With Sonny Clark
- Emmylou Harris – Wrecking Ball
- Louis Armstrong – The Complete Hot Five & Hot Seven Recordings
- Dock Boggs – Country Blues : Complete Early Recordings
- Thelonious Monk – Plays Duke Ellington
- 16 Horsepower – 16 Horsepower
- Dvorak: Symphony No. 9, “From The New World” / Symphonic Variations
- Bix Beiderbecke – 20 Classic Tracks
- Bruce Springsteen – Nebraska
- Willie Nelson – Teatro
- Billie Holiday & Lester Young: Complete Studio Recordings
- Fred McDowell – Long Way From Home
- Dwight Yoakam – Guitars Cadillacs Etc, Etc.
- Benny Goodman – Complete Capitol Trios
- Blind Boy Fuller – Volume 1: 1935-1938
- Ella Fitzgerald – Sings the Cole Porter Songbook
- Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps – Blue Jean Bop
- Los Lobos – Kiko
- Leonard Cohen – Songs of Leonard Cohen
- Johnny Horton – The Spectacular Johnny Horton
- Hungry Dog Brand – Boy Meets Dog
- DI3 – Torch
- Eagle-Eye Cherry – Living In The Present Future
- Colin Brooks – Blood and Water
- Queer Eye for the Straight Guy – Soundtrack
- Dusty Wright – Elevened
- Will Scott – Gnawbone
- Charles Mingus – Mingus Ah Um
- Billie Holiday – Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday on Columbia, 1933-1944
- The Clash – The Clash
- Nick Drake – Five Leaves Left
- Sam & Dave – Hold On, I’m Comin’
- Cream – Fresh Cream
- Big Mama Thornton – Essential Recordings
- Frank Sinatra – sings for Only The Lonely
- Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – Extra Width
- Bruce Springsteen – The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle
- Tracy Chapman – Our Bright Future
- Bob Log III – My Shit Is Perfect
- Joe Cocker – Mad Dogs & Englishmen
- Tomasz Stańko – From The Green Hill
- Paul Chambers – Whims of Chambers
- Booker T. & the MGs – Green Onions
- Bob Dylan – The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan
- J.J. & Kai: The J.J. Johnson and Kai Winding Trombone Octet
- John Coltrane – A Love Supreme
- The Shangri-Las – The Complete Collection
- Furry Lewis – In His Prime 1927-1928
- Phil Ochs – A Toast To Those Who Are Gone
- The Clash – Give ‘Em Enough Rope
- Skip James – Greatest of the Delta Blues Singers
- The Original Sonny Boy Williamson
- Leon Redbone – Champagne Charlie
- Curtis Mayfield – Superfly
- Gillian Welch – Hell Among The Yearlings
- Beth Gibbons – Out of Season
- Buddy Holly – A Rock & Roll Collection
- Mance Lipscomb – Vol. 5, Pure Texas Country Blues
- Jimmy Reed – Ain’t That Lovin’ You Baby – Singles As & Bs 1953-1961
- Fats Navarro – The Fats Navarro Collection, 1943-50
- Jeffrey Halford & The Healers – Lo Fi Dreams
- Lennie Tristano & Warne Marsh – Intuition
- Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Let Love In
- Bill Withers – Just As I Am
- Jacques Brel – Enregistrement Public à l’Olympia 1964
- Leroy Carr – The Essential
- Etta James – At Last!
- Sonny Rollins and the Contemporary Leaders
- John Mayall – Bluesbreakers (w/ Eric Clapton)
- Ted Hawkins – The Final Tour
- Elmore James – Slide Order of the Blues, The Singles As & Bs 1952-1962
- Ida Cox – Complete Recorded Works in Chronological Order, Vol. 1, 1923
- Hoagy Carmichael Sings Hoagy Carmichael
- Blind Willie Johnson – The Complete
- Thelonious Monk – Monk Alone: The Complete Solo Studio Recordings of Thelonious Monk 1962-1968
- The Replacements – Tim
- Bad Company – Bad Company
- Duke Ellington – Money Jungle
- Bill Evans – Interplay
- Big Joe Williams – The Essential
- Kiss – Love Gun
- Mississippi John Hurt – Complete Studio Recordings
- John Lee Hooker – Boogie Chillen
- The Doors – The Soft Parade
- X – See How We Are
- Charlie Parker – With Strings
- Lucinda Williams – Car Wheels on a Gravel Road
- Culture – Two Sevens Clash
- Billy Bragg – Back to Basics
- Sleepy John Estes – I Ain’t Gonna Be Worried No More 1929-1941
- Tommy Johnson – 1928-1929 Complete Recorded Works
- The Rolling Stones – Through The Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol 2)
- Lightnin’ Hopkins – The Complete Aladdin Recordings
- Ray Charles – Pure Genius: Complete Atlantic Recordings 52-59
- Aretha Franklin – Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You
- Sonny Rollins – Saxophone Colossus
- Townes Van Zandt – High, Low And In Between
- Little Richard – Here’s Little Richard
- The Bodeans – Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams
- Junior Wells – Hoodoo Man Blues
- Mance Lipscomb – You Got To Reap What You Sow, Texas Songster, Vol. 2
- Johnny Cash – With His Hot And Blue Guitar
- Tony Joe White – Black & White
- The Ramones – The Ramones
- Cesária Évora – Café Atlantico
- Issa Bagayogo – Mali Koura
- Seán Tyrrell – The Orchard
- Malkit Singh – Sikh Hon Da Maan
- Anonymous 4 – Hildegard von Bingen, 11,000 Virgins: Chants for the Feast of St. Ursula
- Peter Tosh – Equal Rights
- Dmitri Shostakovich – The String Quartets
- Charley Patton – The Complete Recordings 1929-1934 (Disc 2)
- Blind Blake – All the Published Sides 1926-1932
- Blind Willie McTell – Classic Years: 1927-1940 (Disc 1)
- Leadbelly – Important Recordings 1934-1949
- Blind Lemon Jefferson – The Complete Classic Sides Remastered: Atlanta & Chicago 1926 Disc B
- Johnny Azari – Songs From A Motel Room
- Legends of Country Blues
- Bob Dylan – The Times They Are A-Changin’
- Bob Dylan – Another Side of Bob Dylan
- Bob Dylan – Highway 61 Revisited
- Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde
- Bob Dylan – John Wesley Harding
- Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks
- Dr. John – Gumbo
- Dr. John – Gris Gris
- Nina Simone – Little Blue Girl
- The Carter Family – The Carter Family: 1927-1934
- Emmylou Harris – Red Dirt Girl
- Koko Taylor – Koko Taylor
- Social Distortion – Prison Bound
- Slim Harpo – The Excello Singles
- The Kinks – The Kink Kontroversy
- The Meters – Look-Ka Py Py
- Wilson Pickett – In The Midnight Hour
- James Brown – Live at The Apollo (1962)
- Woody Guthrie – Dust Bowl Ballads
- Hank Mobley – Soul Station
- Miles Davis – Birth of the Cool
- Bobbie Gentry – Ode to Billie Joe
- Joan Baez – Diamonds & Rust
- Patsy Cline – Patsy Cline
- Charlie Musselwhite – Stand Back! Here comes Charley Musselwhite’s Southside Band
- Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown – Pressure Cooker
- Taj Mahal – Taj Mahal
- Steely Dan – Can’t Buy A Thrill
- Art Tatum – The Complete Solo Masterpieces
- Randy Newman – 12 Songs
- Waylon Jennings – Lonesome, On’ry and Mean
- Hank Williams as Luke the Drifter – Beyond the Sunset
- Townes Van Zandt – For The Sake Of The Song
- Steve Earle – Train a Comin’
- Portishead – Dummy
- Ministry – Rio Grande Blood
- Neil Young – Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
- Gerry Mulligan-Chet Baker Original Quartet: Complete Recordings (Master takes)
- Link Wray – Link Wray & The Wraymen
- Hüsker Dü – Warehouse: Songs and Stories
- Professor Longhair – Mardi Gras In New Orleans – Complete Recordings 1949-1962
- Little Eva – The Locomotion
- Tom Waits – Frank’s Wild Years
- Captain Beefheart – Trout Mask Replica
- Christy Moore – Back Home In Derry
- Sinead O’ Connor – Sean-Nos Nua
- The Pogues – Rum, Sodomy & The Lash
- Charlie Parker – The Complete Savoy & Dial Master
- Frank Sinatra – In The Wee Small Hours
- Mississippi John Hurt – Last Sessions
- Louisiana Red: My Life With Carey Bel
- John Lee Hooker – The Country Blues of John Lee Hooker
- Frank Stokes – The Victor Recordings (1928-1929)
- Dire Straits – Dire Straits
- The Supremes – Where Did Our Love Go
- The Staple Singers – Be Altitude: Respect Yourself
- Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Damn The Torpedoes
- Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Southern Accents
- Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers
- Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Long After Dark
- Chris Whitley – Living with the Law
- Chris Whitley – Perfect Day
- Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – Bad Reputation
- “Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell – United
- Thelonious Monk – Brilliant Corners
- Django Reinhardt – The Classic Early Recordings
- “Townes Van Zandt – Rear View Mirror
- Ministry – The Land of Rape and Honey
- MC5 – The Anthology: 1965-1971
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – Creedence Clearwater Revival
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – Bayou Country
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – Willy and the Poor Boys
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – Cosmo’s Factory
- Pink Anderson – Carolina Blues Man, Vol.1
- Big Bill Broonzy – The Young Bill Broonzy
- Sam Collins – Cryin’ Sam Collins and his Git-Fiddle: Jailhouse Blues
- The Doors – The Doors
- Duke Ellington – Mrs. Clinkscales to the Cotton Club, Vol. 1: 1926-1929
- John Fahey – Railroad
- G. Love & Special Sauce – G. Love & Special Sauce
- Alberta Hunter – Complete Recorded Works in Chronological Order
- The Impressions – The Complete A & B Sides 1961 – 1968
- Jane’s Addiction – Nothing’s Shocking
- Killing Joke – Night Time
- Solas – The Edge of Silence
- The Modern Jazz Quartet – Complete Atlantic Studio Recordings of the Modern Jazz Quartet 1956-1964
- Big Maybelle – The Complete Okeh Sessions 1952-1955
- Phil Ochs – Rehearsals for Retirement
- Tom Waits – One From The Heart
- Catfish Keith – Mississippi River Blues
- The Del Fuegos – Boston, Mass.
- Lone Justice – Lone Justice
- Half Deaf Clatch – The Life and Death of A.J Rail
- Gene Ammons – Boss Tenor
- Elmo Hope – Trio & Quintet
- Jim Croce – You Don’t Mess Around With Jim
- Sade – Diamond Life
- Massive Attack – Protection
- Tricky – Maxinquaye
- Miles Davis – Kind of Blue
- John Coltrane – My Favorite Things
- Sam Cooke – A Change Is Gonna Come
- Otis Redding – Otis Redding Sings Soul
- AC/DC – Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
- The Clash – London Calling
- Burning Spear – Marcus Garvey
- Albert King – Born Under A Bad Sign
- Neil Young – Harvest
- The Pogues – Red Roses For Me
- Seasick Steve – Dog House Music
- Lee Morgan – The Sidewinder
- Coleman Hawkins – Body & Soul
- Sonny Rollins – The Bridge
- ZZ Top – Tres Hombres
- Alejandro Escovedo – A Man Under The Influence
- King Solomon Hill – The Gone Dead Train
- The Clash – Sandinista
- Elvis Costello – Spike
- 16 Horsepower – Sackcloth & Ashes
- Cab Calloway & His Orchestra – The Early Years: 1930 – 1934
- PJ Harvey – To Bring You My Love
- Tori Amos – Under The Pink
- Richard Shindell – Blue Divide
- Bob Dylan – The Bootleg Series, Vols. 1-3
- John Hammond Jr. – The Best Of
- Miles Davis – Bitches Brew
- Ornette Coleman – The Shape of Jazz to Come
- The Smithereens – Especially For You
- Duke Ellington & John Coltrane – Duke Ellington & John Coltrane
- Morphine – Yes
- Fugazi – (EP/7 Songs)
- Great Bluesmen at Newport
- Van Morrison – Astral Weeks
- Van Morrison – Moondance
- Jefferson Airplane – Surrealistic Pillow
- The Stone Poneys – Evergreen, Vol. 2
- Townes Van Zandt – Live at the Old Quarter
- Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
- Elvis Costello – My Aim Is True
- Chet Baker – Chet Baker Sings
- Nat King Cole – The Christmas Song
- Neil Young – After The Gold Rush
- The Bar-Kays – Soul Finger
- Elvis Presley – Elvis Presley (Rock n’ Roll)
- Motorhead – No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith
- Public Enemy – It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back
- Dylan Thomas – Reading His Complete Recorded Poetry
Preacher Boy | The National Blues 