""Wheels of Fortune, by the Flatlander..." more

""Wheels of Fortune, by the Flatlanders (New West): Probably the most unabashed ''s -- t-kickin''' record of the bunch, but these guys -- Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore -- have been around a long time, and they play great (if sentimental) licks." -SK
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""Live in Aught-Three, by James McMurt..." more

""Live in Aught-Three, by James McMurtry and the Heartless Bastards (Compadre Records): I saved the best for last. If anyone on this short list is apt to ''happen'' in a wider cultural sense, it's probably this guy. That Live in Aught-Three is probably the best live album in five years is a start; that it provides the listener new to McMurtry's work with an introduction to his studio albums (Saint Mary of the Woods, for instance, on Sugar Hill) is better, but not the end. The simple fact is that James McMurtry may be the truest, fiercest songwriter of his generation, and if you don't believe me, get this album and listen to ''Levelland.'' Better yet, check out the psycho southland breakdown called ''Choctaw Bingo.'' There hasn't been anything quite like it since Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited album." -SK
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""Your Country, by Graham Parker (Bloo..." more

""Your Country, by Graham Parker (Bloodshot): I vaguely remember Parker from his punk days, but this is a sweetly rocking, country-tinted album of heartland anthems. Parker wrote most of the material, but there's a bonus: the best damn version of the Grateful Dead's ''Sugaree'' you'll ever hear." -SK
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"SK'S #1 SONG OF 2005 "1. ''I SUMMO..." more

"SK'S #1 SONG OF 2005

"1. ''I SUMMON YOU,'' Spoon
In the end, the best songs defy explanation or analysis. I played this one over and over in 2005 — on my computer, on my stereo, and in my truck. I never understood it, never got tired of it, and never failed to get a chill at the line ''I summon you here, my love.'' For me, that was the summer of '05. We should all have someone to summon us once in a while, I guess.

Those are my picks for the year's best. I guess they won't put me on the cover of Rolling Stone, huh? Oh, and one more: As the year winds down, I plan to cue up my Santa Mix, the one that starts with ''I Want an Alien for Christmas,'' by Fountains of Wayne." -sk
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"SK's #1 ALBUM OF 2005 "An apt enough..." more

"SK's #1 ALBUM OF 2005
"An apt enough title, when you consider that this is probably the best rock band in America that nobody knows. Am I being an elitist here, trying to one-up my audience? Nope. Marah is great in the scat, bop, and jive way Springsteen was great on The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle. One listen to songs like ''The Closer'' and ''Fat Boy'' on this amazing record and I think you'll agree. These guys are either the American U2 or close enough for government work." -SK
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"#6 Best of 2007: "A little uneven, an..." more

"#6 Best of 2007: "A little uneven, and probably not his absolute best work, but still impossible not to turn up and dance to; this is straight-ahead old-school rock. Fogerty has stayed true to the swampy stuff he does the best, and on songs like ''Don't You Wish It Was True'' and ''Somebody Help Me,'' he hits that ole Creedence groove dead-on (and Fogerty always was Creedence)." -SK
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"#7 Best of 2007: "Are you mourning Po..." more

"#7 Best of 2007: "Are you mourning Porter Wagoner? Still bumming over Buck (Owens, that is)? Here's the perfect cheer-up medicine: 15 old-timey country faves, dressed up in rockin' clothes courtesy of Rick Miller's surf guitar. Best cut is probably ''Engine Engine #9,'' with Rick Miller sounding eerily like the late great Roger Miller, but Mary Huff's upbeat take on ''Rose Garden'' (Lynn Anderson did the original) is also a marvel." -SK
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" SK didn't name this particular album..." more

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SK didn't name this particular album, but he loves Steve Earle." less

" SK didn't name this particular album..." more

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SK didn't name this particular album, but he loves Steve Earle." less