verrrrry interesting thread developing here. i'm down with the J Tree and Blue Sky Mining calls, but my 10 would probably be...

1.) JOHN HIATT - SLOW TURNING an absolutely master tunesmith - and what an expressive voice! rock solid all the way through, especially Is Anybody There, Feels Like Rain, and the title track. plus the incomparable Sonny Landreth.

2.) PATTY GRIFFIN - LIVING WITH GHOSTS just her, her guitar, and bottomless blue-eyed soul. an amazing collection of songs about life, love, and loss. stunning.

3.) PETE TOWNSHEND - ALL THE BEST COWBOYS HAVE CHINESE EYES tough call between this and Quadrophenia. either way, Pete is The Man. 'nuff said.

4.) POLICE - GHOST IN THE MACHINE dark yet human. great writing, production, playing, etc...and of course, Stu is God. Sting used to be pretty good, too.

5.) FISHBONE - TRUTH AND SOUL at their considerable peak, they put it all together on this one.

6.) U2 - THE JOSHUA TREE okay, i gotta include this album...after all, it did change my life.

7.) THE WALL how to write a conceptual double album. the soundtrack of the alienated high school years. (and don't forget that it lost Album of the Year to Christopher Cross. of course.)

8.) HOTHOUSE FLOWERS - HOME more of that Irish soul thing (damn, they've got it). more or less unknown, but so honestly written, well-played and performed, and emotionally profound. 9.) ANI DIFRANCO - DILATE yes, she kicks ass, it's true.

10.) DB - HCTNFU okay, this guy couldn't write, sing or play his way out of a wet paper bag...but it's his site, so i thought i'd be nice.

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wow, i kept the honorable mentions down to less than 6,000... ---------------------------------------------------- Stevie Wonder - Fullfillingness' First Finale Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom Eels - Daisies of the Galaxy Spearhead - Home Elton John - Rock of the Westies XTC - Oranges and Lemons Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back Robbie - Storyville Ian Dury and the Blockheads - Best of Oils - Diesel and Dust PG - Us BOC - Agents of Fortune SRB - Requiem For a Gerbil (auto-nepotism!) Finley Quaye - Maverick Strike Lou Reed - Rock and Roll Animal Hiatt - Walk On DB - Triage

that should cover it. okay, who's next? (hey, there's another good one...)