#^d 2015-01-31
#^h Not the Dean's List
I've been waiting to add Robert Christgau's annual "Dean's List" to my
EOY Aggregate file, assuming it would (as has been the case in recent
years) be published by BN Review sometime after the Village Voice posted
its Pazz & Jop poll results. (P&J has figured large in Christgau's
annual summary articles, even after he stopped running the poll.) But it
hasn't appeared yet (and I don't really know why, other than that the
pace of his not-quite-monthly BN Review essays slowed last year, down
from ten to five pieces in 2014). I do know why it hasn't been easy to
construct a 2014 list of graded albums from Christgau's website: I have
not done the work to stuff the new EW reviews into the database. One
reason for that is that Medium insisted on a 90-day delay period so I
couldn't post any reviews until they have aged three months. One way
to handle that would be to write some additional code to check the age
of CG reviews -- something I haven't had much time to do. Another is
to only update reviews that have aged sufficiently, but there haven't
been many of those until recently.
I've finally started working on adding the new EW reviews, and decided
the first step would be to collate a list of all the reviews/grades thus
far. That's what the lists below do: they are sorted by release year,
then grade, then alphabetically by artist, with various artists within
each grade listed last, sorted within grade and year by title. Christgau
is rather inconsistent about noting release date years, so in many cases
I've had to look those up. (He's also inconsistent about non-label albums,
especially mixtapes, but I've given up trying to rationalize those.) The
first thing I did with the list was to add his grades to the EOY Aggregate,
including an unranked point for everything A- or above. (His grades, like
mine, are in the comment field.)
2014
- Wussy: Attica! (Shake It) A+
- Azealia Banks: Broke With Expensive Taste (Prospect Park) A
- Beyoncé: Beyoncé (Platinum Edition) (Columbia) A
- Jason Derulo: Talk Dirty (Warner Bros.) A
- Drive-By Truckers: English Oceans (ATO) A
- Kool A.D.: Word O.K. (Bandcamp mixtape) A
- Miranda Lambert: Platinum (RCA Nashville) A
- Jerry Lee Lewis: The Knox Phillips Sessions: The Unreleased Recordings (Ace) A
- Old 97's: Most Messed Up (ATO) A
- Angaleena Presley: American Middle Class (Saddle Creek) A
- Withered Hand: New Gods (Slumberland) A
- Young Thug & Bloody Jay: Black Portland (free mixtape) A
- Bring It On Home: Black America Sings Sam Cooke (Ace) A
- Lily Allen: Sheezus (Warner Bros.) A-
- Atmosphere: Southsiders (Rhymesayers Entertainment) A-
- Iggy Azalea: The New Classic (Def Jam) A-
- The Baseball Project: 3rd (Yep Roc) A-
- Mary J. Blige: The London Sessions (Capitol) A-
- Boozoo Bajou: 4 (Apollo) A-
- Toni Braxton & Babyface: Love, Marriage & Divorce (Motown) A-
- Bushwick Gospel Singers: Songs of Worship Vol. 2 (self-released) A-
- Laura Cantrell: No Way There From Here (Thrift Shop) A-
- Chromeo: White Women (Big Beat) A-
- Chumped: Teenage Retirement (Anchorless) A-
- The Coathangers: Suck My Shirt (Suicide Squeeze) A-
- Company Freak: Le Disco Social (OpusLabel/Superlatude) A-
- D'Angelo and the Vanguard: Black Messiah (RCA) A-
- The Flaming Lips: With a Little Help From My Fwends (Warner Bros.) A-
- Aretha Franklin: Sings the Great Diva Classics (RCA) A-
- Golem: Tanz (Corason Digital) A-
- Hassan Hakmoun: Unity (Healing) A-
- Hamell on Trial: The Happiest Man in the World (New West) A-
- Homeboy Sandman: Hallways (Stones Throw) A-
- Jon Langford and Skull Orchard: Here Be Monsters (In De Goot) A-
- Jenny Lewis: The Voyager (Warner Bros.) A-
- Bette Midler: It's the Girls! (East/West) A-
- Nicki Minaj: The Pinkprint (Young Money) A-
- Roy Nathanson's Sotto Voce: Complicated Day (Enja/Yellowbird) A-
- Parquet Courts: Sunbathing Animal (What's Your Rupture?) A-
- Steve Reich: Radio Rewrite (Nonesuch) A-
- The Roots: . . . And Then You Shoot Your Cousin (Def Jam) A-
- Billy Joe Shaver: Long in the Tooth (Lightning Rod) A-
- Wu-Tang Clan: A Better Tomorrow (Warner Bros.) A-
- Bob Dylan in the 80s: Volume One (ATO) A-
- Link of Chain: A Songwriters' Tribute to Chris Smither (Signature Sounds) A-
- The Rough Guide to the Music of the Sahara (World Music Network) A-
- Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek (Streamline/Columbia/Interscope) B+
- Chris Butler: Easy Life (Future Fossil) B+
- Johnny Cash: Out Among the Stars (Columbia) B+
- Leonard Cohen: Popular Programs (Columbia) B+
- Mike Doughty: Stellar Motel (Snack Bar/Megaforce) B+
- Khun Narin Electric Phin Band: Khun Narin Electric Phin Band (Innovative Leisure) B+
- Spoon: They Want My Soul (Loma Vista/Republic) B+
- Tinariwen: Emmaar (Anti-) B+
- Lucinda Williams: Down Where the Spirit Meets the Bone (Highway 20) B+
- Get On Up: The James Brown Story (Polydor) B+
- Buck 65: Neverlove (WEA Canada) ***
- Cloud Nothings: Here and Nowhere Else (Carpark) ***
- The Delines: Colfax (El Cortez) ***
- Half Japanese: Overjoyed (Joyful Noise) ***
- Oumar Konate: Addoh (Clermont) ***
- LeCrae: Anomaly (Reach) ***
- Willie Nelson: Band of Brothers (Legacy) ***
- Jonathan Richman: No Me Quiejo De Mi Estrella (Vapor/Munster) ***
- Jenny Scheinman: The Littlest Prisoner (Masterworks) ***
- Tricky: Adrian Thaws (False Idols) ***
- Typefighter: The End of Everything (Huge Witch) ***
- Pharrell Williams: Girl (Columbia) ***
- The Rough Guide to Arabic Cafe (World Music Network) ***
- The Rough Guide to the Music of Mali (World Music Network) ***
- Rosanne Cash: The River and the Thread (Blue Note) **
- Cherub: Year of the Caprese (Columbia) **
- Keyshia Cole: Point of No Return (Interscope) **
- Open Mike Eagle: Dark Comedy (Fatbeats) **
- Flying Lotus: You're Dead (Warp) **
- Future: Honest (Epic) **
- Hard Working Americans: Hard Working Americans (Melvin) **
- Hard Working Americans: The First Waltz (Melvin) **
- John Hiatt: Terms of My Surrender (New West) **
- The Hold Steady: Teeth Dreams (Razor & Tie) **
- Kool & Kass Are . . . Peaceful Solutions: Coke Boys 5 (Bandcamp mixtape) **
- Nikki Lane: All or Nothin' (New West) **
- Modern Baseball: You're Gonna Miss It All (Run for Cover) **
- Moody Good: Moody Good (Owlsa) **
- Grant Peeples and the Peeples Republik: Punishing the Myth (Gatorbone) **
- Skrillex: Recess (Atlantic) **
- Stick Against Stone: Live: The Oregon Bootleg Tapes (Media Groove) **
- Lee Ann Womack: The Way I'm Livin' (Sugar Hill) **
- 1970's Algerian Folk and Pop (Sublime Frequencies) **
- All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs and Voice of Gregg Allman (Rounder) **
- The Rough Guide to the Music of Palestine (World Music Network) **
- Freddie Gibbs and Madlib: Pinata (Madlib Invazion) *
- Ghostface Killah: 38 Seasons (Tommy Boy) *
- Gucci Mane Featuring Young Thug: Purple Album: People Usually Ridicule the Powerful Lead by Example (1017 mixtape) *
- Brad Paisley: Moonshine in the Trunk (Arista Nashville) *
- Prince: Art Official Age (Warner Bros.) *
- Run the Jewels: Run the Jewels 2 (Mass Appeal) *
- Derek Senn: The Technological Breakthrough (dereksenn.com) *
- Sam Shalabi: Music for Arabs (Majmua Music) *
- T.I.: Paperwork (Grand Hustle) *
- Young Thug, Birdman, Rich Homie Quan: Birdman Presents Rich Gang: The Tour (free mixtape) *
That gives us 46 A-list albums already reviewed. In recent years,
Dean's Lists settled into two levels: 2008-10 and 2013 ranged from 65
to 72, while 2011-12 wound up at 92-93. The drop-off from 2012 to
2013 came after MSN cancelled Expert Witness around September, so
Christgau had less motivation to find the extra 20 albums that it
would have taken to continue 2011-12 levels. Even so, the 2013 list
includes 29 records that weren't reviewed in EW. (Eight of those 29
have subsequently been reviewed in the new Medium-based EW -- one
of those, Arcade Fire, with a reduced grade.)
Anyhow, it seems reasonable that when/if Christgau publishes a
2014 Dean's List, it will include another 20-25 thus far unreviewed
2014 albums, though probably not the 45-46 albums it would take to
reach 2011-12 levels.
2013
- Burial: Rival Dealer (Hyperdub) A
- Shaver: Shaver's Jewels: The Best of Shaver (New West) A
- Brandy Clark: 12 Stories (Slate Creek) A-
- The Dismemberment Plan: Uncanney Valley (Partisan) A-
- Kool A.D.: 63 (Bandcamp mixtape) A-
- Kool & Kass: Peaceful Solutions (Bandcamp mixtape) A-
- Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band: Take Me to the Land of Hell (Chimera Music) A-
- Parkay Quarts: Tally All the Things That You Broke (What's Your Rupture?) A-
- Lee Ranaldo and the Dust: Last Night on Earth (Matador) A-
- The Road to Jajouka: A Benefit Album (Howe) A-
- Kool A.D.: Not O.K. (Bandcamp mixtape) B+
- Robert Randolph and the Family Band: Lickety Split (Blue Note) B+
- Young Thug: 1017 Thug (free mixtape) B+
- Homeboy Sandman: All That I Hold Dear (Stones Throw) ***
- Jason Isbell: Southeastern (Southeastern) ***
- Jaipur Kawa Brass Band: Dance of the Cobra (Riverboat) ***
- Migos: Young Rich Niggas (free mixtape) ***
- Oneohtrix Point Never: R Plus Seven (Warp) ***
- Wire: Change Becomes Us (Pink Flag) ***
- Thomas Anderson: On Becoming Human (Out There) **
- Arcade Fire: Reflektor (Merge) **
- Big Sean: Hall of Fame (Def Jam) **
- Ry Cooder and Corridos Famosos: Live at the Great American Music Hall (Nonesuch/Perro Verde) **
- Oblivians: Desperation (In the Red) **
- Orchestre National de Mauritanie: Orchestre National de Mauritanie (Sahel Sounds) **
- Mavis Staples: One True Vine (Anti) **
- Sunwolf: Angel Eyes (El Rey) **
- Otis Taylor: My World Is Gone (Telarc) **
- Valerie June: Pushin' Against a Stone (Concord) **
- will.i.am: #Willpower (Interscope) **
- Defibulators: Debt'll Get 'Em (Pig Cow) *
- Mike Doughty: Circles Super Bon Bon (Snack Bar/Megaforce) *
- Kool A.D.: 19 (Bandcamp mixtape) *
- John Murry: The Graceless Age (Evangeline) *
- Swearin': Surfing Strange (Wichita) *
- Earl Sweatshirt: Doris (Columbia) *
- Wayo: Trance Percussion Masters of South Sudan (Riverboat) *
2012
- Young Thug: I Came From Nothing 3 (free mixtape) B+
- Sunmonx: Power Salad (Interchill) **
- Rework: Philip Glass Remixed (Orange Mountain) **
2011
- Jason Derulo: Future History (Warner Bros.) ***
- Bambara Mystic Soul: The Raw Sound of Burkina Faso 1974-1979 (Analog Africa) ***
- Young Thug: I Came From Nothing (free mixtape) **
- Sunny Sweeney: Concrete (Republic Nashville) *
2010
- Jinx Lennon: National Cancer Strategy (Septic Tiger) ***
2009
- Jinx Lennon: Trauma Themes Idiot Times (Septic Tiger) A-
2006
- Jinx Lennon: Know Your Station Gouger Nation!!! (Septic Tiger) A
2002
- Richmond Fontaine: Winnemucca (El Cortez) A-
2000
- Jinx Lennon: Live at the Spirit Store (Septic Tiger) **