Careening Around My Cranium with Daryll Collins #4!!!

I know I promised a Holiday Edition of my little wacky-assed column, but due to circumstances beyond my control it didn't happen. I trust that none of you were terribly distraught or crestfallen over this. So it's onward and upward with the first order of business for 2009 being...

MY TOP 20 FOR 2008!!!

This is in no particular order. Each release received ample playing time on CD and iPod over the course of '08. I didn't rate them 1 through 20 as that process gets too tedious. It's very rare that a release stands head and shoulders over all others by a large margin that I would bestow a clear cut #1 for the year. There are exceptions though... in 1986 XTC's SKYLARKING reigned supreme. I could not stop playing that disc. In fact it is my favorite album of the 80's. I suppose I could break them down into groups of six or seven as being more favorite than others, but really my taste is not your taste and vice versa. This is just a snapshot of what new music really floated my boat.

Also, I decided that both The Silver Seas - HIGH SOCIETY and Mike Viola's LURCH were 2007 releases. Otherwise they'd be on this list.

*The Simple Carnival - GIRLS, ALIENS, FOOD
*Jim Boggia - MISADVENTURES IN STEREO
*Black Stone Cherry - FOLKLORE AND SUPERSTITION
*Brent Cash - HOW WILL I KNOW IF I'M AWAKE?
*Jack McManus - EITHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT
*Rob Bonfiglio - BRING ON THE HAPPY
*Willie Wisely - WISELY
*Glenn Hughes - FIRST UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR KITCHEN
*Ron Sexsmith - EXIT STRATEGY OF THE SOUL
*Kelly Jones - SheBANG!
*The Goldbergs - UNDER THE RADAR
*Rick Springfield - VENUS IN OVERDRIVE
*Pugwash - ELEVEN MODERN ANTIQUES
*Jordan Zevon - INSIDES OUT
*The Pop Project - STARS OF STAGE AND SCREEN
*Roger Joseph Manning Jr. - CATNIP DYNAMITE
*Glen Campbell - MEET GLEN CAMPBELL
*Ike - WHERE TO BEGIN
*Todd Rundgren - ARENA
*All Day Sucker - THE BIG PRETEND

Two late 2008 releases/discoveries that I'm really diggin' are Fall Out Boys - FOLIE A DEUX and Paul Steel - APRIL & I.

DARYLL'S IPOD SHUFFLE - SPECIAL END OF 2008 EDITION!!!

Did I mention I have a separate iPod for music of the current year? My 2008 device has 1114 songs. I load new stuff, listen for a while and periodically delete everything but my favorites. Let's see what shakes out.

* Adrian Bourgeois - "My House"
* Amiel - "No Game To Play"
* All Day Sucker - "Santa Ana"
* Secret Powers - "We Are Alone"
* Greg Pope - "Sky Burn Down"
* Black Stone Cherry - "Devil's Queen"
* Jack McManus - "Milky Way"
* Cliff Hillis - "Elevator"
* Greg Pope - "Backwards"
* Dungen - "Mina Damer Och Fasner"

A MASSIVE UNDERTAKING

I got one of those ION turntables for Christmas in 2007. Since then, whenever I have a decent chunk of time I grab a small stack of records and convert them to digital files. Most of my favorite LPs have already been re-purchased as CDs, so it's mainly been a process of converting the single tracks from each album that I still like. I have about 200 albums left to plow through. And about 100 singles...

MUSIC, MOVIES & COMICS

In these tough economic times I've had to make some harsh decisions about my discretionary income. I've cut my movie-going by half, waiting to rent most films or seeing them on weekdays at reduced prices. (One of the perks of being self-employed!) If a movie I want to see is truly enhanced by seeing on the big screen, I'm there. But at $10 bucks a pop, I usually walk out of the theater feeling like I didn't get my money's worth.

Marvel comics are raising their prices by $1.00! DC will probably follow suit. Four bucks for a 22 page comic book is where I draw the line. I buy mostly indies anyway, but will now be cutting back on the books from the Big Two dramatically. And so it goes...

But... I'm holding the line with music. I will continue to buy as much music as possible, with emphasis on physical CDs. I'm old school that way. I guess of all my passions/interests, music reigns supreme.

This was cobbled together quickly. I'll have more soon. Until next time...

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Daryll Collins is a free-lance cartoonist/illustrator who has worked for a wide variety of clients including magazines and newspapers, advertising, greeting cards, character design & development, children's books, comic strips and gag cartoons. You can check out his work at www.daryllcollins.com