It has finally begun! On January 20, Looking Closer's look back at favorite recordings of 2021 has begun! Keep watch for Part Two and Part Three, coming soon.

[This post is dedicated to the Looking Closer Specialists — especially Laure Hittle, Timothy Grant, and Winston Chow — whose contributions make this website possible.] The word for this year was survive. The Holy Scriptures caution us that with increasing wisdom comes increasing pain, and that to love is to suffer. The

The countdown continues! Having listed my Honorable Mentions, I move on to my list of 35 favorite recordings from 2020. This post counts down #35–#21.

I've been publishing lists of my favorite albums annually since I was eleven years old. In the early days, I published them in little magazines that I wrote for an audience of one. Today, I offer them to you as treasure maps. You're invited to explore.