Rest in Peace, Jimmy Carter

Happy 99th Birthday, President Jimmy Carter (October 1)

Happy 99th Birthday to President Jimmy Carter, one of my favorite people in the world. 

Just read his books and you will be grateful.

 

Best of 2018 in Music and Recordings

It is that time of the year where we take a look back and reflect on the best in entertainment.  As I said last week, when I reviewed my picks in Television; it has been a few years since I did this.  I have forgotten how much fun it was reflecting on such things, especially in a year with so much diversity.  Of course, if you go by the Billboard chart you may be a bit disappointed if you think you will find much of anything of merit there.  It has been a rough and repetitive year in "popular" music.  Maybe it is because I am getting older, but a lot of it sounds like crap to me.  If I can be so blunt. 

That being said, there are some gems there and I mostly stumbled upon some diamonds in the rough through friends and family, and people on my various social media platforms.  I create these lists to share with my public what I like, what I feel is the cream of the crop in these various fields of entertainment and my highest of recommendations.  

Per usual, some of my choices may surprise, but for the most part I am proud of my list (narrowed down to 31 entries, from my original shortlist of 62).  I still am baffled when critics can come up with just 10.  It helped me to concentrate on albums.  Childish Gambino's This Is America is actually the only "single" to make my list this year.  The other 30 are albums, audiobooks and a podcast.

All listed in alphabetical order by title.

Enjoy & be entertained.

A lot of these you can listen to (and watch) through dynamic searches on YouTube.  

Post Malone

BEERBONGS AND BENTLEYS

Kendrick Lamar and Various Artists,

BLACK PANTHER - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Trevor Noah

BORN A CRIME: STORIES FROM A SOUTH AFRICAN CHILDHOOD

Beck

COLORS

Questlove

CREATIVE QUEST

Migos

CULTURE II

Dua Lipa

DUA LIPA

Dave Chappelle

EQUANIMITY AND THE BIRD REVELATION

Kane Brown

EXPERIMENT

Jimmy Carter

FAITH - A JOURNEY FOR ALL

Sting & Shaggy

44/876

Leon Bridges

GOOD THING

Various Artists,

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Jon Batiste

HOLLYWOOD AFRICANS

Cardi B

INVASION OF PRIVACY

Marcus Miller

LAID BACK

Tiffany Haddish

THE LAST BLACK UNICORN

alexander.paak

OXNARD

XXXTentacion

?

Ziggy Marley

REBELLION RISES

Drake

SCORPION

U2

SONGS OF EXPERIENCE

Seal

STANDARDS

Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper & Various Artists

A STAR IS BORN - ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Lil Wayne

THA CARTER V

Bettye LaVette

THINGS HAVE CHANGED

Childish Gambino

THIS IS AMERICA

Luke Combs

THIS ONE'S FOR YOU

John Legend, Sara Bareilles, Alice Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon & Various Artists,

TIM RICE & ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER'S 

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR LIVE IN CONCERT

SOUNDTRACK

Barbra Streisand

WALLS

Miguel

WAR & LEISURE

GRAMMY WATCH – Children’s Album, Spoken Word Album and Comedy Album Categories: My Picks and Predictions

Here are my picks and predictions in these categories for The 58th Annual Grammy Awards.

Best Children's Album
• ¡Come Bien! Eat Right!
      José-Luis Orozco
      [Smithsonian Folkways Recordings]

• Dark Pie Concerns
      Gustafer Yellowgold
      [Apple-Eye Productions]

• Home
      Tim Kubart
      [Tim And The Space Cadets]

• How Great Can This Day Be
      Lori Henriques
      [Human Puppy Records]

• Trees
      Molly Ledford & Billy Kelly
      [Yay! Music]

My Pick & Prediction: ¡Come Bien! Eat Right!

~

Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling)
• Blood On Snow (Jo Nesbø)
      Patti Smith
      [Random House Audio]

• Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic Moments, And Assorted Hijinks
      Dick Cavett
      [Macmillan Audio]

• A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety
      Jimmy Carter
      [Simon & Schuster Audio]

• Patience And Sarah (Isabel Miller)
      Janis Ian & Jean Smart
      [Audible Studios]

• Yes Please
      Amy Poehler (& Various Artists)
      [HarperAudio]

While this is always a tough category for me, all who thrive in it better be ready for some stiff competition when President Barack Obama becomes a civilian again and gets back in the running. That being said, for me, the competition here is fierce!

My Pick: A FULL LIFE: REFLECTIONS AT NINETY

My Prediction: PATIENCE AND SARAH

~

Best Comedy Album
• Back To The Drawing Board
      Lisa Lampanelli
      [Comedy Dynamics]

• Brooklyn
      Wyatt Cenac
      [Other Music Recording]

• Happy. And A Lot.
      Jay Mohr
      [Lolflix Inc.]

• Just Being Honest
      Craig Ferguson
      [Lionsgate Records]

• Live At Madison Square Garden
      Louis C.K.
      [Comedy Dynamics]

My Pick and Prediction: LIVE AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN (no contest!)

THE 58^TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS will be telecast live on CBS, Monday February 15, 2016 at 8PM/EST – PM/PST.  For everything GRAMMY, including a Full List of this year’s Nominees visit their website at http://www.grammy.com/

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