6:59am

John Cale “Scotland Yard” from Shifty Adventures in Nookie Yard (Domino 2012) N  —Celebrating 2012 with a bunch of music that came out this year - not just my fave songs, but a lot of songs I didn't play on air this year. The new Cale is a good record - not great like his last one, but definitely a pleasure.Buy it!

7:08am

Eleni Mandell “Desert Song” from I Can See the Future (Yep Roc 2012) N  —A gentle, inviting, lilting recording.Buy it!

7:16am

Peter Karp & Sue Foley “At the Same Time” from Beyond the Crossroads (blind pig blindpigrecords.com 2012) N  —Great nasty jazzy blues song - killer horns on this one.Buy it!

7:24am

Neil Young & Crazy Horse “Jesus' Chariot” from Americana (Reprise 2012) N  —She'll be coming round the mountain when she comes. This isn't the way we sang it in grade school.Buy it!

7:36am

John Hiatt “Wood Chipper” from Mystic Pinball (New West 2012) N  —"I'm from the midwest, I know enough to cut a path around a wood chipper."Buy it!

7:45am

Shawn Colvin “I Don't Know You” from All Fall Down (Nonesuch 2012) N  —With Buddy Miller on guitar and at the production helm, Colvin made the best music I've heard from her.Buy it!

7:51am

Jerry Douglas “On a Monday” from Traveler (EOne 2012) N  —Killer take on the Leadbelly song.Buy it!

8:03am

Sleepy Kitty “Don't You Start” from single (Euclid 2012) N L —We're still waiting for a second album from this St. Louis duo (my very favorite guitar/drum/no bass combo in the world), but they did a nice 7" single this year.Buy it!

8:13am

Craig Finn “Apollo Bay” from Clear Heart Full Eyes (Vagrant www.vagrant.com 2012) —Okay, I was suspicious at the beginning of the year, but over time, this record has really grown on me, and now I'm not sure he should ever get back with the Hold Steady.Buy it!

8:22am

Carl Pandolfi “Space” from What Kind of Life (self 2012) N L —We are all going to need more space. This very talented St. Louisian put out a fascinating album a few months back - trying not to let it slip through the cracks.Buy it!

8:31am

Carolina Chocolate Drops “No Man's Mama” from Leaving Eden (Nonesuch 2012) —Here was another triumph for Buddy Miller as producer this year.Buy it!

8:40am

Madonna “Falling Free” from MDNA (Interscope 2012) —Madonna goes all Kate Bush in parts of this song.Buy it!

8:50am

The Explorers Club “Grand Hotel” (Rock Ridge 2012) —A simply happy number from a band that loves the mid-60s.Buy it!

8:55am

The Time Jumpers “Texoma Bound” from The Time Jumpers (Rounder 2012) N  —More instrumental fun, this time in a Western swing mode.Buy it!

9:08am

Chris Stamey “Astronomy” from Lovesick Blues (Bonus Track Version) (Yep Roc Records 2013) N  —Stamey has so many good songs in him that just 7 months after the dB's album, he's back with a really good solo record. Breaking the rules of only 2012 releases, but what the heck, why not?Buy it!

9:16am

Invisible System “Hode Baba” from Rough Guide to the Music of Ethiopia (World Music Network 2012) N  —Fascinating band from Ethiopia that mixes up all sorts of dance sounds from outside their native land - this one has a rich dub texture to it.Buy it!

9:25am

Sugarman 3 “Brother T.” from What the World Needs Now (Daptone 2012) —Instrumental finery.Buy it!

9:34am

Bettye Lavette “The More I Search (The More I Die)” from Thankful n' Thoughtful (Anti- 2012) N  —I was disappointed in this album - it's better than the last one, not as brilliant as the two before that. But, dangit, she's still Bettye LaVette, and even her disappointments are better than a lot of records.Buy it!

9:43am

Brothers Lazaroff “Picking Up Sticks” from Science Won (self 2012) L —I'm pretty sure I didn't get around to playing this cut - so many good songs on this record.Buy it!

9:49am

Kathy Mattea “Gone, Gonna Rise Again” from Calling Me Home (SUGAR HILL www.sugarhillrecords.com 2012) N  —I love Mattea's newfound Appalachian sound.Buy it!

9:55am

Magnetic Fields “The Machine In Your Hand” from Love at the Bottom of the Sea (Merge www.mergerecords.com 2012) —A love song from a skewed perspective.Buy it!