Dear Artists, Fans, Friends, and Anyone Reading This:

I have been compiling lists of my Favorite Albums of the year since I started reviewing for Wind and Wire magazine back in 1998. As the volume of reviews has grown each year, the more agonizing it’s become to choose just a few - or even 30!

2018 was an incredible year for new music! I reviewed 162 albums and 13 singles over the course of the year, and you might find it hard to believe, but there were very few that I didn’t like! It might seem that I have given an excessive number of albums “Pick” status, but I don’t do that to be nice. I honestly like that many albums - and often for very different reasons that include originality, versatility, mind-blowing chops, etc. I thought about breaking the Favorites into categories like solo piano, classical, electronic, Christmas, etc. but that still doesn’t work for me. Instead, I'm going to show a list of all of my "Picks" for the year. They are listed in the order I reviewed them starting with January.

So, I’m just going to congratulate all of the artists that I reviewed in 2018 for producing some of their best work ever. It is so inspiring as well as gratifying to hear such a fine body of new music over the course of the year, so please consider all of yourselves to be on my List of Favorites because you are!

Wishing everyone continued success and lots more wonderful music. You truly make the world a better place!

Kathy