“It’s been so long since I’ve seen the ocean…”

James’s 2020 Year-End Review & Recommendations

BY JAMES

Another year over, a new one just begun. But this hasn’t been just any year. 2020 has become a byword synonymous with dumpster fires and shit shows, and it has earned that title honestly. A global pandemic; lockdown orders; furloughs; job losses; negative bank balances; illness; death; and an overall feeling that the world is as unsafe as it has ever been and is unlikely to turn the corner anytime soon.

In the US, the 2020 election outcome and the development of several promising coronavirus vaccines has offered most of us a glimmer of hope, but it still seems that we have a long way to go before we can crawl out of the hole we’re in and hopefully begin to move forward together toward that new and better normal. 

It was a hard year for us all. In my case, my immediate family lost our beloved toy poodle Pookie in March; a good friend of ours died from cancer in April; and in August, one of my uncles (a brother-in-law to my father who was like a true brother to him) died from COVID-19. The inability to travel or go pretty much anywhere stunted our emotional processes and made it impossible for us to properly grieve these losses. 

With that said, the year hasn’t been a complete disaster on every front. Many of us whose lives were uprooted and upended in 2020 found solace in things like music, books, TV shows, and movies. I know I have.

So to that end, I’m hitting you with my favorites of 2020 from the world of arts and entertainment, specifically music and books. These are things that hit me just right this year and I hope will hit right with you too. So check them out and let me know what you liked, as well as what you picked up in 2020 and would recommend.

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Favorite Albums of 2020

This is not an exhaustive list and is in no particular order. As with most years, I will still be discovering music from 2020 this year and beyond, and there are a couple recent albums from personal favs Nada Surf and Sigur Rós that I am just now getting to and still require some digestion. I’ll also include my 2020 playlist from Amazon Music for those who want to get a fuller taste of what tickled my ears this past year (apologies to the non-Amazon people; I was planning to reproduce the playlist on Spotify, but some of the songs weren’t available).

Pearl Jam: Gigaton

As someone who has been listening to Pearl Jam since the early ‘90s, I didn’t think they could put out their best album 30 years into their career, but they have done it. Some of their contemporaries released albums this year to lesser effect (see Alanis Morrisette and The Smashing Pumpkins, whose albums sadly just didn’t hit the mark for me this time around). This one held my attention from beginning to end on a regular basis in 2020, and the companion visual album was a moving and meditative experience.

Ondara: Folk n’ Roll Vol 1: Tales of Isolation

Tracy Chapman hasn’t released an album in over 12 years. If that makes you as sad as it should, I’ve got something that might help ease your suffering a bit. This album from Ondara (formerly J.S. Ondara) weaves guitar and vocals through timely tales of life in 2020 (hence the title “Tales of Isolation”) and does it with such effectiveness that I was reminded of the legendary Chapman at several points. 

My fingers are crossed that we’ll see another release from Ondara in 2021 and one from Tracy too.

The Lone Bellow: Half Moon Light

The Lone Bellow first blew me away in 2011 when I saw them open for The Civil Wars under the moniker Zach Williams and the Bellow. If I’m being completely honest, they stole the show that night. This is an act whose albums I have to listen to on release day, and this for me was another quality release. There is noticeable influence from producer Aaron Dessner of The National on this record, and Williams vocally at times sounds a lot to me like Bruce Hornsby in his prime. 

D Smoke: Black Habits

This one blindsided me. I didn’t catch the Netflix show Rhythm + Flow, but I love conscious hip-hop and Rhythm + Flow winner D Smoke’s full length album debut is packed with tracks that tell stories from an autobiographical standpoint and also tackle societal ills such as gentrification and disadvantaged kids that get caught in the system. His storytelling abilities shine on “Like My Daddy,” about Smoke’s relationship with his father, and “Free,” which recounts the loss of a friend from cancer. 

Childish Gambino: 3.15.20

Donald Glover is without a doubt one of the most talented artists of my generation, and he continues to prove it. 2020 was a year of surprise albums, and when this one dropped at donaldgloverpresents.com and vanished 24 hours later, I thought I had missed the album of the year, until it came back up again on the streaming platforms. In this follow-up to his tour-de-force 2016 album “Awaken, My Love!,” Glover (as Childish Gambino) further cements his place as one of the great artists of our time, channeling influences like Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson to create a hip-hop infused R&B tapestry that keeps me listening on repeat. 

Taylor Swift: “Folklore” and “Evermore”

Taylor Swift outdid herself this year—twice—dropping two stellar surprise albums in one year. Producer Aaron Dessner and his brother Bryce Dessner joined forces with Swift on both records, which feature collaborations with the likes of The National, Bon Iver, and Haim to great effect. Swift’s outings this year show what can happen when a truly talented artist is able to get free from the record contracts and predatory record producers and show what they are truly capable of. Swift was always great. Now we know just how great.

Chris Cornell: No One Sings Like You Anymore

2020 was a crap year, but let’s not forget it was a continuation of a pretty crappy timeline that included, in 2017, the tragic death of former Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell. This year brought us one more solo album from Cornell, and it’s a brilliant collection of cover songs. Sporting a title lifted from the lyrics of Soundgarden’s hit “Black Hole Sun,” its double meaning is pretty thinly veiled, as it reminds us all that nobody else sings like Cornell could. His cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2U” (also famously covered by Sinead O’Connor) drips with new meaning when we realize that, like Prince, Cornell is no longer with us. It’s hard not to recall the memory of Cornell’s untimely departure when he sings lines like, “All the flowers that you planted in the back yard/ All died when you went away...”

The Midnight: Horror Show

This one wins for most apropos album title of 2020 if nothing else. I’m a big fan of Retrowave/Synthwave/Synthpop music soaked in ‘80s nostalgia, and The Midnight are among the best in the genre. This is another “surprise” album on my list, and it’s an Amazon exclusive. The highlight on this one for me was their cover of 10,000 Maniacs’ “Because the Night.” 

Honorable Mention: Coheed & Cambria (feat. Rick Springfield): Jessie’s Girl 2

Another surprise in 2020, Coheed & Cambria entered the fray with this sequel to Rick Springfield’s ‘80s classic “Jessie’s Girl,” with an appearance in the song and accompanying music video by Springfield himself. 

My 2020 Playlist

Songs from the above albums and more are in my 2020 Playlist. Check it out and let me know what I should add!

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Favorite Books of 2020

I’m a slow reader, so I wasn’t able to get through nearly as many books this year as I would have liked, but here are a few that I found worth sharing. Feel free to hit me with your recommendations!

Happiness Becomes You: A Guide to Changing Your Life for Good by Tina Turner

Tina Turner is a true warrior of worldwide renown whose experience of overcoming abuse to become one of humanity's most famous solo performers is well known and documented, but not everyone knows about her deeply personal spiritual journey. In this book, Tina gives us an intimate glimpse into the practices that have grounded her for nearly half a century, helped her turn poison to medicine, and guided her toward becoming her truest and best self.

Turner’s Buddhism has been a central part of her survival story, and being a quasi-Buddhist myself, I loved reading her insights and how her practice of chanting, which she learned alongside legends like Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock, helped to transform her life and carry her through so many challenges.

Behold the Dreamers: A Novel by Imbolo Mbue

Originally published in 2017, this gem is one I picked up at the recommendation of my brilliant librarian wife, and I was not disappointed.  

A story of hope, suspense, and hardship, Behold the Dreamers traces the journey of a Cameroonian family trying to make it in New York City with the Great Recession looming. 

This Is What America Looks Like: My Journey from Refugee to Congresswoman by Ilhan Omar

This book was my companion read to Behold the Dreamers. I chose it because I specifically wanted to follow up a fictional novel about the difficulties faced by immigrants with a true story of a refugee who not only became a citizen but successfully ran for national public office.

Omar is an inspiration to so many, and after I read about her life as an immigrant, a mother, and a congresswoman, she had become a personal hero to me as well. 

Tell It to the World: an indigenous memoir by Stan Grant

Published in late 2019, Tell It To The World chronicles the lived experiences of international journalist Stan Grant, who was born into adversity and disadvantage as an Indigenous Aboriginal Australian, faced racism and discrimination throughout his life, and managed to become one of the nation’s leading journalists, traveling the globe for CNN.

This isn’t a book in which the author suggests people “pull themselves up by their bootstraps” just because he made it. Grant is very clear that he was fortunate to be given the right opportunities at the right time, and regularly cites James Baldwin as one of his chief inspirations.

Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell, Faith Erin Hicks

Another one from late 2019, This one is the first graphic novel from celebrated Y.A. author Rainbow Rowell. If you love fall, pumpkin patches, hay rides, corn mazes, and seasonal treats, you’ll “fall” for this tale of two high school seniors working their final shift on the last night of the pumpkin patch before they graduate high school and head off to college.

It’s a story of youth, of having big changes ahead, and the things, people, and places we leave behind.

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Thanks for sticking with me through this super long post. I hope you enjoy the recommendations and feel free to add some of your own as well. I leave you with a song from 1996 that for me completely captured the mood of this New Year.