OK, here’s my list. Stay tuned for Top 10s by Snider and Leilani.

1. Lucinda Williams: Little Honey (Lost Highway)
On Little Honey, alt-country queen Lucinda Williams returns to the more focused, rock-oriented sonics of her breakthrough 1998 album Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. In doing so, she reveals a newfound sexual confidence (”Honey Bee”) and celebrates domestic bliss (”Tears of Joy”). The singer/songwriter also manages to mine pathos for humor on the superb Elvis Costello duet “Jailhouse Tears.” Williams can still break your heart, though. “Little Rock Star” plays like a much-needed note to Amy Winehouse, penned by a sympathetic female singer who has already survived the perilous, do “whatever it’ll take to get them to listen” phase. Williams closes Little Honey with a fun treat: A surprisingly awesome swamp-rock cover of the AC/DC road warrior anthem “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna to Rock ‘n Roll).”

2. Lil Wayne: Tha Carter III (Cash Money)
Lil Wayne’s stoned, whisper-y flow and high-drama delivery is spellbinding. The dude opens his mouth, and you listen, hanging on each dazzlingly whack rhyme. On Tha Carter III, Weezy’s scattered-brain brilliance is in top form – as is the big budget production that dutifully follows Weezy’s serpentine flow like a hypnotized lover. The New Orleans native’s boasts, observations and musings are weirdly striking at nearly every turn (”I’m a young millionaire, tougher than Nigerian hair.”) Wayne still bulks at straight story telling, but to fault him for this would be like dissing Dali or Picasso for rebuking realism.

3. My Morning Jacket: Evil Urges (ATO)
Genre-hopping indeed rock outfit My Morning Jacket’s juiciest disc to date features a smattering of styles, all of which are rendered outstandingly natural by the Louisville band. There are moments of extreme sadness (”Librarian”) and utmost silliness (”Highly Suspicious.”) Leader Jim James’ versatile voice convincingly sells everything from guitar-blazing, kick drum-intensive arena rock (”Aluminum Park”) to somber country-pop (”Sec Walkin.) Unlike other ultra eclectic offerings, Evil Urges never comes across as show-y. You just get the sense that My Morning Jacket is doing what they love. And doing it damn well.

4. Robyn: Robyn (Konichiwa/Cherry Tree/Interscope)
This year former Swedish pop tart Robyn finally witnessed the U.S. release of her 2005 self-titled disc. Britney and the rest of our countrys’ brain-dead blowup dolls blew Robyn away in terms of sales, but the woman born Robin Miriam Carlsson in 1979 proved the most compelling of the bunch. By far. Over thick disco beats, jittery high hat, deep space bleeps and icy strings, Robyn subverts pop platitudes. She exudes sexiness, smarts, poise and vulnerability in a way rarely seen in a world where hottnes is defined by Paris Hilton.

5. Bob Dylan: Tell Tale Signs: The Bootleg Series Vol. 8 (Columbia)
The magnitude of Dylan’s late-career resurgence is brought into sharp focus here with a collection of “rare and unreleased” tracks recorded between 1989 and 2006. The two-disc set is a dud-free treasure chest featuring previously unreleased gems like the Time Out of My Mind outtake “Red River Shore” (an epic folk tale with spiritual overtones), the unreleased 2005 lament “Can’t Escape From You” and the superior Oh Mercy session version of “God Knows.” Another testament to Dylan’s genius is hearing drastically different “alternate takes” that are every bit as fascinating as the ones that made the final cut. Sequenced judicially, Tell Tale Signs plays like a stellar double-album by popular music’s most vital elder statesman.

6. Gnarls Barkley: The Odd Couple (Downtown/Atlantic)
Gnarls Barkley blew people’s minds with their 2006 debut St. Elsewhere. Its synthesis of producer Danger Mouse’s R&B-rap-future funk-fusion and Cee-Lo’s confessional vocals were unlike anything on the market. The duo’s follow-up, The Odd Couple, lacks a chart-shattering single like “Crazy.” But on balance, the new album is every bit as absorbing as its predecessor. With Danger Mouse’s spooky production egging him on, Cee-Lo continues to explore his fragile psyche and emotional well being, making for a mesmerizing foray into what we’ll call nocturnal soul.

7. The Hold Steady: Stay Positive (Vagrant)
The Hold Steady’s booze-y brand of classic rock for the indie set gets expanded, and frontman Craig Finn’s mouthful vocals become clearer, on Stay Positive, the Brooklyn band’s latest collection of gutter reports and tales of sing along song redemption. It’s a more polished Hold Steady. But a band this splendidly raw benefits from professional touches like pushing the vocals and occasional guitar solo up in the mix. And on “Joke About Jamaica,” we’re treated to the revival of the talk box. Ironic bullshit? Not to my ears.

8. Sonny Landreth: From the Reach (Landfall Records)
For nearly two decades, Sonny Landreth has been one of the most respected guitarists on the planet. But the Louisiana-based artist is also a capable singer/songwriter, and on From the Reach the slide guitar virtuoso shows he’s capable of a studio album that does more than frame his axe achievements. A cohesive blend of bayou rock, blues, jazz and touches of prog (”The Milky way Home’), the disc is a gripping showcase of excellent musicianship and emotive songs. Famous friends Jimmy Buffett, Eric Clapton, Robben Ford, Dr. John, Eric Johnson, and Mark Knopfler all make guest appearances – but no one outshines Landreth, who is at the top of his game here as a triple threat entertainer.

9. Metallica: Death Magnetic (Warner Bros.)
Rick Rubin miraculously returned Metallica to its thrash glory this year, which means the best metal act of the 1980s again reigns supreme. Metallica’s trademark recipe of whiplash-inducing riffs, slippery machine gun rhythms, and burly vocals about the innate horrors of the human existence results in a timeless mode of escapism. Especially for the male species. Glad to have ya back, fellas.

10. Jamey Johnson: That Lonesome Song (Mercury)
With a mighty pen and a gruff, expressive voice that straddles the line between George Jones and Waylon Jennings, singer/songwriter Jamey Johnson has become a key player in the latest movement to return Music City from Rascal Flatts fluff to the mature, sad country songs popularized by the so-called Nashville “outlaws” of the 1970s – most famously, Willie & Waylon. Johnson isn’t afraid to show his manly emotions on songs like the poignant, cocaine cautionary tale “High Cost of Low Living” or while singing about his WWII vet granddaddy (without getting sappy) on “In Color.” And on “Women,” Johnson has a hoot poking a little fun at the fairer sex. It’s country. The way it should be. Johnson performs tonight at Dallas Bull in Tampa.

• Top 20 songs of 2008.

• Honorable mentions: more best songs of 2008.

March will be a big month for more than just college hoops fans, with two of the year’s most anticipated releases dropping on the 25th. That’s the day shoppers will be treated to the Raconteurs’ (pictured) sophomore album Consolers of the Lonely. Yeah, Jack White & co. pulled a fast one, literally. They reportedly didn’t finish the album until the first week of March. Click “Read the rest of this entry” below for the complete statement posted on the band’s MySpace page.

Billboard.com also reported today that Gnarls Barkley has moved the release of their second album, The Odd Couple up two weeks to March 18 (via iTunes) . The disc was originally due April 8. The old-fashioned CD version will hits stores a week later, same day the Raconteurs’ disc drops.

From The Raconteurs’ MySpace page:

Monday, March 17, 2008

The Raconteurs Announce ’Consolers of the Lonely’ To Be Released March 25thThe Raconteurs are happy to announce that in one week’s time their second album, entitled “Consolers Of The Lonely”, will be available EVERYWHERE Tuesday, March 25th.”Album” meaning: full length vinyl, CD and digital formats; and “everywhere” meaning: local mom and pop Indie retailers, corporate superstores, supermarkets, iTunes, Amazon, the band’s own website and any other location that could get the record up and going this quickly (some places couldn’t move this fast, so they will join in as soon as they can).It contains 14 new recordings and is being released globally on Third Man Records in conjunction with our marketing/distribution partners, XL Recordings and Warner Brothers Records. The album was mastered and completed in the first week of March. It was then taken immediately to a vinyl pressing plant. Then to a CD pressing plant. Then preparations to sell it digitally began. March 25th became the soonest date to have it available in EVERY FORMAT AT ONCE. The band have done no interviews or advertisements for this record before this announcement. The purpose: to get the album to the fans as soon as possible and as we promised. We wanted to get this record to fans, the press, radio, etc., all at the EXACT SAME TIME so that no one has an upper hand on anyone else regarding it’s availability, reception or perception. With this release, The Raconteurs are forgoing the usual months of lead time for press and radio set up, as well as forgoing the all important “first week sales”. We wanted to explore the idea of releasing an album everywhere at once and THEN marketing and promoting it thereafter. The Raconteurs would rather this release not be defined by it’s first weeks sales, pre-release promotion, or by someone defining it FOR YOU before you get to hear it. Another purpose was to also allow people to have their own choice as to exactly which format they would like to hear the album in IMMEDIATELY, rather than having to wait for their favorite format to become available. The band are also not releasing any version of this record that contains bonus tracks. Musically this album will be the same as the band created it no matter what format it is purchased in (The sound quality of each format however, is a different story. The Raconteurs recommend hearing it on vinyl, but the choice is of course up to the listener). The band also prefer that fans buy the album as a whole instead of breaking up the tracks, but until iTunes and other digital services allows bands to release their albums with the option of NOT breaking it up, it will be sold in that fashion on those particular sites. On the band’s website however, the album will be sold in its entirety as an mp3 at 320kb bit rate. Also in Japan, fans will be able to download the record via their mobile phones, as that is how a majority of recorded music is consumed there. The reason we are announcing this release one week ahead of time is because of retail pre-ordering and stocking, information about this album’s imminent release was bound to come to light and could be confusing to fans. Also in the event that the record leaks, we didn’t want this method of release to be seen as a REACTION to such a leak. It’s not. The actual worst thing about a leak is the usual poor sound quality, akin to watching a movie on a wristwatch instead of in a theater. Which for the album’s creators is a bit of a letdown, but again, it is completely up to the listener. There will be a video up on the internet for the first single, “Salute Your Solution”, on the 25th as well, provided it gets edited in time. We just filmed it the other day! We hope not to confuse anyone with too many options, or deny them the formats that they like best. The Raconteurs feel very strongly that music has worth and should be treated as such. Thank you to all those who respect music in this fashion, and thank you to our label partners for working with us to get this album to fans in as many formats as possible all at once. Thank you, and we hope that you enjoy “Consolers Of The Lonely”. Sincerely, The Raconteurs

Featuring layered, highly danceable funk courtesy of Danger Mouse with a killer vocal and dark lyrics by Cee-Lo Green, Gnarls Barkley’s soultastic new groove “Run” easily ranks as the best single to drop in ‘08. Now, if only they’d do something about the video, which made me feel woozy and might make you have an epileptic seizure, according to Billboard. And the lame cameo by Justin Timberlake, who’s usually money when it comes to stuff like this, doesn’t help. Am I just a wuss or are the strobe effects a bit intense?

OK, just watched it again. Not only does the video kinda suck but it’s a health hazard. At least for me. Regardless, the song itself is more pop excellence from music’s most lethal duo.
Gnarls Barkley’s album The Odd Couple, the follow-up to their masterful 2006 debut St. Elsewhere, comes out April 8 and I couldn’t be more stoked. Been a Cee-Lo fan since back in high school when we used to drive around blasting Goodie Mob, digged his highly underrated solo discs and this Gnarls Barkley brilliance with Danger Mouse might go down as the most important music of the decade. For real.