Now that the pain of honorable mentions, and ties for places in the TFC Top Ten are over, it’s clear sailing to a number one CD that is, I kid you not, a modern American classic, and would rank in the top five of CD’s of the decade.

At number five is is Todd Snider – “The Excitement Plan”. This is another late comer to my ears, and while someone like Jay Farrar drones his lyrics for hypnotic-stream-of-consciousness effect, Todd, my buddy Todd, is right up front and wants you to taste and swill every word. Imagine someone like Jimmy Buffett or Kris Kristofferson settling in to tell the song and sing the story at the same time. Snider sinks his teeth into plenty of current social commentary, and stays just musical enough to keep you from squirming too hard from your own pain, or guilt over other’s misfortunes. He is more than willing to make an example of himself as a slacker, just on the other side of the law. Perhaps, if you have to listen to just one song, try “America’s Favorite Pastime” – about Doc Ellis pitching a no hitter on LSD. Then there’s “Corpus Christi Bay”, a song about two brothers and their lifestyles that went separate ways. If you are familiar with the “Island way”, you will recognize one of the brother’s lifestyles crystal clear. The coup de gras is “Money, Compliments, Publicity (song number 10)”.

Coming in at number four is Bob Dylan – “Together Through Life”. Dylan has been honing this sound for a few releases, and now it is mastered. No one has this sound, and I bet no one else could pull it off. Everyone I talk to struggles through this CD once, and gives up. I can’t find a single person who has listened to it twice. There’s the rub. This is one of those releases that needs to be de-corked and aired out. Play it again, and again. Let it rest awhile, and come back for more. Soon enough, you will drink the whole bottle and be left wanting more. I have little doubt that now that he has perfected this sound, he will abandon it for some new venture, a new labor to find a new sound, and he will drag us all along for the years it takes to get there. What a great ride so far. It’s all good.

In at number three is Wrinkle Neck Mules – “Let the Lead Fly”. The opening line, “Don’t just stand there. Raise your guns, and let the lead fly”, says it all. This is mountain honey – banjo, fiddle and a good heavy beat all make for a CD that easily finishes first if the next two artists had taken a year off. It doesn’t really sound like what I imagine to be bluegrass, but they have this loose, impromptu jam sound that takes you in and leaves you wanting more. Their sound turns on a dime, and the band is deep in talent. It’s hard to imagine where this band ends up, but with maturity and the grace of more years playing and touring together, you will be hearing about them in mainstream conversations in the not too distant future. Try listening to “Pleasure is the Absence of Pain”, and see what you think.

The funnel to the top gets tight, and I am indulging my well known weakness by choosing Wilco – “(The Album)” as the number two CD in the 2009 TFC Top Ten countdown. As hard as I tried to push them down the ladder, this release just sticks with you. It’s not like it’s “poppy”, or loaded with hooks. It’s just loaded with very good, well crafted songs. We saw them a few months ago, and they are the most accessible band I have ever seen. Jeff Tweedy has completely woven his personality into the show, and everyone benefits from it. If you were a doubter, or have never seen Wilco, one of the first things that you would probably say to yourself is, “Who does that singer think he is”? Then, you realize he’s talking with the crowd on equal footing, and having more fun at his expense than yours. He is just so opposite any lead musician (at this level of success) ever. I know ever is a long time, but I dare say that Jeff Tweedy may be changing what it means to be a rock-and-roll frontman. Long gone are the days of Kurt Cobain, may he rest in peace. However, all Tweedy charm aside, this band rocks and their sound is an original work of art.

Finally. This one was not difficult in the least. How often do you listen to a CD that causes an emotional reflex? How often do you listen to a singer and wonder how he’s doing it, how he’s hanging in there after what he’s been through? How often do you spin a CD, and say – this is it, it gets no better than this? I picked this one up, once it dropped at the stores, without even hearing a single note. I just knew. Levon Helm’s “Electric Dirt” is a departure from the Grammy winning “Dirt Farmer” CD of 2007. “Electric Dirt” is nominated this year for the Grammy for “Best Americana Album”, and will win that award. Go ahead and listen to “Golden Bird” if you have any doubts. OK, now listen to “Growing Trade” and get a glimpse into the future from where the legalization movement will come – “grass” roots, friends, Grass Roots.

Thanks so much again this year for reading the top ten, and I only hope this is less difficult next year. Maybe it is time to go to a top twenty. I think it may also be time to add a small list of music DVD’s to the countdown. There aren’t that many good releases in a given year, but there are still roughly three times more good music DVD’s than fly fishing DVD’s. There was one poster recommending music in all of 2009, and her recommendation did make the countdown, so feel free to throw down a musical challenge any time you have the urge to test these aging ears.

Just do it! One at a time, or the whole box.

OK, so this is the year I get to cheat a bit on my countdown. Think of it as like playing the game “Uno”- Cheat as much as you can version. Or, think of it as cheating at any game you play, but in this game of counting down the top ten music CD’s of 2009, everyone wins, although some win more than others.

This was an over the top bumper crop year for music that I believe should be in your ears on your way to wherever you go to fish. It’s not mutually exclusive to fly fishing, and never could be. This is music for the masses that just happens to hit the notes I believe fly folks have in their hearts and minds. Some of it reaches, and some of it could fall short of listenable for your taste. I welcome opinion from those who actually have heard the music of which they speak.

In order to expand this to CD’s that should be in your collection, but may not have made the top ten, I am expanding to include “Honorable Mentions” and the plausible, but somewhat wimpy “Tie”. Nobody particularly likes a tie, but until I go to a Top 20, and we can actually count 20 must have CD’s, we are going to have some “ties”.

HONORABLE MENTION MUSIC SELECTIONS OF 2009

Honorably mentioned(HM) CD’s are those that didn’t make the top ten, but are very good themselves. For example one honorable mention by Black Eyed Peas, “POD”, made the HM because they are masters of their sound, and it sounds just fantastic. For some reason though, I can’t remember a single tune off their last CD, meaning the music is good but really has no longevity. Also on the HM list are Lucero for their CD “Overton Park” (give that voice a rest and try again) and Dawes – “North Hills” (too much youthful love angst for most). The Monsters of Folk, a supergroup, had big buzz, but I just couldn’t get on board for the mishmash of sound (vocal) mixes that basically sapped the folk out of the sound.Close enough for the HM though. Rounding out the HM’s for 2009 is Imogen Heap. Sure if you’re a guy, you think “chick music” but chicks fish, and if you are in touch with … anyway she sounds fantastic, and the CD is a keeper because of the masterful production that sounds a bit like Peter Gabriel-light.

If you haven’t noticed, the Beatles are big again. They are everywhere, and Paul McCartney seems to have come out of his personal problems with a dogged determination to show the world he isn’t done yet. The newly released “Remasters 2009″ – all of them – come in at number 10 for 2009. Make no mistake, you will hear the difference in these CD’s and they sound great, with few exceptions. Start with your favorites, and work your way through to buying all of them. According to promotions, they are part of a limited release, whatever that means. Without these CD’s at number 10, it can be argued numbers 9 through one would not exist either. Think about that for a minute.

Coming in at a three-way tie for 9 is Wolfmother – “Cosmic Egg”, The Dead Weather – “Horehound” and Son Volt – “American Central Dust”. I like the obvious fascination Wolfmother has with American hard rock circa 1970′s, and they do the sound amplified justice. The Dead Weather, another super group running under the radar, has a stripped down sound that may not be easy listening, but is certainly worthwhile. To give you an idea of just how tough this year has been, Son Volt comes in at number nine, and that’s after I saw them at Dan’s Silverleaf trying these new tunes on for size before hitting the road hard. I feel a bit of a rut coming on for Jay, as his vocals seem to have become too well blended and the strain to understand lyrics begins to wear on my patience. Nevertheless, Son Volt, Jay Farrar – say no more.

In at number 8 is the double album by the Black Crowes – “After the Frost / Before the Freeze”. In all likelihood this one’s a Black Crowes masterpiece for the fans of the Black Crowes. It has a spontaneous live quality due to being recorded live with fans in the studio over five nights at the Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, New York. Remember that name Levon Helm – it comes up again much later.

In at number 7 (I told you this was a TOUGH year) is Ryan Bingham & Dead Horses release “Roadhouse Sun”. This is brutally low on the list for what it is, and what it is is a rock-and-roll gem. Bingham filed down the rough hoofs, reshod, and rides hard on the Dead Horses backs. Yeah, Bingham shows up, strong as ever, but now he has a “band” that will take him all the way to the end of the line. What seems to be developing here, whether intended or not, is the same escape mechanism Neil Young uses; there’s Neil Young and then there’s Neil Young with Crazy Horse. It’s no accident the band is called “Dead Horses”. Categorize this one as pure rock-and-roll, alt. nothing. If you still doubt the Beatles, listen to track 5 “Change is”.

Blazing up the backstretch, a last minute contender at number 6 is The Band of Heathens – “One Foot in the Ether”. I just got ahold of this one at the last minute, and am glad it found me. Sure they are out of Austin, but you can tell there’s no favoritism here at the annual TFC Music Countdown. Honestly, they get a boost from the fact they are new to my ears, they sound very mature and ready for the TFC Countdown limelight to shine down on them. Think Little Feat in their absolute prime.

Thanks for tuning in to Part 1 and be sure to check out the web site lala to hear some of the music recommended here – for free. The final five CD’s of 2009 are guaranteed to contain a surprise or two. It was just one of those years!

Podcast Video Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The calm time is one of those phenomenon that happens here and there, sometimes randomly, but usually in the morning just before the bite comes on and the sun comes along. If you close your eyes, you can visualize at least one calm time – perhaps recently, or perhaps from decades past. The water may reflect the sky, clouds or even a long gone boat or dock.

As the glass gives way to ripples, the vision of colors dancing can mesmerize and entice you into wondering what that day will bring. Calm always gives way to the elements of that day or the next. Calm never stays, it only visits, whether you are awake for it or sleeping through.

Today is not a calm day. There’s a winter storm bearing down on the middle US with a huge pinwheel of rain, snow and winds that forecast turbulence of epic proportions for Santa tonight. Tomorrow, Christmas day, it clears and kids and parents will bundle up and go outside to try out new toys, evidence of Santa’s superiority. For those of you caught in the nightmare of travel, sit back wherever you are, and read, surf and remain … calm. Even if you don’t fly fish, today you realize mother nature rules your day every day.

Feel Free to Think

So as you sit in the calm, safe and warm confines of wherever you are, take just one valuable second – I know how valuable each and every one is – and look at texasflycaster.com.

Are there any features it lacks or needs? Looking back at posts from two years ago, it’s easy to see the evolution of the site in content and character. 2009 was declared a make-or-break year, and it was evident by mid-year that the site is a make, but “change” for lack of a better term, is good. Rather than continuing to pimp the TFC ride, if parts need to be cut away, or more features added, this is your chance. The obvious assumption applies – silence is consent – to continue along the path of content and character you see evolving from last year and through next.

After finding a way to simply add a music player (Merry Christmas to you music lovers), the only other massive changes forecast is a new e-commerce page. That commerce will concentrate on unique and hard to find fly fishing items (suggestions are welcome). There is also a search on through the powers of WordPress, to create free standing user photo galleries. Those two things are all that remain in the way of changes in the feel of TFC. Statistics are showing the forum “The Fray” is the most consistently read page, although participation is minimal. That is how it was designed to work – snippets of information not necessarily worthy of full length posts, but needing audience participation.

As far as content goes, the balancing act – of fly fishing, food, music and culture – is one that is impossible to maintain with zero help from contributors. One of the spinning plates falls every year, and with luck one is glued back together to spin the next year. Maybe 2010 will see a restoration of that balancing act with the usual wobbles. It’s only partially up to the person behind the curtain.