All Songs Considered

We take a motorcycle road trip to Wisconsin in our annual search for the true spirit of the season. And, of course, we meet some special guests along the way.

Thanks for another amazing year, and happy holidays!

Listen to the songs featured on this episode and more in our holiday playlist in Apple Music and Spotify.

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We get in our fast car, drive like a red wine supernova, and run into Kristine from the 7th grade.  Bad idea, right?

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We asked and you answered. Earlier this month, we opened the polls and invited All Songs Considered's listeners to tell us their top 5 records of the year. We tabulated all of the ballots, determined the top 10, and gave the results a proper countdown in this episode of All Songs. And while we usually include the albums we discuss in our episode notes, this time you'll have to listen to find out what made the list. (OK, fine, you can click here to see the top 50 vote-getters.)

NPR Music critic Sheldon Pearce joins host Robin Hilton.

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Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: allsongs@npr.org

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The sheer volume and variety of Spanish-language music released every year is breathtaking. Even those of us with our ears to the ground are bound to miss things. So, in this episode we travel back through the year to resurface some of the remarkable albums that somehow didn't make it on the show. Catch Afro-Caribbean jazz, a history-spanning classical strings project, the return of Juana Molina and much, much more.

Artists and albums featured in this episode:

- Alex Cuba, 'Índole'
- Enyel C, 'Nuevo Caribe'
- Berta Rojas, 'La Huella de las Cuerdas'
- Cazzu, 'Latinaje'
- Conrad Herwig, Eddie Palmieri and Luques Curtis, 'Reflections-Facing South'
- Juana Molina, 'DOGA'

This podcast episode was produced by Noah Caldwell. The executive producer of NPR Music is Suraya Mohamed.

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NPR listeners share the one song that hit them the hardest this year, and tell us why they laughed, cried, or simply couldn’t stop listening to it.


Featured songs and artists:
1. Annie DiRusso: "Back In Town," from Super Pedestrian

2. Tunde Adebimpe: "Drop," from Thee Black Boltz

3. Brandi Carlile: "You Without Me," from Returning To Myself

4. Bad Bunny: "DtMF," from DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS

5. Of Monsters And Men: "The End," from All Is Love And Pain In The Mouse Parade

6. Eph See: "Malachi The Uber Driver" (unreleased single)

7. Audra McDonald: "Rose's Turn," from Gypsy

8. Big Thief: "Los Angeles," from Double Infinity

9. Flock Of Dimes: "Afraid," from The Life You Save

10. Ben Rector: "Forever (Doesn't Quite Seem Long Enough)," from The Richest Man In The World


Enjoy the show? Share it with a friend and leave us a review on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 


Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: allsongs@npr.org

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