Saturday morning, before heading out on adventures, I checked in, as I do, on social media, and found myself tagged by a friend with this:

Day X of 10 of my all-time favorite albums. 10 days. What really made an impact and is still on your rotation list, even if only now and then. Post the cover, no need to explain, and nominate a person each day to do the same. Nominated by XXXXXX, I now nominate XXXXXXX

This sort of thing, of course, is exactly the kind of thing that gets my brain churning. Music, if you know me, for me, is a very big deal. While I followed the rules over on social media, I’m reserving the right to extend my remarks over here, because this is my space, and I can do what I want. I’m a little behind, but I’ll catch up as time allows. Not in any particular order, though here we go.

Day One: The Clarks: Let It Go (2000)

I first caught these guys shortly after their previous record, Someday Maybe came out while they were exchanging headlining slots with The Badlees depending on which side of the Pennsylvania pop vs soda line they were playing on. I reviewed it in this space back in 2011 as part of the cut out racks series I had going for a while. A the time, I said this:

“It doesn’t matter that it was recorded in by a regional bar band from Pittsburgh on an indie label that didn’t get much play outside the rust belt northeast; in my not entirely humble opinion, it really ought to go down as one of the great modern rock records.”

That’s still true, though the title track (as I did not realize) got several bits of national exposure; in the 2001 film Summer Catch (which apparently no one saw) and as the closing credits music for the E! program “The Anna Nicole Show” (which I know I didn’t watch). This one’s just got a great tone and rock and roll vibe to it – “Better off Without You” just catches the turn-of-the-millenium zeitgeist for me. Bright and optimistic-sounding, even if the song’s about a break-up. This one never leaves my car USB drive (since I don’t have a CD player anymore).