Items14The creator’s order
  1. 1Bryter Layter (1971)Bryter Layter (1971)Released Jan 1, 1971The strings and woodwinds of “Hazey Jane I” make it easy to settle into a song that keeps asking where the singer has ended up. “Poor Boy” sets self-pity to a loose swing, with answering voices that almost make fun of it. Both arrangements let the uneasiness stay audible in a friendly sound.0
  2. 2Bachelor No. 2 (or, The Last Remains of the Dodo) (1999)Bachelor No. 2 (or, The Last Remains of the Dodo) (1999)Released Jan 1, 1999“Deathly” makes a request for distance in an arrangement that feels close and conversational. “Red Vines” puts disquiet into a light-moving tune you can carry away before the words are done. The smallness of the gestures is what makes the unease persuasive.0
  3. 3If You're Feeling Sinister (1996)If You're Feeling Sinister (1996)Released Jan 1, 1996Light guitar and bright horn touches make the record feel sociable. On “Get Me Away From Here, I’m Dying,” the tune moves faster than the singer seems able to make sense of his own unhappiness. The title song has a similar lift, with people privately looking for answers it can’t offer.0
  4. 4either/or (1997)either/or (1997)Released Jan 1, 1997Smith keeps his voice and acoustic guitar close on “Between the Bars,” giving the promises a tenderness that makes them harder to trust. The moving fingerpicked pattern on “Angeles” will draw you in just as the words begin to make an offer sound costly.0
  5. 5Gran Turismo (1998)Gran Turismo (1998)Released Jan 1, 1998Nina Persson’s soft delivery makes “Erase/Rewind” sound easy to approach, even as the repeating guitar and rhythm suggest that starting over may only send the singer around again. “My Favourite Game” keeps that smooth surface while the drive of the band makes the situation feel more urgent.0
  6. 6Atlanta Millionaires Club (2019)Atlanta Millionaires Club (2019)Released Jan 1, 2019“Right Side of My Neck” has a warmth that makes a trace of another person’s perfume easy to understand. By “Jonny (Reprise),” Webster is speaking over music that still sounds welcoming, while the words make the loneliness harder to avoid. The album keeps finding room for both.0
  7. 7Chet Baker Sings (1956)Chet Baker Sings (1956)Released Jan 1, 1956On the 14-track Pacific Jazz LP, Baker’s quiet voice and a small group make these songs easy company. In “I Get Along Without You Very Well,” the careful phrasing gives you time to hear each exception to that claim. “But Not for Me” keeps an easy pace while leaving the singer on the outside of the…0
  8. 8John Prine (1971)John Prine (1971)Released Jan 1, 1971The plain warmth of Prine’s delivery makes “Hello in There” feel like a visit instead of a speech about loneliness. “Sam Stone” follows a veteran’s addiction with a melody gentle enough to sing along to. That’s part of what makes hearing the words such a disquieting experience.0
  9. 9Fox Confessor Brings the Flood (2006)Fox Confessor Brings the Flood (2006)Released Jan 1, 2006Case’s voice can make the car and dark yard in “Star Witness” feel familiar even as the scene starts to turn frightening. “Hold On, Hold On” keeps the harmony buoyant while she decides what company she can bear. The original twelve-song sequence ends with “The Needle Has Landed.”0
  10. 10Heart Food (1973)Heart Food (1973)Released Jan 1, 1973The strings in “The Kiss” rise around Sill’s voice as though the song has reached somewhere safe. Follow that feeling all the way to “The Donor,” the last track on the original nine-song album. There, overlapping voices build into a repeated prayer that feels harder to resolve.0