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Heartbreak Trail's Best Recordings of 2009

Hi all,
Yeah, I know what you're saying, not another list! But as a voice from the Great White North, I thought I'd give props to ten albums I think you non-Canadians would be wise to discover if you haven't already.
Following that is a further ten I believe were criminally overlooked in some cases.
Cheers, and thanks to all of you who regularly visit Heartbreak Trail.

Best Of Canada 2009

1. The Deep Dark Woods – Winter Hours (Black Hen)

2. Timber Timbre – s/t (Arts & Crafts)

3. Great Lake Swimmers – Lost Channels (Nettwerk)

4. The Warped 45s – 10 Day Poem For Saskatchewan (Pheromone)

5. Cuff The Duke – Way Down Here (Noble/Universal)

6. Blue Rodeo – The Things We Left Behind (Warner)

7. Corb Lund – Losin’ Lately Gambler (New West)

8. Carolyn Mark & NQ Arbuckle – Let’s Just Stay Here (Mint)

9. Dan Mangan – Nice, Nice, Very Nice (File Under: Music)

10. The Wooden Sky – If I Don’t Come Home You’ll Know I’m Gone (Black Box)

Best International

1. Alasdair Roberts – Spoils (Drag City)

All I can say is that if you are any kind of folk music fan at all, this will blow your mind.

2. Heartless Bastards – The Mountain (Fat Possum)

Erika Wennerstrom has one of the most powerful voices in American music today, period.

3. William Elliott Whitmore – Animals In The Dark (Anti)

Whitmore's old time approach is somehow stunningly contemporary.

4. (tie) Son Volt – American Central Dust (Rounder)

Jay Farrar and Benjamin Gibbard – One Fast Move Or I’m Gone (F-Stop/Atlantic)

This was a great year for Jay Farrar. His conviction makes Jeff Tweedy sound even more self-indulgent than he already is.

5. Scott H. Biram – Something’s Wrong/Lost Forever (Bloodshot)

A one-man blues-rock wrecking crew. He can write a damn good country song when he needs to too.

6. Left Lane Cruiser – All You Can Eat (Alive)

A two-man blues-rock wrecking crew. Recommended especially for those who think The Black Keys have gone soft.

7. Dave Rawlings Machine – A Friend Of A Friend (Acony)

It’s flippant to say this was the next best thing to a new Gillian Welch album, but really, it was.

8. The Avett Brothers – I And Love And You (American)

Emo-country? The term could lead to the end of music as we know it. Still, Rick Rubin’s guiding hand made this record something of a triumph of earnestness

9. Vetiver – Tight Knit (Sub Pop)

After a compelling album of obscure covers, they show off what they learned.

10. The Handsome Family – Honey Moon (Carrot Top)

Everyone’s favourite oddball couple never disappoints.

Comment by David Haskin on December 28, 2009 at 11:07am: You missed two by Canadian artists that made my personal Top 10 lists for the year:

-- The Wheat Pool: Hauntario. Less alt-countryish than Township, but still hauntingly beautiful.

-- Romi Mayes: Achin' in Yer Bones

I'd also include Rural Alberta Advantage (Hometowns). But technically, it's a 2008 self-release, although its widespread release on a label was in 2009.

Comment by Jason Schneider on December 28, 2009 at 11:34am: Thanks for the adds David. Yes, I'd recommend all those picks too. Thought Romi was 2008 as well, but who cares, it's a great record.

Comment by Stu Reid on December 28, 2009 at 12:50pm: Now the list is only missing C. R. Avery's "The Great Canadian Novel". If you missed it, don't worry - the revised re-issue will be out soon for '09. C. R., by the way, gets my nod for the most dynamic performer in the world right now, regardless of what one thinks of his records. And yes, that list includes Springsteen, Kanye, Bono and Fergie.

Comment by RP N10 on December 28, 2009 at 12:58pm: I'll double second The Wheat Pool's Hauntario - worth it for Lefty alone.
Also The Mountains and the Trees EP A Hop Skip And A Jump is one of my favourites of the year along with the latest Po' Girl incarnation's offering (OK they're only 50% Canadian now, but..) Deer In The Night.

Comment by Stu Reid on December 28, 2009 at 1:08pm: Ooh - also Leeroy Stagger's "Everything Is Real". Is he derivative of a dozen other artists? Sure. He's also currently a better songwriter than any of them.

Comment by Jerry Withrow on December 28, 2009 at 2:15pm: Sorry - heckuva year in Canadian music - but also missing Lee Harvey Osmond A Quiet Evil, Wendy Bird Natural Wonder, Madison Violet No Fool For Trying, Jim Byrnes My Walking Stick .... couldn't agree more about The Deep Dark Woods.

Comment by Easy Ed on December 28, 2009 at 2:52pm: If there's anywhere in Canada where the weather matches San Diego all year round...I'm ready to move. It's hard for me to find any Canadian-made music I don't like.