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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case Councilman stirs online dust-up with anti-marijuana post Visit birding hotspots along Bear Creek Greenway MADGE bust at Medford Walmart nets meth, $20,000 in cash Drug raid in Rogue River leads to two arrests Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case MADGE bust at Medford Walmart nets meth, $20,000 in cash Drug raid in Rogue River leads to two arrests Emergency services Fire reported twice at Eastwood home; second call was real thing Politics and Elections Councilman stirs online dust-up with anti-marijuana post State certifies recount showing failure of GMO-labeling measure Time running out for O&C funds GMO vote recount still shows little change GMO labeling votes recounted under careful watch in Jackson County Education Traveling artist sets the stage for Ruch School amphitheater Ruch school class focuses on the natural environment Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Logos may offer students 'fifth year' at RCC or SOU St. Mary's plays host to youth robotics tournament Environment Monument expansion expected to increase tourism, protect resources Biologist resigns over LNG reporting failure Bird flu discovered in Winston backyard flock Jackson County holds back on enforcing GMO ban for now No fish, no funding for problem dams State News Oregon minimum wage rises to $9.25 Storm brings snow, cold to West Idaho shooting victim supported gun rights Dam problems force early fish transfer into Willamette Valley lakes Portland mattress stowaway cat back home Nation - World Obama makes Maduro’s ‘insolent Yankees’ line harder to sell Obituaries Leonard Lyle Roberts Death Notices Sidney A. Stitt Edward James Kelly Dean Seaney Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable In memoriam: 2014’s notable deaths Looking back: Do you remember 2014’s biggest stories? Sports Latest Stories Ohio State’s Jones getting quite an education Ravens head of security charged with sex offense Going great lengths Lions’ Suh refuses to talk about incident Michigan AD Hackett: Harbaugh a long-term answer Varsity 541 College Sports Ohio State’s Jones getting quite an education Going great lengths Michigan AD Hackett: Harbaugh a long-term answer Facebook responses suggest Ducks win Balanced Beavers knock off Santa Barbara Pro Sports Ravens head of security charged with sex offense Lions’ Suh refuses to talk about incident Aldridge comes back strong in Blazers win Bryant's triple-double carries Lakers Lions’ Suh cleared top play Sunday Community Sports Business Latest Stories Rising prices bear fruit for local pear growers Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Milken economist headlines Southern Oregon Business Conference Ride & Drive: 2015 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Silvio Calabi: Infiniti Q50 offers business-class driving Real Estate News Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Rental owners group reports 2.48 percent vacancy rate More sales, but no change in residential housing median price People In Business People in Business, Dec. 3 Transportation Falling gas prices help spur travel at Medford airport Agriculture Rising prices bear fruit for local pear growers K-BAR ignites agriculture boom beneath Table Rocks Opinion Latest Granlund cartoon: Resolutions redux Matthew T. Mangino: Judges lament ‘Prosecution by PowerPoint’ Jim Brock: You don't have to take it anymore Our View: Caves expansion worth the wait Letters to the Editor, Dec. 31 Editorials Our View: Caves expansion worth the wait Other Views: Oregon incomes still lag behind Our View: Council is barking up the right tree Other Views: Roseburg VA director sets the right goals Our View: Thanks to four departing leaders Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Dec. 31 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 30 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 29 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 28 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 26 Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Loved one chose death with dignity in Oregon Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future Guest Opinion: Suit threatens family farms and democratic vote Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Lifestyle Latest stories Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Community blog: Ring in new flavors with year's last appetizers Community blog: We Don't Have To Conspire Against Good Health Mark L. Hopkins: New Year’s resolutions and more HealthStyle: New year, new you Food Community blog: Ring in new flavors with year's last appetizers Food for Thought: Tips for cooking when you have food allergies Food for Thought: Wintertime wining and dining Kitchen Call: The comfort of creamy soups Community blog: Baking contest finalists combine cookies, candies Home and Garden Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Dear Monty: Can a rookie real estate agent be a good choice? Bathtub or shower: What’s best for you? Home Help: Home safety tips for a safe and happy winter season How NOT to install drywall Health Community blog: We Don't Have To Conspire Against Good Health HealthStyle: New year, new you Health Watch: Build up your glutes in the off-season Dr. Jeff Hersh: What's a monoclonal antibody? Dr. Murray Feingold: Have a happy and stress-free holiday Hiking Biking Faith (No heading) Churches, synagogs host seasonal events Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Milestones and Achievements Local landowners see no public good in proposed pipeline Pear Blossom queen has open heart surgery Hundreds enjoy Christmas dinner, gifts at St. Vincent de Paul SinceYou Asked: SBA would work with Mt. Ashland Ski Area about loan Fans, friends and family welcome home victorious SOU team at airport Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories New Schneider Museum exhibits highlight First Friday Camelot's 'Fiddler' is a charmer Top 10 CDs of 2014 Ring in 2015 at a New Year's celebration near you Dobra Tea menu offers hundreds of brews Theater Camelot's 'Fiddler' is a charmer ACT presents reading of 'The Quality of Life' Meet the real Jacob Marley This Nutcracker ballet will have a superhero twist Plumbing the depths of meaning Music The Farr Side: Top 10 album count-up for 2014 Top 10 CDs of 2014 A tribute to Joe Cocker Ring in 2015 at a New Year's celebration near you SugarBeats headline an all-ages dance party at Historic Ashland Armory Community Events New Schneider Museum exhibits highlight First Friday Celebrate winter solstice with the Bad Film Society Tomaseen Foley's "A Celtic Christmas" returns to the Craterian Theater Stefan Baumann and Eugene Bennett highlight Third Fridays Dancing People Company celebrates the solstice Dining Dobra Tea menu offers hundreds of brews Food for Thought: Wintertime wining and dining Coffee shops roll out holiday-inspired drinks Over Easy serves 'pop-up' brunch Sundays Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case ... MADGE bust at Medford Walmart nets meth, $20,000 in cash ... Drug raid in Rogue River leads to two arrests ... Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case ... MADGE bust at Medford Walmart nets meth, $20,000 in cash ... Drug raid in Rogue River leads to two arrests ... Top 10 CDs of 2014 Comment By By Alan Sculley Last Word Features MailTribune.com By By Alan Sculley Last Word Features Posted Dec. 30, 2014 @ 12:37 pm By By Alan Sculley Last Word Features Posted Dec. 30, 2014 @ 12:37 pm » Social News In a year when vapid, disposable pop dominated the mainstream charts, it was still a superior year for music, thanks to strong contributions from the rock, country and Americana genres. In fact, it was such a good year that albums from the Black Keys, Tom Petty, the New Pornographers and Jack White — which would have cracked the top 10 in many other years — only made my honorable mention. So let’s celebrate a year that was deep in superior albums. They didn’t all light up the charts, but these albums sure brightened my year. No. 1 — Eric Church: “The Outsiders” (EMI) — One of mainstream country’s boldest artists, Church not only breaks new ground on “The Outsiders” — at times he completely obliterates it. He injects grimy funk, rap and good ol’ Southern rock into “That’s Damn Rock & Roll.” The title song, with its heavy texture and an adventurous instrumental passage that almost qualifies as prog-metal, is unlike anything anyone’s ever put on a country album. On the sassy “Cold One,” he suddenly upshifts into a furious fast-picking segment that puts a whole new spin on the song. Such brave and creative moments make the “The Outsiders” my album of the year. No. 2 — St. Vincent: “St. Vincent” — The artist otherwise known as Annie Clark goes even deeper into a synthy/electronic sound on this, her fourth album. And catchy left-of-center tunes like “Birth In Reverse,” “Regret” and “Digital Witness” suggest Clark is really hitting her stride now as a songwriter and performer. No. 3 — Lana Del Rey: “Ultraviolence” — On “Ultraviolence,” Del Rey sounds like she walked out of a scene in “Blue Velvet,” part seductress, part scarred survivor, yearning to tempt the thrill and hurt of love all over again. The music fits the “Blue Velvet” motif, too, as ballads like “Shades Of Cool,” “Pretty When You Cry” and “The Other Woman” are the musical equivalent of film noir, filled with the sensuality, danger and beauty that make “Ultraviolence” a captivating work. No. 4 — The Black Keys: “Turn Blue” — Once you get over the shock of hearing the dreamy Pink Floyd-ish textures of “Weight Of Love” or the sleek synthy soul of the title song and “10 Women,” the depth and creativity — not to mention quality — of “Turn Blue” shines through. This isn’t the garage-ish blues-rock of Black Keys albums gone by, but “Turn Blue” is fresh, exciting and it portends a future of wide-open musical possibilities. No. 5 — Rosanne Cash: “The River & the Thread” — With “The River & the Thread,” Cash explores her roots in the South — both geographically and in the music of the Delta region, specifically reclaiming her Memphis roots, while also tipping her hat to Alabama and Mississippi. Her perceptive and emotionally resonant thoughts are expressed in a collection of melodic rough-hewn ballads (balanced by the occasional friskier tune), making this a rich addition to Cash’s catalog of excellent albums. No. 6 — Sam Smith: “In The Lonely Hour” — With his falsetto to die for and several genuinely stunning soul-laced pop ballads — “I’m Not The Only One“ is as good as a ballad gets — Smith sounded destined for big things before he hauled in a half dozen 2015 Grammy nominations. Several songs could have easily gotten Manilow-esque over-production, but Smith’s producers wisely kept things fairly restrained, leaving space for Smith’s amazing voice to work its magic. No. 7 — Ty Segall: “Manipulator” — Eight releases into an adventurous career, Segall’s songwriting is sharp as ever on “Manipulator,” and he harnessed his wide ranging influences — punk, psychedelic, glam, metal, prog rock — to create his most musically focused effort yet No. 8 — St. Paul & The Broken Bones: “Half The City” — If “Half The City” had come out in the late '60s, it might have gone down as one of the era’s better soul albums. Instead it’s an auspicious debut from a band that already is the best of today’s new wave of soul acts. No. 9 — Miranda Lambert: “Platinum” — The whip-smart, rabble-rousing Lambert of her first four albums is very present on “Platinum.” But Lambert also finds room for a wistful ballad with “Smokin’ and Drinkin’” and ponders a time not long ago when people didn’t seem so entitled (on the song “Automatic”). Could a little more maturity and wisdom be creeping into Lambert’s music? Yes, and it adds some welcome color and depth to Lambert’s artistry on “Platinum.” No. 10 — Taylor Swift: “1989” — The glossy, synth-heavy sound of “1989” puts Swift squarely in step with today’s commercial pop trends. Fun, bouncy and catchy as can be, these songs (fortunately) also have more smarts than the vast majority of the fluff dominating pop radio. Sorry, Charli (and Ariana, Iggy, Miley), there’s a new queen of pop, and she came from Nashville. Honorable mentions: New Pornographer, “Brill Bruisers;” Foo Fighters, “Sonic Highways;” Rodney Crowell, “Tarpaper Sky;” Weezer, “Everything Will Be Alright in the End;” Tom Petty, “Hypnotic Eye;” Sharon Van Etten, “Are We There;” Jackson Browne, “Standing in the Breach;” Against Me! “Transgender Dysphoria Blues,” John Hiatt, “Terms of My Surrender;” Gaslight Anthem, “Get Hurt;” Jenny Lewis, “The Voyager;” Jack White, “Lazaretto;” Spoon, “They Want My Soul;” Leonard Cohen, “Popular Problems;” and The Both, “The Both.” By By Alan Sculley Last Word Features MailTribune.com By By Alan Sculley Last Word Features Posted Dec. 30, 2014 @ 12:37 pm » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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