Classic albums

So we're wandering around Lhasa for 5 days surrounded by warm, friendly Tibetans with the biggest warmest smiles we've ever seen anywhere and we're wondering how in the hell are we ever going to befriend any of them considering half the people on the streets are tourists. The answer: The World Basketball Tour, of course!

Here they are, finally, My Picks For The Best 15 Albums and 40 Songs of 2007. I'm not necessarily claiming these are "The Best" albums and songs of the past year since there were thousands of albums and tens of thousands of songs released over the year and I simply haven't heard them all. What I am claiming, however, is that the selections you'll find below are my favorite tunes and discs from the past 12 months - damn good music, all of it. Enjoy! And let me know anything I've missed.

Kanye West is simply #$%*ing amazing! It's that simple and straightforward. There's just no denying he's one of the greatest artists working in the music industry today. Three classic albums in a row now. Three out of three. The first three of his career. Really now, how many artists have ever done that before?

Ok, so about 34 hours ago I wrote you about my great anticipation and excitement concerning the imminent release of Bob Dylan's new CD "Modern Times" and I sent along that 5-out-of-5-stars review/rave from Rolling Stone Magazine. Well, yesterday I picked up the CD while out running around for the day. Unbelievably, it wasn't until later that evening that I got home and finally was able to listen to the bloody thing. I sat down for my first two listens together with a couple of nice cold Pilsner Urquells (the original Pilsner from the city of Pilsen in the Czech Republic). The perfect combination: A brand new Bob CD and a couple of cold beers... and my son, Kaishan, dancing all around the room to the sound of the new music.

When it comes to raves, some things are simply more deserving than others. And while some newer things, such as The White Stripes, are definitely deserving of a rave, certain older things are in a whole other class and not only renew their rave worthiness year in and year out, but actually become better and better with each passing decade. One such thing, clearly, is The Rolling Stones' 1968 album "Beggars Banquet". A masterpiece if ever one was created! Heavily steeped in the blues, yet not a blues album, just a classic piece of rock 'n' roll perfection.

There's been some talk, maybe a little too much talk. And I've now been led to believe, from the comments of a few friends, that some people think that I actually believe Bob Dylan to be beyond criticism, that is, that he's somehow completely beyond reproach. And that, I've really gotta tell ya, is so far from the truth it's not funny. Yes, it is true that I've often referred to The Bob as a "god", but, what you've got to understand here is that my gods are a lot more like those old Greek and Roman gods than the supposedly-infallible god (God) of the Judeo-Christian tradition.

No ranting today, just raving. Like yin and yang, you've gotta have both for a balanced universe, right?

Anyhow, here's my challenge for all of you: Can anyone name a band that has put out more amazing music over the past 10 years than The White Stripes? I know I can't. I mean, it's pretty obvious that they have no real competition over the past 5 or 6 years - who else has put out 4 classic albums since 2000? - but what about over the past decade?

Ok, so after a 2-week break it's now time to return to the telling of our story of love: our love for Kerala, that is. Yes, our story of Rum, Rock 'n' Ram ('n' Soccer), Jew and Muslim Streets, Sewage River/Canal, Fort Kochi, loads of great music, Bill, The Thursday Night Party Club, A Bunch Of Guys Named Joe and more - all in the beauutiful, lush green, tropical Southern Indian state of Kerala. My first four Kerala letters only covered our first week in Kochi, so there's still a lot - a whole lot - more to tell.