Chalk up another good year full of good music. I am fond of collecting data on what I have listened to rather than compiling a best-of collection. I do this because no artist is better than any other artist or band. That applies to album releases as well. To me, there are just differences. I listened to 585 different albums this year. That number does not consider the bucket full of singles or Apple curated lists that I listened to in twenty twenty-one or some of the albums I listened to on Apple Music, and it got stuck on repeat.

There are some solid contenders for the most listened-to spot. They are all winners to me. The most frequently listened-to album of 2021 was the perennial favourite, Dark Side of the Moon, with seven listens. We have nine copies of DSotM in our library, and I have been a steady listener of this album since it first landed on my turntable in 1973. I listened to other albums by Pink Floyd as well this year, I simply listen to Dark Side of the Moon more frequently. More frequent than other albums by Pink Floyd and more frequent than any other album in our library.

The second most frequently spun was Exotic Quixotic by Lusitanian Ghosts. I didn’t particularly like this album, but I kept repeatedly listening, hoping it would click eventually. Unfortunately, it never did.

There were several other contenders worth mentioning. The Tender Age by Ward White was a good listen. After white, we have black. As in Black to the Future by Sons Of Kemet. Not as strong as Your Queen Is A Reptile but still a good listen.

The most-listened-to band/artist for 2021 was The Beatles, with 18 album listens. It is interesting to note that out of those 18; there was only one album that got heard more than once. That album waw Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band which I listened to twice.

The top runner-up is a perennial favourite that makes a showing in this list every year, Various.

One most listened-to album within the category of various was Spiritual Jazz: The World. A very well-put-together collection of music that works together seamlessly.

The most-listened-to format in 2021 was streaming, with 337 out of the possible 585. Vinyl only had 120, although it seemed like more. We are in the digital era, so those numbers should be no surprise.

The year of release that I listened to the most was 2021. I heard a lot of new music now that I have been blogging submissions from various sources. 1969 to 1972 were all in double-digit listens as were 1975, 1977, 1979, 1982, 2006, and 2020. A bit of shotgun listening going on there.

I was some other music that moved my heart but didn’t make it onto any list. Here are a few, there are too many to mention all of them.

Cannonball Adderley, Sam Jones, Art Blakey, Hank Jones, Miles Davis on the LP Somethin’ Else from 1958.

King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King from 1969 and The Great Deceiver series from 2021.

TRAITRS Horses in the Abattoir 2021

Collect Call on The Golden Hour 2021

Anthony OKS on In The Garden 2021

So there it is, what Norman listened to in the year 2021. There was plenty of good music and none in there that I will call a stinker and never listen to again. It’s all good music, just different ways of putting it together.

I want to give a big shout out to some people who helped me with music appreciation this year:

Shauna McLarnon from Shameless Promotion PR contact@shamelesspromotionpr.com.

Johan Larsson from Mystic Sons johan@mysticsons.com 

Jack Dwyer from Mystic Sons jack@mysticsons.com

Johan Larsson from Mystic Sonsjohan@mysticsons.com