Editors' Choice for December 2012

Even in the singles-oriented field of late-'70s reggae, it's rare to find a compilation as fully essential and exciting as this anthology.

— Fred Thomas

Blur's concert at the conclusion of the 2012 London Olympics is captured on the triumphant Parklive.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

The sophomore effort from Blue Note’s first female signing is a stone killer example of jazz-funk in its prime, and one of her finest records.

— Thom Jurek

This Swedish songwriter moves further away from the soft chamber pop of her earliest work, incorporating more electronic elements into her dark pop.

— Fred Thomas

This killer three-disc set features one disc each of music and poetry, plus a complete, totally unreleased alternate version of Free Will.

— Thom Jurek

The final installment in Green Day's punk-pop trilogy of 2012 plays like a collection of enjoyable leftovers from its two predecessors.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

This collection from one of roots reggae's best-known vocalists shows his distinctive talent touching his best-known hits and obscurities alike.

— Fred Thomas

The album that introduced Interpol's compelling resuscitation of post-punk.

John Hartford's two 1970s Warner Bros. albums were alternative folk before anyone even had the notion of such a thing.

— Steve Leggett

Mammoth 63-disc box containing all the albums Johnny Cash recorded for Columbia, along with his first Sun LP and two discs of non-LP singles.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Ke$ha's second album Warrior is a gloriously tacky call to arms for freaks, burnouts, slackers, and white trash all around the world.

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine

All of the group's 29 singles for the Casablanca label are collected on this fan-aimed and well-executed set.

— David Jeffries

This from-the-vaults collection finds a young Mary Wells cycling through smoky soul, energetic Motown sounds, and loungy standards.

— Fred Thomas

Taking a meandering, proggy approach to chillwave, Dayve Hawk's third album may not exactly be gripping, but it's nice background music.

— Jason Lymangrover

The New Hampshire group's debut is a trippy dose of modern psychedelia that shifts between pretty melodies and fierce instrumental passages throughout.

— Tim Sendra

The excellent third volume in the great bluesman's Chess Masters series finds him at the crossroads where the 45 rpm single was giving way to the LP.

— Thom Jurek

Produced by T-Bone Burnett, this collection of actor performances from the hit series is a breath of fresh air for contemporary country.

— Thom Jurek

Frederic Rzewski's The People United Will Never Be Defeated! is a set of 36 variations for piano on a Chilean mass song and Kiilerich has an attractive obsessive quality that does the work good.

— James Manheim

The final strange, compelling, darkly humorous installment in the trilogy that began with 1995's Tilt and continued on 2006's The Drift.

— Thom Jurek

The Scottish fuzz-pop band's sophomore album features more anthemic, melodic rock, including the rousing slacker call to arms "Evil Dead."

— Matt Collar

With a long list of guest artists, the rapper skillfully explores the divine and the devilish, and how they both feed the soul.

— David Jeffries

The velvety-voiced reggae singer's first album in five years is a comfortable return to form and smooth as silk.

— David Jeffries

Willy Mason fuses his folk roots with personal lyrics and digital rhythms, taking an unexpected detour.

— James Wilkinson

The Australian garage rock trio's debut is a rough-hewn gem for every second of its 32 minutes.

— Jason Lymangrover