Folk Alley Favorites: Best Albums of 2023
After receiving no less that 600 albums in our mail bin and inbox in 2023 and adding songs from over 300 new releases, it’s no small task boiling all the outstanding music we heard down to our Best (aka Favorites) of 2023.
Like every year, our ‘Best of’ lists are a balance of individual staff and host favorites, number of spins the albums received on Folk Alley, plus a reflection of the wide mix of genres we welcome under our umbrella.
To wrap up Folk Alley’s 20th Anniversary celebration this month, we give you our Top 20 Favorite Albums of 2023. Enjoy!
1. Margo Cilker – Valley of Heart’s Delight
2. William Prince – Stand In the Joy
3. Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway – City of Gold
4. Mighty Poplar – Mighty Poplar
5. Natalie Merchant – Keep Your Courage
6. Viv & Riley – Imaginary People
7. Joy Oladokun – Proof of Life
8. Jeffrey Martin – Thank God We Left the Garden
9. Hannah Read – The Fungi Sessions, Vol.1
10. Iris Dement – Workin’ On A World
11. Buffalo Nichols – The Fatalist
12. Mark Erelli – Lay Your Darkness Down
14. Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain & Edgar Meyer (feat. Rakesh Chaurasia) – As We Speak
15. Annie Bartholomew – Sisters of White Chapel
16. Alice Gerrard – Sun To Sun
17. Rhiannon Giddens – You’re the One
20. Lonesome Ace Stringband – Try to Make it Fly
