I am a card-carrying public radio devotee

When I do stray from the lower bands, it's excrutiatingly difficult to listen to advertisements, babbling DJ's, and recycled play lists. Independent publicly supported radio offers a depth of music and special programming that you simply cannot find on the commercial dial.

This has been a great year for music -- Mariah Carey aside. A lot of sites have their 2005 Top Picks listed. I'll have to think about mine a bit more.

Meanwhile, my favorite IPR station, WYEP, has just opened shop in their fabulous new space in the South Side of Pittsburgh. It's a state of the art facility complete with a concert hall. WYEP brings a wide array of new artists into town each year. I'm very excited about the possibilities for compilation CD's drawn from studio performances in their new digs, not to mention some kick ass shows!

I saw quite a few live acts last year. Among the best performances:

1. Citizen Cope
2. Maia Sharp with Bonnie Raitt
3. Ray LaMontagne
4. Buddy Miller
5. Raul Malo
6. Mary Gauthier

Any of these are good bets for your concert dollars. I'll write more about each artist in the next Chewing the Clef.