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New Mix: Some Of The Best Songs We Missed This Year

(Clockwise from upper left) Africaine 808, D.D Dumbo, The Frightnrs, Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band, Anthony Joseph.
Courtesy of the artists
(Clockwise from upper left) Africaine 808, D.D Dumbo, The Frightnrs, Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band, Anthony Joseph.

Bob Boilen and I, along with the rest of the NPR Music team, have been prepping for our year-end coverage by listening to hundreds of songs and albums in one big shared playlist. Along the way, we've all discovered stuff we hadn't heard before — and even fallen in love with some of it.

On this week's show, Bob and I share some of the artists and albums we missed before now, from Caribbean roots music by Anthony Joseph to the Boston-based funk group Lettuce and the idiosyncratic pop of D.D Dumbo.

NPR Music's Tom Huizenga stops by to talk about his favorite discovery from our year-end playlist: The Frightnrs, a band that lovingly recreates the retro sounds of reggae.—Robin Hilton

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

In 1988, a determined Bob Boilen started showing up on NPR's doorstep every day, looking for a way to contribute his skills in music and broadcasting to the network. His persistence paid off, and within a few weeks he was hired, on a temporary basis, to work for All Things Considered. Less than a year later, Boilen was directing the show and continued to do so for the next 18 years.
Robin Hilton is a producer and co-host of the popular NPR Music show All Songs Considered.

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