I recently found my old CD album, the giant book of plastic sleeves that many of us tediously curated back in the day. Flipping through the pages, one by one, I smiled as I recalled memories — certain albums serving as soundtracks to highlights and lowlights of my teenage and early adult years. 

Editor’s Note: Since August 2012, Garret K. Woodward has held the position of arts and entertainment editor for The Smoky Mountain News. In December 2018, he also became a contributing writer for Rolling Stone.

Below are a handful of excerpts from my Rolling Stone travels this year covering some of the best albums of 2024, excursions that took me from Maine to Montana, Florida to New York, Utah to Kentucky and then some — always in search of all things beautiful and true, especially when it comes to the sacred act of live performance. 

As voters ponder the ballot for executive offices within the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians next month, they’ll be looking at a list of familiar names.