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NPR reviewer Tom Moon shares his picks for the year's best CDs, from the lo-fi, indie folk of Iron and Wine to a newly discovered live recording by Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane.

NPR music reviewer Meredith Ochs shares her picks for the year's best CDs, from the "sacred-meets-profane" rock of the White Stripes to outlaw country singer Merle Haggard.

Song of the Day editor Stephen Thompson listened to thousands of albums in 2006 before settling on these 10 frequently overlooked favorites.

The All Songs Considered and Tiny Desk host shares his favorite recordings of the year.

President Bush and the U.S. Senate turn their attention to immigration as the president helps to swear in new citizens while a Senate committee writes a bill to control the flow of undocumented workers. The full Senate is expected to debate the issue for the next two weeks.

The city of Chicago has one more thing to boast about: Its hometown orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, has been named America's top orchestra in a new critics' poll published in the venerable British magazine Gramophone.

Originally a popular Tumblr, Pop Sonnets makes iambic hay out of modern artists like Kesha and Eminem. Critic Tasha Robinson explains why Sonnets isn't your average impulse-buy humor book.

Fresh Air rock critic Ken Tucker offers his picks for the best music of the year, including Fiona Apple's latest album and a Bob Dylan DVD. He also addresses the topic of women in music, and he talks about the year in hip-hop. Tucker is the film critic for New York magazine.

World Cafe features daily interviews and live in-studio performances from seasoned music veterans and new sensations, in genres ranging from rock to blues to folk to alternative country and beyond. From NPR station WXPN, host David Dye chooses his favorite albums of 2006.

FolkAlley.com, an Internet folk-music service produced by NPR station WKSU in Kent, Ohio, specializes in a blend of contemporary and traditional singer/songwriters, Americana, roots, Celtic, bluegrass, world music and more. Here's a look at Folk Alley's picks for the best albums of 2006.