Here’s this year’s countdown.
| Rank | Album | Artist |
| 1 | The Rising | Bruce Springsteen |
| 2 | Come Away With Me | Norah Jones |
| 3 | Yankee Hotel Foxtrot | Wilco |
| 4 | Sea Change | Beck |
| 5 | Demolition | Ryan Adams |
| 6 | A Rush Of Blood To The Head | Coldplay |
| 7 | When I Was Cruel | Elvis Costello |
| 8 | Lost In Space | Aimee Mann |
| 9 | Scarlet’s Walk | Tori Amos |
| 10 | Stereo | Paul Westerberg |
| 11 | 1000 Kisses | Patty Griffin |
| 12 | Up | Peter Gabriel |
| 13 | Jerusalem | Steve Earle |
| 14 | Wait For Me | Susan Tedeschi |
| 15 | Down The Old Plank Road:The Nashville Sessions | The Chieftains |
| 16 | The Ragpicker’s Dream | Mark Knopfler |
| 17 | The Last DJ | Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers |
| 18 | Silver Lining | Bonnie Raitt |
| 19 | American IV: The Man Comes Around | Johnny Cash |
| 20 | Daybreaker | Beth Orton |
| 21 | Are You Passionate? | Neil Young |
| 22 | Brainwashed | George Harrison |
| 23 | So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter | Ani Difranco |
| 24 | This Side | Nickelcreek |
| 25 | I Am Sam [soundtrack] | Various Artists |
| 26 | A New Day At Midnight | David Gray |
| 27 | Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots | The Flaming Lips |
| 28 | Float Away With The Friday Night Gods | Marah |
| 29 | Barricades & Brickwalls | Kasey Chambers |
| 30 | My Ride’s Here | Warren Zevon |
| 31 | Blue Country Heart | Jorma Kaukonen |
| 32 | Greatest Hits | Bjork |
| 33 | Late Lit & Loaded | Blue Highways |
| 34 | For The Birds | The Frames |
| 35 | Live At The Wetlands | Robert Randolph & The Family Band |
| 36 | The Future That Was | Josh Joplin Group |
| 37 | Blood Money | Tom Waits |
| 38 | The Instigator | Rhett Miller |
| 39 | Have You Fed The Fish? | Badly Drawn Boy |
| 40 | The Last Broadcast | Doves |
| 41 | Sha Sha | Ben Kweller |
| 42 | Alice | Tom Waits |
| 43 | Australia | Howie Day |
| 44 | Talking To Strangers | Shemekia Copeland |
| 45 | While You Weren’t Looking | Caitlin Cary |
| 46 | Gold Stars 1992-2002: The Juliana Hatfield Collection | Juliana Hatfield |
| 47 | Songs In Red And Gray | Suzanne Vega |
| 48 | The Deep End Vol. 2 | Gov’t Mule |
| 49 | Old School Dropouts | The Connells |
| 50 | Courier-Live | Richard Shindell |
| 51 | Become You | Indigo Girls |
| 52 | Sebastopol | Jay Farrar |
| 53 | Forever | Cracker |
| 54 | The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most | Dashboard Confessional |
| 55 | Romantica | Luna |
| 56 | Smofe & Smang: Live In Minneapolis 2002 | Mike Doughty |
| 57 | Little Monster | Stringbean & The Stalkers |
| 58 | Ran on Pure Lightning | Shannon McNally & Neal Casal |
| 59 | Love Is Here | Starsailor |
| 60 | Any Old Time | Steve Forbert |
| 61 | Down The Road | Van Morrison |
| 62 | Cobblestone Runway | Ron Sexsmith |
| 63 | The Speed of Trees | Ellis Paul |
| 64 | Villians? | The Saw Doctors |
| 65 | Higher Ground | The Blind Boys Of Alabama |
| 66 | Round Room | Phish |
| 67 | 7 Worlds Collide-Live At The St James | Neil Finn |
| 68 | Sleeping on Roads | Neil Halstead |
| 69 | Riot Act | Pearl Jam |
| 70 | Twinemen | Twinemen |
| 71 | Heathen | David Bowie |
| 72 | Always Got Tonight | Chris Isaak |
| 73 | The Naked Ride Home | Jackson Browne |
| 74 | Big Swing Face | Bruce Hornsby |
| 75 | Sink or Swim | The Waifs |
| 76 | Belly of the Sun | Cassandra Wilson |
| 77 | The Memorial Hall Recordings | Mark Erelli |
| 78 | Jools Holland’s Big Band Rhythm & Blues | Jools Holland |
| 79 | Blue Horse | The Be Good Tanyas |
| 80 | 1 Giant Leap | 1 Giant Leap |
| 81 | In Our Gun | Gomez |
| 82 | When I Go (2002 Reissue) | Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer |
| 83 | Here Be Monsters | Ed Harcourt |
| 84 | About A Boy [soundtrack] | Badly Drawn Boy |
| 85 | Fashionably Late | Linda Thompson |
| 86 | Under Cold Blue Stars | Josh Rouse |
| 87 | One All | Neil Finn |
| 88 | Laugh | Keller Williams |
| 89 | Loose Screw | The Pretenders |
| 90 | Live at Bonnaroo | Various Artists |
