The DJs and music directors at public radio stations have some of the best ears in the business. So we asked them to create a 24/7 channel collecting their favorite music of the year.

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Heavy Rotation: Public Radio's Top Songs Of 2012

Few artists were played as much on public radio this year as the Mercury Prize winners in Alt-J.

Jory Cordy

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If there's one thing public radio DJs know how to do, it's spot a great song. They spend the entire year combing through every album that shows up at their station and endlessly surfing the web, looking the world over for overlooked gems. It's nice work if you can get it.

So, as part of our look back at the year that was, we asked some of our colleagues across the country to share their 10 favorite songs of 2012. Then, we took those picks and created this continuous mix of the best the year had to offer: indie, roots, jazz, classical and even, courtesy of our friends at Q2 Music in New York, a little avant garde.

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Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

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