Welcome, Ozzy. And thanks.

Thanks for ushering in Omaha’s musical year.

Ozzy Osbourne, who played last night at Qwest Center Omaha, is the first of a long line of artists who have area concerts in 2011.

There’s a wide range, from country to pop and big venues to small.

Check out our picks for the best concerts in the coming months (as well as our most-anticipated album releases).

Upcoming concerts

Rascal Flatts

Jan. 22 at Qwest Center Omaha

Next week, the country trio brings its “Nothing Like This Tour” to town to promote its new album called (you guessed it) “Nothing Like This.”

Interpol with School of Seven Bells

Feb. 9 at Slowdown

Nope, not the international police organization. It’s the indie band from New York. The band’s fourth album, “Interpol,” came out in 2010.

Pete Yorn with Ben Kweller

Feb. 19 at Whiskey Roadhouse

Rockers Yorn and Kweller both are veterans of many Omaha gigs. In interviews, Kweller has said he loves Omaha and Yorn spent months here recording his album “Back and Fourth,” so they both should be excited to see their Omaha fans again.

Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson

Feb. 26 at Holland Performing Arts Center

The two country legends will perform together, filling in verses, playing guitar and singing each other’s songs. They’ll also tell stories about their songs and their lives.

James Taylor with Ben Taylor

March 1 at The Orpheum Theater

You’ve seen fire and you’ve seen rain, but have you seen James Taylor sing it to you live? It’s much better that way than on that old, scratched greatest hits CD you’ve had for a decade. Trust us.

Split Lip Rayfield with Mountain Sprout

March 10 at Waiting Room Lounge

This Kansas group makes a habit of playing bluegrass so good that it could force a leather-clad metal head to tap his toes.

Lady Gaga

March 17 at Qwest Center Omaha

She spent the holidays here with her boyfriend, but this time Lady Gaga will perform in Omaha, the first time since she opened for New Kids on the Block here in 2008. Her Gaganess sold out this show quickly, so if you don’t have tickets, find someone who does, and buy or beg.

The Rural Alberta Advantage

April 21 at Slowdown

The Saddle Creek Records band will release a new album, “Departing,” in March, so a tour was sure to follow. The album will hit close to home. “In a way, it’s more personal stories about Alberta,” frontman Nils Edenloff told exclaim.ca.

Of Montreal

May 6 at Slowdown

After a show in Omaha in October, the band is back with a new EP. It’s a quick turnaround after releasing “False Priest” just a few months ago. “I was going through a pretty prolific period, and I was writing a lot. I had the choice to make (‘False Priest’) a double album or to just make it a little bit more palpable as a one-time listen,” Bandleader Kevin Barnes told us last year.

Taylor Swift

May 27 and May 28 in Omaha

The 21-year-old superstar will kick off her summer tour with a pair of concerts in Omaha. The most popular living artist, Swift is on a roll. She’s sold more albums than any other artist for two of the last three years (and was second to Michael Jackson in 2009 after his death).