Exile In Guyville

Has sexual politics ever been better? More tuneful? More truthful? Smarter? When I'm listening to this, I'm inclined to say no. Especially now I've just learnt Phair wrote the whole thing as a track-by-track response to Exile On Main Street. It's also the birthplace of today's voguish Bedroom Rock sound (Japanese Breakfast, Soccer Mommy, Beabadoobee, to name a few from the last year). But somewhere along the line things got sadder, less melodic, less funny. What you get from Phair that you don't get from the new crop are the seemingly infitine personality facets. Here, Liz is a real cunt in Spring and your blowjob queen. She's tested by the male-dominated music industry to see how far she'll bend. She wants to be fuck you till your dick turns blue, jumps when you circle the cherry, and wants to be mesmerizing too. She also gets away with what the girls call murder, is done with the fuck and run game she's been playing since she was 12, and wants a boyfriend. But then again, the boys are just heroes "in a long line of heroes, looking for something attractive to save". And if you don't believe one person can be that complex, there are 18 songs on this thing. And if you don't believe one person can be that complex and prolfic AND consistent, marvel at how she's still able to pull a hook like Stratford-On-Guy out the bag at track 17. Just marvel.

If Exile in Guyville is shockingly assured and fully formed for a debut album, there are a number of reasons why. Most prominent of these is that many of the songs were initially essayed on Liz Phair's homemade cassette Girlysound, which means that the songs are essentially the cream of the crop from an exceptionally talented songwriter. Second, there's its structure, infamously patterned after the Stones' Exile on Main St., but not the song-by-song response Phair promoted it as. (Just try to match the albums up: is the "blow-job queen" fantasy of "Flower" really the answer to the painful elegy "Let It Loose"?) Then, most notably, there's Phair and producer Brad Wood's deft studio skills, bringing a variety of textures and moods to a basic, lo-fi production. There is as much hard rock as there are eerie solo piano pieces, and there's everything in between from unadulterated power pop, winking art rock, folk songs, and classic indie rock. Then, there are Phair's songs themselves. At the time, her gleefully profane, clever lyrics received endless attention (there's nothing that rock critics love more than a girl who plays into their geek fantasies, even -- or maybe especially -- if she's mocking them), but years later, what still astounds is the depth of the writing, how her music matches her clear-eyed, vivid words, whether it's on the self-loathing "Fuck and Run," the evocative mood piece "Stratford-on-Guy," or the swaggering breakup anthem "6'1"," or how she nails the dissolution of a long-term relationship on "The Divorce Song." Each of these 18 songs maintains this high level of quality, showcasing a singer/songwriter of immense imagination, musically and lyrically. If she never equaled this record, well, few could.

It was next to impossible to find new music in 1993, especially albums from a relatively new and obscure female artist who wanted to be your blow job queen and fuck you until your dick turns blue. The internet wasn't yet a thing, MTV and FM radio wouldn't touch such material, and we had to rely on reviews from Rolling Stone and Spin Magazine to even learn something like this existed. Even then, I don't recall any local record store carrying this album on cassette or compact disc, and I doubt Columbia House offered this album either. So it wasn't until the Wild West Era of Napster that I finally heard Exile In Guyville, and it's become one of my go-to albums ever since then. Sometimes I think this is the best debut album ever. It's certainly one of the top 5. Every song is written by Phair as a track by track response to the Stones' classic "Exile On Main Street". If the algorithm had any sense of humor, they'd recommend both albums consecutively to everyone. If listening on Spotify, make sure you listen to the remastered version with all 18 tracks available, as the link here goes to the old version where Spotify doesn't include some of the songs for whatever reason. Liz Phair would achieve more popular success after this landmark album, but never get back to this level of openness and rawness. A trailblazer like Liz Phair knew there's no way to top this masterpiece. If I could only keep 10 albums from this list, this would absolutely be one of them. Pour one out for the amazing Liz Phair. She'll fuck you and your minions, too.

Bold and brash. I loved this. Had never heard of if, but I can hear her in all the young solo artists that I listen to all the time now

Liiiiiz

What a journey I went on with this album. I listened to it in two parts. The first portion on Friday, where my experience of it was as interesting enough background music, that didn’t wrassle for my attention too strongly with whatever else I was doing. Today, though, I picked up where I left off - with Canary - and something had shifted. Maybe it was that England lost the biggest game they’d played in my lifetime in the most painful way possible, but I heard what I think Ms Phair was selling. Her songs suddenly struck me from two angles - 1.) the stark, surprising lyrics: chock full of a certain kind of sexual ennui, oscillating occasionally into revelry and back again. 2.) The songs themselves, roughly hewn, simple-sounding but they have the same punch as anything by that other purveyor of rough-hewn, simple-sounding guitar-led songs from the 90s, Kurt Cobain; and honestly, I realised she is the first artist I think to ever draw comparison with Kurt in my mind as a peer and equal rather than an imitator. And I realise that possibly sounds like damning with faint praise, but it’s not intended as such. I’m so pleased I didn’t just settle on basing my review on my experience of the first half of the album. Well worth it.

This album is weirdly both great and bland at the same time.

I don't think she can sing, but she does so anyway. The lyrics are not good either. I don't ever want to hear it again.

I’ve been hearing the hype about “Exile in Guyville” for years. Starkly confessional! Painfully raw! Sexually charged! After sitting with this on my “to-review” list for several months, I’ve decided the hype is justified, and “Exile” has turned out to excel in even more areas than I’d anticipated. First and foremost, the whole album is loaded with razor-sharp songwriting, dressed in the conceit that it responds to the eighteen songs of “Exile on Main St” track by track. In actual fact, “Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wizard of Oz” have a stronger synchronicity: this theme just seems like the loosest of springboards for Phair to bounce off and do whatever the hell she wants. And it hardly matters. I’d heard a lot about Phair’s lyrical powers, and they’re undeniably excellent. Yes, they’re frank and honest and raw, but there’s a lot of humour in there too with a winning conversational tone. Take the lines in “Soap Star Joe”, a withering put down to a self-aggrandising rockstar: “check out the thinning hair, check out the aftershave; check out America, you’re looking at it babe.” Then, album centrepiece “Fuck and Run” is a bleak admission of how long she’s had to play men’s games: certainly since seventeen, and even when she was twelve. Elsewhere, there’s a delicious c-bomb in “Dance of the Seven Veils”, a dry and skeletal inversion of the Beach Boys’ swinging surf in “Girls! Girls! Girls!”, and an astonishingly frank expression of sexuality in “Flower”. I dread to think of the unwarranted attention she received from male “fans” after releasing it. I wasn’t prepared for Phair’s gift for melody. The more mellow tracks on “Guyville” are some of my favourites, displaying a perfect synthesis between Phair’s deft, cavernous open strumming and her unadorned, low vocal. This is captured best of all on album highlight “Explain It To Me”: sweet without being sugary, sad without being melodramatic, simple without being dull. It, “Shatter” and “Canary” (with a nice departure from guitar in favour of piano) form a gorgeous triptych of sad-Phair. Then there are the big hits. “6’1””: a crisp, biting introduction to Guyville! “Never Said”: a one note guitar line all the way to heaven, complete with wonderfully sloppy backing “ahhhs”! “Stratford on Guy”: a perfectly rendered, sharply hooky insight into Phair’s state of mind on a flight. In short: I’ve found a new fave. “Exile on Main St” will never sound the same again.

Turns out Liz Phair isn't a great singer. I assume this album was chosen because of it's writing...but it's hard to pay attention to the lyrics when the singing is so bad.

This record exhausted me. I remember the buzz after its release, hearing about how "revolutionary" it was. Was it? Is it? After all this time and a re-listen the remaster actually does give it a little more sheen (I'm very much not a low-fi fan)... the music is sometimes just "ok" (actually "Shatter" could or should be a great song) but sweet fancy moses there's no getting by her voice which is absolutely unmanageable and the up-front and dry mix (lo-fi!) does absolutely zero favours to. Was this album cool because of her "bold language?" Maybe. Ordinarily I'm all for it but not in and of itself - for the most part it's used in such a stupid high school back row of the class teenage-giggly way and as a result most of these songs just are a sloppy pile of absolutely nothing. If you get off on "pushing boundaries" in the sense that being edgy with sex and language in music is super important - or maybe all that's important - then go for it here. If you're of the theory that even if your lyrics have the effort of repeating a kindergarten nursery rhyme but you still need to put some effort and thought and creativity into actually freaking making art then you'll probably feel as I do after enduring this. This revolution should not have been televised and instead should have been exiled to the "do not release" pile. 2/10 1 star.

This album is badass and awesome. Required listening for young women.

I remember feeling empowered by this album in high school and that feeling remains. The low-fi guitar, mixed with funny yet true lyrics does what feminism does best…make sure that everyone knows that anything a guy can do, a girl can do as good, if not better. Though this album is situated in the 90’s, it is timeless and forward thinking.

One of the worst things I've ever endured.

6'1"

Great and groundbreaking

Really enjoyed the album

This was really good!

this album has so much personality to it. fantastic storytelling. the lyrical style reminds me of mitski at times but its even better. i think it could've used a little more musical variety, a lot of the melodies got monotonous, although overall the energy/pacing was good. 9/10

What a killer rock album. Excellent songwriting throughout and killer tunes to match. Every song is POWERFUL.

I really should’ve listened to this long ago. It’s very much my shit. Great songwriting, shaggy, yet just polished enough production. Definitely earns the hype.

Pretty bad ass!

These are good songs and I think they are holding up well. Love the idea of this album being a song by song reply to Exile on Main Street. The stripped down sound is perfect. Didn't connect until this listen that "Shatter" is often used as background music for This American Life.

For someone who cares so much about musicianship, it might seem odd that I like Exile in Guyville so much. Liz Phair isn't much of a guitarist, and has a rough voice, to be generous. But the songwriting! The way Phair structures the songs on Exile is clever, interesting, and wholly original. The skeletal arrangements actually work in the album's favor, accentuating the songwriting and lyrics, which are uniformly wonderful. And for all of Phair's technical shortcomings as a singer, her interpretive skills set these songs on fire--she's completely naked emotionally. And, if that weren't enough, there's tremendous range in these songs, from rockers to drones and everything in between. Damned near perfect for what it is.

Really fantastic. Great attitude, equal parts funny and strong. I've grown to be a big fan of this kind of music of late with artists like Soccer Mommy and Mitski, so to hear something from '93 this good has made me very happy.

I LOVE HER!!! Liz Phair, your music helped define my 2021! 4.5

idk ! not my thing i didnt like the sound sorry women everywhere

Skipped it

I only made it through half... It's like a teenage girl singing her inner monologue.

Nope

A couple of questions gnawing at me after first listen. Who thought it was a good idea to give this woman a mic? And then who thought it was a good idea to let them into the studio to produce an album? And finally, who listened to this and thought this would be a great addition to the best albums of all time. Outside of all the Elvis Costello trash, this album is defintely one of teh biggest headscratchers for me.

Good album, enjoyed it a lot! Very well done, will need to revisit to listen more

Really really liked this, great album with some catchy songs and some pretty slow ones, nice variety and a very good listen!

lmao how did she go from this to “you’re being a penis… colada that is!” A

Some cracking tunes!

Seminal album of my young adulthood. I discovered Liz Phair in college and immediately related to everything she was singing about. The ideas of empowered female sexuality, owning your desires, and deciding for yourself what your narrative will be in relationships resonated deeply with me. I love her minimalist production too. The songs are so well-written, so sharply observant, biting and acerbic with a cynicism unheard of at her age. But damn if there aren’t sad pathetic little nuggets of optimism throughout as well. You root for this girl, you believe in this girl, you are this girl. Her dry monotone vocals shouldn’t work, but they do. They’re somehow sultry and raw all at once. Phenomenal album from a unique talent and a powerful voice we needed at this time. Thank you Liz for helping me feel empowered about my burgeoning sexuality and for helping me feel seen.

Rounded up to 5. Liz Phair is a mix of singer-songwriter and grunge rock. You'll be able to relate to this if you've ever been a mess, had a bad relationship or dealt with shitty men.

I forgot how brilliant this album is at times. Sometimes it flags, but mostly it rocks and still feels relevant.

Ég verð bara að játa að mér fannst þetta algjörlega stórkostleg plata! MIkið var gaman að finna eitthvað sem maður hefur aldrei vitað af!

For some reason I just loved the album. Even tho it was mostly pop music, I found it really different from the rest of the genre.

I love this album

So glad to revisit this. Amazing 😻

Her Best works. Love Liz Phair and this album. Listened like 50x seen her 1 x

what a nice album, i wonder what style she'll go in 2010. on a serious note, this is one of the best-written albums i've ever heard and it almost justifies every strange turn in her career. i mean if you've wrote "divorce song", every other album could be like "funstyle" and i could not care less. extraordinary album.

Garagione. Semplice, con chitarre sporche il giusto, voce profonda, testi taglienti, autoconsapevole della distruzione, autoironica. GRRRL!

Great album that covers different types of music- hard rock, soft rock, and soft hearted songs. It feels like a collection of greatest hits not a debut. This album is a response to the rolling stones album of a similar name which was very sexiest. That’s one of the reasons I love this album. The songs are all from a place of hating how the world is structured all around men and the anger that comes from that.

Liz Phair is awesome and Matador Records is arguably the most important American record label of the last 40 years. I don’t feel like there’s much else I need to add here.

Top 5 album of the 90s. If you don;t like this you probably loved some pure shit like Aerosmith or the Eagles. It's true.

Lke catching up with an old friend today, knew every word even though it has been years; a constant in the office CD pile through 93/94. The original and best of its kind, some choice lyrics and tunes throughout the whole 18. "Divorce Song" remains an all-time favorite. Shame she never did anything close to this afterwards.

Very intense, raw energy to it.

All I had heard was "Why Can't I?" but I knew she was a staple of the 90s when it came to rocker females. And rock she did.

это альбом с не самым сильным женским голосом, не самым лучшим продакшеном, но он узнаваем. этот красивый и милый инди-поп с примесью кантри не собирался стать великим, но критики решили на него молиться. альбом обладает несколькими мощными хитами вроде «Never Said» и «Fuck and Run», которые для целого поколения стали родными. Смотря на такое восхваление критиков возникает важный вопрос, а слушали ли критики вторую часть альбома, ведь если убрать четыре песни из промежутка «Girls! Girls! Girls!» до «Flower», то изменится лишь хронометраж. Поэтому 4, недотянуто до идеала.

Don’t know about the exile on Main Street connection, but great nonetheless

Great album, edgy Kate Bush that sounds like it's had a lot of influence on heaps of alt rock punk stuff around today especially in Aus. Dance of the Seven Veils, Mesmerising, Girls!.., Divorce Song all massive tunes.

Not my thing. Although I can appreciate what this is, and some songs like F and Run kinda struck an interesting nerve. Almost like Cody Chestnutt did in a way.

I find this very ovverated critically... it’s a solid record for sure. I don’t see this worthy of all the perfect reviews

this was rly good

Yeah!

I can see how this is on this list. It's not my favorite style of music but I did enjoy some of the lyrics.

Feels like a usual indie rock album, it's a bit too long but it's enjoyable. Lots of tracks aren't that unique though, some of them feel too generic

Not terrible, but not my favorite either. I like Liz's voice.

The dirge-like grunge voice dates this within a few seconds of play and I found the first few songs dull. The blow job-cunt lyrics provoke in the pointless manner beloved of my generation, and the de rigeur Prozac’d detachment in their delivery gets grey quick along with the wash of nondescript guitar on most of the tracks. Still, there are touches - the blast of harmonica on “Soap Star Joe”, the surprisingly cute guitar solo of “Mesmerizing” - that break monotony, and “Never Said” is a decent yell-along. The record has enough rockers here to make a strong 35 minutes.

Maybe she wouldn’t like to hear it, but she is a modern goddess and this is her “birth of the Venus”. This album is a life and sexuality manifesto coming from what you’d call a normal suburban girl from the 90s. It is sincere and yet ambitious. From the cover, with the iconic black and white photo - a wide open mouth and naked chest, like screaming “I’m tired of keeping this to myself, I’ll tell it all, guys”- and the purple font with the title of the album -a reference to “Exile on main St.”- you can tell what it’s coming: a girl fantasizing about freedom and happiness in a male-dominated world. Love how Liz Phair invites us to her head to see how she unfolds this story… so pure. Regarding to the music, I think that the sequencing is perfect and, oh gosh, the creamy guitar tone always gets me. The downside of this work could be the number of songs, maybe a lot for many people, but it’s justified for the concept of the work itself: a track by track response to The Rolling Stones legendary album. If not all the songs are fantastic, the place this album has for me is well-earned for its impact on pop culture (and I’m not going to lie, I have a crush on Liz, too, so fuck it, I’m giving it 5 stars)

This is, without a doubt, one of the more realized, original, and expressively uninhibited debuts in rock history.

This album is an aggressive feminist alternative masterpiece. The jangly guitar playing in particular reminds me of something the Smiths might play though it has been co-opted into more of a grungy style. The lyrics are confessional, angry, occasionally transgressive and openly talk about female sexuality. The candor with which Liz Phair sings is arresting and pleasantly surprised me. The closest album I can think of is Jagged Little Pill though I think this is the better album overall.

An all time favourite of mine. Never hit this level again and that’s ok.

I wish I had heard this album when it was released. Someone gave me a copy of her album, Whip-Smart, which I loved. But I didn't hear this album until the early 2000's. It's such a great album.

I was introduced to Liz Phair and this album by a friend about ten years after its release. I spent the early 2000s listening to a lot of Liz Phair. It was great to reconnect to this today. I listened to the remaster and it sounds terrific! Liz Phair has that imperfect delivery that makes these songs really special to me. There's real passion and emotion driving these song that connects with me every time.

At first, this just had a vague 90s indie sound that is not generally my jam. But I warmed up to it pretty quick. Her voice has an interesting atonal tone and I found many of the songs musically and lyrically compelling.

I have listened to some Liz Phair before, but never a full album. I really enjoyed the sound and experience!

Wow! This was great. Loved the music, voice, lyrics. So exciting to see an artist like this burst out with something really exceptional.

This album turned 30 years old yesterday The first time I encountered Liz Phair was in the 2000s and she had that song Why Can’t I come out and it was all over MuchMusic and the radio (seems like it’s her most popular song on Apple Music). All of the stuff I was reading about her though was about how she had sold out, wasted potential and now she’s just pop music. The other time I would hear about her (and this album specifically) is as a footnote in writing about Exile on Main Street. I’m pretty mute I had read in Rolling Stone or Spin a piece written by Phair about the Stones record and how much she liked it. 30 years on now, this is about the most contemporary sounding album I think I’ve heard on the list. If you listen to indie rock radio there are a ton of acts that are going after this lo fi, confessional style of rock. I’m thinking Courtney Bartlett, Phoebe Bridgers and Boy Genius and Lana Del Ray. Yet Phair is still more pointed in her lyrics regarding sexual relationships especially. This album sounds timeless, while even on her next album songs like Supernova are peak 90s production. I’ve got to say this has been one of my great discoveries and one I think I need to own on vinyl.

Goddess. I wish I'd been aware enough to appreciate Phair in the early 90s.

There is not much to be said about this album that has not been said in every other review of it. It is truly one of the best albums of all time. I personally love the rawness of this album and the honesty in the lyrics throughout this album. It seems like it is a very personal album which makes it feel better in a way. I don't really have any criticisms except for the fact that I feel like it may be a track or two longer than it need to be and some of the songs on this album are a little too slow for me but besides that this album is perfect from start to finish. Easy 10/10.

i've heard a lot about this album but I haven't ever listened to it. i like glory, i like never said. i like explain it to me. so far i like it i can see why it has this acclaim. the sound is cool. it's all blunt and matter of fact on this album but melodic still. it feels kind of timeless. no all these songs are good and have a point of view. deserves multiple listens. its real in a way that most of us think about things but never dare to say those unfiltered thoughts. she does it unapologetically and that's so damn cool.

Honest, stripped down and raw at times. Really enjoy Liz Phair's delivery and there's enough mix of pretty basic arrangements with some more melodic/driven alt rock songs. A great set.

This album is a nice exile from ho-hum music

Love this album

Don't know what they told you Don't even care what about All I know is I'm clean as a whistle, baby I didn't let the cat out I love this album. Everything about it is great. 5/5

A classic. The perfect indie rock guitar album. Amazing lyrics and guitar tones.

I felt lucky to discover this album through the best 500 albums challenge and now I just love this album so much

Hurray! So good.

Angry girl rock that I might like more than Alannis!

canary walked so labour could run last quarter is a little flat but many stellar love at first measure moments and great style from phair

nice

Liz is horny

"Fuck and run, fuck and run, even when I was 17 / Fuck and run, fuck and run, even when I was 12". *Exile In Guyville* is filled with shocker lines like that, but it shouldn't divert your attention from how *elegant* Liz Phair's songwriting can also be at times. Phair knows how to craft a memorable song, both lyrically and melodically (see "Fuck And Run", "Glory", "Flower", and especially the stellar hooks of "Stradford-On-Guy" towards the end). Musically speaking, the tracklisting is a little patchy and indolent once in a while--especially in the first part of this record--and I'm always surprised reviewers rarely comment upon that "flaw". But keep on listening, by all means. Soon, you'll find your way into the bedroom-aesthetics displayed here, evoking a sense of intimacy very few records can pull off (sometimes disturbing, sometimes charming, sometimes both in the same tune). I never bought that selling point stating that this LP was a song-by-song response to "Exile On Main Street", by the way. To me, it's clearly an afterthought justifying the strange twists and turns in this album, going from MOR-so-called-"alternative" cuts to more leftfield or minimalistic ones. That selling point sure placed Liz Phair as a complex artist who had something extremely relevant to say about how sexist and prejudiced male rock musicians can be--a message that has lost none of its potency in 2024. Still, a lot of her songs, exploring her own contradictions, sheer impulses, and somewhat confusing aspirations, speak for themselves. No need to invoke the ghosts that the Rolling Stones had already become in 1993 to enjoy said tunes, even ironically. It sounds as if I'm partly criticizing Phair here, but I'm only underlining how fresh and "original" and personal and pertinent *Exile In Guyville* still sounds today. Its "lesser" tracks are not exactly "fillers", for instance, they're just part of a poetic patchwork-like structure that few artists can create. Oddly enough, sophomore LP *Whip-Smart* is much more cohesive AND dynamic, at least musically speaking. And yet it wasn't as praised as Phair's debut. I always found that quite unfair (un-PHair?). But I guess this situation says something about the particular impact this debut had for so many listeners. *Exile In Guyville* is a record where the whole is clearly more than sum of its discrete parts. And those are the albums you will always return to with a lot of pleasure, even decades after. If only because you will never fully solve their mystery. 4.5/5 for the purposes of this list of "essential albums" (rounded up to 5). Which translates to a 9.5 grade for more general purposes (5 + 4.5). Number of albums left to review: 317 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 306 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 167 Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many other records are more important to me): 221

Classic. Iconic. 5⭐️

Muchaasmuuy guaysss

Bold and sweet. This is a really really really good record from an eclectic collection of a prolific songwriter. I’ve got the CD in my car. Four and a half. Fave track: Fuck and Run

inject it into my veins

Yes, yes, yes! I'm very surprised I didn't come across this album in high school/college -- younger me would have loved it (and honestly needed it). Inject this anti-patriarchal rage into my veeeeiiiiins

I have always loved this record. When this came out we were a couple years into grunge being everything. Liz really flipped grunge on it's head for a second. They writing is so clever and the hooks ands grooves are infectious. This is basically a female Matthew Sweet.

8/10 would listen again

Another classic

I never knew enough about the Rolling Stones to appreciate the intertextual conversation between Exile in Guyville and Exile on Main Street, but that absence has never meant that Exile in Guyville is somehow lacking or that my enjoyment was any less. This is a record that was excellent upon arrival and has stood the test of time for me. Incredible songwriting that is still affecting from humor to heartbreak and a lot of other vibes along the way.

Ok I don’t know what I expected, but I really enjoyed this.

I really like this so far and it really exemplifies the sound of women's rock in the early 90s. The more I listened to it, the more I liked it. Definitely has a couple tracks I'll come back to! There's a variety of sound to the album but it never strays from a core sound so that it all ties together really nicely

Liz Phair, Urge Overkill, Lemon Heads, Juliana Hatfield, The Breeders, Sebadoh etc etc all made some excellent indie rock albums during the first half of the 90s (counterpointing all those copycat grunge albums). Exile In Guyville is one of these albums. At the time I liked, for some reason, Phair's second album Whip-Smart a bit more, but in 2024, playing both albums back to back, I can see the appeal of EiG much clearer and agree EiG is the better album. I am not sure if I can still stand the typical 90s-indie-rock lyrics, but just give five stars for nostalgia reasons.

Another album I wore the grooves out of back in the day. Another album that I struggle to properly rate. When I set out on this project I envisioned the 5 star rating to be reserved for the greatest albums of all time. The icons. But I’m approaching 15% completion of the list and I have come across a few of these albums that were monumentally important to me as a young man that I hold in very high regard but can quite call them some of the greatest albums ever made. But this album is higher than a 4 star album. So I’m doing it. 5 stars for Liz. She is an icon.