Suzanne Vega

i love luka and tom’s diner but this gives me strong....horse girl meets lilith fair vibes. i want to give it two stars cuz it makes me uncomfortable but i’m not the audience so i’m going 3. actually fuck it it’s my list i’m giving it 2

I am going to tell my kids this was Taylor Swift.

Absolutely amazing! Beautiful, poetic lyrics and lovely guitars. Perfect fall album. Favorite tracks: Cracking, Small Blue Thing, The Queen and the Soldier, Knight Moves

She wrote some very intricate lyrics. Marlene on the Wall is a good example. I like how dynamic the musical shifts are in the lyrics in that song. The notes she sings are flying all around and it really works. Also, she's quite the story teller. The Queen and the Soldier is a good example. There are some neat things here instrumentally. The whacked out violin solo on Some Journey is quite good as is the jamming on Neighbour Girls although the guitars are mixed far in the background. Perhaps they were worried about what the neighbours would say.

enya meets bobo dylan

Nice voice, catchy songs that are distinct enough from each other (eg Marlene on the Wall vs. The Queen and the Soldier) that you don’t tire of the album. Very NYC (Greenwich Village) folk sound. Lyrics are at another level. Like a female Leonard Cohen who can sing. An outstanding debut album.

Suzanne Vega and I once shared a midnight kiss in Bruges. She breath stank of cigarettes and cabbage and she bit my lip so hard that a fountain of blood squirted into her eyes. I pushed her down the hill and never saw her again. Stupid bitch.

I listened to her music during my college days in the late 80s and enjoyed it. I didn't keep up with her after that, and haven't listened to her in a very long time. Re-hearing this album now, I'm admittedly a little surprised to find myself still quite drawn in. Her voice is ethereal and her songwriting is exquisite. Some beautiful work here.

Like a coked up Sinead O'Connor without the coke or personality

I was walking through Greenwich Village in NYC in Spring of 1985. It was exceptionally warm, and people had their windows open. From an apartment a few stories up, I heard this warm and engaging song filtering through the noise of the street. It was Marlene on the Wall. My friend and I stood outside listening to the song, completely enthralled. We eventually moved on and, as we crossed the street, we saw a painting ont he side of an old movie theater of none other than Marlene Deitrich. Weird and cool at the same time. Just like that experience, Suzanne Vega's epounymous debut was entralling throughout. Unlike any other music at the time (folk was pretty dead at that point), it was also a slice of New Yorl City in the mid-1980s - a little rough, sometimes sweet, but it draws you in nonetheless. I can tell you that my favorite songs are marlene on the Wall, Straight Lines, and Undertow, but you might get the wrong impression. The whole album is wonderful. Her next album, Solitude Standing catapulted Vega to stardom two years later, but this album captures the soul of the mid-80s much better.

Vega has an interesting style that's unique with vibrant lyrics/stories, but the production between the talk-sing style and instrumentation doesn't always allow each track to shine. And, at times, the instrumentation drowns out the intimacy of her lyrics. The back half of the album provides more air for her voice and lyrics to breath especially on 'Some Journey' and 'The Queen and the Soldier'. There's definitely a Simon and Garfunkel / Bob Dylan / Leonard Cohen influence here. Tracks of notes: Marlene on the Wall, Undertow, Some Journey, The Queen and the Soldier (the standout).

Really sorry about your brother, Suzanne. Honestly, I love pop-tarts and everyone knows that they're only good if you heat them up. I'm pretty sure that Vincent chose the cinnamon and brown sugar Pop-Tarts. Not all Pop-Tarts are created equal. It would've sucked to die waiting for a strawberry Pop-Tart to exit the toaster before being shot by Butch. Anyhow, I really like your voice, but the music is pretty boring.

Childish lyrics, boring instrumentation, not a fan.

Gosh, I just loved this. I listened to this a few times today and grew increasingly attached to the songs and storytelling. She's got a lovely voice, too, really engaging.

This was great! Another gem unheard by me.

kind of unarticulatable...which is funny considering how many words she can fit into a melody. sparkly and jumpy and folky and new age-y, just a ton of aesthetic and sensory appeals for me...lots to touch and feel, lots to Learn i feel like. i rolled this a couple days after getting semi fixated on a tom's diner ytp oops (shoutouts jish for sending it my way). hope ill be able to articulate more ab this eventually, im sure ill come back to it, its too nice to be around

She has an excellent voice and is an absolute poet. Comparisons to dylan are unfair - She's far more talented. 5/5

Great, everytime, anywhere

4.7 - This was very much me, could listen to this a lot. Just very genuine

I find a lot of singer-songwriter stuff somewhat self-indulgent and boring but I really enjoyed this. Her voice is gorgeous, and the guitar is so well-produced here. It's crystal clear, and the other instruments stick to the background mostly allowing it to shine. Great album.

Seems ok album, nice voice

Back in the dim and distant days of yore, and what apparently was 1985. I was watching a tv program called Pebblemill at One, and they would have a musical interlude. So there sat this waif of a girl with a guitar, and she started to play and sing an ethereal piece called Small Blue Thing. And I was enthralled. Even today, some 39 years later it is still one of my all time favourite songs. Where many say The Queen and The Soldier is the stand out track, and Marlene on The Wall was the album's hit. It is Small Blue Thing that sticks in my heart and my memory. You could almost say 'Like a marble or an eye. On the whole though this is a great album, there truly isn't a bad track on it. It can only get a 5 from me, but I guess you'd already worked that one out.

Suzanne Vega is great. Marlene On The Wall is perhaps one of the most underrated songs of the 80s. Although I have to admit that I've never dipped into this album before. On listening - Cracking is really irritatingly produced. The vocals are distant and almost smothered by the instrumentals. The album really kicks up a notch when Marlene comes in. Vega's voice is just exquisite - capturing desperation, exasperation, hope - it's just a brilliant track. There's a really strong album here, with The Queen and the Soldier also being a fantastic track, leading straight into an almost as good Knight Moves. Yep. I like this. Really strong album from a great artist.

Excellent debut album!

Amazingly produced and lyrical folk rock with great synth usage.

Seven of the tracks on this album have been on rotation in my mail playlist for almost 40 tears, now. Brilliant.

It feels good to listen to it but on the other hand it makes me feel nostalgic for moments I've never experienced and get depressed about things that no longer matter. I would like to die right now, just disappear. A death without fear. and wow, these thoughts are now killing me too. Good! This too shall pass, 33 and IDK.

Wow! This was a great album to start my day with, and it definitely caught me by surprise. First off, Suzanne Vega is a great storyteller, and I really like the sound of her voice. This was a fantastic singer-songwriter album, but it also had a very atmospheric and ambient feel to it. It was ethereal and dreamy. The album is driven by the acoustic guitar with excellent fingerpicking. The use of percussion is minimal and subtle, so you might not even notice it unless you’re paying close attention. Another standout element is the use of keyboards and synths. While the guitar is the prominent instrument, the synths play a crucial role in the background, adding to the album’s atmosphere and ambiance. After hearing this album, I’m definitely curious to check out more of her work and see how she progressed in her career.

Album 436 of 1001 Suzanne Vega - Suzanne Vega Rating : 5 / 5 An old favorite. Came across this a year or so after it's release, during college. Wish I could recall who introduced me to it as it was a bit of a turn from what I was listening to, at the time. I've since shared it with several others who also claim it to be one they still enjoy. Extra point just for being connected with good memories.

cool

she speaks to me

Beautifully arranged album, Suzanne Vega has a gorgeous, wistful, voice which lends itself perfectly to her fantastic guitar playing. You can definitely hear the influence artists like Lou Reed and Leonard Cohen have on her work.

5/5 - kinda like James Taylor; Marlene is a standout

Further evidence that I'm getting old - but I really enjoyed this. Was expecting it to be very 80's but not in good way - but was pleasantly surprised.

Suzanne Vega On first listen this is very pleasant but very mid 80s sounding folk rock. That 80s sound is great for upbeat pop music and pop rock and metal, but for something more hushed and intimate like this it sounds too big and too austere, which is a shame as I really like her voice and storytelling. It really feels like it needs some 70s analogue warmth or at least some fake analogue warmth or something to give it some kind of oomph to puncture either the cold politeness or cheesiness of the sound. The first side doesn’t seem quite as strong as the second, Cracking has a nice atmosphere, but the spoken word parts don’t really work for me. Freeze Tag has a bit too much of that squeezing extra words and syllables into the meter thing and is a little bit annoying. Marlene on the Wall is catchy though and uses the meter thing more judiciously, you can see why this would be the main single, it has a nice sense of completeness. Small Blue Thing sounds a little like What I Am by Edie Brickell but is a really nice song. Straight Lines suffers a little from the 80s production, the electric guitar sounds particularly anaemic, but the synth is nice. Undertow is nice, it has a pleasing sense of rhythm and doesn’t out stay its welcome. Some Journey is great, the one time the production style works and I like the violin solo a lot, its slightly chaotic and brings a nice bit of energy to things. The Queen and the Soldier is very good too, it feels quite Leonard Cohen melodically, with a Dylan-esque lyric. The slightly acerbic feel of Knight Moves is nice too, the bit of anger breaking through the pleasantness. Under that cheesy 80s sound Neighbourhood Girls is actually a nice bluesy song, and reinforces the second side being more interesting than the first I really like her voice, lyrics and much of the songwriting and its an enjoyable enough album, but it’s slightly removed sense of pleasantness means it doesn’t linger in the memory as much as you feel it should. Would listen again and am interested enough to try some more albums, but I’m unlikely to reach for this too much. Which makes it a 3 👑➕🪖 Playlist submission: Some Journey

Enjoyable. Simple pleasures.

The lyrics are so odd: obvious, simple vocabulary, lots of basic nouns (love, king, Princess, bar, soldier, wall), little concrete, but assembled such that it confused me, which I decided I liked after two gos. The vocal themselves have a ticklish rhythm to them, and Marlene on the Wall has hook and tempo mostly missing from the rest, though the last song was fun. Weird, unlikely to return to, but glad to have paid attention.

Acoustic fare. Very straightforward. I felt a few songs were a little too ... sophomoric (I'm looking at you, "The Queen & The Soldier). The songs that were with a band I actually liked more than just the plain acoustic guitar. It is a bit of a preface for her second album, which I think is a better choice for the 1001 albums. But they didn't ask me, did they?

This was a new listen for me, an album and artist I had not heard before. I was really torn on it. Vega is a gifted singer, but I mostly found myself either annoyed by her inflections (like a knock-off Patti Smith) or just bored as her voice did not feel unique to my ear. Her lyrics did not stick with me, and her melodies felt too similar from song to song. The second track, "Freeze Tag" is especially emblematic of her trying to be Hejira-era Joni Mitchell with Pat Metheny but without the interesting jazz motifs and impeccable melodic singing. I think much could have been saved with different production. Much of the overly-compressed guitar, chorus pedal, and synth felt very dated and cheesy. Mixed with the serious and often-pretentious lyrics, there were times the album felt like parody. I don't think this album aged well, and may have been more enjoyable 40 years ago. I would compare some of the feel to a modern band like Men I Trust, which have very different lo-fi production underneath, and I could see much of the same ideas working in that way (though I concede that Men I Trust may also sound cheesy in 40 years). I am trying to appreciate this album in the context of its contemporaries, but I just feel very apathetic to it-- didn't love or hate it, and I will probably forget it. After the album finished, "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac auto-played and I was reminded of how interesting the instrumental side can be to back Stevie Nicks' unique and provocative voice. Of course, it may be unfair to compare an album to a masterpiece like Rumours, but that's what this generator is all about, right?

I can see why some people might like this, but I don't like it. Rounding up 1.5

I wanted to like this but it was so boring I couldn't make myself pay attention. Maybe better for a quiet walk or a long drive than a normal morning at work.

Why isn’t Solitary Standing on the list?

One of a very few contemporary albums I was aware of through my Dad's record collection. I thought this was quite boring back then, and it appears my original assessment still stands. Somewhere between Joni Mitchell and Laurie Anderson, but without the boldness of either. What's on here is fine (could have sworn "Left of Center" was included?) but doesn't really stick around (cf. my Dad, who didn't make it to "Solitude Standing", a much better album I recall)

These are not songs. This is slam poetry read with music in the background. She titled the album her name so you didn’t think it was Fiona Apple. The titanic is sinking, we’re not gunna make it. Sorry Suzanne no room for you on the door. I could fall asleep to “Small Blue Thing” Pretty relaxing. Other than that I’m glad it was a short album so I can go back to listening to music. 2/10

This has no redeeming features. One paced, crap lyrics, average vocals. Would get a pleasant polite applause at a Monday night open mic session down the pub.

Not my thing. I felt like this album was one long song. Even when the album was over, it kicked into a similar genre and I didn't realize her album had ended. She has a OK voice and the sound was not bothersome, just not for me and I found myself bored. I feel like this an album that could be done by anyone that can play guitar. Nothing stood out, no song, no sound, no lyric.....just a big meh for me. Will not revisit. 1

I only knew Vega's 2 biggest hits going into this. Those songs are way better than anything here. I was shocked by how boring it was. I really didn't enjoy any part of it. Very disappointing.

Very 80's sounding sort of confessional singer-songwriter. Her delivery is interesting, kind of half-sung, half spoken word. Honestly sounds very pretentious to me - first song being the worst example of this. I see a lot of comments saying this record is "bare" and "acoustic". I did not find that to be the case at all. The arrangements do sound kind of sparse but it mostly sounds like she's in a big empty room. Most of the songs have lots of little embellishments with other instruments (synths, electric guitars, etc) that are all very 80's sounding. To me this is more subtraction than addition. Might be more compelling if it were just her and an acoustic guitar. Maybe with less reverb or whatever makes it sound so sparse. Something to make it a bit more intimate sounding. But maybe that's just me.

It grew on me once I got used to the 80s production

This one was written for the girlies in their 20s There is not a single song on this album I didn’t enjoy Fav Songs: Small Blue Thing, The Queen and The Soldier, Neighbourhood Girls

I really really enjoyed this. Listened to it back to back. Daughter seemed to like it too.

Hypnotic

It’s an odd singing voice but not an unpleasant one. I think I appreciated the unique delivery here. I also got drawn into the lyrics a lot more than I usually do. For something I was completely unfamiliar with before today, this really grabbed my attention.

Very interesting. Simple and stripped back. I really enjoyed it, some bits were beautiful. I relistened immediately with lyrics and will definitely listen again.

I love this album. It's got a certain magic to it, 'Knight Moves' in particular with it's medieval vibe. I feel like I'm entering a different world or someone else's mind. Was already a fan of this one but surprised to see it on the list!

There are many '80s albums that have tremendous sentimental value for me, but this one is right near the top. My mom couldn't tolerate anything with bass or beat, but this one was right up her alley, so we listened to it a lot, especially in her car. i don't listen to very much music like this anymore, but this one remains priceless to me. My wife asked if I was going to give it 5 stars for nostalgia alone, but I think it really holds up. Foundational for a lot of storyteller artists that came later, such as Tay Tay.

When I saw this I thought oh good I like Suzanne Vega but hadn't listened to this debut. When Marlene On The Wall kicked in I immediately when to my music collection to see why I knew this song and it turns out that the two Suzanne Vega albums I have are 99.9F and Tried and True (which is a best of). The three tracks I already knew are fantastic songs, Marlene On The Wall, Small Blue Thing, The Queen And The Soldier. Overall it's a great album and certainly deserves more listens.

Last.fm tells me I listened to this once in 2013 and not since, so I guess it didn't make much of an impression, or I wasn't paying much attention. 🤷 Really liked it this time around, and definitely plan to revisit! It's got that mellow dreamy vibe I value in singer songwriters. Fave tracks - I liked the flow of "The Queen and the Soldier" going into "Knight Moves"

This is my jam. I knew the name but never listened. Right in the sweet spot for me in terms of music. Definitely going to check out others from her catalogue

a very beautiful soft folk album. compared to vega's more experimental ventures later in her discography, her debut is somber, sweet, and just... it's a very relaxing album for a rainy day. listening to the album made me just long for better days.

Way cooler than I even expected. The only Suzanne Vega songs I'd heard before were Tom's Diner and Luka, but this music was much more driving and acoustically folksy than I expected. Great bass sound on a lot of these tracks, awesome vocals throughout, of course, and some great acoustic guitar riffs. The lyrics are very expressive, imaginative and evocative. Such great storytelling in The Queen and the Soldier and Knight Moves. Such a pure and beautiful voice and lots of minor keys that sound really cool when she sings. Great recording quality and crisp sounding instruments, lovely ambience. All of the songs were so good I listened to the album twice. Five stars easily.

This one takes me right back to my dorm room my first year in college, where I used to listen to it a lot. It's one I haven't listened to in years and years, yet it was so comfortably familiar. I love these songs and Vega's voice. It’s a little less polished than her later, more famous work, but I love that I was all in from the beginning.

First time listener for this album. That statement has me raising some questions about myself…

I remember thinking when this came out that the lyrics were super weird. I just thought they were lovely today. Top notch.

“It’s a one time thing it just happens a lot.” The first words I ever heard from Suzanne Vega hold a very special place for me, having first heard them in 1986 sitting alone in a dark room. Those words immediately became a permanent phrase in my library of self talk, still surfacing in my consciousness on a nearly weekly basis. I love this beautiful, understated album and the artist who created it. Every song on this is very special to me. I’m glad it’s here.

Another unexpected brilliant album. The story telling on this puts me in mind of Taylor Swift. I love a song that tells a tale.

I have a playlist where I add songs I like from this list. This is the first time, where I knew none of the songs and wanted to add almost every single one to the playlist. Suzanne Vega makes it all seem so easy, from the Joni Mitchell influenced unpredictable melodies to the almost British folktale outings on side 2. Delightful.

Instantly one of the best albums of 1985. Suzanne Vega’s debut is a work of pure beauty; the intricate lyrics, the Pastorius-like bass and flawless songwriting. As Joni Mitchell used the 80’s to dig into the trends of pop music, Vega stood ready to take over. I was getting ready to listen to some more albums today. I might just end up putting “Small Blue Thing” on repeat.

Familiar sound and voice. Enjoyed it because the lyrics were personal, and the narrative of each song reflects this. I would put this on a playlist..

Incredibly lovely album. So many great hooks combined with great storytelling and impeccable guitar playing. An all time great

My favourite singer-songwriter album on this list so far. She has a beautiful voice and it works great on this style of folk music. Stand-out: Marlene On The Wall

Seeing the cover with the song titles on it, I scanned for "Tom's Diner" and it wasn't on there? That is to say, I may not have consciously heard any other song by Suzanne Vega, ever and: this is very nice! Thank You, 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Halfways in (skipping around a bit), favourite so far "Small Blue Thing"

9/10 absolutely wonderful poetry and beautiful instrumentals — a really really great album

I like this vibe.

- That is one COMPLETELY new album. Have never heard of this lady before. - There's a lot from her sound that makes me think of the 90's and early 00's female singers. There's some Cranberries and Alanis Morrissette in there. - Pretty damn cool!

Great vibes, really solid album 5/5

I've been building a playlist of music which came out in 1985 and Suzanne Vega's debut was listed as an album to check out. In the middle of post-punk and synth pop, this one is a bit of an outlier. I had recently listened and quite enjoyed it. So when this popped up, I got excited and it felt very timely. In all honesty, I think this is one of the best albums I've heard in while. Suzanne Vega's music captures a certain delicate intensity that feels unique and uncomfortable. I really like the instrumentation with the subtle use of synth and her vocal style. I realize it may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I believe this holds a ton of weight.

Muyyyy bueno, inicialmente no me había atrapado tanto pero lo escuché una segunda ocasión poniendo atención completa y nmms las letras, es increíble y el sonido si es muy indie folk de antaño, pero es fantástico, su voz es tan dulce que uno no pensaría que tocaria temas tan profundos en sus letras pero lo hace y eso lo vuelve uno de los mejores álbumes por mujeres cantautoras.

A truly lovely album.

that's a 5

Calm and sincere. Right up my alley.

The Queen and her Solider <3

A stunning debut album

Fantastic album

I love this album so much. Suzanne’s voice is just stunning, and these melodies are just a huge part of my growing up. It’s genuinely Proustian - takes me back to teenage crushes and (longed for) romance. Just ace.

Soothing 80s folk. It is actually baffling how strong a start this is for her, as she really just nails putting out a beautiful, concise album.

Gd

Really nice voice with good melodies

This grew on me a lot after the first impression being a bit proto rap spoken word waft.

Love this… ethereal folk with lyrics on real life feminism. Can’t beat Vega!

Different to what i listen to but i like it

Beautiful melodies

Very impressed with this. Absolutely deserved a listen.

This was a delight. The warmth of her vocal and the orchestration really stood out. The song writing and story telling were brilliant. 4 spins through the day tells its own story.

Really enjoyed this, lyrics were good, instrumentation was minimalist but in a good way.

Coffeeshop singer-songwriter was a widely derided genre that started in the mid-eighties but came to prominence in the nineties. Every song was an elegant variation of the same subject; the constant negotiation of heterosexual love, set to Yamaha synths and an acoustic guitar. Its association with the corporatisation of America’s nascent coffee scene did not help its image. A reputation as the Gen X vaseline. High Fidelity but with the smell of vinyl replaced with espresso. It’s doesn’t deserve this reputation. In a somehow more homogenised, forever elsewhere in a screen world, the notion that a relationship lived on your skill with your tongue rather than your writing is now alien. A transitory genre (the coffee shop is an inherently transitory place) is preferable to one of the permanence of surveillance.

Really good album.

Unique voice. Powerful lyrics.

Really liked this…

It was pretty, the lyrics poetic and the instrumentals rather subdued. No hits I knew on here but pleasantly surprised.