1001 Albums Summary

Some gold plated hits, a few pleasant country rock foot tappers and some introspective songs which are more a vehicle for Lennon's lyrics. A little disappointing overall.

Noisy but very teenage indie

Loved the breezy 70s laid-back jazz funk and beautiful Brazilian melodies and female backing singers. 1st track is very cool, pity there wasn't anything else solar in a slightly more edgy rock style.

So lovely and warm. A gem

Catchy pop. Good fun. Great in concert too.

Funky disco and it has Le Freak!

Enthused about this in 1994 and still enjoy the songs today. Energy, humour, melodies and hooks. good songwriting.

Great pop, not just for students. Surprisingly time-less

I don't understand this at all. I don't like Beefheart's Trout face lp and I don't like this. To me it makes no musical sense. Why is it highly rated?

Punk energy, swamp blues, joy Division production in places, but not my taste

A classic, with interesting and well crafted songs

Lightning fast picking. Rollicking good fun, but overlong. Great musicianship.

Not my taste of music or genre. Found the vocal delivery and most of the music abrasive

Cool, groovy, bluesy and interesting

Dark, bluesy on places, great feel voice. Good.

It's the Beatles, albeit separately. Brilliant

Crooning, but no upbeat swing

Cool, thoughtful hip hop. Not aggressive or abrasive.

Brilliantly Beatlesque in places, electronically wacky in others. Eclectic!

Beautiful Joni vocals and grown up music. Not as catchy as earlier albums, but much more accessible than later ones.

Rock n roll country.

Unmistakably ABBA, but with added melancholy and more Chess-style orchestration.

Listenable catchy, clever

Exciting, rock and still very blur

Accessible hard rock with record scratching. Nothing too abrasive.

Not an easy listen at all. Too experimental and harsh and grating. Didn't enjoy. I'm clearly too middle of the road preferring their first two albums. Beth's voice is still poignant and emotional.

Very indie lo-fi - still slightly disappointing

Relaxing and groovy. Some good dance tracks and some more mellow. All well known.

Ok, fairly energetic, but not as good as AC/DC or Iron Maiden

Mostly enjoyed. Funky punk, a little bit Talking Heads - a little bit punky - better than early Red Hot Chili Peppers. Overlong album, but 35 mins at least is excellent.

Very 80s, excellent pop and rock. Tina Turner was on fire!

Educational, interesting, hypnotic. Probably wouldn't listen to much, but understand it's importance.

Not quite as exciting as their other albums, although Dig for Fire is great

Never really liked Suede apart from a few early singles, notably Stay together. Overblown and not enjoyable.

Great fun, US soul covers and My Generation!

Psychedelic and disjointed. Very disappointing

Has not aged! Good hit singles, indie rock, super moody vocals and electronic programming too.

Most start with good riff, but then it's lost in muddy production and thrashing. Not my taste.

Good, soulful pop. Eileen is quite different to others.

The voice of soul, the music of soul, brilliant!

Actually quite good fun, notwithstanding the subject matter. Fairly eclectic covering much of Cave/Bad Seeds styles.

Awesome - a stone cold singalong classic

Well this easy! My all time favourite album. The best Prince lp, probably the best lp by anyone ever. Eclectic and covers everything good about Prince: pop, disco, rap, rock, blues, ballads, sex, politics, social awareness, live concert, quirkiness. An absolute masterpiece.

This has indie disco rock moments as well as poignant emotional gentler songs. The start of a stratospheric and sustained rise to the top of global stadium and festival headlining glory.

Good fun, excellent poetry, poignant ballads. Very listenable.

Jolly, upbeat New Orleans jazz standards reminiscent of Louis Armstrong but not so gravelly

Reminds me of Burt Bacharach/John Barry/Neil Diamond/Jarvis Cocker. Glorious and heart-breaking pop, arrangements and lyrics. Great fun in concert too.

Byrds style jangly guitars, infectious melodies and grooves, mumbled mysterious lyrics. It worked in 89 and still sounds great now. One of The great British albums.

More accessible and perhaps conventionally rock than OK Computer.

Not a bad listen, actually! Educational, albeit angry, music is good. I now see the irony in the misogynistic lyrics, but still don't like that content.

Massive break beats, very accessible electronic music fused with soul and funk, mostly. Great running soundtracks.

More prog than I was expecting. Relatively accessible although Geddy Lee's singing at the start is higher and more affected than in later years.

Childish themes (guns and marijuana). Cool beats and samples (got some Dusty Springfield too)

A bit over blown. Disappointing, but not awful.

Not my taste, too noisy and aggressive. Good bass work all the same.

Liked the bluesy songs more than the baroque. Pleasant listening.

Great, catchy and polished radio pop.

Music and beats are good. Voice doesn't grate. Don't care much for content.

Accessible, Doors style organ.

Ethereal and boring. Occasional 60s style, but mostly weird background noises.

Not as noisy and unfocused as MBV. I can see the progression towards Leave Them All Behind and Twisterella. OK, probably prefer early Verve for this type of textured music.

Actually more coherent than Loveless, but not as infectious. Still noisy!

Enjoyed far more than "wee small hours" - I prefer more upbeat.

Interesting like Radiohead can be interesting. A few funky Talking Heads meets Beck, with some good akt rick textured music.

Didn't like abstract side 1, but side 2 with flamenco guitar and repeated melodies was good. Reminded me of 1950s cinema and the Taxi Driver soundtrack.

Great fun and a bit punky

Sounds like the link between Carole King and Joni Mitchell. Lovely voice, soul meets jazz and pop. His did I miss this all these years?

It has Two Weeks, but the rest is emotive, interesting, but just a little dull.

Smooth, soulful, enjoyable. beautiful voice

I always liked this Smiths album the best despite their relationship problems.

Mediocre 70s Garage rock and balladeering. Not special.

Listenable reggae with a message even if tampered with by Island Records for international ears.

Good reggae with soul/R&B vibes. Tackles similar political issues, but not seemingly as poignantly (albeit earlier) compared to the preceding listing of Burning Spear's Marcus Garvey.

Put off by "punk" links in many write-ups, but in fact far closer to Jim Morrison and the Doors. Not something I'd listen to frequently, but enjoyable all the same. Very accomplished debut.

Warm, elegant, jaunty and sophisticated pop. Beautiful.

The essence of rock n roll. Electrifying and fun.

Great voice - very Jacques Brel. Quite pretentious!

Some amazing songs (Sensual World, This Woman's Work) and other interesting Bush songs.

Undoubtedly energetic and angry in a yoof/punk style, probably fun to watch their gigs, but not pleasurable to listen at home. More in tune guitar soloing please!

Rock, soul, country rock and slow tunes. Pretty good!

Cool Blues and rock, but ramshackle and rough. I realise this is controversial, but I was disappointed after Let It Bleed and Sticky Fingers.

Lived it in late 80s as a child, still do now although I haven't listened to this in about 25 years!

Half are Super funky, jazzy grooves and half are typically lush mid 70s ballads. Pretty cool. Tracks opening each side are straight up funk. Africano is a wah wah funk jazz tour de force.

Not my favourite kind of music or even style of hip hop. Ok, beats and delivery are ok. Cool James is cool.

Sombre, down tempo, quite beautiful.

Laid-back Summer-time trip-hop style instrumentals.

Good funk rock. Pity about the dross that is "Promental..."

Very accessible and groovy. Clean disco funk basslines. The chanty slogans are catchy enough, but the vocals are the weakest point (although they typify George Clinton P-Funk).

Not sure if this is a perfect album but it is quite superb with a mixture of light rock, pop, country rock, rock n roll, powerful slow tunes. Very listenable.

Accessible, but repetitive 80s style synth with bleak vocals. Punk both synth pop?

Eclectic! Very interesting and enjoyable. Haven't even had a chance to take in the lyrics and themes to see the project as a concept album. So many influences and I think I even heard some Smiths on Oh, Maker! Unfair to just say she is "like Prince". Her ambition is quite different. Impressive.

Very English in a Kinks/Beatles style. Listenable. Interesting to read about writing, production and release issues.

All 3 Dexy's LPs are justifiably highly rated and on the 1001 list. Great driving soul, youthful modern lyricism and attitude. Great bass and brass. Those unmoved by Geno and There there my Dear must have ice in their veins!

Must of these collaborations are good and more of a showcase for the relatively younger guitarists. Sacred cow or not, I don't enjoy most of John Lee Hooker's mumbling and guitar picking. 2.5/5

Brilliant funky pop. Possibly Prince's best and cohesive standard length LP (Sign 'O' the times being a double!). Not too long, superb "backing" band in The Revolution.

Started off like Arab Strap, but boring. Then some shouty bits, but still boring. Will give 2/5 because it isn't as appalling as the albums I've given 1.

Shoegazing, textured and trippy. I'm not in the same place as the critics who felt this was a masterpiece.

Short sharp punk attitude. Thank you Elastica for the 90s tribute.

Somehow missed this having picked up 77 and Fear of Music on cassettes years ago. Not sure it's as good as either, although Angel, Job, Girls, Love are excellent. I hear the progression towards funky dance. Cool. Still haven't got my ears around DB's lyrics, though.

Always enjoyed listening to and watching The Charlatans. Fairly consistent Stones-style rock n roll (appropriate for Beggars Banquet label!). Maybe not as good as The Charlatans eponymous album or New Order-sounding You Cross My Path.

Lovely guitar picking. Some good indie/folk tunes. Not keen on his voice.

Some great Beatlesque pop. Well known hit singles and THAT side 3 weather sequence concluding with the gilt edged Mr Blue Sky. Pretty good, but a little long.

Gorgeous, gentle, quite beautiful romantic music. Very impressed. Retro, but does that matter?

Great example of 60s British blues explosion meets late 60s psychedelia. Great musicians. Half the album is Must Hear. A few fillers!

I knew Revolution already so wasn't expecting such a spaced out quiet bore-fest! I did like So Hot, but it's a very short pretty song. Not a revolutionary listen, but not 1 star either.

Surprisingly conventional rock. Pleasant singing. Some good bits - Wurm sounds like 90s grunge riffing. Was expecting more exquisite Chris Squire Rickenbacker picking like Roundabout.

Phat beats, cool, rhythmic delivery. I liked most of it. Not too aggressive, clever wordplay. Better than most hip-hop. 3.75 out 5

Smooth, sophisticated, but not over crowded jazzy pop music with THAT voice. Very cool, good for sunny days and relaxed evenings.

Smooth, groovy, very sexy. Love the jazz undercurrents.

Ethereal, pretty, but a bit boring for me hence the middling score just reaching 3.

Starts off very angry and aggressive, but with cool beats. The music is fun (notably express yourself) but the subjects become irritating. I see why it is influencial and "classic", but not really my thing. 2.8 out of 5. Just not for me.

Very 80s synth similar to New Order of the same era. Great pop. Always liked Kings Cross, shopping and the singles.

I've always enjoyed this. Has some slower and darker album songs, but six of the 10 are outstanding.

I quite enjoyed this but lost interest during the profane sex and "gangster" sections. Not what I was expecting - musically diverse. 3.5 out of 4

Some great blues rock but definitely overlong jams. Their version of Good golly miss Molly is dynamite.

Really enjoyed this - groovy melodies with pleasant sounding solos. Not too difficult, something I will listen to again.

1978 sounds like 1984 in terms of "hair rock". A better album than I remembered with much of the first half being bonafide classics. 3.5 out of 5

Sombre, but reasonable folk/pop. Wouldn't listen to again as a whole album so 2.8 out 5 rounded up.

Fairly average heavier 60s rock - similar to Doors, but far inferior.

Pretty good prog. Listenable with some well known hits. 3.75 out 5 rounded up to 4*

Sweet voice, but not my cup of tea

Interesting concept, but a poor Who album in relation to their singles or later great rock albums.

The country style is not my taste, although I admire the classic soul covers.hot burrito #2 and dark end of the street are the only sings I liked.

Brilliant. Love the synths and the rock elements. This is The Who that I know best.

Mostly not my taste, although I do get the bluesy style.

Another hip hop album that I quite enjoyed. Good music, rhythmic vocals. Usual questionable lyrics - Da Bitchez!

Pretty tuneless, surprised at the weakness. Started ok, then became noise. Not as bad as pere ubu!

"one of 2004's most critically acclaimed releases" Oh dear! Noisy, scuzzy rock. Has its place somewhere, but not with me. Still not as bad as Pere Ubu, so 2 out of 5.

Classic 70s rock with good riffing particularly on Walk This Way, but throughout. Enjoyable.

Station to station and Stay are my faves. Pretty good.

Some qualities of Robyn and Taylor Swift, just not a comprehensive thumbs up, although kudos for being so young, yet so mature.

Well well well... I thoroughly enjoyed the music and the vocals. Pity Smith didn't do more accessible Fall albums. I will listen to this again. Not quite 4 out of 5.

Astonishingly good, apart from somewhat meandering limp ending to "Listen", the final track.

Far more mainstream than Pixies. Listenable, but not as edgy or dark as Pixies.

Energetic like only young new bands can record. Witty like the best writers and sung in Sheffield vernacular too. Great fun.

Ok, fairly traditional, clearer vocals than later albums, but not as good as the 1987 album. Second half better than first half.

Very 60s psychedelic space rock. Of its time. Bit boring.

Good ska, but a little varied in terms of quality. Best to cherry pick Specials and Terry's music.

Very 80s rock production, sadly not enough ZZ Top blues for a higher score, but a solid album.

I've always enjoyed this album. An early entry point to the eclectic world of Zappa. The blues of Captain Beefheart is excellent as is the electric violin (and guitar of course!).

Uplifting electro-indie. Good, closer to 4 than 3, but not quite essential.

The funkiest jazz, most 70s sounding jazz fusion album ever

There is a sophisticated beauty in songs like Surf's Up and Feel Flows. Disney Girls (1957) and 'Til I Die have gorgeous melodies. A grower of a 'listening' album. Not quite 4, but I think it will get there after a few more listens.

Like the sound of the guitar, but not the wailing cacophony. In this album there are only really 2 songs for me: 50ft Queenie and Dry.

An interesting album, very different to the excellent Different Class. More Bowie-esque. Worth listening to a few times. A bit long. Currently I'm giving it 3.5, but this might increase with familiarity.

Actually not as bad as I was expecting! Good 60s pop and garage rock. I can understand why it is so influential. Terrible noisiness in European Son, which is quite a good song for the first 2 minutes.

Exciting, rock, indie, fun. I still love this more than 30 years later.

Tremendous 60s/70s bluesy rock n roll. I understand why Black Crowes and Reef ripped this off.

Scuzzy, glam rock n roll. Not bad, I can hear Bowie and I can hear Joy Division, so quite influential.

Good pop album. More listening will help familiarity and I'm sure this would earn a higher rating from me at a later date.

Very 70s/80s Gainsbarre. Pretty cool and funky, albeit lecherous old man sleaze, but what do you expect from Gainsbourg? Enjoyable. I recognise the future Portishead/Massive Attack samples. 3.5

Good transition between his early folk and electro r&b/rock n roll. I prefer "Highway...", "Blonde..." and "Nashville..." 2.75 because although it can see it's good, I hardly ever listen to it.

Funk rhythms reminiscent of Remain in Light side 1, but not be as fun. Undeniably clever and technically forward thinking, but not that enjoyable.

Brilliant dance pop.

Good funk afrobeat, but ignore the additional long drum solo tracks from track 5 (original album is 4 tracks)

Punk, metal and prog all combined - awesome. It includes Phantom of the opera, running free, iron maiden and prowler. Great debut, but not perfect - 3.75

So so pop. A bit fey. Enjoyed hearing the song based on New Order's Procession and other influences. Like The Divine Comedy this will need more listens to appreciate the clever lyrics. Lovely album cover!

Good mixture of rock n roll, folk with a bit of soul. Not too country. Listenable. Not quite a 4

Her tone remains the same all the way through. Mellow enough, but so boring with no tonal shift. Disappointing after all the plaudits.

By contrast to yesterday's Kelela, Erykah Badu's voice is versatile and interesting. Perhaps I just prefer "organic" music like this. Excellent.

I read that this is a commemoration of the bass player's virtuosity, but I sadly didn't enjoy the bass solos. Piano is great, however.

Recognised one song and like it, but not won over by the rest of the prog-ness. Not awful, might try again. Difficult to get past Flight of the Conchords send-up (Lord of the rings song).

Spikey - some good indie rock guitar. Mega phone vocals irritate after a while. I liked Pin and Maps. Just scraping a 3 out of 5.

Usual good and distinctive vocals, but not such a super duper sound. Ok I suppose.

Like a companion piece to What's going on - perhaps a bit dated for 1978? Pleasant musically, painful lyrically. A small number of "essential" tracks. A low 3 out of 5

I do like The Cure and this early album isn't too gloomy, but it isn't a classic Cure LP. However, it has one of their finest songs in A Forest so 3 out of 5.

Good rock album. I liked the guitar sound. Songs are all a bit too long. One or two are dreadful (farmer song).3.5 out of 5

Well known soulful piano and melody driven album - sometimes difficult to recall originals from all the first class covers! Not greatest voice but such good musicianship and writing. Great, but not quite a 5 star lp, sorry!

Lovely voice, very controlled. Not won over by the country, calypso, old fashioned style although the bluesy jazzy songs are good. Not my thing hence the lowish score, but a worthy album to include as a variation on popular country music.

Really enjoyable. A classic which I had never listened to from start to finish. Even the strummy acoustic songs rock.

Fun, fun fun! Pretty kitsch. Super rhythms. Probably wouldn't listen to again, but enjoyed listening.

Haven't listened to this for years, slightly disappointed it wasn't better! Listenable, dark and smouldering, big 3 singles are still fun (Lucretia, corrosion and dominion). Undoubtedly influential.

About halfway through. Not my cup of tea. Beats are ok, but I'm not getting the subject matter. Worthy of 2 stars.

Reasonable 90s Seattle rock. Chris Cornell's voice is superb. RIP

Superbly created music. Great for any occasion

Jaunty, but a bit cloying after a while.samey.

Mature, mostly orchestral backed down beat folk/pop. Some 60s/70s dated styles. Good, but not my cup of tea.

Ella's voice soothes me in the same way as Karen Carpenter's, and with superb joyful jazz standards "who could ask for anything more"! There is also a shorter "very best of the Gershwin songbook" available too.

Ace, early doo-wop rock n roll.

Brilliant, not as refined or mature as the classic late 90s/2000s albums, but a good fun mix of early Chilis progressing to the Californication sound. I still love this, even if it a bit too long. 5 star album.

Avant Garde. Unusual mix of classical and modern instruments. Some pleasant gentle music and some discordant. Very interesting artwork.

Quite beautiful for the most part, but heart breaking in terms of pain and angst. Very harsh upbringing by the sounds of things. Musically tasteful, but probably won't rush back to it as it is anguished.

Pretty, but very similar to other classic Cohen LP's. Includes Story of Isaac

Good as a solo record, but why not include the great Mano Negra rather than Many Chao's solo efforts?

Classic prog, but not too Genesis or Yes! Good riffs, voice and flute. I'm going to give it 4 because it is easily listenable.

Pretty early rock n roll. Lovely harmonies. Bit dated now, though. Pleasant enough - 3 stars.

Love it. Late 60s pop with a bit of soul. Good voice, resembles Blood Sweat and Tears singer. Thoroughly enjoyable - 4 stars.

Some (let's say 4) very good and celebrated songs. A famed Soft Cell cover version. I think the somewhat effected vocal style grates in the second half. The downbeat gentleness needs a boost. Not as good as people made out at the time.3 out of 5

Enjoyed this when released, but realise now that I was just skipping through to the singles. Overall musically more accessible than her other material, but still only good for the singles.3 out of 5

Apart from "Blister", this is weak poor music. Not actually bad music, just completely mediocre and weak post-punk. Not sure why it's on the list. Disappointing.

Don't normally like this kind of music. Pleasantly surprised - good, clear delivery. Entertaining and musically diverse. Some of the commentary and skits could be dropped. I actually might choose to listen again!

Taken in by the razzamatazz back in 2001, and thoroughly enjoyed the music and the style. Still quite like it 20 years on, but Julian's vocal delivery can irritate.

Jangly and psychodelic. Some is very pretty, not as much country as I was expecting.

As expected, quite spare. Accessible, but it's no a Autobahn, sadly. 3.5 out of 5

Usual political balladry - voice and electric guitar - but with addition of full band in a few other songs. A good representation of Billy Bragg.

I already knew and quite liked Alone again or. Not sure why the full album is so highly recommended, pretty ordinary - nothing bad, just nothing special or memorable.

Undeniably influential for the single of The Message, and probably essential for break dancing and popping. However, overlong and samey. Nice to see them give tribute back to Tom Tom Club and Stylistics cover. Single 5*, album 2*

Quietly pretty. Bit boring, better for background. Cocoon is quite sexy and intimate, Heirloom and Unison are most fully realised song in the traditional sense.

Apart from Papa was a rolling stone, I found this run of the mill - even First time ever I saw your face. Disappointing.

Fun, guitar indie. Taking a lot of queued from late 70s/early 80s. Quite knowingly arty - like a punkier Pulp.

Big beats, funky fun. Quirky and scuzzy.

The synths surprised me although I was already familiar with First We Take Manhattan. Interesting and intimate - as with other Cohen LP's. Good.

Love it - short big band late 50s jazz. Afro rhythms. Cuban Latin jazz. Cannonball Adderley. Superb.

Been waiting a long time to listen to this legendary album. Beats are good. Taps "flow". It's kind of old school. I like. High 3.

It's superb Elvis in his later period. Not essential, but a great reason why he remains so popular. Some good soul pop crooning songs. Excellent band.

Pretty enough, like most CS&N (&Y).

Glam-era Bowie - succinct and "fun", albeit dark lyrically - very listenable, but a little short of 4 stars. Iconic cover photo. Amongst the songs I wasn't already so familiar with, Panic in Detroit, Cracked Actor and Lady Grinning Soul are highlights. Mike Garson's famous dissonant avant garde piano solo in Aladdin Sane doesn't work for me. Jean Genie and Saturday Night Drive-in are rightly Bowie classics.

Straight forward pop. Ok, but not special.

It is catchy rock n roll, and maybe a few more listens might endear it to me, but for the moment so-so 3stars

Absolutely smashing pop. Heard about the LP, knew a few songs, but never listened to it as a whole. Brilliant, shiny, fun pop. Why wasn't Lennon's material as collectively good on a single album?

Ace, early 80s synth-pop and dance. Always enjoyed this LP. Jennifer is haunting and great. The singles are rightly smash hits. Awesome album.

Pleasant and gentle folk pop. A million miles from Oderlay and Midnite Vultures. What a talented and versatile musician!

So many well known songs it almost felt like a greatest hits album. I also really enjoyed the long jam on "side 2". A triumph of an album.

No. I get it's a fake soundtrack and it's moody, but really!?

Lyrically/narratively interesting, foot tapping, but not my favourite vocal sound or music style. Some good twangy guitar tones. Good old fashioned concise songs under 3 minutes.

Very sweet sentiments and harmonies. Feels like California, but by Scots! I do like the guitar sound, but it is a pity there is very little change across the album.

Early proof of genius pop songwriting. 60s pop rock'n'roll at its finest without studio experiments. Arguably the purest of the great Beatles albums.

Even with familiarity it sounds full of energy. Slightly tame nowdays, but still furious, clever, rebellious and electrifying take on youth rock'n'roll. Rightly one of the better punk records of all time. Not quite a 4 because it's not quite got enough hooks.

I liked this when it came out, but it sounds quite samey and a little boring now, even if the piano playing and Kate Bush vocals are clever. Disappointing.

Might be my favourite Dylan album and possibly emotionally the polar opposite of another favourite, Blonde on Blonde. Accessible and really good songs. Yes, it's about heartbreak, but good music just gets you.

Nine tracks and seven were hit singles. 80s pop distilled into one amazing album.

Some stand out tracks, but I still think talking heads 77, remain in light and speaking in tongues are more cohesive and listenable.

Beautiful voice, modern-ish country, amazing and emotional ballads (Boulder obviously, but also others), excellent Beatles cover. Very good album.

About half is excellent and the rest ok, so 3 out 5 overall. Great band in concert and a first class front man and all round top bloke.

The blueprint of 70s and 80s British heavy metal. Amazing how iron maiden wound so similar 10 years later! Great riffs!

Rap is growing on me. The gangster violence and threats, misogyny, drugs, potty-mouths and tales of impoverished "life is harsh" must be becoming normalised for me as I didn't mind this LP of drug lord iron man peddling "fishscale". It helped that the samples and bscking music was familiar, soulful in and funky and not too abrasive. The rapping was rhythmic and clear. I might even look forward to more Wu Tang related material...

Great laid-back indie pop. I think it might be worthy of the golden 5 out of 5! Hook laden singalongs. Continually came back to this album through the 90s. Pity that Evan Dando started taking himself so seriously...

Sweet voice, not my style of folk.

I'm not bothered that this artist or album are controversial. This is just rubbish. Awful screaming, I can occasionally pick up the lyrics which are deliberately trying to be controversial to the point of being worthless and boring. The music, when musical, is occasionally industrial hard rock, but nothing special. Up there with Venom and Pere Ubu for most unbelievable album on this list.

Good - side 1 acoustic Neil like his classic early 70s LP's, then ROCK 9n side 2. Not as immediately loveable like Gold Rush and Harvest, but pretty good. A high 3 out of 5.

Similar to "...In Rock", which I reviewed last week. Soloing good, but lengthy. Slightly proggy. Good live recording. All the hits!

Musically good heavy indie rock - heavier and more raw guitar sound than Everything Must Go, which I know well and rate highly. Sadly I can't make out the lyrics, so don't get the well documented angst that the critics go on and on about. Will listen to again, but for now it's just a 3, albeit a high 3.

Good singing, although Tracy Thorn always seems a little icy and emotionless even though she sings about emotions. The bleeps, break beats and electronics is good and of its time. For 90s/2000s dinner parties alongside Beth Orton's Trailer Park and Zero 7.

Fairly timeless boogie rock with a hard edge, but not heavy like Deep Purple, Sabbath, etc.

Refreshingly gangster-free, although still posturing about ability. Good use of "daisy-age" jazz-funk samples alongside big beats. Dig the Sly and Scot-Heron samples and what about the additional remix sampling The The!?! Pretty dated, but pleasant to hear.

A gold plated classic. Probably better songwriting than True Blue, but not as familiar to me despite the run of hit singles in the middle.

Pleasant enough, but not knock out for me

Stand out bass playing on Travelling man and Early morning breeze. Very pleasant country album, albeit mainstream.

Lovely - lush, warm Beach Boys style harmonies, charming folk. I'd heard good things, but never got around to listening. Quite wonderful!

No, these musings, mutterings and noodlings are not for me.

Straight ahead blues rock n roll piano. Might have been ground breaking once, but now it's just well executed and sung big band 50s rock n roll.

Mature dance music. Very listenable, albeit a little bit background/dinner party style. Coincidentally to the song "Frozen" the album feels quite glacial: sophisticated, but lacking in singing emotion which fits the music, but not the emotional lyrics. No True Blue, or Like a Prayer, but one of Madonna's best. A high 3 out of 5.

Speed, heavy rock n roll. Sorry to say it is a bit samey. Still legendary band.

Brilliant shiny pop and songwriting at its finest. Becomes heaven-sent with the inclusion of Fernando on later versions. No surprise it's their bestselling LP not called Gold. Instrumental title track that closes original LP is a bit boring, so a high 4 out of 5 for one of my favourite "pop" bands.

Grooves along well, then gets a bit repetitive and tuneless. A pick n mix band. Very cool man, that Josh.

Had to listen several times through. Not usual immediate "hits". Personal lyrics. A celebration of grown up womanhood. Very sexy. A good piece of art in the sense of personal expression. Probably won't listen to much in the future, but it is good quality.

Lo-fi, short pieces, but not very interesting. Not awful, just dull.

The extended album with the first two singles and b-sides is superior. What's so special about Jimi is that his guitar playing still sounds extraordinary even now after guitar music has absorbed, copied and taken inspiration from what he did in the 60s. Another exceptional aspect to Jimi is his singing phrasing and vocal timing. I think he has a natural ability much like Sinatra's phrasing. It's very difficult to do a good mimic. What a talent. Great album - and it's a debut! Even the less well known songs are pretty good, albeit not legendary and so familiar.

Classic era Steely Dan, polished jazzy rock before they became ultra ultra polished and jazzy. Very good indeed. A very high 4 because it's not Aja!

Poor singing and very light weight music. Sounds like what might play in a '70s porn film. Not impressed.

Don't like Armstrong's voice. A few quite good singles. A 90s take on 1977 punk. I suppose it's influential, but just not my cuppa.

Another great upbeat Latin album. Super fun.

Freaked me out bit as a 13 year old. Sorry Mr Waters, but I find the pieces around the big 6 or 7 songs just prog padding. I'm not won over by the story either. 5 out of 5 for Brick, Numb, Run. Positive mentions to Young Lust, Hey You, perhaps Mother. Low scores for much of the rest.

Yes, Billie's voice is croaky, but she has good use of it even if it is past its best. The music is lush, but slow. Too gentle and slow. So I didn't it enjoy it.

Pretty good swampy blues. Just as you'd expect from Fogerty and Creedance. Has the big hits. Probably not a classic classic album, so a high 3 out of 5

Quote good, intros are interesting at first but then distract from the real songs. It rocks well enough, just or all that special .

Gold plated classic. Charming, singalong, fantastic pop with great vocals and harmonies, superb musicianship and guitar work. It's one of the most popular albums of all time for a good reason.

Indie rock - slightly harder Cure or softer Pearl Jam. Strong voice from Lanegan.

Enjoyable.lots of singing as well rapping. Very accessible and good intentions from Missy. Obviously as sex obsessed as Prince!

Too prog and obtuse, frenetic keyboard noodling.

Excellent funky pop, great singing. An 80s pop gem, catchy songs. Mostly upbeat.

Driving, polished rock blues boogie. Includes Move me on down the line and La Grange. Thoroughly enjoyable. Four out of five.

Very smooth, very slow, very sexy, very Marvin. Not very outstanding. Great musicianship, particularly sinuous bass lines that get under the skin. I like, but not extraordinary.

Good, but some unneeded psychadelic noodling. Great ballsy blues voice. A few now classic songs (and covers).

Obviously English style singing which is good, just a little too punky with the out of tune singing. I only really liked the first song. Nice idea to do a punk/country crossover (early alt-country?).

Lovely voice and guitar picking. Nice mix of folk and rhythm & blues. Contains several JT hits, so a good album overall.

Two first class singles making up a third of the duration, then nicely sung folk pop. Vocal is mix of Paul Simon and Jacques Brel.

At the time friends were all over this. Me, not really. Quite good breakbeats. I can see it's technically clever cut and paste sampling, but not my thing.

Very good polished pop, occasionally a few of the songs seem a bit similar. Still one of the better 1980s pop albums.

Difficult to look at this impartially, being one of my favourite and frequently played albums, so I’ll just gush. I kind of understand some people’s “bland/Muzak” perception. I don’t often “get” much punk, early Country or a lot of hip-hop, but... ... This album has amazing musicianship - albeit very calculated and brilliantly produced. The antithesis of punk. Love the funky pop of Black Cow, I got the news, Peg, the mature jazz crossover of Aja, the sophistication of Deacon Blues and the rock of Home at last and Josie. A perfect timeless album.

This is good fun, but not necessarily essential. It is fun new wave catchy singalong pop. Good driving (no pun intended) rhythms with occasional proper long guitar solos! The vocal hooks are bubblegum! A very high 3, maybe a 4 with more familiarity.

Quite earnest singing. Some refreshing alt-rock. Mostly listenable and not too much is dull. Impressive drumming and some interesting bass lines.

Very familiar, but the energy is still palpable. Classics and very influential.

Classics. Awful man, great pop music. Original "Christmas" song is one of the next on the album.

All my loving, Postman, Beethoven and Money are great, but I'm not particularly impressed with the other songs - very so-so. I don't think the Beatles hit their stride until their third LP, the awesome Hard Days Night.

Bluesy and enjoyable apart from L'America. Preferred side 1. Changeling and LA Woman are excellent. Already knew and liked Riders and Love her Madly.

Good mix of modern r&B singing alongside hip hop with pretty good music. Obviously the seed 2.0 is the big famous song, but it's not on its own. Good music. A high 3 due to the quality of the singing, samples and original music. Pretty good .

Interesting mix of mid 60s Beatlesey pop and Dylanesque folk. Very evocative of the times, pleasant enough Sunshine Superman the song is an enduring classic.

Nice pop album.

Superb clear recording. Very listenable and accessible album. Powerful and charming vocal delivery and band leadership. BB never really seemed to vocally or musically change between 60s and 90s! Great guitar playing as always and a terrific sounding band notable piano and brass.

5 star album. Absolutely love the hits on side 1. The drowning nightmare Ninth Wave suite on side 2 is much more \"difficult\", thought-provoking and arguably impenetrable in a delightful Kate Bush manner. Glad of its inclusion in the legendary Before The Dawn concerts.

Sorry Henry, too noisy.

Such a soundtrack to my Uni days and the whole 1990s. Spikey, quirky, Brit pop, indie, truly English. Literally just two or three obvious fillers. A really good album alongside Different Class from that Brit pop 90s era.

Love the singles, but the rest of the LP is patchy. Disappointing. Made me want to listen to Yazoo and New Order instead.

Love the big band jazz upbeat songs. The slower crooners are pedestrian, but quite lovely (eg. Don't let the sun catch you cryin'). A high 3 because the slots are too slow.

Comical vocals like the singer has multiple personalities/voices. The fun is a little spoilt by the aggressive lyrics. Disjointed music. Occasionally good hard rock, but a bit too out there for me.

Refreshingly non aggressive with little of Rap's ugly braggadocio. Good pop music, samples and mix of singing and rapping. Enjoyable.

Quite good fun, much more enjoyable than Sex Pistols. Some recognisable singles. Elements of good musicianship. Quite good.

Dylan's voice is atrocious. Lyrics and poetry are to be applauded, but acoustic side is a bit boring. Electric Hawks/The Band stuff is much more fun.

Love it, great to hear real instruments playing real funk. Another album from my prime youth of the early 90s that stands up well today.

Very 1990s big beat sound, but very good fun albeit with some sweary NYC interviewees! Fun.

Not always an easy listen with the organic sampled rhythms (cocked guns etc), but the music is interesting and really well sung by the ladies. Obviously Tricky cannot sing and his mumbles mostly work quite well too. I listened to this a lot when it was released and it still stands up. Not necessarily a 4, but certainly a very high 3 (better than Bjork's Debut from the same period).

Bookended by good rocking pieces. Questionable mid section. Not the classic I was expecting. A low 3/5

Cleanly spliced together, but oh-so lightweight and boring. What was all the fuss about in 2001?

Slowly moving towards proper "psychadelic soul", but not there yet.

I just don’t get the hype. A couple of good songs here and there, occasionally charming vocals, but the off key guitars and singing irritates. Not enough quality.

Lovely harmonies. Some good pop/folk. Nice and familiar. However, it's not Bridge Over Troubled Water!

Pleasant r&B voice, usual sex content, but not very amusing or opaque. I liked the minimalist backing music. Nothing too complicated or over produced. Occasionally vocal would better left alone without any effects. Quite ordinary in general.

Pretty cool and accessible reggae. Great guitar and bass and smooth singing. I don’t agree with the sentiment, but do enjoy the music! Solid high 3.

Really enjoyed this stripped back blues and rock album. Often the weak drums are just left off altogether and are not missed. Great singing, better than later years when they appear a bit more affected/pretentious. Not so many recognisable hits, but all strong songs.

A strong cohesive album with a 70s feel. Accomplished and sounds good. I'm not sure if I'd award it 4, but certainly a high 3.

Could be a perfect album! Funk, soul, pop. Politics, love and humour. From Stevie’s golden period of colossal 70s LPs.

Short and very sweet stripped back bluegrass roots folk. Gillian and Dave are magnetic on stage. This is a fine example of their work. Title track is the best.

Cool jazzy rap with the standard and likeable 80s drum beats (even though it was 1991). Enjoyable and not nasty aggressive hip hop.

Much more guitar based than I remembered. Quite good actually!

Brilliant trippy LP cover for the transitional album bridging the early beat pop years and the later groundbreaking studio experimental albums. Love the funky chops, the pretty ballads and tight pop.

Beautiful voice: clear and open then with that sexy, bluesy rasp that could be described as smoky. Love it. The songs are either set up to showcase her voice as pop power ballads or blues rock n rollers (my preference). I knew Bonnie in the late 80s as a blues guitarist guesting with Clapton, BB King, John Lee Hooker and Buddy Guy. Surprised to hear her straight pop voice.

Thoroughly enjoyable - mix of rock n roll and country rock. Love those "high flyin' harmonies", sweeter than Beach Boys and Everly Brothers. Looking forward to reviewing Hotel California!

I'm one minute into this and it's immediately aggressive, mysogynistic, gun toting woes of the poor black man's so-called American life. Depressing, unoriginal, unattractive and boring. Absolutely nothing that I, as a black man, can relate to in any shape or form or even believe in or find entertaining. It is so crass and ugly, not eloquent, interesting and far from clever. I will listen to the whole album since it's on the list and I've only ever heard a few 2Pac songs. I look forward to my opinion changing. A few songs in the middle (dear mama) were actually ok where 2pac almost sang. However, it's clear that I really do not have the taste for hard hip hop, just the easy listening gentler styles that are not gangster shooting thug mysogynistic. 2 out of 5 because he rhymes well and the backing tracks are well sampled and put together.

Good deep voice as always. Interesting to hear the modern covers, but a bit weird like your grandad singing Radio 1 or 6 Music! Some work brilliantly (Man comes around, hung my head, hurt, Sam). Powerful, but not essential.

A bit too country folk although Silver Raven was good.

We Brits have a strange affection for the Mondays dispute out of tune singing! Subsequent albums are much stronger, although I've always really enjoyed the remix of WFL and Hallelujah from the Bummed era. However, I really don't like the messy, over-crowded, distant sounding production. Bring on Step On, Kinky Afro, Loose Fit, Judge Fudge etc.

Very pretty chamber pop with erudite lyrics. A good surprise given Cale's Velvet Underground and avant-garde reputation. I'd guess that Divine Comedy knows this album well. Child's Christmas, Paris 1919 and Graham Greene were my favourites.

Exquisite voice and accomplished confident performer. I usually choose to listen to Ella for this type of jazz, but Sarah Vaughan's voice is so smooth. Great piano playing (drums and bass are so good you don't notice them). Lovely recording.

Very exciting, energetic, fun performance. Good doo-wop. Amazing to think James Brown was a leading early 60s soul man as well as the godfather of funk in 70s.

A little disappointing, not the fun, pop version of Ever changing moods. Very low key jazz first half with lots of instrumentals. Second half is much more upbeat, although the songs are more diverse. Please don't rap Paul!

A great crossover album of funky Afro-beat dance, post punk pop and Joy Division-style alternative rock. Very accomplished and enjoyable.

It lives up to the praise - a fine selection of classic Otis Redding and Stax House band soul pop. A great listen. Fills you with sadness that we lost another star so early and not through self destruction this time.

Not as pleasant as a previous more jazzy Ray Charles album so slightly disappointing on that measure. A bit hum-drum, lacking pizazz. Had to wait until well into the album to hear any nice piano soloing. Low 3 because it is still pleasant.

Pretty awful and lacking melody. First time I stopped two thirds through. Not the worst so I’ll give them 2 stars because they don’t sound dissimilar to an old noisy band I used to mess around in, but I knew our limitations!!

Good raspy vocals and pleasant 70s style disco and soul. Nothing very special, but certainly not bad. Low 3.

Another essential funky soul/pop LP from Stevie's classic period. Probably my 3rd favourite after Songs in the key of life (5*) and Innervisions (5*).

A good coverage of Johnny Marr's different musical styles for the Smiths. Some of their greatest songs are on this LP.

Very pretty. Lush orchestral backing. However, some mumbled vocals and a few falsetto curiosities! Reminds me of Sufjan Stevens. Was expecting alt-country not sweet melodic chamber pop/blue eyed soul! A high 3 for its accessibility.

Superb smooth and funky disco. I think it is better than it’s predecessor, C’est Chic due to the comprehensive and mature quality of all tracks - no filler here although there is still the repetition of refrains that keep Chic songs in clubs. Excellent.

Fits in well with Alanis and Tori, definitely with the emphasis on the piano. Less quirky voice than either - quite jazzy and likeable. Good album. Would listen to more of her music. High 3.

Ok foot tapping country. Doesn’t seem essential.

Distinctive sound with the drumming and chanting, but only 3 good hit singles and a two new wave songs with sinuous groovy bass lines isn't quite enough for anything more than 3 stars, although the style was certainly influential.

A bit disappointing for such a well regarded album. I prefer the first half, I'm not so keen on the Celtic folk of the second half. It is well created even if I don't like it much. Low 3 out of 5

It has some noisy pop songs reminiscent of Pixies to and a few lighter jangly pop songs. Noisy, but quite good 90s indie rock.

Very pretty music. Beautiful voice without annoying affectations or histrionics. No country this time, which makes this all-round appealing. A lovely album.

Good blues, great voice full of mischief and fun! Quite busy production - prefer slightly fewer instruments or a cleaner mix between lead and rhythm, so I’m only giving 3* to the blues legend that is Muddy Waters.

Not my thing - I can admire the finger picking guitar playing and melodies emphasised by the sparse instrumentation, but I just don’t think I’m won over by Willie Nelson’s country voice.

Funny, good low key jazz and THAT voice! Feels more like a comedy record, but good all the same. I like the poetry and entertaining. wouldn’t choose to listen to much again, but I get the quality.

I like side 1 far more than 2. I enjoy the blues rock songs and particularly funky Peace Frog. Not as overall enjoyable as LA Woman, but not awful.

Apart from Waterloo Sunset and David Watts (thanks to the Jam's cover) I found this very mid 60s and a bit lame without the rock edge of earlier Links.

Adored this 25 years ago (when the album itself was already over 25 years old) so will be interesting to revisit it today after not listening to it much in recent decades. Yes, it's full of riffs, blues rock, blueprints of heavy rock and folk rock. Still inspirational bass grooves. Brilliant and essential.

Really enjoyed Grace Slick’s vocals. Was expecting more space psychedelic rock, so pleased to hear straight forward late 60s garage guitar rock. Superb Paul Simon/Bert Jansch-style guitar instrumental piece. Good album - perhaps not quite essential to be a 4.

Great fun! Not full of smash hits, but plenty to enjoy.

Too thrashy for my taste. I am familiar with One. Quite liked a few folky intros and melodic guitar solos, but prefer more melody, stronger riffs and less angry vocals. However, I do like James Hetfields deep gruff voice!

Enjoyed this in 94 and still liked it all very much today. Quite Krafwerkian with the layered sounds and (mostly) absence of big beats a la Fat Boy Slim and Chemical Brothers. Still absolutely love Kein Trink Wasser.

A good 80s Brit indie love album. Like Orange Juice meets Prefab Sprout with a hint of Smiths. Listenable without much filler, but only Perfect Skin seems essential.

Another enjoyable 80s "indie rock" album. I like the strong intro bass lines and bass chords. Good to hear Stipe's less affected and nasally singing on these early REM songs. Good and catchy too. Not quite a 4, but close.

Disappointingly unfocused blues rock. It has the power and riffage, but not enough melody or song structure. I can see how it influenced the heavy rock to come.

I really enjoyed this. Americana with a good voice, Sheryl Crowe meets Ryan Adams. High 3.

Bowie is great, but I don’t enjoy or get it all. I quite like side 1, but Blackout is a bit messy. I like Arabian (very Chic), but none of the instrumentals on side 2.

Very industrial post punk. Could have been 1990 rather than 1980. Impressive on that basis, but too harsh for me.

Surprisingly acceptable since I don’t really like rap/hip-hop. I did accidentally download the censored version which sucked a lot of joy out with the whole flow being destroyed by constant missing words - but that also means it’s full of swearing which is an odd lack of variety and articulation against the clever wordplay throughout including a joke about being a bad influence on 4&5 year olds! Eminem has a far less harsh and annoying voice than I recall. Mostly clever and listenable.

I actually knew this album from when it was released and had forgotten it. Yes, it does work better than the very experimental noisy earlier albums. A comfortable 3.

Great poetry storytelling. Very bare and stripped back guitar playing. It's all about the storytelling. Brilliant.