Okay so The Darkness formed and they thought, “Let’s indulge in every hair metal cliche and play the hell out of them.” And somewhere around then the lead singer thought, “I should sing like Freddie Mercury after sucking a helium balloon.” And most importantly they agreed, “Let’s have fun and not overthink anything.” I completely understand why someone would fall head over heels for their shtick. I can’t get mad at music that wants to entertain me as much as this does. But I found myself rolling my eyes about as often as I was banging my head.

One of my all-time favorites. Packed with great songwriting. An incredible debut album. I love how confidently he uses different genre styles throughout the album. There’s some doo-wop on “No Dancing,” country twang on “Blame It On Cain,” old fashioned rock n roll on “Mystery Dance,” and reggae in the beat of “Watching the Detectives.” Most of all Elvis Costello just sounds so cool. He’s a great performer. I remember listening to this in high school and even though I was too nervous to date girls at the time, this album gave me a little window into an adult world of relationships and sex. Hearing Elvis Costello sing about dating with a snarky attitude had a huge impression on me. He was smart and nerdy looking but still had swagger. A lot of songs went over my head — I still don’t know what “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes” or “Less Than Zero” are about) — but I loved the style with which he sang them. Fun fact: I was Elvis Costello for Halloween in college once and I based my look on this album cover. I’m sorry to say no known photographs exist of this costume but I swear it was really good.

My sophomore year in college, I got mono and listened to nothing but The Smiths for two months. I don’t listen to them too often anymore but I formed a bond to the music during that window of time and I’ll always count them among my favorite bands. Their style is a balancing act - the music can have a muscular rock sound (I love that fat and funky bass!) but they can be delicate at the same time (like how they add that twinkling synth at the end of “The Queen Is Dead”). Morrissey is the king of sad and melancholy rock but he’s also very funny. He can really sell these ballads of unrequited love but there’s usually at least a hint of irony in his delivery. He’s one of my favorite lyricists too. “Frankly, Mr. Shankly” is a hilarious song and “I’d rather be famous than righteous or holy” is a great line. Here’s another line I love in “Bigmouth Strikes Again”: “Now I know how Joan of Arc felt / As the flames rose to her Roman nose / And her Walkman started to melt.” Ugh lines like that make me want to write rock lyrics. The album is stacked with great songs but these are probably my favorites: “I Know It’s Over,” “Bigmouth Strikes Again,” “The Boy With the Thorn in His Side,” “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”

A lot of these songs have a melancholy vibe but the production buries them in layers of feedback and noise. The insane amount of feedback and reverb on the guitars in “Dreams Burn Down” is a good example of this. When the music turns up to 11, it feels like hard rock but it’s not a hard rock song, really. I love that contrast and I love the energy of this band. I’m surprised that I’ve never heard of them but delighted to now. They’re a hell of a rock band — the drums on opener “Seagull” are fast and ferocious and never let up. And the rest of the band piles on the noise! It’s a great opening statement and a great track. (I love the drumming on “Polar Bear” too.) 4 stars for the songs and music + a bonus star for this drummer working overtime. He singlehandedly transforms a few of these songs with his playing.

I love Norah Jones and I love this album. Her vocal performance is incredible and the music is so soothing.

This was in high-rotation for high school Steve. Sometimes I take a break from this album for years at a time because I feel like the songs are overplayed on classic rock radio but then I come back to it and the big songs blow my mind all over again. I forget about the more melodic tracks too. Really nice. This song isn't on here but listening to the album again reminded me of this scene from Louie where he takes his daughters on a long car ride: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhAn6ZB5Vg0

I didn't know Smashing Pumpkins contained such multitudes. A wild, sprawling album with a track sequencing designed to give you repeated whiplash. One moment they're playing dreamy ballads, the next they're thrashing through blistering hard rock and even metal. It's hard to predict what's coming next. The band seems to want to disorient you, even at the expense of a better flowing album. Once you open yourself up to the experience though, there are some terrific highlights. They can spin alt-rock gold like "Tonight, Tonight," "Muzzle," and "1979." They can turn up the aggression on tracks like "Jellybelly" and "Zero," or push their rage to the limits like on "Tales of a Scorched Earth" and "X.Y.U." And then there's the sweet spot for me, "Bullet With Butterfly Wings," which has huge hooks but doesn't skimp on the hard rock sound. Other favorites were the "An Ode to No One" (epic!) and "Love" (I love that drenched in fuzz sound). Dizzying and definitely too long but that's the point, right? Really impressive overall.

A little bit surf rock, a little bit glam rock, a little bit jazzy, a lotta bit funky and so many bongos! More than a few of these songs reminded me of stuff you'd hear in a Quentin Tarantino movie. Listening to it straight through would be a lot but it feels more like a compilation of hits than a true front-to-back album. I love the covers of rock songs too. And man, those drum solos! How many drummers did they have? Really fun stuff.

Man, this guy has such a distinct voice. I hadn't listened to much Offspring aside from the big hits that came when we were in middle school (I was more of a Green Day guy) and I really enjoyed this. On this album, they're hardcore but also playful, and the songwriting is pretty tight and focused. A lot of the songs are pretty poppy too (the classic "Self Esteem" is so catchy). Punk is the driving energy here but there's a little grunge on the early tracks and they even dip into ska a bit ("What Happened to You?"). I also have a soft spot for "CD albums" - the intro track invites you to enjoy this "compact disc" and there's a hidden track! P.S.: Dreena yelled at me for playing this album too loud so that's how you know it's good.

I love Norah Jones and I love this album. Her vocal performance is incredible and the music is so soothing.

Solid singer-songwriter album with some country twang and a few songs that nod towards Irish folk music. Favorite tracks: "I Don't Want to Talk About It Now," "Bang the Drum Slowly," "One Big Love."

Wow. Pure joy blasting out the speakers. They don’t make them like this anymore. I love how hard the drums are on a lot of these songs. Everything on here is gold but “Twenty-Four Hours From Tulsa” wrecked me. Also, she can really wail! "Don't You Know" in particular has some fantastic, soulful vocals in the second half. (I had to stream that one on the album "Dusty" for some reason.)

The production on this album is perfection. The drums are so crisp and tight; the bass is thick and funky; and the horns blend beautifully, sounding like an organic extension of the rest of the band. And a lot of great guitar. There's some killer psychedelic shredding and I was totally drawn in by that strange tone on the guitar in "The Heathen." I found his vocal performance particularly entertaining. I love the flow of his vocals on “So Much Things to Say” - I’ve never heard Bob Marley sing like that. (The bonus single “Punky Reggae Party” even has him scatting.) Throughout the album, he sounds so free and expressive. Some really soulful stuff here. There are a lot of classic songs on this album but I also really enjoyed the album cuts. Some songs on here I've never heard before. P.S.: Remind me to show you a music video my friends and I made in high school for “Jamming.” 😎😂

The Pogues are a unique and dynamic band but their style doesn’t get a lot of mileage with me. I do love the drunkard’s brogue of the lead singer but I can’t do much Irish folk music.

I don’t always focus on lyrics but you have to with Joni Mitchell. They’re literary but still emotionally direct. And the music on this album is spare enough to highlight them, adding playful flourishes to accent her stories. I’ve listened to this album a bunch over the years but the little moments always surprise me. I love the seemingly improvised nature of her phrasing - when she chooses to sing high, when she lingers on a syllable, when she jams a long phrase into a short space. A beautifully constructed album all around. (“Carey” is a personal favorite of mine and Dreena’s. I’ll never get tired of imitating the way she sings “buy you a bottle of wine.”)

Bruce’s best? (Talk to me on a hot summer afternoon and I’ll tell you it’s “Born in the U.S.A.”) This is certainly the album where he perfected his signature sound. How do you even describe the E Street Band’s style here? Heartland rock spiked with jazz and doo-wop? Listening to the album again, I wondered: What is it about this music that makes it so timeless? Is it that saxophone wail? The twinkle of the piano? The way Bruce distills a wide variety of influences and makes them his own? (On “Backstreets,” he croons like Elvis and screams like John Lennon.) Or maybe it’s just the sheer drama of it all. Few songwriters can take small moments like driving with the windows down or going out for drinks after a long day of work and make them feel like the huge, existential things they are when you’re in them. And who else can write preposterous lines like “The highway’s jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive” and get away with it? (The answer is probably Meat Loaf but he got it from Bruce.) A classic album and a thrill to listen to.

A top 10 rock album for me. Musically it’s a perfect cocktail of a lot of my tastes: Beatles-esque pop mixed with hard rock, psychedelic vibes, punk riffs and big drama. It’s a loose concept album about the rise and fall of a self-obsessed rock star (I think)* and the sequencing of the album has such a great emotional sweep to it. The melodies are so catchy, the hooks are big and Bowie is a hell of a performer. “Moonage Daydream” is a personal favorite and “Five Years” kills me every time. But every song is great - truly an album with no filler. *Wikipedia explains that Ziggy Stardust is an alien who becomes a self-obsessed rock star, so I was close. 👽😁

A fun, unpretentious rock album. The first half dips into blues and country, and the second half is more musically ambitious. In the past I haven't thought much of Aerosmith but I was impressed by how comfortably they slip in and out of styles. The big hits "Walk This Way" and "Sweet Emotion" are the clear standouts but I also enjoyed the heavy metal crunch of "Round and Round." It's a first-rate Led Zeppelin knock-off. And "You See Me Crying" is an excellent example of that blown-out string-accompanied 70's drama. Aerosmith don't seem to take themselves too seriously, which adds to their appeal for me. I rolled my eyes at "Big Ten Inch Record," but was surprised to learn that it's a cover of a song from 1952! (The original by Bull Moose Jackson is just as silly.) So Aerosmith aren't just goofy horndogs, they're also scholars of goofy horndogs past!

What a weird, funky, horny album. I like that even though a lot of the music is synth-heavy dance music, none of it feels overly processed and robotic like the majority of pop and club music today. There's an organic quality and an off-kilter energy that runs throughout the album. The songs feel alive and unpredictable. I didn't know Prince was so filthy and funny. I can't get enough of that spoken word portion in "Lady Cab Driver" where he has sex with the cab driver and dedicates his thrusts - at first to personal resentments and societal ills and eventually getting abstract as he melts into an orgasm. Really hilarious, strange stuff. And wow, what a performance on the closer, “International Lover.” It’s a supremely cheesy song and he does some kind of character or parody on it but he has incredible range as a singer.

This album was almost all new for me. I knew the main single "I Can See For Miles" and I think that's the best song here. Not many others connected for me. The goofy fake commercials and radio interludes are fun but the main set of songs here isn't very strong. I see this more as a snapshot of where they were as a band - their early hits were behind them and they were about to make some very ambitious albums. Hilarious album cover though.

Her voice has a kind of hypnotic power. Interesting to listen to this shortly after the Joni Mitchell album - she must count Joan Baez as an influence. Their voices are similar. Recently I’ve enjoyed listening to mellow music on headphones late at night when everything’s quiet and this album fits that mood. I may have to add her to the nighttime rotation. (And she sings in Spanish too? God bless!)

A little tough to find online because it's not available on streaming but almost all of the songs are on Youtube and someone put together a playlist in tracklist order. This is so up my alley right now because I've actually been listening to a lot of Ornette Coleman recently while I write. He's an incredible jazz artist who essentially invented free jazz, where you deliberately play atonal notes and sometimes ignore the melody all together. (The album of his I've listened to the most is "Change of the Century" and it's a good intro to the style because it's mostly melodic jazz with some experimental stuff in the improvisations.) I think it's so cool that someone drew a line between free jazz and hardcore punk. I remember listening to the title track on "Change of the Century" and thinking, "This is crazy. This has such a punk rock attitude.” It still sounds wild in 2022 and must have been truly nuts in the late 1950's. But a lot of the songs that John Zorn and his band cover on this album are already so fast and chaotic that playing them even faster and louder and more chaotic turns them into more of an experimental curiosity than anything I'd actually want to listen to for fun. You have to be in the mood to be musically assaulted. Still, some songs really worked for me. "Good Old Days" has blasts of pure noise but breathes enough that you can follow the structure. (It was also one of the only songs I knew going into this so it was cool to hear.) "The Disguise," "Blues Connotation," "Ecars," and "Broadway Blues" stood out to me too. (Also, having two drummers is such a crazy, cool thing to do. I love that.)

What a stunning debut album. How was she this good right out of the gate? Her singing is powerful and expressive, her lyrics are razor sharp and the music is rich and complex. I love how she turns the piano into something aggressive and angry. Or on “Never Is a Promise,” how that one sour note complicates the whole song. “Criminal” is a classic (even better than I remember) and “Sleep to Dream” and “Shadowboxer” are incredible songs too.

An excellent album and probably the solo album of his that sounds the most like the music the Beatles were making when they broke up. There are other John Lennon albums I like more, probably because they're a little more rough around the edges than this one. But it’s a great summary of who John Lennon was as an artist. I always feel weird about the Paul McCartney diss track "How Do You Sleep?" though. I know they had a falling out but it just feels so harsh to rip into Paul like that. It feels petty and needlessly negative, especially after the peace and love message of "Imagine.” "Oh Yoko!" was a big song for me and Dree when we first started dating in college. I put it on a mix CD for her and I'll always associate it with early memories of dating in college and moving in together after graduation. There are a lot of great songs on this album but that one is an easy favorite for sentimental reasons.

Like someone put 90's hip-hop and alt-rock into a blender. The gloomy mood makes it perfect rainy day music but the record scratches and samples keep the music from becoming too downbeat or melancholy. It’s a cool, druggy vibe. Favorite tracks: “Sour Times” (one of those songs I didn’t even know that I knew until it came on), “It Could Be Sweet” (that bass line!) and “Wandering Star” (love the record scratches and background layers).

Damn, she’s got swagger. The strength of this album isn’t really in the songs but her performance. Her voice is an elastic band and it’s fun to hear her play with it and riff on these melodies. She’s clearly having a lot of fun. On her next album, she’ll dial back the riffing a smidge and record some truly great songs. But this album captures her raw and unfiltered, doing some loose and jazzy numbers about love, sex and nightlife. The production oozes cool, balancing retro and modern styles, and provides a perfect stage for her to do her thing. Song after song she lets it rip and it’s a blast to listen to.

I dig the energy even if this isn’t totally my taste. I always respect a sound that’s this distinct and carefully calibrated. Those big, 80’s drums! “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” is one of those songs you can’t get away from but it is very good. And “Shout” is a jam! Definitely my favorite track here.

I can’t believe I’ve never heard of her before. I’ve been listening to this all weekend. The album feels like a singer songwriter record but depending on the song, she does folk rock, country rock, funk and soul. And somehow it all still sounds like one cohesive style. Her vocals tie everything together. She has such a strong, distinct voice and she’s a mesmerizing performer. The songwriting is fantastic too. She writes about love and relationships with depth and maturity, touching on issues of vulnerability, power and confidence. I know I just heard it for the first time a few days ago but I could find room for “Tall in the Saddle” on my top 100 rock songs of all time. What a song! It starts with Pink Floyd style guitar and adds her deeply soulful singing before pausing for a guitar solo that would be at home on “Dark Side of the Moon.” Then it builds to a climax and tears into a funky breakdown followed by an insanely danceable refrain. Even the phrase “tall in the saddle” is great. The song is a takedown of a womanizer in his prime but even post-breakup she concedes how much fun he was. (I love the way she sings, “Fun, fun, fun, fuuun!”) I can’t wait to listen to more of her. Easily my favorite new discovery from this list. 💯

60’s rock like this is butter on my bread. Such a gorgeous, clean sound. David Crosby’s vocals on “Almost Cut My Hair” are stunning. I guess I’ve never heard him before. A real showstopper of a song! Other favorite tracks: “Carry On,” “Woodstock,” “Everybody I Love You”

I would love to mentally time travel and hear this sound with fresh ears. The production is perfection but inevitably sounds dated. To hear it in 1986 when this was the hardest, freshest sound would have been awesome. This still hits hard though. These drums are so tight, so crisp. And the shouted style of the rapping matches the intensity of the music (and vice versa). The use of guitar throughout is killer, especially on the title track. Rap and rock are fused beautifully (gotta love some Rick Rubin production) and “Walk This Way” is an inspired song to remix (cover?). Steven Tyler sounds insane here too. Great that they brought him in on the fun.

This album is a personal favorite of mine and one of the strangest, funniest and overall best debut albums of a rock band. Part surf rock parody, part punk rock, part acid trip at a 50’s drive-thru movie theater, the album is filled with spiky guitar riffs and absurdist humor. Fred Schneider’s vocals get most of the attention in The B-52’s and understandably so; he sounds as if the Mad Hatter were a radio announcer. But Cindy Wilson deserves equal billing here. She’s an absolute maniac on the microphone, screaming and wailing one minute, and slurring her way through a bizarre baby voice the next. She’s a powerhouse on the hypnotic “Dance This Mess Around.” Side A is untouchable for me - the sequence of “Planet Claire,” “52 Girls,” “Dance This Mess Around” and “Rock Lobster” is incredible (the latter two are both top 100 songs for me). The second half of the album is a blast too though, with loads of goofy humor, sexual innuendo and a charming cover of “Downtown” to cap things off. How fun to hear a band experiment and fool around the way The B-52’s do here. It’s a brazen, joyful album that sounds like nothing else. I’ve listened to it dozens of times and it never gets any less strange or thrilling.

We happened to be on vacation in Arizona for this one and it was great for a scenic drive on our way to the Grand Canyon. I like folk rock like this and I appreciate that Love has two lead singers with pretty different styles - the rocker and the more melodic folk singer. The rocker almost sounds like Screamin’ Jay Hawkins at times! Wow, that last track “Revelation” covers a lot of ground! An epic 18-minute jam! I’m looking forward to spending more time with this album.

Really solid album here - strong songwriting and gorgeous production. Hard to complain. I hear a Beatles influence in a lot of the songs (“As You Are” sounds a lot like “Across the Universe”). Even more so, a lot of these songs sound like The Bends-era Radiohead, which makes sense because Radiohead’s producer, Nigel Godrich, produced this album. Still, I don’t see Travis as a knockoff as much as I see them carrying the mantle of 90’s British guitar rock that Radiohead mostly abandoned by the time this album came out. (Technically these guys are Scottish but, you know.) This album is excellent, melodic mood music. I don’t think it’s quite in classic territory but I like it!

There are some classic songs on this album for sure but overall I got a little restless listening to it straight through. (There are a few filler songs and two jams longer than 13 minutes!) I can’t help but feel the album could have packed a bigger punch with some editing. But I’ll confess I gave this a close listen on a plane and maybe I didn’t do it justice. I’ll try listening to it more. The bluesy numbers would probably benefit from being played loud in the house where they can stretch out some more. This feels more like speakers music than headphones music. Even the less than great songs have killer guitar shredding on them though. The band’s brand of hard blues still sounds awesome today. Jimi Hendrix was a hell of a performer and considering this was his last album, maybe it’s no so bad to have more than you need here. 🙌🎸

One of my all-time favorites. Packed with great songwriting. An incredible debut album. I love how confidently he uses different genre styles throughout the album. There’s some doo-wop on “No Dancing,” country twang on “Blame It On Cain,” old fashioned rock n roll on “Mystery Dance,” and reggae in the beat of “Watching the Detectives.” Most of all Elvis Costello just sounds so cool. He’s a great performer. I remember listening to this in high school and even though I was too nervous to date girls at the time, this album gave me a little window into an adult world of relationships and sex. Hearing Elvis Costello sing about dating with a snarky attitude had a huge impression on me. He was smart and nerdy looking but still had swagger. A lot of songs went over my head — I still don’t know what “(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes” or “Less Than Zero” are about) — but I loved the style with which he sang them. Fun fact: I was Elvis Costello for Halloween in college once and I based my look on this album cover. I’m sorry to say no known photographs exist of this costume but I swear it was really good.

Hahaha wow I know almost all of these songs because they play at the restaurant. I was laughing listening to this because one after another I was going, “Yep, I know this one too.” “Queremos Paz,” “Una Músical Brutal” and “Vuelvo Al Sur” (plus a few others) are probably among my most listened to songs of all time because they play every day at work. Honestly though the music itself is pretty cool. A lounge-y mix of Latin American music with French jazz but… I just can’t separate the music from how I know it. One day, years from now, this will be a 5-star listening experience for the nostalgia. It’s gonna bring back a lot of memories. But today I have to give it a 2 hahah

Gorgeously produced country rock (with some psychedelic rock too). Totally the kind of thing I like playing in the backyard in the summer. “Strength of Strings” drags a little but other than that this is a really strong album. The electric guitar on “Some Misunderstanding” is so expressive, especially right at the end! And I love the backing vocals throughout.

This one is going to be in high rotation for workout music for me for a while. I love the energy. The music is full of surprises too. Every song is a marathon dance jam with twists and turns and layers of details in the mix. Amazing production. I love how they use sound effects in the music. There’s breaking glass in “Break & Enter,” a pitch-corrected voice that sounds like a dying cat in “Their Law,” and race cars and car alarms in “Speedway.” The album has an eclectic mix of dance/techno styles and a lot of different vocal samples that make it a great, varied front-to-back listen. Even some more upbeat stuff (that flute melody in “3 Kilos” is great!). I wasn’t familiar with this beforehand but it definitely feels like a classic of the genre.

I can appreciate the cold, electronic minimalism of this album’s style but I found the repetition of some of these songs grating. I like a nice long song but I need some variation or tension or drama to justify an 8 or 9-minute song length. “The Hall of Mirrors” might work for me if it was half as long. “Showroom Dummies” is a highlight. I like the dystopian imagery of people mindlessly going about their routines. It matches the severity of the music unlike the title track, which is just about catching a train? Haha the tone doesn’t match the lyrics for me. Like, lighten up, dudes. It’s just a train. Cool to hear an album that has recurring motifs but there’s not enough variation for me that I’m happy to hear the main theme come back. It just makes the long songs feel even longer. I can imagine this being an influential band / album for a lot of artists. I can definitely hear Daft Punk drawing influence from them. The other album I hear in this is Kanye’s “808s & Heartbreak.” This album had to have been on the mood board when he produced that album. The mostly instrumental “Franz Schubert” is another highlight. Really beautiful.

I love The Velvet Underground. Every album of theirs is distinct and different. This one - their second - is their strangest. The music is mostly fuzzed out, low-fi rock and the production is unpolished and sloppy in a way that feels confrontational towards the listener. The songs are an odd batch. The title track is simple enough (before deteriorating into noise right at the end) but is quickly followed by "The Gift," a weird little short story about a man who mails himself to his girlfriend and gets a knife to the head when she cuts the box open. The background music simmers underneath, keeping a steady beat while the guitar riffs on some psychedelic vibes. "Lady Godiva's Operation" continues the psychedelic music while telling the story of a botched sex change operation. I love how Lou Reed jumps in to emphasize certain words in a monotone voice. It's a crude, jarring effect that I think is really funny. The first half ends with "Here She Comes Now," a beautiful gem of a song and a generous track to include on an otherwise abrasive album. (Nirvana does some really good covers of this song.) But then the real chaos starts. "I Heard Her Call My Name" is a blast of noise and feedback that turns out to just be a warm-up for the 17-minute "Sister Ray," a truly insane assault on the ears. You can really get lost in it. Lou Reed's vocals are wild too as he shouts about drugs and sex. "Too busy sucking on a ding-dong!" must have been a controversial thing to include on an album in 1968 but it's also hilarious. It's nice to know that even as the band was upending what rock music could be and inventing new styles, they had a sense of humor about it all. It's aggressive for sure but you can hear them having fun too.

This was mostly new for me but I’m loving it so far. Musically, it’s a lot of soul and funk, and the style is very loose and free. David Bowie has an incredible band behind him for this one! Whoever plays bass on this is awesome. The drummer too! I’m going back and forth on my rating but I’m gonna tip it in favor of a 5 because I anticipate spending a lot more time with this album.

Funny to have another Velvet Underground album so soon on the list. This is their first album and musically, it’s a fascinating mix of psychedelic pop (“Sunday Morning,” "I'll Be Your Mirror") and more experimental avant-garde fare (like the gloomy BDSM jam “Venus in Furs” and "The Black Angel's Death Song"). There are also songs that exist somewhere between those poles (like “All Tomorrow’s Parties,” which has a simple enough structure but features druggy mood music in the background). The album has some great rock numbers too. I love how "I'm Waiting For My Man" keeps that steady rhythm throughout. The music only changes slightly between the verses and choruses. "Run Run Run" takes a relatively basic rock/blues sound and pushes it towards noise rock, and then "European Son" takes things even further into experimental territory. Somehow the sequencing of the album balances all these different styles. Having Nico sing lead vocals on a few songs helps break up the stranger, more challenging material. The album is a weird, wild ride but I really love it. P.S.: If you're not sure about this one, their sound definitely changes after the experimental first two albums. Their self-titled third album is mostly melodic acoustic songs and their fourth (and basically last) album "Loaded" is a big, beautifully produced pop album with some major hits. P.P.S.: Funny to hear the name Severin used in "Venus in Furs" - I never knew he was saying a name there until now!

Guitars! Lots of guitars! I’m happy to get some classic alt-rock on this list because there are a lot of classic bands like Sonic Youth I’ve never listened to before. Cool to listen to this right after the Velvet Underground albums. You can draw a pretty straight line from them to Sonic Youth, especially the noisy back half of “Mote.” I dig the energy more than the songwriting. Not a lot of songs stood out to me, at least on a first listen. I bet they were great to see live though.

So good. The songs are really dynamic — they switch tempos (and sometimes even genres) mid-song but Black Sabbath has such incredible chemistry as a band at this point that everything clicks. The music sounds alive! I love the melodic songs too. I always knew Ozzy was a great singer but "Changes" was the song that made me realize he's one of the all-time great rock singers. The instrumental "Laguna Sunrise" is beautiful too. An eclectic album full of amazing performances. The way "Under the Sun" ends, with the band gradually slowing down, I always feel like I should applaud at the end. Great stuff.

Moody and melancholy but also muscular rock. Lead singer Robert Smith is great — so expressive! I like that the songs aren’t afraid to take their time. The album is long but I don’t think there’s any filler here.

Off-kilter, spiky songs with a feminist streak that take equal influence from punk and reggae. “Typical Girls” was a standout track for me. The bonus track cover of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is a gem too.

We’ve had a lot of albums like this on the list so far. This one is a mix of easy-going soft rock and more psychedelic music. I’d rate it as good but not especially great. Highlights: “What’s Happening?,” “Eight Miles High,” “Captain Soul” Interesting to start to hear repeats of songs on this list. Joan Baez did a version of “John Riley” and of course Jimi Hendrix does the most famous version of “Hey Joe.”

Wow. The rhythm section here is unbelievable. “Crosseyed and Painless” and “The Great Curve” in particular are stunning. Just relentless in their energy. Amazing. The whole album is solid and it has “Once in a Lifetime,” which I’ve heard a million times before but still sounds fresh.

Raw, political, aggressive and loud. Very loud. There's so much going in the music - so many layers of samples - that it can be hard to focus on anything sometimes. But when it works, the energy is unlike anything else. I also think the songs are better the louder you play them. This was designed to be played at maximum volume. Chuck D's flow hits really hard and doesn't sound as dated as a lot of other hip-hop from this era. "Welcome to the Terrordome" stood out to me as a good example of his rapping. Other highlights: “911 is a Joke,” “Burn Hollywood Burn,” “Power to the People,” “Fear of a Black Planet,” the beat on “Reggie Jax,” “Fight the Power”

Music like this always makes me smile. Cool to know they were among the first hardcore bands out there. Lead singer Darby Crash sounds truly insane. Highlights: “Land of Treason,” “Richie Dagger’s Crime,” “Manimal," "Shut Down (Annihilation Man)"

I’m definitely going to want to spend more time with this one but it’s made a strong first impression. I like the mix of melodic guitar and harder blasts of feedback. A lot of these songs are shapeshifters, moving from one mode into the other and sometimes back again. Beautiful album cover too. Highlights: “Teen Age Riot,” “Silver Rocket,” “‘Cross the Breeze,” “Total Trash,” “Candle,” “Kissability,” “Eliminator Jr.”

Another 60’s rock album, this one with a lot of blues and hard rock. There’s some fun oddball psychedelic stuff too like “Hot House of Omagararshid” (maybe my favorite song). There’s a cheerful, playful spirit to the album, especially in the vocals. Not exactly a high water mark of the era and it’s a little all over the place but there’s a lot of enjoyable music here. Other highlights: "Lost Women," "Over, Under, Sideways, Down”

One of the things I’m really loving about going through this list is how I’m starting to see connections between different artists across different time periods. With this album, for example, I immediately heard the influence of Kraftwerk. The cold electronic production and the emotionally detached vocals remind me of the Kraftwerk album we listened to previously, “Trans-Europe Express.” And yet Depeche Mode does it in their own way. This album has a goth club vibe and a lot more pop hooks than that Kraftwerk album. I’m digging it so far. Here’s another connection: On “Personal Jesus,” the heavy breathing and drum beat that happens around 2:15 is almost identical to the bit on Kanye’s “Black Skinhead”! Kanye’s version seems like a deliberate reference to this song but I’m surprised there’s no songwriting credit given to Depeche Mode. It’s really similar!

This is my first time listening to Metallica! Their sound encompasses a range of metal subgenres and they switch back and forth between them making this a wild ride! I definitely hear the heavy metal drama of Sabbath. Then they get into more dark and thrashy sounds that I typically associate with metal. And the guitar solos! Some real melt your face shit! There’s even some psychedelic vibes on “Orion.” I dig the anti-war lyrics too. The album cover says a lot and songs like “Disposable Heroes” are really powerful. Highlights: “Battery,” “Master of Puppets,” “Disposable Heroes,” “Orion”

A very good singer-songwriter album. Beautifully produced too. I’d never heard of her before. I wouldn’t put it on a ‘best of all time’ list but I do like it. The first half is better than the second half though. Highlights: “Stolen Car,” “Sweetest Decline,” “Couldn’t Cause Me Harm,” “So Much More,” ”Pass In Time,” “Stars All Seem to Weep,” “Central Reservation (The Then Again Version)”

A perfect Sunday morning album. The closing track is even called “Sunday”! I love jazzy folk-pop like this. There’s certain times (Sundays, mornings on vacation) when I put on Van Morrison because nothing else feels right. But now I know - Nick Drake is an option too! But while Van Morrison is wild on the microphone, Nick Drake is much more sedate. The emphasis in these songs is on the guitar playing and the gorgeous arrangements. (How about that flute! Front and center!) Highlights: “Hazey Jane II,” “At the Chime of a City Clock,” “One of These Things First,” “Poor Boy” (the piano on that song!), “Northern Sky”

One of my all-time favorites, an album my parents played a lot in my house growing up and one I continue to listen to on a regular basis. The music is magical to me. The arrangements are rich and layered but they feel so natural and organic. The songs flow like water. Van Morrison’s vocals are stunning. He bends and stretches his voice in ways I’ve never heard before or since. Sometimes I just have to laugh at the way he delivers a line. He’ll slur through his words and I’ll have no idea what he’s saying but I feel the emotion! It’s an amazing performance. Loose and jazzy and full of life! I definitely have favorite songs and favorite moments but I tend to think of the album as one piece of music. When I think about it, I remember the big, sweeping emotions and the sound of all these instruments (the strings, the flutes, the piano, the guitar) and how they blend together for one unique sound. Just beautiful. (So funny to get this album right after the Nick Drake album after I compared him to Van Morrison.)

This album has a pretty eclectic mix of sounds and styles. There’s some experimental stuff and also some more pop-friendly (even clubby) jams (like “Poor Leno”). Some are in between like “Eple,” which has those weird little off-key notes in its hook. There’s also some chill, blippy-bloopy electronica (like “Remind Me,” “A Higher Place,” and the spacey “In Space”) and even some jazzy numbers (“She’s So”). This is an album worth listening to closely but it can also slip into the background for hangouts, smoking, studying, or writing. There’s a newer electronic artist I like called Caribou that a lot of these songs remind me of. No question Caribou counts Röyksopp as an influence. Cool to hear that connection! Also “Sparks” sounds like Portishead! Highlights: “So Easy,” “Eple,” “Poor Leno”

A roll the windows down album of Southern rock that owes a lot to bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and Aerosmith but The Black Crowes do it just as good! It’s got big riffs, great energy and soul. I love the bluesy piano too. This would be an excellent album even without “Hard to Handle” and “She Talks to Angels.” But with them it pushes toward classic territory. “Cause mama, I’m sure hard to handle now” - I’ve heard that line 1000 times but never knew what he was actually saying 😂 Also, I just learned that that song is a cover of an Otis Redding song!

My sophomore year in college, I got mono and listened to nothing but The Smiths for two months. I don’t listen to them too often anymore but I formed a bond to the music during that window of time and I’ll always count them among my favorite bands. Their style is a balancing act - the music can have a muscular rock sound (I love that fat and funky bass!) but they can be delicate at the same time (like how they add that twinkling synth at the end of “The Queen Is Dead”). Morrissey is the king of sad and melancholy rock but he’s also very funny. He can really sell these ballads of unrequited love but there’s usually at least a hint of irony in his delivery. He’s one of my favorite lyricists too. “Frankly, Mr. Shankly” is a hilarious song and “I’d rather be famous than righteous or holy” is a great line. Here’s another line I love in “Bigmouth Strikes Again”: “Now I know how Joan of Arc felt / As the flames rose to her Roman nose / And her Walkman started to melt.” Ugh lines like that make me want to write rock lyrics. The album is stacked with great songs but these are probably my favorites: “I Know It’s Over,” “Bigmouth Strikes Again,” “The Boy With the Thorn in His Side,” “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”

A few months back I went through a major Beach House phase. I wanted to catch up on their older albums in preparation for their new one (which is very good!). I’d always liked them before but something suddenly clicked in my brain chemistry and I became obsessed. I would stay up late listening to them until I fell asleep. Their dreamy, melancholy style sounds particularly good after midnight and they became a part of my end of the night routine for a while. This album might be the best example of their style. The songs are excellent, the arrangements are lush, and the drumming gives the sleepy music a little extra energy (some of their albums just use a drum machine to keep time). There’s a magic in their music I can’t get enough of - I find it very soothing. Favorite tracks: “Zebra,” “Silver Soul,” “Walk in the Park,” “10 Mile Stereo,” “Take Care”

Frank Ocean has the voice of an angel and he’s great at writing one-liners. There’s a lot of different sounds and styles on this album (funk, soul, hip-hop, electronic) and it can almost be too much - it’s overwhelming to listen to straight through. But it’s ambitious and the highlights are incredible. Highlights: “Thinkin Bout You,” “Sweet Life,” Earl Sweatshirt’s verse on “Super Rich Kids,” “Lost,” “Bad Religion”

Manic and experimental, wild and weird, there’s nothing quite like it. So many of these songs (and the entire album in general) feel haphazard and randomly stitched together and yet everything clicks. Every sudden genre switch, every vocal effect and every sound effect feels like it’s right where it’s supposed to be. I’d love to learn more about the editing and mixing of this album. It’s perfectly paced and sequenced. Beck knows when to push it and when to reward the listener. The easy, country vibe of “Jack-Ass,” for example, feels like a cool breeze after the chaos that comes before it. Fun, playful and insanely entertaining.

A classic Bob Dylan album. One of his best and probably the one I listen to the most. It could be a greatest hits. It’s also the one I think gives the best sampling of his style and talents. It’s got everything: storytelling folk songs, more hard-rocking numbers, blues, harmonica solos, long drawn out vowels that he rhymes one after another. There’s a lot of lyrics that pack a major emotional punch. And an equal number of lyrics that make me go, “Wait, huh? What is this song about?” I love that. So many great songs but “One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)” is one of my all-time favorites. I love how the piano amps up the drama. And “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat” is one of his funniest songs.

Very interesting - the production is 80’s pop but the style is art rock. Kinda sounds like Bowie mixed with Tears for Fears and The Smiths. On paper that sounds good but I’m not sure about the vocals. His voice is so dramatic and warbly. I’m not totally into it but the music is definitely grabbing my attention. Great album cover.

I respect an ambitious concept album and this reminds me a lot of The Who in rock opera mode. But even those Who albums I tend to enjoy at an arm’s distance. The style can feel pretentious which is definitely the case here. The explicit reference to Broadway is fitting - it sounds like a Broadway show and annoys me the same way a lot of musical soundtracks do. How about this line from “Counting Out Time”: “Erogenous zones, I love you / Without you what would a poor boy do?” Jeez 🤦🏻‍♂️ Also, wow - I read the plot summary on Wikipedia. Truly bonkers. Shame that the final product isn’t more fun considering the story is so trippy and ridiculous.

Hell yeah! Riffs galore! Big drama! Great energy. Really fun stuff. Their rhythm section reminds me of a train chugga-chugging along relentlessly. It makes for an awesome foundation for the songs.

How amazing to have everything I love in music in one place: psychedelic guitar, jazz improvisations, soulful vocals and stellar drumming that can keep up with all of the above. Also, horns! There’s a special dopamine hit I get when my favorite rock bands include horns on a song and Chicago seems to be designed around the principle that more horns is pretty much always better than less horns. I agree! “Free Form Guitar” is a bit much but I always thought of Chicago as a clean-cut band and it’s nice to know they did drugs too. (The same goes for the wild but kind of exhausting 14-minute closer “Liberation.”) Other than those though, this is great. Favorite tracks: “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?” (such a great song and I’ve never heard that jazzy intro before), “Poem 58” (that guitar!), “South California Purples,” “I’m a Man”

Sweeping and cinematic but also psychedelic and strange. It took a few minutes to grow on me but I got into it, especially once musical motifs started reprising. Very satisfying to hear melodies come back in a long-form piece of music. I do think it requires your full attention though. It was perfect for a long car ride. A few moments that stood out to me (I took screenshots on my phone to remember them): Pt. 1: 12:30 - When the bass joins in. Such a cool, kinda creepy vibe. Pt. 1: 14:25 - A guitar riff! This surprised me. Pt. 1: 17:20 - The music gets quiet but there's tension and drama. You can tell something big is coming. Pt. 1: 20:15 - Haha when he starts listing all the instruments! It's kinda silly but also helpful for me to appreciate everything that's going on here. Pt. 2: 8:40 - After a slow burn, that guitar (?) ripping into the song is a cool effect. Pt. 2: 11:45 - After the narration of musical instruments in Pt. 1, I was wondering if there would be vocals in Pt. 2. Well, here they are! Haha wow I did not expect this insane monster growl gibberish! Mike Oldfield is one weird dude. I love how often this album surprised me.

Sometimes I think of artists’ styles like a cocktail. Shuggie Otis, for example, is 2 parts Stevie Wonder-style soul, 1 part smooth jazz, 1 part funk rock and a dash of reggae, shaken and served over ice. The music goes down easy. The back half is particularly mellow and mostly instrumentals. I’m curious to hear more by him, especially more of the upbeat, soulful, funky songs. Apparently he wrote “Strawberry Letter 23” — for years I’ve loved the version by The Brothers Johnson but didn’t know it was a cover. (I first heard it on the Quentin Tarantino soundtrack for “Jackie Brown.”) His version (not on this album) is excellent too! Highlights: “Inspiration Information,” “Aht Uh Mi Hed,” “Rainy Day”

A strong Neil Young album. I especially dig some of the longer feedback-heavy jams. I enjoy Neil Young in country-folk mode but I like him even more in hard rock mode. His voice can be pretty but he doesn’t have a conventionally good singing voice. That unconventional voice works well though with the loose and unpolished guitar work on these songs. Crazy Horse is a great backing band and they sound awesome here. Highlights: “Country Home,” “F*!#in’ Up,” “Over and Over,” “Love and Only Love”

I'm definitely going to want to spend more time with this one. There's a wide variety of sounds on here and I have a feeling that some of these songs won't fully reveal themselves until a few listens in. A lot of tracks bury their melodies under heaps of reverb and fuzz, like "No More Sorry," which has a sad, Beatles-esque melody underneath layers of effects and noise. I've heard about My Bloody Valentine for a long time and now I see why. I can hear 1,000 indie artists from the last 20 years in these songs. They've clearly had a huge influence on a lot of bands. Highlights: "Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)," "Feed Me With Your Kiss," "Nothing Much to Lose" (those machine gun drums are wild!)

One of the best debut albums of a rock band — a classic. 45 years later and its energy hasn't dampened at all. It still rocks. The "Noo-whooa-ohh!" vocals that come in at 1:44 on "Janie Jones"?! So good. Listening to this for the first time in years, I paid more attention to the social and political lyrics that mostly went over my head when I was a teenager. This is actually my first time listening to the UK version of the album. I've always listened to the US version. (Both CDs were options at Best Buy when I bought it in high school and I had to make a decision.) The US version cuts a few songs and adds a few more so it was cool to hear some of these tracks for the first time. On the other hand, a few of my favorites are missing from the UK version. "I Fought the Law," "(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais," and "Jail Guitar Doors" are all incredible songs. I didn't realize they were singles that weren’t recorded at the same time as the original album.

On this album, The Cure seem to have put more emphasis on mood than songwriting. I dig the sound and energy - pained vocals over melancholy, sometimes spooky music. A few tracks even sound like a horror movie score. There aren't a ton of songs on here when you take into consideration the instrumentals and transitional tracks. But the album is focused and works well as a whole. Highlights: “In Your House,” “A Forest”

Juvenile and silly but they have the musical chops to back up their goofy antics. The music is mostly punk but there’s moments when they sound like the Stones too. And on at least one song, “(I Live For) Cars and Girls,” they do a straight-up Beach Boys parody. Their cover of “I Got You Babe” is pretty good too, but even that they do a bit tongue-in-cheek. “Back to Africa” is a little cringe-y. Reading over the lyrics, they definitely intend it as a criticism of colonialism but I think the band is a bit too childish to really pull it off. Overall this is a fun one from a band I’d never heard of before. Kind of reminds me of the music some of my friends’ bands in high school made.

Wow. I love the live, loose feel of this. Sounds like the songs were recorded in single takes. Even the way the saxophone comes in at the end of “1970” and then stays on for the next two songs feels like a live show. The music is raw, visceral and loud. This is really fun, sexy stuff. I’ve liked Iggy Pop in the past but man, I’m a full convert now. He’s incredible on this album. His vocals on the last two minutes of the song “Fun House” are insane. Also, is it just me or does the opening riff of “T.V. Eye” sound a lot like Rage Against the Machine’s “Sleep Now in the Fire”?

Loose, weird, bluesy and experimental. It’s got an energy all it’s own. “Croker Courtbullion” sounds like a broadcast from another world, or maybe a recording from someone’s dream. Hearing his growling, half-spoken delivery, it’s pretty clear we wouldn’t have Tom Waits without Dr. John. Highlights: “Mama Roux,” “Danse Fambeaux,” “Jump Sturdy,” “I Walk on Guilded Splinters”

I like the harder rocking songs more than the pastoral folk sections. In general, I found the music impressive but it didn’t grab me and move me the way my favorite rock bands do. Part of the reason for that is the heady lyrics. I didn’t emotionally connect with these songs. One moment that stood out to me: that flute solo that comes in halfway through “My God.” You can hear his breathing and his voice while he plays. It’s a cool effect and ups the drama for me.

One of the Stones’ best albums. They’re at the height of their power here, taking blues, country and soul, making those genres their own, writing great songs and then jamming on them. “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” is probably my favorite song of theirs. That jazzy breakdown that ends up taking over the song… incredible stuff. I could jam to that forever.

Nice — he has a style like Michael Jackson. His vocals are great — he’s very soulful and a showman too. Solid, funky 80’s pop. Highlights: “If You Let Me Stay,” “Wishing Well,” “Dance Little Sister,” “Let’s Go Forward,” “Rain,” “Who’s Loving You”

The songs have an easygoing vibe with playful and inventive improvisations, particularly from Stan Getz on saxophone. The Latin-style guitar is beautiful too. Highlights: “Desafinado,” “Samba De Uma Nota So”

Yes — I love 80’s throwback pop like this. Albums like this are a goldmine for party playlists. 😁 Her voice is perfect for this style and the production is packed with fun details. Some of the lyrics surprised me. Like the chorus of “Doesn’t Matter,” where she sings about not knowing if God is real. Most songs in this genre are about about hooking up in the club. I love the willingness to go for deeper subject matter in dance music. Highlights: “Comme Si,” “The Walker,” “Doesn’t Matter,” “Goya Soda,” “Feel So Good,” “The Stranger” On streaming you can also listen to the French version of the album. Very cool to hear the French versions of these songs!

An incredible collection of performances from possibly the greatest soul singer of all time. Man, he can really rock too.

A really enjoyable batch of songs. Not quite as great as their best albums but it does have some classic tracks on it like “Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before” and the record industry takedown “Paint a Vulgar Picture.” I also really like the glistening closing track “I Won’t Share You.”

An eclectic mix of country twang, soft rock and 80’s pop. The album is held together by an easygoing energy, clean production and Mark Knopfler’s Dylanesque vocals. Some of these songs I know from growing up with classic rock radio but never thought much about who sang them. I particularly liked “Why Worry,” which starts like a lullaby and extends into a power ballad jam. The dusty cowboy style of “The Man’s Too Strong” stood out to me too.

Man, “The Rockafeller Skank” takes me back to childhood. So good. I’m very happy to know there’s a whole album of that energy. This is a really fun album with an abundance of personality. Other highlights: “Gangster Trippin,” “Soul Surfing,” “You’re Not From Brighton,” “Praise You,” “Love Island” (wow, the bass on that one!)

I love how the vocals are produced on this album. His voice has so much texture and putting it front and center in the mix highlights that. At its best, the album feels like reading poetry. The songwriting isn’t complex and the production is sparse. We really get to sit with the lyrics and his voice. I’d be curious to return to this album after listening to more Leonard Cohen. He seems to have crafted it knowing it would be his final album. That’s not something a lot of artists have the chance to do. Great album cover. Highlights: “You Want It Darker,” “If I Didn’t Have Your Love” (I like that he found room for a pretty straightforward love song on this album), “It Seemed the Better Way” (such a sad and beautiful violin melody)

A powerhouse singer with a killer rock and soul band backing her. Great songs too.

This album is a blast. You really feel like you’re in the room. The songs are good and his voice is great. The rest of the music is produced in a pretty rough way but his voice stands out. Mostly though I enjoyed the in-between banter and stories he tells. He’s a great entertainer. I love the part when he plays “San Quentin” twice in a row and asks a guard to bring him water in between and you can hear the crowd boo the guard as he walks over. I didn’t realize Johnny Cash recorded 4 live albums in prisons. I had heard about “Folsom Prison” but never heard it. This makes me want to listen to them all.

A classic. They’ve got a huge sound that must have been great in stadiums. You can put this on in the background and jam out or pay closer attention because the songwriting is excellent too. Liam Gallagher sounds great singing these big, John Lennon-esque melodies with a little added sneer. These are beautiful songs and he gives them a little extra rock edge. Oasis might be the only band I know to include transitional instrumental tracks on an album that rock instead of being slow, mood-setters. I love that. A lot of great songs but I think "Don't Look Back in Anger" is my favorite.

The album is at its best when it’s raw and wild. I didn’t get into this nearly as much as the other Stooges album we listened to, “Funhouse,” but it’s cool to hear them on their first album developing their strange, snarling style. I thought the 10-minute “We Will Fall” was going to build to something more. Not sure why they made that one so long when they could have snuck another song on the album instead.

Fun, playful punk. I hear a lot of The Clash and some B-52’s in their sound. But there’s also some country rock in here too. The male singer adds an interesting tone to some of these songs. I got a kick out of the Roy Orbison affectation he puts on for “Adults Books.” And “In This House That I Call Home” has a little of that Orbison drama but mixed with punk riffs. The lyrics are sharp and funny too (“Back 2 the Base” is a wild one!) which makes the songs worth paying closer attention to. I’m definitely going to want to spin this one a few more times.

The production is very clean and crisp, especially for 1959. But I found the album a little tedious and repetitive, both musically and lyrically. How many songs had the image of notches on a gun? I wonder if I’d enjoy one or two of these songs more on their own instead of all in a row.

A mix of absolute classics (“Bad,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “Smooth Criminal”), some enjoyable if not quite great songs, and some less memorable filler tracks (“Liberian Girl” is a funny one). I’m not sold on it as a great album but man the highlights are incredible.

Willie Nelson is a wonderful singer and songwriter. There’s a great mix of melancholy songs and upbeat tunes (including a little bluegrass and ragtime here and there). And the production has a warmth that complements his expressive vocals.

This is a new band for me. I think I’d enjoy this more if I’d heard studio versions of the songs first. But the live recordings definitely capture the energy of the band. They sound like a great live act - the lead singer in particular is pretty wild. (That closing track “Starship” tried my patience though.) Highlights: “Kick Out the Jams,” “Motor City is Burning” (some nice blues riffing here), “I Want You Right Now” (I feel like this track gave me the best sense of who MC5 is as a band)

Manic, untamed and experimental. They pack a lot of musical ideas into a relatively short runtime, which makes for a fun listen. The songs crackle with life, feeling almost spontaneous and unrehearsed. The album is pretty hard and unpolished but then “Where Is My Mind?” comes out of nowhere with a big rock anthem. Such a great song. Awesome stuff.

As smooth as a fine scotch. I can’t get enough of her smoky voice. “Smooth Operator” has slowly worked its way up my list of favorite songs over the years. Any time I hear a cover of it on the radio or in a department store, the song makes me happy. And the original is incredibly seductive and sultry. The opening 1-2-3 punch of “Smooth Operator,” “Your Love is King” and “Hang On to Your Love” is really impressive and the record continues with a string of very strong album tracks. I’m loving this.

“Seven Nation Army” is one of the greatest rock songs of all time. What an opener! And amazingly, the rest of the album lives up to it. “There’s No Home for You Here” is another great song. I think it’s a good example of how they draw influence from a lot of different musical styles but blend them into something unique. Like, there’s no doubt who you’re listening to with that song. It’s so White Stripes. Their version of “I Just Don’t Know What to Do With Myself” is stunning. It starts with a slinky, sexy energy and explodes into grungy hard rock. “Ball and Biscuit” is an epic one too. Scorching hard blues. 🔥 And “The Hardest Button to Button” follows it? Wild. The back half of this album is stacked with head banging hard rock. I want to list other album highlights but I feel like I’ll just end up typing out the whole track list. Great album.

I'm loving these Johnny Cash albums. He's a great performer and knows how to work the crowd. The songs feel carefully selected for his inmate audience. Most of the songs are about imprisonment, loneliness, betrayal and guilt. He keeps them short and sweet too; sometimes I get the impression that he wraps up a song and moves the show along to make sure he keeps the crowd's attention. June Carter has similar crowd-pleasing instincts too. She's not on the album much but she really goes for it on "Jackson." She wants to make sure these guys get a good show. Johnny Cash is a great singer but I can't say enough what a great performer he is. He handles interruptions from the crowd with humility and humor. Like on "The Long Black Veil," one of the saddest songs I know, he pauses to laugh at the reaction to the line "I had been in the arms of my best friend's wife." There's a lot of humor in the songs too. "25 Minutes to Go" is really fun and "Flushed From the Bathroom of Your Heart" has some great one-liners.

I have a soft spot for old-school 60’s psychedelia so I got a kick out of this. They’re clearly a band that enjoys goofing around in the studio with sound effects as much as they do songcraft. Which is not to say the songs aren’t good - they are! But a lot of my enjoyment of this comes from the little production surprises and oddball choices. Funny that such an experimental band decided to name themselves something so mundane. I’m guessing that’s the joke? Highlights: - “Hard Coming Love” (I love that ripping guitar that opens the song) - “I Won’t Leave My Wooden Wife For You, Sugar” (This one cracked me up - I think it’s a good example of sound effects enhancing the song by bringing out the humor) - “Coming Down” (Great fuzzy riff) - “The American Way of Love” (Nutty, druggy chaos but there’s some great hard rock mixed in here. Also, I thought the very end of this suite was kinda beautiful)

A stunning live album and a personal favorite. Their original songs sound amazing - totally transformed and rich with emotion. And their choices of cover songs are impeccable. ("Where Did You Sleep Last Night" -- what a closer!) I love imitating the way Kurt Cobain sings "Fourth of Juu-lyyy!" on "Lake of Fire."

“Green Onions” has got to be one of the greatest rock songs of all time and I didn’t even know what it was called or who performed it. It’s just wedged in my brain from being featured in so many movies and TV shows. Top notch blues riffing on this album. A great inclusion on this list. Feels like an important piece of rock history.

I remember hearing about this album when it came out but never took the time to really sit with it until now. I loved it! The production is gorgeous - meticulous layers of drums, synths and guitars. Every instrument and layer feels carefully placed but the music still retains a nervy edge. The music owes a lot to early 80's new wave. "Other Voices" and "Change Yr Mind" sound a lot like "Remain in Light"-era Talking Heads, which we had on this list a few months back. And on "How Do You Sleep?", "Call the Police," and "Emotional Haircut," James Murphy sings like Bono on the early U2 albums! For my money, "Tonite" is the centerpiece of the album. There are a lot of lyrics about being middle-aged on the album but I love the sense of humor on this one. The lyrics about how today's pop songs are all about fear of death and mortality cracked me up. LCD Soundsystem clearly tried to make a major statement of an album and for my money they succeeded. The album is a rich, emotional and musical experience with great grooves.

Might be Adele's best album. (Although the new one - "30" - is really good too.) This is the one that launched her into the stratosphere and it's easy to see why - the album has four major hits on it and her singing is incredible throughout. It's a great showcase for her voice with some killer pop songwriting too. (Plus a cover of The Cure's "Lovesong"!)

This is maybe my second Coldplay album I’ve ever listened to. (I definitely listened to “Viva la Vida” a few times my freshman year of college.) It’s gorgeous. And jazzier than I thought it would be. Something about that melodic acoustic guitar. Really nice. I love this album cover. It’s very memorable. And I just realized after staring at it for a while that it’s a globe of the Earth. I always assumed it was Jupiter or some other planet. Anyways, I think it’s beautiful.

I’ve said a few times already that I have a soft spot for 60’s psychedelia but I find it interesting to think about why some psychedelic albums from this era sound timeless while others (like this one) sound very much of their time. Songwriting is probably the biggest factor. The Byrds are using similar production techniques and effects as The Beatles were around this time but obviously the songs on this album (while still enjoyable) aren’t on the same level. Of course, it’s unfair to compare any band to The Beatles in terms of songwriting but I do think songcraft is what separates classic music from good music, at least when it comes to pop and rock. Still, if I imagine myself in 1968, sitting cross-legged on the floor of a friend’s room listening to this album on freshly purchased vinyl, I would have been very into The Byrds. Their sound has a nice mix of druggy mood music and folky country rock. “Change is Now” stood out as a highlight for me.

One of the most tightly wound records I’ve heard in a while. But it’s eccentric and weird too. The tone oscillates between wacky, horny and menacing. Wild stuff. Really fun. The music is full of spiky riffs and big hooks. I love that keyboard tone too. (It’s featured pretty prominently on “Hanging Around.”) It’s one of the trademark sounds of new wave rock and I pretty much can’t get enough of it. Great musicianship all around - some excellent guitar playing too. “(Get a) Grip (On Yourself)” in particular is fantastic. It’s my favorite track here.

An excellent follow-up to an excellent debut. I might prefer “Surfer Rosa” on a gut level but they’re very close. On some songs the band sounds like they recorded the songs before perfecting and polishing them too much, so they still have an unpredictable energy. The bass is great and drives the tone towards slightly menacing territory - so distinct, very Pixies. “Here Comes Your Man” is a personal favorite that I used to listen to on repeat in college.

There’s a great mix of songs and styles on this album. And the songwriting has humor and wit. Ian Dury seems to enjoy embodying despicable (even misogynistic) male characters - a surprising but frequently funny choice. I like when singers sing in their natural accent (like The Clash) and it’s very fun to hear Ian Dury sing almost conversationally in such a thick accent. Though sometimes the album can almost be a bit too British for me (“Billericay Dickie,” for example).

60’s rock + traditional folk music. Reminds me of Joan Baez, whose debut album we had on this list a few months back. But while the songs on the Baez album were stripped down and minimalistic, these songs have complex music and a full band sound. “Come All Ye” and “Tam Lin” were highlights for me.

Powerful antiwar lyrics with a focus on the personal experiences of soldiers, mostly in the First World War. The compositions are interesting too. I can’t say I particularly enjoyed this album though. I recognize the high level of artistry but didn’t emotionally connect to the music. “Written on the Forehead” stood out because of that reggae vocal sample. That was a cool surprise.

Reminds me of a lot of British alt-rock bands from this general era (a number of which we’ve had on this list already): early Radiohead, Oasis, Coldplay, Travis. If I was ranking those bands, that’s the order I’d put them in and I’d rank Doves behind all of them, at least on the strength of this album. The songs are fine but not much jumped out at me. I don’t think the band has as much personality as those other acts. “There Goes the Fear” is a solid track though.

I wish someone asked me to guess what year this came out before I saw the answer. I don’t know what I would have said but probably not 2005. Richard Hawley had a great, old-fashioned style and his songs are filled with nostalgia, both in the musical influences and also in the bittersweet, sentimental lyrics. The music feels deliberately timeless. He has a great voice. Sounds a lot like Morrissey at times. “The Ocean” could be a Nicole Atkins song. I guess they’re both drawing from similar influences. She’s always had a pretty old-fashioned style too. The closing track “Last Orders” is stunning. (And probably the track that would most tip me off that this is a more modern record.) Such a beautiful instrumental. It’s the kind of calming music that could soothe you to sleep. Really wonderful.

2Pac has such a great, distinct voice and his bouncing flow is so much fun to listen to. I love these funky beats too. Occasionally, the musical style pushes toward G-funk but I wouldn’t call most of this gangsta rap. 2Pac generally avoids glamorizing violence. He’s more soulful and introspective. He describes the awfulness he sees around him and tries to promote positivity at every turn. “Old School” is a personal favorite. I used to love putting that one on party playlists. This is one of those albums that’s talked about as a classic and I think it holds up really well. It’s over an hour long but there’s no filler, which is rare for a 90’s rap album. Even some of the classics will have a dud track here or there. This is solid. (Side note: I always love finding connections between albums on this list. On “It Ain’t Easy,” 2Pac raps about not wanting to get locked up in San Quentin, the prison Johnny Cash sings at for his second live prison album.)

Live reactions from late Tuesday night after work: For an album with such an eclectic mix of influences, these first few tracks aren’t as fun as I would have thought. It’s almost there but not quite raising my pulse. Ok I just got to “Dennis and Lois,” which is really scratching the itch for me. It sounds like U2’s “Mysterious Ways” with a little extra disco influence. Really digging it. (Fwiw, U2 released that song a year later so maybe it’s fair to say they were influenced by this album?) Maybe it’s this double IPA I’m drinking but the second half of this album is hitting way better than the first. The flute on “Bob’s Yer Uncle” is so fun. And that female backing vocal having an orgasm on the track? Haha I love it. Yeah I’m officially into this. “Step On” is a banger. And the last two tracks are really fun too. I’ll need to go back and listen to the first half of this again because I’m thoroughly charmed right now. Listening again on Wednesday morning and I’m really enjoying it. Their style took me a minute to connect to. His hoarse, shouted vocals are cracking me up. It’s a fun choice for a dance-y record. This one’s gonna go into high rotation for me for the next few weeks.

As far as best opening tracks of a debut album go, “Blister in the Sun” has to be up there. What a great way to introduce yourself as a band! But the rest of the album doesn’t quite live up to it. I found myself looking up how old they were when they recorded this. (The answer is they were in their 20’s — and the lead singer was only 19 — which feels right.) There’s a certain first album charm to their immaturity and goofiness. But there’s a limit to how far that takes me. Maybe I’m getting older or maybe I’m just 100+ albums into this list. 😅🤷🏻‍♂️ “Promise” opens with a grungy Nirvana-esque riff, which makes me wonder if this album was more influential than I’m giving it credit for. The album feels like a bridge between the experimental rock of The Velvet Underground and the alternative rock of the 80’s and 90’s. And man, I can’t believe this is the original version of “Gone Daddy Gone”! I know it from Gnarls Barkley. What a great song! Also, the last song, “Good Feeling,” is lovely. There are some gems on this album. Excellent album cover too. One of the best we’ve had on this list so far.

Wow! It’s been a minute since I’ve listened to this. Just incredible. “Once” is such a heavy track. It’s got the kind of hard rock operatics you hear on a metal album. Killer stuff. But this is more than hard rock. There’s so much passion and emotion in these songs. Pearl Jam isn’t just rocking out for the sake of rocking out (nothing wrong with that btw) — there’s an intensity of feeling, the intensity of life, that drives the energy of this music. Damn — “Deep” is such a wild track. After the mega hits (“Even Flow,” “Alive”), this might be my favorite. So intense. So good. I’ve listened to very little Pearl Jam in the past and revisiting this album is making me realize what a mistake that is. I’ll need to dive deeper for sure.

R.E.M. is another band I’ve always liked but don’t listen to often. In college, when I was reviewing albums for the radio station to play, R.E.M. released a new album that they announced would be their last. I was tasked with writing the blurb that all the DJs would read and rating the best tracks to play. Having never really listened to R.E.M. at the time, I was a little intimidated. I knew that a bunch of music snobs who potentially love R.E.M. would be reading what I wrote and I worried I would seem like I didn’t know what I was talking about. So I gave myself a crash course in their catalog. I listened to a few early albums and a few that have big hits on them (including this one) — while simultaneously listening to the new album. It was fun and the new album ended up being really good! I got on an R.E.M. kick them that semester (and I don’t think anyone ever suspected that I’d never listened to them before writing my review). Anyways, this album isn’t exactly my favorite, but man, it’s beautifully produced and has a ton of classic songs. “Everybody Hurts” is incredible, and “Man on the Moon” and “Nightswimming” are favorites of mine. I appreciate the literate, wordy lyrics. I didn’t pay close attention to what all the songs were about but I love when surprising words, phrases and lines jump out at me. Michael Stipe is a great performer too. I love that moment when he laughs around 2:30 in “The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite” (another great song).

Experimental, druggy and deeply sexy. FKA Twigs is one of the most interesting artists around right now. I’d categorize her music very loosely as R&B but the cool thing about her is how little she seems to think about genre. She’s draws equal influence from avant-grade electronic music as she does more conventional “bedroom music.” And her voice is stunning! She can go so high and tap into this big sense of drama. I love it. (She’s got some awesome music videos too.) Highlights: “Two Weeks,” “Video Girl,” “Numbers”

I underestimated how many Oasis knockoffs there are out there. Granted, Britpop is a style that a lot of bands did in the 90's/2000's, but this album feels particularly derivative and tame. There's some folk twang here and there and “Captain’s Table” has an interesting dreamy quality that sets it apart. But nothing jumped out at me that would make me remember this band. Pleasant but forgettable.

My favorite Rolling Stones album and a top ten rock album for me. A terrific collection of songs across a range of blues and country styles. Song after song, they sound like they’re having an absolute blast in the studio. There’s an abundance of joy and exuberance that they captured in the recording. The album makes me happy every time I play it.

Pure joy. I can’t resist music like this. Those strings at the halfway point of “I Want Your Love” have this great, driving drama. And then the horns join them! Wow. A lot of fun music here but this is the standout track for me. 🕺🏼🕺🏼🕺🏼

I love the signature Led Zeppelin sound - hard rock with a blues influence, a lot of times tipping into heavy metal territory. "In My Time of Dying" is such a good example of it. I guess it's a blues number at its core but it's heavy, man. Those drums sound huge! The appeal for a lot of these songs for me is the way the band slips into a groove and stays there. The beat and rhythm are so important to their music. A lot of great songs here, including some real epic ones ("In My Time of Dying," "Kashmir," "In the Light," "Ten Years Gone") but I think my favorites are "Custard Pie," "Trampled Under Foot" and "The Wanton Song." Those three capture that rhythm and groove feeling I love about Led Zeppelin. And the riff on "The Wanton Song" is insane.

The vocals remind me a little of the weirdo theatricality of The B-52’s and the music is similar to the muscular and moody post-punk we heard on albums by The Cure and The Smiths. The band also reminded me of a more modern indie band that I like, Wolf Parade. Bauhaus was probably an influence on them. Overall I enjoyed this. It’s dark and a little wild. But I enjoyed it at a bit of distance. Cool to hear but nothing I’ll revisit anytime soon.

Such an incredible collection of songs. And the sequencing is so bold. A lot of perfect segues but also a lot of sudden left turns. Somehow I never quite heard this line on “Taxman”: “Now my advice to those who die / Declare the pennies on your eyes.” That’s so good. Really funny. “I’m Only Sleeping” blew my mind a little when I first heard it. It’s such a perfect song about that feeling of not wanting to wake up. I didn’t realize at the time that you could just write a song about a very specific feeling. It seemed kind of radical and freeing that a song or story or any art could be about something mundane as long as it captures a feeling. “She Said She Said” and “And Your Bird Can Sing” are such great rock songs. So tight and lean. “I Want to Tell You” and “Got to Get You Into My Life” each could have been an incredible closing track. Instead the Beatles do one after the other and follow them with “Tomorrow Never Knows,” the most experimental track on the whole album. It’s such a ballsy, brilliant move. “Sgt. Pepper” gets all the credit for being a perfect pop album that dabbles in psychedelia but this album came first and checks all those boxes even better. Of course, “Sgt. Pepper” is great too but “Revolver” could just as easily be the one everyone touts as the “greatest absolutely ever” - it deserves that title just as much or more. Like, if this isn’t a top ten rock album, nothing is. (I gotta start keeping track of how many albums I give the top ten title to 😂 I’m probably about half way to ten and we still have around 879 albums to go.) Listening to this on nice headphones in flawless remastered audio was distracting at first. I think sometimes these remastered versions can almost be too perfect when you get up close to the songs. But I did hear a few new details in the mix that I’d never heard before - a finger snap here, a surprising instrument there - which was cool.

Gorgeous. The warble in her voice mixed with the strings creates a kind of drunken wooziness. The album casts an intoxicating spell. It gives off late-night jazz club energy. Billie Holiday’s voice on this album is so… weathered. Hard to believe she was 43 when she recorded this. She sounds older. But man, her performance on this album is so expressive. “The End of a Love Affair” might be my favorite here. Such a fun song.

I really like Tribe Called Quest but this is my first time listening to solo Q-Tip. His lyrics are fantastic - really sharp, clever wordplay, and the songs are focused. There’s a lot of storytelling too. But you can also kick back and just enjoy the jazzy bounce of his flow without paying close attention to the words. He moves fast but somehow sounds laid back at the same time. His flow on “Won’t Trade” in particular is great. The beat on the first half of “Move” is insane! I’ve always heard J-Dilla talked about as a legendary producer and now I understand why. The sampling on this track is ridiculous! Man, Norah Jones should sing more hooks on rap songs. Her voice is actually perfect for songs like these.

Oooh, like butter baby. This is great. Silky smooth and funky as hell. "Pusherman," "Freddie's Dead," and "Superfly" are all classics but the album is solid front-to-back. Just phenomenal musicianship all around and a fun, funky energy.

Gorgeous harmonies and good vibes. That last minute of “Judy Blue Eyes” has such a perfect, joyous melody. I enjoyed the CSNY album “Deja Vu” a little more but this one is a bit different. It’s mellower. A few songs sound like Simon & Garfunkel. Highlights: “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes,” “Marrakesh Express,” “You Don’t Have to Cry” (I love the lyrics and message of this one), “Long Time Gone”

Fascinating stuff though I connect with a lot of these songs on a cerebral level rather than emotionally. But this is only my first time listening and this is so the kind of album that you need to hear a bunch of times before you fully “get it.” The strings on “It’s Not Up to You” add a layer of whimsy that I associate with some of Björk’s music. It’s like she spiked the song with an old movie score. “Undo” is one I can groove to. There’s a skittering, glitchy beat that you can dance to (living room dancing, not club dancing). Ooh her vocals on “Pagan Poetry” get pretty raw. I think it’s awesome that she gives herself the space to explore on these songs. There must have been a lot of interesting vocal takes to choose from for any of these tracks. Her performances feel very immediate and of the moment. Makes me want to watch some live videos of her. Incredible that Björk is the lead producer on most of these songs. They’re really complex and filled with interesting details. (The warped bass sound on “An Echo a Stain” is what made me check the producer credits - it’s a great effect.) And to think all these reactions are just to the music. I didn’t pay much attention to the lyrics on this first listen but given the emotional intensity of her vocals, it’s clear that the subject matter is worth paying attention to as well. Highlights: “Hidden Place,” “It’s Not Up to You,” “Undo,” “Unison” (a playful but also epic closer!)

What a gem — such a solid alt-rock album with a mix of styles on it. I’ve listened to it twice through on long-ish drives and really enjoyed it. It’s great highway music. He’s a great singer too. He sounds like Father John Misty on a few tracks. The opening notes of “Jupiter and Teardrop” sound so much like David Bowie’s “Moonage Daydream.” It has to be a direct reference / deliberate fake-out. I got a kick out of that. My favorite songs so far: “The Shining Hour,” “Jupiter and Teardrop,” “Fuzzy,” “Stars n’ Stripes,” “Dixie Drug Store”

A very impressive album — I love how it transforms from seductive psychedelic music to mellow folk-rock to Doors-y hard blues to jazz. Very cool for a folk rock album to be so dynamic and eclectic. Highlights: “Solid Air,” “Go Down Easy,” “Dreams By the Sea”

Moody, dramatic goth rock. I didn’t totally dislike it but it didn’t do much for me. Reminded me of seeing an opening act for a show, waiting for the headliner. Afterwards you think, ‘That was kinda cool’ but then you never listen to that band again. “Monitor” is a cool one. Sounds way ahead of its time.

What a great performer! He’s so dramatic and expressive. I wish I understood what he was singing about though. Since the focus is mostly on his vocals and charismatic performance, I’m sure there are funny, witty, and romantic lyrics in French that I’m missing. A lot of songs even sound like show tunes. Still, I love this energy and I’m happy to know about this singer. I’m sure he’ll come again up at some point in my life. Hopefully I’ll have someone translating the song meanings for me. (Or maybe if I have time, I’ll try listening to a few of these alongside a translation.)

Every song that came on, I had a smile plastered across my face. What a contagious, fun energy. I love the fast, playful bee-bah-ba-doop way he scats. And he’s a phenomenal, spirited trumpeter too! “The Lip” is hilarious. I love these time signature changes. And that bit in the middle of “Basin Street Blues / When It’s Sleepy Time Down South” when he scats off time and sets up the change? So good! I tried to list the album highlights but realized I was just typing out the track list. Every song is a blast. But if I had to pick one, “Just a Gigolo / Ain’t Got Nobody” is my favorite. Just amazing.

This is good! They sound like a lot of bands I like. I hear some Clash, some Who, maybe even some Smiths and Elvis Costello. (A lot of those artists were contemporaries of The Jam or came after so it’s probably fair to say those artists took influence from these guys.) I think this is a good album but not necessarily a great one. I’d be curious to hear other Jam albums and see if there’s an even better entry point into their music. The last track — “Down in the Tube Station at Midnight” — surprised me. There are a lot of great details in the music. Makes me want to revisit the rest of the album and see if there are more great songs I missed on the first listen. Highlights: “In the Crowd,” “Billy Hunt,” “The Place I Love,” “Down in the Tube Station at Midnight”

Started by listening to the ‘Very Best’ and then spent the weekend listening to all three hours of the full songbook. Really wonderful - great to spend so much time with her voice. I haven’t listened to a ton of Ella so I enjoyed the deep dive. She has such a soothing voice. But there’s also a playfulness and a flirtatiousness about some of her performances (“Fascinating Rhythm”). A lot of these lyrics are fun and funny, and she knows how to bring out the jokes with a wink and a smile. But when the songs call for it, she brings a mature seductiveness to her singing (“Oh, Lady Be Good,” “Someone To Watch Over Me”). Man, these songs are so good. Great clean, classic pop songwriting. And the lyrics have a wonderful wit and humor. And the big band behind her?! Incredible. I love that full orchestra sound. A lot of gems but these were ones that stood out to me (including some stellar versions of absolute classics): “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off,” “Oh, Lady Be Good,” “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” “Things Are Looking Up,” “They All Laughed” (I love this song so much), “My Cousin in Milwaukee,” “He Loves and She Loves,” “Treat Me Rough,” “Slap That Bass,” “Isn’t it a Pity,” “They Can’t Take That Away From Me” (at our wedding, we danced to the version with Louis Armstrong for our first dance so the song has a special place in my heart - this version is a little different, cool to hear), “Funny Face,” “I Got Rhythm” (oooh the scatting in this! 💃)

Great beats - I love that hard funk sound. The music is a great fit for his tougher-than-nails vocals and unflinching lyrics. “Wicked” stood out as a really wild one! There’s a lot I could quibble with lyrically in 90’s gangsta rap - the misogyny, the glorification of gang violence, homophobia and the use of ‘the other f-word.’ To an extent, these lyrics are dated and today’s rap has moved past some of those things (there’s still a lot of misogyny in today’s hip-hop) but I think it’s worth pointing out. But my brain goes to music first anyways and there’s an abundance of great music on a lot of albums from this era. Listen to the jazzy piano part that comes in for the last 30 seconds of “Dirty Mack.” The whole song is filled with great jazz and funk samples - there’s a real appreciation for great music in addition to tough guy gangsta posturing. Took me a second to recognize it but there’s a Steely Dan sample in the beat on “Don’t Trust ‘Em.” (“Green Earrings” is the Steely Dan song.) This one is a good example of me loving the beat while also acknowledging the deeply sexist and demeaning message of the song.

I enjoyed this. They’ve got a big, cavernous sound that feels designed for live shows. It sounds great on record but the songs must have really come alive in concert. This would be a perfect example to play for someone curious what “post-punk” sounds like. The label can be pretty broad but I tend to think this sound is the core of the style. Moody, dramatic, spacious, big emotions. I’m not sure I’ll ever completely love Joy Division. Right now I respect and admire the music (they’ve obviously had a major influence on a million bands) but I don’t connect deeply to them. I wonder if I just need a certain time in my life when nothing but this sound will do. 🤷🏻‍♂️ In the meantime, I dig the energy.

This was one of the first CDs I ever bought in middle school (it just felt like an important thing to buy to start a record collection), though a few years passed before I actually got into it. In high school, two friends and I all got into Nirvana at the same time. Many summer days were spent listening to their albums together while playing Halo on Xbox. Nirvana is one of those great bands where I can hear the influence of each band member. Krist Novoselic’s bass has a big, fat sound. It’s much more prominent than in a lot of other rock bands. It influences the tone of a lot of songs too — it can be menacing and dark or have a lighter bounce and rhythm. And Dave Grohl’s drums have a thunderous energy. These might be my favorite drums to air drum to while listening. Some of his drum fills are pretty straightforward but man, he plays the hell out of them. And then Kurt Cobain. His guitar is rough and expressive, and it roars in his solos. There are a ton of great riffs here too. And of course, his vocals. This album has long been a soothing balm for my angst and his singing is a big part of that. His screaming is cathartic. It’s been a while since I’ve played something on headphones loud enough to hurt my ears. This was a fun album to revisit and hit me on a day I needed it.

Scott Walker sounds something like if Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys made an album in the style of Tom Jones. (I wonder if Turner is a fan of Scott Walker.) The singing is lounge-y and dramatic and the lyrics are packed with jokes and surprising details. I enjoyed discovering the odd songwriting of these songs. “Jackie” feels like a clear standout, packed with strange specifics sung in a breathless style. “Next” is a funny number too - it could be an interlude in some larger concept album or musical but here it is, on its own, a weird melodramatic little episode. Wow — I was just thinking that some of these songs reminded me of the French singer Jacques Brel, who we had on this list last week. Turns out Brel wrote three of the songs on this album including both of the aforementioned songs! That makes a lot of sense. (Great to hear some of Brel’s tunes in English!) (Also, I guess this list isn’t in totally random order, right?) There’s actually more straightforward love songs and ballads here than the first few tracks would suggest. I prefer the humorous songs. Highlights: “Jackie,” “Best of Both Worlds,” “Next,” “The Girls and the Dogs”

“Alone Again Or” is in my top 100 rock songs. I first heard it in the Wes Anderson movie “Bottle Rocket” and it’s what got me into this album in high school. The driving drama of the song pulls me in every time. The whole album is excellent - great songwriting front-to-back, with a lot of surprising turns in the songs to keep you on your toes. It's also one of those albums where every instrument and detail feels perfectly placed. There are moments of shredding psychedelic rock balanced with gentler folk passages and some wonderful horn parts too. This is a top 20 rock album for me. “The news for today will be the movies for tomorrow” - what a great line. (“A House is Not a Motel”) I love the new melody that gets introduced in the last minute of “The Red Telephone.” “Oh the snot has caked against my pants” is one of the craziest opening lines of a song I’ve ever heard. I love it 😂 ("Live and Let Live") "You Set the Scene" is an epic one and has a couple of great moments I love: - The bass line that comes in at 1:58 sounds so good - The way the song slows down at 2:20 and introduces the horns - At 5:08, Arthur Lee drops in this soulful vocal riff as if it's a Smokey Robinson song, lets it fade into the track and then moves back into the song. How does that work so well?! Genius level stuff, man. Recently I've been skeptical of modern remasters of 60's albums but this sounded fantastic on headphones. Crystal clear but stays true to the feel of the music.

A classic and a personal favorite. It has Steely Dan’s two biggest hits — “Do It Again” and “Reelin’ in the Years” — songs I never get sick of hearing. There’s also a ton of other great songs — “Dirty Work” is incredible and “Kings” is a favorite of mine. This was back when Steely Dan was a full rock band (later it would be just Donald Fagen and Walter Becker writing songs and playing with studio musicians). I tend to think of this album as their most straightforward rock album but there’s still a bunch of awesome jazzy solos and complex songwriting. (“Fire in the Hole” has a great jazzy strut to it.) It’s always fun to hear other singers take lead vocals on a few songs on this album. They definitely have ‘prettier’ voices than Donald Fagen but I’m glad he stayed the lead singer after this album. His singing is so unique. He’s capable of adding a strange drama and theatricality to the songs (and there’s something kind of sleazy about his voice too). I’m totally at risk of giving 100 albums a ‘top 20’ designation but I’m gonna do it again (no pun intended). This is a very much a contender for my top 20 or top 30 rock albums. It’s solid front-to-back, no filler. Such a great album cover too. It’s tacky and gaudy and vulgar but I think it’s very funny and pleasing to look at.

“Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” “I’m Finding it Harder to Be a Gentleman” and “Fell in Love With a Girl” are classics. “Little Room” is such a great quick one. The a way Meg White smashes the cymbals relentlessly captures what’s so great about her as a drummer - simple, direct, hard hits. She keeps time with an attitude. “We’re Going to Be Friends” is a wonderful little ditty. Jack White is such a gifted songwriter - he can write big rock anthems, blues songs and pleasant melodies like this. And all of them will get stuck in your head for years. There are a lot of songs packed into 40 minutes here so we also get some oddball numbers like “I Think I Smell a Rat” and experimental stuff like “Aluminum.” Eclectic album that rocks hard!

Nice jazz-rock fusion. Some of it’s smooth, some of it’s spacey, a lot of it is funky and weird. A lot great percussion too. My favorite track is “Palladium.” Sick album cover too.

They have a punk energy and attitude but the music is more dense and complex than that. Also, the guitar solos are so much more epic and dramatic than I might have expected for the punk-ish / alt-rock music. Some real stadium rock shit. The guitar reminds me of The Who at times. I love it. Some of the long songs near the end drag a little but overall I really like the album. Highlights: “Stop,” “Obvious,” “Three Days” (wow, what an epic long song!)

My first time listening to this album. The production is rougher than I expected. I’d previously only heard a live version of “Atlantic City” but this stripped down original version is really growing on me. I’m very used to hearing Bruce Springsteen in wailing rock star mode but he’s a wonderful, emotive singer in this mode too. Wow - “State Trooper” has a really hypnotic energy. I really like the bells (?) that come in around the one-minute mark of “Used Cars.” On the first go-around, I enjoyed the album but wasn’t convinced it was the masterpiece everyone says it is. But I spent the weekend listening to it a few more times and I’m starting to get it. A subtle but great album.

Some songs feel like 60’s pop with a dark psychedelic edge, others are hard blues rock. There are some absolute classics — “Light My Fire” is probably a top 100 rock song and “Break on Through (To the Other Side)” and “The End” are both amazing — plus a lot of really good album cuts too. I really enjoyed “I Looked at You” and “Take It as It Comes.” Man, I guess I haven’t heard “The End” in a while. It gets really wild around the 9-minute mark.

Lots of interesting musical ideas but I wasn’t too into it. I wasn’t crazy about the lead singer’s vocals. “Hudson Line” (which has a different lead vocalist) and “The Funny Bird” stood out as strong tracks.

Hell yeah - these songs sound massive! I love the energy and drama of this album. Ridiculous guitar solos too! I had this on in the background so I wasn’t paying close enough attention to have favorite tracks yet but I enjoyed the ride. Looking forward to diving deeper.

Solid alt-rock with a range of styles. Some songs reminded me of Pixies, others reminded me of R.E.M. Grungy songs are mixed with bright and sunny pop songs. Overall probably not something I’ll spin often but I enjoyed it.

One of the most joyful albums I can think of. This is Paul McCartney at his best, writing classic pop songs with a great backing band. Ooh that saxophone! “Let Me Roll It” rocked my world the first time I heard it because of how much Paul sounds like John Lennon. People always assume Paul wrote the pop songs and John wrote the rock songs. But clearly Paul is very capable of writing killer rock songs (and singing the hell out of them too)!

I love this album. The music is magic. You can’t ask for a better album to put on when cleaning the house. The pianist, Rubén González, is phenomenal. He had such a light, playful touch. I’ve listened to some of his solo albums too and for a period of time they were my go-to choice when I was stressed or anxious. When you focus on his piano playing, it’s impossible to not smile. “Pueblo Nuevo” on this album is a great showcase for his playing.

Really fun energy. I love the lead singer's willingness to get goofy and over-the-top in his vocals. A true entertainer. “Come on Eileen” is a classic that I fell in love with as a kid after listening to some "Best of the 80's" mix CD my sister had lying around the house. It’s still a great song. The cover of "Jackie Wilson Said" is really good too - it's a great fit for this group.

That “dum-dum-dum” drum fill before the chorus of “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” is so simple but so effective. Ringo’s drumming isn’t flashy on this album (or any Beatles album really) but he always complements the songs nicely. “Getting Better” is a great pop song and it’s got that weird little dark part in the middle where the speaker sings about beating his woman. Such a strange section that complicates the tone of the song. Feels almost like a joke, especially the way the song cuts back to the upbeat chorus afterwards. I love that this weird, druggy album has achieved a such a high level of status and appreciation in our society. It’s talked about as this grand masterpiece but it’s got a lot of strange, trippy moments. I love that. Man, “Within You Without You” is a jam. “Lovely Rita” is a great song with these big, dramatic moments. And it’s about having a crush on a woman writing parking tickets 😂 “Good Morning Good Morning” into “Sgt. Pepper (Reprise)” is ridiculous. Some of the best rock the Beatles have ever recorded. “A Day in the Life” has to be a top 10 Beatles song. I don’t know many other songs like it. As a teenager I gravitated toward this one — it opened my mind as to what songs and art could be. It also reassured me that being bored with my daily routine was a normal emotion. The song is about feeling overwhelmed and disillusioned with the state of the world while simultaneously feeling stuck in a meaningless daily rhythm. It struck me as a high schooler and it resonates with me now too. This album was an absolute pleasure to revisit. And I have to shout out that album cover. One of the all time best ever. 💯

Never heard of this band before but they’re totally the kind of group I like. This album can be a bit much (lots of long, dense, sludgy jams) but I’d be curious to hear a more streamlined batch of studio-recorded songs from them. The opening number “Born to Go” has a big thunderous energy! And “Down Through the Night” keeps the momentum chugging along. Their rhythm section in general really keeps things moving on these long songs. “Lord of Light” has some ripping saxophone in it! 🎷🕺🏼 There’s a fair amount of druggy instrumentals and spoken word nonsense that I could do without. But this was a live show so I understand the theatricality of that. “Master of the Universe” is a heavy, hard-rocker. 😎👍 Sometimes the live recording makes the songs feel a bit distant when I wanted a louder, more immediate sound. I felt like I was in the third mezzanine wishing I was upfront next to the stage.

An excellent album featuring pleasant melodies, great beats and fun details. Feels like it was ahead of its time in sound and style. Highlights: “Xtal,” “Pulsewidth,” “Ageispolis,” “We Are the Music Makers,” “Ptolemy,” “Actium”

Amazing. One of the best discoveries from this list so far. Funky and danceable with African rhythms and melodies commingling with Latin rhythms and touches of soul. He’s a great, charismatic singer. His vocals on “Xica Da Silva” are awesome. Really catchy song. The music is crazy fun. It’s also complex at times. On “Cavaleiro Do Cavolo Imaculado,” there’s an interesting guitar part that comes in around 2:10. It feels detached from the melody and adds a cool layer of tension and contrast. Definitely an album where every track is strong but these ones particularly stood out to me: “Ponta De Lança Africano,” “Xica Da Silva,” “Cavaleiro Do Cavolo Imaculado,” “África Brasil (Zumbi)” (wow - this one really rocks)

Elegant and atmospheric electronica. Some songs (especially early on) also have a nervy, glitchy sound. I really like the overlapping vocal loops on "Telephasic Workshop" — it creates a strange, surreal tone. Beautiful production with a lot of different tones and styles mixed throughout. The closing track “Happy Cycling” stood out to me as well. It’s got an eerie, hypnotic vibe.

A lot of these songs have a melancholy vibe but the production buries them in layers of feedback and noise. The insane amount of feedback and reverb on the guitars in “Dreams Burn Down” is a good example of this. When the music turns up to 11, it feels like hard rock but it’s not a hard rock song, really. I love that contrast and I love the energy of this band. I’m surprised that I’ve never heard of them but delighted to now. They’re a hell of a rock band — the drums on opener “Seagull” are fast and ferocious and never let up. And the rest of the band piles on the noise! It’s a great opening statement and a great track. (I love the drumming on “Polar Bear” too.) 4 stars for the songs and music + a bonus star for this drummer working overtime. He singlehandedly transforms a few of these songs with his playing.

One of the great soul voices. And the music is fantastic. The horns! The strings! “Let’s Stay Together” is a great song. And “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart” is phenomenal — might be the best track here. I love the strings around 2:45 that imitate the wind. I’m a fan of stuff like that in music.

This is my first time listening to Alice In Chains. The songs fall on a spectrum of styles from thrashy heavy metal to more radio-friendly grunge. There are also some beautiful, slower moments. A number of songs made me think of Queens of the Stone Age. They’re one of my favorite current bands and I enjoyed listening to this album and hearing the influence Alice In Chains clearly had on QOTSA. By the end of the album, I was a little exhausted though. I respect the music but can’t fully embrace it — the songs are pretty bleak and tortured. Maybe not the best music to listen to on a sunny Friday afternoon 😂

Awesome. Half of these songs are on their greatest hits and the other half are good enough that they could be. Perfect classic rock with a lot of blues rock.

D'Angelo is the master of baby-making music. This album is loose, jazzy and sexy. I really enjoyed it and it works just as well when you pay close attention to the music as it does simmering in the background. "Shit, Damn, Motherfucker" is a wild song. Aside from the (amazing) chorus, the lyrics about catching his wife with his best friend and murdering them both caught me by surprise. 👀😂

Ooh I really like this! There are a number of Dylanesque songs (“Fisherman’s Blues,” “Strange Boat”) and a few that remind me of U2. They incorporate elements of Celtic folk into their music but it feels fully integrated into the rock sound, at least on the early tracks. Like “We Will Not Be Lovers,” which has this surging drama led by the strings. It’s got that folky influence but with a stadium rock energy! (Later songs dive fully into Celtic folk and I enjoyed those too.) I dig the Van Morrison cover “Sweet Thing,” which also throws in Beatles lyrics from “Blackbird”! Highlights: “Fisherman’s Blues,” “We Will Not Be Lovers,” “World Party,” “When Will We Be Married”

“In the Flesh?” is a great, dramatic opener. It has the grandeur of a stage production but it rocks too. “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2” has gotta be the strangest rock anthem ever canonized on classic rock radio. (Especially when you listen to it with the intro track “The Happiest Days of Our Lives,” which references the teachers’ “fat psychopathic wives.”) It’s a banger, no doubt about that, but the subject matter and theatricality of it is bizarre. I love it. The chorus of “Comfortably Numb” is so emotional. Easy to see why the song became so famous. Great guitar solos on this song too and throughout the album. Man, “The Trial” is bonkers 😂 Pink Floyd made better albums than this. They definitely made tighter albums. But excess comes with the territory on these big, pretentious concept albums. You get a lot of filler tracks that move the story along but aren’t great songs on their own. Still, I like this album better than a lot of other concept albums. I admire the audacity of it.

One of my absolute favorite albums. It might be the album Dree and I have listened to together more than any other. Hard to imagine a road trip or a long car ride for vacation without us putting this on in the car. The music bursts at the seams with joy. Paul Simon writes some of the best pop songs of his career, blending his style perfectly with African melodies and rhythms. His lyrics are also sharp, funny and endlessly quotable. Always a pleasure to revisit this one.

Smooth, sexy and sweet. The music casts an irresistible spell. There’s also an air of melancholy over a lot of these songs. There are a lot of lyrics about wanting a lover back or yearning for a new love who hasn’t quite agreed to “get it on” just yet. The closing track “Just to Keep You Satisfied” captures this romantic sadness exceptionally well. What a voice. Just impossibly, superhumanly beautiful.

Awesome angsty post-punk. Lots of spiky riffs and shouted vocals. The music crackles with restlessness, sexual frustration and anti-establishment feelings — they really capture an energy. The songwriting is really strong too. Highlights: “Ether,” “Natural’s Not In It,” “Not Great Men,” “Damaged Goods,” “I Found That Essence Rare,” “Glass,” “5.45” (I like the theme of this one - how tv turns war into entertainment)

The title track sounds like the score to a sci-fi or horror movie. “Mysterious Semblance…” is beautiful. I was drawn in by those warped tones that almost sound like music being played underwater. I don’t listen to enough ambient music to be a proper judge of how good this album is or how groundbreaking it might have been. But I was moved by some passages and I’d like to listen to it more. This would make great background music for writing. I’ll have to find the right project that matches this tone. Could be a fun way to listen to it more and get into it.

I like how adventurous and unpredictable the music is but I can’t be the only one who finds his voice grating. His vocals held back a few of these songs for me. I’m sure this is a grower of an album and one listen while running errands on a Thursday isn’t going to do it justice. But there weren’t a lot of songs that I could wrap my hands around and enjoy on a first listen. I’m open to persuasion on this one but it didn’t do much for me on the initial go-around. A few tracks stood out as standalone songs: “Race for the Prize,” “Waitin’ for a Superman,” “The Gash,” “Feeling Yourself Disintegrate”

A pleasure to listen to from the opening bounce of “Rockin’ Around (With You)” to the classic “American Girl.” The album has an old fashioned rock ‘n’ roll spirit but there’s some new wave and country rock here too. Tom Petty also sings in variety of styles. Maybe he was still figuring out his style. He’s definitely having fun.

Even at the end of his life, Johnny Cash's voice is like no other and he commands a gravitas and drama that's all his own. Some of the covers are great. His version of Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt" is excellent. And I really like his quiet, pensive take on "In My Life." It's one of my favorite Beatles songs and he more than does it justice. Other covers I wasn't as sold on. His version of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" didn’t land for me. “Tear Stained Letter” stood out as a particularly good track. Overall, a nice set of songs on a pretty low-key album.

I enjoyed this one! What a mix of sounds and cultures. A lot of the songs (especially the ones where the English guy sings lead) sound a little like the Happy Mondays album we had a while back. That clubby dance-rock style was called Madchester and I hear of lot of that in this music. But then there’s Spanish lyrics, African music and Middle Eastern melodies - each song seems to hop to a different country (and a few blend multiple genres together). There’s a druggy energy that ties it together and big drums on every track that sound like they were recorded in a vast warehouse. Highlights: “Visions of You,” “Bomba,” “Ungodly Kingdom”

90’s grunge but with a 60’s rock spirit. Some tracks sound like something The Doors might have done if The Doors formed thirty years later than they did. “Generation Genocide” has a psychedelic feel and “Something So Clear” could almost be a grunge-ified “Break On Through (To the Other Side).” Hearing harmonica on a few songs was a surprise! The album has a fiery punk energy and strong songwriting. An excellent album overall.

I enjoyed this album, though not quite as much as the last John Martyn album we had on this list, “Solid Air.” (I thought the songs were better on that one.) There’s a lot of great music and the production has some interesting choices. Occasionally I felt the production gave the music a kind of muddy sound but just as often I found it hypnotic. Same goes for Martyn’s vocals — he’s an excellent, emotive singer but chooses to bury it on a few of these tracks. “Dancing” is a particularly fun song. Overall I like it. I ended up going back and listening to “Solid Air” a bunch of times after the initial listen so I’m expecting to do the same with this album.

These guys are clearly musical geniuses. I was impressed by the ease with which the band switches between medieval folk, hard rock and prog. But I just can’t get over how pretentious it all sounds. A lot of that stems from Peter Gabriel’s vocals. Not for me. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Grade A Britpop. Lots of catchy hooks and bright melodies, delivered with a playful and mischievous spirit. The influence of The Beatles and The Kinks are clear (the music proudly asserts itself as very British) with some harder alt-rock sounds and styles blended in. The production has an abundance of fun details too that I’m sure will make this album particularly enjoyable to replay. This is a pretty long album and I wonder if it’s too long. Still, I respect a band that had so many ideas that they just couldn’t pick and put them all on the album. Blur is one of those bands I’ve been meaning to listen to for years. One of the things that’s been great about this list is that I’ve finally been finding time for all those bands I’ve heard about but never gave proper attention to.

Fun, appealing dance music. I’m not sure I’d be able to pick MJ Cole’s style out of a lineup of other DJs / producers but this is solid music for dancing or working out. The back half gets a little more eclectic. There’s some moody, atmospheric numbers and the disco-soul of “Rough Out Here” was a pleasant surprise.

I can’t remember the last time I heard an album with so many excellent songs on it. I love the lyrics - lots of sharp, clever writing. Their sound has a lot of country twang but they can also rock like the Stones (“Monday”) or do Beach Boys-style pop (“Outta Mind (Outta Sight)”). What a great opening line for an album: “When you’re back in your old neighborhood / The cigarettes taste so good / But you’re so misunderstood.” Very impressive to hear an hour-plus album that’s this consistent. Highlights: “Misunderstood,” “Far, Far Away,” “Monday,” “Forget the Flowers,” “Sunken Treasure,” “Someone Else’s Song,” “Dreamer in My Dreams” (those fake-out endings are so good!)

Packed with personality and filled with surprising twists and turns. Great beats with music that kept me guessing. Those overlapping piano loops in “Kein Trink Wasser” are beautiful. Highlights: “Sad but True,” “Crash and Carry,” “Kein Trink Wasser,” “Attached”

Grace Slick is the clear star here. Her voice is so distinct and dramatic and she sings lead on the two major classics, “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit.” Without those songs, this album would blend in with other (good) psychedelic albums from the era. Those tracks help distinguish this album from the rest. But there are other good songs here too. The quiet, melancholy of “Comin’ Back to Me” grabbed my attention. It slows things down nicely and has some wonderful lyrics. Ooh the guitar instrumental “Embryonic Journey” is great! “Surrealistic Pillow” is a funny title. Some real late-60s psychedelic nonsense. 😆

People have been telling me forever that Thin Lizzy is awesome but I never really believed them. I believe them now. They're awesome! They have a hard rock style that stretches from heavy metal to blues rock and everything in between. “Emerald” even takes an Irish jig melody and turns it into a heavy metal jam - never heard that before! I was feeling pretty down this afternoon and “Still in Love With You” just completely changed the direction of my mood and my day. What a great song and a great performance! Love those guitar solos! And I love that intense drum solo on “Sha-La-La” and the way the crowd joins in by clapping! Really fun to hear the live performances. It's a well-recorded live album and captures the fun and energy of the show. Phil Lynott is a great showman and I enjoyed hearing his intros and banter. I'm probably gonna come back to this in a few months and go, "I shoulda given this one a 5."

Great mix of dance pop, bass-heavy club jams, world music and atmospheric electronica. The production is phenomenal and the music isn’t formulaic and cookie-cutter like a lot of pop music today. There’s some really cool choices and instrumentation. The songwriting is very strong too! Man, “Ray of Light” is an incredible song. One of those dance tracks that can turn your living room into a club. Impossible to resist. Highlights for me after the first listen or two: “Swim,” “Ray of Light,” “Candy Perfume Girl,” “Ashanti/Ashtangi”

Such a classic sound. I love how up front the drums are. They sound great. The beats are nice and minimal with just a little piano or keyboard to create a hook. Gives the whole album a loose feel. I haven’t listened to much Wu-Tang in the past so I don’t have the ear yet to pick out who’s rapping on any given verse. But I had the Genius app open for lyrics so I could see who was catching my attention. Ol’ Dirty Bastard is an easy favorite. (Is he everyone’s first favorite from the group?) He has such a fun style. He’s not afraid to get weird and wild. Great performer. GZA’s verse that closes “Protect Ya Neck” stood out to me as well. That piano loop on “C.R.E.A.M.” is so good! Classic beat, classic hook. “7th Chapter - Pt II” has an insane beat. Big energy.

More strong Britpop from Blur, this time with an emphasis on guitar rock. I dug the energy but didn’t quite connect with the songs on a first listen. I’ll have to revisit this one. “Song 2” is great! One of those insanely catchy songs that takes on a life of its own and becomes more famous than the band. I didn’t know that song was by Blur.

A delightful album! I didn't think I knew Harry Nilsson but turns out I knew a few of these songs, especially "Coconut" -- such a great, fun song! Lots of strong pop songwriting with a 70's rock sound and a Beatlesque feel to a lot of the songs. Nilsson can write and sing in a variety of styles -- the album kept surprising me by changing tone but I think it holds together nicely as one album. He's a charismatic performer and a joy to listen to. I liked his riffing in the second half of "Early in the Morning," the way he croons the word "crap" at 0:43 on "The Moonbeam Song," and every second of his singing on "Coconut." The 7-minute "Jump Into the Fire" caught me by surprise too. It's a helluva rocker and there's a desperation to his wailing as he tries to convince a lover that they can make each other happy. I'm excited to listen to more Harry Nilsson. With such a diverse collection of great songs on this album, he must have a lot more on other albums too.

I love this album. It has a gentle, easy-going energy, which is a total left-turn from the first two Velvet Underground albums. The hardest-rocking songs are "What Goes On" and "Beginning to See the Light," which are both relatively mellow (especially compared to the experimental noise rock from the Velvets' previous album "White Light/White Heat"). A number of songs feel like lullabies, like "Candy Says," "Pale Blue Eyes" and "Jesus." They're beautiful songs with understated singing from Lou Reed. Rather than pushing the boundaries of rock like their other albums do, this album focuses on songcraft. The only hint that they were wild experimentalists is the strange psychedelic penultimate track "The Murder Mystery." But if you make it through all 9 minutes of that song (I rarely listen to the whole thing), you're rewarded with the closing track "After Hours," a gem of a song and a personal favorite sung by the drummer Moe Tucker.

Rip-roaring blues rock from one of the best bands to ever do it. Love the long extended jams. You know what this album is perfect for? Cooking. Play it loud, pour a glass of wine and start chopping onions. Dinner will be ready in no time.

Peter Gabriel is clearly a man with a thousand ideas running through his head. One minute he’s singing in theatrical voices on “Moribund the Burgermeister,” the next he’s crooning on the pop song “Solsbury Hill.” There’s rockers like “Modern Love,” the old-timey throwback “Excuse Me” and multi-part songs like “Slowburn,” where he tries to capture the breadth of his musical interests in one dramatic song. I think it mostly works! It’s certainly interesting to hear him go for it all. At times I found it overblown the same way I do the proggy Genesis albums Gabriel made just before leaving the band. But these songs are more accessible. There seems to be more of an effort to cater to popular genres and styles. Gabriel sounds like he’s having fun too. “Solsbury Hill” is the clear standout. It’s a bright and catchy pop song but it isn’t simplistic or formulaic. Feels like his genius was more focused on this track and the result is a classic song.

I like this album a lot more than “Trans-Europe Express.” The songs have more energy and while they’re definitely still repetitive, they’re paced well. The music develops in satisfying ways and kept my interest. The production is fantastic - very crisp, clean and polished. They must have been meticulous in the studio. Sometimes that kind of production can drain the soul out of the music. Not here. There’s a lot of emotion in the music! I love the rubber band synths on the first two minutes of “Neon Lights.” The album has some nice, playful touches like that. Wow — “Neon Lights” really builds into a stunning song! That melody (is it a processed voice? a synth?) is beautiful. The beat on “The Man Machine” slaps!

I have a confession to make. I’m a big Simon & Garfunkel fan but I’ve never loved the track “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” The song itself is beautiful but I think it’s overproduced on this album. It’s so dramatic, so big, so loud at the end. I can’t help but wonder if it would have been better to record a simpler, more understated version of the song. The rest of the album is fantastic though. So many great songs. “Cecilia” is one of the catchiest songs Paul Simon ever wrote. And “Keep the Customer Satisfied” almost matches it in its energy. The bossa nova influenced “So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright” is a wonderful gem of a lullaby. And “The Only Living Boy in New York” is gorgeous. A personal favorite. “The Boxer” and “Baby Driver” are both excellent as well. I just noticed that a lot of these songs are about heartbreak (“Cecilia,” “Why Don’t You Write Me,” “Bye Bye Love”) but they’re disguised as upbeat pop songs. There’s a fun contrast between the lyrics and the music.

Good beats and cool grooves but I occasionally wondered if the album was a little too loose and formless. There are a lot of musical ideas but there aren’t a lot of full-fledged songs. A track like “Black,” for example, has a great hip-hop beat and a catchy hook but feels like it’s missing a rap feature. Other tracks loop a vocal hook over an instrumental for a few minutes but don’t ever develop into a song with verses and choruses. It’s not bad exactly but feels incomplete. There are some strong standout moments though. The singing on “Wildfires” is beautiful, the African funk of “Bow” was a highlight and the closing track “Pray Up Stay Up” has a great vibe.

I like the bright, cheerful energy of these songs. The music is complex and ambitious like a lot of prog-rock but you can also hear the band enjoying themselves on these big, long songs. There’s a looseness in the performances even while the song structures are complex. The band seems to enjoy improvising and a lot of the solos have a spontaneous, even jazzy feel. “I’ve Seen All Good People” is a highlight. It’s the one track I knew and it really stands out here.

So tight, so precise, so intense. I love the drumming in particular - there’s a lot of power in the playing but it’s really focused and on point. I can’t imagine how in sync with your bandmates you have to be to pull off music like this. There are some very drastic time signature and tempo changes but every band member clicks into place like a machine. Sepultura has a brutal, punishing style but it’s carefully controlled. I admire the technical precision of the band but one thing holding me back from loving the music is that a lot of songs blur together for me. I’m sure the more I listen to the album, the more the different songs will stand out. But I could use a little more color or personality to distinguish the songs.

There's magic in The Beach Boys' music -- the way their vocal harmonies float in the air, the way bass drums and timpani add drama with a buh-dum-dum. I can't believe I've never listened to this particular album before. I'm loving it. "Do You Wanna Dance" is one of my favorite songs and The Beach Boys' version is one of the definitive takes on it that all other versions get judged against. Something that struck me after listening to the album a few times is how many songs are about male insecurity. On "Good to My Baby," a guy swears that he treats his girl right and that she loves him but it's pretty clear that's not really the case. "Don't Hurt My Little Sister" takes the opposite perspective. An older brother is worried his sister's boyfriend isn't good enough for her. On "Help Me, Rhonda," (a classic) the guy is just using Rhonda as a rebound hookup after getting dumped by his fiancee. The music makes it sound like an upbeat love song but he's really just hurt. Rhonda looks good but he doesn't seem to care about her at all. "She Knows Me Too Well" is a song from the perspective of a jealous man and on "In the Back of My Mind," a man is paranoid his happy relationship will eventually crumble. There are a lot of insecure and unhappy men in these songs. You can put this on in the background and jam out to the music (which I did a few times and loved) but a closer look gives you a deeper (and sadder) experience.

Loose and raw blues rock. The star is obviously Janis Joplin. Such a powerhouse. I can’t believe her voice sounded like this at the age of 25 — so rough and raspy. Great stuff all around. What an album cover. A few things don’t age well on it 😬 but I love the energy of it and how busy it is.

Phenomenal. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard an album quite like it. It combines such an eclectic mix of styles and somehow sequences them into a cohesive listening experience. Hip-hop is the predominant genre. "Root Down" has some of the best rapping I've heard from The Beastie Boys and the Q-Tip collab "Get It Together" was a highlight. But there's also a lot of hard rock. "Sabotage" is a classic. And I enjoyed the two noisy punk rock tracks, "Tough Guy" and "Heart Attack Man" (this one even turns into midtempo metal sludge for a moment). There's also a ton of jazz and funk infused into the music. (The flute sample on "Sure Shot" is gold. One of those beats I could listen to on loop for hours.) There are some incredible instrumental tracks (like "Futterman's Rule") that combine everything together for some awesome jams. I checked out the album credits, expecting to see a long list of samples and was surprised to find that a large portion of this album features live instrumentation. A little digging shows there’s a fair amount of sampling too but I’m impressed by how much is newly recorded. The Beasties could have been a jazz-rock fusion band if they wanted to!

Experimental and hypnotic, sometimes leaning towards atmospheric electronica, sometimes more focused on grooves and rhythms. I tended to enjoy the rhythmic tracks more, though I think the Eno-produced Talking Heads album "Remain in Light" does that style better. (Wikipedia tells me that "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts" was recorded the year before "Remain in Light" but came out the year after that album. That makes sense to me. This feels like the experimenting that led to an even better, more focused album.) The music is fascinating and full of interesting sounds and grooves. But very few of the tracks develop into what I would consider songs. I suppose the album was made in a more of an ambient spirit than a pop one. Still, I wanted more development and structure. Most tracks just do their thing for a few minutes without introducing any new ideas. (I think my favorite was actually “Very, Very Hungry” — it’s the one that sounded most new and strange to me.)

I’ve always liked Aimee Mann’s voice. She’s a good lyricist too. This is a solid singer-songwriter album but there wasn’t a lot on it that stood out to me to make me want to return to it anytime soon. There were a few moments where the music took on a full-bodied rock sound (the second half of “Say Anything,” “I Could Hurt You Now”) and I would have liked more of that.

Such a terrific backing band. They’re all very much in sync with each other but they also have a loose, organic style. The music feels alive. And James Brown is an incredible entertainer. The call-and-response portion of “Lost Someone” is fantastic. You can feel the electric energy in the room.

The funk here is absolutely top shelf. Great jazz solos too. The slow jams are gorgeous, though probably a bit too cheesy for me to replay often. “See the Light” is tremendous though! Definitely has that cheese but it’s big and dramatic and features some great playing!

Calm, soothing music but a bit too slow and repetitive for me. Some of the songs build to a big climax but others don't and left me wondering why they were as long as they were. It’s nice music but not for me. I was surprised to hear the rock climax of "Ny batteri" get a little emo-y. Interesting.

Bob Dylan has a lot of great albums in his catalog but this is in the running for his best. The songs are excellent and the arrangements are impeccable. He's backed by some terrific country and blues playing but the band has just enough tasteful restraint to showcase Dylan's singing and songwriting first and foremost. The sequencing and pacing are perfect. "Tangled Up in Blue" is a phenomenal opening track. And the long songs are spread out nicely with the shorter songs. I’ve listened to this album a lot but I don't always pay close attention to the lyrics. His phrasing is always interesting and his singing style is so distinct that you can kick back and enjoy the music of his vocal performance without knowing exactly what any given song is about. But the lyrics are great! The storytelling songs are packed with memorable details. And the more direct first-person songs capture heartbreak and divorce with honesty and humility. Listening to the album is definitely a melancholy experience but I don't find it depressing or dreary. There's a catharsis in hearing him sing about his regrets and loss. And that catharsis feels good. (Of course I say this now, while I'm in a very happy place in my life. The day I'm faced with heartbreak and loss, I'm sure these songs will wreck me.) “Idiot Wind” is an incredible, epic breakup song. One of those songs you hope nobody every writes about you. This part stood out to me: "You hurt the ones that I love best And cover up the truth with lies One day you'll be in the ditch Flies buzzing around your eyes Blood on your saddle" Oof. What a way to say 'one day you'll get what's coming to you.'

This album has an interesting sound. Hard rock brushes up against jazzy theatricality. The banger “School’s Out” is followed a few tracks later by a cover from the West Side Story soundtrack. 😂 And on “Alma Mater,” Alice Cooper sounds like he’s imitating Paul McCartney. I never realized that the school blows up in “School’s Out.” I wonder if the song is meant to be a little more radical than just a first day of summer anthem.

“Krautrock” is a stunning opener. Noisy (but beautiful) soundscapes that gradually shift and change over the course of nearly 12 minutes. There’s a steady pulse maintained throughout which gives the piece focus. I found it mesmerizing. “Giggy Smile” is a standout as well. The track begins with some playful psychedelic pop before shifting into a free jazz sax solo. Then it morphs into an epic jam that straddles the line between psychedelia and noise rock. There are a lot of overlapping layers in this last stretch but the music still feels playful even as it gets experimental. Incredible! Those two tracks feel like the major achievements here. The album is rounded out by a mix of experimental pop and rock and overall reminded me of The Velvet Underground at their most avant-garde. I’m very interested to hear more Faust.

I adore this album. From the epic opening one-two punch of dance jams “Zero” and “Heads Will Roll” to the quiet bedroom pop of “Little Shadow,” this is an exceptionally well-rounded and sequenced album. I have a strong nostalgic attachment to this album too. I played it a ton in college (working at the radio station, it was one of those albums all the DJs got excited about) and Dree and I listened to it a lot together in our early months of dating. But aside from my own emotional attachment, there’s no denying this album is excellent. It’s filled with big hooks, big emotions, hard rock and dance songs (I love the sexy electro-funk of “Dragon Queen”), alongside more tender moments (I totally forgot about “Hysteric” until it came on and it just totally overwhelmed me with emotions - such a great love song). One of my all-time favorite album covers too.

My favorite U2 album. It’s packed with great songs. There are plenty of the dramatic and cinematic songs U2 is best known for, along with songs that lean more toward alt-rock and even a dash of funk. “Mysterious Ways” is my fav U2 song too. Excellent album cover - captures the energy of the music.

I've heard about Frank Zappa for a long time and wondered what the best entry point is for his music. This wasn't it for me. Impish and experimental, the album makes fun of 60's culture and music. I'm sure this felt radical at the time but it feels like a relic now. There aren't enough standout moments to elevate it beyond being a curiosity of the era. "What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?" was my favorite. Absurd and goofy and parodies 60's R&B very well, but it's real goal is to shake you out of your mundane existence and tell you that your life is a lie. I think that's the goal of the whole album but this was the only time that message really clicked and worked for me.

One of the more laidback classic rock albums on this list so far. A little bit country, a little bit bluesy, some Beatles influence and a dash of reggae (even before "I Shot the Sheriff," which is a solid cover). Easygoing, approachable and enjoyable.

Fantastic. Equal parts punk and pop, with a fun, breezy energy. The album cuts are excellent and “One Way Or Another,” “Sunday Girl” and “Heart of Glass” are absolute classics. Especially “Heart of Glass” — that’s one of those magic songs that sounds like nothing else. The backing vocals throughout the album are really playful. They added fun details to a lot of these songs. I feel like the more I listen to this, the more I’m going to love it so I’m smashing the 5 on this one.

Excellent. I love Thelonious Monk but this was my first time for this album. Monk’s playing is fantastic and the whole band is in sync with his off-kilter, stop-and-start style. Really fun to hear them play around the melody. I love in a live jazz performance when you hear the applause after a solo. This is a studio recording but some of these solos are so good, it feels wrong not to hear clapping after them. I found myself quietly applauding a bunch while listening on headphones.

Bluesy country twang with a relaxed, laidback vibe. I dig it and I could see myself really digging it with time. “Sultans of Swing” is a classic too. Highlights: “Setting Me Up,” “Sultans of Swing,” “In the Gallery”

The Ramones are always a pleasure. Simple and pure punk. The opening three songs are classics and the rest of the album has a lot of good songs too. By the midsection, it starts to get repetitive. But how you can get mad at these guys? They rip through 14 songs in 29 minutes. Maybe they could have spent more time writing more varied music but then they probably wouldn’t have captured lightning in a bottle like they did here. Two details I loved on this album: - The way he pronounces the ‘r’ in massacre on “Chain Saw” (“massa-cree!”) - That heavy metal riff on “Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue” at 0:34

Todd Rundgren is definitely an artist who contains multitudes. This is an eclectic album with a lot of different styles on it. Side 1 is particularly strong - a fantastic batch of pop songs with “I Saw the Light” leading the pack. From there, the album is more eclectic and there are a few tracks I could have done without ("Song of the Viking," for example). It starts to feel more like some of the other 60's/70's rock albums we've had on this list, where the artist throws every weird idea they had onto the album. But there’s a lot of good stuff too, including a fair amount of hard rock. The rocker "Black Maria" is a highlight. Man, “Slut” is a weird closing track. Great energy but don’t love those lyrics. 😬 Overall, really enjoyed this one and I’m especially looking forward to revisiting the opening stretch of songs.

CCR are awesome. This album has some loose and bluesy jams, and some ripping rock n roll. Great example of everything that makes them great. Sweet album cover too.

I was hoping we’d get a Christmas album on this list! This is my favorite Christmas album and I’m very happy to see it here. I love the drummer on this album. On some of these songs, I wonder if anybody told him what song he was playing. He goes so hard. Listen to his drum fills on “Frosty the Snowman” — he’s so intense! I love that. Really ups the energy. Great selection of songs, all beautifully arranged and produced (many of them are over the top but just so good). A bunch of these are among the best versions of these songs. A+ all around. ❄️🎄⛄️💯

I like to rate rappers in three main categories: lyrics, technical skills and performance. Jay-Z is a very good lyricist and his technical skills are excellent but the category he most shines in is performance. There's never any question who you're listening to when he's on a song. He has one of the most recognizable voices in music and he infuses his verses with personality and humor. I'd have a hard time naming a more charismatic rapper. This album has gotta be his best. He's at the height of his popularity here and he doesn't take it for granted, though he does sound relaxed. He's enjoying himself in a way that I find infectious. On a great Jay-Z album like this one, I end up smiling and laughing a lot. The beats are fantastic too. Great use of sampling with big, catchy hooks that make this accessible as a pop album. Sometimes the beats are so good that it can be hard to focus on Jay-Z's rapping. You can get lost in the greatness of the music. Which brings me to the elephant in the room. Kanye produced a third of this album and those tracks are all phenomenal. I haven't listened to any Kanye music since his bizarre appearance on the Alex Jones show a few weeks ago and I've been avoiding it. I figured this would be a good way to test the waters since he's mostly in the background. But man, "Never Change" made me feel sad. The best is so quintessentially Kanye -- chopped up soul samples with hard-hitting drums. It reminds me why I fell in love with his music. Listening to it again was like hearing a voicemail from a friend I've lost touch with. There's an unresolved tension for me with Kanye though. It's upsetting to hear music that I love and to think about what's happened to the man that made it. But I also don't fully understand what's happened to him. Have we finally lost him completely? And what have we lost him to? Right-wing extremism? Mental illness? Was he always despicable, deep down? The story doesn't feel like it's over yet, for better or worse, which leaves me in a weird place when revisiting his music. I can't quite compartmentalize my feelings yet. It feels too soon to be able to separate how awful I feel when I think about him from the joy his music has given me over the years. But revisiting this album at least reassured me that I wasn't wrong about how great he was. "Takeover" goes so hard, "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" is one of the greatest pop-rap songs of all-time and "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)" is still one of the songs I'd play for someone who thinks they don't like rap to convince them they're wrong. Those songs, combined with the other hits on the album make this a classic in my book. Side note: Jay-Z's use of the other f-bomb at 0:24 on "Heart of the City" feels late for that word. It's an unfortunate fact that a lot of old-school rap tosses the word around but I was surprised to hear it here on an album from 2001.

Solid, muscular rock from David Bowie near the end of his career. You can hear echoes of his past music but it doesn’t feel nostalgic. Overall a strong batch of songs. The inclusion of horns on a lot of these tracks is awesome. “If You Can See Me” is a really good one. That menacing bass (or is it a synth?) is fantastic.

A mix of sweet and pure soul along with some edgier funk. Everything is smooth and beautifully produced. I liked it.

What an overwhelming album. A wild fusion of hip-hop and funk that sounds like nothing else. And it’s a big album too. The chorus of “Gasoline Dreams” is incredible - such a hard beat, such a catchy hook. “So Fresh, So Clean” and “Ms. Jackson” are fantastic - insanely catchy songs that have reached a higher level in the culture (and still sound great after 1000 listens). Jeez, “B.O.B.” moves at such a breakneck speed. The music morphs and changes throughout while André 3000 and Big Boi spit rapid-fire. And those are just the major tracks. There’s a ton of inventive music here from hard-hitting rap to more playful and goofy songs. A weird, eccentric, awesome album.

The music has a rough, alt-rock edge in the production but underneath the songs are good-hearted power pop. I enjoyed the music but didn’t love the lead vocals, but I think that’s just a matter of taste. Awful album cover 😬 😂

I’ve previously known Gil Scott-Heron to be more of a spoken word poet but he has a very nice, expressive singing voice here. And he’s accompanied by some terrific jazz piano/keyboard. The album has a calming, soothing sound. (“The Bottle” is a jam though!) Ooh “H2Ogate Blues” is great — this is the Gil Scott-Heron I’m more familiar with. I love how loose the performance is. So funny (sad, really) how much of this still rings true today. I don’t know every Watergate reference he drops here but it reminds me of the scandals within scandals that I used to follow so closely when Trump was in office.

Fantastic. "Song for Sathima" is so sad and beautiful. And the melody kept surprising me with where it went. The players interact with and contrast each other in interesting, surprising way. Like the bassist who sounds like he's playing these little fragments of scales almost removed from what everyone else is playing. But it fits into the larger picture. The bass is awesome throughout -- it sounds almost funky on "Mannenberg Revisited." I like that the bass is upfront in the mix. Sometimes it can be hard to hear the bass solo in jazz but not here. There's a lot of creative, inspired playing throughout the album. The solos feel untamed. I was surprised to learn that the band leader is the pianist because that's the instrument I noticed the least on a first listen. I'm looking forward to playing to this album more and listening for him.

Excellent country rock. Great, clean production. I’m picking up Bruce vibes on a lot of these songs. “Little Rock ‘n’ Roller” is such a sweet, heartbreaking song!

Wild stuff. This album went by in a blur. Sounds like the product of a band equally obsessed with rock, musical theater and music theory. The songs rocket along, always with a lot going on, but there’s a cheerful theatricality that lightens the busy music. I’m not sure I’ve found my way into the music in terms of enjoying it yet but I do respect its madness.

Jazzy, vibey music with an electronic pulse. But there’s live instrumentation as often as there are electronics — there’s even an orchestra on some tracks! Only a few songs sound like a product of the 90’s. I don’t think I would have guessed the time period of lot of these songs if I didn’t already know. Highlights: “La femme d’argent,” “Sexy Boy,” “Talisman”

Juvenile, ridiculous and a ton of fun. Definitely one of those albums where they captured lightning in a bottle. Their goofy lyrics and signature shouted vocals are only part of the equation though. The music is fantastic and a lot of the credit for that goes to producer Rick Rubin (though the Beasties are credited as producers too). Crisp, hard-hitting drums, blasts of fiery electric guitar and a lot of fun sampling. Some of the samples are just long enough to register in your brain but too short to figure out what they're from. It's almost a game to try and guess them. (The closing track "Time to Get Ill" goes wild with that.) "Fight for Your Right" and "No Sleep till Brooklyn" are mega hits and personal favorites but there's a bunch of other great songs here. The album is pretty close to being a masterpiece but some of the childish lyrics hold it back a little for me. Still, it's definitely a classic and I had fun revisiting it. Jeez, so many White Castle references. Between that, Budweiser and Chef Boyardee, I hope they got paid for the product placement.

Tom Waits is a one-of-a-kind artist and a favorite of mine who I don't listen to enough. I wasn't very familiar with this album but it's excellent. There's a lot of different blues, folk and jazz styles here, all played exceptionally well and infused with his unique style. The music is full of minor chords and off-kilter rhythms to match the odd, disturbed lyrics. And his vocal performance is always bold. He has an incredible range. All the songs are great but here's a handful of favorites: - "16 Shells from a 30.6" (Awesome stripped down blues rock) - "In the Neighborhood" (What kind of style is this? A march? I love his singing here. It's rough but also triumphant and beautiful.) - "Frank's Wild Years" (Hilarious and bizarre spoken word story) - "Swordfishtrombones" (So many interesting lyrics here) - "Trouble's Braids" (Whoa! What even is this? Amazing energy) - "Rainbirds" (A stunning, jazzy finale)

Awesome energy. This is definitely up my alley. I’ll have to play it a few more times to pay more attention to the songs but I love the performances and the style. The horns that come in on “Happy Death Men” were a surprise. I wish more songs on the album had stuff like that. Feels like a bonus treat on an overall strong album.

The Kinks are great because their songs are colorful and filled with details that make them distinct. Every song feels like it has its own personality. The concept of this album is ambitious - “The Decline and Fall of the British Empire” - but the lyrics don’t get in the way of the music. Ray Davies is too good of a pop songwriter for that. You can ignore the words and still have a great time listening to this album. But the lyrics (that I caught on the first listen) elevate the songs even more. I’ll have to pay more attention to them in the future. Fun listen from front to back.

Excellent. Sarah Vaughan is a wonderful singer and she sounds very relaxed and comfortable on stage here. I like that the recording leaves in the loose and candid moments too. Like when she jokes that she messed up “Willow Weep For Me,” or when she confesses she doesn’t know the words to “How High the Moon.” Great backing band. The pianist (Jimmy Jones) in particular caught my attention a bunch.

Oasis are a fun band. They clearly pride themselves on delivering premium rock: loud guitars, big energy, plenty of attitude. But at the core of their songs there’s always a seed of a catchy melody. Good pop songwriting and singalong choruses are just as important to them as blaring feedback and guitar solos. They clearly worship The Beatles; aside from an explicit reference to “Yellow Submarine” on “Supersonic,” there are little moments here and there that remind me of other Beatles songs. Also Liam Gallagher kinda sounds like John Lennon sometimes. Ok so here’s my funny line about Oasis: You know how you get a Coke bottle sometimes and it says ‘Made from 40% recycled plastics’? Oasis makes music from 40% recycled rock songs. Listen to the beginning of “Cigarettes and Alcohol” — they totally rip off the opening riff of T. Rex’s “Bang a Gong.” A bunch of times throughout this album I thought, ‘Ooh that reminds me of something,’ but for some reason I give them a free pass when they copy other artists. It feels playful when they do it. They drop in a melody or chord progression from another song but then change it up and do something different with it. It triggers a memory in my brain, makes me smile and that nostalgic feeling for classic rock transfers onto their music. Oasis are rock star pros. They know what they’re doing. (Btw, I love how he sounds drunk on “Cigarettes and Alcohol” - that’s a fun touch.)

Excellent, jazzy rap. Fantastic beats on every song. The production is really crisp and clean. I was convinced there was a lot of newly recorded live instrumentation on this but looking at the credits, there doesn’t seem to be much. I’m impressed that the sampling is clean enough that the music sounds like a live band in the studio. The album also closes with “Scenario,” one of my all-time favorite rap songs and probably a top 100 song of any genre. Such a fun jam. Busta Rhymes’ verse is classic.

Brutal. Savage. Relentless. Definitely the kind of music I respect more than I enjoy. But man, wild stuff. "Human Garbage" was a favorite. It starts out with that fun punk drumming and then devolves into anarchy and noise before morphing into a heavy metal riff. And all in a minute and a half! Holy shit the guy who takes over vocals on the second half of the album (Lee Dorrian) is insane. I already thought the vocals on the first half occasionally sounded like a barking dog but he sounds like a rabid dog on "Success." And the 1 second long song "You Suffer." Hahah you gotta love it. Taking a closer look at the album cover and noticing the corporate logos on the bottom. I wish I could understand more of the vocals on these songs. I think understanding the political rage of the lyrics would be the key for me in terms of getting into this a little more.

I learned about Hugh Masekela a few years ago and I’ve been loving him. Great music to put on while relaxing on a Sunday. There's a lot of playful music here, some really sweet and tender melodies and other tracks that are just flat-out beautiful. And all-around sublime playing from the whole band. Hugh Masekela is incredible -- he absolutely shreds on the title track! The singing on the last track “Ingoo Pow-Pow” is wild! I love that. Personal fun fact: One of the most fun things about planning our wedding was picking out all the music and our DJs gave us a worksheet to fill out so we could choose songs for all the major moments that call for music. For the entrance of the bridal party at the start of the reception I picked Hugh Masekela's version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (not on this album but highly recommended). It's such a fun, high energy version of that song.

Man, Little Richard is wild. A few of these tracks feel like the studio can barely contain his voice. His range is really impressive too. I thought there was a woman singing guest vocals on “Baby” at first but no, it’s him. So “Tutti Frutti” is about sex? It’s gotta be, right? Hearing it with adult ears for the first time and realizing that 😂

Excellent funk (with some ultra-smooth R&B too). Some songs have a bit of an edge but they somehow still sound laid back. A few of these tracks were sampled by hip-hop artists later, or have a certain sound that was copied, like the whiny synth at 3:35 on "Sunshine (Go Away Today)" that sounds like something off of Dr. Dre's "The Chronic."

Interesting mix of styles. There's some drum 'n' bass type electronic music but also bits of jazz, classical and Indian music. My favorites were the rhythmic, dance-influenced tracks, especially when they added in Indian vocals. Whoa, “The Conference” is amazing — I’ve never heard vocals like that before haha. Incredible!

Greg Lake has a beautiful voice. His singing on “The Sage” is gorgeous. Damn those drums that come in half way through “The Old Castle” have power! I almost wasn’t into this. But this is actually pretty sweet. That bass line riff is really hooking me. I was skeptical about this album at first -- I thought it might be a little pretentious or something. But I ended up enjoying a bunch of songs. It definitely feels a little dated in parts and some of the synth solos can be a tad grating but these guys can really rock when they all groove together! Track 8, “The Hut of Baba Yaga,” really captured that energy for me. Some head banging jamming there.

Similar to the Sparks album we had a few weeks ago, I think it's safe to say the members of Madness are brilliant. These are complex songs with a lot of layers and surprising turns. But complexity is rarely the friend of pop music. I can appreciate the band’s craft from a distance but the songs were too busy and complicated for me to get into, at least on a first listen. I'm sure repeated listens would open up the album more. I usually like this kind of Kinks-y British pop but I didn’t connect to this album. "Our House" is a jam though! I know it from the Maxwell House coffee ads 😂: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKuOQSQj9OI Last track was good too - a nice, straightforward jazzy number.

A strong singer-songwriter album of Beatlesesque pop. I tended to enjoy the songs with a full band sound the most. Highlights: “Son of Sam,” “Junk Bond Trader,” “Stupidity Tries,” “Bye” (beautiful little instrumental to end the album)

The more metal I listen to from this list, the more obvious Metallica’s incredible musicianship becomes. They’re operating at a higher level. Really intricate, beautiful music. They have an intense hard rock style but it’s not just brute force. There’s real craft behind these songs. You know me, I’m always attracted to the drums on an album. And jeez! These drums sound insane! That extra bass kick in there is so powerful. And the guitar solos! Some epic, stadium rock, guitar hero shit here! 🎸🔥 Wow - that transition from the melodic intro of “To Live is to Die” to the opening riff is really something! The whole song is stunning. I like Metallica though I probably respect their music more than I love it at the moment. But it's all new to me and I look forward to listening to more. Excellent album overall.

Cool post-punk with an Iggy Pop influence on a few tracks. I really like the rough, jangly guitars and the loose style of the band. Some of the songwriting gets repetitive though (there’s a few too many songs that chant a refrain over and over again). I like the sound but I’m not sure the songs drew me in enough for repeat listens.

Ooh I've never heard of this group before but I'm loving it. The lead singer (Mick Hucknall) has an incredible voice. I was definitely surprised when I googled him and saw what he looked like haha - not what I expected. “Come to My Aid” and “Look at You Now” are jams! The album has some good cheesy 80’s pop, some jazzy songs and some Michael Jackson-style funk. Also a smooth cover of Talking Heads’ “Heaven.” “Jericho” was a highlight too.

At its best, the album is terrific fun. Big hooks, big energy and a wild wail from lead singer Brian Johnson. Their sound distills the 70s hard rock / heavy metal sound down to its most essential elements and turns up the volume. “Hells Bells,” “Back in Black” and “You Shook Me All Night Long” are classics that have taken over classic rock radio and defined the genre. At its worst, the album is juvenile and misogynistic. “What Do You Do For Money Honey” is nasty and mean. And “Givin the Dog a Bone” and “Let Me Put My Love Into You” are are goofy enough to be Spinal Tap songs. A lot of the other songs just copy the formula of the hits and the album gets a bit repetitive. But I’m sure I didn’t do this any favors by listening on headphones. This is a ‘blast it in the backyard’ album. These are songs built to scream out of car windows down the highway. This is rock and roll, best not to overthink it. The final line says it all: “Rock and roll is just rock and roll!” How can you argue with that?

Hard rock with a hippie spirit. Bluesy, psychedelic and just impossibly cool. I don't give enough credit to the Jimi Hendrix Experience for being one of the greatest rock bands of all time. They're fantastic. There are some production effects that are a little dated on here -- quick panning from left to right, a rough filter on his voice or guitar -- but I kind of like them. They achieve the effect of snapping me into the present moment and making me listen to the song a little more closely. The production could be cleaner but would the music still have that loose, wild spirit? "Little Wing" is a great psychedelic jam. I also really like “She’s So Fine” - great drumming and cool to have one of the other guys sing lead on one song. And "Bold as Love" is a fantastic bluesy closer. Honestly, I’ve listened to this a few times over the weekend and keep finding songs I love. Great album.

A classic and a personal favorite. The beats are fantastic -- the drumming is so tight and crisp. And the bits of piano melodies and sampling give each song a distinct emotional tone. Nas' rapping is phenomenal. He set a high-water mark with this album that only a few rappers have been able to match or top since. He sounds tough-as-nails but the lyrics are smart and uplifting (in addition to a healthy amount of tough guy braggadocio). His flow is impeccable -- not lightning fast but steady and relentless. A lot of complex rhyme schemes too. "N.Y. State of Mind" is an incredible first song (after the intro), especially considering that this is his first album. What an opening statement! The beat is just ridiculously cool. "Life's a Bitch" is a favorite and probably a top 50 song for me. Just gorgeous. AZ's opening verse is classic. The jazzy beat must have inspired him because his performance is very musical. And I just learned that that's Nas' father playing the cornet at the end. I love that. "Oo-oo-ooh!" Love that soulful vocal sample on "Memory Lane." The record scratching at the end is great too. Beautiful album cover. A lot of rappers have put their baby pictures on their album covers since but the sepia tone coloring here captures a nostalgic feeling. The blurry car in motion adds tension to the image too. Really great.

Cheerful modern psychedelic pop. I hear some 60's influences, including The Beach Boys here and there, in addition to more recent influences like Animal Collective. I dig it. I’ll keep this band on the back burner and listen to more of them. I appreciate a band that goes out of their way to make every song sound unique. I also like when an album cover immediately signals what kind of music this is going to be. —— I get a kick out of how yesterday’s album was Nas’ “Illmatic” featuring “Life’s a Bitch” and today we have an album with a song called “Life’s a Beach.” (And personal fun fact: the first screenplay I ever wrote was called “Life’s a Beach” — it wasn’t very good but that phrase will always hold a special place in my heart.)

Short punk songs that take cues from Blondie (the melodies and hooks are just as important as the volume of the guitars). A lot of the vocals have that bored, disaffected tone that's in vogue with some indie bands now (Wet Leg and Dry Cleaning are two that come to mind). Cool to hear a band from the 90's doing it. I'm sure there were even others who did it before Elastica. They have some range too. I was surprised to hear the psychedelic vibes of "Indian Song."

Few bands have such a distinct personality and style as Queen. But their style is actual pretty wide-ranging and all of it is on display on "A Night at the Opera." There are shimmering pop songs ("You're My Best Friend"), gorgeous ballads ("Love of My Life"), hard rock bangers ("Sweet Lady") and playful old-timey ditties that feel like musical cosplaying ("Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon" and "Seaside Rendezvous"). And it all comes crashing together in stunning rock god glory on "Bohemian Rhapsody." Just a tremendous, huge song that's still a blast to listen to after hearing it countless times. Freddie Mercury is one of the greatest singers of any genre and his incredible, practically otherworldly skills are perfectly showcased here. There's no song quite like it. Although actually, "The Prophet's Song" similarly swings for the fences. An epic, 8-minute (and admittedly self-indulgent) prog-rock song, it's not as effective as "Bohemian Rhapsody" but it's still pretty awesome. Also, "I'm in Love With My Car" is an underrated Queen song. Such a killer, heavy song, and it's about dumping your girlfriend for your car. Hahah definitely one of their funniest songs. And drummer Roger Taylor is a solid rock singer too. The other gem here is "'39," a beautiful, folky Brian May song. (And I just learned from Wikipedia that it's a science-fiction song about space travel?? Fascinating.)

Nobody plays blues rock quite like The Doors. Something about the tone of their guitars and keyboards infuses the music with a dark psychedelic energy. I love it. The highlights here are the rockin' "Roadhouse Blues" and the funky high-energy "Peace Frog." I also liked the serene "Blue Monday." The rest of the album is a fun, unpretentious set of The Doors doing their Doors thing. Really enjoyable.

I’ve never heard funk that’s this laidback and relaxed. The music has some funky licks and beats but it’s closer to the soul of Marvin Gaye or Al Green then Curtis Mayfield’s own “Superfly.” The music is beautiful and puts a spotlight on Mayfield’s voice.

Never heard of The Saints but they’re good. The tone of “Memories Are Made of This” surprised me. Love that bass line - it’s more complex than I was expecting for an early punk album. There’s a nice mix of songs like that and more typical riff-driven 70s punk. Even the straight punk songs often have details that distinguish them, like the bluesy harmonica wail on “Run Down.” There’s a Stonesy energy on a lot of these songs.

One of the things I love about Sabbath is how well they move together as a band. They understand the power of starting quiet before getting loud, or slowing down before they pick up the pace again. It makes for great drama. They also love changing styles mid-song. They can shift from charging heavy metal to swinging rock and back. “War Pigs” is a top 100 song for me. Absolutely incredible and I love the righteous anger of its anti-war message. “Paranoid” and “Iron Man” are among the best rock songs ever too. Honestly though, there isn’t a bad song on this album. Amazing all around. This has gotta be the worst album cover for a great album though. Just awful haha — what was the concept? (Wikipedia says the cover was designed when the album was going to be titled "War Pigs" but honestly that might even be worse.)

I love how much Alice Cooper revels in his performances. He wails, he yells, he screams. He sometimes assumes a persona that I can only describe as a satanic court jester. Not every song on this album is great but man oh man, Alice Cooper gives every song his all. I love the glam rock drama of "Hello Hooray." It's a great opener. "Billion Dollar Babies" was another highlight. It's weird and manic and packed with ripping guitar solos. And of course "No More Mr. Nice Guy" is a classic. Really fun. I also liked "Generation Landslide."

Good straightforward blues. The deep timbre of his voice is impressive, though his singing is mostly pretty understated. Starting with the Santana collaboration makes sense but also makes me want to hear more Santana guitar. I liked the guitar plucking on “Rockin’ Chair.” Not sure I’ve heard something quite like that before. It gets a little chaotic each time but then he snaps it back into place.

One of the things I love most about Steely Dan is their lyrics. Very few of their songs are what you'd call traditional love songs. More often they write character sketches or social satire (and there's plenty of songs I've heard 100 times but still have no clue what they're about). The album "Aja" would at first seem to be the exception to this rule. Three of the seven songs are named after women. But when you dig into the lyrics, "Peg" (which has a great funky groove) is about a guy pining over a movie star. And "Josie" (which opens with that strangely menacing minor key intro) is about a woman whose return home sparks an all-night party and features this incredible description: "She's the raw flame / The live wire / She prays like a Roman with her eyes on fire." And the epic, 8-minute title track, which seems to be a pretty clear love song, spends more time on cryptic details like "Chinese music under banyan trees / Here at the dude ranch above the sea" than it does describing the actual woman that the song is supposedly about. But while trying to figure out what Steely Dan songs are about is definitely fun, it's not the best part about listening to Steely Dan. It's the music, man. This album is full of stellar jazz solos, including a ton of awesome guitar playing. I also love the sax solo at 4:42 on "Aja" played by special guest star Wayne Shorter, a jazz legend, and how the drums go absolutely berserk behind him. Such an awesome moment. Steely Dan get a lot of credit for pushing rock into jazzy territory. But here they play jazz that absolutely rocks. Even though the Dan didn't write a lot of love songs, so much of their music is romantic in the more classical sense of the word. Take, for example, the chorus of "Deacon Blues," which is often cited as being quintessentially Steely Dan because it's dark and twisted: "Learn to work the saxophone / I play just what I feel / Drink scotch whisky all night long / And die behind the wheel." It's an undeniably romantic fantasy: playing jazz, staying up late and dying in a blaze of glory. Steely Dan may not have written a lot of love songs but all their songs are love letters to the music.

Every morning I check the genre of the album of the day to see if it’s a workout album or a “dishes and laundry” album. This is a fantastic workout album and a great way to start the day. Nothing but great beats, catchy hooks and positive energy. You could put it on at a party and listen to it front to back. Definitely putting this one in high rotation.

Vibey electro-jazz fusion. I always respect an artist who makes exactly the kind of art they want to make. But I don’t connect much to this. Maybe as background music for a smoke sesh. Even then I’m not sure though. Wow the Michael McDonald feature on “Show You the Way” surprised me haha Kendrick Lamar snaps things into focus on “Walk on By.” This is fascinating music for a hip-hop beat. But with Thundercat singing lead vocals on most songs, I get a little lost. I don’t love his high-pitched breathy vocals. I’ve listened to Flying Lotus in the past. He coproduced most of this album but I like his solo stuff better — it’s all manic beats and free jazz energy, and mostly instrumental. The vocals on this Thundercat album add a certain cheese to the music that I don’t love. He’s a sick bass player though. A lot of great bass lines on the album. Pharrell’s part on “The Turn Down” was good too. Fantastic album cover.

“Lively Up Yourself” is a lovely opener. Bluesy with jazzy horns. “No Woman, No Cry” is of course a classic. So touching. So catchy. Nice to hear it in its original studio version here. (Also, I learned recently that Bob Marley gave songwriting credit of this song to a friend of his who ran a soup kitchen so that the soup kitchen would always have a source of income. How incredible is that?!) I’m noticing that a lot of these songs have a blues influence. Overall strong album and an excellent example of the genre, especially with its political lyrics. Love the backing vocals throughout too.

They have a light, unpretentious energy but I’m not crazy about ska in general and this isn’t a strong batch of songs. The only song that stood out to me was "A Message to You Rudy." It's got a great, easy vibe. Very catchy too.

Really strong album with a great mix of alt-rock styles. They’ve got plenty of punk riffs and an impish sense of humor. And man, these guys can really unleash some stadium-sized hard rock too (like on “Black Diamond” -- apparently a Kiss cover). But at the heart of it all is strong songwriting. Lead singer Paul Westerberg has some wail! One of those voices that makes me think, “How does he perform like that without hurting himself?”

This is delightful. I’m thoroughly charmed. I guess they’re a punk band (sometimes) but they’ve got a Stonesy rock swagger (especially when the horns come in). They’re very comfortable reaching into every corner of rock for sounds that fit the song at hand. I was consistently surprised by the instrumentation and tonal shifts. I love the riff on “On a Rope.” I think I’ve heard it before somewhere but man it rocks. Big, bold, brash and fun. Occasionally the vocals were a little grating but I still respect the swagger of this band.

Just wonderful. This is my first time listening to Buddy Holly. The music feels pitched between an older 50’s style and a rougher rock sound. This is a great batch of catchy songs. The recordings capture the fun that Buddy Holly and the band clearly had in the studio. “Oh Boy!,” “Not Fade Away” and “Maybe Baby” were the highlights for me.

🙌🙌🙌 This was one of my favorite albums in college when I was getting into hip-hop. I can close my eyes and picture walking through campus listening to this on headphones, iPod in my pocket. Common is a joy to listen to but Kanye’s production is the star here. He pairs soft-focus soul with tight, crisp drums, a perfect complement for Common’s buttery voice and smooth flow. (Ooh and there’s some killer use of vocoder on a few tracks!) A ton of great songs. The album flows beautifully. A solid 4 but the nostalgia factor puts it in 5 territory for me. After Jay-Z’s “The Blueprint,” this list has been doing a great job of slowly reintroducing Kanye music back into my life. I had a great time listening to this today.

This is Kanye's first album and I still think it's the best showcase for his rapping. He went on to make even better overall albums and albums I enjoy even more but he clearly had something to prove on this one and it features some of his best lyrics. His vocal performances are also brimming with charisma and energy. I love how he doesn't just rap -- every verse is a full performance, emphasizing the emotions, underlining the jokes and finding fun games to play within the rhymes. He has a big, over-the-top style. There's no mistaking him on a song. And of course you could listen to this and just enjoy his production work. Man, I still can't believe how good "Jesus Walks" is. It's so layered. There are so many classic tracks on here ("All Falls Down," "Jesus Walks," "Get Em High," "Breath In Breathe Out," and "School Spirit" are my favorites) that I can easily forgive the supremely stupid (but also pretty funny) "Workout Plan," the self-indulgent closer "Last Call," and the dumb skits about the guy with all his degrees. ---- I've written on here already about how I felt conflicted approaching the music of one of my all-time favorites after, you know, he declared his love for Nazis. 🙄 I hope he gets help. I hope he makes music again. But either way, I've decided that I have too many good memories listening to his music that I won't let anyone take that away from me. Not even the guy that made it. 🤷🏻‍♂️

A classic and a personal favorite. The best of the early Beatles albums. Nice and short, with tight songwriting. The song "A Hard Day's Night" is one of my favorites. I relate to the lyrics -- that feeling when you've been working hard and you're exhausted and the only thing you need at the end of the day is love and attention. I love how in addition to sweet love songs, there are flashes of jealousy in the lyrics too. Similar to the Beach Boys album we had on this list, "The Beach Boys Today!" which came out a year after this, there are moments where the speaker of the song reveals his insecurity and lashes out at his girl (like on "You Can't Do That"). John Lennon in particular seems interested in capturing the good and the bad of new relationships. I also love this late turn "If I Fell": "So I hope you see that I Would love to love you And that she will cry When she learns we are two" What a thing to say to a girl!

Sometimes with these 80's post-punk bands, I feel like I'd enjoy the music more if I was a little high in a dimly lit concert venue, watching the band perform live. It's a bit gloomy for my everyday listening. I need to be in a space where I can be immersed in and surrounded by the music. We've had two other Cure albums so far and sometimes I think they focus more on mood and energy than songwriting. But what a mood!

I was lukewarm on this one. I liked the first few songs, which were mostly upbeat synth pop. (The spiky high-pitched synth on “Head Over Heels” was cool.) But starting around track 5, the album lost me and not as much stood out. A few songs have the drama you’d expect from a stage musical. A little cheesy.

What a voice. What a performer. The way her voice trembles and shakes. There’s so much pain and longing in her singing. This is a great collection of songs and performances from her. The song “Four Women” is a standout. Very powerful. I love that jazzy piano. I know this song from being sampled in the recent Jay-Z song “The Story of O.J.” — it was great to hear the original and sit with the lyrics. "Either Way I Lose" was cool too. Love the deep backing vocals.

I was thinking about the joke in Spinal Tap about turning the amp up to 11 and how the maxim “play it loud” goes unquestioned in much of rock. But Bad Company is a band comfortable with restraint. They like to turn things up to 7 or 8 and leave it there. This is a tasteful album of strong songs and excellent playing. I don’t even mind how much they rip off The Beatles on “Don’t Let Me Down” — it’s nicely done.

Always a pleasure to spend time with this weird, wondrous, sprawling album. We talk a lot about the huge influence that The Beatles had on music and culture. I think them releasing this album, where odd little experiments and silly jokes commingle with fantastic songwriting, gave countless future artists the permission to make other strange, rambling albums in a similar vein. And what a wonderful gift! The White Album continues to give other artists permission to get weird if they want to. I'm very grateful for that. This is The Beatles' funniest album for sure. I still can't get over "Back in the U.S.S.R." It must have started as a joke - part Beach Boys parody, part political satire - but because they're just so good at writing songs, it ends up being a catchy jam and a great song. And "Glass Onion," where the lyrics troll Beatles fans searching for secret meanings that don't exist. I love how the druggy experiments like "Wild Honey Pie" made it onto the album. It gives you a little insight into what being in the studio with them must have been like - goofing around, laughing and always creating and recording. There are also a bunch of stunning songs that might not have made it onto a less adventurous album. "Happiness is a Warm Gun" is incredible, but dark and twisted. And "Helter Skelter" always blows my mind. Like, in addition to everything else they did, did The Beatles also play a role in inventing heavy metal?? And I haven't even mentioned the absolute classics - "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," "Blackbird" and "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" are on this album. "Revolution 1" has always been a favorite of mine too. I could go track-by-track because there are a ton of gems here. But I'll shout out one more - "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" is a personal favorite. I love its energy.

Ooh "Mbube" is wonderful! (Of course, I know it from "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" as featured in "The Lion King.") It's a beautiful song full of life and joy. I love the climax that it builds to with all the layered vocals. This is a delightful jazz vocal album of African folk music with some Western influences here and there (sometimes I hear a little doo-wop, and there's a cover of "The House of the Rising Sun"). Miriam Makeba has a great voice -- she's gentle and jazzy but has some belting power too. Oh man, I love "One More Dance." Is the laughing planned? Or could he just not control himself? His laughter is so infectious. I was cracking up.

This is the third Byrds album we've had on the list so far and I've enjoyed them all. They consistently deliver 60's folk rock with psychedelic vibes, beautiful vocal harmonies and sometimes a silly song about UFOs. This one is particularly easygoing and light. But it’s not simplistic. There are some mysterious, moody songs too. And great guitar work throughout.

I like this sort of sample-heavy, upbeat hip-hop. It’s fun to listen to music where 100 details are fighting for your attention. The main MC, Speech, has a loose, conversational flow on a lot of these songs. Even on "U," where he raps fast, he sounds laidback. I enjoyed this on a first listen but it’s a big album and kind of dense with ideas and music. I’ll need another listen to connect to it more.

About as middle of the road of a rock sound as I can imagine. The songwriting is alright and the music is pleasant enough but the lead singer isn’t selling me on the songs. Terrible album cover. 😬

Sometimes life is full of big, overwhelming feelings. Depeche Mode works with those big emotions — love and guilt and heartbreak and anxiety — and turn them into dramatic goth club dance floor jams and dreamy, haunted synth pop. They have a distinct style and their songs are affecting. I don’t see myself listening to this a lot but I dig the vibe.

And I said yesterday that Depeche Mode works with big emotions? Enter Kate Bush. You can’t get much more dramatic than this. Kate Bush seems like the kind of artist who could effortlessly churn out easy pop songs if she wanted but chooses to make more complex, nuanced music instead. I didn’t connect with every song here right away but she does cast an intoxicating, sensual mood. Favorites: “Reaching Out,” "Rocket's Tail" (this one really packs a wallop when the guitars come in!)

Vibey, moody electronic music and hip-hop beats. (Although maybe electronic isn’t the best descriptor —there are a lot of different genres sampled here.) I'm into it. I listened to it on headphones while cooking and it mostly floated into the background as my mind thought about other things. Pretty cool stuff and I respect the craft of it.

Oh man. What a nostalgia hit. The song “…Baby One More Time” has all the sounds from pop of this era — those big Max Martin drums, the processed funk licks, the gratuitous vocals runs. Of course, I’ll never be able to separate it from childhood memories. I was in the 4th grade when this album came out and like everyone else, these singles (and their music videos) rocked my world. The music on this album was assembled by producers who understand how to elicit Pavlovian responses from listeners — dance! cry! smile! Every chord is chosen for maximum impact, every sound is polished for maximum shine. But even though the music is synthetic, the feels are real! Why is that? I think it’s the songwriting. It’s formulaic but very effective. A record label can market the hell out of a song but it doesn’t become an all-out phenomenon without something real at its core. “…Baby One More Time” and “(You Drive Me) Crazy” are mega hits that will make any millennial lose their mind when you play them. But the album cuts are solid too. They push a lot of the same buttons and do so almost just as well. From a consumer‘s perspective, this is a good product — if you bought the CD for the singles, you wouldn’t be mad about the rest. And if you were at the right age, you probably fell in love with all of it.

Okay so The Darkness formed and they thought, “Let’s indulge in every hair metal cliche and play the hell out of them.” And somewhere around then the lead singer thought, “I should sing like Freddie Mercury after sucking a helium balloon.” And most importantly they agreed, “Let’s have fun and not overthink anything.” I completely understand why someone would fall head over heels for their shtick. I can’t get mad at music that wants to entertain me as much as this does. But I found myself rolling my eyes about as often as I was banging my head.

When I rate albums on here, I try to do it at a gut level. Did I like it, really like it, love it? And even though rating music is subjective, I think I usually have persuasive reasons for my 1 or 2 star albums. This one not so much. I wasn't into it but not for any major reason. The guitars are hard and grungy, and PJ Harvey's vocals are raw. She has a punk attitude that I respect. But I don't know, the songs didn't move me. Maybe some of the music felt a little flat? I don't know if that's the right word. The riffs didn't jump out and grab me.

I love how playful this is. There are moments when they rock out like a hardcore band and moments that sound more like artsy post-punk. The songs move and change enough that you can’t easily nail down the style. They’re a restless band. There’s some excellent musicianship throughout. “Brendan #1” in particular is gorgeous.

This is another album I remember listening to when I was getting into hip-hop in college. I didn’t listen to it a ton but I was obsessed with “Daydreamin’” and would play it whenever I could. I can see why there was a lot of hype around Lupe Fiasco at the time — he’s got the wordplay of Mos Def and the swagger of Jay-Z. But I don’t know, there’s also something about his flow that I find easy to tune out. I often caught my mind drifting off and not listening closely to the lyrics. Maybe it’s because there aren’t a ton of hooks in his rapping. There are hooks in the chorus or from a sample but not usually from him. (Man, you can feel the difference right away when Jay-Z appears on “Pressure” - he has such a strong presence.) Still, the beats are very good and Lupe Fiasco’s rapping is strong. He’s a smart lyricist and I appreciate that he avoids rap cliches and focuses on storytelling. The album is close to being excellent but just misses the mark. (Jeez, the “Outro” is ridiculous — it’s worse than an Oscars speech. He just lists everyone he knows 😂)

Fun electronic-influenced music with plenty of psychedelic style. But really, there’s a wide array of sounds here depending on the song. Some of it is vibey mood music, some leans more towards rock, some is more like dance. The 10-plus minute “Trainspotting” has a loose jazzy style and a hip-hop beat. Eclectic album! They must have a sense of humor calling themselves Primal Scream, knowing that people are constantly going to think they’re a different type of band. They get hard on a few tracks but you’d think they’re a hardcore metal band or something based on the name.

Fantastic! Really fun dance pop. I only knew “Hungry Like the Wolf” going into this but every song is a blast! (Actually, I knew “Save a Prayer” too because Eagles of Death Metal does a cover of it.) Loads of funk rock mixed in too. Definitely going to spin this a few more times.

“Roundabout” and “Long Distance Runaround” feel like the standout tracks here. If there were more like them, the album would approach excellence for me. But this album doesn’t want to be a pristine, well manicured collection of songs. There are oddball prog experiments and nerdy diversions into medieval-influenced folk in addition to the more elaborate numbers. And I find that loose, scattershot approach kind of charming. The album makes for a surprising, active listen. Side note: I’ve always loved the indie band Grizzly Bear and thought of them as being a bit prog-rock. The more bands like Yes that I listen to from this list reaffirms that label. I’m enjoying listening to bands that my favorite bands were influenced by.

Queen’s biggest hits are so unique that I tend to think of them as a band without peers. But I enjoyed hearing them on this early album making music that sounds like the prog/folk/heavy metal mash-up that Led Zeppelin was doing around the same time. This whole album is new to me and it’s just killer top to bottom. They sound ferocious when they’re in hard rock mode! The epic “Father to Son” and the blues crunch of “The Loser in the End” are early favorites for me.

I’ve never heard of The Soft Boys before but they’re great. There’s a 60’s influence that runs deep in their music. The songwriting is excellent. “I Wanna Destroy You” stood out to me right away. And “Kingdom of Love” has some great lyrics about a poisonous love. “Insanely Jealous of You” caught me by surprise. The vocals reminded me of The Velvet Underground. The song has a dark, dangerous energy. “Old Pervert” has a rough, distorted guitar in it too. There are two sides to this band - the nostalgic 60’s side (“Queen of Eyes”) and the more experimental forward-thinking side you hear on these two tracks.

This album is insane. 40 minutes of blistering blues rock and pent-up sexual energy unleashed. One of the great rock albums. It always sounds immediate and fresh. They really bottled a spectacular energy here. I gotta go track by track for this one. “Whole Lotta Love” is one of my favorite rock songs and a hell of an opener. It’s got a killer riff and that spacey experimental midsection that clears space for the guitar to come roaring back. And out of all the many songs Robert Plant has an orgasm on the microphone, this one is the best. He’s just ridiculous. Cracks me up every time. “What Is and What Should Never Be” pulls a similar trick as “Whole Lotta Love.” More than once, the band pulls back and quiets down so they can put a spotlight on Jimmy Page’s riff when it comes back. And when they do it at 3:30 and follow it with a gong hit? Perfection. “The Lemon Song” is the definitive song about a handjob. I’ll die on that hill. I love the bass on this song too. John Paul Jones isn’t afraid to get ahead of the band and push the energy forward. The whole band is in sync here, changing gears together, slowing down and speeding back up. “Thank You” is a gorgeous way to slow things down a bit before the heavy blues riffs come back with the back-to-back jams “Heartbreaker” and “Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman).” And “Ramble On” shows off how dynamic Zeppelin can be. Some bands do hard rock and nothing but hard rock. Here they sprinkle in some beautiful folky acoustic guitars too. And that brings us to “Moby Dick.” An absolute stunner of a drum solo. John Bonham puts other drum solos to shame. It’s jazzy and wild and unpredictable. Mesmerizing stuff. The closer “Bring It on Home” is another great build and release song. This is what I’m talking about when I say sexual energy. It’s not just the moaning and the wailing and the squeezing of the lemons. Led Zeppelin knows how to tease and thrill. I need a cigarette after listening to this album.

“Work It” is a personal favorite and it stands tall above the rest of these songs. Every time I listen to it, there’s a line that makes me laugh or a new detail in the mix that pops out. Just an incredible, goofy, cool, one-of-a-kind track. There are a lot of cool beats on this album, some of which get close to “Work It” in their inventiveness and energy. And all those beats are produced by Timbaland. Honestly, the simplest way to improve this album would be to cut all the tracks he didn’t produce. His beats sound like a transmission from the future, even now, ten years after the album came out. Okay, pet peeve here: She says “This is a Missy Elliott exclusive” on too many tracks. I know it is! I’m listening to your album! Like, put that on the first track and maybe one or two of the singles but you don’t have to tag every song with it. It sounds silly after a while.

Hard, fast punk. Dead Kennedys are political and opinionated but definitely have a sense of humor too. There are moments of weirdo theatricality that remind me of System of a Down. I like that they interject some strangeness into the music.

Eh, I wasn’t feeling this one. It’s a good-natured mash-up of genres with some earnest social messages but I also found it pretty cheesy. I didn’t like the opening cover of “Freddie’s Dead” and the rest of the album didn’t pick up much from there. “Bonin’ in the Boneyard” almost worked for me but it was still pretty silly.

A good pop album. There's definitely some filler though. But I like that a lot of songs have the eccentric feel of experimental electronica (especially the early tracks). The production gets a little adventurous.

What a smart, fun, sharp album. Alanis Morissette is so funny. I must have laughed out load a dozen times listening to this. I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this so much. At first I thought I’d be annoyed by the affectations she puts on but after the first track I started to get it. She uses the weird intonations and exaggerated pronunciations to punctuate her jokes. It helps shift the tone of the songs and cue the listen to hear the irony and sarcasm in her lyrics. “You Oughta Know” is one of the great ‘fuck you’ songs. There are so many good one-liners in it and her delivery drips with anger and resentment. “Forgiven” is one of the best songs I’ve heard about religion. The chorus is great: “We all had our reasons to be there / We all had a thing or two to learn / We all needed something to cling to / So we did.” There’s definitely a layer of irony there but it’s also surprisingly empathetic. She’s resentful toward the church for saddling her with guilt but she forgives the church. Which is hilarious because forgiveness is also one of the main tenets of Catholicism. What a way to criticize an institution — throwing its own beliefs back in its face! “Ironic” is one of the few songs I don’t love here (the lyrics are a little silly) but man, what a hook! The power of that chorus is irresistible. I can’t believe she was 20 years old when she made this album. The depth of feeling and the complexity of what she’s saying on some of these songs is impressive for any songwriter and she was so young! Side note: Really bad album cover for such a great album.

I like Kate Bush. I'd like to love Kate Bush. Her music is bold and adventurous and experimental but it always remains in that 'respect and admire' zone for me. I really enjoyed the first five songs on this album. The second half, which is apparently a mini concept album, not so much. I couldn't get into it. Maybe I should seek out a greatest hits compilation because even her singles are nothing like what I would consider mainstream pop. "Running Up That Hill" is stunning and the songs that follow it here are almost equally bold.

Beautiful singer/songwriter album with a simple, unfussy sound built on top of strong, sturdy songs. Lots of positivity in the lyrics too. “I Feel the Earth Move” and “You’ve Got a Friend” are classics I’ve heard since childhood but never thought about who sang them. A few other songs sounded familiar here too. Cool to find out she co-wrote “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” too. Her version here is good! She has a nice singing voice but I can see why she found a lot of success writing for other artists. She’s an exceptionally good songwriter.

I’m an Elvis Costello fan but I’ve never heard this album before. There are definitely a bunch of albums of his that I’d put on this list and this isn’t one of them. But I still enjoyed it. His lyrics are often a pleasure. And just as often, his words get in the way of the music. He’s a smart writer but I think he can overwrite his lyrics sometimes (especially on a mid-career album like this). “20% Amnesia” was cool because he tries something bold and different with that song, which I like. A full band sound suits him better than a stripped down style in my opinion. His singing takes on a little extra sneer when he has a rock band behind him. (Or maybe his sneering just sounds more at home with a louder sound.) I’ll confess that part of my enjoyment of these songs was hearing echoes of other, better Elvis Costello songs in them. But that’s part of the fun of being a fan of an artist. You enjoy the mediocre stuff because it reminds you of the great stuff! 🤷🏻‍♂️😎 Fun songwriting observation that I’m sure amused Elvis Costello: this album has songs called “Pony St.” and “Rocking Horse Road.” 🐴

“The Girl From Ipanema” is becoming one of my favorite songs and the version here is wonderful. Frank Sinatra sounds absolutely at home on bossa nova. His voice feels totally natural on these songs. This album is a smooth, seductive pleasure. The album cover is gorgeous too.

Wow. I always have a soft spot for bands that can channel the raw power of noise and rage and these guys can definitely do that. But they also stretch out on some pretty long, complex songs. A few of these tracks are intricate and kind of proggy. Is that one of the distinctions that makes a band post-hardcore rather than simply hardcore? The music is much more nuanced and complicated than your typical punk rock. Really impressed with this but it's a lot to take in on a first listen. I'm interested to play it again to get a more full sense of the pacing and scope of the album.

There's rock and then there's big budget, blockbuster, leave nothing on the table rock. These songs are awesome and really layered. There's a wall of sound style to the production -- lots of details and flourishes and reverb to fill out the sound and make these already big songs sound absolutely mammoth. It's well done and very effective, probably because the songwriting puts such a focus on melody. I've never listened to Soundgarden outside of the hits ("Black Hole Sun" is a classic that still sounds great) and I really enjoyed this. Sounds just as good on headphones as it does through a car stereo. There are some cool surprises here too. “Half” is a really interesting one.

This album is somehow both hard rock and easy listening. It totally rocks but man, it's also got this easy-breezy, laidback style. This is my first listen but its reputation precedes it. I've heard radio DJs and other people who were college-age when it came out say the words "Frampton Comes Alive" with a wistful tone, like something magic happened in the room once when they played it. After listening to it, I get it. It's bedroom baby-making music, hang out with your friends music and backyard BBQ rock all rolled into one. I definitely plan on playing this one more.

I’ve never been able to get into Frank Zappa before but I enjoyed this. A mix of blues and jazz-rock fusion. These songs have a lot going on but jamming out and riffing is at the core of them. Good energy. I dig it.

A really nice collection of songs! I like that the album goes back and forth a bit between traditional sounding folk songs and more modern 70’s rock. I enjoy those folk songs sometimes but I usually can’t do too many in a row so I enjoyed having some different songs in the mix. “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight” is an early highlight for me. I love the ‘I’ve been working all week so let’s go out tonight’ lyrics and the melody is great. Honestly, all these songs have strong melodies.

I love how much of a role rhythm plays in Talking Heads' music. So many of these songs are built around tight, funky rhythms. But the music doesn't sound like traditional funk. They've got their own unique spin on it. This is an excellent album and has two classics, "Life During Wartime" and "Heaven" (which has great lyrics that read like a poem). Some songs can feel a little cold, which might be why I've listened to this album less than other Talking Heads albums. There are also a few songs on here that I'm more familiar with from the live album/movie "Stop Making Sense" and they come alive even more in that performance.

From the very first notes, this album changed how I think about The Police. I’ve always loved the singles (and the singles are here: the deceptively beautiful “Every Breath You Take,” the heartbreak jam “King of Pain” and the dub-influenced “Wrapped Around Your Finger”) but the album has some surprising left turns too. “Mother” is a bizarre one — it’s fascinating but not something I need to listen to more than once. I love the opening energy of “Synchronicity I” though — starts things off with a bang! The calmer songs are played beautifully too. “Tea in the Sahara” is spacey and gorgeous. And “Murder By Numbers” has a great off-kilter jazz rhythm. Fantastic drumming throughout the album but I really noticed it on this one. It’s a toss-up for me as to whether “King of Pain” or “Murder By Numbers” is my favorite. I guess I’m going to have to go through every Police album now because I had no idea the album cuts were just as good as the singles. 4.5

The music on this album has such a fun, positive and restless creative energy. Every song has a ton of different samples mashed together like a collage. This was no doubt a major leap forward for hip-hop production. But the album can feel a little too restless for me. There are so many skits and interludes and joke tracks that I can find it a bit hard to get into. And while the music is inventive and playful, I find the rapping underwhelming.

Excellent album overall. Ghostface Killah has a great flow and man, he just goes! No hooks, just tight bars packed with imagery and wordplay. The opening track "Shakey Dog" is incredible -- it's got a cinematic sweep and he's relentless on it. The album could benefit from some editing but I don't think there's any glaring filler. Just a few too many tracks. Fantastic production. The Pete Rock beats are so good, especially "R.A.G.U" and "Be Easy." The drums! MF DOOM has some great production here too. I love those sustained notes in the “Jellyfish” beat. Something different that stands out from the rest of the songs. His beats have little psychedelic and retro touches, which helps the whole album to sound more varied.

I wasn’t familiar with this artist so I did a quick Wikipedia and he’s known for combining Malian music and American blues. I can hear that right away — African rhythms and melodies with bluesy chords. I can get a little restless with straight blues because (unless the performance is stunning) it can start to all sound the same. But this sort of fusion is where it’s at! I’m digging it. I love his finger-plucking guitar playing. It sounds a little chaotic in a cool, jazzy way. The title track “Savane” has some awesome soloing.

I enjoyed some of this but at a distance. I listened to a lot of it on headphones and I kept lowering the volume because it was hurting my ears, but then the lower volume just didn't feel right. It's abrasive music and I didn't enjoy it enough to go back for a repeat listen. But I see the appeal of Marilyn Manson. A lot of songs actually have pretty straightforward pop structures, just dressed up as hardcore punk and metal and industrial. There's a core of solid songwriting in the music. He can also really go full-out hardcore too. This is a huge album and I appreciate that he breaks it up into three segments. Still, I found myself slogging through the end. "Mister Superstar" stood out to me as an interesting one. It's a twisted satire about celebrity and fandom. The lyrics about doing anything for Mister Superstar also felt significant given Marilyn Manson's allegations of sexual abuse and power dynamics.

God, I love the way those drums come in at the beginning of “Time To Pretend.” That moment jump-starts a killer song and an awesome album. MGMT are one of my favorite bands and one of the best and most interesting acts making music today. This album is heavily tied to college in my memories. "Time to Pretend" and "Electric Feel" were huge songs that were everywhere for a while. They were crossover hits that everyone could agree on -- the indie music nerds, the frat guys, your mom when you played it in the car. This was definitely an album I played in my dorm and heard at parties. I have a distinct memory of dancing to "Kids" with some friends at a house party. But man, it really holds up. The whole first half is fantastic and includes the three hits I've already mentioned. "Weekend Wars" is an anthem and I like how the rhythm changes back and forth. MGMT are very good at composing songs with surprising twists and turns. And "The Youth" has that great singalong, chanted refrain. The first half of the album is all big hooks and stadium-sized synth pop, while the second half gets more psychedelic and weird. But there's still plenty of catchy melodies too. "Pieces of What" is a nice, mellow number. And "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" is great psychedelic rock (and again, lots of little twists and turns and surprises that keep you on your toes but feel totally natural after you've heard the song a few times). One of the things that always grabs me about this album is its emotion. There are a lot of lyrics about childhood that resonate with me. And for all the psychedelic production effects (the bubbles and warbles and reverb), the emotion is front and center, which makes the album more accessible than you might expect for this genre. It's one of the best debut albums in recent memory and a classic in my book. (And they even managed to top it on their second album "Congratulations," which is one of my absolute favorites. Not sure if that one is going to be on this list or not but it's a masterpiece and definitely on my personal best albums list.)

I love this album. It’s one of my favorite “just drank a cup of coffee albums.” The opening track “Move” has a great caffeinated energy. I’ve listened to this album countless times and I’ll listen to it countless more times in my life. It’s always a great pick-me-up. A fantastic driving album too. And one of the best album titles of all time too. Sometimes, the phrase “Birth of the Cool” pops into my head and I think, damn what a great title.

Every once in a while I like to feel treated to lyrics that read like poetry. The opening songs “Bird on the Wire” and “Story of Isaac” have that feel. I love lyrics that give you some imagery to roll around your head, even if the meaning of every line isn’t always immediately clear. Those two stood out to me the most, though “A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes” has a nice dramatic and full band sound, and the closer “Tonight Will Be Fine” is sweetly romantic. The songs definitely have a Dylanesque style but Leonard Cohen has a style of his own that comes through too. (And it may well be that Dylan and Cohen are just drawing from the same folk influences.)

"Hotel California" is one of the first songs I can remember rolling my eyes at on classic rock radio. I'd thought the song was awesome the first dozen or so times I'd heard it (just about all of the songs on Q104.3 were new to me when I was 12 and I was soaking them up like a sponge) but as I got a little older and starting developing my personal tastes, the lyrics of "Hotel California" started to sound cheesy and silly. I'd either switch the station if it came on or leave it on and make fun of it. I've since come back around to the song. It's massively overplayed and is bound to get on anyone's nerves if they hear it every day but that's not really the song's fault. It's an epic rock song and supremely catchy. And even though the lyrics are a bit clichéd, I also think they hold a certain hokey wisdom. But I think learning to hate songs like this is an important part of developing taste as a teenager so I'm grateful for the years I spent groaning at it. This whole album is excellent. I didn't know the Eagles sang "Life in the Fast Lane" and "Victim of Love." Solid hard rock songs! And the album cuts are really good here too. There are some country-tinged soft rock gems here.

“21st Century Schizoid Man” is one of the best rock songs of all time and an insane album opener. It’s got that ridiculous heavy metal riff and opens up into an all-out jazz freak-out in the second half. Phenomenal. I love how the gentle “I Talk to the Wind” follows the noise of “Schizoid Man.” Great transition and palette cleanser. And a beautiful song too. I love the flute solo at the end. The drumming on this album is fantastic. Michael Giles (had to look up the name and give him a shoutout) is so precise and on point the way you need for hard rock and heavy metal, but he’s also got this light jazzy touch too, depending on the song. “Epitaph” is a prog rock epic! So cinematic. When I was 14, I would listen to this CD on my Walkman and challenge myself not to skip past the avant-garde section of "Moonchild." I think it helped me build up a tolerance for free jazz and experimental music. 😂 Honestly, it's not as challenging as I remember it being. It's actually pretty calming and soothing. Another epic one with the closing title track. Love those dramatic backing vocals. And more flute solos! 🙌 Listening to this took me back to riding the bus to high school in the morning. This CD was in high rotation for teenaged Steve for a while. One of the best album covers of all time. It might even take my vote for best ever.

Excellent album. Now that some time has passed, I can appreciate "Hello" again. When the album first came out, that song definitely reached a point of oversaturation. (Do you remember when it was the #1 song and some pop stations didn't know what to do with a sad, dramatic song so on weekends at night they'd play these horrible EDM remixes of it? Man, that used to drive me crazy haha) But it's a powerful song and a great opener. "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" is one of my favorite Adele songs. Such a great hook. Damn, "Water Under the Bridge" is another powerhouse song. And "River Lea" is another jam in the same vein. There are a handful of songs on this album that... well, I don't want to call them filler because how could a song with stunning vocals and immaculate production be called filler? But there are a few like "Remedy" and "Love in the Dark" that are beautiful in the moment but quickly melt away once they're over. Adele's such a good singer though that she could sing the dictionary. That's the thing about her, right? And there are also some good album cuts too. I really liked the dramatic and sexy "I Miss You" and the triumphant closer "Sweetest Devotion."

The is album combines a lot of genres I like — jazz rock, prog, funk — but I don’t know, I didn’t quite buy it. The songs change tone pretty drastically and the changes often feel forced. Maybe multiple listens will reveal how these structures are actually brilliant and a perfect fit for each song? I’m not convinced. “Bloody Well Right” is a good example of this. It sound like a mash-up of Chicago, Pink Floyd and Steely Dan. But it’s not as good as any of those bands and I’m not persuaded that they needed to be put together like this. “If Everyone Was Listening” almost worked for me. This album cover is pretty bad but I did look at Supertramp’s other album covers and they have some gems. This is the only bad one.

T. Rex is my #1 ‘three drinks and two hits’ band. When I’m the perfect level of buzzed, no other band sounds as good. This album is top to bottom great, always a blast to put on. “Metal Guru” is a gold standard start-with-a-bang opener, “Main Man” is a *chef’s kiss* mid-tempo closer and in between are 11 more riff-centric sexy as hell glam rock songs. I have a special place in my heart for “Spaceball Ricochet,” which I’ve listened to on repeat in the past. There’s something very romantic about that song to me.

“Silent All These Years” almost has the drama of a Meat Loaf song. But that minor chord change-up at 1:01 is more like a Fiona Apple move. “Precious Things” has drama too. But more in the Kate Bush vein. This was Tori Amos’ first album? It’s really bold! That piano trot on “Happy Phantom” is another one that reminds me of Fiona Apple. (And worth noting here that this album came out four years before Fiona Apple’s debut.) “Happy Phantom” is a clear standout. I enjoyed some of these songs more than others but that’s mostly a question of taste. This is a very impressive album, especially for a first album.

Pink Floyd has great taste when it comes to crafting and pacing albums. They created some terrific album experiences designed to be listened to in one sitting. I think “Wish You Were Here” benefits from a front-to-back listen just as much as “Dark Side of the Moon.” The big achievement here is "Shine On You Crazy Diamond," split into two largely instrumental pieces that bookend the album. Both halves are stunning and show off Pink Floyd's range. And that saxophone that comes in around the 11-minute mark of the first half? It's one of those moments that stops you in your tracks. I don't often think of Pink Floyd as a jazz rock band but they have their moments. The section of the second "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" that goes from 6:20-9:00 is fantastic. Pink Floyd does psychedelic rock better than maybe anyone but they could switch into a cool, grooving fusion band too and sound totally natural. "Welcome to the Machine" is one of those songs I use to get annoyed at on classic rock radio because it got played so much. It's a stunning, haunting, dystopian nightmare of a song. In the context of this album, it's incredible. At a Fourth of July BBQ? Not so much. But this is a gripe with Q104.3 DJs, not Pink Floyd. I love the laser synths at 6:00. Great choice to bring in a guest vocalist to play the record executive on "Have a Cigar." He really hams it up and plays the part. Awesome song. And of course the title track -- another one that's overplayed but when you take some time away from it, you realize how sad and touching and beautiful it is. Great album cover. I follow a Twitter account that takes screenshots from The Simpsons that look like famous album covers and the one they did for "Wish You Were Here" is amazing 😂: https://twitter.com/SimpsonsAlbums/status/1625912717876789259

Any time I put on one of these early R.E.M. albums I think, "Should I be listening to way more R.E.M.?" I've never quite made the jump from liking R.E.M. to loving R.E.M. but they're such a good band. Lots of hooks and melodies in the songwriting and the performances are full of emotion. Top shelf alt-rock. 4.5

A few weeks back we had an album by Ali Farka Touré that fused Malian folk with American blues. Cool to hear a more recent band pick up on what he was doing and continue the style. Songhoy Blues have a slightly more modern rock sound. (“Nick” has a crunchy beat and blues riff that reminds me of the Black Keys.) I love how a lot of these songs sound like they’re in forward motion. This would be great driving music because the songs already feel like they’re flying down the highway.

Not a lot I enjoyed about this one. The vocals are flat and boring. There are some good riffs here and there but the music rarely comes together and becomes a good song. I also didn't buy the moments that get scream-y and tip into hardcore. Those moments should feel cathartic. Here they felt grating. “Think (Let Tomorrow Bee)” was a sweet song — a pleasant surprise near the end.

I’m always impressed when I hear music that sounds fresh and new and strange. And when that music was actually released in 1974? Even more impressive. This album has that restless feel of a genius trying to amuse himself with experimental compositions and production techniques. But I felt like I was invited along for the ride. I had fun with it. This is a pop album at heart and you can feel that through all the more out-there creative decisions.

What a fun-loving group of lads. They’re trying very hard to sound like the Kinks and I find that charming. I have a soft spot for bands like this. I used to listen to the Kooks a bunch in college and they have a very similar sound to the Libertines: blatant worship of British bands from the 60’s, English drawl front and center in the vocals, punk guitars and pop hooks.

There's nothing quite like Stevie Wonder's style of soul and funk. It's so light and ethereal but with killer rhythm and groove. I almost don't even notice the individual instruments in the mix -- I just hear the whole sound together. Except the bass. That great, funky bass usually stands out. Excellent album front to back. A nice mix of soulful, romantic songs and more upbeat funk numbers.

The first three tracks here, which make up side A, are fantastic. Classic songs I've been hearing all my life. They still sound great but it helps to be in the mood for this sort of cheesy pop metal. I've probably heard them a few too many times but they are great. The second half of the album has more of the same style but the songwriting feels like a step down. There was a moment or two when I felt like the band was recycling riffs and melodies. I almost wasn't sure if it was a musical reprise or just a lack of new ideas.

Like listening to the first Clash album on 2x speed. This was very enjoyable (and I appreciate that the runtime is short). This album has a higher level of songwriting than a lot of the hardcore albums that have been on this list so far. And there's a number of political songs that elevate the music too. Strong album!

Incredible debut album. What a sound! And it has 6 (six!) classic songs on it: "Purple Haze," "Manic Depression," "Hey Joe," "The Wind Cries Mary," "Fire" and "Foxey Lady." If I had to choose, "Purple Haze" and "Fire" have to be my favorites. Great energy. A lot of other strong tracks too. Some songs, like “Love or Confusion” and “I Don’t Live Today,” turn up the noise and revel in hard rock jamming and feedback. Awesome stuff. Feels very cathartic.

This is my first dive into a full Chili Peppers album. I’ve always enjoyed the singles and… I think they’re gonna stay a singles band for me. The style is fun — really good hard rock and I love that slappy funk bass — but a lot of these songs are… kinda dumb (like “Suck My Kiss”). But I think this album benefits from a not-very-close listen. Not every album needs to be listened to closely on headphones. Some stuff is best played in the background so you can jam out without noticing that the lyrics are silly. But man I do love “Give It Away.” (That boing noise in the mix is so funny too.) And “Under the Bridge” is gorgeous. The album has a pretty even one-to-one ratio of eye-rolling lyrics to head-banging riffs so I can’t get mad at that.

A joy to listen to front to back. I love new wave rock like this. Fast, tight pop songs. Songs about relationships that take a specific angle or perspective. Top notch all around and has a great upbeat energy. The more I listen to this, the more I hear the punk in their style. But it’s blended with girl group pop too.

What an eclectic album. There are gorgeous songs like “You Are the Sunshine of My Life" and “You and I.” But there’s also some fantastic funk and the album switches back and forth. I love the hook on “Maybe Your Baby.” The song has this great dirty funk style that I absolutely love. “Tuesday Heartbreak” is wonderful. And “You’ve Got It Bad Girl” is a great song too. I love that warbly synth that sits low in the mix. And of course “Superstition”! Easily the Stevie Wonder song I've heard the most. Never gets old and always gets people dancing. This is one of those albums you could discuss track-by-track. Every song has its own personality and character, and lot of ground is covered in terms of genre. And man, “I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever” is a great closer. It’s almost like Stevie Wonder combined every other song on the album and made it this one epic finale!

Rip-roaring hard rock that tips into heavy metal and prog with loads of guitar heroics. The version of “Smoke on the Water” here is awesome. That last track is pretty gratuitous but overall I really enjoyed this.

The National is a band I’ve had on my list of bands to check out one day for a while. I can see why they’re well-reviewed and popular. Smart and interesting lyrics, tasteful production and excellent playing. The drumming is very dynamic; there are a lot of little details that add energy to the songs. But overall I don’t connect much with their sound. It’s a bit melancholy for me. And Matt Berninger’s vocals are a little too low-key. The band has a lot of U2 in their style but without Bono’s soaring drama, I wasn’t as swept away by the songs. It’s a question of taste though. There was still plenty I found interesting about this album, particularly the lyrics. They’re really well written.

Snoop Dogg has one of the most irresistible flows in rap — laidback and cool but with this fun, playful bounce. One of the most distinct voices in music. And the beats on this album are phenomenal, pretty much just as top-notch as anything on "The Chronic," released the previous year. Dr. Dre is so good as sampling these funk songs and turning them into rap anthems. "Gin and Juice" and "Who Am I? (What's My Name?)" are classics but really, all of these beats are excellent. Man, "Ain't No Fun" has a great, joyful party beat. It’s a shame that the lyrics are degrading, misogynistic b.s. I can deal with a little of that here and there but that song was too much. "Gz and Hustlas" is a personal favorite. I love the way that ice cream truck melody opens the song before the beat comes in. 4.5

Wouldn’t you love to know what Beck is listening to at any given moment? He must have an incredible record collection. You can tell by the music he makes that he has very eclectic taste. This album is less manic than “Odelay,” which switches genres multiple times in a single song. “Guero” still covers a lot of musical ground but the various styles are fused together more. You get a Spanish guitar line, an old-school hip-hop beat and an electro-pop synth all at the same time. “Missing” stood out to me as a good example of the this. The production is modern, the best is sped-up bossa nova and those strings add a mysterious, romantic tone to the song. The opening three songs are excellent: the hard rocking “E-Pro,” the very quotable “Que’ Onda Guero” and the catchy pop of “Girl.” This album doesn’t quite reach the heights of “Odelay” but there are a bunch of great songs and a lot of interesting and surprising ones.

So I didn’t actually like any of these songs but every one of them made me smile. Rush almost sound like a parody of Led Zeppelin’s most prog-rock leaning material. The music is shamelessly over-the-top and even though I wasn’t totally into it, I always respect a band that stays true to whatever wacky, wild, ambitious vision they have. Cheers to Rush but “2112” isn’t the album that’s gonna convert me.

I haven’t heard this album in a long time. It’s still great. My dad is a big Traffic fan and this album and “The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys” were albums that got played a lot in the house growing up. A little bit country with a lot of jazzy spirit in the extended jams. Joyful music. The title track has a fun premise. It’s a folk song about farmers slashing down John Barleycorn and harvesting him. But in the end, John Barleycorn gets the last laugh because he’s turned into beer and brandy, and overpowers the farmers by getting them drunk. Now they can’t do anything without a little alcohol.

As a music fan, I do a fair amount of chin-stroking, carefully considering what I’m listening to and evaluating it as art. I can forget sometimes that the primary purpose of most music is entertainment. You can’t forget that when listening to Queen. Hard to think of another band more willing to do handstands and back-flips to amuse you. This album is a blast. It’s got that signature Queen mash-up of hair metal meets vaudeville theatricality. “Killer Queen” is the standout track, one of their all-time bests, and it’s surrounded by a dozen tracks just as wild and energetic and eager to please.

Fast, tight punk but the music gets pretty heavy too. These guys must have had a great live show. The songs have a lot of forward energy and big, full rock sound, including piano on a few tracks and some soaring guitar solos. The album is much more musically accomplished than you might expect from a band singing about pizza, blowjobs and having a pocket full of mice in your pants.

What a wild performance! I played this one on the speakers in the house and Dree and I were both laughing at the way he riffs and wails through these songs. So fun. Shame that only about half the album is available to stream. I’d love to hear the whole thing straight through.

Some of the best funk of all time. Music that sounds like it was made by a party rather than a band. Time melts away on a lot of these songs and all that matters is the groove. I also like how unpretentious it is. Always great to hear music that’s this excellent also be goofy and silly and fun.

Wow. What an impressive album. There's a lot here. Some songs feel like artsy post-punk, others are grunge, others are alt-rock in the vein of Smashing Pumpkins, others are more straight punk (I have a hunch that a bunch of these songs influenced Green Day -- see: "P.C.P."). There are even moments that remind me a little of Bowie. I'm curious to listen to this again because it's a dense album and it feels like a great one. I'm surprised I've never even heard of the band when they're this good.

Cool to immediately get the next Manic Street Preachers album on this list after “The Holy Bible.” Apparently their lyricist tragically disappeared between the two albums and they sound like a different band on “Everything Must Go.” It’s much brighter and more pop-focused guitar rock in the vein of Oasis. I’m not as drawn to this album as the previous one but it’s still good.

Too many of these songs are sprawling and formless. I don't expect pop hooks but I do need some sense of structure to give me an entry point into the music. There was another Björk album on this list, "Vespertine," that I enjoyed much more. On that album, even when the songs were experimental and avant-garde there was some detail that pulled me in -- a beat I could groove to or an interesting synth hook. I felt lost here and found myself slogging through most of it. “Lionsong” stood out to me. The line “Maybe he will come out of this loving me" is a powerful emotional hook. “Atom Dance” has a playful spirit. And Anohni, who sings guest vocals on the song, has an incredible voice -- so distinct. "Quicksand" has that interesting mixing and production I enjoyed on "Vespertine." It's got this thumping bass but the song is far from a dance track.

Sam Cooke has such a powerful voice. He really wails on this album. And the performance is loose. His spoken intros lead right into the songs and he starts a lot of call-and-response with the audience. Great energy bottled in this recording.

Gorgeous album that opens with a stunning back-to-back-to-back opening three tracks, "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and "With or Without You." I also love the hard rocking "Bullet the Blue Sky" and the more country "Trip Through Your Wires" (that harmonica!) Great listen beginning to end, nothing but excellent music.

A looser and more experimental album than the two masterpieces of hard rock that precede it, "Led Zeppelin III" is more eccentric than other albums of theirs and has more folk and country-influenced tracks on it, particularly in the second half. Blues was always at the core of their style but previously they’d played it in the style of hard psychedelic rock and heavy metal. Here, they play with acoustic guitars more. The obvious outlier of course is the opener, "Immigrant Song," which sounds like no other hard rock song ever recorded. Just an insane thundering rhythm with that wild scream as a hook. "Since I've Been Loving You" is a stunner too. Amazing slow burn with some terrific vocal riffing from Robert Plant near the end. I was also drawn to "Tangerine" today in a way I never was before. It's beautiful. The highlights combined with the album's unique personality put this in classic territory for me.

Guitar noodling! And lots of it! I’ve mostly only listened to a few studio albums by Grateful Dead but they stretch out and jam much more live. Like the Allman Brothers live album we had a while back, this is perfect music to put on in the background while cooking. Bright, cheerful, pleasant music. Wait, “Feedback” is really 7+ minutes of experiments with guitar feedback? Surprised that one made the cut for the live album. Gets kinda cool in the second half of the song though.

Fun art-punk with a lot of energy. At times they sound like someone put The Clash and Talking Heads in a blender. I definitely enjoyed the first few tracks the most.

Fun album. Mostly glam-rock but with a lot of experiments and musical detours, like the wild jazz piano on the title track or the cabaret style of “Time.”

One of the coolest jazz albums of all time and a personal favorite. I should keep this in mind when people ask for recommendations on how to get into jazz. The funky style makes the album very accessible and there are some memorable, catchy hooks. I feel like Herbie Hancock and his band set out to make music that sounded like it was from the future. It still sounds like that decades after its release. When I start new writing projects, I like to assemble a playlist of a few albums that will match the tone and style of what I’m writing. Then whenever I sit down to write, I listen to those albums and it helps me slip back into the project each day. Earlier this year I wrote a wild and experimental animated feature (first time I ever wrote with animation in mind) and “Head Hunters” was on the playlist. It always helped me enter the strange, weird world I was inventing in the script.

Really enjoyable album and it has a range of styles on it — some danceable pop and some more traditional-sounding acoustic folk. We’ve had a few West African albums on the list so far and I always connect with them. I also like that some of the more pop-leaning tracks here have a bit of a cheesy production that you expect from the era. But the rhythms still sound complicated. I’m gonna want to revisit this one. (Oooh this guitar solo in the second half of the closing track “Minuit”! 🎸🙌)

Pretty cool trip-hop with a laidback lounge-y style. Probably not something I’ll seek out again though. I imagine this was very fresh and influential in 1991 when electronic music and hip-hop were still kind of in their early stages.

“Wild World” and “Father and Son” are wonderful songs. But Cat Stevens doesn’t do much for me. I don’t have any persuasive reason for that opinion. I know people who absolutely love him but I don’t connect much with these songs or his style. The album just floated by for me.

These guitar solos are awesome. The one on “Top Jimmy” stood out to me. It’s kind of rough and sloppy and wild but you can hear that Eddie Van Halen is also a brilliant musician. Some of these solos sound like free jazz but played on top of hair metal. That’s so badass! First time listening to a Van Halen album straight through and I’m impressed. I think I always dismissed them as a goofy band but they’re pretty awesome. I know the big hits off this one from classic rock radio but it’s been long enough since I’ve listened to them that I was able to hear how great they are again. I’m glad this was a Friday album because I had a chance to play it a few times — while working out, driving, in the background at home — and it gets better and better. I’m more and more convinced this is a classic and I’m looking forward to spending more time with it.

Beautiful guitar playing and beautiful singing. This is a particularly mellow album but soothing and calming for the right mood.

Delightful. Fun, upbeat, perfect for summer music. New wave rock with a lot of African rhythms and the occasional cheesy jazz solo. Totally up my alley. The lead singer, Nick Heyward, sounds a lot like Joe Jackson, one of my favorites from this era. The band sounds huge. Apparently there are 7 band members (which includes 2 drummers) + a brass section. Amazing. The music has a nice, full sound. Man, "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" sounds a lot like Talking Heads' "I Zimbra." Surprised to see no credit to them considering how close the rhythm + that one vocal part is.

Hard to get mad at a band with this many ideas and such a fun-loving, easy-going energy. I enjoyed this album more than the last Specials album we had on the list, mostly because this one is a little more musically restless. Still not my taste but I appreciate its playfulness.

Ooh I really like Cuban jazz but I’ve never heard it in this big band style before. Reminds me a little of the music in “I Love Lucy.” Really charming album with great brass solos and an energetic rhythm section with lots of small percussion.

I think we all have a tendency to imagine the past as a black-and-white photo where nothing moves. But 1965 was every bit as alive and wild and chaotic and real as the present and it's nice to remember that once in a while by listening to a performance like this. B.B. King is a powerhouse. Just stunning. And the crowd at this show matches his energy and fuels his performance. I love how much shouting and cheering is captured in the recording. You can pick out individual voices and hear exactly what they're saying. B.B. King's vocals are fantastic. I don't listen to blues often but when you hear a master like him perform it, the genre really clicks into place. The songs are a foundation for the performers to embellish on and add emotion to. You can hear that in his expressive guitar playing too. Very moving. “I’ve got a sweet little angel / I love the way she spreads her wings” is one of the best wink-wink metaphors I’ve ever heard for sex. Just incredible.

Beautifully produced album. The drums are so crisp. The bass is fantastic -- low in the mix but beautifully played and adds a little funk. The arrangements feel like they have just enough in them -- nothing distracting or pulling attention away from the main focus, which is usually the vocals. Lauryn Hill has a gorgeous voice and there are a lot of great moments when she harmonizes with some sensational back-up singers. She's also an incredible rapper. I've listened to this album a number of times over the years. I'm always impressed but I think I connect to it more on a cerebral level than an emotional level. I have no doubt that other people feel differently and I can see why someone would have a strong emotional bond to this music but I appreciate it at a bit of a distance. The exception is “Doo Wop (That Thing),” which I absolutely adore. And her stellar version of “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.” Man, a lot of people performed on this album! I'm looking at the 'personnel' section on Wikipedia and it's long. Amazing that Lauryn Hill was able to produce such a cohesive album with so many different collaborators.

Incredible album. I love the raw power of it. They sound amazing as a band here. Those drums are huge on “Serve the Servants” and “Scentless Apprentice.” And the bass throughout the album has this ominous, nefarious feel. These guitars solos are sick too. Wild, sloppy shredding that matches the pained screams of Kurt Cobain’s vocals. Great songs, awesome in-your-face heavy sound. I love this album. Okay this is an association that is just for me but this album reminds me of teenage summers by the pool in my friend Steve’s backyard. Us and another friend all got into Nirvana at the same time and we would spend all day in the pool blasting these CDs. Listening to it now definitely takes me back to those hot summer days. I can picture that backyard so vividly right now. Also, ask me to show you the music video I made for “Tourette’s” for my final project in media class freshman year of high school 😂

Somewhere between Bowie and Radiohead, leaning more towards the Bowie side, especially on the dramatic piano-driven ballads. Very interesting album that surprised me more than once.

Beautiful voice, strong songwriting, immaculate production. Kasey Musgraves makes very good country pop. She has an endearing personality and writes charming, straightforward songs. “Slow Burn” is a particularly good one.

Whoa. Metallica already has such a massive sound and then they added an orchestra? 😂 It’s inspired but also a little insane. The album can be overwhelming and overstimulating. Still, it’s a remarkable and impressive achievement. Add in the audience singalong moments and this becomes a very special recording. This is probably more in ‘I respect that this exists’ territory than me actually loving it. But I also wasn’t familiar with most of these songs. I can imagine my reaction being different if I knew these songs and then heard them expanded into these epic, live, orchestrated versions. I’m starting to get acclimated to the over-the-top style of this album. “Devil’s Dance” is slapping right now. Feels like heavy metal meets Bond theme song with the strings.

I like that this album captures the range of Bob Dylan’s personality. Sometimes he’s sincere and heartbroken (“Girl From the North Country”) and sometimes he’s cheeky and sarcastic (“Talkin’ World War III Blues”). Other times, like on the closer “I Shall Be Free,” he tells riddles and jokes, the meaning of which can be hard to pin down. In all fairness, he was only 21 years old when this was recorded and maybe he was still figuring out what he wanted to say and what he meant by it. You can hear that youthfulness on the opener, “Blowin’ in the Wind.” It’s an earnest song written with the wistful spirit of a young poet wondering about nothing less than the meaning of life. He sounds much more sure of himself on “Masters of War,” a stunning and angry song condemning war-mongering politicians that has unfortunately stayed relevant in the decades since its release. I’m also fond of “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,” a breakup song that has its cake and eats it too — he gets his digs in by calling his ex-girlfriend a child and accuses her of wasting his “precious time,” but he still tries to claim the high road by forgiving her with a reluctant shrug: “It’s alright.” The tongue-in-cheek humor captures a certain perspective. He’s not happy but nothing more can be done to save the relationship and he’s content to walk away. The music on the album is beautiful. The spare arrangements put a spotlight on his songwriting. On all but one song, the only thing you hear is Dylan. His harmonica solos are wonderful — short but expressive passages that highlight the melancholy mood of the album. I don’t listen to this album often because it’s pretty quiet and requires a some extra attention to appreciate fully. But I really enjoyed revisiting this today.

I can’t believe “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You,” “You Shook Me” and “Dazed and Confused” are back-to-back-to-back. Just one epic blues scorcher after another. Insane. I love the following track sequencing: The bright 60’s singalong “Your Time is Gonna Come” which melds right into the Indian rhythms meet American folk of “Black Mountain Side” which abruptly ends and smashes directly into the killer heavy metal riff of “Communication Breakdown.” Inspired sequencing. This album is just pure sex blasting out the speakers. That blues guitar. Ugh. So good. Jimmy Page is incredible. So expressive. “How Many More Times” is such a fun closer. I love how the drums change up around 5:40. So cool. What a debut album! An absolute masterpiece.

Beautifully produced country pop, soaked in reverb. Really pristine sound. Emmylou Harris has a gorgeous voice. When she holds out a note, it sounds so clean. So strong. “Bluebird Wine” is a clear standout for me. It’s got real power to it. I love that forceful country style. I wish there were a few more peppy tunes like this but hey, maybe that’s jus another album. “Bottle Let Me Down” is fun too. The Beatles cover “For No One” has some incredible guitar on it. “Before Believing” is beautiful. I love these lyrics: “How would you feel if the world Was falling apart around you Pieces of the sky were falling In your neighbor's yard but not on you Wouldn't you feel just a little bit funny, Think maybe there's something you ought to do?”

An interesting and weird little album. Bold and experimental but very playful too. The music is loose and the production is rough. I find that charming to an extent. Always fun to hear a band not give a f— and just mess around in the studio. But I think that looseness holds the album back a bit too. A cool curiosity from the era that was ahead of its time but I’m not sure I’ll want to revisit it.

Wow. Little Simz is an incredible rapper. She can spit lightning fast with style and attitude. She has a lot of different flows too. The production is fantastic too. I'm not familiar with Inflo but man he's crazy talented. Great beats packed with details and interesting changes that come midway through a song. The opening track "Offence" is a real knock-your-socks-off track. Little Simz sounds badass and the production matches her attitude and moves all over the place. Awesome stuff. I especially liked the first half of the album, which leans more toward shit-talking and confident swagger. But the whole album is solid.

"I've been working on a cocktail called grounds for divorce." What a great line. Here's another great lyric: "I have an audience with the Pope And I'm saving the world at eight But if she says she needs me She says she needs me Everybody's going to have to wait" A lot of excellent songwriting on this album. The lyrics have a literary quality to them. There is also stellar production and nuanced music to match the words. I hear a little U2 and a lot of Radiohead influence in the music. But as much as I'm impressed by the album, something is holding me back from fully engaging with it. I think the vocals are part of that. Guy Garvey has a nice voice but his style is very understated and controlled. He sings about love and heartbreak and longing but in a detached way. His vocals can feel conversational and, particularly with his accent, he can sound a little like Morrissey. But Morrissey lets the sadness seep into his vocals more; he wallows in his pain. Guy Garvey sounds numb to the pain. Strong album but I enjoyed it at an arm's distance. 3.5

I remember when this album came out. It was in high rotation in our house for a while. This is the first album Bruce released after 9/11 and a lot of songs are about loss and grief. But there's a hopeful attitude too, a 'things are gonna get better' feeling. At the time it felt like an important album. Twenty years later, some of the music sounds cheesy. There are a few exceptions: "Mary's Place" let's it rip with that vintage E-Street Band sound and the title track has a triumphant energy that's hard to resist. But the music on a lot of other songs sounds canned. The production sometimes sterilizes the music, which undercuts the loose, live sound of the band. Bruce's faux-accent sounds silly on a few songs too. Still, the emotions are earnest and heartfelt, and there are a lot of memorable hooks and melodies. "Let's Be Friends (Skin to Skin)" is the standout track for me. I've always loved that song. I love the doo-wop/soul style — it’s always a good fit on Bruce. ("Waitin' on a Sunny Day" has some soul influence too.)

I don’t know much about music production but I’ve seen pictures of producers in the studio behind the boards. This album sounds like somebody slammed every level to its maximum output. How is it possible that every instrument sounds like it’s at the front of the mix? Why is this still screaming loud even when I lower the volume? The majority of the album leans toward heavy metal but there’s a nice mix of songs, including the power ballad closer “What It Takes.” Consistently rockin’, occasionally stupid (in a charming way) and a ton of fun.

Awesome post-punk with a driving energy. The vocals are quite a choice. Can't say I'd make the same choice but it does add up to a cool style: Spoken word vocals + relentless riffs and rhythm. I bet LCD Soundsystem counts this album as an influence. Wow, "Past Gone Made" is an awesome track.

Miles Davis's "Kind of Blue" is probably the album I've listened to more than any other in my life. It's the first jazz album I fell in love with. I can hum along to a lot of these solos as I listen. For years it was one of my go-to albums to play while studying. In high school and college, if I was feeling stressed or anxious or heartbroken, I would turn to "Kind of Blue" as if it were a comfort blanket. In high school, when my dad drove me to take the SATs, I wanted to be in a relaxed, focused state, so I played "Kind of Blue" on CD in the car. We drove the twenty-or-so minutes to the testing center, snow on the ground, listening to "So What" and "Freddie Freeloader." Another time in college, a few us ate weed cookies that were stronger than we anticipated. A few people were getting anxious and I was too baked to be helpful. But I played on "Kind of Blue" from my iPod and we all sat in my dorm room and chilled out, riding out the high. "Flamenco Sketches" is easily the song I've listened to the most in my life because I use it to help me fall asleep. On those restless nights when my mind is racing, I've always counted on "Flamenco Sketches" to center me and relax me. I'll play it on repeat, as softly as possible so that I can barely make out the notes. My brain starts to focus on the calming music instead of my thoughts and eventually... I drift into sleep. A few years back I was at a bachelor party in a cabin with no cell reception or internet. The weather was hot and humid and my friend was snoring in the bunk below me. I tried so hard to fall asleep but I couldn't. Then I remembered: I have a small handful of songs downloaded on my phone, including all of "Kind of Blue." I snuck off to a different part of the cabin, laid on the hardwood floor and played "Flamenco Sketches" until I was able to relax enough that I could fall asleep. I should back up a bit too because the whole reason I even started listening to Miles was because I had a crush on a girl in high school. I’d had some exposure to jazz. My dad loved jazz and he often played it in the house but he didn't have much Miles in his collection. He liked Charlie Parker more. Anyway, the girl I had a crush on came into school one day wearing a Miles Davis t-shirt and I just thought it was the coolest thing. I probably went to Borders that week to buy "Kind of Blue" on CD. I wanted to be ready if she asked me if I liked Miles. Nothing romantic ever happened between us (I was way too shy to make a move back then) but that t-shirt started a love affair with Miles Davis's music for me. I started collecting his albums and getting into his different eras (I love the 70's electric stuff the most). A year or two later, my parents bought me a t-shirt for Christmas... the exact t-shirt my crush had worn. I was mortified. I knew I could never wear it in school because she would see it and recognize it and how embarrassing! I hardly wore it at all until college. Then it became a high rotation t-shirt and I wore it until it had holes in it. I guess I should mention the music too. It's a perfect first jazz album to get into because you can play it in the background and listen casually. But if you put headphones on and zero in on the performances, you're treated to some spectacular solos. The album is wonderfully paced. It opens with the impossibly cool "So What." Those opening bass notes are fantastic; they set the mood perfectly. Then comes "Freddie Freeloader," a peppier song that picks up the pace a bit. Next is the gorgeous "Blue in Green." Bill Evans is such a beautiful piano player. Sometimes a phrase or melody of his catches my ear and time stands still. "All Blues" is a nice, long stretch of a song with more phenomenal and effortlessly cool playing. And of course "Flamenco Sketches" ends the album with a soft and stunningly beautiful lullaby. "Kind of Blue" is my number one desert island disc. If were stranded alone on a beach with no hope of contacting help, I'd want Miles to calm me down and keep my company.

Much respect to the art and craft of this but it’s not my particular flavor of aggression. I'm sure its raw power is cathartic for a lot of fans but it’s a little exhausting for me. The album is mostly industrial beats, feedback-heavy guitar and screamed vocals about being horny and doubting the existence of god. Sure, hell yeah, man, go for it. But I’ll personally pass on this. “Closer” is a classic though and the one track I need off this album.

Beautiful production with that 70's country style. Dolly Parton has a great voice with a distinct twang. The songwriting is excellent on this album too. "Coat of Many Colors" had me tearing up.

This list is a real treasure trove of experimental rock and early punk. There are a lot of bands I'm learning about for the first time. The sort of bands that your favorite bands probably listened to. Pere Ubu sounds at times like a less polished B-52's. A little more wild and out there and experimental. Something I've learned by going through this list is that punk and post-punk basically happened around the same time. The name 'post-punk' can be misleading because it suggests that it could have only happened after punk became popular. But it seems like almost right away, a lot of experimental bands picked up on the energy of punk and twisted it in new directions. ("Chinese Radiation" is a good example of post-punk on this album.) Maybe post-punk is a good descriptor of bands that were influenced by experimental 60's rock and just happened to be continuing those sounds alongside punk rock. I also read something recently where a music critic argued that bands don't think about genre as much as fans and critics do. They just make the music they want to make and it gets labelled after. That seems right. Pere Ubu is a band that clearly made whatever crazy music they wanted to make. I don't think they thought a ton about music history when recording this album. The first half felt more focused than the second half. A few tracks lost me in the back half, particularly the nonsense noise of “Sentimental Journey.” 2.5

A very pleasant album of easygoing rock with a full band sound of country, blues and folk. What a wonderful version of “Amazing Grace” at the end of track 3. The acoustic guitar is so expressive. “Maggie May” is the clear standout. Gorgeous song and a perfect example of this album’s style.

Wow. What an incredible album. Emotionally rich and dense with musical ideas. A lot of these songs are pretty complex so one listen only scratches the surface. He’s a beautiful performer and the production is top notch though so even a cursory listen is still very enjoyable. I only knew his version of “Hallelujah” going into this. Incredible version and deserving of its classic status. There’s a wide variety of styles on this album including some fantastic rock. The music on a few songs reminded me of Radiohead and Grizzly Bear, two of my all time favorites. This album must have been an influence on them.

Excellent blues rock. A perfect album to put on when you’re looking for classic rock to soundtrack a BBQ. The whole album is solid front to back. I really like “Bell Bottom Blues.” Of course the standout track is “Layla.” Just an incredible hook. What a sweeping energy this song has! It’s got the drama of classical music.

Cool atmospheric music. For a group called Massive Attack, their mood is pretty laidback and loungy. Some of the beats and rhythms have a jazzy swing to them too. Overall I dig it but mostly as background music.

A nice mix of headphones electronica and dance floor euphoria. Some songs have a playful spirit with lots of fun details. Others are club-ready bangers, like “Paris Four Hundred.” The back half of the album is particularly packed with dance tracks. Excellent stuff, really fun.

Beautiful, long rock songs that would be perfect to listen to on a road trip. “Seeland” has that ‘driving through the country’ feel to it. The vocals on “Hero” are wild. I love the contrast between the soaring music and the crude wail of the singing.

The first half of this album has a playful sense of humor. I really like the opening track “Pop Song 89.” The second half rocks a little more. “Orange Crush” is excellent. And the closing track, “Untitled,” is beautiful. I love the layered backing vocals. R.E.M. are great at writing pop songs but they do it with their own distinct style. Lyrics are excellent too.

"Kid A" casts a gloomy, dystopian mood and for that reason, it's not an album I reach for often. But it's great. And one of the defining Radiohead albums. I appreciated on this listen the way they use ambient soundscapes to add tension to the music. "How to Disappear Completely" is a melancholy song with acoustic guitar strumming. It might have been pretty straightforward but listen how in the opening minutes those eerie tones in the background push it into darker emotional territory. Three songs in particular stand out to me as favorites: "Everything in Its Right Place" is a great album opener. It sets the mood and gives you a sense of what to expect from the rest of the album. It doesn't have a traditional rock or pop structure. It builds and builds as they artfully add new layers of sound until the song hits a climax and then settles back down. And in its own weird way, the song does rock. "The National Anthem" is incredible. What a killer riff. I love songs that loop a great riff and build on it. These drums are so good. Impossible not to bang your head to this. And when the jazz horns come in halfway? Wow. This is one of those songs that makes me laugh because its so audacious. A one-of-a-kind song. And "Idioteque" is prime electronic Radiohead. That jittery, anxious beat that begs to be danced to but you can only dance to it the way Thom Yorke does in concerts: manic and twitchy and random. I love the lyrics too. I don't often pay close attention to Radiohead lyrics but I like how Thom Yorke often writes in an impressionistic style. There isn't a clear story or meaning but rather a collection of images and phrases that add up to something. "Who's in a bunker? Who's in a bunker? / Women and children first ... Ice age coming, ice age coming ... Take the money and run." The end of the world is here and everyone is freaking out and scrambling. "Morning Bell" has another line I like: "Where'd you park the car? Where'd you park the car?" It's a mundane, everyday thing we all say but when Thom Yorke sings it, it sounds sad and beautiful and painful. This song is another good example of how the music straddles different emotions and tones. It's a pretty gloomy song until it hits that rock break in the middle that almost gets hopeful until the mood drops again with the line, "Cut the kids in half." The whole album keeps you guessing like this. It's complex and strange and always interesting to revisit.

Blistering punk and hard rock with a bare bones production. The songs feel joyful too, mostly thanks to Karen O's in-the-moment, live-sounding singing. For the first half of the album, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' main goal seems to be to make the most amount of noise with the least amount of instruments. I can't believe these songs are just drums + guitars + vocals. Then "Maps" comes on. A stunning song and the clear standout track. It's a beautiful song that has resonated with me over the years and I know that millions more have connected with it too. Yeah Yeah Yeahs start the album with an impish punk energy but by the end, they show what a big heart they have too.

I don’t like this. The lyrics are clunky. I get the impression that the band thinks the songs are more clever than they are. The vocals and the style of the music sound like a product of the 90’s in a way that grates on my nerves a bit. Very bad album cover too.

Fun 60’s rock with a some psychedelic style, some Beach Boys pop and some country pop. I love “I’m Not Your Stepping Stone.” I’m more familiar with the Monkees’ version. In this version, the vocals go harder. Really great.

Sensational performance. I love that big band sound. The band plays to entertain and the crowd is loving it! I think this is my first time listening to Duke Ellington. He’s a great piano player. He loves to riff on the melody with these drunken-sounding off key notes. Very fun, really entertaining. That wailing at the end of “Festival Junction”!! Wow, that’s wild! Excellent. Really enjoyed this.

Fantastic funk. Rich, dense arrangements and songs that stretch out and groove for as long as they feel like. Sometimes that means the back half of the song has guitar shredding and jamming. Sometimes that means the songs loop for a while (and occasionally drag on a little too long). Overall excellent and a lot of fun.

So Limp Bizkit is like a dirtbag Rage Against the Machine? I never thought of that before but they sound like they're explicitly imitating Rage's musical style on a lot of these songs. But Fred Durst is no Zach de la Rocha, and without the latter's political lyrics, Limp Bizkit's anger sounds performative rather than righteous. It's just an act. Most of the time, Durst directs his anger at critics who don't like Limp Bizkit. His rage doesn't have a higher cause; it's self-indulgent. But I can't get too mad at some of these dumb lyrics. I just roll my eyes. And even a watered-down version of RATM rocks pretty hard. I found myself banging my head from time to time. I also find it charming how much Limp Bizkit wears their influences on their sleeves. There are interpolations of Nine Inch Nails and Guns N' Roses right at the top of the album. Later, on the second verse of "Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)," Durst sounds like he's imitating Eminem. I’m surprised to hear some more emotional tracks near the end. The music gets pretty heavy. And “Hold On” is surprisingly gorgeous. The album cover is so bad that I almost kinda like it. It’s so unpleasant to look at. I remember being drawn to it and disturbed by it as a kid.

Oooh there are some smooth jams on this album. Some funky ones too. A lot of the music is cheesy but Bobby Womack is a hell of a singer. I really enjoyed this.

Punk riffs, ska horns, reggae beats and soaring rock refrains are all on the color palette on “London Calling” and The Clash paint with the confidence of masters. The music stretches in a dozen different directions across nineteen songs and the band switches styles effortlessly. The songs are frequently pessimistic about the state of the world. Apocalyptic doomsaying, disillusionment over capitalism and oppression at the hands of the police are all part of the lyrical world of the album. But you almost wouldn’t notice given the frequently joyful and exuberant tone of the music. There would seem to be an inherent contradiction between the words and the music. Or maybe not. In punk, the realization that the world is awful can be liberating. It's the first step in a revolution: The government is corrupt! War is destroying the world! Now you know! Let's do something about it! And what better prophet of the revolution than Joe Strummer? His drunkard's howl and Cockney accent are a frequent focal point of these songs. He's a great rock frontman and he gives some incredible performances here. His vocals give an edge to the otherwise immaculately produced music. This might be the greatest double album of all time -- no filler! nothing but great songs! -- and, for my money, is a safe bet for best rock album ever if you absolutely made me pick one. I've spent a lot of time with this album and it never gets old. The album is fantastic front to back but I’m always stunned by the second half in particular. There are at least a half dozen tracks that could have been the album closer. But The Clash end with two entire sides’ worth of album closers! Incredible.

Green Day was one of my favorite bands in high school and “Dookie” is a classic. It has a bunch of great songs and the whole thing is excellent beginning to end. The track list flows really well. A lot of these songs have the momentum of a roller coaster. They blast off right out of the gate, barrel through a few verses and choruses and leave you dizzy after two minutes. Tons of fun, always great to revisit.

Spaced out country and sad, string-laden pop. A beautiful album with fantastic production. The music captures the melancholy fog of heartbreak. But the songwriting is so strong that I don’t mind spending 50 minutes with that tone. And Beck has a gorgeous singing voice. His typical style doesn’t get to showcase it as much.

Fun, old-school hip-hop with an impressive mix of styles including house music and reggae. Some cool jazzy samples too. The production is excellent although the style sounds dated now. I’m glad I listened to this though. I’d never actually heard Queen Latifah’s music before today. She’s a very good performer and a good lyricist. (Some lyrics were a little repetitive; I heard a few lines on more than one track.)

A track like “Djed” is interesting to me because it reminds me of jazz in the way it riffs on a melody and the way the music transforms and shape-shifts. But it does so methodically. There’s a calculated feeling here that I associate with electronica or prog-rock. The music straddles the line between organic and mechanical. The album becomes much more organic on the following tracks. "Glass Museum" is gorgeous and sounds more like the product of a full band. And "A Survey" is really cool. It's driven by that ominous, creeping bass line. Cool that one band can go from spacious and laidback on one song to high-strung and tense on the next. Really strong experimental album!

Beautiful, spare country soaked in reverb. Sad and slow (but sometimes sexy), it’s definitely music for a certain mood. Excellent covers of “Blue Moon” and “Sweet Jane.”

Big riffs and big drama! From the very first track, Black Sabbath knew exactly who they were as a band. The opening title track is a great mission statement for their career that followed. Style and showmanship are the focus here. The songwriting isn’t always memorable but who cares when the music rocks as hard as this?

This album has an interesting style. There’s a strong 60’s R&B/soul influence but filtered through glam-rock and punk. David Bowie produced the album and co-wrote a lot of the music and you can hear his dramatic style. Iggy Pop can be very theatrical with his vocals too and the production puts his voice front and center. The standout tracks are the classic “Lust for Life,” and “The Passenger.” Great rock songs.

Beautiful soul, blues and rock with some killer guitar playing. Great drama and atmosphere. Michael Kiwanuka is a powerful singer and an excellent songwriter. This album is stacked with good songs. The track sequencing flows really well too.

Bass-thumping techno alongside more textured, atmospheric electronica. All of it is impressive and well-produced, though I gravitate towards the less clubby songs. “Banstyle / Sappy’s Curry” is resonating with me. The music sounds like it’s submerged underwater. There’s some blips and bloops but also some organic-sounding instrumentation as well as guitars.

Meat Loaf’s “Bat Out of Hell” is an over-the-top masterpiece featuring epic tributes to 50’s rock ‘n’ roll and doo wop, and soaring power ballads. All of the emotions are blown up to blockbuster proportions. It would be parody if it weren’t performed with such straight-faced sincerity. It’s an audacious concept album about horny teenagers that captures the impossible magnitude of getting laid for the first time. The lyrics are packed with brilliant one-liners and bewildering head-scratchers, all of them passionately delivered by Meat Loaf as if they were wisdom handed down from heaven above. Jim Steinman‘s music is passionate one moment, tender and delicate the next. The whole production might have collapsed under the weight of its own ridiculousness if these songs weren't so beautifully composed and arranged. And cheers to producer Todd Rundgren for keeping everything in balance. I've listened to this album dozens of times but I still found myself laughing out loud listening to it today. It's such a joyful, entertaining album. "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" is a wedding reception staple and I have fond memories (and photos of us) dancing to it at my wedding.

Experimental and out there but lacking purpose. I’m not sure why I’d ever want to listen to this. Occasionally the music reminded me of Tom Waits but Tom Waits is a phenomenal songwriter and performer. He has a way of drawing you in and making you think, “I can’t believe that music this strange is so compelling.” This album just sounds like pointless stoner experiments. I couldn’t wait for it to end. I think “Hello Skinny” was the only song I genuinely enjoyed. It’s got a cool, low simmering energy.

I’m usually an easy sell with this style of 60’s psychedelic pop but this album just floated by without making an impression. It’s okay but forgettable.

Pleasant and playful psychedelic pop with futuristic electronic flourishes. I don’t always love narrative-heavy concept albums they way I did when I was a teenager; sometimes I find them a little silly now. But either way, I need to get into the music before I dig into any kind of story. The music here is enjoyable and inventive. I liked it but probably not enough to learn the lore of the pink robots.

Wow, right off the bat, "I've Been Waitin' for Tomorrow (All of My Life)" is one of the best songs I've heard in a while. Energetic, catchy and fun. But it also captures an anxious feeling I get sometimes of being trapped in a world that won't stop spinning while my life rushes past me. The lyrics are great and the music matches the anxious energy. "This is the Day" has similarly existential lyrics but it's wrapped up in a pop song. I love that. That jazzy piano on “Uncertain Smile” is awesome. Excellent album and one of the more exciting discoveries for me on this list. I’ll definitely listen to this more! Hilarious band name too. Kudos to that.

Who says punk can't be musically complex? These songs have great interplay between the guitar riffs and the rhythm section. All three of them lock in — the music is tight. Excellent, high energy album. I really liked it and could see myself loving it with more listens.

These beats move at a breakneck speed. I guess drum ‘n’ bass is dance music but, man, you could have a heart attack if you try to keep up with these songs. This is an epic album too. I broke it into chunks — two-plus hours is a lot when every song has more or less the same fast drum loop. I liked the songs without vocal hooks the most. Highlights: “Let’s Get It On,” “Mad Cat,” “Morse Code,” “Destination,” “Hi-Potent,” “Trust Me,” “Share the Fall”

Joyful music, full of emotion! The whole band is excellent. The bass playing stood out to me — there are some cool bass lines that add complexity to the music. And the guitar is gorgeous. Definitely going to put this one in rotation for a while.