1001 Albums Summary

I had a lot of trepidation going in to this, just because of all the baggage that comes with Clapton. I'm certainly familiar with the title track--who isn't?--but the rest of the album, though nothing that stands out as an absolute recognizable song, it all sounds comfortingly familiar. I guess that's the spell that blues guitar based music casts on it's listeners. Clearly a tentpole in the long line of this style of music. I enjoyed it a lot more than I was expecting.

Was completely unfamiliar with this, and it's a pretty flawless solo jazz piano performance and recording. Gorgeous.

Another artist I had never heard of--and right off the bat I know this is not for me. The folktronica aspect of the beats complementing the backbone of these songs is just too distracting and too much for me. Though there are some more straight up singer-songwriter guitar based songs in the middle of the album that I did find appealing. His voice reminds a ton of Ryan Adams and the whole album I just wished I was listening to one of Ryan Adams early solo records instead. I'm sure this album is great for a lot of people, but it's not for me.

Reggae is tough for me, it never elevates to anything more than background music, which is my own issue. This was just the same, I realized I had the album on repeat and was probably halfway through the third cycle of listening to it when I realized. Always fine to have on in the background, but it didn't grab me in any meaningful way.

I love this album so much. A nostalgic punch that puts me in an immediately great mood. 5 stars forever!

Never really got in to the dead, and have just always had varied associations with them. This record is objectively great, the middle set of Candyman, Ripple, and Brokedown Palace is excellent and I can see how this album has been so enduring for so long. Up there with any of the best of the classic American music records.

I have known about Neil Finn and Crowded House and everyone's love for them forever. Suffice to say this is not at all what I was expecting, way more unconventional then I was expecting given all of the love. But I found it smart and instantly likeable. Played this record a few times and will play it again.

A lot of overlapping qualities shared with the Riot Grrrl movement and big of the time bands like Nirvana. This album rips, killer debut effort.

Streaming services do not have this whole record available, I assume it's performance royalty issues on some of the cover songs, but was able to find a playlist on YouTube and soldiered through despite the occasional ad to skip through. This album rips! Pretty energetic from the performer and the crowd, and very distinctly rock n roll, which is not really what I was expecting.

This album rips so hard. Nothing but bangers. 10 out of 10 forever!

Muddy Waters is a classic, and this is an excellent recording of an excellent performance, that gives a real sense of what it was like in person.

Another artist that I have aware of forever and have heard many songs, but never really \"listened\" to. This album is a delight, and really meshed well with my mood today. I need to dive in a bit more on his stuff.

This album is incredible front to back. Always kind of aware of Aphex Twin and heard the music occasionally in the background, but never listened to a whole record front to back, this is just excellent. Obviously game changing.

Pretty excellent beats and lyrics, killer golden age of hip-hop record.

This band is so ridiculous and over the top, and Black Dog is maybe the most ridiculous opening track I have ever heard on a album. 20 seconds in and I don't know how anyone has a reaction other than "what am I getting myself in to here." The ballads and "When the Levee Breaks" is what makes this album, the second side of the record is very solid. Although "Stairway" is a classic, I probably never need to hear it again. Too many people have tried to argue to me that Led Zeppelin is under rated, but I think they might be the most appropriately rated band ever. I struggle giving this 4 stars, 3 seems right.

A band that has always somehow been in orbit around me, plenty of people love them, but I have never sat down and given a listen. Pretty fun album, and I dig the vibe a lot. Will explore more of their records.

Really cool and far out record.

This is exactly the kind of album I looked forward to hearing when beginning this project. Something that I know all the hits to but have never listened to the full album. This was great and it was fun to take in the whole thing.

Never listened to much R.E.M. but am fully aware of their influence, and I can hear other bands sounds all over this record, clearly very important to formative year old budding musicians. R.E.M. doesn't do much for me though. Pleasant enough for sure.

Much better than I was expecting. I am not super familiar with the 2 Tone ska revival from the 1970s and have kind of been dismissive of ska in general, but this is a lot more eclectic and enjoyable than I was expecting. Will check out more from The Specials.

Classic album, absolutely love BPB. Great album to revisit this morning.

Don't love this by any means. It's fine, but just kind of reminds me of a poor man's Nick Thornburn and now I'm just listening to Islands records.

This is not for me. Obviously there are people this is for, and I'm stoked for them that this exists for them. But it's not for me.

This album is all over the place. Transitioning from traditional song structure to sound collages. It's a lot. Cool to be turned on to something like this from the 1970s. It's got a bit too much of a prog-rock feel to it for me. But pretty fun and interesting record.

Fantastic album.

Killer record.

I have never listening to a Hendrix album, I only know his stuff in the every present social culture of his hits, inclusion on soundtracks/comps etc. This album is great, and a lot more noisy and disjointed than I was expecting--in a very good way. Dude rips for sure.

I was not thrilled to listen to this, aside from the title track I am not sure I knew anything else from Hole. I don't have a ton of nostalgia for this sound from the 90s either. The second half the album ended up being a lot better than I was expecting after the first half though, and found myself bopping along gleefully. Not the worst by any means.

Never listened to Joni Mitchell, this is great, and it's pretty clear she's got a pretty strong influence in a lot of music to come afterwards. Great record, production quality is top notch.

Slightly embarrassed to say I have never "listened" to this band, but I think I've heard 80% of the songs on this record about a 1,000 times. Part of that is my aversion to late 70s classic rock, and part of that is probably because they have so many different singers in this band, that I have never been to off the cuff recognizing all the different songs as belonging to the same band. I also have conflated them with The Eagles forever too. That being said, this is great, like I said I've heard so many of these songs a bunch of times, it feels super familiar, just not in the album format. I still don't think I love Fleetwood Mac by any means, but I'll give it a 4/5 because it's obvious a classic.

Bauhaus is not for me.

U2 is assuredly not for me, even when trying to objectively put them in to context and ignore all the baggage surrounding Bono and Edge. I guess the best I can say is I can see why people would be in to this. But it's not for me.

Enjoyed this more than I was expecting, I need to be in the right mood for the Prog-Rock, but this was dope.

A lot to say about this record. It obviously held a prominent spot in my life when It was released when I was a 17 year old. I owned it and played it constantly just like everyone else I knew. It made an indelible mark on that time of my life. I probably have not listened to the full record in 20 years now. It still sounds great, both from just a straight pop pseudo Lou Reed sound and from a production standpoint. I'm wringing my hands over all of the knee-jerk bullshit reactionary decisions to 9/11. I fully remember the album art change, whatever that's fine. American's and their puritanical bullshit. But the removal of "New York City Cops" for only the US CD version is just maddening dumb. It's especially dumb that this is the only version the change was made on. The US Vinyl and every single international release contained the correct original track listing. However, for some reason the US CD version has seemingly become the definitive version as it's what all the streaming services carry. Just fucking sickening.

This album is incredible. Always have just kind of known this dude's name more for being adjacent to Lynch contributing to "Lost Highway" and know he's worked with a lot of rad people. First time I've sunk my teeth in to one of his singular works though, and it's absolutely incredible and rewarding.

I had never of this band and this record made zero impression on me. I never really paid any mind to the Britpop movement at all. Nothing bad about it, just kind of meh, and I had a hard time contextualizing it at all.

This is my first repeat artist in this project! I have heard many songs on this album a lot and really enjoyed it. The track with Thom Yorke's inclusion mid way through the album was a big turn off for me, but I did my best to get through it. Not as much fun as the first album of her I had on this list: "Dry." But obviously this is a bit more polished than that. Still great all around.

Elvis Costello is not for me. I certainly respect him more than I like him. I get that people love this kind of stuff, but to me it just kind of seems like very overly busy and produced music overlaid with some mumbling crooning.

This whole thing is just a giant collection of garbage and it's inclusion on this list is an insult to every other artist and to every one taking part in this exercise. There is nothing about this that even makes sense, the artwork, the title, the construction of the track listing, the inclusion of two version of "Rollin'" and the Outro is just a big ol' heap of garbage. I can't believe I made it through this whole thing. I'm exhausted and need a fucking beer. Giving it one star since it will not allow me to give it anything less.

This is fine, I have never listened to a full Little Richard album. And it's fine, but ultimately something I do not care much about.

Never heard of this artist, and it didn't leave much of a mark on me, it's just fine noisy garage rock. Probably will never think about it again.

This album is almost perfect, absolutely spellbinding. One of the best.

Pretty straightforward second wave ska. I had "More Specials" a couple weeks and enjoyed that a lot more than this, it seemed a bit more eclectic, while this feels a lot more like a straight take on classic ska. Obviously an important record in the grand scheme of all things ska. Not bad by any means.

This is pretty much a perfect album from a perfect songwriter. So few records make me a feel a very a specific thing and this is one of them. It's been a while since I listened to it, I only wish today's Portland weather matched the mood this record invokes as it's a very Portland record.

This album is kind of funny, the country elements tinge it all over a lot heavier than I was expecting. I wasn't expecting it to feel so disjointed, but maybe that's what you get from one of the first to do it. I definitely consider the influence of traditional folk music to be a lot more present than country music, particularly considering what side of the Atlantic The Mekons hail from. Enjoyable enough.

Not at all familiar with this record, the extent of my Big Star knowledge and familiarity has always been limited to "#1 Record." But this is great and all over the place, reading about the backstory and the different track listings/presentations of the album was certainly interesting. Alex Chilton rules, and this is great.

This album is incredible, ahead of it's time, and speaks truth to power. It's still sounds absolutely fresh today. Excellent album.

Scott Walker is great. Haven't really listened to any of his records before but found this charming and grounded and pretty enjoyable. I like the mix of originals and covers, which as I understand it, this was the last one of his records with such a balanced mix. Always down to check out more of this stuff.

This was a perfect album for a lazy Sunday morning. Incredible harmonies and takes on a lot of traditional songs. The recording is very worn and lived in and it just feels so comfortable to put on. Great record.

Incredible band, incredible album. Just killer bass lines, funky guitars, keyboards and horns. A band firing on all cylinders. Fantastic.

This album was a lot more rocking than I thought it would be. I was pretty discouraged by it upon initially looking in to what it was when I saw it pop up, but I had a great time listening to it. It's out of my usual wheelhouse so there isn't a ton to say about it for me.

This is maybe the most boring and uninteresting version of Rock n Roll I have every listened to. There is nothing at all interesting or exciting or rocking about this.

I have always been skeptical of Nick Cave for a pretty absurd reason, simply because he resembles someone I know that I am extremely skeptical of. But I have never doubted that I would enjoy his music. I was told this was maybe not the best entry point to him, but I absolutely loved this and am looking forward to more of his albums (assuming there are more) on this list.

I have never really listened to The Smiths, I find Morrissey to be utterly insufferable. I have heard a number of their songs covered by other artists. This album has some jams, and I'm done with it and don't want to listen to it again.

Very hard rocking modern rock n roll, way better than I was expecting.

This album definitely hast he well known hits, but I am not in to the production at all. It certainly rocks, but it is not for me.

I have always loved The Kinks and this album in particular. Love the through line story and concept for it. The Kinks rule!

Classic jams for sure. Steely Dan is a bit much for me. It's good for sure, but just a little too much. Dirty Work is a straight jam though for sure. Pretty good time listening, but I don't love it and couldn't listen to it a ton.

Pretty unique sound for this time and place. I guess we'd call this Post-Punk. I've always heard that Pere Ubu was great and have almost gone and seen them live a bunch but never really checked them out. Very cool record.

Nirvana at the height of it's power. Albini's production puts the band as they should sound on record, and it's so powerfully distorted and raw. This album straight up rocks and is an all-time favorite of mine.

Some of the most classic songs we've heard a million times. Enjoyable listen.

All of the radio hits on this record sound so much different than I remember them sounding when they were hits. The rest of the context of the record makes them all a lot more enjoyable. Definitely talented and a good record, just not really for me.

Wasn't stoked on this, but it's pretty harmless and inoffensive overblown rock, and it certainly has some--jams, doesn't feel like the right word, but--jams on it for sure. Boston is fine, it was enjoyable enough, but I would not listen again.

I just saw Pavement live in person three nights ago, so this has been very fresh in my mind. Great record, I go back and forth which album of theirs is my favorite, and this one is always middle of the pack. Great to listen to it again a few days after seeing so many of these songs live.

Gimmicky album that I’m not sure I’ve ever listened to the whole way through. Definitely some filler but definitely some killer tunes. It’s a slog. Luckily I pulled this on a day I was doing a solo three hour road trip.

This is super cheesy and not for me at all. I can't in good conscience give it more than 1 star. I guess I can say that it's a bit eclectic. But that's all it's got going for it. Not sure how this is on this list.

Epic double album ELO. ELO rules, though I'm partial to the more succinct predecessor to this record "A New World Record" this album definitely is a banger and has plenty of what we love about ELO. Meticulously produced and meticulously performed, Jeff Lynne's ambitious swing is pretty grand.

One of the best. Just a nuanced raw reaction to rock n roll gone astray. Just a killer record and a killer vibe and a killer sound.

I do not know Salsa music at all, but this is great, it grooves, and it's very enjoyable to listen to. Great record.

This album is a lot of fun, chaotic and pretty all over the place. Captain Beefheart's sound is truly unique and he is truly an artist. This album is a trip to listen to.

This is a loooooong album, too long. The Cure have never really appealed to me much at all. Sure you hear an occasional song here and there and it's fine, but a whole album is too much. Not for me.

Never listened to this record, though it's been ever present, people love it. Pretty impressive debut record for sure, very fully formed. A lot of fun to listen to.

This record and this band take on almost mythical stature, which I'm sure that's how Jonathan Richman prefers it. At the end of the day though these recordings that were pulled together to make this record are an excellent snapshot of an otherwise short lived and unrealized sound. Richman has always been changing and not wanting to even perform any older songs all that often. These songs are edgy and have that proto punk driving force and their influence is far felt 50 years later. It's an incredible recording and we should be thankful it exists.

This album is beautiful, a really excellent debut album, about as fully formed as it gets. The production is ethereal and atmospheric and gorgeous. Love this record.

I am very familiar with Electric Warrior but didn't find much of The Slide all that familiar, but it hits the same notes as Electric Warrior. Killer glam rock album, Marc Bolan rules.

Great R&B record, that's been sampled a ton throughout the years. Cool to hear the real thing from front to back.

Never listened to an album from The Monkees before and this is a lot cooler than I thought it would, sure it's got the very classic British pop vibes you'd expect from the late 60s but there's something a bit weirder and stranger on a lot of the tracks rather than the just straightforward pop songs I was expecting. The Monkees seem cool

Had never heard of Songhoy Blues, but I'm very familiar with the modern Taureg guitar based music coming out of Niger, and this shares a lot of the same guitar driven similarities. Ultimately, it's a little bit one noted but very enjoyable and very moving.

Obviously an incredibly influential record--the raw energy is pretty incredible. Been a bit, had a good time listening.

Only ever really familiar with the hits from Yusuf Islam, so kind of cool to listen to a full record, though "Father and Son" certainly looms large over this. Pretty chill record to listen to.

Surprisingly great! And I only say surprisingly because this was completely foreign to me in every definition of the word. 5 stars!

Patti Smith rules. I had never listened to one of her records before and this just seriously rocks.

I guess this album was big at the time, but I have always considered a-ha to be one hit wonders, and there's nothing on this record that changes that for me. Maybe it's that new wave is just so out of my wheelhouse that I don't understand the context, but it's not doing it for me. It seems strange to me that this is on this list.

A big ambitious album, and it's absolutely beautiful.

What can I say about this record--most likely my favorite record from The Beatles. Though not necessarily their best. 5 stars all the way.

Morrissey sucks, I can not imagine possibly caring about something less than I do listening to this person's music. Get it out of here. Wish I could give it less than 1 star.

Great record from both a lyrics and a beats standpoint. Just solid all around.

Put this on and hardly noticed or paid attention to it. Trip-hop I just think is not for me. I know this is supposedly to be the best of the era/genre and it seems pleasant enough.

Ha, yeah I don't know, this is great, it's fine. I have a hard time caring about live performances. They are so limited. I know this is supposedly legendary, so trying to listen to it through that lens is somewhat disappointing. James Brown is great though, this kind of stuff is just kind of ho-hum on this list.

Oh my god. This is so insanely cheesy and bad. I felt like I was Scott Aukerman on the "Analyze Phish" podcast, with every song starting with me being open minded to it, and the opening instrumentation, thinking "Okay, I can try to get in to this..." and then as soon as the vocals start it's immediately "Nope, okay, what the fuck is this? Seriously?" Absolutely wild to me that this is a whole bunch of people's favorite band. My god...

Perfectly enjoyable, with about half the songs being songs I've heard a thousand times. Great to hear them in the context of the record they were all released on.

I was super skeptical of this to say the least. But this was way better than I was hoping for based on the description. Very cool stuff!

I remember this being pretty ubiquitous when it came out, but I can't fully remember if I ever listened to it or not, and listening now it has a weird familiarity and unfamiliarity at the same time. This music feels very timeless and cinematic like it could have sound tracked a film from any era. It has a quality of feeling very at home anywhere. Recommended.

New Wave is not really my jam, but this is fun enough. I did not know "Cars" was Gary Numan, killer song. Not the worst by any means.

This record is cool, certainly demonstrates his virtuosity, but I also really dig how he gives short lessons before each piece to the Western audience as a way to introduce the music. Aside from all of that it's just a great record.

This album is weird. Certainly, when you see Dire Straits come up as your album of the day, the reaction is more of an eye roll than anything else. We all know their hits, and Dire Straits is fine. But you listen to this album and the first three tracks are well known hits that you realize rock harder than you remember or expected, and then after that it just falls off a cliff in to pretty sub-standard easy listening fare. Just very uninteresting overall. Weird album, from a weird band that I honestly don't know much about at all. Money for Nothing totally rips though.

Pretty wide reaching album with an eclectic sound. I hear all manner of other later bands from track to track, so it's influence is obvious. Maybe not for me, but I get it.

This album is a lot. It's an incredible record in terms of musicality and talent. It's unlike anything I've ever heard, but it's also a bit exhausting. The tempo-changes are so frequent that I feel like I'm constantly jumping from one fast moving car to the other. Very unique record.

This is the third (and final) Nick Drake record to show up on this, and it's just absolutely beautiful and so full and warm. Such a great record.

This album is crazy. Certainly the description of Britpop and Irish Chamber Pop from the 90s during the CD era when albums were needlessly long, didn't engender it to me from the get go. It's a lot, very busy, very lush pop layers and highly produced. But I had it on for a few repeats and around the third time, I think I started to get the appeal, and I can understand a little bit better why people like this music, which is an excellent outcome from this 1001 Album exercise. This is just not really for me.

I have learned more and more over the years that the country style rooted in Bakerfield honky-tonk is most likely my favorite style. This album hits all those notes, along with some Tex-Mex accordion sounds as well. Really enjoyable record.

I have listened to this record so many times over the years, but it's been a long time. Initially, when this came up, I kind of rolled my eyes. Over the years, I've come to consider Bleach and In Utero to be much better Nirvana records. But man this record rules--yeah the production is a little too polished. But there's something there with this band, and it's so clearly resonant 30+ years later why this record took the world by storm. So great to hear so many of these songs in the context of this album again for the first time in a while. Note: "Endless, Nameless" is it's own separate track on the streaming services, which I was not expecting, but I guess that makes sense when this record is presented digitally. That track rips so hard.

One of the classic records from my past. I used to absolutely love this record, and haven't listened to it fully for a while. It's still almost perfect.

I just do not care about the heady jammy blues rock at all. I get why people love this, very much not for me, and I find listening to this to be pretty boring.

Great collaborative album from three iconic artists, the harmonies on these somewhat simple and stripped down country songs are phenomenal.

I will not deny that the virtuosity here is as impressive as the roster of guest musicians who appear on this record. However, despite all of that this kind of genre fusion, as impressive as it is, generally is not something that I enjoy listening to.

Just a killer all around record. I love Sonic Youth.

Man, what is this? I don't understand this stuff at all. Just the most non-offensive boring mainstream sounding stuff there is. Nothing great or interesting about this record whatsoever.

Generally I do not dig on this kind of music, but there's something about that really appeals to me. It sounds like a bit of a precursor to what ended up being full blown synth 80s music, and I dig how restrained and full it sounds. It's a cool record.

This album is one of the best early hip hop records ever. Excellent lyrically, expertly produced. 2Pac at the peak of his craft.

I have never been able to get in to Drive-By Truckers, and I'm guessing a double album isn't the best place to start. I found myself treating this more as background music and not being fully engaged, which is not surprising, as it's kind of how I listen to this brand of southern blues based rock. It's just a bit too straightforward and rooted in things I've been hearing my whole life. This was a miss for me for sure.

Never had much of an interest in stuff like this, but there's certainly a place for it. Just not really for me.

The Cure have never really appealed to me and I was not particularly stoked about getting another album from them after previously getting "Disintegration." This is a lot more palatable, possibly because it's not overly long like "Disintegration" is being a product of the early CD era. I enjoyed this a bit more for sure, but still not for me.

Jane's Addiction is a band I have never listened to. I was kind of expecting a pretty shitty grungy sounding band (I have always conflated them with Alice in Chains), but this is a bit different than I was expecting. There is definitely a level of weirdness to them that I was not expecting and appreciate a bit. But maybe I'm having a hard time putting this in the proper context, but I just don't really care about this at all, and would not listen to it again.

I had never heard of Sarah Vaughan and this live recording is absolutely lovely. Very warm and very enjoyable.

I love this album and used to listen to it a ton, and it's great to revisit. Almost flawless.

Pretty seminal record. Maybe the only live album that I feel like is being worthy of being on this list. Cheap Trick rules and are underrated.

Of course we're all familiar with Bowie, but there are only a small handful of records that I am intimately familiar with and "Heroes" isn't one of them. This album is big and ambitious, late 70s Bowie was really something. I find it a bit disjointed, but feel less so about that the more I listen to it. It's a really great album.

This is a weirdly singular sounding album, straddling both blues based rock and modern indie guitar sensibilities. At times I find it trite, but other times it's really appealing. I certainly understand the appeal. Never really paid much mind to this band. Happy to finally give them a go though.

The Rolling Stones are basically an over-indulgent blues bar band, and I'm over it. This overly wrought and overly long record has nothing at all redeeming about it. Good for them that they are leaning in to their one trick pony skill so heavily for so long I guess.

I literally can't for the life of me figure out why this is on this list. I am not sure it's good or relevant at all in any way. It's pleasant for sure, but get this out of here!

Tom Waits is a longtime favorite and this is one of his best. I love his early records, but this record moving away from piano driven songs to more abstract and experimental song structures is a high point. One of his best.

I have never gotten in to Neil Young, I think he rules and I respect the hell out of him and how he's handled himself, but I just can't get in to his voice. That being said, I'm excited to dig in to his albums on this list, but this one isn't for me. I guess there's a good reason why it was such a big hit, it's very polished. It has it's moments before, but I think it's pretty underwhelming.

I have never listened to Santana, and it's a bit rough. I want to give it 1 star because I think it sucks, but I feel like I shouldn't because Santana is like legendary or something? I don't know.

I do not care about U2 at all and have no context or nostalgia for this. First time hearing most of these songs. They seem just pretty pedestrian and ordinary and bland, which is likely why it was such a success. 2 stars.

This album is nearly perfect and just absolutely incredible. Particularly for how good it sounds after so much time and history and gestation. What an accomplishment for Brian Wilson--a true masterpiece. We should consider ourselves lucky and fortunate that this even exists.

Just an excellent well rounded jazz record.

I have never listened to this whole Daft Punk record, and it's a lot of Daft Punk--the CD era really churned out some albums that are way too long. I enjoyed this a ton, but it was tough to get though it all the way.

When this popped up, I assumed it was some shitty emo band from roughly 20 years ago--but turns out it's an Indie chamber pop artist from England from roughly 20 years ago. This was better than I expected it would be. I don't usually go for the very polished bedroom DIY sounding chamber stuff, but this has it's moments, and has enough similarities to things I liked back then. There is a good chance that I would have loved this album when it came out if I had heard it.

This is my second Siouxsie & The Banshees record in this. It's okay, I think I am just not really in to the 80s goth rock scene. It has some great songs, and is enjoyable enough, but overall, not really for me.

I just do not care about this stuff. I feel there is a disproportionate amount of "Britpop" albums on this list. Just kind of boring.

The whole dark wave/goth rock genre is perhaps another genre that is overly represented on this list. This is not for me, and honestly is just kind of straight up bad. Nothing very redeeming about it.

Not a lot here for me either. This band has always been just beyond my reach and has been recommended to me by a number of people over the years. I just do not find this interesting at all.

I honestly cannot imagine a more boring and uninteresting record from a musical and production standpoint. This is not for me, this just plain sucks.

I was not expecting to like this much, as I was pretty nonplussed with "Celebrity Skin" earlier on this list, but this album is sweet. It rocks and doesn't feel like as much of a produced and manufactured thing as "Celebrity Skin." Courtney Love's vocals are killer.

I guess I listened to this record more than I thought I did when it was released, because all of it is very familiar to me. This certainly seems like more of a "certain time and place" type record for me, and I don't think I really listened to anything else from Beach House, but this record is better than I remember it--particularly since I didn't remember it much at all until I listened to it again on this revisit.

This record is a classic. Atmospheric, dark, incredible lyrics and beats. Still as good now as it was when it was released.

I listened to this album a lot when it came out, it was tough not too, as it was when Beck was at his height of changing genres and sounds from album to album, and this beautiful record showed a matured and more personal side of him--and he also toured on it forever. It's been a bit since I've heard it, but it fit perfectly in on this cold Friday morning. Excellent as always.

This is the second of what will surely be too many records on this list from The Rolling Stones. This is a lot better than the first record given to me--"Exile on Mainstreet"--but I just can't get in to this band. There are a couple of well known songs on this that are fine, but also just a lot of blues bar band sounding wankery. No Thanks!

This album is so critical and crucial to so much music that was inspired by and came after it. The bass is mixed perfectly on this thing, I wish all hardcore/punk albums sounded this good. Incredible record.

This album is incredible. It's a little rough at first, because from track to track it definitely seems like the mix is different and changing quite a bit--it feels a little off sonically. But the more you listen to it, the more you get used to it's intention. Some of these tracks rip super hard and The Stooges obviously rule.

Okay, it's starting to get pretty obvious that the collective of critics involved in making this list probably leans heavy on British critics who served as tastemakers in the 1980s and the 1990s. That seems like the only logical explanation for what seems like a gross over representation of mediocre and unworthy British albums from the 1980s and 1990s. This album is a perfect example of this. Aside from the hit that everyone knows from so many movies from the 1990s, this album and band is completely inconsequential. Nothing really here at all.

Oh look, another English band from the 1980s or 1990s, how shocking. I have never listened to this band--I assumed I would recognize some songs but didn't. I cannot get behind this music at all, there is nothing redeeming about this record.

Wow, where to begin. This record is great, but it also might be the biggest troll record I've ever encountered. I don't know what is trolling harder, this record or this list's inclusion of this record to listen to. Run-D.M.C. is great, everyone knows it. This album rips, and is grooving along and right when it should be peaking in to it's middle section, Steven Tyler comes in and just totally destroys all the goodwill this album had been building and working towards. Steven Tyler is one of the worst front men of one of the worst bands in history, and it's honestly downright appalling that Run-D.M.C. collaborating with them. The result is shocking--as if you've just been slapped in the face--and you're left recoiling to pick up the pieces and try to make sense of it. And it's so tough, the rest of album is decent too, but you're just so gobsmacked by the utter audacity of that track that you can't listen to it objectively any longer. Top drawer trolling all around. As a bit of a note: I also fired up the music video for that abhorrent collaboration, and it begins with Aerosmith in some shitty studio riffing on that song sounding like garbage, and Run-D.M.C. are next door banging on the wall and pleading with them to turn it down, which yeah, your initial reaction is "Fuck yeah Run-D.M.C., you guys are right, we are with you, you are speaking for the whole self-respecting world, pleading with these talentless bozos to spare us from their horrible music. Power to you Run-D.M.C.!" And then they are like, we'll show them, and turn their speakers towards the adjoining wall, and you are thinking: "Oh they're really going to give them the business now! Fuck yeah!" And inexplicably, they start playing their version of that horrible song. It only takes 35 seconds of that music video to flip the script. Masterful troll job. If I was in my 20s when this came out, I would have been furious upon my first viewing. All of this is to say, it's impossible to look at this record objectively, which is just all too tragic.

This album is fine--again another English band that I'm not entirely sure needs to be on this list. I had a Paul Weller solo album from the 1990s a while back, and it was not good. This is a lot better. The Kinks cover is pretty fun. All in all, it's fine, but I'm not sure it merits inclusion on this list.

Very excellent record. I probably need more time with it to fully take in the themes of prejudice and blackness, but this record just sounds so good. Solange has an excellent voice that is highlighted so well in the context of timeless funk and soul music. It's an almost psychedelic soul record and it's an excellent record.

This album is fine, but I am just getting really tired of British bands from the 80s. This is not for me.

This record is everything pure Butthole Surfers, and whether or not that's your thing will depend on how you feel about it. It feels like a nightmare acid trip just dripping with a sludginess that feels so quintessential to the band's best music. Great record.

Such a fun and challenging album. The dancing swinging quality of this post-punk record is so infectious. I've always loved this record.

As classic as an album as it gets. The genesis of punk rock. Super simple straightforward driving and catchy songs. It's instantly apparent how important this album is with how familiar it sounds and how ubiquitous music that sounds like it has been in the last 40 years. A true classic.

Broken Arrow is an all time song, one of the absolute best. I'm not super familiar with the rest of this album, but I dig the early, before he hit the big time Neil Young stuff. And this was a fun album.

Unsurprisingly, this is not for me. Rod Stewart is about as plain and inoffensive as it gets. Just basic blues rock stuff. It's fine I guess.

This is horrible. I thought that things could not get worse than the Limp Bizkit album--but this project proved me wrong. Musically it's just as bad, but it's so whiny and angsty. One of the most grating sounding albums I have ever heard. 1 star because I can't give anything less.

This album is more psychedelic and far out than I was expecting, so that in and of itself made it a bit more interesting than I was expecting. That being said it didn't really resonate or make an impression on me at all. Seems fine.

The Roots are just kind of ubiquitous and everywhere, and I get that people really love them. I haven't given any of their stuff a real honest listen with any real earnest and found it kind of surprised how much from this record sounded familiar to me. This record is impressive, as The Roots are obviously a very talented and boundary pushing band musically. They seemed to the push the boundaries on a lot of different genres in a pretty focused output here. Really enjoyed it.

This album is always fun--I definitely prefer earlier AC/DC when thy were a bit more rough and raw and rock and roll. The production on this album is super smooth and sees them start the transformation in to giant rock superstars. Coincidentally on Bon Scott's last album with the band. It's still great and it was a lot of fun to listen to this for the first time in a while.

So many things about this list and exercise is great and so many things are beyond frustrating. The over represented inclusion of anything involving Morrissey is chief among the frustrating bits. I just cannot deal with this guy. I guess this is fine, but I am so not interested in listening to it.

Always happy on the rare occurrences when something I've never heard of shows up on this list. Those albums end up, more often than not, being interesting and worth listening to and learning about and this is no exception. It's a great mix of Electronic, Latin, and acid jazz influences and just vibes really well for the whole 62 minutes. Very much enjoyed listening to this today.

This is great. I just went to a screening of "Coal Miner's Daughter" very recently, so she has been on my mind. 12 songs in 28 minutes is great! All of these songs are great, classic Loretta Lynn. Could listen to her all day.

Easily a masterpiece and 5 stars. This album is so iconic and crucial to a sound that inspired so much after it and since. Listening to it today, it still sounds urgent and unique powerful. Just an excellent record.

I have never listened to this band and never really got the hype. This album was enjoyable enough to listen to while doing things around the house.

I had never listened to this before. Johnny Cash is at his best when he's live and loose. Great versions of these songs and great banter on stage, a real man of the people. Great recording as well.

I can't believe this record came out so long ago now, almost 11 years. It still sounds just as much like it's from the future as it did when it came out. Just a boundary pushing record.

Clearly an important record that explores the black experience, including anger, sorrow and grief. It's musically excellent and very dancy. Great record.

I had never heard of this band. It's fine, doesn't grab me at all. I guess it's on hear because it's supposedly one of the first "heavy metal" albums. I am not a bluesmen at all, and this is just way too bluesy for me. It has a rawness to it, which I certainly appreciate, but this does not grab me at all.

I know more about The Verve and the crazy love triangle between Richard Ashcroft, Jason Pierce and Kate Radley than I do about any of their music. This album does not have the hits on it that I am familiar with. In general this is fine, it's big and loud which was very distinctive of Britpop in the 90s. But it's not for me at all.

I have never really listened to Alice Cooper earnestly, though I have always thought he seemed pretty cool as a person and an artist. I have heard "No More Mr. Nice Guy" so many times and had no idea it was an Alice Cooper song. I listened to it a bunch and it's great, it's got some real Paul Revere and the Raiders guitar riff vibes to it--a good thing! This album was short and sweet and rocked plenty. Very enjoyable.

This is the third album from The Cure that I've pulled on this list, and I am guessing that 3 is probably too many. This is the one I liked the most though. It's the shortest one by far!

Aerosmith is very quite possibly the worst band on this list and the worst band who has every achieved any amount of fame. 0 stars all the way.

Great punk record--love the rush and urgency.

Could not care less about this. Uninspired output from an uninspiring artist. Morrissey is grossly over represented on this list and it's so disappointing when he pops up.

This album is gorgeous and such a welcome change from the usual overrepresented British nonsense. Absolutely loved listening to this a couple times today.

I wish I would have heard this and listened to it more when it came out, because it sounds like it would have been incredible in 1997. This album still sounds great and boundary pushing today. Excellent album.

Truly a masterpiece, this record is perfect and absolutely magnificent both in a singular context as well as within the context of when it was released. I have listened to it multiple times today--both the Mono and the Stereo mixes--and it's been absolutely wonderful.

MC5 just goes at one speed and volume and it's pretty constant. There's certainly an energy there and I bet it was a lot of fun to see live back in the day. I always feel pretty meh about live recordings, and this was no different. Fun enough.

I have never heard of this band, but this record was quite enjoyable.

I had no idea what Amy Winehouse or her music sounded like, and I was not expecting it to sound like this and to be this blown away by it from the drop. Just an incredible record, her voice is amazing, excellent production, it's the whole package. I had no idea.

I definitely think The Temptations are sweet--their history has kind of made them a pretty daunting group to dive in to much more than the "hits," just so many lineup changes and variations and so many releases. That being said, I was stoked to get a full album of them here, but was slightly bummed to see it was the from the post-David Ruffin time for the group. Anyway this album has "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" which is an incredible track. The rest of it is great too, but this didn't really strike me as excellent.

A classic killer album that hits you quick and easy. Listened to this about 5 times before I knew it. Always excellent.

This is my second record from The Temptations in 3 days, both of which were post David Ruffin. It's a little much to get two records too close together and I think my enjoyment of this record likely suffered because of it. This record is just fine, nothing great or blowing me away, but I enjoyed listening to it enough.

Very familiar with Fela Kuti, but have not really ever listened to Femi Kuti. I made the mistake of reading about this album before listening to it, and was kind of bummed about what I was reading, I was expecting kind of a tamed white washed version of Fela's afrobeat, fortunately that's not what I got. This album is fun, it's clean and tight for sure, but it swings. I get why it was received so well.

This was fine, but just a little too much. I sense prog is going to be overrepresented on this list.

This is not for me. I don't think I've ever listened to this record the whole way through, probably because it's just a bit too noodly and bluesy for me. I guess I can say it's certainly a strong debut album and clearly the lads are talented, but man is this so boring. I'd be fine to never had to slog through Dazed and Confused again.

I have never gotten in to The Rolling Stones. This is the third album of theirs I have pulled on this, after Exiled on Main Street and Let it Bleed. I like this one way more than the others, a bit more straightforward rock 'n' roll. Maybe the early Stones are for me. Even the one original song of theirs is a good one. Really enjoyed listening to this.

This album is almost pretty sweet. A lot of the songs sound close to different things that I do like quite a bit. I do think the instrumentation, particularly some of the synth stuff on this record are really cool and ahead of their time. The vocals I could completely do without. It's fine, but I will probably never listen to this again.

This album is a mess and feels like an experiment that doesn't work. It's probably not helpful that I think John Lydon can go pound sand. Zero interest in this all the way down.

Early hip-hop is always a trip to listen to. This album must have been wild when it came out. It rules and is a lot of fun to listen to. That album artwork too... what a time.

Jethro Tull is so much sweeter than I think they are. This album was killer and a lot of fun to listen to. Great record.

This album is killer and feels urgent and has so many great tracks. It feels raw and focused and just delivers so pointedly. Still super relevant today.

Self-empowered and confident, this album is excellent.

One of the all time great post-punk records. A classic and always a great listen.

This album is so good, and it seems so wild to me now that it was so controversial when it came out. Pushed the boundaries for sure. Just a beautiful album that lives in perfect harmony with aspects of jazz and rock improvisation. The electric instrumentation sounds phenomenal.

Had a tough time getting in to this. It's got it's own vibe for sure, and I'm sure more listens would bring more appreciation to it. Scuzzy is a great word to describe it.

Seemed like this record had a lot of potential to be pretty cool, given the names involved. And it is, but it isn't really what I was expecting or hoping. The orchestral, chamber pop nature of the all the arrangements lends a nice juxtaposition to the darker subject matter conveyed in the lyrics, but it just really isn't for me. That isn't to say it wasn't enjoyable to listen to.

This band never grabbed me. That being said this album was more enjoyable than I thought it would be. Seems like they have a penchant for fusing a lot of differing styles of music together, which if that's your thing, right on.

Never got in to this cat, always seemed like a little much. I'm not sure if I ever gave one of his song more than 40 seconds of my time before dismissing it and switching it off. This record was fine, overwrought and way too long surely. I get why people like it so much, but not for me.

Classic record from a classic artist. Great lazy Sunday listening, listened to this on repeat all afternoon.

What can I say about this album? I love this album, I have listened to it countless times in my life, and it holds such a nostalgic sway over my opinion that it seems impossible for me to say that even objectively this album is beautiful and perfect. Very pleased to pull this today. Also listened to Volume 2 and 3 of these recordings as well, which I highly recommend.

Pretty ambivalent on this band, and pretty puzzled as to why it has two (at least to this point) inclusions on this list, along with a Paul Weller solo record. The maker's of this list are really showing their biases. Pretty inconsequential listen.

This album was pretty fun and pretty cool. But unfortunately that is besides this point at this point when it comes to unknown mediocre non deserving bands from the UK in the 90s. The overrepresentation of this stuff really undermines the integrity of this list. It's just so disappointing.

Aerosmith is quite possibly the worst band on this list. I can't believe that I received a second Aerosmith album, and neither of which are their most well known album, which makes me think there is at least a third. Just incredible.

I have never listened to this band, but have unsurprisingly heard two of the tracks on this album a lot as being somewhat ubiquitous in culture from a certain time. That aspect of this album takes away from the rest of the music, which is kind of weird and unique in it's own right. I'd probably like this more without those two mega hits. That being said this music is just kind of lowest common denominator. As a friend of mine told me "it's perfect for listening to when you want to wear neon sunglasses and sip on a shitty Montucky Cold Snack beer."

I like Elton John, but have never really listened to a full album of his, as much as I can remember anyway. This album is kind of hit or miss, some really great stuff, and some pretty mediocre stuff, it probably suffers from being too long with too many songs. But definitely a classic and a fun listen.

This band sucks, I think everyone knows that. But, I can forgive and understand earlier U2 works being on this list. They were massive and I understand why people like those earlier records. However, this album is complete and utter trash. I think that's true objectively. I seriously cannot fathom what would posses anyone to rate this album highly and include it on this list. Just laughably bad and an indictment against the integrity of this list.

Just a big over the top album. About as cheesy as it gets in the best way. Pretty fun, but this is nothing I could ever consider with any seriousness.

This is a great album from a great band. At first I was surprised to see it come up on the list, but with more thought it definitely makes sense and is worth of inclusion. Great revisiting it this morning.

I don't love live albums, and I hope that this isn't the only Thin Lizzy entry on this list. But as far as live albums go, this one is great, partly because Thin Lizzy was just so killer live and have so many great songs. It's well recorded, and it captures their energy really well. Had a blast listening to this.

Just an absolutely beautiful and perfect record. The classic Blue Note releases are as good as they get.

The first five Talking Heads records are nearly a perfect output for a band, in terms of the overall output and their growth and evolution from album to album. Fear of Music is arguably the weirdest and most experimental of the five records and is likely the one I reach for least out of all of them. But this album rules and is nearly perfect and is a great listen every time.

This album is sprawling and majestic. Bookended by the various parts of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond," there isn't a superfluous moment on this record. Near perfect.

This album is excellent when considered in context of when it came out. A forerunner to the "quiet to loud" aesthetic that came to define alternative rock in the 90s. Essential to math-rock as well. It's a tight and succinct sound that packs a punch, a really great listen.

I remember this album being so big when it came out. It's a beast, essentially a double album consisting of solo helmed records from both Big Boi and Andre 3000, and it's just phenomenal top to bottom, Genre defying and generational defining. It was fun to revisit.

I had never heard of this band before, but am familiar enough with some of their Welsh contemporaries like Super Furry Animals and Stereophonics. I had pretty low expectations for this but enjoyed it well enough. Generally when things from the 90s I have not heard of come up they are not for me, but this was fun.

Oh man, I have never cared about The Boss and have found him somewhat insufferable but that might be more from his fans being pretty insufferable. However, I have never given him a fair shake, and wanted to keep an open mind and see what all the fuss is about. And this album sucks, it's unbearable and laughably bad. Very rough getting through the whole thing.

Obviously very familiar with the huge hits from this record, but not so much else from this band. This album is pretty meticulously arranged with beautiful harmonies. Very pleasant listen. Really evocative of a very specific time and place with the mid-60s AM radio gold sound.

I love this album so much and have been listening to it a bunch over the past few years. There are few albums that are flawless in terms of production and the sound they are going for and this is one of them.

This is a perfect album. Easily my most listened to output from Talking Heads. Not a miss on the whole album. The bass line on "Warning Sign" might be my favorite bass line ever.

I was not familiar with this album at all, having really only known about the follow-up to this album, "Forever Changes," and of course being familiar with the single "7 and 7 Is" from watching Bottle Rocket my whole life. This album is great, it's tight and it's weird and rocking, before settling in to the sprawling closer. Definitely enjoyed it and happy to have more context to this band.

I haven't listened to this or to The Police in general with real earnest for a really long time. I know that this is their best and biggest album, and I get why, but it's certainly not my favorite. Excellent musicianship throughout and really enjoyable to listen to and revisit.

Not super familiar with this record in this context, but a lot of these songs are familiar and this sound is certainly familiar. I think the B-52's are just ubiquitous in our culture at this point. Classic new wave vibes, and pretty fun to listen to a couple times through.

Is this album good and worthy of inclusion on this list or does it just contain a massive hit? I think the fact that I do not know and also do not care enough to find out after listening kind of answers that question to me. Another miss on the overrepresented English record from the 80s on this list. It's fine but come on.

This is a great straightforward hip hop album, nothing but rhymes and incredible production from two of the best in Method Man and RZA. Nothing superfluous and this album is still incredible nearly 30 years later.

I mean potentially the best record in the world from the best band in the world. What a swan song. The b-side to this record is incredible and it hits all the feels. Just love it so much.

These kind of records are my favorite. Timeless standards performed by an artist, who shows us yet again why these are so timeless to begin with. Willie brings a quietness and space to these songs that let them breathe and also show everyone that Willie is a truly great musician, connecting with these songs deeply and making them his own. I love these kinds of records.

This took me many days to get to. This is not for me at all, but I understand the appeal. I do feel like it's on here because of the overrepresented bias towards mediocre music from the UK from this time period on this list, but that's neither here nor there.

I have not ever really listened to The Who more than just a greatest hits comp and hearing their songs as ubiquitous parts of pop culture that last 50 years. This album has some bangers that everyone knows and some songs that I have never heard of, which are just whatever. Not my cup of tea, but fun to hear the hits.

This album is a masterpiece, it's all I ever want in a piece of music. It feels like there is a communing with a higher power on this record. It's universal and sacramental. Just an amazing composition. Mingus was and forever is the master.

Pretty meh on this. Another mediocre and inconsequential entry to this list. It's fine, but one of the top albums to listen to before I die? I think not.

I love this album. Probably my favorite album from Queen. It starts and ends so strong, it's kind of incredible. Brian May's guitar tone is perfect as always. Almost a perfect record.

I am not a hip hop expert, but this feels like a classic hip hop masterpiece. Hardcore east coast at it's finest. Flawless combo of rhythm and lyrics. Nas is one of the best.

Thriller this is not. Definitely an uneven outing to my ears. A few classic songs that are great, but the overall vibe and feel of this album is peaks and valleys. Not for me by any means.

This live recording is absolutely breakneck. I can't imagine them being more at the height of their abilities. Just relentlessly pounding. Laying the foundation for thrash. It's honestly an overwhelming thing to listen to and imagine seeing it live in 1980 and 1981. What a band.

Shuggie Otis is great. Just kind of always heard his name--being name dropped by Beastie Boys will do that--but never listened to one of his records. This is just a smooth groovin' jam. Great songs, great sound, great record.

Excellent album and some very welcome World variety. Expertly performed guitar compositions, a beyond enjoyable listening experience.

This is a classic album. I always forget how unexpected and unobvious these compositions are. There is a lot more depth and darkness to them than one might expect. Really short and sweet as a whole, but a great and beautiful album to listen to.

This album is so so good. Forever changed hip-hop. It's a melodic thrill ride, completely bombastic and hard hitting. Love it and an absolute classic.

One of the best albums ever made from a truly talented, soulful and empathetic artist. This album is all Stevie Wonder, every arrangement and every texture. It's simply the pinnacle of his career. A perfect record.

I knew nothing about Tori Amos. Reading about her while listening to this album, it's clear why this album is important given the context and the subject matter. Musically she is without a doubt incredibly gifted. This is just not at all for me.

This album is great, it's racing, abrasive and raw. A great output from a very short-lived but excellent band. Had been a really long time since I listened to this. Excellent.

This is the second Amy Winehouse album I have gotten on this list, and the first one blew me away. I had no idea what kind of artist of musician she was. This album is also great, it's heavy, the production is killer, and it's cool to hear an earlier output after being floored by her second album. Great listen all around.

What can I even say about this record. This record has probably figured more prominently and been more present in my life as something absolutely essential than any other record. They say music is tied to memory and time, and this record has been there for everything in my life since it came out. It evokes such deep multitudes of memories and feelings in such a visceral way. The mythology and timing of how and when this record was recorded and released aside, it's absolutely beautiful. Its at the same time textured and sparse, busy and full of space, bursting with sound and absolutely hushed. It exists somewhere in the margins like the shortwave radio recordings from which it drew inspiration. This record both lends itself to comforting background listens and is still deeply rewarding with fully attentive immersive listens. It has given and continues to give so much. I simply cannot imagine my life without it.

I was really hoping that this would be at the very least marginally easier to stomach than Pyromania was. It is in fact even more of a slog to listen to and get through. It's impressive to make something so boring and uninteresting and also give it such a needlessly long run time in the pre-CD era. It's absolutely mind boggling to me that this among the most sold albums of all time. After two records I now think that Def Leppard is perhaps the most boring and uninteresting and overrated band relative to "success" that there might be.

There is a timelessness to the songs on this album. Obviously a gifted songwriter and musician. Enjoyed this quite a bit.

I have never really sat down and given this record a focused listen. Despite that I'm struck by how familiar a lot of this record is, it must be a lot more ubiquitous than I realize. Radiohead has always been a lot for me, very dramatic indeed. And this record is very much that. Obviously they are a talented band and gifted musicians, but they just aren't really for me. I did enjoy listening to this, though it's hard for me to place it in any context.

I don't have the greatest grasp on Dylan in terms of where the lines are between his different phases and artistic personas. There is a lot of mythologizing that goes in to him, particularly the earlier eras that were more than 50 years ago now. That being said this is a rock record recording with a rock band as backing musicians, so it seems this is post Dylan going electric. A lot of very well known songs on here, and the rest of the record has a swing to it that gives it a drive. I am guessing if I listened to this a lot more I'd think it was phenomenal. Obviously a great record.

I don't really have much to say nor do I know where to begin with this. I do not know electronic music at all nor do I know progressive house music in general. I will say this was a wild thing to listen to for 70 minutes on a lazy Sunday morning. It's not bad by any means, and I get the appeal, but just honestly never something I've ever been interested in.

This is one of my all-time favorite records. Just a tour de force of space rock, neo psychedelia, shoegaze and gospel music. Incredible songs with incredible arrangements. One of the best.

I love the Tuareg desert blues when it's done well. Excellent guitar player and excellent songs. The quality of music that comes out of the Sahara region, particularly from Mali and Niger is top notch. Great record, paving the way for others.

I had never listened to this before. It's a good album both in historical context to being something that stood in contrast to the rising popularity in gangsta rap and as being one of the first Southern hip-hop records and obviously being influential to everything that came after in that genre.

I thought I was going to be a lot less in to this than I am. I just assumed it was pretty bluesy and not for me. Bluesy it is for sure, but it's also pretty fuzzed out early acid rock. It's messy and psychedelic and loud. Janis Joplin is a pretty great vocalist on these songs as well. There is a great vibe to the recordings. I get why this record has had such staying power for 50+ years.

I have never listened to Jane's Addiction--though I recognized that song "Jane Says"--and my expectations were pretty low. This band is wild for sure, and the album was better than I thought. It's loud and bombastic and just kind of straight up rocks. Perry Farrell seems to be a great vocalist and front person. I can't imagine I'll get in to this band at this point in my life, but that wasn't bad at all.

This is the second album I have received from The Prodigy--hopefully the last--and this is the one I assumed the first one was. It has the songs that I remember getting serious radio play when this came out. I was in to this slightly more than the first one, but ss I said on the first review, this band and this music is not for me. But I am happy that it exists for the people that it is for.

I am not super familiar with Radiohead, but Muse seems like something that was just trying to ride those coattails. I don't really get the appeal at all, and frankly it's just too much.

Just a great jazzy, funky, soul record. Just excellent vibes all around. What a delight.

I am not familiar with this band at all so came in with zero expectations. This album is definitely something, it's an incredibly succinct and tightly packed and to the point record incorporating a wide variety of sounds. Touches of garage, prog rock, psych rock, and math rock. It's wild how much it has going on. Seems like it's been very well received. And it is good, just not exactly for me.

I just can't even with this. Some of the most uninspired straightforward bluesy bullshit I have ever heard. What a joke. Get this guy out of here.

I do not know anything about this band at all, aside from knowing "Song 2" was a bit radio hit. And then I realized who Damon Albarn after he tried to discredit artists who are not singular writers of their songs because co-writing doesn't count. The dude seems like a bozo. Anyway, this album was a lot more poppy than I thought it would be, I assumed that with the breakout of Song 2 as having an underground (at the time) sound, that rest of the album sounded like that. But no this is just straight pop. There are a handful of songs that feel like they could have been pulled straight from a Kinks record--in a good way. All in all this record was fine.

Yeah I don't know about this. I am not well versed in Radiohead, and this is making no impression me. Seems like people love it though.

Yeah I don't really know what to think about this. There is a certainly a rawness and a feeling of punk abandon here--I don't know for sure, but I would not be surprised if they came about as being popular after the success of The Strokes. Some of these songs are chaotic enough and fun enough to work, but I'm just not really feeling it. Kind of surprised this is on this list.

Jazz Fusion is ridiculous, but it's also pretty sweet. Great lineup on this Weather Report album. Jaco and Wayne Shorter are top notch as always. Weather Report are easy to goof on, but if you open your heart I think you will find that it can be a good time.

This just feels like a live DJ session or an underground mix tape from back in the day--in a good way. Nothing I would ever listen to regularly, but it was fun enough.

This is not as bad as I was expecting it to be. I am not sure what I thought this band was, but I didn't think they had a pseudo post-punk/garage revival sound. Seems like they are just a Poor Man's version of The Strokes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. This was fine.

I do not get it. I do not understand why this is on this list. It's not bad, just very unremarkable. Maybe I don't fully grasp the context behind this band and this release, but I really feel like this album is not essential at all.

Very out of my depth. I have never heard of this band and certainly am very unfamiliar with anything this deep in the techno realm. A very long record. Not really for me, pretty relieved when it was done and I could listen to something else.

Just a beautiful record. Gorgeous arrangements and just a delight to listen to. Ray is awesome.

Very surprised to see an album that has barely been out for 2 years on this list--and I am not familiar with Lana Del Rey's music at all, so I was initially super skeptical. That skepticism proved to be well placed. This album is boring, uninteresting, and unremarkable. I don't think I ever needed to hear this.

This is so god awful.

Listening to a full album of this is wild. It's long a little much, but I enjoyed it.

Yeah, this is my second album from "The Boss" on this list. What a fucking joke. This is so god awful unlistenable and horrible. There is nothing to this other than just an overly rushed ramble through some shitty song. Get this guy out of here. I'm sure there are even more of his albums on this list, so I have that disappointment to look forward to.

I do not know New Order at all, and had no preconceived notions coming in to this. My initial response, and it's likely a drastic over-simplification is that this is just a better version of The Smiths with no Morrissey to boot. The electronic dance vibes are a bit stronger for sure, and this album is a good time. Not for me, but it's an enjoyable enough album for sure.

This is probably the most quintessential Bob Dylan record in terms of sound and vibe he is oft associated with. It’s a great listen.

This album was and is still an instant classic. Just a phenomenal record.

This is ridiculous. I do appreciate hearing something so dramatically different than the usual on this list, but it's not really for me. I always fine music from this part of the world in the 70s and 80s interesting just because of the insular nature of that area at that time. Fun enough.

When I first read about this album I was so bummed to get it. I am just so tired of albums I haven't heard of on this list being electronic British artists from the 80s, 90s, or 2000s. But I was pleasantly surprised with this. Listened to it twice through while being productive around the house and it was perfect. This is still out of purview, so I don't feel like I can say a ton more about it. But I dig it.

Creedence rocks and this album rules. Just chooglin' baby!

The Beatles are the best. This record is great. There isn't much to say about it that hasn't been said a million times.

This is fine but pretty inconsequential. I would not listen to this again as it made no impression on me at all.

The recording quality on this leaves a lot to be desired, but no complaints here. This record rips. Mudhoney is a behemoth in the Grunge scene and Mark Arm already saw the writing on the wall. This is a classic album, one of the best of the era and the genre.

Ray Charles is a legend, and these performances and recordings are excellent. This was an incredible album to pull on a lazy drizzly Friday morning. Excellent all around.

This album was fun, very solid 90s (1989 I know...) hip hop vibes. Buffalo Stance is a classic with such a solid hook. Good times.

I have never been familiar with Isaac Hayes outside of Shaft and South Park, and didn't have any real expectations at all for this. Initially I was pretty lukewarm to it, but the album builds and gets stronger and stronger, the last track was a surprisingly great 18 minute journey. Very cool stuff.

I loved and listened to this album so much the summer it came out. iPods were new and I remember loving being able to listen to it as I walked around town that summer with nothing else to do. That being said, this is not the first Beck record I think to listen to, and likely not even the fifth or sixth, and it's been a long time since I have heard it. What a jolt of nostalgia this was and I had a blast revisiting it. I remember at one point having a huge issue with the way this record is mixed, and it still bugs me, but not nearly as much as it used to. Great record.

Glam Rock generally ends up being way better than I expect--I am not sure why I don't have a better association with it. It's cheesy, but all music is. This album is a lot of fun, it's stomping and it rocks.

Love the Bakersfield sound so much. Buck Owens was there at the start and at this point his records are classics. This was a great, quick and succinct listen. Just basking in that Bakersfield glow.

I know pretty nothing about this band, aside from the inclusion of their song "Hello Sunshine" in the "The Rock-afire Explosion" documentary (which is great!). I was surprised to learn that this is their debut album. It's incredibly well formed and layered for a band's first output and that in and of itself is impressive. This is a lot more up my alley than the Brit-pop stuff coming out in parallel from their colonizers.

This is obviously a classic recording with excellent performances of many classic and well known Sam Cooke songs. It's so baked in to the culture of what everyone knows now, it feels like it's been around forever. Tough to give this anything less than 4 stars.

Had no expectations for this. This is a really intriguing and crazy album. The electric vibe punctuated by the Moog synth gives it an alien feeling in the context of what I usually associate with Texas Honky Tonk Country. Really solid album and enjoyed listening to it immensely. Reading more about Joe Ely, he seems pretty sweet.

Cosmic American Music. It's great revisiting Parsons who was easily the best known of this genre of 70s country music that has spawned so much interest in mining compilations from he likes of archival labels like Numero Group. This record is beautiful and sound such a part of the fabric of American music. An absolute pleasure to listen to.

Listening to this is wild after living through it so long ago. It's hard to remember just how much by storm Eminem took the world when this came out. I never listened to it then but the singles and his presence were just ubiquitous. Obviously Eminem is a great rapper, one of the best ever, and these rhymes hit hard, but it's hard to get past the nostalgic punch from hearing this and listening to it in that context. It's not bad by any means, it's just not for me.

Slightly aggravating to figure out how to listen to this. Originally released as an EP in 1988, then re-released as an album length compilation including the songs on this EP (although in a different order) and early singles from the band. The only thing available on streaming services is a 2+ hour deluxe edition which has yet a different track listing order than either of the first two releases. Reading interviews and such, it seems like Mudhoney has been asked about it a bunch as they seem pretty adamant that they consider this their first album, and that they consider the designation between EP and LP to be pretty arbitrary. With that in mind I chose to listen to the 6 song 22 minute original "EP" release for this. This album definitely rules and rocks. Mudhoney were the best grunge band in that scene, and that should not come as shocking or surprising to anyone anymore. And like most bands from that scene, their first release was their best. It's the most urgent, raw and true to live representation for them. Just a great recording as well to capture that spirit.

I was immediately skeptical of this just because of Michael Franti, who has long been the butt of many jokes between my friends and I. I had no idea he had anything to do with hip hop at all. This was really hard to find to listen to. 4 of the 13 tracks are not on streaming services, and had to turn to a YouTube playlist with the occasional ad interruption between songs. Not ideal. But... this was a pleasant surprise and felt relevant and right out of it's time. Very political and urgent. I dug it quite a bit.

So I had never heard of this band, and they are whatever. I am not super familiar with Radiohead but they just sound like Radiohead to me, particularly the vocals. I suppose the arrangements and instrumentation is less interesting. I don't know, I am reading and understand that there were a few post Brit-pop bands that had this sound and garnered that comparison, Coldplay among them. I think all of it is pretty pedestrian.

This album rules, and it's such an intrinsic part of my music DNA and language, just omnipresent for so long. It's a perfect record. An absolute joy to see albums like this pop up when they do.

This is a good album for sure, probably her best. Some of it sounds very inspired and some of it sounds kind of run of the mill. Nonetheless a great Saturday morning record.

You know, the American Pie is gets goofed on a lot as a song, but despite it's cheesiness, I have always really loved it. My familiarity with Don McLean basically starts and ends there. This album was great though, starts off with that familiar song and then doesn't veer much from that sound, over a quick and succinct album. Real pleasure on a Sunday morning.

Truly a great record. It's everything, it's brilliant, it's tender, it's transcendent, it's focused and it's sprawling. A truly transcendent record from one of the best.

Great record. I only listened to the 8 tracks on the original release, not the super expanded stuff on streaming services. Just a lot of fun.

I was not expecting the synthesizer drum machine vibes straight out of the 80s for many of these songs. Somewhat silly, but underneath all of that are just absolutely beautiful songs. Truly a poet. Excellent record.

I have never heard of this group or this record before. Very enjoyable late 60s folk record.

Led Zep is rough. And a double album of almost 90 minutes of Led Zep is especially tough. Just too bluesy and too cheesy for me, but I know people love them. It was a slog.

I don't listen to Kanye any more at all these days, and it's certainly been a while since I've listened to this, and man is this a great record. Still sounds as fresh as it did nearly 20 (!!!) years ago when it came out. Great record.

This record comes at you fast from the beginning and doesn't really let up. The early 90s hip-hop just hits so good.

I think as far as 80s synth music (I know this is 1990) goes, you can do a lot worse than Depeche Mode. This album has a couple super well known singles on it and the rest of the album is good enough. No issues with this like I do a lot of similar music.

I did not get on this train in the 90s when this album came out though I remember it being big and different at the time. And I have a handful of friends who would count NIN as one of their favorite bands. Happy to dive in to this and after a couple listens I dig how abrasive and eclectic this record is. I'm sure it would have been wild to get immersed in this nearly 30 years when it came out. NIN is not really for me, but this is a great album.

Did not initially recall N.E.R.D. at all when this came up, but then reading about them and realizing is was Pharrell Williams jogged my memory a bit. Regardless, I never listened to them at all before. This album is okay, it feels a bit uneven and all over the place to me, especially given the level to which Pharrell has risen as a producer. Some fun songs, but a lot of the arrangements just don't really do it for me. Fun enough for sure.

This album is great and feels like such a refreshing force from this time and place. Just killer minimalist synth-punk.

I was not expecting to know so many songs on this record and to like them so much. I guess I just didn't really have a great grasp on Lynyrd Skynyrd at all, and I've kind of always written them off. Having a lot more context to these great well known songs in the structure of an album is kind of wild. This album is great.

At this point The Doors are so ingrained in to the culture of American Music, it's impossible to not know most of these songs. I've never listened to the whole album start to finish, and it's just fine. The hits still slap, there are some nice weird songs in there, and then also some sprawling way too bluesy jams for me, which is just kind of how I think of The Doors in general. So I guess this is probably a pretty good representation of them as a whole I think.

I have always liked and really respected Neil Young while at the same really not liking his voice. Those things are not mutually exclusive. Because of that I have not really explored a ton of his music in depth, and this record is really the only exception. I think it's a phenomenal record. And a really great one to get just a week before seeing Neil perform live.

Was not super thrilled to get a Britpop album on this. But as far as Britpop goes, this seems like one of the better ones. Just fine to listen to.

Rush rules. I have not dabbled in to a ton of Prog Rock, but Rush is tops of that genre. This album kicked ass.

Was not expecting much from this band. I didn't pay attention to them when they came out and just kind of lumped them in with a huge group of bands and artists that seemed to be hitting it big and riding the wave of revival of garage rock kind of spurred by The Strokes. It's probably unfair to all of those bands to be so dismissive of them but that's how it is. This album was better than I expected, a great energy and a great sound. Production value is excellent and it's catchy and just kind of rocks. Really enjoyed listening to this.

There is such a purity and clarity that punches from Dolly Parton's songs. This record is so tight and so succinct. Just an excellent record rounded out with excellent songs.

This album is so ridiculous. Like pretty much everyone I have heard it a bunch and also was very in to AC/DC as a teenager. I listened to this album a bunch today, for the first time in a while. It was so cheesy and it rocked so much. I much prefer Bon Scott AC/DC but this album is obviously a classic.

This album is ambitious. It's vivid and lyrical and self-indulgent. It's certainly interesting, and I can sense it's influence in more modern self-deprecating songwriters, particularly on Jim O'Rourke's Drag City outputs. Great listen and always happy to have something unknown like this come up.

It is absolutely wild that people like this band and this album and that it can be considered anywhere near essential. What a boring pandering sound. Anything more than zero would be too many Aerosmith albums on this list, and this is the third one I've received so far, please make it stop.

This record is beautiful. Within the context of late 90s hip-hop this record is a revelation, nuanced, personal and cerebral. But behind all of that is incredible lyrics and rapping as well. Just a phenomenal record.

Just beautiful songs. Nothing bad to say about this record at all.

This album is incredible and a classic. I’m truly surprised how much I come back to this.

This is a great Can record, meandering and atmospheric. Really excellent listen.

What can I say, just an absolute masterpiece.

I don't know anything about this band or this record, and when I see a band if from England in the 90s I immediately cringe because of the very bad track record this list has in egregiously over representing British music, but this record was surprisingly enjoyable. A much more punk vibe and energy than I was expecting. A pleasant surprise.

I don't have all of the context of where this stands in the Tropicália world, but I am reading this is one of the first Tropicália records, so I'm guessing it's very important. All of that aside, this is just a great record. Everything you'd want and expect in a classic Tropicália record.

I'm always so skeptical of British music from this time period that I have never heard of, but this album is great. Just a very catchy toe tapping album with banger after banger. Really enjoyed it.

Still amazes me out how raw Kurt sounds in fully fuzzed out Nirvana mode as well as stripped down acoustic mode. What an artist. This record rules and it's been too long since I've listened to it.

Any follow-up to the flawless Loveless was going to be a daunting effort with impossible expectations. That the follow-up took 20+ years only adds to those expectations. Despite all of that m b v landed as a great third record from My Bloody Valentine. It has everything you'd expect from the band. It doesn't ascend to the impossible heights of Loveless but it's still a phenomenal album and a great companion listen to their previous masterpiece.

This album is intense and in your face. Pantera barks at you. Pretty great record incorporating a lot of styles, excellent guitar work, excellent vocal work. Great band.

Whenever I listen to The Band I start wondering if they might be the best band ever. Maybe not their best album here, but it's a great one.

The legendary Residents. Another band I have heard about forever but have never earnestly listened to. Obviously their influence is matched by few and it was great to give them a couple spins. This record is just as fun and as weird as I expected it would be.

Just a great punk record from a band at the height of their powers. So much fun.

Elvis is Elvis and he's great for the most part. Crazy career and crazy life. This album is great and some killer songs. Always down to listen to Elvis.

I love ABBA. But I really just know the hits, and was surprised to not recognize any of the songs on this record. Reading about it, it makes sense, this was their last record while they were together, and it definitely is more complex and mature than their previously lighter pop music. The complexity hits you from the first track and the record immediately demands your attention. Really enjoyed listening to this.

Great band and great album.

This album is phenomenal and a classic. Prince's best album and his magnum opus. It would be criminal to give it anything other than a 5/5.

This is more interesting than I was expecting it to be. I don't know more electronic. These guys have never done for me, but this was fine to listen to.

This album was obviously a megahit in the early golden age of hip hop. I need to give LL Cool J more credit than I do because this is a great album. He's an articulate rapper and this album, though a tad too long, is a great listen and solid all around.

Good album from a good songwriter. A perfectly enjoyable listen on this lazy Sunday morning.

What a hilariously cheesy band and album. Fun to hit some hits in there. Just super glad this was so short.

I don't really know what to say about this. It's obviously good, super smooth, super clean production. Contemporary R&B and Soul just kind of go in one ear and out the other for me. Didn't grab me at all.

This album is a classic and is just always so chill to listen to.

Frank Black is really easy to make fun of. He's pretty much a parody of himself at this point. Despite that I love the first run of Pixies records and definitely love this record. This has always been one of my top records to listen to on a road trip. Just so many great sing-along-able songs. It's a tad long, but still punches above it's weight from start to finish.

I always feel like I should listen to and be more familiar with R.E.M. than I am, which is currently very very little, but whenever I do I just kind of feel "meh" about them. This is my second album of theirs that has come up on this list, and I assume not the last, and I still just kind of feel that way about it. Not bad by any means but just kind of "meh" for sure.

I love this band and I love this album, and coincidentally I just listened to this a couple times not more than 2-3 days ago. It's a phenomenal record from a creative force.

This record is a lot to take in right off the bat, but once I got used to it, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Certainly an interesting end of life album for Bowie.

When it comes to Sigur Rós, I am really only familiar with ( ) which was released after this album. This album is just what I was expecting though, just an absolutely beautiful and visceral auditory experience. Excellent release from an excellent band.

This is an excellent contemporary soul album and it's something I didn't even know I wanted. Great listen.

This was an absolute delight and very calm and peaceful record to listen to. Very much enjoyed it.

I love the Bakersfield Sound. This album is a fantastic listen.

An absolute delight to listen to in the morning. Just a great blend of danceable funk, smooth R&B, and earnest soul. An excellent album.

King Crimson is a ridiculous band making ridiculous music. Very far out. Heady even. If you get past how ridiculous it is and just roll with it, it's pretty fun. Obviously these blokes are good musicians. Decent enough for sure.

Tears For Fears are great for sure. I have never listened to a whole album of theirs but know the hits and this is about what I expected.

Metallica used to be pretty sweet, but it's tough to take them all that seriously now because they are so ridiculous. This album is a bit hit or miss from me, but ultimately it's pretty good, I definitely prefer the earlier stuff from them.

Very unfamiliar with Dizzee Rascal and this album, but it obviously was an incredibly well received album from such a young and talented artist. Doesn't really resonate with me which is not surprising, but this album is obviously very good.

Impossible not to give this record 5 stars. It is a flawed album and perhaps overrated. It's impossible to overstate it's significance within the context of when it came out, and it still contains some of the coolest stuff The Beatles ever put to tape, but it's also just not the best collection of songs. These are all judged by The Beatles standards, it's not their best album, but still one of the best and most important albums every put out.