Out of the slot, down and dirty with a little kink in the gravel vocals that pop way higher than the drum machine or the syncopation of the brassy guitar. I mean when this dropped in '84, I was 8. So some of this is seminal, emotional music that still hits me so deep. When I hear her voice, I am right back there on the edge of my seat watching Mad Max or waiting for Mom's aerobics class to end. These early tracks are etched deep into the silicon of my motherboard. Her cover of Al Green is one that put me of two minds. The drum machine is not enough for this song. The synth falters. But her voice. It does carry. The Beatles cover on Help is sort of awful. Ball of confusion earns its name and hmm there are a bunch of songs in the middle that aren't good at all. I feel that all the way through the most of the end. This is one I want to fall in love with again, but just can't.

From the minute it drops. You know. This album is going to rick and it just changed everything about music. I'm right back there with my first girlfriend in her mom's basement. Her black hair, smelling like apricots. We had such high hopes for Cobain right out of the box and somehow we wound up with Hole as the consolation. That baseline on Teen Spirit. If that doesn't make your sap rise, are you really born in the 1970's? Hello hello hello. Come as you are is the ultimate. You wanna drive. You wanna do stuff. Still a jam and hits hard today. I've been really careful not to listen to this album for years so that when I do, I can jump in a time machine and it isn't worn out. This is music at the core of our generation. Love it!!

This is by far and away the best album produced by Air that I have heard. Listening to it is like watching a movie-- so cinematic and dreamlike in its dialogues. I've heard it a thousand times and briefly entered a period of my life when I listened to it repeatedly. Air has other great albums as well, so if you are a newcomer to their sound, I definitely encourage exploration!

On the one hand, this Southern fried album has a lot of great tracks that I remember from growing up and listening to it in the South. On the other hand, it's hard to ignore the rift between the band and Neil Young (though he would later come to temper that somewhat). But Neil was spot on that the band was racist and rocking the confederate flag at their shows. After everything that has happened in our country since this came out, I can honestly say, it's hate not heritage-- and that makes it hard to want to hear.

This album is so hugely popular. My mother played it almost constantly. I'm probably going against the grain to say it, but I just hate her voice. The best songs on the album are the covers, but I mean, how you going to outdo Aretha? How you gonna beat the Shirelles? James Taylor did You've Got a Friend so much better. Everything that King sings is like she jumped the shark.

I remember exactly where I was when I heard this album from the first time. The album had just dropped a few months before maybe and I was transporting a foster child for the Agency I worked for. He asked if he could play a cassette inn the car and it was this. So we checked it out over the long drive and he was WAY into it. Eminem was a complete departure from anything that had come before. And these songs are ballads for the lost and forgotten and the hurt. To see it through the eyes of that foster child as my initial taste of Eminem earned me as an early fan, and I still think he's terrific. A master.

That first track has the weirdest background noises that I am pretty sure are the same as Legend of Zelda II on the OG Nintendo NES! Hahah. Track two brings on the flute bounce which is pretty stressful. Anyhow, overall, I think if I never heard Annie Lenox sing to me again, that would be fine. Glad she's out there and I hope she made someone happy.

This is one of the greatest live albums ever made. What Cash did in this album to a higher degree than I have ever heard is that he spoke to the prisoners from *their* point of view as peers. Listen to the humor, the politeness, and the anti-authoritarian comments. And the crowd responds incredibly because it was so rare for anyone to treat them this way. I've listened to this album scores of times over my life. It is one of the greatest examples of artistic empathy I know. I love Johnny Cash and I definitely love this album. I bet a lot of those guys were seeing June Carter on the back of their eyelids as they fell asleep that night. Worth going to prison for to see this performance? Maybe.

It's catchy, but doesn't have nearly the depth of her more recent albums which I find excellent. She's developed a ton since this was dropped in 2014-- and I think for the better.

I vacillate between thinking they are one of the greatest bands of my time to thinking that they are completely devoid of meaning and have an overly simulated sound. It's wild, but I've never really settled that internal debate. I loved this album when it came out and I think I was completely awestruck. I still think it sounds great.

This is extremely relaxing, pleasant, comforting. I enjoyed this a lot more than ever I have Brian Eno. Not sure I'm a convert yet, but it is very good. Perhaps this is because of my recent experiences reuniting with the Hearts of Space radio program which serves up weekly ambient music now online whereas it did so when I was a kid on the radio once a week. When it's done well, ambient music can really head straight into the heart and move you.

Out of the slot, down and dirty with a little kink in the gravel vocals that pop way higher than the drum machine or the syncopation of the brassy guitar. I mean when this dropped in '84, I was 8. So some of this is seminal, emotional music that still hits me so deep. When I hear her voice, I am right back there on the edge of my seat watching Mad Max or waiting for Mom's aerobics class to end. These early tracks are etched deep into the silicon of my motherboard. Her cover of Al Green is one that put me of two minds. The drum machine is not enough for this song. The synth falters. But her voice. It does carry. The Beatles cover on Help is sort of awful. Ball of confusion earns its name and hmm there are a bunch of songs in the middle that aren't good at all. I feel that all the way through the most of the end. This is one I want to fall in love with again, but just can't.

I had this album as a little kid so it is heavily intertwined with my memories. Some of the saxophone is a little saccharin, but the keyboard and vocal sound characteristics seem timeless-- especially in light of the advent of new synthpop over the last decade especially. Hungry Like the Wolf and Save a Prayer were the ones that I remember most singing with friends on the bus or loving at the school dance. HLTW is still a windows-down, crank it up song while all the kids at the red light are desperately Shazamming it.

Everything about this. The slide guitar. The fantastic honky tonk riffs. This album is top notch. This one wants me to fire up the big rig and get those 18 wheels truckin down I-10 into the arms of a stranger. It's a lullaby for cheaters and broken hearts. Fabulous piece of Americana and it was lovely to hear for the first time.

I think of this as a central album of my growing up. It was an album I'd hear in the middle of the night and find my mom alone, maybe sipping some Grand Marnier in the Baroque barley twist chair, more often in the dark with a little fire going in the fireplace. It is a critical piece of American music, and I was filled with joy to see Joni take the stage again last month. It is somewhat difficult to talk about the songs individually. I've spent so many hours listening to this over the years. Blue is a particularly challenging song. More than anything, it encapsulates all the hardest parts of my childhood with solace and revery. Complicated. Rich. Shattered. I'm not so emotional these days as I once was, but poignant 'River' still does it. It has all the feels about the things I hoped for, still hope for, but also all the losses and the things I had to say goodbye to. I made my baby cry. We all want to skate or run or fly away from the challenges and the difficulties. When I hear it today, I hear its flaws, but also I think this album is valid. It is full of excellent points and sentimental but truthful lyrics. If you cannot respect Blue as an album, your heart is not open. Joni still has it. ❤️.

Hard to believe this is 2 decades old. Every song on this album is a masterwork and a breakthrough for rap that changed the game and level set the bar up into the sky. Triumphs. Ain't no love in the heart of the city is one of my favorites. All the references and shoutouts. Marvin Gaye, Jim Morrison, and many hauntingly beautiful samples I didn't know before I looked them up like Bobby Glenn's 'Sounds Like a Love Song'. The Blueprint is an album in my general rotation even today that I listen to when I'm feeling frustrated by everything and I want to rise above the chaos. Renegade is awesome. Eminem fits right in. Girls, girls, girls is the weak link in the album that I don't think will stand the test of time. Beasties did it on License to Ill and it doesn't hold up.

This album has some real gems, but also has some carnival music that gets a bit well, overexuberant. Elton is one of the highest grossing musicians of all times, but not all of it is great. Candle in the Wind, This Song has no Title, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and I've seen that Movie Too are all songs I can listen to fairly often. The rest I've got no patience for. Solid middle of the yellow brick road 3.

It's such a sweet album. I think only because of all the memories listening to it on vinyl as a kid, it gets a 4. All my single mother's occasional heartaches come back in waves listening to Reason to Believe.

This is an album that is of the highest significance. Although less harmonious than the rest of the album, I credit Living for the City for helping me as a child to be sensitive that life was less fair for others than it was for me, and to realize how scary that must be. I think it is one of the most important songs of the 1970's. I personally have a very small collection of vinyls that I retain and this is one of them. All in Love is Fair is the lowest point for me, but it's still extremely good. Near perfect album.

Quite a few great songs on here, but also a collection of dull repetitive ones. I like all the hits and I sort of dislike the rest save for a few sleepers like Alive. Daft Punk hit with a sound of their own that was exciting and emulated in the clubs at the time. This music got a ton of asses shaking.

The walking blues in Shine on You Crazy Diamond as you hit the cold mechanical noise of Welcome to the Machine is a high point for me. I find Welcome to the Machine to be one of the most alienating and terrifying songs of all times, but then you are in it after a few seconds and you know they've been waiting for you. Have a cigar takes you into the dilapidated excesses of capitalism and says oh these machinations are fine, you're one of us. Ugh, but do I wanna be!?? Then when you hit Wish You Were Here for real, all of it gets stripped bare and laid to the simple acoustic. It is not only the namesake of this seminal album, but also one of the more endearing songs that Pink Floyd put out. It's the one where you know you are quietly with the tribe. A little sadness. A little nostalgia. Your heroes for ghosts. Hot ashes for trees. Hot air for a cool breeze. It is a salve and also a mourning for what we've lost to the organized and dominating machinations of power that roll over us, the quotidian proles. Shine on. It is an excellent one.

Tell me a greater album in rock history. There is no low water mark. This is 100. Every single track.

I have CLEARLY missed out on this band for far too long. Headed for a deep dive this weekend! Lush and sensual. If I were in an intergalactic spaceship, we would have this on the intercom all the time. This could also be the soundtrack to parts of a James bond film. Oompah Radar is a little too lost in the funhouse and not even in a good Twin Peaks way. They lost me a bit on this one-- but only in the weird parts.. But with Utopia, we are right back on the space ship headed for Planet Xenon as we should be and everything is right with the galaxy The final track, Horse Tears is really far too good for the world we live in. It is a musical masterpiece. Opus.

Really an impressive and interesting album that is hauntingly familiar. Someone must have played it at a party or it was in a movie or something when I was a child. In particular, there are a few notes in Autopsy that come sweeping in as near perfect. The fact that Richard Thompson was involved comes as no surprise, because it reverberates with the Richard and Linda Thompson album Bright Lights (I like Linda's voice better)! Quite pleasant overall with a few jangly tracks and an album I would not mind revisiting once in a while.

This is a terrific album. She's fairly mainstream at this point, but I do like that she breaks with the Team 'Murica country set. Not quite Outlaw Country which is most to my liking, but trending that way and I like it. Great voice. Great lyrics. Just about every song on this one is solid straight through.

This album has been popular for a long time and Mark Knopfler's voice and those screaming guitars are the reason why. I think there are better Dire Sraits songs elsewhere, but there are still a couple of tracks here that are my jam. Without the title track though, the album would come up short. I love Brothers in Arms specifically. The mournful notes before the swinging and soulful drop with its tempered drums. Finally, that Hammond B-3 that comes in is just terrific. Take me to church.

This was truly an exciting album when it hit. I feel like Paul Simon's album here was the siren call to usher out the nastiest parts of the 80's-- the unfettered capitalistic republicanism that threatened to destroy America. And for a brief ebullient moment, Simon put is in touch with out hearts. This album gave love and human kindness a reason to hope. the album reminds me of my long deceased best friend from childhood and weekends at my Dad's house. Cool. That said, it is not the best Paul Simon album in my opinion. That honor goes instead to the lesser known album 'Hearts and Bones'. And if you don't know that one, please go give it a listen.

I had high hopes at the outset because the opener hits pretty hard. Then it got a bit formulaic for me.

When you're great, everyone wants to dim your shine. Sure, they can call it Dad rock or whatever. They can say it's derivative. They're all wrong. The haters. I've seen Under the Pressure played live. And it has evolved from this early album. It is much glossier now than this bare bones version. "I'm in my finest hour. Can I be more than just a fool?" Yeah man. You are alright. The Haunting Idle is a truly epic intro and then, it leaves you there idling like a chef who uses the precisely correct amount of salt and leaves you hungry. And then Burning comes in like Rod Stewart in Young Turks and I am second guessing my defense of their originality, but then it meanders elsewhere.. Technically some of the most persuasive guitar sounds and crisp drum work from a currently working band. War on Drugs will be a band our children will know and respect. They will listen to it to try to understand who we were. This album is a great example of why I love music.

That instant at the beginning when the tapping starts. Do you remember where you were the first time you heard it? I definitely do. It was a crazy time in town. They said in the summer of '91 some of the local kids were going nuts (wasn't me), staying up late and doing wild things. Lock your doors at night they were saying. And that muted trumpet and the tonguing of the sax that emerges full on is all *yeah*. It occurs to me that this is possibly the only flute album besides Carlos Nakai that I like. It occurs to me that Empty Pages is a straight up JAM! All of disk 1 reminiscent of some kids and their wild days of footloose and fancy free (certainly not me). Disk 2 jumps right in there with that little Greg Allman style riff and takes off from there. The second version of JBMD is the better of the two and it is amazing. Solid folk and a lot of finger picking too. Medicated Goo is a definitive low point. And the second disk does drop off a good bit, but it's not enough to negate the accomplishment of the first disk. This is a significant and important album that was the soundtrack of a lot of wild shenanigans (definitely not mine).

This album can be hard for me to listen to sometimes, and not for the usual philistine bullshit complaints about Bob Dylan. It's written in the language of an America that our country mostly forgot how to speak. And it's the only language I know, so it makes me feel somewhat lonesome because there's no one left to talk to most days. This album is so good and so close to home for me, it's painful to listen to it. Tangled up in Blue is easily a song I've listened to hundreds of times. I long for her and miss her as he tells me about this love affair that won't let him go across time and place with the coolest woman in the world. Just devastatingly unrequited love. Man, I get it. Simple Twist of Fate keeps up the melancholy reminisce for me. Just gorgeous. This is Dylan at his finest. Lush and spare at the same time. "Time is a jetplane. It moves too fast." Some of the jingly harmonica songs aren't as good. I can listen to them, but they do detract from the overall quality of the music and they seem tone deaf next to the *masterworks* that also include: Meet Me In The Morning and If You See Her Say Hello (will you please say hello from me as well?), and Shelter From The Storm AND of course, the inimitable Buckets of Rain. Buckets of Rain frequently moves me close to the point of tears. I mean, Buckets of Moonbeams in my Hands. I've seen pretty people disappear like smoke. These lyrics, as many many times as I've heard them, are always fresh and always cut right to my spirit and remind me where to place my feet in the neverending pursuit of the righteous path of love.

From the minute it drops. You know. This album is going to rick and it just changed everything about music. I'm right back there with my first girlfriend in her mom's basement. Her black hair, smelling like apricots. We had such high hopes for Cobain right out of the box and somehow we wound up with Hole as the consolation. That baseline on Teen Spirit. If that doesn't make your sap rise, are you really born in the 1970's? Hello hello hello. Come as you are is the ultimate. You wanna drive. You wanna do stuff. Still a jam and hits hard today. I've been really careful not to listen to this album for years so that when I do, I can jump in a time machine and it isn't worn out. This is music at the core of our generation. Love it!!

Oh no. This is like listening to a Yoko Ono album. Terrible lyrics, maddening transitions, painful vocal noise. Sounds like near the rock bottom drug spiral album or maybe like the midlife crisis album. Or maybe this was an album intended to stick it to a bad contract with a record label. If I could sum it up with one word: alarming.

All I Want to Be and Wind of Change were the low water mark for me on this album. Baby I Love Your Way is sounding schmaltzy now though it was definitely the stuff of slow dances in middle school. I Wanna Go to the Sun is pretty miserable. Money, Shine On is the same. The Only song that stands for me is Do you feel, and honestly I feel it's gimmicky.

This is a major album because it was a huge departure for rap. NWA came out swinging and every PTA in the country was freaking out. It was like Black Sabbath all over again but black. That said, it was a huge album also because it started to say the things that needed to be said and nobody was saying loudly enough (or no one was listening). Kudos to Ice Cube, EZE, and Dre for starting a conversation about Los Angeles that was a catalyst for change and has ultimately set into motion the many other changes in our country like taking down the statues and police reform. This album changed music putting Gangsta Rap on the map setting the stage for later major albums like Fear of a Black Planet. Awesome.

I dug in and enjoyed it. I consider Yes to be a sort of minor band in my pantheon, but it was enjoyable and melodic. Everything I expected and the hits I love, especially I've Seen All Good People were cool to revisit.

This album is great! A Forest, M, and At Night are songs I already know and love. But Secrets and Your House are totally new to me and I love these!!! All those discordant notes and minor chords are just excellent. I did not know that there were songs this good by The Cure I had not yet heard. I always thought I was an early adaptor having started in with the Cure with the vinyl of Three Imaginary Boys which dropped in 1979, just barely ahead of this. Somehow I never heard this one!!

This album is a bit of a euphoric hot mess. So many minor chords and weird noise. Not really my thing, but sort of harmless and interesting. It seems like something composed by someone who spent too much time alone.

There are so many little short songs! Loved the intro to "Roller Coasters", the psychedelic surf rock vibes really lead you down the spiral alongside the other deeply laid background effects. Singer taking a background to this and the ephemeral tempo shifts are very very enticing. That said, this music that my parents would have dug, for me had its moment and while historically important isn't compelling.

Mr. Soul is a killer intro. I love NY and this song never disappoints. Hippy hippy shake guitar solos just shredding. Expecting to Fly is so evocative and makes me think about the inevitable loss of love. Songs like Hung Upside Down don't hold up too well and seem pretty threadbare. By the time you get to Sad Memory, ugh, it's like everyone left the party except me, this guitar, and this bottle of booze and a little smoke rising from a nub of incense. Overall, this is a familiar album that has not endured the years as well as other Neil Young efforts have. Broken Arrow is possibly an exception where his voice is straight and true and rises high. I love that one.

The headline in the LA Times says all I can say about Clapton (including 'Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs' at this waning stage of his career.. "Vaccinated but anti-vaccine, Eric Clapton tests positive for COVID-19". Perhaps a 'Lost Sailor', his contributions are fading into the mists of time on this 42 year old album. Some of the backup vocals do stand the test of time. Thanks for the add to the group. -neurorocker

The last time I heard this album deeply was in 1996 when I was dating a girl from Tulsa whose daddy was a CEO at a big pharma company and now just as then, the music and the girl left a lot to be desired. A studio band a girl that were a veneer of what you hoped. Vapid. Light on content. Superficial.

Not an album I've ever heard before. In the past I've felt about Joy Division the way many people feel about Morrissey (I like most of Morrissey). I always hoped that Joy Division would contextualize for me and have their moment knowing how influential they are. While I'm not a huge fan of the sound of Curtis' vocals (like a less talented Ian Asbury), I discovered some bass-lines and guitar I enjoyed more than on prior forays into the Joy Division catalog. Occasionally, the guitar was as good as some of the best Cure songs (Twenty Four Hours).

When I think back to Judas Priest, I feel like everyone called it heavy metal, and maybe it is, but it just seems like a hardworking rock band to me now. The album and the band were much better than I remembered. The relentless pounding rhythms in Steeler were excellent. There were a few popular tunes like Breakin the Law that I remembered with some fondness. These were counterbalanced by the dreck of United and Red, White & Blue which were both difficult to chew through. Not sure I would be up for a deeper dive of JP, but it was interesting to hear some of the sounds countering my internal narrative about this band.

I remember when this band was pretty hot and I couldn't find the glory in it then. I gave it a shot again this morning and I'm still a no. This polyphonic sound wall is not for me.

Best part is the guitar homage to Eye of the Tiger on Bootylicious. Other than that just wracked my brain to determine which auto-tuned keyboard song hurt my ears most. Brown Eyes was the one I finally landed on. That song seems like the soundtrack I would need if I took up full time inspiration porn on my Pinterest board. Happy Face was a very close second. I struggled to dislike one more than the other. The spoken word xian gospel lyrics were just salt in the wound.

They tried to warn us. I remember the exact moment when I first heard this album. I was on a bus bouncing through the back roads of the South San Juan Mountains of Colorado. This was the last album I heard before 24 days of hardcore alpine mountaineering with a crew of five dudes, ice axes, lines, and brand new boots. Hundreds of miles and weeks later and the lyrics were still bouncing around in my brain as they had all along the trail. The album stands. It was way ahead of its time. Probably is still ahead of its time and inaccessible to a lot of Americans who will never understand. Game-changer.

The first notes are so melancholy and moving. A worthy start for one of the most talented American performers, taken from us way too soon and so tragically (https://www.theguardian.com/music/2004/mar/19/popandrock.elliottsmith). I'm trying to remember which ex-girlfriend it was that introduced me to Elliott Smith. Might have been Sasha or maybe Erica. Probably it was Jen. But it was a long time ago, and the love affair with this music went on far longer than the relationship with her ever did (somebody that I used to know). Individually through the magic of Napster, I have quite a few of the individual tracks if Figure 8 in my collection, but there are unheard tracks here. Junk Bond. This is new to me and it swings. Guitars like church gongs in the first stanza. Easy Way Out = 💔. Damn. It's very hard not to like an Elliot Smith album. I've never heard anyone say oh I hate Elliot Smith. I think that's because you have to love music to even get introduced to Elliot Smith. And since anyone who really loves music loves Elliot Smith, no one really dislikes his music. A very quiet massive figure and this album is beautiful. Top notch. Bye.

This is a solid Depeche Mode album. Not something I would listen to frequently, but it definitely has its time and place.

This has to be the best band with the worst vocals I can think of in this genre.

This is an album that has expired. I get that this is the basis of rock and roll, but it's just all bleached bones to me now to hear. My Dad would be tapping his foot!

The opening is regal with the strings and acoustic. A lush, calm, and exquisite entrance. Second track definitely feels like Drake songs I know, sets a quickened pace and we are off. I love the sax in Chimes of a City Clock, a track I've loved a long time. It is a very mature sound far from the reckless abandon of 80's sax. Perfectly understated and not saccharin. I'm sure I am not alone in thinking that 'Fly' is superb. I feel the early notes of 'Poor Boy' are the weakest section of the album, the melody getting lost a bit with over-complex transitions. The angelic background singing pulls it all back together, however, and then this triumph rises to a completely harmonized sonic tunnel that gives way to a just slightly dirtier sax outburst and I'm all in! Northern Sky is excellent and an all time favorite. The album ends on a low note for me as it barely averts drifting into 70's schmaltz.

It's one of these major albums that changed music. Clapton is a person who I have so many personal disagreements with that I find him a bit hard to stomach and I think his dangerous opinions will ultimately dilute his popularity as a musician.

This was a pretty solid Morrissey album. I have a limited subset of his songs in my general rotation and none of these are them. Mostly rock and with predictable rhythms, but with that trademark voice that I like and the rambling and the weird noise that I also like. Overall, just a solid album. My favorite part was the piano nod at the very end to Sing me to Sleep, a great song and worthy of the musical hat tip.

Love all the old classics, didn't hear a lot that I hadn't listened to extensively here in the past. There was the one exception though, loved 'Oddfellows Local 151' which is a song that if not new to me I've not often heard!! Great track. Solid album, great band. I recall partying in Athens and hearing the locals down there rave about what great guys they are. Always amplifies a band in my opinion if they're good people.

In 1998, I was graduating from college. I was 21 and the world was full of promise. This album was barely a blip on my radar at the time and failed to rise above the many other outstanding albums that were coming out. I was deep into downloading and accumulated much of the incredible library I now enjoy. Still not doing it for me.

Just a solid rock album through and through for every song. Thoroughly enjoyed this Friday "full send" album that gets the work done!

Nice to hear a Def Leppard album. The only time I saw the band was in 2006 or so. I was in the front row and center with a buddy and ended up partying in the hotel room with one of the guys from the band in New Orleans. It was an epic and unforgettable night. I enjoyed this album quite a bit!

This is a fabulous album. The driving beats and the excellent guitar work perfectly tuned to the vocals all combine for an absolute smash. Something about this music makes me feel comfortable and at home in my skin. I'm so psyched to go see two nights of AF later this year!

It's a huge evolution that we see on this album against the Destiny's Child album heard recently. And, I appreciate the changes. It's clear that Beyonce grew as an artist between the two albums. That said, songs like 'Rocket' still sound like they are in church, and I really dislike that vocal style. Overall, not for me, but maybe the next one??

This is top shelf rock. Funny thing about this album by the greatest rock band of all time. The first track sucks. But after that... We are off and the redemption is immediate with The Rover. In My Time of Dying is a slow start and then leaps into the tight little guitar spins and quick tempo interchanges. Drums are slammin. Eventually we wend our way to Kashmir which could very well be my favorite song by my favorite band. It's an anthem and I love the Tolkien imagery as well as the strings. Legendary stuff of rock. Disc 2 is off with a bang as In the Light hits us with the heavy guitars and the total optimism halfway through. This song brings hope. Bron Yr Ar takes me back to my early teenage years, eyes full of hope and trepidation. And we swing into the hazy lazy Down By the Riverside. Ten Years Gone reminds me of my dead best friend (we used to listen to Zeppelin all the time for years before he was swept away). The backs of so many cars. So many basements. Campfires. All the excellent nights. "Rivers always reach the sea".

I'm so glad to see this album! This is one of the best Neil Young albums and almost no one knows it well. The best part of this album for me is that I discovered it myself later in life (in my 40's), so it isn't intertwined with complex teenage memories. I know every inch of it and love it so much. That Wurlitzer on See the Sky About to Rain combined with the slide is just... too perfect. The banjo on For the Turnstyles is just classic and portends banjo on later songs like Old King. Good thing I have this album in my collection since Neil Young is *still* way to good for Spotify!!!

This is such a funky and fun Talking Heads album. Classic Byrne bouncing around, seemingly having fun, but technically sound!

Sebadoh is kind of like Pavement. I know they are out there, I know people love to listen to it, but mostly it doesn't do it for me. I always feel like I must be missing something, and indeed sometimes a band will suddenly contextualize for me, so I'll just say, I'm not quite ready for Sebadoh if this album is representative.

I just didn't like this one at all... :(

CCR managed to always give the Southern fried rock served up without the racism. This album is a solid one packed full of the hits that defined the band and got radio play for decades. Liked it, even if the sound is becoming a bit tired and dated. Lots to be nostalgic for and a good tight album with many important songs.

Our Lips are Sealed was one we had on 45 with We Got the Beat! I distinctly remember the family dancing to it. So, it was very nice to revisit this album that came out when I was 6! It is even better than I remember it. The sound has actually not only held up, but sounds incredible keeping pace with some of the hottest music. It's still edgy, tight licks, and hot chicks. The guitar on Lust to Love is especially kick@$$.

This was much better than I was expecting! I really enjoyed all of it! Lots of cowbell.

I have actually listened to a couple CB albums in the past. I liked that opening track which was a classic. Despite the funky name, this band is pretty conventional with a whiff of the 60's psychedelic style into Zig Zag Wanderer. That whiff turns into a full odor by the time you get to Dropout Boogie. I'm Glad makes a complete shift to RNB and that's kind of weird. By electricity, we are back to the gimmicky psychedelic soul replete with therimin. Is that what I'm hearing?? Anyhow, the last ten songs seem to blur together into an ooze and others overheard this and said, that must be the worst music I've ever heard!

Maybe it was growing up to him on the warm sound of spinning vinyls. Maybe it was people spontaneously singing the lyrics around me. I'll always have a home for the too often reviled Dylan. This album is a masterwork. A lullaby by its end and so many of the greatest hits are on it. Dylan is indeed a prince and an American icon. That said, I finally went to see him at Jazzfest one year. The swamp was so hot that I ended up 10,000 miles away from the jumbotron smashed between de-shirted frat bros, and it made me reconsider. All of those images were in my head as I enjoyed some of the lesser known tracks. Stellar artist and a great example.

Don't tell anyone about this album which is by far and away one of the greatest kept secrets in music. I have listened to it hundreds of times and it just never lets me down. It was like revisiting an old friend with whom you never quarrel. The transition to Calvary Cross has to be one of the greatest in modern music history. Try not to cry when the existential wall hits you and you now know there is 'Nothing at the End of the Rainbow'. I always want to know more. Who were the Thompsons? Why were they so good? How come they never got famous? But I decided a long time ago intentionally NOT to open any of those boxes and potentially spoil the music. So dense and each song standing so alone that every song is like an album. If I was trapped on a desert island and could only have five albums, this would probably be one of them.

This is an album that should mean so much to me as a red-blooded American, but doesn't There is a track or two that is excellent.. Okay, Born to Run is excellent. The rest is just okay. If there isn't a freight train runnin through the middle of my bed, it just isn't Bruce enough for me. Just okay.

When I was a kid, this was a 5. I knew every word and we often sang songs from it on our many drives between Washington DC and home shuttling between parents. I think now it has faded for me, possibly fueled by angst and resentment. lol. #overshare.

Mid-college album for me in Northern Arizona enjoying the Southwest and definitely finding all the clubs between Houston and Phoenix. This album was highly relevant for a couple of months in '96 starting in Texas for me and then carrying on for a few years. And a lot of events occurred with its birth that were terribly exciting. It calls up girls in leather catsuits and limos and other things that won't now be transcribed in detail from the thankfully analogue experiences of then to the digital AI superstructure of now. Needless to say, a wonderful pacifying album for some extremely interesting times. I know every song of this like the curves of Schnebly Hill Road or the vintage 70's couches of East Flagstaff or the Kingfisher's bar in Tucson. Mmm. This was a ground-breaking album that erupted and shattered the late grunge era of that year with a fresh sound. And this sound has basically persisted for decades in some genres though never as good as the first time. There is no bad song on this album. Wrong is my favorite with wherever you go I will follow you, but also Mirrorball is a hot track. Bringing back almost a bit too many memories!!

I did not find this particularly to my taste and I really love 80's music and had high hopes.

There were like 800 songs on this album! It was a fun punkstravaganza. Several quiet or thoughtful tracks alongside the more traditional fodder.

I love Kind of Blue. Though I've slogged through this album any of a number of times (and even studied it in college), it just has not contextualized for me yet. Really respect Miles Davis, but this one is very difficult.

It was a groovy journey with a few tracks that rose above. Bit too much flute for my taste!

I've always struggled with Bad Brains even though people I deeply respect love this group. So, I always try to dip in and try them periodically. So glad I did. This was way better than previous engagements. She's Calling you was the highlight. Lots of very tight timing changes.

Tonight the Bottle Let me Down is surely the best track here and portends the better music that Haggard made later in his career. Just kidding, that's not on this album. Haggard, usually a country star favorite of mine from the early outlaw subgenre is music I usually love, but this album was just too early in his development to give me much to get excited about.

A very solid Brit punk album from a band I did not know. Overall, it is a classic. I still have my top favorite punk albums and this won't be in it, but I can see why this band is considered highly innovative. The driving drums combined with the various singing styles were the highlight for me.

Is it RNB? Am I on a spacecraft? Is this an opera or is the orchestra tuning up their instruments? Somewhere in between?? Although I really dislike RNB, I found myself somehow entranced by this album which passes somewhere from this halls into another intergalactic dimension and it held my interest. I feel like I could give this one a few more listens as it was pretty fascinating.

It's a stunning and beautiful album. Many of the songs I know very well, but others are new to me. If Tom Waits is new to you, I am so sorry you didn't grow up with it on the record player as I was so lucky to do then and now too. His voice and his sound are embedded into the soul fabric of my music heart. I love to hear it. If you've never seen it, please watch this Tom Waits video as it will make you laugh and just shows his range, his depth, and his humor! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9NWUqR5w_A

Kind of a fun trashy punk 'n' hair band. I can see why this album has some swag and I really enjoyed it for the most part. Some of the lyrics are a bit top heavy on sniffing glue, but otherwise, I surprised myself by enjoying and humming a long to it more than I expected! The clean interludes on 'Vietnamese Baby' were technically great. 'Subway Train' was catchy.

Of the many things I love about Little Richard, these songs aren't any of them. I think this is certainly where I must have first encountered this interesting and electrifying persona, but probably not the one I remember most. If you aren't watching him do his thing in a video, the music just cannot fully convey his entirety.

This is that edgy over-produced sound that just has bro time in the Jeep Wrangler off-roading reverberating out of every melody. Not as good as 311 or Daft Punk, but just sort of nipping at their heels.

The Jam is great and this album has most of the songs by them that I remember and like. I always think of this as New Wave, but Wiki calls it punk perhaps owing to the undefinable but totally recognizable vocal sound. So English. Great album.

The title track definitely runs away with the album and then you hit a string of WTF. Blue Turk is like an awful Doors song would sound if you had your head under water. I deeply regret that I had to listen to this twice to pen these conclusions.

This album got played to death when I was a kid-- and it sounds pretty wilted to me today. I was not happy with his recent forays as described on a recent Reddit thread, "Van Morrison released his new album 'Latest Record Project' and backlash immediately followed. The album included anti-lockdown and antisemitic lyrics. In the song 'Where Have All The Rebels Gone?' he sings about how rockstars should appose the coronavirus lockdowns. In 'They Own The Media' there are lyrics relating to conspiracy theories of Jews secretly running the media(Jews aren't specifically mentioned but it is pretty clear what he's implying)." This is probably the last time I'll intentionally give one of his albums airplay. What a d**k.

This is by far and away the best album produced by Air that I have heard. Listening to it is like watching a movie-- so cinematic and dreamlike in its dialogues. I've heard it a thousand times and briefly entered a period of my life when I listened to it repeatedly. Air has other great albums as well, so if you are a newcomer to their sound, I definitely encourage exploration!

By the time we get to this album, Taylor Swift has been through many changes. She got out from under the thumb of her original management, and has matured incredibly. And it's not just that I'm friends with her bass player, Amos (humble brag), but I do think the music shows her maturity and her willingness to grow far from the place where she started. This album is haunting, well made and has terrific guest vocals. The lyrics are surprisingly powerful. I've listened to it quite a few times prior to Friday, but continue to enjoy it quite a bit.

When it dropped, I felt very let down. I had wanted a reprise to Pretty Hate Machine, an album with outsize influence on my probably owing to all the time I spent with girlfriend Joanna listening to it. But in this album, they seemed to lose the melody with the exception of 'Piggy' which is a terrific song, but with lyrics that for some reason offended me then. I like that sound now, words and all. Nothing can stop me now. Closer on this album is pretty epic and definitely was an important early college song that got a lot of air time at parties etc. Hurt left me feeling shattered. Still does. I leaned on that song in hard times and I still do. It's an important one. When Johnny Cash did it, I felt like Gen X had been fully vindicated by the aging boomers. It was a nod and a passing of the torch. It's a gorgeous empire of dirt.

On the one hand, this Southern fried album has a lot of great tracks that I remember from growing up and listening to it in the South. On the other hand, it's hard to ignore the rift between the band and Neil Young (though he would later come to temper that somewhat). But Neil was spot on that the band was racist and rocking the confederate flag at their shows. After everything that has happened in our country since this came out, I can honestly say, it's hate not heritage-- and that makes it hard to want to hear.

It's a brief but comfortable ride into the disco funk vibe and I dig it. The horns in 'I Want Your Love' was the high water mark for me. Technically solid and tight-- a tasty jam. I seem to remember Le Freak as the standout hit from the album, but overall, it was unfamiliar to me otherwise and underplayed.

This album is a heartsong that speaks to the places I emerged from: slow, rural, earthy. It is interesting to read her story as an adopted child born in NYC and then being raised in L.A., finally landing in Nashville. I was somewhat sorry I did because I always thought her voice came from the kind of place I did, but it turns out that's not the case. That created a dialogue about authenticity for me, but nonetheless, an album like this by a woman whose biological mother may have grown up in the mountains of North Carolina still feels like she never left those blue hills. Or maybe has strived so hard to find them. I know the feeling.

I know this is one of those that I should enjoy but don't. Father of the blues and all that. I'm a nope for Muddy Waters.

Excellent album. Loved the vocals with Tricky and whoever that is that was in Everything But the Girl. I could listen to this one quite often.

It shouldn't be controversial to say that Morrissey has one of the best voices of his era, but apparently it is for some. The Meat is Murder album is not my top favorite Smiths albums but has a lot of melodic songs that take me back to the early 90's when I was listening to the Smiths on repeat. It's hard to believe this album dates to 1985 and is only their second! Morrissey had really hit hist stride here and the driving tinny drums and groovy little guitar riffs way behind the vocals that form the mechanics of the trademark sound were already falling well into place. It is an excellent album that would blend well with almost any circumstance. Well I Wonder seems to be the best track on the album, because it has a more thoughtful rhythm, more melancholic passion, and lots of transitions and drops to keep it interesting and multi-dimensional. Overall, excellent.

This is a wonderful album. I was right on this the minute it left Glasgow way back and once upon a time. There were other albums made, but this was the one that got me. Dylan in the Movies is the one I loved most. We were listening to it at the deluxe parties at the house on Park Street. You can't say it rocked, but it was different and alluring and it was luxurious to see all those drop dead gorgeous women vibing to it. Wish I could go back to one of those parties and hear it all again, once more, for the very first time.

I'm actually now dead inside. Someone resuscitate me. Like Ween had a lovechild with Peter Paul and Mary and had no sense of humor. Or like 72 acquaintances were like, hey everybody write a song that sounds completely like it should be on its own album and we'll turn it into an album that goes on forever and ever. I have deep regrets having exposed myself to this. I think this is a strong contender for the absolute worst album of all time! Perhaps that is its significance. Give me the worst of Frank Zappa. Give me Grateful Dead space all day. They Might Be Giants studio outtakes. Anything but this. Okay, on disk 2, perhaps it is telling that I fell for the track "No One Will Ever Love You". This is a great piece of music. By the time we get to Washington, D.C., I'm actually feeling a little offended. Honestly, how can you canonize my beloved city in such an audibly destructive manner? Rough.

OG album. What's not to like!?

Just a tour de force. It was my kids that got me listening to Adele in the last few years. They are always excited to hear her so by extension, so am I! This album is the best I've heard and it is a stable around us.

A favorite. This is arguably the best Jamiroquai album when they were really at their peak. The music had smoothened from the earlier albums and was more authentic than the later ones. Sometimes the rhythmic juxtaposition and transitions aren't very listenable and I think that's heard the most on 'Hooked Up' and 'Whatever it is, I Just Can't Stop'. 'Too Young to Die' and the flirty 'Blow Your Mind'. Nice album to revisit. Always pleasant, enjoyable and fun. Great driving album.

I could not distinguish this album from all the other punk albums out there.

I enjoy the depth and tenor of Nick Cave, but there are very few songs that he performs that I enjoy. I found none that wanted for a return listen on this album whatsoever.

This is an album that represents the launch of an entire era of music. It is highly significant in that context and some songs were a massive departure from everything before and landed solidly in the late 80's-- particularly Bad, Man in the Mirror, Dirty Diana, Smooth Criminal, and Leave me Alone exemplify this. Off the Wall and of course Thriller had set these wheels in motion, and in many ways, it is Thriller that is the standout for originality and shapeshifting music thinking. But it's also really important to remember that by the time this album had come out, a lot of the 80's sounds had already been codified. And Michael Jackson had been playing quite a long time and had witnessed firsthand the role of the black American musician that started in RnB and rock and roll in the 50's push into these new areas-- and Jackson was able to move with it transcending the chorus of voices of his siblings into the rockstar and international pop sensation-- something unparalleled in black music at the time. Bad is a solid album although it is not as pleasing to hear now that so many years have passed and styles have frayed.

This album was terrific! Although it is not my personal favorite group of Cure songs (for example, I could listen to All Cats are Grey all day), it is very good. I think almost any Cure album is a four for me! Having seen them live in the last couple years, it now brings back memories of that wonderful evening outside listening to some of my very favorite musicians.

The album drags hard until you hit 'Let Me Love You Like a Woman'. This song hits the velvety regal character that I have come to expect from Lana. It loses momentum again on 'Wild at Heart'. She's a dead ringer for Joni Mitchell on "For Free" which is a neat trick and not easily done. I'm actually a huge fan, so it pains me to rate it this way. What happened here?

This album is so smooth, you probably wouldn't notice if it let your daughter in backstage and took advantage of her age and power dynamic. Oh wait, that's Win Butler, not the album. Super hard not to intermingle the uncoolness of the recent allegations against Butler by four fans aged 18-23 versus the album. Butler's statement to Pitchfork is pretty pathetic: "I’m sorry I wasn’t more aware and tuned in to the effect I have on people - I fucked up, and while not an excuse, I will continue to look forward and heal what can be healed, and learn from past experiences." So for that reason, I say boycott AF. And just in case that seems flippant, I recently refunded two nights of tix for their DC show.

Solid album. About as close to the best American band of all time as I have ever found. Greatest musical regret is not seeing them live. Gallow's Pole, Tangerine, it's hard to pick a favorite. Maybe That's the Way is the one. Hats Off to Roy is the weakest track and it's still pretty good based on originality alone. Easy 5 for me.

Slips in with a characteristic droning sound though I've never heard it before. Immediately like the downbeat vibes. Second track lightens up and then Kim Gordon starts whispering to me. I feel like I could listen to her voice in conversation for about 100 years. Everything about it I like, even when she's screaming or just falling apart a la, "Can I have the car keys.. I wanna go for a ride" on Drive which is an absolute turn it up to 11 favorite from the album Dirty. Shadow of a Doubt is sweet with just a little hint of chaos. Starpower is really good. Gordon is kind of singing around you, not to you on this one. In The Kingdom sounds like a less-deep-fried Southern Culture on the Skids. A big bad voodoo Cadillac headed right for the edge of the cliff and we're just gonna go ahead and keep the gas all the f*****g way down. Secret Girl is like a haunted house and someone is playing a toy piano in the attic. You're not gonna hear this kind of music anywhere else but in a SY album. Just so singular and authentic. Minor chords, crisp high hat, far away singing, heavy heavy guitars, and all manner of unexpected chaos. Can't be a 5, but I absolutely love it. Gorgeous.

Meh.

Delicious, smooth and soothing album! I love music like this album and I think it has stood the test of time far better than other genres. Some of the slow ones are a little cheesy.

I find this kind of saccharine high drama symphonic music really grating. Her voice dos nothing for me. I think this album may be geared toward the German Musical enthusiast set. The only thing worse are the terrible lyrics. Anything with Tom Waits association I always figured I would love, but I suppose rules are made to be broken. Blech. Excuse me while I bleach my earholes.

Moments on the verge of greatness, but mostly an album full of misses and a little too much cheese. Synths are dated and the cadences and changeups are a little bouncy.

This is great. Kind of like Smiths meet Coldplay and The Cure.

This album was a touch early in the evolution of rock / RnB for me. Very tough to relate in any meaningful way.

It's a classic 80's album that got a ton of airplay in my childhood. It was so light-hearted and surface that it made a weird soundtrack to the young Gen X'ers growing up. I'm in Touch With Your World is the worst of it quickly followed by Doncha Stop which is also bad. Bye Bye Love has stood the test of time better than others, but then the guitar riffs and keyboard in the beginning of Moving in Stereo are still also pretty epic. This is a solid and outstanding 80's album. All Mixed Up should have been left off the album.

This is okay. Kind of like Jay-Z with way more gratuitous swearing. Parts seem very interesting with good samples, but I don't quite see how this is a breakthrough in music.

If this album has a redeeming quality I could not find it.. Disappointing to have to suffer through not one but two disks.

'The Sound Of Someone You Love Who Is Going Away And It Doesn't Matter' is the clear standout on this album and also its redemption. It's no wonder at 11:46!! That keyboard is just a delight tickling all the keys in your brain and 'strings make everybody feel everything'. It's a gorgeous and lush song--until they drive it off the god damned cliff 7 and a 1/2 minutes in. Hugebaby is also good and they manage not to fuck it up. Chartered Flight is fair. I could do with less standup bass plucking.

It was very hard for me to discriminate as to why this is a standout probably owing to my lack of deep exposure to this genre. To me it sounded like every other album of the type that I've heard at restaurants and clubs. Pleasant, but nothing special.

This is one I grew up with on vinyl and eventually bought my own copy on vinyl. It is a very important and solid album. The Wind Cries Mary is my personal favorite as it's a little more harmonious than some of the others. That's my favorite Jimi.. The man who gives us his luxurious voice accompanied by groovy guitars. I resonate more with this Jimi than the screaming guitars and feedback or the quickfire pace of Manic Depression or Third Stone from the Sun. I once had a very serious head-on collision to Watchtower and to be honest even though I have nothing against it, I really haven't listened too much to his music since that time-- at 15. Just because it brings back that horrific crash.

Hated this one.

This is primo. The top grade Gen X mainline critical. A near perfect album from the cover art to every lyric. You can reject him for the unique voice or the words, but honestly who besides Cobain and Vetter caught the zeitgeist better than this? Top stuff.

Technically terrific album. Plenty of talent and a great sound. But I'm a no. I'll side with against this-- again. https://www.mcgilldaily.com/2022/11/a-reckoning-within-the-arcade-fire-fandom/

It's probably my least favorite Beck album which is to say still pretty awesome and certainly a portent of the incredible magic which has followed this amazing creature and his band. Beck is a wizard and a joy to see in concert. As an aside, I was pretty impressed when he sided with principles instead of money and cancelled Arcade Fire by leaving the tour.

Top album. Water of Love, Sixblade Knife, and Wild West End are some of the least mainstream yet most slammin' Knopfler tunes. Sultans of Swing is worn out from the radio burning it down, but a great tune. I remember way back in the day having one hell of a love affair with a gorgeous woman whose favorite tune was Wild West End. Ha! That one conjures some memories! I'm a pretty unabashed Dire Straits song. The guitar alchemy of it all.

I feel like I may have heard Grant Lee Buffalo a handful of times as a teenager and blown it off. I was mightily impressed to hear it with a more mature outlook. The vocals were slightly reminiscent of Bowie and I think it is a very rich and unapologetic album that stands pretty tall. I gave it two listens, because I am always intrigued with artists that I truly hear for the first time and genuinely like! This sounds authentic and technically pleasing.

Abbey Road is an album that I bought on vinyl one summer in Croatia. It was a cheap pressing, but I certainly loved it and played it often. Nice to revisit songs like Maxwell's Hammer, Come Together and so many other classics. You Never Give Me Your Money is by far and away my favorite track though not the most popular one. Still a great album.

This is funky and weird. Just a few songs, but woah that last one is erm.. long! But that last one does indeed have the best sound as it diverges from what is otherwise kind of a strange offshoot of prog rock or something. The chugging guitar licks and the weird distant vocals all come together to make something pleasing. Still think this is the last time I will ever listen to this album, but kudos for that last anthem.

This is the one Pogues album I've listened to extensively. I had a little Pogues love affair as a teen. I left this album behind in the wastebin of a misspent youth, but still kept a bit of the spirit and the dancing which is like the antidote to the dark and stormy Dropkick Murphys. Turkish Song of the Damned is sounding great with the dust knocked off and Fairytale of New York is, of course, the one track I've carried all these years and kept in my Xmas rotation sometimes getting misty of the days gone long with my first girlfriend, Jane and my great friends Lauren and Raphael. Cars big as bars and rivers of gold. Thousands are Sailing is noteworthy. Lullaby of London hits certain note sequences that also bring forth the wellspring of sentimentality. Worms is easily the low point and I assume offered up for humor. As an aside, if you've not been, please hurry and go see Ireland. They are the kindest and most compassionate people in the world. From a cultural and humanistic standpoint, it's the greatest country in the world.

I mean this is close to the highest great of American music that I can think of. Every damn song is a masterpiece. Git it, Mic!! I did notice how extremely ahead of its time Monkey Man is with that crisp and delicate piano. What a great intro! A surprise every time. You Can't Always Get What You Want. The lovely choir and the bittersweet message for me, because what if you can't get what you need either.. I dipped into this album deeply in grad school as my good friend, Dana, the half mad genius bartender at Pat O's in the French Quarter only wanted to hear the Stones. So we played it and played and lolled around the FQ for many a long night of admiring the scenery and the night blooming jasmine. Good days in NOLA with the Stones, and this album for a lot of it.

I don't necessarily like musicians just because they are well loved which I know Leonard Cohen is. My belief is that Everybody Knows is his only palatable song in spite of the cheesy keyboard. But we're not here for that. We are starting off with Bird on a Wire..I have to admit I've never heard this version of a song I associate strongly with Johnny Cash. Immediate reaction is that Cohen must've been extraordinarily young on this album as he hasn't attained the deep raspy voice of his later songs. The Story of Isaac.. this old Biblical tale. The story is old and tired and the song isn't much better. That's a hearty 'meh' from me. The Partisan is better, mostly owing to the accompanying French female vocalist. When people who hate Bob Dylan (not me) describe his voice, it reminds me of how I feel about all the vocals on this album which easily overpower the music and don't show much talent. This is maybe worse than that. Depressing. Underwhelming. I could've done without it and I still don't get Leaonard Cohen.

Interesting album. I've never been exposed to this one. I find this catchy, and as the album progressed, began to like it more and more. Definitely could see rolling down the highway to this one all alone in the desert. The vocals are unique and interesting. Drums were notably good and drive the power of the band. Guitar on She's So Loose and the song overall is very attractive and kept me in. Great chord progressions and cadence shifts. Overall, I really like this album and it was much better than I expected!

First track is the one I remember from when this dropped in 92. Second track way better than I remembered. Third track is a little so-so, the female vocal accompaniment is a little fomulaic and bouncy. The next couple are similarly poor. We pick back up with the groovy All Night Long. Here the accompanying vocals are excellent harkening back to 70s funk scene call and response. Quick and tight little piano riffs and the overall lack of lyrics help this song immensely. Step it Up is one of the tracks that got more play time when this album was hot. Still holds up pretty well. Nice sax solos, but I could always do with less flute (Jethro Tull ruined all flute for me). Pressure is way too cheesy. Chicken Shake is another nice instrumental (except for the flute flirting in and out). The next few tracks suffer from repetitive and boring beats and by now we've heard the accent of the lead vocals to the point we're getting annoyed. Nice tempo shift on the last one, but it's just not enough to overcome all the flaws. By the time I listen to is, I'm feeling pretty grateful it's the end.

Slammin'. I bet watching this album live was so hot hot hot.

This is one of those albums that made sense to some people at a certain time. It got huge air play for the couple of catchy songs it has, but overall, the album is boring and the two songs are played out.

Pleasant album with enjoyable sounds throughout!

It was about July of 1989 when I heard this album and I remember exactly where I was. I was in the Finger Lakes region of New York with the people of my childhood hero, Karl Johnson. We were waterskiing and tubing in the lake by day, but by night, the kids of a variety of ages would gather on the dock and listen to tunes. Like a Prayer was the one that hit and hit hard. It was a truly singular song and it was tremendously exciting. I still just love it. Perhaps because of those warm nights in New York, but probably just because Madonna is amazing. To this day, I follow her Insta and she's awesome. Tonight when I revisited 'Oh Father' again, it hit me so differently. I have a friend that says we all love strings because they make us all feel the feelings. that can be said about this intro which I had to rewind and listen to about 16 times today. It's really excellent. Probably TMI as usual but the song now, today, is so much more relatable with my own relationship with my father that has shattered the false golden haze of childhood and has now become so diminished. And I realize his shortcomings. Pray for Spanish Eyes is also an underrated Madonna song. Go to 2:01 and listen to what she does with her voice. It's nuts. It's organic. It just spits into a million shards and I think that is just the raw amazing power of Madonna-- before auto-tune y'all. Nothing but pure talent. We don't have singers like this today. Not really.

Ah, another Belle & Sebastian album. This one lacks all the associated memories compared to the other one we reviewed. So good, catchy, but not great for me personally

I was surprised that I liked this at all. It was much more enjoyable and had more depth than I expected.

The first time I heard this was late night watching the 1995 movie Tank Girl which features the song "Roads" in a truly magnificent shower scene. I have no idea how the movie holds up today, but the Portishead song stayed with me as one of the best timed songs with great keyboard, spare beats, and a singular voice. I immediately bought the album and loved it. it Could be Sweet is a solid track as well. Wandering Star. There are quite a few nice ones and they are cohesive and flow well together. Portishead is no longer a sound I long to hear often, but there were a couple years when I certainly played and heard this album a lot. The talent is obvious.

I really wanted to like this because there are some The Jam songs I like a lot, but I couldn't get into it. I like the vocals, but the lyrics and the general cadence didn't seem exciting.

I don't think I'll often say this, but I didn't finish this one. There were elements, small elements that I liked, but overall the annoying parts really outsized the minor parts I liked.

Oh wow I am liking this a lot! I guess this is kind of that English punk new wave sound, but a band I've never heard. Like it right in there with the Specials and the UK Subs. Band totally fits the time. Overall, the sound is perfect, harmonious and not to gratuitously angry, good lyrics, sweet guitars, short songs, and more than one chord per song. Baseline for 'On Wheels' is pretty sick. What a great band. Nice to find a new one I actually like!!

No weak tracks on it. It is a legendary near-flawless ode to rock heaven. "Nobody rules these streets at night but me!" Eddie Van Halen comes in strong on this initial album and showed us who the god of rock was. Technical talents-- near classical music level-- had never been applied to heavy rock before this. We had never heard this level of control and peacocking despite earlier heavy bands like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and Molly Hatchet. Overwhelmingly, the VH sound was positive, but with a ton of hot dogging and sexual innuendo, and probable misogyny. I remember parents hated it and it was controversial. The boomers could not hang with VH. We had this album on vinyl, and I know I had it on tape later. It was an absolute staple. As a boy, 'Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love' was a top favorite, particularly for the "I've been to the edge..." segue. Still love it. Alex Van Halen was also a technical master and this is suddenly evident on 'Show Your Love'. Imagine, the very first album arrives and Alex and Eddie are rocking this hard this consistently on nearly every track. As for the elephant in the room, David Lee Roth is awesome. His funny light-hearted stage strutting in tights will never be forgotten. His voice was powerful and very California and like nothing we had ever heard. He was in it for fun and it showed and it made hard rock fun for us too!

Wow. Incredible. I loved this album. Never heard this band. I've heard a lot of African music but this is way more listenable than most! I'm excited to find this one!!

This album is so hugely popular. My mother played it almost constantly. I'm probably going against the grain to say it, but I just hate her voice. The best songs on the album are the covers, but I mean, how you going to outdo Aretha? How you gonna beat the Shirelles? James Taylor did You've Got a Friend so much better. Everything that King sings is like she jumped the shark.

I felt like this was a weird redux of Grandmaster Flash. Didn't do a lot to me, but some of the Go Go stuff was pretty enticing. Maybe with a couple more listens, but I wasn't super excited about it.

Neil Young is a musician I admire a lot. I think I got started with CSNY and then worked my way through many of his very fine albums. I've seen him live when he opened for Dave Matthews. I have discovered a lot of his albums over the years, but I definitely don't think I've heard his entire expansive catalogue. For example, I just really started enjoying 'On the Beach'. This album was new to me, but I found it really terrific. Another reason to be a fan is that Neil Young is always on the side of ethics. He told Spotify to stick it to protest their promotion of Joe Rogan's insane COVID conspiracy theories. And he stuck to it. That's exactly the correct place to be. I don't like live albums generally as much as studio albums unless I was at the show, so while some of his albums are fives for me, this one is a four.

Solid Steely Dan album with lots of the hits. I found myself bopping along to it.

Tight little album by CCR with most of the best hits and a few solid tracks you didn't grow up to on the radio. CCR always brings the big Southern rock sound that they pioneered and did so much better than Lynyrd Skynyrd (who suck in the plainest of terms).

Very impressive album with some far out creative sounds that make you feel like you really missed out on something special when this was going down in 1976. I mean can you imagine dancing to this live in '76? I bet it was hot hot hot!!

That intro guitar is off to an incredibly great start! I'm familiar with Beach House which jumped onto my radar from the dreck in the last couple of years only but had not heard this particular album. I like this atmospheric band that has slight echoes of MGMT in certain places but seems fresh and new in their approach. It's a good album but not necessarily one I will seek out again.

Slammin'!! A tour de force. Wow, what a great voice with terrific instrumentation. Piano Joint came on with a strong Bill Withers vibe, yet it was completely unique. Sparse piano, quiet background vocals, and strings ornament the luxurious voice of Michael Kiwanuka. Can't really say enough good about this one. I'm excited to find a 5 from an act I've never even heard of!!

I didn't like English psychedelic rock the first time around, so this is like a shit sequel to that. Not really a fan of this sound.

I don't really have anything of substance to say about Amy Winehouse. Never got her appeal, still don't. To me, this is a musician who is not noteworthy.

I heard the first note and immediately dread and regret the fact that there are 21 tracks of what I now expect will be modern RNB-- my least favorite genre. Some of those tracks are less than a minute, so there's no need to have a defibrillator on site. I mean honestly, if I wanted to go to church, I wouldn't be an atheist. That's really my bone to pick from RNB that I can't parse it out of gospel church music since both are so steeped in the same tradition. At one time, RNB had its own identity and then those lines at some point inexplicably blurred and the genre expired. All the Interludes were the best part because the singing wasn't very present, but even these weren't very interesting and didn't lift the album above the static. Junie and Don't Touch My Hair were the low points to me. I was surprised Q-Tip would associate with this project. Terrible for me.

Look Back and Laugh was quite good! The rest sort of blurred past me. Not a huge fan of this album based on one listen.

The good songs were played out on classic rock stations for years and years and the rest is pretty ho hum. Definitely not a fan. Somewhat difficult to revisit. Not earbleed painful, but not great.

Before diving in, it really is worth understanding the extremely adverse circumstances under which Jarrett performed that cold rainy night in 1975. Because understanding this underscores just how grand an accomplishment it is. You should read the Wiki. To hear the Koln Concert is to hear one of the greatest live piano concerts that has ever been recorded. It is bursting with complex emotion and poignant melodies. Jarrett is a master and this is his undisputed magnum opus and his long-lasting gift to the world. I've heard this and many other Jarrett albums hundreds of times (this is his best). I sometimes turn to this album in times of great emotional distress like nearby deaths. And I usually listen to it on vinyl. It is so evocative that you can hear the plaintive laughter and cries of those in the room uncontrollably and numerously accenting the piano. Don't ignore those voices. That's the accompanying instrument to Jarret. Honestly, if this album does not evoke in you a powerful emotional response, you should be worried! It was nice to hear again. And for what it's worth, thank you, Keith. For the gift you gave.

Her peppermint smile and autumn eyes with flowers in her hair buttoned up for the frisky air. Um, no thanks. I think this album shows the bias of having all English reviewers. Truly. It's predictable and doesn't do much for me except being okay background music.

I don't quite understand consciously why the Doors and Jim Morrison sort of became persona non grata in the music pantheon. But I too have drifted away from this sound which I listened to so much as a pre-teen. I recognize the musical skill and ability, but don't vibe with it much now.

Well, the timing of this was certainly amazing to coincide exactly with the death of Beck. That said, it really did nothing for me personally.

Kicking off with that Neil Young cover was a very turbulent start. Completely tone deaf as to the original-- and not an improvement in my opinion. It didn't get any better from there. This one wasn't worth it for me.

If I'm being honest, I find Elvis Costello to be so cool with one of the most unique voices, a great personality, and fascinating lyrics. But besides Allison, Watching the Detectives, and Veronica, he doesn't really have any songs I enjoy actually listening to. Conceptually I'm a fan, but in practice not really.

Nice album. Gritty and determined all the way through. It wasn't the tenor of my day, but I did enjoy hearing it. First time for me!

In part, I come from a family of Eastern Colorado farmers and they all love Willie. In fact, when we buried my Uncle a few years back, we played Willie Nelson to send him home. It's not without emotion that I enjoy a good solid Willie album and I love what he stands for. He did an awful lot of good for the farmers with Farm Aid. Awesome guy.

I sure do remember some of their wild album covers which I've never revisited-- though this was the first time I've seen or heard this one. Still such a totally wild and gnarly band doing the things that they do, accented with the spoken word. Found it to be innovative, fairly cool, and a lot less intimidating as I did as a small child listening to Iron Maiden in my older brother's room.

Probably the only RNB album I like. I don't like it much, particularly when she takes you to church and gets into the praise Jesus vibes, but I have to stay a real standout in the genre.

It was a DAMN HOT night in New Orleans the night I got to see Journey and Def Leppard play the Superdome with D---, the cosmopolitan bartender from the FQ. He had scored tix because a girl and her ex-supermodel girlfriend had come into the bar and said they needed us to go with them-- because the one was *dating* one of the members of Def Leppard and the other just went through the big D. So there we were, Row 1 and Center for two bands I'd heard a million times. They played most of these songs. And we had a ton of fun. So now when I hear it, I revisit that absolutely wild and beautiful night that went back to the hotel with the band and then all the hot bars of the Quarter until the morning birds were singing. And those are just the parts we can talk about now. I'm worried I might've signed a late night NDA for the rest. Great band if you wanna party. And yes, I do have the photos to prove it!!!!! Ok this album... I mean awesome 80's right? It's the trash hot party dumpster fire anthems that fucking MADE the 80's. We're on a ski trip and slipping a flask of Jack onto the pow pow. We're outside the school dance and we're smoking clove cigarettes. We're sneaking out late at night to meet our girlfriends. It's the hot making out music from our oldest wildest nights that's now wired into the silicon of the hard drive whether it was any good or not. It's Friday at chapel and we're looking at the girls in their plaid kilts. It's Saturday and we're under the train bridge drinking Nattie Lights and breaking bottles... Thanks for all the nights that we kept on the DL (Def Leppard).

This is okay. Overall, I like Gorillaz. The ones I like on this album I've worn out from years of abuse. The ones I don't like aren't my faves.

What a great album. It was like discovering another early Grateful Dead I never heard of. Must have been a wild party in those San Fran days!

This was overall a lot better than I remembered it. There were a few weak songs, but there were some pretty solid tracks beyond the one or two I grew up hearing on the radio. Certainly has a strong English sound and I'm not sure it would've been singled out if it was American.... But, enjoyable listen.

Just ok. Our House, obviously a terrific song. The rest of it? What am I even listening to. Just okay.

What a star Debbie Harry was-- is maybe-- I think she's touring right now. All the songs that were great still are and the ones that weren't a part of her greatest hits album were better than I expected. It's fun to imagine what the scene must've been like with Harry in the Green Room for a show of this album. Bet it was wild!

The year is 1994. I'm living in Flagstaff in a dorm and I meet David from Brooklyn. He's a terrific guy, a Jew, new York to the core, and we hang every night. He's teaching me chess-- he learned in Central Park-- and he's a baller. Short, fast talker, and basically like hanging out with the cousin incarnation of Adam Yauch. Well, anyhow, I had heard Rush, but it was his superband, so he was always playing it and I really don't hear it without thinking about that Tom Sawyer. We had some adventures out in the desert for late night desert business. Oh, but eventually, I beat David in chess. The next week, he dropped out of school and left Arizona for New York. I always felt like it was my fault, but I did remember how to play chess and I taught my kids how to play also. 2112 seems solid and hits all the Rush notes I wanted to take me back to those wild nights smoking cigarettes and watching David Rush through all the moves.