Before I even spin the first tune, I'll say this is a band I consciously avoided. Not sure why. Let's see if I denied myself something fabulous. Oh right... now I remember. Fred Durst may be the biggest little bitch in music. Jesus, he's insufferable. Did you know he doesn't give a fuck? I just Googled "how many times does limp bizkit say fuck on chocolate starfish," and apparently, the title track is noted as having the word "fuck" 48 times. So multiplied by 15, that's 720. So, I still listened to the album (how some of these songs have over 200 million spins on Spotify is confounding). "My Way" has something that resembles a hook, "The One" is actually not offensive or juvenile, and the blend of electronic and metal has promise, but the message in the music is so self-focused and inane, and it's so flat and uninspired, it's hard to endure. I guess some folks feel differently. Great. Makes me wish I rated When Teardrops Explode as a 2 because this sets the bar for a one-star rating. Next?

Damn, what a voice. And k.d. lang knows how to use it to beautiful effect. She's got an impressive range, but doesn't spend any unnecessary time finding reasons to impress with vocal acrobatics. She hits notes with authority, with a shimmer of grief even, when it's the right emotional pitch for the moment, and she sings sweetly and quietly when it's right. She sticks to her sweet spot most of the time, and there's a lot of it. She's a singular singing talent, to be sure. The production is just as spot-on as her performances. Great harmonies, expert instrumentation — not a sour note on the entire album. The only reason this isn't an easy 5-star is that the songs do blend together. There's not much of a change of gear from start to end. That's intentional, certainly, but that's the one key that holds me back from a "perfect" score. It's an 8.5-9 on a 10-point scale in my book. One weird point, how did "Constant Craving" get chosen to close the album? Seems like it should have been placed way earlier in the mix. Easy to say after the fact, but it's so clearly the most accessible track on the record.

Modern listening experience on this one. Started with an MP3 at my computer (through external speakers), continued listening to a CD in my bedroom, finished the album streaming Spotify in my car. Without question, it sounded best on the CD, but that patented mid-range buzzsaw guitar came through in every medium. Found I enjoyed the album more than I expected I would. While I own this on CD, I always preferred Mellon Collie back in the day, so now I'm going to go back and listen to that front to back to compare. Nice blend of dynamics on this, though mostly defined by the angst-fueled signature wail of Billy Corgan — vocally and musically. I appreciated Jimmy Chamberlin's drums more than ever on this listen. At the end of the day, I find myself losing the thread of the song with The Smashing Pumpkins — it's more of a vibe than a collection of songs to me on this album. I remember moments, and a couple of standout tunes, but ultimately, three stars because I don't expect to keep going back to listen to the album. Sidenote: I once stood next to Billy Corgan at a concert in NYC, Ric Ocasik's solo band — dude is tall!

This is one of those albums that I probably have never listened to front to back before, but I knew every single track. Always appreciate hearing tracks in the context of an album, and this is an impressive collection of songs and performances. I know Stewart has made some choices in his mid and later career that undermine his standing as a pillar of pop/rock/folk history, but this album is evidence of his talent as a singer, writer, and arranger. As iconic a vocalist as he is, surprisingly, Stewart is not the best at harmonizing with himself — he sounds more powerful/musical when paired with another vocalist, and the women performing on this album bring it, big time. Last thing thing, for the hundreds of times I've probably heard "Maggie May," I somehow missed the amazing bassline in the tune until this listen.

I appreciate the band and what they're doing more than I enjoy the music — certainly over the course of a full album. I would dig these guys in a live setting and the arrangements are impressive, especially coming from a listener with a decidedly non-traditional-Irish musical background. But I was tired of the album before it ended, and while I think it merits more than two stars, I'll let Marianne's higher rating pull mine up to 2.5 or more. Glad I listened, I wouldn't have picked this out of the list on my own.

While this may come as a surprise, I'm not a huge metal fan. I sure do like my heavy rock in general, but I had this album on cassette back in the mid-'80s and didn't bother getting it on CD when I was building my collection, so that says something. But damn, you have to love the scope of these tunes. Everything is majestic, tight, and while the songs wind and stray, this band is fine-tuning the art of bringing it back to repeated and recognizable themes on this album and there is a musicality and songcraft that sets them apart from their peers. And Lars on drums is pretty darned good, in addition to all the other noise this band makes. This was the album that started Metallica's acceptance into the mainstream, which, unbelievably, did not alienate the band's ultra-dedicated fans. They found a way to maintain the metal majesty and attitude and just kept sweeping more people into the fold by writing songs that resonate and brandishing an attitude that straddles the best of metal and "popular" music. Even the cliché lyrics — sanitarium! — ring as honest, and I've grown to appreciate the dry drum sounds and how every instrument sounds isolated from the others. It's a lot to take in as a whole, but this landmark album holds up, in my estimation. Master! Master!

This was good music to work to, but does that make it a great, must listen-to-before-you-die, record? I'll admit, I don't know what sets a noteworthy trance/ambient-pop album apart from schlock, but I sometimes felt like this record was scratched. I'd be waiting for a song to progress to the next part and it felt like it just stayed in place. It might be the best album ever for its genre, but that's lost on me.

While I love some '80s English synth-laden pop (Duran Duran, Psychedelic Furs, A Flock Of Seagulls), there's a flavor of this genre that does not connect at all. This falls into that latter category, along with groups like Roxy Music, Depeche Mode, and a host of other bands that I sidestepped in my most active era of musical discovery. I had never heard of this band — the name alone would have made me avoid them back in the day — but I went into this hoping to love the album. Alas, not so much. "Second Hand" had a promising bassline, and there were plenty of musical moments that I was enjoying, as immersed in an early-'80s production sound and writing aesthetic as they were. Ultimately, it's the vocalist that made this a one-star rating for me. I was going to give it two, but I was repeatedly turned off by the lyrics, melodies, and choices, and then when "Use Me" came on, that sealed this as a one-star listen for me. Another album I'm glad I listened to, but not one I particularly enjoyed.

This is a difficult one for me to rate. I really do like the band, and maybe even more than that, I appreciate how innovative and groundbreaking they are. But, I don't know what any of these songs are about. I enjoy this album, more than the two preceding it, but OK Computer stands as the high water mark for me with this band. There is almost something deliberately obtuse about some of this music, which I also appreciate. I'm vacillating between a 3 and 4 on this (it's a 3.5 damnit), but saving a 4 for the Radiohead albums I'm more likely to better understand. So many great moments on this though — I love how Yorke uses his voice as another instrument in the arrangements.

Before I even spin the first tune, I'll say this is a band I consciously avoided. Not sure why. Let's see if I denied myself something fabulous. Oh right... now I remember. Fred Durst may be the biggest little bitch in music. Jesus, he's insufferable. Did you know he doesn't give a fuck? I just Googled "how many times does limp bizkit say fuck on chocolate starfish," and apparently, the title track is noted as having the word "fuck" 48 times. So multiplied by 15, that's 720. So, I still listened to the album (how some of these songs have over 200 million spins on Spotify is confounding). "My Way" has something that resembles a hook, "The One" is actually not offensive or juvenile, and the blend of electronic and metal has promise, but the message in the music is so self-focused and inane, and it's so flat and uninspired, it's hard to endure. I guess some folks feel differently. Great. Makes me wish I rated When Teardrops Explode as a 2 because this sets the bar for a one-star rating. Next?

Another album — another band! — I've never even heard of. Definitely a cool feature of this adventure. Punk was never a genre I particularly connected with, Siouxsie and the Banchees and a couple of others were exceptions, and for a minute, I heard a similarity with Siouxsie and Wire. That didn't exactly last, and I won't consider this a band I've fallen in love with, but they were cool and did this right — short songs, no bullshit, bing, bang boom. I did recognize "Strange," though it took a quick Internet search to realize that's because R.E.M. covered the tune on Document. Funny how those lyrics triggered that "I know this from somewhere" switch in my brain. And what the fuck did we do before the Internet? I was there, but what did we do? Just go crazy trying to remember things we couldn't look up in 12 seconds? I would not have put the R.E.M. connection together. So... a 2? A 3? I don't see me going back to this album or this band a whole lot, but maybe. I'm going with a 3. Right down the middle.

Piper Down is covering "Paradise By The Dashboard Lights," and I still have this album on vinyl (I think, gonna have to check). But when was the last time I listened to this front to back? Today, apparently. Let's go! OK, so I was planning to save 5-star ratings for "flawless" albums, and while I think "Heaven Can Wait" could have sealed it had it been a little less melodramatic, that's clearly the driving aesthetic sensibility of this album and damned if they don't pull it off. I'll admit, I thought Jim Steinman produced it, but this is a Todd Rundgren production and it's a real feat. The trio (Rundgren, Steinman, and Meat Loaf), along with some quality musicians, pull off a minor miracle in producing an album that's kitchy, over the top, and delivered with dramatic sincerity, while being clever, adolescent, and self-aware all at the same time. The album totally holds up, and stands alone in genre and classification. From the somber ridiculousness of "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad" to the mini-opera that is "Paradise By The Dashboard Light," this album had big aspirations and managed to get it right over and over again.

k.d. lang is one of those artists I've always thought had something special going on but I never dug into her catalog apart from knowing some of the big hits (and she and Tony Bennett were the choice for Marianne and my wedding song). So this entry makes me want to go and buy the book this whole endeavor is based on. Why this album? I don't know much about her catalog, but I know this is not her best album. It's fine, it's like a glimpse into what she'd later blossom into as an artist, but this is pretty raw, not terribly well produced, and sounds more akin to a well-crafted demo than a shining example of an artist at her creative apex. So why this album? It's a 3 in my book, and just barely.

Well, I've been wrong about The Clash for a long time. I never understood why people consider them "the most important band" ever, and still don't get that, but I always thought they were just another punk-adjacent band who scored a few hits and were blown way out of proportion. I was expecting to not enjoy this listen very much. Turns out, this is one of those rare instances where the hit songs are my least favorite on the album (not entirely, but there's a lot more here than the hits). I was really struck by the quality of the songcraft, which was a major surprise, and also by how tight this band is. I wrote them off as being average players at best, and they decidedly are not (the drummer is really good). It's funny, the image this band fostered and the mythos surrounding them dissuaded me from checking them out, and I had a mis-perception of who they are. All that said, this is not entirely in my wheelhouse, but this is a 4-star album, and I have a new take on this band.

I really know nothing about jazz. I know I like it live more than on record, and while I own some notable jazz CDs, it's all about catching some killer riffs and solos here and there as opposed to studying the compositions and having any real understanding of the history or the significance of anything I'm listening to. So with Miles Davis, I know he's a pioneer, legend, visionary, difficult personality, brilliant player, but that's not because I listen to a lot of his music or know anything about how he changed the form over the course of his storied career. I appreciated the short compositions on this album, it made it easy to stay with a tune through it's duration, and I was struck by how every player seemed to be as accomplished as the next — no one instrument stood out as the focus or the virtuoso among the ensemble. I later read that these sessions were actually recorded in 1949-50, though not released until 1957, and are credited with ushering in a new style of jazz, called cool jazz. That all makes sense having listened to the album, and I guess I'm a fan of cool jazz. A three? Four? I'm going with a four-star as I can see me teeing this album up again and getting more familiar with it.

Wow. Talk about catharsis. I was not particularly digging the first half of this two-album set. Marvin Gaye is unquestionably in a special, elite league as a vocalist. I marvel at how effortless his delivery is — though he also went for some moments of vocal strain in places on this album. But the opening five tracks were like him singing his sad diary in real time with a divorce (I later read a little about the album and that's pretty much what we're hearing). So, from an artistic, "I'm leaving everything out here on the field" perspective, this is pretty bold and probably groundbreaking when released. But I didn't find it made for a great listen, and I was thinking, "this is the kind of material you might regret having released five years after the fact." Things shifted after that with "Everybody Needs Love" and "Time To Get It Together," and I started feeling differently about the album. Still, it's a little hit and miss, "Sparrow" was a low point, but as the second half of the album wasn't so literally glued to his day-to-day airing of grievances, I thought the material was stronger. It's an uneven record, in my estimation, and the hyper-focus on his personal upheaval at the expense of songwriting on half the material makes this a three in my book.

Oh no. Alright, let's see if I have a new take on this cat. Going into it, my bias is strong. I always found Morrissey impossibly whiny, verbose, and just plain unlikeable. Not the guy I'd like to get stuck talking to at a party. And god damn... another revelation. This album is pretty damned good. Morrissey is nowhere near the insufferable git I remember from The Smiths. I'm hearing a quirky crooner with a bit of an attitude and a penchant for the creepy, which I have to admire. The songs are fairly straightforward on the surface, which is just fine, as it lays the foundation for some cool textures and arrangements that are well done and interesting. And Morrissey uses his voice to great effect, with his melodies sometimes going in odd but familiar directions and his lyrics painted just outside the lines of what most any other writer might arrive at. I'm teetering on a 4, but thinking it's a 3.5. The fact that I'm considering a 4-star review for a Morrissey album is the most surprising thing about this endeavor to date. Couple that with McCormick going low on Marvin Gaye and Marianne buying Limp Bizkit merch and we're about to open a portal to the Upside Down. It's freakin' apocalyptical.

The sounds on this album are really pretty amazing. The breadth and depth of the synths, the vocal tones, even the synthetic drums, it's well produced for sure. I was never taken by the band's material, and on this album, while I found myself enjoying the ride more than I thought I might, I do not connect with the songs or the emotional pitch of Depeche Mode, which is why I've never really paid them much attention. Glad I listened, I appreciate the craft, but not an album or a band I'll dig deeper into.

It's difficult rating an album when you don't understand a single word of the lyric. I enjoy hearing this type of music. The interplay of the percussion is infectious, I can't resist moving to the rhythm. I was struck by the muted tones of the horns. No sharp edges at all, the horns were always a mellow, round sound. I also really like the dynamic between the lead and backing vocalists — the call and response was a feature I enjoyed and it didn't wear out its welcome. But all that said, I'm not sure how to rate this. I enjoyed it, but it's like an island in my musical experience, I have little else to compare it to. I'm going with a 3, partly because if I heard a track from this album again in any other context I don't know that I'd recognize it from any other song in the genre.

Another difficult album to rate, and not because I don't like it. I think these guys are brilliant, and this and "Speakerboxxx/The Love Below" are two OutKast albums I own on CD, but man, this is a lot to take in in one sitting. The songs are so dense, I need an hour or so to digest what I've heard after three or four tracks and then come back for more. It's hard to believe this album is 20 years old — I'm not a student of the genre (whatever genre that is... you try to classify them) — as this album would be pretty groundbreaking if it were released today. [Side note, this and Speakerboxxx/Love below won Grammies for "Best Rap Album," so that's how the "industry" defines them.] The effortless (and adventurous) mix of styles, the guitar solo and entirety of "B.O.B." is a great example, is a feature of OutKast that drew me in from the start: the band just doesn't sound or act like any other in the rap/hip hop space. Andre 3000 and Big Boi are like Prince's younger brothers, artists who won't let convention or precedent determine how to create music, and while I don't relate to every moment on the album, it is all really good. It's a long album, with a running time of 73 minutes (taking the CD medium to its limit), but there's nothing to remove to make it leaner, even the interstitial interludes work to give the album cohesion and flow. I guess that settles it, this is a 4, closing in on 5 territory. Glad I had the weekend to explore it.

Always cool to listen to music outside of my wheelhouse, and this fits that. I was focused on the bass and thinking how I'd tire of playing the identical riff over and over and over and over in this band, and that didn't aid in my enjoying the music. It also speaks to why this is not music I am drawn to. It's impressive, the band is really good, but the redundancy of the material wears on me. It's not my bag, baby.

I can't quite put my finger on what it is about this band I don't enjoy. I appreciate their honesty, but something leaves me flat with this band. As in the case of "Otherside" — I was thinking, "hey, this is a really nice tune," but before the song was over, I was less smitten. Kind of emblematic of how I feel about the RHCP. There are plenty of great moments, and while Anthony Kiedis is a singular presence as a vocalist (and Flea as a bassist), I prefer him when he goes with a "less is more" approach, and that's not usually his style. I also wasn't knocked out by the guitar work. I guess this is just not a band I love. I've had bandmates (bassists, specifically) who love this band, and they've been on my radar from early on (1985's Freaky Styley), but I've never been drawn in. I like them on a song-by-song basis, but not enough to go all in.

Going in totally blind on this one... "Your lunacy fits nicely with my own." That's a funny lyric. And that's a seriously strange outro (Sea Song). "Hey Robert, we're not going to be able to afford a trumpet player for 'A Last Straw.'" "No problem. I'll just sing the part. 'wah wah wah wah wah.' How was that?" "Fuckin' NAILED it!" "We're going to need a guitar solo." "No problem. Just record me tuning up." "Fuckin' BRILLIANT!" "I just binged 'Tomorrow Never Knows.' Hit record and let's play this song backwards." There is something strangely compelling about this. Can't exactly say I enjoyed it, it sounded like it were being composed as it was being recorded, but it seems like a peek into the very cluttered mind of a mad genius. This dude must be a trip to converse with. "Mr. Wyatt. Are you off your meds?" "I'm fighting for the crumbs from the little brown loaf. I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it." "So that's a 'yes'..." This is the first artist from this venture for whom I immediately listened to another album just to hear what the hell else this guy recorded. Pretty much a continuation of this album. I feel a little bad now knowing his story about the accident and his loss of the use of his legs just before recording this, but it seems to me that this artist would have recorded a similarly bizarre album regardless. I give it a tuna fish sandwich. A star rating just doesn't apply.

I bought this album when it came out, and it was on steady rotation for a while. Now — as I was then, I'm impressed with the songs, performances, vibe, and the sparse but adept production. The experience held up on this listen, the first in many years. This is just a plain solid album, and that's without delving into the fact that Kravitz apparently did most of it himself. I was never again enthralled by anything Kravitz released, he seemed much more focused on being a rock star that a music artist, and I felt the next bunch of releases were devoid of the things that made this album so great (good songs and honest performances). I've pretty much not listened to anything since 1998's "5," which disappointed me (I did buy the CD, though I no longer have it). But that's a tangent, this album is really good. 'Nuff said.

It's kinda crazy to admit, but I've never listened to an album by The Roots. I do know a little bit about them, and the blend of musical elements — from the live players to the hip hop and R&B flavor and a general disinclination to stick to any one approach — did not disappoint. I listened to the album twice, once with more focus and later as background music as we worked on the kitchen (currently being renovated, I can literally hear the nail guns and saws as I write this). Maybe I'm a prude, because I found that the predilection for sexual references got stale and that ultimately prevented me from loving the album. I enjoyed the less focused spin more. Musically, everything was really inspired and enjoyable, and this would otherwise be a 4+ star review, but lyrically I was less enchanted, which brings this somewhere between a 3-4. I'm going with a 3. Maybe there's another Roots album I'll love more. I'm going to give them a listen and find out.

With so many classic artists and releases, I realize that I'm missing the context of the work in terms of its impact and contribution to its moment in time. What sounds cliché now was novel at one point — things I take for granted in songwriting and production were at one point unheard of. I don't know if any of that applies to this album, per se, but I did find the production and ideas on this album a bit clichéd, certainly taken as a whole. Ultimately, while I'll assert (again) how much I admire Marvin Gaye as a vocalist, this album seemed to skid along the same vibe and subject matter — I didn't feel like the album took me anywhere. "Let's Get It On" is not a subtle reference, and it's used three times (including the album title) and then we have "You Sure Love To Ball," and it's pretty clear what Marvin had on his mind. I imagine this must have been pretty racy at the time of its release, for a number of reasons, but strip that away and I found this to be one long sexy track. Nice, but not an album's worth of interest for me.

Another one I'm going into with a pretty extreme negative bias. I actively dislike "Wonderwall," so I'm girding myself for this album. Immediate thoughts — musically this has energy. But I can't help feeling this is a band that's just trying too hard all the time. Maybe that's mostly true of Liam Gallagher. I had to skip through the end of Wonderwall because of his incessant wankering. How did that become the biggest song on this album? It's the weakest of the first three. 1.5 BILLION spins on Spotify. Confounding. By track #5, I've hit my wonderwall with this sound. I Wanda, if someone did an analysis, does Liam Gallagher hit and hold the same note in every song, because that's what it sounds like to me. The band seems to be running out of ideas... #6... fastest selling album in UK history? The same populace that brought us Brexit. Had to skip past it midway. #7... Oooh, lousy arrangement to add to the cacophony. Not able to save the unimaginative vocal melody. Skip midway. #9... pretty good, I made it about 80% through. #10. Paused. Breathing. Searching for videos of people running fingernails on chalkboards to cleanse my palate. This one has 1.2 million views, so not in the same league as Wonderwall, but respectable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13d5d6LVEpU "Champagne Supernova" is probably the song I liked most — disliked least? — despite the trite lyrics. Gallagher isn't as abrasive on that one. So yeah, didn't like it. Is it a one or a two? Gonna sleep on it.

As a serious David Bowie fan, it pains me to go with a 3 on this album, but there it is. There's a lot I like about this record. I love that Bowie is a pop music artist but there's not a song under four-minutes long on this album. There's also something so strange to this production, and I mean that in a positive way. For all the emotive singing, wailing sax, and perfunctory soul-laden background singing, Bowie sets an eerie, detached vibe to the entire album that's just so unique to him. The problem is, the material isn't awesome. "Fame" is one of my favorite songs in Bowie's repertoire, and "Young Americans" is just a great tune (what it's about, I couldn't tell you), but the rest of the material sounds like Bowie feeling his way through the Ziggy-to-Thin White Duke transition, trying to find his voice in this new musical experiment. It's part of what made him such an amazing artist — his willingness (compulsion?) to go to entirely new places. This record is just a curious choice for this endeavor, as I think Station To Station (the release that came after this) is just a flat-out better album. I will say, I think Bowie's coif on this album cover may be the look Donald Trump has been chasing after.

Damn, what a voice. And k.d. lang knows how to use it to beautiful effect. She's got an impressive range, but doesn't spend any unnecessary time finding reasons to impress with vocal acrobatics. She hits notes with authority, with a shimmer of grief even, when it's the right emotional pitch for the moment, and she sings sweetly and quietly when it's right. She sticks to her sweet spot most of the time, and there's a lot of it. She's a singular singing talent, to be sure. The production is just as spot-on as her performances. Great harmonies, expert instrumentation — not a sour note on the entire album. The only reason this isn't an easy 5-star is that the songs do blend together. There's not much of a change of gear from start to end. That's intentional, certainly, but that's the one key that holds me back from a "perfect" score. It's an 8.5-9 on a 10-point scale in my book. One weird point, how did "Constant Craving" get chosen to close the album? Seems like it should have been placed way earlier in the mix. Easy to say after the fact, but it's so clearly the most accessible track on the record.

I was nominally familiar with Harry Nilsson going into this — but here's one of those artists of whom I knew more of his material than I realized. In addition to "Coconut" and "Without You" (I'm most familiar with Heart's cover from their "Magazine" album), it's apparent Nilsson's influence is huge. Hard to tell who influenced who in some instances, but from McCartney-styled vocal melodies to Beach Boys harmonies, I also heard some Rundgren in there and imagine Ween listened to Nilsson as well. This is pretty inventive, non-formulaic pop that features as many song drafts as it does full-fledged songs (IMO), but that's all the more reason to admire the final product. This is cool stuff.

I've always admired Costello's craft as a songwriter. His arrangements are often unconventional, his gift for creating vocal and instrumental melodies is exceptional, and he's got an edge to his lyrics that gets your attention, even if I don't always know what he's getting at. I've never listened to this album in its entirety, though I was familiar with a lot of it. I didn't love every song, "Senior Service" as the second track seemed like a misstep after the haunting last minute of "Accidents Will Happen," but this is a really strong album. Despite Costello's range as a vocalist and gift for melody, he does have a vocal tone that tends to wear on me after 30 minutes or so, but that didn't detract from my enjoying this album (more than once) today.

I was surprised to see Fishbone's name among those included on this list. I owned "The Reality of My Surroundings" and "Give A Monkey A Brain And He'll Swear He's The Center Of The Universe" and saw these guys live a couple of times, but that was the extent of my explorations into the band and I don't own either of those CDs anymore. Let's do this. Damn, these guys are woefully underappreciated. This album deserves a 4-star rating based on the bass playing alone. I had to look up John Norwood Fisher's name because I should know it. He's badass. But it's the whole band. The blend of styles, the musicianship — these guys are on fire. It's at least a 3.5, but I think I'm going with a 3 because I like the songs better on "The Reality Of My Surroundings" (I listened to most of that right after this was done). It may be a matter of familiarity, though it's been a long time since listening to that album. These songs were a little more of a springboard for Fishbone's antics, and I definitely enjoyed it. I'll be listening to more from their catalog just to explore some more.

Full disclosure, this is my favorite Joni Mitchell album. Haven't listened to it in a while, and never noticed the penis on the album cover before. Learning something new all the time. "Coyote" is such a great opening track. Lyrically, it is just fantastic storytelling, the bass tone and playing set the expectations for the musicality of this ensemble. I love it. "Amelia" has such a sense of longing. Mitchell has a gift for putting pain to melody. And on this album, it's the perfect lyrical blend — high-minded poetic construction that tells rich, beautiful stories. Whether Mitchell set out to create a concept album, I don't know, but there's something so cohesive about these songs, like we're spending a week on the road with her and the band. Quiet moments crossing the middle of the country. This album just transports me. I can listen to Jaco play like this all day. He's a master on the bass. And then comes "Black Crow," which is a clinic on how to be the coolest motherfucker on an instrument possible. Seriously. I get that this may not be her most accessible album, but it's brilliant. Road dick!

I totally enjoyed this album — need a bit more time to get a firmer handle on it, but this band was like a perfect cocktail of a whole swath of British pop/rock/punk that came before them. It was as if I could hear every influence (well, there's plenty I wouldn't know) but it never felt derivative or phony. Dug the sense of humor, liked the overall attitude. Not necessarily music I'm drawn to — I'm mostly unfamiliar with blur — but something I was happy to get turned onto. 3 seems like a low score, but I'm not at a 4, so that'll have to do.

I didn't hate it. That's progress.

I genuinely try to understand what it is about Bob Dylan that gets everyone so excited. I mean, he's a hero to so many great songwriters over generations. So I went into this thinking, "If there's one tune I know by Dylan, it's 'Like A Rolling Stone,' and it's a great song, so maybe this is the album that's going to turn me around." Alas, I struggled to stay invested in "Like A Rolling Stone." By the time the fourth verse came around and there was no change to the intensity to the vocal and no deviation from the musical structure, I was starting to feel physically uncomfortable. The same thing happened in "Tombstone Blues." I was forcing myself not to fast forward to the next track. Dylan's vocal stylings are definitely part of the issue: I just do not enjoy listening to him sing. In fact, it's a more profound reaction. It agitates me. (There are other vocalists who do the same: Eddie Vedder, Van Morrison, Adele.) I also can't abide his harmonica playing. So let's face it, I'm not a fan. It is a dagger in the heart of my beloved, but we'll just have to live with the reality that Bob Dylan and Madonna will never be my cup of tea. OMG, the harmonica solo between verses 2 & 3 in "From A Buick 6" made my testicles pucker. "Queen Jane" has got one too. The slower tracks ("It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry" and "Ballad of a Thin Man") were more palatable to me, for what it's worth even though the title of the first contributes to my belief that Dylan has been playing everyone from the start. It takes... what? Honestly, respect for my wife and the songwriters who obviously hear this differently than I is what makes this a 2. I simply don't get it.

While the Foo Fighters, on paper, seem like a band I should be all over, I really don't know the band's music at all. I mean, yeah, I've heard some songs, but I've never explored their music in any depth. This is a solid album. When you take into account that Dave Grohl wrote and recorded the whole thing on his own, it's all the more impressive. But, man it's difficult to do that and come out with a masterpiece. It's been done, and this highlights just how complete a musician and songwriter Grohl is. It also explains why this is the Foo Fighters' album of choice for this project, as I suspect it's not the "best" from the band's catalog. But a "must listen" as an account of who is the foundation of this band makes lots of sense. Props to Dave Grohl, lots of good music on this album, and I'm inclined to start digging into the band. I was wary, considering every time they release something it results in multiple Grammy nominations — that just fills me with apprehension. My favorite work of Grohl's includes Them Crooked Vultures and Queens of the Stone Age, but maybe that's because I don't really know this band. I started listening to Wasting Light after this played out, and that was very promising. Rock on.

I wasn't able to listen to this album in its entirety, just a matter of a busy day, not a statement about the music. It's interesting, listening to older albums and hearing things that sound so cliché — in terms of songwriting and production — while recognizing that this was probably pretty novel at the time of the release. Hard to put myself in that place and hear it as new. That said, I was surprised to recognize at least one song ("Cool Water," from "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs") and found this to be a pleasant listen. Not expecting I'll be pulling this album out to spin just for enjoyment, but who knows? Robbins has a great range and tone as a vocalist, and there's something soothing about this music, even if it is about outlaws and gunslingers and the dusty trail.

From the outset, this struck me as a blend of Flaming Lips and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Beck — though I get that this might be the precursor to most of their music — and I'm not sure I like it. There are times when I dig a repetitive riff/melody/groove, as well as simple musical motifs that build and swell, but there's fundamentally something uninspiring to the base melodies on this that make me not want to go on the ride. It could be that this needs more time to percolate, it may require a more focused listen (which it did not get in my case), and it's probably better than a 2-star, but I didn't connect from the start and that's how I'm feeling about it.

Learning new things everyday with this experiment. I had never listened to blur before the 1001 album exploration, and while familiar with Gorillaz (my kids dig 'em), I had zero idea that Albarn was the creative force behind the band. So yeah, I dug this album, though I wasn't really able to home in on the details (we all listened to it in the car on the way to Dayton this weekend). I'm going to investigate the band further for sure, I think the concept of a virtual band itself is such a funky idea, and I liked what I heard, though I did feel like it played on longer than necessary.

Well here's another revelation. I've long been a fan of Pete Townshend, but I've never been a big fan of The Who. Daltrey and Moon — while I recognize and respect their artistry — have never been musical voices I've enjoyed listening to, and so I've never really dug into the band. But here we are, a gem hiding in plain sight. This is a bit trippier than may be my typical album choice, but this highlights so many things about Townshend's writing (in particular) that are inventive and distinctive. These songs are so unlike anyone else's music, there's a fierce assuredness to the whole affair. And a sense of humor, which goes beyond the album title and adverts within. This less bombastic version of The Who is one I enjoy. Moon's drumming is interesting, if not characteristically loose, Entwistle is brilliant but not overbearing, and Daltrey serves the songs, as weird as they are.

First impression... what a crappy album cover. Okay, I can't claim to know the details of Crosby's life at the time of this recording, but if Rumours stands as the high-water mark of cocaine-induced genius, this album appears to exemplify how cocaine can derail genius into rambling nonsense. The songs meander — one after the next — the recorded tones are not great (the solo guitar tone is awful), Crosby doesn't sound so hot. A 1-star rating seems a bit harsh, but I couldn't find anything that salvaged this.

Reggae is a genre of music I typically only enjoy in small doses. I appreciate, as best I can, the larger cultural importance of artists like Bob Marley, but when it comes to the music, I find that the similar tempos, rhythms, and song structures get monotonous after a few tunes. I think three (at least) songs on this album begin with that identical steelpan drum intro that is like the reggae version of the Intel logo — you know what's coming next. So with that caveat/admission aside, this is clearly a brilliant album by an artist in his prime. Lots of enduring classics, a band in great form, and an interesting blend of religious/social themes and personal stories of a man looking for love. I never considered that Prince might be a big reggae fan, but that juxtaposition of spirituality and sexuality struck me as I listened to the album. Whether or not I'm inclined to return to listen to this album in its entirety, I appreciate that it's really damned good.

I like the album cover. Fatalistic vibe, kind of the Bizarro Welcome to Asbury Park. First song starts... OK, it's the '70s I guess, different social clime, but still, pretty sleazy. Next up... maybe this is kind of sexy? But I'm not feeling it. What's up next? Nope. This is like all the stupid impulses of an asshole, serial cheater put to music. He can sing. I mean, maybe if the lyrical content were different. But even the songs started sounding similar. How did this album make this list?