189
Albums Rated
2.72
Average Rating
17%
Complete
900 albums remaining
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1960s
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Metal
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UK
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11
5-Star Albums
36
1-Star Albums
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You Love More Than Most
Albums you rated higher than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medúlla | 5 | 2.72 | +2.28 |
| The Sensual World | 5 | 3.17 | +1.83 |
| Aqualung | 5 | 3.44 | +1.56 |
| Dirt | 5 | 3.47 | +1.53 |
| Paul Simon | 5 | 3.51 | +1.49 |
| Machine Head | 5 | 3.59 | +1.41 |
| Appetite For Destruction | 5 | 3.74 | +1.26 |
| A Short Album About Love | 4 | 2.77 | +1.23 |
| Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge | 4 | 2.84 | +1.16 |
| Freak Out! | 4 | 2.84 | +1.16 |
You Love Less Than Most
Albums you rated lower than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Queen Is Dead | 1 | 3.66 | -2.66 |
| The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill | 1 | 3.63 | -2.63 |
| Maggot Brain | 1 | 3.6 | -2.6 |
| Blackstar | 1 | 3.48 | -2.48 |
| The Fat Of The Land | 1 | 3.41 | -2.41 |
| Stardust | 1 | 3.4 | -2.4 |
| Be | 1 | 3.35 | -2.35 |
| Nebraska | 1 | 3.32 | -2.32 |
| Meat Is Murder | 1 | 3.32 | -2.32 |
| A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector | 1 | 3.28 | -2.28 |
Artist Analysis
Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Led Zeppelin | 2 | 5 |
Least Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| The Smiths | 2 | 1 |
| The Chemical Brothers | 2 | 1 |
| Dinosaur Jr. | 2 | 1 |
| Bruce Springsteen | 2 | 1.5 |
5-Star Albums (11)
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Popular Reviews
Nick Drake
2/5
The vocals on the first track (Pink Moon) physically hurt they were that bad. The rest of the album passed by with a couple of irritating moments when he tries to get 'avant garde' with the guitar.
Overall a singer songwriter album that has nothing to recommend it and a few really bad spots.
6 likes
Mudhoney
4/5
Early influential grunge, but not overly impresive nowadays. Nothing stands out as exceptional or as terrible. A recording of its time
6 likes
The Slits
1/5
Well that was painful. I assume they are included in the 1001 albums as some sort of politically correct quota - "we have to have a really bad all girl punk band". I can think of no other reason for the inclusion of this drivel
5 likes
Lauryn Hill
1/5
Pre listening - I'm not going to like this. I detest rap and dislike hip hop - I hope this is better than that.
Track 1 - Intro - 40 seconds and not even a pretence of bring music
Track 2 - Lost Ones - Standard hip hop - awful
Track 3 - Ex-Factor - OK song, but with really annoying sound efects added - why?
Track 4 - To Zion - A Santana collaboration - which is to say pure Carlos Santana - average for him
Track 5 - Doo Wop(That Thing) More hip hop - slightly better than Lost Ones
Track 6 - Superstar yet more Hip Hop - irritating
At this point I stopped. She obviously is a hip hop artist, which is a shame because from what I heard she has good voice, just needs some real music
4 likes
Nina Simone
3/5
Vocal competence, well arranged music, but not for me. I prefer both Billie Holiday and Eartha Kitt. As usual for the genre and time, the songs are not written by the performer, with the exception of Four Women, which in contradiction to the statement on the album cover, is highly forgettable.
Overall OK, but nothing exceptional.
4 likes
1-Star Albums (36)
All Ratings
Manic Street Preachers
4/5
Competent guitar rock. A little too monotone on the vocals with this being a bit nasal. Good songs but could do with more expressive presentation. No track really stood out from the rest.
Metallica
3/5
Suffers from being a live recording. The orchestra is only really significant on a few occasions, about 15 minutes of a 2:13 recording. For those moments it it is interesting but otherwise an underwhelming contribution.
Would not recommend this to those not already fans of Metallica.
Talvin Singh
2/5
Indian fusion jazz - OK, as the title says, for minimally intrusive background music. Perhaps a little to fast rhythmically for this though. Pleasant enough, but not something I would go looking for more of.
The Temptations
2/5
Classic motown - some moments when the high pitch is way too strident - should have been treated better in production. In general the production standard is lower than I would have expected which will cost it a point on my rating.
(Side note - only 3 of 10 tracks available on Spotify in Brazil - switched to Youtube to get the full album)
Solange
4/5
Not sure what to call this. At times it reminds me of some of Joni Mitchell's work, but at other times it is too pop for this. While I understand the feeling behind the the protest element, this is a little overdone and causes a disonance that could have been avoided without weakening the message.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Caveat - spotify provides remastered versions of the tracks (from 1990 or 1993).
One of the greatest first albums ever, from one of the greatest bands ever. The start of a musical migration that originated with this very clearly blues influenced recording and that ended with some of the greatest rock ever produced.
I simply can not find anything to criticise, yes Plant's voice can be a little screechy or shouty at times, but this fits the music. The songs are not as polished as later works but the execution is as virtuoso as ever
Talking Heads
3/5
Talking Heads are an acquired taste and one that I have not acquired yet. Good songs, well produced, but the vocal style distracts more than it contributes. The stand out track is the well known Psycho Killer with none of the others really distinguishing themselves.
Paul Simon
5/5
Freedom from the constraints of a partnership shows here. As expected a collection of well crafted songs, bur suprising in the variety of influences demonstrated - from reggae through latin via folk and blues.
One of the best singer/songwriters demonstrating what he can do, with strong hints of the things that were to come.
Rush
4/5
Rush - not my favourite album of theirs - that would be A Farewell to Kings - but highly representative of the band's exceptional talent. Starts strongly with Tom Sawyer, Red Barchetta and YYZ, but after that there is nothing that particularly stands out.
Tito Puente
3/5
Not much to say. It's not bad, but not my thing
Moby Grape
4/5
Psychodelic rock from the height of psychodelia. One of the best of it's kind but no real stand out moments. Just consistent musicianship throughout.
(Again Spotify does not have the whole album available - Youtube does)
The Slits
1/5
Well that was painful. I assume they are included in the 1001 albums as some sort of politically correct quota - "we have to have a really bad all girl punk band". I can think of no other reason for the inclusion of this drivel
Mudhoney
4/5
Early influential grunge, but not overly impresive nowadays. Nothing stands out as exceptional or as terrible. A recording of its time
Digital Underground
1/5
Rap - I had excluded this from my albums - I detest it. A rating of 1 will be given. This is because there is no option to record 'no rating' and I really did not like any of it.
Christine and the Queens
3/5
Mildly interesting, but not something that I would listen to often. R&B music with french singer/songwriter type vocals
The Undertones
4/5
Good garage rock. Not really punk, none of the anti-establishment content that marks punk out from the rest, and technically too smooth. Feargal Sharkey had a unique voice, that makes them unmistakable.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Somehow the Rolling Stones always sound like they are in an extended jam session, and this album is the epitome of this. Perhaps that is one reason why they are one of the greatest live acts ever. This is not their best album, but it is a good sample of less well known Stones music. Most people will only know Tumbling Dice from this.
Portishead
3/5
Initial confusion as I know that this is a British band, but the first track opens with spoken text in Brazilian Portuguese (as I am British but live in Brazil, this rather suprised me). The designation as trip-hop is misleading to those who don't know the style as it has absolutely no relation whatsoever to hip-hip, being more an updated version of acid-jazz.
It is interesting, but listening to the whole album in one go is too wearing. Best taken in small doses. I got through eight tracks before I had to take a break
Björk
5/5
Seriously impressive. It is not going to be to averyone's taste, but the vocal control and technical competence is just at a different level to nearly anything else I have ever heard.
The phrasing patterns are distinctly Bjork, whether this is her or an effect of having icelandic as her first language I don't know, but it certainly is distinctive.
Well constructed harmonies, with minimal instrumentation make this a vocal tour-de-force.
There are moments that don't quite work for me - Ancestors is too discordant and chaotic for me, for example
Johnny Cash
4/5
Storytelling over a gently strummed guitar - with a voice fit for this. One or other more upbeat songs where Johnny proves that he can actually sing (Jackson for example).
Classic country blues
Pretenders
2/5
As I have fond memories of Brass in Pocket and Stop your sobbing I was looking forward to listening to this. However it was disappointing. The tracks that were released as singles (Stop Your Sobbing, Kid, and Brass in Pocket) are the only tracks of any note. The rest ranges from average to downright poor and monotonous.
Def Leppard
4/5
Th first thing to comment is that this album is prior to Rick Allen's accident, which, while it was a tragedy for Rick, definately contributed to Def Leppard creating a unique sound on later albums. As such this is pretty standard 'hair metal' of the early/mid eighties. Well produced, well performed and one of the best of it's type, but nothing really exceptional. Hysteria and Adrenalize are much more impressive works.
Yes it (and they) will be criticised as being 'poppy' but music does not always have to be serious and cutting edge, sometimes it can be, and should be, just pure fun - which this is.
CHIC
2/5
It starts strong with the one of the two Chic tracks that almost everyone knows - 'Good Times'. The rest is mostly forgetable and by the end of its short 36 minute playing time I found myself wanting it to stop soon. Too repetitive to just sit and listen to.
Orange Juice
2/5
Sterile, which for a surgical theate would be a good thing, but this is supposedly music, not a medical facility. It is clearly a reaction to the anarchy of Punk, but it has absolutely no emotional content.
Patti Smith
3/5
I prefer music that is less atonal. It works as it is intended and it makes sense that it is included here. Just not my taste.
Faith No More
4/5
Well Epic is just that and sort of leaves everything else in it's shadow. That aside Epic does represent this album fairly well. They don't move away from the formula of alternating rapping and singing over heavily bass driven music. Probably their best album and certainly deserves a place in the 1001
As a whole the album is a bit too frenetic in that even when they do start something slowly it inevtably ends up being 100mph. Even the one cover version (War Pigs) has this quality though the original did this too.
In general this will be a love it or loathe it album, but for me it is OK but not great
Songhoy Blues
4/5
Well worthwhile listening to. Most of the album is fairly traditional blues with an touch of Mali, but there are a couple of tracks at the end that seem to be more traditional Malian music (I guess as I don't have a lot of experience of the music from there). The vocals are smoother than Blues would normally have but they work,
I will probably look for some more of their work
The Go-Betweens
2/5
The first track is cliché and with off key vocals, the second is soporific, the third pretentious with the terrible vocals back again. It doesn't get better. This explains why they were not a great success. How and why is this in the 1001 albums list?
Soundgarden
4/5
I can see why some will call this repetetive as it does have a strong similarity throughout. If, though, you do something well then why not do that, and Soundgarden do it extremely well here. Chris Cornell was unique and his vocals do dominate the recording. Whether it is better than Badmotorfinger is open to question, it is more polished and better produced, but maybe loses something in sponteneity.
I know that Soundgarden are considered grunge, but in reality they were simply a very good rock band that happened to come from the same place and time as the grunge movement, there is little here that is grunge.
Would be rated a 5 if it were a little more varied, or perhaps a track or two shorter. I want to give it 4.5
Judas Priest
4/5
It may be sacrelidge to say this in the rock community but I am not a fan of Halford's voice. That said this album delivers classic Priest. The riffs and rhythms are strong throughout, and on the occasions when Halford sings rather than chants the vocals are good.
One of the foundational albums of 'metal'. I can't give it a 5 because of the vocals. If they had been sung instead of shouted it would have been 5. As it is 4
Lorde
2/5
Forgetable - exceedingly average and a little too pretentious
The whole album blurred together into one long and uninteresting piece of elevator music
Kate Bush
5/5
A little into the title track, the first on the album, the impression was that this was going to be a fairly flat reworking of early Kate Bush, but how wrong this impression was. The album grows steadily throughout and by the end I was more than a little impressed.
A very suprising 5 from me
It is not going to be to liked by everyone as it is not pop, not rock, nor blues, not even jazz. It defies any form of categorisation
Beatles
2/5
An hour and 20 minutes of relentless twaddle in 2 and a half minute chunks with the exception of one good song - While my guitar gently weeps and a couple of OK tracks - Yer Blues and Helter Skelter. Why this band is considered the greatest ever is completely beyond my comprehension.
Soul II Soul
2/5
Not as good as I expected based on my limited previous exposure to the band. Two OK tracks both of which I knew prior to listening. The acapella version of Back to Life was mildly interesting.
The Prodigy
1/5
I didn't like techno before listening to this. Now I like it even less. Repetitive meaningless and uninspiring. Perhaps I don't have the right chemical stimulation to enjoy it, I don't know and don't want to find out. If the chemicals can lead you to enjoy this they must be destroying your brain.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
Pleasant enough, but nothing special. A little less country than I expected. Standard singer/songwriter material.
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
2/5
A poor version of Woody Guthrie (who appears on one track). What makes this worth appearing in the list is unclear. Most of the songs are written by other people, the performance is not exceptional and at times is rather mediocre.
Ramblin' Jack Elliot can have been an influence on some, but surely not a strong one
Ali Farka Touré
1/5
Is this supposed to be good just because it uses some less familiar rhythms and it is sung in a language we don't understand? It just plain isn't very good at all. The rhythms don't keep to their own time structures, the instrumentation doesn't keep to the rhythms and the vocals are lacking in inspiration and emotion. For supposedly the king of the desert blues this is very flat indeed.
The album was released posthumously, and it may be that Touré's illness had an impact on the quality of the music, but if this is the case then surely some other, earlier work should be in the 1001, not this.
Songhoy Blues is far superior.
Manu Chao
1/5
By track four I had become seriously fed up with this irritating noise. Not worth using the electricity to play was my opinion at rhat point. From then on things got worse.
Trite, meaningless and tedious songs with very overworked vocal patterns make this an album to miss.
Teria sido muito melhor se ficou clandestino mesmo.
Elvis Presley
3/5
Standard Elvis - nothing suprising or diferent to expectations. If this is live, as it claims to be, then the man could sing - but that isn't really news to anyone.
Not being a fan this left me unmoved, but respectful.
Nina Simone
3/5
Vocal competence, well arranged music, but not for me. I prefer both Billie Holiday and Eartha Kitt. As usual for the genre and time, the songs are not written by the performer, with the exception of Four Women, which in contradiction to the statement on the album cover, is highly forgettable.
Overall OK, but nothing exceptional.
The Young Gods
3/5
I had absolutely no idea what to expect. What I got was an updated industrialised and foreign version of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band. It appears that they are more interested in drama than in music itself. The vocals are generally declaimed rather than sung, and the arrangements / samples are clearly designed to produce dramatic effect.
Listenable but not something I am likely to come back to.
The Smiths
1/5
Entering this with a strongly negative prior opinion. Let's see how it goes. At least it is relatively short at under 40 minutes. (Also a coincidental album title for the 9th of September 2022, maybe a little bit in bad taste).
By the third track Morrissey's whinging voice is becoming almost intolerable, which is a shame because apart from the vocals the music is actually OK.
Track seven and it is becoming physically painful listening to Morrissey, still only three more to go after this. I think I am strong enough.
Well I survived to the end, and unfortunately my prior opinion was overwhelmingly confirmed. I detest Morrissey's voice to such a degree that it makes it impossible to really evaluate the rest of the band.
It would be interesting to hear covers of some of these songs, perhaps that would help, but as it is I can't give this anything other than 1 star (I would prefer 0)
SAULT
3/5
One more that I had no idea about going in.
It was OK, not my thing, but well produced and with good vocals. Too heavy on the race politics for me lyrically.
Passed by without causing any discomfort but without catching my attention either.
Stripped down R&B, with what I think of as typically British minimalism.
The Chemical Brothers
1/5
Is it telling that the first track has nearly double the number of streams that any other track on the album has? At five and a half minutes the track is six minutes too long. To be honest I gave it two and a half minutes before skipping to the next track - which was the same only worse.
Out of a sense of duty I gave each track at least one minute, none lasted more than a few seconds beyond that and at times it felt like an eternity.
To answer my own question - yes it is telling, as by the time you have heard a minute of the first track you have heard everything this album has to offer.
I can't complain about the quality of the singing as there just isn't any until the last track, by which time my senses were completely destroyed.
I am not sure if it worse than The Smiths or The Slits, but it definately is worth less than 1 star
The Crusaders
3/5
Street Life and then the rest. Both are OK, but for those that, like me, knew Street Life, the rest is a little unexpected. Smooth saxaphone led jazz with no vocals.
OK is the best I can give it as it did not grab my attention.
Waylon Jennings
1/5
Typical country with twangy guitars and lovelorn lyrics. Waylon is better with the quieter songs as he tends to shout on the more uptempo tracks.
The arrangements are as simple as they could be. Dominated by a plodding bass line in nearly every case.
Not for me and generally not very impressive,
The Doors
5/5
A genuine classic that demonstrates the range of the Doors from Alabama Song through to The End via the well known Light My Fire and Break on Through. They, of course, are not going to be everyone's cup of tea. For me an album that has not lost any of it's impact over the 55 years since it was released.
The Who
3/5
201 million streams for one track, 7 million for another, but then none of the other 10 tracks get to 1 million (as of September 2022). Clearly dominated by the title track.
Unfortunately I find Townshend's highly repetitive guitar work very very irritating which limits my ability to appreciate the Who, but then on this album there is not much to appreciate anyway.
Some standard 60s pop songs, some highly derrivative blues and nothing more.
Talking Heads
2/5
The problem with the Talking Heads is that I am not sure whether I like their music or whether I find it intensely irritating. If I think about it then it appears that I like to be irritated, which is weird.
In general I do not choose to listen to them, but if a track of theirs appears I don't skip it or change the station (depending on whether it is streaming or radio), I don't own any of their material (from back in the day).
This album is typical Talking Heads - lots of strong rhythms, slightly of key vocals with the voice used more as a percussion instrument than for melodic purposes.
I found, listening to this that I can take about five tracks before having to take a break - which is not good. It may have worked in the days of vinyl - listen to one side of the album at a time, but today with streaming it is too much
Guns N' Roses
5/5
Not too much to say about this. Punk meets hair metal meets classic rock. Not the greatest debut album of all time (that goes to Meatloaf probably) but close.
Unfortunately they flattered to decieve, as nothing else by them even remotely comes close.
I was slightly confused by the album cover shown as my copy has the metal avenger and robot rapist - which is an image more appropriate to the album.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
1/5
I don't like but can respect good reggae, such as that provided by Marley and Tosh. This however starts with a couple of tracks of bad reggae, which I not only dislike, I also find to be an insult to the tradition. From there it is not reggae it is just an undefined mess of Middle Eastern, Latin and Blues influences. There is a reason why Jah Wooble is playing such massive venues as the Jazz Cafe in Camden Town (No insult intended to the Jazz Cafe) and this album epitomises the reason - it is terrible
Ride
1/5
No expectation as the only information I had were the cover art and the date, never having heard of the band before.
First impression, a minute into the first track is that of a less competent Hawkwind - we'll see.
It flattered to deceive in that it started as reasonably good psychodelic rock but migrated quickly (by track 3) to very boring indie rock. Still, have to give it more time yet, it might be a temporary aberration.
No, not temporary it goes on with more boredom. What could be interesting songs absolutely demolished by flat and uninterested vocals. Even the 'hit' Vapour Trail does not manage to alleviate the tedium. I suppose that there are people in the world that like being bored, there is no other explanation for 17 million plus streams of this track!
I gave up at track 10 to go and watch the paint dry
The Band
4/5
As american an act as you can get. Rooted in Rock and Roll with a strong folk influence (how much of that is from working with Dylan is unclear). This album from 1969 seems to have completely missed the british invasion - it comes from a parallel universe inhabited by themselves and CCR.
Is it any good - at times yes, at times less so but never manages to be bad.
Personally I prefer their first album - Music from big pink, - nevertheless this is worth hearing.
Charles Mingus
4/5
I have never been a great fan of Jazz, mostly I think because I consider music to be something to dance to as well as to listen to, and unless you are a practicioner of modern free dance, jazz really doesn't offer much scope for dancing.
Having said that I quite enjoyed listening to this, which took me by suprise. Perhaps that is why Charles Mingus is so highly regarded. I only knew of him by reputation, so this was one of those moments when the concept behind 1001 worked for me.
Tortoise
2/5
I'm sure that it is technically very competent. A little like Tangerine Dream in many ways and not just in that some over pretentious musicians like them while it leaves nearly everyone else absolutely cold.
I was hoping that the first track was ending but when I checked it was roughly half way through.
One I will leave to the afficionados.
X-Ray Spex
1/5
What I remembered of X-ray Specs was a lot of noise and very little music. It turns out that my memory was reasonably good. The version of the album that I listened to only has 15 of the 37 tracks available (Spotify in Brazil) which means that I have not had the dubious pleasure of listening to either the live versions on disc 2 or the rough mixes etc at the end of disc 1. I am sure that I haven't missed much.
One or two tracks on a compliation of punk would be OK, but 15 tracks in a row is about thirteen too many. ( I dread to think what 37 would have been like)
Lucinda Williams
2/5
Singer songwriters with country tendencies can be fine, but they have to be able to sing, which unfortunately Lucinda Williams can not.
The album will get a couple of stars for the composition (could have been 3 but the best song on the album was written by Randy Weeks) and the instrumental work - but I will never ever listen to more of her work.
Just listening to Drunken Angel once is enough for a lifetime without mentioning the travesty that is Joy. If Joy were to be covered by someone like Thundermother it could be quite a good song, it is just completely wrong here.
Bad Brains
2/5
They can't keep in tune or decide on the time signature which wanders all over the place. Experimental punk rock reggae mix that didn't work for me most of the time.
I can see that there would be a market for this just I am not part of it.
Common
1/5
Rap - I had excluded this from my albums as I absolutely detest it
The Divine Comedy
4/5
Expecting something 'avant-guarde' but it was just a collection of old fashioned love songs. It gets one extra star for having the most literaly truthful title of any album I know.
Cocteau Twins
3/5
The Chemical Brothers
1/5
As with Exit Planet Dust the first track is six minutes too long.
They have twiddled a bit more on the FM synthesiser, without actually producing anything of note. A complete lack of inspiration on the drum machine programming and trite vocal effects do not a good record make
Again I forced myself to listen to at least 1 minute of each track - I must have a masochistic streak - and I found absolutely nothing worth listening to.
Stephen Stills
3/5
Standard American folk rock . Nothing really stood out for me. Competently performed, average singing, good songwriting.
Alice In Chains
5/5
Still as good as ever. Musically Alice in Chains were head and shoulders above all of the other 'grunge' bands. The song writing is spectacular. It, of course is not going to be everyone's taste. There are arguments that can be made that Layne Stanley was not as an accomplished vocalist as Chris Cornell, and these I could agree with. Nevertheless the finished product is better than that of Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney or even Temple of the Dog.
Yes there is some filler on Dirt (Hate to Feel and God Smack) but very little.
For me this is the exemplary album for grunge - a solid 5 stars
Beth Orton
3/5
Standard singer/songwriter material. All depends on whether her voice appeals to the listener or not, and in my case it was not.
Nothing really wrong, but nothing that grabbed my attention
James Taylor
4/5
Steamroller was unexpected after the first three tracks, and demonstrates a potential for a greater variety of material. It is a shame that the album rests purely on standard country influenced ballads with the exception of Steamroller and Oh Baby, Don't you loose your lip on me (where he manages a very convicing Steve Miller impersonation).
Not really in my wheelhouse but very competently done and worthy of respect on it's own terms.
Can anyone explain why Fire and Rain has 250 million + streams?
Green Day
3/5
Suprisingly underwhelming. Too many basic punk songs with little inspiration. Obviously Basket Case stands out amongst the chaff.
I had expected something better, but I don't know why. No real signs of what was to come. The production is more than a little dodgy.
Sepultura
3/5
It can be that they are one of the bands responsible for defining the formula, but this album is absolutely formulaic. I have never been a fan of growled vocals - I prefer vocalists who can sing, and the absence of this weighs heavily against Sepultura. The rhythm section is solid as is to be expected. The lead guitar is uninspiring however.
After three or four tracks it gets rather boring - all too much the same.
Bruce Springsteen
1/5
The good people of the state of Nebraska have to have the strongest case ever for malicious misrepresentation. No state can possibly be anything like as boring as this collection of dirges.
This is also one of the few records by a singer songwriter that challenges Bob Dylan's capacity for irritating vocals (there has to be a special mention, as always, in this category to Neil Young).
Normally I quite like Springsteen but this is just dire. Was the inclusion of all of his albums really necessary.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Typical Stones album - a couple of very well known tracks, one or two tracks that are highly rated by afficionados of the group and four or five fillers. Overall it depends on whether one likes the famous tracks or not, and in this case they are two of the best Stones songs of all time - Gimme Shelter and You Can't Always Get What You Want. The tracks for the afficionados are Let It Bleed and Midnight Rambler - both are OK. Overall one of the Stones better albums.
The Blue Nile
3/5
I really did not like this very much - that however does not mean that it is bad, just that it is far from my taste in music. I actually have doubts as to whether it is music at all, given that I understand rhythm as an essential component to all music. This has no rhythm, it is a collection of sounds generated according to some kind of internal logic and with very definite time signatures - it is creating a soundscape certainly but I am not sure that I would call it music.
Having said all that I can appreciate that there is something here that some people will like. It appears to be well produced and competently performed
Milton Nascimento
3/5
First a disclaimer - I live in Brazil, and have lived here for 25 years - but so far I have not found any Brazilian music that I really like.
Next this album has to be taken in the political context of Brazil in 1972 - at the height of the military dictatorship with very heavy censorship being applied to anything that could be remotely construed as critical of the government/society.
Finally it has to be noted that the album is not just by Milton Nascimento - there are two principal collaborators : Lô Borges as cited on the album and also Beto Guedes, additionaly Alaíde Costa sings on Me Deixe em Paz.
The album itself is pleasant enough to listen to, I suppose it helps understanding most of the lyrics, but to be honest they are not too deep or meaningful (as they could not be at the time). Nothing stood out to me as being exceptional or bad - overall an OK album, mostly acoustic guitar and voice with Brazilian rhythms.
Thundercat
1/5
I seem to be on a run of Jazz influenced albums. This one, so far (track 6), is by far the worst to date.
Then when he tries to mix jazz with rap it really goes downhill, Walk on By is just horrible. It was at this point that I decided that enough was enough. I tried Them Changes as it has over 175 million streams - but why is mystery.
I can not recommend this collection of random noise to anyone
Underworld
1/5
Well that was tedious, not irritating or painful or disturbing, just plain boring; with nothing whatsoever to distinguish itself from the sounds heard in lifts around the world.
Nothing more to say
Nick Drake
2/5
Harmless but uninspiring. His voice is unexceptional, and the acoustic guitar is well played but with little emotion - it all feels so very technically correct and emotionally empty.
Radiohead
2/5
Radiohead, like Coldplay. are a band that I just don't get at all. Creep was OK, but is on Pablo Honey and thereby not on this. Their biggest hit - Paranoid Android - is here but is just as flat as the rest of the album. Where is the energy? Where is the drive? They are supposed to be a rock band, and for brief moments this is believable, but then they revert back to a meandering passive style of music that goes nowhere very slowly with Thom Yorke's whining voice not helping. A good example of this is the aforementioned Paranoid Android which has a bridge that is reasonable rock and a coda that is also rock, but for at least 5 minutes of the 6 minute 27 second track it is a mushy mess.
Wild Beasts
3/5
The start of the first track had me thinking - "oh no, not another boring indie thing", however it got better. It never reached the level of persuading me that I should listen to more of their work, but it also did not have me wishing that it would end soon.
Fairly solid soft rock/indie with vocals that would be better if the singer did not depend so much on his falsetto.
They also have little idea about how to structure an album. The first minute of this album will lose tham a lot of listeners.
4/5
A band that was on the periphery of my musical universe. I was seriously impressed by the start of the album. A significant variety of structure and sound without ever losing their energy. A negative point for me is when Matt Bellamy uses high pitched vocals - but that is something that I will overcome with time (as I did with Geddy Lee - No, I am not comparing Muse to Rush).
While all the tracks are good in their own way, none of them made me think 'I have to hear that again' or made my hair stand on end. This lack of that something extra stops it from being a 5 star album
The Pretty Things
2/5
That was strange. Psychodelia from a group that I associate with heavier blues type rock.
An early concept album, perhaps one of the first to tell the story of a life. This does not compensate though for the musical weakness of the album. A lot of mediocre composition and nothing really memorable. Fairly innocuous psychodelic pop of the period.
Wire
2/5
21 songs in 35 minutes!
Competent punk that had little to no impact on the musical scene at the time. The reason being that none of the songs would make a memorable single.
It appears that music critics have made up their minds that this album was influential on the basis of a couple of credits for them bring important, from bands as important as The Minutemen and Sonic Youth. It is possible to list bands that have covered their music - the only one of any significance bein R.E.M. - but the song they covered is not on this album.
Overall this is a footnote in the history of punk, more competent than most but as equally forgetable.
Booker T. & The MG's
3/5
I imagine that the vast majority of people in the western cultural regions of the world know the title track. The rest of the album follows the same formula - no suprises - nothing to upset the gentle groove set up from the begining of the album.
Unfortunately that results in an album of elevator music. It deserves a place in the 1001 because of the title track, the rest of the album is incidental
The Teardrop Explodes
4/5
There is such a thing as the sound of the eighties, and The Teardrop Explodes probably defined it with Reward. The whole album is about as eighties in feel as you can get, which, given that it was released on 01/01/1980 (apart from Sleeping Gas - the live track at the end on the version I heard from Spotify which is from 1981) is either remarkable prescience on their part or an indication of how much influence they had.
Not enough to my taste to be 5 stars for me, but I would not begrudge it 5 from people whose musical taste it fits better.
The White Stripes
4/5
Probably Jack White's best work to date. It demonstrates his eclectic take on rock to great effect. Starting off with one of the best known riffs in music, but moving on from there to some fairly sparse blues, some highly memorable songs and a touch of prog here and there.
Overall a very good album and highly recommended for those just starting with Jack.
Morrissey
1/5
No, not listening to this. I have better things to do. Clean the toilet for example.
The Hives
4/5
I asmit to having a preference for The Hives over The Strokes, bur the formula is almost identical. Solid guitar riffs with strong rhythm section driving a frenetic pace, and shouted/chanted rather than sung vocals. This only works when combined with short songs (12 in less than 29 minutes - an average of 2 min 25 seconds). I can't imagine a six minute song by them!
Overall an epitome of energy and what punk should have been.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
It's Siouxsie so no suprises. Strong dominant drums with squeaks and squeals as vocal highlights.
Either you like it or it is annoying, there is little space to be neutral here. I like it in limited doses - listening to a whole album in one go it gets annoying.
Weather Report
4/5
While it was not exactly a chart success, to be able, as a jazz group, to produce a single that is still recognised 45 years after its release is quite some achievement. Birdland is such as track.
The rest of the album mostly follows the pattern laid down by Birdland, but Rumba Mama stands out as breaking away from this structure.
In general even improvised jazz needs to have some structure imposed on it to make it listenable, and Weather Report get the balance right here.
The Flaming Lips
3/5
Supposedly alt rock, but to my ears it sounded more like prog pop. Nothing stood out as being exceptionaly good or horribly bad.
The track Race for the Prize was familiar from somewhere, this however sums up the experience - it was all "from somewhere".
OK pop with some weird arrangements at times.
Gene Clark
2/5
Nothing good and nothing bad to say about this. Very average country/ballad songs. The sort of thing you would hear in a doctors waiting room. Nothing offensive or challenging.
Lauryn Hill
1/5
Pre listening - I'm not going to like this. I detest rap and dislike hip hop - I hope this is better than that.
Track 1 - Intro - 40 seconds and not even a pretence of bring music
Track 2 - Lost Ones - Standard hip hop - awful
Track 3 - Ex-Factor - OK song, but with really annoying sound efects added - why?
Track 4 - To Zion - A Santana collaboration - which is to say pure Carlos Santana - average for him
Track 5 - Doo Wop(That Thing) More hip hop - slightly better than Lost Ones
Track 6 - Superstar yet more Hip Hop - irritating
At this point I stopped. She obviously is a hip hop artist, which is a shame because from what I heard she has good voice, just needs some real music
Sisters Of Mercy
4/5
Part of a thriving independent music scene in Yorkshire in the 80s they were outshone eventually by The Cult.
This album is a change of direction towards a moodier, more keyboard led sound, however it fits Eldritch's voice and is the sound that most people identify with the Sisters of Mercy.
Whether it is good or not is an open question for me. It depends, as music often does, on my mood when I am listening to it. If I am in a quiet, reflective mood than it is excelent, but if I am upbeat and active, then it just sounds depressing.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
It was better than I expected. I had heard very little of the Smashing Pumpkins and what I had heard had not impressed me very much. The vocals are not to my taste in general, but getting past them to the music itself revealed an inventiveness and willingness to explore that is uncommon in a rock band.
Just please change the vocalist - Billy Corgan's 'little boy' voice lets the band down. Keep him as guitarist, but find someone that has some depth to their voice.
Jeff Beck
4/5
Blues by one of its most competent and in general underrated and forgotten practicioners. The one real criticism that can be made is that he does not write his own material - even Beck's Bolero was written by Jimmy Page
Why this particular album is on the 1001 list is not clear. I expect there will be others
The Smiths
1/5
Having wasted my time listening to the album 'The Queen is Dead" when offered it on this list, I am not going to make the same mistake twice.
This is their best known album, which is one more reason to avoid it.
Pixies
3/5
Post-punk punk, at least in spirit even if the level of technical competence is above that of most punk.
It was OK, I listened to the whole thing without any desire to stop it, but nothing grabber my attention. There are spoken passeges that seem to focus on swearing rather than on any real message - these were just a waste of time,
Not recommended, but no need of a stay away notice either
Blue Cheer
2/5
I guess you get onto the 1001 list just for being loud. A highly overrated band who produced nothing of any real consequence. Yes they were aggressive, loud and a little out of control, but they were not original or really that inspiring.
Basic blues mangled rather badly, that really does not hold up in comparison to Hendrix, The Doors, Moby Grape, The Rolling Stones, Cream etc. etc who all released material the year before.
The material written by them is just a mess (tracks 3, 4 and 6)
Björk
3/5
It's Bjork - and in this case very average Bjork
Randy Newman
2/5
Why?
OK, he had a hit with Short People (which is not on this album) and then decided to get rich by scoring Disney/Pixar movies. A good career move but one that rather removes him from the cohort of musical heroes.
But why is this included in the 1001 albums you must hear before you die. I could have missed it entirely without any hardship whatsoever.
Nick Drake
2/5
The vocals on the first track (Pink Moon) physically hurt they were that bad. The rest of the album passed by with a couple of irritating moments when he tries to get 'avant garde' with the guitar.
Overall a singer songwriter album that has nothing to recommend it and a few really bad spots.
Wilco
4/5
That was interesting. A band that I had not heard before. Thay are difficult to categorise - at times they sound somewhat like Elvis Costello (at least that is what came to mind) but only at times. The catchall label if Alt/Indie would apply, but this applies to everything if you want it to.
No real standout tracks, it is difficult to imagine any of these songs being radio friendly hits. The whole album was interesting enough to hold my attention most of the time
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3/5
Sort of easy listening soft rock. Fine as background music, the sort of thing you would hear in fashion boutiques or trendy wine bars, but not something to actually sit and listen to, nor something to sing along to.
Some of the music as highly reminiscent of other better known songs, but only reminiscent.
Painless and, for me, uninspiring
Jane's Addiction
3/5
Knowing Mountain Song I had some preconceived ideas of what this was going to be like, and it fell well short of those ideas.
The rhythm section is fantastic, the rest is dubious at best. Perry Farrel may have been great live, but this recording reveals him to be more flair than content - the vocals are shouted quietly, probably to hide their incompetence.
The lead guitar is fine technically, but lacks some fire or spirit, which leaves it lagging behind the bass and drums.
Overall Meh
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
3/5
The music is as weird as the cover. It actually was quite interesting for a while, it took until half way through the 28 tracks before I lost interest.
Surreal mixture of Jazz, with some blues structure at times and left field lyrics.
I am unlikely to ever listen to this again, but it certainly was an experience and that justifies it being on this list.
Van Morrison
3/5
Nothing much to say about this. Good songwriting, competent performance, but not outstanding. Nothing that is going to be added to my playlists, but nothing that I would skip if presented to me.
The Sonics
3/5
The image is misleading
The music is frenetic, with uninhibited vocals. What lets the album down is that it is nearly all covers - well done, but without original takes on the material. Fun to listen to, would be great at a sixties themed party to dance to, but not really that important - which is probably why most people won't know of them.
The Verve
2/5
I detest bands that include a 'hidden track' on their albums. In this case there is a five minute period of silence before about three minutes of badly meandering random noise. Don't do it.
Prior to that though there are 12 tracks of generally uninspiring soft rock. The stand out track is Bitter Sweet Symphony' for which they stole the music from the Stones' 'The Last Time' anyway. The rest is pretty forgetable.
Tom Waits
4/5
Upbeat it is not, but then it is Tom Waits so that is not news to anyone. It was an interesting experience but required persistence as his style really does take some getting used to before it becomes appreciated.
I have not, however, been converted. I am not going to seek out more of his so called music to listen to, nor am I going to listen to this again.
Radiohead
4/5
Pre listening reaction - "oh no I detest this lot nearly as much as Coldplay", but I'll give it a try.
The problem appears to be Thom Yorke's voice. The music is fine, covering a wide range of styles with a tendency towards rock, but then the vocals enter and the whine ruins everything. Get a vocalist!
To sing rock you need to have power in your voice - it has to be chest voice most of the time, (Think Dio, Dickerson, Osbourne etc.) but Thom uses his head voice which is thin and reedy - it just doesn't work for rock.
Tracks like 'Just' would be excellent rock if it were not for the vocals.
Overall it was better than expected - just this one big failing
The Only Ones
3/5
So it's not just a song by UFO
Well I knew that as I remember 'Another Girl Another Planet'; let's see what the rest is like.
It was more melodic and slower in tempo in general than I expected. I would describe it as soft punk.
Black Flag
2/5
Five years late, and thereby a little laughable - punk had a very short shelf life and this was released after it had passed it's listen by date.
If it had been released when the band was formed, in 1976, then it would deserve to be here, but as a mediocre copy of british punk, it should be consigned to the bargin bin
Van Halen
4/5
A classic rock album. Perhaps a little too much Dave Lee Roth and not enough Van Halen, but it still rocks hard enough. Not quite five stars as there is some filler (Top Jimmy, I'll Wait, House of Pain - in my opinion)
Sleater-Kinney
1/5
First reaction was - what an uncoordinated mess. As this is their debut album I can only hope that they improved with time - well actually they would pretty much have to as getting worse is nigh on impossible and staying the same just highly unlikely.
Post punk normally displays the same attitude as punk did, which this does, while demonstrating some degree of technical competence - which this does not. Individually they may have reasonable ability - but the concept of playing as a band seems to have escaped them entirely.
Willie Nelson
1/5
Wow 36 minutes of Willie Nelson trying to be a crooner and failing badly. What on earth is this doing in the 1001 list?
Queen
4/5
An album replete with signs of what was to come. I wish I had heard Queen's albums in their release order, but unfortunately that was not the case (The first I heard was A Night at the Opera).
This is from the days when Queen were unquestionably a Rock band, but the transition to being full blown Queen is evident in tracks such as The March of the Black Queen. As ever, with them, there is a variety of musical styles as the songwriting is split amongst the band (Principally Mercury and May, but with contributiond fro Taylor), however in this case it was distinctly divided between the white (A) and Black (B) sides of the album.
The majority of the material will be new to non afficionados - the exception being Seven Seas of Rye which was written specifically to be a single.
Not their best album (the world will never agree on which is their best - but it is not this) but even so it is still an impressive piece of work
D'Angelo
2/5
When it is jazz it is good, however at times it drifts into obscenity laden hip hop and that is annoying and irritating.
Sinead O'Connor
3/5
250 million+ streams for one track on spotify and no more than 10 million for any other. I guess most people, like me, know one song by Sinead O'Connor. Now I get to find out what the rest of the songs on the album are like.
Not that impressed to be honest. Her voice is impressive when it has enough echo added, and she can definately hold a tune. The song choices though are uninspired with the exception of the Prince composition.
Gang Of Four
4/5
Too long for an album that was innovative, but noisy rather then musical. Highly influential, much more so than most 'influential' albums, but overstays its welcome by about 10 to 15 minutes.
Ozomatli
1/5
Only four tracks available in Brazil between Spotify and Youtube. On the basis of four tracks - an uninspired latin hip-hop. I am fine with latin music, but hip-hop is intolerable for me. So 1 star on a limited sample size
Primal Scream
3/5
I much prefer "Give Out But Don't Give Up", but this is OK. Too much filler though to be more than average. Loaded and Moving on Up are the stand out tracks. Then there are tracks such as Don't Fight It, Feel It that are too much boring repetitive rave and not enough music.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
Normal Pet Shop Boys - nothing exceptional on this album. They are good at what they do, but it is not my thing with occasional exceptions, and there were no exceptions here.
Ananda Shankar
1/5
This could have been interesting, but as he chose to cover some very obvious songs, and without any particular variation other than using a sitar instead of a guitar, it was rather flat.
Not impressed.
The Velvet Underground
2/5
Is it me, or are the 1001 albums on a flat streak? One more album that has not made my life any richer or broadened my musical taste one iota. Yes the lyrics are poetical, and for that it maybe justifies a place in the 1001, but musically it is uninspiring.
Not one I will listen to again.
John Prine
3/5
Why does this sound like it should have been recorded in the 1940s?
Very nasal strongly country influenced singer/songwriter with an incredibly strong accent. (Not being American I can't say where the accent is from, it sounds like it should be Texas but probably isn't).
The songs are well written but musically it is rather twee. Not my thing but well done.
Norah Jones
4/5
Lounge music at its best. She has an incredible voice and writes songs that take full advantege of this.
However it is not something that I am going to add to my playlists, as it really is not my style and it does tend towards 'sameness'.
Beatles
2/5
A couple of OK tracks, the rest being average to bad pop music. Why are they so highly rated? I don't get it.
I suppose that if you write and perform enough music some of it is almost bound to be good (There are exceptions to this - looking at Frank Zappa).
Once again, this falls way below expectations given their reputation
David Bowie
3/5
One of Bowie's less interesting albums. It can be that this phase of his production is one that resonates least with me, and that others find it much more relevant to them, but somehow it is too ordinary to be good Bowie.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
Not as depressing as Nebraska, but once again, why is this in the 1001 albums? Nothing worth hearing, and far from Springsteen's best work.
Plain boring
Neil Young
1/5
Why is it that, with the exception of Paul Simon, the best US songwriters can't sing, but insist on trying anway?
Well Spotify here spared me the pain of having to listen to this, as it is unavailable. (There is a track listing, but it won't play any of the tracks due to rights issues). I could swap to Youtube, but I can't be bothered having seen the track listing.
The The
3/5
The The have two big problems. The first is that they don't know if they are a rock band or a pop band and thereby their music falls between these categories and doesn't satisfy many people at all.
The second is that non English speakers can't pronounce their name.
As noted above this album is unsure of what it is trying to be. It is not quite hard enough to be rock, but too aggresive to be pop. OK to listen to, but nothing caught my attention particularly and I will probably never listen to it again.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
THE album - enough said.
Keith Jarrett
3/5
That was painless. If you are a fan of piano or jazz then this is for you, it is just not for me. I didn't interrupt it but it left little to no real impression on me
Jethro Tull
5/5
Can we please forget about the flute for a few minutes. Just listen to how good the guitar work is. Martin Barre just does not get the credit he deserves.
OK, having said my piece, this is one of the all time greats.
There will be people who find it twee or irritating. There will be those that try to argue (and fail miserably) the the flute is not a rock instrument. (Anything is a rock instrument if you play rock on it). These people are to be pitied, not pilloried.
Ian Anderson's voice is not to everyone's taste, but his ability to express himself is almost without equal in contemporary music. The songwriting is as good as it gets, the technical skills are excellent - what more do you want (I know - less flute)
M.I.A.
1/5
Not hopeful on seeing the cover. The first minute of the first track confirmed my fears - this is awful. It is really bad hip hop - and I don't like good hip hop.
No this is not an album I have to listen to before I die - I will die quite content that I did not listen to it all.
What I did listen to showed me that she can not sing, that there is no idea of establishing a style amongst a mess of random and unresolved influences. I just can't find anything redeeming at all about this mess.
New Order
4/5
I can hear why this is on the list, it is well produced, well writen and diferent to most things that came before it. However it is not for me.
The Who
2/5
Pete Townshend's habit of playing lead as if it were an overamplified rhythm guitar irritates me no end. Then the prospect of three and half hours of this, between studio, demo and live versions was more than a little offputting. So I limited myself to listening to the studio versions.
It started off OK, with keyboards, but quickly evolved into overentusiastic rhythm guitar as expected. Musically it didn't improve from there.
As a narrative exercise in musical form, Tommy is reasonably impressive, but as music it is not.
It is also quite evident from the streaming numbers on Spotify that many people have started listening to this but have given up after four or five tracks. The first five tracks all have 2 million plus streams but after that only Pinball Wizard, I'm Free and Christmas of the remaining 19 tracks mange to pass 2 million. I guess that there is only so much of The Who (and Townshend) that people can take in one go.
Todd Rundgren
2/5
As I know of Todd Rundgren as the producer of Bat Out of Hell I had no real idea what to expect.
Whatever I expected it wasn't this collection of random pop, influenced by the Beatles, Carole King and Randy Newman (Yes I know that this is anachronistic in part, but it is what it sounds like).
Not really worth spending the time on - there are various tolerable songs and few that were just irritating, but way to many for too long with too little to say and almost no originality,
As a producer Todd is good, as an artist - average to poor
Pentangle
3/5
Perhaps they are technically superior to Fairport Convention, but they are far less captivating - there is a lack of emotion in Jacqui McShee's voice, and the instruments are just too perfect to provide any feeling.
So give me Fairport every time.
That aside it is an excellent example of English folk music and as such its inclusion is fully justified.
The Cars
4/5
Starts strong and keeps the level high most of the way through. No great suprises - The Cars being The Cars.
Youssou N'Dour
2/5
Thie suffers from one of the pervasive problems of 'world music' - the melodies are so subserviant to the rhythm that they may as well not exist.
And if you do fight through the almost impenatrable layers of percussion to get to the tunes they are not worth the effort.
Frank Sinatra
2/5
Well he can croon - but 16 crooned songs with the same tempo in row is too much for me. After five or six they all begin to sound the same. The careful arrangement of strings and brass, the gentle tinkling of a piano and the velvety blanket of his voice combine to generate a highly soporific effect.
If that is your thing then all well and good - it is not mine
Public Image Ltd.
1/5
I couldn't stand John Lydon in The Sex Pistols - I thought that he was a talent free fraud and poser then. Lets see how he does here.
It couldn't start any worse - a dirge like rhythm with discordant guitars and random screaming - for nearly ten minutes.
Next you get awful poetry that tries to be provocative but just comes over as stupid. Can it go downhill from here? - I seriously doubt it, but one never knows.
They managed it - by repeating the bad poetry partly screamed, over a flat and uninspired rhythm track.
At his point I gave up - it is not possible to give negative stars but if I could I would.
Herbie Hancock
3/5
OK. It got rather tedious, but that is probably because I am not a fan of Jazz in general, nor a fan of instrumental music. So it falls outside of my area of interest. Good to have heard it, but I will probably never play any of it again.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
2/5
Bluegrass - while the musicianship is unquestionable - the lack of professionalism in the studio can jar after a while. It is fine to mess around when you are just having a jam session at home, but to extend that behaviour into the studio is not so great.
Being a double album with a playing time in excess of two hours it is also a bit too much of the same for too long.
Various Artists
1/5
Just over half an hour of saccharine christmas music courtesy of Phil Spector - which just means that they all sound more or less the same.
I could very easily have lived my life without hearing this and have been none the poorer for that.
There are very few christmas songs that are actually worth listening to, and none of them are on this.
The Monks
4/5
Never heard of them, let alone heard them. Let's find out.
I can see why this could be influential - rather psychodelic and heavy for its year. Pleasant enough to listen to but without anything that particularly jumped out as interesting.
Small Faces
4/5
It really is a shame that the small faces decided to align themselves with the 'Mods'. This had the unfortunate effect of meaning that they had almost no fan base outside of the UK as the Mods were a very UK centric group. Had they stayed unaligned (and found a better manager earlier) they would have been a much bigger success than they were.
Musically they were easily as good as The Who, and probably more inventive - certainly more varied in style. This album is worth listening to, even though the storytelling part towards the end really doesn't work that well. If you ignore the spoken word passages and just pay attention to the music it is high quality throughout.
The Mothers Of Invention
4/5
That was different, and interesting. Frank Zappa has always been an enigma to me. Every time I hear his work I find it interesting but then, a day or two later, I can't remember anything of what I heard. It seems that his workis condemed to be ephemeral for me.
This is the start of it all - the first album by The Mothers of Invention - and it clearly shows what was to come. An eclectic collection of music, nearly all a long way from most other music being produced in 1966.
Well worth listening to, but I doubt that I'll remember any of it a couple of days hence.
Heaven 17
1/5
They were tedious in the 80s but with the passing of time they have become absolutely soporific.
Why is this in the 1001? I can think of no justification whatsoever for including it. They had one hit - Temptation - which is not even on this and is not very good anyway.
Sarah Vaughan
2/5
The cover is a mess, how is the music?
Uninispired lounge music. Way to turn good songs into dreary slow meandering outings. She can sing to some degree, if rather limited in her conveyance of emotion. I suppose she is a product of her time.
I just recomend that people compare her version of Just a Gigolo with that performed by Dave Lee Roth or Louis Prima.
Stan Getz
2/5
Living in Brazil I have become tired of Samba, which I never liked very much to start with.
Then to put together the concept of Jazz (free form expression in music) with Samba (heavily defined rhythm and chord progressions) seems to be a recipe for disaster. In its favour is the fact that it is being played by two consumate musicians.
Having heard it through I was left unmoved. Much more Samba than Jazz.
Give it credit for being from 1962, so it was probably one of the first recordings to expose the Northern hemisphere to Samba. That alone makes it important.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
2/5
Why this album ? There are at least five better albums by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. If all of them are in the 1001 list then it is too much.
It gets 2 stars just for being written by Declan Patrick MacManus.
David Bowie
1/5
His last, and least album - if it had not been for his death this would have sunk without a trace, as it should have.
It is a shame that someone capable of producing work such as Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust (to avoid its full title), Aladdin Sane, and Low should have been reduced to producing this.
It has absolutely no redeeming features whatsoever.
Derek & The Dominos
4/5
Clapton and Duane Allman - what more could you want? A vocalist would have been good. Clapton can hold a tune but his voice is nothing special and is clearly the weak link in Derek and the Dominos.
That said, this is a classic collection of blues and worthy of inclusion just for Little Wing alone. Then there is the title track - one of the greatest blues recordings ever.
The Killers
4/5
The title is appropriate. This is as frenetic as anything since the Sex Pistols, but with much more talent. The vocals are a bit monotone for my taste, but work well with the style of music.
Tom Waits
3/5
The album cover is more interesting than the music, but that is not to say that the music is bad.
Tom Waits is fine in homeopathic doses, one or two tracks at a time. Listening to an entire album at once is overdosing. Perhaps this is an effect of streaming rather than buying records, but it holds true today.
Deep Purple
5/5
Anything with Lazy and When a Blind Man Cries on it is exceptional to start with. Then add the rock standards of Highway Star and Space Trucking. Mix in Smoke on the Water and you have a guarenteed classic.
The only question that remains is whether it is better than In Rock - a question that, 50 years later, still does not have a definitive answer.
Dinosaur Jr.
1/5
Why do bands that can play insist on using people who can't sing. The music is OK, not great, but tolerable post punk/alternative rock. The singing is dreadful.
Change the vocalist and maybe it gets 3 stars. As it is it gets 1
Liz Phair
2/5
Singer/Songwriter stuff. The songs are fine - not brilliant but not terrible. The music is rhythm driven rather than melodic, but again that is OK. The singing is monotone and off key most of the time and that is not OK.
I guess that this was a success due to the songwriting, because it surely can not be because of the performance.
Screaming Trees
3/5
Ordinary light weight rock. Nothing stood out as exceptional, and nothing jarred my hearing. Basically it passed by without catching my attention in any significant way.
The B-52's
2/5
Take the same basic song - shout something surreal over the jangly guitars, add a few screeching girls and you have a hit album.
Rock Lobster was fun, but a whole album of what is essentially the same song reprocessed is too much.
The Sabres Of Paradise
2/5
I suppose somebody will like this, just not me. Find something to give a rhythic base and then play a sparse keyboard arrangement over that. Repeat 14 times.
SZA
1/5
I detest autotune, thus I detest this pile of nonsense
Dinosaur Jr.
1/5
No improvement over Bug
Butthole Surfers
1/5
Random noise and ripped off riffs - not worth my time
Slint
1/5
Another band that disappeared without trace - for good reason.
Mediocre music with no content of any interest and vocals that are below standard for your average garage band made up of high schoolers.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
4/5
Classic synth pop - which I detested at the time. Listening to it now, with less prejudice, it is very good and deserves to be recognised as one of the best albums in its category. Great melody lines with clever use of a variety of sound samples and drum tracks. Overall quite impressive. Even the vocals are relatively good.
Echo And The Bunnymen
3/5
It is a bit too depressing for my taste. Songs about collecting the bones of friends, or others that think they are vegetables - really not too uplifting is it.
If you find black moods appealing then this is your album.
Musically it is well constructed, the vocals are clear and tuneful, the only problem is the mood.
Buzzcocks
2/5
Standard punk - absolutely nothing original or innovative. I can see no reason for this being in the 1001 list. Punk is no more than OK at best, and this is average so it gets all of 2 stars.
The White Stripes
4/5
The White Stripes being themselves - or should that be himself with sidekick? Unfortunately if you have heard one of their albums you have heard all of them - they seem to be capable of plagiarising themselves.
Despite that I liked it.
Genesis
4/5
Probably the archetypal progressive rock album - disputing this title with Tommy - and winning because Genisis are much more Prog than The Who.
A swansong for Peter Gabriel with Genesis, almost certainly due to Gabriel's atitude. Despite this it is a masterpiece of Prog
Funkadelic
1/5
Meh - I was expecting something with serious Funk - a la Parliament or some of Earth Wind and Fire - what was presented was a mishmash of what was at times blues guitar over motown rythms, followed by 'artistic' sound doodlings.
Seriously unimpressed
Buena Vista Social Club
2/5
The problem with most world music is that it that it does not generate an emotional response. This is no exception. One or two tracks are catchy and highly danceable, but the rest are just of purely intellectual interest, and that is not what music is about for me (which is probably why I am not a fan of jazz). If I want intellectual stimulation I will read a book, or discuss topics of interest with friends and family, I will not listen to music.
So, despite being well performed and produced, this left me cold. If I am to take an intellectual aproach, then I have to criticise it as being an artificial collective created by Ry Cooder and Nick Gold. There is little that is authenticaly Cuban in its genesis. The result may be true to Cuban music, I can't tell as I am not particularly familiar with their music, but it is their equivalent of a 'boy band' or perhaps a supergroup. All very produced and artificial.
Pink Floyd
5/5
As unimaginably brilliant as ever.
The National
2/5
An extended dirge. Try to imagine a slightly more tuneful Morrisey singing over the backdrop of slowed down Coldplay music for three quarters of an hour and you have more or less this album.
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
2/5
I would call it singer/songwriter if Oldham could sing, but he can't so it is just songwriter.
Boring as hell, perhaps if you want to sit and listen to tedious depressing songs about someone elses life, then you may be interested, but I am not.
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
Jimmy Smith
3/5
It may well have been responsible for making the Hammond B3 the organ of choice for the decade, but beyond this it is nothing exceptional. Rather slow paced light jazz
Mariah Carey
2/5
The start is terrible - It may have been a successful single but 'Honey' is a complete mess - trying to do too many things as a result of which it does all of them badly. Next we get a squeaky ballad with a really badly intrusive drum machine. Then a slightly less squeaky ballad, that just about puts the average listener to sleep - or it would if that infernal drum machine didn't show up to wake them up.
Enough. Why does anyone think that she can sing - on the evidence of this she squeaks
Steve Earle
3/5
Easy listening soft country. Nothing jumped out and grabbed me as the music passed by, either as good or bad.
Magazine
2/5
Why is it that what would otherwise be interesting music, is so often ruined by the artists not considering that the human voice is as much an instrument to be mastered as any other musical instrument. The technical musicianship is outstanding here, except for the vocals which are of pre-school incompetence and thereby ruin the whole thing.
The progressive/avant garde bands that really succeeded were those that paid attention to the vocals, or, if they lacked the vocal skills, stuck with instrumental music.
A good effort thoroughly ruined.
Burning Spear
2/5
I am not a fan of reggae and this is not very good reggae either. It is pretty much the same melody througout, with the obligatory rhythms, and unintelligable vocals. It can not hold a candle to Peter Tosh, for example.
Eric Clapton
3/5
Fairly standard blues for the most part. As is nearly always the case with Clapton. (I am just evaluating the recording - not the person who made it - that way lies a horrible mess.) Obviously I shot the sheriff stands out, but that may just be familiarity - and the fact that it is not really blues.
Ash
4/5
The influence of earlier bands from Northern Ireland is clear, particularly that of the Buzzcocks. Garage rock of decent quality, and at least with vocals that don't harm the sound. Nothing that will be added to my personal playlists but a good album all the same.
Lou Reed
2/5
"You have a hairy minded pink bare bear"! The lyrics don't make sense too frequently here, the music is OK, but not outstanding. There are iconic songs (Perfect day and Walk on the wild side) that will always be popular, but the rest is no more than OK.
Terence Trent D'Arby
4/5
A classic of its time. No suprises, no mystery, just solid good R&B.
He never managed to repeat the quality of this recording, and slowly (or rather quickly) faded from sight.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
Not my thing at all.
Think slowed down rave, with carefully layered electronic soundscapes. All very well done, but it left me absolutely cold. This is what I would expect a good set of music generating algorithms to produce. The drum rhythms are absolutely mechanical, the bass lines follow predictable structures and then a 'correct' melody is layered on top. The lyrics seem to be more concerned with the sound than the meaning.
Then on the final track they transform into a mediocre lounge band!! I guess they had a message they wanted to deliver, but what it was is not at all clear.
Orbital
1/5
Pretty much what I expected. Repetetive electronic and/or sample loops. They were amongst the first to do this and have a lot to answer for.
It is possible to make electronic music, without it being mind numbingly dull, but Orbital fail completely in this regrard.
Johnny Cash
2/5
That was disappointing. Johnny Cash, once upon a time, was an iconic figure in country music, with good reason. Folsom Prison blues, the Orange Blossom Special etc. etc. This however is just a sad colection of carefully chosen cover versions. One or another works reasonably well, others are unmitigatred disasters. I can hear why Hurt was so well received, but incongruity is not sufficient in and of itself, there has to be something more and there just isn't.