1001 Albums Summary

With one or two exceptions, Stevie Wonder music generally just passes over me, unless there is a song I'm really annoyed by ("I Just Called to Say I Love You"). He's one of those artists that I can tell is a really, really good musician, and it's really well-produced. Why doesn't it hit me like other similar music of the era? Is it TOO smooth? Big exception: I LOVE "They Won't Go When I Go", the haunting baroque-inspired song that captures the sadness and hope of any good funeral. It's also the only song that Wonder didn't write by himself, it was co-written by Yvonne Wright, who co-wrote the other Wonder song I like: "I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)", so maybe she's the secret sauce. It looks like this album won every Grammy that year, so what do I know.

I've heard "Lust For Life" a million times, for whatever reason never heard the "other" album he did in 1977. Maybe I'll do a track-by-track reaction. "Sister Midnight" - WOW this sounds exactly like something off of David Bowie's Berlin-era albums. I understand why Iggy purists don't like this era of him, it's so Bowie-y. FUN FACT FOR JIM - I once went into the most High Fidelity-style music store ever, and I found out the owner refused to sell David Bowie albums because he claims Bowie broke up The Stooges. I'd say "drug addiction" had more to do with that, but okay. "Nightclubbing" - I think the only song I've heard on this before, because it was on a Trainspotting soundtrack album. Not my fave, but it definitely feels like how being too coked up and late-stage drunk feels as the sun comes up. "Funtime" - The label put this out as a single? That's pretty funny. "Baby" - That Factory records sound where the band sounds like the album might be skipping. "China Girl" - I like Bowie's version fine, but dig this more. It's like when you've heard The Byrds do a Dylan song first. Also not enough music incorporates toy piano. "Dum Dum Boys" - I can see where R.E.M. got their late-career guitar style from. "Tiny Girls" - Eh "Mass Production" - Ah, the long grind loop ender. I wonder if this started the trend. I'll definitely re-listen to this one. We'll see if the end tracks grow on me.

Ugh, this guy. "American Pie" - No one should make songs about "The King" and "The Jester" unless their name is "Bob" and "Dylan". This is one of the songs that gave boomers their insufferable status. Good piano playing (McLean is not playing it). I'm not going to track by track this one. It mirrors other stuff coming out at the same time. It's Paul Simon without the plain observation, Nick Drake without the sincerity, Joan Baez without taking a stand, Lenard Cohen for optimists. It sounds very cleanly produced, I'm sure that's a big reason why it's on this list. But I'm not a studio technician, so whadda ya gonna do.

BOOM BADDA BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM This album is so much fun, and so energetic, and doesn't have any of the gross trappings that other arena-ready rock acts of the era tend to have. (No songs lamenting the fact that a girl is underage or anything.) I like this as a whole more than any other full album I've heard of theirs. I gonna find this vinyl.

He has a nice voice. Nothing is really popping for me.

You know, it's the Beastie Boys. It's one of their most energetic, but also gets a little repetitive after the half-way point.

I don't know if I like this PJ Harvey more than To Bring You My Love, but it's ridiculous that she wasn't on the wave of success and stardom that other rock acts with much less talent got to ride in the 90s'.

Something tells me she may have gone through a break-up.

Aretha sounds good.

You'd think I would like Nick Cave, but I cannot take him seriously, nor can I make it through any of his songs.

Take what you will from this, but this is as good as Cypress Hill got/gets.

Just because you can play the guitar real good doesn't mean you should also sing.

The beginning of Tom's "pots and pans" era (this album - death). Fifty percent gloom and pain bangers, fifty percent just binks and bonks. The Rain Dogs follow-up album figured out how to make it all work much better.