My 1001 Albums Journey

Album	You	Global	Diff
Duck Stab/Buster & Glen The Residents	5	2.03	+2.97
Sulk The Associates	5	2.36	+2.64
Trafalgar Bee Gees	5	2.63	+2.37
New Boots And Panties Ian Dury	5	2.7	+2.3
Arise Sepultura	5	2.73	+2.27
Basket of Light Pentangle	5	2.76	+2.24
Planet Rock: The Album Afrika Bambaataa	5	2.79	+2.21
Guitar Town Steve Earle	5	2.81	+2.19
Sweetheart Of The Rodeo The Byrds	5	2.83	+2.17
Grievous Angel Gram Parsons	5	2.86	+2.14

Album	You	Global	Diff
The Doors The Doors	1	3.95	-2.95
KIWANUKA Michael Kiwanuka	1	3.74	-2.74
Boston Boston	1	3.71	-2.71
A Love Supreme John Coltrane	1	3.63	-2.63
The Velvet Underground & Nico The Velvet Underground	1	3.62	-2.62
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots The Flaming Lips	1	3.57	-2.57
Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea PJ Harvey	1	3.38	-2.38
xx The xx	1	3.37	-2.37
My Aim Is True Elvis Costello	1	3.35	-2.35
This Year's Model Elvis Costello & The Attractions	1	3.32	-2.32

Artist	Albums	Average
The Who	5	5
Beatles	5	4.8
Bob Dylan	7	4.57
The Rolling Stones	5	4.6
Queen	3	5
Stevie Wonder	3	5
Deep Purple	3	5
Jimi Hendrix	3	5
Bruce Springsteen	3	5
Nirvana	3	5
Led Zeppelin	5	4.4
Miles Davis	4	4.5
Ray Charles	2	5
Run-D.M.C.	2	5
Fairport Convention	2	5
Frank Sinatra	2	5
Prince	2	5
The Clash	2	5
King Crimson	2	5
Van Halen	2	5
Missy Elliott	2	5
Marvin Gaye	3	4.33

Artist	Albums	Average
Elvis Costello & The Attractions	3	1
Morrissey	3	1.33
The xx	2	1
The Doors	3	1.67
Sonic Youth	3	1.67
Ryan Adams	2	1.5
The Velvet Underground	2	1.5
The Beta Band	2	1.5
Love	2	1.5
My Bloody Valentine	2	1.5
Barry Adamson	2	1.5
Slipknot	2	1.5
Dexys Midnight Runners	3	2
Neil Young	4	2.25

Artist	Ratings
Grateful Dead	5, 2
PJ Harvey	3, 4, 1
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds	2, 4, 1
U2	4, 5, 2

Queen

5/5

One of the all time greatest albums of all time. This album has worlds in it. It has characters. It has melody and harmony. And rock. The faerie fellas master stroke, controlled insanity. Father to son with its beach boys harmonies. March of the black queen, with its six sections. Oh, did they do that type of thing again? And it’s an album. You start with procession, and you listen till seven seas of rhye fades out. I pity those who don’t get it. It’s its own universe. Walk in and let Freddie, Brian, Roger and John guide you through.

Live At The Regal

B.B. King

4/5

For all you Stevie Ray and Jimi wannabes out there - this is how you do blues. Even better is live at cook county jail, with Joe Walsh and carol king in the backing band. But no one did blues like B B.

High Violet

The National

3/5

The national try to do the birds. They try to do creedence. They try to do the band. There’s a little eagles in there. But they don’t, at least for me quite get there. They’re good players and the songs are ok. But I always thought they should have tried a bit more risk taking.

Vincebus Eruptum

Blue Cheer

3/5

Certainly one of the contenders for first heavy metal band (tm) summertime blues is an excellent reworking of one of the top 20 songs of the rock era. Ok, the who did it first, but blue cheer slowing it down gave it a certain something. The rest of the album is less assured - they’re trying for something new, but not quite getting it. To be fair, they’re in uncharted waters and we’re listening with massive hindsight. Still I prefer the kinks, the who, cream, yardbirds, sabbath, cream and zeppelin as pioneers.

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Wilco

3/5

Preferred to the national and Mumford. They have a more nuanced sound. Great opener and a solid follow up. There’s a consistency to this album, with tweedy being pushed to write better songs by a good band. Wilco gave us all hope for that so called Americana movement.

C'est Chic

CHIC

5/5

Le freak is an ear worm of course. And let’s be honest Nile has milked the same style of guitar playing since at least this album. But it works. And Bernie’s bubbling bouncy bass is a global treasure. For me not an album to sit and listen to. It’s an album to dance to.

Pump

Aerosmith

3/5

Aerosmith are a band I feel I should like more than I do. Great well crafted songs (thanks mostly to Desmond child working with them), great musicianship - Joe Perry is an underrated guitarist. But I’m left a bit cold. I don’t know why. Sure Steven Tyler is annoying, but a great showman. So, this album was … less than the sum of its parts? In the pantheon of great rock bands, I have many I prefer. This is a better album than many of their others, but a must listen? Nope.

Appetite For Destruction

Guns N' Roses

5/5

At the time I was in two minds. Yes it’s great. Sweet child. Paradise city. Welcome to the jungle. Mr brownstone. It rocks. It rocks hard. But was this the direction rock was going? Back to the future? Didn’t the stones already do this? Yet taken out of the context of its release time, it rocks. sure, Axl is … well, axl, and is slash a one trick pony, or one of the best guitarists of his generation? I’m still not sure. Izzy Stradlin is the glue and a better guitarist than Slash. Which is either not hard or an Incredible achievement. Duff rumbles effectively. Rumour has it it’s all machines except the voice and guitar. Maybe. Certainly Steven Adler was sacked for poor timekeeping, but we can point to many many drummers who record ok In all a great album. It’s not as great as Queen II or Aqualung, but it’s up there. Fight me.

The Village Green Preservation Society

The Kinks

5/5

One of the greatest albums of the sixties. How could I not love a song and album that name checks Sherlock Holmes and moriarty. Overall the perfect mix of nostalgia and critique. Sure, this turns into the worrying politics of ray davies, but this album remains a perfect encapsulation of a certain type of Englishness that has understood it’s no longer the world power, but is happy to remain British, unflappable and unbowed. I love this album, despite where it points. But where it is (not where it points) is an expression of my Anglophilia.

S&M

Metallica

4/5

You can’t deny metallicas impact. Both as a listening experience but also as a phenomenon. The pretence to classical music in hard rock goes back to at least deep Purple and Ibsen to remember kids doing an album with the Melbourne symphony. But this album works. A bit self indulgent But the orchestra does enhance the music. It’s not pretentious which is an amazing feat.

Armed Forces

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

1/5

Elvis Costello wrote some good songs. Nowhere near as many as he or his diminished fan base will tell you. But mostly he’s a ‘not quite as talented as he thinks bore’. I suspect the stampeding elephants are meant to represent the power and strength of the music. To me it’s more like the dull thudding headache you get after wilfully exposing yourself to the ponderous pointless meanderings of the Costello oeuvre. David Lee Roth got it right - the reason rock critics love Elvis Costello is because he looks like most rock critics. Oliver’s army remains one of the greatest songs ever. There’s a couple on earlier albums - I don’t want to go to Chelsea and Veronica Watching the detectives is ok. The rest are at best twee. At worst forgettable mediocrity. Anyone can write one great song. Talent comes in at 4 or 5. The British new wave gave us compelling, unforgettable acts. Off the top of my head - the pretenders, the police, the cure, Lloyd Cole, Ian dury, the stranglers, the Irish boomtown rats, the list goes on. The wrong Elvis doesn’t make the cut. He was spoiled by the terrific Attractions, second only to the blockheads as a unit, but sadly with Costello, a band who were professional turd polishers.

With The Beatles

Beatles

4/5

Beyond review really. Here they are, young and free and cheeky. Except, not. But, also yes. The Beatles are more than musicians. They are a phenomenon. Still are really. But it’s about the music, man. And why it is is pretty good. The covers are great. My favourite cover of theirs is Boys, but please Mr postman and money on this album are particularly close to it. (Yes I know, twist and shout, it’s great too). Poor George had to face the ignominy of developing his songwriting in public - his song is, well, a song. And doesn’t really point to the superb efforts he’d later produce. But John and Paul did their dross in Paul’s bedroom in Liverpool. The album cover suggests the depths they'd plumb, which at this stage, they had no idea of. That it’s only 2 years to rubber soul and is incredible growth. Brian Wilson and Dylan are the only ones who develop that quickly. Also, they are presenting as ‘serious artists’ in that picture, probably cynically at this point. Yet, fate has a way of mocking you, innit? An important waypoint in the history of rock and a great listen, this is a five star album from any band but from the fabs it’s a 3.5. Rounded up to four.

The Last Broadcast

Doves

2/5

Possibly an album put here to include post 2000 releases? And it sounds like every other 'edgy' Indy band. In other words dull. Plodding. It’s like Elvis Costello but on mandrax. Worse actually, because Costello at least tried to hide his lack of originality. There are 1000 bands that sound like this, and you know, I can’t name one off hand? Maybe we should ban listening to the Smiths, The Cure and Joy Division by earnest young urbanites till they’ve heard more music. (All three bands are vastly superior to their acolytes). I’d rather listen to Coldplay outtakes than this Another thing to ban is critics who promote this stuff. No one thinks you’re cool or edgy. There’s plenty of great post 2000 music. This ain’t it. I’m struggling but 2 stars because its mediocrity prevents it being 1 star.

Le Tigre

3/5

Did indie music atrophy in about 1995? It’s not horrible but I’m not getting anything I can’t get out of ‘seether’ or Love. Edgily boring and more hip than the before shot in a weight watchers commercial yet not terribly interesting. 2.5 (rounded up to 3)

A Hard Day's Night

Beatles

5/5

Probably the first great Beatles album, they are in fine form. Imagine hearing this in 1964, not knowing what’s to come. That opening chord - A G9/A - apparently The guitars playing a G7 and the piano playing a A major. Can’t buy me love. All my loving. A hard days night. If I fell. All of it. McCartney finding that melodicism. Lennon’s lyrics. Even the George song isn’t his worst. Stunning even in context.

The Only Ones

3/5

Enjoyed this. Great songs. Impassioned playing. Shows promise.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

3/5

I should hate this. But there’s a craft there that can’t be denied. Sure, Fagen is a miserable so and so and the late Walter Becker wasn’t much more pleasant but there’s a talent there. Crack musicians in the band. I don’t like this one as much as the glorious aja but it’s good. As a certain kind of musician it’s both the thing you’d love to play on and what you’d like to do. Too cynical to be really classed as ‘yacht rock’ (unlike the less misanthropic Doobie brothers or a tonne of privileged white boys most of whom I can take or leave), I can see why punks and harder rockers tend to dislike this. But it, as the kids say, slaps.

Morrison Hotel

The Doors

2/5

I woke up this morning and had myself a beer. Ooh edgy. The pretence. A group that would send Holden Caulfield into conniptions. If you’re 16 this probably appeals. But you possibly should grow out of it. Krieger plays guitar well. Densmore is a decent drummer. I can live without the organ. And the angst from a privileged moderately talented nobody. Ugh. Roy Buchanan on bass (just to shut up those who say ‘there’s no bass man’. Go and listen to b b king ‘live at the regal’ for ‘no bass and an organ’. Morrison is a poet in the way every sensitive year 9 boy is a poet - the world just doesn’t understand me. Sigh.

Let It Bleed

The Rolling Stones

5/5

Gimme shelter. That apocalyptic dervish of destruction. If the rest of the album had been twinkle twinkle little star played half in G# and half in A and half in 3/4 and half in 4/4 that track alone would give the album five stars from me. And yet here’s the rest of it. A stunning collection of songs from the second (I think) of the greatest run of albums of all time. Beggars, this, through to Exile. Jagger Richards were a slow burn. Unlike Dylan, Lennon McCartney and Brian Wilson who made massive strides in songwriting in 18 months to two years, the stones take a little longer to reach greatness. Sure they wrote satisfaction. And some really fine stuff. But mick Taylor and gram parsons unlock the quintessential Stones sound. And as great as that early period can be (Have you seen your mother, baby, standing in the shadows?’ Or Paint it black or she’s a rainbow or dozens of others are truly great.). But the swagger, thanks to country music and blues makes the stones. The Stones swing. Individually they’re ok. (Charlie being the only one who approaches virtuosity.). But together unbeatable. After the phoney, shallow pretensions of The Doors, this is the palate cleanser we need. You want edge? Jagger delivers in spades. You want rock and roll attitude? Keith gives us the template. What other band would write about serial killers, drug use, the end of the world and end it with a jaded world weary understanding of what one can and can’t have? Tons have emulated the model. Few have equalled it. None have bettered it.

Black Holes and Revelations

Muse

3/5

I should love this. For some reason this doesn’t connect. It’s on me. Not them. Bonus star as an ‘I’m sorry guys. It’s not you. It’s me.’ Can’t even tell you why.

Mr. Tambourine Man

The Byrds

3/5

A band which was let down by its production. In a sense highly important. In another sense less than the sum of its parts. More an artefact than a great listen.

One Nation Under A Groove

Funkadelic

3/5

This is good but I like the earlier stuff.

Tea for the Tillerman

Cat Stevens

4/5

What a songwriter. Gets right what so many others get wrong. Personal but not self-indulgent. Universal but not cliched. Gentle but not twee. Father and son should be slop. In a lesser pair of hands it would be. Even the little snippet of the song which is also the title track at the end is the perfect concousion to the album (as it was when it played over the end credits of The Office (UK))

Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite

Maxwell

3/5

I feel I’ve heard this a million times by a million acts for at least a million days before this 1996 release. There’s a decent groove. Otherwise, meh.

Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water

Limp Bizkit

1/5

Misogynist egocentric juvenile pap. Averagely played. No subtlety. No nuance. I’ve rounded up the star rating. This is an album no one needs to hear.

Truth

Jeff Beck

4/5

No one played like jeff. When he got it right though he got it right. Rod Stewart is the greatest singer of his generation when he has stuff that matches the magnificence. This is a great album

Superfly

Curtis Mayfield

5/5

A great funk album. Curtis, Isaac, Marvin, Stevie. There’s your Mount Rushmore of funk. This album is probably enough to warrant Curtis inclusion.

Disintegration

The Cure

3/5

I love the cure. I dislike the cure. I think smith is underrated. I think smith is extremely overrated. I think this is extraordinary musicianship. I think this is simplistic pap. On balance you can excise every second sentence from that paragraph. But then again the whole thing is how I feel. This album is about as cute as you can get. And I love it. And it bores me. And it’s timeless. But it screams that time. The three stars represents the five stars and the one star I want to give this album.

Spiderland

Slint

3/5

Hmmmm. Not awful. Not my thing. Some good stuff. Some self indulgent stuff. Play songs, not maths formulae.

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

4/5

Reelin in the years… what a song. Steely Dan gets their first great album. I know that there’ll be some saying this is too slick. But Fagen and Becker are New Yorkers. New York is slick. And they record out of Los Angeles. Los Angeles is slick. You want a bit of rough, go to muscle shoals or stax in the south, or even get out of Manhattan or Bel Air and go to cbgbs. Sure, it’s middle class first world problems, but they deserve their own songs too. Particularly if they’re this well-crafted and played. The edges are hidden under the slick. But the edges are there. Fagan's lyrics are bitter, twisted and cynical. Under some great playing by the band. This is a great album. With better to come.

Midnight Ride

Paul Revere & The Raiders

3/5

Somewhat disappointing. Not sure why. Much prefer the monkees doing Boyce and hart for example.

Space Ritual

Hawkwind

2/5

Lemmy does more interesting things later. I think I don’t like psychedelia? This is … meh. Self indulgent. God, bring on punk.

Blood, Sweat & Tears

4/5

An incredible group. I’m deeply familiar with two of the singles, the incredible spinning wheel and if I die, which is a song you don’t expect them to do but it’s magnificent. The rest of the album is a strong album. Liked side one in particular. Side two is pretty great though.

Third/Sister Lovers

Big Star

3/5

More critical darlings. Sigh. Actually not too bad at all but like the shins, despite Zach Braffs endorsement in that movie whose title escapes me this probably won’t change your life. To be fair if you were there, then, it might have. But I suspect it meant a lot more to those who lived in their parents basement, railing against the man, man, and earnestly assuring you this THIS is cool!

The Message

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

3/5

Has this aged well? Hmmm. The message is of course timeless and sadly still relevant for particular demographics. I’d suggest that this is important more for the direction it points than the weight of it as an album. Is it good? Yes. Is it great? In parts yes. But in 1000 years when historians look at the hip hop phenomenon this album will be seen as a seed not a tree. Grandmaster flash and melle mel deserve their legendhood.

Trout Mask Replica

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

1/5

Zappa sacked him and for good reason. Overrated, undercooked. Not as clever as he thinks. A decent painter. A pretentious musician. A horrible human being. Horrible humans can make great art. But not in this case.

Ágætis Byrjun

Sigur Rós

3/5

I have a decent level of music theory. I’ve listened too and enjoyed Holdsworth , Coltrane, Zappa, later Joni Mitchell, Shostakovich, stockhausen, Jaco…. I’m still wondering if this is garbage or genius. One wonders if they weren’t from Iceland would they have received any attention? The stars reflect an acknowledgment I might be too hard. Or. Might not.

Innervisions

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Were you to distil my musical dna into 50 albums, this would be one of them. I prefer this album to songs in the key of life. Livin for the city is an astounding song with incredible production. From the hard funk of Higher ground to the pop sensibility of golden lady. The hard brutal politics of mistra know it all. For me the standout is Jesus children of America. The response and call in it is so so cool. It’s really the state of black music, 1973-1983. It’s all killer, no filler. 10 stars.

The Gilded Palace Of Sin

The Flying Burrito Brothers

4/5

The genius of this group is sneaky Pete of course. That spoiled rich kid brat, gram, knows his country, but compared to his contemporaries, including Kris kristofferson, Merle haggard, joe south, Dylan, the band, and even Mick and keith, he is more of an enthusiast than a legend. There’s nice stuff here, don’t get me wrong, and Hillman is never less than driven, but like grandmaster flash, more a a signpost of what was to come,rather than a waypoint. Solid though. 3:5 rounded up.

Kid A

Radiohead

4/5

Never boring, restless, thoughtful, clever. Kid A is a great album, especially after the smash that was ok computer. Opening and title tracks are magnificent. The rest is solid. Check punch bros cover of the opener. I feel this has settled into the place where it should be. 4 stars

Deserter's Songs

Mercury Rev

3/5

Not a band I’d put in a 'bands I listen to often, or at all, really’ list, but I enjoyed this. Maybe I should give them a better listen

Ragged Glory

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

2/5

This album didn’t convert me to being the Neil young fan I’m told I should be. He can be a great songwriter. But nothing grabbed me here.

The Stranger

Billy Joel

4/5

It took me a long while to appreciate the craft of Billy Joel. I know sarcastic elbows has a book that calls him the worst rock star ever, but that same book also calls queen II the worst rock album ever and that is so incredibly objectively wrong so as to completely make it devoid of any credibility. It’s like saying Elvis Costello is more than a mediocre talent with one or two fluke songs. It just isn’t true. But nonetheless I thought Billy was a cheap Elton knock off. I then heard the my favourite albums podcast with a Long Island singer song writer. And he converted me. Hearing the praises sung by a follower opened my eyes. And Billy Joel can write some magnificent songs. Listen to the construction of just the way you are. Or she’s only a woman. The Wikipedia page lists five singles from the album. I knew them all. and really as crafted songs they’re all great. The band is terrific. Is he a favourite of mine? Well… There are still many I prefer. But this is a very strong album of exquisitely crafted and excellently played songs and I shouldn’t have dismissed him out of hand. 4 stars

The Band

5/5

Another one of the albums which is major part of my musical dna. King Harvest, man. What a fricking song. If it was the only good song on the album this would be a five star album. But all are classics. The instrumentation. The voices. The songs. This is F*ck of music. You listen to it and say 'f*ck off. What else is this good?' There’s maybe 25 albums that are this good. 'Dixie' is one of the best songs about the defeat of the South in the civil war, written by a Canadian just over 100 years later. Its only real rival is 'my fathers gun' written by a couple of Englishmen. Rag mama rag, rocking chair. Just F*ck off. Poor tragic melancholy Richard Manuel. He of the voice of an angel, the subconscious of a demon and a fine piano player. Garth Hudson, a prodigy, a multi instrumentalist, a musical genius. When they say that the band combined played 26 instruments between them, Garth plays about half of that. Levon Helm. The voice of the south, and one of the trio of great sixties shuffle drummers - Ringo and charlie watts being the other two. Rick Danko: he of the dark eyes, different harmonies and world changing bass. And Robbie. Wrote the songs and played the guitar like nearly no one else. The album that preceded this one broke up two of the biggest bands - famously Clapton flew across the Atlantic and thought he could demand his way into the band. They said no. He leaves Cream and joins Delaney and Bonnie and friends. I also think George harrison looks at how things were run, and the Beatles start to lose their pallor for him. This album is better. This is what the Byrds and the flying burrito brothers tried to do. That they failed to get there isn’t really a reflection on them. This combination was unbeatable. If you doubt it, look at the solo careers. Some fine stuff. But nothing to this standard. Levon’s dirt farmer is about the best of it and it’s great but … For me, The Brown Album is beyond criticism. 25 stars.

Picture Book

Simply Red

4/5

There’s an old joke which I’m willing to bet sarcastic elbows will also quote (and I think he told me it anyway) - what’s the difference between a wildebeest and simply red? A wildebeest has the horns out front and the arsehole in the back. I don’t know anywhere enough about mick hucknall to know if the joke is even fair but I will say there’s a bit of groove on this. It’s that particularly British groove coming out of northern soul - starts with I don’t know, Joe Cockker? Rod Stewart? Continues through Bowie, Queen, the style council, jamiroquai, everything but the girl and no doubt a thousand others I’ve blanked on. But this is part of it and it’s no surprise it sold so well. Well crafted. Well played. Well produced. It’s a 3.5 that I’ll round up to 4.

At Budokan

Cheap Trick

4/5

Cheap Trick should be a better and more important band than they are. I’m not quite sure what the issue is. They’re great musicians. Great songs. Yet there’s something missing. Surrender is a really great song. 3.5 rounded up.

Ingenue

k.d. lang

4/5

You know, I didn’t like this when it came out. I dislike ‘singers’. But with the benefit of however long it’s been since 1992, she’s not a ‘singer’ as such. She’s a great singer. But like George Michael, there’s not a lot of melisma, or thousand notes crammed into a bar. Just strong melody and excellent intonation and a brilliant tone which is much harder than wailing. But apart from constant craving (so good jagger inadvertently picked it up for ‘has anybody seen my baby’ giving K D a stones writing credit) the songs aren’t really there. I listened to this twice before I realised that I’d listened to it more than once. It’s good but I don’t feel she ever fully reached her potential. As this is not worse than simply red I’m stuck on a 3.5 streak. Rounded up.

Two Dancers

Wild Beasts

1/5

This is musical mogadon. An album you listen to So you die. When I think of post 2000 albums that are great and this comes up. Awful. I might have to do my own list

Surf's Up

The Beach Boys

5/5

No album documents the end of the sixties better than this. We can herald the start as the hope of Kennedy’s election. His assassination. Beatlemania. MLK. Rfk. the hippie movement. Vietnam. Freedom rides Rosa parks. Selma. Woodstock. Altamont. And it’s all here. The hope is watered down. The seventies have started. Dylan has gone small. The Beatles are breaking up. Only Brian Wilson remains at a creative peak. The beach boys were outsiders of course. And the outsider has a special perspective sometimes. Clean cut, nice boys, gorgeous pop more suited to the fifties but their transition to bearded bloated hippies mirrored the sixties. That they could come up with this as has beens- a nostalgia act for a nostalgia that didn’t yet exist - is astounding. My third favourite beach boys album. 4.8 stars. Rounded up.

Apocalypse Dudes

Turbonegro

2/5

*snore*

New Boots And Panties

Ian Dury

5/5

This is what halfwits like Elvis Costello want to be, with fifty times the wit and a better backing band and a more honest and authentic Approach. (Though the attractions are a great unit). The songs keep coming, and Dury is an underrated lyricist. This is considered his best but I think it’s more of a harbinger to come. 4.5 stars.

Deep Purple In Rock

Deep Purple

5/5

Another musical dna album but I’ll be fair it’s faded a bit. Black knight. Speed king. Child in time. Again just f*ck off music. While Blackmore lord and Gillan are noticed Roger glover and Ian Paice supply seismic rhythm section. Blackmore is one of the top 5 innovators on electric guitar. Lord is about the only heavy metal organist. (Unless you consider DP hard rock. God I hate labels. ). And Gillan has one of the best sets of pipes in the industry. And they were to get better …. 11 stars.

Teenager Of The Year

Frank Black

3/5

He needs the pixies. It’s not awful but sometimes giving someone complete control diminishes them. Probably better than I think so rounded up from 2.5

Life's Too Good

The Sugarcubes

2/5

I feel I should know this but if I did all memory of it has gone. And listening to it, I can see why. No doubt there are people for whom this album was life changing. And good luck and all gods blessings on them. My life trudges on, unchanged and unmoved by this.

Lost In The Dream

The War On Drugs

2/5

Jesus. No.

Dear Science

TV On The Radio

2/5

Ok, it’s hard to know what will make the canon. Important stuff fades. Obscure stuff gets noticed. And some stuff starts a the top and stays there. So I might be wrong. But while pleasant enough I don’t see this as a must listen. Or even a yeah, might listen. I might be wrong. This might go on to be a beloved album listened to for half a century. But I doubt it.

Fever To Tell

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

2/5

Great albums since 2000. A partial list. No order. Not comprehensive. Not complete. Just as it comes to mind. Jay-z the black album Beyoncé - lemonade. Taylor swift 1989 Punch brothers - phosphorescent blues Sam bush, circles around me Mike stern, trip Jeff beck, loud hailer Dixie chicks - shut up and sing Olivia Rodrigo - sour Any of these over this. How is this must listen? Stop reading critics Dimery and use your ears.

Moondance

Van Morrison

4/5

Not as good as the incredible astral weeks but still a good album. After the last few ‘it’s cool to live at home at 35’ albums this is a bit refreshing. It’s still not a must listen (unless you are a van Morrison fan) but at least there’s a standard on it. Morrison is a problematic person and can be inconsistent as a songwriter. But when he hits it it’s brilliant. 3.5 rounded up. 5 from any other artist.

Parklife

Blur

3/5

Preferred them to oasis. Sort of. I’m not sure how well they’ve aged. This was enjoyable.

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

Iron Butterfly

2/5

In a gadda is a classic. The rest of the album is better than I remembered. But still not great.

The Blueprint

JAY Z

3/5

Jay-z is, in a sense, much like Eric Clapton or the Beatles, strangely underrated. I prefer the black album, but this is solid, with his excellent narrative style mixing beautifully with phat rhythm.

Roots

Sepultura

3/5

Not my thing. Good at what it does.

Cupid & Psyche 85

Scritti Politti

3/5

The type of band you’re supposed to like, but I wonder how many actually listened to this album more than once or twice, though enjoyed having the cd cassette or album prominently on display - all the while listening to Fleetwood Mac, Duran Duran, Born to be alive, the eagles, pink Floyd, yes, ELP, etc and other horrid dreck, or mega selling crowd pleasers. not bad at all, but there’s a reason it’s more of a cult classic. Perfect way was good actually.

Madman Across The Water

Elton John

5/5

Elton and Bernie Taupin are in the first rank of songwriters. Probably only McCartney has as strong a melodic sense as eton and Bernie’s lyrics are magical. This is part of the incredible run of albums Elton released in the early seventies: a five album run that is rare and gems on every one. Now let me confess something. I’m not a fan of tiny dancer feeling it closer to two separate songs (both great) cobbled together to make one. I know that’s not what happened. But there are a hundred other Elton songs that make up my musical Dna. This is a solid album. I prefer captain fantastic and tumbleweed connection. But I still love this one. 4.5 rounded up.

Alien Lanes

Guided By Voices

2/5

Bored. When will something happen?

Tical

Method Man

3/5

It’s fine. It’s not the best thing he ever did. That would be the South Park concert thing with Ozzie Osbourne and ol dirty bastard. But it’s solid.

Vol. 4

Black Sabbath

3/5

Dimery clearly struggles with ‘importance’. The next album sabbath bloody sabbath is worth a must listen. So is the debut. Just because a band changes the world doesn’t mean everything it does is worthy. Notable exceptions do exist. To think we don’t have little Richard because dimery would rather show he knows rock music man. Black sabbath is cool. It’s a fine album but not the one you need to understand sabbaths place in the pantheon.

Let's Get It On

Marvin Gaye

5/5

Beyond criticism. An extremely important album musically politically socially and culturally .

Guitar Town

Steve Earle

5/5

1986 was a key year for country. This is one of the key albums. Finally a must listen album. Earles brand of country was harsh, brutal, gentle, raucous and fun.

Abbey Road

Beatles

5/5

My favourite fab album. Or sgt pepper. Side 2 of this is the best thing they ever did. Fight me.

Penance Soiree

The Icarus Line

2/5

Pfft

Abraxas

Santana

5/5

Another musical dna. Sure carlos has perhaps become predictable but this mix of rock, jazz and Latin is irresistible. Hope you’re feeling better and mothers daughter kick. Samba Pa Ti is fantastic. Black magic woman pretty much copies greens solo from the original but the backing instrumentation is something special. Listened to this hundreds of times. 13 stars.

All Mod Cons

The Jam

3/5

Always the next big thing. Never the thing. Weller could have been more of a contender than he was. This album shows why. While he could approach transcendence (Town like Malice for example) he never quite gets there. David Watts lacks a purpose. Why listen to this when you have the original? The jam are tight but not quite supported by the songs. Unlike execrable elvis Weller doesn’t waste the band. It’s more that he’s crushed by the weight of unrealistic expectations. But it’s still a pretty terrific album.

Deja Vu

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

3/5

Ok even though I will be highly this is an album that you must hear to understand the development of post 1950s popular music in the US and elsewhere. The singles are good. The album tracks are filler. The harmonies are absolutely made, not by David Crosby whose note choices are admittedly superb but by the tone of graham nash who brings a clarinet into a flute ensemble (vocally speaking). Nash is the secret sauce. There are vocal blends I prefer. Otherwise. Bloated. Self indulgent, insular, learning all the wrong lessons of Dylan and Joni Mitchell, it’s an artifact rather than art. But yes. Worth a listen. 2.5 rounded up. Also Neil young is overrated.

Emergency On Planet Earth

Jamiroquai

4/5

English Funk is great Jamiroquai is good at it. Not 100% solid. But 80% excellent. Makes me wanna dance.

Coles Corner

Richard Hawley

2/5

After a run of albums that are arguably must listen, even if I didn’t like all of them, we get this trendoid crap. Released in 2005. Won awards. Completely forgotten by 2006. I’m sure there’s a coterie of people holding onto this as they try and hold on to their thinning hair, trying to live in a place where it’s always 2005 and wondering why it doesn’t have the resonance of 1968 or 1992. Not as bad as I’m making it out. But nowhere near ‘must-listen’.

Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

4/5

Hmmm. Is this a must listen? Licence to ill changed the world. This is excellent. I love the beastie boys. Probably the first hip hop act I ‘got’ before I ‘got’ hip hop. Hmmmm. Must listen? Are the beasties worth more than one album?

Slayed?

Slade

4/5

Just the inclusion of gud buy t jane justifies this album. Slade are the forgotten heroes of glam. We tend to remember Bowie, Bolan and Queen, but Slade, Suzi and sweet were there too. Noddy has become a notable figure. They were probably not quite ‘there' to be the superstars that Bowie and Freddie became. But their best was magic.

Fire Of Love

The Gun Club

4/5

A critically acclaimed trendoid album I like. Sure, it’s unpolished. And his vocals are off key. And it’s more punk than roots. But here are the seeds that lead to the cruel sea and beasts of bourbon in Australia. I’m thinking later Tom petty took some notes. Probably not as directly influential as claimed. The later roots acts seem to get their inspiration elsewhere. But this album deserves its spot here. It’s good. Solid. 3.5 rounded up.

Face to Face

The Kinks

3/5

Not the kinks best but sunny afternoon is good.

Buffalo Springfield Again

Buffalo Springfield

3/5

Sigh. Neil young. Steven stills. A solid dose of musical Mogadon. Richie Furay is good. Carol Kay is good. Jim Messina is on this. Huh. This album isn’t really historically important except that it has early Neil and early Steven. Csny are important for better or worse but do we want to see every piece of juvenilia? Let’s get back to albums one can justify.

Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus

Spirit

2/5

Must I listen to this? It tells me nothing of the development of rock music that I wouldn’t get from a dozen other better albums. I do think the title is great. Then it’s all downhill. Perhaps the nadir is space child (instrumental). The title says it all. Bored. Boring. Tedium. Grinding boredom. You only have 1000. Don’t pad.

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin

5/5

Musical dna. And my favourite zep album. Yes, this is a must listen. One of the great opening tracks. aaa AA aaaaa AA. Down down down de down down… There’s a few bands where you have to hear their place over a few albums. Beatles, stones, zep. Springsteen. Queen. Dylan. The band. Maybe a couple more. Zeppelin definitely. Tangerine, the glory of gallows pole. Mah mah ma, I’m so happy, I’m gonna join a baaaand. … celebration day. John Paul Jones is the secret sauce. Listen to gallows pole. Mandolin, banjo. A great bassist. Of course Bonzo is great and page and plant … mwah. 2 stars taken off for since I’ve been loving you. 12 stars.

Rid Of Me

PJ Harvey

3/5

I like Polly Jean. Pretenders like Courtney Barnett just rile me, but p j is the real deal. Sure, she can be a bit self indulgent, but she’s a real talent.

Kick Out The Jams (Live)

MC5

3/5

One great song. The rest are ok. Not a must listen album.

System Of A Down

3/5

Never a huge fan. Not awful, just never grabbed me. Does anyone still listen to this?

Suicide

2/5

the overwhelming feeling that Dimery puts this in, and not any one of 1000 more worthy must listen albums. Greatest hits are valid. This isn’t.

The Genius Of Ray Charles

Ray Charles

5/5

Not quite musical dna - that would be modern sounds in country and western - but it is to me an album that lives up or at least almost lives up to its title. Rays genius lay elsewhere, but the man was versatile. 4.5 stars rounded up.

Pictures At An Exhibition

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

2/5

Yes, it should be on such a list if only to explain punk. Modest moussorsgky is a minor composer whose pictures at an exhibition is slightly interesting. If you have pretensions to bring a classical musician this is relatively obscure and technical so you can bask in your own glory. As this noodles away wrapped up in its own importance and pretensions, I felt the urge to form a punk band. Queen did the classical thing better. As does Chris Thile, bela fleck, Edgar Meyer. Iron maiden. Yngwie malmsteen. Frank Zappa. ELP don’t quite get it. And listening to this, neither do I. Come back Sid vicious. All is forgiven.

I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight

Richard Thompson

3/5

Great musicians. Weaker songs. Solid.

The Low End Theory

A Tribe Called Quest

3/5

Another 90s hip hop. No review.

Physical Graffiti

Led Zeppelin

4/5

The first four zeppelin albums are musical dna. After then not so much. But there are gems on this. I think you can start to hear the decline. Had bonham lived I doubt zeppelin would have lasted much longer though they squeeze out a couple more after this. This might be the last of the great ones.

Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

Arctic Monkeys

2/5

Ugh.

Tago Mago

Can

3/5

At first, I thought, oh, god dimery. Then I read about it a bit and thought, oh, ok. Then I listened. Kraftwerk? Yes. Einsterzende neubaten? Yes? This? Not a must listen. It’s ok, but has not survived its critical darling status.

Raw Like Sushi

Neneh Cherry

4/5

Pretty funky. Pretty soulful. Pretty good. 3.5 rounded up.

Run-D.M.C.

5/5

Another iconic album. Probably the actual one which made me understand just how close country and hip hop are in lyrical themes. Go to church. Stay out of jail. Be part of your community. Don’t have money? Get a job. Merle haggard, bill Monroe and hank Williams would approve. Nwa gets us to the other side of hip hop and country. (I can’t see a moral difference between ‘I put my gun against his head, said hey mofo, gonna shoot you dead' and ' I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die). But this is an important album and despite its flaws - some awkward flow and rhymes - hey, you invent a genre - is a worthy album for such a list.

Foo Fighters

3/5

Not a terrible band by any stretch. But a weirdly overrated band. While truly iconic bands like jethro tull are not in the rock and roll hall of fame the foo fighters get in on the year of qualification. Ok the rrhof is a steaming pile of garbage and always has been but what is it about the foo fighters? Certainly Dave grohll is considered one of the nicest guys in rock, but is rock ab oh t nice guys? Which brings me to this. Solid songs. No real standout or classics. An album that left little impact on the world. Again let me reiterate - this is not a bad band. Well played. The songs are above competent. But not like listening to say the white stripes (seven nation army is the type of song Dave grohl wishes he could write). Of course the elephant in the room is not jack white but Kurt cobain, or rather nirvana who did change the world. I suspect the foo fighters would have been successful if nirvana had never existed. Even as successful as they got. But they wouldn’t have been feted in the way they have been. Which leads me back to this. More an artifact of what happened than any important document that should go on a list of important albums I didn’t and don’t hate this. And it’s unfair to expect that any follow up to nirvana (or at least any project after nirvana) would have the same type of impact. Did I enjoy this? Yes. Do I think it should be on this type of list? I’m not sure. But I’m tending to no. 2.5 rounded up.

Meat Puppets II

Meat Puppets

2/5

Like being stuck at a party with an annoying know it all who thinks that they’re much cleverer and edgier than they are. Or talking to an ‘artist’ who has no clue, and turns out they’re a real estate agent and cross fit trainer. Boring, annoying and really not worth anything.

A Wizard, A True Star

Todd Rundgren

4/5

Ok, I saw Todd Rundgren in ringing starr's all starr band, and by god was he awesome. Brilliant rhythm guitarist, a real showman and a great songwriter. Todd Rundgren also produced bat out of hell, and his guitar solo at the end of the title track ranks with 'voodoo Chile', 'so we’ve ended as lovers', ‘Brighton rock', 'comfortably numb' 'eruption' etc etc. Todd Rundgren has written some brilliant work, and has found the level of fame he’s comfortable with. And dimery continues his habit of the obscure over the important. This is not the best Rundgren album, so why not pick Todd or Hermit of Mink Hollow? Let’s have this lsd fuelled critically loved decent album rather than Todd’s great stuff. Gotta keep that street cred. 3.5 rounded up.

Talk Talk Talk

The Psychedelic Furs

2/5

Yeah. Nah.

Boy In Da Corner

Dizzee Rascal

3/5

This was ok, but dizzee isn’t as fun as Flo rider or as insightful as jay-z. It’s not as slick as OutKast, and it’s just there. Let’s not talk about Kanye, but dizzee isn’t in that league either. Another award winning forgettable album in a list that should not be about this. I suppose it shows the state of UK hip hop but why not look at French or Israeli or Australian hip hop? 2.5 rounded up.

Closer

Joy Division

2/5

Important? Yes. But I never really got Joy division. Whinging poms. Much preferred new order. But a highly influential band. The moaning gets to me. And the clever clever but not really lyrics - like an earnest 11 year old discovering he is a poet and no one understands. Without the wit of the smiths. It was tragic what happened to Ian Curtis. And his fans grieve deeply as they should. But a young death doesn’t make your poetry good, any more than indifference to the work makes ihis suicide any less tragic. In all a boring self indulgent work which somehow managed to attract the love and admiration of millions.

New York Dolls

4/5

Johnny thunders is a superb guitarist. He showed punk could be virtuosic. This album is a great album, with its gender bending, its aggression, its energy. It’s a bit chaotic, but hey, it’s punk. 3.5 rounded up.

Street Signs

Ozomatli

3/5

Better than I thought it would be, but dimery has a real knack of picking albums that have lost their relevance. I imagine these guys are terrific live. But on recording? Eh it’s ok. A must listen? Nah. A have a listen and maybe you’ll enjoy. 2.5 rounded up.

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

3/5

Musically dull. Musically brilliant. Overrated. Underrated. I don’t know what to think. Both positions are tenable. The hits are two chords, maybe three. The album tracks occasionally hit four. Yet the arrangements are, from a professional musical view, superb. The follow up, Tusk, is easily five stars. This is both a five star album and a one star. 2.5

Live At Leeds

The Who

5/5

I did a longish review of this, and the browser jammed and reset and I lost it. What it basically said was if you don’t like the who, you don’t like rock, and this album shows why. It’s better to watch them, thank the great spaghetti monster for YouTube, but this captures the sonic power. Summertime blues is a juggernaut. My generation shouldn’t work. But does. And the insane genius of a quick one… leading eventually to tommy. The rock and roll covers are superb. The who songs are incredible. There were a lot of punk bands that wanted to sound this anarchic, this powerful, this relevant and happening, and didn’t come close. And there’s essentially only three instruments and three voices. It’s not quite musical dna for me, but it gets five stars. Who’s next - now that’s musical dna.

S.F. Sorrow

The Pretty Things

1/5

If ' Tommy' took any influence from this it would have been ‘well that’s not what to do’. ‘Tommy’ (which wasn’t Townshend's first attempt at a rock opera btw) has catchy tunes and a sense of humour. This has neither. Not worth listening to. 1.5 rounded down

Risque

CHIC

3/5

Dimery s ridiculous ban on greatest hits albums shows up here. I know it’s well received, but outside the singles, there’s nothing here that requires listening. Dancing? Sure. But I’d rather hear a compilation of the hits. I do love the cover. And Niles and Bernard are just *mwah*

Bayou Country

Creedence Clearwater Revival

3/5

And yet another band better served by a greatest hits compilation. Proud Mary is a monster of a song - pretty damned perfect. Both Tina turner and the Ohio players prove it if the original doesn’t convince. Well produced. But a full album? Give me the singles. Averaged to three but proud Mary itself is worth fifteen.

Olympia 64

Jacques Brel

4/5

And Dimery pleasantly surprises. This is a fine album, from the legend Brel, and from a country that influences anglophone pop in weird yet important ways. This is probably close enough to must listen to justify its presence, though Brel's studio stuff is better, I think. 3.5 rounded up.

Hearts And Bones

Paul Simon

3/5

Paul Simon is one of the premier songwriters of the 20th century. More McCartney than Dylan, he is a very gifted and unique writer. This album is done at somewhat of a low point for him with no really strong songs except maybe the title track and Rene and georgette magritte with their dog after the war. Having said that, any of them written by anyone else would see that person building a career from them. He is that good. It’s a 3 star album at best. Probably a 2.5 but I’ll round it up. He had done better. And he was to do better.

Rip It Up

Orange Juice

4/5

A great Scottish band from a movment that produced a lot of great bands. Edwin Collins is a premium songwriter. It’s lost a bit of verve since its release, mainly due to Collin’s stunning solo career - girl like you is one of the great singles of the rock era. But this has, surprisingly enough, lasted and held up.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

4/5

I was about to dismiss this as another band that would have been better served by a greatest hits. But the two singles aside - California dreaming is one of the great songs of the sixties. Monday Monday is superb. But the covers on this are pretty terrific. One of the more dysfunctional sixties bands, which is saying something, they were capable of moments of sublime transcendence. 4 stars.

Dance Mania

Tito Puente

3/5

So little happened musically in 1958 that we listen to Tito puente. In fact this is very good. But must listen? Nah. Latinx artists to listen to include Desi Arnaz, Richie Valens and others. Tito is fine, but this is not a top 1000 album. I know, it's on the register, but more as a representation than as a artistically interesting artifact.

Aha Shake Heartbreak

Kings of Leon

3/5

*sigh*. This may have lasted a bit better than other contemporaneous acts. But not much. It’s good, but not really a must listen.

Ace of Spades

Motörhead

5/5

Ace of spades - sheer bloody poetry. We are the road crew. Psalmist brilliance. This album - magic. Ok it hasn’t aged that well, or maybe I haven’t aged that well. It works beautifully though. And finally an album that deserves placement in this type of list. Lemmy … Philthy animal … fast Eddie. The unholy trinity of metal and punk. Just bloody magic.

Spy Vs. Spy: The Music Of Ornette Coleman

John Zorn

3/5

Ornette coleman is one of the more controversial but interesting jazz cats. He formulated a system of music called harmolodics which he could never quite explain but was to do with removing the limitations of key, rhythm, tempo and harmony. So, this explains this. John zorn is an excellent interpreter of coleman and a great avany grade composer in his own right. This is an excellent interpretation with a-list musicians of the highest quality. Dimery clearly doesn’t understand this type of stuff. I suspect he read some reviews and felt oh this better go on. 1 star for it being here. 5 stars as a work of music. 1 star for its danceability. 3 stars.

California

American Music Club

3/5

This is not bad and representative of a particular movement. Dimery must have had an off day. It’s not the best Americana but far from the worst. It’s just sort of there. I’d rather listen to Steve Earle or Lyle Lovatt or even Fleet foxes. But in a pinch this is ok. 2.5 rounded up.

Actually

Pet Shop Boys

2/5

What a strange album. I suppose you might find pet shop boys on a list like this, but they are far more of a singles band, so again, greatest hits? West end girls has a zing to it that most of this album lacks. Go west is not bad but again, not on this album. Tenants disinterested ennui is a nice gimmick but wears thin after a while. 2.5 rounded down as it’s not that compelling.

Nowhere

Ride

2/5

Shoegaze. The name says it all. Dull, dated and dire. Not my thing really. Must listen? Nah.

Fear Of Music

Talking Heads

3/5

I like Tina Weymouth’s bass, Chris Frantz’s drums and Jerry Harrison’s guitar. David Byrne - the more you look, the less he has to say. His book on music is worth reading and rereading. But there are at least three better talking heads albums that are more representative. Apparently this is highly regarded but I don’t see the appeal. It’s good, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t think it’s worth a place here. The more I see this list, the more I feel that dimery is trying to impress, rather than illuminate or educate.

Ellington at Newport

Duke Ellington

5/5

The greatest of the jazz big bands? Perhaps. The greatest jazz composer? Probably. An absolute watershed in jazz from that most elegant elegance, Ellington. If this doesn’t move you, you don’t like jazz. A top 5 must own album if you’re into jazz - kind of blue, a love supreme, this, Louis Armstrong hot six, and goodman at Carnegie hall. That will do for now. That list will change. But the duke will remain on it. Timeless. Iconic. Gorgeous. 17 stars.

Headquarters

The Monkees

5/5

https://www.toppermost.co.uk/monkees/ The monkeys were an incredible band. This is an incredible album. Zilch! Tape looping in 1967. Randy scouse git. This is an all time great example of sixties pop. Possibly only surpassed by the astounding Pisces … Think of this. Imagine BTS doing something like Zilch. Not to knock BTS - they do what they do and it appeals to millions. But to bring in cutting edge musical compositional ideas. (To be fair their albums are generally very philosophical even if the music is predictable). More of my feelings on this incredible band - the band that shouldn’t be - can be found in the link above. 16 stars.

Peter Gabriel 3

Peter Gabriel

4/5

Of the genesis alumni, Gabriel was always the most interesting. Nothing against Phil Collins, mike Rutherford Tony Banks or Steve Hackett, but their work, while often superb is much more… predictable shall we say. In Banks' case, I may be being a bit harsh but still… Even though he’s very capable of playing it, would Phil have given us a hit single in 7/8? Gabriel did with the unspeakably great Solsbury Hill. This is not Gabriel's most interesting album, but it’s not a bad one at all. Jeux sans frontieres is pretty incredible. And of course he was exploring what is now condescendingly called world music years before Paul Simon blessed us with Graceland. Gabriel’s lineup, which includes Phil, but not Mike or Steve, has some incredible players, and the songs fit them. I tend to prefer the later Gabriel stuff, but this is a good throat clearer. I’m sick of whinging about Dimerys choices, so I’ll give this 3.8 rounded to 4.

Opus Dei

Laibach

2/5

Nick Of Time

Bonnie Raitt

3/5

The blooz. As I get older, I much prefer listening and playing anything but screeching Chicago style bs. Macho posturing, tales told by idiots signifying nothing. Bonnie raitt is a fine player and interpreter. She is a hard worker, but this, when I was 19, would have been awesome!!! But now is dull to me. See also Eric gales and Joe bonamassa. All clearly talented. But I’d rather listen to English, New Orleans , Memphis. Yank Rachel thrills me much more than Stevie ray. The originators - wolf, muddy, b b, hooker etc are exceptions. To be honest, this is pretty good. Bonnie’s got a terrific voice, the songs are solid, and she really can play. But it’s dull. Predictable and I’d much rather listen to her earlier stuff. I’m glad this sold well. I don’t need to hear it though. 2.5 rounded up.

Blur

3/5

They won the battle but lost the war. What a strange thing britpop was. Sure Noel Gallagher could write songs and Graham Coxon could on Occassion match him - song 2 is a rightful classic. And the standout on this album. They mostly evade lasting success in America and australia for that matter. But this is a good document of a time in which its first pioneers - the spice girls - are the only band which is still culturally relevant. 2.5. Rounded to 3mainly because of song 2. Maybe song 2 should knock it to 4.

Gasoline Alley

Rod Stewart

4/5

Not the Rod album I’d have chosen - every picture tells a story is a stronger contender. But Rod had and has the best voice of his generation - a generation that includes Plant, Tom Jones, Elton, Freddie, Joe Cocker. What he’d sing is a whole different thing. I liked Elton’s country comfort and bobby Womack’s ‘it’s all over now’. Rod is a fine songwriter and his Lady Day is solid. For a man who, being told he could sing the phone book kept singing it, it’s easy to forget his early stuff is excellent. Some of his later stuff is too. But his fascination with soccer and model trains probably distracts him. But early Rod, surrounded by good musicians, with an earned arrogance is well worth listening to. Again maybe not this album. But you could do worse by digging into the Rod Stewart discography than this one.

Colour By Numbers

Culture Club

4/5

It was oh so shocking! Gender fluid! Not that we called it that then. Or at least the circles in which I found myself didn’t. And Boy George certainly garnered a lot of attention. And controversy. What people tended to forget was just how damned bloody good this band is. The slightly reggae approach, not quite ska, closer to the police than the specials, really was tight. Superb playing. And the songs. Sure, karma chameleon. But I preferred it’s a miracle as a single. But neither are anything less than great. George’s voice is really underrated. That reedy tenor but with a bit of heft sounded different to everyone else. At the time, most British singers had brassier baritones - think George Michael or the guy from Spandau ballet, or the guy from the Thompson Twins. Or Howard Jones. All great voices. Paul young another exception. But George coquettishly coos and sighs and holds the melody exactly where it belongs. George Michael was a master of that as well. I don’t care what you think. 5/5. At least.

The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators

The 13th Floor Elevators

2/5

More 60s psychedelia. More artefact than art. Music that is so dated and of its time that it never had a revival. Kind of interesting, but no classic. LSD, what did you do? I suppose this leads to Disraeli Gears, and SGT Peppers, and American Beauty, and T-Rex, and Dark Side of the Moon, and Ziggy Stardust, and Punk, and the New Wave Movement, etc.... But, this hasn't aged well. Albums you must listen to? I suppose, yes, but only once if you're not interested in psychedelia.

Rattlesnakes

Lloyd Cole And The Commotions

3/5

Lloyd Cole is a fine songwriter and the commotions are a fine band. This is a fine album but they improve a bit in later stuff. He always seemed to me to be a bit behind in his writing style. This would have fit nicely a couple of years earlier. But more than a few years later it holds up pretty well. But it’s the later albums where the gold is mined.

I'm Your Man

Leonard Cohen

3/5

Leonard cohen never really resonated with me. I know brilliant lyricist etc. But for whatever reason I never embraced him the way others did. Having said that, this is a pretty good album. Cohen IS a terrific lyricist and can draw a picture in the mind’s eye that is detailed and clear even when the lyrics are obtuse and hidden in allegory, allusion and metaphor. Everybody knows is probably the track I most enjoyed.

A Little Deeper

Ms. Dynamite

2/5

Is this supposed to be interesting? Even in 2002 this felt dated and more ‘clever’ than good. Maybe I’m being too harsh. But nothing grabbed me.

Sunday At The Village Vanguard

Bill Evans Trio

5/5

An excellent album. As great as Evans is, this is a showcase for the rhythm section of LeFaro and Motian. The interplay is something else, and it shows both how much jazz grew but also how much that key year of 1959 influenced everything that came after. Just two years later, this shows new directions while learning the lessons. An album you must hear.

Cosmo's Factory

Creedence Clearwater Revival

4/5

Creedence are really a singles band and Dimery's ridiculous limitations on compilations does hurt Creedence a bit. But this album is full of bangers. Creedence was a great band in a sense. Only John Fogerty was world class in his musicality, but the band is solid. I’ve often wondered what John would have sounded like with Tom petty’s heartbreakers, or the Band, or the E street band. Or the swampers. Or Booker t and the MGS. Or the Funk Brothers. It’s possible that we’d lose something a bar band would provide.* But the songs are so strong that the quality shines through. Long as I can see the light and run through the jungle are as good as anything else he wrote. They can also cover well. Heard it through the grape vine is all about the incendiary vocals, but what a track. Ooby dooby is great too. A good album. But creedence is really a singles band. A greatest hits double album would be better here, but this album would provide a fair whack of tracks** on such a compilation. 3.5 rounded up. * I know the hawks who became the band were considered Americas best bar band, but that was never true. Way way above what a bar band should provide. ** Fair whack of tracks is going to be the title of my greatest hits compilation.

Hotel California

Eagles

4/5

Like rumours, both self indulgent nonsense and one of the great albums of all time. I’ll never forgive that film for stating that the lead coulbt stand the eagles. Dumb and ignorant and allowed too many bros to stop listening to a high level of songwriting and musicality. I don’t know. It’s a wonderful artefact of a certain type of culture. But released the same time as a million other equally good records that do nowhere as well. 10 stars. 2 stars. Averaged to 4. Fight me, I don’t care. I’ll cut you.

Sea Change

Beck

2/5

Ehhh. Loser was great and probably untoppable. This doesn’t feel essential to me. Not awful. Not bad. Just not … ehhh ….

Unhalfbricking

Fairport Convention

5/5

Fairport convention were the best of the English electric folkies. This album saw the death of Martin lambie just before it was released so the surviving members don’t have a fully positive memory of it but among sandy denny fans and fairport fans it ranks highly. To be honest liege and lief is the superior album but this is great. Does it belong on a list of 1000 albums you must hear? I will wrestle with this for a while. But it’s an easier album to beat than the last couple. 4.5 rounded up.

Your New Favourite Band

The Hives

2/5

Yeah. They aren’t. Kinda interesting but there are a million better groups from the early 2000s. And hip hop went nuts. But we have this to listen to. Your new 1500th favourite band. That band that was on the radio but you didn’t turn it off but just waited patiently till it ended when they hopefully played someone better. Not even worth dire. Just there. 2 stars.

(What's The Story) Morning Glory

Oasis

4/5

For the Cool Britannia give me the spice girls. That’s too harsh. There’s no question Noel Gallagher can write songs. Sure he’d be lost without the Beatles but the songs are good. Even pushing to great. Is there a more blatant example of ‘you really had to see these guys live’ than the strangled croak of Liam? Maybe Anthony Kiedis of the red hot chili peppers Anyway this is a good artefact of an era that came and went. 3.5

Highway 61 Revisited

Bob Dylan

5/5

My favourite Dylan album. Musical DNA. ‘Well god said to Abraham kill me a son Abe said man you must be putting me on God said no. Abe said what? His said ‘you can do what you want Abe but Next time you see me coming you’d better run. ‘ Abe said ‘where you want this killing done?’ God said ‘down on highway 61’ ‘ Dylan was never better. Though he came close occasionally. Leopard skin pill box hat. Stuck inside of mobile with the Memphis blues again. Dylan himself wondered how he wrote such songs. And the personnel. And the personnel. My God. Most of the hawks. Most of the butterfield blues band. Other incredible Musicians. Like a rolling stone with Al Kooper realising he wasn’t as good a guitarist as Mike Bloomfield so teaches himself organ essentially following Dylan’s fingers on the guitar. Bloomfield bought a telecaster and hadn’t even bought a case so was wiping the snow off it. That this guitar was converted to left handed and back again requiring extensive restoration is a story for another day. The slightly behind the beat organ lines are less a musical choice and more of a ‘where’s the G? Oh there!’ 11 minutes of desolation row would be self indulgent tripe in anyone else’s hands. But not Dylan. He makes it compelling. Somehow. So many thought they could imitate. So few could. If you wanted to know what Dylan was about this is the one. Sure Blonde on Blonde and Bringing it back home and John Wesley Harding is great as is the other stuff. But for me, this is peak early (ish) Dylan. 15/5

Blackstar

David Bowie

4/5

If you’re dipping your toes into Bowie this is essential. There’s six or seven must hear albums to ‘get’ Bowie. But you could probably condense even that to Ziggy, hunky dory this one and heroes. (And space oddity). To Bowie fans every note he played is essential. Then this one. Note there’s a long gap between great and this. I do like the tin machine one. And scary monsters is decent. Blackstar is an outstanding even great swan song by a dying man embracing mortality. Not that we knew it at the time. So when he died (I was waiting on a plane to jet off to New York when my sister texted me to tell me.) it was a shock. I did find his flat in New York accidentally, up in SoHo (I think) with hundreds of flowers and tributes out the front. I wasn’t sure why they were there and I asked the woman next to me ‘why are these here?’ ‘David Bowie was a rock star …’. No no. Why HERE? I know who Bowie was. ‘Oh that’s where he lived. ‘ He also lived in St Ives on Sydney’s lower north shore, loving the relative anonymity being part of a smaller tight knit community. Is Blackstar one of the 1000 albums you must hear? Compared to Ziggy, or hunky dory, or heroes? Nah. Is it a good album? Yes. Even a great one. But not essential to understanding rock music. It’s a 4. But I’m not sure it should be on the list.

Crocodiles

Echo And The Bunnymen

3/5

I have a history of rock dvd where the producer hated punk and refused to acknowledge it as an important movement. So we go from glam to new wave. It makes for an interesting approach. No sex pistols. No clash. No Ramones. No echo and the bunny men. No Siouxsie, etc etc.. But, let's accept punk is actually important. Given that Echo are pretty important in the movement, I think it's good to see them represented. I think this again is the wrong album but it’s a good one. They have a great energy about them. 3/5.

Queens of the Stone Age

4/5

One of the last of the great rock bands. I do kind of prefer Kyuss, but let's not be churlish. They proved that there was life after Nirvana, and Guns and Roses, though not as much as a rock fan might like. Strong songs, well played, with longish jams. Turn it up, grab your tennis racket, and air guitar for the rest of the night. Rock may not have much more to do, but it will never really die...

The Wall

Pink Floyd

5/5

Pink Floyd. Nope. No ambiguity here. I think they’re great. Ok yes it can be muddled self indulgence. And a lot of lyrical there’s are first world rock star problems. I don’t care. Fight me. I have a knife. I’ll use it pretty boy. Shame to see that delicate face messed up. When I was about 12, Monty Python and the meaning of life came to my home town and the support film (Dubbo held on to double feature matinees well into the 1980s*)was advertised as the odd angry shot**.The wall played instead. A cinema full of 12-18 year old boys weren’t sure what to make of it. Some knew pink Floyd mainly thanks to older siblings. I didn’t know them then except for ‘another brick…’. The interval between the two films was hilarious. Mostly silence and the odd ‘what was that I just watched? That it starred the singer of my favourite group then, Bob Geldof, helped. But it was nothing like anything the Rats did. When I was a little older I heard The Wall again and ‘got it. ‘ Comfortably numb is probably Waters greatest lyric. And he is highly underrated as a lyricist. Mother - what a song. Even their weakest song (another brick in the wall pt II) has my favourite guitar solo by Gilmour. It’s the documentation of a band in decline. But I don’t care. I love it. Musical dna Is it bloated and self indulgent? Absolutely. Do the band seem like grim and humourless grumps? Yep. Is the album bleak and depressing? No question. Does it make any sense? Not a whit. Is the film so insane as to make you doubt its very existence? You have no idea. Am I wrong to like them? Probably. But if loving them is wrong then I don’t want to be right.15/5 * Also the local tv station broadcast the black and white minstrel show on Sunday afternoons. The title did not refer to the video medium. **The best film about the Vietnam war. If you haven’t seen it I thoroughly recommend it. All the questions of the American attempts. None of the overblown angst.

Goo

Sonic Youth

3/5

… Can you separate artist from art? Well, yes, you can. But is the art any good? I want to love this. I do. But I think there’s no there there. Simon had a t shirt with that cover, but with Taylor swifts rap from "shake it off'. Which was much funnier. Atonal music? I’m there. Ornette Coleman, Stravinsky, Boulez, slonimsky, Zappa, chick corea, Jaco pastorius. Tin machine. Me, on occasion, and even deliberately sometimes. But this? I don’t know. An important album. Yes. But a good one? I’m divided. 2.5 reluctantly rounded up.

This Year's Model

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

1/5

The know nothing critics poster boy, elvis costello, underwhelms on this sophomore effort. I’ll be fair, I don’t want to go to Chelsea is a terrific song. But even Ed Sheeran writes good ones occasionally. In my Creedence review, I wondered how John Fogerty might have gone with a better band. It’s the opposite here. Had the Attractions been with a better songwriter and guitarist might we have got the transcendent album it seems the Thomas's and Steve Nieve had in them? Meanwhile, mogadon is available in a musical form. Just hit play here. 1.5 stars, just because I don’t wanna go to Chelsea is worth a listen. Rounded down because the album is nowhere near 'good' let alone anywhere near as good as it thinks it is.

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys

2/5

Interesting but dated. And not in a good way. Less a document of a time than an album that no doubt sounded radical (tm) and wevolutionary (tm) (in my best rik Mayall voice) when they’d finished. There’s perhaps a hypothesis - let’s call it Lewis’s hypothesis - the more offensive the artist name, the less interesting the music. Again maybe too harsh. But … give me never mind the bollocks or Ramones.

Astral Weeks

Van Morrison

5/5

Musical dna. It’s an album that is that rare thing. A work of sonic art. I can’t just listen to it a song at a time, nor can I have it as background music. It’s an experience. Focussed, deep listening. It’s a religious experience. And to me like your best bottle of scotch. Brought out occasionally and savoured slowly and deeply. 15/5.

Tommy

The Who

5/5

No one except maybe Jack Bruce or let’s be fair the Beatles had more musical ambition in mainstream rock music at the time. And no one but Townshend had the balls to try. This is an insane mess - his first really successful attempt at an opera based on rock music. He’d tried before but ‘Rael’ and ‘a quick one while he’s away’ are more throat clearing. Utter garbage like that P F sparrow thing is nowhere near this. And really of the dozens and dozens of rock operas that follow, it’s only this, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joe’s Garage and The Wall that go close to really achieving artistic success. And of the five this is the best. Sure Joe’s Garage goes a bit insane (it is Zappa after all). And the Wall does too. Superstar was probably more shocking at the time but holds up musically. The Who’s manager at the time, Kit Lambert, was the estranged son of noted conductor and composer Constant Lambert and went into rock to annoy his father. He assured Townshend that none of the great operas had plots that made any sense. Add in something about Townshend guru and you have a demented masterpiece. But a deaf dumb and blind pinball champion, English holiday camps. The acid queen. Cousin kevin. Uncle fricking Ernie. Could you even BE a financially successful pinball champion? The only thing that makes this album a bit saner is the incredibly demented movie. The themes, the lyrics, the structures all make sense, even if the plot doesn’t. Pinball wizard, with its chord progression based on Purcell rocks as hard as the Cream, the stones, and zeppelin. See me, feel me, is a gorgeous ballad. Reading the wiki article, I read that Molly Meldrum played uncle Ernie in an Australian production in 1971 with Darryl Braithwaite as Tommy. It just keeps getting more demented. Entwhistle is magic. Moon is on fire. Daltrey is starting to find the voice that would power Who’s Next. And this is possibly Townshends finest moment. Though he still has Who's Next and Quadrophenia to come this lays the groundwork for so much. This is really musical DNA for me. So 10/5

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

5/5

It’s easy to forget just how big Isaac Hayes was. Particularly because living in australia his biggest thing was theme from shaft. (Which is great). But this earlier stuff didn’t really fit in the Australian demographic.* And sadly too, none of his stuff made the big chill soundtrack so the confected nostalgia that attached to Motown and those other soft rock acts didn’t really include Hayes. He was Chef in South Park and that ended badly. Yay us. So this album is extremely good. Walk on by is done as a soul epic. Motown meets Spector meets Jim steinman meets early Queen meets Prince. The second track gets down and funky. Johnny wah wah Watson shines. One woman is a sultry ballad. Nice stuff. And then one of the best songs by one of the best songwriters. Stretched out, phoenix is taken far beyond where Jimmy Webb would have seen it go but keeps its essence. Hayes stretches it out. It’s marvellous. And he had more to come. A great album by a great artist. 4.5 stars. * the complication is of course the reluctance of Australian audiences to listen to black artists or the cost it took to get stuff out here or the reluctance of radio stations to play this stuff or the cultural gulf between Australian suburbia and black urban culture. Or all of it.

Smile

Brian Wilson

4/5

Smiley smile is better. This is good, even great, but it wasn’t going to push McCartney and Lennon to higher achievements. It occurred to me while listening to this that while most of the comparison goes McCartney-Wilson, Lennon and Brian had one major thing in common. They never move on from the music of their youth, even embracing it in their later days. Both men are capable of many styles, but 50s rock and roll remains their bedrock. This album includes doo-wop harmonies, eighth-note piano, walking bass lines, etc. I prefer the versions of the songs on Smiley Smile, and none of the new songs grabbled in the way a great Brian Wilson song can. As far as 20th century American composers, he ranks with Scott Joplin, Gershwin, Dylan, Hank Williams, Willie Dixon, Ellington, Jimmy Webb, Cole Porter, Frank Zappa, Joni Mitchell, Aaron Copeland, Thelonius Monk and Burt Bacharach. You can add your personal favourites. I know I'm forgetting some. But that list should suffice in showing where Brian Wilson sits in the US music pantheon. (It's in no real order, just written as they came to mind). Having said that, this is not his best work. Go back to Smiley smile, or even the over-rated Pet Sounds, or Cabinessence, or 20/20 or Surf's Up, or Love You. Listen to the glory of Good Vibrations - the original I mean. Listen to I Get Around, or Wouldn't it be nice... https://www.toppermost.co.uk/beach-boys/ I wrote the first bit, and it's as good a list as any to show Brian's greatness. Smile is great. No question. But not Brian Wilson great. 3.5/5 rounded up.

D

White Denim

2/5

I am dreading listening to this. An album from 2011 that’s not something I heard then, the love of pretentious comedy optics and Dimerys knack for picking irrelevance and mediocrity doesn’t bode well. Not just mediocrity but derivation. The first few tracks sound like something the Beatles would have given away rather than take up space on one of their albums. And then watched it flop. Track 4 sounds like they said ‘hey let’s write a pink Floyd song’ having heard dark side of the moon precisely once and were aware of ‘another brick in the wall.’ The rest of the album meanders in trying to find an original voice. And never managing it. I don’t like psychedelic music so that’s part of it. But I also suspect that if this had been released between 1967-1973 I might have been more tolerant of it. It’s not awful. But I’d rather listen to a whole slew of other stuff from the early 2010s. 1.5

Sound of Silver

LCD Soundsystem

3/5

Not bad. Not brilliant. A bit more than mediocre. Nothing to write home about. I liked the second or third track.

Crazysexycool

TLC

5/5

I’ve always felt that tlc were either brilliant geniuses or untalented hacks. I’m still not sure. I picked in 1994 that they’d ripped off McCartney in waterfalls. Big fan of McCartney II. But then TLC groove. It’s a tragic tale of left eye. But a tragic death doesn’t mean you were air weren’t a genius. I’m giving this five. But if it turns out they are untalented hacks they get 1.

Ramones

5/5

One of the ur-texts for punk. 1 2 3 4! Fast, hard and deliberately dumb. Ridiculously fun. Anti pc before there was such a concept. If I say I prefer the heartbreakers it’s not that I don’t like this. And a lot more subtle than you’d expect this to be. End of the century is one of the great documentaries. 4.5.

Ctrl

SZA

4/5

Oh, god,dimery, another critically acclaimed almost forgotten trendy garbage record. Except, it’s good. Neo soul is a favourite of mine, and this captures it fairly nicely. Kendrick appears, and James Fauntleroy. Drew Barrymore was my favourite. Is it an all time classic? No… not really. Is it a must hear? Not in a general list, there are more important albums. Erykah Badu, Janet Jackson, TLC (conditionally) all are more important. Is it worth listening to? Actually yes. 3.5 rounded up

AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted

Ice Cube

3/5

An artifact of gangsta rap. Hard. Well done. Intense. I wonder if ice t,s work with law and order has diminished this? I really don’t know. But an album worth hearing even if I suspect it’s here because someone told him it should be rather than any real claim that it must.

Devil Without A Cause

Kid Rock

3/5

Because trumpists deserve music too? Let’s get serious for a second. Most artists are human beings, with a range of backgrounds and beliefs. The beloved Rush drummer, Neil Peart, was a passionate believer in Ayn Rand’s objectivist nonsense. Brian May of Queen and Phil Collins of genesis were lifelong conservative voters. George Harrison’s 'Taxman' is, when you think of it, not really pushing a progressive view of taxation. Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull recently felt he’ll probably vote conservative. I enjoy all of these people’s music (some more than others.) The point is people whose politics you disagree with can still make great music. Look at Wagner and the festival in Israel. Which leads us to Kid Rock. An avowed trumpist, a pioneer in country rap, a once credible hip hop artist, and a massive hit in that mash up of sweet home Alabama and werewolves of London. The trouble is, ‘forever' aside (a great song on the next album) he just isn’t very good. He’s not bad. But most of it is forgettable pablum. It’s like Eminem decided to go even more white trash, and forgot about how to craft a song. And Eminem is on this… I did struggle with this a bit. Am I being classist? After all, he comes from a fairly lower class background and writes music for ‘white trash’. My personal music collection has a tonne of music written for white trash. I draw the line at racism and try to draw it at sexism. I can listen to the songs of quite horrible people and enjoy them. There are some lovely people whose music I can’t bear. The great sin is not being very good. Kid Rock is notorious but he is no Biggie Smalls. 2.5 stars.

B-52's

The B-52's

4/5

We tend to forget that a lot of so called new wave was really doing the punk manifesto of returning to a Pre 1965 ethic. A short list might include in no real order Nick Lowe. Dire straits. Springsteen, the stray cats the ramones. The cramps. And the b52s. All drew on inspiration from before revolver really. Sometimes it was the Spector wall of sound. Sometimes it was surf music. Sometimes it was pop or rock and roll. The b52s dressed like they came out of the late 1950s-1960s and their better early stuff gave the impression of cheap exploitation films. Rock lobster is at least to me a 1950s horror, that might have made it into the golden turkeys if it was a film. Gloria in Excelsis The b52s are tremendously fun. In fact too much fun to write too much about. Analysing this is like explaining a joke everyone gets. Doesn’t add to the enjoyment. Makes you look like a wanker. But I’d have loved to have seen them in a small club, say, the love shack in Atlanta. But they are an arena band now, if indeed they tour at all. My blessings to them. I missed out. Ah well. A great band with terrific musicianship. Turn this album up loud and pogo till you drop.

Led Zeppelin

3/5

It’s reheated yardbirds and stolen Jeff beck. Apparently beck was in tears when he heard it. 'What the hell, Jim? I thought we were friends!' The Jeff beck group took what cream and the who were doing, combined it and made a rocking album or two. Then Beck bogert and appice extended it. If plant and jones and bonham weren’t so good it’d be awful. But they are that good. Page is as well. But often he’s the least interesting player. Which is really saying something. A great guitarist, sure. But compared to what jones and bonham do ... And there’s a sense where it’s magnificent. Good times bad times is one of the best album openers of the rock era. Having said that, it’s more a portent of what was to come than a finished product. So 2 out of 5. Maybe 2.5. Should have been 4. But they stole most of it.

Illmatic

Nas

3/5

As a gen xer I’m supposed to love 90s rap. I don’t hate it. It’s not really my musical dna. It was only when I was lecturing in contemporary music that I started to understand hip hop. It’s folk music. ‘Goddamn it’ as Roy Acuff said about the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, when the long haired scruffs started playing. ‘This is country.’ . NAS isn’t quite folk music in the way a lot of people would define it. Or even country. Except … When you look it at, the themes of country and hip hop aren’t that far apart… Good ol boys running moonshine, versus gangstas selling crack? What’s the difference? Not much, once you take race and class and 'respectability' out of it. Alcohol is acceptable. Crack isn’t. But don’t they fulfill the same basic human needs? Johnny Cash shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die. Merle Haggard turned 21 in prison doing life without parole. His mamma tried. These are hip hop songs, just sung differently. NAS could sing them. Merle could do a nas song. It was surprising that old town road took so long to exist. But here we are. So this leads us to illmatic. I didn’t hate it. But I prefer jay-z. Or Erik b and rakim. Or, gulp, early Kanye. Or the beastie boys. Or lil Kim. But this is good. And an important album. (I know. Most of these aren’t 90s. I know). Just not as good as others I like. But better than others.

A Seat at the Table

Solange

4/5

If Beyoncé was more like this, I’d be a bigger Beyoncé fan.

evermore

Taylor Swift

5/5

Taylor swift is one of the more important acts to have emerged in the last 15 years or so. This is a terrific album. My only issue is that it takes about 10 years to take the determine canon… but it’s a great album. So 5 stars. But will it still be on this type of list in 5 years? Red or 1989 would be more appropriate. I suspect this will go down as an important album. I suspect rather as an important album in an important artists catalogue of work than an important album in its own right. Sort of like comparing ‘blonde on blonde’ to ‘Nashville skyline’. But any look at critics choice or awards from any given year will see a whole range of excellent albums now forgotten. I hope this isn’t one.

Future Days

Can

3/5

It’s ok. Is it must listen? The residents, yes. Kraftwerk? Yes. Einszenten Neubaten? Maybe. Neu? Hmmm… Can? This doesn’t feel essential. 2.5

Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim

Frank Sinatra

5/5

Sinatra was the second greatest white male singer of the 20th century. Elvis pipped him, but only just. Elvis had the greater note range and stylistic range. But within Sinatra limits, he was untouchable. He could break your heart. He could lift a crappy song to high art. He could make you think you were in the heavens with a great song. Give him a great arranger and it’s hard to even explain. Yes, he was a mixture of great human being and puerile awful son of a bitch, but it’s about the voice. He was the voice. Try and understand it. With one of the great Latin songwriters, Jobim, this could have collapsed under its own weight if expectations. It doesn’t. Sinatra, for all the macho swagger, had the lightest of touch when it was needed. Really, girl from Ipanema is all you need to get this album. But all of it is great, even the oversung by mediocrities how insensitive. That this lost out to Sgt Peppers for album of the year is no slight against either album. Finally a must hear.

Something Else By The Kinks

The Kinks

3/5

Three great songs. Waterloo sunset, David Watts and Death of a clown. Then filler. This album highlights the weakness of the concept. How can you not have Waterloo sunset, but when most of the album is dull ….

Woodface

Crowded House

4/5

I like a little more grit but there’s no denying the talent of Neil Finn. Or Tim. Chocolate cake is my favourite of these singles but weather with you and fall at your feet are songs that maybe only McCartney at his absolute best could equal as songs. Maybe Elton too. An excellent album. And we can claim it as Australian because Hester and Seymour were born in Australia. 3.8.

1999

Prince

5/5

Peak Prince? Possibly. The title track is possibly the greatest dance track of all time. Little red corvette is just .. oh! And the rest of the album. Let’s pretend we’re married (and presumably not talk for months). DMSR. Delirious. All of them. Wow! What he’s a little underrated in is long grooves. When the revolution settle in it’s just magic. No wonder the live reputation is immense. 19 stars.

Bitte Orca

Dirty Projectors

2/5

Oh Dimery. *sigh* Tried. I really did. But when the Wikipedia page takes a paragraph to explain the album title, it’s as good an indication to what listening to the music will be like. Not surprised. Just disappointed.

It's Blitz!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

2/5

One of the next big things that sort of fizzled. It’s kind of fun, I guess, but they’re having a better time than I am. *sigh*

Sweetheart Of The Rodeo

The Byrds

5/5

Gram parsons. Massive country fan. Would have made it to Nashville as royalty had he lived despite his difficult qualities as a human being and the poor reception at the Ryman. Elvis didn’t go down well either and now the Nashville country music museum has one of his limos We forget sometimes just how good the byrds could be. Usher produces this album well and while most of the original byrds have moved on (David Crosby being famously replaced by a horses bottom on one cover) this is a pretty fine lineup. The great John Hartford on fiddle banjo and mandolin is a highlight. This is a great album. Perhaps the best the Byrds did. 4.5 stars.

Teen Dream

Beach House

2/5

It’s either pop or it’s something else. Adding a noun or andject to the fronts smells of superficiality. And I think shoegaze is not to my taste. Pah. 2 stars. Pfui.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

OutKast

5/5

Hey ya alone gives this 5 stars. A dance song you can’t dance to - it’s in 22/8. A happy melody about a relationship breakdown. One of the greatest songs and singles of the 21st century. In 2003. Will it be matched over the following 97 years? 21 years later there’s not a lot of competition. * The rest of the double album swerves from great to middling. Without hey ya it’d be a solid 3.5. With Hey Ya it’s a 5. *This isn’t a ‘music these days!’ comment. Hey Ya is that good. .

Heavy Weather

Weather Report

4/5

Fusion jazz. Hated by critics. Loved by its fans. As great as Shorter, Zawinul, Acuna and Badrena are, it’s Jaco, the man who reinvents how the electric bass is played, less than 15 years after a small cohort worked it out. Entwhistle or Bruce hadn’t tried this, and they were more technically adventurous than James Jamerson, Carol Kaye or Duck Dunn. Jaco was something else. Let’s look at Jaco's bass solo on harmonics. It sounds like a guitar. But it’s not. It’s Pastorious. He is the Jimi Hendrix of bass and what a show that might have been. Put Bonham on drums and watch the whole thing crash under the impossible weight of expectations. The other thing about this first album is just how much energy there is. Fusion was developed by the guys who grew up on rock and roll but learned jazz. A lot of later fusion guys forget this thinking it’s about how clever you are. Oh these guys in Weather Report are clever, yes. But they’re also chuck and Richard and the Beatles and the stones. And Sly and Jimi and James Brown, and Motown, and P Funk. Throw it all together and you have a true fusion. This is jazz. Absolutely. But it’s also rock and roll. 4 stars.

Hms Fable

Shack

2/5

That I haven’t heard of this is foreboding. And I listen. And it’s not bad. But must listen? Not even close.

Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

2/5

Another 'is this must hear?' And the answer is no. You can go your entire life without needing to hear this, though the song harry and hermione dances to in deathly hallows makes that scene something special. Nick cave should be on this list, I suppose, maybe. But not this album. 2 stars because it shouldn’t be here.

Amnesiac

Radiohead

4/5

Kid A or Ok computer (ok maybe both) for must listens. Radiohead is great but not every album is a must listen. I’m starting to think this should be 1000 popular acts of the 20th and 21st century (or maybe the last 100 years) you should listen to. That might be more representative and the selections must frustrate me a bit less.

Truth And Soul

Fishbone

2/5

Jacks of all trades, masters of none.

16 Lovers Lane

The Go-Betweens

5/5

I never really got the go betweens. I know they are an iconic Queensland band but they were always just off my ‘taste’ radar. They’re really good. Great playing and strong songs and they deserved their success but I missed the appeal. 5 because I know too many people who’d give this at least 4.

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

5/5

Hoo boy. What a voice.

Tres Hombres

ZZ Top

3/5

Zz top.

Off The Wall

Michael Jackson

5/5

His best album. Sure thriller is great but this has an energy and a risk factor that his later work lacks. Which is saying something. This documents the prodigy maturing into something more than just that kid who electrified his brothers band into something more than they could be. And they could be great. It’s before the weirdness, the absurdity, the awfulness. It grooves, it boogies, it gets down. Runs from jazz to a light funk. Quincy jones at his zenith. Crack musicians. Some of my all time favourite musicians on this. . All killer, no filler. 5 stars.

The Hour Of Bewilderbeast

Badly Drawn Boy

2/5

Critical acclaim. Was a hit. Won awards. Pretty much forgotten today. Rather dull to listen to. Dated badly. Not unpleasant. Good musicianship. Songs are similar with no real distinction between them. . And poorly produced. It’s muddy with no clarity or definition. Another one of the 80% of this selection that isn’t must hear. 2.5 rounded down.

McCartney

Paul McCartney

4/5

Ok, Paul McCartney is absolutely key. But given I only have 1001 albums, it’d be band on the run, McCartney 2 and maybe Ram. This is a throat clearer, with admittedly maybe I’m amazed as an example of what McCartney could do. The rest of it is mid range McCartney, meaning it would have been a stone cold career making classic for anyone else. But McCartney was to do better. From anyone else, 58 stars. From Paul? 3.5.

Songs Of Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen

3/5

Hmmm. Is Leonard cohen a lyrical and musical genius? Or is he a failed poet who lucked into music? I still don’t know. There are some gems on this. But am I - are we? - being hoodwinked? 2.5, so zero if it’s a con, 5 if it’s what its fans claim it to be. Rounded up

Yeezus

Kanye West

4/5

The most problematic of all problematic geniuses. Maybe not actually. He never killed anyone, and while it must have been awful for Kim kardashian, as far as I know he never intentionally abused her. But behind a production desk he was untouchable. This ain’t the album I’d have picked - gold digger is way too great of a problematic track - as is heartbreaker. But man when he’s on fire he burns.

Junkyard

The Birthday Party

3/5

A better example for nick cave. Too druggy and pretentious for me but not awful.

Band On The Run

Paul McCartney and Wings

5/5

Peak McCartney. Musical dna. I consider 1985 his best composition. Jet, the title track. God. He never wrote a dud melody but he can be awful. Not here though. Let me roll it is of course his pastiche to Lennon. But who else thinks 'no words' is his George Harrison song? I even like mamunia. Not a dud on this one. Musical DNA. Only Lennon’s plastic ono band equals this for Beatles solo. 14009487383736384747 stars.

What's Going On

Marvin Gaye

5/5

It’s a must listen. But is it great? The three singles are. The band is of course superb. Marvin is probably singing the best he ever did. The cultural impact of this is still felt 50 years down the track. But according to the wiki article, Greg kot was in a minority, feeling that the three singles were worthy, but the rest of the album was 'meandering introspection'. I want to disagree but I can’t. It gets five stars, but not for itself, but its context.

69 Love Songs

The Magnetic Fields

2/5

We’ve had two classic albums by two of the biggest and most influential artists of the period. Now this.

Bitches Brew

Miles Davis

4/5

Important and must listen? Yes. Do I like it? Well I didn’t. When I heard it many years back (after hearing return to forever, weather report, mahavishnu orchestra, steely dan etc) I found it drab and dull. Maybe I’ve grown into it. Maybe I was wrong then. Maybe I’m old. But I enjoyed it now more than I did. I also have a nagging feeling that Miles is overrated slightly. And I acknowledge that that is not a widely held belief. I also find his ubiquitous influence baffling. It’s only recently that jazz bands have moved away from trying to sound like miles. I don’t resent the influence nor do I think it all bad but I think he inadvertently held jazz back for decades by all of those trying to sound like him. Instead of learning his lesson (find your voice and express that) they copied. So the audience got bored.* This is not Miles’s fault any more than endless pointless wailing on guitars is Eddie van halen’s fault, or tortured wordplay with no craftsmanship is Dylan’s. But jazz players should know better. The whole history of jazz is innovation. I’m pretty sure miles has the most impressive alumni of any bandleader. And the bands that came out of this album alone… who didn’t sound like miles. 5 stars because of its influence. Take that away and think I’d have given it 2 when I was 20. But 3.5 now. Maybe I’ve gone senile. *of course there are honourable and notable exceptions. But those who complained that jazz didn’t progress had somewhat of a point.

Let Love Rule

Lenny Kravitz

2/5

What a weird choice. I mean I know people who revere Lenny and call him the greatest rocker ever. That’s not my view but hey, who am I to judge? I’ll admit, the third album with all the big hits is great listening. But this one? With only 1001 to choose l, I’d think no. I like Lenny, but… He plays all the instruments. Very few can get away with that. But it’s competent. Shouldn’t be here. Not his best. 2/5

Ocean Rain

Echo And The Bunnymen

2/5

Didn’t we already do this? One album from this group is enough.

Axis: Bold As Love

Jimi Hendrix

5/5

Hendrix is one of the very few artists who should have every solo album he did on such a list. This is probably my favourite of his - little wing alone justifies this inclusion It’s an unfinished song - sketch really - but the rest of the album is just superb. Little wing shows his potential more than the widdly wow wow he is known for. But having said this there’s some brilliant stuff here. And really as life changing as Hendrix was, Mitch Mitchell excels. The bass, at least some of which was played by Noel Redding is more than functional. But the drums - for all the bombast of Moon and the force of nature that is bonham, Mitch is probably the most complementary of the great three. Hendrix isn’t my favourite guitarist though I suppose he’s up there. This album is, as the kids say, a banger.

Another Green World

Brian Eno

3/5

Brian eno is either genius or total fraud. I’m still not sure which. A great band… 2.5 while I work it out.

Time Out Of Mind

Bob Dylan

4/5

Can you change the world 3 times? Dylan is in a handful who changed it twice. As for three times? Off hand, Miles Davis, maybe Madonna? I had a longer version of this review that disappeared when the phone battery died and there were a few other names. Bowie perhaps? Certainly this album is a return to form for Dylan. At least according to fans. Now Dylan is one of those artists who, even on the worst albums they did there’s something worthwhile. (Elton, Stones?, again my mind is dying). I don’t quite rate this album as highly as other fans, but acknowledge it is an excellent album. After the dire born again years (which still yielded some good songs) this was rightly seen as a vast improvement. The traveling wilburies helped too I think in that Dylan was able to just relax and write. I don’t rate this quite as highly as other Dylan fans but it is a top ten Dylan album.

The Stone Roses

3/5

Important and actually worth being on the list but I’ve grown away from it. And I heard it a bit when it was current. But I remember none of it. I’ll assume that’s on me. It’s pretty ok actually.

Kenya

Machito

4/5

More important for who listened than the listening. Fun and beautifully played. 3.5

The Healer

John Lee Hooker

4/5

Done at the time of the blues revival and hooker was one of the original 50s blues men and one of the most important. Apart from the slick production and guest stars, it’s a decent example of what Hooker did so well - the boogie - though I’d recommend his 50s output.

The Good, The Bad & The Queen

2/5

Not terribly impressed though I’m sure whoever picked this was terribly impressed with themselves.

The Clash

5/5

I dislike the clash. Hypocrites. Posers. W*nkers. Try hards. Then you play them and they are genuinely one of the best bands ever. What a debut. London calling is one of the great songs of the punk era and maybe even of the rock era. So you give them one for being wankers and 12 for how good they are. I’ll average it to a 5.

Toys In The Attic

Aerosmith

3/5

The singles range from good to magnificent. The rest is filler or just better.

Aftermath

The Rolling Stones

4/5

Mick and keith really come into their own, second only to Lennon McCartney, a Strauss they’ll keep till at least John, Taupin. This is a strong album - I think the uk version is a bit better. It probably hasn’t lasted well although I never really believed Micks misogyny. I don’t think he did either. By stones standards, bottom of the top. Anyone else, career making one off. 3.5 stars.

For Your Pleasure

Roxy Music

4/5

A band that escaped me, like 70s Genesis. I enjoyed this but I might have passed by when this would have been awesome to me. Great musicians. 3.5

Green Onions

Booker T. & The MG's

4/5

That Wikipedia entry is terrible. Reads like a year 8 summary written at the last minute by a bored student who used Wikipedia. Booker T and the MGS are among that cohort who I bent how to play soul music with four new instruments - the Hammond B3, invented 1955, the fender precision bass, invented 1951, and the fender telecaster, invented 1949-1952. So they’re new instruments with four creative and brilliant musicians who’ve worked out how to play these new instruments. This context is important. It’s a good album,a nd a little more than an historic artifact. It’s rough and ready, but virtuosic. And if you play any of those instruments, one of the records you should learn. At least green onions.

Reggatta De Blanc

The Police

4/5

The police. Kind of the mirror image of the clash. A great bad. And this might be their best. Sting wrote some of his best songs. And he is wonderfully backed up by summers and Copeland. Definite must listen.

The Slider

T. Rex

3/5

He’s somewhat of a neglected figure now but Marc Bolan was a huge star. He is somewhat limited in his songwriting but boy within those limits he could write. Again the ridiculous limitation of greatest hits compilations means that we listen to all of this and not just the outstanding singles.

Strangeways, Here We Come

The Smiths

4/5

The biggest whinging Pom who ever whinging Pommed. Also very witty. And the smiths are a great band. Even if I’m a bit … suspicious of them. Steven can write lyrics, even if they do seem to moan and whinge. Marr is an excellent player and it’s a solid solid rhythm section. But, something about them irritates me. I’m sure that Manchester was quite miserable - try Dubbo NSW growing up. If I could afford a train ticket the most interesting place I could get to was Sydney. From Manchester a couple of hours on the train to London and then you have Europe. I prefer Springsteens epic vistas that cover economic and social oppression. But as I grow older though the smiths do make more sense. 3.5 rounded up.

Kings Of The Wild Frontier

Adam & The Ants

3/5

Must listen? Hmmmm Adam ant was that link between the first new wave and the second new wave - how the pretenders were usurped by Duran Duran if you like. None of this is bad. Just history. So is this album: Great fun? Tick Lots of filler? Tick Marvellous singles? he’d do better. But ant music is a banger. Dated horribly? Tick and cross. Production has surprisingly held up. Is it 5 stars? Nope. 2.5.

Youth And Young Manhood

Kings of Leon

3/5

In It For The Money

Supergrass

3/5

Not awful. Not bad. Passed me by at the time. Not a must listen. 2.5

Crosby, Stills & Nash

3/5

Sigh. Important I suppose and gorgeous harmonies. Well crafted songs. Just not for me.

Grievous Angel

Gram Parsons

5/5

Excellent album. Probably the best of the Parsons repertoire, and really shows what a musical loss he was. The band, mostly Elvis's TCB rhythm section, minus Jerry Schett, cooks. The guests, including future Eagle Bernie Leadon, Linda Ronstadt, and legendary fiddler Byron Berline are inspired. Parsons and Emmy Lou were magic together. Parsons wife was suspicious and so excised Emmy Lou from the cover. She really shouldn’t have done that. It’s really as much an Emmy Lou album as a Gram one. And that makes it terrific.

NEU! 75

Neu!

3/5

Wonderful Rainbow

Lightning Bolt

1/5

Nope. I already heard this. Except I knew it as ‘Goo’ by sonic youth.

Live 1966 (The Royal Albert Hall Concert)

Bob Dylan

4/5

Judas. I don’t believe you. One of the three or four musical performances in which Dylan changes the world. And deservedly so. The hawks are a powerful unit. And Dylan rises to the occasion. But it’s 25 years after the event, and the event was shrouded in legend. Dylan of course both knows the power of legend and has spent more than 50 years both downplaying his and using it to keep known. This is an event that you need to be aware of. But the album may make a non Dylan fan wonder what all the fuss was about. 4

Time Out

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

5/5

One of the essential jazz albums. Brubeck had traveled to turkey and heard 9/8 time. Unusual rhythms abound. But perfectly arranged. Brubeck got people listening to 5/4 in the Paul Desmond written take five. So beautifully constructed. You can dance to it. Blue rondo a la Turk is another masterpiece. In fact all of it is. 1959 might be peak jazz - kind of blue also comes out this year. This is astounding. 10/8 stars.

Killing Joke

2/5

Better than expected. Not completely enjoyable.

The Madcap Laughs

Syd Barrett

3/5

Stretching from Chaucer, through Shakespeare, to swift, to Lewis Carroll, to Edward Lear, James Joyce, the goons, the Beatles, Monty Python, Syd Barrett gives that whimsical nonsense beloved of those English and Irish writers. To be fair, the idea of Syd was always more appealing than the existence of the music. I wonder if he’d be as remembered if it wasn’t for the tragic circumstances he found himself in. The early Floyd stuff is essential. This is interesting but not awfully essential. Historically important? Ask me tomorrow. My mind might change.

The Chronic

Dr. Dre

5/5

An album that changes music. How did that make this list? Oh right 90s hip hop. I think more garbage and pretension has been written about this album by suburban white critics than the same breed writing about Jimi Hendrix. In fact it is a great album. Dr Dre knows the form (much better than I do) and grows, expands and changes it. Snoop shows why he becomes a star. And the anger and bitterness is nicely done. . 5 stars.

Joan Armatrading

5/5

I did enjoy this, though Joan would go on to more commercially viable stuff later but also be a bit more adventurous. Terrific musicians with Hellecaster Jerry Donohue and ex faces and Who drummer Kenney Jones among others appearing. It does show the breadth of UK music in 1976 - Bowie, Queen, Bowie and Quatro don’t really fit here. Neither do the soon to be recorded pistols, clash or pretenders. She’s two to three years ahead of Costello (but then who isn’t?) and even Sting and the police are a bit behind. I’d probably compare her most closely to Kate Bush given both have unique voices and are women following their own vision, not the vision of male producers. I was going to give it three but it’s growing on me. 4.5.

Surfer Rosa

Pixies

4/5

My Generation

The Who

5/5

What a statement of intent. A mission statement that is definite and quickly superseded. But there’s a sense in which it’s all in here. Let’s look at the achievements. The censor baiting stutter - not just to imply vulgarity but also to imply the effects of amphetamine. The angry slashing guitar chords that launch a million rock bands and punk bands and industrial bands. The frenetic drumming. The first electric bass solo. And that’s just the title track. One of the absolute songs you need to know if you think you like rock music. The kids are alright is a stone cold Classic. Most of the rest is serviceable to great covers. But that Townshend kid shows promise as a songwriter. 4 .5 stars

Young Americans

David Bowie

3/5

The singles are fantastic. The album tracks are ok. Really, the only Bowie album which has consistently great songs is Ziggy. Fight me. Bowie could do great singles. But his albums tend to be patchy. Wanna try it out? Take out the singles and then sequence the rest. What stands out? Yeah, thought so. Not much. Sigh. 3 stars.

Electric Ladyland

Jimi Hendrix

5/5

Changes the world of guitars. A very good to excellent songwriter. At least one classic. Mitch Freaking Mitchell. Mitch freaking Mitchell

Arc Of A Diver

Steve Winwood

3/5

Why? Must listen? It’s a decent listen. And Winwood is a superb musician and excellent songwriter. ‘When you see a chance’ is great. But top 1000 album? No. 3.5 stars. It’s good. But not 1000 album good. Rounded down.

After The Gold Rush

Neil Young

3/5

I suppose one Neil young album has to be on this list. I’d have thought Harvest. But anyhow… Neil Young is what most people think about Bob Dylan. That other people do his songs better. That’s not necessarily true with Dylan as he digs deeply into genre and style and vocalises accordingly. Neil doesn’t have the vocal tonal range of a Dylan. And while it’s easy to dismiss a lot of his songs because of this, if you listen to Dolly, Emmy Lou and Linda’s version of after the gold rush, or Neil himself backed by the Band the strength of the songs comes through. But mostly I’m not impressed by his work. Strident. Loud mouthed. A peace loving hippie who seems to love conflict. I might be too hard. I’ve never met him and I haven't done the deep dive. But while this is fine I’ll go back to other versions of Neil’s work. And really Harvest is a better album.

The Scream

Siouxsie And The Banshees

4/5

Siouxie is a legend. Great band. Good album.

Sweet Baby James

James Taylor

3/5

Is it important? Yes. It helps launch the singer songwriter west coast thing. Is it well played? Yes. Excellent musicianship and songwriting. Did I like it? Fire and rain is a good song. And there’s a couple of others. Otherwise I’m going back to other acoustic music I prefer. That’s ok.

Bongo Rock

Incredible Bongo Band

2/5

One song that gets sampled. Otherwise it’s …irritating? I love percussion but this seems inessential.

The Who Sell Out

The Who

5/5

Oh boy do they get good. I can see for miles. Townshend wrote it as a no 1 and deliberately put a mostly one note solo as a statement about Clapton, page Beck etc. Topped out at 10 in the UK and I think 15 in the US. The charts are idiots. I’ve often thought of all the rock stars I’m closest in temperament to Brian May. But Townshend is probably closer to me in intellectual interests. This album celebrated what Townshend called the greatest art movement of the 20th century - advertising. And they paid for it too - Daltrey allegedly caught pneumonia after spending all day in the baked beans. Mods at the top of the game. They wouldn’t be as good till who’s next. Though they’d still be pretty great anyway.

Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz

5/5

Hard to be negative about this. Gorgeously done. Ruined by poor imitators. Not their fault. 4.5

Endtroducing.....

DJ Shadow

2/5

Best listened to in a club. Otherwise forgettable.

On The Beach

Neil Young

2/5

Another Neil young? Nope.

I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got

Sinead O'Connor

5/5

A great album. Not quite as good as its predecessor but still. 5 stars. It’s easy to forget just what a great performance she gives. In nothing compares, just listen to the verse about the doctor. And then it builds into the chorus. Magic. And she does this type of thing again and again.

Rio

Duran Duran

2/5

I’ll give them this. They’ve spent the last 40 years working their guts out. The songs are decent and they’re good musicians. But seriously? You have 1000 albums. This isn’t one of them.

Now I Got Worry

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

3/5

It’s not bad. It’s pretty good. They at least try and take blues elsewhere rather than blooz a la every second rate Stevie Ray hack. But is this the one? I think they did better.

Antichrist Superstar

Marilyn Manson

3/5

Even at the time I struggled to see the shock value after little Richard, Screaming Lord Sutch, Alice cooper, the sex pistols, Bowie, etc. That said, Marilyn Manson was a bit interesting. This is the album to pick. That he was a tool, unlike Alice cooper, is irrelevant. This is an interesting album. Not a great album. Probably slips past ok into pretty ok. 3 seems too high. 2 seems a bit low. So rounded up.

The Sun Rises In The East

Jeru The Damaja

2/5

Oh obscure 90s hip hop. *farts*

Floodland

Sisters Of Mercy

2/5

I was bored.

Here's Little Richard

Little Richard

5/5

This is rock and roll. Either Richard or Chuck were the king of rock and roll and Richard roared on to the scene. Is there a greater opener than ‘a wop bop bop a loo bop a wop bam boom?’ Is there a greater song on perversion than slipping and slidin? Is there a greater song on another kind of perversion than longboat sally?* Rip it up.. my god. What a song. Even the b sides cook. 2 million stars. *no kink shaming here. But this was revolutionary in the 1950s

Duck Rock

Malcolm McLaren

1/5

Hypocritical cowardly creep with music that reflects that. Zero stars. Rounded up because whoever was in charge of buffalo girls did manage to write a decent pop arrangement.

New Gold Dream (81/82/83/84)

Simple Minds

4/5

This is a good album and explains where a lot of U2 comes from. The singles are magnificent. The rest is pretty great. 3.5.

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

3/5

Whinging Poms. Actually that’s a bit harsh. I do prefer new order but hook et Al are a good band. That Ian Curtis needed more help than he could get is a recurring theme in the history of pop music. I find this stuff maudlin and dull but recognise that it has a significant following. And yes probably an album you should hear.

Blood On The Tracks

Bob Dylan

4/5

Not every one of Dylan’s many albums needs to be must hear in a broad sweep of popular music. This is one that you probably should hear. It is a bit of a shame that this list continually brings up the overrated Neil young but Dylan, while here, doesn’t seem to be as noticed. I might be being harsh. Dylan had withdrawn from music. Or at least he’d wound back. A motorbike accident in 1966 saw him release less important albums. However this after a string of smaller albums seems like an attempt to be game changing again without actually trying to be. Some of the love for this album I think is a love for Dylan. But it has some highlights. Given Dylan’s importance as a composer this album should be listened to. But I will always prefer the other greats. 4

Paris 1919

John Cale

3/5

Got about halfway through and got bored. Better than Elvis Costello Lou reed and Neil young. But that’s not hard. I like Cale. But should this be here? 2.5.

Fear Of A Black Planet

Public Enemy

3/5

Should be on such a list. Although maybe takes a nation of millions should be the one. Didn’t fully enjoy though some good grooves.

Bringing It All Back Home

Bob Dylan

5/5

The first of the electric albums. Side one explodes with electric instruments. Side two is acoustic. Maggie’s Farm still bites 60 years down the track. So does subterranean homesick blues. A stellar cast of musicians. And he was only to get better from here. And possibly the greatest closing track of any American album. It was over. And something new was beginning. 75 stars.

Oar

Alexander 'Skip' Spence

2/5

I don’t know. Is this good? Or ‘good’? I don’t think it’s must listen. It’s more of a ‘oh you should hear this because of the circumstances’. Not ‘this album defined 20th and 21st century popular music in this way or that way.’ I mean I like it. But Willis Allan Ramsay, Joe South, late Elvis, the band, credence, the allmans and on and on seem more compelling. I don’t know. I think he needed more help than exploitation. I don’t know.

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

A Tribe Called Quest

4/5

This is good stuff. Neo soul is a great genre and it doesn’t get much better than this.

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ray Charles

5/5

This is the shizzle. Ray shows the hairs width difference between r and b and country. Jimmie Rogers, the Everly brothers and Hank Williams get their genius polished. Musical dna. 1500000

Brothers In Arms

Dire Straits

4/5

This is one of those albums, like Rumours or Hotel California that is almost beyond criticism. Easy to dismiss as dull, its ubiquity is a major factor in that conclusion. In fact, like the other two, it’s an exceedingly well crafted album. Important in being the album that the sound quality of cds was demonstrated using this album it is a mix of brilliance and banality. Dire Straits to me at least is a rough equivalent to Creedence Clearwater Revival, insofar as they were made up of brothers and friends and the songs that Mark wrote were much bigger than the band. They are a fine band but not a virtuosic band like, I don’t know, The Police or The Blockheads. Except for the exceptional guitar playing of Mark the band is a bit journeyman. Mark’s limited vocalising works, especially on things like ‘your latest trick’. Of course he wrote the songs and was aware of his limitations. I think it’s telling that the best songs have wiki links. And were singles. I do like this album. I suppose it’s musical RNA to me. There’s a sense that readers in this group may find it dull. It’s not dull but it’s not an album that for me I need to listen to much even though as a guitarist I deeply admire Mark Knopfler’s style. 3.5

The Modern Lovers

2/5

I keep hearing how great these guys are. I’ll take your word for it. I suppose it should be on this list as he’s deeply regarded. But there’s no craft here. There’s no emotion. There’s no art. Maybe you had to be there. Interested to see Jerry harrison was a part of it.

Graceland

Paul Simon

5/5

I suppose to be fair in a just world this would be an album that was well regarded in a post Peter Gabriel world. In an even more just world the magnificent band and Ladysmith black mambazo would have been world famous anyway. But we live in this world. And Paul Simon, a first rank songwriter, produces this after critically acclaimed but commercially subdued albums. And this is superb. IIt changes the world. I know Paul Simon may be a problematic figure. But the music here. And the lyrics. What is not generally noticed is that Simon doesn’t move far away from his usual lyrical themes - Manhattan life, relationship breakdowns. So diamonds on the soles of her shoes - possibly the standout track - is not about Soweto. They fall asleep among the bodegas of Broadway. The title Track may be Simon’s best lyrics. I know what I know is another standout. There’s no filler on this. I’m aware of all the criticisms. Is it exploitation? Did Paul Simon ripoff his musicians? Maybe, maybe not. I don’t know. If true they are valid. But this is a joyful, joyous and wondrous album. If you haven’t heard it, listen closely. Let it seep in. It is musical dna for me. 88 stars.

Guero

Beck

2/5

Didn’t we do Beck already? After Odelay is there anything to add for only 1000 albums? This is good. No question. But not a must listen. 2.5 marked down because it shouldn’t be here.

Blood And Chocolate

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

1/5

. Awful garbage. A poor songwriter, now past his peak in the gently undulating foothills of his talent (I use the term loosely though I did think Oliver’s army a great song and I don’t want to go to Chelsea is also decent.) How could the producer let him get away with wasting a great band in this junk? Enough with the critical darlings. This list has shown most critics don’t understand ‘quality’ ’rock’, ‘roll’, ‘good’ or ‘music’ Let’s have more albums you must hear. 0 stars. Rounded up because it’s too mediocre for a negative score

Psychocandy

The Jesus And Mary Chain

2/5

Hmmm. Garbage? Great? Dull, certainly.

Superfuzz Bigmuff

Mudhoney

5/5

Yep. Should be here and is pretty great. If I named my album like this it’d be Wah bluesdriver delay. This is how you do noise. And rock.

Basket of Light

Pentangle

5/5

I know already that Alan is going to dismiss this as English folk but in all love and affection give me 20 of these over French folk. With that out of the way, that British and Irish guitarists of the 1960s were incredible. This is Beck Page Clapton Townshend, Rory, etc. But the acoustic guys were better in a sense. On this album Jaensch and Renbourn. It’s a true fusion - jazz blues folk all mixing as if they always did. This, Solid Air, Planxty and Fairport. And this stuff leads to zeppelin, Jethro Tull and other such acts.

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

4/5

This is good stuff from a band I’m not as aware of as I should be. But I enjoyed this. And I think is an act that belongs here. Whether it’s this album or not I don’t know. But one of their albums should be here anyway.

Grace

Jeff Buckley

3/5

It’s the worst version of hallelujah but to be fair that’s because all of the awful copies. So not really his fault. I like the original and I like John cales version. The restraint in both of them suits the song. Would have been interesting to see where he would have gone. This album is not bad but I think it’s more an harbinger of things to come rather than a fully realised musical vision. That it was not to be is a tragedy. 3

Exile In Guyville

Liz Phair

4/5

If she hadn’t called herself the blowjob queen would pathetic sniggering white boy critics have cared? I think this is good though. And yes probably one of those albums you should hear.

Hypnotised

The Undertones

4/5

Old tree bird fishlock is in great voice here. This is a really great album. It evaded me at the time but I would have been all over this on release.

Roger the Engineer

The Yardbirds

4/5

I had written a Toppermost article (https://www.toppermost.co.uk/the-yardbirds/) on the yardbirds and after it was published I realised something. Apart from the three important guitarists who made up the lineup - Clapton Beck and Page - they weren’t a terribly good blues band. They were however a pretty terrific pop band particularly on this album. Jeff Beck, one of the greatest rock guitarists, never stopped developing as a player. The songs on this are terrific. Over under upside down is amazing. The Nazz is blue led one David jones, under his more renowned stage name, to describe the character of Ziggy Stardust. It also led Todd Rundgren to name his band. This is worth a listen. Though nearly all members would go on to to other interesting and important things. Not all the songs are bangers. But those that are slap hard. Vale Jeff. (And Keith).

Want One

Rufus Wainwright

2/5

Must listen? More like might listen if that’s all there is. Not especially great. Not especially awful. Not my cup of tea. But nothing special either. Why is this here?

The Gershwin Songbook

Ella Fitzgerald

5/5

That key year 1959. Ella is like Hendrix, like Dylan, like Bird. Greatness themselves but too many inferior copies dilute. But here, with two of the figures (well three) that make up what was great about American 20th century music - the gershwin’s and Nelson freaking riddle - we see magic.

If You're Feeling Sinister

Belle & Sebastian

4/5

Hadn’t heard this before. Thought I wouldn’t like it. Didn’t hate it. Might be a grower. Currently a 3.5. Might improve.

Pelican West

Haircut 100

2/5

Reallly? Highly commercialised pop with admittedly some craft but little originality? It’s fun but that’s about it. Love plus one is an almost great single - rang and i rang and I rang and I… is a terrific hook. But you know, really?

Cafe Bleu

The Style Council

3/5

Weller never quite got the genius level his early work suggested. Nonetheless Style council was pretty cool. It ain’t over is soulful. The album is strong. But top 1000? 3 stars.

Introducing The Hardline According To Terence Trent D'Arby

Terence Trent D'Arby

5/5

This is a grower. When it came out I thought yeah it’s good. But decades later it’s a bit ahead of its time and has incredibly great songs. Finally a must listen. 4.5

American Idiot

Green Day

3/5

At least it’s an album of importance and broad critical acclaim even if I don’t like it that much. It’s more of a throwback than a progression. It’s not bad at all. But is it punk? I will concede it belongs on this list.

Follow The Leader

Korn

3/5

Yes ok. It’s fine. They have a big but niche following and are representative of that type of thing. So yeah. Ok.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Beatles

5/5

It’s either this or abbey road for my favourite Beatles. I know, it gets a bit of snark. But any album that includes’A day in the life’ is instantly five stars. The opening track. Wow. The closing track. Wow. The hidden track. Wow. Lennon at his diminished best. Not a lot of songs but those he does do - wow. McCartney at his best. Wow. George decides to master Carnatic music. As you do. Wow. There’s a reason this was a cultural phenomenon. 65000009 stars.

If I Could Only Remember My Name

David Crosby

3/5

The least interesting member of Crosby stills Nash and young, a group that included stills Nash and young. This is ok. He can sing and play and write decent songs. But it’s not compelling. 2.5.

Electric

The Cult

2/5

The cult is fun. The cult is hideously derivative. I remember syncing up a cult song and an ac dc song. Same riff. Same key. Same tempo. I’m not sure they belong here, and it’s the she sells sanctuary album if they did. Dimery, do your job.

Lazer Guided Melodies

Spiritualized

2/5

This experiment failed.

Zombie

Fela Kuti

5/5

Most white critics missed the point of this. It was not about freedom, but oppression. It’s good actually. An album you should hear.

Permission to Land

The Darkness

3/5

It’s fun. But they sort of fade after this. It’s a good representation of that early 2000s. One does wonder what they’d do if they’d never heard a Queen album. But yes I can accept this.

Born To Run

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Crack band. Crack songs. Springsteen is the best of the post Dylan songwriters. Shut up he is. Ah, what would you know? Born to Run is an anthem - a song that unites in its criticisms of American capitalism. Springsteen understands that the system could work but it’s been taken over by crooks, by shysters, by scammers. The everyday worker gets screwed. You can run. You can’t hide. There is redemption out there somewhere. There must be. There has to be. He puts all this in a vista that is mythic in its vision. It’s an America of small towns. Of broken dreams. Of disappointment. But in there is a little hope. And that’s the magic of it. Growing up I got Springsteen. The cars. The long endless roads. The dying towns where once was promise but now was despair. Central West NSW could be Wisconsin. Or Tennessee. Or Virginia. Sheer poetry, wrapped in Dylan, Motown, The Who, Woody Guthrie, Nashville and Pete Seeger. And a crack band. Did I mention the band? PS - that telecaster is why I play a telecaster.

The Atomic Mr Basie

Count Basie & His Orchestra

5/5

Basie.

Microshift

Hookworms

1/5

White boy critics love this. It’s safe, it’s predictable but you can look down on the noobs who like Elton, or Billy Joel, or Celine Dion or Taylor swift. I’d grown tired of this stuff by 2003 or so. This adds nothing to music, musical knowledge or technique or songwriting. Shortcomings was ok. The rest was … blergh. 1 star

The Undertones

3/5

Didn’t we do this? Feargal Sharkey is a fine singer and they are fine instrumentalists. But one album is enough.

The Boatman's Call

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

4/5

Unusually I prefer nick caves later stuff. Into my arms is lovely and was a deserved single. The piano is somber , quiet and doesn’t have the heroin haze or pretension of his really early stuff. Should it be here? I’m not sure. But it’s a solid 3.5 rounded up.

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy

5/5

An album that changes the world. One to listen to. Yes it’s confronting and violent and misogynistic. But it’s also a statement on what it is in the U.S. then. Bring the noise and party for your right to fight - a cheeky retort and homage to the beastie boys - are my standouts. But the anger passion and insight is strong in this one.

Repeater

Fugazi

3/5

I liked the bass and drums. I’m starting to think the electric guitar is played out. Noise can be music. Sometimes it’s just noise. Boring. But the bass and drums are good. 2.5.

Beggars Banquet

The Rolling Stones

5/5

They’ve found the sound. Well nearly. Street fighting man, with its air of distant curiosity and regret hammers hard. Brian Jones’s slide guitar is exquisite. The acoustic songs show just how good these guys get, once they move away from pop and back to country and blues. Sympathy for the devil has incredible imagery - I drive a tank with a general’s rank, where the blitzkrieg raged and the bodies stank. Underrated lyricists those jagger Richards boys. I think mick wrote that one. Not that the rest of the album is worse. Probably the best thing about this album was they were to get better. Any other band, just about, would have had this as their peak. 5 stars.

Reign In Blood

Slayer

5/5

Absolute must hear if only to understand thrash. Second only to Metallica in sales. Possibly exceeds them in pure hard metal. Yes it’s brutal and fast and difficult. Just like my ex girlfriend. But unlike my ex worth revisiting and you don’t need a jail pass. Even if you don’t like thrash, this is a must hear. Even once.

A Grand Don't Come For Free

The Streets

2/5

Sigh. No. Sterile. Passionless. Dull.

Heartbreaker

Ryan Adams

2/5

To think that people made sure they made a distinction between this guy and Bryan Adams. Both I suppose should be on such a list. A lot of people like them and they sold exceptionally well. And god bless both of them. I don’t like either man’s music much. But I’m clearly in the minority.

Fuzzy Logic

Super Furry Animals

2/5

Not quite mediocre enough to be mediocre. Not quite good enough to be good. Guess it’s ok.

Who's Next

The Who

5/5

Musical DNA. One couplet Nearly all understanding of politics can be summed up in Meet the new boss Same as the old boss. That song. That song by itself gives this album 19/5. And yet the others. My wife, by the ox. Baba oreilly. Teenage wasteland. I knew exactly what it meant. Behind blue eyes. Townshend lashes out. Arrogance hiding an insecurity so deep the song nearly collapses. That cover by limp bizkit missed the point. This is how strength can be broken by weakness. Getting in tune. A career making song for any other band. Here, almost filler. Brilliant.

The Rolling Stones

4/5

A pretty strong debut mostly of the live show with one jagger Richard and Nanker Phelge tracks. The stones were probably the best of the early British blues bands - maybe early Fleetwood Mac were the rivals. I know the Irish contingent are screaming Rory but he’s just a bit later. None the less the blues are authentic and the band will go on to be much much more than this debut suggests. They would transcend blues without leaving it completely behind.

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Raekwon

3/5

It’s really a Wu tang album. One Wu tang album is enough. It’s good though.

In Utero

Nirvana

5/5

I think this is a better album than never mind. But in 1001 albums do we need more then never mind. A lot of the love for nirvana is the potential that was never to be realised. Not all of it of course. He could write songs and the band was incendiary. But should it be here? Still, I think it a better album than nevermind. But never mind is the one. Gets five stars though.

Feast of Wire

Calexico

2/5

*sigh*. Give me punch brothers or their solo stuff. Bela fleck. Billy strings. Sierra Hull. Not this warmed over stuff the Band did better. Or eagles. Or the birds. Or the allman bros or lynyrd skynMusic must develop or die. To be fair, this is competent. It has some nice parts. But give me Chris Thile or Chris Eldridge. Or bela fleck. Or anything that doesn’t fit a predictable pattern.

Scott 4

Scott Walker

3/5

Scott walker was always interesting. This is not as bizarrely weird as some of his work (really go and listen to Jesse. It’s about Elvis in his mother’s womb dealing with his dead twin). But it’s still interesting. Must listen? Hmmmm.

2112

Rush

5/5

I love rush. Shut up you. They were nearly always able to play progressive music without 1) disappearing up their own clackers and 2) being so complex it was impossible to hold onto. Sure Neil’s lyrics were … sometimes only as good as their source material - ayn rand. And geddys voice isn’t to everyone’s taste. But man could they play. Alex plays like a demon being lifted I guess by Neil’s legendary drumming. Geddy’s bass is incredibly great too. 5 stars easily.

Walking Wounded

Everything But The Girl

4/5

Actually this is pretty decent northern soul. She’s got a great voice and the songs are decent and the playing is good. It’s on the border of must listen though …. 3.5 rounded up

Solid Air

John Martyn

5/5

Musical dna. Beyond criticism for me. For all the talk of Eric, Jeff, Jimmy, Rory, Peter and Pete, the acoustic guys were cutting just as much edge. And in fact Page was deeply influenced by this sort of stuff. Incredibly brilliant stuff.

Blonde On Blonde

Bob Dylan

5/5

Highway 51 is the masterpiece, but this is superb. My god, Dylan, beach boys, Beatles, Who. Those acts that grew incredibly as artists. 18 months earlier, you’d never have picked Dylan doing this. Just superb. One of the few double albums I can abide. 25000 stars.

Here Come The Warm Jets

Brian Eno

3/5

Eno is either genius or fraud. 2.5 while I work it out.

Southern Rock Opera

Drive-By Truckers

3/5

Not the best. But not the worst. Some decent music and good playing.

The Modern Dance

Pere Ubu

4/5

Was a time where I’d have thought this fantastic. Not so much now but let’s be fair. I changed. It didn’t. 4

Trafalgar

Bee Gees

5/5

Barry gibb is one of the great songwriters. This album is stage one bee gees at their peak. The vocal blend is among the very best. Yes. This belongs here.

The Poet

Bobby Womack

4/5

Ok, I’ve not heard of this album, though I am aware of bobby Womack. Magnificent talent. Enjoyed a great deal. Must listen? I’ll give this one the benefit of the doubt. 4 probably growing to 5.

Celebrity Skin

Hole

4/5

As tragic a tale as nirvana and just as much tabloid fodder. But is it good? It is good. Maybe not great. But good. Strong songs and musicianship. A not untalented band at all. Ignore the drama. This is a good listen.

You're Living All Over Me

Dinosaur Jr.

4/5

I think so much about this. The too long won’t write version is that it is really good. But it has issues. 3.5. And 25

Buena Vista Social Club

5/5

Ry Cooder is an unheralded genius. This foray into Latin music is the soundtrack to a documentary. The documentary is fine but the soundtrack is incredible. The band, frozen in time it seems since US sanctions is a capsule of 50s and 60s Cuban music. 5 stars.

Mama's Gun

Erykah Badu

5/5

I first saw Erykah Badu in Blues brothers 2000 - a film whose soundtrack is way superior to its content. I then followed her up. She’s never done a dud album.

Make Yourself

Incubus

2/5

Not my tea. People like it. Good for them.

War

U2

4/5

I saw U2 in about 1988 or 1989 at the Sydney entertainment centre, with BB King as support. Now I really went for B B King. And after his excellent set I sat and thought ‘do I want to see U2?’ I thought about balancing a very early start, the cost of the ticket and my interest in U2. In the end I figured they’d do Angel of Harlem and When Love goes to town with B B. So I stayed. And they were incredible. It was just before the huge arena tours. So it was just the four of them, some lights and stage presence. So while their later stuff maybe shows a band who have run out of ideas, the stuff they did in the first half of their career - maybe the album after rattle and hum was the end of this - is really great. This is the first I think of the really great U2 stuff. The first album showed promise but it starts to coalesce here. Perhaps one of the best second albums of all time. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Nebraska

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Springsteen early stuff is primo. Stripped back without the band he lays bare the issues in America at the time. Sparse . Honest. Challenging. One of my favourites. I love the E street band. But sometimes one guitar one voice and a harmonica is all you need.

White Light / White Heat

The Velvet Underground

2/5

Over, let me introduce you to rated. The pretentious nature of this. Yes every one who watched formed a band but how many of those bands were any good? The solo work of Cale is good. There are people who love Lou Reed. Good on them. He wrote a couple of songs I enjoy. But, even if Vu were to be on the list, this isn’t the album.

Hunting High And Low

a-ha

2/5

Really? Sure take on me is a great song with a great clip. And the other singles are strong. And yes Scandinavia punches well above its weight in pop. (Even if you remove the Swedish ABBA) But what next? Get the knack? Racey 1? Focus guys.

Are You Experienced

Jimi Hendrix

5/5

Mitch. Jimi. An incredible phenomenon. Yes. A must listen. Hendrix is one of the few acts where all the studio recordings are must listen.

Tusk

Fleetwood Mac

5/5

This is, at least for me, the best of the Buckingham nicks Fleetwood Mac albums. The bloat is used better and the songs are a bit more interesting. The title track should fail but succeeds with the best of them. The mixed down hooga huggas and other verbal noises just add to the bizarre atmosphere. Sara is a great song too. Mick Fleetwood said that this album was driven by Buckingham but, in my view, as usual the best songs tend to be Christine mcvie’s. It sold 4 million - 2/3 of the population of Sydney for a bit of perspective but they were such a sales juggernaut that it’s a commercial flop. Had you asked me before I’d have firmly planted this at 1982. But it’s 1979. A bit ahead of its time I think. A better album than rumours, I guess I’ll have to give it five.

Live At The Harlem Square Club

Sam Cooke

5/5

It’s rough. Ready and swings and rocks with a whole dollop of soul.

Brilliant Corners

Thelonious Monk

5/5

Thelonious was always a bit ahead of his time. And he doesn’t quite fit into jazz. He’s jazz. Yes. But if you listen he’s also a bit classical. He’s closer I think to Ellington than Armstrong. None of this is criticism, just observation. I liked this album. Still do. Listen to how he pushes harmony and rhythm. No one really thought like thelonious. Maybe Ellington or Ornette. 5

Vanishing Point

Primal Scream

3/5

Ehh. I want to like it and I kind of do.

Your Arsenal

Morrissey

1/5

He can turn a lyric, old Stephen. He can do a melody too. But maybe it’s his attitudes. Should you judge art through the attitude of the artist? The gobshite’s gobshite? Or a genius whose truths are too high for muck like me? In any case this is a poor album from a guy who’s done much better. Vauxhall and I is the album. This is pap Or both? I’m not a fan, but I can’t deny the influence.

Odelay

Beck

3/5

The only beck album you need. Loser is one of the great singles of the pop era and this album is pretty solid. So between them you have the essential listening for Beck if you’re a casual fan or are unaware and are looking to find out about him. You can of course if you like go to the rest of his work. And I enjoy it. I hope you do too. But with only 1001 albums this is the one.

Happy Trails

Quicksilver Messenger Service

3/5

Quite interesting. One chord vamps as done by Bo can be done well. This is. Wouldn’t we be better to hear Bo? Or early John Lee hooker? Nonetheless worth a listen. 2.5 The second side starts with another bo Diddley.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

2/5

I liked it. Not much to say. But it’s a good example. I feel we’re getting a little bit of white boy critical in crowd. But it was ok.

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

5/5

Licensed To Ill

Beastie Boys

5/5

This is rightly held as a classic and like becks Odelay, the one album you need to introduce yourself to the beastie boys. Yes they grow and change but you start here. 4.5

Eliminator

ZZ Top

3/5

ZZ Top. Saw them in 1986. Loved it. They introduce synths to the blues. A New York or Chicago band, let alone a Sydney or Melbourne or London blues band, would have been laughed off as pretentious wankers. ZZ Top are - or were - the real thing. This is probably the last really great album they did. Guns, cars and girls. What more do you need? I’ll be honest. This type of thing tends to bore me now. But they do it very well.

Soul Mining

The The

3/5

An over hyped band who don’t quite reach the heights we were promised. If they belong on such a list, it’s the album with Beat (en) generation. This is for the fans. Not for the masses. They’re not a bad band at all. Kind of the smiths but without the energy that the smiths had. Not bad. But not essential.

Rage Against The Machine

4/5

I don’t know anymore if they are genuine revolutionaries or middle class wannabes. I know Zach de la Rocha’s father was a genuine revolutionary. But is it valid? I suspect it is. But the cynic in me suspects it’s less cred. Too many crappy bands of rich middle class kids botching killing in the name. That’s not ratm’s fault. They also need to swing a bit. 3.5

Sheet Music

10cc

4/5

Not sure this is the album but 10cc is rather underrated these days. The two writing partnerships - Goldman and stewart and godley and crème are superb. This might have been better as a greatest hits or the album with I’m not in love. But this is a good album from an always interesting team.

Post Orgasmic Chill

Skunk Anansie

2/5

Nah. I mean. Nah.

Take Me Apart

Kelela

3/5

This is not bad. I was unaware of this. But I don’t mind it at all. It’s a bit samey . But sets a nice mood. It may be a bit early to see if this becomes canon or whether it becomes a weird artifact in a book that dumps it in a few years for some other new act. But that’s not for me to decide. 3.5 rounded up.

Blue

Joni Mitchell

5/5

‘One of the greatest albums of all time’. ‘The pinnacle of composition and structure.’ ‘Not bad for a girl’. It’s hard to review or critique or even listen objectively to this. Every mediocre cafe singer has heard this and when they sing of their intensely personal life and tell you pointless stories of how this particular song came to be, this is the album to blame ‘This next song came to me when I was doing a load of laundry. Then I caught the bus to buy some milk and my sister rang and we chatted for 34 minutes. I had an itchy nose so I scratched it. My cat meowed and I fed it. This song is called ‘feeding the cat while doing the laundry’ (start cliched chord pattern). Joni is not at fault here. (Neither is Jimi Hendrix or Yngwie Malmsteen or Aretha Franklin, or Stevie Ray Vaughn, or Bob Dylan or Jaco Pastorious or Celine Dion or Metallica to name a few.) A prodigiously talented songwriter, a brilliant guitarist and a great singer, I can’t blame people for wanting to copy her but her stuff is uncopyable. In short this is a great album. One of the few that you should listen to. But I prefer others - offhand Hejira or Court and Spark - from her. Nonetheless five stars.

In The Wee Small Hours

Frank Sinatra

5/5

Musical dna. Sinatra was pretty much untouchable at the top of his game and coupled with Nelson riddle, nothing expressed American masculinity and art like this at least not until Presley or Chuck. Sinatra is not a singer put in front of the orchestra - he’s a vital part of it, as important to the sound of the orchestra as Sweets Edison or George Van Eps. This is as much to do with his talent - his gift - as it is to do with Riddles arrangements. If this doesn’t move you, something’s wrong. And this isn’t my favourite of those magical Columbia albums - the glory of Songs for Swinging Lovers is my favourite. But this is just incredible. I bask in it, revelling in each note, beat, chord and lyric. Essential listening. 25 stars.

American Pie

Don McLean

5/5

He’s a fine songwriter. Of course American pie is a baby boomer anthem, one of those songs that created a false nostalgia for a better time in Australia for example. Are there levies that we could drive a Chevy to to watch good old boys drinking whiskey and rye? And yes the lyrics have been analysed to death, ironically given the song theme. It’s a bit beyond criticism really. Over played. Not its fault. Over analysed. Not its fault. False nostalgia. Erm. Vincent is lovely. Again over played. But if you haven’t heard it in a while it’s good. They are the two best tracks. The rest are fine tracks written by a talented songwriter. McLean still tours and is by all accounts a terrific performer. Without the two singles I think he’d fit in to the California singer songwriter - think Joni, James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Jim Croce, Eagles, post Peter green Fleetwood Mac. But he wouldn’t stand out. Those two songs though. It’s not really a five star album but giving it any less feels wrong. So I’m going to cheat and round up a 4.5. It’s sort of a 3.5. But the cultural impact of the title track bumps it up. (I’m not a huge fan of the song anymore having heard it thousands of times.)

Live At The Witch Trials

The Fall

3/5

The fall is one of those bands you should like and there’s a lot to recommend them but I’m not the biggest fan. A bit like the smiths. Mark e smith was a very clever man with a great turn in lyric. Yes. You probably should hear this. But you mightn’t get it. Nonetheless it has a style. And is important to the growth of post punk and post classic rock.

Boston

1/5

Joyless pap. Micromanaged to within an inch of its life with all the rock, life and joy sucked out of it. Even steely Dan has joy. This is middle class, no culture white boy rock writ large.if the bland suburbs of middle America or Australia had a soundtrack to wallow in their mediocrity it’s this. If beige was music, it’s this. This is like going to a party where some bore is intent on telling you all about his obsession to the nth degree. Give me something I can dance to. Give me something that moves me. No wonder Maryanne walked away. I’m surprised she didn’t run and then get a restraining order. Give me the who, zeppelin, Springsteen, Tom petty, the kinks, Queen, or even Aerosmith. No wonder punk hit so hard. This is 1976, punk is 1977. Can we really be surprised? The pistols or The clash pee all over this. Let alone the ramones or Television. This album angers me. Tasteless White boys and music. Pah.

Quiet Life

Japan

4/5

The sound of 1983. In 1979. This is actually quite good. Atmospheric and easy to listen to. That’s a good thing. 3.5

Dusty In Memphis

Dusty Springfield

4/5

I’ve never really got this one. It’s fine with a terrific band. But Aretha did son of a preacher man better. Being honest, I like the other divas better. Give me Linda ronstadt, sick of your male shit. Give me Cher, recounting the hypocritical racism she faces in Gypsies tramps and thieves. Give me Aretha, Mavis Staples, Whitney, Etc. People love this album. And that’s perfectly fine. I don’t. I do like windmills of your mind and land of make believe. I like the album but don’t love it. It is very popular so I’m averaging my three and everyone’s else’s 5 to a 4. And I feel that’s a little high.

Django Django

1/5

Who left the studio door open and the synth on? I told you don’t play with these things unless you know what you’re doing. Or for god’s sake, be with an adult who can show you what to do. No one wants you to not play music but get some lessons. This is everything rock or pop shouldn’t be. Thinks it’s smart. Too ignorant to be smart. Thinks it’s fun. It’s about as fun as reading the obituary of a child. Thinks it’s original. About as original as the 95th photocopy of a not really funny meme stuck to the office notice board. Django Django. So clever - if you’re in year 9 and a tortured poet. Otherwise go listen to Django Reinhardt. Must listen? If it was the last album on earth I’d give up music.

At Fillmore East

The Allman Brothers Band

4/5

I wanted to say that I’m bored with weedly endless guitar solos and that southern rock was limp toxic masculinity. But I can’t. Not in regards to this album. I listened to it as a young musician and liked it, mainly because I was told to by Critics and Music Experts. Over time my tastes developed and I moved away from this type of thing. However listening to it again, it’s not as brash as I remember and there’s some damned fine playing and composition in it. Whipping post, an alleged favourite of Frank Zappa is a masterpiece. Yes it strains adhd with its length of tracks and launches a million mediocre jam bands. But like so much in music that’s not the fault nor the intention of the album. All in all, this belongs here. I suspect that some of us in our little group won’t like it. That’s ok. Their arguments are probably right. But I enjoyed this much more than I remembered. Points deducted for too long (though as Mozart allegedly said to the emperor, which notes do I remove?’) And a little bit of self indulgence. But still an album that wouldn’t hurt you to listen to.

The Idiot

Iggy Pop

4/5

Ok. 3.5. This is a good album. Hadn’t heard it before but enjoyed it. I had heard Iggy pop. Just not this one. Probably his best work. Very strong.

Dry

PJ Harvey

4/5

3.5. Polly Jean is an excellent player and songwriter with a good band. I enjoy this from time to time.

In The Court Of The Crimson King

King Crimson

5/5

This is a great album. Just incredible.

Among The Living

Anthrax

4/5

I might be wrong here, but Metallica were your older cousins, telling you scary stories and introducing to bits of life that perhaps your parents didn’t want you to know about. Slayer was the weird guy up the street who you should avoid but was too compelling with horror stories who lived in a creepy house and couldn’t be ignored. Megadeth was the lunatic up the road, spouting conspiracies and railing against immigration and the gubmint. But again, compelling. Anthrax were the goofy guys, barrel of laughs, just great fun to be around. What and how you you were laughing about was a whole other thing, again, probably not parent approved, but there you are. And that’s this album. Heavy? Yes. Intense? Yes. But a self deprecation and humour that isn’t apparent on the other three. Most people will only need to hear this once, but it’s a good listen. 3.5.

My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Brian Eno

1/5

Not more Brian Eno. And David Byrne? Some good, not great stuff. He needed Jerry Harrison and Tina Weymouth. Honestly. It’s like Neil Young or cult sixties albums. Way way over represented and after you’ve heard one you’ve got the idea. If you like it chase the artists up but on your own time. Django Django broke me. This is pissing on the pieces. 0 stars on general principle. (Album actually not awful but I’m on a crusade here. Sorry Brian and David if you read this. It’s not you.).

Hot Shots II

The Beta Band

1/5

This is what happens when you listen to white boy critics. Another 0 stars.

Don't Stand Me Down

Dexys Midnight Runners

2/5

Interesting but inessential. 2

Come Away With Me

Norah Jones

5/5

The last great mainstream jazz album? A great mainstream jazz album? She’s good. She can carry a tune and invest it with all the things you need. That some of the tunes are a little dull is certainly more a product of the time than any failing on her behalf. But she has a monster group of musicians and that she diverts from textbook jazz is also a strong mark in her favour. Worth a listen. 4.5

We're Only In It For The Money

The Mothers Of Invention

4/5

One of the great Zappa albums. Its beatle baiting cover apparently impressed the Fab Four. Zappa was always somewhat ahead or apart of his time so this sounds like something from 1979 or 1983 One of the very few artists I’d accept more than one album on such a list.

1984

Van Halen

5/5

Musical DNA. Shut up. I don't care what you think. There is no better opening than Hot for Teacher. The middle finger extended as the high level virtuoso playing gets mixed with juvenile sexist puerile nonsense is sublime.. Isn't that what Scotty Moore, Cliff Gallup, Duane Eddy, Chuck Berry did? In another life, Eddie Van Halen is Alan Holdsworth, changing the world of guitar . while playing to a tiny but devoted audience. The genius is David Lee Roth, he of the ok vocals, but massive charisma, and naughty lyrics. Alex van Halen was the perfect foil to his brother, and the secret sauce is Michael Anthony on bass and backing vocals. Jump, Panama, Hot for Teacher, the opening track.. musical DNA... just magic.

The Specials

4/5

A message to you Rudy is superb. Actually the album is superb. Concrete jungle another banger. 2 tone launched a lot of great bands and the specials might have been the best. Ska music is fun and serious.

Palo Congo

Sabu

2/5

Hmmm. This is good. But I’m not sure if this is white boy wannabe posing. So it gets two till you can convince me otherwise.

Veckatimest

Grizzly Bear

1/5

Oh get lost. 0 stars. Not only not a must hear, it’s mediocrity is such that I’m a worse person for listening to it. Predictably unpredictable. Cliches. Cliches so cliched that other cliches roll their eyes. Music so dull you could play it in lifts without having to rearrange it. Music so dull you could use it in your end of life procedure. I wish they would take this list seriously. Seriously, Get lost.

Urban Hymns

The Verve

3/5

One song doesn’t make a great album. This actually has a couple of very good songs - drugs don’t work is a bit special - but it’s more of a decent attempt showing promise than a must hear. Another couple of albums might have seen a must hear. This is fine. But a not yet. 2.5.

Hot Rats

Frank Zappa

5/5

The Zappa album to listen to to understand the genius of Zappa is the greatest hits selection ‘strictly commercial.’ But due to white boys thinking greatest hits lack credibility, you have to hear every album they praise. We get this, we’re only in it for the money, apostrophe, joes garage maybe Broadway the hard way, so ensuring curious but unfamiliar listeners get an overwhelming introduction to difficult, idiosyncratic brilliance. This is a disservice because Zappa is his own thing. He’s not strictly commercial. In fact he, like Prince later, struggled with corporate interference so did his own recording and distribution. Like Prince too there’s far more in the vaults than can be released in Zappas children’s lifetime. So Zappa is a study in himself This album is five stars. Many, hearing it for the first time will give it three. Peaches en regalia is what would happen if you took steely Dan and gave them more advanced musical theory. Willie the pimp is the only decent thing van Vliet did. It’s one of Zappa best lineups. . Lowell George later of Little Feat, sacked by Zappa for reasons unclear, plays rhythm guitar. Ian underwood. Jean luc ponty. Shuggie Otis. Just magic. Listen. But understand that it’s challenging. And it’s not the whole of Zappa. Listen to strictly commercial. Then you can dive in to everything else.

Music for the Masses

Depeche Mode

2/5

Nope. Sixth album from an above average but nothing special band. And there’s nothing special here. 1.5

Under Construction

Missy Elliott

5/5

Good stuff. A must listen after a run of duds dogs and dross this is finally something with actual value.

Shake Your Money Maker

The Black Crowes

3/5

Must listen? Jeez these boys can rock. And roll. But here they are in 1990 doing 1970s Rolling Stones. Should I like it? No. I own exile and the other great stones albums. Do I like it? Shut up. Yes. I don’t care. Hard to handle is great. Is it a must listen? Hmmmm Is it a must listen? Hmmmm

Tank Battles

Dagmar Krause

1/5

I found it here. https://youtu.be/JbYmWrfNJpQ?si=OZ_S-_B36uE4XGlW It’s … not good. Not good. I’m not going to criticise the lyrics. Idiom is a thing that renders a lot of translated lyrics problematic. The arrangements and performance though. Hectoring tuneless yelling over arrangements that seem more in place in a 1980s Italian comedy. Unpleasant and inessential. 0.5. Yeesh.

A Northern Soul

The Verve

1/5

These guys had one halfway decent album. This isn’t it. Pffft. 0 stars.

461 Ocean Boulevard

Eric Clapton

4/5

Musical dna. Eric is a fine songwriter - underrated even. And a fine guitarist. Underrated even. His first solo album was fine. This is a bit better. We can the debate the merits of Clapton doing I shot the Sherriff but it’s a decent version. We can argue the merits of ‘is Clapton boring?’ But he’s one of the four or five who can genuinely be credited with changing how guitar was played. Charlie Christian, Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, Eddie van Halen, Eric. You can put Jeff Beck in there but he never sold in the numbers Eric did. He may not have been god but a lot of people thought so and as a young guitarist I was able to comprehend lead through his solo albums. (And Cream and Derek and the Dominos). This is a laid back album. Some say dull or boring. Ok. That’s fine. It’s more the document of a man who’s done it all and is now just doing music he likes. So acknowledging all the criticisms to I still give this 4.

Rum Sodomy & The Lash

The Pogues

4/5

The pogues album to listen to if you want to know the pogues. There are better ones but it lays out the manifesto. One mark deducted for Shane’s awful attempt at ‘and the band played waltzing Matilda.’ Otherwise this is where the music of rebellion (Irish folk music) meets the music of rebellion (punk rock). They are true folkies. And true punks.

xx

The xx

1/5

I’ve heard this before. Where? Ah yes, it was a free download from the Sydney morning herald. I hate nimby, middle classless garbage such as the herald. So, while fully admitting I might be being unfair, none of this hit me in any way that suggested it was a must hear. I’ll give this the one point I took off the Pogues. And that’s it.

There's No Place Like America Today

Curtis Mayfield

3/5

Curtis is majorly important. This is good. But I’d have gone earlier.

London Calling

The Clash

5/5

On paper they should be terrible. Private school lads cosplaying as working class punks. Hypocrites and money hungry. On record though - the only band that matters. A fantastic truly great album. Dammit.

Go Girl Crazy

The Dictators

2/5

I lectured in popular music. That included punk. I can tell you who Stiv Bators is. Jayne County. Johnny Thunders. I know the difference between the New York heartbreakers and the Florida Heartbreakers. (Yes the Floridians aren’t really punk.) A hundred others. Never heard of this and listening to it I can see why. It has an energy. But no musical value. Very little entertainment value. Some ok lead guitar. But compared to Johnny thunders nothing terribly special. And the between songs introductions are annoying and amateur. Talentless white boy vicarious fantasia. 1.5/5

Da Capo

Love

1/5

Music to induce comas by. Typical 60s cult album beloved by white boys to seem edgy and cool, but instead they’re stodgy, bloated and dull. Like this album.

Real Life

Magazine

2/5

I’d rather listen to fisher Z, xtc or the boomtown rats. The Irish radiators, j Jo zep and the falcons, or a thousand other bands. This is ok. But not great.

Ten

Pearl Jam

5/5

I love pearl jam. Shut up, I do. To be fair I prefer sound garden but I love this too. Classic rock dressed as grunge. I know that Vedder’s voice rubs some the wrong way but it falls into the ‘sounds better than mine and people pay to hear mine’ category. The lyrics too might be heavy handed but they were young. We can’t all be Cobain. Listen to this. It changes the world. So deserves its place here. After a run of duds, I’m probably overreacting to this. But it’s a good and important album.

The Marshall Mathers LP

Eminem

5/5

Another world changer. Almost beyond criticism.

Van Halen

5/5

Eruption changes the way we play guitar. You really got me is one of the great cover versions. Dave, Eddie, Alex and Michael. Just as god intended. Is it immature? Yes. Sexist? Yes. Arrogant? Yes. Should it be condemned for all of this? Probably, yes. One of the greatest debut albums? Indubitably yes. . 25 stars.

Untitled (Black Is)

SAULT

4/5

Too soon, I think. I know better R and B from the period, but this isn't bad. I wonder if we'll be listening to this in another 5 years. I doubt it. But I don't know. Extra point for its message on police brutality and black rights. 3.5. If its still relevant and listened to in 5 more years, I'll give it another point..

Like Water For Chocolate

Common

3/5

An excellent album and it’s part of that movement that sees hip hop moderate its sexism and toxic masculinity. Supported essentially by the roots this slaps. Hard.

Os Mutantes

2/5

Not awful. Not compelling. Never have to hear this again. Not essential.

Bad Company

4/5

That Paul Rodgers, he can sing. This isn’t the album though. You need Paul kossoff- as great as mick Ralph’s is. Another band where a greatest hits would have led listeners to glory. Bad company is a great song.

All Directions

The Temptations

4/5

Papa was a rolling stone. One chord. 11 minutes. Holy Christ it’s great. Johnny wah wah Watson. The lyrics ‘and when he died/ all he left us was alone’ ‘The first time ever I saw your face’ is an interesting choice. I don’t think it’s one of the better covers of that song. The other commentary songs fall a bit short of ‘rolling stone’. But nearly every song ever does anyway. This is a good album 4/5.

New Wave

The Auteurs

1/5

Pfft. This sounds like a past their prime filmmaker’s opinion of what hip music sounds like. It’s the type of thing that shows up in medical shows like New Amsterdam or Scrubs to show how emotional and deep and cool the cast and audience is, all the while being none of those things. None of the songs stand out. It’s plain I ecream - not even vanilla. Just frozen milk. Edible but unpalatable. Dull and predictable. Mostly uninteresting. .5 for the slightly interesting vocals. Otherwise one. 1.5 Rounded down.

Franz Ferdinand

2/5

‘Take Me Out’ is a great single. Franz Ferdinand was another next big thing that didn’t emerge. And listening to this in retrospect it’s clear why. Like many songwriters FF has one great song. It has competent and even very good songs. But they don’t top ‘Take Me Out’. So they fade a bit from public consciousness. (They’re still around and doing well. But they’re not the superstars they were hyped to be. Maybe that’s how they want it too.) I suppose this gives us a sense of the rock scene in 2004. So I’ll give it 2.5. Rounded down because 3 felt too high. But boy Take Me Out is great.

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

David Bowie

5/5

Musical dna. My favourite Bowie album. 25000 stars. The band is incredible. Mick Ronson. Trevor Bolder. Woody Woodsmansy. And I think a much better album than a lot of his later self indulgent guff. I know a lot of the criticism is that this was a poor album and of its time. Nope. Timeless and great. And the songs. You can have the best concept in the world but it won’t work without great songs. The title track is incredible. The apocalyptic Five Years feels even more relevant today. Starman was a brilliant single and an even better album track. Lady stardust - my god. Suffragette City - wham bam thank you ma’am. 30000 stars. (Also bonus points for the nutjobs who noticed he was standing under a k west sign the year Kanye was born. And tried to make something of it) 35000 stars.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Hill

5/5

Another game changer. A brilliant album that changed the world. ‘That thing’ is a stone cold lay down misere classic. The sketches are decent. The album flows. It’s perfectly sequenced. It opens the game wide open. Still hugely influential. 30000 stars. Genius only has to be genius once. So with no follow up (so far) her position is secure. If her next album is Happy birthday in A quarter flat minor with Lauren intoning the ingredients of a dog food can in monotone she’s still a genius.

Horses

Patti Smith

2/5

Hmmmm. Either genius or garbage. Her biggest selling song was written by ‘much easier to get a handle on’ Bruce Springsteen. The best track on this is the cover of Them’s Gloria - clearly worked up over hundreds of bar gigs. The other best track is the cover of land of 1000 dances. Which for someone who is supposed to be a songwriter might be an issue. The originals. Ummm. The band is good. It doesn’t help that so much wadical wevolutionary bullshit has been attached to this album. Gag me with a spoon. Zappa gets justifiably criticised for his adolescent attitudes. Yet Patti gets praised. Maybe that’s a strike for feminism. * and also to be fair one can’t blame the artist for what is said about them. On the plus side - a strong woman using her voice in a male dominated industry. On the negative side - I don’t think it’s very good. ‘Jesus died for somebody’s sins/but not mine’. What does that mean? She believes in sin but is not a Christian? She’s a Christian who doesn’t think she’s saved? Or she’s a pretentious blowhard whose depth would struggle to get wet in a small puddle? It is a must hear. If only to understand the so called punk or new wave movement in New York at the time. But once is probably enough. It has a cult following so if that’s you, go to it and continue enjoying it and digging out the nuances and love every tape squeak and breath and all of it. It ain’t me babe. Poets. God save us. * this is not meant to be an anti feminist creed. I try to support feminism as best as my social cultural and political habitus allows.

Too Rye Ay

Dexys Midnight Runners

2/5

A strange album. And apart from the two hit (come on Eileen and Jackie Wilson said) singles not terribly essential.

Parallel Lines

Blondie

4/5

Charles Shaar Murray claimed she had no star power. Nope. She’s terrific. They were what talking heads would be if talking heads didn’t take everything so so seriously. Debbie has fun. So does the band. Yes they’re serious artists. And there’s a bit of that. But they are fun. Heart of glass is a banger. So is the other hit single - one day or another I’m gonna getcha. Big dumb fun. And they loved playing with genre*. It’s a shame the heroin curtailed them. But what we have is great. *technically the first rap single was Blondie’s Rapture released just before Rapper’s Delight. History has slightly modified the story to ensure the accolade doesn’t go to a white woman. But the dates remain firm. It is right though that a black group get the credit.

John Barleycorn Must Die

Traffic

4/5

If you ask an Englishman of a certain age and demeanour who their favourite band of the late sixties or early 70s were, you don’t get the Beatles. Or the Yardbirds. Or Cream. Or the Stones. Or Fairport. Or Zeppelin. Not Jethro Tull. You get Traffic. Sadly rather forgotten it was really a vehicle for the immensely talented Steve Winwood. This is probably the album to listen to. All of the above mentioned bands have an input to Winwood’s writing and arranging. The centrepiece is the folk standard title track. But the rest of it is excellent. He might have benefited from more of a band - for all of Ian Anderson’s control of Tull it was still a band - but still it’s terrific. 4

Rust Never Sleeps

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

2/5

Oh look. Another Neil young. Out of tune out of time self indulgent blah. He’s not untalented. But he’s not anywhere near the talent the critics say. And the good songs here are not well performed. I’ll admit hey hey my my goes as close to being genius as Neil gets. Both versions. But is it better to burn out than to fade away? Neil seems to have done neither. To listen to great Canadian songwriters, try Gordon Lightfoot, Ron Sexsmith, Tom Cochrane, Joni Mitchell, Bare Naked Ladies or a host of others.

Electric Prunes

The Electric Prunes

2/5

And after the nine millionth Neil young album we get another dull critical darling. All this talk of a golden age and you get people who can barely tune a guitar. And manage to play a few chords. And noodle. Just because you were around at the same time as the Beatles doesn’t mean it’s as good.

Ritual De Lo Habitual

Jane's Addiction

4/5

I enjoyed this at the time. And I enjoy it now. Been caught stealing is a great single and the rest of the album holds up. 4 stars and yes a must listen.

Sheer Heart Attack

Queen

5/5

I had a long review that the system has taken off me. In brief: This is sheer bloody magic. My second favourite Queen album, and on some days it’s no 1. As great as Freddie Roger and Brian are, John Deacon is the one who makes the album and the band great. His bass in killer queen is - just listen to the fastidious and precise bass line at the appropriate moment. Or the high slides in ‘In the lap of the gods (revisited.). Not that the others are lumps. Freddie’s singing in Brighton rock, where he goes from falsetto to chest voice seamlessly. Brian also knocks a note or two together in one of the great guitar solos of the rock era. Roger shows that in any other band he’d be the lead singer but his fills in now I’m here show just how brilliant he is as a drummer. The band basically invent thrash metal in stone cold crazy. Then give us music hall in bring back that Leroy brown. Maybe the greatest ending track in in the lap of the gods. I could go on for hours. Just listen to this. It is a major part of my musical dna. 6666666600000000 stars.

Me Against The World

2Pac

4/5

Has the flaws of a lot of 90s gangsters rap. But certainly the man has flow.

Supa Dupa Fly

Missy Elliott

5/5

Girls are playas too. I think missy elliot is really really underrated. As we gain a bit of perspective and the alpha male bs gets its rightful critical rejection this stuff will show just what hip hop could really be.

Pills 'n' Thrills And Bellyaches

Happy Mondays

4/5

Manchester. I’m not a great fan of this stuff but it’s significant. And this is a good example. 3.5

The Seldom Seen Kid

Elbow

1/5

Oh god. Just mediocre. Under what fascist dictatorship is this a must listen? And just because you can make this type of stuff doesn’t mean you should.

Tapestry

Carole King

5/5

One of the greatest songwriters distills fifteen years of great songwriting into a superb collection of the craft and art of songwriting. An album about which so much can be said but little actually needs to be. Just listen. 5550000 stars.

Club Classics Vol. One

Soul II Soul

3/5

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin

5/5

I should dislike this. The worst excesses of cock rock - every song is a paean to robert plants member. Jimmy page is a horrible creep. But it is awesome. Whole lotta love. Living loving maid. Heartbreaker. Just get out of here. Ramble on. My god. 4.5 stars. Dammit.

A Night At The Opera

Queen

5/5

I hated school. Hated it. Queen got me through year 10, year 11 and helped me get through - by actually getting to see them live with Freddie at the Sydney Entertainment Centre - year 12.* The sixth best Queen album. Still a ripper. The neat production tricks. Good Company with its 20s English trad jazz band built from guitar feed back, then the tape being cut and the pitches being all arranged into order. Yet tell me that’s not a clarinet. I’m over Bohemian Rhapsody - heard it way too much and there’s nothing in it for me to discover anymore. But it’s still an incredible track. Somewhat underrated I think. That piano riff is a six chord. Used all the time in Italian music. But also used in rock and roll. The Beatles often ended on a six. Possibly the most bitter rock song and a great great opener - Death On Two Legs. Young Mr Bulsara was not known for his subtlety. (He could be subtle but he wasn’t known for it.) Prophets Song - just brilliant. Actually Brian May starts to hit the heights of songwriting. He still had great stuff in him but Prophets song, 39, Good Company and even Sweet Lady are bangers. And the performance of God Save the Queen is the cherry on the top. John Deacon writes and plays piano on You’re My Best Friend. A top ten hit. A portend of things to come.** Freddie slushes and gushes on Love of my Life. I prefer Queen II, Sheer Heart Attack, Day at the Races and Queen. But this is still 5 stars. In fact 20000000 stars. *My dad gave me the tickets on his birthday. I caught the XPT train from Dubbo. Stayed at my uncle's at Burwood. He drove me in. Was in the very back row seven seats from the back wall on stage right. I can still remember a lot of it. Life changing for me. Was the show that made me want to be a musician. Also the first international act I saw. Still the standard I use to judge whether a show was any good. Seen them three times with Adam Lambert who is great. **It’s not generally recognised that Queen’s biggest selling single was ‘Another One Bites the Dust’ written by John Deacon.

Imagine

John Lennon

4/5

God I hate the title track. Trite nonsense. And watching the wheels used the same harmonic ideas much better 9 years later. Yes Lennon’s a genius, living in every pore, as Freddie Mercury sang, and the rest of this album bares this out. ‘How do you sleep?’ Shouldn’t work - it’s nasty, it’s mean and it’s a bit unwarranted. George apparently broke down in tears recording it. But it’s extremely clever ‘those freaks were right when they said you were dead’; ‘all you did was yesterday/ now you’re just another day’. Ouch but good lyrics man. Paul responded in ‘Silly Love Songs’. The refrain ‘I love you’ probably smacks John harder than Paul smacked John. Jealous Guy is a vast improvement on Child of Nature. Lennon had the gift of being to write songs that in nearly everyone else’s hands would be self indulgent tripe. Somehow he manages not to do this. When he follows his muse for general experience it can be guff. When he’s personal it can be transcendent. He lived on a different plane. Crack band. The ever reliable Klaus Voorman, Jim Keltner, Nicky Hopkins. George plays a scorcher solo on How do you Sleep. George invents pop slide guitar. He wasn’t the first to play slide on record - not even in England. Brian Jones, Eric Clapton and Peter Green all had. But they’d all done it in a strictly blues context. George took it to pop and changed it forever. This is a great and early example of George’s approach. This is not quite as strong as the Plastic Ono Band. Or walls and bridges. But it’s pretty strong. One of my maxims is that the worst things the Beatles did would have made the career of lesser acts. Here, in the title track it also made Lennon’s solo career.

MTV Unplugged In New York

Nirvana

5/5

Even though dozens of these were released only two really held up - Clapton’s (even though it perpetrated the horrendous version of Layla, the rest of it shows how good Eric can be when he puts a bit of effort in) and this one. It’s notable that both of them were really known as electric acts. (There are other good unplugged albums but aren’t really remembered. And a whole host of dire - I think the worst is Kiss, who didn’t even bother to rearrange their hits. They were literally unplugged. Awful.) I don’t worship at the shrine of Cobain. I am about his age, so could see exactly where he was coming from. This is not to deny his talent, but more to express how I didn’t see it as innovative and new in the way that many did. Not that I didn’t think it great. But it was more a return to form for rock music than new and wild. At least for me. Others felt differently. And he genuinely changed the world in a way very few did. This one is excellent. Cobain, never one to do anything near expected picks a group of songs that could have crashed and burned the whole thing. Instead, unusual choices give a pretty stunning performance. Of all the Bowie songs, man who sold the world. Of all the blues songs, where did you sleep last night. And it’s chilling. And compelling. A must hear (three in a row!) and a stone cold classic. 5 well earned and deserved stars

I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You

Aretha Franklin

5/5

Aretha oversings but also changes the world. When she’s on she’s on. And right on. It’s hard to critique this but the over singing is what leads to the endless caterwauling on reality singing shows. This is a bit unfair. When she gets it right, it’s transcendent. 8 - 3 for over singing.

The Bends

Radiohead

2/5

We’ve got a couple of radioheads and a couple is enough. 2 stars on general principle. This is a good album and I think that radiohead are a very consistent band in their output. One or two albums is enough. To be fair this and OK Computer. But since I’ve already heard a couple of others - 2 stars.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

Simon & Garfunkel

5/5

I know. Having slammed too many Neil young and Radiohead albums here we another contender for most over represented artist in Paul Simon. Unlike the other two Paul Simon is a prodigious talent. (The others are talented but Simon ranks nearly with Dylan and McCartney.) But you only need two Simon and garfunkels. The first one and this one. This is magnificent. And if the title track doesn’t move you check your pulse. Simons song. Garfunkel’s voice. Yet the rest of it is magnificent too. They were never better and the dissolution of their partnership probably happened at the right time.

Selling England By The Pound

Genesis

3/5

Genesis is an important band both as a prog rock entity and for the careers it launched. Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett. Mike Rutherford. Oh and um that drummer fellow. Bill Collings. Why do we pick an album nobody seems to like? I’ll be fair, Genesis - their seventies stuff - kind of passed me by so I might be missing something. (I loved Peter Gabriel’s solo stuff. Really enjoyed Steve Hackett. Found Mike and the mechanics interesting. And can appreciate Will Colliison. Man sold a lot and is a great drummer songwriter and producer. For prog rock give me Jethro Tull. All day every day. But nonetheless is an album a must listen when there are 13 others by the same band that everyone likes better? 2.5 in case I’m missing something.

Street Life

The Crusaders

4/5

This is terrific. Must listen? Not sure. But I like it.

m b v

My Bloody Valentine

2/5

This one? No. No. No.

Aja

Steely Dan

5/5

Oh wow. This is so great. I know there are those of you out there who don’t like steely Dan. You’re wrong. And this is the best of them. The arrangements are superb. And the best LA players couple with the best songwriting. Listen to those arrangements. Often dismissed as yacht rock but yacht rock has a mild pleasant feel - life is usually pretty good. Steely Dan is pimps, gangsters, addicts, dodgy characters and cynicism. This is probably the least cynical of the albums, but it is the peak. 5000 stars.

Kilimanjaro

The Teardrop Explodes

2/5

Clever clever name but not. Tick Cutting edge music that wasn’t and dated about a week after it was released. Tick Critically acclaimed by the sort of critic who is scared of liking anything that smacks of ‘good’. Tick Boring. Tick This doesn’t feel essential. It’s ok. 1.5

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi

3/5

Look. They can play. And Desmond child gave them hooks the size of the Empire State Building. And Jon’s vocals can be great. Listen to that truckers change when he goes up when you think he’s at the top of his range in livin on a prayer. Great musicians. David Bryan went to Julliard. Richie Sambora was genuinely one of the better post van Halen shredders. Tico Torres is an incredible percussionist. And the late Alec Such was a pocket bassist. Ok Jon tries to be Springsteen. Or the guys from Motley Crue. Or a cowboy. It all more or less works. A lot of people loved this. I actually saw two concerts on this tour. What stuck me is how loud it was - the Sydney entertainment centre wasn’t t built for the size of the rig and add 10000 screaming girls and I damaged my hearing. Second that the show was tightly choreographed. No jamming. No rock and roll danger. This isn’t a criticism (though critics have gone to town on this aspect). A highly professional show which impressed me - at least what I could hear. They deal with cliches in one of the only two ways it’s possible to do it. One you can be like Zappa and subvert them. Or you can write them like you invented them. Jon takes the latter approach. Does it work? Yes. It’s a little bit like having McDonald’s. Fun. Have it occasionally and you won’t get much nutritional advantage and you won’t get much surprise but it’s fun occasionally. 3 stars.

Live Through This

Hole

3/5

Compiler: geez. We’re getting hammered for a lack of diversity. It’s as if chicks are able to play rock. 2nd compiler. Well Courtney love is a chick. How many albums did hole do? Compiler. Who cares? We’ve still got six Neil Young albums to squeeze in. Put in another hole album. That’ll shut em up. Women hey? 2nd compiler. Bloody women. I try not to be sexist. Chicks hate that. But they make it hard. In fact this isn’t bad but it’s a bit inessential. Hole were a good band and I know they get lost a bit in the tabloid circumstances. But they’re solid. I suppose points for including a female act. And they should have more. 3 stars.

Out Of The Blue

Electric Light Orchestra

4/5

Somewhat underrated, ELo was massive. Pleasantly surprised to see this here but New World order but the albums either side were better. Having said that this sold 50 gajillion so makes sense. ELO were one of three bands who got what the Beatles were trying to do and tried to extend what they did. (XTC and Queen being the other two). The clash of rock and classical is nice. It’s strong pop and yes I prefer Queen and xtc but I like ELO. Big hooks. Strong singles. An enjoyable listen. 3.5 stars

Apple Venus Volume 1

XTC

3/5

An earlier album would be better. XTC is a great band though so 4 stars minus one for being inessential.

The Rising

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

So, the biggest on land attack has happened on the U.S. mainland. (Let’s just put aside that it was less than a daily occurrence in the Middle East or Africa. Still pretty horrific.) How does the biggest rock star out of New Jersey deal with it? With this. It’s actually really good and Springsteen’s eye for imagery and his lyrical strengths shine through on this album. The image of the boots by the door is powerful and shows Springsteen affinity for working people. As he’s aged he’s moved to the personal and more abstract - it’s hard for someone worth 300 million to relate to working people but Springsteen knows the limits. He hasn’t forgotten his roots and his heart is with those who lost everything. One of the three or four essential Springsteen albums.

Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

5/5

A great rock band with the best punk singer. Of course McLaren doesn’t understand this and instead botches what should have been a greater band than they were. And they were a great band. And Johnny rotten that anarchic libertarian intellectual dickhead - he’s smarter than you and will argue you to exhaustion - was the cherry on top. Steve jones is rightly considered one of the great punk guitarists though see above. It’s still fresh and right - god save the queen/the fascist regime - is still potent even if we’re two generations at least from another queen. Pretty vacant. Fuck. What a song. 25 stars minus twenty for that sack of shit McLaren.

Larks' Tongues In Aspic

King Crimson

5/5

We’ve had our one king crimson. This is good but the other one was better. And quite ironic given the album before this one was never mind the bollocks. It’s good though inessential. 3.5. Wetton and bruford though. Maybe 4.

That's The Way Of The World

Earth, Wind & Fire

4/5

Groove. Funk. Not sure this is the album.

Atomizer

Big Black

3/5

Interesting but not a must listen. It’s a deeper dive. And for me gets dull. But others will love it. And that’s ok.

Billion Dollar Babies

Alice Cooper

4/5

Another contender for greatest hits. However this is considered the band's best album. And Alice cooper(before Vince funnier took the name and went solo) was terrific. A crack unit. Strong songs and a theatricality that the British audience got (see T rex, Bowie, Queen, Arthur brown, screaming lord sutch, slade and many others). The Americans did catch up - meatloaf and then the whole LA glam scene. But for a long time Alice Cooooer was the main outlet. Driven by 50s horror, Alice famously got decapitated in one tour. But this album is good. Given the ridiculous ban on greatest hits, this is the Alice cooper band album to listen to - but how you couldn’t have schools out, or welcome to my nightmare, or any of a half dozen more. Grrrr

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme

Simon & Garfunkel

3/5

We’ve had enough Simon and Garfunkel. This is good but we only have a thousand. Chase it up when you start to do the deep Dive. And Paul stole Martin carthy arrangement of the title track. So there’s that too. I think Simon is an incredibly talented songwriter and Garfunkel was magic with him. But two albums from S and g and 2 from Simon is enough. We don’t want to get into Neil young territory.

Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury

The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy

3/5

I have a complicated history with hip hop. So while I don’t think this is essential it might be. I’d rather listen to public enemy or run dmc. 2.5

Bad

Michael Jackson

4/5

Probably the most critic baiting album title ever. Actually I always found weird Al yankovic’s parody cover ‘even worse’ funny. Yes MJ is problematic. Yes this isn’t as good as thriller which wasn’t as good an album as off the wall. But there’s groove funk and pop. He was king of pop for a reason. Even his third best album is great.

Paranoid

Black Sabbath

5/5

The black sabbath album along with heaven and hell to listen to.

Elvis Is Back

Elvis Presley

4/5

Having played Elvis a fair bit on guitar I’ve grown to appreciate his whole career. That’s not to say every thing he did was genius. But he could take a rubbish song and make it - if not great, then much better. He is of course supported by a crack band: if you’re an aspiring guitarist learning this Scotty Moore, James Burton and sugarfoot garland licks will help. (Burton is not on this album - he was still with Ricky Nelson at this point). But it’s that voice in that body. He mightn’t have really been the king - chuck or Richard probably have a stronger claim, but you can see why he was anointed so. Elvis is the greatest white male singer of the 20th century. His rivals are few. Sinatra. Bennett. Freddie Mercury. George Michael. Robert Plant. But Elvis had the widest stylistic range. That instrument of Sinatra (who comes in at no 2) had a narrow stylistic range. Untouchable in jazz, Elvis could match him in swing. But left Sinatra behind in Of course this didn’t change the world like those fifties records did. But it showed Elvis had a pop sensibility that could have seen his career flourish in the 1980s. I have written a short story where he teams up with The Band (coincidentally a plot line on the short lived tv show ‘vinyl’). I also wonder what might have happened if he’d teamed up with Rick Rubin. Imagine him as one of the traveling wilburies. This is Elvis at a new crossroads. He reentered the music world when it had moved beyond what his prodigious gifts gave us. But this, not his strongest work, but probably a should listen, showed he hadn’t finished yet.

Traffic

4/5

This is the better album. There’s a certain older English gentleman who reveres traffic and for the relatively short time they were together they did well. John barkeycorn must die is good but not essential. This could go on the list. 3.5

Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret

Soft Cell

2/5

Tainted love is terrific. But as so often here one song no matter how great does not an album make. 5 for tainted love. -3 for everything else.

Chirping Crickets

Buddy Holly & The Crickets

5/5

Given he died at 23 the output of Buddy holly is remarkable. I suspect he would have been one of the few who’d have grown into the sixties had he lived. These songs are quite remarkable. Really the restriction on greatest hits is ridiculous. You’d get all of buddy's great songs. This album is great. But given that’s it from Buddy it’s missing a few and he only really did this album. 5 stars. But should be more.

American Beauty

Grateful Dead

5/5

I’m not a deadhead. Their rambling non directional noodling needs substances I’ve never done. But here is the exception. This is the dead at their absolute best. The only dead album worth hearing really. They are terrific musicians and this album demonstrates that. Focused, disciplined and with the game changing legendary mandolinist David Grisman on a couple of tracks, this is what I would have wanted them to be. This is a better album than the excellent workingmans dead. 10 stars.

Rattus Norvegicus

The Stranglers

5/5

Another band where a greatest hits would give you a much better idea of their range. Peaches is great. Really great. The stranglers were seen as the first of the new wave bands. In 1977. They are that far ahead. Golden brown and duchess were to come. I give this five not because of its inherent worth but because the band is awesome.

I Should Coco

Supergrass

2/5

Hmmm. Nah. A bit dull. Hasn’t t aged well. Not a must listen.

Porcupine

Echo And The Bunnymen

3/5

The Pleasure Principle

Gary Numan

3/5

I like Gary Nunan and he is important . And should have a presence on such a list. But this album is not the one. Are friends electric is the one. This is good. But not a must listen.

Green River

Creedence Clearwater Revival

3/5

Just give us the greatest hits. Nearly every single they did was a banger. And this album’s singles are just *chefs kiss*. Nearly every album track is a dirge. So give us the singles and let’s rock out to that.

Very

Pet Shop Boys

2/5

I can’t see the importance of this. It’s good. Maybe top 5000. Not top 1000. I enjoyed 'Go West' at the time. (Tennant's lispy ‘this is what we want to do’ is a terrific hook). Haven’t heard it since. That says a lot I think. Otherwise … 1.5.

Illinois

Sufjan Stevens

2/5

Reading this list, if you knew nothing about popular music, I’m pretty sure you’d think that nothing after 2000 was good. Or let’s be fair, little after 2000. I’ll be fair, the album as a concept is less popular with streaming. As is the concept album. So it’s a struggle getting must hear albums. Must hear songs? Definitely. So maybe I’m too harsh on this. But Where are the great acts with great albums? Vulfpeck? Punch Brothers? Guthrie Govan? Pharrell? Ok maybe not snoop or Diddy or Kanye. Pink. Taylor Swift. Dua Lipa. Billie eilish. Daft Punk. This album is white nerd boy trash. Some interesting stuff. But completely inessential. 2 stars.

Elephant

The White Stripes

4/5

Ok. A good album from post 2000. There are some. It rocks. If I don’t have much to say it because it speaks for itself. Seven nation army is superb and really I don’t think Jack white has topped it. But this is a great album with some self indulgent dead spots. 3.5.

Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)

The Kinks

3/5

The Kinks are really important. A bit overlooked for reasons I’ll get into. But they are one of the great 60s UK bands. This is a solid album though similar themes are found in the superior village green society. This is well regarded but I think it a bit long. Skippable tracks and nothing of the compel of Dead End Street, Lola, You Really Got Me, the Village Green Preservation Society, etc. Ray has been a bit Brexit supporting (ok a lot) with a tinge of racism, which is possibly why the Kinks have fallen a bit behind their contemporaries such as the Who, the Stones, the Animals or the Yardbirds. Also they got a dud deal which meant they stopped touring for long stretches. Not essential. But pretty good.

Heroes to Zeros

The Beta Band

2/5

Sigh

...The Dandy Warhols Come Down

The Dandy Warhols

3/5

Watch the great documentary on this band. Realise this isn’t the album that is best for this list. Grit your teeth in frustration. Give it 3 stars because you’re scared you’re being too mean.

Greetings From L.A.

Tim Buckley

2/5

This is yet another album that shouldn’t be here. It’s not the best seller, and not the most critically acclaimed. So more hipster white boy nonsense. It’s kind of interesting, but nowhere near essential. 1.5

The Yes Album

Yes

3/5

Probably what sarcastic elbows said except squire and bruford are an amazing rhythm section. And the band does attempt melody as well as harmony and rhythm. That I don’t love it is probably more on me. I did like it more than I expected. But then Chris squire man. And bill bruford. In track four (all good children etc) are harmonies reminiscent of Crosby stills and Nash. Is this a good thing? It’s pleasant. You can’t deny that. PROG is something I should like, but don’t in general. There are notable and honorable exceptions of course - jethro tull. Early Queen. That part of bowies career. But the self indulgence wears me down with a lot of prog. This album is actually ok though. Fairly short and not too many vertical rectal disappearances. 3.5 rounded down because 4 is too high.

The Predator

Ice Cube

3/5

Destroyer

KISS

3/5

Kiss. Perhaps the worst band? Yet hideously and undeniably popular. And hugely influential. Many many 8 -13 year olds picked up an instrument watching the theatrics. Some of them went on to become serious and important musicians themselves. Yes it’s musically inferior. Yes it’s ridiculous. But at the right age, at the right time Kiss was awesome. (Note I’ve never been a huge fan but I can’t deny that these guys probably influenced more people to play than Hendrix. Or the Beatles. I say that with much consideration. ) I will say too that Detroit rock city is an awesomely great song. I also think it notable that their label, Casablanca is hugely important for disco (which kiss embrace with I was made for loving you at a different point). Look I want to hate this - gene simmons is what the Irish call a gobshhite. Paul Stanley complained (rightly it seems) about Peter criss’s anti semitism ( a strange stance to hold with Stanley Jewish and Simmons having studied to be a rabbi) Ace and Paul seem ok. And the English did the music that much better. I can’t hate it (even while being appalled at Simmons’ attitudes towards the homeless. Australian rock radio station 2MMM gave Kiss a lifetime ban from radio play after his comments, calling him a 'dickhead' in the press release.) Maybe it’s the 8 year old in me who did see them on tv and think that’s cool. Maybe it’s my love of theatrical rock. Maybe it’s better than I give it credit for. I suppose this is the album to listen to. But as usual a greatest hits would work better. 3 stars.

Tubular Bells

Mike Oldfield

3/5

The bit where he announces all the instruments is uber cool. The rest? Riffs with no connecting ideas. It’s not awful by any standards. Maybe quite good. Some of the riffs are great actually. Also this sold a gajillion and also pretty much launched virgin records. So yes you should listen to it. But you might find yourself wondering - what’s the fuss about? 2.5

Bookends

Simon & Garfunkel

3/5

Yes I’ve heard the brilliance of Simon and Garfunkel. Those harmonies. The songs. Yes yes. It’s a good album. But I’ve heard the other albums. The singles are strong particularly Mrs Robinson. But one in such a list from Simon and Garfunkel is enough. Even better a greatest hits. 3 because it’s too many.

Sticky Fingers

The Rolling Stones

5/5

One of the handful of acts where you can justify more than one album. And this is a good one. I prefer exile but many prefer this. They rock. They roll. They swagger. They strut. Wild horses will bring you to tears. Dead flowers. Bitch. Sister morphine. This is how you rock and roll. Emphasis on the roll.

Peggy Suicide

Julian Cope

1/5

The first song hasn’t started yet and I’m bored. And it doesn’t improve. Childish melodies. Awful rhyming. Rinse and repeat. Pfui. 1 star.

Deloused in the Comatorium

The Mars Volta

2/5

Yeah. Nah. This might have worked in 1972. But by 2003 this is like writing a 50s rock song today. Might be good. But won’t be essential. Some good playing. And not completely stupid. 2.

Beautiful Freak

Eels

2/5

This is nothing special

Chicago Transit Authority

Chicago

4/5

I once had a discussion with a composer about doing the full rock band thing and what model would you use? Myself, I said, I’d use Jethro Tull. He said he’d use Chicago because of the horns. And listening to this I can see why. The songs are lyrically different but musically solid. After the death of Terry Kath, Peter Cetera would take the band in a much more mainstream direction. But this is a good album. 3.5

Live / Dead

Grateful Dead

2/5

Having praised American beauty … um. This is a record of a live performance by American psychedelic group grateful dead. Guess you had to be there. 1.5

Bandwagonesque

Teenage Fanclub

3/5

I suspect sarcastic elbows will prefer the noisy feedback parts. I actually like the poppy stuff better. They do Beatlesque stuff. They do that post pixies pop. They do sonic youth. Or maybe they’d say velvet underground. But I can’t help but feel the pixies did this approach better. To be fair comparing nearly any band of this type to the pixies is going to fall heavily in the pixies favour. This isn’t teenage fanclubs fault. This album isn’t terrible at all. Quite good really. 3 while I work out if it’s a must listen. Wouldn’t it just be better to listen to the pixies and work your way towards this?

L.A. Woman

The Doors

2/5

I’d rather listen to Elvis Costello. This is probably their best album which is kind of like saying liver cancer is better than child abuse. There’s a couple of decent songs. But unless you’ve never heard actual blues they’re not that great. Krieger is a good player. And Densmore is a good drummer. Neither good enough to redeem this from ok.

Skylarking

XTC

4/5

I like XTC. This is a good album. 4 stars.

Dr. Octagonecologyst

Dr. Octagon

1/5

Just the name is enough to turn me off. And yep. There’s better hip hop. 1 star. Shouldn’t be here.

Black Monk Time

The Monks

1/5

Having an international perspective I can point to a dozen Australian proto punk bands who got interest overseas and would be more influential than this. It’s ok but listening to Australian acts like the masters apprentices, lobby Lloyd, Easybeats (to a degree), Billy Thorpe. English acts like the troggs, or the kinks. Americans are obsessed with having the most influential bands. I’m not saying these guys weren’t. But there were other garage rock and proto punk bands in the US. So this becomes some hipster bs, if you don’t know this you’re not cool rubbish. This is the type of attitude that gives us 550 Neil young albums on this list. Go and put on The Monkees - stepping stone is a much better song. 3.5 for the record. Minus two for its non essentiality. Rounded down. 1.5

Bat Out Of Hell

Meat Loaf

5/5

Musical dna. An epic album whose title song covers more thematic and musical ground than most prog double albums. And it rocks. And it’s funny. And it rocks. It’s Springsteen but more epic. Whereas Springsteen gives us a mythic vista peopled by ordinary people steinman gives us an epic mythos peopled by those chosen by the gods. Springsteen has hope. Meatloaf is promise. I love them both and it’s the E street rhythm section on this. Anyone who doesn’t like this doesn’t understand growing up in a backwards town wanting to get out. Here’s an article I wrote on Meatloaf. https://www.toppermost.co.uk/meat-loaf/ All the missing stars from pretentious twaddle on this list.

At Newport 1960

Muddy Waters

5/5

One of the holy grails of blues. Muddy ran deep. He also could be mischievous and light. So many clueless white boys have lionised this without really understanding. But if you’re prepared to go deep this is great. I’d probably recommend B B King live at cook county prison or live at the regal first. But that’s not a quality comparison. B B is a bit more accessible. 5 stars.

Talking With the Taxman About Poetry

Billy Bragg

3/5

One of your proofs that music doesn’t change the world. Billy disappeared up his own fundament for a while believing I think he was the new improved Fidel or Lenin or Pol Pot. He just couldn’t bring down the Thatcher government. This is fine and worth one listen. 2.5. Rounded up in the spirit of socialism.

Peter Gabriel

4/5

Genesis is an important band and the solo careers are worthwhile. Mike Rutherford Mike and the mechanics was decent pop. Tony banks did interesting things. The drummer had a couple of minor hits think - what was his name? Will Tollans. But Gabriel was always the most interesting. Not everything he did was 1000 album worthy but we’ve had a couple already. The standout track on this is Solsbury Hill - a document of Gabriel's thought process about leaving Genesis. It’s 7/4 time signature set it apart from everything and its lyrics get me every time: ‘son I said, you can keep my things/ they’ve come to take me home’. Apparently an anthem for parents worrying about their serving in the gulf war. Gabriel was a pioneer in world music - that hateful and reductionist term that means nothing. But he used the music of other cultures with ability, subtlety and respect. This album is really a throat clearer though with a magnificent band - Robert Fripp and Tony Levin are a part of the lineup. 3.5 stars.

Frampton Comes Alive

Peter Frampton

3/5

An album that changes the world. It’s not especially great but it is very good. Frampton only really got his due as a musician in the last decade or so. And even here the musicianship is top notch. The songs are well crafted and performed. It sells bajillions showing the industry you could sell bajillions. Worth a listen. 3.5

Pink Flag

Wire

1/5

Another ‘ooh look how cool I am, I know this and you don’t.’ I’d rather listen to Eagles Greatest Hits. This album is ok but not essential. 1.5 rounded down.

3/5

Interesting artifact. Alex Harvey influences a load of bands. But leaves very little footprint. Worth listening and some fun stuff.

The Coral

1/5

Hmmmm. 1 star.

Mermaid Avenue

Billy Bragg

3/5

Woody Guthrie is a towering figure in American music. Dylan. Copland. Gershwin. Porter. Brian Wilson. Smokey Robinson. Stevie Wonder. Bacharach. Chuck Berry. Goffin/King. Hank Williams . Willie Dixon. There are others. Those are the figures he stands with even if he’d reject all of them. So the lyrics donated by his daughter of unrecorded songs are hugely important. This is competent. But I feel Billy Bragg was the wrong choice. Why not Springsteen? Or Dylan. Or some other leftist American. Billy comes across like a young enthusiast who doesn’t really know this stuff but wants to learn. That’s ok. It’s a bit awkward though. And I note that the project stalls after this. Wilco is fine and thank god it wasn’t the grateful dead or its remnants. I think an American singer who had studied woody would have got it better. 3.5. Rounded down because it’s not a four star.

Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots

The Flaming Lips

1/5

Blergh. Reading this list you conclude that the early 2000s were garbage for music. This overhyped undercooked recording won’t disabuse that. Boring and dull. 1 star.

Movies

Holger Czukay

2/5

Should I even bother listening to this? It reeks of hipster middle class white boy gatekeeping garbage. We’ve had Can. This first track has a nice groove. There’s a nice odd melody in the last track. As for everything else, Zappa did this stuff much better. As did Kraftwerk and even Brian eno. Even if I’m being too harsh this album is inessential. Devastatingly inessential. 2.

Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin

5/5

It’s zeppelin. Should be one. But it’s five. Probably 20. Battle of evermore and misty mountain hop total 15 of those.

Dirt

Alice In Chains

4/5

The first wave of grunge in which AIC is important does change things. This an album to listen to. I like them bones in particular. Can get a bit samey. But is worthwhile anyway. 3.5 rounded up.

Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde

The Pharcyde

1/5

Sigh. Hipster white boys who claim they’re 'woke' but voted for trump liked this. No more 90s hip hop. We’ve had all the important ones. Let’s find some must listen albums. 1 star.

Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea

PJ Harvey

1/5

Polly Jean is great. But one album is enough. Most acts only need one. So this is a solid 3.5. But I’m giving it one. When will you critics understand she’s not interested in you. It’s probably a must listen PJ Harvey album. Not a must listen 1000 album.

Eternally Yours

The Saints

5/5

Australian. Ozzy Ozzy Ozzy. Oi oi oi The saints are a seminal punk band and brilliant. I suspect this is here for American hipsters but5 stars for having taste for once.

OK Computer

Radiohead

4/5

Ok, so this is the one Radiohead album you must listen to. I actually prefer punch brothers take on the title track, done as it is with unaffected acoustic instruments. But Radiohead were deeply important for a bit and after this they fade a bit. That doesn’t detract from this album. 4 stars.

Dog Man Star

Suede

3/5

Britpop. Like the Blair government more flash than substance. This is ok. But I’m not sure. 2.5.

Garbage

3/5

This is an album that belongs on this list. Appropriate and great musicianship. Great and well structured songs. Sounds well produced. Not too long. Not a lot of filler. Shirley Manson in particular is excellent. I don’t like it. I couldn’t tell you why. All those points I made earlier are true. But I listened once, like I did in 1995 and thought. Nup. Putting on again today I thought maybe I’ll get it 30 years down the track. Nope. I don’t. I don’t blame others for liking and even loving this. I can even see why. 5 for its quality. -2 for the mark I’d give it. Let’s call it a three

Searching For The Young Soul Rebels

Dexys Midnight Runners

2/5

I’m not sure dexys is 1000 album important. They have a couple of great songs. Geno on this. Come on Eileen. Some decent stuff. But this falls into the ‘not here’ pile. 2 stars.

The Notorious Byrd Brothers

The Byrds

3/5

Ah boomer nostalgia. Where anything even vaguely touching CSNY, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Bread or James Taylor is revered despite any pretence to quality. Now all of these acts could do quality. But not everything they brought out was. It’s hard to criticise the incompetence of Gary Usher as a producer given his crippling addictions which lead to an early death. But compared to Phil Spector, George Martin, Don Kirchner, Sonny Bono or Berry Gordy (as examples) his work is lacking. Muddy. And a bit pointlessly weird. I like weird but it has to work. This doesn’t. Ok some of it isn’t Ushers fault. The songs are weak. Crosby storms out or is thrown out or both twice. The market is changing away from the direction they’re going ln (ironically much closer to their original vision.). Sweetheart of the rodeo is far superior. This is ok. But not 1000 album worthy. 3.5

Fisherman's Blues

The Waterboys

2/5

Nah. One album is enough. 3 because it’s good. But this isn’t the album. -1 because it shouldn’t be here.

Bone Machine

Tom Waits

2/5

I’ve never been a huge fan of Tom waits. I don’t know why. This ain’t the album to convert me and isn’t the album to listen to anyway. 1.5.

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

4/5

This is pretty terrific. A post 2000 album that is worth listening to on this list. A laidback feel, anticipating drake, but does it much better. It’s a grower too. 4 stars

Smash

The Offspring

4/5

Yes, worth it here. Yes. Sarcastic elbows will complain about the shouting and give it a lower mark. Yes it’s not terribly deep. But it’s fun. And given its surprising success, is a decent artifact of punk in the mid nineties. 3.5

Hounds Of Love

Kate Bush

5/5

This is otherworldly and fairly unique. 5 stars.

Rapture

Anita Baker

4/5

You Are The Quarry

Morrissey

2/5

This shouldn’t be here. He did better. He’s a gobshite, but he can turn the odd lyric and tune. But there are better Morrissey albums.

The Köln Concert

Keith Jarrett

5/5

The piano is a piece of crap. Some of the keys don’t work. Some of the remaining keys are out of tune. The audience is expecting something different. Jarrett is in a foul mood. The album is transcendent. How to work within limitations to expand boundaries A top 10 jazz album. And a must listen.

Hybrid Theory

Linkin Park

4/5

This is a must listen if only as a document of the movement that linkin park was such a big part of. I’m not going into the pointless debate of whether they were real punks or not. They did what they did. And they did it well. 4 stars. 3 for the album. And one for a post 1990s album that should be here.

Meat Is Murder

The Smiths

3/5

Growing up in rural New South Wales, I was drawn towards the sprawling, dying, broken vistas of Bruce Springsteen. Towns filled with people who had been left behind. Who had suffered merely for being born. The rusted out cars perfectly captured the illusion of freedom, but the reality of economic bondage. I’ve been to villages and towns which once thrived in frugal comfort, with now empty courthouses, police stations, hospitals. The victims of neoliberalism, but also neglect from older systems. Once vibrant communities were now isolated individuals with no prospects. You might have been born to run, but you were in the badlands mister. Best try and purge yourself in the river. The Smiths never appealed to me then. Whinging poms. Moaning about this and that. Four hours from London. It took me at least 5 to get to Sydney, then a long plane flight to get anywhere interesting. The mofos could just hop on a train and get to London. I suspect it was a city/country thing at least in Australia. City kids resonated with the Smiths. Country kids with Bruce. But I also realise that even if I’m right there’s a million exceptions on both sides. As I’ve aged though, I realised: 1) the arch whinging Pom, the racist, small minded bigot that is Morrissey could write a lyric. And Johnny Marr is a great player. Andy Rourke was an incredible bassist. Possibly a better bassist than Marr was a guitarist. That is saying something. Mike Joyce is tremendous on drums and percussion. And remember I was never really taken with this stuff so they must be good. This album or really this band had a profound effect on many people, and I see their struggle as they try and reconcile the Morrissey that seemed to express their lives perfectly once and the rancid gobshite he’s become. That generation of kids who could relate to a lonely orphan under the stairs have similar complicated feelings towards J K Rowling. This album should be on the list. Taking out its long term context, it remains everything it was supposed to be. Adding in the context does ruin it I think. So 5 out of context, minus 4 for its context. So we’ll give it a 3.

Gentlemen

The Afghan Whigs

3/5

I’m not quite sure why this album gets lionised. It’s not bad. It’s good: even very good. I might suggest maybe excellent. But not great. 3 stars.

Rejoicing In The Hands

Devendra Banhart

2/5

Really? This? This of the hundreds of thousands of albums. This is top 1000. Really? A patience straining 15 songs. All around the same musical ‘ideas’. As a guitarist I wasn’t blown away by the variety. Nor the interest keeping capability. He does try though. The third song changes things up. So there’s an extra point. One of my favourite writers, Andrew Hickey, has called for a moratorium on guitar penned songs. I wonder if this was the album that drove him to that? It’s boring and inessential. Also, looking at the Wikipedia article, this isn’t even his best album. Get lost. Seriously, dimery, dump your hipster friends and get some real music fans as friends. 2 stars.

Machine Head

Deep Purple

5/5

Barnt barnt barnt. Barnt barnt bar barnt. Barnt barnt barnt. Barnt barnt. That alone gives this a thousand stars. But it’s an album. And it’s an awesome album. Yes the lyrics can be stupid. Ian Gillan said if he’d known he’d be singing these songs decades down the track he’d have put more effort into it. But he’s a great singer. And he sort of needs to be. Ian Paice is one of the greatest rock drummers. Underrated. But amazingly great. Roger glover is a powerhouse on bass. Just listen to it rumble under SOTW. Jon Lord - so good that few keyboardists entered heavy metal after him. And Blackmore. If they ever carve a fifth head on Mt Rushmore… (I stole this from a guitar world review. But it’s accurate) How to rock. How to metal. How to groove. 2002 stars. Minus two for the lyrics.

Whatever

Aimee Mann

2/5

There’s a certain type of album that is really important for a minute and then stops. This screams ‘1993 acoustic music’. And it hasn’t dated well. It’s good. But it’s barely relevant anymore. She does better stuff later (which you’d hope for in any artist) So another non essential album. 2stars.

Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1

George Michael

5/5

The voice of his generation. And man can he funk. In fact. Here’s what I said in an article. https://www.toppermost.co.uk/george-michael/ This is a great album. Freedom 90 is a masterpiece. This album is Essential listening.

Tonight's The Night

Neil Young

1/5

Fuck off. Seriously. He’s not THAT good. Needle and damage done is the best here, and he wrote better. Otherwise I can think of 725 albums that could replace this that aren’t on the list. Seriously fuck off with this shit.

Copper Blue

Sugar

2/5

It’s a step up from Neil young. Is it a Must listen? I’d accept husker du on this. . This seems less essential and more ‘hey check my cred’ from a hipster critic. 2 stars. Just.

Eagles

4/5

I know Eagles get a lot of hate but they did that country thing really well. Probably not much better than here. There’s a great documentary which documents the history. And Glyn Johns the producer says it’s a huge mistake for them to become a rock band. And it might not have been financially. But aesthetically he’s right. There’s a reason ‘take it easy’ is overplayed. Peaceful Easy Feeling is sublime. Yes they may not have been the most pleasant people. But here they get it right. 3,5 stars.

Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Wu-Tang Clan

4/5

Wu tang are among the better of the seemingly over represented 90s hip hop of this list. I don’t like the skits. But I do like the characters. But 3.5 stars.

I See A Darkness

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

1/5

I give this a P for pfft. Even the Wikipedia article strongly suggests it sucks. And listening to it it’s right. Tosh. Crap. Garbage.

The White Album

Beatles

5/5

I think this is my least favourite Beatles album*. But it’s got some bangers on it. And the worst things the Beatles ever did would have been the best thing if a million other bands. So it gets an easy 1000 but that’s less than the others. Also I love the fact the cover was designed to ensure that everybody’s album was truly personalised. *excluding bootlegs and stuff like magical mystery tour and yellow submarine.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Kanye West

2/5

Hoo boy. Where on the line does genius and disturbing insanity meet? About at Kanye. When I was lecturing in popular music I used to joke ‘put Kanye in front of a mix desk and there’s no one better. Give him a microphone and a speaking forum and there’s no one worse. ‘ The man could construct a song. What the song was about was a whole other thing. This isn’t the album though. Hipsters. Listen to the public.

Gold

Ryan Adams

1/5

This creep. Nope. Apparently he hates being compared with Bryan Adams. I’m not a fan of Bryan, but I can sing ‘Summer of 69’ without needing a prompt. That immediately makes Bryann better. And as far as I know Bryan has never been done for inappropriate behaviour. Get in the bin.

Henry's Dream

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

1/5

Zionist and genocide apologist. Pah. I never rated him that highly. Heroin chic never did it for me. Some of his later stuff is good. But this is dire empty nothing. Not here though. A must miss. And yes I know that there are those who love him. That’s perfectly ok. But any genocide apologist is morally abhorrent.

The Next Day

David Bowie

2/5

God no. Bowie is improtant but we don’t need every single brain fart he churns out. It’s ok as an album. If you’re a Bowie fan you want to hear every single squeak he did. But for a general list, a couple of the early albums. One of the middle and his last one. This is inessential for such a list. 2 stars.

So

Peter Gabriel

4/5

Gabriel is another artist who’d be better served with a compilation. Sledgehammer is amazing. Don’t t give up is really incredible. Though I suspect he’d fervently disagree he is a singles artist rather than album guy.

Back to Mystery City

Hanoi Rocks

2/5

It's ok, but again, the hipster critics have decided that this, rather than Motley Crue or Poison best represents Glam Metal. Or even Van Halen or Guns and Roses (though they do have an album here). I give it 2.5. The songs are ok, but nothing like Motley Crue's 'Girls Girls Girls' or even Van Halen's 'Hot for Teacher.' Those songs are, if nothing else, fun (and well played and performed.) There seems a caculation here that great rock and roll hides. It's ok, but I don't think a must listen.

Kala

M.I.A.

4/5

It’s good. She’s a talent.

Loveless

My Bloody Valentine

1/5

Tune your guitars. Write songs. If you’re going to play with dissonance and atonality learn it properly. Don’t turn knobs and stumble on a good sound. Craft it. Shape it. Pretentious nonsense. I was discussing this with a friend and he said give it another listen. You’ll find there are songs and structure. And he was right. Which actually made it worse because it seems to me that they got to a 'that’ll do' stage and stopped. And it cost a fortune to make. Eventually sends the label broke. And then they come back 15 years later having learned nothing, having achieved nothing having not developed. Do your fucking job. 1 star.

Sound Affects

The Jam

4/5

The jam were one of the two bands that mattered. The other being the clash. Town like malice caught the anger and cynicism of that late 70s post punk thing. Weller’s worship of Townshend probably hurt him in the long run but this is an excellent album.

Fleet Foxes

2/5

Mediocrely dull. Inessential

Roxy Music

4/5

Roxy music, like Genesis is one of my blind spots. As in I have never had much exposure to the 1970s version. Like Genesis I knew the 80s singles and I think ‘more than this’ is a masterpiece. I also think ‘Avalon’ a great song. So this list has introduced me to this album which I only knew through reputation. It rocks. It rolls. It’s louche. And it’s pretty superb. Some filler but otherwise I liked it.

Done By The Forces Of Nature

Jungle Brothers

3/5

Another one I was unaware of though given the research I did into hip hop I should have been? Maybe? It’s good. Very much of its time but that’s not a criticism, just an observation. I’m giving 3.5 till I work out if it’s must listen as opposed to good listen.

Warehouse: Songs And Stories

Hüsker Dü

2/5

Sort of repetitive. Not as thrilling as the cult of Husker Du would suggest. Inessential. I suspect the quest for a great American band promotes this. They sound bored and irritated. 2.5 stars.

School's Out

Alice Cooper

5/5

This is how to do shock Rock. It’s a tremendous band and a great journey. Alice cooper should be a reviled figure but he is rightfully beloved. He’s a nice guy and a great rocker. School’s out expressed my feelings to school precisely.

Arular

M.I.A.

3/5

Good, but not as good as the other one and inessential. One MIA is enough.

Steve McQueen

Prefab Sprout

3/5

Dull. Not supposed to be

This Is Hardcore

Pulp

2/5

Irritating. Potential smothered by irritation.

Paul Simon

3/5

Some great stuff. But we’ve had enough of Paul Simon.

Kind Of Blue

Miles Davis

5/5

In a sense the album that ruined jazz. In a sense the album that made it. Too many jazzers took the wrong lesson from this album. Don’t try and sound like miles. Do what he did and push things. For thirty years everything seemed to have come out of what miles did. Or was wynton Marsalis pre bop traditionalist. Nonetheless there’s a reason people love this. A tremendous ensemble. Great tracks. It’s a 5 star easily.

Pearl

Janis Joplin

3/5

Is this just trauma porn? Was her tragic death, (aged 27!!!) a large part of the regard this album has? It’s a better backing band than her original band. Bobby McGee is one of the great American songs. 'And I’d trade all my tomorrows for a single yesterday’ is perhaps the greatest couplet in American lyricism. Rivalled only by ‘and I want you more than need you/and I need you more than life’ in Wichita linesman. It’s complex. She didn’t write Bobby McGee. That was Kris Kristofferson. And I’ll be brutally honest. When she goes off at the end it’s always jarred for me. It’s a song of loss, of regret, of sadness. So to gurgle like that is … I don’t know. Millions love it, so … But to the rest of the album. Had she survived this would have been fondly remembered but I think maybe overshadowed by later stuff. Female performers started to come into their own in the seventies and I think Janis would have been prominent in the movement that gave us Linda Ronstadt, Fleetwood Mac, Emmy Lou Harris, etc. so while this is a good album I don’t think it’s a great album. 3 stars.

Here, My Dear

Marvin Gaye

3/5

It’s no what’s going on. It wasn’t part of the divorce settlement. It’s not his best work. It’s not bad though.

Metal Box

Public Image Ltd.

3/5

Not this one. But PIL is fantastic.

Raising Hell

Run-D.M.C.

5/5

If a lot of the conservative critics of hip hop listened to the lyrics, they would have been surprised at just how much the values of the reverend run aligned with their own. Run believes in church and community and a job. Yes he’s critical of society - he understands that things are bad. But he also believes that the individual should try and fix themselves. Get a job. Get involved. Help each other. And walk this way slaps. Hard. Better than the original. A great album.

Dare!

The Human League

5/5

How to be not great yet create something, if not great, then special. That Phil Oakey understood the synthesiser was going to be important so hit it hard. That he wasn’t very good wasn’t the point. Or was he absolute genius? Brilliant album.

L'Eau Rouge

The Young Gods

2/5

Eh, I was in a better industrial band. Pretty sure it’s here because it’s French and hence exotic rather than it being worthwhile. 2 stars.

Hot Fuss

The Killers

4/5

They were the future. Then they weren’t. The singles were terrific. But I suppose it was not to be the seismic shift it promised. Nonetheless terrific songs. 3.5 stars.

Home Is Where The Music Is

Hugh Masekela

4/5

This is excellent. Great playing. Unique approach. Like it. Have for years.

Highway to Hell

AC/DC

5/5

This is more like it. Now, the big criticism can be summed up in this apocryphal story of a reporter asking Angus young how he responded to criticism they’d done the same album 13 times. Angus bristles and says ‘we’ve done 14 albums. ' And while that is not unfair, it doesn’t really grasp that that is what makes ac/dc great. An incredible consistency over 50 years. The band rocks. And rolls. Angus is one of the great rock guitarists. Malcolm is the metronome. As great as Phil Rudd is, ac/dc, like the Who and Metallica is driven, not by the drums, but by the rhythm guitar. Cliff young can’t be described as flashy, but solid. And Bon. He could scream, he could growl, he could plead. He could sing, man. All ac dc albums are 50 billion stars. Some are better than others. I’d have dirty deeds on this list rather than this one, because dirty deeds and jailbreak should be the national anthem and national song. I think it was Australian band frenzal rhomb who said we’d drink paint for acca Dacca. Fair dinkum we would. Here’s some more of my thoughts https://www.toppermost.co.uk/acdc/

Fun House

The Stooges

3/5

Scam or genius? I lean towards the former but many would take the latter without a doubt. James grew into the role of elder rock statesman but there’s a form of trauma porn here that might hide a certain insubstantial quality. I don’t know. 2.5

Nothing's Shocking

Jane's Addiction

3/5

Jane’s addiction was good but this wasn’t the album for here.

Broken English

Marianne Faithfull

3/5

It’s a good album. Never really grabbed me but others love it.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

4/5

Not my favourite. It’s a mess. It’s inconsistent and it has some brilliant songs but it doesn’t hang together like smiley smile or cabinessence. Love you is a better album. It is the one most people love though. 3.5

Duck Stab/Buster & Glen

The Residents

5/5

I like meet the residents better but I was convinced ina discussion on the weekend that this sold better and probably should be the one. The residents are great.

Swordfishtrombones

Tom Waits

2/5

Not a favourite of mine. I’ve grown to appreciate Tom waits a bit more than I did. But I’m still not a massive fan.

Tellin’ Stories

The Charlatans

1/5

There were three British invasions. Beatlemania lasting till say 1965. Then that early to mid 70s stuff. Deep purple, Bowie (kind of), Zeppelin, Uriah Heap, Jethro Tull, Queen. Etc. There’s what I’d call more of an incursion in the 80s with the smiths and the cure etc. Britpop is the third. And the weakest. All sound the same. Not many strong songs. All more reflective of a declining power than a strengthening one. And while I can listen to some oasis or blur and think yep this is pretty good, there was nothing in this album that grabbed me. Oh the lead singer died. That’s genuinely awful. And tragic. But it doesn’t make this a good album. 1 star.

Giant Steps

The Boo Radleys

2/5

There’s some formula about the better the name the worse the band. Certainly it applies here. It sounds like every other indie edgy band. Yes I’ve heard the clash and the smiths. You’re trying but you’re not there. In fact the lessons of those bands is not ‘copy us’ but ‘find your own sound’. It took jazz 35 years to learn that from Miles Davis. I suspect indie rock will take longer. Meanwhile this is 2.5 stars rounded down. I should take a point off for the album title.

Murmur

R.E.M.

3/5

I like rem but Stipe’s singing and lyrics are not to my taste. Green is the better album anyway.

Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

Derek & The Dominos

5/5

Those who say Clayton can’t play or is always dull never listened to this. Superb blues in 1970. Clapton hit these heights agin but rarely. The dominoes were superb. Layla is amazing, if tainted by the despicable miscrediting of the coda, which was written by carol bayer sager. Little Wing is majestic. Key to the highway is terrific. I do prefer the unplugged nobody knows you… but this is great. . In short, this album shows how white guys can do blues. It’s a pity so few others got the lesson.

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

3/5

Nah. It’s ok but I think NIN did better. I guess it shows that not every major band release is worth hearing a lot.

Moss Side Story

Barry Adamson

2/5

It’s ok? It’s not compelling. But it’s not awful. I’d like to read the Dave graney short story. It’s ok. Not a must listen. But a decent one.

Millions Now Living Will Never Die

Tortoise

3/5

If you’d never heard Radiohead, this would be incredible. Now I’m not going to be churlish. They’re a little before Radiohead, and they’re not bad. But they’re not great. Too obsessed with their cleverness to quite get to clever. I do like the album title. 2.5

Bubble And Scrape

Sebadoh

1/5

Sigh. Mediocrity wrapped in pretension. Sounds like Frank Zappa if Zappa had a brain injury and forgot how to compose and arrange. Or it can sound like slayer on Xanax. That sounds much better than this relentless tripe. And I’ve nothing against stupid lyrics. But Jesus. ‘Don’t bite me on the arm/ Capricorn rising. ‘ it’s hardly Dylan. Or Jimmy Webb. Or Bernie Taupin. This is brain damaged stupidity. It needs help. Maybe an operation. It’s Boston without the sense of joy. (And Boston is the most joyless band I’ve heard). It’s Zappa without talent. It’s a random selection of nothing hiding behind ‘art’. But we can see the F that belongs on the front of 'Art’ and we can smell it too. 1.5 stars. It gets .5 for the audacity of it. But Minus 1 for the execution. So it’s .5.

Clube Da Esquina

Milton Nascimento

3/5

Must listen? Hmmmm. Interesting? Vaguely. Unique? Possibly. Liked some of it.

Teenage Head

Flamin' Groovies

2/5

Another attempt at American critics finding a great American rock band. Nope. They’re good. But they’re not better than the stones. Where did mick say that? There’s rock here, but when was the last time you played this? And when was the last time you played the stones? Or given this or the stones for eternity what would you take? 2.5 rounded down because critics.

good kid, m.A.A.d city

Kendrick Lamar

4/5

Kendrick is an important artist and this is really good. It’s worth listening to if only to show the promise Kendrick was to demonstrate. He was to mature. But this is a strong debut.

The Joshua Tree

U2

5/5

I really want to hate U2. But they did this. And I saw them about 1989. Just the four of them. A basic light show. And they were incredible. This should be 3 stars but that’s allowing for the history and the gobshite that Bono became. The Edge changes guitar. The rhythm section is solid. This is the last truly great album though rattle and hum has its moments and achtung baby is good. Ignoring the band’s future, it’s a solid 5. So that’s what I’m giving it.

Rust In Peace

Megadeth

2/5

Dave mustaine is a racist pos. He may have mellowed to be not so over time. But there’s a reason Metallica breaks records and this sells respectably. As immature and obtuse as Metallica can be they were never racist or even homophobic. Everyone who wanted to listen could listen. This is extremely good musically. And is one of the blueprints for thrash. But its unpleasant themes ruin it for me. 2 stars.

#1 Record

Big Star

4/5

I liked this. It’s a critical darling but for once they’re not totally wrong. A lot of this stuff becomes cliche though that’s hardly Big Star’s fault. 3.5

Moby Grape

2/5

Hasn’t aged well. Essential listening? Eehhh 2

Definitely Maybe

Oasis

4/5

It’s another album that works better out of its context.

Oedipus Schmoedipus

Barry Adamson

1/5

Didn’t we do this already? Boring

Electric Warrior

T. Rex

4/5

A great singles band with some pretty mediocre filler. Another argument against the ban on greatest hits. Get it on is fucking poetry. Jeepster would have been many other bands best song. But Marc was to write greater stuff. 5 for the singles. 2 for the filler. I’ll call it 3.5.

All Things Must Pass

George Harrison

4/5

Not my favourite Beatles solo and not even my favourite George solo. It’s worth being here, but while there are some of the best songs written by a Beatle on it (What is Life, for example) there’s a bit of dross. Nonetheless as a guitarist myself, George’s introduction of slide guitar to pop music was genius. Yes, Eric had played slide, and Brian jones, and Jimmy page. But they’d all done it in a blues context, George showed it could be done in pop. My Sweet Lord is a sublime example. And the stupid court case in which Phil Spector was found guilty of plagiarising his own song doesn’t detract from it at all. I prefer the Wilburys and Cloud Nine, but I’m in the minority. 4 stars.

Aladdin Sane

David Bowie

4/5

Bowie, to his super fans, is the most important British artist. To many people he’s a rock star and legend. To me, he’s an enigma. Is he brilliant or bullshit? Stardust or bull dust? Genius artist or con artist? He leaves a large legacy and his best work is among the very best of the rock era. Not everything landed, which his later self happily admitted (and to me leans me towards thinking he’s at the brilliant end of the spectrum). This isn’t quite as good as the sublime Ziggy. Although it must be said the Bowie boosters don’t rate Ziggy that highly. I get it. But that band. Those songs. Here it’s the band but the songs are not quite as strong. Gene genie is great but doesn’t have the audacity of the later diamond dogs or earlier suffragette city. Bowie should be on the list a couple of times. But I don’t know this is one of the albums. It’s worth hearing though. 4 stars.

Brothers

The Black Keys

3/5

The last real rock band? I can’t help but feel this is the hipsters’ choice of Black Keys albums. It’s ok actually. Really good to be fair. But surely the big seller is the one you’d introduce. Not this one. 3

Get Behind Me Satan

The White Stripes

3/5

Elephant? Yes. Should be on this list. This one? Not so much. Not that it’s bad, but it’s not essential in such a list. So many great albums not on this list.

Arise

Sepultura

5/5

Did I enjoy this? Not really. Is it important and deserves a spot on such a list like this? Most definitely. It’s well done and very good at what it does. That I won’t listen to it much doesn’t detract from its importance and quality. 5.

The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

Genesis

3/5

It’s better than the other one. But … I can see why Peter Gabriel wrote solsbury hill. There’s little motivic development or thematic structure. They can all play. But give me Tommy, Joes garage, the wall, thick as a brick or queen II. 2.5

Pacific Ocean Blue

Dennis Wilson

4/5

This is rated highly by fans and critics. And it’s great. It shows all three Wilson’s were prodigious talents.

Be

Common

4/5

I didn’t realise common had been around so long. I liked this but I didn’t listen too closely. But I did enjoy it. And it’s important.

Nilsson Schmilsson

Harry Nilsson

3/5

Lennon loved him as an artist and a man. Without you is astounding really. But is this an album with one great song, and a really great song, and a couple of tragedies. The rest of the album is fine. Crack musos, ex-Clapton (Gordon), future Elton (Caleb Quaye), Chris Spedding(future Womble)and Herbie Flowers (space oddity among many many other great songs)! really lift things. The songs are competent and even pleasant to listen to. Nilsson dies young and drummer Jim Gordon’s story is just too awful. So does this make it a worthwhile album? I suspect this one won’t make many future editions.

Private Dancer

Tina Turner

5/5

Well done to the hipsters for putting in a genuine pop smash by a major female talent. Tina was a massive talent too and some of the songs here would have been dreadful pap in the hands of a lesser singer. Any album with Jeff Beck gets an instant two stars added to its score. And Jeff is equal to Tina’s talent. Vale to the both of them. For reasons that don’t need to be gone into here her extraordinary work with Ike is difficult to judge. It is more dangerous, raunchier and wilder. But the trauma porn that fuels a lot of this stuff is too much for them. So we have this. Like the Bonnie raitt album it’s slick, it’s professionally done. It beyond competent. And you can see the flash of ranch, of sleaze, of sex occasionally. This album made her the superstar she always was. 6 stars.

Brown Sugar

D'Angelo

5/5

Excellent.

Tom Tom Club

2/5

I don’t know. Is this too clever for me? My pedestrian bougie tastes don’t understand. Or is it undercooked garbage. I note the presence of never dull Adrian Belew. I don’t mind genius of love. I think I knew the songs that used it as a sample. But it’s really terrific. A lot of the rest seems half baked - a good idea not fully developed. I love Tina Weymouth’s bass playing. She’s not playing on all the tracks here.

Third

Soft Machine

1/5

Jethro Tull is not on this list. Aqualung. Thick as a brick. Songs from the wood. One song from any of those albums* is worth 20x this self-indulgent twaddle. If you were to put a musical soundtrack to boredom it would sound like this. There’s no progressive acoustic music from the last 30 years on this list. Where is David Grisman Quartet? New Grass Revival? Bela Fleck and the Flecktones? Punch Brothers? Chris Thile solo? Sam Bush solo? It may be a bit early in Sierra Hulls career, but I know she’ll be a major influence. We could look at the Jazz guys - Mike Stern, Marcus Miller, Victor Wooten, the Brecker brothers, David Sanborn … Instead we have this and a hundred albums like it. *ok Thick as a brick is one song but you know what I mean.

Surrealistic Pillow

Jefferson Airplane

4/5

An album of importance and it’s pretty good. Ok white rabbit is transcendent pop and somebody to love is incredible. The others aren’t as strong. But it doesn’t lose focus, doesn’t drone on and is well played. Grace slick gives this album an extra 1.5 points. 4.5 rounded down cause don’t do drugs.

Lost Souls

Doves

2/5

I mean, yeah? It’s ok. It’s kind of forgettable. Best debut album since definitely maybe? Eeeh. I suppose. Do I need to hear it again? Not really. It’s pleasant enough. But? I suspect this is someone’s youth rather than a truly important album.

Vauxhall And I

Morrissey

1/5

The gobshite’s gobshite. The other album is better. This doesn’t need to be here. Maybe Morrissey is so beloved because his fans relate to everything. Not just the 'sensitive' musings on relationships and unemployment but the racism, anti-immigration, Reform UK offensiveness. Listening to Morrissey gives you a deniability ‘oh but his lyrics are SO good’ - meanwhile you tell your critic friends how awful everything is while carrying a picture of Nigel Farage hidden deep in your wallet. Morrissey is your ‘get out of being a fascist’ card. ‘Of course I don’t agree with him’. Sure you don’t.

GI

Germs

2/5

I get a little suspicious when you give qualifiers to genres. This is supposedly hardcore punk. As if punk isn’t hardcore. As Jack black rightly sang in ‘school of rock’ ‘You’re not hardcore/unless you live hardcore/ and the legend of the rent was way hardcore.’ I note the lead the singer killed himself. That is a terrible thing. But one wonders if this just goes into the trauma porn fetish this list seems to lean into? If they were still going, would this be considered a classic? It’s energetic. But a bit dull. 2 stars.

Treasure

Cocteau Twins

4/5

The Cocteau twins are everything I should hate but I actually really like them. They do it properly and that’s the rub. 4 stars.

Hunky Dory

David Bowie

4/5

At least Bowie seemed to grow out of his offensive opinions (unlike Morrissey who grew into them), wasn’t obviously a plagiarist (unlike Paul Simon) and wrote better songs than Neil Young. But really? 3 Bowie albums is enough though if there were more than 1001 maybe I could tolerate it. Changes and the man who sold the world are truly great though. Life on Mars is wonderfully great. And maybe this album is one of the three. But there’s a bit of filler, unlike Ziggy. I’m giving this 3. Though out of the context of here it’s probably a 4.5. So ok a 4. But hold off on the Bowie.

Nevermind

Nirvana

5/5

This one is almost beyond criticism. Truly a game changer. Truly great. At the time I was a bit ‘yeah I can see where they got this from’ but I’ve grown to like it a lot. One of the top five albums to actually change things. Easy 5.

Made In Japan

Deep Purple

5/5

It’s Deep Purple. I mean what more can, should or would you say? All bangers. And smoke on the water is perfection, dumb lyrics and all. Ian Gillan is in magnificent voice. Probably his peak with Purple. ‘When it all was over ahh ooo’. Blackmore burns. Lord destroys. Glover bulldozes and it’s pounded into a pulp by Ian Paice. This is a top ten album. After a run of Brit award garbage this shows how to rock. How to roll. How to play fucking music.

Talking Book

Stevie Wonder

5/5

It’s Stevie. This is part of that great run of albums he did. My own preference is innervisions. But superstition alone makes this a 600 star album. And the rest is great anyway.

Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts

The Adverts

2/5

There’s a reason a lot of punk fades from view. Most of it is not terribly good. That which is great stays. And the rest fails. Now some of this is understandable. Unschooled anarchists or rebels trying to take music back from over schooled elitists. But like advanced experimental music some of it isn’t going to work past its initial shock. Never mind the bollocks holds up. London calling by the clash and actually nearly all of the clash holds up. The Ramones. New York Dolls. Johnny Thunders Heartbreakers. There’s a few others. This doesn’t hold up. I’m sure it hit like a bomb in 1978. But now it’s not there, just a hole where it was. It’s good but not compelling. And hence not essential. Has some energy.

Modern Life Is Rubbish

Blur

2/5

One of the most sarcasm baiting titles. ‘It’s not just modern life’. One blur album is enough and as song 2 isn’t on this, this isn’t it.

Scott 2

Scott Walker

2/5

One Scott walker is enough.

British Steel

Judas Priest

5/5

On one level it’s an absolute stone cold classic. 100 stars. Rob halford seems a great guy and can really sing. The rest of the band is a crack unit. But priest never really grabbed me for some reason. So personally I’d give this a three. But I can’t deny its value. So it’s a 5.

Beyond Skin

Nitin Sawhney

2/5

Didn’t hate it. Not bad. But I don’t feel this is essential. Sounds a bit Sade and the type of thing that people who don’t know much about music think is brilliant. Not brilliant but ok. Inessential.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

3/5

She had a voice no doubt. This album shows what was to come but it’s the later one that would be the one to listen to. Ignore the trauma open. It’s terrible yes but she shouldn’t be defined by it (even if one of her biggest hits suggests she should) An augur of things to come rather than a must hear.

Venus Luxure No. 1 Baby

Girls Against Boys

1/5

Oh Jesus Christ. I can’t even wth this except the review that calls it flailing is right. God this is awful.

La Revancha Del Tango

Gotan Project

1/5

I liked the Zappa cover. Pity they learned nothing from it. Another hipster pretending to be inclusive but actually trying to show their special uniqueness. PAH. 1 star.

Since I Left You

The Avalanches

3/5

I like this. Don’t love it and I’m not sure it’s a must listen but it’s good. 2.5

Kimono My House

Sparks

2/5

Sparks is a strange band. Nowhere near as influential as their latter publicity claims, and their songs are pushing towards great but not quite there. The one really good idea they had, trying to poach Brian May, didn’t work as Brian would seem to have preferred staying in a band where he could be a primary songwriter. And though the wouldn’t have known this at the time, remain a member of a legendary band revered in a way Sparks never would be. So this nomination to the list is seemingly a response to a recent rather ok doco that posits them a bit higher up the ladder than they were. This stuff isn’t bad. Just not must listen. 2/5

Sunshine Superman

Donovan

4/5

Donovan is very talented. No question. He had a run of great singles. From Mellow Yellow through to things like Barbajargl, he had the serious folk edge with a commercial sheen that appealed. Cat Stevens won the ‘war’ but Donovan can hold his head high. Season of the witch is a standout as is the title track. I was going to question this one being on the list but it belongs. 3.5 rounded up

Close To You

Carpenters

3/5

3 decades there was a joke that went A musician dies and as he wakes up he finds himself ina studio with all the instruments set up. Guitars, keyboards, a drum kit, basses and a horn section. Slowly he focuses and sees Jimi Hendrix, Eddie van Halen and Jeff Beck and John Lennon walk in and plug in and start tuning up. Jaco Pastorius follows and plugs in his bass. Dizzy, Louis, Coltrane and Miles Davis makes up the horn section. Freddie Mercury walks up to the piano and adjusts the microphone. Meatloaf, Janis Joplin, Aretha Franklin take their spot at the backing singers microphone. Our hero, wide eyed seeing all his heroes in a band can’t believe it. He turns to Hendrix and says ‘I can’t believe that heaven is so great!’ Hendrix says ‘who says we’re in heaven?’ Just then Karen carpenter sits at the drum kit and ‘ok boys, Close to you in G’ The hipsters have since realised that indeed Karen Carpenter could sing and drum and Richard was a top notch composer and arranger. Maybe not Bacharach level or Goffin King but certainly up there in the first rank. Yet another band that would be better served by a greatest hits rather than an album that is half brilliant half filler and doesn’t really show the full range. 3.5

Sulk

The Associates

5/5

This is great stuff. One album is enough for this type of list, but that Scottish post punk scene was something else.

Freak Out!

The Mothers Of Invention

4/5

Zappa is one of the handful of artists who deserve a few entries on this list. This is a good introduction though the compilation ‘strictly commercial’ is probably the best introduction to Zappa, followed by strictly classical. Now for Zappa freaks every album bootleg and live recording should be on the must listen. This, Hot Rats, Apostrophe and maybe Joe’s Garage (plus the yellow shark) or Broadway the Hard Way and we’ve had we’re only in it for the money, are the ones. Zappa bands would get better, though this is a crack unit anyway, and would experiment more but this is a great debut. The trick with Zappa is to ignore the juvenile lyrics (which he never really grows out of). Zappa saw lyrics as something to get commercial recognition, realising that the music market didn’t like instrumentals that much. So what’s going on underneath, a mixture of doo wop , rock and roll, reluctant jazz and avant-garde European post modern music, is the ore in the mine of Zappa. 4 stars.

Halcyon Digest

Deerhunter

1/5

Trendy too clever name? Check Concept album with a weak concept? Check Dead band member? Check Sorta not bad but not good? Check Not really remembered outside a small clique of white boy critics? Check A mishmash of bs genres? Check Extra points for dedicating a song to a no talent, in this case jay reatard? Double check So mediocre that the universe turned itself inside out rather than suffer this. I present 1001 albums you must hear before you die poster child.

Master Of Puppets

Metallica

5/5

This is great. And it shouldn’t be. There’s only two talents in the band - Hetfield is a rhythm player who ranks with Townshend and Malcolm Young and cliff burton certainly changes the bass in metal. Lars invents of course thrash drumming despite being not good at it. And Kirk does what he does. This should be awful but it’s awesome. 50 stars.

Savane

Ali Farka Touré

4/5

It’s good. What happened to African music after American blues. Talks of it being pure or ‘proper’ are wrong. It’s music that influenced and was influenced by a global music environment. Worth a listen.

Myths Of The Near Future

Klaxons

2/5

Blah

They Were Wrong, So We Drowned

Liars

1/5

Not another one. This sentence from the Wikipedia article sums it up. ‘The album takes the form of a very loose concept album concerning witchcraft upon The Brocken (a mountain) during Walpurgis Night, and tales of witch trials in the area around the Harz Mountains in Germany.’ A long long way from misty mountain hop. Or March of the black queen. Let alone sunshine of your love, seven nation army, deacon blues, aqualung, Pompeii by bastille , shake it off … Just unknowing junk. Someone made the not unreasonable point that a bunch of us complain about another Neil young or Morrissey album and then we complain when something different like this comes along. I can see where they’re coming from. But this is so unappealing to me. (Also who cares that he studied under Mike Nock at the Sydney Conservatorium as per his Wikipedia page? Mike’s a nice guy a brilliant drummer and a great teacher but if that’s all you have to say about your drumming, not ‘built a career in doing worthwhile music’ then perhaps you’re not ready for a career …

Throwing Muses

2/5

It’s not bad. Is it must listen to? I’m not sure. 2.5 rounded down.

Fuzzy

Grant Lee Buffalo

3/5

Not one of the better Americana bands. Not awful. 2.5. Probably not interesting enough to be a 1001 album.

Aqualung

Jethro Tull

5/5

There IS a Jethro Tull. And this is among the very best. And it’s either this or Queen II that is the greatest album of the rock era. Anderson eviscerates British society, religion, schooling, theology. He tells folk stories and little personal anecdotes. All in front one of the best bands of the rock era. Martin Barre, on guitar knows exactly what to play. So does geoffrey Hammond on bass. Held down on drums by Clive bunker and Rod Evans on the keys. Hymn 43, the title track, and the glory that is locomotive breath rock like a pivoting rock on a pivoting rock balanced on a rock that is pivoting. Sensitive songs like Wondering aloud and cheap day return show an everyday side to Anderson. One a love song, the other a little vignette on visiting his father in hospital. My God and Wind up stick it to the establishment in a mature and considered way. The treatment of poor aqualung - at least the salvation army gives him a cup of tea. A much better book would have been listen to this 1001 times. Or maybe 500 times and Queen Ii 500’times. Deducted half a star for not having mandolin. 55000000444000003030003003030300999.5 stars

Liege And Lief

Fairport Convention

5/5

Another brilliant album. This is my favourite of the fairport albums. The standout is Matty Groves. Richard Thompson ranks up there with Beck Clapton page Townshend and Gilmour in English rock guitarists. My one criticism is that a little of Sandy Denny’s vocals go a long way with me. She has a great tone but her phrasing seems to suggest she’s forgotten the words. Having said that you can hear her in Robert Plant. So what do i know? Musical DNA. 100 stars.

Chore of Enchantment

Giant Sand

2/5

*Listens to album.* ‘This sounds like the cutting edge of 1978. When was it done?’ Oh dear. After two stomping albums we get a reminder that no one seems to be taking this list seriously. The overwhelming mediocrity of this - how it didn’t win a Mercury award? Too mediocre and predictable? 2 because it’s a mediocre score. If it was a bit better, it might have got one star.

Double Nickels On The Dime

Minutemen

3/5

When I was young and learning about guitar, the minutemen were all through the guitar magazines. But I could never find a track to listen to. And while It’s true D Boon is a member of the 27 club, the band rightly pays attention to his death but it’s not a trauma porn thing so an extra point there. I first heard of them a few years after his death. So, after all these years, how does it hold up? It’s a bit blah. It’s got all the faults of a double album and few of the strengths. It’s not quite the musicianship of say Tom Petty or REM or the pixies. Also having it country restricted irriatated me. I found it on YouTube. Stupid. (Not the band’s fault, I guess.) I think 2.5 stars. Including the extra for not exploiting trauma porn.

Doggystyle

Snoop Dogg

3/5

Snoop is a beloved figure and this album kind of shows why. I’m not sure what the skits achieve. But the flow flows.

Technique

New Order

3/5

I like new order. I prefer them to joy division, heretically. But this one feels superfluous. Another greatest hits (and I love the double cd greatest hits) was more than sufficient.

Pretenders

5/5

When actual untalented pretenders like Courtney Barnett claim to a rock woman, Chrissie hynde laughs in her face. A great debut. A terrific band. Great songs. 4 stars.

Beach Samba

Astrud Gilberto

4/5

She’s got a lovely voice and yes we need more women on the list. But does this add anything that the other album didn’t? 4 stars but reluctantly.

Sister

Sonic Youth

1/5

Nope. The big one is the only one you have to hear. This is superfluous. 1 star for time wasting.

Bluesbreakers

John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

4/5

In a sense this is a stone cold 5 star classic. Nothing to this point helped the sale of guitars as much as this album. It really defines British blues in a way the yardbirds or the Rolling Stones didn’t. And Clapton is near his peak. In another sense, if you take Clapton out I can see the point of lightnin’ Hopkins barb that ‘these English boys want to play the blues so bad, and they play the blues so BAD.’ John Mcvie is yet to find his voice on bass, and Hugh Flint is solid but not especially great. Compared to Jim McCarty of the yardbirds or Charlie Watts or mick Fleetwood we he lacks something (It’s not fair to compare him to ginger baker or Bonham or Moon. The techniques are incomparable. All are valid) Flint and McVie would become incredibly good musicians in the future. McVie’s sublime playing with later iterations of Fleetwood Mac would become a model. McGuinness Flint showed the chops that Flint would develop. Really, although Mayall was to become iconic, it was more for the promotion of Chicago style blues than for any genius or even virtuosic playing. Eric is the standout, and it’s no wonder Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker wanted him. You need to hear this because it is one of the most influential albums of all time. But those who know its reputation and not its music may well wonder why. Of course context is everything - there was very little like this available in the UK at the time - and it’s not awful. The Blues Breakers are a bit dull. Clapton shows the promise he didn’t always match (and was to top in Cream and Derek and the Dominoes) but it is a case of you need to listen to what came before and after to ‘get’ it. Stepping out is a standout though. I’m going to average it to a 4 because it does deserve a 5 for many reasons but is also as equally deserving of a 3.

Welcome To The Pleasuredome

Frankie Goes To Hollywood

3/5

It’s a collection of singles. I didn’t mind born to run actually. But is this must listen? Hmmmm. Maybe it is. But it’s more the singles that are important than the album. The singles are ridiculously fun though. 3 stars.

The Nightfly

Donald Fagen

4/5

Is it must listen? I like it a lot. The live album is incredible at least in terms of its production. https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGr1IYuG8Wwu6v46lPvquWKv8bQkCOxvD&si=XEIUupnKcRyh0CyJ But you need to hear the studio album to appreciate the live one. Fagen is a top songwriter and the musicians including personal favourites like Marcus Miller and Larry Carlton are phenomenal. Jeff Porcaro, the Breckers are Just amazing. It’s a 4 star as Walter Becker gave him a balance this doesn’t quite have. Still a great album. But a must listen? Aja is. Maybe can’t buy a thrill. But this, great as it is … maybe. Maybe. 4 stars. Really a 3 for essentially. 4 for it being an excellent album.

More Specials

The Specials

2/5

The specials is a great band but one album is audience.

I See You

The xx

1/5

Another one from this pack whose sole claim to fame is they’re loved by the types who think the Sydney morning herald a valid source of journalism and opinion. . Awful. One album was too many.

It's A Shame About Ray

The Lemonheads

2/5

I don’t know. Must listen? Their version of Mrs Robinson took all the menace out of it. The rest of it is fine. Quite ok even. But hardly essential…

Marquee Moon

Television

4/5

Firstly I did like this. And also it is a must listen. A little filler. But the good songs hit. Might be time to break out the 4.

Birth Of The Cool

Miles Davis

5/5

There are those who would have every single miles Davis album on here. And I’ll be fair, he is one of the few artists who should be represented several times. Now personally I wouldn’t have every thing he did here. But this, kind of blue, bitches brew and the pop one he did in the 90s are essential to start to wrap your head around how important he is. I’d probably be persuaded for one or two more. Tutu or the stuff he did with Mike Stern on guitar also suggest themselves. This is superb. The musicians are of course among the very best. The compositions change things. Miles is one of the towering figures of jazz and this one would have been enough to prove that. But being a restless spirit he went on to change the genre 3 or 4 more times. It is notable that since his death jazz innovation has slowed. 5 stars.

Odessa

Bee Gees

4/5

There is no doubt that Barry Gibb is one of the greatest pop songwriters of the 20th century. And the bee gees one of the greatest pop groups. Barry had all ten songs in the top ten in the uk at one point. Actually that might not be right but the number of absolute bangers, bops, classics and even a standard or two is phenomenal. This is a good album marred by ego trips and a lack of focus. Still, a good album. I don’t think Barry could write a dud song. And the leads and the harmonies of the brothers … just magic. They were to get better so 3.5 rounded up.

The Age Of The Understatement

The Last Shadow Puppets

1/5

God no, and yes. It wins a fucking Mercury prize. Because of course it does. Good for ballast. Or weighing down stuff. Or by deleting it freeing up your disc space. Musically worthless .

Tigermilk

Belle & Sebastian

3/5

This is at least a bit interesting. Always band I read about but hadn’t heard. Or maybe I had heard them. 2.5 because I’m wavering.

Bossanova

Pixies

3/5

Another pixies? Maybe is should be calmed 'indecisive critics argue over their favourite bands'. Pixies is a great band. But like most acts one is enough.

So Much For The City

The Thrills

2/5

Nothing compels here. Awards mean nothing. Look at the list of people who never won a Grammy. So album of the year in 2003 and nothing since doesn’t impress. Neither do the songs. Dull. Kind of predictable. Apart from being Irish there’s nothing here that makes them standout from at least another albums that really are doubtful placements on this list. I’m giving it two because I feel bad for being harsh but it’s not interesting enough to be a travesty. But when you look at the great Irish rock bands - thin Lizzy, Them, Boomtown Rats, early to mid U2, Cranberries, The Blades, and a few others - these guys just don’t stack up. Where’s Tonic for the Troops by the Boomtown Rats? The rest of the bands are represented (except maybe not Them, or the blades though Van Morrison is). Tonic is a far superior album. This is a must miss. 2/5. Not interesting enough for a 1.

Station To Station

David Bowie

2/5

This one isn’t essential Bowie unless you’re a die hard fan. And even then this would be 6 or 7 tops in the order you’d put them in. Golden years is a good song but not a heroes or a life on mars or a diamond dogs. Bowie was capable of greatness. But not here. 2 because it has taken the place of something far more worthy.

Forever Changes

Love

2/5

Do all 60s psychedelic albums sound the same? Do I need to take drugs to get this? *sigh* Maybe I don’t love music as much as I thought I did.

The Libertines

1/5

Same old same old. Same guitar tones and riffs. Same lyrics. This list could be broken down to about 20 albums. Also the pathetic attempt at heroin chic on the cover. I wish I could give less than one. Pfui.

Mask

Bauhaus

2/5

Overrated. Not terribly interesting. It might grow on me.

Stephen Stills

2/5

I can’t wait to see Glenn’s review. Despite the presence of Hendrix and Clapton and Ringo Starr this is truly boomer nonsense. 2 stars.

Younger Than Yesterday

The Byrds

2/5

This one is not essential listening unless you’re looking at the history of the Byrds. 2

Rock Bottom

Robert Wyatt

2/5

Trauma porn. If he wasn’t in the accident this would be dismissed as the amateurish nonsense that it is. It’s great they all got together and no doubt he earned well and I have no problem with that. . But this is not worth 1001 albums. Next. 2 stars.

Machine Gun Etiquette

The Damned

2/5

The three great English punk bands, the pistols, the clash and the damned. Pistols burn out after an and a bit albums. Clash do four classics and one dud before dying in a gutter. And these guys flash brilliantly and then spend a long time imploding. We’ve heard the good one. This is just critical darling and ignorance of rock and roll shit. Has every album this week been two stars?

Ogden's Nut Gone Flake

Small Faces

5/5

This is a great document of that post Beatles yardbirds stones movement. Steve Marriott was a great singer. 5 stars.

Remain In Light

Talking Heads

3/5

The USA goes for another Great Band. There’s some great stuff. And Byrne is a hero to most but he doesn’t mean shit to me. Rude motherfucker who tries to hide behind undiagnosed autism. You get cold unemotional music saved by a terrific band - Tina Weymouth, Jerry Harrison and Chris Franz. Like the UKs Attractions far more deserving of a better songwriter and leader. None the less this is essential listening.

The Number Of The Beast

Iron Maiden

5/5

50 000 stars. Iron Maiden is rivalled only by AC/DC or maybe early Metallica in terms of consistency, awesomeness and pure realisation of vision. They get the formula early annd stick to it. The fans love it. And this is probably their best album. No words can really express how great this is. Maiden sneak complex music theory into what is meant to be dumb rock and roll. And it works. Sarcastic elbows has pointed out that rock and roll needs to be a bit dumb to work. The thudding pounding rhythms here and lyrics that are both clever and deliberately provocative (‘6 6 6, the number of the beast!’: American evangelicals clutch their pearls and worry who’ll think of the children. ). Yet Maiden is not easy to play. There’s a level of musicianship that is among the very best of Metal. And indeed music. 50 000

american dream

LCD Soundsystem

3/5

I don’t think this is the album to listen to. But it’s good and a post 2000 album that’s good is a rarity on this list. So 3

A Love Supreme

John Coltrane

1/5

I realised that I’d never heard this for some reason. Coltrane of course is at that rarefied heights of musicians, including but not limited to and in no order, Bach, Louis Armstrong, Hendrix, Glenn Gould, Chris Thile, Mozart, Beethoven, Charlie Parker, Charlie Christian, Jaco Pastorius, Ron Carter, Prince, Jack de Johnette, Victor Wooten, Miles Davis, Frank Zappa, Allan Holdsworth and a few others. Musicians of such artistry they transcend genre and even instrument. This album does that. It was that rare thing. A highly praised album that deserved the praise. Elvin Bishop on drums is player of the match. But the quartet is just … ON. I think I need to block out some time and listen to this in a silent room with no distractions. 5 stars.

Sign 'O' The Times

Prince

5/5

Another almost beyond criticism album. And by a musician who transcended his instruments. It’s as if this could be a worthwhile project. 5

Merriweather Post Pavilion

Animal Collective

2/5

Has critical acclaim ever been so wrong as in the 2010s? These sounds like a 1980s synth experiment. No groove, no soul, no tension. No release. No point. You can’t dance to it and it’s not worth hearing. Garbage is too strong a word for such a dull album. But why it’s here? Critics supporting critics? Bye Felicia. Let’s get back to good albums, hey? 1.5

Talking Heads 77

Talking Heads

2/5

We’ve had our one album from these guys. David Byrne, the Elvis Costello of the US new wave movement is way too up himself to be taken seriously. Nowhere near as talented as his inflated ego would tell you, most of his crap is hidden by a stupendous band. Meanwhile he treats people like garbage and tells them he’s diagnosed himself with autism so he’s allowed to act like a arsehole. Fuck right off. And when you get there fuck off again. One Talking Heads album gives you the idea. One or two good to great songs. The rest is just onanistic nonsense. Would much rather Stop Making Sense or a greatest hits than this. Psycho Killer is a good song. The only good one on the album. Pfft.

Crime Of The Century

Supertramp

4/5

Suoertramp are the forgotten huge band of the 1970s. Banger after banger in singles. Roger Hodgson has a stupendous voice and Rick Davies was a stupendous musician. Davies death this year reminded me just how much I enjoyed supertramp. I prefer breakfast in America but this is a worthy addition. The title track and closing number is great. And the singles were spectacular. 3.5

Violent Femmes

2/5

Another album in which there is one great song and the song is important if only for its immense popularity but nothing else stacks up. I personally have played Blister in the Sun at least 750 times. Always to a drunk woman making sure I stick exactly to the structure. Always a woman. Always drunk. There you go. 2 stars.

All That You Can't Leave Behind

U2

2/5

Um. At their best U2 was compelling. This is a good album. Not their best but not their worst. U2 should have a couple on the list. But I’m not sure that it’s this one. 2.5

You Want It Darker

Leonard Cohen

2/5

Looking over my reviews, you might think I have fairly pedestrian tastes. Maybe. I do think most (not all) professional critics have no idea and I do, probably unfairly, arc up against critical consensus. Leonard Cohen, failed poet, turns to music. Writes some good stuff, some not good stuff and some self indulgent garbage. One album is enough. This isn’t it.

All Hail the Queen

Queen Latifah

4/5

She’s a queen for a reason.

The Colour Of Spring

Talk Talk

3/5

This is good. I hadn’t heard this one though I remember some know nothing Australian critic complaining about all the ‘talking’ bands like ‘talking heads’, ‘I’m talking’ and ‘talk talk’. All of them used ‘Talk’ in their name. Every band. Idiocy. Anyway enough of stupid critics. I should have disliked this. But I didn’t. Is it must listen? On balance yes there’s room for this. I think. I’d prefer level 42. But this isn’t awful. 3 stars

The Velvet Underground & Nico

The Velvet Underground

1/5

Overrated. Undercooked. God it’s overrated. John cale is the star player. Lou reed is like Neil young. Not untalented but not a generational talent. It is a must hear album because a coterie of critics and fans was told it was important. That arch fraud andy warhols involvement gave it prominence but I’m not convinced it’ll last another edition of this. Pretentious and underdone. 1 star.

Winter In America

Gil Scott-Heron

3/5

When gil Scott heron died the number of white boy comments, ‘oh I understand black culture, I just don’t want to live near them, I’m sure they’re and I’m not racist, but…' drove me nuts. It’s not directed at you. That’s ok. Can you enjoy it? Yes sure. Is it important. Yes. But don’t tell me you get it. You don’t. You can’t. It is powerful. It is important. But it’s speaking to its people. If you’re white middle class, that ain’t you. Listen to it yes. Listen to its message. Yes. But you’re a peripheral listener. Still, 3 stars for what I can appreciate. 2 marks off a 5 star, deducted because of the white hipster factor and the album he did before this is better.

Gris Gris

Dr. John

4/5

That second line playing. This is great. Walk on guilded splinters is a top20 song. Mack Rebennak conjures the voodoo of New Orleans and magic happens. Bit of filler but what works works. 4

At Mister Kelly's

Sarah Vaughan

5/5

Sarah Vaughn had one of the very best voices. Unlike the flashier singers, she kept to the melody with perfect timing and nice fills. She’s seen as one of the big three : Billie and Ella as the other two. And my favourite is Sarah. I love how she hangs onto the consonants - just one of the thinnnnnggs. Absolutely crack band behind her too. 5 stars.

Planet Rock: The Album

Afrika Bambaataa

5/5

Absolutely key to understanding hip hop.

KIWANUKA

Michael Kiwanuka

1/5

Ah. A Mercury prize winner. This is about as essential as pouring bleach into your ears which is what I felt like doing. Dull. And mediocre. Like a mild headache that’s just there but isn’t enough for a Panadol to stop. Just there as an irritant. Actually the first track is ok. Oh and Danger mouse produced. Three words you can put in the right order. Sake. For. Fucks. 1 mark for a good first track. .5 for a predictable and dull album. 1.5

Neon Bible

Arcade Fire

2/5

Never thought I’d agree with Rolling stone.

Head Hunters

Herbie Hancock

5/5

Sarcastic elbows gave me an offsite unofficial backup copy of this many years ago. I loved it but thought I’d lost some of the tracks. Nope. There’s are two long tracks and two short ones. And they’re fucking great. One of my favourite fusion albums. Half a million stars.

Fulfillingness' First Finale

Stevie Wonder

5/5

This is highly regarded among Stevie fans. It didn’t change my mind that innervisions is his best album, but it’s Stevie. One of the handful of acts who deserve more than 2 albums here. Most need only one. But Stevie, man. Also extra point for the appearance of Michael sembello, who wrote 'maniac'. Michael plays guitar here. 21 stars.

Low

David Bowie

2/5

Oh god. The heroin addled Bowie tries to convince us he matters! Later and earlier he did but this album seems to me to be the worst excesses of Eno and the worst excesses of Bowie. I know it’s a trilogy, but heroes is enough. I will admit Bowie might be in that rare coterie who could take up 3 or 4 spaces on this list. But not with this one.

The Doors

1/5

Probably the worst of the most overrated acts. Even Neil young can write a decent and even great song on occasion. This is immature toxic masculinity wrapped in the lie of the sensitive poet. The best song, Light My Fire was Robby Krieger’s. The End… if anyone points out the self indulgence of Pink Floyd, counter with The End. Freud would have smacked Morrison in the mouth. We can see how well the band would have done if Morrison hadn’t tragically died. Just look at the careers of Densmore, Krieger and Manzarek after. There was little there then. And nothing there now. And Light My Fire was ruined by the winding endless annoying organ. Jose Feliciano did a much better job. I will be fair. Densmore is a solid drummer and Kroger is a good guitarist. But both needed more than this. 1 star

My Aim Is True

Elvis Costello

1/5

The Neil young of England but without the talent of Neil. Ed Sheeran for all his faults can spin a tune. James Blunt’s you’re beautiful has a memorable melody. Even Agadoo might get you dancing. The inexplicable popularity of the wrong Elvis. Over rated. 2 or 3 good to great songs does not a genius make. And his one great song isn’t till his seventh album. Not even excellence till then. That he flukes a couple of great songs is no excuse. I really don’t know what Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe were thinking. It’s not even good cliche. And many of the rest of the reviews here make the observation that it’s all the same. And they’re right. You get one good song per album (this one is Alison) and the rest are variants on the theme. We all know what we throw against the wall to see what sticks. Not much of this does. No more Costello on this list. Seriously. He’s A racist pos on top. In vino veritas, Declan. You say you can’t apologise enough. No, you can’t. And that’s just for this travesty. Ray Charles deserved better too. Shout out to a band who is far better than the material they are given. What a waste of the Attractions. Steve Nieve could have done so much better.

Slipknot

2/5

I’m not a fan but it’s important. The 2 stars reflect my not being a fan rather than my ‘this doesn’t belong here.’

Blunderbuss

Jack White

3/5

Is he good? Or is he scamming us? I suppose it’s good that he is trying to keep rock alive. But is it? Things grow and change and die out. But is it any good? He can certainly play in that style. But was the style burned out by now with nothing left to say? Or did he catch it? 2.5 while I work it out.

In A Silent Way

Miles Davis

4/5

If I’m honest I always preferred the music of the alumni. Mike Stern, Herbie Hancock, Breckers, Marcus Miller, John Coltrane, Ron Carter, Chick Corea, Gil Evans, John McLaughlin. Pat metheny. and on and on. Having said that Miles is quality stuff and while this isn’t quite my favourite it’s pretty good. Miles of course understood that jazz needed to develop to continue to thrive. And so for him to do it unlike others who wanted it frozen and preserved in aspic he is to be admired for those efforts. It’s almost definitely one of my favourite Miles lineups: McLaughlin, Joe Zawinul, Tony Williams, Chick, Wayne. All he needed was one of the electric bassists - Stanley Clarke, say. Having said that Dave Bell is just perfect on double bass. 3.5 stars. (Being Miles- it would be 5 for nearly anyone else.),

Playing With Fire

Spacemen 3

1/5

‘A similar musical borrowing’ sounds close enough to plagiarism. No thanks.

Fear and Whiskey

Mekons

1/5

This has appalling production. Weak songs. No energy or pep. And the concept seems to have been covered more successfully and concisely in ‘The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down’, in four minutes. Really it’s like someone took all the worst excesses of Elvis Costello, Lou Reed and Neil Young, took all the talent out and the appeal and told critics ‘it sounds different. You’ve gotta like this.’ And critics looking for copy thought ‘sure why not? It’s not like our opinions are taken seriously’. To call this a mess really disparages messiness which at least can be beautiful. This is just entropy without chaos. Decay without evolution. Shit without the fertilizer. There’s a fundamental lack of understanding about country. Ultimately it’s a working class music. But it’s that section of the working class that requires a certain pride in its work. If you look at Bluegrass, they’re all immaculately dressed. They’re not hicks. Although Johnny Cash’s singing voice was limited there was a quality to the songs that suited his voice. It’s no surprise that some of the best musicians came out of Nashville and Memphis. So halfhearted drab energy-less stuff like this fails as country. And what is punk if not energy? Say what you will about the damned or the banshees or the pistols or the clash (and I have) they were never lacking in energy and drive. Now I’ll be fair this could have been better with less harsh production and singing that was in tune and stronger songs that understood the genres they were trying to exist within. . And can someone tune the lead guitar? There is only 1001 spots. Badly played and written nonsense shouldn’t be here. It’s like they decided ‘well, we’re a terrible punk band, and a terrible country band, so let’s see if we can improve things by combining them.' No. No, you can’t. Instead of this garbage listen to Waylon 173 , Merle Haggard Emmy Lou. If you want mashups of genres, Sam Bush merged reggae and bluegrass. If you want punk attitude try any of the Johnny Cash songs or even Buck Owens. If you want a concept album, Willie Nelson’s Red Headed Stranger. Yes I know these are older acts. But they did this attitude much better 40 or more years ago. Honestly, fuck this shit.

Close To The Edge

Yes

3/5

Listening to this list I came to the realisation that I really don’t, with some notable exceptions, like prog rock. Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull, early Queen, Zappa, Rush are most of the exceptions. What they all have in common is songs. Sure there’s complex harmonies, obscure time signatures and diverse melodies but there are songs. You can sing them. You can dance to some of them. You can remember them. Yes should be one I dislike. I like Yes. I find that Yes has songs as supposed to onanistic ramblings. A magnificent rhythm section in Bruford and Squire. Great guitar playing by Steve Howe and exquisite harmonies by Anderson. Wakeman on keyboard and what more do you want? 4 stars with one taken off because I wanted to hate it.

Dirty

Sonic Youth

1/5

We’ve had our one. This is unnecessary Sonic Youth isn’t THAT important. White not critics strike again.

Music in Exile

Songhoy Blues

3/5

Looks at cover. *ugh*. Look at name. *ugh*. Expects white boy critics trying to be street. Reads wiki article. Oh, hold on: this could be interesting. Listens to album it’s not bad at all. It is not the absolute best west African album I’ve heard, but it’s a solid example. Does it belong here? More so than 5 elvis costello or Neil young. Less than other but it’s here. I suppose we should thank Julian casablancas for promoting the cause. Music alone can’t change the world. But it can make it more tolerable. I hope these guys feel they’ve improved things.

There's A Riot Goin' On

Sly & The Family Stone

5/5

Essential listening for funk. This is my favourite sly album I think. Though that might be the other one.

Dust

Screaming Trees

3/5

I like Lanegan other work better. I’m not sure it’s a must hear. 2.5

To Pimp A Butterfly

Kendrick Lamar

3/5

I think we had a Kendrick. He’s excellent but one is enough.

The Score

Fugees

5/5

Ooh. One of those that change music. Lauren hill glitters. Wyclef Jean excels. 5

White Light

Gene Clark

3/5

Gene was brilliant but not 1001 album brilliant. This changes nothing. Adds nothing. It’s good but not worthy.

Wild Wood

Paul Weller

2/5

Ooh boy sarcastic elbows will not like this. I don’t mind Weller. But it’s the Jam really. Not his solo stuff. It’s good. But really doesn’t belong here. 2 stars

The Infotainment Scan

The Fall

3/5

Is this the album from an important band even if I’m not rapt in them? Assuming it is, 3. If it’s not 1.

The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Charles Mingus

5/5

Mingus.

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

5/5

This is the one that shot Dylan into legendhood. And it’s a good one. Dylan needs a few albums. This is one of them. I don’t think it’s his best but a lot of people do. Having said that Girl from the noerth country and masters of war are two of his greatest songs, both being at either end of his emotional range. And don’t think twice is how you handle a breakup. 5

A Girl Called Dusty

Dusty Springfield

2/5

I’m in the minority here, but dusty is not my favourite diva. It took me years to work out why. She can sing, she sings great songs, her voice generally suits the song. But someone else has always done a better version. There’s something missing in a dusty song that gets hidden in her story. There’s always a better version of the song. She only needs one album, if that, and this isn’t a must hear. Dusty in Memphis is the one. 2.5 rounded down because those who don’t want me to be right but know I am will likely try and shout me down. There’s always a better version.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

2/5

The Heartbreakers are one of those great American backing bands - the tcbs, the e street band, the funk brothers. Tom was lucky to find them. Benmont, Mike, Stan. Just perfect. They don’t reach their stride here. So why are we listening to this when full moon fever is probably the one? 3 minus one for inappropriate placement.

All Hope Is Gone

Slipknot

1/5

Why the fuck is this here? The band hates it. It’s not good. It might represent something but the band has other albums. 1 star wishing I could give less.

Scissor Sisters

2/5

I remember hearing about these. I also can’t remember anything about any of the songs on the album. Either it’s the wrong album or it’s no good. In any case it shouldn’t be here. 2

Harvest

Neil Young

3/5

The one Neil album worthy of inclusion maybe. And to be honest I’m not sure he should be here at all. He does write decent and even great songs from time to time, but there is a lot of junk. A lot. 3

Thriller

Michael Jackson

3/5

The second biggest selling album of all time. And it’s not as good as the previous one or the next one. But it’s pretty good. I mean what can you say. You also have to balance it against the serious allegations he faced. I’m not convinced he is guilty. But it still casts a pall. But is it good. I like the songs. Thriller is more performative than song. Billie Jean is so,etching else again. The subtler, softer songs is where it really lands. And the fink of PYT. Should it be here? Yes Is it as good as the numbers and its iconic standing suggests? No. Off the wall remains Michael at his best.

Black Metal

Venom

2/5

Should it be here? As an example of this music, yes. Do I like I? No, sorry guys. 2 stars

Africa Brasil

Jorge Ben Jor

3/5

Smells of white boy critical paternalism. (I’ll like this so that they’ll think I’m progressive. ). Not bad. But not essential. 3. Just.

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