181
Albums Rated
3.44
Average Rating
17%
Complete
908 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1960s
Favorite Decade
Singer-songwriter
Favorite Genre
US
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
21
5-Star Albums
4
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| G. Love And Special Sauce | 5 | 2.74 | +2.26 |
| Exile In Guyville | 5 | 3.02 | +1.98 |
| Time Out Of Mind | 5 | 3.21 | +1.79 |
| Astral Weeks | 5 | 3.27 | +1.73 |
| Fear Of A Black Planet | 5 | 3.34 | +1.66 |
| Fear Of Music | 5 | 3.47 | +1.53 |
| American Gothic | 4 | 2.48 | +1.52 |
| Illinois | 5 | 3.49 | +1.51 |
| Straight Outta Compton | 5 | 3.51 | +1.49 |
| The Clash | 5 | 3.54 | +1.46 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Konnichiwa | 1 | 2.74 | -1.74 |
| Slipknot | 1 | 2.67 | -1.67 |
| Idlewild | 1 | 2.57 | -1.57 |
| Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water | 1 | 2.47 | -1.47 |
| Blue Lines | 2 | 3.38 | -1.38 |
| Ready To Die | 2 | 3.37 | -1.37 |
| Live At The Star Club, Hamburg | 2 | 3.28 | -1.28 |
| Rust In Peace | 2 | 3.24 | -1.24 |
| The Poet | 2 | 3.21 | -1.21 |
| Actually | 2 | 3.18 | -1.18 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Beatles | 3 | 4.67 |
| Pink Floyd | 2 | 5 |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 5 |
5-Star Albums (21)
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Popular Reviews
G. Love & Special Sauce
5/5
G. LOVE!!!!!!!!!!
I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the app and saw this album. Every party I went to from the mid 90s to the early aughts, this album was played at some point. Doesn’t matter where, Center City, University City, South Philly, the Great Northeast, and the burbs.
I can’t believe this album is on this list. I’m breaking my 5 star rule. It’s supposed to be 5 stars go to the greatest albums of all time. I don’t know how many I will hand out but I gotta imagine it’ll be less than 10% Maybe around 5%, I dunno.
This is not one of the greatest albums of all times. But it’s one of the most fun. It takes me back to a great time in my life. It’s getting 5 stars.
I love me some G Love and Special Sauce. I can’t believe this is is on here.
8 likes
Nas
4/5
I’ve never been much of a rap fan and I am using this project as a way to expand my horizons. I remember this album coming out and not thinking much of it. I was in the military and the album was everywhere but I was on a college radio kick at the time.
Listening to it now…omg. This album is incredible. To think I could have been listening for 30 years but I’m only understanding its genius in 2024. That’s on me, shame on me.
2 likes
1-Star Albums (4)
All Ratings
Silver Jews
3/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
Classic album with some great hits. Sinister Purpose is a really underrated gem
Björk
3/5
Bjork is what I would call an acquired taste. It’s certainly not a bad album but also probably not an album for my morning commute. The “hits” from the album: Human Behavior, Big Time Sensuality, and The Anchor song are all decent tunes. Some of the other songs sort of just blend in and sound like one of these theee songs’ outtakes
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
4/5
Bjork is what I would call an acquired taste. It’s certainly not a bad album but also probably not an album for my morning commute. The “hits” from the album: Human Behavior, Big Tim
The xx
3/5
Meh. I understand bands have “a sound” but every song in here was so similar it felt like one big song.
Wasn’t bad, just kind of boring after a bit
The Auteurs
4/5
At first I thought that this album was almost great but was really just OK. Show Girls was decent but Bailed out and American Guitars were mediocre. Junk store Clothes started to turn this album around, with Housebreaker and Valet Parking being strong closing songs. I still think the songs and the album as a whole are missing something to make it a really great album but a very good first outing by a new band.
Aerosmith
2/5
Not a good album. I remember this album’s release. A rebirth for a once great band from the 70s that spent the last 10+ years as has beens.
Other than the hits: The singles I remember:
Love in an elevator, What it takes, Janie's got a gun, The other Side
The rest of this album is really bad white boy blues. What’s worse, the commercial success of the ballad What It Takes lead to 20+ years of society being subjected to really terrible Aerosmith power ballads (starring Alicia Silverstone).
Aerosmith is currently on their farewell tour. I say good riddance.
Sex Pistols
4/5
Nevermind the Bullocks exposes my hypocrisy. When doing comparisons of anything, music, films, television shows, sports, I usually give a heavier weight to the people who came before. As a devotee of Joe Strummer and a lover of The Clash I’ve always thought the Pistols were overrated. As the Pistols inspired The Clash I should offer them more reverence.
I haven’t listened to this album in ages and man am I glad I did today. Not only is album one big banger after another, it’s an interesting reflection of 1970s England and the economic struggled it was still facing after WWII. The anger of the youth for living in such depressed times really shines through the lyrics and fast guitars.
TV On The Radio
3/5
It was an OK album. Not my style but I didn’t hate it.
George Jones
2/5
Classic, stereotypic 70s country as you can get. The Grand Tour was ok and Private Lives was a bit humorous but the rest was a cliche.
David Ackles
4/5
At first I hated this album. My first impression was that this was from a failed broadway show or some shorty high school musical. But by the time I got to the seventh track, Waiting For The Moving Van, I started to understand the brilliance behind this album. When I got to the final track, the ten minute epic Montana Song I was hooked. I listened to the album two more times.
This album is a masterpiece,
I ‘ve read a few review that compare David Ackles to a poor man’s Neil Diamond. My wife said as much. ND is great at what he does, but ND couldn’t do this. He could never each this level of uniqueness and disjointed chaotic beauty.
I might have to start going to more of my local high schools musicals..
Everything But The Girl
1/5
The first mental picture that came to mind upon listening to this album was a middle aged woman driving her kids to gymnastics class.
I am not a middle aged woman.
If this is on the 1001 albums list, I can’t imagine how bad the 1002nd album must be.
Nanci Griffith
2/5
I can see why people like this album, I It wasn’t a bad album, just not my type of music. I like folk and blue grass, but this was a little too country for my tastes.
The Dictators
3/5
Proto-punk sound (more punk than proto) with 60s pop sensibility lyrics about cars and girls. It wasn’t bad but there are so many great bands that came after and perfected this that this sounds more like low talent imitators than ground breaking innovators.
Wilco
3/5
Albums like this are what causes problems with a 5 star rating system. I’m a Wilco fan, I really like Being There. I would love to give this 4 Star. But I’m going to give Yankee Hotel Foxtrot 4 stars and Being there is not as good as YHT. So 3.5 or 3.75 would be more accurate.
Great album though, glad it showed up today, I really enjoyed listening to it again, it had been awhile.
Todd Rundgren
3/5
I’m not a huge Prog rock fan but this was a decent album
3/5
Second prog rock album in a row and I’m not the biggest prog rock fan. This was ok. I had some tedious work to do and out this on and it was decent music to rock out to for that purpose. Just not the kind of music I would listen to for it’s own sake
Buffalo Springfield
3/5
Classic 60s rock
Faith No More
3/5
Very much an album of its era. Faith No More is one of those bands where I dig their vibe more than their music. While I like smoke Patton’s vocals on this album and this album was their big commercial success, I think I like FNM earlier, pre-Patton material a bit more.
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
Very good album contains some real gems: Bookend Theme, America, Hazy Shade of Winter and Fakin it. The only forgettable song is Punky’s Dilemma. My only complaint is that I would like for Bookends Theme was a full length theme.
Keith Jarrett
4/5
5 minutes into Part I and I thought I wasn’t going to finish the album. I did not like it. 12 minutes into Part 1 I was looking up the history and reading all about it. This album was a very pleasant surprise for me. I dig Jazz a little bit straight up piano only Jazz isn’t my favorite. This extended jam has really changed what I thought piano jazz can be.
I’m very happy with this one.
Kings of Leon
3/5
3.5
I was never the biggest fan of KoL. Their hits in ‘08 and after we’re all I knew. I thought Caleb Followill had a really good voice but there was always something I thought was missing in their music, though I could never name what I meant. I also knew their earlier fans didn’t like the new radio stuff but I was never intrigued enough to investigate. Well I can say I understand the early fans’ complaints. I thought this album was much better than their earlier work. It sounds more raw, more authentic and more genuine. I was pleasantly surprised. I put “Where Noboday knows”, “Slow Noght, So Long” and “The Bucket” on my likes songs lists
Prince
3/5
I like Prince a lot. He was a god among men. This album has some bangers on it but a lot of it has a specific late 80s synth sound that I can’t quite stand. That’s why this is a 3 instead of a 4.
Jacques Brel
2/5
Meh.
Air
3/5
It’s a really good score, but it’s a score not a soundtrack
Stereolab
4/5
This album was played at every party I was ever at in the late 90s, early 00s.
Taylor Swift
3/5
3.5
Welcome to NY, Blank Space, Shake it Off, and Bad Blood, iconic songs that define an era. Really good songs. Other than that the rest of the album sounds like generic Taylor Swift songs.
Pink Floyd
5/5
One of the greatest albums of all time. Not a single song is a mistake or misplaced. This is how you do albums
Björk
3/5
I rate this 3 on its uniqueness alone. I like how it’s primarily human voices as the instrumentation, I just don’t particularly care for the songs the human voices are creating.
Simple Minds
3/5
3.5
While his album has no stand out songs for me, the entire album has that quintessential 80s sound that takes me back to my childhood. It’s a sound I really enjoy the older I get.
This album gets 3.5 most on nostalgia alone.
Dirty Projectors
4/5
I liked this album a lot. I was not familiar with this band before listening to this and I will definitely be exploring the rest of their catalog. This album was quickly and interesting. The vocals and harmonies were really good.
Easy 4 stars
Leonard Cohen
4/5
4.5
Leonard Cohen, the man, the myth, the god. I do find this particular album, while full of some of his classic iconic songs, has a bit too….commercialized 80s sound to it. Just a bit though. Manhattan, Everybody Knows, Jazz Police, I’m your Man, Tower of Song….Brilliant.
Love this man
Willie Nelson
3/5
I have a lot of respect and appreciation for Willie. I have a lot of respect and appreciation for the Great American Song book. Unfortunately I don’t much enjoy Willie singing the old standards. I didn’t hate it but it was just kind of underwhelming.
John Prine
3/5
3.5
Decent album. The two stand out for me are Your Flag Decal and Angel from Montgomery
Jane's Addiction
4/5
This album was one of the first for me to expand out past popular music and what my parents listened to. Summertime Rolls, The Mountain Song and Jane Says are some of my earliest influential “alternative” songs.
Little Richard
3/5
3.5
Due must be given to the innovators. Without Tutti Fruitti and Long Tall Sally we don’t have the White Album, Dark Side of the Moon or In Utero.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
4/5
Not Tom’s best album but has some real gems on here. Obviously Breakdown and American Girl are the hits but The Wild One, Strangerwd in the Night, and Fooled Again are really good songs too.
We lost this one way too early.
RIP
Machito
3/5
Some pretty good songs, some forgettable songs
Nirvana
5/5
One of the most important albums of my life time. This album single handily changed the popular music scene from party glam metal to hard rock. I love this album.
Primal Scream
4/5
I was vaguely familiar with Primal Scream before listening to this album but I was pleasantly surprised by this record. Totally chill vibe was the right vibe for me when listening. Def has a signature 90s sound which I dig.
Janis Joplin
4/5
Iconic album by an iconic woman.
The Undertones
3/5
It was decent.
Saint Etienne
3/5
This is one of those albums I don’t know how to rate. I can understand that’s it’s technically good and the artist is proficient at what they do, but that genre isn’t really for me. I guess I’ll go with a 3 since I didn’t hate it but I doubt I’ll ever listen to that again.
Sufjan Stevens
5/5
Sufjan Stevens is one of those artists that I kinda of knows exists and I dig his music but never went beyond his bigger “hits”. I knew of, and very much loved “Chicago” from this album but never listened to the whole album. We I loved this album. I was hanging Christmas lights on Black Friday and I listened this album on repeat for the entire 5 hours it took me.
Bobby Womack
2/5
I don’t know, wasn’t for me. For a soul album it didn’t feel like it had a soul. It felt over produced and commercialized. It sound like a sound track to a beer commercial from the 80s
The Cramps
3/5
3.5
“Elvira does Ed Wood Vampire Surf Rockabilly” That what it sounds like to me. And I like it. I’m not gonna listen to The Cramps every day, every week or even every month, but if they came on the radio, I wouldn’t turn it off.
3/5
I’m giving this 3 but I don’t know why. I don’t particularly care for Muse…and I don’t know why. They’re a talented band. Matt Bellamy has a good voice. They just don’t do it for me. I guess I’m giving it a 3 because I understand they are talented and a 2 feels cruel.
Alice Cooper
2/5
I’ve never dug Alice Cooper.
Arcade Fire
4/5
I very much like Arcade Fire. While I prefer The Suburbs, Funeral is pretty damn good too!
R.E.M.
4/5
Phenomenal album by a phenomenal band.
The Cure
4/5
I’m a fan of The Cure. I’ve been listening to them since high school. But I never listened to them critically as I am doing with this 1001 Album project. I gotta I never noticed, every vocal melody is more or less the same exact melody. The tempo might be slightly different but everything else is the same thing.
That said, I still thoroughly enjoy this album. I’ve listened to it a 1000 times before and will listen to is a 1000 times more.
1/5
1.5
Fred Durst’s lyrics are the very definition of fragile masculinity. This band is the most juvenile band I’ve ever come across. They’re a joke. It’s a shame too because musically they aren’t horrible. But once you add the “you were mean to me so I’m going to get violent” lyrics it just turns to dog shit.
I give this 1,5 instead of 1 because my wife will put on a few tracks while we work out. The rage which I feel towards this band makes me work out more intensely. That’s its only redeeming value.
Tom Waits
4/5
Such a good album. Waite brings his skills as a poet full force with the lyrics while the music is as chaotic and carnival as an he’s done.
The Youngbloods
3/5
3.5
O enjoyed this. Jazzy country rock done very well.
Sepultura
2/5
I’m not a metal fan but musically this ok. But the vocals: I absolutely hate the throat singing vocals prevalent in this type of metal. I ruined the song even if the music is decent.
Canyon Jam was cool though.
Otis Redding
4/5
Great album by a great artist.
Bob Dylan
5/5
One of the more important albums in my life. A return to form for the Master. Tight, snazzy sound. Lyrics contemplating one’s mortality. Dylan puts out one of his best all time albums at age 56.
The United States Of America
3/5
I debated whether this was a 3 star or 4 star. It was interesting and I really enjoyed it. I can hear how it was Avant Garde for its time. I try to conceptualize the music in its time but 55 years later it kind of sounds like some of the more “out there” psychedelia which is very interest but not really lasting.
Soundgarden
3/5
The Kinks
4/5
Love the Kinks.
TLC
3/5
The xx
3/5
I didn’t much care for this album but I think if I was in a different mood I might have enjoyed it more.
Paul McCartney and Wings
5/5
Phenomenal album by a phenomenal artist. This album is my youth.
Various Artists
4/5
Come on….60s Christmas music is what I was brought up on. This along with the older artist like Burl Ives, Andy Williams, Nat King Cole, etc, that is what Christmas sounds like.
Dion
3/5
4/5
Taking about starting out with some bangers, the first three songs on this album are iconic. I’m not the biggest U2 fan but you must give due.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
3/5
Oasis
3/5
Beatles
5/5
I’m mean, it’s Abbey Road
Coldcut
3/5
3.5
I don’t know how much I would have liked this in 89. A year and a half later I would live The Globe by Mick Jones but B.A.D. II had more of a traditional musical structure with electronica / hip hop elements added as opposed to this straight up electronica album. All that said, 35 years later I can appreciate what the fellas were doing here. The beats are fresh and energetic while the samplings are pretty decent.
Bob Dylan
5/5
One of my favorite Dylan’s albums. One of my favorite albums period. Not only ain’t there a bad song on the album, there are some of Dylan’s best work. The obvious Tangled up in Blue but also Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts, Idiot Wind, Simple Twist of fate….all of them. The weakest song for me is probably Meet Me in the Morning and that’s still a classic.
I hadn’t listened to this album in a few years so what a great way to start the day.
Fela Kuti
4/5
I was only slightly aware of Afrobeats and only in the context of western artists incorporating them into western music. This was amazing. I will definitely be seeking out more Fela Kuti and similar artists.
Elliott Smith
4/5
I struggle on whether or not to give this a full 4 stars. It’s a good album, a really good album but not as good as most of the four stars I give out. But it’s also much better than a 3 star album.
Ultimately I’m going with four stars because of Elliot’s soulful vocals paired with some very good early century Indie rock, way better than what was out there at the time.
Beatles
4/5
The early phase of The Beatles best album, maybe second behind A Hard Day’s Night.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
These type of albums are tough. Badlands is one of my favorite Springsteen songs and I really enjoy Prove It All Night. But other than that there’s not much I like on this album. But I REALLY like Badlands.
Ultimately I think I have to give the album as a whole a 3.
Iron Butterfly
3/5
Being such infamous one hit wonders I expected this album to be straight garbage. It was not. I was pleasantly surprised. Will I listen to it again? Probably not. But I enjoyed it this time.
Stevie Wonder
3/5
Everybody loves Superstition. It’s an iconic, top 100 song of all time. I had no idea it was on an album full of songs so saccharine sweet I would need to see a dentist. I respect The hell out of Stevie Wonder but this album was headed for 2 stars even with Superstition but Big Brother and I Believe are good enough to give it one more star. That and You Are The Sunshine Of My Life takes me straight to the back seat of the station wagon headed to the grocery store. It’s sappy but it tickles my little kid nostalgia bone like few other songs do.
The Who
3/5
This is where context plays so much in my ratings. Other than My Generation and The Kids Are Alright, most of this album is middling mid-60s guitar pop indistinguishable from most other mid-60s guitar pop. While I like this kind of music as a whole, this album is just ok. That said, without the success of these two songs, do The Who go on and become “The Who” of Quadfina and Tommy?
I dunno.
I guess I gotta go 3 stars instead of 4.
Justice
3/5
This is one of those albums I probably would have loved as a 21 year old bottom up the clubs. As a 50 year driving to work, it doesn’t hit the same. Not bad, just not my style anymore.
The Louvin Brothers
4/5
Gotta say, after that first twang I thought “oh boy here we go.” And away we did go. It was every bit as twangy and stereotypical country as I thought it would be. But….it was good. I liked it. I liked it a lot. This album is Americana. It’s almost as much folk as it is country.
Some real stand outs that I favorited on Spotify:
Let Her Go
In The Pines (of course)
Katie Dear
Knoxville Girl
Satan Lied To Me.
G. Love & Special Sauce
5/5
G. LOVE!!!!!!!!!!
I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the app and saw this album. Every party I went to from the mid 90s to the early aughts, this album was played at some point. Doesn’t matter where, Center City, University City, South Philly, the Great Northeast, and the burbs.
I can’t believe this album is on this list. I’m breaking my 5 star rule. It’s supposed to be 5 stars go to the greatest albums of all time. I don’t know how many I will hand out but I gotta imagine it’ll be less than 10% Maybe around 5%, I dunno.
This is not one of the greatest albums of all times. But it’s one of the most fun. It takes me back to a great time in my life. It’s getting 5 stars.
I love me some G Love and Special Sauce. I can’t believe this is is on here.
The Smiths
3/5
I dislike Morristown but I gotta admit The Smith are pretty awesome. I’d rate this a 4 but I think 3.5 is more appropriate so it gets a 3.
Tracy Chapman
3/5
I remember buying this album in 88 based off Fast Car, which is one of the best songs of the late 80s. I also remember being disappointed in the album. Now that I’m older and I appreciate music a little differently the album isn’t quite as bland as I remember. But it’s isn’t a whole lot better either.
I’m giving this 3 stars instead of a 2 stars based on Fast Car, Talking Bout a Revolution, and Why.
Neil Young
5/5
Neil at his best. I wore the grooves out of this CD in the late 90s.
Pet Shop Boys
2/5
I don’t think I’ll be listening to that again. If I need to stretch that itch. I’ll listen to New Order who is infinitely better.
Sebadoh
4/5
I always wanted to listen to more Sebadoh but never did. I love Pavement and GBV but just got into Sebadoh. Not sure why not, this album was awesome.
The Sugarcubes
3/5
It’s not bad, It’s not really good. Pretty much the definition of middle of the road.
The Black Keys
4/5
Not as good as The Big Come Up or Rubber Factory but still very very good.
Funkadelic
4/5
Peak funk. Maggot Brain, can Uou Get To That, and Back in Our Minds are classic, iconic songs.
I enjoyed this very much.
When I opened this up on the morning I was very disappointed. U2 used to be great but became pretentiously irrelevant and annoying. Then I listened to it and I was less disappointed. This must have been their last somewhat decent album.
That said, I’m not at all sure that I Must Have Heard This Before I Died.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
4/5
I prefer the first album without Young but this is pretty fantastic too.
Alice In Chains
3/5
I never know how to rate an album like this. It has 3 or 4 songs I like or are pretty decent, but the rest…. I really dont like it. Like not even a little.
I was never a big Alice fan. I thought they were too metal.
Nas
4/5
I’ve never been much of a rap fan and I am using this project as a way to expand my horizons. I remember this album coming out and not thinking much of it. I was in the military and the album was everywhere but I was on a college radio kick at the time.
Listening to it now…omg. This album is incredible. To think I could have been listening for 30 years but I’m only understanding its genius in 2024. That’s on me, shame on me.
R.E.M.
3/5
Not sure if this is quite up to a 4 star rating but it’s def more than a 3 star. The problem is other than Pop Song, Stand and Orange Crush, most of these songs are mediocre. There’s a trend with REM, especially on earlier albums where Michael Stipe’s vocal melodies don’t quite fit the song melodies. He always seems to throw in an extra syllable or two. That happens a lot on this album.
Ultimately I’m giving it a 3 because it’s not as good as other REM albums. I would give it 3.5 if half stars were possible.
Soft Cell
3/5
Other Say Hello Wave Goodbye (very good song), Where Did Our Love Go, and Tainted Love, the rest of this album songs like a 15 year old theater student locked himself in his bed with a synth and a drum machine he got that Christmas morning.
The Replacements
4/5
A little post punk / pre hardcore mixed with sentimental sap. I love it. I’ve always like everything I’ve ever heard from Westerberg but I never go search for more of his music. I don’t know why.
This is a really good album.
Echo And The Bunnymen
4/5
Eagles
3/5
Not much of an Eagles fan. Hotel Californianis a good song ut I’ve heard it 8 trillion times. New Kid in Town is ok but Life In The Fast Lane irritates the hell out of me .
Beastie Boys
4/5
I love me some Beasties. This i not my favorite Beastie’s album but is still phenomenal. It still has the “party rap” feel that was prevalent in their earlier work.
The Modern Lovers
4/5
I like Jonathan Richman a lot. I like the loose nature of the music. I like how he’s silly but in a fun way, not a novelty. You can definitely hear the Velvet Underground influence on this album. But I love Velvet Underground so I am ok with it. This album also has a proto-punk sound to it.
I again struggle with the five star rating system. This album is a pure joy but I don’t think it’s one of the best albums of all time. To me a 5 star album should be one of the best albums of all time. In a ten star rating system this would be a 9.5. Easy. This is a 4.9 in my book.
LL Cool J
4/5
This is a pretty good album. Takes me back to high school so my rating may be influenced by nostalgia. Mama Said Knock you out is a great song. A classic as good as any classic in American popular music. J’s performance in the Unplugged series is an all time great. Murdergram has the same feel as well. Milky Cereal was fun.
Good stuff.
Paul Simon
4/5
Early solo Paul Simmon. Two icon songs, Mother and Child, and Julio are fantastic. The remaining songs are more than just fillers, you can see the beginnings of what would be a career long exploration into many genres of music.
John Lennon
4/5
Jimi Hendrix
3/5
The Gun Club
3/5
I liked this but also feel as those most of the vocal harmonies were the same for each song. Good stuff over all but a bit repetitive.
Van Morrison
5/5
I often call this the most underrated album of all time. It might be my favorite album of all time.
I would give this 6 stars if I could.
Too bad Van Morrison has turned into a total douche pickle.
Common
3/5
This was better than I thought it would be. I’m not the biggest rap fan so common to be is a mediocre actor. But this was good. I really enjoyed the gospel and soul influences of the tracks. His rapping style was quick and sharpe and lyrically interesting. Not sure this raises to a 4 star album but could definitely be a 3.5 star.
Pleasantly surprised.
Kanye West
4/5
In 2024 I oscillate between Kanye’s a garbage human and I hate him, and Kanye’s clearly need mental health help and isn’t getting it. Either way, I don’t much like the guy. I’ve never listened to his music before he went off the deep end and I certainly wasn’t planning on listening if it wasn’t for this project.
I listened through YouTube as to not generate any streaming revenue for this guy.
That said, this album is really really good. If you separate the art from the man, which I absolutely think is possible, then objectively this album is one of the best hip hop albums.
He’s still a garbage human being.
The Isley Brothers
4/5
Not much to say other than this is a real chill album that’s very pleasant to listen to. I definitely favorited a few of these tunes and will be listening again.
Adam & The Ants
3/5
It’s not bad, and I like New Wave but I feel like people came along later and did this kind of music a lot better. I feel like I’m being generous with 3 stars here but it wasn’t bad.
Sleater-Kinney
4/5
Rush
3/5
Tim Sawyer and Limelight are iconic songs and I dig them. The rest of the album…..meh. I respect and appreciate that Rush are incredible and talented musicians and are amazing at what they do. I just don’t dig what they do. It’s not for me.
I’m struggling over whether or not my respect for their talent is worthy to upgrade them to a 3rd star. I don’t think it’s bad music.
The Smashing Pumpkins
3/5
Not much of a Pumpkins fan but there are some decent songs on here.
Talking Heads
4/5
Big fan of Talking Heads. I love their quirky uniqueness. It’s just fun music.
Beastie Boys
5/5
I wore the grooves out of the CD back in the day. Probably my favorite Beasties album.
RIP MCA.
Talking Heads
5/5
This is their best album.
ZZ Top
3/5
I’m not the biggest fan of ZZ Top. In my mind they’re that cheese band from the 80s with the spinning, furry guitars. But this album has a few good songs (Master of Sparks, Have You Heard, and Waiting For The Bus) and the iconic La Grange.
But the rest of the album is uninteresting.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
3/5
Steely Dan
3/5
Do It Again, Reelin’ In The Years, and Dirty Work are pretty great song but the rest of the album is just ok. I don’t hate it, I don’t love it outside those three songs. Though I do really like Dirty Work and listen to it more than occasionally.
If I could do half stars this would be a solid 3.5
Curtis Mayfield
3/5
Aretha Franklin
5/5
Lady Soul
Sparks
3/5
5/5
Massive Attack
2/5
I did not like this
Bert Jansch
3/5
As a fan of Dylan, Seeger, Ochs and Van Ronk this seemed lesser. This sounded like a first attempt at song writing. The way Jansch resolves sequences seemed almost amateurish, as if he didn’t quite have the skill level to really accomplish what he was trying to accomplish.
It wasn’t bad by any stretch, but it was just alright.
Rod Stewart
3/5
Skepta
1/5
I did not like this. While the lyrical styling at first gave me pause I tried to give it a chance to win me over. But the driving beat was so relentless and annoying I couldn’t stand it. I hoped after each song early in the album that the beat would change up a bit or relent some but nope. Same driving beat every song.
I could take one or two of these songs on their own. “ Man” wasn’t terrible nor was “Text Me Back” by themselves. But included on an album with 10 other songs I just hate it.
The Killers
3/5
Pink Floyd
5/5
What’s there to say that hasn’t already been said about one of the greatest albums of all time?
Janet Jackson
2/5
I was hoping years of nostalgia would help with this album but no. I don’t like New Jack Swing. At all. I don’t had Janet Jackson at all and I respect the themes of the album but this genre is not for me. It sounds artificial and soulless.
Aretha Franklin
4/5
Megadeth
2/5
Not for me
The Clash
5/5
The only album that matters
Radiohead
3/5
As with most Radiohead, some of this is really good and some of this is mind numbingly boring.
Liz Phair
5/5
Another album I wore the grooves out of back in the day. Another album that I struggle to properly rate. When I set out on this project I envisioned the 5 star rating to be reserved for the greatest albums of all time. The icons. But I’m approaching 15% completion of the list and I have come across a few of these albums that were monumentally important to me as a young man that I hold in very high regard but can quite call them some of the greatest albums ever made. But this album is higher than a 4 star album.
So I’m doing it. 5 stars for Liz. She is an icon.
The Jam
4/5
Really good album from a really good band.
The Boo Radleys
3/5
Honestly I was a little disappointed. I had known about the Boo Radleys but never really got into them. I was excited when I opened the app and saw the album. But as I listened to it I became disillusioned. If someone played this album for me without telling who it was I would have absolutely nailed what year it came out but would have been unable to tell you the band. That’s to say it sounded like every other indie band from ‘93.
It’s not a band album. I don’t dislike it. I just don’t understand why I HAD to hear this before I died.
The Smiths
4/5
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
Probably my favorite rap album not by the Beastie Boys.
Johnny Cash
4/5
It’s good but I prefer Folsom.
Slipknot
1/5
If I could give 0 stars I would seriously consider that. Maybe the drumming, which is impressive, might elevate this to 1 star.
Marty Robbins
4/5
I thoroughly enjoyed that. I am certainly no authority and this is wildly speculative but this could be the best country album of its era. The best I’ve heard anyway….but I haven’t heard that many.
The Flaming Lips
4/5
I’m giving this 4 stars on the strength of Yoshimi part 1 and Do You Realize. The rest of the album is more like 3 - 3.5 stars.
Muddy Waters
4/5
Rush
3/5
I just don’t get Rush. I by no means think they are bad. The 20 minute opening track that’s actually 4 or 5 separate songs. Some were decent, some not so much. I really disliked Tears.
I just don’t get it. Props to those that do. Slapadabass
Dexys Midnight Runners
4/5
At first listen I was sure I was going to give this 2 stars. I know a little about Dexys Midnight Runners and how Kevin Rowland would constantly change their sound and their look seemingly every other month. I also knew they were more popular across the pond in their native land but they’re just a one hit wonder to me. As it turns out I was out and about for work in my car a lot and absentmindedly listened to the album 3 times in a row and it grew on me.
“Knowledge of Beauty”, “One of Those Things”, “Reminisce Part 2”, and especially “The Waltz” have ended up on my Spotify Liked List.
Curtis Mayfield
3/5
It’s not bad but Superfly is better. For this slower tempo stuff I’d prefer Marvin, The Isleys or Al Green
OutKast
3/5
Meat Loaf
3/5
Dashboard, 2 out of 3 and Words right out of my mouth are all pretty good but Meatloaf’s schtick gets old real fast…to me anyway. Not a bad album by any stretch, but definitely not great.
The Stooges
3/5
Dusty Springfield
3/5
Other than Preachers Son this is just a mediocre blue eyed soul album. It’s not bad but it’s not particularly special either.
CHVRCHES
2/5
I did not like this. I found this to be very mediocre.
Cat Stevens
5/5
The songs of my childhood. Love this album
The Offspring
4/5
For as cheesy and ridiculous as this band would go on to become, this early break out album was a fun album. Though it is hilarious this was considered punk. This ain’t punk. This is pop music. And “pop punk” is an oxymoron.
Goldfrapp
2/5
I was not a fan. The common comment on here is it’s boring. I would agree. Maybe if you’re having a bubble bath with your ladies, smoking a joint and having a glass of wine this might be a decent album but I wasn’t doing that. I also don’t know why this was classified as electronica. Only the last two songs felt anything like electronica music.
Richard Thompson
3/5
70s RenFair rock
The Who
4/5
Ray Charles
4/5
Ray Charles has a great voice and these are gold standard American songs. Easy 4 stars.
David Bowie
4/5
Bowie is a god.
Dagmar Krause
2/5
I do not like that very much.
Fugees
4/5
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
3/5
I can see why people are a big fan of this. I liked it but I think I need to be in an exact type of moose to really enjoy it.
Cyndi Lauper
4/5
Album was much better than I remember.
Franz Ferdinand
3/5
I always want Franz Ferdinand to be better than they are. When in reality, this album sounds like the Strokes had a baby with The Killers and this is what came out.
This album is very much landfill indie. It’s not bad by any stretch, but it’s not anything special either.
The Notorious B.I.G.
2/5
This shit comes off as corny AF thirty years later.
Beck
3/5
Good album but Beck has better.
Hookworms
3/5
I was fully prepared to hate this and I didn’t. Not sure it was an album I needed to hear before I died, but it’s not terrible. It’s also not special either.
David Bowie
3/5
If I was rating just Heroes this would be 5 stars. But the rest of the album is mediocre by Bowie standards.
Jerry Lee Lewis
2/5
Regardless of whatever kind of a human JLL was (not a good one) this album was just mediocre. The sound quality was not that good, his vocals weren’t great and the overall performance was underwhelming considering what I’ve seen JLL do in other live shows. The man could put on a show, I just don’t think this always particularly a very good one.
Tortoise
4/5
In total honesty, I was not looking forward to this. Ambient with no lyrics can go either way. But I ended up listening to this in the early morning before everyone else woke up. Just sat, drinking coffee listening to chilled vibes. It was the perfect setting for this. Had I listened to this while commuting to work I am not sure I would have liked it as much.
Ash
3/5
Sounds like Stephen Malkmus’s little brother fronting Generic 90s Band #3
Doves
3/5
It wasn’t bad.
The Smashing Pumpkins
3/5
I understand why this album is on here but I am not a big Pumpkins fan.
Public Enemy
5/5
Man does this album take me back. My brother listened to this album, along with NWA non stop. Such a good album. Chuck D is the man.
N.W.A.
5/5
Kendrick Lamar
4/5
If I didn’t just have Fear of a Black Planet and Straight Out of Compton the two previous days, I might have given this album a 5. But going up against two of the greatest rap albums of all time, not sure this is quite as good. Very close though. If we could do half stars this would def be a 4.5.
Solomon Burke
4/5
I liked this a lot but I prefer Sam Cooke or Otis Redding.
Elton John
3/5
Elton John has like 5 good songs. Tiny Dancer is one of them. The rest of the songs on here are mediocre at best.
Marvin Gaye
4/5
Love me some Marvin Gaye.
The Saints
4/5
A little more polished than a traditional punk album but still pretty good. I liked it a lot
The Strokes
4/5
After years of post grunge and pop punk shyte this album was refreshing. The Atrokes got tired real quick but I’ll always think of this album fondly.