603
Albums Rated
3.16
Average Rating
55%
Complete
486 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
2000
Favorite Decade
Pop
Favorite Genre
US
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
37
5-Star Albums
6
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Third
Portishead
|
5 | 3.13 | +1.87 |
|
Ritual De Lo Habitual
Jane's Addiction
|
5 | 3.19 | +1.81 |
|
First Band On The Moon
The Cardigans
|
5 | 3.29 | +1.71 |
|
Fever To Tell
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
|
5 | 3.29 | +1.71 |
|
Figure 8
Elliott Smith
|
5 | 3.33 | +1.67 |
|
Sea Change
Beck
|
5 | 3.33 | +1.67 |
|
Debut
Björk
|
5 | 3.37 | +1.63 |
|
Come Away With Me
Norah Jones
|
5 | 3.38 | +1.62 |
|
Either Or
Elliott Smith
|
5 | 3.39 | +1.61 |
|
A Rush Of Blood To The Head
Coldplay
|
5 | 3.44 | +1.56 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Made In Japan
Deep Purple
|
1 | 3.29 | -2.29 |
|
Tago Mago
Can
|
1 | 2.79 | -1.79 |
|
Pearl
Janis Joplin
|
2 | 3.72 | -1.72 |
|
Maggot Brain
Funkadelic
|
2 | 3.6 | -1.6 |
|
In The Court Of The Crimson King
King Crimson
|
2 | 3.6 | -1.6 |
|
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music
Ray Charles
|
2 | 3.49 | -1.49 |
|
Tusk
Fleetwood Mac
|
2 | 3.47 | -1.47 |
|
Fear Of Music
Talking Heads
|
2 | 3.47 | -1.47 |
|
Live!
Fela Kuti
|
2 | 3.44 | -1.44 |
|
Blunderbuss
Jack White
|
2 | 3.4 | -1.4 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Radiohead | 4 | 5 |
| Beatles | 6 | 4.67 |
| Amy Winehouse | 2 | 5 |
| Elliott Smith | 2 | 5 |
| Beck | 2 | 5 |
| Portishead | 2 | 5 |
| Simon & Garfunkel | 3 | 4.33 |
| Michael Jackson | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band | 2 | 1.5 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Miles Davis | 5, 3, 2 |
5-Star Albums (37)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Curtis Mayfield · 3 likes
3/5
Interesting to learn that this album earned more than the corresponding movie. The sounds good, but I only got hooked by a couple of tracks, and eventually the falsetto got kind of old.
Milton Nascimento · 2 likes
3/5
The one track I really like is O Trem Azul. Aside from that, I like the vibe of the album, but nothing else stood out as a really memorable song.
John Zorn · 1 likes
1/5
Dear lord that was awful. I'm a little shocked I made it through the album. There were only brief moments that were in any way listenable. The rest was an attack on my ears and my soul.
Creedence Clearwater Revival · 1 likes
4/5
I like CCR and this album is really solid. Also, this is impressive: "It was the second of three albums they released in that year"
Thundercat · 1 likes
3/5
Before listening I first read a bit about Thundercat, including that he was in Suicidal Tendencies. That context totally threw me off; I expected the album to be very different from what it was -- no punk/thrash, just a mellow mix of jazz and hip hop, with some tongue-in-cheek lyrics. There are some really cool chord progressions, like in DUI. I'd want to listen to this again.
1-Star Albums (6)
All Ratings
Radiohead
5/5
I'm a Radiohead fan so this album was familiar to me. Favorite tracks are Idioteque and Morning Bell, but I like most of the album. A small part of the album is a little too experimental for me (e.g. the title track). There are parts of the album that remind me of Bjork and parts that remind me of some Beatles (e.g. use of the horns reminds me of A Day in the Life).
Gorillaz
3/5
I heard this album years ago, but I didn't know it _that_ well. On the whole it feels more like a bunch of songs than an album -- they don't all have a consistent sound. For example, "Punk", while being pretty catchy, sounds nothing like the rest of the album. The songs with Del are probably the best. I also really like Gravity. But I don't think I'll be returning to this album much.
Guns N' Roses
3/5
This was the year my family arrived in the US. It took another few years before I was interested in music in general, and specifically in hard rock. I was more into GnR around the time they released the Illusions. Agreed with others that it’s more like 4-5 great songs among filler. They do have a very consistent sound throughout the album. And I don’t know if Mr Brownstone is considered one of the greats but I love that song.
Jorge Ben Jor
2/5
This is the first album on the list that was completely unfamiliar to me. I'm really glad for that - I haven't spent much time learning about music in recent years and I've been missing that. Also, the scant bit of Brazilian music I've heard before I've liked (well known Bossanova type stuff). That said, to me this album was more "a sound" than "songs", in part because I don't speak Portuguese.
Yes
2/5
This album was mostly unfamiliar to me. The only song I recognized was "I see All Good People". The sound reminds me of Rush, and in some places of Phish. I listened to the album through twice. The sounds is OK, but I didn't find myself getting particularly hooked.
The Strokes
5/5
This album is such a joy. Every single track is catchy and awesome. I was already pretty familiar with the album. I could listen to it over and over.
Janis Joplin
2/5
Her voice is truly iconic. I recognized that, even though I didn't recognize any of the songs.
Roni Size
2/5
I only listened to a portion of the album. The version on Spotify is like 5 hours long (!!). I gather that for it's time this was a genre-defining album (drum n bass), which is something I respect but it's not a genre I spent a lot of time with. I got some hints that are related to other music I'm a little more familiar with, like Morcheeba or Prodigy. There were also some tracks that made me feel like I'm shopping at Banana Republic. On the whole it was fine, but I'm not sure I'll be returning to this one.
The Allman Brothers Band
2/5
I didn’t know anything about Allman Brothers before listening to this album. The closest thing I’m familiar with is Phish (I had a Phish phase), though Phish is more whimsical while Allman Brithers are more bluesy. To me this album makes for good background music - I can listen to it while working with no trouble. It’s kinda like baseball - when I’m at a game, I’m not really paying attention most of the time, it’s just there in the background.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
What a great album. I probably listened to it 4 times today. I was already familiar with a few songs like Sir Duke, I Wish, Passtime Paradise, Isn't She Lovely, and As. But by the 3rd listen I was really getting into some other ones like Knocks Me Off My Feet and Saturn.
Al Green
3/5
I was only familiar with "Let's Stay Together", which I really like. The rest of the songs have a good sounds, but none of them hooked me after 2-3 listens.
Sam Cooke
3/5
I recognized a couple of songs: Cupid and Twistin' The Night Away. Sam has a good voice, and the quality of the recording is impressive given it was a live show. It must have been fun to be there. But for me this is now just a little too old timey.
Jerry Lee Lewis
2/5
I knew a few of the songs, but I didn’t really get into it. Like the last album, he has a lot of energy and it would have been fun to see. But I didn’t really get into the “use the piano like a drum” style. It felt too constant/overpowering, and didn’t have enough style. Also, his singing is not as good live as Cooke’s.
Madonna
2/5
I recognized 1-2 songs from the album. I liked the background music / production, and some of the styles included (e.g. some industrial sounds, some Indian, etc). But I didn't really get into the vocals or the songs in general.
John Lennon
4/5
I didn't know anything about this album but it grew on me with every listen. There are aspects that remind me of White Stripes -- a very simple, broken down, raw emotion. The notes say that Lennon was into "primal scream" therapy at the time, and that clearly shows up in a couple of songs. Interesting that it wasn't very popular at the time but has grown in importance over time.
Jack White
2/5
I like The White Stripes but I didn’t really get into this album. It has a good sound but none of the songs hooked me.
Ray Charles
2/5
I the vocals, and the music is fine. But the backing choir belongs squarely in 1930’s Disney movies and kind of ruins the album for me.
Björk
3/5
I really like Bjork so I was excited for this one. But at this point I can't give it a high rating, yet. I like the vocals, percussion, and overall sound. But the songs are pretty artsy and take some effort to get into, and I haven't gotten over that hump yet. This differs from some earlier Bjork which was much catchier and easier to get into.
Elis Regina
3/5
I didn't know anything about her. After a couple of listens, I found myself getting into a few of the songs: O Trem Azul, etc.
Funkadelic
2/5
I didn't expect a 10-minute guitar instrumental track to start the album - I kind of liked that one. The rest of the album was closer to what I expected from Funkadelic. The last track (Wars of Armageddon) was annoying to listen to, and it's also 10 minutes, so that one brings down the album.
Common
4/5
I was only familiar with Testify, but I found myself getting into some other tracks too, like The Corner and They Say. After a few listens I had ~5 tracks liked.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
Like others in the group said, it’s impressive when an album has so many hits that it seems like a greatest hits collection. The only things I didn’t like were those live tracks at the end - the vocals were flat and strained.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
1/5
I only made it 1/3 of the way through the album. It was so bad. It's not available on Spotify so I listened on YouTube. Every once in a while I thought "hey, that sounds like a song!", but then I realized it was just YouTube playing a commercial. Until now I wondered if it was a mistake that I held off on giving any 1-star ratings, but now I know it was the right call. This is my first 1-star.
Ryan Adams
3/5
I was only able to give it one half-hearted listen while doing work. The sound is fine and reminds me of other stuff I like (like Wilco) but so far none of the songs really grabbed me.
The xx
4/5
This is one of those albums I didn’t know I knew. I don’t recall hearing the name “The XX” but listening to the album I kept thinking “oh I know this song too”.
Maybe that’s one sign of its impact? It kind of permeated our culture in a subtle way.
Sonic Youth
2/5
I just don't know. It seems like an influential album and various people in our group have strong feelings about it. The overall sound is fine and it does seem to be well ahead of its time for 1988. But after a couple of listens I'm just not hooked by any songs. I guess I'm glad Sonic Youth influenced other bands to make music I actually like?
2/5
This album is “easy listening” / background music. It has this jazz/world feel that reminds me of Comfort Food, the band headlines by Pnina’s uncle. After a couple of listens I didn’t really get hooked by any songs.
The Beta Band
3/5
I think I saw them perform live once, maybe as the opening act for someone else (looks like they toured with Radiohead). The album is extremely "meh". I think it's missing a captivating vocalist. It kind of sounds like a bunch of people around a campfire singing the songs of a band they like, versus the actual band. The general sound/production is OK.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
I don't know Fleetwood Mac too well, just some of the well known hits. So this album was unfamiliar to me. On the whole it was "meh". None of the songs grabbed me immediately, and it's not a sound I'm especially drawn to.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
I never heard this album and I don't know much about Bruce Springsteen. I really liked the overall melancholy vibe. It felt like perfect coffee shop music, something I could have in the background while working. Other folks noted that the lyrics are super dark, but I don't pay that much attention to the lyrics. I didn't find myself humming the tunes even after 2-3 listens, but still, it's something I'd want to listen to again.
Solomon Burke
2/5
I kind of neglected this album. I only listened to the first half. So, this isn't a fully informed rating. I like Solomon's voice, but the backing vocals sound a little too old timey to me.
Judas Priest
2/5
I was familiar with the two popular songs: Breaking the Law and Living After Midnight. I'm impressed at how tight they sound in the live track: Grinder. But otherwise I'm not really into it, and don't really feel a desire to listen again.
Public Image Ltd.
2/5
About 10 seconds into this album my feeling was "I'm going to like this!" Mostly because I liked the guitar and the groove. It reminded me of pixies and similar bands. But the rest of the album was a letdown. I don't like the vocals. The sound was too monotonous.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I knew the first song (Blowing in the Wind) but none of the others. Bob Dylan has a very unique delivery style and it's one that I don't mind. This album makes for very good study (coffee-shop) music, kind of like the Bruce Springsteen album.
Talking Heads
3/5
I recognized Once in a Lifetime. I didn’t know any of the other songs. I didn’t feel hooked by any of those other songs, but I’m curving the album up because other folks in the group are really into the talking heads so I’d want to give them another try.
5/5
I mean, it's just an amazing album. I know that music historians will focus on the concept of the album, or the odd mix of genres, or maybe the sound engineering. But I'm glad that the Beatles did so while _also_ writing another collection of great songs.
Elvis Presley
2/5
Meh. I like the one song I knew (Suspicious Minds) but the rest felt really dated and cheesy.
The Zombies
4/5
I only knew the last song (Time of the Season), but I liked the album overall. I'm surprised to learn that it didn't do very well when it came out. Maybe the band name put people off? It's not the sound I expect from "The Zombies". The sound like Beatles / Beach Boys / Monkeys / etc.
Stephen Stills
3/5
I was familiar with "Love the One You're With", but not the rest. The album was fine as background music. Nothing pulled me in particular.
Deep Purple
1/5
This album was really hard to listen to. I made it through the first album and most of the second, but I had to skip ahead in 2-3 songs when I just couldn't take the excessive drum solos or obnoxious screaming.
Green Day
4/5
I didn't know this album as well as Dookie. After giving it a couple of listens, it's starting to grow on me, but still not as good as the former.
OutKast
3/5
I gave it one listen through (didn't have time for a better dedicated listening session). I knew Ms Jackson and So Fresh, So Clean, and both are awesome songs. I didn't know the rest. I like Andre 3000's voice. The various skits/interludes were "meh". I might get into this more if I give it another listen. I'm also curious to try their other albums, especially Aquemini, since everybody in the group seems high on that one.
Pretenders
3/5
I was only familiar with one song: Brass in Pocket. I liked the sounds. Reminds me of some newer acts like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Strokes, etc. But also related to sounds of the time, e.g. The Police. After a couple of listens I started getting into some other songs, like Lovers of Today.
The Beach Boys
3/5
One of my first albums was Beach Boys (Endless Summer), but I didn't know this album, other than Help Me Rhonda. I like the harmonies/vocals, but for the most part the songs are fairly kids-having-fun style which feels hokey.
Terence Trent D'Arby
2/5
I knew one song pretty well: "Sign Your Name" which I like (reminds me of Sade). I was somewhat familiar with "Wishing Well" and it's OK. I also liked the harmonies in "As Yet Untitled". But a lot of the rest of the album wasn't my style. It has a solidly 80's sound that I now find a little annoying. And at times the vocals were too much for me.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
Interesting that I had to listen to this one on YouTube (Neil Young was protesting against Spotify for some reason). Some say that Neil doesn't have the best voice, and I think I agree with that. But the songs are good enough that it makes up for it. I'd want to hear it some more.
John Lennon
3/5
I knew Imagine and Jealous Guy. The rest was unfamiliar. It’s less gritty and more Beatles-like than Plastic Ono Band. I’d want to hear it again.
Le Tigre
3/5
Solid punk rock. I didn’t know any of the songs, and I didn’t particularly get hooked by any of them either. But I like the album and would want to hear it again.
The United States Of America
4/5
I like this album! The first track (after you get past the marching band montage) reminds me of Half Day Closing by Portishead. I may be overly influenced by that :-) The album as a whole has parts that sound very 60’s and parts that sound modern even today. I listened to the full album, which included some alternate takes, and some of those sounded better than the originals, more to-the-point, which is not what I expect from alternate.
X-Ray Spex
3/5
Decent punk sound but didn’t really hook me. As an aside, someone in our group mentioned that the solo Poly Styrene album is good so I also listened to that; it was a *very* different sound and I didn’t really like it. But this group album is ok.
The Stone Roses
3/5
My friends were all like "The Stone Roses are loved by Brits, and they have one good song (I Want to be Adored), and everything else is meh". I do like that song. I also liked Waterfall. Everything else was indeed meh.
Iron Maiden
3/5
I liked the backing music. It was somewhere between Van Halen and Metallica. I didn't like the vocals too much, it felt too operatic, too much vibrato. My friend Dhanu, who is a huge Iron Maiden fan, says that this is a good intro album to the band.
Guided By Voices
2/5
This album was strange. The songs are very short and most of them fade out, which leaves me with the impression that I'm listening to a preview of the album, instead of the album itself. Some songs had a catch hook but some songs were just obnoxious (e.g. the snoring in the background of Ex-Supermodel.
Fatboy Slim
3/5
I wasn’t familiar with any of these songs. Some of them had the same kind of 60’s groove that I recognize from his other songs, and like. But a good portion is techno-monotonous and best suited for the dance floor, less so for background listening.
Alice Cooper
4/5
I liked this more than I expected. It’s far more melodic than I expected. More like Boston than like metal. Some parts were a bit too theatrical (like Meatloaf), but on the whole it’s great.
Charles Mingus
2/5
I was ok with most of the album but it lost me in the last track when it felt like all the musicians were doing their own thing and clashing with each other.
It was kind of refreshing to hear music that doesn’t stick to a steady beat/tempo but flows from one groove to another. I also liked that instead of one soloist there were multiple instruments that took turns being prominent.
Various Artists
2/5
I think I recognized the version of Santa Claus is Coming to Town. The rest were unfamiliar, though the general sound was familiar. On the whole, this felt like an old-timey album and I have no real desire to hear it again.
Tangerine Dream
2/5
This sounded like background music at a science center documentary. It was a little too abstract to be interesting.
Sugar
3/5
I’m a little surprised to see this album in the mix. Sugar doesn’t seem like a big band for that era. It does have a few good songs: The Act We Act, Hoover Dam, Helpless.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
The album as a whole didn’t grab me. I liked the song Michelangelo. The rest were meh but ok as background music.
Dire Straits
3/5
The only song I really got into is the one song I was familiar with: Sultans of Swing. That’s too bad, because I like the guitar throughout this album. I was surprised to learn that Dire Straits is from the UK. I always assumed they were American. Maybe it’s their blooper video for Walk of Life that just seems American?
Miles Davis
5/5
One of my favorites. I knew this album really well but gave it a couple more listens and it still holds up, as good as ever. It’s one of the few jazz albums I really got to know and love.
Joan Baez
3/5
Interesting mix of styles: some folk, some that sound like old Irish songs, etc. Also interesting to hear her take on House of the Rising Sun. And her song Girl of Constant Sorrow. Her singing has a little too much vibrato for my taste.
New York Dolls
3/5
This album started as a 2 for me - I was put off by the rough vocals. But after 3-4 songs it got better. It reminds me of the vibe from the Train Spotting soundtrack, the sound being like Rolling Stones or Bowie.
GZA
2/5
Justin will probably kills me for this rating but I just can’t get into this album. I’m more interested in music than lyrics and this album is heavily tilted the other way. The one track I kinda liked is the last one (BIBLE).
David Bowie
4/5
I really liked this album so I'll give a rare 4. The best track is "Where Are We Now?" but I found myself getting into many of the tracks. This is cool because I never heard this album and I don't really know much about Bowie, besides the well known songs.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
Another great album. I marked 4-5 songs as favorites, starting with Boogie On Reggae Woman (which was the only song I knew) and They Won't Go When I Go (which is so beautiful).
Fairport Convention
3/5
Decent album. I liked a couple of the tracks: Autopsy and Percy's Song. Altogether there still wasn't enough to bump it to a 4 for me.
Fleetwood Mac
4/5
I've never been a huge Fleetwood Mac fan, but I can't deny that this album has a bunch of great songs. My favorites are "The Chain", "You Make Loving Fun", and "Gold Dust Woman". It's interesting to see the play counts on spotify. The Chain has over a billion views, but the other two are among the "runts" in this album.
Massive Attack
3/5
Trip Hop is one of the first genres that I _really_ got into, and that included Massive Attack, though back then I was more familiar with Mezzanine. This album was unfamiliar to me, and TBH it was kind of disappointing. I liked one track (Unfinished Sympathy) but everything else was "meh".
ABBA
4/5
It's pretty corny but I can't deny that this album has a lot of great songs.
Duran Duran
4/5
Great album. I already knew and loved a few tracks: Rio, Hungry Like the Wolf, Save a Prayer. Now I found myself getting into others: Lonely in your Nightmare, The Chauffeur. This is a borderline 5 album.
Herbie Hancock
3/5
Sounds this album has been influential and has been sampled a ton, which is cool. But I didn't really get into this album too much. Parts were OK as background music.
King Crimson
2/5
This album is a real mix. It has some good melodies, like I Talk To The Wind, or the main part of 21st Century Schizoid Man. But it also has plenty of sections that are just too experimental / artsy / crazy for my taste. The crazy drags down the album to the point where I don't really feel like listening to it again. If someone created a "sane cut" of this album, I would rate it highly.
DJ Shadow
4/5
I already knew and loved this album. But I haven't heard it in a long time and I was curious to see how well it holds up. Really well! I spotify-liked 4 tracks from the album, but I think the entire album has a great sound.
Amy Winehouse
5/5
Such an amazing album. I already knew it pretty well but I loved listening to it again and again. I liked 8 tracks, but really I like the whole thing. In our group there was some talk about how this album is more like recent R&B while "Back to Black" sounds older in a good way, and is the better album. Maybe? I don't know. This album is still very easily a 5-star.
Beatles
5/5
Great album.
Gillian Welch
3/5
I gave it a few listens but it never rose above "background music" quality. It's a shame. I tend to like bluegrass-style music, especially the harmonies.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
The album was kind of old-timey for me. It sounded like a Disney movie. The one saving grace is that it didn't have an angelic choir like Salomon Burke. And there were bits that sounded refreshingly bluesy/jazzy.
Johnny Cash
3/5
It's definitely unique that Cash was able to set up these performances in prisons. It's neat that the recording includes not just the songs but also the banter. Cash is really good at working up the crowd (pandering?). If he wasn't a musician, he could be a good standup comic. I know several of his songs and I think they're fine. But somehow it still doesn't rise above a 3-star for me. The music is 100% Americana, which I appreciate.
Taylor Swift
4/5
I really like Blank Space and Shake it Off. I kind of like Bad Blood. The rest of the album is ok. Altogether it's like a 3.5 album for me, but I'll round up.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I was familiar with Mt Tambourine Man and (I think) with Subterranean Homesick Blues. Dylan certainly has his own sound, but he's more about lyrics than music. I don't have any strong feelings about electric vs acoustic, which I guess was a major division at the time.
Madness
3/5
I knew "Our House". I also liked "Rise and Fall" and "Tomorrow's Just Another Day". The rest of the album is fine. So that puts me somewhere between a 3 and a 4.
The Chemical Brothers
3/5
Kind of a mix. I knew Block Rockin Beats -- good track. I also like Setting Sun. But some of the tracks are really monotonous and hard to listen to (e.g. It Doesn't Matter). Maybe on the dance-floor with a crowd and effects it would be OK, but it's hard to just listen to.
Shack
2/5
This album is incredibly "meh". I'm very surprised that it's included on this list. It didn't seem to ever get much commercial success, and the album doesn't do anything creative, musically.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
3/5
I like Tom Petty so I was looking forward to this. But after a couple of listens, the only tracks that hooked me are the well known ones: Breakdown and American Girl. The rest was just meh.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
This album sounded "older" than what I expected, more bluesy / folksy / something. But while I liked the overall sound, I didn't find myself getting hooked by specific songs. I slightly got into Tumbling Dice. I was also surprised how much Shake Your Hips sounds like the Z Z Top song La Grange.
Super Furry Animals
4/5
This album really grew on me with every listen. Interesting that the songs I liked first are among the ones with the fewest listens (shoot Doris day, presidential suite, sidewalk serfer girl).
Nirvana
5/5
This album is gold. Even the screaming songs are melodic. It's impressive that Nirvana was able to put together multiple albums of this caliber.
PJ Harvey
4/5
I knew nothing about PJ Harvey before listening to this album, and I really liked it. In particular I like "Oh My Lover" and "Dress", but the whole album has a good sound.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
This is a tough album. I like the background music, especially the strings. But I just can’t get into a full album of talking instead of singing. These tracks seem like they would fit pretty well in a preview to a movie or a montage sequence, but it’s not the kind of thing I want to listen to again.
Dusty Springfield
3/5
I'm a sucker for a soulful woman vocalist, especially if the voice is a little raspy and tortured. I also like strings. And the overall sound manages to avoid sounding too old-timey for me. Still, aside from the well known track (Son of a Preacher Man) I only ended up liking a couple of tracks: "Windmills of Your Mind" and "I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore".
Tim Buckley
2/5
I didn't get into this. The songs droned and there wasn't much of a hook. The vibes/chimes is a sound I like occasionally but not here.
Underworld
2/5
It's techno, which is not really my thing. Interesting that I slightly prefer some of the non-popular tracks like Blueski. Banstyle is ok too.
Snoop Dogg
4/5
I'm not at all into gangsta culture so I'm not into the lyrics. But I can't deny that the grooves and delivery are great, so I'll somewhat reluctantly give it a higher rating.
R.E.M.
4/5
I'm pretty familiar with other REM albums, but this one not so much. I liked a few of the songs: Pop Song 89, Orange Crush, and Hairshirt. Stand is a good song but overplayed. The rest is meh. This leaves me between a 3 and a 4, but I'll round up.
Depeche Mode
3/5
I like Depeche Mode. Their sound is clearly 80's but somehow isn't dated. That said, I only got into a couple of the tracks here, the better knowns ones: Never Let Me Down Again (which I knew) and Behind The Wheel (which I didn't). So, as a whole it's not as good as their other albums.
Earth, Wind & Fire
3/5
I was familiar with Shining Star, but not the rest. It sounds a lot like Bee Gees. It's OK, but doesn't especially hook me.
The Byrds
3/5
I like the overall sound and I liked a couple of the tracks: Hey Joe and John Riley. But it doesn’t quite rise above a three for me.
Richard Hawley
3/5
It's a little surprising to find it on the list of top 1001 albums because I don't see anything particularly unique about it. It sounds a little old, like Elvis or whatnot. But it's an OK melancholy sound.
Aretha Franklin
3/5
Her voice is amazing and the popular track (Respect) is huge. The rest of the tracks still showcase her voice, but none of them had the same hook.
Peter Gabriel
4/5
I love this album. I was familiar with ~half the songs from long ago when I used to listen to the Secret World Live tour album. It's interesting to hear the original version of Don't Give Up, with Kate Bush instead of Paula Cole. The overall sound has some overlap with Paul Simon and (world) and Genesis/80's.
Pantera
4/5
This album is nostalgic for me. It was the peak of my strange headbanger phase in high school. For all the screaming the songs are pretty melodic, reminds me of Metallica or late Ozzy. The rhythms are great too. I never feel this level of aggression so I don't think I'll be going back to this album much, but I still like it.
Astrud Gilberto
3/5
I like the bossanova sound -- it's great background music. And I've heard some Astrud Gilberto before. That said, after a couple listens, I didn't get hooked by any particular songs.
Talking Heads
2/5
Not my thing. I kind of like "Cities" but I couldn't get into the rest of the album. I get that it's experimental and it is a unique sound, but it just didn't hook me.
Adele
3/5
Adele has a wonderful voice. She has always seemed ahead of her age. I was familiar with several songs on this album, but the only one that I really like is "Send My Love". So, despite the many hits, I'll go with a 3-star for this one.
Little Richard
3/5
He has a great voice and probably would have been fun to see live. But for me it’s a little too old times.
Faust
2/5
The song Jennifer was ok, but a lot of the album was just too experimental/annoying/long for me to get into.
Beatles
4/5
It's not my favorite Beatles album, but still, it's the Beatles and they're awesome. My favorites are Things We Said Today and I'll Be Back. A lot of the album is pretty early boy-band like.
Justin Timberlake
4/5
What I really like here is Timberland's rhythms/hooks. Justin himself has a good voice. The content is "meh" for me. Still, I like 3 of the tracks: Senorita, Cry Me a River, Rock Your Body. So, that's good for a 4 star.
Fela Kuti
3/5
Sounds like this was a very important album *politically*. I don't know a lot about Nigeria so it doesn't speak to me from that perspective, but it's impressive that it caused such a stir. For me the music is decent.
Jimmy Smith
3/5
I like the overall sound. Makes for good background music while I'm working. That said, none of the tracks grabbed me in particular.
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
It's not quite "Bridge Over Troubled Water", but it's still a pretty solid album. I love their harmonies.
50 Cent
2/5
I'm just not really into gangsta rap, and musically this album is less interesting than some others. The exceptions being the well known tracks: In Da Club and PIMP.
3/5
The song "Dictionary" is kind of annoying, but the rest of the album is actually pretty interesting, musically. Still, it doesn't quite reach 4-level.
Steely Dan
3/5
I like Reeling In The Years, and Do It Again is pretty good too. The rest of the album is fine but didn't especially grab me.
Johnny Cash
3/5
I was a little surprised to see two Johnny Cash live-from-a-prison albums on this list. Looks like they were released within about a year of each other too. But interestingly they only share one track, so the content is almost entirely unique. Anyhow, I like Cash but it's not one of my favorites.
Ms. Dynamite
3/5
The sound reminds me of Lauryn Hill. Looks like this album was released about 4 years after Miseducation.
Rush
3/5
I like Rush and I'm not as bothered by Geddy Lee's voice, or by their hokey scifi lyrics. That said, the songs on this album don't hook me as much as other albums.
Sleater-Kinney
3/5
I liked this album. It has the energy of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but is less poppy, more rock. Seems related to PJ Harvey in the feminist beat. I'm guessing if I listened to it a few more times it would bump up to a 4.
Radiohead
5/5
Another great Radiohead album. I wasn't as familiar with this one as earlier works, but I quickly liked 6 of the tracks, and would probably like more with additional listens.
Björk
5/5
I wish I could give 6 stars. This album is so good. With most albums I count the songs I especially like, but with this album that's basically all the songs (maybe I'd skip Violently Happy).
Ali Farka Touré
3/5
This worked as pleasant/chill background music. I didn't get particularly hooked by any of the tracks.
Stan Getz
4/5
Solid album. I like the bossanova sound, and this album has enough catchy songs to go above average.
The Cardigans
5/5
Wonderful album. Every song is great.
Pearl Jam
5/5
I knew this album by heart and I still like it. There's a lot of raw energy combined with great melodies and some interesting rhythms. I love Porch - can't get enough of that.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
I gave it a couple of listens. I like the 4 better-known tracks: Good Times Bad Times, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, Dazed and Confused, Communication Breakdown. The rest of the tracks have a good bluesy/rocky feel, though at times they get a little long or a little screechy.
King Crimson
2/5
This album was tough to get through. A few parts were pretty good, including Book of Saturday and parts of Larks. But there were other tracks that were very terious, like The Talking Drum.
Slayer
2/5
I didn't enjoy any of this, which is interesting because I do like some other bands from this genre/era (like Metallica, Pantera, etc). It's like this band included all the parts I'm not psyched about (the rage) and excluded all the parts I do like (melody, interesting rhythms).
Neil Young
3/5
I like the music. It works well as background/study music. Neil Young‘s voice is not my favorite, but it doesn’t bother me that much.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
3/5
Janis Joplin has a really special voice. It was interesting to learn that Piece of my Heart is a cover -- the original by Erma Franklin was released a year earlier. I didn't get a chance to give this album focused listens, but I found myself playing it in the background more. I could see going to 4 stars with more listens.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
I knew the 4 popular songs: Exodus, Jamming, Three Little Birds, One Love. Interesting to learn that there was an assassination attempt on Marley not long before this album, that there was such political upheaval in Jamaica and Marley was caught up in it.
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
2/5
I know almost nothing about Michael Franti. This album reminds me of Public Enemy, both for the political bent and for the rapping sounding like Chuck D. It's not bad but it's not really my thing.
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
The album has a noisy-guitar sound that reminds me of Catherine Wheel. It has understated melancholy vocals. It's the kind of sound I would have really gotten into years ago. There was only one track that I really got into, the popular one: "Only Tomorrow". Conversely, I really hated "Nothing Is" - that's basically unplayable. The rest of the album is fine.
The Temptations
3/5
Good Motown sound. The well known track is "Papa was a Rolling Stone". Interesting that the band was against including that song, but then it became their big hit. It was strange to listen to "Run Charlie Run" with its lyrics "the N's are coming" (and if it's unsettling now, I can't imagine how it sounded in the early 70's).
CHIC
3/5
I knew the popular track: Le Freak. The rest of the album has a similar disco vibe. It's a decent album when you're in the mood for that style.
Eminem
4/5
I’m not into the horrorcore genre, but some of Eminem’s lyrics are pretty funny. His delivery is excellent and the backing music is solid.
Fela Kuti
2/5
Not my thing. The language/topics don't speak to me, and the music was a little too drum-heavy to work as background music.
Amy Winehouse
5/5
It's pretty badass to only make two albums in your life and have them both show up in "1001 albums you must hear before you die". And it's completely justified too. I ended up liking 5 songs, but really the entire album is fantastic.
Jungle Brothers
3/5
Initially the sound was fun and nostalgic. But after a while it became monotonous - the same beat, same rhythm, same delivery on every song.
The Offspring
4/5
I knew the popular tracks: Come Out and Play, and Self Esteem. I found myself getting into some of the other tracks, like Smash, so I'll bump this up a bit.
Public Enemy
3/5
Seems like an important album for hiphop history. I knew Bring the Noise, and I seemed to recognize a bunch of other clips, likely because other artists sampled Public Enemy (e.g. I think I heard the "Rump Shaker" groove in there). On the whole it's not the kind of album I would go back to.
808 State
3/5
First listen was a little irritating, but on the second listen it grew on me a little. Pacific State is the best track. Donkey Doctor is decent too.
Nanci Griffith
3/5
It’s a decent background music sort of album. I’m a sucker for folksy harmony vocals but it’s not quite a 4.
The Sugarcubes
3/5
I really like Bjork but I don't know Sugarcubes that well, and after a couple of listens I'm not really into them. I like her voice but this music is very different from her style. It reminds me more of Talking Heads or (as mentioned in our chat) the Sprokets skit from SNL. I only knew one track on this album: Birthday. That seems to be the popular track and it is pretty good. Some of the other ones are just funny-weird, like Delicious Demon.
Elliott Smith
5/5
Amazing album. This is the first time I'm giving a 5 to an album I previously didn't know at all. I think I might have heard the name "Elliott Smith" before, but I never heard any of the tracks, not even "Between The Bars" (which has 186M plays on Spotify). This is one of my favorite "finds" so far in this 1001 project.
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
3/5
I think if the barbershop-like backing vocals weren't there, this album would sound more timeless. But with those vocals it's squarely old-timey.
John Martyn
3/5
Initially I found the album kind of irritating, mostly because of John's voice on the first track and a couple of others. But the music is OK and his voice was very different and much better on other tracks, so ultimately it pulled it up to OK level. This is a kind of world/fusion music that I don't often go for.
1/5
Dear lord that was awful. I'm a little shocked I made it through the album. There were only brief moments that were in any way listenable. The rest was an attack on my ears and my soul.
The Cramps
3/5
They have good energy. I bet they were fun to see live. The songs themselves are OK.
Elliott Smith
5/5
Another great album from Elliott Smith, who I only recently discovered. This one has more piano and orchestral elements, so it sounds more like some Beatles albums or Ben Folds. For me it has a couple of truly standout tracks (Son of Sam and Everything Means Nothing To Me), but the entire album is very solid. Maybe not quite at the level of Either Or, but still amazing.
4/5
I knew the two popular songs (Starlight and Supermassive Black Hole). Those tracks are still good. The album as a whole reminds me of Depeche Mode, and it's more prog rock than I anticipated, but is pretty decent.
Van Halen
4/5
This album gets a 4 almost single-handedly because of Eddie Van Halen's incredible guitar work, especially on Eruption but also just throughout the album. There are also several banger tracks like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", though there are also a bunch of "filler" tracks.
Sister Sledge
3/5
I mean "We Are Family" is a culturally important song -- people play it at so many events. And it was interesting to recognize other tracks that were sampled, e.g. Will Smith used the music from He's the Greatest Dancer in Gettin' Jiggy With It. That said, it's not the kind of album I would go back to often.
Mike Ladd
3/5
I'm surprised to see an album with so few Spotify plays show up on this list. The top track is Bladerunners with ~200K plays, and everything else is 50K or less. This might be the lowest so far. Still, I liked some of the grooves/beats.
Beatles
5/5
Very easily a 5-star album. Possibly my favorite Beatles album.
R.E.M.
3/5
I know some of REM's work, but not so much this album, aside from Radio Free Europe. The overall sound is good, but I didn't really get hooked by any of the songs.
Brian Eno
3/5
Meh. Some of the tracks were like Talking Heads, which I don't especially love. I liked the second half a little more, especially the songs "Here He Comes" and "By This River". But overall the album was just middling.
Public Image Ltd.
2/5
Nope, not my thing. There were a few tracks that almost had a good punk sound and slightly reminded me of the Pixies. But most of the album was pretty abrasive.
Jane's Addiction
5/5
Wonderful album. I don't think I ever owned it but I did somehow know it pretty well, and it holds up after all these years. I Liked 5 out of 9 tracks, but really the whole album is solid.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
I like CCR and this album is really solid. Also, this is impressive: "It was the second of three albums they released in that year"
Metallica
3/5
I know some Metallica but wasn't very familiar with this album, except for the title track and Sanitarium. I like the mix of acoustic guitar and hard hock. The sound is tight but the songs are ok. I think their other albums are better.
Jane's Addiction
3/5
This album is OK but nowhere near as good as "Ritual". It has the right sound (vocals / guitar), but the songs just don't hook me nearly as much.
Aerosmith
4/5
Solid rock album. Stehan Tyler has an amazing voice. I love the use of horns/strings/etc. Plus a few really great songs: Love in an Elevator, Janie's Got a Gun, What it Takes.
Mudhoney
3/5
I was excited to listen to this one because Mudhoney is one of those names I heard mentioned a lot as part of the grunge movement, but it's a band I don't really know (unlike Pearl Jam, Nirvana, etc). This album was super long: 32 tracks and more than 2 hours. Apparently it includes both the original album and a bunch of extras. The band has the same hard-rock energy that comes up for the other grunge bands, but none of the songs really hooked me.
Calexico
3/5
I only listened one time through. I think I should go back to this one to give it another try. The sound was intriguing -- some latino sounds, various strings, etc.
The Beach Boys
3/5
I love the Beach Boys' harmonies. This album has two great songs: Wouldn't It Be Nice and God Only Knows. The rest are fine.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
3/5
The album is OK, except for when Neil Young sings (e.g. Helpless). I don't think I realized "Our House" was from CSNY.
Missy Elliott
4/5
The beats are fantastic, which might be Missy or might be Timbaland. The harmonies are great and the rap delivery is awesome. They lyrics are "meh" for me, but there's some creative stuff in there.
The Soft Boys
3/5
I listened to the main 10 tracks a couple of times (but not to the ~30 bonus tracks). The sound is fine. Some parts remind me of Pixies. The reviews keep saying how they influenced REI, and...I guess? I don't know, the album is OK.
Curtis Mayfield
3/5
Interesting to learn that this album earned more than the corresponding movie. The sounds good, but I only got hooked by a couple of tracks, and eventually the falsetto got kind of old.
Beck
5/5
Fantastic album. I was familiar with this one, but it still plays well ~20 years later. I remember it was strange to get used to this more folksy style of Beck, as compared to the hip-hop/sampling/etc from his previous albums, but I ended up liking it just as much or maybe more. Also interesting that my favorite tracks (e.g. Paper Tiger, End of the Day, Round the Bend, Little One) are NOT the most popular ones (Lost Cause, The Golden Age), though I like all the tracks on this album.
The Darkness
2/5
Another highly questionable selection for this 1001 list. It sounds like ~80’s rock (Kiss, Scorpions, etc) seemingly with nothing new to add. And the lead singer is…not my favorite. Very operatic and irritating.
Tom Waits
2/5
Strange dude. This is like the easy listening version of Trout Mask Replica. I’ve heard other music by Tom Waits that I liked much better, stuff that was more standard blues/folk, less experimental.
Animal Collective
3/5
I'd heard "My Girls" before and it's a decent track. The rest of the album was fine but didn't grab me in particular.
B.B. King
3/5
His guitar playing and his voice are amazing. The background chatter from the crowd is great too. I was only familiar with the little bit from "How Blue Can You Get?" that was sampled by Primitive Radio Gods. I would love to hear this more, but so far I didn't hear enough to bump it above a 3.
Nas
3/5
I knew very little about this album, even though "Nas" is a name I've heard a fair amount in the past. Interesting that he and Jay-Z were battling for position as King of NY. Seems like Jay-Z went way further. I'm not especially drawn to the topics, but the grooves are solid.
Lightning Bolt
2/5
I made it through the album, but only barely. It's noise/chaos that once in a while almost sounds like a song.
Morrissey
3/5
The album is "meh". After a couple of listens, there was only one track that sounded interesting: Late Night, Maudlin Street. Also, it's interesting to learn that Morrissey has become a bit of a right-wing nut job. Still, I'd be interested to hear some of The Smiths.
Mike Oldfield
3/5
It's interesting that this album did as well as it did. It's almost entirely instrumental and is a little out there (classical / guitar / prog rock / etc). I enjoyed it as background music, especially the parts with mandolin. The parts with the voice-over were a little funny/annoying.
4/5
I knew a couple of the tracks and I ended up liking three: Starman, Ziggy Stardust, Suffragate City (this one especially). The album is growing on me.
Sigur Rós
3/5
This album was ok. On first listen it was kind of droning/bland, though I liked hearing some classical instruments in the mix. On second listen I started to pick up some melodies that slightly hooked me, though it still had a movie-score feel. Other people in my group were put off by Sigur Ros using a made up language on one of the tracks in this album (and for the entirety of other albums) but I don't pay attention to lyrics as much anyways so it didn't bother me.
The Smiths
3/5
I didn't know this album at all. It has the same kind of sad-80's vibe as The Cure, though less goth. I kind of got into Bigmouth, but on the whole the album didn't especially hook me.
4/5
I don't love how Oasis is so full of themselves. But the album is pretty good.
Patti Smith
3/5
This will be a lame review because I heard the album 2-3 days ago so I don't remember it that well. On the whole it was fine but didn't grab me especially.
The White Stripes
4/5
Great album. I liked 3 of the tracks, the popular ones: Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground, Fell In Love With A Girl, We're Going To Be Friends. But I came close to clicking a bunch of other tracks.
Curtis Mayfield
3/5
The sound is similar to Superfly but none of the songs hooked me.
The Mamas & The Papas
3/5
California Drearming is a huge song, and I like Spanish Harlem too. But the altogether the album falls just shy of a 4-star for me. If it also had Dream a Little Dream, it would push me over (that's an amazing track).
The Dandy Warhols
3/5
The album was very meh. No song stood out. The sound was OK.
The Human League
3/5
Fun album. The famous track is the last one (Don't You Want Me Baby), but all the songs had the same fell, and I half-expected them to bust into that lyric at any moment. Interesting that this is the only track that has female vocals (and they're not bad!); all the others have just the guy singing. I could imagine this one growing to a 4 after some more listens.
Kendrick Lamar
3/5
I listened through the album once and also spent time just reading the lyrics, because I don't pick up enough just hearing it. I appreciate that Kendrick has more to say than just "I'm all this n that". It's refreshing to see a successful rapper dissect his inner demons: guilt about using his success/influence to take advantage of people, or of neglecting his close relations, plus questioning what he even knows about life (after his trip to Africa). The backing music is rich and varied. I think I'll need more listens to really appreciate it. Anyhow, I'm glad I finally started getting to know him as an artist because for me so far he's just been part of some headlines with his dis track battles with Drake.
The Isley Brothers
3/5
The album is ok, decent funk sound. Slightly disappointing that two of the bigger tracks are covers from a year prior: Listen to the Music and Summer Breeze.
The xx
3/5
I was excited about this one because the last XX album was one of my favorite discoveries of this whole 1001 project. This album has the same kind of vocals, a similar haunting feel, but with more varied instrumentation. But the melodies just don’t hook me as much.
CHVRCHES
3/5
Synth pop. Some parts sound very 80’s. Some parts remind me of Ellie Goulding. It was fun easy listening but nothing special.
Harry Nilsson
4/5
Strange album, with a mix of power ballad (Without You) and quirky (Coconut) and other styles. I found a few songs here that I like so it bumps it up to a four.
The Avalanches
3/5
I was slightly familiar with this album. I love Frontier Psychologist, both for the intricate mix of dialogue, score, and beats, and because it’s just funny. The title track is pretty good too. The rest of the album kind of blends as interesting techno, but not necessarily something I would find myself humming to myself.
MGMT
4/5
Three great tracks and the whole album has interesting beats / production.
Tracy Chapman
3/5
Tracy has a 5-star voice and Fast Car is a 5-star song. But the rest of the album has 3-star melodies.
Cheap Trick
3/5
Two good songs and otherwise an ok collection. I’m surprised this is the album that made them take off. Seems like they already had a decent following by the time this was recorded.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
3/5
I like aspects of bluegrass, like the vocal harmonies and some of the virtuoso strings. But the rhythms can be monotonous, especially on a long album like this. I liked some of the studio session banter in this recording, but eventually that got old too.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
I knew the Devil song and nothing else. I like the overall sound and would enjoy hearing it some more, but even after 3 listens no other track really grabs me.
Yes
3/5
This album was definitely better than the last Yes album. I liked "Mood for a Day", and the first track was pretty decent too.
Funkadelic
3/5
The album is not available on spotify. I heard a version on YouTube that I _hope_ was the right one. On one hand I found myself thinking "wow, that's one classic hook after another". On the other hand, some of the songs went into these long jam sessions like Phish might, which for me gets a little old.
XTC
4/5
I liked this album! In particular these tracks: Ballet for a Rainy Day, 1000 Umbrellas, Another Satellite, Dear God.
Thundercat
3/5
Before listening I first read a bit about Thundercat, including that he was in Suicidal Tendencies. That context totally threw me off; I expected the album to be very different from what it was -- no punk/thrash, just a mellow mix of jazz and hip hop, with some tongue-in-cheek lyrics. There are some really cool chord progressions, like in DUI. I'd want to listen to this again.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
I really liked this album. Specific tracks I liked: "Suzanne", "Hey, that's no way to say goodbye", "Stories of the street".
Frank Zappa
2/5
Not a fan. I knew very little about Zappa before listening to this album. Based on the bits I'd picked up about him in pop culture I expected this album to be very weird. Relative to my expectations, this album was fairly tame. Some songs were actually decent (e.g. Peaches En Regalia). But some songs were way too jammy and annoying (e.g. Gumbo Variations).
Queen
3/5
I like Queen, for the harmonies, the guitar, and in general for their anthems. But after a couple of listens, Killer Queen is the only track that seems like a great _song_. The other tracks have good elements but don't hook me as much.
Milton Nascimento
3/5
The one track I really like is O Trem Azul. Aside from that, I like the vibe of the album, but nothing else stood out as a really memorable song.
Todd Rundgren
2/5
I liked a couple of the tracks: International Feel and Sometimes I Don't Know What To Feel. But the album also had several crazy tracks like Dogfight Giggle and Da Da Dali which ultimately brought down the album for me.
Elvis Costello
3/5
I was familiar with "Watching the Detectives". Good song. I gave the album a couple of listens and none of the other songs really stood out. the album has a retro sound that reminds me of earlier rock days. It also seems like Billy Joel, but doesn't have the awesome melodies.
Aretha Franklin
4/5
This album has two killer songs (Chain of Fools and You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman). The rest of the tracks are OK, but Aretha has a 5-star voice, so it pulls it up for me.
Peter Gabriel
3/5
I knew the popular track: Games Without Frontiers. I didn't know anything else. I like Gabriel's voice and some of the instrumentation, but none of the other tracks really hooked me.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I was familiar with "Like a Rolling Stone", which is an anthem. I didn't know the rest. Dylan has good energy, but it's mostly about the words, less about the melodies, and I care more about the latter.
Culture Club
3/5
Karma Chameleon is of course a huge track. I didn't know any of the other songs, but it's an easy, fun listen. I was surprised how many tracks had that "soul" singer featured.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
This was a fun throwback. In those early 90's years I was far more into other bands (Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains) than into Smashing Pumpkins. Now, years later, I'm getting into it more. I specifically liked two of the popular tracks (Cherub Rock and Rockit), but I enjoyed the entire album.
R.E.M.
5/5
Incredible album. I ended up Spotify-liking 9 of the tracks, and they were NOT the popular ones (which I also like but were overplayed).
Skepta
3/5
I was totally unfamiliar with the whole genre of "grimes" music. I don't really know much about British rap except The Streets, which I like. By comparison this album didn't hook me as much.
Boston
4/5
Great album. I don't know if there's a more quintessential "classic rock station" album. The first 5 tracks are all killer.
John Prine
3/5
I liked this album as "coffee shop music" - perfect to have in the background as I worked.
Lorde
3/5
Pretty good album, but not as amazing as Pure Heroine.
Nick Drake
4/5
Great album. Previously I only knew the title track, but I wanted to hear it because I kept hearing people mention Nick Drake when talking about Elliott Smith. Besides the title track, which is great, I also liked "Road" and "Things Behind The Sun", but really the whole album is great. I'd want to hear his other albums.
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
I love the song White Rabbit, so I was looking forward to the rest of this album. Of course I also knew Somebody to Love -- good track. The rest of the album is OK but doesn't rise to that level.
Small Faces
2/5
Not really into this album. The first track is OK. Some other tracks reminded me of CCR, in a good way. But the album lost me with the talking tracks. I think I wasn't in the mood to listen to a story and didn't get into this concept.
Arcade Fire
4/5
Great album. Something about Arcade Fire reminds me of Talking Heads (maybe just the vocals), but the melodies are much more interesting. I ended up liking 4 of the tracks: Tunnels, Power Out, Wake Up, and In the Back Seat. I guess the only notable thing is that I didn't specifically mark Rebellion, which is like the second biggest song by plays. But really the whole album it pretty awesome.
The Notorious B.I.G.
3/5
This was a hole in my musical knowledge - I only knew the popular tracks: Juicy and Pig Poppa. Some of the backing tracks are great, especially ones that sound like movie scores (so I guess props to P Ditty for that). Biggie has a great delivery and I especially liked the tracks that were dialogs. But at the end of the day I’m not really into the style.
Cream
4/5
I spotify-liked 3 tracks (Strange Brew, Sunshine of Your Love, Tales of Brave Ulysses), but I enjoyed the overall sound, especially the bluesier tracks. I saw connections to Hendrix, Rolling Stones, and a through-line to White Stripes.
Meat Puppets
2/5
This was a bit of a disappointment to me, because I *really* like Too High To Die. But the two albums have pretty different sounds (which I guess is not too surprising because they were also separated by 10 *years*). What I like about Too High To Die is the tight harmonies and great melodies. By comparison this album almost has intentionally amateurish sounding vocals and meh melodies. I respect that Nirvana chose to play some of these tracks on their unplugged set, but I like Nirvana's take better.
R.E.M.
4/5
This is like a 3.5 for me. I'm rounding up. I spotify-liked 3 tracks: Finest Worksong, End of the World as we Know It, The One I Love. The rest of the tracks have the REM sound I like, but the songs themselves are not as good.
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
It's fine. I found it very hard to listen to this album while driving on the highway -- all the white noise from the road blended with the white noise from the album. I had to have a quiet setting to listen to the noise :-) When I did, the music was OK but didn't really stand out.
Kendrick Lamar
3/5
Interesting contrast between this album (which is early in Kendrick's career, and talks a lot more about growing up in a rough neighborhood, with aspirations to be rich) versus the last one we heard (which is much later in his career and almost shows guilt for having succeeded as much as he did). The music and rapping is fine but it's still just not my thing.
David Bowie
3/5
I liked this album. Some parts reminded me of Radiohead, or Peter Gabriel. It's a high 3 and might go to a 4 with more listens.
Nina Simone
4/5
The only thing I knew about this album is the song "Lilac Wine", which I first heard as the Buckley cover. I quickly grew to like Nina's version more. And after a few listens I got into a few other songs: Four Women, That's All I Ask, Black Is The Color Of My True Love's Hair, Either Way I Lose. I can see a pretty straight shot from Nina to other artists I like, e.g. Amy Winehouse, Lauryn Hill.
Massive Attack
3/5
The title track is a great song. The rest have a groove that I really like, but don't have the same level of melodies.
The Residents
1/5
This is a challenging album. It's like They Might Be Giants but crazier and more dissonant. Some songs have Tom Waits-like vocals and others are circus'y. It's wild to read this from the wikipedia article: "Some noted that the Residents were approaching commercial elements with this EP" - I wonder how out there they were with prior albums. Along the way there were some songs that almost sounded OK, like Krafty Cheese. But the album as a whole really tested my patience, especially tracks like "Ds/Bag Suite".
Nick Drake
4/5
Great album. I specifically liked three tracks: Fruit Trees, Time Has Told Me, and Day Is Done. But the whole album is great.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
Solid album. The title track is an anthem. The two tracks I like most are "I'm On Fire" and "Dancing In The Dark". Some other tracks like "My Hometown" are growing on me.
Sly & The Family Stone
3/5
Decent album. The one track I really liked was "Runnin' Away". It has the kind of vibe I like, somewhat reminiscent of Air. The rest of the album was OK background music but nothing stood out, including the song "Family Affair", which I guess was the big hit.
The Lemonheads
3/5
It's an OK album but I'm not sure it belongs on this list. I really like the title track. I like the guitar in Rudderless and kind of like Frank Mills. The rest of the album is meh. It was interesting to learn that Juliana Hatfield was part of the band.
Peter Frampton
3/5
I like two of the tracks: Show Me The Way and Do You Feel Like We Do. The talking guitar thing is kind of a gimmick but it’s fun. Interesting that it was a live album that propelled them to fame.
Elton John
4/5
Three really great tracks in a row: Candle in the Wind, Bennie and the Jets, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. But the rest of the album is kind of meh. I'm not even into the other popular song: Saturday Night's Alright. Still those three tracks are enough for more than a 3.
Eagles
3/5
The album is OK. I can see a through-line from The Eagles to other bands I like with similar sounds, especially Wilco. But I didn't get into the songs on this album as much. The one track I liked is Train Leaves Here This Morning.
The Divine Comedy
3/5
Interesting/questionable pick for the 1001 list. Spotify shows that it only has so many plays, and wikipedia says that the one single from this album (Everybody Knows) peaked at #14 on the UK charts. I dig the orchestral background, but the only track that really stood out for me is Timewatching.
David Bowie
4/5
Pretty good album. I already knew and liked a couple of the tracks: Changes and Life On Mars?. After another listen I got into some other tracks like "Oh! Your Pretty Things" and "Queen Bitch". Interesting that people regard this album as the one where "Bowie became Bowie" (where he settled into his sound). Also interesting that it didn't become popular until after the next album was released (Ziggy).
I didn't know Rod Stewart was in a band called Faces, and I didn't realize he was making music back in 1971 -- I always associated him more with the 80's for some reason. Anyhow, the album is OK. Some parts remind me of Rolling Stones. Some tracks have a throughline to newer stuff, like "That's All You Need" could easily be a Guns n Roses song. Rod's voice used to bother me but now I kinda like it. The album as a whole is OK.
Paul Simon
3/5
Wait, Paul Simon was married to Carrie Fisher? No way! Anyhow...
I think "You Can Call Me Al" is the first song I knew from Paul Simon, and it's still awesome. Otherwise I didn't really know this album.
The Boy in the Bubble sounds like it could be a Bob Dylan song.
The album is OK but I don't like it nearly as much as some of the Simon/Garfunkel albums, especially Bridge Over Troubled Water.
The Doors
4/5
Great album. Would want to give it more listens to become familiar with the less-known songs. The tracks I marked so far are the popular ones (Break On Thorugh, Light My Fire) and The Crystal Ship.
TV On The Radio
4/5
Really pleasant surprise here. I knew nothing about TVOTR, but I gave it extra attention because of the way Ambika and Russ raved about it. I ended up spotify-liking quite a few of the tracks: Halfway Home, Dancing Choose, Stork & Owl, Family Tree, Love Dog, DLZ. Some parts of the album sound related to Beck and other artists I like, and it sounds like they collaborated with Bjork and others. I should spend time listening to their other albums.
Garbage
4/5
Solid album. I marked 4 tracks: Supervixen, Queer, Only Happy When It Rains, and Vow. I'm less into Stupid Girl, maybe because it was overplayed. But the whole album is quality.
Bob Dylan
3/5
The album is fine as background, but no tracks stood out after a couple of listens. Not sure why this album is regarded so highly.
The Velvet Underground
3/5
I like the book-end tracks: Candy Says and After Hours. The latter is the only track I recognized. Everything in the middle is kind of "meh", including Pale Blue Eyes, which I guess was the big track from this album.
Murder Mystery is an interesting track. It has parts that are great and parts that are annoying.
Dire Straits
3/5
I knew the two popular tracks: Money for Nothing and Walk Of Life. I associate both very strongly with the heyday of early Mtv, when music videos were a big deal. I think Walk of Life was how I learned the concept of sports bloopers. The rest of the album is OK but nothing stands out too much (the title track almost rises). The album is more world-sound and 80's than I anticipated.
Dennis Wilson
2/5
This album may have gotten a 3 if it was a normal length, but the fact that it's 33 songs and nearly 2 hours long just makes it annoying.
Carole King
4/5
Solid album. I liked 4 tracks, the popular ones: I Feel the Earth Move, It's Too Late, You've Got a Friend, You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman. But the whole album was a good listen.
Kanye West
3/5
A lot of drama with Kanye, which makes it hard to rate this just based on the music - he's become such an imbalanced Trumpy mess. The backing tracks are pretty awesome throughout - I think Kanye's strength is as a producer. The lyrics don't really speak to me. And this is not an album I heard at all when it was released, so no nostalgia.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
Solid album. I specifically liked 3 tracks: Living For the City, Higher Ground, Don't You Worry Bout A Thing. But I enjoyed the whole thing, as is often the case with Stevie Wonder.
Fats Domino
3/5
I was only familiar with one track: Blueberry Hill. The overall sound is a little too old-timey for me to get into, but it's fine as background music.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
2/5
I'm somewhat familiar with Penguin Cafe, but not this album. The tracks here seem much more experimental and at time a little irritating (e.g. "Zopf: Milk", and "The Sounds Of Someone You Love Who's Going Away And It Doesn't Matter"). The rest of the album is decent, but I think it comes off as a disappointment to me because I like their other work so much more, the stuff that is more orchestral and chill. Interesting that it was produced by Brian Eno. I guess that fits.
The Cure
4/5
Really liked a few of the tracks: Pictures Of You, Lovesong, Lullaby. Fascination Street is also decent. And the whole album is a good listen. Interesting that the band was trying to get away from pop, to make something deep/lasting, and they ended up with their most successful album.
Big Star
3/5
The group seemed to throw shade at this album, but I was fine with it. Specific tracks I liked: Femme Fatale, Holocaust, Nature Boy. The rest was OK.
Neil Young
3/5
I like the popular tracks: Heart of Gold, Old Man, The Needle and the Damage Done. I don't pay as much attention to lyrics normally but I'm annoyed with A Man Needs a Maid. I don't love Neil Young's voice, but there's enough here musically to get over that.
Fiona Apple
5/5
Might be my #1 album from this entire list. There are very few albums where I think every single song is fantastic. I love Fiona's voice. I love the downtempo, the piano and strings, the strong emotion. I love it all.
Michael Kiwanuka
4/5
I knew nothing about Michael Kiwanuka. I like "Living in Denial" and "Hard to Say Goodbye" and "Light". The latter's music sounds like Air. Also "Final Days" reminds me of "Roads" by Portishead. I'd like to check out more of his music.
Laibach
2/5
They say this album was hugely influential for industrial music, and I guess I can see that. I associate industrial with NIN, which released Pretty Hate Machine in 1989, two years after this album. Anyhow, some of this music has that industrial/buzzy guitar/synth sound, but some also has kind of a poppy 80's sound. The voice...I just can't get into that. Some tracks verged on scary circus music, and some of the last tracks were just really hard to get through ("Herz-Felde" and "Jagerspiel"). I find it weird that the band spent most of their career doing covers. And I'm not into the schtick of wearing military uniforms and avoiding "breaking character" in interviews - seems like too much of a show.
Primal Scream
3/5
I didn't know anything about this band, which is interesting because the top track Movin' On Up has over 100M plays on spotify. The album was OK. Nothing stood out, but it was fine as background music while working or at the gym.
The Pogues
3/5
It's like Lord of the Dance meets punk. It's a fun listen when you're in the mood for that happy-drunk-roudy vibe. My favorite track was the one that featured a guest singer, Kristy MacColl.
Songhoy Blues
3/5
This was more bluesy and rocky than I expected from musicians from Mali. It's an interesting listen, but I don't speak the language so it doesn't pull me as much.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
I know very little about LCD Soundsystem so I was looking forward to this. The album has an 80's-like feel. The songs are all fine, but nothing really hooked me. Looks like some of their other albums had more catchy songs (e.g. "Daft Punk is Playing at My House").
Iron Butterfly
3/5
The style reminds me a lot of The Doors, which makes sense - their debut was in 1967, just one year prior. Interesting that this album's most popular track (title track) is 17 minutes long and took up the entirety of the B-side.
Bebel Gilberto
3/5
Bosanova is easy listening. I can always have this kind of music in the background when I'm working. Also, it's interesting to learn about the Gilberto family tree and how it define/owned the genre for so long. The track I liked best if the first one: Samba de Bencao.
Rush
4/5
This album was my "gateway" to Rush many years ago, and it's still a good listen today. I liked 3 songs: Tom Sawyer, Red Barchetta, and Limelight. The other songs are decent too.
Coldplay
5/5
Very easily a 5-star album. Every track is good. Interesting that "God Put A Smile Upon Your Face" was the last single to be released and that it didn't do so well - that might be my favorite song from the album. I also like Politik, Daylight, and Warning Sign, which are not among the highest-played tracks.
The Black Keys
4/5
Great album. Good beats. Good soul. It's impressive when two people can create a such a rich sound. Specifically liked 6 tracks: Everlasting Light, Tighten Up, Howlin For You, She's Long Gone, Ten Cent Pistol, Never Gonna Give You Up.
Kacey Musgraves
3/5
I knew nothing about Kacey Musgraves, and actually I know very little about country music at all, though I do like some country-related stuff (Wilco, some bluegrass, etc). So, I was happy to learn about this. In the end, I like the intro track (Slow Burn) but the rest of the album was just "meh" and tended to blend together.
LL Cool J
3/5
Fun throwback. I knew the two popular tracks and those are the ones I still like: Around the Way Girl, Mama Said Knock You Out. The rest of the album was OK but nothing stood out.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
I knew No Woman No Cry, but none of the other songs. I enjoyed the album, but nothing else stood out.
Radiohead
5/5
Very easily a 5-star album. Interesting that the top played tracks are "High and Dry" and "Fake Plastic Trees" - those tracks are good but for me they are not the best, maybe because they were overplayed. I prefer so many others: Planet Telex, The Bends, Nice Dream, Just, My Iron Lung, Sulk, Street Spirit. I recall reading an article back in those days that called Radiohead "perennial winner of the Only Band That Matters award", which was kind of funny and kind of true.
Lupe Fiasco
3/5
Didn't know anything about Lupe Fiasco. Pretty good album. I liked "Kick, Push" and "I Gotcha". The production overall was solid.
Arcade Fire
3/5
I was a little disappointed, maybe because my expectations were so high after Funeral. I like the title track, but none of the other songs grabbed me. Maybe I need to give it more time?
Pet Shop Boys
4/5
Fun album. I didn't know much about the Pet Shop Boys. I liked the popular tracks: "What Have I Done To Deserve This?" and "It's a Sin". Also "Rent". It's interesting that Dusty Springfield does vocals on one of those tracks. She's such a different generation and her style is so different.
Jeff Buckley
5/5
Such a great album. Interesting that it didn't do well when it was first released. It's probably best known for Buckey's version of Hallelujah, but there are so many good songs. I spotify-liked nearly all of them.
The Who
3/5
I knew the popular tracks: My Generation and I Can't Explain. Those are good. I also liked The Kids Are Alright. The rest of the album is kind of filler. The sound varies from doo-wop to blues or borderline punk. Something about the drums is really interesting.
Kelela
3/5
Interesting production / background music. Definitely an R&B feel, but more modern.
Fishbone
3/5
I faintly remember Fishbone from back in the day, maybe from the very brief moment when I was into ska. But I didn't recall a single track from this album or any other. It's OK as fairly happy-sounding music (even while dishing out social commentary).
Talking Heads
3/5
The very popular track is great: "Psycho Killer". I also like "Don't Worry About the Government" and maybe some of "Happy Day" and "Who Is It?". But on the whole I have a hard time pushing Talking Heads above a 3. The music is just so random and not-serious sounding. I do see a clear influence on other bands, e.g. They Might Be Giants and REM.
T. Rex
3/5
I really thought "Get It On" was a Rolling Stones song. Interesting. Anyhow, that song is pretty good. So is Cosmic Dancer. "Rip Off" has pretty good energy. Parts of this album sounded like 60's blues/rock and some inched towards 70's classic rock. This is a high 3 for me.
Black Sabbath
3/5
Interesting to read the wikipedia notes about all the drug and alcohol induced havoc involved in the recording sessions. The album is solid. The popular song, Changes, is a ballad, which stands out in an album that is otherwise mostly hard rock (apart from Laguna Sunrise, which is also good). Some of Ozzy's later albums also had this play (e.g. Mama I'm Coming Home). I also dig some of the high energy tracks, like Supernaut.
Kate Bush
3/5
Interesting album. Some parts are straight 80's pop. Some parts towards the end are world-sound: Watching You Without Met sounds like Peter Gabriel, "Jig of Life" is full Celtic, "Hello Earth" has a classic choir.
Koffi Olomide
3/5
Meh. Sounds like he's not a particularly admirable person. If I try to ignore the person behind the music, it's fine. It's the kind of thing I'd expect from Congolese music, for the most part. Desespoir sounds oddly like an 80's ballad. And it's odd to see Koffi dressed like MC Hammer on the cover.
The Afghan Whigs
3/5
I remembered and still like the title song: Gentlemen. Pretty good beat/energy there. I also kind of like Debonair (which interestingly has even more plays). But the rest of the album is kind of "meh".
Arctic Monkeys
3/5
Arctic Monkeys is one of those bands I heard about but didn't really know. I only recognized a couple of tracks: "Red Lights Indicate Doors Are Secured" (which only has ~50M plays) and "Mardy Bum" (which has ~430M plays). Interesting that the album has a bunch of other songs with lots of plays that I didn't know: "I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor", "When The Sun Goes Down", etc. In the end the album didn't rise above a 3 for me.
Prince
3/5
From Wikipedia, interesting to learn that: 1. This is regarded as his best album, above Purple Rain, 2. it was originally supposed to be a triple-disk but Prince was forced to reduce it to a double album. It definitely has that 80's sound, which I think is largely because of the synth drums. None of the songs caught my attention.
Neil Young
4/5
I only recognized Southern Man. I think I would like this album much more if someone else did the vocals. It does have some good melodies. This is especially true in the title track -- great melody, but man, those vocals. Still, in spite of the vocals I can't help getting into this album.
Bauhaus
2/5
The album started out OK, but it ended rough. Ear Wax is hard to listen to. So is the "fish cakes" song (next to last on the album).
Arcade Fire
4/5
I'm a little surprised Arcade Fire has 3 albums on the list. This one is not as good as Funeral but definitely better than subburbs. I like ~5 of the songs.
Franz Ferdinand
5/5
I forgot about this one. What a fantastic album. I'd put it in a similar bucket as The Strokes. Solid pop-rock where just about every song is great.
Adele
4/5
I never got really into Adele, but I can't deny that she cranks out great songs. Her melodies, her voice, the piano -- it's all good. I liked ~4 of the tracks on this album.
Röyksopp
4/5
I was going to semi-ignore this one as another UK-centric album that maybe doesn't belong in a list like this. But I ended up really liking this album. It reminds me of Air and other chill/downtempo artists. I specifically liked 3 tracks: So Easy, Royksopp's Night Out, Remind me.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
2/5
The tabla and harmonium is roughly what I expect. I didn't expect there to be what sounds like Spanish guitar and similar influences on some tracks. I get that Nusrat has impressive voice control and I can sense there's feeling there, but I don't speak the language so I can't really connect.
Bee Gees
3/5
This album was a surprise. I assumed the Bee Gees were entirely 70's disco. I didn't imagine they were on their *sixth* album in 1969, and with such a different sound. I guess this is a concept album about a made-up ship, and I feel kind of neutral about that. The one song that caught my attention was Whisper Whisper. Everything else is just OK.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
What a great album. I love the two popular tracks (You Are The Sunshine Of My Life and Superstition) and a couple of others: You And I, Blame It On The Sun.
Kraftwerk
3/5
I was going to write this album off as "shprokets", but I ended up kind of liking it, especially the first track: The Robots. There are aspects of this sound that repeat in other bands I like, e.g. Air (which Spotify played right after this album ended).
Erykah Badu
3/5
This album was OK. I like the sound but the songs didn't stand out. I only marked "Green Eyes" as a song I like, and even that one was borderline.
Michael Jackson
4/5
Such an important album. I mean: 35 million copies sold, etc. On one hand some of these songs are so overplayed that I didn't have a huge desire to hear them again. On the other hand, I'm impressed that while other 80's album now sound stale (e.g. the beats on that recent Prince album), this album still sounds reasonably fresh. That's commendable.
Blur
3/5
I was only familiar with "Song 2", which is decent but maybe overplayed. Besides that, the only song I liked was "Death of a Party". The song "Beetlebum" was borderline.
Lauryn Hill
5/5
This is a landmark record. So good. It's interesting and sad that Lauryn Hill only made one studio album. She kind of dropped the mic and exited the building.
Beatles
5/5
Incredible how many great songs/albums the Beatles created. In this one I marked 8 tracks.
SZA
3/5
I gather people make a fuss over the fact that it's a women dishing out vulgar lyrics. I don't really mind that, but I don't really get into vulgar lyrics from either gender. I like SZA's voice and some of the production, but I didn't get especially hooked by any tracks.
The White Stripes
4/5
I love the White Stripes. This album was somewhat familiar. The only struggle is whether to go with 4 or 5. I'll hold back on this one, but it's a close call.
The Magnetic Fields
3/5
This album has 69 tracks and is 2 hr 45 min. Wow. I did get through it all, but only once. I was familiar with a few songs, mostly because Spotify chose to plug them (or maybe KEXP did?): "Absolutely Cuckoo", "All My Little Words", "The Luckiest Guy on the Lower East Side". The vocals can sometimes be a little too drawl'y for my taste, but the melodies are ok.
Van Morrison
3/5
I remember hearing Moondance years ago and thinking what a cool song it was. But then I was disappointed when I heard other Van Morrison tracks and didn't find that same jazzy sound. At this point I like that folky sound too, but still the album as a whole is so-so. I like "And It Stoned Me", and I kind of like Caravan. I'm surprised "Into The Mystic" is the top played track.
The Police
4/5
The back half of this album is so strong: Synchronicity II => Every Breath You Take => King Of Pain => Wrapped Around Your Finger. The rest of the album is OK. I started getting into Synchronicity I and Murder By Numbers (the bookends).
The Fall
2/5
I slightly liked Frightened and Rebellious Jukebox. But the rest of the album was either "meh" or kind of annoying.
David Bowie
3/5
This album was OK, but my impression is that the cover is more iconic than the music. The style is more rock-like than I expected. There's a Rolling Stones cover, and a few of the other tracks have that same vibe. The title track is the only one I got into.
Linkin Park
3/5
I'm impressed that this album did *that* well commercially - "In the End" has 2.3B plays, and almost every track on the album has 100M plays. I dig the style, the mix of rock / rap / etc. But I only ended up liking two tracks, and after a while the songs felt a little repetitive. I would call this a high 3.
George Harrison
4/5
I really liked this album. I'm somewhere between a 3 and a 4, but I'm feeling generous today. There were 4 tracks that I specifically flagged: My Sweet Lord, Wah-Wah, Isn't It A Pity, Let It Down. And more generally I like Harrison's guitar style. The album is pretty long and maybe has some filler, but I still enjoy listening to it.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4/5
I liked this album. It has less of the whiny voice that appears in other Young albums. And there are several great tracks, in particular: Cinnamon Girl, Round & Round, Cowgirl in the Sand.
Baaba Maal
3/5
It works reasonably well as background music. The guitar and vocals are pleasant. After a full listen it became a little monotonous so I didn't do a second listen.
The KLF
3/5
I was familiar with the "3am" song. The style reminds me of Snap! ("The Power") and C&C Music Factory and that sound/era. The album was fine, but the particular collection I found (on YouTube) had many versions of "Justified and Ancient" so eventually it got old.
Marty Robbins
3/5
I was familiar with "El Paso" but nothing else. Interesting to read that "Big Iron" had a viral moment because it was included in a video game in 2010. I find this kind of music ages a little better than other genres.
Fugees
4/5
Really solid record. I knew "Killing Me Softly" and "Read or not", but the rest of the album was unfamiliar. I really liked "Fu Gee La" and there were various other songs that were pretty solid (Zealots, Beast, Mask...). Awesome grooves.
Ray Charles
3/5
The first half of the album is OK. It's the big-band / swing style. I'm much more into the second half, which is more blues/ballads, with great minor chords. I especially like: Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying, Tell Me You'll Wait For Me, Come Rain or Come Shine. If the whole album was like that second half it would definitely bump it up for me.
Pink Floyd
4/5
I was familiar with several songs but this might be my first time actually listening to the album start to finish. Also it's my first time reading the backstory, so it's interesting to learn about the band's situation at the time (financial trouble, inner conflict), and it's interesting to understand the concept of The Wall and how it all started (Waters being agitated at his rock star situation, to the point where he spat on fans during a show, and subsequently wanted to isolate himself). The album has nine songs I tagged as great songs, which by itself would be a 5-star album. Of course, it's a double-album so it has 17 other songs that are quite good but not that good. That plus the fact that I have a hard time rewarding artists who bemoan their struggle means that I ultimately settle on a 4-star rating. But it's a pretty strong 4-star album.
Johnny Cash
3/5
The album is notable because it was released after Cash passed away. I love Cash's voice/style and this is a great collection of songs, but I have hard time giving him a very high score for covers. I was excited that Fiona Apple does vocals on one of the tracks, but she doesn't seem to add much to that one (Bridge Over Troubled Waters). By contrast I much preferred the woman who does backup vocals on Desperato, though I later realized that "woman" is Don Henley, LOL.
Bobby Womack
3/5
I'm just not really into this 80's soul sound. It doesn't really bother me if it's playing in the background but I have no real desire to go back to this album. Kind of a low 3.
Radiohead
5/5
What a great album. My favorite might be Exit Music, but it's hard to choose. Climbing Up The Walls is a strong contender too. I spotify-liked almost every song on the album.
Black Sabbath
3/5
Interesting that this is considered the first metal album. Also interesting that it was all recorded on a single day in a 12-hour session, almost entirely played live, at once. And also interesting that the guitarist developed his special style in part because of a work accident that caused him to lose parts of his middle fingers on his fret hand! The Wizard starts kind of bluesy (harmonica, somewhat like Led Zeppelin) but then has parts that sound exactly like what I'd expect from Black Sabbath (some of the drumming sounds like War Pigs).
The Vines
3/5
I've never heard of this band, which is a bit surprising because this album was released in 2002, when I was still paying attention to music. Also, it seems they had some amount of success - the song Get Free has 100M plays on Spotify (and oddly it's maybe my least favorite song on the album). Seems like an OK generic alt rock album.
The Cars
4/5
I love the song "Just What I Needed". This album has several great tracks. It's a little more new wave'ish than I realized, more ties to Talking Heads type sound, but the melodies are more consistently strong.
Def Leppard
3/5
I feel a little mixed about this album. The popular songs are really great, especially Photograph, but also Too Late For Love, Foolin', and Rock of Ages. The other songs are kind of filler, and some of them are a little annoying (e.g. Rock! Rock!). That leaves me somewhere between a 3 and a 4.
Booker T. & The MG's
3/5
The title track is familiar and it's a great groove. The rest of the album is mostly good background/study music. The one other track I liked a little more was the last one, Comin' Home Baby.
Stan Getz
3/5
It's first class background music.
Queen
3/5
This album seems kind of "meh". It has the Queen sound, with vocal harmonies, that guitar sound, etc. But after 2-3 listens I don't find myself hooked on any songs. I'm surprised they included this album.
Jeff Beck
3/5
Seems like a decent blues-rock album. Reminds me of Led Zeppelin. I didn't know Rod Stewart appeared in all these bands before going solo. I like Rod's voice on this type of music, but my favorite tracks were the instrumentals: Beck's Bolero and Greensleeves.
Lambchop
3/5
I like the general alt-folk/rock sound. Reminds me of Wilco. The only song I really got into is the intro track: "The Old Gold Shoe". I semi got into "The Distance From Her To There" but I don't love the singer going falsetto there. In the rest of the songs I liked the orchestration (some slide guitar, some horns, etc) but the songs themselves were so so.
Iggy Pop
3/5
It's probably common knowledge but I didn't realize there was such close collaboration between Iggy Pop and David Bowie. Wikipedia says Pop used Bowie's arrangement for the title track, which is a great song. I think I first heard it on the Trainspotting soundtrack. The rest of the album is fine but nothing else stands out. It would have been cool to see Pop do a live show back in the day - sounds like he was a great performer.
Isaac Hayes
3/5
I was familiar with the background music in the first track, Walk On By, because it was used by Hooverphonic on "2 Wicky" (which was a surprise to me). I think Isaac's voice is "meh". I really like some of the instrumentation across the songs (guitar, strings, etc). But some of the tracks are just too jammy/talky/long. So I have mixed feelings about it all in all.
Beastie Boys
3/5
I was never a huge Beastie Boys fan, but some of my friends who do like often say that Paul's Boutique is their favorite album. I think the grooves are solid. I don't tend to pay attention to lyrics so I'm probably missing a key part of the album.
Stephen Stills
3/5
I've been listening to it on repeat most of the day. It's extremely "blah". Even with all these listens, nothing really pulls me. It's like elevator music. I guess I respect that he put the full band with all their names on the cover, so that's something.
Mj Cole
2/5
It's OK but just not my style of music. I can take this for a short period while shopping at Banana Republic, but it's not something I want playing regularly. It gets a little repetitive.
Pink Floyd
5/5
Incredible album. I marked 6 of 10 albums as favorites. I like the setup of having the first album be studio tracks and the second album be live tracks.
Crosby, Stills & Nash
4/5
Our group has been shitting on the various CSN/etc albums because it seems like there are just too many of them in the 1001 list. But I'm a sucker for the harmonies this trio puts together. I marked 4 songs from this album as favorites, so that's good enough for a 4-star: "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes", "Helplessly Hoping", "Song with No Words", "Everbody's Talkin".
Lynyrd Skynyrd
3/5
This album was more "few hits" than I hoped. I knew Gimme Three Steps and Free Bird, and both are good songs. I also kinda like Mr Banker. But the rest is "meh".
Peter Gabriel
3/5
Solsbury Hill is a great song. The intro song (Moribund the Burgermeister) also grew on me, but the freaky circus part kind of kills it ("I will find out"). The song (Excuse Me) got my attention because of the a cappella intro - I'm a sucker for vocal harmony. But the rest of the song is "meh".
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
3/5
Seems like a pretty important album in the evolution of hiphop, specifically that Grandmaster Flash pioneered the setup for using turntables, scratching, extending breaks, etc. I recognized the title track. I also recognized the tune from "It's Nasty" mostly from Mariah Carey's song, though I learned the original was by Tom Tom Club (Genius of Love), a band that emerged from Talking Heads - so many interesting things! This album has more variety than I anticipated, e.g. I didn't expect the soul/ballad tracks (Dreamin, You Are).
Parliament
3/5
Way more funk than the Funkadelic album we had before. Interesting how much this influenced future gangsta rap - I recognized a few backing tracks just from that. In the end this album is still a little too jammy for me, but I recognize this is probably peak for the genre.
U2
3/5
Interesting that this album knocked Michael Jackson from the top of the chart in the UK -- it was a dose of angst and realism to contrast his pop and polish. This reminds me of the grunge movement about a decade later, where Nirvana/etc were there to contrast Mariah Carey, Paula Abdul, C+C Music Factory, etc. I love the two popular songs from the album: Sunday Bloody Sunday, New Year's Day. The rest is OK.
Cocteau Twins
3/5
The sound reminds me of Catherine Wheel. It's pleasant as background music but didn't really grab me. I liked the intro track ("Cherry-coloured Funk") which is the popular one. I also kinda liked "I Wear Your Ring", which is not amongst the most popular ones.
Beck
5/5
Great album. I love Beck but I didn't recall liking this particular one so much. Favorite track Earthquake Weather, but I marked 6 as favorites and I'd probably mark more with another listen. Interesting to learn that Beck and Elliott Smith were friends, and that the song Broken Drum is dedicated to him.
De La Soul
3/5
I was familiar with "Me, Myself, and I" and with the group's sound in general, but didn't know this album. I like overall groove. I also like that the content is not all gangsta-this-gangsta-that. In the end, while it's all pleasant to listen to and I could see myself trying this album again, I didn't feel hooked. Also, kind of random but the Ogree song was unexpected and not really SFW.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3/5
I liked the two hits: Born on the Bayou and Proud Mary. The rest of the songs were ok. The sounds is generally good, but not quite enough for a 4-star.
Meat Loaf
3/5
I'm really surprised the album did this well: "sold over 43 million copies worldwide...It is the best-selling album in Australia" etc. It's not bad, but it's just not that good. It's just a theater-sounding rock album. It's like Rocky Horror but the songs aren't quite as catchy.
Manu Chao
3/5
I really like the two popular tracks: Clandestino and Bongo bong. I'm always a sucker for harmonies and I like the guitar sound. If this album also had "Me gustas tu" that would push it into 4-star territory for me. Interesting to learn that the band originated in France but this album is primarily in Spanish, and they sometimes sing in other languages too.
Machito
3/5
It's a decent jazz sound. A little more intense than what I prefer as background music, but not bad.
Syd Barrett
2/5
I'm disinclined. The general sound is folk-rock and I often get behind that. I liked the first couple of songs: Terrapin and No Good Trying. But the rest of the album was either "meh" or kind of annoying (the outtakes on If It's In You).
Santana
3/5
I like two of the popular tracks: Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va. I didn't get as into the other popular track: Samba Pa Ti. The rest of the album is fine but didn't grab me.
Muddy Waters
3/5
The intro track (Mannish Boy) has some great background yells. It should be sampled more. The rest of the album is solid blues. Pretty enjoyable.
The Stooges
2/5
Some songs (like "Down on the street" and "Dirt") have good rock/blues energy. But some go way too far and are almost unlistenable (especially the last tracks: Fun House and LA Blues).
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
3/5
I don't often reach for blues, but if/when I do, this is the kind of album I could go for. Impressive that so many famous artists spun out of this band. Interesting that Eric Clapton sounds very similar to John Mayall.
The Smiths
3/5
Like the other Smiths album, this is growing on me, and it's teetering on a 4, but not quite there. His voice is good and the melodies are _almost_ hooking me.
Talking Heads
3/5
The album is totally "meh". I have a hard time taking Talking Heads seriously.
The Smiths
3/5
I'm not very familiar with The Smiths. This album is growing on me. It's a high 3, and I could imagine it eventually bumping up to a 4.
Portishead
5/5
It's certainly different from their first two albums. Doesn't have the same trip-hop beat nor as much of the strings / jazz / etc sounds. But it's still awesome. I recall having the same reaction to this album (especially songs like Machine Gun) that I did to Radiohead's Kid A (with songs like Idioteque). Initial reaction is "wait, what's this, what happened to that old sound?" but then I grow to love it.
Venom
2/5
No thank you. It's metal with bad vocals. I have liked some metal in the past, but the stuff I liked had some redeeming qualities, like melodies, interesting percussion, occasional strings, etc. This album has none of that.
Billie Holiday
3/5
Billie Holiday has such a unique delivery/style. It's iconic, and it fits really well with the orchestration. But also she adds so much flourish that there's something almost comical/caricature'ish about it. Still, I like it as background music.
Blondie
3/5
Fun album. I always thought of Blondie as a "her" not as a band. I knew the two popular tracks: "One Way Or Another" and "Heart of Glass". And actually I don't think I realized it's the same artist. Interesting how the album spans disco / new age / almost aspects of punk. It's a solid album but not quite my thing enough to enter 4 territory.
Michael Jackson
5/5
Incredible album. Like every single song is a hit. MJ was a master songwriter and performer.
Bert Jansch
3/5
This was an OK folk music album. It's guitar and voice so it's good as background music. Nothing stood out.
Eminem
3/5
The music and beats are great. The delivery is among the best in the business. But this is one situation where I can't avoid paying attention to the lyrics and it's just too vulgar for me to really enjoy.
The Kinks
3/5
I got into a couple of the tracks: "No Return" and "Lazy Old Sun". Both have really interesting chord progressions. Interesting that both of these songs have relatively low number of Plays on Spotify. The popular track (Waterloo Sunset) is also pretty good. This album is a high-3 for me.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
The album is fine. I don't pay much attention to the lyrics and the music is just OK. The bookend tracks are a bit better ("Badlands" and "Darkness on the Edge of Town") but not close to a 4.
Janelle Monáe
4/5
Possibly the most eclectic album in the list so far. It has symphonic, rap, R&B, theatrical, electronic/sci-fi sounds, church choir, etc. Very impressive. I don't feel specifically hooked by individual songs, but I'm really enjoying the album as a whole.
Aimee Mann
3/5
Kind of disappointed. I *love* the song "Save Me" from Magnolia, and also like some of her other hits ("One" and "Wise Up"). But the songs on this album are just OK. Aside - it was unexpected to learn that she sang with Rush on the song Time Stand Still.
The Young Rascals
3/5
I knew the title track (Groovin'). I didn't know the rest. The album is OK, some soul, some 60's rock. Nothing too special.
Elvis Presley
3/5
"Blue Suede Shoes" has great energy. "Blue Moon" is Elvis doing ballads well. Some of the other tracks sound pretty schmaltzy. Interesting that Elvis did a version of "I Got a Woman" just a couple of years after Ray Charles. Ray's version is way better and I'm glad that version was more successful/popular. Elvis does a little better with "Tutti Fruti" but it's still not an improvement on Little Richard.
Nine Inch Nails
4/5
I like 4 of the songs: "Piggy", "March of the Pigs", "Closer", "Hurt". Especially March of the Pigs - what a great song. The rest of the album is OK, but still I give NIN credit for kind of owning/defining industrial music for this era.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I like Rainy Day Woman. The rest of the album has that classic Dylan style/delivery which is so unique and almost funny (similar in his uniqueness to Billy Holiday). It's OK as background music.
Leftfield
2/5
I'm not into this house/techno stuff. This was the most interesting tidbit for me: "The album was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 1995 but lost to Portishead's Dummy." Yeah, that's not even a close contest.
Sabu
2/5
It sounds like he's a congo drum virtuoso, but for me the combination of drums and singing/chanting is not interesting enough to want to hear it again.
Raekwon
2/5
Gangsta rap is not really my thing. I like the groove in the last couple of tracks: "Heaven & Hell" and "North Star (Jewels)". But I don't feel much desire to return to this album.
Sly & The Family Stone
3/5
I knew "Everyday People" but not the rest, and none of the other tracks really grabbed my attention. It's a decent funk album.
AC/DC
4/5
It's a classic. I'm a little surprised and kind of pleased that an album like this, which is clearly hard rock, is one of the top selling albums of all time. It has 4 major hits and a bunch of other songs are are solid.
Orange Juice
3/5
This seems like another one of those British Isles albums that perhaps shouldn't belong on the list. It does have 28M plays for the title track, and 10M plays for "I Can't Help Myself", so maybe the album is more important than I realize. On the whole it's not _bad_, it's OK early 80's pop; I just don't know if it's _that_ good.
10cc
3/5
It's an OK early 70's pop/rock album. It reminds me a little of the Nilson Schmilsson album (which was released 3 years earlier) for the fact that it's eclectic and at time kind of goofy.
Coldcut
3/5
One of the few albums on the list that wasn't available on Spotify. It's "cut-n-paste" electronic/dance music. It reminds me of The Avalanches, with the same kind of whimsy.
AC/DC
3/5
It has a couple of classic songs: "Highway to Hell" and "Girls Got Rhythm". The rest of the album is OK. Interesting that this was Bon Scott's last album, and our other AC/DC album this week (Back in Black) was the first album with Brian Johnson, and also that their voices are kind of similar. Also interesting to read how Brian got the gig: https://www.reddit.com/r/ClassicRock/comments/17nwv3o/the_story_of_how_brian_johnson_became_the/
Led Zeppelin
3/5
This album is kind of disappointing. I really like "Immigrant Song" and I kinda like "Since I've Been Loving You", but the rest of the album is just "meh". I expected more.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4/5
Very solid album. I like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs but haven't heard this one through before. I ended up Spotify-liking 5 songs: Zero, Heads Will Roll, Soft Shock, Runaway, Little Shadow - acoustic. It's interesting that the tail end of the album has several acoustic versions of the same songs. In general I like the energy of the regular version, but Little Shadow is the exception for me - that acoustic version is awesome.
PJ Harvey
3/5
The one song I got into is "The Words That Maketh Murder". Other than that, the album has a good overall sound but didn't rise above that.
Hole
3/5
I like the song "Violet". But I'm not into Courtney Love's voice and even less so her persona, so I have a hard time getting into the rest of the album. I think I would like the album more with someone else on vocals (but if it wasn't for Love's connection to Cobain and/or her brash persona I probably would never have heard about the band in the first place). It's interesting to learn that before Hole she at one time sang with Faith No More (!) and also to learn that Michael Stipe and Drew Barrymore are godparents to Kurt and Courtney's daughter.
3/5
This album was OK. Hints back to the Beatles era. The first song (Victoria) is somewhat catchy. The rest of the album didn't move me one way or another.
David Bowie
3/5
Kind of disappointing. I was familiar with the two big tracks: Young Americans and Fame. Of course I know the Beatles song Across the Universe, though I didn't know Bowie covered it. And it's neat that Win was sampled by Beck on Debra, though I like Beck's song a lot more. The rest of album has parts that remind me of the Rolling Stones and parts that are closer to 80's pop. But it's not an especially good album.
Hawkwind
2/5
Yet another example of a rando UK band that doesn't seem like it belongs on this list. In this case some of the music was actively annoying to listen to. In particular: "Electronic No 1", "Brainstorm", "Sonic Attack", "Time We Left This World Today" (both versions), "You Shouldn't Do That". This is somewhere between a 1 and a 2.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
3/5
This album is kind of out there in terms of prog-rock / complexity, so I'm kind of surprised it was as commercially successful (peaking at #9 in the US). The last track (Are You Ready Eddy?) sounds like a different band - it's like 50's blues rock.
The Yardbirds
3/5
Interesting that this band had 3 of the big guitar players (not at once): Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck. The popular track is "Over, Under, Sideways, Down" -- it's OK. I prefer "He's Always There". The rest of the album has a mix of blues rock and 60's sounds. It's alright.
The Band
3/5
I didn't know "The Band" was associated with Bob Dylan. I was familiar with "The Weight" but didn't know the rest of the album. It's a comfortable sound, reminds me of Wilco -- mellow, slightly country'ish rock. That said, none of the other tracks really hooked me, even after many listens, so it remains kind of a "high 3" rating.
The Band
3/5
The top track by plays is "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down". The tune is fine but I don't love the singer's voice. The other song that has a lot of plays is "Up On Cripple Creek", which is better. I also kind of dig "Look Out Cleveland".
Eagles
3/5
The title track is amazing. "Life in the Fast Lane" is decent. The rest of the album is OK, but I'm surprised the album did as well as it did.
Nico
3/5
I knew the popular track: "These Days". I really like the tune and instrumentation on various tracks: "These Days", "Chelsea Girls", "The Fairest of the Seasons", "Winter Song". But I'm really not into her voice/delivery -- seems like she's struggling with English pronunciation. And some songs are tougher to get through (e.g. "It Was A Pleasure Then").
UB40
3/5
I recognized the sound but didn't know any of the songs. Not a bad album but didn't especially get into it.
Lou Reed
3/5
It's kind of middling. I'm not super into Lou Reed's talking-singing style. But the songs are fine as background music.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
5/5
One of the very few jazz albums I’m familiar with and still a great one. Take Five is the famous track and it’s probably my favorite, but I also like Blue Rondo a lot. After a couple listens I Spotify-likes all but one track: Pick up Sticks.
Metallica
4/5
I remember this being one of the more approachable/gateway albums. I Spotify-liked 6 of 12 songs, which is really solid: Enter Sandman, Nothing Else Matters, Unforgiven, Wherever I May Roam, Don’t Tread On Me, Nothing Else Matters. Basically the front half of the album.
The Crusaders
3/5
It's kind of a smooth jazz album, with hints of disco and other styles. The first track is the popular one and has vocals. The rest is heavy on instrumentals.
Sex Pistols
3/5
It reminds me a lot of the Ramones - same kind of guitar and musical energy, but different vocals (more spoken, less melodic) and a different tone (more anger).
The Electric Prunes
3/5
Sounds like other 60's psychedelic rock bands. My favorite track was Bangles, which is interesting because it has relatively few plays. The big track is "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)" which is OK. The album also has rando sounds like Toonerville Trolley, which sounds like something Ringo Starr would compose.
Suzanne Vega
3/5
It's a very calm/soothing sound, with acoustic guitar/bass, and with vocals that are half-singing half-talking. It's like the quintessential coffee shop record. The popular song is "Marlene on the Wall", and yeah it's probably the best one. The album is a solid 3 and I could see it rise to a 4 with more listens.
Talvin Singh
3/5
Interesting fusion of Indian sounds (tabla, etc) with electronica and various other influences from around the world. Some parts are very ambient, some are more blunt.
Gram Parsons
3/5
I didn't know anything about Gram Parsons. The vibe is country'ish rock, with slide guitar and such. I liked the intro song: Return of the Grievous Angel. I liked Emmylou Harris' harmonies on all the tracks she's in. I didn't in particular care for his cover of "Love Hurts" -- I prefer the Nazareth version.
Supergrass
4/5
This album grew on me. Initially I liked 4 of the songs: "In It For The Money", "Late In The Day", "It's Not Me", "You Can See Me". And I was thinking 4 out of 21 songs is not such a high rate. But after more listens I started liking other tracks too: "Sun Hits The Sky", "Wait For The Sun", "Nothing More's Gonna Get In My Way". So all in all it's pretty good album.
Deerhunter
3/5
This is a strong 3, borderline 4. I like a few of the tracks: "Earthquake", "Desire Lines", "Helicopter". I like both the tunes and some of the unique sounds. The rest of the tracks are fine.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
I knew "Stir It Up" and maybe recognized a bit of "Concrete Jungle" but otherwise didn't know this album. Like all Bob Marley I like it as background music, but this particular album didn't rise much above that.
Grateful Dead
2/5
Not my thing. If it was all pleasant-sounding jamming then I could put it in the background and call it a 3-star, but there were enough dissonant parts that I don't feel inclined to hear it again. The worst track was "Feedback", but there were some annoying parts in other tracks.
Crowded House
3/5
This album is OK. The one song I got into is "Four Seasons In One Day" - it sounds like the Beatles.
Dizzee Rascal
2/5
I'd heard "Fix Up, Look Sharp" before but didn't know anything else. I kind of liked Jezebel, but most of the album was not really my thing.
Lana Del Rey
3/5
I like Lana's earlier work (the beats and samples, and the 40's style vocals), but this album was a little too mellow / monotone / boring. The title song is probably the best one, but nothing really stood out.
David Bowie
3/5
I think I knew "Golden Years" but nothing else. TVC15 was the catchiest song - kind of an oddball song (about a TV that eats his girlfriend?). The album as a whole is OK.
Christina Aguilera
3/5
I only recognized one song: "Hurt". I liked "Ain't No Other Man", what a jam. Christina has incredible vocal control, but also she kind of has a particular style that ends up feeling repetitive, especially on a double album.
Mott The Hoople
3/5
I don't know if this album is big enough for this list. I gather the big song was the first track ("All the Way from Memphis"); it's meh. I prefer a couple of other tracks: "Violence" and "Whizz Kid".
Ice Cube
3/5
I don't think I heard anything from this album before, even though I'm generally familiar with Ice Cube's sound / look / etc. The grooves and delivery is great, but it's kind of vulgar so not really my thing.
Serge Gainsbourg
3/5
The subject is contentious, to say the least. I'm not super into the talking-singing style. The second track (Ballade de Melody Nelson) is pretty catchy.
N.E.R.D
3/5
Interesting album. Reminds me of TVOTR somehow. I see various other connections too, like the starting track "Don't Worry About It" somehow reminds me of "Pass The Courvoisier". Thrasher is a pretty good track.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
I only really liked one track: "Accidents Will Happen". I was sort of into "Party Girl". The rest is just OK.
Randy Newman
3/5
Every time I hear Randy Newman I think Toy Story: family friendly, folksy, fits in a movie montage but not really something I want to listen to in other contexts. After a bunch of listens, I really only got into a couple of tracks: "Marie" and "Guilty".
Q-Tip
4/5
This album is pretty awesome. It took a couple of listens but eventually I spotify-liked maybe half the album (mostly the first half, but also the track with Norah Jones: Life is Better). What a great find. I didn't know Q-Tip was connected to Tribe Called Quest, but that makes perfect sense.
George Michael
4/5
Classic album. I really like two of the tracks: Father Figure and One More Try. Faith is OK and so is Monkey. I'm not as into "I Want Your Sex". Still pretty impressive that he packed this many huge songs into a debut album.
Run-D.M.C.
2/5
I know of the group and the general sound but never heard this album. I recognize that this is a pivotal album for its time, and I can see how it influenced lots of other artists. But it's not my thing. It's all lyrics and beats, with very little else.
Echo And The Bunnymen
3/5
The sound reminds me a little of other bands from that early 80's time: The Cure, REM, U2, etc. I didn't get into any song in particular.
Miles Davis
3/5
I heard this album all day. It didn't bother me, but it also didn't hook me. So, whereas I completely love "Kind of Blue", I'm pretty indifferent to this album.
Brian Wilson
3/5
It's strange to hear an album released in 2004 that belongs so squarely in the 1960's. I like the Beach Boys sound (I'm always a sucker for harmonies), but it's interesting that he didn't evolve the sound much. I listened to this album over and over today. It has a great sound, the same harmonies, the interesting mix of instruments/sounds, and some interesting progression in the songs (not just a simple verse/chorus), etc. But none of the tracks really hooked me, besides Good Vibrations, which is the one track from other albums.
Isaac Hayes
3/5
It's a good background-music sort of album, given that a good portion of it is instrumental. I recognized the first track (Theme from Shaft) but not the rest.
Donald Fagen
3/5
This album was OK. I didn't particularly like any song, but the sound didn't bother me. It has hints of smooth jazz / funk.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
Such a strong album. I spotify-liked 3 of them: "What is and what should never be", "Living Loving Maid", "Ramble On". But really I like the whole album. This is a high 4 for me, borderline 5.
The Dictators
3/5
Fun album that doesn't take itself too seriously. Especially the last track: Cars and Girls.
2/5
Very rough. Some songs almost had song elements that made them redeamable. But some were just obnoxious (like track 2: steam rose). This is a pretty low 2 for me.
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
Not quite as good as "Bridge Over Troubled Water" but still a good album. I knew three tracks and those are the ones I like the most: "Mrs Robinson", "Hazy Shade of Winter", and "America". But some of the other tracks grew on me too. I'm a little embarrassed that I didn't know Simon and Garfunkel did the original "Hazy Shade of Winter" (I thought it was a Bangles song).
Cornershop
3/5
It's a UK alt rock band with Indian members, so I guess it makes sense that it would have a fusion of Indian sounds and rock/etc sounds. Still, the sound is all over the place. I only knew the one popular track: "Brimful of Asha".
ABBA
3/5
I've always been lukewarm about ABBA. I think it's because their vocal style is "choir" - multiple people singing the *same* melody (not enough harmony). Also because the vibe is kind of "bubble gum", even when the songs aren't happy. Overall the album is OK.
Pavement
3/5
Reminds me of The Pixies. I like the energy, and some of the songs almost hooked me, but not quite there.
The Beach Boys
4/5
At first listen my reaction was "this sounds like the Beach Boys are trying hard to break out of their stereotype and sound like later-Beatles" and the only song I really liked was Surf's Up, which is also in Smile. Then after additional listens I started to like more of the songs, primarily the ones that still had more of the traditional Beach Boys sound. And after some more listens I ended up spotify-liking about half the album.
Tina Turner
3/5
Tina has a voice that I didn't like when I was young, but now I appreciate much more. "What's Love Got To Do With It" is a classic but maybe a bit overplayed. The rest of the album is good but sounds a little dated to me. It was interesting to hear her take on "I Can't Stand The Rain".
Rahul Dev Burman
3/5
The overall sound is very eclectic. Some parts sound Indian (to me), some like a bond-inspired action movie score, some jazzy/big-band, some like a western, some like 60s/70s go go rock. The sound quality is sometimes a little rough -- voices sound a little noisy/clipped.
Goldie
3/5
Drum n bass is not my go-to, but as far as this genre is concerned, this album is decent. I wouldn't pick it but I don't mind it. There's enough "color" (vocals, strings, etc) beyond the underlying drum-n-bass to keep it interesting.
3/5
It's like ambient electronic music with a Brazilian flavor mixed in. It's OK in the background but it didn't grab me.
Morrissey
3/5
After a couple of listens, the only song that I started getting into is "The More You Ignore Me". I could imagine getting more into it with more listens.
Alanis Morissette
4/5
I liked this album in its time and I still like it now. I don't think I realized just how successful it was -- 33 million records sold, that puts it in the same league as Michael Jackson's "Bad" (45 million). There are so many strong tracks in one album, it's a borderline 5.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3/5
I never really knew the Jesus and Mary Chain. It sounds like other 80's bands: Cure, U2, etc. The sound is OK but none of the songs hook me.
Jane Weaver
4/5
This album was a pleasant surprise. I'd never heard of Jane Weaver before, but I liked the sound. I ended up marking two songs as favorites: "Slow Motion" and "I Wish". For me this is kind of a high-3 / low-4.
Can
1/5
The album started out pretty good. Some of the tracks sounded much newer than what I'd expect from a 1971 album -- "Mushroom" and "Oh Yeah" sound like mid-stage Radiohead. But then you hit an 18-minute track "Hallelujah" which is so jammy and endless, and then Augmn is even worse. The whole back half of the album is pretty much unlistenable.
John Cale
3/5
It's 70's sounding folky rock. The instrumentation is nice. I'm not into his voice so much. In some of the tracks it sounds like he's straining to his notes (e.g. some parts of Andalucia, not the falsetto parts). In the end I got into one track: The Endless Pain of Fortune.
Soft Machine
2/5
The tracks are very long (~20 minutes). Some are jammy, some are jazzy.
Some parts sound like background music for a science documentary.
There were parts Iiked (e.g. track 2: Slightly all the Time) but on the whole I'm not inclined to hear it again.
Talk Talk
3/5
Reminds me of Peter Gabriel. The sound is OK but after maybe 3-4 listens I'm not really hooked by any songs.
The Flaming Lips
4/5
I'm overdue to listen to this album - I only knew a couple of tracks before. It's a really strong album. I love the electronic/spacey sounds mixed with strings, mixed with really interesting percussion, and the vocals are good too. I ended up spotify-liking 7 of 11 tracks. One surprise for me is that "Do You Realize??" is the top-played tracks; that's one of the 4 tracks that I didn't mark.
Ryan Adams
3/5
I was eager for this album because I really liked Heartbreaker. But this album is nowhere near as good. I liked one track (Answering Bell) and kind of liked another (Goodnight, Hollywood Blvd) but that's it. The rest of the album is "meh", and it's a pretty long album.
Sonic Youth
3/5
In terms of sound, this album is a few years ahead of its time. It sounds more like the grunge scene of the early/mid 90's. But in terms of songs/hooks, it's just OK.
Tom Tom Club
3/5
I think "Genius of Love" is this album's biggest contributions. I first knew it from a Mariah Carrey song Fantasy. The rest of the album is OK. It has that early 80's new wave sound, reminds me a little of Talking Heads. I like the song "On, On, On, On..."
Roxy Music
3/5
It's kind of theatrical/glammy rock. Reminds me of Meatloaf.Some parts sound kind of theatrical/glammy (e.g. "Would You Believe?" and "Bitters End") - reminds me of Meatloaf. Some parts lean more towards psychedelic or classic rock. My favorite track is "The Bob (Medley)".
Giant Sand
2/5
Strange album. It has a southern feel, with occasional twang. It often drones and mumbles. At times it's harder rock. I listened to the full Spotify album which is 2 hours, and that's my biggest gripe - it took so long to get through it. The members are related to Calexico, but that album was more enjoyable.
Todd Rundgren
3/5
I scored the last Rundgren album a 2 because it had some tracks that were a little too crazy. This album "stayed in its lane" so there was nothing bothersome, but it also wasn't especially good. Just some 70's rock.
KISS
3/5
This album is a high-3 for me. I like the first two tracks: "Detroit Rock City" (what an anthem) and "King of the Nighttime World". I also kind of like the ballad "Beth".
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
I'm biased because this was one of the first two CD's I ever owned so I know it very well. But it's so good. I spotify-liked almost every track. Oddly, the songs I didn't mark are "El Condor Pasa", "Cecilia", and "Bye Bye Love" -- the first two are among the top played songs from the album, but maybe for me they're just overplayed.
Simply Red
3/5
I knew the song Holding Back the Years, but didn't know anything else. I had no idea Simply Red had that level of success or staying power (they still get 7M monthly listens. I didn't really get into this album. The one other song I kind of liked is Jerico.
Country Joe & The Fish
3/5
It's an OK album. Some parts remind me of the doors (organ). One track reminds me of CCR ("Love" for the vocals, though the vocals are different on other tracks). It definitely has a bluesy bent.
Neu!
3/5
When I read that this was krautrock I expected something kind of loud/abrasive, but that was the completely wrong expectation. This is like guitar/synth ambient music. It could easily play in a Yoga class. OK, wait, the back half of the album sounds different, starting with "Hero" -- faster, louder, a bit punk.
Baaba Maal
3/5
Decent sound but didn't pull me one way or another.
Christine and the Queens
3/5
Released in 2018 but sounds like an 80's album. Pretty fun listen. This is a high-3 for me.
Elbow
3/5
Decent album. I liked two tracks: 1. Grounds for Divorce, which reminds me of the Black Keys (and is the only track on the album with that sound), and 2. Whether to Fly. It's kind of a high-3 for me.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
I feel extremely "meh" about Bruce. There's nothing standout about the music (seems unchanged from his 80's albums) and I'm not really paying attention to the words. This is kind of a low 3 for me.
Black Sabbath
4/5
RIP Ozzy Osbourne :-(
It's impressive and interesting that Rolling Stone picked this as the #1 metal album of all time. For me the three hits are enough to elevate the album to 4-star territory: War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man. The rest of the album is solid but those tracks didn't stand out as much.
Rocket From The Crypt
3/5
Meh. The songs all started to blend together, maybe "On a Rope" was a bit better. I'm surprised to see this one on the list. It sounds like their on-stage antics were the most interesting things about them. This is kind of a low 3 for me.
Michael Jackson
4/5
Seems like this was an important album for Michael to branch out from the Jackson Five. It's also important because it pushed pop music in new directions, more disco/etc. Musically, I love the first two tracks ("Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" and "Rock with you") but the rest are just OK. It's cool that Michael is credited with writing the first of them. Also interesting that Paul McCartney wrote a song on this album (Girlfriend) though that song is just OK.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
2/5
I was expecting the worst because Trout Mask Replica was quite possibly the worst album in the entire 1001 list so far. With that expectation, this album actually wasn't *that* bad. It has a kind of traditional blues-rock sound. But towards the end of the album is starts becoming kind of annoying, especially tracks like: On Tomorrow, Trust Us, Korn Ring Finger. So in the end it's still not an album I want to hear again.
Aerosmith
3/5
"Last Child" is a fantastic track, and "Back in the Saddle" is pretty good too. The rest of the album is OK but not great. So that's like a high 3 for me.
Fun Lovin' Criminals
3/5
Fun album. Reminds me of various things: Beastie Boys, Beck, Sublime. I think I had heard the title track before, nothing else.
The Jam
3/5
Fun album and a quick listen (35 min). Reminds me of The Strokes, The Proclaimers, etc. Some punk/rock but mostly pop. The top song ("That's Entertainment") has 73M plays but I've never heard it before, nor any other song on the album.
Khaled
2/5
I've never been in this type of middle eastern sound, so this album is lower for me. I do think it's interesting that he mixes in some different sounds: one track (El Habra Wine) sounds pretty Indian to me, and another track (Imagine) is a collab with a singer named Noa where she sings in Hebrew.
Oasis
3/5
I don't love Oasis' bluster. I think it's absurd for them to claim they are bigger than the Beatles. But if I put aside their persona, their music is not bad. The tracks I liked on this album are the big ones: Live Forever and Supersonic.
Brian Eno
3/5
I associate Brian Eno with the Talking Heads, and I'm not a huge fan of theirs. So, with those expectations, this album is better than I expected. I liked Needles In The Camel's Eye and Driving Me Backwards. The sound reminds me of David Bowie. The tail end of the album starts to get kind of experimental (e.g. Some Of Them Are Old) but even those tracks are listenable. Overall this is a high 3 for me.
The Hives
3/5
I knew the main song "Hate To Say I Told You So". I didn't know the rest. Seems like they were a fun live band -- matching black/white tuxes and high energy. The album itself is decent, but none of the other songs stand out as much.
Miles Davis
2/5
It's very free-flowing jazz. The songs don't have your normal verse-chorus structure. There's no repetition of melody/hook that I can pick up easily. And as a result it doesn't really grab me. The sound is pleasant/interesting, but it's not something I'm inclined to go back to. Kind of a high-2 / low-3 for me.
Black Flag
2/5
I think I heard the song Rise Above before but didn't know the rest. I know of Henry Rollins but don't really know his music. Some of the tracks are kind of fun, like TV Party, but on the whole it's just kind of noisy and amateurish-sounding.
American Music Club
3/5
Interesting that this is among the few albums that isn't available on Spotify. I wonder if it's because this band is too obscure or because they're taking a stand against Spotify? Anyhow, this album sounds like typical 90's alt rock, though given that it was released in 1988 I suppose it may have been a little ahead of its time?
Depeche Mode
5/5
Very easily a 5-star album. One of the best in the list. I forgot how good this album was.
The Undertones
3/5
Reminds me of The Ramones, which makes sense, it's the same era (1979). It's a fun enough album, but it doesn't have the same level of catchy hooks as the Ramones.
Ice Cube
3/5
Ice Cube has amazing delivery. “It was a good day” is a classic. I also knew “check yourself”. I didn’t know the rest. The vibe reminded me of other acts from the time, like Cypress Hill (which are mentioned). I would rate this higher but I’m not really into the vulgar stuff.
G. Love & Special Sauce
4/5
I have a soft spot for this album. It was there in late high-school / early college, and a bunch of my friends were into it. I think it has a really good groove and kind of a unique mix of bluesy-rap over live instruments. It's more about the general sound than about specific hooks. I'm teetering between 3 and 4, but feeling generous today.
N.W.A.
3/5
I can't deny that this was a hugely influential album - it basically birthed the gangsta rap genre. Also, it had both Ice Cube and Dr Dre, each of which were very influential on hip hop. Having said that, I'm not into the whole gangsta rap thing, or the shock value of this album. Also, while Eazy E gets credit for forming this group, I don't think he's as good as a rapper. The sound has one foot in the older sound (like Public Enemy / Beastie Boys / etc) and one foot hinting at the 90's gangsta rap sound.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
I think I heard Hong Kong Garden but didn't know the rest. I can see a throughline from this album to more recent stuff that I like, e.g. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. It's a similar energy, but doesn't have the same level of melodies/hooks. Most of the tracks are fine, with only some exceptions (e.g. Helter Skelter).
Led Zeppelin
4/5
It's not as strong as other Zeppelin albums, but it does have 3 good tracks: Houses of the Holy, Trampled Under Foot, Kashmir. Interesting that they are all bunched together in the early/middle as tracks 4-6. The rest of the album has the Zeppelin bluesy-rock sound, but the songs are "meh". It's still a 4, but just barely.
Mylo
3/5
It's EDM, which for me is fine as background music but rarely rises above that. This album is pleasant enough to listen to.
Sonic Youth
3/5
It's rock but kind of experimental / atmospheric. Given that it was released in 1986 it's kind of ahead of it's time - I can see how it influenced grunge bands. The music is at times almost catchy and at times almost too dissonant, but on the whole it's a decent listen if you're in the mood for something a little artsy/heavy.
Cyndi Lauper
4/5
When I was young I was turned off by Cindi Lauper - too much glam for my taste. At this point I don't mind the glam, and I can't deny that this album has two absolutely iconic songs: Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Time After Time. The latter in particular is just an amazing song. Also, "All Through The Night" - great song. Those three are enough to elevate the album, and the rest is just fun.
Scott Walker
4/5
The album has a cinematic sound that I dig. It reminds me of Butch Cassidy. I love the strings and choir. I got into some of the tracks: Seventh Seal, .... Interesting that the album was a flop, but that members of Radiohead love it.
Deee-Lite
3/5
"Groove is in the Heart" is a huge song. Such a good blend of funk and electronic. Some of the other songs have this vibe (e.g. Deee-Lite Theme). But many parts skew more electronica/house and less funk, the kind of stuff I'd expect to hear in the background in fancy clothing stores.
Otis Redding
4/5
I knew a couple of tracks: My Girl (of course) and A Change Is Gonna Come (what an awesome song). The rest was new to me. I love the combination of his emotional voice and the brass backing. There are a couple of covers in this album that I don't love: Wonderful World and I Can't Get No Satisfaction. His rendition isn't as good as the original and his style doesn't work as well here. But the rest is pretty good. All in all it kinda squeaks by as a 4.
2/5
Interesting how big this album was - didn't expect that. Some of the grooves are pretty good, especially on Take A Look Around. But I'm not into the angst and something about the lead singer's voice is almost comical, reminds me of Flava Flav.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
5/5
What a great album. It has a similar energy as some White Stripes, but less bluesy, more poppy. I spotify-liked 7 of the tracks. What this doesn't capture is that their singer, Karen O, is also a fantastic performer.
Missy Elliott
3/5
I think Missy has a really unique style, and I'm a fan of most things that Timbaland tackles. Plus Busta Rhymes is pretty entertaining. "The Rain" is an awesome track. The rest of the album is pretty good. It's kind of a high 3, maybe I'd push it to 4 with more listens.
Red Snapper
2/5
Meh. It's techno'y music. Some parts are more house, some more ambient. Nothing really stands out.
Faith No More
4/5
I'm kind of biased - I think I owned this album. I was definitely into Faith No More at that time. I still think the first 3 tracks are awesome, and the title track is also solid. The rest is decent too.
M.I.A.
4/5
This album has three absolute bangers: Paper Planes, Come Around, and Boyz. The rest of the album is pretty enjoyable too, and very eclectic mix of influences/sounds. It's neat what she does with the Pixies song on 20 Dollar.
Portishead
5/5
Dummy might be my #1 album from this entire list. It's just so amazing. The mix of tortured vocals, strings, brass, interesting percussion, record scratching and other electronic stuff, bluesy guitar, everything. It really changed music for me when I first heard it, and it still holds up. Incredible album.
Tortoise
2/5
It sounds like this band/album is important because of their influence on other artists, more so than directly. I find the album to be extremely "meh". It reminds me of Philip Glass or other kind of experimental instrumental style things, but far less interesting.
Shuggie Otis
3/5
I knew "Strawberry Letter 23" and I think the title track "Inspiration Information" was familiar. It's a mix of R&B, funk, psychedelic, etc. And most of it is pleasant to listen to. A few tracks get a bit strange (XL-30) or overly jammy (Freedom Flight).
Living Colour
3/5
"Cult of Personality" is a great song, but otherwise I think this album is a bit of a one hit wonder. The rest of the album isn't bad, it's just not great. I will say that the guitarist is incredible and probably deserves to be talked about in lists of top guitarists (Hendrix, Van Halen, etc).
Hanoi Rocks
3/5
The sound is part-punk (like Ramones) but the look is way more glam. The songs are kind of poppy and fun to listen to, but doesn't quite rise to 4-star territory.
Billy Joel
4/5
Pretty solid album. I like the hits: Movin Out, Just The Way You Are, Only the Good Dye Young, She's Always a Woman. Interesting that Vienna is actually the biggest song - that one's OK.
Dinosaur Jr.
3/5
I don't know much about Dinosaur Jr (I know the song "Feel The Pain", which is not on this album, and maybe nothing else). This album's sound is like grunge/alt and it was released in 1987, so that's kind of early. In general I think their vocals are on the drony side, but otherwise the tracks are mostly pretty good (except Poledo, which is weird and hard to listen to). Interesting to learn that the band was original "Dinosaur" but had a fallout, so the band "Dinosaur Jr" splintered off.
Big Black
3/5
The backing music reminds me of NIN (which it predated) -- it's really amped up in a great way. But I don't love the vocals - it's talking/shouting with reverb.
Youssou N'Dour
3/5
I understand Youssou is known for his voice and his drumming. His voice certainly stands out. The backing music is fun/upbeat, but it's not an album I see myself going back to.
Van Morrison
3/5
This is a pretty long live album (double disc). Van Morrison is more bluesy than I anticipated, and some of those songs are good. But the album as a whole is just too long for me.
Mercury Rev
4/5
Really good album! Reminds me of Flaming Lips in terms of the symphonic backing and other vibes. I could do without the couple of crazy track (eg The Happy End) but otherwise it’s comfortably a 4.
Ali Farka Touré
3/5
As a whole the album is foreign, but it has elements that sound familiar. The first track has harmonica that sounds straight out of southern blues. Other tracks have hints of reggae or other styles I know. For the most part it makes for good background / coffee shop music.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
I didn't know Frank Sinatra did a bossa nova album. It's OK. His voice isn't bad but it doesn't necessarily add anything to the tracks, and they come across as somehow less exotic.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
Siouxsie reminds me of Florence and the Machine - something about her voice and delivery is similar. But I think Florence has better songs.
The Cure
3/5
I like Smith's voice and I find it impressive that this album doesn't sound dated, the way many other ~1980'ish albums do. But the songs themselves are just OK.
The Sabres Of Paradise
3/5
Some of the songs on this album could be great background music for video game levels (but without the video game they aren't *that* engaging). Some feel like experimental sound-making and remind me of Stomp. A few have a bit more song structure / tune and feel like Dub (e.g. Wilmot, which is the top-played track, not surprisingly). This is kind of a borderline 2-3 for me.
Eurythmics
3/5
Annie's voice is great. The album's sound is squarely in the 80's and sounds kind of dated (I see hints of Prince, Depeche Mode, Talking Heads, etc). Other than the main hit (Sweet Dreams), the rest of the tracks are just OK.
Einstürzende Neubauten
1/5
Tough album to get through. Sounds like the music in a mixed media art installation. Some of the sounds are really interesting -- industrial or other odd sounds with a heavy dose of distortion and reverb. I think these guys could do a good job as sound designers for films in the sci fi or horror genres. Anyhow, I have no intent to ever listen to this again.
Love
3/5
Decent album. I like the intro track (Alone Again Or) and the rest is OK -- interesting mix of folk rock, occasional Spanish horn, etc. The vocals are at times kind of choir-boy like / angelic, which is different from other tracks I've seen where he's more gritty. Interesting that many years later Lee ran into issues with the law and served time in prison, before being released early due to prosecution misconduct.
David Bowie
3/5
The album is fine but doesn't rise to the level that other Bowie albums did for me (e.g. Blackstar). The album is split, with the first half being more standard rock/pop tunes (with vocals) and the back half being instrumentals. This kind of division made more sense back in the day of records, where there was an A side and a B side. My favorite track is from the back side, an instrumental called Art Decade (which, amusingly, is the *least* Spotify-played track on the album). Interesting to read the back-story about how Bowie and Iggy Pop were such besties - they moved to Europe together to try to detox, and Bowie spent some time as Iggy's keyboardist on tour.
Primal Scream
3/5
It's interesting that this album was made as a kind of tribute/alternative soundtrack to a cult movie (Vanishing Point from 1971). I didn't see the movie. Sounds like it's about a guy who makes a bet to drive across the US while high on uppers - car chase movie. Some parts of this album remind me of The Crow soundtrack (e.g. the tracks "Kowalski", "If They Move, Kill Em", and "Stuka"), which was only a few years earlier (1994 vs 1997). Other parts are more melow or bend in different musical directions.
Slipknot
2/5
Not my thing. The band presents itself like horror film, which is not my genre at all. If I try to ignore the visuals, the music itself is thrash metal and they are capable with their instruments (that drummer is absurdly fast). But the vocals are again half growls, and the tunes are not really catchy. Slipknot reminds me a bit of Limp Bizkit, but the latter is quite a bit better.
The Police
3/5
I like the two popular songs: "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon". The rest of the album is OK, but I think this still a bit shy of 4-star territory for me. I like Sting but I think I prefer the post-Reggae style more.
Destiny's Child
4/5
The first three tracks is pretty awesome. The rest is ok. Slightly into 4 star territory for me.
Jean-Michel Jarre
3/5
It's very synth heavy. Feels like the soundtrack to some sci-fi / fantasy movie from the 70's or 80's. It was released in 1976, and strangely it's the only album he made that was not a soundtrack (and was also his most successful album). I can see how it would influence future artists (maybe Air?). Also interesting to learn that Jarre has done massive performances in some very iconic places around the world, including several that broke Guinness records (3.5 million people in Moscow!).
The Psychedelic Furs
3/5
Fun listen. Some songs are more punk. Some parts remind me of REM or other 80's bands. I'd never heard "Pretty in Pink" but I'm not surprised it's the stand-out song - it's catchy.
New Order
3/5
Poppy 80's dance music. I was never really into New Order (nor Joy Division) back in the day, so for me it's just OK. Some of their other songs are definitely better, like Bizarre Love Triangle.
Lucinda Williams
4/5
Overall vibe reminds me of Sheryl Crow. I like it. I feel like this album is growing on me with every listen so I'm going to skew higher.
Kings of Leon
4/5
Pretty good album. I knew the pop songs: Closer, Sex on Fire, and Use Somebody (though I don’t think I knew who sang them). Some of the other songs are growing on me too, like Manhattan and Revelry.
Ute Lemper
2/5
The music in this album is James Bond'ish, with plenty of strings, and an occasional accordion on Frensh-themed tracks. Based on that alone I would expect to like the album. But I just can't get into Ute's singing. It's overly theatrical/dramatic, with each word enunciated to a T (and from her bio I see that she's primarily known for her work on musicals like Cabaret and Chicago, so that fits). This singing style might be bearable if the lyrics were solid, but they are pretty cheesy. There was no GPT back in the year 2000, but it sounds like the words were written by an early GPT.
Marilyn Manson
2/5
This is one of those albums where the persona/vibe/genre is so off-putting that I can't rate it high, even if the music itself might otherwise be a 3.
Bon Jovi
4/5
This was one of the first CDs I owned and I remember loving it. I still think some of the songs are great: "Living on a Prayer" and "Wanted Dead Or Alive". The album as a whole sounds more dated than I expected. Still, there's enough to put it into 4-star territory.
Barry Adamson
3/5
This was made as a sort of soundtrack for a film noir movie that was never made. It was also meant as a "demo tape", to help Barry get the kind of jobs he wanted (eventually he worked with David Lynch on the score for Lost Highway). It's weird to evaluate film-music without the corresponding film, but the album is decent. It covers a bunch of styles and has some sound effects mixed in.
Spacemen 3
2/5
Not into it. The Spotify link took me to an expanded edition that is 2-disc 2-hour. I only listened to the first 9 tracks, which is what the original included. And even that was a little hard to get through, in particular the 11-minute highly-repetitive track called "Suicide".
Public Enemy
3/5
I was slightly familiar with a couple of tracks: 911 is a Joke, Fight The Power. But I didn't know the album as a whole. I had assumed that the setup on all tracks is that Chuck D raps and Flava hypes, so it was interesting to see that Flava and others do some rapping too. Also, I had kind of pegged Public Enemy as more of a mid-80's group, so 1990 feels kind of late. Anyhow, decent album altogether.
The Flying Burrito Brothers
3/5
I listened to the album on repeat all afternoon (maybe 3-4 times). It's a pleasant enough listen -- it has the harmonies and vibe of bluegrass, with some rock mixed in. But I don't feel hooked by any of the songs.
Laura Nyro
3/5
I think I'd heard Eli's Comin' before, but I didn't know anything else. It's a good sound that mixes some blues, jazz, and folk music. It's interesting to read from her wikipedia article that Elton John idolized her, and that she did successful collaborations with various people, including Barbra Streisand. For me the album is fine.
The Thrills
3/5
It's an OK album. The only song I knew is "Big Sur" (though, amusingly, I had assumed the lyrics were: "Just don't go back to Pittsburgh"). After a few listens, that's still the one standout song.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
I like the song "Help Me". The rest of the album is a pleasant listen but nothing else really stands out.
Doves
3/5
Our group poo poo'ed this album as yet another obscure UK alt rock band. But for me it's not a bad album. It has an atmospheric/spacey vibe. It's kind of a high-3, borderline 4.
PJ Harvey
3/5
I think 50ft Queenie is the only PJ Harvey song I knew before, not just from this album but in general. I don't know, I can't get super into PJ. The songs have good energy, and there's some good guitar and drumming going on, but as songs they don't hook me.
Pulp
3/5
Not a bad album. Some parts remind me of David Bowie, e.g. the last track "The Day After The Revolution" could be a Bowie song.
Drive-By Truckers
3/5
It has that southern rock sound, like CCR, and the singer even has that kind of growly voice. But none of the songs are as catchy. The song "Three Great Alabama Icons" sparked some interesting discussion in our signal chat. It indicates that George Wallace was at times relatively liberal (for his place and time) and perhaps he was more ambitious than racist, though it doesn't excuse everything he did.
Van Halen
4/5
Great album. Half the tracks are hits: Jump, Panama, Hot For Teacher, I’ll Wait. Interesting that there’s a mix of keyboard tracks that feel more like Genesis and guitar heavy tracks, some of which have a slightly bluesy-rock bent (the verse riff in Hot For Teacher could be a ZZ Top song). I always knew Eddie was a wizard on guitar but this album makes me appreciate Alex on drums too.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
I like "Wild Horses". The rest of the tracks are good but not quite good enough for me to bump above a 3-star (though it's close). This seems to be a recurring theme for me with Rolling Stones. I like the sound, but the songs are just OK.
Method Man
3/5
I didn't know much about Method Man and I kind of liked this album. The backing tracks have a really good groove. Method Man has good delivery. I didn't find myself remembering or going back to any tracks (maybe Mr Sandman?) but I could definitely listen to this again.
TV On The Radio
4/5
I like this album. I think Dreams was one of the few TVOTR songs I knew. It's a good track, and so is Staring at the Sun. But with every listen I find myself getting more into other tracks. There's something about the groove and vocals that reminds me of Beck.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
3/5
It's kind of a hippie/spiritual/world style album, with most songs in English but some in other languages too. The female vocals are decent. The male vocals less so. All in all it's OK.
Madonna
3/5
When this album first came out I didn't get into it. I think I was quickly turned off because the lyrics to "Music" are so "koombaya" and cheesy. Now that I'm hearing the full album, I still feel that way, though I appreciate the music production more. I think I'd like this album a lot more with different lyrics and a different vocalist.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
3/5
Pretty fancy name for 80's synth pop. I mean, some tracks include churchy-choral elements, but also some tracks sound like they were made with a cheap Casio, the kind of sounds I associate with early Atari games. All in all it's an OK listen.
The Beau Brummels
3/5
It's an OK album. I can see why people describe it as a Bob Dylan vocalist on top of other more psychedelic music -- the backing at times feels a bit like The Doors or other 60's bands.
Prince
3/5
Prince is an iconic artist. The big tracks on this album are catchy (1999 and Little Red Corvette). The rest is just OK. I already had a sense that Prince had somewhat scandalous/sexy lyrics, but listening to this album through made me realize this even more (some groans would definitely be not safe for work if played out loud).
Sonic Youth
3/5
Sonic Youth is OK but I can't get really into them. I like the grungy sound and energy, it's somewhere between Pixies and Helmet. But the songs themselves are just OK.
Jethro Tull
4/5
I knew the title song Aqualung. It's a pretty quintessential classic rock kind of song. I didn't know the rest of the album. Some of the other tracks are pretty decent, like Cross-Eyed Mary, Locomotive Breath, and Wind Up. Interesting to learn that they recorded in the same studio as Led Zepplin. I can see some connections. This is kind of a high-3 / low-4 for me.
The Incredible String Band
3/5
I didn't know psychedelic folk was a genre. Sounds like Rennaisance Festival music. I half expect them to start singing about brave brave Sir Robin. And then at times they pick up Indian or other world folky sounds. It's not bothersome to listen to, but it's just "meh".
The B-52's
3/5
I only knew one track: Rock Lobster. It's a fun track. Really the whole album is kind of fun in a quirky tongue-in-cheek kind of way.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
Interesting album. The first album that caught my attention is "Christina the Astonishing"; it's mellow and melodic, but oddly it's one of the least played tracks. The album as a whole has a kind of "Americana" sound to me, which is interesting because Nick Cave is Australian.
Chicago
2/5
I knew the song "Does anybody know what time it is?" - good song. I didn't know the rest. It seems to go from jazzy/big-band to soul-filled and to some other styles. Some parts are piano-heavy and remind me of Ben Folds (I'm guessing he was a fan?). But some tracks are just too experimental and annoying (especially "Free Form Guitar" - that's hard to listen to). And some tracks are not quite that bad but still a little jammy for me.
Buffalo Springfield
3/5
I didn't recognize any of the tracks. Some parts remind me of Neil Young or of Simon and Garfunkel. Interesting that it peaked at Billboard #44, and yet it ranks quite high (165 or 188) on lists of top albums of all time. It's not a bad album, but I don't think I'd rate it that high. The start of Broken Arrow reminds me of Cherub Rock.
Madonna
4/5
Solid album. I knew the 3 big hits: Like a Prayer, Express Yourself, Cherish. I was surprised that Like a Prayer has so many more plays than the others (~700M versus ~15M). Also interesting that the album version of Express Yourself is different than the version I remember from MTV -- the album has more horns. Some of the other songs started growing on me, like Dear Jessie and Oh Father and Spanish Eyes.
Scissor Sisters
4/5
I like this album. I knew 3 of the tracks: Laura, Take Your Mama, Better Luck. Take Your Mama is the most played track, but I like the other two better. I also like Return to Oz. Some tracks remind me of David Bowie (e.g. Lovers in the Backseat). Some remind me of Prince or Beck, with the falsetto singing style. Some have a definite disco feel. Interesting that they were much more successful overseas than in the US.
Alice Cooper
3/5
Alice Cooper has a theatrical bent that reminds me a little of Meatloaf. But the music is pretty good. My favorite song is Billion Dollar Babies. I also knew No More Mr Nice Guy -- that one's OK. Some songs are a little too out there for me, like I Love the Dead.
Robbie Williams
3/5
The most interesting thing for me is how some artists are hugely popular in the UK and don't really make in the US. I've heard the name Robbie Williams before but didn't know any of this album, including the big tracks: Angels has 700M plays, Let Me Entertain You has 196M plays. All in all it's an OK rock-pop album, and I see some stylistic connections to Oasis. The hidden track "Hello Sir" is a big up yours to his dad.
Germs
2/5
It's noisy punk. The bass has an almost ska-like feel, and the guitar progression does have some melody to it. But the vocals and overall sound is all noise. Not my thing.
Bill Callahan
4/5
I like this album. I'm not usually into talking-style singing, but this one is just melodic enough. Plus he uses some symphonic sounds in the background, which I always like. My favorite tracks are: Faith/Void, Jim Cain, and the very odd Eid Ma Clack Shaw.
Traffic
3/5
Another album where people jam out with a flute :-)
I like the sax groove and chord progression in Freedom Rider.
The album has a mix of funk and 70's rock sound. It also has a bit of Celtic sounds like in John Barleycorn.
This is a high 3 for me - I could see it rising with more listens.
Grateful Dead
3/5
It's reminiscent of Crosby Stills and Nash in terms of the harmonies, though I think CSN does that style better (their harmonies are tighter). I understand the two bands spent time together so that makes sense. Also, it sounds like this was the other side of the Workingman's Dead album, and yeah the two have a similar sound. All in all it's a pleasant enough listen but not a standout album for me.
k.d. lang
3/5
The music is more shmaltzy than I expected. Sounds like Elvis. I expected KD Lang to be more pop with maybe a country tinge.
Kings of Leon
3/5
I liked the other Kings of Leon album on the list, but this one is different. It sounds more roadhouse/rockabilly, and has AC/DC-like vocals, but the melodies aren't as strong. The tracks "Happy Alone" and "Holy Roller Novocaine" are the ones that have a bit of a hook.
The Gun Club
3/5
The vibe reminds me of The Pixies, but with an occasional rockabilly feel. This album was released in 1981 so credit for helping to establish the sound. The songs are OK.
Air
4/5
It's Air so it's great, though I would pick other albums over this one. The topic is heavy. I should really see the film. Interesting that they tried at times to sync the music to the movie, and at other times tried to create songs that stand on their own.
The Jam
3/5
Fun pop/rock album. The standout song is a ballad: English Rose. The rest is somewhere between punk and New Wave. This is a high-3 for me.
The Modern Lovers
3/5
This album has hints of psychedelic / punk / blues. It has reminds me at various times of The Doors, G Love, Cake, Jon Spencer. Some of the tracks have silly lyrics, like "Pablo Picasso was never called an asshole". It's a light hearted listen.
Pentangle
3/5
It's folk music that feels at time Celtic and at other times churchy. It's OK as background music but I don't see myself coming back to this.
Soundgarden
5/5
What a fantastic album. It holds up well after all these years. It's really impressive how much depth it has. The album is best known for the hits (Black Hole Sun and Spoonman) but for me there are a dozen other equally good songs.
The Replacements
3/5
It's kind of generic pop rock. Not bad, but nothing stands out.
Ice T
3/5
Pretty long album. I like “New Jack Hustler” best, and generally prefer the tracks that have some of the horns/jazz samples. Interesting that in 1991 you had to spell out what OG means - today it’s such a common phrase.
Steely Dan
3/5
It’s not a bad album. It has some of the same groove as other steely Dan albums, with some bongo drums, keyboards, guitar, etc. But none of the songs stand out. Not sure why this album is on the list.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
This album has big "bookend" tracks: Gimme Shelter and You Can't Always Get What You Want. Along the way there's also a country'ish version of Country Honk. The rest is more generic but has the same bluesy rock feel. Maybe my favorite Stones album so far, borderline 4.
Aphex Twin
3/5
It’s techno but fairly ambient, with lots of spacey or ethereal sounds, which makes it easy listening as far as techno goes.
Caetano Veloso
3/5
Boss’s nova mixed with symphonic, some 60’s go go sound, and a bit of sitar. My favorites were the tracks that went symphonic, like the intro track.
Carpenters
4/5
Sweet sweet melodies. I was familiar with some ("We've Only Just Begun" and "Close To You"). I ended up spotify-liking a few other tracks. It's sad to learn that Karen struggled with anorexia.
Ian Dury
3/5
It's the kind of new wave sound I would bucket with talking heads and similar bands, except that Ian has a thick cockney accent. Interesting that he had polio and was clearly affected (left arm is scrawny) but still had the charisma to be a frontman for a band.
The Clash
3/5
It's punk and it's interesting to read spotify's description, that they were "the Beatles" while Sex Pistols were "the Stones". I guess that makes them more accessible, and I can see that. It's gritty, but only so gritty, and some of the tunes are almost catchy.
Basement Jaxx
3/5
Techno isn't my jam, but this album is a pretty fun listen. I can totally imagine it playing in clubs in Ibiza, and people just having a great time. It's more house and has an interesting mix of instrumentation. It's a high-3 for me.
Gang Of Four
3/5
Interesting how my group got into a debate about what is "punk" vs "post-punk". They have guitar but they also have poppy sounding base and occasionally keyboards, and some talking-style vocals that feel like Talking Heads. Sounds like this band was influential.
Wire
3/5
More punk music. The most notable thing for me is that the song Three Girl Rhumba seems like it was more than inspiration for Elastica's Connection.
The Fall
3/5
Sounds like punk or early alternative music. Reminds me a bit of The Pixies. Pretty good listen. The songs kind of started to hook me. This might be a 4 with more listens.
Beatles
4/5
This is still the early "boy band" period of The Beatles, which is not the period I prefer. Still, it has good songs like "All My Loving", "It Won't Be Long", and the Harrison song "Don't Bother Me". Interesting that the album has a bunch of covers (Mister Postman, Roll Over Beethoven, You Really Got A Hold On Me, etc).
Norah Jones
5/5
Perfect album. Every song is excellent. The melodies, the piano, the voice, everything.
Brian Eno
2/5
Interesting that this album is credited with defining the "ambient" genre. It's certainly a calm, pleasant listen. I wouldn't mind if it played in an airport. It sounds like an art installation or a meditation class and I could certainly use it as study music. But it's just a little too simple/calm for me to want to return to it.
Dolly Parton
3/5
I know relatively about Dolly Parton, so this was useful education. Interesting that Dolly says the title song here is her personal favorite song (career-long). The melodies are fine and it has a folksy story-telling vibe.
Orbital
2/5
The intro and outro tracks are just a clip of someone talking, played back on top of itself. It's interesting but kind of annoying to listen to. The rest of the album is dance/techno and it's OK but not really my thing.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
It has a melancholy feel and a story teller approach. OK as coffee shop music (perhaps minus the 1-2 vulgar tracks).
The Undertones
3/5
Sounds like the ramones. Also hints of oldie rock. The most obvious is the cover of Under the Boardwalk, but other tracks also remind me of an older era (like The Monkeys). Fun listen.
ZZ Top
3/5
La Grange is an awesome song. The rest is decent. The guitar work is fantastic and the trio has a tight sound. I tend to prefer the more bluesy stuff. This is almost a 4.
Television
3/5
The vibe reminds me a little of David Bowie, maybe a little more punk. Fun listen.
Hüsker Dü
3/5
People talk about them and REM together, like they have similar sounds and both paved the way. This album does totally sound like 90's alt rock, but it doesn't sound that much like REM to me (maybe slightly similar to the guitar-heavy albums like Monster). Some tracks are decent, like Ice Cold Ice.
SAULT
3/5
The album was released in 2020 in the time of the protests for George Floyd's killing and others. It captures the zeitgeist of the moment. Interesting that it comes from a British group. I like the sound/groove of the album - parts of it remind me of the soulful side of Lauryn Hill. This is a strong 3.
A Tribe Called Quest
3/5
The only track I knew was Scenario. I didn't know that track is credited with launching Busta Rhymes' career - neat! I like Tribe because the backing tracks are groovy/jazzy and they _don't_ do the gangsta rap thing. It's like easy listening rap, in a good way. I think if it had ~2 more hits, I would mark it an easy 4.
System Of A Down
2/5
Not my thing (anymore). I had a metal phase but it ended in the 90's. I have no nostalgia for this band, and I didn't even know "Nu Metal" was a thing. I give them credit for having melodies (not just noise) and for mixing in some different instruments/sounds. But I'm not really into the singer's voice.
Joy Division
3/5
The sound/vibe is somber and reminds me of The Cure, or even of later stuff like The Crow Soundtrack. The songs are OK.