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.

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.

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.

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"

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Her voice is truly iconic. I recognized that, even though I didn't recognize any of the songs.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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?

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Meh. I like the one song I knew (Suspicious Minds) but the rest felt really dated and cheesy.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

This sounded like background music at a science center documentary. It was a little too abstract to be interesting.

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.

The album as a whole didn’t grab me. I liked the song Michelangelo. The rest were meh but ok as background music.

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?

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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).

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.

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.

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".

It's pretty corny but I can't deny that this album has a lot of great songs.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Great album.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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".

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 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.

He has a great voice and probably would have been fun to see live. But for me it’s a little too old times.

The song Jennifer was ok, but a lot of the album was just too experimental/annoying/long for me to get into.

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.

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.

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.

I like the overall sound. Makes for good background music while I'm working. That said, none of the tracks grabbed me in particular.

It's not quite "Bridge Over Troubled Water", but it's still a pretty solid album. I love their harmonies.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The sound reminds me of Lauryn Hill. Looks like this album was released about 4 years after Miseducation.

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.

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.

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.

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).

This worked as pleasant/chill background music. I didn't get particularly hooked by any of the tracks.

Solid album. I like the bossanova sound, and this album has enough catchy songs to go above average.

Wonderful album. Every song is great.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

Initially the sound was fun and nostalgic. But after a while it became monotonous - the same beat, same rhythm, same delivery on every song.

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.

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.

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.

It’s a decent background music sort of album. I’m a sucker for folksy harmony vocals but it’s not quite a 4.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

They have good energy. I bet they were fun to see live. The songs themselves are OK.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Very easily a 5-star album. Possibly my favorite Beatles album.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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"

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The album is OK, except for when Neil Young sings (e.g. Helpless). I don't think I realized "Our House" was from CSNY.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I made it through the album, but only barely. It's noise/chaos that once in a while almost sounds like a song.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I don't love how Oasis is so full of themselves. But the album is pretty good.

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.

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.

The sound is similar to Superfly but none of the songs hooked me.

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 album was very meh. No song stood out. The sound was OK.

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.

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 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.

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.

Synth pop. Some parts sound very 80’s. Some parts remind me of Ellie Goulding. It was fun easy listening but nothing special.

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.

Three great tracks and the whole album has interesting beats / production.

Tracy has a 5-star voice and Fast Car is a 5-star song. But the rest of the album has 3-star melodies.

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.

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.

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.

This album was definitely better than the last Yes album. I liked "Mood for a Day", and the first track was pretty decent too.

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.

I liked this album! In particular these tracks: Ballet for a Rainy Day, 1000 Umbrellas, Another Satellite, Dear God.

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.

I really liked this album. Specific tracks I liked: "Suzanne", "Hey, that's no way to say goodbye", "Stories of the street".

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

Great album. I don't know if there's a more quintessential "classic rock station" album. The first 5 tracks are all killer.

I liked this album as "coffee shop music" - perfect to have in the background as I worked.

Pretty good album, but not as amazing as Pure Heroine.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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".

Great album. I specifically liked three tracks: Fruit Trees, Time Has Told Me, and Day Is Done. But the whole album is great.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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").

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I knew No Woman No Cry, but none of the other songs. I enjoyed the album, but nothing else stood out.

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.

Didn't know anything about Lupe Fiasco. Pretty good album. I liked "Kick, Push" and "I Gotcha". The production overall was solid.

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?

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.

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.

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.

Interesting production / background music. Definitely an R&B feel, but more modern.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.

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.

Incredible how many great songs/albums the Beatles created. In this one I marked 8 tracks.

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.

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.

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.

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 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).

I slightly liked Frightened and Rebellious Jukebox. But the rest of the album was either "meh" or kind of annoying.

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.

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.