This was the first Taylor Swift album I listened to - in fact, the first time I heard more than just parts of her songs. I found the album very upbeat and enjoyable. The vocals were front and center, the primary instrument and audio focal point. The band was wonderfully supportive, upbeat, and energetic and worked to highlight and support the vocal tracks. I’m not a “Shiftie” after listening to one album, but I will be listening to more of her music.

“What if Toni Basil made a hip-hop album in the style of Art of Noise?” Yea, some questions are better left unasked.

So there’s country, and there’s folk, and there is singer/songwriter. This is all three rolled into one. Not a fan.

U2 was the album I was most familiar with, and I think it was one if their best. I think that as I was listening to it, the songs got better

This was the first Taylor Swift album I listened to - in fact, the first time I heard more than just parts of her songs. I found the album very upbeat and enjoyable. The vocals were front and center, the primary instrument and audio focal point. The band was wonderfully supportive, upbeat, and energetic and worked to highlight and support the vocal tracks. I’m not a “Shiftie” after listening to one album, but I will be listening to more of her music.

Interesting mix of blues, folk, and rock

I see this is one of the first albums that started the New Wave era. It combined strong guitar riffs with synthesizers, but was definitely not canned commercial pop/rock. It’s easy for me to forget that this was a debut album. It was a joy listening to this, and I think I will definitely add this to my rotation.

A neat listening experience. A little bit dub step, sort of reminiscent of The Art of Noise, but more industrial in sound.

A good, solid alternative album reminiscent of classic alternative artists like The Clash, The Psychedelic Furs, or Squeeze. Lots of strong guitar riffs, fast-paced, and energetic tracks.

So if you’ve ever had a random thought like “I wonder what a folk new-wave punk band sounds like”, then this album is the definitive answer to that question. Generic and uninspiring in every way.

If I’m listening to music on SiriusXM and an Elvis Costello tune comes on, I will almost always switch to a different channel - unless is one of a small handful of tunes which just happen to be from this album. This was a good, solid album. There are influences from Blues, R&B, and Rock. I guess from my standpoint, Mr. Costello peaked with his first album.

Not a fan of “the wall of sound” - it’s just too much, sounds washed out, and drowns the vocals. As far as a Christmas album, meh!

Folk punk is not my jam, and I’m not likely to listen to this again. That said, this is like The Clash and Woodie Guthrie collaborated on a side project. The guitar melodies are very nice, but, oh my, his voice is just irritating. Decent, but just not good enough to be a 3.

This was an interesting one. Kind of like an adult contemporary version of The Clash. Each song was totally different, in a pleasant way. This was an interesting one for sure.

Not even 20 albums into this project, and I have by second Kraftwerk album. This is truly amazing stuff for 1978.

Hip-Hop is not my thing, but I enjoyed listening to this. Each piece had a distinct sound, and the overall mixing / layering of tracks was well balanced.

Maybe 1001 albums was too many. This was generic, pedantic, and uninspiring. By far the longest 37 minutes in this endeavor so far.

“What if Toni Basil made a hip-hop album in the style of Art of Noise?” Yea, some questions are better left unasked.

I enjoyed listening to this. The pacing / beat is slower than I typically prefer, but the ethereal nature of the music kept me interested and engaged. I struggled between 3 and 4 on this one, but ended up going with 4. If half stars were an option, 3.5

This is the second TwitterTwitter album in consecutive days from this project. This was ok, but not as good as “I See You” But it’s ok enough to get a three, but if half stars were allowed, 2.5

This was ok. Probably not ok enough to listen to again, but good enough for a 3. It started off real slow and I was not really into it, but as the album progressed, I got more into it.

This was fun to listen to. Trippy in a good way. It’s psychedelic funk, just what a band called Funkadelic should be about. This is really amazing stuff.

It makes for interesting background music. The chords are very melodic, but also very repetitive. The guitar playing is excellent, and the songs have a pleasant cadence to them. All in all, it’s pretty good

The positives - really nice harmonies, use of different instruments, interesting rhythms - the music was quite good and engaging. The cons - the vocals are awful, like really, really dreadful. I know there’s words, but all I heard was dreadful wails - what an emotionally draining experience. If this had been an instrumental album, easily a 4. The “singing” just ruined it for me, more than cancelled out what was good.

It was ok. Lots of blues influences and a good listen. Personally, I would most likely not listen to this again.

I really enjoyed this. Very relaxing. It’s a great fusion of eastern music and western instruments. It’s really timeless, still sounds relevant today.

This is really, really good work. It’s not to synth heavy, not too guitar heavy. The synths and guitars complement each other, it’s as if the sounds blend together as one. The depth of the sound stage is remarkable and is incredibly balanced. The long instrumental intros are simply amazing - they hook you and draw you into the layers of sound, and when the vocals come on board, that depth of sound still remains and carries you through the song. Pictures of You and Lovesong are the familiar tunes here, but the other tracks are solid. Plainsong, Disintegration, and Homesick are also standout songs. I did not dislike any of the tracks. The overall mood of the album is suitably dark, but hopeful at the same time. It’s not a melancholy drag, but evokes a determination to persevere and grow.

Red Rain, Sledgegammer, Don’t Give Up, Big Time, and In Your Eyes . . . . all great songs. I like the inclusion of World Music beats, and Peter Gabriel has one of those gravelly voices that is great to listen to, which is refreshing. I heard this a lot when I was in college, and I thought it was ok then. Now, I thinks it is a really great album. So much talent came out of Genesis.

My first Jimi Hendrix album I have listened to. Really good stuff for 1967. Not good enough for a 5, but definitely earns a 4

It’s Elvis. And it’s ok.

A fun listen, I really liked it.

Who knows - this may be a good thrash metal / death metal album. But it sounds pretty generic and formulaic to me with the caveat that I’m not a metal-head. I made the commitment when I started this project that I would listen to each album in its entirety. This album tested my resolve.

Dolly Parton is a national treasure! And Linda Ronstadt has played multiple genres of music from country to pop rock, as she has done them all well. Emmylou Harris is a country star in Her own right. Singing in this album is absolutely beautiful, and this is good, honest country personally, I’m not a huge fan of country music; however, I do realize that this album is a really good one.

Cool album. Blues infused with island grooves. This would be great coffee house music or something to have on when working about the house.

Hmmmmm. This was all over the place. Some tracks featured strong guitar riffs and were solid rock tracks. Some were “easy listening” type tracks. Some tracks were progressive rock- like. It was all over the place. The vocals were superb. This had so much potential, but it was a bit of a let down for me.

This is likely the greatest folk music you will ever hear. But it’s still folk.

Jesus, what a drag

An album with both Monday Monday and California Dreamin deserves a decent rating even if the other songs are rather forgettable.

Man …… this is some amazing stuff. A lot of times, albums that are credited with being groundbreaking and inspiration to other artists just don’t sound that good. This album is timeless, sounds relevant and current today as it did (checks math) 54 years ago. This is the magnum opus of progressive rock albums, every bit as good as Pink Floyd’s albums from the same era. Wow, what a trip!

Not something I’d choose to listen to, but I agree that it’s good.

Wow - 1974? I would have guessed late 80’s based on the sound. And I would have guessed the singer was a woman, but alas, I was wrong. Oh, my, this is just great. I’m a new-wave fan, and I really, really enjoyed this album. It’s fun, it’s glam, and it’s wild. I just like everything about it.

Ugh, more hipster folk music. Uninspiring and boring. Sounds like a rough cut of a demo tape.

Great blues album, and the crowd was really into it.

A great, great bluesy rock record. Steel guitars with no country twang, smooth rhythms, excellent pacing. Sultans of Swing, of course, is the best track on the album. The rest of the songs are of similar pedigree. Not a 5, but a very solid 4

This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. This was the first Daft Punk album I have listened to. Many of the pieces are catchy, but they are a bit repetitive. Did I mention that some of the pieces were a bit repetitive, in a self-repeating, repetitive kind of way. All in all, it was ok. Around the world. Around the world. Around the world. Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion. Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion Could have easily been a 4, but the repetitive nature of the repeating segments repeating in most of the tracks lent a sort of repetitive nature to this, where many of the tracks are repetitive in nature, in that sound bits are laid down in a repetitive fashion

There’s a few segments of really, really good stuff, but those are few and far between. Most of this album is just musicians fooling around - it’s just random flotsam and jetsam. Not sure how high I’d need to be to see this as some sort of progressive rock magnum opus.

If you ordered U2 from Wish, The Verve is what you would receive. Bittersweet Symphony is really good, and you would think that being the first track portends that great things are in the offing for the remainder of this 76 minute (eek!) album. The last track (Come On) is also quite good and is the undiscovered gem from this band that I didn’t know about, but everything in between is so genetic, so forgettable, and that are all but indistinguishable from one another. 1 star, plus one additional star for the two tracks worth listening to. And 2 stars for this is quite generous.

The “singing”: 1. Vocals are dreadful. Everything else: 5. This is a fun album, the music is quite good, catchy, but not overly trite. This is a decent punk album. Overall, it’s a very strong 3.

I guess it’s good? I did enjoy listening to it, but it is not very likely that I would choose to listen to it again.

Supertramp are the most American sounding UK band ever. This is a good, solid 70’s progressive rock album. It’s of comparable quality to other prog rock groups of the same era, e.g., Pink Floyd, Yes, Led Zeppelin.

This is a strong Soul/R&B/Funk album. I can hear the jazz influences here. It’s for albums like this that I undertook this listening project. I’m glad I listened to this.

Heard it Through the Grape Vine is a great track and showed what was possible. The rest of the album sounds like a badly edited demo track. Like one made the morning it was turned in. You can wax on about how raw the sound was, how they influenced other artists, etc., and that’s just sophisticated cover for this album just wasn’t good.

Hip-hop is not my jam, but this work is solid. I found the rhythms inviting and engaging. I enjoyed listening to it.

Ugh. Every track sounded just like every other track. This is the archetypal 2010s hard metal generic album, unremarkable in every way.

It was ok.

So I typically don’t like 90’s music, and Singer/Songwriter is one of my lowest rated categories in this project. This is an exception. I love Sheryl’s gravelly voice, the crisp acoustic guitar tracks, and the simple, yet well done arrangements. I read one review that said she is the female Tom Petty, and I can see that. I love the story telling aspect of each song. I just really enjoy this album. I used to have this on CD and listened to it all the time, then I think a coworker took it. I had not listened to this in years, and I’m genuinely glad this one came up today.

Hmmm. This was interesting. Sort of dance, sort of Dub-Step, sort of DJ mixes. It was all over the place. Interesting to listen to but not remarkable.

This was really good. Excellent jazz is timeless!

What on earth did I just listen to?

I can’t tell if this is a serious album or if it is intended to be parody. The musical style - it’s what I would imagine emanating from Giede Prime, but with the Cookie Monster as the lead singer. It was a trip.

For live album, it was OK

Famous for wearing bow ties and horn-rimmed glasses, Paul Simon was a two-term U.S. Senator from Illinois (1985-1997), and a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination for the 1988 United States presidential election. After leaving public office, Paul Simon was passionate about creating a place to research and provide constructive public policy resources, encourage others to take part in conversations on the issues of our time, and support the next generation of public leaders. Oh, sorry, wrong Paul Simon. Meh, this album was ok. I’m not a huge fan of the singer/songwriter genre.

An excellent Punk album, and definitely a good fusion of Punk and emerging New Wave. Lots of musical styles in play here, from Punk, Hard Rock, Rockabilly, Reggae, and Blues. But it all fits together in a cohesive package. The musicianship is top notch, and the vocals are crisp and bright. This is my deepest dive I do a Clash album (so far), and it’s worth a listen.

I am not a Rap or Hip-Hop fan, but this album is genre defining. Its commercial success (partially vaulted by the Walk This Way cover that charted higher than the Aerosmith original) brought this genre into the mainstream. There are so many popular, well known and just simply enjoyable tracks to listen to. This could be an album I will periodically listen to. This is just epic. 5⭐️

Soul, funk, blues, jazz, and … yodeling? Did I hear yodeling?? This was a good listen, nice background or ambience music. If we could give half stars, this would be a 3.5. But it’s just not rise to the level of a 4.

Wow, Björk’s second album on this list. It’s neat in that hardly any instruments were used, and it’s very avant-garde. Avant-garde, yes. Still a shitty mess of meandering “what the hell did I just listen to?” - also yes.

Wow. Travelin’ Band Lookin’ Out My Back Door Up Around the Bend Who’ll Stop the Rain I Heard it Through the Grapevine I honestly did not know these were all from the same album. I’m obviously not a huge CCR fan. What an album! Blues, Rockabilly, and maybe some folk rock? Really good stuff. Easily a 5, no real doubt here.

Country is NOT my preferred genre, but Dolly Parton is a national treasure. This is what country was meant to be - storytelling, great vocals, steel guitars, and upbeat pacing. This certainly belongs on this list.

So there’s country, and there’s folk, and there is singer/songwriter. This is all three rolled into one. Not a fan.

Oh, good, more singer/songwriter stuff. Jesus, what a drag. This is the cure to happiness and joy - if that was actually something we all needed.

Washed out, over-mixed, reverbed for the sake of using reverb effects. It sort of sounds like Queens of the Stoneage, but just not as good. “Oh,look, we invented a new genre of music”. Good for you, I guess.

Aretha’s voice is simply amazing. Many of these songs are covers (was quite common then), but her vocal style made her renditions her own. Is the sound engineering up to current standards? No. But the recordings are balanced, the instruments clear, and her amazing voice shines through it all. The pacing is decent. All around, it’s a pleasant album to listen to.

Wow, what a trip! The album started off as a wonderful Latin Jazz / Samba jam session (and a GREAT one at that), complete with the two very familiar singles of Black Magic Woman and Oye Como Va. of course, the guitar work was phenomenal, but so was everything else! Then, it transitioned into Prog Rock, and holy shit, they are really, really good at that as well. The Samba influences and jazz tracks are still there of course. Then the album closes with a solid Latin Jazz / Samba piece. Hearing the two singles as part of the whole album allowed me to hear these works in a way I never had before. I was pretty sure I would like this one, but I was surprised it was such a solid 5-star.

Every middle school, high school, and college jazz ensemble in the United States has felonious monk as a portion of their jazz repertoire. Thelonious Monk is a master of the art form of jazz music.

I really enjoyed this. A good mix of soul, funk, electronica, and a splash of rock-a-billy.

Not a fan. And dare I say it, Nirvana are overrated. The guitar riffs are decent, but Kurt’s voice. Ugh. If it weren’t for the singing, this would net another star

This was better than I expected. A solid soul/disco/R&B set. Oh, if only he had handled the superstar fandom that came later better. . .

I made it about half way through this. Not listening to all 8 hours. It’s decent, but not spectacular.

Wow. What a psychedelic trip. Hard to believe this album is older than I am. (Not by much)

Better than I remember it 30 years ago, but still 2-3 strong tracks with generic filler.

A mix of rock-folk and country-folk that is representative of what the early 90’s had to offer, which means it’s just not that good. Hipsters who think they are into politics and wax on about how “both sides are bad” probably love this album. (BTW, the “both sides are bad” are among the most politically ignorant among us)

I’m generally not a fan of live albums, but this was well done. I have always enjoyed Neil Young’s storytelling, and the album sews together folky, bluesy, and rock riffs into a cohesive piece of work. “All Neil Young songs sound the same” is either a feature or a bug, depending on your perspective. I like the song and composition style, so it’s a feature for me.

So David Bowie created the Ziggy Stardust character, performed in character, then was unable to differentiate Ziggy Stardust from himself. So in other words, he presented as his true, authentic self. In 1972. Good for him!! Regarding the album - it’s really good. Fantastic progressive rock, clean editing, well balanced. Just wow. Like really, really good. How have I never listened to this?

I’ve reviewed a couple of other Rap albums for this project already. Rap is not my genre of choice, but I enjoyed listening to this. Based on my limited knowledge of Rap in general, it’s hard for me to assign a rating. I did enjoy listening to it, so I think that warrants a 3.5/5, and ill round up to 4

So I anticipated that this would be a slow, dreary, sad, and depressing slog, but the slow, dreary, sad depressing slog was slower, drearier, sadder, and more depressing than I anticipated it would be.

Jazz is awesome.

I had to listen to this on YouTube, of all places. It was ok, but I’m going to trust other reviewers who raised concerns regarding cultural appropriation. It was an easy listen, like something one might hear in a coffee shop. But I don’t think I will listen again.

Human Behaviour - kind of reminds me of what an eclectic Alanis Morrisiette song would sound like. Crying - If the synthetic world of The Matrix had a local coffee shop, this would be playing there. Kind of neat, like dubstep without all the reverb-base. Catchy. Venus as a Boy - similar vibe to the first track There’s More to Life than This - strip the vocals out, and it’s what I would imagine hearing in Abercrombie & Finch. The rest of the tracks evoke similar responses to the above This is by far the best Björk album I have listened to for this project, but alas, that’s a low bar, as the others have been abysmal to me.

My only exposure to UB40 before this was Red Red Wine. This is much, much better. It is also very repetitive. I did not listen to the whole two hours, I just didn’t see the point in doing so.

Very underwhelming. Like Lynyrd Skynyrd, but not as good. And LS is meh Flat vocals, uninspiring guitar riffs, very generic sounding. This is to rock music what Pabst Blue Ribbon is to beer.

This was by far the best 90s rock I have listened to. But know this: the bar is very low. This was a solid 3.