Trafalgar
Bee GeesI was not expecting this from a Bee Gees album. This has a 60s/70s singer-songwriter vibe, which I dig a lot. Actually, it feels and sounds like David Bowie. But like a cheesy Bowie.
I was not expecting this from a Bee Gees album. This has a 60s/70s singer-songwriter vibe, which I dig a lot. Actually, it feels and sounds like David Bowie. But like a cheesy Bowie.
One of my all-time favorites. The Stooges and Raw Power are incredible.
THE Bowie album. Immediate 5 stars.
Huh. Not sure why this is an album I have to listen to before I die. Kinda generic 90s post-grunge (whatever the hell that means), though there are some pretty good songs on this record. And even if I think it's kinda generic, Dave Grohl is still a cool dude.
It's funny that "Bob Dylan Dream" is on this cover because there's a few tracks ("No Expectations", "Dear Doctor") sound like Bob Dylan playing the blues. Overall, it's a really soulful record. Not every record can speak to it.
This is the kind of record I was hoping for from this app. I've never heard of Fela Kuti, so I'm very excited to dig in. It's such a groovy record. It's a mix of jazz, funk, and I assume some western African folk music. A quick Google says Kuti called this sound "Afrobeat," and given other records I've listened to from African artists I now see where their sounds come from. In reading the background about the record, I can see why this is such an important record. It was a political statement about the Nigerian government and the military. The lyrics (scant as they are) speak directly to these issues. But the music is such a unique blend of soulful grooves and motifs that you could easily enjoy the music even without the statements.
Holy hell, this is like THE Creedence record. I already know 2/3 of these songs by heart. The others fit perfectly along with those. God, I love Creedence Clearwater Revival.
I still know so very little about jazz. I’ve never heard of Hugh Masekela before, but this record makes me want to look into more of his work. This record has a lot of good slow jams that I personally love. Despite the slow beat nature of this record, there’s still plenty of good improvisation work going on.
I'm actually not able to stream this album. Deep Purple is a hole in my music knowledge, particularly for this early rock period.
I was not expecting this from a Bee Gees album. This has a 60s/70s singer-songwriter vibe, which I dig a lot. Actually, it feels and sounds like David Bowie. But like a cheesy Bowie.
Another Rolling Stones classic! Unlike Beggar's Banquet, this leans more into the rock music side of the Rolling Stones. Several songs I'm very familiar with ("Brown Sugar", "Can't You Hear Me Knockin'", "Wild Horses"), but I'm excited to dig into the ones I don't know as well. Oh man. I think this might become an all-time favorite record for me now.
I've always heard about PJ Harvey but I've never listened to her. No better excuse. It seems like this is a pretty political statement about the British government and its history. A whole lot of references to war and British actions in the word. It's a great record, though it's tough to sit down and have this on in the background. It's a record you have to pay VERY close attention to. It's more of a statement than it is a record.
I've always made an assumption that Simon & Garfunkel were just average 60s folk musicians, but they are so much more than that. I think I just heard a synthesizer which blows my mind for a record from 1968.
I appreciate this album for a huge leap forward in alternative modern music. It’s just a tough record to go back to and listen.
This is a fantastic live record. Really shows off what Muddy Waters could do.
This moment in time with progressive music is a bit beyond me. It's high art that influenced a lot of musicians going forward, but it's a bit too artsy for me. Not a bad record, just doesn't do it for me personally.
Never listened to Leonard Cohen before, but I can hear why he was so influential among artists I love.
Only ever heard Come to Daddy and Milkman by Aphex Twin! This is really outside of my normal listening patterns, and I'm only on the first track but I love it. This is the perfect work music for me. While it can be repetitive if you're paying close attention, most of this music feels meditative to me.
I've been waiting for this recommendation. Reggae speaks to me in a way I never thought possible. This is a fantastic record, hard not to bob your head along with it.
I'd never heard of Fred Neil, but I just read about him a little. The intro of the Wikipedia page specifically mention he never achieved commercial success himself. I hate to be mean but I see why. I haven't a clue why this record is on the list.
Possibly my favorite Dan record!
An album I'm incredibly familiar with. It's not my favorite Metallica record nor is it their best record, but it's the record that put them (and metal as a genre) on the map. It's one of the most important records ever made and definitely one of the most influential records. I have to imagine a lot of people picked up guitars and drums after listening to the Black Album.
My mom had this record and would play it when I was a kid. There’s a bit of nostalgia with this one for me. It’s alright! It’s like pop prog almost.
I'm stunned at this one. I'd heard of the band before but never listened. Glad this got pushed to me. I absolutely love it. This is my favorite record recommendation so far.
I'm very familiar with "The Seed (2.0)," but I'm unfamiliar with the rest of this record. It's so much more than just hip-hop. It's a pretty transcendent work of art. I'm genuinely impressed by the depth of this record, and I find myself bobbing along with the infectious beats. Pure genius.
I saw Supertramp and expected Breakfast in America, which I love. But I hadn't listened to Crime of the Century before. I am familiar with "Bloody Well Right" but not much else. Another exciting record for me! It’s not bad! Bloody Well Right, while a good song, isn’t enough to carry the whole album.
This music has a time and place. It's a very classic kind of bluegrass/gospel sound that you could see on a TV show or movie. Not something I'd listen to all the time. It has a very earnest quality that comes across as pretty cheesy to me.
This is cool to me simply because of the combination of influences Kiwanuka uses. I love records that are difficult to qualify in easy genre terms, and KIWANUKA is certainly one of those.
You know exactly what you're getting when you listen to a ZZ Top record. And this is THE ZZ Top record.
Eh. I don’t see the big deal.
I adored this record. I love its protest spirit and combo of folk and punk sounds. Not about of records like this one out there.
I adored this record. I love its protest spirit and combo of folk and punk sounds. Not about of records like this one out there.
This record is A N G R Y. I'd never listened to it and knew the overall demeanor about it, but it's different to actually hear it. It's also a super well-made record. Lots of extremely recognizable songs that feels like the epitome of a 90s rock record.
Much like Jagged Little Pill, this record is extremely 90s. Hell, it has Butch Vig of all people on it. That being said, I have no idea why it's an album I should hear before I die. It's not bad per se, but it's not the classic that its inclusion on the list might indicate.
Not my favorite Bowie album though Heroes is a fantastic song. And the worst Bowie album is better than most artists' best.
Great record and a foundation of big beat electronic music. I really think it’s a classic simply because of how representative of 90s electronic music.
Another artist I've never heard of! It's not quite punk to me, but it certainly has that aesthetic right down to the production quality from this period. I also can't help but compare to Bob Dylan. Maybe it's just the singer's voice, but it has an electric Dylan vibe to me. As if Bob Dylan got into punk rock.
I appreciate what this album is doing, and I actually love Avalon. But this record is pretty early in Roxy Music's career, and every artist has to find themselves a bit. This record proves that.
I love the soul influence on this record. Bowie is the ultimate songwriter in that he can take any kind of musical idea and incorporate it into his own style, and Young Americans might be the perfect example of that.
Foundational 90s electronic record. I’m surprised by how familiar I was with it despite rarely listening to electronic music.
I appreciate reggae music, and this is an excellent example of the art form done well. But reggae tends to meander for me. The songs tend to repeat the same hook over and over again for a few minutes and it's over.
No idea why this is on this list.
The 00s represented a sea change in alternative music to me. Grunge and whatever post-grunge is was on its way out and left room for a number of styles, including dance music infusions like Hot Fuss. This was a shockingly good record from the time that has become a classic of the 00s.
Perfect album from artistic geniuses during a time when this kind of music wasn’t profitable to corporate publishers. No other notes.
Fela Kuti is becoming a favorite artist of mine because of this site. A fantastically prolific artist who has music on the brain.
I'm not sure why this SOAD album is on it in place of Toxicity, a far superior album. No question this is a great record from a very unique metal artist, but there are better examples of this band and what they do. That being said, System of a Down is amazing.
This is absolutely incredible. More words couldn't do it justice.
I think this record was more important historically. It's not that it doesn't hold up, but you can't sense the impact it had at the time.
I'm surprised to see this one on the list. I would never have thought about this band since I haven't heard about them since "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?" came out. I like the album, but this one is another head scratcher as to why it's on the list.
This might be my favorite Beatles record. So many classic tracks on it, and it marks the big change in the Beatles' career. Everyone wants to point to Sgt. Pepper's for that, but it was really Revolver.
Another album that makes me wonder who made this list. It seems like this was included just because the author owned it and wanted to justify it. It's not a bad record but it's not a genre classic either.
Eh. Not for me. 00s overproduced pop/R&B had its time and place for some people. But I don't feel like I'm missing anything in life by skipping over this one.
I don't understand this list's obsession with Deep Purple. No doubt they helped build the foundations of early heavy metal, but they're the overlooked band for a good reason.
Hell yes. This album rules, and so do the Beastie Boys.
This list continues to perplex me. There's some fantastic picks on here that I agree are classics every music nerd should listen to. But then there's stuff like Badly Drawn Boy. Like a lot of other records on this list, it's not bad! In fact, I kinda dig it. But I don't think this is a must-hear record.
Like father, like son!
Not that this is a bad record or artist, but this feels really generic. Bonnie Raitt combines a lot of different styles of roots music (blues, folks, country, etc.) that comes out super bland to me. She's an awesome guitarist though.
Foundational record for hardcore punk! I know why it's important but it's a little too chaotic for my personal tastes.
Wow. An inspired pick on the list. Possibly the most iconic hip hop album of all time.
An interesting subdued modern folk record.
Every song on this record touches my heart. Prine wrote everything he saw with all his soul, and this is the pinnacle to me. He certainly created a lot of impactful music long after this record released, but nothing of his touches this one.
I can hear why this record is important to music, but it's not for me.
REM represents an interesting moment in music. At a time when music was overly commercialized, REM went against the grain to create their own sound. They certainly were a popular band, but they weren't doing what the market was dictating at the time. Plus they're excellent songwriters in their own right. Document is an excellent example of that ethos.
Fiona Apple is a highly underrated and under appreciated songwriter, and Fetch The Bolt Cutters is a modern classic of storytelling through song. Absolutely worth all the accolades it received.
This record was likely massive for popular music in the 1950s, but it hasn't aged well due to some controversy. It does feel like Elvis was stealing what black artists had already done. There are some discussions of whether Elvis was recording these songs in order to bring attention to black artists at the time, but I'm not sure there's much evidence of that. All the being said, Elvis's voice alone is iconic. Few things scratch a nostalgic itch like hearing "Blue Suede Shoes".
A really unexpected gem!
I don't see the big deal. It's just house music. Well made house music but house nonetheless.
Another puzzler. What's with this writer and British rock bands? There seems to be a bias in favor of British indie rock groups for some inexplicable reason. I don't see the big deal.
I love trip hop. It's a real niche genre (at least in the US where I am), and it's a subtle sound to master. Beyond Skin is a fantastic example of how unique the subgenre is.
Eh.
One of my all-time favorites. The Stooges and Raw Power are incredible.
I really love this record, and this is the first time I've heard it. It feels very late 80s/early 90s alternative to me, and it set up a lot of what pop rock would do over the next decade.
I'd never heard of Shuggie Otis before, but perhaps I should have since he played with Zappa. This is an incredible piece of niche 70s music. Psychedelic soul had its day, but not many folks actually created music in this style. Inspiration Information is the record to exemplify what musicians did with this sound.
Certainly a monumental title for 2000s pop metal. It had a significant influence on how mainstream listeners saw metal bands at the time and left a lasting impression on the genre.
What can you say about something that’s had everything said about it?
An incredible start from the Clash. It's so funny that they're reduced to just being a punk band when their music is so much more than that. The Clash is a combination of a lot of different musical ideas expressed with protest songs and political commentary (which might be why the band is considered punk). This record, while not their best, is super fun and fantastic to listen to.
Not only is this an important record for its time, but it's an important for metal all time. It helped build underground metal in the 1980s and was a heavy influence in the creation of death metal (which some folks say Slayer is the first death metal band).
Emergency on Planet Earth feels like a record out of time. It's employing a lot of musical ideas that weren't in style in the mid-90s. This version of jazzy funk was relegated to the 1970s, but Jamiroquai made it popular and fun again using new production technology. Fantastic record even if it doesn't include Virtual Insanity.
What can you say about Aja that hasn't been said about the Mona Lisa?
Bjork is an incredibly creative songwriter though a lot of what she does goes over my head. Vespertine does have some interesting tracks that scratch both intellectual and primal music itches.
Not sure what the big deal is with this record apart from having Paper Planes on it. Interesting use of sound effects as beats, but that's nothing new. Maybe I'm biased against MIA since it's hard to separate the art from the artist for me here.
Frank Sinatra can't be denied, but I don't see any particular albums from him to be all the important. It seems to me that a "greatest hits" compilation of Sinatra might be more appropriate to the list.
Wow. Incredible record that's an excellent example of singer-songwriter style of the time. While there may only be a single classic "hit" on the record, every song is an incredibly soulful musical journey.
For a record from a massive pop artist at the time, the album is remarkably stripped down and simple. Each song is really only a few tracks put together, which shows you that it doesn't take a billion dollars and all the musicians money can buy to make a great record.
Foundational record for British rock and blues music.
It's Creedence. There's a reason it plays all the time.
Nohing bad about it, but I'm not sure why it's on this list. This writer seems to be obsessed with 90s British alternative bands and it seems forced.
More British alternative on this list. Either my algorithm just coincidentally is giving me these, or this writer is really biased in favor of British alternative bands.
Brilliant record. No notes.
I can see why some people appreciate this band.
Sweet early synth pop!
While this isn't the definitive Talking Heads record, it's the exact sound I think of when I think about Talking Heads.
Sultans of Swing is fantastic. The record isn't necessarily forgettable but I couldn't say what else is on it after listening to it several times.
It feels a little too navel-gazey for me.
Maybe the most 80s album. Fantastic vibes and good times. Maybe not the greatest record ever made but one of the funnest albums.
An incredible work of art given the nature of their music and when it was released. That being said, the record does have long stretches of navel gazing with entire tracks dedicated to replaying recordings with some synth and sampler notes underneath.
I'm genuinely impressed by The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway! I'd always associated Genesis with Phil Collins and completely forgot Peter Gabriel used to be in the band. This has to be one of their best records and definitely the best Gabriel Genesis record.
John Lennon post-Beatles does very little for me. Imagine is also kinda ruined by that awful Covid sing along video. Well-made record but not my favorite.
One of my favorite band's best records. Easy A here.
Not the greatest Elton John record but a damn good one.
THE Bowie album. Immediate 5 stars.
I'm floored by this one. I was skeptical since it's a relatively new record by an artist that isn't promoted in the US (as a bunch of records of its kind on this list have been boring and disappointing), so I'm glad to be proven wrong with Konnichiwa.
Funk as delivered by the greats.
I get that it's part of rock history, but this does nothing for me.
I really don't care what this record meant at the time, Kanye West is a piece of shit and deserves whatever bad things happen to him. Screw this.
Absolutely blown away. What an interesting combination of sounds. I plan on returning to this one.