755
Albums Rated
3.12
Average Rating
69%
Complete
334 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1950
Favorite Decade
Blues
Favorite Genre
US
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
145
5-Star Albums
104
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
G. Love And Special Sauce
G. Love & Special Sauce
|
5 | 2.73 | +2.27 |
|
Roots
Sepultura
|
5 | 2.78 | +2.22 |
|
The Grand Tour
George Jones
|
5 | 2.79 | +2.21 |
|
Night Life
Ray Price
|
5 | 2.8 | +2.2 |
|
Bone Machine
Tom Waits
|
5 | 2.85 | +2.15 |
|
I’m a Lonesome Fugitive
Merle Haggard
|
5 | 2.87 | +2.13 |
|
Superfuzz Bigmuff
Mudhoney
|
5 | 2.93 | +2.07 |
|
Swordfishtrombones
Tom Waits
|
5 | 2.94 | +2.06 |
|
Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)
Loretta Lynn
|
5 | 2.97 | +2.03 |
|
Will The Circle Be Unbroken
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
|
5 | 2.98 | +2.02 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Kid A
Radiohead
|
1 | 3.71 | -2.71 |
|
Hounds Of Love
Kate Bush
|
1 | 3.63 | -2.63 |
|
Document
R.E.M.
|
1 | 3.55 | -2.55 |
|
Arrival
ABBA
|
1 | 3.53 | -2.53 |
|
Blackstar
David Bowie
|
1 | 3.48 | -2.48 |
|
Rumours
Fleetwood Mac
|
2 | 4.45 | -2.45 |
|
Strangeways, Here We Come
The Smiths
|
1 | 3.44 | -2.44 |
|
Murmur
R.E.M.
|
1 | 3.42 | -2.42 |
|
Amnesiac
Radiohead
|
1 | 3.42 | -2.42 |
|
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Bruce Springsteen
|
1 | 3.41 | -2.41 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Led Zeppelin | 5 | 5 |
| Tom Waits | 4 | 5 |
| Bob Dylan | 6 | 4.67 |
| Jimi Hendrix | 3 | 5 |
| Johnny Cash | 3 | 5 |
| Bob Marley & The Wailers | 3 | 5 |
| Pink Floyd | 4 | 4.5 |
| Public Enemy | 3 | 4.67 |
| The Doors | 3 | 4.67 |
| Frank Sinatra | 3 | 4.67 |
| Elvis Costello & The Attractions | 3 | 4.67 |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival | 2 | 5 |
| Marvin Gaye | 2 | 5 |
| Beastie Boys | 2 | 5 |
| The Clash | 2 | 5 |
| Stan Getz | 2 | 5 |
| Isaac Hayes | 2 | 5 |
| ZZ Top | 2 | 5 |
| Dire Straits | 2 | 5 |
| The White Stripes | 2 | 5 |
| Aretha Franklin | 2 | 5 |
| Megadeth | 2 | 5 |
| Muddy Waters | 2 | 5 |
| The Police | 2 | 5 |
| Willie Nelson | 2 | 5 |
| Beatles | 6 | 4 |
| The Rolling Stones | 3 | 4.33 |
| Metallica | 3 | 4.33 |
| The Beach Boys | 3 | 4.33 |
| Black Sabbath | 3 | 4.33 |
| Stevie Wonder | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Morrissey | 3 | 1 |
| Madonna | 3 | 1 |
| Radiohead | 4 | 1.5 |
| Bruce Springsteen | 3 | 1.33 |
| My Bloody Valentine | 2 | 1 |
| Pet Shop Boys | 2 | 1 |
| Orbital | 2 | 1 |
| Hole | 2 | 1 |
| Public Image Ltd. | 2 | 1 |
| Taylor Swift | 2 | 1 |
| Leonard Cohen | 4 | 1.75 |
| R.E.M. | 3 | 1.67 |
| Brian Eno | 3 | 1.67 |
| Suede | 2 | 1.5 |
| ABBA | 2 | 1.5 |
| Scott Walker | 2 | 1.5 |
| Eminem | 2 | 1.5 |
| Tim Buckley | 2 | 1.5 |
| The Smiths | 2 | 1.5 |
| Robert Wyatt | 2 | 1.5 |
| Kate Bush | 2 | 1.5 |
| Everything But The Girl | 2 | 1.5 |
| Bee Gees | 2 | 1.5 |
| Dexys Midnight Runners | 3 | 2 |
| Nick Drake | 3 | 2 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Billy Bragg | 4, 1 |
| Grateful Dead | 1, 4 |
| Beck | 4, 5, 2 |
5-Star Albums (145)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
The Jesus And Mary Chain · 4 likes
2/5
Absolutely nothing about this album stands out. The best I can say is that I didn’t need to shut it off, but that’s largely because it was almost not even there. An entirely skippable album.
Aerosmith · 3 likes
5/5
This was definitely a better album for my teenage self, but I still enjoy it. As their return from a drug induced hiatus, Aerosmith seems to have retained a chunk of their 70s sound while taking some of the vibe of the 80s rock without becoming a hair metal band. As one with no love for hair bands but a deep affection for 70s rock, this hit just right for me.
While I still appreciate Joe Perry’s guitar work and, while he’s not the greatest drummer, I dig Joey Kramer’s style, the lyrics are a geared for the adolescent boy that I no longer am (although I suspect Tyler still is). It is hard to deny his vocal ability though. He really does have quite a range.
Pump shows that Aerosmith was still a strong band and were capable of some solid rock. Which makes the awful soft rock they eventually degraded into so disappointing.
For nostalgia alone I have to give it 5/5, although my current opinion is closer to 4
Tom Waits · 2 likes
5/5
This is one of my favorite Tim Waits albums, and that’s saying something. It evokes emotions that I’ve definitely felt. Even if I’ve never been in the exact types of places he sings about, I can feel myself there. Nobody is one of my all time favorites…it ran through my head daily for the last few years of my marriage. And Big Joe is just a great story.
Quite a few lines have dug themselves deep into my consciousness and subconsciousness. Just this morning, before even seeing today’s album, I was thinking about being Better Off Without a Wife.
Tom’s spoken word and…crooning aside, the jazz is just fantastic. It truly has the feel of a little jazz joint. I think that’s a lot of the appeal for me, also. These clubs don’t really exist anymore and I never got to go to one when they did, so this is as close as I can get.
This is an album I’d give 8/5 if it would let me. Maybe more. There is just no part of it I don’t love.
Radiohead · 2 likes
1/5
Radiohead makes me want to grab a length of rope and find a sturdy beam.
Megadeth · 2 likes
5/5
A couple reviews refer to the Onion article on this album. It would be pointless for me to write anything new with that out there.
1-Star Albums (104)
All Ratings
Parliament
5/5
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Dusty Springfield
4/5
Al Green
5/5
Amazing. So much soul on one album.
Talking Heads
2/5
I really wanted to like this album. Unfortunately, the only song I actually enjoyed was a cover. Two stars because I was able to finish the whole album.
Public Enemy
5/5
Powerful and influential, this album flows like an album should. Whether or not you agree with his politics, Chuck D is a brilliant writer and Terminator X mixed like few others ever would.
Morrissey
1/5
I never got into Morrissey when I was younger, so I’m glad I finally sat down with a whole album. No, that’s wrong. I was totally fine with never having heard this. I’m amazed that such poorly written lyrics were even allowed to be put to music, such as it is.
Hawkwind
1/5
Unless you’re on far too many mind-altering substances this is mostly unlistenable. I tried and just couldn’t do it.
The Pogues
4/5
As an Irishman, I’m obligated to like the Pogues, which is fine with me.
Can
3/5
I liked it more than I expected. The drums especially stood out as excellent.
Prince
4/5
It’s Prince, so it’s good. The drum machine and synthesizer created a very 80’s sound, however. Whether that’s good or bad is very subjective.
The first half was enjoyable, I was feeling 3/5, maybe 3.5. But it took off in the second half. Maybe because I’m more familiar with some of those songs, maybe because they’re just the stronger songs, I’m not sure. But part two pushed it to a solid 4/5 for me.
Jean-Michel Jarre
3/5
I generally listen to the album of the day during my morning commute. I am not a morning person. DO NOT listen to this album during a morning commute if you are not a morning person.
That said, I appreciate the influence this album had on the use of synthesizers. It’s decent for ambient sound.
David Bowie
4/5
I like David Bowie, but never really know what to expect…which is part of what made him great. But sometimes it’s too far out there. This, however, is a solid work throughout.
The Kinks
4/5
The Kinks are possibly the most underrated band of the British Invasion. Too many times I have mentioned them to people who have never heard of them. While this album doesn’t have any of the songs that they are most known for, it’s still solid from beginning to end and well worth the listen.
3/5
Van Halen
5/5
One of the greatest debut albums. There are so many great songs, it’s almost a best of album on its own.
Marvin Gaye
5/5
Marvin Gaye could sing an infectious disease textbook and still make women swoon. Even with the pin and, at some points, bitterness on this album, he’s still incredibly soulful. It was admittedly a little difficult to listen to sometimes having gone through a divorce myself, but that’s a testimony to how honest this album is.
Suede
2/5
Is this the worst album on this list? No. Is it at least mildly interesting or enjoyable? Also no. My drive to work would have been less boring had I listened to nothing at all. “This album has music on it” is about the best I can say.
1/5
Uh, no thanks.
Joan Armatrading
4/5
An excellent album. Well written songs and she has a great sound. I’m glad that I finally actually listened to some of her music.
Dwight Yoakam
2/5
I’ll give it two stars since it’s closer to the old, real style of country and not today’s bro country, which gets negative 7 stars. Still, his voice is hard to get past.
Weather Report
3/5
This sort of jazz has its place. Unfortunately, that place is most often a dentist’s office. It’s technically well done, but definitely not the best example of jazz.
Lynyrd Skynyrd
5/5
Great songs from beginning to end. Even the non-hits are incredible. This was a genre defining album.
Arrested Development
4/5
It hurts to not give an album that has both Tennessee and Mr. Wendell, but then there were U and Natural, which aren’t bad, but definitely not great, either. The majority of the album is spectacular, though, and I would listen to it again any day. Also, I believe that with the energy and message that Arrested Development rings, the world would be a better place, if there were more hip-hop along their style.
Guns N' Roses
3/5
If these guys weren’t such raging scumbags, I would’ve liked this album much more. Frankly, they had no right to make such a good album. Slash is disgustingly good. Mr. Brownstone is an astonishingly well constructed song. This album probably deserves five stars, but they’ve made my skin crawl for the last 35 years, so the best I can give is three.
Coldplay
2/5
Much of this album sounds like it was written to be the background music for a hospital or cop drama. Just about any song would fit perfectly as the detective who is obsessed with a case comes home to find his wife has left him. He has a flashback of them being happy when they were dating and having a picnic, then back to him sitting at the dining room table in the dark with a glass of whiskey…
Or one of the emotional scenes in Scrubs after one of J.D.’s patients dies.
Anyway, I was looking forward to this album because I never really got into Coldplay, but had always heard they were great. I figured I had been missing something. Nope. I haven’t missed anything. This album is just there. Technically, I suppose it’s well done, but there wasn’t any meat to bite into. There just isn’t anything driving it forward or drawing me in or giving me anything to care about. It’s just a group of Brits being whiny and sad. (I’ve noticed that this type of stuff sells really, really well in the UK. Are they doing ok over there?)
Clocks is pretty good.
Bob Dylan
5/5
I can understand if you don’t like Bob Dylan and you can’t get past his voice. It’s not the most…traditional singing voice. Bob Dylan is not for everyone. But if you can’t I feel sorry for you; you’re missing out some of the best stuff ever created. This album is so iconic that even if you don’t like it, the artists you listen to do, and the artists they listen to do, etc. It changed the shape of songwriting. It deserves to be on this list for that alone. Plus, it’s just so very, very good.
Beach House
1/5
It makes sense what many of these albums are on this list, even if they aren’t my personal taste. This, however, makes no sense. It is so bland it makes rice cakes interesting. It is at best background noise, but mostly it’s sleep inducing. Which I guess is good if you’re an insomniac.
Metallica
5/5
This era of Metallica was crazy good. Even as a Megadeth guy, I cannot deny that this album is excellent and deserves its spot on this list.
OutKast
2/5
I really tried to like this album, but could not. If this is one of the most influential rap albums, I can only imagine the genre would be much better if this album didn’t exist.
Kraftwerk
3/5
Incredibly repetitive. Not the worst, but not something I care to hear again. I was able to listen to the whole thing without being terribly annoyed though.
Suede
1/5
This is second Suede album I have gotten on this list. I questioned the thinking behind putting the first on. This makes me question the validity of all the choices on this list. I don’t think anyone should ever have to listen to one, let alone to suede albums. Or even songs. This album might be better than the first, but that’s kind of like saying, I’d rather be punched in the stomach than n in the face.
There needs to be a setting on Spotify called “Just Exploring" so that you can listen to new stuff without Spotify thinking it’s something you want to hear again. I now have two Suede albums counted against me.
Louis Prima
5/5
I was beginning to question this endeavor after getting the second Suede album in as many weeks. Then this showed up. It has always made me sad when I find out someone has never heard of Louis Prima, so anything that introduces him to people can’t be all bad.
If you don’t at least find some enjoyment out of this album, I am sorry to say that you are the problem. I can only assume you don’t like fun and hate to be happy This music is pure entertainment, a little goofy, and man, that cat can swing. Not only that but Keely Smith (his wife, by the way) has a fantastic voice that complements the upbeat sound (and silliness) of Louis and the band.
The Cars
5/5
It always blows my mind to go back and see how many great songs came off the first album of classic bands. The Cars is no exception. This album makes me love the Cars al over again. I can’t imagine anyone not liking it.
The xx
2/5
Not the worst thing I’ve ever heard. But I don’t ever want to hear it again. I guess I just really don’t click with UK pop.
Beth Orton
3/5
She has a good voice and I suppose this is a pretty good album. Just doesn’t seem to hit with me.
ABBA
1/5
I’ve never been a fan of ABBA (once considered breaking up with a girl after seeing ABBA’s greatest hits in her CD collection), but I also never listened to one of their albums, so I figured I’d give it a shot. I guess their big hits really are their best stuff.
Scott Walker
2/5
I’m not really sure what I just listened to; that first track totally disoriented me. He is reminded me of Martin Short’s style when he does his Broadway schtick, with a little Shatner-esque delivery on Next. I didn’t hate it, but it has no business being on anyone’s “must listen” list.
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
Meh. I never could get into the Cure. Wait, are you telling me this isn’t the Cure, but a lesser sullen, goth-ish, British band of the 80s? Well then, I like it even less now.
I’m increasingly concerned that the book this list was based on is some wank who believes Brit-pop and its ilk to be the pinnacle of recorded music and is trying to foist as much of it as he can on unsuspecting music lovers.
Dexys Midnight Runners
1/5
Why is this album on this list? At least it very clearly explains why they are a one-hit wonder. Dexys Midnight Runners don’t seem to know how to start a song, let alone finish one. After 12 minutes I still have no idea what she’s like. And what is with all the mumbling? Does Warren Zevon know they ripped off Werewolves of London? This album raises so many questions that I don’t even care enough to know the answers to. I fully expected them to pull off three stars, or at least a very solid two, but found I disliked it more with every unnecessary minute.
Jorge Ben Jor
4/5
Interesting album. Since my Portuguese isn’t that great, I obviously can’t say much about the lyrics. I did enjoy it though, and could see listening to it again or possibly more of his stuff.
Grant Lee Buffalo
2/5
90s alternative is probably my comfort food as far as music goes, and this definitely has the feel of the early 90s. Unfortunately, that’s really about all it has going for it. I just didn’t find any of it very interesting. Mostly it’s just there. I wouldn’t jump over a couch to shut it off, but I’m not going to intentionally listen to any of this again. Knowing that Michael Stipe loves this album actually knocks it down about half a star for me, too.
Sade
4/5
My dad loved Sade, so this gets one star right off the bat just for him. Fortunately, it’s a good album, too. This isn’t the most exciting, upbeat music, it then it wasn’t intended to be. It’s relaxing soulful jazz, of sorts, and she has a voice that’s smoother than butter on a baby’s butt, too. Not my go to, but pleasant and well made.
Bob Dylan
5/5
Ahhh….acoustic Dylan. It’s a shame that he’s so divisive; folks seem to either idolize him or loathe him with very little in between. Admittedly, it’s not all the most complex musically and he definitely doesn’t have the best singing voice, but his songwriting is just so good. And this is folk, after all. The guitar isn’t really expected to be terribly intricate. Besides, this album has “Don’t Think Twice…” on it, so it’s a big win for me.
King Crimson
4/5
I believe anyone who is going through the process of listening to all these albums is open minded and curious enough about all types of music should at least have some exposure to progressive rock. King Crimson is a great choice to do that. I don’t know them well enough to know if this is their best album, but I still found it pretty interesting.
I don’t listen to much prog anymore but when I did I always felt almost apologetic when playing it around others. It’s kind of an acquired taste, it’s easy to get lost in the technical instrumentation, and sometimes it’s just odd. Great music for geeks and music nerds alike. But some great bands have prog roots or leanings (Peter Gabriel era Genesis and Rush spring to mind). It’s cool to listen to a band that stayed firmly entrenched in their niche for decades.
Beastie Boys
5/5
This is one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time and a master class in sampling. Easily the best Beastie Boys album. The was they wove so many different songs and styles together that there are web sites dedicated to listing the little snippets and phrases; there are just too many to catch otherwise. It is also astounding how seamless some of the transitions in B Boy Bouillabaisse are. Just a great album from start to finish.
The Band
4/5
The Band are good musicians and they make good music. This is a very good album. It saddens me that, k knowing this, I’ve never been able to get into them. They just don’t seem to do it for me. But at least I can recognize their ability. I’m going with 4/5 because I feel that’s what they deserve, not because of my own level of enjoyment.
Adele
3/5
I admittedly haven’t listened to much Adele specifically because I always viewed her as a pop artist, and so have written her off as such. However, forcing myself to actually listen to one of her albums, I cannot deny that she has a fantastic voice, very soulful. But I just don’t like pop, and that what too much of this is. The first couple songs, which I was familiar with, did a good job of showcasing her voice. One and only deserves to be bigger than it is as well. However, the rest of the album had far too many played out pop tropes for my liking. All in all, I have a better appreciation for Adele than I did before giving this album a proper listen, but I still don’t see why it would be one of the biggest selling albums of all time.
Os Mutantes
3/5
This sounds oddly familiar, kind of like the Turtles, but Brazilian. It was interesting, not bad, but psychedelic rock just isn’t my bag, man. Can you dig it?
The Beach Boys
5/5
The impact this album has had is hard to fathom. I can’t even count how many times I’ve heard an artist refer to it when talking about influences; probably more than any other work. That alone earns it a spot on this list.
And understandably so. Their harmonies are unparalleled, the songwriting is amazing, and the music is great. The fact that I never listened to this entire album before is probably criminal.
From a personal standpoint, The Beach Boys was the first concert I went to when I was twelve (opened up for by THE Katrina and the Waves), so they will always have a place in my heart.
Steely Dan
4/5
Steely Dan is an undeniably great band. But for some reason, they always feel like the music is hear through the door when I was stuck in my bedroom all night while my parents had dinner parties back in the seventies. Which is weird, because my parents never had any dinner parties.
While I appreciate all of the songs on this album, I wish that I could get into them more. It just isn’t my style. But that doesn’t change the fact that every song is excellent.
3/5
Of all the albums I’ve heard here so far, this is the first that I was unfamiliar with that I actually liked. I had heard of XTC way back in the day, but never heard anything by them. I once almost bought one of their albums just to fill the missing “X” entry in my alphabetically organized CD collection. If their other stuff is similar I may have actually liked it and listened to it more than once.
I found it hard to put my finger on what made this music familiar…at one point i thought I heard Who influences, and another sounded like it almost belonged on Genesis’ Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. That’s actually unexpectedly high praise. It mostly kept me engaged, but at some points I lost interest. All in all, I could see listening to this album again.
I think that’s still the only spot that didn’t get filled. Bummer.
Ministry
4/5
I listened to this album so many times when I was in my late teens/ early twenties. I am curious how my old guy self would to react to hearing it for the first time now. I don’t blame all those who are just now introduced to Ministry being repulsed or confused by what they’re hearing. Industrial metal is not for the faint of heart.
This album is a sonic assault. So heavy, so aggressive, yet at the same time not just a wall of noise hitting you in the face. Not only that, but within that push of sound they built in fantastic pauses to really drive it home.
Ministry was one of my favorites back in the day, but I am torn on what rating to give it. On one hand, I want to give it a 5, but at the same time I stopped listening to this years ago when I became a Christian. (Don’t worry, not getting preachy, this is just for background.) I still enjoy it from a musical standpoint, but sometimes it’s hard to separate musicality from message, and it can be difficult to listen to it with a clear conscience. But man, Just One Fix is so well done.
Pantera
4/5
This and Cowboys From Hell we’re on heavy rotation (on cassette!) when I was 18. Nothing better than Pantera for a foul mood; it’s incredibly cathartic. I don’t know how many times I went hoarse trying to sing along with Anselmo. I haven’t listened to them much in the last several years, but it still holds up. Its a toss up which is the better of the two albums, but this has walk, so it probably has the edge. I never could get too into anything after this one though. It would get 5 stars from me if it weren’t for By Demons Be Driven. Never cared for anything along those lines.
It’s a shame about Darrell.
Eminem
1/5
Eminem definitely has talent - Stan is pure brilliance - but none of that is on this album. This is some of the worst garbage I’ve ever heard. Just a bunch of violent, “I’m so mean and tough” posturing. The fact that this is so highly regarded makes me sad for society as a whole. And if the argument is that it’s a character called Slim Shady, well it’s an awful character and not one that I would want to listen to. Even that is faulty, though, because as “Slim Shady” he repeatedly refers to himself by his actual name. So if it’s a concept, it’s poorly executed. A bunch of hateful, unnecessarily vulgar, obnoxious garbage. Yes, i understand you don’t care what I think, Marshall, you’ve said it plenty. So much that I think you doth protest too much.
Bert Jansch
5/5
I didn’t get to finish this whole album yet, which is unfortunate because so far it’s the first artist on this list that I was entirely unfamiliar with that I actually really enjoyed. Great songwriting, some really good guitar work, just all around good music. I will definitely be returning to this and listening to him more.
Motörhead
4/5
I can’t believe that I never listened to a whole Motörhead album before. I think I would have listened to them a foot bit back when I was younger. This is just good old school heavy rock. And I will most likely listen to them again, but only a song or two. A whole album is just too much of the same for me now.
The Black Keys
4/5
The Black Keys make some good music. It’s not the best, but definitely not the worst. There’s a good mix of soul and blues and some old classic rock that makes it hard to pinpoint what era this belongs to at some points. There are a couple solid tracks that help to keep the rest afloat. I’ll definitely listen to them again, but their not going to be my go-to group.
Dusty Springfield
5/5
Dusty has one of the greatest voices ever. Unfortunately, I have to be in the mood for this style…it’s just a little too slow for me some days. However, there’s never a bad time to hear Son of a Preacher Man. That song alone gets an album four stars.
William Orbit
2/5
Most of the time I listened to this I felt like I should be hacking into the server of a bank or following an enemy spy or some other action/adventure montage.
The rest of the time I was bored. I literally fell asleep sitting at a red light listening to this. Twice.
I see no reason for this album to be required listening for anyone outside people making spy movies. It wasn’t entirely bad, just unnecessary.
Ice Cube
1/5
I expected a lot more from this. The highlights were Flava Flav and Yo Yo, who actually had a flow and rhythm to their voices. Most of the rest was just Ice Cube yelling while rhyming and swearing. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anything this misogynistic, either. This type of stuff makes me appreciate just how talented guys like Chuck D really are.
Oh, and the other highlight was the last track where he shouted out to a bunch of rappers who were significantly better then him.
Ray Charles
4/5
Amazing musician, awful person.
Machito
5/5
This is what I came here for. This stuff is awesome, and I probably would not have come across it otherwise.
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
Good stuff.
R.E.M.
1/5
I can’t stand REM. especially Michael Stipe and his voice. The rest of the band might be good, but I can’t get past that whiny voice.
On closer listen, no, the band isn’t any good either.
Venom
2/5
I might have dug this when I was 17, but not so much as an adult. Although I never really cared for the whole demon aesthetic. I can see how this could have been pretty influential though.
Soul II Soul
1/5
Ugh. I expected something with more groove from “Club Classics.” Most songs seemed to take forever before they even took off, then still only had a few bars of anything worth listening to, if anything.
N.E.R.D
4/5
I was completely unfamiliar with NERD before this and had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised.
This is an interesting mix of many styles that created something unique. They blended R&B and hip hop vocal stylings together, then mixed that with a slightly funky and rock instrumentation to create a cool vibe. I could definitely hear Lenny Kravitz on “Maybe,” and although he was obvious, it still flowed with the rest of the album.
Still not sure how much I’ll listen to them again, but it is definitely something that will be on my radar.
Beastie Boys
5/5
The immature beginnings of one of the most important hip hop bands of their era. I hate to play the race thing, because they’re a great group in their own right, but this album opened the genre up to a whole new audience and made it okay to listen to rap for a lot of white suburban kids. They even got a got bit of play on rock stations.
While this isn’t their best album, it did break them into he scene and laid the groundwork for some great stuff. It’s also a good example of old school hip hop being fun, before it started to take itself too seriously. All in all this is just a fun album, quite a bit goofy, and all intentionally so.
Also, before getting angry at the misogyny, etc, remember they were just dumb kids and grew up. They have since expressed remorse at how awful they were and have changed accordingly.
Steve Winwood
3/5
He’s a great musician, but his solo stuff is a bit…boring at times. Kinda of “adult contemporary,” I guess. I don’t love it, I don’t hate it. It’s good enough, I suppose.
Elvis Presley
3/5
Never a big Elvis fan, but his significance can’t be denied. And there are a few solid tracks on here.
Beatles
4/5
There’s nothing I can say about the Beatles that hasn’t already been said. One of the best albums of one of the best bands. Personally, I like this album, but I don’t love it.
Curtis Mayfield
5/5
“Make a soundtrack to a blaxploitation film.”
“No, I think I’ll draw attention to the condition on black folks living in poverty and drug abuse.”
And aren’t we lucky he did. Soulfull, funky, and brilliant.
Arcade Fire
2/5
This sounds like something that most people like because it was what they listened to when they were younger, like 17 or 22, not because it’s terribly good. And even then I have a hunch they mainly listened to it because it was “indie,” so it made them cool to be included in that scene. Now I assume the appeal here is nostalgia, because try as I might I can’t find anything of interest here.
Astor Piazzolla
4/5
This was some great stuff. Well played vibes are like listening to a dream. Weird how some of it sounds like something I’d have heard from Mr. Rogers, though. That is a compliment…the world needs more Me. Rogers related anything.
Portishead
5/5
The first time I heard this song in the 90s I was hooked, mesmerized by the beats and lilting vocals. Somehow, Portishead managed to make an album full of contradictions. The hip-hop rhythm, samples, and scratching mixed seemlessly with the jazz vibe and other worldly voice. It’s a chill vibe, but drives me forward. I feel melancholy and optimistic at the same time.
This is one of my all time favorite albums. The only thing I don’t like about it is that it eventually ends. Unfortunately, with their next album, either the bottle was the wrong shape or there was no lighting to catch, because it just doesn’t hit the same way.
TV On The Radio
3/5
I could never get into this era and style. It basically all sounds the same to me, and since I didn’t listen to it when it came out, it has no relevance or importance to me. It was ok, I suppose, but mostly I found it to be decent background music. I guess a good review could be, “This album has music on it. There are instruments and singing.”
The War On Drugs
3/5
I would assume that to make it onto a list like 1001 albums to listen to before I die, said album should have something special about it. Maybe the first of a genre, influential in some way, a key entry in an important artist’s discography, or perhaps just singularly exceptional in some way. Sadly, see none of this in this album. It’s not a bad album. It was, I suppose, mildly enjoyable and I wouldn’t be bothered to listen to it again. I wouldn’t even mind if Spotify popped some of it into a playlist in the future. But it’s not a standout album in any sense.
Crosby, Stills & Nash
4/5
It blows my mind every time I hear a debut album with this many big songs. There is no denying how good this band is. Few bands could harmonize like CSN. It’s just a question of whether or not you like this style of music.
U2
3/5
I guess this is a good album. I’ve heard most of the songs hundreds and thousands of times. U2 just always comes across as pretentious, so I can’t fully enjoy it.
Blood, Sweat & Tears
4/5
Great horn section
Judas Priest
4/5
Classic metal foundations. Not my personal preference, but Hanford can sing. Definitely deserves a spot on this list, but not one I’m likely to listen to much again.
The Clash
5/5
This is required listening for anyone who likes punk.
The Clash
5/5
This dropped onto me after The Clash’s first album the day before. As great as that was, London Calling is even better. Different styles of music melded with the punk ethos of the Clash to create music that transcends any of them. One of the greatest albums ever? I just might be.
The National
1/5
I was heard of this band for the first time a few days before it appeared here. Pretty boring, monotonous stuff. The singer might want to try adding a third note to his singing. Maybe some inflection would be nice.
The Stone Roses
3/5
This isn’t bad. Not great, but I would listen to some of this again. Maybe.
The La's
3/5
I could see why some people like this, but to me it sounds kind of like a late 80’s version of the Monkees. That’s not exactly a negative, but it’s not much of a compliment, either.
I’m going with three stars, but it’s more of a two and a half.
Carpenters
4/5
Preferences aside, this is, objectively, a very good album. I’ve heard some of the songs many, many times, but never really listened to them, much less the whole album. Vocals are fantastic, especially the backing harmonies.
However, for me it is just too…corny is I guess the word. Perhaps it’s my dark heart, but sap sap oozes off almost every song. It’s so good I want to enjoy it more than I do. But I won’t penalize it for my own issues.
The Byrds
4/5
A Classic of the folk aesthetic of the era. Not flashy, but well crafted and well executed songs.
Elvis Presley
3/5
Not an Elvis fan, but I don’t hate him either. But with this as a debut album, it’s easy to see how he could become such a phenomenon. His swagger is evident in those rockabilly roots.
Bob Dylan
5/5
This is a monster of an album. The mix of electric songs with mostly acoustic songs all with such turns of phrase that only Dylan could produce (and a couple forced rhymes), makes this a classic album. I knew many of the songs, but didn’t realize they were all on one recording. This is why he’s so highly revered.
Manic Street Preachers
2/5
It’s not horrendous, but if you’re going to name your album “The Holy Bible,” you really, really gotta bring it.
They did not.
Instead it feels like a cheap attempt to shock people and draw attention to a work that deserves no attention.
His vocals are, mostly, shrill and pretty grating after a very short time. Musically, it ok, I guess, but not something I care to hear again. Some of it could possibly fall into a mix of rock from the era and go relatively unnoticed, by which I mean I might not skip to another song or station, but I would probably just zone out and not pay attention to it. I feel that’s what most folks would do, too. And since I’d never heard of them, despite that time period being when I was most tuned into the rock and alt scene, it seems that’s pretty much what happened.
Adele
3/5
Adele has a beautiful, unique voice, but for some reason I don’t really like her songs. I can’t put my finger on why, but I always feel as though her voice is being underutilized. Maybe the songwriting is just bad and she needs better songs.
Also, maybe don’t sing so much lamenting your youth when you’re only 25.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest rock bands of all time. This is a solid introduction to them. Yes, they stole some stuff from the old blues men, but what they did with it was amazing. I’ve listened to this album hundreds of times and I’m not done with it yet.
4/5
I expected to like this album more than I did, since I really liked the Kinks back in high school. This one caught me off guard, however. Some seems overly repetitious. Some seemed like it had a bit of a Monty Python sort of off-the-wall aspect, which I actually sort of like. All in all I liked it, just not as much as I wanted to.
Simply Red
3/5
Not an awful album, I’d even listen to a song or two again maybe. But there is nothing here that warrants a place on this list.
Stan Getz
5/5
Fantastic. I was previously unfamiliar with bossa nova, and who better to listen to than Stan Getz. And while I’ve never really gotten into jazz guitar (although have always respected it), I was drawn to Charlie Byrd. Wonderful. All of it just wonderful.
Brian Wilson
4/5
Interesting. Sort of like what The Beach Boys would sound like mixed with Pink Floyd. It flows so incredibly well, I don’t know if I could even listen to just one song off of it without listening to the whole album.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3/5
There are definite roots of the upcoming rock scene here. Kind of rough, distortion-y, precursor to grunge and the other alternative stuff coming down the pipe. It never really grabbed me, though. I appreciate its place, but it’s not something I am likely to listen to again.
Dolly Parton
4/5
Dolly Parton as a human is a national treasure. She also happens to be an excellent songwriter. It is very unfortunate for me that I don’t care for her voice much. It’s something about that inherent vibrato that is constantly present that I just don’t care for. I am truly the loser in this situation, because I would like to enjoy her music as much as it deserves.
Shuggie Otis
4/5
Groovy, man. Truly out of sight. This cat has soul and I can dig it. But that last jam, man, sounded like they just got a synthesizer and flipped pushed aome buttona for ten minutes.
Elvis Presley
3/5
A bit more of his crooning than I’d prefer. While I see its appeal, especially among the young ladies at the time, I definitely like his more upbeat stuff better. Not a lot of the rockabilly feel on this one. But I suppose it’s a relatively solid album.
Talking Heads
3/5
The more I listen to the Talking Heads, the less sure I am of how much I like them. Psycho Killer is, unsurprisingly, the standout song on this album. Nothing else stood out as particularly interesting. This list has had quite a few debut albums that were wall to wall fantastic, some that were loaded with hits although not completely great, and others that showcased a burgeoning talent. This album has Psycho Killer.
The Black Crowes
4/5
Just straight forward blues rock. There are some great tunes on this album. I listened to this tape (as in cassette) extensively when it came out back in high school. Chris Robinson’s voice was just raspy enough to be interesting. It isn’t necessarily a complicated album, which is why it works. Unfortunately everything they did after was forgettable, if even noticed.
Billy Bragg
4/5
I finally listened to some Wilco. It may take a few more listens before I really appreciate this album, but it definitely has something cool about it that I hope I can discover.
Sarah Vaughan
5/5
If you can’t enjoy this, there is no hope for you. You don’t have to love it, but by all that is good, you should be able to enjoy the beauty in that voice.
I’m gonna listen to it again now.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Imagine hearing this album when it first came out. Nothing like this existed before. The dawn of a whole new genre. I’ve never cared for Ozzy’s voice much, but the power behind this album and what it did to music is undeniable.
Fatboy Slim
3/5
I’m not sure how to rate this one. I like electronic…sometimes. But a whole album? I don’t take MDMA, so I’m not sure it’s for me. Some of it might work well for background music when I’m working. It’s a tough call.
Steve Earle
1/5
I really wanted to like Steve Earle. I’ve known of a few artists I love that were in some way compared to him, but never actually listened to his stuff.
Turns out this was just 40 minutes more country than I wanted to listen to on a Wednesday morning.
Sadly, all I heard here was a contribution to the blueprint of the bro-country, d-bag noise pollution of today.
PJ Harvey
4/5
Raw and aggressive, but in a good way. Could’ve done without the Dylan cover, though.
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
This album is definitely evocative of an era, not only of music but of fashion and culture. For that alone it probably deserves a place on this list.
Personally, though, I never much cared for her voice - a bit too shrill for my taste. Annoying, in fact, most of the time. But then there are gems like Time After Time that show that she does have a sweeter tone and can do softer, emotional songs as well as party anthems like Girls Just Want to Have Fun.
All in all, not my thing, especially since I never cared for 80s pop when it was the 80s, but still an important album in the greater history of music. For me, a 1.5, for the latter, a 4. I guess that balances out to a 3.
Syd Barrett
2/5
Psychedelic folk is interesting, but not something I can listen to a lot of. Sad Syd went bonkers, but I guess this is a glimpse into what Pink Floyd would’ve sounded like if he hadn’t.
The Zombies
3/5
If there were more songs on this album half as good as Time of the Season, I would have really liked this album. Unfortunately, the rest of it is just ok not bad, but too mellow for my tastes.
Bruce Springsteen
1/5
I’ve never understood the attraction to Springsteen, and if this is any indication, I never will. Seems the majority of his formula is semi-incoherent mumbling then yelling the song title several times. This sounds like a bar band, but one that would make me finish my beer, settle my tab, and take off by the time they were on their third song.
Based on my previous experience with “The Boss,” I figure I’d end up giving 2 stars, but tried my best to be open minded and hoped to be surprised. Turns out, nope. I couldn’t even finish most of the songs. I mean, I couldn’t even make it halfway through Factory, and that thing is only two minutes and eighteen seconds long.
Nanci Griffith
3/5
I really wasn’t expecting to like this since I haven’t liked any country music made after the 70s. And I wasn’t much digging it at all until the third track hit. It has the feel of the older country and it caught my ear. I had to go back and start over. I guess her original folk leanings brought more of that old feel that I love. Mostly I was drawn to the way she told a story. Overall, not my favorite album on this list, I may never even listen to it again, but surprisingly pleasant.
Shivkumar Sharma
3/5
This grew on me. At first I just bought, “nice for yoga, but when else would I listen to this?” But then it turned into some pleasant background music while I was working. To be fair, the musicianship deserves more attention than I’m giving. It really is quite stunning, but I just can’t get into it more than that.
Isaac Hayes
5/5
This man sweat out more soul than I’ve ever had in my whole life. And one of the coolest voices I’ve ever heard.
Kanye West
2/5
He got famous with this? This is considered a great album? Really? It wasn’t as bad as I expected but then I guess it couldn’t possibly be. I guess that’s why I don’t listen to much rap from the 21st century. Maybe I’m old, but that’s better than thinking this is good. Two stars just because I was actually expecting worse.
Throbbing Gristle
1/5
Is there some part of this that qualifies as music? If so, I missed it.
Christina Aguilera
3/5
As a caveat, this is not my type of music. I’ve never cared for pop, and most likely never will.
That said, this album was significantly more soulful than I anticipated. No one can deny that she has a powerful voice, and she uses it well here.
However, it’s still not my thing and it got old well before an hour. And then then was quite a bit after that. I’d have to agree with whoever said it’s almost music for grownups. Objectively, it probably deserves four stars, but for me, the best I can do is three.
Oasis
2/5
I did not want to listen to this album. I hate britpop, and I really can’t stand Oasis. I realize they’re “highly acclaimed,” but, my word what an annoying voice.
After listening, I must say, I didn’t like Oasis in the 90s, I don’t like them any better now. I do not see any reason this is considered by so many to be one of the greatest albums. There’s been worse stuff on this list, though, so I’ll be generous with two stars.
Tim Buckley
2/5
This is not an album for the groggy. Most of it felt like when I wake up from a dream, then go back to sleep and the dream continues, but is kind of different. Then the alarm goes off, I hit the snooze button, and it happens again. For pretty much the whole album.
That isn’t to say I disliked it entirely. It just felt like being in and out of consciousness a lot.
The highest praise I can give it is that the first track sounded like something off of a Peanuts special. The biggest critique is that every one of these songs should have ended far sooner than it did. Some songs need the time to unpack and explore, then time to tie it all together. None of that was the case here.
Madness
4/5
What?! That’s it? Thirteen minutes of music? Dang, I was liking this, too. I could have gone for a few more songs.
Aerosmith
4/5
Boy I loved Aerosmith back in high school, and Toys… was one of my favorite albums, the title song especially. My love has dwindled over the decades, especially since they took a much softer turn a few albums into their reemergence from obscurity thanks to Rick Rubin, Run DMC, and a track of this album. It’s still a solid album, though. Just not as great as I once thought it. I guess I’ve (fortunately) matured out of some of the double entendres and innuendos.
Nick Drake
2/5
I wanted to like this, but I just couldn’t get into it. Slow, droning, depressing… not always bad things, but it just didn’t work for me.
Grateful Dead
1/5
Boy am I glad that’s over with. I have long held the belief that the Grateful Dead one of if not the most overrated band ever. (KISS is a close second.) this album did nothing to dissuade me of that.
I suppose if you are a big fan of psychedelic drugs and jam bands, this is your holy grail. For everyone else, i recommend avoiding it. Especially that Feedback track. I’m not sure who that appeals to, but it ain’t music.
Kendrick Lamar
3/5
Interesting. This album is far more soulful than I anticipated, both musically and lyrically. I don’t see me ever listening to it again, but I wasn’t compelled to skip through it, either. I can see this being a stand out in a genre that I am not terribly familiar with, especially compared to others in its field that have also been on this list.
ZZ Top
5/5
This is such a tight album. A fantastic blend of blues and rock, all while mixing in a more modern (of the time) feel.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
Easily one of the greatest and most important albums of all time. Guitar was never the same after this…or music at all, really. Blues is brought perfectly into the psychedelic age on this. This is how psychedelic rock is supposed to sound, not that garbage that literally every other band of this genre I’ve heard on this list did it.
Really, there’s just no denying the gravity of Are You Experienced?
The Specials
3/5
I don’t know if their first album is in this list, but if there’s only one, it shouldn’t be this one. I really like the Specials and I get it, this was “artistic growth” and a departure from their ska roots. But come on, it’s no where near as fun. And maybe I’m missing something, maybe it requires a second listen, but it just wasn’t as cohesive of an album to me. It felt like they couldn’t decide what they wanted to do, so they did a little of all kinds of stuff. I liked it, but not as much as I wanted to. Also, disappointed that there’s not one song about Rudy.
Yes
4/5
Yes is one of those bands that I appreciate more than I enjoy. They’re talented musicians and compose interesting music. This album is excellent from beginning to end. I just wish I enjoyed it more.
The xx
2/5
The last album by the xx that was on this list left me hating britpop and angry that such junk was considered essential listening. This album isn’t as bad, but that’s hardly a compliment. The intro seemed promising, but I soon realized that I only needed to listen to one song to hear the entire album. Why even have a track listing if it all sounds the same? Because I wasn’t left angry, I’ll go two stars, but that’s being generous. I still hope I don’t ever have to hear this band again.
Songhoy Blues
5/5
This is as fantastic. I have no idea what they said, but what a great sound.
Beck
4/5
Not my favorite Beck album, but a solid entry. All the good elements are there, cool beats, eclectic lyrics, general quirkiness…
Air
3/5
I guess this was ok. I didn’t hate it, didn’t love it. I guess it was better than I was expecting, but then, I don’t know what I was expecting. I might listen to it again, I might not. All that ambivalence is just how it felt, I guess.
Rage Against The Machine
5/5
What an amazing album. It hits so hard and doesn’t stop. Rage has an incredibly distinct sound. Between Morello’s unique guitar work and the aggressive de la Roche, no one ever sounded like this before. Or since. And then part of Tool shows up in the middle of Know Your Enemy and it just gets better. It has always seemed to me that from that point on the album had a more Tool-esque feel to it, too, while still remaining decidedly Rage.
Lyrically, they’re a very intelligent band as well. Whether or not you agree with their politics, they’re not simply parroting things they’ve heard, these guys are informed and dedicated. While I generally believe that musicians should stick to music and stay out of politics, they got into music to express their politics. Their not simply using their fame to spout off about things their uninformed about.
Besides, it is so incredibly heavy it’s hard to not be moved.
Scott Walker
1/5
William Shatner does this better.
How did this guy get one album on this list, let alone two? Does this mean I can expect two more from him?!? Hokey smokes, I don’t know if I have that in me.
Dead Kennedys
3/5
I liked about half of this album. The rest was ok….ish. After a while, Jello’s voice can get annoying. Plus any comparison to the Sex Pistols is a big negative for me. Fortunately, a lot of the songs are really short.
The Allman Brothers Band
5/5
There are jam bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish, then there are jam bands like the Allman Brothers. If only they were all like the Allman Brothers.
Can
1/5
Do people actually like this? I don’t.
If I could make a request, please no more CAN. So far I’ve heard two of their albums, which is approximately three too many.
The Smashing Pumpkins
3/5
Some of these songs are iconic from my youth/early adulthood. Corrigan’s voice can get a bit annoying at times, though, whiney even. There are some very well written songs on here though. But I don’t think a double album was necessary. I feel like there was one solid album, possibly three sides would’ve been good, but they just filled in with other stuff to make a full four sides. That kind of waters the whole thing down for me. Corrigan’s arrogance never sat well with me, either, so that kind of taints my enjoyment of anything Pumpkins.
Black Sabbath
4/5
Solid and heavy all the way through…with the exception of Planet Caravan which totally disrupts the flow. It’s a fine song on its own, but putting it between Paranoid and Iron Man was just rough. I’m not an Ozzy fan, but it’s hard to deny the power of this band. War Pigs alone gives me little choice but to give it 4 stars.
Sisters Of Mercy
3/5
Im sure this is an amazing album if you’re into goth. But I’m not, so I guess it was just ok. I’m also not super nostalgic for songs that are excessively 80s, which this is. Although I have heard of the Sisters of Mercy, I’ve never actually listened to them, at least not knowingly. I don’t feel I’ve missed out on anything.
My Bloody Valentine
1/5
With a lot of artists, it’s difficult to make out some of the words, either through distortion or buried under the music or just plain poor enunciation. I’m not sure there were any actual words on this though. I truly did not catch a single word.
The entirety of this album sounded as though I couldn’t get my radio tuned into a station well. It seemed like there might be music in the static, but I couldn’t be sure. The result was sort of the opposite of white noise. What would that be, black noise? Puke-green noise? Mauve noise? That’s it, mauve noise. Ugly, obnoxious, artificial, outdated, and doesn’t belong in anyone’s home. This album was wall to wall mauve noise.
Marilyn Manson
1/5
Even when I was into heavy music and industrial stuff and Nine Inch Nails and the like, I never cared for Marilyn Manson. He turned my stomach then and he turns my stomach now. As a music lover, it is hard to fathom how overrated I think he is…the only part of this whole thing I liked was a couple bass lines. Now as a Christian, I really can’t stand listening to this stuff. I realize that would probably make this guy happy, if in fact he gets happy over anything. But again, even before that, I just could never find anything redeemable about it and don’t understand why it is so highly acclaimed.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
This is an exceptional album. The Drums on In My Time of Dying, especially the second half, alone make this album worth listening to. John Bonham really was the heaviest jazz drummer ever. And then there’s Kashmir, which has a whole different feel unto itself. The entire album just bounces from style to style, thinking Boogie with Stu followed by Black Country Woman, while retaining a very Zeppelin feel. Just fantastic from beginning to end.
Pink Floyd
5/5
This is the definitive concept album. There are other great ones, like The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway and Operation Mindcrime, but in my view this reigns supreme. The flow of the story, the transitions between songs that set the tone for the next chapter, all of it. Beginning to end this is a masterpiece.
Additionally, there are plenty of songs that have the legs to stand on their own. Knowing the story helps, but Comfortably Numb doesn’t is fantastic even out of context. Same goes for Mother, Run Like Hell, or Another Brick in the Wall, Pt II.
As an aside, I truly appreciate that this album came up on a day that I was building a literal wall at my house.
Billy Bragg
1/5
I didn’t like the part where he sang.
I did like the part where this album ended and something enjoyable came on.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
I just had physical graffiti about two days ago, and so was determined to not give this album five stars as well. I can’t just keep giving the same band five stars as each time. However, I forgot about some of the stuff that’s on this thing. it’s just too good of an album to not give five stars.
Brian Eno
3/5
The word “soundscape” kept running around in my head while I was listening to this album. It is impressive how Eno can create an emotion or feeling. The few songs in which he sings detract from the flow and mood, however. I enjoyed it, but don’t know that I’ll ever revisit it.
The Sonics
3/5
Old garage band music from back in the day when rock and roll was still fresh. The soul and R &B covers were certainly not as good as the originals (don’t try to one up Little Richard), but it was pretty enjoyable.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
4/5
Old garage band music from back in the day when rock and roll was still fresh. The soul and R &B covers were certainly not as good as the originals (don’t try to one up Little Richard), but it was pretty enjoyable.
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
Once at work I requested 90s hip hop to be played. To my dismay, I got NWA instead what I really meant, which was this (and Arrested Development, Digable Planets , etc). Gangster rap may have its place, but in my mind, this is the best of 90s hip hop. Unlike the gangster rap stuff, Tribe has a cool vibe. They use jazz for a totally different style. Sure their lyrics are a bit there sometimes, but that only makes them more unique. They’re not angry and abrasive. They take on social issues and sometimes tell stories about losing a wallet. This is a fantastic album. Tribe shows that you can have fun, have cool rhythms, and still speak out on things like domestic violence.
Bill Callahan
2/5
There is nothing interesting here. I guess he’s trying to be another Leonard Coen. If I was into that, I’d just listen to Leonard Coen. But I’m not, so I’m not going to listen to either.
Joan Baez
2/5
I guess she has a beautiful voice and is a good songwriter. But to my ears it comes across as warbling. I’ve really tried to like Joan Baez since she’s so highly acclaimed and influential to artists I love, but I just can’t do it.
Duke Ellington
5/5
If you don’t dig jazz, then this is either a great into for you or an annoyance.
If you do dig jazz, it doesn’t get much better than this. It swings, it’s got that big band feel, it even bops at times. I can’t imagine the audience at his show sat still; I’m not a dancer and I would probably be up and bouncing. My goodness what a treat and a treasure this is.
Sonic Youth
2/5
As a child of the 70s this hit right in my prime era of music consumption, and the alternative scene was my wheelhouse. Despite that, I never got into Sonic Youth. Listening to this full album now, I under better why. Some of was ok, but man to vocals are really awful quite a lot of the time. Maybe they’re going for something I just don’t get. And I’m ok with that.
Echo And The Bunnymen
3/5
Decent post punk. There’s a bit of the punk aesthetic with some foreshadowing of what the eighties new wave brought us, without being poppy. Almost has a Talking Heads sort of vibe at some points. Almost.
I’d heard of the Bunnymen since I can remember, but never listened to them. I appreciate that this endeavor has me actually listening to bands and albums that I hadn’t gotten around to. Sometimes it’s a win, but usually not. I guess I’ll call this a win.
Television
3/5
I really hoped I would see something more than I did with this because I know Television was very influential for a lot of bands I love. This isn’t the first time I’ve sat with this album, either. Makes me feel like I’m missing something, but I just don’t get what’s so special about them. Maybe you had to be there to get it.
I don’t dislike it, it’s just ok. The extended - was it a solo? - on the title track should have been cut to make it a solid 4 or 5 minute song. Instead it sounds like he just did warm ups and finger exercises for several minutes to stretch it out. There were a few other moments Ike it, too, but I found that to be rather egregious.
The Cure
3/5
There are some good songs on here, but goth just ain’t my thing. And I definitely grew out of that broody sad phase by my thirties.
Queens Of The Stone Age
4/5
Pretty solid rock.
The Boo Radleys
3/5
Sounds like soft alternative pop rock…or something like that. It has just enough distortion and minor chords to almost make it feel edgy. But only just almost. All in all, not terrible, though. I feel like it’s just taking up a place on this list.
George Harrison
3/5
I’ll just say it…I don’t really care for much the Beatles in their solo careers. This is probably a good album, and there were a few songs I kind of liked. But certainly not a double album’s worth.
Love
3/5
Groovy. Not bad, until the last song refused to end.
Dire Straits
5/5
This album is fantastic. It has rock, blues, honky took…Mark Knopfler is astounding good at playing what best serves the song. He doesn’t overplay and allows space in a song. Even though he could definitely show off, these songs don’t call for flashy riffs. Sultans of Swing gives a glimpse at just how good he is. Definitely an album everyone should be exposed to at some point.
Method Man
2/5
The Doors
4/5
I loved the Doors back in high school, but as I got older, Morrison sounds less profound and more like a drunk on acid. Don’t get t me wrong, I still like the Doors, but it’s more about the music than the genius of Jim. The keyboards are really what laid the groundwork for every Doors song, and that is as evident on this album as any other. It’s a solid album that still holds up all these decades later, only for different reasons.
LCD Soundsystem
4/5
This was a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t really expecting to like it, but thought it was actually pretty good. Mostly, anyway. It feels like a 3.5/5, so I guess it’s only fair to round up to a 4.
Pretenders
4/5
Solid rock album. Coil listen to this many times over.
The Smiths
2/5
Ok, I listened to the whole album. Can I be done with the Smiths now? I mean, it’s not awful, but once I heard one song, I heard pretty much everything they’ve done.
Kid Rock
1/5
Aright, I’ve heard enough. About halfway through and that’s all the Kid Rock I can take. I knew this album, or at least a lot of it, from when it came out, and he always just make me kind of nauseous. I can hear the greasy hair. I guess as the kids today say, he gives me the ick.
David Bowie
3/5
Pretty good. Brian Eno’s hand is evident on the second half. It makes for great soundtrack for a movie, but less so for a commute. As a general rule I like some of Bowie’s stuff, and this album holds to that.
Public Enemy
4/5
Love PE, Chuck D is brilliant, even if you don’t agree with his politics. The fact that he calls out Black folks hurting the black cause as well as call out the white folks shows he’s looking at the big picture and not just playing a victim. Plus, they flow so well. Not necessarily my favorite PE album, but definitely a solid entry on their discography.
Jack White
4/5
Jack White is an interesting guy. I like him. I like this album. But it seems to fall a little short of his White Stripes work. I’ll still listen to it again a few times, but I just don’t like it as much.
R.E.M.
1/5
Probably my favorite REM album this far, owing to the fact that Stipe’s voice seems somewhat less whiney than on later recordings. That said, I still couldn’t stomach much of it. I just don’t see why anyone would want to listen to this tripe.
50 Cent
2/5
As far as the gangster rap that’s been on this list, I guess this is pretty decent. But I really don’t like this stuff. And why is such misogyny lauded as a great album? It feels like about a 1.5/5, but I guess I’ll round up to 2 since it’s better than a lot of the other rap that’s been on this list.
3/5
A case could be made for the necessity of listening to one PJ Harvey album. But there is no reason to need to listen to two.
This album was okay at best. There were a few tracks where she sounded like she was more just yelling atonally instead of singing. Perhaps it’s a better album lyrically, but I just couldn’t get interested enough in it to care.
Joni Mitchell
3/5
I realize Joni Mitchell is highly praised and very influential for a lot of singers and songwriters and singer/songwriters. I just don’t care for her. Maybe I’m missing something, but she bores the tar out of me. But I know she’s talented and all that, so I guess she gets 3 stars.
Linkin Park
4/5
The music, by which I mean the guitar, etc, is an interesting mix of different styles. It fits in well with the era by being heavy at points, has that alternative to metal vibe, mixes in some scratching and other stylistic elements. The singing, however, is a different matter. The whole one guy singing, then one guy screaming angrily, then singing again, back and forth, then the guy singing holding a note while the other guy screams a line over him thing is ok, kinda cool even. Once or twice. A whole album of it gets rather old. It’s still a good album, and even lyrically it has times it works well. Sometimes they’re even a little off that script.
On a side note, I’ve never really been able to get too into Linkin Park because I saw them in concert shortly after this album came out and before they got really big. They headlined a concert with Cypress Hill opening. That was the mistake.
Cypress Hill hit the stage like a storm and had an amazing show. Total energy. I’m not even a big fan, but it was great. At one point B Real (I think, this was almost 25 years ago) threw off his hat and dove into the crowd.
Linkin Park came out and did a decent show. Had t
I not just seen Cypress Hill I would have probably thought they were really good even. But comparatively, it was pretty tame. For the energy of the album, it wasn’t up to par. Then one of the singers interacted with the crowd too. But he got carried by a security guy so he could high five the front row. One of the lamest things I’ve ever seen in a rock show. Especially after your opening act just crowd surfed.
Haven’t been able to think of them anyway since.
But, trying to be objective, this is I suppose a pretty solid album and I guess I’ll round up to a 4.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4/5
I want to love Neil Young. I really, really do. But I never really liked his voice. That said, he has incredibly solid songs, musically, lyrically, just across the board good music.
This album continues that with fantastic songs. Powderfinger alone just blew me away. If not for my aversion to Young’s voice, I’d probably give it 5 stars, but the best I can do is 4 and feel bad about it.
Tori Amos
5/5
I will at least consider the viewpoints of most people on most topics. Gun control? I can see your point. Hot dogs and gyros are/ aren't sandwiches? I can see that. Omnivore? Vegetarian? I get it. But if you can’t see the sheer brilliance of this album, I don’t think I can talk to you.
Tori Amos is strong, aggressive, vulnerable, soft…and that a just in one song. Her voice is superior to most, of that era or since, and she brings emotion and voice to a piano like no other.
And if you can listen to Me and a Gun and not be a little affected, I can only assume you are a sociopathic monster.
The Rolling Stones
5/5
It doesn’t may if you like the Stones or not, if you even kind of enjoy Rock and Roll, this album is a classic. So many absolute beasts of songs.
The Human League
2/5
This album sounds like ripped stonewashed Jordaches, neon leg warmers, and Member’s Only jackets. That’s not a compliment.
There’s really only one good song on here (Don’t You Want Me, obviously), and if I’m being honest with myself I probably only like that out of nostalgia.
Germs
3/5
Straight ahead, fast, hard, aggressive punk. If that’s your thing, you’ll love this. If it’s not, definitely one to pass on.
Frank Sinatra
4/5
I wanted to love this more than I did. It’s still fantasy, Ol’ Blue Eyes was one of the greatest singers ever, even in the pre auto-tune era he was a standout. I also appreciate the concept album aspect of it. But it did eventually start to wear on me. Just one song that was a little more uptempo would’ve been a nice change of pace. But the music is so solid throughout that’s it’s hard to ding it at all. I really want to give it 5/5, but I just didn’t enjoy it enough. Sorry Frank, maybe if you have another album on this list.
Run-D.M.C.
5/5
My goodness what a great album. Not only is it full of amazing songs, but also changed the landscape of music. Just about every hip hop artist and rapper since owes Run DMC some credit for their existence, as do a lot of the rap rock bands. Walk This Way (even though they hated the song) introduced hip hop to the suburbs and gave the white kids like me a chance to appreciate a genre of music we didn’t really get to hear before. Rick Rubin was pure genius for hearing the e potential in that decade plus old song.
Personally, I prefer Peter Piper, but then, anything that gave Jam Master Jay some spotlight was awesome.
Caetano Veloso
3/5
The picture on the cover kind of gives me the creeps, but I’ll try to ignore that as I listen.
It’s kind of cool. I might get into it more after another listen or two, but for now it’s just ok.
Peter Gabriel
4/5
Really good album. Not my favorite by any means, but I definitely enjoyed it and will be listening to it again. This album reminded me of an artist that I haven’t paid attention to for a while. I forget about him often, but some reason, I’m just glad to live in a world where he exists. He was always a little outside of the rest of the music world and wasn’t afraid to make stuff that wasn’t quite the norm. Yet it was still great.
Solomon Burke
4/5
Good old soul music. Every now and then some other influence would present itself, like the horns in You Can’t Love ‘Em All, which made but a little more interesting. Good stuff, solid album.
Roxy Music
2/5
I have heard of Roxy Music many times but never checked them out, so I was a little excited when this popped up. I can’t recall having been this disappointed in a long time. Some wasn’t terrible, but too much sounded like a bad attempt at DEVO before DEVO came along.
R.E.M.
3/5
This is now I think the third REM album I’ve gotten on this list. One more and I may have to give up this endeavor. I realize they are popular, my for the life of me, I can’t see why. This album, for al it’s praise, is just as intolerable as their others. I’ve couldn’t stand them in the 80s and nothing has changed my mind yet. Michael Stipe’s warbling and whining is more grating than the proverbial nails on a chalkboard. I had hoped I didn’t like the band because I couldn’t pay attention through his voice. But then they had the dmoet boring Uber
Meat Puppets
3/5
This is an interesting album. It starts off punk, then goes in all kinds of directions. There are some great instrumentals, particularly Aurora Borealis. As a whole, it’s really solid. The vocals, frequently out of key, leave a bit to be desired however.
A lot of this album is closely tied to Nirvana now, thanks to their coverage of three albums off this list, with part of the band, during their MTV Unplugged show. As a result, I have the Nirvana version embedded in my brain. It’s good to hear the originals; the covers are quite faithful, and I generally prefer originals to covers, but I’d rather hear Cobain singing them.
Beatles
4/5
This album is (almost) wall to wall excellent. The percentage of songs on this double album that are iconic is hard to fathom. It pains me to have to give it four stars though, thanks solely to Revolution 9. I once jumped over a couch to shut this song off it’s so awful. To justify this one song taking away a full star, to me it is like someone who everyone knows to be a really nice guy - a friendly, shirt off his back kinda guy. Just the best guy. But then you find out he also runs a dogfighting ring. It’s just that bad of a song.
Todd Rundgren
2/5
A lot was awful, some was ok. That’s about the best it got. I suppose it can be filed as an album that needs to be listened to under the influence of hallucinogenics to be enjoyed. I don’t so I won’t.
David Bowie
3/5
Bowie has some really great songs. The rest are usually just kind of there. Or a little too out there. This album seems to fall mostly into the middle category for me.
Prefab Sprout
2/5
This album is about as exciting as a low sodium saltine. There is no reason for anyone to have to listen to this.
Cream
4/5
Great album, but I probably would’ve rated it higher thirty years ago when I was more into this era of music. That doesn’t take away from the impeccable guitar work of the inimitable Clapton. A true master of the craft, and this is him at his peak. The rest of Cream is no slack, either. I just don’t know that psychedelic rock holds up as well as the musicianship deserves. Except for nostalgia , of course.
Marvin Gaye
5/5
There isn’t one bad moment on this album. It’s about as close to perfection as a soul album can get. I’ve never heard an album flow as seamlessly as this; the only break was after Mercy Mercy Me, which made perfect sense in the context of the songs. That still didn’t disrupt the flow though. Even the last couple bars brings it back around to the opening themes. My goodness we lost a great one when we lost Marvin.
Sex Pistols
3/5
In a strange twist, I actually like this album more than when I tried listening to it in my early twenties. That’s not to say I particularly like it now, but I really didn’t like it then. They’re not the most musically talented group, but then that’s never been a requirement for a punk band. And this is one of the most quintessentially punk bands. The significance of this album in that regard is undeniable, not just in the music but in the fashion, attitude…they were the whole package. Like this album or not, I have to give extra credit for the place of this album in music history. I’m going with 3/5 because for me it’s a 2, but it probably deserves at least a 4 for significance alone.
Aerosmith
5/5
This was definitely a better album for my teenage self, but I still enjoy it. As their return from a drug induced hiatus, Aerosmith seems to have retained a chunk of their 70s sound while taking some of the vibe of the 80s rock without becoming a hair metal band. As one with no love for hair bands but a deep affection for 70s rock, this hit just right for me.
While I still appreciate Joe Perry’s guitar work and, while he’s not the greatest drummer, I dig Joey Kramer’s style, the lyrics are a geared for the adolescent boy that I no longer am (although I suspect Tyler still is). It is hard to deny his vocal ability though. He really does have quite a range.
Pump shows that Aerosmith was still a strong band and were capable of some solid rock. Which makes the awful soft rock they eventually degraded into so disappointing.
For nostalgia alone I have to give it 5/5, although my current opinion is closer to 4
Ryan Adams
3/5
I really thought this was a Bryan Adams album when I first opened it up and was confused when I heard this. Also couldn’t figure out why Bryan Adam’s would be on this list.
Anyway, not bad Americana sorta throwback style country. Or whatever you’d call it. It’s not Bro Country, as I’ve heard the current garbage called, and he wasn’t singing about a beer in his truck and a girl with a short skirt and cowboy boots, so that was good.
Tracy Chapman
3/5
Good, but gets a bit boring after a while. Still, Fast Car is an astoundingly good song.
Tom Waits
5/5
This is one of my favorite Tim Waits albums, and that’s saying something. It evokes emotions that I’ve definitely felt. Even if I’ve never been in the exact types of places he sings about, I can feel myself there. Nobody is one of my all time favorites…it ran through my head daily for the last few years of my marriage. And Big Joe is just a great story.
Quite a few lines have dug themselves deep into my consciousness and subconsciousness. Just this morning, before even seeing today’s album, I was thinking about being Better Off Without a Wife.
Tom’s spoken word and…crooning aside, the jazz is just fantastic. It truly has the feel of a little jazz joint. I think that’s a lot of the appeal for me, also. These clubs don’t really exist anymore and I never got to go to one when they did, so this is as close as I can get.
This is an album I’d give 8/5 if it would let me. Maybe more. There is just no part of it I don’t love.
Soft Cell
2/5
Less “cabaret” and more awful, cheesy high school musical. The best track is a cover, which is a sad statement, and I didn’t realize they did Where Did Our Love Go. Everything else was next to unlistenable. Terrible even by British pop standards, which thanks to the albums thus far on this list, is a pretty low bar.
ABBA
2/5
Things I appreciate from Sweden:
- IKEA
- The chef
- Fish
Things I don’t appreciate from Sweden:
- ABBA
In fairness, better than I expected, but that’s probably because I didn’t hear any of the hits on here, all of which I really, really don’t like.
Electric Light Orchestra
4/5
I enjoy the occasional string arrangement on a rock song, and I can’t think of anyone that does it better than ELO. Jeff Lynne is a master at his craft. I just don’t know about a double album of it.
This album is full of fantastic, incredibly well composed songs and it deserves 5/5. But I just can’t get into it that much. I’m the one who’s wrong here.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
5/5
One of my favorite jazz albums. Actually, one of my favorite albums of any genre. Totally groundbreaking in its use of multiple time signatures, sometimes even several within one composition. If I recall, most songs don’t use 4/4 at all. It really opened the doors for a lot of jazz musicians to experiment in new ways. I can’t imagine how difficult this was to play, especially for the drummer, Joe Morello.
Not only is it innovative, but it just sounds really cool. Blue Rondo A La Turk gets it rolling fantastically and it just takes off from there. It’s simply beautiful and a joy to listen to.
The Who
4/5
Solid Who album I guess, but I just can’t get into them as much as I used too. Still a good listen though. Somewhere between a 3 and a 4, so I guess I’ll round up.
Beck
5/5
Love this album. Beck is a weird dude with weird lyrics and sometimes I don’t know what he’s saying, even if I know what he’s talking about. Just great music that was a product of and driver for the other quirky, alternative stuff that was happening at the time. He’s a unique artist that is instantly recognizable. While I like a couple of his albums a little better, but this is still a classic and one I will return to many more times.
Metallica
3/5
This is an interesting novelty, and probably would have been a really cool show to see live, but I can’t imagine intentionally listening to this again. I’d much rather dig into Kill ‘em All. This is also from the post “Black Album” period, and as such has a bunch of songs off of that. That whole album was so overplayed on the radio that if I never hear another song off of it - in any format - I will be just fine. Also, in preparation for that album, James took voice lessons. Personally, I much prefer the guttural, gravelly voice he had on their first four albums. Good on him for wanting to improve and be a better musician, but I feel smooth vocals take away from the overall feel and experience of Metallica’s music. It’s (originally) hard and heavy and angry. A clean voice does not add to that. Even if there’s a symphony accompanying it.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
I’ve never understood the appeal of Bruce Springsteen and this album did nothing to help. There is nothing groundbreaking, original, or even interesting here. Even for the little I’ve listened to him, his music seems to follow a pattern that he deviates little from. I guess when in doubt, verse, repeat title several times, repeat is good enough. I hope there aren’t any more Springsteen albums on this list, but I have a bad feeling I won’t be that fortunate.
Nick Drake
2/5
I want to like Nick Drake, but he kind of just bores me. This is the second album from him I’ve gotten on here and I am just not interested in anymore. Which stinks because I’m sure Pink Moon is coming at some point.
Santana
4/5
Latin jazz meets psychedelic rock. Fantastic.
The Mothers Of Invention
2/5
Very strange, but I guess we know that going into it. Never could get to into Zappa. A shame, really.
The Associates
2/5
This has a definite 80s sound going. That’s not exactly a a compliment. And it often sounds like something Bowie would’ve been involved with, but not any of the Bowie that I like. I can hear the Cure influence, too. All in all, not really my thing.
The White Stripes
5/5
The really unique thing about the White Stripes is their willingness to allow space in their songs. They are able to create powerful songs without a wall of sound behind the vocals on every track. Leaning into the piano instead of a heavy electric guitar for so much of this album was also an interesting choice, and in my opinion one that paid off well.
The Pogues
5/5
Ah, the Pogues. Is it folk? Is it punk? Is it Celtic? Yes. What a mix. Such attitude and emotion. Plus I’m a sucker for some banjo, especially where you might not expect banjo. Dirty Old Town it the tops on this album for me, but it’s all good.
Bob Dylan
5/5
Dylan at his finest. For some that’s a low bar. But I love it.
The Verve
3/5
It’s ok, but not blowing me away. I might like this more after a few more listens. Or I might get tired of it really quickly. If I recall, the Verve was considered an alternative band, but they have a pretty solid Britpop vibe and that never really sits too well with me.
Ray Charles
4/5
Great stuff. Short album.
The Yardbirds
4/5
Cool stuff. Shame we never heard from that guitarist after this.
Quicksilver Messenger Service
3/5
Not usually much for psychedelic jam bands, but this wasn’t half bad.
Talking Heads
3/5
Interesting. It sure how I feel about it. I should listen again under different conditions. I just couldn’t connect with it today, but feel it is worth trying again.
SAULT
2/5
There’s some interesting stuff here, and I see some potential, but too much of this was a kind of cool rhythm with a phrase or statement repeated over and over. For a smooth vibe, it has all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Admittedly, this album is targeted at a specific audience to which I do not belong, but I can’t imagine this format getting old for anyone. I do applaud this album for its merit as an artistic expression.
Sebadoh
4/5
The first couple songs sounded almost run of the mill grunge, but by the end I was kind of into it. The punk ethos that was inherent to grunge is very present. I suppose it depends on your opinion of both those genres as to whether or not that’s a good thing. It gave off definite Stereopathetic Soul Manure vibes, and I’m sure it’s something Beck had been listening to.
Incubus
4/5
I’ve known quite a few people who really liked Incubus. I mean, REALLY liked them. I’ve always thought their big hits off this album were pretty alright, but never so great I felt the need to listen to the whole album. I think I still feel that way.
That said, the full on scratch track was pretty cool. I don't get to hear a lot of turntablism these days.
DJ Shadow
5/5
Very cool stuff. Makes me want to find more instrumental hip hop.
The Young Rascals
5/5
This reminds me of sitting on the porch or the basement with my dad back in the seventies listening to the “oldies.” If I don’t give this 5 stars, he may haunt my radio until it knocks some sense into me.
Besides, this album is just plain awesome.
Lucinda Williams
4/5
Good folkish rock type stuff. Sometimes her voice gets a bit too … I don’t know, a bit too something, but for the most part a very solid album. Can’t Let Go has been on a heavy enough rotation on my Spotify for long enough I have to skip it half the time so I don’t get tired of it.
Jeff Buckley
4/5
With Hallelujah being one of the best things to ever be put on wax, this album is immediately going to get 4 stars minimum from me. The rest of the album certainly does not live up to that one track, but it’s not terribly disappointing, either.
Randy Newman
4/5
This plays an awful lot like a metropolitan Tom Waits. For how much I love Waits, I don’t know how I feel about this. Newman spins a nice yarn I suppose, but it lack the grittiness. However, he didn’t pull punches on the red necks, which I appreciate.
I think online this after all. Maybe we just need more storytellers.
Thelonious Monk
5/5
The world needs to hear more Monk.
Janelle Monáe
3/5
I’m not sure how I feel about this, but I do know that I am tired of popular music, especially hip hop and other stuff along those lines, starting an album with something orchestral or such. Like they’re trying to portray a certain cultured-ness. And then popping them back in later. All while littering the rest of the album with profanity and ugliness. It was interesting once or twice, but I’ve now come across it far too many times for it to be original. Granted, the rest of this album stays away from the gutter, but the played out trope is there.
As for the rest of the album, she obviously has a good voice, especially on the songs that didn’t over-auto-tune her, whether intentionally or otherwise. But a lot of it I just got tired of halfway through.
I wouldn’t intentionally listen to this again, but might not rush to shut it off either. Still, I feel the only reason it’s on this list of essential listens is to sprinkle something more contemporary, regardless of deserving a spot, because it doesn’t.
Michael Jackson
2/5
I realize it’s an unpopular opinion, but I just don’t like Michael Jackson’s music. None of it. Not then, and not now. And, quite frankly, the “hee-hee’s” and “ow’s” get really old really fast.
This album 100% deserves to be on this list for its importance to popular music, but I wasn’t happy when it finally popped up because I just didn’t want to listen to it.
The Style Council
2/5
This sounds like the soundtrack of a C movie from the eighties. I think the editors put this album on the wrong list. I should be on the “Don’t Listen To” list. It adds nothing but the commentary that you can make music that is entirely forgettable.
Two stars because it wasn’t horrible, just pointless.
Elliott Smith
3/5
I liked this more than I expected, but not as much as I wanted. I think it will need another listen to actually appreciate it. It might be much more interesting, or it may turn out to be utterly boring.
Elvis Costello
5/5
Just awesome. What a great debut album. The weakest song on here, maybe Mystery Dance, would be the best song half the albums on this list.
Bonus 6th star for the first song I heard on this Monday morning being Welcome to the Working Week.
Rahul Dev Burman
3/5
Is this an outstanding example of this genre, or just a random Bollywood soundtrack that the editors chose? It’s kind of interesting, but the couple of Western sounding songs made me question its choice. Strangely, one of those, One Two Cha Cha Cha, was one of my least favorite.
Frankie Goes To Hollywood
1/5
Mostly self indulgent crap. I never realized how redundant Relax is, maybe because this time it followed 15 or 20 minutes of the same sound in the previous songs. I was happy to hear their version of Born to Run, not because it was good (because it wasn’t), but because at least it didn’t sound like a continuation of Relax. Everything after that was just bad.
George Jones
5/5
He was a king of the genre. So much emotion. Nobody could sing a sad song like.
Johnny Cash
5/5
This isn’t even Cash’s best American album, but I assume Hurt is good enough to overcome that. I forget how good it is sometimes, but listening to it again it makes my jaw drop. It is also important to keep in mind that he was actively dying during this album, and it’s still superior to most things out there.
For the other songs, I love how he turned Personal Jesus into a gospel song, as well as the first track. Sam Hall is also just fun to sing along with. The rest of it is still great, too, but for my money the first two American Recordings had the best collection of songs.
I am largely incapable of giving Johnny Cash less than 5 stars on anything he does anyway, so I may be a little biased. That doesn’t mean this isn’t a great album.
Robert Wyatt
1/5
I’m not trying to censor, but mankind would benefit from this being wiped off the earth and never heard from again. Utter chaos and does not qualify as music as far as I’m concerned. I feel less whole and human after attempting to digest any of it.
The Beach Boys
4/5
Some really good, classic songs.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
She sounds like an early-2000’s attempt at Joan Jett or Debbie Harry, not that that’s inherently a bad thing. Definitely has a garage band/punk vibe. Not a huge fan, but kind of interesting.
Maps is a standout, not only because it is sonically different from the majority of the album but also because it is just splendid. Says more with simple lyrics and her voice is just more emotive. Easily the best song on the album.
Also, I love the line, “I wish I could buy back the woman you stole” in Y-Control. Says so much in one line.
808 State
1/5
Monotonous and tiresome. Every so often I would realize a song was still playing, get annoyed by it, and skip to the next track.
Big Star
3/5
This is so 70s that it made me nostalgic…and I’ve never even heard it before. Liked it more than I expected, but not as much as I wanted.
Slipknot
3/5
Led Zeppelin
5/5
The most bluesy album Zeppelin put out. It doesn’t have as many of their biggest songs, Immigrant Song is probably the biggest song off of it, but there are so many great tracks. My favorite album of theirs and, in my opinion, the most underrated.
Merle Haggard
5/5
Music from when country was country, not this pop bro country garbage.
The Libertines
3/5
Before listening, my thought was, “Oh goodie. British indie. That never sucks.” But I was pleasantly surprised. This is actually pretty good. Might even listen again.
Eminem
2/5
This was better than the Slim Shady LP on this list. I can’t really see listening to it again, but there were some good moments. Stan in particular stands out as brilliant.
I realize there the case is made for “artistic merit,” but it’s just too much profanity, misogyny, violence, hatred, etc. as a whole for me. And for a civilized society. At the same time, a lot of the rap on this list falls into the same category. Ice Cube and 50 Cent have both been on this list so far, and both were too full of misogyny, et al for me to continue to listen to them. Why should Eminem get a pass? Does he have better hooks? Yeah, probably. I think some of his stuff is better written even. But the hate is still the hate and the violence is still the violence. I just don’t need it and I can’t imagine the world would be better off if we didn’t have people glamorizing such attitudes and actions. Maybe Marshall needs to write this stuff to get his demons out and if it helps him, that’s fantastic. But we shouldn’t be idolizing him. I think that’s part of why I like Stan so much. Even Eminem kind of gets it.
Ultimately I guess I’ll go with 2/5 because it’s actually more listenable than a lot of the other albums of its ilk. And I just really think Stan is fantastic.
But it probably deserves less for the hate mongering.
And while I assume it’s part of his creative expression, I can’t imagine anyone actually enjoying listening to Kim. That’s just disturbing. Maybe identifying with the emotions or something, but if that song makes you happy? Seek counseling. Fast.
Jeru The Damaja
3/5
Better than I expected. Kind of old school, on the border of the upcoming gangsta rap. Having just listened to Eminem for yesterday’s album, I really liked that he managed to respect women and differentiate between most women and those only after money. Might listen again.
Afrika Bambaataa
4/5
This is the third day in a row with a rap album. Each day it’s from a decade earlier and each album is better. The lesson: old school hip hop is the best hip hop and all the newer stuff stinks.
Anyway, classic rap from back in the day, fantastic stuff. I miss the old MCs.
Kate Bush
2/5
Annoying garbage.
Like if Tori Amos tried to be that weird girl by making goofy voices.
The Flaming Lips
3/5
Huh. Not bad. Not great. Kinda liked Yoshimi Battles…parts I and II. Everything else was just kind of there.
Stereo MC's
3/5
That’s a bit of all right.
The White Stripes
5/5
Red Hot Chili Peppers
3/5
Michael Kiwanuka
4/5
I did not expect that. I didn’t even know anyone still made music like this. It has heavy late 60s, early 70s sort of vibe and I totally dug it. Very rarely an album comes across this list from an artist I’ve never heard of that I actually really enjoy and this is one of them.
The Electric Prunes
3/5
Eh, I dig the oldies, but this wasn’t my favorite era. The psychedelic stuff just isn’t my bag, man. This seems to be from before it got real trippy, but is on the verge of that vibe. Ok, but not great.
Skunk Anansie
3/5
Metal and hard rock from the late 90s and early 00s all sounded much the same to me. As a result, I don’t know much from that era because I just didn’t care to listen to it. Being loud and heavy the same way everyone else was just made it boring. This album is more of same, only with a female singer. That added little for me. It wasn’t awful, but it pretty much just became background music. And I’m sure that’s not what they were aiming for.
De La Soul
4/5
While not every track is gold - I could do without some of the odd little interjections and such - there is plenty of solid old school hip hop on this album that I would definitely recommend someone to give it a listen. Eye Know and Me Myself and I alone are reason enough to give it a shot. Rap from when rap was fun, with a little bit of social commentary thrown in. Just great stuff. I want to give it 5 stars, but some of the weird stuff, like De La Orgee, knocks it down a peg.
Patti Smith
3/5
I’ve tried to like Patty Smith…I know she’s really influential in the punk scene and all that stuff. She just doesn’t do it for me. Some of this was ok, some definitely not.
Astrud Gilberto
4/5
Perfect for the Sunday afternoon I got this on. smooth, calm, and just enough shuffle to be interesting.
Paul McCartney and Wings
3/5
If I ever had the opportunity to jam with Sir Paul, and he said, “Let’s do. jet,” I’d most likely say, “You know what, never mind, I’m good.”
That’s about how I feel about this whole album. An SAT style analogy might be Wings :: The Beatles as Jefferson Starship :: Jefferson Airplane. That’s not a good thing. I don’t know if I like Wings less because I expect more from McCartney or if I like them as much as I do only because of who he is. I guess 3/5 because I can’t give 2.5 and go down the middle.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I liked this album much more than the other Sonic Youth album this list dropped on me a little while back (Dirty). It’s not fantastic, but has enough merit that I’ve considered giving Dirty another listen.
Overall, There are a couple good tracks, but I don’t know I’ll be going back to it any time soon.
John Cale
3/5
Leonard Cohen
3/5
I’ve tried for years to like Leonard Cohen to no avail. This synth-heavy album did nothing to help. I was leaning 3/5 until Jazz Police. That may have knocked this album down a peg.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
I realize I am in the great minority, but I really don’t like this album. Never have. Objectively, it’s not bad music. I just don’t care for Stevie Nicks’ voice (again, I know an unpopular opinion) and don’t remember ever not being sick of hearing any of these songs. The only song I kind of enjoyed was Never Going Back Again, which doesn’t have Nicks singing and I’ve never heard before, so maybe I might like earlier Fleetwood Mac. I have just always hated this album. For personal preference, it’s a 1/5, but because I realize the songs themselves are not “bad,” I’ll give it a 2/5.
Pink Floyd
5/5
One of the greatest albums ever. Huge, sweeping, yet also intimate. There I nothing I don’t like about this album.
Dire Straits
5/5
Neil Young
4/5
Really solid album. Every time I hear Neil Young I say this, but I wish I liked him more. His songs are objectively great, but I just can’t seem to get into him, even this album, which is probably his best one. I realize I’m the one that’s wrong here, so it gets 4/5 from me. Even though it might deserve 5.
The Who
4/5
John Coltrane
4/5
Coltrane is amazing sometimes the free jazz is a little too much though. I really like this album, but it’s just on the border of being overly discordant for me. Still phenomenal though.
Todd Rundgren
2/5
Too much of this is the sappy poppy stuff that I didn’t like of the early 70’s. There were a couple decent tracks, the stuff with a little more edge for lack of a better word. They were too few and far between though, which left me listening to a double album of mostly 70’s pop.
ZZ Top
5/5
I don’t care who you voted for, if you don’t like this album you are un-American and need to leave the country.
Kidding.
Sort of.
There is not a weak track on this, solid blues-rock from begin to end.
New Order
2/5
I grew up in the 80s and this is exactly the stuff I hated. I don’t mind it nearly as much anymore, relative to the pop stuff out now, but I still don’t like it.
The Velvet Underground
2/5
The album that launched 10,000 bands. I assume for the same reason so many punk bands were inspired by the Sec Pistols. When people heard it they figured they could make an album at least as good. That’s not really the sign of a great album or even a compliment. I hear great bands and I think, “I could never do that. I’m amazed anyone could.” If I think, ”shoot, I could do that,” it’s not really that impressive of art.
That said, some songs are better, maybe ok for a garage band or even a local bar band, but nothing terribly great. I do enjoy Sunday Morning, though.
Sabu
3/5
Interesting. I’m always up for finding (new to me) old jazz musicians. Unfamiliar with this style, but dig it. Not fully in live with it, but could see listening to it again.
The Byrds
3/5
As someone who only knew of the psychedelic era of the Byrds, this was a surprise. I enjoy the occasional pedal steel guitar, so it was pretty ok.
Beatles
4/5
It is hard to imagine what music would sound like without the Beatles. Even though I never listened to this album before, I still knew most of the songs. They are all solid. I even liked the out of place honky tonk tune Ringo sang. Actually, that was one of my favorites.
All that said, I like this album, but don’t love it. That’s just my taste, always been more of a Stones guy.
By the way, what was with Run For Your Life? Sounds happy and fun, but is an actual death threat? I can’t imagine they play d that one live very often.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Yesterday I gave Rubber Souñ only 4/5, with a statement that I was more of a Stones guy. The next day I get this album. I liked it, but not nearly as much as I expected. I appreciate their more bluesy style, but few of these songs actually hit the right spot for me. Comparing the two albums, I’d have to say Rubber Soul is more solid. Still, this is a pretty decent album. It’s getting 4 stars as well, but if this system had half stars, this would be a 3.5 and Rubber Soul would’ve gotten 4.5.
Arcade Fire
2/5
This is definitely an album and there are definitely songs on it. I believe I listened to the whole thing, but I have absolutely no memory of any of it, because it is somewhat like a less interesting U2 album.* Nothing was bad, I don’t think, but it was purely background music. Like for a movie. But not a very good one. And there was an hour of it?
In retrospect, the album is titled The Suburbs, so I guess it has the appropriate level of excitement.
* I have never found anything U2 did to be terribly interesting and have always been confused by their fame and notoriety.
Missy Elliott
1/5
The best parts were just boring. The rest was mostly mildly to very annoying. Nothing of redeemable value here.
The Smiths
1/5
Really? More Smiths?
I listened to this anyway. It seemed that musically, the band tried to do something different, play some stuff that wasn’t just the same old Smiths music. But if you put that voice over anything, it’s going to sound like a Smiths song. That’s not exactly a good thing. Morissey has the vocal range of a gnat. It’s one tone, all the time. And not a very pleasant one, either. Sounds like it’s coming from the back of the throat and the back of the sinuses at the same time. Or something. I can’t put my finger on it. But I know I don’t like it.
To sum up, Morrisey’s awful and he drags the band down with him.
Gene Clark
2/5
An ok album, but by no means essential listening.
Mike Oldfield
2/5
I almost skipped ahead, which would have been unfortunate. If I hadn’t finished the first track, I never would’ve gotten to hear him show off all the sounds his new synthesizer could make and would never know what an artificial glockenspiel sounds like.
Circle Jerks
2/5
Well, at least it was short.
Lou Reed
2/5
Arctic Monkeys
4/5
I liked it more as it went along. Will listen again. Closer to 3.5, but rounding up.
Nico
1/5
I could only make through about half of this. It’s incredibly listless and morose. There’s lots of “depressing” music that I’ve listened to and loved, but this is just…sad. I didn’t care at all for Nico with the Velvet Underground, either. This might scratch someone’s itch, but there’s just nothing here for me.
MGMT
3/5
I was surprised how many songs I was familiar with. Not so much that I like them, but I don’t hate them, either. It’s an okay album and I didn’t mind too much listen to it, but I don’t see even intentionally listening to it again.
Mekons
1/5
It comes across like a novelty act, but without being funny. I couldn’t wait for it to be over.
Mudhoney
3/5
Early to mid 90s era is my comfort food of music, so I should probably like this more than I do. But for me, the more punk leanings the grunge, the lower on my list. Yes, much of the grunge style and ethos is derived from the punk roots, but those bands seem to care less about the musicality. As such, not my favorite grunge album. I like it, but it’s just in the middle for me.
The Smashing Pumpkins
3/5
I should like the Smashing Pumpkins. They are from my era and right in the genre I love. They have well written, well produced songs. They evoke the feeling of a jaded cynic that is so integral to my generation, while at the same time projecting a certain pathos.
But Billy Corgan is such an egotistical jerk that o have difficulty separating the art from the artist, so I never really got into them. Which is a loss for me.
This album deserves a 4/5, maybe even a 5. But not from me.
The Thrills
3/5
Liked it more than I expected, but it eventually got boring. Just not enough variation. I’d probably listen to a song or two again but can’t see listening to more than that.
The Jam
2/5
Stevie Wonder
4/5
I think I like the idea of Stevie Wonder more than I like his music. The power of I Wish and Sir Duke are undeniable, but a lot of these songs go on for long after I’m done listening to them. Not that they aren’t really good, just too long. I still love Stevie, but I’ve learned that I don’t generally dig a full album, particularly a double album.
4/5
Don McLean
4/5
With this album, it’s not a question of whether or not you like it, it’s how you feel about folk rock. If you like it, this is a fantastic album. If not, this probably won’t be your cup of tea. Probably even boring or even annoying.
As huge a song as American Pie is, for my money Vincent is far superior. Of course that could be from overexposure. There’s a certain ubiquity about American Pie, especially if you spent the better part of your life listening to rock stations.
Jamiroquai
4/5
It’s hard for me to imagine someone not enjoying this.
Stan Getz
5/5
This is exquisite. Aside from the fact this is fantastic, it dropped on the morning of the first real snow of the season and driving to work listening to what for me has vibes of warmer climes after clearing my driveway was more than welcome. I’ve now had Girl From Ipanema in my head all day and have no regrets about it.
Long a fan of jazz, although nearly as knowledgeable as I would like, I now know that I enjoy bossa nova, especially as this is the second or third album I’ve gotten. A dose of Stan Getz definitely doesn’t hurt.
American Music Club
3/5
I have no feelings about this album good or bad.
New York Dolls
2/5
Glad I listened to it because of the influence they’ve had, but don’t really want to listen to it again.
Meat Loaf
2/5
I could not wait for this to be over. In all honesty, I skipped the two biggest songs because I have already heard them countless times already, and always against my will.
I have to admit that technically Meat does have a good voice. But my word this stuff gets old. What do we call this, rock opera? Does every song have to be the same. Ugh. I dislike this whole album so much I can’t even pinpoint what about it annoys me so much.
Anyway, personal preference is 1/5, but there is some objectively good musicianship on here, so an extra star for that. I did enjoy the piano part on Heaven Can Wait.
Miles Davis
4/5
3/5
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
4/5
4/5
Blur
4/5
Sister Sledge
4/5
Growing up in Pittsburgh in the 70s, We Are Family was ubiquitous. It was the theme song for the (then champion) Pirates and the chorus was played dozens of times a day on every tv and radio station during the spring and summer. Even though I don’t like baseball, and despite the awfulness of the Pirates now, that song is deeply seated in the nostalgia center of my brain.
That aside, this album as a whole is pretty solid disco/soul/R&B. My disdain for all things disco must have softened over the decades, because I didn’t mind this too much. In fact, I kind of enjoyed it mostly.
Wild Beasts
1/5
I don’t know why I had such a visceral reaction to this album, but I hated it. Just something about it.
Franz Ferdinand
4/5
Pretty solid garage rock.
John Prine
4/5
One of my favorite bumper stickers that I’ve seen said “John Prine is pretty good”. Such a fantastic understatement. This guy told stories like no other. One of my big regrets is missing him in concert last time he came through my town since he died shortly after.
Deep Purple
3/5
I never did get into the bands like Deep Purple and Blue Oyster Cult and Iron Maiden, etc. Not to say I dislike them, they were just never my thing. This album falls into that pretty well.
It serves a very important place in the landscape of music, but I just don’t see me listening to it again. It definitely does rock though.
Tricky
2/5
Liked it at first, sort of gave me a Portishead vibe. But I wasn’t listening too closely for the first couple tracks, it was just background music. Once I was able to focus on it and started hearing lyrics I got tired of it really quick.
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
2/5
Beginning wasn’t as bad as I expected, then it eventually became unlistenable. Like someone noodling around and mumbling. Two stars because at least the first few tracks were just mediocre, not awful.
Soundgarden
5/5
Excellent album. Gritty and dark and melodic. I’ve always been partial to Badmotorfinger, but still love this one.
The Residents
1/5
Any “music” that often comes with a disclaimer that you need to be on drugs to enjoy it should be wiped from the earth. This is utter garbage. The only thing remotely redeeming about it is the Primus cover of Sinister Exaggerator. Even that I would gladly do without for this album to never have existed. I would give it fewer stars if I could.
Mike Ladd
2/5
Comes across to me as something some guy made in his basement.
Rod Stewart
4/5
For a long time I didn’t like Rod Stewart. Something about him still bothers me. However, I have to admit that this is a pretty solid blues rock album. There are some really good tunes on here. Maggie May especially sounded good to me this time around fir some reason. eating this is hard because I still want to give it only 3/5, but feel it probably deserves a 4. I guess I’ll give it 4 to make up for all the negative I’ve thrown at him through the years.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
Joni changed the landscape of guitar, but he also wrote some fantastic songs. Every song on here is incredible (with the exception of the trippy first track).
It must also be noted that this isn’t just a Jimi Hendrix album, it’s the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding do not get enough credit. I’m especially enamored by Mitchell’s drums. He makes If 6 Was 9 work. Maybe another drummer could have done it, but in my ears he managed to stand out even playing next to the legend that was Hendrix, and that should be noted.
The Streets
1/5
Why would anyone listen to this on purpose? Aside from this project, of course. But then, I couldn’t slog all the way through the 50 minutes (50 minutes?!?!?) of this, so the question still stands.
This had to have the worst flow of any rap I’ve ever heard, and that includes when I’ve heard grade school kids “rap.” I’m a 51 year old white guy from the suburbs and I can flow better than that. This is so bad that I don’t even want to meet someone who does like it. I wish any of that was hyperbole.
Charles Mingus
5/5
Fan. Tas. Tic.
I’ve always liked anything I’ve heard by Mingus, but was unaware of this. It is orchestral in its movement. So much more than jazz. The first half I listened to driving, the second half through ear buds. I have to go back and relisten so I can more thoroughly enjoy the whole thing. I highly recommend you do yourself a favor and immerse yourself in this through headphones, or at least just focus on this in a room with no other distractions. Enthusiastic two thumbs up.
MC Solaar
4/5
I expected nothing from French rap, and was very pleasantly surprised. I actually liked this. It has the jazz hip hop vibe of Us3 and artists like that, although unlike having samples of Blue Note recordings, the backing tracks sounded almost canned in some parts. I think the fact that I couldn’t understand anything he said probably helped. I quickly grow tired of rappers who only spew slurs and epithets and rap about drugs and being horrible to women, so if he said any of that I was blissfully unaware. Whatever he does say flows incredibly well. If I had any desire to learn French, I would probably listen to this guy a lot.
Does it deserve 4 stars though? Probably not, probably a high 3, but I’m going 4 just because it was so much better than I expected.
Pet Shop Boys
1/5
Why? What’s the point of a Pet Shop Boys album without West Side Boys? Really, what’s the point of one with it, but even more so without.
Never cared for these guys in the eighties, apparently time has not softened that.
Carole King
4/5
Great album, but for some reason I’m just not into Carole King. It’s my loss, really. I did enjoy almost everything on this, not a fan of Tapestry, but everything else was really good. It’s just not my thing.
Boston
4/5
Despite having never listening to this album, I know all of the songs incredibly well. Generally not my genre, never cared for all the travel bands of that era (Boston, Asia, Journey, Chicago…), but it’s hard to deny that these are some fantastic songs. The soaring vocals, melodies, power chords are all there. It’s so 70s you can hear the bell bottoms.
Fats Domino
5/5
The fantastic roots of rock and roll. If you can’t at least appreciate it his on some level, you have no business listening to music.
Radiohead
1/5
I realize I risk being branded a philistine, but for the most part I can’t get into Radiohead. Most of what they do comes across to me as pretentious, weird and abstract for the sake of being weird and abstract. All in all, this album is painfully dull, largely just boring and monotonous. Normally I would probably give this 2/5, but I’m going with 1 star because it is so mind-bogglingly overrated.
B.B. King
4/5
It’s hard to knock B.B. King. They guy is a legend and the tone he pulls out of Lucille is unmistakable. That said, while I enjoyed the whole album, the first few songs kind of bled together for me. (Also, as much as I like B.B., he’s not my favorite King bluesman. Albert King doesn’t get enough credit.)
The Shamen
2/5
Some people may like this, although I don’t know why, but it is by no means required listening for anyone. It is nothing more than a stereotype of what I would expect if I were ever to go to a rave. Should not be on this list.
Def Leppard
3/5
85% of the rating is nostalgia. Never cared for Def Leppard, still don’t, but it reminds me of some friends I had in high school who liked them a lot. All in all, not the worst album. Not the best either.
Everything But The Girl
2/5
She has a great voice, reminiscent of Sade to a degree, but it seemed at odds with the synth. Those vocals deserve to be supported by strings, a piano, or at least better electronic accompaniment. What she had may have been pretty cool at the time, but certainly hasn’t held up. Instead it was more of a distraction than support.
As a point of reference, when this album ended, Spotify played It Could Be Sweet by Portishead. Along the same vibe that I think they were going for, but a totally different outcome. Everything But the Girl is far less emotive and the instrumentation is more generic, lacking any complexity or interest, resulting in an almost boring experience comparatively.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
I have a hard time giving Stevie Wonder anything less than four stars. Even if I probably won’t be revisiting this album anytime soon. Boogie On Reggae Woman deserves at least that many stars on its own, though. The rest was good, but not amazing.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
As a disclaimer, I’ve always held the very unpopular opinion that I hate Fleetwood Mac. However, I’ve also had the realization that it might just be Rumors that I hate. That may be true, because I didn’t hate this album nearly as much. It’s kind of like stepping in a puddle vs stepping in dog poop. Neither are enjoyable and I avoid both as best as I can, but one is decidedly more objectionable.
Some of my opinion of this album may be due to a preexisting bias, but there’s also very little here for me to sink my teeth into. From an objective as possible view, these aren’t really great songs. Save Me a Place is particularly awful.
Beck
2/5
I really like Beck, but never cared for this album. Good for him for having an emotional outlet for a rough time and I also applaud the artistic growth. However, after a couple songs this album just sounds all the same to me. I like a song every now and then, but can’t do a whole album of this. I own this album and have only listened to the whole thing a couple times. Pretty much any of his other albums would be getting high marks from me, but not this one. Sorry, Beck.
3/5
I love Bob Dylan, but this album helps me see why many people don’t. I still enjoyed this album, kind of, but I don’t see me going back to it. The wailing harmonica alone kind of drives me away…and I love the harmonica. Just not played like this.
I also appreciate the cultural significance of this album. It’s largely that reason that it belongs on this list.
Ms. Dynamite
3/5
Meh, It’s not awful. Not my taste, so it’s hard for me to really judge, but I don’t see why it’s on this list. It doesn’t have anything about it that particularly stands out, so I would think something a little more well known and of greater significance to music as a whole would have been put on instead. Again, not my genre, but I’ve never even heard of this artist and it doesn’t appear it was a very big selling album relatively.
I suppose 3/5: it’s not bad, won’t listen to it again but didn’t hate it, wish I had the option for 2.5
Sepultura
3/5
Had I heard this back when it came out, I would have liked it more. Now that I’m older, I just can’t get into stuff this heavy as much. I still liked it, mostly, but it just isn’t my thing anymore. The double bass was pretty awesome though.
I didn’t become aware of Sepultura until later in the 90s because earlier I didn’t have friends that listened to this type of metal and my CD budget didn’t allow for as much buying out of curiosity as I would have liked. As this received zero air play and Spotify didn’t exist yet, it never hit my radar. However, I didn’t become aware happen upon Roots Bloody Roots in the late 90s and I would very much recommend that album over this one. Arise is much more straight forward thrashing, as opposed to the intentional tribal influence of Roots. It’s still heavy, but definitely the better of the two. If this is their most acclaimed album, I can imagine what that would make me think of the rest of their work.
Aretha Franklin
5/5
Oh man, I knew I’d like this album - it’s Aretha Franklin, for crying out loud - but when Groovin’ rolled around it was a new game. I love that song and never knew she did that song. Everything she did was gold. Truly deserves the title Lady Soul.
Peter Gabriel
4/5
Took me far too long into my life to hear this album. So much good on here, will be listening again.
Frank Sinatra
5/5
He was one of the best voices ever. If I give this less than 5 stars my dad will come back from the grave and whoop me.
Bill Evans Trio
5/5
I wish I knew jazz enough to give a well written assessment of this work, but I am at a loss for anything that would do it justice. All I know is if it has Bill Evans, it’s going to be amazing. I’m blown away that this is a live album.
The Coral
3/5
The Dandy Warhols
2/5
Huge meh. This is yet another band in the style of a mostly monotone, soft vocal that melts into music an entirely minor synth driven “wall of sound” that absorbs everything. I realize a lot of folks dig this, but I’m not one. It’s ok for a little, but that’s about it. After about 40 seconds into each song, I’ve heard about all it has to offer. Had to stop listening about 2/3 through and couldn’t muster enough give-a-crap to finish it. It’s music, and that’s about it.
Joni Mitchell
2/5
Joni Mitchell is very influential and highly regarded, an inspiration for many women, especially women in music. I just don’t like her music though, no matter how many albums end up in this list. Even if the instrumentation changes, which of all her music seems to be the most varied on this album, once she starts singing she sounds the same. And maybe her lyrics are poignant and brilliant, but I’ll never know because her voice has a Charlie Brown’s teacher effect on me.
La La La La na na na La La na La wa wa La da La
That’s all I hear. Sorry, Joni fans and fanatics. I’ve tried. Many times. I just can’t hear anything else. But I’m glad she made what she made for all those who love her.
Yes
4/5
Great album. Fantastic musicians. Not everyone’s thing, and that’s a shame.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
3/5
Interesting. Different, but not entirely off putting. Kind of relaxing.
I don’t know, think it needs a couple more listens, but I’m not sure I’m up for this again.
Blue Cheer
3/5
Good old (original) heavy metal. Cool to hear the bluesy roots. Eventually it all starts to run together, but I think about half an hour is the sweet spot.
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
This album has two amazing songs (White Rabbit and Someone to Love, obviously) and that’s about it. Why they had anyone besides Grace Slick sing is beyond me. I owned this CD. Listened to it I think twice, ripped those two songs onto Winamp, and never touched it again. For some reason, this album feels more dated than the rest of the stuff on this list. 3/5 stars, but only because White Rabbit is so incredible, even for those of us who avoided the whole drug scene.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
2/5
Did not hold my interest for more than a few moments. I know I listened to it, but have no memory of it.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
Mildly enjoyable. Don’t see any reason why this album with its one hit should be on this list though. That’s all you need to hear off this album; more of a Songs You Need to Hear Before You Die list.
The Stooges
4/5
This is easily a four star album, maybe even five, but then there’s that…what the what is that 10+ minute thing for the third track? Take that out and, sure, it’s a short album, but every track is great. The raw power, pun probably not intended, is undeniable. Maybe not the most musical, but the grittiness of it is kind of the point.
I’m going to pretend that I never heard the third track and go with 4/5.
Ramones
5/5
Unbelievable album. This is what I would point to if someone wanted to know what punk should would like. Heavy, fast, full of aggression and angst. Not complex, but still driving and moving. The Ramones went on to make lots more albums, but all the parts are already in place on this debut album.
Side note, their cover of Let’s Dance here, awesome in its own right, points a little to the fact that they were influenced by more than just the loud heavy stuff before them. Along that line, I recommend checking out the Ramones album Acid Eaters, all covers of 60s songs they were influenced by. Just interesting to honk about how they got to this sound from Jefferson Airplane and CCR.
Eric Clapton
4/5
He’s a legend, and some of these songs are fantastic. Some are more boring and bland than I expected though.
Death In Vegas
2/5
There sure is a lot of electronic British stuff on this list. A little too much, in fact.
Not horrible as background music, little good for anything else.
Metallica
5/5
Barry Adamson
2/5
If I could watch the movie playing in his head that this goes with, I might have enjoyed it. I can’t, so I didn’t. Instead it made no sense.
Some of the jazzier tunes weren’t too bad, even a little enjoyable at times, but by the time they rolled around he’d already lost me. And even they got pretty monotonous fairly quickly.
All in all, it’s mostly background music at best, and even not great at that. If I were a teacher, it would get a D. With extra credit, maybe a C-.
Jacques Brel
2/5
Made me feel like I was in Paris. Paris is tops on my list of places I never want to visit, right behind Somalia and Libya.
David Bowie
3/5
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
1/5
Sounds like something from the cut-out bin at Sam Goody or Camelot Music back in the late 80s. Does not belong on this list.
Pixies
3/5
Little Richard
5/5
There has never been and will never be another like Little Richard. So much energy and just classic songs.
Les Rythmes Digitales
1/5
My initial thoughts: The cover looks like anime. I’m not going to like this.
I was unpleasantly surprised. This was terrible in an entirely different way than I expected. Most of it sounds like the background of a video game. But not a good one. Utter waste of time and I resent that it was put on this list.
I want my money back.
Buffalo Springfield
4/5
Definitely an essential album. Anyone who wants a well-rounded musical knowledge base needs to know Buffalo Springfield. They’re not exactly my taste, but are emblematic of an era in music.
The Undertones
3/5
There are a few riffs that feel similar to other songs that (I’m fairly sure) came after this, so I can see how it could have had some influence. However, all in all it just doesn’t come acato me as a really strong album. After a while they pretty much start to sound like the same couple songs. I’ve also never been a fan of making the chorus just singing the title of the song eight times. That happens way too often here. It’s not an awful album - I wasn’t angry about listening to the whole thing - but I can’t see ever listening to it again.
The Go-Go's
3/5
Never cared for pop music, starting with the early eighties stuff, I think. That said, after listening to the whole album, they rock harder than I expected. Still too poppy for my taste. However, an important album in the history of music.
CHVRCHES
1/5
I need to stop reading the description first so that I can hate an album first, then learn about it. If this is described as “a synth-pop and indie pop album that incorporates 1980s influences,” there’s no way I’m going to dig it.
Drat. I was right. That was a very accurate description.
Stephen Stills
4/5
Pretty fine folk rock. Not entirely my jam, but better than the stuff I’ve been giving 3 to lately, so I guess I have to round up to 5.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
I’ve never met anyone that disliked Bob Marley. Maybe not fans, but at least kind of liked some of his stuff. And this album is chock full of good songs. I don’t know what there is to not like about it.
Orbital
1/5
Far too repetitive to be anything but annoying. I’m not on MDMA, so this was not enjoyable at all.
Silver Jews
3/5
Strangely grew on me. Reminiscent of early Beck, One Foot in the Grave, to be specific. Not that it sounds just like it, but has sort of the same feel to me. At first I was unimpressed, but by the end I could see listening to this again.
Madonna
1/5
The word for when bile backs up into your throat and you can taste it and you think that you’re going to vomit is “waterbrush.”
Madonna gives me waterbrush. As such, did not listen. I refuse to contribute even a fraction of a penny to her undeserved wealth.
Violent Femmes
5/5
Great album. The emotion on some of these, Add It Up in particular, is astounding. There are a lot of elements that make this stand out as well, like the xylophone on Gone Daddy Gone or the general bounce of the bass. Gordon doesn’t have the most conventional lead singer voice either, which is something that I had to get past many years ago, but it’s definitely worth it. I’ve never listened to this album in it’s entirety, and was caught off guard by the harmony on Prove My Love.
The Who
4/5
One of the great concept albums. A little biased since the Who was one of my favorite bands back in high school.
Le Tigre
1/5
Blarg. I feel like it could’ve been decent, but wasn’t. The shriek-y vocals and often highly repetitive lyrics just killed it. And not in a good way. All in all, it just stinks.
U2
2/5
Sunday Bloody Sunday is my favorite U2 song. Actually, it’s really the only U2 song that I actually like. All the rest are at best ok, and that pretty much sums up this album. I guess New Year’s Day is probably fairly good. The remainder of this album is filler at best.
David Ackles
2/5
This sounds like a musical. I really don’t like musicals. But objectively, it seems like it is good if you like that sort of thing. Which I don’t. At all. So it’s a 1/5 for me, but for musicality, I’ll give it 2.
The Vines
3/5
Picks up where Stone Temple Pilots left off. So, not bad if you like them.
Megadeth
5/5
A couple reviews refer to the Onion article on this album. It would be pointless for me to write anything new with that out there.
Iron Maiden
2/5
Never got into this genre of metal, I think partly because of the satanic aspect. Not that I believe they’re actually satanists; it’s just a gimmick. But I ain’t messing around with that.
Also, the screaming vocals never did it for me. It gets old fast. Yesterday I got Rust in Peace by Megadeath. Definitely more my style of metal.
Digital Underground
4/5
Twenty-five years ago I would’ve given this five stars. I appreciated their heavy use of funk, predominantly Patent/Funkdelic, and sense of humor, especially against the backdrop of the rap scene at the time, which was leaning hard into gangsta rap. DU was more akin to the other bands of that era that I enjoyed, like Arrested Development and Trice Called Quest, but still unique.
Now, the largely singular focus of one topic wears old and sad on me. The Humpty Dance is still a solid song, as is Dowhatchalike, but the rest just kind of fill me with - what is it the kids are calling it these days? - the ick? Yeah, that’s what it is.
Oh, Underwater Rimes is pretty amusing. They rhyme “lobster” and “mobster,” so that’s a win. And Danger Zone is an interesting break with depth. If I heard this for the first time today it would probably only get 3/5, but I’ve listened to this album a hundred times in the past and struggle to give it less than 4.
Belle & Sebastian
2/5
I wish I felt any kind of way about this. I’ve heard multiple times about how good Belle & Sebastian are, but listening to this gave me no emotion whatsoever. I didn’t hate it, love it, like it, anything. It’s rare that I feel this much indifference to music, which makes it a failure in my book. But it’s not technically “bad” so I can’t only give it one star.
Derek & The Dominos
4/5
Some fantastic tracks, mixed with some good white-boy blues and some other stuff. Probably a few tracks I’d skip over if I listen to it again. The inclusion of an Allman makes this album for me.
Fun Lovin' Criminals
3/5
Interesting. Better than I expected based on what I knew, which set a pretty low bar. Not an essential album, though. Definitely more appropriate albums from the time/genre than this to be on this list. Half stars would be a great option.
Kraftwerk
2/5
Tim Buckley
1/5
I’ve heard of Tim Buckley, but don’t think I ever listened to him. I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t this. Can’t say digging it much.
Just because you can drag a song out past six minutes doesn’t mean you should. That seems to be the pattern on this album. A song that’s not great at three minutes, but forced to slog on long past the limits of good taste. Which was over pretty quick on this one.
Otis Redding
5/5
This is an objectively excellent album. Incredible voice, great arrangement and execution. While it may not be everyone’s cup of tea (their loss), anyone who would claim this is not at least a good album has no business saying they love music.
Maxwell
3/5
Not my style, but I suppose it’s pretty good for what it is. After a while it got old, though. An hour of this is too much, especially when some songs are largely instrumental and the vocal part is basically “woooooaaaahh.” Or some other such. Would be better as just an instrumental piece.
Prince
3/5
I fully expected to go five stars on this one, but I guess an album that starts with 1999 and Little Red Corvette can only go downhill after that. Delirious is still pretty great. Everything after that, not so much. Prince had a tendency to go off the rails with the hyper sexuality, and that’s a problem here. Some of the songs get overly repetitive, too. I’m tho king Lady Driver mostly. I remember the name because that’s all he sang for half the song.
I still dig Prince and was really disappointed when I didn’t love this album. But, truth be told, I was kind of glad when it was over.
Kings of Leon
2/5
In the very early 2000s I largely stopped listening to new. Eventually I went back and found some good stuff, but at the time they mostly just stopped being interesting to me. This album didn’t do a lot to dissuade me of that opinion. I’ve heard some Kings of Leon that I kind of liked, but didn’t hear any of that on here. There were a few kernels that might grow into something I’d get into after a few more listens, but that I don’t care enough about any of it to see if that happens.
Also, could’ve done without the ode to impotence.
Solange
1/5
She has a decent voice, but I just didn’t find any of this interesting. And while I kind of understand what she was going for, I find any album that has to have some spoken part between every song irritating. I want to listen to music. Besides, isn’t music meant to be a vehicle to express one’s thoughts, beliefs, and feelings? If you need some guy to explain it, maybe you need to write better, more expressive songs.
Scritti Politti
1/5
Sounds like everything bad about 80s music was shoved into a bag then left in the sun to rot.
Sounds like 80s music had a baby with its sister.
Sounds like the soundtrack to Prettiest in Pink, written and directed by John Hughes’ neighbor and with none of the cast from the first two movies, but starring a Molly Ringwald look-alike.
Do you ever make orange juice from one of those cardboard tube cans of frozen concentrate that calls for one can of concentrate and one can of water, only you added three cans of water? Sounds like the 80s music version of that.
Sounds like I fell into a wormhole that took me to an alternate 1980s where instead of neon everyone was wearing pastel and they were
Kate Bush
1/5
This reminds me of Tori Amos in a way, which is odd, because I love Amos but hated this.
Strangely, although I was around for the 80s, I have no memory of ever having heard of Kate Bush until recently. I feel fortunate that I went that much of my life without having to hear this.
Femi Kuti
4/5
Gillian Welch
4/5
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
5/5
What a great debut album. Any album with Breakdown and American Girl is going to be tops for me. The rest was still solid, if not hits.
Gil Scott-Heron
4/5
Beautiful and moving.
UB40
2/5
With all the great reggae out there, I don’t understand why this vanilla reggae is on this list. Some of these songs actually started to get annoying after a while. It’s not awful, but there’s better out there.Is it because it’s British? This list seems to be heavily weighted towards British artists, so much so that my previous misconception of Britain being home to fantastic music has been flipped on its head.
Donovan
2/5
There are two good songs, the rest is too far out for me, man.
Coldplay
2/5
The entire album I get like I was in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. The early seasons. I hate Grey’s Anatomy.
Faith No More
5/5
Man I love this album. I don’t even know where to begin. Faith No More was original in an era of a lot of very original bands. The way they blended metal with rap caught my attention at a time whew I stubbornly hadn’t accepted rap yet, but I was still transfixed by Epic. And the bass on this album is so freaking funky, especially on From Out of Nowhere. I can see how Patton’s voice might not be for everyone, but it serves these songs perfectly. They became one of my go-to bands in the early nineties off the strength of Epic and Falling to Pieces.
Oh, and I can’t forget War Pigs. One of the best Sabbath covers in a world filled with Sabbath covers. Second only to Primus’ version NIB (which is even better than the original). Even better than Cake’s take on War Pigs.
Man, I love this album.
My Bloody Valentine
1/5
Borderline unlistenable. Even annoying as background music.
Morrissey
1/5
Possibly the most overrated singer ever, easily top ten. I can’t get through 30 seconds from when he opens his mouth. Everything he sings literally (yes, in the proper use of that word) everything he sings sounds the same.
Peter Frampton
4/5
There’s a joke that this a I’m was assigned to every household back in the day. My brother had a copy, so I didn’t have to get one. But, as far as mandatory listening goes, you could definitely do worse. I can understand why it’s one of the greatest selling live albums ever.
Youssou N'Dour
4/5
Interesting. I enjoyed it, could see listening again. I feel that repeated listens are required to really get into and appreciate it more than I already did. This is the type of album I was hoping for.
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
2/5
While I applaud his use of art and media of music to express his political beliefs, I can’t see repeated listens of this. Not enough of a hook, not much musically to sink my teeth into. And that’s kind of what I listen to music for.
I will never understand U2’s success. The best I can say about any of there work is that it’s just there. Nondescript, if I had to pick one word. I didn’t want to listen to it, didn’t hate it while I did, and didn’t care when it was over. Well, maybe a little, because it meant I could move onto something, anything, else.
Talking Heads
4/5
This is a complete 180 from my album yesterday (a U2 album, the one with Beautiful Day) in terms of creativity and interest. That and the presence of Life During Wartime boosts it up significantly in my view. While I’ve never been a huge Talking Heads fan as they can get a little too out there, this seemed to be more accessible without being boring.
Dexys Midnight Runners
2/5
I was shocked when the album with Come On Eileen was on this list, and felt it didn’t deserve to be. Imagine my surprise when a second Dexys album pops up. I didn’t even know they had two albums. I will give essentially the same review…mildly enjoyable, but shouldn’t be on a list of must-hear albums.
Killing Joke
3/5
I can see some hints of future genres in this album, mainly industrial and grunge, so there’s a good argument in favor of its inclusion on this list. I couldn’t really get into it personally, but that could just have been my mood at the time. All in all, not bad, may need another listen.
Erykah Badu
4/5
For my money, her live album from ‘97 is better, if only because it includes Tyrone, but this is still a pretty solid album. Badu’s voice is reminiscent of Billie Holliday; I could imagine her doing something like this if she were around then. It’s cool, it’s smooth, and is adequately funky.
The Chemical Brothers
3/5
Drive-By Truckers
1/5
So bad. So very, very bad.
I was expecting awful country and what I got instead was even worse southern rock. And I like southern rock. But if you’re going to put that on a list like that, how about we stick to something with an Allman or a Van Zant in the lineup. Or something along those lines.
This makes me feel like I’m at a bar in a small town where some local band plays on Friday nights and the crowd is mostly their friends, drunk middle aged rednecks all. Sometimes, often, Dan from the corner drugstore sings off-key and there’s probably a reason the drummer is still the store manager at the Piggy Wiggley. They’re having fun pretending to be rock stars though, and as long as there’s a pitcher of Coors Light on the table, their friends don’t seem to care. The week is over and there’s a sitter for the kids, so it’s a chance to let loose.
But how dare they press this crap onto vinyl and hoist it on the rest of society. Even the cover art looks like it was the bass player’s son’s 10th grade art project. I’m not sure I can hate this enough.
I realized after writing the above that Spotify did not play the whole album. After about five or six songs it stopped and went back to the first song, as it sometimes does when it gets to the end of an album. I consider this an act of mercy, as the entirety of this - a double album, for crying out loud! - would have only been more awfulness. I will not go back and finish, but receive Spotify’s mercy.
Beatles
4/5
It’s hard to bash the Beatles. Their songs are so tight, so well constructed that I can’t see anyone not enjoying them at least a little. Even as someone who’s not a huge Beatles fan, this is still a solid album. There’s no wasted frills, nothing that doesn’t add to the songs.
Jerry Lee Lewis
3/5
Great live album. Early rock and roll at its finest. Too bad Jerry Lee was a bit of a creep. This was recorded before he married his barely teenaged cousin, so I can separate the art from the artist just enough to give him credit for being an amazing performer at the time.
Black Sabbath
4/5
More diverse than I expected from a Sabbath album.
The Go-Betweens
2/5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
2/5
Bad poetry spoken over ok music.
Ryan Adams
2/5
This fits into some place of the transition between pop and country, the two genres I most dislike. I suppose it wasn’t pure awful, just not any good.
Faust
1/5
This list has taught me that I do not like kraut rock. Especially since this album was 12 minutes of dial up before any actual music. A couple of those tracks were tolerable, but that’s about the best I can say.
The The
1/5
If the purpose of this list is to expose folks to a broad spectrum of all kinds of music, then I see no reason for the high concentration of British synth-pop. If it’s to showcase examples of the best in many genres, then I really don’t know why this album is on it. Regardless, I didn’t want to hear this album, and hope I never hear it again. Or, really, any other Brit synth pop garbage.
Dinosaur Jr.
4/5
Wall-of-noise type stuff is generally not my go to, but this hit my mood this morning. Not amazing, it I could see listening to this again. Maybe not in its entirety, but Dinosaur Jr in general.
Dion
3/5
Radiohead
1/5
Radiohead makes me want to grab a length of rope and find a sturdy beam.
Eagles
2/5
I wish this album didn’t have some halfway decent songs, because I really don’t like the eagles. That said, the Gypsy Kings version of Hotel California is far superior, but I have to give these jerks credit for writing it. Also, I really don’t like this yacht rock crap either.
Antony and the Johnsons
1/5
This was just too awful to get through half a song and not worth making Spotify think this the kind of dredge I want shuffled to me.
Muddy Waters
5/5
This is remarkably clean for being a live recording from 1960. Even without such high quality sound, Muddy Waters has never disappointed me, and this album is no exception. One of the all time greatest blues men, I would have loved to have been in that audience. So much of the music I love owes its foundation to Muddy Waters.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
5/5
Woo-wheee! That’s some might fine pickin’ and-a grinnin’!
I was skeptical, but once I got into it, I really looked forward to Foggy Mountain Breakdown. Was not disappointed.
Dirty Projectors
3/5
Interesting. I didn’t mind listening to it once, it can’t see ever revisiting it.
Muddy Waters
5/5
One of the greatest blues men of all time. This is the second Muddy Waters album I got this week, and I couldn’t be happier about it.
Ravi Shankar
3/5
I appreciate the tutorial. I enjoyed it, but despite his efforts, it still sounded all the same to my western ear. Maybe if I listened to it a few more times, but I don’t think I’m going to.
Serge Gainsbourg
1/5
Had I not read about this album before beginning to listen to it, I would not have known he made an album with us girlfriend about the time he had an affair with a 14 year old. I still wouldn’t have liked it, but might have made it through more than 30 seconds of the first three songs without my skin crawling. Not only shouldn’t this album be celebrated, no one should ever listen to it.
Incredible Bongo Band
5/5
Yes, incredible.
The Band
4/5
Solid band, solid album. They aren’t flashy and only play what the song calls for.
Sly & The Family Stone
5/5
Super funky. Lots of great, classic tunes that stand the test of time. Some of the songs would rate around a 4.5, but all in all it rounds up to 5/5.
Leonard Cohen
1/5
I’ve tried to like Leonard Cohen, but every time I hear him, my whole being just goes “uuuhhhggghhh.”
Traffic
3/5
Burning Spear
4/5
David Bowie
1/5
If it wasn’t Bowie, I wouldn’t have listened to as much as I did. I kept hoping it would get good, or at least better than awful. But it didn’t. Just because he died right after it was released doesn’t make it a masterpiece. Or even good.
Neneh Cherry
2/5
This was described as an eclectic, but it sounds more like they just tried throwing everything on this album. A few days ago, I had The Band’s self titled album, which was a great sample of only playing what the song called for and not overplaying. This album is an example of the total opposite.
TV On The Radio
2/5
There is nothing here to interest me. Should not be required listening for anyone.
Queen
4/5
JAY Z
1/5
If this is considered one of the greatest rap albums, I’m highly unimpressed by the state of rap. Give me Run DMV or Tribe any day.
The Temptations
5/5
I’m not convinced this is the Temptations’ best album, but as most things by them, it’s awesome. Especially since it has the full length version of Papa Was a Rolling Stone.
The Sugarcubes
3/5
I completely forgot Bjork was in the Sugarcubes…until she started singing. She has an unmistakable voice. She hadn't reached peak weird yet here, which I appreciate. I saw some comparisons to the B-52’s that I think are pretty valid, although this sounded more palatable and less out there.
Stevie Wonder
5/5
For my taste, Stevie Wonder albums tend to have a couple amazing songs, then a bunch of stuff I just don’t care about that make me question my love for him. This album, however, is solid throughout. Easily my favorite of the Stevie albums I’ve heard thus far. Plus, Superstitious is on it, which is one of my favorites.
D'Angelo
2/5
Now I know why 90’s R&B is not my thing. There were some potentially cool grooves on here, but they were wasted by boring, repetitive, largely incomprehensible lyrics. Does he have a good voice? Yeah, I suppose. Can he sing? Nope. Nothing of any interest. And to make matters worse, he ruined a good song (Cruisin’). I still don’t understand how he messed that up.
I think I actually hate this more because of the decent rhythms that came to nothing than if there wasn’t anything good about it at all. But I’ll give it an extra star just because there wasn’t anything once promise there.
Abdullah Ibrahim
3/5
This list has allowed me to hear jazz from other cultures, which I appreciate. Most of them I have really liked. And I like this too, but it’s not as interesting as most of the others. It’s nice, enjoyable jazz, but really just background jazz.
Goldfrapp
2/5
I probably would’ve really dug this when it came out, but my old self just wasn’t feeling it. A little too weird in parts.
Amy Winehouse
5/5
What a shame she couldn’t get her life under control. She had an incredible and unique voice. The production in this album, in particular the recreation of that 60s sound, is impeccable.
The Triffids
1/5
This is the lame stuff that I would hear on tv shows in the 80s that I assumed was just music made for the show be people trying to sound like current music. Kind of like Cure rip offs and such. Very confused why I should have to listen to this.
Tom Waits
5/5
Tom Waits will always get 5 stars from me. I realize he’s not for everyone, and for most folks there are too many of his albums on this list. I don’t know how many there are yet, but it’s all of them, that’s fine by me.
Swordfishtrombones isn’t even my favorite of his albums, but it still has his quirky style of storytelling and some fantastic songs (I’m partial to Gin Soaked Boy and Soldier’s Things). And one thing that can definitely be said about this album that cannot be said of a great many others on this list, it’s not boring at any point. He mixes up styles almost as much as instruments. Classic album, and I’m glad people are getting exposed to this genius, even if they don’t see it.
Elvis Costello
4/5
Solid. While I was unfamiliar with this album, it holds consistent with his earlier work. I will definitely have to relisten.
Rod Stewart
3/5
Never cared for Rod Stewart. Don’t know why, just don’t like him. This wasn’t bad though, but I really didn’t like his version of It’s All Over Now. It’s not as bad as I often think of him as being, but I won’t listen again. Decent enough to earn three stars, rounded up.
The Beach Boys
4/5
I’ve always liked The Beach Boys, but I never even heard of this album. Very confused at first because it doesn’t have much of any of that classic Beach Boys harmony. Part way through I got the vibe this is something Beck listened to as a kid. Once I was finally able to disconnect my expectations for a Beach Boys album from what this actually is, I rather liked it. Will most like listen again.
Side note, this album dropped on me the day after Brian Wilson died. Weird.
Fatboy Slim
5/5
As far as electronic music goes, this is near the top. Normally, redundancy in lyrics is of peak annoyance to me, but in this, the lyrics are used as an instrument, so the repetition makes sense. Besides, California is druggy druggy druggy. Points off for the third track, don’t care for it. But there are so many great tracks that I can just skip over that and hear a fantastic album.
The Roots
3/5
Some of this was awful, some pretty good. I find it hard to enjoy much rap of since the mid 90s because it’s almost exclusively profanity laden, misogynistic, hyper-sexualized chest thumping. At least what I’ve managed to listen to. And if this list includes the best examples, that’s what I’ve heard.
This album definitely has its share of profanity (I don’t really care to hear the “n word,” regardless of who’s saying it. It’s derogatory, reinforces negative attitudes, and people should have more self respect). But at least it didn’t seem too far in the other categories.
Plus I rather like ?uestlove. Seems like a good dude and a fine drummer. I appreciate their dedication to playing their own instruments as well. There are a few really cool grooves.
The Last Shadow Puppets
3/5
I feel I might get into this more if I listened to it a few more times. But I’m just not interested in it enough to do that.
Heaven 17
3/5
At least it was relatively short.
David Crosby
3/5
Listening to his solo stuff highlights how much influence he had on the CSN(Y) sound, even with the understanding that some of them appeared on this album to varying degrees. I’ve never been a huge dan of their sound, although I appreciate the talent, particularly the harmonies and songwriting. This album keeps the same vibe, including the guitar noodling that one would expect. Of the four artists, I may enjoy this solo material most. I should say Neil Young’s works are my favorites, and they may be better, but much to my own sadness I could never really get into him, mainly the nasally voice.
That all said, I have some trouble really getting into this album purely out of “separating the art from the artist” issues. I have heard too many times how Crosby was a class A jerk, even admittedly so. Like a really awful person, among the worst in the industry. Which is saying a lot. Is the music still great? Yup. Does that make the sincerity of his work seem hollow? Sadly, also yup. I’d like to give four stars, probably deserves at least that. But just can’t get there.
The Beau Brummels
2/5
I see the Dylan comparison, sort of. Still not real into it though.
4/5
I liked it, but don’t really know what it is. Jazz? Electronic? Some weird amalgamation with Portuguese lyrics?
Magazine
2/5
It was ok? I guess? I don’t know, it didn’t really keep my interest so it couldn’t have been that good.
Jungle Brothers
5/5
Loved this album. I was previously unfamiliar with the Jungle Brothers, heard of them but not much of their stuff. I don’t know why, but I’m glad that’s changed.
However, this is why I don’t like modern rap…really just about anything from this century. Jungle Brothers are able to express themselves, rap about political views and chasing girls, all without being vulgar and cursing every other word. Maybe that doesn’t bother most people, but I like to be able to listen to good music with my kids. They’re also not misogynistic, unlike every rap album I’ve heard on this list that was made in the last 25 or 30 years. The Jungle Brothers, along with other contemporaries such as Tribe or Arrested Development, prove you can actually respect women and make great hip hop.
Björk
2/5
This is a very Bjork-y album. If you like Bjork, this should be sufficiently Bjork-ish. Definitely has Bjork-like qualities. Plus gives one the opportunity to say Bjork repeatedly. Which is quite fun. Bjork Bjork Bjork.
Otherwise, not a huge fan. Ok, but I only like a little Bjork. Human Behavior is plenty for me.
Sonic Youth
4/5
Holger Czukay
2/5
Fascinating. No, too far. Mildly interesting.
Perhaps some of the experimental work on here inspired some cool stuff, but as it is on this album, didn’t terribly enjoy it.
New Order
2/5
Iggy Pop
4/5
Begins with a great drum into has some fantastic songs. Passenger is a high mark. Makes sense that Bowie collaborated on this, there are a few times where his influence can be heard. All in all just a really good album.
Billy Joel
4/5
I assume there’s a Best Of album for Joel, but that’s pretty unnecessary. I’d expect it just to be this album, plus one or two other tracks. Hopefully Captain Jack, because that’s about all this is missing.
Fiona Apple
5/5
I suppose it’s a a testament to my departure from current musical trends that I didn’t even know this album existed. I remember when Apple first appeared on the scene. I was an instant fan of her voice and “wise beyond her years” lyrics. I only recently busted out her first two albums again.
Since I’d not heard anything new for a while, I assumed she hadn’t produced much of merit in that time, and as such did not expect a lot from this album. I was wrong.
I thoroughly enjoyed this. Apple’s delivery is exceptional as ever, smokey and emotional when called for, pointed where needed. Instrumentation is also intriguing. She’d always seemed an adequate pianist, but whatever is going on with percussion is also interestingly unique. Not exactly straight forward drum kit.
Now I’ll have to go back and find what else she’s done since that second album.
Bob Dylan
5/5
I can understand why many people don’t like Dylan. His voice is nasally, he forces rhymes at times, and his harmonica playing leaves something to be desired. I cannot, however, understand anyone not loving Tangled Up in Blue.
There are a couple other classic tracks on here, most notably Shelter From the Storm. However, I didn’t fully dig into much of the rest of it. I still liked it, but the entirety not nearly to the degree as those two. I’m amazed and a little disappointed in myself for never having listened to this album in its entirety before; as such I’m unfamiliar with songs I should know.
All that to say that I can’t give any Dylan album with Tangled… less than 4 stars, and the rest of this is good enough that I have to round up to 5.
Bee Gees
2/5
Some of this feels like their trying to write Beatles songs. I never would have thought that about The Bee Gees before listening to this album. That doesn’t make me like it, though. Just because they tried doesn’t mean they succeeded. It isn’t as bad as I expected at least.
The United States Of America
1/5
Many parts of this were actually painful. And by that I mean I literally got a headache listening to it.
Aimee Mann
2/5
Van Morrison
5/5
I bought this on CD many years ago at a now defunct Borders Bookstore. The kid behind the counter said something to the effect of, “That’s a great album.” I accidentally answered with the very jerk-sounding, “Yes, I know,” which I regret because I didn’t mean to sound rude, just agree with him. Because he was right, it is a great album. And I knew that, because it is a great album.
I don’t think there’s a weak link in this chain, either. My personal favorite for reasons I don’t understand is Caravan. But I would listen to this album just about any day of the week.
Funkadelic
5/5
Funktastic. And surprisingly heavier than I expected. George Clinton always brings the gold.
Travis
2/5
If I liked Oasis and their style of British alt pop or whatever, I’d probably like this more. I suppose it’s fairly melodic, but boring as all get out. The biggest thing it had going for it is that they’re not as whiney as Oasis. Would not listen again, but my ears didn’t bleed.
The Beta Band
3/5
Very in the middle.
The Byrds
3/5
I liked the Byrds way back when I was young, but the whole psychedelic folk thing just doesn’t do it for me much now. I still appreciate their harmonies though. And Eight Miles High is great.
Everything But The Girl
1/5
Most songs opened with programmed drums and had cheesy synthesizer. The vocals were bland and boring.
Depeche Mode
1/5
Never liked Depeche Mode and this did nothing to change my mind. Moody, brooding, pre-emo junk.
Paul Weller
4/5
When I saw this was big in the UK, I expected either some whiney Oasis-esqe crap or else electro-synth pop garbage. Instead, this had a bluesy, but not quite, vibe that could be from some band that had been kicking it around I the south playing the bar circuit until they were discovered at some club in Beale Street. What was most striking was how similar his voice was to the guy in Blood Sweat and Tears that sang Spinning Wheel. Deep, but not too low, not quite gravely, but not quite clean either. All in all a pleasant surprise and would listen again.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
Easily the most recent album I’ve received on this list thus far, so I didn’t expect much. (Sadly, I’ve grown weary of modern music. Guess I’m old.) That said, it was surprisingly good. Not necessarily something I’ll listen to again, but I would t mind if it’s on.
The Incredible String Band
1/5
I understand this album came with rolling papers and a sheet of acid tabs in the liner. Because you need to be really high to enjoy it.
Alice Cooper
4/5
I like Alice Cooper the human better than Alice Cooper the band. That said, there are some great songs on here. Just solid classic rock tunes.
Hüsker Dü
2/5
This made me feel nothing. Except maybe annoyed at how I didn’t care about it at all.
Not the worst album on here, but also not the best. Something about Rod Stewart’s voice irritates me though
Christina Aguilera
2/5
Of the pop singers of her time - Aguilera, Brittany, Mariah, and the like - I always felt she had the most soulful, well rounded voice. Not to say that I like her stuff, this genre is not my thing, but as an objective assessment of the vocal skill.
That said, she has a good voice with a good range, but after a while it gets old. A double album of this is just way too much. Kind of got fatigued by her voice by the fourth or fifth song. And if this was supposed to be an homage to the old jazz and soul artists, I didn’t see any evidence of it. With the exception of a couple name drops.
All in all, not awful, would’ve been 3 stars if she stopped a lot sooner.
Living Colour
4/5
I loved this album when it came out. Vernon Reid is a monster on guitar. I didn’t realize at the time how funky some of these songs are either, so that was cool to relisten to it with that perspective. This is on a cassette in my garage, so I haven’t listened to it in a while.
The Stooges
5/5
Awesome pre-punk.
Aphex Twin
2/5
This is exactly as advertised. Fine for background noise while studying or working, but little else. When this a um ended and Spotify began playing similar artists, it was a while before I realized. I would put this on again, but only when I specifically did not want to listen to music. So I rank it high on utility, but low as music. Since this is about music, it’s rounding down.
The Adverts
2/5
What was the point of having me listen to this? By the first song I’d heard all that it had to offer. Which isn’t much. I guess I’m just not a huge punk fan.
The Damned
2/5
Second 70s British punk album in two days. There’s not enough variety there for two consecutive days of it.
The Flying Burrito Brothers
2/5
For the countless times I’ve heard of the Flykng Burrito Brothers, I’m glad I finally listened to them. It was fine. I don’t really need to do that again now.
Frank Sinatra
5/5
First good album I’ve gotten this week. Nobody has ever had or ever will have a voice like Sinatra. Paired with Jobim is just beautiful. Also, second version of Girl From Ipanema on this venture, and I’m not sure which is better.
Marty Robbins
5/5
Great cowboy ballads. This is from the era of good country music, we it told a story and didn’t just repeat the same crap about having a beer on a Friday night and such.
FKA twigs
1/5
At first I just thought this was pointless. Not enjoyable, but maybe just not my thing. By the third song, it had become annoying and I had other things to do with my Sunday that didn’t involve listening to this. I never got back to finishing it. I have no regrets about this.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
Emmylou has a fantastic voice and comes from a more traditional folk/country background, so I had high hopes for this album. Unfortunately, it just didn’t hit me that great. It has decent bones, so it might grow on me with repeated listens, but I just couldn’t get into it today. Three sears for its potential.
The Fall
1/5
Kind of has the vibe of the Velvet Underground if they were a few decades later and electronic. This is not a compliment. The first couple songs weren’t great, but tolerable. Glam Racket on was just awful.
Tom Waits
5/5
Tom Waits isn’t for everyone, but he is for me. The eccentric instrumentation, voice that perfectly matches the characters in his songs, the emotions it pulls from deep in the cockles of my heart. I don’t know, maybe something like that. But man do I love a Tom Waits album.
The Modern Lovers
3/5
Had a Stooges sort of vibe without being at all the Stooges. This is an interesting find of a band I’d never heard of. Not my favorite, but there were enough good parts to keep me me listening.
Mariah Carey
1/5
For someone with such a range as she has, all the vocals sound the same. Maybe a little less vibrato. Like, does she have to sing that way on every single word. It’s a good tool, but so overused. The music largely sounds like it came out of a can. The only slightly enjoyable part was the backup singer on (I think it was) Butterfly. And I only liked that relative to everything else that happened here.
Add in the fact that she’s reportedly one of the rudest, most conceited celebrities out there.
In college I had a friend who loved Mariah Carey. He was an idiot.
I hated this so much.
Iggy Pop
4/5
This has some amazing songs, primarily Nightclubbing and China Girl. I prefer Pop’s version of China Girl over Bowie’s. Funtime is also a highlight. It’s definitely a departure from his previous stuff. But it kind of falls apart at the end. The last track sort of cokes across as though he was trying to see if he could get away with putting it on there.
Hole
1/5
My gut instinct was to refuse to listen to anything that features Courtney Love. Then I looked at the reviews and this album got an overwhelming number of 5 stars. Maybe I missed something.
First track, a reminder of how much I hate her voice. Skipped immediately to track two. Sounds like she infused grunge, or by this time post-grunge, with pop. That is a horrible combination, an affront to all that grunge was. Skipped. Listened to bits of the next couple tracks before I remembered that I could listen to virtually anything else in the world and its absence of Courtney Love would make it much better.
I don’t know if I wasn’t listening to the same album as those reviews or I just can’t get past the visceral response I have to Love, but this was awful.
Randy Newman
3/5
He never drags a song on too long, so that’s good. They’re all kind of like mini stories. It was ok.
Steely Dan
4/5
This is objectively good, but soft rock/yacht rock has never been my bag. Night by Night was surprisingly more funky than I expected, though.
Pavement
4/5
This just warmed my little grunge heart. I don’t know why, but I never got into Pavement back in the day, and I feel I missed out. While the vocals sometimes feel incongruous with the music, most songs it works. And I was very pleasantly surprised by the jazzy instrumental 5-4=1 Unity that they snuck in the middle there. It doesn’t all hit, I could do without Hit the Plane Down, for example, but all in all it beat expectations.
Fairport Convention
3/5
The Police
5/5
I’ve always like the Police, but as I grow older I’ve come to appreciate how amazing a drummer Stewart Copeland is. Sting’s songwriting is still great, though sometimes creepy - I think we all know at least one song on this album that fits that - and Summer’s guitar work is also solid. But Copeland was move of a backbone than I originally realized.
Shack
2/5
There’s nothing wrong with this album, it’s just lame to my ears and I don’t like it. Wait, it’s one of those Oasis-like British bands. That explains it.
Fela Kuti
4/5
My big takeaway from this project is that I really dig Afrobeat and AfroCuban jazz. Also, a lot of people don’t like jazz of any origin, which is a shame for both them and society.
Sugar
2/5
So this is alternative 90s rock, but the subset of alternative that was kind of lame. It doesn’t have any edge or grit to make it interesting, but instead is highly polished and produced. I suppose that is a good thing for a lot of people, but I find it gets to be a bit boring. My teenage daughter thought it was from a tv show, and she’s right, it sounds just like something some 90s comedy would’ve used. It’s not awful, but overproduced to the point of being inoffensive and uninteresting. After a while I forgot it was on.
Duran Duran
3/5
If you found a can on a shelf labeled “1980s,” Duran Duran would probably be on of the first five ingredients. Unfortunately, I never liked the sound of the 80s.
That said, listening to this now, I enjoy it much more relative to the music being made these days, so I appreciate what I had more than I did then. Still not my style, but I don’t mind it as much.
Super Furry Animals
2/5
Another band I’ve heard of many times, but never listened to. And once again, I don’t feel like I’ve missed out on anything. It’s ok-ish. Not required listening though.
Tom Tom Club
2/5
It was almost ok, and by that I mean tolerable, but went in far too long. Thirty minutes of this would have been more than enough. No real highlights.
Jane's Addiction
3/5
Been Caught Stealing and, to a slightly lesser extent, Stop! Were huge back in the day. Of the two stop is my favorite. I never really got I to the first. However, the rest of the album is just ok. Maybe I need to listen to this one a little more, but for my money Nothing Shocking is a much better album.
5/5
A classic country album: drinking’, cheating’, and broken hearts. Lynn has a beautiful voice that carries the heartache she sings about and there is never any question what the song is about. The only thing that would have made this album better is if I had a bottle of whiskey to drown my sorrows with along with her.
Blondie
4/5
This required a second listen. A couple stand out tracks, but the bulk of it was pretty solid as well. Blondie did a good job on this album of the post punk new wave sound without sounding too pop-y like some subsequent work. And it doesn’t include Rapture, which is so awful I would’ve taken away two stars.
Frank Zappa
4/5
This is the first time I’ve actually enjoyed Frank Zappa. I’ve tried many times, but couldn’t get into it and thought I was missing something. It’s some kind of jazz/rock that just works. If the horns didn’t sound as much like the horn section on a synthesizer, it would’ve been much better, but then I don’t know if that was the sound he was going for or a limitation of the technology of the time. Regardless, I’m glad I finally appreciate something he’s done.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
Not my favorite album of theirs, but a sold entry.
Public Enemy
5/5
One of the best hip hop albums of all time. Chuck D is brilliant, Flava Flav’ got flavor, and Terminator X was one of the all time best DJs. Too bad he turned out to be an antisemite.
Rhymes were great and excellent use of samples. Bring the Noise is, as the kids would say, an absolute banger. PE was able to give a pointed political viewpoint while still making excellent music. This is what rap was when it was good and it proves that you don’t have to be incredibly profane the whole time and by misogynistic to make a rap album. No one would ever say Chuck D was be anything less than honest about the life of a black man in this country despite limited profanity.
The only thing I don’t like about this album is that it makes me sad for what is considered rap these days. It had suck promise.
The Monkees
2/5
This apparently wasn’t one of the many Monkees albums my brother listened to every night. For the most part, these lacked the whimsical poppiness that I associate with them. I was only familiar with two songs. The irony is that because it sounded so unlike the Monkees to me, the Monkees that I have been sick of for decades due to hearing them every night, I had a lot of difficulty getting into this. Was it really the Monkees? Or were they just on the cover and someone else making the music?
Anyway, didn’t much care for it, and if a Monkees album is going to be on a must listen list, it should probably be one with their hits, not the one where they were finally allowed to stretch their wings and make their own songs.
Highpoint: finding out Mistadobalina was based off a sample from these guys.
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
Generally I don’t care for post-punk bands out of Britain in the eighties. They just sound too whiney. This is much the same, only slightly less so.
Flamin' Groovies
5/5
It’s a crime that these guys didn’t make it big; I’ve never even heard of them. This is bluesy rock of the best kind. Even though it’s a brand new artist to me, this whole album sounds familiar. Not only is it reminiscent of the Stones, but also bands like Thin Lizzy. And then the way slip in a Rockabilly tune. Fantastic.
I assume it’s the extended deluxe version that Spotify shot me, not the original album, but there were a bunch of cover tracks at the end that were great too.
This album deserves to be far bigger than it was.
Eurythmics
2/5
One good track does not make a “must hear” album.
Ray Price
5/5
Perfect music for drowning your sorrows and broken heart in a bottle of whiskey. Favorite song is Pride, with the line about the heart saying to stay while pride saying to go. I think most folks can relate to that. Once eh got past the introduction, both unnecessary and tedious to listen to, it was pure perfection as far as true country music goes.
Soft Machine
2/5
Two minutes in and I was thinking dissonant and pretentious. Then, whale sounds?
By the time it got to the second track, it fell into more of a free jazz groove, which is better, but not much. That would be my least favorite style of jazz. I just can’t get into it.
By the third track, it’s fallen into what I guess would be progressive rock, like ELO or early Genesis, only not nearly as good. I never quite finished this album because by a couple minutes into the last track I had lost all interest. I just didn’t have another 15 minutes of this in me.
So final thought: less dissonant than I expected, by a little bit, but still sort of pretentious and not terribly listenable. If you want free jazz, look to Coltrane and Davis, if you want progressive, early Genesis and King Crimson are better choices.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
2/5
Absolutely nothing about this album stands out. The best I can say is that I didn’t need to shut it off, but that’s largely because it was almost not even there. An entirely skippable album.
Pink Floyd
3/5
This is some odd bridge between the pop of the early and mid sixties and the psychedelic stuff of the late sixties. It got a little out there, but not so far and rambling that this straight, sober bloke can’t follow. Mostly. There are the progressive roots in there, but Syd Barrett era/pre-Gilmore Pink Floyd was a decidedly different band. All in all, I enjoyed it more than most other psychedelic rock that gets too far out.
Favorite track is easily Astronomy Domine.
Devendra Banhart
4/5
Well wasn’t that just delightful. At least mostly.
Mylo
1/5
I have no words to describe this because I just didn’t care about it at all.
3/5
As far as Britpop goes, this was one of the more listenable albums on this list. I’ve found I generally can’t stand Britpop, in large part because it comes across as incredibly whiney to my ears. This wasn’t quite so bad. Perhaps, as I read, they were trying to emulate the Kinks. I’m going with three stars, which is definitely rounding up because I don’t think it’s bad enough to warrant only two, but I’m not going to be listening to this again anytime soon.
Elbow
3/5
Maybe it’s because his voice sounds a little like Peter Gabriel that I was drawn in, but I rather enjoyed this. Granted, I saw no other similarities to Gabriel, but that’s not a bad thing.
The Undertones
3/5
Surprisingly complex songs for only two and a half minutes long. I kinda liked it, except for the overly vibrating vocals. Reminded me of the Dead Kennedys, which was always my issue with them, too.
M.I.A.
2/5
Not as bad as I expected, but still not good at all. Most songs I could only listen to halfway through. Just annoying and I was not impressed with her lack of flow.
Pentangle
2/5
Psychedelic Renaissance Faire Folk is apparently a sub genre that I didn’t know existed. I wish I still didn’t.
Feels like Peter, Paul, and Mary were transported back in time and had to perform for King Arthur’s court.
Def Leppard
4/5
This album was huge when I was in high school, but I never listened to the whole thing until now. At least, not in one sitting, because I knew almost every song on here due to its incredible radio presence. I was never a big fan, though. Still not, really. However, judging this album relative to all music options, not just those of the era it came out, it much better than it used to be. In other words, relative to the watered down quality of music the last couple decades, Def Leppard has started to sound pretty darned awesome to me. Which says a lot because I really didn’t like them back then.
Extra points that my 16 year old daughter enjoys this more than contemporary stuff.
The Verve
4/5
I always assumed the verve was just another Brit pop Oasis-seque band with one good song, so I never paid any attention to them. While I’m still not a huge fan, I must admit I was wrong. This is actually a pretty solid album. I don’t know if I’ll be listening to it many more times, but I appreciated it far more than I expected. I would give it 3.5 if that was an option, and don’t think it really deserves a full four stars, it I’m going that way just because I feel bat that I wrote them off.
PJ Harvey
4/5
It’s odd what artist pop up on this list multiple times. This is the second PJ Harvey album I’ve gotten so far, and while I was familiar with her previously it was mostly in name only. However, I’m not upset by this. The last was pretty good, but this album feels more consistent and cohesive. It probably doesn’t hurt that it gave me 90s era Tori Amos vibes. I do feel that it requires a couple more listens to really get into it though.
Nick Drake
2/5
This album was highly recommended to me several years ago and I tried to like it. Tried again now, and still don’t. I mean, he conveys his depression well, but he does such a good job it’s almost infectious. Which is a weird critique coming from a big Tom Waits fan, but here we are.
Amy Winehouse
4/5
I love her voice. Classic style, but then she tries to make it modern with some of the language, which is actually off putting it’s just incongruous with the style of music she was putting out.
The Cure
2/5
If it weren’t for Smith, this could function as lofi study music. Except it’s too boring. Too bad he has to sing, too.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
One of the greatest albums of all time. Amazing drums, iconic guitar riffs. I always tell myself Stairway to Heaven is overrated, but then I listen to it again. Nope. It’s unbelievably good. Not only is there not a bad song on here, there isn’t a bad moment.
Harry Nilsson
3/5
The first few songs had be pretty bored and wondering how much more was left. Then Coconut came on and I woke up. Super fun song that I for half my life I thought my dad made up when he would sing it around the house. I didn’t realize they were this guy. Next couple songs were good too, also ones I didn’t know were Nilsson. The rest was pretty mediocre at best. And I am too familiar with Without You. I really just don’t like it. So, about three or four songs saved this album that I was counting the run time on.
The Mothers Of Invention
3/5
I always want to like Zappa. And some of this album was good. Not great, but good, as in I could listen to the whole thing. Except for the last track. I’m just going to pretend that doesn’t exist.
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
5/5
I don’t know if this is a great example of samba or not, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Rush
5/5
Possibly the best Rush album, which is saying a lot. Right off the bat is my personal favorite Rush song, followed by another solid track. Then YYZ, one of the best rock instrumentals. And then another solid track with Limelight. If the album ended right there it would be a solid 5/5. While the rest isn’t as good as the first four tracks, they’re no slouch, either. A masterclass in what a rock album should be.
Suicide
1/5
Im not sure any of these are songs. Not only that, they’re all the same not- songs, just some talking and noise over the sound of locusts. Just awful and about thirty-one minutes too long on its thirty-two minute run time. And that’s being generous.
Michael Jackson
3/5
I never cared for MJ’s music (or him after we found out he’s a pedo), but his influence can’t be denied. For me though, the best parts were what I’m sure are the “Q factor,” Jones’ horn arrangements and such.
Slint
4/5
This album flew completely below my radar. I could see really getting into this back when it came out, had I known about it. For some, the second half could drag on, but I think I see where they were going with it. The extremely minimal instrumentation is what gave it that brooding, melancholic, even eerie vibe.
The Chemical Brothers
5/5
Most electronic music tends to get overly redundant, but this album manages to not be so. The first two tracks are definitely the best, but the rest is still solid. Electrobank is the weakest, but still better then most electronic I’ve listened to.
4/5
Solid live rock and roll from back in the day. Not sure it belongs on a must hear list, but still good.
Steely Dan
3/5
This is a good album, has a couple really well made songs. I just never could get into Steely Dan. I guess it too yacht rock for my taste.
Prince
5/5
I’m disappointed in myself that it has taken me this long to listen to the whole album. Truly a masterpiece. I have been very familiar with most of these songs, which is why I assumed I’d listened to the whole thing, but I was missing out with a couple of these tracks. Of course When Doves Cry, Let’s go Crazy, Purple Rain, and I Would Die 4 U are phenomenal, but I was blown away by Baby I’m a Star. Easily my favorite of the non-charting tracks; I might even put it over one or two of them.
Biggest issue is Darling Nikki. Twenty-one year old me would’ve probably been more keen on it than 51 year old me that cringes at the idea of Lazaro g the whole album with my daughter because of it. Guess we can just skip that track.
Only other gripe would be that Purple Rain (the song) probably didn’t need to be 78 minutes long. Maybe that was just the extended edition I listened to though.
Haircut 100
3/5
I am whelmed by this album.
The Police
5/5
Every time I listen to the Police I wonder why I don’t do it more. This album, like their others, brings the intricacies of jazz together with the fun and bounce of reggae while retaining catchy pop sensibilities. It’s also got that creative edginess of new wave.
All three are great musicians, but it took me far too long to recognize how a mixing Stuart Copeland is. One the best in the business, at least in the pop and rock world. The guy just has incredible intuition and feel for what a song needs without being an overplaying showboat.
The Divine Comedy
3/5
First off, I appreciate this album stayed true to its stated goal of being “a short album.” And yes, it was also about love. But it got points for being short.
The entire album reminds me of the Faith No More version of “This Guy’s In Love With You,” which was kind of cool as a one off. But as a whole album, it got a bit much.
Mudhoney
5/5
One of the foundations of grunge, and as such, I am obligated to like it. Which works out, since it awesome. I realize the original EP is somewhere around 26 minutes long, but I ended up listening toy the 2 hours plus deluxe version and not regretting it at all.
Pere Ubu
1/5
I will concede that, like modern dance, I don’t really understand what they are going for “artistic.” However, it still sounds awful and is painful to listen to. And by that I am not being entirely hyperbolic; Laughing was so shrill and some points it actually hurt my ears.
For the majority of the album, the lyrics were largely indecipherable. That may have been because of poor recording/production, or probably just a terrible singer. Regardless it was garbage.
Really, the whole thing. Garbage.
Billie Holiday
5/5
Full disclosure, I was going to give this five stars before hearing a note because, even though I hadn’t heard this album before, I’d never listened to anything by Billie Holiday and not been blown away and/or torn apart. There is no other voice like it, not just in terms of tone but in emotion. If you can’t hear her pain, love, or whatever she’s putting out, you have to be even more dead inside than I am.
Kraftwerk
2/5
While I appreciate the influence Kraftwerk has had on many artists I enjoy, I have never been able to get into them. However, of the three albums of theirs I have gotten on this list thus far, I disliked this one the least. The hyper-redundancy just wears me out after not too long.
But the question remains, who are the robots? Why won’t they tell us?
Crowded House
2/5
Some of it’s like yacht rock, but without as much soul. If this is one of the greatest Australian albums, maybe I don’t want to go there anymore. This is what the word mediocre was invented for.
The Cardigans
3/5
I didn’t expect much, but this was actually pretty decent. Love Fool is the obvious standout, but the rest is also adequately listenable. The Iron Man was definitely different, though. I kind of dig it, but can see how a lot of folks would downright hate it. Maybe not high praise, but there’s also not a lot to complain about either.
CHIC
2/5
The word that best describes this is disappointing. I had high hopes when it started off with Good Times. That’s a five star song. But then everything else was one star, bland and redundant. It was the kind of disco that made me hate disco.
Probably because the best part of this album, first track in particular, is its use in early hip hop.
The Magnetic Fields
1/5
So he backed off from 100 songs because that would have been too long? Maybe he should have kept cutting it down. To four. Or two. Or maybe just none at all.
Now in fairness, there may be one or two good songs in here, but I didn’t listen to the whole thing. It was just too long. In fact, I was wanting it to be over two songs in. In the 1/3 of it I did hear, the thing that was missing most was any real emotion. It’s hard to take an album of love songs serious if there is no sense of love in them.
Remember kids, quality over quantity.
Talk Talk
1/5
For a late nineties album, this sounds an awful lot like it came out in the mid-eighties. That’s not a compliment.
Brian Eno
1/5
This is a soundscape. Its fine for what it is, but unless you’re meditating, trying to cure insomnia, or making an indie film and need some ethereal background effect, there’s no reason to listen to one minute of this album.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
5/5
Along with the Cars, I see Elvis Costello as the gold standard for post punk new wave. Opening with Accidents Will Happen and closing with …Peace Love and Understanding, with plenty of good in between, this album is a solid entry in his discography, if not a high point.
KISS
1/5
Unpopular opinion: Kiss is one of the most overrated bands in the history of rock and roll. Actually, all of music.
This is the first full album of theirs I’ve ever listened to, in fact the only time I’ve intentionally listened to anything KISS. I dislike them more now than ever. This was incredibly one dimensional; every song was “we’re a rock band, we’re awesome.” Even the ballad was centered around the “I’m in a rock band” concept. It was just nonstop chest thumping and posturing, which I detest in general.
Song specifically, I hated God of Thunder. It sounded terribly produced to me. And why was there a kid in the background? The pandering of Do You Love Me is actually embarrassing. Detroit Rock City in isolation is not a bad song, but in no way does it warrant the cult following Kiss has cultivated. There was nothing about the rest of the album I care to think about, much less comment on.
In all fairness, it is brilliant marketing, which is really what their whole thing is. They’re not musicians so much as a business. And I hate that. I don’t listen to music to be sold the product that is the band.
Morrissey
1/5
Not even bothering. The countless Smiths/Morrrissey albums on this list taught me I can’t stand this…. bloke.
Björk
3/5
I really like Human Behavior. Not real big on the rest, although it does have its charm. Another album where I wish I could give half stars. It’s definitely not deserving of 4, but I could see my way to give 3.5.
Arcade Fire
3/5
Up until Wake Up I was unimpressed. Not exactly bored, nor was anything particularly bad, but there was little about this album that grabbed my attention. However, Wake Up was fantastic. It was larger than the entirety of the rest of the album together. The word that popped into my head for it was anthemic, with that uncomplicated but driving riff and the background chorus. Then the orchestration came in. Just a great song. It made me think I needed to start the album over since I had to have missed something. Them the rest of the album made me realize that no, it was one really, really good song in the middle of a mediocre album.
Spacemen 3
1/5
This is largely self indulgent noise created by someone who probably calls himself an “artist” (pronounced arr-teest) who repeats the same two chords over and over then says some awful poetry overtop and says that you just don’t get it. You can’t see his vision!
Revolution started with promise, but ended up going nowhere, with just more of the talking (not singing). I had some hope when this came on, but was disappointed. The remainder of the album was more garbage.
3/5
As big as this album was when I was in middle school, I never got into it. Or U2 as a band, really. There are definitely some good songs, but I’m not convinced they’re worth the hype.
There isn’t anything particularly bad on here, but I wouldn’t listen to it again. Maybe it deserves a 4/5, but I have trouble going that far because I e always felt U2 is overrated already. But it’s also pretty decent, most likely their best album. Oh, my kingdom for a half-star system! Or ten star.
Well, at least it wasn’t forced on people like some other album.
5/5
Great album. Funky, jazzy, had something to say without beating you over the head with it.
CHIC
2/5
Better than the Chic album I got two weeks ago (Risqué), but still not terribly great. A couple good songs, but otherwise underwhelming.
Brian Eno
1/5
It’s not fair to say this isn’t interesting, but being interesting doesn’t make it enjoyable. This was sort of somewhat organized chaos.
The Blue Nile
1/5
This was not over soon enough.
Supertramp
4/5
Great seventies rock.there are a few classics on this album (Bloody Well Right and Dreamer), but the rest is pretty solid with little filler.
Neil Young
2/5
As much as I try, I just don’t like Neil Young’s voice. And none of the songs I can listen to his singing on are on this album.
X-Ray Spex
1/5
So far two songs in and it’s just piercing, unintelligible yelling/shrieking. Not sure I can take another 35 minutes of this.
Oh, a little less shrieky. Still not good, though.
Nope, back to it.
Ok, finished disc one and I think I’m done. This is just bad. And I don’t see it going anywhere good.
Isaac Hayes
5/5
Isaac Hayes was perfect for this soundtrack. Like Shaft, he was always (in till he went all in on Scientology) the coolest cat in the room. This is easily the greatest movie theme ever, and the rest of the album is just soulful awesomeness.
Willie Nelson
5/5
Willie is a national treasure. This album showcases him as the vocal talent he is, not just an outlaw country artist. Blue Skies and Georgia are particularly excellent.
Re-listened on the last leg of a lengthy drive on a rainy night. Perfect.
Manic Street Preachers
3/5
One thing I’ve learned is that I really dislike Brit Pop. The vocals tend to be incredibly whiney, and I have no patience for that. This bloke, however actually has what sounds like a highly crafted voice, kind of reminds me of James LaBrie of Dream Theater. Kind of.
So, don’t hate it. Not a huge fan, either, but I don’t hate it.
Bruce Springsteen
1/5
Bruce Springsteen could make an album of nothing but fart noises and bad bird impressions (think “tweet tweet” instead of whistles) and critics would herald it as a masterpiece. I don’t know what he did to get such a pass, but I’ve never understood the appeal. This album did nothing to help.
For someone known as a songwriter who tells, I don’t understand half what he says, and what I do understand doesn’t fit any kind of meter and only rhymes when he fees like it. It comes across to me as sloppy writing and anyone else would get lambasted for it.
Normally, I’d give something like this a couple stars, but I have higher standards for anyone who gets this much praise.
Megadeth
5/5
Of the two big ones back in my day, I was definitely in the Megadeth camp. Faster, heavier, grittier, and more intelligent lyrically than Metallica. This album was so good, they used the beginning of Peace Sells… as the intro bass line as the MTV News theme. And while Mustaine may not have the greatest singing voice, it’s perfect for this.
Elis Regina
4/5
I’m just a sucker for these South American jazz albums.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
1/5
All the discordant chaos of free jazz. While I respect how hard it must be to sound this…cacophonous, I’m also amazed that anyone would ever want to listen to it. Knowing how many great musicians were influenced by Captain Beefheart, I tried, but man it was rough.
Tito Puente
5/5
No sé mucho español, pero pienso Tito Puente es muy bueno. Me gusta mucho.
Massive Attack
3/5
Ok, I guess. Would like to round down to 2.5.
Aretha Franklin
5/5
As a general rule, i believe everyone has the right to be wrong. But not in this case. If you gave this album one star, you need to stop listening to music. I get it if this isn’t your cup of tea and you go with three stars. Maybe even two, which is still questionable. But one? You’re the reason bad music exists and the rest of us have to suffer for your poor choices.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
5/5
This is easily their masterpiece. Peak funkiness to rock ratio. The members of the RHCP are amazing: Chad Smith has incredible feel behind a kit, John Frusciante was born to play this style, and Flea is a beast with a bass. Then there’s Kiedis. He’s not a great singer, but what he does works on this album. He has the bravado needed to pull off Suck My Kiss, but can also be vulnerable enough for Under the Bridge. He doesn’t have the chops for a lot of the stuff on other albums, but it works here.
And Rick Rubin needs credit as the fifth Pepper, because this album is beautifully produced and flows incredibly well.
This album is just a beast from beginning to end with little to no filler. I have one and only one issue with it, but it’s actually a pretty big issue (for me). Lyrically, it is way too explicit/sexual. It didn’t bother me when it came out because I was a 17 year old guy. However, I’d love to share these songs with my drummer daughter because they have awesome grooves and great interplay between the bass, drums and even guitar, but I can’t listen to these lyrics with her, nor do I even want her listening to them on her own.
Now that I think about it, Kiedis was the primary lyricist on this album, too, if I’m not mistaken. Ugh, every criticism I have of this album, and most of the RCHP catalog, comes back to him.
So, 7/5 stars for the music, 5/5 stars for production, 2/5 stars for lyrics (even though I admittedly can still sing almost every word), 4/5 stars for vocals (on this album only). That comes out to a solid 4.5/5. For nostalgia and because the band is so disturbingly solid, I’ll have to round up. I just wish there was a censor filter I could run this through so I could enjoy it with my kid. You know, like make my own radio edits.
Kelela
1/5
This is what I imagine all the clubs I don’t want to go into sound like.
I didn’t really hate it until about halfway through, so maybe a twenty or twenty five minute run time would have been ideal.
Frank Ocean
1/5
Why are the bad albums so long? Maybe this isn’t awful. But I sure don’t like it.
Lenny Kravitz
4/5
For a moment, I thought of Lenny as a Prince wannabe, but in all fairness, any rock, pop, R&B, or whatever multi instrumentalist who doesn’t emulate Prince a little bit maybe isn’t reaching high enough.
So, good album. Not fantastic, it worth listening to a good bit of it again.
The Doors
5/5
I always loved the way the Doors stood out from the hippie music of the sixties with a bluesier sound, more of a rock edge. As much as Morrison wads the face of the band, Manzarek’s keyboard really shapes their sound. The feel of songs like Riders on the Storm and Changeling rely heavily on what he came up with. Also, Krieger’s guitar work is under appreciated, although I think to a lesser degree than the keys.
Miles Davis
5/5
If you don’t like this album, jazz isn’t for you. Don’t bother trying any more. This album is as good as it gets and accessible to about any kind of jazz fan. The modal style makes it loose enough if you lean to the improvisation of free jazz, but is structured enough if bop and more classic jazz styling is your bag. So if you can’t get behind an album with this lineup - including Davis, Coltrane, Cannonball, AND Bill Evans?!?! - you’re wasting your time trying jazz.
Ozomatli
2/5
Interesting. Such a mix of things, they probably don’t even know what kind of music they play. In Amal bites it was ok, but not this much.
The Soft Boys
3/5
All British pop bands sound like they’re desperately trying to be the Beatles. These guys are not.
It’s not awful, but I don’t want to hear it again.
The Isley Brothers
4/5
Incredibly seventies. Just look at that cover art.
I was really digging it until the covers started coming. Lots of good stuff though.
The Specials
5/5
Awesome album. The beginnings of the Two Tone resurgence of ska. It has the angst of the British punks, but with a fantastic, danceable upbeat sound straight from the Jamaican immigrants. Political and a party at the same time. While I haven’t listened to enough of the albums from this era of ska, not full albums anyway, this is my favorite of those I have heard. Super thrilled when this popped up as my album this morning.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
Like the Banshees, Siouxsie not so much.
Koffi Olomide
3/5
Kind of interesting, but it just wasn’t my vibe. Sort of felt like the music in the background of a cheesy cop movie in the mid eighties.
Paul McCartney
2/5
Can we please stop pretending that just because a Beatle is attached, an album golden and is a must listen? Half of this sounds unfinished. The only really complete sounding song is Maybe I’m Amazed, and I’ve never been a huge fan of it.
Saint Etienne
1/5
Ugh. Like slogging through dreck.
Pavement
4/5
Totally understand all those who hate this, but I dig the raw, rough sound. I could feel the apathy, angst, and slacker ethos as if I was back in high school in the early nineties.
10cc
3/5
Not awful, but not worth a second listen.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
3/5
I have to be in the mood for prog rock, not sure today was the day for it. Definitely talented musicians and all that, but just not my thing all the time.
Anita Baker
4/5
I’m not much for eighties R&B, but if you are, this is a go to album. The lady had chops.
The Cure
3/5
The soundtrack for every pasty faced, eye liner having, black trench coat wearing kid in your early eighties high school yearbook. Very much a meh album.
Spiritualized
2/5
One should only ever have to listen to so much electronic ambient sound. This exceeded that.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
5/5
Amazing album. Joplin was more of a presence than just a voice. It’s also a solid blues rock band that almost feels like they could stand on their own without Janis. Until Oh, Sweet Mary, which leans into psychedelic rock and doesn’t utilize Joplin much at all. The flaw there, however, is less not using such a powerful singer and more straying away from what makes them a good band.
But man, Janis, what a voice.
Peter Gabriel
4/5
The songs that are great are really great, and there are several. The ones that aren’t great are still really pretty good. Sledgehammer and Big Time are particular favorites.
Nina Simone
3/5
I wanted to like this more than I did. It’s good, she has a great voice, but I just never connected with it.
Bad Brains
3/5
Bad brains have been hugely influential on a lot of bands that I like, so I’d like to like them, but just can’t get into them. It’s ok, maybe after a couple more listens I’d dig it more, but mostly it’s just ok.
Goldie
2/5
Not bad, but basically all the same. Two hours is too much, stopped part way through because I don’t need videogame background music today.
Robert Wyatt
2/5
Kind of odd with wimpy vocals. Free jazz is rarely a bonus in my book, too. Not a fan.
Thin Lizzy
4/5
Great live rock and roll, but too short.
T. Rex
3/5
I expected better. But ok, I suppose.
Radiohead
2/5
Everything Radiohead at this point comes across as pretentious to me. I realize that’s probably a me problem, but it is what it is. Even their good stuff, which I guess there is some of on here, isn’t something I want to listen to too much.
John Lee Hooker
5/5
John Lee Hooker is one of the all time greatest blues men. I listened to a ton of his stuff back in the early nineties and am amazed little disappointed in myself that I never happened across this album. That said, I much prefer his older material. While this is still excellent, it definitely has the feel of something that was much more produced than his earlier work.
I am very happy, however, to find out that this album allowed him to enjoy some financial security that he should have enjoyed decades earlier. And although this wasn’t my favorite of his work, it’s still John Lee Hooker, and that man deserves every star I can give.
The Doors
5/5
One of the best Doors albums, which is saying a lot. Bluesy rock and roll, less psychedelic than their peers or some of their other stuff. The transition from Peace Frog to Blue Sunday is superb.
Wire
3/5
For an album that’s only 35 minutes long, it seems to drag on. I liked it for the first fifteen, maybe twenty minutes, but then was ready to be done with it.
Tom Waits
5/5
One of the best Island Year Waits albums. Dark, weird, and glorious. His songwriting is amazing, like no other. Earth Died Screaming. Is a crazy way to start an album, but a great introduction to what’s coming.
TLC
2/5
It’s hard to believe this is one of the biggest selling for group albums. Or the biggest, even. It was fine for what it was for a while, but the tipping point was If I Was Your Girlfriend. Covering a Prince song is risky to begin with, no or least because Prince didn’t like anyone to cover his stuff. But also because, really, how do you top him? Even worse, though, was the choice of song. It makes no sense sung by a woman it is specifically from a male point of view and it is ruined by a female lead vocal.
After that I was done with this album. I continued to listen, but what I would have tolerated as ok was now annoying. I was particularly increasingly annoyed by the interlude segments, which this list has taught me is incredibly common in hip hop and R&B albums. It can be a cool effect, but has been terribly overdone. Now anytime I see it on an album I cringe.
Also, skipped Scrubs. I worked in a pharmacy when that song came out and it was just me and the pharmacist every other weekend. She listened to the top 40 station that played it almost hourly and if I ever hear it again my brain may begin to bleed.
The Mamas & The Papas
4/5
Classic album, a must listen. Not even my thing, but the harmonies are unbelievable.
The B-52's
3/5
Fun album, extra points for Rock Lobster, but I’m not sure it’s enough to kick it all the way to 4 stars.
Earth, Wind & Fire
3/5
Started off strong, but lost speed after the second track. Pretty much just ok.
Fleet Foxes
2/5
Sonically, I suppose this is a well made album. However, it doesn’t do anything for me. Except maybe bore me. It’s almost too dense for folk music; there’s just not enough space. Also, it all sounds the same. I had heard someone else make this complaint about Fleet Foxes before, and the response was that’s because if bands have a sound, their songs will sound the same. But there should still be some diversity between songs. If I were to walk out of the room with this album playing, I would be hard pressed to guess if what was playing when I came back in was the same song or a different one. Any good band should be able to have a distinct sound but still create songs that are easily differentiated. Led Zeppelin did that, the Beatles did that. Primus, White Stripes, and on and on. But these are all the same.
Now, it was an appropriate soundtrack for my dark drive into the city on this traffic-less New Year’s Eve morning, but that doesn’t mean that I really enjoyed it.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
Phenomenal reggae album, as one would expect from Bob Marley. Either you like him, or you have hearing issues.
Supergrass
2/5
First song or two were ok, nothing spectacular, but then the late nineties Brit pop vibe hit. I really don’t like Brit pop. At least this wasn’t the worst example of it that I’ve heard.
Also, I’ve found very few double albums on this list that are worth the vinyl. This one isn’t an exception.
Waylon Jennings
4/5
It’s honky tonk. You love it or you don’t. If you do, this is a great album.
James Brown
5/5
Iconic soul. Thirty minutes of energy. My only critique is that it’s not long enough.
Bee Gees
1/5
Arduous.
Roxy Music
2/5
Some of this sounded like a low to mediocre live recording. The rest just want very good.
Spiritualized
2/5
Not as awful as I expected, but still not something I’d ever want to listen to again.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who doesn’t like Bob Marley at least a little. And I’m certain I wouldn’t want to. While most everything he did was good, this album is exceptional, even among his wider body of work.
Eels
4/5
Heard of the Eels, but didn’t connect them to the first track, which I really like. The rest was good. Not amazing, but definitely something I’d listen to a few more times.
Tangerine Dream
2/5
Spotify said four tracks, but only gave me two. That was sufficient, though. There’s plenty enough of these electronic ambient noise albums to know basically what you’re going to get, and I certainly didn’t need to listen to another to see if I’d like it. It’s fine for what it is, but I don’t really want to listen to any more.
Funkadelic
4/5
As much as I love George Clinton and all he did, I couldn’t really connect with this album. Lots of cool grooves, definitely funky, but probably needs a better listen. Unfortunately, the only platform I could listen to it on was YouTube. Random mid-song commercials really mess a groove.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
For how much I like Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen should be right up my alley. But I really don’t like him. This is more of a spoken word album; the third track is the only one that sounded like an actual song. Some of the backing music wasn’t bad, but I can’t enjoy it connected to the poetry slam out in front of it. Cohen may write beautiful poems, but he’s not a singer, and I came here for music, not just a poetry recital.
Lana Del Rey
3/5
This was way too overproduced and used too much electronic instrumentation to be a folk album, so I don’t know what you’d call it, but it’s not folk. Ai has a good voice I suppose, but listening to that high of a register for that long gets old. Favorite part was the trailing instrumental at the end of Chemtrails…. Clever little trick. Favorite track Yosemite, least was easily White Dress. It was just awkward.
David Holmes
3/5
This would have been a pretty good album if it didn’t have all the weird talking before almost every track. It made it near impossible to get into this thing. And even if it was cool the first time around, it eliminates the chance of enjoying relistens.
Otherwise, the music itself wasn’t bad. Although I found the random cussing in the background of the second track unbearable, so I skipped that one after half a minute.
So, as a whole, could be 4/5, but the thought of listening to it again is all but nonexistent, so I’ll give a generous 3.
Bauhaus
3/5
Pretty decent, but not my jam. Seems like the kind of thing you had to start liking in your teens or twenties.
Kings of Leon
3/5
Very garage-y. Best song is Molly’s Chambers. It has a good, not overly complicated groove and you can understand the lyrics. It’s the cleanest sounding without losing much of the gritty feel. The rest of it is fine. Not a must-listen though.
Alice In Chains
5/5
Very garage-y. Best song is Molly’s Chambers. It has a good, not overly complicated groove and you can understand the lyrics. It’s the cleanest sounding without losing much of the gritty feel. The rest of it is fine. Not a must-listen though.
Public Image Ltd.
1/5
The Youngbloods
3/5
Very sixties folk rock, if you like that. It’s just ok to me.
Orbital
1/5
More electronic Brit music? Why are these albums always so long? Really, half an album is plenty to get a hold of the genre. Only someone really, really into it can tell - or cares to - one track from the next.
Van Morrison
4/5
This is a really good album, but I wish I liked it more than I do. I think I couldn’t stop comparing it to Moondance, which is a definitely superior album. This is fairly solid as well, but in several spots it felt like he was doing some form of self-styled scat. And sometimes the song just wouldn’t end, like Madame George. Fortunately, Van Morrison has a pleasant enough voice that I still liked listening to him, even if I was mostly over the song. The strings were fantastic, also.
Ute Lemper
3/5
Best songs were there two that involved Tom Waits. Not that I’m biased or anything.
She does have a great voice, it’s just not much of it is my style.
Fugazi
4/5
Not a big punk aficionado, but Fugazi has long been just in the edge of radar. I’m glad this album came up so that I have an excuse to listen to a full album outside of just hearing Waiting Room. It’s good, driving, aggressive, all the things a punk album should be. Plus they seem to be actual musicians, not just loud, fast, and angry. Would listen again.
Deerhunter
2/5
Quite the accurate album title. While I’m sure it’s a reference to a chemical induced state, this album has a fuzzy, not quite able to focus dream-like feel. If I’m going to feel that way, I want to be under the covers, perhaps just having hit the snooze button.
Pet Shop Boys
1/5
What are … what are we doing here? No east end boys? No west end girls? Isn’t that their only song? Why are we being told we need to listen to an album that came out almost ten years after their only hit? A song I don’t even like?
Joanna Newsom
4/5
Unique. I applaud the originality and boldness of going with the harp. It’s a beautiful instrument, but doesn’t pop up too often. Her voice is also unique … beautiful, but unique. But also familiar. It sounds like someone…Bjork! It’s Bjork. Her voice is Bjork-y.
All in all, it’s a good album, but I’m not sure it’s my thing. Glad I heard it, but probably won’t listen again anytime soon.
AC/DC
4/5
There’s so much to say about this album, and AC/DC in general.
To give it its due, this is an iconic rock album with some iconic riffs. It’s iconic. As rock albums go, this is as good an example of true rock n roll as anything could be.
However, I’m not sure how well it’s aged. Or rather, how well it holds up with those of us who have aged, because it hasn’t. AC/DC has a formula that works, at least with young men in their teens and early twenties. Fast songs about girls and partying with driving drums and some cool riffs, repeat the title/chorus for about a minute. Play it loud and it’s irresistible to red blooded males. To this day, their core audience remains that same demographic. They’re the musical equivalent of Matthew McConaughey’s character in Dazed and Confused….they get older but the fans stay the same age.
Not to say this isn’t a classic album. I am certain rock would not sound the way it does without the influence it had, if only by inspiring a slew guys to pick up an instrument to get girls.
So, for how much I like it now, probably a heavy two stars. Maybe three. But even if I wasn’t real into it, it’s still largely listenable. From when I was younger and it’s cultural impact, a heavy four. I guess that rounds up it to a four.
Hot Chip
1/5
I think at this point (700 albums in and probably a couple dozen British electronic albums), all Brit pop/electronic will get one star. I’ll try them, at least briefly, but honestly, I have yet to find one even bearable. This one is no different. No worse, but no better, either.
Hole
1/5
I have no intention of listening to this and giving Courtney Love even one four-thousandth of a penny. I’ve heard her trash enough times back in the nineties to know I can’t stand her or her voice. The band might be ok, but I’ll never listen to it with her fronting it. A terrible human being and an awful singer.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I never could get into Sonic Youth. This album didn’t help any. It’s fine, but too much “wall of noise” for my liking. There are roots of things I do like, however.
Gang Starr
4/5
Good old school hip hop. Nothing Stock out to me in particular, but I dug it. Phat beats and dope rhymes. Or maybe it’s dope beats and phat rhymes. Either way, I can see going back to this one.
Elastica
4/5
I have this on CD, but after ripping Connection and Car Song to Winamp (I’m that kind of old), I must have never listened to it again because not much here sounds familiar. I really missed out. Listening to it now, it’s a pretty good album all the way through. It has a cool mid-nineties alternative sound, but doesn’t have that whiney feel that I get from their Oasis and Oasis-like contemporaries from across the pond.
The Flaming Lips
2/5
Listening to this album is kind of like eating inexpensive sugar free strawberry jam. It’s too soft to chew, but there are a couple chunks of strawberry that you can actually sink your teeth into. Sadly there’s not a lot of flavor to it, either.
This was on for my drive in to work, and it had no impact on my drive - no better or worse than if I had driven in silence.
It’s a shame, really, because it seems like there are some pleasant arrangements. But nothing worth listening to this album for.
Laura Nyro
4/5
I appreciate her voice, but it’s just not my style. One listen through is plenty for me, but I wouldn’t mind hearing a song off it every now and then. But I’m glad I’ve heard it, and think it’s a great album for anyone to be exposed to at least once. It very well encapsulates this style in that era.
T. Rex
3/5
If you listen carefully, you can actually hear the bell bottoms.
It’s a good album. Not outstanding, but good.
Beyoncé
1/5
I expected to hate this. I did not. I didn’t like it, though. But how much didn’t I like it? And do I take off points for it being manufactured pop, which is essentially why I hate pop? Yeah, probably. That and I eventually had to skip through songs.
Taylor Swift
1/5
I am not a 14 year old girl, so Swift isn’t my thing. That said, this isn’t the worst album on this list, but it was a struggle to listen to. I think she just writes whatever she wants to say, then pretends it fits the rhyme and meter. I was flabbergasted when I realized she tried to rhyme and fit the one syllable “cut” with the two syllable “problem.” And that’s definitely not the only instance of such lazy songwriting.
Deep Purple
5/5
I can’t understand not liking this album, at least not the big songs off of it. Highway Star, with the key solo, makes me wonder why there aren’t more hard rock bands that feature keyboards. The intro to Lazy made me not care if they ever started singing. And those are just two of the highlights.
Great album all around. Understandable that it laid a lot of the groundwork for rock and metal to come.
Rocket From The Crypt
2/5
This is largely just loud and cluttered rock. Not much inviting a repeat listen. Lyrics are unintelligible, drums are little more than smash, smash, crash. Sometimes smash, crash, smash, crash. Guitar and drums aren’t terribly original or interesting either. It’s not so bad that it’s annoying and needs to be shut off, but if you’re looking for something to actually listen to and enjoy, this isn’t it.
Best suited for people who listened to it as hormone addled teens with unregulated aggression and less discerning taste who now enjoy it out of nostalgia.
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
If this only had Cecilia and The Boxer, it would’ve a four star album. But almost every song is good to great. El Condor Pasa is an under the radar sort of great song. And the title song is also a deeply emotional masterpiece, although I admittedly have to be in the mood for it. In amazing duo at their peak.
Gorillaz
4/5
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
5/5
One of the best, if not the best, of their albums. Radio Radio and I Don’t Want to go to Chelsea are the highlights, but there’s plenty of other great tracks on here.
Wilco
3/5
Pretty decent alternative country, if that’s what this is. Probably will listen to some of it again.
Booker T. & The MG's
5/5
I love Booker T & the MGs and everything they stand for. This album is fantastic soul, but also more than just that. It put Stax on the map. Even more important, I have so much love and respect for the band for having both black and white musicians during a time and place when it was not only unusual but often unacceptable. And potentially dangerous.
Musically, it just grooves. Booker T’s organ has a distinctive sound that just sets a mood. Mellow, but moving. Mixed with the guitar of Steve Cropper and it is a huge win.
Cee Lo Green
1/5
You have to deliver a lot more than this if you’re going to call yourself - and your album - the soul machine. Based on this, he is to a soul machine what a 1974 Casio calculator is to a MacBook Pro.
Orange Juice
1/5
Ugh
Liz Phair
3/5
Of the strong female singer songwriters of that era, I’d rather listen to Tori Amos or Ani DiFranco. This had it’s moments, and I could see listening to it again, but I’m not convinced that it deserves the accolades it’s received.
Fairport Convention
3/5
The Slits
2/5
Taylor Swift
1/5
The description would have us believe that this is a radical departure from her other work - indie alternative with a folkie sound. Or something like that. And it is more stripped down, to a degree. But the reality is that it’s still a Taylor Swift pop album and the lyrics are still dreck. Instrumentally it is marginally better than the Swift album I had to listen to last week, but it still sounds like I’m listening to the poetry of a tween girl’s diary.
Which is why I assume she’s so popular; her fan base easily relates to not only the sentiment of her lyrics but the way they’re written. So, good for them. But can the rest of us please not have to listen to this drivel again?
Björk
2/5
The sounds of woodland Icelandic elves during their lunar ritual.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
The most American band ever? Maybe. But definitely a great album, beginning to end. Practically a greatest hits album by itself.
I don’t know if John Foggerty knows they ripped his sound off, though. He should sue them.
Pixies
5/5
Not sure which is the better album, this or Surfer Rosa. But I do wish the Pixies hadn’t flown under my radar back in the day. They maintain a grittiness without sounding sloppy. It’s a finished product, but not an overly polished mass marketed stuff. Kim Diehl’s vocals elevate it so much over a lot of the other heavy-ish alternative rock of the era. Just a fantastic piece of work.
Stereolab
2/5
I didn’t even realize this was playing for most of the album.
Gang Of Four
2/5
Grateful Dead
4/5
This is tough to rank.
On one hand, the Grateful Dead is one of the most overrated bands ever. So much of their fame is based solely on being in the right place to become the face of the acid movement and creating a following of hippies and burnouts who wanted a sound to get high to.
However, they did manage to have a handful of decent songs, almost all of which seem to be on this album. I’m sure any Best Of album would contain at least six songs off of here.
Ripple in particular has always been my favorite Dead song.
But as good as the “good” songs are, it’s really easy to see why they other songs didn’t get any radio play. They tend to just slog on and on. The second to last track was especially painful.
If I’m being objective, I would probably rate this a five for it’s significance in the history of music. But the best u can do is , which is still higher than I ever expected to give a Dead album.
John Martyn
2/5
Lightning Bolt
1/5
This is not music, it is noise. Whoever is responsible for allowing this to be recorded and distributed should be punished. To say I hate it is not strong enough. If I could give negative stars I would.
Rufus Wainwright
3/5
Tears For Fears
3/5
Shout would be a better song if it stopped about two and a half, maybe three minutes earlier. The rest is ok righties pop.
Minor Threat
4/5
Like it more after a second listen through. Takes some time to get past the fact the vocals are rarely anything but yelling (and not in key), but I guess that’s standard hardcore fare. After that I was surprised how complex the arrangements were, even with a couple what some might call movements within a song just a couple minutes long. They don’t waste time, that’s for sure. This is probably a 3/5, but a high 3, so it rounds up.
The Charlatans
1/5
Why is everything on this list from the mid/late nineties Brit pop? Ugh. I can think of plenty of albums from that era that aren’t that are at least listenable.
I try not to judge an album by its cover, but I knew exactly what dredge I was in for as soon as I saw this one without even knowing the charlatans. This is nothing more than discount Oasis. Which, given the fact that listening to Oasis makes me want to punch a Gallagher in the face.
The only redeemable tracks are the instrumentals because I didn’t have to hear that nasally, whiney vocal that characterizes every Brit pop band.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
3/5
I have immense respect for what ELP does, but try as I might, prog just usually isn’t my thing.
Pearl Jam
5/5
An incredible album. So much raw energy and emotion. This is one of the most pivotal albums of the era, along with Nevermind, that broke the grunge scene. It is als, in my opinion, the best Pearl Jam album by far.
System Of A Down
4/5
I liked this album a lot more when I was in my early twenties. Not that it’s bad now, it’s just more aggression than an old man like me needs. But it’s still a good album.
Leonard Cohen
1/5
Just like every other Leonard Cohen album: slow, monotone, spoken word.
Fever Ray
2/5
White Denim
1/5
Janet Jackson
1/5
Incredibly heavy on the electronically synthesized drums, made every song sound the same to me. Basically it’s eighties pop, and I hated pop back in the eighties. Granted it’s better than what we have now, but I still don’t like it.
Also, skipped all the unnecessary “interludes.” Quotes because if you name the first and last tracks interludes, you don’t know what that word means. Didn’t want to try “intro” and “outro,” maybe?
Pink Floyd
5/5
Easily one of the greatest albums ever made. It flows naturally fo one song to the next and has some of the best solos on record. The Great Gig in the Sky is particularly amazing.
Sigur Rós
1/5
Jeff Beck
4/5
My understanding based on what anyone who knew and/or played with Jeff Beck is that he was one of if not the greatest guitarist. While he is definitely good, I’m not sure this album showcases that to the right degree. With the exception of Beck’s Bolero, which is the best track on here.
Much of the rest had too much Rod Stewart for my taste, which is actually almost any amount of Rod Stewart.
So, great album, kinda, might deserve more than the four stars I’m giving, but since I can’t see listening to much of it again, that’s as high as I can go.
Jimmy Smith
5/5
First impression: the cover is a dude with his dog. This has to be good.
It is. Fantastic jazz album. Will listen again.
The Beta Band
2/5
Couldn’t find anything about this to care about.
The Cramps
2/5
PJ Harvey
3/5
Rounding up to three stars because it’s not a bad album, but against the other PJ Harvey albums on this list, it’s the last I’d listen to again.
Johnny Cash
5/5
Old Jonny Cash is amazing. old Johnny Cash and singing for and talking to convicts is another level. He knew his crowd, captive as it was, and played to them. Doing a song about getting arrested was great, but to follow it up with San Quintin IN San Quintin (twice!) is the stuff of legends.
I recommend following this up with At Folsom Prison. Just as good if not better.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
So good. So very, very good.
Eagles
2/5
The prevalence of reviews that are just the quoting of a line from the Big Lebowski is emblematic of the mediocrity and lameness of the Eagles. That said, I appreciate that scene because I never cared for them, but felt it was just me.
I can’t even put my finger on what I don’t like about them, but a lot of it probably hinges on the fact that they’re just egotistical jagoffs.
Grudgingly, I have to admit that Take It Easy is pretty good, and captures that vibe of taking it easy pretty well. I’ll listen to that, but nothing else on this album.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
Neil Young
2/5
I really want to like Neil Young, but I can’t get past that nasally voice, especially in the higher notes. Southern Man is still pretty good, though.
2/5
Van Morrison
3/5
This probably would have been a good concert to go to, but I just couldn’t get into it as an album. It did pick up some after Domino, but it’s still just ok in my book, which is a shame because I like Van Morrison.
Paul Revere & The Raiders
3/5
Groovy, baby.
Spotify now has the ability to tag a song so you can listen to it without it being counted heavily towards your listening algorithm. I think the mark of whether or not an album gets at least three stars now is if I don’t feel the need to tag any/all songs. This album made the cut, but just barely.
Willie Nelson
5/5
Classic Willie, once again redefining what country could be, while still retaining the essence of country. And in true outlaw fashion, he made the album he wanted, not the one he was told to make.
Just a man, a guitar, and a story. Brilliant.
Lauryn Hill
2/5
Critically acclaimed … blah blah blah … it’s gonna be a no for me.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
2/5
Radiohead
2/5
Overrated band, overrated album. A couple good songs. Or maybe just Fake Plastic Trees.
Bon Jovi
2/5
I hate pop. Pop disguised as hard rock or metal or whatever isn’t much better. I was glad when grunge came around because it drove out the hair bands like Bon Jovi. Wanted… is probably the least wussy, for lack of a better word, on the whole album. Relative to stuff coming out now, I don’t mind it as much as I did in the late eighties, but I’m still not going to listen to it if given the choice.
The Killers
3/5
Alright, that was pretty good.
Animal Collective
2/5
Marianne Faithfull
2/5
Madonna
1/5
Everything about Madonna makes me physically ill: her voice, her appearance, everything.
G. Love & Special Sauce
5/5
This probably doesn’t deserve five stars, but I dig this style so much that I don’t really care. I’m especially enamored with the kinda funky, kinda jazzy drums. Most anything with that backbone would be cool.
Peter Tosh
4/5
Mostly good stuff. Tosh has a nice vibe.
However, despite his claims, marijuana does not help asthma or tuberculosis. Probably will make both worse. It has some medical benefits, most notably nausea and appetite in cancer patients, but definitely not asthma or tuberculosis.
The Dictators
2/5
Nirvana
4/5
As this era of music is my comfort food, I am obligated to like this album. There are some great songs on here and it has a fantastic raw feel despite being made by a huge band with a big budget. It’s still not my favorite Nirvana album, though, nor is Nirvana my favorite band of the era by a long shot. Still great though and an important work.
Johnny Cash
5/5
One of my favorite live albums. Johnny Cash strangely in his element. I love everything about this, even the occasional announcements for receptions.
Thundercat
3/5
Minutemen
3/5
Too often I like punk music, but not the singer. Some interesting drum lines, cool bass grooves, but the vocals just fell flat.
Hanoi Rocks
2/5
Mott The Hoople
3/5
Hugh Masekela
4/5
One thing I learned from this project is that I really enjoy Afro Cuban jazz. While this may not be the best of the albums from this style I’ve heard, it is still very enjoyable.
David Bowie
2/5
Every time I listen to a Bowie album I come to a deeper understanding of how much I only like the stuff that made it onto the radio. And why that’s what made it onto the radio. In other words, one good song on this album, the rest are mediocre at best, annoying at worst.
Malcolm McLaren
2/5
I don’t really know what I just listened to. I didn’t hate it, but don’t think want to listen to it again. Soeme weird stuff came out of the eighties.
Cypress Hill
3/5
First half: songs about being a gangster. Second half: weed.
Not the Cypress Hill album that I wanted or that should be on this list. There are a couple good tracks on here though. They pretty much all come from the first half.
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
4/5
This was an unexpected gem. Almost a full five of five.
Massive Attack
2/5
I understand a lot of people really like this band.
Huh.
Public Image Ltd.
1/5
Utter garbage.
The Pretty Things
3/5
The Bees
2/5
Madonna
1/5
Will not listen…I know what I get with Madonna. She will not contribute to her earning even a fraction of a penny.
Daft Punk
1/5
Drugs have to be involved to enjoy something this repetitive.
Baaba Maal
3/5
Interesting. Not sure how much I’d listen to this, but was cool to have heard.
The Byrds
3/5
Some tracks are excellent; My Back Pages is even better than Dylan’s original, in my opinion. Some are ok. I like them best when they stay away from the psychedelic influences. Also, I had to skip CTA because it made my teeth hurt. Why would they put a dentist’s drill sound in there?
2/5
Ugh. The first album, Three Dollar Bill, was good. It was fresh. It wasn’t a sellout album. And this is one of the biggest sellout bands ever. Not to mention how juvenile and tasteless the album name itself is.
As a band, there’s a lot of good, crunchy stuff on here. I actually really like the music of about the first half of the album. The problem is that Durst is a world class D-bag and a poser, as the kids used to say. He is constantly posturing as a tough guy. I didn’t buy it, nor did I know anyone who did. Also, when he ”sings” in a higher register it comes out as whiney.
The second half of the album seems to take a turn and is less heavy instrumentation and more vocal driven. The worst possible direction they could have gone.
It’s also possible I was just over Durst by that point.
Admittedly, I liked this more than I expected, again, mainly just the first half. And also, almost entirely just the music, as much as I could focus on it than the vocals. Also, it is a better album than their second, which I took as being more of a cash grab based off the success of their first album, which I still believe to be their best album. It was before they were noticed and before Durst seemed to think he was the best, toughest guy in the building.
The Stranglers
2/5
Another on the list of albums nobody ever has to listen to.
Sepultura
5/5
I love this album. The mix of metal and tribal makes this go harder than it should. So many good drum parts. Ratamahatta in particular was always a stand out, but I blared this whole album plenty of times. Closing with the peaceful Canyon Jam is a stark change from what preceded it, but it still makes sense.
Richard Thompson
2/5
Best song, Little Beggar Girl. I dig the Irish style and her voice came down to a more pleasant tone. It’s a bit too shrill in the higher register for my taste.
Mj Cole
1/5
Dude debuted with a double album? That takes some serious blind confidence.
I couldn’t even make it through the first album. From what I heard, they committed to one programmed drum machine sound for about 80% of the record. It just wasn’t good and I saw no reason to continue.
Primal Scream
2/5
Beatles
4/5
I don’t know if it’s level to give a Beatles album anything less than five stars, but I’m gonna. It’s a good album, no doubt about that, but I just don’t love it.