Great story behind the making of this album that I just learned and made me appreciate it more than when I had tried to listen in the past. Beautiful and simple covers shifting away from what Willie had been doing leading up to this. Bold choice Cotton.
Left more to be desired. I kept thinking I would start liking it but never quite got there. The acoustic track was the best of the bunch imo.
There was novelty in some of these song lyrics but I didn’t find their psychedelic sound of the late 60’s different or better than other bands known for those vibes. The album got stale by the 3rd song.
One might confuse this with a greatest hits or compilation album given how many classic Dead tracks originated from American Beauty. Great album.
Jackson Brown wrote “These Days”and recorded a much better version 5 years after this album. Gonna so no to Nico.
Admittedly, I only listened to half of this on YouTube, but wasn’t into it as much as earlier Parliament/Funkadelic albums.
Never listened to Patti Smith before but knew of her and her influence in the punk scene. Really enjoyed this and would go back for another listen.
I believe Quadrophenia to be the superior rock opera penned by The Who, but Tommy was the original. I grew up listening with the CD of The Who: Live at the Isle of Wight, where they perform Tommy in its entirety. It’s super raw and awesome with guitar solos and distortion. It wasn’t until years later that I heard Tommy studio (I had heard Pinball Wizard and other singles on radio). By contrast, Tommy studio sounded acoustic and soft. But the drums are still amazing and it’s an album I can listen to in its entirety time and time again. Bonus points for any rock album that successfully incorporates the French horn.
I was confident LZ2 must contain the most “baby” mentions by Robert Plant of any Zeppelin album. To my surprise it is second to the album Presence. This Reddit post I found was great - https://www.reddit.com/r/ledzeppelin/comments/9t5n4d/number_of_babys_or_babes_in_each_album/
I found true appreciation for this album (and The Beach Boys in general) after seeing the movie Love and Mercy which I recommend.
Not very familiar with Nick Cave but enjoyed some tracks on this album. Though I also felt some tracks sounded very similar.
Meh. I like some other Yes but this didn’t do it for me.
I appreciate what these guys were doing in music at the time but I really struggle to get into New Wave/ synth pop.
Ray deciding to cover country western songs in 1962 is badass. Recently, we listened to Stardust by Willie Nelson where he did what he wanted by covering old standards (including Georgia on my Mind by Ray) instead of country as expected from him. Ray pulled off this move 16 years earlier - doing whatever he wanted to, pushing the boundaries and breaking down expectations. Love it. You don’t know me and You are my sunshine where my fav tracks.
I made pancakes and listened to this. It worked. Would definitely cook to this again.
It’s no Trolls
Can’t deny I have a soft spot for Nora Jones voice. Was between a 3 and 4 here. The review that said “Starbucks created this album in a test tube” made me laugh. No ignoring this album’s mild mannered coffee house vibe that defined a moment in the early 2000s. But it is well produced and I always find it listenable.
Fine for background music. 16 tracks clocking at 34 minutes made it an easy listen - but I cannot remember any one song in particular after listening to it. I’m not a punk fan, so I might not be seeing something.
If The Black Keys, Wilco, and the Aquabats had an orgy, The Zutons would be the result. Never heard of this band before but I’m interested to explore more. Some tracks on this album but didn’t feel overly exceptional.
This was a fun listen. Loved the jazzier backings which reminded me of Digable Planets (though this album predates DP by 2 years. Maybe they were influenced by MC Solaar?)
Agree with Spang’s logic. 4. Much blusier than I expected having only been familiar with Paranoid as my Sabbath baseline.
I’ve always wanted Part 2 of Band on the Run, the “If I ever get out of here…” part to keep going and be its own song. Such a groove.
Really hope my neighbors don’t think I was blasting porn after that listen.
The beats immediately reminded me of Deltron 3000 and sure enough, I realize that Dan the Automator produced this before he did Deltron and Handsome Boy Modeling School. I loved those albums when in college. I’’ll give this a re-listen now that I know about it. The lyrics were a bit to cartoony for my tastes. Dr. Octagon definitely got his degree at Hollywood Upstairs medical college with Dr. Nick. Medocal
I thought this was great and am glad I was introduced to it. Listened through twice and will go back to it in future.
So good.
I like Neil Young a lot. This album is fine but not one I keep going back to.
I saw Frank Black when I was 13 at Tower Records on Clark street doing promo for Frank Black and the Catholics. I have loved that band since. However, I just cannot seem to get into the Pixies for all the times I’ve tried and hoped to. They are fine but I couldn’t get into this album once again even with that song from fight club which brings some nostalgia.
Giving this a 4 because of how popular it was and how good of musicians these guys are. Cult of Personality is a banger and I liked some of the other funk/metal tracks like Which Way To America. Overall this isn’t my go to music but I do appreciate this album.
Tried. Couldn’t get into it.
Everybody in the world has Frampton Comes Alive. If you lived in the suburbs you were issued it. It came in the mail with samples of Tide
I’ll give it a 4 for being groundbreaking. But probably a 3 for my listening tastes. Was nice to work to in the background.
Head Over Heels is the best song on the album IMO. I am meh on all the others, including the hits.
Until the good doctor prescribed me The Chronic, I had never been on a ride like this before. With a producer who can rap and control the maestro.
I feel like I’ve passively heard this entire album before, in the background, over the past 20 years. And with that I never felt called to seek him out. Still don’t really.
This was over the place. Interesting that Keith Haring contributed to the album illustrations.
😴😴😴
I hope there are other White stripes albums on this list because I think this is my least favorite of all of their albums. It’s not bad. It’s just that all the other ones are so much better, in my opinion.
Another example of a middle of the road album on this list when Paul Simon has so many albums that are phenomenal end to end. Maybe those will be on this list too? Hopefully? It was interesting to learn this was intended to be a Simon and Garfunkel reunion album and Garfunkel even recorded but then pulled out of the project so Paul wiped all Art’s vocals. But still, no tracks jump out on this one.
Stuck in the elevator on the way to the dentist’s waiting room.
Album is a solid 3. It was a Good Day is a 5 star song. So I’m going 4.
First time listening to this album. The further I listened and read about this album the more I appreciated how groundbreaking it was. Not my typical jam but I dug it.
Thought this was great and will go back to it.
This one influenced me a lot as a new guitarist in high school. Simple, raw, catchy.
AC⚡️DC has two types of songs. Bangers. And then rock and roll songs that all sound alike. This album has 2 bangers right off the top. But then it just feels like an afternoon at Guitar Center for the rest of the album. Don’t get me wrong, I respect these guys a lot and spent many teen years playing and learning these songs. But they are a bit of a one trick pony. I think a greatest hits volume full of their bangers is the only path to a 5 star rating for AC⚡️DC in my eyes.
A live album from prison singing about prison life. Unheard of.
This was groovy. A bit medieval for my tastes but that double bass is bumping!
I listened this on Spotify. It wasn’t jumping out at me and I just let it play in the background. Then I thought the album ended and Spotify auto played Radiohead and I was delighted. But it was just Thom Yorke on this album and that was the only thing that grabbed my attention.
Loved this
I had two Jane’s Addiction songs from Napster circa 1999. Jane Says and Caught Stealing. Listing to this album now made confirmed that I was okay just having those two songs. It’s not really my jam. But I get that these guys were big in getting alternative music established. IMO, Lollapolooza was the best thing to come out of James Addiction.
You’re lucky they left the tape deck. And the Creedence.
I was intrigued by this for the first two songs but it the avant garde sounds layered the over the contemporaneously popular psychedelia and blues sounds of 1968 just didn’t do it for me as the album progressed.
Beautiful
I mowed the lawn to this and it was great. But I think Motörhead is a one trick pony when it comes to song writing. Points for playing so fast for 2 hours though.
This was easy to listen to, yes. But something just felt unoriginal about it. Lenny Kravitz has always seemed like a caricature of a rock star to me. A rock star written for a movie along with the rock songs written for the movie.
Roadhouse Blues and Peace Frog are awesome tracks. The rest just sounds a bit lazy e.g. Land Ho. “The Doors? Jim Morrison? He’s a drunken buffoon posing as a poet” - Lester Bangs (The late Philip Seymour Hoffman) in Almost Famous. I took offense to this when I first saw the movie. But the older I get and listen to the Doors, the more I tend to agree.
This reminds me of the worst Bond songs. But worse.
Doors galore this week
For how many times I’ve listened to Fairy Tale of New York around the holidays I’ve never listened to any other songs on this album. It was more eclectic than I anticipated. Metropolis was a wild mash up Celtic folk and the Peter Gun Theme from the Blues Brothers. Otherwise I didn’t feel the need to go back for more listens.
First reggae album to hit on the list so far? Enjoyed listening to it outside on the hot day we had yesterday.
Fun. But not Breakfast in America. Hope that lands on this list.
Love everything Janelle does
Meh.
Perfection
I had a lot of fun with this one and will be going back.
This is what happens when you sell out. Luckily their best years followed this.
This album got me through a lot of boring spreadsheet work about a decade ago.
I’ve always wanted to like Peter Gabriel more than I actually do. And now that I think about it, same for Genesis and Phil Collins too. They have some killer hits but then I end up being bored with the majority of work. Big Time and Sledgehammer are so catchy - the background singers make it so full and fun. But I am just not into any of the other tracks on So. In Your Eyes was a hit but has always been a track I’m quick to pass when scanning the 6 radio stations I have preset.
This album was so fun. Never heard of it before and am excited to listen more.
Excellent from beginning to end.
My for me
I’ve had a rough night, and I hate the fucking Eagles, man!
Listened to this 3 times yesterday
This was very fun
The guitar often sounded like the soundtrack to a sega genesis racing game. The vocals we interesting and unique but ultimately not my scene.
For how many times I’ve heard Bohemian Rhapsody this was the first time I’ve listened to this album.
Didn’t realize there was a pre-disco band of BeeGee. Sounded too much of a tip off of Elton John and the Beatles. Nearly catchy at times but not very original. Glad disco happened for their sake.
The back half of this this lags compared to how strong this album starts.
1984 wow. Way earlier than I thought. Super raw. Loved it.