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Wed Jan 24 2024
Rumours
Fleetwood Mac
One of the best albums of the 70s, not a weak track on the record. All the separate members at the height of their powers combining to make an album greater than it's individual parts. In a vacuum you could just raise this up as a Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits album.
All the more amazing is how this album was even recorded at all. With all of the interpersonal strife, relationships merging, intertwining, and imploding; it is a miracle that anything was recorded. The massive amounts of Cocaine could not have made it an easier environment either.
But through all of the strife and tears, fornication and fighting, Rumours emerged as a rare work of art that continues to be held up as a benchmark for other artists and a watershed moment for the group and music in general of that era.
5
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Wed Jan 24 2024
Surfer Rosa
Pixies
There is something primal and irresistibly urgent about the first run of Pixies albums.
The line up...
David Lovering on drums: Straight forward pop/rock sensibilities and just TIGHT AS FUCK. As many drummers find they have to do, David is the glue that keeps the madness together. Driving where he needs to, sparse where it calls for, with whip crack punch he creates the canvas...the skeleton...the outline.
Kim Deal: During the credits to the film "Empire Records", two characters argue about the best bass players. There is an argument for Big BassAPotomus style badassery ala Les Claypool from Primus, but the counter to that is Kim. You can play as ballsy, flashy, crazy as you want to....but can you play the perfect bass line for the song? That is Kim's super power. They are often simple and repeating, but they are the hook and the line. They catch you and make you groove. Added Bonus: Her back up vocals are utterly enchanting and unexpected(especially in this era)
Joey Santiago: Mad Fucking Genius Guitar Wizard. Master of feedback and sound. Coaxing and willing the screams from his guitar with black magic. I saw them after they got back together and watched Joey perform the solo to 'Vamos'. He took the guitar off his shoulder, placed it in the his guitar stand, and he made the most spectacular sounds emerge; walking around it as he would circle, attack, retreat and repeat. It was like watching a wolf chase it's prey.
Frank Black: A vocalist with the range from an unassuming whisper to a soul wrenching scream that wakes the dead. A lyricist to blend the mundane and surreal to teach you of the biblical to the extra terrestrial and everything in between. A rhythm guitarist that knows how to punish an acoustic. A songsmith that could do more with 3 minutes or less than most bands accomplish with their entire discography. An unassuming front man that lures you into his world with a calm presence before exploding with volcanic frenzy.
When they first hit the scene they always seemed right on the cusp of exploding. They had major proponents and fans with the likes of David Bowie(who would go on to cover the song 'Cactus' from this album) and U2(who had them open up for ZooTV Tour). I once read a quote, and I am paraphrasing here, that while not everybody heard the Pixies, everyone who did wanted to start a band.
Surfer Rosa, the first of their studio albums. They had 'The Purple Tapes' and 'Come On Pilgrim' floating around and making noise in the music world, but Surfer Rosa was their first real chance with a label. With Steve Albini set to produce, they booked 10 days in a Boston studio.
Albini is the one who set the tapes to keep recording to get all the snippets of the band in mid conversation which he then used to intersperse between the tracks. Some breadcrumbs between the bars.
LOUDquietLOUD is used quite often to describe the sound. The songs are short, sweet, fast, brash, and can turn on a dime quick enough to give you whiplash.
"Bone Machine" starts the record off giving you a taste of what is to come. Some guitar driven rock with a mix of loud and sweet vocals.
"Break My Body" takes off next with a harsher tack and Frank really starts to lean into the scream and show you just what he is capable of. Joey sounds like he is beating his guitar as much as David is pounding the drums. The accents that Kim uses on the bass line are subtle and sweet.
"Something Against You" continues with the attack and builds the pressure, just like something pressing against you. A sonic affront that gives you a moment or two of respite before smothering you again even stronger.
"Broken Face" is sporadic and hectic, staccato vocals and airstrike guitar. Bass and drums drive it relentlessly off the edge.
"Gigantic" gives us Kim in the vocal spotlight for this voyeuristic love letter. Creamy and silky smooth bass before David kicks on the door and Joey with the quick attack before dropping into the background. Let's do it again and again. A Big Big Love.
"River Euphrates" starts you on a lazy river float but this is the Euphrates and you are gonna RIDE THE TIGER. And while it might slow down around the curves you won't be safe.
Side two begins with one of the quietest tunes: "Where Is My Mind?" Frank Blacks' Caribbean adventure makes you feel like you are listening to it underwater. Sonic calls and hidden depths for an iconic song.
"Cactus" - A prisoner missing his woman, pleading for any contact. With imagery like "bloody your hands on a cactus tree, wipe it on your dress and send it to me" " a letter in your writing doesn't mean you're not dead" evokes isolation and desperation
"Tony's Theme" - This song is about a Super Hero Named Tony!!!
"Oh My Golly!" continues Frank Blacks use of Spanish/Spanglish/Esperanto interspersed with an English chorus to bring you back in.
11. "Vamos" RE: My description of how Joey plays his guitar and this solo in particular. While the Bass and Drums Beat and Bear down on you like a train, Frank Black screams and spits and gnashes his way through the song "YOUR MAMA'S A PRETTY THING"
Vamos a jugar por la playa(Let's Go Play at The Beach)
"I'm Amazed" Bombastic drumming, with a battle between Frank and Joey to see who comes out on top Vocals or Guitar, all while Kim dances sweetly across the fretboard
"Brick Is Red" closes out the disc and if you are not too exhausted from the whirlwind of an album, Frank Black pleads with you "It's not time for me to go, It's not time for me to go" so maybe flip that disc over and Ride the Tiger.
10/10 - no notes, everybody. Don't change a thing. (and this isn't even my favourite Pixies Album)
5
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Thu Jan 25 2024
Ready To Die
The Notorious B.I.G.
Not my cup of tea, but the production is solid. Samples are from everywhere and the beats are tight and infectious. This record is very close to being a concept album and is almost overshadowed by the history surrounding BIG. His name is ubiquitous with rap of that era and style and you can hear the DNA from this album through countless other records even today.
3
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Fri Jan 26 2024
Pet Sounds
The Beach Boys
Brian Wilson's answer to the Phil Spector Wall Of Sound production design and the Beatles Rubber Soul album. Here is a band pushing to be even more than they were, a transition from the beach sound persona and stretching and experimenting with sound and what an album could be.
They brought in the infamous Wrecking Crew to play the instruments on this album and then layered vocal harmonies, strings, and orchestra. A fuller sound and a departure from the standard method of creating a few hot singles for 45 sales and then padding out the rest of the album with fluff. Brian pushed hard to create a record with no filler, a concept album more to do with design than lyrically.
Brian began to delve into psychedelics and continued with marijuana use here, claiming that it opened him up creatively. Whether that was the case, it is hard to argue with the beauty of the songs on the album. Pet Sounds stands as an album that was influenced by other greats of the time and in turn was an influence on those same greats amongst others.
Pretty, happy, yet melancholic throughout.
5
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Mon Jan 29 2024
Low
David Bowie
The first of Bowies' Berlin Trilogy being recorded in Germany with Brian Eno. Further experimenting with sound and electonica in music.
Front end of the album has more vocals and as it progresses it goes more fully into instrumental.
Sound and Vision is probably the most recognized song off the album, but it has tons of high points that are more ambient driven. Bowie, ever the changeling in his career, gives a mood setting piece that plants seeds for his future recordings. A wonderful album to sit in a dark room and enjoy with a glass of wine.
5
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Tue Jan 30 2024
New York Dolls
New York Dolls
Glam Rock meets Pop/Punk in a way only NYC scene could blend in the 70's. Sets an example for several punk albums that followed. It was a precursor to the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, the Clash, and plenty of others that would explode the Punk Movement just a few years later. You can definitely hear the influence that this record must have had (ex. Trash sounds like a blueprint for the Dead Milkmen, put more sneer and an appropriate accent on it and Bad Girl could have been a Sex Pistols tune). An impressive first outing for a band. I much prefer this David Johansen as opposed to his later Buster Poindexter persona.
3
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Wed Jan 31 2024
At Budokan
Cheap Trick
Solid live album. Stand out tracks are 'I Want You To Want Me' and 'Surrender'. These live versions are probably even more recognizable than their studio album counterparts. It shows Cheap Trick to have a strong live performance, but I do not know that it should be on this list.
3
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Thu Feb 01 2024
Fever To Tell
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Short & sweet punk rock songs done NYC Garage Style. Minimal trio still gives more body to their songs than many larger outfits. The guitars sound huge and the drumming is immense. Attack and retreat, all the while listening to the siren like crooning of Karen O. Amazing first album that is gripping with its urgency, like pulling you aside amidst a wild party to whisper/yell its' affections to you. Hard not to love it back. The songs 'Maps' or 'Y Control', either alone would make this a must listen album.
5
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Fri Feb 02 2024
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
In the late eighties, amidst the hair metal, punk rock, new wave, and boy bands this album landed and shook the music world. Black, female, singer/songwriter comes in with an album of folk songs filled with protest and personal pain. 'Fast Car' is the obvious stand out, but every song hits you with Chapman's emotion and sincerity. An album of delicate power and beauty.
5
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Mon Feb 05 2024
Out Of The Blue
Electric Light Orchestra
Jeff Lynne sure can write a catchy tune. Add that to his skill with string and vocal arrangements, synth and keyboards, and round it off with his top notch production makes it hard to go wrong with any ELO album.
'Turn to Stone', 'Mr. Blue Sky', and 'Sweet Talkin Woman' are almost universally known and have been put to use countless times across all kinds of media. No one puts together so much aggressive happy tunes, but still leveling it with a bit of wistfulness and melancholy.
A beautiful double album, start to finish.
4
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Tue Feb 06 2024
Electric Ladyland
Jimi Hendrix
This is THE Hendrix album. This is his Citizen Cane. This is Hendrix given full creative and artistic control.
Sit down with this album and put on a good set of headphones to get the full experience. Feel the way the music moves across the landscape, this is sound in Ultra 3D.
Jimi takes Delta Blues and fuses it with the Psychedelic. We travel from the sky and mountaintops to the ocean and below. From city streets to outer space and everywhere in between.
Starting off with "... And the Gods Made Love", and right off you know this is not just another rock album. Weird and wild sounds attack and subside, ebb and flow and take you into the greeting of "Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)". A welcome to the show, open arms inviting you in.
But now we gotta speed up to get across the city
with "Crosstown Traffic" showing you the chops include more than mellow mixes.
"Voodoo Chile" throws down the gauntlet and let's you know just how much a BAMF Jimi is.
Break into "Little Miss Strange" for a bit lighter fare, fun and bouncy before sliding into a sultry"Long Hot Summer Night"
"Come On (Let The Good Times Roll)" & "Gypsy Eyes" take us back towards the blues. Then"Burning of the Midnight Lamp" slows it down and starts to let us know we are gonna get deep.
"Rainy Day, Dream Away", "1983....(A Merman I Should Turn to Be)" , &"Moon, Turn the Tides....Gently Gently Away" are our seaside adventures that dive into the epic and surreal with music to suit.
"Still Raining, Still Dreaming" brings us back out and gets us ready to close out the album with some (literal) burners.
"House Burning Down" is a barn burner of an epic only to be topped by the next song, arguable on of the best covers of all time.
Jimi stole "All Along the Watchtower" from Dylan, put his stamp on it and forever made it his own. The whole album has built up to this release, and boy does it deliver.
"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" shores the album up and rounds it off, reminding you that Jimi is a BAD MOTHERFUCKER and that you have just experienced one of the greatest albums of all time.
15/10 this is a testament to what amazing things can be achieved in a music studio.
Remember...headphones, good headphones and let yourself be immersed in this thing of beauty.
5
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Wed Feb 07 2024
Billion Dollar Babies
Alice Cooper
Alice Cooper has always seemed more Rock than Shock, more Glam than Rock, more Light Tin than Heavy Metal and for all of his seemingly bad boy persona seemingly toothless and catering more to FM Radio than its' outskirts...even considering the timeframe.
The album is fine. 'No More Mr. Nice Guy' is a classic. 'I Love The Dead' seems tacked on for the shock/creepy factor to keep up the image. The rest seems like pretty standard rock.
3
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Thu Feb 08 2024
Duck Rock
Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm McLaren is quite the divisive character. Manager(and sometimes the ostensible creator) of many great musical groups like The Sex Pistols, New York Dolls, Adam and the Ants, and Bow Wow Wow. And while he had a large hand in making them famous, I don't think any of these relationships ended well.
On Duck Rock, there is a wide variety of wonderful musicians and sounds from across the world. And while McLaren has done a good job bringing them together on this album, my thoughts on it are colored by his controversial approach to how he treated and (ab)used these musicians.
Relationship Status: It's Complicated
3
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Fri Feb 09 2024
Brilliant Corners
Thelonious Monk
That was some cool and complex sound coming at ya. Monk is working overtime here with his composition and play. Wonderful to hear an artist at work pushing the envelope.
5
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Mon Feb 12 2024
2112
Rush
This is probably my favorite RUSH album. This is the trio at their most experimental and weird laying down grooves across time and space. A pseudo-concept album that was a wild statement in the musical landscape of its time.
While I believe that they individually are some of the most talented technical musicians in rock, especially of that era, I always feel somewhat let down by their albums. I know and appreciate just how spectacular they are in their instruments, but I guess I expect that to result in a better whole product. I don't think I have been surprised at a RUSH album, no matter how much I enjoy them. Still 5 stars here for 2112
5
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Tue Feb 13 2024
Pink Moon
Nick Drake
Such a pretty album. Amazing what Nick Drake accomplishes with just a guitar and a voice here. Melancholy but hopeful in an intimate setting like someone sharing their secrets with you at 2am after a couple bottles of wine.
5
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Wed Feb 14 2024
A Date With The Everly Brothers
The Everly Brothers
Some songs recognized the world over along with strong vocal harmonies. A solid benchmark for the genre.
3
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Thu Feb 15 2024
Siembra
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
Right from the beginning, it grabs you by the waist and you can't help but dance and sway to the beat. Salsa/World/Disco, blended and fused to masterful effect. I found myself singing along even though I had no idea what the lyrics were. The rhythm section is top notch and the bass in particular sweeps you away and fills you up.
Siembra is insistent and overwhelming in the best of ways. An excellent record, start to finish.
5
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Fri Feb 16 2024
Stand!
Sly & The Family Stone
This is a powerhouse of an album both musically and in the scope of history. Released just one year after the assassination of Dr. King and in the face of the civil rights movement turmoil, Sly and the Family Stone kept preaching unity. STAND! was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for inclusion in the National Recording Registry.
But, not only it is a record of import, it is a tremendously universal and pervasive even to this day. Covered and sampled by the likes of Diana Ross, the Jackson 5, Jimi Hendrix, amongst countless others. These tunes are used in movies, tv, advertisements...if you haven't heard some piece or version of Everyday People, I don't know how you you have moved through the world thus far. It is even claimed that this is the first presentation of the slap/pop bass playing technique.
On top of all that, every track here is a gem of Soul/Funk/Rock fusion goodness. The band is kicking ass, having fun, and bringing the listener with them on a groove filled adventure. Nothing but love for this record.
5
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Mon Feb 19 2024
Aqualung
Jethro Tull
Could listen to this on repeat(and have) for hours on end. Delicate acoustic coupled with with heavy brashness. Evocative lyrics and composition. Top of their game here.
5
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Tue Feb 20 2024
Oedipus Schmoedipus
Barry Adamson
Interesting concept, well produced. I would watch this fictional movie based on this 'Soundtrack'
4
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Wed Feb 21 2024
The Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks
Folk Pop sounds through the lens of Psychedelia. Picture Book is probably the best known track. Solid songwriting and playing.
4
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Thu Feb 22 2024
Led Zeppelin IV
Led Zeppelin
Arguably one of the top bands. All of their albums play like Greatest Hits albums. Add to it one of the most recognizable songs of all time and it is an instant include on this list.
Page and Plant scream to the heavens while Bonham and Jones drives them through the paces and changes on this classic record.
5
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Fri Feb 23 2024
Vol. 4
Black Sabbath
Even with the MASSIVE drug and alcohol abuse, Black Sabbath put out an amazing record. A veritable blueprint for Heavy Metal albums to come.
4
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Mon Feb 26 2024
Pretenders
Pretenders
Chrissie Hynde's voice is irresistible A great debut album with the absolute classic 'Brass in Pocket' leading the charge. An excellent introduction to an impressive talent.
4
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Tue Feb 27 2024
Rain Dogs
Tom Waits
Our mad, American poet troubadour.
5
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Wed Feb 28 2024
Germfree Adolescents
X-Ray Spex
Early New Wave/Punk album. Poly Styrene definitely makes her mark here and blazes her own trail.
4
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Thu Feb 29 2024
Arular
M.I.A.
Fun beats and a wide mix of sounds. Glad that I pulled up the UK version so that I got to hear Sanford and Son on URAQT.
3
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Fri Mar 01 2024
Kind Of Blue
Miles Davis
Look up the definition of 'Cool' in any dictionary and you should see a picture of Miles Davis just being his badass self. And then you add the rest of this murderer's row of musicians and it is no surprise with just how fantastic of a sound they get.
So What is one of the best jazz tunes ever written. All that build up at the beginning, so tense and restrained, then finally release to float off into the groove.
Titans of Jazz here just laying down the good stuff.
5
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Mon Mar 04 2024
There's No Place Like America Today
Curtis Mayfield
Smooth and soulful. Quietly understated.
4
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Tue Mar 05 2024
Ragged Glory
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
It was....fine, I guess. Not sure that I am a Neil Young fan.
3
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Wed Mar 06 2024
Liquid Swords
GZA
Rap is not a style that I listen to often, but I do enjoy story tellers in all genres and GZA (along with the rest of the Wu-Tang Clan) delivers in this area. I absolutely love the aesthetic of Wu-Tang Clan, mixing the East Coast hip-hop/rap of early/mid 90s with the backdrops of Martial Art movies and Motown grooves and samples. I have always appreciated that aspect of it without really listening to it before recently.
The album was mixed in RZA's basement studio and that gives a guerilla warfare feel to it. The beats are simple but tight with samples layered into the background. All laid down to paint a picture, no real wasted brushstrokes here, everything seems to serve the narrative of each song.
Having just recently done a dive into Enter the Wu Tang(36 Chambers), I appreciate the rest of the crew jumping in with GZA on these tracks. They accentuate but don't overshadow the solo work here. I can see this album working it's way into a regular rotation for me when the Rap mood hits me.
4
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Fri Mar 08 2024
Different Class
Pulp
Less poppy than Oasis, Less disco than Blur, a good mix and blend of guitars and beats with more experimental sounds to give it a variety not reached by the other 90s Brit Pop bands.
Common People is super catchy. I more enjoy the Shatner/BenFolds version, but see why they liked it enough to want to pay tribute.
I Spy gives off the feel of a Leonard Cohen ballad, silky smooth and covered in cigarette smoke.
Disco 2000 reminds me of Laura Branigan's Gloria.
Something Changed evokesThe Smiths with wispy keyboards in the background dancing with Johnny Marr jangles on the guitar.
Underwear is a track that I could see Arctic Monkees using as a template for a good portion of their tunes.
Rounding out the album with the manic energy of Monday Morning breaking into the cool, soothing denouement of Bar Italia. Well crafted from start to finish. Well plied hooks and eminently easy to sing along to
3
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Mon Mar 11 2024
Power In Numbers
Jurassic 5
Tight, jazzy beats. An excellent groove. On some of the tunes, the vocals don't mix as well as others; they are a bit too much in the foreground. All the samples make a smooth interstitial thread that keeps the movement through the tracks nice and buttery.
3
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Tue Mar 12 2024
The Wall
Pink Floyd
A band at the apex of their creativity and execution. The rock opera/concept album that all others are judged beside. The orchestration, repeating motifs, cyclical structure, the pure raw emotion on display, the juxtaposition of the grand and the personal. Filled with iconic tunes and moments, a masterpiece greater than the sum of its' parts.
5
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Wed Mar 13 2024
Tarkus
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
I bit of Prog Rock Weirdness. Starting off side A with a 21 minute song with 7 movements like a movie soundtrack conveying the whole story. Side B seems to be 6 unrelated songs that veer between Prog and Rockabilly. Solid musicians but it is like 2 different albums. THAT COVER THOUGH!!!!! That cover is a 5!
4
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Thu Mar 14 2024
Heavy Weather
Weather Report
A great Jazz Fusion album. The interplay betwixt the musicians is top notch. Jaco Pastorius on bass is fantastic, slinky and smooth on the fretless...a talent gone too soon.
4
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Fri Mar 15 2024
Live And Dangerous
Thin Lizzy
Solid live performance.
3
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Mon Mar 18 2024
Coat Of Many Colors
Dolly Parton
A wonderful mix of the personal and over arching themes ubiquitous in this life. I am not a country fan, but if everyone were to listen to her and take her words to heart it would be just like that final track, 'A Better Place to Live'. Dolly has spent her life quietly doing her best to live up to that mantra.
5
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Tue Mar 19 2024
Is This It
The Strokes
When this came out over 20 years ago, the Sous Chef where I was working told me about this band that reminded him of the Velvet Underground. He was about the age I am now and we both shared a love of music.
'This Is It' is such a New York album for me. Quick paced and loud. Every song is like a New York Conversation. All of the instruments are distinct, weaving in and out, sometimes arguing, sometimes complementing, sometimes taking turns. All atop Julian Casablancas lyrical storytelling introducing us to a cast of characters throughout.
Loved it then, love it still.
4
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Wed Mar 20 2024
S.F. Sorrow
The Pretty Things
Some claims that this is the 1st rock opera/concept album. Solid Psychedelic Rock coming out of the 60s. Mad sounds, quick changes and fanciful lyrics keep it afloat.
3
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Thu Mar 21 2024
Trio
Dolly Parton
3 top tier country voices and excellent session backing crew. Not my genre but solid performances all around. This was a much anticipated grouping that had been in the making for probably over a decade. I don't think anyone was disappointed.
3
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Fri Mar 22 2024
Want One
Rufus Wainwright
Delicate and brash, pulling from a wide array of genres. Lyrically playful and vocally enticing, the songs ebb and flow throughout. A beautiful album
5
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Mon Mar 25 2024
A Night At The Opera
Queen
One of the greatest of all time. 15/10 No Notes.
5
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Tue Mar 26 2024
Back At The Chicken Shack
Jimmy Smith
Smooth and mellow all the way through.
3
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Wed Mar 27 2024
The United States Of America
The United States Of America
Solid psychadelic rock. Sounds like Floyd meets experimental era Beatles.
3
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Thu Mar 28 2024
Private Dancer
Tina Turner
The album that solidified Tina as a solo act.
3
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Fri Mar 29 2024
Ágætis Byrjun
Sigur Rós
Ambient and moody. Etherial and weighty. Melodic and dissonant.
I picked up the album they put out after his one based off of their sound.
Their music would not be an every day play for me, but it can hit the right spot when needed.
3
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Mon Apr 01 2024
Hot Buttered Soul
Isaac Hayes
Only 4 song, but one is 12 minutes and one is 19 minutes and the whole album is fantastic. The tension, build, and release of each piece is masterful.
5
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Tue Apr 02 2024
Band On The Run
Paul McCartney and Wings
McCartney can write the hell out of pop songs. And they are not just formulaic. Constant changes and movements, but all the while with an irresistible hook and immensely singable lyrics layered with wonderful harmonies.
4
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Wed Apr 03 2024
Hearts And Bones
Paul Simon
Not sure about this one, I guess I expected something different going in. It definitely seemed smaller in theme and scope, everything on a much more personal scale. Everything was good with a couple great moments thrown in.
3
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Thu Apr 04 2024
Lost In The Dream
The War On Drugs
The best 80s album of 2014.
It was good, very reminiscent of 80s era new wave and radio rock.
3
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Fri Apr 05 2024
1999
Prince
A master musician and excellent artist. One of the best of its' era.
5
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Mon Apr 08 2024
Jagged Little Pill
Alanis Morissette
I don't think that I have really listened to this since the 90s. It really hit at just a perfect time. I feel like if it comes out a year or two earlier or later it doesn't become as big as it did.
It has the whole gamut of emotions, harsh and soft, calm and frenetic, and everything in between.
And it has Flea on bass for a song.
4
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Tue Apr 09 2024
Nevermind
Nirvana
An album that hit at the perfect time. It set sail to 1000 bands. Not overly complex but every song on there is catchy and instantly recognizable.
4
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Wed Apr 10 2024
Basket of Light
Pentangle
The sounds of a Renaissance Faire. Read on Wikipedia that they were Folk Jazz and I don't think that I knew how that would sound until I played the album and the moniker fit perfectly.
3
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Thu Apr 11 2024
Liege And Lief
Fairport Convention
Was fine, maybe I am too removed from it and context would be important.
3
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Fri Apr 12 2024
Tommy
The Who
Maybe I just have a soft spot for Rock Operas, but this is a great album. Universally known and respected amongst listeners and musicians alike. Any time a piece of art s translated across multiple media, you know you have something special.
5
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Mon Apr 15 2024
good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar
I will probably have to come back to this one. I think there is something more there but I don't know if I am in the mindset for it.
3
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Tue Apr 16 2024
Synchronicity
The Police
The last Police Album and boy did they come with guns blazing. This is one of those albums that captures a band at the moment right before they disband. Egos and creative differences all come to a head and while it can make a record go wrong, if it gets done it really pushes the artists to limits that they may not have reached elsewise. A masterpiece, start to finish.
5
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Wed Apr 17 2024
Dub Housing
Pere Ubu
Talking Heads meet the Minutemen. Coming out in 78, it had to be on the forefront of the post punk movement and I am sure it was a huge influence on bands that came after. DIY and experimental, punk and weird. A fun listen.
4
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Thu Apr 18 2024
Talking With the Taxman About Poetry
Billy Bragg
3
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Fri Apr 19 2024
I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight
Richard Thompson
Inoffensive and middling but not poorly done. The album cover itself definitely evoked more of a response.
3
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Mon Apr 22 2024
Home Is Where The Music Is
Hugh Masekela
Solid jazz all the way through, but the Afrobeat coming through(especially on the latter half of the album) puts it over the top.
4
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Tue Apr 23 2024
Station To Station
David Bowie
The Return of the Thin White Duke. The album right between Young Americans and the start of his Berlin Trilogy (Low). Weird and enigmatic with Golden Years being the song probably most known. Each song has a different feel, but a definite line that passes through the entire album and ties it all together.
Coming off of starring in The Man Who Fell to Earth, so coked out of his mind that years later he admitted to only having vague flashes of memories of recording/producing the album. Chaos and madness and vision and collaboration...and still a brilliant work of art,.
5
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Wed Apr 24 2024
School's Out
Alice Cooper
The title track is a classic. The bass player does a lot of heavy lifting on this album. The pseudo showtunes are a little weird, did not expect to hear West Side Story tracks here. I never got the hype on Alice Cooper but the album is fine.
3
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Thu Apr 25 2024
L'Eau Rouge
The Young Gods
Can definitely see the DNA of this album making its' way through the later Industrial album.
4
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Fri Apr 26 2024
Virgin Suicides
Air
Starts off with a great tune and continues on with it a a motif throughout. Not sure how it would set with me if I had watched the movie before listening. Good album, plan to watch the movie to see if it gives greater impact.
4
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Mon Apr 29 2024
Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash
CSN puts together some good music. Their harmonies really set them apart. A very strong debut album.
4
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Tue Apr 30 2024
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
One of the best of its era, one of the best of its genre. A seminal work that holds up today and will stand the test of time.
5
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Wed May 01 2024
Music
Madonna
Seems only tangentially related to Madonna. Could have been anyone singing these tracks. I think I had heard 2 of the songs on here before. It was inoffensive and forgettable but okay for what it is.
3
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Thu May 02 2024
The Cars
The Cars
The Cars came about at what seems the perfect time for them. They were able to masterfully mix Rock, Pop, and New Wave in such a way that created a catalog of almost nothing but gold. The songwriting from start to finish is in perfect balance. Catchy riffs and lyrics, but in such a way that you never tire of hearing them. An amazing debut album from a criminally underrated band. Every song on here is an instantly recognizable hit.
5
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Fri May 03 2024
Marcus Garvey
Burning Spear
Mellow and powerful and scathing and soothing and light and heavy all in turns. Many levels to enjoy this on and you could just have it on in the background all day.
5
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Mon May 06 2024
Physical Graffiti
Led Zeppelin
I wish I liked them more than I do. That being said, I never really find any fault in their albums. Excellent musicianship, production, and songwriting. I enjoy all their stuff, but it never seems to grab me like some other music does. Still top notch in every way.
5
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Tue May 07 2024
Wish You Were Here
Pink Floyd
A scathing jab at the record industry and its' costs and a plaintive look at innocence lost, Wish You Were Here is an outstanding work of art. Any part of it can be taken in and enjoyed but to feel the full weight one has to listen to the album in its' entirety.
I had listened to everything piecemeal and loved them all. One night while sitting alone in a car at night waiting, I had the radio on and was listening. The station was one that was on the outside fringes of reception and they while they played great stuff they were sometimes erratic with actually having music on. So when the radio went silent for a bit I almost turned it off. But I thought I heard something quiet in the distance so I turned it up. It was Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) and it absolutely gutted me. If anything had been open I would have run to go get the album immediately. As it was I picked it up the next day and it has been one of my favorites ever since.
Few albums convey such pain, anguish and longing in such a beautiful manner.
5
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Wed May 08 2024
James Brown Live At The Apollo
James Brown
One hell of a live album showcasing just how James Brown could own a crowd.
4
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Thu May 09 2024
Dust
Screaming Trees
Good album, but not enough to really stand out for me especially for the time frame it came out. No real surprises until the last track, but there were many hooks and phrases that are either reminiscent of something previous or influenced something later.
3