1001 Albums Summary

Nice groovy tracks.

I've heard at least the singles from this album before, this isn't surprising. I think that the synth lead on the first track is a bit annoying. I think it would be fine in another context but the rest of the mix is a medium ballad with smooth pads and gentle singing. I'm blown away by how much Paul wrote. The second track, Jet, is much better than the first track. I love it. It highlights the talents that the other members of the band have. This is Paul's biggest downfall--that he is larger than life. But man I love his voice. This is one of the best Paul McCartney tracks that I've heard. Let Me Roll It strikes me as a very weak track. There are just some small things that prevent this track from succeeding, but the mix almost seems to zoom in on these flaws. The reverb on Paul's voice is almost a delay, and to me it shows that the producer has some really poor ideas how to use this effect. The wet is too clear, the delay period is strange, and the singing is not enhanced. The guitar riff is very piercing and gets irritating. Mamunia through the end of the album is much more enjoyable than the first half of the album. I'm especially happy when the other members of the band stand up. The structure of the album is a little strange. The album is somewhat short, and some of the songs are maybe a little too long. It seems that the album is at the 80% stage, but they haven't done the work to clean up the mess. Another critique-- Paul should know how to write an album that is more than just a collection of tracks. There is a loose theme between all the tracks and that is fine, but there is no sense of growth throughout the album. In this way this is a backslide--a regression to the early Beatles era. Those with sentimentality for this era will no doubt have harsh words for me, but the true artist never looks backwards.

This album is plagued by inconsistency in quality. This is too bad because some of the songs are very enjoyable. This would have made a great EP if they had just cut the weaker tracks, like "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" and "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face."

There are huge leaps and bounds that radiohead is making during this period and especially leading into ok computer. Thom has begun changing his vocal style, with a stronger focus on amplifying his sweet vocals. Even before I knew that Godrich was on this album I could feel his influence. The mixes are much more subtle compared to Pablo Honey and the vocals can get tastefully surrounded by the other tracks. The drums are much more subdued and everything is pulled back. I enjoyed this album despite its place near the bottom of the radiohead discography."