247
Albums Rated
3.1
Average Rating
23%
Complete
842 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1960s
Favorite Decade
Indie
Favorite Genre
UK
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
28
5-Star Albums
13
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
I Am a Bird Now
Antony and the Johnsons
|
5 | 2.84 | +2.16 |
|
Coles Corner
Richard Hawley
|
5 | 3.02 | +1.98 |
|
The Colour Of Spring
Talk Talk
|
5 | 3.07 | +1.93 |
|
Suede
Suede
|
5 | 3.1 | +1.9 |
|
Live 1966 (The Royal Albert Hall Concert)
Bob Dylan
|
5 | 3.15 | +1.85 |
|
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Wilco
|
5 | 3.3 | +1.7 |
|
The Man Machine
Kraftwerk
|
5 | 3.32 | +1.68 |
|
Meat Is Murder
The Smiths
|
5 | 3.32 | +1.68 |
|
It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back
Public Enemy
|
5 | 3.36 | +1.64 |
|
Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake
|
5 | 3.47 | +1.53 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1999
Prince
|
1 | 3.6 | -2.6 |
|
Madman Across The Water
Elton John
|
1 | 3.59 | -2.59 |
|
Moving Pictures
Rush
|
1 | 3.58 | -2.58 |
|
The Marshall Mathers LP
Eminem
|
1 | 3.49 | -2.49 |
|
Doggystyle
Snoop Dogg
|
1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
|
Ready To Die
The Notorious B.I.G.
|
1 | 3.37 | -2.37 |
|
The Chronic
Dr. Dre
|
1 | 3.33 | -2.33 |
|
Wish You Were Here
Pink Floyd
|
2 | 4.3 | -2.3 |
|
Pyromania
Def Leppard
|
1 | 3.13 | -2.13 |
|
Songs In The Key Of Life
Stevie Wonder
|
2 | 4.07 | -2.07 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| David Bowie | 4 | 4.5 |
| The Smiths | 3 | 4.67 |
| Bob Dylan | 5 | 4.2 |
| Beatles | 4 | 4.25 |
| Nirvana | 3 | 4.33 |
| Radiohead | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Steely Dan | 3 | 2 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Queen | 5, 2 |
5-Star Albums (28)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Portishead
5/5
Mysterious, cinematic, unsettling, cool, strong, oppresive, delicate, original, light, dark, beautiful, enigmatic, surprising, edgy, sad, fragile, desolate, inventive, hypnotic, absorbing, elegant, uncomfortable, seductive, intimate, unique.
1 likes
Blue Cheer
2/5
Cochran x Hendrix = a heavy blues-rock soup!
Nothing stands out until the final track 'Second Time Around' which was cool. Not cool enough for me to ever play this again though!
1 likes
Sonic Youth
3/5
I love noisy guitar bands, Mary Chain, Pixies, Ride etc but somehow I never really got into Sonic Youth. Cool guitar sounds but where are the tunes?
'Sugar Kane' is fantastic, if the whole album was that good it would be 5 🌟 but sadly it is not.
1 likes
Wilco
5/5
I knew I liked them from 'California Stars' and 'Jesus etc' but didn't expect this.
I'm completely hooked and can't stop playing it. Every track, every minute, every moment gets better and better with every listen. So much depth, so immersive. I love it.
1 likes
Nick Drake
5/5
I bought the NME every week in the late 80s/early 90s and a name kept popping up in interviews. Robert Smith mentioned him a lot, then Paul Weller, but I never heard or bought any Nick Drake records. Then about 15 years ago I heard 'Northern Sky' on the radio while driving home one evening, the sun setting, and I still remember the moment.
He became a favourite in the house and was played a lot (!) but not so much recently so it's great to listen to this again in full.
It's a beautiful album, a haze of hushed words, gorgeous folk guitar and jazz bass.
An underlying sadness is clear from the start, 'a troubled cure for a troubled mind', but this only adds to the emotion of it all.
He worked with great musicians, there is so much feeling in every word and note, it's so sad that he wasn't more widely recognised in his lifetime.
Favourite track: 'Three Hours' is incredible
1 likes
1-Star Albums (13)
All Ratings
Sly & The Family Stone
3/5
Everyday People is the only track I had heard before listening to the album, good song. Title track is good and the funky jams are cool but not something I would listen to much.
Nirvana
3/5
Not as catchy & melodic as 'Nevermind'. Only All Apologies and Dumb stand out for me, so sad & honest, the unplugged versions are even better.
Public Enemy
4/5
Public Enemy sound like nobody else. Such a musical mash up and Chuck D is a great voice. Only heard a couple of tracks before and the whole album deserves more listens, the words matter and I read some while listening. Gets an extra star for Fight The Power alone!
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
Love them but somehow this doesn't really grab me. Brilliant recording though, sounds so good 50 years on. The first 3 tracks are great but as a complete album 'Catch A Fire' is still my favourite.
Sister Sledge
2/5
Sister Sledge, I never liked them! I still don't like anything on this album except one song. Hearing it for the first time on a good speaker, with the volume up high, the guitar, bass & percussion on 'Thinking of You' sound great!
Elton John
1/5
Overblown nonsense, it's just so boring. .Next......
Big Black
3/5
Abrasive but weirdly cool. 'Kerosene' is a mad highlight, growling bass and spiky guitars. I can hear Killing Joke and Jesus & Mary Chain in them and I think Nirvana and Bloc Party (!) took elements from them. Not bad but I won't be playing them regularly :)
Funkadelic
4/5
Who Says a Funk Band Can't Play Rock? Not me :) The first 40 minutes are a right old mix of funk psychedelia and craziness (a sermon about a deadly sandwich?) Echoes of Pink Floyd give a hint of where it's heading so I listened to the last 20 minutes lying in dark. Wow, it's fantastic! Like Dark Side of The Moon plus Jimi Hendrix. Earned the album another star as the last section is XXXXX. I will definitely listen to this again and it certainly deserves to be in the top 1001.
Gil Scott-Heron
2/5
I like him but don't like the ultra slow jazz style of most of this album. One big exception is the live track, 'Watergate Blues' is great.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Interesting listen as I'd never heard this album before. It sums The Stones up for me, Jumping Jack(?) flashes of brilliance but otherwise just average. They sound so cool on Paint It Black and Under My Thumb but clunky elsewhere and the songs aren't great. To be fair I think their best albums came a few years later.
De La Soul
4/5
This was huge. Hippy/trippy, fun, likeable, and so much in the melting pot. 'Eye Know' still stands out and 'A Little Bit of Soap' is hilarious! Overall it's too long for me, the best 40 minutes would make a much better album.1989 was a great year💛🩷🧡💚🌻🌼🌷
The Byrds
4/5
I absolutely love The Byrds guitar sound. Add the vocals & harmonies and they were so cool, at their best the music somehow just connects emotionally. This is not their best set of songs but I could listen to that 12 string Rickenbacker all day. 'Eight Miles High' still sounds incredible and always will, play it over and over. 'What's Happening?' and 'Captain Soul' are great too.
They mixed with Dylan and The Beatles, influenced each other, created their own thing and influenced every folky jangly melodic guitar band that followed them: CSN, Neil Young, The Smiths, REM, Lloyd Cole, Teenage Fanclub, early Primal Scream, The Stone Roses, Crowded House, Fleet Foxes and more. I love them and so many of the bands they influenced.
Roxy Music
3/5
Final album with Brian Eno, before they gradually smoothed out their sound. Some great music but the lyrics and vocals try too hard to be weird at times. 'Editions of You' is a banger! Grey Lagoons is good and the title track is a brilliant closer, really atmospheric.
Lenny Kravitz
2/5
I thought I'd like this, I wanted to like it, but I didn't like it!
He's talented and I always thought he was cool but not so much here. Some of the themes are important but it's way too self-righteous and preachy for me, Christian rock?
The garden song is awful! Mr Cab Driver was probably my favourite.
Adele
2/5
By far the best thing about this album is the production. Big and bold, perfect for her audience and earns the second star. The less I say about the songs and her voice the better!
Favourite song? Rolling in the Deep
U2
4/5
I bought this one and played it lots! Side A is great, love it. Side B not as good, apart from Two Hearts. Bono really finding (and using) his voice, he had plenty to say! Still has the raw energy (Like A Song x) but you can hear their sound developing. Global stardom awaits!
Favourite songs: the first four and Two Hearts Beat As One.
Tom Waits
4/5
Welcome to the mind and music of Tom Waits! An often bizarre, underground, back street, dive bar, dead end world of lonely souls and characters. His voice(s) can be challenging and the musical backdrop incredibly varied and willfully weird but there is beauty in the madness.
'Underground' leads us into this other world, 'In The Neighbourhood' (the single, and only track I knew) is great, 'Johnsburg, Illinois' and the closing instrumental are beautiful, as is the poignant 'Soldier's Things' (And everything's a dollar in this box) the stand out track for me.
I love the tough blues guitar on 'Gin Soaked Boy' too. Reminds me of the track that first introduced me to Tom Waits, via a Levi's ad in '93!
I played this a lot today, and it's becoming my favourite album on the list so far.
He's a one off. A great songwriter and musician who started relatively mainstream then took his own direction.
G. Love & Special Sauce
3/5
Cool music, sounds very live, but for me let down by the vocals & songs.
Interesting mix of styles and genres though, which is probably why it made the list.
Wilco
5/5
I knew I liked them from 'California Stars' and 'Jesus etc' but didn't expect this.
I'm completely hooked and can't stop playing it. Every track, every minute, every moment gets better and better with every listen. So much depth, so immersive. I love it.
AC/DC
3/5
Riffs, Riffs and more Riffs. Great Riffs.
Punchy production. Every track sounds similar, obviously. The formula works.
No comment on the lyrics or his voice!!
I wouldn't listen to this again but will definitely hear them on the radio 😀
Air
2/5
I've tried to listen to this before and I always lose interest.
It's like they took lots of cool 90s bands, took out anything interesting or exciting, mixed them up in a processor, smoothed out any rough edges, added some French vocals and out popped a hit album.
Inoffensive background music but I can't get into it at all.
Thin Lizzy
4/5
A live double album is a lot in one day!
Great guitars, good tunes, melodies, variety, a cool singer, great voice and decent lyrics. Classic rock 😎
This version of 'Still In Love With You' is EPIC! My favourite track so far.
'Dancing In The Moonlight', 'Cowboy Song' and (especially) 'Massacre' are great too.
Will definitely listen to this album more ❤️
Beck
3/5
Never start an album with your best track, only one way to go from there!
I quite like Beck but somehow it all sounds a bit gimmicky.
Ash
4/5
Got to love Ash :) Energy, cool guitars, powerful drums and great tunes.
Tim Wheeler wrote 'Girl From Mars' when he was 16, at 18 it was a hit and they were on Top of The Pops. When this album was released he was only 19.
The first 3 tracks are fantastic! 'Lose Control' is blistering, what a start to a debut album. Blasting it out makes me feel more alive, young again.
It's all good stuff, 'Oh Yeah' is another highlight, but they can't possibly keep the momentum going for nearly an hour. Cut to 40 minutes it could have been a 5 ⭐️ album but it fades a bit towards the end.
Good closing track though and a solid 4 stars, how could anyone give less?
Prince
1/5
Two decent hit singles followed by an hour I will never get back, an hour when I could have been listening to something great, an hour when I heard 9 songs which are all contenders for the worst song I have EVER heard. Finally 'International Lover' arrived and claimed the prize!
I would rather listen to Right Said Fred singing 'I'm too Sexy' on a loop for an hour than listen to this again, and hear Prince going on, and on, and on, and on about how he is so sexy. I can't stand Right Said Fred but at least they were having a laugh, Prince seemed to believe it all and it's so boring!!!
He was an incredible musician, he wrote and performed some great stuff, but only when he dropped this egotistical nonsense!
Stan Getz
3/5
We're transported to Brazil in the early 60s, somewhere chic, with beautiful people and a peaceful atmosphere as the sun shines and the waves gently lap Copacabana beach. Cafés across the world have been playing this to try and capture the vibe ever since.
It's so mellow, creates a mood. The recording is so good it sounds like they are right with us. The voices are great and the saxophone sounds like a third voice.
Much as I like it, I know I won't listen to it much, my interest fades.
Best track - The Girl From Ipanema, obviously, the long version.
Wilco
4/5
Two Wilco albums in the first 27, what are the chances? Glad I like them!
Wilco make country rock sound brilliantly different. Imaginative, unpredictable, melodic, emotional and beautiful - uniquely them.
So many great songs, I could listen to this all day. Misunderstood, Far, Far Away, Kingpin, The Lonely 1 and Dreamer in My Dreams all stood out and got second and third plays.
Burning Spear
4/5
Roots!
Political, spiritual, the voice of the oppressed. Love his voice, I think Finley Quaye does too.
Serious content and yet the sound of this album is really chilled, so deep, such a cool groove. Play loud and feel it!!
Pink Floyd
3/5
Comfortably Numb is incredible. Hey You is good. Lovely acoustic guitar on Is There Anybody Out There. Beyond that I can't really get into this album.
Dave Gilmour is wonderful. Not sure about Roger Waters, he goes way over the top here for me, I don't think rock operas are my thing!
Dire Straits
2/5
Good guitarist but I never liked them much as a band.
This was huge, almost unavoidable as half the tracks were singles. 'Private Investigations' and 'Romeo and Juliet' are good, shame they aren't on this album!
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
I bought four of his albums and saw him live in '89. I loved the singles but never listened to this album before.
So much energy and so many punchy songs. Love the basic production and brilliant drumming that drives it along. He's a great songwriter but his songs are rarely pretty, often angry, even spiteful. A year on from 'Alison' he's become bitter and twisted.
Radio Radio is my favourite, the lyrics are so good, so eloquent, perfectly delivered, still relevant.
'Some of my friends sit around every evening
And they worry about the times ahead
But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference
And the promise of an early bed
You either shut up or get cut out
They don't wanna hear about it
It's only inches on the reel to reel
And the radio is in the hands of such a lot of fools
Tryin' to anaesthetise the way that you feel'
👌
Arcade Fire
4/5
Having loved Funeral and liked Black Mirror I lost track of Arcade Fire for a few years. Partly because I lost my Black Mirror CD! Also the first couple of singles from this didn't grab me.
So the first full listen. For me it starts slowly but from 'City With No Children' onwards it's pretty much faultless. One great track follows another. I love that they produce coherent albums where the tracks flow from one to the next so well. Hard to pick favourites but 'Suburban War' and 'We Used to Wait' are fantastic.
Will certainly listen again x
Daft Punk
3/5
I'm guessing this was ground breaking. Sounds like they had fun in the studio playing with sounds, the production is amazing right from the start.
The trouble is I don't like many of the tracks! Is it an album to dance to, or an album to listen to? For a huge hit 'Around the World' is really flat, and like a lot of the album, repetitive.
One track really stands out. The incessant beat keeps pushing forward, the darker atmosphere and energy make it sound cooler than anything else here. Right near the end 'Alive' came along like a 90th minute equaliser to snatch another star :)
Madonna
3/5
Like a Prayer is a great song, I always liked it. Created some controversy too which is always fun!
The collaboration with Prince is cool, if I knew it I had forgotten it.
Aside from that this is typical 80s pop from Madonna and the odd ballad until a big surprise with the final track! I googled 'Act of Contrition" and now I get it, making a point in her own way.
All in all she was better than most, a cool pop star who wrote some good tunes.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
2/5
Track 1 - better than Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree, but only just, and not in December
Track 2 - silly voice
Track 3 - swing your pants
Track 4 - sounds like an early Bon Jovi demo
Track 5 - decent guitar break, tired Stones influenced rocker
Track 6 - I prefer Frank Sinatra singing Strangers...
Track 7 - I don't like It
Track 8 - silly voice, ok guitar
Track 9 - silly voice, dull song
Track 10 - The title and chorus are a master stroke - in terms of marketing. Good tune & guitars but the Strokes stole it, energised it, and made something much cooler.
Final comment - is this the worst album cover ever produced?
Absolute final comment - a top 1001 album, really?
Duke Ellington
4/5
My Dad loved this music so much that I associate it with him completely, I want to hear it as he heard it, feel as he felt. I feel closer to him as I listen. It's a different kind of music, a different kind of listening, lost in music!
He was a huge fan of jazz, swing and big bands. Duke Ellington was a big favourite and he saw him and his band in London at least once.
When I was younger I didn't understand this music at all, but now I can. The musicianship is amazing and I can feel the atmosphere, the recording is so good.
My rating would probably be much lower if it wasn't for my Dad but that's fine with me :)
Tom Waits
4/5
Rattle them bones :) They sure do, and create a wild, swampy, bluesy, even funky racket! I love it!
At times it sounds like they are raising the dead; grave diggers, or murderers, or body snatchers, as musicians.
'In The Colosseum' is brutal, 'Murder in the Red Barn' makes Nick Cave sound like Ed Sheeran!
The slower ones are wonderful too, beauty among the madness, especially 'Who Are You', A Little Rain' and 'Black Wings'.
Got me listening to The Pixies 'Bone Machine' too, now there's a track.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I love noisy guitar bands, Mary Chain, Pixies, Ride etc but somehow I never really got into Sonic Youth. Cool guitar sounds but where are the tunes?
'Sugar Kane' is fantastic, if the whole album was that good it would be 5 🌟 but sadly it is not.
The Clash
3/5
Only 3 stars?
It's raw, angry and energetic which is the point, but listening in full It's not a great album. I was too young for punk so got into it retrospectively. What I love about The Clash is how they developed, wrote great songs and crossed over with reggae. 'Police and Thieves' is the only one I Iove here and it's a cover. This album was their starting point and was part of a movement that changed movement, culture and attitudes so brilliantly.
Their second and third albums are so much better though!
U2, Green Day, The Libertines and loads more stemmed from The Clash but as 1977 debut punk albums go this is a long way behind The Pistols and The Damned.
P.S. this came out a few months before Pretty Vacant, I think they stole the riff from 'I'm So Bored'!
Kraftwerk
5/5
Love it! Brilliant from start to finish.
Is this the best electronic album ever?
Willie Nelson
2/5
Willie plays American standards. I guess these songs have their place.
Maybe a hotel lobby somewhere in the Southern states or Midwest, maybe a tired old department store, or a Nashville bar - but not a cool one, or a quiet restaurant 40 years ago where most of the customers were over 50, or an old cab driver playing them on a journey anywhere in the US, or maybe on a cruise ship leaving the US for the Caribbean - before they pass half way and switch to the calypso/reggae playlist, or popping up on the soundtrack of an old film, or a CD in a car boot sale, or in the vinyl collection of a country fan who bought it 46 years ago and hasn't played it for 45.
I don't mind Willie Nelson's voice, he's a cool character, and some of the songs he wrote are great, I just discovered he wrote 'Crazy'.
But if there's one place this collection of covers DOESN'T belong it is the best 1001 albums list!
P.S. weirdly I think his '92 version of 'Always on My Mind' is great
Snoop Dogg
1/5
More groovy than I expected.
For me Eels, The Pixies, The Sex Pistols, The Clash, and even The Mighty Lemon Drops swore with more style, impact and emotion than this!! Less is more 😀
The lyrical content is repetitive nonsense, and that's being kind! I got bored early on and it was a struggle to listen to the end.
Cream
3/5
Starts with a couple of Blues/Rock classics then goes nowhere until the bizarre final track which was clearly included for one reason alone, to reveal (57 years later through 1001 generator reviews) who listened to the whole album, and who did not!
Queens of the Stone Age
2/5
More mush than grunge.
I'm not convinced by them or him, there's the odd exception but none on this album.
All a bit dull to me.
And he ruined the Arctic Monkeys! 😀
George Harrison
4/5
What a shame. Most of the first hour is wonderful. Beautiful songs with such feeling, and such love. I relate most to a person, or people, and some are very moving. George may have been writing about a person, but most are probably for his sweet lord, a higher power. Simply beautiful.
It starts to tail off an hour in though, and the last half hour - 5 tracks that are just bluesy rock 'n' roll jams are a disaster! Why did George spoil the album by including them? Maybe Clapton bullied him into it! In the days of vinyl the third record would have been played once then returned to its sleeve, never to be played again.
Favourite tracks: My Sweet Lord, If Not For You, Behind That Locked Door, Run of The Mill, I Dig Love, All Things Must Pass. And I Live For You, which incredibly wasn't on the original release. How that was cut to include the rubbish towards the end of the album is beyond me!
Beatles
5/5
I bought four Beatles albums and the red/blue compilations but not this one. Time, finance and space made it impossible to buy everything! I knew and loved the singles but hadn't heard the full album until Joe told me how great it is a few years ago and I listened on Spotify.
From 'Come Together' and 'Something' to 'Maxwell's Silver Hammer', from the sublime to the ridiculous? It doesn't matter because almost every track is sublime, the flow on the second half is perfect.
They are firing on all four cylinders. Three of the finest song writers in one band, it's just ridiculous. But it's not just the songs, or the voices, their playing on this album is amazing, across a variety of styles and textures, with such creativity. They are all on top form including Ringo whose drumming here is so cool and distinctive.
Collective genius at work, and for me this is not even their best album!! No band will ever compare ❤️
2Pac
2/5
Goes above Snoop in my growing list of all time rap albums but a very long way behind Public Enemy and De La Soul.
Can
3/5
Experimental and influential but are they any good?
I tried half listening during the day and it was awful. Gave it another go late evening through headphones and it was better.
I like Paperhouse and Oh Yeah. Unusual rhythms and interesting guitars. Halleluhwar has a groove but 17 minutes, really?
The next two tracks are equally long but more experimental, more sounds and effects than music. Something stronger than my glass of stout is required to get into this!!
Some tunes tomorrow please :)
Dead Kennedys
2/5
Not really a fan.
The best punk bands had split up or moved on to better things by 1980.
Silly voice too!
Nick Drake
5/5
I bought the NME every week in the late 80s/early 90s and a name kept popping up in interviews. Robert Smith mentioned him a lot, then Paul Weller, but I never heard or bought any Nick Drake records. Then about 15 years ago I heard 'Northern Sky' on the radio while driving home one evening, the sun setting, and I still remember the moment.
He became a favourite in the house and was played a lot (!) but not so much recently so it's great to listen to this again in full.
It's a beautiful album, a haze of hushed words, gorgeous folk guitar and jazz bass.
An underlying sadness is clear from the start, 'a troubled cure for a troubled mind', but this only adds to the emotion of it all.
He worked with great musicians, there is so much feeling in every word and note, it's so sad that he wasn't more widely recognised in his lifetime.
Favourite track: 'Three Hours' is incredible
Peter Gabriel
2/5
So.....boring!
Over produced 80s stuff, and he was somehow annoying.
'Don't Give Up' is the best song here but listen to the Willie Nelson & Sinead O'Connor version, it's much better.
The Kinks
4/5
I love The Kinks and Ray Davies so this review is longer than most! I've been a fan since I bought a singles compilation when I was 18. I love them from their raw youthful classics to the songwriting that developed and dominated.
This album sits at the start of the transition. It's not their best, the music is ok, production is thin and dated, but there's still plenty to love.
'Sunny Afternoon' stands out as the best known and loved song on the album but there's much more.
'Too Much On My Mind' is perfectly constructed. 2 minutes 30 that sums up how we all feel at times, except those who are lucky enough to not have a care in the world. All set to a beautiful tune. Few were writing like this in the 'swinging' 60s.
'Session Man' is a simple ditty about a session musician but listen again and it could be about anyone who had a dream, came close to realising their dream, but was forced to compromise and do as they must to pay the bills.
'Rainy Day in June' is out there, really unusual imagery and sound for a Kinks song and I love it.
'House in The Country' makes another social statement, 'Little Miss Queen of Darkness' is a great tune but so sad. Davies creates characters and worlds in seemingly simple songs.
'Dead End Street' from the same year missed the original release but deserves a mention. A truly great song of the times, it's like a Ken Loach film. Class, inequality, isolation and human struggles in a changing world were common themes in his songs. Elsewhere there was plenty of humour too.
Glad this album is on the list, but there are better Kinks albums to come...
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
2/5
They play, and play, and play.
He sings, and sings, and sings.
Michael Jackson
2/5
Almost every track was a single and they were played to death. I barely needed to listen to the album to confirm that I don't like it!
Ramones
3/5
I like them, but I've never loved them. Almost every track sounds the same, their signature sound. They don't care, and they sold millions of records and t shirts.
Nothing great, the guitars and attitude are better than the vocals, but gets an extra star for being part of something that influenced so many of the bands I love.
Coldplay
3/5
Good to revisit this 24 years after I bought it then first played it in the kitchen at Crossbrooks! Listening in a different house and kitchen I'm thinking of so much that has happened since then.
'Don't Panic' is still a great opener and probably my favourite track on the album. 'Trouble' was the first Coldplay track I heard and the reason I bought this album. It still sounds good, very accomplished for an early single. The same could be said of most of this, especially for a debut album.
Overall it didn't grab me though, somehow the emotion isn't quite genuine, maybe too calculated, too smooth. I guess that's why I haven't played it for 10 years or more.
The The
3/5
'Heartland' is one of the best songs of the Thatcher years. When it was released I was 18 and becoming more politically aware so it really struck a chord. If I was a history teacher covering the 80s I would play it to bored students, along with 'Ghost Town' and 'Between The Wars'.
Britain was not a fair place and greed dominated. 'Angels of Deception' continues the theme.
I like the opening track too, really cool through headphones and cranked up loud. Aside from that it's ok, some good lyrics but not great songs, the production is very mid-eighties so it hasn't aged well.
I had to listen to 'Dusk' from '93 too, a very different and far better album. Johnny Marr lifted them so much musically. Give it a go!
The Undertones
4/5
I was bound to like this. I've liked The Undertones since I was 10 or 11. My mates liked them too, we all played subutteo, and I've got a cousin called Kevin!!
They were fun and sharp, with their wit and guitars. I only had a singles tape and never got to see them live (too young) but did see That Petrol Emotion who were a great spin off with the O'Neill brothers and their brilliant guitars.
It's typical Undertones; joyous, catchy, punk influenced pop. Lots of favourites but 'Tearproof', 'Wednesday Week' and the unexpected cover of 'Under The Boardwalk' stood out today. And of course 'My Perfect Cousin', a classic :)
Bonnie Raitt
2/5
Awful
Dire Straits
2/5
They sound better here than on Brothers In Arms, more understated.
I know he's a good guitarist and I quite like his voice but I find it all really dull. Not emotional, energetic or original. Sorry 😞
Portishead
5/5
Mysterious, cinematic, unsettling, cool, strong, oppresive, delicate, original, light, dark, beautiful, enigmatic, surprising, edgy, sad, fragile, desolate, inventive, hypnotic, absorbing, elegant, uncomfortable, seductive, intimate, unique.
The Vines
4/5
Oooh, this is good, really good.
They have a go at almost every kind of guitar tune from the 60s to the 90s and almost everything works. A wise move to avoid metal!
Packed with great melodies and lots of energy. Sounds great in the car and I'll be listening more on our travels.
Talking Heads
3/5
Talking Heads are instantly recognisable. They sound like nobody else, and nobody ever sounded like them, which is a good thing.
I like their fidgety sound and interesting lyrics, and bought later albums.
'Take Me ToThe River' stands out, a cover and the only track I know well. An album that deserves more listens and the rating could go up but I don't have time now!
Minutemen
2/5
One reasonable track, 'Cohesion' has nice acoustic guitar.
I don't like anything else. I guess it's on here because it mixes low-fi rock with funk and (almost) jazz but I don't like it.
Taylor Swift
2/5
'Darling I'm a nightmare dressed like a Daydream'. A great songwriter? Really?
I love swifts, and swallows too, but not Taylor Swift.
Ella Fitzgerald
2/5
My Dad loved her. She can certainly carry a tune but I don't love her voice.
To me there's more emotion listening to Billie Holiday or Etta James (who also sounds much cooler.... Amy Winehouse must have been a fan)
I couldn't possibly listen to over 3 hours so listened to some random songs and went with that. Then I listened to Etta instead of Ella!
Serge Gainsbourg
3/5
I only knew Je t'aime, everyone knew Je t'aime!
The music on this album is great, really cool. Vocals very French! Not sure what the lyrics would be like translated, sounds a bit dodgy reading about it.
An interesting diversion and an album I would never have listened to without the generator :)
Tim Buckley
2/5
From 'Song To The Siren' to this in just a few years. What the hell happened?
Dreadful
Marvin Gaye
3/5
Not a massive fan of the songs or music but the production is great and he really had an incredible voice.
Gets an extra star for that voice.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
Ooh, this is unexpected and wonderful. I didn't know he produced an album as good as this relatively recently.
Gravitas in his words and voice, and quiet beauty in the music. Imagery abounds in the darkness.
Bright August sunshine doesn't quite suit the atmosphere of this album, I Want It Darker!
Michael Jackson
3/5
Not Bad, but it doesn't thrill me.
Kate Bush
3/5
'Hounds of Love' is fantastic, 'Aerial' is wonderful, two albums that would easily make my top 100. I wouldn't put this one in the top 1001 though!
Somehow she sounds so much more worthy here, and it's all too lush, over produced, overblown and boring. Even 'The Fog' which I like initially is overdone.
One exception, 'This Woman's Work' is so sad but so beautiful.
This got me listening to 'Aerial' again, an album that floats and transports the listener. Unfortunately this one is not in the same league!
Throwing Muses
3/5
I bought 'The Real Ramona' on tape, it was OK. I preferred 'Star' by Belly which I bought a few years later. I always associated them with The Pixies even though they are very different.
This is obviously much earlier. It's not great but I like the changes of pace and texture, and I always like the drumming on their tracks, especially that thing he does with the sticks, like on 'Green'.
I like the edgy near madness of them too.
'Hate my Way' is getting better with multiple listens. The whole thing could grow on me with more listens and maybe in a week it would get another star.
Sheryl Crow
2/5
'All I Wanna Do' was such a massive catchy hit that it became annoying!
The album was huge too. It's not bad, easy listening. 'Strong Enough' is probably my favourite track. 'Solidify' is quite funky.
Overall it's a bit too Americana for me.
Johnny Cash
3/5
'Hurt' is incredible, obviously, in fact the first three tracks are all great. I always loved 'Give My Love to Rose'.
If it was all this good it would be 5 🌟 from me but it's not.
Only a few of the other covers really work for me, and some are awful! They are great songs but this left me just wanting to hear Roberta Flack, Simon & Garfunkel, The Beatles and Depeche Mode!
A couple of exceptions, 'I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry' and 'I hung My Head' which I really like.
A bit disappointing, I thought I would love it all.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
What a perfect album for the hottest day of the year!
I love CCR, I don't know why, I just do. There's something really groovy, swampy, soulful, even primal about their sound and the songs are great.
I'm not massively into classic American rock but something sets them apart. His voice could be annoying if the music and songs weren't so good but everything comes together and it works.
The album is good from start to finish, and it's refreshingly succinct. 'Proud Mary' is an absolute classic, I can't think of a more rhythmic track by a guitar band ❤️
Last thing, how good is the recording and production? 55 years old and still sounds amazing belting out of the speaker.
CHVRCHES
3/5
I saw these years ago on Jools and at Glastonbury and always liked them.
Love the synths. If Clare Grogan fronted The Human League instead of Phil Oakey they'd sound a bit like this!
'The Mother We Share' is a spectacular opener, especially cranked up loud. The closing track 'You Caught The Light' is superb too, a dreamy move into Mogwai territory, I love it.
Everything inbetween is good listening but with few other stand out tracks which is a bit disappointing. Maybe with more listens it will grow on me, I do think they are very cool.
Britney Spears
2/5
I have to say 'Baby One More Time' is a great pop song. I also have to say it's the only track here I can bear.
Shack
3/5
I like this. Sits somewhere between The Coral and Super Furry Animals but very much their own thing. Never heard it before but will listen again.
Iggy Pop
3/5
The Passenger, what a riff.
Lust For Life, what a drum beat.
Tonight, what a song.
Otherwise, underwhelming.
Dr. Dre
1/5
I'll listen to anything, I gave it a go, I just wish I could give it zero.
What's the point of rap if doesn't make a point, if it's not eloquent? This is a million miles from 'The Message', 'White Lines', 'Fight The Power' or even 'The Magic Number'. Sad that so much rap went in the wrong direction.
And it has to be said, their attitude to women is shocking.
Steely Dan
2/5
If I had been a 35 year old New Yorker in 1974 I might have liked this, but I was 6 and making dens in Haversham.
It is quirky in places which I like but the overall sound is so polished it's a bit MOR and I'm not tempted to listen again.
One of them produced 'Flaunt the Imperfection' by China Crisis 10 years later, an album I like much more, a soothing listen on a Sunday evening.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
I lied down on the rug and closed my eyes to listen straight through and get the full experience, well as much as I could without the aid of some dodgy substance!
What a trip. Back to '67 with Jimi, Noel and Mitch. On the swinging streets of London, in a psychedelic club, to a party, then to the sky, the stars and over a rainbow 🌈
Did guitar, bass, drums and voice ever sound more together and more wonderful?
Quicksilver Messenger Service
2/5
'Who Do You Love' is a classic tune but there are better versions.
Then it's endless bluesy 60s guitar noodling....yawn.
It says everything that my favourite song here is the 90 second closer 'Happy Trails', a quirky drunken Cowboy Song.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
My wonderful wife bought this on CD as a gift many years ago.
Listening again takes me back and I feel the same about it now as I did then. Around a dozen tracks are wonderful and if they were the album it would be up there with Automatic For The People, Doolittle and Nerrmibd as my favourite from American bands of that era. The only issue is the heavier tracks don't really do anything for me. That said the opening instrumental, 'Tonight Tonight', 'In The Arms of Sleep', '1979', 'Cupid De Locke', 'Galapogus', 'Stumbleine' and the last 5 tracks are magnificent! There you go, a perfect 12 track album among the 28 :)
Queen
5/5
Just magnificent! Heavy, glam, incredibly varied, OTT, full of riffs, fun, complex, multilayered. They threw everything at this, I can hear Sabbath, Led Zep, Bowie, T Rex, even Motorhead and Muse before they existed! Really it's all just them, no other band could do this.
The riffs are amazing, Freddie sounds incredible (voice and piano) and wonderfully OTT. Countless brilliant tracks that only work because of them. The track sequence is staggering, so much variety but somehow it flows. Their best album for me. Play loud!
The White Stripes
2/5
I didn't really like this. At this stage he became a bit annoying to me, sounds like he's trying to be too smart, believing the hype. Nothing here comes close to Hotel Yorba!
Dagmar Krause
1/5
80s German music hall is a narrow genre but in the spirit of generator listening I was happy to explore it for the first time. In for a penny, in for a Deutsche Mark.
Not on Spotify so I went hunting and found every track on YouTube. It was an interesting listening experience. YouTube adverts between tracks would usually be annoying but here they were light relief and the most enjoyable aspect of the overall listening experience. Thankfully some of the songs were shorter than the ads!
1001 is an odd number for the books and the generator. If they choose to round down this is a strong contender for exclusion :)
D'Angelo
2/5
The laid back jazzy hip hop feel is quite cool but the vocals and lyrics are all quite cringy.
Baby, baby, lady, lady, feels likes heaven when I think about you, we'll ride our looooove and walk on street of gold, touch me with your soul. Yes, yes, yawn 🥱
Tracy Chapman
3/5
She's hard not to like. Her performance of 'Fast Car' at Wembley when she was almost unknown was incredible. It still sounds great and I've always liked 'Baby Can I Hold You' too. But much as I like her it's not the most exciting or emotional album is it!
Bob Dylan
5/5
Where to start? An album which opens with one of THE great songs, the iconic moment when Dylan went electric, and closes with one of the most incredible.
I still remember when I first heard 'Like A Rolling Stone'. A wet bank holiday when I was about 16. Radio 1 counting down the best 100 songs voted for by listeners, it was about number 5 and Stairway to Heaven number 1. Times have changed but it still sounds incredible, music and words coming together so perfectly.
Words words words! Does any album on the list have more words than this! It's poetry but not babbling brooks, open skies, hearts and flowers. It's urban poetry of characters and chaos, it's so evocative and often bizarre but Dylan creates a world in each song.
'Desolation Row' is remarkable. An 11 minute journey through New York - maybe? So many characters, so many names, he ambles all over the place, it's often surreal but it works. Musically a track this long heading in one direction could get dull but it never does for me. The strumming is fine but the lead acoustic guitar flourishes add such beauty and contrast, elevating the whole thing. Funny to think that My Chemical Romance introduced me to this song 15 years ago!
The tracks between are fascinating, full of characters and brilliant words, often bluesy and downtrodden. 'Just Like Tom Thumbs Blues', 'It Takes a Lot To Laugh' and 'Tombstone Blues' are probably my favourites but they are all growing on me. It's so imaginative and compelling, I can't wait to hear what he's going to sing next.
But nothing matches the iconic opener, when Dylan went electric, and the fantastic closer.
I want to give this 9/10 but that's not an option and who am I to round Bob Dylan down? Even The Beatles looked up to him! It's easy to hear why.
Nina Simone
4/5
She was a force of nature and a remarkable artist. Brilliant pianist, great songwriter across styles, great voice, and an outspoken activist. At times she seemed and sounds a bit crazy but nothing wrong with that!
Not heard this album before but glad I have now. So many great songs and a lot of variety. To mix something so strong and important as 'Four Women' with beautiful jazz numbers and soulful r&b like the opening track and closer 'Either Way I Lose' is really cool.
Will come back to this again. Such an enjoyable listen.
Blue Cheer
2/5
Cochran x Hendrix = a heavy blues-rock soup!
Nothing stands out until the final track 'Second Time Around' which was cool. Not cool enough for me to ever play this again though!
5/5
I wrote such a long review and deleted it all! The songs and performances speak for themselves, just imagine being there to see, hear and feel it live.
I'm becoming obsessed, he's rivalling Ray Davies as my favourite songwriter.
Otis Redding
4/5
What a voice, what a band and what a recording! The Stax sound is so cool. Full of life, soul, swing and swagger.
I don't listen to this stuff often but it always sounds so good.
The only negative is that so many of the best songs here are covers of classics; Smokey Robinson, Sam Cooke, Jagger & Richards etc
Steely Dan
2/5
Ah, the 70s. I was 4 when this was released, 'Do It Again' and 'Reelin' In The Years' were played on the radio a lot but I never really liked them. I preferred 'Seasons in the Sun' and 'Billy Don't be a Hero'!
Planet Rock play these tracks now to give their listeners a quiet moment. In the palette of rock music Steely Dan are magnolia.
Amy Winehouse
5/5
This is undeniably great.
Retro but modern, brash yet tender, strong but fragile, desperate but uplifting. Full of character and emotion, rooted in her situation. Everyone talks about her voice but her songs are fantastic; full of brilliant words, tunes and hooks. The band, arrangements and production are perfect... Mark Ronson 👏
The title track is amazing. I love the changes of pace, and the melody lifting into the chorus... 'We only said goodbye with words....' only to fall back into sad but beautiful darkness again.
'You know I'm no good' was the first song of hers I heard, on the radio driving to work 17 years ago. It jumped out of the speakers and still does, what a groove!
'Love is a Losing Game' is timeless.
I don't know the second side as well but it all stands up, especially 'Wake Up Alone' and 'He Can Only Hold Her'.
Her love of classic soul and jazz is obvious but this is so original and contemporary. She was a precious talent and it's just so sad.
Christina Aguilera
1/5
Horrible singing, horrible wailing.
Just horrible.
Name checking greats from the past in an effort to somehow relate this is laughable.
Abdullah Ibrahim
3/5
This is a mixed bag, some I love, some I don't.
It starts off sounding like Duke Ellington, track 2 was when I got really interested though, 'Song for Samitha' is a kind of sad drifting tune but gorgeous. 'Mountain Song' and 'The Wedding' are beautiful and I like 'Manenberg' too, the jazzy bass underpinning it all, and his great piano.
I really wish I could sit and listen to this album with my Dad. I think we'd agree there's a lot to like but maybe not the final track, that's an odd one!
I'm glad this came up on Abdullah's 90th birthday. What a talented chap :)
Van Halen
2/5
Where to start with a band who inspired a hundred 80s hair metal bands?
1978 when this was released. In the same year The Jam were covering The Mighty Kinks and wishing they could be like David Watts, millions of American teenagers were wishing they could be like Dave Lee Roth 😀
I like that Van Halen covered The Kinks and opened them up to a huge new audience, but I can't stand their version! Listen back to back and to me it's clear that less is more.
Lots of the tracks are familiar because Planet Rock love them but I don't really like their sound or style. Some decent riffs but 'shredding' doesn't do much for me.
So sorry, not my favourite. I like 'Jump' but that came much later, and even then I prefer the live acoustic Aztec Camera version. Guess I'm not cut out for hair metal 🙃
Buena Vista Social Club
4/5
They can certainly play and this is beautifully recorded. Listening in the car it feels like I'm in the room with them in Cuba!
Glad we had this on Friday. On first play it was pleasant enough background music but with more listens I'm getting into the rhythms and the vibe.
I really like it, relaxes and transports me away, and Monty too! I played it in 3 different rooms and each time he came in and curled up.
I'll come back to this, it creates a warm calming mood, good for the soul.
Favourite track: Chan Chan, but there are hidden depths throughout.
4/5
Great to listen 30 years later when they are back in the news. But oh god, this is tricky and I may disagree with some!
'Don't Look Back in Anger' is so perfect in every way, so familiar yet it still gives me goosebumps. The song, the structure, the perfect (Imagine?) start and perfect (beautiful and gentle) end, all the instrumentation, Noel's delivery, the huge chorus, the guitar break, all are second to none. And the more I listen to it the more I notice the drumming, it's perfect throughout but the fill between the guitar break and final chorus is magnificent!
'Wonderwall' is iconic, a song of the time. 'She's Electric' still sounds as bright and breezy as ever, playful and lovable. 'Hey Now' is better than I remember.
Aside from that there are only 2 or 3 songs I really like. The rest I can take or leave, so I haven't played this in full for over 25 years.
End to end it's not a truly great album for me. Sorry!
David Bowie
5/5
The coolest man in rock.
I listened to this on headphones yesterday and on the drive to work this morning. I got lucky with the weather, dark and misty.
I love 'Low' and this is so similar and just as good. Cool spiky groovy guitar tracks on side A, darker instrumentals on side B, I love losing myself in those tracks. Eno really played his part.
And then there is 'Heroes' itself. Imagine seeing a couple kissing by the Berlin Wall and creating that. Robert Fripp's guitar just tops it off. I always find it really moving.
To produce 'Low' and this in one year is amazing. Add 'Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy' in that same year and it's clear, the man was a genius!!
Patti Smith
4/5
Literate, original, impassioned, imaginative, intelligent, compelling, beautiful, challenging, brave, rambling, fluid, spontaneous, unabashed, unique, influential.
What a great album. Who else was doing anything like this in 1975?
I knew I loved 'Because The Night'. I knew I liked 'Gloria' and 'Dancing Barefoot', I knew lots of the artists I love were influenced by her but somehow I'd never heard this before. I had to play it twice, read the lyrics, read about their meaning.
In 1975 (for context) punk hadn't kicked off, the most popular poet, and one of the most popular 'entertainers' in England was Pam Ayres.
Thankfully people like Patti Smith provide an alternative to all the shite.
Shuggie Otis
2/5
I just read that he turned down the Rolling Stones, Bowie and Stevie Wonder. Bet he regrets that!
I'm sure he's very talented but this does nothing for me.
Nine Inch Nails
2/5
An odd one this. He writes, plays & produces everything and he's done film soundtracks so he's obviously talented. But the disaffected youth thing all seems a bit contrived, not genuine, overblown. It aims to shock and strays into Marylin Manson territory :( And the drum sound is dramatic but all too engineered for me.
'Piggy' is a cool sounding track but I hate the lyrics.
'Hurt' is obviously a great song. I like both versions but right near the end he goes OTT, he can't resist.
My favourite track is 'A Warm Place', for me the most powerful track here, maybe because it stands out from all the noise all around it.
I like noise, but not this noise! Maybe when I was young and alone I'd have been more into this, but I doubt it, whenever I wanted to drown in the depths of despair I had The Cure and The Smiths :)
Talking Heads
4/5
What a band, what an album, but most of all what a sound. I turned it up very loud and it was amazing, the rhythms & basslines, some great guitar touches and the one and only David Byrne.
Eno went from 3 great Bowie albums to producing this, the midas touch.
The first half is brilliant, so good that 'Once in a Lifetime' doesn't stand out, and it made me dance around the kitchen! Second half drops a bit but 'Listening Wind' is incredible, the lyrics, those guitar noises and the groove really remind me of David Gilmour and The Orb, their album recorded 30 years later.
More and more is revealed with each listen. In a week I may wish I'd given this 5.
David Bowie
3/5
The surprise comeback album.
'Where Are We Now' was the first release and caused a stir, it still sounds beautiful.
'Dirty Boys' and 'I'd Rather Be High' are cool. Some good lyrics but overall there's not much spark or originality. He had one far better album to come.
The Doors
3/5
I loved my 'Best of The Doors' tape when I was young and getting into 60s bands, played it to destruction.
'Break on Through', what an opening to a debut album. The first three are all great, 'Crystal Ship' my favourite. After that the stars start to fall.
'Light My Fire' is a classic but let's be honest, it's too long! Then lots of fairly average tracks until 'The End' which I used to think was amazing, I still like the music but Jim's stoned rambling is nonsense really, tedious.
Maybe this just got me on a bad day, who knows, People Are Strange :-)
Queen
2/5
Nonsense.
Stevie Wonder
3/5
If this album was a mountain then 'Higher Ground' would be aptly named as it would be the summit. Such a groovy tune!
'Visions' and 'Living in The City' would be half way up, good tunes held back by some bad lyrics.
Everything else sits at the base, just not my thing.
He's a great musician, there's a lot of good music and he probably plays most of it but I don't like many of his songs, most of the lyrics are terrible! I love 'Higher Ground' though, and the Chilli Peppers version too, so that adds an extra star.
Blur
3/5
I like Song 2, Song 5, Song 7 and Song 8!
The rest is mixed and for me it tails off badly from Song 9 onwards.
This is Blur going alt-country, sounds like Wilco in places but they did it better. Just listen to 'Misunderstood'
Blur
4/5
This takes me back! The essence of Britpop and their best album. Fake cockney laddishness abounds but it's an album with a heart; that Parklife verse about feeding the birds, Badhead, To The End, This is A Low. I like the short, energetic and quirky tracks too, they hold it all together.
30 years later this still sounds pretty good to me. 9/10 but I can't quite round it up.
Radiohead
5/5
Where to start, what to say, how to end?
This is an impossible review. How can I describe the brillance I hear and the emotion I feel? They cracked the code, unlocked the door, tapped into the vein, went intravenous to reach your brain and body, your soul, your hopes and fears.
I've sometimes said The Bends is my favourite Radiohead album, listening again how can that be true? Has any guitar band surpassed this?
Picking this apart seems ridiculous but here goes! To me the sequence of four tracks starting with Subterranean Homesick Alien is incredible, and the final three tracks are just so beautiful and deeply emotional. But that's doing a disservice to the rest of the album which adds so much of the abrasive, edgy texture. It's so complete, so whole.
An amazing, complex, shifting, swirling, flowing piece of art. We are lucky they created it.
Joanna Newsom
2/5
Would be greatly improved were it fully instrumental or sung by someone else!
I like all kinds of voices, many unconventional, but hers really grates on me.
This somehow made me think of Mary Margaret O'Hara so I listened to 'Miss America', now there's an album.
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
From an album ruined by a voice to a group who were known for their voices.
The first three minutes of this album are so wonderful. I've heard this song so many times and still it moves me. His voice is absolutely incredible, so beautiful. I think it's a shame they went for the crashing drums and the big crescendo though.
The second track is a tune I remember from when I was really, really young, played on the radio I guess.
After that my favourite track is 'The Only Living Boy In New York'. That's about it though.
They did some beautiful stuff but for me their best album came 4 years before this.
Bob Dylan
4/5
This was the first one that took me beyond his greatest hits.
Good songs, nice guitar throughout and his voice is better than it often was. Could this be a little more bearable for a younger generation? 🤔 😀
Circle Jerks
3/5
I like this!
A short sharp shock. The lyrics are sharp, socially aware and funny too. Beverly Hills is good, World up My Ass is genius 🤣
1980 so fairly early for US punk. Bet they influenced loads of others including Green Day.
Frank Sinatra
5/5
I love this! ❤️
It's just magical.
So pleased it came up, I played it all evening :)
The War On Drugs
4/5
Not listened to this for a while, it still sounds as good as it did when Joe bought it for me one Christmas :)
There's far more atmosphere in this than most rock albums, it's a hazy, often gentle atmosphere, sometimes retro but still modern. With long intros and outros it's quite cinematic and is a great album for a car journey. Some great guitar, his voice often sounds like Dylan but works.
It works as a complete album but 'Eyes To The Wind' stands out and I have always loved 'An Ocean In Between The Waves', which sounds like a faster, updated, Americanised version of 'A Forest' by The Cure,. I only just noticed that! One of my favourite guitar tracks this century :)
Beastie Boys
4/5
This so cool. I always liked them but never went beyond the first album.
What really surprised me is the musicality. From funky 70s sounds to 90s grooves that sometimes even sound like Massive Attack. The instrumentals are great.
Exceeded my expectations and I'll come back to this.
Sigur Rós
4/5
Wish I had a week to listen this rather than a day, or two, I'm falling behind!
Deserves to be played through in one sitting. Slowdive meets Mercury Rev meets a string quartet, then a full on orchestra. There are lots of beautiful moments and it's a style of music I love but I haven't heard it all enough yet to know if I love it.
Track 4 stands out, restrained power. And track 7, the piano part is really beautiful and it builds from there.
Sigur Ros, music to close your eyes to, my second favourite Icelandic band of all time :)
Fela Kuti
3/5
I love the rhythms!! I got into Afrobeat via The Good, The Bad and The Queen a few years ago and Tony Allen who plays on this.
It's a great groove and Fela was clearly important musically and politically, although it seems he was an odd character too.
Is it wrong to compare with Bob Marley, Burning Spear and Misty in Roots? If they came together at a festival back then it would have been amazing.
Was heading for 4 stars but just dragged on too long.
Billie Holiday
2/5
'Strange Fruit' is incredible and she is much loved and respected so I had high hopes.
This reminded me of 'In The Wee Small Hours' but I didn't like it as much, no real connection. Oh well, on to the next one :)
Pavement
2/5
A toned down version of The Pixies with the sharp edges, excitement, weirdness and coolness removed. And without those fantastic guitars. Sorry 😞
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
3/5
Amazing musicians, great arrangements, brilliant recording, great sound.
Everyone over 30 must know 'Take Five' and that's the only one I'd heard before. I like the opener with the really busy piano and then the sudden change of pace to swinging jazz, then mixing the two tempos.
After that it's all very accomplished but almost too clean, nice background music but I doubt I'll listen again. I can see why it was popular though.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Well this is why the album generator is great.
I came to this with the preconception that the best two tracks would be 'Brown Sugar' and 'Wild Horses' and that the rest of the album would be made up of similar but inferior typical Stones tracks. I was so wrong, my preconception was a misconception!
It starts with one of THE classic riffs, Keith doing what he did best. The lyrics are questionable but there's no denying it's a fantastic track. Charlie plays his part, driving it along, full of rhythm. He underpins the whole album so brilliantly, never flashy but always nails it.
2 minutes 45 seconds into 'Can't You Hear Me Knocking' was when the album changed for me, it goes from a decent rocker into the most sublime 5 minute jam, suddenly we're elevated into different musical territory! Mick Taylor plays his part but it's not just his guitar, there so much depth and texture throughout the album.
'I Got The Blues' is great, no doubt influenced by Otis Redding. 'Sister Morphine' and "Dead Flowers' are so good, two druggy songs but completely different styles.
'Moonlight Mile' is a beautiful closer, so rich, taking their sound to places I never expected.
I've listen to this so much in the last few days. I thought I knew the Stones, but that was only from their singles, I didn't think there was much more to them. How stupid was I?!!
It's pushing a 5 but for me is just let down by a couple of weaker tracks in the middle. But this is still a great listen and I'll keep coming back to it for the tracks I mentioned.
Sly & The Family Stone
3/5
Funky, Futuristic (for 1971) and Fab :)
Minor Threat
1/5
Thrash Punk? Maybe they were influential but this is crap!
Country Joe & The Fish
3/5
I had a quick listen to the first few tracks on the speaker a few days ago and didn't like it. Listened again on headphones, playing the whole thing and got quite into this!
Obviously the same era as The Doors and they are a bit like a quirky, less arrogant (no Jim) version. Some good little tunes early on, then just as my interest was wavering Section 43 came along! What a crazy but cool piece of music. I liked all the songs after that. At times they sound really odd, folky, even pastoral. 'Sad and Lonely Times' is lovely. 'The Masked Marauder' and 'Grace' reminded me of Pentangle which is no bad thing.
Music has a time and place and this album got lucky, a relaxed Sunday evening after a walk and a trip to The Albion was perfect.
The Prodigy
3/5
I always liked their impact, attitude and energy. Firestarter is great but Breathe is my favourite.
I bet they were cool live but somehow a full album dilutes their impact for me, it got a bit repetitive.
So sad what happened with Keith Flint, who it seems was a kind and gentle soul.
Beck
3/5
Hard to explain but I didn't really get into this. It's beautifully played and recorded, at times it reminds me of lots of bands and artists I like but somehow nothing stands out.
I think he was better when he was more groovy, this is a bit dull and I didn't connect with the emotion. Maybe it's the songs, maybe his voice.
John Lennon
4/5
Imagine is so incredible it's impossible to follow, and it's hard to review the album as a whole.
Oh My Love is in some ways just as beautiful.
There are other high points but lots of the tracks are just ok. None of that matters though. Imagine is a song like no other, it's impact is never diminished, it's the opposite of every hymn and national anthem. Maybe he was a dreamer but he certainly wasn't and isn't the only one x
The Flying Burrito Brothers
2/5
Yee-haw!
Happy Mondays
3/5
I bought the 'Wrote For Luck' remix 7" and played it to death, loved that heavy bass, then I bought 'Step On' which still sounds fresh. Suddenly they were huge and on Top Of The Pops. 'Kinky Afro' was ok so I bought the album but was disappointed. Listening now I feel just the same about it.
All was not lost! They were great at Glastonbury, their remix album was good, and the Black Grape debut album was miles better than this.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Yes!!! This is stunning, original, organic, visceral. If there's a better heavy rock album I want to hear it.
I'd only heard 'Changes' (what a change of pace) and the awesome 'Supernaught' before, but everything here is great. There's so much more to them than their huge heavy riffs.
The opening track is spectacular, 'Snowblind' is awesome.Then they come down and do something beautiful like 'Laguna Sunrise', then back up full of riffs and energy for 'St Vitus Dance' and a cool closer.
Genuinely faultless, only works loud of course. For me no other heavy rock band comes close. Funny how they inspired so many one dimensional metal bands really.
p.s. 'Are You Gonna Go My Way' is brilliant, but is so inspired by 'Supernaught' :)
Nick Drake
4/5
A tricky one this. I read it was his favourite work, stripped down to just his words, voice and guitar. But somehow I think his best songs are on the first two albums.
Still lovely though, and of course so sad.
Gorillaz
3/5
This is an odd one! I only knew one track before listening to this, a track I love, so obvious I don't even need to name it.
The weird thing is the tracks leading up to it are good, like late Blur with a heavy bass, a few Beck style guitars and samples, on 'New Genius' there's even a touch of Thom Yorke in Damon's voice.
Then the mighty 'Clint Eastwood' such a cool track.
Then it all goes a bit wrong for me. Yes it's a big collage of songs styles and sounds but it got a bit tedious, I was crying out for a decent tune, a decent song.
I like Damon, I like the concept, but as an overall album it got boring and is too long. Only one track here I'll come back to so it's lucky to scrape a 3. They did better albums later on.
The United States Of America
4/5
1968, the year of my birth!
A year of revolution, a year of hippies, drugs and psychedelia.
On one hand this is a bunch of musicians who took too many drugs and made a rock album of the time.
But listening in full it's so much more! They got their hands on a synthezer (or two), mixed in brass bands, string sections, recorded samples, sounds from I don't know where! For something recorded so long ago this is awesome in places, just listen to the end of 'The American Way of Love', what a way to close the album.
I love the tracks she sings on, especially 'Cloud Song' and 'Love Song For The Dead Che'.
There's some real weirdness in here: Alice in Wonderland/Tim Burton/Flaming Lips/6 Music Freak Zone/circus nightmare genuinely off kilter stuff. And more than a touch of whimsy, including 'I Wouldn't Leave My Wooden Wife For You, Sugar'!
There are also moments of genuine folky and orchestral beauty in the madness.
I really enjoyed this, even on the first listen, once I opened up and entered the world they created. Maybe the most innovative and imaginative album so far. The very opposite of bland and completely unexpected.
Merle Haggard
2/5
I'm not completely averse to Country music. I like Johnny Cash, John Prine did some great stuff, a bit of Glen Campbell, Nashville Skyline might just be my favourite Dylan album.
So it's a shame but Merle did nothing for me. Twangy guitars and a twangy voice. The whole sound and the songs just add up to a big Country music cliche. Country music fans may love him but he's not for me. 31 minutes was more than enough, by the end I was dying to play some John Prine.
Antony and the Johnsons
5/5
This still sounds extraordinary. Within the first 60 seconds it's clear this is something unique and beautiful.
That voice, his words and music, the performances and arrangements really are like nothing else.
It's incredible throughout but three songs in succession, all collaborations, are as good as anything you'll hear. 'You are My Sister' with Boy George. 'What Can I Do?' where he gives the lead vocal to Rufus Wainwright and switches to backing vocals (who does that? The generosity! And just because it works). Then 'Fistful of Love' with Lou Reed which I don't fully understand, it's difficult to listen to those words, so full of emotion and misplaced devotion.
His piano playing is wonderful, the music throughout is so good this would even work as an instrumental album. The final track is stunning.
Pure art.
The Notorious B.I.G.
1/5
From the start rap was competitive, bigging up as the best on the mic, just as reggae DJs and sound systems competed. But that was focussed on the music. Somehow the competiton, arrogance and egos turned to misogyny and gang culture. It all went wrong and ended up with stuff like this.
If his aim was to reinforce negative stereotypes he succeeded.
Maybe this was just aiming to reflect reality while making money, and maybe it did, but did it do anything to improve things? Or did it just glorify terrible attitudes and lifestyles, and perpetuate a bad situation? He died but does that give this any more value or significance? I think not.
Elvis Costello
3/5
Is there anyone in popular music now to compare with Elvis Costello or is songwriting like this dead?
'I don't know how much more of this I can take
She's filing her nails while they're dragging the lake'
'The detectives come to check if you belong to the parents
Who are ready to hear the worst about their daughter's disappearance'
'Watching The Detectives' is an absolute classic, one of the best songs of the time. So striking and evocative, very film noir, with a cool reggae backdrop and threatening atmosphere. A big influence on The Specials and more. I got into this fairly young, along with 'Oliver's Army', 'Shipbuilding' and the rest.
In a totally different way 'Alison' is just as good. He wrote some of the very best songs of the 70s and 80s.
Aside from those two this album is fairly average though.
I'm glad I saw him in '89, he was a force to be reckoned with.
Orange Juice
4/5
'Rip It Up' is the track everyone knows, how can something that catchy still sound great after 43 years?
As an album it's full of gems. I love Edwyn with his distinctive lyrics, look, voice and guitar, Orange Juice and their quirky, uplifting brand of indie, jangly, lilting, rhythmic, soulful, funky pop!
I only ever bought a 'best of' tape so enjoyed exploring this and will keep playing x
Oh, one last thing! After a couple of listens it struck me just how many tracks sound like Talking Heads!
And another thing! For a 10 minute emotional journey read about his health and watch the videos for Rip It Up, A Girl Like You and the new single Knowledge x
Bon Jovi
2/5
They did what they did, millions loved them, and he was adored by many!
Sadly not me, and listening to this now doesn't change anything. It's indie rock & roll for me :)
The second star is for the 'Livin' on a Prayer' bassline which is really cool, especially through the chorus.
5/5
Time takes a cigarette 🚬
I can't claim that seeing 'Starman' on TOTP changed my life, as many do, I was too young. But playing 'Rock & Roll Suicide' many times on a compilation tape from 1974 when I was 6, it must have influenced my love of music. That and 'Space Oddity' which used to be played so much on the radio.
It's staggering to think this was a pop album and made him a pop, as well as a rock star. It's so different, so cool, so challenging at times.
'Five Years' is an amazing opener, so evocative, it's as striking and visual as a Stephen King novel.
Starman, Moonage Daydream, Ziggy Stardust - what a riff!
It's iconic, influential, perfect. A star was born, or did he fall to earth?
N.W.A.
2/5
Yawn. Gets 2 because it's groovy in places and not worse than Adele.
Moby
3/5
Interesting one this, I bought it on the strength of Porcelain and Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad, and I played it a lot but always skipped a few tracks.
Listening for the first time in years it's still three tracks deep into the album that I love: Everloving, Guitar Flute & String and My Weakness. The samples and beats work well elsewhere but these instrumentals have so much depth and emotion.
Too patchy for a 4 :(
Terence Trent D'Arby
2/5
3 hit singles and I vaguely recognise the rest because my sister bought this and played it loads. I never liked it!
Aerosmith
2/5
'Walk This Way' is the only good thing here, cool guitars and drums. The version with Run DMC is so much better though.
I'll never listen to this again, not my thing!
M.I.A.
2/5
I like the ethnic sounds and energy but after a while this all got a bit tedious.
I want to give it 2.5, but even with a mighty fine Clash sample underpinning 'Paper Planes' I'll have to round it down.
Garbage
4/5
This is a corker! I forgot how much I like their sound and all the tracks are good up to and including 'Stupid Girl'. Production is brilliant, Butch Vig. Then it dips a bit until 'Milk' which is a good closer.
I'm off to listen to Goodbye Mr Mackenzie and Curve now. 3 bands with a link, glad I saw them all.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
2/5
This album is 10 days younger than me!
I don't mind it, some cool bluesy guitar.
Is it just me or is Janice Joplin the most overrated singer of all time?
Roxy Music
3/5
Not my favourite from Roxy, it's too contrived. The Thrill Of It All and Out Of The Blue are highlights. Scrapes a 3.
Ray Price
2/5
If Woody from Toy Story was a singer, and not a toy, he would sound like this!
Beastie Boys
2/5
I like some of their stuff, and really tried with this, but couldn't get into it.
Def Leppard
1/5
No, just no. So bad I just can't take them seriously.
All these years later I still can't decide who was worse, these or Whitesnake?
Pink Floyd
2/5
Brilliant but boring, across the album and even within tracks.
Title track is wonderful, but even that is flawed, I never liked the keyboards towards the end. And why two variations of such a long track to open and close the album?
Not their best, too proggy. Punk was a welcome reaction to stuff like this.
Meat Loaf
2/5
For some reason I've always loved 'Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad'. I can't explain why because it's just an overblown ballad, but there's something about the melody, the silly emotional lyrics, and the big chorus.
This trouble is that it's the only track I can listen too, and One out of Seven IS bad 😀
Blood, Sweat & Tears
3/5
Pastoral, Classical, Folk, Jazz, Sixties Psychedelia, 60s Pop, 60s Soul, Stax, Northern English Brass Band, 60s Funk, 60s Blues Rock, Virtuosity, Diversity, Music Hall, Show Tunes, Wit, Quirkiness, Intelligence. Occasionally beautiful, occasionally grating.
There's a lot going on here! I thought I'd never heard them before until it got to 'Spinning Wheel' which I recognised. Groovy!
I enjoyed this, but probably not enough to listen again.
Motörhead
3/5
I like their raw, fast, punky version of heavy rock.
Some great stuff here, Metropolis stands out, even though I'd never heard it before. That guitar sound is so good.
Lemmy was a character, and a thinker too.
Pearl Jam
2/5
Nirvana were fresh, melodic, exhilarating, exciting and emotional.
Pearl Jam were overwrought and dull. I recognised lots here, listening to the whole album didn't make me like them any more.
Kanye West
2/5
The second star is for 'I'll Fly Away' and the cool production.
B.B. King
4/5
Undeniably brilliant. He's feeling it, they're feeling it, I'm feeling it.
The Incredible String Band
1/5
I'm not averse to late 60s psychedelic folk and rock. Pentangle were incredible, Fairport Convention were cool.
But this is dreadful! There's a religious element to some of the lyrics which turns me off, and the rest are nonsense, I suspect magic mushrooms were consumed!🍄
Lightning Bolt
2/5
It's not just pure noise, they have something. Longstockings and Wonderful Rainbow stand out. I'll never listen to this again though.
Prefab Sprout
4/5
A nostalgic one this. Reminds me of the 6th Form common room, shy me, and a girl who was a fan of these and The Smiths - but was too nice to talk to! What a fool I was!
Apt really, because it's a romantic album. I bought it on vinyl and played side A loads but side B rarely. Listening now I feel just the same; Side A is full of finely crafted and beautiful pop songs. Side B slows down and gets too clever for itself, and even annoying at times.
5 🌟 for side A, 3 🌟 for side B.
Electric Light Orchestra
2/5
Post Beatles / Faux Rock 'n' Roll / Watered Down Orchestral nonsense!
The second star is for the last 60 seconds of the title track. Almost everything else is horrible. Overrated.
The Smiths
5/5
Lyrics, lyrics, lyrics! Such amazing lyrics.
Beautiful, emotional, unusual, individual, outspoken, genuine, political, hilarious, intelligent, informed. I could quote, but where to start? Almost every song us packed full of perfect words. The Morrissey who is often slated now wrote 'It's so easy to laugh, it's so easy to hate, it takes strength to be gentle and kind'.
Tunes, tunes, tunes! Much as I love Johnny Marr as a guitar player, it's the tunes he wrote here which are so beautiful. 'I know It's Over and 'The Boy With The Thorn in His Side' are gorgeous. As of course is 'There is A Light', surely their finest moment, everything comes together, achingly beautiful and poignant. Only they could have written this. 39 years since it was released and I am still moved as I listen and write.
I spent so many hours listening to this album, especially in the first 10 years after it was released when I was 17. It was such a soundtrack to those times for me and so many others who didn't feel they fitted in, or even agreed, with the mainstream, and simply loved what they heard.
Many thought they were depressing but here they are uplifting and often hilarious. 'Frankly Mr Shankly' was the soundtrack to my first, awful job, at a bank. It was in my head as I wrote my resignation letter!
Morrissey Marr Rourke Joyce. They all play their part from the blistering opener to the beautiful closer.
Is there one blemish? The lyrics to the final track? Maybe! But it is what it is, and this is one of the finest albums ever recorded, and possibly my favourite :)
All that, and I've not even mentioned 'Cemetery Gates', perfection!
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3/5
This one will always divide opinion, the great feedback debate!
I'm on the fence, I would like this album much more if it didn't dominate so much. One of my favourite tracks is 'Some Candy Talking' and that has none, just a cool guitar sound. But I bought that as a single released after the album, so it shouldn't really be included.
So I really got into them after this album when the feedback was dropped, but I understand its influence and there's something cool about a beautiful pop melody through a haze of white noise. Where it works best is, of course, 'Just Like Honey' which gets a star all of its own, beautiful and cool.
If you haven't seen 'Lost in Translation' then watch it! One of my favourite films, and favourite closing sequence, where JLH plays a huge part.
p.s. I loved their look and copied it for a few years in the late 80s!
p.p.s I walked past Jim Reid in Wardour Street around 1990. Cool, moody bugger, as you'd expect :)
Miles Davis
3/5
Surprisingly what I liked most about this was the great guitar touches, there are wonderful quiet sections when Miles is not playing!
I know he is heralded as a genius, this is definitely great music, but I don't really connect with it and find it a bit boring.
Venom
2/5
'Buried Alive' is joyous and uplifting!
There are some decent heavy riffs in here but the lyrics and voice are silly, especially the spoken stuff!
I'd rather listen to this than some feeble 'Christian Rock' though.
Led Zeppelin
2/5
He's obviously a great guitarist but as a band I think they are massively overrated. Robert Plant is so annoying!
The best thing about them is John Paul Jones and his orchestral arrangements, especially on 'Automatic For The People' which I listened too once I'd struggled through this!
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
I love it when a guitar track changes pace, turns on a sixpence, goes in an unexpected and wonderful direction. 'Take Me Out', 'I am The Resurrection' and add 'Ramble Tamble' to the list.
What a brilliant way to open the album, the shift into the instrumental section that slowly but surely soars. Magical.
'Lookin Out My Back Door' is another new favourite, it's so alive, so vibrant, so imaginative, I'm there with John and the band, I see the giant and elephants too!
'Up Around The Bend' is just great, what a riff! I've played this loads since I've had Spotify, it's so vibrant and fresh.
'Heard it through The Grapevine' is too long but they got so into the groove they just couldn't stop, and they do a great song justice. Just as soulful as the Marvin Gaye version but darker, brooding, more raw, maybe more believable. And those guitars x
'Who'll stop The Rain' is terrific too.
Aside from that it's all swampy bluesy rock that can't quite match the highlights.
Somehow I'm listening to them in hot sticky weather again it just works. CCR must have been amazing to see live, they created their sound and nail it.
The Police
3/5
The 80s were well underway, and you can hear it in the production. The Police were huge and Sting's arrogance was reaching it's peak!
But I have to say 'Every Breath You Take', 'King Of Pain', and 'Wrapped Around Your Finger' is a great run of songs.
Good enough to grab the album an extra star!
Big Star
4/5
Sits somewhere after The Byrds, alongside Glam, and before REM and Teenage Fanclub who they certainly influenced. I bet The Lemon Twigs have heard this too!
I've heard bits before and really like this :)
Some great guitars and harmonies. Not as jangly as I expected. I love his lead voice too.
'The Ballad of El Goodo', 'Thirteen' and the gorgeous 'Watch The Sunrise' stand out.
Will keep listening and explore their other albums. Easy to hear why they are loved by bands I love ❤️
Morrissey
3/5
'Certain People I know' is jaunty enough but the main riff rips off 'Ride a White Swan'.
Overall this is ok but that's all. Mick Ronson's input can be heard in the guitar sound which is a bit glam, a bit indie. Overall it falls short of his best solo stuff and is miles away from The Smiths at their best.
The Temptations
3/5
'Papa Was A Rollin' Stone' dominates and even stretched to 11 minutes the full version is fantastic.
Apart from that it's patchy, but I really like the closer 'Do Your Thing'.
They had a magnificent sound, no doubt.
5/5
Oh wow :)
Into very familiar territory here. I probably heard 3 or 4 of the best known and most radio friendly songs before I was 5 years old. Then in '88 to celebrate its 21st birthday the NME organised a charity version of the album with cover versions, but I bought the original on CD.
What can I say about one of the most discussed albums of all time? From the moment 'Sgt Pepper' segues into 'With A Little Help from My Friends' the magic begins.
A magical tour of songs and sound, imagery and effects. It's so rich, so musical (I realise how daft that sounds), so engaging, and at times so touching (She's Leaving Home).
It's pointless breaking down the songs, I've seen several documentaries that do that, there are probably books that do the same. Paul may dominate but they all play their part, including of course, George Martin.
As an album, a 40 minute collection of songs flowing from one to the next, this is (for me at least) unsurpassed.
Wonderful to play it again, as it always will be.
P.S. I'm happy to say, without reservation, that I even love 'When I'm Sixty Four' :)
Guided By Voices
2/5
A collection of short lo-fi indie tunes.
Occasionally flirts with a Flaming Lips sound.
'As We Go Up, We Go Down' is my favourite, by some distance.
That's it. Not enough here to make the list.
Pretenders
3/5
Some decent post punk/pop tracks throughout but Stop Your Sobbing, Brass in Pocket, Private Life and Kid (my favourite) really stand out here.
The Beach Boys
4/5
Ecological and Social themes. Beautiful melodies, interesting sounds.
I knew the Beach Boys had depths and richness in their pop but this still took me by surprise, having never heard it before. I really got into the atmosphere of the second side with headphones on.
I love the little known Lightning Seeds album 'Four Winds' and it's sound is clearly influenced by this.
All in all this was an unexpected treat :)
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
3/5
I knew two songs here before I even knew who they were. 'Teach Your Children' and 'Our House' which still sounds lovely, a genuine moment in a song.
I got into Neil Young and Bufallo Springfield before I got into CSNY. I like some of it but not all. Helpless, 40 + 20 and Country Girl, along with Our House stand out.
Stephen Stills was great, not sure he really made the most of his talent.
Air
4/5
I really enjoyed this!
Funny because I don't like their more successful album much but this is very different. Calmer, quieter, looser, less groovy, often darker, deeper, more absorbing and far more beautiful.
So many tracks are good but 'Bathroom Girl', 'Afternoon Sister' and 'Dead Bodies' stood out on first listen. Overall it reminded me of Mogwai, even touches of early OMD and Radiohead. Some really atmospheric stuff here.
Will listen again for sure. 9/10 if I could :)
Kate Bush
5/5
What a pleasure to listen to this again. Late in the evening, on headphones, no distractions, straight through, 47 minutes alone in Kate's world.
Side A is brilliant and contains three of my favourite singles of the era, 'Cloudbusting' is magnificent and gets me from the very opening 'I still dream...'. Her voice, the feeling in it all.
Side B takes a deeper, more creative, sometimes experimental, sometimes darker, ambitious, diverse, beautiful, brave and passionate turn. A journey through a night of dreams and nightmares until morning. Listened to properly in one take it's so rewarding.
On this form she was peerless. Up there with Bowie for originality and creativity. In some ways this reminds me of 'Low', but for me it's even better.
She's amazing, and this is her best album.
Butthole Surfers
3/5
Memorable band name I heard years ago, first time listening to them.
Ambient keyboards, melodic guitar, noise, a huge riff, numerous tempo changes, and shouty maniacal chaos. And that's all in track 1, an amazing start!
There are tracks in here that are almost unlistenable, challenging themselves and the listener. It would be easy to right it off as crap but there's way too much going on for that to be true.
'Kuntz' is, well, err, amazing. And unexpected!
'22 Going On 23' reminds me of 'Little Fluffy Clouds' with the taped voices as a hook into the track and then to close, but instead of being light it's dark and sad, nightmarish instead of dreamlike, and it works, especially with the amazing guitar work and heavy bass.
'Human Canonball' is straight up post punk and really good.
Nirvana, Sonic Youth and The Pixies must surely have been listening to them in the 80s. I doubt I'll listen to the whole album again but I'll check out more of their stuff.
Dusty Springfield
4/5
What is it about Dusty and her lovely voice?
It's soulful, hopeful and vulnerable. It's genuine and it connects, with me at least.
I first heard a few of her big hits as a teenager. I wasn't listening to anything remotely similar in the 80s and 90s but bought a compilation and loved it.
This is a bit of a mix. I could listen to anything she did. This doesn't have many of her VERY best but Anyone Who Had A Heart, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow, Wishin' and Hopin' and Colouring Book are wonderful.
The extended version on Spotify is too long but I'm rating the original album tracks!
Kendrick Lamar
3/5
Would it be cool if I loved him and loved this?
Most of the music is definitely cool. Minimalist, a backdrop, a soundtrack.
I know he's widely revered but far too much here is predictable, especially the sexual references. I can't tell if they are supposed to be funny? Some may just be unintentionally hilarious!
I expected more genuine social commentary. There is some, especially later on in the album, but even then it doesn't grab me, it's too clichéd. And turning to God, or the idea of turning to God, does nothing for me.
Another issue! His spoken word vocals are cool sometimes, but so annoying when he does the high squeaky stuff! Is that even him?
Near the end "Real' goes on and on about loving yourself. A tired message.
'Compton' is closer to what I expected from the whole album.
Hey ho, maybe I'm just old. For rap with social commentary I prefer Public Enemy and 'The Message'. Away from rap Bob Dylan, Matt Johnson, Billy Bragg, Morrissey, even The Housemartins and more recently Bob Vylan all have more to say.
Gets a third star, but only just.
MC Solaar
4/5
This is cool. Love his rich and fluid delivery, love the jazzy & soulful, sometimes lively/sometimes chilled out, always groovy hip hop soundscape. There's a warmth to the overall sound. Great drum loops, so rhythmic.
Lots of old samples (Marvin Gaye stands out) but has a 90s feel. Would sit nicely alongside Massive Attack & Morcheeba.
We even get a touch of ragga near the end with a backing that could be Big Audio Dynamite. Think I'll play them next!
New York Dolls
4/5
Starts off sounding like a thrashy Stones/Faces rip off but by 'Trash' I can suddenly hear the clear influence they had on The Ramones, Pistols, Clash, Blondie, Television and more.
It's energetic, ramshackle and crazy but that's the point. The more I hear the more I like it. The closer 'Jet Boy' is the only track I really knew. Really cool guitars and all.
Will listen to this again and again. Rock & Roll, Glam & Punk are all here.
Black Sabbath
4/5
Side A is amazing. Those first 4 classic tracks are fantastic, great heavy sound of course, but great variety too.
Side B dips a bit for me but the closer 'Fairies Wear Boots' is so good. Quirky trippy lyrics, so dynamic, such brilliant changes of pace.
I don't like Heavy Metal, and don't like that much heavy rock, but Sabbath pretty much created it all and at their best they were brilliant.
Michael Jackson
2/5
Not for me. Sorry Michael.
Actually I'm not sorry!
Stevie Wonder
2/5
I knew more of this than I thought. 'Sir Duke', 'As', and of course the sickly, insipid 'Isn't She Lovely'.
He's obviously hugely talented but most of his stuff does nothing for me. The funky stuff is ok, his ballads are generally horrible!
Too many tracks are too long. The reissue on Spotify is way too long. I usually find and listen to the original track listing but I really couldn't be bothered so skipped a bit. Life's too short!
Beatles
4/5
This is great. Young enough to be filled with their raw beat-group energy, and their broadening range and burgeoning songwriting talents are here for everyone to hear, And I Love Her' and 'Things We Said Today' stand out.
John's edge, attitude, songwriting and energy are to the fore too, and he sounds fantastic. Ringo drives it along. George shines on later albums when he was given the opportunity. His song here is not the best!
All that, and the most famous opening chord in pop. And a beautiful song which will forever remind me of my Dad.
UB40
3/5
I liked them and saw them in '86.
Beyond the brilliant 'Food For Thought' and 'King' which I already knew, nothing stands out.
They got much bigger with Labour of Love but 'One in Ten' is still their classic for me.
Fairport Convention
3/5
Richard Thompson is great. Sandy Denny was great.
I've heard and liked lots of their stuff in the last 10 years, but have never listened to this album.
Lots of it I love. The trio of 'Matty Groves', 'Farewell, Farewell' and 'The Deserter' are fantastic. I'll definitely add them to my list of folk favourites. It's not an actual list, but you know what I mean!!
'Crazy Man Michael' makes that list too, so, so good.
Aside from that it's patchy. Too many tracks are too long.
There's some genuine brilliance here, even though I wouldn't listen the whole album again.
Parliament
2/5
I like a funky bassline but not this.
All a bit daft.
The Isley Brothers
4/5
Something compelled me to play this on a sunny drive home from work. I was pulled in on a summer breeze!
I knew they were soulful and funky but the great sound throughout from the band, especially the cool guitar, took me by surprise.
A really enjoyable listen, very 70s, very cool, bathed in a golden light. The spacey guitar is great, almost psychedelic.
Really good. Doesn't dip. Not too long.
Hard to believe they wrote 'Shout' and had a hit with 'This Old Heart Of Mine' years before then reinvented themselves with this sound. The arrangements and production are stunning.
One negative - lots of covers and The Doobie Brothers original of 'Listen to The Music' is far better than their cover.
Sparks
4/5
Look up 'Sparks' in the Oxford English dictionary and what does it say?
1. Small shooting flames generated by a fire or friction.
2 The opposite of bland.
As a 6 or 7 year old watching Top Of The Pops or seeing their picture anywhere Ron scared me shitless.
'This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both of Us' is by equal measure preposterous and magnificent. It sounds better now than when I first heard it 50 years ago. 'Amateur Hour" is great too.
And the rest of the album, most of which I have never heard before, does not disappoint.
At times they could be Franz Ferdinand, the tight pop guitar structure is there, but they are so much weirder. It's no wonder FF worked with them years later, I can here them in 'Thank God it's Not Christmas' and loads of others.
Somehow the energetic madness becomes a bit samey on the last few tracks but the brillant opener gets a star on its own, maybe two.
And finally, for about 40 years, I thought they were German! Early impressions and that tash.
David Bowie
5/5
Spiky angular cool funky strange unsettling uplifting futuristic (for 76/77) challenging intelligent arty swinging layered pop rock synth complex light dark darker moving fascinating heartbreaking absorbing enveloping cinematic innovative groundbreaking influential.
Bowie. Eno. Brilliance.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
3/5
Truly beautiful voices, individually and collectively.
They must have been amazing to see and hear performing in a location with great acoustics, a church or something.
There's such warmth and humanity. It's no surprise Paul Simon was drawn to them. In some ways it's sad that they are best known for Graceland but he brought them to the attention of the world.
Lovely.
R.E.M.
5/5
Tick.
Tock.
Tick.
Tock.
I spent many hours listening to this in my 20s. Mainly alone, on vinyl, all through most times.
Few 'rock' albums have such depth, it's an album that takes its time, an album to wallow in. Starts so slow and strong, ebbs and flows, has moments of genuine beauty musically and emotionally, sadness and hope, then ends with three of the finest songs in succession to close any album. 'Find The River' is achingly beautiful.
It dips a little in the middle but not enough to mark it down.
Wonderful.
Solomon Burke
3/5
Great voice, and I love the old blues/soul sound. I can't fault it but somehow doubt I would listen to him again.
Kelela
1/5
In a select group that are lucky there's no zero stars option.
Rahul Dev Burman
2/5
Better than Shalamar but only just!
Started quirky and interesting but I soon tired of this. Sorry to all my lovely Indian friends and colleagues who love Bollywood 😞
The Undertones
3/5
Great weren't they, I loved them. A brilliant singles band, perfect punk/pop.
Apart from those singles and Family Entertainment which I knew from a Best Of tape nothing really stands out.
But they were great, and although I never saw them live at least I saw That Petrol Emotion and they were fantastic :)
The Smiths
5/5
Oh yes, I'd forgotten how wonderful these songs are.
I always say The Queen Is Dead is my favourite Smiths album and it's the one I've listened to in full the most but this really is just as good.
Less polished, maybe more of an edge lyrically and musically. They are all on brilliant form, Marr and Rourke may never have sounded better together than here. Just listen to 'Barbarism...'.
Loads of tracks are foot tapping in a fidgety way. Morrissey gets political in his own way and is often hilarious.
Then there are the beautiful, yearning 'Well I Wonder' and 'That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore' which I know well but listened to twice, hearing those layers of acoustic guitars and the amazing electric background in the closing part, Marr creating such atmosphere
The title track may divide opinion but who can argue with the truth? And he was saying this long before most..
All in all, pretty wonderful.
The Doors
4/5
I love this!
I only knew the obvious tracks but it's all good.
The stripped back live bluesy sound is great. The addition of a proper bass player on this really makes a difference. Late at night on headphones it sounds amazing, such clarity, a brilliant recording.
Riders On The Storm is, of course, magnificent.
Final thought. John Densmore, what a drummer.
Beatles
3/5
A real mish mash of ideas. Hit and miss but Dear Prudence, While My Guitar, Blackbird, Julia and Helter Skelter are great. The other version of Revolution is better than the one here though.
Rocky Raccoon should be awful, one of Paul's ditties but this time set in the wild west, somehow I love it.
Bizarre at it is I like Ringo's closer Good Night too.
It has to be said, there's a lot of rubbish here though, and I'd never listen to it end to end.
Suede
5/5
What a debut. 'So Young' and 'Animal Nightrate' are a magnificent opening couplet, a real statement of intent.
Edgy glam, full of back street neon glow atmosphere, full of attitude and full of riffs.
'She's Not Dead' drops the pace and is gorgeous, 'Moving' picks it straight back up with thunderous drums and frantic guitar, Brett rides the wave.
'The Drowners' has that mighty riff, maybe my favourite live track of theirs.
'Metal Micky' was the first single of theirs I bought. It still sounds magnificent.
Things drop a bit but the guitars on 'Animal Lover' are great and 'The Next Life' is a wonderful closer. One of their very best, and most moving songs.
There are a few weaker tracks but this is still a wonderful album. I've only seen them live with Richard Oakes, and while they were great I wish I'd seen them live early on with Bernard Butler too.
9.5 gets marked up x
Gene Clark
3/5
Tricky one this!
I love The Byrds, I like him, his songs and music, but somehow I don't love this album.
There are highlights; With Tomorrow, Because of You, For a Spanish Guitar. It all sounds great and I've listened to some tracks many times. But overall it drags a little.
Maybe a little earnest, no spark of genuine emotion of energy. Ah well.
Steely Dan
2/5
Lots of people really rate Steely Dan.
I don't.
Rush
1/5
This is what happens when technical proficiency dominates in rock music. Totally devoid of emotion, energy, excitement, swagger, swing, groove, edge, fun, attitude, aggression, subtlety or beauty.
And he has a very silly voice.
Horrific.
The Beta Band
4/5
If ever a little known album by a little known band deserved to be on the list this it.
I know and like 'Dry the Rain' but hadn't heard any of these tracks before and absolutely loved it. Played it end to end on headphones and got really into it. Really imaginative stuff, really unusual, great sound, great sequence of tracks throughout.
A whisker away from a 5 on first listen 🎶
Black Sabbath
3/5
Their debut. The key components are there but somehow mixed in with a few generic late 60s rock sounds, so for me it doesn't stand out like their later albums.and I don't think many songs here really stand out.
Worth a listen though, and still cooler than most heavy rock.
Tim Buckley
3/5
Weird one this. A lot of it I really don't like, it's all a bit earnest. But some of the instrumentation I like, it's unusual, surprisingly reminded me of Pentangle.
There's some pure nonsense like 'Goodbye and Hello' which is awful and so so long!
But 'Phantasmagoria', 'Morning Glory' and 'Once I Was' are all good and deserve more listens. Scrapes a 3 but only just.
Public Enemy
5/5
A stunning album.
Such a striking, groovy and exciting collage of sound. The funky drummer loop is all over this and was everywhere for the next 3 years!
Chuck D is amazing, one of the best voices in modern music. What he says and how he says it, so cool and so important.
And if that wasn't enough I've just been looking at Chuck D's amazing artwork. Some people are almost too talented!
For me the best hip hop group ever. Listen loud.
The Smiths
4/5
Their last album and for me their weakest.
Girlfriend In a Coma and Unhappy Birthday are tongue in cheek but come across as parodies of themselves. In fact most tracks are fairly average (for them) until the last three which I still love and play regularly.
'Paint a Vulgar Picture' stands out. A damning view of fame, adoration, the media and music industry exploitation. And all set to Johnny Marr's magnificent guitar, from those opening riffs, brilliant rhythm backing to the magnificently short but uplifting solo which I never tire of and play loud on a regular basis!
'I Won't Share You' is a fitting full stop on their recorded output, a beautiful closer.
I can't help thinking the opening track hints at Morrissey's political leanings though, sadly.
Radiohead
4/5
I loved Radiohead from Creep through The Bends to OK Computer.
Kid A and this one passed me by completely, purely because babies arrived and priorities changed!
I've grown to love Kid A but never listened to this in full before, despite loving certain tracks.
Opener '2+2=5' is one of them, classic edgy, fidgety Radiohead, blistering guitars.
'Sail To The Moon' is glorious, beautiful.
'Go To Sleep' is great, starts as folky as Radiohead could be and blends into more familiar brillance.
'Where I End and You Begin' was a shock, as a fan of early Simple Minds I loved it.
'A Punch Up at a Wedding' lays down a rare Radiohead groove.
Of course the mighty 'There, There' is my favourite. One of their finest tracks, and one of the best rock songs of the millennium. It broods, it builds, it explodes. I've loved it since I saw their scorching Glastonbury version years ago.
But overall this has too many average tracks to match up to their best albums. Great moments though.
Nirvana
5/5
Oh Kurt.
I remember watching this on MTV months before he died then buying the CD when it was released months after. I played it loads and it's something I always go back to.
It all works, the stripped down feel and his wonderful voice, full of genuine emotion.
Their own songs all work, the covers all work, and on video they looked so damn cool.
I love that it opens with 'About A Girl' a genuinely classic track from before they were huge, and a version that for me is better than the recorded version. The same could maybe be said for 'The Man Who Sold The World' too, and that's REALLY saying something.
Kurt's voice is is so raw, so genuine.
Of course it's drenched in sadness but this captures them at that moment. Who knows what more they, or more accurately he, was capable of.
Judas Priest
2/5
I remember them on TOTP when I was about ten.
Now they are favourites on Planet Rock.
Just thd kind of heavy rock I can't stand. The lyrics especially are just so bad! Do they or any of their fans care what I think? Of course not, and nor should they 😀
Hugh Masekela
2/5
It's very long.
I'm sure it's very good but if truth be known I would never listen to a jazz album.
Nirvana
5/5
The best pure rock album of my lifetime.
The hidden track is best hidden though!
Duran Duran
3/5
5 hit singles or was it 6? 3 of them massive.
I liked them but was never a true fan.
The best track for me is 'The Chauffeur'. Never a hit but darker, more mysterious.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
3/5
I'm not keen on their accents in the spoken intros. Is it wrong to dislike an accent?!
But they can certainly play and 'Nashville Blues' is spectacularly good, as is 'Black Mountain Rag' and 'Canonball Rag'. So close to traditional Irish or Scottish music, the roots of this music must lie there. 'You are My Flower' is pretty and sweet. 'Dark as a Dungeon' is good.
In general I prefer the instrumentals. There are so many singers here, some I like much more than others!
'Will The Circle Be Unbroken' is the only song here I know, but I much prefer the Wonders tuff version!
3/5
A really solid 3 but I really can't give it any more. They've done some really good stuff but I rarely listen to Muse, they rarely excite or move me. Controversial!
David Holmes
2/5
If this was all instrumental I'd quite like it.
The format with recorded clips of people in NY soon becomes boring.
The Black Keys
3/5
I like them and this is good, really good, sounded great in the car.
But will I play it much? Probably not.
Favourite track is 'I'm Not The One'. If this hasn't been used in a film or TV drama then it should be!
Bob Dylan
4/5
Not quite the classic it's said to be but 'Just Like A Woman', 'I Want You' and 'Stuck Inside of Mobile' are wonderful.
Talking Heads
4/5
What a great, distinctive, groovy, catchy, angular, intelligent, listenable debut.
Really benefits from listening on headphones, without distractions.
They pulled so many elements together into their own sound, and you can hear their influence in so many 'indie' guitar bands that followed.
Great stuff, they are all on form and David is brilliant.
2/5
Track 1 is awful. 18 minutes is a very long time to listen to something you can't stand.
Track 2, I liked. To my complete surprise! Will listen to all 10 minutes again some time.
Track 3 and I'm struggling. The formula of starting busy with quite groovy guitars, then slowing with keyboards, then back up with guitars is becoming clear.
Track 4 and a surprise cover version! They murder a great song though.
Both stars are for track 2. 'And You and I' which I'm listening to for a second time already!
Soundgarden
2/5
I never really got Soundgarden. I still don't.
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
Bridge Over Troubled Water is their biggest album but this is definitely my favourite of theirs.
Lovely, beautiful, delicate, pastoral stuff. Great songwriting. Have acoustic guitars and voices ever sounded prettier?
And then there's the Bob Dylan ripoff, and the final track is surprising, but really well done.
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
Fantastic stuff of course but gets a 4 because I go on original releases and lots of the best tracks on the Spotify version were only added to 90s CD reissued.
Can't count them!
Incubus
2/5
Faith No More lite.
I'd rather listen to The Real Thing ;-)
Supertramp
3/5
I kind of like Supertramp and their thoughtful keyboard driven soft rock!
An album was a bit much though, and nothing here comes close to 'Logical Song' which is superb.
Richard Hawley
5/5
Every second, every note, every line, every word is perfectly crafted and wrapped in a warm nostalgic glow.
Harks back to another time but the emotion is current and genuine.
Pretty much perfect from start to finish, I've loved this since I first played it 20 years ago.
He's a rare talent and this is a gem of an album. Gorgeous!
Radiohead
4/5
It has a wonderful, often cinematic, electronic atmosphere. 'Everything In Its Right Place', 'Motion Picture Soundtrack' and (especially) 'How To Disappear Completely' stand out.
Really good throughout but not great, apart from HTDC which is great!
The Beach Boys
3/5
Not sure what to say about this. The best known tracks are great, the arrangements are great, the production may have been groundbreaking but often sounds dated now, and as an album it's really overrated.
John Lennon
3/5
It's patchy but 'Hold On' and a few others are good. In very different ways 'Working Class Hero' and "Love' are wonderful.
At times he sounds a bit annoying on this album though, can't explain why, self indulgent maybe.
Talk Talk
5/5
I'm happier to see this on the 1001 list than any other album so far.
I was 17 when this was released and already a Talk Talk fan. I knew and liked their early hits. They seemed different to most electronic 80s bands, cool but intelligent, great tunes, great basslines. Mark Hollis was an intriguing front man. Synths were big in the early 80s so their general sound was not unusual.
Then they released 'Life's What You Make It' with that piano riff, or is it a piano bassline? And the great guitar, the woodland video, the whole sentiment.
'It's My Life' to 'Life's What You Make It' doesn't sound like much of a shift, but something was happening, a change in their sound. When I played the B-Side 'It's getting Late In The Evening' I was blown away.
Then the album was released and I couldn't stop playing it. From the opening seconds it demands your attention, and rewards those who really listen. It's so rich, so textured, so emotional. It defies definition, there are some conventional songs but many moments where percussive texture and feel take over.
I won't pick out tracks, that seems pointless. But the album flows brilliantly, often slowly, and reveals itself the more you listen. It opens, and closes beautifully. Spring may be a theme but it sounds beautiful on this Autumn evening. I think it has many themes, but rebirth and redemption are certainly among them.
Looking back this can be seen as a bridge to their later work. The album which followed it is astonishing, and is rightly lauded, but at the time, and now, this is wonderful in its own right.
They really were amazing. I can't think of any band that developed and matured musically as much as Talk Talk, except maybe The Beatles.
In some ways I think they deserve to be better known, but they chose their artistic path and I'm glad they did. I'm glad their later work now is now respected, but sad that Mark Hollis is no longer with us.
I think this was among the first dozen albums I ever bought, their music opened my mind to what art can do, the beauty within.
Hawkwind
2/5
I don't mind 'Silver Machine' but 2 hours 12 of this stuff is not a good investment of my time.
I skipped through and gave it about 15 minutes. Sorry if I've broken the rules!
Eminem
1/5
Without 'Stan' this would get 1 🌟
Without the Dido sample on Stan this would be a 1 🌟
And I'm not even a Dido fan!
Pointless, just pointless. And didn't he mime at Reading?
Actually this IS a 1 🌟. He's annoying.
Depeche Mode
4/5
DM getting mean, moody and, errr, sexy!
I bought this on vinyl and liked it. Starts really strong with three great tracks, brilliantly sequenced.
I love the way 'Never Let Me Down Again' bleeds into 'The Things You Said' which is probably my favourite track.
Having said that 'Behind The Wheel' is really cool too. After that it fades a bit, apart from 'Nothing' which is great.
Cool & powerful synth-pop. And one of the best album titles so far.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
'Rocks Off' is a great opener, The Stones come out swinging.
'Tumbling Dice' has become one of my favourite Stones tracks. Really soulful, and Charlie lays down such a cool groove, love the fills.
Aside from that there are lots of cool bluesy and acoustic guitars but hardly any stand out songs.
Bob Dylan
3/5
This is ok, mostly cool and better than I expected.
The stripped down sound from his band is cool and his vocals work. The lyrics and atmosphere are genuine, very visual.
Lots of good stuff but the closing track is about 10 minutes too long.
XTC
3/5
I like the first track and the last. Apart from that I was disappointed because I like XTC because they were ok at best and annoyingat worst.
Sneaks a 3 because it's better than the albums I've given a 2. There's some complex logic in my ratings :)