My 1001 Albums Journey

268

Albums Rated

3.66

Average Rating

25%

Complete

821 albums remaining

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5-Star Albums

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Albums

You Love More Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
Southern Rock Opera Drive-By Truckers	5	2.82	+2.18
Red Dirt Girl Emmylou Harris	5	2.86	+2.14
Damaged Black Flag	5	2.87	+2.13
Teenager Of The Year Frank Black	5	3	+2
Time (The Revelator) Gillian Welch	5	3.06	+1.94
Manassas Stephen Stills	5	3.07	+1.93
New York Dolls New York Dolls	5	3.12	+1.88
Truth Jeff Beck	5	3.17	+1.83
The Boatman's Call Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds	5	3.2	+1.8
All Mod Cons The Jam	5	3.25	+1.75

You Love Less Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
Gorillaz Gorillaz	1	3.53	-2.53
The College Dropout Kanye West	1	3.31	-2.31
Melody A.M. Röyksopp	1	3.21	-2.21
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Raekwon	1	2.86	-1.86
Club Classics Vol. One Soul II Soul	1	2.82	-1.82
Scott 2 Scott Walker	1	2.63	-1.63
Illmatic Nas	2	3.61	-1.61
Boy In Da Corner Dizzee Rascal	1	2.57	-1.57
Penance Soiree The Icarus Line	1	2.49	-1.49
Hybrid Theory Linkin Park	2	3.39	-1.39

Artists

Favorites

Artist	Albums	Average
Pink Floyd	3	4.67
Bruce Springsteen	3	4.67
The Smiths	2	5
Nirvana	2	5
Led Zeppelin	2	5
Queen	2	5
David Bowie	4	4.25
Stevie Wonder	3	4.33

5-Star Albums (59)

View Album Wall

Popular Reviews

Inspiration Information

Shuggie Otis

5/5

Incredible performance, underrated masterpiece. One of the best.

4 likes

The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter

The Incredible String Band

3/5

Strange with moments of beauty. Will listen again.

1 likes

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

3/5

Groovy hippy easy listening with a few great songs.

1 likes

4-Star Albums (102)

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

1-Star Albums (14)

All Ratings

Bridge Over Troubled Water

Simon & Garfunkel

5/5

Bridge is an amazing song - those vocals are heavenly. Such a complicated relationship between the two of them. But somehow the music was beautiful, having arisen out of both love and contempt. Not so sure about the choice for the closer, but all in all this is a masterpiece.

Bryter Layter

Nick Drake

4/5

Everything that Nick Drake did was lovely in its own way. Hopeful to beautifully bleak. Bryter Layter is a wonderful album but for some reason I prefer Nick on his own. Nevertheless, excellent work and highly recommended.

Automatic For The People

R.E.M.

5/5

R.E.M. somehow solidified their place in history with this album. True to their roots, innovative, and somehow accessible. I love every song.

Meat Is Murder

The Smiths

5/5

I bought this album on cassette when it was released in the USA. It was my first Smiths album. Somehow it resonated with me deeply, and to this day still does. I am likely a bit biased here as this music elicits an emotional and nostalgic feeling in me. Happy and sad. Beautiful lyrics and musicianship.

Reggatta De Blanc

The Police

5/5

Excellent. Listening to this album via headphones really highlights the virtuosity of the Police. Second cousins to Rush in this regard. Quirky songs, odd rhythms, this has it all.

Heroes

David Bowie

4/5

A great album. As many have noted, not as breathtaking overall as the cream of the crop in Bowie’s discography, but there are a few standouts. And ‘Heroes’ is a song for the ages.

Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs

Marty Robbins

4/5

I have listened to this record for over 40 years. It somehow makes the violent, tragic, and hopeful world of the old west in the US come alive beautifully. I am a fan of Marty, and even enjoy his Hawaiian music. Check it out!

Fear Of A Black Planet

Public Enemy

5/5

Hearing these jams took me back a few years. I was able to catch Chuck D, Flavor Flav, and crew live a few times in the LA area. The music is infectious and the messages are more relevant than ever. I grew up in the Hawthorne area and worked in Carson, so even this white kid felt the energy around this form of socially conscious rap music. I was a little closer to the west coast sounds of Dr. Dre and Ice-T initially but these guys won me over with their astute assessment of racism in America. Five stars.

Trio

Dolly Parton

3/5

I love all three of these amazing singers, but I must say that individually each of them have better albums with better material. I do appreciate the lovely blending of their iconic voices on Trio.

Reign In Blood

Slayer

2/5

Blech. I didn’t enjoy this one much, but I guess the technical skills are there for playing at a high rate of speed. I can rock but need a bit of melodic beauty to temper the chaos.

Vento De Maio

Elis Regina

2/5

Note that this album was not available on Apple Music. Dull, light jazzy kind of filler music for me. The language barrier didn’t help either. Probably a very talented singer but without an emotional connection, I won’t be listening to this again.

Hunky Dory

David Bowie

5/5

Absolute masterpiece. I was engaged with every song despite their dissimilarities is subject matter and musical styles. A classic.

Black Sabbath

4/5

Muddy, silly, heavy, sloppy, awesome! Who could not love this?

...The Dandy Warhols Come Down

The Dandy Warhols

3/5

It was okay, perhaps good. Was it great? Not sure. Was it unique? Not really. I may need to listen again. Three stars for now.

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

5/5

Amazing album. I never tire of this dark musical journey.

Live And Dangerous

Thin Lizzy

2/5

For me this was somewhat dull predictable formula arena rock. Too many long and uninteresting guitar solos. I lost interest after a few songs.

Tidal

Fiona Apple

4/5

Abraxas

Santana

5/5

I’ve had a used copy of this record for decades but hadn’t listened in some time. I was blown away! Not only because of Carlos’ guitar playing but also the song craft and amazing rhythm section. A true masterpiece.

The Wall

Pink Floyd

5/5

Hard to be unbiased about this one. I purchased the album when it came out based mostly on the hit - ABITW part II, plus I was previously familiar with DEOTM. I was 11 years old. This album affected me greatly, and I found parallels between Roger/Pink and myself. The musicianship and songwriting are unparalleled, and the storyline is epic. Probably the best concept album of all time.

Teenager Of The Year

Frank Black

5/5

Absolutely fantastic and unexpected. I missed this album when it came out. An instant favorite for me.

Eagles

4/5

A few great songs here and plenty of wonderful harmonies. Peaceful and easy.

Nevermind

Nirvana

5/5

Incredible and timeless.

Bluesbreakers

John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

4/5

This kicks ass!

Go Girl Crazy

The Dictators

3/5

Zany, unexpectedly cool!

Time (The Revelator)

Gillian Welch

5/5

Incredible songs, performances, voices, and vibe. This album has such a country gothic feel to it. True masterpiece.

Foo Fighters

4/5

Amazing that Dave was able to pick up the pieces and record this gem all by himself. Excellent.

Heartbreaker

Ryan Adams

4/5

A really great album. I feel like it could grow on me over time.

Juju

Siouxsie And The Banshees

4/5

A classic for me. I’ll never forget seeing the Spellbound video on MV3 after school in LA.

Back In Black

AC/DC

5/5

Absolute classic. No bad songs here - they are all dumb and awesome.

Blur

3/5

Seems like a 2 1/2 for me but will be generous and begrudgingly award Blur a 3. I’m hearing something akin to a band that’s trying too hard. Gimmicky, derivative perhaps. Still some decent hooks, though. The good hooks are oftentimes lost in sound effects and such that detracted from my listening experience.

Ill Communication

Beastie Boys

4/5

Very enjoyable, musically diverse and creative. Will forgive the Boys for being brats.

Logical Progression

LTJ Bukem

3/5

If three hours and 27 minutes is considered to be the compilation/summary, I can’t image how long the original tracks must have been. Seems like a nice 45-minute compilation would better suit more normal human attention spans.

Black Monk Time

The Monks

3/5

Zany, wild man!

Jagged Little Pill

Alanis Morissette

5/5

The most perfect of perfect albums for me.

Cut

The Slits

3/5

I very much want to love this. I like the voices, the quirky beats, the instrumentation, and THAT COVER. But the songs don’t quite grab me. Plodding, not melodic. Heard it through the grapevine was a highlight. I still like this and perhaps with repeated listening it would grow on me.

Club Classics Vol. One

Soul II Soul

1/5

I’m, Soul II Soul was lacking….in Soul. Sorry, the a cappella songs were okay but those drum machines were monotonous. Give me some Parliament, Commodores, Earth, Wind, & Fire, or Chic for my Soul fix.

Scott 2

Scott Walker

1/5

I could swear that this was Annibale Giannarelli, the cheesy singer in a few spaghetti westerns, and made popular again by Quentin Tarantino. Anyway, this album and I did not connect in any way. Memories of the Lawrence Welk show minus the accordions.

Marquee Moon

Television

4/5

Pretty cool. I’ve heard a lot of hype about this album for years, and it is very very good. Love the guitar sounds. Not quite a five-star album for me yet, but perhaps with repeated listening it could get there.

Rattus Norvegicus

The Stranglers

4/5

Excellent songwriting and production. A really great example of what punk is capable of becoming with a little sophistication. Well, never mind the lyrics. Not so sophisticated.

My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Brian Eno

4/5

Wow, this was interesting. I surprisingly liked it. Torn between a 3 and a 4. Will splurge.

Aftermath

The Rolling Stones

5/5

Geez, this is great.

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys

4/5

A true classic of west coast punk.

At Budokan

Cheap Trick

4/5

Awesome! Such great songs and hooks.

Endtroducing.....

DJ Shadow

4/5

Surprised at how cool this was. I loved the eclectic feel to the music, which has moments of true beauty. I can get annoyed with too much gimmicky sampling but somehow this works great. Had a great headphones experience while working on a writing project.

The Stranger

Billy Joel

3/5

Some classic songs here along with a few duds. The classics are really good, though. I’ve never been into Billy Joel as he was pretty uncool for me in my punky youth. I’m still not quite sure how he fits in - Dad rock?

Dirty

Sonic Youth

3/5

Solid but I was never able to fully get sonic youth. I like the cool vibe and sound of the band, but the songwriting was never over the top for me. Anyway, this is an enjoyable listen and I especially enjoy Kim Gordon’s contributions.

All Hope Is Gone

Slipknot

3/5

I expected to dislike this, as I am not a fan of nu-metal and related. However, I kind of dug this, and not every song was pure thrash, so that’s good. This could grow on me…

Moving Pictures

Rush

5/5

Stunning. An absolute masterpiece. Also nostalgic for me and my buds during middle school.

The Village Green Preservation Society

The Kinks

4/5

Wonderful! A classic look at British life and change. A very creative, lovely album.

Viva Hate

Morrissey

3/5

I like this, but I like the Smiths much better. Good effort.

Southern Rock Opera

Drive-By Truckers

5/5

I expected this to suck. It didn’t. In fact, it was a revelation. I learned a lot about a place that has always sounded utterly horrible, but perhaps there is a possible more nuanced view available. Songs were great, everything was great. I’m fucking shocked. Five stars for me.

KIWANUKA

Michael Kiwanuka

5/5

Oh wow, is this great or what? Rarely does something so unfamiliar hit this deep. So glad I’ve joined this group,

Homework

Daft Punk

2/5

Repetitive, annoying. A few songs were okay.

Lost In The Dream

The War On Drugs

5/5

Really Fantastic! Five stars.

Melodrama

Lorde

3/5

Solid, emotional album. I had not listened to Lorde previously but will do so again.

Lust For Life

Iggy Pop

4/5

Excellent, in some ways contrasting with earlier efforts by the Stooges. I hear Bowie’s influence loud and clear.

Clube Da Esquina

Milton Nascimento

4/5

Beautiful music…

Nebraska

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Excellent

Are You Experienced

Jimi Hendrix

4/5

This is such a classic. Jimi changed music forever.

Strangeways, Here We Come

The Smiths

5/5

Musically strong, some amazing compositions. I am slightly more emotionally connected to their previous works, but this is also a masterpiece.

New York Dolls

5/5

Oh, this is so good!

The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Charles Mingus

4/5

Very nice.

Wild Is The Wind

Nina Simone

4/5

Deeply soulful.

Trans Europe Express

Kraftwerk

3/5

Strange but good.

Rock Bottom

Robert Wyatt

4/5

Strange, delicate, but good. Deserves more exploration.

I Should Coco

Supergrass

4/5

Really great!

Bayou Country

Creedence Clearwater Revival

4/5

A classic

Pacific Ocean Blue

Dennis Wilson

4/5

Both sad and beautiful. I can hear Brian’s influence.

We Are Family

Sister Sledge

3/5

A few classics here!

The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter

The Incredible String Band

3/5

Strange with moments of beauty. Will listen again.

Melody A.M.

Röyksopp

1/5

Boring but not good or peaceful enough to put me to sleep.

Penance Soiree

The Icarus Line

1/5

Um, terrible.

London Calling

The Clash

5/5

Perfection!

Tago Mago

Can

3/5

Very odd yet somehow kind of thrilling

No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith (Live)

Motörhead

3/5

Pretty awesome

Innervisions

Stevie Wonder

4/5

Beautiful!

Pump

Aerosmith

3/5

Okay

Red Dirt Girl

Emmylou Harris

5/5

Incredible album of subtlety and beauty.

Porcupine

Echo And The Bunnymen

4/5

Excellent.

Head Hunters

Herbie Hancock

4/5

Funky and cool

On The Beach

Neil Young

4/5

Sort of a sad, tired sounding masterpiece.

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi

2/5

I was never a fan of formula rock. Props for trying.

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

A Tribe Called Quest

4/5

Loved this!

Yank Crime

Drive Like Jehu

3/5

It had its moments, but also had periods of excessive noise.

Tubular Bells

Mike Oldfield

3/5

Strange, experimental.

Straight Outta Compton

N.W.A.

4/5

Despite the ham handed, offensive, stupid lyrics and silly rhymes, this thing is still a classic.

Stardust

Willie Nelson

5/5

Oh so lovely, sweet Willie.

The Dreaming

Kate Bush

3/5

Challenging, lush, interesting.

The Boatman's Call

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

5/5

A masterpiece of songcraft.

Funeral

Arcade Fire

5/5

I really enjoyed this! In a world of derivative music this somehow sounded original. Lovely arrangements and instrumentation.

1984

Van Halen

4/5

Better than what I remembered from the time!

Night Life

Ray Price

4/5

Surprised that this album actually impressed me the way it did.

Harvest

Neil Young

5/5

Lovely.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

5/5

Timeless

The Age Of The Understatement

The Last Shadow Puppets

4/5

Fantastic!

Tank Battles

Dagmar Krause

1/5

I’m sure that this type of music has its place among aficionados of the obscure. However, this obscure album probably never should have been included in the 1001 Albums book. I feel like I’ve just spent time in an East German prison.

Talking Book

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Beautiful, spiritual.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

2/5

A difficult listen and I wasn’t in the mood for such unsettling music today.

The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

5/5

Nothing left to say that hasn’t been said.

You Are The Quarry

Morrissey

3/5

A good Morrissey effort here.

Stankonia

OutKast

5/5

This is almost too fly for this white guy. Love it!

The Cars

4/5

Really great!

Mothership Connection

Parliament

3/5

I know I should love this, but I just like it. Sometimes a bit dull.

Electric Warrior

T. Rex

4/5

Great glam sound.

Inspiration Information

Shuggie Otis

5/5

Incredible performance, underrated masterpiece. One of the best.

Purple Rain

Prince

4/5

Great but to my ears the 80’s production impacts the potential for five stars.

Duck Rock

Malcolm McLaren

3/5

Hmmm…interesting.

Searching For The Young Soul Rebels

Dexys Midnight Runners

4/5

Really good. I somehow missed out on this back in the day.

Hybrid Theory

Linkin Park

2/5

A few good songs here…

There's No Place Like America Today

Curtis Mayfield

5/5

Sublime, beautiful.

Moondance

Van Morrison

4/5

Wonderful

The Gershwin Songbook

Ella Fitzgerald

3/5

Very nice.

Red Headed Stranger

Willie Nelson

4/5

Good stuff here from Sweet Willie.

Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin

5/5

What to say? Don’t play Stairway at the guitar shop?

Real Life

Magazine

4/5

Excellent

The Next Day

David Bowie

4/5

Fabulous!

Stephen Stills

3/5

I really enjoyed this underrated album.

Grace

Jeff Buckley

3/5

Very nice.

Tusk

Fleetwood Mac

4/5

Odd, massive.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

5/5

Loved this.

Let's Get It On

Marvin Gaye

5/5

Magnificent!

Step In The Arena

Gang Starr

3/5

Catchy, jazzy hip hop.

Vivid

Living Colour

3/5

Okay but not notable for me.

Shadowland

k.d. lang

4/5

Beautiful!

MTV Unplugged In New York

Nirvana

5/5

Perhaps the greatest live album of all time.

Siembra

Willie Colón & Rubén Blades

2/5

Salsa is not really my gig. I’m sure that many enjoy this type of music.

Opus Dei

Laibach

1/5

unlistenable.

Tapestry

Carole King

4/5

Incredible, vulnerable, powerful, heartwarming.

Casanova

The Divine Comedy

4/5

I had never heard of this album, let alone the band. This is a work of parody, camp, and novelty, aptly named. Though novelty or camp doesn’t connect with my musical soul, this is novelty on the grandest scale. In fact in a way this work seduced me much like its namesake, Casanova himself seduced his patrons and lovers. Rather than feeling ripped off or violated, I feel rather satisfied by the experience of listening to this album.

Nowhere

Ride

4/5

Excellent!

Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz

3/5

Pleasant and chill, but not the most compelling jazz I’ve ever heard. Still a very nice listen.

Zombie

Fela Kuti

3/5

It’s great groovy stuff.

Queen II

Queen

5/5

Majestic, brilliant.

Figure 8

Elliott Smith

4/5

Lovely, rich, and textured sounds. Sometimes dark lyrics. Sad fate for this tortured man.

All Mod Cons

The Jam

5/5

Incredible!

Music From Big Pink

The Band

5/5

Mysterious rock-gospel-country-soul. I do believe the hype. This is one of my favorite timeless albums of all time.

The Holy Bible

Manic Street Preachers

3/5

pretty good, needs another listen

Gasoline Alley

Rod Stewart

3/5

A very good album!

Parallel Lines

Blondie

5/5

A punky poppy masterpiece!

My Generation

The Who

4/5

Pretty good embryonic Who. But oh boy is My Generation a masterpiece, which elevates this album to 4 stars for me.

Group Sex

Circle Jerks

4/5

Silly boys. I’m from the area where this band started. I was too young when the band was playing gigs in the South Bay, and I’m too old now.

Microshift

Hookworms

3/5

Not bad, still wondering why this album is so essential.

Songs Of Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen

5/5

Incredible. Listen once, twice, then again.

AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted

Ice Cube

3/5

Kind of stupid, kind of awesome. Good beats but minus one star for ridiculous levels of over the top sexism.

Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul

Otis Redding

3/5

Sweet vocals, great band.

If I Should Fall From Grace With God

The Pogues

5/5

Stunning!

Fulfillingness' First Finale

Stevie Wonder

4/5

Beautiful

Aja

Steely Dan

4/5

Maybe one of the best recorded albums I’ve ever heard.

Tigermilk

Belle & Sebastian

3/5

Despite comparisons with the Smiths, this didn’t grab me. Meh. Will give it a generous three stars and will listen again sometime.

Gorillaz

1/5

A boring, jumbled, rambling mess. I’ll skip the cartoons too.

Illmatic

Nas

2/5

Generic gangsta rap to my ears.

Kilimanjaro

The Teardrop Explodes

3/5

Nice poppy punky music

Rio

Duran Duran

3/5

A really good album, classic tunes and an early 80’s touchstone.

Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

3/5

Okay

Vol. 4

Black Sabbath

4/5

I like.

Truth

Jeff Beck

5/5

I’ve overlooked this album in the past, but wow, just wow!

With The Beatles

Beatles

3/5

Some wonderful tunes and sounds, and a precursor of amazing things to come. By no means is this a great album.

Wonderful Rainbow

Lightning Bolt

1/5

No, just no.

Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

Derek & The Dominos

4/5

Superb.

Ace of Spades

Motörhead

3/5

Lotsa fun with Lemmy !

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

5/5

Damn good! Love the old school arrangements and drums almost as much as Amy’s incredible vocals.

Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury

The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy

4/5

Some great moments here! I miss being exposed to this type of socially aware hip hop.

Greetings From L.A.

Tim Buckley

3/5

Obscure for sure, but groovy and cool.

A Night At The Opera

Queen

5/5

Mamma Mia, this is epic!

White Light

Gene Clark

3/5

Good but not essential for me.

Junkyard

The Birthday Party

2/5

I didn’t like this.

Hot Rats

Frank Zappa

3/5

Interesting music.

L'Eau Rouge

The Young Gods

3/5

I could have really hated this, but surprisingly I didn’t. Something interesting going on with the arrangements and instrumentation.

What's That Noise?

Coldcut

2/5

First, since this isn’t streamable I had to hunt it down on YouTube. Second, once I started listening my mind drifted off to some generic 90’s dance dreamscape. The music was neither great nor terrible, but I did not engage. And I sort of listened to several YouTube ads thinking it was part of a song.

The Beach Boys Today!

The Beach Boys

4/5

Beautiful, especially the ballads.

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

4/5

A classic and a favorite.

Actually

Pet Shop Boys

3/5

Good intellectual synth-pop.

Brothers

The Black Keys

4/5

Surprisingly good, excellent arrangements.

Peter Gabriel

4/5

A classic.

American Gothic

David Ackles

4/5

Wow, how interesting and unusual. After a second listen this is growing on me.

Rain Dogs

Tom Waits

3/5

Interesting, diverse.

Fire Of Love

The Gun Club

3/5

Cool and catchy.

Five Leaves Left

Nick Drake

5/5

Incredibly beautiful.

Either Or

Elliott Smith

4/5

Very, very good!

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy

4/5

I miss this style of hip hop.

The United States Of America

4/5

Truly interesting and innovative for the time.

Headquarters

The Monkees

4/5

The Monkees were actually pretty cool

American IV: The Man Comes Around

Johnny Cash

4/5

I love Johnny Cash and saw him perform many times. This was a fine album to close out his career. Some 5 star songs but a few that were slightly corny.

Van Halen

5/5

All great, no filler!

Trout Mask Replica

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

3/5

Actually I sort of tolerated this, strangely.

Maggot Brain

Funkadelic

4/5

Great!

Franz Ferdinand

3/5

Very good, better than expected

1999

Prince

3/5

I still really like this, some of the 80’s production/sounds sound a bit flat.

New Boots And Panties

Ian Dury

4/5

Quirky and cool

The College Dropout

Kanye West

1/5

Yo, Kanye, I'm really happy for your shit career, but Beyoncé and Taylor kick your lame ass.

Floodland

Sisters Of Mercy

4/5

Cool and dark

Heroes to Zeros

The Beta Band

3/5

Some very cool tunes that I had not heard before.

Born In The U.S.A.

Bruce Springsteen

4/5

Incredible

Ready To Die

The Notorious B.I.G.

5/5

This is a masterpiece, despite the sadness of much of the subject material and ultimately the fate of the artist.

High Violet

The National

4/5

This was excellent; I hadn’t heard it before

All Hail the Queen

Queen Latifah

3/5

Good but not for me. One extra star for the positive messages.

Cloud Nine

The Temptations

3/5

Cool and funky

The Number Of The Beast

Iron Maiden

4/5

Dope

Hail To the Thief

Radiohead

4/5

Complex, dark and light, textured, diverse.

Boy In Da Corner

Dizzee Rascal

1/5

I didn’t make it through the first few songs. Off to pop a few ibuprofen.

Bad

Michael Jackson

3/5

A Date With The Everly Brothers

The Everly Brothers

3/5

Some lovely moments.

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Raekwon

1/5

Incredibly boring.

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

2/5

Too violent and dark for my taste.

Suzanne Vega

2/5

Just okay, didn’t grab me.

Marcus Garvey

Burning Spear

3/5

Cool

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

3/5

Kool

Olympia 64

Jacques Brel

3/5

Interesting

A Seat at the Table

Solange

3/5

Very nice

Manassas

Stephen Stills

5/5

Wow, this is epic. Underrated masterpiece.

Lady Soul

Aretha Franklin

3/5

Groovy

Kollaps

Einstürzende Neubauten

1/5

Excruciatingly terrible.

All That You Can't Leave Behind

4/5

U2 seems to trigger many people these days, but this album is a sonic and creative triumph.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elton John

4/5

Sprawling and impressive with a few of the best songs ever written.

For Your Pleasure

Roxy Music

4/5

Edgy

Songs For Swingin' Lovers!

Frank Sinatra

4/5

One of the greatest singers of all time.

Quiet Life

Japan

3/5

I really wanted to give this two stars due to the songs not being all that compelling. After my third listen I will acknowledge this album’s place - influencing other 80’s bands and albums that I do really like. OK, one extra star for being influential.

Definitely Maybe

Oasis

4/5

I want to like this less than I do.

Chicago Transit Authority

Chicago

4/5

Super cool!

Ritual De Lo Habitual

Jane's Addiction

3/5

A few excellent songs here, vocals are distinctive.

The Atomic Mr Basie

Count Basie & His Orchestra

4/5

Exhilarating!

Good Old Boys

Randy Newman

3/5

Need to spend more time on this one - challenging subject material.

Imagine

John Lennon

4/5

A great album with a few of the greatest songs ever written.

In Rainbows

Radiohead

3/5

Good album with a few standout classics.

Raising Hell

Run-D.M.C.

4/5

Pretty kool

Locust Abortion Technician

Butthole Surfers

2/5

I actually liked a few of these songs, and even the worst Butthole Surfers song is better than the best Kid Rock song. Enthusiastic 2 stars.

En-Tact

The Shamen

2/5

Meh

american dream

LCD Soundsystem

4/5

Surprisingly awesome!

War

5/5

Stunning!

Happy Trails

Quicksilver Messenger Service

3/5

Good live hippy music.

Savane

Ali Farka Touré

4/5

Very nice music.

Natty Dread

Bob Marley & The Wailers

4/5

Excellent vibe.

Rocks

Aerosmith

4/5

Never really a fan of Aerosmith, but this really impressed me and opened my ears.

White Ladder

David Gray

3/5

Pleasant, heartfelt, and good as wimpy background music.

Tarkus

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

3/5

Was kind of a jumble. Need to re-listen when my wife isn’t around. By the way she hated it.

Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell

4/5

Another gem from Joni.

3 + 3

The Isley Brothers

3/5

Funky and cool, but not terribly original.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

3/5

Groovy hippy easy listening with a few great songs.

Aladdin Sane

David Bowie

4/5

Solid album with many fantastic tracks!

Vespertine

Björk

3/5

I think I want to love this but not quite there.

Rum Sodomy & The Lash

The Pogues

4/5

Excellent Celtic-punk!

Metallica

5/5

The metal album that is Practically Perfect in every way. Damn, those songs are fire.

good kid, m.A.A.d city

Kendrick Lamar

3/5

Good, need to spend more time with this.

Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor

Lupe Fiasco

4/5

Fantastic!

Damaged

Black Flag

5/5

A complete classic from the South Bay!

Darkness on the Edge of Town

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Incredible

Hard Again

Muddy Waters

4/5

Hard hitting blues by one of the masters.

Haunted Dancehall

The Sabres Of Paradise

1/5

Huh. I like ambient but this was just dull dredge. Simultaneously boring and painful to endure. Now that I’ve heard it before I die, I will endeavor to do good works, hopefully avoiding being tortured by this album in the afterlife. Haunted Dancehall approaches the horror of a Kid Rock album. Don’t worry Kid, you are still at the bottom of the list, but The Sabres of Paradise are right there in your rear view mirror.

The Stooges

3/5

Sorry but only three stars for me. Good, not great. Proto-punk yes. But much of actual punk was so much better.

Parachutes

Coldplay

3/5

Good, well produced.

Cupid & Psyche 85

Scritti Politti

2/5

Monotonous wimpy 80’s sounds, while not unpleasant it is not compelling or interesting listening. Maybe there’s some good Marxist or anarchism messages hidden beneath the milquetoast vocals.

The Velvet Underground & Nico

The Velvet Underground

4/5

A product of its times, with Dylan-like voicing hooking up with The Animals. Oh so extremely cool. The sounds are garage amateurish yet brilliant and timeless.

Physical Graffiti

Led Zeppelin

5/5

Amazing album!

The Colour Of Spring

Talk Talk

4/5

This is a good album. Though I am a child of the 80’s I do not recall listening to this album. For me Talk Talk had already peaked a few years before. Giving this a generous 4 stars with intent to listen again.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

4/5

A great first album for a band that went on to change music.

Chelsea Girl

Nico

3/5

Cool stuff here.

Stand!

Sly & The Family Stone

5/5

A joy

It's Blitz!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

4/5

Awesome!

Apocalypse Dudes

Turbonegro

4/5

I had never heard of this band nor this album. I loved it! Sounded like The Damned meet Cheap Trick!

In A Silent Way

Miles Davis

5/5

Invokes a mood that is hard to describe.

Devil Without A Cause

Kid Rock

1/5

NOOOOOOO! What a mistake to include this disaster of an album on this list. It’s in reality an album that the Devil spins on his Crosley turntable over and over for eternity, after you die and are sent to hell.

The Modern Dance

Pere Ubu

4/5

Strangely, although I didn’t have any memory of hearing this album previously, a few songs jogged my remembrance of being a very young kid listening to KROQ in Los Angeles in the very early 80’s. This is a good one that I’ll have to revisit.

Let It Be

The Replacements

4/5

What a classic!

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Coldplay

4/5

Excellent well produced album!

Soul Mining

The The

3/5

Solid