My 1001 Albums Journey

Album	You	Global	Diff
Third Soft Machine	5	2.45	+2.55
Scott 2 Scott Walker	5	2.63	+2.37
Scott 4 Scott Walker	5	2.8	+2.2
Shadowland k.d. lang	5	2.88	+2.12
The Gilded Palace Of Sin The Flying Burrito Brothers	5	2.91	+2.09
Moby Grape Moby Grape	5	2.95	+2.05
Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts The Adverts	5	2.96	+2.04
Car Wheels On A Gravel Road Lucinda Williams	5	3	+2
1977 Ash	5	3.03	+1.97
Something/Anything? Todd Rundgren	5	3.03	+1.97

Album	You	Global	Diff
Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water Limp Bizkit	1	2.51	-1.51
A Rush Of Blood To The Head Coldplay	2	3.43	-1.43
Private Dancer Tina Turner	2	3.29	-1.29
Slippery When Wet Bon Jovi	2	3.29	-1.29
Thriller Michael Jackson	3	4.23	-1.23
461 Ocean Boulevard Eric Clapton	2	3.11	-1.11
Devil Without A Cause Kid Rock	1	2.01	-1.01

Artist	Albums	Average
Bruce Springsteen	5	4.8
Beatles	3	5
The Rolling Stones	3	5
The Who	3	5
Steely Dan	3	4.67
Led Zeppelin	3	4.67
David Bowie	2	5
Black Sabbath	2	5
Frank Sinatra	2	5
Deep Purple	2	5
The Clash	2	5
Scott Walker	2	5
Jimi Hendrix	2	5
AC/DC	2	5
Van Halen	2	5
Stevie Wonder	2	5
Joni Mitchell	2	5

Steely Dan

5/5

An exquisitely crafted album, one of my favourites and the album that got me into Steely Dan. Becker and Fagen employ the cream of the session music world - Larry Carlton, Joe Sample, Chuck Rainey, Steve Gadd, Bernard Purdie - and combine them into as many groups as there are uniformly excellent songs. It’s all superb but highlights include Wayne Shorter’s solo over Gadd’s subtle drum patterns on the title track, and one of the most incredible guitar solos in popular music, in Peg, a masterclass by Jay Grayson, who was allegedly the 11th guitar player to give it a go. What a great album to start with.

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

David Bowie

5/5

Ziggy, Moonage Daydream, Suffragette City, Hang On To Yourself, Starman; Ronson, Bolder, Woodie, Bowie. Apocalyptic glam. Extraterrestrial rock. Bowie’s first hit album and, as with so many of his albums, there’s an argument to be made that it’s his best. And some days it is…

The Wildest!

Louis Prima

4/5

I really only know Louis Prima from the voice of King Louie in Jungle Book and Dave Lee Roth's cover of Prima's Just A Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody medley but this album is a fun collection of jump jive jazz. Gigolo/Nobody opens the set and is great fun and, while the rest of the album is not quite as good, tracks like Oh, Marie and Jump, Jive An' Wail come close, Prima's Louis Armstrong-like scatting perfectly complimented by his (20 years younger) wife, Keely Smith's sweet voice. 32 minutes of enjoyment from almost 70 years ago.

Paranoid

Black Sabbath

5/5

While I didn't appreciate it initially, seeing them as fairly one dimensional compared to their '70s peers, I have come to appreciate Sabbath so much over the years; there is so much more going on that the, admittedly spectacular riffs. Listen to Geezer Butler's bass runs, especially at the end of War Pigs, the way Bill Ward plays, like a jazz drummer, and always to serve the song rather than merely to keep time, and Planet Caravan which holds the listener, at least this listener, spellbound for the duration, despite consisting of two repeated chords - Tony Iommi's deft jazz guitar solo skipping over the top. Black Sabbath would go on to even greater experimentation on later albums, particularly Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage but Paranoid built on the promise of their debut and laid the groundwork for even better things to come.

Lady Soul

Aretha Franklin

5/5

Aretha has one of the most distinctive and individual voices in music. And she also plays piano and saxophone. This album contains the classics “Chain of Fools”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and “Sweet Sweet Baby (Since You’ve Been Gone)” and excellent versions of “People Get Ready” and “Groovin’”. The remainder of the album sparkles almost as brightly, Aretha’s stunning gospel vocals raising even lesser numbers close to the heights of the hits. Such was her talent that there was no such thing as filler on Aretha’s late ‘60s and early ‘70s albums.

Cheap Thrills

Big Brother & The Holding Company

4/5

Never fell in love with this. Janis’s voice is singular, the music fairly basic garage rock. It IS good and I do enjoy listening to it but I think Pearl is my Janis Joplin album.

Foxbase Alpha

Saint Etienne

3/5

This was new to me, although I have heard other St Etienne songs. Pleasant enough, a blend of ethereal chill and house music, amen breaks, piano riffs and samples. There’s a nice version of Neil Young’s “Only Love Can Break Your Heart”. I’d listen again but it won’t be on regular rotation.

Floodland

Sisters Of Mercy

4/5

Another new one for me. I have heard some Sisters of Mercy but never a full album. It’s well produced, sounds somehow cinematic to me, big reverbs. I can hear Depeche Mode, and the beginnings of Rammstein. I’d listen to this again.

Solid Air

John Martyn

5/5

I love Solid Air, John Martyn’s voice and guitar, the jazz folk feel, the upright bass. It meanders and take detours and the journey is rich and rewarding. The songs are uniformly excellent but the echoplex tour de force that is Martyn’s cover of Skip James’s “Rather Be the Devil” is breaktaking. Every time.

Home Is Where The Music Is

Hugh Masekela

4/5

I know Masekela’s name primarily from the fight against Apartheid in South Africa, very little about his music. This is a double album of entertaining, if relatively unchallenging, soul-jazz with an Afrobeat flavour in many tracks. Really well played by the whole band with Hugh’s flugelhorn and Dudu Pukwana’s saxophone in particular standing out, the tone of each is excellent. Nothing earth shattering but a really pleasant chilled listen.

Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black

Public Enemy

4/5

I don’t really have much of a frame of reference for most rap and hip hop, but over the years, if there is one group that resonates more than most, it is Public Enemy. They will never be on my most listened list but I can appreciate the production values and the political anger. And the links to Anthrax and ROTM make it a little more accessible for me. This is certainly miles ahead of the gangsta/bling/look at what I got stuff that seemed to dominate the genre a few years later.

Take Me Apart

Kelela

4/5

I admit my heart sank a little when this popped up; slick modern R&B is not my thing at all. I had never heard of Kalela but knew exactly how this would sound. And I was so wrong. Take Me Apart is modern R&B but it has a huge soundscape. Atmospheric, with rumbling sub-bass and glitchy beats. Loads of EDM elements but also proggy (especially in the layered, 10CC-like vocal parts) and consistently interesting. Apparently Kalela played in metal bands at one stage and it’s not too fanciful to hear some of the things Sleep Token are doing, particularly in the breakdowns.

To Pimp A Butterfly

Kendrick Lamar

4/5

Again my lack of anything but a superficial knowledge of Hip-Hop means I only know, and like, Kendrick Lamar’s Black Panther soundtrack. But I do know George Clinton and Ronald Isley and Thundercat and Kamasi Washington, all of whom appear here. Yet To Pimp A Butterfly sounds like a cohesive album. There are echoes of Parliament, ‘70s Stevie Wonder, Prince - impressive.

Shadowland

k.d. lang

5/5

It’s been a while since I listened to this album, although I used to play it a lot. I enjoyed getting to know it again. kd lang’s voice is excellent and really suited to the material, essentially country jazz torch songs. I first heard her on her duet with Roy Orbison and her voice sits somewhere between his and Patsy Cline’s. Black Coffee and I’m Down To My Last Cigarette are particularly good. Really well produced and played, with a lovely pedal steel snaking through many of the tracks.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Hill

5/5

Yet another hip-hop album, 3rd in 10, but one that I have listened to, and like, a lot. It has recently been voted best album ever by Apple Music, it’s not that, but it is very, very good. I can hear a direct line from ‘70s soul like Donny Hathaway and Marvin Gaye, Bob Marley too. Strange that she never made another but perhaps Miseducation said everything she needed it to…

Come Away With Me

Norah Jones

5/5

This is one of those albums which has a reputation as the musical equivalent of coffee table books; everyone had a copy in the early '00s and it was mostly played low, as background music, at a wine and cheese party... Come Away With Me is actually much better than that. Norah Jones's smoky voice and deceptively simple piano playing are sublime; some of her chord voicings are stunningly good. The backing musicians are excellent, the light jazz/country ballads uniformly good. Don't Know Why is a torch song that can stand with the best of the American Songbook greats.

Rubber Soul

Beatles

5/5

Rubber Soul is the start of the second phase of the Beatles. They have been great a great band before, and many of the songs have been wonderful, but this is where the experimentation really begins. Within a year they will have quit touring and become a studio band and the soundscape will open even more but here we have sitars, and fuzz bass, and double-tracked vocals, more complicated arrangements, a touch of psychedelia. They would push things even further on Revolver and Sgt Pepper's but Rubber Soul deserves to be held in the same esteem.

Peter Gabriel

3/5

Been a long time since I listened to this album, possibly because it’s a little inconsistent. It starts and ends really well, Moribund the Burgermeister being very Genesis-like and Solsbury Hill still being among my favourite Gabriel songs, Her Comes the Flood closing in epic style. But, much as I love Bob Esrin’s production style, he’s a little bombastic for PG in places, particularly when his favourite Alice Cooper guitarist, Dick Wagner, shows up on Slowburn. And the Randy Newman sounding blues of Waiting for the Big One doesn’t suit Gabriel at all. Tony Levin and Robert Fripp would have a bigger impact on the better albums to come. Good, not Great.

Nick Of Time

Bonnie Raitt

3/5

I probably liked this more at the time. The production, by Don was, is slick and very '80s in places, with a few tracks full of synths and electric pianos, and a little too much reverb on some of the snares. It is still a very good album, the singing and guitar playing, particularly Bonnie's slide is fantastic. The bluesy numbers, some with The Fabulous Thunderbirds are better, elsewhere the sound is very like Eric Clapton’s mid-‘80s output and just sounds a bit dated now.

Heroes

David Bowie

5/5

Not my favourite of the Berlin Trilogy (this week…), although the only one entirely recorded in Berlin, Heroes sits with Low (my current favourite) and Lodger as part of an atmospheric, ambient trilogy, pretty far removed from Ziggy or Aladdin Sane, but still Bowie. The core band of Alomar, David and Murray is excellent, then add Brian Eno and Robert Fripp, both of whom are all over this, and Tony Visconti’s production. The first side, more traditional song structures, foreshadows New Romantic and industrial rock; the second side, largely instrumental, is more ambient and reflective, echoing Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk. Bowie’s voice is slightly alien, almost synthetic, and it really suits the colder, even bleak, music. Love it.

I’ve Got a Tiger By the Tail

Buck Owens

4/5

Other than Act Naturally, i don’t think I have ever listened to Buck Owens - I didn’t know he wrote Cryin’ Time which is on this album - but I have listened to a lot of artists whom he influenced. This is twangy, guitar-driven honky-tonk out of Bakersfield CA. You can hear Owen’s influence in Gram Parsons-era Byrds and Burritos, and Emmylou Harris, Dwight Yokum and many more. Telecasters and Nudie suits - this is where it started.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

4/5

Back to Black is Amy Winehouse’s magnum opus, but her debut album, Frank, is equally impressive. Frank has a stronger jazz influence compared to its more classic soul-inspired successor. The title, evidently referring to Amy’s love for Sinatra, could equally apply to the candid and raw honesty of the lyrics. There are also ‘90s Neo-Soul influences in the music. For instance, “October Song” blends these influences with the jazz elements, with a playful reference to “Lullaby of Birdland” and a nod to Sarah Vaughan. At the age of 19, Amy’s voice, while not as confident as on her later material, is still strong and distinctively hers.

...Baby One More Time

Britney Spears

2/5

Not for me. I know, and don't particularly like, Britney from the singles; a whole album doesn't make it better. It's well-produced (possibly over-produced) bubblegum pop, largely inoffensive, although I don't like Britney's nasal, adenoidal voice, but some of the songs, like the duet with Don Phillips, are really poor. Apart from Baby, Hit Me... the best song is probably the cover of The Beat Goes On... and that pales in comparison with the Sonny and Cher original.

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

5/5

Stunning album and astounding to think that this came out in 1969. It is such a jump from Isaac Hayes writing and production for other Stax artists, amazing though many of the resulting tracks were. Only four songs, one of which is growling, distorted funk of "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic", another the good but relatively forgettable "One Woman". It is the other two tracks which make this album essential - covers of Bacharach and David's "Walk On By" and Jimmy Webb's (Glenn Campbell's...) "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", the former just over 12 minutes, the latter 18:42 - over 8 minutes before the recognisable part of the song starts, Isaac rapping, free-styling, telling a story to introduce the narrative of the song. Amazing stuff - orchestral strings, fuzz guitar, soul choirs. Unmissable.

Deserter's Songs

Mercury Rev

3/5

I knew nothing about Mercury Rev other than the name. Apparently this album is unlike their earlier, noisier sound. This is delicate, fragile, ethereal. There are orchestral sounds, string quartets, mellotrons, calliopes. It is reminiscent of Funfairs & Saloon pianos. It’s well-played and sounds great and, although the material didn’t grab me, it’s a pleasant listen. The second half rocks a little more and is more compelling. Enjoyable but not essential.

The Rise & Fall

Madness

5/5

I must admit that I overlooked this album despite a growing fondness for Madness that I didn't necessarily have when they were at their height. I know a few of the songs, but I wasn’t prepared for such a powerful, mature, and thought-provoking collection. It’s like a loose concept album that explores childhood and London, similar in feel to the much later “The Liberty of Norton Folgate,” which I also enjoy. I’ve heard comparisons to the Kinks’ “Village Green Preservation Society,” and that makes sense. The humour in Madness’s singles is still present, and the album holds together remarkably well, with a level of sophistication that isn't necessarily gleaned from a casual listen to the band’s greatest hits, good though they undoubtedly are.

At Newport 1960

Muddy Waters

5/5

Excellent band - Muddy’s incredible voice, Otis Spann on piano, James Cotton’s harp - with a great setlist. This live album, and the concert at which it was recorded, effectively introduced Waters’s brand of electrified country blues hollers to entire America, and inspired a who’s who of British artists to play this music - the Rolling Stones, John Mayall, and the guitarists who developed in his band - Clapton, Green, Taylor - and so many more. Essential stuff.

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

5/5

Simply the best Christmas album ever. Darlene Love, the Ronettes, the Crystals, Bob B Soxx and Phil Spector’s wall of sound production never sounding better.

Here's Little Richard

Little Richard

5/5

1001 Albums describes these songs as “rock and roll stem cells” and they’re spot on. Little Richard, as much as anyone ever has, influenced all that rock and roll became. The Beatles recorded his songs, Paul McCartney was proud of his Little Richard yell, the showmanship of Jimi Hendrix, who played in his band, the flamboyance of Disco, the driving, rattling rhythms of metal; they were all in Richard’s debt. And the songs - “Tutti Frutti”, “Long Tall Sally”, “Slippin’ and Slidin’”, “Rip It Up”, “Jenny Jenny”, my personal favourite, “Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave” and the rest - all classics and all as vibrant as the day they were cut.

Cloud Nine

The Temptations

5/5

My favorite period of my favorite Motown group began with this album. Norman Whitfield, who had already produced singles for The Temptations, took full control of production. This coincided with David Ruffin’s departure and the arrival of Dennis Edwards. “Cloud Nine” featured the five Temps sharing lead vocals, often trading lines within verses, to an increasingly funky, psychedelic soul sound. The Funk Brothers added wah-wah guitars and intense instrumental vamps to the traditional Motown sound, and the lyrics introduced social commentary to the more familiar love songs. The title track kicks things off and we’re in Sly & the Family Stone territory; the 9-minute “Runaway Child, Running Wild”, which builds to an organ- and guitar-fuelled crescendo, is stunning and points the way to the even more powerful workouts to come in the early ‘70s. The ballads were still here but times were getting tougher and, with Whitfield’s encouragement, so were The Temptations…

Konnichiwa

Skepta

3/5

I don’t really get grime, fam. But then it’s not targeted at me. Some of the beats are good and I really like the sub-bass. If it comes up randomly I won’t skip but unlikely to seek this out.

Gentlemen

The Afghan Whigs

4/5

I have a weird blind spot when it comes to The Afghan Whigs. They weren’t really on my radar in the ‘90s and I discovered them later through Greg Dulli’s work with Mark Lanegan. I own Congregation and several Twilight Singers albums but rarely listen to them. I’ve seen Dulli and Lanegan live as The Gutter Twins and love the album. And I really like this. I’ve probably heard it before. I should probably listen more frequently.

Out Of The Blue

Electric Light Orchestra

5/5

Talking With the Taxman About Poetry

Billy Bragg

3/5

I’ve just never got Billy Bragg. He does what he does well but I’ve rarely heard one of Bragg’s songs and wanted to replay it. “Greetings to the New Brunette” and “Levi Stubb’s Tears” come as close as any.

In The Wee Small Hours

Frank Sinatra

5/5

While I prefer "Songs for Swinging Lovers", this album, Sinatra's first with Nelson Riddle arranging, is arguably more consistent in that it holds that melancholy mood throughout. It reinvigorated Sinatra's career and, as one of the first records released on the new 12" vinyl format, allegedly kicked off the album era. Not as much fun as some of the later recordings, it is an album to wallow in, late at night, perhaps with a whisky in hand.

Calenture

The Triffids

3/5

Never heard this before nor, as far as I recall, have I heard of the Triffids. It’s not a bad album, jangly pop-rock, a little earnest. The production is of its time, big snare reverb, and reminds me of something, Lloyd Cole and the Commotions possibly. I can’t imagine rushing back.

She's So Unusual

Cyndi Lauper

3/5

It’s a fun pop album. Cyndi has a unique voice, quirky, the arrangements are good. A lot of it still stands up 40 years later, obviously “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and “Time After Time” but others too. And it has a bouncy song about wanking…

Fisherman's Blues

The Waterboys

5/5

Another big surprise - I know the Waterboys from Whole of the Moon and a few other tracks but this album is excellent. It’s like they saw what Dexy’s had done with traditional Celtic folk instruments and thought “We could do this so much better” even down to the Van Morrison cover, “Sweet Thing” which incorporates “Blackbird” by the Beatles. It’s like prog folk and I wasn’t expecting it.

GI

Germs

4/5

Only album by short-lived LA punk band featuring Pat Smear on guitar and produced by Joan Jett. It’s fun, frantic and fast, with the exception of the last song, Shot Down (Annihilation Man), which at almost 10 minutes compared to the sub-two minutes of most of the other tracks, might be my favourite on the album.

Hotel California

Eagles

5/5

It’s become fashionable to hate the Eagles, and some of them don’t seem to be particularly likable people, the current touring version of the band is a cynical money grab. The truth is, in the 1970s, they were very good at what they did. I still listen to Desperado on a fairly frequent basis but I haven’t listened to Hotel California for a good few years. It’s an excellent album. There isn’t a bad song on it. It’s well played, it’s incredibly well produced, and Don Henley, no matter that he appears to mime certain songs these days, was an excellent singer. Meisner and Frey were good too but Henley was top drawer.

The Low End Theory

A Tribe Called Quest

5/5

It appears I like more hip-hop than I realised. I’d forgotten how good this album is. The first track compares hip-hop to bebop and that’s really apt, not just due to the jazz samples, but also in the fast riffing throughout. One of the most musical hip-hop albums I’ve heard.

Rum Sodomy & The Lash

The Pogues

5/5

Another album that I am embarrassed, particularly as an Irishman, to have neglected, if not ignored. And it is an excellent album, a mix of punk-cèilidh thrash, more tender reflective ballads, some great instrumentals, even a touch of Ennio Morricone in "A Pistol for Paddy Garcia" and all anchored by Shane Magowan's wild, slurred growl. A lot of credit has to go to Elvis Costello who, as producer, controls the mayhem and gives the instruments and voices, including that of his soon to be wife, Cait O'Riordan, room to breathe. It feels like you are in the room with them, and what a room that would have been...

Live At The Regal

B.B. King

5/5

BB King captured at the height of his considerable powers live in concert at the Regal Theater in Chicago in 1964 and released the following year, the year I was born, so this is as old as me, and just as great. It is a remarkable live recording. The tight rhythm section never stop, literally - until it's time to flip the record; the music segues seamlessly from one classic blues song to the next, BB introducing each with a little story "Ladies and Gentlemen" about having a girl, or losing a girl. The horn section is clear and sharp, the sound overall is stunning. And on top of the fantastic band, BB's guitar and voice are supreme. His lead playing is sounds so simple and is so perfect, and many greats have failed to duplicate the magic. His voice slips and slides from deep throaty growls to falsetto highs. This record marked the start of BB King's move from chitlin circuit to rock audiences. Innumerable guitarists, many of them white, many of them British, many of them great players took influence from this. A few came close...

Made In Japan

Deep Purple

5/5

From 1969 to 1973, Deep Purple was undoubtedly the best live band in the world, and this album, one of the pioneering double live albums, captures them near their peak. This is the album to present to those who claim Led Zeppelin was the greatest rock band of the ‘70s; much as I like them, they never came close to the energy and inventiveness of the Purple live experience. In reality, Deep Purple was more akin to Miles Davis’s electric bands than to Zeppelin or Sabbath; they weren’t a jazz band, but they possessed supremely talented improvisers. In Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Paice, and Jon Lord, they had three of the finest musicians in rock music. There are only seven songs on the album, spanning just over an hour and a quarter, four of which are from their recent Machine Head release. However, as in jazz, the songs, while excellent, are essentially structured ‘head’arrangements upon which the improvisations are built. A common criticism of Purple’s live shows was their lack of significant setlist variation. However, as Ian Gillan rightly pointed out to an interviewer, tonight’s set could be two hours long, while yesterday’s was two-twenty, so something different was happening. Live, the band would take off, solos extending as long as they required, accompanied by a system of hand signals and motives to signal to the rest of the band when solos were concluding. Listening to the three complete concerts from which the album was compiled is both educational and entertaining. The songs remain the same but different; you can discern the development of ideas that had emerged on previous nights. There are so many unforgettable moments on this album. The introduction to “Lazy” starts with Lord’s squealing bleeps and blips, gradually transitioning into churchy chords, jazzy riffing, and eventually Blackmore’s bluesy and funky Stratocaster licks. Paice’s cymbal work and Gillan’s ferocious screams are showcased in “Child in Time,” while the vocal/guitar duet in “Strange Kind of Woman” features a battle of wits. The interplay between Blackmore and Lord throughout the album is truly remarkable. There’s a sense that at any moment, everything could go awry and end in disaster, but it never does. And that could be due to bassist Roger Glover, the solid rock around which the soloists weave. I must admit that I occasionally skip “The Mule”’s lengthy drum solo. While it’s hugely impressive, showcasing light and shade, loud and soft, almost musical, it’s still a drum solo, and I don’t need it every time. I recognise that I may have a slight bias. I possess at least 50 live recordings of Deep Purple from this period, both official and bootleg, and I could happily listen to them for hours on end, and I often do. However, “Made In Japan” stands out as the pinnacle. The recording is exceptional, allowing for clear separation and definition of each instrument, particularly Ian Gillan’s voice, which is unmatched by any other singer in any other band of the era. Despite still recording and touring impressively, Deep Purple is often unfairly derided and even forgotten these days. This wasn’t a heavy metal band or a progressive rock band; it was a group of five incredibly talented musicians who fed off each other’s energy in live performances, challenging one another, rocking hard while seamlessly blending classical, rock and roll, and blues motives, playing with both power and subtlety, incomparable to any of their peers. I LOVE THIS BAND AND I LOVE THIS ALBUM.

Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea

PJ Harvey

4/5

I’ve listened to some PJ Harvey but don’t know this album. There’s a late ‘70s Patti Smith feel, some Christie Hynde mixed with ‘90s indie. I like it. Very listenable, all the songs good, without there being a standout. It’s largely guitar, bass & drums, well recorded with a couple of contributions from Thom Yorke including a duet on “This Mess We’re In”. I do really like the sound of the record and it could well be a grower.

Brothers In Arms

Dire Straits

4/5

This was one of those albums, the equivalent of coffee table books, which was everywhere in the mid ‘80s, everyone had a copy. It is better than that but not my favourite Dire Straits record. It’s well produced, sounds excellent, and some of the songs are very good but there is nothing on hear to match the best on “Love Over Gold” or “Making Movies” but the second side is better and I could listen to the Hammond organ outro on the title track over and over.

You Want It Darker

Leonard Cohen

5/5

I wasn't expecting this. The title track, which opens the album, is amazing, Cohen's voice darker and smokier than ever, the Jewish (?) chanting at the end adding to what seems to be criticism of religion or preachers. I didn't realise that this was released days before Cohen's death but it has that feeling, similar to Johnny Cash's American recordings, of a final statement, a setting right of things, a last will and testament - especially on "Leaving the Table". I have always respected, never loved, Leonard Cohen's work but I really like this and maybe I have to go deeper, and darker.

21

Adele

3/5

Well produced, good voice, tasteful arrangements, southern soul influenced. It starts fairly strong and there are moments in some of the songs but it’s ultimately relative bland, inoffensive dinner party piano ballads.

Spy Vs. Spy: The Music Of Ornette Coleman

John Zorn

4/5

I have never listened to John Zorn before and, looking at his extensive discography, there is a lot to catch up on. Unfortunately, I couldn't find this album on my streaming services, so listened on an 'ok' YouTube stream but I'm intrigued. It is definitely not easy-listening, but worth the work. I found it difficult to get into Ornette Coleman and am still not hugely familiar with his work, even those albums I own, and I am not sure this 'tribute' makes it any more accessible, but it does make me want to explore both artist and composer further. The music is Avantgarde jazz with a hardcore punk/metal aesthetic and the band - two saxophones, bass and two drummers - make a glorious noise, powerful. It reminds me of what Imperial Triumphant have been doing in the metal scene. Best to sit in front of the speakers and let the force of this album hit you in the chest. I'd like to find a decent copy on vinyl.

Cafe Bleu

The Style Council

2/5

Beyond (some of) the singles, I never really got The Style Council, although late Jam was probably pointing in this direction. First time I have lists to the album all the way through as I recall. It’s cool jazzy lounge music. I like Mick Talbot’s keyboards, particularly on the instrumentals. I’ve never liked Tracy Thorn’s voice, and “Paris Match” doesn’t change that. And then there’s the second side. “The Gospel” - Ill -advised and poorly executed - followed by an awful, in both senses, EWF/Trouble Funk karaoke abomination “Strength of Your Nature”. “You’re the Best Thing” is good, returning to the lounge, but it’s not enough.

OK

Talvin Singh

3/5

"OK" is ok. It is light, pretty chill D&B with Indian Bhangra percussion and stringed instruments layered over the beats. It's a bit Buddha Bar, quite pleasant to listen to, a little bit background 'musak' in places. I had never heard of the artist or the album previously, but it doesn't feel like an undiscovered gem that had been waiting for me to dig it up.

Marcus Garvey

Burning Spear

5/5

I really need to listen to more reggae. This is heavy roots music with deliberate, slow tempos, three part harmonies, deep bass and excellent production, although apparently Winston Rodney aka Burning Spear (although they were a group at this point) hated the mix that Island Records did. The lyrics are political and spiritual, centring on the Rastafarian aims and ideals. The music is hypnotic and somewhat soothing while the lyrics carry that implied threat, Revolution.

The White Album

Beatles

5/5

While not my favourite Beatles album (this week), I love the White Album. Been a while since I listened to it from start to finish - it is a cornucopia of different styles and is therefore a little disjointed, but it is great to dive into - I even enjoyed "Rocky Raccoon" and "Revolution Nr 9" this time, and that's not always the case. There are some truly exceptional, wonderful songs here which come close to their best; the rest are rarely less than really good although it is true that by this time The Beatles were really operating as individuals, with little real collaboration in the songwriting. Things were starting to fragment, the indicators to their subsequent solo careers are evident, but what a soundtrack the breakup had.

Talking Timbuktu

Ali Farka Touré

3/5

Malian guitarist and singer, Ali Farka Toure, collaborates with Ry Cooder on this very listenable album. Certain moments stand out, especially when Cooder’s slide guitar seamlessly blends with Toure’s melodic drones and repetitive patterns. However, the album does become 'samey' after a while, and a shorter runtime of 40 minutes might have enhanced its overall impact. Nevertheless, this album sparked passionate debates about the origins of the blues, with the pair fueling these discussions on the track “Amandrai.” The driving motive on which this song is built could be have been lifted straight from the John Lee Hooker or Muddy Waters songbooks.

1977

Ash

5/5

Despite Norn Iron being such a small place we have produced some talent. Ash are certainly the most fun, mixing the pop sensibilities of The Undertones with the aggression of Stiff Little Fingers. Eclectic teenagers that they were they threw in metal, Dinosaur Jr and ABBA influences, pop-culture references from Star Wars, X-Men, Jackie Chan, Karate Kid, Captain Scarlet. The album starts with the sound of a TIE fighter and ends, at least on early versions, with a hidden track of them egging each other in a vomiting competition. In between there are so many catchy fun, wall of noise songs - Goldfinger, Girl From Mars, Kung Fu, Angel Interceptor - really not a bad tune and all delivered with the youthful exuberance of kids having the time of their lives. Downpatrick’s best!

Parallel Lines

Blondie

5/5

Parallel Lines is the album where Blondie transcended the NYC punk scene and became one of the biggest pop groups in the world. They didn't abandon that aggressive, slightly weird, punk/new wave ethos of previous albums but built on it, with more emphasis on their Phil Spector 'Wall of Sound' influences, which had always been there but really fill out the soundscape on this album. There isn't a bad song here and so many hits it is like a best of - Hanging on the Telephone, One Way or Another, Picture This, 11:59, Sunday Girl, Heart of Glass - all of them played by a really tight band, Mike Chapman's '60s pop production, great drumming, crunchy guitars and, in Deborah Harry, the most charismatic, captivating front woman in rock and pop history!

Blonde On Blonde

Bob Dylan

3/5

There are albums which stand as the greatest of all time, that everyone recognises as ‘important’ and ‘iconic’. Blonde On Blonde is obviously one of these. And yet, like with a lot of Bob Dylan’s discography, I just don’t get it. It’s not that I dislike Dylan, and I do own, and like, a lot of his records. I have owned this album for years and have listened to it for longer, it being one of many Dylan albums in my uncle’s record collection. But it has always felt that something I ought to own, not something that I necessarily derive a lot of pleasure from. Dylan’s voice has never Dylan’s more than it does on BOB. Many of the songs are based on Chicago blues idioms, some more successfully than others - “Obviously Five Believers” could be played by Muddy Waters’ band. There are some good songs here. I like “I Want You”, “Absolutely Sweet Marie” and, especially, “Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again” although it and closer, “Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands” are too long. A lot of the rest is forgettable, the worst of it grating and some of the arrangements, particularly on side one, are not what they could be. Disappointing.

Jack Takes the Floor

Ramblin' Jack Elliott

2/5

It’s not terrible, it’s not great, some of it is played on an obviously out of tune guitar. Not my kind of folk…

The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

5/5

There is really nothing much I can add to reviews of DSOTM. It is simply one of the best albums of the '70s (and beyond) and captured a moment rarely repeated. Musically, lyrically, production-wise, it is an almost perfect album. The themes of madness and the human condition might seem trite - "Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way..." - but it all works. The only thing I will add is that the line "I don't know, I was really drunk at the time..." is spoken by Henry McCullough (soon to be ex-Wings) and, 20 years later, I spent an enjoyable Thursday afternoon getting drunk with Henry...

Tubular Bells

Mike Oldfield

4/5

An odd album which sort of stands on its own. What is is? Prog Rock? NeoClassical? Ambient? Film music? It certainly worked as the main theme from The Exorcist from where a lot of people will recognise it. Tubular Bells is essentially two long instrumental tracks in which the then 19 year old Mike Oldfield layers multiple instruments, building to a crescendo. I listen to it about once a year and I'm always surprised by the time variations, the way some parts come in just after you think they should, which keeps you off balance. And then there is that bonkers, but wonderful, part and the end of the first sequence where Viv Stanshall announces each instrument as it joins, finishing with "TUBULAR BELLS!!!". It shouldn't work, but it does.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

4/5

Not my favourite Steely Dan album, in fact I would probably rank it lowest of their '70s output. Of course, that doesn't mean that it is a bad album; it is a very good if transitional one, and the guitar solo on "Rikki Don't Lose That Number" is worth the price of admission alone. Like all Dan records, it is incredibly well played, produced and arranged and there are pointers here to later LPs which I play more often; the direct steal from Horace Silver on Rikki teases the jazzier direction. This is probably the point where Steely Dan gave up any pretence of being a 'band' and became a two-man project which strove for perfection by hiring the best session players for each track.

Halcyon Digest

Deerhunter

3/5

I’m sure I have listened to this before, and I wouldn’t be resistant to listening to it again, but it’s not a particular standout. I didn’t recall any of the songs and didn’t hum any of the tunes later. It is competent, well-played indie. Listenable, enjoyable even, some interesting electronic noises, but not essential.

The Beach Boys Today!

The Beach Boys

3/5

This is the first release by the Beach Boys which feels like an album rather than a collection of singles. There are no Surf songs. The first side is uptempo pop - Do You Wanna Dance, When I Grow Up (to Be a Man). Help Me Rhonda - The second is more introspective, with more orchestral arrangements. With songs like Kiss Me Baby and She knows Me too Well (much as I hate it) you can hear the beginnings of Pet Sounds. It is slightly surprising though, given the stories of how the Beatles pushed on the Beach Boys, or Brian Wilson to be exact, and vice-versa, that the jump from this to Pet Sounds, is more stark than, say, that from Rubber Soul to Revolver or Revolver to Sgt. Pepper…

Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts

The Adverts

5/5

Despite really liking the single, "Gary Gilmore's Eyes" at the time, I didn't listen to this album until I did a deep dive back into punk in the '90s. I loved it yet it has been years since I listened properly. It still holds up. Good songs, unusually high production values, a really enjoyable half hour.

If I Should Fall From Grace With God

The Pogues

4/5

Another Pogues album that I should have listened to before now. It's a lot more diverse than "Rum, Sodomy..", still very Irish but with other Celtic influences from Spain and the Balkans. When it's good, which is much of the time, it is excellent, at moments it is merely OK, but a very listenable OK.

The Köln Concert

Keith Jarrett

4/5

If you are in the right mood, this can be a really rewarding listening experience but, if not, like a lot of ECM albums, it can dissolve into background music. The story is excellent - the tired pianist, the subpar piano which meant he had to concentrate on the centre of the keyboard - and the improvised music is really well played. But there are no individual moments, at least for me, that linger beyond the listening. I would have loved to have been there, and I’m sure I will continue to enjoy it on the odd occasion. But I have a lot of great jazz albums, and there are lots I have not heard. If this hadn’t popped up, I wouldn’t have gone looking for it.

Bat Out Of Hell

Meat Loaf

5/5

Operatic and overblown, bombastic and frankly ridiculous. I love this album. Todd Rundgren claims he thought it was a Springsteen parody and approached it as such, using members of the E-Street Band and Utopia to create a sound that took Born To Run's Spector Wall of sound influences to a crazy level, everything to the max. There are so many good moments on this record - the way Rundgren's guitar segues from making motorbike noises seamlessly into the guitar solo on the title track; the baseball commentary on Paradise By The Dashboard Light; Ellen Foley never sounding better than in her spot on the same track; the doowop backing vocals throughout. And the combination of Meat Loaf's bonkers lead vocals, Jim Steinman's even more bonkers songwriting, and Todd Rundgren's superb production makes this a never to be matched, one-off.

The Velvet Underground & Nico

The Velvet Underground

4/5

Incredibly influential - every minimalist indie band has listened to this. Lo-fi with hardly any processing on instruments or vocals, lyrics often address, romanticise even, drugs culture. I’ve owned this for years but listen to it seldom. I respect it, understand its significance, I like it but find it hard to love.

Forever Changes

Love

5/5

I love this album. It is almost perfect, one of those records held up as classics which do live up to the hype. I knew Love from a couple of tracks, Stephanie Knows Who and Seven and Seven Is, which I think my uncle had on a compilation, and I first bought Forever Changes in the ’90s, I think, when it appeared in a 100 best albums list. Since then I have played it once or twice a year and, each time, I am surprised by the production, the overall sound, and the songs. The trumpet on Alone Again or, the orchestral arrangements, the folk elements set against the strings and jangly guitars, the way the lyrics vear from optimism to pessimism and paranoia, sometimes within the same song, as if the summer of love was starting to fall into the darkness. The weird thing is, despite the initial, non-Forever Changes, songs I was familiar with, I have never taken the time to investigate Love’s back catalogue, something I need to resolve.

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin

5/5

I like Led Zeppelin. They were a fine heavy rock band. I don’t understand why they are held up as huge innovators, The Beatles of the ‘70s, and I hate that they stole songs wholesale from the likes of Willie Dixon and that some biographers continue to justify the theft because “they made them better songs.” Then again, those biographers also reveal that the band, particularly Bonham and Page, along with manager Peter Grant were basically horrible cunts. That said, rant over and getting back to the music, they did make good records, and Page knew how to produce them. This may have been the first LZ studio album I heard in full (I had put The Song Remains the Same on my Christmas list, thinking that as Deep Purple’s Made in Japan was them at their best, Zeppelin live would be similar - they’re not) as a school friend had it. And it is excellent, one of my favourites. It was poorly reviewed due to the number of acoustic songs on the second side but, Page being a better acoustic player than on electric, it is these numbers that really shine - listen to the space in the lovely “That’s the Way” or “Tangerine”. Never the blues master that Clapton, Taylor, Green and Beck were, Page does shine on “Since I’ve Been Loving You” and “Immigrant Song” is the original Viking metal around which a whole sub-genre has grown. LZ III is a proper album, not just a collection of songs - the way the bubbling synth at the end of “Friends” carries into “Celebration Day” and then disappears forever is excellent. So, when you strip away all the mythology and cultish worship, what you have is a damn fine album by a damn fine rock band. No more, no less, but that should be enough.

One Nation Under A Groove

Funkadelic

5/5

By this time, Parliament and Funkadelic were, to all intents and purposes, one entity, although I don't believe there are any horns on this album. This is incredibly funky but there is still a huge dose of heavy, swirling psychedelic, rock guitar. It's like James Brown playing Blue Cheer, or Vanilla Fudge playing Sly Stone. Loads of warbly synth lines and Bootsy's thumping bass accompany the vocals which range from Doo-Wop harmonies to shouts and barks. Love it. The P-funk tours must have been something to behold...

The Clash

5/5

I went to 'big school' in 1977 and I discovered The Clash the following year when "White Man in Hammersmith Palais" and "I Fought the Law" were released as singles. These tracks were substituted for a couple of the more punky tunes on the US version of the album, not released until 1979, and featured Topper Headon on drums, a much better player than Terry "Tory Crimes" Chimes who had played on the debut. Better songs but they did not necessarily make a better album. The original UK release is a punk classic and the aggression and anger holds the album together as a cohesive statement. "London Calling" is probably a better album overall but it is a result of many different influences. There has been a lot of revisionism on opinions of The Clash, and UK punk in general - Strummer was the son of a diplomat, a poseur; Mick Jones was a hard rock guitar hero wannabe; Simonon was an artist who couldn't play bass - and it is all nonsense. The Clash, on this album in particular, were angry young men railing against the grime and deprivation of late '70s Britain. "The Clash" hits hard, musically and lyrically, from the first chords of "Janie Jones" to the last notes of "Garageland". It was deemed not radio-friendly enough for the US, possibly the inclusion of "I'm So Bored With the USA" was a factor. The world feels worse now than it did then. I'm still bored with the USA and we could do with another Clash.

São Paulo Confessions

Suba

3/5

Chilled, relaxing electronica. It’s pleasant but nothing out of this world. I listened to it last night while watching the starlings’ murmurations off Brighton Pier and it was a lovely experience but I can’t see me returning to the album very often.

Music for the Masses

Depeche Mode

3/5

I’m not a huge Depeche Mode fan. I didn’t like their early synthpop, Top of the Pops stuff. I do like Violator, or at least some of the songs, very much. This is somewhere in between. There is a darkness to some of the numbers but the instrumentation on others is a little weak.

Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots

The Flaming Lips

5/5

This is a really good album, and it surprised me. I listened to it, and The Soft Bulletin, back when they came out, may even own this on CD, but I have never had it on regular rotation. It’s an incredibly eclectic record - pop, psychedelia, prog, electronics - yet harnesses it all into a distinct soundscape. There are echoes of Pet Sounds, Sgt Pepper’s (which they covered in full), and Dark Side of the Moon. I feel I need to dive deeper.

Street Life

The Crusaders

4/5

This is more a case of a song you should listen to before you die, but what a song it is. Street Life, the title track, in its 11 minute plus album version is worth four stars on its own. Randy Crawford's vocals are sublime and the playing from the core group, particularly that of Wilton Felder whose bass playing is even better than his saxophones, is superb. The arrangement and production is excellent, separation in the soundscape is clear and the tone warm. It is a fantastic piece of work. The rest of the album, although engineered and played just as well as the opening track, does not match it for quality. The lounge jazz-funk is pleasant enough but is like the background music playing when Starsky and Hutch had to visit a seedy club. There is nothing memorable or distinctive about any of the tunes. Unfortunate, as the three Crusaders and the session players are incredible players - they just needed better material in which to display their talents.

Born In The U.S.A.

Bruce Springsteen

4/5

I have all of Springsteen's albums from Asbury Park to Born in the USA, and some later ones, but I have never liked BITU as much as Born to Run or Darkness on the Edge of Town, for example. The production is very '80s, particularly on the drums, but that didn't annoy me as much as it once did. There are some very good songs, some passable ones. The E-Street Band plays as well as ever - I really noticed the bass playing this time. And I love the fact that the title track subverts the whole patriotic anthem sound of the music with the downbeat lyrics, and the irony that this is completely lost on those politicians who punch the air in the chorus.

The Rising

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Springsteen's post 9/11 album, written and recorded, with the E Street Band, in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. The album is a tribute to those who died, those who tried to save them, an attempt to make sense of what happened. The lyrics are a mixture of hope, doubt, fear; they never become maudlin and the songs are among the best and most emotional of Springsteen's career, certainly since the late '70s or early '80s. It retains the power to move the listener after almost a quarter century, rooted as it is in the human experience rather than the political world. Would that some of the war-mongers had similarly concentrated on the people.

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme

Simon & Garfunkel

5/5

It has been about a hundred years since I listened to this album and it is a lot more varied than I remembered or was expecting. The sound is excellent, the songs as much chamber pop-music as folk rock, the duo's voices weave around each other, the instruments complimenting them perfectly. Homeward Bound is one of Simon's best songs but there are so many other great recordings hear and the rendition of Silent Night layered over a news reporter announcing Lenny Bruce's death and the growing war in Vietnam, is still powerful. I was anticipating a couple of hits plus filler; this is so much more.

Triangle

The Beau Brummels

3/5

Heard the Beau Brummels before, although not this album. It is perfectly listenable 1960s psychedelic folk pop/rock, very pleasant. But nothing here compares to Love or Jefferson Airplane or the Byrds. I don’t think I would have been any worse off by not hearing this and don’t see any reason why this makes the top 1001.

Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)

The Kinks

5/5

First surprise is the opening track, Victoria, because I thought it was a much later Kinks song, but no matter, it is an excellent start to the album. And the rest of the album has a great sound musically and the lyrics are a satirical, almost Monty Python-like, commentary on the idea of Britishness and the ‘glory’ of the British Empire. For me, it is a much more satisfying album than the more celebrated “Village Green Preservation Society.” It’s, as you would expect, quirky as only the Kinks could be, and there are some really nice touches, like the Beach Boys harmonies in the background when ‘surfing’ is mentioned in Australia. The instrumentation and arrangements are excellent, particularly the guitars and horns, and the drums have a Keith Moon/Mitch Mitchell freedom to them. I’m sure I have listened to the album before but this was a pleasant surprise.

The Number Of The Beast

Iron Maiden

5/5

I have had a passing relationship with Iron Maiden over the years. My uncle gave me Deep Purple in Rock, from which I built a record collection that included the classical, blues, jazz and soul influences in Purple’s music, but was very much geared to the heavier side of ‘70s rock. So, when a friend turned up with Metal for Muthas, the NWOBHM sampler which included two Iron Maiden tracks, as well as a pre-Maiden Bruce Bruce (Dickinson) with Samson, I was interested enough to look out for IM’s first album when it was released later that year. And that, I think is the only Maiden album I own. I liked the punky metal with Paul Di’Anno’s vocals. I listened to Number of the Beast when it came out, and I saw, and enjoyed, Maiden at Reading ‘82. I just didn’t love them. I have dipped in and out over the years, and occasionally, I do a deep dive. I have listened to almost everything they have released, have seen them live again recently (it was excellent) and, even if I cannot say they are one of my favourite bands, I do respect them. I joke that Steve Harris is like the old blues singer on In Living Color - I wrote a song about it, like to hear it? Here it goes…- in that he really wears his influences on his sleeve, or in his titles. This album has a song inspired by Children of the Damned called “Children of the Damned”, and one by the ‘60s TV series The Prisoner (“The Prisoner”). Later we get lots of similarly, literal inspirations. But listening today, I hear a tighter, more varied album than I remembered. I can hear Ritchie Blackmore and, especially, UFO/Michael Schenker influences in the guitar playing and, even this early, indications of the proggier sounds that would come in later. Dickinson does have a good voice, obviously influenced by Ian Gillan; he would become more nuanced as he got older - he tends to use Gillan's high register Highway Star voice 90% of the time on this album. But no matter, I really enjoyed this and it is incredibly influential.

Car Wheels On A Gravel Road

Lucinda Williams

5/5

This is how modern country should sound. It is not slick, as so much '90s and beyond country is, no over-produced pop sheen. It is well played and sounds like a real band with Lucinda Williams's world-weary voice sitting over dobros and fiddles, americana, r&b influenced, earthy music.

Deep Purple In Rock

Deep Purple

5/5

I do not need an excuse to listen to Deep Purple in Rock. This is my favourite album and is, without exaggeration, the most important record in my collection, in fact In Rock is the seed from which most of my record collection grew. My uncle gave me the album in the late '70s and, from the classical, jazz, blues, soul and progressive influences on this, and on later Purple albums, I built and extensive music library which spans many genres. And of course, despite the incredible influence that contemporaries, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, had on the hard/heavy rock and metal worlds, it is impossible to imagine that the likes of Iron Maiden and Metallica and the rest did not listen to Deep Purple, and this album in particular. “Flight of the Rat” is proto-thrash metal, at least a decade before that scene emerged. As hard as DPIR hit me, I can only imagine what it was like to hear this for the first time in 1970, especially for anyone who knew the band. From the cacophonous first minute of opener “Speed King”, and explosion of wailing guitar and screeching, howling hammond organ, thundering drums and crashing cymbals it is clear this is something different - this is not the same band that recorded Hush, let alone the Concerto for Group and Orchestra. The discordant noise resolves into contemplative church organ and then. bang, the riff starts and the band launch into one of the most powerful opening tracks in rock music. The lyrics are largely drawn from the 1950s rock and roll songs which inspired the young Ian Gillan, here energised with the power of the new “heavy’ rock “Bloodsucker” is built around a tight unison bass and guitar line, which snakes through the verses (there really isn’t any chorus) punctuated by organ stabs and sustained chords, then a series of short solo exchanges from Blackmore and Lord. “Child in Time” is one of the great Deep Purple songs with the whole band on stunningly good form. It builds from Jon Lord’s subdued organ introductory riff, adding elements gradually through the verse, until Ian Gillan’s voice screams in increasing anguish, his range and control are amazing, one of the best voices ever in rock music. Then into the bolero section which drives into a jaw-dropping guitar solo. And then we go again, this time with even more power, even more control. Roger Glover’s bass holds everything down, Paice’s drumming is incredible throughout - listen to his cymbal work in the quiet passages. The lyrics can be interpreted as anti-drug, anti-war but Gillan has said they are anti-stupidity - how relevant that still is… “Flight of the Rat” has one of the all time great Hammond organ solos, ending with a series of long, harsh discordant notes (still my ringtone) and seamlessly leading into a very funky guitar break, more busy, jazzy drumming from Paice. The track foreshadows metal but swings like Count Basie. Perhaps the heaviest track on the album, “Into the Fire” is a slower number, slightly reminiscent of Hendrix’s “Purple Haze”. It is followed by “Living Wreck” which taken is at a similar tempo but funkier, again some amazing drumming. Also an unusual, sensuous, slithering guitar solo, Blackmore experimenting with an octaver effect. “Hard Lovin’ Man” lays the blueprint for everything Iron Maiden and other metal bands did later in the decade - the galloping rhythm, the driving riffs - but the metal bands didn’t have Jon Lord. The distorted Hammond sound plays the main riff before the verses and his solo is unbelievable. He plays intentionally in the wrong key and wrestles the notes into key, the organ emitting discordant, atonal screams. The song, and the album, ends with a swirling cacophony of protest from Blackmore’s Stratocaster which echoes the opening of “Speed King”. Awe inspiring.

Graceland

Paul Simon

5/5

Incredible to think that this is nearly 40 years old. The controversy at the time, when Paul Simon defied the UN (?) embargo on South Africa seemed to be overtaken by the attention the album drew to the South African musicians who played with Simon and arguably on the Apartheid regime as well. The music stands up and is as entertaining and fascinating as it was back then, melding Simon's songwriting to music from African and American cultures. We have Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Youssou N'Dour, Los Lobos, Cajun accordionist, Rockin' Dopsie, The Everly Brothers and, particularly influential to the overall feel of the album, an incredible African band featuring Ray Phiri's guitar and the astounding bass player, Bakithi Kumalo.

Picture Book

Simply Red

2/5

I gave this a chance but it didn't change my opinion of Simply Red. To be fair, it is competently played, in fact very well-played by excellent musicians, but the songs are bland soul-pop which approximate '60s and '70s Motown/Stax/Philly recordings without any of the emotional investment. And I really do not like Mick Hucknall or his grating voice. Another dinner party album...

Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water

Limp Bizkit

1/5

Nope!

461 Ocean Boulevard

Eric Clapton

2/5

When I was much younger I believed that Eric Clapton was some sort of hero in a tragic romance, as I am sure he saw himself. Acclaimed as "God", the greatest guitarist of all time (at least until Jimi arrived in London), he falls in love with the wife of his best friend, records Layla in an attempt to woo her, falls into alcoholism and heroin addiction when he fails to win her, then does prise her away, only to dump her and accuse her of being a drunk. In truth, Clapton is, and always was, a selfish bastard, a great guitar player who was a master at interpreting Blues; in the '60s he was supreme, even in the early '90s his album of blues covers at times surpasses the originals; only to support Enoch Powell's Rivers of Blood, anti-immigration rants. While pleasant in places, this is one of his '70s albums of attempting to be JJ Cale, middle of the road soft rock. Some of the material is listenable, some of it - his cover of I Shot the Sheriff and Wiliie and the Hand Jive - is lamentable. I can separate the artist from the art, to some degree, and I will continue to listen to Bluesbreakers, and Layla, and Cream but there is no place in my life these days for music that is not good enough to make me temporarily forget the racist, conceited, Covid-denying anti-vaxxer who made it.

Odessey And Oracle

The Zombies

5/5

Another album I love and don’t listen to enough. The sound is excellent, Colin Blunstone’s vocals, the stunning harmonies, Rod Argent’s keys; it’s incredible that the band had already split by the time of release. Perhaps they and it were too idiosyncratic - the album starts with a lovely, bouncy, upbeat song about welcoming a lover back after her prison sentence… Odessey and Oracle should be spoken of in the same terms as Pet Sounds and Sgt Pepper’s but perhaps it was fated to disappear when the artist misspelled Odyssey in the cover painting. There are so many good songs, so many great moments on the album - listen to the transitions to the choruses in Care of Cell 44 or Brief Candles for examples. The vocal melodies and the piano/mellotron (John Lennon’s mellotron in Abbey Road) combination foreshadows ‘70s prog. Butcher’s Tale (Western Front 1914) written by Bassist Chris White is as harrowing as a Wilfred Owen poem. And then comes Time of the Season, possibly The Zombies’ best known track and their biggest hit in America, when the band was no more. They should have been huge.

One World

John Martyn

4/5

Despite loving Solid Air by John Martyn for years. I have rarely delved into his catalog. While there is little in this album to bewitch me to the same degree, One World is a solid record. Steve Winwood is featured fairly heavily on organ and Moog which does date it slightly, and Martyn’s guitar is processed more frequently than on Solid Air, where it made more impact. As a whole, the album is chilled and soothing, and the closing Sammy Hours is excellent.

Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin

5/5

When you put aside all the 'greatest ever' nonsense that surrounds both the band and this album, this is a really good record. Yes, I occasionally get a little tired of some of the songs, and Stairway is over-praised and over-played, but when the guitar solo in that song starts, or the first drum hit thunders on When The Levee Breaks, or the Jew's harp opening to the album leads into "Hey Hey Mama" on Black Dog, it can still raise the pulse.

Marquee Moon

Television

5/5

Every time I listen to Marquee Moon it sounds fresh and new. Amazing that the CBGB's scene spawned artists as strong, yet as singular, as The Ramones, Blondie, Patti Smith, Talking Heads and Television. This is possibly prog-punk, the intricately weaving, spiky yet melodic guitar lines, jazz-like drumming and solid bass surrounding Tom Verlaine's unmistakable voice, and the soloing is stunning - this album has influenced so many indie and art bands, few of whom ever come close to matching this. Nor did Television really. There isn't a low point on the record but the opener, See No Evil, Prove It and, especially, the 10 minute + title track, are superbly good. As much as I love those other bands from the New York Punk scene, Marquee Moon is the pinnacle.

Nebraska

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Over the years Nebraska has grown to be one of my favourite Springsteen albums. Essentially acoustic demos, recorded in a cabin, guitar, harmonica, Bruce's voice, and natural reverb. It sounds like he is in the room with you. The songs are dark and downbeat, as many of those on the subsequent Born In The USA would be, but without the E-Street band anthemic sound. And they are all the better for that. The sound, the subject matter, the semi-mumbled vocals - all excellent.

Hot Rats

Frank Zappa

4/5

Like Todd Rundgren, Frank Zappa was a master of so many other things it is easy to forget just how good a guitar player he was. Of course he would later release Shut Up and Play Yer Guitar but Hot Rats, a largely instrumental album, set the bar. Peaches En Regalia is the gem but the rest of the tracks display Zappa’s, and the band’s, prowess in both composed and improvised jam settings. Willie the Pimp, the non-instrumental, has Captain Beefheart howling’ the blues as an added bonus.

Moby Grape

5/5

Love this album and I love an excuse to listen to it. Moby Grape should have been huge but record company incompetence and mismanagement means they crashed and burned, and not that brightly. The album is at least the equal of it's peers, from the boogie opening of Hey Grandma, the power pop anticipating Fall On You, the beauty of 8:05 (the opening notes of which always makes me sigh), Omaha which betters the best of Grateful Dead and CSN, and the rest, it is 30 minutes of excellence.

Scott 4

Scott Walker

5/5

This really surprised me. My uncle had several Scott Walker albums but I never listened to them. I did know the Walker Brothers’ The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore, Make It Easy On Yourself, and No Regrets, a couple of Scott’s Brel covers but this is excellent. Apparently unsuccessful on release, probably because it was originally released under Walker’s real name of Scott Engels. The opening The Seventh Seal is based on Bergman’s film but sounds like Morricone and Bacharach. Many of the songs have a Bacharach feel but are Scott originals. The music is lush, the lyrics sometimes have a stream of consciousness feel. The record sounds like Andy Williams tackling the avant-garde. I loved it. In researching the background to the album I came across my favourite quotation from The Guardian - "Now recognised as one of his greatest recordings, it sold poorly. The world was not ready for the existentialist musings of a pop singer whose touchstones were the films of Kurosawa and Bergman and the novels of Kafka and Camus." Fantastic. I can feel a deep dive coming on. And there is a collaboration with Sunn O))) which might be right up my street.

Arrival

ABBA

5/5

I have very eclectic tastes in music but, deep down, I am a metalhead and heavy rock fan, with regular excursions into Jazz. But I have owned and loved this album on vinyl for years. Arrival is close to the perfect pop album, and ABBA the perfect pop band. There are classic songs here - Dancing Queen, Knowing Me, Knowing You, Money, Money, Money - and the rest comes close to equalling those. The arrangements are wonderful and the sounds so influential (listen to Costello's Oliver's Army immediately after Dancing Queen...). I love this album. It always makes me smile.

Greetings From L.A.

Tim Buckley

3/5

Never really got Tim Buckley, certainly no where near as much as I did his son. But he is always listenable and this album is no exception. The songs are all California pop-rock-soul, with touchs of funk in the rhythms, some of them very good in the moment. The problem for me is that I may have listened to this before, I just don't know because nothing really grabs me, nothing sticks.

Beggars Banquet

The Rolling Stones

5/5

"Yeaoowwhh!" Beggars Banquet is the start of the Stones golden period, where they step out of the shadow of The Beatles 'rivalry' and become a Rock Band. "Sympathy for the Devil" is a stunning opener, biting and percussive - not just in the drums; the vocals and guitars are equally polyrhythmic - with references to the killings of the Kennedys, among others. 1969 is just upon us but the '60s are already over. Still one of the group's best songs. There is nothing quite so good on the rest of the album, and I feel the next few albums, when Mick Taylor had replaced Brian Jones, get steadily better, but it is all excellent. "No Expectations" and "Dear Doctor" point to later songs, like "Dead Flowers" or "Torn and Frayed", in which the Rolling Stones become the best country band in the world, even if here they lacked the conviction to push through the pastiche. "Street Fighting Man" is powerful and driving, and always fun to revisit. There are some excellent blues among the other tracks, "Prodigal Son" in particular stands out for the Mississippi Delta acoustic guitars and Mick's authentic barking vocals. The harsh, spiky guitars from the opener make a welcome return at the end of "Stray Cat Blues". Closer "Salt of the Earth" is a little corny but is saved, first by Keith's toneless backing vocals in the choruses and then by the wonderful, piano driven, gospel choir coda. A great album, even with the knowledge that greater were to come.

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

Iron Butterfly

4/5

This is an album of two halves, and its reputation rests on the second half. Side one is pleasant enough psychedelic pop-rock. The opening track is reminiscent of the Doors, some of the organ lines are almost Light My Fire; the second track echoes the likes of the Foundations; the rest follow similarly, sounding like those bands, maybe the Animals. Then comes side 2. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida is a 17 minute plus maelstrom of distorted guitars, hypnotic, repetitive bass, a tribal drum solo (which does become tedious or trance-inducing, depending on where your head is at), slurred vocals, and the swirling organ, which really makes the track, and the album.

Moving Pictures

Rush

5/5

Not my favourite Rush album, I still prefer the 1970s longform madness, but still a very good, and highly influential record. The songs are relatively shorter, some of the time signatures complex. You can hear the beginnings of progressive metal, Tool and Dream Theater, but Rush themselves are taking on influences from the likes of the Police, in particular, and the production is akin to New Wave albums of the time, early ‘80s.

Junkyard

The Birthday Party

4/5

I have a good friend who likes Nick Cave. Other than listening to some Grinderman, I have never found the right entry point to a fairly extensive catalog, although, having recently started to watch Peaky Blinders, in which Cave's music features, I have been thinking of exploring further. Then this turns up. I have heard the name, The Birthday Party, but knew nothing about them, not even that Nick Cave and other Bad Seeds started out here. Musically, it reminds me of PIL, angular, spiky post-punk; some of the guitar playing puts me in mind of Television; but it is feral and unhinged. Cave wails and howls, the band lurches and zigzags - sometimes it sounds rockabilly, sometimes almost metal, sometimes like a murder set to music. Whatever it is, I like it.

Are You Experienced

Jimi Hendrix

5/5

This is my favourite of the Experience albums. I can only imagine what it must have been like to witness Jimi Hendrix's arrival in the UK; it certainly affected those who were there, Eric Clapton among them. He, Peter Green, Mick Taylor and the like were excellent guitar players, who played the blues with a deferential respect to the Chicago players who inspired them. But listen to Red House, where Jimi plays cosmic blues that pushes the envelope, freer and rawer. "Are You Experienced" was preceded by three excellent singles, "Hey Joe", "Purple Haze" and "The Wind Cries Mary", which were included on the US version of the album but not on the original UK version, and the record is all the better for that, more of a singular statement. And it is a band album - opener, "Foxy Lady" rests as much on Mitch Mitchell's busy, jazz inflected drumming as on Hendrix's riffing and vocals; Noel Redding's hypnotic, steady bass playing holds down "3rd Rock from the Sun" while all the stunning, extraterrestrial, whammy bar craziness is threatening to fly us off into space. "Remember" is the Experience's version of Northern Soul; "Love or Confusion" is proto-metal which could sit on Deep Purple in Rock. The beauty of "May This Be Love" crashes into the hard rock riffing of "Fire". No one had played guitar like this before. In these days when every YouTube wannabe can toss off Van Halen two-handed tapping and blistering scales, it could be hard to comprehend the impact Jimi Hendrix had. But imagine what he would and could have done had he lived, where he would have pushed guitar music. Move Over Rover...

Melody A.M.

Röyksopp

3/5

Chilled, downtempo dance music. It is very good, very listenable, but very much passive, background music. I have heard, and enjoyed the album before, but didn't recall an awful lot of it.

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

4/5

Despite listening to a lot of soul over the years, I am not hugely familiar with Solomon Burke, other than a couple of singles, and this album possibly explains why. The record is actually a collection of singles rather than a true album, and they range from the sublime "Cry To Me", an excellent version of "He'll Have to Go", to the merely good. And they are all good but nothing really memorable songwise. Solomon's voice is excellent, somewhere between Ray Charles and James Brown but some of the arrangements are a little tired. Enjoyable but not going to rival Otis Redding, or Wilson Pickett, or Aretha in my collection.

Highly Evolved

The Vines

3/5

Listenable but not essential. Heavily influenced by Nirvana in places, although never reaching those heights, reminiscent of the likes of Feeder in others. I have heard this before and little stuck other than "Highly Evolved", which I like, and "Factory", which I don't.

Street Signs

Ozomatli

3/5

Never heard if this album or the band. It is entertaining, if a little repetitive towards the end. The first track is really good, blending latino and bhangra rhythms and instrumentation with rock/pop. The rest are not quite as good but the mixing pot of latin, ska, dance is fun to listen to.

Songs For Swingin' Lovers!

Frank Sinatra

5/5

I have loved this stunning album for years. The songs, mainly whimsical love songs, are classics. Sinatra's voice, languid yet agile, has never been better, some of his phrasing is mind-blowing. But, at least, equal billing should go to Nelson Riddle - the arrangements complement and augment Frank's singing. Vote and music are in perfect balance, the whole soundscape incredibly rewarding. There are so many great moments and no lows - the way Sinatra will take a repeated verse in a completely different way the second go-round; the way a muted trumpet solo will grow out of the horn section. Songs for Swingin' Lovers makes me smile every time I listen to it.

Ys

Joanna Newsom

3/5

This album got incredible reviews on release and I bought it on the strength of these. I can honestly say I have listened to it a dozen times in 19 years. It has something, I’m just not sure what it is. It’s intense, strangely so for an album that is largely harp and voice with chamber music accompaniment. Joanna’s voice is childlike and can grate at times. The lyrics are hallucinatory and there are no recognisable verse/chorus structures. Ys is intriguing, I find something interesting in it when I do listen. But it is a demanding listen, not something you necessarily do for pleasure, hence the number of times I have put it on.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

3/5

Great harmonies and arrangements but, with the exception of the singles and perhaps a couple of other tracks, the material is fairly average. “California Dreamin’” and “Monday, Monday” are perhaps the only Mamas and Papas I need.

The Seldom Seen Kid

Elbow

4/5

This is a great sounding album, great separation, love the string arrangements in particular, and it feels like a ‘whole’. Excellent production. I was expecting Coldplay and got something a bit more progressive. The bass driven “Grounds for Divorce” was a pleasant surprise. “Starlings”, “Mirrorball” and “One Day Like This” are standouts. I liked “An Audience with the Pope” and the instrumentation which reminded me of The Third Man soundtrack. I liked this a lot and would listen again. The live recording at Abbey Road sounds like it would be interesting.

Odelay

Beck

3/5

I own a few Beck albums and I like his, never loved it. Odelay is admirable rather than entirely enjoyable. I do like a lot of it and appreciate the artistry in the use of samples and traditional instruments. Some of his laconic vocal mannerisms can grate at times, particularly on “Derelict” and I am always disappointed when “Novocaine” starts and I realise that, yet again, I have mixed it up with the better Eels song. I guess Beck may be a greatest hits artist for me. But “Devil’s Haircut”, “Where It’s At” and “The New Pollution” are excellent.

War

U2

3/5

Not a huge fan of U2, with the exception of Achtung Baby which is an uncharacteristically fantastic album. On War, "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day" still stand as classic tracks. The rest is never less than listenable but a lot of it is relatively indistinguishable from other, "lesser" bands of the period like Flock of Seagulls, China Crisis, Simple Minds. Not terrible, some great playing, particularly some of Clayton's basslines, but not mind-blowing.

Back In Black

AC/DC

5/5

Now we're talking. Way back in the dark pre-internet days of 1980 one of the only ways to hear new rock music was via Tommy Vance's Friday Rock Show on BBC Radio One, TV on the Radio. The gang I ran with were huge AC/DC fans, me not so much (that came later). Dirty Deeds, Powerage, Highway to Hell, If You Want Blood were all on rotation on the ghettoblaster, and we were all shocked by Bon Scott's death. So, we gathered around the speakers, 10 PM after youth club, with a bottle of cider, and listened as Tommy played a new song by AC/DC. The slow bell tolled, the mournful riff built and, after a minute and a half, we heard Brian Johnson for the first time. "Oh my god, It's Donald Duck," I said, which brought me a mild kicking... I did get used to, even love, Johnson's shrill voice and, although for me Back In Black will always be slightly below Highway to Hell and Powerage, it is an astounding album. Mutt Lange, as he had done on HTH, makes AC/DC sound huge. The guitars are separate and distinct; you can hear just how much of the band's power is Malcolm Young; open chords never sounded so good. This is probably AC/DC's best sounding record. There isn't a bad song. "Hells Bells", "You Shook Me All Night Long", the title track, and "Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution" are classics; the rest are not far behind, full of Carry-On style sexual innuendo, drinking and partying; all deceptively simple and meticulously crafted. I will always miss Bon Scott's slyer, seedier persona, and I do question the speed at which the Young Brothers completed and released this record following his passing. But Back In Black is one of the great rock albums of all time and broke AC/DC in the USA, even if they never reached the same heights again.

Fly Or Die

N.E.R.D

4/5

It's been a long time since I listened to this album. I really liked it when it was released, although I admit a lot of the attraction was Alicia Dixon, who never looked so good, dancing on the video for "She Wants To Move", which is probably still the best track. The album stands up. I have a lot of respect for Pharrell's talent and N.E.R.D. is where the Neptunes production is brought to a more rock/pop genre. In this album I can hear influences from artists I love - Prince and Stevie Wonder, Sly and the Family Stone, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, The Zombies, Isley Brothers. I liked listening to it again and should give the more recent reunion release a listen.

Born To Run

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

"Screen door slams, Mary’s dress waves..." I don't know if there is a more evocative opening couplet in rock music. From the start of "Thunder Road" to the end of "Jungleland", Born to Run is cinematic and the movie is populated with well-drawn characters into whose lives and struggles we dip for 5 minutes or so. The songs are little vignettes, from the faded lovers of "Thunder Road" to the optimistic but doomed protagonist of "Meeting Across the River" there is a lot going on behind the lyrics. This the fourth Springsteen album on the list for me so far, but it could just as easily be the only one. Not that the others are not good but this one is perfect, perhaps the most perfect of rock albums, and I'm not a diehard Springsteen fan. The band is excellent especially Roy Bittan whose solo piano opens the record and is a key part of many other tracks. And Bruce deserves huge recognition for his guitar playing which is incredibly good throughout. The horns are fantastic, not only Clarence Clemons's sax, but the horn section arrangements too - just listen to the perfect recreation of the Mar-keys horns on "Tenth Avenue Freezeout"... Musically there are influences from rock and roll, Motown and Stax soul reviews, doo-wop, and "Born to Run" itself is the ultimate use of Spector's Wall of Sound in a rock idiom. I love this album. Some will argue Darkness On The Edge of Town, but I don't think Bruce ever bettered this.

Everything Must Go

Manic Street Preachers

5/5

The Manic's first album since Richey Edwards disappearance is, in contrast to earlier more minimalist records, a big bombastic rock album for the most part. Songs like the title track, "Australia", "A Design for Life", "Kevin Carter", "Enola/Alone" are as in your face as anything on Oasis's first two albums, although much more substantial. Complementing the powerchords are sweeping strings and brass. Lyrically, especially on the songs to which Edwards contributed, the band tackles social issues, consumerism, politics. "Kevin Carter", musically anthemic, the trumpet reminiscent of TV series such as The Persuaders or The Protectors, is written about the South African, photographer who, tormented by the cruelty and inhumanity he had documented in his home country and in Sudan, took his own life, the psychological strain shared by Edwards. "Small Black Flowers That Grow In The Sky", a delicate, harp-based ballad, a seems to be about animal cruelty, in Zoos, in testing facilities (?), but also about individual mental health. A stunningly good album. Big, loud, brash and much deeper than it appears on the surface.

1984

Van Halen

5/5

Van Halen, particularly with Diamond Dave Lee Roth as frontman, are ridiculously over the top, brash, flashy, trashy, and really good fun. You don't come to a VH album expecting profound life lessons; you come for the party, and you get that by the truckload. You also get a finely tuned rock band with one of the most influential guitarists in history, a great drummer, an underrated bass player whose backing vocals always made a huge difference to the sound, and a goofish, clown of a lead singer who has more cocky self-confidence than any of them. This album adds synths to a few tracks but they are still mostly built on Eddie's incredible rhythm guitar playing - the man was an outstanding lead player with chops that many still try in vain to match but his rhythm playing is perhaps even better. Van Halen are probably responsible for the Hair Metal phenomena that spread from California in the early '80s but they can't be blamed for the many inferior copycats who followed in their wake. 1984 was the band's last album with DLR for years and, for me, sits just below Van Halen and Van Halen II. It makes me smile.

Stardust

Willie Nelson

5/5

Stardust is a truly beautiful album. Willie Nelson's distinctive, some might say limited, voice is sympathetically surrounded by superb arrangements from Booker T Jones. These interpretations of standards are wonderful. Nelson sings in a leisurely, laconic fashion, is rarely on the beat, anticipating at times, catching up at others, and always sounds completely in his element like he was born to sing these songs. They are uniformly excellent but special mention to the final two numbers, "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" and "Someone to Watch Over Me" which are close to definitive, amazing given the great voices that have sung these songs over the years. I don't listen to this anything like as often as I should; it is a delight and makes me smile every time I hear it.

MTV Unplugged In New York

Nirvana

4/5

I am fairly ambivalent about the whole MTV Unplugged thing. A lot of the shows are enjoyable and there are individual moments which stick out - Pearl Jam's political sharpies, Neil Young's pump organ, I really liked Don Henley doing "Come Rain or Shine", and Nirvana doing "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" (although had they done it with Mark Lanegan as planned, it would have shone). But there is a lot of mythologising about these concerts, and this one in particular, when the truth is that most of the bands featured would, and did, sound much better in their natural, amplified state. In fact, most of the guitars were not 'unplugged', they were amplified acoustic guitars with, as in the case of Nirvana's cover of "The Man Who Sold the World", are put through effects and fuzz boxes. That's not to say that this album is not enjoyable, it is. But is not the best Nirvana gig I have ever heard, nor is it one of the great live albums. Kurt Cobain's suicide 5 months later has little bearing on this recording. It should not need Apple Music to warn "It's Worth remembering and repeating: Unplugged was never meant to be Nirvana's final statement." of course it wasn't; it was a pleasant performance in a slightly unusual setting. Good. Not epocal.

All Mod Cons

The Jam

5/5

The Jam's third album builds on The Who influences evident in their first two albums and adds healthy doses of Kinks, particularly in the storytelling in the lyrics which peaks on the last track. "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight" is a tale of violence and fear, a peak at London in the late '70s. The album is still full of the aggression that fuelled The Jam's music and Weller's songwriting, but adds more melodic variance. The songs are peopled by realistic characters, another influence from The Kinks and Ray Davies, whose "David Watts" sits comfortably among the Weller originals. The album is only 37 minutes long, 12 songs, only two over the 3 minute mark (and one of those only by 18 seconds). Paul Weller was 20 years old.

Third

Soft Machine

5/5

I really should buy this album. I have listened to it several times, usually as part of a 'project' like this 1001-thing, or doing a deep dive into Prog while reading along ('A New Day Yesterday' is a good history), and I have never failed to be rewarded. Third is Jazz-Rock, with heavy emphasis on the jazz. Four pieces taking up a side each of the original double vinyl. Apparently the band were at each other's throats and different lineups and guest players feature. Opening side, "Facelift" is recorded live although manipulated. There is a section in which recordings of two performances are played together, one backwards (!) There is a lot of avant-garde free jazz which reminds me of Coltrane's Ascension and, like that album, it is a challenging listen, but well worth it. "Slightly All The Time" is a gentler, meandering piece which, at times reminds me of Miles Davis '60s work, Jazz Messengers at others. It becomes more electronic and experimental as it progresses. "Moon In June", which appears to be largely a Robert Wyatt solo piece on which he plays all instruments and sings is the most recognisably '70s prog, very Genesis-like in parts. Wyatt's fragile tenor floats in and out of the music, sometimes almost disappearing, and the lyrics appear to be stream of consciousness. The music becomes more experimental and drone/noise driven as the song reaches its final minutes. "Out-Bloody-Rageous" is an ambient piece which opens with loops and repeated keyboard patterns which build in volume and intensity as the track develops. Around the 5 minute mark it becomes a swinging jazz fusion - electric piano vamps, sax and synth, some excellent drumming from Wyatt - and continues to evolve over the remaining runtime. Third is a commitment, a journey. It is not an album you are going to dip into, nor add tracks to a random playlist. It is very English in places yet it is not unlike some of what the likes of Kamasi Washington are doing in jazz today.

Tommy

The Who

5/5

Even at a distance of over 50 years Tommy is such a progression from The Who’s great but largely singles-centric output thus far, it must have blown minds in 1969. It’s an incredible achievement - a concept album but more, a ‘rock opera’ which really works, in which the songs really do carry the storyline. Yet so many of the songs stand alone, many of them comfortably sitting with the band’s greatest singles. “Pinball Wizard”, “Acid Queen”, “I’m Free”, “Amazing Journey”. I have always told myself I preferred Quadrophenia, and I consider Who’s Next one of the best albums of all time but listening to Tommy again with fresh ears, and good earphones, is incredible. I’m astonished not only by the genius of Pete Townsend’s composition and arrangements, by the production and clarity of the mix, but by the amount of acoustic guitar throughout. In the era of Hendrix, Clapton and Beck Townsend may have been forgotten to some extent. He was a different sort of player but astounding in his own right, an incredible rhythm guitarist. The other thing I realised on this listening is what a complete piece of music “Overture” is. It really does serve the same purpose as the great introductions to operas by Verdi or Puccini or Wagner, and deserves to stand alongside them. I have owned this for years but in truth have listened to live performances or the orchestral version more often, so this is the first time in a long time that I have actively listened to the original version. It really is an “Amazing Journey” and one I won’t leave leave so long again.

Locust Abortion Technician

Butthole Surfers

4/5

Loud, experimental (or unhinged…) noise rock. I approached this hesitantly, not expecting to like it, but I really enjoyed it. It’s bonkers and sounds like a Black Sabbath/doom metal album played by guys who had never heard but had had it described to them.

Joan Armatrading

4/5

Just found that I own six Joan Armatrading albums, all on cassette, bought in a job lot; but not this one, despite "Love and Affection" being the song I know best and most associate with the singer. The album is a pleasant listen. Joan's voice is deep, rich and resonant, and the production, by Glyn Johns, and the playing - her own acoustic guitar, some excellent electric guitar from Jerry Donahue, and an ensemble featuring Kenney Jones, Dave Mattacks and others - are sympathetic and supportive. The songs are mainly folk rock, with jazz flourishes and accents, mellow in that warm, rounded 1970s way. It is a fine piece of work I should probably dig out those cassettes and give the rest a listen.

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

3/5

It's not a bad album. The sound is good and Ocean is clearly talented. Some of the songs are inventive, the 10 minute plus is guitar driven for example; others stick to what you might expect from a modern RNB record. It's not for me and I am not qualified to comment on how it sits with contemporary soul. It has been held up as a worthy successor to Stevie Wonder and Prince - it's not that. I listened to it some years ago and yet nothing was familiar.

Coat Of Many Colors

Dolly Parton

3/5

I grew up in a Northern Ireland household who loved their country music - Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, George Jones, Charlie Pride, Johnny Cash - so I have an affinity to a lot of the music. But, while she has become an icon, I always found Dolly a little bit twee, a little "Aw, shucks". Listening to this album again has not changed that. The songs are earnest, and I am sure they come from the heart; the playing is excellent and shares a lot with music that I love, Gram Parsons for example. But it is just not for me.

American IV: The Man Comes Around

Johnny Cash

5/5

A stunning album full of pathos and regret, and apocalyptic rage in places, from a frail, dying Johnny Cash. The arrangements are relatively sparse, support to the main attraction, Cash's breathy baritone. The singer's voice is obviously much weaker than in his prime but that works really well, bringing a great depth of feeling to the likes of "Bridge Over Troubled Water", "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and, particularly, "In My Life" where it is evident that the lyrics are being considered by a man close to the end. Nine Inch Nails's "Hurt" becomes a different song in Cash's version and in the opening lines of "The Man Comes Around" Cash's deep rumbling voice sounds like a Herald of the end of the world. It doesn't all work perfectly, "Danny Boy" is a little maudlin and I'm not in love with his version of "Desperado", but it does work more often than not. The choice of material is generally very good and the production is clear and unfussy - exactly what is needed. A very moving record.

Led Zeppelin

4/5

I'm not a fan of Jimmy Page, less so the more I read about him, the bullying, the wholesale theft of other artists' work and the struggle to admit to it, the faux-witchcraft, the under age girlfriends. Compared to Jeff Beck, Ritchie Blackmore even Eric Clapton, he is a sloppy guitarist, on electric at least. But what is he is is an excellent producer, with an ear for sound and instrument placement. LZ I displays the beginnings of this. The album sounds good although maybe lacking in the bottom end that later albums have. "Good Times Bad Times" and "Communication Breakdown" display early metal blueprint, the former having a nice rounded bass tone and excellent bass drum work, both of which would benefit from a low end boost. "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You", "Dazed and Confused" and "How Many More Times" are fine examples of the dynamics between the quartet and in the breadth of material. They are also the first examples of Page's tactic of claiming authorship of music because he arranged it slightly differently. It took over 20 years for Anne Bredon to gain a credit and back royalties. "You Shook Me" is a more obvious robbery as Page's Yardbirds colleague and friend, Jeff Beck had just released his version and was reportedly livid. At least Willie Dixon is given his due as composer and I have to admit that, while I prefer Rod Stewart's vocal and Beck's guitar, the arrangement and, especially, the mixing lifts the Zeppelin version above the Jeff Beck Group one. "I Can't Quit You Baby" is an excellent version of another Dixon song and (another stolen song) "Black Mountain Side" is a demonstration of Page's acoustic playing which would come to the fore on LZ III. My favourite track is "Your Time Is Gonna Come" which opens side 2. It offers the lighter and harder sides of Zeppelin in the same song, with the acoustic guitar to the fore on both and fine playing from Bonham and Jones, whose drone pedal tones on the organ anchor the chorus, a breather before the next section takes off. A really good album with better to come.

Talking Book

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Music of My Mind, the first album Stevie Wonder made under his own control, was excellent but Talking Book is the real beginning of a stunning run of 5-star records he made in the 1970s. Leading off with "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", a perfect 'classic' love song which never becomes maudlin and straight into the heavy funk of "Maybe Your Baby", Stevie plays everything, as he does on most tracks, other than the occasional guitar - the rhythm section of drums, Moog bass and clavinet is incredible. "You and I" is a gorgeous ballad with a melody worthy of the Great American Songbook. "Superstition" is an all-time classic, one of the best songs Wonder, or any of his contemporaries, ever recorded; a song that proved too good to hand to Jeff Beck, for whom Stevie wrote it and who plays, very sympathetically, on "Lookin' For Another Love". The album closes with the wonderful (!) "I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)", uplifting and full of hope. Talking Book is a fantastic album, largely built around funky love songs but in "Big Brother" we have a pointer to the political and social commentary which was to come more to the fore on the albums which followed culminating in, for me, Stevie Wonder's zenith, "Songs In the Key of Life."

Debut

Björk

3/5

Objectively, this is a very good collection of songs. Bjork's voice is her own, squeaky, childish at times, playful. She croons and yells and is the constant that holds these songs together. But, for me that is not enough. I like most of the songs, or at least can find something interesting in them but other than Bjork's voice there is little continuity. The songs vary in style from dance to pop standards to experimental noise to another style of dance. As an album it can be jarring. It's like she hasn't decided in which direction to go and so tries them all. I don't know her music that well and perhaps later albums find a definitive direction.

Something/Anything?

Todd Rundgren

5/5

I appreciate the irony that right after I criticise Bjork for jumping from style to style, along comes one of my favourite albums which could be accused of the same thing. On Something/Anything Todd Rundgren tackles pop ballads, blue-eyed soul, Motown pastiches, blues, doo-wop, proto-metal, power-pop, prog-rock. He plays every instrument on three of the four sides, does his own backing vocals, produces and engineers it all. I'm not sure Todd gets, or ever got, the credit for the genius he is - as a songwriter, an arranger, a guitar player, producer (on the last two, listen to his Bruce Springsteen on steroids production on Bat Out Of Hell, especially when the motorbike sounds go straight into the guitar solo - all in a single take). There are some fantastic songs here - "I Saw The Light", "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" (listen to those lyrics about unwarranted jealousy and suspicion tearing apart a relationship), "Hello It's Me", "Dust In The Wind", "Couldn't I Just Tell You" - all classics, and we still have time for a peerless medley of blues and soul numbers which Todd obviously reveres, viking cod-operetta, humour, hard rock. But the album still feels like a whole. Each side of the original double album feels complete. An incredible album. It never fails to reveal new layers. Every listen is a joy.

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

5/5

I enjoy Bob Dylan's music but I am not a fanatic. I came to Dylan backwards probably from The Band's Last Waltz so didn't really get the impact his going electric made and I have always listened to largely the same mid-'60s to mid-'70s albums, neglecting his acoustic folksinger origins. Freewheelin' (or The Freewheeling' Bob Dylan) is his 2nd album and the first on which the songs, with the exception of two, are his own compositions. And all but one song, a decent rendition of "Corrina Corrina" on which a small band accompanies him, this is Dylan, his acoustic guitar and his harmonica. And it is excellent. Not all of these Dylan originals are classics but it is amazing just how many of them are - "Blowin' in The Wind", "Girl From the North Country", "Masters of War" (for me one of his best songs), "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall", "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" - and the rest are very good. My only real disappointment was that closer "I Shall Be Free" is not anywhere near the quality of "I Shall Be Released" that the similar titles suggested. Looks like I am going to have to reassess Dylan's early work and get round to watching that Scorsese documentary and A Complete Unknown...

Catch A Fire

Bob Marley & The Wailers

5/5

While this is unquestionably a group album, The Wailers being more than Bob Marley's backing band, this was the album that set Marley on the road to stardom and introduced Roots Reggae to the masses of rock listeners. From the opening organ notes of "Concrete Jungle" through the mix of love songs like the wonderful "Stir It Up" and protest songs like "Slave Driver" and "400 Years", Catch A Fire is accessible and excellent throughout. There is a little controversy about the 'sweetening' of the music by the session musicians whose additions were commissioned by Island's Chris Blackwell, but it worked. The packaging of the original vinyl, a 12" Zippo lighter, is magnificent too. This and Exodus are key albums and an excellent entry point to Jamaican music.

Medúlla

Björk

4/5

I admit my hear sank a little when the second Bjork album in less than a week showed up but Medúlla was a surprise. I enjoyed this. It is a largely vocal album with Bjork multitracked and accompanied by choirs, beatboxers (thankfully on just enough i.e. few occasions) and, somewhere amongst this, the likes of Mike Patton and Robert Wyatt. The instrumentation is light, limited for the most part to beats and sub-bass. The songs display influences from European classical, choral, music and pagan chanting - there is even some throat singing in there. I am not familiar with Bjork's catalogue an, while this is not going to be on regular rotation, I did like it and will listen again. And perhaps I will be less reluctant should another Bjork album show up. But not this week...

Crosby, Stills & Nash

5/5

Loved this album since I first pulled it from my uncle's record collection. The songs are nearly all excellent ("Lady of the Island" can be a little tiring at times) - "Suite:Judy Blue Eyes", "Marrakesh Express", "Wooden Ships", "Helplessly Hoping" & "Long Time Gone" being the picks for me. The harmonies are incredibly tight with each vocalist bringing something special, even I find David Crosby's voice a little less distinctive than the other two. The production is bright and clear; the record sounds fantastic. But this listening brought new appreciation for Stephen Stills in particular. With the exception of drums (by Dallas Taylor) and a couple of additional rhythm guitars, Stills plays everything - acoustic and electric guitars, bass, organ, percussion - and is superb on all of them. His arrangements complement the vocals wonderfully.

Seventeen Seconds

The Cure

4/5

I didn't listen to indie music in the '80s and, while I have never heard anything by The Cure that I hated, I am not that familiar with their catalogue beyond a few obvious singles. This is pretty good - all jangly Byrds/Power Pop guitars and busy, rhythmic basslines which tend to drive the melody. And, over the top of this, Robert Smith's despairing vocals, full of angst. I really like the dark, brooding, sinister "In Your House" - I have no idea what the lyrics mean but it could be something that Michael Myers would listen to if he was wearing AirPods as he prowled. As does "Three" for that matter... The whole album has a movie soundtrack vibe to it in fact. "M" could be a gothic western theme and others have a similar expansive scope, shimmering, fleeting. I like it.

Emperor Tomato Ketchup

Stereolab

3/5

This was pleasant enough, essentially scraps and samples put together to create new tracks, electronic with a 1960s feel and French-pop female vocals which are nice. It's not earth-shattering and I have heard similar done better. Not sure why it made it to this list but it is good background music.

Five Leaves Left

Nick Drake

4/5

I don’t ‘get’ Nick Drake. I have tried ever since one of his albums showed up in one of those 100 Best Albums of All Time lists. I can appreciate the art, the fragile voice, the jazz-tinged folk melodies, the melancholy, his light guitar playing, the orchestrations, The subtle accompaniment from, particularly, Richard and Danny Thompson - it’s all really good, well performed; well-produced, a lovely, wistful listen. But I don’t feel that way very much…

Metallica

4/5

I was somewhat divorced from heavy music in the 1980s so I missed all the thrash bands and this was probably the first Metallica album I ever heard. Even then, with the exception of "Enter Sandman" and "Nothing Else Matters", I didn't properly listen to this until the turn of the century. It is good. The production is excellent and it is commercial without sacrificing power. There are a lot of excellent songs on here with only a slight dip in quality around the middle. I'm never going to be a Metallica fan, and when I listen to them it will probably be Master of Puppets, but this stands up.

Billion Dollar Babies

Alice Cooper

5/5

I have loved this album since the day in 1978 when James Steele handed me his brother's 12" Green Wallet that was the vinyl sleeve. Battered, with all the passport photos falling out and the dollar bill ripped. The music contained inside is the main thing and Alice Cooper never bettered it. There are fantastic songs, excellent moments on other albums, particularly those when 'Alice Cooper' was a band, but this is where it all comes together as a whole. Starting with "Hello Hooray" as an opener, this is an Alice Cooper show. The music is superb and Bob Ezrin's production is sublime. Best moments are the bombast of "Elected" with the campaigning given extra punch by the horn section, the marachi party that breaks out in "Raped and Freezin'" (!), the general Hammer Horror campiness - "I'm so scared your little 'ed will come off in my 'ands..." - the hymn to bad mouth hygiene that is "Unfinished Sweet" which develops into the guillotine in the dentist's chair. And that's just side one, side two is even creepier - what did the protagonist of "No More Mr Nice Guy" do? And "I Love the Dead" never fails to raise a shiver...

Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

5/5

The irony of Malcolm McLaren's Great Rock and Roll Swindle, for all the faux righteous anger and vitriol the Sex Pistols engendered in the British establishment, which seems quaint now, for all the supposed rebellion against everything and the "I Hate Pink Floyd" condemnation of popular music, is that it produced one of the greatest albums of all time. The ultimate manufactured boyband (perhaps their only real competition was The Monkees, whose "Stepping Stone" the Pistols covered) delivered a tight collection which transcends its time and reputation. Ironic too that in firing Glen Matlock for being too musical, there is so much 'pop' here. Matlock's absence meant that Steve Jones played bass, his basslines essentially in close unison with his own guitar, and along with Paul Cook's excellent drumming, the Pistols are a great rock and roll band. Jones's guitar sounds are not far away from the glam rock sounds of The Sweet and his guitar solos are Chuck Berry by the way of Johnny Kidd and the Pirates. A further irony that they hired Chris Thomas, who had worked with the Beatles, Badfinger, Roxy Music, Procol Harum, and Lydon's hated Pink Floyd, to produce the album. Thomas delivers production values that would not shame a prog rock band. Almost 50 years later it still sparkles.

Time Out

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

5/5

When I first did a deep dive into jazz I bought the Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, a huge book, and then bought a selection of albums to which they had awarded five crowns (one up from five stars…). I had previously listened to Miles Davis and Charlie Parker but I really didn’t know what I liked. Time Out was one of the albums I bought but, despite the odd time signatures, I considered it lounge jazz, something to play in the background. This time round I gave it proper attention, with headphones, and no distractions. It is excellent. It is obvious, particularly on the incredible opener, “Blue Rondo A la Turk”, that the music is as influenced by modern classical and Middle Eastern music as it is by what was going on in the jazz scene at the time. It is amazing that music that can be challenging when really concentrated on (try counting BRALT - 2/2/2/3), with riffs that maybe only djent bands play these days, can also be ‘easy-listening’. “Take Five” is the other famous track but there isn’t a bad one here. Brubeck’s piano playing, soft melodies, intricate runs, hammering chords, is stunning and Paul Desmond’s alto sax is unmistakably him, but Eugene Wright and Joe Morello, on bass and drums respectively, deserve huge plaudits. The band is simply fantastic and it often sounds like more than four musicians. Produced by Teo Macero, who would later extract the gold from Miles’s freeform improvisations to create albums such as In A Silent Way and Bitches Brews, the sound is clear - it is like they are in the room (listen to the snap of the bass strings against the fingerboard). So glad I dove back in. Now back to counting…

Nixon

Lambchop

3/5

I have never really listened to Lambchop. I was aware they existed and was under the impression they were something to do with Wilco but apparently not. This is primarily indie-country in feel although there is a mix of styles which works sometimes, others is a bit of a mess: country-ish, Philly soul, new wave (Joe Jackson), and strings. Singer, Kurt Wagner's voice is fragile and almost disappears when he tries falsetto. His falsetto is terrible. Some of the otherwise musically fine songs sound like the vocals have been demoed for other singers. Unlikely to listen to this again although it wasn't unpleasant. At least it reminded me that it has been a while since I listened to (the completely unrelated) Wilco and Uncle Tupelo...

Blue

Joni Mitchell

5/5

Like with Dylan, I came to Joni Mitchell backwards. I saw and heard her on the Band's Last Waltz and had a video recording of an early '80s concert where her bass player was, I think, Larry Klein, her husband and a jazz player. Consequently, I was drawn more to Mitchell's mid-'70s albums with Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter and other jazz greats, although I don't think I fell in love with any of them. I never really listened to Blue. What a mistake. This is simply one of the most achingly beautiful albums I have ever heard, confessional and heart-baring. The playing and production are uncluttered and clear. There is a lot of space for Joni's voice to rise above her and James Taylor's guitars, her own, incredible piano accompaniment on many songs, Sneaky Pete on a couple of tracks - one phrase on "This Flight Tonight" is amazing, where he is essentially a sound effect. I can't believe I once thought Joni's voice a little shrieky in her high register; her tone is stunning. I knew several of the songs before. "River", "A Case of You" (listen to Prince's cover if you get a chance), "This Flight Tonight" from Nazareth's version and the rest of the songs are just as personal and wonderful. It has taken almost 50 years but Blue has got me at last. I have fallen head over heels for the album and for Joni Mitchell and her back catalogue will be my next deep dive.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

5/5

I don't know if it is coincidental that Pet Sounds popped up today or whether the algorithm is following current events because Brian Wilson died yesterday and I was going to listen to this today in any case. Quite simply, Pet Sounds is a masterpiece, a milestone in pop music, and Brian Wilson was a genius on a Mozart or Beethoven level (as is, in my opinion, Paul McCartney who was Wilson's primary rival in the Beatles/Beach Boys spiral of inspiration). We will never really know, despite the re-recordings and attempts to recompile the original, whether Smile would have surpassed this so Pet Sounds stands as Wilson's zenith. The sounds of the album, the careful orchestrations, are the ultimate realisation of Phil Spector's Wall of Sound which inspired Wilson so much. Every note on this album is close to perfect, whether that is in the angelic vocal harmonies, or in the twin basses, the multi-layered guitars, the pianos, the accordion, the horns, the strings, the bicycle bell, the organ, the harpsichord, and so on - that Wilson wrestles all of these elements into such a stunningly beautiful whole is one of the greatest achievements in 20th century music. I can only imagine the impact this must have had in 1966. The songs are excellent, even the cover of "Sloop John B", and the lyrics of Tony Asher need to be recognised too, seeming capturing the introspection, doubt, and longing that Wilson was feeling at the time - "I Know There's An Answer", "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times", "Wouldn't It Be Nice". In "God Only Knows" they came up with one of the greatest love songs ever written. Pet Sounds has stood the test of time. Brian Wilson, and The Beach Boys, never equalled it, but then who did. Now that he has gone, the album stands as a testament to his genius, and the toll that genius took on him, and it will continue to inspire in the centuries to come.

Raw Power

The Stooges

5/5

Not sure whether this or Fun House is my favourite Stooges album, although either dispels the myth that punk started in 1976... There are so many mixes and remasters now available. The one I have listened to most in the past is Iggy's '90s remix which I always found harsh due to his pushing all the faders into the red. Conversely, the original Bowie mix was a little muddy in places. Today I listened to 2023 remasters of both on Apple Music and thought they were both sonically better to the point that there is little to choose between them - the Bowie mix now has more power and the Iggy pulls the distortion back a bit so that details such as the celesta on "Penetration" sing out. That allows you to concentrate on the songs. "Search and Destroy", "Gimme Danger", "You're Pretty Face Is Going to Hell", "Penetration" - I just realised that I am going to list them all... Not a bad track here. Iggy looks defiant on the cover. He may have become close to a parody of himself in his later years but I saw the Stooges support Soundgarden in 2012 and they brought it. Raw. Powerful.

Eliminator

ZZ Top

3/5

A huge change for ZZ Top both in sound and in image. Eliminator takes the band’s blues rock and speeds up the tempos, replaces most of the drums with machines, possibly the bass with sequencers too. It’s fun and gave them their biggest hits, helped by a clever series of made for MTV videos featuring the vintage hot rod and sexy girls. It’s very 1980s and not the album I would choose if I choose to put on some ZZ Top. Some of the guitar sounds are excellent (Billy Gibbons loves pinch harmonics…) but the electronics, while not the worst sounding of the decade, leave me a little cold.

Tusk

Fleetwood Mac

3/5

I have never really given Tusk a chance. I have listened to it a few times but really only know the singles and a couple of tracks which were on the Live album. It starts with "Over and Over" which is a nice Christine McVie number, sweet, if a little plodding and not the equal of her best stuff. Then we have "The Ledge" the first of Lindsay Buckingham's attempts to inject a bit of the punk energy he seems to have felt threatened by. It is not the most successful - there are reports that Buckingham recorded vocals in a press-up position to increase the venom in his vocals. To be fair, he manages that to some extent later on with "Not That Funny" which is a decent New Wave-style song. But another, "That's Enough for Me" tries too hard. Tusk is a decent listen. It's biggest problem is that it is, purposely, not Rumours Pt 2. The production is not as expansive, the soundstage narrower, even muddy in places. Mick Fleetwood's drums sound particularly flabby, detuned, in many songs but not all so it must have been a conscious decision. Stevie Nicks's songs too are not her best, her voice at times being close to a parody of itself. I don't hate the album, it is very listenable and was a deliberate move away from the perfection of Rumours but there is too much of it. It appears to be searching for a direction. "Tusk" itself, I love, the marching band, hiring dodger Stadium for the video, but the album as a whole is not one I will listen to much.

Live At Leeds

The Who

5/5

As someone who considers Deep Purple's Made In Japan as the pinnacle of live recordings and who was raised on 1970s and early '80s 'double lives' like Live and Dangerous and Strangers in the Night, it can be difficult to know how to react to Live at Leeds. Which version are we listening to? For 25 years the only version of the album was the original. It is undoubtedly great but, at 37 minutes, 6 tracks, only 3 of which are Who originals, it is not really a representation of a Who show. It is a snapshot. It is powerful. But it leaves you wanting more. The vinyl equivalent of coitus interruptus. I am not sure what the logic was for choosing the original 6 songs. In 1995 we got a CD which doubled the running time and restored the wonderful, heavy rock cacophony of the John Entwistle sung, "Heaven and Hell". The Who enter like a thunderstorm, the bass rumbling ominously, the drums clattering all over the place like only Keith Moon's could, Townsend's power chords crashing exclamation points. It is powerful and breathtaking. The re-release adds other songs which increases the enjoyment level, but only a short teaser from Tommy in "Amazing Journey/Sparks". 2001 brought the full gig, 33 songs, with the full performance of Tommy on the second disc, even though this meant the running order was broken. My favourite version (I own several) is my 3-record vinyl version which has the whole gig in order. If I am completely honest, each of the longer versions dips a little in "A Quick One, While He's Away" and you don't always want to hear Tommy in full. So choice is a good thing. The original 37 minutes distils the energy and power but, listening to what else was in the can, could easily have done the same thing as a double. That said, Made in Japan was seen as a risk only two years later. In any case, any version, Live At Leeds is a time capsule, capturing one of the greatest rock bands of all time at the height of their powers.

Funeral

Arcade Fire

5/5

Crazy to think that Funeral is over 20 years old. I remember cooking in the kitchen with some music channel, maybe VH1, on the TV in the living room and hearing "Wake Up" (as it turned out) playing. I had to drop what I was doing and go to see who this was, and when the tempo change hit, the hairs stood up on the back of my neck. Notes from listening today… Arcade Fire produce a musical piledriver is made up of fragile sounds. The angular coda to "Une Année Sans Lumière" is superb. Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out)" is emotional, dark, yet uplifting and hopeful, catharsis. Throughout, the shimmering, wavering voices, accordion, piano, glockenspiel, strings and more create a beautiful soundscape. The tempo change in "Crown of Love" almost sounds like ELO; there are no blues inflections. "Wake Up" is where it all started for me (it still gives me the chills). The transition into the YOU CAN’T HURRY LOVE rhythm is smooth and seamless. "Rebellion (Lies)" has an insistent rhythm that encourages children to rebel against (well-meaning?) parents. Still a hugely uplifting album about loss and death.

Cross

Justice

3/5

This was OK, like a rockier version of Daft Punk. The core sound is built on heavy drums and bass, not DnB but a strong kick and snare on top of which they layer Larry Graham/Louis Johnson-style thumb bass, although I suspect it is all sampled/programmed. The influences include disco and hiphop, but also metal-adjacent rock, classical, 8-bit computer-game music, Supertramp(!)... The cover looks very metal too - the black cross on the black background is very Black Sabbath, although it also owes a lot to T-Rex's Electric Warrior with its golden light highlighting the subject. None of the songs particularly stand out although they are all listenable. I wouldn't go searching it out but neither would I switch it off if it popped up somewhere.

Vauxhall And I

Morrissey

3/5

I have never really ‘got’ Morrissey. I didn’t follow the Smiths and am still not that familiar with them other than a few songs. I do like Johnny Marr and I know I should delve deeper into the Smiths but Morrissey puts me off, even more since he seems to have become a right wing apologist, but perhaps he is misunderstood. So I was fairly surprised to have enjoyed a lot of this. The music is pretty good and Stephen’s whining a lot less annoying than I was expecting. Perhaps I’ll go back and listen to that other Morrissey album I skipped….

Born To Be With You

Dion

2/5

This isn't great, possibly the worst sounding Phil Spector production I have ever listened to. It sounds like there is a build up of fluff on the stylus, despite listening to it on a lossless stream. Dion's voice sounds OK (although he looks a little like Billy Jean King on the cover) but the mono mix is muddy. Apparently there are three drummers, three bass players, multiple guitarists and loads of horns and strings, as is Spector's norm, but it all gets lost in a listless, lifeless mix. The songs sit somewhere between Edison Lighthouse and Bay City Rollers - light inoffensive MOR '70s pop with a little bit of country and droop thrown in. Apparently this was a big influence on Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream, no idea why.

Highway to Hell

AC/DC

5/5

I grew up with AC/DC. They were not a huge favourite of mine, not as sophisticated as Deep Purple or some of the other bands I followed, but they were always on the ghetto blaster of the gang I ran with. A few years later I realised that there was much more to AC/DC than I had given credit for. I knew all the albums, at least up until Back in Black, but I had never really listened to the song construction, had mistaken simplicity for simple. Yes, AC/DC do one thing, but they do it incredibly well and the songs don't all sound the same. Highway to Hell may well be my favourite. Powerage runs it close but lacks Mutt Lange's wonderfully clear production. Back in Black is a classic but lack's Bon Scott's roguishness and presence. There is not a bad track on the album. "Highway to Hell", the song, captures everything that was great about AC/DC in the late '70s - the four to the floor kick drums and clear snare, the rounded open bass tone, Malcolm Young's deceptively simple open chord riffs, Angus's stabs over the top and his bluesy soloing, and Bon's winking lascivious growling - he's going to hell but hell ain't a bad place to be (as someone said...) "Girls got Rhythm", "Walk All Over You", "Touch Too Much", "Beating Round the Bush", "Shot down In Flames", I could list them all, all variations on a theme, but a great theme. This is Bon's album for me, and not just because it was his last. His sense of humour is all over the lyrics and he delivers them knowingly, with a smirk. As great as Back In Black is, it has always struck me as slightly odd how quickly after Bon's death it was completed. But perhaps he would have wanted that... Shazbot. Nanu Nanu!

#1 Record

Big Star

5/5

It was said by someone once that very few people bought Velvet Underground & Nico but that those who did formed bands; the same could be true of Big Star. They should have been huge. Their three albums were excellent despite co-founder Chris Bell leaving after this, their debut and the band essentially imploding after their second, Radio City, leaving Alex Chilton to piece together Sister/Lovers (Third). I didn't discover Big Star until the early '90s when I was already familiar with Cheap Trick, Teenage Fanclub, REM, The Replacements, and many other bands who followed and were inspired by the Big Star power pop template. #1 Record is my favourite of theirs, and one of my favourite albums full stop. The songwriting is excellent - Bell's rockier numbers like "Feel", "In The Street" and "Don't Lie to Me"; Chilton's tender "The Ballad of El Goodo" and the heartrending "Thirteen", the uptempo classic "When My Baby's Beside Me"; Andy Hummel's off-kilter, Zombies-like psychedelia "The India Song"; both main writers trading acoustic ballads on side 2. The production and sound engineering is clear and sharp. Clean (and slightly dirty) Stratocasters never sounded so good; the vocal harmonies are beautiful. Bell and Chilton's lead vocals complement each other perfectly. It is such a pity that it only lasted one album but it is a classic.

Achtung Baby

U2

5/5

I'm not a U2 fan but this album, where they stepped away, albeit temporarily, from taking themselves so seriously, is one that I gravitate to. There is some excellent stuff here - "The Fly", "Mysterious Ways", "Even Better than the Real Thing", "One", Ultra Violet". Achtung Baby is grittier, rockier, dancier, and generally more satisfying than anything they did before, or since. Even Bono sheds the pomposity that seems ingrained in his personality and the result is gem of an album. There are still grandiose moments but here they serve the music rather than bolster the band's self-importance.

Who's Next

The Who

5/5

One of my favourite albums of all time and probably the Who’s best, another of which I own multiple copies. It came between the ‘rock operas’ of Tommy and Quadrophenia, both greats themselves, but the failure of the intended Lifehouse project led to this concise and uniformly excellent record. The best known songs are “Baba O’Reilly”, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Behind Blue Eyes” and the rest of the songs are just as good. Entwistle’s “My Wife”, still hilarious, “Bargain”, “Love Ain’t for Keeping”, “Getting In Tune”, Pete Townsend taking lead vocals on “Going Mobile” and the magnificent “Song is Over”. Who’s Next shows what a powerful group the Who were. Augmented by only Nicky Hopkin’s piano and Dave Arbus’s violin (on Baba), the sound is huge. John Entwistle’s bass and Keith Moon’s drums are so big and take fill out the soundscape complementing Townsend’s guitars perfectly. Pete’s playing is breathtaking, particularly his mighty acoustic rhythm playing. Yet there is a lot of space in the mix; you can hear the room. Alternate takes on some of the special editions, the addition of organ to “Behind Blue Eyes”, Leslie West adding guitar to several tracks including “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, are weaker overall due to the added players. I love this album and never tire of it. Only today I discovered that Townsend’s main electric for these recordings was a Gretsch, a guitar I never would have associated with him. Now I need to go listen again…

Band On The Run

Paul McCartney and Wings

4/5

Probably my favourite post-Beatles McCartney studio album (I do have a lot of time for Wings Over America…). Band on the Run is a very good album, made with half a band, but it’s Paul McCartney, and he is an incredible musician. The songs are, almost, all excellent - the title track, “Jet”, “Let Me Roll It”, “Picasso’s Last Words”, “Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five” - but it loses a star because I just don’t like “Mamunia”.

Bad Company

3/5

Bad Company is essentially meat and potatoes rock. I own several of their albums and have done for many years. Individually, the members of the band are excellent. Bad Co’s biggest issue for me is that they are not Free. They are a little less than the sum of their parts. It has been a while since I listened to this album, or indeed the others, but I’m not disappointed when I do, I just don’t often seek them out. This has got some really good songs, but I probably prefer Straight Shooter as an album. But it’s not Free either.

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

5/5

Steely Dan’s first and possibly most atypical. It is a band album, but a band in which the lead singer sings lead on two, co-lead on three and backing vocals on some of the rest, and the drummer takes lead on one song. That said two of those songs, “Dirty Work”, on which singer David Palmer takes lead, and “Midnite Cruiser” sung by drummer Jim Hodder are among the gems, although the way Palmer pronounces Meed-e-val in the former has always bugged me. Otherwise, as he would on most Dan songs afterwards, Donald Fagen takes lead and the presence of a ‘lead’ singer was only because of Fagen’s nervousness about singing live. The best known songs are “Do It Again” and “Reelin’ in the Years”, both classics, like the rest of the album, a little more akin to southern Californian bands of the time - there’s a little CSN, Poco, Eagles in there - but pointing the way to later Steely Dan recordings which leant heavier on the jazz influences. Elliot Randall’s guitar solo in “Reelin’” is close to perfect.

Private Dancer

Tina Turner

2/5

I remember Tina Turner appearing on The Tube on Channel 4 before then release of this album. She sang Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" and it was excellent. It is on this album and it, along with the title track and "What's Love Got to Do With It", are the tracks with which I am familiar. The album opens with that typical '80s, heavily chorused and processed guitar sound, which I really don't like but it fades into the background behind Tina's really impressive voice. It's not bad. I have never really liked "What's Love Got to Do With It" - not a bad song but the keyboard sounds are right out of "Africa" by Toto and, again, the production does nothing for me. The vocal on "I Can't Stand the Rain" is excellent too, the backing not so much, although it is a little bit more subdued. Ann Peebles's original is much better, as is Lowell George's cover, and I would reach for either of those before playing this again. The title track is written by Mark Knopfler, has Jeff Beck on guitar solo and Mel Galley on sax. It's not bad but still manages to be slightly less than the sum of its parts, Beck in particular phoning it in. "Let's Stay Together" proves that you can't replace Al Jackson Jr with a drum machine nor the Memphis Horns with a Fairlight. "Steel Claw" is '80s rock and marginally better than '80s pop/soul although not the best Paul Brady song I have ever heard. Tina takes the Beatles' "Help" as a slow ballad (she may have done this on the Tube as well) and it's not terrible, in fact it is one of the better tracks on the album, at least until the cheesy saxophone solo, but it's not as good as the slow version Deep Purple did on their first album in 1968. The less said about the cover of Bowies's "1984" the better! Tina Turner's voice is strong throughout but not best served by the '80s production. There again, it relaunched her career and sold by the millions so what do I know....?

Grace

Jeff Buckley

5/5

Grace is a stunning album which makes you wonder what Jeff Buckley could have achieved had he lived. It opens with "Mojo Pin", reminiscent of Led Zeppelin as is the title track which immediately follows. Both feature a swirling collage of sound, full of surprises, with Buckley's etherial voice floating over the top. Other tracks, like "Last Goodbye" and the beautiful "Lover, You Should've Come Over" echo Radiohead in places, but in reality Grace doesn't really sound like anything else. The melodies are gorgeous and build, slithering snakelike through the songs. The covers of "Lilac Wine" and "Hallelujah" are definitive, Buckley makes them his own. His guitar playing is excellent throughout; reportedly a virtuoso, he never shows off at cost to the song. The band and the string arrangements complement his voice perfectly. And what a voice - to go from the clear bell-like falsetto in Britten's "Corpus Christi Carol" to the grit of "Eternal Life" is incredible, unrivalled. Truly, and unfortunately, a one off....

If You're Feeling Sinister

Belle & Sebastian

3/5

I have always felt I should listen to Belle and Sebastian, and have tried on a few occasions without it taking hold. I love the albums Isobel Campbell did with Mark Lanegan, and as much for her voice as Lanegan's, but I don't get the same appeal from her old band. Admittedly she wasn't in charge then. If You're Feeling Sinister is very pleasant, easy listening pop which is great background music. This is the second time I listened to the album recently and I did get more from it. It reminds me a little of Nick Drake (another artist I never really got). There are influences from French Pop and I can hear Ray Davies in some of the lyrics, in fact perhaps delving into the lyrics would deliver more, and I may try more of their records in the future.

Black Sabbath

5/5

I imagine it was inevitable that this album would appear today, and I suppose many people found this as their album of the day. As it happens, on hearing of Ozzy's passing, I had started a Sabbath deep dive, something I do every couple of years. It took me a long time to get Black Sabbath. In the late '70s, a friend put together a heavy rock mix tape with "Iron Man" and "Paranoid" on it, and I liked them, but the first Black Sabbath record I bought was Heaven and Hell, on which Ronnie James Dio sang. I heard the Live At Last record which was put out to compete with H&H and it wasn't good, and I therefore considered early Sabbath as monolithic and relatively monotonous. What did I know? "Black Sabbath" by Black Sabbath from Black Sabbath started a new genre. It would be difficult today to find a metal band who didn't owe at least something, even indirectly, to Sabbath. They were responsible for the creation of Heavy Metal, even if they were not trying to. They took the heavy blues of Cream, jazz influences (especially in Bill Ward's drumming and Tony Iommi's guitar. They were heavier than anything else, primarily due to the great riffs, particularly in Geezer Butler's bass doubling Iommi's guitar. They were progressive and inventive, much more than they were given credit for. Sabbath would make better albums. My favourite varies depending on where I am; Masters of Reality if I am in a Doom Metal mode, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath or Sabotage if I'm feeling spacey and proggy. But this is where it started and, if you don't know the band, this is where you should start. And Ozzy Osbourne was a singular and unusual talent. The number of band's who turned out for his, and Sabbath's last hurrah, planned as such but now irreversible, pays testament to his, and their, influence. RIP.

London Calling

The Clash

5/5

The album where The Clash transcended (or betrayed according to some) their punk origins and became “the only band that matters” although in truth the myriad influences had been there along, going back to Strummer’s 101er days, Mick’s love of guitar heroes and Topper’s jazz drumming. Anyway, it is one of my favourite albums of all time, the depth and range of material astounding. No two songs sound alike; the styles jump from straight rock, new wave, to reggae and ska, to rockabilly and rock and roll, to northern soul, sometimes in the same song. And yet all of this seems effortless and never stops sounding like The Clash. All this variety wasn’t the band showing off, “look, we can do this too…” rather an explosion of ideas, overflowing creativity. The songs are excellent, the band becoming bigger than life, the self-mythologising increasing. The anger and power of punk rock was still there, the politics and social commentary, but there were love songs too, moments of tenderness. I love this album. I hear something new every time I listen to it. This time it was a new appreciation of how good a song “The Card Cheat” is, the futility and regret of someone near the end, the echoes of history, all set to a horn driven, Phil Spector Wall of Sound, “Be My Baby” backing. One of the greatest albums of all time.

Paul Simon

3/5

Paul Simon is an odd artist in that I really like a lot of his recordings, and I have seen, and really enjoyed, one of his live shows, but I have never really warmed to him. This was his first album after his split with Art Garfunkel; it's not as good as Bridge Over Troubled Water, and he would produce better albums after this. There are some good songs - "Mother and Child Reunion", "Me And Julio Down By the Schoolyard", "Peace Like A River" - some merely OK. Simon's voice and guitar playing are fine throughout. "Armistice Day" stood out for me, I like this song a lot - acoustic guitar and percussion (by Airto Moreira) which, with the addition of some horns and subtle electric guitar, builds to a nice crescendo. But, as an album it doesn't really hold together and feels like he was largely treading water while he transcended to solo work after so many years in a duo.

OK Computer

Radiohead

5/5

It took me some time to appreciate OK Computer. I had listened to and enjoyed Pablo Honey and The Bends, but initially I didn’t get the new album, and I didn’t own it until the OKNOTOK re-release 20 years later. It starts with “Airbag”, about the lifesaving car safety device - good alt-rock with interesting ambient noise. But it is with “Paranoid Android” that OKC takes off - a mini suite of existential dread, a calling out of capitalism and consumerism; beautifully miserable and unfortunately prescient. “Subterranean Homesick Alien” built on shimmering piano and guitar, a lot of Pink Floyd influences, is similarly downbeat, Thom Yorke wishing that aliens would swoop down and take him away. The production is excellent, the sound expansive and immersive. “Exit Music (for a Film)” may be the most depressive sounding song on the record. I love it despite, or perhaps because, I find it hard to listen to without picturing Tommy Tiernan’s priest gradually succumbing to despair as it plays on the coach radio in the final episode of Father Ted. “Let Down” is gorgeous, emotional and sadly uplifting. Perhaps accepting disappointment is the natural order and we should get used to it…? “Karma Police” may be the key track anticipating as it does the rise of social media intolerance and shaming, the 1984-like rise of Big Brother’s thought monitors. It is astounding that it was released as a single. “Fitter Happier”, apparently voiced by a Macintosh computer, comes off like Stephen Hawking as a wellness guru. “Electioneering” calls out the politicians whose promises when seeking your vote disappear once in power. The almost jaunty track capturing the gladhanding perfectly. “Climbing up the Walls” is claustrophobic and oppressive. It builds to an almost unbearable, frightening climax, utilising strings in a cinematic way while also echoing The Beatles “A Day in the Life” “No Surprises”, another achingly beautiful melody, is the other side of “Electioneering” when the elation of change wears off and, as Pete Townsend pointed out 25 years earlier, ‘new boss, same as the old boss.’ The protagonist of the incredibly sad and touching “Lucky” is deluding himself that his ‘luck is gonna change’ and you can’t help but feel that he is ‘standing on the edge’ of something much worse than he thinks. The album ends with “The Tourist”, a measured exhortation to ‘slow down’ at odds with the underlying panic I don’t subscribe to the championing of OK Computer as the best album of all time, but it is excellent. The sounds, lush in places, bare in others, are haunting. The lyrics capture detachment and separation, confusion of living in a world where you feel you don’t belong. Sadly, more and more people are feeling that still, almost 30 years later. It is an album in which you wallow and often that can be cathartic, but it can be a relief when it’s over. I love the album but, like the young priest in Father Ted, it’s not one I need too often. Just often enough…

Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

Derek & The Dominos

5/5

I approached this one with trepidation because, quite frankly, Eric Clapton is a bellend (Bellend Bottom Blues?) and I find it very difficult to listen to him these days. I used to love this album but haven't listened to it in a few years. It stands up. "I Looked Away", "Keep On Growing", "Tell the Truth". Why Does Love Got To be So Sad" and, of course, "Layla" are classics. The blues covers are good, the extended jams from Clapton and Duane Allman excellent. If you can put aside the racism, the Covid denial, suing a fan for £4,000 for advertising an €11 bootleg on Ebay, and generally being a prick, there is some really great music here. I can forgive Clapton for stealing his friend's wife, as George did, as it led to a lot of these songs, but then he treated her as the arsehole his is. For these reasons, it may be a while before I can suitably divorce the art from the artist and listen to this album again, but I'm glad I did this time.

Violent Femmes

4/5

Turns out I have liked Violent Femmes for years, since 1997 probably as that is when Grosse Point Blank was released. I love that movie and I love “Blister in the Sun” which features in the soundtrack. Thing is, I never went beyond that, and I have to look the band’s name every time I hear the song. “Blister…” is the opener and the best song on here but it is a really good album. Acoustic punk, delivered in a busker fashion. There is a lot of space in the arrangements and the sound is really clear. You can hear the acoustic guitar (and yes there are some electrics on here too), the crack of the snare drum, the click of the individual strings on the upright bass (one on the great revelations), all topped by Gordon Gano’s fragile, quivering, shaky vocals. I really enjoyed this. Unusual stuff.

Sheer Heart Attack

Queen

5/5

I prefer early Queen to later Queen and this may be my favourite, although that can, and does, change. Sheer Heart Attack works as an album. It opens with the powerful one-two of “Brighton Rock” and “Killer Queen”, both classics. There are hard rock, metal even, of “Now I’m Here” and, especially, “Stone Cold Crazy” (as much as progenitor of thrash metal as, say, Black Sabbath’s “Symptom of the Universe”), the former sitting somewhere between the glam rock of the likes of the Sweet and the prog of Yes. “Tenement Funster” is the first great Roger Taylor vocal is not unlike Mott the Hoople. And then there are the idiosyncratic numbers that work in the context of the album but probably only there - “Dear Friends”, a piano ballad with classical choral harmonies; the frankly, deliciously, ridiculous “Bring Back That Leroy Brown” with more complex harmonies, a Charleston rhythm, and banjo! “She Makes Me (Stormtrooper in Stilettos) despite what its title might lead one to picture is largely acoustic guitars and Brian May’s lead vocal. “Lap of the Gods” in two parts revisits the fantasy prog of the first two albums; but much of the album looks forward to the albums, and spectacular success, to come.

Stephen Stills

4/5

This was an album my uncle had way back but the only things I was aware of were "Love The One You're With", the lead track which I had heard many times, and that Jimi Hendrix was on one track. But, having been really impressed by Stephen Stills when I gave Crosby, Stills and Nash and Deja Vu a critical listen, I approached this with a lot of hope. And it wasn't misplaced. LTOYW is still an excellent opener, once again Stills playing a large proportion of the instruments, as he does on much of the album. On "Old Times Good Times" Jimi plays with a funky soul unlike very little I had heard from him before but he is matched by the excellent organ playing from Stills; it's a great track. "Church (Part of Someone)" is a gospel song with a 'choir' which seems to be made up of five voices, one of which, Liza Strike, appeared on a lot of '70s albums. Stills playing throughout is very skilful, his acoustic guitar on "Black Queen" is phenomenal. Not every song hits the mark but this is a very good record.

Reign In Blood

Slayer

4/5

I missed the whole thrash metal scene in the '80s and so, although I follow a lot of bands who were heavily influenced by the 'Big 4', I am not that familiar with many 'seminal' albums, least of all Slayer. It took a couple of listens to get this. Reign In Blood is relentless and brutal. Dave Lombardo is unquestionably a great drummer but the blast beats, from which there is little relief, can be overwhelming at first. On initial listen I was really impressed with opener "Angel of Death" and "Raining Blood" which closes the album, the two tracks I was already familiar with. The former documents the horrors of Mengele's experiments during holocaust; the latter sounds like an update, at frantic speed, of "Black Sabbath" with its rainstorm SFX. "Raining Blood" is also a song which varies the rhythms to great effect. The other song that stood out was "Criminally Insane", possibly because of the relative lack of blast beats. On second listening though, once accustomed to the overall sound, and playing on room speakers rather than headphones, I was able to appreciate the nuances more (Slayer? Nuanced?). The album hits hard; you feel it in your chest. It is certainly the most brutal thrash album I have heard and there are elements of the music that obviously foreshadow the death metal scene. I'm beginning to appreciate Slayer and their importance to the development of music that I love.

Sulk

The Associates

3/5

An intense experience. I was never into New Romantic or ArtRock, and this album is adjacent to both genres, but you can't help but marvel at the result - angular, spiky instrumentation which can be all over the place at times, with Billy McKenzie's incredible, wailing, operatic, sometimes on the edge of derangement, voice. A fever dream and not always enjoyable but worth visiting now and again.

The Atomic Mr Basie

Count Basie & His Orchestra

5/5

When I first got into jazz, I bought a copy of The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD and gradually supplemented my couple of Miles Davis LPs and Charlie Parker cassettes with selections from their recommendations, largely '50s and '60s post-bop and Blue Note classics. I am still not an expert on swing and big bands but two albums stood out enough to make my collection - Ellington at Newport and The Atomic Mr Basie. Immediately, from the first notes of "The Kid From The Red Bank", the arrangements, by Neal Hepti, stand out, the horn section popping and pulsing sinuously over the rhythm section of drums, walking bass and the Count's piano. Eddie 'Lockjaw' Davis's tenor wails above it all, great stuff. The whole album is excellent but that opening track, "Flight of the Foo Birds", "Splanky" and closing ballad, "Lil' Darlin'" really stand out.

Post Orgasmic Chill

Skunk Anansie

3/5

Never heard this before. My knowledge of Skunk Anansie was "Weak" from their first album and a couple of tracks from Stoosh, their second. Post Orgasmic Chill is a bit harder, a punky, funky, metal, pop mix which is very listenable. Lead singer Skin is the band's biggest asset, her lyrics railing and raging against sexism, misogyny, racism, an underlying anger in her voice even when she sings at her most melodic, although her default is a growling and biting delivery. Musically a lot of the album is RATM/Manic Street Preachers-lite. Some of the songs stand out, particularly in the first half - "Charlie Big Potato", the opener, starts with a drum and bass riff which morphs into the sort of poppy prog-metal sound that Muse would adopt several years later; "On My Hotel TV" is scathing and bitter; "The Skank Heads" - although things are a little mellower in the second half of the record. The production takes a little of the hard edge off and it could have benefitted from a bit more rawness.

Live At The Harlem Square Club

Sam Cooke

5/5

Recorded in 1963 in a small club in Miami, this album is so different from Sam Cooke's studio output. On record, Cooke is a smooth, velvet voiced pop star. Here he is a gritty soul singer, much closer to those who followed idolised him - Bobby Womack, Otis Redding, Sam Moore, Al Green. The listener is in that club, raw, sweaty, buzzing. The band, with King Curtis on sax, is on fire throughout. You can smell the alcohol and perspiration. And Sam is in charge, he works the crowd. It is stunning and it never lets up. Some of the best moments, among great moments, are the adlibs, the almost songs, the "You Send Me" gospel preacher-style introduction to/segue into "Bring It On Home" (of course, despite his gospel roots, Cooke was preaching about sex). Much as I love Sam Cooke records, this album documents exactly why so many greats looked up to him and why he was such a loss to '60s soul and music in general.

Green River

Creedence Clearwater Revival

5/5

Perhaps it is because they released so many albums in such a short period of time (this was one of three they put out in 1969 alone) it can be hard to distinguish one CCR record from the rest. But they are all good. Green River perhaps doesn't have as many instantly recognisable songs as others but it does contain "Bad Moon Rising" and "Lodi" and the cover of "The Night Time is the Right Time" is as well chosen and stands out just as much as their celebrated cover of "I Heard it Through the Grapevine". Like AC/DC, Creedence had essentially one sound, but what a great sound; murky and swampy, steeped in the bayou despite originating in California. It is incredibly distinctive and recognisable. No wonder that when John Fogerty was sued for plagiarising himself the judge essentially said, Of course it sounds like him, it is him...

Mott

Mott The Hoople

3/5

I really like Mott the Hoople. They straddled the early '70s glam rock/hard rock divide and produced some great tracks. I never felt they were an album band though. Three or four of the tracks on this album would make their greatest hits - "All The Way From Memphis" is a classic, "Honaloochie Boogie", "Hymn for the Dudes", and I really like "I'm a Cadillac/El Camino Dolo Roso" which is a showpiece for Mick Ralphs's guitar and a nod to his later work with Bad Company. The rest are listenable. But for me there are great tracks on most Mott albums and they are better together on a Greatest Hits collection or on their excellent Mott the Hoople:Live (particularly the 30th Anniversary expanded edition.

Sticky Fingers

The Rolling Stones

5/5

Sticky Fingers is probably my second favourite Stones album, their first full album with Mick Taylor. Often described as the greatest rock and roll band in the world, not something I subscribe to, but the run of albums from Beggars Banquet through Let it Bleed and Sticky Fingers to Exile On Main St would be good evidence for someone who wanted to make that argument. On this album I would contend that “Wild Horses” and “Dead Flowers” are persuasive that the Stones may have been one of the best country bands of all time… Sticky Fingers also contains two of the best rock riffs in “Brown Sugar”, lyrically problematic though it may now be, and the horn driven “Bitch”. “I Got the Blues” is an excellent southern soul song that you could imagine Otis Redding singing; “You Gotta Move” a wonderful cover of Mississippi Fred McDowell, with Dobro and slide guitar from Richards and Taylor and with an amazing organ solo from Billy Preston. “Sway” and “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” are superb hard rock songs with stunning lead guitar from Taylor. “Sister Morphine” builds in intensity as it describes a dying man’s hallucinatory last journey accompanied by the titular drug (and Ry Cooder’s haunting slide guitar). The record ends with the dreamy “Moonlight Mile” a gentle meandering lullaby with a wonderful string arrangement. The addition of Mick Taylor transformed the Rolling Stones, perhaps not making them the ‘best’ but certainly making them an album orientated rock band to rival The Who and Led Zeppelin as they entered the 1970s.

Ragged Glory

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

4/5

This is a Neil Young and Crazy Horse album, and it sounds like a Neil Young and Crazy Horse album. Crazy Horse are the ultimate garage/bar rock band, dirty, grungy, nothing flashy, like the title suggests, a little ragged in places. But they make a glorious noise. The record has the soundscape of Rust Never Sleeps or Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere or Zuma. The band rumble and lurch along. Neil’s guitar sold are raw and simple, they meander and take their time, full of pinch harmonics and squeals. The songs overall lack the quality of those ‘70s classics but have a familiarity about them. It is a comfortable, and rewarding, listen. “Over and Over” is essentially a retread of “Like A Hurricane”, as are a couple of other songs to be honest, but it doesn’t really matter that much - the record is more than listenable. The exception is “Fuckin’ Up”. “Fuckin’ Up” is a stone-cold classic Neil Young song which can sit comfortably with his best, certainly with this band. Neil is cranky, laconic, a little pissed off - no change there. The song, and the overall sound of the record, sits perfectly with its early-‘90s contemporaries, with bands Neil influenced most - Pixies, Dinosaur Jr and, of course, Pearl Jam.

My Aim Is True

Elvis Costello

5/5

Still probably my favourite Elvis Costello album, his debut predates the Attractions, the backing band being Clover, a country rock band who featured, a pre-News, Huey Lewis, but contains stunning songs. Costello’s vocals are at their most biting and snarling, the lyrics spat out. Even on “Alison”, one of his very best ballads, there a bitterness, about the loss of a dream love to the mundanity of life and marriage (perhaps?). The album never lets up starting with “Welcome to the Working Week” and through “Miracle Man”, “(The Angels Wanna Wear) My Red Shoes”, “Less Than Zero”, “Mystery Dance”, all classics. Every time I listen to the album I hear something new. This time the backing vocals on “No Dancing” really jumped out and the bridge section in “Waiting For the End of the World” (“and then the bride, the groom…) over an excellent slide guitar. The music is steeped in the pub rock from which Costello and producer Nick Lowe had just emerged and there is rock and roll, country, doo-wop, Spector-like beats, and other influences all thrown into the angry melting point. “Watching the Detectives”, which was not part of the original album but was added to the US release, features Steve Nieve’s organ and points to the Attractions who would back Costello on the rest of his ‘70s and early ‘80s output. But My Aim is True stands on its own merits and is the equal of anything which followed.

White Blood Cells

The White Stripes

4/5

I am not the biggest Jack White fan but I do like the sound of a lot of his records. This album sounds excellent. There is a lot of space in the mix, perhaps not surprising as we are essentially listening to guitar and drums and voices, with a little bit of organ thrown in in places. It is garage blues-rock and you can hear the garage... Both Jack's guitar and Meg's drums are simply played but the production on both is really clear and roomy. "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground", "Hotel Yorba" and "Fell in Love With a Girl" all stand up to repeated listening.

Eagles

3/5

Years ago a guy sold me a box of albums which held a lot of good stuff, including the Eagles albums from Eagles to Hotel California. I used to listen to this a lot, not so much these days - Desperado is usually my go to when I choose to go. The debut is still a decent record. The four members of the band are all good singers, their voices complementing each other perfectly, the harmonies first class. Bernie Leadon’s acoustic playing and, especially, his banjo adds a lot to the Southern California country sound. The album lacks the quality of some of its obvious influences - The Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers - and some of the songs are a little tired and dated. “Chug All Night” and “Most of Us Are Sad” don't really stand up but “Take It Easy”, ”Witchy Woman” and “Peaceful Easy Feeling” do. Of the rest, “Earlybird” and “Nightingale” are good but, a little surprising, as I like his voice a lot, Randy Meisner’s songs are among the weakest. Glyn John’s production is clear and uncluttered. The album is a pleasant listen but there were better to come.

The United States Of America

3/5

An uncomfortable listen which keeps you off balance this album is an interesting mix of electronic sounds and Jefferson Airplane-like psychedelia - singer Dorothy Moskewitz even sounds like Grace Slick at times - but the whole is like everyone involved, players, singers and engineers, were on a bad trip. There is pop music, Avantgarde strings, Latin masses, horror movie scores, oompah marching bands, fairground calliopes; the lot seemingly having intentional pitch issues, all a little ‘off key”. I didn’t ’enjoy’ this but would give it another listen. Just not now…

Hearts And Bones

Paul Simon

3/5

Not sure how many Paul Simon albums there are going to be on this list; there are albums I like better which haven’t shown up, those that have so far, with the exception of Graceland, are not required listening to my ears. That doesn’t mean that Hearts and Bones is a bad album. The songs are never less than listenable, some excellent. The title track foreshadows Graceland (both the song and the overall sound of that record). The production on some, not all, songs on the album, despite the quality of the players on them, displays too many ‘80s cliches, particularly on the more uptempo songs like opener “Allergies” - too much reverb, too much Greg Phillinganes. (That’s perhaps a little unfair but he did seem to appear on albums by the likes of Phil Collins and Eric Clapton from that decade, probably Tina Turner too.) The middle of the record is a little forgettable, both ‘Think Too Much (A)” and (B), or B and A as they are sequenced. “Train In the Distance” is a nice enough track but could lose the sax solo - another ‘80s trait. “Rene and Georgette Magritte With Their Dog After the War” is almost as surreal as its subject’s art with the painter and his wife pictured dancing naked, window shopping, and listening to ‘forbidden’ doo-wop groups of the ‘50s. Not sure what “Cars are Cars” is about, not one of Simon’s best lyrics, but “The Late Great Johnny Ace” is a great song in that introspective, slightly maudlin, way of much of the album. The mood captures the feeling of emptiness that the death of and idol can bring - in this case Johnny Ace, whose music the singer doesn’t know, and John Lennon, with whom he was obviously much more familiar - and the Philip Glass composed coda adds to that feeling.

Lost Souls

Doves

3/5

I remember Doves, although I think I was more familiar with their second album, The Last Broadcast, not sure I ever heard this before. Lost Souls is listenable if a little forgettable, Radiohead-lite but with nothing to make me sit up and really take notice. The opening instrumental “Firesuite” is atmospheric club-chill; “The Man Who Told Everything” is possibly the best song. Aside from the early Radiohead and maybe Oasis influences, I hear moody, downbeat dance music, a little prog-rock. The record is well produced and is decent, trancey background music. I don’t think it goes any deeper than that.

Exit Planet Dust

The Chemical Brothers

4/5

Excellent electronic dance music with a rock sensibility, the album starts with “Leave Home”, probably the best track, driving and powerful with a bass player upfront and centre. It is the first of six songs with are mixed and run together like a DJ set. The second half of the album is more chilled with nice vocals from Tim Burgess, from the Charlatans, on “Life is Sweet” and Beth Orton on closer “Alive Alone.” I really like the record. Nice cover too with a hippieish-looking couple walking along a verge of an American road.

Elvis Presley

5/5

“Well it’s one for the money…” So starts just less than 30 minutes that make up one of the most influential albums of all time. Elvis first album for RCA with that iconic album cover that has been imitated frequently, most memorably by The Clash on London Calling, is a driving mix of rock and roll, country, rockabilly, steeped in reverb and still sounding fresh nearly 70 years later. “Blue Suede Shoes” kicks things off with huge energy and contains a Scottie Moore guitar solo as iconic as any Hendrix or Van Halen. In the next half hour we have “I’m Counting On You”, a country/gospel number; a youthful, bouncing version of Ray Charles’ “I Got A Woman”, which ends with the grinding, hip swivelling, snarling Elvis that so enraged conservative 1950s parents; “I Love You Because”, an archetypical Presley ballad; “Trying to Get to You” which is a lot more Hank Williams-like than I remembered; “Blue Moon” Sinatra-like crooning, drenched in echo. If there is a weak point it is that “Tutti Frutti” doesn’t approach the manic, wildness of the Little Richard original, but it’s not a bad rendition and frankly, what could? The arrangements are simple and direct throughout. The core band of Moore, Black and Fontana are superb. Forget Vegas-Elvis; this is where it’s at…

Exile On Main Street

The Rolling Stones

5/5

The Rolling Stones' best album leads off with the one-two punch of "Rocks Off" and "Rip This Joint". The former starts as they mean to go on - Richards's and Taylor's guitars hard panned left and right, complimenting and playing off each other. The song really takes off when the horns come in, with Nicky Hopkin's superb piano. There is a lot going on yet, oddly for an album with a reputation for muddiness, there is so much space in the mix. "Rip This Joint" continues in the same vein, if anything even more breathless. A couple of blues/boogies in "Shake Your Hips", a fairly reverential version of the Slim Harpo song, followed by the cut-up nonsense lyrics of "Casino Boogie", lead into the first real classic of the record, "Tumbling Dice", one of the Stones greatest tracks. And that's only Side One. Side Two contains two of the best country numbers the Stones ever recorded - "Sweet Virginia" and "Torn and Frayed", both heavily influenced by Gram Parsons. "Sweet Black Angel" is a calypso ode to black activist, Angela Davis, whose political sentiment has worn a little better than the patois vocal in which Jagger decided to deliver it - different times. "Happy" is one of the band's best Keith-sung songs, for me bettered only by "Thru and Thru" from the otherwise forgettable Voodoo Lounge. "Turd on the Run" features excellent harmonica playing from Jagger but is one of the lesser songs here, as is "Ventilator Blues" - both tracks still very listenable and with some lovely playing from Taylor on the latter. "I Just Want to See His Face" isn't really a song, more a vibe - a little like hearing a band playing next door; intriguing, you want to hear more. "Let It Loose", a gospel-blues which closes Side Three in style, features a slow build with long horn washes and vocals which weave around and through each other - it is one of my favourites on this album, and Stones songs in general. Side Four opens with another uptempo blues rocker in "All Down the Line", driven by the horns and by Taylor's slide guitar which also features in the cover of Robert Johnson's "Stop Breaking Down". Unfortunately, like others of their contemporaries, the Stones initially failed to credit the blues icon they claimed to revere so much, although at least, unlike Jimmy Page, they didn't claim authorship. "Shine a Light" is another highlight although only three of the band actually play on it, producer Jimmy Miller filling in for Watts on drums and Taylor on bass (Bill Wyman is missing from quite a few songs on this record). But the song, a toast to fallen friends (Brian Jones apparently) is carried by the wonderful organ and piano playing from Billy Preston - it fades out a little abruptly for me. The song overshadows the perfectly decent closer, "Soul Survivor". Exile on Main Street is looser and less cohesive than Sticky Fingers or Let It Bleed but that sprawl is part of its greatness. It is not one of those double albums from which you create the best single album; even the lesser tracks work, all part of the greater whole. They never came close to replicating this.

Lost In The Dream

The War On Drugs

5/5

An excellent album that completely passed me by until now. Steeped in 1980s American AOR without slipping into that decade’s worst production mistakes. A lot of the album is vocally and musically reminiscent of The Waterboys, particularly the opening “Under the Pressure”, which stretches to 9 minutes including a wonderful dreamy ambient coda, and “Eyes to the Wind”, a lovely track with a nice saxophone solo. There are other influences evident in songs like “Disappearing” (Tango in the Night-era Fleetwood Mac; atmospheric, etherial guitars and keyboards, drum machines), “An Ocean in Between the Waves” (Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and, especially, “Boys of Summer” by Don Henley). There is not a bad track on the album but other highlights include “The Haunting Idle” which is truly haunting with freeform drones and ambient guitars and keys. “Suffering” is slow and deliberately paced, and really powerful. All these influences could be really messy in less-skilled hands but Adam Granduciel corrals everything into a homogeneous sound that is familar yet also new. I loved this.

Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz

5/5

Beautiful, sublime. The combination of Stan Getz tenor saxophone, João Gilberto’s subtle, understated guitar and his and his wife Astrid’s low sultry vocals is outstandingly good. “The Girl From Ipanema” is THE bossa nova standard but the rest of this slow burning, intimate record is just as good.

Let's Stay Together

Al Green

5/5

Really any of Al Green’s 1970s run of albums from ‘Al Green Gets Next To You’ to ‘Call Me’ (and beyond) could be, and perhaps are, on this list. The Hi Records Memphis Soul sound is simply breathtaking, as stunning as, yet much subtler than Motown or neighbouring Stax. Producer Willie Mitchell conducts one of the best house bands ever put together, including the Hodges Brothers, Mabon “Teenie”, Charles and Leroy, on guitar, organ, and bass, the Memphis Horns, and drummer Howard Grimes, accompanying Al Green’s sensuous and expressive voice. Green, whether low and whispering or rising into his falsetto, truly was one of those singers who could sing the phone book. But everything he did, fragile at times, powerful at others, was in service to, and completely suited, the song. The classics are “Let’s Stay Together” and his version of the Bee Gees’s “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart” but everything here is close to perfect, the lesser known numbers matching the quality of these two. And he released second, equally as impressive album, in 1972, ‘I’m Still in Love With You’…

Groovin'

The Young Rascals

3/5

Blue-eyed soul/psychedelic pop. I know the singles, or at least some of them as apparently 8 of these tracks were released on 45s, but never listened to a (Young) Rascals album. They had three lead singers, all fairly distinctive, with Felix Cavaliere probably the pick of them. He sings the opening "A Girl Like You" which is also probably the best song here, and also "Groovin'" which is so much like Smokey Robinson that I was sure I had a version by Smokey - I don't and it probably doesn't exist (I do have a version by Aretha which is good but not as good as the original). As an album, it is a little disjointed, more like a Greatest Hits, and it jumps around in style. There are songs that sound like The Monkees, others that are like psychedelic flamenco. "How Can I Be Sure" is another good song which I know from Dusty Springfield's version; sung by Eddie Brigati, it suits his voice. Some of the songs are 5-star but it lacks the cohesion of a proper album.

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Coldplay

2/5

I’m never going to like Coldplay, which is not to say they don’t have a few good songs. I’m sure they are nice guys (well I’m not… the ‘niceness’ grates and makes me want to punch something, maybe Chris Martin). Musically it is not offensive, it’s just middle of the road inoffensive which might by it’s very nature be offensive… To call it Radiohead light is a slight on Radiohead but it comes from the same sound palette; just doesn’t take any risks. The songs are full of platitudes and facile rhymes. I hadn’t listened to this album in full before today and so was astounded that, while I don’t like Coldplay (I mentioned that), I didn’t know they could be even worse than I had imagined- the abomination that is ‘Green Eyes’? ‘Warning Sign’? That said, I do like ‘God Put A Smile Upon Your Face’ and ‘Clocks’ isn’t bad but, in between these is the album’s big dramatic centrepiece ‘The Scientist’ which is overwrought and annoying. I really don’t understand why so many people seem to like this unless it is the music for people who don’t like music phenomenon that explains Adele’s popularity, or why most people seem to think that Dire Straits’ only record is Brothers in Arms, or that Ed Sheeran has something profound to say about anything…

Ace of Spades

Motörhead

4/5

Not my favourite Motörhead album, which may be because of over-familiarity, especially with the title track, but also because the best songs on the first three albums are, to me, better than those on this, the band's 4th. It's all fairly subjective though because Motörhead didn't really evolve from album to album - despite later lineup changes, they sounded pretty much the same (with the exception of the experiment with Brian Robertson ex-Thin Lizzy on Another Perfect Day, which I like a lot even if no-one else seemed to...). Ace of Spades may be the band's best sounding album though, the production is excellent. The sound could have been muddy, and was on some other recordings, with Lemmy playing rhythm bass, Phil Taylor clattering along with his double-bass drumming and Fast Eddie Clarke's limited but very effective guitar, but there is a lot of space in the mix - you can hear Lemmy's Rickenbacker clearly, as you can the other instruments; they all sit distinctly in the mix. Lemmy may have always claimed that Motörhead were a rock and roll band and not a metal band but this album, and Overkill & Bomber the year before, came along at just the right time with the emergence of NWOBHM and had a huge influence on the 1980s metal scene in general.

The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

Genesis

5/5

Genesis were, for me, the quirkiest and most approachable of the 1970s prog rock bands. I love Foxtrot and “Supper’s Ready”, Selling England by the Pound, Nursery Cryme, but I never really got The Lamb… I have owned it for years, played it occasionally; I worked on projects with a lovely guy who knew every word and, after a few drinks, could be encouraged to recite it (he wasn’t a singer) and, with some difficulty, could be encouraged to stop; but I ever really got it. And then I did a deep dive for this list. I listened to my CDs, to the Atmos mix, to the 2025 50th anniversary release, the live version, a bootleg I had on CDR - and it makes sense. I still don’t fully understand the story, but the album is ambitious, it overreaches - spectacularly and gloriously - and it is musically adventurous. I’m a convert and I understand why this was the pinnacle of the classic lineup and why the band couldn’t continue as it was; both Genesis and Peter Gabriel had to go in different and diverse directions afterwards.

(Pronounced 'Leh-'Nérd 'Skin-'Nérd)

Lynyrd Skynyrd

4/5

Skynyrd’s first album is fully formed - that Southern Rock sound, twin guitars, piano, rooted in the blues. The first side contains “I Ain’t the One”, “Tuesday’s Gone”, “Gimme Three Steps”, “Simple Man”; the second dips a little, still good but less memorable, but it ends with the glory of “Freebird”… The first side proves there was more to Lynyrd Skynyrd than just that song, and maybe “Sweet Home Alabama”, the last track proves they were a great band.

Darkness on the Edge of Town

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

I don't like Darkness on the Edge of Town as much as Born to Run, but man it's close. The production always seemed a little harder to me, a bit more in your face, perhaps not surprising given that Springsteen had been stalled for three years due to contractual rows about production and producers. It opens with "Badlands", intense and angry, straight into "Adam Raised A Cain" and the intensity continues. The wall of sound, Spector inspired arrangements from BTR are gone, replaced by a simplified, driving urgency, a heavier, rockier E-Street Band. "Candy's Room" is stunning as is "Racing In the Street", a contender for Springsteen's best song, incredibly moving, the emotions complex, the narrator's possibly self-delusion that he can escape the quiet desperation of his, and particularly, his 'Baby's' lives, she hating herself 'for just being born' - I never tire of listening to it. The underlying anguish, tempered by a stubborn refusal to give up, continues through side two, through "The Promised Land", "Factory", "Streets of Fire" and "Prove It All Night" and the theme of the album is summed up in the closing, title track. "Darkness on the Edge of Town" seems to be a further chapter in the story of the couple from "Racing in the Street" (and perhaps from "Thunder Road" and "Born to Run"). The record has lost none of its power in the forty plus years since its release. It cemented Bruce Springsteen's position as the champion of the blue-collar worker and, looking on from the outside, perhaps those very people should be listening to The Boss rather that to the lies of the would be King...

The Notorious Byrd Brothers

The Byrds

3/5

The Byrds have never resonated with me as much as some of their contemporaries. I love a lot of their songs but, other than Sweetheart of the Rodeo, I never 'got' the albums, more individual songs. And this album in particular, regularly held up as their best, didn't really land with me; I prefer Younger Than Yesterday, Turn, Turn, Turn, 5th Dimension. Not that NBB is a bad album. It is experimental blending chamber pop, country-folk, ethereal whistful balladry into a psychedelic mix in which I can hear elements which influenced the likes of Big Star, REM, Teenage Fanclub, The National, Fleet Foxes and others. It is a cohesive album despite the turmoil in the band at the time - Gene Clark had gone, only to return briefly, David Crosby was about to be sacked, as was Michael Clarke (Crosby is famously replaced by a horse on the cover...) and although the songs were rarely recorded as a band, they do sound of a piece, even if the running of tracks into each other doesn't really work for me. The production is a little weak and of its time. The horns on "Artificial Energy" sound like they were recorded from the room next door. Goffin and King's "Going Back" is possibly the best track but I prefer Dusty's version. "Draft Morning" is a good anti-Vietnam War song complete with battle sound effects. "Space Odyssey" has some early Moog synthesiser. In "Tribal Gathering" you can hear where Crosby would go next with CSN. The album deserves recognition for where it led - the introduction of Gram Parsons, who would drive the country rock of Sweetheart and then on to the Flying Burrito Brothers with Hillman; Crosby Stills and Nash; even early Eagles and Poco. So, I like it, I respect it, but I don't love it.

Jazz Samba

Stan Getz

3/5

Really pleasant, easy listening bossanova jazz. Both Stan Getz’s tenor saxophone and Charlie Byrd’s nylon strung guitar have wonderful tone. Great late night listening but Getz/Gilberto from a couple of years later is a much more essential album.

Electric Ladyland

Jimi Hendrix

5/5

I don’t love Electric Ladyland as much as the Experience’s first two albums. I DO love it but have always found the mix a little muddy, strangely as it was an Eddie Kramer mix. But there are great songs here, some fantastic playing, and some proggy experimentation which might point to where Jimi might have gone in the 1970s, we’ll never know.

Close To The Edge

Yes

5/5

I was never a huge fan of Yes when I was younger. I had a cousin who was a big fan but I never really listened to them. I always thought they were a bit pretentious. And this album does reinforce that a little - the title track (suite?) starts with a freeform, cacophonous band improvisation, reminisent of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and ends with a Rick Wakeman solo played on the organ in St Giles Church in the Barbican. It is also a great album. I grew into Yes, particularly this and the two albums which preceded CTTE. The lineup is probably their best - Jon Anderson's folky falsetto, Steve Howe's excellent guitar, Rick Wakeman, Bill Buford's amazing drumming, and Chris Squire's trebly, melodic, lead bass playing. Things would get really pretentious later but this is excellent stuff.

That's The Way Of The World

Earth, Wind & Fire

4/5

The jazziest of funk bands, or perhaps the funkiest of jazz bands. It's not my favourite EWF album but, having been introduced to them via their cover of "Got to Get You Into My Life" and "September" I listened to later albums before this one. It does contain "Shining Star" and title track "That's the Way of the World" but there are other excellent songs here and whether dance numbers or ballads, they all groove. The rhythm section is incredibly tight, the horns huge and driving, and the vocals from Maurice White, his brother Verdine and Philip Bailey are superb, weaving and winding in and out of each other. Maurice White's experience as a drummer is evident in the syncopation. It's great, and they did better albums...

Thriller

Michael Jackson

3/5

I don't really get Thriller or Michael Jackson in the '80s generally. It is a well produced (by Quincy Jones) pop album with some good songs and some poor ones. I like "Thriller" itself, "Billie Jean" is ok, although Jackson's often parodied percussive vocal mannerisms wear fairly quickly, "Beat It" obviously had the novelty of an Eddie Van Halen guitar solo; but Prince was knocking it out of the park at this time, and played his own guitar as well as almost anyone. "The Girl Is Mine" is one of the worst things Paul McCartney has ever leant his talents to, including the Frog Chorus... It's not that I hate Michael Jackson's music, I love the Jackson 5 and the later The Jacksons albums have some great songs, but I don't see the appeal of this record and certainly don't understand its reputation as one of the best of all time.

Infected

The The

3/5

I don't really know The The, although I do have Mind Bomb on cassette somewhere - I won it as a spot prize at a quiz night late '80s/early '90s. I didn't like the opening title track, a bit too '80s in its production for me but the rest of the album is listenable, often better than that; dancy beats, horns and synths (or synth horns?). It's not really my genre or era, and a lot of bands of that time - Orange Juice, Wah! (I think) - sound similar to my ears. didn't hate it and I did like "Slow Train to Dawn" with Neneh Cherry guesting. Might dig out that cassette...

Dire Straits

5/5

I haven't listened to this album in years and had to check that I had it on vinyl (I do). It is excellent, the Dire Straits sound arriving fully formed, albeit after years of playing in pubs and clubs no doubt... and this comes from the same pub scene that Elvis Costello, Brinsley Schwarz, and other 'new wave' artists came from. 'Dire Straits' is essentially country rock with an incredible guitar player, a bit like Heads, Hands and Feet (in fact I had completely forgotten that the original of "Setting Me Up" is on this album being more familiar with the Albert Lee version). "Sultans of Swing" obviously the standout but there isn't a bad track here and, for me, this is a better album than the celebrated 'Brothers in Arms'. Mark Knopfler's clean Strat sings, understated but technically and sonically brilliant and his songwriting matches it.

Future Days

Can

4/5

I’ve listened to this several times over the years. It’s very good but doesn’t grab me; it doesn’t stick. Four songs, one of which, the 20 minute “Bel Air” fills side two. Prog rock? Krautrock? It’s certainly progressive, ambient, jazzy and funky, but not really in a jazz or funk sense. At times it is reminiscent of Miles Davis’s In A Silent Way, at others King Crimson. The rhythm section are excellent, particularly the drumming. The drones and extended chords, and Damo Suzuki’s weirdly laconic vocalisations, are interesting. I like the album, I’m just not sure it’s ever going to grab me.

Rock Bottom

Robert Wyatt

3/5

I don’t recall ever listening to this album before, although I know Wyatt’s work with Soft Machine and his later cover of Elvis Costello’s “Shipbuilding’. Rock Bottom is different from both of those and takes a somewhat avantgarde jazz/folk approach. Robert Wyatt’s voice is fragile and faltering, occasionally slipping out of key, as he sings along to music largely made up of synthesiser drones, shimmering with tremolo, and noodling, on both synth and piano, accompanied by bass and drums. The songs meander and both time and pitch seem flexible, keeping the listener a little unsettled. At times it is almost like listening to a slightly warped vinyl record, not unpleasant but neither does it lend itself to casual background listening. You leave the record a bit off balance.

Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell

5/5

Strangely, I had actually listened to this album more than Blue before I fell in love with that album, through this list, earlier this year. Court and Spark finds Joni Mitchell moving towards the jazz sound she developed later in the decade, and the albums with which I was (slightly) more familiar with. Joni really is an amazing songwriter; there are no verse, chorus, verse, chorus songs here, everything feeling like she is telling a story. The melodies are wonderful and the production is clear and spacious, allowing the instruments and, especially her voice, to breathe. The supporting musicians are as great as you would expect - Larry Carlton, Wilton Felder, Joe Sample, Robbie Robertson, David Crosby and Graham Nash among them. The woodwind arrangements by Tom Scott on “Down to You” are incredible. There isn’t a weak song here. I think I am a Joni Mitchell fan…

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elton John

4/5

I have always liked 1970s Elton John but have leant more towards Madman Across the Water and Tumbleweed Connection than this album. And, on the whole, having listened to Goodbye Yellow Brick Road in its entirety for the first time in years, I have to say I still prefer the other albums, and the wonderful live album, 17-11-70 to this double album. That said, the opening “Funeral for a Friend/Loves Lies Bleeding”, all 11 minutes of it, may be the best thing Elton ever recorded, and is prog-rock to rival Genesis or Yes, and the rest of side one, “Candle in the Wind”, still a triumph, and one of Bernie Taupin’s most affecting lyrics, despite the maudlin Princess Diana ‘90s version, and “Bennie and the Jets” represent perhaps the best LP side of Elton’s career. It could be argued that a single album of sides 1 and 2, dropping the poor “Jamaica Jerk-Off” and squeezing on “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” and “Harmony” would be an undeniable 5-star triumph, but there are good songs elsewhere which do more than just fill the space. Aside from the best known songs, there are surprises like “Grey Seal”, “Sweet Painted Lady” and “I’ve Seen That Movie Too”. Elton’s regular band are excellent thoughout and Gus Dudgeon’s production is crisp with a wide soundstage.

Another Music In A Different Kitchen

Buzzcocks

5/5

I went to secondary school just as punk arose in the UK. I loved Buzzcocks - "Ever Fallen in Love..", "Orgasm Addict", "What Do I Get?" - and had the Singles, Going Steady collection, but I don't know if I ever listened to this album before. None of the singles I know are on it, and it is excellent. Buzzcocks were always on the poppier side of punk rock and this album is full of short, fast, melodic, pop songs (and one long Krautrock-inspired closer). It's fun despite, or maybe partly because of, the recurring lyrical themes of unrequited love and sexual frustration.

Pretenders

5/5

I don’t listen to this album half enough. It is an incredible record, one of the best of the punk/new wave era. The songs are excellent, not just the hits - “Brass In Pocket”, “Stop Your Sobbing”, “Kid” - but from opener “Precious” through “Tattooed Love Boys”, instrumental “Space Invader”, “The Wait”, “Private Life” the quality is consistent. There is a straight line from the Byrds, Big Star, The Kinks (covered here and Hynde was later to become Mrs Ray Davies) - The Pretenders were one of the great power-pop bands. Chrissie Hynde’s voice is distinctive, sometimes laconic, sometimes confrontational, sometimes soft and seductive. The rhythm section is strong with the bass high in the mix. And for me, the star is James Honeyman-Scott’s guitar playing. His rhythm playing is superb and his lead is stunning, particularly on “Kid” which has one of the best lead breaks in pop music. His playing always suits the song like in the muted choppy percussive guitar on “The Wait”. The next album, Pretenders II, is almost as good, and there are great songs throughout their discography but the deaths of both Honeyman-Scott, to a drugs-related heart-attack, and bassist Pete Farndon, who had been dismissed from the band and died the flooding year, robbed us of one of the great punk-pop lineups.

Devil Without A Cause

Kid Rock

1/5

Nope. I have better things to do with my life. For only the second time, to quote track 12, “Fuck Off”.

Innervisions

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Innervisions is the third of a stunning five album run, starting with Music of My Mind and culminating with Songs in the Key of Life, which sets Stevie Wonder as one of the greatest artists in popular music. Freed from the constraints of the Motown production line, Stevie’s genius was allowed to go wherever he desired and, playing the majority of the instruments and arranging the songs, he went places few had gone before. He was 23. There isn’t a bad song here, every minute is close to perfect but highlights (if that is the right word) include “Higher Ground”, “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing”, “He’s Misstra Know-It-All” and the social commentary of “Living For the City” the lyrics of which could be aimed at many people in power today, particularly in USA, as could the criticism of the hypocrisy of the ‘Holy Rollers’ of “Jesus Children of America”. A stunning, breath-taking record.

The Stranger

Billy Joel

4/5

I went through a stage in the early ‘80s where I listened to a lot of Billy Joel but haven’t heard this album for a long time. It holds up, a well-crafted pop-rock album. The big hit was “Just the Way You Are”, a little soppy but a classic love song and, although I always preferred Barry White’s version, still very good. There is a real feeling of time and place through the album, Italian-American New York, most obviously in the excellent “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant” but also very evident in “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)” and “Only the Good Die Young”, a direct path from Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons and West Side Story. Lyrically and musically, the record stands up and, although the quality tails off slightly at the end with “Get It Right the First Time”, which sounds like it was written for Barry Manilow, and the overwrought cod-gospel of “Everybody Has a Dream”, I really enjoyed revisiting.

Shaft

Isaac Hayes

4/5

Shaft is an excellent soundtrack, one of the best Blaxploitation soundtracks of the ‘70s along with Curtis Mayfield’s Superfly, James Brown’s Black Caesar and Bobby Womack’s Across 110th Street. But it is not a ‘great’ Isaac Hayes album and, arguably unlike the other albums I mention, it doesn’t really stand without the movie. “Theme from Shaft” is monumental, an amazing piece of music and an excellent song. The rest of the album is really well composed but is very much music to accompany visual media. It certainly works as background music but, when I listen to Isaac, I want to hear his voice, his stories; I want to listen to Hot Buttered Soul or Black Moses.

Heaux Tales

Jazmine Sullivan

3/5

I’d never have listened to this, and I’ll never listen to it again, but it’s not terrible. It’s not as slick and sickly over-produced as much of what I hear of modern R&B, the arrangements sparser and the vocals, especially the layered harmonies, very good in places. Not close to the worst album on this list but that doesn’t mean it deserves to be here.

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi

2/5

Very well done, very poor generic ‘80s rock-pop. “Let It Rock” kicks it off with loads of organ and sounds like Yes or Kansas playing a third rate AC/DC song. Side one contains the big numbers, “You Give Love a Bad Name”, Living On A Prayer”, with that irritating voice box, and “Wanted Dead or Alive” - the three Bon Jovi songs I thought I never had to hear again although the Atmos mix seems to add a lot of keyboards to the soundscape, so that was a thing - now I never have to listen again. The rest of the album is full of forgettable, very earnest tracks with no substance and very little depth. I just don’t get Bon Jovi; there aren’t even any ‘guilty pleasures’ here. There are worse records but maybe not many as bland.

Elephant

The White Stripes

5/5

Like Smoke On the Water 30 Years before, Seven Nation Army has become so familiar and overplayed that you forget how good it is - a simple sounding riff of which football chants are made, but the song is so much better than that. And the album is so much more than SNA - The Hardest Button to Button; the cover of I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself, which recalls Dusty's version and yet is so different from it; Meg's vocal on In The Cold Cold Night; the wonderful noise that these two could make; the clean, clear, loud production. I'm not a devoted Jack White fan but, when he's on it, he's on it and never more so than on this album, with his divorced wife-sister.

No Other

Gene Clark

5/5

This is incredible. I didn’t really know a lot about Gene Clark except that he was in The Byrds; I have confused him with Guy Clark in the past… I did try to listen to this before but I didn’t want get it. This time I gave it my full attention and I can’t believe I’ve slept on it for so long. No Other is a psychedelic country rock album which reminds me a lot of Gram Parsons’ less country stuff. The songs are excellent, Clark’s voice superb and he is supported by an array of talent both vocally and instrumentally - Timothy B Schmitt, Russ Kunkel, Leland Sklar, Chris Hillman, Jesse Ed Davis, who, I assume, plays the wonderfully melodic guitar solo on “From a Silver Phial”.

Scott 2

Scott Walker

5/5

My Uncle had Scott Walker's first four albums in his collection but I never really got them. I liked some of the Walker Bros songs and, recently, really enjoyed Scott 4. Still, I was amazed at how much I enjoyed this record. It is lush, string and, especially, horn arrangements are wonderful and accompany Scott's superb baritone voice. The songs are eccentric with shades of Spaghetti Westerns and Bacharach. It's tongue-in-cheek, avantgarde '60s pop and should be ludicrous. But it works. Loved it.

Music From Big Pink

The Band

5/5

Three unconventionally brilliant singers. Manuel fragile, ethereal, beautiful; Danko almost as brittle, on the verge of cracking; Helm, deeper, whiskey soaked, limited range: combining to deliver some of the strongest vocal performances ever recorded. I have loved this album, as I do pretty much all The Band’s output, for years; but this is the one for me. The vocals express pain and anger, helplessness, and joy. “Tears of Rage”, “The Weight”, “This Wheel’s On Fire”, “I Shall Be Released” (perhaps the best version of a Dylan song I have ever heard). The songwriting, from Robbie Robertson and Richard Manuel, is excellent, the musicianship is first class. Garth Hudson’s Hammond Organ on “Chest Fever” is as heavy as anything this side of Jon Lord. There isn’t a weak moment on this album.

John Barleycorn Must Die

Traffic

4/5

Not a huge Traffic fan, I've listened to this before but didn't retain a lot. And that's probably the major issue - white listening, "Glad" is a great soulful opener, "Freedom Rider" is a decent song; Winwood's voice and his Hammond stabs are great, but 30 minutes later I'm not really recalling much. The electric piano vamping against sustained organ chords on "Empty Pages" is excellent. "I Just Want to know" is barely a song. The title track is very Fairport Convention modern folk and is good if a little too earnest, a bit repetitive and overlong. Guy Stevens' production is good if very "guitar hard left, piano hard right." It's an album I enjoyed listening to, well played and produced, but not one I'll have on repeat.

It's Too Late to Stop Now

Van Morrison

5/5

There was a time, in the '70s, when no one could touch Van Morrison. His reputation as a dickhead is well deserved (he borrowed a mote of mine’s Telecaster once and Robin almost had to sue to get it back), but he was a genius. Whether it is reinterpreting classics like, opener, Bobby Bland's 'Ain't Nothing You Can Do" or his own classics like "Saint Dominic's Preview" Van and his Caledonian Soul Orchestra are on the top of their game. Quite simply one of the great live albums, really well recorded and played. The sound is clear, the strings and the horns are superb, the guitar playing is really impressive and the drums and bass hold it down, with Van conducting and driving them to greater heights. There are no weak moments here only highlights, but Side Three, “Bring It On Home”, “Saint Dominic’s Preview”, “Take Your Hand Out of My Pocket” and “Listen to the Lion” is perfection, an incredible celtic-soul review.

The Gilded Palace Of Sin

The Flying Burrito Brothers

5/5

THE great Country Rock album, or Cosmic American Music as Gram Parsons called it. Gram and Chris Hillman had recently left the Byrds, where they had recorded Sweethearts of the Rodeo, and they delivered an album to beat that. The music is excellent, the country very traditional but with rock/soul influences. The lyrics deal with (then) contemporary issues - excess (“Sin City”), Vietnam (“My Uncle”). The covers are excellent with “Do Right Woman” rivalling Aretha's version and “Dark End of the Street”, James Carr's (although perhaps not Clarence Carters' weird and wonderful “Making Love”).. And then we have “Hot Burrito #1” + #2 the first being possibly the Best song Gram Parsons ever did. A fantastic album.

British Steel

Judas Priest

5/5

I bought this album on release. I had already listened to Unleashed in the East and Killing Machine (I can’t remember which was first) and then Stained Class, possibly Sin After Sin as well, so I was primed for British Steel. And I didn’t like it… Listening now, I am not sure why. I sold the album and didn’t really listen to Judas Priest, apart from the odd song, until about 10 years ago. This is a really consistent album. Priest were one of the first bands to fully embrace the Heavy Metal label and British Steel built on its predecessors from the off - “Rapid Fire”, “Metal Gods”, “Steeler”, anthems in “United”, “Breaking the Law”, “Living After Midnight”, the hiding in plain sight of “Grinder” (Rob Halford is a legend). I do recall disliking the Police-like choppy guitar in “The Rage”, now one of the standouts for me. I do think there are better individual songs on earlier albums, and more subtlety, but British Steel is a classic, an incredibly influential album.

McCartney

Paul McCartney

3/5

McCartney is not a great album. In fact, compared with Plastic Ono Band and, especially, All Things Must Pass, Paul's first post-Beatles offering is very poor indeed. There is still quality of course - it's Paul McCartney - but the decision, possibly due to depression following the breakup, to record largely at home, leads to an album that sounds like demos recorded at home... The Atmos mix cleans things up a bit but even some of the real drums sound like they are played on a suitcase or cardboard box. There are too many throwaway songs and fragments - "Lovely Linda", "Man We Was Something" - and average instrumentals. Even the better known songs like "Junk" and "Teddy Boy" are below average compositions that failed to make the cut for the White Album. "Every Night" is slightly better, "Glasses" could have developed into something interestingly Avantgarde instead of a tacked on coda to "Hot As Sun". Then we have "Maybe I'm Amazed" which might be McCartney's best song without the other Fab 3. It deserves to be in better company.

Van Halen

5/5

This album was seismic. Almost 50 years later it would be easy to underestimate just how much Van Halen’s debut changed rock music. Nobody played like this. Montrose’s first album had arguably paved the way but VH took the ball and didn’t just run with it - they strapped it to a rocket engine and blasted it into space. Eddie gets the attention, and his guitar is game changing, the tapping, the fast runs, yes, but listen to his rhythm work, it’s like an orchestra. Alex is an incredible drummer and DLR is a one off, a showman, with a limited but distinctive voice, he fits perfectly, a huge part of the initial impact. But the unsung hero is Michael Anthony, whose fat basslines round out the sound xxxx and whose melodic background singing fills any vocal deficiency from the front man. The production is excellent. The songs are uniformly good - "Runnin' With the Devil", "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love". "I'm the One", covers of John Brin's "Ice Cream Man" showing they could put a spin on the blues, and of course the stunning guitar barrage that is "Eruption" leading into a great version of the Kinks' "You Really got Me". Van Halen were cocksure and bombastic; it is unsurprising that, an admittedly shaky, Black Sabbath struggled to compete when they took them on tour. I love this album, and I think the following VHII is even better. Incredibly influential and still holds up. That VH inadvertently led to 1980s hair metal is not their fault.

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy

5/5

I thoroughly enjoyed this. It's not my area at all - I'm a skinny white Northern Irish man - but I can relate to the rage. There is nothing throwaway here, it is a really well-crafted album and the production values are very high. These days, when I hear rap, it appears boastful and more concerned with bling and 'look what I've got' - and perhaps there is a deep reason for that - but "It Takes A Nation..." is revolutionary in all senses of the word. The music is funky and jazzy and hits as hard as a metal band. The lyrics are angry and confrontational. It's scary and political. I am not suddenly going to become a hip-hop expert but I can relate and I know art when I hear it.

Here Are the Sonics

The Sonics

4/5

Garage Rock that sounds like it was recorded in the garage. It rattles by in less than half an hour and never stops for breath. "Have Love Will Travel" and "Psycho" are huge and the versions of "Walkin' the Dog" and "Good Golly Miss Molly" rival the originals, "Money" is one of the best versions out there. Great stuff.

Ctrl

SZA

3/5

Again, I am not remotely the target audience for SZA. I appreciate the sound, the production is Vey slick, particularly the subs - bass and kick. SZA has a good voice, in that mildly auto tuned way in which a lot of RNB vocals are treated these days. Kendrick Lamarr appears. Apparently the lyrics are by mature and relevant to her fans, but I don't really get it.

A Hard Day's Night

Beatles

5/5

The Beatles third album and first soundtrack but the first that feels like an 'album' rather than and collection of songs. A Hard Day's Night is the first LP to contain only originals, all Lennon and McCartney compositions with the exception of George's 'I'm Happy Just to Dance With You', and heavily weighted towards John. At just over 30 minutes it never wanes and from the stunning opening chord of the title song to 'I'll Be Back' it is packed with classic songs - 'I Should Have Known Better', 'If I Fell', 'And I Love Her', 'Can't Buy Me Love', 'Things We Said Today', 'I'll Be Back'. There was even greater to come but this album is the first indication that The Beatles were more than a really good pop band.

Fifth Dimension

The Byrds

4/5

I'm not a huge Byrds fan but this might be my favourite outside of Sweetheart of the Rodeo. It has that jangly Byrds sound but the music ranges from a country song about aliens ('Mr Spaceman') to John Coltrane influences - 'Eight Miles High' contains a hilarious yet effective attempt at a Coltrane-style solo played on guitar which captures some of the spirit if none of the technique. The covers include a very good version of 'Wild Mountain Thyme' and one of the worst versions of 'Hey Joe' I have ever heard. 'I Come and Stand at Every Door', another cover, is a harrowingly effective story of Hiroshima narrated by a seven-year old victim of the atomic bomb.

Back At The Chicken Shack

Jimmy Smith

4/5

I saw Jimmy Smith play the Jazz Cafe in Camden Town in 2004. I got to the venue early. It was fairly empty and, as I couldn’t get a table in the upstairs restaurant, I had dinner and a few drinks down the street. When I got back there still wasn’t a huge crowd and I pulled one of the bent chequer-plate bar stools to the back wall to sit on while I waited. A while later someone walked right into to me. He apologised, his hand on my knee to steady himself, an old black man in a dark suit. He seemed to be struggling to focus and two thoughts entered my head. “Oh my god, that’s Jimmy Smith…” and “He looks out of it” - old age? Alcohol? Worse? Someone took his arm and led him away. Some time later the gig started, a drummer, guitar player, and a saxophonist surrounding the empty Hammond organ. They played for five minutes or so and then Jimmy Smith was guided, from the upper level, down the stairs at the rear of the stage. It seemed to take ages for his helper to get him to the Hammond, and all the time I was thinking “This is going to be a disaster…” Then Jimmy started to play the organ and so started one of the best performances I have ever seen in person. He was fantastic. Animated. Flirting with girls in the audience - “Don’t you come up here now…” At one point I noticed the restaurant above was quieter and I went up and managed to find my way to a gantry which spanned the stage above the band. I have no idea why no one stopped me, but I was able to stand right above the Hammond organ and watch Jimmy Smith’s fingers as he made it sing and growl. Anyway, Back at the Chicken Shack showed up on 1001 Albums today. It is fairly representative of Smith’s Blue Note releases - nothing earth shattering, just incredibly talented, seasoned jazz players - Kenny Burrell on guitar, Stanley Turrentine on tenor sax, Donald Bailey on drums - playing off each other, captured on tape by Rudy Van Gelder. Excellent.

Bluesbreakers

John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

5/5

John Mayall was, along with others like Alexis Korner and Graham Bond, one of the British artists who championed American Blues and introduced it to a UK audience, and reintroduced it to the USA, at a time when the originators were battling with racism and segregation in the 'States. Mayall's Bluesbreakers was also the launching pad for great guitarists - Clapton, Peter Green and Mick Taylor among them. It was through this album, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, and, less obviously, Deep Purple quoting 'Rock Me Baby' on a live album, that I discovered BB King, Albert and Freddie, Otis Rush, Buddy Guy, Elmore James and so many more. It has become fashionable to hate on Eric Clapton, and he deserves it, but his personality does not retrospectively dim his talent as a guitarist, especially in the '60s, any more than Richard Wagner's proto-nazi views made him a bad composer. The playing here is incredible and ably supported by the rhythm section of John McVie and Hughie Flint, and Mayall's organ, harmonica and voice. The covers are well-chosen and originals, particularly 'Key To Love' and 'Double Crossing Time', fit right in. Along with producer Mike Vernon, John Mayall loved the blues and contributed a lot to the UK and Europe being more welcoming than their homeland to the great black bluesmen who inspired that love.

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