Cinnamon Girl is the best song on the album. The rest is typical late '60's folk rock. Not really my thing, but I can see the influence on later artists; especially during the '90's grunge/garage/alternative period.

Bjork appeals to someone, and I have heard enough to know that I am not that someone. Just a little too quirky and out there for my tastes. That said I know she has had a profound influence on a lot of indie and electronic groups. But, I just can't seem to get into her music.

I like Bob Marley, but I'm more of a greatest hits kind of Bob Marley fan. Nothing bad, the music is good, but all the songs sound similar.

Makes me think of mom. I appreciate Cat Stevens for being a great singer-songwriter. I think I'll have to listen to this one again to get a better feel for what he's saying in some of the songs I've never heard before.

I love this album. It was one of the first ones I bought as a young kid learning to find my own music. I set it aside after a while, but for some reason it has come back into my life lately. I love the hard punk edge. I love Dexter Holland's piercing voice. The messages remind me of some of life's events when I was in college, but some of the other songs seem pretty relevant in today's world too...

Definitely NOT for me. Music for the whiney kids that are way too into "indie" rock, PBR, and skinny jeans. The type of people that you find at weird house parties in gentrifying neighborhoods. I can't tell the difference between this group, MGMT, and the Lumineers. Essentially backing track to sappy romance dramas staring the latest manic pixie dream girl and Michael Cera. I feel like I could go on, but that would be more effort needed for music that is not good.

Typical post-war jazz. Like the stuff you would hear at one of those expensive restaurants that are trying too hard to sell you an experience over actual ambiance and good food. I don't know enough about jazz to really comment on it, but the production value and quality of the players is definitely really good. I think if I was more into jazz this would be at the top of my list. I can also appreciate that Ellington was super influential in the jazz arena.

I really enjoyed this. I grew up with Cyndi Lauper's music as background noise in the '80's, and never really listened to it because it was "girl music." But, now that I'm older, I really enjoy it. Her voice can be punchy and then sonorous in the same song, and the lyrics are great! There's a lot to recommend in a romantic way. Not so much in trying to woo someone, but rather in the way you do in a long term relationship. I also like the synthy and eclectic sound. I miss the experimental nature music had from this era. Music has become so cardboardy and uniform. We could learn a lesson from Lauper in trying new stuff and making music sound different but also appealing to a wide variety of people. Also, makes me miss Lou Albano and the Goonies...

Oh man, I love this album. It's so raw, and you can just feel the emotion in Dave Grohl's play and lyrics. You get the sense that he's just trying to figure out how to pick up the pieces after Nirvana. Maybe not as refined as later albums, this was a great bridge into The Color and the Shape. I think the music is actually more creative than a lot of Foo Fighter's later stuff. Everything after the first two albums always felt kind of flat and like crack jack rock pumped out for sales. But this album is the real thing. (Side note: I'm a huge sucker for debut and sophomore albums) It also came out when I was just getting into my own music, so it has a special spot for me there. I spent a lot of my teen years trying to figure out my place in life, which hardly makes me unique, but this was one of those albums that made me understand that maybe everyone else is just trying to figure out what to do next too.

First reaction: wtf is this crap? Sounds like the long lost link between whiney '90's Portland grunge and early '00's corporate indie music. It should have stayed lost. Most likely in a Wes Anderson film that I won't watch. I really don't understand the appeal of music like this. The bland melodies and lyrics that are written by a freshman English lit major with a thesaurus and too much time on their hands just make me want to scream. It feels like music written by some insecure boy trying to impress a girl that is way out of his league, wrong for him, and will eventually completely ignore him because she realizes nobody wants to be with neurotic losers. Which will probably only further spur the boy to write more bad music like this bemoaning that no girl wants to date him.

Not a huge fan of The Cure outside of some of their mainstream hits. Very dark and moody, and frankly at this point of my life I don't need that sort of thing. However, there was a time when I would have found that appealing. I have never understood the ethereal instrumentals though.

Why is there so much Neil Young on this list?! It's not bad, but it just doesn't do anything for me. He has always felt kind of whiney to me. I like his stuff better that he did with CSNY. I kind of dug the mellow guitar and bongo drums on "On the Beach" though. Good laid back summer night kind of song.

This album is the definition of a deep cut. So many massive hits. One of the all time greatest albums made.

I've always heard that early hip-hop like the Tribe is required listening to understand rap, but I've just never been able to get into it. The flows and rhymes are legit, and I can see the influence it had on later rap artists. That said, it kind of lands flat for me. Long tracks of them just flowing doesn't really do it for me. In this day an age, this seems like foundational listening for newer rap artists, but there's better stuff for pure listening. It was kind of fun to hear an early Busta though.

I'm not sure what kind of drugs you need to be on to find this music interesting, but I'm not on them. There's flashes of...something...here, but I'm not grasping it. It's almost like a dark Disney movie narrator or villain soliloquizing his reasoning for doing whatever nefarious thing he's doing. With complete mumbo-jumbo lyrics. Whatever it is I'm too sober to understand. Maybe I'll revisit next time I go on a bender, but I'll likely forget.

I can see where this influenced a lot of other subsequent synth groups. Very raw sounding though. The synth is pretty one dimensional, but I'm guessing that's more a symptom of the limitations of the technology at the time. The drums and backing beat is right on though. In the end, not really my thing though. The vocals really grate on me. Side note: I checked out some of their recent stuff, and it's really interesting.

I really wonder how some of these albums get onto this list. I get it, this is a prime example of psychedelic rock from the late '60's, but it's nearly unlistenable. Plus a 17 minute track about drugs, sex, and murder...I'm sure it was quite shocking in the day, but it just comes off as annoying now. Albums and music like this make me happy we have moved onto better things. Also, there was way better examples of music like this from the time, why aren't they on this list?!

Disco! Freak out! I'm not a huge disco fan, but I dig the beats. Makes me want to dance, and I have two left feet. As much as I don't really listen to disco, I enjoy it when I hear it. The production quality is great too.

This is just not for me. I'm not into that early poppy punk stuff. I can elements of this in some subsequent groups from the '80's and early '90's. It also gives me some Heart vibes. But, like I said, this isn't for me.

I enjoy the grittier take on '60's pop rock. Anything with the Artic Monkey's lead man is good in my book. Not great, but fun listening. I enjoyed the organ and orchestral baking on some of the tracks. Everything had kind of an impetuous back beat to it too. I'll have to revisit this one after I've had some time to digest it.

Who is this targeted towards? It's not bad per say, but it's definitely not good. Sounds like something that is on an easy listening station or in the background at your dentist's office. I don't understand the appeal of music like this. It's just innocuous and inoffensive noise. It could be on in the background while there's chaos all around and it wouldn't elevate the stress of the situation. Maybe that's the point? I also get the feeling that the lead singer is one of those that wears weird ass shit and acts all hard on stage while playing the most vanilla garbage (side note, I googled him. Yep, his outfits are ridiculous and totally not matched to how bland this music is). Kind of like a soft Lenny Kravitz (who is basically the same thing with a mildly harder edge). I don't get it. 1/5, but in the most polite way possible because being angry about music this soft seems profane.

Garage rock. Sounds like it was recorded in a garage too. The lead vocals lead a lot to be desired as well. Otherwise sounds like early alternative stuff. Pretty boring stuff to be honest. Not sure how this one made a list of "must hear" albums...

Cohen has a classical voice, and interesting lyrics. It's like what Dylan could have been if he had a decent singing voice. But, Cohen suffers from the same thing as Dylan, long rambling songs that become monotonous after the 8th verse.

I've always wondered how the hell do the Beastie Boys work? Three nasally Jewish white boys from NYC throwing down some of the slickest flows in the middle of the hip hop revolution should have been less than a blip on the radar. Yet it works. And I fucking love it.

Sounds like radio station background music. Like a mix of Massive Attack and Gorillaz. Very '90's London sounding. The smoother and mellower answer to '90's industrial music. I like Portishead better though. This is too slow and grimy.

Album reminds me of the period of my life immediately after college when I was trying to navigate complete upheaval in my life. This was one of those albums that was always just on in the background. Good stuff then, and good stuff now.

Super German dude pulls up in a BMW convertible: "Hey fun boys get a room! Hahahahaha" That's all I have to say about this.

Someone else said this album automatically gets at least a 4 because of Respect alone, and I wholeheartedly agree. I grew up to my parents listening to Motown, so I'm pretty familiar with this, but I hadn't heard some of the B-sides from this album. The music just wants to make me sing and dance along with it. Queen Aretha's vocals are amazing, and the backing tracks hop. Motown is one of those cultural things that was a product of it's time and the forces moving in the world then. I don't think it could be recreated with as much authenticity or power ever again. These artists moved the art of music in a way that we will likely never see again, and used their art and talents to draw attention to cultural norms and injustices that needed to change. They also left us with some of the best anthems and love songs ever created.

I was too young for this when it came out. I remember it being on repeat on the radio and listening to it. Then getting really burned out on hearing so often. Revisiting it I'm getting the same vibes. I like it right now, but I think in after a day or so of listening it would start to get on my nerves. Heavy grunge has that effect on me. It all kind of sounds the same, and the lyrics aren't enough to overcome the chugging drone of very similar sounding songs. Good for an occasional listen, but not much more than that.

What the actual fuck did I just listen to? When the instrumentals started, I was kind of into it. It was kind of funky. Other tracks reminded me of a bad musical set Then the lyrics started. I think this guy stopped maturing at the age of 13. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Part of me was giggling at the juvenile nature of it, but the other part was like "I need to stop listening to this".

I like ABBA. I'll never admit it openly, but I do. This was a curious album of theirs to pick though. I enjoyed it, but this is not what I think of when I think of them. Still pretty good, but I don't know that I would suggest this one to someone else looking for that definitive ABBA sound.

One of the all time greats. 5 stars just for Stairway to Heaven. This was one of those albums that introduced me to a new (to me) genre of music at a young age. Should be required listening for everyone.

One of the greats, hence the high rating. But, to be honest, while I really liked it when I was younger, it doesn't hit the way it used to.

Ray Charles' voice is amazing. Truly one of the all time R&B singers. I just don't really care for the big band sound. That said I can appreciate this as a bridge between the post war big band jazz sound and what Motown would do in the following decade.

Initial reaction upon seeing the album cover: what the fuck is this? Initial reaction upon hearing the music: What. The. Fuck. Is. This? After having some more time to think about it: WHAT THE FUCK? Seriously, this list is so fucked. I was looking at the index of all the artists/albums, and when absolute shit like this is a "must hear" album but others like Tool, Linkin Park, Gorillaz, and basically any and all influential country music after about 1985 is left off it really makes me question the validity of this list and (more importantly) my desire to continue this fool's errand. This is one of those albums that was forgotten for a reason, and should stay that way. I don't care if it has some link to a later singer or group that was influential. Shit is shit, and lots of groups have shit that has no reason to be dredged up again.

Another day, another boring album that according to this list I have to listen to before I die. Pass. Just so much more boring electro-pop that is better suited to backing music in a some expensive club; the kind that I dislike and never go to anymore and didn't like it when I did when I was younger. At least it's not some nails on the chalkboard random punk group that happened to be the shitty starting group of some moderately famous lead man or guitarist. But it's like Sabrina Carpenter: plastic, tastes like cardboard, and fake. Next album please. I think...

Damn. This hit hard on a rainy morning. I can hear this reflected in Outkast, especially on Aquemini. It's there in Nate Dogg's singing, and definitely in some of the stuff put down by the Tribe and WuTang. I can hear some of the jazz influences in other artists like Jamiroquai too. The keyboards picked me up and then let me float down. The phasing/reverb was something else too. So much soul! I also liked the spoken word poetry. Finally this is an album from this list that consists of someone previously unknown to me that I am able to get into.

I think the same folks that composed Disney movies in the 50's and 60's help Ray Charles compose all this what with the string flourishes and chorale backing. All it needs is a princess with forest animals flocking to her to complete it. Otherwise, makes me feel like I have more grey hair and need to drive around slowly in the left lane in my Cadillac while wearing high waisted slacks and complaining about young people and minorities.

I remember my best friend's mom getting mad at us and telling us to shut off that song that was making fun of people with stutters. I always think of that when I hear this album. Otherwise, while there's flashes of what was to come, this album was too much of them trying to be the next Beatles. I think once they found their own sound later in the decade is when they really became something amazing.

Honestly. What the fuck is this? Never heard of these idiots, never would listen to them, and I don't understand people who think this qualifies as music. Zero stars.

I liked this ok. I like how up tempo it is, but listening to it at work got a bit grating after a while. At some point the sound is just kitschy just for the sake of it. Good for an occasional listen, but I wouldn't want to hear this all the time. Also, why is Tom Brady on the cover?

Others may not agree with me, but the Beatles are one of those groups that are more than the sum of their parts. I like this fine, but when I want to hear a Beatle I'm just going to listen to the Beatles.

I enjoy this. I like the raw feeling and the riffs and drum lines deliberately meant to compliment the in your face vocals of Robert Plant. Led Zeppelin is one of the few '70's hard rock groups that I can listen to whenever.

It's was ok.

I'm old(ish), and love me some good late '90's and early '00's rap. Kendrick seems to be carrying the torch for that. Oddly enough though, I didn't get into him until his more recent shit. I think I like this, but it's going to take more listening for it to land.

Brings back memories of that time in the mid to late '90's when the '70's R&B groove and disco permeated everything for a couple summers. I hear a lot of this influencing artists like Justin Timberlake and backing tracks and bass lines that were super heavy in Dr. Dre 2001. The songs tend to run together after a bit. I'm not sure that's a bad thing in this case though. Otherwise there isn't much to recommend here.

This list would be SOOOO much better if it limited any singular group to ONE album. I get that some groups have an outsized impact on the direction of modern music, but Leonard Cohen does not need 5 albums! Ok, now for the review. I'm tired today, and this album just makes me want to go back to bed. I know that he is considered one of the greatest lyricists, but his music is so damn boring. And, frankly, the lyrics don't really do anything for me. If I came to a bar and someone was playing his songs I would leave.

I didn't know anything about Frank Zappa except that he was a hippie era guy who did A LOT of drugs. I went into it not really sure how I was going to like it, and honestly, I really enjoyed it. I don't know that I would listen to it with other people around or all that often, but it was worth the listen. It was definitely weird. The drummer had it going ON, and there was specific instrumentalist later that really hit it too.

Nice voice and high quality recording doing jazz standards(ish). I think I prefer a lot of the originals better though. Jazz just isn't really my thing. Might be nice music in the background at a dinner party or swanky restaurant.

What even is this?

It's just club dance music. Like one step above elevator music. I don't get the selection of some (a lot) of these albums. Doubly so when you consider a bunch of the albums on the "ex" list.

Poppy, early punky, girl rock. I know this was trend setting and popular when it came out, and it has been a common anthem since for girly power, but I'm neither a girl nor really into crack jack pop. If I wanted to listen to something similar to this I would probably just listen to Cindy Lauper as she's way more complex musically and has deeper lyrics.

Elvis Costello is one of those artists that everyone says you need to like in order to be taken seriously about liking "good" music. But, when you ask anyone why you should like him the response is, "I don't know, I don't particularly like him, but that's what they say." His music is pretty middling at best. Maybe it was creative and new sounding at the time, but it's pretty bland and boring. I see that he has a lot of representation on this list, and I will be giving him 2's at most just because no moderately talented artist like him deserves that much on a list like this. Especially considering he has similar representation in number of albums as bands like Pink Floyd, the Beatles, and Michael Jackson who arguably deserve much more representation than a bland corporate rocker from the late '70's and '80's.

Well if this isn't prescient...Springsteen speaks out against all the idiots in charge at a concert last week, and then this album hits first thing Monday morning. I'm all for it. I'm not a huge Springsteen fan. I've always found his vocals a bit grating, but the guy is as good as them come as far as being a decent human. You can't deny that he is the anthem of post Vietnam America. That weird time of American history where things weren't great, people wanted to move on from years of conflict and pain of Vietnam and the social upheavals of the '60's and '70's, but the economy was changing and people weren't exactly sure what to think or do. The funny thing about this album is that so many people misunderstand it. The take the light and happy sounding tunes, and completely miss the lyrics behind them. Again, it's like the '80's, things seem ok on the surface, but when you dig into it there's a lot of disfunction that people are trying their hardest to ignore.

I like a few of the songs on this. It's the type of stuff I put on to try and get my woman in the mood. I think some modern artists could learn a thing or two about writing songs from Ryan Adams, but hopefully that's all they learn!

Moby is notable in that the main reason anyone remembers him is because of his arguments with Eminem. Otherwise he seems like a nice enough human, maybe he just needs to calm down a bit telling everyone that he's a vegan. Looping other people's music over a drum track might have been interesting in 2000, but it's boring and derivative in 2025. Literally sellout music used for commercials. I'm not going listen to 2 hours of it. I lived through it in my younger days, and didn't enjoy it.

Too weird. Maybe I could do it another day, but I've had enough oddball crap for this to land.

Butthead: Uh huh huh huh, Beavis this freakin' rules! Beavis: He he he he, YEAH! Breakin the law!

Peak Sir Elton. All there is to say really. Just an epic album all around. It's definitely one that everyone should listen through at least once in their life.

They really like reverb and long drawn out yelling lyrics. Otherwise, more boring '80's proto-emo. Kind of like the Cure, but not as good.

Oh. More "indie" (TM) music that is backing music for crappy dramas and rom-coms. I bet these guys unironically ironically have mustaches, odd tattoos, and wear silly vests and ugly shoes. They probably also talk about bespoke man-bags and belts. Ugh, I hate music like this. I would give it a zero if I could. Also, why does it not surprise me these dingleberries are from Seattle?

More random British electro dance music from the late '90's/early '00's. Just more trash. Sounds like the soundtrack to a bad Matrix knockoff.

I like that the production quality of this album is so high. I also appreciate the influence Depeche Mode had on electronic and moodier music. Definitely worth a listen every once in a while. That said, I have to imagine that being in a relationship with Martin Gore (or anyone that identifies with this music for that matter) must be insufferable after the first argument. I suppose bad mental and relational health is a catalyst for creative song writing, but good God, maybe you need to get some professional help for all those repressed feelings man!

Such a cool album! It's Blur, but modernized, electosized, and produced with a mass market in mind. It was also completely creative compared to the corporate garbage that was being pumped out back then. Hence, you hear this stuff in regular rotation still today. I like Demon Days better than this album, but this was the start.

This album started with so much potential, but then it fell into these silly sounds with cheesy vibraphone and synth lines that completely ruined the mood. If Fagen had just leaned into the more minor melodies and darker feel it would have been amazing. But, he didn't, and then he succumbed to lyrics that basically amounted an Ivy League bro chasing rich girls. So much wasted potential...

I can see the influence that she had on subsequent artists like Adele, Amy Winehouse, and similar. And frankly, I think they improved on what Dusty started. I liked a few of the songs, but after a few they all are very similar. The lyrics also aren't super inspiring (though a lot were borderline raunchy). Her voice is amazing though!

First, Steely Dan is great. Second, this is not my favorite album of theirs. They started so strong with Can't Buy a Thrill, and this is definitely a sophomore slump (of sorts). Their more long term sound is definitely coming out here, but not as solid as it was in later albums. Still worth the listen though.

I'm not sure that I quite get this one. It's really good DJ'ing to be sure, but when does it go from being a beat over a bunch of other people's work to something original? I think if it had vocals over it I would be more into it. Just listening to a DJ mix isn't doing it for me today. Maybe on another day it would? I don't know. That ambiguous feeling is what makes me have vague feelings (tending towards negative) about this. That said, from the perspective of what music is used for as an art form, this is great, and would be awesome backing music. Especially in a movie or TV show.

Not sure if I like CSN better or CSNY, but they are both great. Such deep lyrics, great harmonization, and intricate guitar work. Also, it seems that there's a song on this album to match any mood, though their more introspective songs seem to really snag me the most. I think Helplessly Hoping is one of my all time favorite songs ever.

Oh man, this album is all over the place. You can definitely hear the transition happening from the rock of the late '50' and early '60's to the sound of the later 60's. I even hear some hardcore/punky sounds in there. Other tracks make me hear the sounds of blues and/or jam bands. And then there's just some weird stuff. I'll be honest that other than "For Your Love" I don't know much about the Yardbirds other than they were a British band in the '60's. Listening to it feels like something between the later Beatles and the Moody Blues, with a dash of extra drug use. I bet this was pretty edgy back in the day, but it kind of gets washed in with the rest of '60's Brit rock from the time today. Probably more famous for being the launch pad for Clapton and Page.

I saw the cover and immediately knew it was going to be more random Brit-electro dance music that was on in the background of annoying dance clubs in the '90's. How do these albums keep getting added to this list? Side note, was this sort of cover art and font the stock for albums in the '90's? I feel like it was used a lot.

This is a weird pick for the Beach Boys. This is definitely one of their more eclectic albums. It's like Brian was let loose to do whatever he wanted after the success of Pet Sounds. It is also dripping with political and societal commentary. Definitely a departure from their earlier content. It doesn't really land for me though. Also, weird that this album popped up the day after Brian Wilson died...

Didn't get a full listen on this one. Seems a bit slow and moody for me, but maybe in the right situation it could hit right. I'll have to revisit this later.