1001 Albums Summary

I mean I feel like the singles are still my favorite tracks here, as I didn’t quite love the rest of them; however, absolutely love that clean synthy big-budget sound mixed with Peter’s more idiosyncratic pop sensibilities. In other words, awesome sounding album just maybe not my favorite song-structure-wise.

What can you say…it’s Johnny Fucking Cash’s last album he ever recorded. I think there are some songs that don’t quite work as well for me (the Sting cover), some are maybe too by the book or trite (In My Life, Bridge Over Troubles Danny Boy, though the latter is beautifully performed), plus some Certified Rick Rubin Moments (the waveform for Hurt gotta just be a solid black rectangle)….damn, the arrangements are so tasteful on the cuts that work. Of course Hurt and Personal Jesus are deserved highlights, but love the two original songs, and as someone who is a near complete outsider to the songs of Cash’s heyday, the cuts from that genre really make me appreciate how special and distinctly American those songs are and the stories they tell. Finally, We’ll Meet Again got me tearing up. Overall, probably 3.5/5 but will round down.