RIP Ozzy. This album is the child of a flower girl and a rock guitarist, seamlessly mashes together hard guitars and transcendental visions. The band took over the production here so this is how they wanted to be and what they wanted to be was gods of their genre. They nailed it.

I like Depeche Mode but never felt inspired enough to buy an album. This was wonderful but still would not buy it.

What can I say, I WAS a huge fan of Radiohead, weathered through OK computer loving its originality. But there is innovation and there is unlistenable. For me this is the latter and this ended my love affair with them.

Not my sort of music generally so feel I wouldn't do a review on this album justice.

I like Led Zeppelin but not that much. This was a good album but with too many songs some I felt were fillers.

Great tunes and brilliant vocals but feel this work is a bit derivative.

This really surprised me, in a good way. I have never listened to this band before but found the opening track to me mindblowing. It lost one star just as the rest of the album, while great, didn't live up to the first tracks potential.

This was a great album with lots of great tracks but nothing that stood out as interesting or novel.

I like Depeche Mode but never felt inspired enough to buy an album. This was wonderful but still would not buy it.

I found this quite boring - I do like Joy Division but here I felt a lot of the songs sounded the same.

This was a fantastic album - I felt like I was walking around San Francisco during the Summer of Love, thats how emotive it was. I thought it was innovative, though very much in the psychedelia genre.

This is a completely new band to me. Without research I would have said that they were from 2000 onwards. In fact they are a late UK 80s band. This album is lovely but not interesting enough for me to give it 4 stars pity.

I am not the biggest fan of the Clash - or punk in general but this was better than I thought. Rudi cant fail and Lost in the Supermarket are great songs. But I feel that the album is rated highly more for its title track.

I didnt need to listen to this whole album to give it five stars...but I did anyway. Like a tuneful Lou Reed and a source of inspiration to many bands, including Elastica, this is a New York feast for the ears. Great lyrics and melodies and wonderful album.

After the brilliance of Television comes Jamiroquai. I think that if you have never heard Stevie Wonder in your life. Which is sad. Then you would think this is amazing. But I adore Stevie and this is far too derivative to even appreciate that they are okay songs in their own right.

Like early Pink Floyd and Rush I always thought I would like this album/band. Unlike the aforementioned bands I actually do! This is a wonderful proggy sound in a band where Greg Lake is actually allowed to shine without having the unlistenable madness of ELP. It has a Jethro Tull feel with the flute and the songs are beautifully layered. After my first time listening this will be one to buy.

This album is on my list of ones to buy but now I have listened to it I am not sure. Perhaps my expectations were too high - I thought it would be country tinged singer songwriting style but it is a bit too much country for me. Definitely great but perhaps not for me.

I haven't really listened to Nina Simone before so this was a revelation. The songs were beautiful and the production innovative. One of the highlights being another version of Lilac Wine. Alternatively romantic and political with each song. This is an album to be savoured.

I have Run, Sodomy and the Lash and that's okay! But even with Fairytale of New York I am not really loving this. I feel the best track is Turkish Song of the Damned and that is not enough to get more than 3 stars.

This sounds like something I would hear at a cocktail party (which I would never go to) or in a trendy jazzy restaurant (which I would never go to) so not for me (not for me).

I am now thinking the generator hates me. Why else is it giving me the band behind Blue Monday, the most soulless song ever! I didn't dislike this as much I thought I would but, even though I love electronic music, this is too dancey for me

Hey ! at last classic rock. I love Deep Purple and while not a big fan of live albums (taking of one star for the pleasure?!) this was greeeaat:)

My favorite Radiohead album of them all. After their first album with the wonderful Creep + lots of fillers and before they went crazily electronic this album had not a dud song on it. Brilliant videos and amazing lyrics and tunes. Great album

Whoa ! the Band! Great love this band. But I would not say this is my favorite albums of theirs so sorry 4* I will make it up with Stagefright/Brown album though.

I hate drum and base. I also hate Jass Fusion. In addition, I hate instrumentals. Guess what I thought of this album? Here is a clue. I sat through 5 minutes and turned it off.

I have never heard of this band before and it was nice. Good tunes and vocals. But (pet peeve) it sounded a bit samey to me. Couldn't distinguish after listening to it one song from t'other.

I liked the energy of this album. Wiki notes this band along with Green Day + others were responsible for making punk rock popular again in the 90s....ah yes Green Day now THATS a good band. This just doesn't cut it for me but I have to thank it for making want to listen to Bowling for Soup again!

I always had the impression that I didn't like Pixies but listening to this I feel they are a better band than I thought. I think the issue is that the first tracks are very stereotypical post punk and not that interesting. But once you get into Here comes your man and the tracks that succeed it you can appreciate that they are innovative.

I came to Bowie late not liking the poppy tunes he had in the 80s then I heard Starman on the radio and it was like time stopped. My favorite Bowie period will always be his glam rock period. However, this is so innovative, so ahead of his time and so hauntingly beautiful.

I am not a friend of punk. You add hardcore to it we are enemies. Thought it was just one long song and the album is so short, whats the point. I read that it was influential for some genres of music that followed, such as Skate Punk and Thrash Metal. Do I look like I care?

I generally prefer prog metal but this was fantastic. Really great song, vocals and melodies. Great to listen to before starting work!

I can see how this album was influential to the heavy metal genre - I can hear elements of Deep purple here, but I don't really like rock n roll and if this was self-penned I may be a bit forgiving, however only three of the six tracks here were written by a member of the band. Hmm

Hmm another Pixies album. Hmm. I gave them a chance the last time with Dolittle, but this album is filled with masses of 2 minutes wonders that are so punky and over so quickly they don't touch the sides of your brain. The only highlight is "where is my mind" that is so lovely it makes you ache for what this album could be.

Great album, really nice lyrics and tunes

If you really want to give yourself a migraine listen to this - irritating and tuneless. Like you gave some four year olds some guitars and a drum kit. In fact their repetitive "lyrics" sound like they were written by young-uns.

Absolutely bloody brilliant. So beautiful. At first I was confused as I thought their music was disco but it is more soul/rnb with wondrous vocals and production that includes guitar solos. Most importantly is the way this album made me feel - comforted and invigorated at the same time.

I know of FA but never listened to anything by her imagining her music to be some hipster 90s rubbish. So the first track Sleep to Dream was mind blowing..but after this it got very forgettable. Sounds like Macy Gray and others. Not bad, but too much filler for me.

Great album, signs of things to come. I loved the production values. An album definitely made for airplay. The King in every sense.

I know of the White Stripes and like Seven Nation Army but never felt inspired to buy anything of theirs, so you can imagine my ennui when faced with this BUT I loved it. Really different but with beautiful melodies. I normally compare musical acts to others but couldn't for the life of me think of who this reminded me of, which is also a bonus! An unexpected 4*

Nice album, I love soul and he has a great voice but I didn't feel any one song stood out.

American 1960s psychedelia? Bring it on! But then I thought the album was not as good as I expected it to be. One or two were great but not enough to enthuse me. It gets an extra star just because I can appreciate the genre.

What can I say, I WAS a huge fan of Radiohead, weathered through OK computer loving its originality. But there is innovation and there is unlistenable. For me this is the latter and this ended my love affair with them.

One of my favorite groups. What a voice, what creative songs, what melodies, what drumming, what an album. Insanely good.

I love love Stevie, I am convinced everything he touches turns to gold. However, I would not say that this is his best album. But there is something about what he does to music that makes one grin from ear to ear.

Gene Clark is a god, one of the founding members of the Byrds and the best songwriter of those. I would give it five stars but I will save that for No Other, one of my favorite albums of all time.

Tori had a lot of comparisons to Kate Bush when she was first around, but if it's a crime to like Kate we would all be in prison, right? This is an album that reeks of Tori herself, dark, honest, melodic and absolutely stunning.

Great album, this band are so wonderful I smile when I listen to them. The production shines through but they have better albums so 3 from me.

Hmm love Smiths, didnt love this, perhaps their weakest album. Its not that I hated it but didnt really appreciate it as much as I would do.

I am not a fan of rap but this is accessible, love the melodies and production. Happy Birthday KEndrIcK!

Rubber soul - one of the the Beatles most perfect albums, bridging the gap between their "boy band" early years and the more introspective psychedelic later years. Every track is listenable and memorable, with many songs becoming staples. My favorite - Nowhere Man.

I don't like rap music. I like to think to myself that if a rap band was really good I might like it. But it all seems to me all words and no melodies. I can quite easily listen to a song in another language if the tune is good but find it difficult when there is nothing nice for my ears to hear. This album didn't break down my rap barrier i'm afraid, although I did like Bingo.

I bought this album when it came out, loved it and still have it on cassette. I have of course listened to it in the intervening years but today I felt I didnt appreciate it as much as I did then. Perhaps that time the bands who were making this post punk music were not very listenable and Dookie looked good by comparison. It IS a good album but I feel three stars is my score today.

As someone who groaned and whimpered when I saw Paul Simon, I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I think the first two tracks are the best. At the end of the day though with all the songs that followed, I don't feel I would buy this but at least my dislike of his work has abated.

What can I say? Stevie is a god, a genius, a great great man. This is a wondrous album. Beautiful songs produced to such a high degree tears come to my eyes.

Lynyrd Skynyrd. Yes they are a classic rock band, but one I never cared for. Let me check wiki for the reason. Ah yes Blues Rock - not a genre I like. I have never heard a full album of there's and this had a lot of energy and strong vocals but the blues sigh.. the blues...Wait a minute, what is this? Country Rock with "Tuesdays Gone" this is fantastic! Suddenly i'm interested! Simple Man yeeeeah! On no, and we're back to Blue's Rock with Mississippi Kid. Well at least I tried. We end with Freebird, a song I don't usually like but I have to admit it is a thunderhorse of a song, and imagine hearing this for the first time, instead of 1000 x due it to being a staple on Classic Rock radio stations (or any radio station for that matter). I would like to give it 3 and a half stars. But it will have to be three. Perversely, I am thinking of buying this album. High praise for me.

Know Fall. Wouldn't know one of their songs if it fell on my head. Sounds like other bands. Really don't like this monotone type of singing over what some may call a "tune". Not for me.

I know Metallica are more thrash metal and I prefer to stay within the prog-metal genre as I like a good tune. This however pleasantly surprised me it sounds gothic, dark and on songs like Unforgiven very melodic. Definitely will check out more from this band.

I adore the Doors but feel that the 1001 albums book would be better if it just included "the best of the best". I prefer other albums of theirs so will give this 4*.

I don't mind Bossa Nova when you add vocals to it. But this just seemed like something you would hear at a high class cocktail party and, like the canapes, instantly forgettable.

This is an artist new to me and at first I thought it was wonderful, beautifully played instruments with an ethereal quality . But then it just sounded like one of those albums you could buy to help you to sleep, like with dolphins cheeping. So after the initial interest it felt like no tracks stood out for me which is a shame.

Wonderful Rainbow by Lightning Bolt 1 STAR Oh no I cried when I revealed my album today, who they? But then I have thought that before and it has been okay. Then I wikied them and the first words that popped out were the two words guaranteed to put an icepick into my heart “noise rock”. Let’s think about that – If a tree falls in the wood does it make a noise? (debateable apparently, but yes it does) but would you actually call that noise music? I wouldn’t, and I definitely wouldn’t say that that this band makes music either.

Never heard of this album before - and it was better than I expected but still not going to use up cash on the album. Nice vocals though!

I was expecting much more from this as I have heard of him and know that he is a singer songwriter, my favorite genre. However it felt like no one track stood out to me, ultimately was not that interesting to my ears.

One of my favorite singer songwriters shows off his extreme talent in his debut album. With some of his biggest "hits" included it is a delight for my ears that loves a minor key much more than a major.

I am a huge fan of this band, loving their dry deadpan lyrics, spoken vocals and great synth melodies. I wouldn't say that this is my favorite, preferring their first two albums, but whats not to like about an album with a song about passive aggressiveness on it. Their first two album's names were chosen so people could walk into a record shop (remember that) and say "I'd like the Pet Shop Boys, Please" and "The Pet Shop Boys, actually" and in their tradition this is VERY Pet Shop Boys:)

This album was on my list of CDs to buy as I love Dexys but it was always so expensive, but after listening to it I think it is awful. Yes, Knowledge of Beauty is lovely but it is immediately followed by One of Those Things whose only redeeming quality is that it has the riff from Werewolves of London. I really can’t understand why this has been included, do the compilers of the book NOT want you to like Dexys?

This is really lovely but perhaps not so memorable.

What can I say that hasn't been said before? One of the most recognisable voices, brilliant lyrics, melodies to die for. This probably doesn't even cover the accolades this album richly deserves.

I have an issue that no matter what wonderfully apt politically conscious lyrics are being expressed if there is not a melody I find it difficult to listen to. This album therefore washed over me. Combine this with samples which to me always feel sterile and contrived and you have something that is unpalatable.

Absolutely beautiful. Such poignant lyrics and that gracious voice. What happens when a god does what he was made to do.

I was pleasantly surprised by this album. Lovely vocals and dark synth with beautiful lyrics. I only knew this band for Take on Me so really happy to finally hear this.

Another band that I believed to be some sappy Brit pop losers but was amazed to find out I liked. They had intricate melodies and I liked the urgency of some of the songs. I would have given it four stars but it felt quite derivative and reminded me of Pulp/Richard Hawley

I only have a couple of albums of the Cure and while I like them, I wouldn’t say they were one of my favourite bands. Listening to this album is changing that. The instrumental that starts off the album is stunning and one reviewer has written that the Final Sound seems like it could be the soundtrack to a Hammer movie – yes, it’s that good!

I am not a huge fan of rap but this felt quite accessible for me, perhaps it is because a lot of the melodies were purloined from other songs. I think its called sampling isn't it? and thinking about it today, isn't it similar to a band that only does cover songs? Don't get me wrong some cover versions actually add something to the song - i'm thinking John Cale's Heartbreak Hotel but here? Hmm ironically the song I liked best was Cowboy where I couldn't determine the source of the riffs.

This album just blows my mind. It seems like it is all singer songwriter, and it is, but it is also invigorating with a production so good, so subtly brilliant, you don't even realise how much effort is put into every second of this album. Add to all of this a voice so tortured and so beautiful, what you end up with is a unforgettable album.

RIP Ozzy. This album is the child of a flower girl and a rock guitarist, seamlessly mashes together hard guitars and transcendental visions. The band took over the production here so this is how they wanted to be and what they wanted to be was gods of their genre. They nailed it.

I liked this solo recording from Lauryn better than her work with the Fugees - although it contained sampling the songs had a higher level of originality. I really liked the songs in which she collaborated with other singers, but ultimately would not buy this. Would have liked to have given it 3.5 stars but it will have to be 3.

I was looking forward to this. An album often included in the top 100 albums of the 70s and it was good, more new wave than punk which surprised me but at the end of the day, all seemed to meld in to one for me.

I am not a fan of rap and this album by the BBs seems to contain all the genres of music I hate. Hardcore punk? Jazz-Funk? Rapcore ? No, thank you. With so many songs on this album they all blurred into one big noise.

Heard of this band but never listened to them before. Absolutely loved it, great vocals, heavy rock guitars, brilliant melodies, meaningful lyrics....

I have this album but had not listened in a while. It is as I remembered, In a gadda da vida is the standout track and the other songs, while supremely psychedelic, are less memorable. I love the darkness of this 60s offering, its like Bach trying to expand his mind. Hard to score as the title track is sooo good. But it will have to be a three.

I really found it difficult to rate this one. By rights I should like it. It’s interesting, good melodies-sounds like Bowie/Japan, lots of worthy contributors – Paul Weller, Kate Bush and ahem.. Phil Collins. However, it just didn’t do it for me. I was left feeling quite cold. It didn’t help that his vocals were lost in the mix, perhaps contributing to my emotional distance from it.

I have some of Elvis's music but not his whole catalog so was interested to hear this one. Its really good ! I like the production and the little tone changes that makes the songs more interesting but having said that the second half of the album felt a bit samey. Only one of these songs is on his greatest hits which kinda says it all.

Brought me back to the 80s quicker than any DeLorean. The best song is Our Lips are Sealed which was co written with Terry Hall of Specials etc fame. We got the Beat is also great. It sounds quite familiar - these songs have been used on many American Films where there is a Jock and a Princess and a Nerd , you know the type. I am debating between 3 or 4 stars. Three stars I think.

Boston – Boston 5 STARS This is what perfection sounds like. Heavy rock fused with synchronised vocals, electronic riffs and poetic lyrics. Tom Scholz knew what he was doing, sitting in his home studio making music that raises your consciousness to another level. I prefer the song Don’t Look Back to More than a Feeling but this is the better album and one of my favourites of all time.

Soundtrack to the film and other songs. I had to stop the song after the first verse of the song Hard Day's Night as it hurt my head it was so good. The second side leads them back to boy band era of their youth but is equally good. They are able to take these Four Season's type of songs and lift them to a new interesting level.

The Young Gods L'Eau Rouge After my initial whosdat I decided to listen without looking them up. I imagined them to be some French electronic types from 2015+. They are in fact an 80s band from Switzerland and apparently used lots of effective sampling which influenced people like David Bowie WOW, not sure if you can hear my sarcasm where you are, because while they may have influenced Bowie, he would never have made an album this bad – so he obviously took the good elements and made them into something unique. For its part this album sounded just dark and had elements of carnival music that has been used to such great effect by the Doors but here just didn’t work. It was just loop after loop of boring noise.

The only song I had heard off this album is Sympathy for the Devil and while it has a great hook and savage lyrics, I felt it just went on and on, leading me to say out loud “for Pete’s sake just get on with it!” I am sure I have heard live versions of this track which were scalding hot but the album cut was a bit dull. After that it got so much better-from the beauty of “No Expectations” and the interesting tale told by “Dear Doctor” to the brilliant posturing of “Stray Cat Blues”. I absolutely loved it – it was so surprisingly introspective and while clearly tinged with blues rock, it made it accessible to someone like me who doesn’t like this genre.

I liked this but then not enough, not as much as I thought or hoped to. Side two built up my interest more than side one. Sadly only 3 stars.

It's so hard to be objective when it is one of your favorite singer-songwriters. This record, Joni's most poppiest/accessible album, was the first one I heard many years ago. Her voice is incredible, the lyrics are sublime, you can feel the situation, see the characters, understand the feelings in every tale brought to life by music. They are poetry and confessional poems at that. The tunes are accessible but there is always something different about her melodies that distinguishes her work from other artists. I am trying but its really hard to put into words how much her music means to me.

Not living in a cave in the Outer Hebrides I have heard of Taylor Swift, but wouldn’t normally listen to this overly produced type of pop music. I do like “we are never ever getting back together” and her tracks are catchy but I know I am never ever going to buy an album. It includes just one song I know “Shake it Off” as it is in the film Sing and even though the piggies do a great job of dancing their hearts off to this one, it is my least favourite song in the film. Bottom line, its meant to be autobiographical, which normally means deep, but I thought this album was quite vapid. 3 STARS as I thought it was okay to listen to, but that’s it.

This type of music would normally tick all the boxes for me – 60s music? Yep / Psychedelic? Yep. But I was a bit ambivalent. I know two songs of theirs (I am not including We Built This City), Somebody to Love (heard on the film the Cable Guy) and White Rabbit (insert any Vietnam War film) and like the fact that both of these are used in films to indicate discord and confusion. While both of these songs are happily on this album it didn’t really do anything for me as a whole, with songs that are nice but not very interesting musically. I think its indicative of the fact that although I have heard of the group, I have never felt inclined to buy an album.

I really love Joan Armatrading's voice and she is a supreme songwriter. However, hearing this album made me think it was a wise choice I went with buying a greatest hits album instead of her entire catalogue. Her singles off the album were wonderful but others felt a bit like fillers.

I generally don’t like Oasis, they are supposed to be anthemic but if I want anthems I would go to Alarm, Big Country and U2. I think they were part of that whole Britpop debacle and the artists I liked during that mad time didn’t really fit into that genre so it passed me by. Having said that, I have had a look and the songs I find okay of theirs are on their What’s the Story Morning Glory album (little nod to Nilsson there) and so I will wait for that album, which I am prettttty sure is on here to make up my mind.

I really liked this, the melodies are sensational and what a voice. But because I preferred Want One, which I will give four stars two, I will give this one three stars.

Japan - I really love their style and sound, they have a unique dark vision and great songs but I didn't feel this album had any standout tracks. Not sure why Tin Drum isn't in the book but this one is. Far prefer that album.