This is a solid bit of thrash metal but I don’t think it’s their best work. It’s all personal preference but I like the more theatrical songs like on Ride the Lightning whereas this is more pure heavy metal. But overall I still enjoyed it.

There’s a few classic songs on here but mixed in with some pretty forgettable ones too. Was interesting to listen through the album as I reckon I’ve never heard the non-singles before. Held my interest but probably nostalgia playing a bit of a role there.

There’s snatches of solid 80s beats and I found myself finding it a “what if” album. Almost good but ultimately boring. Doesn’t compare well to its peers.

Interesting, creative, weird, and touching on a number of genres. Being slightly lazy as I listened a week ago and can’t be bothered to listen again, so just dipped back into a few songs for a refresh.

This has to be the most bland set of Foo Fighters songs I have listened to. It doesn’t really have the highs and lows of their later catalogue so you’re left with the uninspiring middle. It was an ok listen but left me disappointed.

This was an eclectic hoot. I like the Latin influences and the inherent lack of any sense of where the album might go next. Not sure what I expected but it wasn’t this.

This was pretty cool to listen to, sort of easy listening but some storytelling going on. I can see why it got made into a Broadway show using songs from the album. Probably the one letdown was the realisation in the second half that the singer reminded me of Daniel Bedingfield in the second half, once I had that thought it was just about all I could think of. Would return to give it another go, at least in the background.

Enjoyed this. A nice mix of soul and funk without the wackiness of some funkier albums. Run Charlie Run wasn’t for me (in more ways than one) but other than that definitely enjoyed. Ended up listening to a chunk more temptations afterwards by not paying attention, no bad thing.

I think this is just wide of the mark for me. It’s a little too slow build, instrumental and it’s only when the brass, drums and vocals all come together that it piques my interest. Under the right circumstances and live I reckon this could hit differently.

This was a challenge as this stretched my semi-lapsed A level French (without the French lyrics on screen I would have been lost) but in a weird way it probably meant I followed the lyrics more than I might otherwise. It has a good flow, decent variety of backing tracks and nice wordplay. It’s not groundbreaking from a non francophone country perspective but enjoyed it.

This is a brilliant album. It’s probably also going to trigger me returning to Tropical Fuck Storm. It’s a lovely blend of witty vocals, strong guitar and complementary percussion etc, building a sound calibrated with just the right amount of chaos/irreverence alongside great musical foundations. A great find as someone who’s never really given Nick Cave a pop.

A classic live blues album where one track drifts into another (at least for part of the album). No doubting the charisma and rhythm that comes through on every track. I don’t always think the electric guitar makes absolute sense but equally there’s some stonking solos in there. Somehow never sat down and listened to BB, which I have reason to change now.

I found this quite a struggle. Having made it through the first couple of session-style songs I found the third track a relief at a mere 5 minutes long, only to get into “By The Time I Get To Phoenix” and all of its 18 minutes. While I generally like or at least don’t mind soul, I don’t (personally) think Isaac Hayes had the sheer charisma and singing talent to pull off these kinds of tracks in terms of length. I found the single edits easy enough to listen to but the full versions were a drag. Having read up on him I get the sense he had an outsized influence beyond his solo career and is credited with being a significant part of the music of the 60s and 70s, with influence lasting much longer, but that didn’t make me enjoy this any more.

I found this reasonably enjoyable although I didn’t think the album necessarily had any standout songs (asides from those that are more well known so they stick in the mind). But it’s a impressive first album, interesting that this was probably the peak of the band’s work. I think what I like most about the sound of the album is the mixing of different eras, there’s definitely some pop 80s in there but aspects of earlier eras like the 60s comes through too.

I found this album pretty bland and I’m not convinced I’m a fan of Costello’s style of singing, a bit grating to me. Didn’t hate it but didn’t especially like it.

I enjoyed this. VERY different for the most part to the White Stripes I know, entirely informed by Elephant / Seven Nation Army. I liked the creativeness and the stripped back nature of it, could really appreciate the drums and guitar when it made an appearance. Would have been a 3.5 but more a 4 than a 3.

Enjoyed this. Refreshing to have a rap album that doesn’t stick to the regular tropes e.g violence and misogyny. The beats felt fresh and can see how this would have been an interesting album to come out in the 2000s as a contrast to other artists in the era. I didn’t feel like there was anything groundbreaking about the lyrics, but it was inoffensive and easy listening, which is pretty rare for the genre.

This wasn’t as hard going as I expected and some of the tracks with more developed background beats were okay to listen to. However, I am just not a fan of the genre and all that comes with it. Some of the intro/outtro’s with the sex stuff were just a bit gross to listen to rather than funny.

I liked this, and glad to be led to listen to some Led Zeppelin again as I’ve not done so for a very long time. I didn’t find it profound and it didn’t necessarily grab me but some enjoyable guitar play and the distinctive sound of the lead vocals. Maybe on another day it would be a 4 but a 3 today.

Another soul album with great social commentary. Pusherman and Freddie’s Dead stood out to me, the characterisation involved I really enjoyed. I slightly prefer Marvin Gaye’s style, probably the closest comparison and very much a contemporary but I’d happily listen again.

Voting with my head not my heart. I love a bit of Johnny Cash and there’s a couple of Cash classics on the album but other than the novelty of Folsom Prison live at Folsom Prison I don’t think it will massively please anyone other than the die hards. Jackson for instance sounded really tired compared to some other performances.

At times this was too much and just a lot of NOISE but not always in a good way. But there’s a few classics in there. Equally a few lazy songs in my opinion so a mixed bag.

I think this album is a bit too long but is dotted with some solid tracks with decent beats, I just lost a bit of interest by the end. Have never listened to De La Soul purposefully but heard them a few times on Gorillaz songs, definite overlap explaining why I generally liked this. I think without that link I might have struggled a bit more through it.

I think the first three tracks are the high water mark and HC itself is undeniably a classic, but then this gets more and more overindulgent for my liking. The quality of the music is great but it all feels middle of the road, which is what they were clearly aiming for!

Not sure I gave this one the full concentration it deserves but generally enjoyed it. I sort of eased my way into it as at first I wasn’t sure quite certain, but a couple of tracks later got into general vibe. Feel I need to give it another listen and will try it again for sure.

Middle of the road grunge, I enjoyed it but having reviewed Nevermind recently it doesn’t stack up that well as a comparison. Felt quite similar to the Stone Roses and I possibly liked some tracks better on this one, but it didn’t really capture me (nor did the Stone Roses album to be fair). Quite liked some of the slower songs though.

I liked the angsty passion of this, it made an otherwise monotonous trip for the Fulbourn Tesco Extra shop on Saturday, dare I say it, a pleasurable experience. Will be returning to it (sadly, the Tescos too)

I enjoyed this to start with but felt like it petered out a bit by the end. The slightly unusual/eclectic rhythms of some of the earlier songs piqued my interest but then it seemed more samey later on in the album. Overall decent though.

I really tried to give this the benefit of the doubt considering the album as a whole, and trying to suspend judgement after the absolute dross in the first few tracks. But that just carried on throughout. Any plus points for creative/unusual beats and the mixture of different styles cultures etc is lost by the repetitive lyrics that feel like someone is slowly driving a blunt nail through your head. This isn’t one for me. First 1 star review!

I don’t really have anything novel to say about this. I listened to it and didn’t hate it, but it just felt majorly drab and I can’t say I would actively listen to any of it if I happened to hear it again. Most likely I would switch the radio/skip.

Weirdly my first Bowie album that I have listened to fully and enjoyed this. It had a coherent theme (his own mortality lies heavy on this) but I don’t think it was quite straying into indulgent. It’s not necessarily something I’d pick out to listen to but it was definitely engaging and leaves me interested to try more.

I think this album is a mixture of pretty solid songs typifying the genre and equally some forgettable dirge. The more upbeat Number of the Beast (a formative song for me in my teenage discovery of heavy rock/metal) and Run to the Hills do better in my opinion but Children of the Damned is decent. May be a bit of a rose tinted 3 here.

I just found this boring. I think I’d have a different take on this if I had been around to enjoy it the first time around, but I don’t think it’s aged that well and a few tracks in I was done with it all. I’ve never really listened to Blur beyond the obvious hits and on this listening I won’t be rushing back!

This comes out so strong and then loses its way for me. The first couple of tracks perfectly set up the show-style melodrama and I think it’s an amazing piece in the genre. But it does then get a bit lost in the latter few tracks. I think it does enough for a 3 but that’s on the strength of the first few tracks.

This was ultimately a bit of a meh album in my opinion. Another rap album that wasn’t dreadful nor overly profane but it went on SO long. It honestly took me about 3 attempts to get through and has put me behind in this grand album exercise. I just feel like they have one speed/style and it’s not for me but I’m sure others would enjoy.

I do enjoy the 90s west coast rap beat/flow but that on its own isn’t enough. Interesting to hear quite a bit of Snoop on this album and actually hearing him knock out some decent bars is a novelty having grown up on his mainstream days. But it’s not for me and some of the standard gangster rap stuff is just very regrettable on account of being both boring and vulgar. Call me a Victorian prude.

This was super. A bit heavier than their last album on the 1001, but a few stripped back songs slipped in too. I think more or less every song had me engaged and I always appreciate the clarity of the vocals, you never have to struggle to make out what Jack White is saying. Just good crisp rock music. Enjoyed some of the nirvana/soundgarden/audioslave vibes on parts of the album.

I can imagine this kind of album being performed on a Saga cruise. I feel like it would cater well to some middle class octogenarians who would probably think it was all marvellous and doesn’t he have such a wonderful singing voice. I found it pretty insipid start to finish. There are some different musical influences in there but none used to any great effect. The falsetto didn’t surprise me but could have done without it.

Loved this. This album feels irreverent and creative, I may entirely wrong but it came across that Kate Bush is just doing the music she feels like making and it just so happens to be great. There are some absolute classics in the album but the rest of it works too.

Just middle of the road old school country. It wasn’t awful but pretty bland and didn’t really feel much conviction behind the songs. Fine to listen to but nothing to return to.

There’s a lot of drug and sex fuelled dross in this album. There are snippets of jazzy vibes that are pleasant to listen to, and it just had me feeling “what if”. Don’t feel I can give this any more than a 2 but the jazzy/slower tracks are reasonable, at least in places.

Folsom Prison gets the attention (I think mainly just as the song is popular) but this is a far more engaging live performance. The performance of the tracks could better but there’s no denying the charisma and sheer effrontery of Johnny Cash in this live performance. As a piece of cultural history it is superb.

Inoffensive, reasonably well put together rap. It has the usual tropes about nobody else raps as well as we do, we’re going to get you, but more that we might diss you rather than engage in hijinks with firearms. Bland enough that at times I sort of forgot I was listening to it, which is saying something for a rap album. But when focusing it was reasonable enough.

Well ain’t this funky. A bit interesting as there’s this weird extraterrestrial funk theme they spend a reasonable amount of time on in the first few tracks, but given it’s so funky it sort of works in a whimsical way? I’d say it’s “accessible” funk, in that it’s not ramming really loud vocals or excessive sax solos down your earnoggins, and genuinely enjoyable. Maybe just a bit done with it all by the time I got to the last couple of tracks.

At first I thought, “oh, this is what Nirvana would be like if they had no charisma”. But that does a disservice to Nirvana and also doesn’t explain the weirdness of this album. It starts off terribly with the first song - thought I was in for a very rough ride at that point. Mercifully there was less terrible white noise/screaming from there on in. Which allowed me to collect my thoughts on the lead singer: - effeminacy reminiscent of the pet shop boys but without the charm - a bit like when they let a fan come up on stage and sing a song, but they’re not any good - at times sounding like they were asked to sing this all with a gun to their head having only heard it a couple of times previous The different sounds throughout this album threw me too. It all started sounding more coherent in the last few tracks then there was the bizarre outtro on the last track. All in all, a bit strange and confused. As am I after listening to it.

I am slightly in two minds about this one. Overall I found it reasonably enjoyable and Lauryn Hill’s charisma makes for some solid tracks. It’s a bit of a mixed bag - interestingly I found some of their biggest hits didn’t necessarily gel with the general thrust of the album. But I think it’s worthy of a 3 rather than a 2.

I think this would be utterly mesmerising to witness live and I feel the need to go to a dark room and just let this wash over me. It felt like an effortless flow of music and while I am not necessarily a jazz fan I could appreciate this and the talent on show here. Not quite a 5 for me but maybe that’s more a reflection on my tastes than the musical quality. A superb way to spend some time and I’ll be a repeat customer (maybe then at least in spirit I’ll be increasing my rating).

I think this kind of music is better enjoyed live. I imagine the vocals would cut through better enjoying it in some dimly lit bar where you can try and vibe with it. As it is, it’s some well produced but ultimately boring music. The occasional instrumental section cut through differently but I wouldn’t go as far to say I enjoyed it.

I don’t think this ages well. It’s a bit of a groany, mumbly mess with some theatre-esque piano chords and folksy blandery. I get that he’s supposedly an icon and all that but not for me thx.

This one had me torn. Overall enjoyable and I enjoy their sound, there’s some creativity in this album in pockets but is a bit samey. I don’t think I’m quite on a 4 but it’s a very solid 3.

This was a pleasant listen. I could imaging bopping around to this in a perm in the 80s, were I born a couple of decades earlier. I thought it started strong then got a bit lost, “I Believe” was a bit dull. Actually enjoyed this a bit more than the Television album but not quite enough for a 4.

A bit of a weird medley of sounds on this album. It was by no means shit but the idiom about throwing enough shit and some of it will stick comes to mind. I don’t think it really works for me as an album, I found some songs reasonably enjoyable and no denying the staying power of the first two songs on the album, but then you get the dire ending of the final two tracks. Kudos to anyone who can enjoy Essex Dogs, in particular the final interlude.

This is an interesting listen. There are moments of bleak introspection at the beginning that are then followed by comedy tracks like Sigourney Weaver and “I hate faggots”, which hits a strange note mixing attempted comedy with more serious topics. I honestly did not see where the album was going to get towards the more pure comedy songs. As a collective piece it’s really hard to rate but I think it gives a look into the artist’s life experience, whether we wanted that as a listener or not.. but I’m sort of glad I listened to it as an unhinged piece of artwork. I just cannot imagine being in the recording studio for some of these tracks though. Utterly bizarre at times.

I appreciate that there is a raw energy to this album, it’s like the sound is straining to get out but then rumbling into deeper, darker noises. There’s a discordant theme throughout so weirdly it does work as an album. However. I think this is all a bit too much for my poor head. I find trying to engage with some of the songs is like trying to do quadratic equations while banging a saucepan perched on your head, and other times the very devil himself is after you. The drums on Read The Book That Wrote Itself and birdsong with eerie banging noises in the background on Flow My Tears the Spider Said will haunt me for a while.

Another album where there is loads of energy in the tracks. Charles Mingus has a really strong presence in every song and I reckon if you are into jazz it would be pretty special to have watched him live jamming away. I don’t really like the genre though and I know I’m sort of “missing the point” when listening. Overall I found it an ok listen but the final 18 min track was a struggle, each crescendo felt like an attack on my uneducated ears. I’m just too basic so apologies jazz fans.

I enjoyed this, sort of classic rock but with some creative touches thrown in. I think the flutes really add something here and while I wouldn’t say it was a masterpiece it had enough going on to make it interesting. I did lose a bit of interest by the end but that’s not unusual.

A strong 4 for me. I loved the start - Everything In Its Right Place had strong Massive Attack vibes (maybe it should be vice versa but I listened to Massive Attack before this album). Then there’s some real tonal shifts that come through later in the album, it’s got such creativity and melding of electronic and more typical rock vibes of that period. The one downer for me is I didn’t really vibe with the actual title track and on occasion I actually thought the electronic sounds were a bit OTT (maybe anathema to say but this is an honest first listen review). But there are some really enjoyable tracks on this and considering it’s such a divisive album I’m liking the fact that this is my first proper experience of them and enjoyed it so much. I think I’m just a miser with 5 ratings and suspecting with relistens I might be there. But this is a super 4.

For me, this is a really high quality jazz album and for me as someone who can struggle with the genre sometimes, it never felt overindulgent. The opening track (Blue Rondo) got things off a jolly high tempo start and it rarely dipped too much after that. Was interesting reading this was a pioneering jazz album as it was at an atypical speed for the genre. It had enough musical variation while all feeling like it had a clear strain of slightly funky jazz throughout. I also think it was (for me) a really good length to not become same-y. Nice to find some more jazz that I would happily listen to again!

I appreciate the algo tweak to get this in now. Lots of opportunity for hyperbole here but for me in general this is just a generally epic album. Brand new genre, the tone is at the right level to not be either overly serious or silly on the more ‘doom metal’ tracks, with other really high quality songs as well. There’s so many tracks on this album (if not all of them) where you can absolutely trace the heritage of other albums and artists that followed back to the industrial wall of noise from brum. The bass, guitar, drums all play their part in allowing Ozzy to shine. My first instinct was a 4 but for the combination of great music, its outsized influence and the fact this is the first thing they even released I’m happy to pop my 5 cherry. Not even necessarily my favourite “Slack Babbath” album.

Just dreadful really. The lack of coherence in this album is so jarring. There are songs that sound like run on the mill late 90s/early 00s pop/soft rock, others with heavy Bhangra/south Asian influence then others that are relatively benign electronic sounds. None of which are particularly enjoyable. On multiple songs I got transported to some sort of purgatory and I truly feared for the wellbeing of my soul. I’ve only ever heard the sped up remix of Brimful of Asha and assumed it was the actual track, how wrong I was. It’s telling the remix has 12 to 13x the plays compared to the original. I imagine for some people this was an important album but I just found it dire.

Had to remind myself of this a little for the review as I hadn’t written any notes. I think this strays more into the kind of jazz I struggle with. The musicality is top quality but to listen to as a standalone exercise it’s not necessarily my bag. My favourite sections are probably when the sax and other instruments are involved but given the style that can then get a bit chaotic, like each instrument is fighting to break through.

I think this is a really solid album. It’s just really high quality songwriting and there’s more than a few classics. I wasn’t a huge fan of “Scenes from an Italian restaurant”, wasn’t sure how well that sat with the other tracks and it was lengthy but I can excuse the blip.

This is a weird and difficult one to rate. It’s eclectic to the extreme. I felt like the first song was the high watermark. There was some interesting jazz-rock stuff going on and the tonal shifts were at that point intriguing. But each track is so long that you lose the plot a bit. Some sections put me in mind of Pink Floyd but only if they were trying to find a particularly obnoxious opening sequence. The vocals really don’t help and prefer when it’s instrumental (fortunately most of the time). I think both the second and third song had a very jarring climax shortly before the end with eerie electronic sounds. So all told I applaud the experimental nature and there is musical quality involved but it was an album I pushed through rather than enjoyed. Just don’t think I can give it a 3 (on my own personal scoring).

This was enjoyable zippy, what I would term mainstream jazz. High quality but mostly accessible stuff that I reckon even the less initiated could listen to and at least respect if not enjoy. I think jazz is only ever going to be background music for me but this is a high quality version.

Just found this an odd really. I really struggled to keep interested because it feels like a bit of an unfunny parody after of an artist. No thanks would not listen again.

High quality pop but with fun shifts throughout, enjoyable but I can’t see myself returning frequently to listen. Call me a cynic but I would be really interested to know what global score this would get if it WASN’T Abbey Road and the Beatles. At time of writing from memory this is one of if not the highest scoring album globally? It’s great iconic pop but the genre has its limitations.

Superb. I can’t quite describe it, but this album is sort of timeless while also being a lovely time capsule, pulling on influences from the 60s. It sort of ebbs and flows from the dizzying heights (Starman has to be the archetypal pop song and might be my favourite ever, Moonage Daydream you can almost hear echoes of The Eagles but with some passion) through to more (dare I say it!) but each song stands on its own merits. Enjoyed the melodramatic rocky horror-esque ending of Rock n’Roll suicide, felt like the Ziggy - Suffragette City - RnR transition was really smooth. As an album and collection of great songs I can’t really fault it and it’s another album in the pantheon.

Just meh. I don’t think there’s anything profoundly wrong with it but there’s nothing particularly good about it either. Recognised Two Weeks that has clearly had plenty of airtime and is objectively a good single, and wonder if it got in on the back of that song, the rest was quite forgettable. Feels wrong giving this the same rating as Abbey Road but we live in a strange world.

I feel tied in to a weird rating funk due to a potentially dodge last 3 rating. Enjoyable guitar and unexpected (and unknown 😂) Rod on vocals actually turned out to be an ok combo for me. I’m not sure it worked 100%, at times I thought I would have just preferred a Jeff Beck jam minus the vocals. But all in all reasonable to listen to.

A stronger 3, this was perfectly enjoyable. I don’t think it has the songwriting strength of The Smiths or the catchy hooks of The Cure but it sits nicely in that sweet spot genre-wise. A nice way to while away the best part of an hour.

Good quality 80s Pop. Not every song is a banger but I didn’t think there were any duds. The one thing I thought it lacked was on a couple of songs the intro would start with an interesting tonal shift, but then once it got going it just defaulted back to the same kind of sound as the previous track. I’m sort of toying on the rating but enjoyed it enough to give it the 4.

I found this really interesting and could definitely see myself listening to it more to really dig into it. So different to the last few albums I’ve listened to. At its best you get transported away into a peaceful plane of existence and the music washes over you. I was definitely in this category for a few songs on the bounce and into solid 4 territory. However at times I found the vocals a bit discordant, it was like they were needed to tie the music together but a bit grating, particularly on the first two songs. Then towards the end of the album there were a few songs that had a more chaotic vibe I didn’t enjoy as much. A close miss on a 4 and might be one that over time I grow to enjoy more, but it’s a strong 3 on first listen.

A bit of an exercise in how far charisma can carry an album. This is a rich, brooding album that hits a lot of great notes. Cohen’s voice is definitely an acquired taste and there’s limits to how much you can say he is truly ‘singing’ but each song feels like an event. The presence of choir/gospel elements leans into the theme/material nicely. I definitely think it’s not for everyone but I can’t help but enjoy it a lot.

A strange mixture of trippy and attempts at comedy. Large sections like an unfunny Monty Python sketch put to music. Odd without being interesting.

I don’t really know how to describe it but everything on this album felt quite surface level. Maybe I was missing something. I generally found the album reasonable to listen to and there are a few certifiable earworms that I’ve heard before, but I don’t think the style is quite for me, it’s a bit “earnest northerner”. An album where the answer to “would I care if I never heard it again” is a no.

Being a Luddite/millenial a few steps removed from the Rolling Stones, this is the first Stones album I have listened to all the way through so it was interesting to give it a go. I think for me this album is at its best when the soul/blues influences are at their strongest and the rock and roll is taking a back seat. In general I didn’t have any standout songs, but it was pretty decent background music. A strongish 3.

Potato. Croquette. It was alright. There was a surprising amount of variation in the second half of the album but it didn’t necessarily make it any more interesting. For me it was sufficiently boring to fall below a 3. The only real highlight was “Alright” as it’s a song I heard tons of times growing up but didn’t actually know who performed it or even what it was called.

This was an interesting one in the end. The percussive elements gave it a discordant vibe, mixed in with the heavy backing track and in your face 80s vocals it’s a heady mix. At times I think I was sort of ironically enjoying it because it felt like a parody where the artist wasn’t in on the joke. It didn’t keep my interest throughout but had enough to draw me back in at times. A weak 3.

Whatever. An apt name for a boring album. Answered the question of “what if PJ Harvey had no charisma and droned a bit more”. Not necessarily a question I needed an answer to. It was fine for parts but dragged on and couldn’t get into it.

Meh. There’s a mix of reasonable songs (title track and while long, Desolation Row was more engaging than many others) entirely drowned out by harmonica on other songs that is on a spectrum from grating to bone-grinding. Particular shout out to the closing sequence of Queen Jane Approximately for being truly terrible. Hope I enjoy the next Dylan album more.

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I enjoyed this. For the most part it’s clever, easy flow, that typical 90s era backing music that I quite like and I think having a number of different artists in the group helps keep it fresh. Probably would have been in 4 if it hadn’t had the usual issues of the threats of violence (albeit in more imaginative ways than most rap/hip hop) and dragging on a bit.

It’s somehow monotonous while also being quite varied in its flavours of rubbishness. It is short and no track is too long and I appreciated that, if nothing else. The creative influences do not lead to anything genuinely interesting for me, but quite aware I’m a few steps removed from the target audience. I know many others will have a different take (beyond this 1001 group) but I’d be grateful if this is the last M.I.A on the 1001, please and thank you.

This was an unexpected gem, at least a rhinestone or opal if nothing of greater value. It confounded my expectations after the first two tracks that are solidly British alt-rock of the era (Heads Will Roll and it’s more famous remix are a classic) to then play through to the acoustic set of the last few songs (minus Faces), all in all pretty enjoyable. Maybe a weak 4 as I did dip in and out a bit in the middle, but a step above the average. Would (and will) listen again.

Well, this was a tale of two halves. The first disc is a mixture of funky, jazzy poppy sounds that to me taken on its own would have been a perfectly pleasant album and a great place to stop. You then have the bloated, slightly indulgent second disc. Did we really need extended versions of songs on the main album? Isn’t that what deluxe editions are for? The weakest of 3s - a 2.5 if ever there was one.

A solid 3. Some real pop classics and found this album good fun on the whole, but there were a couple of grating songs too. If the assignment was “give me some quintessential 80s pop” this would fit the bill.

I think there is just (just) enough creativity and variety in here to get a 4 and even though each number in the rating system covers a broad range, this deserves more than the last album (soz Cyndi). I did find Cracked Actor and Time jarring on both the first and second listen, for whatever reason didn’t think they sat right in this album. But there’s a good beginning and end, and ultimately a number of songs I could see myself returning to.

Masterful, Inspiring, Sonically Stimulating, Individual, Simply Sublime, Inimitable, Perfectly Produced, Ingenious. An album you can really drown yourself in. Every song washed over me like the lapping waves of a major river in the American deep south.

Wow, this was an unexpected pleasure. The first song is an all-out assault and must admit I read the Wikipedia review that talked about this album being a departure from their first that had “unintelligible vocals and chaos” - along those lines anyway - and thought, have they really departed from that? Luckily, they did, though this remains a chaotic piece of brilliance. Country instrumental has never sounded so good as when it’s put to punk/grungy vibes and I agree it’s more engaging than Nirvana where there are obvious parallels. I’m very on the fence but it’s maybe (just) not a 5 for me, but it’s darn close.