My 1001 Albums Journey

Album	You	Global	Diff
Rhythm Nation 1814 Janet Jackson	5	2.99	+2.01
Something/Anything? Todd Rundgren	5	3.03	+1.97
The Real Thing Faith No More	5	3.21	+1.79
The Köln Concert Keith Jarrett	5	3.39	+1.61
Blunderbuss Jack White	5	3.4	+1.6
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Kanye West	5	3.41	+1.59
Tidal Fiona Apple	5	3.45	+1.55
Dirt Alice In Chains	5	3.47	+1.53
Dusty In Memphis Dusty Springfield	5	3.47	+1.53
The Wildest! Louis Prima	5	3.53	+1.47

Album	You	Global	Diff
Frank Amy Winehouse	1	3.45	-2.45
The Band The Band	1	3.36	-2.36
The Specials The Specials	1	3.3	-2.3
The Boatman's Call Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds	1	3.2	-2.2
The Hour Of Bewilderbeast Badly Drawn Boy	1	3.12	-2.12
Here Come The Warm Jets Brian Eno	1	3.07	-2.07
Back To Black Amy Winehouse	2	4.02	-2.02
Sunshine Hit Me The Bees	1	2.99	-1.99
New Wave The Auteurs	1	2.86	-1.86
Scream, Dracula, Scream Rocket From The Crypt	1	2.77	-1.77

Artist	Albums	Average
Pink Floyd	2	5
Beastie Boys	3	4.33

Artist	Albums	Average
Brian Eno	2	1.5
Amy Winehouse	2	1.5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds	3	2

Artist	Ratings
The Band	1, 4
Fiona Apple	5, 2

Todd Rundgren

5/5

This is a surprisingly diverse album. Maybe I shouldn’t be stunned since there is 25 tracks on it, but I liked that there was a mix of styles in this. Some ballads, some rockers, a bit of Motown influence mixed in. I had heard a few of these songs before, but picked up some new ones for my own personal library which I really liked, such as Black Maria, Couldn’t I Just Tell You, Wolfman Jack, and It Wouldn’t Have Made Any Difference. Giving this a 5, even if every track on here isn’t amazing for me, because of the variety, his obvious talent, and the fact that you can tell that he had a lot of fun making this album (the Intro song was such a cool add). Definitely worth the listen. Fun listen for the first one on my quest (1,000 to go!).

Band On The Run

Paul McCartney and Wings

2/5

I know that Paul McCartney is one of the great artists of all time, but frankly I found this album to be pretty bland. The two popular singles, Band on the Run and Jet, are alright. I liked Mrs Vanderbilt and Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five the best. The rest of this is very average. An ok album, but certainly nothing special and not anything I would come back to.

MTV Unplugged In New York

Nirvana

4/5

I have this but it is has been many years since I have listened to it, so I was excited about revisiting. It’s an excellent album and is indicative of what made the Unplugged sessions great when approached correctly. A chance to represent yourselves differently musically, and Nirvana certainly did that. The coolest aspect is that they took some songs from other bands (the Vaselines, Meat Puppets) to bring into this session. It wasn’t just their original tunes. The best example: Bowie’s The Man Who Sold The World is a definite highlight of this set. What keeps this from being an 5 star album for me personally is that there are some songs on here that just aren’t that good, such as Pennyroyal Tea or On a Plain. As a result, the middle of the set wanes a bit for me. But I had forgotten about how cool some of these songs come off like Oh, Me. That all said, while I have never been as enamored with Kurt Cobain as many others (despite totally loving 90s alternative music), he is undeniably excellent throughout this set. Strong and straining (in a great way) in certain parts, restrained in others. Meanwhile, Grohl shows he can strip down his bombastic drumming style and settle in the background amazingly well. A fantastic performance from both of them.

Hysteria

Def Leppard

4/5

I really enjoy a ton of 80s and 90s rock bands that are contemporaries of Def Leppard, but admittedly have never really been as big a fan of DL as a lot of others. But results are results and it’s hard to argue with a series of things: - Very few bands have sold 20m albums in their careers, let alone selling 20m copies of one record like DL did with this album. - Very few albums have a consecutive song run of hits like songs 2-6 on this album: Rocket, Animal, Love Bites, Pour Some Sugar on Me, and Armageddon It, all of which made the Top 20. - Rick Allen’s ability to adapt to playing drums with one arm is pretty incredible, and you would never know it on this album. Half of this record is still played on the radio (some more than others) so it wasn’t hard to burn through those and enjoy them. The non-singles I hadn’t heard before and each one of those was a bit of strange listen for me. They would all have parts that I enjoyed and started heading in directions that had a chance to be great, but they would all take turns that I didn’t really like as much, often into very generic choruses. As a result, I didn’t really find anything new that I have to come back to. Still, the sheer sophistication that DL creates at various points on this album and the hits that it generates sets Hysteria apart from most other albums of this age. And, to be honest, the hits hold up after all this time. So despite my lack of DL fandom, surprisingly, this album gets 4 stars from me.

Here's Little Richard

Little Richard

5/5

I met Little Richard back in the mid 90s, so when Here’s Little Richard popped up as my next album, I must confess that I already was predisposed to wanting to like it. And maybe that brings some bias into my review, but I can’t adequately put into words how much I enjoyed listening to this record. Little Richard’s voice is infectious and makes this a truly fun listen. What’s amazing is how much energy he brings to these songs - for example listen to him basically run out of breath with 30 seconds left in Jenny Jenny. Beyond that, the piano work on various songs is great, especially at beginning of True Fine Mama and Slippin’ and Slidin’. Lots of great early rock songs on this album that delivers from beginning to end. It, like Little Richard himself, is a true force of nature, one that is well worth the listen.

Dirt

Alice In Chains

5/5

Admittedly, I am a big fan of 90s alternative. There is a ton of great albums from this genre in the decade, from Pearl Jam’s Ten to Live’s Throwing Copper to Soundgarden’s Superunknown and Nirvana’s Nevermind. Lots of great music. That said, admittedly, I was not a fan of Alice In Chains when they first came out. It took me a while to come around on them, so I’ve never owned this album. Upon my first full listen to it, I realize I have been missing out all these years. The opener, Them Bones, really sets the tone for the rest of the album. It’s just in your face right from the jump. Lane Staley’s vocals are great throughout and the harmonies with Jerry Cantrell are excellent. Of course, the songs that everyone has heard like Down in a Hole, Rooster, and Angry Chair (saving Would for later) are highlights, but others like Rain When I Die help this record hold up from beginning to end. And as for that ending track, Would? is one of those songs that just defines this era of rock. A killer track that is one of my favorites of the decade, and a great end to what I found to be a tremendous album.

Eliminator

ZZ Top

3/5

I love the 80s and I love rock music, which should have made this a perfect match for me and my tastes. Unfortunately, though it's a good record, I found this album to be a bit below my expectations. Certainly, this is ZZ Top's most commercially successful effort and one that appeals to the masses. It didn't hurt that their long beards made for a very original look that was best captured in the MTV video age. But chalking up their success with this record solely to that novelty would diminish what they had accomplished musically with this album. There are undoubtedly a series of catchy hooks on here. Gimme All Your Lovin, Legs, Sharp Dressed Man, and Got Me Under Pressure are all rightfully still played on radio today, which is a testament to their sound and songwriting. I looked up the chart success and this album only made it to #9 on the charts and yet, despite this, they sold 10m+ copies of it. That doesn't happen because of a flash in the pan, it happens because the songs have staying power. That all said, the rest of this album was pretty generic to me. There are a few other good tunes like I Got The Six and Thug (what they do with the bass early in this song is very cool), but then there were songs like TV Dinners which left me asking “what the hell?” That song shouldn't even be a B-side on any record. It was like the label said "we need X number of songs" or "we need it to be long enough" and the band said, "sure, let's throw that one on there." To be honest, I waffled between 3 and 4 starts because the highs are pretty high, but the lows are very low. I even gave this a couple of listens to see if it would impact my thinking either way. I ultimately landed where I did simply because while the hits are great, it is not a complete album for me.

Vulgar Display Of Power

Pantera

3/5

There is certain metal bands that I like, but I have never really sought out Pantera. So I was coming into this album totally fresh, not really knowing any of these songs. There are some definite highlights here, but overall it was kind of a mixed bag for me. Walk is pretty cool tune. I guess it's their most played song on Spotify, so theoretically it's their most popular song. Does that equal the best? Not necessarily, but it can be indiciative, and if this is the best it gets, I quickly realized this wasn’t going to be a 5 star album. I liked Rise as well. I'm usually very amazed by how guitarists/drummers can play as fast as they do in certain metal songs. Rise is one of those tunes at different times. This song reminded me of Helmet's Unsung at points, which should be obvious to anyone who knows both (released around the same time). That's a tune I love, so I was drawn into Rise in a similar fashion. Meanwhile, Hollow was a cool closing track. It kind of blows me away that the album just goes along kicking you in the face the whole time, and then we get to Hollow, whose first half is a complete departure from everything else you just heard. It gives me a bit of a One by Metallica feel, even if it isn't nearly as long or as epic. Regardless, a great closer to this album. All the same, I see how people would predominantly only have two ratings on this - great (5) or truly horrible (1). With bands like these, there is limited middle ground, though perhaps amazingly that's where I landed. Some good songs. But remember when I said I’m typically amazed by really fast playing? That happened on the vast majority of these tunes, which led to some boredom, as most of this record ended up sounding pretty homogenous to me. I see how people could be into this, it's just not my thing other than in small doses. That said, it was worth the listen and I picked up a few new tunes for my own library, which means it wasn't time wasted.

Idlewild

Everything But The Girl

2/5

This group wasn't that popular here in the US, other than I remember their song Missing being big in the early 90s (good tune). And after listening to this album, I kind of know why on both fronts. Let’s just say that the dance infusion into Missing is probably why it was a hit. The first thing that struck me on this album is that Tracey Thorn is an excellent singer who has a really nice tone to her voice. She reminded me a bit of Natalie Merchant, though Merchant's voice has more character to it while Thorn is a bit more breathy. Ben Watt is also a good signer, though not as good as Thorn, and his best moments on this album really come when the two of them are harmonizing together. The opener to this record (original release), Love is Here Where I Live, is a decent song. Breezy in some ways, though Thorn brings some nice emotion to it. As I listened further though, a lot of these songs just kind of floated along for me. They were easy listens, but they didn't really reach me that much. Many times, the song would just drift off at the end, causing a "really, that's it?" reaction. Frankly, as I listened to this album, I found myself longing to listen to Johnny Hates Jazz, British contemporaries of Everything But The Girl. Turns out I wasn't wrong for that, as evidently they both could be categorized as sophisti-pop, a genre I've never heard of before. Anyway, JHJ songs are just better, as they have more weight and are superior constructions. I would encourage anyone reading this to go find their Turn Back the Clock album, which blows this one away - Shattered Dreams, Heart of Gold, I Don't Want to Be a Hero, Don't Say It's Love, What Other Reason, and Turn Back the Clock are all better tracks than anything on this record. All the same, there are a few songs on here that I did like, such as Blue Moon Rose and Lonesome for a Place I Know. Also, their cover of I Don't Want to Talk About It, which was added to the re-release of this album, was decent. Some nice instrumentals in it. Maybe if this was the first song I heard from them, I might have really enjoyed it. But after listening to the rest of the album that sounded very similar, I just didn't care. A pretty weak album for me and probably not worth seeking out by most people. Off to listen to Johnny Hates Jazz . . .

Gasoline Alley

Rod Stewart

4/5

My first experience with music was effectively just before the start of the MTV era, right around the turn of the 70s into the 80s, which means my earliest memories of Rod Stewart are Infactuation and Passion Rod (even Da Ya Think I'm Sexy). So what I heard on this album is a very different artist in certain ways. I had not found any of these songs before and this album had a pretty strong folk feel, not one of the flashy artist I am used to. A lot of this, frankly, reminded me of what I might hear on The Lonesome Jubilee album from John Mellencamp (who inexplicably is missing from this list), which is a great record. What stayed the same is Stewart's great, distinctive voice. The combination of his stellar vocals backed by a different approach (I recognize I'm the one who's not familiar with his older, less commerical stuff) makes for a very fun listen. It's far from a perfect album - It's All Over Now, very ironically, goes on for way too long - but there's a lot of great stuff on here and it's diverse enough to keep me listening. The title track and opener is a cool tune. The way his voice and the guitar compliment each other on this track is fantastic. Only a Hobo gave me a Gordon Lightfoot type of feel. The end of My Way of Giving reminded me of the beginning of Whiter Shade of Pale. Cut Across Shorty drives so well throughout that you don't realize it is 6+ minutes (unlike the afore mentioned It's All Over Now). Finally, the closer You're My Girl was a song I really enjoyed because of its great groove. What's astonishing about this album more than anything is that it didn't find a broad audience. His voice is so cool and considering that he found a lot of success just a year or two later (both solo and with Faces), it’s a bit surprising that this didn't translate commercially. As for me, I am happy to have found it this late in the game.

That's The Way Of The World

Earth, Wind & Fire

4/5

I've never listened to much of Earth Wind and Fire. I know the hits like September and Let's Groove, and they are good songs, I just never really dug into their catalog. Super glad this popped up as my next choice, though. This record was a very fun listen. Maurice White and Philip Bailey both have excellent voices and that alone would have made this really enjoyable, but the musicality of the group makes this great. I enjoyed different songs for different reasons on this record. Shining Star is a really catchy song with tight, good harmonies. That's the Way of the World has a nice groove to it. All About Love is a well constructed ballad. Reasons has some great vocals. Africano felt like an exercise in "how fast can we play and still sound musical" - like listening to great jazz musicians, just pure talent. Two things keep me from rating this a 5: Yearin' Learnin' I didn't really care for and I didn't think See the Light was that great a song as a closer. 6+ minutes and it felt longer. That said, the rest of this album was great for me and a fun find.

Scissor Sisters

3/5

Going through these albums always makes for an exciting time. Sometimes it's an album that you have and can't wait to hear it entirely again. Sometimes it's an release with a few songs that are on the radio and you are curious about the rest of the record. And sometimes it's a record and a band that you have never heard of before, which allows you to explore something completely new. This one fell in the last camp for me. The best way I can describe this album is diverse. From it's songs to the theming to the way I felt about it. It was all over the place. A microcosm of this experience for me was Filthy/Georgeous, which is rather aptly name considering my take on this album. This is straight out of the 70s and the lead singer's voice could have fit very nicely on any of those disco records of the time. This song is totally different than anything else on the album. Fun and cool at times, and yet totally derivative and plain at others. Simultaneously georgeous and filthy, much like different parts of this record. Some of the highlights for me were songs like Mary, a song that felt a bit to me like Robbie Williams was leading it, which is a testament to the lead singer's voice. He demonstrates a lot range on this and hits all the right notes. An excellent tune. Take Your Mama is a bit of mix of Better Than Ezra and Neon Trees (Laura gave me some NT feel too). It's a well constructed song, and demonstrates that they actually have a good amount of talent. On the other end, the inclusion of Comfortably Numb on this is a really strange choice. It's not that their take on this is awful, per se, it has some interesting elements. I guess it was a big dance hit in the UK (equally as strange). However, given how epic a song Pink Floyd's original is, their version massively pales in comparison, effectively making it nothing more than filler and it an instant skip on this record for me. Meanwhile, Tits On The Radio is just a bad song, with lyrics that are pretty dumb. My daughter and I got a good laugh out of it though. Music Is The Victim is a better song, but again their lyrics are just very inferior and relatively meaningless. You can see how they think they are being cheeky with this, but it comes off as very poorly thought out. I imagine them in a room thinking "what rhymes with shotgun" and then celebrating when they finally come up with . . . "dog run"! Yes, spectacular. In addition, bringing in various cities comes across as pretty trite. To be honest, I was thinking of making this album a 2, but the record is diverse, their talent is decent, and the lead singer’s voice is interesting. Also, the fact that I grabbed a few songs for my own personal library pushes it up for me. Can't put it higher than 3 though, as this compilation is a roller coaster, with some pretty high highs and very low lows.

Triangle

The Beau Brummels

2/5

Second album in a row from a band I have never heard of. I guess this band is more of a folk band but had moved closer to psychedelic rock for this album. For my money, they pretty much failed. Only 29 minutes long, this is an album did not translate commercially nor does it appear to have influenced anyone. All on top of it being from a band barely anyone has heard of. I am really struggling to understand how this was included in a list of albums I must hear. Not that it’s terrible, it’s just sort of there, serving no obvious purpose. Only Dreaming Now is the highlight of the album for me. It at least heads in the direction of the intended genre. But that’s about it. A very substandard inclusion, a true head scratcher.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

4/5

This is my second consecutive album which has been basically been at 30 minutes long. While the last one was from someone I had never heard of and really not good, that certainly wasn't true for this one. Tom Petty is one of the great rockers of all time. Saw him back in the mid 90s and it was a great show. That said, I don’t own much of his catalog, and I have never listened to this album at all. While I am very familiar with the couple of hits on this record, the rest of this was uncharted territory. The opener, Rockin’ Around (With You) is a great way to kick off the record. Breakdown follows and is a great tune, best one on the record for me. I wasn’t a fan of Hometown Blues, but the album picked back up with The Wild One, Forever. I quite like Petty’s voice, even if it isn’t the most technically amazing one in the business. And he’s great on this song, including in the harmonies. The yo yo continued for me as Anything That’s Rock ‘N’ Roll and Strangered In The Night were just average for me, though I liked the flipping of the guitar between speakers on the former. Fooled Again (I Don’t Like It) was a step back in the right direction, a definite highlight for me. I started listening to Mystery Man, and almost instantly it gave me an Into The Mystic feel. Since the theme is somewhat the same, and the titles aren’t that far apart, I wonder if Van Morrison’s tune inspired this one. Regardless, I really liked this song. Luna has some aspects that I liked, especially the flowing portions of this song, but the repetitive keyboard sections brought this down for me. Finally, American Girl is one of those classic 70s rock anthems and a truly great way to close the album. In summary, lots to like in this tight 30 minute set, but it’s not an album that is great from front to back. Frankly, I am surprised that this is Petty's only album on the list, either with or without The Heartbreakers. At least one of Full Moon Fever, Wildflowers, or Damn the Torpedoes warrant inclusion, if not all of them. Still, happy to have visited this album for the first time.

The Soft Bulletin

The Flaming Lips

2/5

I've heard of the Flaming Lips but never really knew anything by them, so I was interested to see what this was like. The best way to describe this is one of two ways: 1. A crappy carnival with a few good rides, but it all started to melt. 2. A jack-in-the-box which was low on batteries. Anyway, a couple of things stood out: - They have a very interesting style, one that takes a lot of risks, which is very cool. Occassionally this is to their determent, though I generally liked this, except . . . - The singer is terrible. I'm betting he is revered by a few for some strange reason, but his voice is very inadequate. Strained but in a bad way, with limited vocal range that stays in a very annoying spot. - The lyrics might be worse. Singing fly in the air, comb your hair over and over again? Completely uninspired. I take that back, the vocals are worse. Definitely. If you want to get the gist, listen to The Spark That Bled. Some weird chords at the beginning, terrible singing, then some cool instrumentals in between more terrible singing. Unfortunately, the redeemable qualities are well outweighed by the lack of good vocals or excellent song construction. Very confident that some people love these guys, mainly because they are looking for something different. Sadly, in this case, different = very bad. Still, giving them a 2 because of the risks they take (respect). Edit: Essentially all of the 5 star reviews I have seen are from people who already love the band and/or have seen them a series of times. None from someone discovering them for the first time, which I find very interesting. This is definitely a band that you either love or hate, there really is no in between. For me, I can't get past how bad the singer and lyrics are. This album would have been much better for me as an instrumental.

Teenager Of The Year

Frank Black

4/5

I've heard of the Pixies, but I don't know a giant amount of their music and I wouldn't have been able to tell you that Frank Black is/was their front man. As a result, this ends up being another totally new album and artist for me, though this comes from an era of alternative rock that I love. First thing that struck me is that he is a pretty adept vocalist. It seems like he has toned down his voice a bit vs. what I think I remember of the Pixies, so kudos to him. There’s lots he can do with his voice, and he does a cool job of adjusting to the tone of the song. Interestingly, at certain points (e.g. I Could Stay Here Forever) he sounded like Julian Lennon to me. At others, he has a refined Bob Dylan feel (The Hostest with the Mostest). And then in other songs, he felt a like Mark Knopfler type of signer (e.g. Calistan). Bottom line is that I liked how he moved around his style. Beyond this, has a penchant for rhyming strange words with each other. I could see how people might find annoying, but I thought it really worked for this album. The album is only just over an hour, but with 22 songs, there’s a lot of variety on it. Some highlights for me were White Noise Maker, Pure Denizen of the Citizens Band, Headache and Calistan. A really solid album which I unexpectedly liked a lot.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

4/5

Getting this album as my selection the day that Brian Wilson died is likely to make my review a bit more friendly. That said, objectively, this is an excellent album and I loved listening to this today. There’s a lot more depth to these songs than I would have expected. I’m so used to hearing their huge hits on the radio and they are good songs, but they all have a consistent high energy, positive vibe to them. This album shows how much more versatile as a band they were vs. what I had thought. Sure, there are the hits like Sloop John B, God Only Knows, and Wouldn't It Be Nice (all good songs), but this album hits higher notes for me on these lesser known songs, predominantly because of their depth. Songs like I Just Wasn't Made for These Times and That's Not Me are thematically and tonally a departure from the Beach Boys I am used to, which is a lot of fun to discover. The title track is like something an orchestra would conduct for a movie, which makes it a strange but pretty cool part of this album. The vocals on You Still Believe In Me are excellent, especially the way they layer at the end. All in all, an excellent record, way better than I would have anticipated.

Rust Never Sleeps

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

4/5

Neil Young is an acquired taste. At least that's the true for me. Sure he had some songs that instantly struck me, like Rockin in the Free World. But his voice, however distinctive, wasn't really something I sought out. I've never listened to a single one of his albums straight through, so I wasn’t sure how I’d view this. It helped that this album started with My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue), an instantly recongnizable song and a classic. Thrasher is an interesting song, love the theme of it, but it just kind of sits there and then fades out. Other than the lyrics, it didn't really move me. Similar reaction to Ride My Llama, though I liked the music more and the lyrics less. Pocohontas is just a weird song - singing about the plight of the indians and then end up singing about the Astrodome and Marlon Brando? Just really strange lyrics. Sail Away I liked a lot better. I could see some people not liking this, but I thought it was just a more well constructed song than the previous few. All in all, though, an uneven first half. It's interesting how this album shifts from solo acoustic to electric with Crazy Horse for the second half. Unique and I liked the construct. Powderfinger is a cool tune, loved the lead guitar work on this. I was less a fan of Welfare Mothers, it's fine but it felt pretty basic to me. Sedan Delivery picks back up, a straight rocker with an interesting viewpoint. The highlight of this album is the dichotomy in styles from the first half to the second, underscored by the different versions of My My, Hey Hey. It's hard to say whether the Blue or Black version is really better (the distortion in the guitars at the beginning of the electric version is very cool), both are great, despite the repetition. To be honest, just focusing on the songs, I'd probably be at a 3 for this. However, given how this album has two distinct halves and the fact that he could take the same song in My My, Hey Hey and make it sound considerably different depending upon whether he goes acoustic or electric? This combines to elevate it for me, making it deserving of a 4. It's far from a perfect album though.

My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Brian Eno

2/5

I have to admit that I started listening to this while mowing the lawn, which was a mistake. I couldn’t really get a good feel of it, I just knew it was different. Upon a re-listen, I will also admit that I had low expectations. What got me early on was not the creativity of what they brought into the recordings. Frankly, we can call that ingenious or innovative, but if it really only influenced future electronic music and nothing in the pop or rock realm, does it really matter? What I did like and ultimately drew me in to give this a fair shot was the rhythm of some of these songs. Sure there were some early misses like Help Me Somebody. Ok, a lot of early misses, with random screaming / narrative that might have had a place for others, but was totally lost on me. That said, songs like Regiment and Mea Culpa had something about them that I enjoyed. Unfortunately, as the album progressed, those pounding rhythms fell by the wayside, in favor of more and more randomness, which made this an opportunity wasted in my opinion. For those who might rate this a 5, I’d ask two questions: is this something you come back to repeatedly and is it close to a no skip record? I highly doubt you would find anyone to say yes to both. Anyway it’s very, very different and while different can be good, in this case it’s not. Interesting for sure, but I’m confused by why I had to hear it. Again, if it led to something that was huge, or if it was really influential on the direction of music, I could accept its place. But since it appears to have done neither, it’s just a departure that adds up to little more than noise save for a couple of highlights. Worse yet, its inclusion in a list of albums I had to hear at the expense of some tremendous records is really baffling. If you want instrumentals, do yourself a favor and go listen to something more influential and innovative that’s actually musical (and incredibly high level), like Joe Satriani.

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Raekwon

4/5

Rap isn’t something I listen to an overwhelming amount anymore. High school and college is when I listened to it the most, mainly guys you would hear on the radio - LL Cool J, Dre and Snoop, Young MC, and later on Eminem. Never listened to Raekwon and though I’ve obviously heard of Wu Tang Clan, I’ve never listened to them much either. So I didn’t know what to expect from this, though the rampant explicit ratings certainly gave it away. To my surprise, I kinda dug this, even if I am probably a bit removed from the target audience. There were a good amount of songs I liked. Criminology felt like something off of a Public Enemy album (who I really like). Incarcerated Scarfaces had a LL Cool J type of beat to it. Guillotine was excellent. Beyond this, it has a bit of a movie type of feel to me, which tied it all together. Enjoyed this more than I thought I would.

Maggot Brain

Funkadelic

4/5

Hilariously, my first experience with George Clinton and Funkadelic was when they, as Parliament Funkadelic at the time, popped up in PCU (a great underrated movie). Never heard anything from them before that, nor have I listened to them since. This album was totally new to me and while I’m not surprised that I liked it, I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed it. The solo that is the title track is a wild way to start an album - the way it bounces back and forth is killer. I guess this album is known for this solo, though the fact that it goes on for 10 minutes is a bit of overkill. All the same, a cool way to start off the record. The next three songs are, for me, the real high point of this album. Can You Get To That has some awesome vocals, especially the way the harmony works with the low and high voices that come in at different points. I loved Hit It and Quit It. This song just drives all the way through. Awesome. You and Your Folks, Me and My Folks sits in a great groove. Though it felt like a large departure from the prior song, I thought the contrast totally worked. At this point, I was totally sold on this album. Unfortunately, things waned a bit from there for me. Super Stupid is better than the title, but I didn’t connect with this as much as the last 3, even if the guitar work in this was great again. Back In Our Minds is best described as a very bent song. It’s psychedelic in nature and while it wasn’t my favorite, I could appreciate the musicality of it. Meanwhile, Wars of Armageddon bookends this album with another roughly 10 minute track and though I liked it more than the opener, it goes on a bit too long too. Still, a good jam. All tolled, this wasn’t something I would listen to over and over again front to back, but it was still a great listen with a series of songs I really liked. Fact is, I have been missing out all this time.

Achtung Baby

U2

4/5

I know that U2 is beloved, but I have never been a huge fan of them, at least not nearly to the level of a lot of my friends were. I liked a decent amount of their songs (New Years Day, Angel of Harlem, etc.) and have seen them live (Innocence + Experience tour, great show), but I've never owned a lot of their music, nor do I ever find myself saying that I feel like listening to some U2. That said, I've listened to most of this album before. Everyone's heard One and Mysterious Ways, both of which are excellent songs. The Fly was a cool single as well. Some of the other singles - Even Better Than the Real Thing and Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses - I was less enamored with. The rating on this album from me was, as a result, always going to come down to the non-singles and how they hold up. Zoo Station is kind of a sleepy opener in my opinion. It just kind of sits there and never really diverges too much from the same centrally located notes. I did listen to it a few times and it did get better with different listens, but it's yet to register with me as a great song. Until the End of the World is a lot better. Lots more range, lots more heft to this tune. Really good. So Cruel and Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World I liked as well. Neither is truly amazing, but both change things up enough to be interesting. Ultra Violet (Light My Way) had some cool lyrics and I loved the guitar sound in this one. I liked Acrobat for similar reasons. Finally, though this album's closer, Love Is Blindness, starts out pretty slow, the guitar work on this really carries this home. This song is almost haunting in some ways and it builds well. It doesn't quite pay off in the way that I would hope, but it's still an excellent tune. All in all, this is a really, really good album that has a lot of interesting aspects to it. Probably better than The Joshua Tree in total, but it's been many years since I listened to that album. Regardless, this is a worthy listen for anyone.

Traffic

4/5

I have a much more recent Traffic album, but nothing from their earlier catalog, so I was interested to explore this record. The main thing that stood out to me was Steve Winwood's amazing voice. Dave Mason is a decent singer too, and a pretty good writer, but his voice pales in comparison to Winwood's, though most do if we are being honest. Still, having both of them on this album makes for an interesting contrast. Beyond this, throughout this album, I enjoyed the lead guitar work and the keyboards. And then there's that flute! Ok, seriously, you don’t often hear flute on a lot of songs (unless you are a Jethro Tull fan), so that was unique. A few songs which were highlights: I loved the way guitar bounced back and forth in Pearly Queen, great listen with headphones on. Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring almost had a bit of a Motown feel to it, though this really soars because of Winwood's distinctive voice. Feelin' Alright? is a great song. No surprise it is one of their most recongizable, even if it was really made popular via the objectively better Joe Cocker version (speaking of distinctive voices). I thought 40.000 Headman was a great, great song, again carried by Winwood. Medicated Goo gives me an Almann Brothers kind of vibe. Very cool tune. Not everything on this album is great - You Can All Join In is a strange opener - but there's a lot to like. This is an excellent album.

Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water

Limp Bizkit

1/5

Nu metal is division of rock that I like to a point. I was more interested in the bands which nu metal spawned from - I.e. Faith No More - vs the bands that are really in the genre at its height in the late 90s / early 2000s. Sure, bands like Linkin Park, Deftones, and Evanescence are excellent, very talented artists with really interesting mixes. Staind has some cool music and even Korn was a decent band for me in pockets, I just never listened to any of them on repeat back in the day. And on the less talented, less listened to side comes Limp Bizkit. Where to start? Maybe here: I’m still scratching my head about how Hot Dog ended up with an explicit rating. Were there any bad words in it? There were some ok songs - My Way is well constructed even if it is somewhat basic in the lyrics. But more often than not, they steal from better bands. Beyond this, when you are limited in the musicality, you really need something important to say or sing about, and LB fails massively on this front. In listening to this, three words come to mind: derivative, unoriginal, and uncool. Swearing has never bothered me in songs, I listened to plenty of metal, hard rock, and rap back in the day. But I much prefer when it is used limitedly and, more importantly, for a purpose. These guys just throw it around aimlessly and because they think it makes them seem hard. Instead, it just makes them hard to listen to.

Pink Moon

Nick Drake

2/5

Evidently, Nick Drake is influential to a variety of singer songwriters in the 80s. I suppose if I listen to this through that prism, I can kind of see why this album was included. In absensce of that, someone who has sold a few hundred thousand albums in the UK and was never popular in the US, simply singing and playing guitar, is pretty unremarkable. There's nothing inherently wrong with this album, it's just kind of there. Decent voice, good guitar, but just that. In listening to Nick, I found myself thinking about Jack Johnson, who has somewhat of a similar sound, though I would much prefer to listen to a JJ record. That's not to say there weren't any good songs on this. Things Behind The Sun was an excellent listen. Some of the cadence of the singing in this reminded me a lot of a song I love by Jars of Clay called Truce, so this one I really enjoyed. Others were fine, but not much more. Amazingly, though only 28 minutes long, this sounded very monotonous to me. An average album from an unremarkable artist.

Kind Of Blue

Miles Davis

5/5

I might not have appreciated this as much a few years ago, but since my son has taken up jazz band, I enjoyed this a lot more than expected. The playing on here is impeccable and in true jazz form, everyone gets to have their time in the sun. This was a great album to listen to with headphones, where you could better hear the nuances of some of the playing. It’s not just about the notes played, it’s the mood that is set, and the way they can go solo or blend together. It all sounds perfect. Love me some stand up bass. The saxes were amazing on this. The underlying drums and the off beat stuff was very interesting. And Miles Davis is a truly great player. So What was my favorite of this excellent album.

Maxinquaye

Tricky

4/5

Another English artist I had never heard of. It’s interesting to me that Tricky is a rapper, but he paired up with a female singer, Martina Topley-Bird, to release his debut record (and a couple of others). This proved to be a very wise choice, as what resulted was a super intriguing album with a variety of different layers to it. I loved many of these tracks, including the instrumentals and Topley-Bird’s voice over the top on numerous songs. Right from the jump, Overcome is a great starter. It has a seductive, almost sneaky feel and it was an instant add to my library (joining Live and Better Than Ezra as the third “Overcome” in my playlist). The next two were totally different from Overcome and each other. Ponderosa has a basic but pounding rhythmic feel. Black Steel is driving rock based. Both were excellent in their own right. Hell is Round the Corner steals from Glory Box by Portishead (took my daughter to help me place it) and has a great groove to it as a result. Pumpkin felt like something off of a moody 90s alternative record. 5 songs in, all totally different styles, but all really cool songs. Amazing start. After this, the album wanes a touch for me. Aftermath is a bit of a sleepy track and is 3 minutes too long, but it’s the front part of the track that should be cut, as the random distorted guitar and flute (?) was cool. Having the two leads layered on top of each other in Abbaon Fat Tracks was great and it had an excellent groove, I just didn’t like some of the lyrics. Brand New Your Retro was similar for me in that I thought the song was interesting except for some of the lyrics. Suffocated Love was cool, gave me a bit of a PM Dawn type of feel for some reason. You Don’t had a reggae base, yet another style on this album. Good tune as well. The last three, You Don’t, Strugglin’, and Feed Me were all decent but somewhat unremarkable. What makes this record such a fascinating listen is the variety of styles. At times rap, at times sultry R&B (a la Silk), and on occasion one on top of the other. Other times it has electronic and harder rock alternative elements which borders on a Nine Inch Nails type of feel. Still others it is experimental in its sound and construction. On this effort to get through all 1,001 albums, there have been times when I was excited to dive into an artist or album I was familiar with but I hadn’t yet fully explored. In other cases, there were brand new artists which I’d never heard of, but they mostly have been underwhelming. This is the first time that an unfamiliar artist got me excited while I went through the record. It was a very cool experience. Still, some of the songs on here aren’t great, keeping me from making it a 5.

The Köln Concert

Keith Jarrett

5/5

When I thought about what might make this project exciting, it wasn’t about trying to make it through 1,001 albums. It was about hearing music like this that I never would have found on my own. This is an astonishing recording. In fairness, I am a big fan of artists who are piano players. While everyone always thinks of Billy Joel and Elton John, there are plenty of others who are every bit as talented as them, such as Bruce Hornsby or Sara Bareilles (who has undoubtedly the best voice of the group too). But almost regardless of who it is, some of my favorite music comes from acts featuring lots of piano. The point is that I'm predisposed to any great piano playing and I'm bound to favor it more than others. That said, what makes this truly unique from anything I have heard before is not just that it is solely piano playing (no singing, no band), it's that it is nothing but improvisations for over an hour. With that as a backdrop, what results from this is truly jaw dropping. To know that he had something else planned, but completely shifted when the piano he requested did not show up, and then had the confidence to just play whatever came to him in that moment? And to have it come out as incredible and melodic as this does? It really speaks to Jarrett's masterful ability and ear for music. While there were a lot of highlights in this, my favorite part was from about 7:20 to just past 12:00 into the first song. I have to have listened to this part at least 10 times by now. It’s incredible to hear what he effectively created on the spot, just by focusing on the middle of the piano. Really an amazing album.

Kala

M.I.A.

3/5

I find it interesting that I am about 30 albums into this project and this is the second UK rap / R&B / hip hop artist that I’ve received to listen to. That’s more than what I’ve received for similar US artists! That’s not inherently a bad thing, it’s just that when you consider what the US has to offer from Sugarhill Gang to Public Enemy to Eminem, East Coast to West Coast rappers, Motown to New Jack Swing R&B singers/bands, etc. there so many more influential US artists I would have been expecting to hear more of. The UK just doesn’t have much to offer from that scene to warrant a ton of inclusion in a list of albums anyone has to hear. That said, MIA’s admittance in this list is fair. Her infusion of rap, hip hop, Asian and African influences, and electronic music is interesting . . . to a point. Unfortunately, this album has a too many songs like The Turn and World Town which drag on aimlessly. Xr2’s name dropping was nostaligic but equally somewhat pointless. What’s interesting is that if you really think about her biggest hit on this record, Paper Planes, it’s reasonably different than what is on much of the rest of this album. She’s better when there’s more singing and melodic elements. Jimmy is somewhat in that vain as well, and it was one of the other songs I liked on this. Unfortunately, these were few and far between. Not that there weren’t other interesting elements at different points on this (eg Bamboo Banga), it just wasn’t strong enough throughout for my liking. All the same, credit given for all the different layers and elements she brings into this album. It’s not bad, it’s just not consistently great.

White Light / White Heat

The Velvet Underground

3/5

This was just an average album for me. I enjoy older rock, but there was too little here that I really loved. White Light / White Heat was a decent starter. Cool little jam song. The Gift being spoken the entire time proved to be a waste of almost 10 minutes. Lady Godiva’s Operation was one of the highlights for me and was well worth the listen. Here She Comes Now had a chance to be good, but managed to be pretty repetitive despite being only 2 minutes long. I Heard Her Call My Name reminded me of a Beatles song. Good tune. Sister Ray started off strong but just went on for way too long. So for every hit, there was a miss. I did like that this had a punk feel to it though. That’s enough to make this a 3.

Honky Tonk Heroes

Waylon Jennings

3/5

This album did not get off to a good start. Admittedly, I’m not a country fan, but it wasn’t that. It’s that the opening 3 songs were all pretty sleepy and a bit slow for my taste. Low Down Freedom is when this album picked up from my perspective. The phrasing and cadence gave me a Gordon Lightfoot type of feel, even if it was a true country song. Omaha followed with some good harmonies in another well constructed song. Then came You Ask Me To, which might have been when this album peaked. Builds really well with tons of interesting guitar work. And Jennings voice really stands out on this one. An excellent song. The rest of this album is uneven. Ride Me Down Easy wore me down quickly. A boring song that’s just sort of there. Ain’t No God In Mexico picked back up and had a lot more energy to it. Same went for Back Rose, which had some cool guitar and harmonica work. The closer, We Had It All was better than some of the other slow songs on here, but still just wasn’t that great for me. Solid album, just nothing that exciting.

Tusk

Fleetwood Mac

4/5

Fleetwood Mac is one of those bands where I haven’t owned much of their music, but when they are on the radio, I generally don’t turn away. So when this album popped up, I was genuinely excited, as I’d only heard a couple of these tracks before. This proved to be an excellent album with tons to like. I already knew Sara was an excellent song, but for the first time I really paid attention to the drums, and I just loved what Mick Fleetwood did throughout this track. Their voices blend amazingly well on many of these songs, but the harmonies on Beautiful Child and Think About Me really stood out. Other songs like the title track or What Makes You Think You’re the One were straight angry, making them interesting to hear for other reasons. Sisters of the Moon was one of the highlight for me in the tracks I hadn’t heard before. For some reason, this reminded me of Isn’t It Midnight, which might be my favorite Fleetwood song, but that could just be because it’s not one of those songs you hear on the radio from them. Even a tune like Storms, which I didn’t love, is inherently interesting because of the dichotomy between what Stevie Nicks is singing about and how amazing her voice sounds while singing it. The point is not everything on this is perfect by any means, but even when it isn’t, it’s always an interesting listen and well worth your time. A great selection.

Queen II

Queen

4/5

Queen has always been an acquired taste for me. They undoubtedly have a lot of great music and are an incredibly talented/gifted band, but they’ve never been one of my favorites. What’s super interesting Queen II is that it is very much a metamorphosis album. You can hear all of these pieces which are representative of what the band will become, but they are not fully there yet, leading to a fascinating mix of straightforward rock and theatrics. For me, it’s the former that actually is a lot more appealing. All of this album was new to me, and I have to admit that it was a very good listen. Their songs are really intricate which I do appreciate. And some of the things which happen on this recording (shifting where the sound is coming from, changing of keys or even styles) are really cool. A microcosm for this album is definitely March of the Black Queen. It has all of these amazing parts, but it also has some bombast too it, much like the rest of the record. Other songs on this record were better than some of the more standard Queen fare. For example, White Queen was interesting because, frankly, parts of it didn’t sound like Queen at all. It was very much a song that fits in the middle of prog rock, which I generally love, and it was nice to hear them not be so bombastic. Some Day One Day, Funny How Love Is, and The Loser In the End were similarly non-traditional Queen - I.e. more straight forward rock songs. It was great to hear the band in this fashion, as it was much more about the musicianship as opposed to the show. Seven Seas of Rhye was a fun listen: at times Billy Joel-esque, at times straight guitar rock, still other times vocal mastery. I enjoyed this one a lot and a definite highlight. A quick additional note, it was amazing to hear how quickly the songs changed, both within songs and when moving to the next one. You almost never knew when you were on the next track, unless you heard the theme of the song change or actually looked at what was playing. In total, I enjoyed this way more than anticipated because while this was distinctly Queen at points, at others you wouldn’t know it was them at all. Meanwhile, the fact that you can start to hear what the band is going to become … it’s like listening to the teenage years of Queen as they move from boy to man. And to be honest, when it’s just about the songs and not about being over the top, as incredible as those theatrics can be, I personally like them much better. That all said, there’s no doubting the true talent and musicianship of this band, which is displayed throughout this album. For that, they earn a 4.

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

4/5

I know who Issac Hayes is, but I really haven’t listened to him that much. And he’s not really on the stations I listen to other than very sporadically. Well, at least the radio stations. I did know that he has a very cool voice though (trying not to state the obvious). This album was excellent. I loved Walk On By, just such a great groove, which is a consistent theme throughout this record. His baritone voice (perfect for voice acting, but we’re not talking about that) really soars on One Woman, which is another great tune. Loved the balance between his voice and the backup singers. Hyper… was another cool song, for totally different reasons. This is just down in it. Everything fits together so well (like a perfect recipe… no, don’t go there). The remake of By The Time I Get To Phoenix was my least favorite on this record. I don’t mind narration in songs, but this just went on too long and there wasn’t nearly enough to get me interested. In total, an excellent album that just didn’t finish off great. But, he gets a bonus half star because he’s Chef!!!! Damnit! I tried. The fingers were willing, but the mind was weak.

The Band

1/5

The Band. You could read that one of two ways. It could mean “that’s THE band”, as in a group who is truly great. Or it could be more like “who’s playing? I don’t know, the band”, as in “I have no clue who that is.” While I know who The Band is, this album is decisively in the latter camp for me. There is nothing that is interesting about this album. Even the hit, Up on Cripple Creek probably should have an “a” where the “i” is, because it’s an average song at best. There’s just so little here to really be that excited about. I guess at points like on The Unfaithful Servant, I could hear something that pre-dated early Counting Crows, but even that had me thinking, I could go for listening to August and Everything After right now rather than this. Evidently this is a concept album, though I would much rather listen to Pink Floyd’s The Wall or Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime album. Just a below average album from a below average band that is unremarkable on both fronts.

Countdown To Ecstasy

Steely Dan

3/5

Steely Dan is just an offbeat band. Their songs are generally pretty strange when compared to contemporaries. Sure there are songs that I love like Do It Again or Reeling In The Years, but a lot of their stuff is simultaneously interesting yet different enough to keep me intrigued, but not a big fan. This album proved to be no different. Really gifted musicians producing music that seems like it is slightly bent. There were some high points, no doubt. The Boston Rag had some very cool elements, including the way the guitar and piano worked together, the fact that this borderline turned into a march, etc. The closer, King of the World, also has some great guitar work, though the keyboard in the middle is aimless and sounds like something you would hear at Tomorrowland in Disney World. Surprisingly elementary given the what Steely Dan is known for. I really dug My Old School, especially the horn section. Surprised that this song was released as a single and barely charted. This is an excellent tune and happy to have found this one. Yet, the problem with this album is that this song is followed with a song like Pearl of the Quarter (both on the album and as the B side on the single release) which was just a sleepy tune and has little to offer. The guitar work was ok, but this was an instantly forgettable song, much like too many of the others on this record. And that inherently the problem with this collection. It might be technically sound, but few of the songs really grab your attention. I think this is part of the problem with this band and how they are viewed in many circles. They have a clear sound that is often an audiophile’s dream (e.g. the A’ja album), but what gets lost is that the songs aren’t inherently great on a consistent enough of a basis for them to be viewed as highly as they are. In short, they are inflated by people who want to believe they are cool, when all they are is just eccentric. This album is another example of that: an ok album with too many misses to be rated as highly as it is.

Scream, Dracula, Scream

Rocket From The Crypt

1/5

This is a direct quote from Apple Music: Though it was a bigger hit in the U.K. than the United States, 1995’s Scream, Dracula, Scream! remains a pivotal work of '90s rock 'n' roll. With the exception of Nirvana’s In Utero, no other album succeeded more in translating the sounds of late-'80s American indie rock to a modern radio rock setting in the '90s. In “Born in ’69,” “Young Livers,” and “Burnt Alive,” RFTC kept the spirit of Squirrel Bait and Dag Nasty for a generation that missed those bands. And despite John Reis’ cheekiness, “Used” and “Come See, Come Saw” are as rousing and inclusive as any songs by Springsteen. Let me translate: this album which didn’t chart at all in the US is evidently as important as an album from perhaps the most important artist of the 90s, brought to you by a band that neither you or me have ever heard of, keeping alive the tradition of another couple of bands that neither of us have ever heard of, fronted by a guy creating songs that are supposedly as great as those created by arguably the most important US rock singer of the last 40 years. Got it. With that as backdrop, I think I can sum this up more quickly. It was neither great, nor influential. In fact, it was repetitive and not good. And I, or really anyone, didn’t need to hear it. What a waste of a slot on a greatest of list. There is nothing about this album which provides any inkling of a reason as to why we had to hear it.

New Wave

The Auteurs

1/5

At first, it thought this album was ok. But the more I listened to it, the more it was the same thing over and over again. Worse yet, the singer lacks any type of range or strength to his voice. His falsetto is inferior. And their choruses are totally repetitive and uninspired (eg American Guitars and Starstruck). I’ll say it again, like I did on my last review for Rocket From The Crypt, there is no discernible reason why this album is on here. This band never did anything in the US, never had a top 20 UK album, top 40 single anywhere, nor did they influence anyone or anything. I don’t understand why this is included, and while it might be good enough to give a 2 (it’s better than RFTC), it gets a 1 because it does not belong anywhere near a list of top albums you need to hear. Go find the early albums from Live, Tonic, Toad The Wet Sprocket, or Vertical Horizon instead.

There's No Place Like America Today

Curtis Mayfield

3/5

I could see some people not liking this, but I thought this was a fun selection. Curtis Mayfield has a cool voice and this album is best when the funk is present. Billy Jack was a great opener, loved the groove throughout this track. I was less of a fan of When Seasons Change, just a sleepy song that didn’t do much for me. You could make the same argument about So In Love - that it was a bit sleepy - but I liked this one so much better. It was just a much fuller song, sung with more emotion. An excellent track. Next up was Jesus, decent song with interesting lyrics, but again there wasn’t much to this song. So I liked others better. Blue Monday People was another ok track, but not great. Hard Times was much better, again because of the funk within. Love To The People was a good closer, elevated by the guitar and horn work in the song. Definitely not a complete album, but it had a series of highlights and was a good listen.

Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs

Marty Robbins

4/5

An old time Western on a record! I had limited time to listen to this but it was worth a spin. Big Iron, El Paso, and Cool Water were my favorites. A tip of the hat to Marty for being a surprisingly good singer too.

The Only Ones

2/5

Another album which isn’t inherently bad, but shouldn’t be anywhere near this list because it is neither great nor influential, but is included solely because they are from the UK. If you listen to this album, it sounds like something straight from the late 60s with some later punk elements. Unfortunately, it’s the late 70s by the time they released it. Yes, an album that came a decade too late and the results, or lack thereof, shows. Sure, there are some highlights, such as the guitar work in the middle of Another Girl Another Planet, the construction of City of Fun (very interesting throughout). Sadly, the singer’s voice is very below average, like one of those 80s new wave bands, but without the interesting moments. And the lyrics are substandard too, eg the beginning of The Beast, which ruins what could have been an excellent song. It just isn’t, because everything about the signing is bad. When this happens, I openly wonder if this band knew that they were being held back by their front man? Then it occurs to me obviously not, as otherwise some of us might have heard of these guys before.

Stand!

Sly & The Family Stone

4/5

I had an old basketball coach who said he was front row at a Sly and the Family Stone concert and he had a terrible time because he had to hold the stage up so it wouldn’t collapse the entire time. That has nothing to do with this review and that’s 15 seconds you are never getting back. Though I will say, as I listen to this record, I would imagine S&TFS put on a great show, presuming you weren’t stuck holding up a stage the whole time. As for this album, I liked it. Stand is a high energy opener, good tune. The second song? Uhhh yeah, not touching that with a 39.5 foot pole. As this album progressed, I really liked a lot of the sonic elements, with different instruments or singers in different spots, and the overall sound of certain songs bouncing around from ear to ear. Everyday People is a genuinely great song. Short but powerful. Of course, that’s followed by the longest song on the album, Sex Machine, which was an ok jam but it just goes on too long. This is one of the lowlights, though those were few on the record. All in all, a good record and worth the time.

Who Killed...... The Zutons?

The Zutons

2/5

Another English band that I’ve never heard of. Awesome! Too many of these on this list, so maybe I went into this with some inherent bias based on the last 5+ I’ve listened to that weren’t that good. Let’s start at the beginning. Calling your band The Zutons, naming your album Who Killed The Zutons?, and then starting that record with a song called Zuton Fever? Trying to be cheeky? Making a statement? Whatever the intent, it failed. Bad song, and it barely got marginally better from there. At least I can say this, unlike the last few of these bands I listened to, the lead singer has an interesting/good voice. The band is pretty good too. Unfortunately, the song construction is terrible. Too many songs about nothing, that are aimless, with bad choruses, or all three. Havana Gang Brawl is a perfect example. When this started, I thought “finally something I can get into” only for the chorus to come up and deliver…nothing but repetition. So, Who Killed The Zutons? Sadly, no one fast enough. Anyone with a (much) quicker trigger would have sufficed. Instead, no one did the job and we ended up being stuck listening to this album. I will give a second star to this though, solely because they managed to hurdle the very low bar that is the other no-name English bands I’ve already listened to, and lumping them in with those others seems wrong.

Casanova

The Divine Comedy

3/5

This hasn't been a great recent run of albums for me. In the last week: The Zutons The Only Ones The Auteurs Rocket From The Crypt Add in Curtis Mayfield, Sly & The Family Stone, and Marty Robbins, that's 7 straight days of albums where I have heard a grand total of 1 of these songs before. That can be a good thing, as I like discovering new music, but for those four bands above it really hasn't been good. When this popped up, all I could think is "here we go again". But much to my surprise, I kind of liked this record. Not that it was amazing, and I expect that a lot of people will not like this (my hunch is the average rating is less than 3) since it is a bit of a bizarre listen, but at least it was different. Frankly, it's like listening to a Broadway musical album. What's interesting about it to me is that some of these songs come off as light, but they actually have a good amount of depth to them. I don't think this group takes itself too seriously, but it's not a farce, nor are they just mailing it in. There's a bombast that is reasonably enjoyable to me. Through a Long & Sleepless Night was a highlight for me, lots to this song and well constructed. 3 stars for the effort, even if this isn't normally my type of thing.

L.A. Woman

The Doors

4/5

The Doors are a band that I would never seek out, but I do enjoy them from time to time when I hear them on the radio. I've never listened to a full album from them, so I was interested to see whether I would like this entire record. This is an excellent album, even if it's not a cover to cover truly great record. Certainly, there are the songs that we all know: Lover Her Madly, Riders on the Storm, the title track. All classics and these alone would be enough to make this a worthy listen. But it wasn't just the hits, there were others on here that I enjoyed as well, The Changeling most notably. I liked the way this song just drove throughout. On the flip side, there were a couple of tracks on this which weren’t that good: L'America and The WASP chief among them. I can, at least, appreciate that they brought some variety to the album. That said, they do drag this record down from being truly great for me personally. All the same, a good listen. Four stars.

What's Going On

Marvin Gaye

5/5

I was stoked when this album popped up. Never listened to it, though I had heard a few of these songs a number of times. What really stood out to me was two things: 1. The way this album never really seemed to break, at least up through Mercy, Mercy Me. Everything just flowed into each other. I thought that was very cool. It did lead to the first part of this album sounding relatively homogenous, but since that sound was great, that didn't end up being a negative. 2. That this album has a really distinct and serious viewpoint, very pointed, and yet was light in it's approach at the same time. Excellent dichotomy. Mercy, Mercy Me is a song that I absolutely love. Admittedly, I am more used to hearing the Robert Palmer version, but the original is awesome. Great tune. Of course, everyone has heard this one and the title track too, which is a great song as well. But there were a bunch of other ones in this which were excellent like Flyin High. Right On was the one track that I wasn't really enamored with. This seemed to go on too long and wandered a bit aimlessly at times. The theme is good, no doubt, but this could have been much tighter. But that's nitpicking. Inner City Blues is a great tune, excellent way to close this album. Really great album.

Dusty In Memphis

Dusty Springfield

5/5

Dusty Springfield isn’t typically my thing, but this album was undeniably great. Her voice is so pure, and the songs are really well constructed. Love the orchestral backing on a lot of these tracks. Highlights: The Windmills of Your Mind - This sounded almost like a Bond theme to me at the beginning. Love the way her voice moves through this song, soft and subtle at the beginning and more strong at later points as the song grows. Don’t Forget About Me - This could have easily been a song that Aretha Franklin was singing. Just a very full song, with some cool guitar work in it too. Son of a Preacher Man - the biggest song off this album and for good reason. Very soulful with a great blend of different instruments hitting at just the right points opposite her voice. The closer, I Can’t Make it Alone, is another excellent tune. Dusty’s voice is pitch perfect on this one. This was a revelation. Exactly the type of thing I hoped to get out of this project. While I wouldn’t say I loved every song on this, there are no bad ones. A truly great album, which I never would have expected to say prior to listening to it.

At San Quentin

Johnny Cash

5/5

He’s called the Outlaw for a reason. Imagine having the balls to perform and record a performance in a prison. Then go and do it again. I haven’t listened to this album previously, or its predecessor from Folsom. I did read some say that Folsom was better, and if that’s true, I definitely need to check that out because I thought this was great. Wanted Man was a smart way to kick this off. It is a straight forward song, but it instantly connects him with the prisoners. They are already way into this by the time he plays San Quentin. Twice. Amazing that he just wrote it the day before, and then he goes and includes both on the recording. Awesome, mainly because of the reactions from the inmates. And that’s really what makes this great. It’s not a massive feat in intricate songwriting. Quite the opposite, actually, but that’s not the point. The prisoners wanted someone just like them up there, someone to recognize them, and that’s exactly what they got. This is great because of the simplicity and all the interaction with the crowd. A must listen for anyone

After The Gold Rush

Neil Young

3/5

Neil Young has always been a political activist and regardless of your position about his views, it's undeniable that this has generally resulted in a lot of great songs. Whether it is Ohio, Rockin In a Free World (my personal favorite), or Alabama, he's had a ton of impact through his music. That alone has also meant that Neil is rarely boring. Unfortunately, rarely doesn’t equal never, as is very evident on this album, as much of it played out as very dull for me. The dichotomy of his two protest anthems on this is really a microcosm for the rest of this record. Yes, Southern Man is a great song and impactful, but that's balanced out by After The Gold Rush, which is less on both fronts. Of course, the latter might be worse simply because he sings in his higher register the entire song and that's where is voice is the weakest when it's not supported by others in a harmony. Regardless, I just didn't like that song at all. There were other high points on this album. Most notably, I loved Don't Let It Bring You Down, which was backed by some great acoustic guitar and piano. A song I was instantly drawn to. But these great songs were too few and far between. I had previously listened to Rust Never Sleeps, and that's a far superior album to this one. This was average at best for my ear.

Murder Ballads

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

3/5

Whew, what can you say about this album? They killed it! This album slays!! Imagine the sacrifice that went into this record. Ok, I’m done. Ooh, one more. The execution on this was amazing! This was, how shall we say it, an interesting album. At first, I just didn’t think I was going to get through an album full of songs about murder. But the more I played this, the more I appreciated it for the storytelling and how the songs were built. Is this something I would pick up and listen to over and over again? No. But taking it for what it is, this is a solid effort. Not sure I need five Nick Cave albums on this list, but at least this one got me intrigued to hear the other four.

Let Love Rule

Lenny Kravitz

3/5

I love a lot of Lenny Kravitz’s stuff. Whether it’s huge hits like Are You Gonna Go My Way or Again, to other stuff like Low, there’s so much of his music that I like. When this popped up, I was excited to listen to it front to back. But I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed with this. Not that it’s a bad album, per se. It’s just not nearly as good as I hoped. To be sure, there are some good tunes. Let Love Rule is great and I really liked Rosemary. And the whole vibe of this record, along with Kravitz’s voice, is very cool. Too often, though, the choruses in these songs were very basic and repetitive. It’s like the ideas for the songs were there, but he didn’t know how to flush it all out. For that reason, this ended up being just an average album for me. Would love to give him more, but can’t give it more than 3 stars.

Document

R.E.M.

4/5

It's interesting to me that REM is categorized as Alt Rock which took off in popularity and was the music I loved in the 90s, but REM kind of predated that and really first hit it big in the late 80s. They are a talented band, they've just never been my thing. I do like tunes like Losing My Religion, Nightswimming, Driver 8, but they have just as many songs that I don't really care for like Man on the Moon, Stand, or Orange Crush. It's very hit or miss for me and I think I've only ever owned Automatic For The People. That's a roundabout way of saying I've never experienced this album. Like anyone else, I've heard It's the End of the World As We Know It a bunch (Tommy Boy!). And because our middle school cafeteria got a jukebox installed in 1987, I am super familar with The One I Love, as that song was played basically every day by classmates at lunch. That means this album was already +2 on the love REM / hate REM count, which probably helped. That said, I actually enjoyed this record more than I anticipated. The first thing that really strikes me is how great the recording is. King of Birds is a perfect example: you can really hear all of the nuances built into this, whether it's the tweaked guitar, the varying drums, the overlapping vocals, etc. Beyond this, there are some cool songs beyond It's the End of me naming this song and The One I Love. Welcome To The Occupation was had some great harmonies throughout and is the type of song I generally really like. Oddfellows Local 151 was a cool closer, and just something a bit different, even for REM. It started to border on a harder rock song with the more prominent bass, which I don't think is the isn't super typical for their songs. Not everything is amazing on this record, and the quality of the songwriting wanes for me at times, but there's more than enough on here to warrant it's inclusion on this list.

Tidal

Fiona Apple

5/5

This is a great album. When it popped up, my daughter screamed “you’re gonna love it” and she was right. Her smoky and rich voice, along with some great piano playing make for a great combination. Of course, I love piano in songs, and one of my favorite modern artists is Sara Bareilles. Apple’s voice isn’t nearly as great as SB’s, but it’s perhaps cooler and certainly strong in its own right. I already knew that Criminal was an excellent tune, but there’s a lot more which is great on this record. Sleep To Dream was released as a single before Criminal, which is too bad, as that probably would have built on or at least consolidated the success of Criminal if it was released afterwards. I loved Pale September too. Her voice sounds excellent on this tune. There’s a series of other well constructed songs as well. Bottom line is that this is an excellent album, especially for a debut. There’s an amazing sophistication about this album for how young she was when she recorded it. Really a great effort.

Sail Away

Randy Newman

2/5

Not sure how to feel about this album. Randy’s a superb songwriter. This has been proven over and over again. Unfortunately, his voice is just subpar and listening to a whole album of him is clearly not for me. There’s some decent songs on here: Last Night I Had a Dream for one. Political Science is very cheeky, as is You Can Leave Your Hat On. Memo To My Son was cute and well constructed. But his voice!!!! Ugh, I don’t need to listen to 40 minutes of songs that sound like the bears from Splash Mountain. Just not my thing.

Bat Out Of Hell

Meat Loaf

4/5

Anyone who listens to classic rock hears some of these songs on the radio regularly. And some of you are undoubtedly like me: while I don’t go seeking them out, I find myself singing right along when they come on. What was interesting is listening this album front to back, as it’s actually quite good. Paradise By The Dashboard Lights is always so much fun. That they including the Phil Rizzuto part always kills me (even if he didn’t know what it was for, which actually might make it better). But the way this track moves through different parts and phases is the true genius that drives this song. Truly great. There’s so much to like on this beyond that tune though. Right from the jump, the title track is an epic tune that’s just in your face, over the top, and really lets you know what you are in store for across the rest of the album. A great way to open. Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad is another fun song, as is You Took The Words Right Out of My Mouth (even if the opening is super strange). The low point for me was For Crying Out Loud, which I thought was a bit boring at times. Even then, Meat Loaf’s voice is great and the orchestral backing soars at numerous points. The roll up is that this was way better than I anticipated. Meat Loaf’s voice is great and there are a lot of intricacies to these songs which make them interesting. Is it bombastic and exaggerated? No doubt, but that shouldn’t diminish how well constructed this album is.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elton John

5/5

We all know that Elton John is one of the most accomplished artists in history. I've always liked certain songs (I'm Still Standing, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me) and his catalog is astonishingly large, but he's never been one of my go-to musicians. That said, I am very drawn to many piano playing artists, whether it's Bruce Hornsby, Billy Joel, Sara Bareilles and others. So, I figured I would like this, but I had no idea how much. This is an incredible album. Candle in the Wind is an iconic song, not much more needs to be said. I know that Bennie and the Jets is one of his biggest selling songs, but I've never really understood why. It's a good song, but there are others that are much better. For example, Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting is a much more fun song. I would rather listen to the latter than the former. The title track is another excellent tune, especially the sweeping chorus. It's almost whimsical but it simultaneously has a lot of depth. Other highlights for me beyond the hits: Funeral For a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding: Yeah, the first 3:30 of the opening track is a waste but after that, it's a great way to kick off this album. Never knew that Elton had prog rock in him! An excellent song with tons of cool layers to it. Grey Seal: reminded me of Billy Joel's Miami 2017 for some reason, though it predates Joel’s by a few years. Something about the speed of the playing that felt similar. It had a smidge of a disco feel, which it also predated (at least mainstream disco) by a few years. All the Girls Love Alice: reminded me of I'm Still Standing in the non-chorus parts, really liked this one. Your Sister Can't Twist: I think Bernie and Elton sat down and said, "what if the Beach Boys were on unlimited stimulants?" Lots of fun to listen to. I was totally struck by the fullness of the sound and diversity of these songs. From front to back, it's abundantly clear how great a set of writers Bernie Taupin and EJ are. You do not get cheated on really any of these songs. An amazing effort.

With The Beatles

Beatles

3/5

Yes, the Beatles are the biggest band of all time and for good reason, but this album wasn't an amazing record for me. The good: There’s actually a lot of diversity in the sound of a lot of these songs, at least more than I expected at this stage in their careers. And that sound is really quite great, if we look at these songs through the lens of the time in which they were written. Also, they are excellent singers and the songs are generally fun and catchy. The bad: Where there wasn't diversity? The theming. I'm going to get the girl, I am going to call the girl, I'm going to kiss/love the girl, I've lost the girl, the girl is far away, I'm with the girl . . . even where's my letter from my girl? We were halfway through the album before something different finally came on with Roll Over Beethoven. Oh and then right back to the girl: please hold me, she has a hold on me, I want to be with her, she loves me but she's the devil, I'm not giving her another chance. Mercifully, a song about money to close the album. Sure, not the greatest theme ever - I just want money - but at least it wasn't being used to get a girl! This will undoubtedly be well rated because it is the Beatles, but this really didn't get a hold on me (yes, I did just bend one of their songs). It's good, but not great.

Black Sabbath

4/5

Not surprised to see this show up today. My daughter got it too on the day of Ozzy Osbourne's passing. I've heard a lot of Black Sabbath's music, but I've never listened to this album in its entirety. I’m guessing when this came out it was unlike anything else that was out there at that time. The dark and twisted picture it paints is very cool, actually. Speaking of cool, Ozzy's voice has always been one of the greatest in rock history. Not technically speaking, of course, there are others who have greater range for example. But it's just so different from other amazing voices and perfect for their group and this album. The title track is unique and just a great song. Nothing like announcing yourself to the rest of the world with that song. As a side note, I loved how Ozzy’s voice bounced back and forth in my headphones on Wasp (etc). The rest of the tune was excellent as well, much like a lot of this album. Just a fun record to go back and visit. It’s hard to imagine that it came out over 50 years ago. RIP Ozzy.

Ingenue

k.d. lang

2/5

Getting KD Lang the day after Black Sabbath is almost unfair. Sabbath brings an amazing force to their records. KD Lang is almost the exact opposite. This record has a very laid back feel. Sadly, it never really departs from that until the very end, and it ends up making this record pretty lackluster in my eyes. Save Me saunters along, almost in a very slow southern type of way. A pretty basic chorus, but there is something about this song that crawls along with just enough interesting aspects to keep me engaged. A decent start. Unfortunately, she follows this up with a series of very sleepy songs that barely hold my interest. At least until Season of the Hollow Soul, which has some nice layers to it. Frankly, this had a similar feel of the types of songs that Sting was writing around the same time (the cello helps, the la la las do not). Of course, it's then back to more laid back songs . . . Until the closer, of course. Constant Craving is, by far, her best known song and for good reason. This is a very well constructed song which shows off KD's voice really well. But this was about it for selections that are memorable. The rest of the time KD's vocals are backed by a bunch of lackluster songs that have a bit of character, but not nearly enough to hold anyone's attention.

KIWANUKA

Michael Kiwanuka

5/5

I was really unsure of what to expect from this album. Never heard of Michael Kiwanuka and, to be honest, most of the artists they have included who are only popular in the UK have had no business sniffing this list, let alone being included. This one, however, has been a welcomed change from those other inferior musicians. It's cool to listen to artists you have never heard of IF they are deserving of being on this list, which Kiwanuka definitely is. This album has a really interesting blend between soul and rock. The best way I can sum it up is that there is just a cool atmosphere throughout this record. Frankly, as I listen to this, it feels like a toned down Lenny Kravitz with the volume lowered a notch or two. Highlights for me: - Piano Joint: Awesome, awesome song. Just loved the feel of this. - Living in Denial: A throw-back to songs from the 60s / early 70s. This could have easily fit on some of those old Marvin Gaye albums. - Hero: starts simple but grows really well. Another great tune. To be honest, I am smack dab at 4.5 stars for this, as it’s not a perfect album, but I am giving it 5 for three reasons. 1. By using that picture on the cover and self-titling this, it's as if he is saying "this is me, take it or leave it." Note: You should definitely take it. 2. Finding stuff like this is exactly what I hoped to get out of this list. 3. Something happened to me on this album which rarely happens: I got chills listening to Piano Joint the first time through. Well deserved rounding up.

Ghosteen

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

2/5

I just don’t understand how there are so many Nick Cave albums on here. I get that he is unique. And no doubt that this one is cool in concept, first album is from the perspective of the children, the second from the parents. Great way of constructing. Unfortunately, the broad brush does not create a complete painting, and the individual constructions that are each song are not that good. Beyond this, Nick’s voice is not that interesting to me. This is one of those classic cases of the “experts” loving something (ie critics) while the customers don’t (ie the listeners). This is widely critically acclaimed, and yet the people on this album journey have voted this as under 3 stars. The simple fact is that this is just pretentious and boring, and it’s why it’s less than average with fans of actual music.

Music for the Masses

Depeche Mode

3/5

I like Depeche Mode. They are definitely a different sounding band, but they are accessible enough to be pretty popular. I own a good amount of their stuff around the turn of 90s, but I’ve never listened to this album, so I was intrigued about listening to this. It’s interesting in that you can definitely hear the sound that they hone in the coming years, but this is certainly a bit rawer. That said, I have to say that putting this on the list instead of Violator is a crime. This album doesn't have a whole lot of great songs. There’s a few, but those pale in comparison to World In My Eyes, Personal Jesus, Policy of Truth, Enjoy The Silence and others. Violator is vastly superior in just about every way, and I would encourage anyone reading this to go find that album. It’s a much more complete sound and listen. As for this one, an average effort at best.

Morrison Hotel

The Doors

3/5

Another Doors album! Good band, not my favorite though. LA Woman was an excellent record, so color me interested. This record gets off to a great start with Roadhouse Blues, a tune I've heard a bunch of times. Super fun with tons of energy. Love this song. The rest of the album doesn't live up to the opener, but in fairness that's a pretty high bar. There's still some good stuff on here, and Morrison's voice is very cool throughout. That said, it's not as good an album as LA Woman. A solid effort, but definitely an inferior album to others.

Illinois

Sufjan Stevens

2/5

This strange album requires a bit of a different review than I normally give. The good: the instrumentation is solid throughout, the nod to Quiet Riot in the album title, the song Chicago. The bad: the singing is very substandard - airy, limited range, just no weight, adding nothing to the songs - and the lyrics aren't that good either. The ridiculous: The names of some of these songs. I do think that when an artist does what Stevens does - e.g. the theming without a real point, the extraordinarily long song titles - it’s a form of compensating for the fact that the songs aren't that good. When it takes longer to read the title than to play the whole, something isn't right. In this case, it's the songs. Not a total waste of time, but pretty close.

Dookie

Green Day

4/5

I remember when I first heard Green Day, I thought “yeah this is ok but they will be gone soon.” I never thought Green Day would stick around as long as they have, let alone be super popular. What I underestimated is how catchy some of these tunes are. Yeah, it could be classified as punk, with all of these short, fast-burn songs. But there's a certain appeal to their music that hits closer to mainstream rock in a way that a lot of other punk rock bands do not. Things I liked about this: - It's full of fun, well-constructed songs. I liked how some songs blended into others (e.g. Chump into Longview) - Billie Joe's signing has never been great to me, but given the style, he certainly adds to the songs. - There were a lot of things I heard while listening to this on headphones that I never picked up on the radio, especially in Welcome to Paradise. - The lyrics are good and not random / aimless like some of what I have heard from their contemporaries on this list from the other side of the pond. BTW, All By Myself was just a disturbing closer. That's all I'll say! Their still not going to be a band I really turn to regularly, and until today, I've not had any of their music in my own personal library. That said, this changed today after listening to this album, as there is no doubt that they have some fun/cool songs and that this is an excellent record.

Liege And Lief

Fairport Convention

3/5

British folk rock. Meh. This genre really produced very little music that you hear today, which should tell you about its importance in the annals of music. That said, it might have helped to spawn Jethro Tull, so bonus points there. This album is fine, though nothing spectacular. The lead singer's voice is very good. There's a touch of Grace Slick in there. Grace was certainly more powerful and rock oriented, while Sandy Denny's voice is more melancholy at times, even haunting. Really technically sound. Both are pretty distinctive. The songs here are decent, many of which are old English folk songs. Interestingly, I actually much preferred what the band created themselves (especially the harmonies on Come All Ye, Crazy Man Michael) vs. what they covered. I also liked the guitar work throughout this, better than most. Not amazing, but good enough for a listen and worthy of inclusion on this list, at least more so that some of the British bands which were included that shouldn't have been. 3 stars.

The Marshall Mathers LP

Eminem

3/5

I was really looking forward to listening to this when it showed up as my next album, but I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed. Let me start with the good. Eminem has a great rapping style. I like how bounces around his rhythm a bit, but it always feels right for the song. Beyond this, he tends to have a good song construction behind his raps, even if they are simple at times. It all just fits together really well. Meanwhile, the song Stan has always been a favorite of mine. A great, great tune. What I didn't like was a few things. Let’s start with the swearing. This doesn't bother me at all, except that because it was nonstop, it made it seem like he lacked for other ideas (incredibly) or that he was trying to sound tougher / harder than he really is. Also, the song Kim is terrible. Just hideous. Finally, it’s fair to knock him down a bit for the homophobia and misogyny. Just too much of it for me. Right now I am sitting between a 3 and a 4 and, in truth, if I could give this 3.5 I would. But I am moving to a 3 because, by the end of this album, I was tired of listening to it.

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

2/5

I am not an Amy Winehouse fan. I find it strange that people lionize her, when her one hit was about not going to rehab, and then she died from alcohol poisoning just a couple of years later. Is it too bad that she died? Of course it is. But people make her greater than she was as a result. Admittedly, when I started listening to this album, I knew it would be hard for me to get past my predisposition, especially with Rehab being the first song on the record. I openly hate that song. To me, it represents a life wasted (seriously no pun intended). I will say, as I listened to this, it is easy to admit that she has a cool voice. Relatively distinctive. She reminds me of a rockier version of Norah Jones. I’ve seen some compare her to Adele, which is downright unfair because AW pales in comparison. But it was a good instrument that she had. This album has a major throw back feel. Not sure if I like it or not, to be honest. It is fascinating that she stuck to this style throughout, so I give her credit for holding the line. There a few good songs on this, the title track among them. For my ear, that’s probably the best song on the album. Beyond this, I was pleased to see that she diverged from the Rehab type of material. Of course, that was until she closed with Addicted, which is another song I didn’t like. And ultimately, that’s the problem with this album, too many songs about how bad she is. I openly wonder if she succumbed to the pressure of trying to live up to this persona. As for this album, it ultimately felt disingenuous to me and for that reason, I would put it at 2 stars. If there’s a bright side, that’s one more than I thought I would give coming into it.

The Message

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

4/5

I liked this album a lot. If I recall correctly, GF&TFF were early pioneers to use turntables to manipulate sounds like scratching, and it's cool to hear this at an early stage on this record. But they are bringing a lot more than just being pioneers on this front. They have a lot of great grooves and the commentary is excellent throughout. The song dedicated to Stevie Wonder - Dreaming - was an interesting departure from a lot of the rest of the album. Cool song. The piano and singing on You Are was awesome, really complimented each other. The highlight here is definitely the title track. The Message is a great song, powerful in its message. Loved the way the rap changed rhythms throughout. I know this has been sampled a bunch of times, but beyond this it's been very influential in setting a new direction for rap. A truly important song in the annals of music. And for that reason, this album is a must hear for anyone. Really great.

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

5/5

I'm a long time PinkFloyd fan and am very familiar with this album already. It's a classic. The songs on this are amazing. And though it's easier to have no bad tunes when you have a lower number of songs, this album doesn't have any missteps. It's great from beginning to end. Personally, I've always liked the way they have bookended this album with Shine On You Crazy Diamond. In my opinion, none of it is as good as the three songs in between, though that's a super high bar, and it's always interesting to hear all of the different layers in those two halves of the song. As for those tracks in between: Welcome to the Machine is probably my favorite song on this album. It's far from a traditional rock track, no doubt, and the lyrics are very ominous. But I love how all of this comes together to paint a pretty dark picture. A great, great tune. Have a Cigar is more of a traditional rock song in some ways. Love the lyrics to this, especially the "by the way, which one's Pink" line. Even if they are brief in nature, still really well written. Wish You Were Here is quintessential Floyd. A great song that couldn't have come from any other band. This is what really strikes me about this album, is how well constructed it is. Frankly, I've always preferred David Gilmour as a singer to Roger Waters, though Waters is undoubtedly the better writer and the more meaningful stuff has come from when he was in the band. Wish You Were Here as an album is a great example of this. A 5 star album, no doubt. Amazing songs, powerful, great playing, and a complete album.

Step In The Arena

Gang Starr

3/5

This was a throwback for me. I liked a lot of late 80s early 90s rap, and though I was never into these guys, it sounded like a lot of stuff I enjoyed back then. They have a simple, straightforward style but the lyrics were strong and the package was good enough to where this was worth a listen. Reminded me a bit of A Tribe Called Quest, Eric B & Rakim, or De La Soul at different times. I really liked Step Into the Arena and Take a Rest. There’s a few other good songs on this album too. Not a great record overall, but definitely solid.

Blue Lines

Massive Attack

3/5

Trip hop!!!! Yes!! Ok, so I’d never heard of Trip Hop before I started blazing through these 1,000+ albums. I got Tricky earlier and enjoyed his album, so I figured I might like this. It was good, though far from amazing. It did get off to a great start with Safe From Harm. That was an excellent song. Unfortunately, they threw all that momentum away with One Love, which desperately needed to be sped up a few notches. I found this one to be very boring. Most of the rest of the album was up and down. I have to say, I kind of get why Tricky decided to go solo. He’s the most interesting voice after the first song on this record. I like the vibe of this album, and it has some diverse sounds to it, but the individual songs aren’t that great, and it’s far from complete. A solid effort all the same.

Sheer Heart Attack

Queen

4/5

Another Queen album that I was pleasantly surprised by. We are so used to the bombastic Queen that can be heard on the radio all the time. This had a more straightforward rock feel to me, even a harder edge at times in numerous songs, and I much prefer this version of Queen. Killer Queen is an excellent song, but there’s a lot more on this record that is worth staying for. Brighton Rock is a cool opener, though I much prefer the guitar solo in the middle of this tune than any of the vocal parts. Tenement Funster is more of a traditional rock song too from the band. Liked this one as well. To be sure, there’s plenty in the “this is what we are used to” category for Queen. The two In The Lap Of The Gods songs are good examples of this. Very rock opera-ish and fun listens. I really enjoyed Misfire. This reminded me a lot of Don’t Treat Me Bad by Firehouse for some reason. Just a bunch of different styles throughout this record. Really good.

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin

5/5

First Zeppelin album on the list for me, though I have heard a lot of these songs before. An excellent record, no doubt. Tons of great songs. Immigrant Song, Tangerine, and Gallows Pole have always been favorites from me on this record. All excellent tunes. There’s so much more to like on here though, whether it’s Bron-Y-Aur Stomp, Friends, and others. The way they all blend together is incredible, one of the great bands of all time and an amazing record.

Sunshine Hit Me

The Bees

1/5

Sorry, but this is when I get pissed. 1,001 albums is a lot, but there’s a massive amount of great music out there. Way beyond a thousand albums. And these English writers put this crap on here? It serves no point, drives no emotion, is ineffectual . . . I could go on. So let me. It has inferior production quality, poor song construction, the singing isn’t good, nor does it influence anything. If only the Sunshine hit this band and gave them an ounce of musical talent or originality. Instead, they tried to recreate a Beatles album circa the early 60s. In the 2000s. With no talent, and nothing upbeat. There have been some bad English albums on this list, but this is the worst. Why? In short, it’s boring. Shame on the authors of this book, taking a spot with this useless record. Nothing worth listening to and it certainly shouldn’t be anywhere near this list.

Come Find Yourself

Fun Lovin' Criminals

3/5

This album was such fun. I was lovin’ this! It’s criminal that I hadn’t listened to it before! You see what I did there? Yeah, that was about as subtle as this album was. I had actually totally forgotten about these guys. Then Scooby Snacks came on and I was like “Oh yeah, I remember this!” It’s fine. That song is cool, and there are some other good grooves on this record. Nothing that is winning any Grammy’s, but it was fine. A solid 3.

Violent Femmes

3/5

This is a weird one for me. Yes, the signing is generally subpar. The acoustic guitar and drumming are pretty basic. It wants to be punk but doesn't truly get close to that level. But that bass! And the fact that they don't seem to take things too seriously ("and your happy, this is only a guess"). It all just kind of works. To a point at least. This isn't an amazing album, but I kind of dug it for some strange reason. It's like a movie that sucked at the box office in the theaters but then achieved cult classic. It takes a while to find its audience, but when it does, that audience stands fiercely by it.

Ill Communication

Beastie Boys

4/5

The Beastie Boys are one of those bands that probably should get more credit then they already receive. Yeah they've sold tons of records and I believe they are part of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (whatever you think of that), but they really are pioneers in different ways and have been pretty influential on many others including Eminem. This album is a prime example of what they are capable of. We've all heard Sabotage and for good reason. That's one of those songs that just hit on all airwaves, whether it’s rap, rock, alternative, or pop. It was just huge in the 90s and arguably one of the best songs of that decade. But there's a lot more to like on this record, whether it is the other song you sometimes hear on the radio (Sure Shot), a collaboration with Biz Markie (Do It), other great back and forth raps, and one cool instrumental (Eugene's Lament, which I loved). I would give this a five, but two things hold me back: 1. Though it's a way more refined sound on this record, this album isn't as good or as complete as Paul's Boutique. 2. There are too many instrumentals on here (Eugene’s Lament as the exception). All the same, a very good album.

Rhythm Nation 1814

Janet Jackson

5/5

Though I never owned this album, I remember when the various videos from this came out and were all over MTV right at the turn of the decade. But I must admit I had forgotten how many really great songs were on this record. I think I recognize no less than 7 singles off of this album, if I am counting correctly, which is pretty incredible. Personally, I have always liked Come Back to Me the best. There's something about this song, whether it's the groove or the despair / vulnerability of Janet's voice throughout, it definitely moves me more than anything else on this album. That said, the other singles are really excellent songs. And if you think about how she made huge hits out of Escapade, Love Will Never Do Without You, Miss You Much, Rhythm Nation, and others all within months of each other? Consider how different some of these songs are from each other, whether it's tempo, tone, complexity, etc. It's really quite an amazing effort, and a testament to the writing. Of course, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have worked with so many different great R&B artists, but I think Janet wrote (or co-wrote) a lot of the big hits on this record, and she's the one that really makes them come alive. There's some other songs on here that are excellent as well. The best of these to me is State of the World. Though the theming is a ton different, the sound of this one reminded me a ton of Johnny Gill's Rub You the Right Way - Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis probably borrowed from themselves, since they wrote both. I was instantly drawn in by this one. While this album has 20 tracks, that's a bit of a misnomer since 8 of them are just interludes. The core 12 songs on here individual and collectively are great. This is easily a 5 star album for me. Frankly, this is one of the few complete albums I have listened to so far on this list.

Giant Steps

The Boo Radleys

2/5

Never listened to the Boo Radleys before and I can’t say I have been missing out all this time. This has some good aspects to it and they sound reasonably talented. I also like some of the distortion they used throughout and this is somewhat similar to other stuff I like. The problem with this is that basically every song devolves into an instrumental ending full of the same notes over and over again. This happens right from the jump with I Hang Suspended and is a running theme throughout the album. It’s almost like they had no clue how to finish songs. For that reason alone, this gets a major downgrade for me.

Imagine

John Lennon

3/5

I think we all recognize that the Beatles are one of the great bands of all time. But this is the second time I’ve had a post Beatles album from one of the band members that I have been disappointed with. Imagine is a great, great song, but the next few on this album are really subpar. It’s not until I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier Mama that this album picks back up. After that, it’s better but still far from great. I did think How Do You Sleep was excellent and I actually somewhat enjoyed Oh Yoko. However, that was counterbalanced by Oh My Love, which is about as elementary a song as I’ve heard in a while, which is saying something given the amount of shitty not-even-a-hit-in-the-UK English bands that I have heard on this 1,001 album list. Overall, this record was not terribly inspired other than Imagine and the few politically driven tracks. It is, at best, average for me.

Astral Weeks

Van Morrison

2/5

Van Morrison has a series of excellent tunes. Brown Eyed Girl is one of those songs that everyone loves and I have always been a big fan of Into the Mystic. Sadly, nothing on this album remotely comes close to either of those tunes. Frankly, a lot of this comes off as the same song over and over again, becoming a repetitive bore.

The Hour Of Bewilderbeast

Badly Drawn Boy

1/5

Crap English Band Alert!!! Another entry from a UK act that doesn’t belong on this list. This album has very little going for it. The one song I liked was Everybody’s Stalking, mainly because it sounds a bit like Alice In Chains’ Got Me Wrong. Everything else was very bland. This guy’s voice is below average and the songs were not well built out. Better than a couple of the others who sucked on this list, but still getting 1 star out of spite.

Get Behind Me Satan

The White Stripes

2/5

I’ve never really listened to the White Stripes, but know a series of people who like them. And since Seven Nation Army is an excellent song, I was interested to see how this was. Unfortunately, I was pretty disappointed with this album. The songs are pretty simple with limited hooks. The singing is below par. I read that it cost less than $10k to produce this record and it shows. A subpar effort.

Will The Circle Be Unbroken

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

2/5

Have you ever been to Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom? That's what this album is. It's like listening to the Country Bear Jamboree or the music on the old Splash Mountain. And as enjoyable as those can be, I don’t want to listen to that for two hours straight. That's not to say this doesn't have merits. The guitar, violin, etc. playing is excellent, as are many of the harmonies. I just don't need 2 hours of this sound. Add in that it is a bunch of remakes and not original music, leaves this one towards the bottom of the barrel. Still giving it a 2 though, because this isn’t a band that is devoid of talent.

Connected

Stereo MC's

4/5

I I get that some people might not like this, but I really enjoyed listening to this album. Of course, I was pre disposed to liking this, as Connected is one of those one-off songs from the 90s that I have always loved. But there’s a lot more on here than just the title track. Ground Level, Sketch, Fade Away and others all hit for me. Interestingly, I wasn’t as big a fan of Step it Up, which was bigger than Connected in the UK. I just think there are much better songs than that track on this record. It’s not amazing throughout, and front half of this album is definitely better than the back half, but the songs generally hit a good groove for my ear. A worthwhile listen.

Nothing's Shocking

Jane's Addiction

4/5

I really enjoy alternative music and this album is right at the start of when that genre had shifted away from punk and college rock, into what it would ultimately become in the 90s. This is a bit before alternative truly became popular though. It isn't a complete record, but it’s very good. No doubt that there are some definite highlights on this album, such as the back half of Ted, Just Admit It. The playing on this is excellent. Mountain Song and Idiot's Rule are similarly very good, the latter of which gave me an early Red Hot Chili Peppers vibe. That said, all of these songs have a bit of a problem. That problem is Perry Farrell, if we are being honest about it. His has an inferior voice, almost whiny at times. In short, his singing just isn't that good. It's too bad, because Dave Navarro's playing on this is excellent, even amazing at times, as is the rest of the band. They are just held back at this stage by Farrell. The sole song where I thought he truly added to the music is Jane Says. Other than that, he is generally a detractor from the sound, rather than enhancing it as a great frontman should. All the same, there's more than enough meat on the bone on this record for anyone to give it a spin, especially given that it is at the forefront of the alternative movement.

Californication

Red Hot Chili Peppers

5/5

I've been a fan of the Chili Peppers since the 80s with Mother's Milk came out, as I just loved Knock Me Down and their version of Higher Ground. And then they followed that up with the amazing Blood Sugar Sex Magik record, which just reaffirmed my love for this band. They had so many great songs in the 90s and beyond. I would encourage anyone to go find Go Robot and Dark Necessities off of The Getaway album, two great tunes. Back to this record, as this album was a punctuation mark on their domination of the 90s. When you listen to it, you understand why. Personally, my favorite tune on this record is Parallel Universe, a song that just drives throughout. A great, great tune. Really, though, all of the singles from this record are excellent, from Otherside to Scar Tissue to Around the World to the title track. These five are all part of the first six songs on this disc, which is an incredible start. Yes, the record wanes a bit from there, but it would be nearly impossible to match that amazing front half of the album. Even then, there’s still a ton of great music in that back half. These guys have a massive amount of great tunes, but this record is probably their best, most complete one. A five star effort.

Dirty

Sonic Youth

2/5

Meh. This album was just meh. Wanted to like it, as the playing wasn’t bad. The singing was just not good.

The Slim Shady LP

Eminem

2/5

It’s Eminem! He’s cool! We have to love this! Right? Well, not really. Rapping style is cool. The background music can be good. And that’s about where it ends. There’s just a ton of subject matter on here which is stupid. “Hey daughter of mine, why don’t you and I go to the beach while I tie a rock to mommy’s foot so she can lie on her bed at the bottom of the ocean.” “Hey girl, I might have accidentally killed you with too many mushrooms.” Huh? Don’t even get me started on the 15 year old girl song. Saying this hasn’t aged well is a cop out, as it’s the same back then as it is now. Some people would call this edgy. Or even say it’s meant to be a dumb character / funny. But it’s just dumb.

Time Out

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

4/5

I generally enjoy listening to these old jazz albums, especially now that my son does jazz band at his school. This one proved to be no different. Take Five is one of those songs that you have definitely heard, whether it is in some show or an old ad. I feel like this was in an ad for some luxury item or an old Apple commercial. It's very cool and well constructed. Definitely the highlight of this album. But stick around for the other tunes as well. Excellent playing, both individually and together. Love to hear actual talent like this, seems like that is kind of lost these days.

McCartney

Paul McCartney

2/5

This is the second "solo" McCartney album I have gotten, after the Wings Band on the Run album. Like that one, I am very disappointed with this. Having quickly perused the backstory for this record, I have a theory. Paul knew John was leaving the Beatles, the Beatles were breaking up, and he wanted to announce that he was going solo before that all became public. That's the only reason I can see for insisting this come out before the Let It Be album. It also makes sense when you listen to this record, which clearly has limited effort put into it. It obviously was rushed by an artist who was lost at the time. The Lovely Linda has potential, but it was more of a concept than an actual song. A strange way to start, effectively announcing "hey world, I'm on my own . . . but I only have half flushed out ideas." I think That Would Be Something sounds cool. It's a borderline Led Zeppelinesque type of song. However, if you measure that against LZ, it pales considerably in comparison mainly because the lyrics are limited and repetitive. It does, however, hurdle the low bar that was the first track. Of course, we are right back down in the valley with Valentine's Day. A short instrumental that serves no purpose. Fortunately, the yo-yo bounces back up slightly with Every Night, a relatively tame song which sounds alright and has some decent guitar work. And then down again with Hot As Sun / Glasses . . . a 35-minute album with this many instrumentals? I thought McCartney was an incredible songwriter? We are 5 songs in, but we have yet to truly hit a complete song. Junk was pretty much that. 6 songs in now. Man We Was Lonely must be a metaphor where the "Man" = other lyrics, as of the 30 lines in the song, 12 have "we was lonely" in them. Oo You I kind of dug, mainly because I think Paul FINALLY gets into a song. The energy is much better on this tune, making it one of the highlights of the album. Yet another instrumental with Momma Miss America. This one is a bit better because it the tune comes together pretty well in a borderline psychedelic type of vibe. Teddy Boy felt more like a complete song, though I found it kind of boring. And then a 4th instrumental with the poorly named Singalong Junk. Thankfully, we finally get to the highlight of this album with Maybe I'm Amazed. This is an excellent song that rightfully has a strong place in the annals of classic rock. Unfortunately, I wasn't amazed by anything that preceded this track on this record. Lastly, like the start of this album, Paul takes a strange approach to closing this album with Kreen-Akrore. Yeah the drums are ok, and the limited guitar is decent, but what was the point? An aimless track that just doesn't do anything but put a stamp on an underwhelming effort. Also, 5 instrumentals? On a 13-track album? Only 35 minutes in length? If I look at this through an incredibly narrow lens, I can maybe see the point. It's Paul experimenting with going solo, with different sounds, different approaches, etc. Perhaps there's some value in this to him, but to the listener it's pretty limited. I can't help but guess that many people felt like they got ripped off when they bought this record. It's a very underwhelming effort where Paul appears to mail it in.

Chirping Crickets

Buddy Holly & The Crickets

4/5

Whenever I listen to something from thus far back, I think I have to take it in the context of the time when it was made. With that as backdrop, this proves to be an excellent record. Yes, the background singers aren’t that great. It’s true that the songs are simple and straightforward. But there’s still a lot to like about this. The tunes are catchy. Buddy Holly’s voice is excellent and he shows a ton of character, well beyond what you would normality hear on most any record from his contemporaries. And some of the guitar playing is pretty different from the sounds of that them. That makes it a record which stands out vs. it’s peers, which makes it a 4 for me.

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

4/5

This is an excellent album. Yes, 90's alternative is right up my alley and I remember when this came out while I was in college. Maybe NIN are a bit harder than I might usually like, but not egregiously so. And while I could see where some would be turned off by this record, eventually by the end of it, I loved it. The way that Trent Renzor constructs song, especially alternating between aggression and a softer tone, I think is very cool. Closer is a great song, as is Hurt, but there's lots more to like on this record, whether it is Piggy, I Do Not Want This, Eraser, or others. It's not a perfect record, but it's still really good and one of the best of the decade.

Deja Vu

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

4/5

This is the third time I have had Neil Young in some form on this list in under 100 albums and this is probably the best record of the 3. Harmonies have always carried CSN(&Y) as a group and the same is true with this album. Right from the start, two great songs in Carry On and Teach Your Children have excellent harmonies. But there’s more to this album than just that to like. Carry On was interesting in that it had almost a Doors like feel with the organ late. Almost Cut My Hair is harder than typical CSN music, but I think that’s what makes this record so interesting, is it feels like a much more diverse sound than other CSN work. What takes this album to another level is Young’s guitar playing, which adds an extra element to CSN’s already great sound. It’s true that not everything is amazing on this album. Helpless features Young’s trademark voice, but that’s not really a good thing, as it’s probably the weakest part of the record. Woodstock picks back up, the playing here is very good as it is on Deja Vu, the latter of which had some Yes-like vibes to it. Liked that it sounded pretty different than other stuff on this album. Our House is an instantly recognizable tune. A classic rock staple. 4 + 20 not so much, an instantly forgettable track. Country Girl was much better than the last. Liked the piano on this and, as usual, the harmonies. Young’s voice as lead here works because of the backing CSN vocals supporting. Finally, the closer Everybody I Love You was a good way to wrap up what proved to be an excellent record. All in all, an energetic and really good effort from CSNY.

Bayou Country

Creedence Clearwater Revival

4/5

Never been an overwhelming fan of CCR, just haven’t been that interested in them. Yet, I can admit that John Fogerty has a super cool voice. This album was good. Not amazing, but good. Born on the Bayou is a rock classic. Excellent song and a great way to kick off this album. I liked Bootleg. Good tune, felt like a fast blues song. Graveyard Train is where I start to have a problem with this album. 8 minutes? Long songs aren’t inherently a problem, but this was very repetitive to me. Combined with a remake of Good Golly Miss Molly and the fact that this album is only 34 minutes, it leaves the impression that these guys just didn’t have enough creative spark to create a full record. Which is too bad, as songs like Penthouse Pauper and especially Proud Mary demonstrate some excellent song writing and playing. I enjoyed both of these tunes a lot. Also, creating a word for a song like Chooglin’? That is certainly original. This is a 3.5 star album for me. Just too short with some holes therein to be considered amazing and a 5 star record. Rounding up because Proud Mary and Born on the Bayou are truly great songs.

The Atomic Mr Basie

Count Basie & His Orchestra

3/5

The first thing that has to be said about initially listening to this album, I was very disappointed no one came out and sang “Meet George Jetson! His boy Elroy!” So you have to take this at the time and place when this was made, which is essentially right before rock became popular. Given that lens, it’s a good album. All the same, I found this a bit boring. It gets a bit slow at times and while the band is good throughout, it just wasn’t amazing for me.

Amnesiac

Radiohead

4/5

If Salvador Dali paintings had a soundtrack, this would be it. The best way I can describe many of these songs is “warped.” There is a strange sound to many of these tracks, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, that’s kind of the power of Radiohead, they create such interesting tracks. This isn’t an amazing, 5-star album for me, but it is very good. Highlights include Pyramid Song, I Might Be Wrong, Dollars & Cents. Even some instrumentals like Hunting Bears I liked (this reminded me of The Right Side of My Mind by Queensryche). An excellent, unique record.

Hard Again

Muddy Waters

4/5

I really enjoyed this album. Is it a bit repetitive at times? Sure. But the energy, feeling, and passion are excellent throughout. Mannish Boy was an excellent way to start. This reminded me a lot of Bad to the Bone by George Thorogood, which undoubtedly borrowed from Muddy’s song. I Want To Be Loved #2 was another highlight for me. A couple of great songs that have been added to my library. Nothing else truly stood out to me, but that doesn’t mean they were bad songs. It was all just very solid with these two significant highlights and really no low lights. All in all, a very fun listen.

Emperor Tomato Ketchup

Stereolab

2/5

This is my 100th album reviewed and I was so excited that I got the Emperor Tomato Ketchup album! If you believed this, you obviously haven’t heard this record. In truth, this isn’t as awful as some of the Britpop albums that have been included. But like those albums, this is another record of no consequence from a group I’ve never heard of. There’s a couple of songs on here that aren’t bad. The Noise of Carpet I kind of liked. And there were a few others which weren’t half bad. Some of the sonic elements are interesting. But most of this is repetitive and the singer’s voice is very weak to me. In short, it shouldn’t be included.

Dare!

The Human League

3/5

I love 80s music and Human by the Human League is one of my absolute favorites of the decade. Even though that isn't on this album, I was excited to listen to this. Don't You Want Me is definitely the highlight, a song that feels like it is more from the mid 80s rather than the early 80s. It's a bit ahead of it's time for me. Sadly the rest of this album doesn't quite live up to the closing track. There are some other decent songs on here, but a lot of this is very average, so it gets an average rating.

Ten

Pearl Jam

5/5

A lot of the fun of running through this list is hearing a songs, albums, or even bands that you have never heard of before. There's always something cool about discovering new music. This one doesn't fall in that camp in 2025, but it definitely did back in '91 when it came out, and it instantly grabbed me. I wore this album out when it was released right at the forefront of the 90's alternative movement. Even if over the years, I have grown tired of Pearl Jam and a lot of their more recent stuff vastly pales in comparison to me, I still am amazed by this album, as it is great from cover to cover. Tons of singles that hit like Alive, Jeremy, and Even Flow, but songs such as Garden, Porch, Once, Why Go, or others are every bit as great as the singles. Amazing that this was a debut album, as it’s truly a 5 star great record.

School's Out

Alice Cooper

4/5

This album was an excellent listen. School’s out is a great tune, as is My Stars. Public Animal #9 lyric’s were very fun to me (aside from the repetitive end). Alma Mater was another cool one. Cooper’s always had a theatrical edge, what liked more was how he wove the story through the album. A great record.

Tigermilk

Belle & Sebastian

4/5

Unlike the overly represented series of “we’ve never heard of you” UK bands we have had on this countdown, this band actually has talent and constructed a good album. There’s an early Mumford and Sons, Of Monsters and Men feel in this record which I dug. The signing is passable, not great. The musicality of the album makes up for that though, and the lyrics are decent. I really liked that the guitars were a bit harder than many which focus on a lot of acoustic playing. I see this band compared to Nick Drake, which I get to an extent, but the sound here is so much more full and complete, with a much better song construction. This was definitely worth the listen. I quite liked it.

Either Or

Elliott Smith

2/5

Meh. It’s sad when someone dies way too early, no doubt, but I do think the industry tends to lionize people like this as a result for no other good reason. Perhaps people really were influenced by Smith, or maybe they just use his name or cover his songs because they are trying to be cool. Regardless, if you listen to this album, there’s not a whole lot on here that is great. The guitar work on this was decent. Not a whole lot else here. Singing was lackluster. He used overlays to get a richer sound, probably because his voice wasn’t that good to begin with. Angeles was a decent song. The rest was just meh.

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys

4/5

Man, that was interesting. I listened to this on the way into work. I also cut off 38 other drivers on the way in. These might or might not be realted comments. With songs like Forward to Death, Let's Lynch the Landloard, Stealing People's Mail, and Chemical Warfare, how can you go wrong. And they don't. Bonus points for throwing Pol Pot into a song (laughed when the threw one last "Pol Pot" into Holiday in Cambodia). Punk at it's finest.

Innervisions

Stevie Wonder

4/5

I generally like Stevie Wonder. I don’t own anything, but there’s a good amount of his songs on the radio that I like when they come on. But I’m not actively seeking him out. This album was better than expected, but that’s not a big surprise to me. I’ve always known that Stevie was talented and makes interesting music. It was just more interesting than I anticipated. I thought the way he bounced around unexpectedly in Visions was great. It was a series of unorthodox changes that he made in the song, but it was always in tune, which had to have been very hard to pull off. This song reminded me of Safe by George Michael, though I’m not quite sure why, as the tenor of the song is not close to the same. Higher Ground I’ve always loved, though I have to admit that I first heard this song when the Chili Peppers did it and I still prefer their version. There were others like Living For the City or the closing track which were excellent as well. Not an unbelievable album for me, but it was very good record.

All Hail the Queen

Queen Latifah

4/5

Very cool to go back and listen to Queen Latifa when she was first starting. I’m guessing this has to be one of the earliest female rap albums. I remember Salt N Pepa coming out around that time and MC Lyte, but I wonder if this was first female fronted one. I enjoyed this record; her style was interesting to me as it wasn’t always linear, Queen of Royal Badness is a good example of this. Dance For Me was a strong opener, one of the best tunes on this album. Ladies First was another good one, especially the interplay between her and Monie Love. A great blast from the past.

Violator

Depeche Mode

5/5

I was never a massive fan of Depeche Mode growing up in the 80s and 90s. They were fine, I never really cared much one way or the other. Eventually, I started to enjoy their music more, predominantly this album, as it is a tremendous one. The main singles - Policy of Truth, Enjoy the Silence, Personal Jesus, and to a lesser extent World In My Eyes - are all great songs which definitely could carry this record. But there are other very good songs on this as well, such as Halo (my favorite of the non-singles), Waiting for the Night, and Blue Dress. At only 9 tracks, it's a cover-to-cover listen. And while DM has other albums/songs that are worth exploring, this is definitely their peak and certainly their tightest record. A 5-star album.

Broken English

Marianne Faithfull

2/5

I know that we tend to lionize people who overcame drug addictions or other bad situations, and in some cases that’s totally fair. But in other cases, we make it more than what it really is. That feels like the case here. She reminds me a bit like Stevie Nicks, but she vastly pales in comparison for two reasons: 1. Her voice is inferior and not nearly as interesting. 2. Her songwriting is not good. This album was pretty bad as a result, leading me to wonder, if she wasn’t a drug addict and lived on the streets for a while, would anyone really care?

The Notorious Byrd Brothers

The Byrds

3/5

This album was fine, nothing spectacular. Decent playing and decent singing. Some experimental parts, which was cool, but nothing really stood out as spectacular or terribly memorable. The true definition of an average album.

Smash

The Offspring

4/5

Never realized this was on Bad Religion’s independent label, though it makes sense when you listen to it. There’s obviously a lot of similarities to BR, though The Offspring have a more accessible sound and Dexter Holland is a better front man. When they first hit more mainstream radio, I thought they were a bit of a novelty act, likely to be a one hit wonder. But man was I wrong. Gotta Get Away, Self Esteem, Come Out And Play all rightfully had a ton of airplay. Excellent songs, and pretty diverse from each other as well as the type of band they evidently were before Smash, which speaks to their talent. And bonus points for them working dweeb into a hit song. It’s still amazing that they sold over 10m copies of this when they didn’t have a major label to push the record. That’s how good this album is and the hits they put out. A great listen.

Tical

Method Man

3/5

This is alright. Some songs were cool like Release Yo ‘Delf which stole from I Will Survive, and Bring the Pain was good. Decent grooves, decent rapping, just a solid album.

Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim

Frank Sinatra

3/5

There's nothing inherently wrong with this album. Frank brings his always great voice. Jobim is a good player and has a cool South American flair. I just don't care too much for bossa nova, evidently. This is just boring to me. Not a whole lot more than that to say. It's very average.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Kanye West

5/5

I've barely heard any of Kanye's music before. No, I'm not living under a rock. I love a lot of rap and R&B, but it's 80s/90s music (Janet Jackson, Jodeci, LL Cool J, New Edition, etc.). More recent stuff is just not my thing. This album proves I have been missing out. In short, this record is great. Some rappers come out and drop heavy beats with strong lyrics, but limited musicality behind it. What's here is so much more flushed out than what other artists can bring. There are tons of excellent songs on this. My favorites: Power - A crescendo about the personal issues and different views in Kanye's head. Awesome. All of the Lights - Yeah, it's a contradiction, but the underlying message is great and the chorus around lights here is amazing. This song is an incredible composition. The bonus is Rhianna on here, who brings her great voice to a tremendous track. Runaway - At first, with the single piano note, I was thinking this is stupid and how is this going to be 9+ minutes long. Then the track built and I actually think it's amazing how this song is constructed around that single piano note every few beats. A really, really cool track. Lost In The World - There's a celebratory feel to this tune. A bit repetitive, but I liked this. There's plenty of other tracks on this that were cool, these are just the ones that stood out to me. Is he crazy? Maybe. But he made a really complex record that was a complete and great one. 5 stars.

Green Onions

Booker T. & The MG's

3/5

So you have to look at this through a specific lens: 1. Yes, we know that music has come a long way. 2. Yes, we know we even have singing in music 3. Yes, antiquated music can still be interesting. And so this is worth a listen. It’s not amazing. Relatively simplistic even. But it has a certain charm.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

1/5

The beauty of music is that it is subjective. It’s typically great for a certain group of people, though it’s never right for everyone. Some for the masses, some more niche, but it all has its place. Meanwhile, with lists like this, there’s always artists or records that anyone would have put on in place of what actually made it. Personally, I would have included Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime, Live’s Throwing Copper, Joe Satriani’s The Extremist, Sara Bareilles’ Little Voice, or John Mellencamp’s Scarecrow album on a list of must hear records. Others would put totally different albums on and that's awesome. What someone likes vs. dislikes is truly subjective. Again, that's the beauty. With that said, this album objectively sucks. I mean truly horrible. Something had to be the lowest rated album on the list, and this was a place well earned. There is nothing redeemable about this record. To quote my wife, “they should have stopped at 1,000.”

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

3/5

This album never really captured my attention. It's not bad, per se, not great either. It's just kind of there. There were some songs that I liked, such as Road, River, and Rail. This sounded very Depeche Mode-like, but maybe that's because I just had DM's Violator album a few days ago. Heaven or Las Vegas reminded me of a Cure song (Pictures of You, maybe), so I liked that one as well. But nothing was terribly original or outstanding. A pretty average album.

xx

The xx

3/5

As tired as I am of the abundance of no name English bands that are on this countdown, there is something about this record that I dig. Not that this is amazing, because it isn’t. The singers are average at best, especially the male one who is mediocre, while the songs and production are pretty basic. But they do have something interesting about them that made this a worthwhile listen, even if it is best categorized as a slow burn. When the album first began, l was instantly buying in with Intro. Yeah it’s an instrumental, but it was a great start. Unfortunately, they never seemed to get appreciably better than that, as backed up by this being listed as the only top song from the album on Apple Music. That said, the song constructions are generally good and it has a certain vibe about it that is cool. Not great, not bad. Pretty average, which is way above a lot of the other English acts on this list that no one has ever heard of.

The Clash

4/5

It’s amazing when you listen to music made these days, everything is programmed, refined, and mixed to “perfection.” What’s lost in all of that is the rawness that makes many albums great, and that unrefined nature is certainly in abundance here. Credit where credit is due. The Clash were one of the first bands to bring punk into more of the mainstream. This album has a lot of punk classics on it, but it’s really that raw energy which makes this excellent. Great to go back and listen to.

Scott 4

Scott Walker

3/5

Scott Walker has a very good voice and there were a few songs on here that I actually liked a good amount (eg Hero of the War). I just can't see myself coming back to this album over and over again. I would rather listen to Gordon Lightfoot, who constructs better songs and isn't as reliant on trying to create things that are too bombastic or sound so loungy. Still, this is a decent album, carried mainly by his voice.

Bluesbreakers

John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

4/5

This album reminded me of Traffic at a lot of points. Mayall's voice pales in comparison to Steve Winwood's (most do), but he was a good enough signer and his harmonica playing is excellent, really adds to the album. Clapton's playing on this is the real highlight though. Just tons of great work throughout. It's an interesting choice for him to join this Mayall and his band for this, but it really works. The blues have always suited Clapton and they do here as well, even if admittedly I prefer the songs with a bit more of a rock bent to them on this record. An excellent listen. Favorite tracks were All Your Love and Little Girl.

James Brown Live At The Apollo

James Brown

3/5

Didn’t think this was a great album. I was listening and when it finished, I couldn’t believe it was already over. Yeah the energy was decent throughout, just as you’d expect from Brown. But that’s about it. Just not a whole lot to it for me. Pretty average.

Surrealistic Pillow

Jefferson Airplane

4/5

This was a cool album, a great psychedelic rock record. Grace Slick has such a cool voice and the two main hits, Somebody to Love and White Rabbit are great, great songs no doubt. But I really enjoyed the ones where she co-led with Marty Balin every bit as much, such as She Has Funny Cars. Fun to discover this in this list. A fun listen.

O.G. Original Gangster

Ice T

4/5

I enjoyed going back to listen to this record. It's easy to forget how Ice T started, as we are all used to seeing him on the thousands of episodes of SVU, and he never was a close to as successful as a rapper as he has been acting. But back in the day, he was one of the pioneers of gangsta rap, and a great one at that. I remember New Jack Hustler coming out in the early 90s and though that was an excellent song, so it was cool to go back and revisit this. The rest of the record wasn't quite as great as this, but it was still very good. Especially liked Midnight, including Ice T sampling Black Sabbath! A blast from the past. Happy this was on here.

Neon Bible

Arcade Fire

3/5

This isn’t a bad album per se. It’s just not great. I feel like if I went back and listened to this a few more times, I might be able to get into it, I just don’t feel the need to go back and listen to it. They have some potential, it just feels like they haven’t reached it yet. Some good songs, some bad songs, kind of the very definition of an average album.

Vol. 4

Black Sabbath

4/5

Second Sabbath album, with the first one coming the day after Ozzy's death (much like many others who got an Ozzy/Sabbath album that day). This album is good, and while it's close, it's not as great to me as the original Black Sabbath album. There are some excellent songs on this, no doubt. Snowblind is a great rock song. I'm sure many might consider this metal but that's solely because Ozzy is fronting it. In truth, it's much more of a straightforward rock track. What made this album different for me, though, was how they showed more musicality on this, mixing in cool ballads like Changes and Laguna Sunrise amongst all of the very powerful tracks. A testament to how talented the entire group truly was. Meanwhile, Ozzy's voice just is so amazing, it really soars throughout this record. I do think it is a more complex, more refined, and more diverse record, I just happen to not like it as much as the initial Sabbath album, probably because the original was so raw, and yet, still completely beyond what anyone else was doing at the time. Nevertheless, a 4 star record for me.

Eagles

3/5

Back in the mid 90s, I worked at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), which was an apitheater in upstate NY (really great place). The Eagles came one summer and I distinctly remember them being the first act ever to charge over $100 for tickets inside the ampitheater (seats on the lawn were less). Then they proclaimed they wouldn't take the stage until all of the ampitheater seats were filled, even though it was their fault that they weren't since they were charging so much. The SPAC staff was literally going to people on the lawn to give them tickets to go into the ampitheater seating. So while they might be a really talented band, it's safe to say their egos bother me. What follows might have a bit of bias, no doubt, as a result. This album is fine. Cool that they had a couple of big hits from this record, especially when they were just starting out. But it's far from a mindblowing album, especially when you hear songs like Chug All Night or others that are mediocre at best. The fact is they have written a ton of great songs over the years (Hotel California, I Can't Tell You Why, Life In The Fast Lane), but this album contains only a few songs that are worth listening to, and really only one that is great in Take It Easy. It might have been a vital album after the challenging 60s, but it doesn't sound like it has stood the test of time for me. Pretty average.

System Of A Down

4/5

First time listening to this album, and I’ve gotta say I’m surprised I haven’t heard more of this previously. This is the exact type of bubblegum ear worm pop candy the kids normally dig en masse. This should’ve been on every pop radio station, all across the nation, all the time. OK, so this isn’t normally my type of thing. I do love hard rock and even a bunch of metal, but this is a touch outside of what I would normally listen to. That said, I think it’s easy to hear that these guys are actually pretty talented. Most of the songs are in your face (understatement) but really not bad. When they went a bit less aggressive, such as with Spiders, they reminded me a lot of the Deftones. An excellent album, all in all. Not something I would come back to, but it was worth a turn. Now I’m gonna try and resist the urge to swear at strangers and punch babies. Maybe I’ll opt instead to listen to some Yanni and Christopher Cross to regain my equilibrium.

Moondance

Van Morrison

4/5

I quite enjoyed this album. It’s not phenomenal, and some of it sounds a bit homogenous. There’s more than enough meat on the bone here for this to be listened to though. I’ve always been a huge fan of Into the Mystic, I think it’s probably his best song outside of Brown Eyed Girl. The title track is good as well, and there’s a few others that are keepers. All in all, fun to go back and listen to

Sunshine Superman

Donovan

3/5

When this popped up, I had no idea what I was in for, even if the album cover kind of telegraphed it. I was guessing this would be all new, but to my surprise, I’d actually heard a couple of these tracks before. Admittedly, those two songs, Sunshine Superman and Season of the Witch, are cool tracks. One of the other endearing things of albums like these is that you can hear all these imperfections and not be bothered by it. That said, the rest of the record is just ok. Not great, not bad.

Stardust

Willie Nelson

2/5

When I first started listening to this album, the songs were a bit interesting to me, mainly because Willie's voice was carrying them. He has a cool voice, very sound, not amazing. But once we got to Unchained Melody, it was clear that his voice, or at least what he chose for the notes, was inferior. I'd equate it with a crappy band with a decent lead singer at a wedding with limited to no energy. Just an inferior album, less than average.

Bad

Michael Jackson

5/5

This album is amazing. Yes, the Thriller album is better, but MJ shouldn't be downgraded simply because he made another album that is arguably one of the top 5 albums of all time. Bad sold $30m+ copies for a reason. Front to back, this record is packed with hits. 5 #1s, 6 Top 10s, 7 Top 20s. Crazy. And this all holds up. Even the non-hits are good tracks. Liberian Girl is a smooth tune. Speed Demon is excellent. Leave Me Alone, which was released outside of the US but not a single domestically, might be my favorite song on the record. But back to those hits. Think about the diversity of these songs. A true dance track in The Way You Make Me Feel, A street anthem in Bad, A ballad about self-reflection in Man In The Mirror, a rock song (as much as MJ can do) in Dirty Diana, an R&B / rock mix in Smooth Criminal. And all of them bangers. Truly incredible stuff. A 5-star album

Let's Stay Together

Al Green

3/5

I was hoping to like this more, as a lot of the old R&B I have listened to on this list has been great, but this was just average to me. The title track is a great song and Al's voice is smooth and good to listen to. I just found a lot of these songs to be pretty homogenous and unexciting. This pales in comparison to anything from Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and some others.

Django Django

4/5

Whenever I see one of these no-name, never done anything of consequence English bands pop up as my latest album, I always cringe. They rarely, if ever are worth listening to. Generally, they are amongst the worst albums on this list, and I always wonder how they got included on a "must hear" list (yes, I know the answer is the bias the English authors have towards English bands). However, I try to listen with an open mind and I have to admit that this was one of the best of those bands that I have tried. Not that they needed to be included on this list, as they are check none of the boxes that they should for inclusion: innovative, great, popular, or influential. That said, they are interesting and have some decent songs. The signing is not amazing, to be sure, but it is solid, especially in some of the harmonies. However, right when this album started with Introduction, I found myself intrigued. This blended into Hail Bop and I was even more drawn in, especially when the guitars came in on this track. It was a bit warped, but that only added to the tune. I see that Default is the most popular song and it was fine, though it's carried by the various effects they have going on, including the bouncing rhythm at various points. Absent those pieces, it's not that great a tune. Firewater had a catchy intro. Kind of sounded like what we might have gotten if the Beatles went full hippie. On the fence about whether this is a keeper or not. The singing holds this back, as it is so basic. Might add it just to see if I keep listening or skip it when it pops up on my personal list. Waveforms is also not great, though there is a fullness to the sound at certain points in this song that I somewhat dig, especially with how they have different vocal arrangements on top of each other. Zumm Zumm might be the worst song on this record. Very repetitive with limited to like the first time I heard it, let alone over and over again. Hand of Man had some good harmonies and I liked the limited arrangement, though that did make the song a bit sleepy. Love's Dart reminded me a bit of a Mumford and Sons type of song, mainly because of its pace. That said, I was longing for some fast guitar playing on this as a result. Wor's back half isn't bad, it just takes too long to get through the front half to really care. Storm was a solid track, not much more to say. Just kind of there. Life's a Beach was fun, mainly because it had a bit of a Beach Boys tinge to it. Sky's Over Cairo was cool until it went into the Indian vibe, which I just wasn't crazy about. Even if the overall sound of this track is consistent with the sound of the band, this particular song didn't seem to fit with the rest of the album. Silver Rays was a good closer. Trippy in similar ways to other parts of this album, builds in good spots. Felt like it could have been an anthem kind of song, but it does fall short of such a lofty goal. Still, a cool track to end with. Is it an amazing album? No. It's far from a cover-to-cover listen. But there is enough here to give it an average rating and a bonus star for hearing something completely new and getting a few new tracks for my own library.

Walking Wounded

Everything But The Girl

2/5

Everything But The Girl nothing but mediocre songs. Why is this band on here, let alone twice. The female singer's voice is nice, but far from amazing or super interesting. The only track that was somewhat intriguing to me was Single, but only because it reminded me of George Michael's Safe, though even then the latter is a superior song to the former. Just another waste of a spot on this list.

Reggatta De Blanc

The Police

4/5

I love the Police and was stoked when this was my next selection. That said, this album pales in comparison to Synchronicity or Ghost In the Machine. Even Zenyatta Mondatta is a superior album to this record. Yeah, there are definitely some highlights. Message in a Bottle is an all-time classic, a truly great track. Walking on the Moon is excellent as well, though nothing quite reaches the peak of the opener. There are others as well which I like, including Bring on the Night, The Bed's Too Big Without You. But there are others like On Any Other Day and Contract which are just inferior songs. Overall a good album, but not great or complete. What you can take from it is the fact that you can start to see what the Police are going to become, and that’s is a very good thing.

Horses

Patti Smith

3/5

This album is decent. Not amazing. There are some cool tracks on here, no doubt. I loved Free Money, great song. Admittedly, Birdland was an epic tune, even if I didn’t care for it. Gloria was also good. But a few others were not as great. Land in particular, I found pretty derivative. Still, there’s a cool vibe about this album and Smith’s voice is great. Nothing I’d come back to over and over again though.

Liquid Swords

GZA

3/5

This was decent, not amazing. I do like the beats that he dropped and the rapping was very good, but it was a bit repetitive for me. Duel of the Iron Mic was my favorite on this album. Solid. Not great.

All Things Must Pass

George Harrison

5/5

I've never heard this record before, and I have really been missing out. I thoroughly enjoyed this collection. It stands in stark contrast to the McCartney solo/Wings and Lennon's solo albums that have been on this countdown for me so far, which by and large have been considerable disappointments. It's amazing how much praise (rightfully so) the Lennon/McCartney partnership gets for the songwriting, given how Harrison demonstrates here that he is better than either one of them as a solo writer. My Sweet Lord is a great, great song. I get why everyone praises Imagine by Lennon which does have a great message, but I would rather listen to My Sweet Lord. It's a touch repetitive, though that doesn't bother me. Really well constructed. But there is so much more on this set. The title track, Art of Dying, What Is Life, Let It Down, The Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp, and Isn't It a Pity were my favorites, the last of which is a sweeping track with some excellent lead guitar work. Frankly, the playing from both Harrison and Clapton on this record is great. At 1:45, it is super long which could be a bad thing if the music wasn't great throughout, but it was. Just tons of great tracks throughout.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

3/5

Steely Dan has some excellent music but I really didn't think this was that great an record, especially the back half. It starts out strong with it's first 3 songs, no doubt. I had never heard Night by Night before, but I really dug that track. That's bookended by a couple of songs we've all heard before in Ricky Don't Lose That Number and Every Major Dude Would Tell You, the former of which is superior to the latter, mainly because of the harmonies and offbeat vocal choices that really work. That said, after that it steadily goes downhill. There are some poor tracks on here, especially With a Gun and the title track. Rare to name a record after a song which is clearly inferior to some of the others, but Steely Dan always have been different. Just an average album.

I See A Darkness

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

2/5

That was a cheery record! It's generally not a great sign when you are looking at the time on the first song, thinking it has been going on for 5+ minutes and it's barely been 2. That's kind of how this album was for me. Short in nature but felt much, much longer and not for a good reason. Is it interesting? Sure. Is the song construction decent? Maybe. But the singing is painful. it’s like listening to the bad parts of Neil Young's voice but even worse. Don't get me started on the "harmonies". I saw someone say that this is like listening to a 3rd grade choir, but I actually would say it's more like a couple of middle school boys who are going through puberty. Still, I get why it is included. The title track reminded me of something I would hear on a Ben Folds album. Madeleine-Mary was a cool song, mainly because there was a lot more to it than just depression like the other songs. All summed up, though, I just didn't really care for it. Below average, but not bottom of the barrel bad.

Dust

Screaming Trees

3/5

This should have been right up my alley, as I love 90s alternative music. I just found it to be ok. All I Know and Dying Days were both excellent songs. There were a few others that were alright. Nothing was terrible. But overall it was just an average album.

Fear Of Music

Talking Heads

3/5

When you hear Talking Heads and David Byrne, you expect something offbeat / strange and this didn't disappoint on that front. But that alone doesn't make it great, and that certainly holds for this album, which is just average. There are some good tunes on here. It got of to a very interesting start with I Zimbra, which I thought was a decent song. I downloaded it to my own library, not sure I will keep it though. Life During Wartime is a song most people have heard and it is solid. Heaven was another good one in my book. But others didn't hold up and were just inferior recordings. Worth a listen, but nothing I would come back to again.

69 Love Songs

The Magnetic Fields

2/5

69 songs! What a novel concept. Sadly, the execution of this was significantly inferior to the idea. Not that this album doesn’t have some interesting parts to it, the playing is alright, and the voices are interesting. The depth of the one singer’s voice reminded me a lot of the Crash Test Dummies. I probably would give this a one, cause they really aren’t any standout songs, which is incredibly hard to do when you have 69 attempts. But I’m giving an extra star for effort.

Kilimanjaro

The Teardrop Explodes

3/5

This album was a lot more interesting than I was expecting it to be. Admittedly, I love 80s music. So I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that I kinda like this. To be honest, these guys gave me a lot of early U2 vibes, especially the heavy bass line. They’re not nearly as good of course, there’s a decent amount of similarities. Not an amazing album, but not bad either.

Diamond Life

Sade

3/5

This album was a touch of a letdown for me. I've always thought Sade has a gorgeous voice, and was excited when this popped up as my selection for the day. As I listened, I found that there wasn't an overwhelming amount to these songs especially early in the album. Smooth Operator is a great song, no doubt, just a tremendous way to kick off the album. As the record progressed, though, a lot of these songs lacked a certain something for me. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, as I listened to Your Love Is King, Hang On to Your Love, and Frankie's First Affair, all of which I found pretty boring. But then When Am I Going to Make a Living and Cherry Pie came on, both of which were great tracks with a ton of interesting elements, especially the former of these which I really enjoyed lyrically. These two were the highlight of the album for me, even beyond Smooth Operator. Unfortunately, the album closed with three more songs I couldn't care less about. All rolled up, a couple of really great tracks, sandwiched around a variety of duds. Makes this a 3 for me.

Tapestry

Carole King

5/5

This album is truly incredible. Carole's voice is excellent, but the songwriting is just outstanding. Not only are the version of her songs on this record each great listens, think about all of the people who have covered songs on this album. This list includes a series of massive artists: Michael Jackson, Mary J Blige, Alanis Morisette, Rod Stewart, James Taylor, and Barbra Streisand, just to name a few. Taylor's version of You've Got a Friend won a Grammy, as did King for the songwriting. I've never listened to this record fully before and I am amazed that there is not a bad song on here. It gets off to a great start with three very recognizable songs in I Feel the Earth Move, So Far Away, and It's Too Late. Later on we have other songs we've all heard in some version with You've Got a Friend, Will You Love Me Tomorrow, and A Natural Woman, but even the others I'd not heard before like Beautiful and Where You Lead are great tracks. From beginning to end, this is a masterclass in songwriting. A true classic and clearly one of the best albums ever made. 5 stars.

American Pie

Don McLean

4/5

Ironic that I got this album from Don McLean following right after having had Tapestry by Carole King yesterday, when this album follows an album called Tapestry in Don's catalog which was released around the same time. Certainly, this album pales in comparison to King's great recording, but in fairness that is a super high bar. In truth, this album is still good, even if nothing on here is terribly surprising. We all know the song American Pie, one of the great tunes of all time. Personally, I like the original version, as opposed to the shortened radio track you hear occasionally. Just a great listen. What follows are a series of songs which are similar sounding, though nothing nearly as great or epic. I've heard Vincent before, but none of the others. All of them are decent: not great, but not bad either. I did enjoy The Grave the best, as it represented a bit of a departure from the others. Babylon was interesting in that it sounded like a church hymn in a way. Makes for a pleasant listen, though I might only go back for the title track. That said, given that we have a solid album with a truly great single song, this is really a 3.5-star album for me.

OK Computer

Radiohead

5/5

This is a great album. I'm not a massive Radiohead fan and there were bands around that time that I liked a lot better. But it's hard to deny their impact and how cool a listen this album is. From the very jump with the very different drumbeat in Airbag, it sets the stage for a bunch of really fascinating songs. My favorites on this included that track, Paranoid Android, Karma Police, Electioneering, and Lucky, all of which were excellent songs. It's not a perfect album to me, but it is super interesting, and it definitely was influential. For that reason, I am sitting squarely at 4.5 stars, but I am going to round up because this is my daughter's favorite band. Really a must listen for anyone.

My Generation

The Who

3/5

First Who album of this list and I was excited to see it up next. The Who have always been a band I've enjoyed, albeit from afar. Not my favorite and I don't really seek them out, but I won't turn them off when they come on the radio. Undoubtedly, they have some great songs, with Eminence Front being my personal favorite. With this being their debut, I thought it would be interesting to explore how they started. I made the mistake of looking at other reviews before this and I was really surprised to see how many people rated this a 3, but after listening to it, I kind of get it. There's not a giant amount here to get excited about. It's not bad, per se, just nothing spectacular outside of My Generation.

Truth And Soul

Fishbone

3/5

Ska! Punk’s fun little cousin. Good to listen to, normally doesn’t have much weight to it though. This album might be a bit of an exception, which actually makes for a bit of a strange listen. Ska with a message? These guys have talent, no doubt. Had some stuff that I liked. Other songs were like, huh? Puts it squarely at a 3 for me.

The Sounds Of India

Ravi Shankar

2/5

Interesting but not really my thing.

People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm

A Tribe Called Quest

4/5

This was an excellent listen. Never been a Tribe Called Quest fan, but there’s no doubt that they are really talented. Right from the jump I was hooked into this album. Really great album.

Maverick A Strike

Finley Quaye

1/5

I have found the inclusion of those non-name English bands to be a series of terrible artists with bad music. Interestingly, the exception has generally been in the R&B and rap categories, where there has been some excellent stuff like Michael Kiwanuka and Tricky. Unfortunately, this fell into the former camp. It was just awful. Very derivative and unoriginal, with lyrics that were incredibly subpar.

Smile

Brian Wilson

3/5

Meh, I expect I might come down in a similar camp to many others on this one. It's not that the sound isn't good, or even iconic at times. I just don't understand why we need this album in the mid 2000s, given what's on it. There's some good songs, no doubt, but we heard it all in the 60s and music had progressed well beyond this at that point. That's not to say that this vintage sound isn't cool, it is. It just had its time, and that time wasn't in the 21st century. 3 stars, which might be generous.

Back At The Chicken Shack

Jimmy Smith

3/5

It’s fine. Solid. His sax playing is excellent no doubt. Some cool guitar work. Just not much else to the songs in my opinion. That said, given how long ago this was made, it holds up well.

The Specials

1/5

A lot of ska is fun, but this was just boring. Not a fan.

Modern Kosmology

Jane Weaver

2/5

This is not a great record. Not even sure why this is on here, as there’s nothing terribly special about the album or the artist.

Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts

The Adverts

3/5

Fun? Sure. But nothing terribly exciting. A lot of the choruses were very repetitive and the songs kind of blended together. Pretty average.

Disraeli Gears

Cream

3/5

Another in a string of albums I have had recently that I just thought were ok. Yeah there's some things to like here. Both singers are good and Clapton's playing is great on anything. However, I found a lot of this rather mundane and not terribly intricate. Even Sunshine of Your Love, which is an excellent tune, I think we can all admit is not a terribly challenging song to play. Given all this, an average rating, as little really stood out to me.

Haut de gamme / Koweït, rive gauche

Koffi Olomide

2/5

Man am I on a string of mediocre albums. This adds to that pile. That this is in French doesn’t bother me. It’s just that it sounds like music I could hear in any cruise ship in the world. Boring and repetitive.

Mott

Mott The Hoople

3/5

My run of less than great albums continues. It's been basically two weeks of average or worse albums that I have received, save for one 4-star record (thank you A Tribe Called Quest). Not that this is truly horrible, as it's not. There is something here. It reminds me of Meatloaf without all the drama/theatrics, perhaps even an early Alice Cooper. I could even argue that this is somewhat similar to Bad Company, except that the songs aren't nearly as good. Just more average stuff.

Snivilisation

Orbital

3/5

I have been on a run of very average and uninteresting albums. For this one, at least I can say it was not the latter, as it was a very interesting listen. All the same, it was still just average to me, as I found a good amount of it to be pretty repetitive. Having songs which are exceedingly long is not necessarily a problem, but if there is no real diversity in the song, the question is: what's the point of extending this? The answer is still unknown. Best I can give this is 3-stars, and that's being generous.

At Newport 1960

Muddy Waters

3/5

Another in a long line of albums that are just ok. Did I enjoy this? Yeah. Would I ever come back to it? Probably not. Some interesting songs, but not enough here to be fascinating.

London Calling

The Clash

4/5

Refreshing, mainly because the last two weeks of albums I have received have constituted a huge slog. There’s a massive difference between what is on this album and many other recent entries on this list. Though they are steeped in punk, there’s a sophistication to this album that moves them way beyond their contemporaries. The songs are generally catchy, but more importantly, they certainly are well constructed. I really enjoyed Lost In the Supermarket and Train In Vain the best. An excellent album

Logical Progression

LTJ Bukem

1/5

Pointless. I don’t mind electronic music, but it needs to build to something. Over and over again, this really did not. Also, every song doesn’t have to be 7+ minutes long when you are going to be this repetitive. Don’t even get me started on the last two which are each over 1 hour long. Why is this on here?

The Chronic

Dr. Dre

4/5

I remember when this dropped in high school and it was just markedly different from any rap that was in the mainstream. And with it G-Funk had arrived. The groves on this are great and the record's impact cannot be understated. Also, I forgot how Snoop was all over this. He really elevates so much of this album. Nuthin' But a G Thang is a great track, while Let Me Ride sets the stage for Warren G's amazing Regulate to come just a year or two later. Dre Day is another highlight. An excellent record.

Boy In Da Corner

Dizzee Rascal

3/5

This was not an amazing record, but I at least get why it was included on the list. The rapping style is cool and the beats had some originality to it. In other words, it wasn't mundane. I liked Fix Up, Look Sharp the best - the sampling of Billy Squier an unexpected twist. Overall good, not great. Worth a listen.

Rattlesnakes

Lloyd Cole And The Commotions

4/5

I love all kinds of 80s music, but I was not expecting to like this nearly as much as I did. When it showed up as my next album, my instant thought was "not another no-name English band!" I've grown tired of a lot of these bands that have no business sniffing this countdown, let alone being on it. And while I am not sure this belongs here either, I at least really enjoyed their sound. Yeah, the singer is that typical New Wave voice, which struggles to hit all of the notes but it sounds like it was supposed to be this way. The band is solid and the songwriting is good, even if some of the lyrics are a bit basic. While I enjoy New Wave music, it's not my favorite subgenre of the 80s, but this was a welcomed addition that I had never heard before. Stuff like this makes plowing through this list fun. 4 stars.

Survivor

Destiny's Child

3/5

This album kicks off with a bang. Survivor and Independent Woman Part 1 are two excellent anthems. Both are really well constructed tracks Unfortunately, what follows just pales, not just in comparison to those two songs, but also to a lot other similar groups like TLC, En Vogue, SWV, etc. So while this album is decent, it’s obvious from the start that it could have been a lot better.

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

4/5

Steely Dan is always a strange listen for me but this had more than enough good songs to keep my interest, making this an excellent album. First, I’ve always loved Do It Again. It’s far and away my favorite SD song. Like many, I had heard Reelin’ In The Years and Dirty Work before, though the former is much preferred to the latter. Both are good tunes though. What surprised me is how much more I would like on here. Of the songs I hadn’t heard before, Midnight Cruiser was definitely my favorite, but Kings and Change of the Guard were also good. They are an offbeat band, I almost think of them in the same way as I do Weezer from the 90s / early 2000s. Talented band, some interesting song writing, but neither are my favorite. Regardless, this was fun to go back to listen to. 4 stars.

Catch A Fire

Bob Marley & The Wailers

4/5

This is a very good album. Tons of interesting songs and while reggae has a definite sound, I felt like there was a good amount of diversity on this album. Some excellent songs in No More Trouble, Concrete Jungle, and Stir It Up. A worthy inclusion.

Golden Hour

Kacey Musgraves

4/5

I've never listened to any of Kacey's catalog at all, as I am not a country fan, so color me surprised when I really liked this album. I get why some would be turned off by this, in part because it is a country album at heart, or the fact that if anything it is bordering on adult contemporary music, but I found this pleasant to listen to. The first half of this album is packed with good songs, including Slow Burn (which was my favorite), Lonely Weekend, and Butterflies. Even Mother, which was a bit of a throw away given how short it is, was a decent tune. The second half isn't quite as good to me, though I think it is more diverse - e.g. wouldn't expect a dance song like High Horse on here. What keeps this from being a 5-star album to me is that I think the song writing lacks at times. It's just too simple and/or disconnected in the lyrics for me to think this is an amazing album. That said, the song structure is solid and the songs are generally catchy, even if they are a leisurely stroll. I see in Wikipedia that she is credited for throwing in yacht rock, electronic, or disco elements, but if anything this feels like a mid 90s album that calls back to something that could have been created by Sarah McLaughlin or Natalie Merchant. All in all, I understand why this was so well received and it's included here. A 4-star record.

Low

David Bowie

2/5

It's Bowie, which means it has to be great, right? Except for when it isn't. This was a mediocre album. Interesting in that there were two distinct sides to this record, but the front half was vastly superior to the second half. He was pretty experimental on the back side, but this didn't really hit at all for me. Just long, drawn out tunes that didn't have a whole lot to them. Frankly, I found them all to be wastes of space. The actual songs on the front of this record were decent, but nothing was spectacular. Pretty average. So 1/2 X 3 + 1/2 X 1 = a 2-star record. He's made much better music than this.

The Hissing Of Summer Lawns

Joni Mitchell

3/5

Meh, this wasn't that great to me. I get that Joni Mitchell is an excellent songwriter and there was a clear intent with this album to be experimental in different ways. It just didn't hit with me at all. A lot of the songs were too convoluted to actually be good listens and tunes I would come back to. Still, hard to deny her talent for writing. 3-stars.

The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

5/5

Amazing album. As if this isn’t great enough with epic tracks like Time, Money, and Us and Them, this packs so much more into this incredible effort. So many different colors, from the trippy On The Run, to the gospelish The Great Gig in the Sky, to the tight bow at the end which is Eclipse. And yet it all just fits together amazingly well. A true masterpiece and easily one of the top few albums of all time.

Melody A.M.

Röyksopp

3/5

This was decent. I'm not an overwhelming fan of electronic music, but there was something here that was better than other e.m. albums I've listened to. It was more diverse, less repetitive, more melodic even. A solid effort.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

1/5

I just don’t like Amy Winehouse. And nothing on this album really changed my mind. In My Bed isn’t bad, nor is What Is It About Men, but the rest of this album is poor. What makes Back in Black as an album at least somewhat redeemable is that Amy’s voice is filled out and has a ton of character on that record. Here it is not as mature and, frankly, whiny. Never really understood the appeal of this very overrated artist, and this certainly didn’t change my opinion.

Leftism

Leftfield

3/5

I’m not a fan of electronic music, as I find much of it pretty repetitive. But this album was decent enough and worth the listen. Not bad, though not amazing either.

Fleet Foxes

3/5

Decent. Not amazing. Early on, I thought this album was pretty boring. Some nice harmonies and decent music, but nothing spectacular by any means. Later on, I though this picked up a bit. Heard Them Stirring and Blue Ridge Mountains were my favorites off of this. A good record, worth the listen. Not anything I would come back to regularly though.

Buena Vista Social Club

4/5

I kind of dug this. Yeah, the fact that it is Spanish means that I don't understand a lot of what they are saying (ok, most of it), but that doesn't take away from the excellent musicality / playing that is on display and the general feel of the album. Worth a listen

The Real Thing

Faith No More

5/5

Do I love 90s music? Do I especially love 90s alternative? Did I own this album? Did I already have a few of these songs in my personal library? All yes! I was predisposed to liking this, but on going back to listen to it, I had forgotten how excellent an album this was. Solely "Surprise You're Dead" is a disappointment to me, but even that has some campy charm to it. As for the rest, Epic is exactly what its name says. Falling to Pieces is anything but. Already loved those. But I ended up picking up others like From Out of Nowhere, Zombie Eaters, and the title track for my personal library. Their version of War Pigs is excellent as well, though any remake is never going to be good as the Black Sabbath original. All in all, a welcomed blast from the past in what is a tremendous album.

Tres Hombres

ZZ Top

3/5

This was fine. Not amazing. Kind of sleepy at points, which you wouldn’t expect from ZZ Top. La Grange is an excellent song. A few at the front were decent. Nothing else really that great though. Pretty average.

Rock Bottom

Robert Wyatt

1/5

I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like this right from the jump when, 1/3 into the one song that is the most downloaded, there was a bunch of random aimless playing that sounded made up on the spot with no forethought. It set the stage for the rest of this album which was, by and large, aimless.

Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Wu-Tang Clan

3/5

Not bad. Some excellent beats. Good lyrics and cool rapping. Not anything I would come back to over and over again. Get why people would love it though.

Like A Prayer

Madonna

4/5

This was an excellent album. We’ve all heard the title track, which is a great, great song. And certainly Express Yourself and Cherish harken back to younger Madonna and her upbeat pop brilliance. Both are very good songs, even if I wouldn’t seek either one out. There’s a lot more to like on here. For me, the best of the rest is Keep It Together, which is a great tune that reminds me a lot of those late 80s / early 90s jams from groups like New Edition. There’s some other more mature songs on here, which Madonna has always had in her bag (starting with songs like Papa Don’t Preach), and frankly I prefer to the more poppy songs. Excellent back to front. Not amazing, but really good.

Natty Dread

Bob Marley & The Wailers

3/5

Bob Marley is a great artist, reggae just isn't my thing. Lively Up Yourself is a cool tune and No Woman, No Cry is a great one. The rest of this just didn't hit for me.

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme

Simon & Garfunkel

4/5

I've always been a fan of Simon and Garfunkel so it comes as no surprise that I would like this. It's not a perfect album, far from it actually. Songs like Cloudy and the closer really did nothing for me. However, there are a lot of good tunes on this, including Scarborough Fair (though I am very used to listening to the Queensryche version), Patterns, Homeward Bound, and The 59th Street Bridge Song. A better than solid album.

Blunderbuss

Jack White

5/5

This is a strange one for me. I am actually going to give this 5, even if I didn't love every song on this album. In fact, there were a series I thought were good, but not amazing. However, what I did love was the way he blended throw back elements with modern music to create something that I found to be pretty original. In short, I was intrigued enough by all of this to listen to it three times and found that the more I heard a track, the more I liked what he did. Definitely a worthy inclusion. Rare for music of the last 10-15 years.

Rust In Peace

Megadeth

4/5

Phew, that was a trip. I love a lot of hard rock, but thrash metal is a bit beyond what I typically like. That said, this album has some meat to it that I enjoyed. There's a level of musicianship / musicality that is better on this record than most of their contemporaries. Mustaine’s voice is unique. That doesn’t make it great, but it’s not bad either. Just different. He is hard to understand though, and that hurts some of the songs. The solos in here are really good, which makes up for some of the other issues with this record. In the end, not amazing, but it was good, especially for the genre.

Hejira

Joni Mitchell

2/5

I know that Joni is revered, but I just didn't care for this album. There are some interesting parts to this, but too often I would start to like a song and it would change tact towards a direction that wasn't nearly as good. Beyond this, while Joni's voice is excellent, the lack of a melodic approach hurt many of these tracks. It was just all over the place for me.

Elvis Presley

3/5

I enjoyed this, but it wasn't amazing. Considering that it is his debut, the sound that is already coming through is great. That said, it was a very short album and while there are a few really good songs on here, there are a few not so great ones too. Pretty average to me.

Toys In The Attic

Aerosmith

4/5

Good record, not amazing. I really like Aerosmith, always have. They have a ton of great songs and a few are on this record in Sweet Emotion and Walk This Way. There just wasn’t enough on the rest of this album to make it amazing. Still, it’s solid and worth the listen.

Fred Neil

3/5

The very definition of an average album. Good voice, not great. Decent songs, nothing amazing. Average length even. Just average. Right down the middle. Nothing special.

Aja

Steely Dan

4/5

Yes, Steely Dan has always been a bit of an offbeat band, and this is a very good album, though not blow-me-away amazing. There's so many layers to these songs. I listened to it a few times and I seemed to hear different things each time, which is really a testament to what they constructed. I know audiophiles love this album and I get why. That said, none of the songs are incredible and the collection is not unbelievably great. Very good? Yeah, I'll give them that.

Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul

Otis Redding

4/5

This was a good album and a fun listen. Not the most amazing thing ever, since there were some covers on here. However, it was cool to hear his take on these songs, and the originals were interesting. Really liked Respect before AF did it.

Welcome To The Pleasuredome

Frankie Goes To Hollywood

4/5

If I were to read negative reviews, I would expect them to say this is a bloated, overproduced record, full of songs that are repetitive and/or go on too long with some unnecessary covers. And they'd be right. But I loved it. The first time I listened through to this, I thought the title track was just overblown and never ending. However, after having listened to the album, I could come back to this track and realize that it was an amalgam of everything that was about to follow, which turned it from stupid to intelligent for me, making it a worthwhile listen. Relax is a great song. Fun, driving, energetic. Excellent. After that, nothing ever comes quite as close to this, but that doesn't mean there aren't some other cool tracks on here. Two Tribes, Black Night White Light, and The Power of Love led the way for me. Diverse from each other, but all excellent songs in their own right. Wish the Lads Were Here was something I could have found straight out of the Oingo Boingo catalog. At times furious with slapping bass and fun horns. Excellent. Their takes on War and Born To Run were fun, as was San Jose. Not as good as the originals, but those are high bars and they performed admirably against any of the standards. Summed up, this was a great listen for someone who loves 80s music but wasn’t familiar with anything beyond Relax. Lots of good stuff on here.

BEYONCÉ

Beyoncé

3/5

Decent album. Well produced, maybe over produced though. Her voice is great, I just wasn’t blown away by anything on it.

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

3/5

Decent album. The singers voice was just too blah for me. The whole thing seemed a bit heavy handed, if I am being honest. That said, it had some good qualities to it. Bonus points for Shadowplay. I heard that track on Killers live album and had no idea it was a remake until now.

Franz Ferdinand

4/5

This started out great, but I just found that it lost steam towards the end. Got a bit monotonous. Still, some good stuff on here. Take Me Out is a great song, some others hit for me as well. Liked it, better than average, not amazing though.

Face to Face

The Kinks

3/5

This has a very late Beatles feel to it, which probably isn't a surprise given when it was made. Some of this is decent, but mostly I didn't think any of it was amazing. Really didn't grab me at all. But not bad. Pretty average.

Coat Of Many Colors

Dolly Parton

3/5

I liked this, it was pleasant. Didn't blow me away by any means. Dolly has an excellent voice, great person, easy songs to listen to, etc. Lots to like. But there's nothing special about it for me. Decent.

Here Come The Warm Jets

Brian Eno

1/5

There's a lot to learn about in these 1,001 albums, whether it's about different styles of music you might not have listened intently to before, how certain albums came about, etc. One new thing I have learned in this musical journey: I think Brian Eno is massively overrated. Is it neat that he was experimental? Sure. But to me, it either came at the expense of, or was the byproduct of his inability to, constructing/construct actual good songs and music. Nothing on here is really any good. And just like his album with David Byrne that I listened to earlier, this was substandard.

Actually

Pet Shop Boys

4/5

I've never been a massive Pet Shop Boys fan. Decent group, like some songs, not seeking them out. This album proved to be very good, not amazing. It's a Sin is a great song, and I do like What Have I Done to Deserve This. There were a few others on here which were very good as well, such as Kings Cross which I really enjoyed. Still, there were others like Shopping which were not close to the level of some of the others. A good listen, fun to go back to, not incredible.

On The Beach

Neil Young

2/5

Neil Young is at his best when he is angry and that angst comes through in the songs, and I didn't hear nearly enough of that on this record. Revolution Blues was an excellent track, but that was about it for me on this record. Many of the softer/slower songs just weren't that good. Part of it is that Young's voice is so unique, which can be a cool thing at times, but I found it just off putting on this record.

You Want It Darker

Leonard Cohen

4/5

Not sure how to feel about this. This record got off to an amazing start. When You Want It Darker came on, I was instantly drawn in. Cohen is not a great singer, but how this song was constructed and the mood to this track was just so unbelievably amazing, especially considering how Cohen felt at this life, that his voice fit this perfectly. Side story, I knew my daughter would like this, so I get her in the car and start playing it. She starts freaking out, as I guess she heard this for a trailer for Assassin's Creed Origins but didn't know what the song was or who did it, and was looking for it (yeah, I know, she could have figured this out from YouTube, undoubtedly). Anyway, the rest of the album did not live up to that incredibly lofty beginning, but that would have been really hard. It was great to hear some of these tunes given the background of what Cohen was facing at this point. Not that any of the rest were great songs, but this is everything that one of those Nick Cave albums strives to be (and fails to live up to). 4 stars

Stripped

Christina Aguilera

4/5

This was an excellent album. Christina can really sing, no doubt. Some great songs in Beautiful, Stronger, and a series of others. Waned a bit in the end for me, but lots of diversity in the tracks which really showed off her range. Great stuff.

The Suburbs

Arcade Fire

3/5

This album was just OK to me. Started out decent enough. The suburbs was a good song and a couple of tracks that followed were alright. But after that, wasn’t a whole lot here to get terribly excited about. I ended up finding a lot of these songs repetitive, and by extension the overall album repetitive. In the end, it was just an average album from a relatively average band.

Exile On Main Street

The Rolling Stones

4/5

The Stones are inarguably one of the greatest rock bands of all time, and that was on display on this record. There were a series of different layers to a bunch of these tracks and it all added up to what is a very good album. Loving Cup was a big hit for me. Loved that track. The rest of this had a bunch of tunes that were fun, which was the general vibe of the whole record. Excellent listen

The Wildest!

Louis Prima

5/5

This was such a fun listen. Jump, Jive, An’ Wail, Just a Gigilo, Be Mine, The Lip, I could go on. They were clearly having a great time making this record and it comes through in the music. Some really great playing on this too. Great, great stuff.

461 Ocean Boulevard

Eric Clapton

2/5

I found this album to be a bit boring, at least until a few songs at the end. Clapton is a great guitarist with a ton of excellent music. And I liked I Shot The Sheriff, Mainine Florida, and Steady Rolling Man on this. But much of the rest of it was pretty slow and, in my opinion, uninspired. Expected more and got less. 2 stars.

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

3/5

This album’s OK. Yeah, it’s fun to hear a bunch of Christmas songs on Christmas, and the sound is full and interesting. But to me, this is nothing spectacular, and Phil talking at the end of silent night was just kind of creepy to me. Fun to get on Christmas Day, but I’ve heard so many different variations of these songs. These weren’t consistently any better or worse than the others I’ve already heard.

This Year's Model

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

2/5

I don’t really understand a lot of the infatuation with Elvis Costello and listening to this album just reaffirmed my position. Yeah the playing on this is good and there are a few decent songs like Pump It Up. But too often I think the songs have choruses that are really lacking. Worse, I am forced to listen to Costello’s voice which is just inferior to a lot of others in music. It all adds up to a subpar album for me. Nothing that is really that exciting or even interesting.

Call of the Valley

Shivkumar Sharma

3/5

An interesting listen but this really wasn’t my bag. Clearly they were talented, but I really didn’t get into it. Still, giving 3 stars out of respect.

The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Charles Mingus

3/5

Points for being very talented, I just didn't care for the songs that much.

Licensed To Ill

Beastie Boys

5/5

I used to be a fan of a lot of the Def Jam artists back in the day, whether it was LL Cool J, Public Enemy, Warren G, Onyx, or these guys. But this was the first of their records that I owned and it is great. I remember hearing this back when I was growing up and thought it was so different from what I had heard before. Is it sophomoric? Yes. Does it hold up? Debatably. Do I still love it? Absolutely. So much to like about this album, whether it's No Sleep Til Brooklyn, Paul Revere, Brass Monkey, Girls, She's Crafty, Fight For Your Right, or others, this has a bunch of bangers from front to back. A great, great record. Debating 4 or 5 stars, but going with 5, given what it kicked off in terms of the Beastie Boys career, what it did for Def Jam, the fact that it was the first rap album to top the Billboard charts, etc.

Music From Big Pink

The Band

4/5

I had another album from The Band which I just hated, so I had low expectations coming into this record. But surprisingly, I liked this one much more. There's an enhanced musicality to this record, with more soul into it. That’s not to say that it is the most amazing album ever, because it is not. But at least this one was worth listening to and there are some cool songs on here - e.g. The Weight. An excellent record.

Exit Planet Dust

The Chemical Brothers

3/5

The beats are interesting and good on this album, but the repetitiveness of it all just wears on me. Not bad but certainly not great.

Central Reservation

Beth Orton

3/5

I had never heard of Beth Orton before, so I was intrigued by what I would hear. This started out well with the lead track, but after that I found this relatively pedestrian. Orton has an interesting voice, but she never quite does enough with it to consistently be great. The songs are pretty much just there as well, hanging in the ether. It's pleasant, but nothing outstanding or anything I would come back to other than the first song.

3 + 3

The Isley Brothers

4/5

I've known about The Isley Brothers, but that knowledge was limited. This album was a trip to listen to, not just because there are a series of songs on here that are good, but also because there were a bunch that others had made famous which I had no idea they had written. Things like Summer Breeze and Listen to the Music, both of which were cool in their original form, even if we are all used to the Seals & Crofts / Doobie Brothers versions. I really enjoyed You Walk Your Way, which was a really good. Others were excellent on here as well. Lots of great songwriting, lots of good performances, well worth the listen.

Shalimar

Rahul Dev Burman

1/5

I understand that this list has to be a "worldwide" list, but here's a partial list of artists with 150m+ records sold who are nowhere to be found on this list: Garth Brooks Phil Collins (solo) Drake Celine Dion Ed Sheeran And we get this shit, instead? Just listen to One Two Cha Cha Cha and it gives you all you need to hear about this album, which shouldn't be near this list.

The Joshua Tree

U2

4/5

This is a hard one for me, as I am squarely between 4 and 5 stars. When I was growing up in the 80s, I was not a U2 fan. Tons of my friends were and I just didn't get it. Over time, I've grown to appreciate them much more, even saw them in Chicago for the Innocence + Experience tour back in 2015, which was undeniably a great show. All the same, they are not a go to band for me. This album gets off to an amazing start with the three lead singles, followed by Bullet the Blue Sky, which I might like even better than those hits. The problem I have is that after this, the album wanes a bit for me. Sure, Running to Stand Still has some good soul to it (even if a lot of the song is quiet), In God's Country is a good one too, but most of these songs are far from great. This is why I am stuck, as it is a great record with some tremendous songs on it, but it is far from perfect. Given this, I think I have to go with 4 stars. It's just not consistently amazing for me.

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

5/5

I've been wondering when this might hit for me. I have always liked Fleetwood Mac, but I don't worship them. Really talented band (playing, singing, and songwriting) and very complicated. It's the latter piece that helps them stand out in many ways, and it's really what makes this album so amazing. This record, front to back, is a no skip one for me. When the worst song on here is a track that would be one of the best on any given artist's solo record (Songbird), it speaks to how strong the band is as a collective. Tons of hits on here, including The Chain, Don't Stop, Dreams, Go Your Own Way, You Make Loving Fun. But the other tracks like Gold Dust Woman, Oh Daddy, Never Going Back Again are just incredible in their own right. 40 million in album sales can't be wrong, and they are not. An incredible record. A clear 5 stars.

Get Rich Or Die Tryin'

50 Cent

4/5

Hadn't heard anything off of this before besides In Da Club and I really liked this record. The grooves on this and 50's rap style is excellent. Liked that Eminem was on this a few times. Some excellent tracks, including IDC, Patiently Waiting, Poor Lil Rich, Gotta Make It To Heaven, and others. 4 stars.

The Boatman's Call

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

1/5

I guess I just don't get it. I don't know why we have so many Nick Cave albums on here. Is he interesting? At times. Murder Ballads was ambitious and intriguing, a worthy inclusion. That said, he is very far from great. Want proof? He is revered by a good amount of critics (mainly English), as evidenced by having 5 albums on this list. And yet, here in the States, he has had one album that has sold more than 100k copies. One. That's incredibly hard to accomplish. Is he a complicated artist that is just misunderstood in the US? Perhaps. Or maybe, just maybe, he's a relatively uninspiring/bad signer, who is a lackluster song writer. Some examples, just from this album: "We'd buy the Sunday newspapers and never read a single word." "I don't believe in an interventionist God but I know, darling, that you do." "In a colonial hotel, we fucked up the sun and then we fucked it down again." He's incredibly trite throughout this record. Him trying sing layers about a "twinkling cunt"? Huh? Worse yet, this collection of songs are very basic with zero real musicality to them. The only bonus is that I've now burned through more than half of his albums on this countdown. Only two more to get rid of. While he hasn't supplanted Amy Winehouse as my least favorite artist on this countdown, I realize now I would rather listen to her than him. At least Amy had an excellent voice and talent, even if she totally wasted both. This dude is predominantly just a waste of time.

Black Monk Time

The Monks

4/5

I shouldn't like this for the same reason I don't like a lot of EDM, it was pretty repetitive. That said, I couldn't help but enjoy this. When I first started listening, this felt a lot like "what if The Doors met punk before it was even a thing?" Strange, no doubt, but oddly fun to listen to. Just a bunch of guys getting together to jam and suddenly they are making a record, with no clue what to do. And yet, it works. Is it great? No. Is it a worthy inclusion, given the back story and how this was effectively very early punk? Yeah.

American Idiot

Green Day

4/5

The 90s had some incredible music and I am a big fan of the alternative rock of that decade, but not a big fan of Green Day. This record has a lot to like about it, but it isn’t a cover to cover listen for me. Yeah, there are some great songs on here. You still hear Holiday, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Wake Me Up When September Ends, and the title track on the radio today, and all are excellent tracks. I really liked Jesus of Suburbia as well, sprawling with a lot of different pieces to it, this really speaks to what Green Day was capable of. That said, there were songs on here that didn’t work for me at all, chief among them was Are We the Waiting, a song that so desperately wants to be an anthem that it comes off as incredibly cliche. There were a few others which miss as well. All rolled up, it’s hard to make this anything other than a 4 star album for me. The highs are undeniably very high, even if I am not seeking them out at any point. But with a few holes in the album, it can’t be a five star record.

Chicago Transit Authority

Chicago

3/5

Fun to listen to what Chicago was when they started vs. what they have become. This record had some fun stuff to it, including the variety of styles throughout the album, but nothing that grabbed me instantly and significantly. There were some low notes as well - Free Form Guitar was just poor playing, in my opinion. Good, but not amazing.

Green

R.E.M.

3/5

R.E.M. has always been one of those bands like U2 for me. Loved, even revered by a lot of people, but growing up I didn't really get it. But while I have grown to appreciate U2 through the years, I can't say the same about R.E.M. Do they have some cool songs? Sure. I could easily go listen to Losing My Religion, Nightswimming, The One I Love, Driver 8, and a few others. But they are never a band that I say "I have to go listen to them." Stipe has an interesting (not great) voice, they are good players, but far from incredible. Sometimes I think they appeal to people because they are offbeat, which is fine, but that's not really a reason to consider them great, it just means they are different. This album is another example of me diverging with a lot of people on R.E.M. I see a lot of 5-star reviews on this, and when you think about all the great records that exist in music (e.g. I just had Rumours), this one vastly pales in comparison to those masterpieces, both in playing and in influence. Take Stand on this record, for example. Arguably the most popular song on this record, but when you listen to it, you realize that it is pretty basic, especially the chorus. "Your feet are going to be on the ground, your head is there to move you around." Ok. That's basically like saying the grass is green (no pun intended) or the sky is blue. They are saying nothing. There are some decent tracks on here, but as an overall record it's a bunch of average music from a decent band, nothing more. I will say, though, I've heard Orange Crush a bunch of times, but I can't say I've listened to it with intent like I did this time. And I have to say that I quite like that track. An excellent song, with lots of layers. Unfortunately, this type of greatness was few and far between from this record and this band, at least for me.

Iron Maiden

4/5

It would be easy to listen to this and chalk it up as another metal band that sounds like the rest, but that would be doing a massive disservice to Iron Maiden and what they brought with this debut effort. Is this for everyone? Decidedly no. But I happen to like hard rock and metal and there is zero doubt about how talented these guys are. That they are not in the R&R HOF is incredible to me, given their impact on many of the bands that followed (e.g. Metallica, Alice In Chains, etc.) Yeah, the band is better with Bruce Dickinson leading it, but Di'Anno is no slouch and he is solid on this record. This is an excellent album and a fun throwback.

Head Hunters

Herbie Hancock

3/5

As someone who appreciates jazz more than I used to, I did enjoy this but I also found it a bit rambling and repetitive. There are some highlights no doubt. Watermelon Man is a fun song, but even at its shorter 6+ minute duration, there isn't as much variation as there could have been on this track. Smack dab between a 3 & 4 for me on this one, but moving down to a 3 because it wasn't as fun as I thought it might be and there's nothing here that I would come back to numerous times in the future.

No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith (Live)

Motörhead

4/5

Rock the way it was intended. Motorhead are not a great band, but the one thing they can do consistently is deliver driving music and that's what they do with this live album. This was great to listen to, especially as someone who is not a fan of their music. The energy is just fantastic. Loved this.

British Steel

Judas Priest

3/5

The funny thing about this randomizer is that it feels ever so slightly not random. We all know there is some control over it, that's why everyone got an Ozzy/Black Sabbath album after he died, or a Beach Boys record after Brian Wilson passed away. Beyond this, there are times when things go on runs that seem more than just coincidental. That's where I am at right now, as in the last 4 albums I have had Iron Maiden, a live Motorhead album, and then this one. All early 80s metal and, chronologically, I think these albums are within 20 of each other in the countdown. Kinda strange. Unfortunately, for JP, that means they are being compared directly against contemporaries which I had just listened to and this record, while good, pales in comparison to the other two. There are some highlights, Living After Midnight is an excellent track. The Rage was a great one for me. But another listen to Breaking the Law and others on this record just feels like it is lacking a bit of something. Maybe best said, I think this felt a bit more formulaic than organic for me - i.e. Iron Maiden's debut album and the live Motorhead had more raw energy and power to them. In addition, Rob Halford is a good frontman, I just found some of his abilities a bit lacking on this. All in all, good to go back and explore this album, but nothing that really wowed me, and maybe some inherent bias down because of recent listens which were considerably better.

Tracy Chapman

5/5

I’ve heard Fast Car a million times and as great as that song is, I've never thought about listening to this album. I've been missing out all this time. There's so much to like about this record. The melodic feel despite the simplistic approach. Chapman's cool, dare I say great, voice. The earnestness of many of these tracks. It's just an incredible debut effort. Right from the jump, Talkin' Bout a Revolution demonstrates how she is different from other artists, especially when you consider the sound that dominated the late 80s (hair metal, rock, synth pop, etc.). What she was doing just didn't fit the scene of the time, and yet she ascended to massive heights, which speaks to her talent and especially the reach of Fast Car. Even after these first two tracks, there's so much feeling throughout this record, but she proves to not be just a one-trick pony. Take a song like Baby Can I Hold You, which was the only other track I had heard before. An excellent love song, on a record full of protest, hardship, and inequity anthems? Amazing. A true singer songwriter when the scene had mainly moved on from them. Selling 20m records from a debut? A truly astonishing feat. Really it was a very modern feel on stuff that would have felt right at home in the 70s. 5 stars.

Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo

Devo

3/5

I get why this is on here. There’s a certain charm to Devo and especially this album, given the music at the time (or let’s face it, any time). That said, it is very strange and really not my thing. I’ve heard people say that this is the beginning of new wave, and I sort of understand that, though new wave has a lot more depth to it. This is more or less nerd frat rock, and there’s a reason that really no one else followed it. I read that Bowie said that they were the band of the future, but that’s just based on how they looked. Devo never proved to be a harbinger of music of the future. Smack dab between two and three stars, going with three because it’s so different, new and interesting. And that’s despite the fact that Brian Eno produced this and I really don’t like him. Maybe it’s because the cover looks like Tom Brady. Hey, maybe they were the band of the future…

Disintegration

The Cure

3/5

There's a definite vibe to this album, just not sure if I like it. There are some cool songs. Lovesong is certainly more accessible than some of the other songs on this album, a great track. I also really liked Lullaby. As for the rest, they proved to be pretty similar to each other and that wasn't necessarily a great thing. It's not that it's bad, but moodiness throughout? Also, some of the songs at the end were way, way too long. Take Disintegration for example, it's got a cool riff to it, but playing it over and over again for the first 1:30 doesn't need to happen. Could have set the stage in like 30 seconds or less. It's all just a bit heavy handed for me, even if I can see where people would love this. So it's far from a 5-star album for me. Debating 3 & 4, but going with the former as this album could have easily been 45 minutes and not its bloated 1:10+.

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

The Smashing Pumpkins

4/5

I've never been a big fan of the Pumpkins, but this album is undeniably great. My last album was a Cure album which, at over 1:10, I was calling bloated. And here I am praising an effort which is over 2:00. The big difference is that while the Cure set a mood and stayed in it the entire time, that made the album feel more like a slog than it should have. Meanwhile, the Pumpkins come right out and give you energy and manage to carry it in many songs throughout the record, while at the same time providing more than enough diversity in the songs to keep your interest. The beginning of this record is tight with the first 5 songs after the title track (which is just an intro anyway). Tonight Tonight, Zero, and Bullet With Butterfly Wings are an especially tremendous way to kick things off. After that, it's not as great, though there's still a lot to like about this record. Giving this 4-stars. I get that it's an epic effort, but it's not unbelievable from beginning to end.

Fetch The Bolt Cutters

Fiona Apple

2/5

I had a weird experience listening to this. I loved Tidal. I loved Fiona's voice. I loved her sophistication. Evidently, the least 25 years didn't do her favors. She can still sing and she has a lot to say, but she doesn't do either, at least not nearly enough. There's a lot of musicality here, but it never is used to accentuate what she should be showing off, which is her capable songwriting or her voice. Instead, there's repetition, trite lyrics, and more talking than singing. Shameika is a perfect microcosm for this album. She constantly repeats "Shameika said I had potential" and I can't help but think that the implication is that she never reached it, which is really how I felt about this record. The title track, ultimately, proved to be pretty aimless, especially at the end. I was excited when this showed up in my queue, but was left disappointed. Not that it was awful, but it was not nearly as great as it could have been and she can be. It was like she was trying to do a Brian Eno impression. Unfortunately, I hate Brian Eno. Too much experimentation and not enough actual forethought leads to an inferior effort.

Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

4/5

This was a blast to go back and listen to. Beastie Boys have always been a band that I have liked, even if I didn't own a ton of their stuff. I knew a lot from this record, including Hey Ladies, Johnny Ryall, and Shake Your Rump, the last of which is one my top 2 or 3 favorite songs by them. I forgot about Egg Man, which is a super fun song to listen to. There were others as well that were great to check out, as I don't remember many of the rest. That said, this album has the unfortunate circumstance of being less than a month removed from me having listened to License to Ill, which I think is their best record. This just isn't quite as good, even if it is considered one of the landmark albums of hip hop. While I am squarely between 4 and 5 stars on this, much like I was with L2I, I am landing on this at 4 stars, as it doesn't quite hit as high as the raw energy of that record, even if it is a move towards a more sophisticated sound with stronger beats.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Beatles

4/5

A little more than 20% into this list and I have had a good amount of albums from the Beatles and their former members. 1 Lennon album, the sole George Harrison record, both McCartney records (w & wo Wings), and now my second Beatles album, which I believe puts me exactly halfway through the combined catalogs on this list. This is definitely an excellent album, especially when you see how far they grew as artists vs. their first record included (With The Beatles). That said, though it is critically revered, it doesn't quite reach the levels of George Harrison's All Things Must Pass album for me. There's a lot of great tracks on here, no doubt. The Title track, With A Little Help From My Friends, Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and my personal favorite A Day in the Life all are tremendous songs, going a long way towards showing how much more sophisticated their sound became as a band. There are multiple layers to all of these songs, tempo and key changes, etc. Really demonstrates how good a set of songwriters they were as well. 30m+ people can't be wrong, of course. Still, there are points on this album which aren't close to the highs of some of the rest of it. Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite, Lovely Rita, and Fixing A Hole being chief among the songs which aren't that great. In the end, while great, this doesn’t sum up to an amazing 5-star album for me. Still, it’s very good and a worthy inclusion.

Live At The Regal

B.B. King

3/5

Decent, not amazing. King can really play and his voice is good. I found this a bit monotonous though. Just not my thing I guess.

Lost Souls

Doves

4/5

I've read some of the most liked reviews on here, and it seems that people are blaming them for the summary saying that it's the best album to come from Manchester since Definitely Maybe. First, that's a pretty finite compliment. How many albums really came from bands from Manchester in that time? Second, it's not the band's fault that someone else feels this way. Listening with an open mind, I thought this was quite good. And this is coming from someone who has truly hated a lot of the Britpop albums which should not have been included on here. It's not blow you away amazing, mind you. The lyrics are sparce, which leaves some of the songs lacking. The band, however, has some very good musicality to them. There is definitely something here that was worth exploring. I particularly would point people towards Rise and The Man Who Told Everything, both of which I thought were great. The former almost has an ethereal feel to it that made it excellent. A lot of the English albums the Brits have included on this countdown have been massive letdowns. This one certainly was not. An excellent inclusion.

Run-D.M.C.

3/5

I get that this is a pioneer album for rap, and though I like a lot of rap, I just found that this album doesn’t hold up. It’s not bad, it’s just not amazing. The raps are decent, but the beats are simplistic and repetitive.

At Mister Kelly's

Sarah Vaughan

3/5

Another album from 1956, after I got Louis Prima's The Wildest about a month ago. This one isn't quite as good as that one, as Prima's record had a lot more energy to it. Take Just a Gigolo, which is interestingly on both records. Compare the two and it’s not even close, as Prima’s clears easily. That said, it's amazing that this still holds up after 70 years, mainly because Vaughn's voice is really great. That makes it at least worth the listen, though not much more.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

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