1001 Albums Summary

Lush, cinematic art pop. There are some hints of the darker, more avant-garde artist Walker would eventually become, particularly in the epic first track, “The Seventh Seal”.

Some classic Chili Peppers songs for sure, particularly Under the Bridge and Give it Away. However, the album as a whole I found tedious, it's length very much a feature of the era it came out in. I understand why this funky, dirty record has a following, but it's not really my thing.

Life in a Northern Town.by the Dream Academy is one of my favorite songs, so I definitely have heard of Nick drake before this. A very haunting, chamber atmosphere with these songs. This could grow on me further.

Dense psychedelic rock, both of its time and ahead.

Electronica that was perfectly suited for the moment of release, with one foot I the future and one foot in the past. I felt like too many tracks relied on repetitive loops for my liking, and the last few songs just closed the album on a whimper. Still, a very impactful album on pop culture, and I had several “oh that song” moments while listening.

I understand it’s importance, but I really didn’t care for this.

I understand it was influential, but this was pretty uninteresting outside of 1 song.

Hard to nail down exactly what genre this is. A mix of light rap, funk, soul and pop with some alternative flair. It’s certainly unique.

A very different side of the quintessential summer band I had no clue even existed. This is music for when the beach is trashed, the heat is scalding hot, and everyone’s nervous about the summer inevitably coming to a close. It’s dark and unusually pessimistic, but still contains the group’s signature harmonies, like a ray of sunshine attempting to break through the ever-building clouds.

Classic Stevie, the first of his Grammy-winning albums.

Would need more listens to really appreciate this. But I understand it’s importance.

Can’t stand the singer, and the unpolished production. Not sure why this is defined as “alternative”.

Classic 90s rock, although Eddie Vedder’s overwrought singing can grate at times.

The closest to new age Madonna ever came. Stranger than the hits might have led you to believe.

This would have been even better if the band had included Day Tripper and especially We Can Work It Out, but those were on a single released the same day as the album. Still, it was the midpoint between the more commercial early albums and their later, psychedelic and progressive work.

Nice production, but this needs a lot more instrumentation, better singing, and catchier hooks, or at the very least more songs that actually go somewhere. These tunes feel very underdeveloped. I only really liked 2 tracks.

These women were my hometown heroes growing up. It’s hard to dismiss an album with 4 hits and a future superstar, but some of this is hard-carried by nostalgia.

Organ instrumentals similar to Booker T, but leans much more into jazz as opposed to rock. I can see why this was influential on soul music. It’s odd that the sax layer isn’t also billed as an artist considering how much he dominates the album.

I like the hit singles I’ve heard off of the previous and subsequent albums better than the ones here. Still, the album has plenty to offer in its deeper cuts. Not sure it needed to be this long, but I could see myself getting into this more with more listens.

“And AYYYYY wanna rock your gypsy soul, just like back in the days of old!” You’ve probably heard about half of this album without even realizing it.

Almost every critically-praised rock subgenre can trace its roots back to this album. The gritty, experimental music paired well with the lyrics about topics other artists were merely hinting at at the time. I understand the appeal, but it’s not really my cup of tea. Lou Reed isn’t really a singer and some of the songs are just formless jams.

Strange choice for a Monkees album. Not a hit single in sight, but it is the catchy 60s pop they were known for.

I was completely unfamiliar with this group, but now I see why. Super grass is near the bottom of the Britpop totem pole for me.

Some gorgeous moments, but I found The Dark Side of the Moon to be a bit ponderous on a first listen, particularly during the instrumental tracks. I think the hype of this being one of the best selling albums ever may have raised my expectations a bit too high, but I understand why someone might love this.

It’s theme of crumbling relationships is more focused than the more abstract and surreal Highway 61. I love the emphasis on narrative-based songs here. Still having to get used to Dylan’s voice.

Classic single, strange album. An interesting artifact of ‘80s new wave.

Watered-down Lemonade. Not memorable at all to me.

My favorite Dusty track (“Wishin annd Hopin”) isn’t here, and I’m not the biggest fan of “Son of a Preacher Man”. But otherwise, this is nice.

A very eclectic set showing that the band could play whatever they darn well pleased and still be punk. The jazz and ska influences really surprised me in a good way. Not my favorite thing in the world, but it’s a good listen.

Biggie was a skilled rapper in terms of how he flowed and put together rhymes, but his vocabulary was apparently limited to profanities, epithets, and guns. Every song is about killing, stealing, or pimping, and without anything else on his mind, and no particularly great beats or hooks outside of maybe “Juicy”, over an hour of this is enough to drive me up the wall. And it ends with the rapper fictionally killing himself. I liked the movie-like progression of the album sequencing but otherwise, this was a tough, tough listen. Plus, the P. Diddy of it all makes it really hard to go back to this. I tried, I really did, but this was simply NOT for me.

One of the most famous supergroups, and a key album of the California sound.

I forgot how good this band was when they weren’t constantly being pushed on me by the radio. Ridiculously over the top in the best way. Some of the conspiracy themed lyrics are showing their age.

The story is a bit muddled and confusing in the back half, but otherwise this is an interesting early stab at the “rock opera” before that term was coined.

Great lyrics. The talk-singing is an acquired taste. This was probably not the best place to start with Leonard Cohen. Still, I understand why many consider this a beautiful record.

Half the distortion, all of the angst. Nirvana worked really well in this more intimate setting. The decision to play mostly deep cuts and cover songs paid off well. I was surprised by how familiar a lot of these songs were to me. I think I’ve heard about half of this on my local radio stations in the Seattle area. This album is also a good encapsulation of the MTV Unplugged phenomenon in general. People tend to forget how huge this was in the early ‘90s with artists like Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart, and Tony Bennett making huge records from their appearances on the show.

Fun, but disposable punk rock with some new wave leanings. The singer’s distinct warble can be a bit grating.

More varied than the debut. Plenty of rocking here like before, but there’s also a piano ballad and a song with some unexpected Latin elements. It’s less gloomy English countryside and more of an LA romp. I don’t know if this is really my thing, but I can see the appeal.

A long journey of cosmic ambience from Iceland with some epic moments and rich instrumentation. The highs are very much worth sitting through the low moments.

Culturally important in some regards, but hard to love. There are a few decent songs, and the choice of samples is wide-ranging, the epitome of what producers could get away with before copyright law was in effect. And it was a statement for hip-hop as a whole.

Adrenaline-pumping and excessively exhausting in equal measure, this is the quintessential hard rock/glam metal album of the late 1980’s.

Surprisingly uninteresting outside of the two major hits. For an album that was influential on glam rock, there isn’t a lot of rocking here outside of a few songs.

All-swing set from the legendary crooner. Well-performed and produced, this is the classic Sinatra sound.

Morrissey is an icon of British music, but where I’m from he’s a cult artist at best. I’m genuinely not sure what the British record-buying public heard in these mopey, hook-free self-flagellations to send four of them into the upper regions of the charts. He claims that the world is full of boring people only to make an album full of boring songs. Absolutely not my cup of tea.

The Prodigy are guilty of stretching certain musical ideas out for far longer than they deserve. Most of these tracks could have been cut by at least a minute. And their faux-edginess is a bit ridiculous at times. Other than that, this is some of the best dance music of the 90s, with plenty of moments of brilliance.

The beginning of Queen’s signature brand of theatrical rock. Queen were much stranger than I expected on the deep cuts, and not every idea lands. Still, it’s a testament to their versatility, even at this point in their career.

Stone-cold Beatles classics sit alongside novelties and avant-grade oddities to create one of the most eclectic albums ever produced by a mainstream group. Not every song here is a banger, but there’s so many to choose from that you’re bound to find something to love.

Reminds me of an American version of The Moody Blues.

I can see how this was influential on future D&D/neo soul, but it’s kind of boring.

Mr. Soul in the raw. You can feel the excitement and energy in that club with every note.

Yes, she was a country music legend. But all of these songs just blend together into sameness.

Some good tracks, but the “story” is confusing to follow. Too many faceless slow songs near the end.

Very catchy and fun with that big 80’s production from Trevor Horn. A bit too campy for me at times.

If Steely Dan continued into the ‘80’s, it would have probably sounded like this.

Ice details the problems he sees in his world but doesn’t really try to offer any solutions. I appreciate that at least he varies up the tempo and tries some unconventional things musically, particularly with the rock edge he brings to some songs. And he has conviction even with his more controversial songs. Too many filler tracks without rapping drag the set down however. I love being able to see connections with some of the earlier albums I’ve heard, such as when I noticed the Black Sabbath sample on Midnight.

Perhaps the most overrated and overplayed song of all time, paired with mostly uninteresting album cuts. He wrote a lot of great songs for The Beatles, but I was never the biggest fan of Lennon’s solo material.

These songs don’t thrash so much as strut and lumber along, which understandably threw off some of their early fans. But this is the album that made Metallica what they are today, with a number of their most recognizable songs, than even people who don’t listen to metal would recognize.

It’s a good stab at recreating this mythic lost album. But you really need the 60’s recording quality and the Beach Boys’ harmonies to really make it pop. The solo version sounds a bit sterile and cheap in comparison.

The first time I listened, I was driving down the freeway, so I could barely hear much of it beyond some electronic blips. After listening to the almost the whole album again at home with headphones, it clicked: you absolutely need to be in a certain state of mind, possibly altered by some illegal substances, to truly appreciate this. Too much of this album is wasted on formless instrumentals and songs that seem to never end, but when they focus their pop instincts you can hear something special.

Even this early in his career, Elton John had a flair for the cinematic and theatrical. Given how iconic it now is, I’m surprised that Tiny Dancer wasn’t an huge hit back then. Enjoyable all the way through, though admittedly it comes dangerously close to being essentially an album of Tiny Dancer clones.

Simmering cinematic funk with a social conscience, hugely influential on neo soul. It’s fine I guess.

The usage of sampling is creative, especially with how many obscure sources Beck pulls from. Yet he seems to be concerned with being superficially cool and clever over anything else, resulting in an at times interesting, but otherwise unmemorable listen.

Is it weird if I think Come on Eileen is a bit overrated? Overall a joyful set of Celtic soul, even if I don’t really understand what the lyrics are about.

To call what Darby Crash did with his voice “singing” would be charitable at best.

I’m not sure if it’s genius or awful, but you have to admire this man’s chutzpah into taking 3 - 4 minute pop songs and turning them into 10+ minute psychedelic soul epics.

Great harmonies and melodies, a perfect encapsulation of the 1960’s.

Three superstar voices joined in harmony. One of the most iconic country supergroups. However, it’s hard not to want them to pick up the pace a little bit, as the largely melancholic songs all kind of blend together by the end.

Fun in small doses, but it wears repetitive over the length of an album.

Dancey post punk from the mid 2000’s. Not exceptional, but still a fun listen.

Contains some of their most recognizable tunes, but parts of it are a bit too abrasive for my tastes.

The apex of 80’s over-production. Layered guitars, gated drum samples, and stacked vocals all blend together for a style that resides somewhere between metal and electronic pop. Six top 40 singles.

Reggae with politically charged themes. Not unlistenable but it’s dull and not particularly interesting for me.

Everyday People is one of my favorite songs of the 1960’s. Not sure I loved the 13 minute jam at the end however.

The Queen of Soul with some of her signature classics.

Some of her singing was overdone and takes away from the melodies of her songs. But there’s song cool production, some interesting lyrics, and her jazzy sultriness was unique among the pop girls of the early 2000’s. Overall, not bad for a debut. If only she could have stayed sober.

Wasn’t sure what to expect from this, but it was way different from what the cover suggested. Very much 1980’s posit-punk pop.

I’m giving this a 5 solely based on One Day Like This. As soon as it was over I had to pause the album and rewind to listen to that song again. As someone who loves Coldplay and Keane, how have I never heard of this band before?

The Girl from Ipanema is a classic. It’s an important album in bossa nova. And it’s decent late night listening. But it all gets a bit sandy over time.

I was born and raised in Bakersfield, and somehow, I’ve never heard this version of “Streets of Bakersfield” until now. I’m not a country guy, but I’m giving it a pass for that.

I love the retro synth-pop production here, but some of the lyrics are a bit odd (seriously, what is a Goya Soda?), likely due to English. It being their first language. But that’s also kind of charming in a way. The Walker is my favorite track by far.

This is ground zero for all of the modern pop punk I grew up with.

The biggest album of all time. This transformed so much in pop music, and spawned more hits than any other album, although I wouldn’t say every song is a classic. The Girl is Mine is underwhelming for what could have been a superstar collaboration. But Billie Jean is one of the greatest songs of the decade. Human Nature is underrated. And so much else here was instantly iconic.

Peculiar but not uninteresting. Highly theatrical rock that might have been called new wave had it arrived a decade later.

Definitely not someone I’ve heard of before, but this was more than okay. Turns out mixing Indian music and electronica is a great combination! A worthwhile listening experience.

This was the guy that wrote the songs for the Wonka film. A set of lush produced love songs, with quirky lyrics.

Dense, sample-heavy production and Chuck D’s stentorian delivery about various social issues, some of which were pretty controversial at the time. Cool I guess, but not really my kind of thing.

Don’t want to be harsh on a legend, but I can’t get into this collection of ad-libs and screams.

It definitely took time to get into this album from this band I’ve literally never heard of before today. Sort of like a mix of Soundgarden, Radiohead, and Alanis Morisette. I wasn’t really feeling the first few songs, but by the end I started to get into it. The more ballad-type songs are pretty good.

Noble intentions and niceness don’t make for a good record. Wimpy beats and weak hooks mean their sentiments just come across as corny. I respect what they did for Southern hip hop and their groundbreaking win at the Grammys, but even the best songs here just aren’t very interesting.

Dancey, reverb-heavy post-punk with angular guitars and clean bass lines. I like some of their later stuff more but they had a very interesting sound even on this debut.

One of the essential albums from the Boss, with a still-impressive 7 top ten singles. He embraces the hope but also explores the contradictions of American life circa 1984.

The most biting self-portrait of rock stardom committed to tape. One of the great concept albums.

This set the tone for ‘90’s British guitar music. Love this band’s catchy, reverb-laden sound. And yes, I absolutely remember She Bangs the Drums from Guitar Hero III.

She can be a bit of an acquired taste, but her voice, paired with her piano, brings out highly distinctive emotions in these songs about love and loss.

The subjects are a bit too topically British for me to fully appreciate. But it’s a fun concept album nonetheless.

Leans a bit more punk and slightly less folk compared to the previous album, with a few touches from other genres like jazz. But it’s mainly remembered for Fairytale of New York, which is a massive Christmas song in the U.K. but hardly acknowledged in my part of the world.

I usually love 60’s music, but what in the world was this? Seriously bad.

A couple of the songs aren’t bad. But this is really lacking in memorability to me. And it goes on and on and on and on.

This opens with a song I remember from Rock Band 2. It’s loud, trippy, weird, and aggressive but balanced with a lot of melodic passages throughout. Fun in small doses, and perhaps something that could be appreciated over multiple spins, but it’s a LOT to take in over its massive length. Cool, but not really my kind of cool.

Nas came, said what he needed to say, and split with little fuss. No joke songs, skits, or filler tracks, just 9 songs of straight-up spittin’ from the young, hungry Queens MC. I can’t say that I love it since I’m just not into this genre, but I certainly respect its hustle and flow.

The Cure conjure up an effectively gloomy, nightmarish atmosphere of despair, even if the songs aren’t always the most memorable. You could probably just listen to One Hundred Years and get the whole vibe immediately without going through the whole thing.

Who could have expected a song called Heavy Metal Drummer to sound so relaxing?

Has a few classic singles. Otherwise, not that interesting.

I remember playing Give Up The Funk in my high school pep band.

This takes me back to my Rock Band/Guitar Hero days.

These songs are super nostalgic for me. This felt like one of the last major albums before the big sea change in my life in 2016. Going back to 25 after a decade with the lyrics about aging and forgiving past wrongs just makes it hit all that harder. It makes me reflect on where I was, where I am now, and how much I’ve grown. One things for sure, I’m not getting any younger. This has my favorite Adele song (When We Were Young).

Far stranger than expected with a lot of half-formed experiments and peculiar songs. But when they kick out a jam, it’s a rush.

Kind of like dubstep before dubstep.

Fine enough, if more subdued than I’d like, but I can’t help but feel like they choose the wrong Mariah album. Daydream or even the Christmas album would have been a lot more representative. Still, My All is one of my favorite hits of hers that doesn’t get enough credit.

Again some classic songs here, but too many gimmicks and detours for my liking.

FREE BIRD!!

Pure metal from start to finish.

Best track: Miles Runs the Voodoo Down. Supposedly this is an early example of jazz-rock fusion, though it leans much closer to jazz. It has some rock-like intensity in some moments.

They have some good grooves, but ultimately come across as a second-tier Beastie Boys knockoff. There’s hardly a reason for this to be on the list.

So now I know where Will Smith nicked the beat for “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” from.

Mellower, more ambient. A prototype for his further experimentation with Bitches Brew.

Because nothing says Merry Christmas like a little Roundabout!

This album is literally the sound of Christmas. Most Christmas classics after this point emulated this sound for a reason.

Similar to Odelay, but with less blatant use of random samples and a better sense of song craft.