Jun 06 2025
Blood, Sweat & Tears
Blood, Sweat & Tears
*Combination of typical Blood, Sweat, and Tears (which I like), and some weird horns. Horns were too much throughout.
*Fave Songs: Smiling Phases (Track #2) and Sometimes in Winter (Track #3)
*Started off loud, then some good songs, then alternated between loud and good.
*You Make Me So Very Happy was track #7.
*Tried to put this on in the background while I was working. Some was good and melodic, some was just too loud/shouty and not my cup of tea. Weird combo.
RATING - 5/10 based on personal taste.
2
Jun 07 2025
Bryter Layter
Nick Drake
*Very chill, singer-songwriter vibe with some super light horns, lots of piano and guitar.
*Best track - One of These Things First (Track #4)
*Really good background music. Listened to it several times today because it was short (39 mins) and because I could work at the same time.
*Enjoyed it, but wasn't wow'd.
*Rating - 7.5/10
4
Jun 08 2025
I Should Coco
Supergrass
*Sounds like British Green Day.
*Dave says it sounds like The Monkees. I guess - British and there's a little 60s/70s musical stylings in there.
*Alright (Track #4) - We know this one! Never heard of Supergrass, and didn't realize this was their song.
*Fave Track - Time (Track #11). Sounded a little more mature than most of the album.
*Overall I liked the genre, but this felt like the band's first album (it is) and not refined at all. You can tell this is an early effort.
DAVE RATING - 4.9/10
RATING - 6/10
3
Jun 09 2025
Nilsson Schmilsson
Harry Nilsson
*SONGS I ALREADY KNEW: Coconut and Gotta Get Up. Also knew Harry from The Point! and that he had some Beatles ties.
*RESEARCH: He's from Brooklyn. Died from a heart attack. Born with heart problems.
*Sounds like a combo of Billy Joel and the Beatles.
*Super short - 34 minute album. One song is 7 mins.
*Very solid, easy listening. Dave liked it too.
RATING - 8/10
4
Jun 10 2025
The Band
The Band
*Knew: Up on Cripple Creek and Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (Whipping Post isn’t on this album)
*Combo typical The Band sound (CCR, Allman Bros, etc) and some Van Morrison vibes
*Really liked some of this album. Didn’t so much like the aggressive harmonizing and violin.
*Hard to rate because some is great. But definitely not all.
RATING - 7
3
Jun 11 2025
The Suburbs
Arcade Fire
*Arcade Fire fan, so I know all of the good songs on this one, but I’ve never listened to the whole album.
*Could easily get rid of 4+ songs in the middle and make it a fantastic 45-55 min album instead of 65 mins.
*Feels like a cohesive album as opposed to just a series of standalone songs.
*Love when their songs build and alternate between quiet and loud.
*Fave track - Sprawl II
RATING - 8/10
4
Jun 12 2025
Abbey Road
Beatles
*Fave song - Here Comes the Sun (followed by Oh! Darling and Golden Slumbers)
*Some great songs here. The medley in the second half is cool too.
*Definitely some misses here though.
*Not album I would listen to in full again.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jun 13 2025
The Beach Boys Today!
The Beach Boys
*RIP Brian Wilson
*Yup, sounds like The Beach Boys... Old timey harmonies about beaches and women.
*Fave track - Help Me Rhonda.
*Super short at 28 mins. That’s about as long as it takes to get really tired of the this sound.
*Wouldn’t be mad if someone were playing this. Would not actively seek it out though.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jun 14 2025
A Hard Day's Night
Beatles
*Did not like this at all.
*Only 30 minutes - 13 songs, ~2 minutes each.
*Bubble gum poppy and boring.
*Fave Tracks - Can't Buy Me Love and Hard Day's Night
RATING - 4/10
2
Jun 15 2025
Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Red Hot Chili Peppers
*Several big ones here: Suck My Kiss, Give It Away, Breaking the Girl, Under the Bridge.
*73 minutes is too long for RHCP.
*Love the bass. And guitar.
*In fact, really enjoy the album when Anthony Kiedis isn't singing. His voice has never bothered me, but this is a long time to be subjected to it.
*The lyrics are awful, but you don't notice them most of the time.
*Fave tracks - Castles Made of Sand, Breaking the Girl, and Under the Bridge
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jun 16 2025
Get Behind Me Satan
The White Stripes
*I like (don't love) the White Stripes.
*Fave Song - My Doorbell (also the only one I already know on this album)
*Starts out pretty standard Jack White - mellow and melodic, but still interesting. Turns into more experimental, and I'm just not here for it.
*Research - I didn't know White was Meg's surname and Jack took it when they got married in 1996. This was their 5th of 6 albums after breaking up in 2011.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jun 17 2025
Axis: Bold As Love
Jimi Hendrix
*Not a lot of strong songs here.
* best song – castles made of sand
2
Jun 18 2025
Bayou Country
Creedence Clearwater Revival
*If you like CCR, you’ll like this.
*Short album at 33 mins, and every other song is a hit.
*Fave track - Keep on Chooglin’ (longer and more jam band-y than the others here)
RATING - 7.5
4
Jun 19 2025
Lazer Guided Melodies
Spiritualized
*Kind of like if INXS but with absolutely no cool parts.
*Fine background music, but pretty boring and sometimes just annoying.
*Looks like Wiki described is as English space rock, which seems accurate. But light rock.
*Meh.
*Don't hate it, but very unsure why this would make any top album list.
RATING - 4/10
2
Jun 20 2025
Scott 2
Scott Walker
*Like an off broadway musical - fun and different, but wouldn’t revisit.
RATING - 5.5/10
2
Jun 21 2025
Appetite For Destruction
Guns N' Roses
*Fun album.
*Felt very hair-band 80s at times, but higher level music other times.
*Welcome to the Jungle, Sweet Child o' Mine, and Paradise City all on the same album is impressive.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jun 22 2025
American Idiot
Green Day
*I really enjoy Green Day, but don't love this album. Same Green Day, but it's really whiny. And not in a fun emo or punk-rock way.
RATING - 5/10
2
Jun 23 2025
Mermaid Avenue
Billy Bragg
*Folk rock, which I normally like, but this was mostly pretty boring.
*Natalie Merchant made an appearance! But only for a short 2 min song…
*Fave track - way over yonder.
*Pleasant, good background music. Just not very compelling.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jun 24 2025
Live At Leeds
The Who
*Enjoyable but not memorable and wouldn’t listen again.
RATING - 5/10
2
Jun 25 2025
Rum Sodomy & The Lash
The Pogues
*Weird not listening to this on St Patrick’s Day.
*These guys are premier Irish punk rock.
RATING - 6/10
3
Jun 26 2025
Wonderful Rainbow
Lightning Bolt
*Weird music - no singing/lyrics.
*Sounded like it could be used for a Tony Hawk video game.
*Worked well as background music - almost like white noise.
RATING - 3/10
1
Jun 27 2025
Let's Get It On
Marvin Gaye
2
Jun 28 2025
Pink Moon
Nick Drake
*Very chill, sad acoustic music.
*This album was recorded the year before Nick Drake OD'd on antidepressants.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jun 29 2025
OK
Talvin Singh
*Ahhh, don't like. Weird mix of repetitive club beats with occasionally a cool Indian or Middle East sounding song/instrument.
*Almost entirely instrumental.
*There's an 11 minute 'song' - whyyyy?
RATING - 3/10
1
Jun 30 2025
Devotional Songs
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
*Uplifting middle east music.
*Enjoyed it - good background music.
*Research - Nursat Fateh Ali Khlan is Pakistani and died in 1997 at age 48.
RATING - 6.5/10
2
Jul 01 2025
Chirping Crickets
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
*Classic Buddy Holly
*Fun listen, but wouldn’t listen again unless it happened to be on.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jul 02 2025
The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady
Charles Mingus
*Short jazz album.
*Good stuff, but need to revisit to give it a better listen - just had it on in the background.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jul 03 2025
Master Of Puppets
Metallica
*Started off pretty cool, then got repetitive.
*Will try this one again - kept trying to listen throughout the day and just wasn’t in the mood for light metal.
RATING - 6.5/10
2
Jul 04 2025
Superfly
Curtis Mayfield
*Very 1972 fly music. Fun and groovy, but wouldn't actively listen to this on my own.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jul 05 2025
Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills & Nash
*Really like these guys, but missed Young.
*Good background music.
*Fave track - Guinnevere (track #3)
RATING - 6.5/10
2
Jul 06 2025
Third
Soft Machine
*Bizarre album. Basically a jam band experiment, but all over the place.
*Only 6 songs of about 15-20 minutes each.
*All over the places - lots of experimental noise, then some melodious parts. Instrumental except one track.
*Not my jam.
RATING - 3/10
2
Jul 07 2025
Heaux Tales
Jazmine Sullivan
*Fun, but there are a ton of way better female hip hop acts out there.
RATING - 5.5-10
2
Jul 08 2025
Red Headed Stranger
Willie Nelson
*Standard Willie. Good stuff.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jul 09 2025
More Songs About Buildings And Food
Talking Heads
*Love the Talking Heads.
*Only song I knew was taking me to the river.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jul 10 2025
First Band On The Moon
The Cardigans
*It’s like 90s ABBA… but not as catchy.
*Only knew Lovefool. Whoever identified that as a single among the rest of the meh songs really struck gold - I had tuned out by the time this one finally rolled around toward the end of the album.
*Not terrible, just not very exciting.
RATING - 5.5/10
2
Jul 11 2025
New Wave
The Auteurs
*Beatles meets Oasis.
Rating – 7/10
3
Jul 12 2025
Imagine
John Lennon
*Some hits and misses.
*Fave track - Imagine
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 13 2025
Punishing Kiss
Ute Lemper
*Sultry and interesting.
*Enjoyed the singer’s voice and most of the songs, but not the ones by Elvis Costello.
*Fave tracks - split and little water song.
Rating - 7/10
3
Jul 14 2025
Closer
Joy Division
*Yikes, I thought I liked joy division, but this was mostly rough.
*First song was 6 minutes of good vocals with obnoxious background noise.
*Improved after that, but will not be revisiting.
RATING - 4/10
2
Jul 15 2025
Born In The U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen
*Dripping with Americana delight.
Fave track - Dancing in the Dark
RATING - 7.5/10
3
Jul 16 2025
Green River
Creedence Clearwater Revival
*Solid 30 minute album of all good CCR stuff.
*Fave track - Bad Moon Rising
RATING - 8/10
4
Jul 17 2025
Cee-Lo Green... Is The Soul Machine
Cee Lo Green
*Actually not a bad album. Fun to listen to. Melodic and a little soulful.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 18 2025
Metallica
Metallica
*A few good songs, but pretty repetitive.
*Metallica is best when they're playing around with volume (loud and quiet parts).
*Fave track - Nothing Else Matters
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 19 2025
Superunknown
Soundgarden
*I love 90s alt/grunge, but I just find Soundgarden meh.
*This was fine.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 20 2025
Born To Run
Bruce Springsteen
*I liked Born in the US better. This was Thunder Road and Born to Run, with a bunch of songs that sounded like watered down versions of those two songs as filler.
*Fave track - Thunder Road
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 21 2025
Le Tigre
Le Tigre
*Like the 1999 version of The B-52s.
*Same lead singer as Bikini Kill.
*Don't much care for this style.
RATING - 4/10
2
Jul 22 2025
1999
Prince
*Fun but repetitive
*Fave track - LRC
*Worth the occasional revisit
RATING- 6.5/10
3
Jul 23 2025
Basket of Light
Pentangle
*Really interesting - folk rock but make it 1960s and British
*Fave track - Sally Go Round the Roses
*Would revisit and play in the background
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 24 2025
Vol. 4
Black Sabbath
*Melodic, soft to medium rock - occasional blips of very light metal.
*Lyrics seem to have been written by a 10 year old.
*Lots of enjoyable songs though.
*RIP ozzy, but still not a fan of his voice.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jul 25 2025
Floodland
Sisters Of Mercy
*Strange combo of Depeche Mode style music mixed with a really deep growly almost metal voice.
*Kinda cool, but wouldn't listen again on my own.
RATING - 6/10
2
Jul 26 2025
Highway to Hell
AC/DC
*Strong album, but everything kinda sounds the same.
*Didn't realize ac/dc is Australian.
RATING - 7/10
3
Jul 27 2025
Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor
Lupe Fiasco
*Sounded like an off-brand Jay-Z, but not necessarily in a bad way.
*Lyrics were mostly about social justice, but were a bit elementary.
*Enjoyable album
*Fave track - Daydream'
RATING - 7/10
3
Jul 28 2025
Orbital 2
Orbital
*1993 English electronic album.
*Good for coffee shop background music, but that's about it.
*Just sounded like a DJ practicing. No real ebbs or flows - just the same sound on each track.
RATING - 3/10
1
Jul 29 2025
James Brown Live At The Apollo
James Brown
*Fun album.
*Only 30 mins.
*Listened as background music while reading - that worked great.
*Amazing music, but probably wouldn’t return to this album.
RATING - 6.5/10
2
Jul 30 2025
Maverick A Strike
Finley Quaye
*Low budget Bob Marley mixed with Boyz 2 Men and sometimes Jack Johnson and a lot of autotune or something going on.
*I would probably like this a lot more if I couldn’t just listen to Bob Marley instead…
*Wait, he’s Scottish? Definitely wouldn’t have been my guess.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Jul 31 2025
Let Love Rule
Lenny Kravitz
*Do not care for Lenny as an artist, and then didn’t change my mind.
*Just no soul and not compelling. It feels like Lenny was originally an actor or something, and then decided to try his hand at being a rock star now that he’s famous.
RATING - 4/10
2
Aug 01 2025
John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
John Lennon
*John was in full hippie mode here - lots of lyrics about love and God not existing. Found out after listening that he was undergoing Primal Therapy in 1969, so this is a therapeutic/trama-dump type album. Huh.
*God was an interesting song - seemed like a dig at the Beatles and everything else. Very consistent with his "more popular than Jesus" comment and general ego.
*Well Well Well had the worst lyrics but was the catchiest tune.
*Not sure John would have made it without the rest of the Beatles if this is the stuff he would've churned out. It's not bad, just forgettable. I listened to it twice today, and there were just a few bits that stood out to me.
RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 02 2025
A Night At The Opera
Queen
*Queen’s 4th album. 1975.
*Started out amazing in the first half, then got really noisy and bad in the second half (except for Bohemian Rhapsody).
RATING - 7/10
3
Aug 03 2025
Kenya
Machito
*35 minutes of Cuban jazz party!
*Lots of fun.
RATING - 7/10
4
Aug 04 2025
Pacific Ocean Blue
Dennis Wilson
*1977 album. Mix of singer-songer with some extra production.
*2 discs - 1:52 total run time.
*I thought this would totally be in my wheelhouse, but I just wasn't digging it. Mostly boring and a bit self-indulgent.
*Didn't realize this was Dennis Wilson of Beach Boys fame. Died at 39 y.o. in 1983 from drowning/drinking accident.
RATING - 6/10
RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 05 2025
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
David Bowie
*1972 - Bowie's 5th studio album.
*Really enjoyed this, especially the first half.
*Fave track - Five Years is the opening track, and hooked me immediately.
*Will be relistening.
RATING - 8/10
4
Aug 06 2025
Mama's Gun
Erykah Badu
*2000 - In my wheelhouse, but never listened to this when it came out.
*This took me a few tries, and still couldn’t get through it.
*I like a lot of the music - very chill and smooth, but I really dislike her voice.
*Like Macy Gray but without the catchy melodies.
RATING - 5/10
2
Aug 07 2025
Copper Blue
Sugar
*1992 alt rock. Sounds like Tonic, Soul Asylum, etc. Right up my alley.
*Never heard of these guys, but enjoyed it.
*Will definitely revisit it.
RATING 7.5/10
4
Aug 08 2025
With The Beatles
Beatles
*1963 - second studio album.
*I liked a lot of this.
*Simple lyrics and melodies for the most part, with some cool bits thrown in.
*Not the bubble gum pop Beatles and not the drug-fueled, introspective stuff either.
RATING - 7/10
3
Aug 09 2025
Blur
Blur
*1997.
*First time listening to this album all the way through. Starts strong with Beetlebum, Song 2, and Country Sad Ballad Man, then falls off.
*Really wanted to like this, but just didn't hit. Didn't hate it either though.
*Anyone who says Blur is better than Oasis is a pretentious contrarian.
*Will try giving it more listens.
RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 10 2025
Rattlesnakes
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
*1984 - British band formed in Glasgow.
*Never heard of these guys before.
*Sounds like The Church or pretty much every band on Sirius XM - Channel 33. Love that stuff.
RATING - 7.5/10
4
Aug 11 2025
The Slider
T. Rex
*1972. British glam rock.
*Didn’t love this, but didn’t hate it either.
*Pretty forgettable.
*RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 12 2025
Strangeways, Here We Come
The Smiths
*1987 - 4th and final studio album.
*I really like The Smiths, and this was solid all around.
*Only big song was Stop Me if You Think You’ve Heard This One Before.
*Girlfriend in a Coma and Unhappy Birthday are lyrically wild.
RATING - 7.5/10
4
Aug 13 2025
If I Should Fall From Grace With God
The Pogues
*1988. Celtic punk rock.
*I have no idea why there are two the Pogues albums on this list.
*I liked the first few songs, but then it got weird.
**Best song is fairytale of New York.
RATING – 6.5/10
3
Aug 14 2025
Loveless
My Bloody Valentine
*1991 - Irish-English rock.
*I'm not sure what I thought MBV was like, but this is not it.
*Not a fan.
RATING - 5/10
1
Aug 15 2025
At Mister Kelly's
Sarah Vaughan
*1967 live jazz album.
*Very pretty album.
*Sarah Vaughan has a lovely voice.
*Made me think 'jazz is kind of cool' but didn't make me actually look into jazz any further.
RATING - 6/10
3
Aug 16 2025
The Next Day
David Bowie
*2013 - Bowie's 25th studio album.
*It's fine - nothing memorable, but not bad either.
RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 17 2025
Street Signs
Ozomatli
*2004 - Latin rock band from Los Angelos.
*Lots of Latinx horns and rhythm, then some rap/hip-hop in English sprinkled in.
*Felt like I needed to be on an island with an umbrella in my drink, but also the hip hop elements felt very big city LA/NYC. Cool blend.
*Wouldn't revisit but enjoyed the concept.
RATING - 6/10
2
Aug 18 2025
Tigermilk
Belle & Sebastian
*1996. Alt rock.
*Boring, quiet.
*Listened as background music while I was reading. That worked.
RATING - 5/10
2
Aug 19 2025
So
Peter Gabriel
*1986.
*A personal favorite, but also objectively an amazing album.
*Red Rain and In Your Eyes on repeat would still make the album a 5 star listen.
RATING - 9/10
5
Aug 21 2025
A Nod Is As Good As A Wink To A Blind Horse
Faces
*1971. English rock.
*Stay With Me was the only song I knew.
*I didn't realize there was another vocalist besides Rod Stewart.
*Pretty good overall and pretty much exactly what you'd expect.
RATING - 6.5/10
3
Aug 22 2025
Bad
Michael Jackson
*1987.
*5 out of 11 tracks are massive hits. Hard to argue with that.
RATING - 8.5/10
4