1001 Albums Summary

4/10 - well produced/mixed. It’s a musical journey to nowhere. I love piano and I like jazz, but this didn’t do it for me. Is it important? I dont know. there are lots of jazz albums more singular and more coherent.

6/10. Definitive Louis Prima. Of a time. Having listened to many of these tracks individually, I was surprised to find the backing was nearly identical in every song. Variation on supporting melody and especially on vocals.

4/10…it’s ok. Classic Beastie Boys: the adolescent vulgarity of the first album, a few new rhyme/rhythm devices heading toward later albums, but nothing revolutionary or new.

8/10. Bowie at his peak…or is it a long plateau. Hard to go wrong.

9/10 highly replayable. A distillation of legacy and late Beatles.

7/10. Good album, another step in evolution. A singular band in terms of technique, style, and pop cred. Every track is <3 min and more like a chocolate sampler. Solid and enjoyable but not earth-shaking

5/10…it’s a good album, musically. Not my jam.

6/10 An 80s icon. Rhythmically interesting as far as pop goes. Stylistically rich and not unpleasant

Great live album.

opens with a quiet cacophony of voices, giving the impression of an intimate club set and fades into the title track, drawing me right into the groove

Ccr

Epic

Meh

Ummmm. The music is good, the lyricism is stunted and sounds like a teenager is improvising. Terrible experience

Better than I expected. Good sophomoric effort.

6/10. Something I haven’t heard! Psychedelic jam band. Well done live performance, but a bit too long, it drags by the end of disc 2

Brutal experience

Classic

Classic

Some songs do t hold up, with the affected singing voice tipping into blackface territory. Interesting band overall, though, and in some ways well ahead of their time

a 2nd tier hair band has a Billy Idol tribute singer as frontman. Mixing favors the sharp and repetitive snare at a cost of any enjoyment to be squeezed from this generic production

Ok. Good live presentation overall but lots of talking , so it’s post-stardom unfortunately.

Bluesy, experimental and original.

A mellow detour before Born In The USA. Evokes a mood: Wide, empty feeling. Need to be in the frame of mind to drive across Nebraska, or at least be pining for it, if that’s your thing.

Sounds like a generic version of the whole scene at the time. Unnotable

Energetic, obnoxious, articulate, and angry. the epitome of SoCal 90s punk. Smoothly mixed and well-produced. this is a great album. Being from the era (ie middle aged) though, I have heard this whole album so many times it annoys me now. I think it’s Dexters whiny style that chips at my patience. On the other hand, the most well-known track on the album (Self Esteem) takes me back 30 years so effectively I can feel the sheepskin seat covers, and smell the old car and motor oil smell of my old boat of a first car.

Ok

Genre bending, yes, but using pop mechanics of repetition within songs seems to be trying to communicate a mode…sort of an abstraction made by painting clear bold lines. Effective? Maybe. In any case it’s not my bag.

Great album, all the best aspects of the original band represented. Such a modern sound for 1970, definitely ahead of its time. While the “evil” vibes the band leans into are pretty tame >50 years later, Black Sabbath made the trail for decades to follow

Influential for its time, but from a modern perspective it’s thin and repetitive. Given its emergence on the verge of a technological boom, it’s actually a surprisingly nuanced and interesting album. But it’s too long

Short, sweet and playing to a captive audience (dad joke). Quality is live show perfection. Johnny Cash was an authentic man and performer, and professional. At just over 30 minutes, there is not a bit of dead space. This is dense and flawless considering it was recorded in a prison cafeteria. One of two (Folsom being the other).

3/5. I’ve never heard anything quite like it. On the surface, It’s weird but strangely compelling. Album becomes easier to listen to as it goes. Lots of interesting things happening in there. From samples overdrive guitars to big orchestra sounds, it’s a sampler of samples created in house. The drums are rich and driven, the vocals both growling and smooth…weird but it grew on me pretty quick

I was not familiar with Randy Newman outside of Disney films, which kinda ruined it for me a little bit. This is progressive story telling about places middle class white folks probably aren’t familiar with. Question is, is this appropriation or bringing an underground scene into the mainstream?

One known song from this album, it’s experimental as usual. Some great harmonica passages. Nothing terrible but nothing notable.

3/5…wish I could go 2.5. Definitely can hear their influence on post-punk pop groups, like the Cars. Angular rhythms and fluid leads. However, Vocal is pure punk…never mind if it’s any good or off pitch, they’ve got stories to tell now, and it’s not for me

It’s good ambient sound. Low-key electronic music. Nothing bad, it’s just a bit too mellow for me

It was good. Pure gold 70s pop…set a new standard.

Meh…couple of good tracks. Fairly bland and repetitive. It does have some good qualities but they all can be experienced listening to only the title track.

3/5 A landmark R&B album, but has lots of arbitrary vocal cadenzas (ie showing off). The third release from Destiny’s Child is where they really grew into a more mature star group. This a complete album though lacking a story ir thematic consistency. Many of the tracks are interesting and more dynamic than the 3 top 40 hits that lead off the album.

High energy, fun and catchy. Some standout hits and solid tracks otherwise. Pretty good…not nearing perfection for my ears though

Ok

Some greatest hits tracks. Deliciously low key.

better than I expected. My American experience is limited to the one radio hit here (Red Wine), from another album. This is a well rounded of global flavors

better than I expected. My American experience is limited to the one radio hit here (Red Wine), from another album. This is a well rounded of global flavors

Kinda weird folk jazz thing. I didn’t get it

Staying true to their style, American Idiot is a mature Green Day with a well-conceived album for the time.

One of my favorite alt-rap albums. Weird, surrealistic and brilliant. Nothing accidental happening here.

Interesting instrumentation and musical themes. It’s a product of the 80s but new to me and was alright

Rockin. I can see here where Metallica derived a lot of inspiration.

3 greatest hits in a 6-track album. Bangin

This one was weird, like Willie and Austin TX. I wanted to rate this a 2 for all the repeats of Day of the Preacher but kept being surprised by other quiet triumphs.

2.5 Experimental Bowie. Just ok. The redeeming quality here is that you can see where the jazz and orchestration experiments led later on, and that is fulfilling

Really good. And complete, well-conceived, no moment wasted. An honest, assertive and fun voice.

This is a tricky one. It’s ok, good and bad. Lyrically original, but muddy.

Pretty good

When an album tells a story and the music goes on its own journey. Masterful

Played out and kinda stale now but hugely Influential and great use of vocal harmony accents (full but not overdone).

Epic jazz quartet and recording.

Refreshingly original. Pretty good, dragged out a bit but overall ok

This one is new to me. The marriage of folk and rock/pop in 1969, a successful British band of the time has gone largely forgotten. It’s a product of its time but lacking glamour and sparkle to keep it in the public memory nearly 60 years later.

Late 70s Brit punk. Rebellious and rude without being cynical or nihilistic. Like most early punk it’s specific qualities are the attraction more than the quality of it’s presentation or technique, and that is clearly evident in this low fi recording with monotonous vocals. You have to work to get anything from it.

Ambient music is not my jam. Imaginative and creative use of samples

New to me, pu k vibes with heavy metal inspiration as well as cribbed classical themes sprinkled in sometimes.

Deeply poetic lyrics, this album demands study. Phenomenal.

All time classic

Great use of electric guitar fills. This is both mellow and busy. Something for everyone.

Smooth jazz with activist vocals

Classic

Just ok

This one was a little tough. It’s so trite now but leading edge sound at the time

Great music, super juvenile lyrics.

Good but not as good as some other Newman albums

Qualify this by saying I kinda hate The Rolling Stones. But this is the definitive Stones album

Imagine putting a new record on and Wap Bama lumab a wop bam boom! Exciting stuff.

Can’t decide if this influenced Eric B and Rakim or the other way. Anyway was well done.

Generic cover art to match generic sound. Nothing to see here.

Classic

Everybody’s talking at me… Otherwise a good outing of the time.

Belongs on this list. A clear evolution of what Harrison brought to the Beatles and an awesome technical feat for first solo album. Well orchestrated/composed. But I just don’t like it much. Really torn on rating this a 2 or a 4, so I guess 3

Chain chain chaaaaiin

Punk rock.

Ok pretty generic but a good example off UK alt rock late 90s

All-time Classic. Maybe Queens greatest album

Irrationally angry and violent

Pre 90s angst but doesn’t find a groove

3

3

Surprisingly deep. Starts off a bit rough, but Waits is just accelerating from a cold stop.

2

Chill. Have mixed feelings about the aesthetic though

R&b and disco. Classic

Drippy and trying to hard to be “deep”

This album is amazing. I really should see this movie.

Never have vibes with this band. This is deeper and more interesting than the famous self-titled album but I’m not into it for some reason.

Whatever. Late 00’s sound. Lots of whiny vocalizing and fairly generic sound

Pretty good 3/5

Uninspired and shallow. The mid 90s Nickleback. Strip away all the Noel “I’m Special” Gallagher drama and it’s his shrill monotonous on-truck vocals that really drag down Oasis. Wonderwall is the definitive Oasis song, but it’s not on this album and it’s not even that good.

3. It’s good, not my favorite EWF.

Romantic and swinging. Delivers as advertised

It’s ok.

Feels self indulgent and a little shallow

Like the flaming lips but stupid

Like the flaming lips but stupid

This album marks a shift in popular music, reflecting the maturing audience of more experimental 60s rock to something more grounded.

Pretty cool. Classic punk with rockabilly and blues inputs. Solid

3/5

3ish

Conflicted. The mother of punk rock and cultural influencer before everyone pretended to do that. I don’t like it though…it’s prototypical and not for everyone.

4

It’s not great as a casual listener, but was super influential. Baez explores the less-explored internal dialogue of (white) American experience.

If every tracks not “another missy elliot exclusive” it may have scored higher

3

4

Surprised by this one.

They can’t all be the greatest. Still good and worth listening

4/5

3

Sure is a lot of punk rock in this list.

Pretty amazing synth work for late 70s.

Aside from the fact that rock and roll already was appropriated, Eric Claptons credibility as a blues singer is weak. He didn’t write most of this material and use of first-person in a blues song pretends credibility. I hate this dude because of his choices.amazing guitarist though.

Kinda monotonous and shallow. Instrumentals are ok, but screaming the same childish euphemisms is not good art.

Dreamy 80s pop. Meh

Flaming Lips wannabe

Good

Speakerboxx -1.5. Love below - 4

All-time classic. This is a different side of nirvana, and not orchestrated I. The typical fashion. They came well prepared for this onetime live event and it killed