Absolutely not for me. I’ve never listened to electronica and now I’m sure I’ve not been missing anything. Couldn’t have had a worse choice for the first of my 1001 albums
I knew this album almost by heart on the 70s when it came out but hasn’t listened for ages. I thought I’d be giving it a 4 but after listening it’s definitely a 5. I remembered Ogre Battle as having pretty naff lyrics but OMG the guitar more than makes up for that. And then there are delicious little surprises like the “look into my eyes” interlude in the middle of Black Queen.
Love it ❤️
I assumed I knew Depeche Mode’s music but I didn’t recognise a single track on this album. I associated them with New Romantic but tbh they sounded more like Kraftwerk. Not a fan of electronica, but I liked the variety in the second half of the album.
Good to listen
No woman no cry is a classic but the rest of the album passed me by without leaving any lasting impression
Really enjoyed the music. Wish I hadn’t read the reviews about the artist’s behaviour
I didn’t know this album but I did know about half the songs - probably from a later “best of” collection. Interesting mix of 60s pop and bluesy styles across the tracks. Enjoyed the listen
Unlike some of the reviews I loved that this was a live album. I actually listened to the extended version which goes for almost an hour and a half I loved the rawness of it, the wild guitar solos and revelled in the difference between the live performance and studio recordings of their hits.
Interesting listen. I felt like I knew The Cure but it turns out I just merged them in my mind with the New Romantic period they coincided with.
I found traces of punk in their sound and an emo feel, even though I think they’re a bit early for that genre.
Three discs, mostly instrumental was a bit much but I enjoyed disc 1 and that’s the basis of my rating
I only knew The Byrds as a name, an era and “Turn, turn, turn” which has been played so much it’s become clichéd. I expected standard 60s pop but it’s much more varied. Definite comparisons with The Beatles for pure pop, great harmonies and experimental sounds. Love the lead singer’s voice and the harmonies. Enjoyed the country and folk influences as well as the experimental sounds.
The Mind Garden is the most “out there” and my favourite - somewhat discordant but still hauntingly beautiful. I preferred the pared back Mind Garden 1 version where the clarity and purity of the voice really shines through.
So glad to have discovered this album
Pure pop well done. Surprised how many of the tracks I remembered but hey this was the middle of my uni years.
Fun to be reminded but I wouldn’t bother to listen again.
Didn’t know Supergrass apart from their big hit which did have a real Brit pop feel. Other tracks were a bit more post punk which I quite liked. Worth a listen
Loved Wordy Rappinghood, which I remember from my youth. Really enjoyed the sense of fun and the lyrics in French (reflecting Weymouth’s Breton mother I assume). But found the long tracks a bit repetitive. Enjoyed the listen
Nice voice, easy listening but not remotely memorable
It’s a classic of the genre but I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen
I took an irrational dislike against The Girl From Ipanema and boss’s nova in general years ago but started to soften recently when my daughter fell in love with it.
So I was prepared to be irritated by this album but found myself win over by its gentle vocals and rhythms and Astrud Gilberto’s vocals in the two tracks that feature her. For me those are the stand outs of the album
I’d never listened to k.d. lang before but had the impression her roots were in country music. I couldn’t detect any such influence in this album. Very smooth easy listening without being bland. My favourite track is “Outside myself” which is an outlier on the album - I’d like to hear more like this
Great example of the early years of post punk. Has the same driving energy of punk and its directness but with less anger and more humour.
I knew the singles but not the album and thoroughly enjoyed it. Great album to listen to whenever you need to lift your spirits
It’s not my sound but I recognise the musicianship and support the courage of the protest
So this is apparently where the sound that made the Stones famous started. I get it but it didn’t grab me
Earlier in my life I lived with a music lover with eclectic tastes and an extensive downloaded music collection. Generally I let him choose what to play and only intervened if he played something that didn’t appeal.
Usually that was because the music didn’t match my mood or he’d been in a streak of playing the same artist and I’d got bored. Very occasionally it was because he played something that set my teeth on edge.
This album was one such example. 15+ years later it popped up as my daily album so I’ve given it a second chance. My opinion has not changed.
Never listened to Radiohead before or heard of this album (even I know OK Computer is famous)
Loved it, added to my favourites
Most music from the early 1990s is new to me (when I got the classical music bug) so I had never knowingly listened to Coldplay. I know they were massively popular but I found they l their style a bit dirge like.
Apologies to any offended fans but this isn’t for me.
Never heard of this band before. Love the punk sound, string vocals and variety of styles
Classic metal. Vale Ozzie
An album this iconic deserves 5 stars anyway but the clincher was rediscovery of a track that I heard once - maybe on a school bus? - and was entranced by. It was never released as a single but for my money it’s the best on the album.
If you listen to nothing else, check out “My life, my love”
I like the general sound but singers who are just slightly out of tune all the time are like fingernails on a blackboard to me and I just couldn’t get past that
Liked this more than I expected to mainly because I enjoyed the tracks that weren’t released as singles.
I didn’t hate this as much as I expected to - I don’t like electronica. But there were a few moments I quite enjoyed
Always wary of anything “experimental” but Brian Eno is a master of sound. I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to this but I’d be happy to have it as background music while I’m doing something else.
Great for blues aficionados
Easy listening but not memorable
I have an irrational hatred of the hi-hat so this is calculated to irritate me. I also dislike jazz that starts off catchy then wanders into variations that go on for ever. I can tell it’s a really good jazz album but it’s not for me.
I wasn’t into Talking Heads in their heyday but I’ve warned to them since. Really enjoyed this album
I was so relieved this was not in any sense elevator music that I actually enjoyed it. Psychedelia not to over the top and much more varied than much of the music of that time
More of a 2 1/2 than a 3 but it’s a good heavy rock album
I’m way out of the demographic for this but I quite liked it
An album I knew of as iconic but had never listened to until now. I think it will take several more listens to fully appreciate but based on my inclination to listen more I’m giving it 4 stars. It might grow to 5 over time.
This has been one of my favourite albums since it was released. My favourite track remains Always a Woman, but I can listen again and again to Vienna, The Stranger, Only the Good Die Young, Movin’ Out and Scenes From an Italian Restaurant and never get tired of them.
A solid gold hit album - love it
Although this comes from my teens I had no memory of The Adverts until I saw the track list and recognised Looking Through Gary Gilmore’s Eyes. The rest of the album isn’t memorable - I quite likedSafety in Numbers.
I’m one of I suspect many who only know Joy Division for “Love Will tear is apart”. A bit disappointed to see it’s not in this album.
I can’t say I enjoyed it but it’s got something that could hook you in. Heart and Soul came closest for me. Dare I say I don’t early like Ian Curtis’ voice much?
Maybe I was just in the right mood at the time but this album really hit the spot for me. The opening track is the best version of the much (over?) covered Gloria. Loved the whole album
This album came up straight after The Modern Lovers and it was a good follow up. At first it didn’t grab me but the mix of punk, country, folk and a dash of Billy Bragg priest song really grew on me.
Glad to have discovered this album.
Quite varied which stopped me giving it only one star but there were too many tracks I found boring or irritating to give more than two stars
I’m not a big fan of psychedelia so I didn’t expect to like this album but only two tracks crossed the tolerance line for me (Pow R. Toc H. and Interstellar Overdrive).
I enjoyed most of the experimental sounds because they added atmosphere that related to the words. I liked the lack of structure - prefer it to forcing story or description to fit a verse, chorus format.
There’s a bit of a folk style to this album and I loved that some of the songs (Bike for example) are very tongue in cheek. They reminded me of very early Bowie (possibly when he was still Jones)
Really glad to have been introduced to this album
Disappointing. Slow paced and little variety. I think Robin is on vocals and I prefer later albums with Barry taking the lead.
Overall a bit boring
I almost gave this 5 stars but there was one track I really disliked.
I had never heard of this artist but he is a serious songwriter and musician. The orchestration of “Montana Song” Is a composition in its own right. The lyrics are like a prose poem - very little verse and chorus structure - and there’s a lot of variation.
The title track reminded me of Kurt Weill while others had country and even gospel influences.
Totally intriguing and deserves listening more than once
Every time I listen to The Who I’m reminded how good they were. This album is no exception
Listened to a couple of tracks. Quite liked the sound. I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen but I’d be cool with someone else putting it on
I actually didn’t mind this. I’d play it when I needed some energy
I prefer Blue but this is still pretty special
I have a soft spot for Right here, right now because my daughter unexpectedly loved it when she was pre-school age.
But I’ll be honest the album is just background noise to me.
I thought I would find Steely Dan bland but inoffensive, acceptable background music. To my surprise I found this album bland and deeply irritating. Can’t really explain why. Just not for me
Listened to a couple of tracks. Not my style
Some good stuff but I worldly go out of my way to listen
I should hate this but I don’t quite
A classic and a lot of fun
I know lots of Beatles songs but not which album they belong to. Abney Road has a great mix but includes a few tracks that don’t do it for me.
I understand it’s special for the context as well as the music. So 4/5 feels right
Great energy but too samey
You have to like good ol’ fashioned country music to enjoy this. Not for me
A really fun album. Enjoyed hearing the hits again
Puts the power in power ballad! With a touch of song cycle. Love the way the style switches to bring in a new perspective. Thoroughly enjoyable trip down memory lane
Not my thing but I can tell it’s really well done
I could listen to Jacques Brel all day. I don’t know his work that well but I love the cabaret style and staccato yet expressive singing. There’s nobody like him. Even so, I doubt this is his best album so 4 stars
Breathy, samey, a bit boring
Quite liked this. Flower favourite track because of the backing vocal harmonies.
I’d listen again
Master of the genre, just not my genre.
I didn’t appreciate what fabulous voice Dusty Springfield had until I tried singing her songs myself. They sound simple but her voice is so strong and perfectly on pitch, it’s really hard to match her standards.
Plus the songs are great. Can’t go wrong with this album
I need to listen to this again because I played it as background music so I don’t remember individual tracks but it made a positive impression. My scale for background music is 2 for no impression at all, 1 for irritating, 3 for vaguely pleasant impression and 5 if it’s so good I have to stop what I’m doing and give it full attention
