Sinatra did albums? I thought it was just singles. Nice bossa nova tracks with symphonic orchestra soundscapes. Oh it came out same year as Sgt. Pepper, the last album I listened to. Of course it lost at Grammy Awards. It has all the feels but lacks the originality. After listening to the full album: yes this should have been a single. And Sinatra never got the swing of it. It felt like he needed to concentrate hard to stay in rhythm. Unlike Jobim who felt much more natural.

Sure I know Depeche Mode. They had 2-3 hits in Europe. I know them as innovative composers who were master of the synthesiser craft. A bit dark maybe? So I was looking forward to listen a full album of theirs. Oh I like their beats. It‘s very groovy without much percussion. I like how understated the songs are. The songs are epic. On some of the songs (never let me down and sacred) I wished the singer had a fuller voice. This would work well as an opera or maybe as an Adele album. It has aged incredibly well. Close too modern deep house. I like their joke to call it music for the masses while they knew they will always stay an underground band and then putting megaphones on top of a mountain on the cover to underline the joke. Bottom line: fell in love with it. Exactly what I was looking for: new albums for me top 50 album list.

Ramones? Isn’t that one of the early punk bands who had cultural impact but who’s music is not comprehensible in hindsight? Does this need 1h of wikipedia reading to enjoy? Oh it sounds like a school band. Guitar plays the same 3 chords throughout the album. The base player stays on the chord base always. The drums are base/snare in stupidly. The singer sings with the same voice. So it seems this is not about the music but the message. So let’s read wikipedia then. After 15m reading of wikipedia: I get the appeal of the lyrics: „beat on the brat with a baseball bat“ is funny as well I want to sniff glue as being the first positive song after all other songs start with „I don’t want“. But that won’t be enough to motivate me to listen to the album again. Sure critiques loved it but it’s just not enjoyable.

On the Beatles Stones debate I‘m definitely team Beatles. Stones are just rebellion without innovative songwriting and only life recordings with bad equipment. So far my prejudices regarding stones. Let’s see. 1966. That’s the same year as Rubber Soul Track by track (uk version) Mothers helper: sitar stolen from Beatles Stupid girl: that’s early Beatles just with anti romance lyrics Lady Jane: ok this is original, great instrumentation. and sung with emotions. Only the chorus is a bit dull. Under my thumb: oh it gets more and more original. The stones sound seems to emerge somehow. Marimba is a nice addition. And Jaggers ahs add a lot of texture. Duncher Bother Me: great blues song. Bet this works great live! Even though the genre is totally different from previous songs it somehow fits the album. Going Home: more blues! The home bome bome thing gets on my nerves. Should have been 2m but it’s, 10 minutes!!? Ah it’s a giant jam session. Not many good ideas in there though. Could have been a lot shorter. Flight505: Boogie woogie standard scheme High and Dry. Gospel standard scheme It’s not easy. Rock n roll standard I am waiting. Oh some original songwriting again with great instrumentation. Even some non common time parts. Nice Take it or leave it. Lovely. But not special. Sounds like Phil Spector wall of sound. Think. Again some good songwriting and great instrumentation. But a bit sketchy still. I see how they grew their songwriting skills with this album What to do. Sounds like a Beach Boys ripoff. But not bad. Overall it sounds they trained their songwriting skills with this album. The middle part (Going home-High and dry) they should have left out. Then it would have been a decent album.

I never heard of Pulp. Sure I knew Disco 2000. But I recognise their influence in many bands I know, from Franz Ferdinand (Mis-Shapes), Manic Street Preachers (Something Changed), Coldplay (whole rush of blood album draws from Live Bed Show, middle section. Also Martins singing leans towards the singing style of the whole album) It sure is a great album. Lots of things going on. What I disliked was that almost all the songs themes are about sex. Would have been ok for a teenage band. But they were in their 30s. Gross. Was whole UK so into sex? This feels dated now. Do I like this album? I wasn’t sure until A Feeling Called Love. This is genius. I‘m a fan. Another great discovery off this list. 2nd listen: OMG common people is genius when following along the lyrics. It was a hit in the UK? It failed to chart here in CH. I spy: this is a lunatic destroying a successful pairs life. The storytelling is tight and the song acts as a soundtrack for a movie. I almost cried. And that’s it for today. This is a definitive re-listen

I‘m a casual hip hop listener. I know Beastie Boys pretty well. But never knew the difference between east and west coast. First I was put off by the narrowness of the lyrics. Diss tracks, d*cks, n*ggers and all kinds of violence. Then I learned that this album basically invented west coast rap. Ok I let it slip then. Musically it’s super approachable even on first listen. I like the summer party laid back beach style. Reminds me of Summertime by DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince. The beats are great. The days the n took over is such a killer groove. Every song is produced interestingly. Great samples. I dig the occasional flutes. But no real standout track and in the end I‘m left somehow without anything substantial. So: I like but won’t listen to it again.

Is it early hard rock? Or is it Chuck Berry with bad microphones? The bad recording quality makes it hardly enjoyable. The songs are not original. All based on the same 3 chords. Why is this on this list? Trash. Edit: Ok Money & Walkin the dog were actually good. Upped from 1 to 2 stars

What‘s this? Instrumentation from metal, harmonies from blues, lyrics from grunge. Polyphonic singing? Complex song structures? This one is hard to put in any drawer. I never listened to Alice in chains before. Part of me feels at home, in a mix between Pearl Jam and Linkin Park. The production us superb. The guitar sound thick. Drums sound like Dave Grohls. It somehow ticks all the boxes but still doesn’t stick. Then they lost me in the 2nd part (after untitled) it got too depressing. Maybe I got weary over time or the last songs are more hopeless than the 1st part. Drug addiction is maybe not a theme you should use for a whole album. Favourite track: Rooster.

Ah, Joni Mitchell, this was on my todo list anyway. All I know from her is Big Yellow Taxi, the cover from Janet Jackson „Joni Mitchell never lies“ I cannot warm up to her voice. The vibrato feels staged, the more dynamic singing too quirky. It seems she never settles. Why did she get famous? The compositions sound academic, overthought, they don’t flow. Whenever she built up a melody or mood she immediately destroys it by taking a left turn. Why? To be unpredictable? Best track: hissing of summer lawns (but also here I‘d prefer if someone else sung it), Harrys House (2nd half)

The stars aligned! Ozzy Osbourne died yesterday, I got my new Airpod Pros and my album of the day is Black Sabbath. I never listened to any of their albums because of my religious upbringing and I thought of this music as satanic. I enjoyed the album quite a bit. 3-4 songs are bangers (wheels of confusion, supernaut, snowblind, cornucopia) but also some filler tracks (laguna sunrise is nice but doesn’t go anywhere)

This album didn’t age well. Some songs seem too tame (around the world girl) most tracks are built around one sample loop and get boring around the 30s mark. Compared to Dr. Dres Chronicles album (got this last week) this sounds lame.

I understand that Bowie pushed boundaries here but it’s too artsy to be enjoyable. Even life on mars which I believe is the hit of this album was too experimental for me to enjoy it. I looked forward to listen to listening to Bowie. I hope there’ll be better albums of his on this list.

Look Ma, a punk band with more than 3 chords. With a song with surfer influence. With tempo changes mid song. With short songs - only 30m total! Only - kill the bad drummer! (Oh look they exchanged him afterwards) And, are the lyrics all meant serious? The moment I started to don’t take them seriously I started enjoying the album. Still: Not my taste. But one of the better punk albums for sure.