1001 Albums Summary

I like the vibe, but I guess it's not blowing my mind. Laughed at quite a lot of the lyrics (I think I was meant to?) Really enjoyed the moments of jazz influence, but they didn't seem to come too often. the live drums on the some of the skits sound great On 2nd listen I definitely got more into it. May revisit.

A treat. I knew exactly 1 Pogues song before listening to this. I wouldn’t say there are any big surprises here, but I enjoyed hearing more of what this band was capable of. Stand out tracks (aside from Fairytale): Thousands are Sailing (gorgeous melody, ever pertinent topic), Streets of Sorrow / Birmingham Six and – of course – Worms!

OK now we're talking. At it's best – sublime. At its worst – strong compositions with astute arrangements that just happen to be a bit on the nose. But the sheer competency of the whole thing is remarkable. The bass throughout is very super tasteful, melodic and perfectly recorded – Dancing Queen of course is a standout in this way (and many other ways too obviously) Songs I thought of as throwaway on first listen are now firm favourites (When I Kissed the Teacher, Dum Dum Diddle, Tiger) There's such a sadness to many of the lyrics, and the stories. The absolute balls to be so deadly and epically serious lyrically, all set to the most joyous, candy-sculpted pop music.

Takes me back to my teen years when my brother was obsessed with this band! A classic.

Weird - I know this album pretty well, but never knew: a) it was recorded on my 6th birthday b) it was recorded so soon before Kurt died It's pretty great – as if we needed further proof of how strong Cobain's compositions are. They hold up so well to this format, and probably any other you'd care to throw at them. The covers are so well curated too. I was surprised though on this listen how a band so at the peak of their powers can be so sloppy in places? They’re out of their comfort zone sure, and it’s part of the warts-and-all charm of the set, but there are some really pretty dodgy moments here.

Finally a reason to actually listen to this album properly… I don't really like it? Found myself getting quite bored or rolling my eyes a few times...

Elvin 🙏🏻

History I guess. It's fun, gets silly at times. Held together by charm and imagination. Not a great album in my view but gets a 3 for its influence, undeniably groundbreaking production for the time. Made me smile a lot.