I had discovered this album earlier this year and really enjoyed the title track previously. The rest of the album is also very good--well above average for a pop/rock album in my opinion. The challenge was to pick a second song. The opening track is great (Perfect Skin), but I find myself gravitating to the last three tracks of the album as well (Four Flights Up, Patience, Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?). Had to listen to those four songs a few times to pick the second track for my playlist. Ultimately, I went with "Four Flights Up."

An interesting late 70s album from the former Buzzcocks vocalist. Two favorite tracks on first listen were "Definitive Gaze" (the opener) and "The Light Pours Out of Me" (which sounds like a lot of the throwback to this sound indie music from the early 2000s). Some weak tracks, but an interesting listen throughout!

Always a favorite and has been for a few decades at this point. Love the samples and think there are 8 to 10 hip hop classics on here. Two favorite songs, which is what I'm trying to pull out for each album are "Buddy" and "Me Myself and I." Obviously the latter was a huge breakout for them, while the former is essentially a De La Quest song because Jungle Brothers and Q-Tip feature. Always fun to listen to this album.

An album that makes me appreciate slow playing one album each day. Absolutely great album. I had never listened to it all the way through (in order). I think the "big" songs on the album (Moonage Daydream, Stardream, Ziggy Stardust) are all great, but the slightly less big (but still big) "Suffragette City" and "Lady Star" are my two tracks to pluck from this album for my 1001 greatest albums playlist. I think Lady Star is just a beautiful 70s piano pop song and Suffragette City is clearly the template for a bon of brit pop and brit rock bands 10 to 20 years later.

So strange to have an album of my younger years pop up so early. Remember seeing them in Arlene’s Grocery just before this released. Still not a huge fan of the whole album but do really enjoy a few of the tracks.

I'll give a 5 to every southern soul album on this list! "Cry to Me" is a classic and my other pick was "Beautiful Brown Eyes," which seems to preview what's to come for a lot of future deep soul ballads. Great listen and glad Burke has an album on this list!

Winwood brings in a lot is synths here. Wow. I think the opening track is a solid synth pop song that clearly influenced a lot of synth stuff that came throughout the decade. You can hear that on a lot of songs throughout, but other than the first song and the title track I’m not sure this is a particularly good album for my tastes. I think one issue for my own preferences is that the songs were quite long (5 to 7 minutes) and the synth-ness of it all sometimes felt like it was droning on.

Such a great album, though initially a confusing listen on Spotify. Back in the late 90s I had the 4CD set version of this album that included the second volume and other country recordings Charles did for Atlantic. The version on Spotify seems to include both volumes but I didn't realize that at first, which made picking a track particularly challenging. That said, when I went to refresh my memory about the importance of this album in terms of crossover appeal of R&B singers, I found the original volume 1 track list. So, keeping "Half as Much" and "It Makes No Difference Now" from this album for my 1001 album exploration project playlist. A solid album on re-listen all these years later and I always have a soft spot for listening to Ray Charles.

Fun Brit pop album. Had not heard of them previously, but a fun album that was apparently one of just two full releases from the band. Super catchy, funk- and dance-inspired songs. The two songs I picked off this album are the opening track, "Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)" and "Marine Boy." The big hit is "Love Plus One," which was good but more repetitive than I'd like--plus "Marine Boy" has some heavy yacht rock-like sax and I really enjoy that.

A real departure from what I think of as being Goldfrapp music (more EDM or at least electronica). This album is more like Virgin Suicides by Air or something--ethereal pop with synths and electronic influences. Not really an album that I liked a lot, but I dig the musical exploration. Ultimately I picked two of the less popular (based on Spotify plays) tracks on the album: "Cologne Cerrone Houdini" and "Caravan Girl." Both seem to capture the overall vibes of the album, and I enjoy both songs a lot, though I'm the album isn't one I'm likely to return to.

Album ok. Really like some of the songs but I think it’s a bit inconsistent. Clearly huge potential with “Brass in Pocket.” Also really liked “The Wait.”

So many memories of this album. Including when I bought it and my dad made me return it because of swearing in the liner notes.

First Beatles album to pop up! Not my favorite but lots of great songs all the same.

I think Frank Zappa is an incredibly brilliant artist, though I find myself rarely enjoying his music. I respect it, but generally it is not for me. Two songs I pulled out that I found enjoyable (many of the songs have super smart lyrics, etc., just not my jam): "What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body" and "Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance." My first two-star rating. Two stars for the music. Five stars for the entire package as art/commentary.

A classic! Chose introduction (part 1) and psalm (part 4) for the playlist.

Never actually listened to the whole album before. Known for being ahead of its time and I get that for sure. The opening track sounds like if Faces did more cocaine and then recorded a song. Trash is a song that clearly launched a bunch of proto-punk and punk bands in the US and elsewhere. Overall I think this is an above average album and deserves a lot of credit for being ahead of the times.

I get it was one of the first of its kind. But not real listenable for me at my current age. Maybe younger me.

I had discovered this album earlier this year and really enjoyed the title track previously. The rest of the album is also very good--well above average for a pop/rock album in my opinion. The challenge was to pick a second song. The opening track is great (Perfect Skin), but I find myself gravitating to the last three tracks of the album as well (Four Flights Up, Patience, Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?). Had to listen to those four songs a few times to pick the second track for my playlist. Ultimately, I went with "Four Flights Up."

Surprised how much I didn’t like this album. Always enjoyed the About a Boy soundtrack.

Really enjoyed this. Love that old honey tone country stuff. Chose the first two tracks because I thought they represent the album well.

Love Nina Simone. Not sure this album really holds together well as an album (which, upon reading, makes sense because this was cobbled together from a bunch of other sessions). I assume its inclusion is primarily because it's the album "Four Women" first appears, but overall I think the album lacks a cohesion some of Simone's later (actual) albums have. Chose the opening track "I Love Your Lovin' Ways" and "Break Down And Let It All Out" from the album as favorites. The former is the opening track and is very much an R&B/soul song. The latter is more in the jazz/soul tradition with Simone doing much more with her voice as an instrument.

A perfectly lovely album of bossa nova and Brazilian-inspired music...but I'm not sure the album is distinct enough to be any higher than a 3 for me.

I wasn't a fan of this album in college, though the album was very well liked by others. I still find myself largely uninterested in the album, but I think the first two tracks give the album a lot of hope, but I don't vibe with most of it. I chose those two tracks for the playlist, but I doubt I'll be back to explore this album more in the future.

First album I had to listen to on YouTube because it wasn't on Spotify...so it's also not included on the "favorite" playlist as of now. I think this was an interesting listen. Not my speed, kind of cabaret with a larger orchestra? Not sure. Seems very German pop oriented (which is also interesting but a bit odd to my American pop preferring ears), but I won't be seeking it out.

I'm not sure what critics say is the best Beatles album, but this is definitely my personal favorite Beatles album. Not a track on here I feel compelled to skip and there is a window into a Beatles blues rock/pop album that I wish would have been made. Definitely my favorite album of the 20 or so albums I've listened to in this project thus far.

The first two songs were ok. Not sure about the rest. Not for me.

Honey is a banger lead off track. I didn’t pick it as one of my favorite songs though, because I think the Bone Thugs ‘n’ Harmony track epitomizes the rap/R&B trends of the time, and “Outside” is the closer and really demonstrates how great Carey could be as a vocalist. Didn’t love the album but some great songs.

Initial scan I just thought more average than I expected given how much I like certain Air songs, and the Virgin Suicides soundtrack, etc. After a full listen seems like one of those albums you can effortlessly listen to any time even if there aren't specific tracks that really, really stood out to me. An above average album where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts (for me). Chose "La femme d'argent" (the opening track) and "Ce matin-lá" for the playlist.

Solid album. Like more tracks than I recall. Favorites include "Silence Kid," "Cut Your Hair," "Gold Soundz," "Range Life," and "Heaven is a Truck." Ultimately went with "Cut Your Hair" and "Range Life" for the playlist..."Silence Kid" almost made it though!

I’m not sure I’m a Depeche Mode person. Some songs really land with me, but the stuff that doesn’t really puts me off. I like the three hits off this album (Personal Jesus, Enjoy the Silence, Policy of Truth) and the track Halo. I chose Halo and Enjoy the Silence for playlist keeps, though almost chose Policy of Truth because the album version of Enjoy the Silence has like 90 seconds of not as good as the rest of the song at the end. An average album for me with some real high points.

Didn’t like the album but that big hit is a big hit for a reason. Had no idea Q-Tip, Herbie Hancock, and Bootsy Collins all had a hand in that track.

Huge album. I'm going 5 stars because I think there are enough great songs to make up one 5 star album (though I think overall there is maybe half an album of just ok tracks within the double album). I used to think this was my favorite Beatles release, but these days I think Abbey Road is a far superior project.

Love me some Black Flag…just in 7” doses rather than LP doses.

Undoubtedly, my favorite Stevie Wonder album. I know many people would go with Songs in the Key of Life or Innervisions, but I think what I love about this album is that it captures the bridge between his Motown sound and him finding a more unique artistic sound of his own...which is a great bridge to be on, musically. Also, for nostalgia, I remember hearing "I Believe" for the first time as the credits rolled on the movie High Fidelity. I loved that song and it was actually the motivation for me to listen to more Stevie Wonder (because I liked all the hits but then realized maybe I liked more than just the hits). So, for the playlist from this project I went with "I Believe" and "Tuesday Heartbreak"--two really good album tracks from a really good album. "Maybe Your Baby" almost made it--also considered the hits "You're the Sunshine of My Life" and "Superstition"...as well as "You've Got it Bad Girl" and "Big Brother." Lots of options on this album!

Living After Midnight is a legit great song. Breaking the Law is good. The rest was ahead of its time but I think because I heard so much that improved on this template that I think the whole album isn’t even average overall. But the hits are hits for sure.

When I was first exposed to indie music, I learned about Touch and Go Records, and they had all these bands that people were wild about. I like some of it, but not all of it from the mid- to late-90s. This is kind of in the grouping of albums where, for me, I was like "yeah this is fine but maybe not totally my style." Bullet Proof Cupid is a good song, and I also picked Let Me Come Back for my 1001 "favorites" playlist, but overall this was kind of an underwhelming and average album as a unit.

I thought I didn’t like the Smiths. I really enjoyed this album. I believe my thoughts were incorrect. Chose “Frankly, Mr. Shankly” and “Cemetary Gates” for the playlist.

Really enjoyed listening to this album I had never listened to! Some great songs. I think I'll likely come back and listen to this album more in the future. "I Wanna Destroy You" is a good lead off track and the title track closes out the album. Almost went with those for the playlist, but settled instead on "Kingdom of Love" and "Queen of Eyes." Lots of good songs across the 10 tracks!

Love this album. Maybe a top 10 album for me? No misses. Vienna a top 10 fave song too.

A fine album that’s just not much of a standout for me. Maybe just wasn’t the right listen this Saturday for me.

Funny to get this the same week as Talking Book. I think Talking Book is the better album even though I imagine many think otherwise. Still a great album. Choose the opener (Too High) and closer (He’s Misstra Know-It-All) for the playlist.

Fun to listen to. Not really a great album for them, to me, but that’s not really an insult because it’s still great. Lots of ear worms. Went with “I Should Have Known Better” and “Things We Said Today” for the playlist.

Knew a few Buzzcocks songs before listening to the album, but not many. Really enjoyed this album and can hear how many bands I grew up listening to that formed in the late 80s/early 90s were clearly influenced by this record. Selected "Get On Our Own" and "Autonomy" for the playlist.

A fun listen (representing Lubbock!). Enjoyed the album and I appreciate Ely representing West Texas. Didn't include "West Texas Waltz" on the playlist because I thought "I'll Be Your Fool" and "Honky Tonkin'" better represented the album.

Another album listened to on YouTube because the artist in this case pulled much of his work off Spotify. Some great songs here (including the title track, covered by Johnny Cash), but overall not for me. Very slow. Monotone-ish throughout. I respect the album but it is not for me.

Enjoyed it more than I expected but not something I’ll have on repeat. Children of the Damned and Run to the Hills for the playlist.

I seem to like X like I like Black Flag: a 7” amount rather than an LP amount.

The first track had me really excited but that excitement went away as the album got more and more psychedelic in a way I don’t find particularly appealing 58 years later.

Really enjoyed this album! Hungry Like a Wolf is a great early 80s song and I've always enjoyed Rio as well. I was surprised because I was between three non-singles for the tracks to add to the playlist: Lonely in Your Nightmare, Last Chance on the Stairway, and The Chauffeur. Went with the first two of those three, which seem to get a lot less attention that the latter and the hits of the album. Wild because I think Lonely in Your Nightmare and Last Chance on the Stairway are excellent songs. Probably closest I've felt to this being a 4.5 for any album through the first 50 days or so of this project.

Fine but also kind of boring…? Chill country. I get that. Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood.

Not really my speed. Did like a few tracks.

Enjoyable (but kind of run of the mill) Brit Pop.

Some great songs but just an ok album to me.

I do not like Björk. Have never liked Björk. Did once ph a bunch of money to ruin the night of a bar by playing Björk excessively on the jukebox. Picked the two shortest songs for the playlist. Didn’t really like anything about this album. Not my style.

Knew the hits but this is a solid album throughout. I’d put this in the 4.5 category because there were some skips and I don’t have any nostalgia did the record. That said I absolutely get why it has classic status after listening to the whole thing. Chose album tracks “Love Ain’t for Keeping” and “My Wife” for the playlist.

An album I think is weaker than the late 70s Jacksons output and certainly not as good as his next couple of albums. Still enjoyable and I chose the Stevie Wonder written “I Can’t Help It” and the Carole Bayer Sager/David Foster song “It’s the Falling in Love.” McCartney’s “Girlfriend” almost made it. And “Rock With You” has made a lot of other playlists for me historically.

More folk than rock on this British folk-rock album. Some enjoyable songs but other than a couple tracks nothing I’d come back to. I’m trying as I do this project to focus more on album quality overall rather than how much I like individual tracks or nostalgia. The latter is harder to fight but still. Whole good albums are tough to come by, I’m realizing.

An ok album that clearly documents the evolution (and quick evolution) of Jimi Hendrix as an artist, but falls short of being a great album to listen to. Some great moments but some weak spots too.

Odd to have an EP on the best albums list but here we are. Solid EP. I’ve always been more of a Fugazi guy than a Minor Threat guy, but enjoyed listening to this.

One of my favorite albums from my youth. I remember listening to this CD in portable CD player in our basement for days and days and days. All the way through. I remember thinking I liked it better than other Nirvana albums but I didn’t know why. Cobain was dead when it was released and that made it more special but also sad (in a way my pre-teen self couldn’t understand). Anyway, I think it’s a top 10 album for me (all time). I love these versions of Nirvana songs, and the Meat Puppets covers, and the other covers. Went with “Lake or Fire” and “All Apologies” for the playlist. Have always loved that back to back.

More of a Leonard Cohen song person than a Leonard Cohen album person…

Definitely a top 10 hip hop album for me and also this gets a nostalgia bump. There's like a song or two on the album I wouldn't mind skipping, but for the most part this is a set it and forget it album, which puts it in the 5 space. Went with some non-hits for the playlist: "Zealots" (great sampling in this one) and "The Mask" (very traditional late 90s hip hop vibe). Always fun to listen to and I listen to it pretty regularly!

An enjoyable album that feels a bit musically repetitive at times, probably by design, which is cool but also made parts of the album a bit redundant as I was listening to each time. I went with "Se a Cabo" and "Mother's Daughter" for the playlist. Thought the two tracks capture the general vibes of the whole album well.

Saw him on tour in support of this album in 2013. Great tour for a good album.

The hit is a hit but this was shockingly unenjoyable to listen to…

A long-time under appreciated power pop (or maybe just pop/rock?) album that is now quite appreciated. Lots of good tracks on the album.

Enjoy this album a lot more now than when it came out. Not my personal favorite Kanye output (I’ll always prefer the early stuff) but this album is just all over popular and commercial media. For me it’s an average album with some really bright spots.

Loved listening to this again, as it has been years. Far more my speed than some of the other albums I've been listening to lately!

Not something I think I'll come back to.

A monumental album with meaning that holds up well. Musically, a bit less interesting than I was expecting listening from front to back.