1001 Albums Summary

One of the best Albums from the 80's. One of my favorite albums. Debaser, Tame, Wave of Mutilation, Hey and Gouge Away (also perennial favorite There Goes Your Man)

Great album too many throw away songs to rate a 5, wish there was a 4.5

Great Album from the 90's - I still think they should have dropped one song so there were 10 songs (I know the Mookie Blaylock story) but then they had the hidden track so . . . oh well still one the greatest grunge album that changed music forever

Surprisingly good in that Soul/R&B some Hip-hop is not my goal to genre. Concept album, 'educating oneself about love' (fairly long at 77:39). Quite different than the Fugees material, light on hip-hop heavy on soul. Has Carlos Santana as a guest musician. I think what I liked most is the album sounded raw (underproduced) for 1998. Contains radio hit Doo Wop (That Thing)

Blues more so than rock probably wasn't in the right space

took a few listens to appreciate - wasn't familiar with this album

Funk is not really my genre. I felt like this was an album I could’ve died without listening to.

Well. . . no doubt one the greatest albums of all time. Paperback Writer and Taxman are two of my favorites also Got to Get You into My Life

Always had issue with Muse as I felt they were too forced and just never liked the marketing -was glad to listen to this album start to finish as the album was tight and much better than I expected.

Country, more covers (including Dolly's Coat of Many Colors) but surprisingly good - more bluegrass and traditional (1973) than 90's country which was refreshing and Emmylou has a great voice. I recall not loving Emmylou growing up but Country wasn't my thing.

Very good - surprised to see it in the 1001. I don't feel like this is a true 4 or 5 in terms of albums that changed a genre, so I gave it a 3 (maybe unfair) because I feel like if this wasn't my type of music I would have been less likely to give it a high mark. I also feel like the music is fairly repetitive/formulaic to their other albums - it works great for 'trance' experience but I expect would get boring if they released many more albumes

Pretty sure this is my first 2, which I feel bad about as it's a great fun album from the 80's. A lot of radio friendly pop hits. I just don't see this album that influential and if we are to have a grading curve of any sort I can't give all 4's and 5's

Good live album

This is why the 1001 'challenge' exists - missed this album (don't even remember these guys) even though it is in my genre (1996 was a busy time for me.) Very good album. Loved the song God!, a lot on here. Took a few listens to recognize how good this album is (like many great albums they take a bit of time to acquire a taste.) Wish there was a 4.5 button, just can't justify a 5.

Well. . . how do you review one of the best-selling albums of all time other than a 5? I want to give it a 4.5 as it's not my 'go to' album right now but over the years I've enjoyed this album a lot (most rock fans have.) Remarkable influential album - deserves to be in the topo 25 of all time but for my blog purposes I'm giving it a 4 to save space for a handful of 5 I want to give (feel like every album of 1001 should be a 4 - 5 but grading on a very harsh curve.)

Solid Album I remember in 1979 just loving Van Halen's eponymous debut album and an older kid, whom I looked up to in every way, explaining to me that someday I'd understand why the Doors were a "much better band." Well . . . maybe someday Thad.

So I thought, 'well here's the first album I won't know a single song.' Press play and <BOOM!> Straight in to every 60's heist movie I've ever seen soundtrack. Solid. Not a huge organ R&B guy but much better than I predicted.

So this is my first 1-star album. It's odd too as I really like TLC's radio stuff, including the radio hit Waterfalls. I didn't love the album as a whole (and it's not the explicit content, which I was a little taken aback, I've heard and liked far far far worse) it was the Interludes - they just seem childish and sophomoric, I struggled through them. If I was a tween girl in 1994 I could see this being a lifetime 5 (and for those of you that feel it's a 5 I support you - continue loving it!) I do feel bad - I hope this is my only 1 but I just didn't like this album and I don't think it should be in the top 1001 - still if I hear Waterfalls on the radio (or other TLC hits) I'm still loving the song.

Prog rock gods - reminds me of Moody Blues. Creative for the time, led to an era of 4 song sets . . .

I'm sure for funk fans this was a life changing album but I don't see me listening to it much - glad I had the opportunity to listen

Always liked this album, still like this album. Has a lot of blues riffs from The Faces - great drumming.

Absolute 5 - Probably my favorite Beatles' album (most of the time -depends on mood) I remember listening to my mom's "North America" version which did not contain "Drive My Car", "Nowhere Man", "What Goes On" and "If I Needed Someone" all of which are fabulous songs (I guess they were on the next North American release). I really don't understand how you could just cut those songs for a whole continent and expect people to wait but . . . I guess those were different times. The album is MUCH better including these 4, and excluding "It's Only Love" and "I've Just Seen a Face" which belong on Help! and do not match the musical style of this album. "Norwegian Woods", "Nowhere Man", "Michelle", and "In my Life" are all in my favorite Beatles' songs of all time. Also "Day Tripper" and B-side (technically double A, calling both sides the A side) "We Can Work It Out" were released as singles during the Rubber Soul recording time period but not included (as was the style then) on their albums. Add those two songs and there is no doubt this was the Beatles at the peak of popularity.

OK so . . . the album is about 50% the first song - the parts that sounded like Kidsmoke (Wilco) I liked a lot, the parts where it sounds like their studio equipment was breaking down and they said, 'Fuck it, keep recording' I liked a lot less. Had they just stuck with the heavy bass line I think I would have really grooved to this album but . . . At one point they appeared to have snuck in the some naval sub pinging sonar for some reason. I feel like this is one of those bands you really have to spend some time with to fully appreciate. Didn't hate, don't love it. Do love Wilco! Closest contemporary in the genre that came to my mind is God is an Astronaut.

Punk Rock classic. I think about how many of these album "challenges" I've given a 3 to because I didn't understand the genre and just didn't have enough listening time to give it enough rotations For everyone giving The Damned a 3 - I forgive you ;-P

I don't like this album nearly as much as I should and I'm convinced it's the cigarette imagery messing with my subconscious. Also the way this album was marketed was super annoying in 2006. . . I try and love this album but I just can't.

Great album, pulls me into NYC in the 90's which is some outstanding writing (lyrics) but it's not a place I want to be pulled into. I don't want to live Nas' experience too often but definitely rates a spot on this list. "Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft", Mary Schmich.

Solid - country, blues and bluegrass. Really highlight's Ryan voice, some beautiful songs

Hard album - angry album. I can see why people would love this album. It would take me too long to get into it. I know when I love an album I haven't heard before as I'll play it again on the way in to work and this morning I really wasn't feeling it.

This album gets better with time - I used to find Radiohead whiny pretentious bitches, still find Radiohead pretentious. . . but less whiny . . . enjoyed the album in it's entirety far more than the sum of the parts.

I feel like Kanye's earlier work should have been represented (probably is) - not a bad album but there is only so much Ye I need to listen to before I die.

5 - for so many reasons 1.) This is a live album and it sounds better than most studio albums, admittedly MTV (unplugged) had a lot of experience recording live 2.) This is acoustic (well . . . mostly, acoustic through an amp) and amazing 3.) Kurt is so put together (considering) - integrating conversations, the Meat Puppets (they were touring with) and random banter with his band and guest Lori Goldston 4.) ONE TAKE. Only two days rehearsal - amazing Considering Kurt's mental state it's just amazing this came together at all and wasn't a disaster.

I expected Madonna albums - I did not expect a 2000's album . . . I like a lot of her stuff, Like a Virgin era. She's a lot better singer and musician on this album and I'm sure in 2000 it was important development for her to stay current and relevant (and selling, I believe this album was a commercial success) but it's not my favorite.

A great album but I prefer the originals more in general. This album is mostly impressive due to the longevity of Cash's career (67 albums over 50 years.)

Blues really isn't my genre but it's a good recording and good album the man was extremely talented.

3.5 This is a punk album I sorta missed - I think if I had spent a lot more time with it, I would have gave it a 4 or even 5 but as a missed classic I'm not going back to this so I'll go 3. Wish there was a 3.5

3.5 Top notch for Rock "Opera" but still. . . Rock Opera Always thought this album was pretentious (nonetheless radio friendly) pop bubblegum; that is fun for a bit, tastes great at first but quickly loses flavor and you spit it out and move on. However I really did find that enjoyed this album FAR more in 2025 than 1977. Some of the lyrics are almost childish, and not in a fun camp Rocky Horror way - which annoyed me then but doesn't now. Jim and Todd Rundgren really set up Poor Fat Marvin (aka "Meatloaf") who's voice is actually far better than I remember it. Another solid 3.5, can't quite bring myself to give it a 4. I really do think this album wouldn't have sold a million though without Rundgren who is FAR under credited for it's success. (And as the story goes neither Jim nor Meatloaf really ever made anything off this album . . . though I image they negotiated better on 2, 3, and 4. . .)

4.5 Man I really love this album and it's hard for me not to give it a 5 as I could listen to this album any week of the year and enjoy it. It's so smooth it seems like it's a 15-minute album (it's 33:28 to include the cover of Ms. Robinson but exclude bonus materials.) Have to say two songs (eponymous and the cover) almost warrants a 5 but I was also somewhat surprised to see this album (one of my personal favorites) on a list of the most influential considering some they skipped. Don't be too upset Lemonheads - I love you just trying to be fair to 'others' :-P

3 I've always felt like White Stripes was a band I could really get into if I just had the time - still feel that way. Solid album but not currently something I'd revisit frequently.

4.5 Love this album. 14 songs which all seem full and complete delivered in 15 minutes. It's amazingly efficient. Frankly I shocked this album made the list but I think I should reframe my expectations from "1001 Best Albums" to "1001 most Influential albums" I had this album on a bootleg (record cassette to blank tape) cassette as a kid and loved it. I figured out if I ran as hard as I could I cover the 2.9 miles from school to home in 15 minutes and 25 seconds. This was only possible if the walkman was playing Group Sex.

Psychedelic Soul is just not my genre in general. I'm positive The Temptations body of work is WAY above of 2 but this album just isn't something I want to revisit (which is my criteria). I didn't hate it but I feel like they must have a better album.

5.0 This isn't even my favorite (The Queen is Dead) or 2nd favorite (eponymous) or 3rd (Stangeways, Here we come) but still definitely 5.0. When I get to The Queen is Dead I am ranking it a 5.5 because it's the best album ever! Note - if TQisD isn't on this list. . . this project is OVER!

3.0 Thought I'd enjoy this album more than I did. Probably would (frequent note by me) if I listened to it 20 times but only had time for 3 listens and just couldn't get into it. Not bad, but didn't love it - 3

3.0 Thought I'd enjoy this album more than I did. Probably would (frequent note by me) if I listened to it 20 times but only had time for 3 listens and just couldn't get into it. Not bad, but didn't love it - 3

3.0 I liked XTC in the 80's I remember this album more favorably then than I do now. Just OK. I love some of their other radio hits. Probably would love it more in 1988 but my tastes have changed a lot since and a lot of people since have improved on this sound. Still a solid and fun album.

4.5 Love this album just saving my 5's for truly massive drops and I feel like I'll hold off.

2.5 I got Dry by PJ Harvey about 20 albums back and gave her a 3 (rounding up) so I figured a 2 rounding down was fair. Dry she was angry and powerful and I really see why some people may have that album in their top 20 (not me but. . . ) This album was more contained but also more boring. A plus is her vocals have improved. She's got a powerful voice and is an amazing songwriter but I just can't get into her stuff. Same comment as Dry I think with time I'd come to like her stuff more but I don't have that kind of time.

2.5 Not a bad album but not something I would revisit. Most songs sound a lot like Up on Cripple Creek

4.5 One of the most influential punk albums of all time. Really do wonder what would have happened if they continued to record. Conflicted about giving it a 5.0. If every song was like Anarchy in the U. K. I think it would be a 6. As is a few songs are too repetitive.

2.0 This album didn't excite me. From the guys that broke the radio with You Really Got Me in 1964 it's a disappointing album. Note - I'm really not into concept albums or rock opera - if you like either or both. . . this may be your album.

2.0 OK somewhat apologetic for the 2.0 - I'm not a funk guy. Maggot Brain (song, not album) is phenomenal guitar work by Eddie Hazel. During this period, I don't think anyone was using the wah peddle more influentially except possibly Hendrix. HOWEVER - not enough to save this album from George Clinton and the heavy LSD influences. I didn't live through the early 70's but the rest of this album ESPECIALLY Wars of Armageddon is a bad acid trip which I did NOT need to listen to before I died. Still 100% agree this is probably one of the most influential albums of all time (especially for guitarists not just funk guitarists but everyone. There is no doubt a lot of what Prince and others did in the 80's in pop trace to this song.)

1.5 Not a big Psychedelic rock fan in general but add the circus element into this and it's just not aging well. I think at the turn of the 70's there was a lot of experimentation (and not just with LSD) going on in music and this was considered creative and influential. I just don't see me listening to it again (listened twice to see if it grew on me, it didn't. I think this is the 'way out there' music that takes a long time to grow on you without chemical aid)

3.5 (Genre birth - Shoegaze) 43:45 in it's original release. Trance really. Shoegaze. Good album - must be listened to in headphones (hard to appreciate otherwise). This is meditation music. A hike or a sauna session. Usually I do not like albums in the "psychedelic rock" genre but those were the years 68-72, the reboot of psych rock I'd actually describe as Trance and/or Shoegaze. There are times Trance is quite a mood enhancer and I feel like this may be one of those albums although I somehow missed the band entirely in the 80's

3.5 (4 side) I'm giving it a 4 mostly because it's one of the most known albums of all times. I greatly prefer Rubber Soul which is a controversial pick as best Beatles album. I think Abbey Road general captures that spot due to 1.) A much better title - Rubber Soul (a nod at sole and something blah blah) 2.) A much better cover - one of the most iconic photos in history. I dislike the Rubber Soul cover shot from underneath and the bubble font 3.) timing - Beatles were at their peak Still almost everyone would agree great album

3.5 Dream Pop - short - 10 song release 37:38 This album was the grandparent of Dream Pop and Shoegazing - moved the industry for this reason a lone I lean to a 4. However, I've always dislike Elizabeth vocalizing in nonsensical syllables - seems lazy. For a long time I thought they were French and not Scottish.

3.0 Long double album 7 songs 73:27. "Krautrock" a term I've never heard. It was good to hear this was done in the early 70's. Reminds me of Wilco. A lot of it was the sound track to a horror house, pulsating, building dread. Not terrible.

3.0 Never been a huge The Black Keys fan and never understood why, still don't. The first 4 songs sounded much better than I remember from radio play in headphones and I thought maybe I'd been unfair. The next 14 though were just too repetitive and I couldn't get into it. I can see why people like them but for me I'm going three (album I enjoyed but don't think I'll revisit)

4.0 Coldplay (early Coldplay) is one of those rare bands that got better with age. At first I thought they were just ripping off Radiohead but after 24 years I have come to appreciate this album much more. I've always thought Coldplay was a "better Radiohead," actually I'd prefer if Radiohead just swapped out Tom for Chris as Tom's voice is annoying and whiny for such an obviously influential band. I really enjoyed early Coldplay (this was their 2nd studio release). I believe Clocks (even though they were sued) is one of the best songs ever written from a music theory (and execution) perspective.

2.5 Didn't like the album at first sounded like standard Knarls Barkley Cee-Lo stuff. The 2nd half of the album was more personal and I enjoyed more.

4.0 I like Billy Bragg, but not enough to give this a 5, very influential but I never thought he had 'one great album.' This album is good as he collabs more (Johnny Marr, Bob Dylan etc.) I really like a few songs on this album. Ideology (and the 2006 alternative) still as relevant today 40 years later. With the 2006 reissue, edited to a single disc, I think this, in a theoretical world, could have been a 5. Deportees (Woody Guthrie), The Tracks of My Tears (Smokey Robinson) etc. and edit out some of the 'filler' but the rules of 1001 albums are 'original release format so. . . . 4

4.0 One of the 'redacted' (removed from future versions) albums - this is unfortunate as "world music" is underrepresented on this list and one of the reasons I've embraced this challenge. Surprisingly good. Not speaking Songhai I have no idea what the lyrics are but I assume they are strongly political. Many songs (including a titled song) include Mali. I believe they are technically Tadaksahak speakers which is a dialect of Songhai but their beats and hooks come through beautifully. I found myself singing in Tadaksahak.

3.0 New Wave meets Ska. I like the music, the horns are not annoying, Rowland's voice is. Just not into this singing style but didn't hate it as much as I thought I would, kinda Rocky Horror Picture Show

4.0 Came to like this album more on repeat listens. Only criticism is Suzanne is a bit pretentious in her lyrics, feels like she is trying too hard, but it was her debut album. I appreciate her trying. Straight Lines and Marlene on the Wall had the best hooks. I liked Small Blue Thing and Some Journey.

3.5 Probably one of the most important recordings in East Coast Hip Hop - but my rating scale is a 4.0 is an album I want to return to and just don't see me returning to this album. I did enjoy the album, Flavor Flav is extremely repetitive (maybe this is intentional) with the 'yeah boy' and 'cold medina' stuff but Chuck D is excellent.

3.5 Struggled with the rating, felt maybe a four but other than the radio hits I've heard hundreds of times I didn't like much else on this album. I think I decided Strong Enough is my favorite song on the album (which is odd as I didn't love it on radio play.) Finally settle on my rating system that this is a very good album but not one I would necessarily want to invest time listening to again, though I wouldn't at all if someone else had it on in the background. May still come back and upgrade to a 4

4.0 Classic metal album, possibly the most influential of all time.

3.5 Not bad - I didn't really know any of these songs and I do like some of Dwight's radio hits but it was a solid 'full album' that plays out loosely as a concept album

4.0 Hip Hop classic from three Jewish boys from the Bronx. Timeless and classic.

3.5 I owned this album and heard of this band ONLY because in the Marine Corp a buddy of mine meant to buy a Firehouse (glam rock band out at the same time, a lot of radio hits). He couldn't find the one he was looking for and bought this album by mistake. He immediately said, "what is this shit!?!" and, since I was known for eclectic musical tastes, it wandered down my way. I Liked it then - still do. Note - if you're a Firehouse fan - I'm guessing this isn't your project - just sayin' but I can see why Firehose ins't for you :-P

3.5 (Genre birth - Bakersfield) I get for many this isn't their style but Bakersfield country wouldn't exist without Buck. No buck no George Strait or Alan Jackson. Steel guitars are great. It was a legendary album and influenced genres far beyond country (especially to include rock).

3.5 to be reviewed - tired today

4.0 72:17 (long albums, a lot of gangsta skits run up track count) 24 tracks Great album but by 1991 I'm not sure we needed another album from Ice (Tracy) to define the West Coast hardcore sound. Power and Rhyme Pays are better albums for this list. A few things I liked: 1.) He gives MC Hammer the street cred he could never get on his own - this was well played 2.) Body Count is a much better heavy metal band than most people give Ice-T credit for 3.) He finally fixed Flav's stupid ass Cold Lampin' (leaning against a lamp post while working the streets) to Cold Lounging which is a big improvement 4.) Still gave it a 4 - a few tracks (Midnight looking at you) are filler and added nothing but other tracks were cuttin'. I disliked the use of the Asian bitch voice. If you don't agree with me, you can suck my dick

3.5 VERY IMPORTANT NOTE IF YOU ARE READING THIS - there are multiple versions of this album. For purposes of this project, it is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that you source the 1991 "British" release as this is the electronica/dance pop/techno version which The KLF is known for. "Correct" Album 43:43 10 tracks, 4th and final (famous flame out) album I found out there are multiple versions 'the hard way' as I've seen The KLF live multiple times (Rave culture in the early 90s) and listening to their albums so I should have known better. However I inadvertently listened to a 2021 version (release) thinking it was just remastered for better sound - it was NOT it is a COMPLETELY different stripped-down version of the master tapes with all the post-recording productions (which frankly just IS what The KLF is known for, club music) stripped out. The 2021 remaster album should be considered a separate album and classed as Trance (it isn't bad, but it is definitely not the 1001 Album project album.) Other than this, once I listened to the correct version, it was a great throwback to a very different, younger time. I can't imagine just getting started at "3 AM" anymore but I have fond memories of when I could . . .

3.5 56:56 - long album, Debut (of Gorillaz, certainly not Blur) 15 tracks as originally released. A lot of great songs but too much filler to get up to a 4. I love Blur too - the concept, with artwork thought, is a 5 - insanely creative to create a virtual 'animated' band that never ages kudos to Blur (Damon Albarn) and Jamie Hewlett for this.

39:23 (8 tracks) - third album by Springsteen Fully recognizable songs and I felt the sum of the whole was actually greater than the sum of the parts. I've always felt Born to Run was a little too over celebrated, but the other songs are also classics and I really enjoyed 9:34 Jungleland far more than I thought I would. Pleasantly surprised to give this album a 4.

3.0 43:44 (14 tracks original cut) 4th album 1995 I love punk but this really isn't 'punk' per se. It isn't a bad album just didn't get into it either.

4.0 (58:37 13 tracks - released posthumously - 3rd and last album) Second West African (Mali) group on the list and I liked both.

3.5 57:23 (13 tracks, last hidden a cappella) Full of radio hits - hard not to know this album

2.5 57:11 (12 tracks, debut), 1992 I liked it a lot more while walking with headphones. Still Tori comes across as whiny. While I applaud her work founding RAINN; it doesn't mean I have to love her music. I've always felt she and Davitt Sigerson exploited for money her personal tragedy. I really feel like Tori could have remained a classic pianist (for a lot less money and fame) but choose this route. Still for anyone who loves this album I don't want to take anything from you - she is a talented musician and artist.

4.5 44:45 (9 tracks) Debut Album. 1969 Classic album that further merged blues/folk with rock and cemented England as a 'home away from home' blues mecca (Yardbirds, Cream, Jeff Beck, Clapton, etc., etc., etc.) It's hard to overstate how important this album was to all rock to come. I give it a four (not five) only because I'm very stingy and it's not my favorite Led Zeppelin album but again it's probably the most influential. Interesting trivia is Page paid for the recording out of pocket, and it cost under $2,000 (that's about $41k USD in 2025, which for a musician without a fan base after leaving the Yardbirds. This was a heck of a gamble; obviously he knew he was on to something.) This investment gave Led Zepplin artistic freedom most bands in the 70's and 80's never enjoyed. Had this not happened who knows what Zepplin II, III, IV, et. al. may have sounded like.

4.0 51:56 (11 tracks, 1994 debut) Better than I expected. I've always considered them Beatles want-to-bes but the album was good. Production/sound wasn't great is my main complaint.

5.0 39:28 (10 tracks, debut album, 1979) Just groundbreaking, as is so often the case Ian (Curtis) was obviously conflicted but a beautiful album and who knows where Joy Division would have went had he battled through? (Not that New Order wasn't an outstanding band as well, just a very different direction for the 3 surviving members.)

3.0 51:40 (13 tracks, 3rd album, 2004) Latin Hip Hop (U.S. band, LA) heavy salsa and jazz influences. English Spanish mix - not bad.

4.5 (72:17, 18 tracks, (4 skits), 2000 third album) The album that ensured Marshal would be a cultural phenomenon. After this album no one didn't know who Eminem was. I enjoyed the Mel-Man productions far more than the horrorcore of F.B.T.

6 This is the best album on this list IMO

2.5 (63:49 but still a double vinyl record, not sure why. 17 tracks. 1969. Sixth studio album) So I totally associate the Bee Gees with disco, I'm guessing most everyone does, and the mid to late 70's. I had no idea by 1969 they had released six albums. The album opens with a long rock opera about (apparently, I had to google this) a made up shipwreck and I expected a rock opera. Not being a rock opera fan I wasn't terribly optimistic but given the Bee Gees success in the 70's I was intrigued. The album turned out to be mostly unrelated tracks with a 'sea shanty' theme. I really didn't find much in this album which I want to return to. I enjoyed the two instrumental tracks the most which is fairly damning in itself. It was hard to categorize what genre this album falls into chamber music? Pop Country (some tracks). I didn't hate it and I am super glad I did listen to it 'once' to understand the Bee Gees and the transition of music from the 60s to the 70s to 80s. It's easy for me to forget that music and entire genres (for example Disco) don't just 'happen' but a sound and a 'scene' evolves collaboratively over time.

3.5 53:46 (debut, 2017, 14 tracks) "Alternative R&B", American Pleasant album - never heard of Kelela. Not exactly my genre, would describe more as neo-soul than "Alternative R&B". It's soul plus electronica (some songs more than others, I preferred the ones with less.) Somewhat sounds like what Sade might sound like if she was born 30 years later. Probably not coming back to this but if someone suggested it during a road trip I'd be on board.

2.5 57:20 (12 tracks standard format, 6th album, 1997) R&B (technically - more hip-hop pop but this is probably why it's a 'must listen') Fair amount of Sean Combs influence taints the legacy but . . . then again does it? Overall each track is pleasant, some a bit too long The Beautiful Ones (a Prince cover that adds nothing) is far too long and should have been dropped for something else. Collectively the album is boring, slow and benign; however, a pleasant shift away from the pop and long frills she was known for to a more pure R&B sound. I'm glad I did listen to it - a side of Mariah I forgot or undervalued. It's not a terrible album, I enjoyed it more than I thought and struggled with rating 3 vs. a 2 but in the end decided I really don't want to revisit this album and, in fact, took a 'break' in between to listen to ANYTHING ELSE (which I never do) but the back half of the album just gets so boring (first 4-5 tracks aren't bad) so. . . 2. Though there is nothing 'wrong' with this album, if on a long road trip and someone really wanted to play it I wouldn't object.

to be rated

2.5 (37:13, 9 tracks, 1981, 3rd album) synth pop Boring. I realize this was a transitional album during the post-punk/new wave movement and kind of set the side for the 80's but looking backwards this album isn't their best and it is just bland listening. Lean 3 side of 2.5 as I'd definitely listen to it again if I had time and. . . given enough time may come to have really like this album but there are too many better albums to invest that time in 2025

2.5 (only 35:36, live album in Chicago, 9 tracks, none written by Vaughan) Jazz I like 50's Jazz and thought I'd like this album more but just couldn't help but feel Sarah was mailing it in, she messed up songs, forgot lyrics, went into some unnecessary scat. I get it was a live album but either rerecord or do another take Maybe fans back then were more forgiving with their money but if I spent an hours pay or more on her record I'd expect better. Maybe this was all just contrived to make it seem more intimate (but then I'd feel played?) Other than this Ms. Vaughan's voice was loving and the playing top notch. The recording was sub-par by today's standards but for 1959 was probably outstanding.

4.5 (43:18, 7th solo album (excluding the S&G days) 16 tracks in orginal bonus material is worth a once around if you have time too, especially Paul talking on the making of the song Graceland, 1986) Great album - this is how you culturally appropriate 'right' (note I didn't say misappropriate). Paul someone weaves American country, pop, zydeco, and mbaqanga (South African street music) into a very cohesive beautiful album. I owe this a longer review if I find time to come back to it.

3.0 (41:24, 9 tracks in original 1978 format (couldn't find), 13 in the 2007 remastered, debut album) Basically, Magazine is spinoff after the Buzzcocks broke up - Howard Devoto created a more progressive sound now known as "post-punk" (then new wave or artistic rock). They released only 3 albums before breaking up in 1981 and the lead guitarist forming another spin off Siouxsie and the Banshees, Deveto formed a less successful solo project.) Better in headphones. I have to respect how groundbreaking this was at the time as the 'post punk' genre had not been invented yet but overall there wasn't anything I loved. I'd listen to it again.

2.0 (42:21, 10 Tracks in 1983 format; 2005 bonus adds 6 tracks, 72:10, second album) New Wave, Pop 2nd album but Eurythmics were unknown after their first album, in many ways this was their breakthrough debut album. Radio hits everyone knows, not much else. Everything after Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These) (sic - I know it's "this", always know this, but "these" rhymes well with "seven seas" so why Annie?) was boring. Hated Jennifer and This House. Don't need more synth pop in my life. Thought it would be a 3 but the back half irked me. The 2005 bonus tracks (while technically I don't include tracks not on original release in my rating) broke the 2 vs 3 tie they were all garbage including, dare I say, a Lou Reed cover.

3.5 (45:28,11 tracks, 2021, seventh album); Americana/folk Not a bad album, I think people misunderstand Lana Del Rey when they criticize her for being boring. The genre is not pop or rock, she is recording in the genre. It's definitely a stripped-down sound that not everyone will find interesting. I'm not a huge fan of Lana but this album was pleasant enough, there weren't any stand out tracks. The album wasn't as good as her previous Norman Fucking Rockwell.

3.0 Great first song - hard to top it after that. If you're into Soul you're probably upset I only gave it a 3 but. . . honestly just not my genre. I will say this is 1000 times better than the next album I review.

0.5 Holy fucking hell what the fuck!?! (49:51, 10 tracks, third album, 1967) OK - first the genre is described as "Acid Folk" on Wiki but really this is just trolling before there was the word trolling. What I figure is this was the 1967 version of getting "Rick Rolled" by a hippie. You would get this great advise, probably while stoned, 'hey man you need to listen to The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter' and then when you listened to it and realized you were Rick Rolled you'd jump in on the game and insist to your friends and family this was an awesome album and so forth until somehow this got entered in the annuls of music as actually somehow a serious project. These bastards are just trying to annoy you. A kazoo, a slide whistle; bad, I mean really bad sitar, a vibraphone. a whole shit ton of Jew's harp. I mean obviously they are trolling everyone. This should be most clear by the fact they are Scottish and choose NOT to use a bagpipe which would have been waaay too obvious that they were just trying to annoy everyone, Then there are lyrics like: "next week a monkey is coming to stay if I was a witches hat" (yes they spell this wrong too, probably to annoy) "sitting on her head like a paraffin stove I'd fly away and be a bat" AND for those that think I'm cherry-picking bad lyrics I'm not, this was fairly creative most of the other songs were worse. One has something about riding backwards on a giraffes (I'm guessing this is how they'd spell it) back and stopping occasionally to laugh. By the eight track - if you are still listening - you will absolutely wish you were dead. It's 7 hours long and it makes you want to commit suicide. Now get this - best of all I've reviewed 100 Album (this was literally my 100th) and this is the SECOND worst I've reviewed. I'm really looking forward to this Throbbing Gristle guy as I'm not sure how exactly you can trick the public into getting onto a 1001 list with worse than these two (other was The United States) but . . . I guess we shall see This is 100th album reviewed and it was a doozy.

4.5 (40:44, 9 tracks, 1969, 2nd album (surprise)) Better than Led Zeppelin I, not as good as Led Zeppelin 4 Why didn't I give it a 5? Because I'm stingy with 5's and saving my Zeppelin 5 for Zep IV. Still a great album. Looking at the online criticism (and really there isn't much, just don't sort by top comments) it appears almost everyone gives this a 4 or a 5. For those that don't. . . I don't get the criticism that it's 'cock rock' well duh of course it is. It was 1969 and all 4 of them were having more sex with young beautiful women than should be humanly possible. Plus I'm listening to my album 102 now Joni Mitchell's Blue - you won't hear me complaining this is Pussy Pop (can't think of a word for the vulva that rhyms with rock, or actually folk. I would say it's 'joke folk' but for folk it's not bad . . . I digress.) My point is 49% of the population has a cock and they need something to rock to; so fuck off militant feminists. Other criticism Do they sing about sodomizing women? Maybe. Do they sing about sexual relations with minors? Probably not, this is extrapolation. They did just fine with of age teens/twenties but I doubt they checked a lot of IDs. Do they use the word baby waaaay too much? Well, OK I'll give you that one. At any rate just a classic - stole a lot from Chicago Blues but others would just say they were 'influenced' by the Blues. Considering it was recorded while touring one of the best piecework albums of all time.

2.5 (36:15, 10 tracks, 1971, 6th album) folk So if I'm ever looking forward to a 35 minute nap on a road trip and someone says, 'how about Joni Mitchell's Blue?' I'm gonna be like, "Fuck yeah, crank that bitch to 4!" Not bad, considering it's folk. Enjoying the instruments. I think Joni is a better guitarist than lyricist but always impressed by singer songwriters. Overall boring. Some of the hippie slang hasn't aged well. I find how she hits the high notes annoying

2.5 (53:46, 19 tracks, 1 is spoken word, 1985, 9th album) Experimental Weird genre, apparently I have to get used to Tom Waits as he has 5 albums on the list. Didn't love it, didn't hate it. Some good instruments. Album takes from so many different genres it's hard to define. Waits voice is gravelly. The album is best described as avante garde. I like the song Downtown Train the most but it seems out of place on this otherwise weird album.

4.5 (genre birth - Punk) (34:33, 8 tracks, 1969, debut) Pre-punk Includes I Wanna be Your Dog, 1969, and a 10-minute version of We Will Fall. For anyone that loves punk and everything that followed - these are your grandfathers! So hard to understate how important this album was to the development of punk which led to almost everything good in the 70's and 80's (even if you don't like punk - to include hard rock, no Stooges, no Van Halen.) A lot of this album is in the same general genre/sound as The Rolling Stones and The Doors et. al. 'rock' at the time but moving rock to a more unpolished 'garage sound' (1969 for example, great song, but not groundbreakingly new sound, almost Stones-like in the beginning) and then out of almost nowhere they recorded the 2nd track "I want to Be Your Dog" and this was a "Smells Like Teen Spirit" moment where basically a generation of pre-teen, and young teens musicians who became the punk artists 6-7 years later said "what the fuck was that?!? I need to figure out how to recreate that sound." It's hard to understand looking backwards why this song was so groundbreaking as soooo many other songs sound just like this punk riff/beat but that is EXACTLY why this song was so important (they invented it). Out of all the garbage experimentalizing of psychedelic era that NO ONE copied (thank God see some of my 1's reviews) The Stooges created a sound no one else was recording at the time, seemingly out of nowhere. And almost singlehandedly (this is hyperbole for effect) created punk. It would be like if in 1969 The Bee Gees suddenly recorded Saturday Night Fever out of thin air creating a whole genre (e.g. disco) Note - they did NOT, listen to some of their work in the late 60's good, very experimental, but nowhere near disco. Typically, a sound takes many years and a whole scene to develop but . . . every once in a while, an artist just picks up an instrument and decides to play it in a way no one ever has before (Hendricks, Eddie VanHalen with tapping, et. al.) and this was one of those moments. Rest of the album is great but the B side is just more moving rock to punk through a heavier, dirtier, garage sound. Thank you Stooges for your contributions!

4.0 Hard album for me - Morrissey (including The Smiths, has 11 albums on this project - that's a full 1% of all albums of 'all time' which is insane. One was 'redacted' (removed in a later edition but still 10 is crazy.) I absolutely love Morrissey but I don't find this his best album so how do you rate it. Struggled as I think if this was his first album (or even first solo) it would have been revolutionary (a 5) but by 1994 most of the songs sound in the same vein as other work he has done. If I ranked all the albums this isn't on the bottom quartile but probably middle - that would be a 3 but no way. I'm going 4, reserving 5's for some of the better work but. . . it would be a 5 if this was his only album and died young.

4.5 (37:37, 8 tracks, debut album, 1976) Arena Rock Album was their debut and plays like a greatest hits album. Was surprised how much I enjoyed this album and that I'm giving it a 5. However, this album I could listen to so many times and it always puts a smile on my face. Not a bad song on it! 1. "More Than a Feeling" 4:45 2. "Peace of Mind" 5:02 3. "Foreplay/Long Time" 7:47 4. "Rock & Roll Band" 2:59 5. "Smokin'" 4:19 6. "Hitch a Ride" 4:11 7. "Something About You" 3:48 8. "Let Me Take You Home Tonight" 4:44

3.0 To be reviewed - one of the 'redacted' (future editions) albums

(41:51; 8 tracks, 2nd album, 1970) Heavy Metal Hard to understate how important this album was in 1970 to the development of Heavy Metal. So much hippie garbage and phychodelic rock was dominating that Black Sabbath took the industry a different direction. 1. "War Pigs" 7:57 2. "Paranoid" 2:48 3. "Planet Caravan" 4:32 4. "Iron Man" 5:56 5. "Electric Funeral" 4:53 6. "Hand of Doom" 7:08 7. "Rat Salad" (instrumental) 2:30 8. "Fairies Wear Boots" 6:15

4.5 (47:02, 9 tracks 1990, 7th studio album), late generation Synth Pop I find it hard to believe that this was released in 1990 not because it seems newer but I could have sworn I listened to it in the late 80's, probably because Personal Jesus was released so long before the album. Contains so many hits - going to edge it to a 5 - may reflect later and downgrade to 4

3.5 (58:26, 14 tracks, 9th album, 1999) dream pop. Probably need to listen to this a few more times, might drift up to 4.0 on multiple plays. I found it pleasant (some of Flaming Lips I find somewhat provoking almost like a joke-band, but none of that on The Soft Bulletin). Definitely a departure from their sound to much more 'layered' dream-pop.

3.5 (36:10, 9 tracks on the "U.S. release", 6th album, 1980) Heavy Metal Who would have ever thought that a guy in leather singing a song about Grinder (looking for meat) would have turned out to be gay? I like this album. Recognize Priest and Sabbath contributed more to heavy metal than almost any other bad. The thing is Sabbath did it in 1970 (coincidently, or not I got Paranoid (Sabbath) just the other day. I give a lot more credit to Sabbath for clearing the path but the English sure did embrace metal. This was their 6th album, and I consider their best, moving away from a darker sound and more melodic (some criticize as 'over polished' but I like it - what is wrong with music sounding good? However, if you were into their earlier stuff there is no doubt this sound must have felt a bit like 'selling out.' Remember no British Steel, no RATT (some may say that's argument against it) or any of the other metal that surged in the 80's)

2.5 (2:19:54, yes two hours+, 22 tracks, debut, 1997) British Drum and Bass Mercury Prize winner (best UK album of the year, also certified platinum in UK). Really not sure why Onallee (Tracey Bowen) wasn't more credited as it is a vocal heavy album. I don't feel she adds a ton but 2 1/2 hours of drum and bass alone would have gotten pretty repetitive. (It still got repetitive). I feel like this album would have been more cutting edge in 1990 at the height of the Rave culture. Four singles, "Share the Fall", "Heroes", "Brown Paper Bag" and "Watching Windows". Given the length of the album I think my 3 listen goal is going to have to be waived. Clearly a UK bias to include this in a must listen list but not a bad album - not my genre and I still enjoyed it. Kind of Trance. Main criticism - too long.

Need to review on PTO

3.5 (56:41, 16 tracks (5 are skits), debut, 1992) hip-hop (alternative h-h, joke hip-hop) OK this band certainly sounds like they could have put out one of the better non-gangster alternative hip-hop albums of the 90s but they just couldn't stay serious. Here is my equation for how to build a Pharcyde 4/8 Arrested Development + 2/8 Will Smith + 1/8 Skee-Lo + 1/8 Afroman = Pharcyde Another commenter said "it's like a kid good enough to make the NBA but wastes his skills throwing suction cup dildos into increasingly difficult places to reach" - couldn't have summarized it better. Band literally raps about jerking off, vaginal fisting, a whole song (4:22) of Ya Mama jokes, eating brains, everything, it's just a hot mess. Perfect album if you're in junior high. Pretty much loved Quinton's on the Way (it's a skit but captures the damn album) Didn't hate the album (was on the west coast in 1992, never heard of them - but then gansta rap was king

3.5 (40:36, 13 tracks, debut, 1998) heavy metal/ Nu Metal OK so I disliked SoaD in 1998, I don't like the metal gwaaaar sound and the elf talk is worse (but I do like some metal); however, I really never gave them a fair shake. After listening to this album once I moved from 2.5 (leaning 2) to 3, then four more listens and I'm up to 3.5 leaning 4 (that's probably the biggest movement over listens of my 115 albums rated). Serj has an insane range for any genre but has to be the best in metal (wish haters could comment here and prove me wrong). Personal Favorite - Spiders Always loved the artwork (Heartfield) and use on this album "Open your eyes, open your mouths, close your hands and make a fist"

(1:25:43 double album, 17 tracks, 1976, 18th Album) R&B/Soul Eighteenth album - incredible - for Stevie Wonder. Singles: I Wish Isn't She Lovely Sir Duke Another Star As Pastime Paradise is infinitely recognizable as Coolio's rework Gangsta's Paradise. I Wish (Wild Wild West, Will Smith)

5.0 (Genre birth - Grunge) (33:21, 13 tracks, 1988, debut), proto-Grunge Impossible to underestimate how important this album was to the development of music. In 1988 alternative (aka "College" radio was getting stale, The Smith/Cure sound had been explored entirely, synthpop was dead, College Radio (REM and Jangle Pop was five years old) and the industry was desperate for something new. Almost out of nowhere Boston band Pixies hired Chicago producer Steve Albini to record the first "Grunge" record. While the album was not commercially successful until 5 years later, this kicked off everything known later as "Alternative Rock" - approximately 50 of the albums on this list (many are top 50 rating) owe their existence to this album. So many artists wouldn't even exist without this album. I remember telling my friends in 1988 (or 89?) it was impossible to understate how important Gigantic was (a song Kim denies is about painful interracial (1986 film Crimes of the Heart) intercourse. . . but it is.) Equally confusing was the flamingo dancer's breast which were on the larger end of the spectrum for 1988 (mostly pre-enhancements era). The album's name Surfer Rosa was selected DIRECTLY because Gigantic and the album cover art would draw an incorrect analogy. "Where's my Mind At?" (in no small part it's role in Fight Club) finally broke Pixies as the most influential band of the 80's (retroactively awarded by many critics). No Pixies = no Nirvana - no Smashing Pumpkins - no Alternative - no Grunge

3.5 (genre birth - Trip Hop) (63:23, 13 tracks (4 skits), 1996, debut) trip hop Trip-hop sampling record - hard to classify. Hypnotic in a trance way, strong hip hop beats. This album birthed trip-hop which became Chill Lofi. In 1996 it took a master to produce this masterpiece pre-editing tools, pre-internet samples everywhere. What took DJ Shadow a year now takes A.I. 1.482 seconds (which is sad.) It's easy to overlook the genius of this album. People criticize as it's not his music but you put this together - it sampling at it's best. What he's creating sounds nothing like anything he took it from. NO ONE TELLS A BAKER - it's just butter, flour, sugar, eggs, and milk (vanilla, spices, salt, and baking powder.)

3.5 (43:28, 9 tracks, 1976, 5th album) Rock (future country) Eagles became essentially the proto-type for 90's country revitalization. I don't love every song on this album but there are some great ones. Only album with the greatest Eagles Lineup (Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner bass, Don Henley and Glenn Fry) Singles: New Kid in Town Hotel California Life in the Fast Lane Lost best album to Fleetwood Mac's Rumors; however, remains one of the best selling albums of all time.

4.0 (Genre birth - College Radio/Jangle Rock) (44:11, 12 tracks, 1983, debut) College Radio (Jangle Rock) In 1983 REM took college radio a new direction and brought "Alternative" to the masses. No REM, no Radiohead. REM denoised the increasingly noisy punk scene which dominated alternative rock at the time. College Rock eventually became Indie. Opening with their magnus opus - Radio Free Europe - "College Radio" was born. Track listing - best songs ** ** "Radio Free Europe" – 4:06 * "Pilgrimage" – 4:30 "Laughing" – 3:57 ** "Talk About the Passion" – 3:23 "Moral Kiosk" – 3:31 "Perfect Circle" – 3:29 "Catapult" – 3:55 "Sitting Still" – 3:17 * "9–9" – 3:03 "Shaking Through" – 4:30 "We Walk" – 3:02 "West of the Fields" – 3:17

3.5 (49:20, 15 tracks, 1998, compilation) Wilco and Billy Bragg split duties writing music for previously unheard lyrics by Woody Guthrie. Woody's daughter, Nora Guthrie, contact both to create Mermaid Avenue. A second volume of recordings, Mermaid Avenue Vol. II, followed in 2000. I love Wilco, like Bragg a lot (love some songs) and respect the hell out of Guthrie so I wanted to love this album but for me it's just OK. Beautiful in many ways but not an album I plan to put on frequent repeat. Best song - Songs in a Minor Key 1. Walt Whitman's Niece 3:53 - Bragg 2. California Stars 4:57 - Wilco 3. Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key 4:06 - Bragg 4. Birds and Ships 2:13 - Bragg 5. Hoodoo Voodoo 3:12 - Wilco 6. She Came Along to Me 3:26 - Bragg 7. At My Window Sad and Lonely 3:27 - Wilco 8. Ingrid Bergman 1:50 - Bragg 9. Christ for President 2:39 - Wilco 10. I Guess I Planted" (Music: 1997) 3:32 - Bragg 11. One by One 3:22 - Wilco 12. Eisler on the Go 2:56 - Bragg 13. Hesitating Beauty 3:04 - Wilco 14. Another Man's Done Gone 1:34 - Bragg 15. The Unwelcome Guest - 5:09 Bragg

2.5 (78:51, 16 tracks, 2015, 3rd album) Hip-Hop ("Gangsta Rap done right"?) IMPORTANT NOTE: If you're not familiar with Kendrick or a hip-hop fan I highly recommend you start at track 13 (The Blacker the Berry) and loop through 14, 15, and 16. This is the best part of the album and Mortal Man (the spoken word parts) will help a lot understand what Kendrick is attempting. I still don't get it but I really wish someone had given me this advice as by track 12 I had all but checked out. Almost universal acclaim, I must not get it? I salute Lamar confronting racism but too many distractions. I don't hate the music but Lamar's vocalization style is annoying (U is just awful). Talking about boo-boo and all the sexual references just seems immature and doesn't add anything. Either do Gangsta Rap (Ice-T's O.G.) or do a political statement (Public Enemy's It takes a nation . .. well except for Flavor but you know his role is to be everyone's loveable but retarded little cousin.) Album was too long, too immature, not political enough (and/or not gansta enough), it wasn't catchy. Personally I think Lamar was riding a wave of good sentiment from the previous two. Not a terrible album for the community (obviously many love this stuff) but not a great album. Best track - The Blacker the Berry Best parts of the album - all spoken word 1. Wesley's Theory 4:47 2. For Free? (Interlude) 2:10 3. "King Kunta" 3:54 4. "Institutionalized" 4:31 5. "These Walls" 5:00 6. "U" 4:28 7. "Alright" 3:39 8. "For Sale? (Interlude)" 4:51 9. "Momma" 4:43 10. "Hood Politics" 4:52 11. "How Much a Dollar Cost" 4:21 12. "Complexion (A Zulu Love)" 4:23 13. "The Blacker the Berry" 5:28 14. "You Ain't Gotta Lie (Momma Said)" 4:01 15. "I" 5:36 16. "Mortal Man" 12:07

4.0 (38:34, 11 tracks, 2009, debut) dream pop OK for everyone criticizing it as "boring" - I get it, its repetitive and can be boring but you're not getting the genre (dream pop) Driving bass beats, post punk drumming, minimalist atmospheric sound at its best. This is great and I'd give it a 5 if they could have held the vibe for all 11 tracks. Mood music for when you to tune out by tuning in. Music is almost spooky good.

2 Sick today - I'll type up later but suffice to say I'm not a Tom Waits fan and I think two albums is enough (this is my second, sounded like the first, both are some kind of weird creepy house of horrors sound tracks out of voodoo New Orleans or something. I think he has 5 albums which is 4 too many)

2.0 (33:49, 10 tracks, 1971, 17th album) Psych Pop I'm not a fan of Psych Pop and the Beach Boys didn't do a lot to help this. Not the worst album by far in this genre but some of these tracks were just week (or filler? "Student Demonstration Time" is abysmal On a positive - the album cover and it's introspective "end of the road" tone is welcoming (especially if you're going to to title your album Surf's Up.) On the negative - Album seems pieced together, no cohesion. Keyboards are terrible. Too slow - I figure if you're the Beach Boys just stay true, record another feel good clean album (by album 17 they had grown weary and tired, see above in positives) and let your fans come to your concerts to hear your hits.

1.5 (34:12, 13 tracks, 1963, N/A) Christmas OK this doesn't belong on this list for a lot of reasons 1.) It isn't all that great. As far as Christmas compilations go there are better. (Nonetheless Rolling Stones put it as the 142nd greatest album of all time? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ) 2.) Compilation albums are barred from this list, if compilation albums are allowed I can think of 500 "greatest hits" albums that should be on this list (I realized this was released as an individual album but still - stretching it 3.) Phil Specter - eewww These aside Specter adds his 'wall of sound' to Christmas and I guess in 1963 THERE wasn't much better. People like this album. I don't see me returning to it. Best Christmas Album Vince Guaraldi Trio (A Charlie Brown Christmas)

(68:34, 13 tracks, 2010, 5th album) Hip Hop Why redact the George Condo artwork? Not terrible, a lot of sound. I'll come back and add more later want to see the next album.

3.0 (34:32, 11 tracks, 3rd album, 1970) folk (country folk) Kind of a boring album. I've never been a huge fan of Neil's whiny voice. Neil has garnered much more respect over time than when this was released.

3.5 (43 minutes, 10 tracks, debut?, 2017) trance (electronica) Jane Weaver has been around the UK folk scene for a while, not sure if this was her first studio album. Spacey lyrics with a melodic electronic beat. A pleasant album but I agree with another reviewer I'm unsure why this album is included on this list (he gave a 2, I'm far more generous at 3.5 as I like this album) . Clearly the book has a bias toward songwriters. I can say if this album is considered psychedelic (I don't consider it this) it makes the genre (one of my least favorites) very accessible.

3.5 (31:36, 8 tracks, 12th album, 1973) Soul Best song is the title track - some of the album seems like filler, 12 albums in Gaye was still innovated and creating hits which, in and of itself, is pretty impressive. Tortured life. A compilation album by Gaye would be a 5 for sure but overall this album is good, not great.

3.5 (41:43, 10 tracks, debut, 1969) Folk This is the soundtrack to listen to when you are going to take a long one way walk into the woods with a gun. Nick died young, 26, of an apparent overdose of antidepressants. A high level of sadness is prevalent in his recordings. It does beg the question had he lived would he a.) have been largely forgotten as another unsuccessful but talented struggling artist b.) taken his music to commercial success? Sometimes dying young is good for your reputation. The music is undeniable sad. One music critic (professional) said he detected that Nick was a virgin in his singing. I wondered to myself what the hell does that sound like??!? I suppose sad and depressed may apply? Overall, I liked his guitar playing the most; a lot of strings and piano for "folk". Don't plan to revisit it often but I did listen to it 4 times in a day and it's mid-range long (41 minutes). Thought about rating a 4 but I music is just too depressing. Favorite track - Man in a Shed

2.5 (49:01, 14 tracks (standard release), debut, 2017) Hip-hop (HH soul) Pronounced sizza (like scissors, less the 'ors', plus za) and control. Sort of hip hop w/ a heavy influence of rock, some soul (listed as soul, maybe new soul but not really soul in sense of Marvin Gaye Soul). A lot of computer mixing (overmixed in my opinion, I think I see a Commodore 64 behind her on the album cover, I think I hear some Commodore 64 sound bites.) Her falsetto is annoying, her actual singing voice OK. Heavy use of the N word for no good reason doesn't age well. I'm not against black artists using it to either make a political statement, counter racism, or to desensitize ('own') the word but just throwing it out to say your part of the community doesn't add anything. She's OK. She kind rocks a low self-esteem, 'not hot, but not bad' girl next door effect throughout. Fairly sexual album, don't mind that but a lot is pretty immature. I don't need filler like the end of track on Broken Clocks - it's not a skit, it's not a song, it's not filler just 'there'. I feel like Kendrick Lamar fucks up things - wonder with no Kendrick influences how much better the album would be (however I'm guessing a lot less financially successful so - probably a good call by SZA). One of the best albums of 2017? Probably. One of the best of all time? No. Not an album I felt I needed to listen to before I died.

to be rated

3.5 – since redacted album (to make room) but Back to Black (58:48, 13 tracks, plus some hidden tracks, debut, 2003) Jazz (Bossa nova, English Pub music) OK so I initially gave this a 2 as I’m not big on Amy Winehouse or her contralto voice , or should I say I wasn’t. After a dozen or so listens (mostly while hiking) I came to appreciate her true talent and tragic short life a lot more. 2003 wasn’t really a time period I had time for new music, so she just missed me and I wasn’t interested in expanded to British Jazz. There weren’t a ton of radio hits off this album. Because I don’t feel this album significantly moved the industry forward, I settled on 3 but almost a 4. I give her a ton of credit for her writing abilities at 19. While being developed by the management company, she was kept as a recording industry secret,[ although she was a regular jazz standards singer at the Cobden Club. Nate Chinen of The New York Times complimented her original lyrics and called the music a "glossy admixture of breezy funk, dub and jazz-inflected soul". Favorite Songs: Moody’s Mood for Love, Amy Amy Amy Amy sadly joined the "27 club" in 2011 - official cause was alcohol poisoning (0.416%) but certainly complicated by overall poor health (bulimai) 1. "Intro"/"Stronger Than Me" 3:54 2. "You Sent Me Flying"/"Cherry 6:50 3. "Know You Now" 3:03 4. "Fuck Me Pumps" 3:20 5. "I Heard Love Is Blind" 2:10 6. "Moody's Mood for Love"/"Teo Licks" 3:28 7. "(There Is) No Greater Love" 2:08 8. "In My Bed" 5:17 9. "Take the Box" 3:20 10. "October Song" 3:24 11. "What Is It About Men" 3:29 12. "Help Yourself" 5:01 13. "Amy Amy Amy"/"Outro"/"Brother" (hidden track)/"Mr Magic (Through the Smoke)" (hidden track) 13:14 Track breakdown “You Sent me Flying/Cherry” again about an older male crush (not sure if this was Chris) that left her depressed when he didn’t return the crush/ “Here name is Cherry” - more crying about men not understanding her. Cherry is clearly her guitar but she tells us as the last lyric just in case you didn’t catch it. “I'm talking 'bout my new guitar” “Know You Now” – basically a crush on someone she doesn’t know. “Fuck Me Pumps” – bashing on an older female golddigger who is struggling to pull in rich men like she used to. WAG (wives and girlfriends night) a “footballer” in England of course would be soccer. Most of the song was written by Sallam Remi before Amy had influence on it so it shouldn’t be taken as more than tongue in cheek. “i heard love is blind” Winehouse tongue in cheek justification of infidelity. Separating the sex from emotions. Done in the style of a Jazz standard. Moody’s Mood for Love / Teo Licks is a jazz standard (cover of the 1952 vocalese track by Eddie Jefferson) and a tribute to James Moody. Amy sets her own lyrics to the standard and ends with a 39-second instrumental outro. I thought she said “Prince Henry,” in 2003 he would have been 19 so it made sorta sense but she’s actually calling out to her saxophonist (Vince Henry) to literally play the sax “you can blow now I’m thru” don’t even want to go where I thought that meant. I really like Teo Licks solo, wish it was longer than 39 seconds. “There is no greater love” is a straight cover of a 1936 jazz standard composed by Isham Jones with lyrics by Marty Symes. Sort of a call out to the double entendre of Frank (Frank Sinatra but also just being really honest aka “frank”). Remember Amy was a teenager when she recorded this song – this is hard to reconcile. “In my Bed” probably about Chris again – she’s done with the relationship but enjoys the sex Take the Box – again about Chris – it’s a literally cardboard box of her stuff including a Frank Sintra CD he had given her. Chris fucked up I guess as Amy turned out pretty wealthy but then again she ended up kind of hot mess. To his credit he stays the hell out of the public eye. She’s giving back the gift, even her precious Frank (title of the album of course>) “October Song” - references so beautifully Sarah Vaughan I love how she sings her last name. She is apparently singing about her dead pet canary (wouldn’t have guessed this). I like this song – Amy claims she wrote it in 10 minutes after seeing her bird dead – impressive as hell if true for a 19-year old. Obviously she had more talent than her demons allowed to get out. “what is it about men” – Final track but there are buried hidden tracks in it. It’s about Amy’s father Mitch who had a long running affair with a woman named Janis – obviously this impacted young Amy a lot in her life and her lyrics. This may be one of her best lyrics on the album “Emulate all the shit my mother hates I can't help but demonstrate my Freudian fate”. Buried tracks “Amy, Amy, Amy” (I like, really like the Jazz w/ Hip Hop style). It’s a cute meta-lyrics commentary on basically the whole Frank album, and it’s a frank admission she a horny 19 year old teenager that her hormones sometime overrule her brain. Brother – literally a song to her older (6 years) brother to grow up and help take care of her mother (Janis) – Amy and Alex had a good relationship. Mr. Magic (Through the Smoke) – ode to marijuana – not so great considering her decent Amy Winehouse – vocals, guitar, production 21st Century Jazz – accompaniment John Adams – organ, Rhodes Robert Aaron – flute, saxophone Teodross Avery – saxophone Ian Barter – guitar Rudy Bird – percussion, shaker Houston "House" Bowen – engineering assistance Ben Bryant – engineering assistance Errol Campbell – drums, percussion Wilburn "Squiddley" Cole – drums Commissioner Gordon – drums, effects, engineering, mixing, percussion, production, programming, turntables Delroy "Chris" Cooper – bass Salaam Remi – arrangement, drum programming, drums, electric bass, electric upright bass, mixing, organ, percussion, production

2

to be listened to

2.5 (37:11, 7 tracks, 2nd album, 1968) Blues Rock 2nd and last album Janis Joplin was with BB& the HC. I mean this is a classic album, just Piece of Heart alone brings it up to 3 but it's hard for me to love this album. Throughout I felt like someone must have said 'we have enough room for one white guy and one white girl to sing raspy blues rock, we're already got Robert Plant anyone know a female version?) Best parts of the album - Robert Crumb doodles, great cover. Worst parts - poor production, Janis screeching more than singing overpowers the music at times (works on some tracks, gets old by the 37 minute mark and it's a short album). I'm not a musician but I swear some of this is out of tune. A faked "live" studio effects (why?). I'm glad Janis went solo, there wasn't much more she could do with a sloppy (at best) band. If this was a REAL live album I'd understand (even appreciate their musicianship) but for a studio album with funding it is poorly done (probably why the fake 'live' audience.) If there wasn't Piece of My Heart I would have two'd this album. I'm still very glad I listened to it before I died. 1. "Combination of the Two" 5:47 2. "I Need a Man to Love" 4:54 3. "Summertime" 4:01 4. "Piece of My Heart" 4:15 5. "Turtle Blues" 4:22 6. "Oh, Sweet Mary" 4:16 7. "Ball and Chain" 9: 02 (and too long)

4.5 (51:13, 14 tracks, 3rd album, 2019) Soul (Psychedelic Soul, World Music, Rock) Really liked this album, soul is not my go to genre and generally anything 'psychedelic' is a turn off (dislike the phrase "psychedelic soul"). First track I assumed this would be a "World Music" (meaning African) album but it most certainly is not. It draws from a lot of different genres. Won Mercury Prize, was nominated by Grammy's for best rock album. Probably the first (maybe the best thing about this album) is the lyrics are outstanding (Dimery is unabashed about his lean towards singer songwriters). The album is mostly a self-affirmation album. Sing about love but from an introspective exploratory perspective (oppositive of 'gansta rap'). Also in 2019 Micheal (I'm calling him this, can't pronounce his last name) released a true 'album' in album format (kind of a dying art) with intros (almost like skits in hip - hop, a lot of hip hop in this album) Tidbits Produced by Danger Mouse - this is probably the source of the 'psychedelic' Cover Art I really dislike - I thought this was going to be a world album. I dislike the Motter Ombra font. I don't like the painting. I think it completely detracts from how awesome this album is as one goes in with an incorrect notions (maybe Micheal's intention?) He address racism but it an afterthought in the album. It definitely address social identity but not through the lens of a black man. Track Listing - Favorite tracks marked with * 1.* "You Ain't the Problem" 4:09 2. "Rolling" 2:51 3. "I've Been Dazed" 4:25 4. "Piano Joint (This Kind of Love) (Intro)" 2:18 5.* "Piano Joint (This Kind of Love)" 3:51 6. "Another Human Being" 1:51 7. "Living in Denial" 3:31 8. "Hero (Intro)" 1:20 9.* "Hero" 3:19 10. "Hard to Say Goodbye" 7:05 11. "Final Days" 4:10 12. "Interlude (Loving the People)" 2:42 13*. "Solid Ground" 3:53 14. "Light" 5:48 Michael Kiwanuka is a British (go figure, 1001 sure has a UK-centric lean) citizen

4.0 (11 tracks, 36:56, 5th and final,1970) folk rock Following the duo's soundtrack for The Graduate, Art Garfunkel took an acting role in the film Catch-22. A similar musical pattern as their previous album "Bookends (1968)", sold over 25 million copies worldwide. Garfunkel’s work on the film is widely cited as the reason for the breakup. "Bridge over Troubled Waters" was influenced by the gospel music to which Simon was listening at that time. The "silver girl" in the song refers to his wife Peggy at the time, and her first gray hairs. "El Cóndor Pasa (If I Could)" is a Peruvian song based on traditional Andean music. Simon relied on erroneous information from Jorge Milchberg of Los Incas about the collection of royalties for his arrangement of song. Simon wrongfully thought it to be a traditional song and thus not restricted by copyright law “Cecilia” He began with a random line, "You're breaking my heart. I'm down on my knees," The song is about an unfaithful girl who invites another lover to her bed, while the singer (the first) is in the bathroom. David Browne suggested that the name may be derived from the patron of music, Saint Cecilia and I believe it was an intentional double meaning by Paul in the selection of the name. "Keeping the Customer Satisfied" is like "Homeward Bound," a song about the trials of a traveling band. "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" is a tribute to the architect Frank Lloyd Wright but also to Garfunkel, who wanted to train as an architect. It’s thinly veiled as a goodbye to Garfunkel. “So long Artie” The folk ballad "The Boxer", became one of the longest and toughest in the duo's career. This is my favorite of all Simon & Garfunkel songs. “All lies in gest; A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest" "Baby Driver", an up-tempo and happy rock and roll song considered a fluff piece already released as a B-side of "The Boxer", talks about a boy who lives a comfortable life in a protected home, but who searches for adventures and one day decides to have his first sexual experience. Just a bunch of innuendo. Not my favorite. "The Only Living Boy in New York" it is about the isolation Simon felt while Garfunkel was away filming. Tom refers to Art’s pseudonym in a high school band they formed. It’s a super sad song knowing they had been friends since elementary school. I like this song - it's so sad. "Why Don't You Write Me", deals with separation from Simon's wife in a jungle and again a veiled complaint to Art – my least favorite song on this album. The Everly Brothers' "Bye Bye Love" had been recorded live, but Simon, Garfunkel, and Halee were not satisfied with the performances. Again saying goodbye to each other -in Tom and Jerry they idolized The Everly Brothers. The album's final song, "Song for the Asking", represents an "olive branch" extended by the duo to each other and holding open the possibility of reconciliation and further collaboration. They never recorded together again, but they have reunited in concert many times. After Bridge over Troubled Water, both musicians became more independent. Garfunkel took a role in another Mike Nichols film, Carnal Knowledge, in the role of Sandy, for which he later earned a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor nomination. All tracks are written by Paul Simon except where noted. 1. "Bridge over Troubled Water" 4:52 2. "El Cóndor Pasa (If I Could)" Daniel Alomía Robles 3:06 3. "Cecilia" 1969 2:55 4. "Keep the Customer Satisfied" 2:33 5. "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" 3:41 6. "The Boxer" 5:08 7. "Baby Driver" 3:14 8. "The Only Living Boy in New York" 3:58 9. "Why Don't You Write Me" 2:45 10. "Bye Bye Love" 2:55 11. "Song for the Asking" 1:49

2.0 (42:34, 10 tracks, 7th album, 1975) Soft Rock (Jazz Pop, Folk Jazz) Boring as fuck. Second album on this list I’ve got by Joni (first being Blue, I liked blue more, it was 35 minutes and better music to take a nap to.) This album has more of a jazz infused sound, which, for me, doesn’t work. I really don’t want to hear a Canadian white chick do jazz poorly. She is credited as the first white person to literally steal (sample) black music – certainly nothing new for music but an interesting tidbit. She did jazz better on her previous album (1974) not sure if that’s on this list, kind of hope not as Joni is already WELL represented with two albums, three, at least to me makes her overrepresented. I hate the name (Hissing of Summer Lawns) and the artwork (Joni’s own) is atrocious, this alone turned me off to this album. The solid green, the big snake, just why? So a bunch of men (possibly black) are carrying a big snake past her house? I think in 1975 if I were female, I could have eventually got into it. This is the type of album you eventually grow to love but don’t like much at first. The man-bashing is a bit much as I’m not female, but I respect her for it. I think this definitely needed to be said in 1975 and 50 years later in 2025 it’s not exactly like it’s not still a relevant issue. Meh

1.5 (44:43, 6 tracks, 3rd album 1969) folk (psychedelic folk, folk jazz) The beginning of the end. Like a lot of artists Tim had some moderate success with his first two albums and got cocky or life got sad, not sure. Started to play around with jazz and psychedelic and his fans left him. Just a downward spiral from here. He wouldn't be on this list if he didn't ride the hard fought fan base he clawed and fought for on the first two releases. Always feel sad when this happens. OK just got Joni Mitchell's The Hissing of Summer Lawns which I thought was boring as fuck for folk jazz and then I get this which makes Joni more tolerable. I'm giving this a 1, 150 albums in and I only have 3 (now 4) 1's. Maybe I'm just angry today, it's cold and miserable and this album did nothing. 6 tracks (2 are over half the album) all suck. I was going to joke seeing the cover (which I like) that it looks like a sad older version of Jeff Buckely (just playing on the last name. I read he actually IS Jeff's dad so well . . . that joke doesn't work. The best thing about this album is Jeff who everything he does was so much better.) Just couldn't get into this - feel bad about the 1, it's not as terrible as the other three, but I need some one's.

4.5 (48:52, 12 tracks, 8th album, 1992) Alt Rock By 1992 what was called “College Rock” or “Jangle Rock”, which REM more or less invented, in 1983 with their debut Murmur had become Alternative Rock, a genre REM dominated even while bands like the Pixies (and Nirvana) were taking the genre to a harder post-punk song known of course as Grunge. I’ve always loved this album, The Smashing Pumpkins and so many others were doing this type of Alternative Rock; but there is no doubt REM was the/a driving force defining the genre which saved America from “Hair Metal” (now I loves me some hair metal, but there was only so far we could ride that burning ship before it sunk.) The album is a bit faster paced; more rock less alternative than some REM records. Alternative radio really fell in love with this album. By 1992 REM had hit their prime where they could have written some really experimental, fan and radio unfriendly, shit – I’m glad they went this direction, they didn't "sell out" they sold in - and everyone is better for it. It’s slow yet rocky, less Jangle Rock than their debut stuff. So why so sad? These guys were entering their 30’s, punk was dead and they just crushed (pun intentional) it. Stipe struggled with anxiety and his sexuality (pretty much an open secret at this point he was gay) but did NOT, despite rumors, have AIDS. It’s a mood album, sometimes, depending on my mood, it’s my favorite REM album. Hard to say it was as influential as their earlier works but still just a classic album. Track listening * denotes radio released single (all of which got seemingly unlimited radio play in the early 90’s). A – F (A being great, A+ classic, F being terrible) grading of songs. 1. *"Drive" – 4:31 A (great opening track, just dives right into it) 2. "Try Not to Breathe" – 3:50 A 3. *"The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite" – 4:06 A 4. *"Everybody Hurts" – 5:17 A 5. "New Orleans Instrumental No. 1" – 2:13 B 6. "Sweetness Follows" – 4:19 B+ 7. "Monty Got a Raw Deal" – 3:17 B 8. "Ignoreland" – 4:24 A- 9. "Star Me Kitten" – 3:15 C+ 10. *"Man on the Moon" – 5:13 A 11. *"Nightswimming" – 4:16 A+ (favorite song on album) 12. *"Find the River" – 3:50 A (great ending) album opens and closes so strong. SNEAKS into the 5 category, I feel it doesn't deserve a 5 (not trendsetting, nothing 'you must listen to before you die' but look at the grades (first time I've done this) - there isn't a bad song on this album. It's also in perfect album format album where each song flows into the next.

5.0 (Genre defining sound - Madchester 1983 to 1989) (61:14, 13 tracks US format, debut album, 1989) Alt Rock (Madchester), Brit Pop Formed in 1983 Stone Roses were THE driving force behind the Madchester sound (basically they invented it), kind of REM's Jangle Pop in the US but with a distinctly British sound. Madchester grew into Brit Pop. Stone Roses also were associated heavily with Freak Party (Johnny Marr, a pre-Smiths band) They didn't release their debut album until 6 years later in 1989. While it took time to gain international popularity this album is widely regarded as one of the most important albums in the 20th century. Cover Art - one of my favorite all covers of all time. Done by Guitarist John Squire (note I almost always hate, looking at you Joni Mitchell, when the musician insists they are an artist but . . . this is the except that proves the rule.) Track List (US release, Fools Gold and Elephant Stone not on UK original release but that is a real shame) * denotes radio released single A – F grading 1. *"I Wanna Be Adored" 4:52 A+ 2. *"She Bangs the Drums" 3:43 A+ 3. *"Elephant Stone" 3:00 B (first single, added to debut album, 20th anniversary Collector's edition is a much better version, original was poorly recorded) 4. *"Waterfall" 4:37 A- 5. "Don't Stop" 5:17 B 6. "Bye Bye Badman" 4:04 B 7. "Elizabeth My Dear" 0:53 B+ (Scarborough Fair tribute/ bridge, traditional folk song with an English protest) 8. "(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister" 3:25 B 9. *"Made of Stone" 4:10 B+ 10. "Shoot You Down" 4:10 11. "This Is the One" 4:58 A- 12. *"I Am the Resurrection" 8:12 A- 13. *"Fools Gold" 9:53 (double A-side single)

2.0 (38:27. 12 tracks (two different genres), third studio, 1968) psychedelia (and Prog "fairy tale" Rock) OK I thought as I relistened to it in Stereo I had been too harsh at 2.0 but no same as first time the shit degrades fast with the Happiness Stan fairy tale concept stuff. The Small Faces have the chops to make a great album but the Prog Rock regression is just bad. The album starts a solid 3 but they are lucky near the end I didn't 1 them. I've never understood what happened to the Brits in late 60's that so much drug use and psychedelic rock was required so while walking with this Winnie-the-Pooh made up language non-sense (on the whole B side) I thought about what happened 20-30 years early to the youth of England and . . . oooooh epiphany 1940 was the height of German Lutfwaffle sooo fuck you Hitler - you fucked up so much shit. All this psychedelic music and return to childhood stuff is literally the kids wanting their youth back? At any rate people sometimes argue Prog Rock has all the elements necessary to create Punk (my genre) but yeah white flour, sugar, eggs, milk and butter (baking soda and flavoring) are all that are needed to make cake but I don't want to eat a bowl of flour or a bowl of any of them alone. The album highlights the weakness of the list that's it's just too England-centric. So many strong albums left off the list (especially 2000 - 2025) and too much British shit from the late 60's, as you're making room for new stuff start dumping some of this stuff as it's overrepresented

4.0 (and rising) (36:34, 13 tracks, 3rd album, 1997) Punk (Post-Punk, queercore, riot grrrl) Third Sleater-Kinney album but definitely their breakout album. Seattle, WA. Riot grrrl (All “chick”) band, best drummer (Janet Weiss) debut. Sounds good and not gimmicky (as sometimes all “blank” bands do). Lots of commenters complained about their screamy vocals being annoying, agreed on first listen this can be distracting but I promise if you listen multiple times that goes away. Their guitars (two guitarist, no bass) are just amazing and I think the lack of a bassist kind of illuminates their “screechy” vocals (“you just don’t get riot grrl, it’s not meant to sound sexy to a man’s ears.”) Tucker’s vocals are stronger (and can be more off-putting) than Brownstein’s but together they are power duo + Janet. Punk just isn’t supposed to play in the mini-van on the way to soccer practice. Another reviewer said it best, their a huge double standard where men in punk can scream but women need to remain sexy. There’s a reason many critics name them the best rock band in America – it takes a bit to acquire a taste for a 3-piece without a bassist. They certainly can’t be credited for genre forming of riot grrrl (late to that party) or queercore but they contributed a lot to both. Factoids Album cover – Kink’s homage (Kontroversy), nice. Band name – apparently a road where they rehearsed (no Sleater’s or Kinney’s were harmed in the making of this album) Carrie and Corin dated briefly, broke up, stayed together as a band, both define as bisexual but dislike the focus on their sexuality (Brownstein particularly being outed in Spin magazine). Tucker married (believe they’re still married) filmmaker Lance Briggs (2 children) Favorite song – Little Babies Track Listing - *denotes single 1. "Dig Me Out" 2:40 2. *"One More Hour" 3:19 3. "Turn It On" 2:47 4. "The Drama You've Been Craving" 2:08 5. "Heart Factory" 3:54 6. "Words and Guitar" 2:21 7. "It's Enough" 1:46 8. *"Little Babies" 2:22 9. "Not What You Want" 3:17 10. "Buy Her Candy" 2:02 11. "Things You Say" 2:56 12. "Dance Song '97" 2:49 13. "Jenny" 4:03

3.5 (28:48, 12 tracks mostly covers (8), debut, 1965) Garage rock (way before punk, proto-punk) American band (Tacoma, WA), never heard of them. So in a way they are literally the grandparents of grunge. Can certainly see why Stooges, Nirvana, White Stripes, et. al. cite them as influences. Good covers (Do you Love Me, Roll Over Beethoven, Good Golly Miss Molly etc.) Just great drumming and sax. Terrible recording but that enhances the garage rock sound. Did these dorks (cover art could be improved sweaters and punk just don't go together and the kid on far left, what happened?) ever make any money or was this just a hobby? Per Wiki - They had three studio albums in the 60's, one in 1980 and then nothing until 2015. According to Wikipedia they are still touring though it looks like there was a 28 year hiatus from 1979 to 2007 (maybe they retired from their "day jobs?") Looks like the original band never got back together after breaking apart by 1968 but the name and sound drifted on to this day. The closest reformation was 2007. Definitely worth listening to before you die and it's less than 1/2 hour lunch break. Track listing 1. "The Witch" Gerry Roslie 2:41 2. "Do You Love Me" Berry Gordy, Jr. 2:19 3. "Roll Over Beethoven" Chuck Berry 2:49 4. "Boss Hoss" Roslie 2:24 5. "Dirty Robber" (The Fabulous Wailers cover) John Greek, Kent Morrill, Rick Dangel 2:03 6. "Have Love Will Travel" Richard Berry 2:38 7. "Psycho" Roslie 2:18 8. "Money (That's What I Want)" Gordy, Jr., Janie Bradford 2:01 9. "Walking the Dog" Rufus Thomas 2:46 10. "Night Time Is the Right Time" Lew Herman 2:58 11. "Strychnine" Roslie 2:13 12. "Good Golly Miss Molly" John Marascalco, Robert Blackwell 2:09 I don't feel like I can go above 3 because there is so little original material on this album but I bet if I was a teen in 1965 this would have been a 5.0 for me. I can see others being annoyed that these sweater wearing white kids are stealing black music and they we 3 years behind the Beatles formula on how to steal black music.

3.5 (and rising) (59:09, 12 tracks, debut album, 1996-2000) Dream Pop (Indie Electronic “Post Rave”) Four years in the making this album spans a lot of different sounds. At one point it sounds a lot like the Foo Fighters (Catch the Sun), others Dream Pop. A lot of influences of house music. While I really like this album, I tend to agree with the majority of commentors that this album is here because of an overweighted bias to British recording artists. Apparently, Doves gets two albums in the 1001? Struggled with rating it. At times I felt a 4 (it grew on me a lot, I listened to this a dozen or more times, it’s generic office friendly music.) I settled on a 3 as I just don’t want to over reward an album that probably shouldn’t be on this list. However, honestly, in 1996 this was pretty cutting-edge music it’s just by 2025 it sounds like ‘everything else from 2000’ and they released it in 2000 so it’s hard to give them credit for being ahead of their time. Factoids This album is best listened too at night when you really don’t want to listen to anything complex – it’s dark but yet poppy. Sort of dance, sort of moody. It’s an hour long but it plays over quickly. Nothing annoying. I could definitely see this being many people’s ‘favorite’ album. I could go anywhere from 2 – 4.5 on it. Album cover – not terrible, appealing, generic like their sound Band name – rename after Sub Sub Apparently, the band lost all of their equipment and recordings in a studio fire and had to redo everything? Favorite songs – Catch the Sun, The Cedar Room 1. "Firesuite" (instrumental) 4:36 2. "Here It Comes" 4:50 3. "Break Me Gently" 4:38 4. "Sea Song" 6:12 5. "Rise" 5:38 6. "Lost Souls" 6:09 7. "Melody Calls" 3:27 8. "Catch the Sun" 4:49 9. "The Man Who Told Everything" 5:47 10. "The Cedar Room" 7:38 11. "Reprise" (instrumental) 1:45 12. "A House" 3:40

3.5 (50:51, 12 tracks, debut, 1995) Alternative, USA (WI) I love Butch Vig – who couldn’t. Producer of among others Niravana, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins; however, I always found his band Garbage a bit overproduced (I mean he is a producer). However, their debut track was all killer, no killer. Spawning 5 radio hits and 2 more alt radio frequent plays. Lean hard towards 4 as it is just so good throughout - I just don't feel like it's genre defining or even necessarily an album anyone needs to listen to before they die. The majority of the album is a tongue in cheek mockery of the grunge scene at the time becoming all about being dark and depressed. Butch Vig producer and owner of Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin cofounded Garbage. Scottish born Shirley Manson was contacted to be the lead vocalist of the band, she didn't know who Vig was and was urged to check the credits on Nirvana's Nevermind. Garbage work on their debut album delayed by Vig's work producing Soul Asylum's Let Your Dim Light Shine. Given Vig "got bored spending so many years recording really fast, straightforward punk records", the band "didn't want to approach the Garbage record from the angle of a band playing live", making their songs out of samples that would be processed and reworked in a Wall of Sound process "to create something that sounded fresh." A major part of the work involved Manson rewriting the song lyrics, which Vig said the band attempted to "write from a woman's perspective and I think, initially, some of them were a little pretentious. But as soon as Shirley came on board, she simplified the lyrics so that they were a lot more subtle and worked better as songs." The lyrics on the record were described by the band members as "a collaborative psycho-therapy session wherein personal demons of various sizes and importance are exorcised, vilified, taken revenge upon and laid to rest." Vig said they tried to deal with "dark themes that I think a lot of people can relate to in some way or another", which included voyeurism, hedonism, perversion, obsession and "the art of self-destruction." "The initial idea was to make this a dark lyric with a shiny, happy, pop sensibility. You could be singing this really catchy line and realize the lyrics were totally wacked." Manson revealed that "Fix Me Now" was originally titled "Chris Cornell", because she was obsessed with the lead singer of Soundgarden. 'Stupid Girl' that was initially a mistake, it didn't fit Shirley's range, but when we slowed it down, actually fit the timbre and pace of the song and became the hook." Vig stated that the band had no initial plans to tour as "not going on the road would really free us up to record tons of stuff." As the band members realized "that if we were going to have a successful record we'd have to go out on tour and promote it.' They enjoyed playing live to record the "Vow" video, they decided to perform to audiences as well. To perform the complex and layered tracks live, the band hired Los Angeles bass player Daniel Shulman for the tour, and figured out ways to trigger samples on stage, such as having Marker play a keyboard along with his guitar. Garbage set off on a 17-date headline tour of North America. Garbage then supported Smashing Pumpkins on their North American arena tour from June 25, although the tour was cut short after the death of Smashing Pumpkins keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin on July 12. Garbage was named the 71st greatest album of all time by The Guardian in 1997. Favorite Song: Supervixen **Singles from Garbage 1. "Supervixen" 3:55 2. **"Queer" 4:36 3. **"Only Happy When It Rains" 3:56 4. "As Heaven Is Wide" 4:44 5. "Not My Idea" 3:41 6. "A Stroke of Luck" 4:44 7. **"Vow" 4:30 8. **"Stupid Girl" (Garbage, Joe Strummer, Mick Jones) 4:18 9. "Dog New Tricks" 3:56 10. "My Lover's Box" 3:55 11. "Fix Me Now" 4:43 ("Chris Cornell") 12. **"Milk" 3:53 Total length: 50:51 "Queer" contains a loop from "Man of Straw" by Single Gun Theory. "Not My Idea" contains a loop from Headless Chickens. "Stupid Girl" contains a loop from "Train in Vain" by The Clash. Garbage is: Shirley Manson – vocals, guitar Steve Marker – guitars, bass, samples, loops Duke Erikson – guitars, keyboards, six-string bass, fuzz bass Butch Vig – drums, loops, noise, EFX Additional musicians Clyde Stubblefield (Drummer for James Brown)

4.5 (70:08, 13 tracks, third album, 1998 ) nu metal Genre defining Never thought I'd give this album a 5 - need to read to understand why: Stylized as FOLLOW the LEADEЯ the band's most commercially successful album (5x Platinum) Singles, "Got the Life" and "Freak on a Leash" both music videos are insanely good. Launched nu metal into mainstream. Super long album probably would have been considered a double album pre-digital. Been meaning to review this forever – I was surprised how much I liked this album. In 1998 I was 28 and the album annoyed me as it was widely embraced by junior-high kids and they annoyed me. Album is insanely dark in places ("Pretty" describes the real-life rape and subsequent death of an 11-month-old by her father. Jon witnessed the mutilation as a mortician recovering her body. The infant’s legs were pushed back and broken. In other places it’s lighthearted fun (i.e. "All in the Family" with Fred Durst). Nu Metal mixing with rap (for example Ice Cube on "Children of the Korn"). I decided to give it a 5 even though Nu Metal isn’t exactly my genre because of its influence on the industry, the music videos popularity (near the end of the MTV era) and Jon’s ability to write deeply personal lyrics about his family, his traumas (as a ‘freak’) but also to make them commercially appealing. The collaborations are insanely good. Justin was written for a deceased 14-year-old fan (they granted a Make-a-Wish and visited him on his deathbed w/ cancer.) "My Gift to You" is about a fantasy to kill his wife to keep her forever and necrophilia (disturbing considering he was a real-life mortician.) Given his occupation "Pretty" is an especially disturbing song for me especially in context with the rest of the lyrics of this album. And then he ends with a lighthearted hidden track “Earache My Eye” which is just them in the studio riffing on Mexican stereotypes, marijuana and the Cheech and Chong song. (Still like Cheech's “Orelay” w/ Fred Durst) Without studying this album, I think I would have given 3.5 as I don’t desire to listen to it all the time. Pretty sure I’d rounded up to 4 for Ice Cube and Fred Durst plus the videos; however, after studying I’m giving one of my rare 5s. Toured with Fred Durst, "The Family Values Tour". The video for "Freak on a Leash" won Best Short Form Music Video A then-unknown Eminem appears as an extra in "Got the Life" music video; he can be seen in a brief close-up during the final seconds. Korn's After-School Special featured guest appearances such as Sugar Ray, Limp Bizkit, Deftones, Steve Vai, 311, and the Pharcyde. Follow the Leader features numerous guest vocalists, including Ice Cube on "Children of the Korn", Tre Hardson (SlimKid3) of the Pharcyde on "Cameltosis" and Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst on "All in the Family". The hidden track "Earache My Eye" features comedian Cheech Marin of Cheech & Chong. Jonathan Davis was a real-life mortician and lived in an apartment (like me!) attached to it – many attribute this to his dark lyrics for example "Dead Bodies Everywhere" (generally interpreted as anger at his parents, especially dad, for trying to force him away from music into mortuary science, literally would leave his apart to 'dead bodies' everywhere.) In a 2013 interview, the band revealed that they partied heavily during the production of Follow the Leader, with massive amounts of alcohol, drugs, and women in the studio. Davis explained further, saying that while recording the vocals for "It's On", there were "people getting blowjobs right behind me, there was girls banging each other in front of me, people getting boned in the closet right behind me, it was the craziest shit I've ever seen in my life and I sang that song." The cover art depicts a child hopscotching toward the edge of a cliff and a gathering of kids waiting to follow, The video follows this theme. (Must watch video) Korn toured with the band Limp Bizkit, as well as Ice Cube, Orgy, Incubus, and Rammstein. The album had five singles issued: "All in the Family", "Got the Life", "Freak on a Leash", "Children of the Korn", and "B.B.K." All songs written by Korn except "Earache My Eye" written by Tommy Chong, Gaye Delorme and Richard Marin. All guest appearances feature an extra writing credit by the guest. The album features 25 tracks (a minute of silence for Justin), 12 x 5 seconds each 1. "It's On!" 4:28 2. "Freak on a Leash" 4:15 3. "Got the Life" 3:45 4. "Dead Bodies Everywhere" 4:44 5. "Children of the Korn" (featuring Ice Cube) 3:52 6. "B.B.K." 3:56 7. "Pretty" 4:12 8. "All in the Family" (featuring Fred Durst) 4:48 9. "Reclaim My Place" 4:32 10. "Justin" 4:17 11. "Seed" 5:54 12. "Cameltosis" (featuring Slimkid3) 4:38 13. "My Gift to You" 15:40 (14.) (a hidden track in 13) “Earache My Eye Cheech Marin (and Chong) 6:40 Total length: 70:08 "My Gift to You" ends at 7:16. A hidden track entitled "Earache My Eye", a Cheech & Chong cover, starts at 10:50 after 2 minutes of silence and an interlude that lasts around a minute and 40 seconds. The track itself is around 4 minutes 50 seconds long. On the digital version, the tracks are separated. Jonathan Davis – vocals, bagpipes Head – guitar Munky – guitar, talk box on "Freak on a Leash" and "Dead Bodies Everywhere" Fieldy – bass, vocals on "Earache My Eye" David Silveria – drums Additional vocalists Fred Durst – on "All in the Family" Tre Hardson (SlimKid3) – on "Cameltosis" Ice Cube – on "Children of the Korn" Cheech Marin – on "Earache My Eye"

3.5 (48:46, 10 tracks, 3rd album , 2010), Dream Pop (shoegaze) I've listened to this dozens of times now - possibly more than any other album yet. Struggling between 3 (boring dream pop) and 4 (interesting mood music) - ended with 4 just because of how many times I've listened to it and I would revisit it. Baltimore based dream-pop 3 piece (sometimes referred to as a duo as the drummer is an ‘after thought’) is led by Victoria Legrand is the lead vocals and lyrist – born in France, went to VASSAR her deep vocals are often confused to be male but she is cis-gender female. Alex Cally went to Oberlin so a lot of student debt here. Beach House – the name, according to Victoria, was somewhat random. They’ve toured with Skyler Skjelset of Fleet Foxes and Chris Bear of Grizzly Bear as touring musicians Teen Dream’s lyrics are abstract and atmospheric, focusing on a journey toward self-discovery for two overeducated musicians their lyrics are difficult to interpret. Legrand went on Twitter to address Katy Perry's album Teenage Dream, which was released later that year, for having a similar title as the band's album, writing they "can't believe this, and not in a good way" when linking to the Teenage Dream Wikipedia article. All by Victoria Legrand, except "Used to Be" co-written by Alex Scally Three singles; "Used to Be", "Norway" and "Zebra". Favorite Track: Zebra 1. "Zebra" 4:48 2. "Silver Soul" 4:58 3. "Norway" 3:53 4. "Walk in the Park" 5:22 5. "Used to Be" 3:59 6. "Lover of Mine" 5:06 7. "Better Times" 4:23 8. "10 Mile Stereo" 5:03 9. "Real Love" 5:20 10. "Take Care" 5:48 Total length: 48:46

4.0 (59:09, 12 tracks, debut album, 1996-2000) Swamp Rock (R&B, Rockabilly, Southern Rock) CCR was John and Tom Fogertys last iteration before they exploded in 1972 (basically 1959-1972, played with the same lineup as The Blue Velvets, The Golliwogs, and CCR) Doug Clifford (drums) and Stu Cook (bass) rounded out the 4 piece. CCR released 6 albums from 1969 to 1972 and every one was a chart topper, this was their best-selling. Almost impossible not to give this album a 4 – not a bad song on it. A few covers and ‘almost covers (Tavelin’ Band being an ‘homage’ to Little Richard and sued for plagiarizing Good Golly Miss Molly) Factoids – • John was the lyricist and lead guitarist and driving force being the band, his brother Tom (rhythm guitarist) is generally considered the driving force behind their acrimonious breakup. • Cook and Clifford later formed Creedance Clearwater Revisited • Cosmo was Cook's (drummer) nickname, "The Factory" was the nickname of their rehearsal warehouse (because John made them rehearse so frequently) Album cover – don't love it - why is John on a bike? Otherwise weird, looks like and warehouse with carpet - I don't understand Band name – meaningless really, Clearwater from Olympia beer, Creedance from another friendly band and Revival to make the name work and allude to swamp rock sound they were moving towards. Plus Golliwogs is a shitty name for a band. Favorite Song – Ramble Tamble (just a great jam, mostly no lyrics) *radio single and top 5 hit 1. "Ramble Tamble" 7:09 (rockabilly, psychedelia, long swamp swampy solo) 2. *"Before You Accuse Me" Bo Diddley 3:24 (R&B cover) 3. *"Travelin' Band" 2:07 (rockabilly) 4. "Ooby Dooby" Ray Orbison (Dick Penner) 2:05 (rockabilly) 5. *"Lookin' out My Back Door" 2:31 (country, Bakersfield) 6. *"Run Through the Jungle" 3:09 (Blues, Swamp) 7. *"Up Around the Bend" 2:40 (swamp rock) 8. "My Baby Left Me" Arthur Crudup 2:17 (R&B) 9. *"Who'll Stop the Rain" 2:28 (folk rock) 10. "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Marvin Gaye 11:05 (soul, cover, long cover) 11. *"Long as I Can See the Light" 3:33 (soul)

4 (Genre defining – Goth Rock) (34:19, 10 tracks, second album, 1981) Goth Rock (post punk) Basically Bauhaus ‘invented’ Goth in 1978, for this reason only I bump it to 4 but it’s a great album. Personally, I prefer Peter Murphy’s solo stuff (more pop friendly) better as I was never a dark robe type. Factoids – • English – OF COURSE – this was Peter Murphy’s first band • Kevin Haskins (drummer) and his older brother David J later played with Love and Rockets. Album cover – not terrible, appealing, generic like their sound Band name – Bauhaus 1919 (first year of the German Art School, later shortened) Favorite Song – Hair of the Dog – just driving base – often confused with Dancing (It’s better than Dancing) 1. "Hair of the Dog" 2:43 2. "The Passion of Lovers" 3:53 3. "Of Lillies and Remains" 3:18 4. "Dancing" 2:29 5. "Hollow Hills" 4:47 6. "Kick in the Eye" 3:39 7. "In Fear of Fear" 2:58 8. "Muscle in Plastic" 2:51 9. "The Man with the X-Ray Eyes" 3:05 10. "Mask" 4:36

3.5 (with hey Jude and Revolution 4.0) (93:33, 30 tracks, 9th album, 1968) Rock (60’s pop, folk) Technically this is an eponymous album but no one wanted to call it that on their 9th album. Album is super long (double album) and has a lot of self-aggrandizing filler in my opinion. I know people want to 5 this album but it just isn’t that good - only because it’s The Beattle’s I think. They were struggling (Ono) at the time to keep the band together – weird recording in that they work largely as individuals recording at different times, sometimes same time different studios. By this point the Fab 4 was rich enough to waste a ton of time in studio – they recorded 100’s (literally) of versions of the same track until they liked one and would overlay other best tries. John and Paul were famously cold to each other (Ono) and many site this as the beginning of the end. Really it’s like 3 egos competing for time on one double album + Ringo (he gets one song.) If Hey Jude and the better version of Revolution were on this album I’d give it a 4, if they trimmed all the garbage and kept those two it would be a 5. There is just too much filler. (I gave Rubber Soul a 5.) Basically only a handful of Beatles songs and a bunch of solo project – pile on in their and say fuck it – they’ll eat it up (and oh boy did they ever . . . ) Not the best album on all time by far, not even the best Beatles album. Revolution 9 is just on their to annoy the shit out of people – they could have made it 20 minutes longer if they wanted to. Factoids – • The Maharishi album (Mahesh Yogi) – all four went to India on John’s advise to get away, a few stayed (John and George the longest) • By far the best George Harrison album – George really came into his own on this album • People criticize The Beatles for not using their platform to get more political but they snuck some stuff in here. Blackbird is an outstanding song against racism. George’s Piggies • And. . . of course Charles Manson had to and fuck up Helter Skelter but when you put Revolution 9 on the album that’s what happens Beattles Album cover – plain white sleeve, embossed with their name, number albums created a sense of value. Presses 1 – 4 went to the four members. #1 sold for a huge amount of money to Jack White. Favorite Song – Blackbird (and for Birthdays – Birthday) Glass Onion is fun, While my Guitar Weeps is a Harrison classic with Eric Clapton **Best songs 1. **"Back in the U.S.S.R." McCartney 2:43 2. "Dear Prudence" Lennon 3:56 3. **"Glass Onion" Lennon 2:18 4. *"Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" McCartney 3:08 5. "Wild Honey Pie" McCartney 0:52 6. "The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill" Lennon with Yoko Ono 3:14 7. **"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (George Harrison) Harrison 4:45 8. *"Happiness Is a Warm Gun" Lennon 2:47 9. "Martha My Dear" McCartney 2:28 10. "I'm So Tired" Lennon 2:03 11. **"Blackbird" McCartney 2:18 12. "Piggies" (Harrison) Harrison 2:04 13. "Rocky Raccoon" McCartney 3:33 14. "Don't Pass Me By" Starr 3:51 15. "Why Don't We Do It in the Road?" McCartney 1:41 16. "I Will" McCartney 1:46 17. *"Julia" Lennon 2:57 18. **"Birthday" McCartney with Lennon 2:42 19. "Yer Blues" Lennon 4:01 20. "Mother Nature's Son" McCartney 2:48 21. "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" Lennon 2:24 22. "Sexy Sadie" Lennon 3:15 23. **"Helter Skelter" McCartney 4:30 24. **"Long, Long, Long" (Harrison) Harrison 3:08 25. *"Revolution 1" Lennon 4:15 26. "Honey Pie" McCartney 2:41 27. "Savoy Truffle" (Harrison) Harrison 2:54 28. "Cry Baby Cry" Lennon with McCartney 3:02 29. "Revolution 9" Speaking from Lennon, Harrison, Ono and George Martin 8:22 30. "Good Night" Starr 3:14

6.0 HOT DAMN! have I been looking forward to this album. (42:16 (w/ thriller at 5:58 album cut not the 13:42 mini-movie version, 9 tracks) 9 tracks, 1982) Sometimes the album of the day is a chore, and I'm like dang, was hoping for something better . . . not today! 5, Five, Cinco, Cinq, Wǔ, pięć - it's just a five everywhere in the world!!!! Now do I wish they would have moved Baby Be Mine and The Girl is Mine to the back of the album. . .hell yeah as that would have been the 7 universally loved songs in a row in the history of non-Greatest Hits albums release ever! You don't sell nearly 70 million certified records without broad mass appeal. Man fuck I love this album - Paul McCartney (yeah the song is weak but still, SIR PAUL), the greatest video(s) ever (Thriller is really more of a mini-movie, Beat It crushes it), the dance moves, Playmate Ola Ray (super-hot), Vincent Price (should have taken royalties, $20k probably looked like a huge sum in 1982), Quincy Jones, Eddie fucking Van Halen as your guitar soloist it's like someone pulled out all the stops (and they did! - Off the Wall was huge commercial success but no one, I mean no one could have anticipated Thriller's instant (I mean overnight) impact. MJ almost printed money for MTV. No album before, or since, has changed the world like this album did. In today's digit era I highly doubt anyone will ever have as many certified sales. Not to mention Micheal's stage presence in the early 80's was just 2nd to none - I highly doubt any musician will EVER be able to afford to put on the production show (I read it was something like 24 semi-trailers just to move costumes, lights and props from city to city) that the Thriller tour was (probably doesn't technically count in the 1001 'score' but it's my damn ranking so it counts! - F. O. I still tell people this was, hands down, the best concert I've ever been to and at the time I was into early 80's heavy metal (Quiet Riot and Van Halen), so this was totally not my thing then. I don't what else to say, this is a 5 for so many reasons. Anyone that doesn't give this at least a 4 simply isn't able to suspend their feeling about his personal life from his music (understandable, "I want to love you pretty young thing" hasn't aged well :-P) BUT. . . by this standard so many of these 1001 artists IF THEIR LIVES WERE AS PUBLIC as Micheals would be 1's. Most just hid their crazy better.) In general money makes people terrible people, in general sudden fame makes people terrible people and in general being a child super star makes you a terrible person - superstardom is like multiplying all times each other x 10. It's amazing he wasn't more fucked up (well . . . ) When Micheal says in the Thriller video he's different, he's not like "other guys" well . . . yeah, there will never be another Micheal. I loved Off the Wall but I remember hearing (on a cassette, a friend stood in line to get it the day of release, thought he was nuts) Thriller the first time and from the first 15 seconds of track 1 I knew this was going to be one of the best albums of time. By the time we got to Beat It I had lost my damn mind. Favorite Song (they're all good) - Wanna be Startin' Something', honorable mention Billie Jean Track Listing 1. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 6:03 - Holy fucking shit 12/10 I loved it the first time I heard it - lost my damn mind in fact - best "mass appeal" starting song on an album maybe ever (OK not my genre but still mass appeal), it bumped the previous best opening song ever which held by none other than MJ on Off the Wall ("Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough") damn did Micheal know how to start a show, an album, what an entertainer. Micheal practically invented opening the show with your encore song. When the band cold opened with this song and Micheal emerged from a hidden compartment in SLC I thought those damn white ass Mormons (whitest damn MJ concert I bet of the year (1983)) would have lost their damn minds. If a conniption was a real thing, I'm sure heads would have been exploding! No one and I mean no one (capacity crowd) sat for one second of that whole show. 2. "Baby Be Mine" 4:20 6/10 (2nd worst song on album) 3. "The Girl Is Mine" (with Paul McCartney) 3:42 cheesy as fuck but yeah still an 7/10 4. "Thriller" 5:58 9/10 everyone loved it but not my favorite on the album 5. "Beat It" 4:17 10/10 6. "Billie Jean" 4:57 11/10 7. "Human Nature" 4:06 8/10 (it's a good song - it doesn't exactly fit the theme but it's a really good song - move this to the end too) 8. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" 3:58 9/10 9. "The Lady in My Life" 5 5:00 5/10 We all know Micheal didn't have any ladies in his life (Lisa doesn't count, equally fucked up childhood) OK can I say more about this album? Only that I have no idea how I wasn't a bigger MJ fan in the 80's. My excuse is I hung out with the wrong crow me and my mullet wearing white boy trailer trash friends were kind of stuck in hair metal. So glad I got to see you while you were in your prime (and alive, what a shame.) Where's the six button?

2.5 - A later redacted (no longer on list, to make space) album (50:50, 13 tracks, third album1999) Alternative Rock, Alt Metal (Britrock, clit-rock (black female rock) Skunk Anansie are a British rock band; Skin (Debroah vocals, guitar), Cass (Richard bass, guitar), Ace (Martin guitar) and Mark Richardson (drums). Band name from Akan folk tales Album was fine – glad I listened to it, mixed feelings if it should be included in the 1001. I struggled with 3 or 2 but didn’t want to ‘reward’ an album that probably shouldn’t have been on the list in the first place. I DO wish they redacted out more pre-1998 (this seems to be the cut off point) albums to make room and left the majority of the albums which have been cut. This album probably isn’t one of the 1001 but it was a sound that was very popular in the late 90’s early 2000s. In Living Colour (not female) and Garbage and Evanescence come to mind. Angry female melodic ‘post-punk’ mixed with metal and Alt Rock. For this reason I think it does belong (or at least a couple representatives of the genre, best described clit-rock, as for me this is a musical journey to explore the development of sounds over time and how sounds influences newer sounds and music evolves. From that perspective an influential album) Honestly if I would have stumbled into this group in 1999 I might have got into them as I liked a lot of other Britrock (Bloc Party, etc.) at the time in this genre and I’m good with clit-rock too – but I drifted to a 2 as I just don’t see me revisiting this again and that’s my delineation for 2 and 3. It’s a good album for a 2, so many of the two are worse. Really wish there was the ½ button on stars. Apparently they departed from a heavier punk sound on their first two album (never listened to anything by them) to a more melodic melancholic sound, considered by critics as significant growth. After P. O. C. they took an 8-year hiatus. Recently celebrated their 25th year anniversary. Post Orgasmic Chill track listing *singles 1. *"Charlie Big Potato" 5:32 2. "On My Hotel T.V." 3:34 3. "We Don't Need Who You Think You Are" 4:21 4. "Tracy's Flaw" 4:30 5. "The Skank Heads" 3:11 6. *"Lately" 3:53 7. *"Secretly" 4:45 8. "Good Things Don't Always Come to You" 5:25 9. "Cheap Honesty" 3:47 10. *"You'll Follow Me Down" 4:01 11. "And This Is Nothing That I Thought I Had" 3:04 12. "I'm Not Afraid" 4:48 13. "Post Orgasmic Sleep" (Japan bonus track)5:17

SUPER IMPORTANT for readers – read this paragraph even if the rest is too long. This is Fats Domino! (1956, 3rd studio release) This is Fats (1957, 5th studio release) and This is Fats Domino "The story of Soul" WHICH IS A COMPILATION album of his 3rd album plus material from his first 4 albums, released at the end of 1957 but almost everyone would have bought in 1958, the cover in the book in light blue) ARE all separate albums! Fats was rascal, he released seven albums in 2 years (1956 and 1957) all with similar names. I’m convinced Robert Dimery thought the compilation album (pictured in the book, light blue background and here in this project) was Fats' 1957 album (5th) but the 3rd and 5th have ALMOST the same name (Here Stands Fats Domino, his 4th, in the middle) in a period of two years! The guy who made this project also calls the album This is Fats Domino (no exclamation point, which isn’t a reference to any of the three, unless you add “The Story of Soul”) is closest to his 3rd album FROM 1956 (not 1957 as he lists). Fats and the studio capitalized on the radio success of Blueberry Hill with a re-release in 1957 of his 3rd album (released after his 5th). The album which starts with Blueberry Hill is 1956. I'd like to believe they intended the 1957 album by almost the same name but just "This is Fats" (no Domino!) which starts with “The Rooster Song” (which sounds a lot like “Ain’t That a Shame”, even contains this riff). In my opinion, his 5th (1957) is his best, non-compilation, but it DOES NOT contain “Blueberry Hill” (one of his most recognizable songs). Why that album? It had so many influences on Chuck Berry, Chubby Checkers (his name an homage to Fats) and Elvis that it ABSOLUTELY should be the album on this list if you’re only going to pick one but almost everyone is reviewing his 3rd album from 1956??? Why? Because he links to the 1957 album "This is Fats" only on youtube; the compilation album (later in 57, really 58, with songs from multiple 56 albums) on Spotify and the stand-alone album 1956 on Apple (w/ Blueberry Hill.) Most of the commentators are referencing the 1956 album which is more soulful but less influential (with Blueberry Hill as the first song) and NOT the 1957 (starts with The Rooster Song). Note: "Ain't That a Shame" was off his 1st (debut) album "Rock and Rollin' with Fats Domino" not to be confused with his 2nd album "Fats Domino Rock and Rollin'. Confused yet? - yeah he's (more accurately Imperial Records was) a bastard. The reason this was done was both to sell more records and Fats, like most black R&B stars at the time played two very different clubs. There were “Blues Clubs” which were 95% Black (these clubs featured the first versions, slightly slower songs, more soulful, the songs from the 1956 album would be played at these clubs. Very different atmosphere; more drinking, smoking, and sitting at large round tables with your (black) friends). Then there were Dance Clubs which were 99.9% white (blacks weren’t even let in, more lit, less smoking, big dance floor, smaller tables, singles would go to these clubs to dance and meet people). Fats (and other R&B artists) would play a little faster, a little more Rock and Roll – the 1957 albums reflect this. If you want to know what influenced Elvis (what he stole) it’s the 1957 album (which people aren't reviewing much). The songs are DIFFERENT iterations of similar songs (different lyrics, different cadences etc.) Plus when you play 4-6 shows a week you and your band get bored with the same 11-12 songs so you start playing around. Fats recorded at least 35 albums in his life (over 100M in sales), with compilations, singles, and other releases now extant it would be almost impossible to compile all of Fats’ works but for this project I recommend you listen to both This is Fats (1957 – "white" version) AND This is Fats Domino! (“1956” – "black" version). The compilation album which Dimery got confused by (draws from his previous 5 albums but mostly the 1956 in it's entirety (Blueberry Hill), isn’t necessary for the project -however; it contains a few hits from his first 4 albums). Dimery accidentally broke his own rule (no compilations)! Note - at the time no one really said “white version” or “black version” as of course people of all races enjoyed both but if you were a blind man and walked by club hearing music from the street and knew his entire catalog – you’d know exactly which type of club it was. Even AI fucks up if you google "which Fats Domino album is included in 1001 songs. . .” It comes back with a mixture of all three albums and contains all kinds of inaccuracies "sometimes listed as This is Fats Domino!" no it's not sometimes listed as that; THAT is a different album. There are many errors - it was released in 1957 (the album with Blueberry hill) NOPE that's 1956 (Rooster Song isn't listed, but that WAS 1957) and it was his fifth album. They list Blueberry Hill which was on the compilation and his third Album but not released (Rooster Song again is how the 1957 album starts). A.I. is comically confused. Obviously Dimery lists the album in 1957 (book is chronological) so if he's including Blueberry Hill (1956) he is listing the compilation album and picture (just an oversite, again Fats didn't make this easy on anyone.) Fats was a rascal! RIP Track Listings Most songs by Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino. For my purposed I'll call it a “double Album” (I’m not including the compilation on the light blue from the book – that’s cheating) I'll describe the album cover so you know which you're listening to while you stream the music. 1956 This is Fats Domino! (Fats B&W in a suit, behind him the album name wallpapered on red) 1. "Blueberry Hill" (Vincent Rose, Al Lewis, Larry Stock) – 2:25 2. "Honey Chile" – 1:48 3. "What's the Reason I'm Not Pleasing You"– 2:06 4. "Blue Monday" – 2:20 5. "So Long" – 2:16 6. "La-La" – 2:18 7. "Troubles of My Own" – 2:18 8. "You Done Me Wrong" – 2:06 9. "Reeling and Rocking" (Fats Domino, Alvin Young) – 2:18 10. "The Fat Man's Hop" (Fats Domino, Alvin Young) – 2:29 11. "Poor Poor Me" – 2:14 12. “Trust in Me" – 2:34 1957 This is Fats (cool 50’s cover, FATS spelled in neon lights on pink background – big head, tiny piano drawing) 1.) "The Rooster Song" – 2:05 2.) "My Happiness"– 2:14 3.) "As Time Goes By" (Herman Hupfeld) – 1:38 4.) "Hey La Bas" (Bartholomew) – 2:24 5.) "Love Me" – 1:55 6.) "Don’t You Hear Me Calling You" – 2:06 7.) "It’s You I Love" – 2:01 8.) "Valley of Tears" – 1:52 9.) "Where Did You Stay" – 2:00 10.) "Baby Please" – 1:55 11.) "Thinking of You" (R. Hall) – 2:09 12.) "You Know I Miss You" – 2:12

3.5 lean 4 genre (shoegaze) defining (52:12 (CD), 11 tracks, debut, 1990), British shoegaze Ride had previously released three EPs, a self-titled EP, Play, and Fall; they were between 18 and 20 and it was overwhelming them, Mark “It all added to that dark, alienated feeling that I think permeated through Nowhere.” Ride sort of picked up where the Stone Roses’ left off + the Cure’s Disintegration Ride was Bassist Andy Bell (Oasis), Mark Gardener (Guitarist, singer), Laurence Colbert (Jesus and the Mary Chain) drummer, and bassist Steve Queralt The CD version contains three extra songs and two of the best so, in my mind, it's the only version. Album cover: uncrested wave. The original cassette and CD releases featured no band name or album title on the cover, but sometimes came with an identifying sticker on the outside of the CD or cassette case. In February 2011, Rhino Handmade released a special 20th anniversary edition of Nowhere, featuring the remastered original album with seven bonus tracks from the band's previous EPs, plus a bonus disc featuring a previously unreleased live performance at The Roxy in Los Angeles recorded on 10 April 1991. Ride's first full-length album after three acclaimed EPs, Select critic Andrew Perry deemed Nowhere a "phenomenal" debut . Nowhere has been acclaimed as one of the greatest albums of the shoegaze genre. Track listing 1. "Seagull" 6:10 2. "Kaleidoscope" 3:00 3. "In a Different Place" 5:30 4. "Polar Bear" 4:45 5. "Dreams Burn Down" 6:04 6. "Decay" (Mark Gardener) 3:35 7. "Paralysed" 5:34 8. "Vapour Trail" 4:18 CD bonus tracks 9. "Taste" 3:17 10. "Here and Now" 4:26 11. "Nowhere" 5:23 Reissue bonus tracks 12. "Unfamiliar" 5:03 13. "Sennen" 4:23 14. "Beneath" 4:06 15. "Today" l 6:26

2.5 (72:37, 14 tracks (some very long) 7th album, 1966) folk rock (blue rock) First (major label) double album somehow – odd it took to 1966. Blonde on Blonde completed a trilogy (1965's Bringing It All Back Home and Highway 61 Revisited.) Regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time. Yet it peaked only at 9 Billboard Top LPs The two singles "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" (aka everybody must get stoned) “Just Like a Woman" are recognizable and good. "Visions of Johanna" I liked however overall the album has waaaay too much harmonica and Dylan’s voice is just annoying. He’s a polarizing artist, a lot of 1’s and 5’s. I was going to give it a two but it did grow on me enough I didn’t want to group it in with other 2s I disliked a lot more – begrudging 3 as I suspect other Dylan albums will upset me a lot more. Hate a lot of the lyrics – I know he won a Nobel Prize in Literture but I guess I’m just too simple to understand these lyrics as many songs just sound like some drunk guy rambling on to a complete stranger about some woman that hurt him. Nonetheless it’s ranked 38 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Dylan started recording in New York but changed producers and moved to Nashville – I speculate this resulted in deeper blues and country sound. Album cover - close-up portrait of Dylan, blurry, I like the cover. Track listing 1. "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" 4:36 2. "Pledging My Time" 3:50 3. "Visions of Johanna" 7:33 4. "One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)" 4:54 5. "I Want You" 3:07 6. "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" 7:05 7. "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat" 3:58 8. "Just Like a Woman" 4:52 9. "Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine" 3:30 10. "Temporary Like Achilles" 5:02 11. "Absolutely Sweet Marie" 4:57 12. "4th Time Around" 4:35 13. "Obviously 5 Believers" 3:35 14. "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" 11:23

2.5 (36:25, 8 tracks, 7th album, 1979), New Wave (British) Overall I think she benefited from her dark past, guess she was a major recording artist/actress in the 60s. "As Tears Go By" (1965 - British Invasion) broke her - it's an OK 60s bubblegum song, melodic with high vocals (definitely not this album - she roached her voice) - video is a black and white young blonde (in the style of the times) with breasts very pointed and pushed very high. Sex appeal no doubt helped. British of course. Dated Mick Jagger, broke up (1970), fell apart ended up homeless and addicted to heroin but somehow made a comeback. Had moderate success in 80s and 90s kept recording into the 2000s. Died Jan 2025 (78) Glad I listened - however I don't see any major genre defining or other reason it should be on this list. Wavering 2 or 3, not the worst 2 but . . .I liked some of her earlier work better (checking out Marianne a bit). She was rated the 25th Greatest Woman of Rock and Roll (VH1 1999) so maybe I'm missing something? Rolling Stone ranked her 173 Greatest Singer of All Time. Ended 2, downgrading because context is greater than content on this album. If was going to give Dylan's Blonde on Blonde a 2, I can't fathom giving this a three. I just hate Blonde on Blonde and I know I'm supposed to love it. . . (by the way upgraded to 3, but barely, that was yesterdays album.) Album cover I believe is her, dark blue with a hot red ash cigarette - it's not a bad cover. Marianne Faithfull’s major comeback after years of drug abuse, homelessness and anorexia, first release since Love in a Mist (1967). After ending her relationship with Mick Jagger in 1970 and losing custody of her son, Faithfull suffered from heroin addiction and lived on the streets of London. Her voice was lowered and cracked from years of smoking and drug use. Musically, Broken English is a new wave album with elements of other genres such as punk, blues and reggae. The backing band of Barry Reynolds and Joe Mavety (guitars), Steve York (bass) and Terry Stannard (drums) had been formed in 1977. The album's title track took inspiration from terrorist figures of the time. "Guilt" was informed by the Catholic upbringing. "The Ballad of Lucy Jordan", originally performed by Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show, is a melancholy tale of a middle-class housewife's disillusionment; Faithfull's version became something of an anthem and was used on the soundtracks of the films Montenegro (1981) and Thelma & Louise (1991). "What's the Hurry?" was described by Faithfull as reflecting the everyday desperation of the habitual drug user. The last track "Why'd Ya Do It?", is a caustic, graphic rant of a woman originally conceived as a piece for Tina Turner. Faithfull convincing him that Turner would never record such a number. The song's profanity and explicit reference to oral sex (which earned the album a “Parental Advisory” label on some versions) caused controversy. Faithfull notoriously performed the title track and "Guilt" on Saturday Night Live in February 1980 where her voice cracked and she seemingly strained to even vocalize at times. Track list - ** singles 1. **"Broken English" 4:35 2. "Witches' Song" 4:43 3. "Brain Drain" 4:13 4. "Guilt" 5:05 5. **"The Ballad of Lucy Jordan" Shel Silverstein 4:09 6. "What's the Hurry" 3:05 7. "Working Class Hero" John Lennon 4:40 8. "Why D'Ya Do It" 6:45

3.5 (28:22, 11 tracks, 3rd and final album, 1972) folk 2nd Album I've got (Five Leaves Left (1969)) by English musician Nick Drake which seems excessive especially since it's the album released in North America. However I did, like Five Leaves Left, come to like this short album. In 28 minutes he packs in 11 full songs (none feel short) that are sad and beautiful. I don't see me revisiting this album as I don't need depression in my life (I believe I said in my previous review this is the soundtrack to your long one way walk into the woods with a gun.) It is a great album if you just want to walk around on a fall or winter day and feel moody (don't bring a gun) by yourself. Pink Moon differs from Drake's previous albums it's just Drake on vocals and acoustic guitar. Drake had no commercial success in his lifetime (partially because he didn't want to perform live) however; obviously it has since garnered significant critical acclaim. Beautiful and melancholic. Released two years before his death (1974), at 26. Cover - Keith Morris was commissioned to photograph Drake for the cover of Pink Moon. However, the photos were not used as Drake's rapidly deteriorating appearance, hunched figure and blank expression were not considered good selling points. "I remember going to talk to [Nick], and he just sat there, hunched up, and even though he didn't speak, I knew the album was called Pink Moon, and I can't remember how he conveyed it, whether he wrote it down ... he wanted a pink moon. He couldn't tell me what he wanted, but I had 'pink moon' to go on." In Melody Maker, Mark Plummer, "His music is so personal and shyly presented both lyrically and in his confined guitar and piano playing that neither does nor doesn't come over ... The more you listen to Drake though, the more compelling his music becomes – but all the time it hides from you. On 'Things Behind the Sun', he sings to me, embarrassed and shy." Pink Moon was voted number 131 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).[36] The album was ranked number in 2020 was revised to number 201 Rolling Stones. All songs written and composed by Nick Drake - all sounds played acoustically by Nick Drake 1. "Pink Moon" 2:06 2. "Place to Be" 2:43 3. "Road" 2:02 4. "Which Will" 2:58 5. "Horn" 1:23 6. "Things Behind the Sun" 3:57 7. "Know" 2:26 8. "Parasite" 3:36 9. "Free Ride" 3:06 10. "Harvest Breed" 1:37 11. "From the Morning" 2:30 Total length: 28:22

4.0 (41:34, 9 tracks, debut, 1978), Blues Rock (British) I ended up liking this album far more than I thought and I’m sorta getting into the Blues after living in Chicago for 30 years. UK Blues. Hit single "Sultans of Swing", In the Gallery is a song about the fickle nature of art (only valuable after you die) (was a tribute to a real life artist Harry) and hit me hard with my previous album being Nick Drake who sold 6,000 albums in the United States in his whole life. Overall the album is an introspective nostalgic “stream of thought” memories Mark Knnopfler has of his childhood, young love, and moving to the “Wild West End” of London post-divorce to be part of the scene. A lot of songs about the scene. Setting me up is really a country song and was, as such, covered by a lot of country artists. Pretty much exactly what I’d expect – all tracks similar – considering they were nobodies (debut) its remarkably confident and solid. Their stage presence has always been shoegaze (I don’t give a fuck about a production just look at my shoes and play.) Album cover Light yellow thick framed painting from Chuck Loyola, stark room with a blurry figure – don’t love it. All tracks are written by Mark Knopfler. 1. "Down to the Waterline" 3:55 2. "Water of Love" 5:23 3. "Setting Me Up" 3:18 4. "Six Blade Knife" 4:10 5. "Southbound Again" 2:58 6. **"Sultans of Swing" 5:47 7. "In the Gallery" 6:16 8. "Wild West End" 4:42 9. "Lions" 5:05 Total length: 41:34

2.5 (36:17 13 tracks, 5th studio album, 1967) English rock band I did not like this album on the first two listens, grew on me in headphones. Was walking in a forest preserve listening to Afternoon Tea and met a woman (the only person I talked to that day) name Donna – that’s a weird coincidence. Still giving it a 2 as I don’t love the end of the 60’s psychedelia and chamber music stuff that was so popular in its day, but ALMOST a 3. I want to like The Kinks as there are some songs by them that are so good. . . just not this album. This album continues the Kinks' trend toward an eccentric baroque pop and music hall-influenced style defined by frontman Ray Davies' observational and introspective lyrics. The Kinks were brothers Ray Davies (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) and younger Dave Davies (lead guitar, vocals), Pete Quaife (bass), and Mick Avory (drums, percussion). Lyrically Dave explores fame and deteriorating mental health (clow) while Ray explores isolation. The singles "Waterloo Sunset", one of the group's most acclaimed songs, and the Dave Davies solo record "Death of a Clown", both of which charted in the UK top 3. Something Else sold poorly and became the Kinks' lowest-charting album nonetheless the album was ranked No. 288 on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Ray Davies assumed control over production after the departure of Shel Talmy; hence Something Else marked a change in the sound and production style of the Kinks. Davies felt unsure of his skill in mixing and recording the group's records, and later commented: "I feel that I shouldn't have been allowed to produce Something Else. What went into an album required someone whose approach was a little bit more mundane". Musically, Something Else features multiple different genres and stylistic influences, from the chamber pop of "Death of a Clown" to the bossa nova of "No Return". With the exception of the garage rock-style "Love Me Till the Sun Shines" the album was a departure from the hard-edged rock and roll of the group's earlier material, instead featuring mellower, acoustic baroque pop ballads, English music hall, and "tempered" R&B. Ray Davies' lyrics on the album deal with English-inspired subject matter, particularly the harpsichord-laden "Two Sisters" (a metaphor between the two brothers, Ray being an introvert and Dave an extrovert who like to go out and party), the lazy shuffle "End of the Season", and the sardonic "David Watts." The album includes three songs composed by Dave Davies, including the hit single "Death of a Clown". Favorite Song: Afternoon Tea All tracks are written by Ray Davies, except where noted. 1. "David Watts" – 2:40 2. "Death of a Clown" (R. Davies, Dave Davies) – 3:15 3. "Two Sisters" – 2:03 4. "No Return" – 2:03 5. "Harry Rag" – 2:19 6. "Tin Soldier Man" – 2:53 7. "Situation Vacant" – 2:43 8. "Love Me Till the Sun Shines" (D. Davies) – 3:23 9. "Lazy Old Sun" – 2:49 10. "Afternoon Tea" – 3:25 11. "Funny Face" (D. Davies) – 2:29 12. "End of the Season" – 3:00 13. "Waterloo Sunset" – 3:16

3.0 Hypnotised (38:11, 15 tracks, 2nd album, 1980) Punk (early pop punk) Irish (Derry) First listen I was like ‘meh’ but it grew on me. Although the primary lyrical concern of the songs upon this album focused upon teenage angst, boisterousness, and heartbreak (as had been the case with their debut album), several of the songs upon are notably both lyrically and musically more sophisticated than previous material. The Undertones choose not to address The Troubles in Ireland which were ubiquitous in Ireland at the time. Hypnotised was the highest-charting album of their career. Brothers John and Vincent O’Neil originally, and after Vincent left Damian O’neil joined, along with 3 other childhood friends. Two singles: "My Perfect Cousin", and "Wednesday Week". Album Cover – hate it - the photo was taken by Damian O'Neill, and depicts the band's bassist Michael Bradley and drummer Billy Doherty. The image itself was taken at a seafood restaurant in the Bowery, where the band had been taken for a meal by the manager of Sire Records, Seymour Stein, on their first tour of America in September 1979. Favorite Song - Hypnotised and There Goes Norman 1. "More Songs About Chocolate and Girls" 2:43 2. "There Goes Norman" 2:28 3. "Hypnotised" 2:31 4. "See That Girl" 2:25 5. "Whizz Kids" 2:20 6. "Under the Boardwalk" 2:27 7. "The Way Girls Talk" 2:30 8. "Hard Luck" 3:42 9. "My Perfect Cousin" 2:36 10. "Boys Will Be Boys" 1:27 11. "Tearproof" 2:21 12. "Wednesday Week" 2:17 13. "Nine Times Out of Ten" 2:38 14. "Girls That Don't Talk" 2:27 15. "What's With Terry?" 3:19 The Undertones Feargal Sharkey - lead vocals John O'Neill - guitar, vocals Damian O'Neill - guitar, keyboards, vocals Michael Bradley - bass, keyboards (on "See That Girl"), vocals Billy Doherty - drums

3.5 (43:03, 8 tracks, debut, 1973) Southern Rock (country blues) Without Freebird this is an impressive album but not a 1001; w/ I gave them a 3.5. I like the album - knew the three main songs (to include Solitary Man) pretty well. Most of the songs on the album had been in the band's live repertoire for some time. They rehearsed near Jacksonville, FL in a rural home they nicknamed "Hell House" due to the long hours in the intense heat. Producer Al Kooper marveled at how well prepared the band were once they entered the studio. Bassist Leon Wilkeson left the band a few months before the album's recording sessions. Ex-Strawberry Alarm Clock guitarist Ed King had been impressed with the band after an earlier incarnation of Lynyrd Skynyrd had opened for Strawberry Alarm Clock in Florida circa 1970. He told vocalist Ronnie Van Zant to keep him in mind if he ever needed a guitarist, and he was invited to replace Wilkeson as bassist. Once the recording sessions were wrapping up, Van Zant decided that King would better serve the band as a guitarist, and he visited Wilkeson and convinced him to rejoin. Wilkeson returned to the band and King moved to lead guitar, giving the band what would become their trademark "Three Guitar Army" along with Allen Collins and Gary Rossington. Wilkeson was back in the band by the time the band shot the cover photo for the album, and appears on the cover, as well as being acknowledged in the liner notes. “I Ain't the One" was based on a real-life paternity trap scare Ronnie had. “Tuesday’s Gone” is about the band leaving their past lives behind to tour. “Gimmie Three Steps” is based on a real-life incident involving Ronnie Van Zant at a biker bar in Jacksonville, Florida, called The West Shore. Ronnie was dancing with a woman named Linda. Her boyfriend (or husband) walked in, caught them, and pulled a .45 caliber pistol on Ronnie. As the band worked up "Simple Man" in rehearsal, Kooper expressed his feeling that the song was weak and should not be included on the album. The band felt differently on both counts but could not change Kooper's mind. Ultimately, Van Zant escorted the producer outside to his car and ordered him to remain there until the song was recorded. The band recorded the song on their own with the producer absent from the studio, and it subsequently became one of Lynyrd Skynyrd's best known tracks. The song is about a mother giving life advice to her son, urging him to prioritize integrity, love, and character over material wealth. If included in their live performances (it’s one of their best-known songs, despite not being a single) it is always a tribute to Ronnie. "Things Goin' On" is as relevant today as it was in 1973, it criticizes the American political elite for being out of touch with the struggles of the working class and the poor. Spending money on space exploration (moon) and foreign wars (across the ocean). Fairly MAGA song except the parts about the environment. Although Van Zant was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, he began calling himself the "Mississippi Kid" in the months leading up to his death. Van Zant frequently prophesized with bandmates and friends that he would never live to see 30 and would "go out with his boots on". In 1977, at age 29, Van Zant died in a plane crash in Gillsburg, Mississippi. Fans and biographers often point to the song and his chosen nickname as a strange, unintentional foreshadowing of his final destination. Poison Whiskey is just about that, don’t over consume whiskey, especially cheap whiskey (Johnny Walker Red was consider rotgut at the time, as compared to blue and black.) Freebird – how many bands hate this song?! (because of the incessant yelling of “Play Freebird”!). While the song wasn't originally written about Duane Allman (the Allman Brothers Band guitarist who died in 1971), it became a permanent tribute to him. During live shows, Ronnie Van Zant would often dedicate the song to "Duane Allman and Berry Oakley," and the slide guitar style used in the track was a direct nod to Allman's influence. The legendary five-minute triple-guitar jam (“The triple guitar attack” at the end was added to give Ronnie Van Zant a break for his voice during long club sets. It transformed a slow ballad into a high-octane rock masterpiece. Album cover photograph was taken on Main Street in Jonesboro, Georgia, and shows, from left to right, Leon Wilkeson (seated), Billy Powell (seated), Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington (seated), Bob Burns, Allen Collins and Ed King. As of March 2023, all the band members pictured are now deceased, with the passing of Rossington. After releasing five studio albums and one live album, the band's career was abruptly halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered airplane crashed, killing Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines, and seriously injuring the rest of the band. The band lives on through younger brother Johnny Van Zant and a host of musical journeymen (all accomplished in their own rites.) Rolling Stone magazine ranked the album number 403 on its 2012 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and number 381 in the 2020 edition. Favorite Songs: Free Bird and Gimmie Three Steps 1. "I Ain't the One" 3:51 2. "Tuesday's Gone" 7:32 3. "Gimme Three Steps" 4:30 4. "Simple Man" 5:57 5. "Things Goin' On" 4:57 6. "Mississippi Kid" 3:57 7. "Poison Whiskey" 3:11 8. "Free Bird" 9:08 Total length: 43:03 Lynyrd Skynyrd Ronnie Van Zant – lead vocals Gary Rossington – lead guitar ("Tuesday's Gone", "Gimme Three Steps", "Things Goin' On", "Poison Whiskey"), rhythm guitar ("I Ain't the One", "Simple Man", "Mississippi Kid", "Free Bird") Allen Collins – lead guitar ("I Ain't the One", "Free Bird"), rhythm guitar ("Tuesday's Gone", "Gimme Three Steps", "Simple Man", "Things Goin' On", "Mississippi Kid", "Poison Whiskey") Ed King – bass (all except "Tuesday's Gone", "Mississippi Kid"), lead guitar ("Mississippi Kid") Billy Powell – keyboards Bob Burns – drums Leon Wilkeson – bass (credited but does not perform) Additional personnel Al Kooper – producer, engineer