1001 Albums Summary

A solid late 60's blues rock album. I think I would have loved this as a teenager, when I was musically voracious for this genre, mood and the guitar solos. "Ol' Man River" was the standout for me.

I've got all The Doors albums on vinyl like, I imagine, every other 30-something that collects vinyl. If you call yourself a vinyl collector, a bearded ex-hippie magically appears and gives you a copy of Frampton Comes Alive and Waiting For The Sun (and/or their eponymous album) that are scratched to hell. You won't be able to get rid of them. They are your burden for wanting music on an analog format. I like The Doors, but my interest in The Doors has waned over the years, with my peak interest being around age 19 or 20. One time I had friends come over and I had each of them go through my vinyl collection and pick an album. We'd play everyone's picks while we talked and hung out. This one guy I know picked Morrison Hotel. It was a bummer. Changed the whole vibe. We all listened out of politeness, but the room was disinterested and anxious, like they were experiencing the musical equivalent of being at a party and being trapped by a guy who is explaining in detail his frisbee golf league, who stops talking only to take some whippits. There's some entertainment to be derived, but there is certainly something more entertaining somewhere else. But then I listen to L.A. Woman and get to "Love Her Madly", which absolutely rules. It has so many musical parts strong enough to support a whole song, and yet they've been effortlessly sewn together into an interesting structure. Great song. Listened on Tidal.

An eclectic mix of songs, most of which I like. I played a game with my friend where I had him try and guess the band. It was “I’m In Love With My Car” and “‘39”. He was pretty mad that I cheated by playing two unrecognizable Queen songs.

Pretty solid album in the Early Beatles discography. I really like "And I Love Her"

A fun, boisterous, energetic party record. Not the best example of hip-hops lyricism, but it highlights the genre's early energy and playfulness, with some catchy early sampling.

"Passive / Aggressive" -> "The Grave and the Constant" -> "Scooby Snacks" is a pretty solid run. This album is light and silly, with 90's grooves. Some of them would fit on a Tony Hawks Pro Skater PS1 game. I'm seeing a lot of hate for the inclusion on the list, which is a fair criticism. If I were voting for that, I'd also vote a 2/5 or less and ask for it's removal. But I feel like this is an exercise in voting on albums for their individual merit. This is pretty inoffensive; it has solid musicianship and production; it is emblematic of 90's alternative rock and hip-hop. Of course it falls under the shadows of better albums, such as Beck's Odelay or Beastie Boys Check Your Head, but it's still not dire enough to be considered bad. So a 2.5 rounded up to 3 because it does more right than it does wrong.

It’s 1973 and King Crimson shouts, “We also did an elaborately produced prog rock song themed around money!”

A perfect punk album.

A creative and interesting landmark in the art of music sampling. It's often chill, but there's a haunting melancholy that I connect with. I find myself switching from active listening to passive throughout. It's been a good album to throw on while I'm working on a project.

I grew up in Jacksonville, Florida, where Limp Bizkit originates, in the 90's and early 00's. I went to school with second cousins of Fred Durst. In my early formative years I experienced the pop culture saturation of Limp Bizkit in real-time. "Rollin'" and "My Way" were inescapable. (Even "Weird Al" Yankovic had "My Way" in his "Angry White Boy Polka" medley from Poodle Hat (2003).) It was never really my thing. So today, 1001 Albums Generator wants me to listen to this album even though it's no longer technically on the list. Thoughts before I listened: This feels like it was included on the list for historical context (late 90's/early 00's white boy nu metal / rap metal) rather than as an example for an incredible album. I don't have any of the books, so I don't know the write-up. I also don't really like Nu Metal. It was such a Thing when I was growing up, but any nostalgia I may have for it is laced in irony. But surely there must be better examples of early 00's Nu Metal to go on the list. Is Hybrid Theory on the list? Also, I am so reluctant to listen to this album on my streaming services out of worry it will fuck up my algorithm. (I know how pretentious that sounds.) "Intro": Feels like an OutKast rip-off. "Hot Dog": Tidal doesn't have this uncensored. There's almost no lyrics without the expletives. I had to seek out the uncensored version elsewhere. I was absolutely shocked that the chorus is shoplifted from NIN's "Closer". Absolutely egregious. "My Generation": Are we invoking The Who with this? Begins with a Jax, FL reference with the Matthews Bridge, which connects Arlington to Downtown over the St. John's River. I do not like driving over this bridge. The turntable riff is monotonous. "Full Nelson": The lyrical perspective is defensive, prosecuted. The vocal delivery is smarmy and then angsty. It posits both that the narrator will physically assault their enemies for verbal harrassment, but the bridge pleads for everyone to get along (and that people are awful). "My Way": The most successful song with lyrical consistency and a solid hook in the chorus. Except the post-chorus guitar riff feels way too close to "What It's Like" by Everlast to be considered original (in my book). "Rollin'": Absolutely crazy how popular this song was. Designed to be a Wrestler intro song. (It was The Undertaker's entrance theme from 2000 to 2002.) "Livin' It Up": Sampling the Eagles. Lame. Imitating Cyprus Hill. Weird. "I'm the starfish." So you're the... asshole? "The One": I don't really care for Durst's singing, but the guitar tone is nice and the bass line and drums are funky. Is this secretly the best song on the album? I do not like Fred whispering in my ear. "Getcha Groove On" (featuring Xzibit): The synth sample is so unusual compared to the rest of the album. Turns out it was sampled from a Cirque du Soleil trapeze act. They sued Limp Bizkit for using the sample. Even French Clowns are out to get Fred! "Take a Look Around": No one else would be brave enough to do a Mission Impossible Nu-Metal song. John Woo, what hell hath you wrought? So strange that this was made for the film when it's so lyrically irrelevant to the subject and themes. This song had a Grammy nom, but it lost to RAtM's "Guerilla Radio", which we can all agree is a better song. "It'll Be Okay": The guitar tone reminds me of going to Guitar Center and hearing people fuck around with too many pedals. Part of the guitar riff in the chorus sounds like the guitar riff from "Swamp Thing" by the Chameleons, a song I love. "Boiler": Has anyone ever written an essay on Limp Bizkit's lyrical anal fixation? I'd read that. "Hold On": The musical equivalent of someone grabbing you when you're trying to walk away from a conversation. "Rollin'" (featuring DMX, Method Man & Redman): It is very nice of three legitimately good rappers to just let Fred Durst do his silly shit before they eclipse him with their verses. "Outro": You know, this vocoder is also a rip-off of "Intergalactic" by Beastie Boys. "This is a Phat Beat...by DJ Lethal." No arguments here, it is a nice little beat. Shame it's spent on...this. Overall Impression: This debuted No. 1 on the Billboard 200. Sold over a million copies in the first week. Eventually certified platinum. Pretty much all of the best choices on this album are taken from better songs with more sincere intelligence and creativity. The term "shoplifted" kept coming to mind. It's 75 minutes, and that's just stupidly long for what's on offer. I think the band--Wes Borland on guitar, John Otto on drums and Sam Rivers on bass--are technically competent but uninspired. It's interesting that a band with such influence and popularity had such short staying power. My conclusion is they never fully had their own identity, something that couldn't easily be traced as being lifted from another artist. Every artist learns from their heroes and influences, but good artists distort it through their own taste and interests into something unique. I don't think Limp Bizkit ever wholly became their own, and so there was nothing for the mainstream to hold onto once the shine of the pop culture spotlight burned out. Considering the artist behind the art, Fred Durst seems like a dick. For everyone who likes this album, I am so happy for you. This isn't my genre. I would rather hear the bands they're lifting inspiration from than this.

Shifts between mellow and upbeat, but always feels bright, warm and funky.

Seven out of eight songs really worked for me, and the one exception isn't bad (just not interesting enough for me). Some songs have weird tails that feel incongruous but don't break immersion. It's a solid soulful album with some grooves and feel-good optimism.

Single-handedly made doo wop and retro-soul relevant to millions of people around the world in the mid-2000's. It's classic soul style arrangements, performed by veteran musicians, are infused with modern vulgarity, dark sentiments and direct emotions. Amy Winehouse has a powerful, echoic voice that bursts through the songs. Half of the songs are punchy and energizing, and half are sad and soulful but never despairing. I missed this at its peak of popularity. I thought she was good from hearing "Rehab" pop up everywhere. Everyone around me liked her. I just didn't know that she was making doo wop and soul music, which I've always loved.

This has been my favorite Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds album for the past year.

Enter Sandman is inarguably a major hit, but the majority of this listening experience leaves me ambivalent. I don't hate it, but rarely does it grab me. Every positive review lists "Wherever I May Roam" as a top-tier song on the album and that one didn't do anything for me. I liked "The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters", though. "Of Wolf and Man" is seemingly about werewolves, so that's pretty cool. I wouldn't self-identify as a metalhead, although I've got my list of albums and bands I've enjoyed. (Ie, Dopesmoker by Sleep, Dopethrone by Electric Wizard, Ozzy-era Black Sabbath, early Megadeth. More Stoner and Doom than Thrash.) What I like about the metal I enjoy remains intangible to me. I just know that this album doesn't light up my brain like others have. Personal taste, this is a 2/5. Cultural significance, it's probably a 3/5.

The best album of the 2000s I’ve discovered from this site. Baroque pop with synths that is eerie and beautiful. Some of it feels sci-fi, most of it feels spooky. There’s a polka performed on synths that would somehow please both Tom Waits and The Doors. I respect amazing performers who decide their first project is weird and spooky.

Joe Strummer's lazy, breathy way of singing is just the epitome of cool. The songs are varied and catchy. Blends world music with 2 tone and punk rock. It may not be direct and refined enough for punk purists, but genre is descriptive not prescriptive. It's more post-punk or new wave, but I'm not gonna wag my finger at anyone calling this their favorite punk album. Hard to pick between 4 and 5 stars for this. To me it's a 5 star album, but it hasn't fully emerged as an all-time favorite for me despite years of listening to it. Many parts of it, like "Hateful", is on constant rotation for me. I don't have any critiques against it.

Chill, mellow, peaceful, smooth. Perfect pairing for a cup of coffee in the morning, or a bike ride on a sunny day, or walking around a neighborhood, or hanging out at the beach.

Artistic depiction isn't endorsement. Feels like a 70's French art film for your ears. That may not be everyone's cup of tea. It's got a consistent groove throughout, although it's erotic overtones do become unsettling even without considering the subject matter. I've listened to this album multiple times throughout the years and I haven't become Humbert Humbert.

There’s three standout tracks: she found now only tomorrow new you The rest of it just bled together and the wall-of-noise approach was oppressive in the last few songs.

Bright and beautiful with a golden gauzy haze. Dusty's voice always has a tinge of melancholy, which resonates with me. I'm more inclined towards Side One over Side Two, but it's all lovely. "Son of a Preacher Man" is the obvious standout, but I really connected with her cover of "I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore"and "Breakfast In Bed" on this listen. Listened on vinyl.

"Supervixen" - Rules. The weird cuts to silence are awesome. "Queer" - Shirley Manson making an argument for being the best singer of "doot doo doot"s in the 90's. "I'm Only Happy When It Rains" - We've all be there. Every hook is great, the musical bridge is fun, but I really love the way the end of the chorus rises up. "As Heaven Is Wide" - Pretty straightforward, but doesn't grab me. Reminds me of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. "Not My Idea" - This is my favorite song on the album. Everything around the chorus (which is very good!) is just incredible. The best "doot doo doo"s on the album. I just love the way they juxtapose with the whining guitar. The verses and post-chorus are just so much fun. "A Stroke of Luck" - Straightforward with solid vibes, but nothing especially stands out. Feels like it could have been a song featured on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. "Vow" - The chugging industrial percussion in the middle of the mix, the guitar switching from fuzzy to jangling, the slight distortion on Shirley's voice. A very good song! "Stupid Girl" - The 'Train in Vain' bassline is a groove, there's a chill dance vibe, there's some weird incongruous electronic noises that sounds like robot vocal fry. This song rules. Very danceable. "Dog New Tricks" - The post-chorus breakdowns where she shouts "Live and you learn!" are good. Not the most exciting song, though. "My Lover's Box" - The mellow palm-muted guitar riff and soft singing to a noisey pop chorus, and then some more "doot doo doo"s! Soft trip-hop drums! Hell yeah. "Fix Me Now" - I'm not a vocalist, so excuse my lack of proper terminology in trying to articulate this: Shirley Manson's voice hits a deeper, more full range in the chorus on this, and it's lovely. Great chorus. "Milk" - Makes me feel like I'm smoking a cigarette in a dark club late at night, watching everyone dance.

The only hot take I have about this album is that the lesser-known acoustic "demo" version of "Quicksand", made available on CD reissues since 1990, is better than the studio version. Shame it's not as readily available on streaming services. That's why you buy physical, baby!

More like slipkNOT to my taste. I remember hearing about this band when I was 10 years old. I was intrigued by the masks. Then I heard the music and knew it wasn't my thing. Most of the songs are pretty concise compositions, which is nice. I am surprised to read so many reviews that describe this as "chaotic". Not really, dude. It's loud, it's percussive, there's obvious technical skill, it's in-your-face, but it's all pretty intentionally controlled and structured. Go listen to The Shaggs for true chaos. Standout track: "Eyeless", "Scissors" (some cool textural work here) 1001 Album Generator, please stop making me listen to Nu Metal. Nu thank you.

Standout Tracks: Rikki Don't Lose That Number Any Major Dude Will Tell You Barrytown But it's all good.

"Now they're planning the crime of the century Well what will it be?" "Bloody Well Right", "Hide In Your Shell" and "Dreamer" are three of the best songs of the 70's. Breakfast In America will always be Supertramp's most popular album, and there are incredible songs there, but none of it ever hits the same highs as the three previously mentioned songs from Crime of the Century. Honestly, every song on this album rules. When you're worst song is "Rudy", it's hard not to argue "perfect" album. Ken Scott's production on the album is stellar. The musical textures on "Bloody Well Right" are incredible. The arrangements are complex, but never oversaturated, always clear and never overbearing. Most of the lyrics and themes are about existential dissatisfaction, systematic oppression, being shackled to the workforce, social anxieties, but there's an optimistic light shining through, a longing for human connection delivered with Roger Hodgson's bright vocals trying to pull you through the darkness. Not to discount Rick Davies grittier vocals, which I also love. This album is really a 4.5 for me, but I'm rounding up! Unrelated: if you look at pics of Rick Davies and Rodger Hodgson from the 70's, they both look like variations of White Jesus.

There was a year where I was obsessed with "Mambo Sun". Very good album. I own it on vinyl.

The musical equivalent of 90's nostalgia.

Contains multiple indispensable songs from the Led Zeppelin canon: "Immigrant Song", "Friends", "Since I've Been Loving You", "Gallows Pole", "Tangerine" But even the lesser offerings, such as "Out on the Tiles" and "That's The Way" are great. Except for "Hats Off to (Roy) Harper)" which I don't really care for. This album tends to fall between the cracks of their discography, since it's surrounded by albums that weigh heavier in the cultural context. However, I appreciate the more folk-focused offerings. This album feels like it's secretly Jack White's main inspiration for The White Stripes more than other LZ albums. I own this on vinyl, but I listened to the hi-fi version on Tidal. Standout tracks on this listen: Tangerine, Gallows Pole, Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

"King of Pain" is their best song. Period. At 5 minutes, it is constantly introducing new sonic layers, new musical ideas, new harmonies until the end. Never overcomplicated, always crystal clear. Depressed existential pain with imagery of death and decay, self-loathing, self-pitying, but endearing and sympathetic rather than sad-sack doldrums. A good album with some great songs, which is an applicable review for all of their releases. That's the conundrum with The Police. With only 5 albums of hits and misses, you could seemingly make due with an essential compilation. However, I looked through a dozen of their compilations while listening to this, and every single one of them has a glaring omission. (Usually lesser-known bangers such as "Bring on the Night" or "Man in the Suitcase") For everyone who has a problem with Sting, may I direct your attention to Stewart fucking Copeland, who's been an incredible influence on video game and film music, and Andy fucking Summers, an incredible guitarist. (His most notable contribution to this album is "Mother", which is abrasive and weird and breaks up the flow of the album, but I think has some interesting musical ideas going on, especially with his guitar. Probably would have been better if it were only 2 minutes and maybe a hidden track at the end rather than a main course.) With only one clunky (clunky, not bad!) song (Mother), their best song (King of Pain) and their biggest radio hit (Every Breath You Take), this album gets a 4. Even though I'd personally rank it just below Zenyattà Mondatta. Standout tracks: King of Pain (GOAT status), Synchronicity I, Miss Gradenko, Synchronicity II, Wrapped Around Your Finger, Murder By Numbers (bonus track on most releases)

Peace Frog is peak song. Waiting For The Sun is also great.

Completely new to me. Very enjoyable.

A good album, but a step down from their previous albums. Seven Nation Army is the obvious hit here, but it's been so oversaturated in its use that I mostly associate it with football and other sporting events. The real stand-out is "The Hardest Button To Button", which is weird, catchy, and full of energy. There aren't any bad songs, though.

While this rapping style is antiquated now, even compared to Tribe's later releases, this is a milestone in hip-hop that is still fresh and enjoyable. The production feels like you're hanging out with the Tribe and friends at the studio, complete with corny segues that introduce the title of the next song. The beats still bump and the flow is on point even if the rhymes are simple. Does "I Left My Wallet In El Segundo" make any narrative sense? Not really. But the hook and beat are so catchy, I find myself riffing on it after it comes on. "Can I Kick It?" will always be a classic. There's a youthful naivety that's infectious. This album shows hip-hop when it was still green. Some of the sampling is a bit annoying. (I *get* why a baby is crying in the intro, but I don't want to listen to a baby crying.) Nonetheless, it's an influential album that's actually still a fun listen. 3.5, but I'll round up to 4 for historical importance.

When I think about Smooth Soul, I think of Marvin.

My most-listened to album of Wu-Tang Clan's first phase, besides "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)". It wasn't my favorite on first-listen, but every listen has made my appreciation grow. The samples, while lengthy, set such a mood that I don't try skipping them. The beats are sometimes murky, sometimes plucky, sometimes hard-hitting boom bap. Lyrically complex, and varies from introspective to violent. You can argue where it ranks among "the best 90's rap albums" and "best rap albums of all time". In my experience, you mention this album in hip-hop discussions and everyone agrees it's great.

Pop Punk is just not my flavor of punk, and Green Day epitomizes the mainstreamification and therefore Pop Punkification of Punk. Which is weird, cuz I still like ska. There's a whininess that's inherent to a lot of pop punk that I just find intolerable. I was in middle school when American Idiot released. Every emo girl had it's album cover artwork everywhere: on backpacks, on notebooks, in lockers, etc. It's weird when you experience something that instantly becomes iconic on first look. However, I just didn't really like Green Day's sound. American Idiot was fine, Wake Me Up When September Ends eventually got it's hooks into me. But as a whole, I skipped it. In middle school, I knew a Baptist youth pastor who was an effeminate light skinned black guy with curly hair. The 2000's were laced with inherent homophobia and everyone just assumed he was extremely closeted. He was in his early 20's and had the pomposity of a guy who had lost his invite to the barbecue but was trying his damnedest to earn some kind of cred. For instance, he drove a motorcycle, but no one was ever convinced of any badassery. He was obsessed with befriending every teenage girl. He constantly talked about the importance of abstinence and then would then go into an emphatic rant in front of an auditorium full of teenagers about how much he likes fucking his wife. "I love having sex with my wife! Okay fellas? It's incredible! It's incredible BECAUSE we waited." He also had a seething disdain for Green Day, because they were anti-God, anti-Christian and anti-Bush. He loved to tell a story about one of the emo girls of the school approaching him and asking, "Mr. So-and-So, do you really thinks Green Day is anti-Christian?" Yes he did. So she pulled out her American Idiot CD from her backpack, broke the CD in half right in front of him and threw the case in the trash can. He said it was a beautiful, glorious moment, and we should all be so brave. (I've always been incredulous about that story. He never mentioned the girl's name and a teenager breaking a CD in the 00's sounds like music sacrilege. She'd have to go all the way to FYE and buy another one once she realized her mistake.) So that's the climate of my life during Green Day's peak popularity. I received a lot of consternation at not liking Green Day. Almost everyone with cool music taste I knew would tell me: "Oh yeah, but you've GOTTA like Dookie, right?" "Basket Case is an indisputable classic!" Now as a less pretentious adult who regularly looks back on the sheer breadth of the music of the 90's, the decade I was born from, I can say that yes, I do like Dookie. And in general I prefer 90's Green Day to 00's Green Day, although there's definitely songs from that era I like. Still not big into pop punk. This album will never be a favorite of mine. But it's high energy, sardonic, and catchy. The songs are tight. Billie Joe Armstrong isn't a great singer, but his cadence gives the simple vocal melodies a memorable flair. Tre Cool is a great drummer. Standout tracks: Longview, Welcome To Paradise, Basket Case, She, When I Come Around, All By Myself is genuinely funny Pulling Teeth was also pretty cool, because it sounds like a more 90's college rock song rather than pop punk.

I fucking love The Band.

I know Frank Ocean more for his persona and his interests rather than his music. (I know the dude has really good taste in movies, for example.) In 2012, his song "Crack Rock" got it's hooks in my friend group and I heard it a bunch. I liked it, to be sure; it's a soulful song with very pretty textures while discussing a depressing topic. Overall, this is a nice album, from it's PS1 intro theme to it's neo R&B grooves to it's electropop tunes. It doesn't *all* work for me. "Pilot Jones" is a clunker. I fucking hate John Mayer, the most overrated guitarist in my lifetime and a genuine asshole, so "White" is a waste of a good groove. (Ocean rightly seems to have lifted the only 60 seconds of Mayer's noodling that are worth listening to.) But the highs are high. "Super Rich Kids" with Earl Sweatshirt is great. The aforementioned "Crack Rock" really fits my sensibilities. "Lost" is so catchy and smooth. Rating this is hard because: 1) it's very good, 2) I'm not the biggest contemporary R&B fan, but I'm not a hater, 3) there's plenty I enjoy but there's plenty I could skip on a relisten. It's times like these I wish this site offered half stars. So this is a 3.5 or a 3.75 for me, but I feel reluctant to give it a full 4 stars.

This is basically my dad's favorite band, so CCR and John Fogerty's solo career have been ever-present in my life. I swear I wrote up a whole review for this album; praising "Lodi" as a great song, detailing Fogerty's deceptively simple but punchy guitar riffs, the Rickenbacker 325 tone with some murky stank, Fogerty's soulful sad-laced singing, how the band gets all the southern cred even though they're from a town outside of Berkley, Oakland and San Fran, California... But then my computer shut down and the review was gone. Oh well! Standout tracks: Green River (of course), Bad Moon Rising (of course), Lodi (my favorite), Wrote A Song For Everyone (underrated), and the good spooky blues rock of Tombstone Shadow and Sinister Purpose

Standout Tracks: "Forever", "Sad but True", "Crash and Carry", "Science Friction", "Kein Trink Wasser" A nice album! Plenty of interesting musical textures and catchy hooks.

Somewhere between Silver Jews and Daniel Johnston, although it lacks a sincere vulnerability that are apparent in this band's sonic peers. This is really in my wheelhouse, so I enjoyed this throughout, but it has a lot of off-putting characteristics. Howe Gelb's mumble-whisper style of singing lacks melodic variety, and it's so forward in the mix. The lyrics are often weird and illustrative, but they don't often feel revealing or poetic. A lot of the compositions feel haphazardly performed by the band, but then there will be well-done intricate production during other parts of songs. A lot of this doesn't feel like regular rotation for me. It's too singular to throw on a mix tape. And yet the album's mood in it's entirety is interesting and evocative. It feels like a musical grower, not a shower. Favorite songs: Punishing Sun, Temptation of Egg, Shiver, Bottom Line Man, Way to End the Day

Eeek eeek eeekekekekekekeek!!!!

OutKast gave us an album who's concept is as sly as their word play. "It's not a double album, it's an album double." There's over 2 hours of material here worthy of a track-by-track summation and dissection, but I'm gonna keep it brief. For most of my OutKast fandom, I've been Camp Three Stacks. Absolutely nothing against Big Boi, Dre just had the playful lunacy, like a Bugs Bunny of hip hop. Yet within the last few years, I've shifted, my interests gravitating towards Big Boi's bars. Before this listen, I would have said I prefered The Love Below. Instead, I preferred Speakerboxxx. Maybe Big Boi really has been the secret sauce behind OutKast's success. This isn't really an either/or situation, since you're buying both albums; they're grouped together on your streaming service. And yet, comparison is impossible to resist, since the album is a demarcation of each performer's instincts and interests. Andre 3000's The Love Below gets the most airtime. It's the critical darling. It's weird, it's comical, it's sincere, and it's musically eclectic: lounge jazz numbers, pop rap, electronica, R&B, neosoul, spoken word pieces, all interspersed with inventive skits. It's very cool, it highlights 3000's creative individualism, and it's overlong and indulgent. It has more lows than Speakerboxxx, which are only emphasized by listening to both albums back-to-back. Andre pushes his vocals into ranges he just can't meet, especially on "She's Alive", a strange ode to his mother as a single parent. Andre's songs are thematically consistent, to the point that it's a little humdrum. I read a review that said "Andre 3000 made The Love Below to get laid". Perfect summation. And there's nothing wrong with that. Andre 3000 is clearly channeling Prince throughout the album, it's soaked in the music's DNA, but Prince wrote about so many other subjects while also writing about wanting/getting pussy. When one of the few songs on The Love Below that's NOT about falling in love (or wanting to fuck) is about the singer's mother, no matter how saccharine or sincere it is, it's hard not to make an intellectual Oedipal connection. But I'm not a Love Hater, this is still a great album. When comparing Singles, I have to give it to The Love Below's two hits, "Hey Ya!" and "Roses". The latter may have been the most popular song throughout my middle school and early high school life. "Hey Ya!" is still huge, especially when you're in the club and the DJ is trying to throw a bone to all the white girls. Despite "Hey Ya!"s oversaturation, listening to it in context of the album shows how much of an injection of energy it is, and sitting with it shows off it's less thought about qualities, like the squiggly warbly synth sound throughout the song. And the music video is still cool. HOWEVER, "The Way You Move" (feat. Sleepy Brown) is one of the definitive songs of the 00's, and at this point I'd rather hear that in any context before either "Hey Ya!" and "Roses". Speakerboxxx is incredible, but not without it's sins. The Bamboo interlude is cute, but does it need to be 2 minutes long? Does the album really need that many interludes at all? While The Love Below is musically eclectic, Speakerboxxx is lyrically and thematically eclectic. Not to say the Speakerboxxx's music is predictable. It zigzags all over the place. "GhettoMusick" launches with an electronica feel with heavy synths, then 45 seconds shifts into an electric organ. 1 min 15 seconds, you shift to a chill downtempo section with a longing soul singer crooning and various voices singing "Feeling Good, Feelin' Great". A strange tangent for 45 seconds? Nope, it's something like a 2nd chorus, or a repeated bridge. It's awesome and strange. Meanwhile, lyrically the song is something of an anthem, for partying, for celebrating music, for celebrating OutKast. This is followed by "Unhappy", my favorite song on the album, which talks about stoicism, creative productivity and a pursuit of happiness in dire situations, while also sharing seemingly autobiographical stories about Big Boi's parents disentegrating relationship due to stress and money troubles. The next song, "Bowtie" is full of imagery of decadence and wealth, set to a horn-led big band funk sound; the irony of juxtaposing this with "Unhappy" is not lost to me. The album bounces around these ideas--"The Way You Move" being a sexual dance song followed by "The Rooster" a song about being a single father, a song literally about "War" to a call to respond to existentialist (and literal) worries by going to "Church". If The Love Below is Andre 3000 chasing Prince's lineage, then Speakerboxxx is Big Boi chasing Parlaiment/Funkadelic's lineage. Anyway, neither album is perfect, and when combined the flaws are emphasized. And yet you get two of the best albums of the 2000's for one price, so who's bitching?

I think almost every Prince album from ‘79 to ‘88 is perfect. This album is incredible from start to finish.

Epitomizes everything I love about country music. Willie's melodies, while simple, are beautiful and memorable. His cadence is immediately recognizeable, charming and disarming. His lyrics and singing are full of longing, melancholy and sadness, but also delivered with an empathetic warmth. This album is a cohesive medly. The songs smoothly flow into each other, with Time of the Preacher acting as a repeated theme, and some instrumentals to segue into a new story song. The flow of the album is beautiful. One of the few albums that's popped up that I listened to several times on repeat, just letting the album loop.

Apocalypse Dudes got nothing to lose Gonna bake some motherfucking magic tonight

Queen is one of them most misrepresented bands in all of rock history from a modern perspective shaped by Greatest Hits comps and constant radio play of their singles. The tone of Queen is unmistakable. What people miss is how unabashedly nerdy a majority of their music is. One of the best songs on the album is about how Mom’s should be cooler and not losers. Half the songs are fantasy stories that Led Zeppelin would find indulgent. I wouldn’t consider this a favorite album at all, but I like how it’s undeniably Queen with awesome harmonies, intricate song structures, heavy driving tough-as-nails music, but weirder songs that I haven’t heard a million times. It’s perfect for when I’m in the mood for some 70s heavy glam.

A solid early 60's pop rock album, but remains low in my Beatles ranking. I never think of these songs or crave them. Although it was fun reading about how revolutionary it was for a British group to cover American R&B, which was underground and off the UK's radar. Hilarious that a bunch of Brits heard a 23 year old Lennon sing "You Really Got A Hold On Me" and freaking the fuck out.

I'd include this album on a list of 1001 simply based on "I Believe In A Thing Called Love" and "Love Is Only A Feeling". The rest of it ranges from fine, to pretty good. It's all FUN. I've never met anyone that dislikes this album. Everyone finds it enjoyable, although there are huge variations in irony. Through no fault of my own and through none of my own doing, this album was HEAVILY prevalent in my life in 2010. It was constantly popping up.

Not my favorite Smiths album, but there's a lot here to enjoy. Simple songs like "Girlfriend In A Coma" get surprise string sections, "Death of a Disco Dancer", which absolutely rules, has awesome drums and stabbing guitars. The album artwork is boring. Like it was designed to be forgotten. Definitely not the album I'd recommend to try and win over a new Smiths fan, but definitely a good album.

Very pleasant. The definition of a "3.5" for me, in that there's nothing offensive, there's a few standouts (Shoot The Moon, Nightingale), but this isn't groundbreaking, doesn't resonate heavily in me. Pretty remarkable that an album half vocal jazz and half singer-songwriter folk sold like a trillion copies in the early 2000's when so much radio was abysmal.

I loved "The Dolphins", "I've Got a Secret (Didn't We Shake Sugaree)", "Everybody's Talkin'" and "Green Rocky Road", with "Sweet Cocaine" right behind them. Those were thrown on a lot of playlists, and are strong enough to justify my rating. I already knew Nilsson's cover of "Everybody's Talkin'" from the incredible film Midnight Rider. Fred's original is just as powerful. His voice has a beautiful baritone that resonates. The rest are all good songs. I don't know what to make of "Cynicrustpetefredjohn Raga". It's basically a freakout jam sesh among the musicians named in the song title. It's not offensive, but there's not enough that I latch onto. It feels incongruous with the rest of the album, although it makes sense in a 60's Greenwich Village Scene sorta way. Very happy to have found this.

Probably my favorite Neil album. An almost perfect Side A and a perfect Side B. And I like the weakest link here ("For The Turnstyles")! Not the best song on the album (for others), but I absolutely love "Vampire Blues". Also I was obsessed with "Walk On" for two months straight. Also the ironic juxtaposition of "On The Beach" as a theme for the album is my favorite type of thing. "On the Beach" sounds like a happy idea, but it's also the name of a famous 1957 novel and 1959 film that depicts the aftermath of nuclear war. The album cover, a literal image of Neil on the beach facing the ocean, even though his outfit is bright and the furniture is (an iconic) cheerful pastel yellow, the weather is dreary and the water looks cold. Inexplicably a 1959 Cadillac is buried under the sand. In the sand, as if dropped by a disgusted reader, is a newspaper which somehow hasn't been carried away by the wind.

You're beautiful, more beautiful than me! You're honorable, more honorable than me! Loyal to the Bank of America! (It's a sign of the tiiiiiimes!) R.E.M. is a band with pretty distinct eras. Document marks a pretty big change into what has become how they are understood and considered by the "mainstream". "It's The End of the World As We Know It", a big hit and a cornerstone in "college rock", erring close to something like They Might Be Giants. "The One I Love" was an alt. rock hit, with everyone in a band in 1987 doing a cover of it. I love almost all of their career, although I gravitate towards their first four albums rather than the late-80's/early 90's albums. (Although I'm a weird R.E.M. fan that loves Monster as much as I love Automatic For The People.) Honestly, they're just one of those bands where if they click for you as a whole, you're gonna have an outlier favorite. This album rules, though. Even a lesser song like "Fireplace" has an interesting resolution to the melody at the end of the chorus. Also it has an unexpected horn section powering through the 2nd half of the song. Billy Joel ripped off "It's The End of the World As We Know It" with "We Didn't Start The Fire". Can't convince me otherwise. Favorites: "Finest Worksong", "Exhuming Mcarthy", "Disturbance At The Heron House", "It's The End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)", "The One I Love", "King of Birds". But "Strange" gets a shout-out.

The album's solid, although it only really peaks with the single In Da Club. Besides that single, and the snapshot of what early 00's hip-hop was like, I don't know if this album really justifies it's presence on this list.

THE definitive cowpunk album. I got this album the summer of 2009 when I graduated high school, and it was such a defining shift towards my adult individual music taste. While it's not representative of the band's discography as a whole, it's still an awesome introduction.

Ryan Adams is a piece of shit, but this album is classic 2000's Americana with a few nostalgic standouts. Standout Songs: "To Be Young (Is To Be Sad, Is To Be High)", "My Winding Wheel", "Oh My Sweet Carolina", "Bartering Lines", "Call Me On Your Way Back Home", "Come Pick Me Up", the rockabilly jam "Shakedown on 9th Street" The album features vocal contributions from Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, Dave Rawlings, Kim Richey and Allison Pierce. Their haunting harmonies induce goosebumps. Dave Rawlings also has songwriting credits. The arrangements are simple, minimal, direct. Front and center are the lyrics and vocal performances. There's a painful sorrow conveyed in many of the songs, the weariness comes as a surprise from a guy in his mid-20's. It's not a perfect album. It's almost 52 minutes long, and I can pick a few songs that are weak enough to be cut. But the highs are so damn high. The length doesn't feel indulgent, but instead feels bloated. I can intellectually separate art from the artist, although I appreciate how music and singer/songwriter projects generally affect people on a more personal/emotional level. This is an exercise in grading albums--full stop--in the context of their genre, their era and their individual merits. It's not a platform to judge how much of an asshole Ryan Adams is. It's verifiable, he's an awful individual. However I'm here to judge his art. It's a solid debut solo album. It's where Ryan Adams peaks for me. He never quite hit this stride again. If someone's not predisposed to Americana or 2000's Alt. Country, I don't think this is going to convince them of the genre. However, I think it is a defining album of the genre for it's era. Although, twenty six years later, it's easy to scoff at the praise Adams received that made comparisons to Neil Young, Bob Dylan and other greats. Doesn't mean this album is bad.

Inoffensive Britpop. Pleasant and catchy enough, but it's not going to linger in my thoughts.

Roughly 37 minutes long, 10 of which are one of the greatest guitar performances of all time. Soulful, psychedelic, funky, sometimes surreal or absurd. Side A is perfect. Literally perfect. Eddie Hazel's performance on "Maggot Brain" is the epitome of a soulful guitar solo. He was 20(!) years old! "Can You Get To That"--with it's chill groove, loose choral voices, melodic rhythms, simple but insightful lyrics--is at least one of my all-time favorite songs, if not one of the best songs from the 70's. Side B gets a little weirder with "Back In Our Minds", but that trombone sneaks in and makes the whole thing cohesive. Wars of Armageddon introduces the sounds of a crying baby, sirens, shouts from a domestic turmoil, terminal announcements, canned sitcom audience laughter, cuckoo clocks, airplanes, train track alerts, cow moos, owl hoots, chants for pussy, shoe boxes(?) being dropped down stairs, women screaming, farts, rocket explosions, and ends with a heartbeat. All over Tiki Fulwood's steady, energetic drums. Not a relaxing listen by any stretch, but exciting, textural, confounding, and playful.

Abrasive, overwhelming, but not incoherent. I appreciate everyone who characterized this as the Jazz take on Thrash and Hardcore Punk, which provided better context. Not an album you just throw on, but that's not the intention, nor is it a quality all music should be filtered through.

I was obsessed with AF's album Funeral in 2009. Then I completely skipped Neon Bible. I think the buzz was it wasn't as good as Funeral. The Suburbs then hit, and the titular song was everywhere. It's a great song, and yet not powerful enough to pull me into a full album, which fans were calling a triumph. Now a decade and a half has passed and I've finally listened. It's bloated, but not necessarily padded. Although not every song is Great, as a whole it mostly works. The lesser-thans are still fine, and the highs are pretty high. Standout songs: The Suburbs (which I do think deserves to be on a list of Great Songs of the 2010's), Ready To Start, Modern Man, Half Light 1, We Used To Wait, Sprawl II (which is so so good). I like the Spike Jonze film too.

I can understand someone not liking Springsteen's voice, even though it's echoic, soulful and incredible. I can understand someone not liking ballads or the structures of large-ensemble bands. Musically he's just not for everyone. (What band is?) But if you don't like Springsteen cuz he's a "commie", you're a fucking pussy. One of the best albums of the 70's. One of the best American mainstream rock albums. Few songs are as powerful as "Backstreets" (top 3 Springsteen songs) or "Born To Run". "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" is a groove. Everyone song is bare-minimum Good, most of them Great. I prefer the darker, moodier Springsteen from Darkness On the Edge of Town, The River and Nebraska, but this is probably the album I'd give someone if they wanted to give Bruce a try. Fun fact: Scorsese's Taxi Driver has the iconic DeNiro line "You talkin' to me?" DeNiro had just seen a Springsteen concert where someone yelled "BRUCE!" And Springsteen nonchalantly said, "You talkin' to me?" That was the Born to Run tour. This album is a 5/5, but it's a personal 4/5.

Pleasant and especially consistent for an album from 1960, but the songs aren't remarkable in Presley's pantheon. There's some excellent musicianship and production, for sure.

Ska isn't dead, it just smells funny.

Ranks relatively low among my Bowie favorites, but this is still a very good album from his peak period.

What can I say, I find 80's music production charming.

Ignore his work for film, which is echoic and incredible in it's onw right, and what remains is one of the great American songwriters that's emerged from the 60's. Randy Newman's songwriting style is sadly out of style in a concurrent mainstream understanding. His songs are stories, always told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator. This level of detachment seems alien to an audience that expects a songwriter to be writing and singing from their immediate perspective. I guess it's not obvious at first listen to the uninitiated. Randy Newman has more in common with Raymond Carver than he does most songwriters. The other thing people seem to miss is his irony, his acidic vitriol. His soft froggy voice and string arrangements bely the anger at injustice and ignorance which stands front and center in songs like "Rednecks". He's also funny as hell. "A Wedding in Cherokee County", one of my favorite songs of his, always makes me laugh when the narrator starts talking about his bride's family. While there's irony everywhere, there's also sincerity. He has a soft spot for the disaffected, can find charm in the freaks of the world, cuz we're all human. He hates examples of humanity turning against itself--racism and prejudice, capitalists and politicians fucking over regular people, the weaponization of religion against people's best interests. In addition, he crafts great songs with simple lyrics, simple rhythms, but powerfully memorable melodies sung with such a distinct froggy voice.

A lot of the music and tones are bright, many of the lyrics feel sad or melancholic. There's a lot of celestial/cosmic sounds through the production that I associate with early 2000's albums which I really like. New to me. I thought it was very good.

James Taylor. He's an objectively good singer. He has written some objectively good songs that will remain in culture forever (probably). He's Easy Listening Folk, he's got some Blues, he's got some Soft Country. It's all pretty chill and pleasant. I can say this album is good. It contains his biggest song, 'Fire And Rain', and there's some good lesser-known songs. I just don't connect with James Taylor. Growing up I knew many people who considered him a definitive part of their musical identity. To me, he's the music equivalent to a couch pillow. It helps you feel nice, but it's low on the list of essentials.

Cosmic chill.

There's a handful of standout tracks that hold up: Right Here, Right Now; The Rockafellar Skank; Gangster Tripping; Praise You. The only song that really grinds this down is In Heaven, and that's more from the repetition and abrasive choices overwhelming the idea of the song. Not really my go-to genre, and I never need to hear Praise You again after years of it, but this is still danceable, fun, and is definitively 90's. Adding up all the songs, this rates at a 3.75 for for me, but I'm rounding down instead of up because I can't get enthused about Rockafeller Skank and Praise You anymore from overexposure. I can, however, keep Gangster Tripping around, cuz that shit still works.

I was only familiar with 'Come On Eileen' and the aesthetic of overalls and straw hats. I like 'Come On Eileen' a lot. It has a lot of variations, all of them good. It sounds sweet with a longing for love that sounds genuine. A lot of that I attribute to Kevin Rowland's unusual vocal timbre. This album is pretty far, musically, from the big hit single from their previous album. Most of the songs are long, most of them are chill. There's a lot of time spent on conversations that are meandering, and often funny, over a groove. All the aspects I like about Come On Eileen is present here, although the pop structure isn't. This is a hodgepodge of Blue Eyed Soul and New Wave with string arrangements. A third of the lyrics I couldn't parse through Rowlands thick accent. Doesn't matter. The melodies of the songs are so good, and his vocal melodies are even greater. I don't think I'd have ever listened to this without an extra push. I thought it was great. In it's favor, it's a good album to just put on and listen through, rather than cannibalize its best tunes for playlists.

The best album by one of the greatest bands.

A nice little surprise. Despite my deep dive of 60's albums years ago, The Youngbloods just never reached my awareness. It's a delightful album that smoothly switches between Folk Rock, Blues Rock, Ragtime, and Jazz Rock. It was a nice soundtrack on a rainy summer day. 3.5/5, rounded down.

I love Brian Eno. I love his 70's albums. I love this album.

Ah the indie folk boom of the late 00's. Fleet Foxes was never one of my favorites, but they are definitely talented and inoffensive, and they deserved their popularity.

One of the most important albums for American music in general, but of course a seminal album of rock and roll. VU's influence continues to this day. This launched three incredible musical careers: Lou Reed, John Cale and Nico. The world is better for it. If we ignore ALL of that, this is still a 5 star album. Run Run Run is maybe the weakest proper song. Heroin can try your patience if you aren't in the mood for the electric viola freakout. The Black Angel's Death Song feels the most of it's time, something like early Dylan or electric Phil Ochs, compared to its timeless siblings. I don't think European Son is anyone's favorite. Still, they're great songs.

I read a lot of middling/polarizing reviews before listening to this, so I wasn't expecting much. Turns out this is exactly my shit. Kind of like a British equivalent of an Elephant 6 band. Shoegaze, Jangle Rock, string arrangements, brass sections, woodwinds, 90's psychedelia... Although I can contend, the album should have ended with Lazarus. Except, I like I've Lost The Reason and The White Noise Revisited. Also didn't care much for the noisiest song, Spun Around. I'm happy to be an outlier and happy to have a new album and band to spin.

Slacker Rock 101. Definitive 90's rock album that, much like The Velvet Underground, influenced so many contemporaries and bands to come (echoes we still hear today), despite never charting. Pavement's always existed like Nirvana and Sonic Youth's little brother; definitely related, but more jocular, fanciful and hopeful. Every time I spin this album, I love it more. Skipping a song on this feels like blasphemy; even something more haphazard and noisy Chesley's Little Wrists is only 1 minute long, shows the band's playfulness, and works in the album's flow. Seems like a fair price to pay to then get to sink into the warm fuzz of Loretta's Scars.

3.5 New Wave

3.5

(Review for UK Version) A solid album and seminal for 1966, released months before The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" and The Beatles "Revolver". The Rolling Stones have reached the apex of their early style with more original material than earlier releases. They've already written "Satisfaction", "Play With Fire", "As Tears Go By", "Get Off of My Cloud", so they'd have already solidified themselves in rock history by this album. While this has some big songs for them--"Mother's Little Helper", "Under My Thumb", "Out of Time", "Paint It Black" for the US release--they are still a few years away from hitting their pinnacle. That's the biggest mark against this album. Although it's quite good, it just pales in comparison with basically everything that comes after it: over a decade of great albums. 3.5 / 5, rounded down. This is a pretty big stepping stone for them. Of all the bands that started in the 60's, The Rolling Stones discography is maybe most emblematic of the changes in the world and musical landscape. In just 3 years after this album, the 60's would die in a cloud of confusion and darkness, with The Rolling Stones performing at Altamont Free Concert. With Aftermath, the darkness is looming, but it's hiding in the peripherals. The Free Love movement is dwindling, and leaving behind some scars. And yet, as a whole, Aftermath feels less essential for me personally.

Took me years to get on the Björk Bus, but over the past few years I've been Björk-pilled and now I'm a happy passenger. This is regularly heralded as her best album, alongside Homogenic. For me, this isn't a great first album to start with. I climbed Björk Mountain starting from the sea level: The Sugarcubes album "Life's Too Good", which I love. From there, I took the linear path of her discography: Debut to Post to Homogenic to Vespertine. All of which I've loved. Sometimes you have to follow an artists trajectory to really appreciate them. She's a glorious, beautiful weirdo. This is an incredible album.

An all-time favorite album from an all-time favorite band. As much as I love '77, this is where Brian Eno joins the mix as producer and elevates the band into the next level. This gets overshadowed by the next three albums, and that's fine, but I love all of these songs without any exception or caveat. No one did it like Talking Heads and everyone has been living in their shadows since the fucking 70's.

The production is fine. Some of the synth tones they use are cool; they feel like an early Playstation or N64 video game sound chip. I don't think this is necessarily bad, but I don't connect with this at all.

A 1990 party album that successfully presents House, Pop Soul and Funky R&B. The songs are catchy, the beats are danceable, and the mood is groovy. The beats still get a House crowd moving. The sampling and musical textures are still cool, regardless of the now-retro feel. A perfectly fine Summer album.

I love Jangle Pop, and this is one of the best in the genre. However, it's maybe my 3rd favorite album of The Smiths. I love Johnny Marr's guitar playing. There's plenty of humor along with the darkness of the lyrics, and it's a solid mix of upbeat and downbeat songs.

The title says it all.

This album was a nice surprise. All of the descriptors made it sound more depressing than it actually was. While the song subjects are often about alienation, loneliness, repression and trauma, there's also hopefulness, playfulness, and beauty in the music. Something titled "Jesus Hates F*ggots" with a subject matter about a parent being bigoted and prejudiced towards their child, which they feel is justified by distorted religious views, is catchy as hell while also painful and uncomfortable. "TC and Honeybear" was fine, but the entire run from "Marz" to "Jesus Hates F*ggots" was wonderful. "Caramel" and "Leopard & Lamb", while good, were a step down for me. Ends strong with "Queen of Denmark".

Everyone knows "Sultans of Swing". I've heard it so much that it's hard to appreciate it for its merits, but when I do, I can fully appreciate how good it is. It's regularly listed as one of the Greatest Guitar Solos. No argument here. Mark Knopfler just embodies effortless coolness. His loose talk-singing is just awesome, especially when you listen to what he's doing with the guitar at the same time. I've been underrating his guitar playing for too long. Standout track for me is "Wild West End". I was on a camping trip with my buddy two years ago and he played it for me while we sat around a campfire, drinking beers and smoking a joint. That moment elevated it to my favorite Dire Strait song. Listening to it sober, it's still incredible.

I can't deny how good Rod Stewart's raspy scratchy singing sounds. This is straightforward boogie-woogie rock. Not bad, but uninspiring. "Debris" stood out to me, and I guess "Miss Judy's Farm" and "Stay With Me" and, to a lesser extent, "You're So Rude" and "Too Bad". I don't think I'll ever feel pulled to relisten to this.

I first heard Hot Rats when I was sixteen years old and it remapped the neural pathways in my brain.