Excellent power pop music. I appreciate the more orchestral tracks, as well as some of the harder edged material. The noise tracks don't land as well for me, probably because of the amount of subsequent noise bands I've listened to. I'd be curious to know how they would have impacted my listening experience without having engaged with bands like Sonic Youth, Flipper and the Jesus Lizard. Nevertheless, I greatly enjoyed this, and look forward to digging into Big Star's back catalog.

Spectacular. A lot more folky than I expected. Ian Anderson’s voice is so clear and resonant, Martin Barre’s guitar playing is fluid and creative, and Clive Bunker’s drumming is more Bonham than Bruford. Any time the folk songs started overstaying their welcome, Bar would come in with overdriven guitar.

I listened to this on a drive from Tallahassee to Jacksonville after a weekend of visiting a friend. The only song I had heard before was “The Weight.” How I didn’t know any of the others is anyone’s guess, because this was fantastic. I keep mental notes of my favorite songs per album, and each song here could have been my favorite.

Less a traditional album and more a collection of singles. Nevertheless, I had never realized how many songs I knew originated as Little Richard tracks. His vocal performance is the standout, making the material hold up in a way that some of the other rock and roll pioneers’ work does not.