An absolutely excellent (mostly) instrumental album. Zappa’s virtuosity is on full display throughout, and is by far my favorite album instrumental wise out of the little Zappa I’ve heard. A must listen for any fans of experimental, avant-garde, and or progressive rock.
Incredibly strong album, Stevie Wonder at his best. However, I really do think this album suffers from too long of a runtime. Nothing here sounds bad at all but my mind can’t help but drift off and want a different soundscape, 1 hour and 44 minutes is far too long for an album that sticks to the traditional RnB sound. Looking at Content alone, it’s a 5. However while the content is great, it’s too much of the same for too long to maintain that 5. Favorite songs off this album are Sir Duke and Black Man.
“Jesus died for somebody’s sins BUT NOT MINE!” What a bold way to start an album, and what an album this is. This album is dark, angry, and sensual all at the same time.
If I had to boil it down, Patti takes everything that came before her in the Rock scene (namely Bob Dylan, the Doors, Hendrix, and to a lesser extent the Rolling Stones) and splices it with her unique experiences and poetic skills to create something psychedelic and absolutely RAW.
Best Tracks:
- Gloria: In Excelsis Deo
- Birdland
- Land: Horses/Thousand Dances/La Mer
(^This track especially is fantastic, first time in a while a song has had me in a trance trying to understand it, it’s INTENSE!)
Worst track:
- Redondo Beach
To be quite honest this album didn’t click with me. The album has strong instrumentation for a folk album and excellent vocals (maybe even too good in a way) but the lyrics weren’t really resonating with me throughout this project. That isn’t to say they’re bad, they’re not corny or bland or anything like that. It’s just that in my current mindset, it’s not clicking. In the limited time I’ve had with this album I can only give it a 3, but I’m going to try and give it another listen when I’m in a different state of mind. The only real flaw I can give to this album, is that it’s too long considering it’s limited soundscape.
Favorite tracks:
Jacksonville
Chicago
Casimir Pulaski Day
Worst track:
Nothing is so bad on this album that it makes me think “Wow this is terrible what song is that.” The worst tracks are the one that were just so forgettable that I couldn’t bother to remember them.
I’ve always thought of the Stones as a “hit” band rather than a “album” band, and boy does this album prove that.
While I’m sure at the time this came out it was great, it unfortunately just has not aged with grace at all.
Beggars Banquet is largely by today’s standards, an album full of subpar blues rock. While not sonically offensive, it’s disappointing for a band such as this. The only track worth remembering on this album is the iconic “Sympathy for the Devil,” the rest you could throw away.
The only reason I’m not giving this album a single star is because Sympathy for the Devil is on this, and because of the time it was made, which is hardly an excuse. The Beatles had dropped the White Album a month earlier, people like Hendrix were pushing the boundaries, and Rock as a whole was just evolving past the sound that the Stones were sticking to.
Best track: Sympathy for the Devil
Worst track: Factory Girl
Unfortunately I’m not a Hispanic speaker so I can’t really judge this albums lyrical quality, so I’ll be judging it based on sheerly how it sounds. This album to me is probably the perfect thing to put on while eating dinner for example. It’s great background music and really gives me the feeling I’m in a small jazz club. I can’t really say much more, it’s good but not great.
Absolute classic. I’ve been listening to this album long before this review so I was equal parts excited and disappointed I had to review it, as I knew it would be great but not new to me.
Anyways for the actual review I’m just going to say that this album is perfect from top to bottom. The instrumentation is amazing and the vocals are beautiful.
It’s not really informative I know but I don’t know what else to say. This album is a Jazz / Bossa Nova standard for a reason. Any person with an interest in this genre absolutely must listen to this album.
Best tracks:
Girl from Ipanema (both versions are stellar)
Corcovado
Worst Tracks:
Can’t pick
First of all I have to make this clear, Alice in Chains is the best grunge band for two reasons, the first is their EP/album “Jar of Flies” and the other is this album, “Dirt.”
Dirt is definitely the bands crown jewel, with pretty much any track on here being able to be taken as your favorite with no complaint. It’s crazy to think about but you’ve got Rooster, Would, Down in a Hole, and Them Bones all on this same album. Layne’s voice is powerful yet haunting and Cantrell provides excellent backing vocals to the mix, all while playing some of the best solos and riffs of the 90’s BY HIMSELF. This is best displayed on the song “Rooster” where Layne sings about his Dad’s experience in Vietnam and the treatment he got coming back, where we get Layne switching between a haunted storyteller style to a powerful chorus, all backed by Cantrell’s virtuoso performance. This album is an absolute classic and worthy of a perfect 5 stars.
Favorite Tracks:
Rooster
Would
Least Favorite:
None without counting the interlude
Not really much to say about this album to be quite honest. It’s a nice folk blues album and that’s it. I found the story about the groups inception much more interesting than the music itself.
I genuinely don’t know why this album here. Yes, Countdown to Ecstasy is a good album for sure, but it is absolutely not a must listen. Almost any other Steely Dan album is better then this one, but that’s not because this album it’s just because almost all their other albums are better. Anyways, this album is just good, not great.
Favorite Track:
Razor Boy
Worst Track:
Show Biz Kids
This is undeniably a good album, but I never found myself loving it like many other people did. As far as Protopunk goes I found Patti Smith’s “Horses” a much better listen. Either way though this album is a great listen and is undeniably incredibly (if not the most) influential to the punk and art rock movements and is worthy of respect. I don’t think it’s aged like wine like many other listeners do, with it dragging at times in my opinion. Really a perfect example of a 4 star.
Favorite Track:
Heroin (had me levitating)
Worst Track:
I’ll be your Mirror
I’ve never really gotten Springsteen to be quite honest. Springsteen isn’t bad but he isn’t great enough to be hailed as a legend and this album further cemented that fact for me. There’s some good tracks on here such as the famous title track but the rest sort of just takes a backseat in my mind. It’s good but not great.
Best track:
Born in the USA
Worst Track:
No standout lower quality song
I’m not going to sugarcoat it, this album sucks. Leonard Cohen is revered by many for his lyrical talent, often considered one of the best song writers of his generation. This album showcases this fact clearly with songs such as “Bird on a wire” being masterfully written.
So why then do I say this album sucks? Well the reason is simple, the music itself is just boring. Throughout this album, Cohen sings in the same monotone style every song, almost exclusively backed by a quiet guitar playing mindless bland 3 chord melodies.
If I had to describe this album, it feels like Leonard Cohen went to a poetry recital and some guy happened to be playing guitar outside. It’s a completely passionless project, and honestly it gives off the impression that Cohen only chose to become a musician because it was more profitable to be one instead of just writing solo poetry.
Best Song:
The Old Revolution (this is the only track I can remembering having any instrument besides a bland backing guitar)
Worst Song:
A bunch of lonesome heroes
The most “Ok” album I’ve heard. Impressively Ok as a matter of fact. Then again I’m not really a fan of pop so this album was kind of just lost on me I guess? I could definitely see this being someone’s favorite. For me though I can’t ever see myself coming back to this.
Favorite Track:
They all sound the same
Worst Track:
See the above
2.5 stars
I’m just on a generational run of the most ok albums ever. This is a really unique album blending Electronic and I guess Classical (?) I don’t really know what to call it off the top of my head but you’ll know what I mean when you hear it. It’s a good album but I can’t see myself being so hooked to come back to it.
What an absolute masterpiece. For a very long time, I found myself more in the Giant Steps (Another Coltrane album) camp when it came to Coltrane’s work. However upon relistening I have to say I think this Album is the better project. Giant Steps is more consumable, but as a whole this clears.
Now let’s get to what exactly is good about this album? The short answer is everything, no exaggeration. Every piece of instrumentation is perfectly played and positioned throughout. The standout for me has to be Elvin Jones drums though.
Never before has a Jazz drumming performance captivated me as much as his performance here. Anyways if you like Jazz at all, you should know this is a classic for a reason.
Best track:
Meant to be consumed as a whole
Worst Track:
See Above.
This album has all the things you want in a good Pop album, catchy lyrics, good hooks, and just overall easy to consume. I’m not a huge pop fan overall but Michael Jackson is known as its king for a reason. Overall a great album, not much else to say.
Favorite track:
Rock with You
Worst Track:
She’s out of my life
This website has given me lots of albums lately that have just been “Ok.” This is one of them. The first half of the album is like a 7.5-8/10, then goes down to a 6 on the latter half, with a lot of it just being the audio equivalent of chicken and rice. Truly the album of all time.
This album is a damn tragedy to me. I say this because this album really shows the band’s potential to do interesting instrumentation, it’s just that they couldn’t decide what exactly what they wanted to do. There is near zero cohesiveness in this album, with no real core sound to it. Then there is the vocalist, who is quite frankly terrible. The guy’s poorly ripping off David Bowie and Roger Waters style of singing, and it just doesn’t match the vibe in any of the songs. This album could’ve used another year of touchups before it came out.
Best Song:
This is Hardcore
Worst Song:
TV Movie
I have nothing good to say. This is slop pumped out during drug trip. This is as artistic as me grabbing a paint bucket and tossing it at a canvas. Nothing at all redeemable about this and should absolutely not be on this list.
Ella’s vocals are great, but this is simply too long for me to enjoy
