1001 Albums Summary

As my first album I feel like I’ve been pranked because this is kind of a terrible album. And what a terrible album cover! Most of the music here is not good. The only tracks worth listening to are the one’s with guest vocalists, so tracks 3, 6, 11, 12. This album does not belong on this list (might not even make the top 10,001) and should be removed. Ok I guess I should look forward to tomorrow because it can’t get much worse than this can it?

Oh thank goodness, absolute redemption from yesterday! Here we go straight into one of the great albums of all time! Every song is great with a lot of diversity and the track order works very well. Such great songs and vocal performances! This album is definitely one of my faves from her great catalogue.

Don’t know what happened to the notes I put in here when I listened to this album but I did enjoy it very much. I have not had the chance to listen to the earlier albums by The Cure so I’m glad this came up as I enjoyed it very much. I’m looking forward to hopefully one day sitting down and listening through their catalogue as I think they’re a great band with a distinct sound.

Great album! I haven’t heard this in ages and even then only heard a couple of times so great to listen to it again. Such a great singer and songwriter! …and holy crap, Cheech and Chong are on the last song!

One of those bands I’ve heard of but never got to hear until now. A beautifully plodding, synth supported rock album on the soft and gentle side but with a lot of tasty electric guitar work. Kinda sounds like a mid-80s Canadian folk-rock album or something like that. Definitely want to spin this a few more times as well as listen to more of their catalogue. For now though it doesn’t strike me as necessary listening but who knows after multiple spins?

huh so a second album by The Cure this week… I heard Pornography for the first time this week and loved it! However this one seems a bit under cooked to me but it is interesting how they progressed from this to the aforementioned album. This album still has a very uniquely melancholy sound to it though and the sparse and dry production reveals the starkness of the songs as well as the distinct voice of Robert Smith. A good album and perhaps I’ll learn to love it more upon further spins but for now I would say that I only need one Cure album on this list and that would be Pornography.

Nice! There’s so many great songs on this album! And what a distinct and powerful voice! As is usually the case with these 80s pop albums there’s a few songs that don’t have the same quality as the hits but that makes the hits sound that much more impressive. It was nice to listen to this album again and even though her voice is just out of my range, it sure was fun to sing along and to try to reach some of those notes!

A uniquely distinct band that I only know from the 80s and am unfamiliar with the earlier stuff from the 70s. Nice to hear the beginning of where they evolved their sound from. This album is well recorded and lays out all the quirky songs nicely in the mix. Maybe sounds a bit dry but it sure helps to highlight the great bass lines by Tina Weymouth! I’m enjoying my first spin through this but feels like it will take a few listens to really understand these interesting and creative songs. Makes me wish I was in my early 20s in 1977 and hearing this on college radio and in the nightclubs at the time!

Wow what a pleasant surprise! As someone not well versed in soul music, it was mind blowing to come upon this album and see that it’s made up of only four mostly long tracks. The Bar-Kays as the rhythm section! Isaac Hayes singing, playing organ and conducting the band live! String section overdubs! Kind of a psychedelic vibe throughout this whole album and the tempos are all fairly slow and steady. Great to learn about this album and looking forward to future replays.

Yet another band I know of but never got to hear much from. I really only know the song True Faith, which I absolutely love with it’s ominous and dark feel and was likely exposed to it from music video shows on tv because of that amazing video, as I rarely heard them on the radio. Some of these songs have an electronic feel to them and some have a live band feel. The songs themselves sometimes feels happy and upbeat and sometimes dark and dramatic. Although nothing really stood out upon first listen I did enjoy listening to this album and look forward to getting a few more spins in and also exploring more of their catalogue in the future.

Another band I’ve heard about but never got the opportunity to hear. This is a well produced album of rock based songs. The amount of variety keeps this album interesting to listen to. By this point they’re a few albums along in their career so it would be interesting to listen to all the preceding albums to hear their evolution. A better knowledge of this band and their music as well as more spins of this album will surely raise the rating in the future.

Getting the first jazz album of this generator makes me wonder how many jazz albums there are and also if there are any classical albums. There must be tons of great jazz and classical albums out there and so many of them should probably be on this list but sadly are not. This album is amazing to listen to for the fact that it’s a big band playing incredible arrangements live, being captured by minimal equipment. You can totally feel the energy of the crowd build towards the end and it sounds absolutely wild out there! We are blessed that this moment was captured and available for all to hear.

I remember these kinds of bands a lot in the 90s. I think the one that did it the best was Mano Negra. As for The Coral, the mix of styles is interesting and it’s well played and recorded but for me it sounds a little stilted and a bit too clever for its own good as if trying to win over a conservative audience in a friendly way which they no doubt did. This is good but for me is not essential listening. Personally I’m not sure that I would ever need to listen to this again however I might play this to a group of the right people at a party if they were somewhat adventurous but conservative listeners.

Another artist I’ve heard of but never got to hear. This is sample based dance music which can be ok but this album makes me wish that it had more adventurous content or that I was at least listening to some real musicians playing. There are some moments here and there of harmonic movement which keep it interesting however presented over an unchanging electronic beat does make it sound a little flat. I am curious though to listen to at least a couple more albums by Moby to see if anything grabs me. In the meantime unless I can muster up any desire to listen to this one again to see if it clicks, I’m afraid that this will be filed under non-essential listening for now.

A name I may have seen or heard around but had no idea what they’re about and what a pleasant surprise it was to listen to this! Although I don’t normally gravitate to folk based music, the way this music is put together is very interesting. Great arrangements and vocal harmonies! I’ll definitely be checking out their other albums and I’m already thinking about asking around to some of my friends to see if they know of this band or not. I’ve been a little dismayed by some of the albums I’ve had to listen to lately, a lot from around this era, but this one gives me hope that there actually are some great albums I don’t know of and to not give up on this project.

Alright, here’s an artist that’s hard to not know yet I’ve never sat down to listen to any actual albums. Once again another genre of music I’m not very well versed in but I definitely enjoyed listening to this very much. This recording sounds really nice, very warm sounding, and the music is all performed well. Love the background vocal arrangements! Definitely want to hear more from the catalogue especially learning that this is his seventh album!

Ah, another nice and warm sounding recording. Nothing like the ‘70s to envelope you in its analogue methods! I’m only a little bit familiar with Richard Thompson and always heard about his albums with Linda so it was great to finally get a chance to hear one. Having spent some time with the albums of Sandy Denny a few years back this album really put me back in that sort of vibe. Once again I don’t usually gravitate to folk based music but I really enjoyed this one as well. There’s a sort of nostalgic sentiment to these songs in the lyrics, vocals and chord progressions over a lot of slow and steady tempos. I’m guessing that there’s some sort of a British folk sound here in the way the songs are written and performed. Definitely going to check out their other albums and though I’ve heard of Fairport Convention I haven’t spent much time with that band either so here’s hoping there’s one coming in the pipeline but if not I do hope to get there one day as well.

Ah so nice to get back to some rock ‘n roll again and this one rocks! Once again a band I’ve heard of but never really listened to. There’s a lot of good energy on this one with some hyper drumming and loud guitars. The songs are good with some interesting chord progressions and vocal melodies, all in a pop rock framework. Not sure if this is essential listening right now but with repeated listens I can see this one being justified so. Definitely want to hear their other albums to see where they went after this.

I remember when this album came out back in the day and being surprised by the sound of this album seemingly looking back to the aesthetics of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s and well, just the Beatle-ness of it all. It definitely stood out amongst the pop and rock music of 1989 and 1990. Lots of varied song ideas and soulful vocals and cool that he made most of this himself. Unfortunately it’s a bit too long at just over 55 minutes and would have been served well by some edits and/or cutting some songs out. It’s a good first album but personally I like his next album, Mama Said, much more and that would have been my album of choice for this list rather than this one.

Wow what a nice surprise! From France no less, which makes me wonder how many hundreds of international albums deserve to be on this list. I like the sound of this pop record with its subtle arrangements and dry beats with a sparse mix. The vocals are performed very well, often carrying the whole tune over a minimal soundscape with some nice harmonies here and there. Looks like there’s french versions of some of these songs which I’ll be checking out as I bet they sound even better in their native tongue. It sure was great to listen to a modern day artist exploring pop music in this way!

Alright here we go with my first rap album from this list. The flow and delivery of the words can really make the difference without a strong melodic component up front and it’s all delivered well here. The backing tracks are fairly simple riffs and loops with some guest singers and samples to fill the sound out a bit. For me, it’s hard to relate to much of what he’s trying to say but there are definitely moments where what he’s talking about is universal and I understand the sentiment. This album seems to be lacking some dynamics though. It all seems a wash of words on first listen however I do believe that rap music takes more than a few listens to really understand so for now I’m not into this much but I do want to hear more, if not this album then maybe some other albums in his catalogue and only when something clicks would I be able to give this a higher rating.

Well this one’s gonna be easy as its another absolute classic! The album starts with a hypnotic (guitar?) synthesizer riff in 6 and off we go! Every single song on this album is great, most of them written by Sting which shows you where the songwriting talent really was. Even the twisted piece in 7 by Andy Summers and the sing along one by Stewart Copeland are fun to listen to and make a great contrast against Sting’s songs. For a 3-piece band it’s harmonically rich, the vocal melodies and lyrics are great, and the drumming is subtly complex. It’s no wonder they broke up after this album as they definitely hit their peak here in their career and they surely would not have been able to top this one. I hadn’t heard this album in a while but managed to listen to it around this time last year so it was nice to pull it out again today for this project. What fun it was to sing along from the beginning of the album to the end!

This project is really helping to check off the list of all the bands I’ve heard of but never got a chance to hear. Although this album came out at a time when I was fully immersed in the act of listening to music, I can tell just by the sound of this that I would not have encountered this because I was in high school and I didn’t have any friends that listened to stuff like this at the time. I bet I would have heard it though if I was in college and into listening to campus radio. It’s a real nice mix of some sort of folk, country, and rock. Yeah I’m digging this more and more as the album goes on. It would have been cool to see them live back in the day. Ok I’m sold on these guys and I’ve gotta check out some more of their albums! ps I love the photo on this album cover! I would like to know more about it but came up empty online however I did get to do a bit of a deep dive on the photographer Bobby Neel Adams and his stuff is great! Now I want to find some of his photo books if they’re available anywhere. Ah art! So tough on my wallet!

A very interesting collection of songs on an album by a very talented stage actress. The songs are all interesting and they are all arranged, performed and recorded well. The vocal performance is very dramatic as expected and there’s a lot to take in from the lyrics. Once again, hearing an album like this makes me think of other albums in this vain, especially recordings of musicals as well as soundtracks. So many albums to be considered for this project and so many that are not on the list! Anyways it was good to listen to this album as it’s not something I would normally gravitate to. I was quite mesmerized by the last piece and finding out that it was by the great Scott Walker and also learning that there’s another long Walker piece as a bonus track means that I’m gonna try and track it down so I can listen to it.

Well alright here we go again with the quirky tunes of Talking Heads! Their first album came up a couple of weeks ago and now on to their second album. Yep it still sounds like them. The production seems to be better this time around. I find a lot of the time that the songs don’t necessarily stick in my head very much and I find some parts to be a bit monotonous however I’m sure that with a few spins they will stand out more as there are a lot of cool things to listen to here. Ya I’m not sure if the first two albums by this band should be on this list as I have a feeling that their best albums are about to come after those two.

Well this was totally inoffensive. Just a plain and pleasant listen. There’s some basic arrangement ideas here but the recording keeps it fairly devoid of dynamics so by the end I just felt flat and emotionless. I’m not sure what exactly would make this a must listen album but it’s not bad. It’s just good. That’s all. Just good.

Ah hell yes here we go! Good to finally get to something heavy! Although their best albums were before this one, this is a pretty important piece of the puzzle regarding this band’s history. There’s no denying how fucking awesome this album sounds! Huge props to Bob Rock and his team for recording and mixing some of the greatest tones in heavy music history. The slower tempos really fit this new style and recording. It basically shows you how important Black Sabbath is to heavy music! It’s still a little disconcerting to hear how much they simplified thei riffs and songs but they knew what they were doing because this is the beginning of them becoming one of the greatest and most popular heavy metal bands ever. Although a bit long, because of the age of cds at this point in time, they really do a good job with each and every song on this album. They really learned from the last album how to throw in some good arrangement tricks in their songs and there’s definitely some good ones here to keep things interesting. The only thing preventing this from a perfect score is the fact that their best albums were before this, in a different style, so I hope those albums come up at some point on this journey. Otherwise, yes, this album is essential listening for anyone who considers themselves a music fan. And those who don’t know this band should absolutely check out all of their previous albums!

Oh great! I remember the song Dear God from back then and I remember liking it. I never knew that it was a dilemma whether to include that song on the album or not. I never got the chance to hear any albums from these guys so it’s great to finally listen to one and this one is pretty great! So creative and progressive! Great songs with great chord progressions! I can see once again how an album like this back in the day would be more of a college radio staple rather than on mainstream radio. Listening to this was so enjoyable that I definitely need to check out the rest of their catalogue!

Another band that was around when I was a deep music listener but never got to hear when I was young. I’ve had the chance to finally listen to so much great music from this era it really makes me realize that I was born just a few years too late as I’m sure I would have been able to hear all this great music if I was in college rather than elementary or high school. I’ve been wanting to dig into their catalogue for a while now so it’s great to finally start with this album. I’m definitely digging this! Such a unique sound! Her vocals are great and that flanged and chorusy guitar, although a bit thin sounding, is doing some very unique things on top of a great sounding rhythm section. Even though I don’t know much about their music I did get to see them live once when they were direct support to Jane’s Addiction on the first Lollapalooza tour in 1991! Damn that would have been great to experience with more knowledge of their music. Definitely looking forward to digging into the rest of their catalogue.

Holy smokes! I remember this album was in our household way back when it came out. I really love the song “Church Of The Poison Mind”! I couldn’t remember much about the other tracks other than the hits and didn’t expect much but I was pleasantly surprised. Upon listening to this again (about 40 years after the last time I heard this!) I’ve realized how somewhat rooted this band’s sound is in R&B and soul music and Boy George does a good job at getting some soulful vocal takes. Funny how around this era there always seemed to be an obligatory reggae number as well as the dramatic, piano driven, album closing, epic. Alright well this was an unexpectedly fun listen and it’ll make me want to check out their other albums around this time as well.

This is another one of those “just ok” albums. It might fit on a list of 10,001 albums but probably should not be on a list of 1,001 albums. It sounds ok with a pleasant mix of alt rock styles but they’re clearly taking their sound from many great bands that came before within 10 years from when this was released and it doesn’t sound like they’ve taken that sound and elevated it much. The vocals are good, the musicianship is good, and there’s some interesting things going on with the arrangements and the mix but I still can’t help but think that this sounds a bit second rate. There’s some potential here though and with further listens and perhaps a deeper examination of the lyrics it might click with me but for now this goes in the ok pile and I’m unfortunately left with that feeling of hoping for a better album tomorrow.

This sounds interesting right off the bat. I dig the unique flow and style of the rap and the backing track is good using a lot of interesting sounds. I’ve heard the album after this and enjoyed it as well so I definitely need to check out his more recent albums. As usual though with a lot of this kind of rap, the subject matter is personally unrelatable but it sure is fun and funny to listen to!

Hmmm well alright, at first I wasn’t too sure about this album but it’s growing on me a bit as it goes along. It’s some sort of lo-fi rock music and I can’t help but think that there are many other bands that have come before who pull it off much better than this. Although a bit too friendly sounding, it still sounds fun. A lot of the guitar work is also lacking balls and is a bit one dimensional but they do play competently through some mildly interesting arrangements. I think this album might click with further listens but for now I’m a bit ambivalent about its inclusion on this list but it’s ok enough to not be a complete write-off for now.

I heard this many years ago and didn’t think too much of it back then. Hearing it again now it’s still a bit underwhelming although the spirit is in the right place. This recording sounds pretty good. There’s a fuzzed out, warm, analog thing going on here with a nicely panned and spacious mix. I think the weak link here is the vocals which are done well but doesn’t have the convincing soul needed to elevate this kind of music to the next level. Yeah the music is good and quite catchy in spots but that’s about it. For me it doesn’t belong on this list but it might fit on a list of 10,001 albums.

Wow, so cool to finally hear a different style again! I’m no expert in Afrobeat but musically this sounds pretty solid to my ears. Great, sexy grooves, a horn section, background vocals, and a whole lot of melody! It’s a bit long but that just means you get to burn more calories from dancing!

Oh yeah, cool 70s R&B soul! Damn this album sounds so nice in its warm analog glow. On first listen some of this sounds a bit standard but I’m finding most of this to be quite interesting. Love that psychedelic electric guitar! Yeah this is all well performed and the vocals are great. I don’t know how anyone could not like this album. I’m definitely looking forward to playing this a few more times and getting to know it better.

Wow, what a fucking classic! Ya they sure don’t make albums like this today. I’ve listened to most of their catalogue and it’s so amazing to me, the path they took to get here in their career, and where they went afterwards. Such an important turning point! One of, if not the greatest, progressive rock bands of all time!! So much great music to absorb here, probably takes at least a dozen listens to begin to understand. This band deserves multiple albums on this list. Here’s hoping for another!

I’d heard about this band and their two guitarists many years ago so it’s nice to finally hear them. It starts off with a bang as the groove for the first piece is played in an unusual time grouping therefore pointing to some sort of a progressive folk style. Then the timing settles down after that however the addition of a sitar in the next piece keeps things sounding unique. This album is definitely an interesting listen and the use of all acoustic instruments does give it a definite folk infused sound to whatever song they’re playing. Definitely would like to hear more from this band!

Oh yeah! What a classic! Such an amazing writer and arranger and playing a mean bass as well! These pieces are so steeped in emotion and played so well by this band. I haven’t heard this in a while and definitely getting a lot out of it this listen. There’s a lot to absorb each listen but that just keeps one going back for more! I hope there are other albums on this list by Mingus because this guy wrote and recorded a lot of great music!

I don’t know much about country music but it’s undeniable the distinct singing voice that this guy has. This style of country from this era sounds nice and warm, a very friendly and inviting listen. There’s really nothing offensive about this and it doesn’t sound like it’s pushing any boundaries but I suppose that would be the point. I would have to listen to a whole lot more country albums, especially from this era, to really make any sort of judgement about whether this album is necessary listening or not. For now it was just a pleasant listen. I’m not sure if I would ever have any reason to return to this album however I’m pretty sure I’m going to check out some other albums by him. p.s. As I get further into this project I’m realizing how much an album’s context in one’s life would influence the feeling that one would have of a particular album being essential and a must listen. Even if I don’t understand an album or a certain style of music I’m usually not that bothered by the music and wholly realize my failures to understand the music deeply is dependent on the way my life has been lived up to this point but I am quite sure that it’s possible to get to a good level of understanding somehow depending on situations of my life in the future.

Wow, this was a fun and surprising listen! I really don’t know enough about The Who. I know all their hits but I haven’t listened to any of their albums at all except for Who’s Next. I always forget they go all the way back to the ‘60s! This quality of the sound of this album is not great however keeping in mind the restrictions of the day they really do some creative things here with not just the recording but the mixing. What a wild idea to make all those jingles as well! Damn, I really gotta make some time to listen to their other albums. I’m guessing that they must have a few albums on this list though so I’ll be looking forward to when I get those!

I heard this album a long time ago and didn’t really remember it so I wasn’t expecting much but it turned out to be a pleasant listen! It’s a unique mix of styles and it seems that music like this could only have been popular in the ‘80s. I’ve always loved the song Come On Eileen ever since I first heard it as a kid and it still stands out as a great song. So interesting that they saved it as the last song on the album but it’s a nice journey getting there and makes for a great capper. Once again another interesting take on music and one which seems like it would never be popular if released nowadays. It’s projects like this that will help get unique albums like this to be heard again by newer generations of music lovers.

Nice! A chance to hear a solo album from one of the greats. I do love The Beatles, especially their last few albums, but have not been able to explore the vast catalogue of their solo albums. This album starts with one of the greatest songs of all time so it’s going to be hard to follow that. After that iconic song it does seem like the front half of the album is loaded with some so-so blues based numbers but it seems to even out in the back half with a series of good songs. By the end I did feel like it was a good listen and will hopefully have more time to explore all the other solo albums by the great musicians of The Beatles.

Wow, Imagine by John Lennon yesterday and All Things Must Pass by George Harrison today! Sometimes I wonder how random this generator really is especially when I found out last week that a friend of mine ended up with the exact same record as me on the same day. Because of the unusual changeover time for this generator I sometimes have barely enough time to squeeze in a complete listen of the album of the day so what a shock it was to learn that this release was a triple album! Thankfully it’s the weekend so I think I’m gonna have just enough time to get this one in tonight. I’m really enjoying listening to this album. There’s a nice and warm sound to a lot of these songs with a bit of bombastic rock here and there. Definitely enjoying the mix of different kinds of songs and finding the sequencing to be spot on. He’s really proving here how under-used he was in The Beatles but if that weren’t the case then we wouldn’t have this fantastic album to listen to. Even though the jams on the 3rd LP are not really a must listen (except for the one with the weird Moog stuff!), I definitely gotta check out his other albums.

This album is nostalgic to me as it was first introduced to me by a friend (who has since passed) about 25 years ago. I had heard a lot of these songs before and was amazed to find out that they all came from this album. The clincher though is The Prophet’s Song. That epic vocal breakdown chorus of Freddy’s is out of this world! What an incredibly heavy piece! This whole album is great from front to back. Unbelievable songs and arrangements, experimental recording and mixing and great performances captured on tape! It’s one of those albums you should listen to at least once a year, which I try to do!

What the hell?! First John Lennon then George Harrison and now The Beatles?! One after another (although I did have Queen’s A Night At The Opera last night as an epic break!) now that’s not very random… What a classic! Even though it wasn’t planned, there’s no way they could have ended their career any other way than with this, their last recording, ending on a high! What an epic journey highlighting the strengths of each member of the band. Some of the material here is still as fresh and original as it was back then. Damn, this really does prove how some examples of music can be way ahead of its time and beyond!

Oh no, another ‘90s DJ album that doesn’t need to be on this list. It’s ok and good for dancing but it’s musically lacking. There’s no way that this should be essential listening.

Wow, this is a lot of music and a lot of words, none of which seems to stick with just one listen. I think I’ve listened to this only once before in my life and am unsure if I’ll ever do so again. Which might be too bad for me because there seems to be some good stuff to be found here if you can get past the imposing runtime and get several listens in to let it absorb. Ya I’m definitely finding it hard to remember any of these riffs and melodies. Maybe too clever for its own good? I think a good way to experience this would be with visuals, say a full length feature film with this album as the soundtrack. Can’t deny the talent here though and also cool to see where they came from on their way to pop songwriters extraordinaire! And I do enjoy their later pop songs immensely so hopefully some of those albums are on the list.

I think this is a great album but it’s pretty much the only one I’ve listened to multiple times from this band! I got to hear The Who Sell Out last week so it’s cool to get this album now and hear how far they’ve come in 4 years time. Looks like I’ll have to listen to Tommy to get the full picture of their transition. They sure ramped up the production as they sound much more well recorded and mixed than from 4 years ago. Every single song has its own vibe and well worth listening to multiple times for their arrangements. Also great to hear the contrast of the two lead vocalists. One of the great rock bands of all time and unbelievably still going as of this writing at the end of 2025.

There’s that iconic song… played twice! This album sounds pretty chill and fun, maybe too chill and fun because it comes off pretty straight and harmless. The music here is certainly well played but lacking any edge which I suppose is the point. You can certainly play this album almost anywhere and pretty much never offend anybody. I think there’s a sort of generic sound to this album though which makes it hard for me to recommend as necessary listening.

I wasn’t too sure when the album started but as it went along it ended up being a fun and great listen! A few different kinds of old rock music styles are here. A lot of it reminds me of what Patti Smith had done up to this point so maybe not the most original take on rock but it’s well played and I can see why they would be included here by the British author since they are a British band. I had barely heard of this band in passing so it was good to finally hear this and have it be a good listen which is what I look forward to the most with this project regarding albums I’ve not heard.

This is a very interesting sounding rock based album straddling the lines of country and folk with some sparse avant-garde shades. This album is all well played and recorded and the singing is unique. I’ve listened to their #1 Record a few times and remember enjoying it but I can’t seem to remember it. Same with this one. I’m enjoying listening to this but the songs aren’t sticking the first time around. The first time a song stood out I had to check and it turned out to be a Lou Reed song so I’m still looking for one of their own songs to click with me. I’ll have to listen to this more to fully understand it but for now I’m into it and definitely intrigued so I’m looking forward to the next spin.

I’ve tried listening to them a few times over many years but I just don’t get what the big deal is. I’m Canadian so I feel that I can say that this music kind of sits in a certain Canadian style that has an underwhelming vibe. They’re a competent band playing songs that don’t seem to really go anywhere and the vocals aren’t doing too much either. I get the feeling that this is way too hip for its own good. I’m generally more open-minded than most when it comes to the enjoyment of music so it is a bit disconcerting to not be able to like this so I’m giving this a second spin… …and although I was able to find a couple of things I liked it’s still mostly not doing much for me. Damn I could have spent my time more wisely by listening to some other album I enjoy but oh well, win some, lose some.

Wow! What a great album!! I can’t believe I didn’t get to hear this when it came out in 1989. I probably would have played this a lot back then. Everything about this record is so great; the raps, the scratching, and the production of all those sounds on the backing tracks. Their sense of humour also adds to the upbeatness of it all. I live for days like this with this project when I can have a great listen and discovery of an album I had not heard yet.

Wow, what a great album! The sound of this recording makes the performances sound unhinged! Damn, this must have been one of the heaviest albums to have been released around that time. Great musicianship all around, and especially love that sweet, heavy, sexy sax work! Aw shit, and I totally forgot about how awesome that last track, L.A. Blues is! It’s a fucking noise track by a rock band! So fucking awesome! This album definitely is a must listen!

Alright here we go with another band I’ve heard of but not heard much from. I listened to a more recent release a while back and enjoyed it. This one sounds pretty good to me! I immediately noticed the inventive guitar work which intertwine very well with each other and sounds great hard-panned. Great riffs and lines and a great sound. Probably would be fun to play live although it must be a challenge to sing over it! The drumming sounds great as well, real good energy in the beats and fills. I also dig the urgent sounding vocals and the overlayed vocal lines. This was a great listen and I now really want to hear their other albums!

These guys have so many hits I’ve barely ever played any of their albums and I definitely have never heard this one. What a ride it was as I was slammed in the face with John Fogerty’s amazing voice! So damn bluesy and soulful and what a mean delivery! A couple of droning vamps to deal with on this album but it’s what they did back then and makes a nice contrast with the more succinct songs. This was a good listen and it sure makes me want to hear the rest of their albums!

So not even 60 albums in and I get the first three Talking Heads albums in chronological order over the last few weeks. This is the one album that I’d heard from these guys many years ago, before the start of this listening project I remember thinking back then, within the first few opening notes of the album, how it sounded like King Crimson, then finding out that Robert Fripp is on the first track! I dug King Crimson back then so I was immediately sucked in but I remember the album petering out from that first track and I’m starting to get the same feeling on this listen. The production is sounding better but the songs feel a bit half cooked. David Byrne in particular doesn’t seem to click for me as much on this album. The vocal production could be better so I don’t know if that’s affecting my judgement but he is a very wild and unique singer! But the band does groove like hell throughout this whole album! I have a feeling their best album is coming up in their career so I hope they show up on this list!

What the… a second album by CCR this week! Again, not so random, maybe more luck… I can’t believe this is their fifth album in 2 years! It’s got a nice, warm sound capturing some great performances. Along with the numerous covers, they really seem to be paying homage to their roots and influences on this album although maybe that’s their sound, and if it is, it does sound very refined at this point in their career. Although the long ones here might be a tad long (but that’s how I felt when I heard the other album this week) it was a good listen.

The thing about this old time rock and soul music is that it was before my time so I have no sense of how impactful this was back then. These songs sound all too familiar and not too adventurous nowadays but perhaps back then it sounded fresh. If it did sound fresh back then it doesn’t seem to have stood the test of time and I have a feeling that there were others who came before and after who did it much better. He does have a killer voice though and I wish he had some more interesting material to sing over but then again this is probably his thing and what he’s best at.

So far this one sounds soft and majestic with great ambience. I appreciate the harmonic movements and the great singing. Some interesting electronic sounds here. I’m digging the ominous vibes and experimental sounds. I think I’m listening to the 2cd version and I’m starting to find it a bit long and exhausting to listen to in one sitting. This is a great discovery nonetheless because of how creatively experimental it is.

I’ve been meaning to check out his music for a while now but a complete double album is a bit of an overwhelming way to start! It’s interesting for sure but a lot of this is just going in one ear and out the other on first listen. Maybe too many ideas for me to absorb right now on first listen. The rock sound being on the softer side isn’t helping with having these tunes stick out but I can hear the nuances in the writing and arrangements so I think this album will be worth listening to more in the future. The next thing I want to hear from him though is a single album.

Happy Birthday Santa! Definitely not random! I wonder what happens next Xmas? This sounds great! Next!

I’ve heard this once before and I get the same impression which is that it’s surprising how melodic it is for an improvised solo piano concert probably because any other improvised solo piano concerts I heard or experienced were by more ferocious types like Cecil Taylor. It’s very melodic and there’s a strong sense of pop harmony which makes it very appealing to conservative listeners so I can understand why this album is so popular. I just read the background to this recording and am fascinated that this beautiful music was made with so many obstacles to overcome that evening. Perfect listening for the hangover day after Xmas!

Oh no another recording with more than 2 albums worth. It does make me wonder if multiple album proejcts should have their own category. Likely not going to be able to listen to this whole thing in a day but in order to keep this project going I’ll listen to as much as I can and edit these notes once I get through it all in the next few days. Should be fun though as Ella is a great vocalist. Alright I’m getting through it now and wow these are some great songs! I appreciate the work that went into all the arrangements. There’s an epic, show-tune kinda vibe here which is possible so it would be good to know the context of some of these lyrics. Would be fun to karaoke these but it would take a bit of work for sure to get it to Ella’s level!

Alright another band I’ve heard of but never heard and wow, this album is taking me places! It’s their ninth album so there’s something going on here by now and I appreciate how experimental this sounds! Lots of diffetent moods beings explored here. Epic in scope. This is a great listen!

There’s some cool sounds here but after a while comes across fairly conservative. I like the mix of rock and latin, they sometimes sound ferocious together! Nice warm jams all around. Would have been great to hear this at a dorm party in the 70s, on acid.

I remember buying and listening to this when it came out in 1991. Although I enjoyed it, I never totally got right into it. I do like the lo-fi garage rock sound and Mark Arm’s distinctive voice but I think the album might be a bit too long as it seems to drag towards the end. Now that I’m hearing it again many decades later I think the problem might be the vocal melodies which follows the riffs too much. Otherwise it’s a fun album and best enjoyed in small chunks.

Great to get to a true classic that I haven’t heard yet. This really is a beautiful album. I’m entranced by the way he sings these songs with a lot of room to just stretch and vocalise however way he feels. Maybe after a while it starts sounding a bit same-y but there’s no denying his distinct voice and talent at emoting through these songs. Definitely need to hear some more albums from him!

I grew up with this and have listened to it dozens if not hundreds of times and still listen to it to this day. I think Angel Dust is probably better and I don’t think it’s on the list which is a shame. Perhaps it’ll be on the post-project list? So I don’t even have to listen to this to give it a five star rating but I gotta stay on course with the program and am looking forward to putting this on once again. Probably gonna sing along to the whole record. What a great way to ring in the new year!

Wow, what an album! Great pop songwriting experimentation. These songs always go somewhere interesting and create such a vibe. Definitely gotta check out more of his discography!

I saw him live for the first time a few years ago and I was blown away by the show! His music still stands the test of time and amongst all the synth sounds there’s a bit of a dark and ominous feeling to his songs. Definitely need to hear his other albums.