I think a lot of the reviews are unfair. Sure, this is not something any of us even could fathom to listen, but taking on the 1001 albums exercise is precisely why I myself have taken it up - to broaden my musical experiences and to listen to something that I'd never even consider searching out for myself.
I don't know, it's just now what I'm into I guess. Piano and ballads, but there is a sense of prog rock here, albeit through the Elton filter. Title track is good, better than the hyped Tiny Dancer.
Well, when they tell you "classic prog-rock stallwarths", they certainly fail to mention the flute, the minstrel troupe vibe and the overall feeling of a medieval fair band.
I guess my expectations were not in line, and that caused a bit of a whiplash during listening. 3 feels too little, 4 seems too much, but maybe I replay the title track at some point and that kind of makes it worth it.
This is a clear five. What a fun album! I'm a big rap fan, so it is always nice to hear music that rap producers heavily sampled from. I loved that Funkadelic leaned into rock on this one.
This gets a 3, but I really wanted to give it a 2. I don't care for Neil Young, he can't sing, songs are boring, I don't get his appeal and it's grandpa rock, folk or whatever. Just nothing.
I appreciate the band and the music, I respect that this gave us grunge, and some of the songs that went too long were actually a benefit to the whole thing since they Neil Young stopped and the music could wash away his presence.
I am dreading more Neil Young on this list, it is unfathomable that he has 6 albums here. Actually, I just might skip them and listen to some of the glaring omissions this list has on the day his albums come up.
As a big rap fan, this is of course getting a 5. Amazing music, so many recognizable samples, no wailing, I mean singing, just a spectacle all around.
If I have to nitpick one thing, I do have to say that for me, Clive, the bongos are hitting almost too well, if anything. Had they dialed down the bongos and let some other instruments breathe a bit more, it could have been even better, but they're called Bongo Band after all.
The one I was looking forward to and got all excited when I saw it pop up today. The one where I had great expectations due to its status as one of the best ever albums. The one where I had already knew one song (Fool's Gold) due to pop-culture osmosis and I kind of expected more of the same.
Maybe then it's all on me due to misplaced expectations. Still good, not all-timer. Maybe it was a game-changer when it came out and nobody sounded like this. Maybe give it a spin again some time later and hopefully I'll feel different.
This was surprisingly good! I thought it'd be more country, more singing - nope, a lot of instrumentals, great music. I'm giving it a 5, fuck it.
I'm not a Nick Cave guy, something about him was always off-putting. I don't get this appeal, but that's fine. Some of the songs here had solid music, and that's about all the positive I can muster.
Surprisingly good, I'd give it a half star even more if I could. Could have used a bit more variety by the end, but still pretty awesome.
Bruce is not for me and I never could understand his appeal. Was it one of those things that you had to be young in the 70s?
Thankfully short album. I'll give it something just for cool sax moments (unexpected), and I didn't hate every song (Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out and Jungleland were fine).
I'm dreading 4 more albums from him.
Obviously great. They should have at least two more albums here instead of Neil Young's 74 albums.
I was pretty stoked when this popped up, didn't expect them on here! Only knew the songs from their previous albums when they would show videos on MTV and also knew some of Skin's solo songs - this was a great opportunity to hear a full album.
Pretty good, and I'd rate it 4 or 4.5, but I'm giving it a 5 because some of the other reviews are insufferable and also we need a more varied artist list on here instead of the same Neil Young drivel.
This was fine, I guess it mattered more in the moment since these guys were "alternative" for their time and influenced what was going to come.
Pretty good. More punky than I'd thought, but classic of the genre for a reason.
Weird, and in a good way. Glad that something like this is on the list, because I don't need another day of Neil Young in my life. Other reviewers gave this 1 stars because they're pretentious people who can not think outside of conventions for a single iota. This 5 star is dedicated to them.
Not for me, Clive. This is supposedly their best one. I knew the hits from this album beforehand, didn't like them, gave album a fair chance and still didn't like them.
Oh man, I thought I'd hate it, this is something I don't usually like. However, like a movie you don't like as it doesn't resonates with you, but you can definitely see why it could resonate with others, this was a surprisingly well spent time.
This is what an exercise in 1001 albums should be.
Kinda expected more, as this was supposedly a classic. Still, 4-5 songs I really liked, and that's enough for me to make an album worth it.
Oh man. Not for me, Clive
6 more albums of *this*? Sings like an unholy cross of a donkey and cat is being skinned alive, and then the fucking harmonica kicks in making you feel as if someone simultaneously sodomized the poor donkey/cat with a particularly hot pepper.
No amount of great lyrics can save the boring music and awful singing. This is not a fun listening experience. I guess the second half of the album was somewhat better, but still.
The middlest of the middle that ever middled. 3 of 5 somehow feels not adequate. Just general, straight up rock with a lot of word "love" thrown around the lyrics.
Incredible that this is on the list, I really could have died and not listened to this and still not missed anything. At least awful albums are inspiring me to write awful stuff. This left me whelmed.
OK album, very much of its time I guess, probably was big when it came out but it didn't do much for me. Fairly short, at least.
Didn't care much for this.
Never cared for Tom Waits, but this was surprisingly fine. Some weird instruments and an unusual vibe to the whole thing.
If this is what it took to give birth to an entire genre... I don't know.
Fuck off Neil Young, there is too many of your appearances here. Some nice music by Crazy Horse forces me to give this more then it should have.
This album was everywhere when I was hitting adolescence. I hated the videos and the music then, and it's not much better now. The only song I actually liked is the last one on the album.
U2 is not for me nor for you too. For complete nostalgia reasons that awoke the long dormant hate in me and actually made me feel something, I'm giving this a 2 instead of 1.
Unexpectedly a fair amount of instrumentals, great vibe and very goth unlike their more poppy and polished later works. Pleasant surprise!
A live album? A Double live album from a guy I don't care about? Gotta be a low score right?
Well, that's not what the exercise in 1001 albums is, it is keeping an open mind about stuff and giving every album a fair listen. Classic (generic) rock that it may be, this sounded amazing and musicianship was obvious.
I love instrumental albums. I love ambient music. I do like mine with a bit of more drums or faster tempo. Is this why this didn't click?
I really, really wanted to like it. Opening 20 minute track is good only in parts, the rest are fine, and the last one is the best on the album so at least it washed away the major disappointment I felt while listening.
This has legendary status and I really expected a lot from it.
Not a clear 5 for me, I guess it was ground breaking at the time. Still, holds up pretty good.
Another one of the "thought no way I'd like it" - and it turned out to be pretty good. Not necessarily my genre or years, but I gave it a fair chance it and it was nice enough.
Tough, I love instrumental albums, and I had high hopes for this one. Sorry.
This one was solid, glad to hear Grateful Dead finally.
It gets a 5 because I'm a big fan of OutKast, otherwise I feel they have better albums.
ATLiens and Aquemini should have been on the list before Stankonia (and don't get me started on Speakerboxxx/Love Below), so give those a try if you liked this.
Not for me, Clive. I don't think I'd like it even if i was 60s hippie with dirt on my feet and sand in my nails. Sorry Joni.
Here's my Drew Review of this album wamp-a-la-do-da wamp-bam-boom.
Musical revolution in the 50s apparently means finding a word and a name that goes with it and then slapping it on a not a fairly long song and then adding a bunch of random rhyming syllables at the end. Also, a piano in the background.
Mercifully short and influence on the decades to come earn Little Brittle Lizard Richard more star-a-blam-dlam do-dam-then-deserved.
I'm a rap fan, so I looked forward to this when it popped up.
Maybe I'm old and the game has left me, I could not connect with this. Obviously, the artist is talented and there are some nice beats on here, but can't say I liked it.
There is a track midway through the album that sounds like an antelope being bonesawed alive on a late afternoon in the steppes.
Shame, I tried to like this.
Pretentious and sanctimonious are sins on their own, but the true third strike for whatever this is supposed to be is that is *boring* - for all that many songs about sprawling, they really should have realized that the album itself is too long and going absolutely nowhere.
How can you make rock/pop this boring and this aggravating? Why does the singer makes you feel like he is going to cry at any given time, sounding performative and fake instead of giving you a feel of true emotion he is trying (and failing) to convey?
Never again, and neither should you.
That was pretty good actually and well worth its reputation.
Eh. U2 meets a darker tone? Solid, but nothing more. Nice instruments has to be said. Better than U2 at least.
Classic of the genre for a reason and some of their most known songs are here. Jazzy beats are a Gang Starr staple, mellow and relaxed sounds give you a very pleasant listening experience and Guru (RIP), forever underrated, is as smooth as he ever was. The album does kind of meander towards the end, but I won't hold it against it.
This list should have featured one or two more of their albums, so if you liked this check out at least Moment of Truth as it is most likely their best work.
Not my kind of stuff, but nice enough. Enjoy your extra star Carole King, I know you care about the rating of a random internet music non ball knower.
Keysey voice: Brit.Pop.Slop.
Shamefully boring and singer's voice is grating. The zodiac sign song and love in a Volvo, that was supposed to be deep, but it really wasn't. You can tell that the record company or whoever decided on the singles from the album because those three are all somewhat faster and energetic than the others.
Some interesting instruments work here (i.e. not all acoustic shit) but a dull voice and ineligible singing. If it was an instrumental album, could have worked better.
Who? Who? What are you, a fucking owl?
Eh, I really wanted to like it. I didn't. That's the review.
Wanted to be The Residents, but didn't quite make it. Pleasant surprise that something like this is on the list. Still better than Neil Young's 79 albums.
Solid. Maybe I liked it because finally something energetic came up on the list for once.
I'm a rap fan, first of all.
Where to start? It is an important album, great production and of course a talented and capable rapper, albeit one's whose voice I don't find compelling.
This is a tough listen, though. It is an ambitious effort that doesn't quite land at all times (and I'd count the poem and 2Pac conversation at the end in that too). It is not that is a dark album, it is simply not fun - and no, I don't need a club or dance track, I'd like a pleasant listen or a couple of songs to return to.
The hype and almost universal acclaim and instant classic accolades that were bestowed upon it *didn't* help as the bar was set into the stratosphere.
Wish it was an instrumental album or at least an alternate version because it would make it a quite pleasant ambient listening experience or something to drive to. Singer is trying to be Dylan, Don Hanley or the resident town acoustic guitar by the fire singer. Oh well.
This would have hit much harder if it was on our actual Christmas which in this part of the world is on January 7th. I appreciate the attempt though!
Also, as someone who *doesn't* like Christmas and its festive songs, I really liked the music and singing on the album.
Of its time, but it's fun. Energetic at least, which I can't say for all the folk/rock/indie shit that happens a lot on this list.
To me, an evolved faster and coked out crazier cousin of the great Duck Stab album I had here before.
Pretty good!
Amazing stuff, really enjoyed this.
I don't like Come on Eileen. The rest of the album was in the similar vein. Not for me, Clive.
I'm sorry, but this was outstandingly awful. I expected a lot more, in turn I got a lounge restaurant singer with the most boring instrumentation ever. I really, really, wanted to like it, especially as I know Holiday is an all time singer, but this was just not good or interesting enough. It's on me.
Penultimate track is spectacular.
Now that the only good thing is out of the way, oh boy. I thought I liked synths, this album made me loathe them. I thought I hated David Byrne and U2, this album affirmed it. I thought that in no way some really good rocking instrumentals could be ruined by someone yapping or badly singing over them, but yet again this album proved it can be done.
Fuck off, and never again. Great music on occasion though, so it would feel wrong to give it a 1.
Bit of a slog to get through. It's just not what it wants to be.
Solid, if not good. Can't say I'm Iggy's fan, but at least it wasn't boring. Trainspotting song is like an old friend, always happy to hear it.
Big fan so it's an automatic 5. No Good is my favorite Prodigy song, plus there's a lot of other bangers here.
I was pretty stoked and elated when the album popped up, great surprise to see an old favorite!
Enjoyed this a lot, more than I thought I would. Great find and a day that makes following this list meaningful.
Can't say I enjoy Janis' voice too much when she tries to force it and scream about, but the music was really good and an album very much worth of its reputation.
Meh, expected more from the legends.
Made 35 minutes look like 135.
Not a 5 but I'll give it because its been a while.
Money Too Tight always a banger, Holding Back Years forever a song that Del Boy listens when Rodney gets married.
Rest of the album I heard for the first time and enjoyed most of it.
Not bad at all, although I wish more songs were in the likeness of the album opener and less folky flutey Jethro Tullly.
Deserves less, but still didn't bore me do death as some (Arcade Fire, looking at you).
It was pretty awful though, saved by some funky basslines or synth work. 1.5 should be more appropriate.
Thought I wouldn't like it - good surprise. I'd give it a half star less or a 7 if scale to 10, but I'm a generous fellow when surprises are good. Very solid album from the group I was only familiar through their biggest hit (and it was not on the album).
Often you hear how this album is departure for Beach Boys and out of character - if this is it, I really don't want to hear their *main* stuff.
Eh didn't feel it. Then again, I'm not a fan of their biggest hits from the album either.
Well, I'll give it some leeway because this goes beyond music. It does contain my favorite PE song (Terrordome, and that one is one of my favorite instrumentals in rap), and there are really some 3-4 great songs here. Crux of it is that nothing has changed from when it was released which definitely says something about the world. Social activism music is not a fun listen, but it is important, and especially as this could have been released today, hence my 5 star rating. Don't even have to mention the state of rap music today vs then.
PE's production was stellar in its time, probably the best in the classic era, and still sounds great! Chuck D was never my type of MC, more of a spoken poetry/preacher type, but it does go along with his powerful lyrics and messages, even though it does start to grate after some time. Bit bloated with skits and whatnot, but all that falls to the side - fight the power and the terrordome!
Quite literally made on a calculator, as one of the synths they used came with an integrated calculator. Very synthpop of its time, charming as it may be, it does sound like the rest of the era.
Eh, the biggest hit was never my favorite. Couple of good songs here and that's it.
Ah, the first of many. Looking forward to giving the others the same treatment.
Thom Yorke is an insufferable prick, maybe the worst in the history, and only one worse than him are Radiohead fans.
If you're a rap fan, chances are you've listened to this one already. It has a mythical status for a reason.
To other reviewers who cannot comprehend what is going on here - yes, Kool Keith is an acquired taste. You also likely heard Dan the Automator on Gorillaz, Handsome Boy Modelling School, Deltron, etc. - and yes, most likely loved his work.
So, what gives? You're stressed out by the concept of a spacetime travelling Dr Octagon and his half shark half alligator blabbering? What, world needs more love songs, more bling raps? Fuck off and grow a spine you sensitive, easily offended hypocrites.
Great music. There is a reason Reznor went on to make music scores and soundtracks. There is a reason he makes movie music and gave up vocals because his "through the megaphone" yelling and hollering and whispering on this album sucks ass. Could have been perfect.
Nope! Who is this music for?! I think I owe Neil Young an apology, at least Crazy Horse plays good music.
Eh. Not bad, but a bit, you know, lounge around or eat at restaurant music. Can't say I hated it, but forgettable.
Never heard of this band before. Really energetic and good, this is the stuff that makes the list worthwhile (instead of getting another Radiohead album).
Not my kind of stuff, but fine to listen to in the background.
Meh. Forgettable? Appreciate the music in some places though.
Actually good, and found it more interesting then Iggy's solo effort from before. Not an Iggy Pop guy by any means, but yeah, pretty solid.
