The voice initially throws me off. Like a less interesting version of the smiths at times. this kind of driving funky bass is something that doesn't vibe with me.
there are a few tracks i quitre enjoyed though. not sure how often i would listen to this, but i wouldn't always skip a track if they show up in shuffle.
First track thoughts: Voice reminds me of Ted Hawkins a little bit, if Hawkins was a bit happier.
Just read the wikipedia on Otis, very sad. Died so young!
I really love the first half of this album; it feels like I've been missing a lot of this style of music in my collection. the last half of the album isn't as engaging for me, but still: any song coming up on shuffle would be welcome!
This was an enjoyable listen, especially considering the historical context. The production is unique and progressive, and the lyrics are impressive.
I do feel like it's a little long, hitting an hour+. I also think though, in 1990, it would have been great to buy this CD and have this many songs. It never felt repetitive.
Today, I don't think I would put this album on all that often; it is simply just a little too far outside of my personal taste. I'm glad to have listened to it though.
I listen to She & Him quite often, so I'm already a fan of cover albums.. This album feels like one i'll listen to when i don't want to particularly listen close to an album.
It's very enjoyable, but almost as background music.
What impresses me about this album is its age. If it had just a little more oomph, it could have been produced anytime in the last twenty years and sound fresh. I think this says a bit about how much current pop rock steals from the past though. (i guess it's technically punk and not pop rock, but it sure does feel like pop.)
I listened to this album twice yesterday, but can only remember the hit song 2, so, I suppose that tells you everything you need to know about the album. But, i never thought 'i should turn this off' during the two listens, so it's not actively bad at any moment.
Chapman's a great singer, but the instrumental composition reminds me too much of music i'd hear in the grocery store growing up. It's tough for me to give this an honest listen for that totally subjective reason.
The initial few tracks sounded boring to me and I was quite resistant to them - they're like bob dylan, but not so great. But then I started really digging it as the album went on. If I was stoned in 1970 this would be an all timer. But, as someone sober in 2025, it's mostly just an 'okay that's fine' type album.
initally feels too noodly. but after the full listen, i kind of really dug it. That said, i would not want this in my general library. If a twelve minute jam song came up on shuffle, i would not be happy.
super fun! i can see myself listening to this whole album through whenever the mood strikes.
first off: amazing album cover.
I enjoyed this entire album and would gladly listen to it all the way through multiple times a year. I can hear how it influenced a lot of my favorite artists, and yet it stands for itself.
The problem with selling out is that future generations cannot enjoy your creations as art. When I hear any song from this album, I do not hear music. I hear car commercials. I hear movie trailers. I hear needle drops used to the point of cliche.
Corporations have used these tracks to invoke feelings in consumers for so long and so often that there is nothing left in the well. I've never intentionally listened to this album. I have never put on a single van halen song willingly. Yet I listened to this album today, and with disdain I knew every single track.
Which is a shame, because i can faintly hear how this could be an exciting album; It would blow my socks off in 1978. But today it's nothing but banal backing tracks, with each measure printed on a hundred dollar bill.
wow this is amazing! really like everything about this. every track had me bobbing my head. I'm giving it a 4 instead of 5 because rap is typically outside of my 'taste zone', so I wont be spinning the record all the time -- but i will be putting it on, cover to cover, when the mood strikes.
fav track: if you only knew. love the flute!
I've listened to a lot of jazz -- mostly hard bop. I always thought I disliked latin jazz. Now I realize, i just never heard good latin jazz. I spun this album three times in a row. it's so good! and here we find my first five star album: an album that opens up a genre to me. One that i listened to multiple times, loving every minute, and will continue to put on going forward.
my first 1 star album of this project! 1 star means i couldn't even finish listening. i got through four songs; tim's vocal range on Sweet Surrender is clearly impressive, but most of this album feels too... cocaine-y for me, or maybe heroin-y.
it's like listening to your older brother's band practicing in your house and you're forced to hear them jam for weeks and sometimes you'll catch a riff that's interesting but mostly it's just four guys doing drugs and noodling, which doesn't impress me much.
I've never put on a talking heads album. I now see this has been a massive blunder. I can't stop dancing!
neat vibes. i've never listened to wu-tang before so this is my first exposure. when i think of skits in rap albums, i've only known comedy ones before. So it's refreshing to hear a serious concept album like this.
i can understand both the hate and the love this album gets. i'm not a beatle fanatic, but i have listened to all their albums multiple times - but, i've never checked out the solo stuff yet.
This is not as good as a beatles album. many of the songs do sound just like sketches. There's a charm in that though, but the timing was bad. This feels like something Paul would have put out BEFORE becoming a beatle. And maybe that's kind of what he was doing: going back in time, trying to find what it was like before being a super star.
When I was young, I was worried I would grow up and age into soft rock adult contemporary.
Listening to this album, I breathe a sigh of relief. I am not yet there. This album is subjectivity torture for me. I can hear why some people would love it, but I am not those people.
This is my 20th daily album review, and solidifies my rating system: totally subjective. This is not a 1 star album objectively, but i would be happy to never ever hear it again.
crazy that biggie was only 22 when he put out this album, and would die two years later. a couple all time great tracks here, mixed with absolute garbage skits.
i've listened to every beatles album multiple times through... except this one! this popped up as my album of the day and i thought 'is this a compilation album??" but nope, this album somehow never really found its way into my collection!
So it was a real treat to listen to. Some tracks were already familar, in fact most were. to me, they never put out an album i wouldn't willingly put on and listen all the way through.
fav tracks: it wont be long / till there was you.
i like how weird it is sometimes on the vocals. it feels like it should never really work, and yet every track did.
this is the first time i've learned about the cuíca. i quite enjoyed it, and also hated it, swinging back and forth constantly. i'd welcome another album in this style of music for me to really decide on if I personally like the style.
i tend to like bad singers, and my rating reflects that. i'd rather someone be themselves than strive to be perfect. This guy really goes for it.
how is this album so old and yet so fun? I haven't experienced much with electronic music, likely because my only exposure to it has only been bad techno. so i'm giving this 5 stars because it feels like it has opened up a whole new genre to me. I don't know if there are more albums like this one, but I hope to find them. I can't stop DANCING.
having 3 main singers is a pretty cool idea that more bands should do. i wasn't liking this band much until i read their history. I can't see myself putting on this album willingly any time -- it's too soft, too folk for my tastes -- but i wouldn't mind hearing any of these songs come up on shuffle. a solid 3 star album.
I listened to this three times in a row. It's so fun! I've always known 'of' prodigy, but never listened to a full album all the way through. Is all electronic music this good??? anyway, 5 stars, gonna bang this one often.
i kinda want to give this album a 0 for making me mildly like soft rock. but it was decent! i didn't hate it or turn it off and for that it gets 3 stars.
what a total banger! I've never listened to a rolling stones album - i've only heard their hits. I enjoyed every song here - the country, the blues, the rock.
uhhhh this was awesome? why did no one tell me neil young was so awesome? this is the first time i've ever listened to one of his albums. i think in my head i always thought neil diamond and neil young were the same person.
i'm not sure but this 1001 list might be changing me.
maybe i was just in a bad mood but i really disliked this. i do have a short temper when it comes to 90's music.
i enjoyed it but it never really peeled my ears back if that makes sense. easy listening to listen to while cooking.
an opening track so cool it makes you want to smoke cigarettes in the dark with a lover. ending track is also great. middle is unremarkable. I think for those middle tracks, The Echo Friendly does this sound a lot better a few years later.
I've listened to this a few times before; I really enjoy bjork, but only when i'm in the mood for the oddness.
springsteen is always like 30% less energetic than i need him to be. his song compositions are great, but i generally find myself bored by his vocal delivery.
love albums that feel like fall and this is one of em. i listened to this a lot back in 2008-2013 or so, and it holds up imo.
This project is giving me a super power: I can look at an album cover and know mostly what it's gonna sound like, and guess the year/country. i suspect that says more about this list than it does about my prediction ability; after a certain point, one does wonder how many 1970s british bands need to be on this list.
I started listening to Sinatra a few years ago after moving to philly, because he used to spend a lot of time in this town, and it just felt right. Walking around in a rainy town while listening to this album is a 5/5.
first kanye album i've ever listened to... and oh no, i liked it!
really cool album. "frontier psychiatrist" is one of my favorite songs that i've heard this entire project.
