My 1001 Albums Journey

Albums Rated

3.27

Average Rating

Complete

1001 albums remaining

Rating Distribution

Rating Timeline

Taste Profile

1960

Favorite Decade

Folk

Favorite Genre

other

Top Origin

Wordsmith

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5-Star Albums

1-Star Albums

Breakdown

By Genre

Top Styles

By Decade

By Origin

Albums

You Love More Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
I See A Darkness Bonnie "Prince" Billy	5	2.98	+2.02
For Your Pleasure Roxy Music	5	2.98	+2.02
Being There Wilco	5	3.23	+1.77
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) The Kinks	5	3.38	+1.62
The Village Green Preservation Society The Kinks	5	3.4	+1.6
On The Beach Neil Young	5	3.46	+1.54
1984 Van Halen	5	3.49	+1.51
Hounds Of Love Kate Bush	5	3.62	+1.38
Chelsea Girl Nico	4	2.63	+1.37
My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts Brian Eno	4	2.79	+1.21

You Love Less Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness The Smashing Pumpkins	1	3.68	-2.68
Dirt Alice In Chains	1	3.46	-2.46
...And Justice For All Metallica	1	3.42	-2.42
Blue Lines Massive Attack	1	3.39	-2.39
Elvis Presley Elvis Presley	1	3.37	-2.37
Inspiration Information Shuggie Otis	1	3.27	-2.27
461 Ocean Boulevard Eric Clapton	1	3.11	-2.11
Eli And The Thirteenth Confession Laura Nyro	1	2.94	-1.94
The Joshua Tree U2	2	3.67	-1.67
Channel Orange Frank Ocean	2	3.33	-1.33

Artists

Favorites

Artist	Albums	Average
The Kinks	2	5

5-Star Albums (9)

View Album Wall

Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)

Popular Reviews

I See You

The xx · 1 likes

2/5

An album so vapid, I don't remember listening to it. At least it wasn't offensive.

1-Star Albums (9)

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

All Ratings

Being There

Wilco

5/5

Stankonia

OutKast

3/5

Some great songs, but album is too long and dragged down by skits.

Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell

3/5

Not my bag. Not bad per se, but doesn’t move me. Might suffer from the hype.

Physical Graffiti

Led Zeppelin

4/5

One of my favorite bands, but this album is 6 songs too long. How’s this for a better track listing: 1. In the Light 2. Custard Pie 3. In My Time of Dying 4. Houses of the Holy 5. Trampled Under Foot 6. Down by the Seaside 7. Bron-Yr-Aur 8. Kashmir 9. The Wanton Song 10. Ten Years Gone

...And Justice For All

Metallica

1/5

I remember loving this as 13 year old, but, man, it’s boring! The sound of the drums is a dead horse that doesn’t need any more beating, but really there are just no dynamics on this record - just one continuous sound. It’s possible these songs would rule re-recorded today with boutique pedals and a drummer with emotions.

Moving Pictures

Rush

4/5

Perfect prog-pop mix of nostalgia, cheese, and emotion.

Soul Mining

The The

3/5

Didn’t move me, but was pleasant as a soundtrack to the work day.

Hard Again

Muddy Waters

4/5

Time Out

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

4/5

1999

Prince

3/5

The Village Green Preservation Society

The Kinks

5/5

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

4/5

For a Christmas album, this is a banger - rating reflects this specificity.

Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)

The Kinks

5/5

Proto-indie rock, without which we'd probably be missing out on so much fun, twee, modern music.

3 Feet High and Rising

De La Soul

3/5

Seventh Tree

Goldfrapp

3/5

A fine album - it didn't move me, but it was pleasant to listen to.

Chelsea Girl

Nico

4/5

More Specials

The Specials

4/5

I weighting the rating based on the half of the album I love. The more they ditch ska and embrace experimentation, the better they get. I don’t think Gorillaz, and other trippy, eclectic bands, would exist without this album.

Hounds Of Love

Kate Bush

5/5

💯perfect album, no notes.

L.A. Woman

The Doors

3/5

Not a bad album, but it's buoyed by Morrison's voice. Without that, it's just a collection of mostly mid-tier blues rock.

Peter Gabriel 3

Peter Gabriel

4/5

Le Tigre

3/5

I love every one of these songs individually, but I tire of them fairly quickly as an album. Perfect mixtape fodder, boring album.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

3/5

Incredible musicianship. Schmaltzy, saccharine smoothness. Pretentious pricks.

The Queen Is Dead

The Smiths

4/5

Such a good album. Despite all his faults, Morrissey is one of the greatest lyric writers of the 20th century, although the music doesn't always live up to them. Just shy of a 5 star album.

My Aim Is True

Elvis Costello

3/5

Fun, danceable album, but I wish I liked his voice.

Armed Forces

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

3/5

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin

4/5

SCC. A couple of stinkers, but mostly perfect.

White Blood Cells

The White Stripes

3/5

I appreciate the White Stripes for doing something different, I've never been able to get behind them fully. LIkes: Lyrics, melodies, and energy level. Dislikes: Jack's voice and guitar tone.

I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You

Aretha Franklin

3/5

Nothing but respect for Aretha - she can do no wrong with her voice, and this is entirely a pleasant experience. But...is this an album, or a compilation of ballads? There is no adventure or excitement here, just a perfect voice singing bog-standard R&B/soul grooves.

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

The Smashing Pumpkins

1/5

A month in to this project, and I've reached the first album I couldn't finish. A couple of good songs, but they weren't kidding when they called it infinite.

Close To The Edge

Yes

4/5

Good shit, but didn’t get to listen closely enough for a review. Will definitely revisit.

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

2/5

b o r i n g

1984

Van Halen

5/5

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

4/5

Had only heard the hits, which are SCCs. The rest of the album isn't exactly groundbreaking, but it sure was fun.

Penthouse And Pavement

Heaven 17

2/5

Probably deserves a higher rating, but I know nothing about the genre except I don't really enjoy it. Based on the number of bands associated with Heaven 17 I imagine they're groundbreaking in some way. Good for them.

Floodland

Sisters Of Mercy

4/5

Felt like a vampire in a night club.

Dirt

Alice In Chains

1/5

The. Worst.

War

4/5

A very good, but not perfect, album. In a world where U2 followed this thread they could have done great things; instead, their God complex kicked in and they were reduced to producing drivel (with an occasional bright spot) catered to hollow masses.

Ananda Shankar

3/5

This was fine. Not amazing by any standards. Maybe it was more groundbreaking at it's release?

Melodrama

Lorde

3/5

Compared to her contemporary pop-girlies, this is very listenable. Still not my bag.

Inspiration Information

Shuggie Otis

1/5

Boring background funk

Bayou Country

Creedence Clearwater Revival

4/5

The is album makes my choogles choog:

Elvis Presley

1/5

During the first track I thought, "This is going to be an easy 4 or maybe even 5, despite the terrible mix." By track two I was proven wrong. By track 3 I was annoyed by his voice and the audio levels. By track 4 I remembered why I don't listen to Elvis. The deification of Elvis Presley is a great example of how the lack of choice can influence the popularity of mediocre talent.

I See A Darkness

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

5/5

Stone cold classic. Lyrics that cut through the faf. Strong songwriting delivered with great fragility.

Aja

Steely Dan

3/5

Good for a lark, but not something I come back to a lot. I was just talking to a friend about Steely Dan last week and told them they're the kind of band I like on a play list, but not the kind of band who's records I would collect. Also, they're insufferable, pretentious dorks (trust me - takes one to know one), which makes them hard to like.

American Beauty

Grateful Dead

2/5

Every once in a while I listen to some live Dead and it's okay, but not spectacular. Album Dead doesn't move me at all.

Thriller

Michael Jackson

5/5

Too bad about the pedophilia or whatever was going on.

Siamese Dream

The Smashing Pumpkins

3/5

I finished it! Listened to it twice, even. Not entirely my cup of tea, but there are couple of bangers and nothing that pissed me off.

On The Beach

Neil Young

5/5

An all time great. The thin, reedy vocals and filtered overall sound might not be everyone's cup of tea, but to me it matches the lyrical themes of depression, loss, anxiety, and moving on perfectly. Truly an album that everyone, especially people who make music themselves, should listen to at least once before they die.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elton John

3/5

If you took every good song that Elton John released and stuck them together, it would be a 5/5, perfect, all-time great, fun and moving double-album. Instead we get a bunch of albums of mostly cheesy filler, each with a few stand out tracks.

Younger Than Yesterday

The Byrds

3/5

While I appreciate albums like this, they definitely show their age. I can hear the bones of what came after, and I understand why they're on this list, but they just don't capture my attention.

Zombie

Fela Kuti

4/5

I'm not very knowledgeable about the genre, but I know I dug this.

Sunday At The Village Vanguard

Bill Evans Trio

4/5

Great listen! Very cool snapshot of the era.

Want One

Rufus Wainwright

4/5

Rufus Wainwright has one of my favorite singing voices of all time, moving and creative lyrics, and beautiful melodies, but something stops me from giving this a 5. For all I love it, it is not something I come back to very often. Sorry, Rufus!

Different Class

Pulp

3/5

A perfectly fine indie-rock album.

I See You

The xx

2/5

An album so vapid, I don't remember listening to it. At least it wasn't offensive.

The Joshua Tree

2/5

Look at us! We love America! We love Elvis! Edge - hold this spotlight on me while I vamp.

Talking Heads 77

Talking Heads

3/5

Not their best effort, but I always appreciate some Talking Heads in my ears.

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

3/5

Not my thing, hard to rate. Hard to believe it was any kind of hit with only 4 songs, one of which is spoken word.

Eli And The Thirteenth Confession

Laura Nyro

1/5

There are very few Laurel Canyon type singer-songwriters I can stand. This isn't one of those. Boring, overproduced, warbly muzak.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

4/5

Heroes

David Bowie

4/5

Heroes to Zeros

The Beta Band

3/5

Nice background music. No reason to be on a list of albums you must hear before you die.

Planet Rock: The Album

Afrika Bambaataa

3/5

Fun album.

After The Gold Rush

Neil Young

4/5

Not as high a peak as some Neil Young, but still speaks to the soul.

Highway to Hell

AC/DC

3/5

So dumb it's fun!

Honky Tonk Heroes

Waylon Jennings

3/5

It's fine for what it is, but I'm not a honky tonk guy.

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

3/5

High Violet

The National

3/5

Easy listening for hipsters. Nothing offensive, but nothing to knock my socks off.

Funeral

Arcade Fire

4/5

Adele

3/5

No denying her incredible voice, but suffers from Top 40 production cheese. Just too glossy for it to be in any regular rotation.

Jagged Little Pill

Alanis Morissette

4/5

It's showing it's age, but there's no doubt how influential and cool this album was in the nineties.

461 Ocean Boulevard

Eric Clapton

1/5

Boring blues rock from a boring twat.

My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Brian Eno

4/5

Peter Gabriel

4/5

American IV: The Man Comes Around

Johnny Cash

4/5

I adore this album. Cash's voice was never better than when it was barely holding together. The arrangements are mostly perfect and gave new life to songs from other artists that would otherwise be forgettable.

Tracy Chapman

3/5

Beautiful voice, but only a couple of tracks that I come back to.

Blue Lines

Massive Attack

1/5

Most of the things I hate about 90s music all wrapped up in one place.

The Stooges

4/5

Classic, informative album.

Ágætis Byrjun

Sigur Rós

4/5

If You're Feeling Sinister

Belle & Sebastian

3/5

Not my favorite Belle & Sebastian, but I would never say no to listening.

Gold

Ryan Adams

2/5

Boring ass millennial easy-listening written by a sexual predator. Perfect your next blind date at Starbucks.

Let It Be

The Replacements

4/5

Os Mutantes

3/5

I enjoyed this, but it was a little too sedated to keep me super interested. I would live to see it live, though!

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

1/5

Just not enough music to make it enjoyable.

Green

R.E.M.

3/5

I always think I'm going to love R.E.M., but they never quite get me there.

Sound of Silver

LCD Soundsystem

3/5

For Your Pleasure

Roxy Music

5/5

Bandwagonesque

Teenage Fanclub

4/5

I've been aware there was a band called Teenage Fanclub, but I believe this is the first time I've heard them, and I don't know how this album isn't more talked about when we talk about the 90s. Sounds like they took the Beatles, Kinks, et al and did Britpop better than any of the more radio friendly versions could ever dream.