Younger me loved G&R but I don't vibe with them as much as I used to it. Still fun to revisit this one - an undeniable classic with a shocking number of certified bangers, even more so considering that it's their debut. None of these tracks are filler. Enjoyed Paradise City the most this time around although Welcome to the Jungle always used to be my favourite. It's hard to really judge a lot of these songs since they are so ubiquitous.
Wasn't sure at first, but there's a very strong run of songs a bit further in. A lot of fun, no bad tracks. Best track is Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting (banger), but made some very enjoyable new discoveries too. A little overlong, but works well spread out through the day as I've done. Would listen again.
Smoky and bluesy, very enjoyable. Perfect length, also cohesive. The WASP is excellent, as is Riders on the Storm, an old favourite. Love an album that ends strong.
An established favourite. Rich, complex, emotional, resonant, groundbreaking, flawless.
Feels like a low budget Steven Soderburgh film. Vaguely intriguing background atmosphere, not an album I'd revisit. Shellback is a pretty good track.
Makes me want to sit in an American roadside cafe drinking a coffee while I listen. More of a mood album than one I'd continually revisit, but solid nevertheless.
Bland and tepid. This is one I could have died happy without ever hearing. The title track's lyrics imply urgency, but the music, with its repetitive funky beat, does not.
Sounds like they set out to make the most 60s sounding record possible. Also terrible album cover. California Dreamin' is an excellent song though.
Lots of creativity here, and a few solid tracks, but the vocals are pretty bad and it feels a little dated. Enjoyable enough, but I can't imagine being in a mood where I wouldn't prefer to listen to Depeche Mode.
Never actively listened to this style of music before, but it's delightful. Also great drumming.
Excellent album, I'd give it 4.5 if I could. Not my usual genre and vibe, but it has so much kinetic, playful momentum and creativity. Such density and variety of samples, yet they all feel purposeful.
Best experienced walking through a city in the early morning when it's still dark. Pure vibes.
This is exactly what I'd expect from them, and is thoroughly servicable. No hidden depths here. Pleasant but unmemorable.
Feels a bit undercooked, like a band who haven't fully figured themselves out yet. A small handful of standout tracks, and a whole lot of filler. Its successor, Demon Days, is a vastly superior album, and should have been on this list instead.
This really isn't my thing at all, but seems competent for what it is. Production and vocals are pretty solid, and it seems to come from an authentic place emotionally.
If you put every mellow British indie rock band in a blender, this is what you'd get.
It hadn't occurred to me that live albums would be on the list, but it's a delight to discover one that captures a moment in time and place like this one does, and feels so cosy and inviting. Sarah Vaughan's voice is very warm and smooth, and I'm definitely interested in hearing more of her.
I like The Who, but this particular album doesn't do a whole lot for me. I prefer their later, more expansive stuff. You probably had to be there at the time to fully appreciate this one. A few standout tracks, especially towards the end, and Keith Moon's drumming is a highlight.
I see why people like it but repetitive beats can only do so much when you're sober. Especially when this thing goes on for over an hour.
No rock here, only soul, which is not my favourite genre. He has a nice voice, but aside from that nothing about this album grabs my attention.
More like Grandmaster trash.
Songs go on too long, however this is enjoyable and not half as dated as I thought it'd be. Solid album.
4 stars mainly because the drumming is fire. Reminds me of John Bonham. I could listen to an isolated drum track of this album. Not that the rest isn't good, but this style of jazz can be a little challenging to fully get into.
Love her voice but the production is too glossy and it's pretty boring.
I didn't realise I needed an album in my life that sits at the intersection of New Orleans Blues, sea shanties, noir vibes and gritty, boozy folk music but I absolutely did.
I'd give 4.5 if I could. Just a really good collection of songs that keeps revealing more layers as it goes, and stays interesting all the way through.
I get the hate but I enjoy the theatrical excess and weirdness of this one. Especially when he hits those ridiculous high notes on Club Country.
Just a really fun album that put me in a good mood all day. An antidote to the endless grey and lifeless January I find myself in.
An 80s album that sounds like the 60s and the 90s had a baby. Not that it's a bad thing.
More like a 3.5. Interesting and mostly pleasant, but not memorable or emotionally impactful.
None of these songs go anywhere and there are about twice as many of them as there should be. Synthy europop should be more fun than this.
A damn good album, even though reggae isn't usually my thing. All good songs. My only real complaint is the track order, Revolution should have been the closer.
A really good, exciting and fun punk album that I hadn't heard before by a band I knew very little about. It's always good to be surprised like this.
Boring but pleasant. Like sitting around waiting in someone's lounge but they have very nice wallpaper.
This is a weird one for me.
Musicianship 10/10
Historical importance 10/10
Personal enjoyment 7.5/10
I think I'm just too British and sober and far removed from the 60s to really vibe with it.
I wanted to give this 4 early on but it's very long and gets boring for a good stretch towards the end. I'm not sure why people are fixating on the homophobia - maybe I missed something, but the lyrics sound relatively mild to me compared to others. It's hardly surprising that a hip hop album from the year 2000 has some objectable lyrics in it.
I like a handful of these songs, particularly Friend, You've Got to Fall and She Floated Away. However, at 1hr 9 minutes it's just too much of the same unappealing, rough sound that most of these tracks have. More grating than anything else.
I've never listened to Radiohead properly before, but I'm liking this a lot. The soundscapes are very soothing to my brain. It feels like it's taking me on a journey.
I'm sure there's a lot of cultural context I'm not getting. To me it just sounds like pleasant background music. A bit long and repetitive, and I don't see myself ever listening to it again. But it sounds nice enough not drop it to a 2.
As dull and uninspiring as a very weak cup of tea where the teabag has barely made contact with the water.
The most safe and beige collection of melodies, riffs and lyrics I've heard so far. Fittingly, there is a track called (I'll Give You) Money which is exactly what Frampton would have to do to make me see his live show.
The tuba sound in 'Excuse Me' makes me wonder if the title is an apology for an episode of bad flatulence. An messy, uneven album but a few good songs, particularly the closer 'Here Comes The Flood' and some interesting ideas allow it to scrape a low 3 stars.
A safe and unobjectionable country album. I'm not the target audience for this, but it's fine.
Not usually into this style, but this is a surprisingly solid collection of songs.
Good musicians, well written songs, but it's just too smooth and my brain slides right across it with nothing to latch on to.
Just a collection of catchy, fun songs delivered with enough personality to make them stand out, and the album doesn't waste any time. Sometimes that's all you need.
It's a fun sound, but it does not need to be 55 minutes long and it doesn't need a digeridoo track at the end.
Of all the albums I've got so far, this is the one I most want to put in a time capsule and send to my teenage self. It doesn't feel as impactful to me now as it probably would have then, but I like these songs and love the acoustic bass sound. Very ahead of its time for 1983.
As someone who listens mainly to rock and metal, it's nice to discover a solidly enjoyable pop album that I probably never would have listened to otherwise. Good tunes, and good use of synth.
A dense, layered, darkly atmospheric soundscape. Those basslines are perfection.
How have I never heard of this band before? A fun collection of songs that successfully blend different genres and styles into a raw punk template. More like this please.
This is a 2.5 rounded up. I can't be doing with the whole "anything one of The Beatles touches must be worshipped" mentality. The first few tracks are repetitive messes, and many others are forgettable, but there are some good songs later on. Personally my standout was 'Momma Miss America' an atmospheric, heavyish rock track with forward momentum and a very nice guitar sound, but 'Man We Was Lonely' and 'Maybe I'm Amazed' are good too. The generator gave me George Harrison's All Things Must Pass a while ago, and I liked that album much, much better.
This was a new discovery for me. I already knew that Suzanne was a perfect song, but it is followed by many more beautiful, perfect or near perfect songs. The music is fairly minimal but carries light and shade, texture, personality and mood, like looking at a painting that captures a whole story and atmosphere in a single frame. I want to listen to it in different settings - in the woods, in a town, by the sea, at night, in the snow, in the rain - to see how it feels different and which parts jump out. So many moments where an instrument comes in and adds texture and feeling in a way that is unexpected but feels perfect in retrospect. A genuine work of art.
I love Priest, but not this album. They have probably 10 albums I like more than this one. It's a little too restrained, streamlined and samey for my taste. Nevertheless, Breaking the Law is an all time iconic metal song (deservedly so) and I can see how the album would have been influential back in 1980, so my 3.5 gets rounded up. Painkiller or Sad Wings of Destiny would have gotten 5.
It's fine, but I don't know why its on the list. Pretty standard post punk/garage rock from the era, with that wall of bass sound that was everywhere at the time.
One of those bands that somehow manages to be both overrated and overhated. Nice guitar lines but otherwise mostly a bit dull, though pleasant enough. Not too long, which is good.
I like that it's both socially concious and funny (most hip hop I've heard is one or the other at most, though it's admittedly not my usual genre). Great lyricism/rhyming, and not overloaded with skits and interludes like other hip hop albums on this list.
April Fools Day and the generator proclaims "Elvis is Back!". Well, if he has returned from the dead, I hope his comeback is a more interesting album than this one. First 2 tracks were good but everything else is very forgettable. I can see how this album was an important one in his career, being released following his return from the army, but that doesn't mean it's important music to listen to in the 21st century.
I just can't get past his nasal voice. If he took the peg off his nose I'd probably like it more.
The most uneven album I've come across so far, with very high high points (Sunshine of Your Love) and very low lows (Mother's Lament).
When you order The Smiths on Wish
I want to find this interesting but it just sounds like people farting about with electronic sounds to be honest. Some nice moments, but many of these tracks are far, far longer than they need to be. Listened on YouTube and the music from the ads in between was often more enjoyable.
It doesn't need to be a double album, lets be honest. There's a few tracks here I'd cut: Bron-Y-Aur, Down by the Seaside, Boogie with Stu. In My Time of Dying could probably stand to have a minute or 2 trimmed off, as well. But there are some incredible moments here, and all of disc 1 is at least solid.
Horrible production, none of these songs go anywhere. The artwork looks like it was thrown together by someone using PowerPoint on Windows 95 for the first time.
I don't honestly know if I've ever heard an album that makes me feel as completely neutral as this one does. The complete absence of anything sounding either good or bad is kind of impressive.
Does this list really need 2 albums by The Band? I just got them yesterday too so I'm feeling a little biased against them. Is this album better or worse than Music From Big Pink? Who can say? It all sounds the same to me. Another low 3 star. Competent, but not for me.
I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this. A very pleasant sound and the electronic elements add texture and prevent it from feeling too run of the mill.
Loose, exploratory and atmospheric, but purposeful. Another gem of a new discovery from this project.
The first thing I'm struck by is all the beige in the artwork, and the music mostly matches. Macbeth and the title track are standouts, however.
Speakerboxxx - 4/5
The Love Below - 2/5
Overall - 3/5
An aggressively middling collection of songs elevated by live energy, like giving flavour to white bread with condiments but forgetting the ingredients to make it a sandwich.
Pretty, but kinda dull.
Is this 1001 albums you must hear before you die or 1001 Ella Fitzgerald tracks you must hear before you die? It's very nice, but it's a little much.
A very enjoyable album. I am now sold on the concept of going space truckin', although I am not sure exactly what that entails.
Sure, this has his biggest hit, but Escapology is the better album and it's not particularly close.
For a band I know mostly for 1 song (Teenage Kicks) this is neither a revelation or a disappointment, it only demonstrates that the band has at least 1 full album of songs of approximately the same quality and the same bouncy energy as that song. Feargal Sharkey's expressive vocals go a long way towards preventing this from becoming bland and forgettable. Good, breezy fun. Does it need to be heard before you die? Probably not, but I'm glad I did.
As the title implies, an uneven mixed bag, but I enjoy the vocal performances and Papa Was a Rollin Stone is phenomenal.
Some immaculate guitar work, but to me it feels a bit lifeless, lacking a certain grit and authenticity.
Alright Eddie, settle down. We know you can play guitar well, it doesn't make the songs that interesting.
About 61 too many, honestly. Most of the songs are quite boring and blend together, and many of the lyrics are cheesy and cringeworthy. The female vocalist is more pleasing to my ears than the man, but she is used disappointingly sparingly. There is some genre variation, but while that makes this less oppressively dull then it could be, it adds to the overall feeling of the album being sloppy and lacking artistic direction.
