1001 Albums Summary

Ok well, its a good album. Listened to it many times. I prefer neon bible or whatever it was after this but rebellion and wake up still go extra hard. We can forget about their more recent stuff since butler turned out to be... himself

Iconic album from my youth, it set the stage for a lot of my habits. It has definitely aged more like milk than wine, but it still has the same visceral qualities that I once loved

Still an annoying singer but I can appreciate the love he puts into it

Did I think I would like a Billy Joel album to this extent? No. As someone who was born in the UK, Billy Joel was seen as American shlock. I still think Just The Way You Are is a dreadful song, but the rest of it is so good, you forget.

Little Wing has to be up there for one of the greatest songs ever created, and I will always argue how important it is. The fact they also have Castles Made of Sand and Up From the Skies on this album makes me give it top marks. Nothing to fault on this album at all.

As a Bowie fan of pretty much all of his work, especially including his maligned later stuff, ive never been massively attracted to Heroes as an album. Some of the tracks are just weak and not the best Eno collab in that Trilogy. A strong 4 slightly let down by too much cocaine

Is this good as Movin On Up? Does it ever live up to that track? No. Its a good representation of the music scene and how it evolved, its just not really that strong.

Perfection in an album to be honest. Is he one of my favourite motown artists? No, but this is one of his three albums that absolutely kills me every time I listen. Never bore of it.

Forgetting Boy George's somewhat offensive behaviour, as a little gay boy growing up, he was one of the only representations i had growing up. What a voice. It suffers due to its age and some of the sounds not being as cool or modern as they were at the time.

The Kinks will always be more enjoyable to me than the Stones and Beatles. I don't rate this as one of their best, but Arthur is still a banger. The textures of this album and the 'vibes' are unmatched

It feels weird to rate such an iconic album at less than a 5, especially when this was one of my dad's favourite albums. Some of the songs are brilliant, unbeatable, and then the sleazy blues arrive to beat you over the head and you realise that this isnt truly a great album, just a very good one.

What can Ginger Baker not do on drums in that period. Phenomenal. Fela Kuti has always been a musician I respected rather than liked. Maybe it was the relisten but it absolutely clicked this time.

I was firmly in my teenage years when this album came out, I would've been exactly the target audience, but I'd listened to Dookie and Nimrod before this, so my general reaction to this was "what is this punk opera shit about". For many years I avoided this album. Listened to it last year as my partner was due to go to their gigs. Still didn't hit. Sitting down with it again, it's still a frustrating album. There's some great tracks in this - Letterbomb, Extraordinary Girl, and with the exception of Jesus of Suburbia which is about 2 minutes too long, all of the singles still hold up. Does it make me take back all the crap I gave it 20 years ago? Nah, but it's not a bad album.

I'd never heard this. I'd heard Strawberry Letter 23 but not from Shuggie. What a shame, I feel like my life is already better for listening to this album. The drums are so modern sounding, the funk is unreal.

Is this album as good as Wiley, Ghetts, Kano, even Bizzle? To stand against the best of grime this album needs to offer something. To be so critically lauded for what is quite a mediocre album with 2 good singles simply because this was the first time anyone had seen grime in the mainstream was a mistake. Im more of a UKHH head so I struggle with an implicit bias against grime, but this album is not the one to bring to a fight.

Alright, maybe Gold Rush didn't hit, but this ROCKS. I didn't know Neil Young had it in him. First half - a 3.5, second half is a 5. The SOUND of that guitar makes you forget Neil Young's voice here, and it ain't even that bad! I will come back to this album, maybe I'll give it a 5 then, but I did not expect to love this.

Is it a very white man singing soul? yes, but it's Bowie. Bowie wins.

An album and artist I'd never heard of - what a shame. I can see why this was seen as one of the first albums of Britpop. Unapologetically British, dark, sardonic, exactly how I want my music from the 90s. Singer seems like a bit of a twat though.

If I'm honest - I don't have much to say. Mr Soul is a great opener. The rest of the album just does not live up to this. Notoroiosuly not a massive fan of Young's voice but... passable. Fine. Stills' voice is good. Latter part of the album sinks. It's.... alright.

I've never had an issue with Dylan's voice, but I can appreciate when someone says they don't like it. Despite being a divisive nasal voice, you have to look past it to an extent, to the words, the melodies, the gorgeous backing band. Superior.

Im not a massive jazz fan and struggle to understand it sometimes. This is different. This is a masterpiece.

As someone who likes the Cure in passing, and has never delved apart from Disintegration, this was a good detour into understanding their other work. Still moody, still works.

I was really tempted to give this a 1, but this is probably a disservice. As someone who was a kid even past be here now and was at uni when they split, Oasis has always been the dominant band within yer normal brit taste. I hated it, I hated them, I hated how they had ripped past bands like Suede and Pulp and numerous Britpop bands, even Stone Roses, that they were never as good as, and we had to swallow it and nod along while the 100th person of the day shouts out Wonderwall. I did this project partly to reevaluate what I liked and disliked growing up and whether my tastes have matured. They obviously havent because this still sounds like shit. Catchy though

I'm sorry, I really did try and like this, but this album made me go slightly mad. I can appreciate the musicianship at certain times, but this gave me a headache.

I think its slightly unfair for me to rate this one - I'm a huge Hot Chip fan. I don't think this is their best work, but this album summarises the band the best out of anything else. Great work boys, keep it up x

Sad listening to this one knowing the very known history of how close it was to his death. They were at the peak of their power and the confidence in these recordings is reflective of that. I don't think this is as good as their studio stuff, but is still kicks you in the gut.

This is lovely isn't it. Coffee shop music but Norah has a great voice. Theres a reason why this is still played, still regarded, and why Norah Jones is still beloved. I wish there was more experimentation on this, but I'm not complaining. It's lovely.

Not as good as Zen Arcade, so it would be odd if that wasnt included... but I love this album. Very influential when I was growing up... its lost its thrill a bit, but I will never not love Husker Du

I really loved this. I've got a general thing for gruff voices, and so adding in the sensibilities of the Beach Boys meant this was always going to be a winner. Never been a huge fan of the Beach Boys' solo work, apparently, except for this one.

This is really really good you know. Punk isnt my genre, I'm more of a post-punk boy, but the production is top-notch (thanks Joan), the frontman lyricist is absolutely what this band needs, but my god, Pat Smear MAKES this album. His guitar work ascents this to at least an 8.

I was surprised by this album. Fast Car is obviously a genius song - can't be denied, but this whole album is stellar. Great lyrics, good musicianship and a singer who MEANS it. Tracy's great.

It's fine. It's a good album. All it does is reinforce my opinion that REM are largely a singles band, with the exception of Murmur. I always rate the production on their stuff though.

I gave the Nitty Gritty band a lot of shit, and good reason, but this Honky Tonk stuff is GOOD. He's not quite got the voice to pull it off sometimes, and I think the lyrics are a bit.... weird, but if this is the kind of country I have to listen to, I'll be much more grateful.

Brown Paper Bag is one of the best DnB tracks ever made. I was never into it as much as my brother was, but this was one of the essential albums that I listened to a while ago. It doesn't quite hit as hard as it used to, but this was revolutionary for its time, and still, for me, holds up. It is too long though.

I have a feeling people are ignorant or forget the fact that this album launched a new era. Anyone giving this a 1 star review quite clearly hates joy and happiness. For better or for worse, she changed pop music for decades with this. The first 3 songs of this album are absolute perfection. Yeah, it's dated, but it's still an obvious 5 stars x

I love Elvis Costello. Is this his best album? no, but his first 4 or so albums were perfection. This one is up there.

Very mid, but has at least passion and drive behind it, you can tell they put a lot of effort into it, it's just a shame that their brand of neo-psychedelia wasn't particularly interesting

Stunning, beautiful, gorgeous. Of course it's inspired by a lot of other artists, but this was one of the first times experimentation hit the mainstream. And plus pretty much every track is sublime.

Street Fighting Man and Sympathy are perfect tracks. Stray Cat Blues and No Expectations are up there. The rest of the tracks do lack... something, but that doesn't mean they're bad tracks. This is quite clearly and obviously the band finding their feet as genuine artists, a 4 just because it doesn't quite reach the levels of the next few albums. It feels incomplete without those to consider.

I'm not sure how to mark this one. Definitely aged, definitely part of a history book somewhere. The sounds and textures were great, but did I enjoy it past a 3? nah.

I'm giving this a 5, because there is absolutely no way it is under a 3. This was such a departure from his earlier work, showing that he could write baroque. it's not his best, that as probably one of his records for island - but this is the work of a certified genius.

Great lyricism, good voice, let down by a lack of musical ideas.

This was the album that inspired me to pick up bass when I was 13, and Kim Deal's basslines still ruin me. The best Albini engineering. I'm not sure if I prefer this or Doolittle, the chaos on this one speaks to me on a fundamental level. Will never not adore Pixies.

These guys had the blues groove. It's quite clearly not as good as Sticky Fingers which it's compared to, but this will be entering circulation as a working in the garden album. What a privilege for it.

This wasn't just a punk album, this changed the music landscape for decades. A huge array of different sounds, beats and vibe just make this album almost perfect. There's not many albums better than this

I've never been a massive fan of jazz. I think this is the best jazz album ive ever listened to.

hard not to compare her to her sister, but sounds like she could've used some of the projection lessons her mum had already obviously paid for. She's got a great voice but I wish there was better production at times.

Honestly it's quite difficult to me sit here 70 years after recording and give a balanced opinion. Obviously fundamental to the creation of Rock n Roll, but it's hard to separate in my ears. Probably a 7 but....

you know what, this is fine. it's not as good as lemonade, and it's only real relevance now is the way it was dropped, but for a certain time, this was te best production you were gonna hear from this genre. it just, lacks something for me.

Marc Bolan's charisma stinks on this record - makes me want to lick his sweat up. you can tell this is the moment he realised that he made great rock n roll. his guitar sounds great, the visconti production makes you cream your pants. there are some weaker songs on this which doesn't make it top score, but christ it was close.

Great songs bookending what is a really weak middle. Starts and finishes ridiculously strong but those songs sandwiched in are really fucking boring.

I think I probably had the same experience as a lot of people - told that Trout Mask Replica will change your life, you listen, nothing has changed apart from never revisiting the album and live your life safe in the knowledge that Captain Beefheart made art you just didn't enjoy. Well, I enjoyed this one. It made *sense*. I got it. It clicked. There's some songs on here which are undoubtedly brilliant. A lot of them are interesting at best, but now I'm safe knowing I CAN explore if I wanted to. Thanks Captain.

i love this album, and it was probably one of the albums of the year when released. would not, however, list it on 1001 albums. melodies are great, but this sometimes feels too detatched, too disparate to make a truly great album. every open eye is probably the better album. or screen violence. using my judging hat, i can only give this a 3. a very strong one though.

I truly and honestly do not think this is the Beastie Boys best album, I think Ill Communication is better, but the one thing this album does have, is the best samples. The production is INSANE. lol at people thinking they just shout.

The skit quality lets down what is an icon of Hip-Hop. It's your uncles favourite rap album.

Feels like i shouldn't be listening to this in April. This is a winter album. I like the Knife, but i've never really listened to Fever Ray. This is good. Not AS good as The Knife, but some of those textures feel like they're going to strangle you. Fun.

one thing you can't deny about this album - the instrumentation is tight beyond belief, but then do you expect much more from peter tosh and the rest of the wailers? i do think this album still has filler on it, even though its been tightly cinched, but i'm always glad to hear bob's voice.

Sorry, is this it? All Things Must Pass came out a year earlier and this is the slop that Lennon served up? an extra point for phil spector's production

moody and traumatic, it's one of the greatest debut albums ever made. if you think this is miserable, that's kind of the point honey. they MEANT everything recorded on here. doesn't try to comfort or coddle you. a brutal masterpiece. relistening to this brings back emotions every single time, perhaps not emotions for all the time, though.

mate. yeah, i didn't expect this. I thought i was getting something harder than this. I was not expecting 70s rock that sounds like Sparks to me. what a revelation. its albums like this that make this worth it so far, would never have listened otherwise. BANGER. i'll explore other stuff and may reassess this score.

10 horror driven bed time stories delivered by everyone's favourite evil uncle.

It doesn't hold up does it? Graham Coxon's guitars still sound fresh, but it just doesn't quite hit like it probably did at one point. A few bangers, obviously, but the rest of the album seems like a dearth of enjoyment at times.

I know why people may hate this - it's weird, it's psychotic, it's odd and offputting at times. This is pretty much why I loved this. I haven't felt this uncomfortable listening to an album for a long time. Some absolutely demented work on this. I thought it was great. Absolutely compelling.

First half - pretty much all bangers that hold up now. Second half - boring jungle inspired big beats. Iconic for its time, I prefer Fat of the Land and even Experience, but judging this on its own, and taking away the bias that it does sound dated, it's 3 with an extra point.

5. 5. 5. This album has been the soundtrack to so many hazy weekends. Can't quite do it the same 20 years later, but the feeling persists. I love most of what Air have done, but this album is on another level, created by angels.

Not sure if I'm... missing something here. Sure, they can play, and there's definitely some good stuff in here but the production is painful. I like the baroque elements, I like how chaotic and messy it is, but this is not the album i wanted from the talent clearly on show.

Judging by the reviews, I was expecting something awful. Sounds like a white dude trying to learn different cultures while integrating it with the sounds and textures he already knows. Absolutely fine.

She's always been a bit of a Greatest Hits listen for me, a stunning voice with the typical 60s album situation of one or two tracks from each album are worth listening to - and this really shows that behaviour. Her first album shows her vocals off well, but with the exception of one or two, better versions are found elsewhere.

It's fine. It's not as good as their other work. The emphasis on the piano harmed them on this one, and someone take those bloody marimbas away. Still good, just not great.

Im excited to know PJ is on this list multiple times because I know that this isnt her best album, but what an album it is. I first knew of PJ through the desert sessions, not the most typical introduction but I was struck by her voice. This was actually the first solo album I listened to of hers, and I wasnt massively impressed because it all seemed a bit samey. I then listened to Dry and Rid of Me, and I understood it, every album has an intentionality behind it, and once you understand that this was a step away from the harsh sounds of her previous work, and instead a lush soundscape, it should make sense. Anyway I love this one but this isnt perfect.

For some strange reason, I've kinda avoided this band. I'd heard some things, but I think this is why you can't trust people. What a glorious album, I feel like I've missed out all of these years.

for me, this is very much a part of hip-hop history, but it is important to view it as such. This isn't comparable to Lupe Fiasco which I had straight after this, and it certainly cannot be looked at in the same lens as 2020s HH. I like it, but conscious rap that makes you very aware that they're not like one of those guys, a pick me, does and will always grate. Great sounds and textures but this isn't as fun or adventurous as it likes to think it is.

Yeah this slaps, will always slap, and will continue to slap no matter what people say. one of the best alt hip-hop albums out there. sure it's not a diverse album, and yeah, the outro is fucking annoying but like, dude, kick push.

Fuck Ayn Rand. Rhythm section is great, vocals would be significantly more annoying had this album gone on any longer. I'm not really a prog person and this proves it, but there's some definite cool ideas on here, just nothing to carry it past me listening to it for this.

Banger album. Im giving this 5 because the current score is not acceptable for this band and album. Every little helps. Not only is this a perfect example of jangle pop, the post punk influences in this are so good. It seems like Americans mostly dont get it. Thats fine. Piss off.

Absolute banger of a punk album, another artist i've not really listened to,but this won't happen again. I knew of Mike Watt and his bass work outside of this but woof, love it. Jackass Theme Tune!

What in the absolute dad rock is this. So banal and bland in its totality, this feels like the most pointless album in existence. And weather with you is STILL horrible.

This album can make you gay. The fact that there is a song called Krisco Kisses on here instantly bumps it up to a 5. An absolute rebellion against everything in power in the 80s, this is sleazy, angry, and so incredibly fun.

You might not remember when I said Dusty was a greatest hits artist. I still don't disagree with that, but this album goes a long way to remedy that. What a VOICE. Even though she hated it, apparently.

I did not like this. I did not hate this. This would have been enjoyable if I was born with minimal hearing. Beth was alright though.

I think i could be fed slop from Radioheads bum and id still think it was the best thing ever. Amnesiac is quite clearly not their best album, its probably not top half, but Im giving pyramid song, you and whose army and knives out a 5 and the rest, 4, and this is my list so you can do one

Very difficult to separate the artist from the art with this one; much more so than older artists that are decades away from their best, while Kanye is still making music. Still a massively influential album, still some of the best production on a hip-hop record ever, but this album more so than the others, he is the weakest lyricist and rapper on it. I still love this album, but it's not held up as well as it possibly could have done. Lets forget about anything past Life of Pablo though eh

I do like Winwood's work, but this was mostly seen in bands where he's the 4th most interesting character. Great pianist, brilliant arranger, patchy lyrics if this is anything to go by. It was fine. I'd listen again with a fat zoot.

I looked at this score before listening, and I had a thought - I remember this album as a child when growing up and I loved Sir Psycho Sexy, Give It Away and Suck My Kiss among others, so I was surprised, how dare they give it such a low score. Listened again and you're all right, sorry. This album has certified great tracks on here, they're all on top of their game, but this album dragssssssss, they really could've done with an editor, or someone to tell them that they can easily reduce this by half an hour.

Listened to both the Bowie and Iggy mixes for posterity, even though i've listened to this album multiple times before. Iggy's mix is just categorically worse. I wrote an essay on the Loudness War back in uni and this was one of the albums I used - Iggy just sat on the mixing desk until it was 10 on every dial. Bowie's version has it's faults - it doesn't quite ever get the power side of the album, and you can barely hear the bass at any point, but at least it has dynamics that aren't just make it louder. I love this album despite the engineering issues, despite both productions being inadequate, but tell me you don't go for it when Search and Destroy comes on and I'll call you a liar.

One of the best debut albums created, and still so fucking apt today. The machine has always been here, but it's stronger now, and we need to make sure we rage against it until it dies or we do. Any right wingers who listen to this album and just think it is 'work out music bro' need to be put against the wall first in the revolution.

As someone who studied music tech and had to listen to Kraftwerk and their influences like a nerd, I don't think this album ever wore out its welcome, and it definitely doesn't 15 years later. Yes it's clunky, yes it's proto everything you've ever heard electronically, and yes it is beep boop music to the nth degree, but by god those synth melodies are still amazing. The most humanistic robot music ever created, AI could learn a few things from these. Actually, lets not. Some things are best left in the human mind.

I feel like such a fanboy when I give Marvin a 5, so I'm going to be objective here. Some of his best songs on here - but this album does get samey in the middle. He had a theme, a concept, but because this was new for the time, perhaps this could have done with some time editing. Still phenomenal vocals as you would expect.

Some people were meant to be musicians, but even less were meant to be stars. Nick Drake is in a tiny group where they were always meant to be a star after his life burned out. Can't wait for Pink Moon tbh lads, that's always been my favourite, but this is pretty much perfection. "They will know that you were here When you are gone"

Yeah, I mean, honestly, I have no idea why this on the list. Their first album is the only one I would ever consider essential listening. It's fine. It's rich and lush, Romy probably sounds at her best here but this doesn't compare to the rest of the list. This was a great album for 2017, not much else.

I'm a big fan of separating the art from the artist, even if I struggle occasionally. The Smiths were fine, some great albums there, but I think everyone knows that this was mostly down to Marr, especially with what both have done since. Steve is quite obviously and blatantly a fucking idiot, and it's very hard to try and move away from this, and he almost gets there half way through the album. However, this album is mid-tempo mojo magazine dad rock that fades into nothingness, just as I wish he would.

Yeah, I was one of those white kids that discovered this album at 14, right when I was experimenting with green herbs, and yeah, I thought it was the greatest thing ever. The amount of pearl clutchers that think this is still an affront to their ears with GASP dick jokes GASP can do one. One of the best hip-hop albums created, bar none. Those beats are still so tasty. Nobody did it like Dre. Not so much anymore.

Not much to say for this apart from sweet love being an absolute banger and the great voice. Rather middling apart from that

I had only really heard stuff from her from when she worked with Andrew Weatherall and the big beat guys from the 90s - hadn't paid much attention to it otherwise. Her voice is like a big comfy hug from a warm blanket. The instrumentation and production is lovely. Beth slays