Having owned both Greates Hits albums by Queen, I'm ashamed to say that I've never listened to a full album of theirs. I wouldn't say that I'm the greatest fan of Queen, although I clearly enjoy the hits.
Overall, I liked this album and will definitely revisit it again. The best track for me is "Now I'm Here", just a great rock song.
"Killer Queen" is a classic of course and instantly recognisable as a song that is one of their most played.
"Stone Cold Crazy" is one I know well as it's often credited as a big influence on Thrash Metal, a genre I love.
"Tenement Funster" is the song that has had the biggest impact on me as I didn't know Roger Taylor had such a great voice, I mean I know he harmonises in a lot of songs, but this blew me away. It made me realise how talented these guys really are and I already knew they were talented. Don't get me wrong, he's no Freddie, but the man can sing.
It made me feel a little guilty that I'd not given their albums a try before as I imagine that there are lots of gems to be unearthed amongst their extensive back catalogue.
Overall I'd give it 8/10 will listen again. There are just some elements of Queen that mean I'm not always in the mood for them. It's just a little too upbeat and whimsical for me at times, that's why it's an 8.
Always quite liked Billy Joel, but never listened to a full album.
I was glad that this album had "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant" as it's a song a like very much. It's where Billy is at his best for me with his storytelling.
There are the other big songs "Just The Way You Are" and "She's always a Woman" which I of course like.
Overall I enjoyed the album, but it's the hits that stand out for me. A great album to put on when people are around for a meal, but not one I'd listen to repeatedly myself.
7/10, the hits carry it, and there is no doubting the talent, just doesn't blow me away.
I'll give this 8/10. Great to work to, some classics on here that will be familiar to everyone.
I'll be buying this album on vinyl as it's a great album to have on in the background when people are around.
Can't give it higher even though I loved it as it wouldn't be in my general rotation of music that I listen to, but I still rate the album very highly.
I bought this album when it was released. I initially loved the album, although I always found the vocal effects a little jarring.
Due in part to the albums popularity and my early to late 20s period of pretentious music snobbery, (which at one point found me in a small venue buying an album by an artist that performed in a wedding dress and wobbled cardboard for part of the perormance which was as objectively crap as it sounds in retrospect), I decided I no longer liked this album.
For years I've maintained that position, largely because it's been over 20 years since I gave it a chance again.
Well, what an idiot I've been, and this is why pretentious music snobbery gets you nowhere.
I maintain that I find the vocals jarring, but I get they fit the aesthetic of the music. Some of the songs are overplayed, but that doesn't take away from how good the album is.
I've always said I'm eclectic, but sometimes when I decide I don't like something, I can be very stubborn about changing my mind.
Overall, 8/10. I will be buying this on vinyl. It loses marks because of the vocals, but that's just a nitpicking part of me and because it doesn't match 10/10 albums I will have on my list.
Easy top marks for this album. I love the production and listening with headphones enhances the experience as you can hear each instrument individually.
I'm a big metal fan, so this is an album I've listened to before. Some classic tracks, the opener just fills you with dread.
The Wizard is a jukebox favourite of mine.
My first 10/10 album! Hugely influential and still sounds great to this day.
I'm not the greatest fan of hip hop, but I respect the genre and recognise that this is a very good album.
Overall I enjoyed the album, it's an easy listen and oozes cool. It's just not an album I would play on a regular basis. I can't think of a stand out track that gripped me, the vibe felt similar all the way through.
6/10 for me (3 stars on the app). Can't rate it low as the talent and production is undeniable, just not for me.
A good album that sounded like a heavier version of 80s REM, but without the catchy hooks.
I enjoyed the album, but it's not one I'm overly bothered about listening to again.
3 stars from me because I appreciate the impact they had on 90s music and they can clearly play and create good music. It just didn't blow me away.
I've seen Bjork live and she's an amazing performer. I love quite a few of Bjorks songs, but I've really got to be in the mood for her.
I thought this album was good, and I'll listen to it again. It's just a little too ambient for me, but I think it will grow on me if I give it repeated listens.
For now, it's a 3/5. Great voice, great production, but just too ambient and slow for me at this moment.
This album is massively carried by 3 outstanding songs and they are the 3 songs that everyone knows.
The rest of the album is just slightly edgier, but ultimately generic 80s hair metal.
There is no doubting of the ability on display here.
Honestly those 3 songs are so good that it's a shame the rest of the album is (to me) so average.
3/5 stars, purely for those 3 songs, you know what they are, I don't need to say them.
This is not on Spotify so I had to listen on YouTube. I like electronic music, and I quite enjoyed this, but it's not a stand out album for me. There are much better EDM/IDM albums from the 90s out there.
3/5 for me.
Really quite enjoyed this. A couple of very recognisable tracks that I think most people will know, "Blue Rondo a la Turk" and "Take Five", the latter probably the most famous.
I can tell that this album was influential on other artists, particularly in the Prog-Rock field and perhaps beyond into Metal.
I've not really explored Jazz as a genre before, but every time I listen to it, I enjoy it.
Solid 4 stars for me and will revisit in the future.
Recognised the voice straight away as King Louie from Jungle Book.
Good album to listen to whilst working, but it's not really my style.
3/5 clearly talented, but not something I'd choose to listen to again.
I had a girlfriend many moons ago that was massively into folk music, so I have heard this before.
It's a good album, but I've really got to be in the mood for folk music, and this style in particular. I love the music that was influenced by folk and one of my favourite genres of music is folk metal.
I find this type of folk great live, or when played at home with other people around, but on my own it's just a little boring.
3/5 great talent and ability, just a little boring for me.
Great album. I really like the stuff I've heard by The Doors so it was nice to finally listen to an album.
Will definitely listen to this again.
4/5 for me.
I love live albums from this era and it always amazes me how good they sound.
I only know a few Frampton songs, and they were on this album. Absolutely loved the album closer and just got the sense that this was an artist and band enjoying themselves.
4/5 Really enjoyed it.
I remember the advert to launch this album. I was playing FIFA on a monitor in the room whilst the wife was watching X-Factor. I pretty much instantly went to Twitter to see if everyone suspected it was Adele. It was a great viral moment.
I like some of Adeles songs, Hello is a pretty decent song, but I wouldn't say I'm a fan or that bothered overall. There is no doubting her impact though and that's why that ad was so effective.
3/5 some good songs, she has a great voice and I recognise her contribution to music. Overall not for me though.
Probably one of the best album openers of all time with Hotel California.
The rest of the album is mainly middle of the road soft/country rock that does very little for me. Inoffensive and easy to listen to, but just a bit boring to me.
Life in the Fast Lane is a fun track though.
3/5 Mainly for Hotel California, but also because they are great musicians.
I remember seeing Ratamahatta on The Chart Show in the UK when it came out. It was the heaviest thing I'd ever heard and the video was amazing.
I was already into Rock, Alternative, Grunge etc, but this was my initial toe dip into heavier music. I eventually bought the album and enjoyed it, but I wouldn't say I was fully blown away by it back then.
I'd actually started getting into their earlier stuff and found that I enjoyed Beneath The Remains and Arise more.
I had a friend that relentlessly played Chaos AD and it grew on me, which made me revisit Roots. Both albums grew on me and whilst I still feel that Arise is Sepulturas best album, Roots is still a 5 star album to me.
I love the tribal fusion with metal music and I don't think it's been done as well since. The drumming in this album is so raw and yet perfect at the same time. Initially I missed the technical guitar solos, but now I wouldn't change the solos that are there for anything else as they just work.
5/5 A perfect album that I've listened to many times.
I've been meaning to listen to this for a while. I've always liked You Can Call Me Al and there are a few Paul Simon songs that I've liked over the years.
He's a great musician with a diverse range of influences which come across clearly in this album.
It's just a little too upbeat for me, but great nonetheless.
3/5 You Can Call Me Al is a fun track and it's an easy listen, but just a little too upbeat for me.
Wonderfully bonkers, but not quite my cup of tea.
Will still give 3 stars though.
I've always been aware of the cult following of the Grateful Dead. I knew it was their live music they were famous for rather than their studio work.
I was quite excited to give this a go, and was left utterly disappointed. As a fan of prog rock, I'm used to long songs that have virtuoso elements to them, this was not like that at all.
There is some talent here, but for the most part it felt like several guys just turning up with their instruments and playing whatever they want individualy with complete disregard for whatever else was going on around them.
A 7 minute track called feedback that is just feedback! Absolutely ridiculous, but kinda funny at the same time.
I know they are a jam band and not prog rock, but the fact they have 2.7m monthly listeners on Spotify and Kimg Crimson only have 1m is absolutely mental to me.
2/5 It's not quite a 1, there was one bluesy track that was ok that shows they can play, but the rest was over indulgent nonsense that I guess you had to be there with a shitload of drugs for.
Slipknot - Slipknot
Even though I love metal, I largely ignored this when it was released, mainly because Slipknot fans were insufferable at the time.
Slipknot fans back then were like the Arsenal fans of the metal world (maybe they still are, I'm ignorant to it these days). They honestly believed Slipknot invented extreme music and that there was no band more shocking or extreme.
Revisiting it in later life, I've started to appreciate this album. After seeing endless drum covers of Eyeless on TikTok, I've began to appreciate Joey Jordison as a drummer, even though I did feel that some of his stage show theatrics were gimmicky back then.
It's just missing some solos for me, but I understand it doesn't fit the aesthetic of the album.
4/5 for me, just missing some solos, but I get why.
One of my most listened to albums of all time. Whilst I like their later work, they never came close to topping this masterpiece.
Not one duff track on this album and it seems wrong to give an album called Ten 5 stars, but I'll give the 5, knowing in my heart it's a 10/10 album.
Heard a lot about this album over the years, but never gave it a listen. Today was the day.
It takes something truly special to stop me in my tracks these days, but that opening track just blew me away. I can see why this has received so much praise over the years.
Super Stupid is great too, with clear influence from Jimi Hendrix.
I really enjoyed the album, but it just falls short of 5 stars. The last track is meandering yet somehow stationary at the same time. As an almost 10 minute closer, you'd expect it to be a main focus of the album just like the opener.
4/5 Overall brilliant, but the last track lets it down.
Not sure how I felt about this one. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. Just seemed to be there inoffensively in the background.
3/5 nothing really stood out, but it wasn't a difficult listen.
Another influential band that I've never listened to until today.
I ended up listening to this several times as it is amazing. I can see that it influenced a lot of artists that followed.
Definitely going to be adding this to my rotation from now on and will likely buy on vinyl.
5/5 amazing album.
I was only familiar was Two Tribes and Relax before listening to this album.
I quite liked it for the first half of the album. Then there were several cover songs that I just felt messed with the flow of the album. I also felt that was too many covers to make this a stand out album for me.
The Power of Love is of course a great song, but by that point I was wanting what felt like an overbloated album to be over.
3/5 Great when it hits hard, but too many covers to be lauded and way too long.
Easy 5 stars. I bought this when it was released and played it to death.
It's been a while since I've listened to it, so it was like welcoming home an old friend that's been away for a while.
5/5 SuperCALIFORNICATIONexpialidocious
I should really like this album as it's a genre of music that is amongst my favourites, but I found it to be just ok.
Apart from Englad, I didn't really feel there was a track that stood out.
3/5 Not bad, not great.
I've always heard great things about Elvis Costello, and some of the tracks I've heard I've enjoyed.
This has Pump it Up in which is a really infectious song.
3/5 Overall it was good, but not something I'm desperate to listen to again.
So I kinda got delayed listening to this. I started it, then when to the football and had to pick it up the next day. Initially it was going to be 3 stars off my first impressions with an acknowledgement of how influential Kraftwerk have been to electronic music and other artists.
Anyway, I listened to it in full the next day and it just grew on me. Then I hear all the parts sampled by other artists, and I'm like, if this band didn't exist, we would have missed out on so much good music.
Definitely a great album, not quite a 5, but a strong 4.
Solid album from my early 20s. Some great tracks on here that instantly transport me back to going out and putting money in the jukebox.
I get the drumming fits the sound overall, but it's a little one note and repetitive throughout their repertoire.
4/5 I like a bit more complexity to my drumming.
I mean Papa Was Rollin Stone earns enough stars on its own for this album.
Great album that isn't too long and probably has one of the coolest songs of all time on it.
The album oozes cool throughout but not quite a 5 for me as it's not up there with my favourites of all time. It's a good 4 though.
Was initially going to give this 3 stars as I'm not really a glam metal fan, but as it went on, there were some catchy hooks and great technical ability that drew me in.
So I gave it another spin and I quite enjoyed it overall the secondtime. Good rock album to play whilst working.
4/5 some great solos and catchy hooks. Just that element of cheese that means it's a soft 4, but 4 nonetheless.
Overall a good album, very funny at times. I can't help but feel it goes on too long though.
Nudges into a 4 for me, but a low 4 at that.
Would be great if I still smoked weed, but I don't.
I appreciate that it is good folk music, but it's just not for me.
3 stars
I really enjoyed this, loads of samples that I recognised that have been used in other songs.
It's albums like this that have gone on to influence some amazing music, whilst also being a great album in its own right.
4/5 for me.
Some good moments, but nothing outstanding for me. When it's good, it's repetitive and the song seems to go on too long.
Some cheesy keys at points, but the beats are on point.
Not something I'd listen to again so it has to be rated 2 stars.
Generally speaking I enjoy prog rock, some of my favourite albums are from bands of this era.
I've never really given 70s Genesis a try before. I thought this album was good, not great. The drumming is exceptional and some of the guitar parts great too.
I just found some of the changes of pace a little chaotic, more so than other prog rock bands.
3/5 for me, didn't grip me like some other bands of the era.
Not really listened to Kanye West before. In recent years, his behaviour and statements have made him problematic so I thought the ship had sailed for me.
I listened to Graduation on the recommendation of a friend a couple of weeks ago and enjoyed it, so wasn't disappointed when this came up.
I'm not the biggest rap fan, but there are some artists and tracks I like. I'm willing to be open minded though.
I've pretty much enjoyed what I've listened to by Kanye so far, I appreciated the influence of Lauren Hill who is up there for me as one of the best.
Feel that this album just goes on a bit long though, so it's 4 stars for me.
I groaned when this came up. I remember when this album came out and certain songs from it seemed to be on everywhere.
Being a Prog Rock fan, the cover of comfortably numb seemed like an abomination at the time.
I don't know if it was the sunshine and clear blue skies on my walk, or the fact that I'm much less of a grumpy musical snob these days, or even if there was a tinge of nostalgia from the great times I had back in the early 2000s, but this was a great listen.
The cover of Comfortably Numb has grown on me, which means that this album has an opening 4 track run that most bands would die for.
If you've explored a lot of music from the 70s and 80s, the influences jump out at you, sometimes subtly other times full on in the face. You can hear 10cc, Elton, Depeche mode and of course, a lot of disco.
It's just a fun record and this grumpy middle aged music snob (less so now) thoroughly enjoyed it.
5 stars
I'm always told that Brian Eno is a genius that influenced a lot of music. I'm sure this must be true, and I thank him for that, but this isn't a great album.
There are moments, and there is definitely some skill and ability on display, but it doesn't seem to know that anyone knows what is going on half the time.
I like experimental stuff, but there has to be something interesting going on within the experiment. This was borderline unlistenable at times with some jarring sounds that seemed to go much higher than the volume selected for some reason, so much so that it was unsettling.
2 out of 5. Clearly some skill, Clearly an influence, but absolutely mental.
Was interested as the Divine Comedy are involved in this. There were some interesting moments, initially, then it wears thin.
It's like listening to showtunes that go on for way too long and never really goes anywhere.
2 stars as musically it's not bad, but it's just boring and not an album you need to hear before you die.
I like some of Paul Simons stuff, but can take or leave most of it. There are some good songs on this, Me and Julio down by the school yard is instantly recognisable.
Other than a couple of tracks, nothing much stands out for me. 3 stars because I recognise his ability, but not something I'm likely to listen to again.
This is like the kind of music you'd hear in a lift in one of those movies from the 60s. At best it progresses slightly to lounge music at a posh hotel.
There is nothing original here, if you've heard lift music and hotel lounge music, you have heard this, so there is no need to hear it before you die.
I was initially a little underwhelmed by this, but it grew on me. There was one moment of really dated synth sound, but apart from that I'd say this is a very solid album.
Vanishing point might just be the best song I've never heard before. Absolutely loved it.
Going to give it 4 stars as I'd like to explore this album more.
Great album with some amazing all time classic tracks.
Think it would be a crime to give this less than 5 to be honest. Influential and timeless.
5 stars
Good album, but not great. The opening track which is a cover was very promising.
Throughout you hear the influence on other bands that came after, and perhaps without this album, some music wouldn't exist. So it deserves recognition for that.
The bands that were influenced are far better, and there's a reason most people have heard of those bands, but nobody really talks about Blue Cheer.
3 out of 5.
One of the easiest 5s I can give, don't even need to listen to give this a 5 as it's a regular rotation of mine. I'll of course listen as part of the project though.
Despite it being a masterpiece, it's not my favourite Radiohead album, but they set the bar so high with their work.
5 stars
Knew from the first 10 seconds this would be rough. I don't like country music for the most part, but accept that there are some good songs and artists of the genre. This is not one of those artists.
I prefer more folk style country music when I do listen to it. This is like line dancing music and might make for a good time at a barn dance, but that's the kinda good time I personally try to avoid.
1 star
Solid album with some classic tracks on it. Massively influential on both hip-hop and metal.
She Watch Cgannel Zero?! Clearly influenced a lot of the rap metal/nu-metal that came in the 90s.
4/5 again I feel that some of the hip-hop albums from this era just go on a little too long with some tracks having repetitive features.
White Girl is a great song and I enjoyed the album it was a fun listen. Wouldn't say I'd listen to it again, but I can see its influence on later bands.
Some songs remind me of The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster.
3 stars. Not bad, but not one I'll listen to again.
Some classic tracks on here which are timeless classics. Not something I would listen to over and over though.
3 stars
This was a good find on the list. Can't believe this album escaped me back then, although I was mainly listening to metal at the time.
Really enjoyed this and looking forward to becoming more acquainted with it going forwards.
4 stars, but a strong 4.
Great album, enjoyed it from start to finish.
He would have laughed is a contender for one of the greatest closing songs to an album.
Easy 5 stars.
There were times when I didn't know what was going on and it felt like nothing went together, but the more I listened the better it got.
I think this is an album that will grow on me, it already has.
4 stars
Older country is definitely better than new country. I didn't mind this, it was a nice album to have on in the background whilst I cooked and the wife washed up after a tough day for us both.
Never going to be my favourite genre, but I'll give this a solid 3.
Great album, owned this at the time. Screams 90s. Might be a bit of a take, but it's the last of the albums for me from that period that still retains that 90s alternative vibe.
It falls short of a 5 as some songs are a bit weaker. A solid 4 though.
Another slide guitar infused garbage country album. The one classic song on the album, Love Hurts, is again ruined by annoying slide guitar.
1 star
Going to give this 3 stars as there was some good stuff on here in and amongst the country vibes. There were even some slide guitar moments that weren't too bad.
Definitely some tracks on here I'll check out again, overall 3 out of 5
Owned this for years. Definitely a 5 star album for me and one I still play to this day.
I did kinda smile thinking about people listening to this for the first time as they're going to hear that first Francis Black Scream and either love it or hate it.
5 stars, would allow someone to buy me a soda and molest me in a parking lot again.
Really quite enjoyed this and found it hard to believe it came out in 1994 because it feels so ahead of its time.
My main criticism of the hip hop albums I've listened to on this list is that they go on too long, but this one was different.
Solid 4 for me.
On the surface I should love this album, it's weird, whimsical and experimental.
I just found that it went nowhere and nothing really stood out as something I'd want to listen to again.
3 stars due to it being experimental, and reasonably enjoyable.
I personally feel Alice in Chains MTV unplugged is better, but this is still a solid 5 star album for me. It's my era and I love all of the big 4 grunge bands.
5 stars
I largely ignored Santana in my teens even though I was told he is a great guitarist and I was massively into Rock music. I put this down to Smooth being released and it just sounding like a cheesy rock song at the time.
Since then I have heard different things and it's clear he is great guitarist, but this album didn't do that much for me. I feel kinda justified in the fact that I mainly listened to Deep Purple, Hendrix, Led Zep from the same era as they are a lot better in my opinion.
That being said, some great moments on this album and all round I'll give it a 3.
I've seen Coldplay twice and they put on a good show, but I'm not a massive fan. It's very middle of the road music for me. I owned this album when it came out and after a few spins, I rarely played it.
Warning Sign is a great song and the best on the album for me.
3 stars middle of the road.
Can rate this without even listening to it. I bought it when it was released and still listen to it to this day. Great album and perhaps more accessible than some of her other stuff. Some great rock songs mixed with slower and at times a little more experimental songs.
5 stars
Brought up on prog but not listened to Rush as much as some of the pioneers of the genre. That being said, I have heard much of this album randomly over the years.
Really enjoyed this, although some of the synth sounds are a bit of their time.
4 out of 5, solid album.
I listened to this album and it made me pregnant.
Not my cuppa tea I'm afraid.
My era of music so was around when this was playing in the pubs and clubs of the alternative scene back in the day. This is an album I regularly revisit and highly regard. It's a 4 from me, but a solid 4.
Never listened to an album by this band before, but glad I started with this one. Really enjoyed this. It's rocky, but stands apart from the other music of the time. I can hear the influences on bands that came after. I'd like to dig deeper into the lyrics, it seems that there is a lot going on there. 4/5 will definitely explore more.
I like Bob Dylan so it's always going to be a high rating from me. 5 stars.
Only heard Pretty in Pink before which I love. I enjoyed this album and it sits firmly within the styles I like so looking forwards to exploring their discography more. 4/5
Solid little album that mixes several genres of the era well. There are some moments that I feel don't quite work and a personally like the punky parts more. Solid 4/5 though, would listen again.
As a long time Radiohead fan this ranks highly for me. I love all their albums, but this came out at a really interesting time in my life. Politically it felt relevant and it still feels relevant to this day.
What it does well is bridge that gap of the more experimental elements of Kid A and Ambesiac to bring something somehow more recognisable, but at the same time completely different.
It's an easy 5 stars for me, it's one of my favourite albums of all time.
