1001 Albums Summary

STANDOUTS: Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen, Oye como va, Mother's Daughter One of the most effortlessly cool albums ever made. This is the type of album you listen to on a tropical beach in the middle of the summer with no care in the world. No worries nor concerns, just pure smooth psychedelic bliss. I would also like to mention how well this album holds up after over half a century. I'm convinced Carlos Santana is actually a time traveler, because an album like this could be made in 2026 and still feel fresh and unique, let alone 1970. 8.5/10

STANDOUTS: What More Can I Say?, Lilac Wine, Wild Is the Wind Nina Simone is one of the greatest vocalists of the mid-1900s, only really being rivaled by Nat King Cole in my book. That being said, Wild Is the Wind is such a gorgeous album. It really makes you feel like you're sitting in a recliner by the fireplace, reminiscing over the life you've lived so far and yearning for the things you miss. In other words, this is a must-listen, regardless of if you're into vocal jazz or not. 9/10

STANDOUTS: Seven Nation Army, Ball and Biscuit, The Hardest Button to Button Okay everybody and their mother has heard Seven Nation Army, and for good reason I think it's pretty easily the best song on the album, but the rest of the album is pretty solid (although I think I prefer White Blood Cells over this). And one more thing, if you think Meg White is a bad drummer, you know nothing about drumming. 7.5/10

STANDOUTS: Disorder, Day of the Lords, Shadowplay For a band called Joy Division, this album is depressing as hell!! Jokes aside, this album is great, albeit I think it is a bit weaker compared to the works from other post-punk bands like The Cure, Talking Heads, and even Siouxsie and the Banshees. Even then, it's impossible to deny this album's influence and greatness. 7.5/10

STANDOUTS: Gloria's Step, Solar, Alice in Wonderland Peak studying music right here. Listened to this while working on homework and I've never felt more locked in in my life. The sound level of the crowd noise is perfect, it's not too loud where it overpowers the music, which by the way is absolutely gorgeous (especially the bass), but it also prominent enough to provide a bit of natural ambiance, making it feel much livelier than a studio recording. 8/10

STANDOUTS: Desafinado, Samba Dees Days, É luxo só This is the type of music that would be perfect for a candlelight dinner with your partner. It's not the most mind-blowing jazz album out there, but it doesn't need to be. It serves its purpose as a relaxed mix of samba, bossa nova and jazz very well. 7.5/10

STANDOUTS: Alameda, Between the Bars, Say Yes This album is such an anomaly to me. It's depressing as hell (I mean hear the lyrics for yourself they are heartrending), yet the album still feels getting a hug from a loved one after being touch starved for years. The melodies are perfectly melancholic, to the point where it feels impossible for me to listen to this album without at least humming the songs. I think Say Yes, my personal favorite song on the album, exhibits this perfectly. It's a song about hoping to salvage a relationship after a breakup (maybe a bit more optimistic than the rest of the album but still not a happy topic by any means), and Elliott Smith accompanies this bittersweet song with merely a guitar, strumming possibly the most gorgeous set of chords I've ever heard. It simultaneously feels like both a gut punch and a warm embrace, an experience that is unique to Either / Or. In my opinion, there's a decent chance there will never be another singer-songwriter on the level of Elliott Smith. May he rest in peace. 10/10

STANDOUTS: I Don't Know What It Is, Go or Go Ahead, Dinner at Eight I have nothing against music that feels theatrical, for example I think this is quite comparable to something like Illinois by Sufjan Stevens in terms of theatrics, which is an album I absolutely adore. My problem with Want One is that its theatrics is the only thing it has going for it. Rufus Wainwright isn't a particularly great vocalist in my opinion, and his songwriting, while not bad, is noticeably weaker than the songwriting of similar artists. This results in an album that sounds just fine but feels like it's missing something. 5.5/10

STANDOUTS: Plástico, Pedro Navaja, Siembra One major flaw about me and the music I have listened to is that I haven't really delved into Latin American music (outside of Reggaeton and MPB). Salsa has never really been on my radar, until now that is. My introduction to Willie Colón is unfortunately a little tragic, because his death (which was actually a few weeks ago at the time of writing this) was my introduction to him. While I didn't have much of a reaction at the time, I can say now that we have lost one of the greats, because this album is nothing short of fantastic. Siembra functions as both a wonderfully catchy record, with some of the most colorful instrumentation I've ever heard, but also as a powerful political statement, with songs like Plástico being critical of the worship of American celebrities and the title track Siembra, which uses the act of planting seeds as a metaphor for creating positive change in the world. The title track hits even harder now, knowing Colón kept true to his and Blades' words, planting seeds that not only brought positive impact to not only music, but the world in general. May he rest in peace and may the seeds he sown grow into the most beautiful flowers. 9/10

STANDOUTS: Gloria, Free Money, Land I don't have much to say about this, but it is a very lesbian album, so here's the transcript for Billy On The Street - Lesbian Lightning Round. "Okay guys now it's time for a special lightning round today I'm running around New York with a pack of wild lesbians. They're going to chase after people with me and help them answer questions. Let's go let's go lesbians Let's go. Sir, sir for a dollar who's sexier, Britney Spears or Kesha? Kesha. Kesha. What do you think lesbian? Kesha. What do you think? Kesha. Yes, here you go here you go correct let's go lesbians let's go. Sir, sir, sir for a dollar, sir for a dollar who's sexier, Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera? Britney Spears. What do you think lesbian? Britney Spears. What do you think? Christina. Oh, oh, what do you think? Christina. What do you think? Britney. Britney the answer is Britney yes here's your dollar yes let's go lesbians let's go here we go lesbians here we go lesbians come on. Miss, Miss for a dollar who's sexier Meryl Streep or Britney Spears? Britney Spears. What do you think lesbians? Britney Spears. What do you think? Uh, Meryl Streep. What do you think? Give me Streep. What? Give me Streep. Streep. What do you think? Streep. The answer is Meryl Streep let's go let's go lesbians. Oh my God lesbians, lesbians move out of my way. Oh miss, miss for a dollar who's sexier Adam Scott or Ronald Reagan? Ronald Reagan what do you think lesbian? Uh, Ronald Reagan. What do you think? Ronald Reagan. Adam Scott or Ronald Reagan? Scott. What do you think? Reagan. The answer is Adam Scott, you're wrong let's go let's go here we go rounding the corner with a bunch of lesbians here we are Manhattan can you handle it? Oh sir, sir for a dollar who's a better host Steve Harvey or Terry Gross? Harvey. What do you think lesbians? Steve Harvey. What do you think? Steve Harvey. What do you think? Steve Harvey. What do you think? Terry Gross. The answer is Steve Harvey here's a dollar let's go lesbians let's go let's go lesbians excuse me lesbians coming through watch out. Miss, Miss for a dollar who's better Emma Stone or Taylor Swift? Taylor Swift. What do you think lesbians. Taylor Swift. What do you think? Taylor Swift. What do you think? Oh the- the answer is Emma Stone let's go she's wrong these two Lesbos always wrong lesbians we're going to circle the corner lesbians move out of here I got lesbians coming through. Sir for a dollar who do you prefer Emma Stone or Taylor Swift or Anne Hathaway? Who is it? Anne Hathaway. What do you think lesbian? Anne Hathaway. What do you think lesbian? Emma Stone. Oh here comes slow lesbian look who just got here what do you think? Emma Stone. The answer is Anne Hathaway, yes you Inn take it take it let's go lesbians let's go oh lesbians Jews lesbians, lesbians Jews, careful lesbians and Jew lesbians and Jews hi Jews we're lesbians let's go. 7.5/10

STANDOUTS: Take It Easy, Nightingale, Peaceful Easy Feeling Take It Easy and Peaceful Easy Feeling are pretty good, but outside of that, it kinda blows. To quote The Dude, "I've had a rough night, and I hate the fucking Eagles man." 5/10

STANDOUTS: What's Going On, What's Happening Brother, Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) There's nothing I can really say about What's Going On, the music speaks for itself. I had trouble picking out three "standouts," just because the album is perfection from front to back. If you haven't listened to this before, do it immediately, and if you have already listened to it before, do it again damn it!!! 10/10