1001 Albums Summary

Still a solid listen. I haven’t heard it all the way through since it was released. Several 5s and 4s, only a couple of less interesting songs, but nothing that brings the album down or slows the momentum. I’m still not a big fan of zydeco. 4.5

When you’re a teenage boy and you discover drugs this is what you want. It’s like it was written and produced for you. Then you get into stuff like noise rock, ambient and minimalism and Pink Floyd seem like pretentious wankers. You hear yourself saying absurd things like “I only like Syd Barrett era Floyd”. Then you get older and you realize all music is pretentious… or, none of it is. It’s the listener who is applying their own bullshit hang ups and judgements on everything. I didn’t say it was a profound revelation or whatever. So, why is this record good? There might be some context application required for you younger folks… but, it’s hard to listen to listen to this album without listening to the whole thing. It’s like a whole piece of music compiled of mini suites. I’m at an age where I have a teenage son of my own… technically not a teenager anymore. I think Pink Floyd, like them or not, is a necessary step in a popular music education. Dark Side Of The Moon is on one end of the spectrum. This album represents experimentation, innovation, creativity and a desire in self belief to create something elevated and meaningful… yes, that sounds pretentious and I guess it is, but I guarantee that most musicians operate with this belief whether they sound like Pink Floyd or the Ramones. Both bands have 5star records. This is a 5. Your hate only feeds its greatness.

I don’t like what Chicago became, but this album is ok. Terry Kath rules!

Not my cup of tea. It’s like if Thornton Wilder wrote musicals or a less cool Scott Walker.

Great. Not as good as ATliens or Aquemini, but excellent.

Fantastic! Guitar driven British power pop in the tradition of The Who. One of the best of the 90s BritPop wave. 4.5 I have to save my 5 star ratings for perfect albums, but this is close.

I like noise rock and more avante genres of music, but this was a little too repetitive and I’m not a huge fan of blast beats. It was enjoyable. I just like something a little more dynamic.

Solid listen. Not my favorite by Steely Dan, but very good.

Solid. Brilliant. The prototype for the greatness of 90s hip hop.

I forgot how good this was. Pretty great throughout. Last couple of songs kind of throw the brakes on the momentum, but very good overall.

Superbly pleasant. Listened on a rainy morning while drinking coffee. The musicianship is sublime. Locked in. Listen to Jimmy Smith.

Not a fan. Sorry. Meh.

Perfect album. One of the best of the first psychedelic era

More like Bored of Canada. Just kidding. Mellow. No. Offensive, Chill.

Great album. Ground breaking. Almost a 5. Starts strong but small decline toward the end of side 2.

Not my thing, but I see its value. I’m feeling generous.

Same as previous. I need to be in the right mood for this. It’s good for what it is, just not something I would choose to listen to unless I was in some very specific circumstances. Still feeling generous.

3 really great songs, 4 very good songs, 1 ok song. I’ll let everyone else decide which ones they are.

Side 1 is so great. Heavy funk, incredible version of Walk On By. Side 2 explores the romantic elements of r&b beautiful string arrangements and horns. 4.5

Decent for a later period U2 album. Pretty average compared to their early, more energetic output. 3.5

I love this album. This revitalized Neil and his on again, off again band, Crazy Horse and solidified his influence on the new generation. Recorded live in Neil’s barn, it does sound like a bunch of geezers jamming, but it’s the best band of geezers there is. I’m trying to be reasonable with my rating considering the quality and weight of Neil’s discography. As much as I’d like to give it a 5, I think a 4 is more reasonable, but it’s great.

Not a huge fan, but these first 2 records are undeniably good. I know the 3rd record is everyone’s favorite, but I feel like it’s bloated and overproduced. Their first record will always be my favorite. This one is a 4.4

It’s a fun record from the early 70s glam era, with a little more pub rock feel. I’ll give it a solid 3.7

3 great songs, 9 very average songs

Most people don’t have much regard for this album compared to the totality of Zeppelin’s oeuvre, but I love it. I like that aren’t trying to punch you in the head with riffs on riffs and thundering drums. They’re bringing the folk and their third album. Jimmy playing a lot of acoustic here, Jonsey is bringing the mandolin and synths and Bonham is downright subdued. No orgasmic caterwauling from Plant (just a little Viking battle cry). 4.7^

Boring. The vocals are annoying. Song structure is flat. No dynamics. All the songs are the same. I want to be nice, but I just don’t like it.

This thoroughly enjoyable album is the pinnacle of the outlaw country movement featuring its best representative and singer in Waylon Jennings and its greatest songwriter in Billy Joe Shaver, who harassed Jennings until he agreed to record his songs.

Incredible. Quite possibly the best album of the first wave of the post punk era. Dark and menacing, but also upbeat and danceable? Great bass lines and sharp, angular guitars. Snotty vocals. Great. 4.8 (I’m bumping it up to 5 because it’s one of my all-time favorites)

I’m getting a lot of albums I like a lot. Some of my most favorites. I’m afraid this thing is front loaded and going to get a bunch of garbage at the end, but I know… I got a long way to go. Lou Reed is one of my most favorite songwriters of all time. I know he’s kind of divisive artist, but I’ve never let that be a deterrent. Most of my favorite artists are notorious grumps with unconventional singing voices, but isn’t that more interesting? It’s like getting the news from a grizzled, trustworthy old school journalist over some plastic, smiling talking head with perfectly coiffed hair. You just know they’re lying. Lou Reed ain’t lying. He’s giving it to you straight. The ugly truth. Street level. Lou Reed is the Edward R. Murrow of rock and roll. If he says “I thought I was someone else, someone good”, it cuts deep… Perfect Day, what an incredible song. This album is like the punch in the gut that you didn’t know you needed. 4.7^

Incredible live album by Van the man. This one kind of gets forgotten when talking about the greatest live albums of all-time, but it deserves to be up there with Live at Leeds or At Filmore East. Van Morrison at his peak as a live performer. 4.5

Great band. Woefully underrated. This is generally considered their best album, but the have many as good (or maybe better) and they even better live. I saw them on tour with Iron & Wine (who they’ve also recorded with). If you like this, dig deep. It’s worth it. 4.4

Not my favorite kind of music, but pleasant. Excellent musicianship and arrangements. I could do without the strings on the title track.

The The is one of those bands I’m supposed to like, but it never clicked. I can’t really explain it other than there are other bands from the genre and time period that do the same thing, but better. Dude’s vocals get on my nerves a bit. This Is The Day is great song though.

Whatever genre of music this is… I don’t like it. It’s lightweight and no substance pop music. It’s not unpleasant. I just does nothing for me. There is music adjacent to this that I do like.. say, Cocteau Twins, but the depth is night and day. 2.5

Definitely the style of hip hop I like the most. 5 was west coast but shared a lot of the same vibe and influence as the soul informed groups of the 90s. I like this album, but I’m putting it below those top tier albums. Still, very good. 3.7 (I’ll bump it to 4)

Brilliant album by a songwriting master. Almost perfect. There’s a couple of lightweight songs, but they don’t bring down the overall greatness of the Album and the great songs are pop masterpieces. Truly one of my favorite albums. 4.8 I’m bumping it up to a 5.

Prior to this record, I just thought Radiohead was ok. I saw them open for R.E.M. on the Monster tour, they were supporting The Bends. They were just ok. Not a great live band, but enjoyable. Then I bought OK Computer on a whim. I was floored. It’s a perfect album. Honestly, Fitter Happier is not a great stand alone song, but in context, it’s obviously relevant. 4.9

Oh, boy… I don’t like this. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now. It’s like everything I didn’t like about the second half of the 90s chopped up into a soup with no regard for compatibility or flavor profile and it’s still also very bland. If a pair of JNCO jeans became sentient and made music it would sound like this. I do think I finally understand why people who listened to this were so angry, I’m angry. This is making me angry. I’m an angry teenager with labret piercing and my parents are dumb. They don’t understand. Nobody understands. It’s kind of funny though. I’ll be nice and give it a 2.5 for the effort… oh, the effort. I’m not rounding up.

Heavily influenced by the Jimi Hendrix, Clapton formed this power trio with top musicians, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker and made the best album of their short career. Clapton makes his best music when he’s inspired by other musicians which didn’t happen enough. This album is great though. 4.5

I’m from Texas. ZZ Top is the official rock band of Texas. OK, that’s probably not true, but if you’re from Texas and you don’t like ZZ Top, you have to leave once you turn 18. That’s not true either, but if you don’t like ZZ Top there’s probably something wrong with you and you’re not fun to be around. Seriously, how can you not like ZZ Top?! What genre is ZZ Top? Funky Texas Blues Rock Boogie? How fun does that sound? Pretty fun. Two weird beards and one guy named Beard who didn’t have a beard?! Again, fun. Also, if you were a teenage boy in the 80s, those videos were pretty great. I like ZZ Top. I would like them even if I wasn’t from Texas. 4.6

Great album. 6 perfect songs, 4 very good songs and my favorite Smiths song is on this album. I’m not going to reveal the answers to any of these suppositions. I’m going to be dodgy and unpredictable like Morrissey

I had never heard this record. Really good. I like Midlake who back up Grant (former singer/songwriter for the Czars) and convinced him to end his hiatus and make this record. It’s a little uneven, but there are some great songs here. Sigourney Weaver and Chicken Bones are standouts. 3.7

Love Joni Mitchell! Incredible voice. Great songwriter. Fantastic guitar player. This album is nearly perfect. 4.5

I like Queen. This wasn’t one of my favorite Queen album, but I liked it more than I remembered. Solid 4

Great album. This is the Byrds in transition. David Crosby, Michael Clarke and Gene Clark becoming revolving door members leaving Mcguinn and Hillman toexplore a simplified approach and experimenting with country instrumentation. Great guest guitar work from James Burton and Clarence White and pedal steel by Red Rhodes, but also mixing in some Moog synthesizer. It’s an interesting approach and turns out to be extremely influential. 4.6

I still say this is as good as it got for Oasis. So much potential. I saw them at a small club in Texas on this tour. Amazing. All attitude and hooks. Then the audience got bigger and so did the egos. Which is fine. You have to believe to succeed, but to me they lost that real swagger and replaced with a more performative version. They had some great songs after this, but it was a decline in quality and effort. Solid 4

This album is so great. They cover so much musical ground here. They bring the noise (and Chuck D). Kim Gordon attacking misogyny in hip hop and left wing politics all in the same song. The guitars are all at once wild and expressive, but still well in control. The drums are composed in service of the song like an alternative/noise rock version of Ringo Starr. The songs are alternatively and simultaneously accessible and challenging. It’s an impressive feat. I’ve calculated 4.7 because there’s a couple of songs that go against the flow without derailing the album, but I’m bumping it up to a 5 because it’s such a great and important album.

I’m a little puzzled at this selection when House Of GVSB and Freak*on*ica are floating around out there. Good on GVSB for crawling their way out of the DC hardcore scene and having the good sense to relocate to NYC, expand their sound and make more interesting music, but this isn’t quite the peak of that experiment. It is a good jump from their first record, but not quite there. They peaked with the two aforementioned records and kind of just leveled off. Some bands just occupy a verse specific space in time and GVSB dodged grunge and ducked Nu Metal, but missed the Indie Rock train of the early 2000s and just fizzled out. They were a breath of fresh air for a couple of years. Some bands never get that. Hooray for GVSB! 3.4

Another band with “hardcore” roots, another odd representative album choice. fIREHOSE formed after the incredible Minutemen had dissolved after the tragic death of singer/guitarist D. Boon. Fan of the band and guitarist, Ed Crawford of Ohio (as referenced in the album title) convinced bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley to start playing music again. On a personal note, I was very excited about fIREHOSE because I was such a big fan of Minutemen. I was a teenager at the time and although I listened to a lot of punk, outside of a handful of bands, I never really connected to the hardcore scene. A lot of those bands I liked were on the SST label, but unlike a lot of those bands, Minutemen were different. More musical, minimalist drawing from a broader range of influences funk, jazz, r&b and punk, but not like anyone else. fIREHOSE kept the same blueprint but formed an identity of their own. I, personally would have gone with Ragin’ Full On or Flyin The Flannel, but Fromohio is very good. Listen to fIREHOSE.Listen to Minutemen. 4.5

I discovered Nick Drake in the early 90s He was for me, like Jeff Buckley was for most people of my generation. I’m no Anglophile , but I love British musicians and songwriters who don’t shy away from their roots. Ray Davies is another one. I learned more about life in England from Kinks records than any Dickens novel. Drake was incredibly efficient. He released three perfect albums and met a tragic end. He had a beautiful voice, was a phenomenal guitar player and wrote amazingly deep and sorrowful songs. One of These Things First is one of my most favorite songs. 4.7 I’m bumping to 5 to upset the algorithm.

I have to admit, I didn’t really connect to Minor Threat when they were active. I didn’t identify with the hardcore scene outside of a handful of bands like the Minutemen (who were only hardcore adjacent), Bad Brains, Circle Jerks and a few others and at 13 I was gravitating to more melodic music in the alternative area. Also, I grew about 3” that summer and got very awkward on the skateboard. It wasn’t until I heard Fugazi that I went back and listened to Minor Threat with more interest. Out Of Step is an influential release. You can hear it in a lot of the alternative rock that came out in the 90s. The songwriting is a step above a lot of their contemporaries. 4.3

Ok. I don’t like this kind of pop music. It all sounds the same to me. It’s ok while I’m listening to it. What I mean by that is that it’s unobjectionable… most of the time. It just doesn’t stick to me. I forget about it seconds after I hear it. There’s usually no musical hook. It’s just kind of moves forward without going anywhere. That being said… this is probably as good as this style of pop music is going to get. This lady is a great singer. I get it. She sings with so much emotion and power. It’s moving. Almost manipulative. If you’re heartbroken or one of your parents just died, don’t listen to this… or do if you want to cry. You’re going to cry. Maybe that’s what you need. It’s sad piano music for people who need a good cry, but if you’re one of those emotionally healthy people who needs to cry a lot, this is as good as it gets. I don’t want to cry. I have things to do today. 3.3

I La La love Pixies. What a great band. So influential. I remember the first time I heard this record. I couldn’t even fully process it. What are they even doing? What are these songs about? Mutilation? Scuba Diving? Big Dicks? Is that Spanish? Why do I like it? Who is this Black Francis character? Why doesn’t the bassist sing more songs? This guitar player is great! That drummer swings! I like this band. A lot. 4.8 ^

I have to be honest… of the big 4 “grunge” (whatever that means) bands, Nirvana is the only one who can hold my interest for a whole album (maybe I’m basic, but I like them hooks). Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Alice In Chains all have great songs, but getting through a whole album is a bit of a slog (which could have been a better descriptor for the Seattle music scene… Slog Rock!). That being said Dirt is a damn good record and, as far as I’m concerned, AIC’s best (I do like that Sap EP though). However, there’s a few songs that bring it down. If this album was 10 or 11 songs deep, it’d be near perfect. 3.9

Classic 90’s hip hop. Soulful. Great rhymes. It’s a little dated… just a little. The best thing this record did was introduce the Lady Ms. Lauryn Hill to the world. I would rather listen to The Miseducation. 3.7

I love R.E.M. I remember seeing them on the original Letterman Late Night show in ‘83 of the last century. They became my favorite band. I feel like I’m almost at the age where I can really lean into it, but I haven’t gone grey or shrunk five inches yet. I’m looking forward to it, but I digress. I was 13 and from a place where you had two kinds of music you could listen to. It was country, or metal, or you were a pariah. I was a pariah. I listened to little metal (I didn’t get country yet, but that changed), I also listened to a lot of stuff that I didn’t really talk about in mixed company. The radio and MTV were ok to watch just be careful about which artists you talk about at school lest your sexuality come into question. There were small enclaves of kids who liked different kinds of music with a little bit of crossover and my close friends who were very open about music. It should come as no surprise that the few gay kids at my school were in the cool music club. R.E.M. was one of those bands that the cool kids liked, but might get you punched or looked at like you had antlers growing out of your head. I remained an R.E.M. fan throughout the IRS years and through the Warner Brothers years even though I missed the jangly folk rock, they held my interest through all the evolution toward a more polished production and overtly pop sound. Automatic For the people was the biggest step to date. The album was darker in tone, in sound and lyrical content. I didn’t know if I liked it the first time I heard it. It took awhile for me to adjust. It was very different. I came to really love it, but I’m still adjusting to it. It’s not the first R.E.M. record I usually pull off the shelf, but every time I do, it still surprises me. It’s one of the few records that makes me feel like that. 4.7

Lovefool was a huge in 1996. Everybody loved it. Grandmas, little kids, soccer moms. It was a huge hit. It was on movie soundtracks. Just a perfect little pop song. And like all good pop songs, everyone got sick of it, but it’s probably been long enough that people like it again. The good news is the Cardigans didn’t let themselves be defined by Lovefool. The bad news is the rest of this album is kind of uneventful. 3.3

What can I say about Jimi? So brilliant and otherworldly. This album catches him stretching out and experimenting. The psychedelic fuzzed out rock is still present, but so is some more jazz and more traditional blues. It’s hard to definitively pick my favorite Hendrix album, but it’s probably this. 4.8^

NEU! is one of those bands I slept on for a long time. I think when I was a teenager I thought krautrock, prog rock and electronic music was all kind of similar and I wouldn’t like it, but I remember reading articles and interviews with bands and artists I did like and NEU! Kept popping up. I would hear a sound here and there, but that didn’t solidify my perception because they all sound like a different band. Once I hit my 20s I started feeling more experimental and liked challenging myself I got into NEU! and all those deterrents became dividends. This album has a lot of variety, but it’s also really solid and steady with different themes and moods but it never feels disparate. It’s great. I recommend. 4.7^

I have to admit I was a little disappointed with Kid A when it came out. I really liked OK Computer and I was expecting another big guitar record. It seemed like too much of a left turn at the time, but now it seems like a natural progression. I think it helped to hear these songs live and living amongst the OKC and Bends songs. I really liked Kid A now, but I still like OK Computer and In Rainbows a little bit more. 4.6

Boring. I have yet to hand out a 1. I know it’s coming, but not today!

There are three great songs here. The rest are very good. Beautiful harmonies, maybe the best behind the Everly Brothers. 3.8^

What a voice.Soulful. Incredible Memphis musicians. It’s one of those records that is drenched in quality and authenticity, but still appeals to a broad audience. It probably converted more than a few housewives into soul/r&b fans. 4.2

Stevie Wonder could not be more aptly named. This run of albums from Music Of My Mind (my personal favorite) through Songs In The Key Of Life is incredible. Talking Book isn’t the best of the five and it’s hard not to compare them, but it possesses a few of his best songs. Innervisions and SITKOL are more solid albums, but who else can claim a run of 5 albums this good? Dylan? Beatles? Stones? Bowie? Tough company and Stevie played most, if not all, the instruments on these records. Amazing. 3.7 ^

This album makes a strong case for Pulp being deserving of the best BritPop band of the 90’s. More clever than Oasis. Weirder than Blur. More sophisticated than everyone else. Heir to the throne of bands like the Kinks, the Jam and the Smiths as chroniclers of life in Britain. Jarvis Cockers lyrics are raw and pointed. The music is simple but bombastic at the same time arrangement of spikey synths, sweeping guitars and drums building into crescendos like some kind of bizarre, art show musical production. Pulp doesn’t get their well deserved recognition, but they are great and this album is their magnum opus. 4.5

I love Margo Timmins voice. I like how Cowboy Junkies disturbed the alternative rock scene by lowering the volume. I love their music taste that shows in the songs they cover. I love their original music. They are one of a kind. They started a quiet revolution and opened the door for the alternative country scene that stumbled in after them. I saw them play in the 90s at my favorite grubby club and it was the first and only time I saw them put folding chairs out on the floor. The Cowboy Junkies demand that you sit and listen. Please be quiet.

Speaking of great voices… Sarah Vaughan in a smoky Chicago club with a trio of great musician playing all the right notes and only the right notes? Yes, please.

What can I say? I think Grace only touched the surface of this dude’s talent. It’s tragic that his potential was cut short. 4.4

The Ramones were first and had more endurance, but Nevermind The Bollocks is the sound of the first cannon fire of a revolution. The Pistols were born to die in a brave, glorious explosion. Unfortunately, the end was more like a whimpering gasp and the legacy keeps dragging itself out like a reflection in a thoroughly smudged mirror. Props to Steve Jones for being a good enough musician to make this record a John Lydon for capturing the disenfranchisement of youth in seventies UK. Style over substance is the lesson learned here and Neil nailed it when he said “It’s better to burn out than fade away”. The Sex Pistols epitomize both sides of that enduring principle. 4.4

Sex Pistols and Dead Kennedys back to back. It’s very fitting because I’ve always viewed Jello Biafra as a more jovially sardonic predecessor to John Lydon. As much as I was turned off by the hardcore punk scene, mostly the invasion of the jock punks, boneheads and the macho, aggressive atmosphere, there were great bands that came out of that scene and called out the toxicity of the scene. DK and Biafra were at the forefront of that sentiment. Incredibly self aware and journalistic lyricism and funny the Dead Kennedys seemed to exist to antagonize the scene they found themselves in, but more than that, they were critics of the corporate consumerism and political conservatism of the 80s. The represented what I liked about what was being touted as hardcore punk. The labels are meaningless. As Nirvana showed a decade later, you don’t choose your audience, they choose you and you have two choices. 4.4

Ray Charles had been a professional musician since the age of 15, but his recording career started later. He was 27 when his first record came out on Atlantic Records. This album came out two years later. Of course, for people in the know, Ray Charles was a badass, but I like to imagine people first exposure to Ray being this album. “Genius?! Who does this guy think he is?!” And then they put it on… Let the good times roll indeed. Charles is cutting up some jazz standards with a loud, heavy cats. Dudes that played with Duke and Basie. This wasn’t your mother’s bid band. This ain’t Glenn Miller. Genius? You betcha. It’s not bluster if you back it up. Side 2 adds some strings to the mix for some soulful ballads and the best version of Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Cryin’ you’ll ever hear. Who does this dude think he is? Ray mother fucking Charles, that’s who.

The Rolling Stones are probably the greatest rock and roll band ever. It’s pretty hard to argue against it. You certainly can’t say they haven’t endured. The Stones, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney… they seem to be in some kind of geriatric race against the grim reaper. The Rolling Stones have survived through their blues based beginnings, pop, folk, psychedelia, country rock, funk, punk, disco and for 80+ year olds, they still sound remarkably fresh. Let It Bleed is the Rolling Stones figuring out who they’re going to be going forward. The sixties are coming to a close. They dabbled in flower power and psychedelic rock, but now the darkness is closing in. Gimme shelter… it’s like a prophecy. We all need someone we can lean on. You can’t always get what you want. Midnight rambler… Things are getting dark. The Beatles and Brian Jones will be gone in a year and the Stones are making their best records regardless. They will revolutionize the idea of the rock and roll road show as sound system technology catches up. They will roll with changes and adapt to every new sound in popular music without ever losing the core of their own unique qualities. This album was a big step forward. 4.7 I’m just going to give this a 4 because I know Sticky Fingers and Exile On Main Street are coming. Although it’s probably better than some 5s I’ve cavalierly doled out.

The Unplugged series is pretty hit and miss and there’s probably more misses than hits. Nirvana’s performance was one of the best. Glowing through the shadow of Cobain’s death, it transcends the television broadcast and stands alone as a live recording. Cobain performs like he might be aware of his fate and legacy and the band delivers subtle and beautiful arrangements of selections from their catalog and incredible choices of covers of Vaselines, David Bowie, Leadbelly and Meat Puppets joined by the “brothers meat”. Cobain gives one of his best performances, Grohl plays with subtlety without losing power m, Novoselic is a solid melodic anchor (and pretty decent accordion player, while punk icon Pat Smear gives Cobain acoustic support. Every song is a killer especially the last spine chilling performance of Where Did You Sleep Last Night. It’s as superb as it is somber considering the incredible loss of an artist with so much potential.

I have to admit… I love Neil Young. I like his voice. It’s unique, beautiful, fragile. He’s a great, expressive guitar player and distinctive whether he playing acoustic or electric. I don’t understand people who don’t like his voice, criticize his style or doesn’t understand his influence. This is a great album. Something about this period really hits me hard. I listened to this album a lot whe I was 18-19 and going through some tough times. Neil pulled me out of the spiral many times. How could this world be that bad if Neil young is in it. I’m wearing a Neil Young shirt as type this. Did I mention I love Neil Young?

Ok. This is what I’m here for! Something I’ve never heard of that I’m going to like! I’m excited!…. Uh oh… what is this? It sounds like if Jack White and Bjork did a side project, but Jack didn’t show up and Bjork half-assed it. Is this supposed to be spooky? This song is literally single notes on a synth with 2/4 hits on the zap effect on a drum machine while some creep is whispering in my ear. Ew. This is pretty low effort stuff. I’m pretty bored. I’m starting to think I’m not going to hear anything I like that I don’t know already. Come generator! Generate something new and good! This sucks.

Every time I listen to T Rex, I wonder why I bother listening to anything else. Marc Bolan is like if Buddy Holly was born 10 years later did a bunch of drugs and wrote songs about wizards and dragons. T Rex is the apex of the glam rock era. I like to boogie. 4.7

Desert Blues is my most favorite world music genres. I first got into African rock music in the 90s, through a co-worker at a Caribbean restaurant who was from Zimbabwe who got me into Fela. I would show him bands like The Clash and Velvet Underground. Later on, I found those Zamrock! comps and just got interested rock music from Africa. Another coworker introduced Group Inerane and I got into Tuareg and desert blues. It’s so interesting to hear blues rock return to its roots. Instead of American blues with straight forward 2/4 beats, this Polyrhythmic closer to funk with emphasis on the one. Circular, arpeggiated guitar parts and loops. I love this stuff. 4.3

Why are metal records produced so poorly? The drums especially sound so thin, cymbals are washed out, the bass drum are so compressed, the guitars are muddy. I don’t like this style of vocals, but I would like a lot more if everything else was recorded and mixed as well as the vocals. This is actually good. The drummer is insane. The guitar player is pretty great. The bass player… do they have bass player. I can’t hear one. I want to like this more, but the production sucks. Sorry, guys. 2.5

This is one of those records that is better if you’re in the proper mood, but if you’re in the proper mood, you’re not doing so good. It’s a great album, if you want to hear some suicidal alcoholic on LSD music. It’s dark in here, buddy. This is going to sound weird, but I think I prefer a happier Robert Smith. This album is great though… somehow. 4.5

In contrast to Pornography, this is a joyous celebration of funk. Sly Stone didn’t create funk, give it up for James Brown, but he distilled funk into its final form and George Clinton put on a rocket to outer space. This album is perfect for your next party. Unless your parties suck. Think about it. 4.5

Like a lot of people, I became aware of Beta Band from hearing Dry The Rain from that scene in High Fidelity. This album doesn’t have anything on it that would make me buy it if I heard it while record shopping, but it’s very good. It’s the most solid 4 I’ve heard so far. Not 3.9. Not 4.1. Just a solid 4.

I think this is my favorite Bob Marley record. The original zippo lighter cover art is super cool. It rivals Sticky Fingers and caused less damage. Some of Marley’s best songs are featured, but The Barrett Brothers rhythm section is the winning element here. 4.2

My dad had a subscription to Rolling Stone magazine and liked reading the album reviews to see if he was missing out on any new music. He was a bit of a risk taker so, often he would buy an album based on the review and if he didn’t like it, he would give it to me. That’s how I got The Clash and London Calling. I think he got both because he couldn’t remember which one was reviewed or the London Calling review was so good, he took a chance… anyway, he didn’t like it. He didn’t buy any punk records after that, but I liked it and I bought punk records. I already had a couple of Ramones records. Dad probably regretted giving me those Clash records, but if he did, he didn’t mention it. He was more concerned about Metal for some reason. It was the 80s and there was all that satanic panic nonsense…. I reassured him I wasn’t a master of the dark arts, and that was the end of it. None of this has anything to do with the Clash’s first album which I said I like… not as much as London Calling, but it’s still very good. 4.5

I thought there was a “no compilations” rule here. OK… welol go about King Of The Delta Blues or The Great Twenty-Eight then. The Hives are pretty cool regardless of the rule breaking.

Belle &Sebastian really occupy a specific time and space in my music listening experience. The late 90s were interesting. There were a lot of different genres popping up as the reign of “grunge” dissolved into Nü metal and the heavier rock bands took a back seat to more pop oriented genres. One of the more more interesting subgenres was twee pop and Belle & Sebastian was the king/queen of twee. I really got into them for a bit, but I hardly ever listen to them now. I don’t know why. This is definitely their best album. 4.8

I love Iggy. What can I say? What would music be like if Iggy didn’t form the Stooges? We would’ve gotten here, but it would be different. Less interesting. Not as fun. Iggy makes music like if Godard and Bo Diddley made a movie together, but the medium was the light of a roaring fire illuminating the wall of a cave. Like a visionary primitive. Lust For Life covers all our primal urges through an art nouveau filter. It’s minimalistic abstraction. Everyone thank whatever higher power you believe in for Iggy Pop.

So many times over the last 20 some-odd years, I’ve tried to listen and receive new hip hop with the freshest ears I can imagine, but for the most part, I can’t connect. It’s not that I’m too old because I’m in tune with culture, even though I don’t personally like much of it. I’m pleased to declare that I connect to this record. Lamar pays attention to details like my favorite hip hop artists do and, most importantly, it’s soulful and musical in composition. This a really good record. There’s a couple of dead spots, but it’s got a good flow and I never got bored. 4.6

Cheap Trick was my favorite band when I was a kid. Everyone else liked KISS (who I always thought never musically lived up to their image) but, I thought Cheap Trick was more authentic and fun. It’s kind of crazy that both bands made it big off of live albums. It’s a different energy that’s hard to capture in a studio. Cheap Trick was also the first concert I saw without my parents. I know a lot of people don’t get this band and I’m not trying to change anyone’s mind, but if you don’t like Cheap Trick, even a little bit, you’re no fun to be around. Sorry. I don’t make the rules. 4.3

This isn’t Dire Straits best album (that title belongs to Making Movies imo), or their biggest hit (Brothers In Arms), or their most experimental (Love Over Gold), but it is a calling card. Mark Knopfler is the new gunfighter in town, he’s got skills and they’re all on full display. Fast and effervescent as Hank Marvin, sweet and clean as B.B. King and picking fingers like Chet Atkins. A new guitar god has arrived. If Sultans Of Swing was the only song on this album he still would made his point. 4.3

1988 was weird year. All the early 80s Pop, New Wave and Metal was falling off in favor of something more honest and authentic. Along comes Tracy Chapman. Authentic, earnest, sincere… folk rock? What do you know? Powerful voice. Fast Car and Baby Can I Hold You are clear winners. 3.6

I love Alice Cooper. The first and the best original shock rocker, but not just a showman. He had great songs. Again… album choice not the best. Why not Billion Dollar Babies or Welcome To My Nightmare or one of the early ones when Alice Cooper was the name of the band and not his persona. I don’t want to complain too much because this project seems like lot of work went into it, but Alice deserves more. He’s not just some creepy old guy that hangs out with Johnny Depp. He’s a foundational and influential rock star. 3.7

Essential soul. These guys didn’t just make groovy instrumental soul music, they were the house band for Stax Records. The driving force behind Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Albert King… they were major badasses. 3.8

The Beatles try to be deliberately anti-art and avant/garde but wind up inventing 13 alternative rock subgenres on this double album that hit stores in a plain, white sleeve with no title in 1968. The psychedelic era was over. Raw, sometimes loud, sometimes silly minimalism was the idea. Still reeling from the death of their manager and fresh off a soul searching, inspiring but, also disappointing trip to India, the fab 4 was burned out on everything that came before. There are some arguably low effort, self indulgent songs on this album but, it’s unfair to not consider the White Album in its entirety because the Beatles as the most popular band in the world were ballsy and arrogant enough to make an album that could have alienated everyone and collapse the whole facade of Beatles, but that wasn’t too far away. 4.7^

Solid. A couple of bangers… Jay Z hasn’t ever held my attention outside of a few hooks that make me say, “oh, yeah…” but, this is good record.

I became a Björk fan in ‘92 when I saw the Sugarcubes support U2 on the Zoo TV tour with Public Enemy. I liked the Sugarcubes well enough, but the singer was charismatic, ultra-unique and weird. When Debut came out I had no idea what to expect and I was correct. Björk made a spectacular debut seamlessly blending music styles to create the music perfect atmosphere to hold her sweet, lilting, growling and sometimes chaotic voice and continues to be a singular, musically mercurial dynamo. 4.5

Middle of the road new wave. Two good songs and the best one is a cover… a good cover, but nonetheless… everyone reading this should listen to Gloria Jones’ original version of Tainted Love.

For me, Depeche Mode has always been what I refer to as a singles band. They have a greatest hits record worth of really good songs but listening to one of their albums is a bit of a slog. They have some really good single songs though and Never Let Me Down is one of them. 3.5

The last really great Metallica album. After this they really just got in their own way. Apparently, Cliff Burton was the anchor and aesthete of the group. And Justice… could have been good if they hadn’t restrained their new bass player. They got haircuts and started writing ballads which confused their fans into thinking they were still good, but after that it’s been very hit or miss (mostly miss). Hunting sleepy bears, mocking the suicide of infinitely more talented and relevant musician and making documentaries exposing themselves as dumb babies were not great choices… however, this album and the two previous are classic metal records that everyone should own. RIP Cliff Burton. 4.7

Oh, Mariah… the cover pic is so promising. That voice is sublime even wth all the over singing, vowel stretching, diphthong lingering, melismatic runs… that just goes nowhere. The production is squeaky clean. Bright snare beats, tinkling piano runs, sweeping strings, acoustic guitar runs… it’s so boring. I just don’t like radio friendly r&bish pop. I’m sorry, butterfly. 2.5

Bleh.. There are three good songs out of SEVENTEEN and they didn’t age well. That’s way too many songs. Who does this dude think he is? Natalie Portman’s boyfriend? Moby is a nerdy cretin who was relevant for 6 months and now he insults great songs by great bands because he doesn’t understand their intent. Boo Moby. Boo. 2.3

If someone asked me, “what does experimental pop sound like?”, I’d probably play this album. More focused and less shambolic than the You Made Me Realise EP, but not the fully realized statement of Loveless, Isn’t Anything sounds like a band on the verge of accidental bliss. My Bloody Valentine makes pop songs under the disguise of artsy noise rock. Don’t let them fool you. 4.5

One great song, does not a great album make… However, Rapture is a solid record. A few reviews ago I was not so kind to Mariah Carey and to support my case, I present Sweet Love by Anita Baker. This is how you do it. This song makes me feel like I’m being caressed in a soul sanctuary of divine healing. Ai it’s Baker is like the female vocal equivalent of Barry White. I used to feel ashamed of my love for this song, but I don’t care anymore. It’s the song I like that is least representative of 99.999% of the music I like. The rest of the album is ok. 2.7

“ We are the priests of the Temples of Syrinx!” Rush is the most unintentionally hilarious rock band ever and I mean that in the kindest way imaginable. Side 1 of this album is like the nerd version of Ted Nugent’s Stranglehold. The lyrics are embarrassing, but it rocks. Peart’s fascination with the philosophies of Ayn Rand is an unfortunate source of inspiration, but it’s entirely possible that the direness of objectivism had escaped his interpretation. I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt especially since they went on to make Signals six years later. 3.7

The most impressive thing about Aja is that it’s much more fun to listen to than what I imagine it was to make. Fagan and Becker had 40 different hired guns in and out of the studio because they are “perfectionists” or whatever and give directions like, “I want a shuffle, but not a Chicago or Motown shuffle” or writing songs with so many notes, so close together that they had to hire a 12 fingered guitarist to play on it… ok, that last one is a joke, but listen to the guitars on the title track. At least they had the good sense to not pull any of that finicky bullshit when they convinced Wayne Shorter to play on their record. Despite all the fastidiousness and to their credit, Aja is a great record. It’s like a Jazz starter record. If you like it, you might like actual jazz, but if you already like jazz, you probably think this record is bullshit. I like jazz, but I also like this record. I give it a 4.7.

Beep boop boop beep (repeat 12 times) drums and bass comes in for 24 bars then drops out and beeps and boops get quiet while some ambient noise fades in… a woman’s voice whispers something indecipherable, a phone is left off the hook, the drums and bass come back in, the woman starts whispering again, drums and bass fade beep boop boop beep… just a whole album of that. 12 “songs”! Mr. Orbit made 3 of these? It’s not that I don’t like electronic music, I just need it to be a little more interesting. It’s not awful, but it’s pretty low effort and boring. 2.3

I love Kate Bush. There is no one like her. She’s like a mystical creature out of place in the modern world.

In Utero was hard to listen to for a while. It was just a reminder of someone who had so much talent and promise not being able to find his way through the pain that permeates this record, but it’s so good. Listening to David Berman’s Purple Mountains album and the passing of Steve Albini made me want to hear In Utero again. Maybe gain a new perspective… and I did. What was once abrasive and discordant was overwhelmed by the helplessness and tenderness of the skeletal structure of these songs. It’s still sad and a shame to have lost someone who had such a gift, but it’s an incredible farewell and paired with the Unplugged album, I feel grateful to take what I was given. 4.9^

People like this? I have a headache. The drummer is kind of impressive, but I’m not a big fan of blast beats. There’s nothing appealing about this. It’s no fun. I’m loathe to dole out a 1 rating so, a 2 for the effort it is.

Another very underrated Australian band, the Go-Betweens toiled in the same jangle pop territory as R.E.M. and The Smiths and influential in the twee indie pop bands who came after like the Sundays, Teenage Fanclub and Belle & Sebastian. 16 Lovers Lane was their last album with the original lineup and widely considered their best, but unfortunately, not the commercial breakthrough they were hoping it to be. The album is pleasant nothing quite as good as Cattle & Cane, an early favorite. 3.5

The Everly Brothers are severely underrated as performers and recording artists, highly influential on bands like the Beatles and Beach Boys who prioritized harmony vocals as part of their sound. Too country for rock and roll, too rock and roll for country and pop sensibility to spare, the Everly Brothers might be the first crossover act in pop music and the prototype to the feuding brother trope that would tag the Kinks and Oasis. There are very few vocal harmony duos that can come close to the Everly and they wrote a slew of hits and were the best representatives of the songs of the Felice and Boudleux Bryant songbook. This may be their best single album, but in a career that spanned 30+ years, they are certainly worth a deep dive. 4.1

Motown produced a lot of great music and this album is one of, if not the very best. Marvin Gaye is probably my favorite singer of all time and he’s at his peak here. Soul music as protest via love and understanding. Inspired by the Vietnam war (Marvin’s brother Frankie served in the war as a radio operator/DJ), police brutality (the title track was co-written by Renaldo Benson after witnessing the “Bloody Thursday” event at Berkeley) and the continuing Civil Rights struggle in America. Marvin had decided to make his music mean something and created one of the most powerful music critiques of the era. Supported by the powerful Motown house band, the Funk Brothers, created a perfect balance of storytelling, real world concerns and some of the best music ever recorded. Gaye fought hard to get the title track on the album. Even against Berry Gordy who called it “the worst thing I’ve ever heard”. Gaye threatened to never cut another note for Motown if they didn’t release it and after it sold 100,000 units in its first week and became an unmitigated hit, Gordy had to eat crow and admit he was just afraid of the backlash. This album is more than just the title track, it’s the first soul concept album and one the best albums of any genre ever recorded. 4.8^

To be honest, I’m really only aware of Jah Wobble as the original bassist in PIL and as a session man for tons of other people’s records. I’ve never really explored his solo work. Although, the first track on this album was instantly familiar. It must have received some play on 120 minutes. I’m trying to remember if Sinead O’Connor (who guests on the track) was in the video. Like a lot of alternative artists of his generation, Wobble ventured into the amorphous genre of “world music” which basically white alternative musicians blending music traditions of Africa, India, Jamaica, South America into trance/house dance music to varying degrees of success. Rising Above Bedlam does a pretty decent job of making a tasty pot of world music stew. Songs start out with dub bass and evolve into raga meditations. It was a pleasant listen, but not really my thing. Good for its niche and successful in its ambition, but ultimately, a litttle boring. 3.3

Like most teenage boys who grew up in a specific time frame and discovered the joys of listening to music in an enhanced state of mind, I loved Pink Floyd. Mostly, Meddle-The Wall (the classics), but as my music tastes evolved and got a little less mainstream, I started exploring the lesser known bands of the sixties. Specifically, the psychedelic garage rock that I first became aware of from the Nuggets compilation. The 13th Floor Elevators, The Stooges, The Sonics, MC5, the Triggs and early Pink Floyd. For some reason I never explored it before. Maybe someone told me it sucked or something. Syd Barrett, where have you been all my life? What a goddamn weirdo. I love him. There is no one comparable. Maybe Robyn Hitchcock who is heavily influenced by Syd and, thankfully, not as psychologically fragile. There’s definitely an appeal to listening to music made by someone who is cognitively vulnerable. They go where no one else can possibly imagine. The only real comparison I can think of is Daniel Johnston. There’s others Wesley Willis, Jad Fair, R. Stevie Moore… but there’s only one Syd Barrett. It’s like circus music if the circus was run by mad geniuses on LSD. I love this album. It’s not for everybody. I’m sure I’m in the minority. Therefore, I ll give it a 4.5. Just know in my heart it’s a five.

In the middle of Grunge, Hip Hop, BritPop and boy bands and pop tarts came this unique, well executed and produce little gem that seemed to sound like nothing and everything else all at once. Solid, fun listen. No skips 4.4

I am generally not a fan of electronic music. It’s just too repetitive and unsubstantial to hold my interest for very long, but if it’s got a good beat, hook and enough interesting sounds, I don’t mind having it going on in the background. Daft Punk is an outlier. I find them more interesting than most of the lot. I also like Air and LCD Soundsystem and that’s about it. This is a fun album. 4.3

Meh. A little better than the average electro-pop dance music, but not enough to turn me around. There’s a couple of “bangers” here, but I lost interest quickly and started watching a Harry Potter movie. 2.3

By 1965 Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys had grown weary of the sun, surf and girls corner of pop music that they had spent the early years of their career selling to teenagers across the USA. The last two years had featured Brian Wilson stretching the tight boundaries of those limitations he invented by writing more complex compositions both musically and thematically. Songs like Don’t Worry Baby, In My Room, The Warmth Of The Sun and the deceptively innovative, psychedelic and symphonic California Girls. Brian was getting introspective and experimental with his vision, and a little competitive. He quit touring, holed up in the studio and produced Pet Sounds with LA’s greatest musicians the Wrecking Crew while the rest of the Beach Boys with a young Glenn Campbell, followed by Bruce Johnston, toured the globe playing all the hits the fans want to hear. Can you imagine coming back from touring playing Fun, Fun, Fun every night to check on what Brian has been up to, hearing Pet Sounds and then getting to sing those songs? This album is brilliant. Maybe the best pop album ever? I don’t know. The only ones I can think of might not sound quite the same if it wasn’t for Brian Wilson.

This was Dusty’s first proper solo album and it feels like a very orchestrated push to create an introduction to one of the best voices ever. The song selection is precisely curated from powerhouse songwriters of the era… Bacharach/David, Goffin/King, Holland/Dozier/Holland and the arrangements are very clean and aimed at the charts. By the soulful, more slinkier sounds of her subsequent albums, these selections and arrangements are very ordinary, but there is no denying that voice. Dusty Springfield was a powerhouse vocalist and sings these songs like her life depended on it. It’s nowhere near as good as Dusty In Memphis, but for a first effort, it’s a strong announcement of her arrival 3.5

I listened to the whole album, but I could’ve just listened to the first song because they are all the same… literally same tempo, same guitar riffs, same vocal delivery, same dumb lyrics. I get the appeal. If I was 14 and huffing paint behind a Circle K with my dirtbag friends, minutes away from going to jail… this would be the soundtrack, but I’m not any of those things and this kind of sucks. These guys wrote one song and played it 13 times with different names. Speaking of names… it sucks too. These guys are from Norway. I don’t really have a point, just thought that was interesting. I considered this being my first 1 rating, but since I could think of a fantasy scenario where I would maybe like this, I’ll save it for something worse. Anything worse than this will surely deserve it.

This album rips. It’s consistently relentless. You’re gonna strain your neck from head banging. Husker Du was a power pop punk band. Don’t get it twisted… not pop punk. Power Pop Punk. Imagine The Who combined with The Buzzcocks. Doesn’t that sound great? You don’t have to imagine it. You can just listen to Husker Du. Pretty convenient, right? They are the best band that you periodically forget about and then you listen to them and they sound like the best band in the world. Thanks Bob, Greg and Grant (RIP).

Wilco is one of my favorite bands, but I also understand why people don’t like them. One of the reasons Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is considered groundbreaking is because how out of left field it seemed compared to what came before. Wilco rose from the ashes of Uncle Tupelo as a scruffy, alt country outfit led by Jeff Tweedy who was still in the shadow of Jay Farrar, who was widely considered the more serious songwriter of the pair. The narrative would quickly change with multi instrumentalist Jay Bennett. The experimentation and genre busting began subtly with Being There and they became a powerhouse live band. By they 3rd album, Summerteeth they were showing distinct pop influences with more atmospheric sounds resulting in, at times, psychedelic and baroque arrangements. It was kind of a big deal among fans, some of whom didn’t like the experimental direction and preferred the shambling, folk rock Wilco of the first two records. They weren’t done pushing boundaries yet. YHF added even deeper influences. Sonically inspired by a collection of shortwave radio noise and chatter that would supplement the concise and sparse song structures that were layered with acoustic guitars and assorted keyboards held together by John Stirratt’s melodic bass lines and new drummer Glenn Kotche’s controlled chaos. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was purposefully and methodically as experimental which led to music journalists referring to them as an “American Radiohead” which is wholly inaccurate, but illustrates how far away from their less ambitious beginnings they had come in a relatively short time. Underlying all the experimentation were some really great songs which would reach new levels, and continue to do so, in a live setting. Sadly, due to frustrations over control of the mixing of YHF, Jay Bennett would be asked to leave the band. He left his mark on those 3 records and left us too soon eight years later. This record is as good as everyone says it is and if you like it, check out the documentary, I Am Trying To Break Your Heart.

I’m going to write this under the assumption that everyone who reads it loves Bob Dylan as much as I do. I’m not going to defend his voice, or his genius, or his abilities as a musician, because it would be wrong of me to treat you like a Philistine. You already know how great Bob Dylan is and this album is his rallying cry. His first album was mostly covers of songs he had picked up from his immersion in the New York folk scene and listening to an impossible amount of old folk/blues records which he would instantly memorize. Freewheelin’ was his debut as a songwriter and it instantly made an impact. Songs like Blowin’ In The Wind, A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall, Masters Of War and Oxford Town saw him unwillingly taking the mantle of the representative protest singer of a folk scene that had lost a little steam with the illness of Woody Guthrie. However, other compositions like Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright, Girl From The North Country and Corinna, Corinna showed an uncanny ability to write a ballads with depth and perspective beyond his age. While tracks like I Shall Be Free, Bob Dylan’s Blues and Talkin’ World War III Blues exposed an American humorist in the tradition of 19th century cynics (Mark Twain), absurdists (Artemus Ward) and 20th century counterculture contemporaries like Lenny Bruce and Lord Buckley with a big dose of Dylan’s hero, the aforementioned Woody Guthrie. Dylan had arrived as the savior of folk music. A title he didn’t want and would quickly turn his back on when he would be inspired to plug in after hearing The Byrds cover of his song Mr. Tambourine Man. 4.7

Ten or so years in the making these three singers, friends, contemporaries and earth angels finally made the album they wanted to make with each other. Inarguably three of the top singers in the country/folk/rock genre to ever fill their lungs with air and vibrate their larynxes. Dolly, Emmylou and Linda had been friends for years and wanted to make an album together, had some sessions that led to guest appearances on each others records and unified against their perceived differences. I have a feeling this record would’ve been better received if had come out ten years earlier (at the nexus of the country music crossover into the mainstream) or ten years later (with the new alt country movement and the resurgence of “real” country to combat the aforementioned mainstream stuff). Dolly’s unmistakable Appalachian intonation, Emmylou’s sweet, seemless harmonies and Linda’s whisper to powerhouse voice seems like too much of a good thing. The songs are good, the personnel are all top notch LA session musicians and the harmonies are flawless. The only thing missing is just a little edge, or imperfection that makes an album unique. I loved it though and I want to give it a 5 for Dolly… RIP you beautiful, mystical woman. I would probably give it a 4 under normal circumstances, but I’m not the one who disrupted the random album generator.

Much better than I remembered. Haircut 100 was a really tight band and Nick Heyward is an underrated songwriter, but mostly, this record is fun. It’s a good mood record. Upbeat and danceable, but also musically adventurous. 3.5

I like to read one star reviews of albums from the classic rock era because I find younger generation’s lack of perspective and context when criticizing music that was made 60 years ago to be a rich source of amusement. Does that mean I condone songs written from the perspective of a creepy, predatory dudes as being the best thing to write about? No, I do not, but I also don’t believe Mick Jagger is Satan because he wrote a song from that perspective and I move on. I don’t care that some white, British bands appropriated blues/r&b styles to make rock and roll popular again. That’s how music works. You are only as good as your influences and how you adapt them into something fresh. If we’re being honest, most teenagers in the 50s wouldn’t even heard about dudes like Muddy Waters and Howling Wolf if it wasn’t for rock and roll becoming popular. It’s sad to think that Chuck Berry or Little Richard might have faded into obscurity if not for the Beatles, Stones or other British Invasion bands repackaging rock and roll and selling it back to America. Don’t believe me? Check out what Americans were listening to in between Elvis going into the army/Buddy Holly’s death and the time it took for the Beatles to have a hit in America. It was pretty grim. Connie Francis, Paul Anka, Brenda Lee, Neil Sedaka… sure there was a stray Everly Brothers or Roy Orbison song, but rock and roll was dying a slow death. So, here come the Brits and music got a little dangerous again. Did the Rolling Stones overcorrect a little? Probably, but you got to test the limits once a while. Results may vary, but that’s how you get progress. Things have gotten pretty stagnant and transgressive again. We could use some envelope pushing. Anyway, Beggars Banquet.. I like it. It’s not my favorite Stones album, but it’s good. I’m going to give it a 4 because I know Sticky Fingers and Exile On Main Street are ahead and I can’t get too loose with the 5s.

Hmm… does the inclusion of this Verve album which isn’t the “good” one mean that there are two Verve albums on this thing?! Don’t get me wrong, I like the Verve just fine. They’re ok. All these songs sound the same, but I’d rather listen to this than Blur or Oasis but, not Pulp or Supergrass. This is pretty mid. I’ll save the Bittersweet Symphony story for when Urban Hymns comes up. I don’t know… I guess 3? It’s better than a lot of American bands from the 90s. I’d rather be bored than annoyed.

* see review of 25, but I like this less.. I think. I don’t like Rolling In Deep. I know it’s her best song or whatever, but it’s daft. I hope she meets someone nice and stops writing these miserable songs. She has great voice but, see… this is what I’m trying to articulate when people say some dumb shit like “Bob Dylan can’t sing” well, ok… I mean, that’s not true. He can sing, you just don’t like his voice. I’d rather listen to someone with an interesting voice sing something cool than a “good” singer belt out this nonsense. I’ve worked myself up. I give 21 a 2.1

I like Paul Simon. He has a bunch of great songs. A few of which are on this album. The theme here seems to be about the struggles of familial and romantic relationships. It’s his first album after his break with Art Garfunkel and it feels more personal and introspective, but also a little timid and unsure. It’s a remarkably solid record given all that. Duncan is my favorite song. I like the rawness and sparse production the whole album. Paul Simon has always fed off the energy a creativity of the musicians he works with and this album is an early indication of that attribute for good or worse.

I don’t really know what this is. Soft Jazz Progressive Folk Rock? It’s kind of hard to define. Say what you will about John Martyn, he’s a great guitarist who developed his own unique, recognizable sound while making some very nice, relaxing sleepy time music. I don’t know if I haven’t had enough coffee or if this wizard is trying to lull me to slumber but, one of those things is true. This album is well performed and produced but, really only has one great song, the gorgeous Couldn’t Love You More. I personally prefer his album Solid Air which contains two of my favorite songs to play when I’m horsing around with my acoustic guitar, Over The Hill and May You Never. I would give Solid Air a solid 4 so, One World gets a 3.5 from me. Don’t ask about my system. I don’t even understand it myself.

Oh, boy. Here we go. Another polarizing, but objectively great record. If you like the Beatles, you probably either think Abbey Road is their best record or at least, one of the best records. If you don’t like the Beatles or, at the very least, appreciate them for their importance you’re a silly person. I understand it’s difficult for younger people who didn’t experience the Beatles or grow up with boomer parents, to understand how essential the Beatles were to modern pop music. The sounds and styles that they innovated still permeate the music being made today even though it so processed at this point that you have to have an ear out for it. Abbey Road was released before Let It Be, but recorded after. I prefer to think of it as their magnum opus, their final statement. It seems pretty evident that they were all getting sick of each other and if not for the sunshine personality of Billy Preston this album might not exist. Preston’s presence required the Beatles to be on their best behavior and to put forth a better effort than most of the material on Let It Be would indicate. Even John, who had pretty much checked out, reverted back to his charismatic, silly ways. George and Ringo, who had both previously, temporarily quit the group, gave enthusiastic performances that would equal Paul, who was desperately trying to hold things together with paper clips and rubber bands. Come Together is probably the most well known song on the album despite it being a fairly low effort submission from Lennon but, rescued by McCartney’s suggestion to slow the tempo and his and Ringo’s slinky bass and drum parts. Next up is Harrison’s Something, according to Sinatra, “the greatest love song ever written”. George was coming into his own as a songwriter and itching to be free of his two song per album restriction. Next… the Maxwell’s Silver Hammer hatred needs to end. This aggression will not stand! Is it silly? Yes. Does that make bad? No! It’s a vaudevillian style number about a murderous med school student with a Moog synthesizer swimming around the melody. What’s more fun than that? Oh! Darling is another McCartney effort. A soulful ballad that you would’ve liked to hear Otis Redding take a swing at, but McCartney puts his whole being into the vocal here. Is Octopus’s Garden silly? Yes. Do your kids love it? Also, yes. Ringo, you glorious goofball. Also, lowkey, some of Harrison’s best guitar work. I’m not kidding. I Want You (She’s So Heavy) again another skeleton of a song by Lennon that was built into a monster riff and studio wizardry of drop d tuning, double tracking, white noise and, you guessed it… that damn Moog again. Does it go on too long? Maybe… or not long enough? See how you feel after going to YouTube and hearing Nels Cline join the Flaming Lips on a live cover and then see how you feel. This song (along with the first Black Sabbath album a few months later) predated doom metal by a solid decade. And then… Side 2… Here Comes The Sun composed by Harrison is the most streamed Beatles song by a mile and, regardless of that bit of trivia, it’s another beautiful song, the chord progression is lush and bright, but also a little melancholy. Harrison really showed up and gave the best 2 song minimum of any Beatles record. Because is Lennon effort inspired by Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata and bolstered by a harpsichord, gorgeous three part harmonies and that damn Moog again. It’s a beautiful song though. Just listen to Elliott Smith’s version. What happens next is called a mind boggling achievement if you break down its inception and the components used. I have to give McCartney proper credit here. He found a way to take several partial and unfinished compositions and string them all together thematically with seemless segues and melodic call backs to previous songs on the album. You Never Give Me Your Money is a fully realized song and is used as the primary music that bonds the “medley” together and features some nice arpeggiated guitar work from Harrison and Lennon… transitioning into Sun King with a lyrical recall to the side 2 opener with some more soothing 3 part harmonies in pigeon Spanish no less. Mean Mr. Mustard was a Lennon leftover composition from the White Album as was Polythene Pam which was recorded continuously with McCartney’s She Came In Through The Bathroom Window providing the upbeat rocking mid portion of “the long one”. The third act begins with McCartney’s ballads Golden Slumbers and Carry That Weight, also recorded together, which features a melodic callback to You Never Give Me Your Money and a round of guitar soloing by Paul, George and John (in that order) that crescendos into a solo, rhythmic piano chord and the line “and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make”… which seems a fitting platitude. And, that’s it. That’s the whole album with a perfect ending. Except for a silly 20 second song about the Queen mother which was not supposed to be on the album but was left at the end of the tape and when they heard it on playback, everyone had a laugh so, they left it on. I’m not going to be cool and edgy and pretend I don’t like the Beatles. They don’t occupy a huge amount of my musical space but, every couple of years or so I’m stricken with a case of Beatlemania and I have listen to their whole discography. Abbey Road is a 5.

I’m annoyed. First of all, don’t listen to this on Spotify. The have what they are calling Moby Grape (with bonus tracks) but it only features 3 songs from the original album (not even the best ones) and 8 of the bonus tracks. I have to imagine that a lot of people listened to this and rated it thinking they heard the actual album. That sucks. I’m sure this happened to many other albums on this list. Take a few minutes to check if what Spotify is offering is the actual track list of the original album before you listen and rate. YouTube is probably the best alternative. This concludes the public service portion of my review of Moby Grape’s first album. Moby Grape was a late 60s San Francisco psychedelic rock band and they very much have that sound but, despite not having the success and popularity of contemporaries like the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and Holding Co. etc… they were one of the best bands to come out of that scene.They were blending genres like rock, blues, folk and country before any of their peers thought to do so. I’m not just Blowin’ smoke. Multiple songwriters, quick and tight songs that should’ve been hits and no long, boring “jams”. Opener Hey Grandma cooks like Truckin’ 3 years before the Dead released that song. Omaha is one of the greatest songs of the era. Written by Skip Spence, whose solo album Oar is on this list and one of the most incredible albums I’ve ever heard. 8:05 is a nice ballad with harmonies that rival CSN&Y. The whole album is great. There were some behind the scenes drama that may have derailed their momentum but, pretty interesting to say the least. Very solid thoughout. 3.9

Is Otis Redding the greatest soul singer of all time? Probably. Who’s better? Wilson Pickett? David Ruffin? Bobby Womack? It’s close but I think it’s Otis. Just on sheer impact in the shortest amount of time. Backed by the Stax house band Booker T. & The Mags and a horn section with guys from the Mar-Keys and the Memphis Horns Otis Blue Thames no prisoners. The craziest thing about Otis was, sure, he could write his own songs but, he’s going to take your song and tear it up. Satisfaction is such a good song that the original is great, Otis absolutely murdered it and then Devo turned it inside out. Otis had the balls to do, not one, not two but, three Sam Cooke songs on this album. Sam Cooke is probably one of the most revered and influential singers that ever did it but, Otis wasn’t intimidated. There’s not a bad song on this record but 85% of this record is perfect. 4.7

Generally, this type of soulful, southern hip hop is right up my alley This record hit pretty hard when it came out. The singles Tennessee, Mr. Wendal and People Everyday got massive crossover airplay but, outside of those songs this album is a little hit and miss and a little bit dated but, It’s a good record. There are a handful of great songs but the album does lose focus at times and tends to wander a bit. All and all… pretty solid 3.4

Did you know that Neil Young was in a band called the Mynah Birds with Rick “Super Freak” James? When James was arrested for being AWOL from the Navy (which explains why he was in Canada) the band’s record deal was voided. So, Neil (and bassist Bruce Palmer) packed up his ‘53 Pontiac hearse and drove to Los Angeles. After a week in L.A. they run into Stephen Stills and Richie Furay and Buffalo Springfield was born. The Springfield is a tale of three songwriters (Furay, Stills & Young) with compatible influences and along with the Byrds, were pioneers of the Folk Rock explosion of the mid/late 60s. Again was their 2nd album in a career that was cut short by drug busts and waning interest. Neil, despite having one foot out the door, does a lot of the heavy lifting here contributing the fuzz drenched, Satisfaction-esque Mr. Soul and the two epic psychedelic mini suites Expecting To Fly and Broken Arrow. Stills pitches in with Bluebird and Rock & Roll Woman and Furay, who went on to form Poco, throws in a few lighter songs. The band broke up, after releasing one more album but, left a big impact in short period of time. 4.1

The Wildest! is interesting as a document showcasing the innovation of genre blending of New Orleans singer/trumpeter Louis Prima. Prima threw rock and roll, jump/jive blues and jazz into an album of Dixieland, tango and swing jazz covers along with his own Jump, Jive and Wail, which is the best song here along with the medley of Just A Gigolo and I Ain’t Got Nobody. I’ll be honest, it’s a fun record but, to me, gets a little tedious at moments. If you’re in the mood, or if you ever see yourself taking swing dance lessons or wearing a zoot suit, you will love it. 3.5

The best song on this album is Paper Planes. The song is heavily reliant on a sample of Straight To Hell by the Clash and was a pervasive earworm that is still heard in movies and TikTok reels worldwide (except Sri Lanka). It’s not the only good song though. The album starts strong with a string of solid jams Bamboo Banga, Bird Flu, Boyz & Jimmy but, doesn’t maintain that same level throughout. I’m going to separate the art from artist here only to say M.I.A. has chalked up chaotic collection of controversial opinions, but since I was lecturing people for doing that, I won’t do it either. Everyone is entitled to their opinions and not one of us gets it right 100% of the time. She is a singular and unique talent. 3.4

I’ve already espoused my love for Iggy, but combined with another genius musician like David Bowie how can you miss. Well, given the surrounding circumstances it could have been a disaster. Bowie and Iggy moved to Europe to kick their drug addictions and make music… and it worked out amazingly. This was Iggy’s last chance. Even after nearly single handedly inspiring punk, Iggy wasn’t getting his due. The Idiot and Lust For Life finally gave him, at least some of, the recognition he deserved. The Idiot was loosely inspired by the Dostoevsky novel of the same name and the cover art of both this album and David Bowie’s Heroes are nods to the painting Roquairol by Heckel. The music on The Idiot would also bear the European influence as the duo soaked in the nightlife and avant garde art by tapping into electronic and minimalist music of Germany and France and bands like Neu!, Kraftwerk and Can. Nightclubbing, Funtime and Mass Production bump along in the ambient darkness of a Munich underground club while always pushing Iggy’s American experience in the lyrics. The revelation of the original version of China Girl is jolt of American foreign policy and its effects on the culture of other countries but particularly China. If you’re only familiar with Bowie’s version released six years later, it can be quite a startling revelation. The song isn’t about a Chinese girl. Sister Midnight is a a dark, feminist satire and Dum Dum Boys is a tribute to the Stooges The Idiot is a sparse tight bunch of 8 near perfect songs and thankfully gave Iggy the second chance he deserved. 4.8 ^

How many times in his career has Bob Dylan been counted out? Dismissed as a relic, maligned, misunderstood, mocked… only to come back fighting. Showing the world that he’s still vital, influential, prominent… completely unaffected by criticism, indifference, misunderstood and under appreciated? Probably as many decades as he’s been making music and as many different voices and characters he has embodied in those 60 some odd years. Time Out Of Mind came out during one of those times when most people thought he was done. The album was recorded in February of 1997. Toward the end of May, Dylan was hospitalized when he began experiencing chest pains. He was diagnosed with histoplasmosis pericarditis. He had to cancel a European tour, spent most of the summer recuperating and by August he was touring again and released this album in September. Unthinkable fortitude for most men his age. Not only did he make a miraculous recovery, but Time Out Of Mind is widely regarded and ranked amongst his greatest albums and one of the greatest comebacks in rock and roll history. It revitalized his career and was considered his best album since the 1975 album Blood On The Tracks and won Grammies for album of the year, best contemporary folk album and best male rock vocal performance, not to give credence to a Grammy award, but sometimes, something is so undeniably good, they get it right. Dylan also performed the lead single Love Sick at the ceremony, seemingly unfazed when a shirtless man appeared by his side with “Soy Bomb” written across his chest and dancing in a convulsive, flailing manner while Dylan turned his back on him and let loose a gritty guitar solo until security could deal with the intruder. Time Out Of Mind is dark and melancholic in mood, but also offers a light at the end of the tunnel. Like a journey through the heart of darkness to salvation. Every song is vital and creates a narrative without exhibiting a purposeful concept. It explores the inevitability of death, Tryin’ To Get To Heaven and Not Dark Yet, while acknowledging the experiences that validate the journey, Til I Fell In Love With You and Make You Feel My Love (which became a big hit when it was covered by artists like Adele, Garth Brooks and others. The album ends with the nearly 17 minute epic, Highlands inspired by Scottish poet Robert Burns. The sometimes melancholic, sometimes comedic (the interaction with a waitress in particular) and satirical song explores the same themes as a journey through life, love, aging, feeling disassociation with the modern world with a metaphorical heaven or paradise represented by the Scottish Highlands as a symbol of peace and salvation. Time Out Of Mind is the easiest 5 I have handed out so far. 5+

I’m not a big fan of big band jazz, but Count Basie is as good as it gets and this album in particular shows him embracing and absorbing the energy, precision of the new post war era of bop jazz, which I love. Kansas City Swing, Flight of The Foo Birds and Whirly-Bird show clear bebop influences exhibiting fast, complex horn lines and angular phrasing probably due to employing younger players like, trumpeter Thad Jones and saxophonist Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis into the orchestra. This album is veering toward jazz as art and less as dancehall music. My only complaints are when it stagnates in tradition a couple of times and the restraints on drummer Sonny Payne, who obviously wants to cut loose, but is restricted by the big band format. 3.6

No band measures the evolution of perspective from childhood to adulthood for me like KISS. As a kid in the 70s, I was raised on my parents’music. 50s, 60s and the contemporary rock music of the time. When I started looking outside of my parents’ influence and one of those bands was KISS. They were never my favorite band, but I was young enough to think their shtick and iconography was cool, but always a little disappointed that the music didn’t really correlate. I liked Ace though. I still think he was an underrated guitar player. Destroyer (although not my personal favorite) seems to be the consensus pick for their best album. Detroit Rock City is a banger, but listening to this album as an adult whose scope of music has evolved and expanded to incorporate a wide variety of music genres and styles, most of this album leaves me flat. KISS was a fun band for my youth and even my inner child gets a little pumped if I hear Strutter or Love Gun out in the wild, but my fascination with KISS waned pretty quickly as a kid (I always liked Cheap Trick better anyway) and by the time they took the makeup off (Yikes!), I had moved on to punk, new wave and slightly less silly bands. 3.4

I’m getting Number Of The Beast back to back with Destroyer by KISS. It’s an interesting dichotomy. In simple terms, KISS looked cool but had silly music. Iron Maiden looked silly, but had cool music… ok, cooler than KISS. Iron Maiden’s coolest imagery was definitely Eddie and their album covers, but they made the kind of music that KISS looked like they should be making. Unpopular opinion, but I like the early Maiden albums with Paul Di’Anno better than the Bruce era stuff (Powerslave notwithstanding), but Number Of The Beast is a beast. It’s a bit of a weak start but it builds a good momentum and side 2 rips. This record takes me back to my teens and it’s funny to think about how worried people were about music like this and how silly that was. Thankfully, we’ve matured as a society… just kidding. If anything, conservative “Christians” are more worried about the ills of society than ever before, but now we (most of us) fully understand that it’s performative and a means of control to push forth an authoritarian ideology on the American people by starting a culture war. What’s this have to do with Iron Maiden? Nothing really. 3.7

Be is an interesting album. It’s very good. Solid throughout. No skips. The intro is so good, it’s a shame it’s so short. It’s not a groundbreaking hip hop record, but it’s soulful, funky and direct. Kanye West as a producer here does a good job of letting Common shine here without imposing too much of his own influence on the proceeding. Be has a very steady, chill vibe, but Go and The Corner are jams that standout. 4.2

Bowie called Aladdin Sane, American Ziggy, which makes a lot of sense. It’s a little grittier than the glam heavy sound of the previous record but still has one foot in that storyline. The title track equates prewar Europe with 70s America suggesting a society on the brink of collapse. Panic In Detroit is inspired by the stories Bowie heard from Iggy Pop about the ‘67 riots. You can hear Ziggy becoming a revolutionary. The glitz and glamour of Los Angeles is stripped away in Cracked Actor exposing the seedy underbelly of Hollywood’s aging stars, commercialized sex and drug addiction, where The Jean Genie and Watch That Man explore the burgeoning underground scene in New York where it was recorded and inspired by the pre-punk vibe and characters like Iggy, Lou Reed and Cyrinda Foxe. There’s the post apocalyptic vision of the American southwest found in Drive-In Saturday where humans watch old movies to relearn how to feel emotions. I gotta admit… this feels awfully prophetic in retrospect. 4.6

Straight Outta Compton is arguably the most important hip hop record ever. This was the record that dragged the genre from the fun, dance party late 70s-80s beginnings to the 90s and the golden age of hip hop. The truth is coming out whether America, politics and media was ready or not. NWA was going to expose the charade by bringing the hood to the suburbs. Gritty journalism pushed into the mainstream with rapid gunfire beats, police sirens and truth. Straight Outta Compton, Fuck Tha Police and Gangsta Gangsta are relentless declarations and a battle cry for west coast rappers to represent. This record became the thing every kid who has an ear out had to get their hands on. It was a grassroots campaign. Triple platinum without major label support or traditional commercial radio airplay, and completely ignored by MTV, but it was instantly essential. Along with Public Enemy in New York, NWA created the blueprint and gangsta rap was being born in Southern California and spawning architects Dr. Dre and Ice Cube. 4.8^

My favorite Joni Mitchell record. Inspired by a road trip from Maine to Los Angeles and that exactly what it sounds like. Spacious and explorative, Mitchell and bassist Jaco Pastorius play like they are attempting to become one instrument. Jaco giving Joni’s guitar that bottom end that her open tunings and playing style doesn’t allow. He just fills that space with beautifully instinctual smooth, low notes that propel the songs along like wheels grip the road. The opening track, Coyote is one of the most perfect songs I’ve ever heard. Joni wrote this song about her brief, intense affair with playwright, Sam Shepherd who she met on Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Tour. It’s an incredible song. One of the most honest, while still poetic, tale of a romantic fling, doomed from the start, ever recorded to tape. Mitchell is being taken advantage of by a devilish dog, but she knows it. It’s an interesting perspective and a fantastic song. Black Crow is jagged and tense. Joni and Jaco are dance fighting like the Jets and the Sharks. Are crows the sharks of birds? Refuge Of The Roads is the exact opposite. It’s like a galactic hot air balloon ride. This song makes me want to float away. This is the most 5 album of 5 albums.

I have formed a habit of reading one star reviews of albums that will prove my theories about the people who don’t like these records. I don’t know if I’ve accomplished anything but, I do know this… everybody loves OutKast. I do too, but this is about Patti Smith. What I read quite a bit in those one star zingers is, something along the lines of “this isn’t punk”… it’s not?! It seems to me we have a fundamental misunderstanding of punk means. I hate to pull the credit card but, just for perspective’s sake, I am old enough to remember a world before punk existed. Patti Smith is punk AF. Patti Smith was post punk before punk. Punk before punk existed. Patti Smith defined punk. It’s like saying Iggy isn’t punk. It’s insane. Garage Rock Rimbaud?! What’s the worst you can say about that? “Sounds like a female Jim Morrison!” Wait. That sounds pretty cool. Garage rock with surrealist poetry?! Does that not sound like punk?! Remember, this is 1975. Before The Clash and Sex Pistols put out their first albums. And that band? Come on! The first line on this album… Jesus died for somebody’s sins but not mine… how much more rebellious and anti-establishment do you need something to be?! Punk is any ethos. Its an alternative to the mainstream. It’s not just sonic three 3chord thrash. That’s just one branch on the tree. Sometimes it’s not even music. It’s journalism or film or protest. You might not like it, but Patti Smith is punk. To her essence. To her core.

I’m still as baffled about Adam & The Ants as I was in the early 80s. That’s not exactly true. I know that, in 1979, they were a largely unknown, underground punk band, which sounds pretty rough. They sound like a band that needs something that will set them apart. Garner some attention. Generate a buzz. Malcolm McLaren to the rescue! Well… no. In fact, the brain behind the Sex Pistols convinced band to abandon Adam and join his new protege 13 year old Annabella Lwin and become Bow Wow Wow. Left with a cassette of Burundi tribal drumming he got from McLaren and an affinity for historical swashbuckling iconography, Adam teamed up with guitarist Marco Pirroni, hired two drummers, got some new duds from Vivienne Westwood’s pirate collection and the new Adam & The Ants was born. Seems somewhat ridiculous, right? Well, yes and no. They were pretty serious about the music. The arrangements are more sophisticated than what you might expect from a pirate band and they still possessed their punk ferocity. Perroni guitar licks are inspired by the raunchy rockabilly riffs of Link Wray and Duane Eddy mixed with glam swagger plastered all across those jungle rhythms. And, yes… the dressed like pirates and they were committed to it. Adam was a former art student and completely invested in the image. He would storyboard every video and choreograph their stage performances. It’s silly, but they know it’s silly. It’s also good. Every chant, yelp and yodel and overtly sexual overtone. They created their own loyal fanbase, brought some real energy to a stagnant scene and were right on time for MTV and the new wave scene. It’s either a 3 or a 4 depending on how I’m feeling. I guess wrote all this so… I’m in a good mood.