1001 Albums Summary

I can't even tell how I feel about Sympathy for the devil as a song, I know I don't want to hear it but it could be I'm just sick of it. The rest of the A side I did not care for at all. Totally unremarkable blues tunes. I like the blues but I like it with soul and musicianship, these songs have neither. I was thinking it would be a 1 star rating but the b side saved it. I really liked Street Fighting Man, the least bluesy song on the album. Prodigal Son, Stray Cat Blues and Salt of the Earth (which was the only other song I knew from the album) also made my 1001 playlist. As an aside, Charlie Watts (drummer) was terrible on this! His fills are so basic and many are out of time.

I didn't give this album much of a chance when it came out even though I was and am a big fan of OK Computer, Kid A and Amnesiac. Just an amazing album, they really know to set a mood. Impeccable songwriting, musicianship, production. The only song I left off my 1001 playlist was the last song Videotape.

Folk is not a genre I almost ever listen to so I was not expecting to like this as much as I did. I had heard his name before but never his music. It's an absolutely gorgeous album! His voice, while not very dynamic or wide in range, is extremely soothing and he's guitar playing is intricate and beautiful. The album doesn't have a lot of variance in terms of tone or mood but I wouldn't want it different. The vibe is consistent (melancholy but not depressing) and it makes for a very cohesive listen. Stand out songs for me are River Man and Cello Song. Something about the interplay between the vocal melody and guitar part in the later does something for me. Sad to read he died so young. I will be checking out his other 2 albums.

It's ok. I like Cinnamon Girl and the title track. The rest of the album is meh. Good rhythm section in the jam sections but Neil Young's jamming and guitar soloing doesn't do anything for me. I understand it's a very distinct style, with the liberal use of the whammy bar, but his playing is just too basic and sloppy for me. The slower songs, I found myself asking, who is this for? I picture old people slow dancing to it but they were young when it came out! And Neil Young was only 24 when he made it. I just couldn't imagine being in my 20's and liking this music. As a Canadian and Winnipegger it pains me to say, I'd rather listen to CCR.

Did the critic(s) that chose to add this album really expect adult music fans, that didn't grow up listening to this, to enjoy this record? It sucks. The musicianship is subpar, not even particularly good guitar playing, the singing sucks, the rapping is worse. It sounds very juvenile.

So bland. There's absolutely nothing interesting about any of the songs. Ooo they have a synthesizer, I hated every synth sound chosen. Watered down "indie" rock for frat boys. Completely devoid of personality. Made me want to slap a "I rather be listening to Hot Hot Heat" sticker on my ass. Hope I never have to hear it again.

The timing is great for this to come up. I'm reading the James Brown autobiography and he talks about the earlier days and his revivalry with Little Richard. It's a fun listen, I bet it was the ultimate party record when it came out. The songs are kinda same samey so I'd prefer to listen to an oldies playlist. I added Rip It Up to my 1001 playlist

I liked this a lot more than I thought I would. I am a huge fan of Blood Sugar Sex Magic but for some reason never gave this a listen when it came out. Maybe because the singles were mostly mellow or maybe because BSSM is Chilli Peppers perfection and has satisfied me for life. This album's got some funk, Frusciante's guitar work is outstanding, Flea and Chad Smith are obviously a killer rhythm section. I just don't fully jive with Anthony Kiedis' vocals on this (and later material I've heard). The funk of BSSM fits his vocals so well but here the songs require that he earnestly try to sing well and that only works for me in smaller doses. Although, I do like his falsetto on Porcelain. 3.5/5 stars, rounding down 3/5 because I don't think I'll ever put it on for a full listen again. I added Around The World and I Like Dirt to my 1001 playlist

I definitely recognize the first track from restaurant or department store playlists around that time. It's nice enough. I like Bossa Nova, I find it very soothing, but I'd prefer just to listen to stuff from the 60's... like her dad and her step mom. A ton of that 60's stuff was immaculately recorded and really holds up. The electronic elements, for the most part, were not interesting enough to make it a new update to the 60's sound or a fusion like say Thievery Corp. 2.5/5 stars - I won't listen to it again and don't think it should be on this list but rounding up to 3 because I didn't really dislike any of it. I added Bananeira to my 1001 playlist. That tune stands out to me because it's got that 90s-2000s Acid Jazz sound mixed in.

First time listening through this album. I knew the singles Jean Genie and Let's Spend The Night Together and also Cracked Actor (which I played guitar for once at a Bowie tribute night). I added all 3 to my 1001 playlist. I love the guitar on this album, I wish there were more guitar-focused songs instead of the piano taking up so much goddamn space. Why is the piano so loud? In Lady Grinning Soul it's louder than the vocals! I listened to it twice and enjoyed it more the second time, I have a feeling it will grow on me more if I give it the occasional spin.  

Essential easy listening! My 6 year old said "this sounds like love music"... indeed!

Will give it another listen and perhaps edits this rating and review but on first listen, not for me. Feels incomplete, very basic guitar riffs that just aren't interesting, not jiving with the dude voice either.

Between this and Linkin Park I'm starting to think this is just a random list of albums. No one needs to hear this

Record store employee music. If Joy Division is just too polished for you, give this a listen! I knew nothing about the band before listening. My impression after a few tracks, decent rhythm section with some of the worst vocals and guitar ever recorded. Got better towards the end. I saw another review that said it was almost unlistenable but also fascinating, that pretty much sums it up for me. I did find a track to add to my 1001 playlist, the one instrumental without any guitar, "Socialist"

Right up my alley! Might edit this to a 5 after another listen

I understand why people like this album but it's just not my thing. It's just not musically interesting to me and I find her voice and singing style kind of boring.

This is what I was hoping for from this list! Something that I've never heard of and is awesome. Absolutely love the guitar playing, such unique and interesting phrasing. Will be adding this to my regular rotation. I haven't picked standout tracks for my 1001 playlist yet but it will definitely be from the first half of the album. Good stuff!

Jon Spencer Blues Explosion is the coolest band ever to exist. This isn't even their best album and it's an easy 5. Rip roaring, no holds barred, rock 'n roll

Listened totally blind, had not heard of this before. Ok, Damon Albarn on vocals. The bass is really loud, did they think it would somehow cover up how boring the songs are? Is this a collection of Blur songs that weren't good enough to put on Blur albums? Almost rated it a 1 just to spite the list for wasting my time today but I guess it's not that bad. Didn't hear a song that stood out as good or interesting enough to add to my 1001 playlist and I can't be arsed to give it another go. I adore Blur - Parklife, loved it when it came out and rated it a 5 just a few days ago. Wonder if I'll dig anything else from Damon that, I assume, is on this list.

I didn't like this as much I thought I would. I really like the band, especially when they get funky. But I found a lot of the song kinda square and found myself annoyed by David Byrne's voice after a while. I can't see myself putting this on again and will probably continue to enjoy Talking Heads how I have been my whole life, in small doses. Unless one of the other albums I'm sure are on this list grab me more.

I'm an absolute sucker for amazing, goosebumps inducing female vocals. I have wept many times listening to Aretha Franklin. I get chills from Mavis Staples, Whitney Houston, Chaka Khan, Erykah Badu, Loleatta Holloway, Jill Scott etc. I feel nothing when I listen to Adele. My brain knows she's a powerful and amazingly talented singer, my body feels nothing. I considered giving it a 2 because it's not offensively bad but I really don't like it, found it hard to get through and really hope I don't have to hear it again.

Musicianship is great, the vocals are corny. Metal is kinda like stand up comedy for me, the old stuff just doesn't hold up. I didn't grow up listening to this so I have no nostalgia for it and would rather listen to something more modern when I'm in a heavy mood (which is admittedly a rare occasion). Ok, they got me on the last song "Imitation of Life", it fucking rips and the vocalist goes into kind of a punk thing. I dig it. Added that to my 1001 playlist and bumped up my rating from 2 to 3

The only thing remarkable about this album is how middle of the road it is. MOR production, MOR songwriting, MOR vocal performance. The drummer is good. Let Me Entertain You is a fun single. Ultimately, I didn't need this in my life and don't think it should on the list. 1.5 stars, bumped up to 2 because my 6 year old liked the first song

Put this on my ear buds after dropping my kid off at school and walked home with 100 times more swag than usual. Got home and switched to the vinyl copy I've owned for probably 30 years. I collect Blaxploitation soundtracks and this one was never a favourite of mine and I rarely listened to it. I think this is because when I was younger all I cared about were heavy funk tracks and this has a lot of slower, mellower songs on it. Overall it's really not that funky. Now that I'm older, I appreciate the slow jams a bit more but I still prefer soundtracks with a bit more funk like Superfly, Tough Guys and Together Brothers. I added No Name Bar and Do Your Thing to my 1001 playlist (I may remove the later eventually as it's 19 mins long!). I'm struggling with a rating, thinking a 3 based on the fact I probably won't listen to it in full again. But am I really going to give one of my favourite artist's most famous album the same stars as Anthrax? An album I barely liked at all. No I will not, 4 stars it is.

I've been on a journey with Prince lately, listening to his discography front to back, making a playlist of anything I like even a little bit. About a month ago Purple Rain came up, I hadn't listened in full in decades. First listen I thought, wow this has quite a few stinkers for such a classic album. Second listen I thought, well they aren't stinkers but still probably skips. Now listening a 3rd time a month later, where'd the skips go? No skips. Darling Nikki is my least favourite but not enough to skip. I Would Die 4 U is my favourite on the album and might be my favourite Prince song. Before today's fresh listen I thought I would be rating it a 4 but it's a solid 5.

I never minded their hits but I've always thought of them as a novelty act not to be taken seriously. On first listen, I was pretty annoyed with the nasally vocal delivery and thought the sampling wasn't particularly interesting. I rated it 2 stars. For some reason I decided to give another listen today and I've gotten use to the vocals a bit and found a couple favourite tracks. Uping it to a 3 star.

The lyrics are dumb, the music is dorky. Sometimes they have a cool groove or part but it'll last 8 bars and they'll switch to being dorks again. Silly Love starts off great, love the fuzzed out guitars and dry 70's drum tones. I thought, this is your chance boys, don't fuck it up. And then they fucked it up with dumb lyrics and a corny bridge. So much potential but just not for me.

A perfect album. Recording quality is unbelievable for 1959. If you're going to own only one jazz album, this is a good candidate.

Never been a fan but also never really gave him a chance. I liked it more than I thought but still not my thing. I think I'd probably like it a lot more if it was recorded in the 70's. The thin, sterile 80's production kinda ruins it for me. A lot of the songs end up sounding like bar band music just because there's no warmth or character in the production. I will definitely never play this again which usually would mean a 2 or 1 star rating but I really agree with its place on the list and fully understand why it's an important album for americans. I'm glad I listened to it. Cover Me is the only song I liked that I hadn't heard before. His singing is different on that one, not the typical strained thing he normally does. I also like the singles I'm on Fire and Dancing in the Dark.

My first The Who album on the list and the first I've listened to in my life. It's basically just chords and drum fills?

More record store employee music. There's a lot of interesting sounds happening here, especially for 1978 (is that a Roland GR-500 guitar synth on Elvis and His Boss?). But I prefer my weird music to still be enjoyable. Definitely won't listen again but similar to PiL, I'm glad I listened to it. I'd rather stuff like this be on the list than over produced, commercial pop music and hey, it's only 35mins! Added Kraft Cheese to my 1001 playlist for the crazy synth sounds.

I've always loved "Take a walk on the wild side" but first time listening to this in full. I dig it quite a bit! Usually I'm very turned off by singers that can't sing well but I don't know, his voice just works?

I was disappointed in this. I generally like scream style vocals in metal but these vocals seem a bit put on during some parts, like a caricature of metal scream vocals. Doesn't do it for me. The guitars are the most disappointing part, almost nothing interesting happening. They seem like pretty run of the mill, drop d chugging metal parts that I could probably play (and I don't play metal at all). Not that every moment needs to be a flashy display of technical proficiency but maybe sometimes? Or at least something interesting? The drummer is the stand out and I like the way the drums sound a lot. I guess the simpler style makes it more accessible and that's why it was such a huge seller? I use to do sound at a metal venue and I feel like most local Toronto bands I saw out play these guys.

Similar feelings after listening to PiL and The Residents... Not mad it's on the list and I'm glad I listened but will definitely never play it again and generally think it stinks. In the songs that are actually songs and not just avant-garde weirdness, I like the rhythm section and guitar. The vocals and everything else ruin it. I added Street Waves to my 1001 playlist because it's the most listenable track. Oh, the album artwork is spectacular!

It's good but with Getz/Gilberto on the list, this seems unnecessary.

Listening to the first few seconds of the first song I was thinking, fuck yeah, why don't listen to more Afro beat?! But that quickly wore off and I remembered it just doesn't jive with me. I don't really know why. I've been exposed to it a lot by touring in a funk band and my band mates playing it in the van. It has all the elements I like, it's funky, it's got horns, lots of percussion, great guitar riffs but for whatever reason it just doesn't grab me. Also, what are we doing putting a 16 min drum solo on an album?

Had a bit of an aha moment about Neil Young and music in general listening to this. This is the second album of his I've received and I think there's like 5 more coming. I listened through once and didn't dig it other than the songs I knew, especially Old Man (which is definitely my favourite Neil Young song). A Man Needs A Maid particularly bugged me, it's so over the top with the strings and what the fuck is he even singing about needing a maid? It bugged me enough that I looked it up and found some other people complaining about it on Reddit. The discussion around the lyrics was really interesting. Perhaps it's a break up song, he's so heart broken he doesn't want to open his heart to another woman and is cynically saying "maybe I'll just get a maid"... He's belittling the woman that broke his heart in order to cope. Perhaps it's a tongue and cheek jab at himself. He's uncomfortable with his new place in world with fame and fortune. He's got no real problems to work out anymore and he's making fun of himself for toiling over the decision to get a maid... With over dramatic music to go with the joke. Someone mentioned he was dating an actress, Carrie Snodgrass, at the time and she had played a maid in a movie which he mentions in the last verse. So the whole song is about meeting her, she's the "maid". All that from a song I don't even like. I used to not care about lyrics at all, music was mostly about the musicianship, vocal delivery, the groove, riffs etc. But as I get older I've noticed lyrics more and when listening to music with my 6yo daughter, I find I am often trying to explain to her what the song is about as a way to pique her interest. Maybe I'm ready to explore music that might not be that interesting to me musically but might be fulfilling lyrically. I listened again with this more open minded spirit and enjoyed it a lot more. Maybe I'll turn out to be a Neil Young fan afterall... Maybe even Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen!

I'm only 45 albums in and this is my second Pil record, please be the last. Like their second album, this one is better in the second half but only marginally. Johnny Lydon has no musical instincts whatsoever, he's anti-music. Maybe that's the point? I don't know but I feel bad for the other guys I'm the group doing some cool shit like Fodderstompf and then have it totally ruined by juvenile wailing.

The vocal harmonies are nice but they do it way too much. There are songs that are entirely sung in three part harmony. I find it distracting and hard to connect with what is being sung. Overall, middle of the road, kinda samey, background music. Pleasant enough to get a 2 from me.

Weird AND enjoyable! I was enthralled by the sound of the recording, they use tape saturation perfectly and like I don't think I've heard in another recording from as early as 1968. Most of the time when they get weird it's not just to be weird, it really feels like they're trying to experiment for the benefit of the listener. The whole album is a trip and I'm packing my bags for another go.

I want to like this album so bad but I don't. I remember checking it out when I first got into jazz fusion in the 90's and it didn't click for me back then and it still doesn't now. Give me something to latch on to... a groove, a repeating riff, a head or even a fucking chord progression. They just meander the whole time. In a vacuum, I'm rating this 2 stars based on that I will never purposely listen to it again. But I'm adding half a star for how revolutionary it was at the time and how much it influenced a lot of my favourite music... The jazz funk fusion of the early to mid 70's. And half a star for the bitchin artwork.

One of my favourite albums from the 90's. Absolutely perfectly produced, love Beth's voice, all the guitar work, DJ Andy Smith tasteful cuts. Easy 5 from me.

I'm not against melancholic singer songwriters (I gave Nick Drake 5 stars) and I was even in the right mood but I can hardly believe how terrible this is. I forced myself to listen to the whole album as an exercise in enduring torture. I assume he played every instrument because everything is played so amateurishly there's no way he hired these musicians. Fucking brutal. Worst album out of the 50 I've gotten so far.

First 2 songs are fun and interesting. After that it just sounds like poorly recorded and not particularly remarkable Indian music.

I was a big fan of Nevermind when it came out but didn't really give this a chance when it came out, I'm not sure why. It's good. Nirvana will always feel like music for teenagers to me so I probably won't listen to this again (and Nevermind didn't stay in my rotation past my teens) but I will always have a place in my heart for them.

Just a tip, the original release only has 9 tracks so you can stop listening after Whiskey Woman if you like. I thought this had potential when it started but was never realized. Much like the Stones, a couple good songs and then pretty mediocre.

The production and mixing are impressive, it really sounds amazing. Unfortunately I find it a bit boring. I much prefer fun Beck.

There's nothing here outside of the 3 massive hits.