1001 Albums Summary

3.5 stars I loved the epic opening and the emotion of this album all the way through. Some cheesy tones, and I feel like this could have been edited down a bit. Obviously, Benny and Jets is so good. A new unexpected favorite was All the Young Girls Love Alice.

Surprised how much I loved this album. Beautiful opener. 4 stars

Wildly creative. This is a masterpiece. A reminder of how expansive music can be. Unrestrained, it lights up my brain in the best way. 5 stars.

Interesting song structure and great musicianship, but I'm not into the cheesy 80s tones. A few great songs, but a lot of misses for me (Mother is especially annoying). I've never been a fan of Sting's pseudo-reggae-style singing. However, Stewart Copeland's drumming is fantastic, as always. 2 stars.

A fun and upbeat album. Obviously quite influential, and it was quite something at the time, but it's not music I really connect with at this point in my life. 3.5 stars

Another one of those highly influential albums that would have likely blown me away if I had heard it in the 60s. It is interesting to hear the origins of this band, as well as the originals of these songs that have been covered and referenced many times over. That being said, I doubt I'll return to this album, and I don't feel much connection with the recordings. 3 stars.

I love the energy and passion of this album, and of course, 2Pac is fantastic at what he does. This is inspiring me to listen to more 2Pac. Unfortunately, the tones didn't age well, and the backup vocals are cheesy at times. Because of that, I likely won't return to this album. 3.5-4ish stars

One of all time favorites. The lyrics, the raw emotion, the pure grunge, it is perfection. Courtney is far from perfect, but no one expresses that anguish and anger quite like her. This album changed me as a teenager, showing me that I’m allowed to express these dark feelings, that beauty can be complicated and messy and ugly at the same time. I’m grateful this exists, but somewhat sad that many people won’t really get it. So it goes. Someday you will ache like I ache.