Reviews by aretzorn

Bowie starts to emerge from the darkness of drug use and rewards us with a fantastic work of art rock. Every track is great, but my favorites of the vocal tracks are Breaking Glass, Sound and Vision, and Always Crashing in the Same Car. The instrumentals may not be for everyone, but I could listen to them for hours - favorites are A New Career in a New Town (I love how the music evokes both optimism and darkness. Also love the plaintive harmonica which later is heard on Bowie's final album Blackstar), Warszawa, Art Decade, and Subterraneans (love the moody ambience). That said, every song on this album is a work of art. Easy 5.

Love their harmonies. It's all pretty basic rock and roll, but they sound fantastic. I'm not clear on why the authors chose this album for the 1001 albums and not the Everly Brothers debut album, which includes classics "Bye Bye Love" and "Wake Up Little Susie." Still, this is definitely a good album. Favorite tracks: Love Hurts (I didn't know they debuted Love Hurts - they didn't write it though), Lucille (Little Richard cover), Cathy's Clown (great harmonies again). Some tracks were cheesy: Made to Love ("girls, girls, girls were made to love." Motley Crue has nothing on the Everly Brothers), "Sigh, Cry, Almost Die" just made me think, "gee, it's tough to be a teenager." And I'm sure lots of teenyboppers screamed when they sang "So How Come No One Loves Me." Anyway, calling it a 4 for their fantastic harmonies.

Eh, it was ok. I suspect this will be dropped from the 1001 albums in future editions. Lazy review today.

I generally dig Neil Young - prior to the 1001 albums I hadn't listened closely to much beyond his greatest hits but I was really blown away by On the Beach. This album is good, but not blow me away good. Many of the songs are pretty basic and he seemed to put even less effort into singing quality than usual (and that's saying something). There were some tracks I liked a lot - Borrowed Tune is a beautiful, captivating track...just Neil on piano and harmonica. I liked Tonight's the Night (both versions). Speakin' Out had some great instrumental breaks (great Nils Lofgren guitar solo). I also liked Lookout Joe (particularly the chord progression during the verses). New Mama had a nice a capella ending. So, plenty of good moments, but not 5-worthy.

This is the album where Yes became Yes. Sure, it wasn't until the next album that Rick Wakeman cemented the "Classic Yes" lineup, but this album is absolute prog rock perfection. The two previous albums suggested what Yes was going to become, but this album found the missing ingredient with the addition of Steve Howe. Not a weak track on the album. The first four tracks are simply amazing: Yours is No Disgrace rocks. It's about the Vietnam war, but you would probably never guess only by listening to the typical Yes-obtuse lyrics. The fantastic opening riff punches so much harder live, but sounds great here also. The song takes you on a journey of different styles, all fantastic. Then we hear Steve Howe's excellent imitation of Chet Atkins in Clap (as he says, "not THE Clap, thank you very much"). Then one of the absolute Yes greats: Starship Trooper. Man, those guitars - Steve Howe just tears through this song. The last part (Wurm) absolutely takes you into space - every member of the band is on the top of their game in this song (and let's take a moment to acknowledge Tony Kaye - kicked to the curb after this album but did an admirable job here). Of all the songs on the album, this one most shows where Yes was heading from here. I've Seen All Good People is a classic rock radio staple and has so many great moments: The first section has some of the best harmonies in a rock song and then you have to give tons of respect to the jam section at the end. A Venture is the weakest track IMO - not bad, but it has a lot to measure up to on this album. Finally, Perpetual Change is a solid track. It probably took me longer to get into this one than others, but nothing can compare to the first four tracks on this album. Absolutely perfect album and an easy 5.

It's amazing to me how this album never seems to draw me in. So much happening, but it never clicks. Could be because many of the songs sound similar to me. Could be the COMPLETE LACK OF BASS. Whatever it is, I've never been big on this album. "One" is a really cool song (particularly the end part), but most of the rest just sounds like the same song over and over. Giving it a 3 because I don't mind hearing it, but never feel an urge to seek it out. Maybe I'd consider a 4, but have to remove at least a star since they removed the bass.

Ugh, here we go. Time to separate the art from the piece of shit artist. The presence of autotune makes it even harder. I HATE autotune. That said, after a few listens I started to get his appeal. The music/samples are fantastic. The lyrics, well, what an asshole. But his rapping style is impressive. Going to call it a 3 - autotune is an automatic -1 for me. Being an asshole is at least an additional -1. Standout tracks: On Sight, Black Skinhead, I am a God (except for the obnoxious screaming), New Slaves (until the autotune started - that's a common thread here: song starts cool and then there's some strange twist at the end), I'm In It, Send It Up.

Interesting album, but the main question I had while listening was WHY ON EARTH ARE THERE 3 KRAFTWERK ALBUMS IN THE 1001 ALBUMS?? I get that they were groundbreaking, but we could hear the groundbreaking-ness from one album and that's enough. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed listening to this, but there are an awful lot of albums I enjoy that didn't make the 1001 albums. Anyway, I liked this one more than the previous Trans-Europe Express. The tracks that most caught my ear were Spacelab and Metropolis (shades of Daft Punk and the Stranger Things soundtrack on the latter - both clearly owe a debt to Kraftwerk), but all the tracks were good. Moving on...

Full disclosure: I'm a huge Rush fan. Moving Pictures is the obvious pick for the 1001 Albums (2112 is in the list also) and deservingly so. Side one is absolutely perfect - every song a masterpiece. Tom Sawyer with its iconic opening chord and, well, iconic moments throughout. Red Barchetta - a great song for an afternoon drive with the windows down. YYZ - Want to pump up any Rush fan? Tap out morse code for Y-Y-Z. This is stupidly one of the first songs I tried to play on bass guitar. Thought I sucked because I couldn't play like Geddy Lee. Duh. Even more stupid, the Grammys chose the Police's lame Behind My Camel as best rock instrumental over YYZ. Seriously?? YYZ is a perfect instrumental and a showcase for the band's amazing musicianship. Limelight - the greatest song ever written about not wanting to talk with fans. Neil Peart turns misanthropy into a hit! Seriously, I love the guitar parts in Limelight. The second side is very good, but not as great as Side 1 (nobody's perfect, I guess). It's also not nearly as accessible to non-Rush fans. The Camera Eye was never one of my favorites - it's good, but to this day doesn't draw me in and always feels too long. Always liked Witch Hunt and its lyrics are as relevant as ever. Finally, Vital Signs is a fun track and a good hint of what was going to come on the next album. If someone were to ask me which Rush album they should start with I'd give a different answer depending on what they like, but you generally can't go wrong with recommending Side 1 of Moving Pictures. I've never gotten tired of this album and never will. Easy 5.

I enjoyed this album a lot more than I thought I would. The lyrics of much of the first half were the main issue I had with the album - I'm all for female sexual empowerment, but from Drunk in Love to Rocket I just wanted to tell Bey and Jay to get a room (Jay-Z: "Your breasteses is my breakfast." Sigh). That said, the music and production are excellent and she has an amazing voice. Don't know if I'd go out of my way to listen to it again, but I wouldn't mind listening more, so I'll call it a 4. Tracks that caught my ear: Haunted (very cool track - also a good spot to acknowledge the visually stunning videos she made for every song on the album), Partition (more sexy-time lyrics, but I like the music), Mine (really like the drum track), XO (anthemic), Flawless, and Heaven (what a great line "Heaven couldn't wait for you. So go on, go on home." I saw some people say it's about a miscarriage, which hits hard, but she says it's about her mother's friend. If it is about a miscarriage, damn that hits you in the feels). Nice ending with Blue - it made me want to go hug my kids, even though they're not so little anymore.

Ehh...not my thing. I'm not a fan of her style of singing. I liked "Forgive Them Father" - that was a good track that caught my ear, but in general I found the album boring. I'm sure it's great for many people, just not me.

Cultural appropriation or beautiful mix of cultures? Far be it from me to decide. I know what I know, as the song goes, and I know this is an absolutely perfect album. We had Ladysmith Black Mambazo as a pick in the 1001 albums and I rated it pretty low because an album of just their singing was kind of meh. Combine them with Paul Simon's voice and writing as well as a wealth of other styles, and suddenly you have a classic. It's all about the synergy of styles that makes it wonderful. It's good to see Paul Simon treated the artists very well - he paid his band far above scale and made sure all the South African acts received writing credits. He received a ton of criticism for violating a cultural boycott of South Africa over apartheid, but it's questionable how it was a good thing to have a cultural boycott of the very people oppressed by apartheid. Regardless, I've loved the album since it came out and never get tired of it. Easy 5. Favorite tracks: The Boy in the Bubble, Graceland, Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes, You Can Call Me Al (even if the video was all kinds of overplayed), Under African Skies (I had no idea that was Linda Rondstadt or that it was so controversial), Homeless.

Weird, but cool. I dig it. Favorite tracks: Man, Maps, Y Control. Liked the music to Cold Light, but the lyrics are a little ugh.

I like the White Stripes and I like pretty much every track on this album, but after a while the garage riffs and drums get a little repetitive. Don't get me wrong, the album is a rocker, is highly creative, and deserves the accolades, I just can't give it a 5 because of the repetitiveness, even if it's good repetitiveness. It could also be that Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground starts with a ton of feedback, which I can't stand. Sets the wrong mood for me personally. These kids and their loud rock and roll!! [shakes fist at ceiling]. That said, lots of good stuff on this album. Favorite tracks: Hotel Yorba, I'm Finding it Harder to be a Gentleman, Fell In Love With a Girl (absolutely impossible to understand without the lyrics, but super-cool song), We're Going to Be Friends (I like the mood of this song), Offend in Every Way, Now Mary.

Like a lot of teens/twentysomethings in the 90s, my entrance to funk-rock-rap was through RHCP and this album in particular. I thought this album was incredibly cool back then, although Sir Psycho Sexy made me cringe ("There's a devil in my dick and some demons in my semen"??? Made me go ugh then, makes me go ugh now). Some of the tracks continue to blow me away - The Power of Equality, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, Under the Bridge (yes, overplayed and all). Other top tracks include Funky Monks, I Could Have Lied, Breaking the Girl, The Righteous & The Wicked, and Give It Away (another overplayed track, but still love the bass line). The one common trend through pretty much the entire album is outstanding musicianship and very cool writing. Even the lyrics are good for most of the album. I'll move past the lyrics on Sir Psycho Sexy and past the fact that I overplayed it when I was younger and give it the 5 it deserves. It's their breakthrough album for a reason.

Tom Petty was a hit making machine. The rest of his stuff is all good, but not always groundbreaking and this album is a good example. The hits (Breakdown and American Girl) are fantastic, but much of the rest is pretty standard fare (e.g., Rockin' Around (With You) and Anthing That's Rock n Roll). This is probably why in most cases I'd rather listen to a greatest hits album by Tom Petty (or a live collection) than his individual albums. More importantly, I'm surprised THIS is the one Tom Petty album they chose for the 1001 albums. Sure, it has a lot of his signature sound early on, but there are better picks (and I'm including his solo stuff, because he's the primary songwriter and lead either way). Seriously, Full Moon Fever wasn't picked?? It had 7 charting singles on it (incl. 3 #1's and 3 more in the Top 10 of the rock charts) and was great start to finish. If I had to pick one album with the Heartbreakers it would be Damn the Torpedoes (with Refugee, Here Comes My Girl, Even the Losers, and Don't Do Me Like That). This is a good album, but they could have picked better. I would have given Full Moon Fever and easy 5. Calling this one a 4.

Gotta admit, I never gave Fiona Apple the time of day because I thought she was a whiny poser (the full title of When the Pawn... didn't help). From the moment the album started, though, it was clear this is a pretty amazing album that I should have given a chance long ago. More importantly, reading about her life (on the most authoritative source: Wikipedia), I never realized the struggles she's gone through (I won't summarize them here). She also has done a lot of great charity work. It's all a good reminder not to pre-judge anyone. The 1001 albums continue to help break through my biases and preconceptions. Now that I'm listening to her with fresh and open ears, it's clear why this was such a breakthrough album. So, how to describe the album? Jazzy, sultry, edgy, deep. Her voice is captivating - as in it holds you captive and doesn't let go. There's anger in her voice and knowledge. How the hell was she 17 when she wrote most of this? Also, the instrumentation and production is outstanding (looks like credit to Jon Brion, who has worked with a ton of great acts). I'm regretting dismissing her and will definitely dig in to her catalog. Best tracks: Sleep to Dream, Criminal (what a song, and those lyrics pack a punch - I also noted that it sounded like there was a mellotron on Criminal, but turns out it's a "Chamberlin" which was a precursor to the Mellotron - look it up, it's pretty interesting), Sullen Girl (powerful song and lyrics), The First Taste (nice groove), and Carrion (really like the outro).

This album oozes cool. Great tracks throughout including Sabotage - one of the coolest songs ever. Also enjoyed all the musical interludes. Easy 5.

I love when I put on an album here thinking I don't know anything about it, and then a song like Green Onions plays and I go, oh, yeah! I know that! Just didn't know the band or the name. The album is enjoyable. I can appreciate it for its historical significance, especially since the band became the "house band" for a ton of great artists. I'd listen again, mainly as background music, but I don't think it's anything I need to hear again.

It made for some nice background music, but in many ways it just sounded like the same song over and over. It probably didn't help that I also had no idea what he was saying. I'm sure it's really good, but I didn't need to hear it before I die.