Reviews by callimar

Astor Piazzolla certainly made a great contribution to the development of world music, but his music was never really my cup of tea: it's not straightforward enough for dancing (and, according to him, that was never the intention), too restless for easy listening, but then again too monotonous for concentrated listening. Basically, he's one of those artists who are only really good live. In that sense, it's only natural that a concert recording appears on this list and not a studio album. I've listened to some good to very good live albums in this context (by B.B. King or Keith Jarrett, for example), but “The New Tango” doesn't really spark my interest. For me, it's on the same level as Charles Mingus—actually cool, but just not for me.

It's probably in the nature of things that not all songwriters are brilliant singers. In my opinion, however, that's no reason for so many singer-songwriters to ruin their songs with extremely restrained, thin, and whiny vocals—especially when they subsequently show that they're actually quite good singers. As a result, the opening track “Right in Time” starts off rather off-putting for my taste—it sounds a bit like Soul Asylum, but without any edge. Since Lucinda Williams definitely doesn't lack talent, she's probably just striving for a sound ideal that I don't share. “Car Wheels On A Gravel Road” is therefore actually a good album, but one that I don't particularly like.

“Lady Soul” is another outstanding album by Aretha, about which there isn't really much to say. Everyone probably knows “Chain of Fools” (which, more than 50 years after its release, is in itself a sign of quality), and writing any more good things about Aretha's voice doesn't seem particularly useful to me. That leaves a brief comparison with her album “I Never Loved a Man...”, released a year earlier, which is absolutely comparable in quality and which I already had the pleasure of reviewing: Here, too, the strongest song is right at the beginning (was that common practice back then?), Aretha's style no longer seems quite as groundbreaking, and this time the album title is short enough to write out in full. That's it!

Another alternative rock band from the early 90s that I've never heard of. So how good can they be? Let's take a closer look:
After the boring first track comes “Gentlemen,” which has a good main groove for its time. Greg Dulli also has a great voice, which comes into its own here. This is followed by a series of nice songs, but each of them has all the characteristics of the 90s that I've heard too many times before: that rhythm pattern that never really grooves, abrupt but pointless shifts between whispering and screaming, accompanied by guitars that aren't really clean and guitars that aren't really distorted, uninspired drums, and a bass that's so muddy you can barely hear it. Back then, most rock bands avoided the clarity and sharp contrasts of the 80s, but that's exactly what made many talented bands annoying after the fifth song—then and now.

Iron Maiden are such an institution and brand that I sometimes forget that (unlike Black Sabbath or Judas Priest, for example) they have “only” released slightly more than a handful of truly outstanding albums—simply because this band “only” appeared on the scene in 1980. I must also admit that I am a big Bruce Dickinson fan on the one hand and appreciate professional productions on the other. As a result, I actually consider the first two albums, “Iron Maiden” and “Killers,” to be better demos...
Be that as it may, from a music history perspective, "Iron Maiden" was downright disruptive because it offered a way out of the early stagnation of punk rock and an alternative to the synthesizer-heavy mainstream. Along the way, Maiden created important trademarks of heavy metal—note, for example, the parallel lines of bass and guitars in “Phantom of the Opera.” Other important milestones on this album are “Running Free” (as far as I know, still an integral part of every Maiden set to this day) and the story of “Charlotte the Harlot,” which begins with the song of the same name;) Oh, and I was pleasantly surprised by "Strange World" which I had remembered as being lengthy but turned out to be quite atmospheric.
I'd still replace this album with "Powerslave" on the 1001-list...

“Pearl” is Janis Joplin's posthumously released final album and a deeply moving masterpiece. That expressive voice—and the singer who uses it uninhibitedly to make every song unique! The tasteful arrangements and the great work of the Full Tilt Boogie Band fade completely into the background. I had only sporadically explored Janis Joplin's work before and really enjoyed this album.

“Kings of the Wild Frontier” by Adam and the Ants is... well, wild. In my opinion, it's not really worth going into individual songs, as the overall style seems exciting but also somehow cute from today's perspective. The grooves seem very open (maybe it's the Burundi drums?) and lively, but not really tight, the bass is produced very cool for my taste (but maybe I just like the typical early-80s new wave bass sound), and Adam Ant's vocals give the impression that he was very eccentric on stage. I consider the entire album to be an interesting historical document and therefore rate it neutral.

For me, King Crimson are masters of atmosphere and mood, first and foremost because of their sensational timing and also because of their diverse repertoire of harmonic and melodic approaches. For me, these qualities actually come before their undoubtedly excellent rhythmic and polyrhythmic ideas, making King Crimson one of the very few bands that really come into their own in their quieter moments. That's why I could listen to the tracks “Epitaph” and “Moonchild” from this album all day long, while I find the other three tracks quite good. 40% absolute killer material, plus one of the most iconic covers—is that enough for five stars? In direct comparison to the same year's "Unhalfbricking" by Fairport Convention (that I reviewed yesterday): certainly yes!

Many great recordings were made in the 1960s, and I have already had the opportunity to listen to quite a few of them as part of this project. Sometimes I wonder whether there was also boring, uninspired, and insignificant music back then. The answer is yes! “Unhalfbricking” by Fairport Convention meets all these criteria—from the boring songs to the band that isn't 100% tight rhythmically and Sandy Daniels' falsetto whining to the stuffy, eccentric cover, this album contains none of the highlights of its decade. Is it bad enough for one star? No, it's not actually annoying enough for that.

In my memory, there was the Nirvana album (Nevermind), the album before the album (Bleach), and a series of rather mediocre attempts by Geffen Records to keep the band in the spotlight after Nevermind (Incesticide, In Utero, MTV Unplugged). At least as far as In Utero is concerned, however, I have to correct this impression: "Serve The Servants", "Heart-Shaped Box", "Rape Me", and "All Apologies" are really good songs, but of course they no longer had the same innovative power as the similarly good but even better-produced tracks two years earlier. To me, “Rape Me” even sounds a bit like a parody of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” today and, in retrospect, seems like Kurt Cobain's declaration of surrender to the expectations of the public, but also to life, the universe, and everything. For me, “In Utero” thus marks the public beginning of the tragic self-destruction of this talented band.

Similar to Ray Charles (whose “Modern Sounds...” I recently had the opportunity to listen to and review), CCR had a formative influence on styles as diverse as country, blues, and hard rock, inspiring countless bands far beyond these genres. Ultimately, I can't say whether “Green River” was their strongest album, but it is an extremely tasteful piece of rock history. In my opinion, it makes little sense to highlight individual songs, as I would then have to list at least eight of the eleven tracks included. A must for anyone interested in music and a special recommendation for anyone who has even the slightest interest in blues rock!

That was really nostalgic! The songs from “Wood Face” are pretty much exactly what I remember hearing when I turned on the radio as a teenager. Of course, I despised all the music on the radio back then, but to be honest, some of it - including Crowded House - wasn't that bad. Even after 30 years, “Weather With You” and “Four Seasons In One Day” stuck in my head, while I liked “Chocolate Cake” and “It's Only Natural” without being able to remember ever hearing them before. Yes, “Wood Face” is a fairly typical pop album of its time, but in my opinion, it sounds so generic precisely because it is one of the best of its kind and thus helped define the typical sound of that era.

“Songs For Swingin' Lovers” was undoubtedly a milestone for both Frank Sinatra and music history, as it was with this album that he began singing and recording standards - for which, to my knowledge, he is still best known today. While his unique voice immediately makes every song his own, I'm not entirely sure that the arrangements and orchestrations, which of course no longer sound contemporary today, live up to this claim. Although I like swing and standards, I feel that this record is at the historical limit of what can still be fairly reviewed today – accordingly, it is also one of the oldest albums on this list. “Songs for Swingin' Lovers” is certainly a very good album, but it doesn't contain any of Sinatra's really big hits, and to me it just sounds too "standard" to give it five stars.

Picture Book is Simply Red's remarkably mature debut album. Opinions about the style may be divided, and the soft pop excursions are not to everyone's taste, but everything sounds really well thought out and produced – well, mature, as mentioned at the beginning. The new wave influence in Red's sophisty pop is (unfortunately) clearly audible, but so are the additional influences from soul, jazz, and blues. Add to that Mick Hucknall's truly great and unique voice. If it weren't for the pop numbers, which are a little too shallow and soft for my taste, I could definitely listen to this album over and over again for quite a while!

“Come Away With Me” by Norah Jones is easy listening par excellence—the question is whether that's a good or a bad thing. Personally, I prefer easy listening music that rewards closer listening with subtle surprises that remain hidden to the casual listener. Maybe I'm wrong (because I haven't listened to every second of this record closely), but I don't think Norah Jones delivers these exciting details. On the other hand, she manages not to become boring in the background. So I might even keep this album as background music that doesn't require attention, but it will most likely go unnoticed there. Still not sure what to call this. Calm music without any further properties?

When I see this cover, I have to immediately think of "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Even Worse". While this is certainly funny, it already proves how iconic "Bad" actually is.
As Michael Jackson had already been a superstar at that time, it's no surprise that everything about the production is flawless and easily meets also today's standards. And likewise it's no surprise that "Dirty Diana" (with Steve Stevens' incredible guitar work) and "Smooth Criminal" remain the best among the 11 songs on "Bad". Yes, this is one of the most iconic albums of all time!

It's been a while... Radiohead was always that band that “other people” listened to, while I was interested in something more sophisticated. But honestly, they've always been masters of subtle, surprising chord changes and multi-layered lyrics. I've always preferred a more direct approach, but “The Bends” is a very serious alternative rock album from the 90s and, yes, a must-know for any music fan. Personally, I prefer the more in-your-faace tracks like "PLate Telex" or ""My Iron Lung".

That was a difficult task! I was somewhat familiar with Charles Mingus and knew that there was “The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady,” but as far as I can remember, I hadn't heard that album yet. It only contains four tracks, which are arranged similarly to a ballet suite, which I find an interesting approach. I also like the instrumentation and production, but what really bothers me are the constantly overloaded arrangements. It's too exciting for easy listening, but also too inconsistent to be able to concentrate on. It was probably fun live (with a dancing squad?), but I really can't see any context in which I would appreciate this record.

First of all, for me, “Modern Sounds...” is THE popular jazz album par excellence, laying the foundation for pretty much everything that came after it. This is due both to the great song selection and the high-quality performance and production, which easily meets today's standards even without most of the technology available today. Furthermore, this album is rightly considered a milestone in all the musical styles that Ray Charles incorporates during the recordings. Together with Ray Charles' power of integration and the associated social significance for the civil rights movement of the 1960s, “Modern Sounds...” is one of the few albums whose importance cannot be overestimated – legendary++ or 12/10.

Man, Roger Daltrey had an amazing voice! From the softest falsetto to the roughest belting—that must have been unique at the time!
Due to the synthesizer-heavy and unnecessarily shallow intro, which in my opinion pretty much obscures the band's real qualities, the record takes a while to unfold its true effect. It was only later that I realized that the songs are actually just as catchy as those of other 60s greats I've heard more recently (e.g., The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Doors), but in a completely different way. Drums, bass, and guitar are given equal prominence alongside the vocals, making it fitting to describe The Who as the pioneers of hard rock.
I find it significant that the strongest song on the album, “Won't Get Fooled Again,” comes at the very end—here, I think I can already hear a blueprint for the classic Van Halen sound in the guitar riffs and vocals—as if this album was planned as an introduction to a new chapter in music history.