Reviews by kenny-mike

It is said that this album influenced the Beatles. I think the best way to think about that is this. Imagine The Beach Boys and the Beatles running around the same track, but the Beatles just keep passing them by as they are running faster and stronger. Each time the Beatles pass by The Beach Boys, they smile and wave.

A few months after this album came out, The Beatles released Revolver. Compare and contrast.

3/5 but out of courtesy for rock historians I’ll go to 4/5.

Here’s the reason for rating this album, the first I’ve ever heard by St. Vincent, a 4/5. I went in curious, liked what I heard, and came away STILL curious. A reviewer pointed me to her 2009 cover of “I Dig A Pony” - thanks! Now I’m now listening to her full length debut from 2007 (“Marry Me”) and it’s a keeper. She evidenced so much promise, versatility, and artistry. I dig it.

BUT ALAS. This list has become like U.S. Politics, with those holding seats in the 1001 Chamber of Greatness changing seats now every few years. “Must Hears” from the last edition have been voted out, and a new batch of albums sworn in for the next term.… with a good chance of being voted out again next time. Does this 2024 release deserve this distinction, and will it still be here in a few years? Who knows. Do fans of St. Vincent, who know her music well, think this is THE album of hers to hear (it’s the only one on the list)? I doubt it. I mean, heck, even I’m more impressed by her album from 20 years ago.

So I’m giving St. Vincent 4/5, and I’d like to leave ambiguous whether that’s for “Marry Me” or “All Born Screaming.”

So, how many Bowie albums have YOU received so far?

"Heroes" isn't a bad album, and I don't blame you if it's a favorite. It has a good sound and a great collaborator involved (Brian Eno), even if the change from art rock to ambient synth is a bit abrupt. I admit I even enjoyed the first of the ambient tracks before I got to the "lemme outta here!" phase. The closing song was cool.

Lotsa, lotsa, lotsa Bowie on this list. And from me, lotsa 3/5.

There is a song on this album called "Rock Steady," and I think that sums it up. This album sounds like a band that's working really hard to hold it together, to get it just right. The end result is about as exciting as you'd expect something that careful and dutiful to be.

There is something about Johnny Cash that transcends “country,” my otherwise least favorite genre. The strongest clues are embedded in his live albums at Folsom Prison and here at San Quentin. How many artists can create this kind of bond with the residents of a high security prison? How many can walk into San Quentin and sing about tearing it down brick by brick, and being misunderstood?

This album is all about credibility.

The List Maker unfortunately pushed so many Bowie and Bowie-adjacent selections onto the 1001 list that it had the unintended, reverse effect on me. I am left supremely disinterested in this man’s music, apart from some key songs.

Well, this album happens to contain two of those songs: the well-crafted and intriguing “Is There Life on Mars?” and “Andy Warhol.”

This is one of two Bowie albums that belongs on the list. But alas, I’m Bowied out.

This is not my band anymore but when I was, like, 12 years old this was part of my middle school soundtrack. Funny how that works. Anyway, while I’ve outgrown the “sex, hell, and rock’n’roll” vibe I have to give credit where it’s due musically. The songs are iconic because they lay their hooks into you and don’t let you go. Amazing that this was a “comeback” album of sorts (thus the title). They came back, in black, with a vengeance.

Adding an album from a year ago is like putting a 1-year old on the “America’s Most Influential People” list because they are showing so much potential. On top of that, they took a 5-year old off the list and now he’s crying, so nobody’s happy.

No criticism to the one who runs this site, or for the artist who is just trying her best to raise this 1 year old child. Only for Mr Dimery who is making this project unserious.

If you are wondering why an album from 2026 us on the list… It’s worse than it looks.

Not only are albums added to the list that are less than a year old…

Previous albums are removed! Which means you may have heard an album “before you die” unnecessarily. What will St. Peter have to say to you then? But, it gets worse still….

The albums that are removed, this time around for example, are all from 2001-2020, which divides into two more bad things.

One, that the entire list is not analyzed with each edit (even though we’ve all had very mediocre to terrible albums from those earlier 40+ years, not to mention albums left off that shoulda been).

And, Two, that this particular album from 2026 that you now “must hear before you die” could be (and probably will be) removed over the next few years.

The person who runs this site is a saint. But the editor of the 1001 list is destroying his own credibility. Meanwhile, we now have 1100+ albums to work through due to all the different editions.

Mr. Dimery should use all our reviews, and mine in particular 😀, to do an actual one-time edit of the list that makes sense.

Apparently this is the origin story of Britpop. I hear both the good and the bad here... the good being the bright sound, the bad being that dang exaggerated British accent. And I have the same experience with this primordial Britpop that I do with its more famous predecessors (Blur, Oasis): I find myself enjoying it a LOT one moment, and then the next day I wonder what I saw in it.

In that realm of uncertainty I'm going to still choose to round UP instead of down. I like the sound enough to believe I could revisit this, and props for doing something just a little different in the late 80s (when these songs were recorded). I'll take a little Britpop over a lot of grunge.

The Kinks were a great British Invasion band whose unique contributions can sometimes be missed. They proved over the decades to be intelligent, musically versatile, and enduring.

After almost inventing punk rock with earlier hits such as "You Really Got Me" and "Where Have All the Good Times Gone" (both covered later by Van Halen), this is apparently the first album to lean fully into Ray Davies' wry storytelling style. For me it's an absolute success. Not only is the songwriting great, it just SOUNDS so good. It really pulled me in. I'm keeping this in rotation!

You can categorize The Cars as a late-70s new wave band, and they fit the profile perfectly. BUT, there's something more. They sound of their moment but they stand out...way out...from the crowd. So many hits on one album, and each has its own texture, its own personality, and each one has endured for nearly 5 decades.

I sound like a fanboy. But I personally gravitate more toward Talking Heads, The Clash, and P.I.L. (to name a few of contemporaries). The Cars are maybe too "pop" or too familiar for my tastes. BUT... I have nothing but respect, and I want to show that respect with a well deserved 5/5 rating.

This is music I can respect: it's thoughtful and lyrically interesting. But it's also music I can enjoy: more folk than rock, but definitely has an edge that keeps it interesting.

Favorite songs after first listen include the first three from the original Side Two: "Cajun Woman," "Who Knows Where The Time Goes?" and "Percy's Song." (HT to Bob Dylan on that third one; he also wrote two others on the album, plus one of the bonus tracks.)

I like this album a little better than Liege and Lief, but same rating: round up to 4/5.

I would rather listen to these dabblings by Paul McCartney than to albums like “Band on the Run.” This album falls short because he’s not really trying that hard; but you could imagine many of these simple tunes tucked away on a White Album somewhere. But when he tries really hard and ends up with “Band on the Run,” that’s more surprising and more sad. I think that life as a Beatle, and certainly the end of the Bestles, was traumatic for all involved—and Paul’s post-Beatles journey begins here. It’s a front row seat to see how he was coping.

What could be better than a Jimi Hendrix double album? Possibly a single LP by Jimi Hendrix.

At their worst double albums are self-indulgent. The great ones showcase an artist’s range but fail to tell a unified story. It’s like a collection of poems or short stories versus a gripping novel. The main exception to all of this imo is “Tommy.” A complete package.

Again, some of these anthology-type double LPs are tremendous: Blonde on Blonde, The White Album, Songs in the Key of Life, and Electric Ladyland among the early, classic entries.

This is 5/5 for me but it’s the one Hendrix album prior to his death that has to be rounded up. But it is deserving for sure, with so many great tracks … and just a little of the aforementioned self-indulgence on the longer ones.

“All Along the Watchtower” may be the greatest cover song ever released. This was a Bob Dylan song you’ve maybe never heard. But notice in the preceding track, “House Burning Down” (a favorite), the influence of Dylan on the lyrics.

Make time. Enjoy.

At first this was kinda like growing up in a broken home: I like y’all, but why all the yelling?

The yelling tapered off as the album progressed so that was a relief. I liked the sound. But ultimately this album seems to be on the list to show that 10 years after Nirvana grunge made it to Australia….

Noted 👍🏻

More like, “Maybe.”

If you're like me, you started this 1001 journey with the expectation that you would be introduced to many interesting and important albums that fill in your knowledge and enjoyment gaps. You expected albums like this one: arguably the first rock opera, circa 1968, a year before "Tommy" and which you never heard of before but why?

But alas, gems like this have been too few and far between. And it SOUNDS great, which is of utmost importance. Well-crafted 60s psychedelia with its acoustic/electric blend. I'm not sure it fully deserves 5/5 but I'm rounding right up to that because it's what I came here for.

The List Makers love Elvis Costello almost as much as David Bowie. That can be annoying but remember, it’s not Costello’s fault. He was just standing there making music.

So, how does this album rate? I think it’s a solid album with an energetic, direct feel. Much like his earliest work that way. Lyrically, it’s strong and rewards (maybe requires) multiple listens. I find this to be generally true with EC after his first couple albums…he packs a lot in there.

I will take another strong Costello offering any day.

The lead off single “Dirrty” and the provocative cover strike me as following the all-too-familiar playbook for Disney pop stars coming of age. That playbook uses sexual confrontation as a substitute for emotional maturity. Not a fan of that playbook.

But the second single “Beautiful” is what really gained traction here in the States. And the three singles after that also spoke to self-esteem and personal healing, each in their own way.

Those themes, I believe, are the true heart of the album.

“Stripped” is one of two albums on the list by Christina Aguilera. Each exceeded expectations. But while I’d like to go higher, a strong 3/5 seems like the most honest landing place for me.