Reviews by mitch058

It's kind of a weird experience listening to an album in this collection that's also a movie soundtrack, but a soundtrack theme *does* enforce a certain kind of continuity across the songs, I guess. It's also a great vehicle for some classic Curtis Mayfield songs, deep down in funk land. I hadn't heard most of the songs on this album, aside from "Superfly" itself (a great song), although I know "Freddie's Dead" a lot better than I should, thanks to Fishbone's great cover of what turns out to be an equally good original. "Pusherman" is a great track, too, and I really enjoyed the instrumental "Junkie's chase" as well as "No thing on me (cocaine song)". As good as the music is, it's also a pretty sobering album, sadly.

I own this album, so this isn't new to me. And it was the last album of theirs I bought, as it signaled (to me) their turn away from a distinctive and fun style to a more mainstream sound that just didn't do much for me. I don't know if Hillel Slovak was the magic glue that made them so great--I wasn't a big fan of "Mother's Milk" either--but this album has so much filler and few good songs, and too much similarity among the better songs/hits like "If you have to ask", "Suck my kiss", "Give it away" or even "Sir psycho sexy". "Under the bridge" is a great song, though, and the video for "Breaking the girl" is mesmerizing, although the song itself isn't at all compelling.

Their descent into a kind of uninteresting blandness is a shame, too, given that they had John Frusciante on this album (and the previous album), and he's done some interesting stuff in his solo work, and also ironic that this album was released at the same time as Nirvana's "Nevermind"--a similarly breakthrough moment for two bands with very different trajectories (and weird too that Nirvana and Pearl Jam opened for the Chili Peppers for part of this album's tour). It just kind of feels like the Chili Peppers terminated at a type of boring frat rock with a lot of bass at this point, and worse yet the album had the effect (and still does) of making me feel less enthusiastic with their earlier albums. Even worse, I just discovered that the only other Red Hot Chili Peppers album in this collection is the much later "Californication"; what a shame that we're not getting their better stuff like "Uplift mofo party plan" or "Freaky styley"....

I've always felt like I should like Siouxsie And The Banshees more than I do, in part from the great band name, and because they have an interesting style, and one that apparently had a deep and widespread impact. But something about them prevents me from getting into their sound; it may just be Siouxsie's voice and style, which doesn't seem to fit as well as it might with the Banshees' sound (but maybe that's the point). I *did* enjoy a number of the songs on this album, though--"Overground", "Helter Skelter", and "Metal Postcard" in particular--and the album as a whole is an interesting experience, especially the interplay of the guitar and drums, especially in the first half of the album. It's also quite a contrast to their later work--I had no idea that they'd made an album like this early in their career. (And what an incredible contrast to something like "Peek-a-Boo" or their cover of "Dear Prudence"....)

I'll also admit that I had no idea they'd appeared on the scene in the late 1970s; it's impressive how long they played (although they definitely followed a different direction than this album's byt he time I became aware of them). And I give them 4 stars largely for how seminal this album was for the music scene and music critics. It's worth reading the Wikipedia article on this album just for all the homages from bands after them, like The Cure, Joy Division, Sonic Youth, Jesus and Mary Chain, even Tracey Thorn.

I know it's a bit random which albums you get each day, but it doesn't seem fair to the artist/band to get one of their albums fairly close to another, and this seems to be the case for me with "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan", sadly. It's a good contrast to "Bringing It All Back Home", thankfully, but still.

It's really impressive that most of the lyrics on this album are his own, given how iconic they've become--for him and many, many others--and how his previous album was more of a collection of traditional songs. I hadn't heard many of these songs before, and really enjoyed the lyrics (although I've never really enjoyed his voice/timbre); highlights for me among the previously-unheard are "Masters of War" and "Bob Dylan's Dream" (the latter in part from the 19th-century source tune "Lady Franklin's Lament"). And I think this is the first time I heard his original version of "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall"; very powerful. Sadly, too many of his protest-oriented tunes remain incredibly relevant, a testament to the lasting strength of his songwriting talent.

It's always nice to get a new-to-me band and a new-to-me album, and this album not only ticks off both boxes, but was a pleasant surprise. I'd never have guessed they were Welsh, but that only adds to the pleasant surprise (mainly because I'm not aware of listening to too many Welsh bands). I wish the mixing was a bit better for hearing the lyrics and vocals, but I definitely like their sound and edge and the lyrics that I could make out are fittingly caustic and interesting. There are times where they're almost a rock/post-punk version of Ministry (in a good way), and other times where I'm also reminded of Jane's Addiction, but not in a imitative way. I love the title of the track "Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart" (and enjoyed the song), but am bitterly disappointed that they used "it's" instead of "its" -- I foolishly assumed that Americans had the lock on that mistake....

Reading about the album and the band on Wikipedia adds quite a bit, I'll admit, as I would never have guessed that their main lyricist (Richey Edwards) was basically spiralling out of control during the album's creation, and sadly disappeared not long afterwards. (In retrospect, though, I might have guessed some aspects of his condition with the track "4st 7lb", except that my stone-to-pounds conversion powers are very limited.) Very sad.

I know I've heard their name before, but I'm not sure I've ever heard the Dandy Warhols' music before. "Be-In" started off almost like the Chemical Brothers, which I thought was a good start, but then kind of veered into that (later) 90s muddled and flat wall of sound/noise with equally muffled lyrics (or the fuzzy brooding sound, like on "Orange"). Not that there's anything wrong that, of course, but they're not as distinctive as I want them to be. (What they need, of course, is an electric jug to go with the tambourine. :) I *did* enjoy their single "Every day should be a holiday", and the final track "The Creep Out".

I *will* say, though, that whoever created and edited the album's Wikipedia entry didn't do them any favors; it's one of the more disappointing album descriptions that I've come across with this collection. Too bad, as I wanted to find something to up their intriguing-factor and my rating....

(This is a repeat listening of this album for me, as I got this album early on out of the collection hat before I joined a group on this site, and I'll admit that it's not my first choice to listen to again (in part just because it's so damned long).)

Caveats aside, this very rightfully belongs in the collection as a great selection and album, but at the same time I'm only sometimes in the right mood/frame of mind to really appreciate the old-time country style on this (incredibly long) album set, and almost never in a frame of mind to listen to it *again*, so it's a bit hard to list out my favorites. Nonetheless, it's hard to imagine what an experience this must have been, getting so many incredibly talented musicians to play and sing with them. And an unexpected treat to get a Joni Mitchell song/instrumental at the end.

I'm a bit disappointed, though, that this is the only album in the collection by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, as I'm pretty sure it's not really representative of their not-olde-timey style. C'est la vie, I suppose.

More David Bowie! This one isn't quite as chockful of radio-hits as some of his other albums, but it's still very Bowie (and the Spiders, of course). I don't think I'd have even realized that this is a semi-concept album (with Aladdin Sane as Ziggy in America) without reading the Wikipedia entry for the album, and I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or not (to be unaware of the subtext of sorts). This album wasn't as interesting to me as I'd imagined it would be, sadly, but I did enjoy hearing "The Jean Genie" again, as well as "Time" and I also enjoyed his cover "Let's Spend the Night Together" (although it definitely doesn't rank up there with great cover songs).

I *did* like the idea, though, that David Bowie seems to have found touring America a bit like watching roadkill ("appalled and fixated" simultaneously), and this found its way into the album, plus what I imagine was a pretty stressful tension between being a star and a grueling tour (and recording) schedule. There are times in the songs that I'm reminded of Steely Dan, oddly, although David Bowie's voice is pretty distinctive, and it's pretty clear that the Rolling Stones were a strong influence on this album.

I'm not all that familiar with Dylan's albums, so I initially wondered if somehow a greatest hits album got thrown into this collection, but it's clearly not, so I guess this is more of a testament to how strong this album was relatively early in Bob Dylan's career. (I also didn't realize until I read about the album that this was the album that heralded his turn from protest folk songs to electric sounds and what I think of as classic Dylan lyrics, and apparently the birth of folk rock.) It's impressive how solid so much of the album is; the only song that seemed out of place was "Outlaw Blues". I really enjoyed "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream", "Gates of Eden" and "It's alright Ma", in part because I'd never heard them before.

I'm also struck with how many of his great songs are (to me at least) even better when they're covered by other bands (and in the case of "Maggie's Farm" the song acquired a new and even more pointed meaning post-Thatcher). But they all point back to what a songwriting prodigy Bob Dylan was and is. And I'm glad I finally took the time to learn more about the pre-music-video "promotional film clip" for "Subterranean Homesick Blues", as I'd always wondered where that was filmed (in the alley of the Savoy Hotel in London), and who those people were slightly off-camera (Allen Ginsberg and Bob Neuwirth, who apparently helped write the cards in the video along with Donovan and Bob Dylan).

What a strong album. It's nice to see her evolve since this time in terms of style and themes, but it's not hard to see why this remains the top-selling album of the 21st century. I feel like I've heard many of the songs on this album before, but don't mind at all hearing them again, and I enjoyed the songs I wasn't familiar with either. I do wish for her sake, though, that she didn't continue to experience so much heartbreak in her life, even if she has a gift of transforming the pain into soulful music.

I think my favorites are "Set fire to the rain", "Someone like you" and "Rolling in the deep" (especially the latter's video, which is mesmerizing), which perhaps not coincidentally seem to be *everyone's* favorites. I also like her version of the Cure's "Lovesong". I also cheated and now see that we'll also get her album "25"--it's nice to know that this isn't the only Adele we'll get in this collection.

I'm not sure I've ever really heard Pulp before, and wasn't quite sure what to make of the opening song (and its video that has an incredible roadkill-fascinating quality), but the album definitely grew on me as listened more. I'm not sure I really know what Britpop sounds like, but I'm glad this doesn't really remind me of Oasis or Blur all that much. This may have been a one-off-greatness by them, but I'm glad to have heard the album, and watched those fascinating videos (mainly "Mis-Shapes" and "Common People").

I also appreciated reading the Wikipedia entry, largely to find out the backstory for the album title and also the album cover (or at least the wedding photo cover, as I guess early issues had multiple CD covers to choose from). I also feel like this is what The Divine Comedy was shooting for with their album "Casanova".

I know I've heard of the Cardigans before, but never really knew what they sounded like, or who they sounded like, kind of vaguely assuming they were like the Happy Mondays or something like that. I guess not! (And now I know who did that earworm "LoveFool".) But they're also not really doing much for me, despite the props I give them for doing a cover of "Iron Man" (I wanted to like their bizarre pseudo-jazzy take, but couldn't quite). Several of the songs started off sounding interesting, but then seemed to dissolve into some sort of anodyne alt-rock-ish sound (in large part due to Nina Persson's sort of baby-tone voice). I kept wanting them to be more like Portishead, but that's not really their thing.

I know it's not really fair to the Cardigans, but it kind of feels unfair that the 1001 albums project has *this* Swedish band in the collection, but doesn't have Robyn, who seems a lot more interesting and distinctive.

I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit that I've been a big Police fan since about middle-school age, and this is one of my favorite albums, probably in part because it never seemed to get as much recognition as the later albums like "Ghost in the Machine" and "Synchronicity", although it certainly produced a couple of very popular singles. I pretty much enjoy listening to all of the songs (except maybe not quite as much "Deathwish" and "No Time this time"), and one of my favorite songs on this album is "Does Everyone Stare".

I was always a bit disappointed that they moved away from the more new-wave-reggae-rock sound on this album towards a more straightforward new-wave-and-rock sound, but still enjoy their later albums too. And it wasn't until I saw the video for "Message in a Bottle" just now that I realize how much a younger Sting looks a *lot* like a youngish Ewan McGregor...

What a trip, eh? :) I'll admit I've never heard of The 13th Floor Elevators, and I'm pretty sure I've never heard anything from this album before, but that doesn't stop it from being a fun album to listen to. Not too many of the songs really stood out for me, but I enjoyed "Reverbation (Doubt)" and "Through the Rhythm" a bit more than the others.

I'm not sure I ever figured out what their "electric jug" instrument sounds like in their music, sadly (unless it was that weird reverb-kazoo-like sound), but I'm guessing that Tommy Hall's insistence on using LSD to gain a higher consciousness was more trend-setting than his jug....

Nice to get a classic David Bowie album (especially right after a classic Aretha Franklin album)! I'm really impressed at how solid the collection of songs is, both the ones I've heard before and the ones new to me. Very entertaining, great band members, and a lot going on in each song (and fun to have the John Lennon collaboration with the "Across the Universe" version).

I know it's not really fair to try to cast David Bowie's ever-evolving style and sound over the decades, but this album sounds very much like the classic sound that I associate with David Bowie (apparently self-described at one point as "plastic soul"). And now having read the Wikipedia entry for this album, I realize my impression is more a statement on my unfamiliarity with Bowie's body of work than an accurate description of Bowie's "classic" sound. But I still enjoyed the album quite a bit, even if it's more of a tangent to David Bowie's career.

Quite a classic album, and a refreshing change of pace from recent selections from the collection. Given how ubiquitous many of the song on this album have become, I find it hard to imagine what an album like this must have felt like when it first came out. But gauging by its chart performance, I'm guessing it was an instant classic. And rightly so, as she sings her own as well as other people's songs with a lot of style and soul.

It's a shame that the songs are so short, as you just get started with them when they end soon afterwards; I'm guessing that was probably a consideration for the radio, sadly. It was nice with the CD reissue, though, that they released an unedited version of "Chain of Fools"; I wish there were more unedited versions, honestly.

I enjoyed this album, but more like a musical tourist than from any informed perspective, which is always a bit disappointing. This is more of my own limitation, I know, but it's a problem I experience with so many of the non-English-language music styles in this collection, and this is no exception. But it *did* make his version of "Imagine" an interesting experience.

Sadly, the Wikipedia entry had very little to offer as background, but the entry for the album in the 2005 edition of the book was more helpful in establishing *some* context for the "Rai" style and Khaled's pedigree. In the end, though, I still felt more like I was listening to some sort of weird mashup of a James Bond/Jason Bourne/The Passenger (1975) soundtrack than appreciating an old and adapting musical genre.

I'm pretty sure I haven't heard anything from this album, or from Michael Kiwanuka for that matter, so as far I know this is all new to me. And I really enjoyed the songs and the album, a very pleasant surprise. There are shades of Ollabelle and maybe also Ben Harper, but with a much more groove-focused style, and it's really fun that he arranged a concept-style album in 2019.

I always find it a fun challenge to try to guess which side of the pond some English-language singers are from, and I'll admit I didn't do a very good job with Michael Kiwanuka. His style and voice seemed more American to me, and the video for "Hero" certainly seemed to be very American-oriented), but the video for "You Ain't the Problem" (one of my favorite songs on the album, along with "Hero") seemed much more British than American, and I eventually had to cheat and read in Wikipedia that he's English. Not that there's anything wrong with that. :) And very cool to find out he appeared (as himself) in the film "Yesterday"!

Try as I might, I've never really found a way to be a true Prince fan, although he/they has had my respect for a long time. I can see why this is considered one of his best albums, and it certainly has a pretty wide-ranging selection of his distinctive styling. Perhaps almost *too* wide-ranging, as it sounds like this was kind of weird grab-bag of Revolution-involved compositions and some weird "Camille" alter-ego concept album. But still a good Prince sampling.

That said, I'm a bit disappointed that the 1001-albums project included a double-album, as this seems like a bit of an imposition, but I can at least thank Warner Bros for resisting Prince's desire to make it a triple album. And it seems fair to give Prince 3 slots in the collection (although I'm sure some would want even more).

Hm. Not really my cup of tea, but also not terrible either. I kind of regret it that I watched the videos for some of their songs (courtesy of YouTube Music), as the sardonic tone of their songs goes into really annoying territory with the chic-ironic style of the videos (although fun to see Venice in the video for "Something for the Weekend").

I'm sure there are plenty of Divine Comedy fans, but I'm not one of them, sadly. I guess the best way to put it is that at their best (probably with "Through a Long & Sleepless Night"), they sound a bit like a Franz-Ferdinand-inspired band, but not as interesting, although to Divine Comedy's credit they *were* earlier than Franz Ferdinand.