Reviews by tjehl

As is evident from the crowd reaction on this live album, James Brown was one hell of a showman.
His band is airtight and when told to scream everyone at the Apollo joins in. Fortunately that’s quite fun being a part of - even from your own living room!

But - and there’s a big but…

James Brown, the singer not the showman, might just be among the most overrated in history.
His voice is generally okay, but his shouting and screams, his signature, are nothing but average at best. Sue me.

There’s nothing groundbreaking about Be, but it’s one heck of a solid rap album with a length that is just right.

Not particularly a fan of Cockney rhyming slang.
Otherwise this is pretty fun.

There’s absolutely no one who’s able to match the tone of Joni Mitchell. What a voice!

Imagine a world without Imagine.
It is quite hard to do.

Ray Davies completely loses it on the silly-train toward the end of this otherwise critically acclaimed cult album.

Neil Young really revitalized himself when he joined up with Crazy Horse and later Promise of the Real.
The longer compositions really shows of his strength as a rock composer but too many of the shorter songs never gets me interested.

Guns, sex and drugs. Everything you come to expect.

Biggie flow, complexity and tone is one of the greatest ever. But I'm not quite hooked for 70 minutes straight.

Still not a huge fan of Morrissey. But Vauxhall And I comes close to being my favorite album of his.

Maybe I’m just a bigger fan of Whyte and Boorer?
Nonetheless there’s a vibe on this album that I appreciate a lot more than I did Viva Hate.

A large dose of Paul Simon is never a bad thing.
But I’m in dire need of more Garfunkel after finishing Bookends.

In many ways this could’ve been the first Paul Simon solo album.

The obvious highs are really high.
But the lows are equally low.

This really made me want to listen to some Yazoo.

A Southern sounding album if there ever was one. Played by four California guys. What a marvel!

As CCR was nearing its end the rest of the band wanted more individual songwriting credits. Fogerty (you know which brother) allegedly replied: “My voice is a unique instrument, and I will not lend it to your songs.”

Granted. He may sound like a douche.
But listening to “Born On The Bayou”… I kinda get him.

On With the Beatles the Fab Four starts showing signs that they would later turn out to be some of the finest song writers ever.

“Don’t Bother Me” and “It Won’t Be Long” are the best examples of this while the covers of “Please Mister Postman” and “Devil In Her Heart” also work great.

With the Beatles is enjoyable through and through but there’s still some way from this to what those four Liverpool lads were destined to become.

Malcolm Young is one hell of a riff maker.
And Brian Johnson’s snarling voice is the epitome of hard rock.

There are some real bangers on Back In Black that are sure to make me shout along every time they pop up - “Hells Bells”, the title track and “You Shook Me All Night Long” being the best examples.

But as with many a hard rock band the formula is just too repetitive in the end. And many of the songs I simply don’t care for altogether.

It’s hard to overstate the impact American Idiot had on the music scene in the years following its release.

Green Day outperformed themselves and delivered an era-defining record that gave a voice to millions of angsty teens longing to be heard under the post-9/11 Bush administration.

It’s been a few years since I heard this album last but nothing seems to have aged badly. Hit after hit after hit of perfectly written punk rock songs - and an especially honorable mention to the fantastic “Letterbomb”.

I remember growing into my music taste with American Idiot. I don’t think I will ever outgrow it.

Thankfully, they kept it brief.

Booker T. recorded this at the age of 17. Let that sink in.

The title track is instantly recognizable and probably one of the greatest instrumentals out there.

But while I won’t hesitate to recognize Booker T. for being the Hammond-genius that he is, the formula very quickly becomes too boring and predictable.

I love many of the songs individually.
As an album, I’m not so sure.

I wish more punk songs started with someone shouting the title at you.

The perfect blend of the aggressive political stance of Catch A Fire and the love-based songs of Kaya.

When you are done listening to Legend, Exodus is the place to start the journey into Marley’s studio discography.

Considering the band name, this album is very much alive.