Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: Album-by-Album Thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Jmac1979, Sep 19, 2021.

  1. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    I'm not a fan of Radiohead's angst-ridden ditties. As opposed to their later Syd-less dreary Floydisms, The Bends has a certain Manic Street Preachers-lite vibe. Although there are a couple of songs I quite like, overall I feel the album mistakes pomp and circumstance for emotional authenticity; as if it were constructed inside an antiseptic musical laboratory. Fake Plastic Feelings.
     
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  2. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    THE BENDS (Radiohead)
    For years I dismissed Radiohead because I did not like the song "Creep" and it was the only thing by them I had ever heard (or as it turned out know that I heard as I later discovered when listening to OK COMPUTER I had heard a couple songs, but didn't know they were Radiohead).
    Anyway the two Radiohead albums that would make my top 500 are OK COMPUTER and KID A. This album is OK, but not top 500 for me.
    GRADE: B-

    My Current Top 60+ Albums:
    1. THE KINKS ARE THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY (The Kinks)
    2. SOMETHING ELSE (The Kinks)
    3. ALL THINGS MUST PASS (George Harrison)
    4. NUGGETS (Various Artists)
    5. MODERN LOVERS (Modern Lovers)
    6. RAM (Paul & Linda McCartney)
    7. BETWEEN THE BUTTONS (Rolling Stones)
    8. THE WHO SELL OUT (The Who)
    9. GREATEST HITS (Sly & the Family Stone)
    10. THE CARS (The Cars)
    11. FULL MOON FEVER (Tom Petty)
    12. RADIO CITY (Big Star)
    13. #1 RECORD (Big Star)
    14. ODELAY (Beck)
    15. COSMO'S FACTORY (CCR)
    16. ROCKEY TO RUSSIA (Ramones)
    17. DOOKIE (Green Day)
    18. LET IT BE (The Beatles)
    19. WEEZER (Weezer)
    20. ANTHOLOGY (The Temptations)
    21. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE (Neil Young)
    22. ANTHOLOGY (Diana Ross & the Supremes)
    23. YOUNG GIFTED AND BLACK (Aretha Franklin)
    24. THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (Abba)
    25. HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Led Zeppelin)
    26. THE STOOGES (The Stooges)
    27. SURREALISTIC PILLOW (Jefferson Airplane)
    28. MY AIM IS TRUE (Elvis Costello)
    29. SOMETHING/ANYTHING (Todd Rundgren)
    30. BROTHERS IN ARMS (Dire Straits)
    31. CLOSE TO THE EDGE (Yes)
    32. PROUNCED LENHERD SKINNERD (Lynryd Skynryd)
    33. ELEPHANT (The White Stripes)
    34. UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK CITY (Nirvana)
    35. ABRAXAS (Santana)
    36. PORTRAIT OF A LEGEND (Sam Cooke)
    37. PICTURES FROM THE CITY (PJ Harvey)
    38. MOVING PICTURES (Rush)
    39. KING OF THE DELTA BLUES SINGERS (Robert Johnson)
    40. DICTIONARY OF SOUL (Otis Redding)
    41. SOME GIRLS (Rolling Stones)
    42. CURRENTS (Tame Impala)
    43. BEACH BOYS TODAY (The Beach Boys)
    44. ELVIS PRESLEY (Elvis Presley)
    45. BO DIDDLEY/GO BO DIDDLEY (Bo Diddley)
    46. PARKLIFE (Blur)
    47. SIAMESE DREAM (Smashing Pumpkins)
    48. LIVE AT LEEDS (The Who)
    49. RUST NEVER SLEEPS (Neil Young)
    50. CALIFORNICATION (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
    51. NORMAN R ROCKWELL (Lana Del Rey)
    52. 19 LOVE SONGS (Magnetic Fields)
    53, LUCINDA WILLIAMS (Lucinda Williams)
    54. HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Linda Rondstadt)
    55. MR TAMBOURINE MAN (The Byrds)
    56. PAUL SIMON (Paul Simon)
    57. SO (Peter Gabriel)
    58. LIKE A PRAYER (Madonna)
    59. SHERYL CROW (Sheryl Crow)
    60. BACK TO MONO (Phil Spector w/various artists)
    61. NICK OF TIME (Bonnie Raitt)
    62. THE ANTHOLOGY (Muddy Waters)
    63. PRESENTING THE FABULOUS RONETTES (Ronettes)
    64. MOANING IN THE MOONLIGHT (Howlin Wolf)
    65. MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDING AND FOOD (Talking Heads)
    66. ANOTHER GREEN WORLD (Brian Eno)
    67. NILSSON SCHMILSSON (Harry Nilsson)

    No more cuts until I reach 75 albums
     
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  3. Jamsterdammer

    Jamsterdammer The Great CD in the Sky

    Location:
    Málaga, Spain
    Radiohead - The Bends

    I quite like Radiohead when I'm in the mood for it, but also prefer OK Computer, Kid A as well as In Rainbows to The Bends. Still, a good album imo, as this is where Radiohead started to sound like, well, Radiohead.
     
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  4. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    For me The Bends is Radiohead's first great album, and OK Computer is their last one. I like Kid A, especially the first few songs, but it hasn't aged all that well for me -- it's like I like the idea of it more than the actual album. I haven't heard much of their later stuff, mainly because I moved to Europe and didn't have any money to lisetn to music for several years. And I didn't know how to download music.


    But this is a great album that I sadly did not discover until circa 2005 when I found it in the local British Council library. Nowadays it's not the kind of thing that I'm really into: a bit too loud and rocky for my middle-aged ass...but it did captivate me 20 years ago.


    4.5/5


    1. In the Aeroplane Over The Sea
    2. Third/Sister Lovers
    3. #1 Record
    4. Modern Lovers
    5. I Do Not Want What I haven't Got
    6. Weezer
    7. If You're Feeling Sinister
    8. Brian Wilson Presents "SMiLE"
    9. Nirvana MTV Unplugged In New York
    10. Radio City
    11. Post
    12. Dirty Mind
    13. Paul Simon
    14. My Aim Is True
    15. Mr. Tambourine Man
    16. Ram
    17. Wild Honey
    18. The Wild The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle
    19. So
    20. Pink Flag
    21. The Basement Tapes
    22. John Wesley Harding
    23. Surfer Rosa
    24. Aftermath
    25. Everyone Thinks This Is Nowhere
    26. Full Moon Fever
    27. Village Green Preservation Society
    28. Something Else
    29. Gilded Palace Of Sin
    30. Houses of the Holy
    31. The Bends
    32. Today!
    33. Let It Be
    34. Siamese Dream
    35. Parklife
    36. Dookie
    37. Music Of My Mind
    38. Sheryl Crow
    39. Sandinista!
    40. Goo
    41. Let's Get It On
     
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  5. Reckoner

    Reckoner Made in Canada

    The Bends - Radiohead

    For the record, yes, I'm a Radiohead fanboy and my personal Top 3 albums of all time are Radiohead albums. "The Bends" would be #3 of those. In '95 I had some things, both good and bad, happening in my life where music was forced down nearer the bottom of my priority list. I was aware of and liked "Just", "Fake Plastic Trees" and "High and Dry" because the videos got a lot of airplay on MuchMusic but I wouldn't end up buying The Bends until after OK Computer dropped in '97. I found myself really drawn to the deeper cuts on the album, like "Planet Telex", "Bulletproof...I Wish I was" and "Bones". When I throw those in with the hits from the album, well, it's a loaded record.

    Sometimes I think that music enthusiasts have a little bit of selective memory loss when it comes to The Bends. It came after their biggest single, "Creep" and before their iconic album, OK Computer and it gets lumped in with the britpop bands at the time. It may have had that kind of alternative/britpop sound but its hits were quite ubiquitous and that's saying something for a band that doesn't really care about singles or hits.

    OK Computer and Kid A might be the most critically acclaimed and popular with the art rock crowd, but The Bends is really the album that puts Radiohead on the map and creates the buzz for OK Computer.
    Regardless, a classic for this fanboy.
    5/5
     
  6. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Houses of the Holy
    A-
    Not on the level of their first 4, but still really good IMO.
     
  7. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    The Bends
    A
    IMO right there with OKC
     
  8. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    275. Curtis Mayfield - Curtis (1970)
    Producer: Curtis Mayfield

    Curtis is the debut album by American soulmusician Curtis Mayfield, released in September 1970. Produced by Mayfield, it was released on his own label Curtom Records. The musical styles of Curtis moved further away from the pop-soulsounds of Mayfield's previous group The Impressions and featured more of a funk and psychedelic-influenced sound. The album's subject matter incorporates political and social concerns of the time.

    Curtis sold well at the time charting at number one on the Billboard Black albums (for five nonconsecutive weeks) and number nineteen on the Billboard Pop albums charts. Only the single "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going to Go" charted in the United States; however, an edited version of "Move On Up" would spend 10 weeks in the top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.

    Background
    Mayfield began work on his own self-titled album in 1970. Although he never intended to leave the Impressions permanently, he would officially leave them in 1971, under recommendation from his business manager Marv Stuart and given the trend for both R&B and rock artists to go solo.

    Recording and Production
    Like with some of his later Impressions work, Mayfield's lyrics reflected the social and political concern rising in black America at the time. Mayfield was one of the earliest artists to speak openly about African-American pride and community struggle.[5]Mayfield reflected upon this time as a "happening era...when people stopped wearing tuxedos...people were getting down a little more."[3]

    The album had a more hard edged sound than the Impressions had before. On this new sound Mayfield claimed it was something he "long wanted to do...but were out of category of what was expected of me and the Impressions. What I got off in the Curtis album allowed me to be more personal for myself.".[3] The two singles off the album "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going to Go" and "Move on Up" showcased Mayfield's new funk musical style, while the rest of the tracks were much softer soul based songs.[3] Not having any traditional music lessons, Mayfield claimed his backing band would occasionally comment "gosh, this is a terribly strange key to play in", but still played it accordingly as written.[4] According to Joseph L. Tirabassi of Tiny Mix Tapes, "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue" exemplified the "gliding soul" and "hard-hitting funk" the rest of the album veered between.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Christgau's Record Guide B+
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 3/5
    Q 5/5
    Rolling Stone 4/5
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide 3.5/5
    Sputnikmusic 4.5/5
    Tom Hull – on the Web A–
    The Village Voice B

    Audience Reception
    86/100 from 240 users, #11 for 1970, #360 overall - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    9.2/10 from 1,147 users - AllMusic
    4.3/5 from 74 users - Musicboard
    4.04/5 from 7,963 users, #8 for 1970, #179 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
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  9. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Curtis I love everything about this album. Lyrically astute; socially engaged; musically sublime. Big hit.

    My updated list:
    1. Suicide - s/t
    2. New York Dolls - s/t
    3. Ramones - Rocket To Russia
    4. Joy Division - Closer
    5. Elvis Presley - s/t
    6. Black Sabbath - s/t
    7. Curtis Mayfield - Curtis
    8. Rolling Stones - Aftermath
    9. Stone Roses - s/t
    10 Stooges - s/t
    11 Dylan - John Wesley Harding
    12 Roberta Flack - First Take
    13 Various - Nuggets
    14 Modern Lovers - s/t
    15 Sonic Youth - Goo
    16 Elvis Presley - In Memphis
    17 Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine
    18 Frank Sinatra - Wee Small Hours
    19 Big Star - Third
    20 Abba - Definitive
    21 X-Ray Spex - Germfree Adolescents
    22 LCD Soundsystem - Silver
    23 Pet Shop Boys - Actually
    24 Who - Live At Leeds (original LP)
    25 Solange - A Seat At The Table
    26 Raincoats - s/t
    27 Paul & Linda - Ram
    28 Nilsson - Nilsson Schmillson
     
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  10. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    CURTIS (Curtis Mayfield)
    This is a decent album, but I'm not sure it would be top 500 for me. A career spanning anthology, including the Impressions, would be my ideal way to have Curtis Mayfield's work. That said, I can't fault anyone for including this album in their top 500 and I'll add it to the lower region of my top 75.
    GRADE: B

    My Current Top 60+ Albums:
    1. THE KINKS ARE THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY (The Kinks)
    2. SOMETHING ELSE (The Kinks)
    3. ALL THINGS MUST PASS (George Harrison)
    4. NUGGETS (Various Artists)
    5. MODERN LOVERS (Modern Lovers)
    6. RAM (Paul & Linda McCartney)
    7. BETWEEN THE BUTTONS (Rolling Stones)
    8. THE WHO SELL OUT (The Who)
    9. GREATEST HITS (Sly & the Family Stone)
    10. THE CARS (The Cars)
    11. FULL MOON FEVER (Tom Petty)
    12. RADIO CITY (Big Star)
    13. #1 RECORD (Big Star)
    14. ODELAY (Beck)
    15. COSMO'S FACTORY (CCR)
    16. ROCKEY TO RUSSIA (Ramones)
    17. DOOKIE (Green Day)
    18. LET IT BE (The Beatles)
    19. WEEZER (Weezer)
    20. ANTHOLOGY (The Temptations)
    21. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE (Neil Young)
    22. ANTHOLOGY (Diana Ross & the Supremes)
    23. YOUNG GIFTED AND BLACK (Aretha Franklin)
    24. THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (Abba)
    25. HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Led Zeppelin)
    26. THE STOOGES (The Stooges)
    27. SURREALISTIC PILLOW (Jefferson Airplane)
    28. MY AIM IS TRUE (Elvis Costello)
    29. SOMETHING/ANYTHING (Todd Rundgren)
    30. BROTHERS IN ARMS (Dire Straits)
    31. CLOSE TO THE EDGE (Yes)
    32. PROUNCED LENHERD SKINNERD (Lynryd Skynryd)
    33. ELEPHANT (The White Stripes)
    34. UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK CITY (Nirvana)
    35. ABRAXAS (Santana)
    36. PORTRAIT OF A LEGEND (Sam Cooke)
    37. PICTURES FROM THE CITY (PJ Harvey)
    38. MOVING PICTURES (Rush)
    39. KING OF THE DELTA BLUES SINGERS (Robert Johnson)
    40. DICTIONARY OF SOUL (Otis Redding)
    41. SOME GIRLS (Rolling Stones)
    42. CURRENTS (Tame Impala)
    43. BEACH BOYS TODAY (The Beach Boys)
    44. ELVIS PRESLEY (Elvis Presley)
    45. BO DIDDLEY/GO BO DIDDLEY (Bo Diddley)
    46. PARKLIFE (Blur)
    47. SIAMESE DREAM (Smashing Pumpkins)
    48. LIVE AT LEEDS (The Who)
    49. RUST NEVER SLEEPS (Neil Young)
    50. CALIFORNICATION (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
    51. NORMAN R ROCKWELL (Lana Del Rey)
    52. 19 LOVE SONGS (Magnetic Fields)
    53, LUCINDA WILLIAMS (Lucinda Williams)
    54. HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Linda Rondstadt)
    55. MR TAMBOURINE MAN (The Byrds)
    56. PAUL SIMON (Paul Simon)
    57. SO (Peter Gabriel)
    58. LIKE A PRAYER (Madonna)
    59. SHERYL CROW (Sheryl Crow)
    60. BACK TO MONO (Phil Spector w/various artists)
    61. NICK OF TIME (Bonnie Raitt)
    62. THE ANTHOLOGY (Muddy Waters)
    63. PRESENTING THE FABULOUS RONETTES (Ronettes)
    64. MOANING IN THE MOONLIGHT (Howlin Wolf)
    65. MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDING AND FOOD (Talking Heads)
    66. ANOTHER GREEN WORLD (Brian Eno)
    67. CURTIS (Curtis Mayfield)
    68. NILSSON SCHMILSSON (Harry Nilsson)

    No more cuts until I reach 75 albums
     
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  11. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    274. The Byrds - Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968)
    Producer: Gary Usher

    Sweetheart of the Rodeo is the sixth album by American rock band the Byrds and was released in August 1968 on Columbia Records.[2] Recorded with the addition of country rock pioneer Gram Parsons, it became the first major album widely recognized as country rock[3] and represented a stylistic move away from the psychedelic rock of the band's previous LP, The Notorious Byrd Brothers.[4] The Byrds had occasionally experimented with country music on their four previous albums, but Sweetheart of the Rodeo represented their fullest immersion into the genre to that point in time.[5][6][7] The album was also responsible for bringing Parsons, who had joined the Byrds in February 1968 prior to the recording of the LP, to the attention of a mainstream rock audience for the first time.[7][8] Thus, the album is an important chapter in Parsons' personal and musical crusade to make country music fashionable for a young audience.

    The album was initially conceived as a musical history of 20th century American popular music, encompassing examples of country music, jazz and rhythm and blues, among other genres.[5] However, steered by the passion of the little-known Parsons, who had only recently joined the Byrds, this proposed concept was abandoned early on and the album instead became purely a country record.[5][10]The recording of the album was divided between sessions in Nashville and Los Angeles, with contributions from several notable session musicians, including Lloyd Green, John Hartford, JayDee Maness, and Clarence White.[11] Tension developed between Parsons and the rest of the band, guitarist Roger McGuinn especially, with some of Parsons' vocals being re-recorded, partly due to legal complications, and by the time the album was released in August, Parsons had left the band.[12][13][14] The Byrds' move away from rock and poptowards country music elicited a great deal of resistance and hostility from the ultra-conservative Nashville country music establishment, who viewed the Byrds as a group of long-haired hippiesattempting to subvert country music.[10]

    Upon its release, the album reached number 77 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, but failed to reach the charts in the United Kingdom.[15][16] Two attendant singles were released during 1968, "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere", which achieved modest success, and "I Am a Pilgrim", which failed to chart.[16][17] The album received mostly positive reviews in the music press, but the band's shift away from psychedelic musicalienated much of its pop audience.[18] Despite being the least commercially successful Byrds' album to date upon its initial release, Sweetheart of the Rodeo is today considered to be a seminal and highly influential country rock album.

    Background
    The initial concept by Roger McGuinn for the album that would become Sweetheart of the Rodeo was to expand upon the genre-spanning approach of the Byrds' previous LP, The Notorious Byrd Brothers, by recording a double album overview of the history of American popular music.[10] The planned album would begin with bluegrass and Appalachian music, then move through country and western, jazz, rhythm and blues, and rock music, before culminating with futuristic proto-electronicafeaturing the Moog modular synthesizer.[10]

    But with a U.S. college tour to promote The Notorious Byrd Brothers looming, a more immediate concern was the recruitment of new band members.[12] David Crosby and Michael Clarke had been dismissed from the band in late 1967, leaving Roger McGuinn as de facto leader of the Byrds, along with Chris Hillman, the only other remaining member of the band.[9][19] To address this problem, McGuinn hired Hillman's cousin, Kevin Kelley (formerly a member of the Rising Sons), as the band's new drummer,[5] and it was this three-piece line-up, with McGuinn on guitar and Hillman on bass, that embarked on the early 1968 college tour.[20] It soon became apparent, however, that the Byrds were having difficulty performing their studio material live as a trio, and so it was decided that a fourth member was required.[20] McGuinn, with an eye still on his envisaged American music concept album, felt that a pianist with a jazz background would be ideal for the group.[9]

    A candidate was found by Larry Spector, the band's business manager, in the shape of 21-year-old Gram Parsons.[12] Parsons, a marginal figure in the L.A. music scene, had been acquainted with Hillman since 1967 and he auditioned for the band as a piano player in February 1968.[10] His faux-jazz piano playing[20] and genial personality at audition was enough to impress both McGuinn and Hillman; so Parsons was recruited as the fourth member of the band, although he quickly switched to playing guitar instead of piano.[9] Although Parsons and Kelley were considered full members of the Byrds, they both received a salary from McGuinn and Hillman, and did not sign with Columbia Records when the Byrds' recording contract was renewed on February 29, 1968.

    Unbeknownst to McGuinn or Hillman, Parsons had his own musical agenda in which he planned to marry his love of traditional country music (which he saw as being the purest form of American music) with youth culture's passion for rock.[21] He had already successfully attempted this fusion as a member of the little-known International Submarine Band, on the album Safe at Home, but Parsons' new status as a Byrd offered him an international stage from which to launch his bid to reclaim country music for his generation.[8][9]

    Following his recruitment, Parsons began to lure Hillman away from McGuinn's proposed concept album idea and towards a blend of what Parsons would later term "Cosmic American Music".[10] In essence, this was a hybrid of various roots musicforms, primarily oriented towards honky tonkcountry music but also encompassing American folk, soul, rhythm and blues, rock ’n’ roll and contemporary rock.[9] Hillman, who had come from a musical background firmly rooted in bluegrass, had himself successfully persuaded the Byrds to incorporate country influences into their music in the past, beginning with the song "Satisfied Mind" on their 1965 album, Turn! Turn! Turn![9] Many of Hillman's songs on the Younger Than Yesterday and The Notorious Byrd Brothers albums also had a pronounced country feel to them, with several featuring Clarence White (a renowned bluegrass guitar player and session musician) on lead guitar, rather than McGuinn.[22][23] During time spent singing old country songs with Parsons, Hillman became convinced that Parsons' concept of a country-oriented version of the Byrds could work.[12]

    Parsons' passion for his country rock vision was so contagious that he even convinced McGuinn to abandon his plans for the Byrds' next album and follow Parsons' lead in recording a country rock album.[20] Parsons also persuaded McGuinn and Hillman to record the album in the country music capital of Nashville, Tennessee,[12] as Bob Dylan had done for his Blonde On Blonde and John Wesley Harding albums.[24] Although McGuinn had some reservations about the band's new direction, he decided that such a move could expand the already declining audience of the group.[10] After long-time Byrds' producer Gary Usher, who had little interest in producing McGuinn's proposed concept album, indicated a preference for the country concept, McGuinn finally acquiesced.[9] On March 9, 1968, the band decamped to Columbia's recording facility in Nashville to begin recording sessions for Sweetheart of the Rodeo.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Blender 5/5
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 4/5
    Pitchfork Media 9.7/10
    Rolling Stone (mixed)
    Stylus A–
    Uncut 5/5

    Audience Reception
    81/100 from 116 users, #34 for 1968 - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    8.7/10 from 1,728 users - AllMusic
    3.7/5 from 27 users - Musicboard
    3.66/5 from 4,595 users, #91 for 1968, #5,494 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
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  12. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    You'd've thunk the Byrds would have been finished after Crosby and Clark left, but Gram Parsons resurrected them, if they needed resurrecting.

    I don't get into Sweetheart Of the Rodeo quite as much as Younger Than Yesterday or (especially) The Notorious Byrd Brothers, but it's a fine album. Could have used a few more Gram leads -- I know that Roger/the record label intentionally recorded over many. Gram Parson's vision is so strong that it almost doesn't feel like the Byrds at all, but rather closer to Flying Burrito Brother's first one. For some reason I prefer Gilded Palace of Sin, maybe because he was such a great singer and good as Roger is, he is no Gram.

    5/5


    Y


    1. In the Aeroplane Over The Sea
    2. Third/Sister Lovers
    3. #1 Record
    4. Modern Lovers
    5. I Do Not Want What I haven't Got
    6. Weezer
    7. If You're Feeling Sinister
    8. Brian Wilson Presents "SMiLE"
    9. Nirvana MTV Unplugged In New York
    10. Radio City
    11. Post
    12. Dirty Mind
    13. Paul Simon
    14. My Aim Is True
    15. Mr. Tambourine Man
    16. Ram
    17. Wild Honey
    18. The Wild The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle
    19. So
    20. Pink Flag
    21. The Basement Tapes
    22. John Wesley Harding
    23. Surfer Rosa
    24. Aftermath
    25. Everyone Thinks This Is Nowhere
    26. Full Moon Fever
    27. Village Green Preservation Society
    28. Something Else
    29. Gilded Palace Of Sin
    30. Houses of the Holy
    31. The Bends
    32. SweetHearts Of The Rodeo
    33. Today!
    34. Let It Be
    35. Siamese Dream
    36. Parklife
    37. Dookie
    38. Music Of My Mind
    39. Sheryl Crow
    40. Sandinista!
    41. Goo
    42. Let's Get It On
     
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  13. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Sweetheart of The Rodeo It's horrible. That jaunty fiddle, banjo & pedal steel guitar overwhelms most of the songs. It ends up sounding akin to a Jim Reeves knees-up. Big 'miss'.
     
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  14. troggy

    troggy Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow

    Location:
    Benton, Illinois
    I wouldn't call it horrible but it's not a favorite of mine either. I can't even remember the last time I listened to it.
     
    Brian Kelly and Alf. like this.
  15. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
  16. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Sweetheart of the Rodeo
    A

    I don't really think of it as a Byrds album, but I do think of it as being great
     
  17. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    273. Gang of Four - Entertainment! (1979)
    Producer: Andy Gill, Jon King, Rob Warr

    Entertainment! is the debut album by English post-punk band Gang of Four. It was released in September 1979 through EMI Records internationally and Warner Bros. Records in North America. Stylistically, it draws heavily on punk rock but also incorporates the influence of funk, dance music, reggae and dub. Its lyrics and artwork reflected the band's left-wing political concerns. It would be an influential release in the burgeoning post-punk movement.

    Composition
    Entertainment! has been recognized as a seminal post-punk album.[1][2] It has also been described musically as dance-punk[3] and art punk.[4] The album was co-produced by King and Gill along with Rob Warr, their band manager at the time. King's lyrics were heavily influenced by Situationism, feminism, and the effect of alienation on personal life; a unifying notion is that "the personal is political". Topics include commodification ("Natural's Not in It", "Return the Gift"), proletarian life ("At Home He's a Tourist"), Great Man theory ("Not Great Men"), Special Category Status prisoners in Northern Ireland ("Ether"), and the impact of media reporting of acts of terrorism and Maoist guerrilla warfare in Latin America ("5.45"). A number of songs apply these themes to challenge traditional concepts of love and love songs ("Anthrax", "Contract") and sex ("Damaged Goods", "I Found That Essence Rare"). In his 2014 monograph on the album, Kevin J. H. Dettmar likens the album to James Joyce's Ulysses, saying; "both are concerned with the importance of narrative, of storytelling, as a mode of experiencing the world... that the stories we tell ourselves about "the way things are"—a body of stories that in another context we might call ideology—profoundly shape our experiences of the world.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Blender 5/5
    Christgau's Record Guide A
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 5/5
    Entertainment Weekly A+
    Pitchfork 9.5/10
    Q 5/5
    Record Mirror 5/5
    Rolling Stone 4.5/5
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide 5/5
    Spin Alternative Record Guide 10/10

    Audience Reception
    85/100 from 444 users, #9 for 1979, #411 overall - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    9.1/10 from 1,274 users - AllMusic
    4.1/5 from 110 users - Musicboard
    3.97/5 from 15,680 users, #4 for 1979, #228 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
    bekayne, Synthfreek and highway like this.
  18. Jamsterdammer

    Jamsterdammer The Great CD in the Sky

    Location:
    Málaga, Spain
    Gang of Four - Entertainment!

    Terrific album. One of the milestones of post-punk, making punk perfectly danceable (sort of).
     
  19. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Entertainment Damaged and the final three tracks are by far the most interesting here. And that's because they manage to break out of the confines that Gang Of Four impose on themselves for much of this album. Namely: King's flat & monotonously bloodless vocals, allied to the same old funk-lite bass, angular guitar, and looped drum patterns. There's far too much rat-a-tat dourness. No, it's not good enough. Miss.
     
  20. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO (The Byrds)
    Considered an important album in the development of "country/rock". If we are voting on 500 most influential albums then this should get a vote, but for 500 best, it doesn't make my list. Other stuff that came after (Eagles, AMERICAN BEAUTY) did this better.
    GRADE: C+

    ENTERTAINMENT (Gang Of Four)
    Another one considered important that never really resonated with me. XTC manned a similar vein to much more interesting, enjoyable, and successful resutls.
    GRADE: C

    My Current Top 60+ Albums:
    1. THE KINKS ARE THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY (The Kinks)
    2. SOMETHING ELSE (The Kinks)
    3. ALL THINGS MUST PASS (George Harrison)
    4. NUGGETS (Various Artists)
    5. MODERN LOVERS (Modern Lovers)
    6. RAM (Paul & Linda McCartney)
    7. BETWEEN THE BUTTONS (Rolling Stones)
    8. THE WHO SELL OUT (The Who)
    9. GREATEST HITS (Sly & the Family Stone)
    10. THE CARS (The Cars)
    11. FULL MOON FEVER (Tom Petty)
    12. RADIO CITY (Big Star)
    13. #1 RECORD (Big Star)
    14. ODELAY (Beck)
    15. COSMO'S FACTORY (CCR)
    16. ROCKEY TO RUSSIA (Ramones)
    17. DOOKIE (Green Day)
    18. LET IT BE (The Beatles)
    19. WEEZER (Weezer)
    20. ANTHOLOGY (The Temptations)
    21. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE (Neil Young)
    22. ANTHOLOGY (Diana Ross & the Supremes)
    23. YOUNG GIFTED AND BLACK (Aretha Franklin)
    24. THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (Abba)
    25. HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Led Zeppelin)
    26. THE STOOGES (The Stooges)
    27. SURREALISTIC PILLOW (Jefferson Airplane)
    28. MY AIM IS TRUE (Elvis Costello)
    29. SOMETHING/ANYTHING (Todd Rundgren)
    30. BROTHERS IN ARMS (Dire Straits)
    31. CLOSE TO THE EDGE (Yes)
    32. PROUNCED LENHERD SKINNERD (Lynryd Skynryd)
    33. ELEPHANT (The White Stripes)
    34. UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK CITY (Nirvana)
    35. ABRAXAS (Santana)
    36. PORTRAIT OF A LEGEND (Sam Cooke)
    37. PICTURES FROM THE CITY (PJ Harvey)
    38. MOVING PICTURES (Rush)
    39. KING OF THE DELTA BLUES SINGERS (Robert Johnson)
    40. DICTIONARY OF SOUL (Otis Redding)
    41. SOME GIRLS (Rolling Stones)
    42. CURRENTS (Tame Impala)
    43. BEACH BOYS TODAY (The Beach Boys)
    44. ELVIS PRESLEY (Elvis Presley)
    45. BO DIDDLEY/GO BO DIDDLEY (Bo Diddley)
    46. PARKLIFE (Blur)
    47. SIAMESE DREAM (Smashing Pumpkins)
    48. LIVE AT LEEDS (The Who)
    49. RUST NEVER SLEEPS (Neil Young)
    50. CALIFORNICATION (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
    51. NORMAN R ROCKWELL (Lana Del Rey)
    52. 19 LOVE SONGS (Magnetic Fields)
    53, LUCINDA WILLIAMS (Lucinda Williams)
    54. HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Linda Rondstadt)
    55. MR TAMBOURINE MAN (The Byrds)
    56. PAUL SIMON (Paul Simon)
    57. SO (Peter Gabriel)
    58. LIKE A PRAYER (Madonna)
    59. SHERYL CROW (Sheryl Crow)
    60. BACK TO MONO (Phil Spector w/various artists)
    61. NICK OF TIME (Bonnie Raitt)
    62. THE ANTHOLOGY (Muddy Waters)
    63. PRESENTING THE FABULOUS RONETTES (Ronettes)
    64. MOANING IN THE MOONLIGHT (Howlin Wolf)
    65. MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDING AND FOOD (Talking Heads)
    66. ANOTHER GREEN WORLD (Brian Eno)
    67. CURTIS (Curtis Mayfield)
    68. NILSSON SCHMILSSON (Harry Nilsson)

    No more cuts until I reach 75 albums
     
  21. Flaevius

    Flaevius Left of the dial

    Location:
    Newcastle, UK
    #279 Nirvana - MTV Unplugged in New York
    It's a good set. There's a real warmth that comes through with the band and audience interactions, a lot of droll Cobain humour. Akin to the Alice in Chains Unplugged set, showcases a different side to a hard-edged grunge band.

    #278 Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
    I have a cool appreciation of Zeppelin without buying into the mythos. I own their six albums from I to Physical Graffiti. Houses of the Holy is probably my second favourite after the debut. I applaud the band for going beyond their usual remit, but it's not wholly successful. Plant puts in a horrid vocal performance on The Song Remains the Same, and the James Brown and reggae pastiches are interesting but not great. Conversely, the sublime No Quarter is the finest song they ever released, pipping Kashmir. A spotty album, one I enjoy nonetheless.

    #277 Alicia Keys - The Diary of Alicia Keys
    I am familiar with some of Keys' hits, such as the soaring If I Ain't Got You, as found here. I sampled the opening few songs and was pleasantly surprised that it was more than 'rent-an-R&B'. There is bite to the production and good musicianship and songwriting of course. Not something I wish to spend an hour listening to though.

    #276 Radiohead - The Bends
    Historically not being much of a Radiohead fan, I think this may have been the first time I've listened to The Bends in full. The scope is such that I would require repeated listens to form a firmer opinion. Enjoyable, but it didn't immediately grab me in the way Ok Computer did - my recent gateway to Radiohead. So for now it ends up on the same pile as In Rainbows - needs more attention.

    #275 Curtis Mayfield - Curtis
    This album was a minor revelation. I expected slick Soul/R&B, yet the opening song coming straight out of the gate with it's chunky low-end and charged lyrics was eye opening. That charged atmosphere continues across most of the album, e.g. The Other Side of Town, and We The People... which develops into a psychedelic tribal workout. Movin' on Up also takes on a different meaning when heard in the context of the album, grounded and becoming more relatable. Excellent songwriting, vocals, arrangements, variety - always nice to come across an album that you enjoy unexpectedly!

    #274 The Byrds - Sweetheart of the Rodeo
    Countrified jingle-jangle has no place in this home.

    #273 Gang of Four - Entertainment!
    After a fallow period, finally an album emerges that enters my Top30. As a broad descriptor, 'post-punk' sits as one of my most cherished genres and this album is a strong one within that field. Very nervy and twitchy - but funky too - and that offbeat musicianship holds my attention splendidly, allied to Jon King's deadpan and cryptic vocals. A stab of guitar here, a yelp there, clashing instruments aplenty. It's 'danceable' as in a marionette, jerking around uncontrollably. The influence of Gang of Four traces right through to modern bands such as Slaves. They never managed to top this debut.

    It sits at no.4 for 1979 on RYM, in a top 5 including Unknown Pleasures, London Calling, Fear of Music and 154. That's a strong group!

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: May 17, 2022
  22. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    272. The Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat (1968)
    Producer: Tom Wilson

    White Light/White Heat is the second studio album by American rock band the Velvet Underground. Released on January 30, 1968, on Verve Records, it was the band's last studio recording with multi-instrumentalist and founding member John Cale. Recorded after Reed fired Andy Warhol, who had produced their debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico, they hired Steve Sesnick as a manager and hired producer Tom Wilson who had worked on the band's debut. White Light/White Heatwas engineered by Gary Kellgren.

    The album includes lyrically transgressive themes like their debut, exploring topics such as sex, amphetamines, and drag queens. Reed was inspired by a variety of authors, including William S. Burroughs and Alice Bailey, and the lyrics create a cast of characters, such as in "The Gift" and those named in "Sister Ray". Musically, he took influence from jazz music and players such as saxophonist Ornette Coleman. Warhol conceived the album's cover art, although he is officially uncredited.

    White Light/White Heat was recorded quickly and modeled after the band's live sound and techniques of improvisation, since they often played loud with new equipment from an endorsement deal with Vox. However, the final product was compressed and distorted-–most members were dissatisfied with the final product and it was followed with the less experimental The Velvet Underground the following year; Cale would leave the band later in 1968. The distortion level became a prototype for punk rockand noise rock. The 17-minute "Sister Ray" is widely considered the standout track by critics and fans.

    White Light/White Heat sold fewer copies than The Velvet Underground & Nico, and peaked at 199 on the Billboard Top LPs chart. The album's only single, "White Light/White Heat", failed to chart, which the band blamed on airplay bans and lack of promotion from Verve. The album was dismissed by many contemporary mainstream music critics, although underground newspapers took notice. Ultimately, White Light/White Heat had a hugely significant impact on early forms of punk rock and no wave and has appeared on several lists of the greatest albums of all time.

    Background
    After the disappointing sales of the Velvet Underground's first album, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967), their relationship with Andy Warholdeteriorated. They toured throughout most of 1967, and many of their live performances featured noisy improvisations that became key elements on White Light/White Heat.[1] The band fired Warhol, parted ways with Nico (which she would describe as being fired),[2][3] and recorded their second album with Tom Wilson credited as producer. Jack Donohue, writing for Tech, the student newspaper of MIT, would be one of the first to announce that the band were working on a follow-up.[4] The band had access to new electronics through an endorsement deal with Vox.[5] The sound of the album was designed from the beginning to be against the Summer of Love in San Francisco[6] and also to capture their live sound.[7]

    Steve Sesnick was chosen as the replacement manager for the band, and he was accepted by all band members except bassist John Cale;[3]drummer Moe Tucker even considered him a fifth member of the group.[8] Singer Lou Reed influenced the album with his obsession with astrology,[3]especially his interest in the Virgo-Pisces astrological opposition.[4] Rehearsal was similar to the band's debut, with the band's best pieces being reworked mostly in the studio.[9] However, Cale would state that no one in the band "had the patience to rehearse" the album, even after numerous attempts to do so.

    Recording
    The album was recorded in a short time frame,[a]and with a noticeably different style from that of The Velvet Underground & Nico. Decades after its release, John Cale (in the liner notes of Peel Slowly and See)[11] described White Light/White Heat as "a very rabid record ... The first one had some gentility, some beauty. The second one was consciously anti-beauty."[6] Sterling Morrison, the lead guitarist, said: "We were all pulling in the same direction. We may have been dragging each other off a cliff, but we were all definitely going in the same direction."[10]Tucker would estimate that the album took two weeks to record, with about seven recording sessions. It was "almost" recorded in one day—the band would not "accommodate what [they] were trying to do due to the limitations of the studio", according to Morrison. They were well prepared, and the tension between Cale and Reed wasn't apparent in the studio.[9]

    White Light/White Heat was recorded in September 1967 at Mayfair Sound Studios at Seventh Avenue in Manhattan,[4] with work to form its songs being done in the previous summer.[3] The band specifically passed on songs that sounded gentler—though Cale also said that the band simply didn't have enough songs prepared for recording, which led to a reduced track list. White Light/White Heatwould have far more involvement from Wilson, who originally only produced "Sunday Morning" on The Velvet Underground & Nico; however, he would not participate heavily, as he would talk to his girlfriends for most of the time.[4]

    Reed purposefully wanted to go "as high and as hard as we could". At the time, Reed played a 12-string guitar, Gibson, and Epiphone guitars; he also used Vox amplifiers.[9] The band also used Vox distortion pedals to the fullest extent;[5] recording engineer Gary Kellgren reportedly said "you can't do it – all the needles are on red" during the recording sessions.[7] To get the sound of a character receiving a blade through their skull in "The Gift", Reed stabbed or smashed a cantaloupe, at the request of Frank Zappa, who was recording in the same studio.[6] For "Sister Ray", the band worked individually instead of coordinating together–the drums were drowned out due to the level of noise. The song was intentionally recorded in one take to prevent constant shifting of the sound of it, which was what happened with "Heroin" on the previous record.[9] Tucker was disappointed with the final product, as Wilson forgot to turn on some of her drum microphones while recording.[4] According to Reed, Kellgren walked out during the recording of "Sister Ray".[6][12][10]

    "I Heard Her Call My Name" was remixed by Reed after the recording process to boost his vocals, which Tucker said ruined the sound of the song.[3]Morrison considered the album a technical failure, additionally citing "I Hear Her Call My Name";[9]Morrison would quit the band for a couple of days in response.[4] While mixing the album, Reed discovered how the sound of it was distorted since the band played too loudly, and the band couldn't resolve the issue as they had limited studio time.[12]Cale said the band neglected how playing loud would affect the technical quality of the record, and Morrison concluded that it was "doomed" due to its level of distortion and compression.[4] Before its release, Wilson resigned from MGM Records, the owner of the band's label at the time, and would never work with the band again.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Chicago Tribune 3.5/4
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 4/5
    The Guardian 5/5
    Pitchfork 10/10
    Record Collector 5/5
    Rolling Stone 4/5
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide 5/5
    Spin Alternative Record Guide 9/10
    Uncut 10/10

    Audience Reception
    86/100 from 1,055 users, #8 for 1968, #283 overall - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    8.9/10 from 3,588 users - AllMusic
    4.2/5 from 411 users, #3 for 1968 - Musicboard
    4.03/5 from 26,037 users, #4 for 1968, #111 overall - RateYourMusic.com


     
    KaBluie likes this.
  23. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    White Light, White Heat Their debut usually gets the biggest plaudits, yet for me this is The Velvet Underground's best effort. Cale dominates, and sculpts the grime perfectly. It's messy & murky; full of nervy edginess. A 'trip', that shoots off at numerous tangents, ending with the firestorm of Sister Ray. This is Artistry with a capital A.

    Suicide
    finally gets dethroned from pole position on my list:

    Top Three update:
    1. Velvet Underground - White Light, White Heat
    2. Suicide - s/t
    3. New York Dolls - s/t
     
    NSenada, Smith, troggy and 1 other person like this.
  24. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    I can see why White Light, White Heat deserves to be on some kind of all-time greatest list, but it's my least favorite of the four Lou-led VU albums. Having said that I don't hate it, but just can't really deal with "Sister Ray" and the "The Gift" gets old rather quickly, though it is a well-written story with a good backing track. I've owned this album twice, but no longer and I intentionally decided not to rebuy it when I was rebuilding my CD collection -- mono version smokes the stereo, though, FWIW.

    4/5

    1. In the Aeroplane Over The Sea
    2. Third/Sister Lovers
    3. #1 Record
    4. Modern Lovers
    5. I Do Not Want What I haven't Got
    6. Weezer
    7. If You're Feeling Sinister
    8. Brian Wilson Presents "SMiLE"
    9. Nirvana MTV Unplugged In New York
    10. Radio City
    11. Post
    12. Dirty Mind
    13. Paul Simon
    14. My Aim Is True
    15. Mr. Tambourine Man
    16. Ram
    17. Wild Honey
    18. The Wild The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle
    19. So
    20. Pink Flag
    21. The Basement Tapes
    22. John Wesley Harding
    23. Surfer Rosa
    24. Aftermath
    25. Everyone Thinks This Is Nowhere
    26. Full Moon Fever
    27. Village Green Preservation Society
    28. Something Else
    29. Gilded Palace Of Sin
    30. Houses of the Holy
    31. The Bends
    32. Sweethearts Of The Rodeo
    33. Today!
    34. Let It Be
    35. Siamese Dream
    36. Parklife
    37. Dookie
    38. Music Of My Mind
    39. Sheryl Crow
    40. White Light/White Heat
    41. Sandinista!
    42. Goo
    43. Let's Get It On
     
    bekayne and Alf. like this.
  25. danasgoodstuff

    danasgoodstuff Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, OR
    WL/WH was a favourite when it was newish as I used it to drive the unenlightened from the room back in Saskatoon. Not sure how I would feel if I had come to it later. I’m fond of all the original issue VU and some of the leftovers but the Peel Slowly box is plenty for me now. Some VU would be on pretty much any list I’d make. However I’m not very fond of any of the many who claim them as an influence.
     
    Last edited: May 18, 2022
    Lance LaSalle likes this.

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