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

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

  1. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    208. Lil Wayne - Tha Carter III (2008)
    Producers:
    • Birdman (exec.)
    • Ronald "Slim" Williams(exec.)
    • Lil Wayne (exec.)
    • Alchemist
    • Bangladesh
    • Cool & Dre
    • D. Smith
    • David Banner
    • Deezle
    • DJ Nasty & LVM
    • Drew Correa
    • Infamous
    • GX
    • Jim Jonsin
    • Kanye West
    • Maestro
    • Mousa
    • Play-N-Skillz
    • Pro Jay
    • Robin Thicke
    • Rodnae
    • Swizz Beatz
    • Streetrunner
    • T-Pain
    Tha Carter III is the sixth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released on June 10, 2008, by Cash Money, Universal Motown & Young Money Entertainment.[2] It follows a long string of mixtape releases and guest appearances on other hip hopand R&B artists' records, helping to increase his exposure in the mainstream.[3] The album features appearances from Jay-Z, T-Pain, Fabolous, Robin Thicke, Busta Rhymes, Juelz Santana, Babyface, Bobby V, and Kanye West, among others. It also features Static Major, who is credited posthumously following his death in February 2008.

    Amid release delays and leaks, Tha Carter III became one of the most anticipated releases of 2008.[4][5][6]It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling over 1 million copies in its first week which made it one of the fastest-selling albums in the US.[7] It reached sales of 2.88 million copies by the end of 2008 and produced four singles that achieved chart success, including the international hit "Lollipop" and Billboard Hot 100 hits "A Milli", "Got Money", and "Mrs. Officer".

    Upon its release, Tha Carter III received widespread acclaim from music critics and has since been regarded as one of Wayne's best records. It earned Lil Wayne several accolades, including a spot on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2009 Grammy Awards and won for Best Rap Album, while "Lollipop" won Best Rap Song and "A Milli" won Best Rap Solo Performance. It has been certified 6× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

    Background and Recording

    Lil Wayne stated that producers would include The Alchemist, Cool & Dre, Deezle, Jim Jonsin, Just Blaze, Kanye West, Mannie Fresh, The Runners, Timbaland, Danja, and will.i.am.[8][9][10] In an interview with HipHopCanada.com, Solitair of the Black Jays stated that he and Cipha Soundsproduced a track called "Outstanding", which later eventually leaked.[11] The Runners have stated that they have produced three tracks for Tha Carter III.[12] Lil Wayne revealed that he has a track for Eminem, which he has yet to send to him.[13] He described this song as the "craziest".[13] Some believe that his request was turned down, but it most likely turned into "Drop the World" on his 2010 album Rebirth.[14]

    The album features guest appearances by Fabolous,[15] T-Pain, Brisco, Bobby V, Babyface, Betty Wright, Static Major, Robin Thicke, Jay-Z,[16] Juelz Santana,[17] and Busta Rhymes.[18] MTV reported that Wyclef Jean worked on a couple of tracks for the album and that a song featuring Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado, and Timbaland was likely to appear on the album.[13][19] However, that Timbaland-produced track did not make the final cut. David Bannerconfirmed that he will be credited for five tracks on the final cut of Tha Carter III, but only one is featured on the album.[20] After the copyright controversy of "Playing with Fire", the track was later removed and replaced with another David Banner-produced track "***** Monster". Swizz Beatz stated he was also working on the album.
    Lil Wayne stated that producers would include The Alchemist, Cool & Dre, Deezle, Jim Jonsin, Just Blaze, Kanye West, Mannie Fresh, The Runners, Timbaland, Danja, and will.i.am.[8][9][10] In an interview with HipHopCanada.com, Solitair of the Black Jays stated that he and Cipha Soundsproduced a track called "Outstanding", which later eventually leaked.[11] The Runners have stated that they have produced three tracks for Tha Carter III.[12] Lil Wayne revealed that he has a track for Eminem, which he has yet to send to him.[13] He described this song as the "craziest".[13] Some believe that his request was turned down, but it most likely turned into "Drop the World" on his 2010 album Rebirth.[14]

    The album features guest appearances by Fabolous,[15] T-Pain, Brisco, Bobby V, Babyface, Betty Wright, Static Major, Robin Thicke, Jay-Z,[16] Juelz Santana,[17] and Busta Rhymes.[18] MTV reported that Wyclef Jean worked on a couple of tracks for the album and that a song featuring Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado, and Timbaland was likely to appear on the album.[13][19] However, that Timbaland-produced track did not make the final cut. David Bannerconfirmed that he will be credited for five tracks on the final cut of Tha Carter III, but only one is featured on the album.[20] After the copyright controversy of "Playing with Fire", the track was later removed and replaced with another David Banner-produced track "***** Monster". Swizz Beatz stated he was also working on the album.

    Music
    Tha Carter III's lead single, "Lollipop", peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100, staying at the top for three weeks. It was Wayne's most successful solo single in his career, winning one Grammy Award, a BET Award, and an MTV VMA. The song was praised as an "electro-bumpin'...infectious track",[23] perceived as more of a "bubblegum" pop track than rap.[24] The second track on the album, "Mr. Carter", was nominated for a Grammy while also peaking within the Hot 100. Jay-Z's guest verse on the song was praised, which was seen as him passing the throne to Wayne.[25][26] The second single, "A Milli", was a top ten hit and was praised as one of the best songs of 2008.[27] The song garnered countless freestyles and remixes, while Wayne's original version was praised with "spectacular rhyme".[26] "Dr. Carter", the sixth track, was also praised for lyrical content and humor as Wayne took on the persona of a doctor performing surgery on various patients (a metaphor for Wayne resurrecting hip-hop[25]).[24] "Tie My Hands", featuring Robin Thicke, was praised as a deep track featuring "political commentary" and "despair" with Thicke's performance being the most complementary to Wayne.[23] "Phone Home" also features various alien metaphors reminiscent of the film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).

    Critical Reception

    Aggregate scores
    Metacritic 84/100

    Review Scores
    AllMusic 4/5
    The A.V. Club B
    Blender 4.5/5
    Entertainment Weekly B−
    The Guardian 4/5
    Los Angeles Times 3/4
    MSN Music (Consumer Guide) A−
    Pitchfork 8.7/10
    Rolling Stone 4.5/5
    Uncut 4/5

    Audience Reception
    79/100 from 733 users, #88 for 2008 - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    7.5/10 from 652 users - AllMusic
    4/5 from 577 users, #8 for 2008 - Musicboard
    3.24/5 from 6,088 users, #656 for 2008 - RateYourMusic.com

     
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  2. CaptainFeedback1

    CaptainFeedback1 It's nothing personal.

    Location:
    Oxfordshire, UK
    I'm hopelessly behind with this thread, but I have to stick up for Primal Scream - Loaded was released as a single in February 1990, while Freedom '90 wasn't released until the end of October 1990... George Michael very much ripped off Primal Scream, not the other way round!
     
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  3. pig bodine

    pig bodine God’s Consolation Prize

    Location:
    Syracuse, NY USA
    Moving On Up was where he ripped off George Michael and that came out in 91
     
  4. Spitfire

    Spitfire Senior Member

    Location:
    Pacific Northwest
    That's impressive. There's a lot of different types of music on this list and I wasn't familiar with a lot of artists on it which is one reason I've stayed out of this thread. I have added a few artists to my list that I need to check out but I'm not a rap or hip-hop fan so I'm not going there at all.
     
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  5. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Raising Hell
    A-
    A little top-heavy, but has a ton of great moments, and was almost largely responsible for crossing over hip-hop to the mainstream. Revived the career of dead-and-gone Aerosmith, too.
     
  6. CaptainFeedback1

    CaptainFeedback1 It's nothing personal.

    Location:
    Oxfordshire, UK
    Do you mean Faith? I never noticed that with Movin' On Up, but now you say it...

    Freedom was definitely informed by Loaded though. Mutual innit.
     
  7. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    207. Eagles - Eagles (1972)
    Producer: Glyn Johns

    Eagles is the debut studio album by American rockband the Eagles. The album was recorded at London's Olympic Studios with producer Glyn Johnsand released in 1972. The album was an immediate success for the young band, reaching No. 22 on the charts and going platinum. Three singles were released from the album, each reaching the Top 40: "Take It Easy" (number 12), "Witchy Woman" (number 9), and "Peaceful Easy Feeling" (number 22). The band, starting with this album, played a major role in popularizing the country rock sound.

    Background
    In 1971, the band had just been formed and signed by David Geffen, who then sent them to Aspen, Colorado, to develop as a band. For their first album, Glenn Frey wanted Glyn Johns to be the producer as they liked a number of rock albums produced by Johns, including albums by The Rolling Stones, The Who and Led Zeppelin. Johns was invited by Geffen to see the band perform at a club called Tulagi in Boulder, Colorado in December 1971.[6][7] Johns, however, was not impressed by the band's live performance, thinking that the band sounded confused and was lacking in cohesion—Frey wanted it to be a rock & roll band while Bernie Leadonwanted a country feel—so Johns declined to produce the album.[8][9]

    Johns was persuaded by Geffen to have a second listen in a rehearsal setting in Los Angeles, but Johns did not change his opinion of the band until all four started singing harmonies with acoustic guitar on a ballad written by Meisner, "Take the Devil".[10]Johns was impressed by their harmony singing, and later said: "There it was, the sound. Extraordinary blend of voices, wonderful harmony sound, just stunning."[8] In the albums he produced for the Eagles, Johns emphasized the vocal blend of the band, and he has been credited with shaping the band into "the country-rock band with those high-flyin' harmonies".

    Recording
    The band went to London, where they spent two weeks recording the album at the Olympic Studios. The album cost $125,000 to produce.[12] Johns tried to introduce a more acoustic sound in the recording, and concentrated on the vocal blend and arrangements.[10] There were however frequent disagreements over the sound of the band between the producer and Frey and Don Henley during the making of the album.[12] Frey and Henley wanted a rougher rock and roll sound, while Johns was interested in using Bernie Leadon's banjo and Randy Meisner's bass to create a more country sound.[12]Frey later admitted: "[Johns] was the key to our success in a lot of ways", but added: "We just didn’t want to make another limp-wristed L.A. country-rock record."[11] Johns also instituted a no-drug and no-alcohol rule that Frey, but not Henley, was unhappy about.[12][13]

    Three of the songs recorded in London feature Frey on lead vocals, another three with Meisner and two with Leadon. The chirping sound at the start of the song by Leadon and Meisner, "Earlybird", was taken from a sound-effect library.[14] On "Take It Easy", Johns convinced Leadon to play double-time banjo on the song, a little touch that Johns felt made the song different.[10]

    Originally, Henley only had one song on the album, namely "Witchy Woman". Later, a further track, "Nightingale", was recorded in Los Angeles after Geffen and manager Elliot Roberts listened to the tape of the album and decided that it needed another song with Henley on lead vocals.[15] Johns had previously recorded a few takes of the song in London, but abandoned it as he felt it did not work. Geffen tried to get the song recorded with another production team,[16] and Johns, angered by the attempt to record "Nightingale" behind his back, then re-recorded the song with the band at Wally Heider's Studio 3 in Hollywood. Even though Johns judged this recording unsatisfactory, it was included in the album.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 3/5
    Christgau's Record Guide B
    Rolling Stone 3.5/5

    Audience Reception
    67/100 from 74 users, #158 for 1972 - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    7.6/10 from 996 users - AllMusic
    3.6/5 from 105 users - Musicboard
    3.27/5 from 2,308 users, #666 for 1972 - RateYourMusic.com

     
  8. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Birth Of Soul If I'd to choose a Ray Charles compilation it would be the one disc Anthology of his ABC-Paramount recordings. IMO that bests this.

    Raisin Hell I don't really care for this. I prefer Run DMC's more skeletal & less polished debut.

    Tha Carter III Rule of thumb: any record that has a multitude of producers & writers - not to mention being almost 80 minutes long - is almost guaranteed to be rubbish. And this certainly is. Ticks all the 'usual suspects' rap tropes as well.

    Eagles It's pleasant enough. Nothing special.
     
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  9. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Eagles
    Of course the day I get my wisdom teeth removed is the day that we have an Eagles album. Where’s the Big Lebowski when you need him?

    Eagles/10

    Tha Carter III

    I listened to Tha Carter II because of this thread, and it’s the same for this album. There are a lot of misses here like Lollipop, Got Money, Phone Home, and Mrs. Officer that do live up to the negative reputation Lil Wayne received from music nerds, but a good chunk of this is as solid as mainstream 2000s hip hop can be. Comfortable is especially excellent. The beats and lyrics on the best songs here are exquisite and clever respectively. Pretty much the same quality if not a bit worse than Tha Carter II, and I’m not surprised at all that this made the list given how much praise this album received.

    7/10

    Ranking of Albums I’ve Found Through this Game

    1. (8/10) Liquid Swords
    2. Bizarre Ride II Pharcyde
    3. The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
    4. Black Sabbath
    5. Blackout
    6. Cosmo’s Factory
    7. Live at the Regal
    8. Mingus Ah Um
    9. Discovery
    10. Suicide
    11. Young, Gifted, and Black
    12. Ege Bamyasi
    13. The Stooges
    14. Golden Hour
    15. Houses of the Holy
    16. Modern Vampires of the City
    17. (7/10) A Seat at the Table
    18. Sound of Silver
    19. I’m Still in Love With You
    20. Time (The Revelator)
    21. Cheap Thrills
    22. The Emancipation of Mimi
    23. A Rush of Blood to the Head
    24. In the Wee Small Hours
    25. Tha Carter II
    26. Tha Carter III
    27. For Your Pleasure
    28. Never Too Much
    29. First Take
    30. Close to the Edge
    31. If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
    32. In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
    33. Fly
    34. Amor Prohibido
    35. Music of My Mind
    36. (6/10) EL MAL QUERER
    37. Aftermath
    38. The Shape of Jazz to Come
    39. II
    40. Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
    41. (5/10) Born This Way
     
  10. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    206. David Bowie - Low (1977)
    Producer: David Bowie, Tony Visconti

    Low is the 11th studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released on 14 January 1977 through RCA Records. After years of drug addiction when living in Los Angeles, Bowie moved to France in 1976 with his friend Iggy Pop to sober up. There, Bowie produced and co-wrote Pop's debut studio album, The Idiot, featuring sounds Bowie would explore on his next record. After completing The Idiot, Bowie began recording the first of three collaborations that became known as the Berlin Trilogy with American producer Tony Visconti and English musician Brian Eno. Sessions began at Hérouville's Château d'Hérouville in September 1976 and ended in October at Hansa Studios in West Berlin, where Bowie and Pop had relocated.

    Grounded in art rock and experimental rock and influenced by German bands such as Tangerine Dream, Neu!, Harmonia and Kraftwerk, Low features Bowie's first explorations in electronic and ambientstyles. Side one consists primarily of short, direct avant-pop song-fragments, with mostly downbeat lyrics reflecting Bowie's state of mind, and side two comprises longer, mostly instrumental tracks, conveying musical observations of Berlin. Visconti created the distinctive drum sound using an Eventide H910 Harmonizer, a pitch-shifting device. The cover artwork, a profile of Bowie from the film The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), was intended as a visual pun, meaning "low profile".

    RCA refused to issue Low for three months, fearing it would be a commercial failure. Upon release, it divided critical opinion and received little promotion from RCA or Bowie, who opted to tour as Pop's keyboardist. Nevertheless, it reached number two on the UK Albums Chart and number 11 on the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart. Two singles were released: "Sound and Vision", which peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart, and "Be My Wife". The success prompted RCA to release The Idiot in March 1977. In mid-1977, Bowie played on Pop's follow-up album Lust for Life before recording his album "Heroes", which expanded on Low's musical approach and features a similar mix of songs and instrumentals.

    In later decades, critics have rated Low one of Bowie's best works, and it has appeared on several lists of the greatest albums of all time. It influenced numerous post-punk bands such as Joy Division, and its drum sound has been widely imitated. A forerunner in the development of the post-rockgenre of the 1990s, Low has been reissued several times and was remastered in 2017 as part of the A New Career in a New Town (1977–1982) box set.

    Background and inspiration
    In 1974, David Bowie developed a cocaine addiction.[2] It worsened over the next two years, affecting his physical and mental state. He recorded Young Americans (1975) and Station to Station (1976), and filmed The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), while under the drug's influence.[3] Bowie attributed his growing addiction to Los Angeles, where he moved from New York City in early 1975.[4][5] His drug intake escalated to the point where, decades later, he recalled almost nothing of the recording of Station to Station,[6] saying, "I know it was in L.A. because I've read it was."

    After completing Station to Station in December 1975, Bowie began work on a soundtrack for The Man Who Fell to Earth with Paul Buckmaster, who worked with Bowie on the 1969 album Space Oddity.[9] Bowie expected to be wholly responsible for the music, but withdrew his work when he was invited to submit it along with the work of other composers: "I just said, '****, you're not getting any of it.' I was so furious, I'd put so much work into it."[10] Station to Station co-producer Harry Maslin argued Bowie was "burned out" and could not complete the work. Bowie eventually collapsed, saying later, "There were pieces of me laying all over the floor."[9] Only one instrumental composed for the soundtrack was released, evolving into the Low track "Subterraneans".

    When Bowie presented his material for the film to director Nicolas Roeg, Roeg decided it was unsuitable. He preferred a more folk-styled sound, although the soundtrack's composer John Phillipsdescribed Bowie's contributions as "haunting and beautiful".[16] Six months after Bowie's proposal was rejected, he sent Roeg a copy of Low with a note that read, "This is what I wanted to do for the soundtrack. It would have been a wonderful score."[9][17]

    The soundtrack abandoned, Bowie decided he was ready to free himself from the Los Angeles drug culture and move back to Europe.[9][18] He began rehearsals for the Isolar tour to promote Station to Station in January 1976; the tour began on 2 February.[19] Though it was critically acclaimed,[20]Bowie became a controversial figure during the tour. Speaking as his persona the Thin White Duke, he made statements about Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany that some interpreted as expressing sympathy for or promoting fascism.[21] Bowie later blamed his erratic behaviour during this period on his addictions and precarious mental state,[22]stating: "It was a dangerous period for me. I was at the end of my tether physically and emotionally and had serious doubts about my sanity."[23]

    After performing the 7 May 1976 show in London, Bowie caught up with ex-Roxy Music keyboardist and conceptualist Brian Eno backstage. The two had met occasionally since 1973. After leaving Roxy Music, Eno had released two solo albums in 1975 in the ambient genre: Another Green World and Discreet Music. Bowie listened to Discreet Musicregularly on the American leg of the tour. Biographers Marc Spitz and Hugo Wilcken later recognised Another Green World in particular as a major influence on the sound Bowie aimed to create for Low;[c][24][25] Christopher Sandford also cites Eno's Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) (1974) as an influence.[26] Bowie and Eno became infatuated with the German musical movement known as krautrock, including the acts Tangerine Dream, Neu!, Kraftwerk and Harmonia. Eno had worked with Harmonia in the studio and on stage, and Bowie exhibited a krautrock influence on Station to Station, particularly its title track.[27] After meeting, the pair agreed to stay in touch.

    Development
    At the conclusion of the Isolar tour on 18 May 1976, Bowie and his wife Angela moved to Switzerland, although the two would rarely spend time there. David booked studio time later in the summer at the Château d'Hérouville in Hérouville, France, where he made plans to write and produce an album for his old friend, singer Iggy Pop.[30] Although the two had been friends for many years, the last time they worked together officially was in 1973, when Bowie was hired to mix the Stooges' Raw Power (1973). After the Stooges' demise, Pop descended into drug addiction. By 1976, he was ready to get sober and accepted Bowie's invitation to accompany him on the Isolar tour and then move to Europe with him.[30]The two relocated to the Château,[31] where Bowie had recorded his 1973 covers album Pin Ups.[9]Afterwards, Bowie travelled back to Switzerland, where he spent the next few months writing and planning his next album.[32]

    Bowie and Pop regrouped at the Château in June 1976. Through August,[29] they recorded what would become Pop's debut studio album The Idiot (1977).[31][33] Bowie composed much of the music, and Pop wrote most of the lyrics,[29] often in response to the tunes Bowie was creating.[34] During the album's recording, Bowie developed a new process whereby the backing tracks were recorded first, followed by overdubs; the lyrics and vocals were written and recorded last.[35] He heavily favoured this "three-phase" process, which he would use for the rest of his career.[9] Because The Idiot was recorded before Low, it has been referred to as the unofficial beginning of Bowie's Berlin period,[36] as its music features a sound reminiscent of that which Bowie would explore in the Berlin Trilogy.[37][38]

    After completing The Idiot, Bowie and Pop travelled to Hansa Studios in West Berlin to mix the album. Because Tony Visconti was already in line to co-produce Bowie's next album, Bowie called on him to help mix the record to familiarise himself with his new way of working.[39] Bowie became fascinated with Berlin, finding it a place for a great escape. In love with the city, Bowie and Pop decided to move there in a further attempt to erase their drug habits and escape the spotlight.[9][18][39] Although Bowie was ready to move fully to Berlin, he had already booked another month of studio time at the Château after The Idiot, so recording began there. Although The Idiot was completed by August 1976, Bowie wanted to be sure he had his own album in stores before its release.[40] Château owner and The Idiotbassist Laurent Thibault opined that "[Bowie] didn't want people to think he'd been inspired by Iggy's album, when in fact it was all the same thing".

    Contemporary Critical Reception
    Upon release, Low divided critical opinion.[9] Rolling Stone's John Milward said that "Bowie lacks the self-assured humour to pull off his avant-garde aspirations" and found the album's second side weaker than its first, due to the band inflicting "discipline into Bowie's writing and performance".[109] Another reviewer, Dave Marsh, gave Low two stars out of five, finding a lack of "thought" and "real songs", calling the majority of side two "as limpid as the worst movie soundtrack". He ultimately found the record a new low point for the artist.[110] A reviewer for Record Mirror found the album boring at first listen, and upon repeated listens, felt Bowie had hit an "all time low", releasing an album that lacks a "genuine vision" with in cohesive music and few lyrics.[111] NME's Charles Shaar Murray gave the album an extremely negative assessment, describing it as "a state of mind beyond desperation". He felt that the record encouraged the listener to feel down and offered no help in getting back up, stating, "It's an act of purest hatred and destructiveness. It comes to us in a bad time and it doesn't help at all." Murray ultimately asked, "Who needs this ****?"

    In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau found side one's seven "fragments" to be "almost as powerful as the 'overlong' tracks on Station to Station", but described "the movie music on side two" as banal.[113] He revised his opinion on the second side after the release of "Heroes", writing that Low "now seems quite pop, slick and to the point even when the point is background noise".[114] Christgau included it at number 26 on his "dean's list" of the year's best albums for the 1977 Pazz & Jop critics poll.[115] Los Angeles Times critic Robert Hilburnfound some of the album as "striking" and "satisfying" as Ziggy but felt the rest lacked mass appeal.[116] Robin Denslow agreed, calling LowBowie's "least commercial" yet "most experimental" work yet in The Guardian.[117]

    Other reviewers praised the record. NME's Ian MacDonald found Low "stunningly beautiful [...] the sound of Sinatra reproduced by Martian computers". He considered it a conceptual sequel to Station to Station and concluded that Low is "the ONLY contemporary rock album".[118] A writer for Melody Maker called it "the music of Now", praising the album as feeling "right for the times", despite its lack of popularity.[119] A reviewer for Billboard described the second side as "adventurous" with an appeal that was as yet uncertain,[120] while Canadian critic Dave Winnitowy found Low "hideously interesting".[121] Though John Rockwell of The New York Timescalled the lyrics "mindless" and described the instruments as "strange and spacey", he found the album "alluringly beautiful".[122] Sounds magazine's Tim Lott considered Low both Bowie and Eno's best work thus far and a "mechanical classic".[123]

    Bowie's musical direction perplexed some reviewers. Rockwell felt that Bowie's fans would find Low was his finest work after they overcame their shock at hearing it for the first time.[122] In National RockStar, David Hancock was surprised the record was Bowie's, calling it "his most bizarre and adventurous LP".[68] Kris Needs in ZigZag described Low as strange and shocking but believed it was one of Bowie's greatest achievements.[124] Phonograph Record's Bud Scoppa felt the album made little sense. He found it "the most intimate and free recording this extraordinary artist has yet made", and believed listeners would be "baffled" by it or "give in" to it.

    Reappraisal
    AllMusic 5/5
    Blender 5/5
    Christgau's Record Guide B+
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 4/5
    NME 9/10
    Pitchfork 10/10
    Q 5/5
    Rolling Stone 5/5
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide 5/5
    Spin 4/5
    Spin Alternative Record Guide 9/10

    Audience Reception
    89/100 from 1,786 users, #1 for 1977, #45 overall - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    9/10 from 6,400 users - AllMusic
    4.4/5 from 1,333 users, #4 for 1977, #113 overall - Musicboard
    4.13/5 from 32,092 users, #2 for 1977, #42 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
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  11. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Tha Carter III
    A-
    Probably his best album, and one of the best hip-hop albums from that era, IMO.
     
  12. Alf.

    Alf. Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Low Of his Berlin trilogy I like this one best. Sound & Vision has to be one of Bowie's finest ever singles; it clatters along fabulously. Side One's obviously more 'conventional', packing plenty of oomph. Side Two's instrumental haunting bleakness would prove very influential, as well as being immersively effective & affecting. Yes, this will make my own list. Bowie was at his creative zenith between '72 & '78; a master of musical guises, brimming with kalaedoscopic possibilities.
     
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  13. Jamsterdammer

    Jamsterdammer The Great CD in the Sky

    Location:
    Málaga, Spain
    David Bowie - Low

    My favorite Bowie album. Brilliant from start to finish. Side one opens with "Speed of Life" a thundering instrumental, followed by a string of great short, urgent vocal rock songs, with the magnificent "Sound and Vision" in the middle. The side closes with another instrumental that more than any other song on the album screams Berlin to me (knowing full well that the album was mainly recorded in Paris if I'm not mistaken), acknowledging Bowie's indebtedness to Krautrock. Side two couldn't be more different with Bowie introducing us to some truly brilliant soundscapes. I hesitate to call them "ambient" as they are too engaging to really fit that description. From the weight of history expressed in "Warszawa" through the decadence of "Art Decade" and on to the shimmering moods of the final tracks, this was groundbreaking stuff for a rock and pop artist at the time. He would more or less repeat the formula later that year with "Heroes", but I would rate it just a tad lower than Low. In any case, Low might be a top 10 album for me. The fact that it's only at 206 in this list is rather disappointing (but not surprising).
     
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  14. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    The Eagles
    B-
    Not *bad* but this album does so many things less impressively than others of its ilk that I wonder how it managed to get on this list. Trust Lebowski on this one.
     
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  15. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Low
    A
    I consider this to be half of a Bowie album and half of an Eno album. No problem here - both were at creative peaks in the mid-1970s, IMO.
     
    Alf. likes this.
  16. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    CARTER III (Lil Wayne)
    Some albums are just not anything I would consider at all. This is one of them.
    GRADE: D

    EAGLES (Eagles)
    A solid debut featuring 3 good hits. Certainly could be considered for the top 500, but I think there are other Eagles albums I'd take over this. HOTEL CALIFORNIA for sure, but also ON THE BORDER and ONE OF THESE NIGHTS.
    GRADE: B

    LOW (David Bowie)
    As with the Eagles above, this album could be considered top 500, but there is other Bowie I would take over it.
    GRADE: B-

    My Current Top 85+ Albums:
    1. THE KINKS ARE THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY (The Kinks)
    2. ODYSSEY AND ORACLE (The Zombies)
    3. PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN (Pink Floyd)
    4. SOMETHING ELSE (The Kinks)
    5. ALL THINGS MUST PASS (George Harrison)
    6. NUGGETS (Various Artists)
    7. DEJA VU (Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young)
    8. MODERN LOVERS (Modern Lovers)
    9. RAM (Paul & Linda McCartney)
    10. BETWEEN THE BUTTONS (Rolling Stones)
    11. A HARD DAYS NIGHT (The Beatles)
    12. THE WHO SELL OUT (The Who)
    13. DAMN THE TORPEDOES (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers)
    14. GREATEST HITS (Sly & the Family Stone)
    15. THE CARS (The Cars)
    16. FULL MOON FEVER (Tom Petty)
    17. RADIO CITY (Big Star)
    18. #1 RECORD (Big Star)
    19. ODELAY (Beck)
    20. COSMO'S FACTORY (CCR)
    21. WISH YOU WERE HERE (Pink Floyd)
    22. ROCKET TO RUSSIA (Ramones)
    23. DOOKIE (Green Day)
    24. HELP )The Beatles)
    25. AMERICAN BEAUTY (Grateful Dead)
    26. LET IT BE (The Beatles)
    27. WEEZER (Weezer)
    28. ANTHOLOGY (The Temptations)
    29. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE (Neil Young)
    30. ANTHOLOGY (Diana Ross & the Supremes)
    31. YOUNG GIFTED AND BLACK (Aretha Franklin)
    32. HERES LITTLE RICHARD (Little Richard)
    33. THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (Abba)
    34. HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Led Zeppelin)
    35. AMERICAN IDIOT (Green Day)
    36. THE STOOGES (The Stooges)
    37. SURREALISTIC PILLOW (Jefferson Airplane)
    38. MY AIM IS TRUE (Elvis Costello)
    39. SOMETHING/ANYTHING (Todd Rundgren)
    40. BROTHERS IN ARMS (Dire Straits)
    41. CLOSE TO THE EDGE (Yes)
    42. IMAGINE (John Lennon)
    43. PROUNCED LENHERD SKINNERD (Lynryd Skynryd)
    44. ELEPHANT (The White Stripes)
    45. UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK CITY (Nirvana)
    46. ABRAXAS (Santana)
    47. PORTRAIT OF A LEGEND (Sam Cooke)
    48. STORIES FROM THE CITY (PJ Harvey)
    49. MOVING PICTURES (Rush)
    50. KING OF THE DELTA BLUES SINGERS (Robert Johnson)
    51. DICTIONARY OF SOUL (Otis Redding)
    52. SOME GIRLS (Rolling Stones)
    53. LAYLA AND OTHER ASSORTED LOVE SONGS (Derek & the Dominoes)
    54. CURRENTS (Tame Impala)
    55. BEACH BOYS TODAY (The Beach Boys)
    56. ELVIS PRESLEY (Elvis Presley)
    57. BO DIDDLEY/GO BO DIDDLEY (Bo Diddley)
    58. PARKLIFE (Blur)
    59. WHITE LIGHT/WHITE HEAT (Velvet Underground)
    60. SIAMESE DREAM (Smashing Pumpkins)
    61. LIVE AT LEEDS (The Who)
    62. RUST NEVER SLEEPS (Neil Young)
    63. CALIFORNICATION (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
    64. NORMAN R ROCKWELL (Lana Del Rey)
    65. 19 LOVE SONGS (Magnetic Fields)
    66, LUCINDA WILLIAMS (Lucinda Williams)
    67. HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Linda Rondstadt)
    68. MR TAMBOURINE MAN (The Byrds)
    69. PAUL SIMON (Paul Simon)
    70. SO (Peter Gabriel)
    71. LIKE A PRAYER (Madonna)
    72. HONKY CHATEAU (Elton John)
    73. SHERYL CROW (Sheryl Crow)
    74. BACK TO MONO (Phil Spector w/various artists)
    75. NICK OF TIME (Bonnie Raitt)
    76. THE ANTHOLOGY (Muddy Waters)
    77. PRESENTING THE FABULOUS RONETTES (Ronettes)
    78. HEAVEN OR LAS VEGAS (Cocteau Twins)
    79. THE BIRTH OF SOUL (Ray Charles)
    80. MOANING IN THE MOONLIGHT (Howlin Wolf)
    81. MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDING AND FOOD (Talking Heads)
    82. ANOTHER GREEN WORLD (Brian Eno)
    83. HEADHUNTERS (Herbie Hancock)
    84. FREEWHEELIN' BOB DYLAN (Bob Dylan)
    85. METALLICA (Metallica)
    86. DEFINITELY MAYBE (Oasis)
    87. COAT OF MANY COLORS (Dolly Parton)
    88. EITHER/OR (Elliot Smith)
     
  17. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    205. Cat Stevens - Tea for the Tillerman (1970)
    Producer: Paul Samwell-Smith

    Tea for the Tillerman is the fourth studio album by singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, released in November 1970.

    Overview
    Stevens' second album released during the year 1970, Tea for the Tillerman includes many of his best-known songs such as "Where Do the Children Play?", "Hard Headed Woman", "Wild World", "Sad Lisa", "Into White", and "Father and Son".

    Stevens, a former art student, created the artwork featured on the record's cover.

    With "Wild World" as an advance single, this was the album that brought Stevens worldwide fame.[citation needed] The album itself charted into the top 10 in the United States.

    In November 2008, a "Deluxe Edition" was released featuring a second disc of demos and live recordings. In January 2012, a hi-res 24/192 kHz version was remastered using an Ampex ATR100and a MSB Technology Studio ADC and released on HDtracks.com.[1]

    Fifty years after the original album's release, in September 2020, Stevens remade the album as Tea for the Tillerman2, including new lyrics and new instrumentation, and he sings along with his 22-year-old self in "Father and Son".[2] That same year, Tea for the Tillerman was re-released as a 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition.[3] Along with five discs, the Super Deluxe Edition also includes a Blu-ray containing music videos, live videos, and audio of the 2020 mixes of the original album, as well as a 12" vinyl record of live recordings by Stevens at the Troubadour.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Christgau's Record Guide B−
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 5/5

    Audience Reception
    82/100 from 168 users, #45 for 1970 - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    9/10 from 1,721 users - AllMusic
    4.1/5 from 96 users - Musicboard
    3.82/5 from 6,086 users, #36 for 1970, #1,320 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
    ARK likes this.
  18. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    Love this album. It's the only album by Cat Stevens that I unequicocally love. So damn early seventies it hurts, in my most sensitive seventies parts.

    5/5
    1. In the Aeroplane Over The Sea
    2. Third/Sister Lovers
    3. All Things Must Pass
    4. Odyssey And Oracle
    5. #1 Record
    6. Modern Lovers
    7. I Do Not Want What I haven't Got
    8. Either/Or
    9. Weezer
    10. If You're Feeling Sinister
    11. Brian Wilson Presents "SMiLE"
    12. Nirvana MTV Unplugged In New York
    13. Radio City
    14. Tea For The Tillerman
    15. Post
    16. Dirty Mind
    17. Paul Simon
    18. My Aim Is True
    19. Mr. Tambourine Man
    20. Ram
    21. Wild Honey
    22. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
    23. Wish You Were Here
    24. The Wild The Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle
    25. Pink Flag
    26. Imagine
    27. So
    28. Loaded
    29. The Basement Tapes
    30. John Wesley Harding
    31. Surfer Rosa
    32. Aftermath
    33. Everyone Thinks This Is Nowhere
    34. Full Moon Fever
    35. Village Green Preservation Society
    36. Something Else
    37. Gilded Palace Of Sin
    38. The Bends
    39. Sweethearts Of The Rodeo
    40. Deja Vu
    41. Today!
    42. Let It Be
    43. Siamese Dream
    44. Parklife
    45. Village Green Preservation Society
    46. Houses of the Holy
    47. A Hard Day's Night
    48. Golden Hour
    49. Dookie
    50. Odelay!
    51. Help!
    52. Music Of My Mind
    53. Sheryl Crow
    54. White Light/White Heat
    55. Sandinista!
    56. Goo
    57. Let's Get It On
    [/QUOTE]
     
    P(orF) and prymel like this.
  19. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    Tea For the Tillerman
    B
    The highest I'd go on a Cat Stevens album, so obviously I'm not that much of a fan. But yeah - on the strength of a few of the hits I think this one is basically good. If I was to own a Cat Stevens album I'd just get the greatest hits, but I've probably heard them enough already to be OK with not hearing them again.
     
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2022
  20. danasgoodstuff

    danasgoodstuff Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, OR
    Tea For the Tillerman is Tweeriffic.
     
  21. Jamsterdammer

    Jamsterdammer The Great CD in the Sky

    Location:
    Málaga, Spain
    Oh dear, I just cannot stand Cat Steven's music. None of it. Same as with Donovan. My loss, I know.
     
    Lance LaSalle likes this.
  22. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    204. Kanye West - Graduation (2007)
    Producer: Kanye West, Brian “AllDay” Miller, DJ Toomp, Eric Hudson, Nottz, Warryn “Baby Dub” Cameron

    Graduation is the third studio album by American rapper and producer Kanye West, released on September 11, 2007, through Def Jam Recordingsand Roc-A-Fella Records. Recording sessions took place between 2005 and 2007 at several studios in New York and Los Angeles. It was primarily produced by West himself, with contributions from various other producers, including DJ Toomp. The album also features guest appearances from recording artists such as Dwele, T-Pain, Lil Wayne, Mos Def, DJ Premier, and Chris Martin. The cover art and its interior artwork were designed by Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami.

    Inspired by stadium tours, house-music and indie rock, Graduation marked a departure from the ornate, soul-based sound of West's previous releases as he musically progressed to more anthemic compositions. West incorporated layered synthesizers and dabbled with electronics while sampling from various music genres and altering his approach to rapping. He conveys an ambivalent outlook on his newfound fame and media scrutiny alongside providing inspirational messages of triumph directed at listeners. The album prematurely concludes the education theme of West's first two studio albums, The College Dropout (2004) and Late Registration (2005), as his aborted "Good Ass Job" album would have concluded the concept album's themes as a tetralogy instead of a trilogy as it ended up being.

    Graduation debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling over 957,000 copies in the first week of sales. It has since sold over 5 million copies in the United States and been certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Five accompanying singles were released, including the international hits "Stronger", "Good Life" and "Homecoming", with the former of the three topping the US Billboard Hot 100. The album received widely positive reviews from music critics, with several of them praising the production, and earned West his third Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, as well as his third nomination for Album of the Year. It was named as one of the best albums of 2007 by multiple publications, including Rolling Stone and USA Today, while also listed among numerous decade-end lists and later named to the lists of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and NME's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

    The coinciding release dates between Graduationand fellow American rapper 50 Cent's Curtisgenerated much publicity over the idea of a sales competition, resulting in record-breaking sales performances by both albums. The success of the former and the outcome of its competition with the latter marked the end of the dominance of gangsta rap in mainstream hip-hop. This is credited with paving the way for other hip-hop artists who did not conform to gangster conventions to find commercial acceptance.

    Background
    Graduation is the third installment of West's planned tetralogy of education-themed studio albums, which West subsequently later deviated from due to the events surrounding the conception of his fourth studio album, 808s & Heartbreak (2008).[1] The album demonstrates yet another distinctive progression in West's musical style and approach to production. After spending the previous year touring the world with Irish rock band U2 on their Vertigo Tour, West became inspired by watching Bono open the stadium tours every night to incredible ovations and sought out to compose anthemic rap songs that could operate more efficiently in large stadiums and arenas.[2] In West's attempt to accomplish this "stadium-status" endeavor, West incorporated layered electronic synthesizers into his hip-hop production, which also finds him utilizing slower tempos, being influenced by the music of the 1980s, and experimenting with electronic music.[3][4][5]West was particularly influenced by house music, a subgenre of electronic dance music that first originated in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois in the early 1980s.[6] West has stated that growing up, he would listen to hip-hop music at home or in his car, but when he felt like dancing, he would attend a house club. While he rarely listened to house at home, he still felt it was an important part of his culture and background.[7]

    West further broadened his musical palette on Graduation by not limiting himself to his customary use of samples and interpolation from classic soulrecords and instead drew influences from a far more eclectic range of music genres.[8] Along with house music, Graduation contains samples and music elements of euro-disco, hard rock, electronica, lounge, progressive rock, synth-pop, electro, krautrock, dub, reggae, and dancehall.[9][10][11][12][13] Also, for much of the third studio album, West modified his style of rapping and adopted a dilatory, exuberant flow in emulation of Bono's operatic singing.[2] West altered his vocabulary, he utilised less percussive consonants for his vocal delivery in favor of smoother vowel harmonies.[14] In addition to U2, West drew inspiration from other arena rockbands such as the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelinfor the melodies and chord progressions of his songs.[4][15] In terms of lyricism, he simplifies some of his rhymes after touring with The Rolling Stones on their A Bigger Bang concert tour and discovering he could not captivate the audiences as well with his most complex lyrical themes.[2][16]

    West made a conscious decision to abstain from the widespread recording practice of excessive rap albums saturated with skits and filler and instead comprised Graduation with significantly fewer tracks.[17][18] He also chose to scale back on the guest appearances, limiting himself to just one single guest rap verse on the entire studio album.[19]West cites the rock bands The Killers, Keane, Modest Mouse, and indie-pop singer-songwriter Feist for being among his favorite musicians and having considerably profound influence on the sound of Graduation.[17] Due largely to these factors and the inclusion of layered electronic synthesizers, West believed that his record took hip-hop in a different direction. He also acknowledged that the differences did not in and of themselves make Graduation a good album; however, he felt it was an accurate representation of the music he was listening to and inspired by at that time.

    Recording
    West began working on Graduation immediately after releasing his second studio album Late Registration.[20] By late September 2005, West had already completed three songs for the album, which he intended to contain a total of twelve tracks.[20]Around the time of the recording of the third studio album, West would often listen to songs written by folk and country singer-songwriters Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash in hopes of developing methods to augment his word play and storytelling abilities. The former musician had been recommended to West by multiple of his friends, including English disc jockey Samantha Ronson, all of whom claimed his music and the way he dealt with the press reminded them of Dylan. West also listened to his most favorite alternative rock bands, including The Killers, Radiohead, Modest Mouse, and Keane, in order to gain new ideas on how to make his hip-hop production style more stadium-friendly.[21]Additionally, West would often test his new songs on his iPod, in his office, in dance clubs and just about anywhere people might listen to his music. He would then make adjustments to the tracks based on feedback he received, repeating the process as many times as necessary.[17]

    In comparison to previous albums, Graduationfeatures fewer guest appearances from other recording artists. West elaborated that it was a fully conscious decision to keep his guest vocalists at a minimum, saying that, "When I hear the records of my favorite bands – The Killers or Coldplay – you only hear one voice from start to finish".[22] R&Bsingers T-Pain and Dwele, New York rappers Mos Def and ALBe. Back, and famed hip-hop record producer DJ Premier are featured in individual tracks primarily to deliver melodic hooks and refrains.[23]However, though he originally intended for Graduation to be completely devoid of guest rap verses, West decided to invite New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne on the track "Barry Bonds".[24] At the time, the two MCs had been working together, with West contributing to the production of Lil Wayne's sixth studio album Tha Carter III.[25] As for the absence of skits, West explained, "There's just serious songs, hooks, chords, and ideas. No special effects or antics ... and no fake Bernie Mac!"[18]West instead decided to record two earthy musical interludes in place of the hip-hop skits. He incorporated African sounds and polyrhythmicpercussion into both.[18] However, for unknown reasons, the two musical interludes were omitted from the studio album.[26]

    Many songs on Graduation contain background vocals provided by Connie Mitchell of the Australian dance music group Sneaky Sound System.[26] The collaboration came about when West met her bandmates Angus McDonald and Daimon Downey at a diner in Sydney while touring the country with U2around November 2006.[27][28] Seeking musical inspiration, West asked McDonald for ideas, who in turn suggested that he be introduced to Mitchell.[28]Upon meeting Mitchell after she arrived at Studios 301 where he was recording music during the tour, West had her sing over a vocal track and quickly took a liking to her voice.[27][28] U2 singer Bono and guitarist The Edge also complimented Mitchell's singing while visiting the studio.[28] Some time later, Mitchell received a call from West who asked if she could travel to The Record Plant in Los Angeles to begin recording tracks for his third studio album.[28]Mitchell later admitted that while she previously didn't know who West was and never really cared for hip-hop music, the collaboration has changed her views.

    During an interview with Billboard, West revealed that he had worked with Chris Martin, the lead singer of the British alternative rock band Coldplay, on a song entitled "Homecoming", and that it could possibly be released as the lead single for Graduation.[29] The collaboration occurred the year before when West and Martin met one another during an impromptu jam session at the Abbey Road Studios in London, England.[30] West had just finished performing at a show that had been held at Abbey Road and the band just so happened to be recording their music in the recording studio at exactly the same time.[6] The song in itself is actually a re-vamping for "Home (Windy)", a track that originated from a demo tape dating back to the year 2001.[31] It was made available two years later under the new title "Home" on West's 2003 mixtape Get Well Soon... and also on the advance copy of West's debut studio album The College Dropout, which due to a leak was never released.[9][32][33]This original version possesses West's once trademark classic soul vocal sample production style, with singer John Legend on the chorus, which contains lyrics that are different than Martin's.[32]This is due to the fact that Martin asked West to change the song's lyrical content.[34]

    Widely considered by music critics and listeners alike to be the most radio-friendly track on Graduation, West defines the studio album's third single "Good Life" as the song with the most "blatant hit-recordness".[35] The track features vocals from R&B singer T-Pain, who utilizes the voice audio processor technology of Auto-Tune. The song is sampled from Michael Jackson's song P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing). West had previously experimented with the technology on his debut album The College Dropout for the background vocals on the songs "Jesus Walks" and "Never Let Me Down". During his brief stay in Sweden, West sent through sixteen different mixes of "Good Life" over to their recording studio for the audio masteringprocess.[36] West admitted that he actually did not really care for the single, but he was pressured into releasing it by his record label Def Jam Recordings. However, West has since clarified that he doesn't retain any lingering animosity whatsoever towards his record label in regards to this.[18]

    Graduation started taking definite form around the time of the filming of the music video for its second single "Stronger", whereas prior West had been "aimlessly making songs".[37] The music video was directed by famed music video director, film director, and screenwriter Hype Williams. The sci-fi imagery of music video inspired West to take his album in a more futuristic direction.[37] After the filming of the music video, which began before West had even written the song's second verse, he returned to the studio to redo parts of "Stronger" and various other tracks he recorded for the album, watching films such as Total Recall for more ideas.[37] West mixed the track seventy-five times, as he could not seem to get the kick drum to sound precisely the way that he wanted it to, amongst other issues.[36] He worked on "Stronger" with eight different audio engineersand eleven different mix engineers around the globe and recorded over fifty versions of the track.[38][39]Still feeling dissatisfied after hearing the number-one hit single inside a club compared alongside Timbaland's 2007 single "The Way I Are", which was his favorite hip-hop beat at the time, West enlisted the record producer to assist him in redoing the drum programming.[18][40]

    The third studio album also sees the return of composer and multi-instrumentalist Jon Brion – who had played an integral role as the co-executive producer on West's previous studio album Late Registration – for the track "Drunk and Hot Girls".[29]West claimed that one day, while listening to "Sing Swan Song" by the German experimental-rock band Can, he heard the words "drunk and hot girls" rather than the actual "drunky hot bowls" lyrics.[41] Rather than rap, West instead slowly sings along to the sinister song's dreary original melody with warbled vocals.[42] West features vocal harmony during the chorus with guest artist Mos Def, who just after his voice experiences a four-second audio delay, also delivers the song's reverb-filled bridge.[43]

    More than any other song on the entire studio album, the epic stadium-rap power ballad "I Wonder" was the most influenced by U2.[2] West cites it as one of this top three most favorite songs from Graduation.[4] West imparted that he had sought out to make the hip-hop variation of the rock band's "City of Blinding Lights".[2] West reportedly heard the snare drum which was used for the track while shopping for furniture at Moss and spent many weeks working on it.[38][44] West has also said that he wrote the song while thinking of performing it onstage in front of an audience of over 50,000 people. With this in mind, he placed a significant amount of concentration on speaking at high volumes with fewer wording and initially delivers his defiant lyrics in an intense staccato vocal style.[2][45]West raps the song's three verses using single and double-time rhyme schemes. He stresses each syllable in each word in the minimalist first verse.[46]West then transitions to a faster, more fluid flow for the more intricate second and third verses. West considered the release of "I Wonder" as the album's fourth single. But he instead chose "Flashing Lights", which he refers to as the "coolest" track from the studio album.

    Critical Reception

    Aggregate Scores
    Metacritic 79/100

    Review Scores
    AllMusic 4/5
    The A.V. Club B+
    Entertainment Weekly B−
    The Guardian 4/5
    Los Angeles Times 3.5/4
    MSN Music (Consumer Guide) A−
    NME 6/10
    Pitchfork 8.7/10
    Rolling Stone 4.5/5
    Spin 4/5

    Audience Reception
    82/100 from 4,991 users, #46 for 2007 - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    8.1/10 from 2,239 users - AllMusic
    4.1/5 from 7,645 users, #9 for 2007 - Musicboard
    3.61/5 from 36,171 users, #29 for 2007, #3,242 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     
    RVA_101 and ARK like this.
  23. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    TEA FOR THE TILLERMAN (Cat Stevens)
    I'd be more apt to include a greatest hits from Cat Stevens in my countdown, but if choosing just one regular album this would be the one. Includes some good singles and album tracks. Stevens was in his prime at this time! This will make the lower part of my list at this time!
    GRADE: B

    GRADUATION (Kayne West)
    If grading him as a person, West would get a big fat F. His music isn't that bad, but it is nowhere near in the category many modern critics want to place it. Boring is a word I would use to categorize many of his songs. His "vocals" are particularly unmemorable.
    GRADE: C

    My Current Top 85+ Albums:
    1. THE KINKS ARE THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY (The Kinks)
    2. ODYSSEY AND ORACLE (The Zombies)
    3. PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN (Pink Floyd)
    4. SOMETHING ELSE (The Kinks)
    5. ALL THINGS MUST PASS (George Harrison)
    6. NUGGETS (Various Artists)
    7. DEJA VU (Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young)
    8. MODERN LOVERS (Modern Lovers)
    9. RAM (Paul & Linda McCartney)
    10. BETWEEN THE BUTTONS (Rolling Stones)
    11. A HARD DAYS NIGHT (The Beatles)
    12. THE WHO SELL OUT (The Who)
    13. DAMN THE TORPEDOES (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers)
    14. GREATEST HITS (Sly & the Family Stone)
    15. THE CARS (The Cars)
    16. FULL MOON FEVER (Tom Petty)
    17. RADIO CITY (Big Star)
    18. #1 RECORD (Big Star)
    19. ODELAY (Beck)
    20. COSMO'S FACTORY (CCR)
    21. WISH YOU WERE HERE (Pink Floyd)
    22. ROCKET TO RUSSIA (Ramones)
    23. DOOKIE (Green Day)
    24. HELP )The Beatles)
    25. AMERICAN BEAUTY (Grateful Dead)
    26. LET IT BE (The Beatles)
    27. WEEZER (Weezer)
    28. ANTHOLOGY (The Temptations)
    29. EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS IS NOWHERE (Neil Young)
    30. ANTHOLOGY (Diana Ross & the Supremes)
    31. YOUNG GIFTED AND BLACK (Aretha Franklin)
    32. HERES LITTLE RICHARD (Little Richard)
    33. THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION (Abba)
    34. HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Led Zeppelin)
    35. AMERICAN IDIOT (Green Day)
    36. THE STOOGES (The Stooges)
    37. SURREALISTIC PILLOW (Jefferson Airplane)
    38. MY AIM IS TRUE (Elvis Costello)
    39. SOMETHING/ANYTHING (Todd Rundgren)
    40. BROTHERS IN ARMS (Dire Straits)
    41. CLOSE TO THE EDGE (Yes)
    42. IMAGINE (John Lennon)
    43. PROUNCED LENHERD SKINNERD (Lynryd Skynryd)
    44. ELEPHANT (The White Stripes)
    45. UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK CITY (Nirvana)
    46. ABRAXAS (Santana)
    47. PORTRAIT OF A LEGEND (Sam Cooke)
    48. STORIES FROM THE CITY (PJ Harvey)
    49. MOVING PICTURES (Rush)
    50. KING OF THE DELTA BLUES SINGERS (Robert Johnson)
    51. DICTIONARY OF SOUL (Otis Redding)
    52. SOME GIRLS (Rolling Stones)
    53. LAYLA AND OTHER ASSORTED LOVE SONGS (Derek & the Dominoes)
    54. CURRENTS (Tame Impala)
    55. BEACH BOYS TODAY (The Beach Boys)
    56. ELVIS PRESLEY (Elvis Presley)
    57. BO DIDDLEY/GO BO DIDDLEY (Bo Diddley)
    58. PARKLIFE (Blur)
    59. WHITE LIGHT/WHITE HEAT (Velvet Underground)
    60. SIAMESE DREAM (Smashing Pumpkins)
    61. LIVE AT LEEDS (The Who)
    62. RUST NEVER SLEEPS (Neil Young)
    63. CALIFORNICATION (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
    64. NORMAN R ROCKWELL (Lana Del Rey)
    65. 19 LOVE SONGS (Magnetic Fields)
    66, LUCINDA WILLIAMS (Lucinda Williams)
    67. HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Linda Rondstadt)
    68. MR TAMBOURINE MAN (The Byrds)
    69. PAUL SIMON (Paul Simon)
    70. SO (Peter Gabriel)
    71. LIKE A PRAYER (Madonna)
    72. HONKY CHATEAU (Elton John)
    73. SHERYL CROW (Sheryl Crow)
    74. BACK TO MONO (Phil Spector w/various artists)
    75. NICK OF TIME (Bonnie Raitt)
    76. THE ANTHOLOGY (Muddy Waters)
    77. PRESENTING THE FABULOUS RONETTES (Ronettes)
    78. HEAVEN OR LAS VEGAS (Cocteau Twins)
    79. THE BIRTH OF SOUL (Ray Charles)
    80. MOANING IN THE MOONLIGHT (Howlin Wolf)
    81. MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDING AND FOOD (Talking Heads)
    82. ANOTHER GREEN WORLD (Brian Eno)
    83. HEADHUNTERS (Herbie Hancock)
    84. FREEWHEELIN' BOB DYLAN (Bob Dylan)
    85. METALLICA (Metallica)
    86. DEFINITELY MAYBE (Oasis)
    87. TEA FOR THE TILLERMAN (Cat Stevens)
    88. COAT OF MANY COLORS (Dolly Parton)
    89. EITHER/OR (Elliot Smith)
     
  24. mwheelerk

    mwheelerk Sorry, I can't talk now, I'm listening to music...

    Location:
    Gilbert Arizona
    A couple of more I can add from the list to those I have...

    207. Eagles - Eagles (1972)
    4/5 I do really like the new MoFi release
    206. David Bowie - Low (1977) 3/5 never really been a fan of this period of Bowie
    205. Cat Stevens - Tea for the Tillerman (1970) 5/5 one of the all time favorites and greats for me

     
  25. EyeSock

    EyeSock Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    203. Nick Drake - Pink Moon (1972)
    Producer: John Wood

    Pink Moon is the third and final studio album by the English musician Nick Drake, released in the UK by Island Records on 25 February 1972.[1] It was the only one of Drake's studio albums to be released in North America during his lifetime. Pink Moon differs from Drake's previous albums in that it was recorded without a backing band, featuring just Drake on vocals, acoustic guitar and a brief piano riff overdubbed onto the title track.

    Released two years before Drake's death in November 1974, at the age of twenty-six, the lyrical content of Pink Moon has often been attributed to Drake's ongoing battle with depression.[2] The songs are shorter than on his previous albums, with a total album running time of just over twenty-eight minutes.

    Pink Moon, like Drake's previous studio albums, did not sell well during his lifetime, and its stripped-back, intimate sound received a mixed response from critics. However, the album has since garnered significant critical acclaim.

    Background
    Nick Drake's first two albums with Island Records, Five Leaves Left (1969) and Bryter Layter (1971), had sold poorly, and combined with Drake's reluctance to perform live or engage in album promotion, Island was not confident of another album from Drake.[2] Additionally, Drake had isolated himself in his London apartment and was suffering from depression. In 1971 he saw a psychiatrist and was prescribed antidepressants, which he was reluctant to take due to the stigma associated with depression and his fears concerning the medication's interaction with marijuana, which he smoked regularly.[2]

    Although critics often associate Drake's music with his depression — especially the perceived melancholy of Pink Moon — Cally Calloman of Bryter Music, which manages Drake's estate, remembers it differently: "Nick was incapable of writing and recording while he was suffering from periods of depression. He was not depressed during the writing or recording of Pink Moon and was immensely proud of the album."

    Recording
    Drake appeared to have made a decision before recording his third album that it would be as plain as possible and free of the numerous guest musicians that had been employed on Bryter Layter. In his autobiography, Joe Boyd, producer of Drake's first two albums, remembered that as they were finishing the recording of Bryter Layter, Drake had told him that he wanted to make his next record alone.[5] And in his only interview, published in Sounds magazine in March 1971, Drake told interviewer Jerry Gilbert that "for the next [album] I had the idea of just doing something with John Wood, the engineer at Sound Techniques".[6]

    After a brief hiatus in Spain spent at a villa belonging to Island Records' head Chris Blackwell,[7] Drake returned to London refreshed. In October 1971 he approached record engineer and producer John Wood,[2] who had worked with Drake on his previous two albums and who Drake felt was one of the few people he could trust. Wood has worked with other artists such as Fairport Convention, Cat Stevens, and Pink Floyd, and he often worked in partnership with record producer Joe Boyd. Boyd produced Drake's first two albums with Wood acting as sound engineer. Although Wood primarily focused on the engineering of an album, he often contributed as a producer.

    When Drake reached out to Wood in 1971 expressing his interest in recording another album, the ensuing process was significantly pared down compared to Drake's other two albums. The album was recorded at Sound Techniques studio in London in late October 1971 with just Drake and Wood present.[8]With the studio being booked during the day, Drake and Wood arrived at the studio around 11:00 p.m. and simply and quietly recorded half the songs. The next night, they did the same. In only two late night sessions, with just his voice and acoustic guitar, Drake created what is considered by many to be one of the "most influential folk albums of all time".[9]

    Contrary to popular legend that Drake dropped the album off in a plastic bag at Island Records reception and then left without anyone realising it, Drake delivered the master tapes of Pink Moon to Chris Blackwell at Island.[2] In an interview for the Nick Drake fanzine Pynk Moon in 1996, Island's press officer David Sandison recalled that Drake's arrival at the record company had certainly not gone unnoticed, although there had been no indication that he was delivering them a new album:

    "I saw him in reception after I came back from lunch and I was talking to somebody and I saw a figure in the corner on the bench, and I suddenly realized it was Nick. He had this big, 15 ips [inches per second] master tape box under his arm, and I said 'Have you had a cup of tea?' and he said 'Erm, yes', and I said 'Do you want to come upstairs?' and he said 'Yes, okay'. So we went upstairs into my office, which was on top of the landing, it was a landing that went into the big office with a huge round table where Chris and everybody else worked—very democratic—and there was a big Reevox (sic) and sound system there, and he just sat in my office area for about half an hour ... After about half an hour he said 'I'd better be going', and I said 'Okay, nice to see you', and he left. Now, he went down the stairs and he still had the tapes under his arm, and about an hour later the girl who worked behind the front desk called up and said 'Nick's left his tapes behind'. So I went down and it was the big sixteen-track master tape and it said NICK DRAKE PINK MOON, and I thought 'that's not an album I know'. The first thing to do was get it in the studio to make a seven and a half inch safety copy, because that was the master. So we ran off a safety copy to actually play, and I think twenty four hours later or so, it was put on the Reevox in the main room and we heard Pink Moon."

    The tapes of the Pink Moon session also included Drake's recording of "Plaisir d'amour" (translated from French as "The Pleasure of Love"), a classical French love song written in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini. "Plaisir d'amour" was on the track listing of the Pink Moon master tape box as the first track of Side Two when the tapes were presented. However, a note in reference to the song was included which read, "Spare title – Do not use"[11] so the song did not make it onto the album. The recording, less than a minute long and featuring guitar with no vocals, was eventually included as a hidden track on UK editions of the Nick Drake compilation A Treasury(2004). Had "Plaisir d'amour" been included on the Pink Moon album, it would have been the only song on any of his albums that Nick Drake did not write himself.

    Critical Reception
    AllMusic 5/5
    Encyclopedia of Popular Music 4/5
    Hi-Fi News & Record Review A
    MusicHound Folk 4.5/5
    Q 5/5
    Pitchfork 10/10
    Rolling Stone 5/5
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide 4/5
    Spin Alternative Record Guide 10/10
    Uncut 5/5

    Audience Reception
    89/100 from 1,596 users, #4 for 1972, #61 overall - AlbumOfTheYear.org
    9.4/10 from 2,439 users - AllMusic
    4.4/5 from 994 users, #2 for 1972, #111 overall - Musicboard
    4.19/5 from 33,038 users, #2 for 1972, #25 overall - RateYourMusic.com

     

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