I know very little about the Commodores, just a couple of their hits and what Lionel Richie became in the ’80s. So, from “Let’s Get Started,” I was very pleasantly surprised to hear a funk band rather than whatever the band who made “Easy” is.
Tag: Music
A Night on the Town (1976) by Rod Stewart
Atlantic Crossing felt like the beginning of Stewart’s long decline from exciting rock and roll singer to raspy poor man’s Tony Bennett. But A Night on the Town finds him in a bit of a holding pattern. The problems of Atlantic Crossing are still here, as are some of the redeeming qualities of that album’s …
All Things in Time (1976) by Lou Rawls
This is my first Lou Rawls album, despite having heard the name many, many times. So basically all I knew was that it was soul.
Gettin’ Ready (1966) by The Temptations
This is one of the better Temptations albums, in part because of the qualify of the original material and in part because of the (slightly) contrasting styles of its two producers, which gives at least some variation.
Miss E…So Addictive (2001) by Missy Elliot
I have some vague memory of beginning to listen to an earlier Missy Elliot album and then deciding to stop before my three listens because it didn’t seel enough, the reviews weren’t good enough or I felt I didn’t have enough to say (I do not remember why or even which album it was). But …
Moulin Rouge! Music from Baz Luhrmann’s Film (2001) by Various Artists
I have no idea what to do with this. I haven’t seen the movie. (“Then why are you reviewing the soundtrack?!?!”) And so all I have to go on is the music.
Break the Cycle (2001) by Staind
So this is what happens when post grunge meets nu metal? Good, I needed to know. Really, I did. Imagine if you were a fan of post grunge and you were like “This just isn’t heavy enough some of the time (really, a tiny bit) and the way we should make it heavier is to …
Survivor (2001) by Desinty’s Child
I can’t quite get over the congruity (and timelessness!) of writing a song about being an independent woman, while starting off the song referencing the Charlie’s Angels remake. Because, if the idea of Charlie’s Angels was ever feminist, well it’s a pretty dated and dumb version of feminism. (Smart, capable women whose lives are controlled …
Bringing Down the Horse (1996) by The Wallflowers
I think my brother had this album but I don’t think I ever made it far enough into his CD collection before I got to it. I had, um, zero interest. Once I was interested in the contemporary stuff he owned I certainly wasn’t interested in Dylan’s son. That single was everywhere. I must have …
Older (1996) by George Michael
This is my third George Michael album, in addition to at least one Wham album, and I can say, without doubt, that I’ve never liked his aesthetic. But he often makes up for that with his talent, as a performer (not just a great singer but as a versatile instrumentalist, and some who commits), as …
Gish (1991) by Smashing Pumpkins
There are people, usually older people, who will tell you that Gish is actually the Pumpkins’ best album, or their only good album, or something like that. I suspect these people are either just old or they are being deliberately contrarian/curmudgeonish, or they are trying to be hipsters (“I liked the Pumpkins before they were …
Like an Ever Flowing Stream (1991) by Dismember
Hot take: Florida is better than Sweden.
Seamonsters (1991) by The Wedding Present
We all have musical sweet spots, things we like so much that we just eat up anything that fits into those sweet spots. This album, the first I have ever heard by The Wedding Present, hits me in a few of mine. And I left wondering, not for the first time, why it took me …
Seal (1991)
I know one Seal song. (I’m too young for “Crazy.”) Seal was not big in North America and is known here to my generation for “Kiss From a Rose” and, for younger people, as being Heidi Klum’s ex-husband. So I didn’t know what to expect.
Blessed Are the Sick (1991) by Morbid Angel
So yes, I’m listening to this without ever having heard Altars of Madness. That is likely a mistake but I have a good reason: despite its reputation within the metal community, mainstream critical appreciation isn’t really there, so I missed it in 2019. As a result, I’m likely going to say something stupid.
Spellbound (1991) by Paula Abdul
I know very little about Paula Abdul. I remember a couple of her songs – and, honestly, remember the video for “Rush Rush” than I do the song – and I remember some vague reason for her being kicked off some talent TV show. That’s it. So I was expecting some kind of early ’90s …
Raising Hell (1986) by Run-D.M.C.
Full disclosure, as usual: I know little about hip hop. But, that being said, the more I learn about hip hop the more I get at least some idea of what matters and what doesn’t. And I feel like I might be able to say that this has to be one of the most consequential …
Top Gun Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (1986) by Various Artists
Like everyone else my age, I have seen Top Gun more than a few times. Unlike virtually every other boy my age, I didn’t like it. I think it’s because I recognized it was dumb but more because everything else I knew seemed to love it. And I was already watching old war movies and …
Playing With a Different Sex (1981) by Au Pairs
This is an excellent feminist post punk record that has right been compared to Gang of Four, both for its political lyrics and its danceability.
East Side Story (1981) by Squeeze
Can I admit something to you? I thought “Tempted” was from the ’60s. Of course, if I’d really listened to it, I might have noticed it wasn’t. But I became familiar with it when I was young and before I had an ear that could spot time and genre differences. And I guess I just …
Nightclubbing (1981) by Grace Jones
More than once I’ve begun listening to a Grace Jones record, really not enjoyed myself and then looked to see if it had high enough sales or enough acclaim and stopped listening to it the moment I could justify it. Not this one though: near universal acclaim.
Computer World [Computerwelt] (1981) by Kraftwerk
There’s an argument to be made that Kraftwerk are one of the most influential bands of the 1970s, given how they are more responsible than anyone for the transition from the fairly abstract tone poems of ’70s German electronic to synthpop. That’s an argument I’m extremely receptive to on their pioneering mid and late ’70s …
Turnstiles (1976) by Billy Joel
I have trouble putting into words how much I hate Billy Joel, especially late ’70s Billy Joel. Basically I don’t like anything about his music, though occasionally there will be something redeeming. And I’m getting to that point where I should be inured to him, where the animus should be wearing off. But it’s not.
Just as I Am (1971) by Bill Withers
I am perhaps softening in my old age, because this is a slicker soul record than the kind I like, though only a little bit slicker. Basically I used to not really tolerate soul with strings but apparently I can now. So that’s a weird way to start this.
What’s Going On (1971) by Marvin Gaye
Is it wrong that all I want to do is compare this to There’s a Riot Goin’ On? Gaye beat Stone to the punch and the title of Stone’s album was apparently changed to answer Gaye’s question. So it doesn’t feel that far off. Still, I’ll try to avoid it as much as I can.
Little Wheel Spin and Spin (1966) by Buffy Sainte-Marie
This is my first encounter with Buffy Sainte-Marie’s music – save covers of “Universal Soldier” – though I’ve known of her for longer than I can remember. (Is it possible one of my parents had an LP that never got played?) It seems I should have started with her earlier records, but I honestly missed …
Rock Action (2001) by Mogwai
I don’t know what I would have done if I had found this Mogwai record when it came out or, honestly, any of the early Mogwai album when I first discovered post rock. I probably would have lost my mind with excitement and would be insisting to this day that it is an absolute classic. …
Set This Circus Down (2001) by Tim McGraw
All I really know about Tim McGraw is that he likes to hold his cowboy hat on his head and he’s married to Faith Hill. I assumed he was a singer-songwriter, actually.
The Swimming Hour by Andrew Bird’s Bowl of Fire (2001)
I know very little about Andrew Bird. I actually thought he was a jazz musician, confusing him with, um, another Andrew. (Andrew Hill, apparently, which seems ridiculous.) Anyway, eventually I did figure out he was an “indie rock” musician but knew nothing else. Nothing about his principal instrument, nothing about the Squirrel Nut Zippers, nothing.
Crash (1996) by Dave Matthews Band
When I graduated high school in 2000, I barely knew who the Dave Matthews Band was. Sure, I must have seen their videos on TV, but I don’t know that I could have told you anything about them.