...and this is when music really starts going downhill. Mostly that little awkward window between grunge and indie rock, where everything just really sucked.
1990:
1. David Bowie - Changesbowie
2. Pixies - Bossanova
3. The Alarm - Standards
4. Enigma - MCMXC a.D.
5. Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Ragged Glory
6. Lou Reed & John Cale - Songs For Drella
7. Jane's Addiction - Ritual De Lo Habitual
8. Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
9. Grateful Dead - Go To Heaven
1991:
1. R.E.M. - Out Of Time
2. Nirvana - Nevermind
3. Mazzy Star - She Hangs Brightly
4. I'm Your Fan: The Songs Of Leonard Cohen (tribute album)
5. Pearl Jam - Ten
6. Trout Fishing In America - Big Trouble
7. Smashing Pumpkins - Gish
8. U2 - Atchung Baby
9. Bob Dylan - Peco's Blues (outtakes from Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid)
10. Metallica - Metallica
1992:
1. R.E.M. - Automatic For The People (greatest album ever recorded)
2. Tom Waits - Bone Machine
3. Nirvana - Incesticide
4. Alice In Chains - Dirt
5. Leonard Cohen - The Future
6. Neil Young - Harvest Moon
7. Phish - A Picture Of Nectar
8. Cowboy Junkies - Black Eyed Man
9. Beastie Boys - Check Your Head
10. 10,000 Maniacs - Our Time In Eden
1993:
1. Nirvana - MTV Unplugged In New York (even though it wasn't released until '94, it first aired in '93)
2. Big Star - Columbia: Live At University Of Missouri, 4/25/93
3. Bjork - Debut
4. Cowboy Junkies - Pale Sun Crescent Moon
5. Nirvana - In Utero
6. Counting Crows - August & Everything After
7. Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
8. Mazzy Star - So Tonight That I Might See
9. Neil Young - Neil Young Unplugged
10. Violent Femmes - Add It Up (1981-1993)
1994:
1. Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
2. Jeff Buckley - Grace
3. Green Day - Dookie
4. Tom Petty - Wildflowers
5. R.E.M. - Monster
6. Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Sleeps With Angels
7. Phish - Hoist
8. Smashing Pumpkins - Pisces Iscariot
9. Soundgarden - Superunknown
10. Testament - Low
1995 (bad year):
1. Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness
2. London Philharmonic Orchestra - Us And Them: Symphonic Pink Floyd
3. The Police - Live!
4. The Presidents Of The United States Of America - The Presidents Of The United States Of America
5. Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill
6. Neil Young & Pearl Jam - Mirror Ball
7. Goo Goo Dolls - A Boy Named Goo
1996 (another sad year):
1. Pearl Jam - No Code
2. Butthole Surfers - Electriclarryland
3. Medeski, Martin, & Wood - Shack Man
4. Gorgoroth - Antichrist
5. Phish - Billy Breathes
6. Mazzy Star - Among My Swan
7. The Beatles - Real Love
8. R.E.M. - New Adventures In Hi-Fi
9. Sex Pistols - Filthy Lucre Live
10. The Verve Pipe - Villians
1997 (music's really starting to suck)
1. Modest Mouse - The Lonesome Crowded West
2. Everclear - So Much For The Afterglow
3. The Flaming Lips - Zaireeka
4. The Misfits - American Psycho
5. Echo & The Bunnymen - Evergreen
6. Pennywise - Full Circle
7. The Sundays - Static & Silence
8. The Grateful Dead - Terrapin Station
1998:
1. Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea
2. The Offspring - Americana
3. Smashing Pumpkins - Adore
4. Texas Terri & The Stiff Ones - Eat Shit + 1
5. Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty
1999 (No. No. No. No. No.):
1. Rage Against The Machine - The Battle Of Los Angeles
2. Sleater-Kinney - The Hot Rock
3. The Magnetic Fields - 69 Love Songs
4. Dream Theatre - Scenes From A Memory
5. Eurythmics - Peace
6. Britney Spears - ...Baby One More TIme
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
Best Albums Ever: 1980s
The 80s... Some of the best and worst music ever.
1980:
1. AC/DC - Back In Black
2. Don McLean - American Pie
3. Bob Marley - Uprising
4. The Police - Zenyatta Mondatta
5. Bruce Springsteen - The River
6. Lou Reed - Growing Up In Public
1981:
1. Simon & Garfunkel - The Concert In Central Park
2. J.F.A. - Blatant Localism
3. Black Flag - Damaged
4. Balboa - Live Like This
5. The Police - Ghost In The Machine
6. The Go-Go's - Beauty And The Beat
7. Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard Of Ozz
8. Men At Work - Business As Usual
1982:
1. Michael Jackson - Thriller
2. R.E.M. - Chronic Town EP
3. The Misfits - Walk Among Us
4. Dead Kennedys - Plastic Surgery Disasters
5. Dead Kennedys - In God We Trust, Inc
6. Roxy Music - Daylight Again
7. Crosby, Stills, & Nash - Daylight Again
8. Toto - Toto IV
1983:
1. R.E.M. - Murmur
2. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
3. Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes
4. Circle Jerks - Golden Shower Of Hits
5. Meat Puppets - Meat Puppets II
6. The Police - Synchronicity
7. Metallica - Kill 'em All
8. Pink Floyd - The Final Cut
9. J.F.A. Valley Of The Yakes
10. U2 - War
1984:
1. R.E.M. - Reckoning
2. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense
3. Metallica - Ride The Lightning
4. Iron Maiden - Powerslave
5. Madonna - Like A Virgin
6. Bruce Springsteen - Born In The U.S.A.
7. Dead Can Dance - Dead Can Dance
1985:
1. R.E.M. - Fables Of The Reconstruction
2. The Misfits - Legacy Of Brutality
3. Michael Jackson - Number Ones (another great compilation)
4. The Replacements - The Shit Hits The Fans
5. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Pack Up The Plantation (Live)
6. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Southern Accents
7. The Cure - The Head On The Door
1986 (two bad years in a row...):
1. Paul Simon - Graceland
2. Metallica - Master Of Puppets
3. R.E.M. - Life's Rich Pageant
4. Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet
5. The Velvet Underground - Another View
6. Europe - The Final Countdown
1987:
1. Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
2. The Replacements - Pleased To Meet Me
3. Dead Kennedys - Give Me Convenience Or Give Me Death
4. Suzanne Vega - Solitude Standing
5. The Smiths - Strangeways, Here We Come
6. R.E.M. - Dead Letter Office
7. U2 - The Joshua Tree
8. R.E.M. - Document
9. Ozzy Osbourne - Tribute
10. David Bowie - Never Let Me Down
1988:
1. Cowboy Junkies - The Trinity Session
2. Leonard Cohen - I'm Your Man
3. Pixies - Surfer Rosa
4. R.E.M. - Green
5. Phish - Junta
6. Metallica - ...And Justice For All
1989:
Pixies - Doolittle
Nirvana - Bleach
The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
Neil Young - Freedom
Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever
Indigo Girls - Indigo Girls
Eurythmics - We Too Are One
1980:
1. AC/DC - Back In Black
2. Don McLean - American Pie
3. Bob Marley - Uprising
4. The Police - Zenyatta Mondatta
5. Bruce Springsteen - The River
6. Lou Reed - Growing Up In Public
1981:
1. Simon & Garfunkel - The Concert In Central Park
2. J.F.A. - Blatant Localism
3. Black Flag - Damaged
4. Balboa - Live Like This
5. The Police - Ghost In The Machine
6. The Go-Go's - Beauty And The Beat
7. Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard Of Ozz
8. Men At Work - Business As Usual
1982:
1. Michael Jackson - Thriller
2. R.E.M. - Chronic Town EP
3. The Misfits - Walk Among Us
4. Dead Kennedys - Plastic Surgery Disasters
5. Dead Kennedys - In God We Trust, Inc
6. Roxy Music - Daylight Again
7. Crosby, Stills, & Nash - Daylight Again
8. Toto - Toto IV
1983:
1. R.E.M. - Murmur
2. Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones
3. Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes
4. Circle Jerks - Golden Shower Of Hits
5. Meat Puppets - Meat Puppets II
6. The Police - Synchronicity
7. Metallica - Kill 'em All
8. Pink Floyd - The Final Cut
9. J.F.A. Valley Of The Yakes
10. U2 - War
1984:
1. R.E.M. - Reckoning
2. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense
3. Metallica - Ride The Lightning
4. Iron Maiden - Powerslave
5. Madonna - Like A Virgin
6. Bruce Springsteen - Born In The U.S.A.
7. Dead Can Dance - Dead Can Dance
1985:
1. R.E.M. - Fables Of The Reconstruction
2. The Misfits - Legacy Of Brutality
3. Michael Jackson - Number Ones (another great compilation)
4. The Replacements - The Shit Hits The Fans
5. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Pack Up The Plantation (Live)
6. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Southern Accents
7. The Cure - The Head On The Door
1986 (two bad years in a row...):
1. Paul Simon - Graceland
2. Metallica - Master Of Puppets
3. R.E.M. - Life's Rich Pageant
4. Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet
5. The Velvet Underground - Another View
6. Europe - The Final Countdown
1987:
1. Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
2. The Replacements - Pleased To Meet Me
3. Dead Kennedys - Give Me Convenience Or Give Me Death
4. Suzanne Vega - Solitude Standing
5. The Smiths - Strangeways, Here We Come
6. R.E.M. - Dead Letter Office
7. U2 - The Joshua Tree
8. R.E.M. - Document
9. Ozzy Osbourne - Tribute
10. David Bowie - Never Let Me Down
1988:
1. Cowboy Junkies - The Trinity Session
2. Leonard Cohen - I'm Your Man
3. Pixies - Surfer Rosa
4. R.E.M. - Green
5. Phish - Junta
6. Metallica - ...And Justice For All
1989:
Pixies - Doolittle
Nirvana - Bleach
The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
Neil Young - Freedom
Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever
Indigo Girls - Indigo Girls
Eurythmics - We Too Are One
Best Albums Ever: 1970s
Punk! Prog! Alternative! Music from the 60s usually sounds "old," if not outright dated, but the much of the 70s' music still sounds fresh and relevant today.
1970:
1. The Beatles - Let It Be
2. Neil Young - After The Gold Rush
3. Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
4. Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young - Deja Vu
5. Woodstock: Music from the Original Soundtrack and More
6. Van Morrison - Moondance
7. Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band - Trout Mask Replica
8. The Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead
9. Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon
10. The Doors - L.A. Woman
1971 (almost impossible to rank the top 3):
1. Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Love And Hate
2. Joni Mitchell - Blue
3. David Bowie - Hunky Dory
4. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
5. The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
6. Carole King - Tapestry
1972:
1. Lou Reed - Transformer
2. Stevie Wonder - Talking Book
3. Yes - Fragile
4. Cat Stevens - Catch Bull At Four
5. The Rolling Stones - Exile On Main St.
6. Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
1973:
1. Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time
3. The Stooges - Raw Power
4. Led Zeppelin - Houses Of The Holy
5. The Who - Quadrophenia
6. Marvin Gaye - Let's Get It On
1974:
1. Leonard Cohen - New Skin For The Old Ceremony
2. The Rolling Stones - It's Only Rock 'N Roll
3. Tom Waits - The Heart Of Saturday Night
4. Kraftwerk - Autobahn
1975:
1. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
2. Neil Young - Tonight's The Night
3. Bob Dylan - Blood On The Tracks
4. Patti Smith - Horses
5. Big Star - Third/Sister Lovers
6. Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
7. Elton John - Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy
8. Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
1976:
1. The Ramones - Ramones
2. Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
3. Rush - 2112
4. AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
1977:
1. Neil Young - Decade (I won't normally include compilations, but this one's too good to miss)
2. Neil Young - Comes A Time
3. Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols
4. Billy Joel - The Stranger
5. Pink Floyd - Animals
6. Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell
7. Crosby, Stills, and Nash - CSN
8. Leonard Cohen - Death Of A Ladies' Man
1978:
1. Tom Waits - Blue Valentine
2. Armand Schaubroeck - Ratfucker
3. The Adverts - Crossing The Red Sea With The Adverts
4. Van Halen - Van Halen
5. Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door
6. Foreigner - Double Vision
1979:
1. Pink Floyd - The Wall
2. Neil Young - Live Rust
3. Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
4. The Clash - London Calling
5. The Clash - The Clash
6. Sex Pistols - The Great Rock N' Roll Swindle
7. The Dead Kennedys - Live At The Deaf Club (not sure when this was released, but it was recorded in '79)
8. Fleetwood Mac- Tusk
9. Cheap Trick - At Budokan
10. Supertramp - Breakfast In America
1970:
1. The Beatles - Let It Be
2. Neil Young - After The Gold Rush
3. Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
4. Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young - Deja Vu
5. Woodstock: Music from the Original Soundtrack and More
6. Van Morrison - Moondance
7. Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band - Trout Mask Replica
8. The Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead
9. Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon
10. The Doors - L.A. Woman
1971 (almost impossible to rank the top 3):
1. Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Love And Hate
2. Joni Mitchell - Blue
3. David Bowie - Hunky Dory
4. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
5. The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
6. Carole King - Tapestry
1972:
1. Lou Reed - Transformer
2. Stevie Wonder - Talking Book
3. Yes - Fragile
4. Cat Stevens - Catch Bull At Four
5. The Rolling Stones - Exile On Main St.
6. Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
1973:
1. Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
2. Tom Waits - Closing Time
3. The Stooges - Raw Power
4. Led Zeppelin - Houses Of The Holy
5. The Who - Quadrophenia
6. Marvin Gaye - Let's Get It On
1974:
1. Leonard Cohen - New Skin For The Old Ceremony
2. The Rolling Stones - It's Only Rock 'N Roll
3. Tom Waits - The Heart Of Saturday Night
4. Kraftwerk - Autobahn
1975:
1. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
2. Neil Young - Tonight's The Night
3. Bob Dylan - Blood On The Tracks
4. Patti Smith - Horses
5. Big Star - Third/Sister Lovers
6. Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
7. Elton John - Captain Fantastic & The Brown Dirt Cowboy
8. Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
1976:
1. The Ramones - Ramones
2. Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
3. Rush - 2112
4. AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
1977:
1. Neil Young - Decade (I won't normally include compilations, but this one's too good to miss)
2. Neil Young - Comes A Time
3. Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols
4. Billy Joel - The Stranger
5. Pink Floyd - Animals
6. Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell
7. Crosby, Stills, and Nash - CSN
8. Leonard Cohen - Death Of A Ladies' Man
1978:
1. Tom Waits - Blue Valentine
2. Armand Schaubroeck - Ratfucker
3. The Adverts - Crossing The Red Sea With The Adverts
4. Van Halen - Van Halen
5. Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door
6. Foreigner - Double Vision
1979:
1. Pink Floyd - The Wall
2. Neil Young - Live Rust
3. Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
4. The Clash - London Calling
5. The Clash - The Clash
6. Sex Pistols - The Great Rock N' Roll Swindle
7. The Dead Kennedys - Live At The Deaf Club (not sure when this was released, but it was recorded in '79)
8. Fleetwood Mac- Tusk
9. Cheap Trick - At Budokan
10. Supertramp - Breakfast In America
Best Albums Ever: 1960s
I'm going to try listing, at most, my 10 favourite albums from every year since 1963. Years with less than 10, I simply don't have that much music from. Note that these are completely subjective, biased, and opinionated!
The 60s were the decade that created music as we know it. You can argue that the 50s created rock n' roll, but without The Beatles, Bob Dylan, The Velvet Underground, and so many others, we wouldn't the music of the day. These lists are dominated by The Beatles, partly because they're my favourites, and partly because they influenced EVERYTHING.
1963:
1. The Beatles - Please Please Me
2. Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
3. The Beatles - With The Beatles
1964:
1. The Beatles - Beatles For Sale
2. Simon & Garfunkel - Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.
3. The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night
1965 (exciting year!)
1. The Beatles - Rubber Soul
2. Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
3. The Beatles - Help!
4. Bert Jansch - Bert Jansch
1966:
1. The Beatles - Revolver
2. Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde
3. Simon & Garfunkel - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme
4. Simon & Garfunkel - The Sounds Of Silence
5. Donovan - Sunshine Superman
1967:
1. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground & Nico
3. The Doors - The Doors
4. Cream - Disraeli Gears
5. The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
6. Jefferson Airplane - Surrealistic Pillow
1968:
1. Leonard Cohen - The Songs Of Leonard Cohen
2. The Beatles - The Beatles
3. Johnny Cash - At Folsom Prison
4. The Doors - Waiting For The Sun
1969:
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II
The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
The Shaggs - Philosophy Of The World
Tim Buckley - Happy Sad
The 60s were the decade that created music as we know it. You can argue that the 50s created rock n' roll, but without The Beatles, Bob Dylan, The Velvet Underground, and so many others, we wouldn't the music of the day. These lists are dominated by The Beatles, partly because they're my favourites, and partly because they influenced EVERYTHING.
1963:
1. The Beatles - Please Please Me
2. Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
3. The Beatles - With The Beatles
1964:
1. The Beatles - Beatles For Sale
2. Simon & Garfunkel - Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.
3. The Beatles - A Hard Day's Night
1965 (exciting year!)
1. The Beatles - Rubber Soul
2. Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
3. The Beatles - Help!
4. Bert Jansch - Bert Jansch
1966:
1. The Beatles - Revolver
2. Bob Dylan - Blonde On Blonde
3. Simon & Garfunkel - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme
4. Simon & Garfunkel - The Sounds Of Silence
5. Donovan - Sunshine Superman
1967:
1. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground & Nico
3. The Doors - The Doors
4. Cream - Disraeli Gears
5. The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
6. Jefferson Airplane - Surrealistic Pillow
1968:
1. Leonard Cohen - The Songs Of Leonard Cohen
2. The Beatles - The Beatles
3. Johnny Cash - At Folsom Prison
4. The Doors - Waiting For The Sun
1969:
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II
The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
The Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed
The Shaggs - Philosophy Of The World
Tim Buckley - Happy Sad
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Ferraby Lionheart - The Jack Of Hearts
The Jack Of Hearts, released August 2010. 5.5/10
I saw Mr. Lionheart at Grimey's, a really great little record store in Nashville. Very intimate show, just him and his keyboardist playing to a crowd of maybe 30 people. He put on a really great show, lots of personality, gorgeous vocal harmonies, not to mention fantastic musicianship, especially from his keyboardist. So, I bought his latest album, "The Jack Of Hearts."
I was disappointed. Not that it's a BAD album. It's really not. The songs are catchy, the music's good... It's just boring. It's boring and a little fake sounding. The whole album sounds almost exactly the same: vocals and strummed acoustic guitar in the forefront, with nicely layered keys, bass, drums, vocal harmonies, and steel guitar. There's not much variety in the songs themselves, pretty straightforward verse/chorus/verse pop songs.
What really gets me is the incredible unoriginality of his sound. It's indie folk at its most derivative, from the wannabe-Simon & Garfunkel harmonies to that stupid fake European accent that ALL indie kid singer-songwriters do. It's annoying, to say the least, and the songs aren't quite good enough to make up for it.
The lyrics, at least, are really great. Very personal, very real. The songs are about everything, from dying friends to sucky friends to straightforward love. Probably my favourite song on the album, "Arkansas," is "kind of a funny story. My friend looked up her estranged father on Google, and didn't realize 'till she got there that the address was for the Arkansas State Penitentiary."
I've grown to kind of like "The Jack Of Hearts." It's not a great album by any means, but it's a good easy listening album, when you just need to relax and not think too much.
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