Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #479: Funkadelic – Maggot Brain

#479

Funkadelic, Maggot Brain

Release Date: 1971
Previously Owned: Yes
Funkadelic - Maggot Brain
The album cover is the least weird thing about this album
Impressions:  Okay, I loved this album back when I stumbled upon it in college. I'm 100%  sure I 'll still feel that way, but we'll listen to it anyway...  Starts off with George Clinton's opening spoken word schpiel about Mother Earth tasting maggots in the brain of universe and maybe drowning in his own shit, is just bonkers bizarre, but at least it let's … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #480: Raekwon, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

#480

Raekwon, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Release Date: 1994
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Raekwon -
Is Raekwon getting photobombed here?
Impressions:  The title of the album itself is a challenge: "Are you tough enough for this?"  I guess we'll see. Hmmm, kinda takes a while to get going... "Knuckleheadz," production boring, but bouncy. Not bad, but seems a bit ordinary for '90s hip hop. "Criminology" clicked a bit more from me. This album's vibe takes me back to college; living in a post-graduate haze back in the "slums" of Champaign, IL,  shooting hoop and … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #481: D’Angelo – Voodoo

#481
D'Angelo - Voodoo
For the year 2000, D'Angelo possesed the world's most famous abs.

D'Angelo, Voodoo

Release Date: 2000
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Impressions:  D'Angelo is never in a rush. Songs take as long as they need to (the shortest track on this album is still four and a half minutes.) He starts singing when ever he feels like it and he puts out albums when ever he wants to. Voodoo came out five years -an eternity in pop music- after his successful neo-soul debut Brown Sugar. Take the opening song; "Playa … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #482: Steve Earle – Guitar Town

#482

Steve Earle, Guitar Town

Release Date: 1986
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Steve Earle, Guitar Town
Steve is going to go to town on that guitar.
Impressions:  Modern country isn't exactly my bag, but over the years I've grown to appreciate older country stars like Johnny Cash & Patsy Cline, and so-called alt-country artists like Uncle Tupelo, but the sheen of modern Nashville country still bores me. I guess lots of these newer country stars just seem to me like they are doing lame arena rock dressed up with a "country" packaging. Steve Earle seems … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #483: Gang of Four – Entertainment!

#483

Gang of Four, Entertainment!

Release Date: 1979
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Gang of Four - Entertainment!
Not just "Entertainment!" but other things like "Guitars!" "Politics!" and "Robot Vocals!"
Impressions:  Weird that I never heard of these guys before. Unlike the previous album on this list, it's  completely in my wheel house: no-nonsense, angular, angry-ular punk rock with a touch of dub and funk. "Not Great Man" sounds like, and better than, all of those spiky-punk-pop bands who came out in the 2000s (ie The Futureheads,) but with actually … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #484: Mott The Hoople – All The Young Dudes

#484

Mott The Hoople, All The Young Dudes

Release Date: 1972
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Mott The Hoople - All The Young Dudes
Pictured are some of the young dudes, but not all.
Impressions:  A great Bowie album, without Bowie's voice (mostly). A cover of Velvet Underground's "Sweet Jane" is no-brainer slam-dunk, and although it doesn't dispell the weird feeling of imitation, it's beautifully done. Lead singer Ian Hunter has a lot of Dylan, a lot of Bowie, and a sharp sense of humor and self awareness. The band plays pitch-perfect glammy rock that doesn't get … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #485: Pearl Jam, Vitalogy

#485

Pearl Jam, Vitalogy

Release Date: 1994
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: No (I went to college that year, c'mon)
Impressions:  Let's start with this: I don't hate Pearl Jam, nor do I love them. For whatever reason, they generally fail to leave a mark, but let's give them a fair shake shall we? Album ON! The dry, unadorned production helps the songs like the opener "Last Exit" and the punk-tempoed "Spin The Black Circle" and the hits like "Not For You" "Nothingman," "Better Man." But these songs seem like they are aiming for classic rock radio rotation twenty years in the future: solidly played, lean … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #486: Earth, Wind and Fire – That’s The Way of The World

#486

Earth, Wind and Fire, That's The Way of The World

Release Date: 1975
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
I guess it's hard to fit nine band members on the front of the LP cover. Sorry, guys to the left!
Impressions:  Not sure why, but I had a feeling this was gonna be a monster. But, I realized for the benefit of the blog, I must manage expectations and approach this album dispassionately. I was so dispassionate that I went on Spotify and listened to the wrong album. As it turned out, I listened to the … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #487: Cyndi Lauper – She’s So Unusual

#487

Cyndi Lauper, She's So Unusual

Release Date: 1983
Previously Owned: No First Time Listen: Yes
Let's not get carried away... she's only 'somewhat' unusual.
Impressions:  Ah Cyndi, I was numb to your music when this album came out, as your hits were so hard to get away from. Radio. MTV. Commericals. I couldn't even find refuge in pro-wrestling because you'd show up there too! Let's give this a listen... Not a bad guitar-driven opening number, "Money Changes Everything" almost sounds like Psychedelic Furs or New Order-ish (although it's two minutes too long.) "Girls Just Want To Have … Continue Reading ››
Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums

RS #488: Hüsker Dü – New Day Rising

#488

Hüsker Dü, New Day Rising

Release Date: 1985
Previously Owned: Yes
Why yes, I do remember New Day Rising.
Impressions:  Back in junior high (mid '80s,) lots of friends of mine started getting in to hardcore music. They got mohawks, would wear punk t-shirts to school and go slamdancing at shows at the Caberet Metro or Aragon Ballroom (aka the "Brawlroom.") Naturally, I was interested in hearing what kind of music would make someone shave their head for it. I couldn't really find any of this stuff on the radio, so I gave … Continue Reading ››