Picking your favorite member of the Beatles can be easy. But now that I come to my favorite Beatles’ solo album, I was quite tried in my attempts to pick. Obviously all the Beatles had a great deal of individual talent, but when it came time for their solo work, they were all so different. John Lennon’s “John Lennon/ Plastic Ono Band” has its ( Read more... )

I come to a Pink Floyd album that has a lot of consternation regarding it. It is it even a Pink Floyd album? Arguably, yes, since all the band performs on it. Yet, this is more or less writing wise an all Roger Waters album, to the point where this is reflected on the album’s back cover. Now, some people have a problem with this, but I have little ( Read more... )

Johnny Cash is an icon whose songs are well known to even those who do not follow country. He is a memorable man with a memorable voice that created so many beloved songs. I was introduced to his music towards the end of his life, as he recorded the American records. Different from much of his early work, the records were primarily recorded ( Read more... )

Progressive rock is one of those genres that I can’t help but love. And at one point I was informed that there were 4 essential prog rock albums you needed to have: Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, Emerson Lake & Palmer’s Brain Salad Surgery, King Crimson’s In the Court of the Crimson King and Rush’s 2112. So over time I collected all these ( Read more... )

I have never listened to a great deal of scores for films, as I tend not to take the soundtrack as a separate element. However, when I saw “Requiem for a Dream” I was haunted by the score, which added such tension and emotion to the scenes that ran behind it. When I bought the album, and learned it was Clint Mansell and the Kronos Quartet that did ( Read more... )

Once again I'm following one album with an album of a completely opposite genre. The Great Southern Trendkill is quite possible Pantera’s heaviest album (Far Beyond Driven being the other possibility). Leave it to Pantera to make an album that is not only incredibly melodic but also incredibly heavy. As a metal band, they've always been able to put ( Read more... )

I’ve started listening to the Smashing Pumpkins a lot more lately; largely do a friend of mine that is obsessed with them. I had always liked them but I hadn’t given their albums a great deal of thought. Now I’ve seen them live twice, finally heard all their albums and own most of them. The Smashing Pumpkins rise above those that debuted around the ( Read more... )

Oh come on. A top albums list without the Beatles? I don't think that's even possible.

Ever since I was a kid, I can remember listening to the Beatles. Why not? They're a very playful, very catchy band. Take “Yellow Submarine”for example. But as I got older I came to realize that they have a great deal of complexity added to their pop rock ( Read more... )

Motorhead may very well be my favorite heavy metal band of all time. Twice I have seen them in concert now and twice have I been massively impressed by their ability to bring their music to life. Each of their albums is a treat. Even on album’s I like less (Snake Bite Love and We Are Motorhead would probably be the two I would pick to fit this bill ( Read more... )

In the 90’s, I didn’t listen to much in the way of music. I owned four albums maybe, Spin Doctor's “Pocket Full of Kryptonite” The Offspring’s “Smash” The Red Hot Chili Pepper’s “One Hot Minute” and Weezer’s “Blue Album” and really, that was all the music I needed to be happy. But I grew up and got more into music and at some point, stepped on my ( Read more... )