The Official Needles and Grooves 1001 Album Generator Project (aka Preachin’ about the Preachers if today’s selection sucks)

[Whiteout75]

9/11/23
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Black Sabbath

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Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath | Album | AllMusic

Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath released in 1970. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

Essential stuff. This is one of the foundations of modern rock music. Not my favourite Sabbath (Paranoid, Master of Reality, Vol 4 and Heaven and Hell are all better albums IMO), but soooo important. Five stars without a doubt, and looking forward to listening to it again today.

 

[Nee Lewman]

Sabbath is a landmark. Not their best, but it is hard to think of a more influential album, I mean even Velvet Underground didn't start a whole genre.

 

[Nee Lewman]

9/12/23

Frankie Goes to Hollywood - Welcome to the Pleasuredome

Welcome to the Pleasuredome - Frankie Goes to ... | AllMusic

Welcome to the Pleasuredome by Frankie Goes to Hollywood released in 1984. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

 

[Nee Lewman]

I know Relax and have heard at least twenty different versions of it through the years. However, I don't recall ever listening to another song by them ever.

 

[Wicked Dreamer]

I know Relax and have heard at least twenty different versions of it through the years. However, I don't recall ever listening to another song by them ever.

I know Two Tribes because that was on a Grand Theft Auto: Vice City station, it’s great.

 

[Yer Ol' Uncle D]

I know Relax and have heard at least twenty different versions of it through the years. However, I don't recall ever listening to another song by them ever.

I know Two Tribes because that was on a Grand Theft Auto: Vice City station, it’s great.

If you're old enough to remember the worldwide context (@Lee Newman is), the Two Tribes video depicts a Reagan / Chernenko televised brawl. It's pretty great...

 

[dbarila]

9/12/23

Frankie Goes to Hollywood - Welcome to the Pleasuredome

Welcome to the Pleasuredome - Frankie Goes to ... | AllMusic

Welcome to the Pleasuredome by Frankie Goes to Hollywood released in 1984. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

Some of the songs are good. But all of the talking between tracks, a Born to Run cover smack in the middle?....not great. 2/5.

 

[Joe Mac]

I know Relax and have heard at least twenty different versions of it through the years. However, I don't recall ever listening to another song by them ever.

Two Tribes and The Power of Love were huge singles in the uk too.

 

[jamieanderson1968]

Hard to really rate a record that was made for the US market to capitalize on the strength of their singles. Frankie really is just a 12” band.

 

[Nee Lewman]

I like this Frankie Goes To Hollywood. Peak 80's fun. Not a great album per say, not anything I am gonna run out and buy, but I enjoyed it. 3 stars

 

[Nee Lewman]

9/13/23

R.E.M. - Murmur

Murmur - R.E.M. | Album | AllMusic

Murmur by R.E.M. released in 1983. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

 

[Yer Ol' Uncle D]

9/13/23
View attachment 182212
R.E.M. - Murmur

Murmur - R.E.M. | Album | AllMusic

Murmur by R.E.M. released in 1983. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

What a timely, important record.

Just as REM and countless others were influenced by the basic framework of The Byrds, this LP's amalgamated 60's psych/new wave sound launched thousands of bands.

Not necessarily REM's best record, but most probably their most influential.

 

[MadLucas]

What a timely, important record.

Just as REM and countless others were influenced by the basic framework of The Byrds, this LP's amalgamated 60's psych/new wave sound launched thousands of bands.

Not necessarily REM's best record, but most probably their most influential.

I agree with everything said here.

 

[jamieanderson1968]

Nice afternoon listen. I remember hearing for the first time when it came out. I bought my cassette of it the fall of '83. This and New Order's "Power, Corruption and Lies" where never far from my cheap walkman knockoff. 4.5/5. Not as good as Reckoning or Fables but pretty damn close.

 

[Nee Lewman]

View attachment 164246R.E.M. - Murmur

Man I haven’t listen to this in forever. May be a big reason why I don’t necessarily gravitate to lyrics. What the hell is Stipe ever mumbling about.

Radio Free Europe - jangly makes me want to bop. That voice, the baseline, the insistent drum line. Man this is great!

From the allmusic review: “Leaving behind the garagey jangle pop of their first recordings” wuh? I should probably listen to Chronic Town Again but this isn’t garagey and jangly?

Pilgrimage - like the way it builds and stops to start over again…

Laughing - man, Out of Time is all right here in this song. They emerged as such as realized force.

Talk about the passion - Stipe gets a lot out of a few repeated lines. He’s really one of a kind. Such a pretty song too.

Moral Kiosk is just fun sounding. Makes me want to spin around with my arms out bopping. Love the guitar sound! Peter Buck is kind of an underrated genius.

Perfect Circle - another masterful vocal.

Got me thinking. Right here at the birth of alternative music there were three guys Stipe, Morrisey and Bono that were kind of larger than life and certainly bigger than their bands, really. So much hate was aimed at them (okay maybe Morrissey deserved it) I mean I know it’s mostly envy driven but he really is something and he hasn’t really gotten full of himself here.

Catapult - just like LCD the other night. If folks weren’t trying to sleep there would be a dance party in the listening room.

Incidentally, this is a band I don’t listen to near enough as my wife dislikes them.

Also, they were my entry drug to The National and Modest Mouse as I saw those guys open for R.E.M. when they were touring to support Accelerate.

Sitting Still is just another awesome song.

9-9 sounds like u2 playing punk through an R.E.M. filter.

Shaking Through is an example of how an uptempo song can just sound beautiful.

We Walk is a little grating (I, however, have no problems with Shiny Happy People or Radio Song)

West of the fields feels like it wants to be more epic than it is

Yeah, I mean Out of Time came out my senior year of high school. I remember being aware of them around the time Life’s Rich came out (still my favorite album by them) and they just seemed to get bigger with each album. For sure It’s the End of the World, The One I Love, and Stand were ubiquitous.


Most of the folks I hung out with in college were fans no matter if they were listening to grunge, the Dead or Prince.

And that was sort of the hey day of college rock too when bands were jumping from college rock to 120 minutes to heavy rotation on mtv and top 40

Clearly an important and influential record. Not perfect though. 4 stars.

 

[Joe Mac]

This would be my favourite R.E.M. record. It’s not actually all that close. I like all their stuff well enough but this is the only one that reaches out and grabs me.

 

[Nee Lewman]

TANGENT

 

[Rip_City]

9/13/23
View attachment 182212
R.E.M. - Murmur

Murmur - R.E.M. | Album | AllMusic

Murmur by R.E.M. released in 1983. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

A high quality R.E.M. record. Perhaps not their best (or my favorite), but a very important one. "Radio Free Europe" is an all-time great opener.

Rating: 3.5/5 [Great]

 

[Nee Lewman]

9/14/23


Emmy Lou Harris - Red Dirt Girl

Emmylou Harris - Red Dirt Girl Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic

Discover Red Dirt Girl by Emmylou Harris released in 2000. Find album reviews, track lists, credits, awards and more at AllMusic.

www.allmusic.com

 

[Nee Lewman]

Ohhhh… I don’t know this one and I do have a fair bit of her stuff in the collection!