Omar's Album Reviews of The Rolling Stones' Top 500 Albums (and some other albums too)

[BigFin]

That may be so, but what I really was trying to say is that that song is not recognized today, though it was certainly recognized back in 1963 or whenever. Is that the song you think of today when you think "Beatles"? It's certainly not for me; like I said, I just heard it a month ago.

Weirdly enough, I don't know what The Beatles' "signature song(s)" are. Like, for the Stones, it's definitely got to be "(Can't Get) No Satisfaction." Bob Dylan is "Like A Rolling Stone." AC/DC is "Highway To Hell" or "Back In Black." But The Beatles kind of stump me on that one.

Looking it up on Spotify, their top 5 songs by plays are:

5. Twist and Shout
4. Hey Jude
3. Let It Be
2. Come Together
1. Here Comes The Sun

I think the later stuff holds up better over time. I think Ferris Bueller's Day Off is the only reason "Twist & Shout" is in the Top 5.

I don't think of Beatles have a signature song in my mind. Maybe having three distinct phases in their music probably contributes to that.

 

[Raw_Bee808]

That may be so, but what I really was trying to say is that that song is not recognized today, though it was certainly recognized back in 1963 or whenever. Is that the song you think of today when you think "Beatles"? It's certainly not for me; like I said, I just heard it a month ago.

Weirdly enough, I don't know what The Beatles' "signature song(s)" are. Like, for the Stones, it's definitely got to be "(Can't Get) No Satisfaction." Bob Dylan is "Like A Rolling Stone." AC/DC is "Highway To Hell" or "Back In Black." But The Beatles kind of stump me on that one.

Looking it up on Spotify, their top 5 songs by plays are:

5. Twist and Shout
4. Hey Jude
3. Let It Be
2. Come Together
1. Here Comes The Sun

I always considered "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Yesterday" as signatures songs too.

 

[BigFin]

I think there has to be 3 signature songs: Yesterday, Hey Jude, and Let It Be

 

[Wazmankg]

63'-77' is the sweet 15-yr spot for me musically, and I just turned 34.

Me too. I remember it, though. You have good taste. GnG does too... In fact he should think about giving up the PF and hanging out here full time.

 

[Wazmankg]

Their early stuff is very underrated and under-appreciated. People wanna label it as bubble gum pop, but there is some great stuff there.

I just dismiss people who write off their early stuff. The lyrics of some of it was generic & basic but those were fantastic tunes and arrangements. People who compare their early stuff to boy bands of the 90s or whatever simply have an infantile appreciation for music.

 

[Omar 382]

Me too. I remember it, though. You have good taste. GnG does too... In fact he should think about giving up the PF and hanging out here full time.

Oh fuck you. That "liberals are dumber than conservatives" thread is a goddamn national treasure...

 

[Wazmankg]

I also like The Beach Boys "Pet Sounds" album... I feel it was very underrated.

Well it is widely considered a top 5 LP from the rock era, so it's not underrated. But it is a masterpiece.

 

[Wazmankg]

Raw Power should be higher. Masterpiece. Loveless by MBV, too on artistic merit. Doolittle

Interesting Let It Bleed is first Stones entry, that's my favorite but usually ranks below the others.

I still listen to the radio in the car, and change the station whenever U2 or GnR come on.

Raw Power .. I went through 2 copies of that back in the day. Search and Destroy is a top 5 hard rock song for me. on Dolittle too. I'll have to check out Loveless. It sounds like we share some musical tastes.

 

[Wazmankg]

I fucking loathe U2. My least favorite band of all time. I'll let Joshua Tree fucking slide, but that's it.


In fact, I would pay the price of a CD just to have someone remove that shitty free CD from my phone, that they gave to everyone a few years ago.

Pisses me the fuck off when it comes up in shuffle.

I dug them at first and I like most of their hits, but War is the only LP of theirs I ever revisit. I liked their rawer sound from back then. When they smoothed off the edges, no pun intended, their sound became less interesting. I can't deny they've had several excellent tunes since then though.

 

[beardown07]

I dug them at first and I like most of their hits, but War is the only LP of theirs I ever revisit. I liked their rawer sound from back then. When they smoothed off the edges, no pun intended, their sound became less interesting. I can't deny they've had several excellent tunes since then though.

Something about them makes me want to gouge my eardrums out with a rusty butter knife.

If I were granted the wish of being able to beat the shit out of one person, it may just be Bono.

 

[Wazmankg]

I just heard "I Want To Hold Your Hand" just about a month ago or so. If the freaking Hollies ever released a song like that, it would be heralded as their magnum opus and one of the greatest pop songs of all time. Since it's a Beatles song, and an early one like you mentioned, meh, who really cares I guess?

I was going to review Rubber Soul, but I don't want this to turn into a Stones/Beatles thread, as much as I like the two groups, so I'm gonna put that one on the back burner and review something else that I've been listening to for a month. I'll give a hint to everyone who will be continuously refreshing their browser to see if the review has dropped (which is no one)- this album was released in 1971 and is in the top 150 on RS' list.

There are many it could be. '71 was a terrific year for rock music. That was the year I started making money, a real job not a paper route, and really started buying a lot of LPs.

 

[beardown07]

couple of female '71 releases...


Janis Joplin - Pearl
Joni Mitchell - Blue

 

[DragonfromTO]

Ima guess Zeppelin IV, Bowie- Hunky Dory or The Who- Who's Next?

The "Top 150" distinction makes me think that the selection is between 100 and 150 on the list, but it certainly could be an Omar red herring.

 

[Chewbaccer]

I never could forgive the Beatles for butchering a Buck Owens classic.

 

[GNG]

Well it is widely considered a top 5 LP from the rock era, so it's not underrated. But it is a masterpiece.

It is now considered a masterpiece but back then it was ignored by music critics.

 

[beardown07]

The "Top 150" distinction makes me think that the selection is between 100 and 150 on the list, but it certainly could be an Omar red herring.

I didn't actually look at the list when I posted those, just looked at releases from '71 that I thought would be in the top 150. I just looked at it, and the only 2 released in '71 that fall between 100 and 150 are Janis Joplin - Pearl, and David Bowie's Hunky Dory.

 

[Wazmankg]

couple of female '71 releases...


Janis Joplin - Pearl
Joni Mitchell - Blue

Carole King - Tapestry

I have all 3 of those.

 

[JohnShadows]

I see Cheap Trick Live At Budokan (rightly) listed, but didn't spot Frampton Comes Alive. I thought those were great albums recorded live.

 

[JohnShadows]

And I'd forgotten what a great lineup of songs Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere had. Had that on cassette back in the day, may need to get it again in digital.

 

[Omar 382]

There are many it could be. '71 was a terrific year for rock music. That was the year I started making money, a real job not a paper route, and really started buying a lot of LPs.

couple of female '71 releases...


Janis Joplin - Pearl
Joni Mitchell - Blue

The "Top 150" distinction makes me think that the selection is between 100 and 150 on the list, but it certainly could be an Omar red herring.

I didn't actually look at the list when I posted those, just looked at releases from '71 that I thought would be in the top 150. I just looked at it, and the only 2 released in '71 that fall between 100 and 150 are Janis Joplin - Pearl, and David Bowie's Hunky Dory.

Hunky Dory: 3.5/5 stars. Rank on RS Top 500 Albums List: 108

Sorry for the wait folks; I had to study for finals, send well wishes to the mother, watch more of Breaking Bad S2 (this is my second time watching the series)- but now, at long last, I devote my time to one David Robert Jones and his breakout classic Hunky Dory.

I like this album, though not nearly as much as Ziggy Stardust (4.5/5 stars) or Station To Station (4/5 stars); the other two Bowie albums I've reviewed. To me, the lyrics are breathtaking (notably "Life On Mars," "Song for Bob Dylan," and especially "Eight Line Poem." "Eight Line Poem" in particular, man, what a trip. Look at the lyrics; I'm not saying it's a good or bad song, but it reads like something out of a T.S. Eliot poem. David Bowie – Eight Line Poem Lyrics | Genius Lyrics)

My favorite songs on the album are "Life on Mars," "Changes," "Oh! You Pretty Things," "Andy Warhol," and "The Bewlay Brothers." Of these, I would put "Life On Mars" and "Changes" within my top 250 songs of all time.

The biggest problem I have with this album is that while it's a lyrical treat, it's production is kind of bare-bones, and most of its songs lack either that classic Bowie catchiness ("Station To Station," "Modern Love," "Young Americans," etc.) or the transmission of feelings of raw pain and emotion ("Rock 'n Roll Suicide," "Five Years," "Space Oddity," etc.) that he develops later in his career. Of course, "Life On Mars" has a lot of emotion to it, and the chorus to "Oh! You Pretty Things" is pretty catchy, but those are the exceptions on the album, IMO.

But really, even with the dearth of production quality and catchiness, Bowie really astounds me as a lyricist. I swear the guy could have been a renowned poet if he didn't want to be a singer. Just like he could have been an A-lister actor if he wanted.

Bowie really hearkens back to the times of a better man. He smoked, he did a gram of blow a day for nearly 10 years, he made some of the best music ever released, he acted (my favorite performance of his is The Prestige (4.5/5 stars)), he was extremely well-read (he released his list of his favorite 100 books on Instagram IIRC before his death; I see me and him are kindred spirits when it comes to lists), he was constantly evolving and changing and updating with the times, but most of all; he was just a real cool, funny, genuinely nice guy. At least that's how he's always come off to me from everything I've read and the interviews I've watched.

Rest in Peace, Starman