We’re back. From 2012 to 2016, I listened to all the albums on the 2012 revision of Rolling Stone’s Top 500 Albums of All Time list. It was an…interesting experience. I discovered a bunch of new favorite albums and artists, it helped me understand the history of the popular music from the 50s onward and got me listening to numerous artists and albums that I never would have thought of listening to otherwise.
Times change. People change. Heck, lists change. It’s been ten years since I did the majority of the listening and rating for the 2012 list, and since then, Rolling Stone released a much more diverse, more well rounded list with over 150 new additions that I never listened to as part of the old list. My biggest regret? The fact that I didn’t document any specific thoughts on each of the albums, just a rating. Here’s my chance to redeem myself and see how my tastes have changed (or haven’t changed) over the past decade.
I’ll be using a 5 point scale in half point increments in rating these albums. The basis for these ratings are (generally) as follows:
5.0: A perfect album, no faults, or very minimal missteps at worse.
4.0 – 4.5: An excellent album, a song or two that falters, but I would listen to this full album again. Recommended to all to check out.
3.5: A great number of the songs are memorable in some way, though the album may have multiple faults. Would go back and listen to multiple selected songs in the future, a full album listen could happen.
3.0: Less than half of the songs caught my attention, maybe one or two highlight songs. Album has numerous problems but it comes together or feels right. Prominent filler tracks take away from experience. Would listen to a selected song or two in the future, though not the full album.
2.0 – 2.5: Far less than half of the songs are memorable, album has numerous problems. Would not listen to many songs or full album again.
0 – 1.5: Used sparingly. Album is downright atrocious and has very few to no redeeming qualities. No memorable songs. Why is it even on the list?
You can follow along on my journey by checking out this snazzy Google Sheet with my new ratings and my ratings last time around. Without further ado…
#8: Purple Rain
Prince & The Revolution
Purple Rain was once described by a music reviewer as being “too obvious in its brilliance to even be worth discussing at length,” which a) might be the best reviewer cop-out of all time, and b) is the perfect depiction of trying to write about this album. This is an album that does pop, rock, and funk to near perfection, there’s something for everyone and just enough Prince-brand weirdness to keep you guessing what he’ll do next. Something that may surprise first time listeners: Purple Rain is not immediately smooth to the ears like its oft-mentioned 80s counterpart, Thriller. It veers, shift tempos, defies expectations and most importantly takes chances, but always leaves you wanting more. Good luck finding anything like the bass-less “When Doves Cry,” the weird experimentation of “Computer Blue,” the back-masked, parental advisory inspiring “Darling Nikki,” the spoken word intro and subsequent freak out on “Let’s Go Crazy” on any other album from that era. You have to look really hard to find any faults here without being picky. This is an album well worthy of the praise, purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka and enjoy.
Key Tracks: Let’s Go Crazy, Darling Nikki, When Doves Cry, Purple Rain
RS 2020: #8 // RS 2012: #76 (up 68)
My Rating: 5.0 (8/1/23) // 5.0 (12/2/13)
#45: Sign O’ The Times
Prince
There’s a reason why Sign O’ The Times sounds so scattered – it was actually put together from two different projects the Purple one had been working on during the mid 80s. This includes Camile, an unreleased album of Prince pitch shifting his voice up to a more androgynous voice, and a double album with the Revolution called Dream Factory. Originally, Prince wanted to release music from both of these sessions with some tracks held over from the earlier part of the decade as a three album set titled Crystal Ball. His label, Warner Bros, objected to this – the compromise was this odd double album. Most of the time, extended albums like this end up having about an album’s worth of worthy material on it, with the rest being included because the of ego of the artist, or the feeling like there was nothing more they could do with them. Given all the material that Prince had created in only a couple of years time, I don’t blame him for wanting to release so much of it at once, but the reality here is that this album comprised mostly of low key funk and R&B that often sounds half-baked lyrically, musically (or both!) – or in the case of the tracks from Camile, just plain weird. Unlike most double albums, this one actually hits more of a stride in the second half, especially the back to back of “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” and the Wonder/Hendrix styled “The Cross.” Knowing its background as a conglomeration of multiple projects gives important context to why this album sounds the way it does – but, even still, the promising moments (about five songs) aren’t enough to make this entire double album worth the listen.
Key Tracks: I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, The Cross, Sign O’ The Times
RS 2020: #45 // RS 2012: #93 (up 48)
My Rating: 2.5 (8/2/23) // 2.5 (12/2/13)
#193: Willie and the Poor Boys
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Willie and the Poor Boys was the third album of original material that CCR released in 1969, an outrageous pace, even back in the 60s when high profile artists were expected to consistently churn out albums. Of course, there are some classics on here: “Down on the Corner” and the ridiculously overplayed Vietnam flashback “Fortunate Son” open each side magnificently. The same can’t be said for the songs that close each side, as both “Effigy” and “Feelin’ Blue” don’t hit those same highs and end up taking over 11 minutes of run time on a 35 minute album. But, there are other highlights that aren’t well known or conventional CCR hits, including “Cotton Fields,” “Don’t Look Now,” and “Midnight Special.” The fact that there are two instrumentals on this album as well was probably a sign that the CCR chooglin’ machine of 1969 was running on fumes; nevertheless this is still a solid album with some all time classics, and some hidden gems – it’s just not their best total album effort. Color me confused as to why Willie is so much higher on this list than Cosmo’s Factory.
Key Tracks: Down on the Corner, Fortunate Son, Cotton Fields (The Cotton Song), Don’t Look Now
RS 2020: #193 // RS 2012: #309 (up 116)
My Rating: 3.5 (8/3/23) // 3.5 (3/26/14)
#320: Los Angeles
X
Behind London and New York, Los Angeles emerged as a third hotbed for punk as the late 70s turned into the 80s. X had been kicking around the scene for a few years prior to their debut, Los Angeles, was released in 1980. What set them apart from the more riotous acts that became well known staples of punk to this day (i.e. the Sex Pistols, Clash, Ramones), X were different because the lyrics on their early records read more like rockabilly tinged punk poetry. This is in contrast to most early punk bands playing fast and loud simply trying to incite anarchy. As an added bonus to their uniqueness, Doors’ keyboardist Ray Manzarek produced and contributed his signature organ sound to a few songs on here; hearing him pop up on songs like “Nausea” and “The Unheard Music” puts a smile on my face while adding another interesting wrinkle to X’s style. That’s not where the Doors connections end though, since they cover “Soul Kitchen” with unexpected ferocity and relentlessness. The fact that this album, unlike so many “classic” punk and hardcore albums is so well produced just makes it even more compulsively listenable.
Key Tracks: Nausea, Los Angeles, Johny Hit and Run Pauline, Soul Kitchen
RS 2020: #320 // RS 2012: #287 (down 33)
My Rating: 3.5 (8/3/23) // 3.5 (4/9/14)
#491: Fine Line
Harry Styles
Swoon. Fine Line‘s inclusion near the bottom of this list may be nothing more than a way to convince readers of Rolling Stone to keep scrolling onwards (“oh, an album I know! Wonder what other ones they have on here…”). but its inclusion is very well deserved, in my opinion. This is an album that looks back to the golden age of sunny 70s rock – think Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, dashes of David Bowie, Paul McCartney, America and Joni Mitchell. Not surprisingly, Fine Line is a warm, inviting album that manages to hit all the right buttons: stratospheric radio friendly pop, summer bops, and delicate lighter than air ballads, all delivered in near perfection and all coated with an abundance of acoustic guitars, organic bass lines and drums and beautifully double tracked vocals. The first five songs are especially incredible (“Golden” through “Cherry”) and show off Styles’ cohesive vision for this record. The back half is no slouch either with highlights like “Sunflower Vol. 6,” but it’s a bit more subdued and not as immediate as the first half (I wouldn’t have minded if a couple minutes had been shaved off of “She” and outright axed the too on-the-nose “Treat People With Kindness.”) Overall, this a wonderful album, and one of my favorites of the past few years.
Key Tracks: Adore You, Golden, Lights Up, Sunflower Vol. 6, Cherry, Watermelon Sugar
RS 2020: #491 // RS 2012: N/A
My Rating: 4.5 (8/3/23)
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