1000 Greatest Albums of all Time

 888 Steve Miller Band - Fly Like an Eagle Band (1976) Studio Album - Rock About the Act: The Steve Miller Band, not to be confused with Ed Milliband or even David Milliband, are an American rock band, from San Francisco, based around frontman and guitarist Steve Miller. They started in 1966 as a blues band, morphed into Psychedelic Rock, and in the early 70s then became more mainstream rock. The only constant member has been Mr Miller himself. The band did have Boz Scaggs for a while, who went on to have a career of his own. About the Album: This was the ninth studio album by the band. My History with this Album: None, but I know a few of the songs. Review: The Steve Miller band has always sat at the edge of my awareness. I know some hits, possibly knowing "Abracadabra" best, but also Rock'n Me (on this album) and The Joker. I've not really delved into the albums. The musical style is curious. it starts with "Space Intro" which is synthesiser noises, and fo...

 889 Hot Chip - The Warning (2006) Studio Album - Electronic About the Act: Hot Chip are an indie electronic pop-ish band from London, England. They were formed by two schoolmates as a bedroom recording project in 2000 and expanded into a band. They are basically still the duo for recording purposes, but the other members join them for live shows. About the Album: This is the second album by the band, and the first on a major label. My History with this Album: None Review: My first listen was not particularly taken with it, my second more so. Musically it's unusual. Not in structures or even particularly in harmonies, but in sounds. There are a lot of disparate instruments used, many unusually, giving some odd sounds. Some of it is quite synthy and electronic, and at times the rhythms are glitchy, or drum & bass-y, but it can be more mellow. There must be some sort of logic to what goes where, but I cannot discern it. It reminds me of some things, possibly most of Bjork, b...

 890 Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto - Getz/Gilberto (1964) Studio Album - Bossanova About the Acts (mostly from WIkipedia): Stanley Getz (February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist, professionally known as Stan Getz. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott Yanow as "one of the all-time great tenor saxophonists". Getz performed in bebop and cool jazz groups. Influenced by João Gilberto and Antônio Carlos Jobim, he popularized bossa nova in America with the hit single "The Girl from Ipanema" (1964). João Gilberto was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, and guitarist, who was a pioneer of the musical genre of bossa nova in the late 1950s. Around the world he was often called "father of bossa no...

 891 The Small Faces - Ogden's Nut Gone Flake (1968) Studio Album - Psychedelic Rock About the Act: The Small Faces were a British Rock band from London. They started in 1965 with Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, and were initially a "Mod" band. They morphed into a psychedelic band.  In 1969, Marriott left to form Humble Pie, and the remaining three members teamed up with some others, including Rod Stewart, to be Quiet Melon, and then The Faces. In 1975 both the Faces and Humble Pie broke up, and The Small Faces reformed with their original line-up. They existed for a further three years until hanging up their towels in 1978.  About the Album: This was the third album by the band, and was a concept abum. It is named after a brand of tobacco. My History with this Album: I have heard the album before, a couple of times. Review: 1968 and there was a thing happening at the time in British Bands, where psychedelic songs were being mixed in...

 892 Kiss - Hotter than Hell (1974) Studio Album - Heavy Rock/Metal About the Act: Kiss are an American glam/shock/heavy rock/metal band from New York. They have been in existence since 1973 and are responsible for 20 or more studio albums (depending on how you count them). They have had a pretty stable line-up. They are best known for wearing bizarre black-and-white face paint, and glam metal costumes, and for the length of the lead singer, Gene Simmons' tongue. Oh and they have had several hit singels, quite a few hit albums and have sold lots and lots of records. They are generally thought of as being a shock rock band, as the sort of band that you listened to if you were a bit of a rebel. About the Album: This was the second album by the band. It sold a lot of copies, bt not as much as their first. My History with this Album: None Review: It's a rock romp. Some songs are rock, some are are quite glam, reminiscent of Slade, some are more heavy metal, with a particular simila...

 893 Suede - Sci-Fi Lullabies (1997) B-Side Compilation - Britpop About the Act: Suede are a rock/britpop band from London, England. They are known as one of the big four britpop bands, along with Blur, Oasis, and Pulp. They have had a few member changes, 8 studio albums, lots of sales, a good slew of awards, and one break in service between 2003 and 2010.  About the Album: This is a compilation of b-sides to singles off the first three albums. It is a double album. My History with this Album: None Review: Slightly above meh. So it's b-sides, and the traditional makeup of the b-side is that it is both more interesting and less radio-friendly than the a-side, although sometimes it is less interesting than the a-side. I'm going to spend much less time describing this album than it took to listen to it twice, because it's looooooong. And because it is a compilation, it doesn't have the rhythm and flow of a crafted album.  Can I just say at this point, how many singles did ...

 894 Arctic Monkeys - AM (2013) Studio album - Rock About the Act: Arctic Monkeys are a rock band from Sheffield, UK, founded in 2002. They have lost one member along the way and gained a replacement, but that was before their first album so hardly counts. They became one of the first bands to successfully market themselves through the internet, and have had quite a lot of success.  About the Album: This was their fifth album, and brought them international success. My History with this Album: None Review: Most of the songs can be best described with a sound, a guttural, sexy "Heurgh" sound. Those songs are rock with an attitude, reminding me (and probably only me) of Led Zeppelin. The other tracks are more gentle and contemplative. I prefer the "Heurgh" tracks. The playing is great, and ballsy. The songs are mostly quick wins, the tunes are fairly memorable. The lyrics are measured and at times memorable, including some lifted from a John Cooper Clarke poem. The si...

 895 Jackson Browne - For Everyman (1973) Studio Album - Singer/Songwriter About the Act: Jackson Browne is an American Singer/Songwriter. He wrote some songs, and did some singing, and played guitar and piano, and seemingly still does all of those things, but maybe not right now. He started in the late 60s in the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, then writing songs for other people, and finally recording them himself. He has won awards, sold lots of records, been an activist and done charity stuff. In 2015 Rolling Stone ranked him as 37th in the list of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time.  About the Album: This was Jackson's second album, and features a cyuple of songs that he wrote (or co-wrote) that other people had already recorded and released, in particular, the opener, "Take It Easy" which was also recorded by Eagles. It sold well, and was received well by critics. My History with this Album: None Review: I've said something to this effect before, but the early 70s...

 896 Ramones - Acid Eaters (1993) Studio album - Punk About the Act: The Ramones were an American punk band that existed from 1974 to 1996. They were one of the most influential punk bands in the New York punk scene in the late 70s. They have been recognised in many lists as being of the most significant rock bands, well, ever.   Unlike other punk bands who's style often included colourful dyed hair, the Ramones adopted long hair and leather jackets as a kind of uniform. Also, all members of the band adopted stage names with the surname "Ramone" even though they were not related. The "classic" line-up was Dee Dee Ramone, Joey Ramone, Tommy Ramone and Johnny Ramone, all of whom are now dead.   Their music was categorised by fast beats, raw, simple rock and short, abrupt songs. Later, they diversified into more poppy music. About the Album: This was the thirteenth studio album by the band, and is their only full album of cover songs. My History with this Album: No...

897 Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002) Studio Album - Experimental Rock About the Act: Wilco are an Alternative Rock band from Chicago, who have been in existence since 1994. During their first decade they had a high turnover of members and then settled down. They emerged out of an alternative country band called Uncle Tupelo. They have received critical acclaim but not massive sales. They have released 11 studio albums. About the Album: This was their fourth studio album. Because of the lack of radio-friendly singles, it was rejected by their record label, Reprise, who let them out of their contract and gave them the rights to the album for free. As bootleg mp3s were leaking out over the internet, they posted the whole album for free streaming on their website. It got a lot of hits and a lot of attention. After a year, they signed a deal to have it commercially released, with NoneSuch records. The irony is that both Reprise and Nonesuch are subsidiaries of Warner. My History...

 898 Brian Wilson - Smile (2004) Studio Album - Art Pop About the Act: Brian Wilson was a Beach Boy. He was one of the founding members, one of the three brothers, and was one of their major songwriters and producers. In 1964 he stopped touring with the group, but was still heavily involved in their recording, including the much-applauded Pet Sounds album, and the disastrous Smile album which never got to release under the Beach Boys name. His involvement with the band slowly diminished as he descended into a reclusive lifestyle and substance abuse. After being rescued from the Psychologist Eugene Landy in 1992, he started to receive conventional treatment and since the late 1990s became successful as a solo artist.  He has released 11 solo studio albums. About the Album: While the Beach Boys were recording Pet Sounds, Brian was thinking about the their next project. The concept seemed to keep changing. This was the album "Smile!" which never got to release...