planetneutral's Master Rating Log 2021- - Music Diaries

planetneutral · 2020-12-30T14:04:16-05:00

Sometime in the era of 2009ish, my wife gave me a copy of the original edition of 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Like so many foolhardy list-obsessed music enthusiasts, I began an endeavor to listen my way through it. You've heard a similar story in this forum many times before I'm sure. It didn't start well. In August of 2009, a mere eight albums into my effort, the library I work in flooded completely, burying my office in liquid sewage and putting an end to my new practice of sitting in my office listening to CDs. In 2010, I started to keep a rating log on RYM, combining my general listening and half-assed effort to work through the book. - https://rateyourmusic.com/list/planetneutral/planetneutrals-master-rating-log (I stopped using this list for a while. I'm working on catching it up.) I also kept a log specifically related to the 1001 Albums book. - https://rateyourmusic.com/list/planetneutral/chronicle-of-the-1001-albums-you-must-hear-before-you-die (This is up-to-date.) And I picked up a copy of 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die, which had enough parallels with the 1001 Albums book that I figured I might as well track my progress through both. https://rateyourmusic.com/list/planetneutral/chronicle-of-1_000-recordings-to-hear-before-you-die (Up-to-date.) The 2010 listening effort only lasted until April, the travails of library flood recovery dominating my attention. And it was totally backburnered until 2016, when I started really focusing on the original Dimery 1001 Albums book, using a spreadsheet list and a random number generator to make selections. By this point, I was also tracking revisions to the Dimery list. My current spreadsheet lists all 1,076 albums that I know that have been included in at least one edition. I had two good runs of listening between Jan. 2016 and Apr. 2018. But I was starting to have real problems with the Dimery book, namely that it was almost comically Anglophile. Could I really justify listening to three Dexys Midnight Runners albums? Did I really need to commit to three Blur albums? Or every single thing Brian Eno ever touched? Was I giving too much of my limited lifespan to this guy's musical worldview? I decided that the answer to the last question was yes and so I just stopped, 380 albums into my effort. The last album I reviewed in 2018 was Tanto Tempo by Bebel Gilberto, which I described as "Deeply unremarkable." And I thought that would be the end of the story. I shifted my hobbyist attention away from album listening and into building out Spotify playlists, like my 770+ song 1980s A-Z playlist. But then something unanticipated happened, when my friend announced he was going to listen to the new 2020 edition of the Rolling Stone 500 album countdown. He started at #1, which I completely bristled at, especially since he didn't seem very inspired by the top ten. ("It's all downhill from here!" I protested fruitlessly.) But I realized it was someone close to me, who was taking on my kind of project. So I decided to join him and, in so doing, continue with the other two book-driven lists that I had been tracking. So I am currently about 2/3 of the way through the Rolling Stone list (which my friend abandoned around #50 :o) and, with the new year, thought I'd try to start chronicling my listening here at BEA. I'm a little intimidated since the people in this space take their chronicling and rating and reviewing seriously and I'm kind of a doofus with really mainstream taste and a limited attention span (courtesy of three tech-enabled children, age 10-15). I generally like things and generally listen to things I expect to like. At the time of this post, my mean rating is 75 over 650+ ratings, with 70 being the mode. But part of the fun is that I'm growing a little impatient with the Rolling Stone list as we head toward the bottom, so this ride could get a little bumpy! The reviews I post as "comments" on BEA tend to be terse (despite the logorrhea of this intro post) and, if consensus of the BEA audience is any guide, unhelpful/unpopular. I will probably use this diary context to offer more informal commentary and notes from my listening experience. We'll see. Just wanted to try keeping track of stuff here and see what happens. I'm not especially thoughtful, attentive, or critical. I'm not looking to be convinced not to like something that I find joy in, but I'd love to have people encourage me to reconsider my negative takes. I mostly want to have motivation to keep going. And the reality for me is that documentation is a double-edged sword as it fuels my hobbyistic tendencies, but keeping up with a diary does increase the overhead of the actual listening. My current overall chart: Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by planetneutral Here's one attempt-in-progress to put words to my ratings, which I switched to BEA's scale relatively early on: 100 - Beyond objective consideration. Either basically flawless or containing so much 100+ material that it overcomes any shortcomings. 95 - Important to me, but just slightly out of the 100 league or flawed in some way I can't overlook. 90 - Generally speaking, the highest rating an album will receive if it has no personal resonance for me. Would have to be a significant first experience for me to rate an album of new-to-me music higher than this. 85 - The flawed version of 90. 80 - Genuinely compelling to me. (I consider anything at this score or above worth your time to listen to at least once.) 75 - I liked it+ 70 - I liked it 65 - OK+ 60 - OK 55 - A hint of something redeeming. 50 - Meh. 45 and below - Increasing levels of dislike. I have yet to rate anything below 15. I claim no consistency and surely go through periods where I am more or less enthusiastic in general. Rating is always about how the material meets the mood. This log only chronicles first listens, but it is rare for me to change rating on a re-listen. Thanks for actually reading this far. I intend to start using this diary on 1/1/2021, although I might tinker with a test post or two before then.

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Wild Honey by The Beach Boys
Year of Release: 1967

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00722
Rating Date: 2021-01-29

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #410
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? N
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 80

Posted comment: Admittedly did not have high hopes for this and, well, I kinda loved it. Definitely a different animal from Pet Sounds.

Notes: I mean, a Stevie Wonder cover, only six months after the original was released? Who are these guys?

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #423 of 500 (84.6% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #448 of 692 (64.7% of all items rated - avg. 77.3)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.3% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

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Love And Theft by Bob Dylan
Year of Release: 2001

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00723
Rating Date: 2021-01-30

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #410
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? Y
planetneutral's music collection? CD

Rating: 75

Posted comment: Pretty rockin' for a 70-year-old poet. Good songs, some great, but the band really carries the day.

Notes: How is this already 20 years old?

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #424 of 500 (84.8% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #449 of 692 (64.9% of all items rated - avg. 77.3)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: #204 of 1,000 (20.4% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

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Going To A Go-Go by Smokey Robinson And The Miracles
Year of Release: 1965

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00724
Rating Date: 2021-01-30

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: #271 2012: #273 2020: #412
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? N
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 70

Posted comment: Smokey shows that he's capable of writing more than one gem, but most of this album is just solid poppy R&B.

Notes:

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #425 of 500 (85.0% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #450 of 692 (65.0% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.4% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

planetneutral Profile

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Risqué by Chic
Year of Release: 1979

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00725
Rating Date: 2021-01-30

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #414
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? Y
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? N
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 70

Posted comment: Some funky riffs, but some good songs are ultimately rendered boring by repetition.

Notes: Had a hard time settling on a score here. 65, 70, and 75 all in play.

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #426 of 500 (85.2% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #451 of 692 (65.2% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: #561 of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.4% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

planetneutral Profile

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Look-Ka Py Py by The Meters
Year of Release: 1969

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00726
Rating Date: 2021-01-31

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: #218 2012: #220 2020: #415
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? Y
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 80

Posted comment: A solid collection of instrumental jams from a band with undeniable influence on numerous artists that I consider live favorites.

Notes:

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #427 of 500 (85.4% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #452 of 692 (65.2% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: #205 of 1,000 (20.5% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

planetneutral Profile

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The Felice Brothers by The Felice Brothers
Year of Release: 2008

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00727
Rating Date: 2021-01-31

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: N
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? Y
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 65

Posted comment: Long and, with a couple of exceptions, the songcraft and musicianship can't escape the shadow of the 60s Americana artists to whom they are clearly indebted.

Notes: Listened to this by recommendation, after a very generous review of my all-time chart. Ryan, it might have been a mistake to tell me which song was the good song. I totally listened to it first and was like "Oh, I like that" and then, in consuming the album, I mostly just wanted to go back to that song. It's playlist material though, so thank you for turning me on to it.

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: n/a of 500 (85.4% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: n/a of 692 (65.2% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.5% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

planetneutral Profile

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Things Fall Apart by The Roots
Year of Release: 1969

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00728
Rating Date: 2021-01-31

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #416
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? N
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 60

Posted comment: I can appreciate The Roots as instrumentalists, but the battle rap bars and mediocre hooks don't do much for me.

Notes: I continue to find the general reverence for The Roots to be perplexing.

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #428 of 500 (85.6% of all items rated - avg. 77.5)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #453 of 692 (65.5% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.5% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

Last edited by planetneutral on 02/01/2021 04:28; edited 1 time in total

planetneutral Profile

Waiting For Columbus by Little Feat
Year of Release: 1978

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00729
Rating Date: 2021-01-31

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: N
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? N
planetneutral's music collection? CD

Rating: 100

Posted comment: Simply the live album that I listen to the most often. It's just that good. Lowell George at the height of his powers.

Notes: Spent today organizing my top 70s and 80s album lists, which both now exist in a somewhat more real fashion. Decided to formally listen to and log this album that sits at #10 on my all-time chart, yet is inexplicably not on any of the lists that i'm working with. I'd actually already made the comment some time ago, but it still works.

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: n/a of 500 (85.6% of all items rated - avg. 77.5)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: n/a of 692 (65.5% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.5% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

Mercury Turn your back on the pay-you-back last call Profile
St. Louis

planetneutral wrote:

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The Felice Brothers by The Felice Brothers
Year of Release: 2008

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00727
Rating Date: 2021-01-31

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: N
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? Y
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 65

Posted comment: Long and, with a couple of exceptions, the songcraft and musicianship can't escape the shadow of the 60s Americana artists to whom they are clearly indebted.

Notes: Listened to this by recommendation, after a very generous review of my all-time chart. Ryan, it might have been a mistake to tell me which song was the good song. I totally listened to it first and was like "Oh, I like that" and then, in consuming the album, I mostly just wanted to go back to that song. It's playlist material though, so thank you for turning me on to it.

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: n/a of 500 (85.4% of all items rated - avg. 77.6)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: n/a of 692 (65.2% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (20.5% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )

Haha! Well, I saw you listening yesterday and was happy to see. I understand the review and I’m stoked you liked Frankie’s Gun.
_________________
-Ryan

ONLY 4% of people can understand this chart! Come try!

My Fave Metal - you won't believe #5!!!

planetneutral Profile

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The Shape Of Jazz To Come by Ornette Coleman
Year of Release: 1959

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00730
Rating Date: 2021-02-01

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: #246 2012: #248 2020: #417
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (repeatedly revised 2005-2018)? N
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die (2008)? Y
planetneutral's music collection? N

Rating: 80

Posted comment: For some reason, this album makes more sense to me than some of the more "conventional" works in the jazz canon.

Notes:

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #429 of 500 (85.8% of all items rated - avg. 77.5)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #454 of 692 (65.6% of all items rated - avg. 77.2)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (52.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.3)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: #206 of 1,000 (20.6% of all items rated - avg. 79.8 )