planetneutral's Master Rating Log 2021-

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.

Goto page Previous 1 2 3 ... , 212223 Next

View previous topic :: View next topic

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00796
Rating Date: 2021-03-06

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Presenting The Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica by The Ronettes
Year of Release: 1964

Rating: 70

Posted comment: All good performances and some of these songs are true classics, but this songlist doesn't really excite me when strung together.

Notes: Maybe I'd have been a little more excited by this if I hadn't just listened to Back to Mono, which has 75% of these tracks. With this album, I've hit 75% of the albums that have been on any iteration of the Rolling Stone list.

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: #427 2012: #422 2020: #494
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? #81 of 89

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #494 of 500 (98.8% of all items rated - avg. 76.8 )
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #519 of 692 (75.0% of all items rated - avg. 76.6)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (54.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (21.6% of all items rated - avg. 79.6)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00797
Rating Date: 2021-03-06

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

II by Boyz II Men
Year of Release: 1994

Rating: 55

Posted comment: They were plenty talented, but most of this material isn't great.

Notes: Again, seriously, Rolling Stone. Come on.

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #495
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? N

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #495 of 500 (99.0% of all items rated - avg. 76.8 )
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #520 of 692 (75.1% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (54.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (21.6% of all items rated - avg. 79.6)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00798
Rating Date: 2021-03-06

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Dónde Están Los Ladrones? by Shakira
Year of Release: 1998

Rating: 75

Posted comment: I thought more than once "This is what Alanis would have sounded like if she sang in Spanish." Not at all a bad thing.

Notes:

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #496
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? N

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #496 of 500 (99.2% of all items rated - avg. 76.8 )
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #521 of 692 (75.3% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (54.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: #217 of 1,000 (21.7% of all items rated - avg. 79.5)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00799
Rating Date: 2021-03-06

The Indestructible Beat Of Soweto by Various Artists
Year of Release: 1985

Rating: 80

Posted comment: Sounds remarkably fresh and contemporary for a 36-year-old compilation of apartheid-era South African music.

Notes:

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: #388 2020: #497
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? N

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #497 of 500 (99.4% of all items rated - avg. 76.8 )
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #522 of 692 (75.4% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (54.0% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: #218 of 1,000 (21.8% of all items rated - avg. 79.5)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00800
Rating Date: 2021-03-07

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Suicide by Suicide
Year of Release: 1977

Rating: 55

Posted comment: I found this mostly tedious. Like what I imagine the Velvet Underground would sound like if they weren't creative geniuses.

Notes: I'm sure that contrarian take won't generate any unhelpful votes. 😜

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: #446 2012: #441 2020: #498
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? N

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #498 of 500 (99.6% of all items rated - avg. 76.7)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #523 of 692 (75.6% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: #583 of 1,078 (54.1% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (21.8% of all items rated - avg. 79.5)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00801
Rating Date: 2021-03-07

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Ask Rufus by Rufus & Chaka Khan
Year of Release: 1977

Rating: 65

Posted comment: About a third of this is solid, but the rest is uneven and, by the end, downright ponderous.

Notes: You're talking about an album with only 20 BEA ratings taking a slot on an all-time great list. Basically an album of no real regard.

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: N 2020: #499
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
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? N

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #499 of 500 (99.8% of all items rated - avg. 76.7)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #524 of 692 (75.7% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: n/a of 1,078 (54.1% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (21.8% of all items rated - avg. 79.5)

planetneutral Profile

planetneutral Master Rating Log ID#: 00802
Rating Date: 2021-03-07

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Funeral by Arcade Fire
Year of Release: 1977

Rating: 80

Posted comment: Certainly very good, but not quite as compelling to me as it seems to be to the general album-rating populace.

Notes: I'm on board with the theory that says this placement on the Rolling Stone list was basically trolling the denizens of sites like BEA and RYM.

Just like that, the Rolling Stone 500 (2020 edition) chapter of my music chronicling comes to a close. I'll generate some sort of wrap-up post, after which I honestly could use a break.

Included in...
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums? 2003: N 2012: #151 2020: #500
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? Digital
planetneutral's Decade list (min. 70 rating)? #12 of 56

Rating metadata
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2020 rating order: #500 of 500 (100% of all items rated - avg. 76.7)
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums 2003/2012/2020 Combined List rating order: #525 of 692 (75.9% of all items rated - avg. 76.5)
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die 2005/2013/2017/2018 Combined List rating order: #585 of 1,078 (54.3% of all items rated - avg. 74.2)
1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die rating order: n/a of 1,000 (21.8% of all items rated - avg. 79.5)

DommeDamian Imperfect, sensitive Aspie with a melody addiction Profile
Spire City

Hope the journey was worth it 😜
_________________
My Top 100 :
www.besteveralbums.com/thechart.php?c=4...amp;page=1

My music:
- www.hyperfollow.com/dommedamian

planetneutral Profile

DommeDamian wrote:

Hope the journey was worth it :P

Mostly...

baystateoftheart Neil Young as a butternut squash Profile
Massachusetts

planetneutral wrote:

Notes: You're talking about an album with only 20 BEA ratings taking a slot on an all-time great list. Basically an album of no real regard.

Ask Rufus is an incredibly popular album - it went platinum. Just because the subset of music nerds on this site hasn't rated it much doesn't mean it's insignificant.

Congrats on finishing the list! Have enjoyed reading about your journey, even if I may disagree a good bit of the time.
_________________
Join us in the canon game :) / Add me on RYM

New topic Post reply

Topic Posters
All times are GMT
Goto page Previous 1 2 3 ... , 212223 Next

Page 22 of 23

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Topic	Author	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Sticky: User Listening Log Masterlist	mickilennial	Music Diaries	6	07/06/2019 09:09 StefanR10
Looking for ideas for rating tracks i...	JoshN125	Music	5	05/26/2026 16:21 Johnnyo
EyeZayZay's Listening Log	eyezayzay	Music	19	08/17/2014 20:54 AlexZangari
From the Black Mountain Hills of Dako...	RockyRaccoon	Music Diaries	364	10/01/2026 19:04 RockyRaccoon
Log me on automatically each visit:	RFNAPLES	Suggestions	23	09/17/2010 13:34 RFNAPLES