1001 Album Club

“Bookends’ problematic, disillusioned themes, sometimes disguised in wry humor, striking arrangements, and augmented orchestral instrumentation, portray the sounds of people in an American life that they no longer understand, or understands them. In just over 29 minutes, Bookends is stunning in its vision of a bewildered America in search of itself.” AllMusic Review Thom Jurek

The band was thinking about a completely different direction and developed the idea for SF Sorrow a bold and uncompromising concept record with a complete storyline that has since been acknowledged as being the first ever “rock opera” ; as it was released a year before The Who’s “Tommy”.

With its endless, droning minor-key riff and mumbled vocals, “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” is arguably the most notorious song of the acid rock era

Dr. John’s Gris-Gris is among the most enduring recordings of the psychedelic era; it sounds as mysterious and spooky in the 21st century as it did in 1968.

The United States of America was an American experimental rock band whose works, recorded in late 1967, are an early example of the use of electronic devices in rock music. The short-lived band was founded in Los Angeles by experimental composer Joseph Byrd and singer and lyricist Dorothy Moskowitz

They quickly rose to fame for their exciting live performances and a charismatic 22 year old Texan singer named Janis Joplin. The 1968 album Cheap Thrills was Initially planned as a live album but because a studio recording mimicking their live set.

Yet another Byrds record in this book?! This was is one of the band’s most interesting and cohesive sounding albums that furthered the ever evolving sound of the Byrds.

Vincebus Eruptum is a glorious celebration of rock & roll primitivism run through enough Marshall amps to deafen an army; only a few of Blue Cheer’s peers could turn up and they did it with just three people.

Lady Soul completed a remarkable 12 months of achievement for Aretha Franklin. Having been signed to Atlantic in 1966 after years in the doldrums at Columbia. These 10 tracks represent Aretha Franklin’s coronation as the Queen of Soul. There’s soul. And then there’s Aretha Franklin.

A brilliant and innovative composer, with intricate, haunting works highlighting her singularly powerful vocal phrasing, evocative lyrics. Modern comparisons have been drawn to Kate Bush and Tori Amos to St. Vincent and Joanna Newsom. This album and song structures are completely baffling.

The album has gone on to be something of legend. An outlaw country singer with a penchant for danger performs songs about breaking the law and casualty jokes with the inmates as if they had been locked up together. This record would further push the romantic outlaw aura for Cash as not only the man…

At a time when a growing number of pop songwriters were embracing a more explicitly poetic approach in their lyrics, the 1967 debut album from Leonard Cohen introduced a songwriter who, rather than being inspired by “serious” literature, took up music after establishing himself as a published author and poet.

Jimi Hendrix’s third and final album with the original Experience found him taking his funk and psychedelic sounds to the absolute limit. The result was not only one of the best rock albums of the era, but also Hendrix’s original musical vision at its absolute apex.

Os Mutantes’ first album is an astonishing listen. It’s far more experimental than most of the albums produced by the era’s first-rate psychedelic bands of Britain or America and at times seems like a reinterpretation of the genre itself.

Ravi Shankar could be considered one of the the most famous Indian musician’s on the planet. And his introduction to India music is soothing and incredible.

Ray Davies’ sentimental, nostalgic streak emerged on Something Else, but it developed into a manifesto on The Village Green Preservation Society, a concept album lamenting the passing of old-fashioned English traditions.

Many musicians have acknowledged this record and the band as an influence including Bob Dylan and Robert Plant, who touted its influence on Led Zeppelin’s first album and general direction. We think this album is utter nonsense and don’t know why anyone would include it in a book of “must hear albums”.

Traffic’s first single “Paper Sun”, gave them instant chart success, reaching No. 5 in the UK, but Winwood was reportedly unimpressed with the song’s success, feeling it misrepresented his vision for the band. And while Traffic’s sound was very much of its time, the emphasis on Winwood’s keyboards and Wood’s wind instruments set them apart…

This was the start of the prolific period in which the Rolling Stones would become the biggest rock band of the 70’s and perhaps history. Their raw, bluesy over-driven Delta blues licks and slide guitar fit perfectly with Mick Jagger’s leering over-sexualized vocals that cut like a knife over African drums beats.

While the inclusion of “Respect” is in and of itself sufficient to earn I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You classic status, Aretha Franklin’s Atlantic label debut is an indisputable masterpiece from start to finish.

With Axis Hendrix stretches further musically than the first album, but even more so as a songwriter. Hendrix had a contract for three albums in one year and this could be considered “the middle child”.

The second album is a visceral audio assault of overdriven instruments, and lyrics about methamphetamine abuse, botched medical procedures violence and of course heroin-dealing drag queens. Cale recalled “The first one had some gentility, some beauty. The second one was consciously anti-beauty.”

The instrumental album “Call of the valley” follows a day in the life of an Indian shepherd from Kashmir. It is one of the most successful Indian albums and one that became popular with an international audience.

The country legend with her defining album that made her one of countries most likeable artists but also one of the most important as she speaks plainly about woman’s issues and growing up poor in her own beautiful way.