The Cure - Head on the Door: 8 (A-)

Boz Scaggs - The Essential Boz Scaggs: 7.5 (high B+)

# [best of] [4 listens]

Art Blakey - Ken Burns Jazz: X stars

I have this, but would not presume to be able to grade it.

List of lists I've already been through, only started tracking in 2024 though

Brooklyn Vegan - Classic Goth's 13 Greatest Hits (Albums)

PopMatters - The 50 Best Post-Punk Albums Ever

Rolling Stone - The 74 Best Albums of 1974

Swans - Swans [EP] [aka Speak E.P. #1]: 7.5 (high B+)

I have this with Filth on the 1991 CD reissue. Normally this would be # [noise; experimental] but I have a weakness for EPs, and this one is supposed to be seminal in its genre.

The Slits - Cut: 8 (A-)

Have this on vinyl from back in the day.

Jason Isbell - Something More Than Free: 8 (A-)

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - The Nashville Sound: 8 (A-)

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit - Weathervanes: 8.5 (high A-)

EPMD - Business Never Personal: 7.5 (high B+)

They really need to stop using the f-word.

The Allman Brothers Band - One Way Out: Live at the Beacon Theatre: 7.5 (high B+)

# [live; blues/southern rock] I owned this once and sold it off, so I’ve given it at least 4 or 5 listens, probably more. Streaming it again now, I think I made the right decision. And I note that while Haynes/Trucks may have “chops,” as Christgau calls it, Duane had soul and heart, if those aren’t the same thing. To rate this 8 (A-) and Fillmore East at B- is ludicrous in my opinion.

Burning Spear - Living Dub, Volume 2 [honorable mention]

:-)

Basic Channel - BCD: 7.5 (high B+)

# [techno]

Various - Music from Saharan Cellphones: 8 (A-)

Digital/vinyl-only

The Clean - Live Dead Clean [EP] [honorable mention]

:-)

Black Uhuru - Reggae Greats: 9 (A)

Not at all sure why I got this, since I have almost everything, if not everything, that this band put out during the period covered by the compilation. I'm pretty certain there was a reason, but I just can't remember it right now. Anyway, what a great band.

Don Carlos - Time is the Master [honorable mention]

:-) [Compilation of two 1983 albums: Spread Out and Pure Gold. The former is aka Pass Me the Lazer Beam, Laser Beam, and Groove with Me, so I guess I've listened to that six times now. I think the track "Spread Out" is also sometimes called "Laser Beam."]

Don Carlos - Pass Me the Lazer Beam [honorable mention]

:-) [aka Spread Out, Laser Beam, and Groove with Me]

EPMD - Out of Business: 7.5 (high B+)

This has the second disc of Greatest Hits, which I would actually give the same grade.

Massive Attack/Mad Professor: No Protection: 8 (A-)

Don Carlos - Prophecy [aka Suffering]: 9 (A)

When entitled Suffering, it has this cover:

All versions apparently have discomixes following each of the six songs, which I usually don't like, but I am making an exception for this one because the dubs just burn. Some of the best versions I have ever heard. I got the issue put out on Don Carlos' own imprint. The more I play this, the more I realize it's a lost reggae classic. I know a fair amount of reggae, but other than Horsemouth on drums and Junior Murvin, all of the other session players on this are barely known to me, if at all. Just a really strange and beautiful moment in reggae history. [1981]

Steel Pulse - The Best of Steel Pulse: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: 7.5 (high B+)

I tend to really like these Millennium Collection comps. But with this one, the songs at the end are jarring. So, # [best of].

The Golden Palominos - The Golden Palominos: 8 (A-)

Various - Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968: 8.5 (high A-)

I have the 40th Anniversary Edition (2012), with the gatefold sleeve. Beautiful item. Bought used, and it came with the booklet and CD for this -- Various - Psychedelia At Abbey Road (1965 To 1969) -- stuffed into it, for some reason, which I wish I had the time to listen to but will probably just put in the sell pile:

I also have the 4-CD box set, which I bought for some stupid reason decades ago when I must have been feeling flush (even though I generally am not into this era/genre), and have maybe only gotten around to listening to once. The first disc of that is the original 27-track classic album, so I had that as my edition of Nuggets, but realized I'd rather have the 40th Anniversary Edition than that whole box set, so put that in the sell pile and got this.

Steel Pulse - Ultimate Collection: 8.5 (high A-)

Tom Hull seems to like Rastanthology one notch better than this. This has 16 tracks vs the latter's 18. And they have seriously different track listings. But, other than the albums any fan of the band would already have, there are only five other songs on that one:

from Vex

"Islands Unite"

"Back to My Roots"

"Bootstraps"

from Victims

"Taxi Driver"

from Rage and Fury

"When You're in Love with a Beautiful Woman"

The last song is only on some versions of Rage and Fury, and not the version on Spotify, so I can't hear it. Strangely, it's also not on YouTube. But the other four songs are definitely not worth worrying about.

Steel Pulse - Handsworth Revolution: 9 (A)

Various - The Disco Years, Vol. 4: Lost in Music: 8.5 (high A-)

The Insect Trust - The Insect Trust: 8 (A-)

Never officially released on CD domestically. Found a used vinyl copy for a good price though.

Pras Michel - Win Lose or Draw: 8 (A-)

Deer Tick - War Elephant [honorable mention]

Docked a couple notches for that annoying croaky vocal-fry thing McCauley does with his voice for most of the album. It ruins the whole thing for me and is impossible to listen around. Posted the cover because the music is at a higher level than honorable mention, and because it's a good cover.

Jimmy Radway & The Fe Me Time All Stars - Dub I [honorable mention]

:-)

The Allman Brothers Band - The Road Goes on Forever: 8.5 (high A-)

I have this on vinyl, bought before the 2001 CD remaster and never upgraded. Plus, the 2001 CD expanded this, which is too much of a good thing in my opinion.

The Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East: 8 (A-)

The Allman Brothers Band - Brothers and Sisters: 8 (A-)

The Allman Brothers Band - Eat a Peach: 8 (A-)

Various - New York Rocks: 8.5 (high A-)

Boz Scaggs - Silk Degrees: 8 (A-)

Brian Eno - My Squelchy Life: 7 (B+)

Not a regular issue release, I guess, but some kind of reconfiguring of Nerve Net? Anyway, not commercially available, as far as I can see, or at least not in any form I would recognize.

Bill Laswell - Ambient Compendium: 7.5 (high B+)

# [ambient] [Plus, the thing goes on forever]

Kanye West/Ty Dolla Sign - Vultures 2 [honorable mention]

:-)

Rail Band: Rail Band 1: Soundiata [honorable mention]

:-) [Upped from neutral due to the presence of one long track, the title track, essentially: "Soundiata (L'exil)." This track of course comes in several versions, with 2 others I think on this very collection, and is obviously a classic. What I think I might do here is buy the original vinyl of that one track, which is split into 2 sides of a single album released in 1975.]

Rail Band: Rail Band 3: Dioba: 7 (B+)

# [best of] I have enough of this band's individual titles/other comps to make this seem unnecessary, although I admit I haven't done a track comparison or anything, which would be laborious. Maybe one day when I can't think of anything else to do. I do have an alert on this one up for now though, in case one comes up at a no-brainer price.

Aerosmith - Greatest Hits: 8.5 (high A-)

Aerosmith - Rocks: 8.5 (high A-)

Aerosmith - Toys in the Attic: 8 (A-)

Fleetwood Mac - Rumours: 9 (A)

Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac [1975]: 8.5 (high A-)

Jozef van Wissem - A Rose by Any Other Name: Anonymous Lute Solos of the Golden Age: X stars

# [solo lute]

Lupe Fiasco - Samurai [honorable mention]

:-)

Sylvester - Sylvester: 7 (B+)

# [r&b]

Sylvester - Step II: 7.5 (high B+)

# [r&b] Went to get a copy anyway, because it's a semi-official disco classic, but there are no official remastered CDs. So I got a near mint original vinyl issue for a good price.

SXL [Bill Laswell] - Into the Outlands: 8 (A-)

I have this as part of a nice set with One Down and Temporary Music by Material.

Amen Dunes - Death Jokes [honorable mention]

:-)

Robert Forster - The Candle and The Flame: 8 (A-)

Pras - Ghetto Supastar: 7 (B+)

I'm pretty sure I bought this when it came out, and then sold it back, probably jumping on the bandwagon that this much-maligned solo album sucks. Well it doesn't. If he had left off the two covers, I guess they are, "Hallelujah" and "Amazing Grace," as well as all the ridiculous answering machine tracks, I would give it an 8 (A-). In other words, I docked it 2 notches for those transgressions, which are pretty serious. But I picked up a copy after all, when I realized the other tracks are good. And the title track of course speaks for itself.

Soul Coughing - Lust in Phaze: The Best of Soul Coughing: 9 (A)

Rhino does best ofs right.

Various - The Hip Hop Box [placeholder]

If I had easy access to this, I'd play the whole thing at least once, but at 8 (A-) from both Christgau and Hull, I know I'd never buy it, so I've never worried to much about getting access.

Burning Spear - 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Burning Spear: 9 (A)

Grade is provisional, since it got on the shelves before I started blogging. But the only other thing it could be is 9.5 (high A). If I ever listen again, I will try to make that distinction. I guess it could be an 8.5 (high A-), but obviously no lower than that for a Burning Spear best of, in a series that knows how to pick good tracks and doesn't clutter up releases with ephemera to lure those who are already fans, as if that's what we all want.