Bettie Serveert - Private Suit: 8 (A-)

Madonna - Madame X - Music From the Theater Xperience: 7.5 (high B+)

Digital/vinyl-only. #live

The Dandy Warhols - Rockmaker: liked

:-)

The Dandy Warhols - Odditorium or Warlords of Mars: 7 (B+)

The Dandy Warhols - Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia: 8 (A-)

The Dandy Warhols - Welcome to the Monkey House: 9.5 (high A)

Masaka Kids Africana - Greatful: 8 (A-)

Digital-only

Aesop Rock & Homeboy Sandman - Miami Lice: Season Four [EP]: 8 (A-)

Vinyl-only

Madness - The Ultimate Collection: 7.5 (high B+)

Definitely the best Madness compilation I have heard, but still #bestof.

Television - Television: 7.5 (high B+)

Television - Live at the Old Waldorf: San Francisco, 6/29/78: 8 (A-)

Television - The Blow-Up: 7.5 (high B+)

I'm not going to play the #live card on Television.

Cypress Hill - III: Temples of Boom: 7 (B+)

Orchestre Maquis & Orchestre Safari Sound - Zanzibara 11: Congo in Dar: Dance No Sweat/1982-1986: 7 (B+)

#multiartistcomp

Cypress Hill - Skull & Bones: 7 (B+)

I'm going to call this #miscarticles and save myself some money. The second disc contains some inferior "rock" tracks versus the "hip hop" ones on the first. Notably, it's their first release not affiliated with Ruffhouse, and it shows. It could easily all have fit on one disc (the second one's basically an EP, the first one a standard album length).

Low - I Could Live in Hope: neutral

:-|

Last Exit - Iron Path: 8 (A-)

Cracker - Kerosene Hat: 7.5 (high B+)

Redman - Dare Iz a Darkside: neutral

Docked a notch for bloat. Fricking thing goes on forever, as always with this artist. In fairness, it's a scourge of basically the entire genre.

The Grateful Dead - The Best of the Grateful Dead [Rhino, 2015]: 9.5 (high A)

This two-disc compilation is a fantastic listen. A really, truly great historic overview that just squeezed in at the end of the CD era. I have all but six of these tracks in other configurations, but this is still worth having. What a Long Strange Trip was good, but this kills it. This is the regular-issue Dead I would take to that deserted island if I could only take one (together with a matrix of Cornell for live bootlegs). Just a very special compilation, beautifully done by Rhino.

Dennis Robbins - Man with a Plan: 7 (B+)

#country

Barry Black - Barry Black: 7.5 (high B+)

Just like Luke Haines putting Baader Meinhof after the Auteurs, Eric Bachman puts Barry Black after Archers of Loaf. Shelf space.

The Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat: 8.5 (high A-)

The Velvet Underground - Another View: 8 (A-)

The Velvet Underground - VU: 8.5 (high A-)

The Velvet Underground - The Velvet Underground: 9.5 (high A)

The Velvet Underground & Nico - The Velvet Underground & Nico: 9 (A)

The Velvet Underground: Loaded: 9 (A)

Freedy Johnston - Unlucky [EP]: 7.5 (high B+)

Crooked Fingers [Eric Bachmann] - Reservoir Songs [EP]: 7 (B+)

Great cover

Crooked Fingers [Eric Bachmann] - Red Devil Dawn: 7.5 (high B+)

Madness - The Best of Madness: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: 7 (B+)

Unlike many best ofs in this series, this one, while nicely short, does not appear definitive enough to me. #bestof

The Village People - Can’t Stop the Music: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Album: liked

I don’t remember what inspired me to put this on the listen list.

Eric Bachmann - To the Races: liked

:-)

Crooked Fingers - Crooked Fingers: liked

Eric Bachmann, after demise of Archers of Loaf. Debut album. Four plays.

The Grateful Dead - Dick's Picks, Vol. 4: 7 (B+)

Fillmore East, 2/13-14/1970. #live/bluesrock/folkrock

Morrissey - Make-up Is a Lie: neutral

:-|

Sleep - Dopesmoker: liked

Heavy

MC Paul Barman & Kenny Segal - Antinomian Pandemonium: liked

Digital- and limited edition vinyl-only

MC Paul Barman & Jordan Katz - Lovecore [EP]: liked

:-)

Ren - Vincent's Tale [EP]: neutral

:-|

Buck 65 - Do Not Bend: 7 (B+)

Upped from "liked" on fourth play. Digital-only.

Various - Only for the Headstrong: The Ultimate Rave Compilation [FFRR, 1992]: 7 (B+)

I'm 99% sure I had a copy of this once, right around the time it came out 34 years ago. #multiartistcomp/electronica/dance

Archers of Loaf - All the Nations Airports: 9 (A)

Archers of Loaf - White Trash Heroes: 9.5 (high A)

Archers of Loaf - The Speed of Cattle: 8.5 (high A-)

Archers of Loaf - Seconds After the Accident: 8 (A-)

Archers of Loaf - Vee Vee: 7 (B+)

The Modern Lovers [Jonathan Richman] - The Original Modern Lovers: 7 (B+)

#demos

Suicide - Ghost Riders: liked

Recorded live on September 19, 1981

Michael Hampton - Into the Public Domain: 7.5 (high B+)

Really grew on me, but #limitededition, and probably #jazz too.

Veruca Salt - American Thighs: 7.5 (high B+)

#indiepop

Lucinda Williams - World's Gone Wrong: 8 (A-)

Love the cover. [In cart, awaiting decent price]

Sly & Robbie - Dubs for Tubs: A Tribute to King Tubby [Rohit, 1990]: neutral

:-|

Sly & Robbie - Meet King Tubby: 7.5 (high B+)

Might be an 8 (A-), but #import anyway. This original UK release with the orange cover and 10 tracks is the only one to get. Other import releases are first generation CD transfers or un-remastered CDs with bonus and/or alternate tracks.

Ronald Shannon Jackson & The Decoding Society - Mandance: 8 (A-)

Husker Du - 1985: The Miracle Year: 7.5 (high B+)

The grade is an average: the complete show January 30, 1985 set is an 8.5 (high A-) to me, while the 20 selected songs from other shows in 1985 is 7 (B+). So, the entire thing rounds up to 8 (A-), and then I dock it a notch for bloat, which makes it #live and #limited edition. The truth is that even at 8 (A-), I wouldn’t bother because the prices being asked by the lucky few consumers who snatched up copies early are ridiculous. Maybe the label will get smart and do another run, but probably not. Notably, there is no overlap between the two discs, and the better songs are not only from the complete show, but the better performances are too. I wish they would release that first complete show separately (they did release digital-only EPs of some tracks). Update (March 2026): I got the digital tracks of the complete show and burned it to disc. How it should have been released in the first place.

Al Green - To Love Somebody [EP] - 7 (B+)

Digital-only. They’ll sell you a To Love Somebody t-shirt, but not the music.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo - Classic Tracks: 7 (B+)

#mbube/bestof

Flamin Groovies - Groovies Greatest Grooves: 7 (B+)

Outstanding track: “Shake Some Action” (obviously). #garage/bestof

Sir Douglas Quintet - Border Wave: 7 (B+)

#texmex

George Harrison - Living in the Material World: liked

:-)

Tav Falco & Panther Burns - Life Sentence: liked

:-)

Tav Falco's Panther Burns - Behind the Magnolia Curtain: 7 (B+)

#junkrock

Mad Professor - Dub Me Crazy: liked

:-)

Mad Professor - Beyond the Realms of Dub: liked

:-)

Rod Stewart - The Best of Rod Stewart: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: notation

I usually love these, but there’s no way to justify this one. Four tracks from Every Picture Tells a Story, five from Never a Dull Moment, two from Gasoline Alley, and one from the debut. These are all strong albums worth having in their own right. The debut is probably the least strong, but it’s still good, and there’s only one song here from that. It’s obviously good enough that I played it four times. Musically, I’d give it a 9 (A), which I guess means I dock it three whole notches for complete inutility.

Ian Dury & The Blockheads - Mr. Love Pants: liked

:-)

The Modern Lovers - Live [Beserkley, 1977]: neutral

Starring Jonathan Richman

The Alpha Band - A Spark in the Dark: liked

Outstanding track: “East of East”

Tapper Zukie - From the Archives: notation

This contains all the songs on MPLA, except “Stop the Gun Shooting” and “Don't Deal with Babylon.” This also contains “Tapper [Tappa] Roots” and “Oh Lord” from Tapper Roots. See separate post on that album. Finally, this has “Peace and Love” and “The Bum,” which are good songs, but not good enough to make this necessary, in my opinion.

Various - Kickin Mental Detergent [Kickin, 1992]: 7.5 (high B+)

#electronic/dance