Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers - Back in Your Life: 7 (B+)

#folk

B.T. Express - Greatest Hits: 8 (A-)

Special AKA [The Specials]: In the Studio: 7 (B+)

Normally this would be #ska/2tone, but I saw this beautiful box set, 2 Tone: The Albums, for a ridiculously low price and snagged a copy. It contains this.

DJ Screw - 3 'n the Mornin', Part Two [blue]: liked

See the way "Part Two" is shaded blue? Apparently, an earlier version of this, with different tracks, was shaded red. And then he got sued by the more national artists whose tracks he was chopping and screwing, so he changed the whole thing to local artists and reissued it with a blue shade. Cover posted to avoid confusion about what I am posting about. This is #59 on the Pitchfork list of The 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time.

Corey Harris - Fish Ain't Bitin': 7 (B+)

#blues

Robert Fripp - Exposure: 8 (A-)

I have a first-generation analog transfer of this, but I plan to upgrade to the Steve Wilson remix.

Fripp & Eno - The Essential Fripp & Eno: notation

Contains all of No Pussyfooting and about a quarter of Evening Star. The rest of this (about one-quarter) is a four-part suite called "Healthy Colours I-IV." I found the files for that and downloaded them. It's good -- I would rate it 7 (B+) -- but it doesn't justify the prices being asked for this 20 minutes of music at that grade.

Adrianne Lenker - Bright Future: 7 (B+)

Normally, this would be #folk/country/singersongwriter or something like that, but since she’s actually more alt-rock with Big Thief....

Fu-Schnickens - Nervous Breakdown: 7 (B+)

The Specials - More Specials: 7.5 (high B+)

Normally this would be #ska/2tone, but I saw this beautiful box set, 2 Tone: The Albums, for a ridiculously low price and snagged a copy. It contains this.

Free Expression - "Chill-Out!" b/w "Save the Last Dance for Me" [12" single]: X (X)

Not sure how I happened upon this. I don't usually post about singles. #singles

Al Green - Everything's OK: 7.5 (high B+)

Herbie Hancock - Ken Burns Jazz: X (X)

I'm not qualified to grade/rate this. But it received a 4.5-star rating in the last Rolling Stone album guide, so I listened as warranted. #jazz

Sleaford Mods - The Demise of Planet X: liked

:-)

The Sleepers - Seventh World [EP]: liked

:-)

Pete Townshend & Ronnie Lane - Rough Mix: 8 (A-)

Public Image Ltd. - This Is PiL: 7.5 (high B+)

Danny Brown - Stardust: 7 (B+)

#import/artisanal

Alan Vega - Dujang Prang: liked

:-)

Yugen Blakrok - The Illusion of Being: 8 (A-)

#import/artisanal

Jimmy Cliff - Struggling Man: 7 (B+)

Never given a modern reissue, so I will stick with the majority of tracks from this that are represented on Classic Jimmy Cliff.

Jimmy Cliff - Classic Jimmy Cliff: The Universal Masters Collection [Island, 2001]: 8.5 (high A-)

This European release was the winner in a 4-way showdown between (1) this compilation, (2) the regular issues Wonderful World, Beautiful People [aka Jimmy Cliff] [A&M, 1970] and Struggling Man [Island, 1973], (3) the compilation The Best of Jimmy Cliff [Island, 1975], and (4) a compilation similarly-titled to this one called 20th Century Masters: The Best of Jimmy Cliff: The Millennium Collection [Universal, 2004]. The two regular issues were never given modern remasters, plus, this compilation contains all but four tracks from each of those two (so it's really a condensation of those two plus a couple singles and some tracks also on The Harder They Come). There's alot of overlap between this one and the 1975 Best of, but I like this one better, because the unique songs on this one (ignoring the songs on The Harder They Come) are all more songs from the two regular issues, while the 1975 Best of gives you one other song from WWBP ("Sufferin' in the Land") and these:

"Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow"

"Another Cycle"

"Synthetic World"

"I'm No Immigrant"

"Give and Take"

"Goodbye Yesterday"

And that just leaves 20th Century Masters, which is super short, so it's good for that reason, but it contains the clunker "Bongo Joe," and if I really think both those regular issues are 7 (B+), I should go for the release that has the majority of their tracks.

Zaiko Langa Langa - Pusa Kuna... Serrez! Serrez!: liked

Outstanding track: "Matshi Ya Ilo"

Ray West & Kool Keith - A Couple of Slices: 7 (B+)

Allegedly on CD, but the one or two copies that appear to be available are asking for astronomical prices, so I won't even bother putting this on a wantlist. If they reissue it in physical one day, maybe I'll pick it up. Anyway, Kool Keith I'm not sure has ever put his name on anything that's not worth hearing.

Bad Bunny - Debi Tirar Mas Fotos: 7.5 (high B+)

#reggaeton

Toni Brown & Terry Garthwaite - The Joy: 7.5 (high B+)

Five plays. #folk/country

Cat Power - What Would the Community Think: liked

Very irritating how it is mixed as a soft, quiet album, which forces you to turn it up to a fairly high volume to hear what is going on in the mix, and then when she starts shrieking or they amp up the guitars for a half a minute or so, it comes as a very unwelcome assault on the listener. It's like listening to a very soft talker, and when you lean over to get your ear closer to her to hear what she is saying, she suddenly starts shrieking in your ear sporadically.

Various - The Akron Compilation [Stiff, 1978]: 7 (B+)

Somewhat spotty compilation of the late 1970s Akron sound. Strangely never issued in the United States, it seems. #multiartistcomp

XTC - White Music: liked

Outstanding track: cover of “All Along the Watchtower”

Rubber City Rebels - Rubber City Rebels: liked

:-)

Dave and Central Cee - Split Decision [EP]: liked

:-)

Turnstile - Never Enough: liked

:-)

Rosalia - Lux: neutral

:-|

electric eels – The Eyeball of Hell: liked

I’m proud of myself for giving all of this (at one hour and eleven minutes) three good listens. I’d like to up it a notch for their commitment level, but that would mean that I’d have to listen to it again, and I can’t bring myself to expend another hour plus on that. I did play the shorter compilation Die Electric Eels once though, which is almost the same thing (most of the songs on that one are on here). Anyway, excellent for driving the wife and children out of the room.

Rocket From the Tombs - Rocket Redux: liked

Possibly a 7 (B+), but too expensive and #miscarticles, really, to worry about even if it was.

The Delfonics - La-La Means I Love You: The Definitive Collection [Arista, 1997]: 7.5 (high B+)

The shorter compilation, Platinum & Gold Collection [Arista/BMG Heritage, 2003] [aka The Very Best of the Delfonics [Arista/Legacy, 2005], gets a bump up. This one is too much of a good thing. See separate post on that other one. #bestof

John Forte - Poly Sci: 7.5 (high B+)

John Forte - i, John: 8 (A-)

Lupe Fiasco - Fahrenheit 1/15 Part II: Revenge of the Nerds: liked

Digital-only mixtape. Listened to this because it was #96 on Pitchfork’s 2025 list of The 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time. I’m not sure how it got there. Docked a notch for bloat.

Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor: 7 (B+)

Docked a notch for bloat.

Lupe Fiasco - The Cool: 7.5 (high B+)

Various - The '50s: Singles [by Robert Christgau]: X (X)

I made a Spotify playlist of this list of '50s singles made by the Dean, appearing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Thought about making a physical of it, but then thought again.

The Big Bopper: "Chantilly Lace" (Mercury)

The Bobbettes: "Mr. Lee" (Atlantic)

The Cadillacs: "Speedo" (osie)

The Channels: "The Closer You Are" (Whirling Disc)

The Chantels: "Maybe" (End)

Danny and the Juniors: "At the Hop" (ABC)

The Del Vikings: "Come Go with Me" (Dot)

Bill Doggett: "Honky Tonk" (King)

The Five Satins: "In the Still of the Night" (Ember)

Bobby Freeman: "Do You Wanna Dance" (Josie)

The Gladiolas: "Little Darlin'" (Excello)

Dale Hawkins: "Suzie Q" (Checker)

Screamin' Jay Hawkins: "I Put a Spell on You" (Okeh)

The Heartbeats: "A Thousand Miles Away" (Rama)

Ivory Joe Hunter: "Since I Met You Baby" (Atlantic)

Little Willie John: "Fever" (King)

Johnnie & Joe: "Over the Mountain, Across the Sea" (Chess)

Mickey & Sylvia: "Love Is Strange" (Groove)

The Monotones: "Book of Love" (Argo)

The Penguins: "Earth Angel" (Dootone)

The Rays: "Silhouettes" (Cameo)

Shirley & Lee: "Let the Good Times Roll" (Aladdin)

The Silhouettes: "Get a Job" (Ember)

The Teenagers: "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (Gee)

Ritchie Valens: "La Bamba" (Del-Fi)

Jimmy Cliff - The Best of Jimmy Cliff [Island, 1975]: liked

Breaking protocol and posting the cover on an ungraded album, just to keep his best ofs straight. This is the import-only double album release from 1975. I'm still searching for an adequate best of for him.

Scarface - The Diary: 8 (A-)

Van Morrison - Remembering Now: 8 (A-)

His best in a very long time, in my view.

Al Green - The Immortal Soul of Al Green: notation

I've been very tempted to get this 4CD box set but always decide against it. It has songs drawn from his peak 1970s period (ie, non-gospel) with very few rarities (I think maybe just one long live track?). On the one hand, these kinds of boxes are great for artists who have long, spotty album catalogs, but on the other hand, this does not describe Al Green. His studio albums are mostly strong, and so I have most if not all of them. I also thought about the 3CD Anthology, but that's a rarities box as I understand it, which I only get if it proves somehow to be essential in one way or another, which this one does not appear to be. Here's the cover on that one:

Kiss - The Best of Kiss: 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: 8 (A-)

Ashford & Simpson - Come As You Are: 8.5 (high A-)

I think I like this one best of all their albums. Even the schmaltzy ones ("Believe in Me") are good. Hugh McCracken on guitar.

Muddy Waters - Rare and Unissued: X (X)

This is in my somewhat eclectic Muddy Waters collection, probably because Christgau gave this the equivalent of at least a 9 (A).

Various - Punk 45: Extermination Nights in the Sixth City (Cleveland, Ohio : Punk and the Decline of the Mid-West 1975-82) [Soul Jazz, 2015]: 8.5 (high A-)

Various - Punk 45: Burn Rubber City, Burn! (Akron, Ohio: Punk and the Decline of the Mid-West 1975-80) [Soul Jazz, 2016]: 8.5 (high A-)

The liner notes I think incorrectly cite to The Akron Compilation [Stiff, 1978] as "The Akron Sound" from 1977. But this is a good Akron compilation, as are the LA and Cleveland entries in this Soul Jazz series. I intend to review The Akron Compilation at some point in the future.

Joy Division - Permanent: 8 (A-)

Not sure why I have this. I guess I've become a Joy Division completist over the years.

Zaiko Langa Langa - Hits Inoubliables, Vol. 4: notation

This appears to be a compilation of two albums: Pusa Kuna... Serrez! Serrez! and Volant: Makambo Ya Mikolo Oyo, each with four of the eight songs on this. I only listened once. It was mentioned in Gary Stewart's great book Rumba on the River, but seemed unremarkable on one play. He didn't actually say it was good. The former definitely sounded better than the latter. Actually, I played the former twice because the back half of the sebene on the last song, "Patshi Ya Ilo," was so outstanding. Actually, actually, I played it four times (see separate post).

Bopol Mansiamina featuring Nyboma etc.: "Esta Tierra no es Mia" b/w "La Cintura" [single]: 8.5 (high A-)

I normally don't rate singles, or post covers for them, especially digital-only ones, but one makes an exception for Bopol and Nyboma. Maybe I should be calling this an EP, because it's 12:24?

Collected, but not necessarily shelved or graded yet (some with provisional grades) 2026

List made in 2026, but acquisition could have been many years ago ... decades, a half a century, even:

Bootsy Collins - Original Album Series [Stretchin' Out; Ahh... The Name Is; Bootsy? Player of the Year; This Boot is Made; Ultra Wave]

Brian Eno and Karl Hyde - High Life [8 (A-)] [final listen shelf]

John Lennon - Wonsaponatime [8 (A-)] [final listen shelf]

Aesop Rock - Black Hole Superette [8 (A-)] [in cart awaiting decent price]

Suicide - Half Alive [final listen shelf]

Suicide - Attempted: Live at Max's Kansas City 1980 [final listen shelf]

Danny Brown - uknowhatimsayin? [7 (B+)]

The O'Jays - Ship Ahoy [8 (A-)]

Odyssey the Band - Back in Time [8 (A-)] [final listen shelf]

Al Green - Soul Survivor; Explores Your Mind

Joy Division - The Best of Joy Division

Peter Perrett - The Cleansing [8 (A-)]

Dean Wareham - That's the Price of Loving Me [8 (A-)]

Afrika Bambaataa and Soulsonic Force - Planet Rock: The Album

Al Green - The Absolute Best

Al Green - Full of Fire [8 (A-)]

Lupe Fiasco - Drogas Wave [8 (A-)] [final listen shelf]

Al Green - Truth n' Time [8 (A-)] [Xgau originally gave B+ when it came out but appears on his decade-end 1978 A-list; also pretty high up on his Dean's List for the year]

Al Green - Have a Good Time [7.5 (high B+)]

Bryan Ferry - These Foolish Things [8 (A-)] [final listen shelf]

John Lennon - Mind Games [8 (A-)] [in cart]

Lily Allen - West End Girl [8 (A-)] [in cart, awaiting CD release]

Catalog Scrubs Complete 2026

Bootsy Collins

Faith Healers

Dry Cleaning

DJ Screw

Mount Eerie

Ultravox

Robert Calvert

Joy Division

Blue Nile

Brian Eno

Robert Fripp

Fripp & Eno

Adrianne Lenker

Gilberto Gil

Fu-Schnickens

E.T. Mensah

Bon Iver

Rory Block

Pete Townshend

Bill Frisell

Danny Brown

Suicide

Martin Rev

Alan Vega

Bad Bunny

Jane Aire [& The Belvederes]

Rachel Sweet

People's Choice

Dee Dee Sharp [Gamble]

Bryan Ferry

The Bug

Joe Simon

Dave

Turnstile

Fugees

John Forte

Lupe Fiasco

Middle Class

Delfonics

Martina Topley-Bird

Lambchop

Suicide Commandos

Rubber City Rebels

Bizarros

Pagans

Jazz Destroyers

Broncs

electric eels

X-X

Defnics

Human Switchboard

Pressler-Morgan One Plus One

Poli Styrene Jass Band

Mirrors

Styrene Money

Rocket From the Tombs

Waitresses

Hammer Damage

Chi-Pig

Denis Defrange [and Mark Frazier]

Jane Aire & The Belvederes

Ralph Carney

Numbers Band [aka 15-60-75]

Geto Boys/Willie D/Bushwick Bill

Dead Boys

2026 Single Listens (unless 2 otherwise noted)

Brian Eno - Panic of Looking [EP]

Brian Eno - I Dormienti

Flipper - Nurnberg Fish Trials (Live)

Sister Irene O'Connor - Fire of God's Love

The Manhattans - Kiss and Say Goodbye: The Best of the Manhattans

The Cribs - Selling a Vibe

Ry-Co Jazz - Bon Voyage!!

The Bug/Ghost Dubs - Implosion

Six Sex - X-sex [EP]

Nas and DJ Premier - Light-Years [“Yes indeedy/I wrote graffiti"?!? Wtf?]

Marie Davidson - City of Clowns [Hull #16 of 2026]

Galaxie 500 - CBGB 12.13.88

Dove Ellis - Blizzard

electric eels - Die Electric Eels

Turnstile - Time & Space [really an EP]

Howlin' Wolf - The Real Folk Blues/More Real Folk Blues: X (X)

I don't trust myself to rate this, but it's obviously in the A-range somewhere near the top.