Randy Newman - Trouble in Paradise: 8.5 (high A-)

John Lennon - Rock 'n' Roll: 8 (A-)

#covers Update (July 2026): I caved and upped this a notch and got a beautiful remaster.

The Rolling Stones - GRRR!: notation

I thought about buying the three-CD digipack version of this 50th anniversary collection, just as the collector's piece that it is, but decided against it. Even though their my favorite band, I'm not a completist with respect to them. (I skipped several live albums, the dreaded and awful Hot Rocks, that singles collection, etc.) But I couldn't find it for a good price anywhere at this late stage and just lost interest. And it's not on Spotify so I couldn't even check out the flow.

Shabazz Palaces - Exotic Birds of Prey [EP]: liked

:-)

Imperial Teen - Seasick: liked

At least four plays

Imperial Teen - The Hair the TV the Baby & the Band: liked

:-)

Imperial Teen - What Is Not to Love: liked

:-)

Super Rail Band de Bamako - Kongo Sigui: 8.5 (high A-)

Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton - Play the Blues: Live From Jazz at Lincoln Center: 7.5 (high B+)

#live/jazz/blues

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan & Party - The Supreme Collection, Vol. 1 [Caroline, 1997]: placeholder

As noted on Discogs, this is a combined reissue of Greatest and Latest Hits, Vol. 1 [Sirocco, 1988] (minus track "Milate Rahen") and Greatest and Latest Hits Vol. 2 [Sirocco, 1988].

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Rapture [Music Club, 1997]: 8 (A-)

Underwritten as "An essential selection from the genius of Qawwali". Music Club is a fantastic reissue label.

Howlin' Wolf - Ain't Gonna Be Your Dog [Chess, 1994]: 8 (A-)

Volume 2 in the Chess Collectibles series. I stupidly had this in the de-shelve box. Then I pulled it out, gave it another listen, de-fatboxed it, put it back on the shelf and am now even checking out the first volume in this series, One More Mile, by Muddy Waters. Just this side of what I like to call the early CD era, still fatboxed as noted but at least digitally remastered.

The Mighty Diamonds - Speak the Truth: liked

:-)

Ray Charles - Genius + Soul = Jazz [Impulse, 1961]: X (X)

Sometimes (often?) paired with My Kind of Jazz [Tangerine, 1970]. I did not listen to that one. This one is definitely not my kind of jazz, so if that one is in the same category.... #jazz

Paul Simon: Graceland: 9 (A)

Various - No Thanks! The '70s Punk Rebellion [Rhino, 2003]: 9 (A)

I love this compilation. For some reason, it seems to have been somewhat ignored by the critical community when it came out, but eventually, it came to my attention. I love it because it made me search up some of the more obscure punk bands, like Penetration, Subway Sect, the Boys, 999, Rich Kids, Rezillos, the Ruts, Sham 69, and the Skids. It's just great, and they had the wisdom to keep it to four discs. I consider it on a par with the other great four-disc genre/era compilations like The Funk Box, Tougher Than Tough: The Story of Jamaican Music, and The Sound of the Suburbs. I regret that I do not have the booklet that came with it, just the discs, in original jewel boxes, which I got for relatively cheap because of that. But there is something punk about not having the accoutrements. I did go up on eBay to see if anyone was selling the booklet but was disappointed to see the price gouging and so passed.

Eric Clapton - No Reason to Cry [RSO, 1976]: 8 (A-)

I think it became fashionable for rock sophisticates to hate on Clapton in the mid-1970s for some reason. This one has the Band on alot of it, and Dylan on one track. What's not to like? Okay, the lyrics aren't profound, but it sounds good. Clapton's guitar solos are classy and restrained throughout, and it's got a nice groove to it. I stayed away from it for years because of the bad reviews, and spent my listening time elsewhere, but I get to enjoy it now in my old age I guess. And it has "Hello Old Friend" on it.

Shakira - Donde Estan Los Ladrones?: 8 (A-)

Shakira - Laundry Service: 8.5 (high A-)

Shakira - Oral Fixation, Vol. 2: 8.5 (high A-)

Shakira - She Wolf: 8 (A-)

Ray Charles - The Best of Ray Charles: The Atlantic Years: X (X)

I never wanted the Birth of Soul box set. It's too complete (everything he recorded for Atlantic), and it's too long. Unlike others, I do like the fact that it's on three discs even though it could fit on two, but it's still too long. I struggled alot with his Atlantic albums, but eventually got this one, and individually evaluated these four:

Ray Charles (aka Hallelujah I Love Her So) (1957)

The Genius of Ray Charles (1959)

What'd I Say (1959)

The Genius Sings the Blues (1961)

I listened to them all at least four times. See separate post on What'd I Say. I'm passing on The Genius of Ray Charles as #bigband/popvocals. If one has the best of under review, one has nine of the 13 tracks on Ray Charles (1957), so no need to consider that one separately. That leaves The Genius Sings the Blues, which I will evaluate separately. For reference here are the album breakdowns on this one:

9 from Ray Charles (1957) (13 total)

5 from Yes Indeed! (14 total)

2 from What'd I Say (10 total)

2 from The Genius of Ray Charles (12 total)

1 from Ray Charles in Person (live)

1 single

Orchestra Super Mazembe - Giants of East Africa: 8.5 (high A-)

Random Notation

I spent alot of this fine Fall day evaluating two three-album runs that could not be more different:

Ray Charles

Ray Charles (1957)

Genius of Ray Charles (1959)

Genius Sings the Blues (1961)

Pere Ubu

St. Arkansas (2002)

Lady From Shanghai (2013)

Carnival of Souls (2014)

I know, they're only semi-contiguous in each case, but still.... One big difference is that the Ray Charles albums are near the top of his catalog, critically, while the Pere Ubu ones are near the bottom of theirs.

Jimmy Reed - The Best of Jimmy Reed [GNP Crescendo, 1973]: notation

The Rolling Stone guide has this at five stars and therefore the best non-box set collection of Reed's work. However, according to AllMusic, it is a needle drop and sounds awful. In any event, almost all of its tracks are on The Very Best of Jimmy Reed [Rhino, 2000], which I have a copy of and has long been under review. I will get to it eventually. I will also note here that this one has the majority of the tracks appearing on Bright Lights, Big City [Chameleon, 1988], an early CD-era compilation which I de-shelved, presumably in favor of the Rhino set.