gilest.org

1001 albums
some are good

I’m listening to all of the 1001 albums you must hear before you die playlist.

In alphabetical order, by album title. This page is where I record my progress.

Updates

• 12 August 2019: Listening to 1001 albums
• 13 August 2019: Found out that the original book list has changed over time. And that there are several similar playlists on Spotify. And that those playlists don’t all match. I’m going to just carry on with this playlist for now.

Key to symbols

★ = I really liked this album
♯ = I’d never heard this before

 Tuesday 26 February

1. #1 Record / Radio City, by Big Start ♯
2. 3 years, 5 months and 2 days in the life of Arrested Development
3. 3+3, by The Isley Brothers ★ ♯

Never heard this before; really liked it.

4. 16 Lovers Lane, by The Go Betweens ★
5. 69 Love Songs, by The Magnetic Fields ♯

Friday 1 March

6. 461 Ocean Boulevard, by Eric Clapton
7. 1977, by Ash
8. 1984, by Van Halen
9. 1999, by Prince ★
10. 2112, by Rush
11. Abbatoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus, by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds ♯
12. Abraxas, by Santana

Saturday 2 March

13. Achtung Baby, by U2

Friday 22 March

14. Actually, by Pet Shop Boys
15. After the Gold Rush, by Neil Young
16. Aftermath, by The Rolling Stones
17. Agaetis Byrjun, by Sigur Rós ♯
18. Aja, by Steely Dan
19. Alladin Sane, by David Bowie ★
20. Alien Lanes, by Guided By Voices ♯

Thursday 18 April

21. All Directions, by The Temptations ♯
22. All Hail the Queen, by Queen Latifah
23. All Mod Cons, by The Jam
24. All That You Can’t Leave Behind, by U2

Tuesday 23 April

25. Ambient 1/Music for Airports, by Brian Eno
26. American Beauty, by Grateful Dead
27. American Gothic, by David Ackles ♯
28. American Idiot, by Green Day

Wednesday 8 May

29. A Girl Called Dusty, by Dusty Springfield
30. A Grand Don’t Come for Free, by The Streets
31. A Little Deeper, by Ms Dynamite
32. A Love Supreme, by John Coltrane Quartet
33. American IV: The Man Comes Around, by Johnny Cash
34. American Pie, by Don McClean ★
35. Amnesiac, by Radiohead
36. Among the Living, by Anthrax ♯
37. A Night at the Opera, by Queen
38. A Nod is as Good as a Wink to a Blind Horse, by Faces
39. A Northern Soul, by The Verve

Thursday 9 May

40. Another Green World, by Brian Eno
41. Another Music in a Different Kitchen, by Buzzcocks
42. Antichrist Superstar, by Marilyn Manson
43. Apocalypse Dudes, by Turbonegro ♯
44. Appetite for Destruction, by Guns N’Roses

Thursday 16 May

45. Aqualung, by Jethro Tull
46. Architecture and Morality, by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
47. Arc of a Diver, by Steve Winwood
48. Are you Experienced, by Jimi Hendrix
49. Arise, by Sepultura ♯
50. Armed Forces, by Elvis Costello and The Attractions ★
51. Arrival, by ABBA
52. A Rush of Blood to the Head, by Coldplay

Monday 20 May

54. A Short Album about Love, by The Divine Comedy
55. Astral Weeks, by Van Morrison
56. At Budokan, by Cheap Trick ♯
57. At Fillmore East, by The Allman Brothers Band ♯
58. At Mister Kelly’s, by Sarah Vaughan and Her Band ★
59. At San Quentin, by Johnny Cash
60. Autobahn, by Kraftwerk

Tuesday 21 May

61. Automatic for the People, by R.E.M. ★

Thursday 23 May

62. A Walk Across the Rooftops, by The Blue Nile
63. A Wizard / A True Star, by Todd Rundgren ★ ♯

I thought I knew my 70s stuff pretty well, but I’ve never heard this before, or indeed anything quite like it

64. Axis: Bold as Love, by Jimi Hendrix

And finally, we reach the Bs! This project may take a tiny bit longer than I had expected…

65. B-52’s, by The B-52’s ★

One of the finest pop albums ever made, imho

66. Back at the Chicken Shack, by Jimmy Smith ♯

Monday 3 June

67. Back in Black, by AC/DC
68. Back to Black, by Amy Winehouse ★

Tuesday 4 June

69. Bad, by Michael Jackson
70. Bandwagonesque, by Teenage Fanclub ★
71. Bayou Country, by Creedence Clearwater Revival
72. Beautiful Freak, by Eels
73. Before and After Science, by Brian Eno
74. Beggars Banquet, by The Rolling Stones
75. Behaviour, by Pet Shop Boys

Monday 10 June

75. Being There, by Wilco
76. Berlin, by Lou Reed

Tuesday 11 June

77. Bert Jansch, by Bert Jansch ♯
78. Better Living Through Chemistry, by Fat Boy Slim
79. Beyond Skin, by Nitin Sawhney
80. Billion Dollar Babies, by Alice Cooper
81. Birth of the Cool, by Miles Davis

Tuesday 9 July

82. Bitches Brew, by Miles Davis
83. Black Holes and Revelations, by Muse
84. Black Sabbath, by Black Sabbath

Thursday 8 August

85. Blonde on Blonde, by Bob Dylan
86. Blood and Chocolate, by Elvis Costello & the Attractions ★
87. Blood on the Tracks, by Bob Dylan
88. Blood, Sweat & Tears, by Blood, Sweat & Tears
89. Blue, by Joni Mitchell ★
90. Blue Lines, by Massive Attack ★

Friday 9 August

91. Bluesbreakers, by John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers
92. Blur, by Blur
93. Bone Machine, by Tom Waits ♯

Monday 12 August

94. Bongo Rock, by Incredible Bongo Band ♯
95. Bookends, by Simon & Garfunkel ♯

Another surprise: I thought I knew my S&G, but I’d never heard this one before and it’s not at all what I expected it to be…

96. Born in the U.S.A., by Bruce Springsteen
97. Born to Run, by Bruce Springsteen
98. Bossanova, by Pixies
99. BOSTON, by Boston
100. Boy in da corner, by Dizzee Rascal ♯
101. Bridge Over Troubled Water, by Simon & Garfunkel

First milestone reached: 101 albums in the first 6 months. Wrote a post to tell the world. Right. Next!

Thursday 5 September

102. Brilliant Corners, by Thelonius Monk, Sonny Rollins and Ernie Henry
103. Bringing it all Back Home, by Bob Dylan
104. British Steel, by Judas Priest ♯

Dylan/Judas Priest was an interesting transition.

105. Broken English, by Marianne Faithfull ♯
106. Brothers in Arms, by Dire Straits
107. Brown Sugar, by D’Angelo
108. Brutal Youth, by Elvis Costello

Monday 16 September

109. Bryter Layter, by Nick Drake ★
110. Bubble and Scrape, by Sebadoh ♯
111. Buena Vista Social Club, by Buena Vista Social Club
112. Bummed, by Happy Mondays
113. Butterfly, by Mariah Carey ♯
114. Caetano Veloso, by Caetano Veloso ♯

I’ve never listened to any Mariah Carey before, and I’ve never even heard of Caetano Veloso. That’s one thing this project is good at, forcing me to listen beyond my usual boundaries.

115. Café Bleu, by The Style Council ♯

Another completely new discovery for me. You’d think, given my age, that I’d be well familiar with The Style Council’s stuff. But no, only the singles. I’d never heard this album before. It’s… jazzy.

116. Calenture, by The Triffids ♯

Tuesday 17 September

117. Call of the Valley, by Shiv Kumar Sharma, Hari Prasad Chaurasia and Brij Bushan ♯
118. Can’t Buy a Thrill, by Steely Dan
119. Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, by Lucinda Williams ♯
120. Casanova, by The Divine Comedy
121. Catch a Fire, by Bob Marley & The Wailers
122. Central Reservation, by Beth Orton
123. C’est Chic, by Chic ♯ ★

 Wednesday 18 September

124. Cheap Thrills, by Big Brother & the Holding Company ♯
125. Chelsea Girl, by Nico ♯
126. Chicago Transit Authority, by Chicago ♯

Thursday 19 September

127. Closer, by Joy Division
128. Close to the Edge, by Yes ♯
129. Club Classics Vol 1, by Soul II Soul
130. Clube Da Esquina 1, by Milton Nascimento ♯
131. Coat of Many Colors, by Dolly Parton ★
132. Coles Corner, by Richard Hawley ♯
133. Colour by Numbers, by Culture Club

Friday 20 September

134. Come Away With Me, by Norah Jones
135. Come Find Yourself, by Fun Lovin’ Criminals
136. Connected, by Stereo MC’s

Sunday 29 September

137. Cosmo’s Factory, by Creedence Clearwater Revival ♯
138. Country Life, by Roxy Music ♯
139. Court & Spark, by Joni Mitchell ★★★★★

It’s hard to overstate how important this album is to me. I’ve been listening to it as long as I can remember. I know the words by heart, and sing harmonies, as best I can, to every song as it plays. I turn it up very loud. I play it when I’m driving, when I’m commuting, when I’m working, when I’m doing chores, when I’m relaxing. It gets 5 stars because frankly, it deserves them. Thank you for this gift, Joni.

140. Crime of the Century, by Supertramp
141. Crocodiles, by Echo and the Bunnymen

Monday 30 September

142. Crooked Rain Crooked Rain, by Pavement
143. Crosby, Stills & Nash, by Crosby, Stills & Nash ♯
144. Crossing the Red Sea with The Adverts, by The Adverts ♯
145. Cupid and Psyche 85, by Scritti Politti
146. Cypress Hill, by Cypress Hill
147. Da Capo, by Love ♯

 Tuesday 1 October

148. Damaged, by Black Flag ♯
149. Dare!, by The Human League
150. Darkdancer, by Les Rythemes Digitales ♯

Monday 21 October

151. Darklands, by The Jesus and Mary Chain
152. Darkness on the Edge of Town, by Bruce Springsteen
153. Daydream Nation, by Sonic Youth
154. Debut, by Bjork ★
155. Deep Purple in Rock, by Deep Purple ♯
156. Deloused in the Comatorium, by The Mars Volta ♯
157. Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes, by TV On The Radio ♯
158. Destroyer, by KISS ♯
159. Devil Without a Pause, by Kid Rock ♯
160. Devotional Songs, by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ★ ♯

Quite a mix in those last 5 or 6 albums. Half a day of stuff that was utterly new to me. I’d never even heard of The Mars Volta or TV On the Radio before.

Monday 28 October

161. Diamond Life, by Sade

I was a big Sade fan when I was a teenager, which was odd. At least, I wasn’t completely sure why, because the rest of my music taste at the time was far, far away from Sade. But I remember owning all the Sade albums and playing them a lot.

162. Different Class, by Pulp ★

And Pulp, OMG Pulp. I discovered them when Intro came out, and worshipped the mic that Jarvis Cocker sang into. Different Class is a masterpiece, but not Pulp’s only masterpiece.

163. Dig Your Own Hole, by The Chemical Brothers
164. Dire Straits, by Dire Straits
165. Dirt/Unplugged, by Alice in Chains ♯

The thing about this project is that it forces me to listen to things I would never otherwise consider listening to. Like Alice in Chains, for example.

166. Dirty, by Sonic Youth
167. Disintegration, by The Cure ★
168. Disraeli Gears, by Cream

Wednesday 6 November

169. Document, by REM

I discovered REM when Radio 1 DJ Steve Wright played The one I love, and my teenage brain latched on to it immediately. I was a dedicated fan for years afterwards.

170. Dog Man Star, by Suede
171. Dookie, by Green Day
172. Doolittle, by Pixies

Thursday 7 November

173. Double Nickels on the Dime, by Minutemen ♯
174. Dry, by PJ Harvey ★
175. Duck Rock, by Malcolm McLaren
176. Dummy, by Portishead
177. Dusty in Memphis, by Dusty Springfield

Monday 18 November

178. Either Or, by Elliott Smith ♯
179. Electric, by The Cult
180. Electric Ladyland, by Jimi Hendrix
181. Electric Warrior, by T.Rex ♯
182. Elephant, by The White Stripes
183. Eli and the Thirteenth Confession, by Laura Nyro ♯
184. Eliminator, by ZZ Top

Tuesday 19 November

185. Ellington at Newport 1956, by Duke Ellington ♯
186. Elvis is Back, by Elvis Presley ♯
187. Emergency on Planet Earth, by Jamiroquai
188. Endtroducing… by DJ Shadow

 Wednesday 20 November

189. England’s Newest Hit Makers, by The Rolling Stones
190. En-Tact, by The Shamen
191. Entertainment, by Gang of Four ♯

Friday 22 November

192. Everybody Knows This is Nowhere, by Neil Young ♯
193. Every Picture Tells a Story, by Rod Stewart ♯
194. E.V.O.L by Sonic Youth ♯

Tuesday 3 December

1. Exile on Main Street, by The Rolling Stones
2. Exit Planet Dust, by The Chemical Brothers
3. Exodus, by Bob Marley and The Wailers
4. Faith, by George Michael
5. The Fat of the Land, by Prodigy
6. Faust IV, by Faust ♯

200 albums down! We’re into the Fs!

Filed under: music and projects
(12 August 2019)