Essential Studio Albums

[VinylGuy]

Yeah in super interested in a Prince ride.

[LoathedVermin72]

I wish I liked Prince more than I do. I like some songs a lot but I never quite see why people think he’s such a genius. Purple Rain is a good album but something about the production always feels a little thin to me.

[Jorge]

"I Would Die 4 U" is my favorite

[Ello Sailor]

I wish I liked Prince more than I do. I like some songs a lot but I never quite see why people think he’s such a genius. Purple Rain is a good album but something about the production always feels a little thin to me.

He could play like a dozen different instruments at an elite level. Not to mention his songwriting chops.

Get a hold of yourself, man!

[liebzz]

Sheila E. - The Glamorous Life

More Prince connections! This pop album was produced by the center of our conversation, and Sheila E. has a few really nice tracks here, most prominently the 9 minute title track that never feels quite that long and demonstrates Sheila E.’s ear for rhythm and percussion. Shortberry Strawcake (instrumental I think), and Oliver’s House stuck for me as well here. Prince was hanging around some good talent in this period for sure.

The Essential Track: The Glamorous Life

Up Next: Madonna - Like a Virgin

[wease]

[liebzz]

Madonna - Like a Virgin

Madonna’s takeover of the pop world may not have started here, but this is the album that catapulted her to impossible fame - pushing the boundaries of what a female pop star could do both musically and visually. This album is full of her classic songs and nearly plays like a greatest hits album. I’ll admit my own experience of her music has never been particularly positive, but coming back very many years since I have last heard Madonna’s music (other than her debut which I listened to a couple of weeks ago) is a pseudo-retcon - I don’t necessarily call myself smitten by these albums, but I am not reflexively rejecting it on premise. So the needle has moved in the right direction.

The Essential Track: Material Girl

Up Next: Tina Turner - Private Dancer

[epilogue]

I wish I liked Prince more than I do. I like some songs a lot but I never quite see why people think he’s such a genius. Purple Rain is a good album but something about the production always feels a little thin to me.

I really respond to this.

Prince is undeniably great. I do think he's a true artistic genius. But I also have a difficult time totally connecting with his work. I can appreciate it more than I like/enjoy it.

[liebzz]

Tina Turner - Private Dancer

This is another album that made a pop star undeniably huge. Tina Turner in some ways is analogous to Joe Cocker in that she used her singing voice to breathe new life into other people’s songs, in a way that almost makes them her own. The obvious track here, and the one that is rather iconic, is What’s Love Got To Do With It?, though my personal favorite on this listen is Steel Claw, which brings some good hard edges sonically that match perfectly with her raspy voice.

The Essential Track: Steel Claw

Up Next: Sade - Diamond Life

[liebzz]

I wish I liked Prince more than I do. I like some songs a lot but I never quite see why people think he’s such a genius. Purple Rain is a good album but something about the production always feels a little thin to me.

I really respond to this.

Prince is undeniably great. I do think he's a true artistic genius. But I also have a difficult time totally connecting with his work. I can appreciate it more than I like/enjoy it.

This is precisely how I feel about Madonna.

[wease]

Wait till you see who wrote Private Dancer

[liebzz]

Wait till you see who wrote Private Dancer

Yes, Mark Knopfler. I saw that.

[liebzz]

Sade - Diamond Life

Now this is a fantastic album. This is the perfect mix of pop, and vocal jazz. Sade Adu’s voice is smooth, alluring, and mysterious enough that your attention stays on it with the smooth jazz in the background that complements her perfectly. Smooth Operator is a pure classic, and Your Love is King is also quite familiar. Sally is so good that it feels so familiar. Cherry Pie, Hang On To Your Love, and Frankie’s First Affair also so great. This one ended taking me by surprise.

The Essential Track: Smooth Operator

Up Next: The Cars - Heartbeat City

[VinylGuy]

ive been listening Sade a bit more serious last year and yes, some very groovy stuff there.

[Higgs]

Love love love that Sade album. I have an original pressing on vinyl and it is one of the best sounding albums I have.

[liebzz]

The Cars - Heartbeat City

This is another very good album from The Cars, most famously including Drive and You Might Think, both 80s classics. This one feels a little more big rock for some reason, maybe the guitars are bit more prominent than the debut, but I really enjoyed this one, the kind of stuff you can build an 80s playlist off of.

The Essential Track: Drive

Up Next: Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA

[liebzz]

Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA

Seems like nearly every song on this album is a classic. From the oddly co-opted Born in the USA - a song about forgotten and disposed veterans turned ‘Murica anthem, to the last minute addition of Dancing in the Dark, to the platonic love and loss of Bobby Jean, to the cheesy but weirdly universal over the hill anthem of Glory Days, or the lusty I’m On Fire - it just seems like everything on this album is well played. And yet what hits like a true ton of bricks is My Hometown, a stunning song as much about the struggles of a place as a person perseverance in connection with that place.

The Essential Track: My Hometown

Up Next: Midnight Oil - Red Sails in the Sunset

[liebzz]

Midnight Oil - Red Sails in the Sunset

Quite a few years ago, I did an Oils deep dive (in the thread). I have basically no memory of this album but for Kosciusko, though that is because the one chance I had to see Midnight Oil they played it and is was glorious. All that’s a bit surprising because this is maybe the most interesting album of theirs sonically thus far. Seems like they are playing around a bit with their sound, even if the results are not quite as resoundingly great as Place Without a Postcard or 10, 9, 8… - though the aforementioned Kosciusko, When the Generals Talk, Best of Both Worlds, Minutes to Midnight, and Jimmy Sharman’s Boxers are all phenomenal tracks. Often these guys seem to reflect their brand of discourse through the lens of the modern sounds of the moment, and I think this one does that as well, and does it quite well.

The Essential Track: Kosciusko

Up Next: U2 - The Unforgettable Fire

[liebzz]

U2 - The Unforgettable Fire

By this point, you can expect at least a couple world defining global epic U2 hits per album. The blistering War had Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year’s Day, and this one has Pride (In the Name of Love) and Bad. The title track is up there as well, though maybe not as globally recognizable as the other two. For this one, some of the edge is taken off for atmosphere, and it certainly suits them well, though I’d pick War between the two if I had to choose. A Sort of Homecoming and Indian Summer Sky are two more solid highlights here.

The Essential Track: The Unforgettable Fire

Up Next: R.E.M. - Reckoning

[coptheriotact]

Love love love that Sade album. I have an original pressing on vinyl and it is one of the best sounding albums I have.

i picked up an 80s nz pressing a few years ago and it sounded so good it made me want to sell all my records pressed after 1989