Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums of All Time (500-491)

So as I mentioned earlier, with the release of a newer list, I have restarted the Rolling Stone list. With the newer 500-491, we have eight new albums, including two of my all-time favorites and two ones from the last list that I'm checking out for a second time. Here are albums 500-491 on Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums of All Time:

500. OutKast-Aquemini

I have always appreciated the duo of Big Boi and Andre 3000, better known as OutKast. It was with this album that I heard my first OutKast song, "Rosa Parks", a song that sounded unlike anything in the Puff Daddy dominated hip-hop of the time. I didn't own a OutKast album until Stankonia, and while I liked the combination of the two rappers, I didn't love it the way I wanted to. Big Boi seemed too typical while Andre 3000 was too off the wall. They were almost too different and that mixture didn't always work for me. Yet when they finally separated with Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, something felt missing from each of the albums: each other. Listening to Aquemini in its entirety for the first time, the combination sounds so perfect in hindsight. Aquemini is just weird enough to stand out and the lyrical stylings that deal with issues unheard of in hip-hop work brilliantly with these two. A song like "Spottieottiedogaliscious" highlights both of their strengths. The dual attempt at storytelling, the placement of the horns, Andre's funkier sound and Big Boi's more straightforward raps, all blend together into a seven minute song that's just so crazy, it works. OutKast was a one of a kind hip-hop duo that should have clashed, but ended up creating a perfect combo and Aquemini is an example of just how great they worked together.

Suggested Track: "Rosa Sparks"

499. B.B. King-Live in Cook County Jail

One of my major weak points in music that is already being rectified in blues. Disappointingly, one of my biggest weak spots in that genre is also one of music's biggest names: B.B. King. I can tell a King song from its style and sound, and I know a few songs from him, but besides that my knowledge is very lacking. In fact Live in Cook County Jail is the first King album I've listened to. For someone who isn't a big fan of blues, I really liked Live in Cook County Jail. King's guitar is almost as powerful as his voice, which blasts through the Chicago jail on this album. The best example of this is on "How Blue Can You Get?" While I am predisposed to love this song since it is sampled on a song I adore, Primitive Radio Gods' "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hands", the song is a powerhouse. King shreds on his guitar for the first half and then completely overwhelms with his voice as he sings "I've been down hearted baby, ever since the day we met." Live in Cook County Jail makes me appreciate blues like I never had before and I can't wait to check out more King further on in the list.

Suggested Track: "How Blue Can You Get?"

498. The Stone Roses-The Stone Roses

Since this is my second go around on this list, I planned on making my way through the bottom few very quickly, in an attempt to get back to the point that I had ended at. I didn't expect there to be many real new surprises. A majority of the albums are ones I have already listened to, or albums I already consider to be some of my favorites. But one thing I didn't count on was The Stone Roses. I've always been a fan of the music that made it's way from England to America in the early 90s. I grew up on bands like Radiohead, Blur and Oasis, yet I had never listened to any of The Stone Roses, even though they are credited for this type of music's trip across the Atlantic. But one track in, I was hooked. The influence The Stone Roses has had on bands like the ones aforementioned is apparent, especially with Oasis. Instead of moving on with my list, I just kept going over The Stones Roses over and over again. The Stone Roses is type of album that is exactly why I started listening to this list in the first place.

Suggested Track: "She Bangs the Drums"

497. The White Stripes-White Blood Cells

First off, I'm amazed that this album didn't make Rolling Stone's original list, considering this album, along with Is This It, brought along the most influential music period of the 2000s, the garage rock movement. It's weird listening to White Blood Cells eleven years after it came out. Since then, the band became one of the biggest rock bands, broke up and made Jack White arguably the biggest modern rock star we have today. I believe that their follow up Elephant is better in almost every way, but that's also because that album was trying to expound upon what was set up in White Blood Cells. I'll be honest, I do miss the simplicity, thrown together attitude of White Blood Cells and it is those elements is the reason why I wasn't such a big fan of their final two albums, Get Behind Me Satan and Icky Thump. White Blood Cells did what no other White Stripes album really did after, it showed Jack and Meg having fun with what they are doing. White Blood Cells feels like everything from sped-up punk song ("Fell In Love With a Girl", arguably one of the best songs of the 2000s), movie homage ("The Union Forever") to childhood playground sing along ("We're Going to Be Friends"). It's a masterpiece of bare-bones rock that shines in its effort to be something simple and full of childlike glee.

Suggested Track: "Fell In Love With a Girl"

496. Boz Scaggs-Boz Scaggs

Boz Scaggs is one of those unfortunate albums for me where I understand why it made the list, yet I can't  really find myself enjoying the album that much. While listening to Boz Scaggs, every track did seem to just run together for me, a problem I occasionally have with blues albums, even though Boz Scaggs isn't solely blues. Boz Scaggs is the type of album I feel like I should hear on a rainy day at Panera; something in the background, unintrusive and just kind of there. The album starts off fun, but by the second track, "I'll Be Gone", the album finds its melancholy groove and never really gets out of it. I wish I could have found something substantial that I could latch on to with Boz Scaggs, but sadly the album just sort of didn't make much of an impression.

Suggested Track: "I'm Easy"

495. Bonnie Raitt-Give It Up

In listening to these first ten albums, I accidentally listened to a different Bonnie Raitt album by mistake, one that will apparently come up later in the list. I didn’t necessarily feel too strongly about the album, which was released almost twenty years after Give It Up. I’m glad I got to spend some time with her 1972 release, because it’s much more of a style that I truly enjoy. Coming off White Blood Cells, Give It Up is a nice transition, also utilizing blues and country stylings into something fun. The first song “Give It Up or Let Me Go” really reminded me of Loretta Lynn-Jack White collaborations and 1920’s jazz. The album only features three songs written by Raitt, but it sounds definitely like her. Give It Up is a strong release, much toned back in terms of production than her future albums and just feels like a group of musicians, including Paul Butterfield who we will get to soon, just having a great jam session together. As far as Raitt is concerned, Give It Up shows me I appreciate her older material much more.

Suggested Track: “Give It Up or Let Me Go”

494. MGMT-Oracular Spectacular

Okay, before I bash this album's placement, let me say that I like MGMT. In fact, I'm one of the few people that think that Congratulations, their follow-up to this album, is much better then it gets credit for. "Time to Pretend" and "Kids" are easily two of the best songs of the last decade. But I can't help but feel like this is one of those albums that in a decade, won't be considered as relevant as it is. Yes, MGMT did popularize this type of style, but Animal Collective made it important. Time has told that it isn't necessarily what is more popular that lasts but rather what did it better. I realize that Animal Collective isn't exactly as dancey as MGMT. but the styles are similar. Also, I find it weird that Rolling Stone believes this album is more important that White Blood Cells. 

That being said, Oracular Spectacular is a great pop record, one that has a unique view of popularity, which we see in "Time to Pretend". The album is back-to-back amazing pop songs from beginning to end. Unfortunately, it doesn't have much substance beyond that. It's an incredibly fun record, and there's nothing wrong with just being that. This may be very foolish of me to believe, but MGMT does have the power to change pop music for the better, much like The Black Keys is currently changing rock music, I just hope they get better with age.

Suggested Track: "Time to Pretend"

493. Wilco-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

My taste in music evolved in a very fluid way. I used to listen to what was popular, Top 40 and TRL and the like. Then I realized my favorite songs on those stations and shows were more along the lines of alternative rock, so I switched to my local rock station. When I didn't want to hear any more terrible screaming rock, I took to music magazines that shared my tastes in a hope to expand what I listened to. In some cases, I trusted the magazines so wholly that I took to buying albums just because a magazine I liked favored them. One of those albums I had complete faith in was Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Hell, in early 2000s music journalism it was almost impossible to not hear about Wilco's hard time in releasing what would become their greatest album. 

I had never heard Wilco before, but was instantly entranced by YHF. It's an album that in certain songs isn't that weird, but on some tracks, seem completely unusual. If you just jump in to a song like "I'm The Man Who Loves You" or "Heavy Metal Drummer", there's nothing too weird about the sound, but if you were to check out "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart", it would be a complete mindfuck. I've loved this album for over a decade and I still have no idea what many of the lines in that song mean.

I think Wilco is the closest thing America has to their own version of Radiohead. If that's the case, YHF is their OK Computer. They both started off as bands with a much different sound, then tried something different, went a little bit weirder, then created a new sound that worked as a combination of both their old and new sounds. I would easily place YHF as one of my all-time favorite albums, one that flows so smoothly and there doesn't feel like any missteps throughout the entire 52 minutes. If anything, I'm shocked YHF is this low on the list. I would consider it one of the most important albums of the last decade, especially in terms of how bands interact with their labels. I've even wrote college papers on this album discussing its importance before. I'm glad the new list included this phenomenal album, but it easily deserves a higher placement.

Suggested Track: "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart"

492. Eurythmics-Touch

What I originally said:

For me, Eurythmics were one of those bands that I never really payed much attention to. I found Annie Lennox annoying and the song "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" was a constant irritation to any kid growing up in the nineties who listened to Top 40 radio. After checking out the track list to make sure "Sweet Dreams" wasn't on this album, I delved in and was surprised by the album. Touch is a consistently fun synth pop album that never really slows down. It actually hit a sweet spot that I didn't really know I had until LCD Soundsystem, which is dance music that is also quite emotional, as can be seen in "No Fear, No Hate, No Pain (No Broken Hearts)" and the hit single "Here Comes the Rain Again." I'll be honest, one of the detractions for me starting this list was seeing that I would have to start off with the Eurythmics, but I must say, I'm glad I gave Lennox and Dave Stewart another chance cause Touch is a fairly fun album.

What I say now:

Eurythmics' Touch is the first album we've reached that is on both lists that we've already reviewed. Touch is a pleasant surprise, one that is clearly 80s synth-pop fun that is a product of its time. Like I stated earlier, I've always been quite irritated when hearing Eurythmics on the radio, but Touch only leaves me with positive feelings on the duo. Yes, the 80s have been done better, but Touch is a fine product that features enough fun tracks to give it a listen.

Suggested Track: "Here Comes the Rain Again"

491. Albert King-Born Under A Bad Sign

What I originally said:

There are a few genres of music that I don't hate, but that just don't really stand out for me. Funk, reggae and blues I don't have a problem with, but I rarely will listen to for fun. I knew little about Albert King's Born Under A Bad Sign with the exception that it was a blues album. I'll say this: Born Under A Bad Sign didn't change my opinion of blues but I do think it is a very good album. King's vocals, along with his phenomenal guitar that is clearly an inspiration for many a classic rock guitar player really elevate this album. There is a lot to like here and when King gets into a groove, it can get pretty fun. But one of my problems with blues, mostly an entire album of it, is that most of the songs feel like they drag into one long track. Once again, it doesn't sound bad, it just can be a bit boring. But at least King makes it sound fun.

What I say now:

Re-listening to Born Under A Bad Sign, I enjoy it quite a bit more. It's not one of my favorites, but I do think I could see myself listening to it to just mellow out. King is very fun when he gets going. I think listening to some of the albums I listened to on the original list have left me more susceptible to enjoying blues and funk albums. Having listened to more blues, Born Under A Bad Sign is enjoyable, but I don't expect it to get much higher than it did on my original list.

Suggested Track: "Born Under A Bad Sign"

Here are my personal rankings for the albums I've listened to so far (original rankings in parenthesis):

1. Wilco-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (493)

2. The White Stripes-White Blood Cells (497)

3. The Stone Roses-The Stone Roses (498)

4. MGMT-Oracular Spectacular (494)

5. B.B. King-Live in Cook County Jail (499)

6. OutKast-Aquemini (500)

7. Bonnie Raitt-Give It Up (495)

8. Eurythmics-Touch (492)

9. Albert King-Born Under a Bad Sign (491)

10. Boz Scaggs-Boz Scaggs (496)

It already feels like this newer list has more variety than the original, but I may be saying that since more of my favorite albums are already included. Regardless, it'll be interesting to see how some of my favorites fair against the albums we've checked out in the earlier list this time around.

Also if you'd like to follow along, check out the Rolling Stone Top 500 Albums list on Spotify.