Tag: Pop
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Todd Rundgren ‘Something/Anything?’ (1972)
Todd Rundgren’s career was a tightrope walk between pop stardom and cult icon status, a balancing act that began in the late 1960s and reached its zenith with the 1972 magnum opus Something/Anything?. Emerging with the Nazz, a psych-rock band steeped in Beatlesque melodies, Rundgren quickly set his sights on a broader canvas as a…
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George Michael ‘Faith’ (1987)
After rising to fame as the lead singer of Wham!, George Michael left the teenybopper persona behind in a bold transformation from pop heartthrob to serious musician– Faith sees Michael writing and producing all the songs while also playing many of the instruments himself. It’s the quintessential debut solo album that showcases Michael’s versatility across…
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Etta James ‘At Last!’ (1960)
At just 22, Etta James had already lived a life rich with struggle and resilience when she stepped into Chicago’s Chess Records studio to record At Last. And with a delicate orchestral arrangement and a velvety, yearning vocal delivery, the title track “At Last” captured the essence of love’s deepest longing. There’s so many things…
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Herbie Hancock ‘Head Hunters’ (1973)
Herbie Hancock’s influence on funk is undeniable, with his groundbreaking keyboard work redefining what was possible within the genre. Hancock brought a mesmerizing harmonic sophistication and experimental spirit into funk, especially through his mastery of the electric keyboard and synthesizer. On Head Hunters he fused the rhythmic depth of jazz with the driving grooves of…
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ABBA ‘Arrival’ (1976)
ABBA’s Arrival showcases the band’s signature blend of pop brilliance and sense of drama– the whole album has always felt to me like something out of a Broadway musical, with tunes that told a grandiose story played up to maximum effect. From the infectious energy of “Dancing Queen” (how many goddamn weddings have you been…
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Savage Garden ‘Savage Garden’ (1997)
Savage Garden’s “Truly Madly Deeply” is up there for me as one of the better pop love songs of all-time for the sole reason that it came at a pretty formative point in my life. Whether you want to call it my band boy phase or something else a little less accusatory (although boy band…
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Hall & Oates ‘Private Eyes’ (1981)
Hall & Oates’ Private Eyes epitomizes the duo’s signature yacht rock sound—a smooth blend of pop, rock, and soul that captures the essence of early ’80s radio. The album features some of their most iconic tracks, including the title song “Private Eyes” and “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do),” both of which showcase…
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Dan Hartman ‘I Can Dream About You’ (1984)
I Can Dream About You is a quintessential 80’s album that perfectly captures the era’s vibrant energy and cheesy earnestness. Blending pop, rock, and synth elements, Hartman’s powerful voice cascades over arrangements whose bias for danceability hides some pretty excellent melodic choices. If you close your eyes and listen closely you can hear the influence…
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Backstreet Boys ‘Backstreet Boys’ (1996)
I was nine years old living in a two-bed two-bath apartment when I first heard the Backstreet Boys’ debut album. It was one of the first albums I would ever own alongside Third Eye Blind’s self-titled debut and Mighty Mighty Bosstones Let’s Face It, which in retrospect is a pretty awesome trio of albums to…
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Nicki Minaj ‘Pink Friday’ (2010)
Pink Friday reshaped the hip hop landscape in a way that has a lot of parallels to Lil’ Kim’s magnum opus Hard Core. It marked the rise of Minaj as a multifaceted artist, blending rap with pop, and broadening hip hop’s appeal to a more diverse audience. And like Kim before her, Minaj’s dynamic persona…
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The Beach Boys ‘Surfin’ Safari’ (1962)
The Beach Boys occupy a pretty important niche within the lexicon of American pop music. For the majority of the band’s career they cranked out campy lively surf rock anthems which captured the essence of the early 1960s Southern California surf culture, celebrating the carefree spirit of beach life and surfing. It’s basically the audio…
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Madonna ‘Like A Virgin’ (1984)
You’d be hard pressed to list a pop culture moment as iconic as Madonna’s 1984 performance at the VMA’s that saw her writhing on the ground in a white wedding dress while singing “Like a Virgin.” It was a career-defining performance, one that thrust her headfirst into the world of controversy she’s been known for…
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Buddy Holly ‘Buddy Holly’ (1958)
Buddy Holly’s impact on rock and roll is profound and enduring. He shaped the genre’s evolution in a few pivotal ways, from his innovative approach to songwriting and his distinctive style which set a new standard for rock and roll. With hits like “Peggy Sue” and “Everyday”, Holly’s sound combined energetic rhythms with a blend…
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Joan Armatrading ‘Joan Armatrading’ (1976)
Standing somewhere in between the hazy folk singer-songwriter vibes of the early 70’s and the more grandiose classic rock production that would come latter in the decade, Joan Armatrading’s self-titled third album has a really sly way of working its way into your headspace over the entirety of its ten songs. It’s an intimate treatise…
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Prefab Sprout ‘From Langley Park To Memphis’ (1988)
Shiny and glittery, Prefab Sprout’s third album From Langley Park To Memphis is a trip down memory lane into the world of late 80’s sophisti-pop. This entire album is a colorful collection of immaculately produced New Wave pop songs that sparkle at every turn, a catchy and fun ride that makes you want to tuck…
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Bertie Higgins ‘Just Another Day In Paradise’ (1982)
I was legitimately obsessed for Bertie Higgins song “Key Largo” about five years ago, around the time my first child was born. And when I say obsessed I mean obsessed– I played it about three times a day for an entire calendar month and it ended up on my Spotify Wrapped at the end of…
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Looking Glass ‘Looking Glass’ (1972)
When my wife and I were first seriously dating she played me Looking Glass’ hit single “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)”. I don’t remember if I had ever heard the song before, either on a yacht rock radio station or otherwise, but what I do remember is that I’ll never forget that moment. The way…
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Spiral Starecase ‘More Today Than Yesterday’ (1969)
The career of Spiral Starecase was a brief one– the band broke up a mere 18 months after their debut album was released, marred by infighting and legal disputes amongst the band members. But before they burned out they released one of the greatest oldies hits of all-time in “More Today Than Yesterday”, a soulful…
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Meat Loaf ‘Bat Out of Hell’ (1977)
Bat Out of Hell is the first edition of the musical trilogy that made Meat Loaf a household name over the course of four decades. Bat Out of Hell and its two companion albums (1993’s Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell which features his most famous song “”I’d Do Anything for Love (But…
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Oingo Boingo ‘Dead Man’s Party’ (1985)
Oingo Boingo’s 1985 album Dead Man’s Party is a unique experience from start to finish, capturing the eccentric nature of the band and all of their quirky provocativeness. I’ve been running a ton during 2024 (my New Year resolution is to hit a Vo2 Max over 50) and this album is a slam dunk pick…
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Steve Winwood ‘Arc of a Diver’ (1980)
As a member of some of my favorite classic rock bands from the late 60’s (Blind Faith and Traffic), I’ve always been a massive stan for Steve Winwood. His gloriously high and rich tenor voice, his ability to play multiple instruments, and his emphasis on writing songs that prioritize the groove above all else have…
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The Youngbloods ‘The Youngbloods’ (1967)
Sometimes I like to dig through old 60’s folk rock bands who never really made it and check out their albums for no other reason than I enjoy the blind discovery inherent in the process but also the familiarity of what you’re going to get. So many bands in that era and genre of music…
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Dennis Wilson ‘Pacific Ocean Blue’ (1977)
Out of all the albums I’ve listened to over the last year in a half (529 plus in a row, and counting) the one that has come out of the woodwork and struck me completely by surprise is this one. I’m not a huge Beach Boys fan by any stretch of the imagination, and outside…
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TLC ‘CrazySexyCool’ (1994)
CrazySexyCool is the one of the albums I immediately think of when someone brings up 90’s R&B. The big heavy snare and bass drum beats, soulful melodies, and empowering lyrics is like listening to a little time capsule that takes you back to a time when pop music had some real substance. Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins,…
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Taylor Swift ‘THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT’ (2024)
Despite being in the midst of the record-breaking Eras World Tour, an incredibly public courtship with NFL star Travis Kelce, and the release an astounding 8 albums in the past four years (which includes four of her “re-recorded albums”, a concept we previously covered with her 2021 edition of Red) Taylor Swift managed to find…
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Tina Turner ‘Private Dancer’ (1984)
Following a divorce from her husband Ike Turner, whom she had carved out an incredibly successful career as a husband-wife duo, Tina Turner’s career was at somewhat of a crossroads. Despite her world class vocal talent her first four solo albums were nothing short of a disappointment– Acid Queen was the only one that made…
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Redbone ‘Wovoka’ (1973)
Redbone’s absolute smash single “Come and Get Your Love” was notable for a variety of reasons– the incredible groove, orchestral hooks, and iconic chorus that sounds like it was sung from the heavens. It also was the first Native American song to crack the Top Five of the Billboard Top 100 (peaking at #5 in…
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LFO ‘LFO’ (1999)
Boy bands were an American institution during the late 90’s. You had the originals who started it all with New Kids on The Block, powerhouses like Boys II Men, Backstreet Boys, and *NSYNC, B-listers like 98 Degrees and Five, and then various offshoots who were clearly following the trend and looking to make a quick…
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The Byrds ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ (1965)
The Byrds brand of electric rock paved the way for a generation of American folk musicians to enter the rock and roll genre with a soft landing in the 1960’s. Composed of folk cover songs (four of them penned by the legendary Bob Dylan) and a bevy of originals from guitarist/vocalist Gene Clark, Mr. Tambourine…
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Paula Cole ‘This Fire’ (1996)
This Fire was self-produced and self-written by Paula Cole following her stint as a backing vocalist for Peter Gabriel in the early 90’s. This matters because the album breaks a lot of traditional molds we’re accustomed to in modern pop music (will get into that in a minute) and I’ve found it quite impressive Cole…
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The Delfonics ‘La La Means I Love You’ (1968)
I just watched Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown for the first time a few days ago (yes, I’m aware I’m a little late to the party) and as anyone who has seen the movie before is aware, The Delfonics played a massive role in the movie. They effectively serve as the soundtrack throughout the film for…
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Prince ‘Purple Rain’ (1984)
No artist impacted the sound of the pop music in the 80’s more than Prince. His unique blend of virtuoso musicianship (his guitar solo on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” in 2004 is an absolute masterclass), unrivaled instinct for unique harmonic elements, and prolific writing capabilities that saw him release forty studio albums during his…
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The Beatles ‘Abbey Road’ (1969)
When you think of iconic album covers, Abbey Road is the one that certainly tops the list. The only others I can think of that even come close are The Clash’s London Calling and The Velvet Underground’s The Velvet Underground & Nico. In London thousands of fans re-create this album every single day outside of…
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Harry Styles ‘Harry’s House’ (2022)
Members of boy-bands going on to illustrious solo careers is somewhat of a rare bird. You have some standout examples like Michael Jackson (Jackson 5), Justin Timberlake (*N Sync), and George Michael (Wham!) who went on to be megastars that made people forget they were ever anything but a solo artist, but in general it’s…
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Will Smith ‘Big Willie Style’ (1997)
Long before Will Smith became infamous for losing his mind and slapping Chris Rock onstage at the Academy Awards, he had cultivated a public persona of being a gentle soul and a generally stand-up guy. All those things can be true at the same time of course (as Walt Whitman once said “I am large,…
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James Bay ‘Chaos And The Calm’ (2014)
James Bay’s Chaos And The Calm was seemingly everywhere during the mid 2010’s– his husky emotive voice, dreamy clean guitars, and comfortably simple arrangements made him a household name, especially once “Hold Back The River” hit radio airwaves and launched him into a full blown superstar at the age of 24 years old. Bay isn’t…
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