Posts From Thomas Kintner

The Van Halen Debut Album: A Turning Point for Rock

It didn’t sound at first listen like something to change the course of rock music, but they opened doors for any number of rock acts.

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Review—James Taylor’s ‘Sweet Baby James’: Fire and Rain

It ushered in the singer-songwriter era and has endured as a beacon to listeners and like-minded musicians for half a century.

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Warren Zevon ‘Excitable Boy’ LP: Werewolves and Lawyers, Oh My

With songs like “Werewolves of London,” “Lawyers, Guns and Money” and the title track, it was not only his greatest work but a singer-songwriter classic

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Joni Mitchell ‘Court and Spark’ Turns 50

Her 1974 best-seller was adorned by a sophisticated sonic sensibility that would define her career from that moment forward.

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When Johnny Cash Did Time ‘At Folsom Prison’

Performing for prison inmates was nothing new for the legendary singer, but his record label was nervous about making an album at one. Good thing they did

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Queen ‘A Night at the Opera’: A Fancy Blockbuster

Their fourth album was “a showy spectacle that revels in its bombastic production” and gave us “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It’s also an indisputable classic.

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Elton John’s ‘Madman Across the Water’: A Blue Jean Baby

He was everywhere in 1971 but still hadn’t quite found his way. Then he released the first album that defined his singular gifts.

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Pure Prairie League: ‘Bustin’ Out’—Persistence Pays Off

Left for dead by their record label, and with musicians using the group as a revolving door, the band nearly packed it in. Then they got lucky.

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Blondie: ‘Parallel Lines’—An International Smash

The LP, which included the smash “Heart of Glass,” would transform the group from boutique act into a worldwide sensation. Our Album Rewind…

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Styx ‘Paradise Theatre’: Where Prog Met Pure Pop

The album was the band’s greatest success but with the members no longer on the same page, it was also the beginning of the end.

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