Album Rewinds
Given the test of time and the wisdom of hindsight, how do significant albums from the past sound and play today? Our critics take a second look from a fresh perspective
Pink Floyd Shine on ‘Wish You Were Here’
Despite tense recording sessions, the band’s 1975 followup to The Dark Side of the Moon became a landmark of art-rock on its own right.
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Traffic: ‘Welcome to the Canteen’—Together Again
The front album cover didn’t even call them Traffic; it just listed the names of the musicians. But there was no mistaking who they were.
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The Byrds’ ‘Sweetheart of the Rodeo’: Cornerstone of Country-Rock
Their most consequential stylistic stroke since their pioneering folk-rock debut three years earlier, it ushered in country-rock and Americana.
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The Multi-Platinum Boston Debut Album: More Than a Feeling
With 17 million sales, it still ranks not only as one of the best-selling debut albums in music history, but also one of the fastest-selling as well.
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‘Graceland’—The World Music Reset From Paul Simon
The album that would become Simon’s grandest statement came into view when he was gifted with a tape of South African music.
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Neil Diamond ‘Hot August Night’: Renowned Hits & Self-Indulgent Gems
So revered was the vibe—and all those hits—that you can’t really tell the 1972 release is a live album.
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Nilsson ‘Pussy Cats’: With a Little Help From a Bad Boy Beatle
By 1974, his once-promising career had hit a wall and it would clearly take something significant to get him back on track. Enter John Lennon
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The Allman Brothers Band’s ‘Brothers and Sisters’: A New Family
With both Duane Allman and Berry Oakley now deceased, the ABB had to decide how to move forward. The answer: their biggest album yet.
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‘Who’s Next’: Plan B Yields a Career Blockbuster
Born from the ashes of an abandoned project Pete Townshend called ‘Life House,’ the band’s 1971 masterwork triumphed through songcraft and performance.
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Linda Ronstadt ‘Hasten Down The Wind’: Right Songs, Right Singer
The 1976 release became her third platinum album in a row, and earned her the second of her eventual 13 Grammy awards.
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