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
Los Lobos’ ‘How Will The Wolf Survive?’: Songs of Passion
“The title song is about people who are living along that fine line between extinction and…staying alive.”
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Jethro Tull ‘Thick As a Brick’: Don’t Sit This One Out
Equal parts ambitious and meticulous, the band’s 1972 best-seller is a smartly produced collage whose appeals remain undimmed.
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Yaz ‘Upstairs at Eric’s’ & Alison Moyet ‘Alf’: Dynamic Duo
Vince Clarke and Moyet were an “arranged marriage.” When Yaz split, each went on to a successful solo career.
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Bob Seger ‘Against the Wind’: Rockin’ the Mainstream
It’s difficult to discern any one Seger album that stands out overall. Yet even now, this 1980 release still ranks as one of Bob’s best.
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Todd Rundgren ‘Something/Anything?’: An Extravagant Opus
As its title suggests, the ambitious, far-reaching 1972 double album provided early proof that the possibilities were endless.
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Fleetwood Mac: Mirage—A Return To the Top
The 1982 album, and follow-up to 1979’s more experimental Tusk, served as a return to the more polished and accessible sound of the band’s earlier work.
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The Byrds’ ‘Younger Than Yesterday’—An Ambitious Studio Flight
Expanding beyond their trademark jingle-jangle folk-rock, the band created their most diverse, experimental recording to date.
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‘The Great Lost Kinks Album’: Revisiting an Overlooked 1973 Delight
Although compiled to satisfy a contractual obligation, the collection of stray tracks is “a corner of the room worth spending some time in.”
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Elvis Costello & The Attractions ‘Trust’: A Dark Masterwork
The album, Costello’s fifth overall, captures the quartet at a potent but troubled peak, its title a loaded, ironic signifier
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Bob Dylan’s Masterful ‘Blood on the Tracks’ @50
After finishing the recording sessions for his new album, the artist decided he didn’t like some of it and went back into the studio. A classic emerged.
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