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
Joe Jackson ‘Look Sharp!’: An Artful Debut
The impressive 11 songs that made the final cut of this new wave-era debut comprise a coherent piece of art with nary a dull moment.
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Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson ‘Waylon & Willie’: Two of a Kind
It was actually a strange hybrid, but it proved irresistible to record buyers, including many rock fans who’d never bought a country album before.
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Badfinger ‘Straight Up’: A Power Pop Masterpiece
They began as proteges of the Beatles, then became power pop heroes. The story behind one of the classic Apple Records albums.
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Deep Purple ‘Made In Japan’: Onstage Chemistry
The reserved Japanese audience is clearly stunned as the concert ends, and is silent for a moment until exploding into raucous applause.
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‘Let It Bleed’: The Rolling Stones’ Turbulent Masterpiece
The album captures the band at its creative apogee through a dark masterpiece that mirrors the violent ’60s milieu in which it was created.
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Daryl Hall & John Oates: ‘Abandoned Luncheonette’—2nd Chances
The soul-influenced duo was still finding their way when they recorded their second album. Superstardom would soon find them.
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George Harrison ‘Cloud Nine’: Back at the Top
With friends Jeff Lynne and Eric Clapton aboard, and songs like “When We Was Fab” and “Got My Mind Set on You,” the 1987 album was a huge hit.
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The Van Morrison Masterpiece: ‘Astral Weeks’
A “feverish poetic intensity persists” throughout the cycle of songs that comprise his 1968 work, even as those songs shift in pace and tone.
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Randy Newman ‘Sail Away’: The Big One
The 1972 album proved a breakthrough for his career both in terms of quality and box-office appeal as singers of many genres competed to record its tunes.
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When Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen Were ‘Lost in the Ozone’
There was much more to this genre-defying band than “Hot Rod Lincoln.” Here is the back story of a truly versatile and unique group.
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