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
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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Warren Zevon’s Recovery Through ‘Sentimental Hygiene’
The 1987 album signaled more than a bid for a career reset. Now sober and focused, and with help from R.E.M., he was clearly back on track.
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The Kinks’ Masterful ‘Everybody’s in Show-Biz’
The Kinks returned to America in 1972 after a ban to become the arena rock band they deserved to be.
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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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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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Stevie Wonder and ‘Innervisions’: Reaching Higher Ground
On his 16th album in a decade Wonder needed a strong album. He nailed it. Like its predecessor, this one earned a wide audience and generated 3 hit singles
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Emmylou Harris’ ‘Luxury Liner’: Outside The Lines
Influenced by Gram Parsons and using some of the best musicians and songwriters in the business, the singer created a country-rock smash with the 1976 album.
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AC/DC’s ‘Highway to Hell’: You Want Blood?
The 1979 release by the Australian mega-band is not an album you come to for variety; it’s a monument to single-minded rock.
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When the Moody Blues Found Their ‘Lost Chord’
If you’ve been listening to this music on a scratchy vinyl LP for the last 50 years, you’re bound to find the surround-sound version to be a real trip.
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When John Mayall’s ‘Blues Breakers with Eric Clapton’ Broke Down Boundaries
The 1966 album featuring a 21-year-old Clapton helped establish a blues-rock template that would linger long after in the popular music firmament
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