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
Jethro Tull’s ‘Thick As a Brick’: Concept LP or Parody of One?
Equal parts ambitious and meticulous, the band’s 1972 best-seller is a smartly produced collage whose appeals remain undimmed.
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The ‘Truth’ According to Jeff Beck: A Genre-Busting Masterpiece
The former Yardbirds guitarist’s 1968 solo debut signaled a half-dozen highways for the future of rock. Every track on ‘Truth’ is astonishing.
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Neil Young’s ‘Harvest’: Keep Me Searching
Partnering with a new band he called the Stray Gators, Young recorded one of his most popular albums of all-time, and it gave him his only #1 single.
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Eric Clapton’s Solo Debut LP: A Long Way From Home
With help from a some of rock’s greatest songwriters and musicians, the former Cream/Blind Faith guitarist launched his solo career with a gem of an LP.
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The Kinks’ ‘Sleepwalker’: The Comeback
The album kept selling to teenagers who barely remembered the Kinks of the previous decade, or thought they were a new band.
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Love’s Brilliant Landmark ‘Forever Changes’
The deeper complexity and nuance that had lurked under the surface came to the forefront in the L.A. band’s classic 1967 third album.
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Todd Rundgren’s ‘A Wizard, A True Star’: Brilliant & Baffling
Was Todd’s against-the-grain psychedelic album a masterpiece or a slab of unintelligible self-indulgence? We look back at a ’70s classic.
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When Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen Were ‘Lost in the Ozone’ (Again)
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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Sam Cooke’s Early Years Collected in New 5-CD Set: Review
Cooke’s years at Keen found him taking his first steps away from gospel, including the session that would yield his first smash hit, “You Send Me.”
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Santana’s ‘Abraxas’: Post-Woodstock Latin Magic
When it came to recording their second album, the band wanted to expend more effort, and make a better-sounding record, than their somewhat rushed debut.
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