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Turner68Quote
DandelionPowderman
Doctor Robert and Dead Flowers aren't masterpieces, imo.
Dr. Robert is an excellent song.
The lyrics are excellent
The "well well well" break is amazing.
It has also aged well. Play it next to "Mother's Little Helper" and compare. I could see a band today releasing the song and it being a hit, to whatever extent rock songs are hits these days.
The rhythmic guitars are deceptively simple and I love their tone.
The use of the Dorian mode gives it a distinctive feel.
The subtle, restrained use of the harmonium is exactly right.
Pauls' backing vocals beginning in the second verse add just the right feel.
My verdict: masterpiece.
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stewedandkeefed
I think there are very few albums where every song is a masterpiece but I would argue that there are albums that are masterpieces where every song contributes to that achievement though not every song might stand alone as a masterpiece. For example, Exile On Main Street is the greatest rock n roll album of all time IMHO but part of that is examining it as four sides of vinyl and how the sides are sequenced and the mood each side creates. Side two is my favourite but each side has its own perfection. Each song may not be a classic but it is still a part of a classic side and, by extension, classic album. As far as double albums go, London Calling is similar to Exile whereas Blonde On Blonde always gets downgraded by me because of its first song "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" which is such a bad song (though that never affected its popularity).
White album is a great record, but has several fillers like Ob-la-di and Bungalow Bill.Quote
Turner68Quote
stewedandkeefed
I think there are very few albums where every song is a masterpiece but I would argue that there are albums that are masterpieces where every song contributes to that achievement though not every song might stand alone as a masterpiece. For example, Exile On Main Street is the greatest rock n roll album of all time IMHO but part of that is examining it as four sides of vinyl and how the sides are sequenced and the mood each side creates. Side two is my favourite but each side has its own perfection. Each song may not be a classic but it is still a part of a classic side and, by extension, classic album. As far as double albums go, London Calling is similar to Exile whereas Blonde On Blonde always gets downgraded by me because of its first song "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" which is such a bad song (though that never affected its popularity).
I agree with this.
I think London Calling might be the only album that comes close to Exile as a unified masterpiece. The Beatles White Album is also a masterpiece but in a completely different way, as it is fragmentary.
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Redhotcarpet
Schubert: winterreise
Dinu lipatti: anything
Waits: swordfish maybe
Nirvana: nevermind
Iggy: the idiot
Vega: 99,9 F
Velvet : the debut and White light
Beach boys: smile possibly pet sounds
Ry cooder: paris texas
Michael jackson : thriller
loaded is also. I cant make up my mind there. Velvet released masterpieces. Every song more or less.Quote
Turner68Quote
Redhotcarpet
Schubert: winterreise
Dinu lipatti: anything
Waits: swordfish maybe
Nirvana: nevermind
Iggy: the idiot
Vega: 99,9 F
Velvet : the debut and White light
Beach boys: smile possibly pet sounds
Ry cooder: paris texas
Michael jackson : thriller
"white light" is all masterpieces and "loaded" is not? hmm. i beg to differ.
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LieB
It's really hard to decide if certain albums have ONLY masterpieces on them. Exile? Not sure. The album may be the greatest ever made by anybody, but I'm not sure if Ventilator Blues, Turd on the Run or Soul Survivor qualify as masterpieces. Pretty much the same with Beggars Banquet -- perhaps my favourite Stones album, but are Factory Girl, Dear Doctor or Salt of the Earth masterpieces? Let It Bleed is almost the opposite -- I think Banquet is a better album but Bleed has pretty much only masterpieces on it. At least as far as songwriting goes -- there are a bunch of songs (Rambler, Live With Me, Love In Vain) that sounded better on Ya-Ya's, for example. Don't know if this makes sense at all...
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saltoftheearthQuote
LieB
It's really hard to decide if certain albums have ONLY masterpieces on them. Exile? Not sure. The album may be the greatest ever made by anybody, but I'm not sure if Ventilator Blues, Turd on the Run or Soul Survivor qualify as masterpieces. Pretty much the same with Beggars Banquet -- perhaps my favourite Stones album, but are Factory Girl, Dear Doctor or Salt of the Earth masterpieces? Let It Bleed is almost the opposite -- I think Banquet is a better album but Bleed has pretty much only masterpieces on it. At least as far as songwriting goes -- there are a bunch of songs (Rambler, Live With Me, Love In Vain) that sounded better on Ya-Ya's, for example. Don't know if this makes sense at all...
Salt of the earth is indeed a masterpiece (my favourite Rolling Stones song ever), but Dear doctor or Jigsaw puzzle are definitely no masterpieces! Beggars Banquet as a whole is a masterpiece because the 'weaker' songs shine in the context of the album.
Same goes for Let it bleed. Monkey man is no masterpiece, IMO it is not really a very good song. The studio Version of Mindnight rambler is rather boring, the song came to life with the brilliant live Versions (although Love in vain is stronger on the album, the same could be true for this song. But the Album as such is a masterpiece for the same reasons als Beggars Banquet, and it was the original source of those classic live versions.
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Come On
Del Shannon - Rock On!
Roy Orbison - Mystery Girl
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Lou Reed - Transformer
Thåström - Skebokvarnsvägen 209