Heyah! Heyah! You forgot something!

Ok, so most people who are vaguely interested in 'Top 100' lists for music know that Spin has released their 'Top 100 albums from 1985 - current.' Here's the link for the news story:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Music/06/20/music.spintop100.ap/index.html

If you don't want to visit the link, Radiohead is atop with their masterpiece OK Computer (no argument there). In fact... I think I'm going to listen to that right now... Anyway, Number 2 is Public Enemy's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. There are some albums that were not included in favor of other albums from the same artist (e.g. The Bends was excluded in favor of the polarizing Kid A) and some omissions were borderline criminal (see list below).

Spin put out their 'best of the 1990s' list a few years ago and a few of the albums that were on the list are now in very different positions. For example, PJ Harvey's To Bring You My Love was way the hell up at number three in the 'best of '90s' list, but it languishes in the lower half of the most current list. Rid of Me is now in the top ten. Some of the albums in this list are very, very good, but still - Elastica's self-titled album, D'Angelo's Voodoo, Cornershop's When I was Born... and Weezer's Pinkerton pale in comparison to these selections:




U2 The Joshua Tree
A bummer this wasn't included. However, at least All That You Can't Leave Behind was also excluded. This album helped bring in a much-needed air of legitimacy to mainstream '80s music.



Radiohead The Bends
Yes, OK Computer was a better album. But The Bends remains Radiohead's best 'front to back' listen. Yes, Kid A was more experimental and arguably more influential, but The Bend's exclusion is inexcusable.


Massive Attack Blue Lines and Mezzanine
Hard to believe that Portishead and Tricky landed on this list, but the pioneers of the trip-hop genre get left out. Mezzanine was the better album. Blue Lines helped usher in the genre. BOTH needed to be included.


The Flaming Lips The Soft Bulletin
In the tone of a teenager in a bad sitcom: "Were lobotomies like totally passed out when I was gone?"



Tori Amos Under the Pink
A tossup between this and Little Earthquakes. Tori Amos almost single-handedly redefined the singer/songwriter album for the '90s and today.



Tool Aenima
Aside from its relentless quality, this album made metal accessible once again to book-reading intellects.




Other dumb omissions:

Bob Dylan Time Out of Mind and Love and Theft - Old people made music too during this time.

Johnny Cash American Recordings - See above. It's hard to compare, but it's hella better than the White Stripes White Blood Cells (which I am a great fan of).

The Verve Urban Hymns - As long as we're including Oasis and Blur, this album definitely ranks up with Parklife and Definitely Maybe.

Modest Mouse The Moon and Antarctica - It's as good as the album that was included in the list (The Lonesome Crowded West) - meaning it's amazing enough to be in the Top 10 list.

Garbage - Their self-titled album is a pop album for the ages.


Albums that are my favorite, but I know Spin would never include, so I know better than to ask...

Morphine Cure for Pain

The Cowboy Junkies The Trinity Sessions

Rancid ... And Out Come the Wolves

Neko Case Blackisted

Current Listening Selections

Wilco - Summerteeth

Radiohead - OK Computer

Cowboy Bebop - mix CD