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It's hard for me to describe an album this extraordinary good. It's supremely trippy, sometimes disorienting, and always an absolute blast. This is a top 5 album by anyone for me and I can't praise it enough. Listening to it is a total head trip, with its intoxicating, LSD laced party atmosphere; in part due to crazy production, ridiculous lyrics, irresistibly groovy funk, brilliant vocals and instrumentation, and just a general feel to it unlike any other. The songs themselves are sensational and I would kill to have been apart of the recordings sessions because the fun and craziness of it all is so obvious through the recordings. Funkadelic and co. would never again reach the heights of this album and it stands as something unique amongst the rest of their discography. Their follow up album comes closest in sound, but doesn't compare in quality.

This was my first funk album only a few years back, but as a big fan of psychedelia, it grabbed my instantly. The high quality of the songs themselves soon became evident, too.
-10/10

With a distinct jazz influence largely absent from their rock band compadres; Spirit kick things off beautifully with their self-titled debut. The exuberant opener 'Fresh-Garbage' remains one of my favourite songs by the band, with its killer melody and feel, and tight musicianship. 'Mechanical World' has a suitable industrial feel with its dynamic melody, mechanical beat, and distant, wavering vocals, and is a particularly good display of the cleverness of this band.

'Taurus' is a somber and sweet orchestral piece (ignore the petty lawsuit by the band) that fairly quickly makes way for the sitar backed, hazy 'Girl in Your Eye'. 'Straight Arrow' is a bit by the numbers and is less impressive, but is still a bit of fun. Everything from here on is consistently great even if they don't make as big of an impression as the two aforementioned highlights 'Fresh Garbage' and 'Mechanical World', but that's not to say they're generic or unspectacular, as they're all terrific with a sound unique to their own.

Even when the band more closely echoes their most dated contemporaries with slightly uneasy and dreamy but largely jovial and innocent pop-psych melodies and lyrics, Spirit put their own spin on it, transforming and elevating the song into something with more spectacle and originality.

Unfortunately 'Elijah' is tacked onto the end. It's well recorded and has a good drum solo, as well as a cool riff... between that, though, it's too many minutes of meandering instrumentation that makes no impression. It's a disappointing ending to what could've been a top to bottom classic album.

Spirit are a great band and they knocked it out the park right away. They're one of those fair few bands where you can put on just about any song and recognise them almost immediately. Overall; I highly recommend this album... just don't feel bad for lifting the needle before the last track.

I doubt you'll find anyone who will argue that The Beatles never went on to do better things (or hadn't already), but this is still a damn fine album in its own right, and holds up even in comparison to their excellent previous efforts, even with the reinclusion of abundant song covers despite Beatles For Sale's predecessor, A Hard Day's Night, being their first album of only originals.
The original songs found on Beatles For Sale showcase a noticeable musical progression, as A Hard Day's Night also had from it's predecessor, further delving into the realm of folk rock. These are all gold, with highlights being; 'I'm a Loser', the absurdly infectious and up-beat 'Eight Days a Week', 'Every Little Thing' and 'I Don't Want to Spoil the Party'.

Some of the covers are weaker than those found on previous albums, notably 'Honey Don't', 'Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey!' and 'Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby' being low-points for the band, but they're still all highly enjoyable pieces of rock 'n' roll. These covers are ultimately what I believe leads to unfavourable comparisons with Beatles For Sale to other Beatles albums, but I still think this album's a blast, and for whatever reason, I find it flows better as an album than any of their first seven albums do.

The vocals are, as expected, amazing, with some really stunning harmonies, and George's folk inspired guitar noodling is really enjoyable and is well recorded. In other words: as typical for the band, the musicianship is brilliant and each member catches your ear.

No, Beatles For Sale isn't the best example of this band's immense songwriting prowess, but by any measure, it is still brilliant, and I can't help but give it the full 5/5 treatment. It doesn't make any profound statement, it doesn't blow the lid off of the rock genre with clever compositions or technical innovations (although it is the best sounding album pre-Rubber Soul by a long shot, for some reason) and it doesn't rival the best material of the band, but what it does do is give me immense joy every single time I listen to it, and ultimately when it comes to music, that's what matters most, and so I cannot possibly fault it for not matching the peaks of this vast medium. I simply adore this album, just as I adore all albums this band did, and so, for me, it is a nigh flawless rock 'n' roll album.
-9/10

If you're expecting another Forever Changes from Four Sail, or even just another psychedelic work, then you've come to the wrong place. Four Sail may not have the sound or emotional and poetic impact of its predecessor, but purely in regards to quality, it holds up.

Four Sail drifts away from the surrealistic lyrics, more immediate songwriting and orchestral arrangements of Love's most famous work and opts instead for a focus on instrumental showcases and hard rock. The style and sound of Four Sail is of its own, however, as it has an undefinable feel to it unlike any album I've heard. Gone are the original Love members; all that remains is band leader Arthur Lee. Thankfully, Arthur brought along some seriously talented musicians who each make a strong impression with their individual instruments. The bass, drums and electric guitar all match each other in strength. The songs often drift off into extended improvisation, which is something I'm rarely a fan of, but almost always do they keep my attention the way through.

What's most important are the songs, and at this point at least, Arthur Lee's songwriting abilities were still a force to be reckoned with. Every song on here is superb.

I recommend Four Sail for any rock fan. Even if it doesn't sound like it's your cup of tea, give it a couple chances just to make sure. It's an album that deserves a lot more recognition.
-9/10

Face to Face isn't quite a classic, but it is a big improvement upon The Kinks' previous albums all the same. This is where Ray Davies started to really prove himself as a writer to be reckoned with, handling more interesting subject matters and providing greater variety, with fresh new sounds. Face to Face is where he'd start to delve into the character studies he'd soon become famous for, such as on 'Sunny Afternoon' and 'Rosy Won't You Please Come Home', which rank as some of my favourite songs by anyone. Unfortunately, few other songs on here come close to that level of quality, but the other songs are almost all still solid, though. The exceptions to the rule are 'You're Looking Fine' and 'I'll Remember', which are okay, but sound dated and are fairly forgettable, dragging the album's second side down a bit. His lyrics aren't always good on here, but they certainly paint better pictures in one's mind than most writers are capable of.

The musicianship is brilliant here, with ear catching basslines, impressive guitar work that always lends much to each song, the typically fantastic drumming, and some great vocal performances. The Kinks were a terrific band, from both a technical point of view, and from the point of view of having released simply amazing music in their time, and Face to Face proves both of these things. It's not the most innovative album of its time (it still sounds like a simple collection of songs, for one), nor is it the most remarkable by any stretch, but I'd still give it an easy recommendation.
-7.5/10

A continuation in sound rather than a clear progression; Free Your Mind ends up sounding not too dissimilar to the band's equally as freaky debut. It's not at the same quality as that phenomenal album (it's much shorter, for one), but it's still some super out there funk that can't be missed.

The title-track, with its heavy focus on jamming and a repeated mantra of the song’s title, initially sounds like nothing but A-melodic nonsense, but with repeated listens the musicianship starts to stand out and it’s a total trip.

The next two tracks are a little more grounded, but still have some fantastic instrumental flexing and are bloody funky. The fourth, 'I Wanna Know If It's Good to You', has a decent vocal melody that fairly quickly makes way for some more stellar organ and guitar playing that lets your mind slide into psychedelic bliss. Speaking of which, organist Bernie Worrell is all over this album and lends greatly to its unique sonic signature. Likewise, Eddie Hazel's electric guitar soars across the stereo soundscape (there is some crazy stereo panning on this album) and he even provides some really under-appreciated vocals. Seriously, the guy should've sung more. Tiki Fulwood also perks the ear with his interesting drumming and Billy Nelson is a very solid bassist. In other words; the musicianship all across the album is amazing, and the moments where they're free to flex their muscles without driving a lead vocal melody are the best moments on the album.

I'll be honest; the final track 'Eulogy and Light' doesn't sit well with me. The subversion of Biblical scripture conflicts with my beliefs and I'm not certain of the intention behind it. In general it just has an uncomfortable feel to it as well. I'm not offended by it, I just don't personally want to listen to it. Sorry to bring personal beliefs into things, and it means I'm not judging it fairly, but I can't help the way I feel, and so I always skip it.

Nevertheless, this album steadily grew on me in a big way. I highly recommend it. It's like a party on LSD, and has become one of my favourite albums to get into the mindset of music over matter.
-9/10

Read enough about any Pink Floyd album released after their classic underground debut but prior to the release of their massively mainstream The Dark Side of the Moon, and you'll inevitably find people reciting the same nonsense along the lines of: "Pink Floyd were still trying to find their way after the loss of band leader Syd Barrett" - as if the band's diverse experimentation and contentment to make music for music's sake without the need for deep statements and huge production was a bad thing...

I say "Nay." to early Floyd dismissal. Nay, I shout the word at the top of my lungs (naaaay!), for pre-Dark Side Pink Floyd is my favourite era of the band, and their film soundtrack LP More is a big reason why. Few albums make me feel the way More does, whether that was Pink Floyd's grand aspiration or not (I doubt that kind of thought and consideration went into this).

More features an eclectic mixture of songs and trippy instrumentals: 'Green is the Colour' is a soothing ballad and 'Crying Song' is in a similar vein, whereas 'The Nile Song' and 'Ibiza Bar' are famously hard-rocking shouters that prove the band could blast away as convincingly as many of their contemporaries when they wanted to. 'Cirrus Minor' is an eery piece of low-fi psych and is easily one of the band's most under-appreciated songs, and arguably the album's best known track 'Cymbaline' is a truly stunning piece that is certainly another highlight on not just More but Pink Floyd's early years as a whole.

The rest is a diverse set of mostly understated, soft instrumentals - the kind of stuff I "imagine" would be the ideal backdrop for taking certain substances to, but is still very enjoyable (albeit certainly not music for everyone) while sober. They're melodic pieces intended to have different themes to fit different scenes, and they're all really enjoyable in their own ways ('A Spanish Piece' is a masterpiece).

More isn't an album that's going to appeal to many listeners - Pink Floyd diehards and non-fans alike - but it's always been a favourite of mine for when you just want to drift away from reality for a bit - its remarkable, one-of-a-kind atmosphere feels built for it, even if unintentionally.
-9/10

L.A. Woman is certainly their bluesiest album; a sound the band all had interest in playing from the start, but had never fully embraced on a full LP. The Doors' previous album, Morrison Hotel, was their furthest dig into the blues, but with songs like 'Been Down So Long', 'Cars Hiss By My Window' and 'Crawling King Snake', the band pay worthy homage to their heroes, proving that they were a band born to play the blues.

Songs like the funky 'The Changeling' and the perfect road trip song, 'L.A. Woman', are rock classics. 'L'America' and the iconic 'Riders on the Storm' echo their famous psychedelic sound, providing an eeriness to the album, but are really only hints at the trippy sound they were once inseparable from in image. The relentlessly groovy, largely spoken word 'The WASP' is a personal highlight, and 'Hyacinth House', while nothing particularly impressive all by itself, is nonetheless a solid song that works better within the context of the album as a more laidback track than most songs on here - even despite its paranoid lyrics.

This is surely one of the greats when it comes to well produced rock albums, too. It has fantastic clarity without sounding clean or anaemic. The Doors always sounded brilliant, but this is their ultimate album for those who particularly fancy hi-fi.

L.A. Woman is one of those rare, perfect swan-song albums. It really couldn't be a better send off to Jim Morrison and the full line-up of The Doors. It's a real tragedy that we lost Morrison so early, but this is one hell of a send-off to a supreme talent.
-9.5/10

A more pop rock sounding album than the blues and early rock 'n' roll sound of the band's prior two albums: The Kink Kontroversy dates better with more appealing songwriting and lyrical themes, and less of the cliché ridden, substandard covers and inspirations that lead to the lesser songs on Kinks and Kinda Kinks.

I don't have much to say about the album, except that it's a lot of fun. It's a bit more indicative of what the band would go on to do, whilst sticking to much of the same sound as the band's early material (albeit with worse production?)

The Kink Kontroversy is a noticeably more refined collective effort in comparison to their previous two LPs. It's not a leap forward, but it is a step in the right direction, and is a solid mid-'60s rock release that I can safely recommend to anyone with an interest in that period of classic rock history.

A little bit unpolished, a little bit beautiful, and a little bit mad; this is Brian unhinged, with his wild studio experimentation and radical songwriting coming to life, in one form or another. Smiley Smile may not have turned out as envisioned by its mastermind, but what resulted was still a wonderfully trippy, whimsical outpouring of oddball sounds and charmingly original ideas in all regards; sonically, musically, and lyrically.

You may associate a few things with 1967 in the realm of pop music; goofy concepts and themes in The Who Sell Out, revelatory dives into all things new and intriguing in the monolithic Sgt. Pepper's, the first glimpse of a shining star burgeoning from within the underground psych scene with Syd Barrett and Pink Floyd's mind-boggling debut, the game-changing Hendrix and his Experience, and the more grounded and steadily growing blues influenced rock coming from bands such as Cream...
but Smiley Smile has no grandiose statement. It is content to simply be brilliant.

At least, that's the impression it gives off, thanks to its unrefined and slightly incoherent nature (regardless of intention), and I like that about it. That doesn't mean it's less impressive than competing efforts by The Beach Boys' big-name brethren - it just means it's less abrasive. So, while this may have been intended as another Pet Sounds, (at least in terms of ambition) it doesn't suffer greatly from its ultimately more understated nature, and it remains a delightfully intriguing record all through its brief run-time.

I certainly recommend this album to fans of Pet Sounds, fans of psychedelia, and fans of The Beach Boys in general. It borders on crazy at times, but it always feels good spirited, and it maintains that signature joyful Beach Boys sound that naturally results from their gorgeous harmonies and intensely musical arrangements. Smiley Smile is a gem.