Remember that wacky annoying chick from the show "It's a Different World"?



I saw this in the throwaway bin at a music store and bought it for a joke. I bought it to see how bad it would be. And WOW! It is a killer album. Even when I was on my way home and discovered that Lenny Kravitz produced the album, I thought...no way could he rescue this project from tragedy...

But this is a very satisfying album. She has a great voice and Lenny brought out her full potential. I have even bought it full price, twice to insure it as part of my music collection. I would have never given her a chance, and had it not been for the $1.99 price tag I would never have discovered this gem.

What albums have you laughed your ass off before listening and discovered a great ride?

the scissor sisters album. it's not "ok computer", but as dumb fun pop albums go, it's a really good piece of work.

Joan Osborne "Relish." I thought "One of Us" sucked but then heard the rest of the record and it was all killer no filler. One of my top 5 of all time.

badujunkie said:

Interesting. Were you skeptical about the album because of the song "one of us"? I can see how one might be afraid of an album colored by that song but Relish is an amazing album Agree Agree Agree.

namepeace said:

Is it because you were afraid that touching the album might make you gay???

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Get out of my brain.

I never in a million years thought that I would like the Pet Shop Boys, but after reading an in-depth analysis of their work on another forum, my interest was piqued. After picking up Discography, it took me a few listens to really appreciate the craftsmanship that goes on in a PSB song, but afterwards, I was hooked.

Axchi696 said:

That is awesome! People often mistake the PSB for typical dance-pop music, but the PSB really are incredible artists. Have you tried any of their 90's stuff? Very is probably their strongest album, but they are all excellent.

let's see.. for me one that jumps out is Cher's "Believe" album. I really enjoy it - it has a great euro-disco/pop vibe to it, and the songs just make me want to groove. not something i would normally listen to, but it is definitely a fab album.

NorthernLad said:

Well, I actually bought their entire catalog in a span of about 3 or 4 months (), so yeah I have tried their 90's stuff. I've gotta say that 'Very' isn't among my top PSB albums, though. 'Behavior' would be my choice for best album, and that one's from the '90s.

Axchi696 said:

Yeah Behavior is great as well. There is something about Very that really speaks to me, though. It's all big and gaudy and flashy on the outside, but under the surface there is a great deal of pain and angst in that album. Especially on "Dreaming of the Queen" which is one of the most powerful AIDS songs ever recorded, IMHO. And the dour and hopeless take on "Go West" - a fond daydream.

I also think that "Nightlife" has been undervalued.

a friend of mine back in the day brought over a new lp by some guy named lenny kravitz called "let love rule". i looked at him and sarcastically said "ohhh.... this is MR. LISA BONET, right? ROMEO BLUE, huh?" i put it on, and hated it initially. but something kept drawing me back to it.... and then i realized that while i didn't (and still don't) like the execution and (especially) vocal delivery of the songs on that LP, the album has quite a few well written songs.

in the end, i still prefer "mama said" though.

--gm--

I had a major blockage of some sort in 1998. A lot of my favorite alternative artists that year released an album that I just couldn't get with at the time. Later I came to appreciate them all, but I just wasn't ready for what they had in store for me. Tori Amos' From the Choirgirl Hotel, PJ Harvey's Is This Desire?, Liz Phair's Whitechocolatespaceegg, Tricky's Angels with Dirty Faces and the Pumpkins' Adore were all acquired tastes.

Once I got over every fratboy blasting it for hours upon hours in my dorm, Pearl Jam's "Ten" isn't so bad after all.

I'm glad to see Pet Shop Boys get some love. Westendgirls is one of the best songs ever

GangstaFam said:

All excellent albums

Hey you

GangstaFam said:

Oh, dear. PJ's 'Is This Desire' is not one of my favorites by her either. I don't dislike it like I do 'from the choirgirl hotel', but it doesn't make my top four PJ albums.

What album did Björk release in 98? Maybe I didn't like that one also.

sextonseven said:

Desire is my favorite PJ album. All these years later and I still feel like I'm listening to a secret incantation, being exposed to magic. My favorite of hers by far....

sextonseven said:

Homogenic in 1997.

CinisterCee said:

Now this one took me years to understand. I listen to it now in amazement. I remember Bjork saying that this most accurately reflected the sound of the music she hears in her head. Beautiful

Hey Cin

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Here's how I rank PJ's albums:

Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea
To Bring You My Love
Rid of Me
Uh Huh Her
Is This Desire
Dry
Dance Hall at Louse Point
4-Track Demos

Maybe I'm not being entirely correct when I say it's not my favorite. It makes my top five and the gaps between the top six albums are all pretty close. It's just if I had a choice to listen to just one album by PJ, there are four that would come before 'Is This Desire'.

Totally different from how I rate Tori's albums where 'choirgirl' is near the bottom.

CinisterCee said:

Oh man, I love that record. That might be my favorite Björk album--all beats and strings--friggin' amazing.

It must be because it wasn't released in 1998.

add edit
[Edited 11/7/05 15:48pm]

L-O-V-E the Cree Summer cd!! I thought I was the only one who owned it.

My Scoff was 'Synchronicity' by The Police. I didn't like Every Breath You Take, the first time I heard it so I shunned the cd. As it grew on me more and more, I picked up the cd finally and it turned into a gem.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

hi supa I didn't buy that album until probably 1999 or 2000.

The one that comes to the top of my head at the moment would probably be Elvis Costello's "This Year's Model". I couldn't get with the production of that one, but one day I got over some of the cheesy dated synth sounds and saw that it truly was his heaviest and most kickass album. I had always preferred Armed Forces, but now those two have kind of flip-flopped for me.

Others include Prince's "Lovesexy" and "The Truth" and Madonna's "Ray of Light",

I really thought, for some reason, that Kanye West was a fluke but his new album is brilliant and that is coming from someone that has been listening to hip-hop for 20 years.

pkidwell said:

Me too. I brought The College Dropout and didn't listen to it for a while and when I finally put it on, I was really surprised by how good it was.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Hey to you too.

And I knew that because of your love of "Is This Desire?" that Choirgirl would be the perfect place for you to start with Tori.

sextonseven said:

Glad to see I'm not the only one that had a '98 roadblock.