Legend review

Bob Marley is the first name that leaps to mind whenever someone mentions reggae. This is the best selling reggae album ever, and brings together all the best Bob Marley songs. Here are my thoughts.

Tracks:

1. Is This Love?: 8/10 kicking off the album is an excellent love song. It repeats itself both literally- as the title question is repeatedly asked during the excellent chorus- and metaphorically as Bob Marley's unfortunate habit of repetition in his song writing reveals itself a little bit but overall it's a lovely song and a good start.

2. No Woman No Cry: 9/10 the live performance of the No Woman No Cry is one of Marley's masterpieces. Aching with emotion, honesty and optimism, this performance is genuinely brilliant and the applause heard at the end is well deserved. It's a little too long but I'm not complaining.

3. Could You Be Loved: 9/10 with its smart lyrics, excellent harmonies and awesome baseline this one is an absolute tune and one of the best on the album.

4. Three Little Birds: 9/10 you have got to love this. Yes it just says the same thing over and over but it's a track with unbeatable spirit and it makes you believe every little thing will be alright. A true classic.

5. Buffalo Soldier: 8/10 once again it keeps saying the same stuff again and again, but this is an exuberant and meaningful song which shows Marley's talents for telling compelling stories in an accessible way. The woy yoy yoy chorus is fabulous.

6. Get Up Stand Up: 7/10 the verses are full of clever lyrics which do get under your skin but the chorus is a bit dull.

7. Stir It Up: 8/10 lyrically this one doesn't hold an awful lot of substance, but the brilliant and unique sounds created throughout the song overshadow any flaws.

8. One Love: 10/10 a deeply touching and brilliantly written song which has a great message and represents Bob Marley at his best. Simple but devastatingly effective.

9. I Shot the Sheriff: 8/10 another strong political song. The lyrics are a bit confusing at times but it's still thought provoking and meaningful and still has a strong beat.

10. Waiting in Vain: 7/10 this one has a less upbeat tone and some very good moments but overall it's difficult to distinguish among the other songs of the album.

11. Redemption Song: 9/10 this one has no gimmicks or big musical effects or instrumentals. It's just one man and his guitar who, in the quietest song of the album, speaks a powerful and important message louder than an earthquake. It's a shame this one isn't longer.

12. Satisfy My Soul: 7/10 another less memorable song, which is pretty good overall but feels somewhat generic.

13. Exodus: 8/10 an excellent song full of energy and punch which it manages to sustain throughout its excessive length.

14. Jamming: 9/10 such a great song. One of the most purely enjoyable tracks on the album, this is a  vastly entertaining song which also boasts one of the best intros on the album. It's a great one to just relax to.

Best Song: One Love.
Worst Song: Satisfy My Soul.

Album review: A very good album overall. While the songs do often feel a bit too similar to one another, at its best the album is completely brilliant. The music itself is uniquely relaxing and affecting while the lyrics are touching, soulful and show that less is more. There isn't a bad track on here overall and if anyone's looking for a reason as to why Bob Marley is by far the most well known reggae artist, just play them this album.

Final rating: 8/10 

Revolver Review

The Beatles. What can be said about them that hasn't already been said hundreds of times? The song from The Lego Movie, Everything is Awesome, certainly applies to them. Before Revolver they were already great. Their music was fabulous but here is where they matured as artists. Revolver builds up on the changes shown throughout Help! and Rubber Soul and shows their journey into psychedelic heaven. So, how does this album hold up against Sergeant Pepper and Abbey Road?

Tracks:
1. Taxman: 8/10 a great intro bursting with wit and social commentary. A little repetitive perhaps in its sounds, but it's a catchy tune which you can nod your head to with ease.

2. Eleanor Rigby: 9/10 a beautiful song about loneliness. It's pretty depressing and not necessarily the most enjoyable song on the album, but it is genuine poetry. This song is the moment when a new era of Beatles music is ushered in. With all due respect to their great initial music, the arty stuff they did later on is arguably superior.

3. I'm Only Sleeping: 10/10 a psychedelic gem with a very interesting song structure and a melancholy yet devastatingly beautiful vibe. Just don't listen to it if you're feeling sleepy.

4. Love You To: 8/10 One of George Harrison's Indian tunes. As far as I'm concerned this is superior to Within You Without You. The excellent Sitar music is overwhelming in the best sense of the word and is full of brilliant sounds. Its lyrics feel a tiny bit meaningless at times though.

5. Here, There and Everywhere: 9/10 after 4 louder songs, this one's quieter, more understated and less experimental. Don't think for one second that's a bad thing. This is a lovely song which is peaceful, relaxing and full of great harmonies.

6. Yellow Submarine: 8/10 Alright so this is just a nonsense children's nursery rhyme which doesn't have much meaning. You kind of have to love it though. You'll find yourself wishing you could join them on that yellow submarine.

7. She Said, She Said: 9/10 a great rocking tune with a fascinating backstory. This is one of those mystery songs where the meaning isn't entirely clear and you can interpret it how you want. That's part of the fun.

8. Good Day Sunshine: 6/10 ah this one could definitely be skipped. It's just not particularly noteworthy and feels like it came out of a nauseatingly oversweet kids movie although it's still catchy.

9. And Your Bird Can Sing: 9/10 I actually rather like this one. It's not the most eye catching (or ear catching?) song on the album with its fairly typical beats but it can conveys its message in an interesting way. The bird feels a little random but it's still an enjoyable track.

10. For No One: 9/10 short and sweet. It's only 2 minutes long but it unleashes more emotion in those 2 minutes than the Twilight Saga did in 5 movies.

11. Doctor Robert: 7/10 I don't really know what this one is about. Something to do with drugs? Its lyrics are very plain but it's catchy enough to compensate. It's also an interesting one to interpret.

12. I Want to Tell You: 8/10 with obscure lyrics and a catchy rock beat, this makes for an interesting listen.

13. Got to Get You Into My Life: 8/10 this song has a different meaning than what you expect. Well sung by Paul McCartney and featuring strong lyrics, this is a good one but the tune itself feels somewhat overwhelming.

14. Tomorrow Never Knows: 10/10 they saved the best for last. This hypnotising, mesmerising and wonderfully unique psychedelic masterpiece is one of John Lennon's greatest songs. With its strange sounds, mind being lyrics and general insanity listening to it is like riding an out of control roller coaster through a kaleidoscope. Surrender to the void. You'll be glad you did.

Summary: Revolver is the best Beatles album. Every track has its merits, every Beatle gets their moment to shine and every lyric oozes meaning, wonder and genius. Weird and wonderful, this album is experimental, ground breaking, thrilling, fascinating and genuinely beautiful.

Best song: Tomorrow Never Knows
Worst song: Good Day Sunshine

Final Grade: 10/10

Introduction

Hello there

Until recently I was completely and utterly ignorant about music. Eventually I decided this had to change. This blog is my exploration of the strange, wonderful and occasionally god-awful landscape of music and features my reviews of songs and albums.

Enjoy Reading!