Do Re Mi Fa Oh Si Di

It's no secret (one need look no further than here) that there's a certain obsessive pathology running through the veins—and synapsing through the brains—of brumpelstiltskin.  With that in mind, it's finally time for me, MC Gallagher, to unveil the fruit of my most compulsive musical labors.  Here goes...

Several years ago, circa 2005, I devised an algorithm for rating my favorite albums.  The crux of the formula involves rating each song from 1 to 5 stars (1, 2, 3, 3½, 4, 4½ or 5).  This is quite subjective, but I've become reasonably clear on what each rating signifies.  For example, a 3-star song is one that I "like", but am sometimes just not in the mood for (e.g., if I heard it on the radio, I might switch the station).  Five-star ratings, by contrast, are reserved for songs that do what music at its best is meant to do: induce a reaction that is profoundly emotional and/or physiological in nature (e.g., tears of sadness, chills of nostalgia, lulls of tranquility, invigorating bursts of adrenaline, etc). 

But my condition—which psychiatrists on the DSM-V planning committee are referring to as "Do-Re-Mi-Fa-O-C-D"—does not allow me to stop there. Oh no! Rather, after rating each song on a given album, I am then compelled to weigh songs based on length (i.e., a 10-minute song contributes more to the final rating than a 60-second song), and from there compute an overall average score.  Finally, I adjust the average-of-songs score to account for the aesthetic cohesiveness of the album as a whole (e.g., a really cohesive concept album gets bonus points; an album that's uneven, or drags on a bit too long, gets docked a few points).

That's the gist; here's the list

Was it right and salutary to inflict science and statistics upon one of the most intrinsic and qualitative things in my life?  I'm not sure.  But once I started, I just couldn't stop.  And now, after months and months (OK, years) of just thinking and talking about it, I'm finally ready to reveal my magnum opus: "MC Gallagher's 100 Favourite Albums"!

But first, just a few clarifications/disclaimers: (1) I only considered proper studio albums and live albums; thus, "compilations" that otherwise might have made the list (like Hatful of Hollow by The Smiths) were not eligible; (2) I've long been accused of Anglophilia, and the results have certainly borne that out, so brace yourself for a hearty dose of British music—literate and witty, rousing and swaggering, melancholy and brooding British music!; and (3) to merely say that the difference between my top 2 albums (i.e., 21 ten-thousandths of a point) does not reach statistical significance would be a bit of an understatement; in the end, the album that prevailed is the one that’s dearer to my heart, and which I discovered first, when a then-13-year-old still stood at the threshold of his musical awakening, and the band in question still teetered on the precipice of utter ubiquity, about to “supernova” into greatness.

To view the list, click below on the "Continue Reading" link.


To present my list, I've harnessed the powers of my two favorite music sites: Rate Your Music, with its excellent list-making feature; and Lala, which allows me to embed actual song files into the blog (many thanks to my friend, Bill, for his assistance on the HTML code for this!).  You'll notice that I've included a sample song for all albums on the list that Lala has under license.  In most cases, I've selected my personal favorite track, but in some instances I chose a song that arguably provides a better "introduction" to those unfamiliar with the album. Please note that listening to the songs via Lala may require you to create an account (if you don't already have one).  To borrow a line from Pitchfork, "signing up for Lala is something like signing up for MySpace or Facebook -- you don't have to give them any credit card information, and it's free".  For more info, see Pitchfork's full summary here, or my testimonial here). And without further ado (really!), here is the list:

100		Stevie Wonder Talking Book (1972)
99		Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)
98		Jimi Hendrix Are You Experienced? (1967)
97		Suede Suede (1993)
96		PJ Harvey To Bring You My Love (1995)
95		The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
94		Television Marquee Moon (1977)
93		OutKast Aquemini (1998)
92		Radiohead Amnesiac (2001)
91		Nick Drake Pink Moon (1972)
90		Wilco Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)
89		Love Forever Changes (1967)
88		John Lennon Imagine (1971)
87		Iggy Pop Lust for Life (1977)
86		Blur Parklife (1994)
85		Bruce Springsteen Born to Run (1975)
84		George Harrison All Things Must Pass (1970)
83		The Stone Roses The Stone Roses (1989)
82		LCD Soundsystem Sound of Silver (2007)
81		Radiohead Hail to the Thief (2003)
80		Kate Bush Hounds of Love (1985)
79		The Kinks Muswell Hillbillies (1971)
78		Richard & Linda Thompson I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight (1974)
77		Elvis Costello Imperial Bedroom (1982)
76		Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison (1968)
75		The Kinks Something Else by The Kinks (1967)
74		Neil Young Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (1969)
73		The Rolling Stones Beggars Banquet (1968)
72		Guns N' Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987)
71		David Bowie Aladdin Sane (1973)
70		Jeff Buckley Grace (1994)
69		Neil Young Rust Never Sleeps (1979)
68		Gram Parsons GP (1973)
67		The Kinks Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround (Part One) (1970)
66		Nirvana MTV Unplugged in New York (1994)
65		Neil Young Harvest (1972)
64		Bruce Springsteen Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)
63		Neil Young On the Beach (1974)
62		Pulp This Is Hardcore (1998)
61		Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II (1969)
60		The Smiths The Smiths (1984)
59		Big Star Radio City (1974)
58		Sufjan Stevens Illinoise (2005)
57		The Kinks The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968)
56		The Beatles Let It Be (1970)
55		Radiohead In Rainbows (2007)
54		David Bowie Hunky Dory (1971)
53		The Flying Burrito Bros The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969)
52		Bob Dylan John Wesley Harding (1967)
51		Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin [IV] (1971)
50		Big Star #1 Record (1972)
49		The Cure Disintegration (1989)
48		Weezer Weezer [Blue Album] (1994)
47		U2 The Joshua Tree (1987)
46		The Velvet Underground Loaded (1970)
45		Prince Purple Rain (1984)
44		The Smiths Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
43		Pulp Different Class (1995)
42		Belle and Sebastian If You're Feeling Sinister (1996)
41		Bruce Springsteen Nebraska (1982)
40		Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited (1965)
39		The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground (1969)
38		Stevie Wonder Innervisions (1973)
37		Radiohead Kid A (2000)
36		The Beach Boys Pet Sounds (1966)
35		David Bowie Station to Station (1976)
34		Joni Mitchell Blue (1971)
33		The Rolling Stones Exile on Main St. (1972)
32		Patti Smith Horses (1975)
31		Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
30		Pink Floyd Animals (1977)
29		The Clash London Calling (1979)
28		The Who Quadrophenia (1973)
27		Van Morrison Astral Weeks (1968)
26		Arcade Fire Funeral (2004)
25		The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
24		Pink Floyd The Wall (1979)
23		Neil Young After the Gold Rush (1970)
22		The Verve Urban Hymns (1997)
21		Bob Dylan Blood on the Tracks (1975)
20		The Kinks Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire (1969)
19		The Who Who's Next (1971)
18		The Beatles Rubber Soul (1965)
17		The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed (1969)
16		John Lennon Plastic Ono Band (1970)
15		Weezer Pinkerton (1996)
14		U2 Achtung Baby (1991)
13		Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here (1975)
12		Neutral Milk Hotel In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998)
11		Oasis (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995)
10		The Beatles Abbey Road (1969)
9		David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars (1972)
8		The Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers (1971)
7		The Smiths The Queen Is Dead (1986)
6		The Beatles Revolver (1966)
5		Gram Parsons Grievous Angel (1974)
4		Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994)
3		The Beatles The Beatles [White Album] (1968)
2		Radiohead OK Computer (1997)
1		Radiohead The Bends (1995)