Pop album that has stood the test of time


I found a used CD copy of Sinead O’Conner’s “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” in Easy Street Records and snatched it up.  I remember liking it in the 90s when it came out and may have a lousy cassette copy somewhere, but I had not seriously listened to it with the better systems I have now.  Listening now, I am impressed by the material, the performance, and the recording quality, and it occurs to me that as an overall concept, it could have come out in 2024 and still sound poignant.  There are a few rock hangovers from the 80s, but even those are well delivered.

I am wondering what pop albums you have that you think have aged well in terms of material, performance and production.

kn

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+1 slaw  Bruce Cockburn - Stealing Fire

Saw the album tour in London, Ontario where the bass /lead used a Chapman “Stick” to amazing effect….the simultaneous, repetitious runs were done with it and made for a mesmerizing show.

Of course, Bruce is a virtuoso guitarist/songwriter who should be experienced in concert.

Juluka - Scatterings of Africa with Johnny Clegg and Sipho Mchunu is another great 80’s release that shouldn’t be forgotten.

Jazz pop would be Chuck Mangione and the Great album titled main squeeze.

Also outstanding jazz trumpet player Don Ellis, Live at Fillmore East was a remarkable Orchestra performance. He did the soundtrack for French connection the music is a little bit unconventional.

Bruce Cockburn’s "Stealing Fires" is good, but I really love his "Night Visions" album. It’s got an instrumental "Islands in a Black Sky" that is hauntingly spectacular, and a good one to pull into system demos. The whole album is pretty cool despite not being my normal fare. The vintage LP I have of it sounds GREAT.

As mentioned by others - I also love Joe Jackson’s "Look Sharp".

I’m not mentioning more because a lot of material I like would probably not qualify for sounding "fresh" today, though that line has become quite blurred by the whole retro/synth wave genre. It’s all quite subjective, I suppose. I’m a big fan of Level 42, and their recordings on 80s vinyl generally sound pretty amazing. For the modern new wave "revival", a few of my favorite bands are:
Wild Nothing (especially "Nocturne" and "Indigo"),
Miami Horror ("All Possible Futures" - spectacular sound on vinyl)
The Midnight (they use an an analog recording chain).

 

Still fresh “pop” recordings from between 1970 and 2000

Many of my favorites have already been listed above.  My definition of “Pop” here is clearly stretched to mean albums and artists that got a lot of attention when released, won Grammys or at least appeared on Saturday Night Live which is where I have learned about new and older artists new works for decades.  For example - I was particularly impressed by the guitar tone Mk.gee was getting on SNL this last Saturday - would not have known about him otherwise.  As for “freshness” that is completely subjective.  But all the titles listed below sound good to me on a better rig.  Some of my favorite albums from this period music wise sound thin or dull unfortunately, at least in the formats I have. 

If I have repeated any your previous suggestions, my bad.

Al Green - “Let’s Stay Together”

Bettye Lavette -“I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise”

Bruce Cokburn - +1 “Stealing Fire”

  • “dancing in the dragon’s jaws” (CBS Master Work pressing is superlative)
  • “Nothing But a Burning Light” (produced by T Bone Burnett)

Beck - pretty much any album from any decade

Cassandra Wilson - “Blue Light Till Dawn”

Cat Sevens - “Tea for the Tillerman” & “Teaser and the Firecat”

David Crosby - “If I Could Only Remember My Name”

DEVO - “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo”

Eryka Badu - “Baduism”

Fleetwood Mac - “Rumors”

Grateful Dead - “Workingman’s Dead”

Jane’s Addiction - “Nothing’s Shocking”

Jeff Buckley - “Grace”

Jethro Tull - “Thick as a Brick”

John Hiatt - “Slow Turning”

Joni Mitchell - everything 

Loggins and Messina - “Motherlode”

Los Lobos - “Kiko”

Marvin Gaye - “What’s Going On”

Mary Chapin Carpenter - “Come On Come On”

Melissa Etheridge - “Never Enough”

Me’Shell Ndegeocello - “Plantation Lullabies”

Nirvana - “Nevermind”

Norah Jones - “Come Away With Me”

Pearl Jam - “Ten” and “Vs.” 

Phoebe Snow - “Second Childhood”

Rickie Lee Jones - “Rickie Lee Jones”

Shawn Colvin - “A Few Small Repairs”

Steely Dan - “Asia” (especially UHDR LP)

Stevie Wonder - “Talking Book”

Super Tramp - “Crime of the Century”

Talking Heads - “Naked”

The B-52’s - “The B-52’s”

The Rolling Stones - “Tattoo You”

Tony! Toni! Tone - “Sons of Soul”

U2 - “Achtung Baby”

War - “The World is a Ghetto”

Whitney Houston - “Whitney Houston” (side one)