Albums of the 60s

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IllumiThottie
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Albums of the 60s

Post by IllumiThottie »

A few years ago I decided to listen to the albums from this site in chronological order. I've made a post for the 50s, and having finished listening to albums from the 60s, I'll cover them in this post. Before that though, I'll note a few changes to my methodology. First, I've stopped listening to albums five times before moving on. I realized that I pretty much always have my opinion formed on the first one. If it keeps my interest, I'll listen a few more times. If not, then I'll move on. I ultimately realized that it seemed pointless to subject myself to listening to some things over and over again that I don't like just on the off-chance my opinion of it will change. It certainly does, but it's not as if I can't ever re-listen to any of these albums later on.

Before finishing off this decade I took a lengthy detour into classical music, and then I decided to catch up on the songs side of the spectrum so I listened to all those up to 1963. Then every year after finishing the albums, I'd move onto songs. For the sake of brevity and continuity, I decided to focus this post just on albums of the 60s.

This decade wasn't one full of surprises for me like with the 50s was simply due to familiarity. Still there were surprises, and I think the great benefit of going in chronological order with this is that one can really tell when something novel comes around — say Louie Louie by the Kingsman or Like a Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan. It's also quite incredible how much music changes in this decade compared to the 50s — contrast Two Faces Have I by Lou Christie in 1963, and Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix in 1966.

And before listing my favorite albums I would like to discuss Bob Dylan too. I knew and loved many of his 60s albums years before I started this listening project, but what I was really missing was the context. I knew Like a Rolling Stone was a fantastic song, but couldn't quite get the hype. Well it makes much more sense now. That sneer with which he sings with, the word play, and length of that song! He pushes the limitations of popular music very far in 1965. It's incredible to see just how much songs like that and Subterranean Homesick Blues completely stand apart from everything else at the time. And the Beatles too. At first I couldn't quite figure out what makes songs like Please Please Please Me so different from the Everly Brothers or The Crickets, but the fusion of their type of rock with R&B influences without that incessantly used 50s chord progression really seams to be what sets rock into the modern era.

I'll now list my favorite albums chronological by year, and alphabetical by artist within those years.

1960
  • Smack Up by Art Pepper
  • Blues and Roots and by Charles Mingus
  • Mingus Dynasty by Charles Mingus
  • Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas by Ella Fitzgerald
  • A Date with the Everly Brothers by the Everly Brothers
  • Soul Station by Hank Mobley
  • Blues and Ballads by Lonnie Johnson
1961
  • Sunday at the Village Vanguard by Bill Evans
  • Songs I like to Sing by Helen Hume
  • Someday My Prince Will Come by Miles Davis
  • Eastern Sounds by Yusef Lateef
1962
  • Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
  • Ella Swings Brightly with Nelson by Ella Fitzgerald
  • Jazz Samba by Stan Getz
1963
  • Please Please Please Me by The Beatles
  • With The Beatles by The Beatles
  • The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
  • The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady by Charles Mingus
  • Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Jerome Kern Songbook by Ella Fitzgerald
  • Feelin' the Spirit by Grant Green
  • Live at the Apollo by James Brown
  • Joan Baez in Concert pt. 2 by Joan Baez
1964
  • All Summer Long by The Beach Boys
  • A Hard Day's Night by The Beatles
  • Getz/Gilberto by João Gilberto and Stan Gertz
  • Folk Roots, New Routes by Shirley Collins and Davy Graham
1965
  • Live at the Regal by B.B. King
  • The Beach Boys Today! by The Beach Boys
  • Help! by The Beatles
  • Rubber Soul by The Beatles
  • Bringing It All Back Home by Bob Dylan
  • Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dyland
  • Hoodoo Man Blues by Junior Wells
  • Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul by Otis Redding
  • Out of Our Heads by The Rolling Stones
  • The Rolling Stones No.2 by The Rolling Stones
  • A Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi
  • My Generation by The Who
1966
  • Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys
  • Revolver by The Beatles
  • Blonde on Blonde by Bob Dylan
  • Aftermath by The Rolling Stones
  • Parsley, Sage, Romseary & Thyme by Simon and Garfunkel
1967
  • I Never Loved a Man The Way I Loved You by Aretha Franklin
  • Smiley Smile by The Beach Boys
  • Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles
  • (Recorded though not released this year) The Bootlegs Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes by Bob Dylan
  • Disraeli Gears by Cream
  • The Doors by The Doors
  • You Got My Mind Messed Up by James Carr
  • Volume 6: Days Have Gone By by John Fahey
  • Something Else by The Kinks by the Kinks
  • Forever Changes by Love
  • One Nation Underground by Pearls Before Swine
  • The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Uhnderground
  • Easter Everywhere by The 13th Floor Elevators
1968
  • Lady Soul by Aretha Franklin
  • The Beatles by The Beatles
  • Electric Ladyland by Jimi Hendrix
  • Beggars Banquet by The Rolling Stones
  • Bookends by Simon & Garfunkel
  • Traffc by Traffic
  • Astral Weeks by Van Morrison
1969
  • The Fabulous Charlie Rich by Charlie Rich
  • Green River by Creedance Clearwater Revival
  • Dusty in Memphis by Dusty Springfield
  • Hot Buttered Soul by Isaac Hayes
  • Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere by Neil Young
  • Let It Bleed by The Rolling Stones
  • Stand! by Sly & The Family Stone
I did almost all of this listening between August and November, but my pace has slowed down a lot since then. Still, I've reached 1971 so hopefully I can finish the rest of that decade this year.
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