Commenting on Esquire's list of the 75 albums every man should own is pointless, but what the hell: I can't believe a major magazine marketed at an under-60 demographic would come up with as bad a list as this. (FWIW, I own 22 in some form or other. I am 22/75 of a man.)
Here it is, in its unranked entirety:
Darkness on the Edge of Town, Bruce Springsteen
Phases and Stages, Willie Nelson
The Stone Roses, The Stone Roses
Lust for Life, Iggy Pop
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, David Bowie
Live at The Apollo, James Brown
What's Goin' On, Marvin Gaye
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, Pavement
Illmatic, NaS
Dire Straits, Dire Straits
American Beauty, Grateful Dead
Out of Step, Minor Threat
Aftermath, The Rolling Stones
Paul's Boutique, The Beastie Boys
Led Zeppelin (I), Led Zeppelin
Imperial Bedroom, Elvis Costello
The Cars, The Cars
Being There, Wilco
Destroyer, KISS
The Bends, Radiohead
Gettin' Ready, The Temptations
Highway To Hell, AC/DC
The Dictionary of Soul, Otis Redding
The Headphone Masterpiece, Cody Chessnut
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Soundtrack, Ennio Morricone
Blood on the Tracks, Bob Dylan
Take a Giant Step/De Ole Foiks at Home, Taj Mahal
Catch a Fire, Bob Marley
MTV Unplugged in New York, Nirvana
Live at Oberlin College, 1966, Mississippi John Hurt
The Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1, The Traveling Wilburys
Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas, Townes Van Zandt
Woke On a Whaleheart, Bill Callahan
Rubber Soul, The Beatles
Velvet Underground and Nico, Velvet Underground
Workin' Together, Ike & Tina Turner
The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, Explosions in the Sky
True Stories, Talking Heads
This Is Hardcore, Pulp
Appetite for Destruction, Guns N' Roses
In the Wee Small Hours, Frank Sinatra
Sketches of Spain, Miles Davis
Combat Rock, The Clash
Road to Ruin, The Ramones
Marquee Moon, Television
Animals, Pink Floyd
Doolittle, The Pixies
The Adventures of Slick Rick, Slick Rick
Ready to Die, Notorious B.I.G.
The Unreleased Recordings, Hank Williams
Ten, Pearl Jam
Band of Gypsys, Jimi Hendrix
Brighter Than Creation's Dark, Drive-By Truckers
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Ray Charles
...And Justice for All, Metallica
Fair Warning, Van Halen
Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z
Pet Sounds, Beach Boys
Exile In Guyville, Liz Phair
Look Sharp!, Joe Jackson
Songs in the Key of Life, Stevie Wonder
Rage Against the Machine, Rage Against the Machine
Who's Next, The Who
Left to His Own Devices, Vic Chessnut
Symphony No. 5, Beethoven
Night Beat, Sam Cooke
Songs of Leonard Cohen, Leonard Cohen
Penthouse, Luna
Buena Vista Social Club, Buena Vista Social Club
Small Change, Tom Waits
Live at Folsom Prison, Johnny Cash
Harvest Moon, Neil Young
Mingus Ah Um, Charles Mingus
Mahler Symphony No. 5, George Solti
Grace, Jeff Buckley
Here it is, in its unranked entirety:
Darkness on the Edge of Town, Bruce Springsteen
Phases and Stages, Willie Nelson
The Stone Roses, The Stone Roses
Lust for Life, Iggy Pop
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, David Bowie
Live at The Apollo, James Brown
What's Goin' On, Marvin Gaye
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, Pavement
Illmatic, NaS
Dire Straits, Dire Straits
American Beauty, Grateful Dead
Out of Step, Minor Threat
Aftermath, The Rolling Stones
Paul's Boutique, The Beastie Boys
Led Zeppelin (I), Led Zeppelin
Imperial Bedroom, Elvis Costello
The Cars, The Cars
Being There, Wilco
Destroyer, KISS
The Bends, Radiohead
Gettin' Ready, The Temptations
Highway To Hell, AC/DC
The Dictionary of Soul, Otis Redding
The Headphone Masterpiece, Cody Chessnut
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Soundtrack, Ennio Morricone
Blood on the Tracks, Bob Dylan
Take a Giant Step/De Ole Foiks at Home, Taj Mahal
Catch a Fire, Bob Marley
MTV Unplugged in New York, Nirvana
Live at Oberlin College, 1966, Mississippi John Hurt
The Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1, The Traveling Wilburys
Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas, Townes Van Zandt
Woke On a Whaleheart, Bill Callahan
Rubber Soul, The Beatles
Velvet Underground and Nico, Velvet Underground
Workin' Together, Ike & Tina Turner
The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place, Explosions in the Sky
True Stories, Talking Heads
This Is Hardcore, Pulp
Appetite for Destruction, Guns N' Roses
In the Wee Small Hours, Frank Sinatra
Sketches of Spain, Miles Davis
Combat Rock, The Clash
Road to Ruin, The Ramones
Marquee Moon, Television
Animals, Pink Floyd
Doolittle, The Pixies
The Adventures of Slick Rick, Slick Rick
Ready to Die, Notorious B.I.G.
The Unreleased Recordings, Hank Williams
Ten, Pearl Jam
Band of Gypsys, Jimi Hendrix
Brighter Than Creation's Dark, Drive-By Truckers
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Ray Charles
...And Justice for All, Metallica
Fair Warning, Van Halen
Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z
Pet Sounds, Beach Boys
Exile In Guyville, Liz Phair
Look Sharp!, Joe Jackson
Songs in the Key of Life, Stevie Wonder
Rage Against the Machine, Rage Against the Machine
Who's Next, The Who
Left to His Own Devices, Vic Chessnut
Symphony No. 5, Beethoven
Night Beat, Sam Cooke
Songs of Leonard Cohen, Leonard Cohen
Penthouse, Luna
Buena Vista Social Club, Buena Vista Social Club
Small Change, Tom Waits
Live at Folsom Prison, Johnny Cash
Harvest Moon, Neil Young
Mingus Ah Um, Charles Mingus
Mahler Symphony No. 5, George Solti
Grace, Jeff Buckley
I own three of them, which by this reasoning makes me 4 percent of a man. Usually I have a much higher level of statistical testosterone when surveyed, maybe I'm (for once) revealing my female, heterosexual mom demographic. Or maybe that's who this list would REALLY appeal to.
Smiles from
Rose K.