The five hundred and ninety-first album: #591 Prince - Sign 'o' the Times

If it's time for another double album, Prince is the artist to do it with. His funk/pop sound is unique, perfected to a T without becoming clinical, the tracks are all catchy and unique without feeling like it goes all over the place. The lyrics and themes are different, from serious world order to admiring a weird girl's ideas back in school. It's strong and compassionate, human and emotional from someone who feels like he might have felt isolated from that. It's all Prince, but there are that many layers to his work.

The five hundred ninetieth album: #590 R.E.M. - Document

While It's The End of the World As We Know It is the best known song of this album for good reason, the other tracks follow a similar feeling and build on it. A fairly set beat, with a number of musical influences on top and lyrics that are comprehensible, but hint at a lot more depth to delve into - sometimes offering more clarity, sometimes less. The One I Love follows it straight away (although it's originally on the other side), showing how much further that goes - I've discussed it before, but the lyrics get quite meaningful while everything else supports it. That's not to say the music isn't standing out - there's still a lot to it, with some variation, but all fitting into a sound that feels like it really identifies R.E.M.

The seven hundred forty-first song: 1952 Vincent Black Lightning - Richard Thompson

There's something odd about a folk song about a motorcycle. It's not, by far, the first song I've heard about the topic, but there's something odd about the different expectations of the sounds. It's a fine folk song, not feeling as bottled up because of the topic, but not something that feels really challenging.

The seven hundred forty-second song: Balada conducatorolui - Taraf de Haidouks

It's hard to remember at this point, but I don't think I've heard much Romani music before. It's weirdly discordant, strangely off, quite a different experience with clear eastern influences. It's an odd melting pot, interesting to hear a bit off, but even this song was discordant for too long.

The seven hundred forty-third song: Calling All Angels - Jane Siberry with k.d. lang

From the start, the electronic sounds of this track mixed in with the dreamy synths create an otherworldly atmosphere - my first thought was aliens. It's really sweet and wishful when it gets started and the feeling it settles into works incredibly well, but the lead in helps set up the mood so much better.

The seven hundred forty-fourth song: I Can’t Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt

This is a full, sensitive ballad, a love song with a forlorn vibe as the outcome seems clear. It's small and sweet, its own type of tearjerker performed so beautifully and sensitively - Bonnie Raitt does amazing work here interpreting the song.

The seven hundred forty-fifth song: Jesus Built My Hotrod - Ministry

The bizarre vocals of this song are almost completely hidden by the aggressive metal track, the repetitive nature of the lyrics nonsensical enough that it just becomes an instrument instead of imparting much music, a scat base overlaid with guitars and heavy drumming. It's a strong, heavy track, exhausting to listen to but at the same time incredibly energetic.

The seven hundred forty-sixth song: No More Tears - Ozzy Osbourne

As much as this is a metal track - and all the instruments are there - there's a level of production to this that feels different, while Ozzy's vocals feel like they also set it apart, more of a falsetto that drag themselves out of the music, contrasting with the heavy sounds in a way that lets them stand apart and increase the impact of the music. It's a real story, told in several acts with variation in the track, but all culminating in something great still.

The seven hundred forty-seventh song: Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana

Even if the lyrics are difficult to follow at times, the idea is clear. It's an anthem for teens, a demand for the post punk to be given what they want. It's rebellious and angry, it's selfish but also resonates now as life is getting harder and more superficial. It's a feeling of rebellion, wrapped up in vague lyrics and a lot of memorable parts that all fit in a single track.

The seven hundred forty-eighth song: Summertime - DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

After all that, some nice, unintimidating hip hop is a nice break. There's nothing threatening or challenging, the lyrics are easy to follow and identify with, and it's just about enjoying summer. It's perhaps aimed a bit too broadly, but it's a nice, fluffy track.

The seven hundred forty-ninth song: Give It Away - Red Hot Chili Peppers

While it feels like they may have been a bit more of their own joke, there's something that really works in this RHCP track. The refrain is incredibly catchy and memorable, a vocal trick in there making that more compelling. The remainder doesn't hold up as well - it's fun to listen to and makes for a good rock track, but the energy there is just more infectious.

The seven hundred fiftieth song: One - U2

U2's big power ballads are their strength. One is one of those clear ones, a strong sound, clearly focusing on the message, not pushing the music out too much but making sure they tell their story. It's pretty well done.

The seven hundred fifty-first song: Losing My Religion - R.E.M.

Following that, Losing My Religion probably hits those beats even more. It sounds really good, the message hits, but doesn't overpower. I don't know why, but there's something where the combination, again, really works, sending a message while staying really interesting musically as well.

The five hundred and eighty-ninth album: #589 Def Leppard - Hysteria

This full helping of glam metal hits all of the highlights. It's loud and anthemic, ideally suited for a large stadium or similar - the background harmonies add to that crowd feeling even though it's all recorded in the studio. I do struggle to separate the tracks a bit, but the energy is present and welcome throughout, making for an album full of highlights.

The two hundred and twelfth classical recording: #380 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture

The fantasy element of the title cannot be overstated while listening to this piece. It's dreamlike, not slow but exploratory, relying on light sound but with some heavy percussion in the background. It builds up to moments of tension and anger, changing its levels of intensity. Even without tracking the story step by step, you can feel the beats of it reflected in the music and it continues to hit you.

The two hundred and thirteenth episode: #2 Hopalong Cassidy

Hopalong Cassidy is not the easiest watch for a number of reasons. It's from 1949, so there's an automatic disconnect. It's the follow up to a popular film series, so assumes a lot of information I don't have as a viewer new to the world. And it's a western, which isn't a genre I care for much, and which generally doesn't create episodic stories that have much you can latch on to. It's interesting how the show is gentle and feels more cerebral than other westerns I've seen, but I just can't say there's a lot that properly connects - not bad for its time, I think, but not something I really enjoy now.

The one hundred and twenty-first book: #92 Camera Obscura - Hildebrand

Having had to deal with older English before, here I got to contend with some old, nineteenth century Dutch writing. On the whole it was just that bit more challenging to follow, mostly having to remember some older meanings of words, but it gave character to the stories as well. A lot of these are stories of daily life, characters of the day and the amazement of the rise of the railways, preferred over travel by boat. They got very moralistic in places, more treatises on specific topics, but when it's more focused on the characters it got more interesting.

The five hundred and eighty-eighth album: #588 Dolly Parton with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris - Trio

There's some power in a different perspective of a genre. While the three ladies involved were all already great at the time, they put in a performance here that's even more masterful and makes the songs a lot more listenable than I often feel about country. There's something about the skilled harmonies and forward feeling that really benefits anyone listening to it who comes to it from outside the genre. It feels simple, but there's enough interesting music to listen to here.

The seven hundred thirty-fourth song: Three Days - Jane’s Addiction

A nearly 11 minute rock track about the affection for someone who died of an overdose - the lyrics feel overshadowed by the music, but there's something haunting playing through the track to the point where that barely matters. The long rock solos have a bigger impact and there's a lot of darkness in here that feels like it comes from somewhere deep.

The seven hundred thirty-fifth song: Dub Be Good to Me - Beats International

A love song of sorts, the musical style is what stands out. Dub evolved from reggae, and the broadening of the sound really helps this track stand out. The smooth sounds still have a lot of life to them, while Lindy Layton's vocals work really well with them. The hip hop breaks feel unnecessary, breaking the flow of the song, but it's mostly really effective.

The seven hundred thirty-sixth song: Kool Thing - Sonic Youth

The smooth punk feel of this track really lures you in and the ending of the track came as a surprise to me, it just flowed along so well. It's smooth, well produced punk that works its way in really well.

The seven hundred thirty-seventh song: Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Saint Etienne

It feels weird to get a dance cover of a folk rock track, but this feels like it works, the African folk influence adding to the ongoing beat and slighter vocals.

The seven hundred thirty-eighth song: Crazy - Seal

Reading that this song took two months together somehow makes sense. The hook is catchy, with Seal's vocal performance adding an extra twist to it. It builds and shifts, drum interludes and vocal samples interrupting that feeling but adding to a dreamlike feeling. It's all a bit off, but in a great way, and to me the lyrics still connect on some level. It manages to hit its high points really well.

The seven hundred thirty-ninth song: Mustt Mustt (Lost in his Work) - Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

I haven't heard of Qawwali music before - this is one of those ways where the list is broadening my experiences - although it feels like its sounds made it into other places and feel in line with the Bollywood sound. The music under this track is sparse, the support mostly provided by a chorus while the vocals lie on top. While some are simpler, there's a bunch of vocal trickery that works really well to create that interest as you're listening to something, transcending language. The translation of the subtitle does fit in with it, the droning chorus in particular enforcing that impression.

The seven hundred fourtieth song: Diaraby Nene - Oumou Sangare

Another track from Mali, this is another that partially feels updated to Western tastes - the core of the music is there, the chorus and vocals feeling unchanged, but the underlying musical accompaniment, although in the background, adding a different sort of life to it. It's music that works.

The five hundred and eighty-seventh album: #587 Dinosaur Jr - You're Living All Over Me

The post punk rock boost continues, with a grungier sound developing here - hard guitars with softer vocals, simple lyrics that mostly seem to be quite like a love song, very much related to daily life. It's not a sea change, and I feel I need some refinement before it would really reach its heights, but there's still something compelling enough about these tracks.