Rolling Stones' Top 500 Albums

Do you ever get placed next to a coworker with an annoying habit that absolutely drives you nuts, but saying anything would make you look like more of a jerk than the person actually committing the social atrocity?  I am in that situation currently with a gum chewer.

 

While I do have a distaste for everything related to chewing gum, the umbrage I take against her is for popping the gum every 30 seconds.  I sit about 15 feet away from her and every time I hear the pop, or sometimes multi-pop, of the disgusting gum being blown out of her mouth it is like nails on a chalkboard.  I cringe when the sound starts and it takes only about four or five times before I feel my skin crawling and I have to either leave my desk for a long time hoping she ultimately grows tired of the gum or put earphones in and listen to some music through the computer.

 

Since leaving my desk for an hour that isn't my lunch break isn't really going to work out in the long run, I have elected to start listening to different mixes on YouTube.  Finally I decided to listen to what are considered the greatest albums of all time, leading to a list published in Rolling Stone Magazine in 2003.  Obviously it is heavy on rock and roll since that is what the publication has focused on for so long and lists like this are never 100% accurate since music is art and art is subjective, but it at least gives me a jumping off point to listen to some great music that I normally wouldn't ever hear if it isn't played on the radio or I don't already own the CD.

 

Looking through the 500 albums listed, it turns out I had only heard 23 of them in their entirety, and 15 of those were from The Beatles and U2, which I own all of their records.  The other eight albums I had heard were from The White Stripes, Coldplay, The Strokes, Arcade Fire, Miles Davis, The Clash, and Amy Winehouse.

 

As of this morning I added the second album on the list, The Beach Boys' Pet Sounds.  I'm not sure I would say it is the second greatest album of all time, but it was certainly enjoyable.  It did have "Sloop John B" and "God Only Knows," which are great tracks.

 

Having already reveled in the first and third albums on the list from The Beatles, which are Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Revolver, I will be moving along to number four.  This afternoon will be brought to you by Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisted.