So why is Cat Power’s The Greatest on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Cat Power is a musician, the stage name for Charlyn Marie “Chan” Marshall. I had heard of Cat Power for years, but it was a name that flitted around my mind along with a bunch of others that were unusual or striking for one reason or another (Japanese Breakfast? Flowers Must Die?) but took me some time to actually give some time to the music associated with it.
Cat Power is also one of those artists that, upon my very first listening, made me feel both immediately joyous and bummed at the same time that I hadn’t checked it out sooner.
I absolutely adore “Love & Communication,” my favorite song on The Greatest. It’s got a world weary, drinking beer at a bar at three in the afternoon vibe. It’s beautiful and tinged with a certain sadness, or yearning, or something. It’s mysterious in a good way. It’s restrained in a wonderful kind of way that constantly makes me want to hear more. Which makes me want to listen to it on a loop. It’s that kind of song.
“Islands” has a dreamy, whimsical quality that allows you to focus on how great Marshall’s voice is.
The slow pace of an acoustic guitar that involves a single note that’s followed by a chord being strummed is always something that gets my immediate attention. And Marshall’s voice over it on “Hate” is haunting, riveting, fantastic.
Some stats & info about Cat Power – The Greatest
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Singer Songwriter, Indie Rock, Alternative Singer Songwriter
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4 out of 5 stars
- When was The Greatest released? 2006
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #623 out of 1,000
Cat Power’s The Greatest on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Cat Power’s The Greatest that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Anyone can tell you there’s no more road to ride. Everyone will tell you there’s no place to hide.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.