Please No Moss

She's been mentioned on almost every other episode we've done, so we'd thought we'd kick off Season 3 with album #3 from the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. On Blue, Joni sings perhaps the most personal songs we've covered so far, but is it the third-greatest album ever made? Album Recommendations: Clouds - Joni Mitchell Between the Lines - Janis Ian Follow Please No Mos...

To mark the end of Season 2, we re-rank all 47 albums we've covered on the podcast so far. We also decide which albums should be removed from the list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and which albums that we've recommended should be added. Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art: Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

It's our Season 2 Finale! In honor of the MJ biopic Michael, coming out on April 24th, we're covering the Jackson's breakthrough solo album which redefined him as an artist and set the stage for him to become the King of Pop. Album Recommendations: Step II - Sylvester Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

“Jump” by Van Halen is the band at their most accessible, trading in Eddie’s usual guitar heroics for an iconic synth-driven hook. In this episode, we get into the song’s massive pop appeal, its role in redefining the band’s sound in the ’80s, and why it still feels like pure adrenaline decades later. But does “Jump” deserve a spot among the greatest songs of all time? Cover art by Katherine Evans...

With its woozy melodies, surreal lyrics, and that instantly recognizable guitar line, "Black Hole Sun" feels like a sun-baked fever dream that still hits hard decades later. The song is peak Soundgarden, blending grunge heaviness with psychedelic weirdness in a way that’s both catchy and deeply unsettling. So the big question is: should “Black Hole Sun” be considered one of the greatest...

Aja is Steely Dan at their slickest and most obsessive, blending jazz chops, studio perfectionism, and impossibly catchy hooks into a record that somehow feels both laid-back and insanely precise. From the smooth glide of “Peg” to the dark, cinematic sprawl of the title track, it’s the sound of a band firing on all cylinders and refusing to waste a single note. So… is Aja one of the greatest album...

Otis Blue is Otis Redding at full throttle: raw, sweaty, no-frills soul that sounds like it was cut live in the room, complete with blistering covers and some of his most iconic originals. The whole album feels loose, urgent, and impossibly confident, like a singer who knows he can out-sing, out-feel, and out-groove just about anyone. By the end, you’re left wondering whether this is merely a grea...

With the Super Bowl coming up, we'd thought we take a look at this year's halftime show headliner, Bad Bunny, and his debut album from 2018. Album Recommendations: Barrio Fino - Daddy Yankee DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS   - Bad Bunny It's Album Time - Todd Terje Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

“Toxic” is breathless, string-stabbed tune where Britney sounds both dangerously in love and fully aware it’s a terrible idea. It’s slick, dramatic, and somehow still unusual for a pop hit. But is the Grammy-winning song of Britney's career one of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time? Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gra...

Robyn’s Body Talk is basically the moment she perfected sad bangers: icy, minimal pop songs that somehow make crying on the dance floor feel empowering instead of embarrassing. It’s stacked with tracks like “Dancing On My Own” and “Call Your Girlfriend” that hit way harder emotionally than you expect, especially for music that goes this hard. Album Recommendations: La Roux - La Roux Period - Kesha...

In 1967, the country was captivated by a mystery: "Why did Billie Joe McAllister jump off the Tallahatchie Bridge?" The fictional suicide of a teenage boy in the Mississippi Delta had everyone talking about this song by southern songstress Bobbie Gentry - knocking even the Beatles off the #1 spot on the Hot 100. But is "Ode to Billie Joe" one of the all-time great songs? Follow...

Just in time for the holidays, we conclude our Phil Spector Spectacular with Disc 4 from 'Back to Mono,' which features the entirety of Spector's 1963 Christmas album, A Christmas Gift to You from Phil Spector. Also, we finally dig into the details of Phil Spector's murder of Lana Clarkson as well as some of his other various crimes and controversies. Album Recommendation: Ready Fo...

Our Phil Spector Spectacular continues with disc 3 from Back to Mono. As the popularity of the girl group sound wanes, Spector begins working with other types of artists, including the Righteous Brothers and Tina Turner. Album Recommendations - Eccentric Soul : The Capsoul Label - The Numero Group - We Are The Pipettes - The Pipettes Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans...

Our Phil Spector Spectacular continues with Disc 2 from Back to Mono , covering songs from 1963-1964 - mostly by The Ronettes, but we also get some more from Darlene Love as well as a cover of a Beatles song that is significant for all the wrong reasons. Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art: Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

Before he murdered actress Lana Clarkson in 2003, Phil Spector was known as a legendary producer in the music industry, famous as the "Tycoon of Teen," launching the careers of multiple girl groups and developing his trademark "Wall of Sound" recording techniques. Pat and Derek discuss Spector's early career as documented on the first disc of the four-disc compilation Back...

In honor of the movie Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, Pat and Derek conclude Rocktoberfest 2025 by discussing the Boss's landmark album, Nebraska. Album Recommendations: All Hail West Texas - The Mountain Goats Songs from Suicide Bridge - Eric Caboor & David Kauffman Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

We kick off Rocktoberfest II: A Hayride Through a Pumpkin Patch of Autumnal Albums by celebrating the harvest season with, what else, Neil Young's landmark 1972 album Harvest. But is Harvest as great as a flannel sweater on a crisp fall day or is it nothing more than a pile of wet leaves? Album Recommendations Bryter Layter - Nick Drake 1984 - Van Halen Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cove...

Santana’s Abraxas is a wild fusion of Latin rock, blues, and jazz that's packed with hypnotic rhythms, and blistering guitar solos. Tracks like “Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen” and “Oye Como Va” aren’t just classics; they’re the kind of songs that define an era. But does its genre-blending brilliance earn it a spot among the 500 greatest albums of all time? Album Recommendations: Mint Jams - Ca...

Funky Kingston by Toots and the Maytals is one of those records that feels like a bridge between worlds: part raw reggae groove, part soul-drenched funk, and all good vibes. You can hear the roots of reggae exploding into something bigger, as this became one of the first albums to make the rest of the world sit up and take notice of the music coming out of Jamaica. The real question is: does that...

Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill dropped in 1998 and instantly felt like a cultural event—blending hip-hop, soul, reggae, and R&B into something that was both deeply personal and universally resonant. The album covers everything from love and heartbreak to spirituality and identity, all with Hill’s unmatched mix of sharp lyricism and raw emotion. It’s the kind of record that defin...

"Promised Land" is a fast-paced rock 'n' roll travelogue where the narrator hustles his way from Virginia to California. It's full of motion, rhythm, and clever references to the civil rights movement. It’s the American road trip as a metaphor for the fight for equality, all set to a killer guitar riff. But is it one of th greatest songs of all time? Follow Please No Moss on...

The B-52s’ debut album is a wild, campy ride that dropped in 1979 and still feels like a dance party from outer space. With surf rock guitars, retro-futuristic vibes, and absurdist lyrics, it introduced the world to the band’s totally unique sound. It’s kitschy, chaotic, and somehow still cool as hell, but is it one of the greatest albums of all time? Album Recommendations: Talking Heads: 77 - Tal...

Carole King's Tapestry is a landmark album that masterfully weaves introspective lyrics with unforgettable melodies, creating a deeply personal yet universally resonant listening experience. Given its immense cultural impact, enduring popularity, and influence on generations of musicians, Tapestry obviously deserves a high ranking on the Rolling Stone Album List, but is #25 too high, too low,...

Lorde’s Melodrama is basically the soundtrack to being 19, heartbroken, and feeling everything way too much. It’s full of glittering production, devastating lyrics, and the kind of self-aware drama that somehow makes crying on the dance floor feel empowering. But does this coming-of-age album belong on the "Supercut" of Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time, or...

With Pat out of the studio, Derek welcomes Andy Pierce, David Mucci, and Russell Gonzalez to the show to play some music-themed trivia games. Listen to OTR Debate on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art: Katherine Evans Closing Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton