"' Forever Changes ' made only a minor dent on the charts when it was first released in 1967, but years later it became recognized as one of the finest and most haunting albums to come out of the Summer of Love, which doubtless has as much to do with the disc's themes and tone as the music, beautiful as it is ," wrote Mark Deming in an entry for the online Allmusic guide.

Allmusic described Minor Threat's music as " iconic ," and noted that their groundbreaking music " has held up better than of most of their contemporaries.

However, Allmusic has called Peart " one of rock's most accomplished lyricists ",

The merging of instruments has led Allmusic to state that guitarists John and Damian O ' Neill " mated infectious guitar hooks to 1960s garage, 1970s glam rock, and Feargal Sharkey's signature vocal quaver.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic paid attention to the attempts of Simon in embracing his classic folk sound with Eno's electronic textures, and wrote that " Simon doesn't achieve his comeback by reconnecting with the sound and spirit of his classic work ; he has achieved it by being as restless and ambitious as he was at his popular and creative peak, which makes Surprise all the more remarkable.

According to Allmusic, Jones " has left his mark on rock & roll music history as an innovative musician, arranger, and director.

As an uncredited critic has written for Allmusic, " being freed of all rules, free improvisation cannot be traced back to a genre other than the very generic term avant-garde ".

" Steve Huey of Allmusic asserted that despite being born into a family of entertainers, Janet Jackson has managed to emerge a " superstar " in her own right, rivaling not only several female recording artists including Madonna and Whitney Houston, but also her brother, while " successfully her image from a strong, independent young woman to a sexy, mature adult.

Andy Hinds of Allmusic laments the polka influence as undermining " the intended threat of a death metal band " while his colleague Alex Henderson praises the band for their " solid, consistently likable effort ," declaring that Finntroll has set themselves apart from their peers " because of their emphasis on Finnish humppa " and " the humor and irony they bring to the table.

The political content was well received, with Allmusic calling it a " nasty, fierce realization of an entire world that has ... lost the plot .".

" In a review of the band's 2003 greatest hits collection Thank You, Allmusic critic Stephen Erlewine wrote that " STP made music that sounded great at the time and even better now ," and that " this music has stood the test of the time ," calling Thank You " nearly perfect.

John Bonham has been described by Allmusic as one of the most important, well-known and influential drummers in rock.

Allmusic critic John Dougan has written that " As the band's creative force, Lynott was a more insightful and intelligent writer than many of his ilk, preferring slice-of-life working-class dramas of love and hate influenced by Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen, and virtually all of the Irish literary tradition.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic summarized Survivor as " a determined, bullheaded record, intent on proving Destiny's Child has artistic merit largely because the group survived internal strife.

Allmusic has claimed that " funk metal evolved in the mid -' 80s when alternative bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Fishbone began playing the hybrid with a stronger funk underpinning than metal.

In his Allmusic review music critic David Cleary called Homecoming " America's finest album " and despite citing the lyrics as sometime banal, wrote that " each song here has something to recommend it.

Rick Anderson of Allmusic noted " After several fine, if rather derivative, albums of ska-inflected punk rock, and after years of being criticized for relying unduly on gestures lifted from the Clash, Rancid has come roaring out with the harshest and most consistent album of their career.

The album has also been identified as an " All Music Guide Album Pick ", denoting that it is one of the top albums recommended by the Allmusic critics.

Jason D. Taylor of Allmusic said Alive or Just Breathing is " a pure metal album that seemingly has ignored any fashionable trend and instead relies solely on skill and expertise to sculpt some of the meatiest heavy metal since the glory days of Metallica and Slayer.

Allmusic has called Rimes ' vocals " rich and powerful.

Media reception of the CD was generally enthusiastic, with the Allmusic saying the album " has all the assuredness and smart developments that should keep Monica's younger longtime followers behind her — all the while holding the ability to appeal to a wider spectrum of R & B and hip-hop fans.

" Jason D. Taylor of Allmusic stated " This is a pure metal album that seemingly has ignored any fashionable trend and instead relies solely on skill and expertise to sculpt some of meatiest heavy metal since the glory days of Metallica and Slayer.

Although the album did not meet commercial success at the time of release, it has gone on to sell over 300, 000 copies and received critical acclaim from several publications, including Pitchfork Media, Magnet Magazine, Allmusic, and The Pazz & Jop poll.

Allmusic described the album as " bland ", while Rolling Stone's David Wild gave it four out of five stars, stating, " Pilgrim is the work of someone who has learned in the hardest way imaginable that although he cannot change the world, he might be able to change himself.

Producers Giorgio Moroder, whom Allmusic described as " one of the principal architects of the disco sound " with the Donna Summer hit " I Feel Love " ( 1977 ), and Jean-Marc Cerrone were involved with Eurodisco.

His career, though short, is described by Allmusic as " enormously influential " for both country and rock, " blending the two genres to the point that they became indistinguishable from each other.

William Ruhlmann of Allmusic gave the album a star rating of five stars out of five and described it as the " definitive version of the Horror score.

Steve Huey in Allmusic describes the band as " one of the most unusual cult bands of the 1990s ... driven by frontman Mike Doughty's stream-of-consciousness poetry, Soul Coughing's sound was a willfully idiosyncratic mix of improvisational jazz grooves, oddball samples, hip-hop, electronics, and noisy experimentalism ( described by Doughty as ' deep slacker jazz ').

It is described by Allmusic as " extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding " music.

Stewart Mason in his Allmusic review of the album described it as a " terrific album " and a " fascinating, underrated release ", " every bit the equal of Safe as Milk and Trout Mask Replica ".

Shiny Beast ( Bat Chain Puller ) was described by Ned Raggett of Allmusic to be "... manna from heaven for those feeling Beefheart had lost his way on his two Mercury albums ".

Skyclad began as a thrash metal band but added violins from session musician Mike Evans on several tracks from their debut album, The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth, an effort described by Eduardo Rivadavia of Allmusic as " ambitious " and " groundbreaking.

Pure Prairie League, formed in Ohio in 1969 by Craig Fuller, had both critical and commercial success with 5 straight Top 40 LP releases, including Bustin ' Out ( 1972 ), acclaimed by Allmusic critic Richard Foss as " an album that is unequaled in country-rock " and Two Lane Highway, described by Rolling Stone Magazine as " a worthy companion to the likes of The Byrds ' Sweetheart Of The Rodeo and other gems of the genre ".

The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle is the second album by Bruce Springsteen and the as-yet-unnamed E Street Band, and is described by Allmusic as " one of the greatest albums in the history of rock & roll.

) With their 1994 album, Mars Audiac Quintet, Stereolab focused more on pop and less on rock, resulting in what Allmusic described as " what may be the group's most accessible, tightly-written album ".

What's Going On would later be described by an Allmusic writer as an album that " not only redefined soul music as a creative force but also expanded its impact as an agent for social change ".

Stephen Thomas Erlewine, senior editor for Allmusic, described specifically Culture Club as a new wave band and generically as the most successful pop / rock group in America and England during the 1980s, adding that, " By 1986, the group had broken up, leaving behind several singles that rank as classics of the new wave era ".

Reviewing Ain't Life Grand for Allmusic, Steve Huey described second singer Rod Jackson as " a combination of ' 80s pop-metal bluster and Faces-era Rod Stewart " with a " touch of Aerosmith ", a description that he felt also fitted the band as a whole.

Allmusic described it as a " groundbreaking " country metal album.

Writing for Allmusic, John Dougan described the genre's origins:

The album was described by Allmusic as " an abomination of ' 70s / Lenny Kravitz clichés, full of third-and fourth-rate tunes and, ultimately, bad blood ", going on to say " the words are just plain awful throughout, not even worth printing ".

The Dwarves reformed in 1997, releasing The Dwarves Are Young and Good Looking ( described by Adam Bregman of Allmusic as " the beginning of a new Dwarves ... one that plays real songs, had a set list, and left the club unbloodied "), and its 2000 followup The Dwarves Come Clean.

Simon Le Bon described So Red the Rose as " the most pretentious album ever made ," while Allmusic called it " the best album Duran Duran never made ".

Allmusic described it as " probably the most hyped debut album by a rap artist in about a decade ".

Allmusic described Red Headed Stranger as " really elusive, as the themes get a little muddled and the tunes themselves are a bit bare.

The album received positive reviews, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic described the album as having " classic moments of revivalist punk ".