With all due respect to Entertainment Weekly (a publication I actually enjoy), my response to their “New 100 Classics List” is: the hell. The magazine rated the 100 best albums from 1983-2008, but not only is their rankings a bit odd, it ignores many classics – particularly of those in the R&B genre that can’t be classified as “pop light.”

For example, as much as I love Lauryn Hill, is The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill really the second best album released in twenty five years? Is The College Dropout the fourth? Madonna’s debut the fifth?

They kicked off the list with Purple Rain. Eh, but having said that, where is Sign O’ The Times on the list? Likewise, The Blueprint is #7, but where’s Reasonable Doubt?

And how can you include Rhythm Nation (#54) but not the .janet album or the The Velvet Rope albums?

I like Back to Black, but #9, seriously?

And just how in the hell did Dangerously In Love make the list (at #19)? Same for Back to Basics and Britney? None of these albums are even the respective artists’ best offering.

So many people laud Tidal (#20), but When The Pawn… is a much superior album.

And get this: The Emancipation of Mimi is ranked just below Tidal. To that I say: Stop playing Mariah’s dual medicine cabinet/wine cellar. Where are my Butterfly fans? Emancipation is something I enjoyed at the time, but soon forgot about. Kind of like The Writing's On The Wall (#92).

It’s good to see some of my favorites listed (My Life #70, Stankonia #12, Illmatic #28, CrazySexyCool #36, It Takes A Nation Of Millions to Hold Us Back #55, Trap Muzik #95, Mama’s Gun #64, Ready To Die #40), but the exclusion of the debuts of Erykah Badu, D’Angelo, and Maxwell make me question the credibility of this list. But you know what? Their omission explains why of all the offerings of Alicia Keys to choose from, they go with her most soulless offering.

I’m about to turn on Toni Braxton’s first two albums and sing really loud off key. Shortly thereafter I will hit myself in the throat and sing select tracks from the Aaliyah album.

After that, I’m turning on the Bad album and telling the crafters of this list to pull over and get their get it right. How can you put Dangerously In Love on here and not Bad?

I won’t even get on my Jodeci stan kick.

You can read the rest of this list by clicking here.

Feel free to vent with me.

Labels: say what