NQL's Top 50 Deserted Island Albums, Part 1

If you ever listen to Sound Opinions on Chicago Public Radio, you know that at the end of each episode either Greg Kot or Jim DeRogatis pick one song to be added to the "desert island jukebox." (When we were discussing this post, Jim Powers actually came up with a strong point in that the correct term should probably be "deserted" and not "desert," but whatever.) Basically, one of them picks a song that every music fan would not, or should not, want to live without.

Well, NQL is going to spend the next few weeks doing something of similar vein. Only we're going to focus on albums. Here's how it's going to work:

• For this week, six of our contributors each picked five albums they would want to bring to the island. We posted the albums in a thread on Gmail on a first come, first served basis. Therefore, if one person had already picked an album, it could not be chosen by anyone else.
• Next week, we're all going to once again choose five albums. That will bring the number to 60 albums.
• The third week, each contributor is going to vote two albums selected by others off the island. They will have to add a brief sentence or two to show cause as to why they could not handle the idea of being on the same island as such-and-such album. At this point, personal insults involving the album, the band that is responsible for said album, and the contributor who thought to bring along the album will not only be tolerated but strongly encouraged. After this is done and friendships are destroyed, the albums will have been whittled down to 48. Now, in the comment section of this particular post, each contributor will select two albums that were banished that they wish to remain on the island. Contributors will not be able to vote for any of their own albums that were told to piss off. The top two vote-getting banished albums will be allowed to stay. That will bring the number of albums to a nice, even 50.
• The fourth week we will post the official NQL Top 50 Deserted Island Albums.

So as you see, we're basically ripping off Sound Opinions, only with a little bit of Lost, Lord of the Flies, and a few episodes of the old television show Benson mixed in as well. We have no idea why we were sent to this island, nor why we all had the foresight to pack our favorite albums. Nevertheless, we're hoping at least one of them will help fight off scurvy. And now that the rules have been explained, here is our first round of deserted island albums:

Alex Crisafulli
Astral Weeks by Van Morrison
Black Sheep Boy by Okkervil River
Boys and Girls in America by The Hold Steady
On Fire by Galaxie 500
Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins

Brian Herrmann
Double Nickels on the Dime by Minutemen
I See a Darkness by Bonnie "Prince" Billy
In the Aeroplane Over the Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel
Laughing Stock by Talk Talk
Stankonia by Outkast

Travis Newman
Ænima by Tool
Here Come the Warm Jets by Brian Eno
London Calling by The Clash
Louder Than Bombs by The Smiths
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust by David Bowie

Jim Powers
Abbey Road by The Beatles
Aqualung by Jethro Tull
The Futureheads by The Futureheads
OK Computer by Radiohead
Perfect From Now On by Built to Spill

Scott Rudolph
Chocolate and Cheese by Ween
Doolittle by Pixies
Songs in the Key of Life by Stevie Wonder
Time (The Revelator) by Gillian Welch
The White Album by The Beatles

Audrey Wen
At Dawn by My Morning Jacket
Off the Wall by Michael Jackson
Tidal by Fiona Apple
Tigermilk by Belle & Sebastian
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot by Wilco