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Album Ratings and Admin Errors

There's something I want to ask about your ratings. When an artist's album pick (the suggested entry point) differs from being their most highly-rated, editors usually provide criticisms in the review that explain why the album pick release hasn't received a higher rating. See Erykah Badu or Lou Reed.

Lately, I've noticed that there are occasions where criticisms weren't given to explain the choice. It has led me to wonder if errors were made instead. There are two very different acts that I wanted to highlight this with.

The first is the late Nanci Griffith. Once in a Very Blue Moon is a great breakout record but her follow-up, The Last of the True Believers is more often name-checked and praised by both her fans and critics alike. The AllMusic review also highly rates the latter album and awarded it the album pick. Considering that both records sit next to each other in Griffith's discography, is it possible that Once in a Very Blue Moon was accidentally given the five star rating instead of The Last of the True Believers? Or was the former record always the intended choice?

Likewise, there's Pure Guava by Ween. It's a fantastic little record but it's one that's rarely viewed as the band's best and it seems like such an odd choice to give a full-five star rating. It also sits right next to the acclaimed Chocolate and Cheese, which yet again has AllMusic's album pick. Could it be that the follow-up album was originally the intended target for a maximum rating but there was a mix-up along the way?

I would be interested to know if these two choices were intentional or accidental. And if they were intentional, what was the reasoning behind choosing them over their popular neighbor. Look forward to your feedback.

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So you agree with your colleague's assessment that Once in a Very Blue Moon is Griffith's best album? If you do, I'd be interested to know what you believe sets it apart.

It could be "the finest of her albums" and "a true landmark in the contemporary folk musical style" but there's little in the review making those claims. Which is why it would be nice to know more behind the choice. As someone who's relatively new to her music, other fans seem to talk more about The Last of the True Believers, Other Voices | Other Rooms or even Lone Star State of Mind. So I'm interested to know what exactly makes Once in a Very Blue Moon AllMusic's preferred record in her back catalogue.

Looking closer at your Nanci Griffith reviews, I haven't seen that editor review anything recently. Are they still with your team?

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It is possible that a true work of art or the most finely crafted album may not be the most accessible or best introduction to an artist's work.

An album pick may be selected when an album contains a well-known hit or a better entry point than another album which may be a better cohesive whole.

In the Nanci Griffith example, The Last of the True Believers contains arguably her best-known song "Love at the Five and Dime" and is a great introduction to her music, but it is possible that Once in a Very Blue Moon was the editors' choice for not only being the finest of her albums, but a true landmark in the contemporary folk musical style.

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