RSSXgau Sez
These are questions submitted by readers, and answered by Robert Christgau. New ones will appear in batches every third Tuesday.
To ask your own question, please use this form.
November 26, 2025
What's in a name, live vs. recorded, tuneful vs. melodic, Pulnoc at P.S. 122, a lost Clash cassette, and a half-century-plus of delightful rhetoric.
[Q] I have come across your name so many times in my search tracing my dad's side of the family. I did a Google search and came across this post of someone asking about your last name. I read the same things about the meaning but my dad also told me it had a French spelling and sound prior to the current spelling. Have you ever come across this? His name was Henry William Christgau. He passed in 2018 and was 63. I am from upstate New York but live in Florida now. I love my last name and that it is rare. I did trace the origins and where it came from in Germany. Side note I appreciate your Taylor Swift reviews—die hard Swiftie here and was pleasantly surprised to see your ratings. Reputation is my favorite album and so misunderstood by those who don't follow her and what has happened to her. "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things" is a dis track for Kayne West and all the drama they caused her. It is one of my favorite songs on that album. -- Andrea Christgau, Florida
[A]
In my family lore the name Christgau is either North German or
Danish—there is a
Danish coffee brand of
that name, an empty bag of which hangs on my office door. And huzzah
huzzah, as noted in a strange coincidence you can find below but as
I've long known, Minnesotan
Victor
Christgau was an early director of the Social Security
Administration, which is something for all Christgaus to be proud
of. Plus, oops, a Minnesotan jerkola named, oops, Robert Wayne
Christgau was once arrested for driving his pickup with a young kid on
the roof. Hope he did hard time for that.
[Q] Being born in 1961 and not getting into rock music until the late '70s, I was not contemporaneous with a lot of rock's goings-on in the '60s and '70s. For example, Emotional Rescue was my first Rolling Stones cassette. I did voraciously listen to everything I missed, thanks to several guides, notably Paul Gambaccini's Rock Critics' Choice: The Top 200 Albums (to which you were a contributor) and two copies of Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. What I could never replicate was the live experience. While the Stones "Not Fade Away" was easily accessible to me, the visceral experience of their live show from the '60s and '70s was not. My question is, how crucial is this? Are they two different experiences or essential parts of one? Is it the difference between viewing (and being a part of) history and reading about it or simply different facets? Or is the difference simply unavoidable? -- Ted Raikin, Metuchen, New Jersey
[A]
The answer, obviously, is that they're two different but related
experiences, with the recording generally more foundational, although
it happens a lot that seeing a performer you've never heard before
live inspires you to buy his/her/their recordings. One nice thing
about records is that they tend to be a lot cheaper; another is that
by familiarizing the listener with the artist's material they
generally render the performance more revelatory. And of course, many
artists make more money on the road than they do from royalties.
[Q] At least a couple times in your reviews you've made the distinction between "tuneful" and "melodic" music (I'm thinking in particular of your reviews of the Beths' Expert in a Dying Field and Sleater-Kinney's The Woods). How exactly do you personally distinguish the two terms? -- Rogan, Melbourne, Australia
[A]
Tuneful, implies simple and catchy. Melodic has more duration in
it. Which is not to say I feel any need to be strict and/or absolute
about the distinction.
[Q] In 1989, you named Pulnoc's Live at P.S. 122 Album of the Year. Was it the Eastern European Revolutions that were a shock to you? -- Barbara, Prague
[A]
Shock? Nah. Barely even a surprise. As I recall, it was my minimalist
avant-garde colleague
Tom Johnson who first
alerted me to the
Plastic People of the Universe,
who evolved into
Pulnoc. As for the P.S. 122
show, which Carola and I attended a few blocks from home and enjoyed
tremendously, someone but I no longer recall who made me/us a CD
of that show, which Carola and I enjoyed tremendously just this
morning. Under the title "Reality Czech," Carola also
reviewed Jana Chytlovas's
documentary The Plastic People of the Universe. And as it
happens, my fan Joe Yanosik has published a book called
A
Consumer Guide to the Plastic People of the Universe.
[Q] Hi Robert, Your review of The Clash US version mentioned a tape you made of the Clash singles from that time period and how dandy it was. Do you still have said tape and if so, what was the sequencing of the songs. -- Chris Kelly, Raleigh, North Carolina
[A]
By moving coats around in my hallway I was discombobulated to discover
I've shelved, alphabetically of course, what looks like hundreds of
homemade cassettes, none of which I've played in years. Couldn't find
a Clash one, unfortunately. Sorry.
[Q] Dear Mr. Christgau, Why do you dislike and rag on so much delightful music? -- Brent, New Orleans
[A]
Because over half a century I've found that a lot of people either
agree with me about what's "delightful" or enjoy my rhetoric.
October 16, 2025
Let us praise first-rate collections of first-rate songs but let us skip the twenty-four albums awarded some variation of the E grade. Also: albums vs. songs, Mary J. Blige, Geese, and chansons.
[Q] I've noticed that in the '90s you reviewed a lot of compilations of '50s and '60s artists. What's more, many of these garnered exceptionally favourable reviews—James Brown, the Coasters, Bo Diddley, Fats Domino, Curtis Mayfield & the Impressions, the Shirelles, and Howlin' Wolf all garnered A pluses, whilst Johnny Cash, the Chantels, Ray Charles, Lee Dorsey, the Drifters, the Everly Brothers, Slim Harpo, Buddy Holly, Little Willie John, B.B. King, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, the Marvelettes, Wilson Pickett, Huey "Piano" Smith, the Temptations, Gene Vincent, Muddy Waters and Jackie Wilson were all awarded full A's. My theory as to why this might be the case is that most if not all of these artists were included in your '50s and '60s Basic Record Library in your '70s and '80s Consumer Guides, and by the '90s you had moved on to CDs and many of your long-beloved comps by these (mostly singles) artists were vinyl-only if not out of print all together. -- Jamie Dangerous, Sunderland, UK
[A]
Right. The '90s were a boom time for the music industry, driven in
part by the arrival of almost everything old in a new format:
CDs. Consumer Guide is at heart exactly that, a guide, and when a
first-rate collection of first-rate songs arrived in the mail,
consumer guidance often followed. With a few exceptions, most of the
artists you list above recorded a lot of first-rate songs but didn't
conceive their output in terms of albums, which at their best tend to
be structured so they flow, to include tracks that may not be
irresistible on their own but intrarelate (note: the previous word is
not "interrelate," although that can happen with successions of songs
as well). Greatest hits records hit home differently, track by track
by track. Unsurprisingly, they suit artists who rode through their
careers on the strength of memorable songs—some hits, some evocative
of similar hits, others strung together by the artist in question's
unique style and vocal identity.
[Q] I have a dumb question that has bothered me since I bought my first copy of Rock Albums of the '70s back in college: why E rather than F? For years I thought it must be a joke you didn't bother spelling out (E for "Existentially Awful?"), then thought perhaps it's a New York City public school thing. So please, for a lifelong fan who owes you for introducing me to hundreds of great records and many of my favorite bands, why doesn't a terrible record get an F? -- Gary Mairs, Los Angeles
[A]
Remembering with certainty why I made that call half a century ago is
pretty much impossible, but I can certainly see a logic there. A, B,
C, and D don't stand for anything. They're the first four letters of
the alphabet, just as 1, 2, 3, 4 are the first four numbers. To resort
to F, which clearly stands for "Fail," would be to abandon that
logic. E gives us five grades, with E the lowest and "Plus" and
"Minus" available for further detail work. But did I ever actually
resort to E Plus or E Minus? I dimly recall doings, and by checking my
site—Tom
Hull is unstoppable—have determined that there
are
seven E+'s,
fifteen E's, and
two E-'s
(Aorta,
Kim Fowley).
[Q] I find myself recently listening more to individual songs than full length albums. Do you think you may be missing something by focusing on albums, including great songs by one-hit wonders or artists without any A albums? Aren't albums for the most part made up of songs? When listening to albums I do tend to break the album into songs I love, songs I like and songs I don't like. -- David S, Arlington, Virginia
[A]
Sure I'm missing something by not searching out singles. I'm also
missing something by never visiting New Zealand. But do I hear enough
great music in the course of my life? Damn right—few humans hear
more, and focusing on albums as I have for 60 years has proven an
enriching way to do that.
[Q] Hi, Seems to have gone unnoticed by many critics, but any thoughts on the last Mary J. Blige album? -- James, Liverpool
[A]
I assume you mean 2024's Gratitude, of which I wasn't aware until I
got this question, which says something about how "unnoticed" it's
been. Streaming it first listen on Spotify as I write and would say
solid, as she generally has been. But only time will
tell—suitable breakfast music will enable me to check it out
with my secret weapon the Carola Test. Would observe for the nonce
that that's what Blige has always been: solid. Would observe that at
54 she's still an unmistakable pro. Would also observe that pros
generally need something a little more scintillating than solid to
break into the A list and that I'd handicap this as what I call an
Honorable Mention.
[Q] The 23 Sept 2025 GQ article about the band Geese, authored by Grayson Haver Carvin, led me to listen to some of their music and the solo album titled Heavy Metal released by band member Cameron Winter. I was surprised and delighted to be moved by some of those tracks in ways reminiscent of first hearing Marquee Moon, Horses, or More Songs About Buildings and Food, i.e. something crafty, good, and new. Given Geese are young and the influences of today's world on all young artists can be boggling to discern, I would like to know any thoughts you may have about their music.Thank you! -- Mike McMann, North Bend, Washington
[A]
My suspicion after one play of Geese's Getting Killed is that
your Television/Patti/Talking Heads comparison is a bit hyper. But
I'll certainly play it again and at a guess would allow as how it
might be some kind of A.
[Q] One of my favorite of your CG reviews is the one for Leonard Cohen's I'm Your Man—analogizing what he did to chanson not only opened his work up for me (even more), it also opened up chanson itself—albeit, after a LONG period of threading my way around my own rock & roll grain—or African-American-informed-music grain—just to tolerate it. You gave a Serge Gainsbourg comp a shrug, and I'm not surprised (I like him, but oh that bullshit meter). Yet I'm wondering if there have been any actual chansonnier(s) that might go on a theoretical "Sujets de recherche plus approfondie" list? Not your beat, I realize, but I'm curious. -- Mark Bradford, Brooklyn
[A]
I may be forgetting something, but I don't recall a single chansonnier
(is there female variant of that term?) who's rung my chimes. I miss
the African-American groove too much is one problem. But a while back
I gave an A minus to a 2010 album called
Bad Reputation: Pierre de
Gaillande Sings Georges Brassens, in which de Gaillande
translates and sings a bunch of Brassens's chansons. I ranked it 31st
in that year's Dean's List. So I found it in my shelves and gave it a
spin, which sounded damn good, funny and occasionally filthy (it's on
Spotify). I read French moderately well, but I barely speak it
unless I'm ordering food. Carola's French is quite good and when we've
vacationed there she's run the show and saved our asses. Similarly,
both she and Nina have run the show when we've visited Italy, where
Nina's studied the language a little, although I do the driving, which
in Italy is something to brag about.
September 17, 2025
African American science fiction, Eno before and after rocking, where (or who) in the world is Stephen Malkmus, first musical loves, variants of the art-rock mindset, and listening without prejudice.
[Q] Any recommendations for African American science fiction novels? -- Amy, Taiwan
[A]
Two of the most renowned science fiction novelists are Black. One is
the also quite feminist Octavia E. Butler (I've read Wild Seed
and Kindred, which I admired though they didn't stick with
me—this was well over a decade ago). The other is Harlem native
Samuel R. Delany, a great. The acknowledged classics are Stars in
My Pocket Like Grains of Sand and
The Motion of Light in Water. Plus
there's the wonderful East Village memoir Heavenly Breakfast. Delany
is gay and writes about it sometimes. He's 83. I deal with him at some
length in
Book Reports.
[Q] Hello Sir, After recently streaming the wonderful new documentary film ENO, I immersed myself in his catalog of solo albums and collaborations and most of them sounded better than ever to my ears. I found two in particular to be absolute gems: 1973's No Pussyfooting credited to Fripp/Eno and 1983's solo Ambient 4: On Land. Checking your website, you gave both of these albums B+ grades so I'd like to ask if you have listened to either of them lately and if so has your evaluation changed? If not, I'd highly recommend you give them a spin when you can. I agree Another Green World is Eno's masterpiece but I'd be surprised if you didn't agree that these two albums are almost as good. Hope you are doing well. -- Tarun Bahaj, NYC
[A]
I have not encountered the film but will keep an eye out for
it. Another Green World is the only Eno album I play anything
like regularly—I mean, I own something like over 10,000 CDs not
to mention LPs, so give me a break. But your letter inspired me to
return for at least four-five tracks to
Taking Tiger Mountain,
Before and After Science,
and
Here Come the Warm Jets.
They all sounded good, but (as I'd anticipated) Warm Jets was
tops. Rocked a little more, for one thing.
[Q] What did you think of the Pavement movie? Appreciate you getting me into Pavement so I could enjoy it for the nostalgia as well as the delightfully weird meta elements. -- Griffin Han-Lalime, Damariscotta, Maine
[A]
Structurally, I found the film abstractly experimental in a mostly
impressive but sometimes overly experimental way. Its operative
conceit is an interesting one: that it's a semi-fictional or
play-acted music doc. Found myself unsure at times where or who
exactly Malkmus was. Was nonetheless glad that I saw it, just as a
film.
[Q] Hi Bob, hoping you and yours are well. What do you make of the notion that our first musical love is eternal? I reckon it's impossible to truly view anything in a vacuum, as lived experience necessarily dictates personal preference, but do you find any particular difficulty in remaining impartial about the music that reared you? -- Ryan Abraham, Muskegon, Michigan
[A]
I'm not familiar with this truism, but it's sensible enough—up
to a point. Among my early faves I certainly remember buying remember
buying Doris Day's "Secret Love" and via my Aunt Mildred a
Platters album while at the same
time enjoying my parents' 78 of
Fats Waller's "All That Meat and
No Potatoes," which in an early book dedication I mistook for "One
Meat Ball." For sure I still enjoy them all. But that doesn't mean I
regard any of them as titanic or foundational.
[Q] I've been thinking about your comment in your 2024 year-end essay, about the dearth of catchy songs with good beats in Pitchfork's year-end: "it could also be that America's greatest gift to world culture is going out of style." Have there been other periods when you've wondered anything like this? Is the worry limited to American music and culture specifically? I find more catchy songs/good beats than ever before, but the vast majority come from outside of the United States. This seems different, even as a longtime globally curious listener. -- Dave Moore, Philadelphia
[A]
That clause was intended as a mild dig at the current manifestation of
Pitchfork, which without having done a statistical breakdown
certainly seems to be tending toward a less songful and more abstract
aesthetic than I prefer, probably in the hope of nurturing a less
fun-prone, more snobbish editorial identity and hence market. Not that
this isn't the editors' true aesthetic penchant. But I've been poking
holes in variants of the art-rock mindset for most of my career.
[Q] You've mentioned you still give the occasional listen to new albums by artists you don't necessarily love but respect or have a personal connection to a la Paul McCartney. But what about artists you "turned against"; did you give a spin to the Who's most recent album from a couple years back? After a series of bad reviews, do you still give a spin (or stream) to new records by Nick Lowe? Cheap Trick? Or to groups you once dug but haven't officially reviewed in some time such as Elvis Costello, the Pretenders, or Elton John? Obviously, you spend less time with "classic rock" survivors now that commercial considerations don't play into it, but how curious are you to artists you obviously spent some time on in the past who may have irritated or bored you in recent years? -- James K, Queens
[A]
I hold no grudge against "classic rock" on the level you posit, and
would almost certainly give new albums by almost every artist you name
a spin. All are clearly talented. But whether their aesthetic retains
sufficient vitality is another matter. How many such albums would I
get to the end of? I truly couldn't say. Most, probably, but people
run out of gas, artists and critics both.
August 20, 2025
Thoughts on AI, advice to young critic, the Angry Samoans as dinner music, "It's Only Rock 'n' Roll" as ASMR, the road to humane politics, and 21 Louis Armstrong albums in no particular order.
[Q] I've always appreciated how you find unique ways to "unlock" music, and I often revisit your back catalogue to refresh my ears on records I love (for ex, your wry point about early Steely Dan: Palmer's singing "fit[ting] in like a cheerleader at a crap game" is on-point, though you've forever ruined my enjoyment of "Dirty Work":)) Another fave of mine is your quip about the Strokes' fourth album: "You know how it is—the gym does more for your wind than for your jump shot"—a splendidly abstruse (and apt) line! It's in these touches where I believe real value/artistry in criticism occurs. That said, I wonder what you think AI will reap in this particular context. Have you toyed with the tech at all? On a lark, I've asked it to imitate distinct prose stylists (Hem, DFW, etc.) & find that it can capture overt staples, but clumsily so; I had it imitate your style, and it broadly "got" you in certain touches, but somehow had you praising an Aimee Mann record. Your thoughts on AI and "unique voice"? -- Jason Holtzman, Gainesville, Florida
[A]
As a well-read, self-taught writer who's spent his professional life
looking inside himself and figuring out whether and how the good
feeling the melody or timbre or beat or verbal
intellection/humor/expressiveness of a compelling track arouses in me
entails physical pleasure, fresh insight, incisive humor, affecting
emotion, and now I'll stop until somebody pays me money—good
money—to excavate further, I'm extremely skeptical regarding
AI. For one thing, human writers have bodies. AI is certainly aware of
this inconvenient fact. But that doesn't mean it has the proper
physical equipment to understand what it means. AI, it's called,
right? Intelligence does not happen in the body. It happens in the
cerebellum, which AI presumably knows as opposed to understands is a
different thing without having the intellectual wherewithal to "know"
just exactly how it's different.
[Q] As a young person that loves music and is very opinionated, I want to review albums and be a critic. What words of advice would you give to a young writer, or what advice would you give to your younger self? -- Reagan Bussey, Starkville Mississippi
[A]
First, don't kid yourself about the raw appeal of your prose. Be
relatively confident that some people out there enjoy your writing AS
WRITING. Second, don't fib about how much you yourself like or dislike
the music in question, and even more important, why you feel the way
you do. If the reasons aren't vivid or interesting or significant or
striking or of general social/aesthetic usefulness, review something
else.