Jason Mendelsohn and Eric Klinger

Counterbalance is Eric Klinger and Jason Mendelsohn's attempt to make sense of the Great Rock & Roll Canon, the albums that have been deemed indispensable by the critical cognoscenti. They began by examining the most acclaimed albums of all time (as compiled by the mathematical genius at www.acclaimedmusic.net), and now they're looking at the idea of critical acclaim from a broader perspective. Look for Counterbalance on the Face-Book at www.facebook.com/CounterbalanceMusic and on Twitter @EricRKlinger

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Counterbalance: Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak

Guess who just got back today? Them wild-eyed boys that have been away. This week they're talking about the 813th most acclaimed album of all time. A 1976 classic rock mainstay is this week's Counterbalance. Spread the word around.

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Counterbalance: Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Imperial Bedroom

History repeats the old conceits, the glib replies, the same defeats. Keep your finger on important issues, and keep listening to the 275th most acclaimed album of all time. A 1982 masterpiece is this week's Counterbalance.

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Counterbalance: Harry Nilsson - Nilsson Schmilsson

Doctor, ain't there nothing I can take? Doctor? To relieve this bellyache? A 1972 smash (however unlikely) -- and the 938th most acclaimed album of all time -- is this week's Counterbalance. Jump into the fire and join us!

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Counterbalance: The xx - 'xx'

Watch things on VCRs with me and talk about big love. I think we're superstars -- or at least the xx are. A 2009 indie pop masterpiece is the focus of this week's Counterbalance.

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Counterbalance: Talking Heads - Speaking in Tongues

Put away that gun. This party's simple. We're talking about the 1137th most acclaimed album of all time. (That Talking Heads' 1983 commercial smash is this week's Counterbalance. Turn like a wheel inside a wheel.

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Counterbalance No. 16: David Bowie's 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars'

Up next for the Counterbalance series is No. 16 on Acclaimed Music's Big List—David Bowie’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Press your space face close to mine!

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Counterbalance: The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

And I will hang my head low — as we build our homes aluminum and fill our mouths with cinnamon. By land, by sea, by dirigible, we turn our Counterbalance attention to a 2006 indie rock classic.

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Counterbalance: Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963

We'll never know just what Sam Cooke would have accomplished if he had lived, but it's painfully clear that we missed out on something incredible.

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Counterbalance: Tame Impala - Currents

On Currents, Tame Impala hit upon a winning formula, moving seamlessly between electronic and organic, big ideas and bigger licks, pushed by an unstoppable rhythm.

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Counterbalance: Johnny Cash - At Folsom Prison

This week, we're stuck in Folsom Prison, and time keeps draggin' on. Actually it went by pretty fast as we listened to the 157th most acclaimed album of all time. Do the roots of roots music start here?

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Counterbalance: Courtney Barnett - Sometime I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit

Put me on a pedestal and I'll only disappoint you. The debut LP by a pop-rock wunderkind is this week's Counterbalance. She hasn't made the Great List of the most acclaimed albums of all time, but look for her next year.

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Counterbalance: John Cale - Paris 1919

Welcome back to Chipping Sodbury. You can have a second chance. Counterbalance is back. To mark their return, they're looking at the 356th most acclaimed album of all time -- avant-garde pop or the poppiest avant-garde?

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Counterbalance: My Morning Jacket - Z

You've got to want to rearrange and keep it off the record, off the record. Unless that record is the 556th most acclaimed album of all time. A 2005 mainstay is this week's Counterbalance.

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