What Are You Listening To? OCTOBER, 2018

[Old Uncle Toe]

Seems I'm stuck in the '80's for a while.

The Cure - Greatest Hits

 

[Unsomnambulist]

Love - Forever Changes (1967)

I fear this eloquent album is fading from the public consciousness even among modern music fans despite being ranked critically many years ago one of the greats (and hey NME in 2013 ranked it 37th of all time so some are still listenng). Perhaps it hasn't been there for many years (when I discovered this album in the mid to late 80s, I knew no one else who listened to it). I know my elder son has heard it - gotta make sure I suggest it to my younger son too.

Inspired by Zeeba to listen to this.

 

[lpfreak1170]

Drop Nineteens - Delaware (1992)

That cover has me very curious about the music inside.

 

[lpfreak1170]

Marilyn Manson - Heaven Upside Down (2017)

 

[Old Uncle Toe]

Love - Forever Changes (1967)

I know of and love the song Alone Again Or but I know little of the rest of the album. I'm in for a listen.

 

[Nickyboy]

I'm in for a listen.

Don't forget about the Starland Vocal Band after that.

 

[Old Uncle Toe]

Don't forget about the Starland Vocal Band after that.

No.

But getting back to Love. Again, the opening track "Alone Again Or" is fun. I like the guitar work. I like the campy Mexican bullring horn section. I like the pushy tempo. I got halfway through the album and never found that sound again. And then I just lost patience.

 

[Old Uncle Toe]

So I decided, enough of being influenced by these yay-hoos, I'm going back to my home turf...

The Nighthawks - Last Train to Bluesville

 

[Nickyboy]

So I decided, enough of being influenced by these yay-hoos

You used to be fun.

 

[Unsomnambulist]

That cover has me very curious about the music inside.

It wasn’t that great. Shoegaze that was a little too twee.

 

[Ojai Sam]

Lionel Hampton - 1951-1953 (Classics 2006)

Lately I've been filling in some missing titles in the dear departed French Classics series. This last volume of Lionel Hampton (in disco order, Axo!) is quite rare but somehow I found a copy without having to surrender more than one limb. It contains 5 MGM sides from 1951 featuring Hamp's hard-swinging big band with arrangements by none other than Quincy Jones. Two years later, we hear from a much quieter but no less effective all star quartet consisting of Oscar Peterson, Ray Brown and Buddy Rich. The rise of the LP allowed the latter group to stretch out for ten minutes or more, which they did without ever running short of fresh ideas.

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

No.

But getting back to Love. Again, the opening track "Alone Again Or" is fun. I like the guitar work. I like the campy Mexican bullring horn section. I like the pushy tempo. I got halfway through the album and never found that sound again. And then I just lost patience.

Ah, but then you didn’t get to the wonderful album closer “You Set the Scene”. On the one hand Forever Changes is quite an album of its era. But it’s also (and I’m very biased and have heard this one well over a hundred times in my life) a deft blend of ornate chamber folk, psychedelia, rock. I love so much about it - the cute line by line wordplay in “Maybe the People would be...”, the Marat/Sade quote at the end of “The Red Telephone”, the guitar solo at the end of “Live and Let Live”, the hippy trippy string/horn heavy “The Good Humor Man...”, and the fragile beauty of “Andmoreagain”. For a band that essentially was only locally know (Arthur Lee hated traveling limiting the group’s popularity) with only one low top 40 hit (“7 and 7 Is”) the overall sound and production is incredible (Elektra really let the band run with this one). To me, perfect

 

[lpfreak1170]

It wasn’t that great. Shoegaze that was a little too twee.

I'll give it a pass then.

 

[lpfreak1170]

Tony Joe White - Black & White (1969)


RIP

 

[axolotl]

It wasn’t that great. Shoegaze that was a little too twee.

I'll give it a try, then.

I'll give it a pass then.

Your opinion, notwithstanding...

 

[Old Uncle Toe]

Guano Padano - Guano Padano (2009)

Italian surf/spaghetti Western influenced guitar rock - picked this up randomly after a good Mojo review 9 years ago. Still really enjoy it.

This, on the other hand, turned out to be a very good listen. Thanks Zeeb!

 

[axolotl]

Alex DeGrassi ~ The World's Getting Loud (1983)

 

[axolotl]

Omar Haddad / Diego Ruiz ~ Ceremony (2009)



Minimalist guitar and piano Jazz is the best description I can give, at the moment.

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St. (1972)

Comfort food

 

[lpfreak1170]

The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St. (1972)

Comfort food

That's almost a good album.