| Author | Message | ||
     Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3679 Registered: 05-2005 |
Paul Kelly - Every Fucking City | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1968 Registered: 01-2005 |
Rosanne Cash - Black Cadillac Rosanne's album in memory of her father Johnny, her mother Vivian, and her step mom June Carter Cash. | ||
| andreas Member Username: Andreas Post Number: 806 Registered: 04-2006 |
wareika hill sounds - wareika hill sounds really great roots reggae with afro beat and fantastic brass. i love it. | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 387 Registered: 10-2006 |
The idea of really great roots reggae with afro beat and fantastic brass is too much to resist, so an immediate order has gone in... | ||
| andreas Member Username: Andreas Post Number: 816 Registered: 04-2006 |
...away from the brass into space rock jam... white hills - polvere di stelle (track from white hills s/t) wow! i borrowed a review : White Hills - reminds me of the true spirit of rock and roll. Find a cosmic groove. Play loud. Kill your friends. Burn down your school. Merge with the infinite. Put simply, this is a gift for everyone interested in the destruction of life, municipal buildings and piss weak indie.” - The Quietus | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2488 Registered: 03-2005 |
Desmond Dekker--Rudy Got Soul (1963 - 1968) At last, Sanctuary/Trojan put together an anthology that picks up everything recorded by Dekker for this time period, all lovely Leslie Kong recordings and all preceding his Stateside hit "Israelites." I never heard about 60% of the material on this 2 CD collection. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3687 Registered: 05-2005 |
Right now Madness. Earlier, both Paul Kelly and Dan Kelly. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 865 Registered: 10-2008 |
randy, desmond dekker is somebody i've never really checked out too much. you will not be surprised,given previous correspondence, that he is probably too "pop" for me. that uniques comp on pressure sounds is a real winner, have been playing it a lot. i will do some digging on mr dekker though. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 866 Registered: 10-2008 |
the national high violet. my 15 year old daughter had this on repeat play for what seemed like a fortnight recently, and i noticed a lot of love for it in the off topic section of the wilco message board, so i stuck it on tonight for the first time in a few months. it is a great record, very understated but there is loads going on in the mix, the instrumentation is conventional enough but still well removed from mainstream american indie rock. the sufjan stevens album age of adz is really astonishing, such a brave album to release when he could just have released another "illinois" type album to massive critical acclaim. i need to check out the ep that was released recently. belle and sebastian - write about love. its not in the class of "sinister", but there are a few great tracks and certainly no filler. a far better album than the last one which was pretty turgid. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2489 Registered: 03-2005 |
Kevin, once Desmond Dekker relocated to the U.K. following his success there it was inevitable that he wandered away from the rootsy Jamaican sound. The simple solution for you as a listener is to stop at about 1970 or so and you're good. By the time he covered Cliff Richard's "You Can Get It if You Really Want" it was all over. He is probably the most extreme case of a Leslie Kong artist who didn't survive the producer's death. I'll send some samples to you. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1900 Registered: 09-2006 |
Cliff Richard? | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 867 Registered: 10-2008 |
wouldnt that be fantastic if it had been sir cliff? actually, probably not :-) knowing randy's consumate attention to detail, he more than likely dropped that one in to see who was paying attention!! i had a similar one recently when i got all my genes, and clarkes, and parsons mixed up!! | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2490 Registered: 03-2005 |
Oops. Jimmy Cliff. Short-circuit in the brain. And, no, I do NOT want to imagine a Cliff Richard version of "You Can Get It If You Really Want." | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1901 Registered: 09-2006 |
Oh c'mon, his duet with Bobby Vinton on "Legalize It" was to die for... OK, that's not entirely fair, as I know Mr. Richard had a few rock bonafides before slipping into MOR. We never heard any of them over here, of course. His first stateside blip was "Devil Woman" in the mid-70s. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2491 Registered: 03-2005 |
Allen, surprisingly Richard did a pretty decent cover of the Stones' "Blue Turns to Grey" in 1966 though, for the most part, he was already doing MOR by that time. In fact I think he'd started his weird religious thing by then. His early stuff is worth having, mostly thanks to the Shadows. But for early British rock (pre-Beatles) that is seriously excellent, see Johnny Kidd & the Pirates. Kidd went through two genuinely great power trio backing bands and made mostly good records from 1959 right up to his fatal road accident in 1966. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 868 Registered: 10-2008 |
devil woman is a classic!! | ||
| Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 392 Registered: 10-2006 |
Andreas, listening to Wareika Hill Sounds this very moment...uplifting stuff after a hard day! Great to have something described that sounds exactly as you want to when you actually hear it! | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1923 Registered: 09-2006 |
Brinsley Schwarz - Live in Cardiff 1974 Caught on a good night, quite ebullient, lotsa fun. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 909 Registered: 10-2008 |
have any of you nz enthusiasts heard a band called surf city? they have a new album out called kudos. i have saw a few positive reviews, the predictable reference to the chills and the clean have been made. heres a review below http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entert ainment/music/reviews/album-surf-city-ku dos-fire-2125301.html | ||
| Hugh Nimmo Member Username: Hugh_nimmo Post Number: 286 Registered: 03-2007 |
Kevin, they released a six track EP called 'Surf City' in 2007 or 2008 in New Zealand on Arch Hill Records ( later released on Morr Music in Europe.) I have a copy and although I cannot find mention of it on the Off Topic Forum using the search facility I am almost certain I mentioned them at the time. I do know for certain that I sent some samples to Randy. For me, the standout tracks on the EP are 'Dickshakers Union' and 'Canned Food' where the influences of the 'The Chills' and 'The Clean' shine through. Check your mailbox. | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1521 Registered: 08-2006 |
A stream of select tracks from the forthcoming outtakes collection accompanying the remaster of Springsteen's "Darkness": http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story .php?storyId=130858856 Some good, pleasant, surprisingly upbeat stuff (esp. in relation to "Darkness") in here. Can't believe they got two CDs worth of music. Dude must have lived in the studio in the 70s. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 910 Registered: 10-2008 |
thanks hugh, i'm at work and will look forward to hearing what you've sent later on tonight. listened to blonde on blonde by dylan in mono recently - strangely enough it sounded even more wonderful than the stereo. not often that happens. people in years to come will probably be mystified as to how music made in the 60 and 70s sounds far superior to more modern recordings. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 912 Registered: 10-2008 |
surf city - interesting stuff hugh, certainly on first listen. the first song i played, free the city sounded like the strokes or the walkmen to me- couldnt hear any obvious nz-ishness to them from that song. however, the second song, canned food, definetely did - like you said above. dickshakers union was harder to pin down ( a good thing!), and was the standout song for me. randy will be intrigued to hear that amongst the influences listed on their myspace page is a certain joe meek!! | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1993 Registered: 01-2005 |
This one will easily make my Top 10 for 2010: Tift Merritt - See You On The Moon | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2501 Registered: 03-2005 |
I ran across the name "Dickshakers Union" on my iPod a couple weeks ago and went "what the hell?" With that song title I assumed Surf City were an Aussie act Hugh had sent me. I imagine its the heavy distortion on a couple of tracks, what you attribute to the Strokes, Kevin, that might be the Joe Meek influence. Plus Meek did a LOT of trashy instrumentals, which could be an influence on the backing. I hear a lot of Clean and very early Chills in "Headin' Inside" and "Flagpole Skater." Ok, "Dickshakers Union" is very Chills and also a bit of--shudder!--Arcade Fire. Wow, yes, "Canned Food" is extremely Chills-esque. "Mt. Kill" and "Free the City" sound like two versions of the same song. Hugh sends me lots of wonderful stuff, for which I'm eternally grateful. I hope he keeps doing it. Surf City doesn't quite work for me; they seem too derivative. And maybe there's more sound than song going on. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 914 Registered: 10-2008 |
brian eno - small craft on a milk sea elliott smith - an introduction to.. robert hood - internal empire | ||
| Hugh Nimmo Member Username: Hugh_nimmo Post Number: 287 Registered: 03-2007 |
Kid Canaveral - Shouting At Wildlife. Debut album by a young Scottish band. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2502 Registered: 03-2005 |
Bossa n' Stones-2 | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1925 Registered: 09-2006 |
Yo La Tengo is Murdering the Classics A novelty album, but a really fun one - "Route 66" with the kid on lead vocals is up there with "Career Opportunities" on Sandinista! | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 1996 Registered: 01-2005 |
Drive by Truckers - The Dirty South Not bad, but I think Steve Earle is better then these guys. At least that is my first impression. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3708 Registered: 05-2005 |
Belles Will Ring - Come North With Me Baby, Wow. Brilliant 60s west coast psychedelia made in the Blue Mountains of NSW in 2010. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2004 Registered: 01-2005 |
Rob, I'm thinking Bruce had a lot of tracks stored up that he wrote during his year long dispute with his manager Mike Appel. Apart from his uncredited guest stint on Lou's Street Hassle album, I don't believe Bruce showed up on any other studio album during the three years between Born to Run and Darkness. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1930 Registered: 09-2006 |
Television - Live & Demos 1973-75 The Richie and Tom era, and a righteous noise indeed. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2517 Registered: 03-2005 |
Venus Traps Fly--Machine Translations | ||
| Shane Greentree Member Username: Realinspectorshane Post Number: 76 Registered: 03-2007 |
Jimi Hendrix Experience: Are You Experienced? | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2518 Registered: 03-2005 |
Dolly Mixture--Everything and More On disc number one right now. I'm a great lover of demo tapes and these sound nearly as great as The Sound's wonderful 1979 Propaganda tapes. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2102 Registered: 10-2004 |
Oh wow, Dolly Mixture. I haven't heard them in ages. Fun. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1932 Registered: 09-2006 |
Youssou N'Dour - Dakar-Kingston Etoile de Dakar - the four excellent Stern's CDs that cover their 70s and early 80s career | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1934 Registered: 09-2006 |
Shalamar - The 12" Collection Rolling Stones - Metamorphosis Sufjan S. - All Delighted People and The Age of Adz | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 941 Registered: 10-2008 |
lcd soundsystem - london sessions. a live in the studio greatest hits album encompassing all 3 albums. you can download it now, not available on cd till 20th december. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2009 Registered: 01-2005 |
Television - Adventure (Bonus Tracks) I glad you guys talked me into getting this puppy! | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1939 Registered: 09-2006 |
Glad you're enjoying it... | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1526 Registered: 08-2006 |
Elizabeth Cook - Welder Really fine, straight-up folk-country. A little poppier than Lucinda Williams, but a lot easier to get behind than... oh, I dunno, Shania Twain? | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1941 Registered: 09-2006 |
I'd perhaps plug LeeAnn Rhimes in that last slot in your sentence, there, as I have a soft spot for Shania at her best, but I get where you're coming from. I've been meaning to get to that album for awhile. For myself: James Brown - Messin' With the Blues Being a big Brownhead I can't believe it took so long for me to get to this one. Wonderful, raucous stuff. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2014 Registered: 01-2005 |
I just ordered Welder, thanks! We might not ever see another Shania album. It's already been eight years since her last, and now that Mutt Lange and her are busto she might hang it up. | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1528 Registered: 08-2006 |
Maybe Shania wasn't the best example, but I do prefer Cook's brand of country-pop over hers. Michael, I think you'll like the record. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2015 Registered: 01-2005 |
Rob, I never minded Shania. At least her voice was distinctive and had some edges to it, which is more then I can say for little Miss Swift. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1944 Registered: 09-2006 |
And personally, being that I'm a pop fan of the Cars and ABBA variety, I think her best stuff is fun and ultra-catchy (credit to Mutt Lange as well, for that). But I finally went and got the Cook album yesterday, and damn, it's pretty excellent. More detailed analysis to follow after a few more plays... | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3719 Registered: 05-2005 |
Girls - Broken Dreams Club EP | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2018 Registered: 01-2005 |
1960's Jazz guitar great Grant Green's fantastic 1964 album Street of Dreams, remastered RVG 2009 Blue Note version. Grant Green - Street Of Dreams That's Grant Green on guitar, Elvin Jones on drums, Bobby Hutcherson on vibes, and Larry Young playing the Hammond B3. Larry Young was know as "the Coltrane of the B3 players" for his unique approach to the B3, and add to it you have Coltrane's drummer at the time in Elvin Jones, one of if not the best vibes player of the era in Bobby Hutcherson, and the best or at worst the second best jazz guitar player of the era in Grant Green and you have quiet a band. What puts this puppy over the top are the four songs choices that average 8:20 in length (I Wish You Love, Lazy Afternoon, Street Of Dreams, and Somewhere In The Night) that are perfect in length and variety to let each jazz god do his thang and then fall back into the mix. Highly, highly recommended! | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2522 Registered: 03-2005 |
Michael Nesmith--And the Hits Just Keep on Comin'/Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash. Two early 1970s albums I never got around to. The first of them consists only of Nesmith on guitar and electric piano and his long-time collaborator, Red Rhodes, on pedal steel. I probably have to be the age I am now to have the patience for this record so willfully missing all of the pop conventions. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1953 Registered: 09-2006 |
Sly & the Family Stone - Live at Woodstock Husker Du - Candy Apple Grey Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five - box set James Brown - Dead on the Heavy Funk | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1954 Registered: 09-2006 |
Television and Patti Smith - Early Gig Live 1975, CBGB Television - Live at the Academy 1992 | ||
| frank bascombe Member Username: Frankb Post Number: 482 Registered: 01-2007 |
Leon Russell Retrospective, not keen on it too much boogie-woogie/blues Caribou-excellent The Walkmen-Lisbon i like a lot | ||
| Andrew Kerr Member Username: Andrew_k Post Number: 601 Registered: 04-2005 |
Dif Juz - 'Time Clock Turn Back'. A cassette only release that I bought in the mid 80s after seeing the band supporting the Cocteau Twins at the Sadlers Wells theatre in London. They were phenomenal live and their 4AD release ('Extractions') offered only a pale representation of their stage sound. They weren't helped by being produced by Robin Guthrie, who made them sound like the Cocteaus. The tape (a compilation of demos) is pretty rough but offers some pointers to why they were really special. Interestingly their Wikepedia entry states that they backed Lee Scratch Perry on a UK tour and also recorded with him, the tapes of which are still in the 4AD cupboard somewhere... | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2022 Registered: 01-2005 |
Elvis Costello - When I Was Cruel Is this EC's last very good/great album? Delivery Man is the latest EC I have and I bought it five years ago but haven't gave it a spin in 4-5 years. Perhaps later today. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2023 Registered: 01-2005 |
Another EC besides Eric, Edwyn or Elvis: Elizabeth Cook - Welder This might end up in my Top 10 for 2010. | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1532 Registered: 08-2006 |
It's up there for me, too, Michael. A terrific little piece of Americana. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1956 Registered: 09-2006 |
Thirded on that one, and my lovely wife agrees. And at the very least you gotta give it up to someone who can get a Velvet Underground cover on the country music radar... | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2105 Registered: 10-2004 |
TV21 - A Thin Red Line | ||
| Andrew Kerr Member Username: Andrew_k Post Number: 603 Registered: 04-2005 |
Hey Jeff ! If you can get to Edinburgh on the 29th of this month TV21 are playing alongside the Scars (first gig for 25 years ?!) and Malcolm Ross... http://www.avalancherecords.co.uk/2010/1 1/29/scars-tv21-malcolm-ross-hmv-picture -house-29th-december/ | ||
| fsh Member Username: Fsh Post Number: 228 Registered: 05-2005 |
I is gonna try to be at dis one. It's like time travel to Edinburgh 79/80 ! C'mon boys! | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 960 Registered: 10-2008 |
the scars - author, author - what a great album that was. i wore that one out in 1981/1982 | ||
| TROU Member Username: Trou Post Number: 264 Registered: 05-2005 |
Yes the Scars were good. Must go in the attic to find the record. Listening to the Stranglers now. On wednesday I've badly missed the concert of Hugh Cornwell (aged 61!) in Bxl due to snowfalls and bad roads. I've heard it was fantastic. Hope he'll come back. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2106 Registered: 10-2004 |
Andrew - sounds like an unmissable gig! But I'll be in Slovakia on the 29th, so no such luck. The Scars were pretty amazing. I only just discovered TV21, so I'm still getting acquainted with them, but at least some of their songs are undeniably good. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1958 Registered: 09-2006 |
Judee Sill - s/t Sly & the Family Stone - Fillmore East 1968 Robert Forster - Joe's Pub NYC, 2008 | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1961 Registered: 09-2006 |
Nile Rodgers Presents the Chic Organization Box Set, Vol. 1 Allo Darlin' - s/t | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 968 Registered: 10-2008 |
here's what stephen morris of joy division/new order listens to. he doesnt rate much music made in the last 30 years going by this! http://thequietus.com/articles/05413-joy -division-new-order-stephen-morris-inter view-favourite-records | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2527 Registered: 03-2005 |
Chameleons --Script of the Bridge (25th Ann. Ed.) This should be in the revival thread but I never got around to listening to the Chameleons, so it's new for me. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 971 Registered: 10-2008 |
my wife must be the only 43 yr old who strolls about our town wearing a chameleons t shirt. never saw the attraction myself, just a few steps removed from the mission and sisters of mercy imo. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1969 Registered: 09-2006 |
The Chi-Lites - (For God's Sake) Give More Power to the People and Greatest Hits | ||
| Jerry Clark Member Username: Jerry Post Number: 1059 Registered: 08-2004 |
Oh I don't know about that, Skully. I've never seen anyone in a Chameleons T-shirt. Then again, I guess they are meant to blend in with their territory.I saw a Ramones Tee for sale at Sainsbury's today, oh dear. My wife said "Do you want one" I had to say no. I love The Chameleons cos they had an individual sound & never really made it overground. Certainly not as stylised as The Mish & The Sisters. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2112 Registered: 10-2004 |
Chameleons "just a few steps removed" from Sisters of Mercy and MIssion? Oh man, I really beg to differ! And I guess your wife does, too, Kevin. (and I don't mind the Sister, though I hate the Mission). | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 972 Registered: 10-2008 |
i never took to them. they were big peel favourites as well, which at that time shaped quite a lot of my listening. jeff, my wife has very bi polar tastes(well imo anyway) she likes genesis, she likes the clash. she likes edwyn collins, she likes marillion she likes abba, she likes the go-betweens she likes the doors, she likes james blunt seriously, she went to see that last named bozo in concert. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2529 Registered: 03-2005 |
And you must have gone too, your face screwed up into a cheerful rictus all the way through! | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3733 Registered: 05-2005 |
Your wife can be forgiven everything except Blunt. (And maybe The Doors). | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 973 Registered: 10-2008 |
padraig, marillion and genesis are as vile as blunt if you ask me. and i should know, cos i've seen him live allegedly! | ||
| Burgers Member Username: Burgers Post Number: 23 Registered: 05-2005 |
Script of the Bridge is my favourite album of all time. John Peel really didn't play them very often. That said, after SotB The Peel Sessions is their next best album. I'm also a fan of TV21 but never rated The Scars. I'm tempted by the Picture House show. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 974 Registered: 10-2008 |
miss burgers, thats not the way i remember it. if i recall correctly peel played them quite a bit. though not the most reliable source wikipedia mentions "several peel sessions", i'm not sure how many there were exactly but there were definetly 3 given that there is a 12 track peel sessions album. anyway, in the 80's i spent lots of time socialising at the local university, we were in the camp that loved the fall, the smiths, rem, the go-betweens, new order etc - typical weedy indie boys no doubt. it seemed like everybody else was what could loosely be termed goths - fans of the mission, sisters of mercy, the cure,the banshees, the cramps, and yes you guessed it the chameleons. like i said, i just couldnt take to them. sometimes you dislike or dismiss a band for no real reason, you just cant put your finger on it. they're by no means crap and they're not as leaden or as lumpen as the mission or the sisters(although some of the early sisters singles are fantastic), i just dont think they were anything to write home about. mind you, they do seem to attract a devoted fan base so fair play to them, they are obviously doing something right. i am listening to their debut album as i type this and with each passing song i kept thinking "that bit sounds like so and so...", and while there are some nice shimmery guitar parts i just cant get past the uninspiring deadpan vocals. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1970 Registered: 09-2006 |
Go-Bees - Very Quick on the Eye Believe In Music - the very first non-kid album I ever bought, in 1972, a K-Tel compilation of "22 Explosive Hits," though it's not exactly the same album I grew up with, as whoever made it available online took the trouble of compiling the full-length versions of all the songs - K-Tel was notorious for heavy-duty edits on their albums, which was how they could cram all of those Explosive Hits on one record. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2530 Registered: 03-2005 |
The Chameleons' vocals are the weak spot for me as well, Kevin. Jeff compared the vocalist to a super serious John Cale when he sent me a sample. I heard Tom Robinson. Last night I was thinking he sounded like a super serious Julian Cope. Some of the songs could be shorter too, but there are some lovely guitar sculptures and I intend to check out their second and third albums. I'm trying to imagine people listening to both the Fall and the Go Betweens when they were both new acts. I love them both but I discovered them at entirely different times. I was still pretty heavily into the Fall when I got the Go Bees' 1978-1990 collection. I enjoyed it but not enough at that time to start hunting up their albums. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2034 Registered: 01-2005 |
I got into The Fall, The Go-Betweens, The Pixies, Wire, Throwing Muses and My Bloody Valentine all during 1988. Not a bad musical year for me. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2114 Registered: 10-2004 |
I think I compared TV21's singer to a super serious John Cale. I'm not sure who I would compare Chameleons singer Mark Burgess to. In the US, the Chameleons were definitely *not* relegated to the goth crowd. In fact, none of the goths I knew (I more or less was one myself as a teenager) were into them. Chameleons got a lot of college radio airplay, and their appeal was broader than any one specific sub-genre. They appealed more to the kind of college student types who loved, say, the Cocteau Twins, the Bunnymen, Felt, and Joy Division, but who were *not* goths. I don't know if that makes sense, but they definitely weren't part of the goth "canon" over here. Plus - the Chameleons never looked goth. They just wore grey sweaters and had short, slightly disheveled hair. They never did the make-up and the glam, etc.. They were more working class, down-to-earth, earnest pub-going types. Sure, they had a flair for melancholy and melodrama, but they were never lugubrious or pretentious. Their lyrics were always earnest and personal, never flamboyant or escapist. I mean, just *not* quite the kind of thing goths were typically drawn to. I'm sure there were goths that dug them, but they definitely weren't seen as goth, like Bauhaus or Christian Death or Sisters of Mercy, etc..., and they didn't pander to the sub-culture in any way. So, maybe it was totally different in the UK? Maybe it's a fine line? I don't know. But here in the US, they were perceived as a solid, melodic, guitar-y college/alternative band, and nothing more. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 975 Registered: 10-2008 |
jeff, a lot of what you say does make sense actually. they were possibly more of a bridge between the Cocteau Twins, the Bunnymen, Felt, and Joy Division, and the likes of the Sisters etc. so maybe it was just my towns university goths that liked them!! | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2115 Registered: 10-2004 |
As for myself, I think I've always kind of seen them as somewhat akin to the Sound and the Comsat Angels, ie - capable of making dark, moody, intense music, but which could also be light and melodic when they wanted. Of course Adrian Borland was a better singer and more affecting lyricist than the dudes in the other two bands, but that's kinda how I see them. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 976 Registered: 10-2008 |
comsat angels - definetly similarities there. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2531 Registered: 03-2005 |
Sorry, Jeff, for crossing wires on your vocalist comparisons. I don't find the Chameleons' singer very characterful so--for me--you can compare him to any bloke-ish sounding guy. I DID think that he sounds like an extra somber Julian Cope when I listened to Script of the Bridge over the weekend. I tried the Comsat Angels. No impact for me. | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2117 Registered: 10-2004 |
Yeah, I could possibly hear a bit of Cope, but it's a different vibe. Cope was so brimming with enthusiasm and/or totally, lysergically (but happily) fried. And more expressive. Burgess would be like Cope's dock-working younger cousin or something. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 977 Registered: 10-2008 |
randy, i think the comsat angels were probably a band of their time, and dont really stand up now. i really liked them at the time, especially the album sleep no more. their dual headline tour with the sound in the early 80s was a great gig. i seem to recall that each band would headline on alternate nights, the night i saw them in edinburgh it was the comsats who headlined. naturally the sound blew them off the stage, just as they had done with echo and the bunnymen a few years earlier on the bunnymens heaven up here tour. that was no mean feat as they bunnymen were a great live band at that time | ||
| Jeff Whiteaker Member Username: Jeff_whiteaker Post Number: 2118 Registered: 10-2004 |
I really like two Comsat albums - Fiction and Waiting for a Miracle. They always got lumped in with the Sound for getting lots of critical praise but being ignored by the public. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1972 Registered: 09-2006 |
Mighty Sparrow - First Flight The Klezmatics - Woody Guthrie's Happy Joyous Hanukkah | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2534 Registered: 03-2005 |
Concubines--Well-Armed Leftist Rebels New! | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2038 Registered: 01-2005 |
Robert Forster & Grant McLennan - Munich B2 Radio Broadcast from 1999. I forgot how great this is! I think I'll play the double disc Live in Geislingen next. I remember how wonderfull it was seeing Grant and Robert for the first time at the 7th House show in Pontiac MI, which was a few weeks after the German gigs. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1973 Registered: 09-2006 |
Gladys Knight & the Pips - Claudine soundtrack Pet Shop Boys - Disco 4 Ladysmith Black Mambazo - Raise Your Spirit Higher | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2536 Registered: 03-2005 |
Teardrop Explodes--Kilimanjaro | ||
| Andreas Severins Member Username: Andreas_severins Post Number: 183 Registered: 11-2007 |
The Gordons - Growing Up (Wipers like song... long and wonderful) | ||
| Andreas Severins Member Username: Andreas_severins Post Number: 184 Registered: 11-2007 |
uups - wrong thread. but the album is great as well ;) | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3737 Registered: 05-2005 |
R.E.M. - Discoverer. This bodes very well for the next album. Sounds like the last album with a twist of psychedelia. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1977 Registered: 09-2006 |
Go-Bees - The Botany Sessions | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1978 Registered: 09-2006 |
Go-Bees - 1982 Peel session | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2538 Registered: 03-2005 |
The Missing Links--Driving You Insane Not new: 1966 | ||
| Burgers Member Username: Burgers Post Number: 24 Registered: 05-2005 |
What Jeff says about The Chameleons and Mark Burgess is about right. Burgess was a friend of Adrian Borland's - hence Adrian Be on Burgess/Yves Altana's album. A fair number of people rate SotB ad the best album of all time. Many of them are in the USA. You'll see that in review of the 25th anniversary edition on Amazon, etc. I don't think they ever did anything very good after SotB but the Peel sessions album is worth listening to because the version of Perfume Garden from the 2nd session is so much better than that on the 2nd album. The 3rd album was designed for the US college market and a lot of people like it. I think it's okay. I would think that Peel probably played around 30 tracks by them in the six years including sessions and festive 50 entries. I always got the impression he only liked In Shreds and found the later stuff too melodic. He was a bit perverse a lot of the time. They were also a tremendous live band. There's been an awful lot of stuff released over the years and most of it is very missbale. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1984 Registered: 09-2006 |
Fever Ray - s/t Pernice Brothers - Goodbye, Killer Chromeo - Fancy Footwork | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2043 Registered: 01-2005 |
Here is my favorite song of the moment. Ron Sexsmith - Love Shines I detect some snippets of Paul McCartney and Elvis Costello. Can you think of others I have missed? You can listen to it hear. It will be on Ron's new album to be released late February/early March 2011. http://www.ronsexsmith.com/ (click on Listen to "Love Shines" now) | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1986 Registered: 09-2006 |
Everybody Was in the French Resistance...Now! - Fixing the Charts Vol. 1 | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1990 Registered: 09-2006 |
Dessa - A Badly Broken Code | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1994 Registered: 09-2006 |
More listens to Allo Darlin's debut. Excellent fit for the day. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 1996 Registered: 09-2006 |
Several discs of great, great mixes by legendary disco DJ Larry Levan. | ||
| Pádraig Collins Member Username: Pádraig_collins Post Number: 3752 Registered: 05-2005 |
Yes, and now The Waterboys. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2053 Registered: 01-2005 |
Paul Weller - 22 Dreams I didn't listen to this as much as I should have back in 2009 when I picked it up. It's a great album to say the least. Would you rate it as his best solo album ever? I just recently picked up the Yep Roc deluxe edition 2 disc Wildwood and need to give it a few more spins. I also never picked up his 1992 solo album, so I'm missing that one as far as a comparison. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2546 Registered: 03-2005 |
Last night: Kissing the Pink--Naked The Gaylads--Best of the Gaylads 1968-1971 | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1023 Registered: 10-2008 |
wire - red barked tree drive by truckers - go go boots fujiya and miyagi - ventriloquizzing caribou - swim | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 2007 Registered: 09-2006 |
I'm liking the new Wire so far...like all their incarnations rolled into one. | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 2009 Registered: 09-2006 |
Mahotella Queens - Izibani Zomgqashiyo Bruce Springsteen - The Promise | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 2012 Registered: 09-2006 |
The Corin Tucker Band - 1,000 Years | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2549 Registered: 03-2005 |
The Gaylads--Soul Beat. Earlier material from their days with Clement Dodd. Kevin, this comment's for you if you haven't explored the Gaylads much. In my recent huge intake of rock steady reissues, I'd have to say that the best things have been Slim Smith's solo (post-Uniques) work and the Gaylads' recordings. Smith is a great singer and a good writer but my perception is that his writing ability did not really take off until his solo career. B.B. Seaton of the Gaylads, on the other hand, bloomed as a really great writer from a much earlier point. And the Gaylads created sophisticated vocal harmonies and played their own guitar and bass parts on their recordings, very unusual for Jamaican vocal groups. For a guitar guy like me this lends a special appeal to the recordings which are, of course, very guitar dominated. "Peculiar Man" on this Studio One set is entirely out of the box as far as the lyrics go: "He was a most peculiar man When he walked down the street every little girl he'd meet he would kiss his feet knock his head on the concrete. Did he smoke? Yes he did. Did he drink? He never touched that thing. Did he smile? I've never seen him but in love, he got it all." On the other hand, "Red Rose" is a blatant rip-off of Joe Meek's instrumental "Telstar" melody with the addition of lyrics. "Soul Beat" is actually a pretty straight reissue of their 1967 album of that title. The original liner notes are included and the corny biographical stuff about the members is included. Harris "Bibby" (aka B.B.) Seaton's favorite artists are Ken Boothe (who Seaton had already worked with and would again), Slim Smith (so he already knew who among his peers to pay attention to), Otis Redding and The Temptations. Definitely a stand-out group from the rock steady era and things got even better after they left Dodd and started recording with Sonia Pottinger and Leslie Kong. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1027 Registered: 10-2008 |
Randy, the Gaylads is a name I'm familiar with, but havent actually heard any of their albums. This is being rectified immediately, Napster have two albums. The first is this one http://www.allmusic.com/album/fire-and-r ain-r288483/review The second one is "The Best of The Gaylads" on Beverleys Records, which I think is Leslie Kongs label? I see from the blurb on ALLMUSIC that one of the Gaylads was also an ex Paragon. This seems to have been a feature of lots of the rocksteady era bands, that singers would drift between bands all the time. Which brings it home to me that for such a small island the amount of great singers/musicians that came through between the 60's and 70's is astonishing. Just a pity that the last 25 years have been largely (for me anyway) devoid of this, I find most Jamaican music post 1985 unlistenable which is a great shame. Ragga, Bashment etc is just a noise :-), and even the great groups/singers from the 60's and 70's went all digital and the music seemed to suffer badly. Sorry, went a bit off topic there!! Also, dont know if you picked up on this but Sonia Pottinger died back in November. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2550 Registered: 03-2005 |
Kevin, be patient with the "Fire and Rain" album. It's the first thing I bought by the Gaylads, probably about two years ago and I found it too slick and polished. However, that was really only because of the James Taylor cover song that gives the album its title. There are some very good things on that album. By the time you get to "There's a Fire" all should be forgiven. If you like what you hear from Napster, I recommend Trojan's "Over the Rainbow's End." It's a generous 26 track collection. Beverley's is indeed Leslie Kong's old label. I did not know Sonia Pottinger died. I've somehow gotten the wrong idea with respect to your JA music tastes. I thought you FAVORED the post-'85 stuff. I agree with what you're saying here. It's the organic nature of the earlier pre-digital music that makes it so great. It was recorded on a nearly zero budget where you had to rely upon the song and the feel because you couldn't do many overdubs. In the '70s quite a few excellent Jamaican artists relocated to the U.K. and homogenized their sound. I can understand why they wanted to go to the crucible of civilization but, sadly, they failed to understand that the reason we were listening to them was because they were DIFFERENT and we certainly didn't need them to morph into what we already had quite enough of. | ||
| Randy Adams Member Username: Randy_adams Post Number: 2551 Registered: 03-2005 |
Kevin, another thing to be aware of on "Fire & Rain." It's weirdly front-loaded with cover versions of outside songs. Though I think the last 1:30 (after the song proper is over!) on "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" is completely brilliant, the covers originally put me off the Gaylads. Focus on the originals. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1028 Registered: 10-2008 |
Randy, I was checking through my digital collection and found I do have the Trojan collection you mention. I really cannot remember downloading it!! Anyway, I love it even on the strength of hearing the first 5 or 6 songs. I do love the sound these original Jamaican vocal trios achieved(although as I admit below that wasnt always the case), and the Gaylads certainly seem to be up there with the best. I was very intrigued by your mention of a Studio One set, Soul Beat, and have ordered it already!!. Anything on Studio One is fine by me. Regarding my Jamaican tastes, my favourite era is 1971-1981 which basically catches the birth of the reggae music era, which as you know grew out of the rocksteady era of the late 60's, all the way through the mid 70's roots era, and ending with the dancehall stuff which for me peaked in 1981. After that things got too digital for me, and the human element which reggae relies on didnt sit well with machines. I'm not a lover of ska, a bit novelty-ish for my tastes, and I must admit until the last year or two was fairly ignorant to the great wealth of rocksteady music(outwith Studio One) that existed. I have learned to love that period of music, but for me the 70's era is still the pinnacle. | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1029 Registered: 10-2008 |
james blake - james blake even this early i expect to see this feature at the top end of this years polls. vaguely dubstep i suppose, in the way that burial and darkstar was classed as dubstep. this guy has obviously been influenced by jeff buckley, anthony and the johnsons and thom yorke as well as burial. the lead single is a cover of feists "limit to your love", and has been all over bbc6 music for the last few months. it starts off all pretty piano ballad, but then gets a bit more off kilter and dubby. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOT2-OTeb x0 http://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review /james-blake-james-blake http://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/james- blake-james-blake | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1031 Registered: 10-2008 |
gang of four - content similar to wire on their new album, Gof4 have went back to the sounds that made them great in the late 70's/early 80s. and it seems to work. all the trademarks are there, slashing guitar, chunky bass, the twin vocals trading off against each other - even the melodica is used again. ok, so its reinventing the wheel, but when they (and wire) do it this well who's complaining? | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1032 Registered: 10-2008 |
Q review http://www.gangoffour.co.uk/wp-content/u ploads/2011/01/Gang-of-four-Q-magazine-r eview.jpg Uncut review http://www.gangoffour.co.uk/wp-content/u ploads/2011/01/gang-of-four-uncut-review .jpg Spin review http://www.spin.com/reviews/gang-four-co ntent-yep-roc | ||
| Allen Belz Member Username: Abpositive Post Number: 2015 Registered: 09-2006 |
Definitely keen to hear this one. | ||
| Michael Bachman Member Username: Michael_bachman Post Number: 2060 Registered: 01-2005 |
I can't wait for this one as well. I'm glad I got to see the orignal GoF in 2005 (and picked up a red Entertainment! t-shirt from the merch booth). I trust that Jon King and Andy Gill have picked wisely in coming up with a thundering new rhythm section in bass player Thomas McNeice and drummer Mark Heaney (to replaced Dave Allen and the retired Hugo Burnham). | ||
| skulldisco Member Username: Skulldisco Post Number: 1035 Registered: 10-2008 |
more wire reviews. i've been playing the album every day for the last week or so, its a belter. http://www.clashmusic.com/reviews/wire-r ed-barked-tree http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/1356 32-wire-red-barked-tree/ http://www.musicomh.com/albums/wire_0111 .htm |