Perfectly put, that's exactly the effect I'm looking for. I did a similar thing with horror films over the course of the last few years and it was a blast. I remember seeing "Night of the Living Dead" after the scads of '60s Vincent Price flicks. It made the movie extra special, even though I had seen it before and enjoyed it.
Yeah. I like the idea of doing it with Horror movies too. The progression of special effects would be very interesting. Evil Dead would be a special treat as always.
To give you an idea where I'm at with listening. I'm up to 1998. Looking back, I think I started sometime around October/November last year. I'll probably need to do another round or two focusing more on specific genres. _________________ http://jonnyleather.com
Yeah. I like the idea of doing it with Horror movies too. The progression of special effects would be very interesting. Evil Dead would be a special treat as always.
The special effects evolution was cool, but it was very gradual and varied a lot depending on the film's budget. What was really striking was the evolution in the way people thought about horror. My grandparents would have grown up with the idea that horror films were the same as monster films (Dracula, Frankenstein, etc.) and were generally vehicles for big-name stars, like Bela Lugosi or Boris Karloff. My parents grew up with sci-fi horror, inspired by the nuclear age and featuring all sorts of weird creatures. Psycho ushered in an age of psychological horror, based more on human terrors than monsters, while Night of the Living Dead made exploitation the norm. Before 1969, gore was almost unheard of in mainstream horror, but after that, it was expected.
Anyway, I could go on for pages about that stuff, but I'm getting off topic. That journey was documented here:
Everything with a star rating is something we watched.
Quote:
To give you an idea where I'm at with listening. I'm up to 1998. Looking back, I think I started sometime around October/November last year. I'll probably need to do another round or two focusing more on specific genres.
Wow, that's fast. I seriously doubt I'll be able to keep that pace. I'm expecting this to take at least a few years, given my current threshold for "historical." Of course, I'm always itching to move forward, so maybe I'll start restricting my lists more.
Jazz
-----
Sketches of Spain (Miles Davis) - Rolling Stone top 500 albums
Giant Steps (Coltrane) - Rolling Stone top 500 albums
Ella in Berlin - Grammy Hall of Fame
The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery - Penguin core collection, groundbreaking guitar techniques
Blues and Roots (Charles Mingus) - Mingus plays the blues, hard/post-bop
We Insist! (Max Roach) - Early example of socially conscious jazz
Mel Tormé Swings Shubert Alley - Pengin core collection, vocal jazz
Open Sesame (Freddie Hubbard) - Penguin core collection
Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus - Penguin core collection
Portrait in Jazz (Bill Evans) - Grammy Hall of Fame
Cannonball & Coltrane - Miles Davis Quintet minus Miles Davis, one month prior to Kind of Blue sessions
Don't Go to Strangers (Etta James) - Grammy Hall of Fame
Blues In Orbit (Duke Ellington) - representative recordings
Rock and Roll
---------------
The Ventures - debut of influential rock band
Sound of Fury (Billy Fury) - One of first rock recordings to feature original songs
Fabulous Style of the everly bros - representative recordings
Me and My Shadows (Cliff Richard) - representative recording from first successful UK rock act
His Hand in Mine (Elvis Presley) - Elvis does gospel
Elvis is Back! (Elvis Presley) - first Elvis after military discharge
12 of His Biggest Hits (Eddie Cochrane) - representative recordings from rock and roll hall of fame artist
Blues
------
At Newport 1960 (Muddy Waters) - credited with popularizing blues in wide audience
At Last! (Etta James) - Widely acclaimed debut album, Rolling Stone top 500 albums
World
-------
Drums of Passion (Babatunde Olatunji) - first successful world album in US
Country
---------
Country Songs Old and New (Country Gentlemen) - Representative progressive bluegrass
R&B
-----
Ray Charles in Person - grammy hall of fame, technical milestone in live recordings
Folk
-----
Joan Baez - landmark folk debut
Other
------
Eden's Island (Eden Abhez) - Famous hippy songwriter
Konkakte (Stockhausen) - influential electronic music
I Hear a New World (Joe Meek) - influential experimental concept album
Last edited by sp4cetiger on 10/31/2013 02:21; edited 3 times in total
You should also listen to Blues & Roots by Mingus, Elvis Is Back!, 12 of His Biggest Hits by Eddie Cochran, Cannonball & Coltrane, all from 1960.
Also, since it's perspective you're after, I'd suggest you listen to Gainsbourg Percussions (1964) right after Drums of Passion.
Thanks, I updated the list. For Percussions, I'll add it to my 1964 list (WIP) and then make sure to revisit Drums of Passion right before I listen to it. From what I read in the Pitchfork review of the former, it should be an interesting comparison.
Oh, and probably I Hear A New World by Joe Meek. It was released only in part in 1960, still, amazing work from the producer, and will help you see where some of the most avant-garde popsters were about in those early days.
The early '60s appear to have been a bit of a lull in the history of popular music. Even jazz is coming down a bit from a massive creative peak in the late '50s. Still lots of great music, though. Here's 1961:
Jazz
-----
Favorite Things (Coltrane) - Coltrane goes mainstream, grammy hall of fame
The Complete Village Vanguard Recordings (Bill Evans) - Early model for jazz piano trio play
Free Jazz: a collective Improvisation (Ornette Coleman) - Template for free jazz
The Blues and the Abstract Truth (Oliver Nelson) - Defining post-bop recording
Out of the Cool (Gil Evans) - Penguin core collection
Focus (Stan Getz) - Penguin core collection
Motion (Lee Konitz) - Penguin core collection
Beauty Is a Rare Thing (Ornette Coleman) - Penguin core collection
The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra - One of the most accessible Sun Ra albums
This is Our Music (Ornette Coleman) - representative recordings
Straight Ahead (Abbey Lincoln) - representative recordings
Forbidden Fruit (Nina Simone) - representative recordings
Blues
------
Two Steps from the Blues (Bobby Bland) - Blues hall of fame
Jimmy Reed at Carnegie Hall - representative recordings from influential blues artist
Let's Hide Away and Dance Away with Freddie King - influential blues album
Rock and Roll
----------------
Lonely and Blue (Roy Orbison) - representative recordings
The Shadows - debut influential instrumental rock band/album
Folk
-----
Maid of Constant Sorrow (Judy Collins) - folk social protest, representative recordings
R&B
-----
Genius + Soul = Jazz (Ray Charles) - Grammy Hall of fame
Hi...We're the Miracles - first album by Motown's first group
Soul
-----
The Amazing James Brown - representative recordings from the beginning of Brown's peak
Country
---------
Patsy Cline Showcase - Representative recordings country legend
Foggy Mountain Banjo (foggy mountain boys) - representative recording from bluegrass landmark band
Other Pop
-----------
Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall - "Greatest night in show business history"
The Shirelles - debut from first in girl group fad
Last edited by sp4cetiger on 10/27/2013 00:51; edited 2 times in total
That's the year King of the Delta Blues Singers came out, but I suppose you've already heard that one.
Since you're going Ornette's way, may I suggest This Is Our Music (61 too)? Straight Ahead by Abbey Lincoln is a must discover also, as well as The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra. And since you've listening to Joan Baez for 1960, I'd also suggest Maid of Constant Sorrow by Judy Collins. Not a masterpiece, but an interesting listen.
Useful suggestions, as always, thanks Norman. We just came back from a car trip where we did a lot of listening, so we're moving quickly. Here's 1962:
Jazz
-----
Night Train (Oscar Peterson) - Penguin core collection, one of most commercially successful Peterson recordings
Let Freedom Ring (Jackie McClean) - Penguin core collection, mix modal and free jazz
Live at the Village Vanguard (Coltrane) - controversial live performance signalling new direction
Jazz Samba (Getz) - first bossa nova album in american craze
Go! (Dexter Gordon) - representative recordings
3 Blind Mice (Art Blakey) - representative recordings from Blakey's Messengers ,now a sextet
Oh Yeah (Charles Mingus) - his wildest album
The Bridge (Sonny Rollins) - representative recordings
R&B
-----
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (Ray Charles) - landmark integration of soul and country
Stubborn Kind of Fellow (Marvin Gaye) - first successful album for Gaye
Meet the Supremes - debut
The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie (Stevie Wonder) - debut as a 12-year
Folk
-----
Bob Dylan - Dylan's debut
Peter, Paul, and Mary - debut from notable folk act
Blues
------
[i]Howlin' Wolf - Considered classic blues recording by multiple major publications
Soul
-----
Green Onions (Booker T & the MGs) - debut of from landmark Southern soul band
Rock and Roll
----------------
Surfer's Choice (Dick Dale) - pioneered surf rock genre
Surfin' Safari (Beach Boys) - debut
Sherry & 11 others (Four seasons) - representative from major rock act
Crying (Roy Orbison) - representative recordings
Other Pop
-----------
Twist Uptown (The Crystals) - debut from prominent girl group
Last edited by sp4cetiger on 10/31/2013 02:22; edited 2 times in total
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
