ELVIS COSTELLO
MY AIM IS TRUE
1977-COLUMBIA
Produced By NICK LOWE
1. Welcome To The Working Week
2. Miracle Man
3. No Dancing
4. Blame It On Cain
5. Alison
6. Sneaky feelings
7. (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes
8. Less Than Zero
9. Mystery Dance
10. Pay It Back
11. I’m Not Angry
12. Waiting For The End Of The World
13. Watching The Detectives
Bonus Tracks:
14. Radio Sweetheart
15. Stranger In The House
16. Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver)
17. Mystery Dance
18. Cheap Reward
19. Jump Up
20. Wave A White Flag
21. Blame It On Cain
22. Poison Moon
Elvis Costello was initially wanted by Sire Records as a songwriter for Dave Edmunds. Nick Lowe got him into the studio, recorded this album, and persuaded them to utilize him as a solo artist instead. My Aim Is True had all the right timing. His angry young man sneer fit in well with the blossoming punk scene, and more than anything else, Costello was proving to be a master songwriter. “Alison” and “Watching The Detectives” made him a huge star, but it was the other songs that made him Elvis Costello. “Mystery Dance” is a great punk song: “Red Shoes”, “Blame It On Cain”, and “Less Than Zero” are top notch songs, and “Waiting For The End Of The World” (which was the vehicle for naming The Legendary Hitchhikers) is maybe his best song.
Bonus tracks. The best thing about them here is that they give an indication as to just how country Costello actually was. The first 3 are interesting, decent songs that didn’t make the cut: the rest are interesting one time, boring acoustic demos that were intended to stay on the cutting room floor. None of what Rykodisc threw onto the end of this fine album (10 tracks) is vital or necessary. Find a version without bonus tracks unless you must have them.
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PUBLIC ENEMY
APOCALYPSE ’91…THE ENEMY STRIKES BLACK
1991-DEF JAM
VARIOUS PRODUCERS
1. Lost At Birth
2. Rebirth
3. Nighttrain
4. Can’t Truss It
5. I Don’t Wanna Be Called Yo Niga
6. How To Kill A Radio Consultant
7. By The Time I Get to Arizona
8. Move!
9. 1 Million Bottlebags
10. More News At 11
11. Shut ‘Em Down
12. A Letter To The New York Post
13. Get The Fuck Outta Dodge
14. Bring The Noise
From back in the day, it seemed that the only hip hop I was able to get into was Public Enemy. Their first three albums ended the 80’s and ushered in the 90’s with a rampage. For me, the appeal of this group was Chuck D. He had a way of making his words fall over one another like dominoes, and he always sounded dead serious with his message, which was usually “Look out…we’re coming for you”. Their first three albums were excellent, in a genre littered with one album wonders. Coming off the huge success of Fear Of A Black Planet, there was much to look forward to.
While Apocalypse ’91 has its great moments, it’s also the last gasp of greatness for Public Enemy. “Can’t Truss It” and “Shut ‘Em Down” are as good as anything else they did, and they remained controversial with tracks like “By The Time I Get To Arizona”, for which a video was done showing the group killing Arizona Governor Evan Mecham for refusing to acknowledge the birth date of Martin Luther King Jr. But there are more bits of filler than before, and the group never made another album worth having after this. But you can’t go wrong with the first three albums by them, and you can include this, their fourth, as well, even though it’s a notch below.
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ALEX CHILTON
19 YEARS: A COLLECTION OF ALEX CHILTON
1991-RHINO
VARIOUS PRODUCERS
1. Free Again
2. You Can’t Have Me
3. Kanga Roo
4. Nighttime
5. Kizza Me
6. Holocaust
7. Bangkok
8. Can’t Seem To Make You Mine
9. Like Flies On Sherbert
10. My Rival
11. Rock Hard
12. Lost My job
13. Tee Ni Nee Ni Noo/Tip On In
14. No Sex
15. With A Girl Like You
16. Volare
17. Make A Little Love
18. Thing For You
19. Take It Off
Outside of Rod Stewart, Alex Chilton may be the guy in rock & roll who lived up to his potential the least. He was once the lead singer of The Box Tops (“The Letter”), and later the leader of Big Star, which went on to become one of the most influencial power pop bands ever formed. But Big Star, never famous while active, broke up in 1974, and Chilton embarked on a long journey of bad albums, questionable musical direction, and substance problems. He reformed with both Big Star and The Box Tops in later years, but he never got around to recording that next great Chilton masterpiece. Never got close.
19 Years actually starts with “Free Again”, recorded between the time of The Box Tops and Big Star. The next five tracks are from the final (and strange) Big Star album…and from there, it’s a lot of hit and miss singles and solo album tracks. It’s mostly a strange mess, with an occasional jolt of the old Chilton magic. “Make A Little Love”, “Bangkok”, and “Lost My Job” are terrific: “My Rival”, “No Sex”, and “Rock Hard” are most definitely not. But Chilton’s is an important career, and it’s interesting to hear the strange paths he chose. 19 Years has great moments, at times it will make you cringe, and it’s an important musical history document.
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STEVE GOODMAN
THE BEST OF THE ASYLUM YEARS VOLUME ONE
1988-RED PAJAMAS
VARIOUS PRODUCERS
1. Between The Lines
2. Jessie’s Jig (Rob’s Romp, Beth’s Bounce)
3. Hand It To You
4. Death Of A Salesman
5. Still Trying To Care
6. The Twentieth Century Is Almost Over
7. Banana Republics
8. Two Lovers
9. I’m Attracted To You
10. One Bite Of The Apple
11. The One That Got Away
Steve Goodman may have lived a short life, but it was by no means an unproductive one. Discovered by Kris Kristofferson, Goodman went on to write “City Of New Orleans” for Arlo Guthrie, “Banana Republics” for Jimmy Buffett, and several other hits, including several songs about Chicago and his favorite team, the Cubs. He also gave the world John Prine. Goodman died of leukemia in 1984 at the age of 36, but he left behind a very nice musical legacy. This collection (there are 2 volumes) cover his five album period with Asylum records between 1975 and 1980.
Goodman was a pretty mellow guy, but he was at his best when it was just him on guitar. Co-written with Prine, “The Twentieth Century Is Almost Over” was a better song about the turn of the century than Prince’s “1999”. Goodman never even got to see it. His version of “Banana Republics” is better than Buffett’s, and the rest is all solid, not spectacular. The Asylum period was not the best for Goodman, so to get a better idea of what he was really capable, try any of his other compilations…or his early albums on Buddah Records.
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DIRE STRAITS
MAKING MOVIES
1980-WARNER BROSTHERS
Produced By JIMMY IOVINE & MARK KNOPFLER
1. Tunnel Of Love
2. Romeo And Juliet
3. Skateaway
4. Expresso Love
5. Hand in Hand
6. Solid Rock
7. Les Boys
I seem to be running into a lot of “topheavy” albums lately…Bringing Down The Horse, Excitable Boy…albums that seem to be front loaded with the best songs, only to weaken as it goes. Making Movies, the third album from Dire Straits, is most definitely one of those. Depending on which side you listen to first, it’s either one of the finest albums ever made, or it’s a sort of a clunker for the band. But what can’t be denied is that “Tunnel Of Love”, “Romeo And Juliet”, and “Skateaway” makes for one of the greatest three track sequences in rock history. With David Knopfler now out of the band, they work as a trio, and it’s as tight as can be. These three songs are beautiful, expansive, and extremely well written.
After that, there’s a serious drop off. The remaining four tracks aren’t bad, they just can’t compare to the first three. Knopfler’s expert playing carries everything, but it is a let down. Still, Making Movies is worth having for just the first half alone. 3 songs, 20 minutes of pure Dire Straits heaven. And then 4 tracks of filler.
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RICH ROBINSON
THROUGH A CROOKED SUN
2011-CIRCLE SOUND
Produced By RICH ROBINSON
1. Gone Away
2. It’s Not Easy
3. Lost And found
4. I Don’t Hear The Sound Of You
5. Hey Fear
6. All Along The Way
7. Follow You Forever
8. Standing On The Surface Of The Sun
9. Bye Bye Baby
10. Falling Again
11. Station Man
12. Fire Around
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this album when I first heard it, but I didn’t expect it to be this good. The guitarist for The Black Crowes, without his brother Chris, recorded the best music he’s made with or without his band mates in years. It’s not a flashy effort, and it doesn’t seem to be trying too hard. Robinson sounds relaxed and poised, and the album sounds simply great. “Falling Again” has a chorus as catchy as anything by the Crowes: “Bye Bye Baby” is a beautiful song featuring Warren Haynes on slide guitar. And “Standing On The Surface Of The Sun” is just one high point in an album that’s surprisingly filled with them.
The album is very acoustic yet has plenty of electric guitar. It’s low key, yet rocks in all of the right places. Robinson’s voice is unspectacular, yet perfect for the surroundings. Comparisons to The Black Crowes are inevitable, since he’s been a mainstay since the beginning. The truth is, this is better than anything his band has done in some time. Even the choice of a cover song (Fleetwood Mac’s “Station Man”) is dead on. A very surprising effort from a source not expected to come out this strong. Not perfect, but closer than I ever thought Robinson would get. (There’s also a four track EP that goes with it out there somewhere called Llama Blues).
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PAULA COLE
THIS FIRE
1996-IMAGO
Produced by PAULA COLE
1. Tiger
2. Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?
3. Throwing Stones
4. Carmen
5. Mississippi
6. Nietxche’s Eyes
7. Road To Dead
8. Me
9. Feelin’ Love
10. Hush, Hush, Hush
11. I Don’t Want To Wait
Paula Cole first surfaced as a backup singer on Peter Gabriel’s Secret World live tour in 1993-94. After releasing her debut in 1994 (the hitless but really, really good Harbinger), Cole took a more accessible approach. The result is a more commercial sound, two huge hits, and a very good album in This Fire. Coming a year after Jagged Little Pill by Alanis Morissette, This Fire has places that are just as raw emotionally, but there are also songs that portray a loveliness that Morissette could only dream of. And while not everything works here, the highs are extraordinary.
“Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?” is Cole’s breakthrough single, and it’s a great recording of a great song. “I Don’t Want To Wait” was the other big hit, and may have turned a lot of people off to Cole, being the theme song for the awful TV drama Dawson’s Creek”: being at the end of the album is a good thing. But it’s redeemed by songs like “Mississippi”, “Nietsche’s Eyes”, and “Hush, Hush, Hush”, which she sings with her former boss Gabriel. Cole has been very sporadic since, which hasn’t made her albums sell through the roof. But this one and Harbinger are worthwhile.
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BOB SCHNEIDER
LONELYLAND
2000-UNIVERSAL
Produced By CARL THIEL & BOB SCHNEIDER
1. Metal & Steel
2. Big Blue Sea
3. Jingy
4. Bullets
5. The World Exploded Into Love
6. Round & Round
7. Moon Song
8. Madeline
9. Tokyo
10. Under My Skin
11. Blue Skies For Everyone
12. Better
13. 2002
14. Oklahoma
How is it that you’ve never heard of Bob Schneider? He’s released 15 solo albums since 1998, he’s done 11 more with various bands he’s fronted. As a solo artist alone, he’s won 24 Austin Music Awards. Hell, he even dated Sandra Bullock. But, outside of Austin, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who actually knows who this guy is. And that’s a shame, really. Because not only is Schneider a prolific musician, he’s also a very, very good one. Lonelyland is his second album, and his major label debut. His music is a blend of singer/songwriter, country, folk, funk, rock, all of which he uses quite well. Of course, a major label wouldn’t know what to do with someone so diverse…hence, Schneider loses the major deal and remains a local Texas hero.
“Big Blue Sea” was a minor hit from the album, then it sank into obscurity. Too bad, because there were plenty of gems here waiting to be discovered. “Metal & Steel”, “The World Exploded Into Love”, and “Tokyo” were should have been hits. Instead, they became great album tracks on an album that few would ever hear. The follow up album fared no better, and Schneider was back to the small time, where he still writes circles around his contemporaries. Lonelyland is still out there somewhere, and it’s worth getting your hands on if you can find it. If you ever catch him live, you can always walk out with a copy of this and a two disc album of the show you just heard. A true American original, Schneider is a gifted guy who simply isn’t heard by enough people. Too bad for us.
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1. Dance With The Devil
2. Come Out To Play
3. Breakfast In Bed
4. You’re Always Putting Me Down
5. I Would Do For You
6. ‘Cos It Isn’t True
7. Where Did I Go Wrong
8. Contaminated Minds
9. Matter Of Time
10. Music So Nice
11. Dance With The Devil (Reprise)
Chrissie Hynde saw UB40 playing at a club and gave them a spot as an opening act on the Pretenders tour. They’ve been going non stop since, even keeping the original 8 piece lineup until 2008. A British reggae band, they have always been big in Europe, but have had only sporadic success in the US. The band has made a lot of very average albums over the years, but UB40, their 8th effort, ranks as one of their best. The album features strong songwriting and great playing, particularly on “Where Did I Go Wrong”, “Come Out To Play”, and “I Would Do For You”.
The real highlight is the lone cover song, “Breakfast In Bed”, which features Hynde on vocals. There are some keyboard sections that sound, like pretty much anything anyone did in the 80’s, terribly dated. And while it’s not a great album, it’s about as close as UB40 ever got to recording a masterpiece. It has plenty of flaws, but it also has more highs than any other UB40 album. Labour Of Love gets all the sales and “Red Red Wine” gets all the airplay, but this is UB40 at their best.
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CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL
GREEN RIVER
1969-FANTASY
Produced By JOHN FOGERTY
1. Green River
2. Commotion
3. Tombstone Shadow
4. Wrote A Song For Everyone
5. Bad Moon Rising
6. Lodi
7. Cross-Tie Walker
8. Sinister Purpose
9. The Night Time Is The Right Time
Between 1968 and 1970, no band was more successful or prolific than Creedence Clearwater Revival. And this was while The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were still very active. Green River is one of three albums released by Creedence in 1969, and it was a huge success. The album contains four hit singles: “Bad Moon Rising”, “Lodi”, “Commotion”, and the title track, and the album spent 27 days in October 1969 at number one. The sound is consistent with Bayou Country, released earlier the same year, and centered the band into a period in which they could do no wrong.
CCR albums from this period are pretty much judgable by the non-hit material, and Green River is fairly consistent in that area. “Wrote A Song For Everyone” is the best of the lot, with “Tombstone Shadow” not far behind. “Cross Tie Walker” and “Sinister Purpose” are not as strong, and the final track is a decent cover of a 1957 hit by Nappy Brown. Overall, a pretty great album…you can’t go wrong with any CCR album from 1968-70. It all came unraveled for them by 1972, but during this time, CCR may have been the best band in the world.
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