ENYA
SHEPHERD MOONS
1991 – WEA
Produced By NICKY RYAN
1. Shepherd Moons
2. Caribbean Blue
3. How Can I Keep From Singing?
4. Ebudæ
5. Angeles
6. No Holly For Miss Quinn
7. Book Of Days
8. Evacuee
9. Lothlórien
10. Marble Halls
11. Afer Ventus
12. Smaointe…
The first thing that strikes me about Enya is that she does not like having her music classified as new age. The second is that her music is simply downright beautiful. This Irish artist plays almost all of the instruments and sings every one of those stunning layers of vocals you hear on her recordings. Her world is filled with haunting melodies and beautiful musical landscapes…and whether or not you like music of this kind, how can one not appreciate her vision and her art? Shepherd Moons is Enya’s third album, and it’s the follow up to her stunningly commercially successful album Watermark, which was highlighted by her unexpected hit “Orinoco Flow”. Shepherd Moons, although it did not have a hit like “Orinoco Flow”, was an even bigger seller than its predecessor. Because it’s just that good.
If you’re looking to rock, this is not for you. But if you are able to allow Enya’s drenched in echo vocal layers and her instrumental beauty into your mind, the rewards are surprising and plentiful. Shepherd Moons is as powerful an Enya album as you will find…”Caribbean Blue”, “Marble Halls”, “Book Of Days” and “How Can I Keep From Singing?” are all first rate tracks. This is one where you turn off your social media, light some candles, drop the needle and just close your eyes. This is beautiful, mellow music. That’s what Enya has always done, and her formula works every time. Shepherd Moons is a beautiful album. It’s not a sound for everyone, but if you can dig it, you are in for a real treat.
ENYA
SHEPHERD MOONS
1991 – WEA
Produced By NICKY RYAN
1. Shepherd Moons
2. Caribbean Blue
3. How Can I Keep From Singing?
4. Ebudæ
5. Angeles
6. No Holly For Miss Quinn
7. Book Of Days
8. Evacuee
9. Lothlórien
10. Marble Halls
11. Afer Ventus
12. Smaointe…
The first thing that strikes me about Enya is that she does not like having her music classified as new age. The second is that her music is simply downright beautiful. This Irish artist plays almost all of the instruments and sings every one of those stunning layers of vocals you hear on her recordings. Her world is filled with haunting melodies and beautiful musical landscapes…and whether or not you like music of this kind, how can one not appreciate her vision and her art? Shepherd Moons is Enya’s third album, and it’s the follow up to her stunningly commercially successful album Watermark, which was highlighted by her unexpected hit “Orinoco Flow”. Shepherd Moons, although it did not have a hit like “Orinoco Flow”, was an even bigger seller than its predecessor. Because it’s just that good.
If you’re looking to rock, this is not for you. But if you are able to allow Enya’s drenched in echo vocal layers and her instrumental beauty into your mind, the rewards are surprising and plentiful. Shepherd Moons is as powerful an Enya album as you will find…”Caribbean Blue”, “Marble Halls”, “Book Of Days” and “How Can I Keep From Singing?” are all first rate tracks. This is one where you turn off your social media, light some candles, drop the needle and just close your eyes. This is beautiful, mellow music. That’s what Enya has always done, and her formula works every time. Shepherd Moons is a beautiful album. It’s not a sound for everyone, but if you can dig it, you are in for a real treat.
Enya indeed ticks all the boxes of cliche thinking by music lovers without having listened at all to her music (except for Orinoco Flow which was actually not bad) so I think I should also make an effort and listen to those two most important albums.
LINK WRAY & THE WRAYMEN
1960 – EPIC
NO PRODUCTION CREDIT
1. Caroline
2. Slinky
3. Right Turn
4. Rendezvous
5. Dixie Doodle
6. Ramble
7. Hand Clapper
8. Raw Hide
9. Lillian
10. Radar
11. Comanche
12. Studio Blues
Imagine being a teenager in the early days of rock and roll and hearing the guitar of Link Wray for the first time. Not just surf rock…Wray’s music led to the use of the power chord in rock, and his output, mostly singles, between 1958 and 1963 was stunning. There were albums as well, mostly compilations. But the first Link Wray album (with his band The Wraymen) was this little gem from 1960. Wray was a Native American (Shawnee), and grew up in the American south. He had been in the military during the Korean war and had lost a lung to tuberculosis, which was why his music was instrumental. His breakout single, 1958’s “Rumble”, has been cited as a huge influence on several great guitarists who came after him.
This first album is a gem, although, like a lot of albums from this time, it wasn’t really a studio album. It does consist of previous recordings he made between 1958 and 1960, and it does, as a result, not have a real flow to it. But fortunately, with an artist like Wray, you can have it both ways. This is historic, as it was his first full album, and there are enough excellent compilations that you can find that will fill in any gaps left by this. The bottom line is that Link Wray was one of the very best of the early guitar heroes, along with Dick Dale and Duane Eddy. There are tracks here that are interesting enough, but won’t be found on compilations of more popular material. And if you dig early instrumental surf…why would you NOT want this one? Out of print for decades, it’s now fully available.
There is NO Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame without Link Wray. Period.
Nice writeup. My knowledge of Link Wray is not up to par with his impact/influence.
Link Wray pretty much invented power chords and rock guitar. There's a really great movie that I recommend on Netflix...it's not only about Wray, but also about the impact that Native Americans have had on all of American music. It's very worth watching! It's called Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World.
Here's the trailer:
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
BIG COUNTRY
THE CROSSING
1983 – MERCURY
Produced By STEVE LILLYWHITE
1. In A Big Country
2. Inwards
3. Chance
4. 1000 Stars
5. The Storm
6. Harvest Home
7. Lost Patrol
8. Close Action
9. Fields Of Fire (400 Miles)
10. Porrohman
When Big Country first appeared out of Scotland in 1983, critics proclaimed them to be the next great rock band. And their lead single, “In A Big Country”, seemed to back that up. A powerhouse drum intro, catchy words and chorus, and that big bagpipe sound. Only it wasn’t really bagpipes…it was guitar. Big Country was an immediate breath of fresh air, as they had no use for synthesizers in their music. All of those synth-like sounds you hear from them are achieved on guitars, as are most of the traditional folk instruments. Guitarists Stuart Adamson (who died in 2001) and Bruce Watson led this stunning new group to stardom. Their fame was fleeting in America, but they actually had a string of four straight top ten albums in the UK.
“In A Big Country” was a monster, but it’s not the only track worth hearing here. “Harvest Home” continues that giant sound in a good way. “Fields Of Fire (400 Miles)” and “Chance“ are also excellent, and “The Storm” could have easily been a hit for them. Good songwriting and excellent playing were the trademark of early Big Country, who still play to this day (for awhile, they had Mike Peters of The Alarm on board), and they’ve released nine studio albums to date. It’s the band’s early discography from the eighties that best shows their underrated sound and talents the best. You can’t really go wrong with Steeltown, The Seer, Peace In Our Time…and of course, The Crossing. A fine slice of eightes.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
40 BELOW SUMMER
INVITATION TO THE DANCE
2001 – LONDON / SIRE
Produced By GG GARTH, SHAWN CRAHAN & STEVEN RICHARDS
1. We The People
2. Rope
3. Still Life
4. Wither Away
5. Step Into The Sideshow
6. Falling Down
7. Smile Electric
8. Rejection
9. Power Tool
10. Drown
11. Minus One
12. Jonesin’
40 Below Summer came out of the American east coast with a sound that falls between melodic and screaming metal…and everything in between. There is no denying that this, their major label debut, is heavy to the bone…it’s also very well done. The record is loaded with monster riffs and rhythms that will make your head spin…but there’s also a maturity in the sound that’s rare for a band so young and this heavy. You’ll find elements of jazz, hip hop, hard rock, alternative rock and nu-metal, at times all within the same song. But just two months after this was released, their label, London / Sire, folded, leaving the band without funds or promotion. So that they survived and sold any copies at all is a testament to how good this is.
The centerpiece to Invitation To The Dance is “Falling Down”, a song that shows off many of this band’s talents. The album is exciting as it is unpredictable, and while hardcore, you never know what each track holds in store for you. It’s never just a place to bang your head…there are melodies and thoughtful pieces that are difficult not to respect. 40 Below Summer split up in 2005, but they have been back together since 2011, and have released six albums to date. They are not widely known, but this is a good solid metal band with a wide variety of influences and abilities. Invitation To The Dance is a great place to start with this band. It’s an album that, if you like metal, you’ll find yourself coming back to a lot.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
FischmanRockMonster, JazzMeister, Bluesboy,ClassicalMasterProfile Land of Enchantment
Link Wray pretty much invented power chords and rock guitar. There's a really great movie that I recommend on Netflix...it's not only about Wray, but also about the impact that Native Americans have had on all of American music. It's very worth watching! It's called Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked The World.
SCARLET FIELDS
FAIRWEATHER EP
2003 – SOLARSONIC
Produced By NIGEL GODRICH
1. Storm
2. Alone To Myself
3. Sell You Out
4. Headway
5. Maker
6. Drowning Well
Sometimes, it happens like this. Even nearly six years later. I stumbled on this album in my collection, and couldn’t figure out who this was, or where I would have picked it up. Through some research, I have found that the leader (I believe his name is Fionn O’Lochlainn) once played bass in Black Crowes guitarist Rich Robinson’s solo band. This would explain how I ended up with it. As far as I can tell, the band was formed in New York and released only this EP. It’s only about 25 minutes long, but it sounds pretty terrific. It has a definite seventies vibe to it, and it rocks quite sufficiently. Scarlet Fields was apparently never heard from again, despite the promise shown here.
The best track here is “Headway”, a nice psychedelic rock trip. But all of these songs are worth hearing at least once. You can hear a lot of the Crowes bleeding through as well, definitely more on the Rich side than the Chris. Some very nice guitar work throughout. Very promising indeed…so what happened? I have no idea. There seems to be not much history of them beyond the release of this EP in 2003 and a full length album four years later... no major label deal (although a source claims that this EP was produced by Nigel Godrich, who produces Radiohead), and no anything else. Did they just vanish off the face of the earth? Were they abducted by aliens? I guess I’ll never know…but if you happen to run into this, give it a spin. It’s way too short…but it’s cool. _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
AFTERGLOW
1990 – EPIC
Produced By JEFF LYNNE
1. 10538 Overture
2. Mr. Radio
3. Kuiama
4. In Old England Town (Boogie No. 2)
5. Mama
6. Roll Over Beethoven
7. Bluebird Is Dead
8. Ma-Ma-Ma Belle
9. Showdown
10. Can’t Get It Out Of My Head
11. Boy Blue
12. One Summer Dream
1. Evil Woman
2. Tightrope
3. Strange Magic
4. Do Ya
5. Nightrider
6. Waterfall
7. Rockaria!
8. Telephone Line
9. So Fine
10. Livin’ Thing
11. Mr. Blue Sky (Japanese 7” Edit)
12. Sweet Is The Night
13. Turn To Stone
14. Sweet Talkin’ Woman
15. Steppin’ Out
16. Midnight Blue
17. Don’t Bring Me Down
1. Prologue
2. Twilight
3. Julie Don’t Live Here
4. Shine A Little Love
5. When Time Stood Still
6. Rain Is Falling
7. The Bouncer
8. Hello My Old Friend
9. Hold On Tight
10. Four Little Diamonds
11. Mandalay
12. Buildings Have Eyes
13. So Serious
14. A Matter Of Fact
15. No Way Out
16. Getting To The Point
17. Destination Unknown
18. Rock ‘N’ Roll Is King (Single Edit)
This box set from Electric Light Orchestra begs the question: was their career really worthy of a three disc box set? They had a bunch of hits, and they also had a slew of really terrific non hits…but I think that three discs is a bit more ELO than the casual fan would need…and the die hard fans would have already owned all of the individual albums. The best disc of the three is the first one, which covers the early days from 1971-1974, with not just the hits but also gems like “Kuiama”, “Mr. Radio” and “Bluebird Is Dead”. This was the period before they became a singles band…and some of the longer tracks are very good. Also included are the full version of “Roll Over Beethoven” and the lesser known hit “Boy Blue”.
Disc two is the more successful era. And while it has some fine tracks (“Jungle” would have been a great addition), it also misses with an inconsistent timeline, fewer of their better non-singles, and a disappointing version of “Mr. Blue Sky”, which omits their fine ending. Disc three covers the end of the band, and their worst albums. It gains points for including songs that were left off of Secret Messages…but loses them back for having them not be up to par with what the band had done before. 18 songs from their last three lackluster albums (where Jeff Lynne had trimmed it down from a full band to just a trio) is a bit too much. There are several shorter and better chosen compilations from this band. This is just more than what is needed beyond their great material.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
AVERAGE WHITE BAND
AWB
1974 – ATLANTIC
Produced By Arif Mardin
1. You Got It
2. Got The Love
3. Pick Up The Pieces
4. Person To Person
5. Work To Do
6. Nothing You Can Do
7. Just Wanna Love You Tonight
8. Keepin’ It To Myself
9. I Just Can’t Give You Up
10. There’s Always Someone Waiting
11. Pick Up The Pieces (Live)
In 1974, six white guys from Scotland exploded onto the US pop charts…and the soul charts…with an album of funk and soul, led by a massively successful instrumental single. This actually happened. The Average White Band ruled the airwaves with “Pick Up The Pieces”, a saxophone led funk romp that was as irresistible a dance hit as there was in the seventies. The rest of the album was pretty terrific as well. These guys were for real! They never had another massive hit like “Pick Up The Pieces” (although “Cut The Cake”, from their next album, came close), but there’s also not a loser on this record. Their ability to bring the soul never wavers, and it looked like these guys were on the fast track to much more success.
Unfortunately, just a month after this was released, drummer Robbie McIntosh died of an overdose. He was replaced by Steve Ferrone (later of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers), and the band kept rolling, but the hits dried up fast. But if you love seventies funk and soul, you will not be disappointed with this. AWB rolls with winning tracks like “Got The Love”, “Person To Person”, and a cover of the Isley’s “Work To Do”. One of the really cool gems of the mid-seventies, AWB is loaded with great stuff…fine guitar grooves, expert rhythms, awesome horn charts, and soulful vocals. And these guys had the songwriting chops as well. In a perfect world, more of these songs would have been hits…but they are still out there to hear.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
WHEN IN ROME
1988 – VIRGIN
Produced By MICHAEL BRAUER, BEN ROGAN & RICHARD JAMES BURGESS
1. The Promise
2. Heaven Knows
3. Something Going On
4. I Can’t Stop
5. If Only
6. Sight Of Your Tears
7. Wide, Wide Sea
8. Child’s Play
9. Total Devotion
10. Everything
Ah, the 80’s one hit wonders. They were everywhere. When In Rome was an English trio consisting of two singers and a keyboard player. Studio musicians were used to record the rest. Their one hit was “The Promise”, with one of the catchiest choruses of the decade. It was initially released as a dance single, and when it started becoming popular, Virgin Records ordered an album. Unfortunately, they didn’t really have any good ideas outside of “The Promise”. The singing is quite good, as vocalists Clive Farrington and Andrew Mann sing well together, and the piano parts sound great…but there’s not much to hang your hat on otherwise. There’s nothing here that would have been a good follow up single, and so it died a silent death.
The biggest problem here is that this band had really nothing to say. Outside of, again, “The Promise”, When In Rome had nothing much in the way of lyrics or melody. They were done within two years, having not made any new recordings. These days, the trio, who parted ways acrimoniously, have two bands called When In Rome…one in England and one in the US, neither one successful. As for “The Promise”…if eighties hits are your thing, you can probably find it on any decent decade hits compilation. Hearing this song next to, say, “Come On Eileen” and “The Safety Dance” would be much more enjoyable than sitting through the rest of this forgettable disc.
Link _________________ I'm leaning on the threshold
Of her mystery
And crashing through the walls
Of dying history
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