- #9
- Posted: 10/21/2015 16:01
- Post subject:
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Went for a mixture of all-time and recent favourites. The Young Mods' Forgotten Story is up there with This Is My Country as the best all-round Impressions LP, and stands up next to any of Curtis' solo records. That Moondog record is great fun, a really unpretentious take on classical music, taking a type of music often thought of as exclusive and definitely bringing a "street" feel to it. Live/Dead might be the essential Grateful Dead release, and is certainly as good an introduction to the band as any. This particular Morricone soundtrack may not be quite as iconic (or as distinctive) as his spaghetti western stuff, but it's a kind-of creepy take on easy listening music that is still littered with earworms. Karen Dalton's debut is, quite simply, one of the greatest folk albums ever made, a selection of spare, loving versions of old blues songs that are taken to higher plane by Dalton's gorgeous voice, modest yet sturdy, occasionally quivering but always cutting. Lastly, Ali Akbar Khan's 80 Minute Raga is just a wonderful piece of Hindustani classical music, a droning, gliding, spidery journey that genuinely feels as though it has come from somewhere altogether more spiritual, with Khan and his sarod merely the vessel for a piece that could quite rightly be described as heavenly (and this coming from somebody who views religion with extreme cynicism) - it's been a recurring bedtime listen for months now, and was the first album that sprang to mind when I offered to put forward a 1969 team in Goodsir's absence. If there are numerous albums in this matchup that you're unfamiliar with and only have time to listen to one, I implore you to pick this one. It's just incredible.
Singles-wise, I just went with lots of old, oft-overlooked favourites. Smith turn Bacharach's 'Baby, It's You' into a sexy, soul-rock stomper, and it's easily my favourite version of one of my very favourite pop songs. 'Return of Django' is a wonderful slice of summery, instrumental ska, with an unforgettable lead riff that never fails to bring a smile to my face. Baez' take on 'Love is Just a Four-Letter Word' is arguably my favourite Dylan cover ever, including anything by The Byrds, Hendrix, or The Band - it's definitely an of-its-time piece, replete with questionable faux-sitar licks, but vocally she just puts so much meaning into this, showing off both her trademark falsetto as well as her sorely underappreciated, surprisingly muscular lower register to really bring the most out of one of Dylan's most underrated lyrics. That Carmen Maki song is a haunting piece of Japanese folk-pop, with more than a passing nod to the aforementioned Morricone, albeit in his more recognisable western period. 'Something in the Air' is just one of those really great pop-rock songs that brightens my day, one that I'm very prone to sticking on any jukebox that I find it on. And then there's The Delfonics 'Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)', a lolling, ornate, gorgeous soul ballad that I never, ever tire of, quite simply one of the greatest singles ever released.
I toyed with the idea of including some of Goodsir's previous picks, but there was just so much that I wanted to see represented from 1969, and hopefully I've done his previous teams justice. Got a lot of love for large parts of that 1972 team as well, so this is a great match to be a part of, especially as it's almost certainly my last of the tournament. Glad to see it back underway.
p.s. Please listen to that Ali Akbar Khan album.
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2021 in full effect. Come drop me some recs. Y'all know what I like.
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