CREAM
WHEELS OF FIRE
1968 – ATCO
Produced By FELIX PAPPALARDI
1. White Room
2. Sitting On Top Of The World
3. Passing The Time
4. As You Said
5. Pressed Rat And Warthog
6. Politician
7. Those Were The Days
8. Born Under A Bad Sign
9. Deserted Cities Of The Heart
1. Crossroads
2. Spoonful
3. Traintime
4. Toad
Following the success of their 1967 album Disraeli Gears, Cream unleashed this mammoth 2 record set in the summer of 1968. Containing one live disc and one recorded in the studio, Wheels Of Fire was intended to show off the strengths of the trio both as a band and as individual musicians, and it succeeds very well in doing just that. The only thing that Wheels Of Fire doesn’t have is a song written by Eric Clapton, who instead chose a pair of cover songs. The studio side opens with the impeccable “White Room”, featuring great guitar work from Clapton and sung by bassist Jack Bruce. Clapton’s covers, “Sitting On Top Of The World” and “Born Under A Bad Sign”, are powerful blues tracks. Drummer Ginger Baker contributed three songs, including “Pressed Rat And Warthog”, which is simply unexplainably weird. The studio half is mostly excellence, and shows why Cream was, for the short time they could stand to be in the same room with each other, one of the great bands of the late 60’s.
The live half (the two records were, at one point, sold as separate albums) is more about showing off what each member could do individually, and it suffers from a bit of overindulgence. Clapton’s guitar work on “Crossroads” is legendary, and he tears up “Spoonful” just as exceptionally. But “Traintime” is too much Bruce on harmonica, and the plodding “Toad” is way, way, way too much of a Baker drum solo. But, even with these excesses, Wheels Of Fire is a great accomplishment, and one of the must have albums of the sixties. The band broke up soon after this was released…they recorded a handful of songs for the Goodbye album, and that was it. Baker and Bruce hated each other, and Clapton wanted to move into a different direction. But the band’s first three albums (Cream, Disraeli Gears and Wheels Of Fire) provided enough material to cement the band as legends forever. An important and short lived important band, always well worth hearing.
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SUGAR
COPPER BLUE
1992 – RYKODISC
Produced By BOB MOULD & LOU GIORDANO
1. The Act We Act
2. A Good Idea
3. Changes
4. Helpless
5. Hoover Dam
6. The Slim
7. If I Can’t Change Your Mind
8. Fortune Teller
9. Slick
10. Man On The Moon
Husker Du was hardly music for the masses. And Bob Mould’s voice is not one that’s ever been extremely radio friendly. But, after a pair of not so great solo albums, Mould formed Sugar, a trio that betrayed the whole anti-pop thing that he’d been living off of for so many years. Not saying that Sugar was a sudden pop monster with a slew of radio hits…but underneath the mountain of loud guitars, there were suddenly melodies that could stick in your head. Unlike with Husker Du, on Copper Blue (the Sugar debut album), things were a bit slower, and Mould’s voice was a bit more coherent, making for a much easier and, in some cases, more enjoyable experience. A handful of highlights to point out on this record: “A Good Idea”, “Helpless”, and “If I Can’t Change Your Mind” were as close to hits as Mould had really ever come at this point: is great guitar rock. “The Act We Act” is a fine opener, and sounds the alarm that Husker Du was really over. And “The Slim”, the centerpiece, is about losing a loved one to AIDS.
Unlike in Husker Du, here Mould is the only songwriter. This is Mould’s band. On this, and the follow up EP Beaster, the Sugar formula is at its best. Ironically, Sugar split up in 1995 over an argument about pursuing a more pop direction. They had come close to matching the quality of Copper Blue on later albums, coming even closer to a pop sound on File Under Easy Listening, but the mixture of better songs and a more accessible sound was at its best on this album. It’s almost perfect, if you can deal with the sorta nasally sound of Mould’s voice and the way the bass gets lost in the mix sometimes…but despite these flaws, it’s a really great album by a band that was before its time, as Mould has made a career of being. He has never resurrected the Sugar brand, although he has done Copper Blue shows. This is a band well worth checking out.
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Good description of the album but of as a Bob Mould and Hüsker Dü fan I of course can't really agree with how you see the Hüsker Dü albums (which to me had a lot of melody below their hardcore sound) and the first Bob Mould solo albums which are all about loss and I absolutely love them for that (and which is maybe the reason why you dislike them).
But I suppose you describe it well: not everybody likes Hüsker Dü or Bob Mould and Copper Blue has a much more accessible sound which could be appreciated by anyone who hasn't discovered it yet (where Beaster again moved away from the mainstream).
Good description of the album but of as a Bob Mould and Hüsker Dü fan I of course can't really agree with how you see the Hüsker Dü albums (which to me had a lot of melody below their hardcore sound) and the first Bob Mould solo albums which are all about loss and I absolutely love them for that (and which is maybe the reason why you dislike them).
But I suppose you describe it well: not everybody likes Hüsker Dü or Bob Mould and Copper Blue has a much more accessible sound which could be appreciated by anyone who hasn't discovered it yet (where Beaster again moved away from the mainstream).
I'm a fan of Husker Du as well, but I do find their sound to be less easily accessible and more difficult than what Mould did with Sugar. Not that Husker Du was bad...to me, they were simply more challenging. _________________ May we all get to heaven
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GRAM PARSONS
GP/GRIEVOUS ANGEL
1990 – REPRISE
Produced By GRAM PARSONS & RICK GRECH
1. Still Feeling Blue
2. We’ll Sweep Out The Ashes In The Morning
3. A Song For You
4. Streets Of Baltimore
5. She
6. That’s All It Took
7. The New Soft Shoe
8. Kiss The Children
9. Cry One More Time
10. How Much I’ve Lied
11. Big Mouth Blues
12. Return Of The Grievous Angel
13. Hearts On Fire
14. I Can’t Dance
15. Brass Buttons
16. $1000 Wedding
17. Medley Live From Northern Quebec: Cash On The Barrelhead/Hickory Wind
18. Love Hurts
19. Ooh Las Vegas
20. In My Hour Of Darkness
The bright star that was Gram Parsons was short lived: his solo career was even shorter. This budget compilation of his two solo albums is a must have. Here, you can get both of Parson’s incredibly influencial records on one disc. His solo debut after his departure from The Flying Burrito Brothers, GP (from 1973), is the weaker of the two, but in the context of both albums taken together, and for what Parsons means to everything alt-country, it’s just as essential as Grievous Angel. He was able to surround himself with great musicians, but the real star of the show is the introduction to the world of Emmylou Harris. Suddenly, Parsons’ voice had met its perfect match. Songs like “She”, “A Song For You” and “The New Soft Shoe” are given the perfect country rock life with the combination of these two great voices. GP can stand on its own, but the next album is where things really got rolling for Parsons, and for Harris.
Grievous Angel is simply amazing. With Parsons and Harris in almost constant duet, this album is practically the alt-country bible. “Return Of The Grievous Angel”, “$1000 Wedding”, “Ooh Las Vegas”, and “Brass Buttons” show how strongly Parsons was evolving as a songwriter, and perfect choices in cover material (“I Can’t Dance” from Tom T. Hall and Boudleaux Bryant’s “Love Hurts”) create a perfect balance. The beautiful closer, “In My Hour Of Darkness” is all the country gospel you will ever need. Unfortunately, Parsons had already died of a heroin overdose when Grievous Angel was released, so we’ll never know what his next step would have been. These two albums are very important: taken together, this may be the strongest twofer deal (along with #1 Record/Radio City by Big Star) you will ever find. Great music, and a great historical document at a bargain price. AND the liner notes are extensive and excellent. This is simply perfection.
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Love the review and love for GP/Grievous Angel. 2 of the best and Gram is one of my all time favorites as is Emmylou. Those albums are stellar - especially Grevous Angel. _________________ -Ryan
1. The House Of The Rising Sun
2. The Story Of Bo Diddley
3. Bury My Body
4. Dimples
5. I’ve Been Around
6. I’m In Love Again
7. The Girl Can’t Help It
8. Boom Boom
9. I’m Crying
10. I’m Mad Again
11. She Said Yeah
12. Baby Let Me Take You Home
13. Memphis Tennessee
14. Around And Around
15. The Right Time
16. Gonna Send You Back To Walker
In 1964, American rock and roll was all but dead and gone, while The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were preparing to take over the world. In their wake came what was almost the greatest band of them all, The Animals. Led by Eric Burdon, this British band was heavier than The Beatles, and had a tighter grip on the blues than the Stones. And, while they had pretty good taste in cover material, they never quite got the hang of songwriting…a deficiency that ultimately left them in the dust. They were also plagued by numerous personnel changes and terrible management, leading to changes in their sound and their ultimate breakup before the 60’s were even over. The Animals is their debut album, and as was common at the time, there were different versions released in the US and the UK. Somehow, the version I have is the one released in Japan, featuring four more songs than the American album. It’s almost great, and it’s almost a must have classic album. Almost.
Their version of “The House Of The Rising Sun” is still the definitive one, and the album contains many other great tracks written by the likes of Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, and John Lee Hooker. On their own, these tracks are strong, but the covers lack the cohesiveness to make it a truly great album. This is the sound of a band that maybe could have been someday great, but we’ll never know what they could have done had they stayed intact. Still, “The Story Of Bo Diddley” is entertaining, “Boom Boom” shows that they really could handle American blues, and “Around And Around” shows their dedication to the early days of American rock and roll. Burdon snarls through each song, and the band is heavier than most were at the time. Some original songs would have made this a much better debut album, and more of them would have made their career a better journey. A good cover song album, but unfortunately, not much more than that.
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ADELE
21
2011 – XL
Produced By JIM ABBIS, ADELE, PAUL EPWORTH, RICK RUBIN, FRASER T SMITH, RYAN TEDDER & DAN WILSON
1. Rolling In The Deep
2. Rumour Has It
3. Turning Tables
4. Don’t You Remember
5. Set Fire To The Rain
6. He Won’t Go
7. Take It All
8. I’ll Be Waiting
9. One And Only
10. Lovesong
11. Someone Like You
As simply as I can put it: what the world needs now is more, more, more Adele. What the music business needs is more albums like 21. Adele was discovered on myspace, and her first album (19) was a hit. But this album? If you haven’t taken the plunge and immersed yourself into 21 (her age when the album was recorded), you’re really in for a treat. This is not your ordinary pop star: Adele writes her own songs, has a voice that shuts down autotune, uses real musicians, and has more soul than most people ever dreamed of having. This album rejuvenated album sales in 2011, and made her a huge star. The thing is, all of the hype about Adele is justified. All of the records this album broke are well deserved. She doesn’t just say she’s influenced by different types of music, you can HEAR the jazz, Motown, country, folk and blues oozing from every song, from every note she sings, and from every note the musicians play. This is not just a great album: this is one of the greatest albums.
“Rolling In The Deep” is soul at its finest…a truly great song. Not far behind is the powerful “Rumour Has It”. These two tracks alone will win you over, but the rest of this album is simply fantastic. Her version of The Cure’s “Lovesong” is stunning, and the closer, “Someone Like You”, will bring you to tears if you listen closely enough. “Turning Tables” and “Set Fire To The Rain” are also standouts. 21 is simply a great album…I cannot find enough praise for the quality and excellence of this disc…something that had not been as common with pop music at the time for me. This is powerful and exceptional from the first to the last note. Music could use another shot in the arm that comes with an Adele album...the follow up to this was four years in the making and fell just short of the heights achieved here, but was still great. In the meantime, you should have this album. It’s not only a great reminder of how records used to be made, it’s also amazing proof that great albums can still be made. Adele is no joke…21 is a perfect album.
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PETE YORN
DAY I FORGOT
2003 – COLUMBIA
Produced By R WALT VINCENT, BRAD WOOD, KEN ANDREWS & PETE YORN
1. Intro
2. Come Back Home
3. Crystal Village
4. Carlos (Don’t Let It Go To Your Head)
5. Pass Me By
6. Committed
7. Long Way Down
8. When You See The Light
9. Turn Of The Century
10. Burrito
11. Man In Uniform
12. All At Once
14. So Much Work
Sometimes, people fall into record deals. You have to wonder if that’s the case with Pete Yorn, who has two brothers: one is a high level talent manager in Hollywood, and the other is an entertainment lawyer. Hmm. And so Yorn graduated from Syracuse University, moved to Los Angeles, yadda yadda yadda, and he signed with Columbia Records. Soon after, this charmed individual landed the job of scoring all of the music for the film Me, Myself And Irene. From there, he released his debut album, musicforthemorningafter in 2001, scored a hit single, and seemed poised to be a big star. But, hey. Who am I to judge? The big star thing, despite the fact that the follow up album, Day I Forgot, charted decently and contained a modest hit in “Come Back Home”, has never happened for Yorn. Why? Yorn is a talented guy who plays multiple instruments and can sing…but what really shows up on Day I Forgot is that he is not really much more than an average songwriter.
The result is that the sound of Day I Forgot is very good (he even got Peter Buck of R.E.M. to guest on a number of tracks), but after listening to the album, not a single song stands out or sticks in your head. Even the song that was the hit, “Come Back Home”, blends in with everything else so much that you might as well be listening to muzak. Yorn has a pleasant voice, and he can rock, but the album ultimately comes across more as bland adult contemporary than anything else. He’s still out there…he even was able to make the album Break Up with Scarlet Johansson, but despite this, and the fact that he’s recorded steadily since Day I Forgot (including 41 live discs, a number inflated by having recorded an entire tour of record store performances), Pete Yorn has never established himself the way his pedigree would indicate he would. So much for nepotism making you a big star…but it seems it can at least get you on that stage.
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THE POLICE
SYNCHRONICITY
1983 – A&M
Produced By The Police & HUGH PADGHAM
1. Synchronicity I
2. Walking In Your Footsteps
3. O My God
4. Mother
5. Miss Gradenko
6. Synchronicity II
7. Every Breath You Take
8. King Of Pain
9. Wrapped Around Your Finger
10. Tea In The Sahara
11. Murder By Numbers
By 1983, The Police were one of the world’s biggest bands, and it was looking like they were going to be the great hope of the 80’s. For good reason…most punk bands were learning how to play and write from album to album, but The Police were already accomplished players and writers on their debut. And they were only getting better. Synchronicity is as good as they got…mostly because they imploded not long after this was released. They pretty obviously hated each other, and there were bad feelings that Sting was getting most of the attention, as well as the songwriting credits. And so, while Synchronicity was exploding into a hit monster, the band was evaporating. Too bad, because it would have been exciting to see what might have come next from these guys. We will never know, but we do have five albums that are all in the range of very good to almost perfect. This is docked half a star partly because Sting just has that under the surface annoyance factor about him. But otherwise…
The two title tracks are the centerpieces, and are both excellent. You can hear a new direction starting to take form, and it’s exciting to hear. As far as hits go, this is just stupid with hits. “Every Breath You Take” is one of the creepiest songs ever written. “King Of Pain” and “Wrapped Around Your Finger” show just how easy it was for them. “Walking In Your Footsteps” , “Tea In The Sahara”, pretty much every Sting track is excellent. The only two lesser tracks are Stewart Copeland’s awful “Mother” and the forgettable Andy Summers track “Miss Gradenko”. Sting was writing exceptionally by this time…too bad he switched gears to light jazz for his solo career. I know some are annoyed by The Police (I am, sometimes, too), but there is really no denying that this almost perfect album is powerful, and a major part of good music from the decade of the 80’s. The perfect way to end a career…leave ‘em wanting more.
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