I'm going back to the start

[kokkinos]

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Jr. Walker And The All Stars - Shotgun
Well, that’s a straightforward record, you know what you are getting, no surprises really. The one thing that immediately stands out is what a great job they have done in the production department, every instrument, every sound comes through crystal clear. I also like their attitude, tons of energy, it should get a smile on your face and your feet on the dancefloor. On the other hand, the lack of diversity is obvious. Many songs sound way too similar and it gets tiring rather fast, though, thankfully, they don’t reach Ramones level. All in all, I guess it makes more sense to check no more than two or three songs (for example, those could be the self- titled track, Road Runner and Shake and Fingerpop) and just skip the rest, unless you really liked the small sample you listened. Oh, I almost forgot, cool album cover.
5.5/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[kokkinos]

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Four Tops - Second Album
The recipe that most Motown records follow is well-known: take a couple of hits, add quite a bit of filler – and at least some of it has to be covers – and release as many albums as possible. If you want to stand out, you need either exceptionally good hits or acceptable filler. Four Tops Second Album (somewhat offtopic, but I was thinking how cool would it be if an artist released an album titled “second album” and it actually wasn’t his second, lol, just a random thought that you can ignore) achieves a respectable score in both departments. The opening track, I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) is a stone-cold classic, one of the greatest songs of all time – by the way, I can’t believe its rating in BEA is a mere 85/100 and it doesn’t even have the little shiny star next to its name, talk about an underrated song – while It’s The Same Old Song isn’t that far behind. And if you are wondering about its title, it is the same old song, indeed, you could call it a different version of I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch), though it does sound fresh enough to hold its own. So, any Motown album can have a few spectacular moments, the question is what’s next and that’s the most impressive part of Second Album, there’s nothing to complain about any of its songs, all of them range from good to great. Their songwriting team (Holland – Dozier – Holland) was on top of its game, the production makes everything brighter in a way that characterised most of the Girl Group genre and was perfected by The Beach Boys and of course the vocals. Their lead singer, Levi Stubbs, sings lower than your average ‘60s singer and that gives them an earthier and more tangible quality, which creates a nice balance with the helplessly romantic lyrical content.
8/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[LedZep]

[kokkinos]

[kokkinos]

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The Missing Links - The Missing Links
The opening track, Wild About You is a blast, it’s Sex Pistols 10 years before the fact. The recipe is simple: take the guitar of Link Wray & The Wraymen or early Kinks, add the punk attitude and that’s it. This is followed by a couple of generic, bluesier tracks. Not To Bother Me is where things get going, we enter psychedelic territory, fasten your seatbelts. Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut pushes even further in that direction, I could see this being an influence for Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd – and if an album can be said to stand somewhere between Sex Pistols and Pink Floyd, then you know it’s an interesting one. You’re Driving Me Insane is the third song that develops in similar fashion. Unfortunately, the rest of the album is more straightforward. There are some cool ideas every now and then and it’s a more experimental album compared to what one might expect, but they could and should have explored them deeper. All I Want is another fine song, the vocals are taken straight from the Beatles/Beach Boys school. Not my cup of tea, yet one has to admit it’s an important album and quite an underrated one as well, it deserves way more attention.
6/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[kokkinos]

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Tony Scott - Music For Zen Meditation And Other Joys
Well, the first and obvious thing to say is that this is completely different from pretty much anything else I’ve listened while exploring the ‘60s - if you are desperately looking for a point of reference, maybe it could be compared to some Arabic jazz due to its repetitive and hypnotic nature - , so that already counts for something, it was great I had the chance to check this out. Another good thing about it is that it comes with an honest and accurate title, meaning you know exactly what to expect and there are hardly any surprises throughout its entirety. Of course, its defining characteristic and the main reason one should hear it is that it’s an absolutely gorgeous record, more or less every moment of it is pure beauty. If there’s a problem with it, I’d say it has to do with the fact that one’s enjoyment of it depends a lot on his/her mood, it’s definitely not an album that works under any occasion, the timing is crucial. If you want to relax and escape from the harsh reality, this is perfect. Otherwise, there’s a good chance you ‘ll find its minimal approach rather boring - and the running time of some tracks won't help either.
6.5/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[kokkinos]

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The Turtles - It Ain't Me Babe
I wasn’t feeling particularly adventurous today, so I didn't want to be challenged, I needed something nice, light and easy and The Turtles are exactly that. Their debut album is softer than most of their contemporaries, it seems they don’t care that much about the British Invasion, they go for a pop sound with a folk foundation. If you were to look for a point of comparison no matter what, I ‘d say they are closer to The Zombies - still not that close-, though if you look beyond the British Invasion movement a rather obvious choice would be fellow Californians Byrds or even The Beach Boys. Anyway, all of that isn't really relevant, the album includes some – I think four - original songs, nothing spectacular or groundbreaking. Their covers are decent, the self-titled track being the biggest hit and for good reason. Of course their versions can’t compare to Dylan, that’s a given, nobody can. And a funny bit of trivia “Prior to recording, the band members required written permission from their parents due to being underage”.
6.5/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[kokkinos]

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Dusty Springfield - Ev'rything's Coming Up Dusty
So, here we are, one year after her debut and its – maybe surprising but definitely deserved - success. Well, not much has changed in the meantime, she keeps doing covers. However, I’d say this is an inferior album compared to its predecessor and that has to do above all with the song selection, you can't fault Dusty. On the one hand, you might argue it tries to expand and explore new directions – mostly soul –, is more diverse and as a result allows Dusty to demonstrate her huge talent as a singer. On the other hand, the main reason I view A Girl Called Dusty as the superior release is that it quite simply contains better songs, there are hardly any tracks I would consider skippable, which sadly isn’t the case for Ev'rything's Coming Up Dusty, where one can find more than a couple instances of Dusty having to carry the song. Also, the pop/girl group/ brill building style of her debut suited her perfectly, so making an entire album based on that proved to be a great idea, while Ev'rything's Coming Up Dusty isn’t as focused - though hints at what she'd be doing in the not so distant - after all, we are only four years away from Dusty In Memphis - future, which is also what she'll be remembered for. And I have to add I like the album cover, that’s a lovely photo.
6.5/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[kokkinos]

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Archie Shepp - On This Night
That’s a third great release in a row for Archie Shepp. The Dolphy inspired opening track, The Mac Man, sets the tone for what’s about to come, it’s aggressive, bluesy, yet unconventional. However, the next track, Duke Ellington’s classic In A Sentimental Mood, feels like the odd one out, it’s way too romantic to fit with the rest, whatever. The vocals done by Christine Spencer add a nice touch to the already great self-titled track, pushing it even further into greatness’ territory – and I’m not a big fan of vocals in jazz generally speaking, Archie Shepp seems to be one of the few that actually make it work, following the example of Max Roach, who is the master of that. The Pickaninny is a weirder version of The Mac Man, though I have to say I didn’t find it as enjoyable, it was too noisy and confusing – maybe I would have been able to appreciate it more on a different day, I don’t know. The Original Mr. Sonny Boy Williamson, on the other hand, is more focused and as a result more effective. And big props to Bobby Hutcherson, his delicate vibraphone almost steals the show.
7/10.
_________________
Bob Dylan
Charles Mingus

[theblueboy]