15 November – 31 December 2013 (Days 319 – 365) ……and in the end (pts 1&2)

Unfortunately, insofar as this blog is concerned, the previous entry marked the end of my year.

Two factors conspired to bring this about.  First, I started managing a major project at work that required a lot of concentration, consultation and meetings with time for listening at work dramatically decreased, also leaving me drained of energy most nights.   More importantly, December turned into a horror month health wise.  The illness that had blighted my year returned with a vengeance destroying the lead in to the holiday season.   Christmas Day itself was spent in bed and, even as I write this, I have still not yet fully recovered.

But one good thing did happen.  Despite increasing body temperatures, “M” and I managed to attend the wedding of her Matron-Of-Honour on 20 December.  This was the first mid morning/mid week wedding I’d ever attended and was curious to see how music would be deployed in the luncheon reception.  But there was no band and no DJ, just an iPod attached to a dock and set to shuffle, which just goes to show that you can still have a memorable wedding without music.  

And I did manage to get through some listening with the final albums for the year:

(# 713) Jane’s Addiction – Strays (2003)

Their comeback album was much better than anyone could have possibly forecast.  The single Just Because was a perfect calling card made better by a dazzling video clip which showed just how exciting a lip syncing performance can be rendered if gone about the right way.  The first half of this album is magnificent, taking in that track, a cracking opener  in True Nature and culminating in the double whammy of The Price I Pay and The Riches which to these ears sounds like an attempt to build a modern day Three Days or Mountain Song without actually acknowledging it.

(#714) John Lee Hooker – The Healer (1989)
(#715) Johnny Cash – American Recordings (1994)

Each of these albums heralded a mighty (and final) comeback by giants of 20^th Century American Music that resulted in a number of other releases leading up to and past their respective deaths reclaiming their reputations and garnering new fans along the way.   Each saw the act augmented by the contributions from likely (and unlikely) peers.  In the case of Hooker, this came from the flesh and blood contributions from musical heavyweights such as Carlos Santana (on the soaring title track), Bonie Riatt (on the randy I’m In The Mood For Love), Los Lobos, Robert Cray and’ inevitably, Canned Heat.  All played to Hooker’s known strengths allowing time and space for his deft guitar and vocal work to shine.  For the Cash album, producer Rick Rubin convinced the Man In Black to record acoustically for the first time in his career including covers from acts across the musical spectrum.  On this first instalment (which eventually grew to 6 volumes and a box set), Cash covered songs from artists such as Nick Lowe, Danzig, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, Kris Kristofferson and Loudon Wainwright III.  It was simple concept that was brilliantly realised which left only the mystery as to why no one, including Cash, had thought to do it earlier in his career.

(#716) Radio Birdman – Ritualism (1996)

After an 18 year hiatus, Radio Birdman resurfaced to reclaim their position, along with The Saints as the Godfathers of the now flourishing Australian alternate scene.  This live album was recorded for Melbourne’s independent radio station 3RRR and sees the band scorching through their best known tracks culminating in a brilliant version of New Race.  Although not the document of a live concert - the tracks were recorded live in a studio over a six hour period -   I do have one minor gripe.  It is that the album is sequenced differently to how these were first broadcast on 3RRR.  The 3RRR sequence is more representative of a concert performance and consequently the tracks flow better.

(#717) Radiohead – Kid A (2000)
(#718) Captain Beefheart And The Magic Band – Trout Mask Replica (1969)

Two of the bravest albums ever released but for which the risk has paid off, in artistic terms at least, handsomely.  Each album makes for a difficult first listen but both reward repeated listens.  Kid A is arguably the greatest reinvention album of all time.  On this Radiohead took a dramatic turn away from the signature guitar driven epics to embrace a more atmospheric sound with electronic and Krautrock overtones.  They succeeded so successfully that the most surprising moment on the album comes when one hears something passing for a guitar solo.  Of course none of this would have meant anything if there weren’t any songs and in its opening four numbers (Everything In Its Right Place, the title track, The National Anthem and How To Disappear Completely), the awesome Idioteque and the preposterously brilliant final track Motion Picture Soundtrack, they created music of the highest order that mocks their earlier output as much as the later Beatles material did to Love Me Do and their ilk.  Trout Mask Replica is an inspired mélange of seemingly song fragments, delta blues vocals and psychedelic.  If anything the advent of the CD has enhanced this work so that it more appropriately comes across as a single suite.  That has certainly been the way I’ve always listened to it; even today I can’t name a single track, just preferring to let the musical insanity wash all over.

(#719) Superchunk – Here’s Where the Strings Come In (1995)
(#720) Buffalo Tom – Let Me Come Over (1992)
(#721) Built To Spill – You In Reverse (2006)
(#722) Stereolab – Emperor Tomato Ketchup (1996)
(#724) The Jesus Lizard – Show (1994)

Five albums from some of the great acts that emerged from the great indie/alternative explosion in the 1990s.  Apart from this, there isn’t much similarity between the bands.  North Carolina’s Superchunk is a splendid band that produces great guitar driven rock with more than enough stylistic turns per track to keep the most earnest trainspotter happy.  Here’s Where The Strings Come In is an extremely strong effort, although it’s successor, Indoor Living, is generally viewed as their best.  Boston’s Buffalo Tom is a three piece that comes closest to producing rock that could cross over to the mainstream.  Let Me Come Over is full of memorable songs, especially the opener Staples, the raging Velvet Roof, the slower, but no less effective, Tailights Fade and the superb, unplugged  closer Crutch.  Idaho’s Built To Spill favour lengthy Flaming Lips type guitar work outs as performed by Dinosaur Jr.  On You In Reverse, some of the tracks, appear to demonstrate that the band had also been absorbing the influence of The Beta Band.  Stereolab is a mostly English band with a distinctly European sound and lefty political leanings.  Most of their albums marry 60’s electric organs to the robotic beat found on Kraftwerk or Neu! albums usually with heavily European accented English vocals.  Emperor Tomato Ketchup is my favourite of their albums which even rocks a little.  Anonymous Collective also sounds as though they had been listening to Massive Attack.  Texan noise makers, The Jesus Lizard, perfected their signature slowed down hardcore sound on Down.  It contains the standout tracks of their renowned latter day live show including the sleazy Fly on the Wall (to which lead singer David Yow would occasionally strip), the ominous sounding The Associate and the relentless Destroy Before Reading.

(#723) MUSE- HAARP (2008)

A live album that provides good aural evidence of one of the better live acts going round today, HAARP is the soundtrack for MUSE’s live DVD and documents a 2008 show at London’s Wembley Stadium.  It demonstrates that the band’s prog rock style is perfectly suited to big arenas especially on tracks such as Knights Of Cydonia, Map Of The Problematique, Time Is Running Out, Micro Cuts and Stockholme Syndrome

(#725) Love – Forever Changes (1967)
(#726) The United States Of America – The United States Of America (1968)

Two classic albums from the 1960’s, the former well known and the latter not so much.  Forever Changes is best described in my mind as “hippy protest pop” with tracks full of lush strings “inspiring” lyrics and mellow acoustic vibes.  The last couple of tracks provide the “big finish” with trumpets which must have lulled listeners (and critics) into thinking that the entire album was more significant than it has merited.  On the other hand, I don’t mind admitting I hadn’t heard of sole The United States Of America album until I read about it in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.  It is an amazing album of psychedelic that contains sounds not normally associated with rock – opening track The American Metaphysical Circus is built on marching band music – with tracks colliding into each other until the fantastic closer The American Way Of Love which incorporates flashbacks to all of the album’s preceding tracks. 

(#730) Uncle Tupelo – No Depression (1990)
(#728) Son Volt – Wide Swing Tremolo (1998)
(#729) Jay Farrar – Stone, Steel & Bright Lights (2004)
(#727) Wilco – A Ghost Is Born (2004)
(#731) Loose Fur – Self Titled (recorded 2000/released 2003)

Once upon a time there was a band called Uncle Tupelo.  They recorded three albums of country influenced rock starting with No Depression.  It is one of the very best of the new alternate country albums, so much so, that a magazine dedicated to the scene (and ultimately the scene itself) was named after it. But in 1994 the band fractured into two.  Two members, including one of the band’s key songwriters, Jay Farrar, formed Son Volt.  Wide Swing Temolo was their third album and, more or less, maintained the path set by Son Volt.  The band went into a hiatus between 1999-c2004 during which Farrar undertook a number of projects, ultimately releasing the live Stone, Steel & Bright Lights.  This showcases his solo work although for me the most memorable part is the two song encore of covers:  Syd Barrett era Pink Floyd’s Lucifer Sam and a fiery but faithful rendition of Neil Young’s Like A Hurricane.  The remnants of Uncle Tupleo, led by Jeff Tweedy, formed Wilco who gradually moved way from their country roots culminating in the grand A Ghost Is Born.  This contains music as far removed from country as you can get especially with Spiders (Kidsmoke) and the challenging Less Than You Think.  To get there, Tweedy and another member of Wilco formed Loose Fur with Jim O’Rourke.  They released two albums including the self titled debut which was recorded in 2000 and foreshadowed the music Wilco was to release on Ghost’s predecessor, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.

(#732) Boards Of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children (1998)
(#733) Nightmares On Wax – Smoker’s Delight (1995)

These are another two albums that found their way into my collection owing to their inclusion (or rather, the entry justifying their inclusion) in 1001 Albums You Must Hear.  I bought each album last year and left it to late this year to see if I was as impressed now with when I purchased them.  If anything, I’m even more impressed.  Music Has The Right To Children is an impressive album of ambient sounding electronica.  There is, however, more than enough underlying texture, beat and melody occurring underneath to dismiss this as mere background music.  Further listening is mandatory.  Smokers Delight though, and the 1001 Albums book acknowledges this, is something that could be used for background listing especially as a dinner party or chill out album.  Once again, this is not to dismiss the album, but rather to indicate that the mostly instrumental electronica here contains so much classic soul and R&B samples that it is a conversation starter.  “Where did I hear that?”  In fact, on this year’s listening, I’m pretty sure I’ve heard the album a great many times as background music in restaurants without realising it.

(#734) David Gilmour – Live In Gdansk (2008)

How many people out there think that the last official Pink Floyd recording was the live album p.u.l.s.e? Strictly speaking you’d be correct as it was the last album credited to the Gilmour led Floyd. But a case can be made for this to be regarded, at least, as a late honorary addition to their catalogue.  Recorded in the Gdansk shipyards in Poland that gave rise to Lech Walesea and the Solidarity trade union, this album contains both CDs and DVDs (there a few combinations available) of the performance.  Many of the members of Gilmour’s band came from the last touring version of Pink Floyd and, crucially, the keyboardist is Floyd’s Richard Wright.  As a result the music is practically identical to that produced by Gilmour’s Floyd (Nick Mason’s live drumming was essentially rendered redundant on those tours by other percussionists on stage and so his absence is not missed here) especially when the songlist is considered.  A volley of tracks from The Dark Side Of The Moon opens proceedings before Gilmour leads the band through a track by track recreation of his solo album On An Island.  After that the Floyd show kicks into overdrive with Wright kicking off the second CD with his keyboards on Shine On You Crazy Diamond.  Astronomy Domine and Atom Heart Mother’s Fat Old Sun pay homage to the early Floyd that contrasts with High Hopes from the final studio album The Division Bell.  Then comes the reason for Floyd completists to purchase this album, a thrilling 25 minute version of Echoes, easily the longest version of this warhorse that has been made commercially available.  Wish You Were Here and Comfortably Numb predictably end the show, sandwiching The Division Bell’s A Great Day For Freedom which paid appropriate homage to the venue.  

(#735) Ian Moss – Workbook (1989)
(#736) Grant McLennan – Watershed (1991)
(#737) Robert Forster) – I Had A New York Girlfriend

One of things you rarely hear in Australian music is the solo album by an established member of a band whilst that band is still operating.  I’m not sure why this is the case.  Perhaps there is a greater sense of distrust that the solo album is the harbinger to the end of the band.  So in this part of the world, the term “solo album” usually means an album released by a member of a band after that band has broken up.

Ian Moss is the guitarist in Cold Chisel and the closest Australia has had to being a guitar god along the likes of Eric Clapton.  Workbook was released after the band’s first break up and, like Clapton, Moss chose to concentrate on songcraft and his voice rather than produce an album full of guitar pyrotechnics.  The result was a thoroughly likeable album of adult rock with most tracks containing morsels of his best guitar work.  The result was a number 1 album, numerous ARIA awards and an even more eclectic solo career.  The big hit single Tucker’s Daughter was fiery enough and Such A Beautiful Thing appeared to act as a coda to it, the title track and Mr Rain used sophisticated funk to great effect and I’ll Remember You is an effective ballad. 

The songwriting and vocal duo of the Go-Betweens, Grant McLennan and Robert Forster each released a number of albums during the 1990s when the band was effectively on hiatus.  Watershed was the first of 4 solo McLennan albums in this time and was a promising start including notable acoustic based tracks such as When Word Gets Around, Haven’t I Been A Fool, Easy Come Easy Go and Black Mule.  Subsequent albums and collaborations were to be more ambitious but this one has a nice honest feel to it.  Forster also released 4 solo albums in the same period including the covers album I Had A New York Girlfriend.  In it he covered a wonderful range of artists and songs including Keith Richards Locked Away, Grant Hart’s 2541, Dylan’s Tell Me That It Isn’t True, Guy Clark’s Broken Hearted People and, best of all, the Martha And The Muffins one hit wonder, Echo Beach. 

(#738) The Postal Service – Give Up (2003)
(#739) Fleet Foxes – Self Titled (2008)

It was these two albums that made listeners realise that there was more to the Subpop label than just grunge and that it had actually been releasing a diverse range of music all along.  The Postal Service couldn’t have produced music as diametrically opposed  to grunge; the songs on this debut set essentially being infectious electronic based pop.  The Fleet Foxes album is effectively a modern folk  version  of The Postal Service.  Close your eyes , play both albums, and you could actually kid yourself that the same musicians had made both having swapped their instruments.

(#740) The J. Geils Band – Sanctuary (1978)

One of my in-laws is a massive fan of this album and I don’t blame him one little bit.  Sanctuary contains eight servings of heavily influenced R&B rock that is heavily reminiscent of early era Rolling Stones.  Of all the American bands formed in their wake, The J. Geils Band certainly came closest to replicating the Stones template and was, for a while, more than a match for them on the live circuit. The smoking sounds of I Could Hurt You, One Last Kiss, the title track provide the thrills; the tender ballad Teresa, the reason to slow down and take breath and the closer, Jus’ Can’t Stop Me provides the excuse to replay the album.

(#741) Garland Jeffreys – Ghost Writer (1977)
(#742) Mink Deville – Cadillac Walk. The Mink DeVille Collection (2001 compliation)
(#743) Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes – Fever! The Anthology 1976-1991 (2008 compliation)

The J. Geils Band wasn’t the only American of R&B/soul influenced rock act to find favour during the 1970s and found fans among a cache of well-versed  Australians.  Indeed, my CD copy of Garland Jeffreys best album comes from an Australian only double set that includes it with its successors One Eyed Jack and American Boy And Girl.  Ghost Writer is notable for containing both of Jeffreys’ best known work, the anthemic Wild In The Streets and Cool Down Boy.  The rest of the album strives to match to these two peaks and on tracks such as I May Not Be Your Kind, 35 Millimeter Dreams and Spanish Town, he very nearly succeeds. 

Mink Deville (the band), led by Willie Deville (later a solo act) was another of the bands that emerged in the New York punk explosion, although their work is very much in the Jeffreys vein.  Given their origins it’s no surprise their basic sound is a bit tougher (not surprising as Jeffreys recorded Ghost Writer with session musos) but their songs are no less enjoyable.  Cadillac Walk compiles material released by the band and commences with a formidable five track sequence comprising Spanish Stroll, Mixed Up Shook Up Girl, She’s So Tough, Cadillac Walk and Gunslinger.  Alas, the mighty Savoir Faire, the title track of their best individual album is an inexplicable no show which prevents the compilation from being definitive.  

Southside Johnny (aka John Lyon), with or without The Asbury Dukes, also deserves to be included in this batch of musicians.  A colleague and contemporary of Bruce Springsteen, he perfected an R&B style of rock that came to be tagged as The Jersey Sound.  Unlike, The Boss, it is a sound from which he rarely strayed, other than adding more modern production touches.  Still Fever! is a damned fine introduction to the man’s career and the first to cross the numerous labels for which he has recorded.  Almost all of the tracks on this were written either by The Boss or his lieutenant (and one time Asbury Dukes member) Steven Van Zandt and include great numbers such as The Fever (surely the best of all the tracks given away by The Boss to other artists), the title tracks of the albums Hearts Of Stone and I Don’t Want To Go Home and It’s Been A Long Time.  All I want Is Everything and Restless Heart among others demonstrates Lyon’s songwriting abilities and stands up well in this company.

(#744) Little Steven – Voice Of America (1984)

Speaking of Van Zandt, he branched out as a solo artist in the 1980s.  His first album, credited to Little Steven And His Disciples of Soul, Men Without Women is a knockout and deserves to be ranked alongside the best of Southside Johnny, Garand Jefferys et al.  Ditching the Disciples, he recorded another two albums of highly political songs of which Voice Of America is the first and better.  On this, his target was the effects of American foreign policy overseas as conveyed by highly charged tracks such as the title track, Checkpoint Charlie and Solidarity.  All of the tracks employ 1980s production touches which slightly date them today but Van Zandt has compensated for this through his expert integration of what we would now call World Music.  For this reason alone, this is reason enough to listen to this album.  If not convinced by this, try the blistering closing trio of tracks, the reggae infused I Am A Patriot, Among The Believers and Undefeated and see if you can resist.  If convinced, then proceed directly to what was his next project, the awesome Artists United Against Apartheid record, Sun City.

(#745) Silver Apples – Contact (1969)

(#746) Silver Apples – Silver Apples (1968)

These two albums, now available on a single disc, will come as a mighty shock to think that electronica was developed solely by German and British musicians.  The Silver Apples was an American duo whose albums relied on oscillators, a very early form of synthesizer.  The tracks on their self titled debut album sound, even by today’s standards, remarkably primitive, although at least one track – Dancing Gods – seems to anticipate no less a groundbreaking act as early Public Image Limited.  The tracks on Contact are more adventurous still, even to the extent of  employing banjos on A Pox On You.  For the most part though, the album sounds exactly like The Doors with synths, or put another way, The Sisters Of Mercy.

(#747) AC/DC – Live At River Plate (2012 release of a 2009 concert)

The two disc version of the DVD of same title, this records AC/DC’s show at the River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  As such, it is AC/DC’s second live disc with Brian Johnson at the helm and is a major improvement over 1992s AC/DC Live.  The track listing is fairly similar for this and the 2 disc edition of the 1992 album containing all the tried and tested AC/DC set pieces including Whole Lotta Rosie, Let There Be Rock, the tedious The Jack, Highway To Hell and the time honoured closer For Those About To Rock Salute You) complete with canons.  Two factors make this the better release.  First is the inclusion of songs from Black Ice, the bands best studio album in quite a while and from which the band wisely chose highlights such as Rock ‘N’ Roll Train, the rollicking Big Jack and the, by AC/DC standards, the light and shade of Black Ice.  The other factor is undoubtedly the return of Phil Rudd to the drummers chair and the return of his rock hard, almost metronomic beat that provides the band’s true musical backbone.  If you doubt me, compare the two versions of For Those About To Rock; on AC/DC live it sounds slightly sped up, almost as if the band wanted to get out of the stadium quickly.  On River Plate, the pre cannon sequence is paced so superbly that the effect of the arrival of the canons is greatly enhanced.