Rock
Prefab Sprout “Steve McQueen” (1985)
Saying Steve McQueen is easy listening, is like saying Twin Peaks was a soap opera. At first glance both statements seem true, yet both works have a way of distorting such unattractive mediums so much that it becomes something so different that could never be replicated again. Now Steven McQueen doesn’t have scary synths or a lady carrying logs narrating, so I’m going to kill that comparison now. Song by song, I have heard very few albums that measure up as well as Prefab Sprout’s crowning achievement. Listening over and over (sometimes five times in a row), I just start picking out individual moments in a song that add so much more charm and mystery to the bigger picture. Paddy McAloon has one of the best vocals in music, and just had the essence of someone you want to follow or know about simply through the power of his performance. Every song on here comes so close to the line between heartbreak and recovery, that they all capture the essence of both and never fail to move me. It’s something truly special and one of the greatest albums ever. Like at the end of The Great Escape when Steven McQueen is out running the germans on his motorcycle. He sadly flips out and ends up where he began, back in the camp. He didn’t succeed but he’s happy. Why? Because he’s Steve McQueen and that’s a bad mother fucker. –Allistair
Nektar “Down to Earth” (1974)
Temporarily abandoning the extended suite forms of their previous releases, Nektar turn in an accessible, almost pop-flavored collection of shorter songs with Down To Earth. Although it orbits in a sort of Euro-hippie galaxy, and features a vague circus concept running throughout, don’t let that scare you away, as this is a focused album with consistently strong songs. My favorites include the giant-sized “Nelly The Elephant,” (which sounds more than a little like part of Pink Floyd’s “Echoes”), animated “That’s Life,” expressive ballad “Little Boy,” and insistent “Show Me The Way,” but even the lesser stuff is pretty great. A refreshing, successful departure from the norm for Nektar. –Ben
Queen “Queen II” (1974)
It’s a slightly awkward (and goofy) amalgam of Glam and Prog and Metal, but only slightly: the band catches fire and forges the core of their classic sound (in which Glam and Prog and Metal get along Famously) with this second release, a dense, majestic, and, of course, operatic sequence that inhabits a dark sound-world while delivering shimmering pop hooks aplenty. Gallivanting sword ’n’ sorcery themes alternate with classic r ’n’ r rebellion, and somehow it all works, even if I get the feeling that they could’ve developed some of these songs a little more. Incidentally, this also can be cited, for better or worse, as the origin of Smashing Pumpkins’ whole guitar sound and song dynamic (not to mention melodic sensibility) on their (his) early records—so fans of that stuff should look this up. Low on hits but stacked with impressive “deep cuts,” this is to my ears nearly as good as successors Sheer Heart Attack and A Night at the Opera; in fact, I find that I play this one more often than either—if only to hear tracks that never fail to surprise me in this album’s baffling yet strangely fluent sequencing (“White Queen,” “Some Day One Day,” and the Phil Spectral “Funny How Love Is”). –Will
The Kinks “Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire” (1969)
The freshness of a piece like “Shangri-La” is astonishing. It’s as relevant to middle-class values today as it was 40 years ago. “Brainwashed” continues the examination, which is completed by “Nothing To Say” taking a look from a completely different perspective. Brilliant! Individually most of the songs aren’t great. The exceptions are the brilliant “Victoria”, “Shangri-La” and “Young And Innocent Days”. But, put together the songs amount to another masterpiece from the Kinks. I don’t know of another lyricist who has achieved on one album of popular music what Ray Davies has achieved here – a complete social history of a particular era. –Jim
Van Morrison “Common One” (1980)
If not the least accessible and popular Van album, it is definitely one of them. Having two songs that both go over fifteen minutes, being made in a week, and carrying a very experimental jazz vibe it sounds unique in Van’s catalog.
“Summertime in England” builds and builds up until it’s majestic ending blows the house down, “When the Heart is Open” is the most ambient song of his career and is the best song to fall asleep to on a rainy day. The other four songs are equally great. The album only feels more organic and beautiful put into the context of the time. It was a celebration of spirit and freedom [released in 1980]. –Allistair
Spinal Tap “This Is Spinal Tap” (1984)
The soundtrack to Spinal Tap’s cult rockumentary serves as the only easy place to hear highlights from long out of print, impossible to find albums like Brainhammer, Shark Sandwich, and Bent For The Rent, with classics like the onstage anthem “Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You,” the squalid “Hell Hole,” and sexual throb of “Big Bottom” and #5 Japanese hit “Sex Farm” leading the charge. Tap’s regrettable flirtations with progressive rock are represented by “Stonehenge,” and the ill-timed ’77 release “Rock And Roll Creation,” the album also featuring the previously unreleased Tufnel composition, “America,” and both sides of the band’s pre-Tap Thamesmen 7-inch, “Gimmie Some Money/Cups and Cakes,” both fine examples of the so called “Squatneybeat” sound that gripped the UK for 3 days in 1965. Until the long promised Tap reissues arrive (“A lot of our music they won’t put out on CD because it’s too vibrant.” – David St. Hubbins), This Is Spinal Tap is your best bet for a taste of the Tap. –Ben
Nick Drake “Bryter Layter” (1970)
Five Leaves Left was Drake balancing on a wire as lush orchestras complimented bare acoustics with songs that cried in the evening and smiled in the morning. While Pink Moon can be seen as Drake dialed down to -1, Bryter Lyter is Drake turned up to 11. You can hear his smile when he sings on “Hazy Jane II” and you can feel the tears roll on (“Northern Sky”). While the strings on “River Man” and “Cello Song” off his debut added a dramatic flair, the arrangements here added a steady backbone and call for celebration. While the integrity behind the change in sound isn’t that inspiring, the execution is. Who would have known that John Cale of all people who bring the crowning moment of the album when he plays the piano solo in “Northern Sky”? –Allistair
Lucifer’s Friend “Lucifer’s Friend” (1970)
This German hard rock machine, with British belter John Lawton, (later of Uriah Heep) gave birth to one of the best heavy rock albums of the early 70’s. From the screaming vocals of “Ride In The Sky” (with its brass opening reminiscent of Zeppelin’s “The Immigrant Song” and an almost “thrash metal” riff) to the progressive/hard R&B of “Toxic Shadows”, to the lumbering, Sabbathish doom of “Keep Goin”, this album never lets up for a second. Fans of Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin must have this in their collection! Lawton is one of the best singers in hard rock, and the musicianship of the group is tremendous. Very heavy indeed for a 1971 release. The bonus tracks show the more mainstream, rock ‘n’ rollin’ side of the band, but the instrumentals “Horla” and “Satyr’s Dance” (taken from B-sides) really cook. Do yourself a large favor and check this one out. —Chris
Peter Green “In the Skies” (1979)
So, after eight years away from the music scene does Peter Green still have it? Of course he did! This album is almost, for me, a testament to the longevity of raw talent. Considering all that Peter Green had been through throughout the decade, it’s quite something that he could come up with something this good (as well as putting out a record better than 1079’s effort from his former bandmates). The only slight downer is the uncertainty over which songs Peter Green actually plays lead on due to his ill-health, but that doesn’t really detract from the quality of these songs. There’s a really laid back feel to the album, like mellow blues. “A Fool No More” was the only song I’d heard prior to purchasing the album and it’s probably this song that sounds most like Green’s Mac efforts (it was originally written for the first Fleetwood Mac album). The guitar playing and vocals are strong, as they are on the other vocal led tracks “In The Skies”, “Seven Stars” and “Just For You”. “In The Skies”, “Tribal Dance” and “Proud Pinto” have Santana-esque rhythm sections and drums, underpinning the laid back mood and displaying Peter Green’s musical influences. “Slabo Day” has a really nice riff and emotive leads (the sleeve notes state that Snowy White plays lead on this track), and “Apostle” is a beautiful closer to the album, displaying the feel and sensitivity of Green’s compositions. As the first of Peter Green’s many comebacks, “In The Skies” is a great effort and a worthy addition to the man’s catalogue. –Tom
Harry Nilsson “Aerial Ballet” (1968)
After the Beatles blew everything else off the charts, most artists tried too hard to be “difficult” while others were too stuck in the past, not even attempting to catch up. I think the reason Aerial Ballet impressed Lennon so much and remains classic to this day, is that Nilsson’s songs contained a sweet yearning for yesteryear paired with a (then) modern touch of artistic genius. “Together” is a wonderfully, breezy pop tune, “Everbody’s Talkin” is an incredible cover that got Harry up on the charts, and “One” of course is one of the greatest songs ever written (nothing beats the original, here). –Allistair
Talking Heads “Remain in Light” (1980)
In the height of punk and the beginning of hip-hop, white and black music had never been more distant. David Bryne had his eye on fixing that. The funky rhythm section returns more complete then ever with Bryne being more characteristic then ever playing with words and sounds that is both unbelievably cool and bizarre. Brian Eno’s songwriting contribution and production just top it off, from the computer freak out in the opening track to the excellent “Once in a Lifetime”. Above all, it’s Byrne’s tackling questions about our identity in a booming society (“Seen and Not Seen”) and sympathizing with people that aren’t a part of it (“Listening Wind”), that makes it all the more poignant. It’s like those parties where everyone gets drunk and dances their asses off, and around 3am the guys with beards who like to talk about their emotions go on about the government and the super ego. –Allistair
What a gathering of great musical minds. Adrian Belew, Brian Eno AND David Byrne!? What results is like the offspring of 80’s King Crimson and David Bowie’s Low on uppers. “House in Motion” is ridiculously fun to listen to. The Reggae rhythm mixed with East Indian themes, Adrian Belew doing his thing on guitar, the repeating electronic trumpet and that “mbarp” sound. What the heck is that sound? –Rob
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