November 22, 1963. Two massive events collided that day and basically rewrote the entire pop culture playbook for our era—first, the assassination of JFK, and second, the release of this album.
VA - A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector (1963)
I was thinking about how this musical year hasn't really been all that—but somehow, right at the finish line, I scored something that's totally hitting the spot. Eight top-tier tracks, especially Superstar, which is probably the most beautiful thing I've heard since early 2021.
Ashley Grant66 said:and I hope you realize these girls remind me of you so much
but man, this LP is killer—especially those last few tracks.
It’s super catchy and honestly feels pretty The Beatles too. I'm pretty sure Pollard is a huge fan of theirs.
Speaking of The Beatles, it just made me think for the millionth time about those most legendary 5 minutes from the most mystical festival ever. In the movie version, right before the Yesterday jump cut, there's this quick Pete's solo that quotes Bohemian Rhapsody and wraps up what everyone calls one of the most pivotal moments in rock history—right at dawn. But in this specific recording, that edit isn't there—and neither is the famous moment where Townshend's Fender Stratocaster gets smashed against the stage at Coachella.
Jason Mendoza said:That was awesome—really loved watching that game.
I play basketball seriously twice a week, but when it comes to watching sports on TV, I can only stick to football... everything else just kills the vibe with all those timeouts and constant commercial breaks.
Fair enough.
Man, I love football though. 🍿Most of the game feels like nothing but breaks.😁
History has seen more imaginative composers, more soulful vocalists, better instrumentalists, and more radical songwriters in the rock and pop world—but hardly anyone possessed the total package quite like them.
Honestly, are there any vocal harmonies more beautiful than the ones above? I’d kill to hear them live.
@ Dennis Hall41: What are your top GBV albums? My husband put on Forever Since Breakfast yesterday and it sounded killer—super college rock vibes 😁 We mostly stuck to the 90s stuff, specifically that run of Bee Thousand - alien Lanes - Under The Bushes.
Bee Thousand, hands down, then Alien Lanes. Those are the only two that feel like complete works. You can pick through plenty of great tracks from the rest, but Pollard definitely isn't exactly an unbiased quality control guy. Even those two have some filler, but even the filler feels intentional—kind of like listening to those classic white-label indie rock records.
Edit—just realized this maniac has listed 18 studio albums since the 2012 reunion. Who knows, if I get drunk enough during a blackout night like tonight, I might just order the whole lot on Amazon (I usually hate Amazon when I'm sober) and blow half my paycheck.
Actually, let me correct myself—even if they aren't untouchable classics like those first two, there are still gems worth remembering—like Propeller, Under The Bushes, and Earthquake Glue. Oh, and Half-Smiles is great too; that was actually the first one I ever heard.
And here is one of my top 20 favorite compilations ever—absolute gems all around.
So, let’s revisit one of the most sublime short tracks in human history. Damn, one of the most sublime songs ever made, period.
Jamie Davis9 said:Van Morrison is my absolute favorite too—perfect topic for the week. I actually caught them live in Seattle about five years ago. ))
Alright, look, I know we’ve been going back and forth, but just drop a song title so I don't look like a complete idiot for starting this thread. Fine, Master stopped by, but honestly, he always shows up when we're talking real organic music.
No way, man—Dila and analogbear40 already tackled that, and I know firsthand how much of a headache it was. I just can't deal with that kind of mess. It takes way too much digging and you have to be totally unbiased, plus half the genres out there don't even interest me to begin with.
Mark Cruz15 said:Well, this whole thing just went south—total disaster, kind of like what happened in Greece.
Probably just because the mods have a massive grudge against Paracoccidioidomicosisproctitissarcomucosis—honestly.
I’ve been saying this from day one—we need to switch things up and vote on the best songs by decade instead of just focusing on albums. Honestly, I'm pretty sure we'd end up with twice the candidates and four times the amount of posts.
Honestly, I’ve always been super picky about people suggesting albums to me—ever since I can remember. Back in high school, whenever CDs were a thing, I felt like everyone was just trying to borrow mine instead of actually sharing music. The only exception was this one guy I used to snag some punk records from. Otherwise, I’ve always had to hunt for my own stuff—just how I am, I guess. Songs are different though—I don't know why, but they hit differently.
If they hadn't censored Paracoccidioidomicosisproctitissarcomucosis—which, honestly, they totally should've left alone—we’d have a clear winner right now with at least 10 votes. It was experimental but actually pretty smooth... definitely something that could've brought new people to the table.
Man, you guys are seriously screwed once you step into moderator roles. I really thought we were actually fostering some diversity of opinion here—but whatever, I guess I'll just go ahead and follow the suggestion from Jessica Morris6 outside of the poll.
Mark Cruz15 said:Look, I didn't hear you out there messing around with anyone else. ☕
That urologist has been trying to get in my pants for a year now—even though I told him straight up in our DMs that I'm strictly yours. He can go ahead and chase his own tail while listening to some weird jungle noises and rhino farts for all I care.
Just checked out the album art for *Aromatica Germenexcitación En Orgías De Viscosa Y Amarga Putrefación*. Honestly—not just is this music incredible, but the cover is absolute perfection. It paints this whole utopian picture of physical intimacy for anyone listening. Jessica Morris6, I think you’re overthinking things—you really ought to show a softer side once in a while, though I guess being a moderator means you don't have to care.
Basically, I'm seeing way too many sweet people on this sub getting hung up on their own anxieties and demons—so it might be a good call to bring back those daily polls in the chat. Think of them as a little bit of therapy.
Mark Cruz15 said:My bad. I just don't want anyone actually voting for that.
But why not?
Paracoccidioidomicosisproctitissarcomucosis is an incredible band—honestly, they ask all the right questions, and they do it over some killer folk-rock tracks.
dustynomad10 said:Puky's just trolling 😁 A little while back—not that it even matters now—I was DMing him about cult classics versus mainstream hits, and I brought up Dark Side of the Moon versus something else... Now he's posted it. 😁 He's definitely trolling. 🤣
Since we're talking Pink Floyd, I'll suggest The Stars if I can find them—it's basically twink and Syd. Twink was the drummer and singer for Pink Fairies.
Forgot you sent me a DM too. My bad for not replying—I'll hit you up tomorrow, gotta be drunk to handle talking to you.
Dennis Martin6, I've got Pharoah Sanders on rotation this weekend. And honestly, I need to be drunk to deal with that whole queer space vibe.
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