To give my brain a break from the Go Go band, here’s a Taffica concert from the LA suburbs back in the early 70s. Every time I listen to him during this stretch of his career, I can't help but think about how I'll never forgive Winwood for what he turned himself into—and how he just wasted that incredible talent. To be composing music like this when you're barely twenty-something, only to allow such a total decline in the 80s... it makes me want to give him a serious piece of my mind while Valerie plays in the background. Or maybe just stick to the Go Go band, I guess. Either way, it's a blessing—or maybe a curse, I haven't quite decided yet—that he was actually sane earlier in life, leaving us with something decent to inherit and something worth remembering.
Lisa Davis46 said:Classic Fass. 😁 Honestly, those two albums were such a pleasant surprise for me! 😁
el kid, do you want to write about Neil Young? 🙂 If you're up for it, feel free to take over. I'd really appreciate it—you always put so much effort into your writing. I won't even offer it to Fass, since he needs to focus on the forum, and dark wanderer already has his topic picked out! But the same goes for Billy Walsh (glad he joined us for the albums 🎉 even if just for the poll) and Charles Ramos4. So, who wants to tackle his first, think about it. I won't bug puky this weekend, since things are pretty hectic.
I'm just finishing up Tomasev's intro now... and honestly, I didn't expect the Young stuff to pass with that Crazy Horse album, even though it's one of my favorites. I also feel like there's still plenty left to say about him.
You can't suggest Young and expect it not to pass. 😁 Unfortunately, I have to pass too—I've been slammed the last few months, and because of that, I haven't been suggesting anything lately either. Townes was an exception because there weren't many suggestions coming in (at least it seemed that way) and plus, it was Easter Monday, which gave me a little more breathing room to put together an intro post. I guess I'll get back to my old self soon and be able to participate again, or at least lend a hand when someone's struggling..
Edit: Just wanted to give a quick shout-out to Maria Muldaur and her self-titled album 👍
brightwolf48 said:I was just suggesting an album for you—one where John " Woody " Mellor is actually doing the vocals at that time.😁
By the time I even finished typing my post, you were already suggesting an album just because of Mellor—though I’m not entirely sure if that’s actually his real last name, or at least I haven't really committed it to memory. And if you had left the way you originally planned, how would I have ever found out? It's a rhetorical question, really—you know exactly when that would have happened...
Don't start blaming the weather down South—that’s just an excuse we use under the San Francisco fog when things go sideways. You guys need to find some other way to justify yourselves, please. Thanks.
PS don't mess around—just show up properly and then head back. We barely even had time to mourn Mezz, and now you're looking to retire from the forums already? Where's the humanity? 😁
Since things are looking a little thin on suggestions today, I figured I'd toss out a little country gem of my own..
Townes van Zandt - The latiti Great Townes van Zandt (1972)
Tracklist:
1. no Lonesome tune 4:17 2. SAD Cinderella 4:13 3. German Mustard 2:53 4. don't let The Sunshine Fool Ya 2:23 5. Honky Tonkin 3:41 6. Snow don't fall 2:25 7. Fraulein 2:41 8. Poncho and Lefty 3:38 9. if i Needed you 3:41 10. Silver Ships of Andilar 5:06 11. Heavenly Houseboat blues 2:51
Here’s a little something for anyone who digs progressive sounds that are still easy enough on the ears—the kind of music I can actually sit through without any trouble, I guess. I’m not sure if there are many fans of The Alan Parsons Project hanging around here, or if people just don't talk about them much, but this duo deserves a bit more love on this corner of the forum. Just a heads up—Eric Woolfson isn't in this concert, since he left the group back in the 80s, but even without him, Parsons and his crew put on an absolutely top-tier performance.
Jesse Jackson3 said:I won't have time to write up Tearse today, but I'll get to it tomorrow.
Give it another year in New York City and you'll be crying for home. 👎
Vanča, thanks for the offer, but I'm really not some big-shot expert on the New York City scene—so it feels a bit weird for me to jump in and write about them. Plus, I've been pretty short on time lately—which is probably why I haven't suggested anything over the last couple of months. Not to mention, there are plenty of people here more qualified than me, and from what I can see, some of them have already offered to start a thread.
brightwolf48 said:If they had just stopped after that album—you know, Boy, October, War, and then finishing up with Under a Blood Red Sky—they would've easily been ranked among the greatest and most important rock bands in history.
I don't know if I'm making sense here, but for me, U2 is listenable and actually good from their first record, Boy, all the way through Achtung Baby. But after that... I don't know, they just kind of lose it for me. I mean, sure, there were a few tracks that worked—Walk On, for example—but I could probably count them all on one hand.
brightwolf48 said:I know people might disagree, but personally, I think Young’s Chrome Dreams II. is actually beautiful.
From the Boy era all the way through Achtung Baby, you can hear them shifting their sound and production style on pretty much every single record. If you listen to War and The Unforgettable Fire back-to-back, the sonic jump is honestly bigger than anything R. E. M. has done.
I’m talking about U2 specifically after Achtung—up until then, I thought they were alright, but once they moved past that, they went in a direction that just doesn't work for me. It’s hard to listen to. Then again, looking at the commercial success, it's clear they hit a home run by changing things up... so maybe I'm just off base here.😁
Dennis Hall41 said:Exactly. Something else crossed my mind too—with a good portion of them, probably all of them, that I've listened to (so far), I've noticed that magic just... fades. Take Neil Young, for instance—he’s been one of the top ten most important artists in my life. As great as his stuff has been over the last few decades, I don't think he's truly caught that Muse with the same intensity since Rust Never Sleeps / Live Rust. He might catch glimpses of her, maybe, but for me, there hasn't been that once-in-a-lifetime alchemy at an album level since 1979.
I'd say Harvest Moon from '92 is one of his favorites, even if everyone agrees his absolute peak was back in the 70s.
Regarding what brightwolf48 was saying about musicians changing and maturing—I mostly agree, though I wouldn't really pick U2 as a good example of that. I'd say they were more about following trends, whereas with R. E. M., you could argue they actually refined their sound as they aged.😁
Man, I probably played that Barin's album so much in my apartment when it first dropped—it was basically the soundtrack to my life back then. I don't know, maybe it's just me, but I still get these weird little tics whenever certain tracks come on. 😁 Not that there’s any debate about it being a fantastic record, just so we're clear.
I remember reading some review by Dragaš about Mother—it was basically just one long list of superlatives and praise for them. It actually caught me by surprise, I guess, since I wouldn't call myself a die-hard fan... unlike a few of my buddies who probably consider them their #1 American band. Still, those guys definitely played a part in making Mother feel close to me.
If Grimble is following this thread, maybe it’d be helpful to do a little deep dive to get to know them better. Though, I suspect Grace, Time to Move, and Path to Happiness would probably suit your taste more than those first two albums (Reason and Madness, Discord), which have much more of a punk edge to them.
I think it’s safe to say this was the absolute peak for the band—both in terms of their songwriting and their live energy. With all due respect to the founding members, this was easily their best lineup. From the very first note, the whole concert just feels like pure, raw rock 'n' roll. It’s definitely one of the best shows from that entire 90s era of American music. If I had to pick a few highlights, maybe "You're Still Crying," "Take me," and "Be Proud" would be my top picks for the night—though there are plenty of other tracks that could honestly make that list... I mean, if a cup of coffee and a little bit of chaos doesn't wake you up after this, nothing 😁 . The Band - Live in Washington, D.C., 1997.
Jason Mendoza said:that using Spacy's vocabulary here actually adds a certain depth—meaning there's literally something for everyone to sink their teeth into 👍
Nothing works without a little spiral imposition 🧐
And if I can add one tiny correction—it’s Spacy’s vocabulary, not Spacy's... wait, I mean, it's just Spacy's way of talking. Though honestly, that's probably beside the point. The main thing is that you've had your fill of him and his "wisdom." 🙂
If you don't love Elvis Presley, you probably don't have a heart ☕
Look, jokes aside—I don't really take him (or his music) all that seriously, but even at his most basic, he’s still better than half the garbage currently on the American pop charts. I guess that says more about the state of the industry than it does about Elvis, but that's a whole other conversation..
It’s a legendary recording on so many levels—starting with that initial shout hey, hey, then immediately jumping into a synth solo backed by those tribal drums... We all sort of soar together into this hyper-folk headspace, hands in the air, with the crowd acting like they're on steroids—kind of like the best nights back in the day. The performance has this heavy metal-folk vibe, like seeing a kid in a white tee at 1:38 followed by a total superstar moment at 3:21. The comments on YouTube are pure gold, as usual. This whole set is a treasure, so I figured I should share it with you guys. 😁
I was at one of his shows in NYC maybe 15 or 20 years ago, and I remember it being an absolute riot. And honestly, half the crowd looked like hardcore metalheads 😁
I didn't get around to my usual forum duties yesterday, but there's no question that he's got my kind of voice (alongside The Byrds, Sade, and maybe a few others on that list). I get it when someone like David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, or some classic rock legend doesn't make Album of the Week, but if an icon of this magnitude stays overlooked—well, I guess that's just a failure of society as a whole ☕
I’m hearing about Little Feat for the first time today—or maybe I just never really paid attention until now—thanks to this incredible set from London back in the summer of '77. The first few tracks feel a bit like your typical 70s rock, nothing too deep, but as the set goes on, I finally get why Page mentioned them as his favorite band in that interview. It’s hard to pin them down to just one subgenre, I guess. Their sound is such a blend of different styles—you can really feel those hints of country, folk, blues, and soul woven together. I see people trying to label them as southern rock, swamp rock, roots rock, Americana, jam, or even blue-eyed soul (????), but they're just... their own thing. 😁
