Albums that are owning you right now - Page 5

You can get it for about half that on E-Bay or Amazon. (I snagged mine at a used CD shop) But, oh yeah, it definitely is! They killed the Stones for me!

I'm curious about that Ronnie Lane complilation. I might pick it up.

Continuing to own me right now: One Night Stand - Sam Cooke Live At The Harlem Square Club, 1963

Ah jeez you're right, I didn't even check the Amazon used section. Much more affordable there. Now I can't wait to hear those live tracks!

Now here's a question for either of you (well, after Nicholas buys a copy): do I need the individual Faces albums if I have the box set? I remember an interview with either McLagan or Jones when it was released where he claimed that they were never all that happy with their studio releases in terms of translating the live experience and that the box represented the definitive version of the Faces.

Fuck yeah. I have to listen to that album the whole way through whenever I put it on. I can't bring myself to stop it.

I'd agree with that. The only caveat is that it's not sequenced chronologically, if that matters. Otherwise, it's pretty much definitive.

I also think it sounds pretty great, but I'm comparing that to my old vinyl copies, as I'd never picked up the individual Faces albums on CD.

I say the individual CDs are still a go--well, at least the first three. Some killer tracks are missing from the box set (Blazing "Memphis, Tennessee" the most glaring). First Step-my fave- is especially under represented.

I will say, Dave-if you're a Faces fan looking to spend some Christmas money, pick up Reason To Believe: The Rod Stewart Anthology first. It contains Rod's first four albums and all the Mercury recordings. Even though the rest of the boys back him up, his partnership with Martin Quittenton is a revelation; assured craft an astonishing contrast to the rough and sloppy Faces records. On his solo records he hones the raucous energy to craft complete brilliant masterpieces.

(When I say "assured craft", I don't mean the over-polished Atlantic Crossing Rod. He's soulful, folkie, funky, and rocking. Blistering "I'm Losing You" is better than any Faces tack, or any Stones track ouside of Exile for that matter. His song-writing here hints at a Springsteen-level genius)

I'd tend to agree (apart from the invidious Stones comparisons).

Rod's first four solo albums are among my alltime favorites, and even Smiler has its moments.

The fact that Atlantic Crossing is so slick tends to obscure the fact that he still came up with some great stuff in the albums that followed (and there's even some nice bonus stuff on the 2-disc reissue of Atlantic Crossing): Tonight's the Night is full of great heart-on-the-sleeve singing, and even Foot Loose and Fancy Free features the definitive "If Loving You Is Wrong" (even if "Hot Legs" is about a tenth as exciting as the Faces would have made it).

But at this point, the decline in Rod's songwriting has begun: the only really memorable originals he comes up with anymore are the generic (but effective) stuff like "Tonight's The Night" and "You're In My Heart"; there's nothing with the observational specificity of "Every Picture Tells A Story" or "You Wear It Well" or a dozen others.

And then comes Blondes Have More Fun... and the abyss.

Though I do have a soft spot for his recording of "Ooh La La": it's as heartfelt a tribute to Ronnie Lane as you could ask for.

Oh, and the album currently owning me is The Blind Boys of Alabama's Go Tell It On The Mountain.

Various Artists - Daptone Gold - This is a compilation album featuring some groovy, toe-tappin' soul/funk from Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, The Menahan Street Band, Antibalas and other groups on this NY-based indie label. Some previously unreleased material makes its debut here.

Cotton Jones - Paranoid Cocoon - The debut record from the two founding members of the now-dissolved indie rock band, Page France. This music is definitely influenced by The Doors and other psychedelic bands of the era.

Elizabeth & The Catapult - Taller Children - This is a catchy album from a Brooklyn-based indie pop trio (made up of Berklee College of Music grads) that I first heard about this past summer on WXPN's "The World Cafe."

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below - This is another summer 2009 release that I was introduced to by The World Cafe. This LA-based nouveau-hippie band is quickly earning a reputation for their infectiously fun live shows. See here for their October performance on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Levon Helm - Electric Dirt - Yet another summer 2009 release from The Band's former drummer/vocalist. This is his second album (the first one, Dirt Farmer, won a Grammy) released in about 3 years following his recovery from throat cancer. While his singing voice has changed, ol' Levon can still make some damn fine music. This album, recorded in his barn studio, mixes elements of rock, bluegrass and blues and and is a great listen.

"Three Time Loser" would have been a great Faces song! (Loving the alternate Atlantic Crossing with the M.G.'s-"To Love Somebody", "Holy Cow", "Drift Away", Allright For An Hour"--wow!)

And "The Killing of Georgie (part 1 & 2)" is brilliant and kind of daring.

(probably where and why those hilarious 80's schoolyard rumors started!)

The Rolling Stones dig was a bit brash and off-the cuff. Let's say it trumps anything post-Exile and most everything of the Mick Taylor era not on Exile or Sticky. "I'm Losing You" IS that good!

Robert Randolph and the family band-Live at the wetlands. Just incredible energy, Rob really whips the crowd into a frenzy, it's like a modern day juke joint.

Great album.

One of the episodes of Elvis Costello's Spectacle series coming up this season has the theme of "building a band," and will feature Levon as the drummer (along with Nick Lowe on bass and Richard Thompson on guitar).

At which time, Dave will be plunged into a joy-induced coma.

Not an album, but Costello's addictive show is once again owning me.

I've watched the two episodes that have aired this season so far (on On Demand, at least). The Bono/Edge one was pretty good - I particularly enjoyed Elvis and the Imposters doing "Mysterious Ways" and the stripped down version of "Stay (Faraway So Close)" although the interviews may have trumped performance overall.

The Sheryl Crow/Neko Case/Jesse Winchester/Ron Sexsmith was a mixed bag. I wish there'd been more interaction among the guests (although I loved Case's "Prison Girls" backed only by Steve Nieve and Elvis). I didn't know anything about Sexsmith or Winchester going in, but I'll definitely be getting some stuff by the latter - guy has an amazing voice and actually managed to make Case cry with one of his songs on the show. Crow was the appeal to the masses here, but the woman who once sagely advised us to "Soak Up the Sun" seemed out of place, predictably enough.

Norah Jones - The Fall

The change in band and producing is sometimes too subtle, but those who think its more of the same listen to "It's Gonna Be" right now.

The Band Rock of Ages

I don't mind the horns.

Jeb: Did you get the deluxe edition of Night On The Town? Bonus cuts not quite as exciting as Atlantic Crossing.

Is it really that nuts to consider what Rod & the Faces were doing at the time to be better than the Stones? I get the eye rolling in real life as well. Ha.

Generally speaking, I prefer the Faces, too (with Sticky Fingers being maybe the only exception to that statement).

If we're talking early 70's, I'm pretty much there with you. Weren't the Stones in a bit of a decline, quality-wise, by that time? So yeah, I don't think it's too crazy to say that.

I love the Faces, but from Aftermath to Exile, there's as much good songwriting on any one Stones LP as in the entire Faces catalog (I maybe exclude Satanic Majesties. Maybe).

And if there's more than one or two Faces songs that are even in the same ballpark with "Honky Tonk Women" or "Gimme Shelter" or "Sister Morphine" (to say nothing of "No Expectations" or "Brown Sugar" or "You Can't Always Get What You Want"), then they didn't get released over here.

Now, if you throw Rod's solo stuff into the mix, the race becomes much closer.

And having seen both bands several times during the 70's, there's no question the Faces were a lot more fun as a live act.

Thanks for this recommendation. I was already a big fan of other indie folk acts they have been associated with, including Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn and Noah & The Whale. Their sound also kind of reminds me of Langhorne Slim, Elvis Perkins and Justin Townes Earle.

It's evidently being shown 12/23, and I neglected to mention that the band also includes Allen Toussaint.

Johnny Winter-Second Winter. Such a great album, Johnny's skills are amazing, he has a ton of energy and he's ably backed by Tommy Shannon and Uncle John. The stand out is 'Highway 61 Revisited'. Johnny just blazes through this Bob Dylan song, you can feel the scorch marks.

And a week earlier on Free Movies on Demand, apparently. Watched it, enjoyed it (there's a killer Elvis & the Imposters-backed "Shoot Out the Lights" that should nab Thompson a few new fans), really hope they release an extended version with the all-star band playing more songs together.

Marvin Gaye I Want You

The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You

Meet The Beatles-The Beatles

<Back To Mono>

My god, I thought Swamp Dogg was dead. Give 'Em as Little as You Can . . . as Often as You Have to . . . or . . . A Tribute to Rock 'n' Roll is full of covers of songs I was tired of hearing thirty years ago, but damn if it's not irresistable. Even remaking "Total Destruction To Your Mind" doesn't seem such a bad idea here.

Fuck: he did a Christmas album last year, too? Where the hell have I been...?

Everything by The Weakerthans.

Al Green-Call Me

No misses on this one. Title track, "Have You Been Making Out OK" + his soulful take on Willie's "Funny How Time Slips Away" are moving & grooving me right now.

Roger Waters' - Amused to Death

I've always loved this album, and have always considered it a superior album to both Momentary Lapse of Reason and The Division Bell; as well as the better "Floyd" album. Though I do still like Momentary a lot, it's been waaaaaaaaay long since I gave The Division Bell a spin. Give Amused to Death a try. I can't believe it came out in '92!! I was listening to this as a college sophomore! Wow!

Reminded by Dragon Ma's post in the "songs" thread, I was poking around online and discovered that there's a new reissue of 1967's James Brown Live At The Garden, and it's phenomenal.

The original is kind of odd: it was actually recorded at the same Jersey nightclub where Jackie Wilson suffered his onstage stroke (the album title was to hype JB's upcoming debut at Madison Square Garden, as the LP was rush-released), and fake ambience and crowd noise were added to "simulate" the larger venue. As a result, it sounds like crap, and it's not generally been regarded that highly (at least in relation to the vast amount of live Brown material available).

But the new 2-CD release goes back to the original tapes to scrub away all the added studio nonsense, restores songs that were edited or cut altogether, and provides both mono and stereo versions of the resultant album.

The new version is most notable for the sweaty intimacy of the setting. I can't pretend to be all that familiar with the first version (as I say, the original release was kind of "listen then file for reference"), but in this one, with no fake audience, JB is interacting with the band and the nightclub crowd like nobody's business (and whenever he and the Flames start harmonizing, the ladies are swooning and shrieking all over the place). More than any of his other live albums, this one really places you right there at the front of the stage, with all that funk exploding over your head.

I wouldn't rank this ahead of some of the other standard Brown live classics, but if you've got Apollo 1 and 2 (and Paris and Dallas), and just want more live JB, this is a great CD.

Nice! Is the rest of their discography as strong as Reconstruction Site? It's the only album I've heard, but it made quite an impression.

Thanks for the heads up! If it comes anywhere even close to Apollo 2, I'll be jazzed. The intimate atmosphere sounds intriguing. That's what i love about Sam Cooke's Live in Harlem record.

I've been listening to the XX's debut album a lot lately. I don't listen to a lot of newer music, but something about this does it for me. It sounds like indie rock r and b. It's not for everyone but I dig it.

I've had a rough couple of days, and was in the mood for some 80s power pop. The Outfield's Play Deep fit the bill nicely.

Beautiful.

It's a guilty pleasure, but In this Light and in this Evening by Editors really grabbed me. Let's face it; it's still Joy Division jr, but the Editors are into Depeche Mode now, and they do it better than fucking She Wants Revenge.

Here's proof.

Editors have always had too much U2-style stadium ambition to be just another Joy Division wannabe band. And they've never bettered "Bullets."

Somehow, Bullets never grabbed me. Blood is so much better on that album.

"Blood" is a cracking tune. "Munich" would also have to be prominent on any "Best Of" list. Why are they a guilty pleasure?

They barely have an original bone in their body.

Listening a lot to the upcoming Beach House album, and I'm sure it will bring 'em to the next level. 'Teen Dreams' has the best damn female vocals since Feist's 'The Reminder'. All great songs & no filler.

At this point, that case could be made against many current rock bands. There's a difference between boring hero-worship and wearing your influences on your sleeve. I'm not in the business of defending bands that purposefully stay in a prescribed sandbox, but it's a bit sweeping to call such groups guilty pleasures. When so much has already been done, not everyone can be a trailblazer, and the strength of bands like Editors is the combination of interesting, at times disparate elements with their own personalities; in their case, minimalist sensitivities (reminiscent of Joy Division) and a bigger, more anthemic veneer (like U2.) The end result may not be completely original, but when seemingly so little is, they deserve at least some credit for not being totally derivative.

The Sunset Tree-The Mountain Goats

I'm ashamed to admit as a big Dr. Dre/N.W.A fan that I only just recently listened to Efil4zagin' (or rather Niggaz4life) in its entirety. Ice Cube's absence was the main reason I never gave it a chance, but it's a pretty good album. "Appetite for Destruction", "Alwayz into Something" and "Approach to Danger" are all quality cuts. You can definitely hear the seeds of the G-funk Dre would create in his Death Row years.

I really don't love their newest (Reunnion Tour) but their first album is amazing (Fallow) and the follow up (Left and Leaving) very, very good. Reconstruction Site is the high point, I think.

At the time I was all about AmeriKKKa's Most, but I think Efil4zaggin has actually aged better. The production is brilliant.

On constant rotation right now: Clapton's Crossroads 2 box-set and Al Green's Greatest Hits.

Thanks!

I really like that album, but I've got a soft spot for the Editors. They're a tad over serious, but they're talented musicians and they're amazing live. They sort of got mauled over here when The Back Room got released because all of their old fans shunned them for 'selling out' despite the fact they didn't actually change all that much.

I actually think they get away with the electronica elements on the new album because the instrumental undercurrent is so strong. The synths are just one element on the album.

I'm loving the Broken Records album and I've gone back to the Isobel Campbell/Mark Campbell album Sunday at Devil Dirt which is probably one of my favourite records of the 00s.

The new Basement Jaxx album is pretty kickass as well.