50 Albums you must hear before you buy a house 7.0 (2)

Buenas, amantes de la música. Puedes ir to propio camino, puedes llamarlo otro día solitario, o puedes escuchar y disfrutar! Porque estas son las raíces del ritmo, y  las raíces del ritmo permanecen.

Pero primero una pregunta para los viajeros: ¿Quién sabe qué portada de Bob Dylan se puede encontrar en Viena?
Oooh, qué dificil por la gente con chalecos amarillos, oh, una tormenta está amenazando mi misma vida hoy.
Chalecos amarillos en todas partes, lo apuñalan con sus cuchillos de acero, pero simpelemente no pueden matar
la bestia.

Chalecos amarillos en todas partes, dicen que cuando se encuentra la verdad para ser mentiras, toda la alegria
dentro de ti muere. Pero si salen de aquí alguna vez, piensan en regalarlo todo a una cardidad registrada.
Porque como todos sabemos, ¡todo lo que necesitamos es una pinta al día y estos álbumes!

GF
Artist Album Year 2017
40 Explosions In The Sky The Earth Is Not a Cold Death Place 2003 *
39 Fleetwood Mac Rumours 1977 44
38 Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti 1975 *
37 Bert Jansch Birthday Blues 1969 *
36 The Beach Boys Pet Sounds 1966 13
35 My Morning Jacket Z 2005 *
34 Songs: Ohia Magnolia Electric Co. 2003 33
33 Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes 2008 37
32 Fleetwood Mac Bare Trees 1972 32
31 Eagles Hotel California 1976 42
GvZ
Artist Album Year 2017
40 The Flaming Lips The Soft Bulletin 1999 *
39 Bob Dylan Bringing it All Back Home  1965 41
38 Van Morrison Astral Weeks 1968 29
37 The Smiths The Queen Is Dead 1986 33
36 The Mountain Goats The Sunset Tree 2005 47
35 Paul Simon Graceland 1986 44
34 My Morning Jacket It Still Moves 2003 *
33 Bob Marley & The Wailers Exodus 1977 36
32 The Smiths Strangeways Here We Come 1987 39
31 The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed 1969 22
RKH
Artist Album Year 2016
40 Modest Mouse The Moon & Antarctica 2000 *
39 Grateful Dead Workingman’s Dead 1970 29
38 Bruce Springsteen Nebraska 1982 23
37 The Beatles Abbey Road 1969 37
36 Paul McCartney & Wings Band on the Run 1973 19
35 Jefferson Airplane Surrealistic Pillow 1967 9
34 Fleetwood Mac Bare Trees 1972 33
33 The Flying Burrito Brothers The Gilded Palace of Sin 1969 *
32 Elvis Costello This Year’s Model 1978 49
31 Weezer Blue Album 1994 31

50 Albums you must hear before you buy a house 4.0 (3)

And the heat goes on, if you only wouldn’t clap so hard:

GvZ:

40. (44) The Mountain Goats – The Sunset Tree (2005)
39.
(*) Buffalo Springfield – Buffalo Springfield Again (1967)
38. (21) The Band – The Band (1969)
37. (29) Pink Floyd – Atom Heart Mother (1970)

36. (26) The Byrds – The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968)
“My brothers for a horse!”

RKH:

40. (42) Lambchop – How I Quit Smoking (1996)
39.
(*) XTC – Skylarking (1986)
38. (23) Love – Forever Changes (1967)
37. (24) David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust… (1972)

36. (35) Pixies – Doolittle (1989)
“Musical colon cleansing.”

Shuffle of the week #47

1. Fatboy Slim – Soul Surfing (You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby, 1998) [singlepic id=371 w=80 h=50 float=left]

One of the less known tracks from the Hotel California of the nineties, freely dropping four singles in the top of the charts and personally bringing the big beat genre to the attention of the great audience thanks to all the hooks and well-chosen samples. Fair enough, but I’ll pick my druggy Hotel.

2. Ray Price – There’s No Fool Like A Young Fool (Night Life, 1963) [singlepic id=373 w=80 h=50 float=left]

I couldn’t have imagined a greater contrast to start this shuffle with, as we move over to mister Ray Price, born and died in Texas at the blessed age of 87. Price moved to Nashville during the early fifties, where he became the great ambassador of honky tonk. Just when Bakersfield was about to launch country music to prominence during the early sixties, Price released his best album about the real Night Life: not the preceding joyful expectations, not the ecstatic moments of drunkenness, but the disappointing conclusions right before closing time.

3. Pink Floyd – Pigs on the Wing 1 (Animals, 1977) [singlepic id=372 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Lighthearted, acoustic bookend about Waters’ girlfriend at that time, on Pink Floyd’s tenth album, that was itself bookended by Wish You Were Here and The Wall. On WYWH, Waters was primary aiming at the music industry of which Floyd had inevitably become part of. On Animals, he broadens his critical sight to late seventies Britain as a whole, drawing capitalist parallels with Orwell’s Animal Farm and presenting a decent successor to Selling England… from prog pals Genesis. Its promotion tour In the Flesh, with massive arena gigs culminating in Waters spitting at a fan, directly led to Water’s next project: The Wall.

4. The Beatles – When I’m Sixty Four (Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, 1967) [singlepic id=267 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Small step to another guy who loves the bass, himself and the idea of a good concept album. And of course, McCartney (who wrote the song when he was 16, to record it only eight years later when his father turned 64) wouldn’t be McCartney if he didn’t add a clarinet trio to this composition.

5. The Mountain Goats – Song for Dennis Brown (The Sunset Tree, 2005) [singlepic id=375 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Indi folk band from California, that originally consisted mainly of singer John Darnielle. He led a lo-fi life with an overwhelming need to write songs throughout the nineties, before recording well-thought through albums in the new century. After discussing his meth years on the third one, this album treats his not so enviable childhood. This album breathes revenge.

6. Echo & The Bunnymen – Rescue (Crocodiles, 1980) [singlepic id=35 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Jim Morrison meets The Smiths, literally, on this lead single from The Bunnymen’s (Liverpool) debut album. Nothing to laugh about here, that way setting the tone for a series of four strong albums. And those covers, those beautiful covers…

7. Blind Faith – Presence of the Lord (Blind Faith, 1969) [singlepic id=369 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Probably the strongest track on this muscular album, with Clapton on guitar and vocals from Steve Winwood. Talking about album covers, this must be one of the weirdest in rock history. The portrayed 11-years old girl asked for a horse as compensation for the use of her image, but had to settle with 40 pounds…

8. The Move – The Last Thing on My Mind (Shazam, 1970) [singlepic id=205 w=80 h=50 float=left]

Clapton and Winwood fantastically fade into one of my absolute favorite cover songs of all time. It was originally written by Tom Paxton and covered numerous times afterwards. But this version absolutely tops them all: top class vocals complemented by delicious guitar solos towards the end.

9. Sonic Youth – Rain King (Daydream Nation, 1988) [singlepic id=374 w=80 h=50 float=left]

A jump in time, but the guitars are still there on this electric powertrip. They took their time, but with this album, Sonic Youth brought the guitar back home. Not in any specific nation, but at the forefront of the music scene.

10. Broken Social Scene – Shampoo Suicide (You Forgot It in People, 2002) [singlepic id=370 w=80 h=50 float=left]

A pleasant surprise after my recent addiction to Apostle of Hustle’s Folkloric Feel, although this track rather sounds like Tortoise or something like that. Didn’t like BSS’s debut album, but this one is a young and modest classic.

50 Albums you must hear before you buy a house 3.0

With the end of another year in sight, it’s time to set in an annual tradition by asking albumblog’s music professors the vitally important question: “Which are the best rock albums of all time?”. It’s the third edition since 2012, when GenesisSelling England by the Pound was jointly picked by R.K. Hofmeijer and G. van Zwanendonk as the ultimate best album of all time. Last year they were joined by senior student musicology D. Oude-Kamphuis, resulting in top positions for Kid A, The Velvet Underground & Nico and Band on the Run respectively.

However, DOK didn’t put enough time in his postdoc last year, clearing the way for this year’s senior student Guus Fog to join the action. This is the first part of their contemplation’s result, with #50-41 (GvZ’s & RKH’s last year’s ranking between brackets):

GvZ:

50. (*) Donald Fagen – The Nightfly (1982)
Turning craftsmanship into mastership.”

49. (47) Simon & Garfunkel – Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme (1966)
The Breakfast Album.”

48. (*) Joy Division – Unknown Pleasures (1979)
Essential postcard of the hanging.”

47. (46) Jefferson Airplane – After Bathing at Baxter’s (1967)
“If you try, you can almost smell 1967.”

46. (*) Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues (2011)
Deep in the woods, the dwarfs are gathering around a little folk bar where pixies play the blues.

45. (39) The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground (1969)
Rarely did a band make such an abrupt sound switch without losing a single bit of its quality.

44. (*) The Mountain Goats – The Sunset Tree (2005)
There’s gonna be a party when the wolf comes home!

43. (27) The Rolling Stones – Sticky Fingers (1971)
“Second part of one of rock’s most impressive trilogies.”

42. (38) Creedence Clearwater Revival – Green River (1969)
Take me back down where cool water flows.

41. (28) Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Although born in ’85, most of my time on university was spent on air guitaring on ‘Time’.

RKH:

50. (47) Radiohead – The King of Limbs (2011)
Let’s try to redefine modern rock music once more. To be continued.

49. (43) Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)
I am Yankee. I shall play you the song of my people.

48. (39) J.J. Cale – Naturally (1972)
Pass me the peace pipe and let me pet the buffalo.

47. (33) Lee Hazlewood – Cowboy in Sweden (1970)
Diary of a psychedelic cowboy.

46. (36) Neutral Milk Hotel – In the Aeroplane Over the Sea (1998)
I meant what I sang there. I truly truly did.

45. (26) Panda Bear – Person Pitch (2007)
Brain Wilson’s illegitimate child. Loves sand boxes.

44. (42) Afghan Whigs – Gentlemen (1993)
Greg Dulli thinks you’re a wimp and he’s probably right.

43. (29) Cream – Disraeli Gears (1967)
Pass me the joint and let me pet the dragon.

42. (50) Lambchop – How I Quit Smoking (1996)
I smoke sixteenthousand packs of sigarettes a day. These are my musings.

41. (*) The Byrds – The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968)
Loose the walrus, perfect the vocal harmonies. That tune is mellow, man

GF:

50. Richard and Linda Thompson – Shoot Out the Lights (1982)
Dit album hoort hoger. Nummer 25 ofzo.

49. Phosphorescent – To Willie (2009)
Vuurvliegen tijdens een zomernacht op the countryside te Lille.

48. Shearwater – Palo Santo (2006)
Pure natuur, gemaakt door een birdwatcher op een onbewoond eiland.

47. Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend (2008)
Fieest!

46. Tom Waits – Rain Dogs (1985)
Herfst, winter, whisky en sigaren!

45. Mogwai – Mogwai Young Team (1997)
Voor iedereen die tijdens de stiltes van ‘Like Herod’ zijn volumeknop nog verder opendraait.

44. Electric Light Orchestra – Out of the Blue (1977)
Barokke plaat, bedacht in de pure Zwitserse Alpen.

43. Creedence Clearwater Revival – Green River (1969)
De enige muziek waarin ik en mijn vader elkaar vinden.

42. Neil Young – On the Beach (1974)
Mijn favoriete plaat, tot ik gelukkiger werd.

41. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus (2004)
Wie zich herkent in de vrouw van ‘Nature Boy’ mag mij mailen.