Thursday, February 22, 2024

2/21/24

The Beach Boys- Friends (Stereo)
(Picked up a small collection with a number of Beach Boys originals in excellent shape. Might as well play a few.)

The Beach Boys- Pet Sounds (Original MONO)
(See above.)

Iggy & The Stooges- Raw Power
(There is nothing like it.)

U2- Songs Of Surrender (Record Two)
(Enjoyed this more than Record One. Fewer misses. Nice to hear the harmonies on the stripped down "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses." Good stuff, Record Two.)

Jon Cleary & The Absolute Monster Gentlemen- S/T
(Top 5 New Orleans record. Just listened to it a few days ago, but went in again because I sent a copy to a friend, who loved it, so I wanted to remind myself of what he was listening to. Make sense?)

Thin Lizzy- Jailbreak (Kevin Gray Remaster)
(Probably not cool to think the band's most popular record is their best, but I think it is. And the VMP/Kevin Gray master is the way to go. "Running Back," by the way, is a perfect example of Lynott's genius wordplay, emotion and unique ability to break hearts with melody. Hall of Fame!)

Yes- S/T
(My favorite Yes album and I love a lot of Yes albums. This one is for those who don't like Yes, prog and long songs. Unless, you've heard this and don't like it either, then, I can't help you.)

Peter Frampton- I'm In You
(The RnRHoF, the podcast...can't escape Frampton. I really dig this record and had to play it. Skip the title track if you need to, and turn the album cover away if it helps. This is a solid record. "Tried To Love," a failed single featuring Mick Jagger, is my fave PF song. No question. And for you nerds, the single mix turns Mick's vocals way up!)

David Bowie- Scary Monsters
(Not a fave like it is for others, but needed to check if Frampton was a guest. He is not. Enjoyed the record. Still, not a fave.)



 


6 comments:

Anonymous said...

While I haven't played it many times and not for a while, Songs of Surrender is better than expected. As I recall, disc 1 is the least interesting, the 2nd is better, the 3rd is better still, and the 4th disc is the best.

Scary Monsters has a lot that I really like, and a couple of tracks that I really don't.

Yesterday I wanted to hear some Mark Isham and David Torn, so I spun up Torn's Cloud About Mercury (with the killer rhythm section of Tony Levin and Bill Bruford) followed by Isham's Castalia. Enjoyed both as much as I did when I first heard them many moons ago. Try them out if you want something different.

- Paul in DK

Sal Nunziato said...

Paul,
I recently pulled out the Upper Extremities record which I loved at the time. Even saw them perform at The Bottom Line which was better than the recording. I don't remember Cloud About Mercury. Thanks for the tip. Isham instead of Botti is exciting!

Michael Giltz said...

I've really come to enjoy the hippie lo-fi vibe of Friends. And yes, Scary Monsters is a favorite. Speaking of the word yes, about Yes. Your favorite Yes album is the 1969 debut Yes, not -- I assume -- The Yes Album from 1971? So similar in title, I wanted to be sure but I'm confident you would have made the distinction. And why would anyone turn the cover of Peter Frampton's I'm In You away? It's the best part of the album!

Anonymous said...

Sal, I like but don't love Upper Extremities. There is live 2CD set, Blue Nights, which is better than the studio album, but both seem to hold back a bit. Perhaps I should give them a few more spins. Blue Nights

- Paul in DK

Sal Nunziato said...

The thing that bothers me about "Scary Monsters" is this, which is what I wrote when I ranked all of his albums:

"This album is what I imagine Bowie haters think all Bowie records sound like. You can hear him posing on every track. His affected vocals even give me the twitch. But there is enough on it to like, even though it has always been one of my least played Bowie albums. That it ended up as Rough Trade's #1, is another reason to not pay attention to that list, says the non-expert. They say, "...his voice, a jagged weapon tearing restlessly into classic after classic and it sounds great." No, it doesn't. Not on all of it. It's actually his voice that ruins half of it."

His oversinging sabotages about half of it.

And yes, "Yes" is not "The Yes Album." Photo on BW today.

Michael Giltz said...

I saw the Yes album cover for Yes (1969) when returning to the home page, excitedly looking to see if my comments were posted and what people said) but it only meant something after I looked the albums up since I had no idea what their covers looked like!I felt dumb but only in retrospect and I forgave myself quickly.

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