Funny how this band was supposed to be the next big supergroup and redefine the country rock that the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers did on their albums (Sweetheart Of The Rodeo and Glided Palace Of Sin) but I could never get into their Picking Up The Pieces album at all although it still sits on my shelf gathering dust.
But over their history and with Rusty Young being the foundation that other vocalists and players came through Poco's albums have been spotty and scattered all over the place. It may have been a downer to know that The Eagles became the country rock darlings, after Poco begin their career that radio continues to play The Eagles all the time, whereas Poco is hardly heard of, unless it's Crazy Love or Heart Of The Night from Legend.
For my money The Very Best Of Poco (the original 2 record set) just about captured it all, the great, the good and the bland but I never forgave Sony Music for omitting Railroad Days off the CD when I had to go find it on the bland From The Inside album. It's also interesting to know that their best album was the live Deliverin' with A Man Like Me and the record actually does a good job capturing Poco on a great night too. Ditto that for the Epic contractual Poco Live as well, although later Sony Music took the best of moments for their Setlist Series. The Epic years I think the S/T album probably was their best studio album, From The Inside their biggest disappointment and Cantamos their most underrated. Losing Jim Messina may have hurt them but in the long run (to quote The Eagles) Paul Cotton was a valuable member who added a bit more rocking country to the spark that sometimes bogged Richie Furay down at times although Crazy Eyes may have been the best album featuring Furay before he moved on to the illfated Sother/Hillman/Furay band. (Falling In Love would have sounded pretty good on a Poco album too)
Most of the Poco stuff with Furay remains in print but once he left, the major labels either shuffled the other albums on various labels (One Way, Wounded Bird) or just deleted them altogether. Seven lacks direction after Furay left but Cantomos was much better, their most underrated album I think. After Cantamos, Poco moved over to ABC for Head Over Heels or Cantamos part 2 but with an eye for the radio with the hit single Keep On Tryin' one of most beautiful songs they ever came up with. The record sold better than the previous, but nevertheless could be found in cutout bins in the 70s. The CD is a little bit harder to find but worth it if you come across it. Tim Schmit left for the Eagles (who replaced Randy Meisner who was part of the original Poco lineup) and for the rest of the ABC/MCA years the songwriting would be between Paul Cotton and Rusty Young. At times they would get some FM cuts that get played (Rose Of Cimarron-why wasn't this a bigger hit?) but then they made their biggest selling album to date with Legend, which was more MOR rock than what Poco was better known for and scored a number 2 hit with Crazy Love and another top ten with Cotton's Heart Of The Night.
The MCA era again had some singles worth noting (Under The Gun) but most of the albums that I heard were kinda boring, Blue & Gray a concept album that is many a fans favorite if they heard it. Cowboys & Englishmen was a strange covers album but that didn't sell and Poco went to Atlantic for two albums, Ghost Town which I thought was their best since Head Over Heals and Inamorata a album to which Richard Landis can be blamed for imploding the band since he didn't like the rhythm section very much and the album was clash of styles although some of the original members did help out on backing vocals to make it their most Eagles sounding album but it didn't sell despite a radio ready single that could have done wonders had their label promoted it better (This Old Flame). And then it was over.
For what's it worth Legacy doesn't try to recapture the early years when the guys who made Pickin Up The Pieces came back to this reunion album but it is a good contemporary album of the times which gave them a top 30 song with Call It Love and to a lesser extent Nothin' To Hide. Paul Cotton would return later on for the more Nashville sounding Running Horse.
With all the choices out there for the Ultimate Collection or Best ofs, The Ultimate Collection (Hip O) tries to do its best to give the best overview but it only gives four props to the Epic years but does add some Atlantic and RCA sides. The Essential Poco pretty much deals with the Epic/RCA era with only Crazy Love and Heart Of The Night from ABC/MCA. Before I could find Head Over Heels, I ended up getting the 20th Century Masters version since that album had most of the ABC/MCA stuff I listened to. I don't think they ever topped The Very Best Of Poco when it came out as a 2 record set but since they never did correct it the right way, the reader is on his own when it comes to deciding what to get for the Sony Years Poco.
I don't believe Poco was a minor league band, they had great songs and good albums but they always seem to have a label indifference and the only time it ever worked for them was Legend when Crazy Love made it up the charts. Bad luck or bad timing or bad producers, Poco has continued to stand with the best of what The Eagles or any other harmony driven country rock band could do. The Sony Music albums with Richie Furay remain out there to be heard, the rest you can keep an open eye out for the Atlantic/Rhino or One Way/Wounded Bird reissues that didn't stay in print very long. Or the get the vinyl.
The best overview:
Ultimate Collection (Hip-O)
The Very Best Of Poco (Epic vinyl)
20th Century Masters (MCA)
Studio albums of note:
Poco (Epic 1970)
Crazy Eyes (Epic 1974)
Cantamos (Epic 1974)
Head Over Heels (ABC 1975)
Ghost Town (Atlantic 1982)
Live albums:
Deliverin' (Epic 1971)
Poco Live (Epic 1976)
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Ram Jam
A big hit wonder band with Black Betty but the metal heads out there say that their second album Portrait Of An Artist As A Young Ram is a headbanger's classic. Martin Popoff gave it a perfect 10 on his metal meter.
The single actually goes back to Bartlett's early band Starstruck who released it under their TrackStar label (B side I Should Have Known) but Epic put it out under the Ram Jam name and Bartlett recruited newer members to make their uneven first album. It didn't help with production from Kastner/Katz who were associated with the Bubblegum pop of Buddah Records of the late 60s. Ram Jam the album had some nice numbers (Right On The Money, 404 and even a cover of Tuff Darts All For The Love Of Rock And Roll) but the song selection was spotty and most of the album was forgettible as well as the failed followup single Keep Your Hands On The Wheel.
The album sold enough for Epic to give the go ahead on the followup and with a new guitarist at hand (Jimmy Santoro) Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Ram came out to very little fanfair and a much heavier sound and stinging leads from Santoro to give people a headache. Poorly recorded (lotta treble, not so much bass) Pretty Poison was another failed single. The album has its moments such as a moody Turnpike, a pop stab with Saturday Night a song that most didn't like but I thought it was the best song of the album and the punk sounding Gone Wild but Santoro's leads overwhelm the whole thing. Despite kudos from a Geoff Barton and Popoff, most reviews were negative and Epic pulled the plug on the band and they fell apart.
Howie Blauvelt died in 1993 from a heart attack at age 44, Peter Charles in 2003.
Both albums can be found on CD, Collectibles released the first album under Golden Classics, whereas the import Rock Candy reissued Portrait in 2006, remastered by Jon Astley but still remains a ear piercing headache although it has its moments.
Albums
Ram Jam (Epic 1977-later reissued Collectibles 1994) C+
Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Ram (Epic 1978 reissued Rock Candy 2006) C+
Very Best Of Ram Jam (CBS import of both albums on one disc) NR
The single actually goes back to Bartlett's early band Starstruck who released it under their TrackStar label (B side I Should Have Known) but Epic put it out under the Ram Jam name and Bartlett recruited newer members to make their uneven first album. It didn't help with production from Kastner/Katz who were associated with the Bubblegum pop of Buddah Records of the late 60s. Ram Jam the album had some nice numbers (Right On The Money, 404 and even a cover of Tuff Darts All For The Love Of Rock And Roll) but the song selection was spotty and most of the album was forgettible as well as the failed followup single Keep Your Hands On The Wheel.
The album sold enough for Epic to give the go ahead on the followup and with a new guitarist at hand (Jimmy Santoro) Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Ram came out to very little fanfair and a much heavier sound and stinging leads from Santoro to give people a headache. Poorly recorded (lotta treble, not so much bass) Pretty Poison was another failed single. The album has its moments such as a moody Turnpike, a pop stab with Saturday Night a song that most didn't like but I thought it was the best song of the album and the punk sounding Gone Wild but Santoro's leads overwhelm the whole thing. Despite kudos from a Geoff Barton and Popoff, most reviews were negative and Epic pulled the plug on the band and they fell apart.
Howie Blauvelt died in 1993 from a heart attack at age 44, Peter Charles in 2003.
Both albums can be found on CD, Collectibles released the first album under Golden Classics, whereas the import Rock Candy reissued Portrait in 2006, remastered by Jon Astley but still remains a ear piercing headache although it has its moments.
Albums
Ram Jam (Epic 1977-later reissued Collectibles 1994) C+
Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Ram (Epic 1978 reissued Rock Candy 2006) C+
Very Best Of Ram Jam (CBS import of both albums on one disc) NR
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Linn County (or a brief history of Iowa rock)
Iowa rock and roll is not exactly a big deal in the music world. Sure Iowa has have their share of bands that made it on the regional side of things. Some bands toil in obscurity for their whole lives (Townedgers come to mind) while some managed to make a hit and then fade off. And then there were some that became legends in their own time, The Everly Brothers started at a Shenandoah station, Andy Williams was born in Wall Lake and of course went on to a steller recording career. The most popular band that still makes its home in Des Moines is Slipknot, Corey Taylor has done marvelous things in that band and Stone Sour.
There are legends that still hang around in the area for radio and blues music, Bob Dorr and The Blue Band, an Iowa staple since 1981 and of course Billy Lee Janey and son Bryce continue to rock the blues away. The late Tommy Bolin made his name in Zephyr, then The James Gang and later Deep Purple, was born up in Sioux City Iowa, his brother formed DVC which made one album for the Japanese based Alfa in 1980. At that time The Hawks (no relation to Levon and The Hawks or Ronnie Hawkins) scored a CBS deal and made a power pop first album that like The Brains, can't seem to find its way on CD. Columbia botched them up by sticking their best song Need Your Love a B side to Right Away which bombed. Their S/T titled album sold enough to warrant another CBS album 30 Seconds Over Otho. But they did managed to get Clarence Clemons to wail away on saxophone on another failed single. Only CD that ever came out was for their aborted third album Perfect World Radio that Not Lame issued in 2003.
The Iowa Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is a lot more lenient when it comes to inducting musicians into their museum unlike the joke that is the Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame of Jann Wanner and his money friends. Many local bands here that are in it are probably too obscure for Wanner to know if they exist. The Pete Klint Quintet is one example: they made a few singles that a couple that got picked up for distribution by Mercury and Atlantic/Dunwich, Gonn's Blackout Of Gretely (Emir) may have been the best garage rocker of them all, even to the point that it wasn't included on the original Nuggets album on Elektra. Lenny Kaye saying that the song was too long but then again, he included The Amboy Dukes Baby Please Don't Go in all of it's five minute and thirty six second glory. (Blackout was only 4:33).
Perhaps the best known band prior to Slipknot had to be The Linn County Blues Band led by Stephen Miller. In the late 60s TLCBB was into the hippy dippy blues freakouts that was the rage at the time. They were propping up a album at Chess Studios for Dunwich Records when they were snapped up by Mercury Records for fifty thousand dollars, a very high price for a local band. Their first album S/T (known as Proud Flesh Soothseer) provided one single, a cover of Think (Mercury 72852) which didn't chart. Many consider the first album to be their best. And it's the only one out there on CD.
Fever Shot, the second album is best known for the title track which got played a lot on Clyde Clifford's Beaker Street show. They covered Little Richard's Girl Can't Help It and Too Far Gone may have been picked as a single but outside of the title track, I found the album to somewhat dull but then again I may have been put off by the scratchy album that it skipped on a couple of the songs off that album. Fever Shot the track was a FM underground classic.
With the third album Till The Break Of Dawn, Linn County got switched from Mercury to the lesser priority and prestigious Phillips and from what I heard of that album it was them going back to a more straight forward blues with a country hint on another failed single, the swinging Let The Music Begin (Phillips 40644). The Phillips album is very hard to find with prices commanding 40 dollars or more. Miller left to join Elvin Bishop for three albums on Fillmore and Epic and then moving over to Grinderswitch later on.
Linn County was inducted into the Iowa Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2004. Stephen Miller died in 2003
Linn County Singles
Cave Song/Think Mercury 72858
Lower Lemons/Fast Days Mercury 72882
Fever Shot/Girl Can't Help It Mercury 72907
Let The Music Begin/Wine Take Me Away Phillips 40644
Stephen Miller 45
Sea Cruise/It's A Fact Of Life Phillips 40669
Reference: http://www.deaddisc.com/GDFD_Linn_County.htm
Albums:
Proud Flesh Soothseer (Mercury 1968) B+ (later reissued on Kismet UK)
Fever Shot (Mercury 1969) C
Till The Break Of Dawn (Phillips 1970) B
Live (K-Tel Download Only 2010) NR
There are legends that still hang around in the area for radio and blues music, Bob Dorr and The Blue Band, an Iowa staple since 1981 and of course Billy Lee Janey and son Bryce continue to rock the blues away. The late Tommy Bolin made his name in Zephyr, then The James Gang and later Deep Purple, was born up in Sioux City Iowa, his brother formed DVC which made one album for the Japanese based Alfa in 1980. At that time The Hawks (no relation to Levon and The Hawks or Ronnie Hawkins) scored a CBS deal and made a power pop first album that like The Brains, can't seem to find its way on CD. Columbia botched them up by sticking their best song Need Your Love a B side to Right Away which bombed. Their S/T titled album sold enough to warrant another CBS album 30 Seconds Over Otho. But they did managed to get Clarence Clemons to wail away on saxophone on another failed single. Only CD that ever came out was for their aborted third album Perfect World Radio that Not Lame issued in 2003.
The Iowa Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is a lot more lenient when it comes to inducting musicians into their museum unlike the joke that is the Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame of Jann Wanner and his money friends. Many local bands here that are in it are probably too obscure for Wanner to know if they exist. The Pete Klint Quintet is one example: they made a few singles that a couple that got picked up for distribution by Mercury and Atlantic/Dunwich, Gonn's Blackout Of Gretely (Emir) may have been the best garage rocker of them all, even to the point that it wasn't included on the original Nuggets album on Elektra. Lenny Kaye saying that the song was too long but then again, he included The Amboy Dukes Baby Please Don't Go in all of it's five minute and thirty six second glory. (Blackout was only 4:33).
Perhaps the best known band prior to Slipknot had to be The Linn County Blues Band led by Stephen Miller. In the late 60s TLCBB was into the hippy dippy blues freakouts that was the rage at the time. They were propping up a album at Chess Studios for Dunwich Records when they were snapped up by Mercury Records for fifty thousand dollars, a very high price for a local band. Their first album S/T (known as Proud Flesh Soothseer) provided one single, a cover of Think (Mercury 72852) which didn't chart. Many consider the first album to be their best. And it's the only one out there on CD.
Fever Shot, the second album is best known for the title track which got played a lot on Clyde Clifford's Beaker Street show. They covered Little Richard's Girl Can't Help It and Too Far Gone may have been picked as a single but outside of the title track, I found the album to somewhat dull but then again I may have been put off by the scratchy album that it skipped on a couple of the songs off that album. Fever Shot the track was a FM underground classic.
With the third album Till The Break Of Dawn, Linn County got switched from Mercury to the lesser priority and prestigious Phillips and from what I heard of that album it was them going back to a more straight forward blues with a country hint on another failed single, the swinging Let The Music Begin (Phillips 40644). The Phillips album is very hard to find with prices commanding 40 dollars or more. Miller left to join Elvin Bishop for three albums on Fillmore and Epic and then moving over to Grinderswitch later on.
Linn County was inducted into the Iowa Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2004. Stephen Miller died in 2003
Linn County Singles
Cave Song/Think Mercury 72858
Lower Lemons/Fast Days Mercury 72882
Fever Shot/Girl Can't Help It Mercury 72907
Let The Music Begin/Wine Take Me Away Phillips 40644
Stephen Miller 45
Sea Cruise/It's A Fact Of Life Phillips 40669
Reference: http://www.deaddisc.com/GDFD_Linn_County.htm
Albums:
Proud Flesh Soothseer (Mercury 1968) B+ (later reissued on Kismet UK)
Fever Shot (Mercury 1969) C
Till The Break Of Dawn (Phillips 1970) B
Live (K-Tel Download Only 2010) NR
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Teen Idols Of The 60s
Since I have been flooding the pages over at my other site, I decided to move this one over here at the Consortium site.
Growing up, my parents were into music, I think my mom more than dad due to a rough life and playing 45s seemed to be a way of out things. Certainly Elvis figured into there although the majority of records came from the teen idols of that time. Ricky Nelson for one, Paul Anka the other, night and day, the angel and the antichrist so to speak. Growing up as a kid whose never strayed far from the Woolworth's record section back in 63 (or never left) buying 45s came from word association or labels. Mostly ABC Paramount to which that logo seemed to hypnotize me into buying just about everything that came out of the label (and explains why the Ginny Come Lately 45 came home with me a few weeks ago, never underestimate the power of the ABC Paramount Logo. Don't believe me let it hypnotize you then.
Which is probably the reason why Paul Anka figured into this. I'm sure the logo got Mom or her sister to buy about 5 copies of his hits. I've seen his 15 big hits that ABC put out years ago and while Anka isn't rock and roll, he was more lounge, I did like Something Has Changed Me (B side to It's Time To Cry) and the urgency of Lonely Boy which I consider his high point. I'm guessing my mom also bought his 1963 RCA revisit of the hits 21 Golden Hits to which Anka runs through his hits in Ramones like fashion, most are around 2 minutes and Lonely Boy sounds more assured than the ABC version and The Longest Day was a nice ending, but the rest of the album hasn't held up over time. Since I have the CD perhaps I'll return it to my mom, I think she'll enjoy it more than me. Or maybe not.
Anka recorded for a while for RCA and wrote My Way to which became a big staple for Frank Sinatra but he also wrote It Doesn't Matter Anymore for Buddy Holly to which 21 Golden Hits actually is more rocking than Buddy's if you can believe that. For me, his 1973 Buddah single Jubilation to which I'm guessing was a gospel song managed to pop in the KCRG super 30 for a couple weeks and the first three and half minutes or part one really cooked till Anka entended it to a overbearing 6 and half minutes of strings and a bizarre wah wah throughout the song. I found the LP for 2 bucks and bought it and although his cover of Let Me Be The One is tolerable the rest of the album sucked. And then the next year Anka may have penned the all time worst song ever in You're Having My Baby for United Artists and he lost all credibility after that. He had a couple of top 20 hits after that (I Don't Like To Sleep Alone, Times Of Your Life come to mind) but the only thing I remember was his Rock Swings CD a few years ago to which he takes Smells Like Teen Spirit and turns it into a big Vegas showstopper number. Rhino Records collected the best and worst of Anka into 30th Anniversary Collection which has the ABC singles rather than the RCA remakes, plus Jubilation and of course, You're Having My Baby. The cream of the crop and the chaff.
One of the more interesting albums that in my folks collection was Johnny Tillotson It Keeps Right On A Hurtin for Cadence. (Available on ACE as an import) to which Johnny sang country songs and had some of the finest Nashville session players backing him up (Floyd Cramer comes to mind). This is where I discover songs like Fool number 1, Lonely Street, Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On and even Willie Nelson's Hello Walls. In my opinion, one of the best teen idols doing Nashville albums ever made. Tillotson had a big hit with Poetry In Motion but later bargain hunts found Without You, his 1961 top 40 single that is before It Keeps Right On A Hurtin and A Worried Man for MGM in 1964. Varese issued 25 All Time Greatest Hits which combines the Cadence/MGM years.
Bobby Rydell, another dude that isn't exactly rock and roll. I think Mom had this album of Bobby's Biggest Hits and I'm surprised Dad never broke that album like he did with the Johnny Mathis albums. But for pure camp, Kissing Time was later covered by KISS if you can believe that. The B Side You'll Never Tame Me was wicked cool genius but the folks at ABKCO didn't think it was worthy of a spot on the best of that they put out. Wild One gets some airplay on the radio and it does bring a smile to my face when I hear it but I'm sure Bobby's version of Volare is remembered as the scene that Robert Wahl's character on Hollywood Knights is that he farts when he hears it. I'll never heard any of the Capitol singles.
For the other idols of note, Frankie Avalon was too cheesy most of the time and Fabian was even more cheese but one of my earliest singles that I ever got from word association was De De Dinah or Ginger Bread but the rest was too corny for me to partake even at 5 years old (Boy Without A Girl, Bobby Sox To Blue Jeans) Fabian, the Asphalt Elvis from Philadelphia as one mag called him had Hound Dog Man to which if you sped it up to 78 RPM it sounded like Hot Dog Man and probably the inspiration for Hot Dog Hell by Old Skull. I did buy Got The Feeling for 10 cents at some place years ago and didn't care much for it but in the end the best song he ever did was Tiger, a fun song and the only time I ever want to hear Fabian. Collectibles put out a best of years ago that pretty much captures all his highlights if you can find it. Varese Sandabande rumoured to put out a 10 song best of but I have yet to see it. This Is Fabian! (Ace UK) has all the hits and b sides for the curious.
Which leaves us the best for the last. The Everly Brothers. Four singles and the 15 Biggest Hits that came out Cadence remains the best of the teen idols that I grew up listening to. Four more singles came from Ricky Nelson to which It's Late was one of the first 45's that I ever bought. Rhino has kept the Everly's All Time Greatest Hits in print and EMI has always had a best of Ricky Nelson as well, but I tend to favor the Ace Rockin' With Ricky which with James Burton in tow, Nelson made some real rocking records and prove the be the best of teen idols right up to Elvis. But for perfect harmonies, none were better than the heavenly sound of the Everlys. Nuff said.
Records Of Note: (45's only)
Johnny Tollitson-It Keeps Right On A Hurtin, Without You, Talk Back Trembling Lips
Frankie Avalon-Ginger Bread, De De Dinah, Just Ask Your Heart, Boy Without A Girl
Tommy Roe-Carol, Everybody
Fabian-Hound Dog Man, Got The Feeling, Tiger
Ricky Nelson-Poor Little Fool, It's Late, Believe What You Said, Hello Mary Lou
Everly Brothers: Wake Up Little Susie, Problems, Since You Broke My Heart, Poor Jenny
Bobby Rydell: Kissin' Time/You'll Never Tame Me, Wild One
Chubby Checker: Popeye The Hitchhiker, The Twist
Paul Anka-Dinah, Lonely Boy, It's Time To Cry/Something Has Changed Me, Don't Gamble With Love
Elvis Presley: A Big Hunk O Love, Teddy Bear, Anytime You Want Me/Love Me Tender
Growing up, my parents were into music, I think my mom more than dad due to a rough life and playing 45s seemed to be a way of out things. Certainly Elvis figured into there although the majority of records came from the teen idols of that time. Ricky Nelson for one, Paul Anka the other, night and day, the angel and the antichrist so to speak. Growing up as a kid whose never strayed far from the Woolworth's record section back in 63 (or never left) buying 45s came from word association or labels. Mostly ABC Paramount to which that logo seemed to hypnotize me into buying just about everything that came out of the label (and explains why the Ginny Come Lately 45 came home with me a few weeks ago, never underestimate the power of the ABC Paramount Logo. Don't believe me let it hypnotize you then.
Which is probably the reason why Paul Anka figured into this. I'm sure the logo got Mom or her sister to buy about 5 copies of his hits. I've seen his 15 big hits that ABC put out years ago and while Anka isn't rock and roll, he was more lounge, I did like Something Has Changed Me (B side to It's Time To Cry) and the urgency of Lonely Boy which I consider his high point. I'm guessing my mom also bought his 1963 RCA revisit of the hits 21 Golden Hits to which Anka runs through his hits in Ramones like fashion, most are around 2 minutes and Lonely Boy sounds more assured than the ABC version and The Longest Day was a nice ending, but the rest of the album hasn't held up over time. Since I have the CD perhaps I'll return it to my mom, I think she'll enjoy it more than me. Or maybe not.
Anka recorded for a while for RCA and wrote My Way to which became a big staple for Frank Sinatra but he also wrote It Doesn't Matter Anymore for Buddy Holly to which 21 Golden Hits actually is more rocking than Buddy's if you can believe that. For me, his 1973 Buddah single Jubilation to which I'm guessing was a gospel song managed to pop in the KCRG super 30 for a couple weeks and the first three and half minutes or part one really cooked till Anka entended it to a overbearing 6 and half minutes of strings and a bizarre wah wah throughout the song. I found the LP for 2 bucks and bought it and although his cover of Let Me Be The One is tolerable the rest of the album sucked. And then the next year Anka may have penned the all time worst song ever in You're Having My Baby for United Artists and he lost all credibility after that. He had a couple of top 20 hits after that (I Don't Like To Sleep Alone, Times Of Your Life come to mind) but the only thing I remember was his Rock Swings CD a few years ago to which he takes Smells Like Teen Spirit and turns it into a big Vegas showstopper number. Rhino Records collected the best and worst of Anka into 30th Anniversary Collection which has the ABC singles rather than the RCA remakes, plus Jubilation and of course, You're Having My Baby. The cream of the crop and the chaff.
One of the more interesting albums that in my folks collection was Johnny Tillotson It Keeps Right On A Hurtin for Cadence. (Available on ACE as an import) to which Johnny sang country songs and had some of the finest Nashville session players backing him up (Floyd Cramer comes to mind). This is where I discover songs like Fool number 1, Lonely Street, Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On and even Willie Nelson's Hello Walls. In my opinion, one of the best teen idols doing Nashville albums ever made. Tillotson had a big hit with Poetry In Motion but later bargain hunts found Without You, his 1961 top 40 single that is before It Keeps Right On A Hurtin and A Worried Man for MGM in 1964. Varese issued 25 All Time Greatest Hits which combines the Cadence/MGM years.
Bobby Rydell, another dude that isn't exactly rock and roll. I think Mom had this album of Bobby's Biggest Hits and I'm surprised Dad never broke that album like he did with the Johnny Mathis albums. But for pure camp, Kissing Time was later covered by KISS if you can believe that. The B Side You'll Never Tame Me was wicked cool genius but the folks at ABKCO didn't think it was worthy of a spot on the best of that they put out. Wild One gets some airplay on the radio and it does bring a smile to my face when I hear it but I'm sure Bobby's version of Volare is remembered as the scene that Robert Wahl's character on Hollywood Knights is that he farts when he hears it. I'll never heard any of the Capitol singles.
For the other idols of note, Frankie Avalon was too cheesy most of the time and Fabian was even more cheese but one of my earliest singles that I ever got from word association was De De Dinah or Ginger Bread but the rest was too corny for me to partake even at 5 years old (Boy Without A Girl, Bobby Sox To Blue Jeans) Fabian, the Asphalt Elvis from Philadelphia as one mag called him had Hound Dog Man to which if you sped it up to 78 RPM it sounded like Hot Dog Man and probably the inspiration for Hot Dog Hell by Old Skull. I did buy Got The Feeling for 10 cents at some place years ago and didn't care much for it but in the end the best song he ever did was Tiger, a fun song and the only time I ever want to hear Fabian. Collectibles put out a best of years ago that pretty much captures all his highlights if you can find it. Varese Sandabande rumoured to put out a 10 song best of but I have yet to see it. This Is Fabian! (Ace UK) has all the hits and b sides for the curious.
Which leaves us the best for the last. The Everly Brothers. Four singles and the 15 Biggest Hits that came out Cadence remains the best of the teen idols that I grew up listening to. Four more singles came from Ricky Nelson to which It's Late was one of the first 45's that I ever bought. Rhino has kept the Everly's All Time Greatest Hits in print and EMI has always had a best of Ricky Nelson as well, but I tend to favor the Ace Rockin' With Ricky which with James Burton in tow, Nelson made some real rocking records and prove the be the best of teen idols right up to Elvis. But for perfect harmonies, none were better than the heavenly sound of the Everlys. Nuff said.
Records Of Note: (45's only)
Johnny Tollitson-It Keeps Right On A Hurtin, Without You, Talk Back Trembling Lips
Frankie Avalon-Ginger Bread, De De Dinah, Just Ask Your Heart, Boy Without A Girl
Tommy Roe-Carol, Everybody
Fabian-Hound Dog Man, Got The Feeling, Tiger
Ricky Nelson-Poor Little Fool, It's Late, Believe What You Said, Hello Mary Lou
Everly Brothers: Wake Up Little Susie, Problems, Since You Broke My Heart, Poor Jenny
Bobby Rydell: Kissin' Time/You'll Never Tame Me, Wild One
Chubby Checker: Popeye The Hitchhiker, The Twist
Paul Anka-Dinah, Lonely Boy, It's Time To Cry/Something Has Changed Me, Don't Gamble With Love
Elvis Presley: A Big Hunk O Love, Teddy Bear, Anytime You Want Me/Love Me Tender
Saturday, June 9, 2012
CD Reviews:Chicago Hot Streets
Chicago-Hot Streets (Friday Music) 1978
One of the most played albums during my high school years, Columbia reissued this as a cheapo cheapo Collector's Choice Series to which the horns sounded bizarre but for years I kept the cd simply of the fact I didn't have the album anymore, I had a scratchy LP bought used. Rhino reissued the CD in the late 90s and now Friday has reissued Hot Streets with a bonus track, a Donnie Dacus version of Love Was New, a more MOR and jazzier take than Robert Lamm's version.
Chicago was at a crossroads, after Terry Kath shot himself. They not only got a new guitarist but also a new producer, Phil Ramone (Billy Joel) to replace longtime James William Guercio. And with the start of Alive Again, Chicago comes charging out with a very rocking track which sets the tone for Hot Streets. The Bee Gees add their harmonies to Little Miss Lover and Ain't It Time borders on hard rock with Dacus' beginning guitar. Still a band effort, Peter Cetera did the majority of vocals, sans one by Donnie Dacus (Take A Chance) and three from Robert Lamm (Love Was New, Hot Streets and Show Me The Way). The new direction didn't set too well with the Chicago faithful, although No Tell Lover and Alive Again did get radio airplay, Gone Long Gone flopped as a single which surprised me since it was one of my favorite tracks. Show Me The Way with the strange end chorus a runner up. Still it remains a high B plus in my book, likewise the followup, the unlucky Chicago 13 to which Dacus would leave and 14 which did even worse chartwise. Friday Music will reissue those albums at another time.
The new remaster corrects the problems of the Columbia Cd and has a more fuller bottom sound. The bonus track is a curio but you can live without it.
Grade B+
One of the most played albums during my high school years, Columbia reissued this as a cheapo cheapo Collector's Choice Series to which the horns sounded bizarre but for years I kept the cd simply of the fact I didn't have the album anymore, I had a scratchy LP bought used. Rhino reissued the CD in the late 90s and now Friday has reissued Hot Streets with a bonus track, a Donnie Dacus version of Love Was New, a more MOR and jazzier take than Robert Lamm's version.
Chicago was at a crossroads, after Terry Kath shot himself. They not only got a new guitarist but also a new producer, Phil Ramone (Billy Joel) to replace longtime James William Guercio. And with the start of Alive Again, Chicago comes charging out with a very rocking track which sets the tone for Hot Streets. The Bee Gees add their harmonies to Little Miss Lover and Ain't It Time borders on hard rock with Dacus' beginning guitar. Still a band effort, Peter Cetera did the majority of vocals, sans one by Donnie Dacus (Take A Chance) and three from Robert Lamm (Love Was New, Hot Streets and Show Me The Way). The new direction didn't set too well with the Chicago faithful, although No Tell Lover and Alive Again did get radio airplay, Gone Long Gone flopped as a single which surprised me since it was one of my favorite tracks. Show Me The Way with the strange end chorus a runner up. Still it remains a high B plus in my book, likewise the followup, the unlucky Chicago 13 to which Dacus would leave and 14 which did even worse chartwise. Friday Music will reissue those albums at another time.
The new remaster corrects the problems of the Columbia Cd and has a more fuller bottom sound. The bonus track is a curio but you can live without it.
Grade B+
Saturday, June 2, 2012
The Animals
For me, rock and roll started when I first heard The Animals than The Beatles. Not because of name association but rather the first 45 I ever known was Gonna Send You Back To Walker to which as a 3 year old I played the record and then broke it thus beginning a 40 year search of getting another copy and did so. When you're 3 years old the world revolves around Cricket Records and or Peter Pan to which nursery rhyme songs were commonplace. But then again I think that came from my liberal minded mom who would go get these cheap records to amuse and keep her little brat out of trouble. And she did come up with some interesting titles although the little brat loved those ABC Paramount labels and MGM.
The Animals broke big with the next single House Of The Rising Sun a song that has been overplayed to death on classic rock radio to which they still play House on a full time basis and ignore the rest of the Animals catalog. There's more to The Animals than what radio plays.
The original lineup featured Alan Price on organ/keyboards, Chas Chandler on bass, Hilton Valentine-guitar, John Steele-drums and a vocalist that sounded black at time Eric Burdon who would go on to have one of most uneven careers in music. The original Animals were produced by Mickie Most and the singles, like Herman's Hermits came out on MGM in the US although in the UK they were under the EMI banner. The Animals were more blues driven then The Rolling Stones, Burdon having a big love for John Lee Hooker and Ray Charles and to me more dirty sounding than the evil Stones. Hits like I'm Crying and Talking About You to which they employ the call and response sound and sometimes the B sides to the singles were just as good as the hits, I'm Going To Change The World for one was a statement of purpose, just like We Gotta Get Out Of This Place or It's My Life, but somehow the statement of purpose was wearing thin on Price and he and Burdon always had a very oil and water relationship anyway to which Price left and John Rowberry came on board. John Steel left, and Barry Jenkins (Nashville Teens) took over on drums.
A change of producers, Tom Wilson in, Most out, resulted in a more heavier sound which is features on my 2nd favorite all time Animals song, Inside Looking Out, a single that I wore the grooves down to the nubs. The B Side You're On My Mind remains one of the best loved ballads that Burdon ever written but by then the original Animals were leaving to which by then Eric Burdon was the last person standing. The New Animals era made some of the most dated hippy dippy psychedelia ever recorded beginning with Winds Of Change to which Burdon became way too much into the San Francisco hippy scene (as you can tell on San Franciscan Nights or the his telling of Monterrey's pop festival in the failed hit Monterrey). By then, Burdon gave up on what made The Animals sounded great, old blues standards done rocking in favor of hippy dippyness. The last great single was Sky Pilot one of the better protest songs of the 60s. But the rest of The Twain Shall Meet was boring, as well as Every One Of Us and what people considered to be their worst over all album, the 2 album Love Is, complete with River Deep-Mountain High to which a segment pays tribute to Tina Turner with the Tina tina tina chant. By then they lost their fanbase and Burdon retired The Animals to start up a new endeavor with War which gave him a top ten hit with Spill The Wine and either he left or War fired him to form The Eric Burdon Band which made 2 albums for Capitol to which I have never heard.
The original Animals got back together to recreate old times with Before We Were Rudely Interrupted, an album of mostly blues covers and it sounds like they were having a good time. Five years later they return, signing a new recording contract with IRS and the promise of better things to come. But Ark turned out to be a big snooze, too many subpar Eric Burdon numbers and not enough Alan Price and then the bottom fell out with the awful Rip It To Shreds, a live album that showed Burdon's vocals shot. And then Price left again and the band splintered to ashes once again.
The best Animals album out there is a greatest hits collection, Retrospective (ABKCO) which contains just about everything they released as singles up to Spill The Wine but thankfully no IRS stuff to contend with. All of the MGM albums are out of print, Polydor in the 80s reissued Animalization and Greatest Hits Volume 2 to which has more selected B sides (You're On My Mind). The Polydor CD of Eric Burdon/The Animals 1966-1968 is a mess and adds way too much filler to make it a worthwhile compliation. The original Abkco best of had the UK version We Gotta Get Out Of The Place which made it even more frustrating but since the arrival of Retrospective that has been corrected. Hip O Select released Animalism as a limited edition and is best known for having Frank Zappa arranged The Other Side Of This Life and the rocking Hey Gyp.
There's plenty of imports out there, and some work and some don't. For myself it's The Singles Plus (EMI) which is as advertised. Inside Looking Out (Sequel) is the other and showcases The Animals at Decca (UK) Records for the 2 years prior to going out to San Francisco and forever alternating and alienating their sound. The Complete Animals (EMI) is not but it shows most of the Alan Price era. A uninspired Sonny Boy Williamson shows up on The Night Time Is The Right Time (Pizzazz) that has been reissued time and time again but In The Beginning (Wand) has the 7 minute Story Of Bo Diddley which has to be heard to be believed.
You can live without Ark or Rip It To Shreds but Rudely Interrupted is actually a good listen and the Repitorie Records did a fine job remastering it, sounds much better than the Jet/UA album that came out in 1977. ABKCO has put out the barebones Very Best Of The Animals (10 songs Five dollars) and has the Price era hits.
The New Animals (John Wieder/Barry Jenkins/Vic Briggs/Danny McCollugh/Eric Burdon) may have been the better band but with the material they had, their albums have dated badly after the Age Of Woodstock. But then again St. James Infirmary may have been Burdon's best blues take on that song ever. But then again that's up to the ears of the listener. The grades issued for these albums might seem harsh, especially Love Is, and new guitarist Andy Summers does help a bit as well as Zoot Money's work but it still doesn't hold up over repeated listens. The IRS reunion of the original band is a reminder that sometimes it's best to not reunite for any kinds of money. It does have a habit of tarnishing the rock solid bad boy early years. And both Ark and Rip It To Shreds both are bad, especially on the latter album, which sounds like a bad oldies band.
Since the breakup of The Animals, John Steel has retained the rights to that name over Burdon and the rest and did play on the banner of Animals 2. And gave us a very crappy K Tel best of, to three songs are original recordings (When I Was Young, House Of The Rising Sun, San Francisco Nights) and the rest piss poor new recordings that were dated even before they were recorded. Hilton Valentine sometimes plays in Burdon's band. Eric Burdon returns to ABKCO with a new album called Before Your River Runs Dry. Not a bad album but the problem is that Burdon's vocal still sounds shot. A good but not great album. McCollugh passed away in 2014.
Discography (all over the place but this is the albums that I bought)
The Singles Plus (EMI Import 1988) B+
Inside Looking Out-the 196501966 Sessions Sequel 1991) B+
The Original Animals-Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (Jet/United Artists 1977) B+
US Stuff
Animalization (Polydor 1986 reissue) B+
Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals Volume 2 (MGM 1967) A-
Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals 1966-1968 (Polydor 1992) B-
Animalism (Hip O Select 1966) B+
Winds Of Change (One Way) B-
The Twain Shall Meet (One Way) C
Every One Of Us (One Way) C+
Love Is (One Way) C-
Ark (IRS 1983) C+
Rip It To Shreds: Animals Live (IRS 1984) C-
K Tel Presents The Animals (BCI 2006) D+
Retrospective (ABKCO 2008) A
Very Best Of The Animals (ABKCO 2012) B
The Animals broke big with the next single House Of The Rising Sun a song that has been overplayed to death on classic rock radio to which they still play House on a full time basis and ignore the rest of the Animals catalog. There's more to The Animals than what radio plays.
The original lineup featured Alan Price on organ/keyboards, Chas Chandler on bass, Hilton Valentine-guitar, John Steele-drums and a vocalist that sounded black at time Eric Burdon who would go on to have one of most uneven careers in music. The original Animals were produced by Mickie Most and the singles, like Herman's Hermits came out on MGM in the US although in the UK they were under the EMI banner. The Animals were more blues driven then The Rolling Stones, Burdon having a big love for John Lee Hooker and Ray Charles and to me more dirty sounding than the evil Stones. Hits like I'm Crying and Talking About You to which they employ the call and response sound and sometimes the B sides to the singles were just as good as the hits, I'm Going To Change The World for one was a statement of purpose, just like We Gotta Get Out Of This Place or It's My Life, but somehow the statement of purpose was wearing thin on Price and he and Burdon always had a very oil and water relationship anyway to which Price left and John Rowberry came on board. John Steel left, and Barry Jenkins (Nashville Teens) took over on drums.
A change of producers, Tom Wilson in, Most out, resulted in a more heavier sound which is features on my 2nd favorite all time Animals song, Inside Looking Out, a single that I wore the grooves down to the nubs. The B Side You're On My Mind remains one of the best loved ballads that Burdon ever written but by then the original Animals were leaving to which by then Eric Burdon was the last person standing. The New Animals era made some of the most dated hippy dippy psychedelia ever recorded beginning with Winds Of Change to which Burdon became way too much into the San Francisco hippy scene (as you can tell on San Franciscan Nights or the his telling of Monterrey's pop festival in the failed hit Monterrey). By then, Burdon gave up on what made The Animals sounded great, old blues standards done rocking in favor of hippy dippyness. The last great single was Sky Pilot one of the better protest songs of the 60s. But the rest of The Twain Shall Meet was boring, as well as Every One Of Us and what people considered to be their worst over all album, the 2 album Love Is, complete with River Deep-Mountain High to which a segment pays tribute to Tina Turner with the Tina tina tina chant. By then they lost their fanbase and Burdon retired The Animals to start up a new endeavor with War which gave him a top ten hit with Spill The Wine and either he left or War fired him to form The Eric Burdon Band which made 2 albums for Capitol to which I have never heard.
The original Animals got back together to recreate old times with Before We Were Rudely Interrupted, an album of mostly blues covers and it sounds like they were having a good time. Five years later they return, signing a new recording contract with IRS and the promise of better things to come. But Ark turned out to be a big snooze, too many subpar Eric Burdon numbers and not enough Alan Price and then the bottom fell out with the awful Rip It To Shreds, a live album that showed Burdon's vocals shot. And then Price left again and the band splintered to ashes once again.
The best Animals album out there is a greatest hits collection, Retrospective (ABKCO) which contains just about everything they released as singles up to Spill The Wine but thankfully no IRS stuff to contend with. All of the MGM albums are out of print, Polydor in the 80s reissued Animalization and Greatest Hits Volume 2 to which has more selected B sides (You're On My Mind). The Polydor CD of Eric Burdon/The Animals 1966-1968 is a mess and adds way too much filler to make it a worthwhile compliation. The original Abkco best of had the UK version We Gotta Get Out Of The Place which made it even more frustrating but since the arrival of Retrospective that has been corrected. Hip O Select released Animalism as a limited edition and is best known for having Frank Zappa arranged The Other Side Of This Life and the rocking Hey Gyp.
There's plenty of imports out there, and some work and some don't. For myself it's The Singles Plus (EMI) which is as advertised. Inside Looking Out (Sequel) is the other and showcases The Animals at Decca (UK) Records for the 2 years prior to going out to San Francisco and forever alternating and alienating their sound. The Complete Animals (EMI) is not but it shows most of the Alan Price era. A uninspired Sonny Boy Williamson shows up on The Night Time Is The Right Time (Pizzazz) that has been reissued time and time again but In The Beginning (Wand) has the 7 minute Story Of Bo Diddley which has to be heard to be believed.
You can live without Ark or Rip It To Shreds but Rudely Interrupted is actually a good listen and the Repitorie Records did a fine job remastering it, sounds much better than the Jet/UA album that came out in 1977. ABKCO has put out the barebones Very Best Of The Animals (10 songs Five dollars) and has the Price era hits.
The New Animals (John Wieder/Barry Jenkins/Vic Briggs/Danny McCollugh/Eric Burdon) may have been the better band but with the material they had, their albums have dated badly after the Age Of Woodstock. But then again St. James Infirmary may have been Burdon's best blues take on that song ever. But then again that's up to the ears of the listener. The grades issued for these albums might seem harsh, especially Love Is, and new guitarist Andy Summers does help a bit as well as Zoot Money's work but it still doesn't hold up over repeated listens. The IRS reunion of the original band is a reminder that sometimes it's best to not reunite for any kinds of money. It does have a habit of tarnishing the rock solid bad boy early years. And both Ark and Rip It To Shreds both are bad, especially on the latter album, which sounds like a bad oldies band.
Since the breakup of The Animals, John Steel has retained the rights to that name over Burdon and the rest and did play on the banner of Animals 2. And gave us a very crappy K Tel best of, to three songs are original recordings (When I Was Young, House Of The Rising Sun, San Francisco Nights) and the rest piss poor new recordings that were dated even before they were recorded. Hilton Valentine sometimes plays in Burdon's band. Eric Burdon returns to ABKCO with a new album called Before Your River Runs Dry. Not a bad album but the problem is that Burdon's vocal still sounds shot. A good but not great album. McCollugh passed away in 2014.
Discography (all over the place but this is the albums that I bought)
The Singles Plus (EMI Import 1988) B+
Inside Looking Out-the 196501966 Sessions Sequel 1991) B+
The Original Animals-Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (Jet/United Artists 1977) B+
US Stuff
Animalization (Polydor 1986 reissue) B+
Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals Volume 2 (MGM 1967) A-
Best Of Eric Burdon & The Animals 1966-1968 (Polydor 1992) B-
Animalism (Hip O Select 1966) B+
Winds Of Change (One Way) B-
The Twain Shall Meet (One Way) C
Every One Of Us (One Way) C+
Love Is (One Way) C-
Ark (IRS 1983) C+
Rip It To Shreds: Animals Live (IRS 1984) C-
K Tel Presents The Animals (BCI 2006) D+
Retrospective (ABKCO 2008) A
Very Best Of The Animals (ABKCO 2012) B
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Billy Joel
Growing up in high school in the late 70's you couldn't escape it without hearing a Billy Joel song or two or three at any given hour. In some ways, he replaced Elton John around 1977 in terms of top ten songs and albums. But in the course of my life, Billy Joel was the least favorite of the late 70s.
Maybe it was that New York smugness that didn't appeal to me back then. Or perhaps the all time annoying Piano Man, his 1973 hit which introduced us to Joel and if it wasn't bad enough, we had to hear it every single night at DeSoda's right around closing time or any selected bar. For 30 years after that, I never cared much for Joel although I do admit he has always had a gift for melody and at one time boasted a great band backing him up, Liberty DeVito drove the band till a severe falling out ended his tenture in the band.
I still will not listen to Piano Man the song but I'm sure the album has other notables. However, Streetlife Serenade had the wonderful failed hit with The Entertainer and I found a pawnshop copy of the CD and it remains a underrated album. I also got a kick out of the instrumentals on that album too Root Beer Rag, Mexican Connection. Turnstiles, didn't do much for me sorry to say, Say Goodbye To Hollywood a classic but the rest just fell flat. Some call Turnstiles Billy's best but I just don't hear it myself.
The Stranger was Joel's beginning, the title track with the moody beginning, Scene From An Italian Restaurant are the standouts. Didn't care for Just The Way You Are in my youth but I have learn to appreciate it more but I enjoy She's Always A Woman more. Of course there's Only The Good Die Young. The Stranger, not as flawed as Turnstiles is a good period piece.
Billy began to experiment more and adding more rock and roll to 52nd Street, getting into punk rock with Big Shot which can sound a bit goofy. He had a big hit with My Life (overplayed on classic rock radio or KDAT) but my faves remain the title track, Zanzibar, Stiletto and to a lesser extent Rosalinda's Eyes.
When Joel decided to go all out rock and roll he made his finest album with Glass Houses an album that steeped itself into new wave with It's Still Rock And Roll To Me or Sometimes A Fantasy (for some reason the long version of that song with Joel rocking out even more so only got to see a DJ copy only release, I haven't seen it availble on any other best ofs although I could be wrong). The overplayed You May Be Right is straight ahead rock too but Joel returned to the ballads with All For Lenya but he never rocked harder on Closer To The Borderline to which KRNA actually played one night, back then they did do album cuts and not focus sorely on the hits.
Upon closer inspection or hearing Songs From The Attic was Billy's live album but instead of playing the classics and Piano Man, he went for the more obscure with She's Got A Way or Say Goodbye To Hollywood and fan faves such as Captain Jack and I Loved These Days.
But after that, I never paid much attention to his music although The Nylon Curtain had Allentown, Pressure and Goodnight Saigon on it and many folks consider that to be his best. An Innocent Man shows Billy's love of Doo wop and it shows with the Four Seasons tribute Uptown Girl or the Dion soundalike of The Longest Time. Or even apeing Springsteen on Christie Lee. Sure Billy may have ripped off Frankie Valli or Little Anthony or to me The Tymes, An Innocent Man may just be his most fun record. Storm Front I really never paid much attention to, Mick Jones from Foreigner had a hand on the album and Joel got raked over the coals over the name chucking of We Didn't Start The Fire. But a second listen on Storm Front shows that Joel altered his singing and most of the time it comes very strained and out of character. I can take Billy Joel the crooner but Billy Joel the screamer, no way. The Bridge had a nice duet with Ray Charles on Baby Grand, and his final studio album 1993's River Of Dreams better known for his ex wife's album cover than songs.
For me Greatest Hits 1 and 2 remain the best way to hear Joel if you want to hear the hits. For myself Glass Houses is the one that I turn to, with 52nd Street and The Stranger and Streetlite Serenade in that order. The more adventurous can seek out The Nylon Curtain and An Innocent Man.
Albums:
Cold Spring Harbor (Family 1971) NR
Piano Man (Columbia 1973) C
Streetlife Serenade (Columbia 1974) B
Turnstyles (Columbia 1976) C+
The Stranger (Columbia 1977) B
52nd Street (Columbia 1978) B+
Glass Houses (Columbia 1980) B+
Songs In The Attic (Columbia 1981) B
The Nylon Curtain (Columbia 1982) B+
An Innocent Man (Columbia 1983) B-
The Bridge (Columbia 1986) B
Storm Front (Columbia 1989) C+
River Of Time (Columbia 1993) C
Billy Joel's Greatest Hits 1 and 2 (Columbia 1986) B+
Billy Joel's Greatest Hits 3 (Columbia 1996) B-
Fantasies & Delusions-Composed By Billy Joel, Performed by Richard Joo (Sony Classical 2001) B-
Maybe it was that New York smugness that didn't appeal to me back then. Or perhaps the all time annoying Piano Man, his 1973 hit which introduced us to Joel and if it wasn't bad enough, we had to hear it every single night at DeSoda's right around closing time or any selected bar. For 30 years after that, I never cared much for Joel although I do admit he has always had a gift for melody and at one time boasted a great band backing him up, Liberty DeVito drove the band till a severe falling out ended his tenture in the band.
I still will not listen to Piano Man the song but I'm sure the album has other notables. However, Streetlife Serenade had the wonderful failed hit with The Entertainer and I found a pawnshop copy of the CD and it remains a underrated album. I also got a kick out of the instrumentals on that album too Root Beer Rag, Mexican Connection. Turnstiles, didn't do much for me sorry to say, Say Goodbye To Hollywood a classic but the rest just fell flat. Some call Turnstiles Billy's best but I just don't hear it myself.
The Stranger was Joel's beginning, the title track with the moody beginning, Scene From An Italian Restaurant are the standouts. Didn't care for Just The Way You Are in my youth but I have learn to appreciate it more but I enjoy She's Always A Woman more. Of course there's Only The Good Die Young. The Stranger, not as flawed as Turnstiles is a good period piece.
Billy began to experiment more and adding more rock and roll to 52nd Street, getting into punk rock with Big Shot which can sound a bit goofy. He had a big hit with My Life (overplayed on classic rock radio or KDAT) but my faves remain the title track, Zanzibar, Stiletto and to a lesser extent Rosalinda's Eyes.
When Joel decided to go all out rock and roll he made his finest album with Glass Houses an album that steeped itself into new wave with It's Still Rock And Roll To Me or Sometimes A Fantasy (for some reason the long version of that song with Joel rocking out even more so only got to see a DJ copy only release, I haven't seen it availble on any other best ofs although I could be wrong). The overplayed You May Be Right is straight ahead rock too but Joel returned to the ballads with All For Lenya but he never rocked harder on Closer To The Borderline to which KRNA actually played one night, back then they did do album cuts and not focus sorely on the hits.
Upon closer inspection or hearing Songs From The Attic was Billy's live album but instead of playing the classics and Piano Man, he went for the more obscure with She's Got A Way or Say Goodbye To Hollywood and fan faves such as Captain Jack and I Loved These Days.
But after that, I never paid much attention to his music although The Nylon Curtain had Allentown, Pressure and Goodnight Saigon on it and many folks consider that to be his best. An Innocent Man shows Billy's love of Doo wop and it shows with the Four Seasons tribute Uptown Girl or the Dion soundalike of The Longest Time. Or even apeing Springsteen on Christie Lee. Sure Billy may have ripped off Frankie Valli or Little Anthony or to me The Tymes, An Innocent Man may just be his most fun record. Storm Front I really never paid much attention to, Mick Jones from Foreigner had a hand on the album and Joel got raked over the coals over the name chucking of We Didn't Start The Fire. But a second listen on Storm Front shows that Joel altered his singing and most of the time it comes very strained and out of character. I can take Billy Joel the crooner but Billy Joel the screamer, no way. The Bridge had a nice duet with Ray Charles on Baby Grand, and his final studio album 1993's River Of Dreams better known for his ex wife's album cover than songs.
For me Greatest Hits 1 and 2 remain the best way to hear Joel if you want to hear the hits. For myself Glass Houses is the one that I turn to, with 52nd Street and The Stranger and Streetlite Serenade in that order. The more adventurous can seek out The Nylon Curtain and An Innocent Man.
Albums:
Cold Spring Harbor (Family 1971) NR
Piano Man (Columbia 1973) C
Streetlife Serenade (Columbia 1974) B
Turnstyles (Columbia 1976) C+
The Stranger (Columbia 1977) B
52nd Street (Columbia 1978) B+
Glass Houses (Columbia 1980) B+
Songs In The Attic (Columbia 1981) B
The Nylon Curtain (Columbia 1982) B+
An Innocent Man (Columbia 1983) B-
The Bridge (Columbia 1986) B
Storm Front (Columbia 1989) C+
River Of Time (Columbia 1993) C
Billy Joel's Greatest Hits 1 and 2 (Columbia 1986) B+
Billy Joel's Greatest Hits 3 (Columbia 1996) B-
Fantasies & Delusions-Composed By Billy Joel, Performed by Richard Joo (Sony Classical 2001) B-
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