Friday, 30 January 2015

100.  OK Computer. (L.P) Radiohead. 1997.
Paranoid Android alone took pointers from The Beatles. DJ Shadow, Bohemian Rhapsody and The Pixies. The intro to 'Airbag', the album's torturous lead in was meant to "sound like a car crash Rock musicians are always saying such things - rarely do they equate with something as remarkable as 'OK Computer'; a 1990's landmark and a record whose symphonic scale expanded rock music's very vocabulary. (R.W. Mojo)
Posted by at No comments:
99.  In It For The Money. (L.P) Supergrass. 1997.
Three likely lads from Oxford survive Brit-Pop. Gone are the perky Chas & Dave-isms of the marvellous debut album 'Alright'; this splendid second album rocks, squalls and churns on monstrously infectious riffage. Despite feelgood hits like 'Sun Hits The Sky' and the lovely mope of 'Late In The Day', sales dipped. No matter, actually the band with the long sideburns were in it for the long haul. Classic British pop from an exuberant outfit. (D.P. Mojo).
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, 28 January 2015

98.  Wrecking Ball. (L.P) Emmylou Harris. 1995.
Possibly Emmylou's least country album, 'Wrecking Ball is still a classic album from a classic artist. Producer Daniel Lanois places Harris in an all enveloping aural land-scape to create a mysterious and exhilarating vehicle for her remarkable vocal talents. Though traditionalist might prefer 'Blue Kentucky Girl' (1989) or 'Live At The Ryman' (1992), 'Wrecking Ball' is nonetheless remarkable. (Mojo).
'Wrecking Ball' by Emmylou Harris is not to be confused with the later song by Miley Cyrus that shares the same title. Emmylou's version of 'Wrecking Ball' is her interpretation of the Neil Young song. (CB)
Posted by at No comments:
97.  Grand Prix. (L.P). Teenage Fanclub. 1995.
Terrible puns aside (Neil Jumg, Mellow Doubt), this was a return to form, with Scotland's Raymond McGinley, Norman Blake and Gerard Love passing the song writing baton assuredly on their only album for Geffen. The Byrdsian vocal harmonies and catchy melodies seem to come as naturally as a change in the seasons, adding romance and depth to songs such as sumptuous hit single 'Sparky's Dream'. (J.McN. Mojo)
Posted by at No comments:
96.  American Recordings 1. (L.P) Johnny Cash.
Produced by Rick Rubin this was the record that brought Cash back to a contemporary audience. A hard, sparse acoustic set of some of his most affecting performances, including the former son-in-law Nick Lowe's 'The Beast In Me' and the man's own 'Nam vet story 'Drive On'; the terror is in the emotional mask Cash sings in, or more precisely, when it slips. (M.H. Mojo)
Posted by at No comments:
95.  Grace. (L.P). Jeff Buckley. 1994.
A hymn here, a camp show tune there, from Led Zep style epic to grunge explosion, the son of Tim Buckley's one completed work displays a brilliant musical mind wrestling his tremendous gifts into many shapes. Loaded with bravura and promise, angry, dazzling and touching where necessary, for once the cliché of First Album Syndrome - "Give 'em everything, we might not make another." - made tragic sense. (J.L. Mojo)

My fave track from the album. Love the way he sings "Where are you tonight" at 1:55.
Posted by at No comments:

Monday, 26 January 2015

94. Whatever. (L.P). Aimee Mann. 1993.
After three albums fronting Boston based outfit 'Til Tuesday, Mann delivered this articulately lovelorn debut solo album. Drawing praise from Roger McGuinn and Elvis Costello (the former is a guest on the record), it casts her as the songwriter's songwriter. Sparky single 'I Should Have Known' and emotive ballad '4th of July' pack just the right blend of vulnerability and strength. Brainy, distinctive and consistently singable. (J.McN. Mojo).
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)