Containing, among other things, my humble effort to bring my fellow sixty(ish) year olds up to date on some current, and frankly, not so current, pop music.
So, like I said, 2014 sucked, and 2015 was offering a compelling reason to just take a break from music altogether.
But sometimes circumstances call out for it. And after hearing about the untimely death of an old friend, I knew I’d need something.
We’d heard he was sick around Thanksgiving and found out he’d died right after Christmas. The wake was on New Years Day.
The next day, I needed to go for a long walk and along the way bought a CD, but my heart wasn’t in it.
The funeral mass was the day after that. We came home feeling drained and numb. I was off from work that week and finally gave myself permission to do nothing. I decided to just lie down and read for a while. I could have opted to listen to nothing, but since I’d just gotten a CD the day before I figured I’d put it on.
So I lay there reading, so tired I felt glued to the bed. I’d nod off occasionally as CD played, so before I knew it, it was over. So I put it on again. And again.
So it was - and I mean this as a compliment - a good substitute for nothing. In a way, it was an expression of nothing. Again, a compliment. I certainly didn’t want to hear singing, at least not in English.
These guys left the pre-famous (if you’d call it that) Kraftwerk because they (the latter) weren’t weird enough. Neu! would eventually be renowned for a synthesizer sound that would later influence David Bowie’s late 70s sound (Lowand Heroes, two of my faves) and Brian Eno in general.
On this, their first album, there’s more guitar than synthesizer. Still very drone-y though. And although the six songs are all rather long, and the guitar touches are pretty minimal, the drums keep you feeling like you’re getting somewhere. On paper, it all sounds pretty boring, but because they change up the beats, on the best cuts, it verges on hypnotic.
And they’re not afraid to make noise. And not just musical noise. Noise noise. Like a jackhammer. I mean it. An actual jackhammer. That one’s call “Negativland”. No sh*t.
At times quiet, for a cold cloudy day. And at others, an explosion of distortion and rage. Then it ends with a whimper. On purpose. Works for me!
But it may be music for people who don’t like music, or who are tired of it. Exactly what I needed.
I’ll have to try it again when I’m feeling better.
This may ultimately be the most important year of all, because things were happening and a lot of us were doing our best to deny it.
Sadly, it’s the year when listeners were presented with a choice, but had long before already made the wrong one. Conditioned by increasingly diluted AOR-type rock music, but then suddenly confronted with punk - on the news instead of the radio - what was the average listener to do, but double down on some very lame music? Hence the complaints in letters to Rolling Stone about songs where “you couldn’t hear the words”, etc.
I was no better. I loved “rock music” and wished that it would get the respect it deserved. So I wanted it to be serious, and found the, well, glamorous surface of glam rock and spectacle of arena rock excess a bit depressing. On the one hand commercial success indicated a wider acceptance of rock music. But sometimes it felt….icky. Like when I saw Al Stewart on “In Concert” with a full orchestra. And country rock bands accepting Grammys and American Music Awards wearing tuxes. The whole point of the music is to not be respectable, and it was finally driven home to me at the time while in a village record store. As leather clad cashier was wearing a button that said “Help Keep Rock and Roll Sleazy”. (He was doing his part.) That was when I knew I was sitting on a fence that would have to collapse at some point.
I have an almost visceral reaction to the records I bought that year – not because they somehow changed my life - but because they didn’t, and as such represent a breaking off point. The Before of the Before and After.
I didn’t pick up on the records released this year until at least 1980. But in retrospect. It turns out to have been a hell of a year, with more to come after. Well, of course, there's the Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks. You either take this road or you don't. Well, I took it and I'm glad. This is some of the most powerful rock and roll ever made. And no, I have no love for Sid. I’m a Glen Matlock guy, no matter what John Lydon thinks. Those tunes didn’t come from outer space. But it was Johnny’s snarl that put them over. Television’s Marquee Moon has lots of guitar on it. And lots of solos. So in that way it’s not punk music at all. As a matter of fact, it's the perfect record for bridging punk and jam music. It's got all the speed, passion and harshness of punk, but with all the virtuosity of the Dead or the Allman Brothers. At least me and Roommate Mike thought so... By 1977 the Ramones had already made a lot of waves and had become the target of ridicule from disc jockeys. So just how did their seemingly simplistic formula result in a brilliant third album Rocket to Russia? I don’t know either. One of the greatest punk albums ever with classics such as “Rockaway Beach”, “Sheena Is a Punk Rocker”, and, my favorite “We're a Happy Family” ("Daddy likes men…") I'm putting The Clashhere because this is when the UK version came out, which I'm not totally familiar with. In 1979 the American version would be released, which would contain much of the UK version, along with a number of singles they released since then. I'm happy with the US version because there's so much on it. Being a punk record, its sound isn't that great, but it contains some of the greatest rock songs ever, including what might be my favorite – “Complete Control”. How can a record be punk and still be pretty? Because punk is an ethos not a genre. Anyway, aside from the occasionally weird hiccups in David Byrne's singing, and odd subject matter, Talking Heads 77is very sweet. Especially "Psychokiller". jk I was never one for cults, though, so don’t get the idea that once I fell for punk music, I’d never like anything else. Back when I was even whiter teenager , I bought records by singer songwriter or the above-mentioned Allmans and Dead. But while in the record store I couldn't help but notice the flamboyant record covers of bands like Funkadelic and Parliament. Of course, I was a snob, and assumed such covers were needed to hide crappy music.
Little did I realize that Funkadelic was quite an ambitious outfit, with a damned good guitar player (the recently deceased Gary Shider). My first plunge was One Nation Under a Groove that has the greatest opening five seconds of any record ever recorded, but which then makes its way into the classic funk music of the era. It's a bit more confident and sure of itself than I'm comfortable with, so I went back to Best of the Early Years, an early greatest hits record, which has more in common with the hard rock and Sly Stone records I was happy with. An alien (to me) universe every bit as valid as the one I was inhabiting at the time. Rough Mix isa misleading title. It may be fun, but it's also pretty tight. Pete Townsend joins up with Ronnie Lane (from the Small Faces). They also have some friends join them, like Eric Clapton. And against all expectations – they were all in decline by then - the result is wonderful. “Heart to Hang Onto” is my favorite, but not by much. If you find “Heroes” a bit harsh, so you might prefer David Bowie’s Low, which is experimental and catchy at the same time. Great on vinyl, since the two sides are so different. Side one for parties, and side two for late at night. Just around the demise of ElvisI, the new one - Costello, that is - arises. You can fault My Aim is Truefor an dull production and sameness of some songs, but that’s about it. This is the beginning of an explosion of songwriting (the best since 1970?) that would last for years. “Being German” and “being into electronic music” aren’t the first two things I’d look for in a band, and Kraftwerk looked like a bunch of robots with all the soullessness that it implies. But that's clearly untrue within the first minute Trans Europe Express. Sounds great in the summertime, of all things.
I’ll finish up with a record that is almost forgotten now. Karla Bonoffis a guilty pleasure. It’s the epitome of LA studio hotshot smoothery. Her voice resembles Linda Rondstadt, who actually did a few of these songs, too. It's very middle of the road, and perhaps because it brings back some great memories I'm going easy on it. Karla can really write a tune. The one 1977 record I actually bought that year that’s worth remembering.
It’s embarrassing to admit how clueless I was about the things that would end up having such lasting value. But the next few years would be thrilling as I slowly caught up. In 1977, my musical world was cracked in half and I didn't even know it.
For some reason, I just wasn’t getting any new music for the first few months of 2000.This was probably due to and end of decade record buying binge that then caused me to swear off of them for a while.It wasn’t until the Memorial Day that I felt like picking anything up.Mmm, where to start?How about a couple of Village Voice Pazz and Jop winners for 1999?
Belatedly starting the musical decade off with a bang, The Magnetic Fields three disc set “69 Love Songs” completely monopolized my CD player for the entire month of June.And not just because there was a lot of it.It was so good I had no desire to hear anything else. ----------------
Now playing: The Magnetic Fields - All My Little Words via FoxyTunes
Poor Moby, who’s “Play” just wasn’t for that month.And yet, by the time I got around to it, I found it to be, if anything, even more remarkably consistent than 69.You’ve definitely heard some of this, even if only on commercials.
Around the same time, my wife wanted to play her students an example of scat singing.So, what would be better than Ella Fitzgerald’s “75th Birthday Celebration”?That lesson lasted one day but we’ve still got this wonderful two disc set.It’s not for every occasion, but it is just exotic enough to pull you out of an otherwise ordinary day.
Summer:
Later that summer, we caught Blue Man Group, and picked up their first record, “Audio”.If you haven’t seen BMG yet, you should check them out.They’re a lot of fun, and the record stands quite well on its own.
Then came my annual birthday run, which is kind of like an orgy, except that instead of women, there are CDs.(Hey, the first step is knowing you have a problem.)This time around, I got a little too ambitious.
I figured Hole’s “Live Through This” would be my ace in the hole, but it didn’t quite meet my expectations.It turned out to be a typical “record that everyone liked, and even you liked what you heard on the radio, but once you bought it you thought it was really not such a big deal”.It’s quite good, just not great.Courtney can scream really great, though.
Then there was jazz, like Cecil Taylor’s “Unit Structures” which is the type of record I buy when I’m in the grip of one of my “I can listen to any kind of music no matter what” delusions.It is surely one of the wildest records I’ve ever gotten. It’s like being locked in a room with a band that happens to be high, and mad as hell.I put it on when I feel that my soul has been crushed and I need something that will scatter all the pieces, or on beautiful summer days when I’m just not with the program.Another “put it on to get rid of the company” record.
When trying to decide on which Charles Mingus record to start with, I choose “MingusAh Um” - the one with the pretty cover. At first, it was just a bit out of reach at the time – despite the so infectious I can’t believe I’m hearing it “Better Get Hit in Your Soul” - but over the years, it’s grown on me, and is now one of my favorite jazz records. ----------------
Now playing: Charles Mingus - Better Get Hit in Your Soul via FoxyTunes
Aphex Twin’s, ambient, well “Selected Ambient Works, Volume II” was the polar opposite of Cecil Taylor, and as such is the type of record that – when company is over – is likely to elicit remarks like “one of your speakers must be out”.It’s similar to one of my all time favorite records – Eno’s “Another Green World”, but way drier.For devotees of sensory deprivation, which is what I must have needed in 2005, because I played it a lot at the time.
Somewhat similar (but boy does that somewhat make a difference!) is Kraftwerk’s “Trans Europe Express”.Leave it to the Germans to come up with something robotic, yet catchy.
And how could I leave out world music?I traveled to Africa (well, that section of the record store, anyway) for Mzaki Mbili’s “Resistance is Defense”.There’s a great sounding guitar throughout the album, but that’s part of the problem.The whole album sounds like one catchy song.Good, but too repetitive.
Next time I have to remember to balance things out a bit more. But, hey, I figured that I had the law of averages working for me.
Thanksgiving:
Leave it to my Thanksgiving run to save the day.I had been flirting with the local used CD store for a while, but feared that I’d get burned.But this time I took the plunge and came up with one great, and one worthwhile, record.
First, there was Randy Newman’s brilliant, hilarious, dark, profane “Faust”.Musically, it was perfect for the holiday season.Thematically, it couldn’t have been more perverse.This is the only context where I can accept James Taylor as God.Randy’s the devil, of course.Bonnie Raitt does the great “Feels Like Home” and Linda Ronstadt doesn’t annoy me. ----------------
Now playing: Bonnie Raitt - Feels Like Home via FoxyTunes
I remember putting Robin Holcomb’s first record on repeat one late night at work. It played about six times before I left.It’s quiet, slow and jazzy, and maybe a little too much of all of these things.But good to listen to when miserable, which I am from time to time.
Christmas:
And finally, when I got a gift certification to my favorite record store I thought I died and went to heaven.It was time for a major plunge into something new (by which I mean old), and this time I chose Louis Armstrong.I found his “Complete Hot Fives and Sevens” and the more wide ranging “Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man”.Both are 4 CD box sets.I went deep with the former, because the box was smaller!This music is now 80 years old, and I still can only wonder what it sounded like to people at the time.It must have been comparable to heavy metal in its shear size.I love to just take one of the CDs at random and plop it into the player.I’ll probably never get to the bottom of it all.
