TWELVE TIMES IN A
LIFETIME: A couple weeks back, some of
my friends on Facebook were posting lists regarding albums that made some kind
of lasting impression.
All these posts start
like this:
“The rules: Copy this
and post as your status, but delete my list. List 12 albums in no particular
order that made a lasting impression on you, but only 1 per band/artist. Tag
friends to do the same, including me, so I can see what you choose.”
Of course being a music
lover, I was tagged a few times, and although I was too busy to respond then, I
did get a great idea to incorporate it into my latest blog. Have missed a few weeks of my blog, I needed
to get my end-of-summer edition out first, before tackling this one. Of course many of my friends were listing
albums from the late 1960’s and 1970’s, and with me, that takes up much of my
list as well. However, there are a few
surprises in the end that, perhaps if you’re a regular reader, you won’t be so
much. Keep in mind that I am going to
miss leaving out a few albums here and there as this nearly sixty-year-old mind
can’t recall many things I used to remember, so this is pretty much on the fly. Finally, keep in mind that these albums are
not necessarily my all-time favorites, just those that I can recall
So, without further
delay, here are my list of 12 albums that made a lasting impression on me, plus
a truckload of honorable mentions.
1. The
Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. (1967)
This was a toss-up between this album and Meet the Beatles, since both
of them really had an impact on me.
But, while Meet the Beatles was pretty much my introduction to top 40
music (which I really wouldn’t follow religiously for another couple of years),
Sgt. Pepper had more of an impact on me, simply because the times had
changed. The Fab Four that we once
knew and loved, had changed drastically, and the soundtrack to my youth took a
turn into fantasy. Compare their early
music to the music on this one, particularly “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds”, “With
A Little Help from My Friends”, and “A Day in the Life”. It didn’t hurt that I was away at sleepover
camp at Frost Valley, NY, and during an overnight hike and camping that I heard
this album. Both civilization and the
Beatles’ early music seems so far, far, away.
2. Santana,
“Santana” (1969)
This was essentially a “late bloomer” album (of which there are a few
here; those that I didn’t discover and/or appreciate until later in life),
which initially gave the world their first hit single “Evil Ways”. But there was so much more to that album
than that song. Like the Beatles, I was
torn between their debut and their sophomore effort “Abraxas”. In fact, it was about 35 years later, which
I bought the compilation CD, The Best of Santana did I realize how many awesome
tracker there are from these first two albums (Their third effort, Santana III,
was no slouch, either). I think the
deciding factor was their all-out jam “Soul Sacrifice”, which of course began
their set at the legendary Woodstock festival in 1969 (and also when I saw them
live in 2010 at Bethel Woods at that original site), chills began to
erupt. That song alone just captures
the exuberance of being out and around and enjoying nature and your
surroundings. It is one of my key
camping songs and always reminds me of Roscoe and Lake George in particular. ‘Persuasion”
also fits that bill, too. And perhaps
Abraxas may have more cool songs on it; it is their debut I am going with here.
3. Chicago, “Chicago II” (1970)
This seven-piece horn band came upon the scene in 1969, then called “Chicago
Transit Authority” (they shortened their name per a lawsuit filed by the real
Authority). But it was their second
effort the following year that they made their mark. “Make Me Smile” was a top ten hit that
spring, but it was the awesome “25 or 6 to 4” that really did the trick for me,
especially the long unedited version featuring the guitar prowess of Terry
Katy, the man Jimi Hendrix thought was better than him. Actually, it was my brother Dave, who at
the time was away at summer camp in Massachusetts who heard the song first, and
finally when New York’s top 40 station WABC started playing it, I loved
it. That fall I started high school
and played trumpet in band class, and many of the compositions were by this
band. Some of my co-horts would play
riffs from various songs, and we did perform many songs from their first two
albums in class and at school shows. It’s
perhaps that experience that led me to become a fan of this band; one I stayed
with through its many changes (and evolution into an 80’s pop ballad
band). Their induction this year into
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was long deserved.
4. Yes, “Close to the Edge” (1972)
By the early 1970’s, rock music had become more progressive that it
really didn’t have anywhere else to go, so it started splintering into various
factions. There was the introspective
singer-songwriter movement, glam rock,
and progressive rock, in with this band and Emerson, Lake & Palmer led the
way. I wasn’t sure whether to include
ELP’s “Trilogy” here, but with only twelve spaces, I went with this one. Yes broke big earlier that year with “Fragile”
and their hit single “Roundabout”, but it was this album, the first I bought
with my own money, that made it more memorable.
An edited title track was played
on Buffalo station WKBW, which I “DX’d” (distant listening) every night that
year), and the album track was an 18 minute delight. Two songs, including the single “And You and
I” comprised the other side; I really wore out the grooves on this several
times over. And, maybe perhaps because
of the album design, I always envisioned myself in a wooded area in a mountain,
overlooking a vast gorge and a flowing river and perhaps waterfall. Little did I know, I’d be living that during
my camping trips at Roscoe with Russell Brook falls (my Roscoe friends would understand that). While my interested in the band would wane
after this album, I did get to see them play three times at the PNC Bank Arts
Center from 1998 to 2000.
5. Electric Light Orchestra – “On the Third Day” (1973)
What would become one of my favorite bands of the 1970’s, I started
getting into with the release of Jeff Lynne and company’s second album earlier
in 1973, with their take on “Roll Over Beethoven” which was their first top 40
hit. This one didn’t have an immediate
hit (and it was the only album these released, aside from their debut, that
didn’t have a top 40 hit on it). But,
getting this on 8-track that Christmas, along with an 8-track player, I played
this one over and over again. “Showdown”,
“Ma Ma Ma Belle” and the instrumental “Day Breaker”. And there was “Oh No Not Susan”, which was
timely in that I had a crush on a girl named Susan during this period. And what about their rendition of “In the
All of the Mountain King”. And while
ELO’s became more commercial as the decade progressed, I was happy to see them
get successful. I did get to see their “Time” tour in 1981, my first time at
what was then called the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands.
6. Nektar – “Remember the Future” (1974)
In the Fall of 1974 I was a freshman at Montclair State College (now
University), and thus was exposed to new experiences. The college had a radio station, but
because of red tape, it was off the air for the entire semester. The station, usually piped in over the
speakers throughout the student center building, was instead replaced by
WNEW-FM, the then-freeform rock station.
I was introduced to many albums during that time, but the on that stood
out was this one from British rock band that was based in Germany. Side one was awesome, with essentially the
one whole side being one song with four different phases to it. Side two was less exciting, but continued
the story of sorts. I was staying
off-campus in a room in a private home, and the album was pretty much the last
thing I listened to before turning in.
7. Boz Scaggs – Silk Degrees (1976)
This album definitely stayed with me during its
run in 1976 and 1977. Yes, the hit
singles “It’s Over” and the #1 “Lowdown” were on the radio during the latter
half of the bicentennial year, and also a college soundtrack of sorts,
too. “Lido Shuffle” was a hit in the
spring break period of the following April.
But it was tracks like “What Can I Say”, and “Georgia” that lingered on
through the start of my club-going days in the fall of 1977, as rock bands that
played at Squire’s at Far Hills in Bridgewater would play any of these songs.
8. B-52’s – “Cosmic Thing” (1989)
In reality, probably their 1979 debut and 1980’s “Wild Planet” would be
the seminal releases for this band (and I have memories on a road trip I did in
’83 going to a local club in Lake Placid and watching kids dancing along to
this). But it was “Cosmic Thing” that
for me was very memorable. Released
that summer, the title track, and “Planet Z” were popular but it was the tandem
of “Love Shake” (#2 on my year-end list for 1989) and “Roam” (#1 on my year-end
1990 list) that left memories. And the
last single “Deadbeat Club” was a theme song of sort for our circle of
happy-hour friends while I was working at Prudential. The album was, in essence, the soundtrack
to that era.
9. R.E.M. – “Out of Time” (1991)
I had been an R.E.M. fan since 1984 when I heard “So. Central Rain” on
WDHA, from their second album “Reckoning”.
I watched them go from a college radio band to popular success by the
end of the 1980’s, but this was their peak.
“Shiny Happy People” was my #1 song of 1991 (even though Michael Stipe
despises the songs and wouldn’t play it in concert), and “Losing My Religion”
was a big hit. But the rest of the
album is awesome and “Texarkana” was played on the jukebox up at Deacon’s Den during
my early days in the “Skihaus”, which set the tone for that area.
10. Hootie and the Blowfish – “Cracked Rear View”
(1995)
This was a toss-up between Alanis Morissette’s “Jagged Little Pill” for
mid-90’s representation, but I went with Hootie, who was basically my
soundtrack to that year. Five big
singles, and another track off if it, “Hannah Jane” echoed memories of a ski
trip out went to Park City, Utah. And
then during the summer, Darius Rucker made a guest appearance at Belmar’s
now-defunct bar The Tropical Pub, playing “Hold My Hand” with local bar band
The Willies. You couldn’t go anywhere
that year without Hootie on my mind.
11. The Raveonettes – “Pretty In Black” (2005)
By the mid-2000’s I have completely given up on buying CD’s and
concentrated on mp3 downloads. I
pretty much stopped listening to the radio as well, and just burned CD’s of the
songs that were current, based on charts or alternative-rock playlists online
(a precursor to my blog). Well, after
listening to “Love in a Trashcan”, I was blown away by the sound of this Danish
duo. The whole album seems like a trip
to the neon, pink flamingo days of the late 1950’s. I was blown away by the fact that this era
was so much recaptured. This is
probably the only album that I constantly played from start to finish in the
last twenty years.
12. Fitz and the Tantrums – “More Than Just a Dream”
(2013)
Well, I just had to include one album from my blog era. Although I thought that their debut effort “Pickin’
Up the Pieces” was a better album, I basically was alone at that party. When this second album came out, several
friends were on board and just that provided many recent memories. I added six songs from that album to my
playlist and five of them reached the top and the one that didn’t (“6 AM”)
stuck around for 71 weeks, and remembered it being played on the jukebox at Frenchy’s
in Roselle Park. “Keeping Our Eyes Out”
was a shore memory as well. And of
course “Out of My League” and “The Walker” reached #1 on the alternative chart,
too.
Honorable Mentions: Cream, ‘Goodbye” (1969); Allman Brothers Band, “Idlewild South” (1970);
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, “Trilogy” (1972); Elton John, “Goodbye Yellow Brick
Road” (1973); Steely Dan, “Countdown to Ecstasy” (1973); Bachman-Turner
Overdrive, “Not Fragile” (1974); Bruce Springsteen, ‘Born to Run” (1975), “Boston”
(1976); Television, “Marquee Moon”, 1977; Billy Joel, “The Stranger” (1977); The
Ramones, “Rocket to Russia” (1977); Blondie, “Parallel Lines” (1979); Prince, “Purple
Rain” (1984); The Cure, “Disintegration” (1989); Nirvana, “Nevermind” (1991); “Collective
Soul” (1995); The White Stripes, “Elephant” (2003); Adele, “19”, (2008); Rachel
Allyn, ‘Late Nights and Early Mornings” (2009); The Black Keys, “Brothers”
(2010);
BACK TO THE CURRENT: A lot of
action on my SNS chart this week.
Speaking of Santana, the same lineup that made my list above holds at
the #1 position for a second week, with “Blues Magic”, but the veteran
guitarists is being chased by bands featuring former Roselle Park
classmates: At #3 is The Billy Spanton
Band with “Shake Your Soul”, that features Ron Pietranowicz on keyboards, and
in the runner-up spot is Tom Corea with his band The Hounds of Winter, with “Oh
Paige”. That song trails Santana by
just one point, and it’s quite possible that the Hounds could overturn Carlos
and the gang for the top spot next week.
This is the third #2 song for Tom Corea’s bands on SNS; “Amy’s World” peaked there in 2014, while
Corea’s other band Bad Attitude, claimed the second-banana position the holiday
season before that, with “Merry Christmas Anyway”. Will he finally get his number one song
next week? Stay tuned. At any rate, both Santana and the Hounds
have broken away from the pack and could hold the top two positions for a few
weeks to come. Finally, I also want to
thank Tom for sharing my blog on his timeline this past week
The locals still have dominated the SNS 100; aside from numbers 2 and 3,
Rachel Allyn’s cover of “For What It’s Worth” jumps 29-15 and become the Top 20
Impact song. This gives the Ogdensburg
native her 12th consecutive SNS top 20 song in as many tries. Unfortunately, she was eliminated from
advancing to the next round of New York country station NASH-FM…you gave it a
good try, Rachel! Us Commoners make it
3-for-3 in the top 20 as “Fallin’” moves 47-18 to grab the Mover of the Week
honors. DMA’s, Foals, and Coldplay also enter
that region. For Foals, it's their third straight top 20 off their latest album What Went Down.
Some nice debuts this week, mostly from established SNS artists who
scored last time around., However the top debut is one that has been on my list, but not in my top 20. Colony House gets the honor, with “You and I”, off of their second album Only
the Lonely. The Tennessee band
impressed their first time around with 2014’s When I Was Younger; two songs
from that album made my list, including “Silouettes” reaching #25. This is a solid effort with a bit of commercial
rock appeal. The Avalanches, who
released their first album in 15 years recently and coming off an SNS top 10
with “Frankie Sinatra” are back with “Subways”. This one is more akin to the title track
from their last album Since I Left You.
The sample-based band gives this one a more lush, soulful treatment, not
like the Love Unlimited Orchestra back in the 1970’s.
Another Tennessee-based band, Kings of Leon also return. The group had one of the last real rock top
10 hits back in 2008 with “Use Somebody”, but has been making solid music
since. That includes the #4 “Temple” off
of their last one Mechanical Bull. “Waste
A Moment” is a driving rock song that continues their style and proves, if
nothing else, that traditional rock and roll is not dead. It’s catchy enough, much like “Temple” and
will ensure many spins. We Are Like Love
Songs is the seventh album for the band who goes back to the turn of the
century.
Next is another local, Kjband, which had three top 40 songs last time
out; the project by Ken Johnston, Noise was released a while ago and the first
featured track, “Waves” debuts this week. Johnston, who provides a make-shift
group of musicians to record under the Kjband moniker has kept the lineup from
2014’s Real Life set intact. That album
produced the SNS #15 “Our Art”. The new
single, “Waves” is actually a blues-jazz hybrid, featuring horns and flute via
Kevin Presutti. The change, however is
with the female lead vocalist; Kate Lewis replaces Kayla Scott, but her vocals
are just as sweet yet powerful. Through
all this musicianship, you have to wonder where Ken is during all of this. Regardless, a strong effort from the kj’ers.
Rounding out the debuts are the latest by Catfish and the Bottlemen, ‘7”
in yet another attempt to break through here after some close calls, and
Maybird, a band from Rochester, NY.
Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100
September 25, 2016
| This Week | Last Week | ARTIST-Title | Weeks on List |
| 1 | 1 | NUMBER ONE:
"Blues Magic"
Album: Santana IV
(2 weeks at #1)
|
8 |
| 2 | 7 | The Hounds of Winter - Oh Paige | 4 |
| 3 | 3 | Billy Spanton Band - Shake Your Soul | 10 |
| 4 | 4 | Fitz and the Tantrums - Complicated | 10 |
| 5 | 6 | Finish Ticket - Color | 12 |
| 6 | 2 | M83 - Go | 11 |
| 7 | 12 | Michael Kiwanuka - One More Night | 6 |
| 8 | 5 | Phoebe Ryan - Chronic | 11 |
| 9 | 13 | Charles Kelley- Lonely Girl | 18 |
| 10 | 8 | City and Colour - Wasted Love | 14 |
| 11 | 11 | Young the Giant - Something to Believe In | 10 |
| 12 | 17 | Barns Courtney - Fire | 10 |
| 13 | 20 | The Blossoms - At Most A Kiss | 11 |
| 14 | 18 | The Strokes - Oblivius | 10 |
| 15 | 29 | TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:
"For What
It's Worth"
Album: Next Years Girl
|
5 |
| 16 | 24 | Coldplay - Hymn For the Weekend | 11 |
| 17 | 26 | DMA's - Too Soon | 9 |
| 18 | 47 | Us Commoners - Fallin' | 3 |
| 19 | 10 | Nada Surf - Believe You're Mine | 20 |
| 20 | 22 | Foals - What Went Down | 10 |
Songs
with the greatest increase in favorite points over the prior week.
● Songs
with 25 or more plays on my iPod.
▲ Songs with 50 or more plays on my iPod.
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