Announcement: Post Reduction

The time of university is, sadly, upon us and as such I am going to have to make a reduction in the number of posts I make every week to make sure that I don't suddenly fall behind.

I will still be trying to post 4 days a week, every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Thanks to everyone who has been reading :)

#34 Night Life by Ray Price

For the purposes of conducting this review I first had to acquaint myself with some of the terminology used in this album. While this may sound a bit over-dramatic I actually had no idea what a honky-tonk was before, and now I know this album makes a greater degree of sense. For those who, like me, don’t really know what a honky-tonk is I have ascertained that it’s a type of bar who’s name is derived from the sound of geese.

Ok that definition didn’t really help, although the derivation information is serious. The music of the honky-tonk is one you would expect to find in these bars in the Southern USA in the middle of the twentieth century. It is a type of country music, one of the main constituent parts of what we would now consider county, and has such all but disappeared having been enveloped into the genre as a whole. As such the ghostly echoes of guitars that reverberate through out these tracks are those that can be heard on many modern songs that take inspiration from the genre, the first coming to mind being Change Is Hard by the M.Ward/Zooey Deschanel project She & Him.

After two listens of this album I was really unsure what I thought of it. The only conclusion that I had definitively reached was that Ray Price’s voice, especially in The Twenty-Fourth Hour reminded me of Morrissey singing country. On the third listen though it occurred to me that upon each exposure of this album I grew to like it even more. Suddenly the subtle nuances of each track began to be uncovered with the subjects of love, loneliness and loss becoming rendered apparent.

One such track, and the first to truly emerge emotionally to me, was A Girl In The Night. As songs go it is a fairly simple portrait of a girl sitting alone in the bar with the singer trying to guess facts about her life and her past. However, it is with Ray Price’s delivery of the spoken passage towards the end of the song that actually moved me to tears. There was a sense of empathy and compassion that came across which to me signifies a great artist.

No, this is not the most exciting or innovative album on the list. I will hold my hands up and admit that. What this album does have though is an amazing capacity for empathic delivery. If someone were just to have this album on in the background as they are going about other business they are excused to thinking that this is just another country album with violins and a rhythm section. It is however when you begin to focus on Ray Price himself that more is revealed. His voice, his ability to convey emotion and the unusual reverberating quality of his vibrato all serve to emphasise the lyrics with such a great subtlety that after a while you are sitting down with tears in your eyes (which happened on my first listen and I had no clue as to why).

This is not just an album for those that can appreciate country music though. In my opinion it is for anyone who can appreciate loneliness, heartache and the need for a good shot of whiskey as you go through it. Also violins.

7.5/10

Top Tracks:
Night Life
The Twenty-Fourth Hour
A Girl In The Night
Pride

#33 Jazz Samba by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd

First things first, I would like to saw a belated Happy Birthday to my mum before I start this review. So there it is, I hope you like whatever present that I bought you.

Down to business and it’s beginning to dawn on me that I have taken albums with vocals for granted for the most of my life as once again 1962 has gifted me with a completely instrumental record. At least I know tomorrow and Night Life will be different. Either way at least today if an album of a different new genre; bossa nova. As with a lot of these jazz-related genres I am a novice with names and knowing what to expect. The only exception to this is that I am a bit of a fan of Bebel Gilberto, especially the album Tanto Tempo which I will reach one day. With that album being released over 40 years afterwards I actively sought out any form of precursor in Jazz Samba, and lo’ and behold these were found.

The feature of bossa nova that I fell in love with are the use of percussion and guitars that are able to take whatever season you are in and make believe as if it is summer even if you are listening to it on some rainy day in May. These musical elements which, whether it be wrong or not sound distinctly Latin to me, are in constant use throughout the album from the intricate guitar work in Baia to the masterful percussion in Samba Dees Days. So far, everything that I have come to appreciate is on here, and in spades. So surely there is nothing what is there for me to complain about?

Sadly it is, now I can get over the lack of vocals on an album. So far I have given half of my highest ratings to Green Onions and Kind of Blue so I can recognise the merit in them. However, these are songs that you can tell need to be sung not saxophoned. In an attempt to bring bossa nova to the main stream it appears that it was the choice to try and form a fusion with American jazz by the heavy use of a saxophone in lieu of a vocalist. Not only that but on occasions suddenly the improvisation starts and the coherence and flow of the song is lost and I just sit there wondering what might have been. While in song places on Jazz Samba such a fusion is a boon and both genres draw strength from each other there are also times when the jazz becomes a liability.

In the end I can see so many positives in here that do outshine the negatives of the saxophonist, the biggest of them what is going on in the background that could easily be overlooked. However, these sadly do not warrant repetitive listening and as such will rated in such a way. I can only hope that Getz/Gilberto is an improvement on this.

6.0/10

Fab Four:
Desafinado
Samba Dees Days
Sambe Triste
É Luxo Só

#32 Green Onions by Booker T. And The M.G.s

The art of the instrumental record appears to be one that is no longer embraced in the noughties. Where back in the sixties an album such as Green Onions or Back At The Chicken Shack received respectable a placing in the Billboard Charts nowadays they are lucky to even get a nomination for the Mercury Prize. Is this a great loss to music? Maybe it is, but in the end if you are really one for the instrumental then you just need to do a bit of delving and reach albums such as Zoe Rahman’s Melting Pot, which in itself is a reward.

Green Onions in itself has proven to be one of the more surprising albums that I have encountered so far, not only due to the legendary title track. While this may be the second album that I have encountered this week that makes use of a Hammond Organ in all it’s songs but to me it is one that makes good use of it. Don’t get me wrong here as I really enjoyed Back At The Chicken Shack but here on Green Onions Booker T & The M.G.’s have turned this obscure one into one that can show you a good time.

While it pains me to say this, and one can not say this without immediately thinking of Austin Powers, but this is the album that typifies to me the concept of ‘groovy’. It is a complete reminder of the spirit of the sixties and just makes you want to dance around the room to it. I myself found myself doing ‘The Monkey’ in the middle of the kitchen as You Can’t Sit Down was playing.

The highlight of the album is most definitely Green Onions itself. This song is like New Order’s Blue Monday in that it is a miracle of fate. While Blue Monday miraculously escaped from deletion you have Green Onions which was in fact the product of a few artists jamming in the studio while they waited for the recording session to begin. Yet out of such an improvisation a now timeless classic was produced with possibly the most recognisable riff to emerge from the sixties.

While it is hard to explain the sheer feel good factor that exudes from this record you can not blame a guy for trying. In the end though the best advice I can give is that anyone who reads this should give it a go. Whether it be Spotify or in the bargain bin at HMV this is an album that as you listen to it, it’s one that has to be seen to be well and truly believed. Even if you just listen to the title track you will know what I mean. Just amazing.

9.0/10

Fab Four:
Green Onions
I Got A Woman
Twist And Shout
You Can’t Sit Down

#31 Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music by Ray Charles

Well Mr. Charles, so we meet again and for the final time. Maybe this time it shall be under more felicitous circumstances where your hat is not as large as your belt. If you are unaware of what I am talking about then I redirect your attention to my review of The Genius Of Ray Charles where I took great umbrage with the rather liberal use of the word genius. This time however his album sports the far more acceptable title of Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, so let’s see whether this album does exactly what it says on the tin.

The concept of this album is indeed a fascinating one for the realm of country music is still basically a whites-only club. Try to name a successful black country musician, I guarantee that it is not an easy task. So, back in the sixties this was definitely a great undertaking. That is not to say that any of these songs sound remotely country in anyway, because they don’t. Instead what Ray Charles has taken all the cards and then stacked them in his favour by changing the arrangements of these songs to suit how he plays. So instead we have the lavish fifties style production mixed in with blues and jazz. Interesting to note though is the use of Modern Sounds in the title when in fact songs like Born To Lose and Worried Mind have production values that would not sound out of place in the Bambi soundtrack.

It is interesting how some songs contain elements that echo songs that are to come on this list, with Aretha Franklin, Ute Lemper and Rufus Wainwright immediately coming to mind. So there is no question of how influential as an artist Ray Charles was. The songs themselves are also wide ranging withing the scope of jazz and blues an amazing danceable start in the form of Bye Bye Love, or the sumptuous strings in You Win Again. As albums go this is, at least to me, a far better offering than The Genius of Ray Charles. While this may not be terribly consistent it is still a very good listen and earns it place here on the 1001 list not only because of it’s experimental nature but also it’s different when compared to what was around in 1962.

If you want my advice, this is the Ray Charles album you should listen to first as while it is strangely revolutionary it is also a far more gentle introduction than most of his previous offerings.

7.0/10

Fab Four:
Bye Bye Love
You Don’t Know Me
Careless Love
Hey, Good Lookin'

#30 Sunday At The Village Vanguard by Bill Evans

1961. What happened in 1961? John Kennedy was elected to the White House, future reality TV star Susan Boyle was born and Barbie got a new boyfriend in the form of goody two shoes Ken. In terms of music it appears not a lot actually happened this year with it only yielding one album on the list. However, I personally believe that this list missed a trick by leaving out Judy Garland’s Judy At Carnegie Hall. Mind you this isn’t because I particularly like the album but it was meant to be one of the big nights in music and actually won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. But in the end there must me a good reason this was missed out and so that’s the end of that.

So in a way there is even more pressure piled upon Bill Evan’s Sunday At Village Vanguard for not only does it afford a place on such a list but also must represent an entire year. Maybe I am pinning too much hope and expectation on one album before I even know what it is. A live album? Ok that isn’t so bad there‘s been a couple of good ones so far. A live jazz album though, not so good.

Upon the first listen though, I believe that this may be the live jazz album to change my mind. The lack of any brass instruments and the prominence of a piano and a stringed instrument (in this case a superbly played bull fiddle) does a lot to distance this from a lot of jazz albums whilst still maintaining the jazz label. Also there is absolutely no talking from anyone in this album, just brief smatterings of applause, this is the most studio album of the live ones. Again a huge thing in favour of this album.

However, upon the second listen the negatives began to creep in. As you will notice from my Fab Four most of these songs are accompanied by take numbers. This points towards the biggest con of Sunday At Village Vanguard; the use of multiple takes. While it’s not as if these are completely identical but they are easily discernable as the same song. As such this album sounds way too repetitive, with some cuts of the album actually having three takes of one song. On the second listen this becomes a very pronounced weakness that detracts from the enjoyment of this album. This is a real pity as there is so much that is good on this album which is ruined by the multiple use of the same tracks which just makes me feel cheated out of a great jazz experience that would have been better if Bill Evans chose one take and stuck to it.

6.5/10

Fab Four:
Gloria’s Step (Take 2)
Solar
Alice In Wonderland (Take 2)
All Of You (Take 3)

#29 At Newport 1960 by Muddy Waters

I would like to start off this review with a retraction. Yesterday, in my review for Back At The Chicken Shack, I referred to today’s album as another in a long line of jazz albums. This is not the case as Muddy Waters’ At Newport 1960 is very much a blues album. Right, now that is out of the way, it is time to get started.

Again, the name of Muddy Waters was one that I have heard in passing. In fact the most poignant of these asides is the reference made to him in an episode of Family Guy where he is passing some kidney stones while backed up by his band. While this may not count as some form of definitive exposure it actually did mildly introduce me to the jazz riff from I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man so in some unusual way I guess it did contribute to my overall knowledge, however minutely.

Either way, whether or not it be a blues album it is also the third of the live albums to be featured on the list. Having flicked ahead I can see I have plenty more to come in the next few weeks so shall leave my rant until then. As for now what I can say about this that as live albums go At Newport 1960 is up there with Sarah Vaughan’s At Mister Kelly’s for the sheer fact that it knows when to have the artist and the emcee stop talking and allow the music to play.

Unlike Monday’s album this is one that produced an immediate positive impact whereby I found myself immediately transfixed with the artist and the music. While it is true that’s the advantage you gain by of starting off the set with a strong track such as I Got My Brand On You, but this just continues on throughout the album. Songs that follow such as Tiger In Your Tank and the two-part I’ve Got My Mojo Working just go on to further cement how good this album actually is.

The rating may seem low considering that this is almost a glowing review, however, there are some areas that to me are just missed. The largest of these is that this album is too short, being only 35 minutes long. I would’ve liked to have heard more. Now I know length of an album is one that I do use a lot, e.g. Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Gerswin Songbooks, but personally a few more blues numbers couldn’t hurt. Or maybe this is actually the rare art of live album editing in action here. Either way, I am going to need to do some digging into the Spotify available back catalogue. As for the other areas, they are more that of a feeling than of substance that can be articulated. While I am aware that this is in a way of a cop-out but there is a certain ‘je ne sais quoi’ that prevents a higher rating.

Still, this is definitely an album that should be checked out as a great introduction to the blues as how they should be played.

8.0/10

Fab Four:
I Got My Brand On You
I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man
Tiger In Your Tank
I’ve Got My Mojo Working

#28 Back At The Chicken Shack by Jimmy Smith

So far on my musical odyssey through the ages, coming up to a span of seven years thus far, I believe that I am becoming increasingly well versed in jazz. With this knowledge now ranging from the great (Kind Of Blue) to the downright annoying (The Atomic Mr. Basie) I believe myself to have found a winning formula for jazz appreciation, at least for myself:

1) Do not truly judge until one track into the second exposure
2) Take no notice of the colourful artist and album names as they will only cause a distraction
3) Do not attempt to find a melody, let it just flow over you
4) Drink plenty of fluids

So what do I do? I completely avoid the first three steps of this procedure I have put in place and was immediately transfixed by the album cover and the use of ‘The Incredible‘ as to refer to the artist. Oh well, I have another jazz album to do next so maybe this will have been a lesson well and truly learnt.

On the first few notes of the first listen I was all too ready to write this off as a rather mediocre album that inspired neither elation nor misery. The use of the Hammond organ was also rather an odd sensation since the last time I was exposed to one was in the credits for an episode of Red Dwarf, and this wasn’t meant to be a positive reflection on the instrument. By the time I actually finished the first listen I didn’t really feel any hurry to start off the second listen. I actually began contemplating my latest project of forming a list of my Top 50 albums f the decade and thought of some methodologies to do so. It was only when I went to get myself a refill that I psyched myself up and decided to go in for another look.

So there I sat in complete complacency with this second listen being little more of a formality, and suddenly my foot begins to tap. This whole new laid-back attitude that was adopted purely by accident was actually a far more conducive atmosphere than on my first attempt.

On the whole Back At The Chicken Shack is a profoundly cool jazz album that definitely deserves more than a simple perusal but a good go. In the end, that is the only way that we truly get the greatest experience from an album, unless it is so shockingly awful that you get a migraine (yes Simba I am once again referencing you). In all seriousness though, this is a good jazz album that is definitely worthy of some time, whether you like the Hammond organ or not.

7.0/10

Fab Four:
There are two real standout tracks here, Minor Chant and Back At The Chicken Shack but since it’s a five track album, give it all a listen while you admire the noble chicken on the cover.

#27 A Date With The Everly Brothers by The Everly Brothers

With the exception of Wake Up Little Susie I have very little knowledge of The Everly Brothers, with the exception of the shocking fact that they were brothers. So when I was confronted with the title of A Date With The Everly Brothers there was an overriding temptation to start off the review as some form of crazed fan-girl who was extremely excited at the prospect of being on a date with these guys. What stopped me from doing this? Well I reasoned that maybe I should give the album a listen first before I made such a rash writing decision.

One thing I found very interesting about A Date With The Everly Brothers was that in the light of Elvis’s comeback this twosome felt the need to up their game in order to combat this renewed threat. If you have actually read my previous review of Elvis Is Back! you will probably understand why the idea of this album being a commercial threat actually had me in stitches. Still though, fair play to them in their need to maintain their crown as the dominant voices on the chart and hey a little bit of fair competition brings out the best in an artist.

What struck me as strange was how their version of one-upmanship could just sound so flat and uninteresting. There are songs on this such as Sigh, Cry, Almost Die that are so full of angst that it’s painful to listen to, granted I went through that period and kept that diary filled with ‘woe is me’ sentimentalities, but if you are really so angst-ridden don’t sound so bloody perky. Then we have Love Hurts whose sadness just leaves me thinking they should just go to a local diner and drown their sorrows in a vanilla malt. That is what teenagers did in the late fifties/early sixties right? Sad thing is that Love Hurts is actually one of the better songs on this album.

This is, however, not meant to undermine the vocals on this album. While I may not be one for male close harmony singing (or close harmony singing in general with the exception of The Mamas & The Papas) I can appreciate the purity of their harmonies. For me if these guys were given different songs I can see no reason why I could not be a fan. I mean, I actually really like Wake Up Little Susie as it is slightly more poppy, upbeat and downright catchy.

In summary, considering this was the music teenagers of this era would have been subjected to I consider myself fortunate. Personally the idea of sitting alone at the computer all angsty accompanied by Alizeé and the Sugababes is a far happier one than what previously existed in the form of teenage entertainment. Again none of this is meant to undermine the influence that this duo had on music, which their vocal stylings echoed in the works of later artists such as the Beatles, but for an album that doesn’t last more than half an hour I found myself deathly bored for the vast majority.

4.0/10

Fab Four:
Made To Love
Love Hurts
Donna Donna
Cathy’s Clown

#26 Miriam Makeba by Miriam Makeba

…and now for something completely different. For me it’s a touch strange how so far the list has been completely dominated by American acts. Seriously, if you read the book it rates the nationality of every act thus far as being from the USA. I noticed this a few reviews ago and so I made a bet with myself which would be the first other country to feature on the list. Seeing that I knew acts such as The Beatles and Dusty Springfield were liable to appear in the early sixties I assumed that the UK would be the first to break the Yankee streak… so appreciate my surprise when I found out the country to do so would be South Africa.

My first real exposure to African music was last year with the amazing album Welcome To Mali by Amadou & Mariam, an album I expect to be on the next edition of the list. While it may be a little unfair of me to lump all African music together with Welcome To Mali it’s probably a darn sight more accurate than lumping it all together with the soundtrack to The Lion King. While it may sound ridiculous to draw that as an example it is only because I have had several infuriating conversations with people saying that Disney provided a definitive look on African music (try your hand at Toumani Diabaté and then get back to me).

In the same vein as should be thought of The Lion King soundtrack this album taken as a whole is not exactly a definitive take on the African sound. I say on the whole as the first half of the album is frankly fantastic and filled to the brim with the songs that I had hoped for. This is epitomised by The Click Song (so called as the typical English speaker is unable to properly pronounce the title of Nguqongqothwane). It is of my opinion that there has not yet been a song that can match the sheer wow factor of The Click Song which is over far too quickly. Also in the amazing first half of the album is a more traditional arrangement of The Lion Sleeps Tonight (here titled Mbube) which is given new life when sung as it was originally meant.

However, you then flip over the record (yes it is that obvious where the break is) and suddenly all bets are off and Miriam unleashes The Naughty Little Flea. The logic of this latter half of the album doesn’t escape me at all. This debut album was meant to capitalise on her numerous plaudits from her performances on stage and was meant to catapult her into true stardom. However, when listening to her sing The Naughty Little Flea and One More Dance, which I can already say without doubt is beneath her talent, it drags this album towards mediocrity. Maybe I am being a bit harsh, as so many artists have to make crippling compromises on their major label debut before they can truly let themselves free creatively (such as Nina Simone or Christina Aguilera), but the gambit didn’t work too well.

Before I rate this album I do have to devote some discussion to the worst track on the album. One More Dance. Now here is a song where the logic of it’s inclusion escapes me completely. The constant laughing of whatever random guy they shipped in to perform this duet with her is so off-putting that to me it robbed this album of being given an eight. So if you are to try this album, do yourselves a favour and erase this track before you give the album a listen. It’ll definitely increase your enjoyment of an otherwise great album.

7.5/10

Fab Four:
Suliram
The Click Song
Mbube
Iya Guduza

#25 Elvis Is Back! by Elvis Presley

The phrase ‘comeback’ is thrown around rather liberally nowadays. If you have been touring for 2 years and then release an album a year after you are done it’s labelled as some great comeback. For me the casing point is I’m Not Dead by Pink who took great offence to having her fourth album being called a comeback as in her opinion she had never really been away.

So when I label Elvis Is Back! as a true comeback album consider that this was his first album since he finished his military service. I mean OK I am not sure if he really had much to do much apart from be garrisoned at some army station in Germany but he wasn’t touring or recording any new material while he was away so this really was time off for him. Also this ‘respite’ from his musical career marked the death of Elvis’s mother which was really the catalyst for his spiralling into sex, drugs and obesity.

So how does Elvis Is Back! measure up as a comeback album? Well he’s back there is no denying that. Apart from that the majority of this offering is the same stuff he had been recording back in the mid fifties. You would feel that when attempting to break your way to the top the charts after a long break the tactic would be to release something more revolutionary instead of more of the same shtick. Instead you get him crooning along to songs like The Thrill of Your Love which just leaves me cold and the sickly Soldier Boy that frankly leaves me with a slight uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Not butterflies, the bad sort of uneasy feeling.

The shame is that, like his eponymous debut, Elvis Is Back! starts with a bang and I was feeling very hopeful that this would be a swinging good fun time album as promised by the titles exclamation mark. Make Me Know It is a toe-tapping winner of a song with so much promise that you can not wait for the next track. Next comes a cover of Fever that is so deliciously sultry that I actually believed that I had the first 10 on my hands. Third comes The Girl of My Best Friend, ok a slight decrease in quality but after the opening two tracks is forgivable. But still, two knock-out tracks in a row. Fantastic!

Then what does he do!? Croon after croon after croon. And this is how the album progresses apart from Such A Night and Girl Next Door Went A ‘Walking where the bopping of the shoulders returns once more. Maybe I was expecting too much but in the end this album is probably on-par with his debut. However, the wasting of Fever and Make Me Know It just made me plain angry. It is also true that there was a slight improvement in the latter half of the album. However, too high a proportion of the tracks in my eyes are so insufferable that as ratings go you have a perfect balance of the sublime and the ridiculous to give a middling rating. Sorry Elvis, I’ll see you again in Memphis.

5.0/10

Fab Four:
Make Me Know It
Fever
The Girl Of My Best Friend
Such A Night

#24 Joan Baez by Joan Baez

While I apologise for the Hairspray song it was not without good cause. It’s officially the first album of the sixties and I couldn’t be more excited to try out the works of The Who and Bob Dylan as well as some of the odder titled albums (Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band immediately springs to mind). Wait, I think I will take back the apology. In the end Hairspray is an amazing feel-good film and that is what the sixties was about, right? Hope, happiness and hair.

As for the first album of the decade I had a bit of a double take moment as soon as Silver Dagger began to play, for the resemblance between the Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell for me was rather startling. So for the rest of the album I tried to listen out for more of these similarities which cropped up again and again, such as in All My Trials which in places reminds me of My Old Man off of Blue. This got me to thinking as to how with out Joan Baez there may not have been as open a door for Joni Mitchell to walk though. This would have a cascade effect on many of the singers that I listen to, such as KT Tunstall, Amy Macdonald and Lene Marlin. For that I do feel a bit indebted to this album as a whole for giving me so much in influential listening pleasure.

But hey, this is all well and good but what do I think of the album as a whole? The short answer is that I really enjoyed it. The minimal orchestration works really well here and to my knowledge is the first album on the list to feature such a sparse arrangement. The majority of the songs feature only a woman with an impressive vibrato and her guitar. That’s it. Nowadays this doesn’t sound too breathtaking as women vocalists are on equal footing with men now and are equally armed in string instruments. In fact it‘s common place that a new musical revolution would be a kind relief. Back then though this was an oddity, think of At Mister Kelly’s and Lady In Satin where the women were backed by a full orchestra. Instead there is a series of beautifully executed folk songs with such emotional dexterity, the most emotion being placed behind her version of Mary Hamilton which made me cry when I started listening to the lyrics.

While it may sound in a way clichéd from me but this is just one of those albums where you can just faintly see the blueprints of a whole genre of music which inspires a future cohort of women to take arms (ok guitars) and play away. Needless to say that there probably won’t be a voice quite like Joan Baez… apart from Joni Mitchell. But that’s a mute point surely. I can foresee many more plays of this album in the future so it is definitely deserving of a high rating.

8.5/10

Fab Four:
Silver Dagger
Donna Donna
Little Moses
Mary Hamilton

Welcome To The Sixties

Right, so that's the first decade down. Now it is time to mull around the sixties for a while.

To celebrate...



I couldn't resist. Sorry

#23 Time Out by The Dave Brubeck Quartet

It’s happened. The last album of the 1950s has been reached. Now it’s time for a smooth sale through the sixties before the bumpy road that is the seventies. I know I shouldn’t project into the future but having recently watched a documentary on Factory Records the late seventies dread is beginning to set in. If it wasn’t for the prospect of trying out Rumours and The Hissing of Summer Lawns that time period would certainly be a lot more daunting.

As for right here and right now the album of the day is Time Out by The Dave Brubeck Quartet. While this is indeed another fifties jazz album it probably has the most instantly recognisable jazz tune of them all, Take Five. I for one am really bad with track names when it comes to jazz for the sheer fact that there are no words to recognise it by. So when suddenly when I recognised the tune I immediately jumped to attention and all began to feel right in the world.

With the exception of the amazing track that is Take Five, this is an all round decent jazz album. However, I can not help but think that it still pales in comparison to Kind Of Blue. This is of course unfair as the styles of jazz here are pretty different although both revolutionary in their own right. Something I can not stress enough with Take Five, and to a lesser extent Blue Rondo a la Turk.

In the end this is an album that falls, for me, into the same category as Brilliant Corners whereby I see that it is a good album but it may not be one that I would actively seek out to listen to. Except for Take Five which is bloody brilliant. So this gets an above average review, which makes me glad in retrospect that I did not go overboard when I rated In The Wee Small Hours.

7.0/10

Fab Four:
Blue Rondo a la Turk
Take Five
Three To Get Ready
Pick Up Sticks

#22 Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs by Marty Robbins

Now let’s see… the album has a man dressed up as a cowboy in black. So I am guessing maudlin ballads of the old-west in a country-western style. Possibly with close harmony male singing in parts? Guitar? Mentioning of outlaws and cattle?

You have to give the album cover some credit. It does adequately prepare you for the music that you are about to listen to. All of these songs on Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs would not be at all out of place in one of those old Western Films, or in an SUV commercial. Also, while this may not be an album I would probably choose to listen to on sight I can really appreciate the complete contrast this has with all the other albums that I have thus far encountered. The closest album would be Tragic Songs of Life which is also a country album, however a different subgenre.

When I first listened to this I was all but ready to give this album a low review. The first track, Big Iron, captivated me but the rest just all felt like variations on the same theme which grew annoying. However, this is why I make sure to listen to every album twice. On the second listen there was a vast improvement. I began to enjoy the story telling of religion, The Master’s Call, and betrayal, They’re Hanging Me Tonight. It also took me a while for his voice to grow on me which, again, can take more than 2 listens to do (Joanna Newsom and Joni Mitchell similar to Marty Robbins for me in this respect).

This album isn’t exactly something that you would expect to find in your standard music collection I grant you, but in the end it’s albums and artists like this that shaped artists who followed. Even The Who acknowledged him as an influence in their 2006 song God Speaks of Marty Robbins. So yes, even if country music isn’t your thing this is one of those influential albums that won’t leave you cold for while it may be very dated it has somehow managed to become dateless. It harks back to a part of history that have been the subject of children’s games for generations and as such speaks to past and future generations in the same way.

Thus, Marty Robbins, I believe your work may live on in ageless dignity.

7.0/10

Fab Four:
Big Iron
They’re Hanging Me Tonight
El Paso
The Master’s Call

#21 Kind Of Blue by Miles Davis

Another day and another jazz album… oh wait. It’s time for Kind Of Blue today. Awesome.

I say awesome because this is an album that I am already acquainted before I started this project and so will be the victim of a surprise jazz attack. Also, this is Miles Davis who’s previous album in the list, Birth Of The Cool, was rather enjoyable.

Thus here we have Kind Of Blue which critics tend to agree is Miles Davis’ masterstroke of an album, and it has been the one I have preferred of his thus far. This may change though since there are two more of his albums to be reviewed, both of which released at least a decade after this one… so will look forward to any progression in sound that there may be. I will be the first to admit though that the write-up surrounding Bitches Brew is a little bit daunting.

The thing that sets this album apart from other jazz albums is that nothing on it jars at all. This is an album focused more on smoothing and concordant sounds that please the ears rather than a discordant mess that give me a headache. (Yes Sabu that is my bony finger is pointed in your direction for that garbage heap of a track you named Simba.)

While as a whole this is one top album there is one clear favourite track for me on this album, the opener So What. While the whole album itself is incredibly smooth and pleasing to the ears this track to me is the epitome of smooth jazz. For over 9 minutes it is able to stay smooth with subtle nuances changing here and there whilst never forgetting the central melody. Yet this is still recognisable as a jazz/blues track. How does Miles Davis do it? I tell you why, he’s plain awesome.

Seriously, after the audacity behind the naming of the titling of yesterdays album I only have one thing to say. Mr. Charles… I believe that Mr. Davis requires the title you gave yourself. He is far more deserving of being called a genius than you are. You know it to be true.

There is no doubt in my mind that this deserves to be up there in the ratings. It’s not really been a bad run of albums since Billie Holiday arrived on the scene :).

9.0/10

Fab Four:
It’s a only a five-track album.
So you can listen to the whole blasted thing.
Do so in an armchair while toasting a brandy.
Or maybe when lying in a hammock.
Not a good idea for running on a treadmill… I can not see that ending well.

#20 The Genius Of Ray Charles by Ray Charles

I do believe that my first exposure to Ray Charles was when I was much younger and he appeared on Sesame Street. I don’t remember in what capacity it was but for some reason that particular pairing was the first that cropped up when I was looking up this album on Spotify. So yea, I did not exactly have the most normal first exposure to Ray Charles but it was definitely a happy one… even if Channel 4, to my shock and dismay, no longer show Sesame Street. Even if they did contribute to my phobia of broccoli.



Anyway, back to the topic at hand.

When you release an album with the precursor The Genius Of… you need to have some stones as if it turned out to be a bit of a duff album you would end up as a laughing stock crying into your piano. But don’t worry then-wunderkind Quincy Jones is in charge of the song arrangement so all should indeed be well. So what do we have here:

Revolutionary Album? Check
More Jazz? Check
Rhythm and Blues? Check
Another of these revolutionary albums that leaves me cold? Checkaroonie.

Much like the case of The ‘Chirping’ Crickets’ this is just an album that just doesn’t capture my imagination that much. It’s ok as background music but the moment you bring your head back up to listen to the music and it appears that not much has really happened since you last took notice.

Also one thing that I guess has been lost since vinyl was ceremoniously left behind in favour of cassettes and discs is the whole flipping of the record. That is something that would have worked well here with one side being mostly ballads and the other being more up beat and jazzy. When just listening to it in one uninterrupted run (excluding adverts) it feels that instead of two clear sides it is more like the car has made a sudden detour en route to the Sherbet factory to take a sleep under the nearest tree. Weird analogy I know but that’s what this album made me envisage.

Don’t get me wrong, there are a few good songs dotted here and there, such as Let The Good Times Roll and 'Deed I Do, but for an album with the audacity to be labelled as the work of a genius it just falls a bit flat for me.

5.5/10

Fab Four:
Let The Good Times Roll
‘Deed I Do
Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Cryin’
Come Rain or Come Shine

#19 Sings The Gerswin Songbook by Ella Fitzgerald

Where some albums are a sprint, such as Elvis’s eponymous debut, there are others that are just a marathon. None on the 1001 list fits this bill more so than Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook which at a running time of about 3 and a quarter hours is nearly 20 minutes longer than the second longest album on the list (The Magnetic Fields’ 69 Love Songs) which I will also be listening to one day. The strange thing being that both of these albums are ones that I had actually listened to in their entirety before I even began this project. Thus I don’t really feel guilty for listening to these only once. Hurrah!

A listening tactic for this album, at least for me, is not to be focussing solely on this album but do something else where music provides an excellent accompaniment. Personally, I decided to start some research on my dissertation for this attempt but before I just had it on my iPod as I went into town one weekend to do some grocery shopping and a bit of a finagle around the shops.

Ella Fitzgerald is, as always, brilliant and versatile but it’s really weird how out of the last four albums there have been three very different forms of female vocaliss. I mean you have Billie Holiday who has emotionality with none of the power and then there was Sarah Vaughan with perfect pitch and control but somehow on the really slow songs such as Embraceable You falls slightly short of what you would expect. Finally we now have Ms. Fitzgerald whose voice is definitely the most captivating of the three. Not because she has a better voice than Sarah Vaughan or a better degree of emotionality than Billie Holiday but because out of the three she is the best at inspiring joy. You listen to songs like Things Are Looking Up and you can not help but dance a little bit in your chair. In my opinion this was where her strength was truly found.

I understand that this album is more of a 3CD collection rather than one continuous work, or at least I hope it is. As no matter how amazing Ella is, after a while you drift in and out of noticing it. After all, when I watch long-ass films such as Gone With The Wind I need to take a brief respite half-way through to recharge my batteries so I can pay attention again. This is a tactic that I took here and I believe that it helped me to enjoy the album more.

However, there are many songs that could easily be left out for the sake of the sameness. Yet this can not be done since this is Ella singing the Gerswin Songbook in what I believe is almost in it’s entirety. This as such provides the album’s greatest strengths and weaknesses. Therefore the rating may not be as high as it could be, or I would like it to be considering the talent on offer here, but it can not be as high as Lady In Satin, At Mister Kelly’s or Song’s For Swingin’ Lovers as it is such a mountain to climb and the idea of a complete re-listen is rather daunting and to be honest a bit of a turn-off.

8.0/10

Fab Four:
Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off
Things Are Looking Up
Stiff Upper Lip
I Got Rhythm

#18 At Mister Kelly's by Sarah Vaughan

For those of you who read my review of Ellington At Newport you will remember the slating that I gave that live album. The main problems that I had with it being three-fold: the length, the M.C. and a just a general lack of wow factor from the music. So as you can expect my hopes were not too high at the prospect of another live album.

However, one thing that At Mister Kelly’s has in spades which sets it above Duke Ellington’s is sheer unadulterated charisma, which is impressive due to this only being a recording. Sarah Vaughan really did possess this by the barrel-full as she flaunts her practically flawless voice with a wink and a nod as now and then she messes up. Ok, I’m being mean as it only occurs twice (Willow Weep For Me and How High Is The Moon) but the way that she just carries on with such humour and panache really do distinguish her from performers nowadays. You can not imagine Amy Winehouse having the wherewithal to completely improvise the rest of a song as you completely forgot the words. Sarah Vaughan actually has to do this on How High Is The Moon and in doing so gives the song such a great depth of character that really reflects her as an artist compared with the others on the album.

In fact, I found myself looking forward to the mess-ups or the brief interludes between the songs. Whether it be the cheekiness and dirty laugh before Dream or her addressing the crowd as she starts on the closer I Cover The Waterfront. But aside from that I really still need to mention the amazing vocals, for me the songs that really illustrate this the best are the aforementioned How High Is The Moon, where she scats her way through, and I’m Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter. The latter of these may have one mouthful of a title but she never minces her words, in fact it simply provides the platform for her vocals to soar.

I am really tempted to give this a really high mark. However, I won’t for the fact that there are a few songs that really act as filler. While this may not be fair as it is a recording of a live show, as pointed out in September In The Rain, and I can tell that the experience will have been breathtaking. However, with this on an iPod too much of this great night in music is sadly lost with a bit of light editing being welcome. However, not as much as was on the original release of the album compared with the re-issue as I can imagine that too much of the music was lost.

Then again, I can really imagine a lot of repeated listening occurring here. Which is always a good sign, right? Oh heck. I think she deserves to be on par with Lady In Satin.

Great album. Needs to be experienced even just as a means of gaining a greater knowledge of the musical landscape of the fifties.

9.0/10

Fab Four:
Willow Weep For Me
Honeysuckle Rose
How High Is The Moon
I’m Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter

Anyone Can Comment :)

I only just noticed that I didn't allow everyone to comment, that is if they wanted to.

That has now been rectified :)

I look forward to hearing your opinions.

#17 Jack Takes The Floor by Ramblin' Jack Elliott

Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. Now if that name doesn’t conjure up the image of cartoon rednecks in the styling of Family Guy I don’t know what will. Also it’s sentences like that which make me wonder how prejudiced I really am. Especially since I found out later on that he was born and raised into a Brooklyn-based Jewish family. Which goes to prove that you never really can tell.

I have always been a bit of a sucker for folk music, however I have never really listened to the old stuff. For me it’s all modern stuff like Joanna Newsom, Sufjan Stevens and M. Ward. So it was greatly reassuring that upon the strumming of the first notes of San Francisco Bay Blues that I knew that this was going to be a record that I would like. None of these songs would feel at all out of place in the soundtrack of O’ Brother Where Art Thou?, with there being a great similarity between the track Mule Skinner Blues and Man Of Constant Sorrow.

One thing that comes across very well is the apparent impromptu nature of the music with the short introductions that pepper this album. Also the prompts that occur during songs, the most obvious examples being in New York Town.

As a whole this is one of those albums where you are able to so easily discern what it would later influence. However, unlike The ‘Chirping’ Crickets this album hasn’t really dated at all. In fact it sounds like it could have been made in the last ten years. It’s only some parts of the production that give it away to being as old as it in fact is. A very impressive album really.

7.5/10

Fab Four:
The Boll Weevil
New York Town
Mule Skinner Blues
Salty Dog

#16 Lady In Satin by Billie Holiday

While it is great relief for me to have finally reached an album where female vocals take the centre stage it is in a way a bit double-edged. The thing with Billie Holiday is that even though in her hay-day she never had the most powerful of voices her trump card was always the emotion she was able to convey. It is for this reason that she has been remembered and why her recordings of Strange Fruit and Gloomy Sunday (a song that urban legend has linked to multiple cases of suicide) live on in infamy.

Her life was, by any standards, a troubled and highly turbulent one. Raised in poverty, raped at a young age and working in the brothels until the early thirties when her voice caught the attention of a promoter. Even with all that behind her she came to be highly dependent on drugs and alcohol, and really you can not blame her for succumbing to them.

Anyway, back from the ramble about musical history it is time to attend to the matter at hand. Namely Lady In Satin and my thoughts regarding it. The first thing that I believe needs to be said is that it is anything but an easy listen. Due to years of substance abuse this 43 year old woman sounds old beyond her years with her voice being reduced to a reedy state. However, where most artists would probably count their losses she ploughs on through and gives possibly the most emotional set of recordings you could find. You just believe everything she says, this woman whose voice, and body, had been reduced to one belonging to a woman beyond her years. You feel her pain. This is definitely the most disarming thing about Lady In Satin and reflects the lyrics that she wrote back in the late forties:

Lady sings the blues
She’s got them bad
She feels so sad
Wants the world to know
Just what the blues is all about

With the rating I know I am about to give this album it feels stupid to outline a few of the tracks as highlights when the whole thing needs to be taken in one fair dose. However I would like to specifically mention the opener I’m A Fool To Want You as well as Violets For My Furs, which occupies the midpoint. Both of these are the prime example of the use of this broken blues-soaked voice that is backed by sweeping orchestral movements which together give her the space to truly soar.

9.0/10

Fab Four:
I’m A Fool To Want You
Violets For My Furs
It’s Easy To Remember
But Beautiful

#15 Dance Mania by Tito Puente

So here I sit as I enter 1958, playing Pokémon Platinum on my DS (yes I am a Pokénerd), it is time for me to tackle Tito Puente’s Dance Mania. It’s so sad that my only previous exposure to this fair guy is via his cameo on The Simpson’s two-episode arc Who Shot Mr. Burns.

Please would all fans of Tito Puente not take any offence when I say that this music sounds identical to what my Sims on Sims 2 listen to recreationally, listen to Cuando Te Vea and you’ll see what I mean.

While I can not say that I did not enjoy this album I can not really say that I enjoyed it either. The idea of a second listen actually seemed like a chore and on neither of the listens could I discern a standout track that I could rave about. Or even one that I could really bitch about.

All in all. Highly mediocre. And while I do not expect all of these albums to be so good that they set my world alight there should at least be some element of enjoyment, an ability to see how this influenced music or at least some overall impression. But there is none. Zilch. And from the festive cover this came as a profound disappointment.

4.0/10

#14 Here's Little Richard by Little Richard

And here we are at the end of 1957 and I find it rather interesting that on this musical odyssey that I have now encountered an openly gay singer, when it was still technically illegal, before I listen to an album where a woman is the singer. There’s no real point to this observation, it’s just something that I found to be of particular interest.

Here’s Little Richard starts off with Tutti Frutti, a song that is still residing in recent memory due to the Elvis Presley cover on his eponymous debut. Again an interesting idea that the cover appeared on an album released a full calendar year before original artist‘s debut. The extra year being worth the wait with Little Richard’s spirited version running rings around the Elvis version.

The title itself is like a declaration of intent ushering in a new wave of musical ideal. I mean, let’s face it, there had not really been anything like Little Richard before as illustrated by the abundance of jazz and crooning. Rock & Roll had only just begun to cut it’s first teeth with the release of this and The ‘Chirping’ Crickets. However when it comes to overall impact and listening pleasure there is no real competition. Little Richard all the way people.

Tracks such as Tutti Frutti, Baby, Ready Teddy and Slippin’ & Slidin’ (Peepin’ & Hidin’) and boisterously energetic tracks which reap more and more rewards on a repeat listen. I will also not deny that at one point during Long Tall Sally I found myself dancing over to the kitchen to get myself a drink.

A truly amazing debut that is not yet available on Spotify unless you cobble together the tracks which I have done for anyone who wants to have a listen. By anyone I mean everyone. He has too amazing and unusual a voice to be ignored peeps.
8.5/10 Fab Four:
Tutti Frutti
Ready Teddy
Slippin’ & Slidin’ (Peepin’ & Hidin’)
Jenny, Jenny


Link to playlist