70's Classic Albums Discussion (now featuring: ZZ Top)

[jingle.boy]

All killer, no filler.  My #3 Rush album (behind AFtK and MP).  Just glorious.  Took me a while to be able to digest the title track after I got deeply 'in' to Rush ('89), as I had gravitated to Xanadu as my fav long-epic of theirs.  Hemispheres (song) is a little bloated, but it's still on the Rush A-list.  La Villa is absolutely God-tier, and a top 20 song of all time in the jingle books (and 2nd fave Rush song)

[Stadler]

What's number one?  Should I know that?

[jingle.boy]

What's number one?  Should I know that?

Well, actually ... I typo'd and there's a virtual tie for #1 (making LVS #3).

Red Barchetta and Xanadu

[The Walrus]

Xanadudu

[TAC]

Red Barchetta and Xanadu

You and I are in total agreement on this!

I rate Red Barchetta my #1, and Xanadu right behind it.

[Stadler]

Huh; LVS is my number one, but both those others are right up there (especially Red Barchetta; that to me is almost the perfect song.)

[TAC]

Been doing a lot of driving in the hills north of San Diego this week, and every time the road starts to decline I am totally thinking "...goes screaming through the valley...." 

[jingle.boy]

Red Barchetta and Xanadu

You and I are in total agreement on this!

I rate Red Barchetta my #1, and Xanadu right behind it.

[Stadler]

Why is Jingle under the desk high-fiving TAC?  That's what that is, right? 

[TAC]

Disclaimer:

I have nothing to do with that gif. I don't even know who that is.

[TAC]

Just kidding. I know who Jingle.Boy is.

[King Postwhore]

Just kidding. I know who Jingle.Boy is.

You know him by his mole?

[TAC]

Um...not that well, apparently.

[King Postwhore]

 

[KevShmev]

Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run



I will admit that I am not much of a fan of Springsteen. I do like a dozen or so of songs, although I rarely reach for them on their own.  From this classic album, I do like the title track, and Jungleland is a heckuva song as well.  I never quite got the love for Thunder Road, although there is a nice melody in there somewhere.  The crappy sound of this album doesn't do it any favors.  I remember very little about the deeper cuts, all of which I heard years ago.  Let's see if there are any fans of the Boss here who will talk this one up.

[jingle.boy]

Mrs.jingle is a big fan of his big albums, but I'm mostly ambivalent - and he absolutely lost me after Born in the USA.  I do absolutely love this album - it just cracked into my original Top 50.  Jungleland is a top 100 all-time song for me.  That and the other big-2 are god-tier for me, while the rest is still excellent, despite a big dropoff in quality - simply because the other 3 are so damn awesome.  She's The One is probably my fave after the other 3, but there isn't a bad track on the album.  We saw him live back in '08 maybe... damn good entertainer, and the band was on fire.  Great show.

[King Postwhore]

I've always been a casual fan.  Certain songs connect to me while others, not so much.  I do recognize is genius and craft.

[Podaar]

From this classic album, I do like the title track, and Jungleland is a heckuva song as well.  I never quite got the love for Thunder Road, although there is a nice melody in there somewhere.

With the addition of enjoying 10th Avenue Freeze Out, this is basically my take.

Edit: Also, "You ain't a beauty but, hey, you're alright." is not a recommended romantic line for anyone but the Boss, me thinks.

[Kwyjibo]

I will admit that I am not much of a fan of Springsteen. I do like a dozen or so of songs, although I rarely reach for them on their own.

This is me too, although I must say that I saw him twice and he puts on a good high energy show.

[KevShmev]

My brother saw him years ago when he did a tour by himself where he sang and played an acoustic the whole show, and to this day he swears that if someone would have offered him a revolver so he could have put himself out of his misery, he would have done it. 

Note: he went with his wife at the time (now ex-wife), since she is a big fan.

[Stadler]

I'm not the hugest Boss fan - I love "The Rising" and "Wrecking Ball", I really like "Born In The USA" and "Nebraska", and most of his "classic stuff" is eh - but having seen the Broadway show, there's no doubt he's one of the two or three greatest living American musical artists. 



Yeah, it was scripted, and yeah, at the start of the show he concedes he's a fraud (never having "worked" any of the jobs he writes about) but his ability to captivate is unparalleled.  I've seen him in arenas, stadia and the theater, and for this one, for most of the show, I could hear him raw (that is, without the amplification) and I was very impressed.  VERY impressed.   

[Kwyjibo]

My brother saw him years ago when he did a tour by himself where he sang and played an acoustic the whole show, and to this day he swears that if someone would have offered him a revolver so he could have put himself out of his misery, he would have done it. 

Note: he went with his wife at the time (now ex-wife), since she is a big fan.

The second time I saw him, he had a small acoustic set in the middle of the show and yes, that wasn't really that interesting. But with the whole band he was seriously rocking.

[KevShmev]

Stevie Wonder - Innervisions



I will admit that I do not listen to soul or R&B that much, but whenever I do, Stevie Wonder is one of my go-to artists, and this album is a major classic.  I remember seeing on VH1 Classic about 20 years ago a live version of Living for the City, which I had never heard before, and it absolutely floored me; what an amazing song.  I eventually got Innervisions and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it, since, as stated before, this kind of music is usually not my thing, but like I always say, good music is good music!  He's Misstra Know It All, the album closer, might be my favorite song by Stevie Wonder.  This is really good stuff.

[Podaar]

Looking at the track listing, I don't believe I've ever heard a song of this album. I'll remedy that today.

[Max Kuehnau]

Stevie Wonder - Innervisions



I will admit that I do not listen to soul or R&B that much, but whenever I do, Stevie Wonder is one of my go-to artists, and this album is a major classic.  I remember seeing on VH1 Classic about 20 years ago a live version of Living for the City, which I had never heard before, and it absolutely floored me; what an amazing song.  I eventually got Innervisions and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it, since, as stated before, this kind of music is usually not my thing, but like I always say, good music is good music!  He's Misstra Know It All, the album closer, might be my favorite song by Stevie Wonder.  This is really good stuff.

this is my favourite album of his (along with Songs In The Key Of Life of course), I consider him to be a genius (and I rarely use that word)

[Max Kuehnau]

Looking at the track listing, I don't believe I've ever heard a song of this album. I'll remedy that today.

I'm sure you know Living For The City though? (btw Toto covered it in 2002 and they did it really well)

[Kwyjibo]

Don't know many Stevie Wonder songs, some I like, some not so much, don't know if he's a genius, but he's also responsible for one of the musical crimes of the century:

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday 

No matter the noble intention but that song is atrocious.

[Max Kuehnau]

Don't know many Stevie Wonder songs, some I like, some not so much, don't know if he's a genius, but he's also responsible for one of the musical crimes of the century:

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday 

No matter the noble intention but that song is atrocious.

"crime", maybe yes, but even these are difficult (harmonically speaking, I've analysed some of his stuff in music college, the guy knows his onions)

[Stadler]

Mrs.jingle is a big fan of his big albums, but I'm mostly ambivalent - and he absolutely lost me after Born in the USA.  I do absolutely love this album - it just cracked into my original Top 50.  Jungleland is a top 100 all-time song for me.  That and the other big-2 are god-tier for me, while the rest is still excellent, despite a big dropoff in quality - simply because the other 3 are so damn awesome.  She's The One is probably my fave after the other 3, but there isn't a bad track on the album.  We saw him live back in '08 maybe... damn good entertainer, and the band was on fire.  Great show.

I hear you, on "lost me after BitUSA" (by the way, "Downbound Train" is perhaps my favorite Bruce tune).   But what from after that have you heard?    You should give Wrecking Ball a try.    I wasn't expected much, but it blew me away.  That's  good record, by any standard.   

By the way, there's a video out there of Bruce on "VH1 Storytellers" and he is very humble and makes a joke about the Manfred Mann version of Blinded By The Light.   The original lyric is "cut loose like a deuce" (it's a car reference), but MM changed it to "revved up like a deuce", and it SOUNDS like "wrapped up like a douche" instead.  It's actually kind of funny. 

[The Walrus]

By the way, there's a video out there of Bruce on "VH1 Storytellers" and he is very humble and makes a joke about the Manfred Mann version of Blinded By The Light.   The original lyric is "cut loose like a deuce" (it's a car reference), but MM changed it to "revved up like a deuce", and it SOUNDS like "wrapped up like a douche" instead.  It's actually kind of funny.

I was just listening to that last week. I've never understood how nobody pointed that out and changed it. It's not even subtle, it's hard to even call it a misheard lyric because of how audible the 'sh' is. Enunciate, motherfucker, lest your song be a joke for future generations. I mean, it already sucks, you don't need to throw that cherry on the sundae.

[RoeDent]

Innervisions is one of two Stevie Wonder albums I own, along with Songs in the Key of Life. Favourite tracks are Golden Lady, Don't You Worry Bout A Thing (the intro is ridiculous, but the rest of the song more than makes up for it), and He's Misstra Know It All.

[Podaar]

Listened to Innervisions this morning. It was very enjoyable. Still, not something I'd tend to revisit.

I was wrong, though. I had heard Higher Ground and Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing before.

[Cool Chris]

Was expecting something by Stevie Nicks. 

[Max Kuehnau]

Was expecting something by Stevie Nicks.

Rumours, by any chance?

[Cool Chris]

Ha, no. Just if I am thinking 70s music and someone says Stevie! my mind goes to her, not Stevie Wonder.