 The Byrds always follow the Beatles on my record shelf. Mostly because they both take up some serious space. Also because, in the beginning, the Byrds were inspired by the Beatles. Roger McGuinn was a total folkie at the time but he brought that unmistakable jangly 12 string sound that the band became famous for. Gene Clark wrote all those great tunes that you still hum in the shower and then the band's vocal harmonies became synonymous with the Southern California coast where it all happened. I like this first album a lot, the staff: McGuinn, Clark, Hillman, David Crosby (Pre CSN) and Michael Clarke on drums changed as the years passed and we'll get to that when I talk about "Sweetheart Of The Rodeo" and the Gram infusion . "Mr Tambourine Man" was embraced at first for the Dylan covers but, as time passed, songs like Here Without You, and I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better and I Knew I'd Want You garnered the attention they deserved. Gene Clark should be partly credited with making the early Byrds (get it) what they were, He wrote some very enduring songs. For the rest, they were a tight band with stellar vocal harmonies and great musicianship.
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Saturday, 17 January 2009 13:50 |
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The BEATLES- Rubber Soul
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 Recorded in just over four weeks, "Rubber Soul" was released in 1965 and immediately regarded as an artistic achievement of the highest level. I don't know about any of that, I just love how it jump starts your groove with Drive My Car and then it takes a sharp right turn into Norwegian Wood featuring George on Sitar (This was about when he was inspired by Indian music and took lessons from Ravi Shankar). Apparently, the song is about an affair that John had, written cryptically so his wife wouldn't figure out (Uh, how dumb was she?). That, and Girl might be Lennon's best ballads. Michelle, Looking Through You, and You Won't See Me are what's become enduring classic Paul McCartney and In My Life was the last song that John and Paul wrote together before their friendship turned sour, and, considering that, how very poignant. Rubber Soul seems to me to be the mpoheads emergence from Beatlemania and marks their plunging themselves into serious, ponderous, thoughtful songwriting.
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Wednesday, 14 January 2009 15:47 |
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The Doors- Strange Days
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 Moving along to other 40(ish) year-old albums. I present to you "Strange Days". People might say that the Door's first was their best but those of us who like to cross over to the dark side and wallow in a Morrison induced funk seem to enjoy "Strange Days". Besides the catchier and more accessible Love Me Two Times and People Are Strange, there's a mixed bag of Morrison at his most poetic and theatrical and visceral. The atmospheric Horse Latitudes is like being at a Poetry Brawl and the eleven minute When The Music's Over is erotically political and self-indulgent in a way that only Morrison could pull off. It's hard to listen to the Doors and not feel the tragedy that befell Morrison but I sometimes think that it adds to the poignancy of their work. Ray Manzarek's signature organ is everpresent on this album and I think he added so much more to the doors than he's often given credit for. It must have been hard to watch Jim gyrate in his tight leather pants while he plunked away at his organ behind him. This LP is one of those timeless things that I'll be listening to till the end of time.
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