Thank you for the music: Memorable Albums
Before we begin, let me say this is not intended to be my list of the best albums produced in my lifetime, so don't go looking for Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road or The Beatles' Sgt Peppers. I leave that to Rolling Stone magazine who have listened to and analysed more albums that I've had hot dinners and have come up with the ultimate Top 500 album list. These are either the gems, often stumbled upon by accident, that have brought me hours of listening pleasure, or albums which for a variety of reasons, hold a special place in my collection. By sharing them with you, I hope you'll take the plunge, look them out and let them bring you the same enjoyment and listening pleasure they have brought to me.
Any Day Now: The Songs of Bob Dylan
(Vanguard/1968) Joan Baez
My first job after leaving school was at the Library Board of WA in Perth. On my first day checking out the place I discovered the Central Music Library, where one could not only read books about music, but listen to complete albums of music on LP records. It didn't take me long to head down there in my lunch hour and sample some of the goodies on offer. Wanting to hear something other than gospel, which was the music diet at home, I asked the assistant to surprise me with something 'folky', so she sat me down with a set of headphones and put on this album, for which I am eternally grateful. It has always been one of my all-time favourites.
Any Day Now: The Songs of Bob Dylan finds folk singer Joan Baez in a Nashville studio cutting a double-album of country-inflected renditions of 16 Bob Dylan's songs, many of which were unavailable from Dylan at the time except on bootlegs. One song, Love is Just a Four-Letter Word, has apparently never been recorded by Dylan himself. To select the songs for the album, Baez apparently spread Bob Dylan sheet music on the floor in front of her, closed her eyes and picked at random, until she had 16 songs. She also drew the illustrations for each of the songs that decorated the gatefold of the album (but sadly, not the CD cover).
Baez's vocal mastery in interpeting Dylan is second to none - as witnessed by a remarkable a cappella reading of Tears of Rage. Renditions like her sly, almost flirty take on You Ain't Goin' Nowhere, shows Baez not just as an interpreter, but as both a close friend and a fan. The compositions are so brilliant, and her voice and musical acompaniment so listenable, even the 11 minutes 18 seconds of Sad-Eyed Lady of The Lowlands seems to have finished too soon when the fade-out comes.
Foreshadowing the country direction of Dylan's forthcoming Nashville Skyline album and reflecting the rootsy sound of The Band's recent Music From Big Pink, Any Day Now shows that once again, Baez was in the right place at the right time in terms of the musical zeitgeist. The album is the perfect introduction to the musical genius of Bob Dylan, particularly for those who find Dylan's own unconventional half-spoken delivery a little hard to listen to.
Personnel: Joan Baez (vocals); Stephen Stills, Grady Martin, Ken Buttrey, Norbert Putnam, Junior Huskey, Hargus Robbins, Pete Drake, Hal Rugg, Pete Wade, Tommy Jackson, Buddy Spicher, Harold Bradley, Jerry Reed, Jerry Kennedy, Bill Purcell, David Briggs, Fred Carter, John Gimble.
Late Again
(Warner Bros./1968) Peter, Paul & Mary
Late Again forms the final third of a trilogy, in my mind, with Album and Album 1700. These were the last three really good studio albums released by PP&M before they "retired." Late Again is a continuation of the eclecticism that marked most of the trio's albums after In The Wind, and saw PP&M following Bob Dylan away from folk music, which by then was in its death throes. With this album, they made the seamless transition from accoustic folk to plugged-in folk-rock, and in so doing, showed themselves to be masters of popular music in its many forms of expression. Leaving On A Jet Plane, recorded by the Chad Mitchell Trio and written by their leader singer, a young and relatively unknown John Denver, was covered by Peter, Paul and Mary for this album. Being about a young soldier flying off to the Vietnam War, it was shelved as Late Again was meant to be a change of direction away from their past, which had been dominated by protest songs. Their version was released two years later and it became their last and biggest hit single.
Late Again would be their last album of new songs before going their separate ways; they would never make it into the folk-rock era of the 1970s that this album helped pioneer. Somehow, despite what could have been an awkward mix of folk, rock'n'roll, blues and soft, romantic balladry, this largely forgotten album moves effortlessly between the genres, mixing them up, and ends up being a wonderfully cohesive whole. Who would have thought that a simple folk trio would rise to such artistic heights as this?
Giving and Taking
The Seekers 1975
Seven years after The Seekers broke up in 1968 at the time lead singer Judith Durham left to start a solo career, the three 'boys' of the original Seekers met up again in Australia and decided to revive the group. They recruited Dutch-born Melbourne singer Louisa Wisseling as Judith's replacement and had immediate success with a top 10 single, The Sparrow Song/Every Road Leads Back To You, and an album, The Seekers (June 1975). These releases were followed up by three further singles, Reunion (No.14), Where In The World (No.36) and Giving & Taking, the latter being the title track of their second album in the new line-up.
Giving & Taking was every bit as good as anything they had recorded with Judith Durham and featured a more contemporary sound than before, though sales suffered in Australia at least from a public perception that they weren't the real Seekers because Judith was no longer the lead singer. Louisa, who in every way was equal to the task, had given the group a totally different but equally professional sound which had been perfected by the time this excellent album was in the can. Bruce Woodley had been honing his skills as a songwriter, and Giving & Taking became a showcase for his latest compositions. Giving & Taking, Part of You and the Bee Gees' composition Country Lanes are the highlight tracks.
Sadly, Bruce left The Seekers in June 1977 to concentrate on songwriting and production and Buddy England took his place. Within a year, Athol Guy had left, being replaced by Peter Robinson. By the next album - All Over the World (1978) - Cheryl Webb had replaced Louisa, who had left to start a family. The group disbanded in 1981, at which time only one original Seekers (Keith Potger) remained. Sadly, neither of Louisa Wisseling's Seekers albums have thus far been released on CD. Louisa proved to be a more than adequate replacement for Judith Durham and deserves better than the footnote she is so often given in the history of the group.
Earth Song / Ocean Song
(Apple/1970) Mary Hopkin
Discovered by Paul McCartney who brought her success producing her biggest hit, Those were The Days, Welsh songstress Mary Hopkin is more folk-oriented here than on her previous recordings. This remains to this day the album Mary is most pleased with, considering it to be more her style than any of her other work. Earth Song/Ocean Song, which has a perhaps unintentional theme of finding inner peace, features Danny Thompson on double bass, Ralph McTell on guitar, Tony Visconti on recorder (the wind instrument, not the tape deck) and Dave Cousins from The Strawbs on guitar. The album's release marked the end of her tenure with Apple. Mary temporarily retired from recording soon after, marrying Tony Visconti, the producer of this album, and mostly left the music business to bring up her children.
Included in this set are interpretations of Ralph McTell's Streets of London, Cat Stevens' The Wind and Gallagher & Lyle's International. My favourite is How Come The Sun, an exquisitely performed Tom Paxton composition featuring the unusual combination of Mary's distinctive voice, 12-string guitar (hauntingly played by Ralph McTell) and cello, played by Clive Antree, which, when played together here, still gives me goose bumps. Another standout is Silver Birch and Weeping Willow, about finding comfort in your own company when you can't count on others (or is it really just about watching a sunset? You decide!). Every song is enhanced by skillfully played accoustic instruments, meaningful lyrics and Mary's lilting voice that soothes the soul like hot tea with honey.
Whales & Nightingales
(Elekra/1971) Judy Collins
When you listen to Whales & Nightingales the big question is which song do you find more haunting, her crystal clear version of Amazing Grace or Farewell to Tarwathie, which is sung over the accompaniment of Humpback Whales - both sung a capella. The latter track was truly innovative and inspiring, and has not dated in the slightest. The glorious soprano voice never falters; the quality of any Judy Collins album is always enhanced by the choice of songs and this one is no exception. This time around we have Bob Dylan's Time Passes Slowly and songs by Jacques Brel (Marieke) and Pete Seeger (Oh Had I a Golden Thread), as well a nice little original composition (Sons of).
My favourite, after the a capella masterpieces, is Song for David, written by fellow folksinger Joan Baez to her husband who was in gaol at the time for burning his draft card in protest at the Vietman War. Judy Collins music invoked (and still does) the life and times of the late 1960s. The beautiful instrumentation, Judy's unique, haunting voice and the lyrics still have the power to send tingles down my spine.
Two Rooms
(Mercury/1991) Various artists
A tribute album, this time to the songwriting skills of Elton John and Bernie Taupin. There are actually some clunkers here (tribute covers, not songs), like Sinead O'Connor's woeful overdone Sacrifice and Rod Stewart's soul-less rendition of Your Song, however they are more than made up for by Wilson Phillips' superior (to Elton's) recording of Daniel; the Beach Boys' Crocodile Rock perfectly evokes the 50s; Tina Turner's The Bitch Is Back could well have been written for her; Hall & Oates' Philadelphia Freedom runs rings arlound Elton's original.
Bon Jovi's Levon is perhaps the best song this band of boring metalheads ever did; Eric Clapton's Border Song is excellent, as is Phil Collins' Burn Down The Mission and quite unexpected from a man who has recorded some of the world's most boring covers. I'm not generallly a fan of cover/tribute albums, but this is one of the few that earned itself a place in my record collection.
Brothers In Arms
(Vertigo; Warner Bros/1985) Dire Straits
Brothers in Arms was the fifth studio album by British rock band Dire Straits. Propelled by MTV video airplay, it was their most successful recording. The first half of the album is a development of their unique brand of arena rock which had evolved in their music since the 1980 album Making Movies, while the second half consists of more folk-influenced material. The whole album maintains the original Dire Straits' bluesy and laid back guitar-based sound whilst retaining a more lavish and bombastic production and overall sound.
Brothers in Arms was one of the first albums to be directed at the CD market, being the first full digital recording (DDD) released. Money For Nothing has one of the greatest guitar riffs of all time. Your Latest Trick is every 80's soft rock cliche somehow shoehorned into one song. The second half of the album is mainly fillers that haven't aged well, but the first three tracks are so good and Mark Knopfler's Dylanesque singing and guitar playing so hot, it almost doesn't matter.