Another round applause to TAD for this week's top ten and thank you for
taking the time and effort to put it together. Perhaps had Fleetwood
Mac added Sliver Springs to Rumours that record would scored a perfect A
Plus. Clearly I think the best angry love and loss song that Stevie
Nicks ever wrote.
On the subject of The Beach Boys, 20/20 may
have been a throwaway odds and sods album but with Cabinessence and Do
It Again included I believe that record is a lost classic. I didn't
start getting into the Beach Boys untill BJ Records had a lot of their
Reprise and Capitol albums in the bargain bins and I pretty much snapped
most of them up. Donno what would have happened had Brian Wilson
issued Smile back in 69 but from what I heard on the 2005 Nonesuch Brian
Wilson Presents Smile, that album was way ahead of it's time. Mike
Love can't do a fucking thing with them, but Brian wilson made them what
they are.
On the Q of Tangerine Dream being a prog rock
band.....I have to say yes they were when Peter Bauman joined up for
their mid 70s Virgin albums. Again, i may have to get the remastered
Rubycon CD eventually.
Anyway, the highlight of Twitter was when I
lambasted Pancheros for burning their steak the last time I ate there
and called Hot Harrys Burritos the place to go but appently that didn't
set too well with Reid from Coralville who left this little note in the
Tweeter.
I'm sorry you're disappointed in the meat. Does it reassure you to know we don't serve crab? ;)
And this.
We're very crab friendly, don't you worry.
One
thing about Pancheros is that they take their food very seriously
enough to go call out The Crabb and tell him to have another go at it.
To which I did, and got a Steak Burrito over at Edgewood Rd and To Reid
at Pancheros I must say y'all cooked up the pefect burrito. Cooked
nicely and tightly wrapped but not too tight that it didn't drip all
over the place. And full of flavor too. So y'all back into my good
graces once again. So here's some shameless promotion for Iowa's very
own Panchero's. And maybe I'll take you up on the Carnitas on the next
trip.
But while Pancheros gets my approval, I can't say the same
for Taco Bell on 33rd which has fucked up my last order for the last
time. If you can't cook a decent Quasidalla (fuck I can't spell y'all
know that), then you have no business being in business. Get somebody
that knows how to cook and knows how to cook rice. The last bowl of
rice I ordered were hard as bullets. No wonder that fucking place is
empty. Sonic is kicking your ass all over the place and they been
sucking over there too.
On the subject of Courtney Love on Twitter, why do I follow her? She's interesting, happy now?
On
the subject of Madison....maybe next week I might take two days and
spend it up there biking if my back holds up. But I have two sessions
with the back therpy specialist at St Lukes so I may have to just
bargain hunt. As if I need anymore outdated media storage as Doowop
likes to say.
some micro reviews of CDs now and then.
Mike
Farris & The Roseland Rhythm Revue Featuring The McCrary
Sisters-Shout Live (INO) This is gospel soul from the former Screaming
Cheetah Wheelies lead singer whose born again but don't let that stop
you from checking out this throwback to good old Rhythm Gospel Soul.
They tear up old gospel chestnuts as Will The Circle Be Unbroken and
Precious Lord Take My Hand. The McCrary Sisters even do their own
number which moves the soul, and you also get a tamborine solo. Praise
the Lord indeed. Grade A minus
Rush-Signals (Mercury) 1982 Some
people consider this the last true classic Rush album before they went
all gloss and Peter Collins dammed near ruined them but this is actually
more fuller sounding then Moving Pictures but in all honesty I shake my
head at the way Russ gawks over most of their albums. 27 years ago, I
wouldn't bought this but today I've come to like their stuff that i
hated years ago. Geddy Lee doesn't shrieks all that much on this album
which is a good sign and the lesser known stuff does pack a punch
(Losing it, Countdown). But I did buy their single New World Man, which
ranks as one of my top three fave Rush tunes. Just don't tell Russ
otherwise he'll play them to death and I'll start hating them all over
again. Grade B
54-40 Northern Soul (True North) The latest from
one of the longer lasting Canadian Americana bands out there. Dave
Gann replaces Phil Comparelli on guitar and they don't miss a beat.
Neil Osborne still sounds like Murray Attaway and the songs have more
radio friendly beat than Goodbye Flatland but nobody knows what I'm
talking about since 54-40 doesn't get airplay in the US. Best cuts
remain Snap and The Scare Of Meaning Less which sounds a bit like Joshua
Tree U2 without the pomp. Digipak, which means a point taken away.
Grade B
Styx-The Wooden Nickel Albums (Hip O) Say what you want
about Styx their Wooden Nickel albums lies somewhere between Kansas prog
rock, and REO Speedwagon boogie before Kevin Cronin took them to ballad
land to which Dennis DeYoung took notes and made Styx less likeable
Children Of The Land, B side to Lady is typical midwest boogie but I
found myself playing that song more than I did the hit. And You Need
Love was a fine followup although like Lady was released two years after
the album came out. So they were late bloomers but The Complete Wooden
Nickel Recordings showed that Sytx were rock and roll all the way
through, but with prog rock leanings toward ELP or Kansas or Yes. Long
time ago, the FM underground station played Quick Is The Beat Of My
Heart to which I heard the song but imagine that Styx actually did it
(in fact, I though the DJ called the band STICKS which has a 45 out on
Signpost around that time), so in essence Quick Is the Beat Of My Heart
is a piece of the rock and roll puzzle songs that I've been desiring to
get in my collection. Styx 2 might be the best of the 4 albums but
Witch Wolf and Rock And Roll feeling are glorious rockers in their own
right. After the success with Lady, Styx would sign up with A and M
records to record their last classic album Equinox to which yes I gave
it a A (wot's it to ya?) and call it one of my albums that i got through
high school with. Unfortuly, the secret weapon John Curulewski would
leave after that album and Tommy Shaw would join up and Styx made the
flop Crystal Ball. Trading Curulewski's rock savvy for Shaw's pop pomp
would make me lose interest in this band. The Wooden Nickel recordings
makes me forget about the band that gave us Kilroy Was Here or Babe.
Grade B plus.
