Followup to the Top Ten Blog.
TAD-That may have been the longest comment that I have seen, must have been a good one eh? The Stan Freberg number is the one that you're thinking of, to which the singer gets locked in the closest and the bongo playing dude tells him he's too loud. I still can't recall the puppet show that KCRG put on around the early 70s but they did a skit around that. I found the CD at the Salvation Army over the weekend to which the old buzzard up there was saying I had 10 minutes to look before they closed. That store rarely has any decent CDs and although they have lots of vinyl albums the majority of them are the old religious stuff that nobody listens to and Johnny Mathis albums that looked liked they been on the interstate all night. I find a lot of the Capitol Collector Series of Mr Freberg dated and the John Martha song annoying more amusing but that one sold a ton of 78s. There was supposed to be a Collectors Series Volume 2 but I guess demand wasn't enough to warrant that.
Chance remains a varied listen although I tend to think most of Manfred Mann WB albums were like that. Nightingales and Bombers was probably their best, The Raging Silence their worst despite Blinded By The Light, one of the most overplayed songs on the radio. Warners never did them any favors by putting out that lousy best of a few years ago, they left Stranded off that thing. One thing is for certain, Manfred owes Bruce Springsteen.
Bread doesn't get their due. They made perfect radio ready ballads that still sound good 40 years on but they could rock when they want to. Hearing the opening guitar riffs of Make It To You sounded perfect on radio. I think everybody had a copy of Best Of Bread on their collection at one time but I traded mine in for the Rhino Definite Collection which has 2 CDs of all their hits, plus some rocking B sides. I never did forgive Elektra for leaving Mother Freedom off that cheapo collection......
The Spinners to me were part of a great soul renaissance that was part of the early 70s. Motown couldn't or wouldn't help them that much even when Stevie Wonder gave them their only top ten with It's A Shame. But the key was getting Phillippe Wynne into the band and moving them to Philadelphia to record with Thom Bell and the MFSB band. You can probably make a case of I'll Be Around to be more rock than soul. The 2 CD One Of A Kind compilation gives the most complete picture of mid 70s Atlantic years although Best Of The Spinners has the major hits although they should have used the longer version of Rubberband Man. I guess the wheels came off after the first Best Of Spinners (Atlantic not Motown), and when Johnny Edwards took over and Michael Zager replaced Bell as producer. Never cared much for the Working My Way Back To You/I'm Sorry or Cupid Medley that were the last top 20 hits for The Spinners. Phillipe Wynne went solo, and was working with George Clinton till he passed away from a heart attack in 1984. Meanwhile The Spinners limped on and Atlantic moved them to Mirage/ATCO for a uneven affair with Gerald McMahon. Which gave the indication that Edwards was cool but Wynne was better.
And finally Gordon Lightfoot remains one of the special singer songwriters that we have known in our time and listening to the United Artists Collection proves that he could hold his own with Bob Dylan. And had a better voice too. He survived being on Warner/Reprise for about 28 years, 20 after having his last hit Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald. And still made decent to good albums, All Music I disagree with Endless Wire being a 2 star album. It's just as good as Summertime Dream. And the recent find Shadows (1982) might be his most underrated. He almost lost his cred working with David Foster on East Of Midnight (1986) and Waiting For You (1993) was spotty at best, but the final Reprise CD 1998's Painter Passing Through finding him singing in a different pitch which is acquired taste at best, but the songs are top rated including I Used To Be A Country Singer. The Rhino Best Of Complete Greatest Hits (2002) isn't complete, there's missing UA tracks and not all WB/Reprise hits are there but the radio hits are there and is preferred to the Gord's Gold albums of the late 70's of remakes of his hits. Since leaving Warners, Goldfoot has only recorded one album but he still tours regularly. http://gordonlightfoot.com/Home.asp
The big story of the day is The White Stripes finally putting an end to their career. They haven't done much since Icky Thump except a post live album and one appearance in 2009. I wasn't a hard core fan, didn't care much for Get Behind Me Satan and the early albums were low fi garage rock for more acquired tastes. Still think the high moment was Elephant which Ball & Biscuit remains classic. Icky Thump a nice ending to the band as well. While Meg White actually settled into the married life, Jack has been keeping busy with The Dead Weather, The Raconteurs and Wanda Jackson's backing band. I don't think he's the absolute weirdo that people make him out to be but rather a genuine love of rock and roll and music in particular. It wouldn't surprise me to see Meg reunite if things don't go well in the domestic side of life but then The White Stripes have put together a good legacy of music for you to discover. I'd start with Elephant than backtrack to White Blood Cells and then on to Icky Thump. Upon a second listen White may have gone over the top with Wanda Jackson's Party Ain't Over but he did get it right on Loretta Lynn's Van Lear Rose of 2004.
And so it goes.
http://www.patrickhazell.com/LedZeppelinPage.html
On January 15, 1969 Led Zeppelin paid a visit to Iowa City and the IMU, the first time they ever played the state. I'm guessing they were promoting their first album. Anyway if you read the review the guy was either too old or not into the hard rock that was Zeppelin but he did make an interesting point that with time and material they would become better and command more attention as the established bands of that time. Fun fact: it was Led Zeppelin's second concert but it did managed to attract a few hundred kids out to see what the next big band would be.
As for The Mother Earth Blues Band, they were pretty big around the state, mostly around Iowa City since Patrick Hazell lived there. Later editions would feature Bo Ramsey and The Backsliders coming from the ashes of Mother Earth breaking up. Sonny Lott also played drums for a time. I remember him being the janitor at National Computer Systems and I would trade tapes with him to listen to. He would later play in Divin Duck, a Iowa City jam band that was popular in the 1990's. Patrick Hazell still plays as a one man blues band from time to time.
6 comments:
Hi Crabb,
Hope you are getting through that blizzard OK. I reallly like the Manna album. I had the LP around 1972, so it's been in my life for a while. Quite a bit of diversity on it, and some overlooked gems, succh as what a change. Probably rocks a little harder than the rest for a Bread album. I always thought Manfred Mann's 1979 release Angel Station was very good, as well. Waiting for the Rain is an excellent version. Great late prog album. Take care.
Crabby: I'll go along w/ Starman -- ANGEL STATION's pretty solid thru the 1st side ("Don't Kill it Carol," "Hollywood Town," "Belle of the Earth," Dylan's "You Angel You"), & in2 the 2nd ("Angelz at My Gate"), but I think it drifts off after that. But that 1st side's their most consistent, of the stuff I've heard. It actually sold fairly well, 2.... & I don't think ROARING SILENCE is terrible, there's some OK stuff on there....
Thanx 4 all your kind words/feedback, etc. Not trying 2 take over yer blog, I usually try 2 restrict total babbling 2 my own site....
Take care, & I hope U get dug-out OK....
Always great to hear from ya Starbro and TAD, no worries on how much or how big you post. I always enjoy getting other viewpoints from y'all. That way at least I know somebody is reading these blogs ;)
I do admit I haven't paid much attention to the Manfred Mann WB albums just going on what I heard so I take both of y'all word on Angel Station being very good. Chance is that one album that I always seem to get rid of only to buy it back when I see it in the dollar bins. I remember the FM station playing The Good Earth in 73 but never seen that album much in stores. I heard good things about Get Your Rocks Off, but I recall Creem Magazine bashing Watch, the 1978 effort. I donno, maybe some day I'll be more kind to the Roaring Silence but I think we can all agree WB did a terrible job on that Manfred Mann Best of they regurgitated on us.
Starbro-Manna was okay to my ears I still give it three stars but what seem okay to me is a classic to you. It's all in the ears of the beholder. I don't what it was when in high school the jokes would laugh at me if I played The Best Of Bread on the 8 Track player but I grew up listening to all of that on radio and my Aunt Cindy's record collection. Bread really great musicians and songwriters and even though James Griffin didn't get much credit or many hit singles, he did provide some rock and roll to the pop styles of David Gates. Larry knetchel and Mike Botts figured into making the music rock (along with Robb Royer who was on the first 2 Bread LPs). But next to Elton John and 3 Dog Night, Bread made some of the best forty fives of that era. Or at least that's what I think.
We made through the blizzard okay. 16 inches of snow is too much especially when it drifts over the car's hood but it was snow only and the main roads were just about cleared off Wed. But I am getting sick of the below zero temps at night. Can use a bit of that global warming ya kno? ;)
Can't type...The JOCKS in high school or for that matter THE HOODS would laugh and make snide comments when I did play Best Of Bread on the 8 Track we had up in high school but years later at the 25th reunion some of them were playing Bread.
I just winked and smiled and told them, yep eventually you'd come around and see the genius of Bread.
I got my revenge.
I agree the music is in the ear of the beholder. Bread holds such nostalgia for me, and the hits were monsters that sometimes overshadowed the other good material on the LPs. I have a German made remaster of Manna that sounds excellent. I also have a remastered Angel Station along with the original LP. I bought Angel Station on CD several years ago, and I was unhappy with the sound and took it back. The remaster sounds closer to the LP.
I know what you mean about the high school crowd. Some of my friends laughed when I played Devo's first album and the Ramones Rocket To Russia when they were brand new. They aren't laughing so much now.
Howdy Starman-Actually our HS was cool to the sounds of the Ramones. And I think I bought the DEVO record at Kmart. Some of the LPs I bought cuz of the cool cover, that's how I bought Skull Wars from The Pirates. I wished I held on the first Ramones LP since it was on the ABC/Sire rather than WB.
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