Blood, Sweat & Tears S/T - BS&T’s breakthrough second LP is still their best for me;
T.Rex ‘Tanx’ - probably Bolan’s last consistently enjoyable album before ego and drugs took their heavy toll;
Juicy Lucy ‘Lie Back And Enjoy It’ - decent second album from this later period blues boom act, featuring a rather nifty version of Zappa’s ‘Willie The Pimp’;
Paul Weller ‘Fat Pop’ - rarely a day has passes since its release that Weller’s latest has escaped my CD drawer. Great modern pop just seems to fall from his fingers these days;
Buzzcocks ‘Another Music In A Different Kitchen’ - which I once adored to obsession. It still sounds good, but just that: a bit over-produced and soulless. Maybe it’s that I prefer the more primal Devoto takes on ‘Time’s Up’;
Gong ‘Continental Circus’ - more a film music commission than a bona fide Gong album, this pre-Camembert LP features some soundly rocking axework from Daevid Allen, with no hint of Radio Gnome or pot head pixies. Includes a great early take on ‘Fohat Digs Holes In Space’ called ‘What Do You Want?’ This really is a jewel of a record and one that (as a certain eminent former contributor to this website has confirmed) even non-Gong heads can enjoy;
The Doors ‘Absolutely Live’ - which according to Paul Rothchild was anything but “absolutely” live, featuring a multitude of edits throughout. Who cares? In its original 2 LP format, it’s a gas and, unlike most “live” albums, isn’t just a hit fest and lets you hear the band more than an annoying crowd (when they do pipe up, Morrison orders ‘em to SHUT UP!) And remember, this came out in the middle of 1970, a long time before ‘Made In Japan’, ‘Kiss Alive!’, or most (any?) lauded live rock double albums on our shelves. I swear Mr Mojo Risin’ is in my room when he rips into ‘Five To One’, such is the fidelity of the recording. And Robbie’s solo... Granville, fer fer fetch a cloth. And here’s a sobering thought: if you take away the age of this album from the year of its release, the hippest music you could be listening to would be by the Dixieland Jazz Band. No shame in that, mind;
Various ‘Hits Greatest Stiffs’ - for whatever reason, a LP that has thoroughly entertained me ever since I was sixteen years of age. “Contains no hit singles whatsoever”. Maybe that’s why I love it so;
The Beatles ‘Let It Be’ - always a tarted up Beatles piss-about for me than an album in its own right, there’s still enough good stuff here to justify its place. In fact, I often wonder how much better songs like ‘Two Of Us’, ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’ ‘I Me Mine’ and ‘Dig A Pony’ would have sounded with a full studio (and non-Spectorised) approach. And with none of the annoying Lennon wank between the songs. Alas, we’ll never know. But ‘For You Blue’ is such a gas anyway - even more so in the film version;
Kiss ‘Off The Soundboard: Tokyo 2001’ - Given their past live album history, I’m dubious as to just how untouched this album is, but... what the hell, it rocks. Hard. Paul may be the star man but Ace is the star here. What a shame he left soon afterwards;
Iron Maiden ‘The Number Of The Beast’ - hadn’t played this for at least 30 years before this week. My opinion hasn’t changed: it’s tight, confident and dull as ditchwater. Though I respect Bruce Dickinson, I feel that Paul Di’Anno brought so much more punk attitude to the party. I therefore remain attached to Maiden’s first two LPs in preference to this, and indeed anything else the band has issued since;
Faust ‘The Faust Tapes’ - I see a new, even more complete, listing of track titles for this has emerged in advance of a new box set of Faust’s 70s output. So what? Ignorance is bliss, and part of the appeal of this near-perfect album is not knowing where the parts originate or what they’re called. I suspect that many titles have been retrospectively applied anyway;
Charles Mingus ‘Mingus Ah Um’ - quirky and innovative big-band music that belies its sixty-odd years;
Dave Brubeck Quartet ‘Time Out’ - from the same momentous year as the aforesaid, I’ve always thought that the classic Brubeck quartet made several better records than this famous outing but what the hell, I love it anyway;
Jan Garbarek Quartet ‘Afric Pepperbird’ - 51 years old and still my fave Garbarek outing by a mile. Even ECM naysayers need to hear this;
Mozart: Sonatas K 454, 304 & 378 (Olivier Stankiewicz & Jonathan Ware) - expert transcriptions for oboe of three of Mozart’s most colourful violin sonatas;
Dvorak: String Quartet Op.96 ‘American’ (Juiliard Quartet) - impressive new recording by the latest lineup of this legendary ensemble;
Brahms: Serenade no.2 (Budapest Fest Orch/Ivan Fischer) - Brahms’ Hungarian flavours are suitably emphasised in this beautifully judged new recording, a coupling with the Third Symphony which I played again this week and enjoyed for its subtle approach;
Brahms: Symphony no.4 (LSO/Claudio Abbado) - from the Italian’s more driven earlier years, this 1972 performance is well judged (if a little four-square in places) and performed. And what a work. No-one did minor key angst like ol’ Johannes;
Schubert: Symphony no.8 (VPO/Istvan Kertesz) - this 1963 record is still the most powerful performance I know of Schubert’s ‘Unfinished’ symphony, with even more heft (if not intensity) than Furtwaengler, and that’s saying something from me;
Dvorak: Symphony no.5 (BBC Scottish SO/Christoph Koenig) - idiomatic concert reading from 2014, featured on this month’s BBC Music cover disc;
Beethoven: Prometheus and Fidelio overtures (BPO/Karajan) and Fourth Piano Concerto (Pollini/VPO/Boehm) - classics from the 60s/70s DG catalogue, sounding as great as ever;
Beethoven: Symphony no.8 (Concertgebouw/Philippe Herreweghe) - well played if rather characterless performance;
Vaughan Williams: Symphony no.5 (Halle/Sir John Barbirolli) - this wartime recording has a palpable air of discovery about it and is very special, despite crumbly sound;
Vaughan Williams: Symphony no.8 (BBC SO/Andrew Davis) - VW’s penultimate symphony has a verve and bite belying its creator’s age, especially in this fine recording.
As a great man once said:
Before I sink into the
Big sleep
I want to hear
The scream
Of the butterfly...
Rock on, dear friends.
Dave x
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