Sitting on a cornflake, waiting for the van to come:
Van der Graaf Generator ‘The Least We Can Do Is Wave To Each Other’, ‘Still Life’ (2021 remix) & ‘World Record’ - that this immaculate band remained a cult while Genesis achieved world domination is one of the great unsolved mysteries of our time. Surely there was room for both. Whatever, those of us who know, know. And if you don’t, shame on you. Put it right immediately. You’ll be glad you did;
Led Zeppelin ‘Presence’ - their rockinest album, and still my fave;
The Smile ‘Wall Of Eyes’ - a more than worthy follow up to ‘A Light For Attracting Attention’, even if I’d have preferred a longer awaited successor to ‘A Moon Shaped Pool’ (EIGHT YEARS… c’mon guys!). Hard to describe or define music like this, and ain’t that the way to be. On first hearing, one track particularly grabbed me: the eight minute epic that is ‘Bending Hectic’ that veers from keyless meandering (with some inventive tuning up guitar) through to the heaviest metal via a fabulous ‘Day In The Life’ type string crescendo. If you hear nothing else from this record, you gotta try this;
Saxon ‘Hell, Fire & Damnation’ - as cliched as its title indicates, but so what. Pure, solar plexus-hitting rock to feed my jaded soul;
Bob Dylan ‘Bringing It All Back Home’ - jaw dropping greatness from 1965. I mean, 1965??? Naah;
Roxy Music ‘For Your Pleasure’ - it’s easy to forget how revolutionary this record sounded fifty years ago. Oh for that level of originality now;
The Beatles ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ - the only Fabs album of purely Lennon & McCartney originals, and a delight from start to finish, especially in un-buggered-about-with mono;
The Beatles ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ - this week concentrating on the original six track double EP, rather than the bastardised US album. Patchy, but psychedelic gold on half the tracks. I’m sure I don’t need to specify which ones to sussed dudes like you;
Shakin’ Stevens ‘Take One’ - before his bland pop years, the (not so) young Michael Barratt purveyed some highly respectable rock’n’roll records backed by great musicians like Geraint Watkins, B J Cole and Albert Lee. This 1979 album is a very decent case in point. Hot dog;
MC5 ‘Back In The USA’ - well, I had to spin this, didn’t I? Wayne’s slide on ‘Looking At You’ is as definitive as anyone could ask. Rock in perpetuity, great man;
Riverside ‘ID.Entity’ - Polish prog with more than a toe dipped in 80s pop: think A-Ha with big balls. Sounds like it could be horrendous, but believe me, it isn’t;
Richard Beirach ‘Eon’ - one of ECM’s lesser known 70s gems from an unique American pianist still regaling his art;
Bach: The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 (Robert Levin) - a Prelude & Fugue in every key, beautifully played on period keyboards that don’t shred my nerves like some…
Bach: English Suites 1 -3 (Vladimir Ashkenazy) … but isn’t it great to get back to Bach on the piano, however “authentic” it may not be. All I need to justify it is that Bach’s music moves me more than ever here;
Beethoven: Piano Sonata Op.81a ‘Les Adieux’ (Friedrich Gulda) - 1950 reading that leaves me a bit cold, sorry to say;
Beethoven: Symphonies 2, 7 & 8 and Egmont Overture (Philharmonia/Herbert von Karajan) - Karajan’s London years were (for me) his peak, with an unsurpassed hand-picked orchestra. These are pretty much benchmark readings: the Second ideally paced, the Seventh full of vim, and Beethoven’s “little one” given both power and humour. Karajan’s much lauded later Berlin readings don’t quite reach this standard for me;
Mozart: Horn Concertos 1-4 (Brain/Philharmonia/Karajan) - still the definitive recording of these delightful works. No-one since has approached the ethereal tone of Dennis Brain, the Hendrix of the French horn.
One thing we share is an ideal of beauty.
Keep yer heeds, lads and lasses
Dave x
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