What I heard....8/12/09

"Naturally, I'll say it's the wine." The Beastie Boys are soooo underrated. Listened more closely to Hallo Nasty. I've decided that as good as their rhymes are, the instrumental tracks are even better. But I never feel as though anyone ever credits them as an "influence" on current music, do they? I missed this though: apparently the new album and tour have been delayed because Adam has cancer in his salivary glands. Speedy recovery--looking forward to new stuff.

Started in on our Beatles catalog: Let It Be, White album so far. What could I possibly say that hasn't been said before? I do hear new things every time I listen, and imagine what the interplay between the group must have been like at various times. So here's the question: if John had lived, do you think they would have reunited or toured again?

What I heard....8/10/09

Some violin and oboe concertos by Bach, then Bach's Mass in B Minor. While one of my all-time favorites, it was making me a little sleepy today after lunch.
Needed the Beastie Boys to wake me up. All I gotta say is Paul's Boutique. 'Nuff said.

What I heard....8/8/09

Checked out a few B's yesterday...
A little Bauhaus to start out the day. I often think about the "quality" of an artist's music, or how much I like the music, and the "importance" of their music historically. Sometimes I really struggle to like something deemed important (say, Cream or Led Zeppelin, for example). I usually enjoy when there's a bit of balance. I think Bauhaus does this: I like tham a fair bit, and they're a fair bit important and influential (think about all the group and solo work that grew out of them!)
Also listened to Bach's Brandenburg Concertos. I know a bit about classical--not as much as many, more than some. I like what I like, in general.

What I heard....8/7/09

On to the B's...here are the A's:

ABBA Arrival
ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits
ABC Absolutely
Abdelli Among Brothers
Abdelli New Moon
Ace Of Base Bridge
Ace Of Base Sign
Adderley Quintet, Cannonball Cannonball Adderley Quintet In San Francisco
Adderley, Julian & Coltrane, John Cannonball And Coltrane
Ade, King Sunny E Dide/Get Up
Ade, King Sunny Odu
Aerosmith Big Ones
Afghan Whigs Black Love
Afghan Whigs Gentlemen
Afghan Whigs What Jail Is Like
Afghan Whigs 1965
Afro Celt Sound System Release-Single
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 1 Sound Magic
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 2: Release
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 3:Further In Time
A-ha Hunting High And Low
Air Moon Safari
Aitken, Laurel Blue Beat Years
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo Malembe
Alemany, Jesus Cubanismo Reencanacion
Alice In Chains Dirt
Alice In Chains Jar Of Flies
Alice In Chains Unplugged
Allen, Geri Gathering
Altan Runaway Sunday
Amadaun Legacy
Amos, Tori Boys For Pele
Amos, Tori China
Amos, Tori Cornflake Girl-Single
Amos, Tori Crucify
Amos, Tori From The Choirgirl Hotel
Amos, Tori Little Earthquakes
Amos, Tori Past The Mission-Single #1
Amos, Tori Past The Mission-Single #2
Amos, Tori Pretty Good Year-Single #1
Amos, Tori Pretty Good Year-Single #2
Amos, Tori Talula-Single
Amos, Tori Tea With The Waitress
Amos, Tori Under The Pink
Amos, Tori Scarlet's Walk
Anderson, Laurie Mister Heartbreak
Anderson, Laurie Strange Angels
Animal Logic II
Ant, Adam Antics In The Forbidden Zone
Ant, Adam Wonderful
Apple, Fiona Tidal
Apple, Fiona When The Pawn...
Arcane Arcane
Archer, Tasmin Shipbuilding
Armonias de Venezuela Musica Venezolana Y De Otros Lares
Armstrong, Louis Let's Do It
Armstrong, Louis & Friends What A Wonderful Christmas
Arrested Development 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days In The Life Of...
Arrested Development Zingalamaduni
Arthur, Joseph Big City Secrets
Arthur, Joseph Come To Where I'm From
Arthur, Joseph Nuclear Daydream
Arthur, Joseph Our Shadows Will Remain
Arthur, Joseph Redemption's Son
Ash, Daniel Coming Down-Limited Edition
Ashkhabad City Of Love
Assad, Badi Chameleon
Aurora Ordinary World-Single
Avery, Teodross My Generation
Aztec Camera Love

What I heard....7/27/09

Lame. Lame Lame.

This listening project stopped in its tracks a few months back. I got busy and once I was out of the habit, it was hard to get back into it. But I'm back and ready to go.

Closing out the A's were Daniel Ash's solo effort Coming Down (held up much better than I thought) and the quirky Laurie Anderson. I once had tickets to a Laurie Anderson concert that I passed off to my brother. Strange Angels is actually one of my favorite albums of all time, with a huge, quality assist from Bobby McFerrin (sadly, he is less known for his massive talent and more for not worrying and being happy). She made a great album that was far more musical and less odd than her other efforts. Though, I gotta admit that "Sharkey's Night" on Mr. Heartbreak with William Burroughs, gruffly on "vocals," is a masterpiece.

What I heard....3/19/09

Still a little out of order....listening to Alice in Chains Dirt, Jar of Flies and Unplugged. The first two are certainly an assault, and their hits are definitely my faves. But Unpluggled is actually quite good. I kind of miss the unplugged series and concept, and it's funny how some bands like Nirvana and Alice In Chains shined.

What I heard....3/18/09

Back in the day, and even now, I've been a little obsessed with Peter Gabriel's REALWORLD record label. It's made up primarily of international music artists, so I watch carefully when a US artist is signed. So begins the collection of Joseph Arthur. I have 5 of his, and damn him, he's snuck a couple new ones in the last year or two that I don't have yet! His first, Big City Secrets, is raw, jagged and beautiful at the same time--songs like "Daddy's On Prozac" lead you that way. His next three albums, Come to Where I'm From, Redemption's Son, and Our Shadows Will Remain are nothing short of masterpieces: tightly written and played songs and thoughtful lyrics. You might recognize "In the Sun" from the movie Saved--a nearly perfect song. "Honey and the Moon," "Can't Exist" and "The Real You" are equally beautiful. But JA also still doesn't completely discard his early roughness, like "Stumble and Pain" and "Wasted." Nuclear Daydream represents a step backward in my opinion--a little too mainstream--so I will anxious to hear his latest. Final note: I listen to an Akron radio station, The Summit, online. That's where JA is from, and I can always count on them to keep me up to date on him.

What I heard....3/17/09

At the risk of gushing a little bit, I also (re)discovered Fiona Apple. I knew a couple of her more prominent songs, most notably "Criminal." I also had a stripped down version of "Never is a Promise" on a Various Artists CD. I kind of wrote her off after her 1997 MTV video awards tirade as a kind of nutter. Clearly, the most brilliant minds are a bit "touched." Both Tidal and When the Pawn... just blew me away. Both are very, very rich, sweeping and textured, well written. What I'm finding in this project is that I've come to appreciate the complete, or nearly complete, album. It's a shame that she has produced so little, because this is good stuff.

What I heard....3/16/09

I know that I mentioned the Afghan Whigs previously from an EP that is mine. Jen owns the rest of the full length albums. THIS....is why I'm doing this project. My God, they are just awesome. Black Love and Gentleman are truly their standouts. Extremely tight, well written songs with a great flow. I just don't know how I missed them for so long. Actually, some of my faves, like "I Keep Coming Back" and "Step Into the Light" don't really rock out, but are still great listens. Also listen to one of my favorite international cd's, Ashkhabad from Turkmenistan. Upbeat, funky good stuff.

What I heard....3/15/09

Today, I took a day off....

What I heard....3/14/09

Louis Armstrong Let's Do It...The Verve Years was on tap today, as well as a great CD that I bought in Venezuela from a group called Armonias de Venezuela. There's a story: while in Caracas recruiting, a group of us--20 university reps--had a looong day of school visits, college fairs, etc. We had been invited to return to one of the schools that night for a concert performance. All of us were beat, but it would have been bad form for us to ditch. It was one of those "things happen for a reason" moments. This group of doctors who play a huge variety of acoustic stringed instruments on the side just blew me away with their peppy, traditional, beautiful music! I know that some of my compadres could've done without--not quite the international music fans that I am. Actually, I think Mary puked when we got back to the hotel, so I suspect it REALLY wasn't one of her favorite nights. But I listen to this music FREQUENTLY and will hold that night as a very big one in my travels to South America.

What I heard....3/13/09

After suffering through the second Ace of Base album....a slight improvement over the first one, which still makes it crap....I delved into the Tori Amos catalog. I remember when Little Earthquakes (and even Under the Pink) came out, it seemed like an explosion, something very ground breaking like a Nirvana. It just hit a perfect spot. It still does, and that's one of the things I've been looking for specifically in this project--whether an album holds up as time passes. The songs and styles of these two albums are solid. "Crucify" and "Winter" still blow me away, as do her hits from Under.... But as I said previously when I was working through her singles and b-sides, something went wrong-and Boys for Pele is a bloated horrible mess. I think that's what kind of turned me off her, and caused me to not follow Amos besides the singles that followed. And then I listened to From the Choirgirl Hotel. Wow. This is an *excellent* complete album. It has a flow and a mood to it that is really deliberate and thoughtful. I am now very intrigued by the albums that follow....

What I heard....3/12/09

A-ha Hunting High and Low is quite good, and they put out that awesome, ground-breaking video in the heyday of MTV for "Take on Me." Back when MTV actually affected record sales. But the best song is "The Sun Always Shines on TV." All the songs are surprisingly solid though. They sold a ton of copies, though didn't really have a big catalog of albums. I think they go down as one of those bands that's probably more influential than anyone would want to admit.And Adam Ant. Another MTV staple. Who didn't want to be Adam Ant? Not as bad as I thought it would be, not as good as I wanted it to be. Antics in the Forbidden Zone is what it is: same general drum beats, same kind of naughty boy songs. But fun.

What I heard....3/11/09

Another GH album, ABC _Absolutely_. One of the great things about this exercise has been discovering things out of Jen's collection that I wasn't aware of. I knew the big hits of ABC, but found some of the lesser known songs to be outstanding. I'm always very keen on artists and songs that can seem dated, but actually do hold up. Some of the things I'm listening to are now pretty old, and ABC is no exception. Though 25 years old, "The Night You Murdered Love" and "That Was Then But This Is Now" are really standout tracks of their own. Also listened to Arrested Development's second album. Much less popular, but a far more steady musical effort than their first one.

What I heard....3/10/09

Today I listened to the very opposites in pop music. After starting this little project, I've decided that I'm going to try and determine the worst albums I listen to. There might be as many that I have to do that by letter. So we'll start with Ace of Base as an early front-runner. _The Sign_ is awful. I am absolutley astounded at how musically un-interesting this album is. There is *nothing* there. Did they really need 4 band members? At the other end, I am not too proud to admit that ABBA _Gold_ is actually pretty good. (Still sticking with the theory that GH sets fall off towards the end, but that's a quibble...) There are at least a couple of songs I haven't heard since I was about 7. and I'm amazed how certain things like a song itches this corner of your brain that hasn't been itched in 30+ years. And who knew those years of listening to Erasure's "Gimme Gimme Gimme" WASN'T actually theirs!

What I heard....3/9/09

So let's just get this out of the way. I listened to an ABBA album today. And will tomorrow as well. Today's lineup brought _Arrival_. At least tomorrow I'll listen to the GH album. But damn if that s**t didn't stick in my head all day....Mixed in were a few albums by Geri Allen, Altan, and Jesus Alemany's Cubanismo, some very serviceable Cuban big band stuff. Nothing spectacular, just solid.And the first/best album from Arrested Development. Of course, they got the Best New Artist Grammy, aka, the kiss of death. Who knew that their songs were on the charts way back in '92?? The thing is, they are kind of a riot. Rap with a message, I guess? Didn't get to "Tennessee" yet, but "Mr. Wendel" is always a good one to make you feel guilt about.....well, everything.

What I heard....3/8/09

Again, not much time to listen to anything today. Heard some of ABC's greatest hits album. Kinda forgot how good their songs were. (For some inexplicable reason, I always think of Maya when I hear ABC, which is odd: I don't remember listening to them THAT much together in college. I think it's more of a "sound" or feel that does so.) But what I noticed was that the first 80% of the songs were great, and then the last two or three fell off. Why do GH collections do that......?

What I heard....3/7/09

Not much time today to listen to anything, but on the way to pick up dinner, I went back to Laurie Anderson's _Mister Heartbreak_. An acquired taste in many senses, but I was reminded that Peter Gabriel played a big part, as well as production by Bill Laswell, of whom I am a fan. But, the album is so worth it just to hear William S. Burroughs reading for the final cut, "Sharkey's Night." Brilliant.

What I heard....3/6/09

Listened to Laurie Anderson's _Strange Angels_ driving into today, though I probably should have listened to _Mister Heartbreak_ first, chronological order and all that. I had forgotten how much I like this college-era album. Way more accessible and musical than previous outings, though still a bit quirky. Really liked the Bobby McFerrin backing vocals. The title cut is beautifully textured and wonderful. I also discovered this morning that the 3rd Afro-Celt Soundsystem album is my favorite--the one that includes "When You're Falling" with Peter Gabriel's vocals. As I write, Laurel Aitken is giving me some nice late 50's/early 60's ska, appropriate for the warmest day this year.....

What I heard....3/5/09

Besides continuing with a litte Cannonball Adderly with John Coltrane, and some King Sunny Ade, I have found myself square in the middle of some Tori Amos. Now, don't get me wrong: I think she's done some brilliant stuff. But some of the rest of it, especially B-sides, well....did we really need a T.A. version of "Humpty Dumpty" or "Home on the Range?" When she's good, she's good. Her cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is the example of the good stuff. But some of her stuff feels like she was going through a checklist: dramatic solo piano intro? Check. Quirky and/or shocking lyrics? Check. It just seems like she found some success and an audience, and then got a little ahead of herself in the "I have a bit of an ego and can do anything" department. This coming from someone blogging about his music listening and thinking people will read it. But I digress. Done with her singles, moving onto her albums, and we'll see if anything else comes up....

What I heard....3/4/09

I started out listening to an EP from the Afghan Whigs, "What Jail Is Like." I have never really known much about this band, though Jen has a couple of LP CD's. Though I like the title track and live version, the song "Mr. Superlove," blew me away. Might have to pull out Jen's LP's. Cannonball Adderly Quintet in San Francisco. Wow.