bloggedy blog: the personal weblog of a music lover and aging punk wannabe

:: Tuesday, March 09, 2004 ::

Greatest Pop/Rock Albums, Vol. 4: 70-61
On and on it goes. (For a refresher: Vol. 1: 100-91; Vol. 2: 90-81; Vol. 3: 80-71)

70. Rites of Passage, Indigo Girls
The top pick on Ganns' list. "This 1992 opus is amazing. With harmonies and lyrics that work together in brilliant unison, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have proven why, 17 years later, they're still rocking the free world." Blogger's note (and shameless plug for The Only Band That Matters): for the Indigo Girls at their finest, check out their cover of The Clash's "Clampdown" on the Clash tribute album -- RealAudio file or wav file.

69. New Boots and Panties, Ian Dury and the Blockheads
I remember hearing "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll" over and over on the college free-format station when I was a student, but other than that song I'm not too familiar with Dury's work. This ranks at the top of Richard Hall's list, so it must be worth a listen. Dury even rates a tribute album of its own.

68. Live at Budokan, Cheap Trick
One of the five greatest live albums ever created. Cheap Trick's idiot savant guitarist Rick Neilsen shines on tunes like "I Want You to Want Me," "Ain't That a Shame" and "Goodnight." Drummer Bun E. Carlos is runner up for the coolest drummer name in rock'n'roll history (to Topper Headon of The Clash, of course).

67. Tres Hombres, ZZ Top
Have mercy! The lil ol' band from Texas serves up three-man boogie rock with the best of them on this album. "La Grange" is John Lee Hooker's Delta Blues spiced up with Tex-Mex attitude. "Waitin' for the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago" brings tears to my eyes.

66. Tapestry, Carole King
A writer of great '60s pop tunes (Little Eva's "The Loco-Motion," the Monkees' "Pleasant Valley Sunday"), Carole King directed her efforts toward herself in this 1971 album and weaves a beautiful musical portrait. I was 10 when it came out, and my older sister Margo played it over and over. "So Far Away" remains a powerful song of love and yearning.

65. Quadrophenia, The Who
The lesser-known Who rock opera (after Tommy), but the better -- no, make that the best -- rock opera, according to panelist MarcV, who put it at 16 on his list.

64. Crosby, Stills and Nash
Classic folkie rock. Beautiful harmonies. "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" alone is worth the price of admission.

63. Off the Wall, Michael Jackson
Before he became a freak show, Michael Jackson created some terrific pop tunes. Forget Thriller; this album's the real killer. Says KJo: "Thriller was the popular one, but this was the beginning of maturity as an artist and vocal risk."

62. Jars of Clay, Jars of Clay
In my judging criteria, I didn't devalue the ratings for this crossover record (as I did the ratings of other, strictly CCM titles, giving them 0.8 points for every 1 point of true pop/rock). That's because this debut stands on its own. In a sea of mid-90s CCM dreck in which only Rich Mullins produced anything creative, ,I.Jars of Clay redefined what it meant to be a "Christian" rock band and opened doors for others to cross into the mainstream.

61. Doolittle, The Pixies
Says our panelist David: "The Pixies may have been just a moderately successful band within the indie/alternative scene, but their magnum opus Doolittle is as close to perfect as rock'n'roll gets. Twisted, catchy, playful, textured, solid -- the Pixies created an album that kicks ass and takes names."

*****
My Top 10
by MarcV
("Not a music critic, just an aficianado")

10. Roundabout, Yes
Prog-rock classic. Another band where it is tough to choose amongst several albums worthy of the list.
Probably my favorite band in my late teen years -- that's why they made my list!

9. Aerosmith, Aerosmith
They outdo the Stones on white-boy blues. Raw, from-the-gut rock, nothin' fancy, just straight-ahead power chords. They also paid the price years later, yet they somehow have survived through it all.

8. One More from the Road, Lynyrd Skynyrd
The best southern party band cut short. Their studio albums were good (who doesn't like the song "Curtis Lowe"?), but this type of boogie was best on stage.

7. Ted Nugent, Ted Nugent
Another fast-hand guitarist playing and writing at his peak, but leaving the lead vocals to someone who could actually sing. Ted wrote the best guitar jam intros ever.

6. Frampton Comes Alive, Peter Frampton
Everyone has it and knows it. Peter snuck up on people to deliver a great concert experience on vinyl.

5. Paranoid, Black Sabbath
THE heavy metal statement and their best. How many speakers have been blown while playing this album
(don't look at me!)? Oh to be able to play bass like Geezer!

4. Houses of the Holy, Led Zeppelin
It's tough to choose just one from them, but this finds them at their peak. They established themselves as the pre-eminent hard rock band with this.

3. Electric Warrior, T. Rex
Musical genius cut short. Like Hendrix he (Marc Bolan) not only wrote awesome songs but played them like nobody else could.

2. My Aim Is True, Elvis Costello
Perfect pop-rock. While he has written some great songs since, this album remains his definitive statement of pop artistry.

1. Are You Experienced? The Jimi Hendrix Experience
The guitar maestro's finest, one that has influenced rock the most and raised the bar for all other guitarists to come.

:: Andrew 08:27 + ::
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