Exile On Main Street, Rolling Stones

It's Finally-Got-Around-to-It-Friday!  Wherein I discover a classic that everyone else already knows about.

Exile On Main Street, Rolling Stones, 1972, :67

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

I would like to begin by saying that through a lifetime of what to most people would be obsessive and non-stop listening to music, the Rolling Stones are not in my top fifty acts in terms of time listened to.  They're actually about number 60, tied more or less with the Band and just under Elf Power.  I say this to give you a sense of how I feel about the Stones.  England's hitmakers, for sure, but to me they will always be the luckiest lads to take country-blues and add a British strut, not "The World's Greatest Band."  So anyway, this album doesn't change my view much.  Yes, what a good blues-country-rock record this is.  An excellent one, even, made even more impressive by its length.  But one of the all-time greatest discs?  Not to me.  Most of it kind of blends together for me, all the songs sounding vaguely similar and somewhat evocative of the guitar line in "Gimme Shelter."  Sorry, Robert.  Sorry, world.  That said, of course, there are some great songs on this double album, and, admittedly, some departures from their usual sound, like 'Sweet Black Angel."  Favorite tracks: "Rocks Off," "Tumbling Dice," "Shine a Light," "Rip This Joint," "Soul Survivor."

All the Young Dudes, Mott the Hoople

It’s Manic Monday! Wherein I listen to a rocker, a punker, or just a general banger.

All the Young Dudes, Mott the Hoople, 1972, :40 

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Everyone knows the story.  Swaggering into obscurity, glam band finds savior in Glamfather Bowie, who gives them "All the Young Dudes."  Band has a hit, but fades away anyway due to reasons.  Bowie records his own, far superior, version of his song.  The end.  But what about the other songs on the album?  They must be okay, too, right?  Well, sadly "okay" is about it.  The guitar work is excellent, though it leans a bit too heavily toward noodling for my taste, and the drumming lends a lot of muscle to the songs.  But Ian Hunter's vocals are not as strong as the band's chops.  The cover of "Sweet Jane" is decent, but an odd choice to begin the album -- if you're going to cover something so well known right off the bat, it better be a big statement and you should make the song your own.  They don't do that.  "Ready for Love" is a pale echo of the later Bad Company version.  "Soft Ground" is as heavy as early Black Sabbath, but not very interesting.  In all, it's just a weak album around an okay single.  Favorite tracks: "All the Young Dudes," "Momma's Little Jewel," and yeah, I guess that "Sweet Jane" cover.

Be Altitude: Respect Yourself, Staple Singers

Women's week, part two continues!

Be Altitude: Respect Yourself, Staple Singers, 1972, :41

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Gospel soul, backed by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Memphis Horns.  Songs about social issues such as respecting yourself and others, and helping the downtrodden, boost the religious material.  Two singles attached to the reissue of this record, "Walking In Water Over Our Head" and "Heavy Makes You Happy," are two of the catchiest and really should have been on the original release.  Favorite tracks: "I'll Take You There," "Respect Yourself," "We the People."  

Fanny Hill, Fanny

It's Womyn Week! 

Fanny Hill, Fanny, 1972, :42

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

I've never heard of this group, and that's a shame!  They deserve to be better known.  With infectious harmonies and catchy hooks, they should have had more than four years in the spotlight.  There's a variety of styles here.  "Knock on My Door" sounds like a lost ABBA track, while "Blind Alley" is blistering Southern boogie-woogie rock, and "You've Got a Home" is all soft vocals.  And there's a version of "Hey Bulldog" with new lyrics.  Throughout, this album is toe-tapping, enthusiastic energy and talent!  Favorite tracks: the terrific rendition of "Ain't That Peculiar" (which boasts Beatles-like harmonies and a sizzling slide guitar), "Wonderful Feeling," "Hey Bulldog," "Sound and the Fury."

Superfly, Curtis Mayfield

Thus ends Black Music Month.

Superfly, Curtis Mayfield, 1972, :36

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Slick R&B from the cinematic streets!  Socially conscious soul, bemoaning drugs and crime tearing apart black communities.  I love the horns and the dynamic drums.  Looking at it from 2021, it's a little histrionic, but as they say, ain't a damn thing changed.  For fifty years black Americans have been overlooked, denied opportunities, and washed away by popular media.  Amazing that this album is as bold as it is.  Favorite tracks: "Superfly," "No Thing On Me (Cocaine Song)," "Little Child Runnin' Wild."

Still Bill, Bill Withers

It's Black Music month!

Still Bill, Bill Withers, 1972, :36

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆ 

This is street soul!  Slinky, funky blues.  Songs about life.  And what a voice!  "I Don't Want You On My Mind" reminds me of "Ain't No Sunshine." Favorite tracks: "Lean on Me," "Another Day to Run," "Kissing My Love."

Something/Anything?, Todd Rundgren

Continuing the alphabet of albums, S is for sly sad soft pop.

Something/Anything?, Todd Rundgren, 1972, 1:28

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

An undoubtedly impressive feat, this double album.  Rundgren wrote the songs and played all the instruments on this double album (except for the last few songs). I'm coming to this backwards, because I only know Rundgren from his later, more experimental stuff. Based on the material on this album he's been called "the male Carole King," and it really is an apt epithet. Frank ballads, sort of AOR-pop, with just a little bit of the mischievous imp here and there (like on the song "Slut").  It's an assured, intelligent, well-made and even beautiful album, but not my style.  Favorite tracks: "Wolfman Jack," "I Saw the Light."

Obscured by Clouds, Pink Floyd

Continuing the alphabet of albums, O is for old school Pink Floyd.

Obscured by Clouds, Pink Floyd, 1972, :40

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Pink Floyd, before they became the Wall of Bleakness.  Could these young lads be... hippies?  "The Gold it's in the.." sounds like an early version of "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey." This is the Pink Floyd album that people who don't particularly care for Pink Floyd (me, really) will like. Comparatively brisk songs, with acoustic guitar and standard 1960s rock arrangements, melodic almost, and less of the throaty intoning and ponderous solos that mark much of their later work. "Free Four" is a '60s folk-rock in the style of "Spirit in the Sky," fuzzy guitars and handclaps.  The instrumental "When You're In" is not bloated, but lean and crunchy, and mercifully short. "Stay" is like a lounge singer from 1977 tried to write a Pink Floyd song: it's vaguely Pink Floyd, but more accommodating, with a warm, inviting jazzy riff.  You know, this may not be the best Pink Floyd album but I think I have found my favorite Pink Floyd album.  Favorite tracks: "Free Four," "Childhood's End," "What's… Uh the Deal."

Honky Chateau, Elton John

Continuing the alphabet of albums, H is for Hits! 

Honky Chateau, Elton John, 1972, :48

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This is another album that I actually have heard and even own but that deserves a solid listen front to back a couple times in a row. The bloated and somewhat ridiculous (but of course damned catchy) "Rocket Man" dominates, so I tend to miss stuff like the absolutely gorgeous "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters," and the rocking "Honky Cat." But what of the hidden gems that aren't classic rock staples?  Favorite tracks in addition to the hits: "Susie (Dramas)" hits hard, "Salvation" is beautiful, and the funky blues "Amy" would have gotten a lot more attention were it not on an entire album of brilliant, bewildering, rocking songs. This might be John's best album.

Can't Buy a Thrill, Steely Dan

Continuing the alphabet of albums, C is for cool jazz-pop.

Can't Buy a Thrill, Steely Dan, 1972, :40 

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

This debut is one of the only albums left from their 70s run that I hadn't listened to in its entirety, and often (the other being, I think, Katy Lied). It's weird hearing that one-shot singer on a few of these tracks, before Fagan decided he wasn't too shy to sing. Other than that, this is all glossy pop, jazz flourishes, and cryptic lyrics, Steely Dan as usual. "Kings" is a fairly subtle dig at Richard Nixon ("we've seen the last of good King Richard") and "Only a Fool Would Say That' mocks the optimism of John Lennon and his '60s ilk. But "Dirty Work" is as pop as pop gets, so there's a sort of balancing act between the subversion and commercial success here.  Favorite tracks: "Reelin' in the Years," "Do It Again," "Midnight Cruiser."

St. Dominic's Preview, Van Morrison

Currently doing one album for each year, 1960-2020. Today: 1972. 

St. Dominic's Preview, Van Morrison, 1972, :41

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

A sort of Astral Weeks light, meditative and somewhat abstruse, a personal journey in song. From the immediately catchy opener that pays homage to soul to the freewheeling jazz of the closer, these songs tell where Van is musically.   Strongly influenced by jazz and soul and blues, leaning into the mystical power of music. The songs rise and fall like waves, and at times Van seems to be possessed by them rather than recording them. "Listen to the Lion" would be an all-time classic, meditative and defiant, but for me is marred a bit in the middle by the somewhat goofy sound of Van growling and roaring. Favorite tracks: "Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile)," "Redwood Tree."

Not So Much To Be Loved As To Love, Jonathan Richman / The Slider, T. Rex

Not So Much To Be Loved As To Love, Jonathan Richman, 2004, :38

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

What do you get when you let Jonathan Richman do his own thing, unhindered, for decades? This album.  Twee, silly, heartfelt, maudlin, utterly indulgent through and through, same themes as ever.  Not that that's necessarily a bad thing.  Even a lesser Jonathan Richman song is honest, and fun, and life-loving.  There's a couple of French songs and couple of Italian songs on here, and, well, good for Jojo for trying new things.  There are a couple songs I might even save space for on a best of Richman: "Vincent Van Gogh," "My Baby Love Love Loves Me."

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The Slider, T. Rex, 1972, :44

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

I'm perfectly aware that people consider this a five-star classic, but it just doesn't move me.  Too much guitar noodling and heavy riffs for my taste.  At least it doesn't take itself too seriously.  Fun lyrics.  Favorite tracks: "The Slider," "Ballrooms of Mars," "Chariot Choogle."