Dean's favourite albums #5 - At Folsom Prison - Johnny Cash

“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash”. And with this simple yet powerful phrase, Cash launches into a blistering set of music to the inmates at California’s Folsom Prison. Cash draws on the great American songbook to find songs with a prison/crime them and delivers the lyrics with the passion that he is renowned for, resurrecting his career that was stagnating at the time.  In the opening track, “Folsom Prison Blues” (see link) an old Cash song from the 50’s, he delivers that definitive version of this song, complete with the audience cheers after the infamous “I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die” line. (I was disappointed to read that this didn’t actually occur though, the cheer was added later). Other great moments on the album are “Cocaine Blues”, ”Busted” and  “25 Minutes to Go”, which Cash really launches into character for, as he sings about the desperation of a man about to be hanged. There are also poignant moments, such as the thought provoking songs “The Wall” and “The Long Black Veil”. Throughout the album, Cash subtly makes fun of the prison guards watching over his audience with the odd snide comment. He wife, June Carter also joins him onstage and the album contains a version of their signature duet “Jackson”.

 

One other thing to say about this album – there are a number of versions floating around. I own the 1999 re-release version, which does contain a few different tracks and a different order to the original release. 2008’s legacy edition is different again, but I am sure that they are all great versions and any one of them would be a great addition to your music collection.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDktBZzQIiU

 

Next Time – we turn to the early 70’s for a popular album with a big big hit track on it

Dean’s Favourite Albums #6- (What’s the Story) Morning Glory – Oasis

1995. Britpop, the wave of British alternative music that Tony Blair decided to ride the coat tails of and get himself into office. The driving forces in Oasis were those Gallagher brothers, whose arrogance and bad behaviour could be quite annoying at times. Despite this, the band has produced some great tracks, and this album is a masterpiece. If I was writing this list a few years ago, this album probably would have been right up in the top two, but I haven’t listened to it much in recent years. I gave it another spin, and wow, it is still a great album.  Highlights abound, with the wonderful “Wonderwall” a piece of class (see link), but there are plenty of other great tracks, the sing-along catchy “Don’t Look Back in Anger”, the driving rock of the opening track “Hello”, the fun “She’s Electric”, and the anthemic “Morning Glory”. “Champagne Supernova” provides a great closer after the journey the band takes us through during the album.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hzrDeceEKc

 

Next time – the only live album to make it on my top 25 list launches us into the top five. Any guesses as to what it might be? Any predictions for the top five? Leave a post below…

Dean's favourite albums #7 - London Calling - The Clash

Ok, so I probably gave it away last time, but number seven on my list is the Clash’s “London Calling” album. This is the sort of album that usually rates highly on best of all time lists, and is often called the greatest punk album of all time. I find that tag strange though, because when I think of punk, I think of the Sex Pistols “God Save the Queen” or the Saints “I’m Stranded”. This album is not like that though, and its more diverse with reggae, ska, jazz, pop and rockabilly all featuring at some point. It’s a long album – was a double album when released, but it doesn’t outstay its welcome at all. My favourite songs – probably  the opening title track, a great rock track (see link),  the sinister sounding “Guns of Brixton”, the rockabilly of “Brand New Cadillac”,and the fun of “Wrong Em Boyo”.  I could keep mentioning songs, but I think you get the idea.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfK-WX2pa8c

 

Coming up at number six – its Britpop time, and an album from a band that really annoys me, yet the album is a masterpiece

Dean's favourite albums #8 - Nothing But a Dream - Paul Kelly

With a body of work of such high calibre that Paul Kelly has, I really could have virtually clogged up this entire list with Paul Kelly albums, and would not have been unhappy with the final composition of the list. So the choice of this album might seem like a strange one to you all, as its normally albums like “Gossip” or “Comedy” that get mentions on these types of lists. If I wanted to take a different approach, I could have turned to the bluegrass incarnation of “Foggy Highway”. Indeed if I wanted to take a sentimental approach, “Spring and Fall” could have been the choice, because it was released on the day my boys entered this world. But no, I have gone for one of his lesser known albums, 2001’s “Nothing But a Dream”.

 

I remember back to 2001, and the Weekend Australian newspaper did a promotion where you got a free four track sampler ahead of the release of this album. I still have that sampler, and the wonderful thing about it was that it contains some alternate versions of some of the tracks, which are a great listen. I can’t actually remember how I got the album, but I think it was bought for me as a birthday gift (if that is the case, to the person that bought it for me – thank you – (and I am thinking that it might have been from my mate Andy))

 

So why did I choose this album? Well, it is just full of some gems that really show off Kelly’s songwriting abilities. The opening track, “If I could Start Today Again”, a simple song, but wow, what a song, with beautiful lyrics that talk about regrets and wanting to go back and start the day again (see today’s link). “I Wasted Time”, written from the perspective of an old person thinking back at the time they have wasted in their life who now sees “…old friends at funerals now and then, its down to this, it either me or them”. The there is “Somewhere in the City”, a track where Kelly sings deep in thought about what a loved one might be doing, perfectly evoking feelings of  loneliness, jealousy and longing to be with someone.  There is a certain moody, atmospheric sound to a number of the tracks (such as “Midnight Rain”, “Would You Be My Friend”, “Smoke Under the Bridge” ) and then just for some diversity, Kelly throws in the bass laden “Love is the Law” and the frantic “Just  About to Break”. 

 

I know its not as well known as many of Paul’s other albums, but its a great album and very worthy top tenner! (and, like “Suburban Songbook”, it has a great cover as well!)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tb9nrAvGPaI

 

Coming up next – its off to the UK, for a more well known classic album (or should I perhaps say that London is calling)?

Dean's favourite albums #9 - Suburban Songbook - Bob Evans

As lead singer of 90’s-00’s alt rock band Jebediah, Kevin Mitchell sung with an unusual but distinctive rock and rock whine. So when the time came for Mitchell to do something different, he chose to perform under a pseudonym, and as the story goes, he got the name from a US burger chain. In 2004, he released “Suburban Kid” an underrated album that showcased intimate roots flavoured songs. In 2006, he released his second album under the Bob Evans name, “Suburban Songbook”, which occupies number nine on my favourite albums list.

 

The first thing I need to mention about this album is the cover art – what a beautiful photo of a suburban street, with lovers hand in hand walking towards the sunlight.  But a good cover alone won’t get you on this list, and this album is so much more than its cover. In the 100 Best Australian Albums book (which rated this at #74), they describe it as “…a revelation, catching the listener off guard with its naked honesty and big , romantic heart.” The album blends country and folk with pop and sunshine, and sets the tone right from with the start with the warm acoustic track “Don’t You Think Its Time” (see link). There are great moments all throughout though, such as “Sadness and Whiskey”, the catchy pop of “Don’t Walk Alone” . Even when the sentimental, “Nowhere Without You”  ventures towards being too lovey-dovey and saccharine sweet, it doesn’t cross the line and leaves a smile on your face. Its not an overly diverse album, but has significant variation to keep the listener hooked. One of my favourite tracks is the hidden closer “Me and My Friend”, which could have very easily been called an ode to friendship. It’s a wonderful track, simple, but so effective. The use of the word “suburban” in the album title is no coincidence either, as it really has that everyday timeless, romantic feel to it.

 

For those of you that don’t know the album, and want to know what to compare the sound to, I have read various reviews that compare parts of it to the Beatles, Elliot Smith, Simon and Garfunkel, Neil Young, John Lennon, and even Burt Bacharach!  So I hope that mixed back of names helps in some way.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lx_lPyJluc

 

Coming up at #8 – one my favourite musicians, and Australian music legend….but which album?

 

Dean's favourite albums #10 - Cold Fact - Rodriguez

My friends had been talking about this album from the 70’s for a while, and they had played me a few tracks and I had liked them, so it was on my list of albums to check out for a quite some time. Then, in March 2010, I was on my lunchbreak from work and walking through the city, when I happened to pass the laneway where Basement Discs is located, and saw a sign – “Rodriguez – in store today”, so I thought this was too good an opportunity to let pass. As I walked down the staircase to Basement Discs, I heard the crowd applause. Of course, he had just finished his performance as I arrived…damn…but he was hanging around to sign copies of his album. I lined up and the shop assistant asked me what I thought of his performance, I explained that I missed it and I think he thought I was a bit odd! Waiting in the line, Rodriguez, looking just a little frail, posed for a photo for the lady in front of me. Then, as it was my turn, I was asked to pause…Rodriguez produced a backpack and started fumbling through it for something. Eventually he produced a bottle of red wine, which he proceeded to drink straight from the bottle! After a swig, he chatted and signed my album, and that is the story of how I came about owning a copy of “Cold Fact”.

 

Hailing from the US, Rodriguez released “Cold Fact” in 1970, and it was a massive flop, barely troubling the US charts. But for some random reason, it became a cult classic in South Africa, and to a lesser extent, Australia. In more recent times, the man was the subject of the Oscar winning documentary “Searching for Sugarman”, something which I still haven’t seen but am quite keen to, which has brought some belated attention to Rodriguez in his home country.

 

In terms of describing the album, I find it very hard, and the best I can do is borrow from the review on allmusic.com: “There was a mini-genre of singer/songwriters in the late '60s and early '70s that has never gotten a name. They were folky but not exactly folk-rock and certainly not laid-back; sometimes pissed off but not full of rage; alienated but not incoherent; psychedelic-tinged but not that weird; not averse to using orchestration in some cases but not that elaborately produced. And they sold very few records”. I think this sums it up quite well.

 

 Its Dylanesque, in terms of the stream of consciousness lyrics, which sometimes don’t make sense, and seem to have an undercurrent of protest in them, but it would be wrong to dismiss this as just another wannabe Dylan album. Its full of highlights for me -  the catchy “I Wonder” and “Sugar Man”, “Rich Folks Hoax”, “Hate Street Dialogue” and my favourite track on the album, the wonderfully titled “This is Not a Song, its an Outburst: Or, the Establishment Blues” (today’s link)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnzGrQy7cwU

 

For those that know the album, how would you describe it to someone who has never heard it?

 

Coming up next – a beautiful album from the suburbs of Australia

Dean's favourite albums #11 - Crowded House - Crowded House

Being a fan of Crowded House, virtually their entire back catalogue could have made it onto the list, and in particular, their fourth album “Together Alone” was very very close to making the cut. But I decided to head to their debut album, “Crowded House”, which occupies the 11th spot. This is an album full of hits – “Don’t Dream Its Over”, “Mean to Me” (see link), “Now We’re Getting Somewhere”, “World Where You Live” and  “Something So Strong”, but also contains some great other moments like “Love You Til the Day I Die” and “Tombstone”.

 

Strangely enough, it took the band breaking up for me to take notice of them. I still remember watching their “Farewell to the World” concert on TV, and thinking, “I know this song, this is a good song”, over and over again, and that led me to purchasing their best of album. My first venture into a Crowded House album though, was made in Hobart of all places in 1999. Its funny the things you remember – I still have strong memories of  purchasing a three pack containing “Crowded House”, “Temple of Low Men” and “Woodface” from the Sanity music store in the Hobart’s Elizabeth Street Mall. Those albums have been listened to a lot over the years since, and they all hold up as great albums.

 

 

Coming up – we enter the serious end of the countdown and at number ten its time to face fact with an American folk singer of Mexican heritage.

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8nCSyPRCBQ