Whatcha' Listenin' To?
Trudging on in my quest to hear and absorb what the pop culture/music illuminati routinely say are the best albums ever, I have recently been on a library binge.This is me throwing up in the sink. Metaphorically speaking, of course.
First, as I hinted at a few posts ago- Tom Waits is rocking my world. (Strange, since he's not really a "rocker" in any common definition of the word.) Rain Dogs started me off, but I have also gotten into Blood Money, Alice, Mule Variations and Orphans:Brawlers, Bawlers, and Bastards. I reccomend that you check these things out. I have said to a friend that Waits is the last true musical artist.
Each album is a little different. Some of them have more of a creepy, fin de siecle-type bohemian darkness to them. Amongst all the noise and carnival-barker lunacy, there are also beautifully weepy ballads. Even some spoken word bits over music. For instance, check out "What's He Building?" on Mule Variations. Alice is the most conventionally beautiful in that all of the songs are accompanied by strings or horns or other such symphonic niceties. Orphans is a bit overwhelming at three discs, but the "Road to Peace" grabbed me on first listen and you can't beat Waits' gruff voice singing old-timey gospel songs and hymns.
Anyway, all this to say--I highly reccommend Tom Waits. This guy will change how you listen to music.
Not quite the acquired taste is The Who's Who's Next. This album starts and ends strongly with the most synth-heavy songs: "Baba O'Riley (one of the best opening tracks I know of), and "Won't Get Fooled Again." Other highlights for me: "Bargain," "The Song is Over," "Going Mobile," and "Behind Blue Eyes."
Speaking of the songs, get a load of the spiritual component to the lyrics of "Bargain":
I'd gladly lose me to find you
I'd gladly give up all I had
To find you I'd suffer anything and be glad
I'd pay any price just to get you
I'd work all my life and I will
To win you I'd stand naked, stoned and stabbed
I'd call that a bargain
The best I ever had
The best I ever had
What's to like about this album? Fantastic, wild-man drumming by Keith Moon, the aforementioned synth sounds which were new at the time, Pete Townshend's rhythmic guitar-playing, which I often overlook and of course the interplay between Townshend's and Daltrey's vocals.
What's not to like? When it ends.
posted by Mike @ 9:12 PM
1 Comments:
Tom Waits is absolutely my favorite musical artist of EVER. I never, never tire of him. He has a song for any mood I could possibly be in, and introducing me to him was the greatest gift my husband has given me.
My personal favorite is "Watch Her Disappear," a softly-murmured ode to a beautiful woman. My favorite album is Nighthawks At The Diner, which always makes me wish I was sitting in a dimly-lit bar, nursing a whisky-and-soda and a Jucy Lucy, while Mr. Waits performs.
And then there's Heartattack and Vine, and Small Change, and ...
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