What Are You Listening To?

[J.Thomp]

--check out my newest single "Ride Or Die" at https://soundcloud.com/j-thomp/ride-or-d...p-mastered
Good R&B music!!

[CRAZY-HORSE]

DREAM THEATER "metropolis pt II: scenes from a memory" cd, 1999.

career stats:
studio albums.......13
singles.................25

this album..............#73 US...#131 UK
singles:
"home"...................no chart action
"through her eyes"...#72 JAP

the Theater's fifth studio album....
rock/prog rock/hard rock/ ballads all form this album...
a concept album also,
story is about a man who is hypnotised into revealing his past life,
that life revolves around him being a married woman who is living with her alcoholic, gambling husband,
she basically seeks solace/comfort in the arms of her husband's brother,
the brother wants more than the role of comforter and when she wont take it further he murders her...
as it turns out, the therapist who is conducting the hypnotherapy happens to have been her husbands brother in a previous life,
when the guy is brought out of his hypnotic state he is followed home by the therapist...the ending of the album is left open as to
exactly who kills who in the final confrontation....
a recent poll of readers in Prog magazine saw the album come out as their #1 prog rock album of all time
this is one powerful album, and is without a doubt one of those I would take to a desert island with me.....
several of the tracks on here could have been Pink Floyd songs, my favourite is one of them IMO.

I LOVE THIS ALBUM

worst track: home
best track: the spirit carries on

[video=youtube;eqi7tFv84z4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqi7tFv84z4[/video]

tracks:

1...regression **
2...overture 1928 (instrumental) ***
3...strange deja vu ***
4...through my world ***
5...fatal tragedy ***
6...beyond this life ***
7...through her eyes ***
8...home **
9...the dance of eternity (instrumental) ***
10.one last time ***
11.the spirit carries on ***
12.finally free ***

3s=10
2s=2
1s=0

rating: 2.8

[CRAZY-HORSE]

RICK WAKEMAN "journey to the centre of the earth" cd, 1974.

the Yes keys guy reimagines the Jules Verne classic...
recorded with the London symphonic Orchestra live....
sme spoken narrative, some vocals throughout also, some rock music, and some orchestral interludes would
be the way I describe it...
very similar in concept to Jeff Wayne's War Of The Worlds, but this one predates Wayne's by several years...
unfortunately for Wakeman, I heard and loved WOTW years ago, and I love that one..
so I can only like this one right now, who knows, in years to come I may love this album as much as that one.

I LIKE THIS ALBUM

only two tracks on here, split into two parts each, both of which I like

1...the journey/recollection **
2...the battle/the forest **

sorry, but all the links I click on for this one are "unavailable in my country", and I don't know
the quality of them so I cant post what I don't hear...

3s=0
2s=2
1s=0

rating: 2.0

[CRAZY-HORSE]

time to get back and delve into the midsts of time and space for some classic rock and roll...



THE KINKS "lola vs powerman and the moneygoround pt: I" cd, 1970

career stats:
studio albums..........24
singles....................78
ep's........................10

this album...............#5 NZ...#24 AU...#35 US
singles:
"lola"......................#2 UK...#9 US...#4 AU...#2 CAN...#1 NZ
"apeman"................#5 UK..#45 US..#5 AU..#10 CAN..#5 NZ

album was supposed to be part of a double cd set which never eventuated due to studio time constraints,
Davies then envisioned a "pt:II" would be released the following year, he got sidetracked and it never happened,
thus the "pt:I" title...
lots of folky sounds on here, lots of blues rock also...
lyrically it is very strong and contains the Davies humour in the lyrics...
although I love at least half this album its difficult to ind anything other than the two singles released that could have
possibly stood out in their own right as singles...this IS an albums-album, to be played as one piece IMO...
the critics loved it, the UK public stayed away in droves (as did the Canadian public), where it never charted in either country
despite the success of "lola"...
all up a very good album, just don't expect "sunny afternoon", "waterloo sunset" or "you really got me"...theres nothing like those songs on
here, which is obviously why it failed to chart in some countries...
one bonus with this one is that Lola contains the 'coca-cola' lyric instead of the radio friendly 'cherry-cola' lyric..

I LOVE THIS ALBUM

worst track: the contenders
best track: lola

[video=youtube;-1ydKJ5v88I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1ydKJ5v88I[/video]

tracks:

1...the contenders *
2...strangers **
3...demark street ***
4...get back in line ***
5...lola ***
6...top of the pops ***
7...the moneygoround **
8...this time tomorrow **
9...a long way from home ***
10.rats **
11.apeman ***
12.powerman **
13.got to be free **

3s=6
2s=6
1s=1

rating: 2.4

[CRAZY-HORSE]

back even further into the past now....
and I really need this to blow out the cobwebs of all the modern crap I hear!




THE SMALL FACES "the small faces" cd, 1966

career stats:
studio albums........6
singles.................14
ep's.....................12

this album................#3 UK
singles:
"sha la la la lee"......................#3 UK
"whatcha gonna do about it"....#14 UK

the debut set from Messers' Marriott, Lane, McLagan and Jones...
you guys already know that I think these guys were the greatest band to emerge from the UK in the 1960s, right?!
anyway,
debut set...
lots of rough and ragged blues rock on here and a couple of ballads...
not unusual for a band of that period to include covers(took the Beatles three albums to write all their own material!)
this one contains a cover of Sam Cooke's "shake"...I hate that one, best version is by Otis Redding IMO...
the rest are original songs..
a good solid collection of songs from the era of the original Britpop scene...

I LIKE THIS ALBUM

worst track: shake
best track: sha la la la lee

[video=youtube;u1bESN-fP_g]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1bESN-fP_g[/video]

tracks:

1...shake *
2...come on children *
3...you better believe it ***
4...its too late ***
5...one night stand ***
6...whatcha gonna do about it ***
7...sorry she's mine ***
8...own up time (instrumental) *
9...you need loving **
10.dont stop what youre doing **
11.E too D **
12.sha la la la lee ***

3s=6
2s=3
1s=3

rating: 2.2

[CRAZY-HORSE]

DREAM THEATER "train of thought" cd, 2003.

career stats:
studio albums.......13
singles.................25

this album.............#53 US...#146 UK
singles:
"as I am"...............no chart action

the Theater's seventh album...
not a concept album this time round but the title refers to the album (he says sarcastically!)...
"train of thought", it sounds like a 'train'-wreck, and no 'thought' was put into it IMO...
then,
I check Wiki to read what they say about it and...
it was apparently written in three weeks and recorded in about the same amount of time,
band says it was a 'metal' album to satisfy fans...
either way, I don't like this one except for the lead off single and an orchestrated ballad, the rest is rubbish.

I DONT LIKE THIS ALBUM

worst track: endless sacrifice
best track: vacant

[video=youtube;MxK-_Q6VeZU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxK-_Q6VeZU[/video]

tracks:

1...as I am **
2...this dying soul *
3...endless sacrifice *
4...honor thy father *
5...vacant **
6...stream of consciousness (instrumental) *
7...in the name of God *

3s=0
2s=2
1s=5

rating: 1.3

[Music Head]

from the cd room



5th album and 3rd highest charter here at #16
surpassed by their next 2 and this is their first top 20
such a good album as are most of theirs
3 singles but only the track below charted here

#15

[video=youtube;YzktQty-sbU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzktQty-sbU[/video]

[Music Head]

from the cd room



7th album
#5 here, #6 UK
follow up to their best selling Breakfast In America
a hard act to follow
but I expected better than this
5 singles but only the weak It's Raining Again got any traction
doesn't get good for me till the last 2 tracks
Hodgson left the band after this one
quote from wiki: "Hodgson later said that he regrets recording the album, calling it "a last-ditch attempt to try and make things happen" after the life had gone out of the band."
or in my words, they tapped out
which is usually what happens to good artists
we all know the exceptions

fav

[video=youtube;Kl_fc8NR8ig]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl_fc8NR8ig[/video]

[CRAZY-HORSE]

I only have "even in the quietest moments", courtesy of a recommendation rom someone on MD, which im thinking was probably Jerome, but I could be wrong (and If I am wrong, sorry for not remembering who reco'd it to me)...love that album, will probably pick up BIA at some point...

"its raining again"....a terrible, annoying song IMO, hated it when it came out as a single, and still hate it when its played on the radio nowadays, in fact, I change channels when it comes on over the airwaves.

[Jerome]

A very big fan of EITQM, but I have a feeling it was Ruby that recommended this - not sure. BIA is a must. And once you have BIA, EITQM, COTC & CWC, then get Paris. One of the best live albums and DVD's I own. The live version of 'Fool's Overture' is beyond brilliant.