Members Weekly Music Recommendations-July 31

[thebes]

I'm off on vacation next week so the drawing is EARLY this month so let's have a hearty round of applause for:

Grog.

Congratulations Grog, you have your choice of a BS Button or Klipsch

Tie-tac. This makes Grog a double winner having won a Klipsch

t-shirt a year or two ago.

You've also won the right/obligation to do this thread next Monday

during my hiatus fromthe forum. Thanks for that and email me your

address.

Format's simple: Name of artist or group, name of album, type of

music as best you can (rock, blues etc.), and recording format (cd, lp

etc.)

As usual I'll start it off with:

Blues Traveler, "Straight On To Morning", indie blues, cd

I've only had this one cd of theirs until I picked up "Travelers and

Thieves" this weekend at an estate sale.This particular release though

is not up to snuff, derivative, poorly recorded and not just that

interesteing.

On the other hand, "Straight On" is excellent. I like the way

this group has re-invented the blues with indie sensibilities,

aggresive pacing and great harmonica. I love it when musicians

rediscover the Blues and although this is not quite the crossover that

the early Stones, Byrds and Animals stuff brought to the genre, it is

quite good indeed.

So what do you have to share this week?

[Jay481985]

I see you are listening to some indie stuff now. Hopefully on my recommendations?

[grog]

Thanks thebes!

You know I have to post something good this week now!

Alan Parsons Project - I Robot

# Audio CD (October 25, 1990)

# Original Release Date: June 1, 1977

01 I Robot

02 I Wouldn't Want To Be Like You

03 Some Other Time

04 Breakdown

05 Don't Let It Show

06 The Voice

07 Nucleus

08 Day After Day (The Show Must Go On)

09 Total Eclipse

10 Genesis Ch. 1 V. 32

Greg's pick: Track #4 - Breakdown

The 1977 album I Robot, by The Alan Parsons Project, was inspired by Asimov's I, Robot.

I Robot is a must have CD pick.

http://www.alanparsonsmusic.com/home.html

http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/parsons_alan_project/bio.jhtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alan_Parsons_Project

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I,_Robot

The first recording under the Arista aegis, I Robot (Arista AL 7002), integrated the concepts of robotics and the souls of machines into a concept album. I Robot became a Top 10 album smash, earning platinum certification by the RIAA for selling over one million copies. The album also spawned another U.S. Top 40 hit, "I Wouldn't Want To Be Like You" (Arista AS 0260), and helped reinforce the Alan Parsons Project as one of the top bands in the art-rock genre.

"We did intend at one stage that I Robot would be in fact related to the Isaac Asimov work," said Woolfson. "I had the honor of speaking with Asimov, and it emerged during that conversation that he had many years before granted all sorts of rights to some other company, who had never did anything with it, but nevertheless he was precluded from licensing to us to tie into his stories. So we had to slightly alter the grammar of the I Robot cover - ours didn't have a comma in the title, as his book title did - even though he borrowed his title from the book I, Claudius. The album ended up as being something not directly related to Asimov, but related instead to the concept of the power of robotics."

Many however know of the work Parsons did with the Pink Floyd masterpiece the Dark Side of the Moon.

Parsons is even amused by the reports of fans merging the music of Dark Side of the Moon to the motion picture The Wizard of Oz. "I always correct them," laughed Parsons, "it wasn't The Wizard of Oz, our source material was Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

[oldbuckster]

A couple of things first, CONGRATS to Grog..............................Next up, I do not understand why this thread has such low turn out...................if it wasn't for the music why do you need equipment? The only time since I've been on this forum,( I have been on before under a different name) where the turnout was large is right after Thebes announced the give away...............What a shame, you need prizes to participate?

Ok, SHOWTIME...........another 70's Classic..................CD..............1973

Jerry Lee Lewis ; the Session.......Recorded in London with great guest artists, let me just touch on the Guitarist's.........Rory Gallagher, Albert Lee, Peter Frampton, Alvin Lee,.........

This is the Band the Killer should have always had, for all the albums he has done, trust me, he NEVER had musicians of this high caliber. This set touchs every base, Blues, Country, and oh yes, Rock n' Roll...........From the opening song, Drinking Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee, to the final, and awesome Rock n' Roll Medley of: Good Golly Miss Molly: Long Tall Sally:Jenny,Jenny: Tutti Fruitti: and Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On, this disc just blows my socks off.........the KILLER is the man, just love his little comments during the songs, arrogant, brash, but on the top of his game..............What a performer, one of the Founding Fathers of Rock as we know it, God , this guy is good..........Don't tell me about Classic Rock Collections if you do not own this album...............This CD was just reissued in the U.S., I waited over 20 years for this on CD and believe me, it was worth the wait.

If you can't find it try; www.lemonrecordings.co.uk or www.cherryred.co.uk you would be surprised the old re issues they have available, I got mine thru Amazon.................the sound is GREAT..........it was only available on vinyl until now.............

[Frzninvt]

My suggested album this week is:

Box of Frogs

Read about it here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Box_of_Frogs

Very talented artists here that I am sure you will recognize.

[rplace]

Hey all...been meaning to stop by this weekly thread for a while. Hopefully this is the correct thread for the current week.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

This is some great summer time music. Not really sure how to describe the band. Sort of the B-52s meet some tongue in cheek Psychobilly music. Let me stress this is in no way country music [+o(] They are a really fun bad be it live or on CD.

The band is Southern Culture on the Skids or SCOTS as the people in the know call them. Check them out at http://scots.com/

<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Thebes has heard Voodoo Cadillac on a CD I gave him. I highly recommend all their music but best to start with:

Southern Culture on the Skids, "Dirt Track Date", indie, nothing but fun

This CD does not have a bad song on it. I defy you to not tap your toe or smile from ear to ear.

[expatmatt]

Prompted by another thread on the Talking Heads, try getting Naked.

Great horns, even some baritone sax thrown in, clean and crisp bass, and an overall fantastic recording. Excellent for showing off your system too...

1 : Blind

2 : Mr. Jones

3 : Totally Nude

4 : Ruby Dear

5 : (Nothing but) Flowers

6 : The Democratic Circus

7 : The Facts of Life

8 : Mommy Daddy You and I

9 : Big Daddy

10 : Bill

11 : Cool Water

lots of inspiration from my current hometown...

[Big Piney]

I will throw in my three cents worth this week with a band that started out as a bluegrass band and with personnel changes eventually became a pretty durn good prog rock band. I followed band personnel more than anything in choosing what music to listen to and it worked out pretty well. So going from Yes (following Rick Wakeman) I found this group of which Wakeman was once a member. Although he is not on this album.

This album was the first for Strawbs in their move from folk/bluegrass to electric and remains among their best (IMO).

Strawbs Hero and Heroine 1973 LP

Also available on CD (A&M)

There are some very strong tracks here with good songwriting and lyrics. The guitar work is muscular and hard-rocking.

Why they weren't more widely known here is questionable but some speculate they were more into partying than the seriousness of the music. At any rate this is some very nice music showcasing prog rock of the early seventies. Similar to Yes, ELP, Gentle Giant, etc.

[Arky]

I have a hard time remembering to venture beyond the general section.

been listening this week to Joe Walsh's Greatest.

[Steve_L]

Well, congrats to Grog! I am soooo jealous! Here I'm pining away for one of these fabulous Klipsch tie-tacs till I'm barely sleeping at night, but Grog wins twice. Oh well.

Oldbuckster, I think lots of people are traveling on vacation, but I know what you mean. All this talk about woofers, tweeters, decibels and all that stuff and not enough about music and concerts and movies and content for all this cool technology.

Here's my choice for the week. A bit of a change for me. One of my favorite CDs to get me warmed up for the Newport Jazz festival next week.

Adam's Apple with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock. Although this isn't Wayne's most famous album, it is one of my favorites. The music is warm, mysterious, soft, rythmic and accessible. It's great stuff, and a wonderful entry point into Wayne's music and that great genre of quartet mid-sixties jazz.

If you're not a jazz buff and looking for an entry point that is melodic and accessible, consider this. If you like it, he has wonderful discography of additional work with some great partners. Here, Herbie Hancock does a super job trading licks with Shorter.