I have a never ending thirst to find new exciting music. I've found many times though that doesn't necessarily mean new, just new to me. Even after nearly 20 years of listening to classic rock, I still stumble across lesser known songs by popular artists I come to love. In this series of posts I'll point out some of my personally underrated favorites by popular artists along with reminiscing about when I first discovered the song myself.
Elton John - Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters (Honky Chateau - 1972)
Always one of my favorite artists, Elton has such a back catalog that it can be very cumbersome picking through everything to find the gems that don't appear on greatest hits packages or public opinion. Luckily I have tv to help me out.
A few years ago I got hooked on the new show after "Lost" called "Life On Mars". Sadly it was cancelled after one season as most shows that I actually like are, but they played lots of good 70's music throughout. In the series finale they played this song at the end and I was awestruck by how great it was. It's in the same vein as Tiny Dancer and other piano ballads. It's been in my regular rotation ever since.
Kid Rock - Blue Jeans And A Rosary (Rock N Roll Jesus - 2007)
Juxtaposing Kid Rock and Elton John is strange. I feel kind of wrong doing it. Imagine how surprised I was to hear this song off his very solid Rock N Roll Jesus album. After a few times of listening to it, I said to myself "My God this song (especially the chorus) sounds like an Elton John song". Obviously Kid Rock's vocals can't hold a candle (in the wind) to Elton's, but the use of strings, some of the vocal inflections and even the lyrics to a degree all fit. I could easily see Elton performing this song.
Tom Petty - Louisiana Rain (Damn The Torpedoes - 1979, Live Anthology - 2009)
Honestly I don't know how this one slipped through the cracks all these years. Tom Petty has always been one of my favorite artists since I discovered I loved music and this is one of his better album albeit one that for some reason I don't own. I'm sure I had heard this song at some point in my life, but re-discovered it when the live anthology came out a few years back. Maybe it's because the live version is considerably better than the studio track. It's just your classic Petty tune, but newish to me.
Allman Brothers Band - Seven Turns (Seven Turns -1990)
A product of their nth lineup change, I don't remember this song when it was new so I doubt it received much radio play in my area. I discovered this song about five years ago. I really don't remember the first time I heard it, but I remember instantly loving it. Around that same time, I experienced a rather disheartening breakup and one of the things that got me through was teaching myself how to play this song on guitar. I couldn't find any tabs for it online at the time, so I charted every note and taught it to myself.
Guns N Roses - Estranged (Use Your Illusion II - 1991)
Being a big GNR fan, I do remember this one when it was new, but I feel it still really doesn't get the respect it deserves. Maybe that's because it's a lot like November Rain only not quite as good. This was the third video in the overblown video trilogy following November Rain and Don't Cry which both received significant airplay at the time. Do yourself a favor. Watch the video of this. Maybe it'll push the memory of Slash playing while Fergie butchers one of the best songs ever out of your mind.
CCR - Wrote A Song For Everyone (Green River - 1969)
CCR and John Fogerty crammed a lot of memorable songs into a pretty short timeframe in the late 60's/early 70's. This one I discovered on Chronicles II which is all the lesser known songs still worthy of greatest hits. It's one of my favorites by them. A simple acoustic guitar with ever powerful vocals by Fogerty. I like uniqueness in rock and roll and anytime you hear Fogerty sing you instantly know who it is.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Book Review: Cornflakes with John Lennon by Robert Hilburn
I have a well earned reputation as the person who knows all about music so when my college roommate visited a few weeks ago he brought along this book for me knowing I'd enjoy it.
While I keep up with the new music scene as well as I can, I often times miss literature like this. I had never heard of the book or Robert Hilburn, but it looked like a very interesting read. Robert Hilburn, as it turns out, was a music critic for many years withe L.A. Times and got to know a lot of the artists he covered personally. This book is more or less about his interactions with a lot of rock and roll's greatest artists ranging from Elvis to Jack White and also U2 (seriously why do people like them so much?)
I was very eager to read about his interactions, but I was a little cautious because I disdain most music critics. At least in today's landscape, critics tend to heap praise on boring sounding indie acts and turn their nose up at anything mainstream. While it's true most mainstream music today is crap, they appear pre-ordained to like and hate certain music without ever having any solid reasoning behind it.
The first chapter put a lot of my fears to rest. It's a very good intro to the book, discussing Mr. Hilburn's child life and his influences in music that really shows the reader a lot about his character and his passion for rock music. I think my favorite thing about his writing is you can tell that being a critic wasn't just a job for him. He makes a good critic because he is actually passionate about the music he is listening to and to me, passion is what rock and roll music is supposed to be. He manages to write the whole book as a fan of rock music, not as a condescending critic. I envy him for being around rock and roll's roots and discovering Elvis and other many great artists on the up.
On a side note it must've been great to be a critic in the 60's and 70's and eagerly awaiting the release of a good new album. I still remember the rush I got as an early teenager discovering all this music that was so great that was released before I was born. It's a bit different though. Once I discovered I liked the Beatles or Springsteen I instantly had their whole catalog at my disposal and didn't have the built up anticipation of seeing what they would do next. Again I think I'd fit in much better in society growing up 25-30 years earlier. How many albums do I eagerly await now? Ragweed and umm..Jack White's new project sorta?
While I don't always agree with his assertions I understand where Bob comes from in his musical taste. He doesn't just want an artist to make a hit song. He wants them to become that song and become something transcendant. I personally think you miss out on some songs this way, but overall it's not a bad position to have. While I may enjoy a catchy throw away single (i.e. most 80's pop) it doesn't move me the way listening to the absolute best does. Waiting around for something transcendant though gets boring. I'd love to have an artist come along with amazing work and blow me away, but it rarely happens anymore at least on the album level. I'd love to find the next great band and hang on their every album, but in the meantime I'll take my one or two fantastic songs even if it may not be a stepping stone to something more.
One thing he mentions throughout in the book is the essential artists in rock. The 20 or so artists that if you took them away, rock music wouldn't be the same. I'd never really thought about it like that before, but once presented with the theory I did buy into it. Obviously without Elvis or the Beatles, you don't have rock and roll. Even though I appreciate a lot of songs by Boston, Billy Joel, Kansas etc. removing them from the picture doesn't affect rock's landscape too drastically (although my life would be a little less joyful without "More Than A Feeling" or "Carry On Wayward Son").
This book was a delightfully easy read and has been passed on to the girlfriend and her father and I'm sure it will make its rounds to many rock and roll loving friends in the future. I would highly recommend it for anyone who appreciates the history of rock and roll music.
While I keep up with the new music scene as well as I can, I often times miss literature like this. I had never heard of the book or Robert Hilburn, but it looked like a very interesting read. Robert Hilburn, as it turns out, was a music critic for many years withe L.A. Times and got to know a lot of the artists he covered personally. This book is more or less about his interactions with a lot of rock and roll's greatest artists ranging from Elvis to Jack White and also U2 (seriously why do people like them so much?)
I was very eager to read about his interactions, but I was a little cautious because I disdain most music critics. At least in today's landscape, critics tend to heap praise on boring sounding indie acts and turn their nose up at anything mainstream. While it's true most mainstream music today is crap, they appear pre-ordained to like and hate certain music without ever having any solid reasoning behind it.
The first chapter put a lot of my fears to rest. It's a very good intro to the book, discussing Mr. Hilburn's child life and his influences in music that really shows the reader a lot about his character and his passion for rock music. I think my favorite thing about his writing is you can tell that being a critic wasn't just a job for him. He makes a good critic because he is actually passionate about the music he is listening to and to me, passion is what rock and roll music is supposed to be. He manages to write the whole book as a fan of rock music, not as a condescending critic. I envy him for being around rock and roll's roots and discovering Elvis and other many great artists on the up.
On a side note it must've been great to be a critic in the 60's and 70's and eagerly awaiting the release of a good new album. I still remember the rush I got as an early teenager discovering all this music that was so great that was released before I was born. It's a bit different though. Once I discovered I liked the Beatles or Springsteen I instantly had their whole catalog at my disposal and didn't have the built up anticipation of seeing what they would do next. Again I think I'd fit in much better in society growing up 25-30 years earlier. How many albums do I eagerly await now? Ragweed and umm..Jack White's new project sorta?
While I don't always agree with his assertions I understand where Bob comes from in his musical taste. He doesn't just want an artist to make a hit song. He wants them to become that song and become something transcendant. I personally think you miss out on some songs this way, but overall it's not a bad position to have. While I may enjoy a catchy throw away single (i.e. most 80's pop) it doesn't move me the way listening to the absolute best does. Waiting around for something transcendant though gets boring. I'd love to have an artist come along with amazing work and blow me away, but it rarely happens anymore at least on the album level. I'd love to find the next great band and hang on their every album, but in the meantime I'll take my one or two fantastic songs even if it may not be a stepping stone to something more.
One thing he mentions throughout in the book is the essential artists in rock. The 20 or so artists that if you took them away, rock music wouldn't be the same. I'd never really thought about it like that before, but once presented with the theory I did buy into it. Obviously without Elvis or the Beatles, you don't have rock and roll. Even though I appreciate a lot of songs by Boston, Billy Joel, Kansas etc. removing them from the picture doesn't affect rock's landscape too drastically (although my life would be a little less joyful without "More Than A Feeling" or "Carry On Wayward Son").
This book was a delightfully easy read and has been passed on to the girlfriend and her father and I'm sure it will make its rounds to many rock and roll loving friends in the future. I would highly recommend it for anyone who appreciates the history of rock and roll music.
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