The Albums What Changed The Duke's Life
Most folks might prefer to go for the old "Best What Was Ever Made" approach when conducting the lists with regards their favorite records. Thing is, The Duke has yet to hear every record ever made anywhere, and so would be woefully ill-prepared to tell anyone about what the best records of all ever might be. There's a couple Miles Davis bootlegs somewhere. One or two cast-off's from Music For Big Pink. Couple a things I still need to hear, before I can get all definitive and what-not.
What I can offer, though, by way of providing an insight into the old Mind De Duke and so on, especially the part of the Mind De Duke that deals with the listening to records, is this here list all about the albums that are closest to mine gut-sauce.
These here are the records what changed The Duke's life, the ones that made the biggest impact is what. These here are the pieces of the resistance, or whatever the hell those French folks call The Records What Made Me Numb Like A Motherfucker On Account Of Their Brilliance.
This list is composed in no particular order of preference. Maybe the Freudians among you might think, Oh, he mentioned such and such before so and so, so therefore such and such is better than the others.
Go for it, Freudians.
You incestuous motherfuckers.
Billy Bragg - Talking With The Taxman About Poetry
First off, when did you last hear a record title like that? When? I Don't Want You Back, The Marshall Mathers L.P, The Soundtrack To Toy Story 2, I mean really. Folks just don't put enough effort into the titles nowadays. If it was your kid, would you throw a "Self-titled" or "Black Album" at it? No, man, you'd take the time and think up stuff like Benjamin or Shannon or whatever. Or maybe Foxy Lady River Feet, if you're a rocket star or whatever.
This here is the album where we find Bill preparing to cross over, about to add a few more strings to the bow and so on. A transition is what. His first two records mostly went for the old electric guitar and voice approach, barring the majestic pipes on Saturday Boy.
On this album here, you can tell Uncle Bill is thinking about his next move. There's a piano on there, there's even drums sometimes. There's all sorts of flutes and what have you. All in all, it's like a bridge of some kind, leading the way from Brewing Up With Billy Bragg, across the pond to the shimmering gates of Worker's Playtime, his first "full-band" record.
Article comments
1 - Jim Carruthers
Well, since I have an autographed photo from Billy Bragg (saying "No snow, no show" re: touring Canada) and he once played one of my guitars, I give three thumbs up to the Bard of Barking.
I never got The Smiths. Tho I do have the tshirt (a friend was on a trip to the UK, I asked for a Zodiac Mindwarp tshirt, he brought me back a "The Queen Is Dead", I altered it with a marker to say "Keeping up with the fucking Jones'".
Lessons I learned from The Pogues, Shane, don't throw beer at the audience since they have more beer to throw back than you do, plus bottles. And I am amazed he is still alive. Though I once had my head clamped between a doxie's thighs during a Pogues song, so that's worth something.
The only thing I know about Bob Dylan is that he did a rap record with Kurtis Blow.
Given your nature of snark, I'm surprized you didn't list The Beautiful South.
2 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Jim, nice to hear from you once more. An autograph from Sir Bill? Cool! I'd love to meet him.
As for the old slurp-slurp during a pogues song, well, i can only offer a gloved hand for you to shake. My fiancee is not very fond of the pogues im afraid, and so i'll have to keep that kind of activity for when i fall asleep.
Incidentally, i love the beautiful south, although haven't cared much for their last couple of albums. I loved the housemartins too, even though Fatboy Slim was in it. oh well.
3 - Jim Carruthers
Well, it was actually her thighs clamped round my head as she was sitting on my bloody shoulders at a Pogues show. Y'know how you wonder how Jem kept his knees in shape leaping around with his accordian? It was sorta that.
4 - Jim Carruthers
Three albums that made my dick bigger, got my secret money out of money land and gave me so many prescription drugs, I am fucked up for life.
"My Aim Is True" Elvis Costello. The fact that this album had two different covers, and that one of my best friends at the time was from England with the UK version, exposing the perfidity of the global music industry, only made me love this record more. That and there was a totally different selection of songs. Plus, even a dork like me could not only look like Elvis, but change our look. The aspiration became if only we had enough glasses.
Minutemen "Double Nickles On The Dime" -- we were only a couple of corn dogs from Pedro. I never got to see The Minutemen live, I missed them by a week, and then D Boon died. But they really summed up what could result from faster, louder, faster and better. And saying something. (though I do want to give a shoutout to accidentally rolling empty beer bottles down the aisle during a screening in 1984 of "Spinal Tap" at the Cineplex)
"Rocket To Russia" -- The Ramones -- this was the greatest rock album I'd ever heard, which eventually lead me to go to Toronto, meet drug dealers, drop acid, see Neil Young on his International Harvesters tour, wind up at Dundas and Spadia and know I was fucked up because everything was in Chinese. Plus meeting Joey Ramone in the bathroom in Bala, and taking my niece to see the band, because that's what all 4 year olds want.
5 - brown_boognish
The Smiths are it.
6 - Barry Stoller
Regarding Bringing It All Back Home.
I'd say it was superficial to call that one his 'transitional' album, you 're looking at the medium not the message. The real transitional album was Another Side of Bob Dylan, i.e. the 'side of Bob Dylan' that turned his back on all the left wingers who provided him with his first ladder step. Almost every song was a boy-girl radio thingie, and pretty crappy, too. Note that Sonny & Cher scored a big hit with 'All I Really Want to Do'; we can't imagine them singing 'Masters of War,' now can we? You say, 'Fuck knows what he's banging on about, but it sounds great, whatever the hell it might be.' That's right, nicely phrased nonsense (much of it stylistically copped from the beat authors; notice how Dylan's 'novel' Tarantula is a lame imitation of Burroughs' mid-60's work). From left wing anthems to nicely phrased nonsense, that's what the corporate music masters demand. From there, ads for Victoria's Secret were a logical regression. Try Phil Ochs In Concert or even Pleasures of the Harbour instead - better music, too.
7 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Barry, thank you for the considered comments. I agree, i was perhaps being overly superficial, and i did indeed contemplate mentioning that lyrically, Another Side Of... was perhaps as radical a shift as this was musically. The article was already ten pages long, tho. Shit, man, i couldn't waffle for another three paragraphs. Interesting point about how the music industry would be pleased with Bringing... on account of the shift from "saying something" to "saying nothing".
To be fair tho, there were really only two albums wherein Dylan played the political card, namely Freewheelin... and The Times... The first record was fairly a-political. Granted, it took the "finger-pointin" songs for him to get any recognition. Seems to be, he just shifts along from scene to scene, notion to notion, getting bored with things fairly quickly. The political period is no more worthy of comment than the Christian period, for example. Both resulted in a core of three records, the middle one of which was the most explicitly in tune with his current beliefs.
The difference is, of course, the political stuff sold and made his name, the christian stuff didn't. Still, what would record companies be more fond of? What do they make more money out of? Blowin' In The Wind or I Believe In You? Which period caused more outrage overall?
But thanks for the comments, thought-provoking stuff.
And Jim, great list!
Oh, and Brown.. They are indeed "it".
8 - brady
Regarding Bob insofar as transitional albums, how about Nashville Skyline? Not so much stylistically but thematically and lyrically ( or as they are intertwined - conceptually). This seemed to really mark the beginning of the end for Dylan as a serious artist. I think the government (or some official or agency) had finally scared Bob out of doing anything radical album-wise (I am only half joking about this theory). From that point on it was Bringing it All Back to Mediocrity ( and hello Victoria's Secret).
9 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
ah come now Brady, Nashville Skyline is a fantastic album! And i mean, you can't really expect old Bob to keep up that level of prodigious wonder all through his career! I mean in the 70's he gave us blood on the tracks and desire back to back! True, the eighties pretty much sucked, but Infidels was fairly decent and oh mercy is amazing. and then Time Out Of Mind and Love And Theft back to back! That's a pretty fine hit rate, man.
But thanks for adding to the debate! much appreciated
10 - Brady
Duke,
You have a point with "Blood on the Tracks" but to this listener's ears that was an anomaly. "Desire" and "Infidels" are ok ( granted I don't listen to them much ) but the focus and passion seem missing. Only on "Blood" does there seem to be that spark again; he had to go through relationship hell to dredge up that angst. I have to disagree with you on his two latest as well. "Time out of Mind" has one good song and "Love and Theft" well, seems to be suited for Dharma and Greg episodes and.. er lingerie ads. Don't get me wrong Duke: when Bob was on no single artist could touch him except arguably Elvis Costello, Van Morrison or Marvin Gaye - and this is serious company. Dylan just seemed to fall a long way down and one has to wonder why ( religion? Drugs? Women? Shadowy figures from shadowy agencies? ). I do agree that "Bringing It All Back Home" is an astounding record and your Smith's pick, Billy Bragg pick and Pogues pick are legendary discs that deserve mention. Oh yah, The Toadliquors rock as well!
11 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
Brady, thanks for the kind words about mine selection. I was thinking about Infidels last night, and came to the conclusion that if ever a record needed some kind of directors-cut carry-on, its would be it. I tihnk if the production were totally stipped and we had bobs voice and a guitar Infidels would be a mindblowing record. As it is, its just one with really ownderful melodies and fantastic lyrics most of the time, but crippeld by an awful awful sound.
I can't agree with you on Time... or Love And Theft. The latter took me a while to get into, even though i could tell the songwriting was seriously back on form, but Time... hit me like a ton of bricks. Trying to get to heaven, Not Dark Yet, Love Sick, thats all amazing stuff. I don't think there's a bad song on there, and the production is amazing. The otherworldy feel that Lanois brings to every damn thing he touches, just sucks you right in. On the other hand, bizarrely, Love And Theft is much more welcoming, but takes a bit longer to truly sink in. But its worth it, i think.
I can see what you mean, definately, about a certain spark being lost. Blood... is certainly much more raw in feeling than, say, Desire, but i think Desire is one of those bizarre offshots that Bob indulged in occasionally that actually 100% work. See also Nashville Skyline (controversial i know) and Slow Train Coming.
Thanks Brady!
12 - Laura
On Jay Z's album titles, the Black album
---- Its really a copy of Metallica,
does that make it worse or better?
lol