The Vinyl Countdown

Wilco, Wilco (The Album) (2009)
This album arrived rather swiftly on the back of Sky Blue Sky and at the time I liked Sky Blue Sky – it felt pretty, the playing was exquisite – but I was still sold on the Wilco of everything up to Sky Blue Sky. I still feel that Sky’s key tracks are among the band’s best but the album is lovely rather than brilliant. And so when this self-titled album, replete with self-titled song, arrived I was keen to get on board but it felt – ultimately – like filler. Live, the songs offered a bit more grunt, the VU-like chug of the opener, and some beautiful ballads – not quite another Sky Blue Sky but transitioning away from everything else (still). I bought the LP as part of a package deal – three Wilco records, all of them with the CDs inside too; the smart way for a record to be presented (rip the tunes from the disc to your iPod, we might like to sit around and play vinyl but we are also on-the-go people in this never-stopping world). But I forgot about Wilco (The Album). I just couldn’t get enthused. I’ve seen the band live twice – about to see them a third time. I’d always see them if I could – great band, amazing players, with a strong body of work, it’s almost irrelevant whether their latest material grabs you, you just know it’s going to be a good gig. But in the build-up to the latest tour I finally put this LP on the turntable – I was familiar with it when the band last toured and since then I’ve let it all slide. It’s a far better album than I remember. And that’s one of the reasons I like owning LPs. Files sit there and are happily forgotten. Records know how to wait.

Sample Track: Everlasting Everything

The Vinyl Countdown is a document of every LP I listen to, brand new discoveries and old-old favourites; extremely pre-loved, previously abandoned or with the shrink-wrap having just been removed it’s all here at The Vinyl Countdown

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March 24, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1397

Art Pepper, Art Pepper Meets The Rhythm Section (1957)
I’d heard a bit of Art Pepper and a bit about Art Pepper and then I heard this. And this was just it. Replete with the story: Pepper was nervous – he found out about the session the day it took place. The Rhythm Section refers to the players, known as just the best, Miles Davis’ crew (Red Garland, piano; Paul Chambers, bass; Philly Joe Jones, drums). And the story is unreliable, apocryphal – had Pepper just scored a hit so he could do the session? Or was he drug-free and that’s why he was so nervous? Could he not play straight? There’s also added bits about him having not played for up to six months – or was it just two weeks? And the horn he was using was in need of repair, or had just been repaired – badly. So you take this story, and the versions of it, in with you as you arrive at this album. And that adds to it. You hear a tension, you feel the anxiety. I’ve lived with this album a long time; a very special album to me. A very special album for me. I’ve turned a few people onto it. And I’ve bought it as a gift for a few people, I’ve bought a few CD copies of it – and my vinyl copy sat in my collection sealed for years. Today, of all days, I took it out and gave it a spin. Why today? No reason. Just wanted to say hello to an old friend.

Sample Track: You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To

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March 23, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1398

Aphex Twin, The Richard D. James Album (1996)
When I first heard Aphex Twin it had such a huge impact; I almost went crazy listening to all the music I could find by Richard David James. There was so much to process – the sheer amount and then within each album (and sometimes within each piece). There was industrial drill’n’bass, calm Eno-esque reverie gone (slightly) astray, there was wonky electronica and cruel, demented techno. There was calm before the storm – and you could find the calm inside the storm most of the time too. And again that could all be just talking about one piece. I liked this album when I heard it – as part of my Aphex fascination. But it was never one of my favourites. There were some great pieces but it just got lost in the deluge. But it was recently reissued on vinyl and I snapped it up – for the chance to have some (any) Aphex on vinyl (I do have the Windowlicker single/EP). And not only have all those feelings come straight back from my first discovery of Aphex Twin and that total immersion but this time The Richard D. James Album feels so much more vital than I gave it credit for – it feels so ahead of its time; remarkable to think that it’s closing in on 20 years since this was released.

Sample Track: Logan Rock Witch

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March 21, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1399

Santana, Abraxas (1970)
I fell in love with the music of Santana as a 12 year old. We got the first family CD player and a Greatest Hits album from Santana was one of the first discs in the house. And various 1960s/70s compilation tapes, Vietnam War-era soundtrack stuff, had served up some Santana too. And then that appearance at Woodstock. I was hooked. That footage blew me away, watching it for Woodstock’s 20^th Anniversary. It’s pretty embarrassing where the Santana band-name/brand-name has ended up but the first handful of albums is still amazing to me. This one is the one with all the hits, the big second album. It’s pretty extraordinary. Still. I don’t play it all that often. Don’t need to. But I love it.

Sample Track: Singing Winds, Crying Beasts

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March 20, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1400

INXS, Inxsive 1980-92 (1982)
I got hooked on INXS through the album Kick. It was the soundtrack to my final days at primary school, my first pair of basketball boots, my stone-wash jeans and the very-cheap Lacoste shirt my parents bought – the alligator facing the wrong way on this cheap copy-version. And then I checked out other albums. They were a good band. And this collection tells a different story, the story on the way toward Kick I guess. Listening to it now I hear them as contemporaries of our Dance Exponents, which they kinda were I guess, in an across the ditch sense. I first knew this album as a cassette tape, bought for $2.98 from Deka. I wanted something else (anything) by INXS and this was it. And at first it didn’t do it for me. But there was enough there to force me on. And I started really digging it. I don’t know when I bought the LP but it was one of those moments – I just know – where I bought it to represent the tape I once owned. I give it a listen now and then. And I like it. A lot.

Sample Track: Simple Simon

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March 18, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1401

Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Re*ac*tor (1981)
Funnily enough Re*ac*tor was one of the first Neil Young albums I bought on vinyl; bought because I heard it was awful. It sat on the shelf for a while and I couldn’t bring myself to actually listen to it. I love Neil with Crazy Horse so I wanted to believe it was good. But when I finally got to playing it Zuma and Ragged Glory it was not. All I could remember from it was nine minutes of interminable meat moaning (the song T-Bone). One night a friend came around and we were pretty ripped; had been on it for some time that evening, out at a gig and such and we decided to give the record a spin, determined to make it all the way through. We tuned it out pretty quickly, just babbled over it and then when we flipped it to side two we got the drunken-giggles as we heard Neil all but flipping his finger over his lips like a baby (the song Rapid Transit). When Re*ac*tor was issued on CD in 2003 I was working in a music store and the rep (back when there were those) gave me her copy. I was far more interested in learning up On The Beach, obviously. But I hung on to the CD of Re*ac*tor because, well, why not. I never really gave it another thought. It wasn’t as horrific as, say, Landing On Water but it wasn’t great. It was better, too, than Life, but it was low on the list of Neil Young albums. No need to defend it. Then, just this weekend, I dig it out and give it a spin or two because set lists from the current NY/CH tour suggest that Opera Star, Re*ac*tor’s opening track, is often part of the bill. So I’m going to give it another chance. And of course it’s not a great album – still. And all the usual comments apply, it’s harmless big dumb rock/plodding Crazy Horse stuff and it’s either ghastly or not quite ghastly in most cases and lyrically it’s poor/uninteresting/uninspiring. But, I dunno now – you see this is just the pre-concert-prep talking, I know that, but I’m kinda digging it. I’m kinda going into bat for
Re*ac*tor now. I still laugh at the bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb-bit in Rapid Transit but Opera Star is pre-grunge/post-punk loveliness/rawness, a damn fine rocker – and much of the album feels like a not-quite-as-good-as-Sedan Delivery-attempt-at-writing-companion-pieces-for-Sedan Delivery. Southern Pacific, Motor City, Shots. I might be over this in a day or two but I’m feeling charitable, I reckon Re*ac*tor is okay you know. And I’m happy enough to be the only one thinking that. That’s okay.

Sample Track: Surfer Joe and Moe The Sleaze

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March 17, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1402

Joe Cocker, Mad Dogs And Englishmen (1970)
You know I’ve seen Joe Cocker live more than any other international touring act. He comes to NZ a lot – and I have the job of seeing him (as a reviewer). And he’s always different. And he’s always the same. And though he’s more a cabaret act now than the sweaty, vital rock’n’roll/soul animal that killed it from Woodstock on through the early 70s he’s still got something. And usually that something is a killer-good band. Well, that’s part of the something. But this – this is just the business. Overblown and wonderful, this album is (still) a revelation. I grew up with Cocker’s music – just Greatest Hits stuff – and I never heard this album in its entirety until the 35^th anniversary CD reissue. But I was a fan of the first couple of studio albums – great, great singer; shit-hot band/s. Strong material. The greatest rock’n’roll and soul and pop covers artist when he was at the height of his game – and still capable of doing a good show now, long gone, long past the prime. But this really is the height of his game. This is visceral. This is magical. I’ve only owned the LP for a few days – I kept it on hold at the shop for ages though; knew I had to (one day) get it. Man it’s great. It’s fucking great.

Sample Track: The Letter

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March 16, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1403

Michael Nyman, The Kiss and Other Movements (1985)
My (knowing) introduction to Michael Nyman was the score from The Piano but in finding out the name attached to the music I realised I’d heard his music before; having seen a few Peter Greenaway films – head-fuck that they were to a young teen. And I loved Nyman’s score for The End Of The Affair also. So from there I started collecting up a few things, compilations to start with, the best way to sample the range of soundtrack music. From there it’s been to individual scores and albums. Found this the other day and bought it without knowing anything from it, as far as I was aware. But one play and it’s all familiar, some of this music used for films too, some of it composed for this album. I really love Nyman’s music.

Sample Track: Images Were Introduced

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March 14, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1404

Tracey Thorn, A Distant Shore (1982)
I bought this a few years ago because I was a bit intrigued by it – which is to say I didn’t know it existed; I’ve warmed to Everything But The Girl with time, I wasn’t a fan immediately, I find myself more interested in the music these days. But my wife’s quite the fan. And I went through this phase, as I think a lot of record-buyers do (at least I figure I’m not the only dunce to have tried this) where we attempt to get our partner to accept the habit by purchasing for them. Katy has no real interest in records – she likes when one is playing if she likes it, but that’s about where it starts and ends. She likes music. But records are never going to be for her to collect. So I bought this thinking she’d be into it – and she was. At least she was in the sense that she wanted to hear it. But it was so slight that the first couple of times we played it the record just seemed to disappear, hardly more than 10 minutes per side (it’s an album – not an EP, at least that’s how I understand it and yet it’s 23 minutes only; I like that by the way). So the way into this record ended up being to get the CD out from the library and give it a few spins. Been doing that again recently and that’s taken me back to the record (I’m not sure why it works like that for me, I’m not even attempting to justify the practice, simply documenting it as it happens). So there’s a neat cover of the VU’s Femme Fatale that I quite like. And one time when I was doing a DJ set of less-obvious 80s material I played Small Town Girl, the album’s opener. I liked that one straight away. But it took a while for this to make sense to me as a project – so slight, almost throwaway but not without its (bedsit) charms. Now I’m really into it. Digging it a great deal. Perhaps because I really liked Tracey Thorn’s most recent solo album. And I’m about to start reading her book. Those are definitely reasons. Absolutely. So I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I’m really glad I picked this up way back then. And how I’ve still got ground to cover with Thorne and Ben Watt and EBTG. And there’s always time. And that time feels like now.

Sample Track: Dreamy

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March 14, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1405

Spain, The Soul of Spain (2012)
I liked Spain already – one day I’ll find The Blues Moods of Spain on vinyl and it will be mine; oh yes, it will be mine – but last year’s The Soul of Spain took me by surprise/bowled me over (albeit it in its own slow-burn kinda way). I guess I just didn’t expect it to necessarily be brilliant, but rather nice. Turns out it was (and is) both. Terrible thing to say to recommend an album but our baby, new at the time, has listened to this album so many times when it was go-to-sleep time; yes, I just tried to sell an album by saying, effectively, it’ll put your baby to sleep. But I mention that because this album just crept up and into our home and with the music coming through the wall softly as Oscar fell asleep it turned out we were listening to it even when we hadn’t (quite) planned to listen to it. I gushed about this album. I raved. I gave it the full five-star review treatment and then scanned that review into a blog declaring it my new favourite slow-burn album. And it really was one of the musical highlights and delights of 2012 for me. When I spied the LP I put it on hold. Had to have it. But Oscar wasn’t done listening to the CD. Some nights he still crashes out with Spain wafting over and around in his room. I still love how Because Your Love is the best kind of Ben Harper song ever (ie: one not written or performed by Ben Harper). I love that gorgeous, lilting opener. I love this whole album. The LP’s been on hold for a bit now. I kept meaning to collect it. So I did – finally. I haven’t played it yet. I got home with it, took it from the bag and just stared at it. The music came immediately to mind; filled my mind, and our home, once again. I’ll look forward to the first play on the turntable with this. I kinda know that I’ve found an album that’s so very special to me. I doubt I can ever – quite – explain it (arguably this is my third go at it). And I doubt anyone else quite feels the way about this album that I do. And that’s okay. That’s quite okay.

Sample Track: Only One

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March 11, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1406

Marshall Crenshaw, Downtown (1985)
I still believe in great music-writing – just as much as I believe in great music. It was great music-writing that got me hooked on Marshall Crenshaw; just one of many…I guess he’s the sort of artist that lends himself to the nerd’s appreciation; the music-scribe convinced they’re changing the world firing out that missive, determined to show people the right way as opposed to all the obvious pap that fills people’s ears via the radio. And all of that… I remembered the name – Marshall Crenshaw – from when I first read about him. I was young (ish) and hadn’t come across his name before; this was pre-internet. I held on to the name for years. Finally, when I moved to a bigger city, one with a few record stores (at the time, anyway) I could start digging for all those names I remembered; had stored up for my misspent youth devouring so many music bios and mags and listening to whatever I could. Marshall Crenshaw doesn’t deserve more over-the-top/go-nowhere praise (from me, because who am I) but hey, he really is the one that got away isn’t he? Writing like that – and it all seemed to go nowhere. I don’t understand that at all. This record is brilliant. Several of his records are brilliant. T-Bone Burnett, Tony Levin, Mitchell Froom – the credits here suggest an embarrassment of riches. The songs reward over and over. The songs are perfect pop gems. The songs are the thing. And when he was on form Marshall Crenshaw was king. Even if only a small handful of people seemed to know and care.

Sample Track: I’m Sorry (But So Is Brenda Lee)

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March 10, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 1407

Robert Wyatt, Rock Bottom/Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard (1983)

I bought this last week because I’d never seen it before – a reissue of the two albums, combined as one double LP. Rock Bottom was released in 1974, Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard the following year, 1975. I’m a Robert Wyatt fan – I particularly loved Rock Bottom back in the day – and a lot of the more recent material. A few years ago I’d have turned my nose up at this sort of thing; a bizarre reissue. In my world these sorts of twofers were around on tape and CD but not so much LP. I was never into them on any format – I had to have to original tape or CD (on its own). But now I’m broke – so two-for-one is a total bonus. And in this case there’s just something strangely curious about it – a talking point; a good reason to add it to the collection. Oh, and the music stands up – no surprise there. And good to finally have a copy of Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard; I’d heard the album but never owned it. Love its title and cover so much.

Sample Track 1: Sea Song

Sample Track 2: Soup Song