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Middle Aged Dummies!! Artists #1's have been posted!! (8 Viewers)

"A Slight Discomfort" -- Nice listen, an interesting, mellow one from an up and down record. I can be sure my favorite from this album, which was really a B-side, will not be here, I think @scorchy thinks I'm weird for liking it.
I could never think you were weird, gb, but no, it's not gonna make an appearance. I do remember how much you liked it when we saw them play it in Harrisburg and sent vibes you're way when I heard it a second time in Nashville a couple years back. The one last B-side on my list isn't as good of a song as Ascension Blues, but it's my favorite rarity just for how mean it is (and because I've never heard it live).
 
I think the Joke going big with production (Shooter Jennings produced) helped it break through to major airplay in 2018. This was mid-Trump...a time that required big noise to gain notice. It won two Grammy awards but lost out to "This is America" for song and record if the year.

I'll be curious to see your reaction to my #3, which I think is Brandi's best written song about love. It has a lovely vocal track that doesn't ask her to really belt it out, and the production stays (mostly) simple. I don't think it's very well known, so I believe it will surprise some people.

In between in an early BC song that kept climbing my list each time I replayed the albums while building my list.

I've saved five of hers as new-to-me favorites, and I tend not to like the big productions, so I think I'll play a few for him on the way home and see what he thinks.

And Rush. I'm going to make him listen to the Rush song. :lol:
 
"The Joke" by Brandi Carlile: I love her voice. She's obviously a great singer. Structurally the song is good, but the people involved are afraid to let her voice do the heavy lifting. They're afraid of simplicity and so whenever she goes big, they bring all the music up with it, like the strings in a Steven Spielberg movie to hammer the point home. It's so corny and manipulative. There's a universe in which that song could be powerful, and I imagine the demo of it sounded great, but it was so overwrought in the studio that anything a dude like me would connect with has been sanded down or worn away. Compare it to this song by Nina Nastasia. Like the Brandi Carlile song, it's simultaneously small and quiet but grandiose. It has a mix of electric and acoustic. But everything sounds natural, and there's an immediacy to the recordings. When she goes big, her voice carries where it needs to carry, and the music doesn't compete with that. The whole thing creates a world that you can inhabit.
I get what OH is saying here. I love Brandi's music, but sometimes her records are overproduced. Ray Charles had the same problem, if "problem" it was. And, like with Ray, I think the singer is more responsible than the producers for how those records sound since both basically were responsible for them.

I think the Joke going big with production (Shooter Jennings produced) helped it break through to major airplay in 2018. This was mid-Trump...a time that required big noise to gain notice. It won two Grammy awards but lost out to "This is America" for song and record if the year.

I'll be curious to see your reaction to my #3, which I think is Brandi's best written song about love. It has a lovely vocal track that doesn't ask her to really belt it out, and the production stays (mostly) simple. I don't think it's very well known, so I believe it will surprise some people.

In between in an early BC song that kept climbing my list each time I replayed the albums while building my list.
I'm all in on Brandi. I know Shooter produced it, but she seems like the kind of artist who isn't going to get pushed around and will make her records sound like she wants them to. Who the hell am I to criticize? I'd like to see more stripped-down versions of some of her songs to let that voice carry even more than it does. Like I mentioned, I've thought the same with Ray Charles. They wanted their records to sound a certain way - I'm good with that. She's a treasure.
 
Lola - This is a fun song by them. I remember when I saw them back '85, they kept teasing the crowd by playing the first notes of the song, but then playing a different song instead. They played it about midway through the show.
At my 1990 show, they did this with Celluloid Heroes (not the beginning but the "you can see all the stars as they walk down Hollywood Boulevard" line), finally playing it during the encore. Lola was played toward the end of the regular set without previous fanfare.
 
I think the Joke going big with production (Shooter Jennings produced) helped it break through to major airplay in 2018. This was mid-Trump...a time that required big noise to gain notice. It won two Grammy awards but lost out to "This is America" for song and record if the year.

I'll be curious to see your reaction to my #3, which I think is Brandi's best written song about love. It has a lovely vocal track that doesn't ask her to really belt it out, and the production stays (mostly) simple. I don't think it's very well known, so I believe it will surprise some people.

In between in an early BC song that kept climbing my list each time I replayed the albums while building my list.

I've saved five of hers as new-to-me favorites, and I tend not to like the big productions, so I think I'll play a few for him on the way home and see what he thinks.

And Rush. I'm going to make him listen to the Rush song. :lol:
If you tell him La Villa Strangiato has no vocals (which is true), he might protest less. Might.
 
Prodigy 7-5 catch up:

Invisible Sun is the last track on the countdown before we go into full single banger mode - another one that is absurdly slow for the band in terms of tempo, but feels incredibly dark and atmospheric, not an enormous fan of the vocal style used, feel like the track would have been improved with less effects, but as it's minimal throughout the track I'm letting a minor thing like that slide, it's another one that feels like it could easily be used in some sort of film soundtrack

Warrior's Dance is the last track being selected from "new" Prodigy, for which I'm meaning after the one album that properly broke through in the US, and this was their last top ten hit in the UK (before such things became basically irrelevant), and as someone that thinks their best albums went "the first one > the second one > the third one > whatever", I get enough vibes and general flow of the track that despite it being on one of their later albums, it would not be out of place on anything that came earlier in the slightest. Real nice combination of ups and downs, including enough spots for the dance floor to go mental

Firestarter? 5? That would I guess would be the reaction to many people who are US based, who might only have ever listened to bits of The Fat of the Land (their only album to penetrate the Billboard 200 heavily, being number one at the same time as it was here), and the only single off the album to get anywhere up the Hot 100 at any time. Simply down to opinions - it's an absolute banger, not going to disagree, but it's not the best track off the album, and from where I'm sitting, there are three tracks off of previous albums that I'd rather take to a desert island with me. It's great Prodigy, but it's not peak Prodigy, it's just mainstream popular Prodigy
 
I forgot to add "Times Like These" to the songs I know. I've always liked that Foos song.

10 new ones I like a lot. I like more than this, but keeping it short. Big thunder storm going on.

Bullet - I like the pedal steel and that other guitar that's keeping it good company.
Talking **** About A Great Sunset -
Pais Tropical
On Melancholy Hill
Held
Lagartija Nick
Kingdom of Rust
Minority
We Gotta Get You a Woman
You Enjoy Myself

adding Grace, Too
 
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I will not be doing any special write ups for the remainder of my tracks. Frankly, I just put my head into thinking I was 20 year old titusbramble again, watching Prodigy live, and thinking "which of these tracks would I mark out at the most". It became simple from there. Once the countdown is done, I'll drop in some live tracks of the top 10 plus a special "making of" the number one track I've picked
 
Damon Albarn song #5

Gorillaz - "On Melancholy Hill" from Plastic Beach (2010)


Another mid-tempo Pop song with a simple childlike melody paired with somewhat darker lyrics. Albarn originally wrote the song for The Good, The Bad and the Queen but decided to put it out under Gorillaz' name instead.

Spotify link: https://open.spotify.com/track/0q6LuUqGLUiCPP1cbdwFs3

Acoustic-ish Live Performance on a LA street corner

 
Round 5 thoughts:

Lots of let’s call them “interesting” songs about the male/female dynamic this round from Todd, Police, Genesis, Kinks?, and I’m assuming Slade. Good thing Brandi is hear to set the guys straight.

Really like these new to me songs from Modest Mouse, Decemberists, Trail of Dead, Steely Dan, Phish, ELO, Frank Black, Clutch, Gorillaz, Doves, and Tragically Hip.

Some personal known to me favorites from Police, Kinks, Rush, Daft Punk, Chicago, Stevie W, Foos, Prodigy, and Heart.

S&G - my older sister had The Boxer on 45 and would play it all the time on our family turntable. To bug her, I’d start singing the Li La Li parts at the top of my lungs, skipping around her annoyingly, until she either threw something at me or called out for my mom. Great memories! I think this inspired me to leave a voice mail for her tonight - I’ll let you know how it goes.
 
In terms of live tracks, I have found the perfect combination of how music works - take reggae track from the 70's, sample the hell out of it in a rave style in the 90's, then go full mandolin orchestra cover in the 10's
 
Knew 13 of the 5's going in, the most yet. Knew the Chicago and Foo Fighters songs when I heard them.
Lola, Under Pressure, Spirit in the Night, Crazy On You and Grace Too would be in my top 5 for these artists also.
Some new to me I liked in playlist order.
The Joke
All St Day
Varuo
Cheap and Nasty
Bullet
A Fool For You
Kingdom of Rust
Held

Surprised "Can I Sit Next to you Girl" is so high. I like it myself but assumed it didn't make the cut at this point.
Taylor Swift is another list not in worst to first order, correct? This is the first one I didn't really like.
Despite knowing and liking alot of songs, I thought this playlist was weaker than the last 2 for my tastes.
 
Surprised "Can I Sit Next to you Girl" is so high. I like it myself but assumed it didn't make the cut at this point.
I didn't rank mine. I blended them. Mostly because i was too lazy to try and order them.

Just a little suggestion for the next one, which you guys can take or ignore, but it would be really nice to have in the first or second post a list of who did them in favorites order and who didn't. I've found it impossible to keep track, as I know others have, too. Would prevent a lot of people from having to say, "Once again, mine were not in preference order."
 
but it would be really nice to have in the first or second post a list of who did them in favorites order and who didn't
Is you list ranked by?What is the name of your Artist?What is your FBG screen name?
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomTodd RundgrenNew Binky the Doormat
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomJorge Ben JorDon Quixote
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomBrandi CarlileJB Breakfast Club
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe PoliceZegras11
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomModest MouseThe Dreaded Marco
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomGenesisYo Mama
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomStevie Ray VaughanSullie
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe Decemberistskupcho1
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottom...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Deadplinko
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe KinksGalileo
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomRushhiggins
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomSigur RósScoresman
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomDonald FagenCharlie Steiner
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomGreen DayMAC_32
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomBig ThiefIlov80s
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomDaft Punk rockaction
My list is ranked chronologically!Taylor SwiftJpalmer
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomElliott SmithTuffnutt
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomChicagoPip's Invitation
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe StranglersJohn Maddens Lunchbox
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomRyan AdamsDr. Octopus
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomStevie WonderUruk-Hai
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomSladeMrs. Rannous
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomPhishshuke
My list is ranked chronologically!Electgric Light Orchestra (ELO)jwb
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomFrank BlackMister CIA
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomClutch Raging Weasel
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomDinosaur Jr. KarmaPolice
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomWarren Zevonworrierking
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomAlice in ChainsMt. Man
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomQueensnellman
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomAC/DCfalguy
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe Hold Steadscorchy
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomDamon AlbarnEephus
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomRay Charlessimey
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomDoveslandrys hat
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomSpoonHov34
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomFoo FightersJust Win Baby
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomSimon & Garfunkelzamboni
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomBruce SpringsteenDrIanMalcolm
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe Prodigytitusbramble
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomBauhausotb_lifer
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomHeartDoug B
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomThe Tragically HipNorthern Voice
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomdeadmau5zazale
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomElton Johntimschochet
 
Surprised "Can I Sit Next to you Girl" is so high. I like it myself but assumed it didn't make the cut at this point.
I didn't rank mine. I blended them. Mostly because i was too lazy to try and order them.

Just a little suggestion for the next one, which you guys can take or ignore, but it would be really nice to have in the first or second post a list of who did them in favorites order and who didn't. I've found it impossible to keep track, as I know others have, too. Would prevent a lot of people from having to say, "Once again, mine were not in preference order."
I suppose I may have subconsciously ranked mine just by the order they came to me, although some got chosen just because I heard them in the moment while streaming a playlist. My #2, especially, falls into that category (even though I love the song, I'm wondering how many here have heard it at all). I'm already kicking myself in the *** for songs I left off.
 
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomStevie WonderUruk-Hai
If that's what I entered into the spreadsheet, I made a mistake because that's not how I compiled the list.
Zegras only put two options on that sheet to choose from. One was In order with favorite #1 and least at the bottom. The other was chronological order. Like you, mine aren't ranked worst to first and they aren't in chronological order, but there was no third option.
 
I think the Modest Mouse ones were ranked for flow, IIRC.

That was kind of me with Daft Punk but I wound up ranking worst to best with an acknowledgement of flow.

Modest Mouse was just Marco and randomness, I think. 31 songs. Here you go. I could try to find where he says that, but I'm lazy. Correct me, Marco!
 
No, it's a solid suggestion and a good and useful one. Not laughing at you, just laughing at the maybe the obviousness of it. Like I can see you slapping your forehead going, "This shouldn't be so hard."

Maybe not. It cracked me up, anyway.
 
I think the Modest Mouse ones were ranked for flow, IIRC.

That was kind of me with Daft Punk but I wound up ranking worst to best with an acknowledgement of flow.

Modest Mouse was just Marco and randomness, I think. 31 songs. Here you go. I could try to find where he says that, but I'm lazy. Correct me, Marco!
Definitely not least favorite to favorite. I tried to sequence some songs that I thought went together, some literally are back to back on their albums that I thought shouldn't be separated. Tried to make the playlist flow a bit but I often suck at that so......yeah, maybe a bit random.

I'm going to rank them 31-1 for the next playlist.
 
Like I can see you slapping your forehead going, "This shouldn't be so hard."
Yeah, something like that.

Though, since the issue seems to be whether a list is in order of preference or not (99% of the time this comes up because someone says "why is song X ranked here?"), perhaps "this is ranked from favorite to least favorite" and "this is not ranked from favorite to least favorite" are the only options needed.
 
PhishshukeYou Enjoy Myself

Well here it is. Considered by many to be the greatest Phish song. It rightfully could have been all the way up to my #2 spot.

To really enjoy it, here's a live version.
1:25 opening notes
Beautiful composition and building to 8:30, I especially love those long Trey notes at the 8:00 mark.
8:30 SCREEEEEAM
9:13 pre-internet, no one knew for sure what they were saying.
10:50 Trampolines!
15:45 Trey dances
17:05 Vocal jam starts and lasts for more than 4 minutes. You might want to skip this. Not for the faint of heart. Don't come back in here complaining about it. I warned you.

Zero comments on the vocal jam? No one is actually watching these, are they?
 
Random thoughts on some of the known-to-me songs from #5:

Todd as a solo artist probably doesn't become a thing if not for We Gotta Get You a Woman. When he left Nazz, his goal was to be a producer, and he achieved that quickly after getting in with the people who ran Ampex/Bearsville. The Runt album was a thing he did in between production and engineering gigs, with no expectation of it catching on. But when We Gotta Get You a Woman became a hit, all of the sudden that created a demand for him as a performer, and from then on he did both production and performing. (In fact, he said he felt free to experiment as much as he wanted to with his own material, because there was no risk to him if it flopped commercially, as he was making a lot of money from producing.) Regardless of how you interpret its message (I never thought it was about hookers until OH's comments), it's a great pop tune and set the stage for his achievements in songcraft.
I am with OH on The Joke -- I love the vocal but not the arrangement.
Don't Stand So Close to Me is definitely not the kind of subject matter you'd expect from a massive hit, but the melody is great.
I included The Musical Box in my 1971 countdown. What I said there:

72. The Musical Box -- Genesis (from Nursery Cryme)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4going_cOo

Nursery Cryme was the first Genesis album to feature Phil Collins and Steve Hackett, and they both make their presence felt on its opening and best track. The dynamics shift all over the place on this one, treating us to sections of pensive folk, raging rock and many things in between. This was also the song that inspired Peter Gabriel to start wearing costumes onstage -- he would change into them during the instrumental breaks.

Which prompted this response from Wikkid, where we learned it was his favorite song from 1971:

my #1. not then, but NOW..NOW..NOW.NOW..NOW!!!!!.

when my baby sister visits, she & me 96yo Da request that i not sing along to the "NOW" song during prime viewing hours, cuz i apparently cant hold back. masterpiece - top 5 thing i've seen live (was at their first American concert, Brandeis College, early '72?)

Lola was my first pick in the "Rolling Stone Garbage List" draft. I took it because I love it, but also because it was in a grouping that I thought was weak. Strategery!

1.04 Lola -- The Kinks (#386, bloc 376-400)

My "strategy" is that I went through each bloc and identified songs that I would have no hesitation about drafting. Then I counted up how many "no hesitation" songs are in each bloc. I will target the blocs with the fewest "no hesitation" songs first.

Bloc 376-400 was the weakest for me, with just 10 out of 25 songs in the "no hesitation" category. And there aren't many of those 10 that I feel really strongly about, so going with one that I did made sense.

Lola is one of Ray Davies' best songs and its subject matter, about a guy who unwittingly picks up a transvestite, was revolutionary for 1970. Eephus will approve because it's from one of their non-Arista records. 😄

La Villa Strangiato is probably in my top 5 Rush. It's one of the greatest prog instrumentals. It's got beastly performances from all three members and, in a development positive for some (many?), no vocals.
Don't Take Me Alive is one of my favorite Steely Dan songs. Its music is some of the most straightforward and hardest-rocking they ever did, but its lyrics are completely bonkers.
Signed, Sealed, Delivered is joyous. And yes, very Stax-like by Motown standards.
You Enjoy Myself is one of Phish's greatest concert jam vehicles, and as with Tweezer, the studio version doesn't really do it justice (but at least never gets boring, unlike the studio Tweezer at times). Trey Anastasio studied under a jazz composer named Ernie Stires, and YEM is one of many of his early compositions that reflect that. The version that they played at my first show in 1993 was insane.
Heaven Beside You is anguished in the best way.
I don't care what Vanilla Ice did to it, the bass line of Under Pressure is an all-timer.
Times Like These came out during the peak of my Lost Years and still makes me emotional.
LI-LA-LI! SMACK (from Hal Blaine)!
Spirit in the Night was an early showcase of why Springsteen was a unique talent, but also of why he could be annoying.
Crazy on You has a great riff and an undeniable vocal. I remember CBS using it as bumper music a lot during the Madden-Summerall NFL telecasts in the '80s.
Amoreena just hooks you in slowly. And Phish covered it once!

I know I've heard All St. Day, Dreaming of 4000 and Miss Misery before but I don't remember what they sound like.
 
PhishshukeYou Enjoy Myself

Well here it is. Considered by many to be the greatest Phish song. It rightfully could have been all the way up to my #2 spot.

To really enjoy it, here's a live version.
1:25 opening notes
Beautiful composition and building to 8:30, I especially love those long Trey notes at the 8:00 mark.
8:30 SCREEEEEAM
9:13 pre-internet, no one knew for sure what they were saying.
10:50 Trampolines!
15:45 Trey dances
17:05 Vocal jam starts and lasts for more than 4 minutes. You might want to skip this. Not for the faint of heart. Don't come back in here complaining about it. I warned you.

Zero comments on the vocal jam? No one is actually watching these, are they?
I already know what they do there. And there's a lot of music to get through on the playlists before getting into the "bonus material". However, I will listen to the version from my first show before going to bed.
 
Dapple Rose - whoa where did this come from. I should have recorded myself and made one of those first time reaction videos.
Still catching up Wikipedia has this nugget:

"Dapple Rose" features lyrics from Powell about an elderly horse. Recalling the inspiration behind the song, Powell recalled in 2009: "I've always had a fondness for horses and where I lived with my parents there were some fields over the back and there were always gypsies camping there. They used to have these horses and donkeys and they always looked dead to me. They were not looked after which was sad."
What was your reaction?
 
And then there's "Don't Stand So Close To Me '86"

Let me preface this with, old man over here going from my old man memory and I'm too lazy to look it up or find it. I thought that I once read an article that the reason this version existed was because The Police were asked to put out a (or perhaps it was to fulfill an obligation of their record deal?) "Greatest Hits" album. Which is kind of crazy considering they only recorded 5 studio albums. Anyway, so, what they had decided (or perhaps what Sting decided) was that instead of doing that, they would reimagine their most popular songs and release an album of completely different versions of their greatest hits. Which, I think is a really cool idea, much better than the usual old routine of just throwing a bunch of previously recorded songs picked and pulled from previous studio albums with maybe one or two live tracks or an extended track version of one of the songs already on the GH album, etc. And this kind of thing always ticked me off because I'm an idiot and, as a kid, I would fall for this almost every time. Did I have all The Police albums? Yes. Did I still go buy this stupid "The Police - The Singles" version? I'm pretty sure I probably did.

Anyway, what I think I read happened was that, at this point in the band's history, they were pretty much over each other. Stuart Copeland broke his collar bone the day before they were supposed to record this album and I think this was the first song there were set to work on. So electronic drums were used, they were fighting and really didn't want to be around each other any longer and this remake was the result of that mess. What's even funnier, to me, is the train wreck of the video they released which needs a seizure warning in front of it. It reminds me of exactly how it would look if you tried to bathe three random cats in the same bath tub at the same time. And, what's worse, is that they throw in clips of the original Don't Stand So Close To Me when they were having fun and enjoying life. Just focus on Stuart Copeland in that video, he's so pi$$ed off it makes it worth watching.

Having said all this, I'm probably one of the only people on the planet that will ever openly admit this but I actually kinda like this version. I know that it's crap, if feels like one of Sting's Jazz infused mash ups and I realize it doesn't hold a candle to the original version (which is a brilliant song), the electronic drum machine thingy is horrible and the beginning of the song is simultaneously bizarre and awful. . . but for some strange reason I still enjoy this version because it doesn't really even resemble the original version of the song to me. It just sounds like its own weird, unique but enjoyable song to me. . . and I despised New Coke fwiw.
 
In order with favorite #1 and least favorite at bottomStevie WonderUruk-Hai
If that's what I entered into the spreadsheet, I made a mistake because that's not how I compiled the list.
Zegras only put two options on that sheet to choose from. One was In order with favorite #1 and least at the bottom. The other was chronological order. Like you, mine aren't ranked worst to first and they aren't in chronological order, but there was no third option.

I would suggest adding “random” as an option in addition to “in order of favorite” and “chronologically”.
I will be one of these as well assuming nobody takes the artist. Part 2 won't be either of these options for me as well.
 

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