Joe Meek:

The Emotional, Cosmic & Occult World of Joe Meek:(2014)

Record producer, studio innovator, songwriter, oddball... All seem to hit Joe Meek. In 1962 he dreamed up the instrumental hit Telstar, which for the first time landed a British act at number one on the US Hot 100 Chart. I first heard this reissue compilation album when a friend brought over some records for a day of porch drinking, and vinyl listening. It is a nice cross section of Meek's body of work from the Rock'n'Roll melodrama of John Leyton's Johnny Remember Me to the abstractions of the Blue Men.  

Kraftwerk:

Autobahn:(1974)

Man-Machine:(1978)

Computer World:(1981)

Musique Non Stop:(1986)

Sometimes when I can't sleep I close my eyes, and imagine a river of static and white noise washing over me, and it lulls me to sleep. Kraftwerk are kind of like that river. I find this music to be so peaceful. Sure, I could talk about how influential they are. Or how inventive they are. Or how stylish they are. But, really, talk can be overrated, and it's so much better to just put on one of these albums, and enjoy.

Jandek:

Ready For The House:(1978)

Six And Six:(1981)

True originality is a rare thing, but it exists in Jandek. From invented tunings to ghostly melodies to seemingly tossed off album cover photos, new worlds are conjured from the depths of Jandek. I first became aware of him by watching the documentary, Jandek on Corwood. Find it, watch it. These two albums, his first and second, set the tone for all that would come in what would be an incredible output of work by an independent artist. Naked In The Afternoon, which starts Ready For The House is one of my all time favorite songs. 

Half Japanese:

Music To Strip By:(1987)

If you're unfamiliar with Half Japanese I suggest you track down a copy of the documentary The Band That Would Be King. Jad and David Fair are pop geniuses from another dimension. On this, their fifth album, incredible originals like Stripping For Cash, and U.S. Teens Are Spoiled Bums are mixed in with a selection of covers like only Jad and David could do them, like La Bamba. 

Strange But True:(1998)-Jad Fair and Yo La Tengo

This is a killer album where Jad recites inventive nonsensical stories over music by Yo La Tengo. I love this record. It's an adult kid record. 

Godspeed You! Black Emperor:

F♯ A♯ ∞:(1997)

I love this album. And I love that this piece of vinyl came with so many mysterious little inserts like a flattened penny, and hand drawn card etc., all of which go hand in hand with the cinematic spatial feel of the music. This is top of my list of great car trip albums, especially when driving west as the landscapes widen. 

 

Peter Gabriel:

Peter Gabriel (Car):(1977)

Peter Gabriel (Scratch):(1978)

Peter Gabriel (Melt):(1980)

Peter Gabriel (Security):(1982)

So:(1986)

Yes, the first four solo albums by Peter Gabriel were titled simply, Peter Gabriel. It seems he chose to see each album as an exhibit and an extension of an artist's work, and as such they didn't need titles. But they did have great artwork, which made them instantly identifiable. For years I avoided Peter Gabriel's work simply because I associated it with a period of music I just didn't care for. Yes, it was silly, and unfair to generalize in that way. Then one day I caught the tail end of Solsbury Hill coming out of some TV or Radio or something, and wanted to hear more of it, and because we live in the age of instant gratification I pulled it up online. There in that 4 minute song I found an artist as inventive as he was sentimental and meaningful, and fell in love with the work of Peter Gabriel. This guy is an incredible songwriter, and seemingly very open to musical adventure with his arrangements and concepts. 

Flaming Lips:

Oh My Gawd!!!...:(1987)

Telepathic Surgery:(1989)

In A Priest Driven Ambulance:(1990)

The Terror:(2013)

You have to appreciate a band that can keep evolving like the Lips, or at least I do. That said, maybe, just maybe, my favorite period of theirs is the early one with their second, third, and fourth albums above. I dig the punky edge. But then, I also really like the Terror with it's Eno-esque atmospherics. Above and beyond all else, I just dig the on going DIY esthetic that Flaming Lips have always championed. It's a bonus that the music has been so good for so long.

Brian Eno:

Another Green World:(1975)

Before And After Science:(1977)

Ambient 1 Music For Airports:(1978)

Music For Films:(1978)

Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks:(1983)

The Pearl; Harold Budd/Brian Eno:(1984)

I pull out Music For Airports more times than I can recount. I use it as a focusing tool to calm my mind while working. I often do the same with Apollo, Music for Films and The Pearl. There have been times when I spent the entire day playing Eno's ambient music on loop just for the atmosphere it provides. No one has ever put on one of Eno's ambient albums for a party. They are more of a solitary affair, one of contemplation. However, his other albums are party worthy, I'll Come Running is such a great song off of Another Green World with Robert Fripp providing the guitar acrobatics like only he can. By This River, off of Before And After Science, is a beautiful tranquil love song worthy of any party. Over the years, Eno has made music for all occasions, and introduced the world to a depth of atmospherics that music didn't have before he came along.   

Miles Davis:

In Person: Friday Night at The Blackhawk:(1961)

Four & More:(1966)

Jack Johnson:(1970)

There are any number of things you could say about Miles Davis, and most of them would be true. There's a lot of his music floating around my house, but these are the three vinyl pieces. The studio albums were innovative, but the live albums crackle with energy of a different kind. Miles knew how to change and adapt every so often to stay fresh. The album Jack Johnson was one such turning point, and maybe my favorite Miles Davis album. On it he wanted to bring in a Rock'n'Roll element. The result is an album that sounds as defiant as Jack Johnson himself was, with music lean and muscular, and like nothing that had been done. Want to pick your day up? Look up Right Off by Miles Davis. 

Some people are ferocious natural storms destined to leave a scorched path, Davis was one such person.   

Ornette Coleman:

Twins:(1971)

Seems like when it comes to jazz, and boundary pushing most get to Miles Davis and John Coltrane and stumble. And perhaps Ornette is further out there than most care to venture, but he is a bold genius of music and invention. This particular album was put together by the Atlantic Records without Coleman's input, and it comprises outtakes from a few different projects. I suggest checking out First Take. There is a magic in Ornette's playing that transcends genre.

John Cage:

Variations IV, Vol. II (assisted by David Tudor): (196?)

Culled from the wildly popular marathon of a six hour concert at Feigen-Palmer Gallery in L.A. in 1965, this album mixes Cage and associates live performance with audience sound to create a vast auditory painting. A spectacular representation of Cage's belief that any sound or combination of sounds can be music that is completely free from rule, law or dogma. Listening to this record you hear the birth of sampling. Cage was a fearless pioneer on many fronts. 

Etudes Boreales (1978) Ryoanji (1983): (1985)

It's been said that minimalist art makes people the most uncomfortable. If you feel that way, then this record is not for you. John Cage believed in the use of silence, which is put to good use here on record one, Etudes Boreales, first with solo prepared piano, and then with solo cello. In this minimalist composition it becomes inevitable that your mind will fill in the pauses, and rest with sounds from your surrounding. Even the slight pops and clicks of the vinyl seemed planned. Side three combines the two solo instruments into a dance like conversation. Record two, side two, Ryoanji, is a 20 plus minute composition for voice and percussion. Slightly less minimalistic, but still representative of Cage's taste and style emitting a grace in its execution that is as soothing as a breathing exercise. While this music may be a turn off to some, I find it relaxing, and incredibly visual. 

David Bowie:

Lodger: (1979)

Bowie is one of the great Rock'n'Roll changelings, and usually everyone has their favorite Bowie incarnation. Mine was the Berlin period, and Lodger was the last of this period. In fact of the three albums he made during this period, Lodger feels like the one he gave the least damn about having a hit on. Which is possibly why I love this album. The closest this record gets is DJ. Check out Red Money.

Le Grande Storia del Rock: (1981)

This Italian collection of songs from Bowie first album, and B-Sides highlights the period of the Bowie story where he was trying, sometime desperately to fit in with European psychedelic scene, a la Syd Barrett era Floyd. I'm sure there are some of these songs the artist wishes weren't out there. 

Let's Dance:(1983)

Well, he had a few hits on this album, didn't he? However, for the record, I prefer the Iggy Pop Version of China Girl, but I understand why Bowie wanted to cut his on version of the collaboration, and in fairness, his version was bigger. I own this album because of my love of Steve Ray Vaughan's playing, and his involvement with this album. His guitar solo on Let's Dance adds a wonderful juxtaposition the slicker sound of the Bowie/Nile Rodgers production. Overall, this is a pretty classic album.

Tin Machine:(1989)

Bowie has made some interesting side trips in his career, and this is one of those. In fact it yielded two albums. It starts out as Bowie fronting an 80's style hard rock band, complete with thin shreddery guitars, but then it's starts morphing into a true bowie weird album. I Can't Read is a key track on this one. 

The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band:

I'm The Urban Spaceman; The Very Best of: (1984)

The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band. Just saying the name makes you smile. If you think you don't know this 60's art school band, well maybe you're right, but you've probably seen them in the strip joint/club the Beatles and their mystery tour guest go into in The Magical Mystery Tour. And their influence can be felt in bands like Roxy Music, and Death Cab For Cutie. The latter taking their name from a Bonzo Band song by the same title. George Harrison sited them as his favorite band. My favorite tune in this collection has to be "Hunting Tigers Out In India". Look it up now!