Classic Albums
Classic Album: Elton John – Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
Managing to traverse the chasm between critics favourite and global commercial acceptance at the same time as David Bowie, the former Reg Dwight seemingly had the best of both worlds by the mid 70s. Like Bowie, he had segued almost effortlessly from lauded singer-songwriter to glam rock icon (and, lest we forget, had even cracked …
Reissue: Attilio Mineo – Man In Space With Sounds
“Straight into the heart of the future!” boasts the narration for the latest LP re-issue of Man In Space With Sounds from Attilio “Art” Mineo, on the opening track “Welcome To Tomorrow”. Now back on vinyl, it’s probably the most famous and collectible theme park soundtrack. The 12 tracks here were originally written as library …
Classic Album: Black Sabbath – Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
If Black Sabbath’s eponymous debut is their most influential album, Paranoid boasted the hit single that became the band’s signature tune, Master of Reality and Vol 4 are the fan favourites, then where does that leave Sabbath Bloody Sabbath? Better produced than its four predecessors, a touch broader in its musical scope (even heavy metal’s …
Classic Album: Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV
Down the decades certain albums have had so much praise heaped upon them by fans and critics alike, that it becomes almost impossible to be objective about them. If so many people tell you how Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Dark Side of the Moon and OK Computer are the greatest albums ever recorded, …
Classic Album: Bob Dylan – Highway 61 Revisited
Imagine the shock of hearing Highway 61 Revisited the first time in the mid 60s. You’re a Bob Dylan fan, you like his politicised songwriting as it fit in neatly with your ideals and opinions. Sure his material has become slightly less political over recent albums, but he’s still a great songwriter. You can even …
Classic Album: Electric Light Orchestra – A New World Record
By October 1976 Electric Light Orchestra had managed to morph themselves into a slick prog-pop group, scoring hit singles the world over and releasing a string of increasingly impressive albums. Not only that, but band leader Jeff Lynne was merrily picking up influences from progressive rock, Beatlesque pop and even elements of disco, all of …
Classic Albums: Considering the status of Nirvana’s Nevermind 25 years later
It should go without saying, but sometimes it’s okay not to like something as much as people tell you that you should do. This applies many multiple times over for music. So why am I pointing out the obvious? Because since the widespread use of the internet, there are more and more opinion pieces …
Classic Album: AC/DC – Back in Black
There are some rock albums that grow to be bigger than the band that recorded it, so much so that it eclipses their whole career, becomes somewhat of an albatross around their necks and they spend the rest of their careers trying to downplay the album as they struggle to match its commercial success. Then …
Classic Album: Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms
That’s the trouble with first love – it only ever happens once. While some of us finally find what we are looking for later in life, you can never turn the clock back and recapture that feeling you had when you were a goofy adolescent with your hormones bubbling over and lusting after someone that …
Classic Album: Motorhead – No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith
Black clad, rickenbecker-bass wielding, rock and roll enthusiast Lemmy spent much of his post-Hawkwind career fronting Motorhead, a band that could play a range of slow, medium and fast-paced numbers, as long as they were loud. No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith was a well-received live album which cast a long, often mutton-chopped shadow over the band’s …