Not Forgotten
Not Forgotten – Mott The Hoople – All The Young Dudes
1972 was the turning point for Mott the Hoople. Having decided to throw in the towel after four poorly selling albums and multiple sold out tours, they wound themselves down by fulfilling their final commitments and casting their minds to the future. In search of a new gig, bass player Pete ‘Overend’ Watts called rising …
Not Forgotten: Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
Steely Dan are one of those acts who are spoken of in hushed tones. Be it their studio perfectionism, their increasingly deft blending of rock and jazz as their career progressed, or their smart arse lyrics, Steely Dan are a band beloved by those who take music very seriously indeed. For many Steely Dan fans, …
Not Forgotten: Sparks – Balls
One of the great things about Sparks down the decades has been their innate ability to innovate and inspire those that follow in their wake. The fact that those that follow in their wake have their own disciples and, somewhat frustratingly, bigger sales, only adds to the lure of Sparks for me. Having made great …
Not Forgotten – Suede – Coming Up
There are times when revisionism just gets it a bit wrong. In the early 90s, Suede were at the very vanguard of British guitar music. With the backing of the weekly music press, they gained a considerable amount of momentum, with frontman Brett Anderson even finding his way onto he front page of one of …
Not Forgotten: Jethro Tull – Too Old to Rock ‘n’ Roll : Too Young to Die
Frequently disregarded by their fans as an attempt by bandleader and benign dictator Ian Anderson to simplify the Jethro Tull sound, Too Old to Rock ’n’ Roll: Too Young to Die is in some senses one of their most interesting works. Wedged between the band’s grandiose work of the early 70s, and their late 70s …
Not Forgotten: Kirsty MacColl – Kite
I find it impossible to dislike any aspect of Kirsty MacColl. She was a trier, tirelessly honing her craft, refusing to sell herself short or compromise her material for anyone, be they record companies, her expectant fans or her father. Sadly for all her obvious talent and verve, she struggled to record a consistently satisfying …
Not Forgotten: Silver Sun – Silver Sun
Silver Sun were a bit of an oddity during the dying years of Britpop, as they were far more of a straight power-pop act than any of their contemporaries. Specialising in Weezer-esque geek-pop guitar tunes blended with Posies-style harmonies, they were a far fizzier and fuzzier proposition than the bands they inevitably toured with. They …
Not Forgotten: Snoop Dogg – Doggystyle
Okay, let’s just forget for a moment that Snoop was the comedy dad character in reality TV show Father Hood. Try and forget his terrible commercial dance track ‘Sweat’ with ubiquitous producer of the moment David Guetta. And if you can, try to wipe from your memory his collaboration with Katy Perry on airhead anthem …
Not Forgotten – Marty Robbins – Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs
Prior to hearing Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs, if you’d told me that I’d get into an album of songs about the American wild west, I’d have said that that was about as likely as me winning a beauty contest. These things have a nasty habit of surprising you though, and so it proved when …
Not Forgotten: Marillion – Brave
It’s odd isn’t it, the amount of importance we put on being ‘cool’. Of course, the pressure on us be perceived as cool can be crippling in our teenage years, but it’s something which can continue to linger throughout our twenties, and for some of us, well into our thirties and beyond. Of course, what …