Category Progressive
ROOTING FOR NUCLEUS
Overnight I received a text message from good mate and lifetime record collector, Mr 1537. No greetings or preamble necessary; like any true music tragic, Joe cut straight to the chase. “Are you familiar with this platter of pure delight?” he asked. I am, Joe, to a degree at least. And I agree with the […]
ALBUM COVERS | FLAPS
They fold, they open, they arise, they reveal. Those hinged bits of a record sleeve that give you something to study—or play with—while the disc spins. Here are some favourites. * US rockers Grin featured Neil Young collaborator and (later) Bruce Springsteen guitar slinger Nils Lofgren. What’s behind the toothy smile? Why gums, of course. […]
THE DAY THE MUSIC DEPARTMENT DIED
Walking down the corridor between the Counselling Service and Student Housing it was not uncommon to encounter a colleague. Greetings were exchanged and sometimes a brief chat ensued, before each continued on their journey. Over time you got to know each other a little better, making life easier when it came to the end-of-year lunch. […]
LISTENING ROOM
I’ve been dabbling in Bluesky (as mentioned previously). Thought it would be fun to share a selection of recent posts as they give an insight into what my ears have been seduced by in the listening room. As always, love to hear responses to any of these. * When some Matthew Sweet vinyl re-issues appeared […]
OINK, WOOF, BAA
Released in 1977, Animals remains one of Pink Floyd’s most politically charged and emotionally potent albums—a snarling, dystopian masterpiece that channels the disillusionment of a generation into a five-track conceptual epic. Loosely inspired by George Orwell’s allegorical story Animal Farm, the album trades the surreal psychedelia of early work The Piper at the Gates of […]
LOW: A CREATIVE HIGH
Born in Brixton, South London, David Robert Jones—known to the world as David Bowie—was a creative child who formed his first band in 1952 at the age of fifteen. After his unsuccessful self-titled debut LP in 1967, Bowie stepped back from pop music for a while and studied mime and drama with Lindsay Kemp. When […]
MOMENTARY PINK
After The Final Cut (1983), Pink Floyd were no more. So decreed Roger Waters, key lyricist and driving creative force in the band. But guitarist David Gilmour had other ideas and in 1986 he began working with drummer Nick Mason in the floating studio he had created on the magnificent houseboat Astoria, moored along the […]
PINK PULSE
There are many reasons for not having attended a live concert by an artist you love. Maybe the tickets sold out quicker than you could say ‘Scalpers!’. Perhaps the concert was in another city—or another country. For artists long gone, you may have been born too late. Whatever the reason, the live album has long […]
1974 COUNTDOWN | THE LIST
Here is the entire 1974 COUNTDOWN, with links to the original posts. Following this are the other 1974 posts including live albums, film soundtracks and jazz. And here is an invitation to add their your own favourite 1974 albums in the Comments… ranked or unranked, two or twenty, curated our plucked out of the ether, […]
1974 COUNTDOWN | #5 — #1
It has certainly been a long, strange trip yet here we are near the end of the 74 FROM ’74 album countdown. With a dozen-and-a-half days of 2024 still remaining. What efficiency! Before launching into the final five albums, it is timely to recall that this is neither a ‘Best of’ list, nor a ‘Greatest […]