Tag Archives: Music writing
1975 COUNTDOWN | #30 — #21
#30 NEIL YOUNG — ZUMA After the grim soul scouring of Tonight’s The Night, Young reformed Crazy Horse with new guitarist Frank “Poncho” Sampedro replacing Danny Whitten. Zuma blends wistful reflection with raw electric power. “Don’t Cry No Tears” and “Barstool Blues” evoke rough-edged tenderness, while “Cortez the Killer” stands among his finest works—a thunderhead […]
1975 COUNTDOWN | #50 — #41
#50 AC/DC — T.N.T. The Aussie rockers crank it up a notch for their second album of 1975. “It’s a long way to the top” fully deserves its iconic status, while “High voltage” offers exactly that: raw, electrifying rock. Add in a title track that boasts one of Malcolm Young’s best riffs and you have […]
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 […]
DAVID, STEPHEN AND GRAHAM
On 28th June 1969 the self-titled album by Crosby, Stills & Nash entered the US charts. It reached #6 and stayed around for an impressive 100 weeks. Two singles were released—Nash’s jaunty ‘Marrakesh Express’ and Stills’ extended ‘Suite: Judy Blue Eyes’—both reaching the Top 30. So much for the data. What makes this album so […]
KEEPING TIME
It is easy to forget how many great songs R.E.M. wrote. Forty years on from their formation and a full decade after the band called it a day, the band’s legacy as one of the most successful indie bands of all time is assured. That legacy is in full view on In Time 1988-2003: The […]
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 […]
FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE | PART TWO
An Interview with Fiona McQuarrie Vinyl Connection: Firstly, congratulations on the recent publication of your book on Fountains of Wayne (J-Card Press, March 2025). It’s great to have something more substantial than a magazine article to dive into. Fiona McQuarrie: Thank you! When this project first came my way, I was very surprised that there […]
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 […]
GOOD LUCK
Rock behemoths Pink Floyd cast a long shadow across popular music, from the 60s to the 80s and beyond. Perhaps that is why Floyd guitarist David Gilmour has produced just five studio albums in a six decade career; the band that bought him fame, fortune and friction has tended to dominate his creative life. Luck […]
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