Clad in black, don't look back and I love ya

Continuing my trip up Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time...

#188 : Electric Warrior - T Rex (1971)

“A successful, hit rock & roll record is a spell,” T. Rex leader Marc Bolan told Rolling Stone. And so, muttering “eye of Bowie, toe of Slade,” Bolan cast a spell over all of England. He took his Tolkienesque hippie music and gave it a glammed-out Chuck Berry update on sexy singles like “Bang a Gong (Get It On)”; this was rock that thrusted, quivered, and recklessly employed metaphors equating cars with sex (“You got a hubcap diamond star halo”). He outdid himself with “Jeepster,” an entire song on the topic, vibrating with lust, a shuffling beat, lots of guitar, and the sound of Bolan stomping on the studio floor.

I was aware of the singles from this album and the general T Rex sound, but had never listened to a whole album's worth - I'd have to say I wasn't expecting any surprises though.  And surprises were very much not delivered with "Bang A Gong" and "Jeepster" being the high points for me - there must be other groups that sound like T Rex, but it's seems like an "almost unique" sound and hence is instantly recognisable to me.  I also liked listening to "Cosmic Dancer" because it reminded of Billy Elliot, which is a film I never go out of my way to watch, but whenever I stumble upon it I always watch it through til the end and really enjoy it (whilst laughing at how young Jamie Bell is!).  The rest of the album is fine, but somewhat suffers in comparison with the high points.  I wasn't really able to decide if the album felt dated or not becayse it's very much of its time, but still sounds surprisingly fresh - I'd also have to say that is one fine album cover.

Wikipedia tells me this was really the first album where T Rex established their sound and it's also widely considered as the first glam-rock album, which is a genre I enjoy mostly for its ridiculousness.  It doesn't have a lot more to say about the album - it got to #1 in the UK, so obviously did well enough for itself, but the entry doesn't really draw that out.  Oh yes, and there's this - "Bolan was a guest on the BBC television show, Cilla, in January 1973. He and Cilla Black sang an acoustic version of "Life's a Gas"".  Errr - what?  

The Wikipedia entry for the band is somewhat lengthier and reminds you how popular they were at the time - 11 top ten singles between 1970 and 1973.  The "Influence And Legacy" section is a joy to read - so many famous names in their declaring their love for Bolan and the band.  So much so that it surprised me to read they were only inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last year (along with Depeche Mode, The Doobie Brothers, Whitney Houston, Nine Inch Nails and The Notorious BIG - an eclectic mix)

"Customers also listened to" Thin Lizzy, Free and a load of other people from around that time who made some fine sounds, but nothing really like T Rex.  Because there's nothing really like T Rex from this period - and I like it.

#187 : AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted - Ice Cube (1990)

Six months after quitting N.W.A, the group’s most gifted lyricist returned with a vengeance on AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted, recorded with Public Enemy’s production crew, the Bomb Squad. Lyrically, it sharpened N.W.A’s politics; “Why more niggas in the pen than in college?” Cube asks on “The Nigga Ya Love to Hate.” The album’s rapacious sexism has aged horrendously, though give Cube some credit for being smart enough to include the stunning “It’s a Man’s World,” in which female rapper Yo-Yo tells him off straight to his face.

I can't claim to be massively familiar with N.W.A. or any of their constituent rappers (although Dre pops up in quite a lot of stuff), but I was basically expecting this to be angry sexism that I didn't like.  And boy, is it angry (he even looks super angry on the cover!) and sexist - although I'd argue that misogynistic would be closer (and it's interesting that Rolling Stone claim it's aged horrendously, because I'm not sure I remember such behaviour being TOTALLY acceptable even all the way back in the early 90s) .  But, to my surprise, I found it surprisingly likeable with intelligence and humour coming through in the places where he wasn't being a complete dinosaur.  Which makes me somewhat conflicted - I mean, obviously, I hate it but I also quite like it.

For once, Wikipedia pretty much agrees with me, although it states the album is hailed as a classic, which I'll pretty much have to take their word for.  Ice Cube's entry tells me he's a year younger than me (the hip hop heroes are all so old these days!) and very much glosses over his N.W.A. days and concentrates on his solo efforts (don't worry - I'm sure we'll get a chance to look at N.W.A. at some point further up the list).  It also covers his acting credits - I'd forgotten he was in Boyz N Da Hood and Three Kings and he is particularly fine in both of them.  And using my informal (and more than likely completely incorrect) correlation between personality and length/number of marriages, he comes out as a nice guy, having been married for nearly 30 years now to the same woman with no reports of children with anyone else.  So well done him!

"Customers also listened to" N.W.A., Dr Dre and Eazy-E - there's a theme going on here methinks.  And whilst there's little chance of me becoming an Ice Cube fanboy, I enjoyed some of this, whilst absolutely hating other bits of it.  So it's a tricky one.

#186 : Blood Sugar Sex Magik - Red Hot Chili Peppers (1991)

No one ever disputed the boisterous energy of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ music — it was only a matter of whether these funky monks could write riffs and songs that stood alongside their idols. On their fifth studio album, they got the balance right. They went touchy-feely (and multiplatinum) with the ballad “Under the Bridge,” the biggest of the album’s five hit singles. In addition, guitarist John Frusciante brought energizing, songful riffs, producer Rick Rubin kept the songs streamlined and free of juvenilia, and Anthony Kiedis brought a new degree of simplicity to his singing.

Ah yes - RHCP, those funky monks (it's a track off the album, so it does make some kind of sense).  I did listen to this back in the day, but have never revisited it (unlike Californication, which I have listened to a lot) so I was interested to revisit it to see how things turned out that way.  And I think I can see why - there's a lot of skill involved and "Give It Away" and "Under The Bridge" are both very fine tracks, but the rest kinda blurs into a funky, bassy mess for me - although I appreciate for many it's a funky, bassy haze (which is obviously several steps up from a mess).  I also particularly didn't like the closing track "They're Red Hot", but was somewhat surprised to find it's a cover of a 1936 Robert Johnson song, which makes it somewhat more forgivable (but only somewhat).  And, going back to a favourite bugbear of mine, at 73 minutes this album is way too long for me for something with the lack of variation it displays.  And yes, I know this is not going to be a popular opinion.

Wikipedia tells me I'm wrong.  It also tells me "Kiedis focused lyrically on sexual references and innuendos, as they were frequently on his mind" - no shit, Sherlock.  It also tells me "Kiedis wrote "I Could Have Lied" to document the brief relationship he had with Irish singer Sinead O'Connor" - I can't even begin to imagine the amount of angst in that relationship.  This period of time in the band's Wikipedia entry is entitled "Blood Sugar Sex Magik, fame and Frusciante's first departure" which gives you an idea that maybe it wasn't the most settled period for the band but, to be honest, I'm not sure they have ever really been all that settled.  However, the tour for the album had them supported by Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Smashing Pumpkins - I imagine a lot of people have happy memories of those gigs.  And finally, WIkipedia reminds me that All Saints had a UK #1 with "Under The Bridge" and, oh boy, was Anthony Kiedis not happy about it - amusingly so.

"Customers also listened to" a lot of similar but different bands from around the time - which suggests it's a popular album for those that listened to it at the time, so maybe I'm just too late on the bandwagon.  Oh well, there's no chance of this old dog learning new tricks here, I'm afraid.

This certainly wasn't RHCP's finest hour for me and I couldn't bring myself to give the win to Ice Cube, so T Rex gets it by default, but I actually really liked it and can imagine many people have happy memories of it.

#191-189 - Pinball wizard vs riot grrrls
#185-183 - A very close two horse race