Once happy turquoise armies lay opposite ready

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

#94 : Fun House - The Stooges (1970)

With garage-savvy ex-Kingsmen keyboardist Don Gallucci producing their second album, the Stooges made their most fully realized effort, despite their collective drug problems. “We had a certain purity of intention,” Iggy Pop asserted. “I don’t think we did ever get it from the drugs. I think they killed things.” They couldn’t kill what he has called the relentless “troglodyte groove” the band had on Fun House. “I stick it deep inside,” Iggy growls on “Loose,” one of the album’s typically confrontational tracks. Later, on “1970,” he insisted, ad infinitum, “I feel all right,” and there’s no question you wouldn’t want any of whatever he was on.

I was very much not looking forward to this and it didn't disappoint.  It's mostly dreadfully dull or tediously terrible - although I didn't mind "Dirt" despite it being almost 7 minutes long.  Having said that it's followed by "1970" which is "only" 5 minutes long - and as Rolling Stone makes it clear in the description above, is just terrible.  Why would anyone want to subject themselves to a whole album of this?

Wikipedia cheers me up by telling me that at least I didn't have to listen to the 2005 re-issue which featured an extra 75 minutes of material including a 7 minute take of "1970" and an 11 minute take of the title track.  Believe me, there would have been some serious complaints if I'd had to suffer that.  Wikipedia also tells me that, by 2000, this album had sold 89,000 copies - that's about 3,000 a year.  I'm completely baffled as to how it found its way onto this or any other "best/greatest/enjoyablest" lists ever.  So much so, that I'm going to boycott the band's Wikipedia entry, which it appears I did last time as well (when I experienced probably the worst selection of three albums so far - and I imagine it's unlikely it's going to be beaten down the home stretch).

"Customers also listened to" a particularly bizarre looking collection of people, with the only ones I know being Captain Beefheart and Yoko Ono, so that's not exactly drawing me in.  Not that anything would have drawn me in after having listened to this album - next!

#93 : Supa Dupa Fly - Missy "Misdemeanour" Elliott (1997)

Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott made her name as a songwriter behind the scenes, even before she dropped her 1997 debut. But Supa Dupa Fly introduced everyone to Missy’s world, with avant-funk cosmic swamp beats from Timbaland. What a team: two kids from Virginia Beach, Virginia, dazzling the planet with a playful homegrown sound nobody could imitate. “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” was the breakout hit, taking an old-school Ann Peebles soul oldie and looping it into a Dirty South jam — Missy sings, raps, giggles, and talks her shit. Supa Dupa Fly changed the sound of hip-hop, but also kicked off a tradition — every year, Missy and Tim would score the jam of the summer, while everybody else was still trying to catch up with what they did the summer before.

I was aware of Missy, but hadn't heard this album - but who in their right minds isn't going to look forward to some avant-funk cosmic swamp beats?  Count me in!  However, having listened to it, I'd have to say it was much more of an understated experience than I was anticipating.  It's all a pleasant enough sound, but it kinda drifted by me - which, given her somewhat larger than life persona later in her career, wasn't at all what I expected her to produce.  "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" is well done though and it was nice to see "Pass Da Blunt" sampling Musical Youth though (and I never twigged that Miss Dynamite did the same thing in "Dy-na-mit-ee").  I definitely could have lived without "Busta's Intro" - this seemed a very odd way to start the album off.  I like the album cover though - fine attitude coming through there.

Wikipedia doesn't have a lot to say about the album, but does make the claim that this album was extremely influential, so possibly it drifted past me because I've heard a million things like this since but, at the time, it totally was ground-breaking.  Given my range of knowledge of late 90's hip-hop, I don't feel this is something I can either prove or disprove (or more accurately, can be bothered to).  Her Wikipedia entry is quite long - she's been a busy lass over the years (including a LOT of songwriting), but she comes across well enough and has helped plenty of people out along the way.  She has been the opening act for an impressive list of artists - Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Madonna and Janet Jackson.  That's an impressive list of egos she's had to satisfy by being good, but not too good - no-one's happy if the crowd leaves a concert raving about the opening act.

"Customers also listened to" a load of them hippy-hoppy types who I've heard of, but I can't say I've listened to a single one of the albums.  I liked this more than I was expecting, but at the same time found it somewhat disappointing - it's like I was looking forward to a challenge which then wasn't forthcoming, which feels like an odd feeling to be left with.

#93 : Axis: Bold As Love - The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1967)

 Jimi Hendrix’s first album remade rock & roll with guitar magic that no one had ever even dreamed of before; his second album was just plain magic. It started with some musings on extraterrestrial life, then got really far out: jazzy drumming, funky balladry, liquid guitar solos, dragonfly heavy metal, and the immortal stoner’s maxim from “If Six Was Nine”: “I’m the one who’s got to die when it’s time for me to die, so let me live my life the way I want to.” All over the album, Hendrix was inventing new ways to make the electric guitar roar, sing, talk, shriek, flutter, and fly. And with the delicate “Little Wing,” he delivered one of rock’s most cryptic and bewitching love songs.

This is exactly the sort of album that I've never heard before and know I'm going to hate - but, approximately 2 years ago, I asked for recommendations of classic albums that I might have missed and Mr Darcy suggested this, so I checked it out and I filled it under "appreciated rather than enjoyed".  Which is a vast improvement on "detested with a passion" so I was quite pleased to revisit it and see if the verdict held up - and I'm pleased to say it did.  It starts in a very peculiar manner, but soon settles down into a man make all sorts of interesting noises using a guitar.  Which I still appreciated, rather than enjoyed. 

Wikipedia has a lot to say about the album, but very little of any interest.  The section on the cover art is probably the most interesting - it is apparently quite offensive to Hindus because it depicts the members of The Experience as versions of Vishnu.  It's also quite offensive to Hendrix who made the point "You know I'm an American Indian, right?" - so all in all, it wasn't the best received album artwork.  The album sold well though (top 5 in the UK and the US) although some critics said "the other Hendrix albums" are better - and the good news is we've still got two of them to go on this list.  WIkipedia has a LOT to say about the man - I flicked through it but it's a lengthy read, so I'm going to save it for a later album.

"Customers also listened to" all the other Jimi albums, The Doors and Cream - all very much products of their time.  But I found this to me a much more acceptable product of its time than a lot of the other monstrosities from that era which have been forced on me (like, say, The Stooges).

So it probably won't surprise you to hear that The Stooges are not going to win this round.  Part of me feels that possibly Missy deserves it if the album is as influential as Wikipedia tells me, but I don't think anyone's going to argue too much if I give it to Jimi, so for once I'll take the easy option - it's Easter after all!  And congratulations to Jimi.

#97-95 - A one horse race for the one word artists
#91-89 - I never thought this would happen