What did you see, my blue-eyed son?

Continuing my trip back in time through the album charts

04/11/73 : These Foolish Things - Bryan Ferry

Unlike the last time we met such a thing (which was all of a week ago), I knew this one was an album of covers but had no real clue what to expect.  I like "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" and the title track (which bookend the album) but they're not really that similar, so I was intrigued as to what we were going to get.

But before we get to that, we have a compilation that I spent some time considering before rejecting - Slade's best of which is intriguingly titled Sladest (I think I would have preferred Slade, Slader, Sladest).  There's no doubt it's culturally relevant because 1973 is peak Slade, but I rejected it on grounds of timeliness - not on the usual grounds of "far too late" but instead because it was "slightly too early" given that most of the well-known tracks were from '72 or '73.  However, having done a bit more research whilst writing this up, I fear I may have been incorrect because most of those tracks were, as Wikipedia puts it, "non-album singles" so there's an argument it timely (or a rip-off designed to skweeze the last bit of cash out of people, I guess).  But it's rejected now and the rules can't be changed.  Probably.  So, back to Bryan.

And hmmm - I think "mixed bag" is probably a fair description here.  I quite liked "Sympathy For The Devil" and I didn't mind "Piece Of My Heart".  I'm glad he doesn't ruin "Tracks Of My Tears" - I mean it's not as good as Big Country's version, but it's still acceptable.  He doesn't half sound like Shakin Stevens on "Baby I Don't Care", "Don't Ever Change" employs the most bizarre vibrato effect and "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" attempts to use the Motown sound and it doesn't really work - everything else, I have no comment on!  

At a first listen, I enjoyed the variety of selected tracks (they span the 30s right up to the "present day") and the sound (it's all obviously Bryan singing though) but I suspect that also makes it very unlikely I'd ever listen to it again - there's just no flow.  So, the very thing that makes this so different to Bowie's effort is both an advantage and disadvantage.

We're at #6 in the charts this week on its second week of a twelve week run, having peaked at #5 in its first week.  It then, somewhat bizarrely, spent 30 weeks in the charts over nine separate runs in 1974.  The top five this week were Bowie, Elton John, Status Quo, Perry and Slade and the highest new entry this week is T Rex's best of at #31.  And yes, Karen is the highest woman at #8 - she's slowly climbing up (well, dropping down I guess if you consider things chronologically) but she's only got the three albums in the chart this week.

Wikipedia doesn't have an awful lot to say about it, but does mention that Ferry told people not to be precious about it - "It's amusement value.  I think".  The critics were very keen on it which surprised me because I expected them to be sniffy about it, but that wasn't at all the case at all - "one of the best of its kind by any artist".

Customers also listened to" Roxy Music (like, duh!), Cockney Rebel and China Crisis (there's obviously some link there but I don't see it).  I enjoyed listening to the album - it is definitely a bit of a musical curio.  Some of the tracks do sound very dated now but others are pretty timeless and I'd be happy hearing them again, although it feels unlikely I'd revisit the album as a whole.

28/10/73 - Very "of its time"
11/11/73 - Enjoyable in small doses