LOU REED (ABO#369)

LOU REED

REPLAY

(1970-1992...2007)

Lou Reed is the quintessential New Yorker; loud, headstrong, and often in a hurry to be somewhere else. He grew up on Long Island, NY and went to college upstate at Syracuse College of Arts and Sciences, graduating in 1964. He moved to NYC in 1963 and his acquaintances in the art community introduced him to life in the underbelly of the city. His music and his life would be dominated by those influences for many years.

He and John Cale formed a band in 1964; it would later become the Velvet Underground. It brought him notoriety as an avant-garde artist, but the band was never commercially successful while it existed. He left in 1970 and went to work for his father in the tax-preparation business. Within a year, he decided that he'd rather be a solo performer.

Despite almost 40 years on his own, his reputation rests primarily on the seven years he spent guiding the Velevet Underground. His solo career has been hampered by the fact that any new work is compared to the Velvets. Judging by the mellow songs on several of his early albums, he initially was interested in being a successful Top 40 singer-songwriter, but the dark side kept calling him back. His devotion to the seedy clubs in Soho and their decadent patrons exposed him to the burgeoning Glam Rock movement. He hooked up with David Bowie, who went on to be the producer on Lou's 1972 break-out album, 'Transformer'. It featured his signature song, 'Walk On The Wild Side'. Success was short-lived however; consumers were unsure what to expect from him. If one album showed an attempt at commercial pop, the next was just as likely to revolve around the lives of drug addicts and transvestites.

It was a struggle for him to find his place as music evolved in the Eighties. Though many punk rockers cited him as an influence, he thought the majority of them were dull-witted and that he was too worldly to be a part of their scene. During the early '80s he assembled his best band, centered around guitarist Robert Quine and bassist Fernando Saunders. Though they only lasted two or three years together, it allowed Reed to become focused on the mechanics of making music again. It was also at this point that the cult around the Velvet Underground really began to grow. He was able to draw self-respect from his accomplishments with that band rather than feel he was constantly being measured against them. Maturity began to mellow many of his worst traits. Nearly all of Lou Reed's best works have come since 1982; at 68 years of age however, I'd guess that he has reached his peak.

I decided not to include any of his later works because, at the exception of some albums that are only spoken words or ambient music, the two really musical are Set The Twilight Reeling and Ecstasy, but weren't really worthy to be part of this.

-BURNS-

Burns' Lou Reed Top3 :

1. Transformer (1972)

1. New York (1989)

1. New Sensastions (1984)

Burns' Lou Reed Bottom3 :

1. Metal Machine Music (1975)

2. Take No Prisonners (1978)

3. Growing Up In Public (1980)

RATT (ABO #280)

RATT
HYSTERIA

Glam metal, hair metal or American hard rock (call it what you want) was very successful in the 80s and Ratt, along with Poison, Mötley Crüe, Twisted Sisters and a few others were the biggest acts of the scene. Basically, their music consisted in simple riffs, singalong choruses, fun-ridden lyrics and... Well, that's pretty much all. So, okay, it lacked the substance which makes artists great but it was fun and, after all, that's all it tried to be. Surprisingly enough, there seems to be a revival of this sound. I've tried a few of these new bands but failed to find one that could rival with the original ones. So here's a little tribute to that scene with Ratt's baistophe. 21 songs of easy hard rock'n'roll done by one of the most talented band of the original hair metal scene. Enjoy.

My RATT List
1 - Invasion of Your Privacy (1985)
2 - Out of the Cellar (1984)
3 - Dancing Undercover (1986)
4 - Detonator (1990)
5 - Reach for the Sky (1988)
7 - Collage (1997)
6 - Ratt (1999)

RIYL:
Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, Kiss

MOTT THE HOOPLE (ABO#268)

MOTT THE HOOPLE

NO MERE DUDES

(1969-1975)

First of all, I'd like to welcome new full-time contributor to this blog, the very documented TT who compiled this great BAISTOPHE.

Many will know Mott The Hoople for their David Bowie penned hit “ All The Young Dudes” but as the title suggests their was much more to the MoTT than their Glam period hit. Many hardcore fans would cite their pre-Bowie period on the Island label as their peak period, not me. I was a spotty wee Bowie fan when I was blown away but “All The Young Dudes” but it was the period that followed that for me is their best. Their “Mott” and “Hoople” albums still stand up today.
That said had Bowie a long time Mott fan not stepped in at that time, they would have broken up and we would never had those albums.
Unfortunately the break up was inevitable with first Mick Ralphs leaving to form Bad Company. Ian drafted in Mick Ronson but that line up only give us the one single, “ Saturday Gig” a tantalising glimpse of what might have been. The band struggled on without Ian as “Mott” for one album, Ian went on to a long solo career, with a new album just released.
And after 35 years, the original line-up will return to the stage for a sold out 5 nights at Hammersmith Apollo, where they appeared recorded their “Mott Live” album over three decades ago with someone called Queen ( whatever happened to them ?) [TT]

Mott The Hoople - All The Way From Memphis
envoyé par newcanadian. - Regardez la dernière sélection musicale.

HEAVY METAL KIDS (ABO#189)

HEAVY METAL KIDS
BORN TO ROCK
(1973-2003)

The Heavy Metal Kids were formed in 1973 & with the line-up of Gary Holton, Keith Boyce, Ronny Thomas, Danny Peyronel (later to join UFO) & Micky Waller. The band's brand of good-time rock was never really heavy metal, and they even shortened their name to The Kids for their second album 'Anvil Chorus'.

Lack of commercial success lead them to change to the RAK label for the final album 'Kitsch' in 1977. However, Gary Holton's over-the-top perfomances lead to frictions in the band - by the time 'Kitsch' was released, the band had already split. Despite rumours that Gary would join either Boxer or Uriah Heep, neither came to anything, and he moved onto a career in TV acting. He almost became a household name when he got a role in the TV series 'Auf Wiedersen Pet', but this was cut short when he died in 1985, victim of heroin addiction.

The Heavy Metal Kids shortly came back in 2003 for a swansong CD called Hit The Right Button (source: rock-photos.co.uk)

My Heavy Metal Kids TOP3 :
1. Anvil Chorus (1975)
2. Kitsch (1977)
3. Hit The Righ Button (2003)
4. Heavy Metal Kids (1974)

SWEET (ABO#082)

SWEET
GOURMANDISE
(1968-1982)

Originally, the Sweet were called the Sweetshop and consisted of Brian Connolly (vocals), Mick Tucker (vocals, drums), Frank Torpey (guitar), and Steve Priest (bass). In 1970, the group truncated their name to Sweet and signed a record contract with Fontana/EMI, releasing four unsuccessful singles. Sweet signed to RCA Records in 1971, where they were placed under the direction of songwriters Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. During this time, Sweet were writing their own B-sides and album tracks. All of the group's compositions were harder than Chinn and Chapman's songs, featuring crunching hard rock guitars. Consequently, the duo decided to write tougher songs for the group. "Blockbuster," the first result of Chinn and Chapman's neo-glam rock approach, was the biggest hit Sweet ever had in the U.K. For the next two years, Sweet continued to chart with Chinn and Chapman compositions, including the Top Ten hits "Hell Raiser," "Ballroom Blitz," "Teenage Rampage," and "The Six Teens."

By the summer of 1974, the members of Sweet had grown tired of the control Chinn and Chapman exerted over their career and decided to record without the duo. By the end of the 70s, the group continued to churn out albums, which were all less successful than their predecessor. Sweet bounced back into the charts in 1978 with "Love Is Like Oxygen," but the single proved to be their last gasp.

Connolly left the band after "Love Is Like Oxygen" and the group replaced him with keyboardist Gary Moberley. The group carried on for three more years, releasing three more albums that all achieved little success. After several years of little success or attention, Sweet broke up in 1982. (Source : AMG)

1. Man From Mecca
2. Blockbuster
3. The Ballroom Blitz
4. The Six Teens
5. Medussa
6. Man With The Golden Arm
7. Set Me Free

8. Sweet F.A.
9. AC/DC
10. Cockroach
11. Keep It In
12. Action
13. Lost Angels
14. She Gimme Lovin'
15. Hard Times
16. Funk It Up (David's Song)
17. Love Is Like Oxygen
18. Anthem No.2



My Sweet TOP3 :
1. Sweet Fanny Adams (1974)
2. Desolation Boulevard (1974)
3. Off The Record (1976)

My Sweet BOTTOM3 :
1. Identity Crisis (1982)
2. Funny How Sweet Coco Can Be (1971)
3. Water's Edge (1980)

QUEEN (ABO#010)

QUEEN

GIMME THE PRICE

Queen were originally formed as Smile but changed their name for their first and eponymous album. At first,, their music leaned towards glam-rock but, as soon as the glam wave began to lose its momentum, the band chose a poppier orientation (on A Night At The Opera, 1975) with hints of hard rock thrown in the mix (particularily on Sheer Heart Attack, 1974). The eighties saw them at the peak of their popularity with poppy (I Want To Break Free) and even disco/funk oriented material (Another One Bites The Dust). Unfortunately their finest work remained unnoticed (with the exception of Bohemian Rhapsody) so that I felt a good retrospective compilation was a necessity.

CD1:

1. Keep Yourself Alive
2. Liar
3. Modern Times Rock'n'Roll
4. Son And Daughter
5. The March Of The Black Queen
6. Seven Seas Of The Rhye
7. Brighton Rock
8. Flick Of The Wrist
9. Now I'm Here
10. Stone Cold Crazy
11. '39
12. Sweet Lady
13. Bohemian Rhapsody
14. Tie Your Mother Down
15. Somebody To Love
16. We Will Rock You
17. Get Down, Make Love
18. Mustapha
19. Fat Bottomed Girl
20. Bicycle Race
21. God Save The Queen

CD2:

1. The Kiss
2. Cool Cat
3. Under Pressure
4. Tear It Up
5. Hammer To Fall
6. Is It The World We Created ?
7. Who Wants To Live Forever ?
8. Forever
9. Gimme The Price
10. Princes Of The Universe
11. The Miracle
12. Was It All Worth It ?
13. Chinese Torture
14. Innuendo
15. I'm Going Slightly Mad
16. Bijou
17. It's A Beautiful Day
18. The Wedding March