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The sixty-seventh album: #67 The Mamas & The Papas - If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears

Listening to this album, I hear shades of the Beach Boys' harmonies, with female vocals adding to a 'hippy' feel of the album. There are times where this sounds really good, and there are some good songs on the album. The covers are adjusted to their sound, but I'm not sure that always works for me. For example, "Do You Wanna Dance" is robbed from the energy that makes the original listenable, not giving me much to work with and boring me far more. I see how they want to go for the orchestral sound, but it's a bit too slow and doesn't enhance the song for me.

Songs written for their own voice work better, but still don't feel inspiring or give me much confidence. But, I mean, then we get to California Dreamin, where (as we discussed in a past songs entry) it all comes together and does work. The harmonies sound good, the lyrics work and the message comes across well. It grabs you more, in part, I think, because it's more confident. It leads into a few more songs that work like that where the energy is there, but it's a mixed bag and on the whole, that leads to the album falling down for me.

The thirty-sixth book: #36 Rasselas - Samuel Johnson

How much can I say abou this? Rasselas is prince of Abyssinia and, bored with life in a valley, goes out to see the world - mostly Egypt. He travels, has some adventures and mostly talk about philosophy.

Unlike Candide, it's written straight, and where the former included some real life events and happening, even if the timeline doesn't work out, all of Rasselas' visits are fictitious, without anything else to back it up. It makes it feel inconsequential, and with the stories not really feeling inspiring, I'm not sure I really saw the point of it.

The fifty-sixth TV show: #438 Northern Exposure

We've only jumped around this in the first three seasons, as we're planning on watching this for a while longer. The show takes a while to get running, and that put me off for a bit - the first season isn't that strong, until it starts taking off in some later episodes. It mostly shows its potential in the dream sequences that start earlier - they subvert what's otherwise a pretty standard fish out of water story that I feel got dull rather quickly. I know the beats - the doctor who, in this case, is assigned to a small Alaskan town, doesn't want to be there, but has to stay. The people around him try to include him while life keeps going on around them, and they break down their shell. It takes a while to get past that, and early on it made me unsympathetic towards the show - I get the beats, but they don't impress me.

The show gets a lot better when it lets itself go weird. There are several reasons - the characters become more outlandish, where it's more fun (something Rob Morrow starts doing early enough, but the show and writing need to adjust to), the plots go stranger (especially when Adam, the mysterious man in the wood starts showing up) but even more when we see them in different situations. Most interesting are episodes like the last of season 3, where the cast of the show shows up as different characters during the founding of Cicely, where the show takes place.

So yeah, the first season clearly doesn't show what makes the show great, possibly with the exception of the finale and a few segments here and there, but when it's less fish out of water and more weird town and happening, it's where the show really shines.

The two hundred and eighty-sixth song: Is It Because I’m Black? - Syl Johnson

It feels difficult on a song with such a specific message, because the lyrics have such a specific message you don't want to undercut. Here, it's a slow blues song that during the extended musical riffs fail to inspire, more often boring me. They're the ponts where I keep waiting to return to the lyrics, where a more powerful point is made on how society isn't allowing him to move on. It's even more powerful considering his own history, with some of the most sampled songs that generally don't get credited.

The two hundred and eighty-seventh song: I Want to Take You Higher - Sly & The Family Stone

Although we supposedly stay in the same genre, this song has a lot more energy and body to it. It swings along and even though it relies on repetition, there are more changes in the music, several performers and a sound that comes together better. Sure, it's shallow, but it's a better listen.

The two hundred and eighty-eighth song: The Court of the Crimson King - King Crimson

Moving to the other side of the pond, we get a larger rock number, from one of the bands that seemed to have taking inspiration from the Beatles and Brian Wilson in this era (it is hard to escape them). Prog rock is moving on here, in a song that creates a fantasy setting and tells a strange story and basically creates its own world. But even without these lyrics, the song creates its own scene. We get the big musical sections, dominated by the keyboard, and the acoustics where the lyrics come in. It flows into each other and alternates quite nicely, with an interlude dominated by the flute breaking up the pattern and a two minute coda at the end that fits thematically but at the same time seems to be its own song. It's an amazing performance and feat and I'm looking forward to covering this album in the future.

The two hundred and eighty-ninth song: Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin

The improvised, middle section of this song feels like it dominates here, and while they may have considered it necessary, it feels unneeded here. The song for me only kicks off after this section, three and a half minutes in, when the riff has a chance to push ahead and sound good, while the start seems sloppier and doesn't work as well. It's that end where the music actually starts to sound good and cohesive, as well as more polished.

The two hundred and ninetieth song: I Wanna Be Your Dog - The Stooges

Remember how we started off this set with funk? I barely do, rock music dominates so much at the moment. There are hints of punk and hard rock coming in again, and the lyrics of this song follow that too - a dirtier feel that feels so much less elevated than where prog rock is going. It's also loud and heavily distorted in places - made to sound, clearly, like the equipment couldn't handle any of it. It works, but lacks a bit of energy sometimes. But still, the sleigh bells are there.

The two hundred and ninety-first song: Kick Out the Jams - The MC5

A live recording with swearing and a loud crowd, something has changed again. We've got more hard rock, more punk, and as much anger as before, but this time following a more melodic direction than I feel other loud songs have done. You can feel showmanship in the loudness, still trying to tell its story. It's counter culture expressed in music, following the mood of its time. Musically, it's a direction I'm okay with anyway, but it really sounds good for me here.

The two hundred and ninety-second song: I Want You Back - The Jackson 5

Time for a mood whiplash. We're getting a sweet love song sang by an eleven year old Michael Jackson, whose voice does draw the attention, while the music sounds good but is in service to his voice. It sounds good and makes for a decent soundtrack, but can come across as a bit forgetable as well. The many vocal gymnastics don't necessarily mean much, even if they are impressive.

The two hundred and ninety-third song: The Thrill Is Gone- B.B. King

So we end the sixties, the decade of the rise of rock and the fall of its first strands and icons, with a slow blues number. Blues has been our reliable companion since near the start of the list, a gentle sound guiding us through as we have this end-of-love song here. Here it's buoyed by a larger string section and more impressive instruments, creating more than just a blues song and creating something larger to listen to. As an older performer - his previous list song was in 1953 - it's calmer and clearly with less anger than the younger bands of the time. It still has wall of sound larger orchestraction elements, but everything feels nicely constrained here.

The sixty-sixth album: #66 The Kinks - Face To Face

I feel like in the two first songs on this album, we're seeing two sides of the Kinks. While both are reminiscent of Beatles and Rolling Stones songs, the first is harder, while the second is a bit more of a ballad with psychedelic rock influences in its sound. It's the second that dominates the album after that, songs about real life at a gentler pace. There are some weird choices in there, with sound effects mixed into songs that were meant to link them together, but just feel like they interrupt the songs without reason now.

For the most part, it is a nice set of rocky ballads, with a handful of songs that rock more and try to get across a more aggressive point than the life stories in the quieter songs - in the former it swings towards punk. It's all about simpler things in life - again moving beyond love songs, but not trying to make their messages to big most of the time. We've had Sunny Afternoon on the songs list a while ago, and it stands out here as well. It's a still a pleasant melody and gives a good feeling overall. It's not quite typical, but tops off a nice album quite well.

The sixty-fifth album: #65 The Monks - Black Monk Time

Time for some garage rock. Unlike what I've heard before, the album clearly focuses on the rhythm, with very loud drums and the vocals over htat, again relying on repetition. It feels like hard rock, one where the loudness matters a lot. The lyrics have different influences, but the album plays much like a long concert, with shouted intros and the first song introducing the band.

Still, the album shares a lot of common elements - the songs aren't always that distinct, using repeated elements in the way the chorus and harmonies go (as much as you can call them harmonies). There are many elements in here that I do appreciate - there is a lot of energy in the songs and I like the move towards punk, a streak that's there musically as well as lyrically. It really feels like we're in an era where music is trying to mean more, with a youth voice arising that is trying to have an impact. For, it does it by sounding good while doing it.

The thirty-fifth book: #35 Candide - Voltaire

Candide felt a lot more readable as a book than the previous few. It was reminiscent of Gulliver's Travels in places - visiting a very mythical El Dorado, as well as setting up other odd situations and miraculous survivals. It's fine with the tone it's going for - over the top, clearly to go against other works that might be less miraculous but try to be serious. In that sense, it's more like Gulliver's Travels: The tone is satirical, making fun of some established tropes, but also making a philosophical argument.

I sort of got the point, but it didn't matter too much. When you accept the outrageousness and bad luck - taking a tour around a bunch of recent disasters and at one point meeting several deposed kings - it's quite interesting to read some of the banter and discover the characters. There's some preachiness to it, but for the most part it's paced well enough to still work. A welcome break after the past few setups.

The two hundred and seventy-seventh song: Sister Morphine - Marianne Faithfull

The eerie vocals of Marianne Faithfull make this partially Rolling Stones-penned song the chilling song that it is. As a song about addiction, this was apparently prescient for her later life, but on its own it also stands out as something that strikes me as somewhat harrowing. It's dark, and while the melody was written first, the lyrics overpower that in the sentiment and sound of them.

The two hundred and seventy-eighth song: Okie from Muskogee - Merle Haggard

Here's a country song that, as so many relies on the lyrics to stand out. And the tone of them... One of the best I can look at for this one is where we place King of the Hill - it is sympathetic with those living in a smaller mid western town, but also makes fun of them, a sympathetic look at the flaws if you will. It sounds decent, but is hard enough to read that you can always find something in the lyrics.

The two hundred and seventy-ninth song: Heartbreaker - Led Zeppelin

Heartbreaker is a song that suits my tastes more closely. It's a really good rock sound, heavy and hard, taking all of that on board without pushing it too far. The (later edited in) guitar riff feels a bit out of place, but makes for a good solo, setting up the guitar even more as its own individual sound and focus.

The two hundred and eightieth song: Is That All There Is? - Peggy Lee

We just took a break to wash some fresh cherries, bought a few hours ago at Borough market, and it has made for a great break to jump from Led Zeppelin's hard rock to this gentle pop song that harkens back to the big band days. This sounds good, the story being told well, but with the happier music contrasting with a depressing set of lyrics, all speaking of disappointment. It's an obvious contrast, but works well. It has a sense of humour about things that works well as an anthem to keep going, regardless of what life throws at you.

The two hundred and eighty-first song: Sweetness -Yes

While I understand Yes later really becomes one of the faces of prog rock, here it feels like we're listening to a Beatles song, a love song that experiments a bit with its sounds, but in this case draws from its influences. It takes a lot from the Beach Boys harmonies as well, and in that sense we're seeing the groundworks of post-Beatles rock emerge, going towards its own style.

The two hundred and eighty-second song: Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley

Elvis had an impressively long career, where he keeps up with musical trends and does his best to seek out contemporary sounds. While it has big band influences, Suspicious Minds is bringing in a lot of rock as well, using his voice to meld the sounds quite well. His voice is as strong as ever and it shows why there was a comeback here - it brings you along to sound that good.

The two hundred and eighty-third song: Suite: Judy Blue Eyes - Crosby, Stills, & Nash

This is a suite - a collection of linked songs as we see more often in the classical list, but is clearly a rarity in modern music. What we're getting here are a lot of complex harmonies that sound amazing, the guitar underlying the song feeling unnecessary for the first two parts as the harmonies do so much already. Aside from the harmonies, the most impressive part here really are the four parts of the song, creating a unified sound that's still all different that doesn't otherwise come out in that many performances. The final section, with a release, especially comes out naturally while creating an upbeat coda that wouldn't otherwise fit in.

The two hundred and eighty-fourth song: Pinball Wizard - The Who

So somehow, during a late night TV showing, I have seen the movie this song was a part of. It's an absolutely bizarre piece of watching, but the music is very good even if the subject is odd. The lyrics, too, are clunky, but the sound, call and response and so on, sound good and as much as we had a concept album here, it works out. There's so mch energy put into this that it convinves you based on that alone.

The two hundred and eighty-fifth song: Je t’aime…moi non plus - Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg

These ballads make for a weird change of pace when listening in an era where rock dominates. Dominating love scenes around the world, this sounds sensual and close and while nothing happened in the recording booth, Birkin and Gainsbourg are clearly close enough that they bring those feelings into the recording and it sounds real and convincing. Part of the song, after all, is just empassioned moaning, other parts just whispered, which is really enough to be convincing.

The sixty-fourth album: #64 Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde

Starting off rather racuous with a loose 'Rainy Women', the album sets up a misleading first track. All of this sounds like Bob Dylan - the sound is still there, just, perhaps, slightly bigger in sound in places. That doesn't mean the lyrics are ignored, but everything seems build up nicer around it.

It also gives the songs far more of an individual feel. When there is so much of a same style, songs can start to blur together, and while there is a clear risk of that with Dylan, it doesn't happen here, each time it was enough of a difference to make me sit up and recognise those differences.

The thirty-fifth comic: #705 The Sojourn

I have read and seen a lot of different takes on World War II and the ones I enjoy best - possibly because of my own background - are "life during..." narratives - the events of people resisting but also adapting to life in wartime. Military stories generally don't interest me as much, and it's rare that WWII narratives have it in a way that's palatable. For me, it's the small human stories that get me.

You see, Sojourn is set during the second world war, in conquered France, where a soldier taken away by the Germans escapes the troop train. His escape stays hidden because the train was bombed soon after, without survivors, and his papers were found. He's thought to be lost, and gets away from his fate that way. He hides for some time, aided by the villagers while trying to remain undiscovered. It ends with him following his love to Paris.

It's a recognisable story, starting small and avoiding the big action elements you often see in these stories - while we see the resistance, most of the story is more about Julien's survival, and the trouble of those around him. It looks good as well, drawn in a semi-realistic style that sets up the story well.