albums equal to less the sum of their parts

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which records, despite a number of great songs and a general sort of consistency ultimately come up short for reasons that are hard to put a finger on

kiss me, kiss me, kiss me
i actually really like at least half the songs, but i view it overall as a bit of a troubled record, where the few missteps tend to overwhelm the many bright points.

ideas

― Charlie Howard (the sphinx), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:39 (twenty years ago)

at first I thought 'none'

then I thought 'The Love Below'

― ;_; (blueski), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:44 (twenty years ago)

White Album

― scnnr drkly (scnnr drkly), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:44 (twenty years ago)

almost all 'best of' albums.

― benrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:45 (twenty years ago)

buffalo springfield own this thread. a bunch of great musicians, great songwriters, great songs that for some reason I never take out of the racks to listen to.

― simon 803 (simon 803), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:47 (twenty years ago)

http://www.angelfire.com/wi/blindfaith/images/vvcov69ff.JPG

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:50 (twenty years ago)

lots of rolling stones albums. for me, anyway.

― scott seward (scott seward), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:51 (twenty years ago)

'the love below' is a good example

and of course 'best of' albums are a case in point is well. the al green 'best of' i've been listening to tonight really makes me feel like i'm cheating. classic track after classic track all seems a bit gluttonous.

with 'the white album', my favourite songs thankfully always come to mind first up when i think of it.

buffalo springfield is the sort of thing too, come to that

― Charlie Howard (the sphinx), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 14:52 (twenty years ago)

Early 90s albums lasting for 70-80 minutes in general to thread.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 15:03 (twenty years ago)

the latest flaming lips, sunlandic twins by of montreal, real gone by tom waits

and... euhm the first of the velvet underground would be perfect without the contribution of nico

― maarten maes (dice collective), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 15:27 (twenty years ago)

The first Velvet Underground would be perfect (although arguably a bit short) without "Heroin" and "European Son"

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 15:39 (twenty years ago)

Stankonia
God's Son
Maggot Brain

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 15:47 (twenty years ago)

Zen Arcade
most any De La Soul record, especially the first two

― Eric Harvey (eric marathonpacks), Tuesday, 24 October 2006 23:25 (twenty years ago)

The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground
Roxy Music for Your Pleasure

But the reasons not hard to put my finger on

― Adam S S (Zephery), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 00:34 (twenty years ago)

RHP - Grace Cathedral Park

solid all the way through, but I'd be perfectly happy if they reissued it with 4 or 5 tracks removed at random -- as long as "Katy Song" didn't get cut. I can only stomach Mark's 30 b.p.m. diary entries for about an hour before I start to doze off and dream about self-mutilation.

― King-a-Ling (King-a-Ling), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 01:11 (twenty years ago)

xpost

BUCK FATES

― King-a-Ling (King-a-Ling), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 01:12 (twenty years ago)

No way is Red House Painters less than the sum of its parts. "Katy Song" into "Mistress" is if anything greater than the sum of its parts. From the dreamy gloomy "without you I'm nothing" song to the dreamy uplifting "pfft, whatev, I can totally do better" song.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 25 October 2006 01:41 (twenty years ago)

Buck Fates, the Colby College ralley cry?

― Adam S S (Zephery), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 02:37 (twenty years ago)

No way is Red House Painters less than the sum of its parts. "Katy Song" into "Mistress" is if anything greater than the sum of its parts. From the dreamy gloomy "without you I'm nothing" song to the dreamy uplifting "pfft, whatev, I can totally do better" song.

Oh, "Katy Song" and "Mistress" are unfuckwithably great. It's the dreamy, gloomy, entire-song-is-an-extended-coda tracks like "Mother" and "Funhouse" that tend to grate on me unless I'm in the mood for slowly-unfolding melancholy.

I'm sure if I listened to the album at just the right moment, the whole thing would resonate with me so deeply that I'd deem it flawless and listen to it nonstop for a week...at which point I'd toss it back on the shelf and forget it ever existed. That's the beauty of mood music.

― King-a-Ling (King-a-Ling), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 03:40 (twenty years ago)

The first Velvet Underground would be perfect (although arguably a bit short) without "Heroin" and "European Son"
-- Geir Hongro (geirhon...) (webmail), October 24th, 2006 4:39 PM.

Good to hear that you're big on "Run Run Run."

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 03:49 (twenty years ago)

When you look at it, the first (and maybe second) Mama's and Papa's album is as solid an album as about any other 1960s classic, with the exception of a few canonized ones. I don't really regard it as one of those big great 60s classics though. I think it all comes down to what you've been told are the "great albums" and how much that causes you to overlook the fact that other albums are better song-for-song.

1. "Monday, Monday"
2. "Straight Shooter"
3. "Got a Feelin'"
4. "I Call Your Name"
5. "Do You Wanna Dance"
6. "Go Where You Wanna Go"
7. "California Dreamin'"
8. "Spanish Harlem"
9. "Somebody Groovy"
10. "Hey Girl"
11. "You Baby"
12. "The 'In' Crowd"

― Cunga (Cunga), Wednesday, 25 October 2006 04:27 (twenty years ago)

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