The Official Pop and Rock Music thread

[rough cut 1,752]

On 7/11/2023 at 1:54 PM, Richard Penna said:

My latest pop music interest: Ellie Goulding.

 

I don't think I'll become a fan anytime soon as her newer material just comes across as fluff to me, but Halcyon Days has some nice songs. I heard 'Explosions' playing in a restaurant in the States last month. I was vaguely aware of her from when the London NYE fireworks used 'Burn' some years ago.

 

Also I'm prepping a video montage for my walking group's AGM, and last night I accidentally stumbled upon My Blood, the instrumental version of which turns out to be perfect for an upbeat section.

Ellie is great! I saw her live in 2016. It’s been fun watch her evolve and grow musically.

 

Check out the non-album track “Mirrors”, which is from the Halcyon-era, and is really cool.

 

 

Another good non-album track is Hollow Crown, worth checking out.

 

 

[Thor 8,688]

 

Is it too early for Christmas music? Probably. But I just had the first Christmas beer for the season, so I thought what the hell. This 1992 cassette compilation was one of the "survivors" of my cassette collection when my dad threw most of them away during a move a few years ago. One of the few I had in original format too.

 

(I don't have a cassette player, so I've tried to replicate it on Spotify, missing only Kate Bush's "December Will Be Magic Again").

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

"December Will Be Magic Again", is among my favourite Kate Bush songs, and among my favourite Christmas songs. Others are "Ring Out, Solstice Bells", "Run With The Fox", and "Stop The Cavalry".

oddly enough, I have a different version of "December..." on one those BEST CHRISTMAS CD EVER (or whatever it's called) CDs.

[Thor 8,688]

Anyone know why the song isn't on Spotify? At first, I thought it was because Bush was one of those artists who boycotted the platform in toto, but her albums are on there, so that can't be it.

[GerateWohl 5,344]

I tried once as well to look it up. I guess it is coincidence because it is on none of her albums. I just have it on one of the bonus disks of the "This Woman's Work" box, which aren'ton Spotify. Haven't seen it anywhere else since.

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

Odd, that, but at least it's on YouTube.

[Sweeping Strings 2,698]

My work has called its newly launched online employee platform POP (Platform Of The People). 

Can't help thinking 'Well, that's that U2 album ruined for me now'. 

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

That's a mite sad. I like POP.

[Sweeping Strings 2,698]

I'm maybe exaggerating for comic effect a little. Fine, underrated album.  

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

I find it a better listen than ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND.

[Sweeping Strings 2,698]

It was the last album where they were still 'experimenting' (as evidenced on the likes of Discotheque, Mofo, If God Will Send His Angels, Miami and The Playboy Mansion). 

Seems the difficulties with the album's recording and the shaky start to the PopMart tour perturbed them enough to return to 'classic' U2 on ATYCLB.  

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

Didn't one of them get stuck in a giant lemon, on that tour? A real Spinal Tap moment 

[Sweeping Strings 2,698]

Hehehe, yes ... and it was described by the band as exactly that. Talk about a metaphor, lol. 

Fortunately, there were no such mishaps when that tour came to Belfast (not initially part of the tour schedule, but there were issues around their Dublin dates at what was the Lansdowne Road stadium then and is now the Aviva so they said 'FINE, we'll see if they'll have us 100 miles up the road instead') and lo and behold - we did! 'Thanks for having us when our own city wouldn't', to quote Bono on the night. 

[Richard P 4,374]

According to Spotify wrapped I'm literally a vampire as I listen to dark and depressing shit quite a lot of the time

 

I mean, they're not wrong. I have a few albums that are literally drones and my top artist is Bleeding Fingers (Zimlings who do some very good pseudo-orchestral nature/space music, quite a lot of a bit dark) and, naturally in second place, Dua Lipa.

 

[Thor 8,688]

 

One of my dad's LPs that I've also latched on. Awesome, their best.

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

Who's heard "I/O"?

What do you think of it?

 

[Thor 8,688]

I had completely forgotten that was out now (the new Peter Gabriel album, for those not in the immediate know). I missed out on his only concert here in Norway in May (in Bergen, wouldn't have afforded the trip or ticket anyway), but have been looking forward to the album all year, only to forget its release date (December 1). I'll get to it asap.

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

I think that I'll order it in the New Year, when all the pre-Crimbo flurry has dissipated.

[Schilkeman 1,332]

On 29/11/2023 at 2:30 PM, Naïve Old Fart said:

I find it a better listen than ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND.

Mofo is one of their best songs, and I like Pop fine, but this is incomprehensible to me lol.

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

  RADIO K.A.O.S., for obvious (and sad), reasons.

[Thor 8,688]

4 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

  RADIO K.A.O.S., for obvious (and sad), reasons.

 

What have I missed?

[Jay 40,286]

2 hours ago, Thor said:

What have I missed?

 

8 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

R.I.P, Jim Ladd 

[bespinGPT 8,907]

My traditional playlists for Happy Hour and Dinner

 

DON'T USE THE RANDOM MODE!

 

 

 

[Jay 40,286]

No Christmas Wrapping, no sale

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

On 27/12/2023 at 4:57 PM, Jay said:

No Christmas Wrapping, no sale

 

You mean, the song by The Waitresses"?

Brilliant song, and in my top-5 favourite Christmas songs.

 

[Jay 40,286]

Yeah

[Richard P 4,374]

Heard vampire by Olivia Rodrigo on the radio on Boxing Day, and now rather enjoying her stuff - I'd never heard of her before. Some of Guts is a little heavy on the high school rock sound for me and Sour has a lot of material later on with piano/vocals which starts to wander a little, but for a 20 year old songwriter it's damn good.  I bought both and she's definitely someone to keep tabs on. The song she did for Hunger Games is a slightly more memorable variation on some of the later material from her first album.

 

Also giving the rest of Ellie Goulding's Halcyon Days another go - I'm liking it a bit more now, although I've firmly decided her more recent work is totally not for me.

[Meredith McKay 7,067]

12 minutes ago, Richard Penna said:

Some of Guts is a little heavy on the high school rock sound for me and Sour has a lot of material later on with piano/vocals which starts to wander a little,

I think the genre term is Pop Punk or Emo, though I could definitely be wrong.

[GerateWohl 5,344]

 

We are under attack again!

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

A great song, @GerateWohl.

[GerateWohl 5,344]

2 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

A great song, @GerateWohl.

Absolutely!

 

Impressive to end their career on such a high note.

[Tom Guernsey 2,810]

5 hours ago, GerateWohl said:

 

We are under attack again!

I always wondered how ABBA were released back into the wild. Good to know.

 

(But yes. A great song. What were we talking about?!)

[Jay 40,286]

There's a Talking Heads tribute album coming out, and Paramore is covering Burning Down The House for track #1

 

 

[A24 4,658]

 

The album before Paul Simon's legendary Still Crazy After All These Years. And no, it's not on the same level.

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

Agreed, Alex. It's a good record, but STILL CRAZY... is just beyond. It's his best album by a country mile.

[A24 4,658]

22 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

Agreed, Alex. It's a good record, but STILL CRAZY... is just beyond. It's his best album by a country mile.

 

Oh, wow! We agree! I recently discovered that Amazon Music has Still Crazy After All These Years in 'Ultra HD' and, lo and behold, it does seem to sound better than the standard version or the CD. 

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

3 hours ago, A24 said:

Oh, wow! We agree! 

 

It's not that uncommon. Give us both credit, Alex 

[A24 4,658]

.

[Jay 40,286]

On 10/01/2024 at 6:01 PM, Jay said:

There's a Talking Heads tribute album coming out, and Paramore is covering Burning Down The House for track #1

 

Sounds pretty good

 

https://music.apple.com/nz/album/burning-down-the-house-single/1724205028

[Jay 40,286]

Yup, I like it

 

 

[GerateWohl 5,344]

The new New Model Army album is excellent. 

 

Time to see them live again.

They still have that great pirate vibe in the music.

Love it.

 

[Jay 40,286]

Paramore wins Best Rock Album and Best Alternative Music Performance at the Grammys, wow!

 

Now can they PLEASE do a concert anywhere in New England? Kthx

[Sweeping Strings 2,698]

On Saturday night, I was at an orchestral Beatles thing ('The Two Of Us') which had 3 vocalists (Joe Stilgoe, Mark McGann and Claire Martin).

Shortly into the 2nd half, the woman next to me said 'I'm SORRY, but I've paid to listen to THEM NOT YOU'. I meekly complied, but I was angry ... it's the BEATLES love, probably the most 'singalong' band in history.

Uptight, joy-sucking, head-up-own-ass BITCH.   

[GerateWohl 5,344]

My discovery of the week. Great dreamy album with perfect 60s vibe.

 

 

[Thor 8,688]

 

Cheesy as hell, but I can't help but to like it. This was among the many cassettes my dad gave me in my childhood years, so I've come to have a close, nostalgic relationship to it.

[bespinGPT 8,907]

This morning, I'm diving back into Roy Orbison.

 

Since a modern "complete" box set of the Monument period is yet to be released (the last one dates back to 2001 and was released by Bear Family Records), here are my suggestions to complement the excellent 4-CD "The Monument Album Collection" boxset released in 2015, which, as mentioned, only includes the albums.

 

Roy Orbison's illustrious career spanned several distinct eras, each marked by musical innovation and evolution. Beginning with his pioneering days at Sun Records, Orbison's early rockabilly sound laid the groundwork for his future success. The Monument period cemented his legacy as a master of emotive ballads, with timeless classics like "Only the Lonely" and "Crying" showcasing his unmatched vocal prowess. While his tenure at MGM Records saw the emergence of songs like "Walk On" and "Penny Arcade," it never quite attained the same level of popularity as his Monument era. Throughout subsequent label changes, Orbison's versatility and enduring talent shone through, culminating in a fruitful collaboration with Virgin Records, exemplified by the release of "Mystery Girl." Across these varied eras, Orbison's unmatched vocal range and emotive depth ensured his place as one of the most influential figures in the history of popular music.

 

So, all the singles and some rarities are missing from the 4-CD Monument Box. In the case of Roy Orbison, like many recording artists from this era, ignoring the singles means missing out on A LOT of hits.

 

So here it is, two additional volumes to complete it.

 

Singles, Vol. 1

 

Singles, Vol. 2

 

Without going into details, let's just say that a complete box set could also include many alternative versions—they are numerous. But, well, let's say that here I wanted to get straight to the point and avoid repetitions.

 

😎

[A24 4,658]

Here's a little bit of trivia for you guys. All the pics on the front and back cover of Paul McCartney's Driving Rain album were take by Paul's Casio spy watch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Casio WQV-1CR

[Jay 40,286]

LOL

 

 

[Thor 8,688]

[Naïve Old Fart 10,790]

My favourite 10cc will always be HOW DARE YOU!, but I'll give this a spin.