What Are You Listening To?

[CRAZY-HORSE]

EURYTHMICS  "the ultimate collection" cd, 2005

a revisit...
soft rock and easy listening is where these guys sit IMO...
a nineteen track career spanning chronologically sequenced collection of hit after hit here...
its easy to forget just how good a hit song writer Dave Stewart was and how versatile Annie Lennox is as a vocalist...
she belts it out and goes toe to toe with Aretha on one track and holds her own...
elsewhere there are gorgeous ballads, soft rock, dance, synth-pop and new wave tunes...
excellent is the only word to describe Eurythmics IMO
I LOVE THIS ALBUM

track that really got me on this occasion: (and who doesnt love a bit of sax in the morning!)

---

i cant post Eurythmics without posting this one...vocal viagra

[CRAZY-HORSE]

CARLY SIMON  "no secrets" cd, 1972...

her third...
thought i had already posted this one but it appears ive only posted her first two...
the one that contains "youre so vain", thus her biggest seller....
soft rock, a few folkie type ballads, and a rocker written by Mr Taylor....
okay, so the hit is the best song on here IMO but theres a handful of others that arent too far behind and its one of those i will post...
I LOVE THIS ALBUM






Please tell my sweet mother
Go on now tell uncle Paul
Tell all my girlfriends
Not to wait for me
Daddy, I'm no virgin
And I've already waited too long.


Raise up your eyebrows
Raise, I said raise your glasses with a song
But don't expect me to be home tonight
Daddy, I'm sorry
But I've already waited too long.

I met a boy with eyes of green
The warmest eyes I'd ever seen.

He gave his lovin' love to me
The way I've always heard it would be.

Daddy, please forgive me
And I've already waited so long.

So blow, blow, blow out the candles
Make my bed wide and long
Tell all my girlfriends
Not to wait for me
Daddy, I'm no virgin
I said I've already waited too long

[CRAZY-HORSE]

NEIL YOUNG with BOOKER T & THE MG'S  "are you passionate?" cd, 2002

a revisit earlier this afternoon....
Neil's 24th solo album...
soft rock, easy listening with a bit of r+b thrown in for good measure...
songs about life, love, mistakes, children, children growing up and moving on...
good heartfelt tracks from Uncle Neil...
was 2.2 in my "beginners' guide to...", have upgraded to 2.4 after today's listen...
I LOVE THIS ALBUM

favourite on this occasion: (a song about Amber, his daughter. going off to College)






Wish you told me by and by,
That my life would come to this,
That I'd have to find a way
to let things go,
That my friends would turn to foes,
And my love would come to blows,
Then I would have done some things
differently.

Differently...
I would ask you out every night.
Differently...
And I would make you feel so good.
Differently...
And appreciate the things that
you bring to me, babe.
Differently...
Oh yes I would, oh yeah.

Yeah, I know you tried and tried,
But your signal I just missed,
When you said my little girl
would soon be gone,
Yes I didn't hear you then,
And it might be too late now,
That's another thing I'd do
differently.

Differently...
Like trying to make you feel
loved every day.
Differently...
And saying little things to
let you know how I feel.
Differently...
Yes I can hear your young
voice calling me, babe.
Differently...
Oh yes I can.

When I 'm away I call you up,
And you don't seem to miss me as much,
But I know our love
is still there in your heart,
Just differently.

Differently...
Oh yes, I can hear your young
voice calling me, babe.
Differently...
Oh yes I can.
Differently...
I'd appreciate the things that you
bring to me babe, yes I would.
Differently...

[CRAZY-HORSE]

ELVIS PRESLEY  "thats the way it is" vinyl 1970.

his eleventh studio album,
well, there are four live tracks on it...
albums forms part of the documentary of the rehearsals and first shows of his first Vegas residency...
its a good doco, lots of relaxed behind the scenes footage and cool concert footage...
IMO this is the best Presley album one can buy for quality material (both covers and original tracks)
I LOVE THIS ALBUM

side 1:

1:  i just cant help believin'  ***
2:  twenty days and twenty nights  ***
3:  how the web was woven  ***
4:  patch it up  ***
5:  mary in the morning  ***
6:  you dont have to say you love me ***

side 2:

1:  youve lost that lovin' feeling  ***
2:  ive lost you  ***
3:  just pretend  ***
4:  stranger in the crowd  ***
5:  the next step is love  ***
6:  bridge over troubled waters  **

3s - 11
2s - 1
1s - 0

rating:  2.9






I've been standing on a corner
Since a quarter after seven
I was down to my last cigarette
And the clock in the window
At a quarter to eleven

I was watching all the people
Passing by me going places
Just the loneliest guy in the town
Looking for a friendly smile
But all I see were faces

And then, just like the taste of milk and honey
I found the stranger I've been looking for
Like a wave, my cup of love was overflowing
I knew the stranger in the crowd
And I would be stranger no more

The love that comes on the corner
At a quarter to eleven
I thought you were to good to be true
All my life I had believed
That angels only live in heaven
But now, we share the taste of milk and honey
Each day is sweeter than the day before

My cup runned overflowing
because the stranger in the crowd
And I would be stranger no more

Deep inside, my cup of love was overflowing
I found the stranger I've been looking for
Like a wave, my cup of love was overflowing
I knew the stranger in the crowd
And I would be stranger no more

[CRAZY-HORSE]

DAVID GRAY  "shine: the best of the early years" cd, 2007

a revisit:

a compilation containing David's favorite tracks from his first three albums ("white ladder" was his fourth), so pre White Ladder and fame...
lovely acoustic material on here, could have put this under folk/americana but decided on 'easy listening' instead...
excellent collection of songs IMO.
I LOVE THIS ALBUM

favorite on this occasion:

[CRAZY-HORSE]

WILLIE NELSON & WYNTON MARSALIS  "two men with the blues" cd, 2008.

a live collaboration between these two old friends...
some jazz and blues standards on here and a couple of Willie originals...
i just kind of find this album hit or miss,
some good tracks whilst others are downright boring...
I LIKE THIS ALBUM

[CRAZY-HORSE]

ROD STEWART  "merry christmas, baby" cd, 2012

his twenty-seventh studio album and a yuletide release....
okay first up....
i am not really a fan of these sorts of albums but there are a couple of exceptions (Presley and Boney M to name a couple)....
anyway, the songs themselves dont really have a warm Christmas feel, they sound more like another "great american songbook" album.
so yes, this is difficult as a like the songs as they are, they just dont fit into the style they were intended to...
I LIKE THIS ALBUM

1:   have yourself a merry little christmas  **
2:   santa claus is coming to town  **
3:   winter wonderland  **
4:   white christmas  **
5:   merry christmas baby  *
6:   let it snow!, let it snow!, let it snow!  **
7:   what are you doing new years eve  **
8:   blue christmas  **
9:   red-suited superman  *
10: when you wish upon a star  **
11: we three kings  *
12: silent night  **
13: auld lang syne  **

3s -  0
2s -  10
1s -  3

rating:  1.7

[CRAZY-HORSE]

ROY HAMILTON  "the singles collection 1954-62" cd

from Georgia,USA.
R+B crooner...
3cd set, 80 tracks, containing all his "a" and "b" sides of singles plus "ep" tracks from that period...
a huge influence on the way Presley sung his ballads by putting power and soul into them..
"unchained melody" was one of four versions released in 1955, his version of "youll never walk alone" was a #1 hit in the US in 1954.
he also recorded "hurt", "pledging my love" and "you can have her" all of which Elvis Presley later recorded, they became good friends int eh 1960s and Presley even gave him a song he was supposed to record in 1969 (angelica) which Presley thought Roy would do it more justice...
that said, the man died way too early at age 40 after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage in 1969.
as he was broke at the time of his death Presley covered all of his medical costs and funeral expenses and assisted the family pay off other debts and mortgages.
I LIKE THIS ALBUM

"hurt"   Hurt - Roy Hamilton - YouTube

"you'll never walk alone"  You'll Never Walk Alone by Roy Hamilton 1954 - YouTube

"pledging my love"  Pledging My Love - Roy Hamilton - YouTube

"unchained melody"  ROY HAMILTON - UNCHAINED MELODY 1955 - YouTube

"angelica"   Roy Hamilton - Angelica ( The Song That Elvis Gave Away ) - YouTube

and my favourite:

[CRAZY-HORSE]

JOHN LENNON  "the john lennon collection" cd/vinyl 1982

i guess "soft rock" would be the most apt way to describe most of Lennon's solo output...
a seventeen track vinyl album but a nineteen track cd release....
i prefer the vinyl version because the two bonus tracks (from '70/'75) are tacked on the end of the cd whereas the rest of it is chronologically ordered, maybe most people wouldnt care but fans know the vibe is wrong....
album overall is a good representation of his post-Beatles singles unto and including those off his final "double fantasy" album from 1980.
a couple of tracks:
"jealous guy", used to love this one but Roxy Music's is better IMO
"imagine", never liked it and still dont.
"love", would have preferred "cold turkey" on the original vinyl l.p instead of this.
it is also evident of the quality of his material as a solo artist that stands up well alongside the singles by Paul McCartney and event he Beatles output showing that he was a musical force to be reckoned with in his own right as an artist.
I LOVE THIS ALBUM

1:   give peace a chance  ***
2:   instant karma  ***
3:   power to the people  ***
4:   whatever gets you through the night (feat: Elton John)  ***
5:   #9 dream  ***
6:   mind games  ***
7:   love  **
8:   happy xmas (war is over)  ***
9:   imagine  *
10: jealous guy  **
11: stand by me  ***
12: (just like) starting over  ***
13: woman  ***
14: im losing you  **
15: beautiful boy (darling sean)  ***
16: watching the wheels  ***
17: dear yoko  **
extra tracks on cd:
18: move over miss L  **
19: cold turkey  ***

3s -  13
2s -  5
1s -  1

rating:  2.6

a rare live performance by Lennon.
the story goes that when he wrote and recorded this with Elton that Elton said to him that "if this gets to #1, you have to join me on stage at Madison Square Garden", Lennon didnt think the single would reach #1 so he took Elton up on the bet and the rest is history.

[CRAZY-HORSE]

ELVIS COSTELLO & THE IMPOSTERS  "the boy named if"  cd,  2022

his thirty-second album
i could never keep up with his output, from looking at Wiki i think i have around twenty of them...
i can never decide where to put his albums neither because they are often quite eclectic and this one is no different...
there's 1950s jazz/blues, country/folk, new wave/post-punk and straight up ballads...
a welcome return to form after a relatively weak last decade (IMO of course)....
this album is classic Costello and stacks up well against his back catalogue of 70s/80s material and the chart placing of #6 in the UK marking his first top-10 album since the mid 1990s reflects that, but yet again, he fails to chart just about everywhere else (stupid world) and not so stupid Americans because it did scrape into the top-200 over "the pond"...
I LIKE THIS ALBUM

1:   farewell ok  **
2:   the boy named if  **
3:   penelope halfpenny  ***
4:   the difference  **
5:   what if i cant give you anything but love  ***
6:   paint the red rose blue  ***
7:   mistook me for a friend  **
8:   my most beautiful mistake  ***
9:   magnificent hurt  **
10: the man you love to hate  **
11: the death of magic thinking  **
12: trick out the truth  **
13: mr crescent  **

3s -  4
2s -  9
1s -  0

rating:  2.3

favourite: