Right Up Top

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After numerous conversations about records in which I realized my knowledge of 70’s pop was severely lacking, I asked Cody to send me an email

with few albums that he thought I’d like. There was a lot of good stuff on the resulting list; Sparks, Todd Rundgren, Eno, but my far-and-away

favorite was John Cale’s Paris 1919.

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A number of discussions of 70’s krautrock in reviews of the Fujiya & Miyagi record inspired me to go back to the Pitchork list and try out the genre. I couldn’t get in to Neu!, but these guys really do it for me. Check out the track “Vitamin C”. Sounds good, sounds perfect.

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Found this one after a Fresh Air reviewer of Dylan’s new record talked about hearing the song “Idiot Wind” for the first time as a child: “One

day you’ll be in the ditch / flies buzzin’ around your eyes /
Blood on your saddle”. That line alone was so gripping I went and listened to this gem; turns out “Idiot Wind” is the standout track, but the

whole album is great.

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I’ve been putting off getting into Bowie for years; his catalogue is so huge and intimidating; not to mention, the

“Bowie-is-the-greatest-thing-ever” coalition of Annie and Haw in high school kept me away from it for years (kind of like how I refused to see Good

Will Hunting for years because everyone hyped it up so much, although I’m still glad i did that… OVER-RATED). Anyways, after I got the aforementioned P-Fork Top 100 of the 70s list, I finally decided to give in.

Ziggy served as a perfect Bowie introductory album; very user-friendly. Top notch glam and great karaoke fodder.

Sorry Wu, I credit Jesse as the source of my new E.L.O obsession. Admittedly, “A New World Record” is my favorite E.L.O. album, but Afterglow was a great introduction to the band and a sneaky way to say that I discovered E.L.O.’s entire catalogue this year. Afterglow is a 3-disc box set that nicely chronicles the entire progression of Jeff Lynne and company. Pop masterpieces, one right after the other.

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My mom always talked about how much she loved going to see Laura Nyro in the late 60s, and when I saw Nyro listed among Todd Rundgren’s big influences I decided I should take a listen. This album, which is the first (and most accessible) in her trilogy of records that are considered classics, totes blew my mind. I’m really looking forward to disecting the next two, which I understand are far darker. Thanks Mom!

I’m at the first show of SXSW ‘06, listening to Sleater-Kinney bang out a few tunes from their newest album, “The Woods”. Things are sounding good, and the week is already looking like a success. Suddenly, Carrie kicks her right leg four feet in the air and the girls roll into the song “O2″. Corin howls “I wanna run away / I wanna get away / But I will never get up … I didn’t know / I could feel this low”. The sound seems to explode off the concrete walls of the crappy little warehouse in which we’re standing; I turn to Heather, my eyes wide, and I yell as loud as I can: “What fucking album is this on?!?!”. She just smiles and says, “One Beat.”

I’ve been meaning to listen to Wire for a while now; I think the final straw that made me finally delve into their legendary late 70’s trilogy was when I read that Field Music described themselves as “Wire meets the Beach Boys”. I went back to my Pitchfork Top 100, and lo and behold, all three albums are on that list. I didn’t really understand that Field Music comparison after listening to Pink Flag, but it started to make more sense as I moved on to Chairs Missing and 154. That’s one of the things I love about these records; how different they are from one another. I’m lucky that these three records are available in one box set; this way I can cheat, and put all three on the list. Picking just one would be way too hard.