October 2022 Vinyl Challenge: Chart Watcher's Edition

Day 11: 1974

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1974 holds the record for the most Hot 100 #1s within a calendar year (36 #1s in 52 weeks). It also has a reputation among some as a bad year for music, many pointing to some of the songs that topped that pop chart as examples (Seasons in the Sun, The Night Chicago Died, The Streak, Having My Baby…)

Many of those “bad” songs (minus Having My Baby, that one deserves it’s bad reputation) I actually have a level of affection for, mostly due to nostalgia (my parents played them a lot during my childhood), so I happen to like those songs a lot more than other people I know.
 
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Roxy Music "Flesh + Blood" (1980 Polydor Japan)
Generally regarded as the worst Roxy Music album, I somehow still quite like it and often return to it. It's biggest flaw to me is that it opens with the rather weak cover of "In The Midnight Hour". It otherwise includes several genuine jams in "Oh Yeah", "Same Old Scene" and "Over You", as well as excellent deep cuts like "My Only Love" and "No Strange Delights".

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Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Soul Asylum - Let Your Dim Light Shine

I am somewhat notorious for falling in love with a band through their "sell-out" record, where they seem to shed what made them cool in the first place and lean into the more commercial side of their sound (see also: Celebrity Skin). Soul Asylum was already smoothing out their sound by the time they made this record but with this album their lyrics pivoted sharply into what Allmusic describes as "so overwrought that they not only approach self-parody, they go completely beyond it." But I LOVE that here. And it soundtracked a great year in my life, so familiarity and nostalgia play a big part. Let the haters hate, this disc kicks ass.

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CroutonBoy said:
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Soul Asylum - Let Your Dim Light Shine

I am somewhat notorious for falling in love with a band through their "sell-out" record, where they seem to shed what made them cool in the first place and lean into the more commercial side of their sound (see also: Celebrity Skin). Soul Asylum was already smoothing out their sound by the time they made this record but with this album their lyrics pivoted sharply into what Allmusic describes as "so overwrought that they not only approach self-parody, they go completely beyond it." But I LOVE that here. And it soundtracked a great year in my life, so familiarity and nostalgia play a big part. Let the haters hate, this disc kicks ass.

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I love this one!
 
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Coldplay - Ghost Stories

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I know there are people out there who say Coldplay hasn't made a good album since Viva la Vida (or A Rush of Blood, or Parachutes, etc etc) Well I absolutely love Ghost Stories. It contains one of Coldplay's biggest hits (A Sky Full of Stars) and that wouldn't even be a top 5 song on the album for me.

This is definitely a fall/winter album for me and I plan on spinning the hell out of it once the weather changes a bit.
 
CroutonBoy said:
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Soul Asylum - Let Your Dim Light Shine

I am somewhat notorious for falling in love with a band through their "sell-out" record, where they seem to shed what made them cool in the first place and lean into the more commercial side of their sound (see also: Celebrity Skin). Soul Asylum was already smoothing out their sound by the time they made this record but with this album their lyrics pivoted sharply into what Allmusic describes as "so overwrought that they not only approach self-parody, they go completely beyond it." But I LOVE that here. And it soundtracked a great year in my life, so familiarity and nostalgia play a big part. Let the haters hate, this disc kicks ass.

View attachment 153776
Click to expand...
Misery is such a jam!
 
tvham said:
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

Coldplay - Ghost Stories

View attachment 153789

I know there are people out there who say Coldplay hasn't made a good album since Viva la Vida (or A Rush of Blood, or Parachutes, etc etc) Well I absolutely love Ghost Stories. It contains one of Coldplay's biggest hits (A Sky Full of Stars) and that wouldn't even be a top 5 song on the album for me.

This is definitely a fall/winter album for me and I plan on spinning the hell out of it once the weather changes a bit.
Click to expand...

Haha, scooped! Really dug their “Bon Iver album”
 
Day 11: 1974
play a record you love that others seem to dislike

To quote Allmusic:

"Quite possibly the worst album by either Bob Dylan or the Grateful Dead, the live Dylan & the Dead completely squanders its promise. Working from an intriguing selection of songs -- it includes staples like "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" and more obscure gems like "Joey" -- the Dead and Dylan contribute listless, meandering versions that are simply boring. Both artists have done much better -- reportedly they have done better together, according to various bootleg fans -- but Dylan & the Dead is a sad, disheartening document."

I will say that while Love is a strong word, this album has grown on me and certainly is better than this review indicates. Besides Joey (which is just about unlistenable still) the rest of it finds a good late 80's Grateful Dead groove going on and Dylans delivery has some passion and fire to it. Slow Train Coming is solid, as is Garcia's soloing on All Along the Watchtower.

Edited to add - and also the Cover and RSD 'Tie-Dye' pressing of this are pretty spectacular in their own right.

Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead ~ Dylan & The Dead

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