Vinyl Me Please Essentials

can i just say i LOVE that i now know that praising pet sounds (because its a classic) would mean making fun of mike love for thinking it could never work.. brian made one of the best of all time, mike made one of the worst albums ever made
 
I appreciate that it’s at least a much more diverse list. I think of it less as a list of the “Greatest” (what does that even mean?) and more as “most influential on music right now.” It shows a better representation of the albums that still have any impact on the musical landscape today. The list they had a while back was like all dusty old white dudes - i feel like the beatles and bob dylan both had 3 albums in the top ten. Sgt peppers was at #1 - it just made no sense. Marvin Gaye is a much better fit. Pet Sounds is still at #2 and rightfully so - that and What’s Going On are both still incredibly influential on new music being made today and also albums that people care about and want to own high quality pressings of and will regularly listen to. Joni Mitchell and Stevie Wonder belong in that conversation for sure. And I’m so here for Lauryn Hill at #10.
Omg yes! This post is exactly how I feel! It really does read like the most influential albums list! And I am also very much here for Lauryn Hill being at #10 too! That honestly made me so happy! 😄
 
i think my issue when it came to voodoo was the length of the songs mixed with how.. repetitive the songs can be, making me tired... its a good album though.. its also why i had trouble with mamas gun, repetition is the stuff that makes me exhausted
 
i think my issue when it came to voodoo was the length of the songs mixed with how.. repetitive the songs can be, making me tired... its a good album though.. its also why i had trouble with mamas gun, repetition is the stuff that makes me exhausted
Mama’s Gun isn’t repetitive though! I want you to be with me when I play Mama’s Gun! I would light a Caribbean breezy island candle, would made some tea and have all the windows open and would try and make you enjoy Mama’s Gun!

I was so happy to see that album ranked in the top #200 of the RollingStones list and I think Mama’s Gun is a very diverse album actually! A quarter of the tracks have a punk aura, another quarter of the tracks are very romantic and intimate, another the rest are lazy, dreamy and breezy! It’s a magnificent album!

I wonder how you’ll feel on the album in a few weeks time after listening to it! I’m guessing you’ll give the album a good shot after it officially gets announced as the November Essentials ROTM!
 
i love the "repetition" aka the Groove!
And repetition can really convey a message or aesthetic! Like Solange’s When I Get Home is an extremely repetitive album, and is very sleepy too, but it’s like it’s sending through that message of being tired that nothing is changing, and that no matter what happens, things remain the same. Like, repetitiveness can work really nicely sometimes, it can really make for an immersive experience!
 
i will probably one day grow up to call mamas gun and voodoo some of the best albums ever made, just not right now


also i will call bullshit on rolling stone about the beatles..

hot take: white album=Sgt Pepper>Abbey Road>Revolver>Rubber Soul
Abbey Road, Revolver and Rubber Soul are all better albums than Pepper. So is Help. And I'm with you on the White Album. Its usually a toss up on the day I decide to play some beatles between that AR and Revolver
 
And although Joy In Repetition isn’t my favourite song by Prince, it’s my favourite from Graffiti Bridge!
Do yourself a favor, if you haven't listened to it already, and check out the live version of Joy in Repetition from the One Nite Alone Live The Aftershow set (opening track). This version is what really wrapped me into the song. There are some slight lyric changes, in part referencing his conversion (Four letter words will not be heard, not up on this stage tonight) and given the amorphous nature of a live performance.

The way it fades in with pulsing guitar and Prince saying:

"How long you been waitin'?
Well, I hope I can make it up to you
Give us a minute to get tuned up"

Is just priming the audience for what's in store. The band is on point. The bass (Larry Graham!) is thumping and the guitar solo is chest-caving.

And for all your love of sexiness, Prince is giving you that mature shit for grown folk....

"He lost himself in the articulated manner in which she said them
Huh
These two words — little bit behind the beat
Mean just enough to turn you on"


Edit: also when Prince sings "little bit behind the beat, mean just enough to turn you on" the bass is accentuated and you can really hear its interplay w/ the drums. I read an interview w/ Prince years and years ago where he talked about what he learned from Larry Graham as a bass player. One thing he talked about was having the bass play a little behind the drum beat to create funk. So, when I heard the juxtaposition of the sung lyrics and the technique put to the forefront in the music, I appreciated having read that and understood the context even better.
 
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Do yourself a favor, if you haven't listened to it already, and check out the live version of Joy in Repetition from the One Nite Alone Live The Aftershow set (opening track). This version is what really wrapped me into the song. There are some slight lyric changes, in part referencing his conversion (Four letter words will not be heard, not up on this stage tonight) and given the amorphous nature of a live performance.

The way it fades in with pulsing guitar and Prince saying:

"How long you been waitin'?
Well, I hope I can make it up to you
Give us a minute to get tuned up"

Is just priming the audience for what's in store. The band is on point. The bass (Larry Graham!) is thumping and the guitar solo is chest-caving.

And for all your love of sexiness, Prince is giving you that mature shit for grown folk....

"He lost himself in the articulated manner in which she said them
Huh
These two words — little bit behind the beat
Mean just enough to turn you on"
I was actually extremely shocked when you said Joy In Repetition was your favourite Prince song! My jaws dropped! I’m going to listen to that song live from the One Nite Alone Live Aftershow! Cannot wait to check it out and get a better idea of why it’s your favourite Prince song of all-time!
 
I was actually extremely shocked when you said Joy In Repetition was your favourite Prince song! My jaws dropped! I’m going to listen to that song live from the One Nite Alone Live Aftershow! Cannot wait to check it out and get a better idea of why it’s your favourite Prince song of all-time!
So, I will caveat that it is particularly that live version. The studio version is great too but I love that performance. And I tend to give live albums short shrift, and only buy them in rare occasions; so it's seldom I'll reference a live anything as my favorite.

Studio - it's difficult 'cause I have different reasons to appreciate different songs. For example, I love the song SOTT b/c it showcases Prince's use of the Fairlight and every time I hear it opening I'm struck by it. Other songs, like When Doves Cry, that also showcase innovations in recording and songwriting (no bass line, looped vocals, Linn M-1). There are songs that make me giddy - the keyboard on Delirious. Songs on Dirty Mind capture me because it's the evolution of a sound - hearing the way he used keyboard/synth parts to replace parts that would normally be reserved for horns, in developing the Minneapolis funk sound. Straight fun - Housequake, Sexy MF, My Name Is Prince, Batdance

If I'm going straight studio feels - then it's Beautiful Ones. That wailing climaxing in his falsetto when he is challenging his interest to make a choice...

"Do you want him?
Or do you want me?"
 
So, I will caveat that it is particularly that live version. The studio version is great too but I love that performance. And I tend to give live albums short shrift, and only buy them in rare occasions; so it's seldom I'll reference a live anything as my favorite.

Studio - it's difficult 'cause I have different reasons to appreciate different songs. For example, I love the song SOTT b/c it showcases Prince's use of the Fairlight and every time I hear it opening I'm struck by it. Other songs, like When Doves Cry, that also showcase innovations in recording and songwriting (no bass line, looped vocals, Linn M-1). There are songs that make me giddy - the keyboard on Delirious. Songs on Dirty Mind capture me because it's the evolution of a sound - hearing the way he used keyboard/synth parts to replace parts that would normally be reserved for horns, in developing the Minneapolis funk sound. Straight fun - Housequake, Sexy MF, My Name Is Prince, Batdance

If I'm going straight studio feels - then it's Beautiful Ones. That wailing climaxing in his falsetto when he is challenging his interest to make a choice...

"Do you want him?
Or do you want me?"
Omg, Beautiful Ones is one of my favourite songs too! It’s so magical, opulent, heavenly and grand! That wailing falsetto really is incredible! 💎

I love those lyrics too in the context of the song! It adds to the rich, lustful, mellow fantasy aesthetic of the song!
 
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