A totally unoriginal thought struck me as I watched Castaway, starring Tom Hanks. Which ten albums would be an absolute necessity for me to have if I were a castaway -- provided I had the electricity and equipment to hear the stuff! Not that I'd ever want to join the insipid cast of "Survivor." Too cutthroat. And I probably wouldn't like their choices anyway. I have very eclectic tastes that run the gamut from classical to country to rock to punk to rap and beyond. Rhythm & Blues is my absolute first love, though, primarily because of its continuing vibrancy and importance in shaping what the world hears. But to really distill hundreds of thousands of albums into ten essentials, well, that takes a lot of thought and cutting.
So, I locked myself into my home office with my comfort blanket of a record collection and threw myself into the pleasant task of imagining myself as a castaway with all the time in the world to listen to, gulp!, ten albums. Hey, do box sets count as single albums? Not this time. I chose my top ten -- you may surely have others -- strictly on the enjoyability factor, with a bit of how an album had an impact on moving the music forward and influencing and affecting a change in direction.
Michael Jackson Thriller (1982):
A no-brainer. Arguably, the all-time greatest pop album, as evidenced by the fact that Thriller continues to duke it out with The Eagles'Greatest Hits collection for the title of best-selling album in music history. It's equally important because Thriller was the album that signaled an end to the "holy war" waged by New Wave's five-year "Disco Sucks" campaign. Thriller, released in November of 1982, followed his 1979 disco-influenced Off The Wall, the first of a wildly successful three-album production run with super producer Quincy Jones. I was at the Motown 25th celebration that blew Jackson up with his stunning Moonwalk dance to "Billie Jean," a memory I'd gladly take to any desert island destination. In addition, Thriller's importance is underscored by the fact that the "Billie Jean" video broke MTV's ironclad "rock-only" policy of the time.
James Brown Live At The Apollo, Pt. 2 (1968):
The Allman Brothers'Live At Fillmore East has been called the best live album of all time. Perhaps it should be amended to the best live rock album. If you didn't have a chance to see James Brown strut his stuff when he was at the peak of his powers, then this is all you'll ever need next to actually being there (save for his incredible TAMI show performance several years before, which is available in many viewing formats). Brown released a live album of the same title in 1962 that is as good as this 1968 offering. However, Brown had reached a level of superstardom that demanded he prove his electrifying track record and, oh, did he deliver! Earlier in the year, Brown saved Boston from burning down with a special concert broadcast on television the day after Martin Luther King was assassinated. That's reason enough to realize why he is so revered beyond music.
Marvin Gaye What's Going On (1971):
Quite simply, the encapsulation of America's conscience at the heights of the Vietnam War, and the dying off of the Civil Rights movement. It was a curious combination of scolding authority and questioning the very tenets of a country at odds with itself and its children. In fact, What's Going On was also a liberation for Gaye, and shattered the image of him as merely a towering sex symbol. And the songs? From beginning to end, just about as perfect as an album can be.
Curtis Mayfield Curtis (1970):
Mayfield's first solo album after a successful run with the gospel-based Impressions. In fact, this album could have arguably been the blueprint for Marvin Gaye's opus, save for the fact that Mayfield had been doing this social conscience thing while Gaye was still a puppet of the Motown machine. If you can find this on vinyl, well, you've got a collector's item, as it was unavailable for nearly three decades until Rhino, in its infinite wisdom, reissued the set in 2000 - with additional outtakes, to boot!
Isaac Hayes Hot Buttered Soul (1969):
This was the first R&B album that brought FM radio into play as a major force. AM radio was the dominant wavelength, with songs rarely going beyond three minutes. Hayes shattered that when he clocked an unheard-of 18:40 minutes with the album's signature "By The Time I Get To Phoenix" single. AM soul radio had a fit trying to appease the demand that this song generated, but what to do? The solution: make airing the song an event every time it was played. I remember sitting in a dimly lit room with my freshman classmates, anticipating the first listen of HBS in its entirety -- and on a high-tech stereo system with colossal speakers. By the time the album was finished, a look of exhaustion and amazement was etched on our faces. It's still on mine. By the way, bet you've never heard a song title like "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic!"
Earth, Wind & Fire That's The Way Of The World (1975):
By the time this album was released, EWF was already a fixture on the black college and radio scene. Their live show had cemented the group as a "must-see" whenever they hit a city, and they had a slew of black radio hits well before middle America caught "wind" of their awesome power. This was originally the soundtrack to an absolutely atrocious film of the same name that was out of theatrical run two weeks after its release -- and hasn't seen the light of day since. "Shining Star" and "Reasons" are well worth the album's price, but the final song, "See The Light," with Philip Bailey providing an uplifting performance, ups the ante to priceless.
Aretha Franklin I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You (1967):
After seven years on Columbia Records, Aretha left the label confused as to the direction she should take. Jazz? Pop? Blues? Gospel? How about soul, a subset of R&B that hadn't truly had an established superstar, particularly female. This was Franklin's first album for Atlantic Records, and, thanks to insightful guidance from the label's Jerry Wexler, she truly found her groove. "Respect" (earlier sung to near perfection by Otis Redding), brought Franklin instant fame. Other classics on this album include "Do Right Woman Do Right Man," "Save Me" and "Dr. Feelgood." I was going to include her "Live At The Fillmore West" (1971) featuring a sterling cameo from Brother Ray Charles, but go ahead and pack either. No argument here.
Prince 1999 (1982):
I wanted to include the personal fave Purple Rain soundtrack in this list, but 1999 is the more groundbreaking of the two. It took five albums to prove conclusively that Prince was king of the kinky underworld with this release, and from the time the apocalyptic title song finished, well, one knew the crown fit snugly. For You, Prince, Dirty Mind, and Controversy exhibited a steady growth into mindful sexual explorations, with 1999 being the physical consummation. The 1999 tour featured a sheer-curtained brass bed upon which Prince shockingly played out "International Lover." Other classic cuts include "Little Red Corvette," "D.M.S.R.," "Delirious" and "Lady Cab Driver." Any of these would have concretely established any artist; collectively, they revealed Prince's immense genius.
George Clinton Computer Games (1982)/Funkadelic Maggot Brain (1971):
Okay, the list includes two from one artist. But I did say that it was compiled with an enormous dose of enjoyability. The reason these are here is that there is only one High Commander of funk, and one album isn't enough to represent Clinton's universal influence properly. Maggot Brain, a mind-blowing trip of rock/funk, is simply a masterpiece that should be included in any serious collection -- let alone a desert island list. The late Eddie Hazel's sizzling guitar solo on the title track is one of the greatest moment in any genre of pop music. Computer Games, Clinton's first solo effort, contains a single song that even the staunchest conservative would be hard-pressed to deny had a colossal impact on music and dance floors: "Atomic Dog." Enough said!
--Gary Jackson
Sr. JAMZ Editor at HITS Magazine
