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Come On Feel The Lemonheads (Album of the Day)
Friday, March 4, 2016
COME ON FEEL THE LEMONHEADS builds on the success of the Boston alternative heroes' breakthrough release IT'S A SHAME ABOUT RAY. The 1993 Atlantic album bursts with power pop hooks on such songs as “The Great Big No” and Modern Rock chart-topper “Into Your Arms,” though the collection's diverse track lineup also includes country (“Big Gay Heart”) and shambolic goofs (“The Jello Fund”). You can feel an appealing slacker seeker vibe a la J. Mascis or Paul Westerberg on COME ON FEEL THE LEMONHEADS, which became the band's highest charting album. We'll give it another spin today to help celebrate Lemonheads frontman Evan Dando's birthday!
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Buffalo Springfield (Box Set) (Album of the Day)
Thursday, March 3, 2016
When Canadian transplants Neil Young and Bruce Palmer intersected with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Dewey Martin on the Sunset Strip 50 years ago, one of the truly great Los Angeles bands was born: Buffalo Springfield. Taking their name from a steamroller they'd seen parked on a street, the quintet emerged as folk-rock/country-rock leaders during their tumultuous 2-year existence. The 4-volume BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD might not include every note the group cut for Atlantic Records, but it's pretty close; along with such era-defining songs as “For What It's Worth,” “Mr. Soul,” “Rock & Roll Woman” and “Broken Arrow,” the set includes a bumper crop of previously unreleased demos, alternate versions and mixes. Compiled with input from Neil Young, it's the ultimate collection of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers.
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Live At Max’s Kansas City (Expanded & Remastered) (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Years before anyone had ever heard of CBGB, Max's was THE place in New York City to see cutting-edge rock acts (and mingle with Manhattan scenesters). Near the top of that list was The Velvet Underground, whose final show with leader Lou Reed (until a brief '90s reunion) is documented on LIVE AT MAX”S KANSAS CITY. The quartet mixed such older favorites as “I'll Be Your Mirror,” “Femme Fatale” and “I'm Waiting For The Man” with new songs like “Sweet Jane” and “New Age” from their soon-to-be-released LOADED, with plenty of venue atmosphere heard throughout (like an audience conversation where Jim Carroll hits someone up for pills). Rhino's Expanded & Remastered Edition of the seminal collection includes both sets the band played that night in their entirety, and we'll pay another visit to MAX'S in honor of Reed, born on this day in 1942.
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Love Songs (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Still going strong, Chicago is one of the most successful American bands in pop history, with decades of hits to its credit. As LOVE SONGS bears out, many of those hits were romantic ballads; the Rhino compilation's 18 tracks include such smash singles as “You're The Inspiration,” “Beginnings,” “No Tell Lover” and “Hard To Say I'm Sorry.” While the set covers some of the territory mapped out on the group's best-ofs, LOVE SONGS also features a pair of exclusive live recordings drawn from Chicago's 2004 tour with Earth, Wind and Fire (“If You Leave Me Now” and “After The Love Is Gone”). If this past Valentine's Day left you craving more amor, the recently reissued collection offers all the LOVE SONGS you'll need until next time.
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Lean Into It (Album of the Day)
Monday, February 29, 2016
Los Angeles hard rock quartet Mr. Big made it big with their second album, LEAN INTO IT. Produced by Kevin Elson, the Atlantic collection soared up the charts on the strength of hit singles “Just Take My Heart” and “To Be With You,” which began a three week run at No.1 on this day in 1992. There's plenty of the instrumental virtuosity heard on Mr. Big's debut (guitarist Paul Gilbert and bassist Billy Sheehan get off some amazing riffs here) but with a stronger emphasis on songwriting – these 11 tracks are both catchy and diverse. Don't let the train-crash cover fool you: LEAN INTO IT is the work of a band on track and firing on all cylinders.
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Night Thoughts (Album of the Day)
Friday, February 26, 2016
With NIGHT THOUGHTS, The London Suede show their recent reunion was no mere cash grab; the new album is perhaps their best since DOG MAN STAR. And like that earlier collection, the music here is ambitious and cinematic (a feature film was created to accompany the songs), with nagging doubt in the face of time's relentless passage as a thematic throughline. If this is a more mature band than the Brit-pop heroes of the 1990s, it's by no means less exciting – such songs as “Outsiders” and “Like Kids” brim with passion and memorable hooks. With original producer Ed Buller back behind the boards, NIGHT THOUGHTS is the work of “a band carrying off a balancing act between their past and present in the grandest style,” to quote Mojo magazine, and an album sure to figure in best-of-the-year lists some 10 months from now.
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Christopher Cross (Album of the Day)
Thursday, February 25, 2016
On this day in 1981, Christopher Cross’ self-titled debut garnered five Grammys, including Album, Record and Song of the Year as well as Best New Artist. No doubt there were hipper records being released at the time (Pink Floyd's THE WALL was another nominee that year), but when it comes to adult contemporary pop, the Grammy voters know their stuff. Produced by Michael Omartian, the Warner Bros. collection is immaculately crafted, with Cross' fine voice supported by an ace studio band and such singers as Don Henley, Michael McDonald and Nicolette Larson. Of nine fine originals, “Never Be the Same,” “Ride Like the Wind” and “Sailing” were omnipresent on the radio, and several others could've been. CHRISTOPHER CROSS sold more than 5 million copies, and if you don't already own one of them, there's still time to rectify that...
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Double Double Good: The Best of the Happy Mondays (Album of the Day)
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Emerging in the mid-1980s as leaders of the Manchester acid house scene, Happy Mondays fused wiggy lyrics to sample-rich grooves that were perfect for “Freaky Dancin'.” The sextet's original incarnation lasted nearly a decade, and gave us such irresistible floor-fillers as “Step On,” “Kinky Afro,” “Wrote For Luck” and “Loose Fit” - all of which can be heard on 2012's DOUBLE DOUBLE GOOD: THE BEST OF. Mondays frontman Shaun Ryder helped compile the 17-track set, which includes an otherwise unavailable 1985 single (“Delightful”) and fine comeback covers like “The Boys Are Back In Town” along with the band's indie dance favorites. A perfect encapsulation of Happy Mondays' anarchic party ethos, DOUBLE DOUBLE GOOD will brighten any day of the week.
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Dream Into Action (Album of the Day)
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
On the heels of a very strong debut, Howard Jones scored another winner with DREAM INTO ACTION. The 1985 Elektra release, produced by Rupert Hine, takes Jones' melodic, upbeat synthpop a step further with the addition of some surprisingly effective soul/funk moves. You probably know the hits here – “Things Can Only Get Better,” “Life In One Day” and the original version of “No One Is To Blame” (which would reach #4 in the U.S. after being rerecorded for single release) – but there isn't a dud among these 14 tracks. DREAM INTO ACTION went Top 10 on both sides of the Atlantic and remains among the singer-songwriter-keyboardist's very best; we'll give it another spin today in honor of Howard Jones' birthday.
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If I Could Only Remember My Name (Album of the Day)
Monday, February 22, 2016
Though his most famous recordings are those he cut with The Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash, David Crosby could also conjure musical magic on his own, and his IF I COULD ONLY REMEMBER MY NAME is filled with haunting beauty. Crosby's matchless vocals evoke a wide variety of moods here, even in the absence of lyrics ("Song With No Words (Tree With No Leaves)"). The album's nine tracks were recorded in San Francisco, and members of Bay Area kingpins the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane appear in support roles - the collection is a postcard from the California of the early 1970s, its sunshine tempered by uncertainty. Crosby's solo debut was released 45 years ago today, and IF I COULD ONLY REMEMBER MY NAME is well worth remembering.
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