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A.M. (Album of the Day)
After his former group Uncle Tupelo broke up, singer-songwriter Jeff Tweedy took most of its members - notably bassist John Stirratt and drummer Ken Coomer - and quickly recorded Wilco’s first album, A.M. Released on this day in 1995, the collection includes several fan favorites like “Casino Queen” and the funny-sad ode to drunk driving and unrequited love, “Passenger Side.” While the group would go on to incorporate a dizzying variety of influences in their music, here they stick close to their roots to create what Rolling Stone called “one hell of a country-guts debut.” Wilco continues to make excellent records and play shows that stir the soul, and it all started here on A.M.
Kettle Whistle (Album of the Day)
When L.A. alternative rockers Jane's Addiction returned to performing for their 1997 “Relapse” tour, Warner Bros. marked the occasion with the release of KETTLE WHISTLE. An odds & sods-style compilation of demos, live and rare cuts, the 15-song set includes two new recordings: “So What!” and the title track (both of which feature Flea on bass). But most of this material hails from the group's late-'80s heyday, with alternate versions of such classics as “Been Caught Stealing” and “Mountain Song” joined by more than 20 minutes of a Hollywood Palladium concert that shows why the band remains legendary. We'll wish frontman Perry Farrell a happy birthday with the Gold-certified KETTLE WHISTLE.
Forever Changes (Album of the Day)
Recorded during the Summer of Love in Hollywood, FOREVER CHANGES is Love's most fully realized studio effort, featuring Arthur Lee (vocals, guitar), Johnny Echols (lead guitar), Bryan MacLean (rhythm guitar, vocals), Ken Forssi (bass) and Michael Stuart (drums, percussion). The 1967 collection introduced classics like “Andmoreagain,” “Red Telephone,” “A House Is Not A Motel” and “Alone Again Or.” A perennial on critic's lists of the best albums of the era, the psychedelic folk-rock pioneers' masterpiece has been inducted into both the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. Forssi was born on this day in 1943, and in his honor we'll cue up FOREVER CHANGES once again.
Show (Album of the Day)
One of two concert releases drawn from The Cure's WISH tour (the other being PARIS), SHOW showcases the U.K. alternative rock heroes at their peak. The 1993 set was recorded at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan, and includes such hits as “Pictures of You,” “Just Like Heaven” and “Friday I'm in Love,” underlining the success the band had achieved since their previous live collection, IN ORANGE. Along with frontman Robert Smith (who produced the album), the quintet heard here includes mainstays Simon Gallup and Porl Thompson, who would leave The Cure after this tour. SHOW (LIVE) returns on Record Store Day next month as a 2-LP picture disc.
The Last Waltz (Album of the Day)
After more than a decade together, The Band decided to go out in style with a final concert at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom on Thanksgiving Day 1976. For what was billed as THE LAST WALTZ, the quintet was joined by an all-star group of music legends including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Muddy Waters and Neil Young. The evening was captured on film and the accompanying soundtrack includes stirring live versions of “Up On Cripple Creek,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and “The Shape I'm In” along with signature songs from some of the guest stars and an elegiac suite recorded specifically for the album. Richard Manuel was born on this day in 1943 and we'll take one more trip around the dancefloor to remember the vocalist/pianist with THE LAST WALTZ.
Making Movies (Album of the Day)
By the time of MAKING MOVIES' 1980 release, it was clear that Dire Straits had few peers when it came to literate, roots-informed rock. Singer-songwriter-guitarist Mark Knopfler was always the British band's focal point – even more so with the departure of brother David on this third album - but the frontman really rose to the occasion here. With arrangements as ambitious as its cover art is minimal, the Warner Bros. set features seven cinematically rich originals including “Romeo and Juliet,” “Tunnel of Love” and “Solid Rock.” The collection was co-produced by Jimmy Iovine, who called on old friend (and E Street Band member) Roy Bittan to add his distinctive keyboard work to the mix. Both passionate and poetic, the Platinum-certified MAKING MOVIES remains among Dire Straits' very best, and we'll give it another spin to wish drummer Pick Withers a happy birthday.
Amazing Grace (Album of the Day)
Aretha Franklin owed much of her vocal power to a religious upbringing; her father was the prominent Detroit minister and activist Rev. C.L. Franklin, and a young Aretha frequently sang in his church. So it was a natural fit when the performer set up at Los Angeles' New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in 1972 to cut an album. True to its title, the 2-LP AMAZING GRACE features transcendent performances of such sacred standards as "Precious Memories," "What A Friend We Have In Jesus" and "How I Got Over," accompanied by the Rev. James Cleveland and the Southern California Community Choir. Greeted with rave reviews, the collection would go on to sell more than two million copies in the U.S. alone and still holds the record as the best-selling live gospel album of all time. AMAZING GRACE also earned the singer a Grammy award, Franklin's first for Best Soul Gospel Performance.
I'm Going to Do What I Wanna Do: Live at My Father’s Place 1978 (Album of the Day)
One of rock's most gifted eccentrics, Don Van Vliet - aka Captain Beefheart – is known for a string of critically acclaimed studio releases but I'M GOING TO DO WHAT I WANNA DO: LIVE AT MY FATHER'S PLACE 1978 shows he was also a riveting concert performer. On the road to promote their SHINY BEAST album, Beefheart and band made a stop at the intimate Long Island venue, where a local radio station had set up a two-track tape machine to record the show for broadcast. Along with a healthy chunk of the new album, the set list includes favorites from TROUT MASK REPLICA, SAFE AS MILK and CLEAR SPOT, and the Magic Band (then including Zappa vet Bruce Fowler) was in magical form that night. Originally a limited edition Rhino Handmade CD, LIVE AT MY FATHER'S PLACE 1978 debuts on vinyl this month for Record Store Day 2023.
Songs Of Faith And Devotion (Album of the Day)
In the aftermath of their breakthrough collection VIOLATOR, Depeche Mode might have been tempted to follow its sonic template, but instead, the U.K. band opted to try something different for SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION. Working with producer Flood, the foursome rented a villa in Madrid to work up material and take a more visceral approach to recording, utilizing live drums, aggressive guitars and unusual instrument processing. The resulting ten songs, including singles “In Your Room,” “I Feel You” and “Walking In My Shoes,” have the power of then-omnipresent grunge rock while retaining Depeche's distinctive synth/dance sound. This reinvention was successful commercially as well as artistically, and SONGS OF FAITH AND DEVOTION hit No.1 on the U.S. album chart on this day in 1993.
One of These Nights (Album of the Day)
An Album of the Year Grammy nominee and a quadruple-Platinum smash, ONE OF THESE NIGHTS proved to be Eagles' breakthrough release. The product of more than a year's work by the band and producer Bill Szymczyk, the 1975 Asylum collection includes three Top 10 singles: "Lyin' Eyes,” “Take it to the Limit” and the title track. The increased emphasis on rock heard here would lead to the departure of country-leaning co-founder Bernie Leadon following the supporting tour, leaving singer-songwriters Glenn Frey and Don Henley firmly in the driver's seat. ONE OF THESE NIGHTS was the first Eagles set to top the Billboard chart, and it remains one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers' defining albums.