Posted in Album Reviews

Pink Floyd – More (1969)

Posted on by Michael

The More soundtrack is the third studio album from Pink Floyd. The quickly recorded, semi-improvised disc feature several instrumentals with David Gilmour handling all vocal duties on the other tracks. Of the instrumentals, opener “Cirrus Minor” stands out.  Starting with birds chirping, the Richard Wright farfisa organ gives it a pastoral feel. “Main Theme” has a sci-fi feel and sounds a bit like the band’s past work. “Up The Khyber” gets some sped up jazzy drumming courtesy of Nick Mason, a few of the other instrumentals are more geared towards incidental movie music.

Two tracks take on a proto-meal guitar crunch with “The Nile Song” being the pick, Gilmour’s vocals stretching to much the riffing. Taking writing credits for most of side one, two of Roger Water’s best tracks on More are found in the middle of the album. “Green Is The Colour” has some acoustic guitar and great piano playing in the outro, a really nice tune. Best is the atmospheric “Cymbaline”.  More great keys and the simple chorus hook of “.. and it’s high time…”.  A deep, hidden gem in the catalogue.

7/10

Posted in Album Reviews

David Bowie – Re:Call 3 (2017)

Posted on by Michael

Re:Call 3 appears in the David Bowie box set A New Career In A New Town (1977-1982) released in 2017. Like it’s Re:Call predecessors, it mops up various single versions, EP tracks and rarities. This period covers some of Bowie’s greatest works which means this collection is a treasure trove of some of his greatest hits starting with one of his best singles, “Heroes” and followed by an extended version of “Beauty And The Beast”. Not to be outdone, singles from Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) appear including the single version of “Ashes To Ashes” and the title track.

“Space Oddity” appears in a 1979 version, not as spacey as the original, it is far more raw. A great addition to the set is the “Under Pressure” single recorded with Queen that came about when Bowie stopped by the studio one day. This is then followed by tracks from Baal’s EP released in 1980, based on songs from playwright Bertolt Brecht.  The five theatrical songs do not fit with the other tracks found on this compilation and would have been better on its own disc. That quibble aside, Re:Call 3 contains some of Bowie’s most legendary 70s moments.

8/10

Posted in Album Reviews

Buffalo Springfield – Last Time Around (1968)

Posted on by Michael

Buffalo Springfield was broken-up by the time their final album, Last Time Around, was released in 1968.  Made up of previous recordings, the album was a contractual obligation put together by Jim Messina and Richie Furay.  Just two Neil Young compositions appear. Sung by Furay, “On The Way Home” is a terrific song, complete with horns for added pleasure. Towards the end of the record, the easy going Young sung “I Am A Child” appears.

Almost half the tracks are Stephen Stills songs with the best being the dreamy ballad, “Pretty Girl Why”. “Four Days Gone” tells the tale of a draft dodger returning home to see his baby and “Special Care” gets some organ added and much guitar riffing.  Two Richie Furay tracks appear towards the end including “Merry-Go-Round” and the excellent country rock ballad, “Kind Woman”. The last album in the Buffalo Springfield cannon does not have the strengths of their previous recordings but still a few worthwhile tracks to hear.

7.5/10

Posted in Album Reviews

The Last Dinner Party – From The Pyre (2025)

Posted on by Michael

Last October, London band, The Last Dinner Party, returned with their second album – From The Pyre. The initial recordings got derailed when producer James Ford was diagnosed with leukemia who’s hopefully doing better after a tough 2025. The band then worked with another big name producer in Markus Drays. The album manages to avoid the dreaded sophomore jinx with several terrific songs including the soft rock opener “Agnus Dei” that manages to rhyme “Ohio” with “Disembowelled” plus the driving thunder chorus of “Second Best”.

The album shares similarities with their debut in that the five ladies are theatrical in nature, mixing 70s soft rock with harder edges. Single, “This Is The Killer Speaking” is jaunty, with a flash of style. The album closes with a few strong tracks including the slower “Sail Away” that sees singer Abigail Morris sing defiantly that “I would take my ship/Have no one else on it” before “The Scythe” picks up the pace. From The Pyre does an excellent job of picking up where the debut left off and offering up a better distillation of their sound.

8/10

Posted in Album Reviews

The Doors – L.A. Woman (1971)

Posted on by Michael

The last album by The Doors to have Jim Morrison appear was L.A. Woman.  Released in 1971, the album is a bluesy affair with songs like the John Lee Hooker cover, “Crawling King Snake” plus the originals “Cars Hiss By My Window” and “Been Down So Long”. “The Wasp (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)” takes that sound in a slightly more experimental direction led by the stomping beat of John Densmore and the organ of Ray Manzerek.

First track “The Changeling” really gets things moving with a funky bass line.  The band wanted it as a single and it really should have been, instead it appears on the B-side to “Riders On The Storm”. “Hyacinth House” opens with a solid guitar riff from Robby Krieger as Morrison later sings, “I need a brand new friend who doesn’t bother me”.  It’s an all together lighter affair, compared to the darker elements of the album. The single “Lover Her Madly” was one of the band’s highest charting US singles, it is played with joy – a bit of a tambourine and an organ that breaks through midway through.

At almost eight minutes, the title track plays like a jam with Morrison really shining with evocative lyrics, a goodbye to the city he would soon leave. “Well, I just got into town about an hour ago…Just another lost angel/City of night…Drive through your suburbs/Into your blues…Cops in cars, the topless bars/Never saw a woman so alone… Mr. Mojo Risin” to name just a few. An FM radio album track staple for years to come.

The album finally closes with another moody classic, “Riders On The Storm”. The rainfall sounds mixing with lyrics about a killer hitchhiker oozes the underbelly of the era.  A chugging bassline with jazzy psychedelic Rhodes piano as Morrison tells a woman that “you gotta love your man” and to “Take him by the hand/Make him understand”.  More sinister than loving, it was the last song that all four members would appear on before the untimely death of Morrison on July 3, 1971. After a couple of critically middling albums, the original version of The Doors went out with two classics with Morrison Hotel and L.A. Woman, regaining the greatness first heard on the debut.

9/10