Pendulum-Greatest Hits Full Album Zip
Nelson Suggs
I am a list freak. As a high school junior I used to tabulate everyconceivable aspect of Peter Tripp's Top 40, and as a new collegegraduate I applied my Ivy League training to careful graphs of myfavorite songs on the radio. After I began subscribing to the tradesa few years ago I got into the habit of predicting the Top 20 everyweek, though I finally gave up out of frustration--anyone whobelieves the charts are so damned mechanical should try it for amonth. Anyway, now that I have initiated the Consumer Guide I amtipsy with it, devising all kinds of systems to make it more pleasantand efficient and listy. These will no doubt change a lot. Bear withme.I have added a new category to Probable and Conceivable and Forget It.It is called Consumer Guide. I scrawl the titles of Consumer Guiderecords on a piece of scrap paper which has to be exhumed every time anew one occurs to me. The category includes: "important" recordswhich I don't want to treat at length, usually because I don't havemuch to say about them; records by artists who deserve more attentionthan they get or I am likely to give them; most worthwhile soul lps,which even at their best rarely lend themselves to extended comment;interesting oddities; public nuisances; and records I can think up agood joke about. It does not include every bloody new group thatcomes my way--the flow has to stop eventually but it hasn't let upyet. All Consumer Guide records except patent atrocities get myversion of special attention, which is to say I play them two or threetimes and listen at medium intensity at least once. (Lest I seem toocavalier, I ought to add that many are treated better than that.)When I've had enough I type out a rough-draft comment and bury it. TheConsumer Guides, from now on, will be a compilation of these comments.Am I wrong to believe that a record which concentrates four or fivegood cuts on one side is preferable to one which spreads them overtwo? Perhaps, but when a record has an obvious good side, I will sayso. I also plan to charge notches (B minus to C plus, etc.) forvarious derelictions. I think records, especially those thatemphasize musicianship, should provide informative personnel listings.If putting them on the jacket will jeopardize its inherent artistry,then an inside sleeve should be used. I also believe that recordjackets should not fall part. This means that when an album is packedUnipak, that chintzy half doublefold with the badly glued openinginside, I will note it and charge a notch. Most important, I believethat lps should play for a long time. I take that to mean at least 30minutes--12 songs at two-and-a-half minutes. When a record offersless I will charge a notch. Most labels are polite enough to listtimes, but CBS (Columbia, Epic, Ode, Date, Okeh) does not. Since CBShas been a pioneer of the 11- and 10-cut album (arty cousin of the11-ounce beer can) I think this is deplorably sneaky, but I can'tquite bring myself to charge a notch for it. When a CBS record seemsshort I will say so. Maybe they'll change. Why don't you all writeand complain?Although any rating system is absurd--always based on short-termjudgments and incapable of implying ambivalence--there is noreasonable alternative. On reflection, however, I realize that allthat business last time about taking records on vacation was silly.Look, it's fairly simple. A means I like it a lot, B means I like itsome or admire it a lot, C means I like it a little or admire it some,D means I don't like it or admire it a little, and E means Shit. Whatmore can I say? There were a lot of A's last time, but that was so Icould plug all the records I'd been digging. Each Consumer Guide willbe arranged alphabetically by artist for easy reference and include 20records. If you have a record you want rated, or any othersuggestions, write me. This is your column. Keep it clean.HOYT AXTON: My Griffin Is Gone (Columbia) Hoyt Axton, whocan't sing, has written two good songs, "The Pusher" and "On theNatural." The latter is on this record, produced by Alex Hassilev,who can't produce. D PLUSMEL BROWN: Blues for We (Impulse) Bad album by anexcellent guitarist. The fault is mostly in the production, whichinstead of dealing up obvious goop in the manner of Shorty Rogers andHarvey Mandel is so eclectic that it almost functions as a parody ofeclecticism. Contains eight cuts: one black soul, one white soul, onecountry, one Lennon-McCartney, one bubblegum, one trad jazz, oneblues, and one avant-garde jazz. Brown ain't that good. If you getturned on to him, try: "The Wizard" instead. Scanty personnellistings. Time: 27:08. DSOLOMON BURKE: Proud Mary (Bell) Solid and soulful asalways. Self-produced in Muscle Shoals, it's not quite up to hisAtlantic stuff, but close enough. Includes a strong rendition of"That Lucky Old Sun," usually a death-trap (especially for blacksingers) because it's been done so often. That took balls, so I won'tcharge him for being slightly under time: 29:25. BCANNED HEAT: Hallelujah (Liberty) The best Canned Heatlp solely because it contains four (of 11) cuts by Alan Wilson, whohas one of the great freak voices and writes songs to match. Asusual, it is dominated by Bob "Rastus" Hite, who must have beenresponsible for Rolling Stone's suggestion that the next Canned Heatalbum be called "Yassuh Boss." He is most offensive on one of those"introducing the band" jams ("Henry shoah does have the feelin',yeah") and on another exercise in solipsism called "Canned Heat." Iam sure I only forgive him his version of Fats Domino's "Big Fat"because I don't happen to know the original. Still, Wilson's talentis too peculiar to fill an album. I wonder what should be done withhim. B MINUSJOHNNY CASH: Johnny Cash at San Quentin (Columbia) Muchinferior to Folsom Prison and Greatest Hits, which is where tostart if you're just getting into Cash. Contains only nine songs, oneof which is performed twice. Another was written by Bob Dylan.B MINUSCROSBY, STILLS & NASH (Atlantic) Rated by request.I have written elsewhere that this album is perfect, but that is notnecessarily a compliment. Only Crosby's vocal on "Long Time Gone"saves it from a special castrati award. Pray for Neil Young.B PLUSEDDIE FLOYD: You've Got to Have Eddie (Stax) This time,my rating stands for "confusing." This is apparently an attempt at achange-of-pace for Floyd's rather thin voice: some rockers, some slowstuff. Producer Steve Cropper uses all kinds of interesting tricks,none of which quite come off, at least not now--I'll keep listening.One song, "Seagull," written by Floyd and Booker T., sounds to me likean easy-listening (!) sleeper. I suspect the Stax staff is capable ofcreating a whole new kind of ballad sound. CKIM FOWLEY: Outrageous (Imperial) Fowley is such agargantuan shuck that he ought to be preserved in a time capsule. Idon't understand how he continues to earn a living, but he does. Thisis a follow-up to his flower record of a couple of years ago. Itcomes complete with revolutionary liner notes ("Guerilla warfare hasbegun. The streets belong to the people. Let's tune in to find outwhat went wrong today.") that for some reason--they'd sell a few,no?--are concealed within the double-fold. FTHE GUESS WHO: Wheatfield Soul (RCA Victor) This is aWinnipeg group that hit big with a white-soul ballad, "These Eyes,"which most of you probably hate. I love it. Nothing else on the lpis up to it, but except for one bummer cut (which of course runs over10 minutes on the "These Eyes" side) it is well-played, well-sung,well-arranged, and personal without being pushy. Not to be confusedwith . . . B MINUSTHE GUESS WHO (MGM) Apparently a compilation of old cuts("Released through license from Quality Record Ltd.," the fine printsays) this is recommended only to Guess Who scholars. They sure havecome a ways. One original song, "Stop Teasing Me," distinguishesitself as the most perfect early-Beatles copy this side of "Lies" bythe Knickerbockers. DJOLLIVER ARKANSAW: Home (Bell) Felix Pappalardi neverseems to produce a bad record. One cut, "Frou Frou," may be a hitsingle. The rest is somewhat samey, as they say, though the talent isobviously there. Next time. C PLUSJACKIE LOMAX: Is This What You Want? (Apple) There'ssomething faintly perfunctory about Lomax's intensity, a commonfailing of British shouters, but this album has some good songs andsuperb production by George Harrison, plus Richard Starkey ondrums. BMONTAGE (Laurie) Those who miss the Left Banke (I don't,obviously) should know about and probably buy this record, which wasproduced and written by Mike Brown and is far superior to thenon-Brown "Left Banke Top" Smash recently put together. Unipak.Time: 24.46. DNRBQ (Columbia) Ever since Mike Jahn called this groupthe best since the Beatles (something like that) it has been thevictim of terrible anti-hype. Four or five of the cuts on this albumare really compelling, and while the rest is marred by a kind of cutefunkiness, it is original and grows on you. Dig their version of SunRa's "Rocket Number 9." A MINUSELI RADISH: I Didn't Raise My Boy to Be a Soldier(Capitol) The packaging implies that this indifferent collectionof patriotic songs is an anti-war record. Maybe I'm missingsomething, but it can't be worth four bucks. E PLUSTHE ROCK AND ROLL REVIVAL: The Greatest Oldies Done Hear andNow (Dunhill) Sha-na-nyeh. EPETER SCHICKELE: Good-Time Ticket (Vanguard) P.D.Q. Bachfans beware--witless. EGEORGE STAVIS: Labyrinths (Vanguard) I don't know muchabout Oriental-influence banjo music, but I know what I like.B PLUSNEIL YOUNG: Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere (Reprise)Young is a strange artist and I am not all the way into him yet, butthis record is haunting. For someone who is into him, try to find thepiece Greil Marcus wrote for Good Times (reprinted in the July 23EVO). Best rock criticism in a while. B PLUSZAGER & EVANS: 2525 (Exordium and Terminus) (RCAVictor) Zager & Evans make Simon & Garfunkel sound like Marx& Engels. The only reason this is not an E is that the title songhas sold a million copies. That means they have to be doing somethingright. D MINUSAdditional Consumer NewsAtlantic has released a Greatest Hits record for Aretha Franklin. Forthose who, like me, never quite got off on any of her albums, it is agoldmine--14 cuts, with only two (late singles "The House That JackBuilt" and "See Saw") less than superb. Too bad it doesn't include"The Weight." Aretha and Jerry Wexler have apparently abandoned herSoul '69 bag, which is just as well--she doesn't have the aestheticcunning for jazz. Too warm.Aretha also has a new single, "Save Your Love for Me." The pendulumhas swung back. At an hour or two a day, WMCA once again offers thebest music in the city, despite Henry Mancini and the Winstons. Thestation has fired tight programmer Terrell Methene and is expandingback towards its old 60-65 playlist. Frankie Crocker really is anincredible deejay too. Beautiful singles on the air from the Stones (theflip, "You Can't Always Get What You Want," is my choice for politicalsong of the year; when Jagger did it on TV I thought I caught a verseabout demonstrations that isn't on the record), the Box Tops ("SoulDeep"--album expected), Donovan (with Jeff Beck--shit plus shit equalsfertilizer, Creedence Clearwater (two-sided hit--"Commotion" and"Green River"), Sonny Charles & the Checkmates ("Black Pearl" is oneof the all-time great Phil Spector extravaganzas), and the Plastic OnoBand ("Give Peace a Chance" is a much different sentiment on the radiothan in the pages of Rolling Stone, where folks should know better).Even WMCA's bad stuff isn't that bad, and if you listen long enoughyou may get to hear the Happenings singing "Hare Krishna." If thatisn't a trip.Lucian Truscott's putdown of the Soft White Underbelly a few weeksago was unwarranted. One of the few acceptable New York bands, theUnderbelly needs a singer but has good material and a great leadguitarist.The Pavilion in Flushing Meadow, where the Grateful Dead played to4600 people and Chuck Berry to 700 (for shame), could become the firstgood music scene in New York. Not only should you give it a try, youshould consciously support it, like the March of Dimes.Village Voice, July 31, 1969