The weekend has returned. The weather is turning fall-ish and my mood is turning happy-ish. I've put together a a list of albums here that I've acquired in the past several weeks. It's a pretty wide ranging list of time period and musical styles, so there's bound to be something here worth checking out. Enjoy.
Billie Eilish - Happier Than Ever: Two years after the smashing success of her debut, the wunderkind teen returns with a follow-up. I admit to be being very weary of a sophomore slump, feeling it to be almost unavoidable when your first album is so well-loved. Well, I should have had more faith! Billie doesn't attempt to remake the last album, instead she embraces the brokenhearted undertones of her debut and expands on the jazz club trip-hop vibe and emerges as a complex figure. It's a trajectory Lana Del Rey had made brilliantly, and Eilish seems poised to follow.
Swans - Leaving Meaning: Released in the Fall of 2019, the 17th album from the NYC post-rock band is their most current release. Though I've appreciated this band for years, it's one of several bands that I came to absolutely love during the pandemic. This album, like all of their 21st century records is atmospheric and dark, and seems to illustrate those corridors of thought that have always existed in my mind. Some music hits you physically, some plugs right into you mind. This is Swans music does for me, and this album does as well.
Jeff Beck - Truth: The '68 debut solo album from the British Guitarist's post-Yardbirds band featured an up and coming singer named Rod Stewart and pre-Rolling Stones Ron Wood. This is one of those records that it amazes me had never crossed my path before. Sure, I'd seen it everywhere and knew that it was one of those albums that everyone loved. And yes, I have been a big fan of British Blues since my college days, but it took my recent interest in Rod the Mod to get me to pick this one up and I'm glad I did. Beck's guitar work is fantastic, and Rod is brilliant. One year later, Led Zeppelin would release their debut album, it seems fairly clear to me that this was one of the records that paved the way for their success.
Jackson 5ive - Maybe Tomorrow: Released in '71, this is the iconic Mowtown group's fifth album, just three years from their debut. Fresh off their hit parade of early singles, this album's biggest hit is "Never Can Say Goodbye" which is true gem. Michael still has his childish voice on here, but the older Jacksons balance it well. Pure soulful pop that still sounds good on a sunny day.
Elmore James / John Brim - Whose Muddy Shoes: Recorded between '53 and '60, this is a split album released on Chess in '69 and has tracks by both Chicago blues artists. Elmore James is the bigger of the two names, but the talents of both are very comparable and blend nicely. The Chicago blues was a little more jiving than southern blues and there's clear elements of proto-rock on here. "I See My Baby," "You Got Me,"
Arthur Lee - Vindicator: Released in '72, two years after Love took a break, this is Lee's first solo album and is very much a blues rock album. There's definitely hints of Hendrix on here, with a little of the whimsy of Love added to it. There's lots of great tunes on this, including "Sad Song," "Love Jumped Through the Window," and "He Knows a Lot of Good Women." Certainly not an essential album of the period, but still a good one and well worth the listen.
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