XTC Album Ranking

One of my favorite music channels on YouTube is Sea of Tranquility. Lots of content on classic rock, prog, and heavy metal (well, two out of three ain't bad). This past week they posted video ranking the albums of XTC, who, if you know me, is one of my favorite bands. Here is the video, and beneath that is my ranking of the albums of XTC. 

So here is my list. 

12. White Music 

11. Go2 

10. Drums and Wires 

09. Wasp Star 

08. Apple Venus 

07. Nonsuch 

06. Oranges and Lemons 

05. The Big Express 

04. Mummer 

03. Skylarking 

02. Black Sea 

01. English Settlement 

The top 5 are so close, especially Black Sea and English Settlement. But even below that, I may not like the albums as much as a whole, but the songs I do like are masterpieces.

If you are a fan too, please share your list in the comments.

25 Facts On Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon

1- ‘Brain Damage’ is the only track on The Dark Side Of The Moon which mentions the title of the album.

2 - ‘The Great gig In The Sky’ became the first Pink Floyd song to be used in a TV commercial; advertising Neurofen painkiller tablets.

3 - The chiming clocks heard on The Dark Side Of The Moon were originally recorded as a quadraphonic test tape by studio engineer Alan Parsons for EMI records.

4 - The Dark Side Of The Moon is a reference to the occult name for the subconscious.

5 - Roger Waters wrote all the lyrics on The Dark Side Of The Moon.

6 - The album was very nearly called Eclipse.

7 - ‘Money’ was released as a single with ‘Any Colour You Like’ on the B-side. A two-sided white label promotional version of the single, with mono and stereo mixes, was sent to radio stations. The mono side had the word ‘bullshit’ removed from the song – leaving ‘bull’ in its place – however, the stereo side retained the uncensored version. This was subsequently withdrawn; the replacement was sent to radio stations with a note advising disc jockeys to dispose of the first uncensored copy.

8 - An early working title for The Dark Side of The Moon album was – ‘Dark Side of the Moon – A Piece for Assorted Lunatics’.

9 - Roger Waters created the early demo tracks for the album at his Islington home in a small studio built in his garden shed.

10 - Pink Floyd devised and recorded unconventional sounds for the album such as an assistant engineer running around the studio’s echo chamber (during ‘On the Run’), and a specially treated bass drum made to simulate a human heartbeat (during ‘Speak to Me’, ‘On the Run’, ‘Time’ and ‘Eclipse’).

11 - Some of the profits from The Dark Side Of The Moon were invested in the film production of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

12 - Clare Torry who’s vocal can be heared on The Great Gig in the Sky has also performed as a session singer with Kevin Ayers, Olivia Newton-John, Shriekback, The Alan Parsons Project, Culture Club, Meat Loaf and Tangarine Dream. The singer also covered the Dolly Parton single ‘Love Is Like a Butterfly’ for the opening titles of the BBC TV series Butterflies, which ran for four series between 1978 and 1983.

13 - Recording the track ‘Money’ Roger Waters had created effects loops from recordings of various money-related objects, including coins thrown into a food-mixing bowl taken from his wife’s pottery studio.

14 - The Dark Side Of The Moon remained in the US charts for 741 weeks from 1973 to 1988, longer than any other album in history.

15 - Engineer Alan Parsons received a Grammy Award for ‘best engineered album’ for The Dark Side of the Moon in 1973.

16 - In 2000 The Squirrels released The Not So Bright Side of the Moon, which features a cover of the entire album. The New York dub collective Easy Star All Stars in 2003 released Dub Side of the Moon, in 2009 The Flaming Lips released a track-by-track remake of the album. The group Voices on The Dark Side released the album Dark Side Of The Moon A Cappella, a complete a cappella version of the album.

17 - ‘Us and Them’ was originally a 21 minute track intended for use on the Zabriskie Point soundtrack, but found it’s way onto the album.

18 - English saxophonist Dick Parry who played the parts on ‘Money’, started his career as a friend of David Gilmour and was part of a mid-1960s band also including Gilmour called Joker’s Wild.

19 - If you listen close to the end of ‘Eclipse,’ the album’s closing track, a passage from an orchestral version of The Beatles’ ‘Ticket to Ride’ can be heard; the song was apparently playing in the background at the studio while Abbey Road doorman Gerry O’Driscoll (who delivered the immortal lines, ‘There is no dark side of the moon, really. Matter of fact, it’s all dark. The only thing that makes it look light is the sun.’) was being recorded.

20 - The album was originally released in a gatefold LP sleeve and the band were so confident of the quality of Waters’ lyrics that, for the first time, they printed them on the album’s sleeve.

21 - During recording sessions for the album Roger Waters a supporter of Arsenal Football Club, would often take a break from recording to see his team compete.

22 - In a Rolling Stone readers poll ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’ was selected as the second greatest vocal performance of all time behind ‘Bohemian Rhapsody‘.

23 - The five tracks on each side of the album reflect various stages of human life, beginning and ending with a heartbeat, exploring the nature of the human experience, and (according to Waters) ’empathy’.

24 - Dark Side of the Moon: A Piece for Assorted Lunatics, as it was then known, was performed in the presence of an assembled press on 17 February 1972 – more than a year before its release – at the Rainbow Theatre,London, England and was mainly critically acclaimed. A review in Melody Maker was less enthusiastic: ‘Musically, there were some great ideas, but the sound effects often left me wondering if I was in a bird-cage at London zoo.’

25 - With estimated sales of over 45 million copies, The Dark Side Of The Moon is Pink Floyd’s best seller, and one of the best-selling albums worldwide.

Source

Ten Albums In Ten Days - Day 5

Ten Albums In Ten Days That Changed You 
 or hold significant meaning for you. 

5. “Yessongs” - Yes (1973) 

My first real dive into progressive rock. Their first live album, I actually bought it out of sheer curiosity. The fact that it was three discs long was part of it. And whereas the recording is not exceptional technically, the performance certainly is. Composed largely of material from their two most recent albums (“Fragile” and “Close to the Edge”), it features the most iconic of Yes’ many member lineups. Yes is still, by far, my favorite progressive rock band to this day. 

Favorite tracks: "Heart of the Sunrise", "Close to the Edge", and "Starship Trooper".

Ten Albums In Ten Days - Day 2

Ten Albums In Ten Days That Changed You 
 or hold significant meaning for you. 

“Who’s Next” - The Who (1971) 

This one was discovered alongside on Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon”, listening to it late at night on AOR radio. It was my first introduction to The Who, of whom I have been a strong fan of to this day. And this is my favorite of all their albums. Arguably, it includes their best and strongest songs ever. 

 Favorites: "Behind Blue Eyes", "Won't Get Fooled Again", and "Bargain".

Some Favorite Debut Albiums

I've been listening to music for over 50 years now. There have been so many artists, bands, and styles during that time. As most people, I suppose, as I've gotten younger, there is less "contemporary" music or artists that I like as time passes. And even though I keep searching, I usually end up going back to the "good stuff".

I've always loved discovering new artists. Especially when they break on to the music scene with am incredible debut album. Listening to such an album always fills me with hope and anticipation for future musical goodness from the artist. Many have fulfilled that expectation, but many have not.

But here are but a few of those albums over the last half a century. The order is alphabetical rather than by preference. Rating them would be almost impossible. Please list some of your favorites in the comments.

Amy Winehouse - Frank (2003)
Bad Company - Bad Company (1974)
Barenaked Ladies - Gordon (1992)
Billy Joel - Piano Man (1973)
Bruce Springsteen - Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (1973)
Buffalo Springfield - Buffalo Springfield (1966)
Chicago - Chicago Transit Authority (1969)
Cream - Fresh Cream (1966)
Crosby, Stills & Nash - Crosby, Stills & Nash (1969)
Crowded House - Crowded House (1986)
Danny Wilson - Meet Danny Wilson (1987)
Derek and the Dominos - Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970)
Devo - Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! (1978)
Dire Straits - Dire Straits (1978)
Donald Fagen - The Nightly (1982)
Elvis Costello - My Aim is True (1977)
Elton John - Empty Sky (1969)
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Emerson, Lake & Palmer (1970)
Heart - Dreamboat Annie (1976)
Jackson Browne - Saturate Before Using (1972)
Jefferson Airplane - Takes Off (1966)
Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? (1967)
Joe Jackson - Look Sharp! (1979)
Kansas - Kansas (1974)
King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King (1969)
Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin I (1969)
Michael Hedges - Breakfast in the Field (1981)
Paul Carrack - Suburban Voodoo (1982)
Pat Metheny - Bright Size Life (1976)
Phil Collins - Face Value (1981)
Pink Floyd - The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn (1967)
Pretenders - Pretenders (1979)
R.E.M. - Murmur (1983)
Steely Day - Can’t Buy a Thrill (1972)

Stephen Stills - Stephen Stills (1970)
Talk Talk - The Party’s Over (1982)
Talking Heads - Talking Heads: 77 (1977)
Tears for Fears - The Hurting (1983)
The Alarm - Declaration (1984)
The Allman Brothers Band - The Allman Brothers Band (1969)
The Cars - The Cars - (1978)
The Doobie Brothers - The Doobie Brothers (1971)
The Doors - The Doors (1967)
The Fixx - Shuttered Room (1982)
The James Gang - Yer’ Album (1969)
The Moody Blues - Days of Future Passed (1967)

The Police - Outlandos d'Amour (1978)
The Producers - The Producers (1981)
The Sundays - Reading, Writing and Arithmetic (1990)
The Vapors - New Clear Days (1980)
The Who - My Generation (1965)
Three Dog Night - Three Dog Night (1968)
U2 - Boy (1980)
Van Morrison - Blowin' Your Mind! (1967)
Yes - Yes (1969)

Again, let me know some of your favorite debut album in a comment. More content coming soon.