- Wish You Were Here – Pink Floyd: Though “Dark Side of the Moon”, and “The Wall” are undoubtedly the groups most iconic albums, die-hard fans often rank “Wish You Were Here” above them as the band’s finest work.
- Aja – Steely Dan: Despite being generally revered by Rock critics, Steely Dan’s albums are rarely mentioned amongst the all-time greats. Arguably, “Aja” stands out as being one of the bands most cohesive projects. Decades later, it sounds even better than when it was first released.
- Reggatta de Blanc – The Police: While “Outlandos d’Amour” was a great introduction to this talented trio, it was “Reggatta de Blanc” which provided the first glimpse of the band’s spectacular potential. It was a leap forward in style, songwriting, musicianship and production.
- Frontiers – Journey: On the heels of the phenomenally successful “Escape” album, the band released this gem, which combined the best of that previous record with a heavier, more rock based sound. While the former could be considered a pop record, with some rock underpinnings, the later was more of a rock record, with pop sensibilities.
- Bad Company – Bad Company: Formed from the remains of successful bands, “Free”, “Mott the Hoople” and “King Crimson”, Bad Company came out firing on all cylinders for their debut record. Though this album contained numerous rock radio staples (e.g. Bad Company, Can’t Get Enough, Ready for Love, Movin’ On) and featured one of rock music’s best vocalists (Paul Rodgers), it is rarely acknowledged amongst rock’s elite records.
- In Utero – Nirvana: There is no denying the massive impact the bands, “Nevermind” album had on the music industry, but in some ways that story has obscured the brilliance of their latter work. With “In Utero” the band began to show its range, both musically and emotionally. Tragically, their story was cut short before we got to see how far they could take it.
- One of These Nights – The Eagles: The extraordinary success of 1976’s “Hotel California” didn’t exactly come out of nowhere. 1975’s “One of These Nights” was a number one album, featuring three top ten smashes, “One of These Nights”, “Take it to the Limit” and “Lyin’ Eyes”, which were each sung by a different lead vocalist. Few records or groups have ever managed such a feat.
- Pieces of Eight – Styx: The dynamic tension between Dennis DeYoung’s over the top pension for musical theater, and Tommy Shaw/James Young’s hard rock dreams came into perfect balance for the album, “The Grand Illusion” and on its breakout single, “Come Sail Away”. But on the follow-up record, “Pieces of Eight” it was the duo of Shaw & Young who got to be the rock band they’d always wanted to be. Unfortunately, the phenomenal success of the single, “Babe” from their next album, “Cornerstone” brought DeYoung back to the forefront, and marked the beginning of the end of the band’s straight ahead rock sound.
- Love Over Gold – Dire Straits: Though it was not their best selling or highest charting album, “Love Over Gold” may be the band’s most artistically ambitious work. The plaintive “Love Over Gold”, the haunting “Private Investigations”, and the sprawling, “Telegraph Road” create a soundscape that rivals the film scores that Mark Knopfler would eventually become famous for.
- Houses of the Holy – Led Zeppelin: Though Led Zeppelin I, II & IV are most often featured on critics “best of” lists, “Houses of the Holy” features some of the bands strongest and most original work (e.g. The Rain Song, No Quarter, Over the Hills and Far Away, D’yer Mak’er).
Posts Tagged ‘Bad Company’
10 Underrated Classics
Posted in Entertainment/Music/Sports, tagged Aja, Bad Company, Dire Straits, Frontiers, Houses of the Holy, In Utero, Journey, Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, One of These Nights, Pieces of Eight, Pink Floyd, Reggatta de Blanc, Steely Dan, Styx, The Police, Wish You Were Here on March 30, 2021| 2 Comments »
Upon Further Review (A Fresh Look at Some Old Rock)
Posted in Entertainment/Music/Sports, Lists, Opinions, tagged Bad Company, Chicago, classic rock, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Kiss, Led Zeppelin, overrated rock music, Steeely Dan, The Beatles, The Doors, The Guess Who, underrated rock music on February 27, 2014| Leave a Comment »
After spending the first thirty years of my life being glued to the radio, collecting record albums, and reading Rolling Stone magazine, I took about a twelve year hiatus from that whole scene. In recent years, as I’ve revisited some of that old music, I’ve been surprised by how different some of it sounds to me now. A few of the bands I used to love don’t sound that good anymore, and others seem even better than I remember them. Here are a few examples:
Under-rated:
- Steely Dan – I always enjoyed this bands completely unique approach to their craft. The complex jazz influenced arrangements, the exquisite musicianship, the cryptic lyrics and the sparkling production made them standout against the rock/pop music landscape. These attributes also give their best work a timeless quality that has allowed it to become classic.
- Chicago – In its heyday, this band was one of the brightest and most innovative groups in rock music. Through their first ten albums they produced a library of compelling music, much of which remains vibrant today. Though the exploitation of the band’s name in later years diminished their stature in the rock community, a listen to their earlier work is a great reminder of what a special group this was.
- Bad Company – Formed from the ashes of the bands, “Free”, “Mott the Hoople” and “King Crimson”, Bad Company was something of a super-group and it showed immediately on their classic (self-titled) debut album. Though their run (with the original lineup) was relatively brief, it produced five solid albums filled with a lot of great music.
- The Guess Who – This legendary Canadian band has taken on many forms over the years, but it was the combination of Burton Cummings remarkable vocals and guitarist Randy Bachman’s copious musical skills that created their most memorable music. Between 1969 and 1970 they released classics like, “These Eyes”, “Laughing”, “Undun”, “No Time”, “No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature”, “Share the Land”, and “American Woman”. Those songs alone give them a Hall of Fame worthy resume.
Over-rated:
- Kiss – No one is likely to dispute their credentials as world class entertainers, and I would list a Kiss concert (with makeup) as a must-see event for any avid rock music fan. But as I revisited the old studio recordings it’s been hard to miss the mediocre songwriting, singing and, in many cases, playing. Other than Kiss Alive I & II, I’d be hard pressed to get through a whole album anymore.
- Eric Clapton (Solo) – There’s no doubt that Clapton is a guitar virtuoso, and that he has played on numerous classic recordings. But as I’ve listened with fresh ears it’s difficult not to notice the huge disparity between the work he did in bands such as the Bluesbreakers, Cream, Blind Faith, Derek and the Domino’s, and his solo recordings. His limitations as a songwriter and vocalist become far more apparent when he was not surrounded by great musicians/vocalists like Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Duane Allman, Steve Winwood… His best solo recordings have generally been songs written by others (e.g. JJ Cale).
- Jimi Hendrix – I know that I’ll likely be lynched for including his hallowed name on this list, and it is in no way meant to disparage his amazing talent. In truth, it is more a lament over the circumstances that surrounded his brief recording career. Though every fan cherishes anything they can get their hands on, most of the Hendrix catalog is made up of poorly recorded, poorly produced snippets of songs and ideas. All of them point to the limitless potential that Hendrix possessed, but sadly, few of them represent the realization of that potential.
Lives Up to the Hype:
- The Beatles – These guys are the gold standard by which just about everyone else is judged and after years of not hearing them, their music still sounds fresh and innovative. With all due respect to their notable individual accomplishments, none of them consistently approached this artistic level as a solo artist.
- The Doors – Like everyone else, I was a big Jim Morrison fan, and was often mesmerized by his persona. But in revisiting the Doors catalog I was struck by the incredible talent and contributions of the rest of the band (keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore and guitarist Robby Krieger). They were by no means simply Morrison’s backing band.
- Led Zeppelin – English bands that loved to play the blues were a dime a dozen back in the 1960’s, but none of them quite reached the heights that Zeppelin did. Their eclectic mix of blues, folk and hard rock could be at times tender, haunting, or even bludgeoning. Going back and listening to this music only enhanced my respect for this one of a kind band.
Bjcorbin's Blog 
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2018)
Posted in Commentaries, Opinions, tagged America, Bad Company, Black Sabbath, Blind Faith, Boston, Chaka Khan, Cheap Trick, Deep Purple, Def Leppard, Devo, Doobie Brothers, Foreigner, Janet Jackson, John Prine, Journey, MC5, Radiohead, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Ronnie James Dio, Steve Winwood, Stevie Nicks, Styx, The Cure, The Guess Who, The Scorpions, The Zombies, Todd Rundgren, Traffic on October 11, 2018| 3 Comments »
OK, so I’m not losing sleep over who gets into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but the latest batch of nominee’s reminded me of how haphazard this process can be. This year voters get to pick from a wide variety of artists, which includes overlooked bands like The Zombies and MC5, singer/songwriters like Todd Rundgren and John Prine, genre pioneers like Kraftwork, and Rage Against the Machine, 80’s phenoms like The Cure and Devo, dancefloor divas like Chaka Khan, and Janet Jackson, or popular favorites like LLCoolJ, Stevie Nicks and Def Leppard. It’s not that I have a big issue with any of these artists, it’s that there are so many other deserving candidates who seem to have been forgotten. USA Today ran an article in recent days naming what they considered to be artists that were “snubbed” (e.g. Blink-182, Bone Thugs N-Harmony, Jane’s Addiction?), and while they did name a few I hadn’t thought of (e.g. Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, Snopp Dogg, Kate Bush), they left off what I considered to be the more obvious choices. Four groups that jump to my mind are the Doobie Brothers, Boston, America, and The Guess Who. Each one of those bands produced at least a half dozen classic songs that are still being played on the radio 40+ years later. Their credentials are far superior to many of the other artists who are already in the hall.
In many cases, members of popular bands are also enshrined for their individual careers (e.g. Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, John Lennon…). Along those lines, I believe that a singer like Paul Rodgers should be admitted for his work in bands like Free, Bad Company, The Firm, and Queen. Similarly, Sammy Hagar (Montrose, Van Halen, solo career), Ronnie James Dio (Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio) and Steve Winwood (Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, Blind Faith) should qualify for their stellar careers. With bands like Journey and Cheap Trick already recognized, it’s hard to understand the exclusion of bands like Foreigner and Styx. Similarly, if Deep Purple was worthy, so is Bad Company, and if Bon Jovi belongs, so do The Scorpions. I don’t mind newer acts like Radiohead being nominated, but I don’t want to see some of these classic acts forgotten. If you need further proof for the artists I mentioned, listen to the following:
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