1,001 songs to listen to before you die...

[METALMAN]

3 hours ago, Colly said:

I think I'm A Believer popped up pages and pages ago didn't it?

Odd that’s it’s come up already. I thought it was only recorded for Shrek in 2001.

[Bobfoc]

1 hour ago, metalman said:

Odd that’s it’s come up already. I thought it was only recorded for Shrek in 2001.

Hey now.

[Liam]

304.      

‘(To Be) Young, Gifted and Black’, Bob and Marcia (1970)

Written and recorded by Nina Simone but apparently then covered by a range of different artists within the following months, it reached the UK Top Five when recorded by Bob and Marcia. Andy Bob and Marcia Griffiths were occasional partners, yet this was the first time that they had sung with each other according to the book. The lyrics do what they say on the tin – a celebration of being young, gifted and black – and it is the melodious combination of the two vocalists that adds that extra little sparkle of joyousness. When put against some of the more cynical (perhaps rightfully so) takes on oppression of black minorities in society, the celebratory mood is even more stark.

305.      

‘Balls of Confusion’, The Temptations (1970)

This song confused me as I thought for a fair while that I had never heard it before, yet when the titular lyric hit, it did ring a bell. Perhaps on a soundtrack? Who knows? What I do know is that this is a great song that was also very political for a group that I’d never really been aware of being overly involved in that style of music. The bass and the beat drive everything forward, building the tension all the way up to the ‘chorus’, whilst the brass and screechy harmonica add further layers to the tune. Politically engaging and booty shaking all at once.

306.      

Avec le temps’, Léo Ferré (1970)

The first French song for a while, ‘Avec le temps’ muses on the faces we forget as we grow old, a heart that stops beating and the rays of death on a Saturday night. All very melodramatic, but somewhat acceptable when sung in French. Ferré was 54, considered somewhat of a cultural outsider, yet chose to eschew singing in English so was celebrated by left-leaning intellectuals, or so the book says. Whatever is the case, it’s a mournful song that seems written to accompany the sight of rain running down a window on a dark and stormy night…or something. It is decent enough.

[VerbalPuke]

Ball of Confusion is a fucking masterpiece. I love it, and I love the Temptations. Music is great in it, and obviously has a powerful message in it.

[GoGo Yubari]

You've definitely heard "Ball of Confusion" on a soundtrack somewhere, that one often gets play as a "turmoil of the early '70s" song.

[Liam]

307.      

‘The Man Who Sold the World’, David Bowie (1970)

I’m sure I won’t be the only person who is reading this that heard the song first when sung by Kurt Cobain during Nirvana’s unplugged set. I’m sure that makes me someone who is somewhat blaspheming when I say I prefer the cover to the original, though I do enjoy the spacy nature of Bowie’s delivery, helped by moments of double tracking, and the instrumentals that accompany it , driven by an insistent and catchy guitar. It is a really interesting song lyrically as well. The two are just very different beasts, both enjoyable in their own way.

308.      

‘Awaiting On You All’, George Harrison (1970)

I might be wrong, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard any solo George Harrison until this lively slice of pop. One of the more interesting stories is that this came on a triple album, allowing Harrison to finally show off his writing chops after playing third fiddle to Lennon and McCartney for so long. With Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and Phil Collins involved, alongside Phil Spector on production, it is a really good pop song. There is a lot going on – apparently something Harrison wasn’t sure about Spector’s production – but it creates what feels like something truly joyous, from the vocals to the melody. A real eye opener for me.

309.      

‘Northern Sky’, Nick Drake (1970)

My first engagement, perhaps like a few, with Nick Drake came off the back of Jeff Buckley and Elliott Smith. I felt like Drake had a resurgence as people sought more singer songwriters who died tragically young, turning to Drake’s music from the seventies. Whilst I often thing of his work as quite simplistic, often just letting his vocals do the work, this was a collaboration with John Cale which saw bell chimes, a piano and organ used to create a song that felt more uplifting than most of Drake’s catalogue. I like Drake’s voice, though I can imagine people’s mileage may vary, and the song is a beautiful evocation of love. Wonderful stuff.          

Edited May 7, 2020 by Liam

[Malenko]

@307 *raises hand* - Guilty!

[METALMAN]

I really like Young Gifted and Black from the last set. The other two are so so.

I don't really like David Bowie from that period. It's a well known and universally accepted fact that he didn't get good until Young Americans. The Man Who Sold the World is okay I guess. It's better than Lulu's version which is better than the one from Kurt Cobain's solo album, which is pointless and boring, much like the rest of that album. Except Lake of Fire which is okay I guess. One of the worst things about the 90s was this idea that playing songs slowly, badly and with "acoustic" instruments made them somehow more soulful, or more meaningful. 

All Things Must Pass could make a good case for being the best Beatles solo album (although it would lost to Ram) but Awaiting On You All is not even in its top 15 songs. Weird to see it here. It's fine though.

AND NOW WE'RE TALKING Northern Sky is the best song from Nick Drake's best album. Sublime.

Edited May 7, 2020 by metalman

[Liam]

1 hour ago, metalman said:

All Things Must Pass could make a good case for being the best Beatles solo album (although it would lost to Ram) but Awaiting On You All is not even in its top 15 songs. Weird to see it here. It's fine though.

Was it the most successful?

[METALMAN]

13 minutes ago, Liam said:

Was it the most successful?

I don't think it was even a single, whereas My Sweet Lord went to number one (in 1971 and 2002).

Edited May 7, 2020 by metalman

[Liam]

2 minutes ago, metalman said:

I don't think it was even a single, whereas My Sweet Lord went to number one (in 1971 and 2002).

Yeah, I have no real idea then.

[VerbalPuke]

Man Who Sold the World is a great song. I probably did hear Cobains cover and immediately my dad was like "That's a Bowie song!". Anyway, I like both versions but prefer the original. 

All Things Shall Pass is probably my favorite of the Beatles solo work. Honestly, probably the only solo Beatles work I like honestly. 

[Liam]

310.      

‘Maybe I’m Amazed’, Paul McCartney (1970

Paul McCartney may be a really good singer/songwriter, but I’ve always felt like he comes across as a bit of a knobhead. Also also, I don’t like his solo work really…except probably this very song. With lyrics that seemed to explore ideas around both his new wife and the implosion of the Beatles, McCartney knows how to do one thing really well, and that is to craft a catchy pop song. I like the dynamic shifts between the calm exploration of his situation and the more fractious vocal delivery that perhaps sought to be more reflective of his mental state. Oh and ‘Live and Let Die’ is pretty good as well, if we’re thinking of non-Beatles McCartney songs I like. Might as well chuck that out there.

311.      

‘Into The Mystic’, Van Morrison (1970)

A more sedate and standard song by Mr. Van Morrison here, one that I feel speaks more to the style that those who only know a bit about his music, i.e. me, remember him for doing. Lyrically, the song isn’t quite what it seems with Van Morrison himself unsure of some of the homophonic words that he had written and what he actually meant. What this creates is a song that is more about a tone, emotion or feeling, and there is a lushness that builds to the vocal release that occurs with about a minute to go. A better song than his first on the list? Probably.

312.      

‘Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine’,  James Brown (1970)

The story behind this song saw Brown lose the majority of his backing band, meaning he had to turn to some fresher, younger faces who weren’t going to challenge him over pay or anything else that might strain a working relationship. This led to a change in sound, in particular the horns being tucked away and the bass doing a lot of work in creating the sexy groove. Up there with Brown’s most popular songs, it doesn’t really go anywhere but it doesn’t really have to. It offers up a song to get down to and does that with aplomb.

Edited May 9, 2020 by Liam

[METALMAN]

Paul McCartney's solo music is actually really good. He's had a lot of stinkers, but loads of good ones too. In any event, easily the best of the Beatles solo. Maybe I'm Amazed isn't my favourite of his, but it's good enough. The Faces cover is much better: Rod Stewart really goes for it.

I've never really got into Morrison. He's fine.

Sex Machine is good. Noteworthy (to me at least) for being one of the first big tunes Bootsy Collins would play on, at the age of just 18 or something like that. Bootsy would go on to even better things, of course.

[Skummy]

1 hour ago, metalman said:

Sex Machine is good. Noteworthy (to me at least) for being one of the first big tunes Bootsy Collins would play on, at the age of just 18 or something like that. Bootsy would go on to even better things, of course.

I was going to mention Bootsy being one of the new players - I think he may not even have been 18 yet. Eventually fired by James Brown, allegedly for being too funky.

George Harrison is my favourite solo Beatle - though agree that the choice of song here is perplexing - but McCartney is an easy second place. As much dross as he's done, he's recorded some absolutely brilliant tunes, and changes it up a lot. He was clearly the one mucking about getting into Stockhausen and electronic music, and generally trying out new and interesting things both in and out of The Beatles, while most of Lennon's solo material is pretty dull and derivative, yet he tends to be seen as the more experimental of the two, either because of his personal life or because of proximity to Yoko Ono.

[GoGo Yubari]

Paul McCartney's solo work is a mixed bag for me, but then all the Beatles' solo efforts have pretty decisive flaws to them -- John's often ends up being preachy and self-important in a way that annoys me more the older I get, George started off with an amazing album he could never live up to again on his own, Ringo's is "I was in a little band called The Beatles, remember them?" which is sometimes charming but his ceiling is low -- so his body of work probably is the strongest, and he's for sure the most interesting to me in terms of the stuff he tries for. But then I also think his lows are probably the lowest.

[METALMAN]

See, my appreciation for post-Beatles McCartney even goes as far as liking this:

What a tune. Lennon wishes he could write something like that.

And yeah, Harrison never did anything that came close to All Things Must Pass. Mind you, I really like Love Comes to Everyone but that’s mainly because of Steve Winwood’s minimoog solo. 

Lennon’s music was mostly boring but it wasn’t all bad. Nobody Told Me is really snappy. I like that song a lot.

Edited May 9, 2020 by metalman

[Liam]

313.      

‘Ohio’, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (1970)

What has been interesting in this project so far for me has been a new understanding of some of the events that have moved people so much as to commit their thoughts to song. Written by Young, ‘Ohio’ was a protest song written after four Kent State University students were shot dead by the National Guard at a protest. Recorded in one take to capture the real anger, the lyrics are really powerful as Young spoke about ‘soldiers cutting us down’. These songs are hard to judge as they often end up on here as much for their social importance at the time. However, this still feels very powerful to me even five decades removed.

314.      

‘The Only Living Boy in New York’, Simon and Garfunkel (1970)

According to the book, Art Garfunkel’s decision to go Mexico to act in ‘Catch 22’ for five months not only was the beginning of the end for the duo, but led to this song, penned by Paul Simon. It could be seen as a dig at his partner, yet he claimed that it was always a song written out of affection than anything. This isn’t as good personally as the S&G songs that I like, but kudos has to be given for the lushness of the melody and the novel decision to create a chorus out of Simon and Garfunkel’s double up vocals.

315.      

‘In a Broken Dream’, Python Lee Jackson (1970)

Some more Australian representation as Python Lee wasn’t a man, but a group who moved to London to seek their fame and fortune. Written by the lead singer, David Bentley, he realised that his vocals weren’t going to do this world weary tale of a broken heart justice (apparently after hearing ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ by Joe Cocker). John Peel suggested that Rod Stewart could fill the gap and that leads us to this. What makes this stand out for me is how different it feels to what Stewart became famous for. His sandpaper vocals do indeed work, and it is great fun to see them sitting on a bed of screeching guitar work at points in the song. A definite curio.

[MalaCloudy Black]

Ohio is a fuckin tune. Love it. For me it's one of those songs that's so iconic it just plays in my head as soon as I see the title. Don't even have to press play on that video.

[METALMAN]

Yeah, Ohio is great. CSNY/Neil Young were really on fire around this period.

That Simon and Garfunkel one seems to have become quite trendy fairly recently, even though I’m pretty sure it wasn’t such a big deal at the time. It would be really strange if, for instance, we end up getting The Only Living Boy in New York rather than the Far More Illustrious (and better) song from the same album. Still, I like this one. Nice melodies and I love the layered vocals.

Dunno the third one. It sounds fine, Rod Stewart was another who didn’t do too much wrong around his period.