George Harrison Restores my Faith in Music

#23 George Harrison: Cloud 9


Now edited!

I'm not sure if George likes gymnastics or not.

Two trophies that I don't remember being won.

Almost two years ago, I made a promise to myself. I promised that for the rest of my life I would not hear more than 10 seconds of a John Cougar Mellencamp song. I really had a great streak going, until, ironically enough, the Baltimore Orioles broke this streak. While awaiting the start of the Orioles/Athletics game I wandered the fancy shmancy club level, checking out the World Series trophies that happened before I was born, or not old enough to remember, checking out the amazing records of the '71 Orioles and scanning the food vendors to get a dinner plan. It was at this moment that it happened. Two seconds into the song, I knew I was done. Jack and Diane. I had three options: 1. Throw myself out a window 2. Gouge my ear drums out with my car keys 3. Just stand there and take. Well, obviously, I'm alive, so I didn't take option one, and I just listened to another record, so I didn't take option two. Yes, it was three. I just stood there, and listened to it. I'm not sure why I've developed such a distaste for Mellencamp. Honestly, I don't even feel like trying to figure it out. That's just the way it is. So, here I am tonight sitting in front of my record collection, knowing I have to wash this awful taste out of my ears. After such listening, my ears are sensitive, so I can't do anything too heavy, that could be devastating. What I need is something that just delights the ears. A collection of songs that can transcend everything and make my ears feel like its okay to begin listening again. I need to put my ears back on Cloud 9.

Well, that's an easy one. George Harrison's 'Cloud 9' was released in 1987 and was produced by E.L.O. mastermind Jeff Lynne. Typically, a musician of George's character and reputation needs a producer who will just sit back, push buttons, and let the musician do his thing. Never in his life has Jeff Lynne been that kind of guy. When Jeff Lynne produces a record, he wants the whole world to know its him behind the control board. In any other situation, I'd say a strong musician in combination with a strong producer destroys the original musical vision of the project. However, I'm gonna let that slide. There will be a few other examples of these epic musician/producer combos. Savor the flavor, because they are pretty rare.

Side one begins in standard form with the title track of the album "Cloud 9." The song begins with some interesting almost sitarish sounding guitars. The two guitars remain throughout the song, somewhat slide and somewhat clean pickin', its a great combo. The sitar sound shouldn't be too surprising here, George frequently showed his love of Indian music on Beatles albums. Another frequently shown love is that of orchestral music by the album's producer. Those with a keen eye for 70's music will take note of the production job of Jeff Lynne. Lynne is unmistakable as a producer. That orchestral and synthesizer driven sound was perfected in E.L.O. and found its way into more than a few Lynne produced albums.  On the opening track, the orchestration is mainly a horn section stamping down on the overall rhythm. Next up is "That's What it Takes," a song that lyrically is strong as anything George wrote in that other group he was in. The song seems to be about accepting that, change in life is inevitable and sometimes you just have to tough it out. The song is advising those who are listening not to shy away from the moments that could really be significant. If you don't put yourself out there, nothing will happen...nothing bad, but also nothing good. The guitar is similar to what's been heard already, a great slide sound as well as a clean picker in the background. The acoustic strumming is also present to give the overall structure to the song. Musically, it is an 80's song, but this one is timeless. Produce it anyway you desire and it'll work just fine. "Fish on the Sand," is a great song that kind of brings me back to a time when I wasn't even alive. In the 1960's a woman tried to come between two friends. George Harrison and Eric Clapton both were head over heals for Pattie Boyd, a young British model who first dated the former, than ended up with the latter. This must have been one hell of a woman cause she inspired countless songs by both men. "Something," "I Need You," "Layla," "Bell Bottom Blues," "Wonderful Tonight." Pretty good list of tunes. With that history of love and longing for the same woman its no stretch to say that George and Eric can really pound out a love song. "Fish on the Sand" is that kind of song. Not sure who its directed to, Harrison's wife Olivia? Recalling the old times of Pattie with his buddy Clapton? Who knows, but just listen to those lyrics, he's still got it. 'I'm not so much of a man, I'm like a fish on the sand.' Pretty harsh, I can hear Dr. Evil right now, 'throw me a frickin' bone!' Anyway, musically its also a good song, but I've wasted enough valuable blog space on this one. Moving on we arrive at "Just for Today," a song that uses a very simple instrumentation of primarily piano and strings. I'm gonna warn you, its not an uptempo dance competition.  The song seems to be about depression. The lyrics yearn for just one day, one night even, when things aren't going wrong. Well damn, maybe just take a night for yourself...play some Wii golf, have a Klondike bar, or watch "Destroyed in Seconds" on the Discovery Channel. That'll perk up anyone faster than those objects can be destroyed. As the song slowly rolls forward it adds some slide guitar work that is worth noting. Slide guitar is a great sound, but its even better when done slowly. That slow and even climb up the fretboard and resulting sustain just shoots right into you, its hard not to feel something when you hear that sound. Up next is a song that tries to improve on your mood after the last track. "This is Love," is more uptempo but uses that same slow slide guitar. It also features a couple other guitars, one palm muting the rhythm chords and another playing descending riffs at key moments of the verse. I'm no musical expert (which is a problem considering that's what I attempt to display in this blog), but this song appears to be about love. The word appears about two dozen times in the song but honestly it seems to be in a bitter kind of way. Kind of like saying, 'this is love...sucks doesn't it?' Well maybe I'm missing the point, but honestly it really has that feel to it. I have to say the one element that creates the bitter feeling is that little synth riff right after Harrison delivers the line 'this is love.' Its a descending combo of notes that goes minor and just brings you down. In a major key I'm guessing the lyrics would feel much different. Amazing what a key change can do.  Closing side one is a great tribute to Harrison's musical past, "When We Was Fab." This track discusses the life that Harrison lived for about a decade while a member of the Fab Four. It covers all the wonders of rock star life in the 60's, having it all, running from the cops, no privacy, and the joy of living in tax exile. Now, I'm not sure how the whole tax exile thing worked, but just about every British musician had to live outside the country for a period of time to avoid the 'Taxman.' Being the big single on the album, the influence of Lynne is a little stronger than the others. The writing credits put Lynne first and Harrison second, which is really not that shocking. The music is all Lynne, orchestral, piano fills, multiple backing vocal which sound like they've been run through a phaser, and that ever present 70's pop sheen. Here concludes side one, but fear not, side two contains plenty of additional gems.

After a quick flip side two begins with the best song about tabloid media since Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry." "Devil's Radio" is a song that goes after gossip and those that peddle it. Musically the song is a more straight ahead rock tune more than anything else on the album. The clean guitar is gone and the slide even adds a little grit to its tone, all with the glossy Jeff Lynne sound. "Someplace Else" is a slower number that finds George's guitar weaving a beautiful tapestry of sound. Again, the lyrics have that 'got to get you into my life' feel that was heard on "Fish on the Sand." This time, it seems George got the girl, but he can't imagine life without her. He's admitting that without her, he just couldn't get it together and would simply not make it. Its a sad song, thanks mainly to the slide guitar, but at the same time its quite a beautiful love song. Next up is "Wreck of the Hesperus" which simply can't be a love song...no, not with a title like that. This song seems to be the Rock and Roll equivalent of a grizzled man telling stories "'bout the things I seen." The references in the song are numerous and really I don't have time to try and analyze them all. Next time you're bored and feel like doing something useless, make a list of them and feel free to post it in the comments section. "Breath Away from Heaven," sounds to me like another downer. It starts...whoa...what the hell? Either my record player just fell into a stargate, or George Harrison has developed a taste for Far Eastern music. With a sound straight out of Japan this track comes way out of left field. Familiar technique is there, the strings seem to linger in the background, but that's about all that is recognizable. Lyrically, you've heard it a few times, a woman who has had a great impact on George's life. Who is it this time? I have no clue, but we'll assume its Olivia and not Pattie coming back to be a thorn in everyone's side in the name of great music. The album concludes with the classic that EVERYONE knows. The popular music barometer for this song is off the charts.  Catchy hook? YES Easy to remember lyrics? YES Music video with a squirrel playing a saxophone? YES Weird Al Parody? YES.  Well that's everything you need, its a hit! Weird Al had a good time with the fact that the reason the lyrics are so easy to remember is because 'this song is just six words long.' Wait a minute, Al, where'd you learn to count? Hmm...well it seems Al is a graduate of Cal Poly School of Architecture, so I'm gonna go out on a limb and say his minor math error was really just poetic license. Believe it or not, and I myself am learning this for the first time, this song is a cover! It was written by Rudy Clark and first performed by James Ray in 1962. Well, isn't that something. I should've known this was a cover...there's no mysticism, no Hindu, no pining after British supermodels. Yeah, it all makes sense now. The resulting song is pretty good, though it does sound like a throw away that was tagged on the end. This could be the record company ensuring there was at least one commercially viable single. What, you think there's no integrity in that? Well he's George Harrison, what have you done lately?

George Harrison certainly had the reputation to carry himself anywhere he wanted to go. Interestly enough, he chose to go with Jeff Lynne on this record. As previously stated, this could've been a distaster. Too many chefs, yadda yadda yadda, BUT that did not happen here. George's vision and Jeff's production live in harmony on this album. The other Beatles certainly made their own marks. After the Beatles broke up in 1970, they would go on to various musical paths. John did his thing with Yoko and some solo stuff that produced very well known songs. Ringo would work sessions and record a few solo albums, not a huge impact, but very solid. Paul would become a force to be reckoned with, though I must say, he's better with John. George I think had the best post Beatles career. Maybe, because he never had much input into the Beatles songwriting, he had a lot of good ideas saved up. Or maybe, he just needed to find a few more women to write about.

Strongest Song: That's What It Takes
Weakest Song: Got My Mind Set on You, but seriously, try not to tap your to this one.
Song You Know: Got My Mind Set on You, When We Was Fab
Why You Might Hate It: Jeff Lynne Production drives you crazy.
Buy It? Probably don't need this one on vinyl. Its a good record, I'd say get a couple tracks on MP3...how about Devil's Radio, That's What it Takes, and Someplace Else.

The Crunch, The Clean, The Contrast.

The Crunch, The Clean, and The Pixies

#22 The Pixies: Doolittle

My tastes in guitar vary greatly. Well, not really...they range from kind of loud, to louder. Sometimes I love hearing my Stratocaster through my clean Vox amp. Sometimes I like my Les Paul through my full volume Marshall. Sometimes though, I want both.  So what's a musician to do? You want clean, you want distortion.  Its basically the reason I own two guitar amps. Actually I own six, but that's not the important right now... four of them don't count anyway.  Now what about the non-musicians who just want to hear some contrast? You want quiet, you want loud. You NEED the Pixies. Released in 1989, Doolittle was the Pixies second album. While not as abrasive as their debut, Surfer Rosa, it did further cement the two different sides of the Pixies. It has beautifully structured pop chord progressions that would make John Lennon proud. It also has raw aggression and unhinged guitars. See if you can handle these two extremes living comfortably in the same grooves...PLAY.


The album begins with the song "Debaser" which begins with an urgent sounding bassline which soon picks up a distorted guitar roaring out a somewhat off key attack. The Pixies are so good at making up their own scales and other musical oddities. When the song gets into its groove the off key chaos really holds together well. Frank Black's voice is as stressed as ever as he screams on and on about surrealist art films of a French origin and other random stuff that just bewilders the casual listener. Its a great upbeat opening song and sets the stage for the rest of the album. "Tame" is a song that once again starts with that bass. Kim Deal joined the Pixies without even knowing how to play the  instrument but actually turned into an effective alternative rock bass player. That doesn't really say much about the average alt-rock bassist, unless you're in Primus. Sometimes its less about mastering your instrument, and more about mastering your musical style. After the bass guitar intro, the vocals kick in sounding very quiet and almost reserved. Wait for it... This continues on for all of 20 seconds before suddenly the song absolutely explodes. "TAAAAAAAMMMMMEEE," yells Frank Black as the guitar roars in with piercing distortion and frantic pace. Well, there it is, the Pixies formula that will be imitated for the next decade. Kim Deal has described rehearsals where they would play as quiet as they could, then, play as loud as they could. That Verse/Chorus/Verse structure would be imitated by a few bands, perhaps you've heard of them: Nirvana, Meat Puppets, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Screaming Trees, and pretty much every other band that can possibly be connected to the 'grunge' scene in the early 90's.

Grunge Checklist Item 1: Boss DS-1

If you recall my post on Nirvana 'In Utero' I mentioned this song structure and the fact that at 15, I thought this was the golden ticket to rock stardom. I even have the Boss DS-1 distortion pedal to prove it. After the soothing verse and crushing chorus of 'Tame,' we move onto the next track, 'Wave of Mutilation.' The dynamic of this song is similar to what we've heard already on the album, however this one seems to have a driving pulse about it. The vocals this time use Frank Black's 'whispered scream.' Yes, I know, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Until you hear it, after all this is a band of contrasts. Note the chord progression on this one...the chorus has a great climbing effect that really hypes the whole song up. A short two minutes later, the song is over and we're moving right along. One thing is certain, no one ever accused this band of being long winded. "I Bleed" begins...well, you know...bass first, guitar later, some drums.  This time though we get such a simple chord progression it almost seems childish in nature.  However, if a child did write this song, he probably would be locked up in a some special school by now. For some reason this song just sounds like a fractured mind trying to explain itself. Frank Black is screaming 'I Bleed,' while Kim Deal counters with a very in control and almost uninterested delivery of the same line. Contrast...that should be the title of the album. Next up comes the song you have heard, unless you're really sheltered or obsessed with Rush and Dream Theater. "Here Comes Your Man" is a delightful little love song sung to...an earthquake? Well maybe...I've heard various explanations for the meaning. Sung to a lover, a drug dealer, a hobo. I don't know, decide what you you think it means and stick with it. I put it on a 'mix CD' for a girlfriend who later became my lovely wife Beth, so maybe there's more to this song than Frank Black knew. Thanks Frank! Hah...I said 'Mix CD' ...remember those? The song is built around a great 60's song writing style. Simple chord progression for the acoustic, a detailed guitar riff played very clean and even a nice "Hard Days Night" style chord at the beginning. Next up is 'Dead,' which starts...without bass?  No wait, there it is. It took almost four seconds for the bass to kick in! That has to be a record of some sort. The drums this time show us something different. A very tribal beating of the toms frames the song which uses very high bends on the guitar. The notes sound very stretched to the limit and almost like human screams. This is definitely standing out compared to the others songs, and I like it. The chorus suddenly hits us like...well, like a normal song. Its brief and doesn't stay normal long before its quick end, but wow, what a great CONTRAST.  See, there's that word again. "Monkey Gone to Heaven" is pretty standard Pixies fare. The vocals are casual, the bass is simplistic, the drums are...drums. Lyrically, its an environmentalists song. Look out for the Biblical numbering games!  5: Man, 6: Devil, 7: God, 3: Profit.  I'm pretty sure Bloodhound Gang had something to say about this as well. Oh well, gotta flip the record, no time for details.

Side Two starts out with "Mr. Grieves," an interesting song that begins sounding very rockabilly. After a slow relaxed intro the song kicks into a very simple sounding but infectious rockabilly groove. Did I accidentally put Reverend Horton Heat on?  Nope, its the Pixies alright. It eventually shifts to a nice half time groove of the same basic structure, this is fun! After that little interesting tune we move on to "Crackity Jones." At this point you're really starting to wonder what's up. That one dimensional alt rock sound of side one seems to be long gone. This track has nervous speed, a tremolo like guitar sound, and some great screaming by Frank Black. Okay, maybe its not that different...but still, it feels new. "La La Love You," begins with drums and than continues on in a surf-rock style. Lots of clean guitar, reverb and some slight wavering vibrato? Maybe I'm just hearing things.  Well, I feel like this song needs vibrato, so there. To keep things once again feeling new, Dave Lovering, the guy behind the drums who has gotten no mention at all, sings vocals on this song. He kind of sounds like Morrissey on Prozac, if you can imagine that. Song 11 is appropriately called "No. 13 Baby," and because of this, you now know what its like to be lied to. The song begins like it should according the Gospel of Frank Black. The vocals get a nice falsetto whine makeover. Its an interesting sound, which of course is contrasted with more controlled falsetto at other times. Santiago on guitar, who I think is also getting his first mention, does his usual: play one note, let it ring, let it feedback, let it sound awesome. For those who have seen Amadeus, Nicholas II would never tell Joey Santiago that its "too many notes." No, that will never happen. "There Goes My Gun," uses feedback, rapid strumming and a nice frantic drum beat in the chorus. The guitar work reaches a point where it becomes very relaxed and quiet (contrast dammit!) before roaring back to where it should be. Next is a great tune, "Hey." The song starts with a nice 'HEY,' before the bass and vocals are joined by a fantastic guitar tone. Its a nice out of phase Les Paul sound, I could listen to this tone for hours. As great as the guitar is in this song, look out for those vocals, especially on the verse. Frank Black really out does himself here. The delivery is very fractured, like he's trying to tell you something, but you just won't listen. He's going to keep repeating this over and over so you better just start listening.  Next up in "Silver," not to be confused with Nirvana's 'Sliver.' Just wanted to clarify that to the typically confused grunge fan. The word different doesn't really do this song justice. This song would feel at home on lots of albums, "Exile on Main Street" comes to mind right away. With slide guitar and vocals provided by Kim Deal, the song is a very primal bluesy stomp, just with a Pixies undertone. The fact that the Pixies put this on the album just tells you how bored they get with their own music. Gotta love a band with that kind of creativity. Finally, the last track arrives and its time to "Gouge Away." This song takes it back to the structure and style of the first side of the record. A little more accessible, and a little more standard it features, solid bass line, great one note guitar riffs, and whispered lyrics. It doesn't end there though, this is the Pixies...when the chorus kicks in the wall of alt rock is back. The rage in the chorus is amazing. How Frank Black does it, I'll never know. In my few brief attempts to sing nothing like this ever came out. Somehow, the title really does more than just provide a few lyrics. This song really is gouging away at you. The breakdown in the chorus has that stabbing rhythm beating the drums. The one note guitar riffs are just stabbing at the strings. I'm not sure if this was intended or not, but I gotta think they knew exactly what they were doing.

Over 14 songs crammed neatly onto one vinyl record the Pixies have created a masterpiece and a template for alternative rockers everywhere. I have to admit, I was late to the Pixies party. I was nine when Doolittle was released, that was my Huey Lewis phase. Yes, I can admit it, and you can too. After hearing Kurt Cobain speak about the wonders of the Pixies I figured it was worth a listen. Wow, now I know how my favorite band got their style.

Strongest Song: Hey, Gouge Away
Weakest Song: Probably a couple weaker tracks on the album, but they're still better than most music.
Song You Know: Here Comes Your Man
Why You Might Hate It: You dislike contrast and grunge.
Buy It? I bet you have a couple MP3s of the Pixies already, the album is worth owning, maybe on CD, but probably don't need it on vinyl.

Mozart, van Gogh, and Barrett.

This is not the album cover.

#21 Pink Floyd: Wish You Were Here

Crazy people.  They're everywhere. Chances are, if you can't figure out who the crazy person is in the room, its you. As eccentric as they can be, crazy people have contributed to society. Van Gogh certainly had his issues. He also created some of the most moving art in history before finally submitting to his agony and ending his life. Mozart seems to have had a few marbles rolling around his brain. Again, he departed too early but left an amazing catalog of music for the world to cherish.

Extreme Close-up

Like Mozart and van Gogh, Syd Barrett helped to create some of the most memorable art of his time. The only difference with Barrett, is that others were creating it for him. By the time Pink Floyd was working on their 1975 album "Wish You Were Here," Syd Barrett was just a memory to the members. Once the prolific front man and primary songwriter of the band, Barrett's mental stability declined over the years until in 1968 he agreed to leave the band. After that, he would spend most of his mysterious life as a recluse only occasionally releasing music. Pink Floyd would go on as a band, but the not so subtle clues continued to show up in their music, they really missed Syd. "Wish You Were Here" has a little of that theme loaded into it, as well as a few other interesting observations on the recording industry.   PLAY>

The albums starts with a synthesizer slowly fading in on "Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part I-V." Its the kind of sound you'd probably hear in some futuristic space ship's elevator perhaps.  But its Pink Floyd, so it is still cool. Next, David Gilmour comes in on the guitar. His Stratocaster tone is locked in very clean for the start of the song, but almost with a jazzy softer tone. To this point, the song is just kind of setting the table. Then, you get that eery chord, with one accidental note. Apparently created by misplacing his fingers on the frets, the sound of the four notes repeated is very creepy. It certainly sounsd like something that just isn't 'all there.'  The drums kick into a nice 6/4 beat and now the song has truly begun.  Using the same four note pattern in the background, Gilmour dubs over a beautiful solo which climaxes using a nice turnaround to the main theme of the song. After settling back down, Richard Wright, the keyboardist gives us a nice minimoog solo. But hey, this is Gilmour's show, so lets get back to the guitar solos. This second solo is similar to the first and rolls on until finally, after almost nine minutes, we get vocals. If it were possible, and legal, I'd probably just type out all the lyrics for the song, because you need to pay attention. The lyrics discuss someone who has been lost over time, someone who is not their self these days, someone who has a 'look in their eyes like black holes in the sky.' Or in short, someone like Syd. Apparently while recording, Syd Barrett actually showed up in the studio many pounds heavier and completely shaved on his head and eyebrows. It took about 45 minutes for anyone in the band to even recognize him. Even stranger, Wright says Barrett showed up while they were recording "Shine On You Crazy Diamond," a song written about him. Anyway, after the lyrics are done the song goes back to instrumental mode and features a nice arpeggio on the guitar while a saxophone plays out the final solo. Yes, this is a 13 minute song in five parts, but this is Pink Floyd, they're allowed to do this. Since the Floyd is an artistic and creative band they can't just obssess on one thing, no, that would be boring. They like to diversify their lyrical content so next, instead of crazy, we get ranting about the corporate world of main stream rock and roll. "Welcome to the Machine" is written about the suits at the record company bringing in the next big band, giving them the world, then taking over every creative aspect of their life in order to squeeze every last drop of money out of their souls. Hey, its a new theme, I didn't say it was a happy one. Musically the song is a jump through several time signatures and some amazing sweeping sounds courtesy of the VS3 synthesizer.  Backing up the sound is what I suspect is a 12 string acoustic guitar ringing out chords slowly strummed up and down. The song kind of repeats this basic pattern over and over, but ultimately, that's the point. This is what the record company wants, repetition. If you write an album that sells a million copies, then replicate it over and over and over. Cruel for the musicians, but hey, as the listener you can feast on the fact that the record company is passing the result of that cruelty onto you at the low low price of 99 cents per MP3. SCORE!  Well, two songs into it, and we've already finished up side one.

Side two begins with "Have a Cigar" which continues the theme of the last song. Again those soulless bastards at the record company are trying to kill your favorite band. This song, however, uses a different musical approach and creates a far more rock and roll result. Oh sweet merciful crap! That's exactly what the record company wants! It's a trap! The song starts with Gilmour's guitar sounding better than ever. Some kind of flanger/chorus/phaser thing makes it sound very slick and high class. Lyrically, the song offers the same. High class rock and roll lifestyle. The vocals are done by...Roger? David? Wait...who the hell is singing this? That would be Roy Harper, an English folk musician who just happened to be in the studio next door when Floyd was recording. After David and Roger decided their own takes weren't right for the song, they invited Harper and he nailed it. The guitar solo that follows the verse and chorus is another fantastic performance by Gilmour. With the synthesizers holding it all together the guitar soars high and low and slowly seduces you into the evil corporate tower to sign your musical life away. Or I could be making all that up...its a guitar solo, sometimes they don't mean anything, they just sound cool. Next up comes the title track of the album "Wish You Were Here." The intro is one that everyone with an acoustic guitar thinks they know. Please, if you're going to play this song, just learn it the right way. After a few months working in a crappy guitar store I almost reached the point of Syd Barrett crazy hearing people totally destroy this classic song. That was also the summer of "Seven Nation Army" which also contributed to my musical sensibilities being pushed to the ragged edge. Now, where was I? Oh yes, after a nice 12-string rhythm, 6-string lead intro we get to the verse. Lyrically the song is pretty brief. Its back to the Syd theme, but also a little bit of alienation and feeling like mentally, you're not all there. The chorus brings together the whole band in a very minor tone. Piano, acoustic guitar, drums and the bass are all there as the lyrics reach their conclusion. The outro features the same riffs used throughout, but this time with a sound effect of swirling wind slowly building up during the final fade.  The album concludes with Parts VI-IX of "Shine On You Crazy Diamonds."  The first five minutes of the track focus on interplay between several instruments. You get lots of guitars, lots of basses, lots of synthesizers and the standard drums and rhythm. Just when you thought they were out of new tricks, here comes a lap steel guitar played by Gilmour and used just perfectly in the context of the song. At the conclusion of the lap steel solo, a familiar theme returns. Its back to square one as the song revisits part III...or IV...or something is coming back. Signaling the change is a great transition that slows the whole song down and reigns in the chaos of solos. The lyrics from part IV are back and we get one last reminder of what's happened to Syd. After the reprise of part IV, the song finally fades out slowly with a very casual sounding almost jazzy jam session that eventually descends into more synth driven spacey sound effects. It also marks the point where I'm kind of tired of typing about this.  Its five songs...what do you want?

So...why crazy people? Well everyone knows what happened last week in Colorado. Crazy people I guess were just on my mind. Some crazy people kill....others make amazing art and music. So how do you tell them apart? Let me know if you figure that one out.

Strongest Song: Shine on You Crazy Diamond Parts I-V
Weakest Song: Welcome to the Machine, as a single its boring, but in the context of the album its great.
Song You Know: Wish You Were Here
Why You Might Hate It: You're Syd Barrett
Buy It? YES...easy to find on vinyl and it sounds even better.

Printers, Chumbawumba, and Something Different.

I like the cover, for some reason it reminds me of Titus, the dog.

#20 R.E.M.: Monster

Titus, the dog.

I hate printers. Mankind has come a very long way in the field of computer science. Computers have gotten, faster, smaller and cheaper. Every year new innovations are coming out. Its hard to imagine where computers will go next. Then you try to print. At this point you realize that even though we may have invented the wheel, we also invented the '71 Ford Pinto. Once again, another printer has died by my own hands. Fortunately the old one I thought needed replacing still works, kind of. Anyway, speaking of things you don't care about, Chumbawumba broke up! After 30 years, billions of albums and almost 100 fans, the mysterious Chumbawumba has announced they are throwing in the towel. My guess is they wanted to pull a Seinfeld, quit while you're on top. In the band's statement they said that they 'accomplished everything they set out to do.'  For those not familiar with the Chumbawumba 'to do' list, Summer of Vinyl is pleased to present it to you now:


1. Form band
2. Release irritating ear worm of a song
3. Break up
4. Profit

I'm pretty sure I've seen a business plan like this hanging in Bernie Madoff's office, sans the 30 year wait time for completion.

In September 2011, R.E.M., a band that actually put together a real career, released a simliar statement of 'calling it a day.' The major difference between the R.E.M. statement and the Chumbawumba statement is that R.E.M. actually accomplished a few things in their 31 years as a band. Fifteen studio albums, four live albums, sixty singles, and over 25 million albums sold. Oh, and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....take that Rush!

Today's album is their 1994 release "Monster," a personal favorite of mine. After the hugely popular "Automatic for the People," R.E.M. decided to plug the electric guitar in and really go for a rock sound. That was the beauty of this band, they really could do anything they wanted to. For some bands, that's a horrible concept. For R.E.M. it totally worked...set the speed to 33 1/3 and lets go!

The album starts with the nasally distorted guitar of Peter Buck on "What's the Frequency Kenneth?" most likely produced with a Rickenbacker through a Vox AC-30.  I've found the album's tone on my own Vox amp, and use it quite frequently. The lyrics are...well...odd. Nothing new really, Michael Stipe has always been odd. His lyrics don't really make much sense and he's even admitted that early on they changed with each performance.  When Stipe had hair back in the 80's  he did seem a little normal.  You know the kind of normal I'm talking about...he's a musician, so of course he's odd, but as long as you don't have to meet him in person there's always reasonable doubt. Maybe he's normal. Then for this album he shaved his head...at that point all doubt was successfully removed. Lyrically its about a strange event from the early 90's. Apparently, Dan Rather was jumped in New York City by some nutcase who kept repeating "What's the Frequency Kenneth?" I'm not sure what Stipe's whereabouts are on the evening in question, but seriously, that show 'Cold Case' should look into this. The guitar solo uses a great backwards recording technique which will make it very difficult to replicate without doing the same. Trust me, I've tried, its possible, but difficult to get it just right. The Vox and Rickenbacker tone continues for the next song "Crush with Eyeliner." This time though, the Tremolo effect pays us a visit. I love this effect on an amp. I'm never sure what to do with it, and this song is a great excuse to play with it. Mike Mills and Bill Berry, who probably won't get much mention in this blog, provide a good rhythm for the song as they always do. They're not quite as buried in the background as Larry and Adam in U2, and without them, R.E.M. would be without a vital component. The next track "King of Comedy" is Stipe using his best uninterested style of vocals. His delivery is pretty flat, but with the way the rest of song is written, it works well. The style is somewhat...well, I don't know, I can't really place it.  It is a style, there's no doubt about that. Next up is "I Don't Sleep I Dream," a song that is very true to its title. The dreamy sound comes from the use of a tom based drum beat, arpeggio guitars and piano. The chorus uses sweeping sustained guitar chords and high, almost falsetto vocals. After remaining in a dreamy like state for a little over three minutes, the song abruptly ends, like being suddenly woken up. The next track is an ode to the phone company and one of its revolutionary and now obsolete features, "Star 69." Hmm...I wonder if Star 69 still works?  Someone that actually cares should look into this. The song takes a fast pace, with loud guitars, quick drums and a driving bass line. The vocals use multiple tracks which means you hear 3-4 Michael Stipes at any given moment. The chorus brings it all together with one vocal track and the same rock sound of the verses. The second verse continues the vocal chaos, this time with more Stipe vocal tracks. After a quick guitar breakdown the track continues as programmed until the finish. It is a brief one, but a very good rock song. Side one ends on a high note, "Strange Currencies." This song is all about great guitar work. It features several guitar tracks...one whining with feedback, one playing sparkling arpeggios, and finally a nice overdriven chord strummer for the chorus. All these tracks coming together makes a great wall of guitar sound that really makes the song.  The lyrics work well, it seems to be a simple love song. The writer wants his feelings to be reciprocated by his partner...and it seems like he's got to talk her into it. I don't like where this is going, but right when you think he's walking into a land mine, the song ends and its time to flip the record. Whoa...that was close.

The second side begins in complete opposite style of side one. "Tongue," starts out very quiet with a simple piano introduction. The song itself includes an organ, light falsetto vocals and very sparse drumming. The bridge of the song also brings in a little distorted guitar, just to remind you that is a rock album by R.E.M.  The lyrics are more Stipe oddity, its not really worth commenting what the song is about, because...well, who cares. Moving on we get to "Bang and Blame." This song continues the mysterious sound we heard on "I Don't Sleep I Dream" and "Tongue." It uses subtle wavering guitar and a strong rhythm of drums and bass. The bass line is pretty interesting, simple, yet efficient. The lyrics seems to be about another couple, or perhaps the same one heard in "Strange Currencies," this time in an argument about something X-rated. On "I Took Your Name," the tremolo effect is back on the Vox amp and we're rocking out again. The verse is pretty simple musically, but when the chorus sets in, it gets good. Very grand chords with less tremolo effect ring out and a guitar with a sitar like sound plays a simple riff. The solo of the song features a far off guitar sliding notes down the neck. It was probably mic'd in a hallway of some kind given the echoey sound of it. As for drums, Berry uses a cowbell in the mix. So...that's...special, I guess. The next track is a sad, sad song. "Let Me In" is about a good friend of Stipe's, a man who even called on Stipe to be the Godfather of his first and only daughter. The friend, who Stipe was planning a collaboration with was Kurt Cobain. This song, written after his suicide, is pretty emotional and seems to be Stipe wishing he'd done more to help Cobain. Lines like "I had a mind to try and stop you" are particularly hard hitting. The planned collaboration Stipe had in mind was an effort to get Cobain out of his depressed state. Well, you know the rest this story, and like the song, its pretty depressing for music fans. Okay, this next track better be pretty peppy, because we could use something uplifting. The song consists of several guitar tracks...one that's pure fuzz and one that is the standard Peter Buck overdriven tone. The pure fuzz track continues to get more intense as the track goes on, by the end its basically just noise. With all this noise going on, Stipe's lyrics sound fairly normal and subdued. The album concludes with one last noise rock song. Taking a familiar sound heard on several other tracks on the album, it uses fuzzed guitar, overdriven guitar, feedback, simple tom based drums, and casually delivered lyrics. Apparently R.E.M. was really into that kinda stuff in 1994. The chorus of the song is particularly well done. Starting from the low point of the verse, it slowly climbs in intensity. The vocals get higher, the guitar gets more fuzzed out and there's a great tolling bell booming over everything. The conclusion of the song is a very evil sounding final chord, it sounds to me like the use of the locrian mode, the same mode that creates the British police siren...very eery.

Overall, "Monster" is a lot of things. A great rock album, a dreamy musical experience, and a lot of  non-sensical lyrics that upon closer examination, actually have a few things to say. R.E.M. Would roll on for another 17 years before calling it quits and ultimately I think 'Monster' would be their peak of rock and roll. In the years that following they continued to make excellent music, but that guitar tone and driving rhythm just never seemed to reach this level again.

Strongest Song: Strange Currencies
Weakest Song: Circus Envy (maybe)
Song You Know: What's the Frequency Kenneth, Star 69
Why You Might Hate It: Its not your standard R.E.M. album, if there is such a thing.
Buy It? Yes...I randomly found it at a shop on 14th street in D.C. and I don't expect to see any others just sitting around for sale. Go for the CD or MP3's...just easier to find.

A Trip to Nowhere.

#19 Neil Young: Everybody Knows This is Nowhere

 I don't have a clever reason for putting this album on I just want to hear it. Also, it has a dog on the cover...and Anabelle is busy being a pest so maybe some music will calm her down.

The album cover has a dog...and so do I.

"Everybody Knows This is Nowhere" is the first album that finds Neil with his new backing band Crazy Horse. The band is a simple lineup for this album but that the key to the sound. Neil of course covers vocals and guitar, but the second guitarist makes a huge difference. Danny Whitten is a name that probably doesn't make too many 'best ever guitarist' lists, but he should. Unfortunately, drugs got in the way and he couldn't even get it together for Young's next album "After the Gold Rush."Young dismissed him from the band after only a few songs were complete. He caught a plane back to L.A. and that same day at age 29, he died of an overdose, leaving behind only a small cardboard box of possessions. Later, Young would pen the song "The Needle and the Damage Done," which deals with his feelings about Whitten's death. If you can't write a song yourself about him, the second best way to remember him, is by listening to this album.

Side one begins with a solid rock song in drop-D tuning, "Cinnamon Girl." Drop-D is typically used to make a heavier sound, and it works beautifully on this song. Whitten gives the high harmony vocals and of course a good guitar track for the song.  In typical Neil Young style, the guitar solo is simple but works like a charm. Consisting of basically a D played over and over in the framework of the chord progression it somehow sounds like a lot more is going on. The song concludes with an interesting little guitar riffing that takes full advantage of the drop-D tuning and its ability to sustain an open chord. Next up is "Everybody Knows this is Nowhere," a song that seems to  be about a longing for the simple life. The album was recorded in Hollywood, California, which is pretty much the exact opposite of where Neil grew up in Omemee, Ontario. The song is a letter back home, reminiscing of how he longs for the simple life, away from the hectic pace of Southern California. At least that's what I think, I could be just making it all up. The guitar work on the song is somewhat country, with a certain twang to it which fits in nicely to the laid back rhythm. "Round and Round (It Won't Be Long)" is a slow and spacey acoustic song that features some OOOs and AHHs as performed by Robin Lane. I'm not really sure what the lyrics get into, but it sure seems sad. I think someone should go cheer up Neil...maybe a choco taco would help. The side concludes with a nine minute lesson in dueling guitars. "Down by the River" starts out slow alternately Am and Em7 chords with a nice lead guitar over it. The lyrics are simple, and brief, but very strong. A man has murdered his lover after she's unfaithful, then the sheriff arrives to arrest him. Everybody loves a good crime caper. The guitars in the song serve as the voices of the two quarreling lovers. Young and Whitten go back and forth with increasing intensity for the duration of the song and finally, when only one lead guitar remains, the song fades away as he's hauled off to jail. Anyone who wants to know how to create real emotion with an electric guitar, get a copy of this song and pay attention.

Side two begins with "The Losing End (When You're On)." No one wants to be on the losing end, and Neil is gonna tell how hard it really is.  In this case, he's pining after a lost love, which usually makes for a good song when the feeling are genuine. The song has an upbeat swing feel that is unusual considering the lyrical content, but it certainly works. Neil can make you feel good about feeling bad. The guitar work again is fantastically done, the solo fits right in with the 'desperate for her attention' theme the song looks to instill in the listener. Also, don't miss the extra shout-out to Wilson Picket (or 'pick it') right before the solo kicks in. "Running Dry (Requiem for the Rockets)" is a song that sounds as if something really bad has happened. The desperate yet calm vocals are quite haunting, and even before the violin joins in, you're already looking over your shoulder to see if you're alone. The violin is provided by Bobby Notkoff. The song is a lyrical confession. The singer has abandon his lover, and left her with tears in her eyes. He feels he's done her wrong and now he's confessing it to anyone who will listen and possibly offer forgiveness. Side two concludes the same way side one does, with a long dueling guitar showcase. Again Young and Whitten come together to fire bullets at each other from across the studio with the guitars and with the vocals. Neil's calls are answered by Whitten's responses, echoing every line after its delivered. The lyrics present an image of what seems to be a beautiful and forbidden woman, with Young asking her to start something sinful with him. Oh this will be trouble, but come on, its 1969, go for it. For the verses and solos the songs uses a very sinister sounding A and F chord. Together they sound very alarming and troublesome. For the chorus however, things get a little lighter...using quite a few chord changes and making everything seem alright. Don't fall for it...as soon as the chorus ends, the true colors are back again...A and F. Two chords is all it takes to create this overall mood and the solos slowly get more and more intense. The growing intensity soon turns to desperation which by the end of the song has basically gone completely mad. This is not a sane mind that's being unleashed here.  There is an explanation though. "Cowgirl in the Sand", "Down by the River" and "Cinnamon Girl" were all written by Young while he was in bed with a 103 degree fever. Makes a little more sense now, doesn't it?

Every guitar player has certain songs he keeps in his back pocket so when you don't feel like thinking too much, and you want play on pure emotion, stick with what you know. "Cowgirl in the Sand" and "Down by the River" are two of those songs for me. I've been listening to this album basically since birth (another of my Dad's records) and its impossible for the song not to creep into my style of play. For the guitarists out there, please, buy it...listen, learn, imitate.

Strongest Song: Down by the River
Weakest Song: not a dull moment.
Song You Know: Cinnamon Girl, its covered by just about everyone.
Why You Might Hate It: You don't like dueling guitars and interesting lyrics.
Buy It? Yes, on vinyl...find a good used copy with a little 'character.'

An Album for America's Birthday

#18 Bruce Springsteen: Born to Run

Happy 4th!

Fourth of July, a time to celebrate the birth of America. When I thumbed through my record collection today I had an idea of what I wanted to hear. Something by an American artist, obviously, but also something that seemed synonymous with America. I found some great American artists in my collection...Van Halen, Michael Jackson, Sublime. But being American isn't enough for today. It has to be someone who's shouting it from the roof tops.  Usually your first instinct is the correct one, and today's pick was no exception. Bruce Springteen came out of New Jersey in 1973 with "Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J." After his first two albums, which are very good, he finally perfected his craft and released "Born to Run." I know what you're saying...what about "Born in USA?" Well sorry, I don't have that record yet.  Maybe another time. For me, "Born to Run" is the must have Springsteen. Less talk, more rock!

Side one starts with a beautiful ballad driven by piano and harmonica, "Thunder Road." The lyrics paint a picture of a beat up house out on the plains somewhere. The narator who also plays as lead character describes an old screen door falling off the hinges and a beautiful woman in a summer dress greeting us as the song starts. These two will be with us for the whole album. The characters in the song seem to be a little down and out, but don't fear, that wild American spirit of adventure is there. Springsteen delivers one of the greatest lines of rock and roll next...."You ain't a beauty, but hey, you're alright." Okay, so maybe its not a beautiful woman on the porch...way to compliment your woman Bruce. The song builds up adding guitar, a bell set, and the rest of the band. The lyrics are really the story of this song, the music is very solid and really helps drive home the message, but even by themselves, the lyrics are fantastic. If a pictures worth a thousand words then a Bruce Springsteen ballad is worth a 1000 pictures. Next the song gets to it climax. The piano slides down and welcomes the Clarence Clemons saxophone solo. Following Bruce's twanged out telecaster, this part of the song paints that epic conclusion of Mary and her man driving off to start their day, bright eyed and full of hope. Next up is "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out," a song that offers another solid piano beat but this time with a much more solid groove punctuated by the horns. The song is more R and B and shows that Bruce has a wide variety of influences to draw from. It has an almost doowop feel to it, I can only imagine what this would be like live. White people dancing all over the place. The next track "Night" starts with BIG saxophone. From there it settles into more EPIC sounding Bruce and you're thinking...eh, I've heard this already on the album.  However, then it reaches the chorus. Bruce really uses an interesting tonal change to make the pre-chorus and chorus stand out a little, something very satisfying about those quick chord changes and rapid vocal delivery. Lyrically its another blue collar ode to a man just waiting for the end of the day...get to the night and really have some fun. "Backstreets," starts with piano and stays relatively quiet for the opening, with bass and subtle guitar joining in. The rest of band finally joins in and you get huge strumming chords on the guitar and booming toms on the drums. The vocal delivery is straight ahead and very matter of fact. The chorus finds Bruce singing up high and really stressing his voice. The feeling of desperation is most definitely there. The song continues with the desperation and loss theme before a short guitar break that features Springsteen doing a simple, and essentially chordal solo...trust me it works in the song. After reminding us many many times that he's hiding on the backstreet, the song finally gets to outro which uses the wall of sound instrumentation to build up to a final descent to the closing chord. It sounds to me like our characters aren't very happy with the status-quo.

Side two bring back the epic ballad format that started side one, "Born to Run." The title track takes place at quitin' time. The chains of the working world are released and its time to get the hell outta Dodge. Bruce first discusses the dreary working world that the blue collar man is trapped in. However, when its time to play, PLAY HARD. Can't you just picture a convertible screaming away from the factory? Tires spinning, half out of control, and probably a case of Budweiser Talls in the passenger seat. The saxophone solo kicks in now you truly start to feel like cuttin' loose yourself. The bridge features a scene straight out of American Graffiti. The women do their best to look good for the boys who are out speeding around in hot rods. The breakdown features all the instrumentation that could be jammed into the probably 16-24 tracks of recording. The final chorus announces that while we may be stuck working 40 hours a week, we really were Born to Run...to be free, to live our own life. After that start to side two, I feel 10 feet tall, bulletproof and ready for anything! Next up is "She's the One," a song that starts with, you guessed it, piano! The album was composed by Springsteen on the piano so that explains why it is featured so prominently on the finished product. After the first couple verses the band kicks in and the drums pound a simple rhythm that is imitated by the strumming of the guitar. The overall rhythm is an interesting one, something that we haven't really heard yet on the album. Another saxophone solo by Clemons eventually gives way to more big strumming chords and slides down the ivory. The outro tails off into eternity repeating this well used beat over and over and over. "Meeting Across the River," starts with the usual, piano, but this time a trumpet can be heard echoing in the distance. Sounds like the microphone is at one end of a hallway and the trumpet is on the other end. The lyrics paint yet another picture, but this time...things are getting kinda shady. We're meeting some guy on the other side of the river. I don't know about you, but meeting a guy on the other side of the river somewhere in New Jersey sounds like a bad idea. Wait...wasn't this song on the soundtrack of "Chinatown?" No wait...something on that timeline doesn't work. But really I'm waiting for a 30's private detective to pop up at any moment. The album concludes with the over nine minute "Jungleland." I hope you like saxophone.  The similar piano style for the album comes back again, I will describe it as 'twinkling' moonlight over calm seas. They won't stay calm for long. The instrumentation builds until Bruce's first mention of Jungleland when the whole band comes in and the wall of sound returns.  When the album started, there was a glimmer of hope in the eyes of the characters we came to know and love. In Jungleland, those characters are starting to make horrible decisions, and ultimately, they will pay for them. Before that though, we get some soloing. First the guitar has its go at it. Pretty good solo, usually don't get guitar work like this with Bruce, but I gotta say, I'm impressed. Another verse rolls through and then...SAXAMOPHONE! Here it comes...Clemons very long, very wandering saxophone solo. It actually is a good solo, he doesn't just try to bludgeon you to death with too many notes, there's some style here. Its played over a slower rhythm backing using strings, drums, guitars, piano and any other instrument that happened to be hanging around the studio that day, and I think that's what keeps it reigned in. Boiling down back to just piano the song slowly moves toward one final verse. The final verse finishes the story in the way that we all feared. The main character, named 'the Rat' in this song, meets his end courtesy of a gun shot.

Wow...that was a little depressing in the end. From the young starry eyed lover in Thunder Road, to the tough gunned down street thug in "Jungleland," "Born To Run" has told quite a story. The song can be seen as taking place in essentially one days time. Wake up in the morning with high hopes and go to work, maybe around 10th avenue? Perhaps. Next we daydream at the factory of the night that's ahead of us, contemplate life for a little while and finally, we're free.  After running out onto the streets with no tomorrow in site we focus on that one girl you just have to have. Since work isn't the most gratifying or high paying gig in town its time to make a few bucks on the side. The trouble begins as we go meet a guy across the river. With the deal done, we go into the bad side of town to meet up with the boys. After some trouble with rival gangs, the bullets fly and the story ends.  Wow...great, yet tragic, story. This was my first time really listening to this album and paying attention. I've always considered it a good album, but just as a collection of random songs. This is worth hearing straight through and uninterrupted to get the full effect of the story.


Strongest Song: Thunder Road, Born to Run
Weakest Song: You might think its 'Night', but the chorus saves the song.
Song You Know: Born to Run, 10th Avenue Freeze-Out, Thunder Road
Why You Might Hate It: You hate America, you don't hate America? Do you?
Buy It? YES, its an easy one to find used on vinyl, I paid $2 for mine and its worth every penny.

Derecho Brought Us Wind, Rain...and Lightning for Riding.

#17 Metallica: Ride the Lightning

THE DREADED DERECHO!  By now, most people between Chicago and the East Coast of the United States have heard the term Derecho. Like El Nino 15 or so years ago, this term didn't exist, until suddenly the media got a hold of it, and now, its everywhere. Apparently it explains the terrible thunderstorms that ravaged the Washington DC area last Friday night. Here in our community, it wasn't too bad. We didn't lose power, we didn't have any fallen trees, we didn't have any damage at all. Well, let me correct that...two of jalapeno plants were destroyed. One thing that accompanied this storm ripping through the region was a pretty impressive lightning display. It was the first sign of what was about to hit, the flash in the distance followed by the low rumble of thunder. Tonight, the same thing happened, on a much lower scale. Again, the lightning, was the first sign of what was about to arrive. Racing home from Wegman's to beat the storm I suddenly knew what album I was going to play tonight.

Metallica's "Ride the Lightning" was the second full release by the band and represented an album that displayed the bands growing songwriting talent. They were expanding their horizons, ballads, instrumentals, really really long songs. Wow, what an album...I haven't listened to it straight through in a while so this should be good.

Side one starts much like the distant thunderstorms. A low rumble of acoustic guitar and what sounds like harpsichord? "Fight Fire with Fire" may start slow, but it won't remain that way for long, soon the distortion is on. The song is very thrash; a rapid beat, fast strumming, and war inspired lyrics. Through the first verse and chorus the song uses stop/start metal touches and soon launches to the solo.  The solo shows off Kirk Hammet at his fastest and pauses for a quick double bass fill by Lars. A little bit of harmonized soloing comes at us before another double bass fill.  Wow...this song is hard to type about.  Its moving forward a lot faster than I can analyze this.  Will this require two listenings to get everything?  Probably....I would recommend multiple listenings.  The song ends with an armageddon like explosion and its on to the title track. "Ride the Lightning" starts with a very urgent sounding guitar riff. On to the verse it continues the palm muted strumming with a few full chords for accent that is seen everywhere in thrash metal. The vocals use a very high first line before falling into the regular tone of the song. The pre-chorus is a great descending riff that follows Hetfield's vocals. The bridge is a slower paced chord driven riff that develops into the solo.  The solo again uses fast tapping, sliding power chords and eventually painfully high bends to the upper reaches of the fretboard. Hammet's style of soloing is easy to spot...he's not as fast as Dave Mustaine, but he has a distinct style that works well in Metallica's writing. The solo concludes with another descending riff of tapping fury with double bass that rolls on through the rest of the song. Another chorus, leads quickly to another breakdown of speed and a slow chugging guitar riff which just sets up for the final assault.  One more verse over the breakdown and its onto yet another chorus. A quick flashback to the beginning riff and the song suddenly concludes.  Next its the epic: "For Whom the Bell Tolls." After the said bells toll a few times the song uses a couple big power chords and booming toms before a great guitar riff.  WRONG!  That's no moon, its a space station. I mean...that's no guitar, that's a bass with a fuzz pedal and wah. Cliff Burton basically invented this style, others may have done it first, but he did it best. Onto the main structure of the song with a very evil carnival sounding guitar riff to set the mood. The verse arrives with the power chord main riff continuing. The chorus uses more monster chords before another evil carnival comes to town.  The riff this times takes on several keys over the backing chord progression. This eventually leads to another verse. The drum fills show up between lines and help to punctuate the over all sinister machine feel of the song. The song then goes to a breakdown with the bells tolling, and they do in fact toll for thee. The outro of the song feels like the final soundtrack of a man being sent to the electric chair. Ride the lighting indeed. The first side concludes with the first Metallica ballad, "Fade to Black." The song begins with a beautifully structured acoustic guitar playing on generally B and A with a highly smooth distorted solo over the top. Eventually the acoustic plays the main verse riff which uses arpeggio like chord playing. The lyrics are all about a man contemplating suicide...not a very nice subject for a song, unless you're Metallica. After the first taste of the loud rage that settles in later, the song goes to a harmonized solo using the same angelic voicing from the intro. The lyrics start to get darker and the song heavier, we're now into the second pre-chorus and the riffing is about to unleash the conclusion of the song on us.  Looks like the hotline isn't gonna get here in time. The guitars soon take over with a great concluding riff and Hetfield's lyrics seem to just give up all hope. If you only learn one Metallica riff on the guitars, its gotta be the chorus thrash of this one. The outro of the song takes a still dark, but somewhat more laid back attack on the same chord progression as is seen throughout. This time the soloing tone is a little heavier, and a little more ragged. The playing becomes fast for the solo and for the drums which start rolling double bass drums. The song very appropriately concludes with a slow fade to silence and the sound of my turntable arm returning to rest.


Side two starts with something pretty terrifying, "Trapped Under Ice." I don't know about you, but that sounds pretty awful. Fortunately for us, its summer time, and as a song, being trapped under ice sounds pretty awesome. After the ballad that ended the first side, the thrash returns with maybe the fastest song on the album. This song is just a lesson in riffing and gives something for every guitar player to work on. The chorus is simple but effective, hitting several chords in fairly rapid succession. The solo is more blinding speed up and down the frets before the next verse comes in so very quick. You know, at this speed how can anyone spend time analyzing lyrics?! The song suddenly concludes and finally you can pump the breaks a little bit as we get to "Escape," a slower song (for Metallica). This once again uses palm muted heavy strumming which creates a chunky sound. Ask any guitar player, they'll tell you chunky is good for metal. The chorus of the song offers a great riff which follows the melody of the lyrics, great interplay between Hammett and Hetfield. After the first verse/chorus combo the song repeats again then arrives at a bridge. The bridge uses a slow grinding riff that doesn't sound very Metallica. Its still good, just not what I would expect from them...hmm, actually, maybe Pantera listened to this song a lot at a young age. That could explain some things.  The outro features more steady Hetfield rhythm, Hammett imitating vocals on the guitar, and an air raid siren.  Yeah thanks, the album wasn't creepy enough. Not a bad song...but on this album?  I'm not too sure.  Next up is "Creeping Death." A song that starts on start/stop dynamics with guitar and drums and then reaches its main riff via a trip down the toms on the drum-set. Now we're back in the Metallica groove with this one. Insert your own sentence with the word 'riff' here. More power chords sliding all around on the chorus and we're back into another verse. In 1984, Metallica knew what their fans wanted, and they are giving them a full helping of early 80's thrash on this album. The only other interesting point of "Creeping Death," is the doubled lyrics on the chorus. Listen for it...that evil sounding deeper tone voice in the background...Cliff Burton? Hetfield doubling himself?  I'm not sure, but it sounds really cool.  The album concludes with an amazing instrumental that clocks in at almost nine minutes, "The Call of Ktulu."  The song credits feature the last mention of Dave Mustaine as a songwriter in Metallica. We would miss Dave in Metallica, but, not really... he gave us Megadeth and for that, we thank him. Using an arpeggio beginning and some very intense minor chords it uses clean tone to build up before the rest of the band slowly joins in. After the slow build concludes it finally kicks in and starts immediately kicking ass. Burton's bass again uses the wah and filter to sound like it coming straight from an awful place of no return. Like the later released "Orion," Burton's solo demonstrates that sometimes, four strings is all you need. I've recently been learning this on guitar and its really not a structurally complex song, its fairly straight forward. After a few runs through the basic setup of the song we get to a great breakdown. Climbing from Em to Gm the rhythm and lead guitars tangle together before cranking the whole thing up to Gm to Cm. Now Hammett starts the soloing and flies through every inch of the neck of the guitar...leaving no fret untouched. The song continues to mix the various riffs and patterns randomly before a final climb to a sudden pause, and return to the opening riff. After a couple bars of this, it finally hits the epic ending of hard sudden chords with loud cymbals, loud drums, loud everything. I know what you're thinking, Metallica should do more instrumentals. Don't worry, they will on other albums, and they will be equally as awesome.

"Ride the Lightning" is a strong reminder of what Cliff Burton brought to the first three Metallica albums. Its hard to imagine what the Black album would've been like if Cliff were still alive. His innovative approach to not only playing the bass, but tone and effects really gave Metallica options other bands did not have:  a bass player that could solo.

Strongest Song: Call of Ktulu
Weakest Song: Escape
Song You Know: Fade to Black, For Whom the Bell Tolls
Why You Might Hate It: You're never in a hurry and like to take things slow.
Buy It? A great vinyl find. Should be around used since it was released in the era of vinyl/cassette.