"New" Vintage Vinyl and In the Listening Room

Things have sort of been picking up musically lately. Until recently, I've had a sort of lazy approach to listening... just popping on any old CD now and then as I tap away at my laptop or whatever. Not very focused on the music or on anything else, for that matter. I can probably blame this malaise on the weird pervading gloom that's settled over the world during this pandemic.

But when something on my Discogs wishlist finally came up for sale at a reasonable price and not too far from home, I jumped on that. Just a couple of days ago, my record order arrived in the mail, and I'm stoked to give these albums a solid listen. First off, I got a compilation called Best of Stampeders, with twenty hot tunes that are the highlights of the 70's Canadian rock band's career. And since I didn't want to break the bank, but I did want something extra special, I nabbed the classic Green River by Creedence Clearwater Revival.

The Stampeders are a band I first heard on a beloved 8-track tape of mine when I was a kid in the late 1970's. Their rousing New Orleans was one of my favourite tunes on that tape, and though I have re-acquired that old K-tel album - this time on vinyl - I wanted a fuller representation of the Stampeders. Months ago, I was curious enough to check out a bunch of their music on Youtube and was pretty impressed, occasionally even bowled over, by their other stuff. Of course, I already knew Sweet City Woman, a radio staple ever since those olden days. But the rest of it was new to me, and I especially liked Wild Eyes, which certainly deserves its place on this Best Of record. That plus Rocky Mountain Home and Running Wild are immediate favourites among a lot of strong material on this 1977 LP. Though the record and sleeve show some visible wear, the LP plays clean without any problems. I'm very happy with this purchase.

Green River, by CCR, has long been considered their best album. For many years, I've had a Best Of CCR in my collection, whether on tape or CD, so I've known a few of the songs from Green River, including the title track. Yet Bad Moon Rising is the only song that I really enjoyed enough to play a lot. I even used to jam to that on guitar. So on Green River there are a lot of songs that are new to me. I've yet to spin this record, but will do so later today. I'm looking forward to CCR on the headphones, accompanied by a nice cold one.

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As for my listening habits over the past while, it's been a mixed bag. Australian queen of dance music Kylie Minogue just dropped the first single, Say Something, from her upcoming album Disco. I have to say that even though she has sort of returned to her roots (a good thing, if done right), this new tune is lacking. The sound is so sterile, so cold, and devoid of any real instrumentation, that it's hard to like it. Two albums ago, Kylie's music turned hyper-produced with far too much in the way of digital interference with her voice, not to mention very chilly, studio-generated backing music. This new Kylie needs more groove and warmth (her last album Golden came close), like she had right up into the early 2010's. So I will not jump on the pre-order bandwagon for this one. I'll wait for more advance singles to get a better idea of how this album will sound.

While watching an episode of the new show Devs, I heard a very cool song that I had to search a bit for online. In the end, I learned it was Oh I Wept by 70's rock group Free. I think the only Free song I've ever known was All Right Now, which I feel I've heard enough. But this other one... wow, very chill and soulful. In fact, as I first listened to it during the show, I tried to analyze it and guess who it might be... some sort of cross between Steppenwolf and Cream, that sound and era. I was in the ballpark but couldn't get on base.

During a bit of Youtubing, I stumbled down a rabbit hole to find (for the second time, I think) Caro Emerald doing a funky, jazzy swing pop song called Back It Up. A very pleasant blend of genres that is really easy to listen to. This led me to A Night Like This, similar in vibe but with more of a Latin-American tempo and sound - very fun and dancy.

Earlier in the week, I had a little record-listening session. I didn't play full albums, but instead just did album sides - I chose a side with songs I really wanted to hear and slapped that on the player. Then on to another album's side. And so on. I didn't have a lot of time, so I only put on half of the first Steppenwolf album, then on to Elton John's Greatest Hits (1974). Cool oldies.

Flashback to 1980: A Banner Year in Metal Music

This past week, I watched a Youtube video where some guys kicked around ideas about what the best year was in the history of metal. While I could see some of the points they made, I really could not relate to any opinions about heavy music after the mid-80's. I mean, really, the most pioneering, most exciting, and most influential bands of the genre had already made their mark in the history books by then. That's my take on it, anyway.

It's a no-brainer that 1970 was a key year mainly for the release of the very first Black Sabbath album. This self-titled debut gave us the raw elements that would become key to music in the heavy metal genre. Songs of horror, fantasy, doom, and dread, full of atmospherics, the drums' pounding heartbeat, the often distorted and sometimes melodic guitar and bass riffs, the thick wall of sound that signified the power of the band... and the genre.

Later that same year, Sabbath released their second album, Paranoid, to even greater acclaim. This is the best-known of their recordings, with massive, timeless hits like the title track, Iron Man, and War Pigs. It's stronger on radio songs, yet I lean toward the more gothic gloom of Sab's first album.

1970 also spewed out the legendary In Rock, by Deep Purple. A milestone album, for sure, though not a favourite of mine. The year was perhaps significant for its smattering of proto-metal, music that wasn't quite of the genre in question, but was pioneering in sounds and styles that would help form metal-proper in about a decade. Bands like Uriah Heep, Led Zeppelin, and UFO offered up early hard rock that laid the foundations for what was to come.

A year that truly stands out for me is one that I relished as a teenaged rock fan - 1980. I was already into heavier music like Zeppelin, Triumph, Rush, and some Sabbath, so when I found myself frequently picking up new albums that year, it became clear this was a great time for bone-rattling music. Maybe I wasn't conscious of it being a "special" year at the time, or even during the decade that followed, but today it's easy to look back and recognize 1980 as an important one for metal.

The album I loved - and still love - most from that year was Heaven and Hell, by a revitalized Black Sabbath line-up. With newcomer Ronnie James Dio on vocals and the rest of the original band, Sabbath pummeled us with a powerful and polished sound that we had not witnessed until this recording. And this was the record that clinched my loyalty to these guys, especially the Iommi-Butler-Dio grouping.

Another high point of 1980 was the comeback of AC/DC, who had suffered the loss of singer Bon Scott. They roared back with Back in Black, a blistering metallic history-maker in honour of the fallen Scott. New man on the mic Brian Johnson brought something new and yet familiar to the band with his powerful screech. 

It's hard to forget good ol' Ozzy's contribution to the music world in '80. His debut solo album Blizzard of Ozz took the world by storm thanks largely to guitar wiz-kid Randy Rhoads. The songs mostly stand the test of time and you can hear how Rhoads' new approach to guitar has influenced rockers during that decade and beyond. Crazy Train was playing on every boombox within earshot back during my youthful years. Good times.

Blue Oyster Cult played a type of hard rock that could sometimes be mistaken for heavy metal, and I became aware of their quirky riff mastery via radio airplay. Yet the album that hit the streets in '80 didn't exactly get that kind of attention. Cultosaurus Erectus was that record, and I only learned of it while skimming through a friend's albums. He recorded it to tape for me and I've been a fan ever since. Black Blade is the standout track among many great tunes on Cultosaurus.

I recall first seeing On Through the Night, the debut disc by some little UK outfit called Def Leppard, in my best friend's record crate. These guys were part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal... and after a couple of albums of refining their sound, they invaded and dominated North America - and the world, selling records by the boatload, with maximum radio and MTV airplay.

Speaking of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, the movement brought to North American shores even more young and inventive musicians to entertain metal-heads in the making. Like me. There was Iron Maiden, with their self-titled first recording... a bit rough and punky, but definitely cool and unique. I was on board almost immediately, and became a huge Maiden fan for years, finally catching their ear-bleeding horror-show live onstage a bit later in the decade. 

Another NWOBHM export was the punk-metal hybrid Motorhead, who won some of my affection with their raw Ace of Spades album. I was particularly fond of the title track, The Chase Is Better Than the Catch, and Love Me Like a Reptile. They were all attitude and volume. Perfect!

American didn't take this invasion lying down, as Ted Nugent shredded brains with his Scream Dream album. I wasn't a huge fan of that record, but lead-off track Wango Tango has remained a fun and rowdy tune to crank when the mood strikes.

A band that sort of rode on the new wave of UK exports was the German metal band Scorpions. They had already paid their dues, touring and recording for much of the 70's, and by 1980 were coming into their own with the hot and heavy Animal Magnetism album. Around this time, I took notice of these shred-meisters from the Continent and within a few years, I was a major fan. Packed with powerhouse twin guitar songs, there is no lack of melody among the massive riffs.

Another veteran band who were able to hitch a ride to international attention via the British wave was Judas Priest. Like the Scorps, these guys had worked hard through the 70's and with their 1980 album British Steel, forged something just commercial enough to win them a whole new audience overseas. Though I'm a fan of Priest music before and after this record, I have long had an aversion to British Steel. It just feels so stripped down, dumbed down, and I never want to hear Living After Midnite again. Yet this was the tipping point for Priest; British Steel launched them toward big things, some way better than this album. Ah well, it served its purpose.

While not strictly metal, Rush has their moments, and certainly pioneered some of the more technical and progressive aspects that would creep into the music of artists like Maiden and Voivod, just to name a couple. Their heavy prog-rock was still strong on Permanent Waves, which I snapped up the moment it hit store shelves back in 1980. I was already a Rush fan, but this one helped cement my loyalty to the Canadian rock trio. The Spirit of Radio... yeah, we all know that song. And it's still excellent.

Van Halen was already a big thing, with their rockin' party-hearty tunes all over the radio. I loved everything I heard by the Halens, and was hankering for more when their '80 release Women and Children First dropped. It was the first Van Halen album I ever bought... and it was on vinyl (with that creepy David Lee Roth poster inside). This was even heavier than their first two albums, both in sound and lyrical themes. Dark and menacing, very metallic, yet still embellished by Eddie's guitar and songwriting wizardry, plus those trademark VH vocal harmonies.

I know I'm only scraping the surface here, but these are the high points of the year 1980 for me. These were records that I either owned or knew very well at the time. It was easy to get a feel for albums you didn't own back then (pre-internet) by just hanging with like-minded people, and listening to their stuff that you didn't have yourself. And it was nice when album-oriented radio stations (R.I.P.) played record sides or even whole albums... another cool way to get a taste of something new.

There's no denying the importance of albums like Heaven and Hell, Blizzard of Ozz, Back in Black, Ace of Spades, Iron Maiden, and British Steel. Countless musicians since have cited these as major influences and inspiration. While 1970 beheld major milestones, there were only a few, really. 1980, on the other hand, was awash in historically significant music by both emerging and established (if not yet internationally successful) bands. And that, my friends, is why I consider 1980 to be a major year - if not THE best year - in heavy metal.

My "Action" Movie Collection... In A Nutshell

Action movies. I barely own any pure action movies in my collection. There are plenty of cross-overs, where genres mix, like sci-fi action or martial arts action. I guess what I'll do is whittle down those sorts of hybrids to something I can live with, maybe with some slight genre-blending, but leaning more toward the action.

Tom Jane as my favourite cinematic version of The Punisher

Mad Max: Fury Road - the recent reigning king of all action movies... yeah, part sci-fi, part road movie, but pure unadulterated action with a capital A. The 80's Mad Max flicks were hot actioners, too, in varying degrees.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day - until Fury Road came along, this was my undisputed #1 of all time. So, so close. Sci-fi backdrop and elements abound, yet fast-pace, all-out classic action scenes all over the place. The original Terminator was more a horror story, the killing machine hunting down its prey in mostly dark settings. The sequels were, I suppose, action in some way, though the sci-fi was always a key component.

Aliens - the original Alien was outright horror, essentially a slow-burn haunted house-type picture with the monster stalking its prey. This sequel amps up the pacing, and the number of creatures and action sequences. Classic stuff that spawned all the tropes for copycats to follow.

Batman: The Movie was termed an adventure back in '66, but it was designed with comic book action in mind, so I feel like if this was released today, it would fall neatly into the action genre. And as for the 80's and 90's Batman film series, yes, that's all definitely action-oriented. How about The Dark Knight Trilogy of the 2000's? I'm not as familiar with them, but they'd likely qualify, right?

Enter the Dragon? well, it's martial arts, but maybe this one inspired, influenced, and established the tropes that so many action movies to come would embrace. Right? The earlier Bruce Lee films were more "pure" martial arts. Am I a bit wishy-washy on this one?

The International - definitely! It's very James Bond-ish (in fact, I've long maintained that Clive Owen should have been the next Bond when Craig came on board that franchise). Anyway, a fun spy-action thriller.

James Bond... all of the official films (the Eon Productions) plus one non-Eon, Never Say Never Again. Bond was a man of action... a spy (sometimes), but always an agent/operative in the field, shooting, punching, kicking, you name it. I'd say between Bond and Bruce Lee, those two pioneered and defined early on what an action movie should be.

Kick-Ass - no question that this is among my favourite "superhero"-type movies in modern history. This was so unlike all the rest of them, and was perhaps the very first of its kind, inspiring other films about regular Joe's with no superpowers who throw on a mask, train to fight, and patrol the very "real" city streets. The sequel was nearly as good.

Kingsman: The Secret Service - this and its sequel are pure action in all its over-the-top gory glory. Subsequent viewings were less satisfying, but hey, these still fit the bill.

The Matrix - I couldn't convince some friends with this one, just because of all the sci-fi story points. Well, I can see their side, but I also feel like no action movie list would be complete without it. I mean, when I think of The Matrix, I picture that famous gun battle with Keanu and Trinity running up lobby walls, shooting down and kung-fu-ing that troop of soldiers.

Predator and its sequels, spin-offs, and reboots - The original was the best, with Arnold in his prime, but they all fall into the sci-fi action category. Definitely action.

The Punisher - again based on comic books, this is more straightforward with its extreme gun and hand-to-hand action violence. I've got the 80's Dolph Lundgren version, the 2004 update with Tom Jane, and its sequel, War Zone, this time with Ray Stevenson wearing the skull shirt.

Yup, that's it! I was never much a fan of Die Hard, Bourne, or even Indiana Jones flicks, so those simply never figured into my growing home video collection. And even though I find Rambo and Lethal Weapon movies entertaining when I'm in the mood, I don't like them enough to buy them... a streaming rental will do. 

Happy 2020 Canada Day! The records are a'spinnin'...

Today has been a cool one, though rather solitary, thanks to the COVID-19 situation.

Mr. Lightfoot, Canadian folk legend. Jeez, smile, why don't you?

But no worries, it's been a good one. Got a long solid sleep, then went for a very warm weather run, followed up by a resistance band workout. A sweaty and satisfying exercise regimen. Then food, followed by some hooch and a good book. Then I had the itch for some music on vinyl. So I skimmed the latter half of my collection (just to be different) for something to listen to. Some ZZ Top, from their 1981 El Loco album, was in order, so I slapped that on for some groovin' Texas-flavoured blues-rock. I even rearranged my stereo speakers for maximum effect. I've been experimenting with enhancing my sound experience by moving the speakers around lately. I think I've hit upon the best configuration now. Suffice it to say, tunes like Pearl Necklace and Groovy Little Hippie Pad sounded extra crisp and punchy today.

After that, something heavier seemed appropriate. And this happened to satisfy my Canadian content requirement for this birthday of my homeland. Voivod, those crazy progressive thrash metalheads from Quebec, were exactly what I needed. Some chaotic and inventive heaviness that I haven't gone for lately. Quite cool. I opted for their very strong 2018 album The Wake, and played side one, which satisfied my hunger for some metallic Canadiana.

Then to continue the Canadian vibe, I went with some mellower stuff, the folk mastery of good old Gordon Lightfoot. And yes, this legendary songwriter and performer is still among us. I have his Summertime Dream album, considered by many to be his best, with its famous song, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Anyway, I chose to spin side two, which I wasn't quite as familiar with. All great stuff, especially The House That You Live In. And I love the reference to the first space shuttle, Enterprise, in Too Many Clues in this Room. It's hard to forget Lightfoot, who hails from my own hometown of Orillia. And you know there's something special about a guy who writes songs that have been recorded by the likes of Elvis, Johnny Cash, and countless others. Way to go, Gordo!