The Rock World Loses Another Legend - Alan White

Last week I learned that Alan White, drummer extraordinaire, passed away at age 72.  That made me pause because as a long-time Yes fan, I knew much of his work with the band. Yes has had many, many talented musicians within its ranks during its existence since 1968. Though White wasn't the only drummer to play with Yes, he did spend the most time behind the kit. He was the longest-remaining member in the band, never leaving, and playing right up until his death. During all of those decades, Yes was a revolving door of players, many leaving, returning, and so on. Yet ol' Alan kept on.

Alan White, during the classic Yes years of the 70s

Quite the storied career there, especially when you look at the other famed artists he worked with: John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band (playing live in concert and on most of the Imagine album), George Harrison, Joe Cocker, Gary Wright, Ginger Baker's Air Force, and The Ventures. That's just a sampling, since he performed on over 50 albums by various musicians.

I was inspired to listen to my favourite Yes song yesterday. Turn of the Century appeared on the Going For the One album (my fave Yes album, by the way) in 1977. I've always been fond of the gentle, emotional story and the lush, intimate instrumentation. Curiously, White barely plays on the track... and yet he co-wrote the song and played a large role in developing its vocal melodies and chord structure. Turn of the Century seems completely devoid of percussion until the latter portion of the song, where White plays mostly timpani, a type of kettledrum, more commonly used in orchestras. This choice of instrument adds to the building drama of the song. I feel like this is the most beautiful piece of music Yes ever composed. I always get a little misty while listening to it. And I never even knew until this past week that White played a major role in developing the track.

White was still active in the band 'til the end, appearing on their 2021 album The Quest. While his style of playing differed from that of original line-up drummer Bill Bruford, who came from a jazz background, his distinctive rock approach defined Yes's progressive sound. Such a loss to the music world. RIP, Mr. White.

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This is blog post #498.... getting closer to the big 500!

New Additions to the Record Shelf

After a long spell with no new music (on physical format, that is), I got a couple of goodies in the mail this week. It's about bloody time.

More than a month ago, I pre-ordered the vinyl LP of Alex Lifeson's new project Envy of None. This arrived just in the nick of time. I was about to go bat-shit crazy, anxiously awaiting this cool new musical offering from the former Rush guitarist. It isn't just Alex's album, though, as he's got some very talented performers on board: Andy Curran, formerly of 80's hard rockers Coney Hatch; Maiah Wynne, a young singer extraordinaire; and guitarist Alfio Annibalini... plus a handful of other contributors on drums and strings.

Maiah Wynne, vocalist of Envy of None

The album title is sort of the name of the "project", this assemblage of musicians and their set of songs. In interviews, they often hesitate to say it is the band's name, as they may or may not consider themselves a band per se. A bit of mystery there. But fingers crossed that they DO write and record again, because I really, really like this collaboration. As the record's hype stickers reads: "...dark, cinematic alt-rock". It is indeed moody, atmospheric music that is suited to late night chillin' with the headphones on.

Lifeson's guitar seems to be barely present, with only one guitar solo I can remember on the whole disc. Yet in interviews, Alex reveals that he wanted to create an ethereal, atmospheric sonic wash of sounds, something he explored a bit in Rush's lighter, electronics-laden music of the 80's, only here the guitar is so processed that it is barely recognizable. And yet I love the feel of it all. The bass (by Curran) is mixed very up-front and it's easy to enjoy his proficient and melodic style, nothing flashy, yet perfectly aligned with the other elements. Maiah is an up-and-coming vocalist, with chops beyond her years, and I can't wait to hear more from her. 

Overall, Envy of None the album is a beautiful blend of alternative, experimental and alt-rock or even pop. Even though Liar and Look Inside were the advance singles (both great, I should add), it is the instant radio hit (in my opinion) Never Said I Love You that leaps to the fore. There isn't a dull song on here. It's a consistently great album from start to finish, and it works best when digested as a whole. Catchy hooks and wonderful melodic sense somehow strike a balance with the often dark and moody material, some of which borders on edgier styles like industrial. A sort of art-rock album. Love it.

My other recent mail order purchase was an imported Japanese CD copy of the 1989 Voivod album entitled Nothingface. It's rather hard to track down at a reasonable price, but I was happy to find this "deal". I put this album off far, far too long. I have owned a digital download for more than a few years, but never really warmed to it. Only one song grabbed me, and it first did so upon the album's initial release in '89 (when I saw the "new" music video on TV)... it was Astronomy Domine, a cover of the early Pink Floyd tune. Voivod metallized the track, modernizing it for those of us unfamiliar with the original version. I've always liked Astronomy, but the rest of Nothingface... meh. I put that down to the fact that Voivod had toned down their sound for this album, and it always felt kind of limp and soft compared to their earlier thrash classics, and even other metal of the day. But fast forward to 2022, and I find I'm digging it like never before. When I'm not in the mood for the band's noiser, more chaotic music, I can easily put on Nothingface and enjoy its lighter sounding, sci-fi themed progressive hard rock. I can now appreciate the album properly and understand how this won the band mainstream success, or at least a sort of boost in their exposure, as small as that would be for such a marginalized band and genre. With a cleaner guitar tone and a lack of wall of noise, guitarist Piggy conveys a different vibe from other Voivod albums. A more palatable, sort of jazzy feel emerges in his angular riffing and soloing and his out-there chord voicings. Drummer Away is easier to pick out of the mix, too, his fascinating drum patterns driving the music in new ways. The Nothingface album... also a winner.

So, something new and something old. There IS great music out there... you just have to dig a bit to find it. Rock out, music fans!

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This is blog post #497... a milestone approaches!

The Director's Chair - Part III - Terence Young

It's been a long time since I last wrote about a favourite film director. Though I have a fair-sized list of faves, today it somehow felt like a no-brainer that I'd talk about Terence Young of James Bond fame. Young's contribution to the 007 franchise was no small feat. He was on board right from the start, at the helm for half of the fledgling series' seminal 1960's releases.

Terence Young, having a proper spot of tea on set, with a

couple of hack actors looking on

Young, of Irish descent, was born in Shanghai, China, then returned with his family to the UK, where he studied in London and Cambridge. He began movie screenwriting in the late 1930's. His first credit as a director was for Corridor of Mirrors (1948), which happened to be Christopher Lee's first film appearance. Young directed a variety of movies (none of which I've seen) throughout the 50's, and it was his 1962 adaptation of Ian Fleming's novel Dr. No that would make him a much sought after craftsman in the industry. 

Dr. No the film, while slightly altered from Fleming's 1958 story, presents relative newcomer Sean Connery as the true James Bond, as he should be on screen. Terence Young took the small budget allotted to the project and expertly spun it into a highly influential spy thriller. Unlike subsequent Bond movies, this one centred around a single exotic location, Jamaica. That saved the studio money on airfare. Dr. No introduced many elements that would become part of the Bond formula in the subsequent films: Bond first seen through the gun barrel in the intro, the stylized main title sequence, the theme music, and the overall visual style that would be retained throughout the series.

The casting of Connery was a stroke of genius, of course, but the faces of actors Ursula Andress, Jack Lord, and Bernard Lee ensured Dr. No would be a hit. Terence Young gave Connery a fatherly education in how to conduct himself in the Bond role, resulting in the cultivated, commanding, charismatic, sometimes brutal master agent that we all came to know and love.

Dr. No was a hit, so Young was offered the chair yet again for the follow-up From Russia With Love. This met with even greater success, especially considering the super tight schedule... it was rushed and released the next year, in '63. From Russia involved more air travel than Dr. No, shooting in Turkey, Scotland, Switzerland, Venice, Spain, and Pinewood Studios, resulting in production going over budget and schedule. Most of the crew from Dr. No returned for From Russia With Love. One notable addition was John Barry to compose the film's music. Barry remained on the 007 staff until 1987, scoring eleven of the films in the series. His work remains the gold standard in the history of the franchise, and in spy movies in general.

From Russia introduced even more key components to the world of cinematic James Bond: the pre-title sequence, the villainous character Blofeld, the gadget-master character Q as played by Desmond Llewelyn (who remained for all but one Bond movie until his death in 1999), fun yet deadly gadgets for Bond, a helicopter sequence, a theme song with lyrics, and more, more, more. Heaven for a Bond fan. Young co-ordinated this magical time of invention that would define the 007 adventures and those of imitators. The movie received awards from BAFTA and BSC for its cinematography, and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song.  

Young was offered the third Bond installment, Goldfinger, but he passed, opting to work on an historical comedy instead. He did return for the massive 1965 hit Thunderball, which even today stands as the second most financially successfull entry of the entire series. It won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Though Thunderball was plagued by legal disputes, those were headaches reserved for the executives, not Young. He again engineered a hit, with most filming done in the Bahamas, and a bit in France. A variety of complex and dangerous stunts and effects gave the film a realism that was at times hair-raising for the actors and crew. As reward for their trials, the team (the film) received many award nominations, plus a couple of wins, including another Academy Award for Visual Effects.

During the rest of the 60's and into the 70's, Young directed mostly European films, scoring another hit with 1967 thriller Wait Until Dark, which impressed me. The long-time Bond production team offered Young the director postion again in the early 80's, but he declined. He continued directing until the late 80's, and passed away in '94.

It's clear I've seen precious few of Young's three dozen-plus movies, but his impact on the world of my beloved James Bond remains untouched. He brought an eye for detail, ingenuity, dedication, perseverence - all manner of directorial talents really, plus his screenwriting skills to his duties on the earliest James Bond classics.

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For more discussion about my favourite directors, have a look at my introductory post here, then its follow-up posts at: The Director's Chair - Part I - Robert Wise, and The Director's Chair - Part II - Denis Villeneuve.

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This is post #496... the big 500 is looming.

Songs I Hate By Bands I Love

Don't you hate it when a band you love creates a song that you just can't stand? It happens. Sometimes the musicians have an idea that they think is unique and cool and "Why not?". This can work sometimes, but there is always the potential for it to crash and burn. The worst is when you are enjoying an album by your favourite artist and smack dab in the middle of that glorious set of music is a song that makes you cringe. And you've just gotta skip that track - upon every listen, because it's so insufferable.

Really? Dave Mustaine makes a bad decision,

not for the first - or last - time.

For example, for me, The Beatles were and still are the primo rock-pop band of all time. I love a lot of their music and like pretty much the rest of it. But there's the odd song that brings a frown to my face. Why Don't We Do It in the Road? Why did you guys have to record such an awful tune? There are hardly any lyrics at all... just the song title repeated over and over and over, with a few other words thrown in for kicks. Sounds like an improvised goofball lark... which never should have made it onto any proper album. Droning, unimaginative, plodding piano and drums do nothing for me. The quiet out-of-tune-sounding guitar noodling in the background does nothing to help. I normally like McCartney's singing voice, from full-bodied crooning to powerful screams, but on this track, he just sounds like an angry drunk howling for change on a street corner. In my opinion.

The next song is Neurotica by Rush. This tune doesn't really stick out much within the context of the Presto album, since pretty much the whole record is so low-key and unimpressive. It's a shame, since there are cool little touches here and there. But this track is so completely forgettable that it barely registers at all when you listen to the album. Nothing special going on instrumentally, and Geddy sounds like he's dialing in his vocals, bored with the whole affair. Plus some awkward transitions, especially to the bridge section. And Alex's solo, while usually a spine-chilling foray, feels like a slap-dash effort just patched in at the last moment. It's bland beyond belief. Even Neil's lyrics are repetitive, inane, and uninteresting on any level. Ugh.

Van Halen must have completely lost their minds in a chemical haze when they thought it was a good idea to include a cover of a moldie oldie from 1924 called Big Bad Bill (Is Sweet William Now) on their Diver Down album. The album is, of course, packed with cover songs, but at least they're all rock or pop or something in between. But Big Bad Bill brings the album to a grinding halt in the midst a bunch of fun, up-tempo rockers, the preceding track being the crunchy melodic Little Guitars. It's old-timey music to its core, with light shuffle percussion, dad Van Halen on clarinet, and Dave doing his best vaudeville-style hammy vocals. Silly and maybe a little fun if you've got nothing better to do, but plunked into the middle of an album by the world's greatest rock band (at the time), this kills the mood. Not a terrible song by itself, but it doesn't belong here and I have to hate it for ruining the flow of an album that is pretty darned good despite its fractured conception.

Back when I gave punk music a passing interest, I sort of liked Anarchy in the U.K. by the kings of spit and safety pins, the Sex Pistols. But in the hands of the mighty Megadeth, it becomes a wet noodle... a true weak spot on the band's otherwise tech-thrash reputation. Even the obligatory addition of a metal guitar solo and some double bass fills can't save this poor attempt. How was this ever considered a good decision? Why cover such an already hackneyed song? Mega-Dave and Company injected no suitable energy or snarl (for which Dave is famous, too) into this cover, just dialing it in, I guess, as a last minute addition to meet the album length requirement. A head-scratcher, for sure.

Black Sabbath took some chances during their Ozzy years, and the Technical Ecstasy album drew divided opinions. I haven't even heard the album more than a few times in my life, but I was sort of turned off from first listen. I think I'm appreciating more and more of it as time passes, but the track She's Gone is a tune that feels completely out of place here. Tony plucks acoustic guitar over symphonic strings, while Ozzy emotes on this ballad that robs the album of energy. Five minutes of nothing special just to interrupt a set of blistering rockers. Bah!

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Post # 495 - Countdown to 500!