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| From | "Michael Bennett" <mrhonorama@hotmail.com> |
| Subject | What was going on in the '70s?/Richard Ashcroft |
| Date | Sun, 26 Oct 2003 09:35:31 -0600 |
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I'm listening to some mellow Sunday morning tuneage -- led off with my
freshly purchased used copy of America's HISTORY album. And it got me
thinking...
I have my own theories about this, but I was a little bit young when groups
like Bread, America, Abba and many others were being ripped to shreds by
orthodox rock critics. Those are just some examples -- none who I think
were consistent geniuses, yet all have some incredibly superior pop music
(ex. -- "Daisy Jane" -- simply heartbreaking -- though I always wondered if
it would be twice as cool if the song faded on a reprise of the effective
quiet opening...) on their discs. Though a group of a much different
stripe, Sparks was not a favorite, and, as some of you may know, I think
they're alright (NEWSFLASH!!! -- according to the band's web site, Sparks
will be touring the US in Feb. and Europe before that). Another example
would be Black Sabbath, who were reviled in their day.
I wish I still had my Rolling Stone Red Book -- but I'm guessing that some
of the stuff they were going ape for was full of pretension or dull as dirt.
So my question, for those who were really around then -- what was up with
that? Did you think the critics were nuts? Did it affect your buying
habits, and you had to come back later and get this good stuff?
On an unrelated note -- the new Richard Ashcroft record -- not a great
record, and not that new, but I like this a lot -- he's toned down (without
getting rid of) his epic quality and makes some cool dramatic rock. I never
thought he'd be so good this far into his career.
Mike Bennett
Record reviews and more at http://fufkin.com
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