Rewind
A Buyers Guide to Randy Newman
Quick – who is the greatest songwriter America has ever produced? Okay, how many of you said Bob Dylan? More than three quarters of you I should imagine and you may even be right, but how many of you looked beyond the obvious and said Randy Newman? Quite a few probably, because you’re reading an …
Not Forgotten – Alan Hull – Pipedream
Alan Hull is one of those frequently forgotten names in British rock music. Probably best known as one of the creative forces behind Newcastle folk-rockers Lindisfarne, who were themselves best known for a string of hit singles in the early 70s (including the rightly celebrated “Lady Eleanor” and “Meet Me on the Corner”) and a …
Not Forgotten: Joe Cocker – Mad Dogs & Englishmen
“Thee Mad Dogs, thee Engleeshmen and Joe Cockair….” Crookes lad Joe Cocker was always more comfortable interpreting others songs rather than composing his own originals. None of his hits have been self penned and most casual fans would struggle to name one song that Cocker has written (I know I do). That said Cocker has …
Not Forgotten: Terrorvision – Regular Urban Survivors
How to Make Friends and Influence People had shown brief glimpses of what Terrorvision were capable of, but on the whole it was relatively scrappy. It appeared that the four lads from Bradford had shot their bolt and that they were never going to amount to anything particularly special. Then came Regular Urban Survivors. Opening …
Not Forgotten – Pink Floyd – The Final Cut
By this point in their career Pink Floyd were only a band in name. While building his wall, Roger Waters ego had crushed all before him. Richard Wright had been usurped, David Gilmour was losing interest in Water’s material and Nick Mason’s position in the band was looking increasingly fragile. The Wall had been an …
Not Forgotten – Black Crowes – By Your Side
For a band with such a reputation for shelving whole albums there’s a good argument for By Your Side being the forgotten Black Crowes album. Easily better than anything since The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion and more economical than their most celebrated release, it was also tighter than the band’s debut. In many ways …
Not Forgotten – Wilco – Sky Blue Sky
The career resuscitation of Wilco following the release of the rightly hailed Yankee Hotel Foxtrot was a joy to behold. From being dropped by a short sighted record label to the redemption they found proving the doubters wrong, via losing key band members and being celebrated by the notoriously fickle music press, it must have …
Not Forgotten – Imani Coppola – Chupacabra
One quick glance at my album collection will confirm that I am pretty ignorant when it comes to rap or hip-hop. I’m afraid that it just doesn’t push my buttons and I find it has very little in the way of cultural relevance to me. It’s odd then that Chupacabra has found its way into …
Not Forgotten – The Divine Comedy – Fin de Siècle
Neil Hannon (the man who effectively is The Divine Comedy), cut a unique dash through the British music in the mid 90s, as his almost imperceptible rise to near-fame ran parallel to the Brit-pop movement, meant that he sometimes got lumped in with the unwashed masses. Foppish, louche and possessing a more sophisticated musical mind …
Not Forgotten: Bernard Butler – People Move On
When former Suede guitar botherer Bernard Butler announced he was going solo after a short but troubled collaboration with Soul singer David McAlmont, I barely blinked. I was actually pretty ignorant of his career up to then actually. I had heard that he had quit Suede just before the epic and gloriously overblown Dog Man …