| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| John9 |
Posted - 06/12/2010 : 10:46:46
Although later albums bore the name 'Love' or 'Love with Arthur Lee', there is no denying that 1970 saw the end of the definitive era. Up until then, Arthur Lee recorded and performed with clearly defined line-ups...though of course within these there were inevitably, changes. I was just wondering how other members would rank the six original albums. I know that some would put the first three LPs well ahead of the three that followed....and so I certainly don't expect everyone to agree with my take on this. But here goes anyway:
1. Forever Changes - existential, ethereal, symphonic and probably the most thought provoking lyrics and strongest melodies ever assembled within a single album.
2. Four Sail - like the proverbial Phoenix rising from the ashes, Love re-emerged as an exceptionally tight band with a talent for powerful, jazz tinged and yet still highly melodic rock.
3. Out Here - I'm the first to acknowledge that it was stretching things a liitle to make this one a double....but to my mind, its many beautiful and haunting melodies are amongst Arthur's very best best.
4. Da Capo - as has often been documented, the first six songs on this one were a remarkable surge forward. If only side 2 had been as strong, then Da Capo would easily rank as second. If only............
5. Love (debut) - borrows especially from Byrds, Stones and Yardbirds influences. What makes it such a compelling listening experience is that Love's inimitable originality is already evident......though off course, it is not yet fully realised.
6. False Start - minimalist titles and lyrics...and not especially strong melodies. Too imitative of the heavy rock vogue which had characterised 1970 ....but also excellent production sound....I still love it! |
| 4 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Joe Morris |
Posted - 07/12/2010 : 02:15:23
1. Forever Changes (the peoples favorite) - A+
The best album ever recorded, basically. Sure, theres albums like Pink Moon, Every picture tells a story, Hey Jude, which are probably the peaks (studio album wise) for Nick Drake, Rod Stewart & the Beatles, respectively, but when push comes to shove, which album do you just love the songs on? And its a VERY strong collection of songs indeed! perhaps its better they didn't use any of Bryans songs instead of Revelation - imagine Forever Changes without Alone again or! Still, with regard to
2. da capo - Half of a great album - the 2nd side is pretty wretched though - either in mono OR stereo! Love boring? check out Revelation! - Grade: B
3. Love - not a bad album at all, but basically their live set cut to disc. A few memorable cuts (Can't explain, Emotions, You I'll Be Following) but most noteworthy in the growth the band would make in a VERY short period of time! The odd folk song (Mushroom clouds) offers a nice flavor that one might not associate with Love, but a lot of the songs on the album DO sound alike on that problematic second side. I'm still giving it an A- though, because its a fine 1st release for a band.
4. Four Sail - Arthur trying out a new sound and his band having fled in a flurry of recriminations over drugs, money and so forth.
A fine collection of members like Jay and George form around 'our hero'. Sadly the songs are not up to the (very) high standard of its predecessor. Too many silly throwaways (Neils Song) and even filler (Talking in my sleep) which has HITHERTO never appeared on a Love album. Not a bad album at all, but its not great. Nice to have the jazz touch (Good Times) but suffers from being the follow up to Forever Changes. Perhaps if it had followed da capo? - Grade: B
5. Out There - Loves 1st double album. Good songs (Willow Willow) along with others that just go on too long (Love is more than words). Grade: C+ .. It might be better to find..
6. Studio/Live - MCA Love! - a GREAT collection of the studio tracks from the preceding album (Out Here), and easier to listen through all the way; Love is more than words & Doggone are abbreviated (thank GOD!)
The live side is a bit of a dud, perhaps it would have been better if the live songs had more substance (it would be years before earlier (pre FS) tracks like Bummer in the Summer would see release on a live album). So.. something of a missed opportunity! Still, nice to have "Nice to be" and a 2 minute "Doggone" on one side! The 1st Love album yours truly picked up. Grade: B+
7. Out There - a compilation of the best tracks from Out Here and False Start. Haven't heard it, could well be out of print if not put out by Rhino, or Elektra Traditions. In which case it could still well be in print, as well as featuring excellent liner notes!
8. False Start - Great great album. The last Love album for MCA, which Arthur botched by getting it in writing from Bob Krasnow that he would be released from his contract if the album wasn't top 20.
Did very well at the time for a Love album, regardless, undoubtedly due to Hendrix playing on the opening track. Strangely, "Everlasting first" is the worst song on the album. Well, either that or Slick Dick (which may be better live!)
Tracks like Flying, Anytime, kinda katchy! Wonderful album, regardless, if a little short (only a half hour!)
Grade: A
9. Love Lost - Love on Columbia. Arthur blowing raspberries. Crap.
10. Vindicator - Arthur Lee. A lot of fun, with Arthur doing his best Hendrix on his 1st solo album, from 1972. Featuring Band-Aid! Try to find the reissue from the late 90s on A&M with great Hendrix covers like EZ Rider as bonus tracks. Seen as a nail in the coffin for those who wanted Arthur to do Forever Changes mark 2, but great fun regardless, with little spoken nursery rhymes here and there on the album. Again, terrific all the way through, starting with "Sad song"
Moving in a new direction on this one. Grade: A-
11. Black Beauty - Love. Aside from "Beep beep" (which hopefully isn't an Arthur Lee song as its as bad as LA Coloco!) this is a lot of fun. Skid not really a friend is terrific. The song titles are guesswork. According to Rozelle its I'm YOUNG and ABLE not "Good and Evil" ! This should see release ... one of these years... Grade: B+
12. Arthur Lee (1980) - probably the worst solo album of Love's
(actually Bryan's are pretty good - thank you Sundazed!!)
Interesting because of "I Do Wonder" - a Forever Changes outtake. Its the best song on this one by a long patch. "Bend down" is the worst song ever written by Lee (Note: "Revelation" was a CO write by Arthurly). Arthur starting to do covers (Many rivers to cross) at this point as well. "Seven and Seven Is" doesn't fare as well! Arthur plays harmonica on "Down street" which is good, but while tracks like "Stay Away From Evil" offer a little r&b to this version of Love, perhaps there should be less throwaways like "One". And thats the 1st song, and FEELS endless! Even "Thailand" (an album outtake) is of more interest
Grade: B-
13. Arthur Lee and Live (aka Five String Serenade) - New Rose label. Strange set. Odd songs like "The watcher" break up the flow on the second side. Indeed, lets not discuss the 2nd album as its pretty uninspired and full of tedious blues runs (Black Cat Blues)
Great songs on the first side though, like "You're the prettiest song" and "Five string serenade" (which seems to have been a song Arthur played in the 60s)(perhaps Whittington convinced him to play it in the studio? Hey is Whittington in prison?)
Grade: B
14. Bryan Maclean - ifyoubelievein. Strong collection of songs by Bryan, quite a lot written in the 60s. Very fine release, wonderful liner notes as well. You gotta love Sundazed, they're a (come to) Rhino Records on the east coast. Absolutely wonderful set. Released in the late 90s, soon before Bryans passing. A critics favorite. Arthur was "inside" by this point, curiously Bryan did no tour to support. Perhaps the best Love related release post-Forever Changes. Grade: A
15. Bryan - No One Was Kinder, with Maria Mckee. Not the best audio quality. Still worthwhile though!
16. Bryan - Praise & Worship. Now I like this. I know its about God, but even the most avowed atheist like yours truly can respect spirituality. I spent two hours at Saint Patricks Cathedral last Friday just amazed at how beautiful the place was. I can't always listen to this double album (take THAT Out Here! I mean Out There) but its a very good release. Grade: A-
17. Bryan - Intra muros. Very fine. Quality seems to be the thing with Bryan. Recommended. Too early to grade, I've only listened to it through 4-5 times!
18. Snoopy - H.O.M.E. - perhaps it would be too arbitrary to grade this album just from Snoopy's performance on the Love Story dvd release! (Yikes! put some pants on Snoop!! MORTIFYING!!)
19. Gethesemene - Johnny Echols (with Baby Lemonade) - Haven't heard any tracks from this live - can anyone comment? How are the songs from this coming along live? 
20. Real to Reel - Love. Deserves a reissue. Perhaps with bonus tracks if theres anything left? Why someone saw fit to release (garbage) tracks like "You said you would" as a single I can't imagine! The version of "Everybodys gotta live" from this album saw release on a cd sampler a few years ago and was put out by Oxford American magazine. A very fine album with a lot of great songs. I was always disappointed Arthur never did songs like "Time is like a river" in the early 90s, but you can't have anything can you? Who'll stop the music? sounds a bit soul, always cool. Even the covers on this album (Be Grateful for what you got by Vaugn, Busted Feet by Arthur Lee)are fantastic as well. Great great stuff. Grade: A- |
| waxburn |
Posted - 07/12/2010 : 00:35:46
quote:
Originally posted by John9
Although later albums bore the name 'Love' or 'Love with Arthur Lee', there is no denying that 1970 saw the end of the definitive era. Up until then, Arthur Lee recorded and performed with clearly defined line-ups...though of course within these there were inevitably, changes. I was just wondering how other members would rank the six original albums. I know that some would put the first three LPs well ahead of the three that followed....and so I certainly don't expect everyone to agree with my take on this. But here goes anyway:
1. Forever Changes - existential, ethereal, symphonic and probably the most thought provoking lyrics and strongest melodies ever assembled within a single album.
2. Four Sail - like the proverbial Phoenix rising from the ashes, Love re-emerged as an exceptionally tight band with a talent for powerful, jazz tinged and yet still highly melodic rock.
3. Out Here - I'm the first to acknowledge that it was stretching things a liitle to make this one a double....but to my mind, its many beautiful and haunting melodies are amongst Arthur's very best best.
4. Da Capo - as has often been documented, the first six songs on this one were a remarkable surge forward. If only side 2 had been as strong, then Da Capo would easily rank as second. If only............
5. Love (debut) - borrows especially from Byrds, Stones and Yardbirds influences. What makes it such a compelling listening experience is that Love's inimitable originality is already evident......though off course, it is not yet fully realised.
6. False Start - minimalist titles and lyrics...and not especially strong melodies. Too imitative of the heavy rock vogue which had characterised 1970 ....but also excellent production sound....I still love it!
Forever Changes
Da Capo
Firs album
Four Sail
Out There
False Start
Black Beauty |
| lemonade kid |
Posted - 06/12/2010 : 16:52:36
I'm going to be totally predictable.....almost with Out Here as the ringer
1) Forever Changes
2)Da Capo
3) Out Here
4) Love "Love"
5) Four Sail
6) False Start
Though any one of those albums would make most bands
proud to have been a part of...but the bar is SO high!!
_____________________________________________
Letting your freak flag fly is a state of mind,
not a fashion statement.
-lk |
| rocker |
Posted - 06/12/2010 : 15:31:28
Mine..at the ends we agree but the middle is just a bit different..
1. FC.........the masterpiece....
2. Da Capo.....the band had a destiny with 'art!"...
3. Four Sail...as an encore Arthur and the band got down to earth...
4. Love's 1st.....good but I see it derivative as a start ut that'slike all diamonds in the rough)
5. Out Here (john I may change after listening more to this one)
6. False Start....
And after all is said and done I'm convinced that the greatness and style of FC came from the fact that they held their hard rock side in check. When they did FC, they had the understanding and subtlety to know when to rock it up and to lay it back. Ironic that all that "power" was used in a different way to make somehting new and different in rock music. |
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