Los Angeles Burning! ( #BOTB )

     The news from Los Angeles--the city in which I reside--is that right now as I write this it's a beautiful day with clear blue skies and good visibility of the mountains. From where I sit the world seems fine.

      Of course, across city it's a far different story.  Winds are picking up again which might spread the fire to potentially worse proportions.  We have to leave it up to the firefighters--and ultimately God. My household has been safe and will likely remain so as far as fires go. For now there's been a lull of new reporting, but perhaps the all station all hour blitz will go back to being the programming for all.

      Seems like the whole world is burning from the TV reporting.  And sadly for some it is.

Battle of the Bands

 

        Battle of the Bands is the blogging event started by Far Away Series and now hosted by StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands.   This event happens each month on the 15th and on some there is also a Battle on the 1st of the month.  My blog is one of those with a second Battle excepting over these summer months.   The premise is simple:  Listen to the songs presented below and then in the comments vote for your favorite and tell us why you liked it.  Then visit the links listed near the bottom of this post for more Battle action.

Los Angeles Fires!

     As I was watching the continual fire reporting on the t-vision news, I was in the midst of thinking about my next Battle of the Bands.  My theme seemed pretty obvious.  One song had immediately jumped into my mind.  Then as I thought on I started coming up with more songs about fire and, more specifically, Los Angeles fires. There is a wealth of songs about this topic.  I narrowed it down to two by a couple of groups that I've liked for a very long time.   The videos are kind of like yule log vids for a post-Christmas apocalypse for the new year.  Have fun!

 

 Spirit    "The Great Canyon Fire in General"  (1968)

         As I was watching the fire coverage on TV (and every channel had amazing compelling coverage), the song that first started playing in my mind was this one by the versatile group Spirit. I was a big fan of this group's music in my youth and it still holds up well for me.  Take a listen.  The song not only seems like an accurate account of what we've been seeing, but an interesting optimistic contemplation about time and the future.  At least that's how I read it.  See what you think...

Blue Oyster Cult  "Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll"  (1972)

     I heard BOC's first album on WUOT, the University of Tennessee station in Knoxville probably late 1971 or early '72.    I don't know why I never had any of their albums in my own vinyl collection, but I was very familiar with their music. I still listen to it and enjoy it as much now as ever.  This song off their first album is not as graphic an account as the Spirit song, but it's a very cool metaphor for something and somehow the song works for the fires currently blazing.  What do you think about this one?

 

Time to Vote!

          You better get your vote in before everything goes up in flames!  Which of these songs do you prefer?  Battles are no fun without you the reader participating.    Hopefully you have an opinion of some kind.  You don't have to know about music to have an opinion since it all comes down to your own personal taste.

        Please vote on your favorite by letting us know your choice in the comment section and tell us why you prefer the version you chose. Then after you've finished here, please visit the other blogs listed below who may or may not be participating this time around. And if you've put up your own BOTB contest let us know that as well so we can vote on yours. I don't know if anyone else will be doing a Battle this time around, but you can still check out these sites.


Here are some other places where you might find BOTB posts:

 StMcC Presents Battle of the Bands

  'MIKE'S RAMBLINGS'

'Curious as a Cathy'

Sound of One Hand Typing

Jingle, Jangle, Jungle 

Landmark Sounds (Diedre Knight)

BATTLE OF THE BANDS BY DEBBIE D

Trivial Music Silliness

Results to come on Wednesday January 22

      God willing we're still here.  I'll just trust.  I'll also post some further comments about this Battle as well as anything else that seems worth saying.  

Super 8 Debut Albums

           Be sure to check out all of the other lists by going to DiscConnected where you will find the Linky list.

            I thought that it would be difficult to come up with eight debut albums, but the difficult part as usual was in narrowing it down to only eight.  I didn't.   So what I did was come up with four upon which there would be probably be wide agreement on.   After that I have eight debut albums that are special to me.   You'll probably notice that most of these are from the late 1960s and early 70s--that's just the way it is.

Some No-Brainers:

     Steely Dan    Can't Buy a Thrill (1972)     This album first hit my radar when I saw Steely Dan performing "Reelin' in the Years" on The Midnight Special television show in 1972.  They blew me away.  And when I heard the album I was even more impressed.  Since that album, Steely Dan has been consistent in the quality of their releases.  But if this had been their only release, they would have still made musical history on the merits of this one alone.

King Crimson    In the Court of the Crimson King  (1969)     One of the early progressive rock albums remains one of the best of the prog rock genre.  It's an amazing album and the group has a reputation for cutting edge music.

    Blood, Sweat, and Tears  The Child Is the Father to the Man (1968)    Chicago II is probably my

 favorite of the horn band albums, but BS&T I think surpasses Chicago's debut effort.   Blood, Sweat, and Tears' debut is phenomenal jazz-rock fusion.

 

    The Band     Music from Big Pink (1968)     In my opinion one of the top ten best rock albums of all time.  I am not the only one with this opinion.







Some of My Favorite Debuts:


      Good Rats   The Good Rats (1969)     I recall that I was in the University of Tennessee at Knoxville Undergraduate Library perusing a classical music magazine in 1970 and I found a review of this album.   I thought it odd that they would be reviewing a rock album in a magazine like that so I figured the album must be good.  I found a copy in the University Bookstore and bought it.   It was good and I enjoyed it.    Years later I was looking through cassettes in the cut-out bin of a record store and found several tapes by the Good Rats.  I had not realized that the band had continued recording after that debut album.    The first album is not my favorite, but it is an excellent album.  On hearing the later albums the Good Rats became one of my favorite groups.  The Rats still play primarily in the New Jersey area and maintain a solid base of hardcore fans.




        Crazy Horse     Crazy Horse  (1971)     Primarily known as a back-up band for Neil Young, Crazy Horse has been around with various line-ups for many years.  The original band members released a very fine album in 1968 when they were called The Rockets.   This Crazy Horse album is the first released under this group name (without being Young's back-up band) and I'm going to call it a debut, though in a way it's not.  It's a superb album that adds Nils Lofgren and  Jack Nitzsche to the line-up and includes support from Neil Young and Ry Cooder.     Danny Whitten's "I Don't Want to Talk About It" is included on this album and has since been covered by many artists including Rod Stewart and Rita Coolidge.



         Grin (Nils Lofgren)   Grin (1971)   Grin was a band headed up by the very talented singer, songwriter, and musician Nils Logren.  He has been a singer and guitarist in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band for about 25 years in addition to his solo work.   His debut with Grin displayed his diverse skills as a songwriter.   This is an outstanding album.

Seals and Crofts     Seals and Crofts   (1969)     This duo had a string of huge hits throughout the 1970s.  Though they had been veterans of hit bands since 1958, they didn't make a real name for themselves until they embarked as a duo.   Their many commercial hits were wonderful examples of some of the finest in pop music, but this debut album to me is their real masterpiece.  Heavenly harmonies and mystical songs make this album an absolute joy to listen to.




       Spirit    Spirit (1968)   This is hands down one of the best, most tasteful, most well-rounded, finest musicianship bands in the history of rock.  I'll put them up against Steely Dan any day.   Their debut is a musical masterpiece and I just don't think there is any reasonable argument otherwise.  Spirit ranks as one of my favorite bands.

     The Police     Outlandos d'Amour (1978).   Before Sting and the Police became absolutely huge they were an edgy band that rode in on the New Wave rock music movement.   The album includes the controversial hit "Roxanne".   The entire album is simple reggae influenced rock and it's all good.

        Judybats    Native Son (1990)    This alternative rock band comes from Knoxville, Tennessee.   I have four of their albums and they are all excellent.  This debut is a truly outstanding effort that includes the Roky Erikson song "She Lives" which was also included on the tribute album Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye.

          Rich Mountain Tower    Rich Mountain Tower  (1971)  One of the earliest records released in quadraphonic stereo sound, this has the feel of the harmony bands like Crosby, Stills, and Nash.   The band came out of Knoxville, Tennessee and has a sweet country soft rock sound.   Of the three albums this group made, this is the only one I've heard.  The album is a real gem..




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