Desert Island Discs

[Albacore]

I have got to interrupt here as no one has selected any Hendrix, Jam, Wellar, Queen, Paul Rodgers, Buddy Guy, O.C.S., Van Morrison, Santana, Snow Patrol or Led Zep and I could go on. Like John my taste is very catholic and it changes from week to week. If I filled in this topic I would be back changing it every fortnight and I would be still changing it a year later as I have favourites for my mood at the time and at the moment it is Jazz.

[iamtheblues]

John,
I have four albums out of your top 10 (Dylan and Beatles).
I agree with your comments about SD cards. I don't know if you are familiar with the BBC Radio programme, "Desert Island Discs" on Radio 4 (you can probably listen to it on the bbc.co.uk website, as they have a "listen again" feature for a lot of good programmes. Unfortunately you need RealPlayer installed to listen though.
The premise of Desert Island Discs is outdated, but they have a different celebrity on each week, actor, author musician or somebody famous for being famous, like tv presenters who may choose 8 albums and an item of luxury, so I imagine your palm/sd card thingy would be OK, not sure about the batteries, though.
Risto, my collection also has four from your top ten, Beautiful South, Sting, Dire Straits and Bruce. I don't see any rules preventing greatest hits collections, or "Now That's What I Call Music Vols 1 to 4,793 (but not all of them) for that matter.
Albacore, my collection is littered with stuff you mention, Paul Rodgers "Muddy Waters Blues" was up for inclusion, as was
Hendrix "Axis, Bold As Love" and "Are You Experienced", Santana's "Caravanserai" nearly made it too.
Basically, what I wanted was to get as many of your all time top ten favourites and collate them into the definitive TalkGraphics collection. Who knows, make a cd of the result, design the cd cover artwork (challenge?), obtain copyright permissions and release it, bringing fame and fortune to all involved... just an idea.
Saludos,
Bob.

[Zenarcher]

Van Morrison-------Astral Weeks
Todd Rundgren-----A Wizard a True Star
Led Zep------------ 1
Led Zep------------ 3
Led Zep------------ 4
Love--------------- Forever Changes
Beatles------------- Revolver
Stones-------------- Exile on Main Street
The Blue Nile--------- Hats
The Who------------- Who's Next

Apologies to those I left out.

[iamtheblues]

Hi Zen,
Your choices match 8 albums in my collection,
only Todd Rundgren and The Blue Nile are missing.
Glad to see you chose Revolver, I thought it was their
most rounded album, only "Yellow Submarine" spoilt it
for me. "Alone Again Or" from "Forever Changes" is one
of my all-time favourite tracks, but I found the rest of
the album a bit ordinary. have you heard "Alone Again Or"
by Calexico? Well worth looking out for.

OK, not really enough data coming in, no two people have
chosen the same album yet, but as far as artists are
concerned, I have awarded a point system as follows:
!0 points for a number one down to 1 point for a number
ten. That being the case the favourite artists so far are;
1. Bob Dylan
2. Led Zeppelin
3. The Rolling Stones
4. The Beatles
5. (Joint) all the rest.

Folks, we need more lists if this is going to be meaningful.
I can't believe there are so few forum members who are
lovers of music.
Saludos,
Bob.

[handrawn]

Oh I'm a lover of music Bob but it would be mostly classical/jazz and a healthy sprinkling of 'world music' [awful label] that I would choose from. I'm not sure there would be any 'rock/pop' music in my all time top ten at all. [well maybe Pink Floyd].

[iamtheblues]

Hi Steve,
If Beethoven's "Eroica", Bach's "Brandenburg Concertos",
Stravinsky's "Rite Of Spring" or Roland Kirk's "We Free Kings"
and Cannonball Adderley's "Somethin' Else" are your bag,
then we should be told. The same goes for Compay Segundo,
or Ali Farka Toure et al, it's all as valid as the rock music
that has been posted here.
Saludos,
Bob.

[handrawn]

okay, I'm onto it, but I may have to make separate lists for differing genres - trying to rate Shostakovich against Kid Ory is like impossible man [for me anyway]

[handrawn]

well the first four are easy - they are not in order, they are equals -

Shostakovich: 2nd Piano Concerto - John Ogden
Malcom Arnold: Guitar Concerto - Julian Bream/Simon Rattle
John Harle's Saxaphone - John Harle
The Very Thought of You - Norma Waterson, Richard Thompson et al.

I will go away and consider the rest - I may be some time
Trouble is, it all depends what mood I'm in......

[iamtheblues]

What makes it more difficult is the next one is going to be number 5.
I have Norma Waterson's solo album from 1996.
"There Ain't No Sweet Man That's Worth The Salt Of My Tears"
is a particular favourite of mine.
I just got "Raising Sand" by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss today,
some very good stuff on this, too.
Saludos,
Bob.

[handrawn]

trouble is - I never got my head round this 'favorite album' idea - most albums to me have a good track or two, and the rest is ok to dire.

Take Ry Cooder's eponymous 1970 [first?] album: Police Dog Blues and One Meat Ball superb, the rest well........

However there isnt a bad track on The Very Thought of You

1. Love of My Life [Freddy Mercury] (2:22)
2. Reply to Joe Haines [Lal Waterson] (2:39)
3. Blaze Away [Abe Holzman, Jimmy Kennedy] (2:11)
4. Josef Locke [Richard Thompson] (3:01)
5. Over the Rainbow [Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg] (3:16)
6. Bluebird (Judy G) [John B. Spencer] (1:01)
7. Dreaming [Loudon Wainwright III] (3:30)
8. Al Bowlly's in Heaven [Richard Thompson] /
The Very Thought of You [Ray Noble] (7:36)
9. River Man [Nick Drake] (3:55)
10. Solid Air [John Martyn] (1:22)
11. Change Partners and Dance [Stephen L Graziano] (3:03)
12. On Fridays He's Fred Astaire [Clive Gregson] (1:17)
13. Fallen Leaves [Eliza Carthy] (5:02)


If I had to choose just one [one of the DD requirements as I recall] - this one would be it, simply because of the power of the songwriting in all of these - lyrics and music both - and of the performances.