Trollheart

The worm bring us back to the mid-nineties today, for one of those number one hit singles that made Oasis so much the flavour, not only of the month, but of the year. In recent times they've faded away a little, and all we really hear about them now is when one or the other of the Gallagher brothers opens their mouth and puts their foot in it (isn't that a physical impossibility? Metaphor, man! Metaphor!), but this is from when they were riding high, and it's a great little song, one of their best.

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NSW

Love this song, and love the Earworm section of this journal!

Also, props for featuring the Buffy theme song earlier too!

Oh...and "Summertime"...

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Trollheart

Is feidir linn! Yes we can! Feature another Irish album, that is! Been a while now, so let's have a look at what my homeland, the emerald isle, the land of saints and scroungers --- sorry, scholars! --- has produced over the years that you may have missed hearing, or even knowing about.
Stuck together with God's glue --- Something Happens! --- 1990 (Charisma)


Another great Irish band, who could have been the new U2 perhaps, but it just didn't work out. This was their second album, and four years later they had essentially broken up. They still reform to play the odd gig but are not officially a band anymore. If nothing else, they've left us with the best ever acronym for a tour, with the Something Happens Irish Tour!

The album was actually well received when released, at least in Ireland, with two of the singles charting. The most popular was “Parachute”, of which more later, but the opener, “What now?” was actually my favourite, with its powerful rock melody and its great guitar hooks, it was a shoe-in for radio airplay, and it got a lot of that. Second track, “Hello hello hello hello hello (Petrol)” had the parentheses added after fellow Irish band That Petrol Emotion accused them of ripping off one of their songs. I don't know the song, so I can't say, but there must have been something in it, if they made the amendment.

“Parachute” is next, a great piano-driven bopper, with cool vocals from Tom Dunne, who would later go on to great fame as a radio DJ, Ray Harman, the band's guitarist, gets behind the keys to really drive the melody on the piano. Great, commercial, with more hooks than a butcher's shop, and the album is ticking along really nicely so far. “Esmeralda” is a short, bouncy, fun little track with more than a hint of the Waterboys or fellow Irishmen the Stars of Heaven, while “I had a feeling” is far more down and dirty rock, with growling guitar and heavy drums from Eamonn Ryan, more great hooks and another fine track.

“Kill the roses” starts off acoustic with a great bass line, then comes to life for the chorus, recalling the best of Springsteen's “Nebraska” period, and Alan Byrne's bass drives “Brand new god” in a semi-acoustic song with understated singing by Dunne, while “The patience business” opens on a piano line very reminiscent of Billy Joel's “My life”, but then settles down into its own groove. Nice horns, though they're probably on the keyboard? Very little information exists on this album, and the copy I used to have was on a tape cassette, which I no longer have, so it's thanks to Wikipedia for most of the information on the album, and even that's quite minimal.

“Devil in Miss Jones” has some nice piano and some often incongruously heavy guitar, but doesn't impress me as that special a song, and “Good time coming”, while a great little rocker, is again similar, this time too similar to the Stars of Heaven for me to stand out on its own. “I feel good” is a nice atmospheric little mid-paced rocker, with more than a tinge of country-styled rock, and is in fact the longest track on the album, almost five and a half minutes. Some great guitar from Ray Harman helps this track stand out, and then we're into the closer.

“Skyrockets” is less than two minutes long, a sort of half-blues, half-acoustic track with an interesting melody and an almost acapella vocal --- yeah, despite there being music: you'd have to hear it to understand what I mean. It's an innovative end to the album, and certainly a track you remember when you're putting the disc away.

All in all, this album has some flaws but I think that had circumstances been kinder, Something Happens! could have been a real force to be reckoned with in Irish --- and who knows, international? --- rock music. As it is, they certainly penned some great tunes and made their mark, if only for a short time on the charts. What is it they say? The brightest candle burns the shortest? Thinking about those skyrockets again....

TRACKLISTING

1. What now
2. Hello hello hello hello hello (Petrol)
3. Parachute
4. Esmeralda
5. I had a feeling
6. Kill the roses
7. Brand new god
8. Room 29
9. The patience business
10. Devil in Miss Jones
11. Good time coming
12. I feel good
13. Skyrockets

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THIRD SPIN

And here's something else we haven't done for a while! Time to spin the wheel, and see where it lands. Round and round and round she goes --- please not another Moody Blues album! --- where she stops.... ah! There she stops! Hmm. In-ter-est-ing!

Icon Acoustic TV Broadcast --- Wetton/Downes --- 2008 (Frontiers)


Two accomplished musicans, both former or even current members of Asia, John Wetton and Geoff Downes have collaborated in the past, under the umbrella of the Icon Project. This is an Icon album, though it bears both their names on the sleeve as well as the Icon name, and is an acoustic rendering of mostly Asia hits, as well as a few from the first Icon album, released the previous year. Geoff Downes has been a member (and has returned as a member) of Yes, also collaborated with Trevor Horn in the Buggles, and of course has been with Asia for every album. John Wetton has worked with King Crimson, Wishbone Ash, Uriah Heep and Bryan Ferry, in addition to his solo work and has also teamed up with everyone from Steve Hackett to Phhil Manzanera in his long career, so both have impeccable pedigree within the music business.

The session kicks off with a beautiful understated acoustic version of Asia's top hit, “Heat of the moment”, and it's quite amazing how different to the originals acoustic treatments can be. Stripped down to guitar, piano and keyboard with, it seems, no percussion at all, the song takes on a whole new dimension. It's also very much slowed down, to make it a ballad where the well-known version is a power rocker. “Voice of America” is the next Asia track to get the acoustic makeover, with truly beautiful violin and piano. This was a ballad anyway, when it made its appearance on Asia's third album, 1985's “Astra”, but there was a lot of power in the chorus, which here is of course missing without the big drum sound, but for what it is, “Voice of America” sounds more like the original than did “Heat of the moment”.

“Let me go” is the first of the Icon songs, and as I haven't heard the first album I can't say how different it is to the original, but here it's given a lovely violin and keyboard treatment before stabbing piano takes over as Wetton begins singing, the piano almost keeping a metronomic drumbeat for the song, which works very well. I get the impression this was a fast, rocky track on the original Icon album, but I like the version presented here. It has an ending very reminscent of Genesis' “The lamb lies down on Broadway”, particularly the track “The Lamia”. Another Icon track follows, “God walks with us” is a nice little ballad, with some really nice backing vocals from Downes, but again it's hard to relate how the track works as an acoustic, not knowing how the original goes. Some really nice Spanish guitar in the track, anyway.

Now this one I feel qualified to speak on! Again from the debut self-titled Asia album, “Sole survivor” is carried on a raft of keyboards on the original, but here it's the piano that takes centre stage, and the tempo is slowed down as well, with good backing vocals and again the piano sometimes used as a percussion instrument (which I guess it is), more like a drum, keeping the beat. The keyboard apreggios on the bridge work very well too. In general though I think this was perhaps a bad song to choose for the acoustic treatment, as it just sounds forced, to me.

“Meet me at midnight” is another Icon original, nice harpischord-like keyboard and classical guitar , then we're into Asia's second album, “Alpha”, for one of the great ballads from that album, “The smile has left your eyes”. This works very well, being a slow and somewhat sparse song in the first place, here played on violin and piano, while “I lay down”, another from the Icon album, is a nice piano-driven ballad, with Wetton on top form, almost religious fervour in his singing. One of my favourite tracks from “Alpha” is next, the powerful closer, “Open your eyes”, here treated to piano and synth arrangement. It may seem a strange thing to say, but it's nice that Wetton and Downes chose Asia songs that John originally sung, as it makes it easier to relate to them rendered acoustically. All the Asia songs here are from the first three albums, after which Wetton departed the band, returning for 2008's triumphant “Phoenix” (reviewed a page or so back) and remaining with them for last year's “Omega”, and he's always been my favourite vocalist in Asia. Downes, of course, has been with Asia from the beginning, and remains with them to this day.

Of course, they couldn't leave out the other big hit single, which put both of them on the map. “Only time will tell” is again taken along on piano melody, with great backing vocals, but I miss the fast pace of the original, and again I feel that if it hadn't been such a huge hit, and therefore an expected inclusion, they might have left this alone and gone for something like “Without you” or even “Time again” from that album, which in fairness is not one of Asia's best, despite being their debut and a huge seller.

Another from “Alpha” then, “Don't cry” is originally a fast-paced rocker, which actually opens the album, and they do a decent version of it here, at least keeping the original tempo of the song, inasmuch as they can. It's the last Asia track on the album, which then closes with two Icon originals, the first of which, “In the end”, comes across as a nice ballad, with those violins again and the ever-present piano, and the violin takes centre stage for the closer, “There in your bed”, a short track that finishes off the album nicely.

I do have a few complaints, or let's say, niggles, perhaps even disappointments about this album. The first is of my own making, so I take full blame for that: I haven't heard “Icon” so I can't tell whether these acoustic versions are better, worse than or the same as the originals. But the Asia tracks I do know, and while some are handled well, others are not so much. Also, I would have liked to have heard more of John Wetton's guitar in the tracks. While it does crop up from time to time --- and when it does, it's very good! --- the bulk of the songs seem to rely on Geoff Downes' piano and/or keyboards, and after a while it gets a little samey. There are, in fact, tracks where the piano treatment does not work at all, like as I mentioned “Only time will tell”, or “Sole survivor” --- sometimes you need that guitar!

All in all though, for fans of Asia --- or indeed, Icon, Wetton and/or Downes --- this will be an interesting album. For those using it as an introduction to Asia, I wouldn't: you'll get a skewed picture of them, thinking all their songs are ballads, and while many are, they have some great rockers too. Check out instead the first three albums to get a flavour of what they're really about, and how the songs represented here from their early catalogue actually sound.

Acoustic albums are always hard to review, as there are of necessity fewer instruments, fewer players and much more stripped-down arrangements. Here, Wetton and Downes rearrange their old material from Asia, sometimes well, sometimes not so well, and add in some of their solo work from Icon. It's a decent album, but I am left wondering what the actual Icon album really sounds like?

TRACKLISTING

1. Heat of the moment
2. Voice of America
3. Let me go
4. God walks with us
5. Sole survivor
6. Meet me at midnight
7. The smile has left your eyes
8. I lay down
9. Open your eyes
10. Only time will tell
11. Don't cry
12. In the end
13. There in your bed

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A little bit ago I opened a section called “Head start”, where I feature great opening tracks from albums. There, I stated, which is true, that the first track on the album is probably the most important, as it can often determine whether you go on to listen to the rest of that album, or not. However, similarly important is the closing track. An album which you have enjoyed every bit of, but which closes with a bad, weak or disappointing track can really colour your whole memory of the album. You want it to be good opening and good closing (preferably good all the way through, of course), and in essence you want to be humming, whistling or trying to sing to yourself the last track as you put the CD away, switch off the media player or whatever.

And so we come to the companion slot for “Head start”, which I've thought a little about titles for and decided finally on “Happy endings”, as that's what I want to experience on finishing an album. This, then, is the first edition of that section, and will feature, as did “Head start”, five tracks which I feel help those albums close really well.

First up we have the closer from Marillion's stunning 1983 debut “Script for a jester's tear”, which is so good I literally could not move for minutes after having first heard it. One of the most powerful anti-war songs ever written, it's “Forgotten sons”.


A totally fantastic album, The The's “Infected” builds up to the powerful closer, the unutterably brilliant “The mercy beat”, which just leaves you wanting more. Perhaps too good a closing track?

(P.S. Don't worry about the weird Mexican stuff at the beginning of the video: it starts about a minute in. Not sure why it's there, but there you go...)

Probably one of the most emotional songs closing an album I've ever heard, the mesmerising ending to the Divine Comedy's “Casanova”, this is “The dogs and the horses”.


Peter Gabriel's first four albums are all called “Peter Gabriel”, so they're identified by year. This is his third, 1980, which yielded the hit single “Games without frontiers”, and closes on the powerful political indictment of South African Apartheid, the story of activist Steven Biko, and this is simply called “Biko”.


From one of the best David Bowie albums ever, the closing track to “The rise and fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars”, the semi-acoustic, introspective cautionary tale, “Rock and roll suicide”.

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Time for some more good closing tracks from albums. Starting off with the finale to Arena's 2005 album “Pepper's ghost”, this is the phenomenal “Opera fanatica”.


An incredible little track from an album already reviewed, George Michael's surprisingly good “Listen without prejudice volume 1”, this is the closer, an introspective little acoustic piece that somehow encompasses the entire album. Class.


The amazingly low-key ending to Pink Floyd's final album with Roger Waters, from “The final cut”, this is the emotional and evocative “Two suns in the sunset”.


And speaking of emotional, the closer from Tears For Fears' opus “The seeds of love”, the truly majestic and breathtaking “Famous last words.”


And just so that you don't drift off to sleep right away, we'll close with the final track on the final album featuring Bruce Dickinson before his departure from Iron Maiden, the title track to 1992's “Fear of the dark”.

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Been several months since we last checked out those tracks that close an album well, even if the rest of it has been not the best. Always important, I think, to have a good ending as this will invariably be the tune that gets stuck in your head, and which you will most remember initially about the album, until you hear something else. A bad ending track can come close to ruining your experience of an album, while a good one can heighten and complete it. Good memories, instead of bad; sweet instead of sour.

We've had Supertramp before, and indeed many of their albums end strongly, but one of the best in my opinion is the closing track to “Breakfast in America”. This is “Child of vision”.


One of my favourite female rock singers, this is Lana Lane, from her album “Lady Macbeth”, this is called “Dunsinane walls”.


And one of my favourite male singer/songwriters, Dan Fogelberg. This is the closing track from his 1977 album “Nether lands”, and it's “False faces”.


I like this one from Axxis, not only because it's a good closer, but because it really says “that's the end of the album”. From “Voodoo vibes”, this is “The show is over”.


And another metal track to end this selection, it's Praying Mantis, from the album “Predator in disguise”, with “Borderline”.

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Random Track of the Day
Wednesday, September 14 2011
First we had metal, then classical, and today some pop/rock. Varied week indeed, and we're only halfway through. Random Track of the Day today comes from Robbie Williams, from his album “Sing when you're winning”, a decent track if not one of the best from that album, this is “Forever Texas”.


Forever Texas --- Robbie Williams --- from “Sing when you're winning” on EMI



A good swinging rocker, plenty of swagger and arrogance as in many Robbie songs. A good time is had by all! Great cheeky lyric as per usual: ”Everybody getting cash for the bung/ Everybody wants to know how I'm hung/ You can read it in the papers...”

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Once again, the worm brings you another great track that will lodge in your brain and refuse to move out till you call in the bailiffs! This is the Waterboys, and one of their classic hits, the excellent “Whole of the moon”.

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Thursday, September 15 2011
More hard rockin' heavy metal to get us through the week! Today's track comes from Holland's Elegy, this is actually taken from their debut album, released in 1992, it's “I'm no fool”.

I'm no fool --- Elegy --- from “Labyrinth of dreams” on T&T



Haven't listened to these guys prior to this, but I do like what I hear. Good power metal, great vocals, excellent guitar solos, and a very decent melody. Rock and/or roll!

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