8th
High Fidelity.
Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity is a great, great book. It’s the male version of Bridget Jones’ Diary. It’s a great breakup book. It basically just explains to you in its own subtle way that ‘yes, you are a jackass, but so are all men, so it’s okay’. I’ve completely stolen what I’m about to do from the book. That’s right, my top 5 albums of all time. It’s probably gonna take me about a week to fully complete this post, and no doubt I will constantly edit it for another week after that, but here it is… (for now)…
1) Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III
Amazing. Truly amazing. It combines everything you need from a Zeppelin album. Hard rock from the 70’s (Immigrant Song), acoustic folk masterpieces (Gallows Pole), a truly amazing band performance (Since I’ve Been Lovin’ You) and great guitar work (Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp). In ‘Since I’ve Been Lovin’ You’ Led Zeppelin III manages to contain mine (and my fathers) favourite Zeppelin song of all time and I would recommend anyone to give it a listen. The album would probably make my top 5 on this song alone. For periods in my life, (as lame as it sounds), I have been obsessed with it. The fact that the other 9 songs on this album are some of Zeppelins best as well means it fully warrants its number one position in my eyes.
2) Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of the Orpheus
Technically a double album, but it’s my rules so I’m having it. There are 17 Nick Cave albums in total (I think) and on every album there is at least one song I actually hate. Don’t get me wrong I love Nick Cave but there’s always one. This album has it spot on however, with every track of the highest order. There’s not one bad song on there. Cave’s words on this are lyrically fantastic, and the music is split between being uplifting and fun on Abattoir Blues, and melancholy and reflective on Lyre of the Orpheus. The only downpoint of this album is that you have to change discs half way through. For those of a certain age it’s almost like listening to a casette tape.
3) The Mars Volta - De-Loused In The Comatorium
When I first heard this it was because my good friend David North had won tickets to Reading from their website. He kindly took me so I thought I better give their album a listen. On the first listen I didn’t know what the fuck was going on but then live they blew me away and I gave it a second chance. It’s a perfect album from start to finish, each song linking into the next, creating a flow that sounds more like one song than an album of 11. Special merit goes to this album as well for being responsible for a new chapter in my life, redefining my music writing and my outlook on my future. It also helped me fully discover prog rock and thereafter many other great bands such as King Crimson and Pure Reason Revolution. It also caused my to spend well over a £1000 on effects pedals.
4) Portishead - Live in NYC
Sometimes mid-song I forget this is a live album it is that perfectly executed. Beth Gibbons has a great voice, and being backed up by an amazing band, great songs, and a full orchestra, Live in NYC is a truly sonic masterpiece. For those of you in bands, you will know that there are days when you play well and everyone else plays badly, days when you play badly and everyone plays well, days when you and the drummer are on it, but the singers hungover and so on… And then there was that one magical day when you were all at the top of your game. And it was special. You tried and improvised a new solo that was perfect. The drummer added a fill every 5th bar but somehow it worked. Imagine this day but you are playing some of the best songs written and there is a full orchestra backing you up and some genius of an engineer is recording it. Then you get Live in NYC.
5) Leonard Cohen - Greatest Hits
The first four were easy, then fitting in the fifth was a nightmare. The list of bands that nearly made it is endless: The Velvet Underground, The Doors, Kula Shaker, Pure Reason Revolution, Tool and Camille to name a few. However Leonard Cohens greatest hits just sneaks in above the rest. The songs on it are good, yet they are nothing special. The recordings are pretty sketchy, there are audible mistakes. Cohen is a poet, not a singer, and his voice isn’t fantastic. But it is his voice and his words that draw you uncontrollably in. It’s also unusual in that whether you’re happy or sad the album fits, the songs and words are just true to live, and so honestly spoken that I think it’s impossible not to like.
