Entertainment For Lively Minds
Return to Form - no, really !
Posted by ainsley009 on 3 April 2009 - 8:27am.
Mention of XTC in a recent thread prompted me to think of artists who produced albums that are really, actually, no honestly it really is, up there with their best after a protracted lay-off, split or just a period of albums that were not too great.
The "great return to form" only to realise two weeks later that its nothing but, has been widely discussed, not least on the Podcast, but who really DID manage it ?
XTC's Apple Venus, followed up by Wasp Star, are right up there with the early albums.
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Bowie....
After misplacing his mojo for 20 years, turned in Heathen. Right up there with Low, Hunky Dory and Scary Monsters.
Dylan did it with Time out of Mind
Agreed on both counts ...
Dylan of course does this periodically ...
For those who missed it first time around, can I commend Paul Thompson's excellent - and some might say definitive - graphic representation of Dylan's career highs & lows, set against the rollercoaster career of Van Morrison ...
http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/dylan-and-morrison
Surely..
...Bowie is due the Rick Rubin treatment round about now. Where is the great man? Are we never to have another new Bowie album?
Possibly a health problem?
Didn't Bowie have heart problems? Pure speculation on my part, but perhaps he doesn't need the money or the hassle.
Surely return to form applies to the blog too
No mention of the usually weekly postings for feckin' XTC for a while until, bingo, here's one.
Suppose it makes a change from King Crimson.
Has Robert Fripp ever worked with Andy Partridge? Wimbourne and Swindon in the same neck of the woods, aren't they?
American Music Club
Love Songs For Patriots was their comeback after many years of inactivity as a band and solo albums of varying quality from Mark Eitzel. I'd say this was more than a return to form, but actually the record they always should have made. So much so, I never bought the next one because they seemed to have made their definitive statement.
American Music Club - not as good as they used to be...
I'll have to disagree - they don't seem to have any focus any more, perhaps they're not driven like they used to be, perhaps Eitzel is actually happy and doesn't hate himself like he used to.
'Everclear' is the definitive AMC for me. 'Mercury' is genius in places but Froom messed it up, mostly by putting bloody synths all over it. And some of the songs are crap.
Agree on Everclear
Disagree on Mercury, I love that album and a lot of that is the production; I don't think Eitzel sounded better before or after. Except maybe on that little live solo thingy.
Also agree /disagree
I love both "Mercury" and "Everclear". I've tended to find that both of the most recent albums contain some stone cold classics. "Home" and "All my love" both stand up proudly next to "Last Harbour". I've tended to find the best of the new ones are the ones that they do live, they make you go back and re-appraise them.
Eitzel is still one of the funniest front men EVER though.
never seen them live...
... I should make the effort, really.
Saw the live once...............
.......just before they split in the early/mid nineties. Eitzel destroyed "Bad Liquor", slammed his guitar down, walked off, leaving Vudi, Danny and the boys looking embarrased. Not the best end of gig i've ever seen.
Good call
Wasp Star and Apple Venus are my two favourite XTC albums. No contest.
Mine
Too.
Thirded.
Yup, me too.
The Go-Betweens
I think their run of albums from The Friends of Rachel Worth to Oceans Apart were as good as anything they did in their heyday.
Go-betweens
Yep, although I'd say 'bright yellow bright orange' isn't quite as good as the other two, but then again 'Talullah' isn't as good as the records either side...
Neil Young
Neil did it with erm...ah...wait for it....no...it's gone.
Landing On Water
perhaps? :-)
Neil has decided to enlighten us on.....
The credit crunch on the new missive.
Yawwwwwwwwn.
I'm all for more Neil but not preachy tosh.
One thing is for certain...
The Rolling Stones haven't done it.
If you read "Their best album since Exile On Main Street." it means '"This record is shit."
Sad
but true
Sparks
"Hello Young Lovers" and "Exotic Creatures of the Deep" are the equal of "Kimono My House" and "Propaganda" although after a few below par albums they had been working their way back to top form.
The next R.E.M. album
really will be their return to form.
Eric Clapton - "From the Cradle"
was his best since "461 Ocean Boulevard" and was a real return to form after a long series of very patchy, hit and miss albums.
Paul Weller - "22 Dreams"
in my view, his best work since The (under-rated) Style Council.
You're right Mark
after years of rip off riffs, 22 Dreams is pretty good and the Style Council are well due a reassessment.
Bangles - Doll Revolution
It flopped but for my money, this was just as good as the first two albums. (Everything not being my personal cup of tea).