Entertainment For Lively Minds
Side One
Posted by eddie g on 25 August 2011 - 9:35pm.
I appreciate that talk of such things as 'sides' may appear anachronistic in today's ipod-infested days but I was just pondering today, when albums came in two-sided packages ( sometimes four ), wasn't it almost always the case that Side One was the best? The only exception to this half-arsed rule I can think of is 'Abbey Road'.
Er, unless of course I'm just plain wrong.
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The frst time I really noticed this
was Steve Earl's Copperhead Road. Other albums had one side which I favoured but Copperhead Road just ran out of steam at the end of side one.
My first double post
The first one
was the best.
You're just plain wrong.
Funny enough I always thought it was the advent of the one-side-only cd (and the unnecessary length of most of 'em) that persuaded artists to frontload albums with their best songs meaning even many of the better albums released since the end of the eighties end with a protracted whimper.
Or else I'm just plain wrong...
No
I think you probably have a point. Shorter albums are generally the best, certainly the one's I play the most.
Meddle
Surely the Floyd's finest moment is Side 2 - Echoes?
Most other albums I've thought of do adhere to your rule though.
Echoes
for me was always ruined by all that submarine bollocks. Side One is good though... marred only by 'Silas'.
A pedant, etc.
Seamus.
Of course,
my apologies.
Closer by Joy Division
Boy by U2, and Heaven Up Here by Echo etc. are some of the most sidetwoishly lopsided albums I can think of. Maybe it's a post punk thing.
And The Queen Is Dead, come to think of it.
Can't agree
concerning Heaven Up Here and Closer, or The Queen Is Dead come to think of it. And all of Boy is shit so is disqualified.
OOAA.
Drilltime, dear
My clique and I can't help but notice that as charming as you might be, you do spend an awful lot of time merely telling people that their taste is rubbish.
We're down wit' dat, but can't you think of some even more amusing ways of annoying people?
UU-LAA
(My apologies: I accidentally hit the up-arrow while aiming for the reply link)
I cannot
help but notice that i am not exactly an army of one in this regard.
I do not claim to be here for any purpose whatsoever.
I'm not charming either. Nor do i have time to offer a dissertation as to why my opinions are so abhorent to yourself, your clique, or the editorial staff of any periodical you care to mention.
I undermine my own opinions and those of others because i realise subjectivity is the mother of all aesthetics and critical consensus is often temporal and, sometimes, tyranically destructive to the development of newer ideas.
Cheers anyway.
Good Answer
I may have to nick that in the future and claim it as my own
On the Born to Run anniversary DVD
Jon Landau speaks of wanting a strong in and out on both sides, hence side one beginning Thunder Road, closing with Backstreets
And side two opening with the title track, closing with Jungleland
helps if you have that level of material too, of course....
Interestingly
'Born to Run' was another of my borderline exceptions... if only for Jungleland.
Erm.. Let me think now..
**thinks**
You're right.
I prefer Side Two
of Out of Time by REM. Yes, I know there's Shiny Happy People there, but the rest of it is great. On the other hand, I can live without Radio Song or the Instrumental song. And Low goes on a bit too much.
STD makes a good point that in the day of a 45 minute limit over two sides, there seems to have been a greater likelihood that the final track would be a right belter...the kind of thing to make you get up, flip 'er over and have another go.
""
EP
Out Of Time was a real disappointment to me when it was released - would have made a good EP in the old days though ( Losing My Religion and Belong on one side. Me In Honey and Country Feedback on the other )
Vinyl
Track order became more complicated with cd, vinyl looked for great opener but also had to accomodate closing side one and opening side two, so the quality was spaced.
I'm not sure Side One was better all the time, for instance most XTC albums disprove this.
CD was guilty of a lot of things, bands tried to fill 74 minutes and the more infuriating reissues stuck bonus tracks in between the old Side One and Two.
Low
Referring to REM track on Out of Time, made me think 'Low', by David Bowie. I'm not a major fan of his, but I love Side 1 of 'Low" (the song side). The movie music stuff on Side 2? & my interest fades away. It's OK, if ya like that kind of stuff.
I often dreamed
of different formats having different running orders when young. Later i imagined a format that generated a different track list every time it was played.
Simply don't tell the fans which side is which. Hey presto! everyone is baffled!
Sometimes I like to select an album on the iPod
but play it in shuffle mode. If you're familiar with the sequencing, it doesn't always work but sometimes it throws up unexpectedly great moments, e.g. recently I got "Thunder Road" followed by "Born to Run." Wow! It can revitalise your appreciation of an album.
The Joshua Tree
is perhaps the most front-loaded album ever. Probably because after trying out multiple variations to no consensus, they asked Kirsty MacColl to sequence it and she listed them from most favourite to least.
I think you're right
But I would add track 1 of side 2. I've got loads of lps where I'd get that far and stop because quality plummeted. Bowie for example is a fave of mine but Low, Heroes, Let's Dance & Lodger are all like that.
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter
Here's one for Lord Mark Ellen of Islington!
The Incredible String Band's classic, "The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter" has a brilliant first side, which is maintined on the first track of Side 2 ("Mercy I Cry City"). But after that, I'm afraid ... meh.
Bowie Side 2
I play the second sides of Low and Heroes at least as much as Side One - but for very different moods. In fact they could be different albums.
Strawbs' Grave New World
I'm not sure I even know what's on Side 2. This has made the CD remaster a bit of an adventure.
The Side One majesty of Benedictus, New World and Heavy Disguise always made me wonder why they didn't pace themselves a bit better.
Vangelis (again)
Spiral by Vangelis is one of my favourite albums of all time, but it's so backloaded it's unbelievable.
I never actually listen to the first 2 tracks any more, but the last 3 (Dervish D, To The Unknown Man, 3+3) are enough to propel it to legendary status in my eyes.
Klause Wunderlich Hits Again 3
Seems to loose it's momentum on side 2, I find.
Ooh ... I don't know
His versions of "Crocodile Rock" and "Wig Wam Bam" are definite highlights;
SIDE 2
Popcorn
Apache
Corn-Flakes
Theme From "Shaft"
If You Could Read My Mind
Mañana
Molina
Crocodile Rock
Mama - Mia
I Will Follow Him
Diana
Wig-Wam Bam
Sugar Me
Standing In The Road
I'm afraid I found his Shaft
a bit limp sonically.
Radiohead "In Rainbows"
The first side is no slouch, but the second half:
Reckoner
House of Cards
Jigsaw Falling Into Place
Videotape
15 Step
Are all 5 star classics. Come to think of it I MUCH prefer the second half of "King of Limbs" as well.
Agreed on King of Limbs
The second half of that record is one of the finest things they have done, especially 'Give Up The Ghost'
Pedantry aside (15 Step is the first track on side 1), I think that Nude and All I Need are amongst the finest tracks of their entire catalogue, and Videotape is one of my least favourites.
With you on House of Cards though, what a beautiful song.
Supergrass - I should Coco
Side one - one of the finest side ones ever
Side two - merely fantastic
Rainbow Rising
Side two was mighty - Stargazer followed by A Light In The Black.
Good call.
Side Two pisses all over Side One.