Day 0747 - Tuesday Night Music Club

Sheryl Crow "Tuesday Night Music Club" (1993)

Sheryl Crow is another of those who seems to have been a lifelong lover of music.  Her parents both played musical instruments, she studied composition and then made a living mixing teaching work, singing with bands at night, and recording advertising jingles.  Crow also toured with Michael Jackson in the 80s and provided backing vocals on his "Bad" tour.   After that she started singing backing for other artists and laid down a few songs of her own for film and TV.

Crow tried to record an album with Police and Split Enz producer Hugh Padgham, but neither she or the record company were happy with the result and it was shelved.

Crow started a relationship with musician Kevin Gilbert and the two of them were involved with a loose group of musicians and songwriters that called themselves the Tuesday Night Music Group.  The group worked extensively on this album and Crow and her record company were much happy with this mix of country, blues, balladry, and even pop (in the shape of the almost out-of-place hit single "All I wanna do").  

Great collection of songs.  I recognised "Strong Enough" though I think that was through a cover.  Pretty sure I've heard "the na-na song" too.

Day 0647 - Stone Roses

Stone Roses "Stone Roses" (1989)

When I lived in the UK, the music fans whom I knew seemed to rave about the Stone Roses.  I've never been quite able to understand the appeal based on the songs of theirs that I'd heard.   Oddly (given that they appear to only have 2 full-length albums) I had never heard much of the material on this album before.   

I was much more used to their sound being a stripped down almost funky dancy take on rock; but this album seems to have its roots more in 60 pop-rock and folk (even featuring a reworked version of Simon & Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair").   There is a good deal more melody than I was expecting, and some sonic experimentalism with track "Don't Stop" seeming to be the music for previous track "Waterfall" played backwards with different lyrics.    

As a fan of reversed music, I wholeheartedly support this approach.  Reversing a piece of music really does produce an entirely different sound, often with a different mood to it.   When I was younger, I had a Beatles cassette that got twisted.  Once I rolled the tape back in, half of the album played backwards.  It honestly cracked my mind wide open, and I loved it.

Day 0488 - Talk Talk Talk

The Psychedelic Furs "Talk Talk Talk" (1981)

An 80s band that managed to bridge the gap between the mainstream and underground pop scenes.  Melding melodic guitar lines and catchy saxophone, with a bit of punk directness showing up on some track.  The vocals seem to run somewhere between the ragged drawl of Shane McGowan and the snarl of Lou Reed.   The lyrics are anti-love and more focussed on sex for sex's sake, with penultimate track "I wanna sleep with you" feeling particularly aurally 'climactic'.

The track "Pretty in pink" had something of a resurgence in popularity after John Hughes used it in his film of the same name.

Day 0460 - Underwater Moonlight

The Soft Boys "Underwater Moonlight" (1980)

The Soft Boys were actually recommended to me a few short years back by a friend who was really vibing on them. Pretty sure that this was the album he recommended to me.

Despite the fact that this reeks of late stage punk with encroaching post-punk sounds; this album puts me in mind of the Beatles.  The melodies, the dalliances with psychedelia and just some general overall 'tone' to their sound... so yeah, for me, Beatles = good.