Category: Uncategorized

94. Eric Clapton

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(September 2016) I have completed episode 94 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to an artist’s full discography. This edition: ERIC CLAPTON (except the Yardbirds and Cream, which I did previously). While certainly deserving the Hall of Fame, I would rank him a couple notches below contemporaries who started in the 60s and continued until the present day (McCartney, Simon, Dylan, Bowie, Young) as his songwriting is relatively not as strong. For me, his songs provide the Sountrack to the 70s: Lay Down Sally, Cocaine, Wonderful Tonight, Let it Grow, Promises.

Favorite album: 461 Ocean Boulevard

Favorite song: The Core

Favorite Period: 1970-1977

Worst Album: Pilgrim*

Best late period album: Road to Escondido (with JJ Cale)

Compared to expectations:  same

461 ocean boulevard

* Pilgrim (1998) was chosen as worst album because, at a time when his contemporaries were putting out return-to-form or innovative work (McCartney’s Flaming Pie, Dylan’s Time Out of Mind, Ringo’s Vertical Man, Bowie’s Earthling), Clapton recorded this bland adult contemporary light rock mush.

93. Foo Fighters

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(August 2016) I have completed episode 93 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to a band’s full discography. This edition: FOO FIGHTERS. Accessible, clean hard rock.   After a while, all the songs start to sound the same. But that first album is still kick-ass fun.

Favorite album: Foo Fighters

Favorite song: Monkey Wrench

Compared to expectations: ↓

foofighters-foofighters

91. The Yardbirds

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(July 2016) I have completed episode 91 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to an artist’s full discography. This edition: THE YARDBIRDS. Known best as the launching pad for Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, they also had several hits (you would recognize more than you think). They helped build the bridge from R&B to psychadelic, but their constant lineup changes limited their ability to establish a signature sound.

Favourite album: Yardbirds (Roger the Engineer)
Favourite song: Heart Full of Soul

Compared to expectations:  same

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90. Neil Young

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(July 2016) I have completed episode 90 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to an artist’s full discography. This edition: NEIL YOUNG. Always a huge fan, this review deepened my appreciation. Restlessly prolific (36 studio albums in 46 years), he has ranged from noise rock, folk, country, rockabilly, blues and synth pop. The one constant is that he always pursued what he wanted, not afraid to stick it to the record companies, big corporations and politicians. While there are plenty of forgettable releases, I find him at his best when he is quiet and intimate (Sugar Mountain, Comes a Time, Silver and Gold) or loud and gritty (Cinnamon Girl, Rust Never Sleeps, Greendale).

Favorite album: Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

Favorite song: Down By the River

Favorite period: 1969-75

Worst period: 1980-88

Worst album: Trans

Goes best with: Crazy Horse

Compared to expectations: ↑

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89. Philip Glass

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(July 2016) I have completed phase 89 of my “opus project” in which I listen to the complete works of an artist. This episode: PHILIP GLASS, perhaps the greatest living composer. I am drawn to his early/mid minimalist work, although there is much to offer in the variety in his compositions, including in classic forms, vocal works, and film scores. I would be curious to see a scan of a person’s brain waves when he listens to Glass, because I sense it elicits a different emotional response than other forms of music; I can’t describe it.

Favorite album: Dancepieces

Favorite “song”: In the Upper Room Dance IX

Favorite Symphony: #3

Favorite opera: Akhenaten

Favorite soundtrack: Koyaanisqatsi

Favorite piece of severe minimalism: Music in Twelve Parts (his masterpiece, I would argue)

Compared to expectations:  same

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85. The Cars

~ ernopepper ~ Leave a comment

(May 2016) I have completed episode 85 of my “opus project,” in which I listen to a band’s full discography. This edition: THE CARS. I rediscovered that their first couple of albums are so fun and hook-filled; almost all the songs on the first recording were radio hits. Their outputs fades as they move into the 1980s and the synths and echo drums take over.

Favorite album: The Cars

Favorite song: Just What I Needed

Worst album: Door to Door

Return to form: their 2011 reunion album Move Like This

Compared to expectations:  same

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