Desert Island Discs (DIDs) (1 Viewer)

[Philip Hamm]

Jon wrote:

Talking Heads - Little Creatures

Ugh! That album is dreadful! One, only one good song and the rest is trash. Do yourself a favor and give a listen to "Remain In Light".

 

[Jon Sheedy]

Uh...that's just, like, your opinion, man. I purchased every single Talking Heads album when they were released and Little Creatures is still by far my favorite. To me, and many critics as well since it was and still is highly acclaimed, Little Creatures is a masterful display of the talents of this band. I find it a joyful listen, and have many fond memories associated with it. Remain In Light is overated, in my opinion and would fall behind not only Little Creatures, but Fear Of Music and More Songs as well.
Referencing All Music Guide...Remain In Light recieves a full 5 star rating while Little Creatures gets the decidedly undreadful 4.5 star rating.
O.K....there's my justification of my selection. Now I got one for you! How in the world, pray tell, if someone was going to choose a title by The Clash, could they pick the bloated and weak Sandinista (AMG 2 star) over the brilliant and powerful London Calling (AMG 5 star)?
P.S....it's fairly rude to ask for someones PERSONAL PREFERENCES in music and then turn around and call them "trash".

 

[Philip Hamm]

I just like Sandinista. And for practical purposes the sheer volume of music and extended listening time would make it a good desert island selection. Plus London Calling is a bit "played out" - I've heard it a million times.

However Little Creatures - shivver.... I do really love the song "Give Me Back My Name", but can't stand the rest of the album. Not sure why, but I can't stand it!

 

[Jeff Keene]

Vickie --
Hey! Bjork is female. Although I wouldn't call her voice comforting....
I suppose Jon Anderson's voice might be considered both comforting and feminine. Actually he sounds most like Mickey Mouse. Nevermind.
And... on your compilation idea. If that's allowed all ten of mine would be "Jeff's picks" CDs. I'm actually quite good at those.
Philip --
Not so loud! If my wife heard you talking about Little Creatures that way, she'd be on her way to Virginia with a whippin' stick.
Now me personally, if I had picked a Talking Heads disc it would have been Stop Making Sense. Probably because of the way I was introduced to the band, I think of them as a live band (though one of my buddies has the exact opposite take and thinks of them as strictly studio, so go figure).

 

[Tom Ryan]

1. Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon - My favorite album of all time.

2. John Coltrane - Giant Steps - A jazz classic. I love it.

3. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - My favorite album by them.

4. Led Zeppelin IV - The best of the best.

5. Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble - Couldn't Stand The Weather - Their best and most eclectic collection.

6. Eric Clapton - Unplugged - The pinnacle of Slowhand's career.

7. The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland - A classic album from Jimi.

8. Radiohead - The Bends - My favorite album by the best band to come out in a long time.

9. Miles Davis - Kind Of Blue - Another jazz classic.

10. Van Halen - Van Halen - One of the best hard rock albums of all time, featuring one of the greatest guitarists.

 

[Pamela]

Pete Yorn-musicforthemorningafter

FleetwoodMac-Rumours

Aimee Mann-Whatever

Patty Griffin-Flaming Red

Jason Falkner-Can You Still Feel?

Maria McKee-Maria McKee

The Dandy Warhols-13 Tales from Urban Bohemia

Toad the Wet Sprocket-Dulcinea

Jimmy Eat World-Clarity

Liz Phair-Exile in Guyville

Others I would consider:

Sam Philips-Maritinis and Bikinis

Sugar-Copper Blue

Guided by Voices-Isolation Drills

Dire Straits-The Sultans of Swing: The Very Best Of

Something from REM

 

[Philip Hamm]

Pamela,

Fantastic taste!!

I absolutely love Maria McKee. What do you think of "Life Is Sweet"?

And Sam Phillips is another of my favorites! Have you heard the 96/24 DADs they made of "The Indescribable Wow" and "Cruel Inventions"? They sound incredible on a system that can take advantage of them.

 

[Mike Broadman]

Tom, great list!
Usually when people list a Coltrane album, they lean on A Love Supreme. While it is brilliant, it's nice to see someone pick something else for a change.
NP: Miles Davis, Agharta, CD

 

[Philip Hamm]

Wow, I would select "Giant Steps" also. I also like "Lush Life".

 

[Pamela]

Philip-

I love "Life is Sweet," although I gotta tell you, when I first gave it a spin, I was utterly disappointed. But, instead of throwing it back on the shelf, I kept listening to it and it really grew on me (everything but, "I'm Not Listening"). Whenever I'm down, I throw on the title track and crank it. It's a fantastic song—gives me goose bumps. It's a bummer she still doesn't have a record deal. She actually has a new (well, I think it's a year old by now) CD recorded, but is still looking for a label to distribute it. The major labels really screwed her, Patty Griffin and Aimee Mann. Aimee and Patty got back on their feet. Now it's time for Maria.

Have you heard the 96/24 DADs they made of "The Indescribable Wow" and "Cruel Inventions"?

I haven't' heard those. Will have to track them down. I think I have worn out "Martinis and Bikinis."

 

[Zen Butler]

I wonder how some single men could imagine spending the rest of their lives alone and choosing to never hear a female voice again.

Sade and Bjork would do me just fine.

 

[Philip Hamm]

She actually has a new (well, I think it's a year old by now) CD recorded, but is still looking for a label to distribute it. The major labels really screwed her, Patty Griffin and Aimee Mann. Aimee and Patty got back on their feet. Now it's time for Maria.

I know I saw her do a show (one of about 5 shows on a mini-tour I think) at the 9:30 club in Washington DC in 2000 where she toured acoustic and piano with her fiance on bass (and various other instruments depending on the song). She did about 4 new songs, all of which were extremely compelling. Also, she did an absolutely amazing rendition of "Panic Beach" (probably my favorite MM song) that blew me away. I really want a new album and I'm waiting. You'd think with all that Dixie Chicks success, critical acclaim, and industry connections she'd be able to get something.
P.S. I love the song "I'm Not Listening" .
Another great artist who has been having record company trouble is Jane Kelly Williams. Her first album "Tapping The Wheel" is one of the best I've ever heard. And I know a second album is ready to release, just waiting for a record company.... grrr.....
NP: The Who: "Who's Last"

 

[Mark Lee]

This topic (or something like it) seems to pop up every so often on the Polls board, I believe, but hey, I'll jump in, too!!!
In no particular order:
Achtung Baby - U2. If for no other reason than "One" is perhaps my favorite U2 song of all time.
The Smiths - The Smiths. Back in the days when Morrissey's self-indulgent waahh-waahh-ing was more than adequately balanced out by the wondrous music of Johnny Marr.
Introducing The Verve Jazz Masters. Yeh, compilations may be cheating, but this disc is as good as a CD-R I might have made myself. Wall-to-wall greatness, from Satchmo's "Just One Of Those Things," to Wes Montgomery's "Impressions" and Count Basie's "April In Paris."
Mission of Burma - Mission of Burma. I think this Rykodisc compilation of my favorite Boston band is out-of-print, but since it encompasses several albums of their best stuff, I gotta put this one in. Even the boys in R.E.M. were all over this stuff! And speaking of which....
Reckoning - R.E.M. Sophomore jinx, my ass! To me, this album stomps all over Murmur, and I love Murmur!!
Unknown Pleasures - Joy Division. Morrissey?? Depressed?? Feh! Ian Curtis knew depression!!
Moving Pictures - Rush. Gotta go with Mike B. on this one. Sheer brilliance from beginning to end.
Mahler: Symphony no. 2 "Resurrection" - Simon Rattle and the CBSO. An idiosyncratic, brilliant reading of a classical music monument.
Beethoven: Piano Concerto no. 5 "Emperor" - Claudio Arrau, Colin Davis and the Staatskapelle Dresden. Not a very thrifty DID choice (since it's the only piece on the CD, leaving something like 20-30 minutes blank!), but I can't help it. I love this performance!
....and my one absolutely vital DID:
It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back - Public Enemy. Can't really explain all the reasons why, but this has become, in my mind, the greatest album ever, rap or no. None of their other albums came close to this one, IMO, but that's OK. One example of absolute perfection is enough for any group.

 

[Louis C]

Hmmm, OK I'll rattle some off that quickly come to mind..

Genesis - Foxtrot or Selling England by the Pound? Tough call

Yes - Fragile or Close to the Edge? Another tough call

Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Chronicle

Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks

Spock's Beard - V

Sting - Nothing Like the Sun

Fourplay - Fourplay

Bob James - Restless

REM - Life's Rich Pageant

 

[Todd H]

Only ten discs is tough. But I'll give it a shot....
Pearl Jam - Ten
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magic
R.E.M. - Automatic For The People
Van Halen - Fair Warning
Tool - Undertow
The Police - Synchronicity
Marvelous 3 - Hey Album
Alice In Chains - Dirt
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
And my guilty pleasure pick is...
Journey - Escape
Man I'm gonna catch flack about that last one!

 

[Vickie_M]

:p)
You guys are killing me! Hilarious!!
:p)
It's like a straight guy choosing to spend the rest of his life with no one to talk to or look at but, say, The Rock or Ben Affleck. (Of course, maybe it is a gay thing, in which case, sorry!)
Btw, Louis, Foxtrot, definitely. Would you want to never hear "Supper's Ready" ever again? (Though, yeah, tough call. To never hear "Firth of Fifth" again...damn!)

 

[Pamela]

P.S. I love the song "I'm Not Listening" .

I'll forgive you, Philip!
Actually my faves are Breathe, Life is Sweet, and um..I'm sure I'm forgetting some. Can't think right now.
Good new! She's ready to sign with an indie label. The new CD will be out within a year. Meanwhile, she's gonna tour.

 

[Rob P S]

Johnny A. - Sometime Tuesday Morning
Beastie Boys - Licensed to Ill
Counting Crows - August and Everything After
Steve Earle - Train a Comin'
Hootie & the Blowfish - Cracked Rear View
R.E.M. - Automatic for the People
Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie
Social Distortion - Somewhere Between Heaven and Hell
Terrell - Angry Southern Gentleman
Kelly Willis - Easy

 

[Ken Stuart]

This is easy for me, as DIDS.txt is one of my oldest computer files - and I was programming before Bill Gates was...
... and this has always been a dozen, btw...
This file hasn't been updated since 1996, but the only things that would probably need to be added are Bjork and Nirvana:
Desert Island Bakers' Dozen Discs of Ken Stuart
Beatles - Rubber Soul
Emerson, Lake and Palmer - Tarkus
Fripp & Eno - No Pussyfooting
Genesis - Foxtrot
Grateful Dead - Anthem of the Sun
Handel - The Complete Water Music
[performed by The English Concert cond by Trevor Pinnock]
Hawkwind - Space Ritual
Iggy & the Stooges - Raw Power (the original Bowie mix)
Jethro Tull - Benefit
Pink Floyd - Ummagumma
PFM - Per Un Amico
The Who - Live At Leed's (1995 expanded version)
Yes - Close To The Edge
Honorable Mention:
Ash Ra - Blackouts
Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Deja Vu
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Enya - Shepherd Moons
Gila - Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
Tangerine Dream - Logos Live (1994 remaster)
Andreas Vollenweider - White Winds
Personal Favorites:
Amon Duul II - Wolf City
Black Sabbath - Vol. 4
Duran Duran - Seven and the Ragged Tiger
Brian Eno - Here Come the Warm Jets
John Foxx - Metamatic
Steve Hackett - Voyage of the Acolyte
Steve Hillage - Live Herald
Ijahman - Haile I Hymn
Anup Jalota - Prabhu Darshan
Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
King Crimson - Red
Kraftwerk - Electric Cafe
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Inner Mounting Flame
Joni Mitchell - Blue
Moby - Moby
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Shahen Shah
Gary Numan - Berserker
Mike Oldfield - Incantations
The Orb - Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
Popol Vuh - Coeur de Verre
The Prodigy - Experience
Klaus Schulze - Timewind
Transformer 2 - Transformations
Ultravox - Rage in Eden
Van der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts

 

[Andrew 'Ange Hamm' Hamm]

Wow, back from the dead!
In the past year, I have had to add a few:

• Jane Siberry - When I Was a Boy
• Bruce Hornsby - Hot House
• Sixpence None the Richer - Divine Discontent

I'm not sure how to fit them in. of course, but they're in there somewhere. Perhaps stuffed down my pants, as someone so eloquently put it.