ILM's Now For Something Completely Different... 70s Album Poll Results! Top 100 Countdown!

Really want to listen to Dom, Khan, Destroy All Monsters, and Alternative TV just based on the descriptions given here.

Finally listening to all of Khan. Really liking it.

Some nice Hillage soloing on "Stargazers".

nobody should sleep on that james brown record, it's my second fave live album, right after swans' public castration is a good idea. they're similar records, both being extended primal ecstatic onslaughts delivered by crackerjack teams of rhythm daredevils who execute with rigorous simplicity the bootcamp bombast demanded by their shamanistic + monomaniacal frontmen. while the strigency of these ascetic aesthetics can alienate some listeners who judge such din hopelessly self-involved, these strange beat beasts never pause to admire their own musculature in the icy mirrors of their frozen abbatoirs; they're too busy clubbing listeners like baby seals to pause to preen, let alone to address petty concerns about safe + humane behavior. both contain moments that forced an agog me to ask, is this even music? yes, yes it is.

here's a spotify link, guessing it's not available in the UK?

http://open.spotify.com/album/4pZ4G1VNCk3vTE3JCTQGDT

also lol at it tying w/ aqualung

Sterntaler TOO LOW. I know neu! & ld will do well & that's great but rother's solo stuff is underappreciated. So pretty & plangent. Not at all the ROCK end of kraut but hey it was nommed so I voted. Also: jaki!

thanks for the recap viceroy!

and here is the next album..

457    Eloy - Dawn    482 Points,   3  Votes
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_yRxfvH6kBOI/TMXGY605B7I/AAAAAAAAAsc/AxsL52COliE/s1600/Eloy+-+Dawn-Front.jpg
RYM #90 for 1976 , #4764 overall

Before recording this album, Eloy's fifth, Frank Bornemann had to rebuild his group. With Klaus Peter Matziol (bass), Detlev Schmidtchen (keyboards), and Jürgen Rosenthal (drums), he had the lineup that would become known as the "classic" Eloy. Furthermore, this version of the band crowned him producer, giving him a wild card to do what he had in mind. Thus the transformation of the group from a blues-rock-influenced avatar of Jethro Tull (circa Benefit and Aqualung) to a symphonic progressive rock group leaning toward Dark Side of the Moon-era Pink Floyd was completed with the release of Dawn. A concept album co-written by Bornemann and Rosenthal, it tells the tale of a man who after a sudden death comes back as a ghost. He tries to pass on his newly acquired knowledge to his loved one (Jeanne, also the name of the girl in Power and the Passion). The album ends with his dissolving into light, closing on the quote, "Nous sommes du soleil" ("We are of the sun") from Yes' Tales From Topographic Oceans, released two years before. The hard rock edge featured on earlier LPs has been purged (including most of Bornemann's guitar solos) to make way for multi-layered keyboards. A string orchestra complements the group on many pieces, most notably "Glinding Into Light and Knowledge," the end of "Lost!?? (Introduction)," and the opener, "Awakening." Together with Ocean, Dawn remains one of Eloy's finest albums, at least musically. The new lineup is able to ornament and refine Bornemann's generally simple songs. As for the lyrics, it's a question of taste.

Dom and Eloy both pretty good, but both (I think) missed out on my ballot.

455    456    Sly & The Family Stone - Small Talk    484    5  
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-okmXV4WmlgA/T2hwwqqJwyI/AAAAAAAAMa8/KjzN7_HTA3g/s1600/Senza%2Btitolo-6.jpg
RYM #558 for 1974
http://open.spotify.com/album/1KJAI0W9nvK2insqlsKacw

review
by Rob Bowman

A new bass player and drummer signaled a toned-down Sly & the Family Stone sound. Partially in keeping with changes in much of popular music in the early '70s, and maybe the result of marriage and a child, Sly became more introspective, quieter, and calmer, even employing a string section on various cuts. A less exhilarating album than earlier efforts, there is still much of merit here, including the Top Ten R&B hit "Time for Livin'."

thats #456 obviously

455    Bobby Beausoleil - Lucifer Rising OST    489 Points   5  Votes
http://musicfortrips.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/beausoleil.jpg
RYM #61 for 1972 , #3,394 overall
http://open.spotify.com/album/5pk3Fu369hrE00HdQai0jY

Everyone reviewing this record seems to get hung up on the fact that Bobby BeauSoleil is an inmate, serving a life sentence for murder, who had ties with the Charles Manson cult, and who recorded and produced this psychedelic prog rock soundtrack, in prison, for a film extolling the virtues of Lucifer. If these are the only things that lend credence to this album, someone forgot to actually listen to it. Lucifer Rising is a beautifully realized work, no matter what the circumstances were surrounding its coming to be. BeauSoleil is a talented arranger and a fine guitarist, with a knack for guerilla recording that most D.I.Y. engineers, on the outside, would be envious of. Layers of guitar, processed through handmade effects units, and hot-rodded junks hop synthesizers issuing indescribable tones arc and dive throughout BeauSoleil's spacious soundscapes. The sound stage is wide and horizon-less, with dark-toned movements rising up from stygian depths and then ascending heavenward with gorgeous chordal fusillades. For a compact introduction to BeauSoleil's epode-like songsmithing, "Part III" offers a strata-revealing overview. Moving from Piper at the Gates of Dawn-era Floyd motifs, the song evolves into an intricate and vacillating progression reminiscent of Air's "Don't Be Light" with all of the dazzling chordal movement, but none of the pomp. Floyd and Air comparisons aside, the most accurate description of BeauSoleil's trajectory would be psych-prog by way of Claude Debussy, and hard rock as it may have been envisioned by Ennio Morricone. Lucifer Rising is far too beautiful to be labeled as hard rock, far too focused to be written off as meandering prog, and too full of merit to be judged solely on the heteroclite life of its composer.

Good write-up. Great record.

454    James Gang - Rides Again    490 Points   4   Votes
http://www.soulstrut.com/images/uploads/reviews/James-Gang-Rides-Again-F.jpg
RYM #90 for 1970 , #2681 overall

review
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

With their second album Rides Again, the James Gang came into their own. Under the direction of guitarist Joe Walsh, the group -- now featuring bassist Dale Peters -- began incorporating keyboards into their hard rock, which helped open up their musical horizons. For much of the first side of Rides Again, the group tear through a bunch of boogie numbers, most notably the heavy groove of "Funk #49." On the second side, the James Gang departs from their trademark sound, adding keyboard flourishes and elements of country-rock to their hard rock. Walsh's songwriting had improved, giving the band solid support for their stylistic experiments. What ties the two sides of the record together is the strength of the band's musicianship, which burns brightly and powerfully on the hardest rockers, as well as on the sensitive ballads.

Next one up is m.eily friendly

453    Walter Wegmüller - Tarot    490 Points   5  Votes
http://www.tribute-to-ashra.de/Picture/TarotBox3.JPG
RYM #187 for 1973

review
[-] by Rolf Semprebon

This massive double album is cosmic Krautrock at its finest hour, as visionary Walter Wegmuller leads a tour through the entire major arcane of the Tarot deck while the Cosmic Couriers -- basically Ash Ra Tempel, Wallenstein, and whoever else producer Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser could rope in -- create a remarkable soundtrack encompassing space rock, folk music, funk, psychedelia, and electronic music. Wegmuller's album followed in the footsteps of Timothy Leary's Seven Up, Ash Ra Tempel, and Sergius Golowin's Lord Krishna von Goloka, backed by Wallenstein, the duo Westripp-Witthuser, and keyboardist Klaus Schulze. Tarot, with almost all these musicians on the roster, is the culmination, a bizarre roller coaster ride through sonic soundscapes, while Wegmuller intones in his deep voice, sometimes augmented by more effects, though he often remains silent for long instrumental stretches. From the opening track, a funky number with blazing guitar and rolling piano over which a circus-barker voice announces the band with grand élan, to the side four track's nonstop blast into hallucinogenic after-burn, this one is a monster all the way. Shimmering Ash Ra Tempel guitar freakouts blend with Wallenstein's more rollicking psych rock, Schulze's deep space keyboards, and Westripp's cosmic folk to create strange blitzes of electronic weirdness. This album provide an incredible pallet of styles that all seem to gel in a cohesive mass of pure mystical wonder.

TOO LOW

countdown to posts by everybody else saying WHO???!!!111 ;)

Is there a reissue of this on vinyl with tarot cards? If so, do you have it emil.y?

452    Mott the Hoople - All the Young Dudes    490 Points   6  Votes
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d7ewgPSRH_o/UEP7pe4k1jI/AAAAAAAAEtQ/TLguVqgp8ek/s1600/Mott_The_Hoople-All_The_Young_Dudes_%25281972%2529-Frontal.jpg
#176 for 1972
http://open.spotify.com/album/2aOWMZo9zarFg3wIPLdTA7

review
[-] by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Just at the moment Mott the Hoople were calling it a day, David Bowie swooped in and convinced them to stick around. Bowie spearheaded an image makeover, urging them to glam themselves up. He gave them a surefire hit with "All the Young Dudes," had them cover his idol's "Sweet Jane," and produced All the Young Dudes, the album that was designed to make them stars. Lo and behold, it did, which is as much a testament to Bowie's popularity as it is to his studio skill. Not to discount his assistance, since his production results in one of the most satisfying glam records and the title track is one of the all-time great rock songs, but the album wouldn't have worked if Mott hadn't already found its voice on Brain Capers. True, Dudes isn't nearly as wild as its predecessor, but the band's swagger is unmistakable underneath the flair and Ian Hunter remains on a songwriting roll, with "Momma's Little Jewel," "Sucker," and "One of the Boys" standing among his best. Take a close look at the credits, though -- these were all co-written by his bandmates, and the other highlight, "Ready for Love/After Lights," is penned entirely by Mick Ralphs, who would later revive the first section with Bad Company. The entire band was on a roll here, turning out great performances and writing with vigor. They may not be as sexy as either Bowie or Bolan, but they make up for it with knowing humor, huge riffs, and terrific tunes, dressed up with style by Ziggy himself. No wonder it's not just a great Mott record -- it's one of the defining glam platters.

I don't have Tarot. Used to be impossible to find for under a gazillion pounds, but I'm sure there is a reissue by now.

Never heard this, only know of it from the cope book. I get carried away by his enthusiasm when reading but I'm never sure if I trust him enough to take the leap of actually buying the obscurer records. Xxp

I've been meaning to check them out (Mott The Hoople) for years. Time to do so I reckon.

xp

Chances are a Tarot reissue would be really limited and impossible to find for under a hundred pounds

xxp

It's really great! but download it if its OOP as emil.y says, it sells for shitloads. I think there was a cd reissue but dunno if thats oop or not.

451    The Electric Eels - God Says Fuck You    491 Points   4  Votes
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bLhX--HO3Ww/Tn-gwI-LQUI/AAAAAAAACi8/2SeJ498Hq1c/s1600/ElctrcEls.jpg

review
by John Dougan

Let me quote from the producer's notes to this CD compilation of the entire recorded output of the Electric Eels (including their long-lost LP Having a Philosophical Investigation with the Electric Eels): "The Eels never saw the inside of a recording studio. These tapes were made using an assortment of junk PA equipment and a low-end home cassette deck. No compromises to the recording process would be made and the band played just as always, deafeningly loud." Like the man says, this is grimy, gruesome, and at best, adequately played proto-punk chord bashing, but if you like your punk rock confrontational you'll happily chew on this bone for hours on end. My favorite track is the opener, "Agitated," which, as sung by John Morton, sounds as if he's saying, "I'm so educated." Which is a punky sentiment no matter how you look at it.

says 1991 but I assume it was recorded in the 70s

Sewercide is class gutterpunk, love this album.

From now on in we have a treat for you.

fastnbulbous has been compiling RYM and Acclaimed Music rankings plus some reviews just leaving me to do the album covers/spotify links/amg reviews.

So a big thanks to him!

450. ROD STEWART Every Picture Tells a Story (493 Points, 4 Votes, 1 #1)
RYM: #51 for 1971, #1203 overall | Acclaimed: #159 | RS: #172
http://www.ungthesteeple.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Every-Picture-Tells-A-Story.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/4h1e47X26VQHXCjNZZ5P3v

Because he's tawdry enough to revel in stellar pop-and-flash, Stewart can refine the rock sensibility without processing the life out of it. His gimmick is nuance. Rod the Wordslinger is a lot more literate than the typical English bloozeman, Rod the Singer can make words flesh, and though Rod the Bandleader's music is literally electric it's the mandolin and pedal steel that come through sharpest. A smash as huge as "Maggie May" must satisfy Rod the Mod the way a classic as undeniable as "Maggie May" does Rod the Artist. But it's "Mandolin Wind" leading into Motown leading into Tim Hardin that does justice to everything he is. A+ -- R. Christgau

review
[-] by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Without greatly altering his approach, Rod Stewart perfected his blend of hard rock, folk, and blues on his masterpiece, Every Picture Tells a Story. Marginally a harder-rocking album than Gasoline Alley -- the Faces blister on the Temptations cover "(I Know I'm) Losing You," and the acoustic title track goes into hyper-drive with Mick Waller's primitive drumming -- the great triumph of Every Picture Tells a Story lies in its content. Every song on the album, whether it's a cover or original, is a gem, combining to form a romantic, earthy portrait of a young man joyously celebrating his young life. Of course, "Maggie May" -- the ornate, ringing ode about a seduction from an older woman -- is the centerpiece, but each song, whether it's the devilishly witty title track or the unbearably poignant "Mandolin Wind," has the same appeal. And the covers, including definitive readings of Bob Dylan's "Tomorrow Is Such a Long Time" and Tim Hardin's "Reason to Believe," as well as a rollicking "That's All Right," are equally terrific, bringing new dimension to the songs. It's a beautiful album, one that has the timeless qualities of the best folk, yet one that rocks harder than most pop music -- few rock albums are quite this powerful or this rich.

lots of interesting stuff to listen to thus far, cool! A couple of mine have placed thus far: Live at Budokan and Love Bites. I too missed Sterntaler, which would have received another vote on top of Drugs A Money's had I noticed it. Ah well.

TIE
448. CURTIS MAYFIELD There's No Place Like America Today (497 Points, 4 Votes)
RYM: #153 for 1975 | Acclaimed: #2361
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cPBNVxhrpN8/UQLDnVR1B6I/AAAAAAAALb0/6tRmehRYOJM/s1600/172746_1_f.jpg

I had hoped the featureless doodling of his post-Super Fly albums just meant he was treading water while transferring from Viewlex to Warner Comm. Instead it appears that he was seeking new standards of incoherence. D+ -- R. Christgau

review
by Bruce Eder

The title is intended in an ironic way, as illustrated not only by the cover -- a grim parody of late-'40s/early-'50s advertising imagery depicting white versus black social reality -- but the grim yet utterly catchy and haunting opening number, "Billy Jack." A song about gun violence that was years ahead of its time, it's scored to an incisive horn arrangement by Richard Tufo. "When Seasons Change" is a beautifully wrought account of the miseries of urban life that contains elements of both gospel and contemporary soul. The album's one big song, "So in Love," which made number 67 on the pop charts but was a Top Ten soul hit, is only the prettiest of a string of exquisite tracks on the album, including "Blue Monday People" and "Jesus" and the soaring finale, "Love to the People," broken up by the harder-edged "Hard Times." The album doesn't really have as clearly delineated a body of songs as Mayfield's earlier topical releases, but it's in the same league with his other work of the period and represents him near his prime as a composer.

448. SCORPIONS Lonesome Crow (497 Points, 4 Votes)
RYM: #444 for 1972
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQVTj3e2DQAga6dD4mEW-cK4jj909sXvbM4A7Cko23BpJ-A73EP_w
http://open.spotify.com/album/3i5LXHKq3kuAI7s5Ky3Vsm

Nothing but turgid strips of landfill, not really behind the times, but under them, Lonesome Crow is an odd but electric record of faulty prog rock...the redeeming factor is the all-pervading, ear-splitting axe work from one Michael Schenker.. 3/4 -- M. Popoff

review
by Barry Weber

Something of an anomaly for the Scorpions, Lonesome Crow focuses on deep, dark melodies that sound like a bad combination of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and the Rolling Stones. Although Michael Schenker provides some strong guitar melodies, the album fails to capture any real interest. Klaus Meine's voice, which usually has a tenor pitch, is flat and dull. Neither harmonic nor interesting, Lonesome Crow is one of the Scorpions' weaker releases.

I'm sure this wont be the last FUCK XGAU of the poll.

missed Electric Eels too, I have Eyeball of Hell which is probably a repackaging of much of the same material. They were an awesome band imo

back to James Gang Rides Again, which rules and is likely my highest vote to place so far. Check out The Bomber, which in a fit of perversity I included on my all time metal tracks ballot a couple years back

(am getting the sinking feeling that I might be the only person who voted for a good sixth of my ballot

447. THIN LIZZY Black Rose: A Rock Legend (498 Points, 3 Votes)
RYM: #21 for 1979 , #1092 overall
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tj7L1Kw-42o/T_GmwBYHAqI/AAAAAAAAAZ0/6f7FcqHMfoA/s1600/LP-Thin-Lizzy-Black-Rose.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/6iH6E5ePYSOooTiY3p80sR

Two Lizzy classics emerge, minor hit "Waiting For An Alibi" and heartfelt confessional rocker "Got To Give It Up," both tunes propelled by strangely un-nailable, complex chord structures which tend to highlight a strange, melodic other-worldliness, all the while the band creating the intense spaces and pregnant pauses on which these two tracks feed. Title track "Roisin Dubh (Black Rose) A Rock Legend" finds Lynott confronting his Irish heritage directly...writing on a plane more in league with fine literature than anything as base as rock 'n' roll. 7/10 -- M. Popoff

review
[-] by Greg Prato

Black Rose: A Rock Legend would prove to be Thin Lizzy's last true classic album (and last produced by Tony Visconti). Guitarist Brian Robertson was replaced by Gary Moore prior to the album's recording. Moore had already been a member of the band in the early '70s and served as a tour fill-in for Robertson in 1977, and he fits in perfectly with Lizzy's heavy, dual-guitar attack. Black Rose also turned out to be the band's most musically varied, accomplished, and successful studio album, reaching number two on the U.K. album chart upon release. Lizzy leader Phil Lynott is again equipped with a fine set of originals, which the rest of the band shines on -- the percussion-driven opener "Do Anything You Want To," the pop hit "Waiting for an Alibi," and a gentle song for Lynott's newly born daughter, "Sarah." Not all the material is as upbeat, such as the funky "S&M," as well two grim tales of street life and substance abuse -- "Toughest Street in Town" and "Got to Give It Up" (the latter sadly prophetic for Lynott). Black Rose closes with the epic seven-minute title track, which includes an amazing, complex guitar solo by Moore that incorporates Celtic themes against a hard rock accompaniment. Black Rose: A Rock Legend is one of the '70s lost rock classics.

xpost - The electric eels looks very, very promising, and The Eyeball of Hell seems to be a fairly complete representation of the group. Do they live up to their reputation? Seems daunting to make music as compelling as "got kicked out of the only club that would have them for bringing a lawnmower on stage".

lol they are v punk before punk, lets just say. I might like em more than Pere Ubu

446. BIRTH CONTROL Operation (502 Points, 5 Votes)
RYM: #255 for 1971
http://www.jpc.de/image/w600/front/0/0090204820047.jpg
http://open.spotify.com/album/2N4nQkAdrFbLZ5EhLqot6a

...a nasty, hard-edged prog metal that is hard to define, the band splashing the canvas with psych, baroque, classical, military beats...quite impressive. Favourite would be "Just Before The Sun Will Rise" with its heart-twisting melody and "Flesh And Blood," a jagged rocker with smart dynamics, anguished vocals and measured guitar licks. 6/9 -- M. Popoff

review
[-] by Mike DeGagne

Birth Control's second album, Operation, stands as one of the band's finest recordings, getting the vote as the second best album of 1971 by one of Germany's leading music magazines. Operation has Birth Control employing a nine-piece string section as well as a smaller brass entourage in order to produce a larger sound, and while their progressive air is just beginning to flourish, a rather large difference in musical strength and instrumental craft is noted right away. Not fully abstract or left-of-center just yet, the powerful crunch of Bruno Frenzel's guitar surely leads the way, dominating the rhythms of every track while complimenting the aeronautics of the keyboard passages. With the tempos quicker because of the stern synthesizer work, the entire album moves along at a brisk pace. "Stop Little Lady" has the vocals on par with the whirlwind guitar riffs, echoed perfectly to produce a mysterious rippled effect. "Just Before the Sun Will Rise" and "Flesh and Blood" utilize the keyboards at the heart of both the songs, while the full 11 minutes of "Let Us Do It Now" emanate Birth Control's instrumental coalescence in the momentum of both the drums and guitar. "The Work Is Done" became one of the group's most renowned efforts, with rocksteady percussion creating the perfect bottom-heavy underlay for the strings and horns. The 1997 pressing of Operation includes five bonus tracks, including another version of "The Work Is Done" and a peculiar little number entitled "Believe in the Pill." With the band maturing and slowly working back toward a more progressive rock route, Operation makes for a truly consistent studio album that offers a firm cross section of their sound.

Poll heavy on the german so far

hey if anyone wants some pictures of 1970s American high school kids to look at while they listen to 1970s music, can i recommend going to the archives here http://yearbookeditor.tumblr.com/archive
the 70s start in 1977 (end of october) through today (1971 is just starting to get some faces)

(fyi this is my yearbook blog, but i think the photos are of general interest to 70s enthusiasts)

445. A.R. & MACHINES Echo (506 Points, 3 Votes)
RYM: #240 for 1972
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb77jkJ1t71qf18g7_1349068068_cover.jpg

It was Steve Freeman from Ultima Thule who clued me into this particular sprawling 83-minute monster back in 1995. Even more so than Walter Wegmuller?s Tarot, which allows the listener to rove from emotion to emotion, Echo operates on such a singular level that listeners actually start to feel inhabited by this record... It?s an ever intensifying ever-speeding-up multi-guitar-led rock?n?roll rampage across the ancient starlit skies without so much as one hoary cliché passing across any of the guitar strings. Theme after theme opens out upon yet-more-themes, as drums build then break down to accommodate, then build up again only to fail like waves breaking on some ancient musical shore. When the drums break down for the last time, Mellotron-like real voiced cyber-choirs have taken over to orchestrate our descent into the end of the track with perfect spiritual applomb. -- J. Cope

That sounds good. Will investigate!

A.R. = Achim Reichel, also of the Rattles and Wonderland.

Great!! I love seeing reactions like that to albums. Thanks to fastnbulbous for tracking down reviews n stuff!
xp

some turkish psych now

BARIS?

444. BARIS MANCO 2023 (508 Points, 6 Votes)
RYM: #248 for 1975
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_osaKxjJ33dE/S_dUe_sNKrI/AAAAAAAAAvw/PlCcCysRqz8/s1600/2023.jpg

BARIS!

http://weirdorecords.com/zen/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=4098

This first album under Manco's own name is a monster electric space opus he made after releasing only singles for nearly 20 years. Having knocked out songs in every discernable rock subgenre, what can be left but horrific squishy water noises that sit right on top of ultracheesy synth bonks while Manco intones serious poetry? Lines are duly stolen from Ottoman classical music, but played with scorching waka-waka moves, & there are even breakdowns of sheer blaxploitation funk. A catastrophic collision of maqam 'n' moog that shouldn't be missed. Tracklisting: Acih Da Baga Vir, Kayalarin Oglu, 2023, Yolverin Agalar Beyler, Uzun Ince Bir Yoldayim, Yine Yol Gorundu Gurbete, Beykoca Destani, Gulme Ha Gulme, Gelinlik Kizlarin Dansi, Kara Haber Turnanin Olumu, Vur Ha Vur, Durma Ha Durma, Tavuklara Kissst De, Kol Basti.

cool cover. Is that a collector record, or is it widely available?

lol click the link