OT: Desert Island Albums

[lcjjdnh]

I've been in the mood to discover some new music for my collection recently and have made a push into some new bands (for me at least) but figured I would ask for some recommendations here, as there's a very diverse collection of musical taste. But rather then just ask for a CD recommendation, I figured I would add some sort of angle to it, so as you can see from the title of chosen the old "desert island" designation. Basically, if you could bring any 5 albums to listen to on a desert island, which ones would they be. The criteria for judging is up to you.

Personally my five would be:
Revolver-The Beatles-Any of their albums would have been fine but I only wanted to choose one. It was basically between this, which I think is their finest collection of songs, and the White Album, which is a much further range of musical types. In the end I went with Revolver because there's certain songs (i.e. Revolution #9) I would skip over everytime on the White Album and I can listen to every song on Revolver.

Billy Breathes-Phish-not a particulary groundbreaking album in anyway or really musically "genius" but I just love this album. A nice collection of songs I can listen to over and over again.

Birth of Cool-Miles Davis-I wanted to get a least one jazz album in here to mix things up a bit. It was between this or Kind of Blue but in the end, I think Birth of Cool is just a better album.

Are You Experienced?-Jimi Hendrix-I resisted every real attempting to listen to Hendrix for years but I picked up this album a bit back and absolutly fell in love with it. Just a bunch of great songs on this album.

This last one is tough but I think I'm going to go with...
Astral Weeks-Van Morrison-It was between this and Radiohead's The Bends but I just decided to go with this one.

There's mine, although I'm sure if you asked me again a week from now I would tell you different. Really just want to get an idea for some albums to check out. Have fun with this.

[Groundhog]

My list. I tried to take in to account albums I wouldn't get 'sick' of, either. These 5 albums have lots of replay value with me, and I've heard them all many, many times and still enjoy hearing them.

Rock Bottom - Robert Wyatt: Recorded in the year following his fall out of a window that lost him the use of his legs for the rest of his life, this is simply the most melancholy album I've ever heard, and probably the only album that can bring tears to my eyes on a regular basis. Wyatt, who was on drums for Soft Machine during their better years (including their masterpiece Third), has one of the most unique voices in all of rock, and with Rock Bottom made the closest thing to a 'perfect' album that I've ever heard.

Alone, Alone - Hungry Ghosts: Pretty obscure this one, but it's an Aussie trio of two guitars and a violin, who play a similar style to the other Aussie trio with the same instrumentation, The Dirty Three. I personally prefer this to anything the Dirty Three ever recorded. It's all instrumental, and the first half of the album is simply beautiful. This is the perfect 'bed-time' music for me.

Three Friends - Gentle Giant: Gentle Giant were one of the most complex (without being noisy-art house) bands of all time, and this is the album that introduced me to them. The album is a sorta-concept album about three school friends who all grow up and go their different ways, who then reflect back on their school days. Great album, and despite it's prog-rock genre, the complexity does not get in the way of the music. The final track must be one of the greatest finale's of all time.

The Soft Bulletin - The Flamming Lips: I've been a huge fan of the Lips ever since seeing them live (the best live show I've ever seen, by a long shot), and this is their masterpiece. Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, the follow up to this, is also great, but I think Soft Bulletin beats it out.

Selling England by the Pound - Genesis: Before Phil Collins turned Genesis in to a pop-machine (though admittedly, I like some of the Collins-Genesis, as well as some of the Collins solo stuff), they were a great symphonic band, and this is my fave of theirs. The track Cinema Show is one of my fave songs of all time. Peter Gabriel really steals the show on this one.

[Ksyrup]

I'd say the first three are set in stone, the other two change depending on my mood:

King's X - Gretchen Goes to Nebraska
The Beatles - Revolver
Jellyfish - Spilt Milk
Thought Industry - Mods Carve the Pig: Assassins, Toads and God's Flesh
Dream Theater - Images and Words

[Blackadar]

Aimee Mann - Batchelor No. 2

Pink Floyd - Echoes

Bob Seger - Greatest Hits

Dire Straits - Through the Night (live)

Bruce Springsteen - The Rising

[Suicane75]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Aimee Mann - Batchelor No. 2

Pink Floyd - Echoes

Bob Seger - Greatest Hits

Dire Straits - Through the Night (live)

Bruce Springsteen - The Rising

Isn't it On The Night? And no, i'm not trying to be an asshole, serious question as I had this on tape and loved it, but i thought it was On The Night.

[Blackadar]

You're probably right.

[bossfan2000]

Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run

Michael McDermott - Michael McDermott

Ryan Adams - Gold

Vigilantes of Love - Audible Sigh

Big Country - Greatest Hits

[Rasmuth]

Who's Next - The Who
Exile on Main Street - The Rolling Stones
Rocks - Aerosmith
The Best of The Band - The Band
Out of the Cellar - Ratt

[Fritz]

At this snapshot in my life? We will do a live list

Black 47 - Live in New York.

Bob Dylan - Rolling Thunder Review, Bootleg Series V5.

Bob Schneider - 2003-06-03 KurtisM turned me on to this. A little funky, a little raunchy.

Carbon Leaf - 5 Alive This Richmond based band might not be a name many of you recognize. This Live CD has a clear sound, and has most of the best songs in their 5 studio disc catalog.

Grateful Dead - 1978-12-31. Great Crowd. Jerry sounds fantastic. A song set that I like. What a way to spend a New Years.

[Samdari]

Nanci Griffith - One Fair Summer Evening
Shawn Colvin - Fat City
Iris Dement - My Life
Derek and the Dominoes - Layla
Richard and Linda Thompson - Shoot Out the Lights

Of course, if I were to make this list tomorrow, I might very well come up with 5 entirely different albums (OMG - Steve Winwood, Back in the High Life is not on her, nor is Dire Straits' Brothers in Arms, nor is Revolver) but I suspect Layla would make any list.

[Fritz]

Originally Posted by Samdari

Iris Dement - My Life

Ahead of Infamous Angel?

[bossfan2000]

Originally Posted by Fritz

At this snapshot in my life? We will do a live list
Carbon Leaf - 5 Alive This Richmond based band might not be a name many of you recognize. This Live CD has a clear sound, and has most of the best songs in their 5 studio disc catalog.

hey fritz...does this have anything off of Indian Summer? I just picked it up this week and really like it. Havent heard of the live cd until you mentioned it..

-jeff

[SplitPersonality1]

tough call - I like waaaaay too many albums. As of right now, I would select these five:

Dave Brubeck - Take Five
Nicole C. Mullen - Live from Cincinnati: Bringing it Home
Prince - The Hits
Siouxsie & the Banshees - Through the Looking Glass
Vaughn Brothers - Family Style


Brubeck & Siouxsie would always be on my list; the others could easily change.

[Fritz]

Originally Posted by bossfan2000

hey fritz...does this have anything off of Indian Summer? I just picked it up this week and really like it. Havent heard of the live cd until you mentioned it..

-jeff

I thought it had "Life Less Ordinary" on it, but I must have been thinking of a boot. So, no, it does not.

If you like Indian Summer, run out and get Ech Echo. Actually, you can DL much of the Echo Echo for free on Amazon and off the CL website.

One of the most interesting tracks on 5 Alive! is Crazy Train. smokes the original.

----
edit - why don;t you drag up the CD review thread and write your impressions of indian summer there?

[cthomer5000]

that dog. - Retreat From the Sun
Pixies - Surfer Rosa
Elliott Smith - Elliott Smith
Sleater-Kinney - Dig Me Out
Beatles - White Album

[Bomber]

Wilco - Yankee Foxtrot Hotel
Belle & Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister
Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt
Uncle Tupelo - 89-93 An Anthology
Built to Spill - There's Nothing Wrong With Love

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Fritz

edit - why don;t you drag up the CD review thread and write your impressions of indian summer there?

Yes, please do. So I don't have to feel so damned lonely in that thread...

Everyone should post something in there.

[Kevin]

Alligator Records 20th Anniversary Collection
Stan Rogers - Home in Halifax
Bruce Springsteen - The River
The Eagles - Hotel California
Patsy Cline - Greatest Hits

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by Fritz

Ahead of Infamous Angel?

Well, Let the Mystery Be is my favorite song of hers, by far, but I find every song on My Life brilliant, and the rest of Infamous Angel uneven.

[Qwikshot]

Desert Island, check.
Food to last several months, check.
Zippo, check.
Solar Powered CD player, check.
Single hot Island Babes, scanning.

Music, music, let's think about this...

Music you never tire to is one thing, but we're on a desert island, might be months, years, YEARS man, years.

So I would have to think about this, all these styles, all these bands (I have like 400+ albums) so I get five, FIVE to listen to in between the breakers.

First off, I'm going to break the rules a little, some albums today can be double CDs, but hey, more can be better in some cases.

1. Pure Cinema Classics (2 CD set)- The classics never go out of style, they're classical. 39 classical and modern soundtrack cuts from top movies, how do you not sign up for that from the big films like the Godfather, Dances with Wolves, Harry Potter to the surprises like Oceans 11, Face/Off and others. And the bonus, close each beautiful sunset with The Blue Danube (2001 Space Oddity). Plus for every movie seen you can relive in that ole imagination of yours as the sun because to blister your skin (unless you are hiding under some coconut trees)...Oddly enough, nothing from Castaway is on the album.

2. Speakerboxx/The Love Below - This is the album to get your groove onto, as it takes from funk, rap, and everything else. Listen to the big hit "Hey Ya" but enjoy the Prince influence "She Lives in my Lap", the bluesy jazz piece (with Norah Jones) "Take off Your Cool", the awesome merge of 808 thump with the jazz of Coltraine, a revisionistic "My Favorite Things" and other good cuts, Speakerboxx is a harder set, more rap, but "Bowtie" and "The Way You Move" keep the beat flowing, and you stomping all over that hard sand. This one you can kick on for the island babes too.

3. Sounds of Summer: The Very Best of the Beach Boys - I thought Jimmy Buffett was a little too much, but the Beach Boys and stuck on an isle (sun and hurricanes) how do you not bring this along. 30+ tracks about summer, sun, beach, women, and the waves man, the WAVES. Chill out to California Girls, Surfin' USA, Good Vibrations, Barbara Ann, Help Me Rhonda, they're all here. Beatles and Rolling Stones aside, this would be the music for the islands, unless you are more of a Jimmy Buffett fan.

4. Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness - Why this rather than Pearl Jam, Sound Garden, Nirvana, it's the content stupid. Cripes you can listen to Mellon Collie and hear something new everytime (even when not drinking the grog or sea turtle blood). And island living isn't always about fun and sun, there's enough here to keep you rocking, enough here to keep you chilling, and enough here to make you go, HUH? Choice cuts: "Tonight Tonight", "Bullet with Butterfly Wings", though I really like "XYU". "In the arms of Sleep" and "To Forgive" are for those downcast days.

5. Multiple choice

a) David Cross "Shut the F*ck Up, You F*#king Baby" -Why a comedy album, if you are by yourself, humor will keep you going. If you are more musically into things, grab Tenacious D before the plane, ship goes down...but at 2 discs and full of content, Dave Cross leads some great insight into the quirky nature of a liberal life (he HATES Bush) but the non political stuff is good, better. Not as bitter as Bill Hicks, not as pointless as most comedians. Patton Oswalt or Eddie Izzard would go well too, but two CDs beats out singles.

b)If we have to go with music, then I would recommend either Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On", Otis Redding's "Greatest Hits", or the Doves "Lost Souls" as chillout and soothing music. Something to calm when the winds reach 140 and the waves are bigger than most transatlantic vessels. Each have they're good points. Yeah Miles Davis would be nice "Kind of Blue" but the soulful singing of Gaye or Redding would top any note that Miles could blow. The Doves are trance rock, good, comedown music (kick Moby's tailfeathers), this is music for those who don't like soul. They infuse rock, electronic, and jazz, very lush, melodic, and again an album where you will hear a new sound in the song. "Catch the Sun" is upbeat, "The Man who Told Everything" is dark and brooding (Nick Drake style for the new age).

These are my 5. I don't claim them to be the best stuff but I won't be bored listening to them. Yeah, no Beatles but I can sing most of that stuff by heart. This stuff will keep me moving, grooving, and hopefully sane until my ship comes in.

[Raven Hawk]

In no particular order:

Pixies - Bossanova
Godsmack - Faceless
Live - Mental Jewelry
Shivaree - I Oughta Give You a Shot in the Head
Sublime - Sublime

[Hurst2112]

Rush "2112"

Dream Theater "Awake"

Frank Zappa "Joe's Garage"

Live "Secret Samadhi"

Spock's Beard "Day for Night"


Or:

Time Life's 3 disc collection "How to survive on a desert island" with it's 2 disc companion series: "How to build a kick ass boat out of jungle parts"

[Passacaglia]

I can't come up with my 5 at the moment, but I want to give a shout out to the people who chose Jellyfish and Belle and Sebastian! If Spilt Milk and Dear Catastrophe Waitress don't make it on my list, they'd be really close!