Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Grimsby” by Elton John To use the title of one of the songs included on this album, Elton John’s Caribou is indeed a “Stinker.” That said, this beautiful turd of an album, his first to be recorded in the U.S., captures Elton John at his commercial apex and at the height of his creative powers. The fact that it contained two of his most indelible singles, “The Bitch Is Back” and “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me,” was just the icing on the cake of a very hectic year. By the release of Caribou in 1974, Elton John’s career was so white-hot he could do no wrong. His previous...

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Creepin’” by Stevie Wonder Today’s Song Of The Day is from Stevie Wonder’s 1974 album Fulfillingness’ First Finale which was released shortly after a car accident that almost took his life, making the album an all-the-more-important part of his canon. While on tour in North Carolina in August of 1973, Wonder’s car smashed into the back of a logging truck, and the bed of the truck crashed into the windshield of his car. Wonder suffered head injuries that left him in a coma for four days. He also partially lost his sense of smell and temporarily lost his sense of taste. The brush with death had a great impact on the...

  Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Aire” by Chicago By the time of the sessions for their sixth studio album (and seventh overall), Chicago had dozens of hits behind them and had grown restless and unhappy with the concise nature of their previous two records. Sure the albums established the group as a hit making machine, but the band began to feel that their credibility was at stake. To that end, Chicago decided to use some of the leeway their many hits had bought them to stretch out and make the jazz album they always wanted to. Not all of the members were on board with the idea, especially Peter Cetera and producer James William Guericio...

  Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Kill Your Sons” by Lou Reed After the huge success of the Transformer album and its top-twenty single “Walk On The Wild Side,” Lou Reed delivered his most beautifully disturbing album as a follow up. The concept album, Berlin was considered at the time to be a depressing mess, and it was not exactly what fans expected or wanted from their newly minted glam rock star. Over time, Berlin’s stature has deservedly risen and is now not only considered a classic, but one of Reed’s greatest albums. In order to calm the nerves of his record company and his fans, Reed followed Berlin with the live Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal...

  Today’s Cool Album o the Day (#843 in the Series) is Montrose, Paper Money. I’m writing this on  March 3rd, a year to the day that Ronnie Montrose left us for what many believe is a better place. So for today’s Cool Album Of The Day we are honoring  Ronnie with a piece on Paper Money,  his second Montrose band album which was released in 1974. People ALWAYS mention the genius of the Montrose debut album which was released just a year earlier. That is completely legit however Paper Money certainly deserves its own accolades. Featuring the same lineup as the debut (with the exception of Alan Fitzgerald taking over bass duties for Bill Church) and the same...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#819 in the Series) is Richard & Linda Thompson, I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight. This is an album I’ve went back to recently and it’s captivated me, full to the brim as it is with wonderfully bleak, world-weary and fascinating songs. I actually found my old cassette copy of it and realized that I hadn’t played the full album in years, most of my Richard Thompson stuff is on compilations. Well, I’m glad I put it on because this is one of the best adverts you could ever get for the Keep The Album Alive! campaign, it’s magnificent from start to finish. Thompson, one of the very best British...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day is (#803 in the Series) is Scorpions, Fly to the Rainbow. Fly to the Rainbow was the 1974 album from German metal band Scorpions. It was their second album following up, Lonesome Crow. This was not just a straight ahead metal album. It was far from it. It definitely had a good layer of prog-rock in its sound.  I usually don’t include track times to the listings. I did so here for a reason. Look at the lengths. 7:42, 9:40 etc.  Those lengthy times are a clear point to something different. Lonesome Crow was the only album that had Michael Schenker as full time lead guitarist.  He did appear here but in a...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#800 in the Series) Big Star, Third/Sister Lovers This one goes down as one of the great enigma’s of rock music, an album by a band which had pretty much split up by the time it was recorded, which had no title and which didn’t even have a finalized track listing. For years it was, just like The Beach Boys “SMiLE”, more of a rumour, a myth, than an actual record. Thankfully it was eventually released, in an albeit limited capacity, and fans were finally able to hear what all the fuss was about. Was it worth it? Hell yeah. Big time. Big Star were founded in Memphis by  three friends who were deeply...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#793 in the Series) is Badfinger, Wish You Were Here. Badfinger, the poster band for the “Behind the Music” type of Rock & Roll excess cautionary tale, could have been, and really should have been the next big thing in the post Beatles rock era. Starting with their first record, Magic Christian Record, released by Apple Records, and personally endorsed by Paul McCartney himself, who also wrote the band’s first hit “Come and Get It,” a song that was considered by many to be the next great pop song.  This musical blend of Hollies, Kinks, and Beach Boys, along with a pinch of psychedelic mojo seemed to be the perfect recipe to...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#774 in the Series) is Glen Campbell  & Jimmy Webb, Reunion: The Songs of Jimmy Webb. This album had its beginnings in those wonderful Glen Campbell hits of the late 60′s, five absolute gems released between 1967 and 1970 : “By The Time I Get To Phoenix,” “Galveston’” “Where’s The Playground Susie ?”, “Honey Come Back” and, of course, the ever shining jewel that is “Wichita Lineman.”  All five were written by one of the very best up-and-coming songwriters of the era, Jimmy Webb. Before those recordings both men had careers which were very much on the ascent but when Glen decided to record the first of those songs (Phoenix) as the...