288 - The Kinks - Something Else By the Kinks

There is a nostalgic sweetness that soaks the songs on Something Else By the Kinks. The songs combine less rock influences than folk and traditional pop, that results in an album sounding like the 60's but also is a bit timeless with the heavy doses of nostalgia. The amount of older musical influences seems closer to what Brian Wilson was trying to do with Smile than the Beatles with Sgt. Pepper.

The opening track, "David Watts," reminds me quite a bit of the Rolling Stones' "Let's Spend the Night Together" and the following track, "Death of a Clown," sounds like Rubber Soul-era Beatles with lyrics by Bob Dylan. The rest of the album shuffles around the influences a bit more. Guitars take a back seat frequently as the organ/piano frequently drives tracks.

What has been annoying me about the album is that despite my enjoying the songs, I never felt I got a good grasp on the "specialness" of the album. I kept thinking there is something about the songs that would suddenly reveal some sort of great inspiration or underlying magic that separates this album from many others from the late 60's. I have noticed over the past few years how many various Kinks singles I like. When I saw this album on the list, I was prepared to find new gems I'd want to add to my music collection. While listening to Something Else By the Kinks has been nice, even the songs I really like aren't likely to be added to my own collection.

Songs I knew I liked: None

Songs I didn't know but now like: "Death of a Clown," "Two Sisters," "No Return," "Love Me Til the Sun Shines," "Afternoon Tea," and "Waterloo Sunset"

Songs I can go the rest of my life without hearing again: "Harry Rag"

287 - The Grateful Dead - Anthem of the Sun

Ah, yes, we reach a Grateful Dead album. I've never been terribly keen on The Dead. I got respect for the musicianship, but their music has never really done anything for me. Anthem of the Sun fits 5 songs in 38 minutes. You start off with a fun psychedelic ride with "That's It For the Other One." I really enjoyed this song quite a bit. From what I read, they ended up blending studio recordings with live performance outtakes from jamming. Whatever the methodology, I liked the results.

The song that really stands out after the first track is "Alligator." This song encapsulates what I hear Pigpen's big contribution was to the early Dead - a real, rough blues influence. "Alligator" starts off fairly straight-forward blues and then ricochets around the various musical wanderings the band takes it for the next 11 minutes.

I don't think a studio band could ever come up with "Caution (Do Not Stop on the Tracks)." The use of feedback, the patience to let riffs repeat over and over with subtle differences, and then to crescendo is a tell-tale sign of a road-worn band that has explored and stretched a song continuously at a multitude of concerts.

After really enjoying the first track, the rest of the album fit firmly in my retained concept of what the Grateful Dead sounds like. That could be a good thing or a bad thing.

Songs I knew I liked: None

Songs I didn't know but now like: "That's It For the Other One"

Songs I can go the rest of my life without hearing again: Side Two ("Alligator" and "Caution") are okay, but I won't miss never hearing them again.