Friday, June 20, 2003
oh, Brittania: a personal history of British rock, v.2
1. David Bowie, “Rebel Rebel.” His face was a mess. He had torn his dress.
2. Thin Lizzy, “The Boys Are Back in Town.” A masterstroke by a bar band who, frankly, got real lucky. Of course, if you came up with a guitar riff like this, you’d deserve to get lucky, too. Or if a man with the star quality of Phil Lynott was your lead singer. Or if you came up with as bloody spirited and perfect a lyric.
3. Roxy Music, “Love is the Drug.” Substance over style - but plenty of style, too.
4. Public Image Limited, “Public Image.” Definitive proof that second acts exist, and can if not eclipse, then be the equal to opening acts. Leaving the Rotten life behind him, John Lydon concentrated on his art, and succeeded in spades, crafting an amalgam of disco, dub, art (but not prog) rock, and new wave textures, bringing with him absurdly talented sidemen including Jah Wobble and Keith Levine. Their manifesto as pop single.
5. The Cure, “Let’s Go To Bed.” When not suicidally depressed, Robert Smith could be a cheeky fellow. Always a fine lyricist, he hasn’t often topped his opening bon mot here: “Let me take your hands/I’m shaking like milk.”
6. Marianne Faithfull, “Broken English.” Mick’n’Keef long behind her, Faithfull took a massive leap of, well, faith, enveloping herself in synthetic textures whilst yet keeping her lyrics as spiky as e’er. If not moreso. A blinding triumph from an album good enough to bear its name.
7. The Police, “Invisible Sun.” Sting wasn’t always a pretentious asshole, you know.
8. The Pretenders, “Back on the Chain Gang.” Chrissie Hynde, Pat Benatar, and Joan Jett influenced an entire generation of “women in rock,” but none were cooler than Chrissie, because not only could she compose pop diamonds in her sleep, she just didn’t give a fuck what you thought.
9. Siouxsie and the Banshees, “Cities in Dust.” Wherein Sioux and the boys married their pose to their art and made it work at last, on ‘86’s Tinderbox.
10. Morrissey, “The Last of the Famous International Playboys.” Not a love letter from Moz to the Krays - a love letter from the character Moz is inhabiting, to the Krays. Those guitar squiggles are a fine precursor to his future work with Mick Ronson.
11. My Bloody Valentine, “Only Shallow.” Isn’t Anything may well be the most important UK album of the ‘90s, marrying (to be hugely simplistic) the Mary Chain to the Cocteau Twins. Massively influential. Even more brilliant.
12. Stone Roses, “I Wanna Be Adored.” Baggy. Mancunian. Shambling. Dance-rock. Blame them, and…
13. Happy Mondays, “Loose Fit (12” Version).” E’s are good, E’s are good. The most thrilling fusion of dance and rock since Motown.
14. U2, “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.” Not their finest record by any means, but quite possibly Bono’s finest opening lyric: “You’re dangerous/’cause you’re honest.”
15. Pulp, “Disco 2000.” Paired with “Common People,” proof that Jarvis Cocker should’ve been the king of Britain in ’96 instead of either Damon or Noel’n’Liam. The most acute songwriter from the British Isles since Neil Tennant; ah, what could have been…
16. Suede, “Trash.” The glam revivalists at their glammiest, dripping androgyny and glitter as they ride the gutters.
17. Radiohead, “The National Anthem.” Art rockers go all Aphex Twin and get crazy with the cheese whiz, complete with horn section; film at 11.
18. Robbie Williams, “Rock DJ.” “No, Robbie, Austin Powers shouldn’t be your role model. Oh, alright then, you cheeky monkey, but just this once.” Treats the Stones’ “Miss You” as tabula rasa to fine effect.
1. David Bowie, “Rebel Rebel.” His face was a mess. He had torn his dress.
2. Thin Lizzy, “The Boys Are Back in Town.” A masterstroke by a bar band who, frankly, got real lucky. Of course, if you came up with a guitar riff like this, you’d deserve to get lucky, too. Or if a man with the star quality of Phil Lynott was your lead singer. Or if you came up with as bloody spirited and perfect a lyric.
3. Roxy Music, “Love is the Drug.” Substance over style - but plenty of style, too.
4. Public Image Limited, “Public Image.” Definitive proof that second acts exist, and can if not eclipse, then be the equal to opening acts. Leaving the Rotten life behind him, John Lydon concentrated on his art, and succeeded in spades, crafting an amalgam of disco, dub, art (but not prog) rock, and new wave textures, bringing with him absurdly talented sidemen including Jah Wobble and Keith Levine. Their manifesto as pop single.
5. The Cure, “Let’s Go To Bed.” When not suicidally depressed, Robert Smith could be a cheeky fellow. Always a fine lyricist, he hasn’t often topped his opening bon mot here: “Let me take your hands/I’m shaking like milk.”
6. Marianne Faithfull, “Broken English.” Mick’n’Keef long behind her, Faithfull took a massive leap of, well, faith, enveloping herself in synthetic textures whilst yet keeping her lyrics as spiky as e’er. If not moreso. A blinding triumph from an album good enough to bear its name.
7. The Police, “Invisible Sun.” Sting wasn’t always a pretentious asshole, you know.
8. The Pretenders, “Back on the Chain Gang.” Chrissie Hynde, Pat Benatar, and Joan Jett influenced an entire generation of “women in rock,” but none were cooler than Chrissie, because not only could she compose pop diamonds in her sleep, she just didn’t give a fuck what you thought.
9. Siouxsie and the Banshees, “Cities in Dust.” Wherein Sioux and the boys married their pose to their art and made it work at last, on ‘86’s Tinderbox.
10. Morrissey, “The Last of the Famous International Playboys.” Not a love letter from Moz to the Krays - a love letter from the character Moz is inhabiting, to the Krays. Those guitar squiggles are a fine precursor to his future work with Mick Ronson.
11. My Bloody Valentine, “Only Shallow.” Isn’t Anything may well be the most important UK album of the ‘90s, marrying (to be hugely simplistic) the Mary Chain to the Cocteau Twins. Massively influential. Even more brilliant.
12. Stone Roses, “I Wanna Be Adored.” Baggy. Mancunian. Shambling. Dance-rock. Blame them, and…
13. Happy Mondays, “Loose Fit (12” Version).” E’s are good, E’s are good. The most thrilling fusion of dance and rock since Motown.
14. U2, “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses.” Not their finest record by any means, but quite possibly Bono’s finest opening lyric: “You’re dangerous/’cause you’re honest.”
15. Pulp, “Disco 2000.” Paired with “Common People,” proof that Jarvis Cocker should’ve been the king of Britain in ’96 instead of either Damon or Noel’n’Liam. The most acute songwriter from the British Isles since Neil Tennant; ah, what could have been…
16. Suede, “Trash.” The glam revivalists at their glammiest, dripping androgyny and glitter as they ride the gutters.
17. Radiohead, “The National Anthem.” Art rockers go all Aphex Twin and get crazy with the cheese whiz, complete with horn section; film at 11.
18. Robbie Williams, “Rock DJ.” “No, Robbie, Austin Powers shouldn’t be your role model. Oh, alright then, you cheeky monkey, but just this once.” Treats the Stones’ “Miss You” as tabula rasa to fine effect.
# posted by Thomas : 2:27 PM
