It's Only Rock-n-Roll

EXIT STAGE LEFT Here are some incredible, yet politically left-leaning, albums of note worthiness. Husker Du: Flip Your Wig (SST, 1985). Calling Bob Mould angry is like calling the ocean damp. In fact, he's mad as hell. Divide and Conquer might just be the best rock anthem since Won't Get Fooled Again. Together with partner Grant Hart, they write songs that are terse -though not nearly as much as Zen Arcade - and at the same time sonically challenging to the senses. But they've got a softer side. Green Eyes might be the weirdest, sincerest love song of the age. A Mekons: OOOH! (Quarterstick, 2002). If this isn't the anti 9/11 tribute record then Karl Marx was a Republican. It's also their darkest album since Fear and Whiskey. They also haven't lost any of their country influences, though here that's hardly relevant. They are as obsessed with the treachery of the government and society's old ills as ever. Thee Olde Trip To Jerusalem is anothe...

In No Particular Order: Van Morrision: Moondance (Warner Bros., 1970). Where Astral Weeks was, well, aloof, this becomes his coming out record of sorts. Face it, he's a long way from Brown Eyed Girl. For an Irish R&B singer, he's got more soul than most of the black artists he portends to worship. And there's more spirituality here than in most of the gospel albums you're likely to find. Catchy, rhythmic, and with an eye toward the pop audience, many of whom will probably not be able to appreciate its subtler nuances, and will likely throw it in along with the rest of the "soft rock" pretenders. Their loss. A+ The Who: Who's Next (MCA, 1971). If Exile on Main Street is the best rock-n-roll album and London Calling the best punk, then this is, flat out, the best straight ahead rock album of all time. Historically, they were the first true punks - nothing like Led Zeppelin. And they were politically savvy, to boot. "Meet the new boss ... sam...

5 more worth an A+ 21. Various Artists: The Roots of Rock 'n' Roll 1946-1954 (Hip-O, 2004). Before there was such a thing as rock-n-roll, there was this. Artists like Lionel Hampton, Ivory Joe Hunter, Louis Jordon, Hank Williams and Tennessee Ernie Ford played boogie beat jump blues and honky tonk. Early versions of That's All Right, Mama, Hound Dog, Kansas City, and The Hucklebuck bring one back to what it must have been like before the days of Alan Freed. If you're interested in a history lesson or if you just want to hear some great and, sadly, unappreciated music, this 3-disc set is a must. A+ 22. Robert Cray Band: Strong Persuader (Mercury, 1986). Cray isn't the first professional bluesman to make an impressive album. Check out Live in Cook County Jail, for starters. Other blues greats like Ivory Joe Hunter and Howlin' Wolf likewise held the mantle. What separates Cray is his ability to bridge the gap between blues and rock and not just m...

Continuation from last entry, 11. The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Capitol, 1967). It's impossible to imagine what the '60s would've been like without this album. Where Rubber Soul and Revolver leave off, this takes the gauntlet and runs all the way to the finish line. And while I sometimes prefer the hard-edged rock of Abbey Road, there's no denying the ebb and flow of this: their signature album. A+ 12. Sly and the Family Stone: There's a Riot Goin' On (Epic, 1971). In the late '60s Sly made his bones as front man for the best rock-n-roll band this side of Creedence (See Greatest Hits 1970). Here he descends into the despair of the ghetto and turns that despair in on itself. Bleak and desperate with no hope. The light at the end of the tunnel is in fact a train, and he knows it. But rather than run away from its pessimism, Riot runs straight toward it with defiance. Bitter, but courageous. A+ 13. Derek and the ...

Let's Get Started Music has always held a special place in my heart. As a kid growing up in the '60s and '70s, I was exposed to a vast array of genres, from R&B and soul, to rock, to country, to folk, all the way to bubble gum. It mattered not who or what I was listening to. If it was good, I listened to it. My radio was my friend and it went everywhere with me. Artists like Aretha Franklin, the Temptations, the Stones, the Jackson 5, Smokey Robinson, Al Green, the Doors, the Beatles, the Stylistics all made their way to my eardrums on a daily basis. And later, as I grew up, I developed a fondness for singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Van Morrision, John Prine, Stevie Wonder and Neil Young. Like many teenagers I went through my rock faze. Groups like Jethro Tull, the Who, the Grateful Dead, Kansas and Boston were among the favs. Today only the Dead and the Who remain on that list; the others dropping mercifully into oblivion. Since I was born in 1961 I had the rath...