The Album. During the middle of the 1960s the album, as a musical construct, began to flourish and consume more of the popular music landscape. By the mid-60s artist like Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, and others, began to take over popular music and produced musical collections or albums which quickly took more of a focus for young music buyers and listeners. The 45 record was still very popular and a heavy seller, but young people began to see the album as a preferrable means of consuming the music of the most popular artist. Many of the most popular albums actually still produced several singles, each of which sold as 45s and populated top 40 hit lists of the time.

By the early 70s music buyers started to get away from the singles, and buying 45s, and moved on to purchasing albums. 1974 was the last year that 45s sold more than 200 million copies and sales began to sag after that. This was the beginning of what is termed Album Oriented Rock and the album era. The early 70s saw the birth of FM radio AOR stations and a subtle move away from AM Top 40 radio by many young people. The two most popular emerging stations on the Connecticut scene were WHCN in Hartford and WPLR in New Haven. AM stations like WDRC and WPOP in Hartford began to lose younger listeners.

The album era spanned the years from the mid-60s to the mid-2000s and also spawned several technologies as well. Record companies stopped selling 45s in 1990s. The album, usually containing several popular songs provided the impetus to design technologies that would allow listeners and buyers the opportunity to travel with the music and no longer be tied to a record player or turntable. The first portable technology that allowed for the travel of the album was the eight track cassette. That was followed by the regular half-inch cassette cartridge which was followed by the compact disc and the MP3 player. All had their advantages and disadvantages. The important feature was that they were no longer tied to a physical setting or put the listener at the mercy of a radio station. We could design our own listening experience. I know I am not alone in having the experience of producing many mixed tapes and CDs.

Technological advancement has also been responsible for the near-death of the Album era. With the advent of Napster, which was the first widely-used music sharing app, music was made available to everyone without necessarily purchasing in total what had been produced by artists. Even after the free sharing of music had been curtailed to a degree, the music business shifted to a new paradigm with music, and more specifically individual songs available for purchase on apps such as ITunes and Spotify. The ability for artist to create albums and sell them as collective units has been severely diminished. The most popular artists, like Taylor Swift, Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar, still produce albums that are popular and judged in their entirety, but the bulk of modern music is consumed primarily by the song. It is ironic that the Grammys still refer to the award as Record of the Year when records no longer exist as we once knew them.

As is the case with most of my music choices, my ten albums are focused on the 70s and 80s which is the heart of the album era. One of our favorite killing-time activities during that era was visiting the record shops in search of albums both old and new. Immediately following payday, with a few dollars burning a hole in our pockets, we would hit one of the area record shops like Belmont Records on Washington St in Hartford or Infinity Records on the Silas Deane in Wethersfield and add to our collections. The experience of listening to a great album was the transition through several songs that often had a connective tissue either thematically or musically. At times it was the contrast between songs based on the primary writer or artist driving the production.

The other interesting features of the albums was the cover art and liner notes. Album cover art was a distinct genre of art onto itself. Some artists would utilize the same artist for a series of albums while others created their own cover art through photography or other media. Liner notes were interesting and informative to the serious music listeners who were curious about which individual(s) had written each song, what instruments were being utilized and who was playing them. A typical listening session might involve a comfortable chair, a pair of good headphones (the primary reasons so many boomers are hearing-impaired) and the album cover. In the interest of full disclosure there may have been some occasional listening enhancement as well.

In recent years vinyl has made a comeback. Serious listeners have reverted to vinyl records and turntables. For those who have carefully preserved their collections, albums are once again being enjoyed in their original format. My modest collection unfortunately met its demise as a result of some basement flooding some years back. It is too late in the game for a return to the glory days of listening for me. I will have to be satisfied with listening to my collection of music, including my ten albums, on my Ipod (boomer!) and either my Bose Bluetooth speaker or Bose noise-cancelling headphones. They still sound pretty good.

Disclaimer: During my review of the album info on the internet I came across a site listing the 100 best albums of this century. I regrettably did not recognize the vast majority of them or the artists that had produced them. I am obviously not guilty of recency bias when it comes to current music. Judging by the music that I hear on the radio when I am forced to listen to stations that feature current music, usually while transporting grandkids, I am not drawn to investigate deeper into the current pool. I do like some current indy bands, but not to the degree that I enjoy popular music from the 60’s through the 80’s. The albums listed and described on this list represent the ten albums I would choose to have saved if an evil despot threatened to destroy all music except the ten albums I chose.

My Ten Albums

Abbey Road – The Beatles

This album was the last album recorded by the Beatles although it was not the last album released by the band. The band sat on the music of the Let it Be album for some time which allowed for a period of time in which they recorded the songs for Abbey Road. It was released in 1969 as the band was struggling to continue in the wake of management and personal disputes. Alan Klein was attempting to take management control of the band which divided Paul McCartney from the rest of the group. John Lennon was becoming disillusioned with the process and more focused on Yoko Ono. George Harrison was becoming a more prolific songwriter and felt that his contributions were not given the respect they deserved, and Ringo Starr was just tired and frustrated by the tension. Given all of this turmoil, it is amazing that they were able to produce what is, in my opinion, their best album, and arguably one of the best albums ever produced.

Ironically, the songwriting and musicianship on the album is unsurpassed by anything previously produced by the band. The vocals and vocal harmonies are stunning. McCartney’s vocals on Oh! Darling and Golden Slumbers could not be more different, yet both are unparalleled. It is inexplicable how one person could belt out an iconic rock vocal with unbelievable range and power and later sing a sweet and moving lullaby. The harmonies throughout, but especially in Because and Sun King, are tight and symphonic. Ringo’s drumming was never better or more imaginative. His rhythmic tom-tom rolls on Come Together and his driving solo in the transition between Carry That Weight and the guitar solos is a rare drum solo by him that delivers.

Paul McCartney has always been underrated as a bass player despite producing some of the best bass lines in history. His bass lines on this album surpass many of his previous lines especially in the song Something. George Harrison not only wrote two of his best songs for this album, but two of the best songs ever written in Something and Here Comes the Sun.

The way that the songs transition and come at you, especially on side two of the album, help to produce the drama of the music. To this day I am unable to listen to the medley at the end of side two beginning with Golden Slumbers and moving to The End without being moved. There is just something about the rollercoaster ride of this section that forces a total immersion in the musical journey. Watching McCartney perform this section live on the SNL 50^th Anniversary show, despite his advanced age, gave me the same feeling I had when I first heard it 1969. That may be the best testament to a great album.  

In addition, the album cover is one of the most iconic covers in rock history. McCartney’s bare feet reignited a previous world-wide rumor that he had died. Even now people visiting the area around the Abbey Road studios stop traffic to recreate the ironic crossing.

For Everyman – Jackson Browne

Most of the albums chosen are one of many that could be chosen featuring that particular artist. For Everyman is no exception. Jackson Browne produced a few great albums but my favorite is For Everyman. This is one of the rare albums that does not include one song that you would choose to skip over. All ten songs stand alone as great. From the outset with Take it Easy to the completion with the title track, For Everyman, each song has its own appeal. The album was released in 1973 during an important musical period when many great artists were inhabiting the Laurel Canyon section of Los Angeles. A lot of great music was produced during this period with many of the impactful artist of the period living and working collaboratively. Jackson Browne begins the album with Take it Easy which was written with JD Souther and Glenn Frey of The Eagles. There are many guest artists on the album including David Crosby, Elton John, Don Henley, Joni Mitchell, and Bonnie Raitt.

The album also features the beginnings of some very important collaborations that will follow Jackson Browne for many albums and live performances. It is the first album that features David Lindley on guitar, steel guitar and fiddle. Lindley will be a constant partner for years to come. His lilting and haunting string fills lend an integral texture and emotion to the music. The album also features back-up musicians Leland Sklar on bass and Russ Kunkel on drums who will not only work with Browne off and on for years as one of the most prolific backing bands in history, but several other artists including James Taylor and Carol King.

The songs on the album are a good mix of thought-provoking ballads that express the angst and musings of one of the best lyricists in music such as These Days, I Thought I was a Child, and The Times You’ve Come and a couple of fun rockers like Take it Easy and Red-Neck Friend. Whatever the mood, not many can turn a phrase to express a thought or feeling like Jackson Browne.  For Example:

It is a dance we do in silence
Far below this morning sun
You in your life, me in mine
We have begun
Here we stand and without speaking
Draw the water from the well
And stare beyond the plains
To where the mountains lie so still (Our Lady of the Well)

And I had a lover
But it’s so hard to risk another these days
These days
Now if I seem to be afraid
To live the life that I have made in song
Well it’s just that I’ve been losing
For so long (These Days)

Now your Daddy’s in the den
Shootin’ up the evening news
Mama’s with a friend
Lately she’s been so confused
Little one
Come on and take my hand
Well, I may not have the answer
But I believe I got a plan (Red-Neck Friend)

Jackson Browne puts everything together in the title track, For Everyman. In the song Browne speaks to holding on to the dream of a better world for everyone while those around him seem to be giving in to the tide of despair. There is a dramatic modulation in the song that expresses that tide and the thought of holding on. Before the last chorus, the song quiets down and slowly ramps up again driven by the faint sound of a drum roll that slowly builds to a crescendo and into a lead guitar section by David Lindley as the song fades out.

The cover art for the album shows Jackson Browne sitting alone in front of his childhood home which is a classic Spanish style hacienda which demonstrates his California roots and fits the tone of the album.

Live at the Fillmore East – The Allman Brothers

This album may be the greatest live album ever recorded. It certainly demonstrates the musical genius and virtuosity of The Allman Brothers Band and was responsible for widening that message to the world. The band had produced a couple of earlier albums, but this double album, which highlighted their strength as a “Jam” band, and allowed them to showcase their individual world-class talents, as well as a feel for dramatic arrangements, introduced them to a new and wider audience. The album was a result of recording three shows at the famed venue in March of 1971.

The band consisted of the two founding members and brothers, Greg and Duane Allman. Greg played the organ and piano and provided lead vocals while brother Duane provided lead guitar. Duane was considered one of the greatest guitarists of the time and is still considered the greatest slide guitarist ever. Duane had a steady career as a studio musician working with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett and Eric Clapton. In addition to the brothers, the band included Dickie Betts on lead guitar, a virtuoso in his own right, Barry Oakley on Bass, and Butch Trucks and Jamoe Johanson on drums. The band was one of the only bands with two lead guitarists and two drummers which was largely responsible for their driving live sound.  

The set list for the three shows included a mix of original songs such as Whipping Post, In Memory of Elizabeth Reed, and Hot Lanta and several blues songs by traditional blues greats like Stormy Monday, Done Somebody Wrong and You Don’t love Me. The live shows illustrated the strength of the band because they were not constrained by the time limits of traditional recording. Traditional radio would not play songs longer than 3:30 minutes. Live concerts, and the emergence of FM album-oriented radio, allowed bands like the Allman Brothers Band to fully express the depth and breadth of their talents. AOR allowed an album like Live at the Fillmore East to reach a broader radio audience.

The performances on this album demonstrate the band’s ability to create powerful arrangements blended with individual improvisational efforts especially emanating from the guitars of Duane Allman and Dickie Betts. Listening to these lengthy jams one agrees completely with the enthusiastic fan who yells out, “Play all night!”

Although there are many artist from the 60’s and early 70’s who introduced listeners to the traditional blues music coming from the Mississippi delta and filtering up to Chicago such as Leadbelly, John Lee Hooker, Elmore James and Muddy Waters, white artists like Mike Bloomfield, John Mayall, and Eric Clapton and the Allman Brothers with Live at the Fillmore East might have been important vehicles that introduced those musicians and their music to a wider audience paving the way for other artists and bands to follow and creating space for the originators of the music to have a spotlight.

Aztec Two-Step – Aztec Two-Step

Rex Fowler and Neal Shulman met in a coffee-house in Boston both active in the folk scene of the late 60’s and early 70s. They formed a duo and began writing songs calling themselves Aztec Two-Step after a line in a Lawrence Ferlinghetti beat poem. Their first album, Aztec Two-Step, was released on Elektra records in 1972. The album was critically acclaimed when it was released. The duo and their songs were very popular in the New England and New York areas. Despite less than impressive record sales, they developed a strong following in the Northeast playing small clubs and festivals.

The acoustic-focused album features eleven songs including most of the favorites of their fervent fans who supported them for years in those small to medium venues throughout the northeast. Many in this area would instantly recognize the songs Baking, Dancer’s All, The Persecution and Restoration of Dean Moriarty, Killing Me and Highway Song.

The album, and their music in general, features strong melodies, tight harmonies, and some of the best acoustic guitar accompaniment ever recorded. Rex Fowler is the lead singer and steady rhythm player for most songs and Neal Shulman provides harmonies and masterful acoustic guitar fills that boost the presence and complexity of each song.

The song lyrics are brilliant and reflect the poetic influences of the beat generation that informed the period in which the two found their original inspiration.

The gate left open the sun had woken
The dew left footprints to my door
She walked in slowly her image holy
She knelt beside me on the floor
I remembered you to the highway signs
The colored lights and the highway lines
I said hello to your friends so kind
And told them you were fine (Highway Song)

He was born on the road in the month of July
And he’ll live on the road ‘til he sees fit to die
‘Cause he learned from the road how humanity cries,
How society lies, he sees with more than his eyes (The Persecution and Restoration of Dean Moriarty)

This is also an album that does not contain a song that the listener would choose to skip over. There are some notable guest artists on the album including John Sebastion and Jerry Yester from the Lovin’ Spoonful.

Court and Spark – Joni Mitchell

As is the case with many of my choices on this list, I could have easily chosen another Joni Mitchell album for the list. Her album, Blue, which was released in 1971, is a great album and is one of my favorites. Although it was a close call, I had to choose Court and Spark over Blue. The album was released in 1974 on A&M records. The album was somewhat of a departure for Mitchell as it incorporated more of a jazz-rock tone. There were some expected collaborations such as Robbie Robertson, Graham Nash and David Crosby, but the collaboration with Tom Scott’s L.A. Express lent a fresh jazz-fusion sound to many of the tracks.

The album is another example of great songwriting. There is not a mediocre song among the eleven on the album. Help Me rose to number seven on the Billboard Top 100 making one of the few times a Joni Mitchell song made the charts in the top ten. The album is in the Grammy Hall of Fame and listed as 110th on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Free Man in Paris, written about producer David Geffen, was 47^th on the Rolling Stone list of greatest songs of all time.  

Mitchell is at her very best vocally with her classic clear and precise pitch. Her talent for sliding notes lends itself perfectly to a jazzy approach. She is able to achieve a soft and sweet tone when needed and a strong and forceful tone when called for. There are several subtle moments in the music that draw in the listener for closer inspection.  

The album contains some of Mitchell’s best songwriting and lyrics. Mitchell is one of the best lyricists in popular music history. She lives in the same pantheon as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen  and Jackson Browne and may be the best of the group. Some examples:

All the guilty people he said they’ve all seen the stain

On their daily bread
on their Christian names
I cleared myself I sacrificed my Blues
And you could complete me
I’d complete you  (Court and Spark)

Help me I think I’m falling too fast

Its got me hoping for the future and worrying about the past

‘Cause I’ve seen some hot hot blazes
Come down to smoke and ash  (Help Me)

I was a free man in Paris, I felt unfettered and alive
Nobody was calling me up for favors
No one’s future to decide
You know I’d go back there tomorrow
But for the work I’ve taken on
Stoking the star maker machinery behind the popular song (Free Man in Paris)

Countdown to Ecstasy – Steely Dan

Released in 1973 on ABC records, this was Steely Dan’s second album following their debut album, Can’t Buy a Thrill. Several other albums by the band were in the running to be included on the list including Pretzel Logic, Katy Lied and Aja, but Countdown to Ecstasy has the rare quality that is consistent with most of the albums on the list. There is not a bad song included. Lead singer David Palmer had left the group with co-founder Donald Fagen taking over the role while still playing keyboards. The rest of the band members remained from the first album including co-founder Walter Becker on bass, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and Denny Diaz on lead guitars.

The musical style on this album blends the pop/rock sound of the first album with emerging jazz-inspired melodies and several jazz-like key changes and chord progressions on many of the songs. The jazz influence would continue to grow on subsequent albums. It is the last album that is recorded with a band concept in mind. In subsequent albums Steely Dan, essentially meaning Fagen and Becker, would forgo permanent band members and transition to invited studio musicians in the production of their music.

In the meantime, the band on this album still demonstrates an ability to produce high-level musicianship especially Baxter and Diaz on lead guitar. Several of the guitar leads are masterful and considered among the best in rock history by those who know the guitar. Despite the departure of lead singer Palmer, the move to Fagen as the lead singer better matches the tone of the band and the thematic approach of the band. The work of the back-up singers provides tight harmonies.

The overall themes covered by these songs continue to expose the underbelly of American culture and the excesses that the pair see in everyday life. It is a somewhat cynical view pointing out the pervasive hypocrisy of individuals in society in a colorful and dramatic way. In terms of the thematic approach and lyrics, Fagen and Becker are storytellers. The stories on this album are compelling. 

In Razor Boy, they paint the picture of an addict and the conflict between desires and outcomes with a warning.

Will you still have a song to sing
When the razor boy comes
And takes your fancy things away?
Will you still be singing it
On that cold and windy day?

In Pearl of the Quarter the main character longs for the woman he loves while she is busy working the streets of the French Quarter in New Orleans

And if you hear from my Louise
Won’t you tell her I say hello?
Please make it clear
When her day is done
She’s got a place to go

As is the case with the other albums on the list, there is not mediocre songs on the album.

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

More commonly referred to as simply Sgt Pepper, this album was released in 1967. It followed the iconic album Revolver and marked the final statement that The Beatles had moved on permanently from touring and would let their studio albums stand alone. It was mainly Paul McCartney’s idea to produce a collection of songs under the guise of a fictitious band. Despite the inclusion of many styles of music, including classic rock songs like Getting Better and Good Morning, and McCartney’s affinity for more traditional orchestral compositions like She’s Leaving Home and When I’m Sixty-Four, the album is seen as a touchstone of the psychedelic era with songs like Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds and Within You, Without You.

As is true with most of the later Beatles’ albums, the musicianship and inventive use of new technology and recording techniques make the album complex and multi-layered. One thing remains a constant which is the music itself. The melodies and instrumental play are stellar. She’s Leaving Home is one of the most beautiful and haunting songs. The accompanying orchestration serves to enhance the sadness and drama of the story of a young girl leaving her parents to find a life of her own while the parents are hurt and confused by her actions.

One unheralded feature of Beatles songs from the beginning, and strongly on display on this album, are the background vocals. This has always been an important and precise part of Beatles recordings and is displayed in the songs When I’m Sixty-Four, With a Little Help from My Friends, and Getting Better.

One important feature of a great album is how it ends, especially a concept album like Sgt Pepper. This album has one of the most iconic endings in rock music. A Day in the Life is a unique song as it basically blends two songs together somewhat seamlessly. John Lennon had written the first part of the song and thought it was incomplete. McCartney had an unfinished piece of a song floating around that he thought they could integrate in the middle of Lennon’s section. The result was the masterpiece that is A Day in the Life. The song begins basically focused by an acoustic guitar. It then enters a crescendo to a piano-driven song during McCartney’s section and finishes with a combination of the two as it reverts back to Lennon’s composition. At the end there is a crescendo like a rising tornado with a variety of random sounds and voices that can be faintly heard depending on what medium the listener is using. The tornado of sound abruptly ends with an overpowering but clean pound on a piano chord which was produced by having George Martin, McCartney, Lennon and a road manager all play the chord simultaneously. The chord fades almost endlessly.

The cover of the album is clearly iconic. It features the likeness of scores of famous real and fictional characters throughout the 20^th century. Masny have spent time combing through the figures trying to identify the famous and infamous faces. Standing in front of all of these historical characters are the Beatles in their now iconic band uniforms.

Besides the great music, Sgt Pepper also provides something that Beatles albums only hint at previously. The Beatles started the great British invasion bringing British bands to America. Their music was heavily influenced by American R&B and Country music. Whether it was intentional or not, Sgt Pepper seems to provide more of a glimpse into British culture. There are many more references to British life and music throughout the album which become more prevalent in future albums like The White Album and Abbey Road. It is the rarest of air to have one band lay claim to two albums that have frequently been referred to as the greatest album of all time. No other band has that distinction.

Breakfast In America – Supertramp

Breakfast in America was released in 1979 on A&M records and immediately captured the airwaves. It has a unique combination of sounds and sensibilities. Its melding of symphonic and operatic sounds with driving rock and roll rhythms is like a marriage of Sgt. Pepper and Tommy. Immediately the sharpness and clarity of the production brings color to a black and white picture. The songs are heavily piano driven combined with unusually high-pitched and melodic vocals and harmonies. When Logical Song, Take the Long Way Home or Goodbye Stranger came on the radio one was immediately called to attention. It was a wall of sound and tones that were not heard anywhere else.

Supertramp was primarily driven by two very different songwriters in Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies. They were accompanied by John Helliwell who lends a very strong presence on the sax, a prominent driving rhythm by Bob Siebenberg on drums and Doug Thomson on bass.  

The hallmark of Supertramp are its melodies and harmonies. Besides the ever-present sax throughout most of the album the band also experiments with some instrumentation not regularly heard on most rock albums. There is the rolling clarinet in Breakfast in America and the Wurlitzer electric piano utilized on The Logical Song and other spots in the album.

Although the point of the album was to write fun sings there is a subtle but critical look at American culture with its excesses and superficiality.

There are times when all the world’s asleep
The questions run too deep for such a simple man
Won’t you please, please tell me what we’ve learned?
I know it sounds absurd but please tell me who I am (Logical Song)

I’m a winner, I’m a sinner
Do you want my autograph
I’m a loser, what a joker
I’m playing my jokes upon you
While there’s nothing better to do (Breakfast in America)

Does it feel that your life’s become a catastrophe?
Oh, it has to be for you to grow, boy
When you look through the years and see what you could have been
Oh, what you might have been if you’d had more time (Take the Long Way Home)

It is difficult to not feel upbeat and positive after listening to this album. The Wurlitzer piano, clarinet and saxophone sound like a circus and you cannot help but feel like your are being taken for a ride.

Born to Run – Bruce Springsteen

By 1974 Bruce Springsteen had already released two albums on Columbia records including Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ and The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle. Although both albums were critical successes, record sales did not reflect the critical opinion. The story has it that Columbia was prepared to drop Springsteen unless he produced a hit single to boost sales. Drawing on several inspirations including his native New Jersey and the young people that he observed throughout his youth, he began to work on a tune that could highlight the sights, sounds and sensibilities of that New Jersey. The song was Born to Run.

After several iterations the completed song was presented to Columbia with lukewarm response. Springsteen’s manager took the risk to by-pass Columbia and go directly to radio stations. The immediate popularity of the song forced Columbia to relent and offer an album contract. The result was the album Born to Run.

Springsteen returned to the studio determined to use all of the resources of the studio as opposed to relying solely on the live band sound largely inspired by the Phil Spector’s sound and process. Despite his new focus on the studio, the contribution and the importance of the E Street Band can never be downplayed. The band consisted of very talented musicians who served, many of whom still serving, as the perfect compliment to Springsteen’s songs. The members at the time of the recording included Danny Federici on organ, David Sancious on Piano (replaced by Roy Bittan soon after the release) ,Ernest Carter on drums (soon replaced by Max Weinberg), Gary Tallent on bass, and the Big Man, Clarence Clemons on Sax. Several other musicians contributed to the album including Little Steven Van Zandt on backing vocals and arrangements.

Born to Run, the song and album, offered listeners a different Springsteen sound and feeling that had a harder edge and layered sound closer aligned with Spector’s famous Wall of Sound. The rock and roll had a foundation of more complex arrangements. The musicians had an opportunity to display their individual prowess within the context of the overall sound. The perfect example of this is Jungleland. The intro, with a violin arrangement and Sancious on piano, signals that this song will be a little different and that there is a story to tell. The atmosphere throughout offers a feeling of isolation and desperation. The backing orchestral arrangements drive the feeling of the song and Clarence Clemons saxophone solo is considered by many as one of the best saxophone solos in rock music. The solo, with its interminably long sustained high notes, evokes a frustrated scream for recognition. Springsteen’s unique and recognizable vocal sound blossomed with these songs.

Although Springsteen had displayed the beginnings of his lyrical genius on previous songs, it really came to the forefront on Born to Run. His musings about growing up in an environment that seemed to offer little in the way of opportunity or personal power, and the angst that accompanied those feelings, were powerfully expressed in his lyrics. His listeners recognized the lyrics of someone who understood their frustrations and struggles. He paints pictures with his storytelling that identify him as a kindred spirit.

You can hide ‘neath your covers and study your pain
Make crosses for your lovers, throw roses in the rain
Waste your summer praying in vain
For a savior to rise from these streets (Thunder Road)

Sprung from cages on highway nine
Chrome wheeled, fuel injected, and steppin’ out over the line
Oh, maybe this town rips the bones from your back
It’s a death trap, it’s a suicide rap (Born to Run)

The street’s alive
As secret debts are paid
Contacts made, they vanish unseen
Kids flash guitars just like switchblades
Hustling for the record machine (Jungleland)

Tapestry – Carole King

Until 1970 Carole King had been more famous as a song-writer along with her former husband and lyricist Gerry Goffin. They had written tons of hits for the likes of The Drifters, Bobby Vee, The Shirelles, Bobby Ridell, Tony Orlando, The Monkees, Righteous Brothers, and of course, Aretha Franklin. Tapestry was King’s second album as a singer and performer in her own right. It turned out that the most powerful voice she could have been writing for was her own.

The years that she spent pumping out song after song with her husband while hold up in the Brill Building in New York, and working with so many talented artists who would interpret and record her songs, finally transferred to interpretations of her own songs as she found her voice within her new surroundings. And it was a strong and powerful voice.

 Most of the songs were written while she was living in the creative conclave of Laurel Canyon with many of the other artists of the early 70s. In fact, two of the major voices of the time who were also Laurel Canyon residents, James Taylor and Joni Mitchell, played an important part in the development of the album. In fact, James Taylor would have a hit with the song You’ve Got a Friend before Tapestry even hit its stride. 

The fact that Carole King knew how to write catchy melodies was no secret, but the melodies of these songs were more powerful and personal. The songs are a mix of heart-felt ballads and more up-tempo rock songs. Whichever she was playing and singing you had the feeling that you were sitting in a room alone with her and she was sharing her feelings directly with you.

The production and musicianship on the album are both first-rate. King’s piano is the clear and driving force but is surrounded by the work of first-class studio musicians including a few of the players that will share time with King as well James Taylor and Jackson Browne including drummer Russ Kunkel and guitarist Danny Kortchmar. 

The success of Tapestry was almost unparalleled. The album was 14 X platinum staying on the Billboard charts for 313 weeks. The album earned four Grammy Awards including Album of the Year, Best Female Pop Performance, Song of the Year for You’ve Got a Friend, and Record of the Year for It’s Too Late. The Album is also listed as #25 on the Rolling Stone list of the 500 best albums of all time. How could all of these accolades be otherwise for an album that not only includes new songs like I Feel the Earth and Its Too Late as well as You’ve Got a Friend and Natural Woman.

Honorable Mention

Graceland – Paul Simon

Boston I –   Boston

Hotel California – Eagles

Blue – Joni Mithell

Let it Bleed – Rolling Stones

Let it Bleed – Rolling Stones