What are you listening to?

[The Minsky Moment]

So no way of finding out what percentile fan I am of Sun Ra.

[Savonarola]

Jefferson Airplane - Bless Its Pointed Little Head (1969)

Released almost exactly two years after "Surrealistic Pillow."  To me it's surprising how quickly bands used to churn out albums, this is their fourth in that two year period ("After Bathing at Baxters" and "Crown of Creation" are the other two.)  This is a live album recorded at the Fillmore; it's different than the studio albums in that they do a lot of long jams and that they focus on Marty Balin's songs rather than Grace Slick's (in fact "White Rabbit" isn't on the album, though "Someone to Love" is^1.).  You can hear Hot Tuna ready to break out on a couple songs.  It's decent, but the sound isn't the best so I prefer the studio albums.

1.)  I suspect that Grace went off the deep end (or further off the deep end) when she realized that she was going to have to sing "White Rabbit" and "Someone to Love" every night for the rest of her life.

[Josephus]

Bands did record a lot back then (although in this case it's a live album), but yes that was the case. One a year, at least.
I don't think the money was there in touring at the time, and the only lucrative means was putting out an album. Also record contracts at the time were not very favourable to the artist and they were basically locked into several records in a given time. That also explains live albums and greatest hits packages.

[The Minsky Moment]

There is also the practice of locking up artists for multi-record deals that had to be filled before the artist can move to another label - not sure if that was an issue for Jefferson Airplane back then.  Miles David churned out four or five one-word 'n albums for Prestige in the 50s so he could sign with Columbia.  And of course the most famous example was Prince/"glyph" getting albums out to free himself from Warner.

[Eddie Teach]

I see Spotify has rolled out another data thing which tells you of your top artists, how much of a fan you are (you're in the top x% of spotify listeners for that artist).

Lady Gaga Top 3%
Nicki Minaj Top 3%
Ariana Grande Top 4%
Beyonce Top 6%

I might be gay.

Is that just for premium?

[Savonarola]

Bands did record a lot back then (although in this case it's a live album), but yes that was the case. One a year, at least.
I don't think the money was there in touring at the time, and the only lucrative means was putting out an album. Also record contracts at the time were not very favourable to the artist and they were basically locked into several records in a given time. That also explains live albums and greatest hits packages.

Yes, I read once that Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel got called in on the carpet by the record executives for not having an album planned for 1967.  (Art recorded the conversation and he and Paul would get high and laugh at it.)  Going two years between albums (as they did between both Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme and Bookends and then between Bookends and Bridge Over Troubled Waters was really unusual in those days.

The Beatles were really amazing in that the released two albums a year every year from 1963-1965, made two movies, had a full time touring schedule (often worldwide) and Lennon and McCartney still managed to write hits for other bands.

[Savonarola]

There is also the practice of locking up artists for multi-record deals that had to be filled before the artist can move to another label - not sure if that was an issue for Jefferson Airplane back then.  Miles David churned out four or five one-word 'n albums for Prestige in the 50s so he could sign with Columbia.  And of course the most famous example was Prince/"glyph" getting albums out to free himself from Warner.

I'm not sure of the specifics, but they did form their own record label: Grunt Records.  Like Apple before them, eventually they only released the band's albums, (or bands' in this case, both Hot Tuna and Jefferson Starship/Starship were on Grunt.)

[Admiral Yi]

What songs did Lennon and McCartney write for other performers at that time?  I've not heard of that before.

[Savonarola]

What songs did Lennon and McCartney write for other performers at that time?  I've not heard of that before.

Probably the most famous is "I Wanna Be Your Man" which they wrote for the Rolling Stones, or Peter & Gordon's "A World Without Love; but they wrote hits for The Fourmost ("Hello Little Girl") and Billy J. Kramer and the Dakota's (almost all their songs other than "Little Children," in fact John Lennon suggested the stage name "Billy J. Kramer.")

[Admiral Yi]

grazie

A World Without Love sounds way too folky for early Lennon or McCarthy.

Must have been written after Dylan smoked them up.

[mongers]

Up until today Jackson Browne has never appeared on my 'musical radar', odd.   

[Admiral Yi]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scsJZ67ssDY

[Savonarola]

Quicksilver Messenger Service - Happy Trails (1969)

Recorded live and assembled from two different shows, one at Fillmore East and one at the Fillmore West; the first side is an extended version of "Who do you Love," in which each player takes a solo.  The second side begins with Bo Diddley's "Mona" and transitions into a couple jams, one, ("Cavalry"), which would have done Ennio Morricone proud and then ending with an off kilter version of "Happy Trails" .  I think the album works because the jams stay pretty tight and the musicians are all excellent (the aforementioned "Cavalry" sounds like it could have been recorded in a studio.)

[Syt]

Nanowar of Steel have a new-ish song, "Der Fluch des Käpt'n Iglo", about Käpt'n Iglo, the marketing mascot of Iglo's range of frozen fish products (I'd imagine the figure is used in other countries where Iglo operates).

1993 commercial: https://youtu.be/IYSCGAhp7HA
A newer one for their flasgship (PUN INTENDED) product fish sticks: https://youtu.be/4w6AvoRjP0w

So now we have an Italian comedy folk metal band singing about him. In German. With a cartoon video. Produced by an Austrian label.

https://youtu.be/FK-YmV1eVaU

This is the 28 piece VORTEILSPACKUNG mentioned in the song:

[Savonarola]

The Bee Gees - Odessa (1969)

You said goodbye I declared war on Spain.
Never say never say never again .

That may seem like a reasonable way to handle a break up; but there's a horrible chance that you might win; and then what?  You've really got to think these things all the way through; and sometimes you just have to let her go.  It's certainly better than having to deal with Catalan nationalists for the rest of your life.



While those are the weirdest lyrics on the album, it's pretty weird throughout.  There's a song about a man stranded on an iceberg corresponding with his girlfriend who has left him for a Vicar and there's a paean to Thomas Alva Edison.  The album began as a concept album about a ship sinking; but they abandoned that early on.  It's sounds theatric throughout, some critics describe it as "Baroque pop."  They hadn't yet developed their falsettos, and the songs aren't at all funky, even knowing what's going to happen it's hard to hear this as any sort of precursor to their Kings of Disco era.  The harmonies are all amazing, though, some of the best this side of the (Brian Wilson era) Beach Boys.