Shakespeare In The Alley

Well, the man is a wonderful showman. I certainly enjoy that. But I think that, in his prime, he had the best voice in rock.

I think the fact that there are at least half-serious yes responses to the "am I crazy for not liking the Beatles?" question means they are a tad overrated. It's plenty possible for someone to not like the Beatles. Because, after all, they are just a band. And no band appeals to every human alive.

I think the Who deserve to be put right up there with the Beatles. And I think Townshend at his most ambitious is near equal to any of the Beatles at their most ambitious. All of the Who records up to Moon's death are great, and contain a wonderful balance between bold concepts, and an obvious pop sensibility. I think some of Townshends synthesizer experiments deserve to be lauded as much as some of the Beatles studio experiments. And I prefer Daltrey as a vocalist over any of the Beatles.

I don't know. I think Dylan brought new things to the table musically. Not as much studio trickery as the Beatles, but his "thin, wild mercury" sound is equally worthy of acclaim. But it's really pointless to compare them. I certainly respect the Beatles. And don't think they're a bad band at all. They just don't hit me the same way that Dylan and some other bands do.

"and I, I never took much, I never asked for your crutch, now don't ask for mine." I love that line.

Michael Jackson won't be remembered in the same way as Dylan/the Beatles. He'll be remembered for being an icon, and the definition of strange. Dylan and the Beatles will be remembered for changing pop music. Dylan will be remembered for changing songwriting in general.

Considering how noticeably affected/influenced by Dylan's writing they were, I think they definitely would agree.

I can agree with this. Dylan is more than just a singer, and more than just a songwriter. Everyone who has written a song since he came out owes a huge debt to him. It's hard to think that the most critically acclaimed rock musician of all time will only continue to grow in stature, but I can definitely see it happening.

Well, I know you said band, but I think Dylan was consistently at a level above the Beatles. As for bands, I think the Kinks and the Who were better bands during that span. Obviously this is just my personal preference, but I think Davies and Townshend were writing better songs than Lennon and McCartney. To me, the Beatles were something of a gateway band. Once my interest in them faded, I discovered the wealth of other great 60's music. I guess this is why I put Dylan/Kinks/Who above the Beatles. But I've had a much more enduring interest in them than the Beatles.

Honestly, I think the Beatles are incredibly overrated. Terrific band, who made many important albums. But overrated. When I was a kid, I loved them. But then I moved on, and don't really find myself wanting to listen to them at all. I think there were better bands/songwriters in that era. Not to knock the Beatles at all. Those songs are classics for a reason. But the notion that they are the be all and end all of rock music is too much, in my opinion. So, to answer Wild Frank's question, no...it isn't wrong to not like the Beatles.

This is a damn enjoyable album. Dylan sounds like he's having a hell of a good time recording these, and it resonates with me. Obviously not a classic, but an album that made me smile throughout. I'm not even gonna consider ranking/scoring it. It is what it is, and it's good for that.

My only Jason exposure has been his tracks on DNOTS, and Grandaddy's Sumday album, but he's still one of my favorite writers. His lyrics are so idiosyncratic and strange in a way, yet incredibly powerful. I will have to check this solo album out. And the rest of Grandaddy's catalogue, actually.

Wolf At The Door is my favorite Radiohead track. 2+2, There There, Drunken Punchup, Myxomatosis, and a couple other songs are stone-cold classics. The others aren't bad, they just pale in comparison to the greatness of the album's high points.

Well, Radiohead is the odd band out in that they've never had line-up changes, and they have not seen a band member/former band member pass away. But Wilco is obviously American. Still, Radiohead wins, 2 to 1.

If I may further digress into a Radiohead opinion...HTTT has some absolutely killer tracks. Then it has some non-killer tracks. If it had been trimmed down to a 10 or so track album...it would be a classic, in my opinion.

So great. It's often the one that throws me back into an even greater than usual haze of SFA obsession. Name a style of music, and there's something on this album for you.

I am not looking forward to the amount of people who go as interruption Kanye.

Yea, I know. I'm pretty damn into that album lately, so I jumped at the chance to extol it's virtues.

Kind of Blue is an anything album. It's too damn wonderful to classify as music for one particular mood. And I kind of agree with you. "Break up" music can put things in perspective, but it's obviously dark and depressing music for the most part. More darkness and depression is probably not a good idea.

I did that one year. Not many people recognized it, and it terrified children. So...keep that in mind.

Did you really respond to your own thread with "good thread"?

Oh yeah, I'd love a new legit Sparklehorse album. DNOTS made his catalogue finally click with me, so I've been listening to him a lot this year. Good Morning Spider is just an amazing record. However, I'm not gonna hold my breath for anything else Linkous-related. Brilliant as he may be, he's not known for releasing a lot of music in a short time.

DNOTS is my number two album this year, with the Super Furries at number one. For an album with so many different vocalists/styles, it holds itself together very well. The consistent lyrical themes are rather impressive. Even a guy like Iggy Pop, not known for poetic lyrics, contributes a song that fits in thematically. My personal favorite track is Gruff Rhys', but the first 6 or so are really unstoppable. It's a shame the album won't be officially released. Or, at least it doesn't look like it will be. It really is a great project. As far as other albums, Jarvis Cocker and the Man

You win at having a username and avatar.

I don't know anything about this particular venue, but just because a general admission ticket has a "seat number" does not mean you have a seat, if that make sense. I believe it's just a logistical thing for the venue to keep track of.