The Great Albums

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Bonus Song Thursday - Method Man feat. Mary J. Blige "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By" Jul 06, 2017

Show notes

It's Bonus Song Thursday! Brian and Bill follow up our Wu-Tang talk by discussing one of their most successful members Method Man and his hit featuring Mary J. Blige "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By." Our chat about the time period this was release quickly turned into a deeper examination of cultural appropriation, bias, and why it might be okay for two white guys to have a serious discussion examining what makes some rap music great. Also, we round up the emails and responses to our Jimmy Eat World episode. We'll be back in two weeks with a very Summer Special episode!

Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) [w/ guest Kyle Gordon] Jul 03, 2017

Show notes

Improvisor and vocalist Kyle Gordon (mydarklittlecorner.com) joins Bill and Brian to discuss Wu-Tang Clan's seminal rap debut Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) [1993, Loud/RCA). After Brian goes off book to name all 9 members of the group (RZA, GZA, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Method Man, Raekwon the Chef, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, Ghostface Killah, and U-God), Kyle talks about discovering the group as an angry teen growing up in the suburbs of New York.

Bonus Song Thursday - Jimmy Eat World "A Sunday" Jun 29, 2017

Show notes

It's Bonus Song Thursday! Bill and Brian jump into a Way Back Machine to continue the conversation about Jimmy Eat World by delving into a tune from their 1999 album Clarity. We discuss what exactly "emo" is and why Brian was wrong not to listen to Weezer's Pinkerton before we get into some listener emails about 90s rock icons that have gone soft and 21st century guitar gods.

Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American (w/ guest Jesse Cannon) Jun 26, 2017

Show notes

Renaissance man and author of Processing Creativity: the Tools, Practices and Habits Used to Make Music You're Happy With, Jesse Cannon, joins Bill and Brian to discuss Jimmy Eat World's breakthrough album Bleed American (2001, Dreamworks). Jesse describes coming up in the emo scene at the same time as JEW, listening to their album Clarity as a genre defining touchstone, and loving this album when it came out. Then Brian, Bill, and Jesse talk about Mark Trombino's contributions as producer, Zach Lind's unique drumming, Jim Adkins' tone and string gauge, and a whole lot of production tips and tricks as we make our way through the album track by track. Make sure to check out all the projects Jesse is involved with - including producing and more podcasting - at jessecannon.com!

Bonus Song Thursday - Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart, and Sting "All for Love" Jun 22, 2017

Show notes

It's Bonus Song Thursday! Today, Bill and Brian chat about this gem of a 90s tune! While the song doesn't lend itself to too much specific discussion, the boys take a stroll down memory lane as they attempt to decipher the difference between which bullies from what movies were played by Keifer Sutherland and Anthony Michael Hall. Meanwhile, Brian shares a story of roller rink romance that ends in an all-too-familiar fashion and Bill asks the listeners to help us figure out who went from rock to soft rock between 1997 and 2017 (similar to how Adams, Stewart, and Sting did from the 70s to the 90s). All this and more on this week's Bonus Song Thursday edition of The Great Albums!

The Police - Outlandos d'Amour Jun 19, 2017

Show notes

Brian and Bill are joined by musician Kimi Howe (casino sundae.bandcamp.com) to discuss the Police's debut album Outlandos d'Amour (1978, A&M). Kim talks about listening to this album as a part of her uncle's 8 track collection (he made sure to skip "Be My Girl - Sally" so that it didn't affect her impressionable ears). Then Bill, Brian, and Kim get into talking about the band's musical talent, how they fit in the British punk scene, Sting's ego, Andy Summers' excellent and unique style, just how cool Stewart Copeland and his brother Miles really are, Sting's evolving position on Rod Stewart, and more as we make our through the album track by track!

Bonus Song Thursday - Love "Always See Your Face" Jun 15, 2017

Show notes

It's Bonus Song Thursday! And Bill stops in for a short episode to explain that we had some technical difficulties and lost the episode we actually recorded for this. :( But Bill makes sure to fill you in on the tragic love story that made this Brian's favorite Love song, the results of our informal poll about Wilco's "Via Chicago," and a little bit of promo. Make sure to go support former guest of the podcast Tyler Plazio and his band Soldiers of Suburbia by donating to their Indie GoGo campaign! https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-debut-soldiers-of-suburbia-ep-music-rock#/

Love - Forever Changes (w/ guest Neil Sabatino) Jun 12, 2017

Show notes

Musician, producer, and label guru Neil Sabatino (mint400.com) joins Bill and Brian to discuss Love's third album Forever Changes (1967, Elektra). Neil talks about how the band's early garage sound drew him in after a friend got him listening to Love's first couple albums, but then he was blown away by the maturity of the psychedelic and folk tones produced on Forever Changes. Bill, Brian, and Neil then get into the band's legacy, Bryan MacLean's genius guitar playing, how producer Bruce Botnick deftly motivated the band after bringing in some ringers from the Wrecking Crew, the band's influence on the Doors, a little on Arthur Lee's influence on Jimi Hendrix, production styles and the technology available for listening, the album's place amongst the other classic albums of the time (such as Pet Sounds, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and the Piper at the Gates of Dawn), and much more as we make our way through the album track by track!

Bonus Song Thursday - Wilco "Wilco (the Song)" Jun 08, 2017

Show notes

It's Bonus Song Thursday and this week the B-Squad talks about Wilco's title track off their self-titled album! Along the way they talk about how comfortable (in a good way) the band has become in its own skin as well as what the Dad Rock of the 21st century might sound like. Along the way, they discuss their top 5 favorite Beatles albums (in honor of the recent Sgt Pepper 50th Anniversary), modern standards, and the return of Bill's band Small Planet Radio!

Wilco - Summerteeth (w/ guest Jim Laczkowski) Jun 05, 2017

Show notes

Bill and Brian welcome back podcaster and musician Jim Laczkowski (nowplayingnetwork.net and gardenonatrampoline.com) to discuss Wilco's foray into lush indie pop, Summerteeth (1999, Reprise). Jim talks about checking out the band after reading a favorable review from critic Greg Kot. Then Bill, Brian, and Jim discuss Wilco's evolution within their career, Jay Bennett's influence on the sound of the band, how the album maybe hit at the wrong time - namely, a time when Creed was blowing up the charts, how Jeff Tweedy is 'da bomb,' typical mid-Western Chicago guys shaving their heads and wearing dresses (y'know, like Billy Corgan), a lot about what we think Schmilco should sound like, the obvious influence of Sesame Street, Ken Coomer's welcome contributions as a great drummer, some great-but-extraneous tracks at the end, and more as we make our way through the album track by track!

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