Stephen Skory

Interestingly, although this is the second AC/DC album I’ve reviewed as part of my 30 Years On project, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap in fact originally came out before Back in Black. This album was released in Austrailia in 1976, and only came to the ‘states in 1981, after the 1980 release of Back in Black.

I suspect that AC/DC was a major inspiration for the 1984 mockumentary (that I think is brilliant) This Is Spın̈al Tap. In fact, I think a straight line can be drawn from AC/DC’s song “Big Balls” to Spın̈al Tap’s “Big Bottom”. If you enjoy Spın̈al Tap, you’re likely to enjoy AC/DC and this album.

Most of what I said about Back in Black can also be applied to this album. AC/DC is fun band to listen to if you’re in the right mood. However, because the songs on this album don’t quite get the same airplay as those on Back in Black, this album is worth checking out at least once.

Here’s a quick and simple review of Winelight by Grover Washington Jr.:

• Every time I listened to this album I felt over-dressed. No, I never listened to it wearing a tuxedo or a three-piece suit. I mean that wearing any clothes at all is being over-dressed for this album. It’s that kind of album.
• It has only one song on it you’ve ever heard, Just the Two of Us, and likely only because you saw it in Austin Powers 2.

In summary, if you’re naked, go ahead and listen to the album. Or, you can watch Austin Powers 2 and hear the only song on this album you care about, but see some funny stuff happen at the same time. What’s funnier than little people?

Face Dances was the first album put out by The Who after the death of Keith Moon. I’m not familiar enough with The Who to know if that had an effect on this album. I’m guessing it probably did. The best I can say about this album is that the songs are all very “poppy” and the lyrics and melodies stick in your head very easily. But overall, it’s a fairly unremarkable album and probably got on the top-10 due only to the strength of their previous albums. The fact that the band disbanded two years after this album came out is a good sign that they were already on the decline as a creative unit.

According to the Wikipedia page, the cover artwork was commissioned from various famous artists. Judging from the top and bottom rows, it looks like the artists were handed the same photos. The bottom row is the most disappointing – three of the frames are basically identical, and I’m guessing they filled in the fourth with random icons to break the monotony.

Edit: Anyone want to proffer a guess what the middle-row, left-column icon is?

My recommendation is that this album is not worth checking out.

The album Another Ticket by Eric Clapton is mostly a blues album with only a few rockish songs. That’s pretty typical for Clapton. Curiously, the first 3 (of 5) minutes of the title track is instrumental, which is unusual for album title tracks in my opinion. The only hit single off this record is “I Can’t Stand It”. According to Wikipedia, this song sometimes gets played during interludes on Bill O’Reilly’s radio show. I cannot confirm this, for obvious reasons, but I imagine that Bill does not use it for its original meaning of an ahem troublesome woman. He must want to share something in common with one of his heroes.

I generally like Clapton, and this is a decent album. The only legitimate knock on the album is its bright red cover.

Springtime in Boulder is a tumultuous time. Most evenings the clouds get blown down off the mountains and it rains, and a few times it’s turned into snow overnight. The days are blustery and mild, but not what I would call warm just quite yet. The album Arc of a Diver by Steve Winwood does not fit well into my seasonal or geographical mood. If I were in Florida sipping a fruity drink on the beach, I think it would be more appropriate. It would help if I was older and fatter, too. I’m trying to say that if you are in the right place and frame of mind, this album could be quite pleasant. And sometimes pleasant is all you need.

I’m going to try to catch up completely this week.