I disagree with that one. It's a great record to put on when you're doing something else. In fact I don't think any double album was meant to be listened to from beginning to end in one go.
"The Wall", I admit, is NOT the Floyd album for beginners, but for hardcore Floydheads it is the Citizen Kane of rock albums! It NEEDS all four sides! (But, remember, on the initial drawing board , it was supposed to be a THREE record set!)
To me, it only starts dragging in the sixth side were they threw all the dub versions. I applaud the sheer ambition of the project, they basically played everything (rock, pop, reggae, jazz, rap, world music).
@@luismarioguerrerosanchez4747 One of the greatest moments on the album is on Side Two, when One More Time goes into One More Dub, with the help of Mikey Dread. Even Side Six makes for a perfect chill-out headphone listen. Maybe one reason I've never had a problem with the sheer bulk of Sandinista is because something about the music and production feels beyond time. It has always had a transportive effect on me.
The Wall fits this category for me. It would've made more sense as a book of poetry. As music, it's too self-indulgent. And yes, I fall into the Team Gilmour category. 🙂
Totally agree. Does anyone really listen thru all of side four? Get rid of "The Trial", "Stop", "Outside the Wall", "Vera", "Bring the Boys Back Home", "Waiting For The Worms", "Dont Leave Me Now". "One Of My Turns" and the reprises of "Another Brick in the Wall, and "In the Flesh" and that's over 25 minutes there.
In 1993, Klaus Schulze published a 10-CD box with premiere material and never before published live recordings. The composition "Picasso geht spazieren" fills two CDs (over 150 minutes). In 1995 he released a ten-disc box "Historic Edition", and in 1997 a 25-disc "Jubilee Edition". In 2000, all three boxes were released with a five-disc bonus as the "Ultimate Edition" containing 50 CDs. Between 2009 and 2016, the same material, along with additional tracks, was released as three-disc sets under the name "La Vie Electronique" volume1&16 (vol. 16 have 5 cd box). I only have sets: 1, 12, 13. I can listen to a maximum of one CD from this series in concentration. Less is more.
@@michaelpdawson Thanks! I love most music from commercial to uncommercial like that. I think it takes talent to make that type of wall of sound music and I do find audio form, diversity and purpose to it; it is not like miking a street's jackhammer to me. The only other Lou Reed album I have so far is "New Sensations," one of his almost commercial efforts.
@@shiroibasketshoes I’ve never been a big Lou Reed fan myself. Apart from MMM-which I do own on CD, but I’d love to find an original vinyl-and the early Velvet Underground albums, all I have from him is Transformer and the Poe-based concept album, The Raven.
What about Pink Floyd's Ummagmma? Except for the live side, which is good, the rest of it is a half-baked mess! The only time it sounded good to me and held my attention was when I was on some pain killers... Surprised that you don't dig Bitches Brew. I feel like it's really an extension of the ideas on In a Silent Way, though much denser and more intense. There's a lot of layers to it, which might make it difficult for some folks to take in, but I feel that despite how free and open the structures of it are that it still has a really coherent flow to it. I don't feel that you can even compare it much to most other fusion because it's such a different thing. Most fusion, like Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, the more popular era of Weather Report, etc is much more about tight composition and hotshot playing whereas Bitches Brew is looser and far more nebulous/spacey... but to me, it's arguably more dynamic, more open seeming, yet more intense than any of the others...
I like the 1974 Todd album and yes its a chore indeed but its got nothing on his insane 1975 follow up initiation and side one is classic todd but side 2 is the wild and all 36 minutes of treatise on cosmic fire what are your thoughts of this one
@tomrobinson5776 it's definitely worth getting and it's more in tune with what he was doing with his utopia protects at the time and faithful is a fantastic record to
Despite several attempts, I have never been able to listen to Metal Machine Music in its entirety. The longest that I got is about halfway through Side Two. MMM makes me feel physically ill when I listen to it, like I need an anti-emetic. But as Lou Reed once said about his own record, "Anyone who gets to Side Four is dumber than I am." 😅
I love pure pop, mellow music and "Metal Machine Music." The only Lou Reed albums I have are that and "New Sensations." it's the first time when an artist has insulted (those like) me for loving their album.
Me and a couple friends listened to Metal Machine Music all the way through, stupidedly loud, on mushrooms back in the late 80s. It was a trial of endurance and we lived to tell the tale.
I agree with you that Self Portrait contained some pretty dire stuff but I absolutely love the Bootleg Series, Another Self Portrait. To me it shows what could have been if the best from both albums had been released as a double
@@tomrobinson5776 I agree. After SELF PORTRAIT was savaged by the critics and ignored by fans, Dylan rushed out NEW MORNING. He later claimed that time would vindicate SELF PORTRAIT but that has never really happened (although I've heard some positive reviews from younger vinyl fans). I find the album mostly unlistenable. The "Bootleg Series" version of this double shows that there was a decent album underneath the questionable production and song-choices of the released version. The idea of a "self portrait" made up of covers and roots music isn't a bad one but the execution was truly sub-par. Perhaps, like METAL MACHINE MUSIC, it's a case of 'self sabotage' or, more likely, it's a portrait of an artist losing their way for a bit.
Dunno man, I think Self Portrait is criminally underrated to me, I’ve always liked that album and it doesn’t deserve the flack it gets, I think people don’t like it because they are always told that it’s bad, it’s not.
@@Iomhar I actually have a demonstration album from Columbia titled Sandinista Now that pairs the album down to a single disc and it is most excellent. Just a plain white cover with the titled stamped with a Demonstration Not For Sale sticker in the right hand corner.
Much as I love Bob Mould (particularly with Sugar and his early solo stuff like "Workbook" and "Black Sheets of Rain"), Husker Du are just so INTENSE that I can only take them in carefully measured doses. Yet they put out TWO double LP albums, "Zen Arcade" and "Warehouse: Songs and Stories" that, like some of your selections, contain some of the band's best work. But I can honestly say that, even after they were issued on single-disc CDs, I've never been able to listen to either of them all the way through in a single sitting. Too exhausting. "In a Silent Way" is probably my favorite "electric Miles," too. I love the 3 CD "Complete Sessions" set that came out in 2001, which includes stuff from "Filles de Kilamanjaro" (my fave of that period), "Water Babies," "Circle in the Round" and "Directions." As for "Here, My Dear" -- I have it, but still haven't really devoted time and effort to listening to it. You know the story: He was behind in alimony payments and agreed to hand over (note the title) half the royalties for his next Motown album to his ex. This is it.
@Wayner71 i agree. for me the fault lies mostly with lake and palmer. pretty much forgettable songs on their two sides. but piano concerto no.1 and pirates make up for it, imo
The trouble with that is that you just keep listen to the same stuff - or stuff that sounds like it. Jazz fans - such as myself - are not trying to 'impress others' but searching for new sounds to inspire us.
Yes. I’m a huge Zappa fan and have been hearing 200 Motels are brilliant. That period is just average for me. It certainly doesn’t measure up to his other work.
Zappa is my all time favorite composer and am a Classical DJ, in my opinion the orchestral instrumental pieces (which is at least half of the album) are great and still my favorite FZ orchestral pieces.
Here’s my “hack” for those coming to Bitches Brew” for the first time: Start with record 2 (sides 3 and 4) which is much livelier and interesting as jazz improvisation than record 1. Then try record 1 later without feeling like you have to like it.
I do love Self Portrait though, it always puts me in a good mood. It’s just a fun, relaxed and friendly album to play on a Sunday morning. There are several stand-out tracks here, like ”Take a message to Mary”, ”Belle Isle”, and ”In the early morning rain”. ”In Search of Little Sadie” is an interesting multi-part song á la Incredible String band, and the live tracks sound vital and energetic. Bob is clearly having fun with this album, and it’s interesting to hear his versions of songs that must have inspired him growing up. The band does a good job throughout, and this record is also the last opportunity to hear Bob’s lovely ”Nashville Skyline”-voice! :-)
"the boxer" off of "self portrait" is dreadful but i like at least half of it. i enjoy "here, my dear" but don't play it often. "sandinista" should have been a double album but i wouldn't want to do without the many outstanding songs on it...i knew you weren't going to mention "tusk" (thank god)!....i've enjoyed "pharoah's dance" from the miles record since the first time i heard it. "izzat love" off of the rundgren record is solid...great, interesting video!
I'm surprised you didn't mention Trout Mask Replica, famously difficult to get through, although It eventually clicked for me and i listened to nothing else for a good few months
Great subject! I think Metal Machine was the last record of his contract so he did it out of spite. Record companies CAN be a hassle but I feel Reed disrespected his fans just to stick it to 'The Man." Years later, Rolling Stone gave it five out of five stars but they tend to grade or 'outlandish firsts', not the actual music.
@@davidkenner-rb8go Same here, plus I like or love even some albums the artists themselves dislike. I do think it is kind of sad with musical acts who initially claimed an album was one of their best, later cut it down seemingly because the public cut it down. Examples: Heart "Private Audition," Judas Priest "Turbo," Kiss "Music from the Elder."
I love The Kinks, but always have a hard time getting through Preservation Act 2. I like many parts of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis, but it is a LONG album with a lot of parts that test my patience. I just got done reading Elliot Mintz's new book about his life with John & Yoko. In the early 70s, when he had a radio show in L A, John gave him an advanced copy of Some Time in NYC (it didn't even have any cover art yet). Elliot went straight to the station and played it all the way through, without listening to it first. He was fired the next morning.
Love the Rascals and the UK Freedom Suite is a fantastic single disc. Made the effort to track down the double. As you say... mistake. (Ps Do you spend all day every day sorting these shows out?)
Lou Reed's album cover art of Metal Machine Music looks just like Die Krupp's album Machinists of Joy. This is one of my favourite albums of all time. If you love industrial metal with a German flavour , you have to listen to it. Lastly, fortunately I have none of these records in my collection.
Yes, keep trying! :) The Lamb is in my opinion an absolute masterpiece, all four sides af it. It's by far my favorite Genesis album, and possibly even my favorite Peter Gabriel album. However it took me a long time and some effort to learn to love it. I've had it since it was released in 1974, and it was a couple of years before I got to really appreciate it. Nowadays I regularly listen to it in its entirety. The Lamb was the album that taught me that sometimes the reward is bigger when you've had to work a little for it :)
Now, don't hate on "MMM"...while it's partly true that Lou Reed did it as "contractual revenge" against RCA, that album was a key formative document in the roots of Industrial Music. Not only have I listened to it en toto numerous times, I own THREE different versions of it. The 2LP, which I got back in high school, the CD reissue (which cannot replicate the lock-groove at the very end), and the Zeitkratzer Ensemble's magnificent ensemble cover version/transcription. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that my racket threshold is a bit...uh, high. But even I have ONE double album that scares me... Sunn o))), "Black One". The one time that I heard it all the way through, it required increasingly-longer breaks between the sides due to the SHEER MIND-OBLITERATING WALL OF INTENSE MENACE that this album is. Even in all caps, that doesn't even come close to describing "Black One". Went out and got a copy immediately...about ten years ago, haven't made it through since. Instead of that being a bad album, though, it's an absolute masterpiece. It just really, REALLY wants you dead for some reason! Everyone owes it to themselves to grapple with that album; I can guarantee that it WILL destroy you, but every stage of musical development turns out something on "Black One"'s general epic scale. Just have 911 on speed-dial...an ambulance might come in handy!
Tales from Topographic Oceans. Yes is one of my favorite bands & I can still only manage to listen to one side a year. Although it's one of my top 10 albums, many people find 'Bitch's Brew' absolutely unlistenable.
Almost all double albums are hard for me to sit through in one go. I usually get antsy after about 50 minutes so I usually listen to one disc & save the second for later.
Obviously all down to taste but the only double albums that don't out stay their welcome. 1. Exile on Main Street. Rolling Stones 2. Physical Graffiti. Led Zeppelin 3. A Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Genesis 4 Double Nickels on the Dime Minutemen 5 Warehouse: Songs & Stories. Husker Du However most double albums would be better as singles.
6:14 "A drummer showcase for Eddie." Dino was the drummer. Eddie sang and played tambourine. But point taken about "Freedom Suite," where the second disc is totally unnecessary. A few years later they did a much better double album, "Peaceful World."
Great topic, great picks I agree with you on all of them. I also bought ''Self Portrait'' the day it came out. In the immortal words of Greil Marcus ''What is this shit? Amazingly if you buy Bob Dylan ''Bootleg series vol.10 another self portrait'' it is a really good record. 35 songs and not a dud in the bunch! Lennon killed his solo career with ''Sometime in nyc''.He came to nyc in 1970 hung around with Jerry Rubin, Abbie Hoffman, David Peel,convinced himself he was a revolutionary and just wound up making an embarrassing album.Same with the ''Clash''.They should have stuck with what they know best ''Rock and ''Roll''.They were way out of their league with the whole ''Iran Contra Sandinista Nicaragua'' situation.They had no idea what they were singing about!
I purchased Todd Rundgren's album Initiation (68 minutes plus) and still haven't listened to the whole thing. The Marvin Gaye album was purposely done. When a judge decided all the royalties from his next album would go to his ex, this was his response.
The Gaye album is a great portrait of how unhappy his marriage and divorce was, better than it gets credit for. Probably does not work as well if you do not know the divorce thing and that it was made to settle tax debts and his divorce.
I enjoyed Metal Machine Music the first time I heard it. When I listened to it the second time, I was not pumped full of drugs and I realized it was just unlistenable noise.
Last year Rhino/Bearsville released a 1970-1982 Rundgren compilation. For only 10 songs it’s not a bad selection. It’s only the 1982 track that I could do without. I find all of his albums frustratingly inconsistent, but always peppered with songs I wouldn’t want to be without.
Good reviews. I think Sandinista could have been a good double. Interesting take on Bitches Brew. Because it was the first jazz I ever bought, I respect it but….a couple of his other LPs are listenable.
Gotta take you to task about 'Todd'... because it contains some of his finest, but agree... way too self-indulgent. 'A Dream Goes On Forever', 'The Last Ride', 'Don't You Ever Learn'... solid goild gems. Yep, surely this would have made an excellent single disc. The 'Todd is Godd' people can't discount this important period of his growth and melodic songwriting. (Cue guitar solo on 'The Last Ride'.).
@@DavidCKendall You never know what Todd you’re going to get from album to album. I enjoy the singer/songwriter Todd the best. Hermit Of Mink Hollow is a masterpiece.
Ok Major Tom, another good topic. Agree on Sandinista, Here My Dear, and Self Portrait. On Self Portrait I will say Another Self Portrait from Dylan’s Bootleg series is a revelation and I listen to it frequently. Love Bitches Brew and always felt his producer Teo Macero did a cool job editing it. Will add two from bands I love and these are critics faves. Tago Mago by Can has some incredible songs but a tough slog. And while I love Captain Beefheart It’s best to put Trout Mask Replica on when you want your guests to leave 😂
I bought All the albums in this list at the time of their releases except The Rascals one. I agree with “Todd “ I thought it was a let down after the Brilliance of Something/Anything and A Wizard A True Star especially with Todd performing a Soul Medley ♥️ I bought Lou’s album on its release day here in the UK and hmmm interesting 😂 I even saw the tour when about 15 or so minutes before the concert was about to start, Lou came on stage and placed an Electric Guitar in front of a Amp and walked back offstage and left it with it Wailing Feedback and I Love Feedback 😋 2 Doubles for you to test you then especially as you don’t like Bitches Brew Septober Energy by Centipede lots free form Jazz which I think is Excellent but maybe not to your taste and the Infamous Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart Give those 2 a listen and tell me what you think please
@@andrewthomas3270 I bought Trout Mask Replica years back and made it almost through side 1. Purged it shortly thereafter. It’s unique, nothing sounds like it, but for me it was a true endurance test. Very grating and unsettling. I need some sense of melody or something musically to latch on to. It was a patience test. I do love Safe As Milk. Consistently great.
Have heard Metal Machine Music in full 3 or 4 times. It's a challenge, but still less painful than anything by Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheerhan, etc,
"Sing to God" by Cardiacs. Not because it's a bad double album. It's their best for me, but it just never lets up. It has some of the best songwriting ever ( just listen to "Dirty Boy"), but to sit through it all, that's if you can actually find a copy, is a feat of endurance..
Has anybody listened to Eric Burdon And The Animals’ Love Is? 8 tracks on 2 albums. As much as I like Eric Burdon, it sounds like something you’d listen to only on a bet. I know, I should check it out before I decide I won’t like it but it doesn’t sound very inviting. Features Andy Summers who’d later join The Police. PS I looked it up. It was released in 1968. Side 4 has one song on it. And it has a cover of The Bee Gees’ To Love Somebody.
I know that London Calling is a better LP, but Sandinista is my favorite Clash record. Diehards like me love to play the "what if Sandinista was a double album" game and choose our favorite 18 tracks. Had they focused their time and effort on the 18 tracks (of my choosing, of course) Sandinista would have been as good as London Calling.
RE: "Metal Machine Music" : "... Self-sabotage in the worst way, here. I mean a double album of nothing but tweeks and noises and bleeks and blurps and everything else ..." That about says it, CF. On a brighter note, if your subscribers and other viewers can handle it, Peter, Paul and Mary put out an excellent double LP in 1964, called "In Concert" that works all the way through - if you like that sort of thing (and I do). They were at the top of their folk game, then - with popular pop appeal coming later in the 60s. Wiki, here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Concert_(Peter,_Paul_and_Mary_album)
Well said regarding Sandinista! I love the Clash, but this is just too much. And it's not just that it's a triple album, it's that it's twice as long as London Calling even though it's only one album longer. Two and a half hours almost. I've tried listening to it in one setting, but it's, as you put it, a slog. I don't trust people who say Sandinista! is their favorite Clash album. Who are you trying to impress? A Rolling Stone writer said it was his favorite, then said the best way to listen to it is to narrow it down to your nine or ten favorite tracks, which makes no sense. Either it's not his favorite album, or he doesn't like the Clash very much! This next one is an obvious choice, but Trout Mask Replica. Yes, I am a Philistine apparently. And since you mention Lou Reed, what about his collaboration with Metallica, Lulu, which maybe doesn't qualify because it's a double CD, not LP, but is without question an endurance-tester.
Wire's *Document and Eyewitness* is a tough one, despite the fact that I absolutely love Wire. The live half, especially, is difficult. (Some of the rehearsal/rough demo stuff is fascinating, but would have worked better on a single disc.)
Excellent idea! Like you I always t thought that Sandinista would make a great single album❤, possibly also Miles' Bitches Brew! In fact there is a mesmerizing track called "Call it anything" On the live 3 LP "Isle of Wight/ Atlanta" that encapsulates the best of Bitches Brew🎉 other great live tracks by Poco, Mountain, Allman Brothers, Leonard Cohen, Kris Kristofferson.... But I'm not really sure, if Dylan's Self portrait or Lennon's Sometime in NYC can be salvaged at all: there are too few good tracks, let alone great tracks😮. In the case of Lennon only "The Luck of the Irish" Is worthy of John's genius probably stimulated by the horrifying Irish "troubles" and Paul's "Give Ireland back to the Irish'. Lou Reed's metal machine " music" Is just a sick joke at the height of his amphetamine junky days/years - see his liner notes! 😂 But then again, there is a German orchestra that plays "Metal Machine Music" note for note apparently😂. Other double albums that would benefit from shortening are IMO "The Wall", "The lamb lies down on Broadway" and Chicago Ii & especially III.
Most of the albums you reviewed I've heard of but was not a fan of the artist enough to give them a listen, but I have to disagree on your assessment of Todd. Yes, he was cranking out a lot in the early to mid 70's and and I bought all of them. "Todd", except for a few songs, to me was very good, but then again I am a big fan of his lol. Anyway, love your videos. Keep up the good work!!
As much as I love Minutemen Double Nickels On The Dime, I can never get through all 45 songs. There are a couple of interesting covers on it, one being Steely Dan's Dr. Wu
I love that album. I guess even if you are a fan sitting through a double can be exhausting. That album was made for the CD or streaming age, you can dip in as you want or make your own single album edit.
The deal with Bitches Brew is that there are so many instruments going at once. It's a total distraction because you are thinking too much listening to everything. For me it's a challenging album. It gets the listener thinking too much and that can make the album a tough slog. No wonder it got shit on by the critics. Miles was doing what he does best... changing music.
Good to hear, I thought it was me about 'Bitch's Brew'...tried it, couldn't do it. Same with "Here, My Dear"...I'm a huge MG fan, but that one's a slog. Good double by MG: "In Our Lifetime" Extended Love Man Edition.....a few fillers, but mostly good stuff, esp for fans
Yeah - the instrumental is called King Kong, it's a written piece not some random spaced out jamming and Jam Rag is a fictional title. How clued out was Lennon? And to not characterize Jam Rag as thievery is being an apologist for Lennon. It was Yoko's blathering that ruined "Jam Rag" what a disgrace those 2 were in that moment
Metal Machine Music was the first one that came to mind, LOL! I think I made it through about 10 minutes before I had to take it off. Concerning Sandinista, I love the whole thing until side 6, which is a total waste of time IMO. I think there are too many great tracks to make it a single record, I'd opt for a double....
I'm surprised you didn't mention Tommy by The Who. It contained great tracks, but only enough to fill one album. A lot of it to me just sounded silly, especially the tracks where Roger just sings "Tommy can you hear me" all the way through, as though he already hit a stage in his life where he just couldn't sing anything else anymore. I also found far too many tracks on it were padded with the repeated lines "See me, feel me, touch me, heal me", which I also found sounded silly. Although The Who were a great band, unfortunately they did record the occasional track that just sounded silly, or parts that just sounded silly. But in complete contrast, their next double, Quadrophenia contained no filler. But by then, they developed a harder yet more positive and mature sound, although I did find the last track before Punk And The Godfather had a silly ending. But they did record the odd track that just sounded embarrassing, or parts of a track (A Quick One While He's Away). Another example is The Beatles' White double, which many critics at the time stated contained a lot of filler, and I find it impossible to get through the whole double. Of course it had the great tracks, but not even enough to fill a single album. I at first found Revolution 9 quite amusing, but the novelty of that soon wore off. But what about a video of doubles that contained little or no filler, other examples there being Blonde On Blonde and Freak Out. But what about single albums that were reissued as double or multi CD packages, with loads of bonus tracks, such as previously unreleased, demos and backing tracks, sometimes making the original vinyl release obselete, My Generation, The Who Sell Out, and What's Going On.
@@nicholassheffo5723 I implied that I like some of the tracks, but have to skip other tracks. This was by stating that there was only enough quality to fill a single album.
@@paulgoldstein2569 I know but still, it is an open concept album and they all work together to Tello the story. There is nl\o way to cut any o0f the tracks and it still work.
I agree on Tommy. Some great tracks, but a lot of reprise moments like the section of Sparks appearing on the 10 minute Underture. This melody was also used on Rael from Sell Out.
@@nicholassheffo5723 Looks as though your computer was a bit faulty with your printing errors. I still understood, but you still can't listen to certain tracks which were worse than just fillers.
I always wondered about that album. There’s a few tracks like Willow Willow & I Still Wonder that I have on a compilation, but never owned it. Four Sail is fantastic.
@@jeffspencer646 There is some really great stuff on "Out Here" like the electric version of "Signed DC"! But the 2 long tracks are ruined by the long solos. Without the long drum solo " Doggone" would be a lovely charming song❤
I love Cream, especially the live stuff, but disc two of Wheels of Fire is really hard to get through. As much as I appreciate Ginger Baker, he's one of my favourite drummers, any album with drum solos that go on forever is hard to take. Love Rascals too, but agree about Freedom Suite. They took themselves waaaayyyy too seriously at the time. Same with Yes and TFTO. If I am ever on the fence about committing suicide, I'm pretty sure Metal Machine Music will put me over the edge. What a horrible listen that is.
I actually loved The Clash's "Sandinista!" except for side six. "The Street Parade" at the end of side five is a perfect summing-up of the album and the band's career to that point. Bob Dylan said that he indeed made "Self-Portrait" to skewer the whole mythology that had grown up around him, and some of the folk covers - notably "Days of '49" - are quite good. To me, the most overrated double album of all time is "Exile on Main Street" by The Rolling Stones. When that came out I wished it had been a single album with just sides one and three, which contained all its good songs.
Chicago III (1971)... their first two albums (both doubles) were awesome, but for me III was a bit thin (about six great tracks out of 22, so I kept it!)... V was an excellent single disc LP Too many double albums were made after the Beatles white album.
Sandanista is fantastic , defo not a slog but US has never got dub . Bitches Brew top album. Music no prolemo, buy on sight. Self Portrait is pretty good...the solo/ rough/ demo version is better. Just love rambly double albums. Oh come on.. Here My Dear is a cracking album. Recurring problem here is patience. Must check out The Rascals. Though. OK you win one, the Lennon LP can be happily burned. However Todd Is god. Lou Reed ..lovin the noise.
As a high schooler, I liked the Mikey Dread's dub mixes on "Sandinista!" so much I sought out his albums. In the ensuing decades, I've spent much more time listening to Mikey Dread than the Clash.
What immediately came to mind is "Tales from Topographic Oceans"
Agreed. There’s a lot of good stuff going on there, but it’s really to long and convoluted for it’s own good.
I disagree with that one. It's a great record to put on when you're doing something else. In fact I don't think any double album was meant to be listened to from beginning to end in one go.
@@stephenmorton8017 Its a good album and something a bit different from YES, but still with some mixed results. Glad they did it anyhow.
It's good with a curry 😂
I like it a lot. Excellent work
Bitches Brew -- yeah, tough one to get through. I'd add Pink Floyd's The Wall.
"The Wall", I admit, is NOT the Floyd album for beginners, but for hardcore Floydheads it is the Citizen Kane of rock albums! It NEEDS all four sides! (But, remember, on the initial drawing board , it was supposed to be a THREE record set!)
I agree with you on the Wall. One of the most overrated albums of all time. Clearly a harbinger of Roger Waters' dismal solo career.
That's an insane comment,..The Wall is probably known as THE #1 Double Album of ALL TIME,.lol~
Yeah, "The Wall" was pretty boring!! It was good the first time I heard it but, the more radio played it, the more I hated it!!
I love Sandinista. One of my all-time most played albums.
I especially love the 'dubby stuff'
I bought Sandinista when it came out and thought it disappointing. Played it recently and it sounded fantastic!
@@Ianmackable I dig Sandinista also. You can get into the weeds while it's playing, but I find it charming
To me, it only starts dragging in the sixth side were they threw all the dub versions. I applaud the sheer ambition of the project, they basically played everything (rock, pop, reggae, jazz, rap, world music).
@@luismarioguerrerosanchez4747 One of the greatest moments on the album is on Side Two, when One More Time goes into One More Dub, with the help of Mikey Dread. Even Side Six makes for a perfect chill-out headphone listen. Maybe one reason I've never had a problem with the sheer bulk of Sandinista is because something about the music and production feels beyond time. It has always had a transportive effect on me.
The Wall fits this category for me. It would've made more sense as a book of poetry. As music, it's too self-indulgent. And yes, I fall into the Team Gilmour category. 🙂
@@danielhresko4900 I agree with your assessment. 😉
Totally agree. Does anyone really listen thru all of side four? Get rid of "The Trial", "Stop", "Outside the Wall", "Vera", "Bring the Boys Back Home", "Waiting For The Worms", "Dont Leave Me Now". "One Of My Turns" and the reprises of "Another Brick in the Wall, and "In the Flesh" and that's over 25 minutes there.
Your assessment of the Dylan album is spot on, he said he did it because he was tired of being taken too seriously.
Metal Machine Music is awesome to listen to when ambulating through the city. Mixes well with people and traffic noises.
Great subject! Fun discussion!
In 1993, Klaus Schulze published a 10-CD box with premiere material and never before published live recordings. The composition "Picasso geht spazieren" fills two CDs (over 150 minutes). In 1995 he released a ten-disc box "Historic Edition", and in 1997 a 25-disc "Jubilee Edition". In 2000, all three boxes were released with a five-disc bonus as the "Ultimate Edition" containing 50 CDs. Between 2009 and 2016, the same material, along with additional tracks, was released as three-disc sets under the name "La Vie Electronique" volume1&16 (vol. 16 have 5 cd box). I only have sets: 1, 12, 13. I can listen to a maximum of one CD from this series in concentration. Less is more.
I listen to Sandinista more than London Calling now. Took about 20 years to “get it”.
Funny how everyone says Metal Machine Music is worthless and unlistenable, but no one wants to send me their copy.
Clearly you have good and kind friends.
I say "Metal Machine Music" is excellent and I don't want to send you my copy.
@@shiroibasketshoes But you have a good reason, because it *is* excellent!
@@michaelpdawson Thanks! I love most music from commercial to uncommercial like that. I think it takes talent to make that type of wall of sound music and I do find audio form, diversity and purpose to it; it is not like miking a street's jackhammer to me. The only other Lou Reed album I have so far is "New Sensations," one of his almost commercial efforts.
@@shiroibasketshoes I’ve never been a big Lou Reed fan myself. Apart from MMM-which I do own on CD, but I’d love to find an original vinyl-and the early Velvet Underground albums, all I have from him is Transformer and the Poe-based concept album, The Raven.
Now, now…I like the song Wig Wam.
Ummagumma
What about Pink Floyd's Ummagmma? Except for the live side, which is good, the rest of it is a half-baked mess! The only time it sounded good to me and held my attention was when I was on some pain killers...
Surprised that you don't dig Bitches Brew. I feel like it's really an extension of the ideas on In a Silent Way, though much denser and more intense. There's a lot of layers to it, which might make it difficult for some folks to take in, but I feel that despite how free and open the structures of it are that it still has a really coherent flow to it. I don't feel that you can even compare it much to most other fusion because it's such a different thing. Most fusion, like Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, the more popular era of Weather Report, etc is much more about tight composition and hotshot playing whereas Bitches Brew is looser and far more nebulous/spacey... but to me, it's arguably more dynamic, more open seeming, yet more intense than any of the others...
The live side is great. On the studio side only Grantcester Meadow and Narrow Way are listenable.
I’ll say Several Species Of Small Furry Animals…. has one purpose- to get rid of unwanted house guests!
I like the 1974 Todd album and yes its a chore indeed but its got nothing on his insane 1975 follow up initiation and side one is classic todd but side 2 is the wild and all 36 minutes of treatise on cosmic fire what are your thoughts of this one
@@georgemathie8123 I don’t have Initiation, but the follow up Faithful is interesting with some cool covers.
@tomrobinson5776 it's definitely worth getting and it's more in tune with what he was doing with his utopia protects at the time and faithful is a fantastic record to
Despite several attempts, I have never been able to listen to Metal Machine Music in its entirety. The longest that I got is about halfway through Side Two. MMM makes me feel physically ill when I listen to it, like I need an anti-emetic. But as Lou Reed once said about his own record, "Anyone who gets to Side Four is dumber than I am." 😅
I love pure pop, mellow music and "Metal Machine Music." The only Lou Reed albums I have are that and "New Sensations." it's the first time when an artist has insulted (those like) me for loving their album.
The majority of rock CD's released in the 90's would fit into this category.
Absolutely 😉
One exception is Rainbow's Stranger In Us All from 1995.
Me and a couple friends listened to Metal Machine Music all the way through, stupidedly loud, on mushrooms back in the late 80s. It was a trial of endurance and we lived to tell the tale.
@@egomartini Wow, you’re a trooper. I could not get through side 1 straight. 😉
@@tomrobinson5776 It was a question of endurance and we met the challenge.
I agree with you that Self Portrait contained some pretty dire stuff but I absolutely love the Bootleg Series, Another Self Portrait. To me it shows what could have been if the best from both albums had been released as a double
I’ve heard some good things about Another Self Portrait. Need to check it out.
@@tomrobinson5776 I agree. After SELF PORTRAIT was savaged by the critics and ignored by fans, Dylan rushed out NEW MORNING. He later claimed that time would vindicate SELF PORTRAIT but that has never really happened (although I've heard some positive reviews from younger vinyl fans). I find the album mostly unlistenable. The "Bootleg Series" version of this double shows that there was a decent album underneath the questionable production and song-choices of the released version. The idea of a "self portrait" made up of covers and roots music isn't a bad one but the execution was truly sub-par. Perhaps, like METAL MACHINE MUSIC, it's a case of 'self sabotage' or, more likely, it's a portrait of an artist losing their way for a bit.
Dunno man, I think Self Portrait is criminally underrated to me, I’ve always liked that album and it doesn’t deserve the flack it gets, I think people don’t like it because they are always told that it’s bad, it’s not.
What we need is a "Best of Sandinista" single album.
@@Iomhar I actually have a demonstration album from Columbia titled Sandinista Now that pairs the album down to a single disc and it is most excellent. Just a plain white cover with the titled stamped with a Demonstration Not For Sale sticker in the right hand corner.
I'd like to hear a 4 disc "Sandinista" that includes outtakes.
I've always thought " all the tired horses " was a great way to open an album and I've always liked self portrait.
I always Loved Bobs version of Days of 49 on Self Portrait.
I have the Bootleg Series Volume 10 Another Self Portrait as well 😋
self portrait....masterpiece
Boom is One of the Very best Drum Solos , so well thought out ,like a Term Paper .
You've never heard of Bill Bruford?
Much as I love Bob Mould (particularly with Sugar and his early solo stuff like "Workbook" and "Black Sheets of Rain"), Husker Du are just so INTENSE that I can only take them in carefully measured doses. Yet they put out TWO double LP albums, "Zen Arcade" and "Warehouse: Songs and Stories" that, like some of your selections, contain some of the band's best work. But I can honestly say that, even after they were issued on single-disc CDs, I've never been able to listen to either of them all the way through in a single sitting. Too exhausting.
"In a Silent Way" is probably my favorite "electric Miles," too. I love the 3 CD "Complete Sessions" set that came out in 2001, which includes stuff from "Filles de Kilamanjaro" (my fave of that period), "Water Babies," "Circle in the Round" and "Directions."
As for "Here, My Dear" -- I have it, but still haven't really devoted time and effort to listening to it. You know the story: He was behind in alimony payments and agreed to hand over (note the title) half the royalties for his next Motown album to his ex. This is it.
'Works Volume 1' by Emerson, Lake and Palmer. It bears no resemblance to their much harder-edged early 70's albums. Cheers.
@Wayner71 i agree. for me the fault lies mostly with lake and palmer. pretty much forgettable songs on their two sides. but piano concerto no.1 and pirates make up for it, imo
Speaking of ELP, Welcome Back My Friends To The Show That Never Ends, Ladies and Gentleman would also belong here!
If you have to “try to enjoy” an album… people should only listen to what they like instead of attempting to impress others, ie 90% of jazz fans.
The trouble with that is that you just keep listen to the same stuff - or stuff that sounds like it. Jazz fans - such as myself - are not trying to 'impress others' but searching for new sounds to inspire us.
Zappa...........200 Motels!!!
Yes. I’m a huge Zappa fan and have been hearing 200 Motels are brilliant. That period is just average for me. It certainly doesn’t measure up to his other work.
Zappa is my all time favorite composer and am a Classical DJ, in my opinion the orchestral instrumental pieces (which is at least half of the album) are great and still my favorite FZ orchestral pieces.
Here’s my “hack” for those coming to Bitches Brew” for the first time: Start with record 2 (sides 3 and 4) which is much livelier and interesting as jazz improvisation than record 1. Then try record 1 later without feeling like you have to like it.
Interesting hack
I’ll give it a shot. 😉
@@ghengismcgillicutty4695 like I do after listening to it!
I do love Self Portrait though, it always puts me in a good mood. It’s just a fun, relaxed and friendly album to play on a Sunday morning. There are several stand-out tracks here, like ”Take a message to Mary”, ”Belle Isle”, and ”In the early morning rain”. ”In Search of Little Sadie” is an interesting multi-part song á la Incredible String band, and the live tracks sound vital and energetic. Bob is clearly having fun with this album, and it’s interesting to hear his versions of songs that must have inspired him growing up. The band does a good job throughout, and this record is also the last opportunity to hear Bob’s lovely ”Nashville Skyline”-voice! :-)
"the boxer" off of "self portrait" is dreadful but i like at least half of it. i enjoy "here, my dear" but don't play it often. "sandinista" should have been a double album but i wouldn't want to do without the many outstanding songs on it...i knew you weren't going to mention "tusk" (thank god)!....i've enjoyed "pharoah's dance" from the miles record since the first time i heard it. "izzat love" off of the rundgren record is solid...great, interesting video!
I'm surprised you didn't mention Trout Mask Replica, famously difficult to get through, although It eventually clicked for me and i listened to nothing else for a good few months
@@blackearwax I gave it a good try, but eventually purged.
Totally agree....TMR should be on the list...I grew to absolutely love it but there are few tracks that could be ditched for sure
a few tracks...I meant
Great subject! I think Metal Machine was the last record of his contract so he did it out of spite. Record companies CAN be a hassle but I feel Reed disrespected his fans just to stick it to 'The Man." Years later, Rolling Stone gave it five out of five stars but they tend to grade or 'outlandish firsts', not the actual music.
So you are saying that since I love "Metal Machine Music," I am not a Lou Reed fan?
I heard that "Here, My Dear" was purposefully bad because it was court ordered that Marvin Gaye's ex would get all of the royalties.
Totally makes sense. 😉
I like that album "Here, My Dear." Does that mean I should consider it a failure for that reason?
@@shiroibasketshoes Nah! It's all subjective. I love lots of music that critics (and even fans of the artist) love to hate.
@@davidkenner-rb8go Same here, plus I like or love even some albums the artists themselves dislike. I do think it is kind of sad with musical acts who initially claimed an album was one of their best, later cut it down seemingly because the public cut it down. Examples: Heart "Private Audition," Judas Priest "Turbo," Kiss "Music from the Elder."
@@shiroibasketshoes Yep. And I've always loved "The Elder" and most of "Private Audition" since their original release. "Turbo" isn't too bad either.
Complete Bitches Brew is freaking awesome. (Especially in an altered state of consciousness). 🤪
I love The Kinks, but always have a hard time getting through Preservation Act 2. I like many parts of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis, but it is a LONG album with a lot of parts that test my patience.
I just got done reading Elliot Mintz's new book about his life with John & Yoko. In the early 70s, when he had a radio show in L A, John gave him an advanced copy of Some Time in NYC (it didn't even have any cover art yet). Elliot went straight to the station and played it all the way through, without listening to it first. He was fired the next morning.
@@pauldaniels2019 Ha! 😉
What most people fail to understand is MMM can be played at any speed. Try it sometime.
And I have the quad version!
Love the Rascals and the UK Freedom Suite is a fantastic single disc. Made the effort to track down the double. As you say... mistake. (Ps Do you spend all day every day sorting these shows out?)
@@johnbren1351 No, these happen naturally without little fuss.
"here my dear" and "todd" are great imho
Lou Reed's album cover art of Metal Machine Music looks just like Die Krupp's album Machinists of Joy. This is one of my favourite albums of all time. If you love industrial metal with a German flavour , you have to listen to it. Lastly, fortunately I have none of these records in my collection.
The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. I have always found the second album to be a challenge to listen to. But... I will try again.
Yes, keep trying! :)
The Lamb is in my opinion an absolute masterpiece, all four sides af it. It's by far my favorite Genesis album, and possibly even my favorite Peter Gabriel album. However it took me a long time and some effort to learn to love it. I've had it since it was released in 1974, and it was a couple of years before I got to really appreciate it. Nowadays I regularly listen to it in its entirety.
The Lamb was the album that taught me that sometimes the reward is bigger when you've had to work a little for it :)
I hear ya! My fave Genesis album.
It took me awhile with sides 3 & 4, but eventually fell in love with the entire album. An all time fave.
@@tomrobinson5776 The Lamb was released on November 22, 1974, so friday is its 50th birthday! :)
@ Wow, 50 years. Still sounds timeless and fresh.
I listened to Metal Machine Music all the way through...once. And literally just to be able to say I did it.
I did that several times because I enjoy it.
You've missed the point of Sandinista.
Now, don't hate on "MMM"...while it's partly true that Lou Reed did it as "contractual revenge" against RCA, that album was a key formative document in the roots of Industrial Music. Not only have I listened to it en toto numerous times, I own THREE different versions of it. The 2LP, which I got back in high school, the CD reissue (which cannot replicate the lock-groove at the very end), and the Zeitkratzer Ensemble's magnificent ensemble cover version/transcription.
So it shouldn't come as a surprise that my racket threshold is a bit...uh, high. But even I have ONE double album that scares me... Sunn o))), "Black One". The one time that I heard it all the way through, it required increasingly-longer breaks between the sides due to the SHEER MIND-OBLITERATING WALL OF INTENSE MENACE that this album is. Even in all caps, that doesn't even come close to describing "Black One". Went out and got a copy immediately...about ten years ago, haven't made it through since.
Instead of that being a bad album, though, it's an absolute masterpiece. It just really, REALLY wants you dead for some reason! Everyone owes it to themselves to grapple with that album; I can guarantee that it WILL destroy you, but every stage of musical development turns out something on "Black One"'s general epic scale. Just have 911 on speed-dial...an ambulance might come in handy!
@@daccrowell4776 😆
Sandinista is not a slog and reducing it down to a single album is a pointless pursuit😄
Easy choice
Trout Mask Replica
Captain Beefheart has always been - and always WILL BE- an acquired taste...!
@ and I am a big fan of
I love all of his incredible discography and TMR is the pinnacle
@@l.salisbury1253 But their cover of "Diddy Wah Diddy" was SUPREME.
Heretic!
Tales from Topographic Oceans. Yes is one of my favorite bands & I can still only manage to listen to one side a year. Although it's one of my top 10 albums, many people find 'Bitch's Brew' absolutely unlistenable.
Trout Mask Replica - Captain Beefheart
White Album - Beatles
@@SH-ud8wd I’m with you on Trout Mask Replica 😉
Almost all double albums are hard for me to sit through in one go. I usually get antsy after about 50 minutes so I usually listen to one disc & save the second for later.
Obviously all down to taste but the only double albums that don't out stay their welcome.
1. Exile on Main Street. Rolling Stones
2. Physical Graffiti. Led Zeppelin
3. A Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Genesis
4 Double Nickels on the Dime Minutemen
5 Warehouse: Songs & Stories. Husker Du
However most double albums would be better as singles.
You could add Blonde on Blonde to that list
I love your list there, especially 4&5.
Eh, disagree on The Lamb. Runs out of steam towards the last half of side 3. Would've been better as a single album.
But not Zen Arcade? Hmmm....
6:14 "A drummer showcase for Eddie." Dino was the drummer. Eddie sang and played tambourine. But point taken about "Freedom Suite," where the second disc is totally unnecessary. A few years later they did a much better double album, "Peaceful World."
Great topic, great picks I agree with you on all of them. I also bought ''Self Portrait'' the day it came out. In the immortal words of Greil Marcus ''What is this shit? Amazingly if you buy Bob Dylan ''Bootleg series vol.10 another self portrait'' it is a really good record. 35 songs and not a dud in the bunch! Lennon killed his solo career with ''Sometime in nyc''.He came to nyc in 1970 hung around with Jerry Rubin, Abbie Hoffman, David Peel,convinced himself he was a revolutionary and just wound up making an embarrassing album.Same with the ''Clash''.They should have stuck with what they know best ''Rock and ''Roll''.They were way out of their league with the whole ''Iran Contra Sandinista Nicaragua'' situation.They had no idea what they were singing about!
That’s about the cleanest copy of Metal Machine Music I’ve seen
The first disc is pretty warped though…not that it matters. 😉
I purchased Todd Rundgren's album Initiation (68 minutes plus) and still haven't listened to the whole thing.
The Marvin Gaye album was purposely done. When a judge decided all the royalties from his next album would go to his ex, this was his response.
The Gaye album is a great portrait of how unhappy his marriage and divorce was, better than it gets credit for. Probably does not work as well if you do not know the divorce thing and that it was made to settle tax debts and his divorce.
@@petercena9497 Makes sense. 😉
I enjoyed Metal Machine Music the first time I heard it. When I listened to it the second time, I was not pumped full of drugs and I realized it was just unlistenable noise.
@@jonathanharmon2284 😂
I've never done drugs and I love all its noise. I also love pop. Am I human?
The Kink's Preservation Act 2..........Act 1, a single album is a triumph and an all time fave!
Love ‘em both.
Sandinista is a triple album so…
Swans - The Seer......what a droney racket! Impossible to get through in one go. Makes Trout Mask Replica seem like a walk in the park.
Wow, that’s saying something. 😉
bruce springsteen the river. if bruce is the boss, then i guess i quit this album without two week’s notice
Haha! Almost put that album on the list. 😉
With an edit, that would be a killer single album
Last year Rhino/Bearsville released a 1970-1982 Rundgren compilation. For only 10 songs it’s not a bad selection. It’s only the 1982 track that I could do without. I find all of his albums frustratingly inconsistent, but always peppered with songs I wouldn’t want to be without.
Good reviews. I think Sandinista could have been a good double. Interesting take on Bitches Brew. Because it was the first jazz I ever bought, I respect it but….a couple of his other LPs are listenable.
Gotta take you to task about 'Todd'... because it contains some of his finest, but agree... way too self-indulgent. 'A Dream Goes On Forever', 'The Last Ride', 'Don't You Ever Learn'... solid goild gems. Yep, surely this would have made an excellent single disc. The 'Todd is Godd' people can't discount this important period of his growth and melodic songwriting. (Cue guitar solo on 'The Last Ride'.).
@@DavidCKendall You never know what Todd you’re going to get from album to album. I enjoy the singer/songwriter Todd the best. Hermit Of Mink Hollow is a masterpiece.
Ok Major Tom, another good topic. Agree on Sandinista, Here My Dear, and Self Portrait. On Self Portrait I will say Another Self Portrait from Dylan’s Bootleg series is a revelation and I listen to it frequently. Love Bitches Brew and always felt his producer Teo Macero did a cool job editing it. Will add two from bands I love and these are critics faves. Tago Mago by Can has some incredible songs but a tough slog. And while I love Captain Beefheart It’s best to put Trout Mask Replica on when you want your guests to leave 😂
@@casablanca2745 Ha, I agree. 😉
I bought All the albums in this list at the time of their releases except The Rascals one.
I agree with “Todd “ I thought it was a let down after the Brilliance of Something/Anything and A Wizard A True Star especially with Todd performing a Soul Medley ♥️
I bought Lou’s album on its release day here in the UK and hmmm interesting 😂
I even saw the tour when about 15 or so minutes before the concert was about to start, Lou came on stage and placed an Electric Guitar in front of a Amp and walked back offstage and left it with it Wailing Feedback and I Love Feedback 😋
2 Doubles for you to test you then especially as you don’t like Bitches Brew
Septober Energy by Centipede lots free form Jazz which I think is Excellent but maybe not to your taste and the Infamous Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart
Give those 2 a listen and tell me what you think please
@@andrewthomas3270 I bought Trout Mask Replica years back and made it almost through side 1. Purged it shortly thereafter. It’s unique, nothing sounds like it, but for me it was a true endurance test. Very grating and unsettling. I need some sense of melody or something musically to latch on to. It was a patience test. I do love Safe As Milk. Consistently great.
Love your channel! But sorry self portrait is a great listen!😀
Have heard Metal Machine Music in full 3 or 4 times. It's a challenge, but still less painful than anything by Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheerhan, etc,
@@tcanders123 Ha! You have a point there. 😉
I like Self-Portrait. Wigwam and All The Tired Horses are the best. I also like the Lou Reed album.
"Sing to God" by Cardiacs. Not because it's a bad double album. It's their best for me, but it just never lets up. It has some of the best songwriting ever ( just listen to "Dirty Boy"), but to sit through it all, that's if you can actually find a copy, is a feat of endurance..
A massive Cardiac fan but I agree. Thier music is so complex and dense, sitting through a double album is exhausting.
I agree. Bitch's Brew is a heavy lift. I can't get through one side. Life's too short for four sides of that.
@@DavidCKendall Well put 😉
Ditched my copy of Self Portrait long ago. Liked it for about a week. Chicago 4... might as well just listen to the studio albums.
I love the Todd album!!!!
So do I! Todd is Godd! I'd buy a longer version with outtakes!
I would nominate Captain Beefheart Trout Mask, Uncle Meat, Guns and Roses- Use Your Illusions 1and ll
Has anybody listened to Eric Burdon And The Animals’ Love Is? 8 tracks on 2 albums. As much as I like Eric Burdon, it sounds like something you’d listen to only on a bet. I know, I should check it out before I decide I won’t like it but it doesn’t sound very inviting. Features Andy Summers who’d later join The Police.
PS I looked it up. It was released in 1968. Side 4 has one song on it. And it has a cover of The Bee Gees’ To Love Somebody.
@@williamlangan5902 Never heard it.
"The Wall" by Floyd. Would have been a great single album.
Interesting list. But my number 1 just gotta be Beefheart Trout Mask Replica.
I’d have to agree. Purged it quickly.
I know that London Calling is a better LP, but Sandinista is my favorite Clash record.
Diehards like me love to play the "what if Sandinista was a double album" game and choose our favorite 18 tracks.
Had they focused their time and effort on the 18 tracks (of my choosing, of course) Sandinista would have been as good as London Calling.
@@josepheads5589 I agree 100 percent. 😉
RE: "Metal Machine Music" : "... Self-sabotage in the worst way, here. I mean a double album of nothing but tweeks and noises and bleeks and blurps and everything else ..."
That about says it, CF.
On a brighter note, if your subscribers and other viewers can handle it, Peter, Paul and Mary put out an excellent double LP in 1964, called "In Concert" that works all the way through - if you like that sort of thing (and I do). They were at the top of their folk game, then - with popular pop appeal coming later in the 60s.
Wiki, here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Concert_(Peter,_Paul_and_Mary_album)
Loved that album as a teen. I believe it was recorded in Festival Hall, Melbourne.
@@total.stranger I may check that out. Only have a Best Of…
Interesting video. My least favorite double album is the Wall.
Well said regarding Sandinista! I love the Clash, but this is just too much. And it's not just that it's a triple album, it's that it's twice as long as London Calling even though it's only one album longer. Two and a half hours almost. I've tried listening to it in one setting, but it's, as you put it, a slog. I don't trust people who say Sandinista! is their favorite Clash album. Who are you trying to impress? A Rolling Stone writer said it was his favorite, then said the best way to listen to it is to narrow it down to your nine or ten favorite tracks, which makes no sense. Either it's not his favorite album, or he doesn't like the Clash very much! This next one is an obvious choice, but Trout Mask Replica. Yes, I am a Philistine apparently. And since you mention Lou Reed, what about his collaboration with Metallica, Lulu, which maybe doesn't qualify because it's a double CD, not LP, but is without question an endurance-tester.
"Lulu" was primarily a CD release but there was a limited edition vinyl... and it was a double set.
@@chrisboerger465 Lulu is the epitome of an endurance test.
I don't care about impressing anyone., "Sandinista!" is my favorite Clash album ,and I'd have bought a 4 or 5 disc version that included outtakes.
Wire's *Document and Eyewitness* is a tough one, despite the fact that I absolutely love Wire. The live half, especially, is difficult. (Some of the rehearsal/rough demo stuff is fascinating, but would have worked better on a single disc.)
I need to check out more Wire.
I love all those albums, except Metal Machine Music
Excellent idea! Like you I always t thought that Sandinista would make a great single album❤, possibly also Miles' Bitches Brew! In fact there is a mesmerizing track called "Call it anything" On the live 3 LP "Isle of Wight/ Atlanta" that encapsulates the best of Bitches Brew🎉 other great live tracks by Poco, Mountain, Allman Brothers, Leonard Cohen, Kris Kristofferson....
But I'm not really sure, if Dylan's Self portrait or Lennon's Sometime in NYC can be salvaged at all: there are too few good tracks, let alone great tracks😮. In the case of Lennon only "The Luck of the Irish" Is worthy of John's genius probably stimulated by the horrifying Irish "troubles" and Paul's "Give Ireland back to the Irish'. Lou Reed's metal machine " music" Is just a sick joke at the height of his amphetamine junky days/years - see his liner notes! 😂 But then again, there is a German orchestra that plays "Metal Machine Music" note for note apparently😂.
Other double albums that would benefit from shortening are IMO "The Wall", "The lamb lies down on Broadway" and Chicago Ii & especially III.
@@dreammachine2013 I agree on Chicago III. 😉
Most of the albums you reviewed I've heard of but was not a fan of the artist enough to give them a listen, but I have to disagree on your assessment of Todd. Yes, he was cranking out a lot in the early to mid 70's and and I bought all of them. "Todd", except for a few songs, to me was very good, but then again I am a big fan of his lol. Anyway, love your videos. Keep up the good work!!
@@billhiggins4264 Thank you 😊
Yes, I owned Sandanista. I didn't keep it because of the tracks I didn't like.
trout mask replica, although i rate the captain very high
I love Safe As Milk, but Trout Mask Replica was a challenge indeed.
@tomrobinson5776 safe as milk is a fantastic album
As much as I love Minutemen Double Nickels On The Dime, I can never get through all 45 songs. There are a couple of interesting covers on it, one being Steely Dan's Dr. Wu
I love that album. I guess even if you are a fan sitting through a double can be exhausting. That album was made for the CD or streaming age, you can dip in as you want or make your own single album edit.
A classic. I always enjoy this album from start to finish, but make an effort to play it sparingly.
The deal with Bitches Brew is that there are so many instruments going at once. It's a total distraction because you are thinking too much listening to everything. For me it's a challenging album. It gets the listener thinking too much and that can make the album a tough slog. No wonder it got shit on by the critics. Miles was doing what he does best... changing music.
Funny. "All the Tired Horses" is the only track on that album I like. I find it hypnotic. The rest I found dreadful.
Trout Mask Replica.
Good to hear, I thought it was me about 'Bitch's Brew'...tried it, couldn't do it. Same with "Here, My Dear"...I'm a huge MG fan, but that one's a slog. Good double by MG: "In Our Lifetime" Extended Love Man Edition.....a few fillers, but mostly good stuff, esp for fans
Tribute to Jack Johnson > Bitches Brew
Yeah - the instrumental is called King Kong, it's a written piece not some random spaced out jamming and Jam Rag is a fictional title. How clued out was Lennon? And to not characterize Jam Rag as thievery is being an apologist for Lennon. It was Yoko's blathering that ruined "Jam Rag" what a disgrace those 2 were in that moment
Metal Machine Music was the first one that came to mind, LOL! I think I made it through about 10 minutes before I had to take it off. Concerning Sandinista, I love the whole thing until side 6, which is a total waste of time IMO. I think there are too many great tracks to make it a single record, I'd opt for a double....
Leon Live
I'm surprised you didn't mention Tommy by The Who. It contained great tracks, but only enough to fill one album. A lot of it to me just sounded silly, especially the tracks where Roger just sings "Tommy can you hear me" all the way through, as though he already hit a stage in his life where he just couldn't sing anything else anymore. I also found far too many tracks on it were padded with the repeated lines "See me, feel me, touch me, heal me", which I also found sounded silly. Although The Who were a great band, unfortunately they did record the occasional track that just sounded silly, or parts that just sounded silly. But in complete contrast, their next double, Quadrophenia contained no filler. But by then, they developed a harder yet more positive and mature sound, although I did find the last track before Punk And The Godfather had a silly ending. But they did record the odd track that just sounded embarrassing, or parts of a track (A Quick One While He's Away).
Another example is The Beatles' White double, which many critics at the time stated contained a lot of filler, and I find it impossible to get through the whole double. Of course it had the great tracks, but not even enough to fill a single album. I at first found Revolution 9 quite amusing, but the novelty of that soon wore off.
But what about a video of doubles that contained little or no filler, other examples there being Blonde On Blonde and Freak Out. But what about single albums that were reissued as double or multi CD packages, with loads of bonus tracks, such as previously unreleased, demos and backing tracks, sometimes making the original vinyl release obselete, My Generation, The Who Sell Out, and What's Going On.
TOMMY is a masterpiece, but some people do not like it for some reason.
@@nicholassheffo5723 I implied that I like some of the tracks, but have to skip other tracks. This was by stating that there was only enough quality to fill a single album.
@@paulgoldstein2569 I know but still, it is an open concept album and they all work together to Tello the story. There is nl\o way to cut any o0f the tracks and it still work.
I agree on Tommy. Some great tracks, but a lot of reprise moments like the section of Sparks appearing on the 10 minute Underture. This melody was also used on Rael from Sell Out.
@@nicholassheffo5723 Looks as though your computer was a bit faulty with your printing errors. I still understood, but you still can't listen to certain tracks which were worse than just fillers.
Love's OUT HERE. Two, maybe three good tracks. Pretty depressing coming after the great FOUR SAIL. Same band, too!
I always wondered about that album. There’s a few tracks like Willow Willow & I Still Wonder that I have on a compilation, but never owned it. Four Sail is fantastic.
@@jeffspencer646 There is some really great stuff on "Out Here" like the electric version of "Signed DC"! But the 2 long tracks are ruined by the long solos. Without the long drum solo " Doggone" would be a lovely charming song❤
Never listened to any of these. I love Dylan's work, refused to listen to "Self Portrait" and "The Wedding Album."
The Wedding Album was John and Yoko. Dylan didn't do that one.
I love Cream, especially the live stuff, but disc two of Wheels of Fire is really hard to get through. As much as I appreciate Ginger Baker, he's one of my favourite drummers, any album with drum solos that go on forever is hard to take. Love Rascals too, but agree about Freedom Suite. They took themselves waaaayyyy too seriously at the time. Same with Yes and TFTO. If I am ever on the fence about committing suicide, I'm pretty sure Metal Machine Music will put me over the edge. What a horrible listen that is.
Guns N’ Roses use your illusions
There was a reason they sold each disc separately. 😆
I actually loved The Clash's "Sandinista!" except for side six. "The Street Parade" at the end of side five is a perfect summing-up of the album and the band's career to that point. Bob Dylan said that he indeed made "Self-Portrait" to skewer the whole mythology that had grown up around him, and some of the folk covers - notably "Days of '49" - are quite good. To me, the most overrated double album of all time is "Exile on Main Street" by The Rolling Stones. When that came out I wished it had been a single album with just sides one and three, which contained all its good songs.
Chicago III (1971)... their first two albums (both doubles) were awesome, but for me III was a bit thin (about six great tracks out of 22, so I kept it!)... V was an excellent single disc LP
Too many double albums were made after the Beatles white album.
Chicago 4, the concert set where there horns sounded like kazoos, was finally corrected recently, sonically.
@@John-n9m7r I agree. Their first 2 albums were full of magic, but that third one never registered with me.
Sandanista is fantastic , defo not a slog but US has never got dub . Bitches Brew top album. Music no prolemo, buy on sight. Self Portrait is pretty good...the solo/ rough/ demo version is better. Just love rambly double albums. Oh come on.. Here My Dear is a cracking album. Recurring problem here is patience. Must check out The Rascals. Though. OK you win one, the Lennon LP can be happily burned. However Todd Is god. Lou Reed ..lovin the noise.
As a high schooler, I liked the Mikey Dread's dub mixes on "Sandinista!" so much I sought out his albums. In the ensuing decades, I've spent much more time listening to Mikey Dread than the Clash.
@@tonys9102 Yup that sounds about right. Sandanista is a great gateway album that can lead you down lots of avenues. Dub is definitely addictive.
I tried listening to Trout Mask Replica and had the same reaction you had with Metal Machine Music
Tusk 0:07