Countdown to 30: My Favorite Album From 1993

 1993

Oof...so...1993 is going to be a tough choice, so I'm going to do a countdown of my top three albums.

I said that my 1991 album choice Woodface was my second favorite album by Crowded House. Well, third place is my actual favorite Crowded House album, Together Alone. Together Alone is a gorgeous, lyrical and auditory masterpiece. Obviously, I can't go into too much detail since it's only my third place pick, but it's just so personal. The production on Woodface is probably stronger, but Together Alone feels like you're being sung to. The songwriting is like a summation of everything the band had done up to that point. The instrumentation is strong, but so is the gentle flow, so is the element of power pop.

So, if that's third place, what are the other two? I'm glad you asked, other Emma. One is an album that was actually a big deal to me growing up, and which I would still identify as some of this artist's strongest songwriting. The other is an album that took over my life while I was writing an article about bands influenced by Queen back in 2015, and which I still identify as being an almost perfect album. Decisions, decisions.

I have all the right in the world to be biased toward Kate Bush's 1993 album, The Red Shoes, for which she made a promotional movie called The Line, The Cross, and The Curve, which at seven years old I  made my own version of. I would watch that movie to kill time when I was too excited to sit still before going to a friend's house. I listened to my cassette soundtrack often too. At 19, when I was preparing to move back to Ohio from California, "Moments of Pleasure" came up on my shuffle and made me cry. I messed up "Rubberband Girl" at karaoke in Denver, Colarado while I was filming my as-yet unreleased documentary. This album has deep roots in my life. I love the way Bush used many of the songs to process her emotions about the death of her mother and a session guitarist she frequently worked with, Alan Murphy. She was also mourning the end of a long relationship with bassist Del Palmer. The duo continued to work together after the end of the relationship. I think all this makes this Bush's Rumors. "Moments of Pleasure" is a song of mourning for many of these losses, although she still believed when it was written that her mother would pull through and beat cancer ("For those who will survive"). 

Bush frequently had strange and wonderful guest appearances on her albums, and The Red Shoes was certainly no exception. Prince contributed instrumentals to "Why Should I Love You?" and comedian Lenny Henry contributed vocals to the track. Eric Clapton plays guitar on "And So Is Love," with Gary Brooker from Procol Harum on Hammond organ. It's really a great album and I encourage everyone to check it out at some point.

But clearly, my number one pick is going to be the last one I talk about and that's the one I want you to hear the most. Spilt Milk by Jellyfish is truly art from start to finish.

Spilt Milk is a dream. I listened to a podcast (which I can't remember the name of or I would totally link it here) in which they broke down just how the concept of the night's sleep plays out, beginning with the lullaby that is "Hush." Producer Albhy Galuten and the band themselves had such a clear artistic image for the album that every noise seems to be deliberate, every instrument there for a reason. And yet, it's still playful, childlike. The cover of the album was designed by Mick Haggerty, the genius behind the cover of Supertramp's Breakfast in America. This album had every reason in the world to be successful and regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, and yet...

Remember what I said about Crowded House in 1991? The early '90s were a source of plenty of power pop...but a difficult time to find your niche in a world of genres that didn't quite match what bands like Jellyfish and Crowded House. Jellyfish even moreso than Crowded House, because they were making sunshiny bubblegum pop at the same time that Kurt Cobain was mumbling inaudible lyrics over heavy guitar and drums. 

That's not to say the album hasn't found its place in the world. Many audiophiles and classic pop nerds such as myself have found it since and absolutely love it. Drake Bell and Puffy Amiyumi have covered  the second track on the album, "Joining a Fanclub," a cautionary tale about idol worship. 

"Ghost at Number One" takes on some of their contemporaries, the fleeting nature of fame, and does all of this with nods to The Beach Boys. It was one of the first songs of theirs that I heard, although "Sebrina, Paste, and Plato" is a strange and playful song and it actually bears more resemblance to Queen.

But the track that made me fall in love with the band, the other one listed on the forum about Queen influence, is "New Mistake," a song wearing ELO influences on its sleeve. I never dislike listening to this song, and it's become one of my "magical songs," one I avoid listening to too often so that it can retain the charm it has for me. 

All of the tracks on this album have merit. There's not one I would skip over or roll my eyes about. It's a shame both that these boys didn't find more success and that they couldn't seem to get along for more than a few years. 

Christmas 1993. I become the recipient of a tickle attack from my father.

As I mentioned, my relationship with the band started in 2015. I was at a very strange place in my life. I had finally embraced being alone after living with my ex for a couple of painful years. I was prolific on this blog, I was writing for REBEAT, and I was successful in my professional life. I was making preparations to leave the country for the very first time. I dove headfirst into my love of Jellyfish, spreading that love with anyone I could find. My subordinates at work even greeted me with a Jellyfish song as I came in to work one night, attempting to ensure that I had a good night. When I finally did leave the country, I searched for Jellyfish CDs in shops in London, snagging myself the deluxe reissues of both albums. I still look back on that zeal with pride. It's nice to like something that much. Healthy obsession can be fun, and there's a lot to dive into with Jellyfish. Their first album is great too, one of the good ones from 1990, before I was born. But Spilt Milk is really a congruent masterpiece. Check it out.

Okay, let's throw it up on the leaderboard!

Join me tomorrow for my favorite album of 1994.

I've Got This Covered: 12 Times My Favorite Artists Covered One Another and How I Wish the Original Group Would Return the Favor

One of the greatest joys in life for me is when two artists I like are fans or collaborators of one another. I even went so far as to schedule a vacation around a show featuring two of my favorite artists from different bands. This Saturday is Record Store Day, and there are two exciting crossovers of artists I enjoy. A release by Elvis Costello will feature a cover of "Someone Else's Heart" (Squeeze) and a record in support of same-sex marriages will feature Ben Gibbard covering The Beatles "And I Love [Him]." So I have decided to compile a list of some of my favorite crossovers, along with some crossovers I wish would/could happen.

1) Oh Boy! - She and Him/Buddy Holly

It's not my favorite cover of all Time, but I do think it's really cool that this duo covered the great Buddy Holly. It was included on a compilation that also featured some of my other favorites including Florence and the Machine and Julian Casablancas. 

In return, I wish Holly could posthumously record a cover of "I've Got Your Number, Son."

 

2) Mr. Blue Sky - Lily Allen/ELO

Ms Allen has a new album coming out in June, but in the meantime, let's look back at a much earlier piece produced by Greg Kurstin. I actually enjoy this cover, I think it brings something different to the table, even though I love the original piece.

I would like to hear ELO's take on "Back to the Start."

If not a cover by Jeff Lynne's ELO, I would at least love to hear what Jeff Lynne would have done with the production in some of Allen's songs, particularly from the It's Not Me, It's You era.

3) Friends of Mine - of Montreal/The Zombies

One of the most underrated Zombies tunes was covered by of Montreal in their earlier days. It's a fairly literal translation, but somehow Kevin Barnes' voice alone changes the song immensely.

An of Montreal cover by The Zombies is more complicated, since the former have always been a fairly avant garde group, but I think something from the early albums or Lousy With Sylvianbriar would work out. I guess I would most like to hear The Zombies perform the Zombie-esque "Old Familiar Way."

4) This Charming Man - Death Cab For Cutie/The Smiths

The Smiths passed the baton of somber lyrics with a catchy tune to Death Cab For Cutie, and I think it's only fair that the latter did an upbeat cover of The Smiths classic. It was a b-side to "The Sound of Settling," but I think Morrissey could put an interesting twist on "Title and Registration."

5) All Day and All of the Night - Kate Nash/The Kinks

Adding a little dash more punk rock to this classic Kinks track, it can't be said that Nash didn't do anything interesting to this song.

I would like to see The Kinks do a cover of "Birds" somehow. 

The song would become a voyerish story song, which Ray Davies happens to be an expert at.

6) Life's What You Make It - Weezer/Talk Talk

While it beats the "It's My Life" cover by Gwen Stefani, I can't exactly give this cover my seal of approval. I still appreciate the love of Talk Talk that had to have led Weezer to cover one of my favorite tracks by the former band.

Figuring out how to reverse this cover process is probably the most difficult on the list. Even at their poppiest, there is no other band like Talk Talk, and as they progressed, they became even further from the mainstream. And Weezer's sound is so loud and guitar-driven that it's hard to imagine Talk Talk covering them. So I suppose the best thing I can think of would be that in this imaginary world, Talk Talk would cover "Keep Fishin,'" but much more slowly.

7) 2000 Miles - KT Tunstall/The Pretenders

One of my favorite Pretenders songs is also one of my favorite Christmas songs. While the Tunstall version isn't that different, it's still gorgeous, and earns an equal place in my Christmas playlist.

I think Chrissie Hynde could make several Tunstall pieces work for her, but I would most like to see her perform the slide-guitar-heavy "Hold On."

8) Helter Skelter - Rooney & Everybody Else/The Beatles

Know of a song you don't fully appreciate until you see it live? While I never actually saw this performance live, I didn't fully appreciate this Beatles song until I saw two of my favorite bands perform it together live (on a Youtube video). 

It's a tough return cover since two bands I love are featured here, but I would really love to see John Lennon front a Beatles cover of "Faker" by Everybody Else.

9) Think About Your Troubles - Jellyfish/Harry Nilsson

Jellyfish wore their influences on their sleeve while still being unique. Their heartfelt cover of this track from The Point has everything you can hope for in a Nilsson cover.

Nilsson would have been able to do a great version of "Now She Knows She's Wrong."

10) Joanne - Benjamin Gibbard/Michael Nesmith

Hey look, it's the aforementioned cover I traveled to California to witness. Technically this isn't a cover so much as a co-cover and technically, Nesmith has already covered a Gibbard song with The Monkees, but Gibbard has a storied history of covering Monkees songs also, so I would just love to hear Nesmith perform another Gibbard piece, namely "Oh, Woe."

"Oh, Woe" is one of my favorite Gibbard compositions, but I also think Nesmith could bring some of his own melancholy to it, for a beautiful performance.

11) 1000 Umbrellas - The Format/XTC

I got into both of these bands around the same time, so this was pretty cool. Of note: The Format also covered Jellyfish, The Kinks, and Harry Nilsson.

I imagine that XTC could have done something cool with "She Doesn't Get It."

12) Up the Junction - They Might Be Giants/Squeeze

Possibly one of my favorite crossovers simply because of how unexpected it was for me to find it, this is a loving and not altogether innovative cover that nonetheless captures what I love about both of these bands.

I think that Squeeze should cover "Pet Name" as a thank you gift. It already fits their style.

Agree? Disagree? What's your favorite artist collaboration? Let me know! And don't forget to support your local record store Saturday!

Following in the Footsteps: Queen

What's that? Another new article series? You betcha. "Following in the Footsteps" explores the songs of bands or artists who seem to be carrying the torch lit by a previous band or artist. It's yet another type of playlist featured on One-Mind Tracks (the radio show, not the article series), and you can catch this playlist tonight at 7pm on 97.5 WDIF or streaming online. If you're outside of the timeframe though, let me tell you what you missed.

"Grace Kelly" by Mika
Early on in his career, Mika's voice was often compared to Freddie Mercury, to the point that he ended up referencing the comparison in "Grace Kelly," which definitely has some Queen aires. He wrote this piece about his annoyance with the music industry and their insistence that he change to sell records better, but he also wrote a track about his love of larger ladies entitled "Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)." Does that sound like a familiar concept maybe?

"Old Bike" by Rob Cantor
Not that we're just talking about people whose songs deal with similar ideas to those found in Queen songs (although I did toss that idea around for a bit). Rob Cantor's alma mater band Tally Hall often saw comparisons to Queen as well, but you can't deny the similarities in this glammy track with vocal harmonies in just the right places. If you're doubting the comparison, just hold out for the bridge.

"I Believe in a Thing Called Love" by The Darkness
How about a band that wants to be Queen so bad that they hired Rufus Taylor, the son of Queen's drummer Roger Taylor as their new drummer? Kind of like the way The Who wanted to be The Beatles and so they got Zak Starkey for the touring band (I'm joking of course). But seriously, The Darkness has frequently been compared to Queen, and it's not hard to see why. Or...hear why. Either really.

"Welcome to the Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance
Yeah, I know, it's not 2006 anymore. And I'm sure most people got burnt out on this song so much that they don't want to hear it or think of it as music anymore, and the other half of people are being reminded of the embarrassing era in which they shopped exclusively at Hot Topic and dyed their hair black, but this song is still pretty solid. And it's definitely got some Queen vibes going on, so just deal with it.

"At Least I'm Not as Sad (As I Used to Be)" by fun.
One thing to remember about Queen is that they weren't all arena sound. fun. totally could be, but they also have that other quality that made Queen rad; namely "fun" (even when they're a little melancholic). See also: the acapella intro and vocal harmonies in "Some Nights."

"Starlight" by Muse
I know Muse kind of shot themselves in the foot when they got attached to the Twilight series, but they still have a certain polished glam rock feeling to them. It's like a glam-rocker that wears a button-up coat with a scarf covering any troublesome neck that might otherwise show. You can hear a little heterosexual Freddie in there for sure.

"Brighter Day" by Jellyfish
Jellyfish have a wide range of influences from all over the musical map, and they blend it all up into their own thing. "Brighter Day" is definitely their most Queen-esque track. Although if you're looking to find the lovechild of Queen and The Beach Boys, look no further than "Sebrina, Paste, and Plato."

"Stuck on the Girl" by Young Beautiful In a Hurry
Young Beautiful in a Hurry is a band completely unashamed of the influence Queen has had on them. Lead singer Brendan McCreary has even performed as Freddie Mercury in a Queen tribute show (The Show Must Go On). To find out more, check out the interview I did with him here.

"Unstoppable" by Foxy Shazam
Foxy Shazam are honestly probably the closest match on this list. Upbeat lyrics with an arena sound? Check. Lead singer unafraid of running around in tight pants? Also check.

These tracks can all be found below:

Know some more Queen-esque tracks? Leave a comment!