Please spend an hour looking through this document, it gives a rather enjoyable and surprisingly detailed description of pop/rock styles that have been important in Britain. All respect to the allmusic.com guys who really made a wonderful job with these, I merely merged and edited the excerpts. The hyperlinks are alive in it, click on them for more information. To see the connections, please use the chart I put on earlier. Stay tuned, some more, quite serious material is coming up too.
A History of Pop/Rock Styles
Friday, April 23, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
I agree with Nick
At the much-discussed first TV debate PM Gordon Brown said several times that he 'agrees with Nick'. The LibDems then rode the waves, making 'I agree with Nick' their unofficial campaign slogan, but those with a nose for profit were not to be left behind: http://www.zazzle.co.uk/i+agree+with+nick+gifts ('doggie T-shirt' on pp2)
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Dire Straits
As a heartfelt apology for missing class today, here is a brief, written version of the presentation I intended to give.
Play the music while reading; Dire Straits always intended their music to be accompaniment, not a show in itself. I chose Down to the Waterline because Sultans of Swing, while amazing in its own right, is terribly overplayed; any song off the first album would've given you a clear perspective of Dire Straits' unassuming demeanor and their musical talents, but Down to the Waterline especially so.
Dire Straits was formed in 1977 by brothers Mark and David Knopfler (vocals/lead guitar and vocals/rhythm guitar respectively), John Illsley on bass, and Pick Withers on drums; their name came from a suggestion by Pick Withers' roommate at the time. They intended to play music seperate from both the stadium rock and punk rock that was popular during that time; in fact, during their first gigs they specifically asked pub owners to turn down the volume of the band so as not to impose on patrons. Thus, they developed a style that's been called minimalist rock, conventional rock, progressive rock, and many other labels, a sound that perhaps only Mark Knopfler's solo works can compare to.
Their career began when, after taping a five-song demo, including Sultans of Swing and Down to the Waterline, a BBC Radio DJ put their songs on air. They proceeded to record a further demo tape specifically for BBC Radio London, and in 1978 they recorded their self-titled first album. It wasn't particularly well-recieved, largely due to the lack of promotion; however, after touring with the Talking Heads and signing a contract with Warner Bros. Records, their album was released world-wide and went top 10 in every European country.
Their next album, Communiqué (1978) followed the debut album's simplistic style, with such songs as Lady Writer, Single Handed Sailor, and the lyric masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West. It topped German album charts while Dire Straits was still at number three. However, after this album, during the recording sessions for Making Movies, David Knopfler left the band, because his brother insisted that he practice more.
With Sid McGinnis replacing David, and Roy Bittan joining on keyboards, the recording sessions continued. Making Movies (1980) was a more musically complex album, with tracks like Romeo and Juliet and the longer Tunnel of Love (fitting?). The next album, Love Over Gold (1982) contained only five songs, lengthy atmospheric passages with long solos; it contained the hits Private Investigations (a commonly underrated song of the album, in my opinion) and Telegraph Road. After Love Over Gold's release, Pick Withers was replaced by Terry Williams on drums.
In 1985, the fourth album titled Brothers in Arms was released (personally I think this one is overrated). It immediately became the best-selling album of 1985 in the UK, and had several chart singles: Money for Nothing, So Far Away, Brothers in Arms, Walk of Life, and Your Latest Trick. Brothers in Arms is claimed to have started the whole CD business, as it was released in Compact Disc format, and was the first album in the format to have reached a million copies sold. As such, collectors have labeled it a "must buy" album.
There was a hiatus between 1988 and 1990, the band having disbanded after the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute. Knopfler concentrated on solo material and film scores, and the others went their ways; among Knopfler's projects were the Notting Hillbillies, a country band that released a single album in 1990.
In 1991 the band reformed with Knopfler and Illsley in their original roles and two keyboardists, Alan Clark and Guy Fletcher. In September, they released the band's final studio album, On Every Street, which contained various styles, predominantly jazz. Their very last album, Live at the BBC (1995) was a collection of live performances between 1978 and 1981; after that, the band disbanded again for good.
Of course, they reunite time and time again for various occasions, like good moneywhoring rockers do.
The Dire Straits had a significant influence on British pop and rock; Mark Knopfler is considered to be one of the great guitarists of our time, and often plays with Eric Clapton. And believe me, I tried to dig up some dirt on the band or its members, but apparently their lives were and are as low key as they intended their music to be.
As for my personal suggestions to my dear readers: if you are interested in familiarizing yourself with Dire Straits, I think none of their later albums surpassed the first--Love Over Gold, which I think is a really underrated album, came close, but it wasn't the same style by then.
Play the music while reading; Dire Straits always intended their music to be accompaniment, not a show in itself. I chose Down to the Waterline because Sultans of Swing, while amazing in its own right, is terribly overplayed; any song off the first album would've given you a clear perspective of Dire Straits' unassuming demeanor and their musical talents, but Down to the Waterline especially so.
Dire Straits was formed in 1977 by brothers Mark and David Knopfler (vocals/lead guitar and vocals/rhythm guitar respectively), John Illsley on bass, and Pick Withers on drums; their name came from a suggestion by Pick Withers' roommate at the time. They intended to play music seperate from both the stadium rock and punk rock that was popular during that time; in fact, during their first gigs they specifically asked pub owners to turn down the volume of the band so as not to impose on patrons. Thus, they developed a style that's been called minimalist rock, conventional rock, progressive rock, and many other labels, a sound that perhaps only Mark Knopfler's solo works can compare to.
Their career began when, after taping a five-song demo, including Sultans of Swing and Down to the Waterline, a BBC Radio DJ put their songs on air. They proceeded to record a further demo tape specifically for BBC Radio London, and in 1978 they recorded their self-titled first album. It wasn't particularly well-recieved, largely due to the lack of promotion; however, after touring with the Talking Heads and signing a contract with Warner Bros. Records, their album was released world-wide and went top 10 in every European country.
Their next album, Communiqué (1978) followed the debut album's simplistic style, with such songs as Lady Writer, Single Handed Sailor, and the lyric masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West. It topped German album charts while Dire Straits was still at number three. However, after this album, during the recording sessions for Making Movies, David Knopfler left the band, because his brother insisted that he practice more.
With Sid McGinnis replacing David, and Roy Bittan joining on keyboards, the recording sessions continued. Making Movies (1980) was a more musically complex album, with tracks like Romeo and Juliet and the longer Tunnel of Love (fitting?). The next album, Love Over Gold (1982) contained only five songs, lengthy atmospheric passages with long solos; it contained the hits Private Investigations (a commonly underrated song of the album, in my opinion) and Telegraph Road. After Love Over Gold's release, Pick Withers was replaced by Terry Williams on drums.
In 1985, the fourth album titled Brothers in Arms was released (personally I think this one is overrated). It immediately became the best-selling album of 1985 in the UK, and had several chart singles: Money for Nothing, So Far Away, Brothers in Arms, Walk of Life, and Your Latest Trick. Brothers in Arms is claimed to have started the whole CD business, as it was released in Compact Disc format, and was the first album in the format to have reached a million copies sold. As such, collectors have labeled it a "must buy" album.
There was a hiatus between 1988 and 1990, the band having disbanded after the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute. Knopfler concentrated on solo material and film scores, and the others went their ways; among Knopfler's projects were the Notting Hillbillies, a country band that released a single album in 1990.
In 1991 the band reformed with Knopfler and Illsley in their original roles and two keyboardists, Alan Clark and Guy Fletcher. In September, they released the band's final studio album, On Every Street, which contained various styles, predominantly jazz. Their very last album, Live at the BBC (1995) was a collection of live performances between 1978 and 1981; after that, the band disbanded again for good.
Of course, they reunite time and time again for various occasions, like good moneywhoring rockers do.
The Dire Straits had a significant influence on British pop and rock; Mark Knopfler is considered to be one of the great guitarists of our time, and often plays with Eric Clapton. And believe me, I tried to dig up some dirt on the band or its members, but apparently their lives were and are as low key as they intended their music to be.
As for my personal suggestions to my dear readers: if you are interested in familiarizing yourself with Dire Straits, I think none of their later albums surpassed the first--Love Over Gold, which I think is a really underrated album, came close, but it wasn't the same style by then.
The history of British pop/rock chart
I give you now the chart of the history of British pop/rock, as I (based on the information provided by Sanyi Márton, the allmusic.com, and Richard Linklater) see it. I hope it will help you to digest the reading and to put all the pieces in place. Not necessarily in the right place, but in a sort of a perspective nevertheless. Feel free to argue about the positioning of certain bands and styles. Oh, and the reading for next week is arriving soon. I think it's best if you download the picture, that makes it more manageable than in a browser window.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Obvious hot air metaphor, too good to miss
I found this on the blog of the correspondent for London for the Spanish national television. (In case you didn't know where all the smoke came from.) The gentlemen from left to right: Nick Clegg, David Cameron and Gordon Brown. 
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
