Made of Stone
I've been on a bit of a voyage of rediscovery for the last year, due primarily to having to drive 40-odd miles to work. That's meant that I've needed music, and it didn't take long before I'd wandered away from the tried and trusted into the old and rather unappreciated (sounds familiar).
Anyway, perhaps due to my being in a more receptive state, some of the old CDs have undergone an amazing resurrection whereby I enjoy them even more than - shock! horror! - new CDs.
A case in point, and what got me writing, is the Stone Roses' album Second Coming.
Before I go any further I must mention that, like many other people, I think the Stone Roses' eponymous first album is an all-time classic, and would definitely place it well into my top 5 albums of all time. And what's more, unlike many others [smug mode] I can claim to have appreciated how good it was at the time it came out (1989) rather than a few years later when fashion caught up with the band. And here I have to lay great respects upon a little shop in Harrow called Jamming with Edward. I bought the album from there simply because I greatly admired Steve the owner's taste and it was plain to see on the shelves. I'd never even heard the Stone Roses before. But what an album! It was everything that music hadn't been for much too long, like waking up from a murky dream. I am the Resurrection, indeed (which is itself well into my top 5 tracks of all time).
I suppose it was inevitable that anything the band did afterwards would be a let-down by comparison, especially when it came more than 5 years (!) after the first album. A lot can change in that time. And yes, it seemed it was mostly a let-down. The notable exception was the track Love Spreads, which is arguably the closest in spirit to the band's first album.
But as I've been listening to Second Coming in the last month or so, other tracks have emerged as classics.
First it was Breaking into Heaven... (for a bit)
Then it was Driving South... (even if it does sound quite similar to Love Spreads)
Then it was Tightrope... (for quite a bit longer, and I took the time to work it our on guitar)
Then it was Daybreak... and I'm still cooking on that one, but it's been joined going round and round in my head by Begging You.
So - suddenly I have a new favourite album that's really just a dusty old album listened to with new ears.
As a good friend once said (and do get in touch if you're reading this, Paul):
I'll say Aye to that one.
Anyway, perhaps due to my being in a more receptive state, some of the old CDs have undergone an amazing resurrection whereby I enjoy them even more than - shock! horror! - new CDs.
A case in point, and what got me writing, is the Stone Roses' album Second Coming.
Before I go any further I must mention that, like many other people, I think the Stone Roses' eponymous first album is an all-time classic, and would definitely place it well into my top 5 albums of all time. And what's more, unlike many others [smug mode] I can claim to have appreciated how good it was at the time it came out (1989) rather than a few years later when fashion caught up with the band. And here I have to lay great respects upon a little shop in Harrow called Jamming with Edward. I bought the album from there simply because I greatly admired Steve the owner's taste and it was plain to see on the shelves. I'd never even heard the Stone Roses before. But what an album! It was everything that music hadn't been for much too long, like waking up from a murky dream. I am the Resurrection, indeed (which is itself well into my top 5 tracks of all time).
I suppose it was inevitable that anything the band did afterwards would be a let-down by comparison, especially when it came more than 5 years (!) after the first album. A lot can change in that time. And yes, it seemed it was mostly a let-down. The notable exception was the track Love Spreads, which is arguably the closest in spirit to the band's first album.
But as I've been listening to Second Coming in the last month or so, other tracks have emerged as classics.
First it was Breaking into Heaven... (for a bit)
Then it was Driving South... (even if it does sound quite similar to Love Spreads)
Then it was Tightrope... (for quite a bit longer, and I took the time to work it our on guitar)
Then it was Daybreak... and I'm still cooking on that one, but it's been joined going round and round in my head by Begging You.
So - suddenly I have a new favourite album that's really just a dusty old album listened to with new ears.
As a good friend once said (and do get in touch if you're reading this, Paul):
A change in attitude refreshes the parts a change in lifestyle cannot reach.
I'll say Aye to that one.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home