This is funny... I recently learned of a local insurance operation, I will not say which one. I swear, this is a picture of the brokers on their website.
Insurance guys skiing sans helmets... that is like a pregnant woman selling you condoms right? No? Maybe? Not even close?
So I was listening to Elton John's Honky Chateau and I got to thinking... is there a more underrated musician? Sure, people know who he is and like his music and yes, there have been times when his music is absolute shit (same w/ the Stones), but when you see lists of the top bands/music artists of all time does he ever crack the top 5, or even the top 10? Rolling Stone magazine had him as the 38th all time singer and 49 on the all time artist list. That seems criminal. He has put out 30+ albums. In a 5 year period he banged out 9 records that were outstanding. The self titled album in '70 had great songs like "Your Song", "Take me to the Pilot" (which is really fantastic), and "Border Song". Tumbleweed Connection, Madman Across the Water, and Honky Chateau are all excellent if not perfect start to finish albums. Goodbye Yellowbrick Road? Are you f*ing kidding me? That is an outstanding record. "Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" is an all time underrated song that soars. These are just consistent good compositions that fit together and which you rarely fast forward through. Meanwhile everyone creams themselves over the Beach Boys. The Beach Boys suck. They had some good stuff but Pet Sounds is overrated and the product of stoned artists getting too deep in their own heads. And Surfin' U.S.A.... that is a commercial jingle. The Ramones? Hey, they are fun and were a phenomena, but when you are flipping through the dial and here one of their songs do you stop or keep flipping? Don't lie.
Here are my current top 5 albums in terms of complete start to finish excellent in no particular order
5. Appetite for Destruction - Guns N Roses. Powerful, driven, almost every song is excellent and a few are transcendent, and it all fits together
4. Madman Across the Water - Elton. I think this, Honky and Tumbleweed Connection could be included but this one is the most complete w/ songs that everyone knows and loves. Sure you feel silly singing along to "Tiny Dancer" but you do it anyway.
3. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot - Wilco. I have been listening to this a lot lately. Melancholic, sometimes sweet, and sweeping. It is sad but it just all fits so perfectly like a puzzle and the songs are all very good and again, like "Heavy Metal Drummer" sometimes excellent.
2. Abbey Road -Beatles. Again, which one do you pick, they are all excellent and many of the albums could be considered "perfect". For my money the second side of Abbey Road just hits the cover off the ball as it winds through a lovely lullaby fit for children or adults. When "Carry That Weight" builds to crescendo I find myself sometimes quite overcome.
1.Exile on Main Street -Rolling Stones. Dirty, gritty, a little honky tonk and just a great album.
Yeah yeah in terms of consistent narrative The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon are in the mix and it is hard to leave out Thriller and Kind of Blue. This is just my right now list.
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