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LEARNING TO CRAWL (Album of the Day)
The loss of a lead guitarist and a bassist in less than a year would have destroyed many bands, but Pretenders bounced back from tragedy with LEARNING TO CRAWL. The 1984 Sire set includes a magnificent tribute to the late James Honeyman-Scott (“Back On The Chain Gang,” a Top 10 hit), but the rest of the ten tracks show the band looking forward rather than backward. With producer Chris Thomas returning to the helm, frontwoman Chrissie Hynde came up with some of her best songs, ranging from fiery rockers (“Middle of the Road,” “My City Was Gone”) to tender balladry (Christmastime classic “2000 Miles”). More than a triumph over adversity, the Platinum-certified LEARNING TO CRAWL stands among the very best Pretenders albums.
PORNO FOR PYROS (Album of the Day)
Following the 1992 dissolution of Jane's Addiction, frontman Perry Farrell and drummer Stephen Perkins recruited guitarist Peter DiStefano and bassist Martyn LeNoble to carry on as Porno For Pyros. Expectations were high for the band's self-titled debut, and it doesn't disappoint; if the 1993 Warner Bros. set bears similarity to Jane's Addiction in places, it nonetheless stands proudly on its own. Though the songs remain concise, for the most part they trade riffs for more progressive textures, covering a lot of stylistic ground in the process. The subject matter is equally diverse – paired tracks “Cursed Female” and “Cursed Male” examine gender roles, Modern Rock chart-topper “Pets” has an extraterrestrial theme, and a couple of songs deal with the then-recent L.A. riots. To celebrate Perry Farrell's birthday, we'll give PORNO FOR PYROS another spin today.
THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY (Album of the Day)
Called by Rolling Stone “one of rock's more elaborate, beguiling and strangely rewarding concept albums,” Genesis' THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY was the pinnacle of the U.K. band's progressive rock phase. The double LP would be the group's final release with founding frontman Peter Gabriel, who wrote the set's lyrics about a Puerto Rican gang member named Rael and his journey of self-discovery in New York City. The Atco set showcases both the group's talent for crafting compelling songs (“Counting Out Time” “Carpet Crawl”) and for inspired instrumental interplay. THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY was a personal favorite of both Gabriel and drummer Phil Collins and in honor of keyboardist Tony Banks – who was born on this day in 1950 – we’ll give the Gold-certified collection another spin now.
GORILLAZ (Album of the Day)
Gorillaz is the brainchild of Blur frontman Damon Albarn and illustrator Jamie Hewlett, who together created a virtual band in answer to the vacuity they saw on MTV. While the group's dazzling animated videos would certainly stop any television viewer in their tracks, the music on GORILLAZ is equally arresting. To be sure, there's a touch of Blur's Brit-pop here, but the album is equally informed by trip-hop and many other influences - Del the Funky Homosapien raps on “Clint Eastwood” and “Rock the House,” Cuban vocalist Ibrahim Ferrer sings on “Latin Simone (¿Que Pasa Contigo?)” and “19-2000” features half of Talking Heads. Cartoon quartet 2-D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel unleashed GORILLAZ on this day in 2001, and the collection went on to sell millions of copies around the world.
HOUSES OF THE HOLY (Album of the Day)
On HOUSES OF THE HOLY, Led Zeppelin continued the progression of their classic fourth album to create one of their most diverse sets to date. Though there's no shortage of dynamic Jimmy Page riffs, the Atlantic collection ventures far afield from the blues-inspired heavy metal of the quartet's debut to touch upon funk (“The Crunge”), folk (“Over the Hills and Far Away”) and reggae (“D'Yer Mak'er”). Both guitarist-producer Page and multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones had built home studios, allowing them to perfect tracks like “The Rain Song” and “No Quarter” in advance of recording sessions. Housed in a Grammy-nominated Hipgnosis sleeve, the chart-topping, Diamond-certified HOUSES OF THE HOLY was released on this day in 1973, and it's still tops with hard rock fans.
SKID ROW (Album of the Day)
Though they came of age at the height of the glam metal era, Skid Row took a much grittier approach to the music, and that made all the difference. From Sebastian Bach's take-no-prisoners vocals to the dual guitar attack of Scotti Hill and Dave Sabo, the New Jersey quintet's self-titled 1989 debut features plenty of bite while remaining radio-friendly. The Atlantic collection's "Youth Gone Wild" cracked the Top 100, setting the stage for power ballads “18 and Life” and “I Remember You” to reach the Top 10. Because the band had honed its songs on the road for a year before hitting the studio, there are several other great originals here beyond the three MTV Headbanger's Ball favorites, and we’ll crank up the multi-Platinum SKID ROW to wish Bach a happy birthday.
BEST OF FACES: GOOD BOYS WHEN THEY’RE ASLEEP (Album of the Day)
When mod favorites The Small Faces took in Rod Stewart and Ron Wood and shortened their name, they became Britain's most boisterous party band this side of The Rolling Stones. They cut four studio albums together before their new singer and guitarist were lured away, and the best of that output is gathered on Rhino's 19-track collection GOOD BOYS…WHEN THEY’RE ASLEEP. From the full-throated rock of “Stay With Me” (the group's biggest U.S. hit) to the rueful balladry of “Ooh La La” plus a couple of rarities for good measure, it's the definitive single volume sampler of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers. The group’s bassist and co-founder Ronnie Lane was born on this day in 1946, and in his honor we’ll cue up GOOD BOYS…WHEN THEY’RE ASLEEP.
CANDY-O (Album of the Day)
Following the massive success of The Cars' multi-Platinum debut, the quintet teamed up once again with Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker to record CANDY-O. The album was released in the summer of 1979 and became a huge hit, peaking at #3 on the Billboard Album Chart and eventually earning quadruple-Platinum certification in the U.S. alone. The 11 tracks include such favorites as “It's All I Can Do,” “Dangerous Type” and “Let's Go,” which was the band's first Top 15 hit on the Billboard singles chart. It was David Robinson who asked legendary pin-up artist Alberto Vargas to create the collection’s cover art, and we’ll give CANDY-O a spin now to wish the Cars drummer a happy 75th birthday.
HUNTING HIGH AND LOW (Album of the Day)
Go down the list of pop stars from Norway and you'll reach “a-ha” pretty quickly – even if the list isn't alphabetical. Singer Morten Harket, keyboardist Magne “Mags” Furuholmen and guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (who was born on this day in 1961) became the country's most famous musical exports with “Take On Me,” which hit #1 in America thanks largely to its remarkable video. The single helped launch the trio's 1985 debut album, which sold more than 10 million copies around the world (including a million in the U.S.) and earned the group a Best New Artist Grammy nomination. Along with that aforementioned hit, the ten varied originals on HUNTING HIGH AND LOW include such addictive singles as “The Sun Always Shines On T.V.,” “Love Is Reason,” “Train Of Thought” and the title track.
SWIMMING (Album of the Day)
“You could have the world in the palm of your hands - You still might drop it” notes Mac Miller on SWIMMING, and the Pittsburgh rapper's break-up with Ariana Grande and his struggles with sobriety loom large here. Yet the 2018 set is hardly downbeat; Miller's resilience is inspiring, and a skilled team of producers including Jon Brion adds surprising flourishes to airy arrangements. Mac's singing and rapping were never better, and the baker's dozen tracks include Top 40 hit “Self Care,” “Small Worlds” and “What's the Use?” (which features guest vocals by Snoop Dogg and Thundercat). A Grammy nominee for Best Rap Album, the Platinum-certified SWIMMING would be the final collection from Mac Miller before his untimely death five years ago today.