TURN THIS MUTHA OUT! It's the Alternate 1970s Albums Poll on ILX — Results Thread

I'm nearly ashamed to say that all the Al Green I have is the Greatest Hits album. I'm definitely about to expand my familiarity with him, and The Belle Album seems like a fine place to begin.

If you at all put off by ostensive displays of religiousity, you might want to try I'm Still in Love with You first. That said, one the things that makes Belle such a great piece of religious art is because it's so much of a piece with everything else Green ever did. Unlike gospel, for example, this can't be mistaken as religious hysteria, and it's not a collective experience at all - it's Green's personal, idiosyncratic embrace of the Lord - made on Green's own perverse terms. It's like Green is alone in his own private universe with his Lord, and sorry babe, but no one else is invited. It's way it's essentially the narrative climax of the entire saga of Southern Soul - religious ecstasy gets folded back into the language of seduction, of secular cockmanship. He resolves the sex/manna/self/collective/relgion tensions that motivated soul by eliminating all meaningful distinctions between the multiple dichotomies that had generated the form.

If you *are* at all...

it's wayBelle is essentially...

Belle (the title track) is a near perfect song.

The story of Al Green through the 70s is one I want to read -- is there a good book?

i've never heard the Belle Album, but if it's so religiously charged why does AMG call it "the last secular work he would make for many years"?

I don't want to gum-up this thread with a YouTube video, but the songBelle is here.

It's not a gospel work, so I won't begrudge somebody calling it a secular album, even if it can largely be understood as somebody's expression of their Christian fervor to a secular ear. And certainly not every song directly relates to that experience mind you - nothing about Georgia Boy communicates much beyond the obvious. Also, AMG doesn't know that the hell it's talking about - Truth n Time is his last secular studio album until the 90s, and the secular Live in Tokyo was released in 82, so I don't know how they arrive at that judgment.

xxp Whats the other one, sonofstan?

― Johnny Fever, Tuesday, January 5, 2010 11:53 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

gonna guess 'imagine'

― Electric Universe (wherever that is) (acoleuthic), Tuesday, January 5, 2010 11:54 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

That predictable, I'm afraid...

62. Steely Dan - Katy Lied (1975) [100 points, 9 votes]

http://i45.tinypic.com/hskkf9.jpg

Except maybe for Gaucho, I find this their most despairing album and as such, an extremely unpleasant listening experience, great though it is. I can very much see why anyone would think twice before playing it ... "Doctor Wu," in many ways the ultimate Steely Dan song, for how it amps up both the catchiness and the nihilism and how it burdens single words with so much meaning.

― Kevin John Bozelka, Tuesday, July 22, 2008 7:45 AM (1 year ago)

Ellington would've dug the horns in the bridge of "Throw Back the Little Ones."

― If Timi Yuro would be still alive, most other singers could shut up, Wednesday, August 13, 2008 4:59 AM (1 year ago)

Katy Lied was my first Dan album, and it was "Everyone's Gone to the Movies" (perfectly evokes shag carpeted basement porn screenings) and "Dr. Wu" that sold me on 'em.

― Shakey Mo Collier (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, April 11, 2006 3:49 PM (3 years ago)

the way the album ends, the last few notes..

― jabba hands, Tuesday, October 28, 2008 7:13 PM (1 year ago)

Fulfillingness' First Finale has always bugged the shit out of me.

― The Reverend, Tuesday, November 20, 2007 8:10 AM (2 years ago)

I read this and was like "Why would I say that?" I mean, it, along with Sextant are the first two albums here I voted for! Turns out I was talking about just the title "Fullfillingness' First Finale", not the music contained on the album.

I second whoever is hoping for a Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band placement, but I have my hopes up!

Sorry to take you out of context Rev. Sometimes I'm going through the ILM archives so fast looking for matching blurbs, that I forget what threads they relate to.

haha, no problem

61. Black Sabbath - Master of Reality (1971) [100 points, 11 votes]

http://i45.tinypic.com/33uc2vm.jpg

Well I've just finished the album and I must say my mind has been completely blown. I am absolutely speechless and will not play music for at least another half hour in sheer reverance.

― Bimble, Saturday, May 5, 2007 3:25 AM (2 years ago)

paranoid is probably the biggest step, but master of reality is a solidifying of their sound.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Tuesday, August 29, 2006 6:57 PM (3 years ago)

Master of Reality on the whole is an explictly Christian album, I am actually writing every single day about exactly that aspect of it!

― J0hn D., Wednesday, June 6, 2007 4:51 PM (2 years ago)

^ I still need to buy this book.

40 down, 60 more to go...

100. ZZ Top - Tres Hombres (1973) [80 points, 7 votes]
99. Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges - Clube de Esquina (1972) [80 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote]
98. Chic - C'est Chic (1978) [80 points, 14 votes]
97. John Lennon - Imagine (1971) [80 points, 15 votes]
96. Patti Smith - Horses (1975) [80 points, 17 votes]
95. Van Halen - Van Halen (1978) [81 points, 6 votes, 1 first place vote]
94. Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac (1975) [81 points, 8 votes]
93. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Cosmo's Factory (1970) [81 points, 11 votes]
92. Blondie - Eat to the Beat (1979) [82 points, 9 votes]
91. Miles Davis - Agharta (1976) [82 points, 10 votes]
90. Ian Dury - New Boots and Panties!! (1977) [83 points, 6 votes]
89. Neu! - Neu! 2 (1973) [83 points, 10 votes]
88. Tom Waits - Closing Time (1973) [84 points, 6 votes]
87. Black Sabbath - Vol. 4 (1972) [85 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote]
86. Hawkwind - Space Ritual (1973) [85 points, 11 votes]
85. Aerosmith - Rocks (1976) [86 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote]
84. Tubeway Army - Replicas (1979) [86 points, 9 votes]
83. Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak (1976) [86 points, 11 votes]
82. The Who - Live at Leeds (1970) [87 points, 6 votes]
81. Comus - First Utterance (1971) [87 points, 9 votes]
80. Van Morrison - Veedon Fleece (1974) [88 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote]
79. Electric Light Orchestra - Out of the Blue (1977) [90 points, 10 votes]
78. Bruce Springsteen - The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle (1973) [92 points, 9 votes]
77. Flamin' Groovies - Shake Some Action (1976) [92 points, 10 votes]
76. Pere Ubu - Datapanik in the Year Zero EP (1978) [93 points, 6 votes]
75. ABBA - Arrival (1976) [93 points, 8 votes]
74. David Bowie - Lodger (1979) [93 points, 12 votes]
73. Cluster - Zuckerzeit (1974) [93 points, 14 votes]
72. Pere Ubu - Dub Housing (1978) [94 points, 12 votes]
71. The Rolling Stones - Some Girls (1978) [95 points, 13 votes]
70. Neil Young - Harvest (1972) [96 points, 9 votes]
69. Herbie Hancock - Sextant (1973) [96 points, 12 votes]
68. Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness' First Finale (1974) [97 points, 10 votes]
67. Throbbing Gristle - 20 Jazz Funk Greats (1979) [98 points, 10 votes, 1 first place vote]
(Tie) 65. Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) [99 points, 9 votes]
(Tie) 65. Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark (1974) [99 points, 9 votes]
64. The Pop Group - Y (1979) [99 points, 10 votes]
63. Al Green - The Belle Album (1977) [100 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote]
62. Steely Dan - Katy Lied (1975) [100 points, 9 votes]
61. Black Sabbath - Master of Reality (1971) [100 points, 11 votes]

for the record, I am down for having some Obama babies with Geir

If ever there were a reason for genetic engineering to exist, this is that reason.

I thought about going full on Steely Dan stan and voting for all their eligible albums, but Katy Lied is really my least favorite of their '70s albums and I figured I should make room for other bands on my ballot.

Observation about this list so far: Fastnbulbous is probably right in that the '70s canon is so giant that even a second list of 100 albums is bound to be largely familiar. Not that this makes these albums any less good, but we'd probably have to poll, exclude, re-poll, exclude and re-poll another couple times before we get the kind of completely deep and provocative list we were hoping for. That said, I think the top half of these results will be more interesting to people than the bottom half when it's all over.

This poll really facilitated contemplation of the giantness of the giant 70s canon, with that amazing nominations/shopping/want list. I'd also just point out that this is a pretty rarefied crowd, ~20% of the voters gave points to Zuckerzeit, & so what's overly familiar to ILX poll voters & watchers is largely hopelessly obscure to most others. And we all don't share the same canon WITHIN the larger canon, so there are plenty of opportunities for surprise here. I was sure I was a mega-canonical voter, but only Dub Housing and Agharta have shown up from my ballot so far. I'd be curious to know who winds up with the most picks from their ballot on the final list.

Replicas, Imagine, Harvest and Master of Reality are from my ballot, but my other 36 are safe for now.

the thing is you're never going to get a truly interesting, surprising, unique list by polling a large group of people anyway, especially something that would interest and surprise that group itself. you only get that with a good individual list (and i can't wait to see everyone's ballot after this is all over).

six of mine on the list so far, if i'll get an additional six on it i'll be mildly surprised

So far seven of mine have placed - Tres Hombres, Van Halen, New Boots and Panties, Space Ritual, Jailbreak, Lodger and Master of Reality. I figure another five or six have a good shot, though I'd love to see more (like my top two, for example).

Master of Reality on the whole is an explictly Christian album, I am actually writing every single day about exactly that aspect of it!

― J0hn D., Wednesday, June 6, 2007 4:51 PM (2 years ago)

^ I still need to buy this book.

― Johnny Fever

You really do. Incredibly moving book.

That's the spirit! The more we revel in the vastness of awesome 70s music, the less cranky I get. I just had a flashback to a class my freshman year in high school in 1983 when we were having some sort of discussion about music and culture. I was ejected from the class because a girl said the 70s was a total wasteland, and I called her a "silly twat." Oops!

I was ejected from the class because a girl said the 70s was a total wasteland

That's how I feel about the 90s now, but I'm sure I liked it at the time. One day, I might get there again.

Only three I voted for i think, but I stuck to my pig headed 'one album one artist' rule in order to get the list down, so a few of my alternate choices have come in - for example I only listed 'The Modern Dance', but could have voted for all three Ubus, I went for St. Dominic's Preview, but Veedon Fleece was a close second there, I went for Al green Explores your Mind......

Eight off my list are in. Glad to see my #1 (Veedon Fleece)and #2 (The Wild, the etc) make it. I thought I knew my 70s music pretty well but damn if there aren't a number of discs from bands I'd never knew existed. ILX in long tail shocker.

i thought my ballot was pretty conventional almost-canon stuff but only 4 of 40 have shown up so far...

88. Tom Waits - Closing Time (#27)
83. Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak (#12)
80. Van Morrison - Veedon Fleece (#18)
62. Steely Dan - Katy Lied (#15)

hope a couple of my prog picks get in, as obvious and canonical as they are

Only 2 from my list so far (Comus and Sabbath Vol 4), hoping for another 10 or so but I get the feeling Blue Oyster Cult won't make it...

All forty of mine have now appeared.

Not really - the actual total is seven, of which three are from my top ten. I'm middle of the road.

My votes so far appearing: Neu! 2, Space Ritual, Comus and Cluster.

No idea how many more of mine will appear, almost certainly a few, but this list is already completely different from how I expected it to turn out, so who knows?

i only did a ballot for 35 (36-40 only get a point if you do ordered, didnt feel like sifting through dozens of albums to get a point). so far, just 2 from mine (ccr #4, chic #8)

I'm glad to see Sextant made it, I was beginning to fear it wouldn't. It was my #5 vote (and only one of my votes to appear yet), but it could've easily been my #1, as my top 5 could've basically been in any order. It seems a consensus has formed on ILX that it's Herbie's best album, which indeed it is. Sextant features everything that was great about electric jazz in the late 60s/early 70s, before fusion froze into a set of cliches: the restless electronic experimentation, the abstract but undeniably funky rhythms, the freedom-within-a-groove horn blowouts. It's kinda sad that this was pretty much the swan song of the Mwandishi band (there are those two Eddie Henderson albums where most of the band appears, but as nice as they are, they feel less inspired than the albums released under Herbie's name). The Headhunters were a fine band too, and they released some awesome funk records, but there's just so much potentiality on those three Mwandishi albums (especially Sextant), so many exciting directions the music might've taken if the band could have continued playing.

Anway, I'm beginning to fear that only two or three of my top 40 might actually appear in the top 100. I'm still certain Curtis Mayfield's debut will make it, but I'm not so sure about anything else. If you look at top 60-100, 33 of the 40 albums appear to be more or less in the rock mold (I'm a bit uncertain about a couple of those), which feels way too much fo me. In my opinion the 70s were most likely the best decade ever for "black" music (African-American, Afro-Cuban, Caribbean, Nigerian, Jamaican, Brazilian, etc), but I don't see this being reflected in the poll (yet). I guess I gotta just face the facts, that rock will always be the consensus choice.

my choices are so obvious I'm starting to feel bad for not voting for the more obscure and thus throwing the list into boring territory (though I have to admit that I've found it anything but so far).

That is how I feel too, on both counts, but given how I wouldn't have predicted the results so far it is also entirely possible that actually most of my obvious picks will not turn up at all

still feeling bad for turning in a very rockist (or at least very white) list - sheer musical ignorance I'm afraid, will attempt to school myself at some point, let's hope the results of this poll will allow for some of that as well as a few more of my choices popping up

my list is pretty white too, but out of racism more than anything

Ha!

(well played sir, was rather a stupid non-confession of mine there, but still, this thread has underlined the need to broaden my horizons)

Really beginning to fear for my babies now and wishing I'd ordered my list - there's three records in particular I'd love to see here, but as we go higher the likelihood of that recedes.

Sabotage or bust!

I'm shut out so far!

Did Geir vote?

all of my fav '70s R&B albums are stuff that's either so canonical that it made the first list, or not canonical enough to make this list

my list contains precisely one black person although he is one of the funkiest bassists that has ever lived so probably counts for 3 or 4 (the great Barry Adamson, obviously)

i don't feel especially guilty for this. sure soul jazz and r&b deserve lots of placements here, and sure they'll get them. sometimes a dude has to go bat for art-rock, s'all. i've called it based on what are my favourite albums [/geir]

i wish there was an equal desire on the part of the soul/jazz fans to expand their horizons towards progressive rock! [/geir]

god see talking about this makes me sound like geir

i wish there was an equal desire on the part of the soul/jazz fans to expand their horizons towards progressive rock

ahem, back when you were still in short trousers son...