ILM Artist Poll No. 77 · CAN · Results Thread

I remember, as a no-nothing youngster, John Peel playing "Mother Sky" and being amazed that the bass was on one note for all of the song.

... and how sparse it was.

Is Mother Sky the first motorik beat?

― jmm

Some attribute it to Velvet Underground I think... but yeah I think you're on to something.

Mother Sky = Karoli's most explosive work, and the band's most locked-in rhythm groove, IMHO

Let's wrap it up! Apologies for the unexpected delay in finishing the poll. Hope you enjoyed it despite the technical problems.

http://i.imgur.com/VvtoT5P.jpg
02. Halleluhwah. 867 points, 30 votes, 5 Nº1 votes.
From: Tago Mago (1971)
https://youtu.be/yNvJiIvitBQ

http://i.imgur.com/d2mY0lx.jpg
01. Future Days. 940 points, 32 votes, 6 Nº1 votes.
From: Future Days (1973)
https://youtu.be/B9_fQgvPCS4

wow i did not expect that

wow! ILX leans harder toward future days than i thought! which is a good thing imo

That's my No. 1!

halleluhwah is my fav rhythm of all time & my no 1.

Here's the results in image form in case you want to browse through them without opening the full thread:

ILM Can Tracks Poll on Imgur:http://imgur.com/a/8oGdw
ILM Can Albums Poll on Imgur:http://imgur.com/a/uzSlT
Spotify Playlisthttps://open.spotify.com/user/moteldemoka/playlist/51G2Ur3calfY4vCpxDNcwS

:O

And here's the spreadsheet with ballots and full results:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18ew_Yopjtf9akOTJODJuZuYtRYbwf44Loc_yw3s8Zg8/

Good job ILM you chose good and wisely.

I'm pretty sure Halleluwah would have been my top pick. It's just insurmountably awesome.

I'm actually pleased with the top 10. Ranking by nº1 votes and points the top 10 would be:

1 Mother Sky
1 Future Days
2 Halleluwah
3 Pinch
4 Oh Yeah
5 Bel Air
6 Mushroom
7 Vitamin C
8 Moonshake
9 Paperhouse
10 One More Night

I'm So Green was my numero uno and would have traded it happily for Bel Air or Paperhouse in the top 10 but well, you can't always get what you want.

i always thought tago mago was a little long and uneven but i wouldn't drop a second from halleluwah.

Great poll by Moka, the images for each song are all-time, I feel for the poor sap who has to follow this one.

Thank you!

what Tom D said!

Yaaaasssssssssss, perfect number one <3

You know when choosing the images I was originally trying to maintain a theme/palette per album... so per example; the songs from Future Days would have a predominantly blue palette and a clean, bright futuristic theme while Soon Over Babaluma would have blue/violet hues and a more sci-fi setting, Tago Mago would be orange hues with psychedelic motifs, Ege Bamyasi green with 'pop' motifs, Monster Movie green/purple with monster motifs and so on... Eventually I ran out of time and I didn't really end up doing it completely but glad you enjoyed it.

Ace graphics as always Moka, and thanks for the poll! (Although I'm not a fan of, gasp, "Future Days"!)

1-20:
Halleluwah
Mary, Mary So Contrary
Paperhouse
Mushroom
Mother Sky
Bring Me Coffee or Tea
Smoke
Turtles Have Short Legs
Bubble Rap
I'm So Green
Networks of Foam
Deadlock (Titelmusik)
Midnight Men
Yoo Doo Right
Dead Pigeon Suite
Spoon (Live) [Lost Tapes]
Dizzy Dizzy
Spoon
Abra Cada Braxas
Messer, Scissors, Fork and Light

Just realized I fucked up by not choosing stills from the films of the Soundtracks songs that made it, those would've been adequate hehe

great poll, thanks for running it! Wish we all got paper cut-outs of the track images as souvenirs.

I feel like there was more consensus on this than usual, here was my ballot:

TRACKS
1 Halleluwah
2 Vitamin C
3 Future Days
4 Quantum Physics
5 Mushroom
6 Mother Sky
7 I Want More
8 One More Night
9 Yoo Doo Right
10 Spoon
11 Chain Reaction
12 Oh Yeah
13 Come sta, La Luna
14 Moonshake
15 Dizzy Dizzy
16 Laugh Till You Cry, Live Till You Die
17 Pinch
18 Gomorrha
19 All Gates Open
20 Turtles Have Short Legs

ALBUMS
Ege Bamyasi
Tago Mago
Soon Over Babaluma
Monster Movie
Future Days

1. Vitamin C
2. Oh Yeah
3. Bring Me Coffee or Tea
4. One More Night
5. Moonshake
6. Dizzy Dizzy
7. Future Days
8. Chain Reaction
9. Mushroom
10. Don't Turn The Light On, Leave Me Alone
11. Mother Sky
12. Paperhouse
13. Soul Desert
14. Tango Whiskeyman
15. She Brings the Rain
16. Mary Mary So Contrary
17. Yoo Doo Right
18. Sing Swan Song
19. Splash
20. Spoon

1. Ege Bamyasi
2. Tago Mago
3. Soundtracks
4. Soon Over Babaluma
5. Future Days

Tracks
1. Future Days
2. Chain Reaction
3. Quantum Physics
4. Yoo Doo Right
5. Oh Yeah
6. Sing Swan Song
7. Vitamin C
8. Mushroom
9. Thief
10. I Want More
11. Mother Sky
12. Father Cannot Yell
13. Moonshake
14. One More Night
15. Dizzy Dizzy
16. Halleluwah
17. Hunters and Collectors
18. Butterfly
19. She Brings the Rain
20. Vernal Equinox

Albums
1. Soon Over Babaluma
2. Monster Movie
3. Ege Bamyasi
4. Tago Mago
5. Soundtracks

halleluwah is the turning center of the universe

God, listening to that live version of Oh Yeah makes me want to put it #1.

oh and I was the #1 for Moonshake, I can't count the times I have felt a bit low or washed out, put that song on, and felt restored and recharged. It has ... voodoo qualities.

Wonder what the Malcolm / Damo split is in the top 50!

here's my list:

Tracks:

Mother Sky
Bel Air
Spoon
Halleluwah
Aspectacle
Tango Whiskyman
Vitamin C
Paperhouse
Future Days
Thief
Mushroom
All Gates Open
Father Cannot Yell
Gomorrha
Peking O
Sing Swan Song
She Brings The Rain
Chain Reaction
Graublau
Der Millionenspiel

Albums:

Tago Mago
Future Days
Can (1979)
Radio Waves
Ege Bamyasi

Great poll, Moka, thanks for running it -- fantastic graphics as always.

I'm proud my #1 vote pushed "E&UK" into the top 50.

The Empress and the Ukraine King
Oh Yeah
Future Days
One More Night
Mushroom
Moonshake
Lalleluhwah
Aumgn
Bel Air
Dizzy Dizzy
Unfinished
Vernal Equinox
Vitamin C
Mother Sky
Outside My Door
Paperhouse
Spoon
Splash
Soup
Father Cannot Yell

ALBUMS
1. Tago Mago
2. Future Days
3. Ege Bamyasi
4. Unlimited Edition
5. Soundtracks

Paperhouse was my #1, I wasn't really expecting it to be there but it just sort of does everything.

Great poll!

Missed the roll-out, but you guys rule!

1. I Want More
2. Vitamin C
3. Half Past One
4. Paperhouse
5. On the Beautiful Side of a Romance
6. You Doo Right
7. The Empress and the Ukraine King
8. All Gates Open
9. Fall of Another Year
10. Father Cannot Yell
11. Spoon
12. Tango Whiskyman
13. Moonshake
14. Hoolah Hoolah
15. Hunters and Collectors
16. Below This Level (Patient's Song)
17. Future Days
18. Deadlock
19. EFS No. 99, 'Can Can'
20. Halleluhwah

Thanks, Moka.

Extremely pleased with #1. Didn't expect "Bell Air" to be top 10 based on the voting thread, but nice to see that, too. Christ, I love this band - just about everything on my ballot could have been #1. Ranking was very hard.

01 Future Days
02 Ege Bamyasi
03 Tago Mago
04 Monster Movie
05 Soon Over Babaluma

01 Future Days
02 Pinch
03 One More Night
04 Vitamin C
05 Paperhouse
06 Mushroom
07 Spoon
08 Mother Sky
09 Moonshake
10 Uphill
11 Father Cannot Yell
12 You Doo Right
13 Bel Air
14 Halleluhwah
15 I Want More
16 Dizzy Dizzy
17 Sing Swan Song
18 Oh Yeah
19 Outside My Door
20 Come sta, La Luna

Thank you for doing this Moka!! These results were full of surprises.

Halleluhwah
Mother Sky
Spoon
Mushroom
Vitamin C
Future Days
Moonshake
Tango Whiskyman
Yoo Doo Right
Sing Swan Song
Father Cannot Yell
Bel Air
Don’t Turn The Light On, Leave Me Alone
Bring Me Coffee Or Tea
Peking O
Fall Of Another Year
One More Night
Come sta, La Luna
Connection
I Want More

Tago Mago
Ege Bamyasi
Future Days
Soundtracks
Monster Movie

Thanks for doing this, Moka!

Albums:
Future Days
Tago Mago
Unlimited Edition
Soon Over Babaluma
Flow Motion

Tracks:
Bel Air
Hallelujah
Future Days
Spoon
Spray
Cutaway
Mushroom
Gomorrha
Boat-Woman-Song
I Want More
Flow Motion
Animal Waves
I’m So Green
Ibis
Blue Bag
All Gates Open
Cascade Waltz
Turtles Have Short Legs
Mother Sky
Full Moon on the Highway

You're all welcome. Cool band, cool results! Thank you!

This was probably the most enjoyable ILM poll I've taken part in and read. Splendid stuff!

I just dug out my copy of the 2cd "Anthology" as I do like the 'edited, but still long' versions of 'Halleluwah' and 'Morning Sky'. This CD set was my first proper into (I did buy 'I want more' back in the day)

Anyway, it still has the HMV price tag of £19.25 on it! I mean, what was I, made of money in those days?

Thanks again Moka, splendid poll!

My ballot:

Albums

1. Soon Over Babaluma
2. Monster Movie
3. Ege Bamyasi
4. Tago Mago
5. Future Days

Songs

1. Future Days
2. Yoo Doo Right
3. Mushroom
4. Quantum Physics
5. Private Nocturnal
6. Pinch
7. Oh Yeah
8. Sing Swan Song
9. Father Cannot Yell
10. All Gates Open
11. Dizzy Dizzy
12. Mary So Contrary
13. Come Sta, La Luna
14. Dead Pigeon Suite
15. Vernal Equinox
16. Halleluhwah
17. Animal Waves
18. Waiting For The Streetcar
19. Chain Reaction
20. Turtles Have Short Legs

hard to complain about anything in the top 10 but I am a bit sad that "One More Night" didn't make it, that has got to be the most quietly funky tune I've ever heard

One More Night was #13!

Or, wait: are you saying you were sad it didn't make the top ten?

hard to complain about anything in the top 10

Well, I could, but I'm not going to.

great poll!! thank you for doing it, moka.

didn't vote albums, here are my songs

Mother Sky
Halleluwah
Yoo Doo Right (Live 1971-1977)
I Want More
Messer, Scissors, Fork, and Light
Dead Pigeon Suite
Moonshake
Deadly Doris
Spoon (live from Lost Tapes)
Graublau
Vernal Equinox
Mushroom
Flow Motion
Soul Desert
Come sta La Luna
Millionspiel
Shikaku Maru Ten
Sing Swan Song
Tango Whiskyman
Paperhouse

Honorable mentions:
And More
Can Can (for being so vexing to google)

I frigging love "I Want More." Even if it's the only real toe they ever dipped into disco, it somehow manages to lose none of what makes Can great -- the weirdly half whispered treated lead vocal, the hilarious toy keyboard counter-melody, the Rother-esque melody in the guitar and keys refrain. The remaster (on Spotify) sounds great, too. The fact that "...And More" exists, too, which sounds like some lost KC and the Sunshine Band 12", makes it even better. Wow.

Then there's this, which I said I'd vote for but then didn't :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iInAuoio-pQ