549. Hunting High and Low

Hunting High and Low
A-Ha
1985

Tracks
1. Take On Me
2. Train Of Thought
3. Hunting High And Low
4. Blue Sky
5. Living A Boy's Adventures Tale
6. Sun Always Shines On TV
7. And You Tell Me
8. Love Is Reason
9. I Dream Myself Alive
10. Here I Stand And Face The Rain

I find it difficult to identify musical trends based on this List, as the editors like to choose albums like, say, Abdullah Ibrahim's Water from an Ancient Well which a total of 52 people alive have heard, as opposed to the mainstream trash that is constantly clogging up radio airwaves. I am not necessarily saying that's a bad thing, but I do like it when we come across something that is iconic of its time.

We are all pretty familiar with "Take On Me" and while that is the best song on the album, there are a couple of other gems on the track listing. "Hunting High and Low" and "Love Is Reason" are both quite good. 

You don't get more 80s than this and I'm loving the vibes. Next up, we are getting into Dire Straits. 

RATING: 4/5

548. Water From an Ancient Well

Water From an Ancient Well
Abdullah Ibrahim
1985

Tracks
1. Mandela 
2. Song For Sathima 
3. Manenberg Revisited 
4. Tuang Guru 
5. Water From An Ancient Well 
6. Wedding 
7. Mountain 
8. Sameeda

Well that was a bit of a mixed bag, with some of these tracks being quite good while others sounded like they would be played at a rather dreary dinner party. It's been awhile since we have had a jazz album, but hey, I guess the 80s are all about being retro.

I listened to this while reading Strindberg; the only thing missing was a pipe. I am not sure which author to pair with our next album, Hunting High and Low. Maybe I'll do James Joyce, just to annoy him.

RATING: 3/5

547. This Nation's Saving Grace

This Nation's Saving Grace
The Fall
1985

Tracks
1. Mansion
2. Bombast
3. Barmy
4. What You Need
5. Spoilt Victorian Child
6. LA
7. Gut Of The Quantifier
8. My New House
9. Paintwork
10. I Am Damo Suzuki
11. To Nkroachment/Yarbles

We have finally arrived at the famed 1985, which is the best year of music according to Bowling for Soup. I know it might be considered blasphemous to reference that band in these hallowed pages, but I think we waved goodbye to any form of musical dignity after I couldn't appreciate the Rolling Stones.

Anyway, this was pretty good, with some interesting guitar work that I didn't expect to hear in 1985. The times they sure are a'changin'. I waited a few days between listening to this and writing down my thoughts, so this isn't as fresh in my mind as the albums usually are. Still, an enjoyable experience and a nice kick off to a new year.


RATING: 3/5

546. Born in the USA

Born in the USA
Bruce Springsteen
1984

Tracks
1. Born In The USA
2. Cover Me
3. Darlington County
4. Working On The Highway
5. Downbound Train
6. I'm On Fire
7. No Surrender
8. Bobby Jean
9. I'm Goin' Down
10. Glory Days
11. Dancing In The Dark
12. My Hometown

I like albums like this, ones that seem light and fun on the surface but conceal something darker underneath. "I'm Goin' Down" has the joyous cadence of a love song, but actually expresses the opposite sentiment. The entire album contains this curious element of paradox, with "Born In The USA" sounding like an anthem and being anything but.

Every song on this album is catchy and worth listening to, with my favorites being "I'm On Fire" and "Dancing in the Dark." I feel like we needed this album to inject a bit of life into the proceedings. Now I feel refreshed and ready to take on 1985.

RATING: 4/5

545. Immigres

Immigres
Youssou N'Dour
1984

Tracks
1. Immigrés/Bitim Rew 
2. Pitche Mi 
3. Taaw
4. Badou

In a list that it is notoriously skewed for Western tastes (you should see the 1001 book list; it's like white guy palooza), it was refreshing to hear an album from Senegal.

I think we can all admit at this point in 1984, synths are getting annoying. But they actually didn't bother me very much with this one. Maybe it's because Youssou N'Dour has such an interesting voice that I was properly distracted. 

Despite all that, my frequent readers know I connect to music best through lyrics (which has ultimately been to my detriment on this List), which is significantly harder to do when I don't speak the language. I am not faulting the album for this in the slightest, but since this blog measures my individual enjoyment of each entry on the List, this is a three-star album.

RATING: 3/5

544. Rattlesnakes

Rattlesnakes
Lloyd Cole and the Commotions
1984

Tracks
1. Perfect Skin 
2. Speedboat 
3. Rattlesnakes 
4. Down On Mission Street 
5. Forest Fire 
6. Charlotte Street 
7. 2cv 
8. Four Flights Up 
9. Patience 
10. Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken? 

We continue our streak of decent to superb albums with "Rattlesnakes." I will once again demonstrate my musical ignorance by admitting that I had never heard of Lloyd Cole before. I really liked my first foray into his music and I hope he is represented on the List again.

All of the songs were fairly catchy and Lloyd Cole has a pretty unique voice that manages to be soft and powerful at the same time. I particularly enjoyed "Patience" and "Are You Ready to Be Heartbroken?" Damn, we haven't had good love songs like that in awhile. They warm my shriveled heart.

RATING: 4/5

543. Double Nickels on the Dime

Double Nickels on the Dime
The Minutemen
1984

Tracks
1. D.'s Car Jam/Anxious Mo-Fo 
2. Theatre Is The Life Of You 
3. Viet Nam 
4. Cohesion 
5. It's Expected I'm Gone 
6. #1 Hit Song 
7. Two Beads At The End 
8. Do You Want New Wave Or Do You Want The Truth 
9. Don't Look Now 
10. Shit From An Old Notebook 
11. Nature Without Man 
12. One Reporter's Opinion 
13. Political Song For Michael Jackson To Sing 
14. Maybe Partying Will Help 
15. Toadies 
16. Retreat 
17. Big Foist 
18. God Bows To Math 
19. Corona 
20. Glory Of Man 
21. Take 5 D. 
22. My Heart And The Real World 
23. History Lesson 
24. You Need The Glory 
25. Roar Of The Masses Could Be Farts 
26. West Germany 
27. Politics Of Time 
28. Themselves 
29. Please Don't Be Gentle With Me 
30. Nothing Indeed 
31. No Exchange 
32. There Ain't Shit On T.V. Tonight 
33. This Ain't No Picnic 
34. Spillage 
35. Untitled Song For Latin America 
36. Jesus And Tequila 
37. June 16th 
38. Storm In My House 
39. Martin's Story 
40. Dr. Wu 
41. World According To Nouns 
42. Love Dance 
43. Three Car Jam

Thankfully, this album is not as long as it seems, as some of the songs don't even reach the two minute mark. Perhaps this is the reason for the band's name. As far as nicknames go, it seems rather cruel.

This band has a really great sense of humor, but that didn't exactly translate into music I enjoyed listening to. Sometimes it's hard to articulate why you don't like a certain album and if I knew how, I probably wouldn't have so many haters. I would be a beach somewhere, drinking mai tais and dissing Queen.

Anyway, a perfectly acceptable album, and maybe good for a few laughs. Otherwise, can easily be skipped.

RATING: 3/5