music geek- part II

10 of my favorite (but mostly obscure) albums.....

these are some favorite albums by bands you've probably never heard of. some of them are "one hit wonders", some never even had a hit. most of the albums came and went and no one paid attention. some artists did other albums, but none that i bought. this is just a list of some albums i have loved, that i am guessing most folks haven't heard. and now, in no particular order......

fairground attraction, "first of a million kisses", which i still own and listen to occasionally. this album came out around my senior year of high school and i loved it. the band never released another album, but the lead singer went on to record solo albums, although none has interested me. t his album is so light and airy and kind of romantic. it mixes pop & jazz, and something about eddie reader's voice captivated me. the album reminds me of that famous robert doisneau photograph of the lovers kissing.

yes, i had this poster on my wall in college! thankfully i outgrew this phase (like some girls outgrow their love of horses) and moved on to more substantial (less french) things...

prefab sprout, "two wheels good." my friend mark mentioned this album on another post (about guilty pleasures.) he's the one who introduced me to this album (and many others on this list.) this album went on to be considered one of the best pop albums of the 90's. i don't own a copy but would be willing to be it still holds up. according to wikipedia i am in luck, because the entire remastered album is being released next month!

the sundays, "reading, writing and arithmetic." this band was supposed to be some kind of cocteau twins knock off band, with some smiths jangley guitars thrown in. then the cranberries came around and sort of took over. but i think this sunday's album is far superior and a lovely little gem that most folks have forgotten about. they had 2 albums after this one, including a great cover version of the rolling stones "wild horses", but this first album remains a favorite. 9my copy skips, so if anyone would like to provide me with a new one, i'd be most grateful.) also, i wanted to be just like the lead singer (harriet wheeler) and i think i had the cuffed jeans down just about right......

(nice cuffs!)

poe, "hello." this is a more recent (only a decade old!) album. it was pegged as another "angry female" album at the time, but was much more. it was an odd mix of female vocals, electronica and soul. i don't own this one and would be curious to see if it still stands up, 10 years later.

david sylvian, "secrets of the beehive." this is still a favorite album that i love listening to when i go to bed. this one came out around my senior year of high school, like others. but it still seems otherworldly, and has no sound with any frame of reference. in other words, it doesn't sounded dated to me. it sounds like it could have been recorded 20 years ago or last week. sylvian has a deep, dreamy voice and the songs are atmospheric and lush. strings accompany most of the songs and the entire album has a haunting quality. i found this art book created by the folks from V23 (they did the album covers for all 4AD bands, like cocteau twins) that anyone is welcome to buy for me!

crash vegas, "red earth." if anyone knows of this album, i will give you a dollar! i saw a video for "smoke" on canadian music television, back in 1991. i was visiting my pal stacy and they got much music if you angled the tv antenea just right, around 2am- 4am. i can't even remember the entire album, but i loved that "smoke" song. it was sad and dreamy and had lush female vocals.

matthew sweet, "girlfriend." out of all the albums on my list, this one is the most "rocking". it's just an almost perfect album of pop-rock that was always great to listen to in the car. this guy has released a number of albums since, and all get rave reviews, but "girlfriend" for me is a classic.

everything but the girl, "idlewild." ok, there's a theme. i dig the mopey music, with a tendency to enjoy quirky, british female vocalists. this band had a number of albums before "idlewild" and more after. (they had a huge hit with "missing", which you'd know if you heard it.) but "idlewild" for me remains an all-time favorite. it's hard to describe this one..... lots of acoustic stuff, male/female harmonies.....a good sunday afternoon listen.

sara hickman, "shortstop." this was an odd album by a quirky folk singer out of texas. i remember loving this album, but haven't heard it in over 10 years. it was a favorite back in my college days, and after reading the wiki, i might have to go out and see what her more recent work is about.

jane siberry, "bound by the beauty." yet another quirky female vocalist, and another canadian. she had a few hit singles in canada before this album, and went on to remain popular with the adult acoustic crowd. for me though, this album is timeless. with songs about dogs, and beauty, and trains, it's lovely and strange and stands the test of time. she's recently changed her name to "issa" and is living on some kind of commune. but a lovely album none the less....

honerable mentions:

david & david "welcome to the boomtown" (i loved this album!!!)

toni childs, "union" (rachel and i were obsessed with this one) she had the strangest voice...

charlie sexton, "pictures for pleasure" (this one might have been somewhat based on his cute factor....)

tanita tikaram, "ancient heart", she had a deep, dreamy voice and the song "twist in my sobriety" was mesmerizing.

(if i think of any more i shall add them as well)