Oggy Pip
New Member
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2007
- Messages
- 175
Terrific album. The first time I bought it was a bootleg in that Mojos place in Temple Bar, it came as a twofer with Neil live at the BBC 1971. Its Neil at his songwriting best but there are a couple of songs I could do without - "Vampire Blues" suits the mood of the album but its so comatose that it doesn't stand up to repeated listens. "See the Sky About the Rain" is pretty lame, especially that "silver fiddle/broke down the middle" line.
But everything else is superb. If I'm ever asked what I think a good guitar solo is I'll mention "On the Beach", not a flashy solo by any means but what it lacks in panache it makes up for with bags and bags of expression and pure feel. A guitar solo like that (and the song itself) hits you in the gut. That’s what On The Beach is, a gut album.
Time Fades Away never left a good impression on me. The piano ballads, a bit like See the Sky…, are too James Taylorish and some of the other songs didn't live up to the hype surrounding the great lost album. I should relisten to it though. I remember the title track was good fun.
And another fan of Unplugged too. For all the years and years of strumming nonsense that series produced they really got lucky with Neil*, he was on superb form for that recording. Mr Soul and Pocahontas are brilliant, the harmonica playing! Wow, I love it.
*apparently he scrapped the first Unplugged taping and staged it again a week later
But everything else is superb. If I'm ever asked what I think a good guitar solo is I'll mention "On the Beach", not a flashy solo by any means but what it lacks in panache it makes up for with bags and bags of expression and pure feel. A guitar solo like that (and the song itself) hits you in the gut. That’s what On The Beach is, a gut album.
Time Fades Away never left a good impression on me. The piano ballads, a bit like See the Sky…, are too James Taylorish and some of the other songs didn't live up to the hype surrounding the great lost album. I should relisten to it though. I remember the title track was good fun.
And another fan of Unplugged too. For all the years and years of strumming nonsense that series produced they really got lucky with Neil*, he was on superb form for that recording. Mr Soul and Pocahontas are brilliant, the harmonica playing! Wow, I love it.
*apparently he scrapped the first Unplugged taping and staged it again a week later