We’re in season 3 of this adventure, listening in August, September, and October. On one hand, I’m finding myself anxious to get to the early 70’s, as outside of this experiment I am starting to notice more what timeframe my most favorite music comes from. It shouldn’t be a surprised - I was sorting my record collection and I don’t even have a 60’s section; the few items from that decade are mixed into smaller Jazz or Quaint Pop I Got For Free sections.

On the other hand, each year that goes by drops some serious bombs on me. My breadth was narrower this iteration, because when I looked at the unpruned list, I kept wanting to listen to the same few things. I’m finding writing summaries is similarly difficult. In such a short list I still want to comment on nearly every one. I suspect the format for future years will have to change.

Unsurprising Romps

• The Velvet Underground & Nico - The Velvet Underground & Nico: While I’m writing these, I click around in the track lists to jog my memory, but this one got a full play through. I feel a bit like this one is cheating, because I know it wasn’t very popular that year, but I think that serves the point of exploring the music history even more.
• The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced: Holy shit. I knew this album more intimately than any other so far, but again - putting this in the timeline next to all these other psych rock acts made them seem like total phonies. (and he put out TWO great albums this year)
• The Beatles - Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band: What a sweeper. I guess this is very McCartney-heavy, so it makes sense that I like it.

Other Sounds Absorbed

• Grateful Dead - The Grateful Dead: I understand that this is the general consensus with this album, but the band is so majestic and loved, so I was hoping to get into it and that did not happen. A few months later while writing this, I don’t remember it at all.
• Jefferson Airplane - Surrealistic Pillow: This converted me. I have read that the band was disappointed with the album because it felt too crisp and over-produced and didn’t capture their real sound. I wouldn’t change a thing. Embryonic Journey!
• Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Leonard Cohen: Another conversion. It’s not surprising that the lyricism is mature compared to a lot of the rockers of the time, what have we a poet/writer and all. It feels like a good introduction to the artist, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the catalog over the years.

Total Albums: 27
Most Played: - The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced

The List

• Procol Harum - Procol Harum
• Tim Buckley - Goodbye And Hello
• Van Morrison - Blowin’ Your Mind!
• Country Joe and the Fish - Electric Music For The Mind And Body
• The Rolling Stones - Between The Buttons
• The Doors - The Doors
• Jefferson Airplane - Surrealistic Pillow
• The Velvet Underground & Nico - The Velvet Underground & Nico
• Grateful Dead - The Grateful Dead
• The Beatles - Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
• Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Safe as Milk
• The Hollies - Evoluation
• The Kaleidoscope - Side Trips
• Antonio Carlos Jobim - Wave
• Bee Gees - Bee Gees’ 1st
• The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced
• Pink Floyd - The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
• The Kinks - Something Else By The Kinks
• Buffalo Springfield - Buffalo Springfield Again
• Cream - Disraeli Gears
• Love - Forever Changes
• The Moody Blues with the London Festival Orchestra - Days Of Future Passed
• The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
• The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Axis: Bold As Love
• The Who - The Who Sell Out
• Bob Dylan - John Wesley Harding
• Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Leonard Cohen

The Music

I selected 35 albums from 1966 for listening. Again, I really tried to listen to them all intently, and I think I succeeded. This year had more albums that I knew I would like than the previous year, and a few surprises that were mostly new to me. In addition to some heavy hitters (Blonde on Blonde, Pet Sounds, Revolver!), I enjoyed these notables:

• The Hollies - For Certain Because…: I had my headphones on and went for a meander in the woods for this one. It was a memorable walk off the path down a river bed and I’m not sure if that’s because I liked the album or I liked the album so much because the walk was good. Either way, the edition I listened to was all 12 tracks in Mono and then in Stereo, and I listened straight through both. Either way, really cool composition and super solid hooks. I kept coming back to this all season. Cool track: Pay You Back With Interest
• Richie Havens - Mixed Bag: Another set totally unfamiliar to me that I couldn’t put down. He’s got such a cool sound. He voice vibrates, and the songs could be sad or bright but always just drove through, and there was a soft jazz undertone to it all. Familiar Track: Handsome Johnny
• The Mothers of Invention - Freak Out!: I can’t picture this being from 1966. I know Zappa less than most, but I can see his imprint on a ton of music I do know. Weenest Track: I Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
• Donovan - Sunshine Superman: No surprise at all, I knew I liked this. One of the descriptions called it “wistful,” and I appreciate that. The hits (Season of the Witch and Sunsine Superman) are fun, but I think I more enjoyed some of the weirder folk tracks. Court of Arthurest song: Guinevere
• The Shadows of Knight - Gloria: Foreshadowing a bit, as I’m writing this after listening to 1967 and 1968, but I have to say I’m tired of British Blues. So tired. I’m exhausted. This band comes off in that ilk at times, but when they open up a bit it’s really great. Them Cover Track: Gloria
• Gordon Lightfoot - Lightfoot: Just go listen to The Way I Feel. Gordon Lightfoot Track: The Way I Feel

Most Played: ? and the Mysterians - 96 Tears

The List

• ? and the Mysterians - 96 Tears
• The Association - And Then… Along Comes The Association
• The Butterfield Blues Band - East-West
• The Hollies - For Certain Because…
• The Isley Brothers - This Old Heart Of Mine
• Judy Collins - In My Life
• Los Bravos - Black Is Black
• Percy Sledge - When a Man Loves a Woman
• Richie Havens - Mixed Bag
• Roy Orbison - The Orbison Way
• The Shadows of Knight - Back Door Men
• The Shadows of Knight - Gloria
• Tim Buckley - Tim Buckley
• Tim Hardin - Tim Hardin 1
• The Walker Brothers - Portait
• Simon & Garfunkel - Sounds of Silence
• Gordon Lightfoot - Lightfoot
• Love - Love
• Them - Them Again
• The Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
• Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde
• The Rolling Stones - Aftermath
• Doc Watson - Southbound
• The Mothers of Invention - Freak Out!
• The Yardbirds - Roger the Engineer
• John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers - Blues Breakers
• The Beatles - Revolver
• Jefferson Airplane - Jefferson Airplane Takes Off
• Donovan - Sunshine Superman
• Ike & Tina Turner - River Deep - Mountain High
• Simon and Garfunkel - Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme
• Neil Diamond - The Feel of Neil Diamond
• The Kinks - Face to Face
• Cream - Fresh Cream
• The Who - A Quick One

The Music

Assuming I was good at record keeping, I listened to 23 albums. All of them I really really listened to, and a lot of them I listened to a number of times. The full list is below, but some notables:

• Beatles - Rubber Soul: I had a good long Beatles kick the past few years, so this was ripe, but Rubber Soul is rock solid and I love it more than I did before.
• Jackson C. Frank - Jackson C Frank: I have a feeling this wasn’t really an “of the time” album, so much as it was popularized later in memorial. Or maybe that means it’s even more “of the time”? That’s fine, because I’m glad I found it. This is one of the few I had never heard, and never even heard of.
• Ben E. King - Seven Letters: He had a long career and I was somewhat familiar with his songs, but this is a cool whole piece of music and I was not expecting it at all.
• John Coltrane - A Love Supreme: This is one of those renowned and definitive late jazz albums that everybody loves. No surprise there.

Most Played: John Coltrane - A Love Supreme

Overall, there actually wasn’t as much music as I was expecting. I’m sure I’m missing a ton. I intentionally avoided a whole slew of Jazz. There was a lot of Soul/R&B and country that is probably great, but didn’t seem to fit the spirit of “The Album Era.”

I definitely added some new music to my permanent rotation, and I definitely got a bit of a sense of what music might have been like that year. By all measures, that was my intention and this was a huge success.

The List

• The Beach Boys - The Beach Boys Today!
• The Beatles - Help!
• The Beatles - Rubber Soul
• The Bee Gee’s Sing & Play 14 Barry Gibb Songs
• Ben E. King - Seven Letters
• Bert Jansch - Bert Jansch
• Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
• Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
• The Byrds - Mr. Tambourine Man
• Frank Sinatra - September Of My Years
• Jackson C. Frank - Jackson C Frank
• Joan Baez - Farewell, Angelina
• John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
• John Fahey - The Transfiguration Of Blind Joe Death
• The Kinks - The Kink Kontroversy
• Merle Haggard - Strangers
• Nina Simone - Pastel Blues
• Nina Simone - I Put A Spell On You
• Otis Redding - Otis Blue
• Paul Simon - The Paul Simon Songbook
• Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - Going To A Go-Go
• Them - The “Angry” Young Them!
• Wilson Pickett - In the Midnight Hour
• The Yardbirds - Having a Rave Up with The Yardbirds

“I’m Standing By” is apparently a sequel to his earlier/later hit, “Stand By Me”? Either way, front to back it’s a keeper. It sadly was somewhat of a commercial failure because it didn’t generate any hit singles, but that’s the whole spirit of the Album Era, right?

A few times I’ve tried to “get into Bob” with very little success. Of course there are a pile of songs that have weaseled into my brain over my life - songs like “The Man in Me” that I associate with a movie, or covers like Pearl Jam doing “Masters of War.” Regardless, I know a lot of people that have deep connections with many and particular pieces of his music and whether or not it ever really clicks I’ll keep listening.

Anyway, to the matter at hand - Highway 61 Revisited is his second album in 1965, but the first one I listened to. In 1965, he sparked a kerfuffle worthy of one of the best titled Wikipedia articles - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_Dylan_controversy. I wasn’t a die-hard edgy folk fan in the early 60s, so aside from historical amusement I give little shit about it. In fact, I’m already a fan of The Band, so I’m all-on-board for electric Dylan. Much to my surprise, I’ve listened to this album more times in the past few weeks than I expected to. I liked the ballads more than the chaotic circus freak songs, and so maybe if I’m lucky this will follow the same path I followed with Tom Waits, where his more accessible music led to a very broad and fulfilling appreciation. The willful homages to deep south blues are interesting (and fun?) to listen to, but are not quite as natural for me to enjoy as some of the others.

I think most people associate Dylan with his lyrical prowess, and perhaps that’s why I never really fell in love. I’ve always had a lot of trouble paying attention to lyrics without many repeat listens, and his can be very dense. It’s full of references to society, art, literature, scripture, history - including some that’s very “of that time”. It’s a mind-full. “Ballad of a Thin Man” is of particular note and will probably see a lot of repeat play, though, because despite a lot of meat, I felt like I “got it” (which is ironic given the content of the song; basically telling off an un-hip capitalist that won’t ever get it).

This went better than expected, so I’m looking forward to Part 2 (and as I breeze through the next two decades, many more parts).

(drugs references veiled lightly)

My first listen (of a surprising 5 times already this month) caused a fun wave of nostalgia to emerge. My mom had a cassette tape of some greatest hits compilation. She used to put the tape on while I was taking a bath. I must have been 3 or 4 years old. I might be conflating memories, but I swear it had Hard Days Night and Michelle and Yellow Submarine, so it was a pretty sprawling set for a single tape. Maybe it was multiple tapes.

Regardless, I ended up putting this album on several times when I sat down to look at the list and pick what’s next. That’s in line with the spirit of the endeavor - if I force myself to listen to things I don’t enjoy, I’ll never keep the routine up. It was surprising, though, how fast I found myself stuck on something to love.

I have a sordid past with the Beatles. Like I said, I have memories of them in my childhood, but I also have memories as a teenager of friends going through their Beatles-Are-Genius discovery phases while I distinctly did not give a shit. I did a run through the discography in 2022 that was pretty educational and fun, so I can finally say that I know the difference between a Lennon and a McCartney song. Embarrassing, right?

Anyway, now I’m a fan.

After reading a bit about the Album Era, now I’m seeing references everywhere. When visiting the wikipedia article for MJ’s Thriller album, I find:

Thriller was released at around the peak of the album era, which had positioned full-length records ahead of singles as the dominant form of recorded-music consumption and artistic expression in the industry. The success of Thriller’s singles, however, marked a brief resurgence in the sales of the format.

There’s probably another term for the circular reference trash that exists in wikipedia - define something once and people run everywhere to try and use it.