CoronaVinyl Day 330 (K): Asylum by KISS

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Yesterday's CoronaVinyl category is "K," and I just didn't have enough time to post, but you all know that all I have left for "K" artists are KISS albums.  We're going with their 13th studio album, 1985's Asylum.

Asylum was the first album that officially featured guitarist Bruce Kulick as a band member (though he had played guitar on a few tracks on the prior album, 1984's Animalize).  He would remain in the band until 1996, when the original four members reunited, and along with Mark St. John, he is one of only two KISS members who never wore makeup.

With Kulick in the band, KISS's lineup was, of course, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, as well as drummer Eric Carr.  This lineup would last until Carr's death in November 1991, making it the third-longest consecutive span for a single KISS lineup, after the original lineup of Gene, Paul, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss that was together for nearly 7 1/2 years from early 1973 to mid-1980, and the current lineup of Gene, Paul, Eric Singer, and Tommy Thayer, which has been together since 2004.

Anywho, with Asylum, the band continued its hair-band-esque sound.  The album did okay, reaching #20 on the Billboard album chart, though it went to #12 on the UK album chart and #3 in Sweden.  There was only one single released from the album, "Tears Are Falling," which only made it to #51 on the Billboard Hot 100, but the video got relatively heavy rotation on MTV.

The album cover is a nod to a few earlier KISS albums.  The band members are wearing lipstick that are the same colors as the respective colors associated with original members' 1978 solo album covers:  red for Gene, purple for Paul, blue for Bruce (Ace), and green for Eric (Peter).  It's also a similar layout as the band's 1979 Dynasty album, with Paul top left, Gene top right, Bruce bottom left (where Ace was), and Eric bottom right (where Peter was).

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Any Way You Slice It"
Gene handles lead vocals on this one, and it's a nice uptempo hard rock song that starts with a solid guitar riff.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Love's a Deadly Weapon"
Apparently I like the Gene songs on this album, as this is another one.  This one kicks off the second side with a bang, with a breakneck beat that's almost punkish, and snarling guitars.

Hair Band Friday - 9/10/21

1.  "Lady Red Light" by Great White

2.  "Better By You, Better Than Me" by Judas Priest

3.  "Hell Child" by Lynch Mob

4.  "Now Until Forever" by Giant

5.  "Eyes of a Stranger" by Queensrÿche

6.  "S.M.F." by Twisted Sister

7.  "City to City" by Ratt

8.  "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns N' Roses

9.  "Your Mama Don't Dance" by Poison

10.  "Love Song" by Tesla

CoronaVinyl Day 329 (J): Third Album by Jackson 5

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "J," this is one of the several letters in the alphabet where all the albums I have remaining are by groups or artists that I have already featured.  I went with the Jackson 5's third studio album, 1970's descriptively titled Third Album.

Third Album was not only the group's third album overall, but their third album in nine months.  They released their first album (Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5) in December 1969, their second album (ABC) in May 1970, and Third Album in September 1970 -- 51 years ago yesterday, to be exact.

Apparently, it was a good formula because Third Album was their third consecutive Top 5 album on the Billboard album chart, reaching #4.  It also went to #1 on the Billboard R&B album chart.  The two singles released from the album were both massive hits.  "I'll Be There" was their fourth consecutive #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 (though it would be their last) -- topping the chart for five weeks -- which made the Jackson 5 the first group ever to have their first four singles go to #1.  As a single, it also sold over 6 million copies worldwide, making it the most successful Motown single during the labels "Detroit Era," which lasted from its founding in 1959 until it primarily moved to L.A. in 1972.  The song ended as the #7 song on the Billboard Year-End chart for 1970 and the #170 song on Billboard's All-Time Hot 100 chart.

On top of that, "Mama's Pearl" went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it their lowest-charting single up to that point.  The album also has a few covers, like The Delfonics' "Ready or Not (Here I Come)," The Shades of Blue's "Oh How Happy," Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," and Motown label mates The Miracles' "The Love I Saw In You Was Just a Mirage," which is a bit of a cumbersome title.

Unfortunately, my record has a few scratches, so it skips in a couple spots.  But god dammit, I enjoyed listening to it anyway.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Can I See You in the Morning"
It's kind of weird hearing a then-11-year-old Michael Jackson singing a song that is essentially telling an older woman he wants to shack with her, but this song has a trippy, psychedelic funk feel to it.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Goin' Back to Indiana"
As someone who attended college and grad school in Indiana, I would sing this song a lot when I would go back to school after visiting home.  Of course, the Jacksons were from Gary, which I would avoid at all costs on my drive back to Bloomington.

Retro Video of the Week: "No Diggity" by Blackstreet

Friday marks the 25th anniversary of the release of Blackstreet's second studio album, Another Level, which was the group's biggest album, reaching #3 on the Billboard album chart and topping the Billboard R&B album chart for five weeks.  It eventually went quadruple platinum in the U.S.

If you were in college in 1996, like I was, then you have fond memories of "No Diggity," which featured Dr. Dre and Queen Pen.  It was a staple at pretty much every party that year, and it was a massive hit, going to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The video is pretty damn '90s, with the guys in the group wearing overalls, Dre wearing an Emmitt Smith jersey, and attractive ladies dancing suggestively.  I did some grinding to this song in fraternity basements, that's for damn sure.  God, I miss college.

CoronaVinyl Day 328 (H): Melodies by Jan Hammer Group

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "H," and I went with Jan Hammer Group's 1977 album Melodies.

Czech keyboardist Jan Hammer is best known for the Miami Vice theme song, which was an international hit in 1985 and went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.  But did you know that he made music before then?  Indeed he did.  Hammer moved to the U.S. after the Warsaw Pact went into effect in 1968, and he went to the famed Berklee College of Music in Boston.

After that, he toured with jazz singer Sarah Vaughan and then went into the jazz fusion world.  Over the years, in addition to his own groups and his solo work, he has collaborated with the likes of Jeff Beck, Carlos Santana, Neil Schon, Joni Mitchell, Al Di Meola, and Tommy Bolin, among others.

In the mid '70s, he formed the Jan Hammer Group, and they released a few albums, including one with Jeff Beck.  Melodies was the group's final album.  Given that my only musical knowledge of Hammer is the Miami Vice theme, I honestly had no idea what to expect from Melodies.  I was pleasantly surprised, as I assumed it would all be synthy instrumental stuff.  There's a good amount of funk in there, and I wasn't expecting there to be vocals, but there are, courtesy of drummer Tony Smith.  What's interesting is that there's no electric guitar.  It's Hammer on keyboards and sometimes drums, Smith on drums and lead vocals, Steve Kindler on violin, and Fernando Saunders on bass and acoustic guitar (though there isn't much acoustic guitar from what I could hear).  In addition to the funky stuff, there's also plenty of instrumental stuff, but I'll say it was a nice album to listen to while I worked on a mild September day with the windows open.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "What It Is"
A great bass riff kicks this song off, and from the get-go, it's pure funk.  I just wish it was a little longer than three minutes, so that the band members could jam a little more.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Who Are They?"
This is another one with a great bass intro, and it's a spacy, trippy, six-minute funk song, in line with something that might have been on The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein.

CoronaVinyl Day 327 (G): Greatest Hits by Al Green

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "G," and my selection was soul legend Al Green's 1975 Greatest Hits album with its iconic cover featuring a shirtless Green beckoning you.  Yes, you.  He was tired of being alone, after all.

If there's any Al Green album you have, it's probably this one.  I know it was certainly the first Al Green album I owned.  What immediately jumped out at me when I put it on the turntable today was that the track listing on the CD version that I have is different than what's on the vinyl version.  Some quick research cleared everything up.  The original vinyl version of the album had 10 songs.  The last track on the first side of the original album was a cover of The Bee Gees' "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart."  That was later replaced by "Love and Happiness," which is probably my favorite Al Green song.  And then in 1995, when the CD version of the album was released, it was expanded to 15 songs and included several of Green's hits that were released after the original album was released.  That's the version I'm used to.

Anyway, it's considered one of the all-time classic greatest hits albums across any genre.  It went to #17 on the Billboard album chart and #3 on the Billboard R&B album chart.  In Rolling Stone's initial list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time in 2003, it came in at an impressive #52, and it was ranked the same on the second edition of the list in 2012.  On the 2020 "woke" version of the list, it dropped to #456, which seems drastic, but perhaps a reflection of the fact that the voters featured a lot more younger artists who are less likely to know and appreciate Al Green.

The album features some of Green's biggest hits and most beloved songs, like "Let's Stay Together," "Tired of Being Alone," I'm Still in Love With You," "You Ought to Be with Me," "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)," "Look What You Done For Me," and "Call Me (Come Back Home)."

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)"
I have always like the pace of this song and the beat.  That downbeat smack by Howard Grimes is complemented by Charles Hodges's subtle organ and, of course, the horns and Green's silky voice.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "I Can't Get Next to You"
Released in 1971, Green's version of The Temptations' #1 song from 1969 slowed things down and gave it a Memphis soul treatment, making the song more sultry and soulful.

Hair Band Friday - 9/3/21

1.  "I Want Action" by Poison

2.  "Slide It In" by Whitesnake

3.  "Hellion" by W.A.S.P.

4.  "Reckless Life" (live) by Guns N' Roses

5.  "316" (live) by Van Halen

6.  "It's Over" by White Lion

7.  "I Want a Woman" by Ratt

8.  "Hard 16" by Vixen

9.  "Remote Love" by Sammy Hagar

10.  "Thunderstruck" by AC/DC

CoronaVinyl Day 326 (F): Who's Zoomin' Who? by Aretha Franklin

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "F," and I'm going with Aretha Franklin's thirteenth studio album, 1985's Who's Zoomin' Who?

I'm not going to tell you much about Aretha Franklin because if you're not familiar with her or her music, then you have failed as a human being.  She was the first female artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, she topped Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, and she was #9 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.  And she was in Blues Brothers!

Who's Zoomin' Who? was a decided shift for the Queen of Soul to a more contemporary sound, and just like Tina Turner's Private Dancer album a year before, it was very much a comeback album for her, connecting her with a new generation of listeners.  From 1974 to 1984, she had only three Top 40 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, and the highest-charting was 1974's "I'm in Love," which went to #19.

The album went to #13 on the Billboard album chart, making it her highest-charting album in 13 years.  It was also her only platinum studio album in the U.S.  She scored four Top 25 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 from the album:  "Freeway of Love" went to #3 (and topped the Billboard R&B singles chart for five weeks), the title track reached #7, "Sisters are Doin' It for Themselves" went to #18," and "Another Night" went to #22.  "Freeway of Love" also earned Franklin the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

As part of her effort to modernize her sound, Franklin had some help from some great musicians.  Clarence Clemons -- the "Big Man" from the E Street Band -- played the sax on "Freeway of Love."  The Eurythmics dueted with Franklin on "Sisters are Doin' It for Themselves," which also featured Benmont Tench (on organ) and Mike Campbell (on lead guitar) from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.  "Push" was a duet with J. Geils Band lead singer Peter Wolf and also featured a guitar solo from Carlos Santana.  And last, but not least, "Integrity" featured Dizzy Gillespie on trumpet.  Also, veteran session bassist Randy Jackson (now of American Idol fame) played bass on six songs, and Louis Johnson of the funk band Brothers Johnson played bass on two songs.

Franklin died in 2018 at the age of 76.  A biopic called Respect, starring Jennifer Hudson as Franklin, was just recently released.  I haven't had a chance to see it yet, but I'm sure it's great, as Franklin's life was definitely worthy of a Hollywood send-up.  She had her first child less than two months before she turned 13 (!) and her second when she was 15 (!) (and she would have two more, one just before she turned 21 and another when she was 28), and this was all while she was beginning and/or in the middle of her music career.  R-E-S-P-E-C-T, indeed.

The Spotify version of the album is the expanded edition, which includes 17 additional tracks, all of which are remixes or alternative versions of songs on the album.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Freeway of Love"
As a child of the '80s, this is the song that I most associated with Franklin when I was a kid, and it's a rollicking synth-pop soul song that announced to the world that the Queen of Soul was back.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Ain't Nobody Ever Loved You"
This song has a nice Caribbean vibe to complement Franklin's fantastic voice.

Retro Video of the Week: "Trash" by Suede

Tomorrow marks the 25th anniversary of the release of British rockers Suede's third studio album, Coming Up.  Suede is one of those bands associated with the Britpop movement that was hugely successful in the UK and Europe, for whatever reason, their success didn't translate across the pond.  In total, they had 19 songs that went to the Top 40 of the UK pop charts, including eight Top 10 songs.  And of their eight studio albums, all but one reached the Top 10 of the UK album chart, and three went to #1.

Coming Up was their second #1 album on the UK chart, and it also topped the album charts in Denmark and Sweden.  Five songs from the album were Top 10 hits on the UK pop charts:  "Trash" (#3), "Saturday Night" (#6), "Beautiful Ones" (#8), "Lazy" (#9), and "Filmstar" (#9).

I'm going with the video for "Trash," which was also a big hit across Scandinavia, going to #1 on the Finnish pop chart, #3 in Denmark, #5 in Sweden, and #12 in Norway (and #19 in Ireland as well).  The band was listening to a lot of T. Rex when making this album, and the glam influences definitely shine through on this song.  It's definitely very British, and the video is definitely very mid '90s.

CoronaVinyl Day 325 (E): You Could Have Been With Me by Sheena Easton

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "E," and all I have left for "E" artists are albums by the Eagles and Sheena Easton, so I'll just alternate.  Since I did an Eagles album more recently, it's Easton's turn.  Today's selection is her second studio album, 1981's You Could Have Been With Me.

The album is definitely pure 1981, as it's what I would call post-disco pop, as several songs have some disco elements, but it mostly projects into early '80s soft pop, eith Easton's smooth and soulful voice taking center stage, as you might expect.  After her debut album released earlier in 1981 had done pretty well -- garnering Easton two Top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including the #1 song "9 to 5 (Morning Train)" -- Easton's second album continued along the same path, but didn't do quite as well.  The first side appears to have a love-lamenting theme, with the back-to-back-to-back songs "You Could Have Been With Me," "Just Another Broken Heart," and "I'm Not Worth the Hurt."  Side two is dude-centered, with "A Letter from Joey," "Johnny," and "When He Shines."

The album went to #47 on the Billboard album chart and #33 on the album chart in her native UK.  It did net her two more Top 40 hits in the U.S., "When He Shines" (which was also released on her first album), which went to #30 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the title track, which went to #15.

The Spotify version of the album has five bonus tracks, and the song order isn't exactly the same as it is on the actual album.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Just Another Broken Heart"
This one is definitely the poppiest song on the first side, and with it's chorus and backing vocals, it appears to have some doo wop influences to mix in with that '80s pop sounds.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "A Letter From Joey"
The first track on the second side is a heartfelt soft rocker that tells the story of receiving what is, in essence, a Dear John letter, but in this case, it would be a Dear Sheena letter from someone named Joey.