Before The Flood

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

This is a poll about John Peel's Festive Fifty, 1976. Just tick all the songs you like from the list of 50 (counting down from #50 to #1, as it happens). I've put it up because i) I'm curious about the results, ii) I'm probably writing a pitchfork column about the F50.

[Poll #1137239]

And some more general questions I'd like to think about - they're quite big questions though:

- What does rock do better now? What does it do worse?
- How does the stuff that won respect and adoration on this poll differ from the stuff that critics and fans enjoy now (a VERY broad formulation, I know)?
- Where's the modern equivalent of the audience suggested here - Pazz and Jop? the Pitchfork Readers Poll?
- What were Poco and can we eat them?

Comments

Poco

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Quite jangletastic! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7k0NZ4XidM) Would get a solid 6 on the Podcast Panel so a tick from me here.

I have to say it again!

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

YEOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

[catsgomiaow.livejournal.com]

Obv I only ticked Won't Get Fooled Agane cos of CSI: Pie-ami.

Re: I have to say it again!

[catsgomiaow.livejournal.com]

Hahahahahahahahhahha xpost!1!!!

"A real... baker's dozen!" YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOW!

[dubdobdee.livejournal.com]

poco = mellow country rock, a gentler eagles (ie w/o the stark nihilist bleakness)

(peelie liked mellow country rock iirc but it kinda stalled oif its own accord c.1977) (as ever the bopkids is yer man factswise here)

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

I can't remember how the Beefheart one goes but the title is good enough for a tick on its own (and I approve of Beefheart in general).

Re: I have to say it again!

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Unlucky....for some!

YEOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

[martinv.livejournal.com]

That Peel list confused me initially. It took me a bit of time to realise it was an 'all time'/'best so far' Fifty rather than just songs released in 1976. Ahem. That makes a bit more sense...

[cis.livejournal.com]

I like how they managed to pick two of the Beatles songs i hate most in the entire world! Wow, 1976, you were wierd.

A lot of these, for me, are basically just Time Life Advert songs - I recognise them as a snippet of chorus, a name scrolling in little yellow capital letters (white means 'on the record' yellow means 'playing now'!) over sepia band footage or a blue-sky shot of a freewheelin' road trip. So I think of the audience as being completely mainstream: this is straight-up eighties-baby 'stuff your dad was supposed to want to play in the car'.

[braisedbywolves.livejournal.com]

But presumably bearing the usual slant towards stuff released that year: "Desolation Row" is fkn awesome but not really one of Dylan's top five.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I guess the main clue as to the non mainstreamness is the dogs NOT barking here - no "Bo Rhap"!

But also the mainstream and the non-mainstream were closer anyway?

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

There's a recency effect for some acts but not for others. "Echoes" is basically a first draft for "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" (I misticked it cos I'd got it confused with "One Of These Days") but places higher, I guess because it had settled in longer.

Racing Cars were 1976 though!

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO!!!!!!!!

not a SINGLE ONE!!!!

aaaaagh this is all so bad!

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

oh actually I didn't see Marley but it's still not good enough to override the principle of the thing. dear god this is the root of all our problems! this shit right here!

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

I just youtubed A Day In The Life - I haven't heard it before which kind of boggles me. It doesn't have a chorus? And then goes all weird? I assume it's meant to be all messy and... kind of rubbish?

[cis.livejournal.com]

Time Life stuff for me is basically 'pop' - it's just it's VH1 Classic/Capital Gold rather than MTV/Capital. Unfortunately, the stuff that isn't Time Life is the stuff I haven't heard, which maybe doesn't deserve the TL stereotype.

Artists on this list I RLY can't stand

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

- Van Morrison
- Bob Dylan
- Neil Young

I think it's the harmonica element!

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Hooray! It's good in a pleasingly mental way! (http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZfNb1w7pVcA)

[cis.livejournal.com]

also 'found my way upstairs and had a smoke/then somebody spoke and i went into a dream' OMG IT IS SO TOTES ABOUT DRUGZ OMG THE BEATLES SO RADICAL.

[braisedbywolves.livejournal.com]

It's (the last track?) on Sergeant Peppers, so it's (always been presented to me as) a big "where are our cheeky lads from Liverpool leading us to?" track.

[braisedbywolves.livejournal.com]

Well, yes. On the other hand, yes!

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's cosmic drug pop. I love it mind you.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

There is not one single female in this list. That's...so indefensible I don't know where to begin.

Re: Artists on this list I RLY can't stand

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Is Grace Slick REALLY the only lady on the list?

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

I mean, the more I look at it, the more I boggle at how THIS became the basis for the way people think about pop music. AAARGH.