Countdown Extra!

In true Casey Kasem style, I'm pulling in a countdown extra...

Shaun Groves - Invitation to Eavesdrop

To be honest, I kinda forgot this album when I was making my list. It has a few songs that make me tired and few songs that are some of the best songs ever. "Welcome Home" is one of those best-songs-ever. A beautifully crafted pop song with a piano base and explosive strings and instrumentation...it's about how we try to keep parts of all of our lives from God. We try to keep windows blocked, or closets locked, or just something...but God wants all of us. The song begins and ends with simple lyrics over piano: "Take me, make me all you want me to be, that's all I'm asking, all I'm asking."

My other favorites are "Should I Tell Them?," "Move Me," and "After the Music Fades."

Groves invites music lovers into his mind and his thinking with this album (a rare occurance these days!) and that's why it's my countdown extra!

I don't know, either!

Apparently Blogger, my host for the blog site, was having some problems most of htis past week. And apparently it's better now! So you didn't miss any of the countdown...I'll resume shortly... Thanks for your patience.

A White Soul Band

I'm back.

No. 14: Maroon5 - Songs About Jane

These guys released "Harder To Breathe" to radio, and I loved it. I loved it. (Still do!) I had to find out more on these guys.

They are five guys who got together, and while they were "figuring out their musical identity" they lived in an African-American neighborhood. The music they heard largely affected their sound. The lead singer, Adam Levine, sounds like a mature Justin Timberlake with a band...he has a talented, smooth, and high-ended voice. And the music DOES sound like five rock guys playing soul music...a bit of R&B, funk, hip hop, and pop all thrown together.

Their unqiue sound yielded other hits as well: "This Love," "She Will Be Loved," and "Sunday Morning." I was going to list off my favorite other tracks, but I really like em all. Maybe "Shiver" and "Not Coming Home."

Lyrically...ugh, nothing too special. All 12 tracks, surprisingly, about Jane. Love songs. (Or break-up songs.) Nothing unique there. A few of the songs deal with psychological aspects of relationships...I can't say I want MY relationship to look like anything they portray, but at least it's not total cheese lyrics that way.

Good stuff, though, that Maroon5. This is something I can handle singing to!

No. 15 is 14 years old!

Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience

I loved this album when it came out and I still like it. It was the first time that I realized a specific aspect of music that I like...guitars that, in effect, banter back and forth with the singer as opposed to simply playing background chords.

NME was the breakthrough release for Gin Blossoms of course. It gave us the huge radio hits "Hey Jealousy," "Until I Fall Away," "Found Out About You," and "Allison Road." Quite a list.

But two of my favorite songs are "Mrs. Rita" and "29." (Although "Hands Are Tied" has a great driving rock sound to it!) "Mrs. Rita" is about someone who wants to know answers about lovers. (I never said this stuff was deep!) Favorite lyrics there:
Tell me Mrs. Rita, what's it say in my tarot
Read my palm and tell me why do lovers come and go
(and)
I've been keeping myself busy
With my books and with my tapes
Everyday's much better since I slowed my drinking pace.

"29" is about getting old and looking at yourself. (Not that 29 is old!!!) They use the word "indifference" in the song, and I just like a song that can use a word that unpoetic.

Again, I never said these lyrics were deep or hard to decipher. They're fun(ny) and the music is very easy to listen to and enjoy. I just love the guitars here and the overall sound.

Oh, I gotta leave you with one more lyric to show how goofy this stuff is...
You can't call it cheatin'
Cause she reminds me of you.

And on that shallow moment, have a good one...

Land Of Redemption

No. 16: Caedmon's Call - 40 Acres

How can I, someone from the Great Plains farmland, not like a CD entitled "40 Acres." Caedmon's Call seems to be saying that we as sinful human beings have messed things up...that is the cities and concrete and strip malls. And God offers the plains...a new start, a hope, a place of redemption. Cool.

First off, I must say these guys can write above my head. I've never been that good at understanding what good poetry means, and that is how I know CC writes good songs!

I tend to enjoy the songs that are easier to digest, and I love tracks two and three..."Thankful" and "Shifting Sand." The back-to-back songs display the fight that is in every single human being. "Thankful" says how grateful we are because we are sinful and can play no part in the work of redemption yet "Shifting Sand" shows a desire to have more faith to assure security in heaven, yet realizing that grace is the only avenue. That dichotomy is inside every saved child who hasn't yet reached glory.

And for "fun," Derek Webb spins some great tales about being single, "Table for Two" and "Daring Daylight Escape." How can you argue with a song whose first lyrics are "Danny and I spent another late night over pancakes; We talked about soccer and how every man's just the same." What I like the the song is that it is the interior battle of a young man who wants to know his future, in this case in regards to marriage. But the last lyrics of the song provide peace for a man struggling to know.

And You know the plans that You have for me
And You can't plan the ends and not plan the means
And so I suppose I just need some peace just to get me to sleep.

New Way To Do Music

Coming in at No. 17 is one of the most revolutionary Christian albums of all-time...Switchfoot - The Beautiful Letdown.

What's so revolutionary is not that these guys got major major mainstream success with this album, but rather the way they approached their music. It's different than the way most mainstream groups approach their music, and flat out shocking in the world of Christian music (where most of it sounds the same.)

Switchfoot had recently added a fourth member, Jerome Fontamillas, to their already successful trio of San Diego surfer dudes. That added a new dimension which allowed the group to successfully erase a "Switchfoot sound." Their revolutionary approach was simply to look at each song and find what was best musically for that song...NOT to take a song and make it sound like how "Switchfoot" would play it. I find the resulting album incredibly refreshing. In fact, I reviewed the album when it first came out and KNEW that it would be majorly successful. It was.

I like every single song on "The Beautiful Letdown." That's rare. It doesn't even happen on all the CDs that I ranked above this one! Do I have A favorite? Yeah, tracks 1, 2, 3, 4 and 8. Seriously, probably "More Than Fine" or "Dare You to Move."

OK, let me sumarize...I can't speak to the sonic genius of this album. The sound is simply amazing and unique and perfect for each song. And the lyrics? Check em out...

We want more than this world's got to offer
We want more than the wars of our fathers
And everything inside screams for second life.
We were meant to live.

Maybe redemption has stories to tell
Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell
Where can you run to escape from yourself?
Where you gonna go?
Where you gonna go?
Salvation is here.

Rockin' out at 18

Coming at #18 on the the Top 23 Best Albums of All-Time* (*that James De Boer owns...) is Audio Adrenaline - Bloom

I can still remember buying this album cause it sounded OK on a listening center at the bookstore, then taking it home and playing pinball as the first song faded in. BOOM!!! "Secret" is an incredible rock song, an incredible way to start an album, and probably one of my favorite rock songs of all time. Who knew Christians could rock so well?!

Most people have heard "Never Gonna Be As Big As Jesus" and "Good People." "I'm Not The King" is another great rock song. But this album is more than just rocking out. Songs like "Walk On Water" and "See Through" are great songs are personal desires in a Christian walk.

And then "Free Ride." Love it. Can't remember which 70s rock group originally did it, but I like AA's version better. And then the final song, "Memoir," is a stud song.

Bloom is one of the best Christian pure rock albums ever. Easy.

Breaking the teens

No. 19 – Train

From what I read, major record labels were lining up in the mid-90s to sign Train. And from what I heard on their self-titled album it makes sense.

I have a soft spot in my heart for most California-based music (Train, No Doubt, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Cake, P.O.D., Switchfoot, etc.) but these San Francisco boys released one of the best-produced songs I have ever heard, “Meet Virginia.” I can seriously sit down and listen to each different instrument for the entire song and be blown away. The vocals, the guitar, the bass, the drums…outstanding.

Chances are, “Meet Virginia” is the only song you have heard of from this album. If so, that’s too bad. There is some REALLY good stuff on here. I love “If You Leave,” “Homesick,” and “Free.” Patrick Monahan brandishes some excellent vocals with great range and control.

Some of my favorite lyrics on this album (outside of “Meet Virginia”) are “You wanna go where they still pump your gas for you, where they remember your name.” And the hidden tracks are great.

As I finish this up, I can’t believe how far down the list I put this album. I mean, I think the same thing about MOST of the albums on my list, but this one in particular. The self-titled CD is Train’s best album…no offense to the boys, but all chugging has been downhill since then.

Who's at #20?

Dishwalla: And You Think You Know What Life's About

Dishwalla who? You might only know these guys from their one big hit, Counting Blue Cars (Tell Me All Your Thoughts On God). One of this album's songs made radio for a short time and that is the only reason I knew they MADE a second album (and I don't even remember which song it was!) Why don't more people know about this CD? Because their record label went stupid on them right after the first song got released to radio.

Now, before you right this one off...let me tell you that it really hurts to put this album all the way down at #20. This is a rocking CD that is incredible sonically...ie, the sound. Just incredible. And lyrically? This is one of the hardest-hitting, addressing some REAL thoughts efforts I've heard from a mainstream group in a loooong time.

OK, from "Bottom of the Floor"...
You're not the one to live for, you're not the one to die for; And you think you know what life's about, but when the bottom of the floor starts falling out...And there will always be this thing you just can't live without, so pull your head out.

"Until I Wake Up" makes my all-time list of songs that I most identify with (as someone with an overactive mind!)...
I rest my head, between the bed and sky, download my dread, disarm my mind, make it dry; There's nothing in motion, and I'm satisfied, No disappointment until I wake up.

This album is too good. Check out "So Much Time," "Stay Awake," "Once In A While," "Healing Star;" and the messages of "Pop Guru" and Truth Serum.

Serious, I assume that most of you have never heard of this album. Give it a chance. Find a Barnes & Noble or a place where you can listen to the CDs first. It's worth it.

No. 21

No. 21 is INXS - Kick.

I fully realize that this album is nearly 20 years old (1987) but it still sounds good. I am amazed by their sound. The guitars are tight and clean, the horns and saxophones actually sound cool, and Michael Hutchence...oohh! He's got one of my favorite male voices...rich and refined and incredibly well-controlled. I'm jealous of his voice. And I just love the fresh sound that the Australians brought to the music scene.

But really, you'd be surprised at home many songs you know off the Kick album. New Sensation, Devil Inside, Need You Tonight, Never Tear Us Apart, Mystify. Shoot, as I listen to this CD, I actually forget which songs made radio. Generally it's easy to "remember" which songs were on radio, cause the rest stink, but not on Kick.

I feel a bit like a geek putting INXS on the list, but I've done it, so deal with it...

No. 22

Coming in at #22 on the countdown...Acappella - Hymns For All The World.

From what I understand, this is Acappella's top-selling album in Japan! My boys have put out some great albums (Act of God, Sweet Fellowship, Beyond A Doubt) but Hymns is one I can almost always listen to. Duane Adams makes a bid for my favorite Acappella voice with his work on Softly & Tenderly. Bass Robert C. Guy flashes his incredible range on "In The Garden." And I could devote a book to what "Just As I Am" means to me. Lyrically it rocks, of course. But musically it sounds great on CD and translates just as beautifully live and on-stage in concert. (Barry Wilson doing it live could bring a tear or two to my eye every single time.)

For all of you who know me, I'll tell you this is the only Acappella album I put on the list. Is it fair to call Hymns their best album?

Drum roll, please!

OK, we'll save the drum roll for No. 1. But here comes my list of all-time best albums* (*albums which I own and are not a greatest hits collection!) Again, thanks to Wave Review for providing the incredible financial support needed for this undertaking!

No. 23: Glory - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. Seriously the best movie score from one of the best movies of all time. James Horner composed and conducted; he is a genuis. The Harlem Boys Choir performs. (And as one of my friends has said...there is nothing like a good, young boy soprano...these kids can sang!) Horner captures the feel and emotion of the movie in music. My favorites are the snare drums and timpani (and the incredible vocal range of the boys!) Just a beautiful album. (And if you haven't seen the movie, check it out!)