Spring Grass

Lawn care tips for Spring 
Extend No Mow May from March
To the end of June

Equinox

Vernal equinox
When the winter months give way
To the right of spring

Odessa by Bee Gees

Everyone knows the Bee Gees for their cheesy 70s disco records, sung in impeccable falsetto harmonies by three brothers with bouffant hair and impressive gnashers, but today I was surprised to find that they actually started as a band in 1958 and released five albums before this wildly ambitious concept project, originally titled An America Opera.

This opens with the title track which deals with the aftermath of a shipwreck in 1899. From that point it’s all over the place thematically and musically (ranging from orchestral to country to Sgt Peppers influences), and apparently led to the band breaking up for over a year as no one could agree on how it should be produced or what singles to release. Even the album cover caused problems - it was originally released as a double LP with gold embossed lettering and a red flock coating that caused record plant employees to suffer allergic reactions.

Robin Gibb eventually rejoined his brothers in August 1970 and they went on to record another concept album, this time about the battle of Trafalgar. Eventually they discovered tight white suits and disco and the rest is history, much like this album.

File under ‘What the heck were they thinking when they recorded this?’

https://album.link/gb/i/1467020922

High Violet by The National

I have something of an aversion to listening to bands if the first thing I hear of them is that they’ve been nominated for a Brit award or a Grammy or whatever. Chances are high that they’ll be some johnny-come-lately trendy band that have caught the zeitgeist because one of their tracks was on an advert or a movie soundtrack. 

I think in the case of The National, I might have been unfair. They had been going for 12 years or so before hitting the big time and seem to have had a solid track record of albums up to that point. The music is very much in the indie vein, with droning guitars and solid, repeating drum patterns with a bit of piano thrown in on some tracks for variety. 

I wasn’t immediately hooked on first listening, but I think I’m intrigued enough to give it another listen, which is always a positive sign. 

https://album.link/gb/i/401440905

Melting, Pie

Slice of apple pie
Ice cream melting on the side
A perfect pudding

Horse Tails

We see the hero
Riding into the sunset
Another horse tail

Tellin' Stories by The Charlatans

This album falls somewhere between Madchester and Britpop, with some solid guitar work and an oddly affected vocal style from lead singer Tim Burgess evidently heavily influenced by Bob Dylan. The recording was overshadowed by the death of keyboard player Rob Collins in a car crash when he was driving back from the pub with twice the legal limit of alcohol in his bloodstream and not wearing a seat belt. 

Reading the wiki article about this gives the impression that Collins wasn’t getting on with the rest of the band up to this point, but somehow they pulled together after his death and salvaged this record by patching together things that already been recorded with help from Martin Duffy from Primal Scream to cover the rest. The final track is supposed to be a tribute to Collins featuring a recording of his voice as a child, but it sort of meanders and fades out.

The end result is mostly OK - three stars I guess, but not one I’d bother revisiting.

https://album.link/gb/i/1450115206