"Sir Ian Duncan Smith."
The final kick in the teeth from a year which made us all reconsider the phrase "you can't polish a turd".
It's nearly over... the year, and this countdown.
Thank god for that...
Let's focus on the positive. Another four great albums...
8. Leonard Cohen - Thanks For The Dance
Despite the bad sex award, Lenny's posthumous swan song is touching, playful and wise.
Top Track: Moving On
I loved your face, I loved your hair
Your T-shirts and your evening wear
As for the world, the job, the war
I ditched them all to love you more
7. Hayes Carll - What It Is
Best Americana album of the year?
Not quite. But we'll get to that. Meanwhile... this witty, laidback (yet quite angry in places) collection will do us fine.
Top Track: Wild Pointy Finger
I got a wild pointy finger
It points at the fever and accomplishments of man
It points at all the problems that it don't understand
It points at Parisians across the sea
It points at anybody who thinks different than me
If you're marching to your own drum or kneelin' in the news
My wild pointy finger prob'ly pointin' right at you
Best lyrical explanation this year of why the world's going to hell in a handbasket...
6. Tullycraft - The Railway Prince Hotel
Thanks go to Brian for turning me on to this lot in a big way this year. Witty, literate lyrics and poppy harmonies made this an irresistible summer listen. Plus, they steal part of Paradise By The Dashboard Light in the song below, so bonus points for that.
Top Track: (one of many) Goldie & The Gingerbreads
They shot their disapproving glances like a gatling gun
I couldn't vocalize the words that rested on my tongue
You never let yourself forget that this was passing
I'm sure you're not the only one
5. The Divine Comedy - Office Politics
Edit out three wearisome gag tracks which outstay their welcome after the first couple of listens and this is another great Divine Comedy album... though not quite as inspirational as Neil's last, Foreverland. It's a concept album set in an office... yet peek below the sitcom facade and it has quite a bit to say about Little England and the workaday world that inspired Brexit. Morrissey should give it a listen.
Top Track: When The Working Day Is Done
When the working day is through
And you're waiting in the rain
For another overdue
Overcrowded railway train
And the movie poster screams
"It's the best film ever seen!"
But it's all a different world
To which you have never been
And you're bored out of your mind
So you keep yourself amused
Reading the Financial Times
Of the fellow next to you
Then something in you snaps
And you shout with all your lungs
"We give and get nothing back!"
When the working day is done
I agree Working Day Is Done is a highlight from the album. Thanks For The Dance isn't a classic but still good and on par with Cohen's other stuff from this decade.
ReplyDeleteHey, Rol. I knew you liked Tullycraft when it came out. Glad it stuck with you lo these many months. Catching up with your last two entries. I have fallen for Mattiel in a big way. Thanks for the nudge. I'm still struggling with the Divine Comedy. I want to love it so badly.
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