I Got The Music In Me - Part IV

This should be the last in my Best Album series.  Enjoy.

QUEEN

As a kid, I remember being completely enamoured by Freddy Mercury.  I couldn't tell you why, but there was something about him that made me want to watch him in videos and listen to whatever he sang.  I was about 8 or 9 and "Another One Bites The Dust" was the big hit of the time.  As I grew, and listened to more of their stuff, I began to realize why I wanted to hear him.  He was one of the greatest rock singers of our time and a brilliant showman.  Not only that, but I started to appreciate what guitarist Brian May was doing, not to mention John Deacon on bass and Roger Taylor on drums (and fabulous backing vocals).  Queen was huge!  Their first gig together was way back in 1971.  They had made a demo tape which included early versions of "Liar" and "Keep Yourself Alive".  Nobody would sign them.  It wasn't until almost two years later that the band signed with Trident/EMI and released their first album titled Queen.

Queen albums are hard to pin down.  There are fabulous songs with metal influences mixed with fabulous songs of campy, pop silliness.  Some work, and some don't, but where it worked best was on A Night At The Opera, their fourth record that was released in 1975.  You need not to go too far to find one of their best British pop fun romp in "Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon".  The very next track shows the power of Roger Taylor's voice and May's guitar, "I'm In Love With My Car".    And then we go right into the wonderfully melodic pop of "You're My Best Friend".  Another hard rock inspired "Sweet Lady", another silly romp in "Seaside Rendezvous" and then the gorgeous "Love Of My Life".  It's all great, but we haven't heard anything yet!  The final song on the album, "Bohemian Rhapsody", is touted as one of the greatest rock songs ever produced.  It's operatic, totally heavy and takes you on a fabulous 6-minute trip.  

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  15 (1973-1995)

Grammys: None

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("Crazy Little Thing Called Love" - 1980)

                                             ("Another One Bites The Dust" - 1980)

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS

I started listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers because of their cover of Jimi Hendrix' "Fire".  It was sped up, and funked up, with that driving bass line, and I was hooked.  Went out and bought the tape for Mother's Milk and listened to it almost constantly when I was 17.  The band started in 1983 when four high school buddies, Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (bass), Hillel Slovak (guitar) and Jack Irons (drums), got together to create music.  Their first gig, playing a punk/funk style at the Rhythm Lounge in L.A., was in front of 30 people, but they were rememberable due to the high energy they had.  They were invited back to the Lounge the next week, and they started playing in other venues around the L.A. area, gaining a big following along the way.  After another album, Irons left the band and Slovak died due to his heavy drug addiction.  A few more changes occurred, but Kiedis and Flea never wavered.  John Frusciante would eventually be hired as the new guitarist and Chad Smith would become the new drummer.  This was the line-up that took the Red Hot Chili Peppers into the fame they have today.

Although I loved Mother's Milk, it was their next album that really hooked me.  Blood Sugar Sex Magik was everything anyone ever needed in a Chili Peppers' album.  It had all the funk that became synonymous with the band, right from the top with "The Power Of Equality" and "If You Have To Ask".  Kiedis shows his softer side with his lyrics to "Breaking The Girl" and "Under The Bridge".  "Give It Away" became a monster hit, with help from a really odd, but addictive video.  But the real joy on this album comes from the hard-rocking rapid funk of "Suck My Kiss" and "The Greeting Song".  The lyrics may be seen as juvenile sometimes ("Sir Psycho Sexy") but it was perfect for the adolescent mind of a nineteen year old.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  11 (1984-2016)

Grammys:  3 (Best Hard Rock Performance "Give It Away" - 1992)

                      (Best Rock Album "Stadium Arcadium" - 2006)

                      (Best Rock Performance Group "Dani California" - 2006)

Highest Charting Single:  2 ("Under The Bridge" - 1992)

ROD STEWART

Rod Stewart is another one of those artists that was first introduced to me as young lad.  I had heard the song "Infatuation" as a 12-year old and watched the video on MuchMusic probably five times a day.  I had no idea this was a guy that started his career almost 20 years before.  Way back in 1962, Stewart started playing his harmonica on the street with Wizz Jones, a local folk-singing busker.  They became quite known and took their act to different places in Europe.  At this time, Stewart was actually considered to sing for a new band called The Kinks.  Soon after, in 1963, he saw Otis Redding in concert and started listening to Sam Cooke albums.  He became enamoured with Soul music.  He joined a band called The Dimensions, playing his harmonica a occasionally singing.  At 19 he was recruited by Long John Baldry after he heard Stewart play "Smokestack Lightnin'" on his harmonica while waiting for train in London.  He began cutting solo records around this time.  In 1966 he joined another band named Shotgun Express, a band that counted Mick Fleetwood and Peter Green as members.  In 1967, he was recruited by Jeff Beck to sing for his new band, created after leaving The Yardbirds, called The Jeff Beck Group.  After great success with Beck he made more solo records and was recruited to be the lead singer of Faces, where he'd be coupled with his good friend Ron Wood.  Stewart made albums with Faces and solo stuff at the same time until 1975 when he decided to focus only on his solo career.

That's a lot of back story for a guy that I thought broke into the music scene in 1984!  After listening to his stuff with The Jeff Beck Group and Faces, I started to listen to his solo stuff.  The 1971 album Every Picture Tells A Story is easily my favourite.  The title song is Stewart's best, in my opinion, taking the listener on a trip around the world while listening to his gravely voice.  "Maggie May" became a huge hit and the endearing "Mandolin Wind" is just beautiful.  There are also some great covers on the album, notably "That's All Right" and the fantastic take on "(I Know) I'm Losing You".  This is Rod Stewart in his prime, before his disco and pop eras, where you can feel the soul in his voice.  Great stuff!

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  30 (1969-2015)

Grammys:  1 (Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album "Stardust" - 2004)

Highest Charting Single: 1 ("Maggie May/Reason To Believe" - 1971)

                                            ("Tonight's The Night (Gonna Be Alright)" - 1976)

                                            ("Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" - 1979)

THE ROLLING STONES

The Rolling Stones have been making music for over 50 years now.  For much of the music listening public, we can't think of a time that the Stones weren't a part of our lives.  Hundreds of songs, dozens of records (studio and live and compilations) and millions of fans around the world.  It really boggles the mind that it all started way back in 1961 when Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, childhood friends, got together with Dick Taylor, Alan Etherington and Bob Beckwith to form a blues band called the Blue Boys.  A year later Richards, Jagger, Brian Jones, Ian Stewart and Dick Taylor played a gig billed as "The Rollin' Stones".  They would sign with Decca Records, the label that passed on The Beatles, and began recording.  Fifty-five years later, The Stones released the newest album, Blue & Lonesome, to rave reviews (I have it, and it is fantastic!).  It would be hard to argue against the importance of The Rolling Stones when talking about the history of Rock N' Roll.

It's very difficult to pick a favourite album by The Stones, harder than it was to pick a Beatles fave.  The Beatles were only recording albums for about eight years.  The Stones have a much deeper library of songs.  Massive hits like "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Ruby Tuesday", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Miss You" to mention just a few.  But also lots of "album tracks" that weren't always played on the radio; "Happy", "Bitch", "Dance Little Sister", "Respectable" and many others.  I took all this into account when I selected Let It Bleed as my favourite.  It starts with the incredible power of "Gimme Shelter" with Merry Clayton screaming "rape, murder" that rips right into you.  In my opinion, it is one of The Stones' greatest achievements.  The album also includes another of my favourite songs, "Monkey Man".  You get funny tunes like "Live With Me", mean bluesy tunes like Robert Johnson's "Love In Vain" and country rock in "Country Honk" that follows the tone of "Honkey Tonk Women".  The "static" version of "Midnight Rambler" is there, although the live version would be the one most people think of, and it all comes to a beautiful conclusion with "You Can't Always Get What You Want".  The Rolling Stones came out with their best work between 1968 and 1972 (Beggar's Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Exile On Main St.) but this is the record I go back to again and again.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  30 (1964-2016)

Grammys:  2 (Best Rock Album "Voodoo Lounge" - 1994)

                      (Best Video, Short Form "Love Is Strong" - 1994)

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" - 1965)

                                             ("Get Off Of My Cloud" - 1965)

                                             ("Paint It Black" - 1966)

                                             ("Ruby Tuesday" - 1967)

                                             ("Honkey Tonk Women" - 1969)

                                             ("Brown Sugar" - 1971)

                                             ("Angie" - 1973)

                                             ("Miss You" - 1978)

RUSH

The band Rush has always had a special place in my heart.  They're from my hometown and, even though it wasn't always the case, they were, and are, the pride of Toronto, if not Canada.  They've been playing together for over 40 years and have just recently been getting the recognition of being one of the best prog-rock trios of all time.  The first incarnation of the band formed in 1971 with Alex Lifeson on guitar, school buddy Geddy Lee on bass and vocals and John Rutsey on drums.  The first album they cut, Rush, was more of a hard-rocking, guitar driven release.  The song "Working Man" became a huge hit in the States as folks started to realize these Canadians could rock.  John Rutsey quit the band after the album release due to health problems that came from his diabetes.  Auditions were held for a new drummer and Neil Peart was selected, just in time to tour in the summer of 1974 opening for Uriah Heep and Manfred Mann.  The trio has been together ever since.

When Neil Peart joined the band, he took over the writing of the lyrics so that Lee and Lifeson could focus on the instrumentals.  Their first album together, Fly By Night, saw their first foray into spacey, progressive rock with "By-Tor And The Snow Dog".  I've never been a huge fan of Rush's 20-minute odysseys.  I like them, but I'd rather hear the good rockin' tunes.  That's why I chose Moving Pictures as my favourite.  The first four songs can be counted as four of my favourite Rush songs: the space rock of "Tom Sawyer", the hard drive of "Red Barchetta", the incomparable instrumental of "YYZ" and the wonderful "Limelight", who's beginning suits any fireworks display!  The other songs are just as good, especially the long and winding synth-pop of "The Camera Eye".  It makes me sad that one of the most influential bands of our time has, for all intents and purposes, retired.  But we still have the thrill of their music to pull us through!

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  20 (1974-2012)

Grammys:  None

Highest Charting Single:  21 ("New World Man" - 1982)

SANTANA

The beginnings of Santana is really interesting.  Carlos Santana formed his band in 1966, then called The Santana Blues Band.  The band's first audition came in 1967 in San Francisco.  The promoter for the event told the band that they would never make it in the San Francisco music scene playing Latin music.  The band went on to start recording their first album anyway.  A man named Bill Graham, a big rock promoter in the San Francisco area, was asked to help with the logistics of a rock festival in New York state called Woodstock.  Graham agreed on one condition, that a new band he was following would be allowed to play.  That band was Santana, who went on to play a phenomenal set just one month ahead of releasing their debut album.  The rest, as they say, is history.

Santana has had scores of musicians come and go through the years, including Neal Schon and Greg Rolie of Journey.  The debut album, Santana, is one of the best debut albums of all time, in my humble opinion.  But their next album, Abraxas, is the one I like most.  It has a couple of huge hits for the band in "Black Magic Woman", a cover of Peter Green's song when he played for Fleetwood Mac, and "Oy Como Va", another cover this time from Tito Puente.  There are three instrumentals written by members of the group, my favourite is called "Samba Pa Ti".  Then there's probably my absolute favourite Santana song, "Hope You're Felling Better", written and sung by Greg Rolie.  

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  24 (1969-2016)

Grammys:  9 (Best Rock Album "Supernatural" - 1999)

                      (Album Of The Year "Supernatural" - 1999)

                      (Record Of The Year "Smooth" - 1999)

                      (Best Pop Collaboration "Smooth" - 1999)

                      (Best Rock Performance, Group "Put Your Lights On" - 1999)

                      (Best Pop Performance, Group "Maria, Maria" - 1999)

                      (Best Pop Instrumental "Farol" - 1999)

                      (Best Rock Instrumental "Calling" - 1999)

                      (Best Pop Collaboration "Game Of Love" - 2002)

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("Smooth" - 1999)

                                             ("Maria, Maria" - 2000)

SOUNDGARDEN

Right around the time that Nirvana was blowing up, there were other bands that were from Seattle that started to garner a lot more attention.  One of those bands was Soundgarden.  The first vestiges of the band came about in 1984 when Chris Cornell (vocals, drums), Kim Thayil (guitar) and Hiro Yamamoto (bass) began jamming together.  Eventually, Scott Sundquist was hired to play drums so that Cornell could focus on lyrics and singing.  After cutting a couple of demos, Sundquist quit the band and Matt Cameron was hired to play drums.  The first album they cut, Ultramega OK, was released in 1988, but the band, and more specifically Cornell, wasn't happy with the production.  They decided to sign with A & M Records which their fans took as them "selling out".  Still, their next album, Louder Than Love, sold well and started to make a name for the band.

By 1991, Soundgarden had made their way to a 19 year old boy in Toronto.  (Me, I'm referring to me).  Their newest album, with new bassist Ben Shepherd, was titled Badmotorfinger, and I fell hard in love with Chris Cornell, and I'm not ashamed to say it!  I would go so far as to say their 1994 album, Superunknown, is a superior album, but Badmotorfinger became a soundtrack to my life back then.  The first two songs would give the listener a good idea of what was in store for them: "Rusty Cage" and probably my favourite Soundgarden song "Outshined".  Cornell screams and wailing, Thayil's driving low-end guitar, heavy on bass, it hit me right in the chest.  "Jesus Christ Pose" is a killer tune: great lyrics, ever-pounding beat...it's awesome.  "Room A Thousand Years Wide" can go against any heavy metal song of the era.  "Drawing Flies", "Holy Water", all of it is hard, heavy and beautiful!!

Band Stats

Studio Albums: 6 (1988-2012)

Grammys: 2 (Best Metal Performance "Spoonman" - 1994)

                     (Best Hard Rock Performance "Black Hole Sun" - 1994)

Highest Charting Single:  96 ("Black Rain" - 2010)

STEELY DAN

A couple of guys got together at Bard College in New York back in 1968.  Their names were Walter Becker and Donald Fagan.  Almost 50 years later and they're still making music together.  They started out covering songs by The Rolling Stones, Moby Grape and Willie Dixon, among others, calling themselves the Don Fagan Jazz Trio or The Bad Rock Group or, along with Chevy Chase on drums as Leather Canary.  The two moved to Brooklyn and started selling their songs around town, including one to Barbra Streisand called "I Mean To Shine".  When they discovered that some of the songs they wrote were too complex for others, they created another band, naming themselves after the "Steely Dan III from Yokohama", a strap-on dildo from the book "Naked Lunch".  They've had scores of people play with them on albums and in concert, including Michael McDonald before he joined The Doobie Brothers, and they even stopped making music together for a while between 1982 and 1992.  But their songs have always been jazzy, bluesy, funky fun, and Fagan and Becker have been there through it all.

I became a big fan of Steely Dan's work about a decade ago.  I always knew a few of their big hits like "Reelin' In The Years", "Do It Again" and "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", but I really started to like them after downloading a bunch of their albums.  All of them are great, but I chose Aja from 1977 as my favourite for a couple of reasons.  First, its short, sweet and compact with only 7 tunes in all.  There is a real sense that they had a bunch of songs ready for the album, but only used the best.  Second, the album flows so well and each tune is a finger-snapping delight.  The title song goes for a wonderful 8 minutes.  "Deacon Blues" is one of my favourite Steely Dan tunes.  "Peg" is so much fun, as is "Josie", the last tune.  For me, you can't go wrong with any Steely Dan album, but I think Aja is the best.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  9 (1972-2003)

Grammys:  3 (Best Pop Vocal Album "Two Against Nature" - 2000)

                      (Album Of The Year "Two Against Nature" - 2000)

                      (Best Pop Performance Group "Cousin Dupree" - 2000)

Highest Charting Single:  ("Rikki Don't Lose That Number" - 1974)

STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN

He was seven years old when he got his first guitar.  It was a toy guitar from Sears.  Soon he was listening to Albert King and Muddy Waters and began playing songs by ear.  When he was nine, he received his first electric guitar, a hand-me-down from his older brother, Jimmie.  For the next 27 years Stevie Ray Vaughan was rarely seen without a guitar.  He was a wonder playing that axe!  There was Jimi Hendrix and there was Stevie Ray Vaughan, the two best guitarists of our time.  There's a great moment in the Foo Fighters' documentary "Sonic Highways" where a musician talks about how knocked out he and his fellow musicians were when they first heard a 17 year old Stevie Ray Vaughan play for the first time at The Grand Ol' Opry.  The greatest compliment a musician can get is shock, awe and love from his peers.  Stevie got that his whole career, and when it all ended suddenly in a helicopter crash in 1990, we all lost one of the best guitarist to ever play.

Normally I wouldn't pick a live album as my favourite of an artist, but in this case I mad an exception.  The Live At Carnegie Hall album was recorded in 1984 and released after his death in 1997. It contains some of the best rock/blues you'll ever hear live.  From start to finish it's non-stop energy coming at you, starting with "Scuttle Buttin'", going to "Love Struck Baby" and "Honey Bee", the wonderful "Cold Shot" and a fabulous rendition of "Pride And Joy".  Stevie's brother Jimmie joins him, as does Dr. John on piano.  One of the greatest disappointments of my life is never getting to see Stevie Ray Vaughan live, but this album makes up for it...a little.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  6 (1983-1991)

Grammys:  4 (Best Traditional Blues Album "Blues Explosion" - 1984)

                      (Best Contemporary Blues Album "In Step" - 1989)

                      (Best Contemporary Blues Album "Sky Is Crying" - 1992)

                      (Best Rock Instrumental "Little Wing" - 1992)

Highest Charting Single:  None on Hot 100

STEVIE WONDER

Ronnie White of The Miracles may be responsible for bringing Stevie Wonder to the world.  He brought Wonder to an audition at Motown Records after Wonder sang him his own song "Lonely Boy", at the age of 11.  He cut his first album, Tribute To Uncle Ray, an record of mostly Ray Charles covers, when he was 12 years old, and known as Little Stevie Wonder.  It's been 55 years since he cut that record and is now one of the most successful and beloved musicians in the world.  He has sold more than 100 million records, has had 30 top ten hits, has won numerous awards and accolades, won an Academy Award ("I Just Called To Say I Love You") and has been inducted into the Rock And Roll and Songwriters' Halls Of Fame.
Stevie Wonder had a time in the 1970's that most call his best period of music making.  It was funky, political, jazz-soul that took over the airwaves.  The four albums during this era (Talking Book, Innervisions, Fullfillingness' First Finale and Songs In The Key Of Life) are all considered the height of Wonder's creativeness.  The one I like the best is 1973's Innervisions.  The first song is the funky "Too High" which talks about the battles with drug use so prevalent in the inner cities of 1970's America.  "Living For The City", one of my favourite Wonder tracks is another great tale of inner city life.  "Higher Ground" is a non-stop thrill ride, with another message.  "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" is just happy-feet fun despite all the world worries it talks about.  The last song, "He's Misstra Know It All", is a "love letter" to then President Richard Nixon.  I recommend listening to as much of these four albums as possible!
Band Stats
Studio Albums:  23 (1962-2005)
Grammys: 22  (Best Male Pop Vocal "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" - 1973)
                        (Best R&B Song "Superstition" - 1973)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal "Superstition" - 1973)
                        (Album Of The Year "Innervisions" - 1973)
                        (Best R&B Song "Living For The City" - 1974)
                        (Best Male Pop Vocal, Album "Fullfillingness' First Finale" - 1974)
                        (Album Of The Year "Fullfillingness' First Finale" - 1974)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal "Boogie On Reggae Woman" - 1974)
                        (Best Male Pop Vocal, Album "Songs In The Key Of Life" - 1976)
                        (Album Of The Year "Songs In The Key Of Life" - 1976)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal "I Wish" - 1976)
                        (Producer Of The Year - 1976)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal, Album "In Square Circle" - 1985)
                        (Best Pop Performance Group "That's What Friends Are For" - 1986)
                        (Best R&B Song "For Your Love" - 1995)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal "For Your Love" - 1995)
                        (Best Male R&B Vocal "St. Louis Blues" - 1998)
                        (Best Instrumental Background Arrangement "St. Louis Blues" - 1998)
                        (Best R&B Performance Group "Love's In Need Of Love Today" - 2002)
                        (Best R&B Performance Group "So Amazing" - 2005)
                        (Best Male Pop Vocal "From The Bottom Of My Heart" - 2005)
                        (Best Pop Collaboration, Album "For Once In My Life" - 2006)
Highest Charting Single: 1 ("Superstition" - 1973)
                                            ("You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" - 1973)
                                            ("You Haven't Done Nothin'" - 1974)
                                            ("I Wish" - 1977)
                                            ("Sir Duke" - 1977)
                                            ("I Just Called To Say I Love You" - 1984)
                                            ("Part-Time Lover" - 1985)

THIN LIZZY

There aren't a whole lot of bands coming out of Ireland.  You have Them with Van Morrison, U2 who have done pretty good for themselves, The Cranberries, The Boomtown Rats, Dropkick Murphys, and probably the heaviest of all of them, Thin Lizzy.  There have been scores of musicians coming in and out of Thin Lizzy, but it all started with the great lyrics of it's founder, Phil Lynott.  Three other musicians met up with Lynott in 1969 Dublin (Eric Bell on guitar, Brian Downey of drums, Eric Wrixon on keyboards, Lynott playing bass and singing) to join together, naming their band Thin Lizzy, which many in Ireland mispronounced as "tin" Lizzy, which the band thought was funny.  They cut a couple of albums, none doing too well on the charts, when their single "Whiskey In The Jar" came out in 1972.  Although Lynott didn't feel "Whiskey In The Jar" was a good representation of their sound, it made them a household name and shot Thin Lizzy into stardom in the U.K. and abroad.  The band would continue to be a force on the rock scene for the next decade or so, until Lynott's death from drug related sepsis on January 4, 1986.  New incarnations of the band would tour playing Thin Lizzy classics, but the last album released by the band was in 1983.

I chose Thin Lizzy's 1976 album Jailbreak as my favourite.  It was around this time that Lynott got into a groove with his song writing and, because of this, the band started to gain more and more fame throughout the world.  The album starts off strong with the title song helped along with Lynott's driving bass line.  Then the wonderful rock of "Angel From The Coast".  Lynott's lyrical brilliance is really shown on "Romeo And The Lonely Girl" and the great "Cowboy Song".  But the heart of the album, and maybe the band itself, comes in "The Boys Are Back In Town", a kind of love song to the band's fun times in Dublin long ago.  It was easily the band's biggest hit, as it should be.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  12 (1971-1983)

Grammys: None

Highest Charting Single: 12 ("The Boys Are Back In Town" - 1976)

TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS

Thomas Earl Petty was 14 years old when he saw The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show.  Like many who watched that night he immediately knew he wanted to be in a band.  He took guitar lessons.  One of his teachers was soon-to-be Eagle Don Felder.  In the mid-'70's Petty got together with Ron Blair, Stan Lynch, Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench to form what would become The Heartbreakers.  Their first record, titled Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, was not the hit they hoped it would be, although the song "Breakdown" did become very popular the following year.  They actually did quite well overseas in the U.K., but it took a few years before Petty and his band started to gain ground in the States.  Forty years later the band has been inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and has a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

Tom Petty and his Heartbreakers have had numerous hits.  You can almost always hear a Tom Petty tune on any classic rock radio station in the world.  But if you wanted to know why Petty is so popular, all you have to do is listen to his 1979 album Damn The Torpedoes.  The first three songs on the album have all become recognizable Petty songs: "Refugee", "Here Comes My Girl" and one of my faves, "Even The Losers".  There's the country rock tune "Century City" that goes into another great tune in "Don't Do Me Like That".  It all ends in the lovely, ballad-like song "Louisiana Rain".  Solid from top to bottom.

Band Stats

Studio Albums: 13 (1976-2014)

Grammys: 1 (Best Male Rock Vocal "You Don't Know How It Feels" - 1995)

Highest Charting Single: 7 ("Free Fallin'" - 1990)

THE TRAGICALLY HIP

It is written into the Constitution Of Canada that if you were born in this great country you must like The Tragically Hip.  Well, maybe not, but it should be.  There have been very few artists that have been so successful and can feel like they are ours alone.  Gord Downie has been praised by many, not just in this country, as one of the best lyricists in music.  The band started in 1983, out of Kingston, Ontario.  Downie, Gord Sinclair (bass), Rob Baker (guitar) and Johnny Fay (drums) got together and started to play shows at universities and pubs in Eastern Ontario. In 1986, Paul Langois (guitar) joined the group.  The core of five men have been together for over 30 years.  The retirement of The Tragically Hip came about last year when Gord Downie was diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer. Their farewell tour in Canada sold out in seconds and the last show, in their hometown of Kingston, was aired commercial-free on CBC.  It was a chance for Canadians to hear "their band" one last time.

The Tragically Hip songs are ingrained in a Canadian's being.  Their songs are constantly playing on the radio, and we like it like that.  The have had many great albums, but their 1992 album Fully Completely is a bit of a masterpiece.  It is one of those albums that I know so well because of the way it flows, something that I felt thousands of times as I listened and re-listened to the CD.  There are big hits in "Courage (For Hugh Maclennan)", "Looking For A Place To Happen", "At The Hundredth Meridian" and the history lesson in "Fifty Mission Cap", all great tunes.  "Locked In The Trunk Of A Car" plays out like a thrilling movie plot, even as Downie scream "let me out!".  Probably the best Hip song ever produced is the emotional "Wheat Kings", a beautiful, almost heart-breaking ballad that chokes me up every time I listen to it.  If you live outside of Canada and you don't know much about The Tragically Hip, do yourself a huge favour and pick up Fully Completely somewhere!

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  14 (1987-2016)

Grammys:  None...BUT 14 Junos (Canada's Grammys)

Highest Charting Single:  None on the Hot 100

U2

It was September 1976 in Dublin, Ireland when a 14 year old Larry Mullin Jr. posted a note on a school bulletin board looking for guys to play in a new band.  Only six people replied to the note, but three of them were invited to play with Mullin at his house.  The three were Paul Hewson, David Evans and Adam Clayton.  Hewson was also know as "Bono Vox", Latin for "good voice", soon shortened to just Bono.  David Evans would become known as The Edge, a nickname given to him by Bono because of Evans' facial features and sharp wit.  The four musicians have been together from that day in Larry Mullin Jr's kitchen up to present day, over 40 years now!  

I've never been a huge fan of U2, but I do like some of their work, especially the early albums like War or Boy.  But their 1987 release, The Joshua Tree, is easily their best work, and I know many huge fans that would agree.  I remember buying the cassette tape of The Joshua Tree when I was 15, and I listened to it constantly.  It's not only U2's best album, it is one of the best albums put out by anyone.  The first three songs were huge and on heavy rotation on all the music video stations: "Where The Streets Have No Name", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and the hauntingly beautiful "With Or Without You".  They're followed by a great rocker in "Bullet The Blue Sky".  The fifth song is high on my list as a U2 favourite, "Running To Stand Still".  "Red Hill Mining Town", "In God's Country" also great songs.  The last song, appropriately titled "Exit", is another great display of Bono's vocals and Edge's signature guitar work.  Just a fabulous album from start to finish!

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  13 (1980-2014)

Grammys: 19 (Best Rock Performance Group, Album "The Joshua Tree" - 1987)

                       (Album Of The Year "The Joshua Tree" - 1987)

                       (Best Performance Music Video "Where The Streets Have No Name" - 1988)

                       (Best Rock Performance Group "Desire" - 1988)

                       (Best Rock Performance Group, Album "Achtung Baby" - 1992)

                       (Best Alternative Music Performance, Album "Zooropa" - 1993)

                       (Best Music Video, Long Form "ZooTV: Live From Sydney" - 1994)

                       (Song Of The Year "Beautiful Day" - 2000)

                       (Record Of The Year "Beautiful Day" - 2000)

                       (Best Rock Performance Group "Beautiful Day" - 2000)

                       (Record Of The Year "Walk On" - 2001)

                       (Best Pop Performance Group "Stuck In A Moment" - 2001)

                       (Best Rock Performance Group "Elevation" - 2001)

                       (Best Rock Album "All That You Can't Leave Behind" - 2001)

                       (Song Of The Year "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" - 2005)

                       (Best Rock Performance Group "Sometimes You Can't..." - 2005)

                       (Best Rock Album "How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" - 2005)

                       (Album Of The Year "How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" - 2005)

                       (Best Rock Song "City Of Blinding Lights" - 2005)

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("With Or Without You" - 1987)

                                             ("I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - 1987)

VAN HALEN

In 1972, the Van Halen brothers formed a band called Genesis where Eddie was the lead singer and guitarist, Alex on drums and Mark Stone on bass.  They were renting a sound system from friend David Lee Roth.  Eddie thought they should invite Roth to sing in their band, to save money on the rental.  By 1974, Stone had left the band and, after an all night jam session, hired Michael Anthony.  The original lineup of Roth, Anthony and the Van Halen boys became huge in their native Pasadena, California.  Then huge in Los Angeles.  The huge in America and all over the world.  When it was reported that Eddie and Dave were at odds, it wasn't too much of a surprise when Roth announced he was leaving the band.  Eddie asked Patty Smyth to become the new singer, but she declined.  Daryl Hall was asked at one point as well!  But Eddie met Sammy Hagar, asked him to join, and became even more popular than with Roth at the helm.  Hagar eventually left the band (Sammy says he was fired, Eddie says he quit) and, after a terrible couple of years of having Gary Cherone as their singer, Van Halen went on hiatus.  That is until Roth came back to tour and release a new album.

Van Halen was easily my favourite band growing up.  It started, for me, with the song "Panama" off the album 1984.  I began buying up all the older Van Halen cassettes and my obsession was complete.  When Roth left the band, I was heartbroken.  I didn't like Sammy Hagar at first, but I grew to appreciate him, seeing him and the boys three times in concert.  I'm one of the few Van Halen fans who like both Roth and Hagar, but I think my favourite album is the Roth-era 1981 release Fair Warning.  The album contains my fave song, "Unchained", but that's not the only great tune on the album.  "Mean Street" leads it off, followed by "Dirty Movies" and the fun "Sinner's Swing".  The great harmonies of the band are featured in "Hear About It Later".  Dave softly, soulfully, goes after it on "Push Comes To Shove" which transitions into the band's great rocker "So This Is Love?".  I like most of Van Halen's stuff, but Fair Warning is their best, in my opinion anyway.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  12 (1978-2012)

Grammys: 1 (Best Hard Rock Performance, Album "For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" - 1991)

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("Jump" - 1984)

WHITESNAKE

David Coverdale, one of rock's greatest vocalists, had just left his gig with Deep Purple.  He released a couple of solo albums soon after, White Snake in 1977 and Northwinds in 1978.  While touring to promote these albums, he scrambled together a backing band that was affectionately known as The White Snake Band.  That band, along with Coverdale, became just Whitesnake.  The band included Bernie Marsden (guitar), Micky Moody (guitar), Neil Murray (bass) and David Dowie (drums).  There have been a great many musicians to play with the band, but these were the guys that started it all.  

The first few albums from Whitesnake focused more on blues inspired rock than their huge success in the mid-'80's, when they became more hair metal.  It was during this metal stage that I was first introduced to Whitesnake, coming out with huge hits like "Here I Go Again", "Still Of The Night" and "Slow An' Easy".  After listening to their older catalogue I can say there is a much better version of the band than most know, their best in 1980's Ready An' Willing.  My absolute favourite song from Whitesnake appears on this album, "Ain't Gonna Cry No More", in fact, one of my favourite songs period.  The is the more popular "Fool For Your Lovin'", which is great, along with "Carry Your Load", a great ballad-like Robert Plant-esque feature from Coverdale.  "Black And Blue" is a live tune which is also great stuff, and it all ends with their most metal song on the album, "She's A Woman".  Don't think that Whitesnake is all about screaming and wailing.  Ready An' Willing is a good place to start.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  12 (1978-2015)

Grammys:  None

Highest Charting Single:  1 ("Here I Go Again" - 1987)

THE WHO

Way back in 1961, Roger Daltry started a band in the suburbs of London that included Pete Townshend on guitar, John Entwistle on bass, Harry Wilson on drums and Colin Dawson on vocals called The Detours.  At the time Daltry was playing lead guitar.  Pretty soon Wilson and Dawson dropped out, leaving Daltry singing the songs and moving Townshend to lead guitar, a pretty good decision.  Doug Sandom was recruited as the new drummer.  Townshend ripped a strip into Sandom during an audition for not playing up to his standard and soon quit the band.  By this time The Detours had renamed themselves The Who.  Other drummers played one-offs with the band until they saw Keith Moon.  Moon played a set with The Who, breaking a bass drum pedal and a skin.  He was immediately hired, and so began the reign of the loudest band to ever play!

Anyone who likes rock music must like at least some of The Who's work.  Whether it's their fun pop early stuff, or their hit-making records of the '70's, or either one of their rock operas, The Who have been a driving force of rock n' roll for over 50 years.  Most of their albums are classics, but I can't think of a better one than Who's Next, released in 1971.  Bookended by two of the band's biggest hits, "Baba O'Riley" and "Won't Get Fooled Again", the album includes some great tunes in between as well.  Written almost entirely by Pete Townshend, as most of their songs are, it was the peak of his lyrical creativeness.  "Bargain" is a fantastic rocker that doesn't get the play it deserves, same with "Getting In Tune".  "The Song Is Over" shows the band's softer side before they hit into "Going Mobile", another underrated song.  Then there's the beautiful "Behind Blue Eyes".  Who's Next contains at least six of The Who's best songs and is easily their best album.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  11 (1965-2006)

Grammys:  None

Highest Charting Single:  9 ("I Can See For Miles" - 1967)

ZZ TOP

ZZ Top is another one of those bands that I started to like in the mid-1980's because of their constant rotation on MuchMusic, videos from their Eliminator album.  I had no idea that they started almost 15 years before that.  The origins of the band go back to 1969 when guitarist Billy Gibbons teamed up with bassist Billy Ethridge (who played with Stevie Ray Vaughan) and drummer Frank Beard.  When it came time to sign a record contract, Ethridge dropped out and Dusty Hill came on board.  Those three Texas musicians have now been making awesome Blues-Rock for over 40 years and were inducted into the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame in 2004.  I had a lot of catching up to do, but I enjoyed every minute of it!

I mentioned the Eliminator album, released in 1983, as my first introduction to ZZ Top.  That album was full of big tunes like "Legs", "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Gimme All Your Lovin'".  The album sold more than 10-million copies!  But, upon comparison to their earlier work, you could tell that the songs were "popped-up" for mass consumption.  If you want to know what ZZ Top is all about, you have to go back to their first five or six records, my favourite being 1979's Deguello.  It starts with a great rendition of "I Thank You", first made famous by Sam & Dave.  "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide" keeps the rockin' soul going with one of those memorable breakdowns that ZZ Top has done so well. "A Fool For Your Stockings" shows the bands' comical side, and another cover of a great Blues song, "Dust My Broom", is great as well.  Most of ZZ Top's early albums are filled with great Blues-Rock, so you really can't go wrong listening to any of them.

Band Stats

Studio Albums:  15 (1971-2012)

Grammys:  None

Highest Charting Single:  8  ("Legs" - 1984)

                                              ("Sleeping Bag" - 1985)

OK, finally, that's it.  Hope you enjoyed my 4-part list.  More lists coming soon, probably.