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The Albums I Couldn't Survive WithoutMay 25 '01 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line My list of the CDs I couldn't live without.
Although I'm a newly-minted (and minty fresh!) Music Advisor, I really don't know much about music. So I probably won't be a Music Advisor for long. I've wanted to write this review for a while now, and I've finally decided what my choices are. For a period of two years, I WAS actually in a sort of self-chosen ascetic isolation, where I didn't allow myself to listen to music, watch television, or see movies. During that time, there was some music I missed terribly, and wouldn't be able to live without now. So, here's my "desert island" list of the albums I'd need with me...the rules: 1) No repeat artists (otherwise I'd have too much U2) 2) And I was gonna say no "greatest hits," but there are a few of those on there. Sorry. In no particular order: (Actually, in the order they're in my still-unalphabetized-recently-moved-CD-shelf) 1. THE BEATLES: ONE. Although it's an imperfect compilation, this collection of the Beatles' Number One hits would be the best single album out there. You get everything from their earliest bubblegum stuff to the later psychedelic schmoofest, and it's all good. It continually amazes me that a band that was only together for eight years could have such an amazing impact on the world. ALTERNATE: THE BEATLES 1962-66 OR THE BEATLES 1967-70 2. SESAME STREET: BEST. 52 Tracks of Sesame Love, including classics like "Rubber Duckie" and "C Is For Cookie," but also more obscure greats, like the Kermit anthem "This Frog." Everything from pedantic to emotional to silly, this IS the best Sesame CD out there. ALTERNATE: BERT AND ERNIE'S GREATEST HITS 3. THE MUPPET MOVIE SOUNDTRACK. I've written a separate review on this one, but with the song of hope in "The Rainbow Connection," self-discovery in Gonzo's "I'm Going to Go Back There Someday," and just fun in the rest of it, this would be the perfect CD to keep my Muppety Mind occupied during those long desert island days. ALTERNATE: MUPPET HITS 4. DAVE MATTHEWS BAND: EVERYDAY. Although this album is only three months old, I've listened to it ALMOST every day since its release, and I'm still loving it. Time may place it further back in my rotation, but if the whole desert island thing happened this afternoon, I'd want it with me. ALTERNATE: BEFORE THESE CROWDED STREETS 5. U2: THE JOSHUA TREE. I've described this in other reviews as one of U2's "three pillars of perfection," and in many ways it IS a perfect album. Albums used to be more than invidual tracks all piled together in a random order; this album has a definite beginning, middle, and end. All three parts are distinctive, with highlights in each section: Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, Red Hill Mining Town, and One Tree Hill. Ah, just read my other review on it. ALTERNATES: ACHTUNG BABY, ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND 6. LES MISERABLES: THE COMPLETE SYMPHONIC RECORDING. By far my favorite musical MUSICALLY, this pop-rock opera thing was given to me by some friends ten years ago, and this version of it is unedited, with every song, every piece of music on it, so it's a three hour-long "Lay-Miz" love fest. If you are familiar with the musical, you should check out this recording--it's the best. ALTERNATE: THE SOUND OF MUSIC 7. SIMON AND GARFUNKEL'S GREATEST HITS. This is one I grew up with, and it's laden with fond memories for me. Every song that's ever been made into Muzak is on here, from Mrs. Robinson to The Sound of Silence and Bridge Over Troubled Water. Mostly accoustic, these boys' harmonies will be remembered long after Backstreet and N*SYNC have gone the way of all flesh. ALTERNATE: PAUL SIMON: LOVE SONGS AND NEGOTIATIONS 8. PETER, PAUL, AND MARY: IN THE WIND. Man, I'm a d@mn hippie! Another one I grew up with, the best folk album out there. A wide array of religious songs, love songs, protest songs, and simple traditional FOLK songs; this trio defines harmony, despite what Marshel Troop may have said back in highschool. Boob. ALTERNATE: PETER, PAUL AND MARY (SELF TITLED) 9. ISAAC STERN A LIFE IN MUSIC: TCHAIKOVSKY & SIBELIUS VIOLIN CONCERTOS. I discovered my love for violin concertos when I was about 21, and it's stuck with me ever since. If I'm ever coronated (and at the rate I'm going, I SHOULD be), I want this version of Tchaikovsky's violin concerto blasting as I take my rightful place on the throne. The movements in both concertos range from the subtlest whispers to the most outrageous eardrum splitting beautiful noise, and it all conspires to affirm that I do indeed have a soul. ALTERNATE: MENDELSSOHN VIOLIN CONCERTO 10. ODE TO FREEDOM: BERNSTEIN IN BERLIN BEETHOVEN SYMPHONY NO. 9. This is a live recording of the concert given on Christmas Day 1989 in Berlin, celebrating the fall of the Berlin wall and the eventual reunification of Germany. With my history background and my own personal experiences in Germany, this is evocative musically and emotionally, and it's a recording of a masterwork by a man who knows it forwards and backwards. You've never heard the Ode to Joy sung WITH more joy. If there are angels, they're envious of the voices heard here. ALTERNATE: MOZART'S REQUIEM ...and I think that's it. It's a pretty diverse list, but I'm a pretty diverse guy. Some others that I considered, but didn't make the list of ten (or their ten alternates): THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA JOHN WILLIAMS GREATEST HITS 1969-1999 R.E.M. OUT OF TIME AIMEE MANN: MAGNOLIA JOHN DENVER'S GREATEST HITS THE POLICE: EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE--THE CLASSICS INXS GREATEST HITS O.M.D. THE PACIFIC AGE SHERYL CROW (SELF-TITLED) ELVIS: THE TOP TEN HITS PEARL JAM: TEN THOMPSON TWINS GREATEST HITS THE BEST OF THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS MY FAIR LADY MARY POPPINS WEST SIDE STORY THE SECRET GARDEN Plus EVERY U2, Beatles, Muppets, Sesame Street, and Dave Matthews Album. ...And that's really really it.  |
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