Great list! I was trying to remember Strange News From Another Star but forgot the title. Badhead has always been a favourite too.
That's a hard one, because I love Blur too much... Let me try: She's So High There's No Other Way For Tomorrow Advert Colin Zeal Popscene Girls&Boys Parklife Trouble In The Message Center This Is A Low Country House Charmless Man Yuko And Hiro Beetlebum Country Sad Ballad Man On Your Own Tender Trimm Trabb Music Is My Radar How am I on the clock though?
Choices are always individual. However, I'll attempt to explain my thinking. For me, Blur were a pretty decent pop-rock band, and a rather poor indie/alt-rock band. Put them up against another pop-rock band, and Blur do stand out: intelligent lyrics, and a professional sound with an indie twist. Put them up against an indie or alt-rock band, and, for me, their weaknesses stand out. On Think Tank, the band are not hugely different to what they have been right from the start - from the first album they did atmospheric pieces like "Slow Down" and "Wear Me Down". But Coxon is missing, and badly missed. What we have is the weak side of Blur - the attempts to be atmospheric and musical, without the means to achieve that. The best tracks, like "Ambulance" and "Out Of Time", have always been there in the band - the slow atmospheric touches, but here they are missing the crackle of Coxon's guitar, and they lean a little too much on the late 90s / early Naughty's albums by U2, and a little too much on indie dance acts like the Chemical Brothers and FatBoy Slim, without the touch, groove and excitement of those acts. Being a Nineties band, Blur would have been inspired by the successful blend of rock, electronics, and dance of Primal Scream' Screamadelica, and Albarn would no doubt have liked to create a contemporary version of that. But Screamadelica arrived where it did through collaboration, a simple desire to make groovy interesting music, and some very creative individuals out of their heads on ecstasy. I think those elements were rather lacking on Think Tank, which emerged out of tension, and one individual's dominance and attempt to create something they were truly not capable of. Crafted and intelligent pop songs, yes. Albarn is brilliant at that. Atmospheric music? By himself? Without the most musical member of the band? No. For the best Albarn music at this time, I think we need to look at Gorillaz; though, for me, Gorilaz is a sort of washed out Beck - superficially attractive, but lacking depth, despite the involvement of the creative Dan the Automator. However, I'm prepared to give the album, or individual songs from the album another go if you point them out to me, and tell me what I should be appreciating. As regards Great Escape, as I say above, for me that album is the peak of Blur as they craft some brilliant well structured music with clever, witty and observant lyrics. They do what they do best, and leave the atmospheric stuff behind for those who do it best.
Interesting selection. I see you like the atmospheric side to the band, which is the side I like the least! Some tracks there which I am going to go back to as I don't really know them - like "Country Sad Ballad Man". Thanks!
A C90! Lovely touch! And "Pyongyang" is a beautiful song, possibly in my all-time top 5 Blur songs. Definitely top 10.
Ah, yes, played Blur - Country Sad Ballad Man - Blur - YouTube - That's a track that reminds me too much of Beck. I really like Beck. Huge respect for all his early albums up to and including Odelay, so when I hear something that seems to me to simply be copying him, I tend to switch off. Have you heard Beck's first recording, Golden Feelings? It's mind-blowing. Hard to get hold of - just a cassette that's not been re-released. It appears on YouTube now and again: Beck - Golden Feelings (Rip of My Cassette Copy) - YouTube The best early album for me is Beck - Stereopathetic Soulmanure [Full Album] 1994 - YouTube Wow. Simply wow. And, of course, Odelay, is one of the greatest albums of the Nineties, and of all time.
I re-listened to "Strange News From Another Star" and "Thought I Was a Spaceman" as they were tracks I didn't really know. Both hugely remind me of Bowie. "Strange News" is growing on me. I think that's definitely one I overlooked. Blur - Strange News From Another Star - Blur - YouTube
Yeah, that's the hard part. I like to make up CDs of bands I'm exploring so I can play them in the car. Sometimes I will do two CDs for bands with a long and diverse output, but will also condense that down into one 80 minute CD to get at the essential tracks that can be played repeatedly to get a real feel for and understanding of the core of the band (or musician). I've not attempted to do a single CD compilation for Dylan. I think that would be rather time-consuming!
I think I may have had C30, C60, C90 tapes in my mind when I typed the title. Bow Wow Wow c30 c60 c90 - YouTube
I agree, this is a great compilation. If I were to do an up to date 90 minute type Blur compilation then it would pretty much be this album tracklisting with the two following revisions: No Distance Left To Run < Bugman To The End < Out Of Time On Your Own < Lonesome Street Yep, I'm a bit of a singles nerd when it comes to Blur. They are up there as one of the best singles bands with The Kinks.
I do, but they wrote some great pop songs too, There's No Other Way, Girls and Boys & To The End spring to mind, but there's not really all that many of them across their catalogue. Like I mentioned earlier, I found that a few of their hits got annoying and less likeable the more I heard them, which in that mid 90s was a lot. They were everywhere! I've always been a fan of the more atmospheric, less commercial side. That's unusual for me because I'm a big fan of three minute pop songs. I've never took to Gorillaz. The album Damon Albarn has done that I think is up there with Blur ones, possibly better, is the first The Good The Bad & The Queen album. Another atmospheric one! I forgot that the compilation was aimed at beginners or people who wanted the big hits when I did my list!
At the time this compilation it came out (2000), I would have put Chemical World and the then difficult to find Popscene ahead of No Distance Left To Run and Music is My Radar.
No need to pick one or the other, fortunately, or pit one against the other. Having heard Rings Around The World for the first time this week I will certainly say that Super Furry Animals are under-appreciated. As for Blur, despite owning two box sets by them I wouldn't be able to name 80 minutes of music by them. I must get back to them and do some more listening.
Not entirely sure if this is 90 minutes. Very entirely sure it’s almost entirely early-mid Blur but as Modern Life is my favourite Blur album, not a surprise... There’s No Other Way Popscene For Tomorrow Pressure on Julian Star Shaped Blue Jeans Villa Rosie End of a Century London Loves Trouble in the Message Centre Clover Over Dover This is a Low He Dreamt of Cars Yuko and Hiro Tender Coffee and TV
Surely it should be “Don’t Come Home Too Soon” by Del Amitri which is possibly the least inspiring song ever composed to encourage a sports team to win an actual tournament
Here's my one CD Blur - just about fits with about 15 seconds to spare 01 Sing 02 High Cool (7" Master) 03 Popscene 04 Advert 05 Never Clever 06 Coping (Andy Partridge Version) 07 Chemical World (Radio Edit) 08 Young And Lovely 09 End Of A Century 10 Tracy Jacks 11 This Is A Low 12 He Thought Of Cars 13 Eine Kleine Lift Musik 14 Death Of A Party (7" Remix) 15 Tender (Radio Edit) 16 Coffee And TV (Single Edit) 17 Trimm Trabb 18 No Distance Left To Run 19 Out Of Time 20 Colours 21 [UNLISTED TRACK] Lot 105
Interesting idea to make up a CD of their best tracks .... 13 is the best by a long way for me. That would take up a lot of said CD Parklife next
