Rolling Stone record guides. Anyone else get irritated???

The blue guide repeated some band writeups from the red one, but had some redone by different writers. Yes was another group who got a surprisingly positive writeup in the red book, then a more typical dismissive one in the blue guide.

 

I remember the 79' issue flamed
AC-DC Saying something like they aimed to offend anyone within hearing distance.

 

I never saw the blue one, how was it worse?

 

It's been a while since I saw either book but I remember the red one generally being more respectful towards the bands.

 

The blue one updated some reviews, changed some (The Doors), and listed the albums in chronological order, instead of alphabetical. It might have listed out of print albums as well.

The Red book was my favorite back in 79. Yeah the reviews were bitchy, opinionated (that was the fun), and some haven't aged well, but it was crammed full of great rock history and writing. It was like the rock bible back then. I still love to crack it open and take a trip down memory lane.

 

The reviews by Marsh on Tom Paxton in those books were terrible and nasty.
I doubt he listened to all those albums he deemed 1 Star...

 

Lotsa blue ones avail. on Amazon.
Worth getting just for the laffs...

 

Probably different reviewers.

 

Yes.
Marsh did the blue.
Strange Days, LA woman warranted two stars..

 

These were 1st guide's reviewers:

• Dave Marsh
• John Swenson
• Billy Altman
• Bob Blumenthal
• Georgia Christgau
• Jean-Charles Costa
• Chet Flippo
• Russell Gersten
• Mikal Gilmore
• Alan E. Goodman
• Peter Herbst
• Stephen Holden
• Martha Hume
• Gary Kenton
• Bruce Malamut
• Greil Marcus
• Ira Mayer
• Joe McEwen
• David McGee
• John Milward
• Teri Morris
• John Morthland
• Paul Nelson
• Alan Niester
• Rob Patterson
• Kit Rachlis
• Wayne Robbins
• Frank Rose
• Michael Rozek
• Fred Schruers
• Tom Smucker
• Ariel Swartley
• Ken Tucker
• Charley Walters[1]

 

The 72 book had good sections on Dylan and early rock and Roll..

 

You're right. I meant Tom Rush!

 

This was the description for the bottom-of-the barrel category:

• Worthless: a record that need never (or should never) have been created. Reserved for the most bathetic bathwater. (A square bullet (▪) marked this rating, as opposed to stars for the others.)

 

Rode my bike to the village store, in the early 1970's I think, and bought The Rolling Stone Record Review Volume II. I studied it, and circled things, and highlighted passages. It was my rock'n'roll bible.

 

The second guide's reviewers:

• Dave Marsh
• John Swenson
• Billy Altman
• George Arthur
• Lester Bangs
• Bob Blumenthal
• J.D. Considine
• Jean-Charles Costa
• Brian Cullman
• Dan Doyle
• Jim Farber
• Laura Fissinger
• Chet Flippo
• David Fricke
• Aaron Fuchs
• Steve Futterman
• Debbie Geller
• Russell Gersten
• Mikal Gilmore
• Alan E. Goodman
• Randall Grass
• Malu Halasa
• Peter Herbst
• Stephen Holden
• Martha Hume
• Scott Isler
• Gary Kenton
• Wayne King
• Kenn Lowy
• Bruce Malamut
• Greil Marcus
• Ira Mayer
• Joe McEwen
• David McGee
• John Milward
• Teri Morris
• John Morthland
• Paul Nelson
• Alan Niester
• Rob Patterson
• Kit Rachlis
• Ira Robbins
• Wayne Robbins
• Frank Rose
• Michael Rozek
• Fred Schruers
• Dave Schulpas
• Tom Smucker
• Ariel Swartley
• Bart Testa
• Ken Tucker
• Charley Walters[2]

 

Marsh was one of the editors and also wrote some of the reviews.

 

That compiled text from 1972 was the same text that got me as a 18 yr old Deadhead the same year to become interested in seeking out 1920's Jazz ie., Ellington, Kid Ory, Fletcher Henderson etc as I was already aware of Armstrong...

After the review of Ellingtons / Flaming Youth record & especially Adelaide Hall singing "Creole Love Call" I went down to my local record shop & bought a copy, been hooked every since & for that reason alone I cherish that paperback...

FWIW I still have that original text in my collection

 

Correct all those Atco Early Years Recordings Series of Drifters , Coasters, Clovers etc were in the book & it does contain a nice review of Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol.2 but what sold me as a 18 yr old Deadhead was the reviews of 1920s Jazz ie., Ellington, Ory, Henderson & others (Armstrong I was already aware of)

As a matter of fact after I read the review on Ellingtons / Flaming Youth record & especially Adelaide Halls performance on "Creole Love Call" I went right down to my local record shop & purchased it, been hooked every since...

That text also had a splendid review of Goerge's "ATMP" & high praise for all Flying Burrito Brothers records

& 2 fine write ups on Muddy Waters & Howlin Wolf's paramount 2LP Chess sets of the era also that enticed me to add those records to my growing Muddy & Wolf collections...

Overall just a damn fine read

 

Remember this one?
"Wretched excess, accent on wretched."

 

For some reviews, yes. You learn more about Dave Marsh than the albums, IMO.

 

And the reviewer went nuts over Uriah Heep.
In a bad way.
I found this on one of those list things:

Only the best of, Demons & Wizards and Look at Yourself manage to gain a single star. Nearly a dozen other releases are marked at no stars!

"has to be considered one of the worst commercially successful bands of the Seventies"

"one of the most strident and annoying singers (David Byron) in rock history"

 

I used to buy an album every week
I never read reviews

 

For whatever reason critics were especially harsh about them. Oddly enough, I found their early records in my uncle's collection around the same time I read that Record Guide review and enjoyed them.

 

Just a few thoughts about the Rock Guides
Dave Marsh may have had negative opinions about artists he did not care for but he never ever had positive opinions for artists that the rest of us know are worthless.
His review of the Doors albums in the blue book are directly at odds with Billy Altman's very positive reviews in the red book , did DM pull rank to get his dig at the Doors in the blue book .
D M's review of John Hiatt's second album ' Overcoats' is given a no star which means ' Bathetic Bathwater' Overcoats is in fact quite a good recording that in fact shapes up against his later more popular records [ yes , DM , John Hiatt did make the big time ! ]
John Milward is the JBM who gives the Grateful Dead 3 stars for 'American Beauty' and 'Workingman's Dead' along with low grades for all recordings including compilations. Dave Marsh takes over in the 'Blue Book' and downgrades 'American Beauty' to two stars which means that it is ,' mediocre;
records that are artistically insubstantial though not truly wretched ' mmmm !
Love the RS guides and they are so much more fun now that we can track down obscure artists on steaming platforms and U tube .

 

Rolling Stone has always had garbage taste in music. Also, water is wet