Ultimate Stones? It's a bitch, alright....

The Briefs – Shame on me for doubting Zune, but I googled this to make sure the release date was correct.  This sounds straight out of 1979, and I mean that as a complement.  Speaking of compliments, the songs lived up to their titles. Glad they’re willing to take on important social issues like “Killed By Ants”.  FWIW, I passed a copy to Nose for Beer, who gave it 1 more star than I did.  4 stars

The Men – I didn’t get to listen to this enough. Made no impression on me until about the 3^rd time through, and “I Saw Her Face” got my attention.  Definitely an edge to the album, but the pedal steel and Springsteen/Crazy Horse-ness to it makes it a lot more intriguing.  Like the 2^nd half more than the first, but I’m giving it a tentative rating and reserving the right to increase it down the road. 3.5 stars

Foghat – Ok, it wasn’t as bad as I thought.  Nothing as terrible as “Slow Ride”, and for most of the disc they do a more than adequate job playing white boy boogie.  The rub is having heard these songs done by others.  When I compare Clapton’s version of “It Hurts Me Too” or “Sweet Home Chicago” to the ones found here, its no contest.   Nothing I’d go back to, but not the train wreck I anticipated. 2.5 stars

Cowboy Junkies – In the past, my g-hits have been artists I loved and thought were overlooked.  For this one, I knew I liked some of the CJ’s stuff, so I went through all their discs and cherry-picked the songs I liked best.  This collection will be all the Junkies I ever need, but it’s a helluva disc.  Margo Timms’ voice is fantastic, and while this will be a “in the mood” type-disc, I love the slow-cooked slacker pace their songs roll with.  They also do a great job as interpreters of other’s songs, which is why 1/3 of the disc wound up being covers.

Discussion Question

Rolling Stones Ultimate LP- Well it sounded like a good idea, but it was a bitch (pun intended).  Here’s what I came up with:

1)       Rocks Off (Exile on Main Street)

2)       She Was Hot (Undercover)

3)       Its Only Rock and Roll (Same)

4)       Under My Thumb (Aftermath)

5)       Let It Bleed (Same)

6)       She’s A Rainbow (Satanic Majesty’s Request)

7)       Get Off My Cloud (December’s Children)

8)       Before They Make Me Run (Some Girls)

9)       Dead Flowers (Sticky Fingers)

10)    Salt of the Earth (Beggars Banquet)

11)    Waiting on a Friend (Tattoo You)

12)    I’m Free (Out of Our Heads)

13)    Jumping Jack Flash (Hot Rocks)

Yes I know Hot Rocks is a greatest hits album, but JJF was never officially released on a studio album

Part II

This was almost as hard

Journey – “Separate Ways”

REO Meatwagon– “Roll With the Changes”

Black Sabbath – “Paranoid”