(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)
Artist: R.E.M. Album Title: Monster Year released: 1994 Year reissued: 2019 Details: 25th anniversary, 180 gram vinyl
The skinny: Working backwards chronologically through my collection of R.E.M.’s records from last week’s post, we arrive with a jarring rip and roar at their 9th studio album. It’s yet another 25th anniversary reissue and it won’t be the last as we make our way in reverse. As I recall, I purchased this record online through Amazon, back when I still trusted them to ship me vinyl in one piece and back when it was still possible to purchase records for under $25. To be honest, I almost didn’t buy this one when the reissue was first announced and can’t remember now what changed my mind. But I am glad I did. It is remastered and pressed to 180 gram vinyl and sounds way better than I remember it sounding when I first played the CD copy I purchased back in university. “Monster” was an obvious shift for the Athens, Georgia quartet to a more harder rock sound and got them dusting off the cobwebs and heading out on the road for their first tour in five years. I personally didn’t see them on that particular tour but listening to these songs yet again, I can only imagine how on fire they must’ve been. Standout track: “What’s the frequency, Kenneth?”
(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)
Artist: R.E.M. Album Title: New adventures in hi-fi Year released: 1996 Year reissued: 2021 Details: 25th anniversary, gatefold sleeve, 2 x 180 gram vinyl
The skinny: Just a day over three weeks ago, I signed off from work, from social media, and from blogging on these pages for a much needed vacation. And while I can’t say it was restful time away, it was good for the soul nonetheless. Last weekend, in particular, placed me in Tarannah to find something to do to celebrate my birthday so I dragged my wife downtown to explore one of its many neighbourhoods and it just so (coincidentally) happened to be where Rotate This, one of my favourite record stores, is located. Being my birthday, my wife patiently waited outside for me while I went in to browse the wares. I came out with the new-ish 25th anniversary pressing of R.E.M.’s 10th studio album, “New adventures in hi-fi”. Not only was this the last album recorded with founding drummer Bill Berry and the last in a series of successful collaborations with producer Scott Litt, but it’s also the only album out of those that I consider ‘must haves’ from the band’s discography that was as yet missing from my vinyl collection. (Hmm… I smell the beginnings of a new ‘Vinyl love’ series…)
So as of yesterday at noon EST, I’m off from work for just over two weeks, a break I am really looking forward to enjoying. I am also planning to take a similar amount of time as vacation away from these pages. Before I do, though, I wanted to get one last post in to start up a brand new series and it had to be done today.
Back on August 27, 2012, ten years ago today, I started up a new series on my old blog, Music Insanity, that counted down my top 100 favourite tunes from the 1980s and I’ve decided to revisit and revise said list (hence, the “redux”), starting today. I‘ll leave the preamble at that for now. To read a bit more on the the background, check here.
Starting things off at track #100, The Happy Mondays, and one of their seminal tunes, “Wrote for luck” (aka “W.F.L.”), are a band that I attribute more to the early 1990s than I do the 80s but they actually dug their proverbial roots in the dying days of the “Me” decade.
The Happy Mondays were at the forefront of the vibrant “Madchester” music scene that synthesized psychedelic rock with acid house and rave culture. Their music was rough and tumble but danceable and the Mondays were known for Shaun Ryder’s edgy vocals and their full-time dancer, Bez’s funky moves. They (or a fictionalized version of them) were featured in Michael Winterbottom’s excellent 2002 film “24 hour party people” (the title of which was taken from another Mondays song), a chronicle of the rise of Manchester as told from the point of view of Factory records founder, Tony Wilson. There’s no telling if the real Happy Mondays were as drug-crazed or as fanatic as the band portrayed in the film but my best guess is that Shaun Ryder and his crew partied like rock stars, especially given the legend that their coke and spending habits bankrupted the aforementioned Factory records before their long-promised fourth record could be released.
“Wrote for luck” comes courtesy of the band’s second album, 1988’s “Bummed”, produced by famed madman/producer, Martin Hannett, whose studio trickery gave the album its heavy, heavy bass. And though I think I may prefer the percussion forward remix by Vince Clarke (yes, that Vince Clarke) that was rereleased as a single the following year*, the album version is just as funky and dance club ready. Whenever I hear the tune, I always think of the millions of times I would race out onto our university pub dance floor and find Acid Head Scott** already out their screaming along and doing his best frenetic Bez impressions.
Listening to the song on my ear phones this week, I got to wondering how it didn’t place higher on the list and almost considered rearranging on the fly. Unlike a number of the songs that we may soon find on this list, “Wrote for luck” doesn’t feel like it’s aged a day.
This one goes out to Acid Head Scott and the rest of you old Baggy kids out there.
Original Eighties best 100 position: #93
Favourite lyric: “I wrote for luck, they sent me you /
I sent for juice, you give me poison” Tony Wilson once called Ryder the best poet since Yeats. I don’t know about that but it’s certainly a fun couplet to scream out on the dance floor.
Where are they now?: The Happy Mondays have gone through numerous breakups and reformations over the years. For their fourth kick at the can, the original and definite lineup reformed in 2012 with all kinds of lofty plans for their first new record in 20 years. Said record never materialized but they’ve toured regularly and did release one non-album single in 2015. Sadly, Paul Ryder, founding bassist and brother of frontman Shaun, died this past July.
*Mostly because I’d heard and loved this version first.
**Don’t ask me why we called him that. I have no SFW response.
For the rest of the Eighties’ best 100 redux list, click here.
My (life in) music lists 