One Song Albums

Subject: One Song Albums
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 03 Aug 04 - 10:40 PM

Today, I ordered a CD of the album Naturally, by J.J. Cale. I've had the record for years, and it's gotten scratchy. I can't quite say that there's only one song on the album that I like. But I'm getting the CD just for one cut... Crazy Momma. I could listen to that song every day for the rest of my life, I think. I was motivated to get it because I just picked up a Kentucky Headhunters CD with another individual track, Too Much Too Lose that is worth buying the whole CD. One of these days, I'll burn a CD of those one song per albums that I rarely listen to because there's really not much if anything else on the album that I want to hear.

Some other examples. The track And We Danced by the Hooters... the only song on the album I really liked. Junco Partner (the original version) on a cheap blues album I bought in the 60's.. the song has never been reissued.

Anybody have any other examples of albums where you really only liked one song, but LOVED it? No fair citing my albums.

Jerry

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: khandu
Date: 03 Aug 04 - 10:44 PM

"Thick as a Brick" & "Passion Play" by Jethro Tull
(Each album contained only one 45 minute song!)

Hey Bro!! Will respond to your PM soon!

ken

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Bobert
Date: 03 Aug 04 - 11:21 PM

Well, Jerry, it seams that I have just done the very same thing. Last week I heard on WPFW a guy by the name of John-Alex Mason. He was doing a great job on an old blues standard, "Peavine Blues" and since I've been trying to find a recorded version of this song (for obviuos reasons), I ordered the CD. Yup, you guessed it... Nuthin' else worth listenin' to.

Okay, Vanilla Fudge's album with "She Keeps Me Hangin' On" was the oldest of such LP's (CD's) that comes to mind.

But I'm sure I've got at least 25 or so other old LP's that would fit nicely into this category...

Bobert

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 12:27 AM

"The Black Plague" - by Burdon & the Animals - I think...

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Joe Offer
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 12:49 AM

Anybody remember the other songs on Iron Butterfly's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"?

I suppose it shows I have no class at all, but I love that song. It makes me feel so cool. That album, and any album with Manfred Mann's recording of Springsteen's "Blinded By the Light."

-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: michaelr
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 02:16 AM

Jerry, Jerry, Jerry...!!!

Your narrowness disappoints me. "Naturally" is a brilliant minimalist record by a brilliant minimalist artist. Of course "Crazy Mama" is great, but you do the record a disfavor by ignoring the rest of it. Ironically, two songs off it have been international "classic-rock" million-seller hits ("Call Me The Breeze" and "After Midnight")(not that I consider sales figures an indicator of quality), but JJ's original versions have never been surpassed.

The album also contains back-porch, dirt-road gems like "Clyde" and Southern melancholia like "Magnolia" -- beautifully sleepy rocking-chair music that, to me, evokes the South like nothing else.

For the absolute pinnacle of JJ Cales's Southern minimalist genius, though, check out his albums "Really" (1970, a year after "Naturally", featuring "Lies", "Right Down Here" and "If You're Ever In Oklahoma") or, especially, 1974's "Okie" which IMHO was his high point, with songs like "Crying", "Starbound", "Everlovin' Woman",
and of course "Cajun Moon".

From your posts, I gather that you're a gospel singer. Well, Cale has that Southern soul in spades (no bad pun intended), notwithstanding the fact he doesn't mention Jesus in his songs.

Cheers,
Michael

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: alanabit
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 05:03 AM

I love The Hooters, but it probably has more to do with the vigour and passion of their playing. When you listen to their actual songs carefully, a lot of them are rather sloppy.
I know that when Joni Mitchell moved from a folk based style to a jazz based one, I rarely cared much about more than one track per album. I have got a Steppenwolf album on which only "Born To Be Wild" is above the mediocre. Fortunately, you seem to get a better quota of good songs on most folk albums.

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Vixen
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 08:30 AM

Jerry, you start the most interesting threads....

I've got lots of "one-track" or "two-track" wonders in my LP and CD collections. Most of them are what I call "popular--" they have a song that was a hit in one genre or another, and, lo-and-behold, that's the only worthwhile number on the disk. Some are disks where the first album I heard was terrific, but only one or two tracks of the earlier and later albums have matched my expectations. Then there are the ones I bought "for" the one track--these usually are purchased at concerts where one song blew me away, so I bought the CD with that one on it.

I'd venture that the majority of disks in my collection fall into these categories. Hence, I've come to expect that, at best, I'll only like a very few of the songs on any given disk I purchase. Consequently, I am really thrilled and surprised when I buy something and there are only one or two "duds" on the disk.

FWIW, Here's some of my delightful surprises:
Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer--DrumHatBuddha, and When I Go
Rick Fielding--All three CDs
Bill Staines--the three early CDs are all I have
Jack Hardy--Omens (the only one I have)
Nanci Griffith--Other Voices Other Rooms (But I don't like anything on the sequel)
Joe Hickerson--I have three of his CDs, and I love all three
Band of Humans and Rivergods--two local bands who have a lot of talent

On another note---

Vanilla Fudge??? The Hooters??? Thick as a Brick??? Good heavens! I didn't expect to see *three* "non-folkie" talents that I happen to be familiar with *and* like on the *same thread*!!!!

Great thread, Jerry!

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Steve Latimer
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 08:44 AM

I have to agree with Michaelr. Naturally is one of the handful of albums that I enjoy from start to finish. Magnolia, Clyde, Crazy Momma, et al. "Really" is another favourite.

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: GUEST,MMario
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 08:48 AM

Most CD's I buy I will end up with only one or two of the songs that really "hit" me -

There are exceptions - and they tend to be

a) mudcatter's cd's - Rick Fielding and Mike Campbell spring most readily to mind but there are plenty of others

b) CD's reccomended by Dick Greenhaus - he hasn't steered me wrong yet!

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 09:00 AM

I can't quite say that there's only one song on the album that I like" referring to Naturally. It is a good album, and there are two or three other cuts that I liked a lot.. After Midnight, being one.
It's more a matter of degree. There's something about Crazy Momma (for me) that puts it in one of my top ten favorite recordings of all time.

I'll check out the other album of J.J. Cale that you mentioned. I haven't listened to Naturally in at least ten years, because I haven't had my record player hooked up. I'm looking forward to hearing the whole album in a few days.

Now, there weren't any other songs on the Hooter's album that I liked enough to want to hear repeatedly. That's a better example.

Some other songs I was willing to buy a whole album to get, even there wasn't another song that I liked are/were:

Skokiaan by the Bullawayo Sweet Rhythm Band (I bought a double CD album of African Jazz and almost every track is great.
Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant... fortunatly was able to get it on a reggae collection with several other good tracks.
Don't Go To Strangers by the Orioles... took me most of my life since CDs came out to find a double CD with the song on it... and it is a great collection.

Keep 'em coming..

Jerry

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: barnacle
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 12:51 PM

I often buy albums on hearing "one good song". Very often the rest of the CD proves disappointing - but hey - you get one good song for a reaonable price. I then make compilation CDs of eclectic taste to listen to at leisure.The only problem I find is: Where do you store so many CDs???

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: GUEST,Les B.
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 01:23 PM

Although no particular album comes to mind, I feel if I learn just one good song off a purchase it's been worth it! (And sometimes that doesn't happen!)

Funny though, I often listen to the local "nostalgia" radio station play all the hits of the 60's etc., and get really tired of hearing the one big "hit" song they have programed for the Kingston Trio or Peter Paul & Mary when I know there were more interesting tracks on their album of the time. So, of course, I wonder if all the other "hits" the radio plays ad naseum had better B sides ???

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 03:40 PM

Great point, Les: I had a long discussion with the program manager of an oldies station and told him I never listen to it because I've heard every song they play a million times. THAT'S the point. It's music to wash your car by... or to remember making out in the back seat of one when you were 17. For al lthe great stuff that Chuck Berry recorded, you'd think he only did three or four songs. But, Oldies stations are mostly to stir memories associated with particular songs, so they're only going to play the best known songs by each artist.

And, there are many examples of "B" sides becoming the hits. Earth Angel by the Penguins was the "B" side of Hey, Senorita.

Even if the other songs on an album aren't of the same quality as the "hit", I find it interesting to hear a range of music by the artist. I just may not find much of it holds up on repeated listening.

Jerry

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: PoppaGator
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 04:01 PM

With this new discussion of "B" sides, are we changing the subject from "one-song albums" to "two-song singles"?

There have been a few hit single records where both sides were very popular, with both titles appearing in the "Top Ten." I can't think of any off the top of my head, but I'm positive that this was the case for several Beatles 45s (at least in the US, if not on both sides of the Atlantic), and at least one by the Beach Boys.

I always wondered how they positioned these songs on the charts. If the rankings are based on sales (as we were always told), how can one determine which side of a record each buyer was purchasing (if not both)?

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 04 Aug 04 - 06:31 PM

I believe the rankings were based on some formula of sales and airplay, Gator.

No... "B" sides is a different thread, I think. I just commented on it because Les mentioned that albums often include the "B" sides of the hit singles.

Besides...

Jerry

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Vixen
Date: 05 Aug 04 - 10:52 AM

I forgot to mention, in the "love every track" category, Jed Marum's Streets of Fall River...

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: GUEST,MMario
Date: 05 Aug 04 - 11:24 AM

AMEN!

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: semi-submersible
Date: 05 Aug 04 - 05:49 PM

I bought two CDs because of "Stuff" (click for download page) by Joe/J.D. Thompson.

As it turned out, his first CD, Every Kind of Magic, is one I'd heartily recommend to anyone with young children. Some of my and my son's favourites are "Sticky Fingers," "Rock-A-Bye Johnny" (not your ordinary lullaby!!) Pirates in the Bathroom (a perfect excuse to skip a bath). The pirate concept is deftly handled: comic, without being an appealing role model. Little stories inside the album cover make fun reading practice.

"Stuff" is the jewel of his second album, which is not as good overall, though some of the songs are fun. But I'd love to see that song get more exposure!

Subject: RE: One Song Albums
From: Vixen
Date: 06 Aug 04 - 10:14 AM

I've been giving this a lot of thought, because I'm realizing just how much money I've spent (invested?) in CDs that had only one or two good tracks. Excluding the ones I've bought directly from the performers, it's still a sizable number. And I'm just thinking about how little of that money actually went to the performer and the creator of the one/two song(s) on the disk that I enjoy.

Not sure what the significance of that is, but I'm seriously thinking iTunes or MP3.com, where the performer/creator gets a larger percentage of the purchase price, is a really good way to go. I haven't taken advantage of these alternatives (or Mozilla or Napster either!), however, this thread has me reconsidering my music purchasing habits.

Just another $0.02, fwiw

V