The Original Soundtrack is the third studio album by the UK Art Rock Band 10cc It was released in 1975 and peaked at number four on the UK Album Charts. The Original Soundtrack includes the singles “Life Is a Minestrone” and ” I’m Not In Love”, the latter of which is the band’s most popular song.
The album was recorded and produced by the band at Strawberry Studios in 1974 with band member Eric Stewart engineering and mixing. The album received good reviews when originally released on LP and cassette by Mercury Records in March 1975. The album has since been reissued on several occasions with bonus tracks and has been remastered. The artwork was designed by Hipgnosis [ who also designed the art work for Pink Floyd’s ”Wish You Were Here ” ] and illustrated by artist Humphrey Ocean.
The 40th Anniversary of the album in 2015 will introduce a new generation to the sprawling and almost theatrical ” One Night In Paris ” on side 1. In 3 parts it is 10cc’s Bohemian Rhapsody with the band members playing characters in a musical story of the dark side of the Paris suburbs complete with corrupt Policemen, Prostitutes and dodgy Landlords.
”Flying Junk ” and ”Blackmail” contain typically clever 10cc lyrics and all in all The Original Soundtrack is more rocky than the first album 10cc [ released on Jonathan King’s UK record label in 1973] and the highly acclaimed Sheet Music LP of 1974 which contained hits ”The Wall Street Shuffle” and ”Silly Love”
10cc in its original form of Lol Creme, Kevin Godley, Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman would produce one more album. [ How Dare You in 1976 ] before Godley and Creme left the band to take a more experimental route, although they still produced three hits singles [ Cry, Wedding Bells and Under Your Thumb ] in the 1980’s.
Stewart and Gouldman were joined by drummer Paul Burgess for the 1977 10cc Album Deceptive Bends but after that there was a creative void [ despite the No 1 single Dreadlock Holiday which was on the critically acclaimed 1978 LP Bloody Tourists ] with Stewart and Gouldman happy to turn out the hits to devoted fans of the band in the 1970’s while Godley and Creme went onto break new ground in the world of music video production.
The Original Soundtrack sees the original 10cc at their quirky and brilliant best which is why we at RockSport think it is fitting this album should feature in CLASSIC CORNER.
Wish You Were Here is the ninth studio album by the UK progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in September 1975. Inspired by material the group composed while performing across Europe, Wish You Were Here was recorded in numerous sessions at London’s famous Abbey Road Studios. Some of the songs critique the music business, others express alienation, and “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” is a tribute to Syd Barrett, whose mental breakdown had forced him to leave the group several years before. It was lead writer Roger Waters’ idea to split “Shine On” into two parts and use it to bookend the album around three new compositions, forming a new concept similar to their previous album, Dark Side Of The Moon.
As with that record, the band made use of studio effects and synthesizers for Wish You Were Here. Additionally, the band brought in guest singers to supply vocals to some tracks, which had been another feature from their previous album. These singers included friend of the band Roy Harper, who provided the lead vocals on ‘ Have A Cigar “, and The Blackberries, who added backing vocals on “Shine On”.
The album became an instant commercial success and record company EMIwas unable to print enough copies to satisfy demand. Although it initially received mixed reviews, the album has since been acclaimed by critics and appears on magazine Rolling Stone’s list of ” The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time”. Band members Dave Gilmour and Richard Wright have each cited Wish You Were Here as their favourite Pink Floyd album
The Dark Side of the Moon is the 8th studio album by the British Prog Rock band PINK FLOYD, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band’s earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure in 1968 of founder member, principal composer, and lyricist,the late Syd Barrett. The themes on The Dark Side of the Moon include conflict, greed, the passage of time, and even mental illness, the latter partly inspired by Barrett’s deteriorating mental state.
Developed during live performances, an early version of the suite was premiered several months before studio recording began; new material was recorded in two sessions in 1972 and 1973 in London at the famous Abbey Road Studios. The
group used some of the most advanced recording techniques of the time and these were given prominence in several tracks, and a series of recorded interviews with the band’s road crew and others provided the philosophical quotations used throughout.
Responsible for some of the album’s most notable sonic aspects was Engineer ALAN PARSONS, later of the prog band The Alan Parsons Project, and the recruitment of Clare Torry as a non-lexical singer also added depth and soul to this venture. The album’s iconic sleeve, designed by the late Storm Thorgeson, features a prism that represents the band’s stage lighting, the record’s lyrical themes, and band member Richard Wright’s request for a “simple and bold” design.
The Dark Side of the Moon is one of Pink Floyd’s most popular albums among fans and critics, and is frequently ranked as one of the greatest albums of all time.
Eliminator is the eighth album by the reknowned American Rock band ZZ Top. It was released on March 23, 1983. Recorded in Tennessee during 1982, the album was produced by the band’s manager Bill Ham and peaked at the top of the charts in many countries. Five tracks were released as singles with Gimme All Your Lovin’, Legs and Sharp Dressed Man the most successful singles. TV Dinners and Got Me Under Pressure were the less successful 45’s.
The band wanted to expand on the synth sound of their 1981 record El Loco. Influenced by new wave and bands like The Cars and Devo, Eliminator′s tracks were recorded with a combination of the synthesizer and drum machine.
Eliminator received widespread critical acclaim, often considered ZZ Top’s most popular release, the record has appeared in several publications’ best albums lists. It was ranked at number 396 in Rolling Stone magazine’s choice of the 500 Greatest Rock Albums Of All Time and was listed at number 39 in The 100 Greatest Albums of the 1980s.
After the success of “Legs”, Eliminator was reissued with the song’s edited single mix replacing the original version. The single version was also used when Eliminator was issued on CD in 1984. In 2008, Eliminator was reissued and remastered, with the addition of bonus tracks and a DVD containing music videos and live performances. The original version of “Legs” was restored, making its first appearance on CD, while the single mix of the song remained on the album as a bonus track.
Breakfast In America is the sixth album by the UK ‘Art School ‘ rock band Supertramp, released on 29 March 1979 by A & M Records. It was recorded in 1978 at the Village Recorder in Los Angeles. It featured four U.S. Billboard hit singles: “The Logical Song” (No. 6), “Goodbye Stranger” (No. 15), “Take The Long Way Home” (No. 10), and “Breakfast in America” (No. 62). In the UK, “The Logical Song” and the title track were both top 10 hits, the only two the group had in their native country. Breakfast in America won two Grammy Awards in 1980, and holds an RIAA certification of quadruple platinum. All the singles from the album are on the Rocksport Playlist.
Punk and New Wave was the popular genre of music in Rock and Pop in 1979 so it was a major surprise when the band formerly known as Daddy scored so highly with this album which is a travelogue of America. The opening track ” Gone Holywood ” [ which was also a B side on one of the singles ] explores the rise and fall of those who seek fame while the near seven minute closing track on the album ” Child of Vision ” is an exploration of American innovation tainted by the upcoming greed is good culture of the 1980’s so the album in many ways is ahead of its time. Lead singer Roger Hodgson’s distinctive vocal style is like a cry for help for a great nation on many of the tracks while saxophone and drums also feature heavily on this classic album as well as Hodgson’s distinctive electric keyboard played simply sometimes but always effectively.
Breakfast In America is also the biggest selling Rock album in English of all time in France.