A summertime project

The Music of 1973

This summer was spent by my Dad and me (music buffs both) in a spur of the moment experiment. Looking at the family CD collection, we realised just how much stuff we've got from the year 1973. So we sat down and listened on headphones, judging and discussing by album, from Raw Power all the way to Stranded. And now I'm at the end, and I think it would make a good little writing project.

Naturally the genre is popular music - rock and pop. We didn't even think about what jazz, classical, blues, compilations, et cetera, were also released in that year. And we're aware we missed a bunch of stuff, that we just don't have. So you'll find a list of honorable mentions at the bottom of this page.
My Dad will be cashing in on occasion. His comments are all in red.

Now for a word of warning: this is an extremely British set. It actually seems rather comprehensive of what the English were doing for rock that year, but it practically ignores America. Try not to get in a tizzy over it. No offense meant, just one of those things...

I had British-centric taste in music to start with, being an early fan of The Beatles, and just didn't find much from American artists that was interesting to me. Subsequently I'd say the best American music was all produced in the 1930s.

Also, this list is set up from worst to best. It's organised as best as I could manage, though with the five star set I gave up. You can't number the masterpieces, after all. And since this is based on opinion, what I think of as the great works might fly in the face of many, many other people. So please, save the hate mail if you find one of your favorite records of all time only gets a three from me.

These brief reviews are also a consensus opinion arrived at after hashing out what we felt were the strong points and weak points for each record.

There, you see? We'll share the blame.

Without further ado...
1973 in Music

Donovan
Cosmic Wheels : no stars.
No education in sixties folk psycadelia is complete without a Donovan record. Alas, that was the sixties. Cosmic Wheels, which follows a two-year hiatus from the industry, suffers a multitude of ailments. The production is poor, and Donovan is trying to change with the times, it seems. There's some reasonable songs opening the record before it nosedives, but it's all worth complaining about, because no one should spend two years in retirement and then be allowed to put together an album that sounds like it was written in under three weeks...

Bryan Ferry
These Foolish Things : half star
Okay, I love Ferry's voice, and the songs he writes. This is a cover album (not a bad thing) and the material mostly suits his style. But the band is weak, and the production so cornball that most of these songs just don't sound good. And who thought a campy Dylan cover was a good idea?

Deep Purple
"Who Do We Think We Are" : *
Deep Purple is one of those bands where the less you know, the better it sounds. Read their history, and enthusiasm is liable to cool. Woman From Tokyo is a good opener, and I didn't actively mind most of it. It rocks, after all. But the songwriting is so simplistic, the music has the quality of being stapled together and with the exception of the already mentioned song, there's not one that I'd want to hear again. It just doesn't compare to so much of 73's catalouge. A phoned in effort, to my ears.

Alice Cooper
Muscle of Love : *1/2
Juvenile in every way. You've got a band packed with personality, flourishing show tune brass, James Bond riffs and quirky added elements. You've got Alice's wonderful voice. And a bunch of really, really stupid songs. All that wasted talent. Though a few songs (Man With The Golden Gun) manage to rise above the crowd, more or less...

Paul McCartney and Wings
Red Rose Speedway : **
For the longest time, it seemed this was 73's worst album. Paul seems to have spent no time on this record, and though he's not one of the world's great lyricists, I know he can do better than this - when he makes an effort. Musically it does well (it's got Loup on it), there's a few nice little tunes (Big Barn Bed, One More Kiss) and some good bonus tracks. The rest is fluff. It's an empty throwaway. Sorry Paul.

Todd Rundgren
A Wizard, a True Star : **
It might seem cruel and intolerant to cast a very well done, respectable album this far down the list (made sense at the time!) but consider it this way: this is a 50 minute recording, and even the title tells you just how pretentious it's going to be. Yes, it's incredibly well done, but the best of the songs included are all the little one minute, humourous bits on the first half. And Zen Archer, the only normal length song that keeps your interest. Immensely long, very tedious by the end, losing all quirkiness on the second half, containing a 9 minute soul medley done to perfection (I'm still missing the point of its inclusion), too damn long and really overstuffed with Rundgren's genius. Less is more. Did I mention how long it is?

Fripp and Eno
No Pussyfooting : ***
For sheer innovation (this being the first ever ambient CD) this one merits a three, even though to be honest it goes nowhere, does nothing, required very little effort on the part of Fripp and Eno, is entirely unmemorable, and is basically just a window into the world of what two intellectual musicians do for fun. 73's most eccentric release. Worth a listen every 30 years or so.

George Harrison
Living in the Material World : ***
Sorry George. The slow material is all very good, but why o why must it be so preachy? Two songs in the middle that just got my hackles up, as much from the repetitions of the chorus as the lyrics. And why do I get the feeling the band was just invented for the purpose of making the record?

Pink Floyd
The Dark Side of the Moon : ***
This is where a whole bunch of people are going to dismiss me out of hand, right? But I'm telling you all, to me it just doesn't measure up. The sound is perfect, and it's very, very well done. It conjures one epic, grandiose song after another, and never varies that pattern. Somehow, by putting that much behind each song, it saps the power of rock music. It never gets where it's going, to me. I fail to understand the reputation it holds. But then, I'm not one for Pink Floyd.

Jeff Beck
Beck, Bogert and Appice : ***
Strange name, no? It's got a great cover of Superstition on it. Guitar is wonderful. But on headphones, all the songs become indistinguishable. That's all I have to say on that one. I didn't get a close second listen to this one...

Mott the Hoople
Mott : ***
The mix of plain old rock n roll with fey, glam flourishes is great. The album is a real breath of fresh air, especially with all the prog rock running around that year. Good and simple. What's the catch? Two unbelievably boring power ballads.

Frank Zappa
Over-Nite Sensation : ***
Killer guitar on this one. Zappa creamed a lot of people with his style. And I Am the Slime is classic Zappa, and really funny to boot. The rest of Over-Nite is mostly good, with hints of outrageousness that I could have done without. Still might have rated higher, if not for Dinah-Moe Humm, which was just as crass and offensive as he could make it, apparantly. Have to deduct many a point for that one. Zappa's humor isn't to everyone's taste. Like music itself, humor is subjective.

Alice Cooper
Billion Dollar Babies : ***
The definitive party record. Listen with company, junk food and lame Vincent Price B-flicks lined up for later. It'll be a hoot, I promise. And there is seriously some good stuff here. The title track is a duet with Donovan (the coolest thing he did that year) and No More Mr. Nice Guy comes as close as that band got to finesse. All the little flourishes included make even the bad songs worth one listen, and the rave-up ending is hilariously camp and over the top. But of course, it's still immensely juvenile, and it takes ages to get started. Oh yeah, and as I listened, the thought "what am I doing here?" kept cropping up, so it's got its drawbacks.

Paul McCartney and Wings
Band on the Run : ***1/2
Nope, another strike-out from Paul this year. To give credit, the lyrics are way better... but there's still too many choruses. Great melodies, and Helen Wheels is a treasure. The fact that it sounds as good as it does is amazing, considering the stress the band was under. Or was it a band? Given that Paul played something like all the instruments, two members walked out before sessions began and guitarist Denny Laine was only given a five second fade-out solo at the end of track seven, I can scarcely call this Wings. And what is with the choruses? They don't help, they just drag all these songs out two minutes longer. Sorry Paul. I like bass guitar too but I tend to think his records are bit bass heavy in the mix :) Sorry Paul.

Jethro Tull
A Passion Play : ***1/2
These are some of the best lyrics Anderson ever gave the world (and he's great at that). They read well. That's impressive. It's a musical feat, but more prog than rock (it's a common problem in that genre. The musicians fail to realise that a rock record has to rock, just a little bit. Else everyone would listen to jazz improv instead.) And it has the problem of being a bunch of little songs strung together to try and make Thick as a Brick II. They should have been kept seperate, as Anderson now agrees. Anyway, it's still very impressive.

The Rolling Stones
Goat's Head Soup : ***1/2
This is the record that's got Angie on it. That's the hit, by the way. And it's great. Quite a bit of this one is great, actually. Lots of good rock songs included. Could have had more verses and less choruses, myself. And the conclusion we came to was that it was a rather lazy effort. Look what their competition was up to, and then have a listen to this.

Roxy Music
Stranded : ***1/2
Yes, it gets three and a half, but it's a good three and a half, if you take my meaning. Psalm brings the whole thing down (four minute song stretched painfully into eight) and there's a throwaway or two, but I really enjoyed it. Ferry has a great voice and hardly seems to write a bad song. A lot of wonderful stuff on this record, even though as a whole I'd say the albums that bookend it are better.

Iggy and the Stooges
Raw Power : ****
Say hello to punk rock. And a lot of noise. This is a really hard listen, and alternates, we noticed. Every other song is noise. It's short and packed with energy, though the Stooges sound barely together, especially in comparison to Fun House, from earlier. All the lyrics are really disturbing and violent, and Iggy was out of his head at the time. And these things which make it a really difficult, rather unpleasant record, are also the things which make it so unique and interesting.

King Crimson
Lark's Tongues in Aspic : ****
Another progger band. King Crimson manage what Dark Side of the Moon couldn't do, and delivers a lot of power and artistry. Umm... It also fails to be any fun at all. It doesn't loosen up once. Completely intellectualised rock. Everything is so carefully constructed. It never lets its hair down for a moment, and since all the songs are six or more minutes (except the accessable Book of Saturday) it borders on a plough.

Yoko Ono
Approximately Infinite Universe : ****
Two discs, so it's a bit overstuffed. Remove all but the strongest, and this would have been a brilliant album. Judged as a whole, it's one of 73's most interesting moments. Yoko is consistently experimenting on this, and though the extremely feminist moments were a drawback, most of the lyrics were really good. She got a huge range of emotion from her voice, though I'm still really erked by the supreme downer she chose to end with.

David Bowie
Pin Ups : ****
Another breather from prog, another cover album, but this one's really, really good. It's short and a lot of fun, to start. The band handles the material very well, and it's a good set. And David's voice actually brings some emotion to all these shallow pop tunes of old. It's not brilliant, I suppose. (Well, except for Sorrow) But it's very enjoyable, and there isn't a bad moment in the set.

Can
Future Days : ****1/2
How can a record with four songs, two of them being 10 minute long improvs, be this good? Well, nothing in the world sounds like Can. And so, even if you're not in the mood for Can, listening to it puts you there. It's neat, and very gentle, which I like quite a bit. It's got a spacey, druggy atmosphere, and the playing is really good. Plus, the singer is the best one they ever had. Wonderful stuff.

John Lennon
Mind Games : ****1/2
Now John could write a song. He could write confessional, unpretentious, emotional work, without relying on choruses. There's just one song on here that moves into a rather wishy-washy vein, and the rest is all highly effective. I suppose it doesn't rock that much, though the ender, Meat City, seems to have been included precisely to let you know that he could have rocked out if he'd wanted to. Just a very well done piece of work.

Lou Reed
Berlin : ****1/2
There aren't many concept albums that hang a story together this well. God, it's morose. Just spirals down into misery for all concerned. But does so very carefully, and with a great deal of finesse. It's not absolutely brilliant, but as near to it as anything can get. A record that wasn't in my collection but obviously should have been...

Queen
Queen : *****
Now this is one cool record. Considering it as a debut, Queen doesn't hesitate, doesn't falter, not once is a misstep in evidence. They knew what they were doing, and though they certainly rock out, they also try a couple other formats, with the gospel Jesus and a children's pop song at the end. Grandiose statement, perfect vocals, and a promise of great things to come for sure. I missed the first few Queen records and by the time I was aware of them they had stopped doing rock music.

David Bowie
Ziggy Stardust: the Motion Picture Soundtrack : *****
Well the concert is one of the greatest ever recorded, but even seperate from that, this holds up very, very well. Sound quality is respectable, and the renditions of some of the songs beat the studio takes. The band is in top form, so's David. I tell you, it holds up even without the visuals.

Emerson, Lake and Palmer
Brain Salad Surgery : *****
Unfailingly good. I doubt any other record that year had as much thought poured into it as this one. This is prog at its height. It's got a 20 minute song on it, after all. Yes, the keyboards sound impossibly dated, but as played by virtuoso Emerson, accompanied by virtuoso Palmer on drums, it's awe-inspiring. They even cover Ginastera and yet never come across as pretentious, because just when you think you've got them pegged, along comes Benny the Bouncer...

Ringo Starr
Ringo : *****
A good-natured, self-deprecating album. I think it's wonderful that Ringo beat all his comrades that year in making the best record. This is just so much fun. Every song is a footstomper, there's a lot of humour and all the Beatles are on it at some point and contribute a really strong song each (which I think was terribly nice of them). And Photograph is on this record.

The Who
Quadrophenia : *****
A majestic rock opera of the highest order. It's got a concept, which follows a Mod down the drain, and it's not slightly happy, but it's got enough power for ten albums. Two CDs, but it never feels overstuffed, and it goes full circle as you listen. Epic stuff. Probably the Who's masterpiece.

Led Zeppelin
Houses of the Holy : *****
This one's great. It rocks, it's got Robert Plant singing, and it goes through a fair number of moods. From dark and ominous to stand-up comedy. Easily wins a place among the best of 73. You can't fault it.

Gong
Angel's Egg : *****
When this starts up, you know you're in for a weird, trippy time, but it isn't until the second song that it dawns on you: this is silly as well. Gong takes nothing seriously. Playing is great, it's impossibly dense, and the lyrics (and liner notes) are impossibly silly. Vocals are buried down in the mix, which is worth complaining over, but really, it just demands a bit more attention and rewards you for it. Gong is severely under-rated

David Bowie
Aladdin Sane : *****
Now has there ever been a record as cool as this? From the cover art right to the last track, this is one of those albums that sounds like no other. Dense musically, with some of the best guitar and piano on the planet, and a great list of songs. It even gets away with using doo wop backing vocals on the first half. Superb.

Brian Eno
Here Come the Warm Jets : *****
Well, it's 73's most eccentric outing perhaps. It's also a wonderfully well constructed listening experience. The guitar work trounces Zappa (sorry), the lyrics rival Angel's Egg for sheer silliness, and Eno is a master with keyboards. His don't sound at all dated (sorry E.L.P). I wouldn't say the guitar work was better than anyone elses, but I have always counted Fripp's guitar solo in Baby's On Fire as one of the very best on record anywhere.

Roxy Music
For Your Pleasure : *****
This is a great band. Musically, a work of staggering genius. Lyrically, it veers between camp/kitsch, and otherworldly evocations. Ferry has one of the most unique voices in rock music, and Eno runs riot over the last track. Another superb number.



That's all she wrote
There you have it. 1973 was a groundbreaking year. It had ten five star CDs in it. That's pretty damn good. Not everyone gave it their best, but by far, most of the CDs on this list I would be happy to hear again. I'm glad we took the time to listen.

Honorary Mentions
Well, we could hardly hear it all, even so. I'm certain there are some real gems in here, and at least two important artist's debuts. But it's just not possible to go around collecting it all. If anybody reading this does not find an album they know on either list, feel free to post a note and I'll edit it aboard.

Otherwise, best wishes to those who've taken the time to read this. :)

I've just noted with an * the records listed below that were at one time in my collection, and ** for the ones I enjoyed at the time. Of course I've heard parts of all of these listed below but (not having heard them recently) we couldn't include them in our study.

For me this study of 1973 was fascinating because I grew up with most of these records and have heard them (some of them) to death. So we were listening with new ears and very old ears and coming to remarkably similar conclusions.


John Cale
Paris 1919 *

Yes
Yessongs

The Eagles
Desperado

ZZ Top
Tres Hombres **

Elton John
Don't Shoot Me, I'm Only the Piano Player

Elton John
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road *

The Band
Moondog Matinee

Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert

Peter Frampton
Frampton's Camel **

The Allman Brothers
Brothers and Sisters *

Little Feat
Dixie Chicken

T. Rex
Tanx

Tom Waits
Closing Time

The New York Dolls
New York Dolls

Genesis
Selling England by the Pound

Stevie Wonder
Innervisions **

Aerosmith
Aerosmith

The Wailers
Catch a Fire

Gong
Flying Teapot **