The Record Exchange

So, you’re the Beatles, you write one of the most influential rock albums of all time, and aren’t sure what to do next? How about writing another, after of course, a visit to India to study Transcendental Meditation. In 1968 the band got away from everything, cleared their minds and wrote music for the “White” album. Returning to Abbey Road studios with music in tow and a myriad of personal and band issues, they managed to pull together one the finest collections of music of all time. It encompasses 4 sides and 4 individual musicians approaching a crossroads in their careers, while offering up the widest range of musical styles ever heard from them to that point. Propelling forward to 1981, a legendary power trio with legendary internal squabbling, release “Ghost in the Machine”. Some call this Police album the stepping stone to bigger and greater things to come, but don’t you believe it. Even hardcore Police fans often coin this collection of songs their favorite. Filled with rage and a poppy rawness never before heard, you could cut the tension with a knife. Although even the band members themselves admit things were starting to unravel, these guys were at the absolute top of their game. Squabbling and artistic differences can certainly work up a hearty thirst. How about a couple of pints of Royal City Brewing Suffolk Street Session Ale get tipped while these albums get spun! Oh ya….that’s a good idea in this material world. Almost a revolution.  

The Byrds, in 1968, after dismissing certain members and bringing on new ones release “Sweetheart of the Rodeo”, a country/rock album that became the blueprint for later musical movements. Little did the band know at the time that Gram Parson’s profound influence would feed the fire of later genres like “Outlaw-Country”, “Alternative Country” and even the new traditionalist country movement.  Facing lukewarm reviews and heavy opposition from Nashville back then, like all great albums, this one has managed to shine brighter and brighter with age making it the Byrds most significant album of all time. In 1979 the Clash release their third record filled with a plethora of musical styles from punk, to rockabilly, to even lounge jazz. Executing an “all business” approach to studio work and song writing helped the band present mature, heavy themed material that delved into social displacement, racial conflict and even drug use! A powerful and primal album who’s legacy keeps knuckles hitting bricks just enough that they never quite heal. Wow! How about a couple of pints of “Pompous Ass” from The Great Lakes Brewery to help deal with genre bending and the unbridled fury of a powerful and tireless legacy. 

Dan Mangan releases “Nice, Nice, Very Nice” in 2009. His second album, brimming with honesty and whimsy, he manages to capture the nonsensical parts of life while still maintaining an intensity of emotion that’s rare these days. A gem filled album with wonderful songwriting and masterful guitar work keep the music fan powerfully engaged from start to finish. Spiraling back to 1970, the Doors release “Morrison Hotel”, a return to the golden sound that brought them so much early fame. With a barn burning raw approach, this album hits hard, effectively and quickly, exhibiting the mystery and power the band was known for. It was also the warm up for their crowning achievement…….L.A……well you maybe know the rest. The only thing to quell barn-burning and emotional intensity are a couple of Birch Bark White IPA’s from Bobcaygeon Brewing Company. Volumes up, bottoms up!

In 1980, and from the street of hard knocks came Bruce Spingsteen’s fifth album, “The River”, a raw and stark collection of music that reaches out for a handshake, then pulls you deep into the not so rosy reality of working class America. He sings of victory and loss, of blessings and sins, and of good times and bad with an honesty and devoted morality that only the common man can relate. Hard truths like the complexity of relationships and the relentless inescapable sands of time fill this album, making it a glistening gem in any record collection. What comes when you mix Curtis Mayfield, Bob Marley, John Lennon, Prince, and a dash of Jimi Hendrix? Lenny Kravitz’s 1993 release “Are You Gonna Go My Way”, that’s what. His third and most successful album to date catapults it’s way into your ears, mind and charts solidifying him as not only a true rocker but also the “Aggregator of Styles”. Kravitz delves into faith and freedom with a musical confidence and direction that leaves the music fan wondering is there anything this rockin’ f- - ker can’t do. I’ll tell what some of us can’t do………resist a juicy ass! Make that two pints of “Juicy Ass” from the Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery, please.   

It’s dark! It’s aggressive! It’s got street cred. In 1981 Van Halen’s fourth album, “Fair Warning” punches and kicks it’s way into the rock ‘n ‘roll world. Although absent of chart topping hits, it more than made up for it with a thunderous rhythm section, spitting, nasty lyrics, and some of the most ferocious guitar work in history……..ever. This is a primal rock roller coaster ride dripping menacingly with Eddie and all his sinister influence! Ever heard of “Jizz-Jazz”? Now you have. Mac Demarco coined the term to describe his own unique music genre. In 2012 he releases “2”. Yes, his second album, and it chronicles suburban life with an honesty and veiled humour that can be hard to come by these days. Mac leads us efficiently into a strange late night world of nocturnal existence, complete with open windows, snowy T.V. screens and heaping ashtrays. You’ve got to hear this! Lean back, crack an “Absent Landlord Country Kolsch” and wait for sunrise.   

The year was 1968. The band was, well, “The Band”!  A seasoned group of musicians, (four fifths Canadian), who backed the likes of both Ronnie Hawkins and Bob Dylan releases their debut album, “Music From Big Pink”. Wading through the clouds and fuzz of the psychedelic era came an authentic concoction of music rooted firmly in the earth. It lured the listener into ornate and textured pieces of Americana and on into otherworldly environments. It became the template for all that was to follow, inspiring the likes of The Grateful Dead, George Harrison and Eric Clapton, to name a few, to strike simpler and more honest chords. It’s possible some of the inspiration carried forward to a fiery trio out of North Carolina in 2009 as the Avett Brothers released their sixth album “I And Love and You”. After years of self-promotion, small labels and rigorous touring they commissioned the help of Rick Rubin to construct an album of unwavering beauty. Filled with soul and sadness that the common man can easily relate to, they rocketed onto the mainstream with a gleaming, clean, tasteful and sparse piece of album art that has secured itself solidly in the annals of music history. Collective Arts Brewing offers an IPA that’ll root itself firmly on your taste buds for an otherworldly experience, aptly named Life in the Clouds…….two please.

With 4 million copies sold to date we turn back to 1980 and Queen’s “The Game”. This masterpiece rocked its way to #1 on the U.S. album charts and slays dragons in the process! With not only an exciting new direction, but also a forward thinking and innovative engineer, “The Game” proves, against mediocre reviews, to be one of their most universally recognized and enjoyable albums of all time…..in the world! “A Crazy Little Thing Called album love! Marching forward, biting no dust, and releasing his second album of 2016, Anders Osborne gifts fans with “Flower Box”. A Hendrix-like collection of songs and music that carry you far away and back again and away and back etc…..... This southern fried guitar and songwriting virtuoso has hit a high water mark with this collection of music. Backed by a polished band and with some well-seasoned jams thrown in, this gem will inspire you to delve feverishly into his back catalogue! Dragon attacks and fevers…….let’s try a couple of “Broken Axe” American Pale Ales from Lake of Bays Brewing Company!

Jazz! Oh ya,…..Jazz baby! The Pat Metheny Group fashions their first live album in 1983, “Travels”. Following the success of “Offramp” and in support of it on an obvious creative high, the music is recorded live from all over the U.S. The best of the best live performances are craftily arranged encompassing some the most beautiful glistening and textured sounds that the human ear is even capable of processing! In 2005 an archivist in the Library of Congress finds an audio tape reel that dates back to 1957 with none other than The Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane recordings on it. Yes, you just read that! As it turns out this collection of music is arguable one of the finest recordings featuring both these jazz greats, with Monks buoyant playing and Coltrane’s evolving confidence, Live at Carnegie Hall proves to be a real gem!  Speaking of glistening gems, two Ace Hill pilsners please.

It was 1993, and music was in the midst of an alternative music revolution. Good old rock’n’roll still managed to rear its fiery head, in all that grunge, with the Counting Crows “August and Everything After”. Uniting fans of both genres, it burst onto the scene like an overfilled water-balloon on bricks. This album carried an unrivalled intensity that somehow encompassed some of the most heartfelt and poetically beautiful songwriting of all time! Oh ya, also…….. it was their debut!  In 2016 a rhythm guitar player and vocalist from the original “jam-band- the Grateful Dead” named Bob Weir decided it was time to release an album filled with cowboy tunes. “Blue Mountain” takes us into a softly adventurous world of crackling campfires, big rivers, wide open spaces and cowboy sunsets. Rest assured, both whimsical and wise, and in all its rusticity, there’s plenty of western in this country album! Dusty trails and brilliant debuts call for a Woodhouse Brewing Co. IPA and a Manitoulin Brewing Swing Bridge Blond Ale.

In 1975, following the success of Dark side of the Moon, Pink Floyd struggles with fame and fortune and find themselves in a period of emptiness. With Rodger Waters at the helm, the band creates what is said to be the most complete album in their discography. “Wish You Were Here” pays tribute to founding member Syd Barret, while at the same time providing a powerful critique of the music business and corporate greed. This one’s headphone worthy! Moving ahead to 2003 Kathleen Edwards releases her debut, “Failer”, a straight forward and sometimes painful collection of alt-country tunes that are sure to conjure up visions of wayward youth, infidelity, bad backseat choices and hard drinking. Using an assortment of instruments and arrangements this gritty yet beautifully flawless album won’t let you escape without a few bruises. A couple of glasses of “Clutch” American Pale Ale from the Redline Brew house please.