Sunday 23 September 2012

On Friday 21 September we enjoyed Album Club hospitality at Fiona and Tom's house, discussing No Fences (1990) by Garth Brooks and The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) by Pink Floyd - controversial choices both. Generally 'thumbs-down' for the former, and 'thumbs-up' for the latter.

Next meeting is in Corina and Ian's before Xmas, with Corina and Gavin calling the shots - what will they choose?? Ooh, the excitement!


Garth Brooks No Fences cd cover


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4 comments:

  1. Ian Thompson27 September 2012 at 05:09

    Garth Brooks - Background

    Good 'ol (Troyal) Garth Brooks was born in Tulsa Oklahoma, son of country music mum & born into a religious family. While his brother went on to become a methodist minister, Garth who was also good athlete, chose to study Advertising (Yes!) at Oklahoma University where he met his college sweetheart & amateur country music Sandy Mahl and set up home in Tenessee.

    Garth then started to hit the big time in country charts and denied having affair with country start Trisha Yearwood. However, later on he ditched Sandy and married Trisha.

    Together Trisha & Garth bought a house in Malibu, California. Maybe he longed for the simpler life and sweet memories of his first love - listen to "This aint Tenessee and She Ain't you" and you may hear a bit of feeling there.

    Unfortunately, most of the other tracks were more vapid, if well produced, and although they cerainly hit the mark with their mid-West target audience the ex-advertising guy hadn't really banked on being rated by the Hoylake Album Club, who generally gave him thumbs down.

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  2. Ian Thompson27 September 2012 at 05:15

    Garth Brooks - Friends in Low - or should it be Law - Places

    Blue collar drinking favourite anthem "Friends in Low Places" on the album didn't have that ring of authenticity about it with a staged rowdy crownd probably rented into the studio to sign along.

    Garth certainly has friends in Law places, though. Member of the alpha-Gamma-Phi fraternity at Oklahoma Uni, he probably knows a lawyer or two. This year he won a law suit against a hospital which he'd donated $500,000 to, to build a women's health centre to be named after his mum.

    The hospital accepted the donation, but never built the centre or named anything else after Garth's mum (BIG mistake). Garth sued for breach of oral contract, and was awarded his money back plus $500,000 damages, leaving court with a cool $1m

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  3. Ian Thompson27 September 2012 at 05:28

    Pink Floyd - Background

    This Progressive Rock masterpiece was created by Dave Gilmour, Roger Waters, Nick Mason and Richard Wright. All musically talented, they met up either at School in Cambridge, or later at Art or Music Colleges in London.

    Like a shadow passing across the face of the sun, though, is the prescence of Syd Barret, creative genius and founder member.

    Syd literally "blew his mind" overdosing on acid, causing permanent brain damage from which he never recovered from sufficiently to continue his music career, though the band always saw he got his royalties and he did manage to live out his time in Cambridge doing paintings as he was also talented in art.

    This event occuring to a close friend and early, crazy fame gave the some group personal insights into tragedy. They could consider in musical form the "Big Themes" of life, mortality, soul & sanity (or its darker side) - Dark Side was born.

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  4. Ian Thompson27 September 2012 at 05:37

    Pink Floyd - The Music

    Moving seamlessly from the hearbeart and first breaths to the final eclipse of the sun, the tracks were always conceived, played and performed as an ALBUM.

    The music is endlessly varying, still sounding fresh & innovative now and is popular with our own children (only Gavin said the album was dated, but he was righlty over-ruled by the rest of the group).

    Put the headphones on, appreciate the detail and effort thats been put into every track, its like sherbert footsteps fizzing inside your brain.

    Everyone knows every note of course, except Joe (lucky thing) and for many it brought back significant memories of their youth either of escape from rural Ireland or smoking pot in an attic bedroom.

    About the only criticism levelled by the group was that it was a predictable or easy choice.

    However, everyone loved listening to it again, with universal thumbs up and a nice British antidote to Garth's Americana.

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