A celebration of the rock album

The rock album is more than just a collection of songs. It is a cultural artifact, a statement of identity, a work of art.

Jul 31, 2023

Welcome to LP!

The rock album has shaped popular music, influencing generations of artists and listeners. A curation of simple tales of love and passion, or a reflection of the social and political changes of its time. Ultimately, the album is a testament to the power and creativity of human expression.

‘LP’ exists to celebrate, cherish and appreciate the art of the album.

Albums started as a ragged collection of singles and B sides, put together with little or no thought for how one track should follow the last. And then came The Beatles …

I’m not just talking about concept albums - the ultimate expression of the art of the album - but any coherent collection of songs with each track following the next in a flowing, yet sometimes unpredictable, sequence.

Examples? Well, dig out your records or listen below (via Spotify) to one of these:

‘Revolver’ - The Beatles

‘The Dreaming’ - Kate Bush

‘Selling England By The Pound’ - Genesis

‘Revolver’ is an example of a wonderfully sequenced album which is stronger than the individual tracks. These are The Beatles, so of course each song is wonderful - but the album taken straight though from ‘Taxman’ to ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ raises the experience massively.

‘Selling England’ has connected tracks (‘After the Ordeal’ is a refreshing instrumental after the ordeal of ‘The Battle of Epping Forest’) but the record as a whole doesn’t set out to tell a story in the way that, for example, the same band’s following album ‘The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway’ does.

‘The Dreaming’ surprised many when it was released as it took Kate Bush’s song writing to a new level - she credits Peter Gabriel with “opening the door”. The album wasn’t the source of hit singles and is, perhaps, stronger as an entire piece for that.

I’ll be returning to each of these albums, together with many others, over the next few months.

‘LP’ exists to encourage you to listen deeply to some of the best albums ever made - recognised classics, yes, and others you may not have heard and are perhaps only classics to my ears (so far). Via the comments and notes on Substack I want to hear from you. Although I’ve listened to plenty of music over the years, there will be a ton I’ve missed.

What else can you expect from ‘LP: An Celebration of the Album’?

Long-reads - every two or three months, a long article with the focus on one classic album. What would you like to read more about - preferably an album, or artist, with a significant new release on the horizon.

Super deluxe editions - how much is too much (and I’m not just talking about the price), starting with ‘Who’s Next : Life House’ in September - this will be the first long-read.

Playlists - has the easy availability of individual tracks has diminished the role of the album? The ease of making playlists means everyone can be a DJ. But music needs light and shade, the familiar and the obscure, the choruses and the subtle rhythms. Some playlists - as with the worst compilation albums - miss this.

This is not to say playlists are inherently a Bad Thing. A carefully created playlist can be a thing of beauty in its own right. Subscribers to ‘LP’ will regularly receive playlists, complete with my notes. When I get it right they’ll flow, like an album, so will each be of around 40 minutes (and sometimes ‘double albums’ of around 80 mins, so we can debate which tracks should have been omitted to make a killer single album …)

History - I’ll be dredging up my memories from nearly sixty years of being obsessed with rock ‘n’ roll - gigs, encounters with rock stars, great record shops …

Reviews of new and remastered/remixed albums (always from the perspective of the music, not so much .

I’ll be posting about a different album, along with these more general celebrations of music, every Monday. Join me?

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All the best,
Ian

Sinéad O’Connor

So many tributes have been paid to Sinéad over the past few days. Perhaps we don’t need more words. Yet it would be wrong to post here without noting her passing.

Sinéad was a force of nature. I first saw her perform on ‘The Old Grey Whistle Test’. Wild, dramatic, a unique voice. I bought her first album ‘The Lion and the Cobra’ on the back of that performance.

Later came ‘Nothing Compares 2U’.

That beautiful song and performance have never lost their emotional punch for me. The parent album, ‘I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got’, was outstanding, less raw sounding - though not less raw emotionally - than ‘The Lion’.

Finally, I went to see a Peter Gabriel gig at Earl’s Court in London and discovered Sinéad was part of the performance, including the ‘Blood of Eden’ duet.

There were many other great records, stunning songs, and - most of all - amazing, emotional, singing. Yes, there were controversies. A woman who knows what she believes and stands up for it will be called ‘mad’ sooner or later (and that’s not to devalue the very real struggles Sinéad had - read her autobiography if you need to know more).

I hope you are at peace, Sinéad.