Desert Island Discs

So last week we discussed the one artist you would take with you on a road trip. I decided that the two most important factors were you had to really like the artist (obviously) and they had to have a wide and diverse catalogue.

When I posed the question of desert island discs, I got some feedback wondering if the question was really any different. I gave an emphatic 'yes'.

Obviously, for either question, you are going to need to really like the artist, but the reason I chose the road trip artist had a lot to do with a wide and diverse catalogue. Almost a quantity over quality issue. The point of the road trip artist is to get through a long journey without getting sick of the music you are listening to. If you are stuck on a desert island for years, and only have 3-5 CDs, there is no way you will be able to listen to that music the entire time. Most likely you will pick a time of day to relax and enjoy some music, maybe when the sun is setting and you are done your work for the day (you know, drinking coconuts, fashioning rafts, talking to volleyballs), maybe first thing in the morning to get you started on your quest to kill that wild boar that has been stealing your nuts and berries.

So in this instance, quality is going to rule over quantity. Also, we are picking discs, not artists, so this is where a new artist with maybe one or two great CDs will get the nod, or maybe an artist that was a little inconsistent and you only enjoy some of their albums.

For the purpose of brevity, and to really make you think, we are going to go with 3 albums instead of 5.

I am thinking off the top of my head here, but let's get at it.

No. 1: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Wilco

This is an easy one for me. Of all the albums that came out while I was at a CD-buying age, this is my favorite. I've been listening to it since the summer after senior year of high school, and was still picking out new things years later. The opening song, I Am Trying to Break Your Heart, is riiiii-diculous. It also does a great job of setting the tone for the album, and, dare I say it, acts as a microcosm for YHF. The themes of disconnected lyrics, musical peaks and valleys, and "found sounds" (for lack of a better word) exist throughout the album. Some other highlights for me include the transition from Heavy Metal Drummer to I'm the Man Who Loves You, the song Jesus, Etc, and the lady saying Yankee. Hotel Foxtrot. at the end of Reservations. Definitely an album you can put in and just listen to straight through and feel like you've actually accomplished something.
(sidenote: I listened to this album on the last night of a trip to Ireland in a friend's laptop and the laptop discplayer got stuck and the cd was last forever.)

No. 2: American Beauty, Grateful Dead

This was a tough one to choose over Workingman's Dead. I have always had a thing for WD, especially the song High Time, but I had to go with AB because of Box of Rain and Ripple....or maybe because of Candyman and Brokedown Palace...although it might have something to do with Friend of the Devil and Sugar Magnolia. What I can say for sure is that I didn't choose it because of Truckin' or Operator or 'Til the Morning Comes, but Attics of My Life most definitely had a role in the decision. What I'm getting at here is that I could never pick a favorite song on this album. They have fast tempo songs, slow tempo songs, and the lyrics always tell great stories. I feel like the Grateful Dead would really be able to keep you company.

The third choice is going to be a tough one, that's for sure. And there are a few issues I need to cover before I make a decision.

First of all, am I going to go for an old album or a new one? According to all the lists, the majority of the best albums were created in the 70s, and they were made be the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, etc...

I am not going to argue with anybody that picks a Beatles album, but I don't know if I can do it. I never went through a Beatles phase, I just picked up more and more songs as time went by. I certainly do not have a memory of listening to an entire Beatles album straight through.

Whereas with most newer albums that I own, I can remember the day I bought it and all the time I spent listening to it. So do I choose an album from when I was in high school that I specifically remember and have those emotional ties to? Or do I go with something a bit more universal?

Some artists that keep coming up are Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, and the Counting Crows. With the Bobs (not the office space bobs), no album comes to mind, just the idea that it would be nice to have a bunch of their songs on a CD if I am on a desert island. ...

sidetrack...

is it desert island, or deserted island? Are there actual desert islands? Maybe it is a deserted desert island. Uh-oh, I think I wrote the word desert too many times and now it is losing all meaning....

okay, back to the lesson at hand.

With the Counting Crows, I have two albums come to mind, August and Everything After and This Desert Life.

Oh my god, I just wrote desert again and I had no idea I was about to do it.

Come on, Rob, focus!

Okay, so those are two very good Counting Crows albums, and I definitely have emotional connections to them. A&EA would be the typical choice I think, because it has that feel to it, of listening to the entire album as a process. There aren't too many holes and there are a lot of common themes. But it's kind of sad and mopey, so I'm not going to pick it. Instead, I am going to rely on YHF and AB for my sonic brainfood, and, for my listening pleasure, and because it almost makes too much sense to have this on an island with sand and coconuts, I am going with...

(drumroll please)

No. 3: Legend, Bob Marley

I don't care if it's a greatest hits album, it's got all his hits. And everybody loves Bob Marley, so I can maybe impress some local creatures.

By the way, my formula is

(modern album with emotional ties) + (older album with emotional ties) + (greatest hits album to make you feel good) = desert island discs.

Oh, and furthermore Susan, I recently wrote a letter to a sauce company telling them that I enjoyed all their products but their bleu cheese left a little to be desired. Haven't heard back yet.