Is there an album that is near and dear to your heart by an artist whose other work you are unfamiliar with, or even nonplussed by?
An artist whose usual discography swims in ponds that have no appeal to you, but for this solitary record, they dipped their toe in your jacuzzi. You can recite the lyrics of this album from cover to cover. However, you’d struggle to name even a handful of their songs that feature on other records.
For me, I have two that come to mind immediately and not because they both begin with an A. Actually, maybe because both albums begin with an A. They are, ‘Astral Weeks’ by Van Morrison and ‘Architecture & Morality’ by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark. Neither artist’s other music has ever really resonated with me, but those two records are personal favourites. To the point where the grooves on my vinyl copies are significantly worn down, and there is not a single track I’d skip on either of them. Unlike most of my other albums on heavy rotation, ‘Astral Weeks’ and ‘Architecture & Morality’ are not by artist’s whose entire back catalogue I have great adoration for.
So, why does this curious anomaly occur?
Well, I pose that there are several reasons why this might happen.
It is not uncommon, especially for more prolific artists, to experiment in genres other than the one they usually or are most famously are associated with. This can be said of both of my examples. With careers spanning several decades, their music has morphed and evolved over the years. Though the two albums that are dear to me, can very much be placed in their usual musical genre. A more pertinent example of an artist straying from their established musical wheelhouse, would be ‘Congratulations’ by MGMT. A cult psych-rock hit from a band whose previous album had included nothing but pop hits.
So, there is the foray into unexpected genres which can create a one-off sound for an artist. As well as that, concept albums, by their nature provide a unique and standalone sound. This being an album with a theme within itself, that may not necessarily reference the artist’s familiar sonic touchstones. This can result in a style that is not representative of the greater works of the musician. The most common type of concept albums that see artists wander from the beaten path, are soundtracks. Such as Jarvis Cocker’s album under the name of Tip Top, who is a character in Wes Anderson’s film ‘The French Dispatch’. Where he covers French standards in their original language.
Another impetus for distinct sounds, is the rawness that comes from a live album. Whether that be a recorded live show in front of an audience or one that was recorded during a live session in the studio. Live albums capture a sound that is a one off. The performance happened at a singular time and place, and can never be exactly replicated. ‘Astral Weeks’ is an example of a live recording session that created an album that cannot be duplicated. Even if you watch clips of Van Morrison playing tracks from that album in his live shows circa 1968, the sound is vastly different to the studio album.
Finally, personal circumstances connected to a specific album can often have us holding an album in a particularly high regard. Be that a holiday, a relationship, a joyous and/or stressful period in life, or the fact an album was bought as a present for you. These factors can cause you to listen to an artist that was a complete unknown to you, or made you listen to an artist that you usually wouldn’t have. In turn, those same factors are often the reason that the rest of the artist’s catalogue has been left untouched by your ears.
So, there are some quite clear cut reasons that you have a particular fondness for only one of an artist’s albums. Then there are some that are less clear. All that is certain, is that as much as musicians can have a distinct and recognisable sound and unless you are AC/DC. Most artists are not producing the same record over and over again. That means there are variations in the sound, style and mixing from album to album. All of which create opportunities for people with varying tastes to approach an artist’s music at different points in their discography.
Of own your well-worn records, which are those from outlying artists?
