"The Mojo Collection, The Greatest Albums of All Time"
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OK, I figured since Christmas is here I’d review something that would make a great gift and is also a resource for music gift giving ideas. Mojo Magazine is a British music rag, a more underground version of Rolling Stone. Don’t let the picture above fool you, this book is a full 2.5 inches thick. Listings are broken down by decade with a separate section at the end for greatest compilations and soundtracks The decades start with the 50’s and go all the way to the new millennium. Each album has a brief story of how it was made, how the players met, or basically how the record got made. Also included for every album is producer, studio, players and tech personnel, and label information. Also listed is running time, and track listing. There is a further listening list and further reading list that lists either Mojo articles or websites for more info. This book doesn’t waste vital space on graphics, its the music that is important here. The book is edited by Mojo’s Jim Irvin and articles are written by over 65 music journalists. Unfortunately one of the few things this book doesn’t tell us is who wrote which article. I’m not sure if this is on purpose (so you can’t tell personal preferences) or an oversight; it certainly wouldn’t have taken up much space. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that each album’s listing also includes the UK and US chart heights. Some are mega sellers and some are virtually obscure. All genres are covered everything from jazz and folk to punk and funk, and country, too Irvin wisely didn’t rate or rank the music, but instead presents it chronologically. One of my favorites from this book includes the page on the original UK Nirvana’s "The Story of Simon Simonpath" from 1968. Another one that hooked me was the page on Muddy Water’s "Hard Again," a must for any blues fan. Henry Rollins in Black Flag’s 1981, "Damaged" story reminded me just how this metal/punk rocker turned actor emerged. The page on Sun Ra’s "The Magic City" brought back memories I had put behind me years ago. There is a poignant story on Billie Holiday’s 1958 "Lady In Satin." Standard mega hits like Bruce Springsteen’s "Darkness On The Edge Of Town," Fleetwood Mac’s "Rumours," and AC/DC’s "Highway To Hell," but these are the exceptions to the rule for this book. Echo And The Bunnymen, Iggy Pop, The The and tons of semi-obscure albums are covered. Plus there is tons of stuff I had never heard of, some really obscure stuff to go and discover. In his forward Irvin says that the staff likes to cover a lot of "have you ever heard this..." or "check this out..." type of stuff. They seem to have enjoyed their task and it comes back to the reader. This is a great book to get, to give, to use as a reference for yourself or the music lover in your life. The Mojo site is just as simple and informative as this book. Well worth the visit, it has all kinds of great music info on it. |
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