A to Z: 100 Best Australian Albums so "A" is for...

The Albatross or the Shy Albatross above. OK I've edited these posts because this is taking way too long doing it like I have been so I'm just going to pick out an Australian bird for the picture at the top of the post, from John Gould's The Birds of Australia which was originally published from 1840 to 1848 in seven huge volumes.

Straight on with my favorite 100 Aussie albums now. So it seems everyone has rules for these kinds of lists but mine are going to be just anything you can lay your hands on, physically so CDs, vinyls, box sets, reissued albums are fine plus I'm including also a few compilation albums too.

As for who's included here you will not find Powderfinger or Silverchair or The Living End or INXS or even Midnight Oil for the simple reason that everyone always has them in these kind-of list so I'm not and you can just go to Triple J if you want a mainstream list of Aussie albums. This Hottest 100 Aussie Albums is a worse list than I was thinking it would be and just proves Triple J is completely useless in teaching listeners any kind-of history of the Aussie music scene.

I'll write just a few of lines on each album, I could go on forever but I'll try not too. This blog is basically to keep my writing going and just maybe I'm getting in a bit over my head with 100 albums but anyway here goes...

A is for...
The A to Z Recordings by Paul Kelly
Well, this is the reason I'm doing my list like this and it's much better than rating them in a count down which can be a bit silly really. I'm reading his book so I had to get this eight CD set. Paul Kelly's songs don't need anything more that him on stage with a guitar.


Absence by Snowman
Well, one of two albums released this year but both have been in the pipeline for a long time. This one was worked on in London for at least the last few years and is the final album because band now is broken-up. Snowman will always be remembered as one of the greatest Perth bands.


Adalita by Adalita
Here's the second album of 2011, Magic Dirt's front woman solo album was released at the start of the year. I think it's been worked on for a long time but finally saw the light of day now. We might not ever have another Magic Dirt album but if this is what she going to do as a solo artist it should have been out years ago.


All Times Though Paradise by The Saints
The second box set already but if your going to listen to The Saints you really only need the first three albums and this is where you can find them plus live recording and a shit load of bonus tracks from around the same time, 1976-1979.



Australian Ghost Story by The Paradise Motel
This album was released on 11 June 2010, the 30th anniversary of Azaria Chamberlain's birth. Which I should have wrote about at the top of this post under "A" but if you don't know anything about who she is, you should. This is The Paradise Motel's comeback album after ten years silence.


The Axeman's Jazz by Beasts of Bourbon
If this band formed today it would be labelled a supergroup but back in 1984 they were all nobodys. These guys just wanted to get drunk and play music and that is what happens here so this debut album by Beasts of Bourbon was recorded in an afternoon session of their live set list at the time before going off to the gig.


Stay tuned for the letter "B" soon...

More Gaz: the Roots of The Drones & Gareth Liddiard

OK, even more Gaz and The Drones which I'm not going to apologize for because they are my favorite band and singer-songwriter plus because I haven't done that much here on my blog lately this is extra, extra long. This time I've put together a collection of songs they or he has covered or name dropped at one time or another. I will do my best to cite when and where and why I've included them. If you have seen Liddiard's myspace he's written "Who care's" under influences but also credited Margaret Thatcher as a band member who play's the Kora. This post is somewhat inspired by my last post about Gaz. It's NOT a big list of who the members of The Drones have rooted but in this case it means influenced by, who they loved and covered their songs kind-off like Mojo magazine's free CDs but because this is an online blog here's what I found on youtube. I've made the player thingy small because most are not worth watching for one reason or another but you can make them bigger your self, if you want to.

1. De Kelb Blues by Lead Belly
The first of four songs The Drones covered on the debut album "Here Come The Lies".


2. The Downbound Train by Chuck Berry
The second of four songs The Drones covered on the debut album "Here Come The Lies" also killer live version on "Live in Spaceland".


3. New Kind of Kick by The Cramps
The third of four songs The Drones covered on the debut album "Here Come The Lies".


4. Motherless Children by Blind Willie Johnson
The last of four songs The Drones covered on the debut album "Here Come The Lies".


5. Same Old Man by Karen Dalton
The song which Shark Fin Blues was based on from the album "Wait Long By The River and The Bodies Of Your Enemies Will Float By".


6. I Believe by Alan Vega
The original version of I Believe which was on the album "The Miller's Daughter".


7. Part 1: Acknowledgement by John Coltrane
In the liner notes for the above song Gareth also writes about "A Love Supreme" which is a Coltrane album but it must be this he's talking about.


8. Are You Leaving for the Country? by Karen Dalton
The one and only cover on the album "Gala Mill". One of only two artists who appear on this playlist twice.


9. Cortez the Killer by Neil Young
One of a couple songs The Drones have covered which can be found at thier website under sounds


10. Manic Depression by Jimi Hendrix
The second song The Drones have covered which can be found at thier website under sounds.


11. Who Do You Love? by Bo Diddley
Also at their website but orginally on the Hoodoo Gurus tribute album "Stoneage Cameos" so it's a kind-off cover of a cover.


12. Wild Horses by The Rolling Stones
Gareth Liddard sung a duet with The Audreys' Taasha Coates on Aussie music quiz show Rockwiz. You can find thier verison on "the Rockwiz Duets, Volume 2".


13. Messin' With the Kid by The Saints
Gareth Liddard sung a duet with Magic Dirt's Adalita Srsen on Aussie music quiz show Rockwiz You can find thier verison on "the Rockwiz Duets, Volume 3".


14. Words from a Woman to Her Man by Beasts of Bourbon
The Drones covered this Kim Salmon song on Triple J's Like A Verison. You can find it on "Triple J's Like A Version, Volume 2"


15. Suicide Is Painless by Johnny Mandel & Mike Altman
The Drones covered the M*A*S*H theme song Triple J's Like A Verison. You can find it on "Triple J's Like A Version, Volume 5".


16. River of Tears by Kev Carmody
Most likely the most well known song that The Drones have ever covered. You can find both the original and their cover on "Cannont Buy My Soul"


17. Jailbreak by AC/DC
The first of three songs on youtube from his top five "Greatest Aussie Song Ever" for Triple J's Ausmusic month in 2009.


18. Collapse Board by Laughing Clowns
The second of three songs on youtube from his top five "Greatest Aussie Song Ever" for Triple J's Ausmusic month in 2009.


19. Hope by Dirty Three
The last of three songs on youtube from his top five "Greatest Aussie Song Ever" for Triple J's Ausmusic month in 2009.


20. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart by The Bee Gees
At the AIR (Australian Independent Records Labels Association) Awards 2008, The Drones and Martha Wainwright performed this and the next song.


21. Train Long-Suffering by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
At the AIR (Australian Independent Records Labels Association) Awards 2008, The Drones and Martha Wainwright performed this and the above song.


22. Crowned by These Immortal Souls
The Drones covered this on the album called "A Tribute to Rowland S. Howard" double CD.


23. I Drink by Charles Aznavour
The Drones cover this on the "Custom Made E.P."


24. You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond by Blind WIllie Johnson
Another song from "The Miller's Daughter" who's title borrowed and the second of only two artists who appear on this list twice.


25. Don't Look Back by John Lee Hooker
This is another song from "The Miller's Daughter" album, this song is what the track Stop Dreaming comes from but it is the lyric and not the title of the song that is borrowed here.


26. Moreton Bay by Bernard Fanning
Sixteen Straws for "Gala Mill" uses the first verse from Moreton Bay. This is a very old song. This version was recorded from the Ned Kelly movie but is better than John Denver's version but it's been around forever.


27. Believe In Me by The Throb
One of the earliest covers The Drones have done on the album called "Wild About You! Tales From the Australian Rock Undergound 1963-1968".


28. My Pal by GOD
The Drones played this at The Last Song at the Tote with original singer Joel Silbersher.


29. Slammin' On The Brakes by Spencer P. Jones
The first of six songs which have no videos on youtube so you'll have to find them yourself. Covered on "The Miller's Daughter" album.

30. Revolution by X
From his top five, the Aussie band X's song was picked for "Greatest Aussie Song Ever" for Triple J's Ausmusic month in 2009.

31. Obvious Is Obvious by Kim Salmon
From his top five, Salmon's song was picked for "Greatest Aussie Song Ever" for Triple J's Ausmusic month in 2009.

32. Long Gone Whistle by Maurice Frawley
This is the most recent cover The Drones have recorded from the three CD tribute called "Long Gone Whistle – The Songs of Maurice Frawley".

33. The Executioner by Paul Kelly
Gareth Liddiard played this live for Kelly's induction into The Age newspapers' EG Awards Hall of Fame in 2010.

34. Highlands by Bob Dylan
Not covered or anything like that but just a guess that it might be an big influence on Liddiard's songwriting with his songs like The Cockeyed Lowlife of the Highlands from debut album and recently Highplains Mailman on his solo album plus he now lives in the Victorian's mountains. There's no Dylan here on this list and it's his longest song and Gaz does like long songs.

35. Smells Like Teen Spirit by Patti Smith
If you haven't heard the original by Nirvana I don't know where you've been. Patti Smith covered it on her album called Twelve but at the Sydney Opera House in 2008 The Drones were her support band and were invited back on to cover it and I've finally found it on youtube, you can't see anything but you can hear it, well it's not great but better than nothing. I've made the size a bit bigger because it's The Drones with Patti Smith which is a great way to finish this very long post.


By the way I have no idea who took the top photo but it's another one from their myspace profile. Wow, that has taken me a really long time to write so I'll have to make the next post shorter.