Music Monday - Odessey and Oracle on Flickr.
This album came out forty-four years ago to-day.
I just realised (and feel stupid for only just now realising) that all of the seasons are present in the Zombies’ “Changes.”
I knew her when summer was her crown
And autumns sighed how brown her eyes
I knew her when winter was her cloak
In spring her voice she spoke to me
OK, so just one more post about the Zombies, then I’ll shut up (for now).
I just realised that the reason “Hung up on a Dream” transitions so well to the next song, “Changes,” is that “Hung up on a Dream” ends with a D chord, but the fifth (the A note) is emphasized in the piano part. And then “Changes” starts with an A on mellotron.
It’s too bad that between those two songs is where the sides were split on the LP.
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]
A propos my last post, the piano part in question. Played on guitar, since I don’t have a piano in my dorm room, and I’m too lazy to go to the practise rooms.
Influences
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that the more parts I learn from Zombies’ songs, the more I find similar paradigms in the stuff I’ve written.
For example, I just learned the piano part at the end of “Hung up on a Dream,” and the notes are roughly based on Bbdom7. I have a similar note pattern in “Chanson de l’ombre” based on Edom7.
And now I remember that I based the chord progression of “Chanson de l’ombre” on the chord progression and guitar part in the Zombies’ “It’s Alright with Me.”
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]
Yester-day, I figured out the rest of the guitar parts for the Zombies’ “Hung up on a Dream,” and to-day I learned the rest of the mellotron part for “Changes.”
Now, I just need to acquire a mellotron so I can play it properly.
I forgot I know all of the guitar parts for this, except the solo.
1 & 2 & 80?
I just perused the Rolling Stone’s list of 500 greatest albums. I have a few things to say about this:
- Number 1 was the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper, which… euh. Fine. Number 2 was the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, which unfortunately I have not yet heard as a whole, but I believe I have heard some individual songs from. So, good. Number 80 was the Zombies’ Odessey and Oracle. WHAT!? This does not make sense to me. For an album that is FREQUENTLY compared to both Sgt. Pepper and Pet Sounds, why is this at 80, while the others are at one and two?
- The Beatles have four albums in the top ten. FOUR in the top TEN. That is just UNACCEPTABLE. I mean, OK, so the Beatles’ songs are OK and everything, but three albums in the top ten? No. They are NOT that good. The Beatles, while they’re not bad, are most definitely NOT the epitome of modern music.
It just annoys me that something subjective (like the ranking of albums) has taken this objective view just because it’s done by something like Rolling Stone.
I also looked through their list of 100 greatest guitarists. And, from my point of view, they missed some.
Buddy Holly. Greg Lake. Paul Simon. Nick Drake. John Pender. Michael Nesmith. Tony Hicks. Jim McGuinn. Pete Ham.
But still, that’s just from my (subjective) point of view. I guess it just goes back to the whole thing about, “What constitutes art?” and how art is classified and all of that.
In the end, I guess it’s the choice of the art “consumer,” and if the majority of the world’s art consumers think that the Beatles are the epitome of modern music, that’s their loss.
The Zombies - “Old and Wise”
It’s hard to believe that the guitarist in this - Tom Toomey - actually had food poisoning here.
I got this in the mail to-day. It’s coincidental because to-day is also Rod Argent’s birthday.
This is the first record I bought that isn’t used.
Also, coincidentally, I signed up for 50/90 exactly one year ago to-day. Eight more days until my second one!
A picture of four of the five Zombies with some Daleks, probably around 1964 or 1965. What’s weird is that they’re trying to smash them with guitars, but the guitarist - Paul Atkinson - isn’t in the picture!
“Breathe Out, Breathe In” - The Zombies
The title track of their new album out the 17th.
I’m pretty sure I was smiling like an idiot this first time I saw this.
Amazon.UK has samples for the new Zombies’ album.
I’m on the third time listening to them.
Yeah, so remember this:
Jim Rodford is playing this same bass in the above video! I’m excited I found it, though I don’t really know why.
