Poem: The Hollyhocks

A poetic response to "The Sound of the Hollyhocks" by H. Garner 

The Hollyhocks
They speak to me
They inform me
They connect with me

The Hollyhocks
They are speaking
"Never go back" they whisper
They are right
Never go back

Never.

Poem: The Decision

To kill everyone

Or to spare some lives for few

A choice will be made

Album Review: The Doors' "The Doors"

     Coming into 1967 with their debut album "The Doors", The Doors gave us (In my opinion) one of the greatest debut albums ever released.  Steadily climbing the charts it peaked at #2 in September, right behind the great Beatles Album "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band".  "The Doors" masterfully gives us some of the most solid psychedelic rock songs that have ever come into existence.  It was their most successful album in terms of commercial sales.  By April 2014 it had sold over 17 million units world wide.  

     The main songwriters of the LP were Jim Morrison (Vocals) and Robby Krieger (Guitarist).  On drums they had John Densmore and Ray Manzarek on the keyboard.  Jim Morrison's hypnotic poetry is such pleasure to listen to, and Ray Manzarek's keyboard playing is just heaven to my ears.  What separates Ray Manzarek from other keyboardists is his ability to play two keyboards at once.  Right hand for chords and left hand for bass.  The band actually didn't have a bass player, because the bassist who auditioned for the group couldn't compare to the style and sound of Ray's left hand.  What a demon.  

     As for song composition, "The Doors" delivers to us to that Doors sound that they almost always present to us;  Poetic and acid-like lyrics with Jim Morrison's unique voice and Ray Manzarek's special organ-like sound.  The highlight of this album has to be "Light My Fire".  Released as a single after a few months of "The Doors" debut, the song hit #1 and stayed at the top of the charts for three weeks.  The entire song is just a mesmerizing psychedelic journey from start to finish.

     What The Doors gave to us with their debut LP was an introduction to a new era (although it was a fairly short one at that) of unique mind-bending music.  What a thrill it must have been to hear this new kind of sound back in the 60's.  How fortunate they were.  

Priority Tracks:   

• Break On Through (To the Other Side)
• Soul Kitchen
• Light My Fire

   

Album Review: Queen's "Hot Space"

     Considered to be Queen's worst album, Hot Space is certainly an album that surprised and disappointed many Queen fans.  The cause for their dismay was due to Queen's change of direction in music genre.  Before the release of 1982 Hot Space, Queen had delivered us some of the greatest rock albums ever made.  Hot Space presented us nothing close to rock.  It was a complete collection of disco and dance tunes.  No wonder the hardcore rock fans were ticked off.

     This was not what the whole band wanted.  Freddie Mercury (Vocals/Pianist) and John Deacon (Bass Guitar)  were much more enthusiastic at the idea of a funk dance album.  This was most likely the case because of the influence from their previous funk hit "Another One Bites the Dust".  Brian May (Guitarist) and Roger Taylor (Drummer) were not very excited at the idea of producing a very different sound, but in the end they reluctantly agreed to go with it.

  

    The entire album pretty much consists of a solid back beats, various brass sounds, techno noises, a lot of synthesizer, and funky bass lines.  Very few tracks stand out from the album, but it did give us "Under Pressure", their infamous collaboration with David Bowie.  

   

   Overall, this album is considered to be an artistic failure by Queen.  Fans and critics expected more, and Queen didn't deliver.  Perhaps they were just "Under Pressure" to create great pieces of work and just wanted to do something more simple.  By all means this isn't a terrible album, it was just slightly disappointing from an artsy point of view.  So if you're looking for some funky tunes, give this album a listen.  

Priority Tracks:

• Under Pressure
• Body Language