Listomania! - 1973

1973 was a very good year in my life. It was the end of public school / beginning of high school, which I think is a great period in most people's lives, so I'm not special in that regard. I was riding high in Grade 8, winning 2 trophies at graduation for best marks and citizenship. I had just played 2 big roles in the school production of Gilbert & Sullivan's The Mikado to much acclaim (and attention from girls!) and we had moved into our first house that we owned. I was all of 12 years old and this was probably the biggest my ego ever got - you know, that point in life where everything is so peachy that you can't imagine anything ever going awry. I think of that year often when I am feeling nostalgic, but, as Homer Simpson put it, "Now it's back to stupid reality." Music had become my true passion and I started buying albums instead of 45s.

Top 10 Of 1973

10. Just One Victory - Todd Rundgren

As Robert Plant once said, "This is a song of hope." From the freaky-weird A Wizard, A True Star, this song always puts a smile on my face. From the goofy "hold that line, baby, hold that line" backing vocal, to the rousing chorus, this is Todd being happy and forward-looking. The lyrics now seem a bit hokey, but it is a product of its era. I love the start where Todd is almost like a preacher, calling on God or whomever to make things better. There are a lot of overdubs and studio trickery on this song, but it wouldn't be a Todd Rundgren record without those kinds of touches. The little descending bass line is killer too! " We may feel about to fall, but we go down fighting. You will hear the call if you only listen." This is the official anthem for optimists everywhere!

9. Days Gone By - Joe Walsh

Another song for the glass half-full crowd, this is from Walsh's great The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get album. Rocky Mountain Way has been air-guitared by every fist-pumping lunkhead in the world, but this tune is not Rocky Mountain Way. Featuring great playing by the whole band, I especially love the piano, which is played by drummer Joe Vitale. As if his stellar work on piano and drums weren't enough, he throws in some amazing flute work too. Some people don't care for Walsh's voice, but this song is maybe his best vocal ever. It doesn't have his usual nasal affectation, just a smoothly-delivered, laid-back, jazzy groove baby. The bass is pretty cool too, snaking its way through the song in such a way that it makes you sit up and take notice of it. "In the end we'll see how much of the party we've missed already, please tell me." Damn, I love this song!

8. All The Way From Memphis - Mott The Hoople

Christ! That piano just makes me want to kick up my heels! What a freakin' fantastic piano that is! Played by Mott front man Ian Hunter, it's funny that the ivories take center stage in a song about guitarist Mick Ralphs' guitar getting sent to Oriole, Kentucky instead of Memphis where they were to play a show. Once again, you cannot just sit still and listen to this. You must get up and groove and make a complete ass of yourself to get the full enjoyment of this song! Andy Mackay of Roxy Music throws down some smokin' sax as well. My interpretation is that it's about people looking down on selfish rock stars and their excessive lifestyles. "Yeah it's a mighty long way down Rock'n' Roll, through the Bradford cities and the Orioles, 'n' you look like a star but you're really out on parole! All the way from Memphis." Poor little Rock 'n' Roller!

7. Dancing Days - Led Zeppelin

Cock-rock at its finest! Robert Plant is coming for your daughters and you are powerless to stop him! John Bonham just lays it down so hard on the skins, Page is all slide and ferocity, and John Paul Jones does double duty on the bass and the scorching organ throughout. Like a lot of Zep tunes, the lyrics are actually quite bad, but the words never really mattered with them in my books. It's all about that swagger and groove here. This is dancing music folks, no need to argue, just get on up there and swing it! Apparently, it drove the band to dancing on the lawn of the recording studio when they heard the playback of the finished product as they were so overcome with joy at what they had created. "You are my flower, you are my power, you are my woman who knows." Groovy baby!

6. Time - Pink Floyd

From the stoner classic Dark Side Of The Moon the first part of this song is a real eye-opener. I once played it at a party when everyone was starting to lag, and turned it up to ear-splitting levels when the alarm clocks rang. Needless to say, I instantly became Mr. Popularity at that moment. This is a gorgeous song about time passing you by without you realizing it. The older I get, the more relevance this song has for me. I was 12 when this came out and I didn't hear this particular song until I was 13, but the message didn't hit home like it does now. Sung by David Gilmour and Richard Wright, this is just one song from an amazing album, but it is the top one for me. Hell, the guitar solo by Gilmour alone makes it that. This might be my fave guitar solo in any song ever. It is just so majestic and beautiful that I can listen to the solo over and over and it touches me every time. "Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way." Stiff upper lip mate!

5. Hard-Hearted Alice - Alice Cooper

When I play this gem for most people, they have no idea that it is Alice, especially the slow part near the start. From the album Muscle Of Love, his last with his fantastic original band, this song is full of great dynamics. The organ is quite tasty in the slow part, then the drums and bass take over when the song speeds up, then the organ does a nice little solo, followed by Michael Bruce and a rocking guitar solo. Alice's singing on this one is one of his best vocal parts as he loses most of his trademark sneer and plays it pretty straight, sounding very good in the process. I used to play this daily on the cafeteria jukebox in Grade 9 as I couldn't get enough. "Mind gets scrambled like eggs, get bruised and erased when you live in a brainstorm." V.O. will scramble your mind good, right Alice?

4. Lady Grinning Soul - David Bowie

It starts off with an amazing piano part by Mike Garson, sounding like a 19th century music hall piano. It trills all the way through the song, adding flavour and character to this fantastic song. Bowie's vocal is my favourite of his ever, all clear and full of feeling in the gorgeous tenor he had at that time. I always felt that he was so much more than a rock star, even before the movie roles and such. He is a true entertainer who can rock if he wants, but his versatility is virtually unmatched in popular music. The real topper though is the flamenco-like guitar part at about 1:40 by the under-appreciated genius that was Mick Ronson. Bowie has played with a ton of musicians in his long and distinguished career, but it would be pretty hard to top Ronson. He was so much more than just a guitar player. His string arrangements and other talents were top-notch. This beauty of a song is off the great Aladdin Sane record, with its unforgettable and iconic cover art. A tip of the hat to my bestest and oldest buddy, Steve, for being a teenage Bowie fanatic and laying so much great music on me! "Touch the fullness of her breast, feel the love of her caress. She will be your living end." One word.....beautiful!

3. In Every Dream Home A Heartache - Roxy Music

This was a real tough one. I debated long and hard over this or Mother Of Pearl. Martina, you will have to forgive me as I know Mother Of Pearl is your fave by them, and it is certainly one of mine, but I just couldn't omit Dream Home from my list. It's one of those songs that upon first listen, you go, "What the hell was that?" Then, after you've heard it 300,000 times, you go, "What the hell was that?" Just the creepiest song you may have ever heard, that's what! Bryan Ferry starts the song out questioning opulent living and God, then slowly moves into an ode to the underlying weirdness in people's seemingly ordinary lives, in this case his "lover ungrateful", a blow-up doll. Andy Mackay adds to the creepy factor with a snaky sax part and then Ferry hits home." I blew up your body, but you blew my mind." Then, it's all Phil Manzanera with a searing guitar part and Dave Thompson's maniacal drumming. "I bought you mail order, my plain wrapper baby. Your skin is like vinyl, the perfect companion." What the hell was that?

2. Funeral For A Friend / Love Lies Bleeding - Elton John

This is Elton's masterpiece. The lead track on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, the first album I ever bought, is 11 minutes long, but every second counts. The ARP synthesizer leads us in and then it is augmented by Elton's piano, Nigel Olsson's great drumming, Davey Johnstone's fab guitar and Dee Murray's full and nimble bass. The first part is a beautiful instrumental elegy that draws one in with its sadness. Then, the piano starts rollicking as only Elton can, and off we go! But wait! After some fantastic lead guitar, the piano quietly starts part 2, and then some big power chords kick into the vocals. The Love Lies Bleeding part features Johnstone and his guitar again and Elton's voice, which was quite good back then, before he became a caricature of himself and started re-writing songs for dead princesses. " The roses in the window box have tilted to one side. Everything about this house was born to grow and die." I miss those gatefold double LPs!

1. 5:15 - The Who

About a week after I bought Yellow Brick Road, I made my second album purchase, Quadrophenia, Pete Townshend's self-proclaimed "best thing I ever wrote." Townshend himself sings the lead in "Why should I care" part, then slam! bang! The Who kick it in like only they can and Daltrey is at his cocksure, mic-twirling best. The story of Jimmy, a young Mod with the weight of his world on his shoulders, misunderstood at home, not big with the ladies, and just wanting to belong. This great rockfest of a tune occurs when Jimmy is riding the train to Brighton at the height of his alienation, his brain full of amphetamines. As I get older, it seems to me that Jimmy was a little too self-centred for my liking, but this is still one of my favourite songs and albums. As usual with the Who, Moon is his own crazed self and Entwhistle kicks the shit out of his bass. A true anthem for doomed youth! "Inside outside, leave me alone. Inside outside, nowhere is home. Inside outside, where have I been? Out of my brain on the five fifteen." Those darn kids!