Completely Conspicuous 542: Raised on Robbery

I'm joined by guest Phil Stacey as we discuss our favorite albums of 1974. Listen to the episode below or download directly.

Show notes:

- Recorded via Zoom

- Phil finally got a haircut

- In '74, Phil turned 5, I turned 7

- Capt. and Tennille got married, Sonny and Cher got divorced

- "The Streak" was a big hit

- Phil: Looking back, liked more songs than albums in '74

- Not a long list of albums we liked

- Radio was the main source of how people discovered music at that time

- Phil's likes: Linda Ronstadt, Little Feat, Bob Marley, Lou Reed, Gram Parsons, Big Star, Van Morrison, Clapton

- Jay's likes: Rush's debut album, Genesis, The Who, Queen, Steely Dan, Aerosmith, Zappa

- The various, very different, phases of Genesis' sound

- Queen is more popular than ever

- Jay's #5: Supertramp's breakthrough

- Phil's #5: Another great Stevie Wonder album

- Jay's and Phil's #4: Neil Young with a mellow classic, powered by "honey slides"

- Jay's #3: Big Star with an underrated power pop gem

- Phil's #3 and Jay's #1: Bowie closing out his glam period with a bang

- Phil's #2: Steely Dan featured a ton of guest musicians

- Jay's #2: Lou Reed releases a killer live show

- Phil's #1: Joni Mitchell hits it big with a jazzier sound, with help from Cheech & Chong

- Backed by Tom Scott, who later was bandleader on both the Pat Sajak and Chevy Chase late night shows

- Favorite songs: "Raised on Robbery" (Phil), "Diamond Dogs" (Jay)

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 540: Freak Out in a Moonage Daydream

I'm joined by guest Phil Stacey as we discuss our favorite albums of 1972. Listen to the episode below or download directly.

Show notes:

- Recorded via Zoom

- Re-recording because of audio issues

- Missed the podcast's 14th birthday on Aug. 3

- In '72, Phil turned 3, Jay turned 5

- Big tours going on: Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, McCartney

- Different concept of band longevity back then

- A lot of soft rock on the singles chart

- Phil's faves: Neil Young, Bowie, Elton, Stones, Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead, War, Jackson Browne, Van Morrison, Lou Reed, Big Star, Stevie Wonder, Little Feat

- Pete Townshend's solo debut

- Jay's faves: Sabbath, Steely Dan, Stones, NY, Lou Reed, Big Star, T. Rex, Alice Cooper, Roxy Music, Bowie

- Favorite song from favorite album:  "Jack Straw (live)" (Phil) and "Moonage Daydream" (Jay)

- Did audiences appreciate what they were seeing back then?

- Sometimes people have too much fun at shows

- Next time: 1973

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 479: Gone Too Soon

This week, it's part 1 of my discussion with Phil Stacey about how we deal with losing musicians we love. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Gord Downie died a few weeks ago
- Many high-profile music deaths in last few years
- Musicians are getting older, but also some tragic deaths
- Phil: Elvis Presley's death was memorable
- Lennon's death was shocking
- Phil: Cobain and Jerry Garcia's deaths hit hard
- Jay: The plane crash that killed Randy Rhoads stands out
- Lemmy, Bowie and Prince all died within a few months of each other
- Chris Cornell's death earlier this year came as a surprise
- Many big-name musicians died this year: Gregg Allman, Tom Petty, Chuck Berry, Grant Hart, Walter Becker
- You tend to dig into the back catalog
- Bowie's death kicked off a rough 2016 for music fans
- Losing Prince was a gut punch
- Jay: Saw the Tragically Hip many times over the years
- Downie released a posthumous double album
- Very captivating live performer
- Watched a lot of concert videos and documentaries on YouTube after he died
- Downie focused on indigenous people's rights in his last few years
- To be continued
 
Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 454: Top of the Pops

Part 3 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite indie rock of 2016. Listen to the episode below or download directly.
 

Show notes:
- Breitling's #4
- Frankie Cosmos is fronted by Kevin Kline's daughter
- Engaging pop record
- Kumar's #4
- Very political album from Drive-By Truckers
- Breitling's #3
- Classic C86-style guitar pop
- Good advice: Don't pay the ferryman
- Kumar's #3
- Another outstanding release from Jeff Rosenstock
- Digs into Millennial angst
- Breitling's #2
- Lambchop's new album isn't about the First Lady
- First single is 18 minutes long
- Kumar's #2
- Iggy's last hurrah?
- Josh Homme and friends provide backup
- Breitling's #1
- Johnny Foreigner explore life's beauty and disappointments
- Album came with a script
- Kumar's #1 and Breitling's #6
- Bowie goes out on a high note
- Put a lot of effort into the packaging
- Explorations of mortality from a man who knew he was about to die
- Looking forward to new albums in 2017: Cloud Nothings, Los Campesinos, Feelies, LCD Soundsystem, Jesus and Mary Chain, Ty Segall, Run the Jewels

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 432: Sound and Vision

Part 3 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of the first half of 2016. Listen to the episode below or download directly.
 

Show notes:
- Kumar's #4 and Breitling's #3
- Hallelujah the Hills releases another fine album
- Kumar's #3
- Third in Bob Mould's kickass trilogy
- Don't wait on a Husker Du reunion, Mould's current band is the real deal
- Indie rockers in their 50s are still bringing the heat
- The problem with being U2
- Breitling's #2
- The Car Seat Headrest kids are playing the rock
- Kumar's #2
- Possibly Iggy's last rock record
- Breitling's and Kumar's #1
- Bowie's last album, released three days before he died
- A consistent electronic sound
- Breitling: Looking forward to new Johnny Foreigner, Eros and the Eschaton, Urusei Yatsura comp, reissues from Rocketship and the Lilys
- Kumar: Anticipating new albums from Teenage Fanclub, Dinosaur Jr. and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

 The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blog Clicky Clicky. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.