My Favorite Albums (Western)

In some other people’s blogs, I’ve come across something like ‘Desert Island Albums’ or similar names which are really about the favorite albums of the bloggers who claims that if they are trapped in desert or on remote island for the rest of life, they would love to bring those CDs with them….I just wonder where the hell you get the power (AC/DC) to listen to those CDs anyway after batteries are dry up…

Certainly, in these days and age, people are downloading individual songs like crazy. However, artists still release albums as CDs are not yet dead. I think albums still have its place in music, as artists usually consider an album as a project, especially those concept albums that many western musicians produce. To me they are like a nice salad, with different taste and texture, but somehow with a theme that linked together and the music flow smoothly throughout the albums. It is very much unlike many (but not all) local Hong Kong ‘so-called’ artists who only release album by tossing a mix of songs together, but they are ‘no-salad’, just imagine a salad bowl with spoiled fish, uncooked chicken, with watermelon, lots of pepper, and dumped all shits together….they just make you sick.

Anyway, it is actually very difficult for me to choose (out of 700-800 Western CDs that I own), the following are my favorite CDs (not in any order) of Western music (certainly, I will share my choices of other music in future):

Achtung Baby – U2
I didn’t really like it very much at the beginning, but ‘One’ is really my all time favorite song from U2. ‘Love is blindness’ is tragically good’. ‘Until The End Of The World’ and ‘Mysterious Ways’ continue the band’s guitar riff tradition. Though the band has many good songs in their other albums, but ‘One’ really wins me over.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:wpfyxq95ldde

No Angel – Dido
I started listen to Dido even before she became famous. I used to listen to her brother’s group – Faithless, and like their music quite a lot. Then, I checked out the guest vocal of their albums and found Dido. I bought that CD in 1999 and love it upon the first listening. Almost all songs in the album are good. Actually, I like this CD more than her follow up album ‘Life for Rent’ which is more or less an imitation of the first one, but not as good.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:w9fuxqtkldfe

Space Between Us – Craig Armstrong
I get to know this musician through Massive Attack. In their CD – ‘Protection’, Craig Armstrong played few songs and I like them a lot. He is particularly good in mixing sound of string instruments and down-tempo electronics which create musical atmosphere that fit in many film noirs. I think that’s the reason why he did quite a few movie soundtracks. There are only 2 tracks in ‘Space Between Us’that contain vocal and both of them are great: ‘This Love’ with Elizabeth Fraser from the disbanded group – Cocteau Twins is absolutely stunning! And the other lesser known song ‘Let’s go out tonight’ by a man’s voice is also very charming. This album is very ‘moody’, I would think.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:axfexqljldje

Kind of Blue – Mile Davis
I bought this CD just because of the name of Miles Davis who I then knew not much except that he is supposed to be one of the greatest Jazz artists of all time. I didn’t listen to this CD very often except in few occasions when Cora was in my home (before we got married), She doesn’t share much of my broad taste of music, and she is not much into song with vocal neither. So, music CDs became the natural choices. She found many classical or new age music ‘sleepy’, and I was surprisingly found out that she was ok with this Mile Davis CD. Actually, I began to listen to this CD more in later days and strangely like to put this on when I’m mopping the floor. That’s weird, but hey I like it, that’s all that matter.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3ifrxqegld0e

So Far... The Best of Sinead O'Connor – Sinead O’Connor
Sinead O'Connor is one of my favorite singers; because of her, I began my interest in Irish music and musicians. Actually, the first live concert that I paid to see when I was in the States was her concert. Her voice and the emotion that she put in her songs is simply captivating. I like most of her songs, so I’m a bit greedy to pick one of her compilation as a favorite, but most of the songs in the album are very good. My favorite got to be ‘You Made Me The Thief Of Your Heart’ written by Bono from U2. Actually, I own the CD single of this song with different versions. Other songs like ‘Don't Cry For Me Argentina’, ‘Troy’, ‘Success Has Made A Failure Of Our Home’ and ‘Fire On Babylon’ are all wicked good.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:wpfpxqrjldde

Dummy – Portishead
This album was release in 1994, but I didn’t know this group until 1997 when I borrowed Portishead’s second CD from Nelson Rocha, a colleague of mine. At first, I thought this band’s music was weird, but I remember I really fell in love with their music during a rainy evening when I was listening to their songs and was driving by myself in Harvard Square trying to find a parking space. I paid a lot of attention to the music, combining with the environment and atmosphere at that time; somehow I found that combination of environment and my feeling….so memorable. I couldn’t explain exactly how…but the mood and everything is just…..deep. Then, I began to find out more about this band afterwards and everyone on the web saying that their first album: Dummy is even better. Then, I bought it and listen to it….WOW, it is an amazing CD, the sound is sooo…..unique, Beth Gibbon’s voice is so eerie and sad which make the songs so depressingly good. Most songs in Dummy are great, particularly ‘Roads’, it is one of my all-time favorite song. Others like ‘Wandering Star’, ‘It’s a fire’, ‘Sour Time’, ‘Glory Box’…..just perfect. I don’t need to skip any song on this CD.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:hifixqthldde

Stars: The Best of the Cranberries, 1992-2002 – the Cranberries
Out of the favorite CDs that I mentioned here, this one.….I actually don’t own. Then, how come I claim that this is my favorite? It is because I love the Cranberries very much. I own ALL of their albums and this one is a compilation of their best songs, so I choose this one instead. I like them so much so that actually, I have seen their concert….twice!: one in Boston and one in Hong Kong. I first heard of the Cranberries…..nope not from Faye Wong’s Chinese cover version of ‘Dream’, but from my friend Edward who happened to have their first CD. Certainly, I began to like them, who just happen to be another Irish band. Dolories’voice is powerful, considering her small physique. My favorites are ‘Zombie’, ‘Ridiculous Thoughts’, ‘Just My Imagination’, ‘Promise’, ‘Salvation’, etc.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:fifixq8aldae

Absolute Garbage – Garbage
Similar to the Cranberries, I also don’t own this compilation, but I own most of their albums. When I was in the States, though I didn’t go to as many concerts as I wanted to, Garbage’s concert in Rhode Island got to be my all time favorite concert. While standing all the way in the concert to watch the band playing in a club during a cold winter night, I had a great time there with Nelson, his g-f (forgot her name), Helen, and Kathleen. People were moshing, jumping and raising their hands, etc. So natural hight! Lead singer, Shirley Manson’s voice was simply powerful. I still vividly remember her skin was actually very silky like 10 feet away from me. I remember how much I enjoy the gig that they play most of their hit songs in their first and second albums. My favorites from this band are ‘Only when it rains’, ‘Milk’, ‘Push it’, ‘#1 Crush’, and ‘You look so fine’, etc.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:fnfrxzr5ldte

Eden – Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman was introduced to me by my friend Nelson Tam. The first CD that I owned from Sarah is ‘Dive’. She is the first soprano that I know, with such a wonderful voice, how can I resist. Also, I think that her CDs really well-meshed her opera training voice and electronics synthesizer programming together, very good crossovers of classical singing and pop. I own quite a few of her CDs, but Eden is my favorite. Songs that I like include ‘Dust In The Wind’, ‘Deliver Me’, ‘Il Mio Cuore Va (My Heart Will Go On, From 'Titanic')’, ‘Scene D'Amour’, and ‘Only An Ocean Away’.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:anfoxqejldfe

Big Calm – Morcheeba
I get to know Morcheeba when I was very into the trip-hop music when I was in the States. I think this CD was introduced by my friend Helen who was also into this type of music at that time. There were many so called trip-hop groups, like Massive Attack, Portishead, Mono, etc. But, in terms of trip-hop album that I listened to most often, besides Dummy, it got to be this one. It is not as dark as Dummy, but the voice of the female lead of Morcheeba is so sultry that it just makes you feel soothing when you listen to her songs. My favorite songs are ‘Part of the Process’, ‘The music that we hear’, ‘Blindford’, etc.
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:kxfyxqljldae

Certainly, these 10 albums are by no mean the only ones that I like, there are #11, 12, 13, etc that I would really love to recommend to anyone who seriously like music. Maybe, I will talk about that more in future. Enough said for today.