Urban75 Album of the Year 1983

[Knotted]

Well it turns out there were no mermaids called Jimi but lots of electro. Something something New Order something. Daniel Johnston ftw and Fall Mafiah get ready to mobilise! Fly my pretties!

RYM says, Rolling Stone says (Final Cut ffs!), NME says

Send me a list. With the format Artist - Album (or if necessary Performer [Composer] - Album). Any length of list is fine. Best at the top. No compilations, no EP's. Live albums are fine. Archival albums are also fine but it's release date not recording date that counts. You have the rest of August to get it together.

 

[Knotted]

Anglophone music is a bit naff at this point IMO. Look what was happening in Japan:



Mariah

 

[Knotted]

If you don't like the Fall I strongly recommend you listen to Garden and Smile off Perverted by Language. That way you can be sure about your dislike of the Fall. They really are the pinnacle of the Fall's output.

 

[Knotted]

I'm a bit stuck this year and looking forward to someone finding something good. But for the minute, ooh look Brazilian prog rock classic Depois do fim by Bacamarte. Sort of imagine Baden Powell (the guitarist not the scouting guy) heading a lush symphonic rock band.

 

[Fez909]

Anglophone music is a bit naff at this point IMO. Look what was happening in Japan:



Mariah

And South Africa

Letta Mbulu - In The Music The Village Never Ends

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for In The Music The Village Never Ends by Letta Mbulu. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

 

[maomao]

Tom Waits discovers the key to the percussion cupboard:

 

[maomao]

Sonic Youth's first proper album.

 

[Knotted]

And South Africa

Letta Mbulu - In The Music The Village Never Ends

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for In The Music The Village Never Ends by Letta Mbulu. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

What an amazing voice.

 

[Fez909]

And South Africa

Letta Mbulu - In The Music The Village Never Ends

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for In The Music The Village Never Ends by Letta Mbulu. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

Actually, ZA is probably classed as Anglophone. Maybe?

This is defo Anglo, and had a pretty big impact.

ESG - Come Away With ESG

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Come Away With ESG by ESG. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

There are 584 samples and 12 covers of UFO alone listed on whosampled.com - I prefer Moody, if I had a pick a favourite track.

 

[Knotted]

And South Africa

Letta Mbulu - In The Music The Village Never Ends

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for In The Music The Village Never Ends by Letta Mbulu. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

And Nigeria

King Sunny Adé and His African Beats - Synchro System

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Synchro System by King Sunny Adé and His African Beats. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

 

[Fez909]

A week today, I hope to be dancing to this being performed live in a field, health-permitting. Hoping for some sun or it will feel wrong....



Valle dropping the perfect soundtrack to chill by the pool/beach/garden barbecue/wherever

Marcos Valle - Marcos Valle

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Marcos Valle by Marcos Valle. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

 

[Idris2002]

U2's War - don't laugh - may have been their best album, and it's certainly one I remember from that year. Pink Floyd's Final Cut is also 1983 (though it's basically Roger Waters flying solo). Then there's Billy Bragg's Life's a Riot album (I saw him in Belfast years ago, and the banter between the songs was better than the songs themselves),

 

[maomao]

Bit of a metal year:

 

[Fez909]

Another big Anglo album*. Though, it's not all great. But the highlights are top class. Pre-Detroit techno Juan making another tune that doesn't quite rival ESG for samples, but feels as important as some of the tunes that did sample were so big (Afrika Bambaataa, Missy Elliott)

Blueprint for future greatness, rather than a great album, IMO.

Cybotron - Enter

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Enter by Cybotron. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

*Starting to think your premise is wrong, Knotted

 

[Knotted]

Another big Anglo album*. Though, it's not all great. But the highlights are top class. Pre-Detroit techno Juan making another tune that doesn't quite rival ESG for samples, but feels as important as some of the tunes that did sample were so big (Afrika Bambaataa, Missy Elliott)

Blueprint for future greatness, rather than a great album, IMO.

Cybotron - Enter

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Enter by Cybotron. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

*Starting to think your premise is wrong, Knotted

Need another ten albums from you to be proved wrong. Keep 'em coming.

 

[Knotted]

Dutch albeit anglo anarcho post punks The Ex with Tumult



Loopy rhythms.

See also Dignity of Labour

 

[marty21]

Should be able to manage some from this year , I was well excited about music, doing A levels , turning 18 , #goodtimes

 

[Fez909]

Keeping on the whosampled theme, this has a massive 128 tunes sampling Juicy Fruit and its variations. No doubt there are many more not listed.

The album is tight and dripping with funk. It's got the lot. Vocoders, ridiculous synth bass workouts, classic drum machine action. Great stuff.

Mtume - Juicy Fruit

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Juicy Fruit by Mtume. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

 

[Fez909]

There aren't many Italo albums worth listening to - mostly cheesey filler around one or two (also cheesey) dancefloor bangers. But I think this is a rare exception. Can't imagine it'll do well in the U75 poll, though

Kano - Another Life

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Another Life by Kano. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

 

[Spandex]

March 2020. That week when it became apparent that the pandemic was upon us, that a lockdown needed to happen and no-one was certain what lay ahead. Tension. Anxiety. My usual soundtrack wasn't cutting it. I think a lot of people were in a similar position. A lot of folk seemed to dive into soothing ambient sounds to sooth their worried minds, but all that gentle shit just grated on my nerves.

Then out of nowhere the perfect background music to those troubling times came to me: ZZ Top's Eliminator.

I'd never even thought to listen to it since it's release in 1983, but for that week their daft new-wave boogie-synth dance-metal jams were about all my brain could tolerate.

ZZ Top - I salute you

 

[Spandex]

Bit of a metal year

 

[Knotted]

Keeping on the whosampled theme, this has a massive 128 tunes sampling Juicy Fruit and its variations. No doubt there are many more not listed.

The album is tight and dripping with funk. It's got the lot. Vocoders, ridiculous synth bass workouts, classic drum machine action. Great stuff.

Mtume - Juicy Fruit

Explore songs, recommendations, and other album details for Juicy Fruit by Mtume. Compare different versions and buy them all on Discogs.

www.discogs.com

This is great but the way they keep singing "jucé" has tickled me. Crumbs.

 

[Indeliblelink]

This is rather lovely, a review on RYM describes it as sounding like a cross between Brian Eno & Vashti Bunyan.
Virginia Astley - From Gardens Where We Feel Secure

 

[Magnus McGinty]

I’m going to indulge in these threads now given DSOTM didn’t win. A nice way to listen to new stuff. So far, without listening to anything else I’d vote The Fall and Kill ‘Em All.

 

[hitmouse]

If you don't like the Fall I strongly recommend you listen to Garden and Smile off Perverted by Language. That way you can be sure about your dislike of the Fall. They really are the pinnacle of the Fall's output.

View attachment 385804

No Hex Enduction Hour though, is it?

 

[hitmouse]

Death Church was 1983 so that's this thread sorted then:

 

[Knotted]

No Hex Enduction Hour though, is it?

I don't know. First side is better than Hex, second side is worse than Hex IMO.

I think I would list my ten favourite Fall albums in this order:

Dragnet
Slates
Perverted By Language
Room to Live
Hex Enduction Hour
Live at the Witch Trials
Bend Sinister
Totale's Turns
Grotesque: After the Gramme
This Nation's Saving Grace

 

[hitmouse]

I bet some pedantic spoilsports will try to claim that this is "not an album" and "very clearly an EP, as stated on the cover", but it's 12 or 13 minutes of hateful gold, probably their finest moment imo:

 

[Indeliblelink]

Wild Style OST - First truly great hip hop album and it is a hip hop album not just a rap album. Soundtrack to the film that had come out the year before. Chris Stein from Blondie & Fab 5 Freddy along with performances from the film. The iconic cover graffiti by Zephyr, Revolt and Sharp.

 

[hitmouse]

And Marine Girls did Lazy Ways: