In addition to Everything Counts, another single release from the same album was Love in Itself that also became a favorite of mine. Both singles had very cynical lyrics which seemed to be a trade mark of sorts for the group. But, as good as these two songs were, my number one favorite was a much more optimistic song. It closed the album: And Then... has been embedded above.
Next, we will need to skip September altogether and jump directly to 3 October, when Genesis released yet another Phil Collins era album, this time without a separate title. In some ways, Genesis was actually a more tolerable release than Abacab because the pop songs it contained were not quite as bad as they had been on that previous album. And like then, the album once again contained a couple of genuine highlights that were quite good.
The opening track Mama became a moderate hit which seems a little surprising considering its extremely sombre subject matter and uncompromising art rock format. I am embedding the official video above, even though it contains the shortened version of the song. To enjoy Mama in all its power, you should really check out the album version that runs almost a minute and a half longer. The other excellent sequence on the album comprises of two similarly sinister sounding tracks called Home by the Sea (a song) and Second Home by the Sea (an instrumental). If you can, please do check them out as well.
Next, let's discuss a couple of releases that must have come out some time in the autumn but whose exact dates are unknown to me. The first one of them is Finnish. The eccentric sounding rock singer Kauko Röyhkä had already released three albums previously but they had received extremely poor reviews. It has been claimed that Kauko and his group Narttu were planning to quit if their fourth album were to suffer that same fate. For this reason, it only contained songs about love and childhood, and was even named Onnenpäivä (in English, Day of Happiness).
Onnenpäivä was recorded between 1 and 5 August, so it might have come out around October. No more bad reviews were in store: it became a revered modern classic of Finnish rock music. Some of its songs are perhaps a bit weaker, but you can listen to the album easily all the way through without really needing to skip anything. At the time, the single hit Nivelet (Joints) was my first introduction to the album. My initial favorite track Rakkauden valtakunta (Realm of Love) was the most beautifully powerful Finnish love song I had ever heard.
But, looking back, I think the true pinnacle is the title track that closes the album and has been embedded above. Most likely any non-Finnish speaking listener cannot enjoy its full power, which lies in the masterful combination of lyrics and composition. As you can hear, the music itself is very laconic, contradicting the masterfully written lyrics that have immense power. They combine teenage optimism with adult loss and regret in a way few other songs I have heard do.
The first album by Bon Jovi wasn't released until January 1984, but its first single and future opening track Runaway came out already in late 1983. You can say what you want about the group based on their later output: I agree that many of their hits redefine the term banality. But this first single I am always ready to defend. It is one of the absolutely essential straight rock tracks of the entire decade, and even though I am more inclined towards progressive rock, I do not look down on this type of rock and roll. Nor should you.
Next, we move on to November where three interesting albums came out in the space of only five days. The British pop group ABC had enjoyed noticeable success with last year's The Lexicon of Love. Even though it contained admittedly well made pop songs, I always thought the pinnacle of the group's career was the brilliant That Was Then But This is Now that opened their next album Beauty Stab, out on the 14th.
All right then, let's call a spade a spade. All of the 1983 music I have discussed so far has been good, but none of it has been on par with seventies music. Not even close. If it were up to this year's output so far, I wouldn't be able to name Album of the year. Nothing released by this point would have been worthy of that title - for the first time since 1968. But now, almost at the last minute, a new album release came out that was finally good enough to become Album of the year 1983. This took place only one day after ABC's album release: on 15 November.
The album in question has nothing whatsoever to do with prog. The best album of the year is the landmark heavy metal release Bark at the Moon by Ozzy Osbourne. In the original release, there is one weak track called Spiders but everything else is simply great. The former Black Sabbath singer succeeds in everything he attempts and manages to surprise me once again by making me enjoy a collection of songs that have absolutely nothing to do with everything I used to believe in. This is the second interesting heavy metal album of the year I referred to when discussing Dio's Holy Diver.
Three more days, and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame released his first, and still the best solo album I have heard. Walk into Light came out on 18 November and contained some exceptionally strong songwriting. I will not embed anything here but if you can and want to, please check out songs like Fly by Night, Trains, End Game and Looking for Eden to understand that this album was way, way better than anything that actual Jethro Tull released under that name during the entire decade.
This brings us to the end of 1983 and back to Tangerine Dream that opened our previous blog entry. 16 December marks the premiere of the second feature film by Michael Mann, a horror film called The Keep. You can say what you like about the film itself, but the brilliance of its soundtrack cannot be denied. It wasn't released as a recording until a very long time afterwards but here, embedded below, is the wonderfully ominous main title. Enjoy!
ALBUM OF THE YEAR:
Ozzy Osbourne: Bark at the Moon
UNMISSABLE TRACKS OF THE YEAR:
Brian Eno: An Ending (Ascent)
Depeche Mode: And Then...
Genesis: Mama
Kauko Röyhkä: Onnenpäivä
Kauko Röyhkä: Rakkauden valtakunta
Manfred Mann's Earth Band: Brothers and Sisters of Azania
Marillion: Script for a Jester's Tear
Mike Oldfield: Crises
Best albums of the year, 1967 to 1983:
1967: Pink Floyd: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
1968: -
1969: Procol Harum: A Salty Dog
1970: Genesis: Trespass
1971: Genesis: Nursery Cryme
1972: Yes: Close to the Edge
1973: Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon
1974: Mike Oldfield: Hergest Ridge
1975: Electric Light Orchestra: Face the Music
1976: Genesis: A Trick of the Tail
1977: Yes: Going for the One
1978: Genesis: And Then There Were Three
1979: Robert Fripp: Exposure
1980: Talking Heads: Remain in Light
1981: Camel: Nude
1982: Rush: Signals
1983: Ozzy Osbourne: Bark at the Moon
Best short tracks (under 12 minutes):
1967: Pink Floyd: Bike
1968: Pink Floyd: Julia Dream
1969: Pink Floyd: Cirrus Minor
1970: The Beatles: The Long and Winding Road
1971: Genesis: The Fountain of Salmacis
1972: Gentle Giant: Schooldays
1973: John Cale: Paris 1919
1974: Mike Oldfield: Mike Oldfield's Single
1975: The Tubes: Up from the Deep
1976: Gong: Chandra
1977: Yes: Going for the One
1978: Genesis: Down and Out
1979: Barclay James Harvest: Play to the World
1980: Saga: Don't Be Late
1981: John Foxx: The Garden
1982: Laurie Anderson: O Superman (For Massenet)
1983: Brian Eno: An Ending (Ascent)
Best long tracks (12 minutes or over):
1970: King Crimson: Lizard
1971: Van der Graaf Generator: A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers
1972: Yes: Close to the Edge
1973: King Crimson: Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part 1
1974: King Crimson: Starless
1975: Mike Oldfield: Ommadawn, Part 1
1976: -
1977: Yes: Awaken
1978: Popol Vuh: Brüder des Schattens, Söhne des Lichts
1979: U.K: Carrying No Cross
1980: Mike Rutherford: Smallcreep's Day
1981: -
1982: Mike Oldfield: Taurus II
1983: Mike Oldfield: Crises
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