Some highlights from our available discs include classics from Pink Floyd, some fast driving US rock and a perennial live classic that’s over 40 years old...
Pink Floyd – Atom Heart Mother (1970), Meddle (1971)
These are two albums which essentially set up the ‘Big Three’ Pink Floyd albums… Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here and The Wall. They both feature long, complex tracks filling one side and are more recognisably rock-based as opposed to their earlier more experimental albums. Though it’s fair to say the last track of Atom Heart Mother, called Adam’s Psychedelic Breakfast is, as the name suggests, pretty whacky. For me, the long track on Meddle, called Echoes is Pink Floyd at their best.
Z Z Top – Eliminator (1983)
Three massive beards, two guitars and a drum kit make up Z Z Top, whose sound on this album is archetypal American driving rock. The lyrics won’t win many awards, the variety between songs is, to be generous, limited but the sound has filled stadia around the world. The album includes the classics Sharp Dressed Man and Gimme All Your Lovin’ and the cover is the unforgettable red and yellow 1933 Ford coupe, itself called The Eliminator, designed and owned by Z Z Top’s lead guitarist Billy Gibbons. I noticed that when I played this album on my way into work I always arrived 10 minutes earlier than on other days!
Jeff Wayne – The War of the Worlds (1978)
I’m pretty sure that when Jeff Wayne released this album in 1978 he had no idea of the juggernaut he was letting loose. Released when two and a half minute punk songs were beginning to be ‘the thing’ this behemoth of a double album, based on the H G Wells sci-fi novel, went completely against fashion. Yet over 45 years later it is this music that still tours, attracting massive arena crowds. Originally featuring stars such as Justin Hayward (The Moody Blues), Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzie), David Essex (himself) and Richard Burton (pretty much everything) recent live performances have featured more modern stars such as Jason Donovan, Adam Garcia, Newton Faulkner and Liam Neeson (as a hologram). I was lucky enough to be one of the 13,000 or so aficionados who attended the Liverpool show in the 2018 40th Anniversary Tour where I chatted with fans who had seen the show over 20 times – now there’s commitment!
Finally….for those of you with fewer years than me, we’ve been donated a large number of dance, trance, techno and hip-hop discs, these are currently selling well in the Hospice’s Returned to Glory shop in Berkhamsted. If you want to re-live the ‘80s and ‘90s come along and indulge yourself!
Share Article