Happy end of November all What an incredible year it has been both Harper-wise with gigs and releases etc I've met so many Stormcockers this year it has been great. It's always so strange to put faces to people. Now it is time for you to start thinking about submitting your top albums of the year for THE FESTIVE COCK FIFTY 2011 I know I always say this BUT it has been an incredible year for new music (and re-releases) New releases from old Festive Cock favourites like Laura Marling, The Decemberists The Unthanks & Noah & The Whale + a re-working by Nick and a superb compilation by Roy + lots of completely new stuff (the nu-folk thing just goes on and on - listen to any of the Communion records artists - what a movement - I noticed the brilliant Michael Kiwanuk on Jules Holland last night - saw him at Green Man really outstanding) and repackaged rereleases as always from Pink Floyd etc + new Kate Bush etc A lot of what I have listened to over the last few years has been due to this chart - let's face it - if 10+ stormcockers all vote for the same album - the chances are it's worth a listen. These are the rules: Any album released in any format in 2011 can be included. This DOES include reissues. You send me your top 20 or top 10 or top 7 or top 3 or whatever of the year. You don’t have to have bought it – it might be a Spotify job - but you should have at least listened to it a few times – or why would you vote for it? I write them down in my large cock book (!) I add em up & work out the top 50ish. Published on the mailing list on 31st December.Usually an album will need 2 or 3 votes to get into the bottom of the charts. We all get to chat about what people are voting for & some of us even go out & buy some of them that we haven't got - I promise you our communal taste is damn good. SUBMISSIONS DEADLINE 28th DECEMBER 2011 (allowing for Xmas present last minute votes) we all live happily ever after & the world is a better place etc please email me your votes on jfel2@yahoo.co.uk Looking forward to it Thanks James PS will publish last year's chart later - in case you can't remember how great it was.... :biggrin:
Last year's chart for those who are interested Yes I did make a couple of mistakes - one album got a couple of votes and should have been in there but I got confused because one person had written the artist then the title and the other person had written the title then the artist. I thought they were 2 different albums.... Ho hum I'm sorry I'm not very bright. Will try harder this year..... FESTIVE COCK Forty-three 2010 36= Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz Field Music - Measure The Coral - 'Butterfly House' Paul Mc Cartney - Band On The Run 3cd David Bowie - Station to Station special edition The Fall - Your Future Our Clutter The Orb ? Metallic Spheres Live at Leeds (reissue) - The Who Edwyn Collins - Losing Sleep 28= The Black Keys - Brothers Trembling Bells - 'Abandoned Love' The Owl Service - The View From A Hill Beach House - Teen Dream Alisdair Roberts - 'Too Long in this Condition' Bruce Springsteen - The Promise Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ? Mojo Band Of Horses - 'Infinite Arms' 22= Midlake - 'The Courage Of Others' Robert Wyatt, Gilad Atzmon, Ros Stephen - The Ghosts Within Ffion Regan - The Shadow of an empire Stornoway - Beachcomber's Windowsill Gil Scott-Heron I'm New Here Bellowhead - Hedonism 15= Kate Rusby Make The Light Peter Gabriel - Scratch My Back Gorillaz - Plastic Beach Belle and Sebastian - Write about Love Johnny Cash - American VI - Ain't No Grave MAry Jane - Eve Hawkwind - Blood of the Earth 14 Bob Dylan - The Bootleg Series Volume 9: The Witmark Demos 13 Exit Calm Exit Calm 12 Villagers - Becoming A Jackal 10= Grinderman -Grinderman 2 Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me 7= Wolf People Steeple John Grant - Queen Of Denmark Arcade Fire - The Suburbs 6 Richard Thompson - Dream Attic 5 Neil Young - Le Noise 4 The National - High Violet 3 Robert Plant - Band of Joy 2 Nick Harper - The Last Guitar 1 Laura Marling - I speak Because I Can The only weird thing I notice now is how low down Bellowhead are - I would have thought they would be top 5 at least.... Anyhow looking forward to hearing what you've been listening to this year
Where are you? Come on, I know everyone is strapped for cash but less than half of the usual voters have voted so far! And.....oh it doesn't cost anything anyhow From the votes so far we have a fascinating situation: 7 or 8 front runners and unusually a pop record in the lead... Not all the usual folk/rock stuff. That's what makes it interesting. Get your cheque books out, oops I mean get your laptops out and send me a list of your favourite albums of the year. It's not difficult... Enjoy the festive season James votes to jfel2@yahoo.co.uk :confused1::confused1:
Progness I don't want to name names but... nothing from our leader, El Rose, Big Chris or Winstanley yet. No pressure.... but .....:biggrin:
End of year apathy? Hard to remember albums from start of year? Too many Christmas parties and too much alcohol to remember lists? I have done so many for different sites, am bored with thinking about them now! But this was mine for my blog http://t.co/qztzVPC8 A #21 would have been A A Bondy's Believers. Think Leonard Cohen crossed with The Doors, in a midwestern town, on a David Lynch film set...yeah, it's like THAT!
Only a few days to go About 130 different albums voted for so far, of which 10 could get that covetted (?) top spot. Lots of people haven't voted yet. Come on! :angry::m16: James
Festive Cock 52 for 2011 Apologies thought I'd already posted this here... Well the dust has settled & serious thanks for all the lovely emails and comments.* Only one mistake noticed so far: there's not such an artist as Scarlett Tulip with an album called 'KT Tunstall' Great name for a band tho don't you think? I think that it is is a really interesting chart this year - the bottom reaches are always interesting as it shows a couple or three cockers like an album so well worth a listen - you will rarely be disappointed. Personally anything by the band Low I would recommend - a bit of an acquired taste but worth acquiring. They had another album this year as well that didn't get any votes but is also excellent. I'm investigating and spotifying quite a few of the other*artists that I haven't heard of and it is really interesting. Higher up in the chart some of it seems quite predictable but why*should loads and loads of people vote for fleet foxes, bon iver, laura marling etc if they aren't any good? The Decemberists hardly get a mention on the list all year*yet they won the whole thing a couple of years ago & got massive votes once more this year. I saw them at Hammersmith this year - my gig of 2011 -*If you haven't heard them yet I seriously recommend them - ignore the REM comparisons - they have a few small similarities but they are much more influenced by fairport and English early 70s folk rock mixed with a bit of country and slide guitar and songs that tell a story - what more could you want?* If you want an introduction to them I would suggest: Rise To Me, Jan & June Hymn & any of the faster ones*from this year's album, the whole of Hazards of Love (obviously) and the following earlier tracks: We Both Go Down Together (great song about suicide - jumping off the cliffs of Dover hand in hand), The Crane Wife (first song on the album), My Mother Was A Chinese Trapeze Artist, California One / Youth & Beauty Brigade. That should get you started - if you don't like them then give up, you can't say I haven't tried! I was really pleased that Adele got so many votes - proof once again that just because it's popular doesn't mean it's not good! At one stage she was even leading the chart. We were years ahead with Laura Marling - everyone seems to like her now & she wins all the awards - I'm not so taken with this album yet - but I haven't realy given it a proper listen yet.* As for Kate - well at first I was a bit annoyed she got so many votes (& so many late votes - Xmas presents?) - I thought it was a bit predictable Stormcockers voting for Kate Bush - but I trust your judgement & it's on spotify & I can't stop playing it - what a superb album - mad, quirky, single-minded and beautiful - a deserved winner. And a winner by miles - you can't argue against the public vote. Anyhow I know we should all have voted for Roy but of course many of us did not buy the album as we have every track already, so I'm presuming that*only people who actually got 'Songs of Love & Loss' voted for it - which is fair I think. Sorry for the ramble, I shall start drinking now - hope to catch some of you again in 2012. My favourite album of the year? King Creosote Diamond Mind - breathtaking. Make a cd of it & add Since We've Fallen Out by the Burns Unit at the end & you have the perfect album... Love to all Happy New Year! James The Chart in Full (for those who like it that way) * 33= Trembling Bells - The Constant Pageant* White Hills - H-P1 Van Der Graaf Generator - A Grounding In Numbers. Feist – Metals Lisa Hannigan - Passenger Billy Bragg - Fight Songs Rory Gallagher – Notes From San Francisco Various Artists - Johnny Boy would love this* June Tabor & Oysterband - Ragged Kingdom Nick Harper – Instrumental 2011 version Ed Sheeran + Caravan - In the Land of Grey and Pink (2011 remaster) Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of The Moon Immersion Edition Seasick Steve - You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks Frank Turner - England Keep My Bones Beach Boys: Smile Sessions Amy Winehouse – Lioness Arctic Monkeys – Suck It And See Kate Bush – Director's Cut Scarlet Tulip - KT Tunstall 25= Low – C'Mon; John Martyn -Heaven and Earth Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds Bjork - Biophilia Wild Beasts – Smother King Crimson - Starless & Bible Black Bill Callahan – 'Apocalypse' Wilco – 'The Whole Love' 19= Noah And The Whale – Last Night On Earth Iron & Wine – 'Kiss Eachother Clean' Josh T. Pearson – Last Of The Country Gentlemen James Blake – James Blake Radiohead – The King Of Limbs Gruff Rhys – Hotel Shampoo 16= Peter Gabriel - New Blood The Low Anthem – Smart Flesh Jonathon Wilson – Gentle Spirit 12= The Waterboys-An Appointment with Mr Yeats The Unthanks – 'Last' Tom Waits – Bad As Me Florence & The Machine – Ceremonials 11 The Unthanks - 'Diversions vol 1 The Songs Of Robert Wyatt and Anthony and the Johnsons' * 9= King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine Gillian Welch - The Harrow & The Harvest * 8 PJ Harvey - Let England Shake 5= Bon Iver - Bon Iver Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues Roy Harper - Songs of Love and Loss 4 Adele – 21 2= The Decemberists - The King is Dead Laura Marling – A Creature I Don’t Know 1 Kate Bush -50 Words For Snow
Did I put that Tunstall info the wrong way round? Bad me, sorry! Thanks for doing this again James, I really enjoyed reading it...
