I think I'll do a deep dive on '74, my "first thought best thoughts" don't feel very best thought, and I may have voted in 2003 before realizing my #1 by a mile was an album I hadn't heard until 2023.
1974 deep dive update, I am now going through every Japanese album I can find and could easily make a top 20 just from Japan (but won't). Unbelievable.
"I've long held 1974 as the nadir for Anglo-American music in the rock era, and when it came to selecting a year for this year's summer poll, I didn't hesitate"
I love it for just that reason. When I was looking for 1974 for Unpolled Bangers in the People's Pop Poll, all the great singles in my memory turned out to actually have been 1973 or 1975. (Well, all the great singles in my memory turned out to be "Smokin' In The Boys Room," 1973.)
But IN ORDER TO TORTURE PEOPLE, I can report that, according to discogs, there was an actual, physical single (they have the photo to prove it) put out in France in 1974 of the New York Dolls' "Babylon"/"Human Being" which would be contending for my number one EXCEPT that, also according to discogs, it's a *promo* single. Hey, do I *have* to disqualify it? Do I *have* to? [Grumbles.]
Well, my having rules, even if they're totally idiosyncratic to me, makes the search work better. But I truly haven't decided what the rule should be. Also, discogs being discogs, a promo single turning up doesn't mean that an equivalent nonpromo single doesn't also exist.
Btw, in a comment to Chuck's 150 Best Albums Of 1974, I give my reasons for insisting that the title of the Dolls album is "Too Much Too Soon," not "In Too Much Too Soon." The "in" on the cover clearly means "starring in," which fits with the Hollywood, showbiz theme of some of the lyrics. ("In" meaning "head deep in too much too soon" would be a good title too, but it's simply not what's meant here). Dave has suggested listing the album as "New York Dolls - New York Dolls in Too Much Too Soon," which also works. Think the best way I can explain my Too Much Too Soon argument is that you can either call an album James Brown Presents A Soulful Christmas, or you can call it A Soulful Christmas, but you can't call it Presents A Soulful Christmas
...unless you play with the punctuation so that it's Presents! A Soulful Christmas, with kids and cardboard boxes and wrapping paper on the cover. Anyhow, here's my comment:
This is definitely going to be the major "some people are going to be *very* unhappy no matter what" controversy of the poll, perhaps rivaled only by the Steely Dan placement
I have resigned myself to In Too Much Too Soon being the dominant title choice. I will bear up under this sorrow.
(Also, for now, I've decided to allow "Human Being" as a single after all, since my other choice as single, "Who Are The Mystery Girls" (flip of "Stranded In The Jungle") - the real title of which, btw, is, as far as *I'm* concerned, "Who's The Mystery Girls" (ffs, lyrics pages, don't you even listen to what you're transcribing?), though both grammatological usages appear in the song so there is justification for the other song title choice - is at risk of falling out of my top ten.)
Hey, I thought I voted here before. But I don't see it so I'm gonna try again. I basically went with records I've actually owned and listened to over the years, so I acknowledge that I'm probably missing some cool stuff I should learn about eventually.
Big Star Radio City 30
Richard & Linda Thompson I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight 25
13. Richard & Linda Thompson, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight 7
14. Ry Cooder, Paradise and Lunch 6
15. Eric Clapton, 461 Ocean Boulevard 6
16. Slapp Happy, Slapp Happy 5
17. Labelle, Nightbirds 5
18. Robert Wyatt, Rock Bottom 5
19. Average White Band, AWB 5
20. Eno, Taking Tiger Mountain (by Strategy) 5
& a ‘burn immediately after filing’ singles list:
1. Roxy Music, “A Really Good Time” (everybody has to sometimes break the rules)
2. MFSB, “TSOP”
3. George McCrae, “Rock Your Baby”
4. David Bowie, “Rebel Rebel”
5. Sparks, “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us”
6. William DeVaughn, “Be Thankful for What You Got”
7. Queen, “Killer Queen”
8. Electric Light Orchestra, “Boy Blue”
9. Ronnie Lane, “The Poacher”
10. Elton John, “The Bitch is Back”
Regretfully edged out: Fear, Open Our Eyes, A Tábua de Esmeralda, Rufusized, Meet the Residents, Perfect Angel, Unrest, Let Me in Your Life, The Hoople, Fulfillingness’ First Finale, Musik Von Harmonia, the two King Crimson LPs, the two Miles Davis LPs, lotsa fop dessert (10cc, Sparks, Supertramp – there IS such thing as a guilty pleasure)
10 points apiece, I don't think I'm equipped right now to do more complicated math.
Eno - Here Come the Wam Jets
Roxy Music - Country Life
Bryan Ferry - Another Time, Another Place
Eno - Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy
New York Dolls - In Too Much Too Soon
Miles Davis - Get Up With It
Kraftwerk - Autobahn
John Cale - Fear
Neil Young - On the Beach
Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark
Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic
Richard & Linda Thompson - I Want To See The Bright Lights Shine Tonight
Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness' First Finale
David Bowie, Diamond Dogs
Randy Newman, Good Old Boys
Alice Cooper, Greatest Hits
Shocking paucity of black pop, which I assume would figure more on (if not dominate) my singles list, which I don't have time to do before going on vacation. Wouldn't you know it, the Al Green record released that year (Explores Your Mind--great title) is the one from that era I'm not familiar with, I admire though am (typically) less than enamoured by that year's Funkadelic (Standing on the Verge of Getting it On--also a 10.0 title), and to be honest, I'm not really *that* committed to my Stevie Wonder choice; it's a marked drop from his previous two, though his synthesizer work, if I'm not mistaken, is pretty terrific throughout (am I wrong? I'll have to re-listen to find out). Mind you, 'marked drop' (or anyway, 'drop') also applies to my Roxy/Ferry/Dolls/Bowie picks (to put it mildly on that last one, half of which is near unlistenable), but those artists define(d) those years for me, so there's no possibility they wouldn't show up here anyway. (I was genuinely surprised to learn through this that Here Comes the Warm Jest was a '74 release. Always assumed it was '73. Resisted the temptation to rope in the previous Ferry/Roxy albums, which were probably not heard much in North American until '74, but not being able to recall that precise detail myself I stuck to binding, country-of-origin release date, which I think was your criteria anyway?) Court and Spark is the Joni I return to most often (by quite a distance), and it's possible that "Raised on Robbery" would be a Top 3 single--the one and only time in her career she can be said to have "rocked."
I don't know if it's a good idea to have put scare quotes around "rocked." Some weird god-knows-why lingering embarrassment there which is probably unnecessary. "Robbery" rocks, ok?
Having checked the 70 versions of the single "Shame, Shame, Shame" that discogs shows, the billing, in order of frequency, is:
(1) Shirley (and Company)
(2) Shirley & Company
(3) Shirley and Company
(4) Shirley & Co. [this is on the sleeve of the Hungarian release (which shows up several times), but the inner label itself says "Shirley and Company"]
(5) Shirley & Co [no period, this is the sleeve in Netherlands and France; the inner label says "Shirley & Company" in Netherlands, "Shirley & Co." [with period] in France]
It's hard to readjust to Pazz and Jop eligibility after adhering to the People's Pop Polls rules for so long (I think PPP are better for retrospective polling generally but maybe not true to the spirit of the year as it was lived. But joke's on you, I wasn't alive yet so how would I know!)
The crucial question I'm contemplating via this research, though, is whether to call the captivating male dancer here "Company," "Co." "and Company," "& Company," or, as the video caption suggests, "& Co"
After a very cursory exploration over the last few weeks, I've got to agree with Brad that this is a bad year for music. There's a bunch of halfway amazing, halfway awful albums (Neil, Stevie, Bob, Sly, Leonard, Randy, Brian, Linda) and just so, so much schlock. Geez that Raspberries album is awful. I'd want a few more months to feel totally confident that there aren't a few more diamonds in this rough year, because I absolutely love the Betty Davis record and I wonder if there's more like it that never made a Pazz and Jop.
1974 has some GREAT music! Here are my lists.
Albums
Brian Eno - Here Come The Warm Jets (20)
David Bowie - Diamond Dogs (20)
Bob Dylan & The Band - Before The Flood (20)
Big Star - Radio City (15)
Bob Marley & The Wailers - Natty Dread (15)
Betty Davis - They Say I'm Different (10)
Sly and The Family Stone - Small Talk (10)
T. Rex - Zinc Alloy And The Hidden Riders Of Tomorrow (10)
Brian Eno - Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) (10)
John Lennon - Walls & Bridges (10)
King Crimson - Starless And Bible Black (10)
Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness First Finale (10)
Sensations Fix - Fragments Of Light (5)
Gram Parsons - Return Of The Grievous Angel (5)
Roxy Music - Country Life (5)
Mott The Hoople - The Hoople (5)
Van Morrison - Veedon Fleece (5)
Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic(5)
Gene Clark - No Other (5)
Lou Reed - Sally Can't Dance (5)
Singles
Labelle - Lady Marmalade
Bad Company - Bad Company
The Blackbyrds - Walking In Rhythm
The Jackson Five - Dancing Machine
William DeVaughn - Be Thankful For What You Got
Rolling Stones - It's Only Rock'n'Roll
Al Green - Take Me To The River
Kraftwerk - Autobahn
Fire - Ohio Players
Ann Peebles - I Can't Stand The Rain
1974 was an insanely good year for music...much I had to leave out, which can be found here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6B4ZfR1ALSetmQkX3SAV7p?si=110bf062fe344225
Albums
Joni Mitchell - Court & Spark (25)
Linda Ronstadt - Heart Like A Wheel (20)
Gram Parsons - Grievous Angel (20)
Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic (20)
Raspberries - Starting Over (15)
Willie Nelson - Phases & Stages (10)
Brian Eno - Here Come The Warm Jets (10)
Richard & Linda Thompson - I Want To See The Bright Lights Shine Tonight (10)
Average White Band - AWB (10)
Big Star - Radio City (10)
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Second Helping (5)
Barry White - Can't Get Enough (5)
Bad Company - s/t (5)
Dolly Parton - Jolene (5)
Jackson Browne - Late For The Sky (5)
Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness' First Finale (5)
Roxy Music - Country Life (5)
Millie Jackson - Caught Up (5)
ELO - Eldorado(5)
Ohio Players - Fire (5)
Singles
Dolly Parton - Jolene
Dionne Warwick/Spinners - Then Came You
George Jones - Grand Tour
BTO - You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
George McCrae - Rock Your Baby
Blue Magic - Sideshow
Billy Swan - I Can Help
Spinners - Mighty Love
Shirley Brown - Woman to Woman
Stylistics - You Make Me Feel Brand New
Maybe they keep 3 extra Eves as alternates?
I think I'll do a deep dive on '74, my "first thought best thoughts" don't feel very best thought, and I may have voted in 2003 before realizing my #1 by a mile was an album I hadn't heard until 2023.
I hope no one finalizes their list before listening to Tuca's DRACULA I LOVE YOU (yes I just discovered this an hour ago) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMaidh-ltJU
1974 deep dive update, I am now going through every Japanese album I can find and could easily make a top 20 just from Japan (but won't). Unbelievable.
"Dracula..." is really good! But not a favorite. Might make a top 50.
"I've long held 1974 as the nadir for Anglo-American music in the rock era, and when it came to selecting a year for this year's summer poll, I didn't hesitate"
I love it for just that reason. When I was looking for 1974 for Unpolled Bangers in the People's Pop Poll, all the great singles in my memory turned out to actually have been 1973 or 1975. (Well, all the great singles in my memory turned out to be "Smokin' In The Boys Room," 1973.)
But IN ORDER TO TORTURE PEOPLE, I can report that, according to discogs, there was an actual, physical single (they have the photo to prove it) put out in France in 1974 of the New York Dolls' "Babylon"/"Human Being" which would be contending for my number one EXCEPT that, also according to discogs, it's a *promo* single. Hey, do I *have* to disqualify it? Do I *have* to? [Grumbles.]
As always, the real rule is "vote for whatever you want, I just count stuff"
Well, my having rules, even if they're totally idiosyncratic to me, makes the search work better. But I truly haven't decided what the rule should be. Also, discogs being discogs, a promo single turning up doesn't mean that an equivalent nonpromo single doesn't also exist.
Btw, in a comment to Chuck's 150 Best Albums Of 1974, I give my reasons for insisting that the title of the Dolls album is "Too Much Too Soon," not "In Too Much Too Soon." The "in" on the cover clearly means "starring in," which fits with the Hollywood, showbiz theme of some of the lyrics. ("In" meaning "head deep in too much too soon" would be a good title too, but it's simply not what's meant here). Dave has suggested listing the album as "New York Dolls - New York Dolls in Too Much Too Soon," which also works. Think the best way I can explain my Too Much Too Soon argument is that you can either call an album James Brown Presents A Soulful Christmas, or you can call it A Soulful Christmas, but you can't call it Presents A Soulful Christmas
...unless you play with the punctuation so that it's Presents! A Soulful Christmas, with kids and cardboard boxes and wrapping paper on the cover. Anyhow, here's my comment:
https://accidentalevolution.wordpress.com/2021/01/12/150-best-albums-of-1974/#comment-1785
And here's Dorothy Malone in Too Much, Too Soon
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052302
This is definitely going to be the major "some people are going to be *very* unhappy no matter what" controversy of the poll, perhaps rivaled only by the Steely Dan placement
I have resigned myself to In Too Much Too Soon being the dominant title choice. I will bear up under this sorrow.
(Also, for now, I've decided to allow "Human Being" as a single after all, since my other choice as single, "Who Are The Mystery Girls" (flip of "Stranded In The Jungle") - the real title of which, btw, is, as far as *I'm* concerned, "Who's The Mystery Girls" (ffs, lyrics pages, don't you even listen to what you're transcribing?), though both grammatological usages appear in the song so there is justification for the other song title choice - is at risk of falling out of my top ten.)
Amended above
Albums, all 10 points:
Dolly Parton-JOLENE
Funkadelic-STANDING ON THE VERGE OF GETTING IT ON
Keith Hudson-PICK A DUB
Betty Davis-THEY SAY I'M DIFFERENT
Labelle-NIGHTBIRDS
Big Star-RADIO CITY
Can-SOON OVER BAMALUMA
Gil Scott-Heron-WINTER IN AMERICA
Stevie Wonder-FULFILLINGNESS' FIRST FINALE
Neil Young-ON THE BEACH
King Crimson-RED
Roxy Music-COUNTRY LIFE
Brian Eno-HERE COME THE WARM JETS
John Cale-FEAR
Steely Dan-PRETZEL LOGIC
Miles Davis-GET UP WITH IT
Richard & Linda Thompson-I WANT TO SEE THE BRIGHT LIGHTS TONIGHT
Kraftwerk-AUTOBAHN
Dadwah-PEACE AND LOVE
the Wailers-BURNIN'
Singles on the way.
Singles (all 10 points):
Sparks-"This Town Ain't Big Enough For the Both of Us"
Queen-"Killer Queen"
Ann Peebles-"I Can't Stand the Rain"
Kool & the Gang-"Jungle Boogie"
ABBA-"Waterloo"
David Bowie-"Rebel Rebel"
New York Dolls-"Babylon"
Parliament-"Up for the Down Stroke"
Al Green-"Take Me to the River"
William DeVaughn-"Be Thankful For What You've Got"
The year I graduated high school and went to college. I know these records so well little relistening was needed.
ALBUMS
Steely Dan. Pretzel Logic (30)
Van Morrison. Veedon Fleece (30)
New York Dolls. Too Much Too Soon (20)
Randy Newman. Good Old Boys (20)
Eno. Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy (10)
Joni Mitchell. Court and Spark (10)
Miles Davis. Get Up With It (10)
Jan Garbarack and Bobo Stenson Quartet. Witchi-Tai-To (10)
Neil Young. On the Beach (5)
Al Green. Al Green Explores Your Mind (5)
Bob Dylan and the Band. Before the Flood (5)
Richard and Linda Thompson. I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight (5)
Roswell Rudd Flexible Flyer (5)
Bob Marley and the Wailers. Natty Dread (5)
Gato Barbiari. Chapter Two: Hasta Siempre (5)
Van Morrison. It’s Too Late to Stop Now (5)
Stevie Wonder. Fufillingness First Finale (5)
McCoy Tyner. Atlantis (5)
Funkadelic. Standing on the Verge of Getting it On (5)
Miles Davis. Big Fun (5)
SINGLES
George McCrae “Rock Your Baby” *
Lynyrd Skynyrd “Sweet Home Alabama”
Bob Marley “No Woman No Cry”
Linda Rondstat “You’re No Good”
Roxy Music “All I Want Is You “
Paul McCartney and Wings “Jet/LetMe Roll It”
Raspberries “Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)”
Spinners “Then Came You”
Elton John “Bennie and the Jets”
ABBA “Waterloo”
ALBUMS
Richard and Linda Thompson: I Want To See the Bright Lights Tonight 19
Roxy Music: Stranded 17
Van Morrison: Veedon Fleece 16
Big Star: Radio City 16
Brian Eno: Here Come the Warm Jets 14
Joni Mitchell: Court and Spark 13
New York Dolls: In Too Much Too Soon 11
Bob Marley and the Wailers: Natty Dread 11
Randy Newman: Good Old Boys 10
Steely Dan: Pretzel Logic 9
Gram Parsons: Return of the Grievous Angel 9
Stevie Wonder: F. F. Finale 9
Bryan Ferry: These Foolish Things 8
Neil Young: On the Beach 7
Harry Nilsson: Pussy Cats 6
Spinners: Mighty Love 5
Yes: Relayer 5
Isao Tomita: Snowflakes are Dancing 5
King Crimson: Red 5
Eric Clapton: 461 Ocean Blvd 5
Albums
Richard and Linda Thompson -- ...Bright Lights (25)
Joni Mitchell -- Court and Spark (23)
New York Dolls -- In Too Much Too Soon (13)
Brian Eno -- Tiger Mountain (12)
Gram Parsons -- Grievous Angel (12)
Van Morrison -- It's Too Late (10)
Neil Young -- On the Beach (10)
Steely Dan -- Pretzel Logic (10)
Big Star -- Radio City (10)
Lynyrd Skynyrd -- Second Helping (8)
Randy Newman --Good Old Boys (8)
Al Green -- Explores Your Mind (8)
Funkadelic -- Standing on the Verge...(8)
Lou Reed -- Rock and Roll Animal -- (8)
Willie Nelson -- Phases and Stages (7)
Robert Wyatt -- Rock Bottom (7)
The Spinners -- Mighty Love (6)
Ronnie Lane -- Anymore for Anymore (5)
Yes -- Relayer (5)
Bob Marley -- Natty Dread (5)
Singles
Rufus -- Tell Me Something Good
Joni Mitchell -- Help Me
Kool and The Gang -- Hollywood Swinging
George McCrae -- Rock Your Baby
Billy Swan -- I Can Help
Dionne Warwick and The Spinners -- Then Came You
William De Vaughn -- Be Thankful For What You've Got
Greg Allman -- Midnight Rider
David Bowie Rebel Rebel
Lynyrd Skynyrd -- Sweet Home Alabama
Hey, I thought I voted here before. But I don't see it so I'm gonna try again. I basically went with records I've actually owned and listened to over the years, so I acknowledge that I'm probably missing some cool stuff I should learn about eventually.
Big Star Radio City 30
Richard & Linda Thompson I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight 25
Joni Mitchell Court and Spark 20
Gram Parsons Grievous Angel 20
New York Dolls In Too Much Too Soon 15
Stevie Wonder Fulfillingness First Finale 10
Dolly Parton Jolene 8
Roxy Music Country Life 7
Lou Reed Sally Can't Dance 7
Brian Eno Here Come the Warm Jets 6
Steeleye Span Now We Are Six 6
Brian Eno Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy 6
Mott the Hoople the Hoople 5
Parliament Up For the Down Stroke 5
Tom Waits The Heart of Saturday Night 5
John Cale Fear 5
Miles Davis Big Fun 5
Blue Oyster Cult Secret Treaties 5
Steely Dan Pretzel Logic 5
Van Morrison It's Too Late to Stop Now 5
1. Big Star, Radio City 20
2. Steely Dan, Pretzel Logic 20
3. Van Morrison, It’s Too Late to Stop Now 17
4. Brian Eno, Here Come the Warm Jets 14
5. Joni Mitchell, Court and Spark 14
6. Neil Young, On the Beach 13
7. Bob Marley & the Wailers, Natty Dread 12
8. New York Dolls, in Too Much Too Soon 12
9. Randy Newman, Good Old Boys 10
10. Gram Parsons, Grievous Angel 10
11. Gladys Knight & the Pips, Claudine 7
12.Linda Ronstadt, Heart Like a Wheel 7
13. Richard & Linda Thompson, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight 7
14. Ry Cooder, Paradise and Lunch 6
15. Eric Clapton, 461 Ocean Boulevard 6
16. Slapp Happy, Slapp Happy 5
17. Labelle, Nightbirds 5
18. Robert Wyatt, Rock Bottom 5
19. Average White Band, AWB 5
20. Eno, Taking Tiger Mountain (by Strategy) 5
& a ‘burn immediately after filing’ singles list:
1. Roxy Music, “A Really Good Time” (everybody has to sometimes break the rules)
2. MFSB, “TSOP”
3. George McCrae, “Rock Your Baby”
4. David Bowie, “Rebel Rebel”
5. Sparks, “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us”
6. William DeVaughn, “Be Thankful for What You Got”
7. Queen, “Killer Queen”
8. Electric Light Orchestra, “Boy Blue”
9. Ronnie Lane, “The Poacher”
10. Elton John, “The Bitch is Back”
Regretfully edged out: Fear, Open Our Eyes, A Tábua de Esmeralda, Rufusized, Meet the Residents, Perfect Angel, Unrest, Let Me in Your Life, The Hoople, Fulfillingness’ First Finale, Musik Von Harmonia, the two King Crimson LPs, the two Miles Davis LPs, lotsa fop dessert (10cc, Sparks, Supertramp – there IS such thing as a guilty pleasure)
10 points apiece, I don't think I'm equipped right now to do more complicated math.
Eno - Here Come the Wam Jets
Roxy Music - Country Life
Bryan Ferry - Another Time, Another Place
Eno - Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy
New York Dolls - In Too Much Too Soon
Miles Davis - Get Up With It
Kraftwerk - Autobahn
John Cale - Fear
Neil Young - On the Beach
Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark
Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic
Richard & Linda Thompson - I Want To See The Bright Lights Shine Tonight
Stevie Wonder - Fulfillingness' First Finale
David Bowie, Diamond Dogs
Randy Newman, Good Old Boys
Alice Cooper, Greatest Hits
Shocking paucity of black pop, which I assume would figure more on (if not dominate) my singles list, which I don't have time to do before going on vacation. Wouldn't you know it, the Al Green record released that year (Explores Your Mind--great title) is the one from that era I'm not familiar with, I admire though am (typically) less than enamoured by that year's Funkadelic (Standing on the Verge of Getting it On--also a 10.0 title), and to be honest, I'm not really *that* committed to my Stevie Wonder choice; it's a marked drop from his previous two, though his synthesizer work, if I'm not mistaken, is pretty terrific throughout (am I wrong? I'll have to re-listen to find out). Mind you, 'marked drop' (or anyway, 'drop') also applies to my Roxy/Ferry/Dolls/Bowie picks (to put it mildly on that last one, half of which is near unlistenable), but those artists define(d) those years for me, so there's no possibility they wouldn't show up here anyway. (I was genuinely surprised to learn through this that Here Comes the Warm Jest was a '74 release. Always assumed it was '73. Resisted the temptation to rope in the previous Ferry/Roxy albums, which were probably not heard much in North American until '74, but not being able to recall that precise detail myself I stuck to binding, country-of-origin release date, which I think was your criteria anyway?) Court and Spark is the Joni I return to most often (by quite a distance), and it's possible that "Raised on Robbery" would be a Top 3 single--the one and only time in her career she can be said to have "rocked."
Thanks for doing this.
I don't know if it's a good idea to have put scare quotes around "rocked." Some weird god-knows-why lingering embarrassment there which is probably unnecessary. "Robbery" rocks, ok?
OK, I am maxed out on 1974, calling it!
ALBUMS
1. Tuca: Drácula I Love You (20)
2. Ema Sugimoto: Emma Is Love (20)
3. Slapp Happy: Slapp Happy (15)
4. New York Dolls: New York Dolls in…Too Much Too Soon (15)
5. Miles Davis: Get Up With It (15)
6. Hugh Masekela: I Am Not Afraid (10)
7. Mulatu Astatke: Ethio Jazz (10)
8. Neil Young: On the Beach (10)
9. Queen: Sheer Heart Attack (10)
10. Robin Trower: Bridge of Sighs (10)
11. Chie Sawa: 23 (Twenty-Three Years Old) (10)
12. Kim Jung Mi: s/t (10)
13. Gedo: Gedo (10)
14. Nilüfer: Nilüfer LP (5)
15. Hall and Oates: War Babies (5)
16. Chairmen of the Board: Skin I’m In (5)
17. Lou Reed: Sally Can’t Dance (5)
18. Transsylvania Phoenix: Mugur de fluier (5)
19. Bo Diddley: Big Bad Bo (5)
20. Dana Gillespie: Weren't Born A Man (5)
SINGLES
Shirley and Co: Shame Shame Shame
Gloria Gaynor: Never Can Say Goodbye
Linda Ronstadt: You’re No Good
Cher: Train of Thought
Patti Smith: Piss Factory
Shuggie Otis: Aht Uh Mi Hed
Jeanette: Porque te vas?
Dry Bread: Yamar
Gladys Knight: On and On
Sadistic Mika Band: Time Machine
Argh I messed up my math there -- Gedo should have 10 points, I think
Having checked the 70 versions of the single "Shame, Shame, Shame" that discogs shows, the billing, in order of frequency, is:
(1) Shirley (and Company)
(2) Shirley & Company
(3) Shirley and Company
(4) Shirley & Co. [this is on the sleeve of the Hungarian release (which shows up several times), but the inner label itself says "Shirley and Company"]
(5) Shirley & Co [no period, this is the sleeve in Netherlands and France; the inner label says "Shirley & Company" in Netherlands, "Shirley & Co." [with period] in France]
Might year-of-impact it as '75 to avoid the ampersand question
It's hard to readjust to Pazz and Jop eligibility after adhering to the People's Pop Polls rules for so long (I think PPP are better for retrospective polling generally but maybe not true to the spirit of the year as it was lived. But joke's on you, I wasn't alive yet so how would I know!)
I find the prospect of voting for an act with a parenthesis in its band title to be irresistible.
The crucial question I'm contemplating via this research, though, is whether to call the captivating male dancer here "Company," "Co." "and Company," "& Company," or, as the video caption suggests, "& Co"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9FaOiWRciI
Forgot you can edit comments here -- fixed the math.
All release dates checked in Wikipedia, which is never wrong/sarcasm font.
Albums:
Steely Dan, Pretzel Logic 20
Joni Mitchell, Court and Spark 15
Randy Newman, Good Old Boys 15
Bob Marley & the Wailers, Natty Dread 15
Bob Dylan & the Band, Before the Flood 15
Richard & Linda Thompson, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight 10
Van Morrison, It’s Too Late to Stop Now 10
Eric Clapton, 461 Ocean Boulevard 10
Neil Young, On the Beach 10
Raspberries, Starting Over 10
New York Dolls, In Too Much Too Soon 10
Stevie Wonder, Fulfillingness’ First Finale 10
Linda Ronstadt, Heart Like a Wheel 10
Big Star, Radio City 10
Gram Parsons, Grievous Angel 5
John Cale, Fear 5
Velvet Underground, 1969 Velvet Underground Live 5
Bob Dylan, Planet Waves 5
Bonnie Raitt, Streetlights 5
Al Green, Al Green Explores Your Mind 5
Singles:
*Dolly Parton, “Jolene”
Stevie Wonder, “Boogie On, Reggae Woman”
Maria Muldaur, “Midnight on the Oasis”
Linda Ronstadt, “You’re No Good”
Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Sweet Home Alabama”
Paul McCartney & Wings, “Junior’s Farm”
LaBelle, “Lady Marmalade”
Al Green, “Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy)”
Elton John, “The Bitch Is Back”
Average White Band, “Pick Up the Pieces”
After a very cursory exploration over the last few weeks, I've got to agree with Brad that this is a bad year for music. There's a bunch of halfway amazing, halfway awful albums (Neil, Stevie, Bob, Sly, Leonard, Randy, Brian, Linda) and just so, so much schlock. Geez that Raspberries album is awful. I'd want a few more months to feel totally confident that there aren't a few more diamonds in this rough year, because I absolutely love the Betty Davis record and I wonder if there's more like it that never made a Pazz and Jop.
Longer essay here: https://open.substack.com/pub/moocat/p/best-of-1974?r=3lvt5&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
Votes here:
Court and Spark, Joni Mitchell-20 points
Pretzel Logic, Steely Dan-17.5
They Say I'm Different, Betty Davis 15
On The Beach, Neil Young- 12.5
Fulfillingness' First Finale, Stevie Wonder-12.5
Fear, John Cale-12.5
Planet Waves, Bob Dylan-10
Up For the Down Stroke, Parliament-10
Rock and Roll Animal, Lou Reed-10
Before the Flood, Bob Dylan-10
Grievous Angel, Gram Parsons-10
Small Talk, Sly and the Family Stone-10
New Skin for the Old Ceremony, Leonard Cohen-7.5
Here Come the Warm Jets, Brian Eno-7.5
Good Old Boys, Randy Newman-7.5
Heart Like A Wheel, Linda Ronstadt-7.5
Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy, Brian Eno- 5
Country Life, Roxy Music- 5
Standing on the Verge of Getting It On, Funkadelic-5
Radio City, Big Star-5
Singles of 1974 (all 10 points):
Rebel Rebel-David Bowie
You haven’t done nothing-Stevie Wonder
Boogie on reggae woman-Stevie Wonder
Rikki Don’t Lose that Number-Steely Dan
Tell Me Something Good-Rufus
Jet-Wings
Band on the Run-Wings
Louisiana 1927-Randy Newman
I Will Always Love You-Dolly Parton
The Thrill of It All-Roxy Music