Okay, so it might be a little early for a best of list, but I'm going away early this year, so suck it up.
Best Albums of 2007:It was a good year for the oldies, it was, and also not bad for reformations. In fact it was a good year for music in general. I've gone over this list a thousand times and I'm sure I've left a whole heap out, but here are ten great records that come to mind.
1. Grinderman - Grinderman
2. Neil Young - Chrome Dreams II
3. Paul Kelly - Stolen Apples
4. Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist
5. Beasts of Bourbon - Little Animals
6. Radiohead - In Rainbows
7. The National - Boxer
8. Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger
9. Dinosaur Jr - Beyond
10. The Nation Blue - Protest Songs
Honourable mentions:
1. Glasshouse - Reset Factory Settings (It was actually released in 2006, but I heard it for the first time just after doing this list last year, and it is still in easy reach of my desk as I type this and getting regular plays)
2. The Travelling Wilbury's - Collection (It's not really fair that a couple of reissued albums make it into the top 10 for this year, but this is still an amazing reissue and well worthy of a mention)
3. Various Artists - Do The Pop Redux Vol. 1 (An amazing collection of punk and garage music from the Australian Underground dating back nearly 40 years. Again, a compilation of remastered tracks making it into 2007's top 10? I dunno...)
Best Gigs of 2007:
Now this one is nearly impossible to narrow down to just 10 gigs, so here are, in no particular order, 10 amazing highlights of my concert going life for the past 12 months.
1. Stax 50th Anniversary Soul Revue feat. Booker T and the MGs, William Bell, Eddie Floyd, Isaac Hayes and the Memphis Horns - Antones, Austin, TX
2. Turbonegro - Emos, Austin, TX ("We're here in Ass-tin Tex-ass!")
3. Chris Cornell - The Forum, Melbourne
4. Heaven and Hell - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne (by all account this should've been cheesy and lame... instead, Dio, Iommi and Butler should be worshipped as gods)
5. Lupe Fiasco - The Prince of Wales, Melbourne
6. Afra and the Incredible Beatbox Band + Blox - The Espy, Melbourne
7. The King Brothers - Exile on Smith Street, Melbourne
8. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - Emos Annex, Austin, TX
9. Dirty Fuzz - Machinhaus, Berlin (I heard this band for the first time when they hit their first note on stage. Amazing!)
10. The Nightwatchman (Tom Morello with guest performances by Perry Farrell, Wayne Kramer, Les Claypool, Nuno Bettencourt and Slash - this one is further down the list because a majority of the show was Morello's god-awful Nightwatchman stuff)
Best Sequined Jacket On Stage:
1. Bryan Ferry
Best First Song Of 2007:
1. Wolfmother + You Am I covering The Who's 'Baba O'Riley' at The Falls.
Best Gig That You Thought Was Going To Be Kinda Lame, But You Wanted To See Them Just So You Could Say You Had, Only To Find Out That Their Live Show Is Actually Awesome And You've Become A Lifelong Fan:
1. Pet Shop Boys - Myer Music Bowl, Melbourne
2. Heaven and Hell - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne
3. Violent Femmes - Big Day Out, Melbourne
Best Coming Together Of Aussie Rock 'n' Roll Legends:
1. Benefit for Lobby Loyde featuring Lobby Loyde, Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, Rose Tattoo, Masters Apprentices, Russell Morris, Purple Hearts, Coloured Balls, Wendy Saddington and lots more.
Most Missed Of 2007:
1. Two artists on equal first place, Aussie rock legends Billy Thorpe and Lobby Loyde. May you live on in the hearts of young rock 'n' rollers for all time!
Okay, so that does it. I put these lists together pretty fast, I'm sure I missed out on an awful lot of amazing stuff from 2007. The old guys this year have given the youngin's a run for their money, but they've felt the pressure from great young talent as well.
Anyone who says rock 'n' roll is dead can sod off.
Have a great Christmas and New Year's from everyone at Undercover (don't worry, Paul will still be giving you news for another week or so).
