SCOTTS HIDDEN TREASURES #25

[Scott]

10 days off and now back to the grind!  But first, I got some SHT to catch up on.

My wife and I took our family to the mountains of North Carolina this past 10 days for our Christmas present to them.  10 days of getaways, a cabin, skiing, great food and games, and time spent together.  Musically the wife made sure we were up to our ears (literally) in Christmas classics.  I didn't really want to put together a Christmas SHT list, I just wanted to give the gift of great music!  So these are gifts this weeks.  Some of my all time favorites, hits or not, just tracks that I have to hear often and they all make me smile regardless of the occasion. So expect this list to be stylistically all over the place.  That's the funnest anyway!

And before we get to this list, let me just wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.

Away we go...

TITLE: Hello
BAND: Rail
ALBUM: Arrival
YEAR: 1984
I have to have this album, and I have to lead off this list with this track!   Rail was the local band who made good.  They are from the American Northwest.  They came through my hometown often and played the college and other locations in town.  Seen them a lot.  They really had a great following and everyone loved them.  When they came it was an event.  They even won the first Mtv basement tapes competition with this song! 

TITLE: Heart of the Night
BAND: Poco
ALBUM: Legacy
YEAR: 1978
It's my opinion that Poco has done very little wrong in their career.  Their catalog is simply spectacular and their songwriting capabilities unmatched, at least for their genre.  This song taught me alot about lyrics and, oddly enough, the nuance of the high hat on the drums and how it can really enhance the feel of a song.

TITLE: From the Inside
BAND: Alice Cooper
ALBUM: From the Inside
YEAR: 1978
Disco beats on an Alice Cooper record?  I'm stuck here on the inside, I'm lookin' out, wheres my makeup, wheres my face?  This song opened a whole new world of music for me.  I never really gave Alice much thought until this album.  Then I stopped judging appearances and starting hearing artists! 

TITLE: Plush
BAND: Stone Temple Pilots
ALBUM: Core
YEAR: 1992
1991 pissed me off!  I couldn't stand the grunge movement.  I wanted my music back!  Took me a long time to realize it wasn't coming back, took me even longer to appreciate that it wasn't coming back either.  This song pulled me in and made listen to the 90's bands.  Glad I did and glad I still do!

TITLE: Hard Times
BAND: Boz Scaggs
ALBUM: Down Two Then Left
YEAR: 1977
Scaggs has played with some of rocks best, look up who has been in his band.  You may be shocked.  I didn't like his voice at first, I thought Kermit the Frog was singing and we made fun of it too.  But his voice fits his music so perfectly, and his music is so layered and jazzed up it's like hearing something new everytime you put it on.  Silk Degrees and this album are killer.

TITLE: Love 'em Leave 'em
BAND: KISS
ALBUM: Rock and Roll Over
YEAR: 1976
Important band!  But as much as I loved them this track floored me.  It's still one of my all time favorite Ace Frehley solos and the beat gets me going!  Plus I wanted to have a gift in here for RJ who will like it I'm sure!

TITLE: Feel it Again
BAND: Honeymoon Suite
ALBUM: The Big Prize
YEAR: 1986
The name of this album along with the cover have given me hours of laughter.  One of the best IMO!  I love Derry Grehan's guitar in this tune, killer support for a really well written and played tune!  Its got one of those choruses you must belt out.

TITLE: Whats Your Excuse?
BAND: Doucette
ALBUM: Mama Let Him Play
YEAR: 1977
Platinum in Canada, hailed as the next guitar hero.  Jerry Doucette was on the fast track after a run of concerts opening for The Grateful Dead.  Then his label screwed him.  I know I've gifted you all with the title from this a while back, and eventually I will get through the entire album as its just that good!

TITLE: Monday Morning
BAND: Fleetwood Mac
ALBUM: Fleetwood Mac
YEAR: 1975
I bought this and Bob Segers Night Moves as my first ever musical purchases.  I bought this one because of this song.  I was just getting into dating and girls so this song helped me a lot... hahaha, "First you love me then you get on down the line", You only want me when I get over you", "Got to get some peace on my mind"

TITLE: The Damage is Done
BAND: Foreigner
ALBUM: Foreigner
YEAR: 1977
Everytime we talk about Foreigner this is the song that comes to my mind.  My favorite track by this band easily!

 

This is a small sampling, but these are important songs to me, they are all known by my entire household word for word.

I hope you enjoy the rest of 2010 and hope you and yours have a great Holiday season!

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HERES YOUR PLAYLIST....

http://www.podsnack.com/playlists/31d5a6d0c9234b4e8cf8d93f0a157998

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[Jon]

Nice post Scott..didn't really get into the Rail song, but it was a good leadoff, kind of like the opening song at a concert. Not a bad song, but nothing I'm dying for. The Doucette song was something I hadn't heard before and I really liked it. Everything else was great, even the Kiss song didn't make me throw up in my mouth. :-) 

[Scott]

Thank you sir!  I may end up posting that Doucette album in its entirety someday soon.  Its a personal favorite.  My brother introduced me to it via another friend.