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The 365-Day Album Challenge: Week 11
Fri., Jul. 24. 2020 5:54pm EDT
J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here again.
Back in May, two friends asked me to share 10 albums that influenced me on Facebook. I narrowed it down to 365. I post the cover art for a different album every day with a brief explanation of how/why they influenced me. Fans have asked me to include them in the newsletter, too. Here's are this week's entries:
72. French Kiss – Bob Welch
Another gem from the Columbia House original 13. And all of the things that I said that I wanted … came rushin' by in a box on my doorstep. I already liked "Sentimental Lady" and "Ebony Eyes," but I had no idea how much I'd enjoy the entire thing. What a well-crafted album! ApologetiX released a spoof of "Ebony Eyes" in 2009. We did our best to imitate Welch's jam. Listeners can decide whether or not we did a grape job.
73. City to City – Gerry Rafferty
More music from my cornucopia of Columbia cassettes. This one turned it from a baker's dozen to a Baker Street dozen. I still think this is a great album. "Baker Street" (ApologetiX spoofed that one in 2015), "Right Down the Line," and "Home and Dry" were the hits I knew from the radio, but there's a whole bunch of other great songs stuck in the middle with 'em.
74. Greatest Hits – ABBA
Yet another Columbia House pick. My friend Jeffrey Henry had this one on record before I got it on cassette — every one of my initial 13 Columbia House selections was on cassette. That made them easier to transport … and hide, if necessary. When I was in high school, if you were a guy, you didn't advertise the fact that you had an ABBA album. And if somebody caught you with one and you couldn't convince them it was really your mom's, sister's, or girlfriend's (yeah, like anybody would believe I had one at that point) your only hope was to distract them: "Hey, aren't those ladies who sing for ABBA pretty?"
75. Greatest Hits– The Association
More melodic mirth from Columbia House. Why bother explaining the reason I got this one? Everyone knows it's "Windy." I start playing the cassette, thinking that will be the song I like the most, and then "Along Comes Mary." But there were plenty of other songs to "Cherish" on this one, including "Enter the Young," "Six Man Band," "Requiem for the Masses," "The Time It Is Today," "Everything That Touches You." And a #2 hit called "Never My Love."
76. The Grand Illusion – Styx
Two of my initial 13 selections from Columbia House were Styx albums. ApologetiX has spoofed a couple of the songs from this one already. I've owned six Styx discs over the years. Come sell away, Styx! Roll on Columbia, roll on!
77. Reality What a Concept – Robin Williams
I'm not sure why I bought this album, because I wasn't a huge fan of Mork & Mindy, but I took a flyer on it since I was getting 13 albums for a buck anyway. It definitely influenced my sense of humor. It also got me in trouble with my mom, who overheard one of the routines in which Robin wasn't quite as polite as Mork.
Note: The albums are not listed in order of preference or excellence, but in chronological order of when they influenced me. Also, just because the albums on my list influenced me back then doesn't mean I give them all a blanket endorsement now.
I started actively listening to music in the early 70's and didn't become a born-again Christian until early 1988, so it's going to be a while before we get to the Christian albums, but there will be many of those when the time comes (literally).
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