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Influential Albums: 1304-1310
Thu., Dec. 7. 2023 12:43pm EST
J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here again.
Here are the latest entries in the "albums that influenced me" series I started writing in May 2020.
Note: Just because an album appears on this list doesn't mean I give it a blanket endorsement. Many of the secular albums on this list are mainly there because they wound up being spoofed by ApologetiX.
1304. ANThology - Alien Ant Farm
Southern California alternative-rock band Alien Ant Farm released their second LP, ANThology, in March 2001. It reached #11 on the Billboard 200, selling a million copies in the United States and another 300,000 in the United Kingdom. The big hit was a hard-rocking cover version of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal." Michael's 1988 version hit the Top 10 on both sides of the pond (#7 U.S. pop, #8 U.K.), but Alien Ant Farm's did all right for itself, too (#23 pop, #18 mainstream, #1 alternative, #3 U.K.). ApologetiX spoofed the latter version in 2002, and it became a fan favorite. Two other tunes from ANThology charted — "Movies" (#38 mainstream rock, #18 alternative, #5 U.K.) and "Attitude" (#66 U.K.). I guess we shouldn't be surprised that Alien Ant Farm had two Top Five hits on the other side of the pond, since that's the same place where "Antmusic" and "Ant Rap" by Adam and the Ants hit #2 and #3, respectively. AAF's follow-up album, Truant, yielded one last semi-successful single, "These Days" (#38 mainstream, #29 alternative), although it did not hit the U.K. chart. ANThology and Truant were clever titles, but you gotta love the name of their debut LP, too — Greatest Hits. Alien Ant Farm formed in Riverside CA, a city where ApologetiX played in 2004, 2005, and 2010. In fact, one of those times, somebody who had been involved with AAF ran sound for us. Unfortunately, I can't recall if it was a past member, current member, or crew member.
1305. Don't Fear The Reaper: The Best Of Blue Öyster Cult - Blue Öyster Cult
Originally released in 1983 and remastered in 2000, Don't Fear The Reaper: The Best Of Blue Öyster Cult featured all four of the Long Island NY band's Hot 100 hits: "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (#12 pop), "Burnin' for You" (#40 pop, #1 mainstream rock), "In Thee" (#73 pop), and "Shooting Shark" (#83 pop, #16 mainstream). It also featured the FM rock-radio classic "Godzilla." As I mentioned earlier on this list, I never owned any of the group's original LPs, but I did buy this one for its parody potential, which proved to be plentiful. ApologetiX spoofed "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (twice), "Godzilla" (twice), and "Burnin' for You."
1306. My Generation: The Very Best of The Who - The Who
I owned a couple Who compilations in high school and college, but I bought this one many years later with spoofing on my mind. Released in August 1996, My Generation: The Very Best of The Who covered hits as early as "I Can't Explain" in 1964 and as late as "You Better You Bet" in 1981. There were 20 tracks in all, and ApologetiX has released parodies of six of them: "I Can't Explain," "My Generation," "Pinball Wizard," "Baba O'Riley," "Won't Get Fooled Again," and "Squeeze Box" (which was on one of our early cassettes in '92, but never made it onto a CD). We've also spoofed "The Real Me," which wasn't on My Generation: The Very Best of The Who. There at least four others on this collection that I wouldn't mind taking a crack at. The Who only ever had one U.S. Top 10 hit, "I Can See for Miles." However, they had seven others that reached the Top 20, and each of them peaked at a different position: "See Me, Feel Me" (#12), "Who Are You" (#14), "Won't Get Fooled Again" (#15), "Squeeze Box" (#16), "Join Together" (#17), "You Better You Bet" (#18), and "Pinball Wizard" (#19). I've read three Who biographies/autobiographies — not too long after they each were published — Before I Get Old: The Story of the Who by Dave Marsh (1983), Who I Am: A Memoir by Pete Townshend (2012), and Thanks a Lot, Mr. Kibblewhite: My Story by Roger Daltrey (2018). That last one was particularly entertaining. For a complete track listing of My Generation: The Very Best of The Who, go to https://www.discogs.com/master/68687-The-Who-My-Generation-The-Very-Best-Of-The-Who
1307. Double Wide - Uncle Kracker
Kid Rock's former DJ Uncle Kracker (a.k.a. Matthew Shafer) released his debut LP, Double Wide, on May 30, 2000. Co-produced by Kid Rock (a.k.a. Robert J. Ritchie) and Michael Bradford, the album made it to #7 on the Billboard 200 and sold two million copies, thanks mainly to the single "Follow Me" (#5 pop, #7 adult contemporary, #1 Adult Top 40 for four weeks). As I recall, one of our fans recommended that I check out that song. ApologetiX spoofed it in 2002. Four years later, we also released a parody of Uncle Kracker's cover version of the old Dobie Gray hit, "Drift Away," which appeared on his second LP, No Stranger to Shame. Gray's original went to #5 pop in 1974; the remake (which also featured Gray on some vocals) only reached #9 pop in 2003 but peaked at #2 AC for 10 weeks and #1 A40 for 28 weeks! Uncle Kracker still had a couple more significant hits up his sleeve — "When the Sun Goes Down" with Kenny Chesney (#26 pop, #1 country for five weeks) in 2004 and "Smile" (#31 pop, #3 AC, #2 A40) in 2009 — but we never attempted either of those.
1308. Come Clean - Puddle Of Mudd
Formed in Kansas City MO in 1992, post-grunge rock band Puddle of Mudd didn't put out their major-label debut LP until almost a decade later, after they came to the attention of Limp Bizkit lead vocalist/lyricist Fred Durst. Puddle of Mudd's lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist is Wes Scantlin, and Limp Bizkit's lead guitarist/backing vocalist is Wes Borland, so perhaps Durst believes that "Wes is more" when it come to music. Don't like that one? How about "Go Wes, young man"? When Puddle of Mudd's first album, Come Clean, was finally released on August 28, 2001, it reached #9 on the Billboard 200 and has since sold over five million copies worldwide. There were four singles — all of which made the Top Three on both the mainstream rock and alternative charts: "Control" (#68 pop, #3 mainstream, #3 alternative), "Blurry" (#5 pop, #1 mainstream for 10 weeks, #1 alternative for nine weeks), "Drift & Die" (#61 pop, #1 mainstream for six weeks, #3 alternative for four weeks), "She Hates Me" (#13 pop, #1 mainstream for one week, #2 alternative for three weeks). Frankly, I think any cut on Come Clean could have been successful on the rock charts. The music is hard-driving but consistently catchy without ever becoming redundant, although the language gets way too colorful for me, which is kind of ironic when you consider the album title. ApologetiX spoofed "Blurry" in 2002. I believe it was the last song we included when selecting potential parodies for that year's CD. Puddle of Mudd never reached the pop Top 40 after "Blurry" and "She Hates Me," but they did have other rock hits, the biggest of which was the insanely catchy "Psycho" (#67 pop, #1 mainstream for nine weeks, #1 alternative for two weeks).
1309. Camino Palmero - The Calling
I bought this CD and Come Clean by Puddle of Mudd together on the same day in 2002 at Media Play in Ross Park Mall. Los Angeles-based rock band The Calling released their debut studio LP, Camino Palmero, in July 2001, and it came with quite the calling card — "Wherever You Will Go" (#5 pop, #21 adult contemporary, #1 Adult Top 40 for 23 weeks). That's right; 23 weeks!!! That makes it the second biggest AT40 hit of all the time, after "Smooth" by Santana featuring Rob Thomas (25 weeks). Two other cuts received airplay on Adult Top 40 stations: "Adrienne" (#22 AT40) and "Could It Be Any Harder" (#35 AT40). The music on Camino Palmero reminds me a little of Matchbox 20 and Goo Goo Dolls. Unfortunately, The Calling wouldn't have quite the same staying power as those other two groups. "Wherever You Will Go" remains the group's only Hot 100 hit, although two others from their second LP, Two, made the Adult Top 40: "Our Lives" (#16 AT40) and "Anything" (#23 AT40). Camino Palmero got its name from an L.A. street where Calling co-founders Alex Band and Aaron Kamin first met. The album reached #36 on the Billboard 200, selling about half a million copies in the United States and an estimated five million worldwide. ApologetiX spoofed "Wherever You Will Go" with a studio version in 2003 and a live version in 2004, both of which became fan favorites. Whether you like Christian parodies or not, you can't say we missed our Calling.
1310. The Very Best of Rainbow - Rainbow
I first became aware of British-American hard rock band Rainbow thanks to their 1979 single "Since You Been Gone" (#57 U.S. pop, #6 U.K.). I loved that tune, which seemed to be a much bigger hit on my local Pittsburgh radio stations than nationally. It was written and first recorded by former Argent guitarist Russ Ballard in 1976 and then covered by Head East in 1978 (#46 U.S. pop), becoming their highest-charting hit ... even though they are better remembered for the rock-radio staple "Never Been Any Reason" (#68 U.S. pop). Head East's lead singer, John Schlitt would later join Petra in the mid-80s. But back to Rainbow. Released in July 1997, The Very Best of Rainbow features 16 tracks off eight albums, from Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow (1975) through Bent Out of Shape (1983). The front cover features Rainbow founder and lead guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, but it's a photo that was taken while he was playing with his previous band, Deep Purple. Boy, I've talked about a lot of different groups in this entry; it almost feels like I've been writing about a K-Tel album. Of course, K-Tel compilations usually featured Top 40 hits, and Rainbow only (and just barely) had one of those in America — "Stone Cold" (#40 U.S. pop, #1 mainstream rock, 34 U.K.). They had seven of 'em across the pond, though: the two I've already mentioned plus "I Surrender" (#3 U.K., #105 U.S. pop, #19 mainstream rock), "All Night Long" (#5 U.K.), "Can't Happen Here" (#20 U.K.), "Long Live Rock (#33 U.K.), and "L.A. Connection" (#40 U.K.). Their third biggest U.S. single (after the two I wrote about earlier) was "Street of Dreams" (#60 pop, #52 U.K., #2 mainstream rock). All of those hits are on The Very Best of Rainbow, and so are their other two U.S. mainstream rock hits, "Jealous Lover" (#13 mainstream) and "Power" (#35 mainstream). Despite all that, the band's most popular song may be "Man on the Silver Mountain," which was the opening track on their debut LP and also on this collection. It never charted in the United Kingdom or the United States (coming out over five years before Billboard instituted the mainstream rock chart), but reached #81 in Australia. ApologetiX put out a parody of it in 2017. Rainbow has featured a number of lead vocalists over the years, including Ronnie James Dio (1975-79), Graham Bonnet (1979-80), Joe Lynn Turner (1980-84), Doogie White (1993-97), and Ronnie Romero (2015-2023). You can find a complete track listing for The Very Best of Rainbow at https://www.discogs.com/master/40718-Rainbow-The-Very-Best-Of-Rainbow
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