Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Vatican select Fagen as essential

That's not the Pope or even the guys closest to the Pope, but the Vatican newspaper The Holy See/L'Osservatore Romano, who this past Saturday listed 10 essential rock and pop albums.
As our Italian is useless we've turned to the National Catholic Reporter who kindly serves us all with a description of what and why. And here's the list:

* "Revolver" by the Beatles, described as more innovative than any of their successive albums.
* "If I Could Only Remember My Name" by David Crosby. Its songs used experimental musical forms to express an "existential fragility," the article said.
* "The Dark Side of the Moon" by Pink Floyd, which the newspaper called an "amazing" and eminently enjoyable milestone in the history of rock music.
* "Rumours" by Fleetwood Mac, which the article said mixed the sounds of blues, pop and country.
* "The Nightfly" by Donald Fagen of Steely Dan. A niche album, but "brilliant and ironical," according to the Vatican newspaper.
* "Thriller" by Michael Jackson. The article described this album as "the masterpiece of the king of pop" and said its original approach went against the stereotypes of black music.
* "Graceland" by Paul Simon, who used South African music with his own to create a multiethnic album that marked the birth of "world music," the newspaper said.
* "Achtung Baby" by U2, a disk that stands out for its music and lyrics, and remains a symbol of the '90s, it said.
* "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?" by Oasis. The group picks up the great tradition of the Beatles, but with a harder edge of punk and rock, it said.
* "Supernatural" by Carlos Santana, seen as an avant-garde mix of blues, soul, salsa and rock.

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