Band on the Run (Paul McCartney and Wings)

Band on the Run
Paul McCartney and Wings (1973)

Top Tracks: “Band on the Run”, “Jet”, “Bluebird”

It’s funny that both John Lennon and George Harrison beat Paul McCartney to the punch for a really good post-Beatles album. But Band on the Run is very solid and definitely was a huge forerunner to the mellow sounds of the early/mid-70s (May 2020).

Blue (Joni Mitchell)

Blue
Joni Mitchell (1971)

Top Tracks: “A Case of You”, “All I Want”, “Blue”

This is one of the best albums of all time, says the guy who thinks Joni Mitchell may be the greatest songwriter of all time. Three of her albums — this one, Court and Spark, and Hejira — could possibly be in my Top 10 list of all time, if such a thing existed. Blue’s beauty is in its sparseness. It’s basically Joni alone in a room with her instrument of choice — usually a piano or Appalachian dulcimer — and just the songs, the songs, the songs. Side note: Blue is the highest-ranked album by a woman on Rolling Stone’s “Top 500 Album” list, and as recently as 2017 was ranked by NPR as the #1 greatest album made by a woman ever (May 2020).

Boys in the Trees (Carly Simon)

Boys in the Trees
Carly Simon (1978)

Top Tracks: “You Belong to Me”, “Boys in the Trees”, “Haunting”

This was a mom album… as in, my mom played it often, usually on weekends cranked up on the big stereo while working on her tan in a chaise lounge in the backyard and drinking a beer. I’ve always respected Carly Simon as a writer and a singer, and this smooth late ‘70s sound was definitely a big part of my formative years (May 2020).