Thank you to Todd Evans and Uncle Meat for a full two hour extravaganza of Marillion love! Despite some connection issues, the Meat Man persevered and brought with him an interesting and sometimes surprising list for his Top 11 Marillion albums of all time.
Only three albums did not get listed by anyone. Others appeared on all three lists. In fact, all of us picked the exact same #11.
One thing is clear: Each of us has an emotional connection to these records that we picked. The music is personal. It’s important to our personal history. There was a lot of love for all eras of Marillion on this night. Highlights:
Discussions on the making of certain records, such as Holidays in Eden and Seasons End.
Marillion’s knack for epic closers.
Concept albums, double albums, and live albums.
One album that made a list that isn’t technically a studio album.
Moments that make your skin vibrate.
Love for later albums including a lot of praise for An Hour Before It’s Dark and Marbles.
The mid-show break was a music video by Jacob Moon: his cover of “Kayleigh”.
Sounds that can’t be made, and songs that should have been on the albums.
Remix albums and EPs.
Bonus tracks, B-sides and box sets.
and one vintage 2004 Front Row Club t-shirt!
Please enjoy this excellent love letter to Marillion, with lots of physical product on three formats (cassettes, CD and vinyl). Thank you for watching!
Next week: We are back at the cottage with another list show: Top 5 Childhood Music Videos with Jex and Dr. K!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 58: Marillion Ranked! Top 11 Marillion with Todd Evans and Uncle Meat
It has been almost a decade since we’ve ranked the Marillion albums, and Meat only did five back then. Now we’re doing 11, and we’re doing them with the Contrarian that may know them best: please welcome Todd Evans to the show!
I know that my list will not be the same as the one I did in 2015. I have a strong feeling of Meat’s top six, but beyond that? Your guess is as good mine! As for Todd? I expect nothing less than intelligent and thoughtful picks from this veteran Contrarian.
Marillion is a band I’ve been passionate about for half my life, but this is the first time we’ve ever covered the band on either the LeBrain Train or Grab A Stack of Rock. Be there for this historic show, and as always we will be chatting in the comments!
Friday May 3 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or onFacebook!
Part Six-point-five of a series on KICK AXE!
Thank you to JEX RUSSELL for donating this to the collection.
KICK AXE – “Piece of the Rock” (from Rock the World – 2005 remaster) (2005 Amber Interactive)
The Kick Axe discography, though small, is difficult to complete! There are the first two albums released on Pasha in the US, and the third album on Roadrunner in the US. Rock Candy reissued the first two albums with bonus tracks, and the third without, so they’re fairly easy to get. Then we also have a fourth independent album, an early independent single, a live track released by Playboy, and two songs on the original 1986 Transformers soundtrack (under a different name). That’s about it, right?
Nope!
One important song almost slipped through the cracks. When Kick Axe were working on Vices with Spencer Proffer, the producer was considering using the band to help write the next Black Sabbath album. Additionally, Ian Gillan was out of the band, and they needed a singer. Kick Axe’s George Criston was one of the singers considered, though Kick Axe didn’t want to lose their main man. “Piece of the Rock” was one of the songs written for the Sabbath project. Though Sabbath didn’t use it, like “Hunger”, it was recorded and released by King Kobra on their debut Ready to Strike. As a result, the Kick Axe version went unheard for almost two decades.
That version, harder than King Kobra’s, is actually available on an obscure Kick Axe remaster that pre-dates the Rock Candy versions. Strangely enough, it ended up on a reissue of Rock the World, an album it had nothing to do with.
The plot thickens. Rock the World was remastered by Kick Axe’s Ray Harvey…who was not in the band when it was recorded, and is not on the album aside from the bonus track!
Kick Axe Career Retrospective
Things get crazier still – and this is something that isn’t documented anywhere, even on Discogs. Upon listening, some songs are actually longer! “Rock the World”, for example, opens with two seconds of pick-handling that is not on the original album. The Fleetwood Mac cover “The Chain” has a much longer intro (almost double its original length), with a short section restored. “Red Line” is also significantly longer. Considering the Rock Candy release has no bonus tracks, this version might reign superior. Ray Harvey clearly decided to re-edit some of these tunes as well as remaster. There does not seem to be a remix. The remastering isn’t as loud as the Rock Candy version, though it still sounds fabulous.
Where Rock Candy exceeds is in liner notes and packaging. The Amber Interactive version doesn’t have the original artwork, and actually looks really cringe! The back cover is a computer generated sword handle with a metal “X”. Need I remind you, an axe is not a sword! The front cover artwork is atrocious, even compared to the low budget looking original. It does have the lyrics to “We Still Remember”, which is interesting in itself. See how many references to other bands you can find. “In the days of the haze, the colour was deep purple.” “We ride the killing machine.” “And the wind it cries Mary.” “We won’t get fooled by helter skelter.” References within references.
“Piece of the Rock” should have been released by Kick Axe back in the day, but here it stands on an album! It sounds completely finished for release, with the lush backing vocals fully overdubbed and ready for radio. The other nice thing is that it gives you an old school Kick Axe song on an album that was largely more complex and less instantly accessible. That’s not to say that Rock the World is weak album. Our review will attest to that (links at bottom).
This version of Rock the World deserves an extra half-point for the bonus track and lengthier versions of existing songs. Extra unadvertised value is always good. Shame they couldn’t use the original art (licensing issues), but small gripe.
Deep Purple’s first new album with Simon McBride on guitar will be out July 19. Called =1 (“equals one”), it is largely a mystery what the album will sound like. Many predicted a return to “hard rock” after the last three more progressive albums. The first single “Portable Door” is not all that different from the Steve Morse era. Don Airey’s organ really dominates the solo section, as it should be. Simon’s guitar work is sublime but not showcased as some had hoped. He has this one cool lick in the riff that is really electrifying, but we want more Simon!
Ian Gillan? Reliable as ever, his voice has worn in like suede. He can still sing the hooks. Haters call him “over and done” – fans don’t care. Ian Paice is the backbone, always smooth, always identifiable, infallible. With Ian Paice on drums, Deep Purple will always sound like Deep Purple. His work here is busier than the we’ve become used to…which is just fine!
How does “Portable Door” stack up against recent Purple singles? It doesn’t have that instant “wham!” of “Vincent Price”, and it doesn’t have the hooks of “Johnny’s Band”. It’s a strong, workmanlike latter day Deep Purple single that will grow with increasing listens.
I never say this, but this time it’s true: Our first weekend at the cottage was absolutely perfect. Without a hitch. Exactly as planned, right down to the last detail. And loaded with new music!
The road trip began at 5:15 on Thursday night, April 25. Traffic was heavy, but not as heavy as the music! (We may need to look for another route out of town next time, as it took us almost half an hour just to escape Kitchener.) I had decided early in the week that the first road album of 2024 had to be Invincible Shield by Judas Priest! I had no doubt it would be one of the best road albums of the year. So confident was I, that I packed up my copy for Friday night’s Grab A Stack of Rock – Top 11 Albums to Play with the Windows Down. And I was right. “Crown of Horns” was the singalong track, though there were no duds. The album comes to a natural close on “Giants in the Sky” which has a classic Priest ending, but it’s not over yet! The bonus tracks give you a little extra road play, with a second ending in “The Lodger”. Brilliant album that kept us energized for the drive.
Priest couldn’t take us the whole way. When the Invincible Shield had ended, we moved onto Bruce Dickinson’s Mandrake Project. I haven’t had the time to absorb it yet, but Jen really enjoyed the album as we pulled down our little dirt road and into the driveway.
Everything was exactly as I left it back in October.
Taking my speakers out of storage, and making myself comfortable on the cool front deck, I chose the first porch album of the season. I didn’t want something as heavy rocking. Nor did I want something mellow and acoustic. This calls for the Arkells!
“We got gas in the tank to go all night,” sang Max Kerman from my porch. I danced away to this perfect evening. Rally Cry is the album I connected with the least last summer, being more political and less personal. This time it hit all the right spots, scratched all the itches, and began the season on the right note.
Jen noticed that I was joking around and more giddy than usual.
“Because I’m happy,” I said. “I feel alive again. This is what I had been waiting for.”
Friday was forecast as a summery, sunny day. We started early by picking up the first steaks of the season at the Beefway. We chose one porterhouse and one ribeye. This is our place to buy meat. There’s nobody better around. We stocked up on fish, pies, bacon and cooking oil. I had duck for lunch, and hot dogs and hamburgers in the evening.
For now, it was time for the main event: the first Grab A Stack of Rock from the cottage! It was a 3 PM afternoon show, and Jex was on board with his Top 11 Road Songs, in contrast to my album picks. Once again, everything went really well! Though Jex was late with work (the only unscripted thing about it), it will go down as one of my favourite shows ever. The roaring fire in the background was something new. I love playing with my visual setting, on Grab A Stack of Rock, at the cottage. Thank you Jex for an amazing start to the year. I hope we can do more, but even if we can’t, I got to do the fireside show that I had hoped for. Scratch that off the list.
The rain began Saturday, but it only got warmer. Another day on the front porch was in order, but first we went into town to see what was new.
We hit up a thrift store. I keep seeing all these guys on Facebook buying everything they can at thrift stores. I don’t know what they do with the CDs afterwards. Do their play their new Trisha Yearwood albums? Do they try and flip them? I found nothing in the gospel and country that they had, except for one signed CD by an unknown artist. The Facebook people would have bought them all; I chose none. I don’t buy for investment and I don’t really need a lot of music “on spec” when I barely have time to enjoy what I own.
Saturday was a weird day. It’s hard to explain exactly what happened, but as the day went on the feeling got more intense. I was having Deja Vu feelings every few minutes. It wasn’t specific memories, just…overall feelings. They were usually centered around people from my childhood, but I don’t know why. I would be cooking steaks in the back yard, and having Deja Vu feelings from grade school, but I was unable to nail down any specific memories. It was just a weird feeling like, “I have done this before,” but unable to identify a specific memory. I just felt like it was childhood. It intensified at dinner time. Perhaps the aromas of the cooking brought me back to Saturday dinners at the table, with steak and corn. Our steaks were perfect.
I mentioned earlier that everything went down without a hitch. That is not entirely true….
The Toronto Maple Leafs shit the bed. We shall not discuss this. It is not a good subject.
Otherwise, everything went perfect. I was starting to feel sad on Sunday morning, as I did the dishes and packed my bags up. Deciding what to bring back home and what to leave behind, I felt sad.
“Not this time,” I said, and I fought it back.
We played Kiss on the way home. Unmasked, Rock and Roll Over, and Asylum. These albums of childhood happiness drove the sadness away, and I woke up Monday morning feeling good.
This year’s first weekend at the cottage was a diametric contrast to 2023, which ended prematurely when I decided to go home early.
2023’s first weekend began with anxiety, as my former co-host was focused only on her solo show, and did not seem to care at all what I was doing. That weekend was not just supposed to be my return to the lake, but also hers. This is where we met (online) and bonded. I could not wait to return and do it again. She couldn’t seem more disinterested. She began stripping online that weekend, and I knew the friendship was all but over. I knew that was a road I could not follow, and I knew she wanted me to, even though she refused to come right out and say it. The writing was on the wall, that cold and rainy weekend. Within seven days, the friendship had ended, as I knew it would. She would never join me at the cottage again, even though we had spent six months planning it.
Not this time.
2024 is off to the right start. Even if Jex can’t do as many summer shows with me this year, we accomplished what we set out to do. An amazing weekend was had. The music we road tested passed the gauntlet, and we are ready to get on with the summer.
Back into Lego for a little over a year now, I wanted to challenge myself. I wanted to do something with gears, the more complex the better. Ideally I wanted something motorized. The Lego Audi was an affordable option.
Powered by three motors and six AA batteries, the motorized parts these days are quite different from my time. I recall having a giant Lego brick that you could turn into a tank, which was handy since that’s how it was shaped.
Building a set like this is a process of discovery. You’re not sure what exactly you’re doing at first, until things comes together. The front end, with two motors, came first. One motor is dedicated to the rack and pinion steering. There are a pair of nice heavy shocks for the front suspension. The rear end has another pair of shocks, and a bluetooth power box that syncs up to a phone app.
The controls are simple and even have brakes. These might come in handy if racing indoors!
Rediscovering music can be just as good, if not better, than discovering it in the first place.
I’m not sure why I segregated these records from my collection. When we brought “Mum’s” music home with us after she passed, I stuffed these nine albums in my closet, without assimilating them into my proper collection. I’m sure there were reasons, but today I welcome them with open arms.
Mum liked Canadian music, soundtracks, and the classics. Not so much classical, but classics like…well, you’ll see.
I made this video instead of writing a story, because I wanted the camera to capture the emotions of seeing these records. I went in unspoiled. I didn’t look at the records in advance, because I did not want to spoil the surprise. It has been years since I looked at or played any of these albums. These not were the only albums of Mum’s that we kept. Elsewhere, mixed into my collection properly, are the Beatles, Gordon Lightfoot, and The Buddy Holly Story.
Please enjoy this emotional look at Debbie’s Records.
Friday afternoon and we’re off to the races! The Summer 2024 season of Grab A Stack of Rock has commenced and Jex Russell was there to ring in this happy tradition. The theme(s) for this week are: Top 11 Albums & Songs to Play with the Windows Down! Summer is the time for rocking the road, and Jex and I brought the thunder with two excellent Nigel Tufnel Top Ten lists!
Highlights:
Music on four of the major physical formats: CD, vinyl, cassette and 8-track!
Lots of Canadian content: Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan, Ontario, & Quebec represented!
Stories of years gone by: 1991, 1992, 1996, 2002, 2023 and today.
There was a quick discussion of the new Motley Crue song “Dogs of War”. Who’s the weak link in Motley Crue?
The debut of the Fire Pit on Grab A Stack of Rock
This show was dedicated to my Uncle Paul, and my mother in law Debbie, who inspired some of these picks. It’s also in the spirit of friendship and good memories with Jex’s friend Lucas, and my friends Peter, Bob and Trev.
See you next week for Top 11 Marillion albums with Todd Evans and Uncle Meat!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 57: Top 11 Albums to Play with the Windows Down – with Jex Russell
Show & Tell on four formats: CD, cassette, LP and 8-track
Long we have waited, but Spring is here and the traditional outdoor afternoon Grab A Stack of Rock is back too.*Jex Russell joins for this happy cottage tradition. Last year, these afternoon outdoor shows were incredible fun! If you were there last year, you know! If you weren’t, join the rock and roll party today at 3 PM E.S.T. It’s our first live show in almost a month, after several weeks of popular re-runs!
The theme this week is a “Nigel Tufnel Top Ten” list: Our 11 favourite albums with play with the windows down! There are so many to choose from, this list is literally wide open. What are you choosing to play this spring with the windows down? Many of my picks are traditional favourites with stories attached.
Now, due to a miscommunication on my part, I will do top 11 albums, while Jex will do top 11 songs! This will give us plenty of variety in the lists. Expect plenty of show & tell.
This episode is dedicated to my late Uncle Paul, whose beloved ‘Cuda appears in the show art. He loved music and cruising, and we spent many summer hours in his car with the take deck going! Will Van Halen make these lists today, or something else? Tune in and join the fun! We always chat with the comments section, live.
What are your top 11 albums or songs to play with the windows down? Drop a comment today, on Grab A Stack of Rock.
Friday April 26 at 3:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 4:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or onFacebook!
Part Six-point-five of a series on KICK AXE!
mikeladano.com 