watched a documentary on beck last nite (2001).

fantastic, what a totally talented artist.

my question....as a P fan, can anyone suggest a cd i can start with....

and why..

hmm..

If you are referring to music similar, or somewhat will perhaps open a door to beck music with some Prince-like similarities.. then Midnight Vultures would be a nice place to start.. fun, exciting.. experimental.. funky.


However, his masterpiece is Sea Change.. the title is exactly what it is.. a dramatic shift from his regular albums. it's an acoustic, strings oriented album with lush arrangements.. it's slow and beautiful.


Guero and The Information are great albums too.... They are upbeat and having a consistent sound quality. Beck fits an interesting mold to music... He is an unexpected talent that perhaps has been creating more quality driven albums (back to back).. than most.

Older Gems would be Mutations and Odelay.

I would suggest investing money in his entire catalog... He doesn't stick to one genre, he is always swapping around in his musical talents.. He is worth every single cent you have towards a musical investment.

.
[Edited 5/30/09 0:14am]

Sdldawn said:

thanks. i kind of got that he does different styles from the doco, the only song i was really familiar with b4 this was Loser

mutations, odelay and midnight vultures were titles i remember from the doco.

i might try midnight vultures to start with... i like funky and follow with sea change.

Sdldawn said:

i cant see it

"The Information" would seem to me the one that gathers most of the different styles of music he has tackled into one package. However, it's from his later period and a few of the songs might sound a bit "tired" to folks who have listened to him for a long time. However, I think it's musically quite innovative and the arrangements and the way he uses electronics on that one are admirable. Nice analog synths, interesting rhythms, wonderful basslines. The ballads like "New Round" and "Dark Star" are some of his best on that end of the tempo area too.

"Odelay" is most often considered the classic Beck record, but it hardly present the artistic maturity of his later years - I guess it also sounds a bit dated today because it was just one of those albums that defined the 90s. The "Guero" -album from a few years ago had Beck attempting to redo that sound to certain degree, and I personally consider it the weakest of his album (it's still quite okay, though),

His "folkier" records ("Mutations", "Sea Change") are great, but completely different from his electro / funk / cut-up / hiphop -works. The nee one "Modern Guilt" would not be a bad one to start with either, although it is of course completely different Back than what he did on his debut "Mellow Gold" and "Odelay".

"Midnite Vultures" is him trying to do Prince and Rick James. Whilst it's still a rather good record, it is very derivative and his falsetto singing sounds either ridiculous or terrible to most ears. I don't recommed "Midnite Vultures" as the first one, even if the Prince connection definitely would be there. He does not do Prince better than Prince does as some of the reviewers back in the day claimed. Neither is it "the best Prince record since Lovesexy" as some asshat writing for Rolling Stone stated.

He has also released some lower profile indie stuff, which is mostly of curiosity interest.

So I'd still say go with "Information". I was listening to it the other day, and wondering how much great music there really is in the world and how little time we actually have to attempt to enjoy it all.

novabrkr said:

sounds like his is a bit of a musical chameleon.....remind u of anyone else we know

i think thats what intrigued me last nite...he isnt afraid to try new styles, and experiment.
i just didnt want to listen to something and be put of..eg if i was newbie to Prince and heard "come" i'd have been running for the hills

btw, rick james did get a mention in the doco i watched, i was waiting for a P reference, but

they showed him singing in a radio station, with an acoustic guitar...that was quite nice.

im soooo confused. i might have to check out the local library and see if they have any of his cds, try b4 i buy

Agree 100 percent

Sdldawn said:

i love the org ...everyone is so helpful

i agree with sdldawn that all his albums are worth having.

my own favorite has always been sea change but i love those
slow introverted melodic records. it's stunning.

but to start with, i agree that midnite vultures is probably
the best choice, it has a bit of everything.

guero is also easy to get into and has lots of styles on it,
most songs very solid.

IstenSzek said:

Nobody mentioned Modern Guilt yet, which I love....

Every album of his is pretty stellar, ironically, his most lauded albums, Mellow Gold and Odelay are my least listened to now...

Probably my top 5 at the moment are Modern Guilt, The Information, Sea Change, Midnite Vultues and Guero.

IstenSzek said:

Yeah, Sea Change is timeless.. I also love the Japanese bonus track (Ship in a Bottle)

i'm gettin a taste for beck now.. might pull this stuff out

Sdldawn said:

ship in a bottle is such a beautiful song. when i first got it i must have
listened to it about 200 times over the time of a month. incredibly cool,
and yet so simple.

"Sea Change" [Version that ends with "Ship in the Bottle"]



It’s certainly not the safest or even the most retrospective, but it scaled the heights of my top shelf, clearing space amongst the musical giants.

“Put your hands on the wheel / Let the golden age begin.” – Beck

== Title Edit ==
[Edited 5/30/09 14:10pm]

Guero has been my favorite Beck album
Its a really fun album though

thekidsgirl said:

it is! I enjoy it, i don't listen that often.. but I get that way with his albums.. I popped in his latest album and loved on it all day
[Edited 5/30/09 22:15pm]

novabrkr said:

Fuck that shit. Odelay or Guero are my favorites.

eenie, meanie, mynie, mo....



thx for all the suggestions...might see what the guys in the local wrecka sto have in stock
[Edited 5/31/09 3:02am]

Brendan said:

same here. it went straight into my top 10. it sank a little bit since
than but it's still in my top 20 of best albums for me.

Sdldawn said:

I'm the same way with Beck...I love his albums, and play them out when I first buy them, but then I seem to stop listening to them all together.

Even though Beck fans swear by Sea Change, I think that's a poor recommendation for someone just getting into him.
[Edited 5/31/09 8:15am]

Cinnie said:

yes, it kind of is. it's like recommending "the truth" to someone who
wants to find out about prince when you'd be better off directing them
to "purple rain" or even something as recent as "3121".

Well, not quite. Sea Change is still a rather easy to listen to as an album. Perhaps many listeners will think of it as depressing, though. It is however an album that really defined him as an artist and distanced him from being so reliant on irony and plain comedic lyrics - even "Mutations" relied heavily on irony as far as the lyrics are concerned. That's not to say "an artist" would have to be serious all the time - Beck certainly hasn't been - but you sort of still need to be able to show that side too. It's still essential listening to anybody wanting to form an opinion on Beck's music.

I will say about "Guero" though that "Hell Yes" and "Earthquake Weather" to my ears are still some of his best songs.

Midnight Vultures is my fave... Sea Change for some mellower Beck... and I like Guero - has some fun tunes.

Guero sounds a bit like a collage of everything he'd done up to that point.
in fact, there are some songs on there that he had kept aside for years.

Broken Drum is a sea change outtake iirc and other songs date back further.

it all fits together miraculously well and i love that album. it is a very
good album to drive to on a nice summer evening. excellent stuff.

Cinnie said:

I love the directness. Let’s try a different tact.

==

3-Ways to Beck’s Diverse Buffet

[1] Odelay [1994]

Early-day Beck Masterpiece (Essential for all Beck fans).

[2] Midnite Vultures [1998]

Mid-day Beck with most Prince/Soul mojo (wait ‘til you hear “Debra”).

[3] Modern Guilt [2008]

Late-day Beck Amazement (Not a shred of guilt remains after this album and its “Volcano” closure. He’s a modern-day musical goliath.)

==

One-way Trip to Musical Heaven

[1] Sea Change [2002]

A must-have regardless of Beck interest.

==

This should give you enough material to construct your own spade if you wish to dig deeper.

anyone else been playing Modern Guilt lately?


I gave it a year rest.. now i'm back jivin to it!

Sdldawn said:

I'll likely be playing it until I'm 6-feet under.

And it was you that helped me get a preview of it in advance of the street date.

Brendan said:

I'm glad i'm back into it.. i'm diggin it again..

I still havent found a perfect quality version of the B-side "Half and Half" tho.. only a 128kbps.. doesn't sound good.


wish iTunes had it

Sdldawn said:

I didn't know anything about it.

Just got a hold of one the purported to be much better, but it was complete junk.

=====
[Edited 5/31/09 21:13pm]