U2 — Boy

U2 -- Boy

• Artist: U2
• Title: Boy
• Year: 1980
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 8
• Owner: Mary
• Acquired: 1980 – Unknown origin.
• Keeper: Yes

1980?!? That’s a long time ago. I remember immediately liking “I Will Follow” when I first heard Bono singing “If you walk away, walk away…” But if you had told me then that U2 would still be making music worth listening to decades later I doubt I would have believed you.

For some reason I never bought the record. I’m glad Mary owns almost everything they’ve ever done. I’m pretty sure my friend Jeff Arthur introduced me to them.

Of course “Boy” is a great record and it still sounds modern. It’s hard to believe that U2 is now “classic rock.”

Sad Lovers and Giants – Seven Kinds Of Sins

• Artist: Sad Lovers and Giants
• Title: Seven Kinds Of Sins
• Year: 1987
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 5
• Owner: Mary
• Acquired: 1987 – Probably Plan 9 in Richmond, VA.
• Keeper: Maybe

This is a 12 inch single. I don’t anything about this band. They sound a little like The Chameleons, but with more keyboards. If you don’t know who The Chameleons are keep moving.

R.E.M. — Murmur

• Artist: R.E.M.
• Title: Murmur
• Year: 1983
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 7
• Owner: Tracy
• Acquired: 1983 – Guessing here… Tracks in Norfolk, VA.
• Keeper: Yes

Dullsville baby, dullsville! Maybe I made a mistake by playing Judas Priest’s “Point Of Entry” album (Lemme see those horns people!) for a little afternoon pick-me-up. Then, I played R.E.M.’s “Murmur” immediately afterward. I was anticipating an all-out boredom assualt and thought a little heavy metal buffer just made sense. Instead, I think it made R.E.M. sound even more boring. You can’t follow Priest with the jingle jangle, man!

It’s hard for me now to think of myself as getting excited about R.E.M. But there was a time when that was true. I remember seeing them live early on with Dream Syndicate and maybe even when “Chronic what? Town” came out. They sounded new and different, and maybe I was more open-minded as a youngster.

Of course, this is good music. I just don’t want to hear it anymore. So, what’s my problem?

R.E.M. — Chronic Town

• Artist: R.E.M.
• Title: Chronic Town
• Year: 1982
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 7
• Owner: Mary/Tracy
• Acquired: 1982 – We both had our own copies.
• Keeper: Yes

I was never really into R.E.M., but for some reason I did buy the first few records. Mary, on the other hand, seems to have almost everything they did, including oddball stuff like 7″ 45RPM box sets. I was in high school when this came out and I would buy anything new, not on the radio, that I could get my hands on. Now that I’m a crotchety old geezer I’m not nearly as tolerant. I’m still always on the hunt for “the new”, but I only want what really excites me.

Sinead O’Connor — The Lion And The Cobra

• Artist: Sinead O’Connor
• Title: The Lion And The Cobra
• Year: 1987
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 5
• Owner: Mary
• Acquired: 1987 – Mary bought it when she was working at Plan 9 in Richmond, VA.
• Keeper: Maybe

What can I say about this one? It’s a decent pop record, and different than most stuff at the time. That said, she is solidly in the category I like to call “too-earnest-too-often.” It doesn’t even matter what the lyrics are about, it just sounds too earnest.

Camper Van Beethoven – Key Lime Pie

• Artist: Camper Van Beethoven
• Title: Key Lime Pie
• Year: 1989
• Format: Vinyl 12 in.
• Rating (1-10): 6
• Owner: Tracy
• Acquired: 1989 – This was a promo my brother and I got at our record store, RIP Records.
• Keeper: Yes

I like Camper Van, but never really followed them. This album is interesting musically and lyrically, but it just doesn’t get me that excited. I believe it was their major label debut, and their cover of “Pictures of Matchstick Men” was a mild hit on alternative radio.

I think they are back together in some form. Who knows? Click the search links to find out.