A bumper crop of comebacks happened in 2007, the most prominent being new records from the original members of Bad Brains, Dinosaur Jr., Throbbing Gristle, and The Stooges (minus the late Dave Alexander).
Any Trouble, The Bonzo Dog Band, Buffalo Tom, Crowded House, EIEIO, Happy Mondays, The Hooters, The Roches, and 17 Pygmies also made new albums in 2007 after lengthy absences.
For punk fans, there were comeback albums by 999, Crime, Lifetime, and The Reds. The Reds were a Philly band whose 1979 debut LP was released on A&M. In 2007, Reds founders Rick Shaffer and Bruce Cohen resurrected their band for a new album. Back to 2022: Rick Shaffer has released his 11th solo LP, Tightrope Ride.
Johnny Strike and Hank Rank from San Francisco's first and only rock & roll band recorded 2007 versions of some old Crime songs, with help from a couple of Phantom Surfers.
Metal fans were treated to surprise comebacks by Budgie, Leaf Hound, and Sir Lord Baltimore. (Budgie frontman Burke Shelley died in 2022.) Hip hop fans saw the return of Black Sheep and the Ultramagnetic MC's. Dan Stuart and Steve Wynn made a sequel to their 1985 Danny & Dusty collaboration, and Levon Helm returned with the well-received Dirt Farmer (with the help of his daughter Amy Helm, who released a solo album last year).
2007 Comebacks: https://krakenfiles.com/view/RSJfEQpSQT/file.html
ReplyDeleteSeptember Shirt - Buffalo Tom
ReplyDeleteAll Night Long - Lifetime
What Do You Know - 999
What If I Knew - Dinosaur Jr.
Gonna Fill The World With Fire - Sir Lord Baltimore
Too Many Rock & Roll Times - Leaf Hound
Falling - Budgie
Pure Love/Jah Love - Bad Brains
Lotus - 17 Pygmies
In The Blood - Happy Mondays
The Weirdness - Stooges
Lil Sis - Crime
Little Cisco - The Reds
Undying Love - The Stems
Tremolo - Any Trouble
Say That Again - Crowded House
Where The Wind May Blow - The Hooters
Don't Take Me Down - EIEIO
The Good Old Days - Danny & Dusty
Feelin' Good - Levon Helm (J.B. Lenoir cover)
No Shoes - The Roches
For The Benefit Of Mankind - The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band (with Stephen Fry)
(nothing from the Throbbing Gristle album, which was arguably more disappointing than The Weirdness)
the Budgie song is really freakin good: https://youtu.be/SVddYFZtw5c
These keep getting better, Jon! Great comp! - Stinky
ReplyDeleteThanks, man! At this rate, it will probably be 2024 by the time I catch up to 2022's reunions (which include Altered Images, Boo Radleys, Cave In, Hellacopters, Hoodoo Gurus, the Mars Volta, the Rave Ups, Tears For Fears, Urge Overkill and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs).
DeleteComeback albums seem to be met with excitement followed by disappointment (e.g., Build A Nation and The Weirdness). Eventually they are forgotten, because there is just too much music out there competing for our attention.
But it's interesting when a group of talented people decide after a decade apart (or longer) to make new music. They're older, maybe wiser, and usually less hairy. They no longer have the fire of youth in their belly. Bigger bellies, perhaps, but less fiery. Times and tastes have changed in their absence. They've been busy living: raising kids, working, burying parents (and siblings and spouses and bandmates). And maybe they have Something To Say to their fans -- who have also been aging, working, marrying, parenting, divorcing, and grieving.
Comeback albums may not be solid from start to finish, but there's always at least one great song on each record. I can honestly say that I think every song on this compilation is excellent. It's been fun hearing from old favorites and listening to artists who didn't grab my attention their first time around. And it was fun to sequence the songs to flow from one style to another, since some of them had little in common other than the year of release.
Looking forward to hearing yer 2024 post on 2022 reunions. The new Mars Volta is IMO exceptionao. Major complaint...too short.
DeleteHow great is that feeling -- when a comeback album by an artist who you loved and missed is everything you hoped it could be?
DeleteSpeaking of 2022 comebacks, a new Essential Logic album (coproduced by Youth) will be released on November 25!
Deletehttps://cargorecordsdirect.co.uk/products/essential-logic-land-of-kali
Check out "Alien Boys", the first video from the album "Land of Kali". So great to hear Lora's voice and her sax again!
https://youtu.be/-O4p8FKibUE
Always liked Essential Logic. Followed LL from X-Ray SpeX. Thanks for this. The last time they got back together, mostly LL & MM (Martin Muscatt) on Essential Logic 2. Their touring group I believe was some ex-Bad Manners & Blondie alum Gary Valentine. Sounded good & IMO adios William Bennett. Something musical to look forward to next month.
DeleteYou remember correctly: the Cargo Records site listed above is also selling a box set called Logically Yours with "tracks recorded circa 1997, with Martin Muscatt, Dave Farren (Bad Manners) and Gary Valentine (Blondie), forming the basis of what would have been Essential Logic’s third studio album, ‘No More Fiction’." ['Pedigree Charm' is counted as the second Essential Logic album in the box set.] I agree re. William Bennett -- good riddance to bad rubbish.
DeleteAnd how about this, a new album by Derwood Andrews and Rat Scabies!
https://youtu.be/lFwLZ9_MRio
https://derwoodandrews.com/album/2267427/derwood-and-the-rat
An interesting article about Gary Valentine's career as an author of books about the occult and mysticism:
Deletehttps://pleasekillme.com/gary-lachman-valentine/
Well I am dildoed with a pickle! I think I have featured most of these bands--more since I started blogging in 2008 so this is excellent review for me, Good work Jonder Ho! and glad to see you are catching some of the magic to the depths I have explored and beyond....to infinity and beyond!!!!
ReplyDeleteThe pickle sounds painful, but yeah -- there's not a lot of music you HAVEN'T featured on downunderground.blogspot.com. It's like a fabulous online record store where everything is free!
DeleteWow -- another stellar line-up! Thanks Jonder!
ReplyDelete