#100: The Band - The Band (1969)

This was totally new to me. I had obviously heard the name before but never heard any of the songs. The first impression was not too good; music for men who like Neil Young and similar (nice guitars, annoying voices - prejudiced me? not a chance!). It didn't work as background music, but when I really sat down focusing it grew on me.

It's a fun mix of rock'n'roll, a bit of ragtime, blues, country and a good dose of Hammond organ. I have some difficulties relating to the lyrics - a lot about American men in various kinds and levels of trouble and life stages, but intersting nontheless. There seem to be some interest out there on the internet for analysing the lyrics, at this site for instance, but that's beyond my interest and time limits at the moment.

High ponts include King harvest (has surely come), Rockin' chair and Jawbone (if you can handle all the different beats - must be at least three). A few will always be annoying to my ears, mainly because of the voices, but all in all a positive surprise. I will certainly not delete the downloaded mp3 files and maybe play them once in a while.

So what about you? Do you like The Band?