Timbale

You're on a damn good run, friend.

For me, Robbery Assault and Battery is the weak link ( although the album version is a lot better than the Seconds Out version)...but man it's a good album.

Granted, he was unavailable

Some top tier stuff on this. Washing of the Water kills me every time. Digging in the Dirt is great, too.

David Bowie - Blackstar. Man, he had it right up to the end.

Great record!

Gotta say it's their best single record...and it's in some pretty heavy company.

Yes - Changes

That is a song that I heard many times on the radio when it came out (1986) and seldom after that...so that when I DO happen across it, it REALLY transports me back to that year. Which isn't an all together positive thing 😂

This is a very fine list.

The slightly snobby (😊), hardcore Gabriel fan in me loves III and IV the most....but goddamn, it is hard to deny the perfection of this record.

Mesmerizes me from start to finish! In fact, the low point to me is Cuckoo Cocoon, on side 1! It's like the record is just cooking so hard and then.....meh...and then right into In The Cage, which is so great. But I respect your opinion...and it's hard to beat Selling England :)

I get that - cautiously optimistic is exactly how I feel, too. HIs voice is really great on these recordings. I agree with you on The Court...and Playing For Time really moved me.

Chronos - do you have feelings about the new Gabriel songs (the 3 that are out so far)?

Possibly my fave Van album.

This can also easily be applied to Neil Peart - he does flashy things that a legion of worshipers say "NOBODY can do that stuff!!" - when it's really his choices, not his technique, that make him special. Of course his technique is good...but it's not otherworldly - loads of drummers play at his level of ability.

Wish it was Peter Gabriel...but tickets are just too dear...and as I get older, I feel less drawn to large stadium gigs. Paying over $200 to sit in the nose bleeds watching most of a show on screens just feels like a "normal" I'm not willing to be part of. Hate to be the old guy yelling at the cloud...but I think about the $20 not-too-bad seats I would get at Rush shows and I just think we've entered a different time. It's a shame because there's a change Gabriel might be a great tour. If he ever did a sort of Massey Hall-sized venue tour, I'd be in. I think I'm also less inclined to spend exorbitant money on artist who are past their prime. I think he sounds really great on the new songs, and I will always love his work...but there are a lot of performers out there not at their artistic peak asking for big money because their name is essentially a brand. As I said, I adore PG, but that whole "legacy" thing rubs me the wrong way.

Top 10 (at the moment) The Band songs 1 King Harvest (has surly come) 2 Unfaithful Servant (Rock of Ages version - one of the greatest guitar solos ever recorded!) 3 It Makes No Difference 4 Lonesome Suzie 5 Don't Do It (Rock of Ages version) 6 Ophelia 7 Tears Of Rage 8 Rage Mama Rag 9 The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down 10 Whispering Pines

Possibly...but I get the sense that Tony and Mike don't have a lot of respect for Hackett. There is some video on youtube of Gabriel, Banks, Rutherford, Hackett and Collins all sitting there discussing The Lamb. It is painful to watch. I mean, who knows what they are really thinking...but my take is they just don't really like the guy, and sort of wish he wasn't part of the history of the band.

All great. I take some of those for granted because they are well worn...but the are so good. I remember hearing Tombstone Blues for the first time and just loving it so much - that offhand, cool delivery, the sense of wit, the poetry.... it's masterful. I don't like telling someone what they should listen to...but if you love those 60s tunes...there's a lot in his later work you might dig.

Boy...not putting Blood On The Rooftops on my list is a bit of an oversight. I just listened to it (on a dark and grey Toronto day) this morning. It really is one of their best songs. It's a drag they never returned to it post-Hackett. Imagine hearing that in '92 or 2007 instead of the instrumental Firth of Fifth section or In The Cage. Would have been amazing.

Top Ten (at the moment) Tom Waits songs 1 You Can Never Hold Back Spring 2 Time 3 Picture In A Frame 4 Jockey Full Of Bourbon 5 On The Nickel 6 Step Right Up 7 Martha 8 Tom Traubert's Blues 9 Gun Street Girl 10 Clap Hands

Top 10 (at the moment) Pete Townshend songs (I am not including any demo recordings of Who material - his versions of the Quadrophenia and Lifehouse songs could easily dominate the list!) 1 The Sea Refuses No River 2 I Am Secure 3 Empty Glass 4 Pavardigar 5 Save It For Later (the Deep End Live version is great, and the one that I've listened to many, many times...but there is a stellar studio version that for some reason can only be found on Youtube that totally knocks me out.) 6 I Am An Animal 7 Stardom In Acton 8 Jools and Jim 9 The Ferryman 10 Crashing By Design

Top 10 (at the moment) Rush songs 1 Vital Signs 2 Analog Kid 3 The Pass 4 Natural Science 5 Middletown Dreams 6 Available Light 7 The Weapon 8 Spirit Of Radio 9 Cygnus X1 Book II 10 Witch Hunt

Yeah, I’m not a “greatest hits” Dylan fan…although all his greats are, well, great to me. And will that mid-sixties, Highway 61 Revisited sound is still the coolest thing ever…I’m really really into his later work (although, Jesus, Oh Mercy is now 30+ years old!!) and yeah - Most Of The Time is a masterpiece full of profound moments. That whole record blows me away.