Thursday, November 6, 2008

Who Knew Billy Joel Didn't Always Suck?

You know that doughy, sad-eyed, piano man that penned such drivel as "Uptown Girl" and that god-awful boomer anthem "We Didn't Start The Fire"? Well, he didn't always suck. In fact, in 1970 he was one half of Attila, a duo that was way ahead of their time, about 30 years before the whole minimalist two-piece band trend. Attila played ridiculous Hammond B3 vs Drums mathletic spazz rock that is so fucking crazy it might make you forget Jon Lord and will definitely make you forget "Tell Her About It," at least for a little while. Listen for the blast beat in "Brain Invasion." Brutal.

26 comments:

  1. Damn you to hell. I loved "We Didn't Start the Fire" when I was small. I still think it rules.

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  2. DUDE. this shit is amazing. esp. "Amplifier Fire". goddamn. like you said, who knew?

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  3. i had to come back and leave another comment. aside from the blast beat in "Brain Invasion", how about the foreshadowing of 80s video-game music in some of the Hammond parts in that same tune? fuuuuuck. ahead of it's time for sure.

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  4. I am totally jazzed about hearing this considering how much I enjoy the tales of Mr. Joel.
    Thanks for this!

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  5. This record is excellent. I received a pretty good copy of this for my wedding from a buddy. I had never known of its existence until then. Best wedding gift!

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  6. This record is excellent. A buddy of mine gave it to me for my wedding 2 years ago. I hadn't known of its existence before then. Great wedding gift!

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  7. According to Wiki - Their creative partnership ended when Joel allegedly ran off with Small's wife[citation needed], although this did not end their collaborations, as Small produced Joel's концерт video.

    Scandalous....

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  8. My mother had this record, she was Joel's biggest fan when I was a kid. I wonder if she still has it somewhere...

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  9. You should try to get it. I don't think it's particularly valuable but man, how awesome would it be to listen to this on a turntable and roll a joint on the cover?

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  10. "brain invasion" is awesome. can't say the rest thrills me although there is some pretty good stuff here and there. "tear this castle down" is cool too.

    can't say it stands up to "we didn't strt the fire" though.

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  11. Fun listen, thanks! Great blog!

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  12. I think I've found your arch-nemesis blog: http://blogrizzard.blogspot.com/2007/11/really-bad-early-billy-joel.html

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  13. This fine album has made appearances on a few blogs. Not sure how he can call this "a foul ejaculation" but to each his own.

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  14. wow, this is one of those albums i've always wanted to hear but never remember when i am searching for something to download...it exceeded my expectations...nice job!

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  15. Nice to see this record making the rounds.
    To anyone: it's worth a listen, at least.

    As far as early 70s hard rock (guitar-less!), it doesn't get too much better.
    Why this record didn't find an audience at the time is beyond me.

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  16. Ha! that's definitely a blast beat. I had no idea. a guy I work with is a huge Joel fan. He'll hate this, which is why I'm burning him a copy.

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  17. The bug-eyed little troll tears it up. Thanks for the posting.

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  18. Thanks for this.

    I saw this on another blog but it was (of course) deleted. Forgot about it 'til now, can't wait to listen or make complete sentences.

    -liquidplatypus

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  19. Some friends and I were just discussing how we've all been wanting to hear this for years. Thanks!

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  20. As always Aesop, you fail to let down. This is Badassery. Who Knew....Thanks for something I would have never known about. This Upload is great. This Blog is even better. I am a true fan and visit at least once a day. Thank you kindly.

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  21. holy cow how much coke was he on to come out with Revenge Is Sweet and Wonder Woman? amazing

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  22. While I enjoy seeing you post great metal classics like Blasphemy and Holocausto, its obscure shit like this that I didn't even know existed that really keeps me coming back to your blog aesop

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  23. Whoa. I just killed three hours and a bottle of wine tucking in to the heavy psych offerings of the cosmic hearse. I was recently digging the atilla jams while on tour w/my bros here in Milwaukee. I will probably wake my lady when I lumber into bed. Thanks, Cosmic Hearse!!!

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  24. Duuuuuuuuuuuuude, thank you for this! I really enjoy Joel's "Glass Houses" record, but this one blows it out of the fucking water. And, you said it exactly right, "man, how awesome would it be to listen to this on a turntable and roll a joint on the cover?" I will now begin my quest to find a copy and do just that. Love this blog!

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