Fifty Years of Music • June, 1971

I remember that time you told me

You said, "Love is touching souls"

Surely you touched mine

'Cause part of you pours out of me

In these lines from time to time

–Joni Mitchell, A Case of You

 

Joni Mitchell's Blue leads the pack as this album is on most everybody's all-time favorite list. I've said this before, but Joni Mitchell just blew the doors open for women musicians trying to get in the male-dominated music business. 

For both female and male teenagers like myself, the interpersonal songwriting and singing let young people know it was okay to open up, and let your innermost feelings be known to others. Songwriters across the globe took notice.

I grew up in a home environment where we did not share our emotions. Joni's music was like having a D.H. Lawerence novel playing on your portable stereo in your bedroom. Joni made it possible for bone-headed teenage boys like me growing up in the 70's to begin to look beyond a woman's looks and respect their gifted minds as artists. Blue is a masterpiece.

Just as we seem to end the one act play

We draw so much farther apart

Each new opening, a different time for closing

Will I sing my last symphony to an empty room?

Still my heart is an open secret

Someone tell me have I been gifted or robbed

–Stephen Stills, Open Secret

I believe I purchased Stephen Stills 2 as soon it came out. In 1971, I thought Stephen Stills was a pretty cool rock 'n' roll star and I was a huge fan.

Now in the past five years, I've read a number of rock biographies dealing with everything Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and have come to realize that these guys were such huge assholes to each other, and to a great number of people associated with their careers. All four have acknowledged as much in the past several decades and I for one, don't want to see any more two, three, or four band configuration reunion tours. 

However, I can easily manage to forget all the revelations regarding Stills and just appreciate his records that take me back to a good place and time. Listening to Stephen Stills 2 the past couple of weeks still makes me appreciate his talent and music. He was at the right place and time in Los Angeles in 1966. Even though he didn't always make the best decisions, he made some really good music in the late 60's and early 70's that still holds up today.

I don't know how you feel

If you really see

And for years I would pray

That you'd favor me

But for now, please allow

One formality

Down the road, 'cross the sea

Please remember me

–Todd Rundren, Remember Me

Here's one I didn't appreciate at the time, Todd Rundgren's Runt. The Ballad of Todd Rundgren which is a wonderful album of mostly piano-based ballads, and thus the title. Todd was a fan of Laura Nyro who I also didn't appreciate back in the day, and now I have songs from both in my 100 songs Playlists. 

Nyro's influence over Rundgren is displayed throughout Runt as he started to compose more songs on the piano. Listening to this album fifty years later was such a treat! 

And speaking of better late than never, the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame finally got around to honoring Todd Rundgren, Carol King, and Tina Turner as solo inductions into this year's 2021 Hall of Fame (but, don't even get me started on the Go-Go's and the Foo Fighters being inducted with this same group).

One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do

Two can be as bad as one

It's the loneliest number since the number one

–Harry Nilsson, One

Another great album from this time period is Harry Nilsson's Aerial Pandemonium Ballet. By 1971, Nilsson had become quite famous and took a couple of his older less known albums (Pandemonium Shadow Show and Aerial Ballet) back to the studio for a remix. As a young fan, it was perfect for someone like me to get familiar with his older songs and bring his new fans up to speed.

I can't help but comment in searching all the pictures for Joni and Harry for this post, the number of photos with a cigarette stuck in both of their months from such gifted voices. Of course in Harry's case, the bottle was the much bigger problem...

We all sung together, We all sung together

We all sung together, We all sung together

–Nils Lofgrin, We All Sung Together

Nils Lofgrin started hanging with Neil Young's garage band, Crazy Horse in the late 60's and subsequently played on Neil's classic album, After The Gold Rush in 1970. As a fifteen year old, I read every speck of that album cover to cover and saw Lofgren's name for the first time, "Who is this guy?"

Nils also seemed to be at the right place and time and by 1971 recorded his first album with his band Grin. The self-titled Grin was produced by Neil Young's favorite Producer, David Briggs.  Nils went on to be a steady member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984, and recently rejoined Crazy Horse after  Frank "Poncho" Sampedro retired from the band in 2014. 

As a new feature to the Fifty Years Of Music playlists starting this week, I've included a sprinkling of hit singles that were on the Billboard Hot 100 during the month of June, 1971. Enjoy my friends!