Goals for the remainder of the year: Stop writing articles for the LA Weekly involving the phrase, [Random Band] is the Best [Insert Hyperbolic Superlative Here]. That said, I get hopelessly stannish when talk turns to Arthur Lee and Love, in particular their masterpiece, Forever Changes, which was just re-issued by Rhino last month complete with a new alternate mix and a few obsessives-only outtakes.
The article makes the case for Love as Los Angeles’ greatest band based on how perfectly they capture the way the city feels (no, not over-tanned and bloated with excess, that would be Ratt). If you haven’t heard Forever Changes, I can’t recommend anything more, save for possibly yoga on weed. So the morale of the story is probably to listen to Forever Changes while smoking a blunt and stretching. I think that last sentence indicates that I may need to move. Soon.
LA Weekly: The Doors? Black Flag? The Chili Peppers? Nope, LA’s Best Band Was Love
Buy Love-Forever Changes (Collector’s Edition)
Download:
MP3: Love-”Maybe the People Would Be the Times Or Between Clark and Hilldale”
MP3: Love-”Alone Again Or”
Bonus Track:
MP3: Love-”Your Mind And We Belong Together”
11 comments
douglas martin says:
May 12, 2008 at 3:44 am (UTC -7)
most times, we agree to disagree [well, that's what OMG TOTALLY ONLINE BFF'S do, right?], but this time, you’re OTM, jeff weiss.
GREAT piece.
padraig says:
May 12, 2008 at 2:15 pm (UTC -7)
I’d take the Minutemen myself even if they are from San Pedro (which I guess is more like Long Beach which still counts as LA right?) but you can’t go wrong with Love.
duke says:
May 12, 2008 at 3:44 pm (UTC -7)
enjoyed this one (obviously).
scott says:
May 12, 2008 at 5:01 pm (UTC -7)
Can I claim San Pedro if I’m a resident of Long Beach? What would Mike Watt think about this?
Passion of the Weiss says:
May 12, 2008 at 5:17 pm (UTC -7)
Not sure about that one, but you can claim LBC, which is more meaningful I think.
Also, I’ve been trying to subscribe to the Pressed For Sound RSS feed but it won’t let me. What gives sir?
dog hole says:
May 12, 2008 at 5:17 pm (UTC -7)
goal: stop fucking writing
Passion of the Weiss says:
May 12, 2008 at 5:32 pm (UTC -7)
Goal: If you’re going to insult me on my own blog come up with a better name than Dog Hole.
Sach says:
May 12, 2008 at 10:06 pm (UTC -7)
“yoga on weed”
I’d have to let the “greatest LA” band question marinate for a while, but this is definitely the most LA statement I’ve read in a good minute.
Still loving the blog holmes, just used it to catch up on what I’ve missed in the past few months.
DudeAsInCool says:
May 12, 2008 at 10:06 pm (UTC -7)
Better than The Byrds, The Doors, Frank Zappa, Crosby Stills and Nash and Young, The Eagles, X??
scott says:
May 13, 2008 at 3:47 pm (UTC -7)
It should work, lots of crappy bugs were finally fixed last Friday. If it doesn’t work again then I’ll get someone on it.
Dan says:
May 15, 2008 at 2:17 am (UTC -7)
Great album, but I can’t help but prefer “7 And 7 Is” to all the rest of Love’s discography, taken en toto. That song is punk as fuck.