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88-686: John Barleycorn Must Die is the fourth studio album by English rock band Traffic , released in 1970 as Island ILPS 9116 in the United Kingdom, United Artists UAS 5504 in the United States, and as Polydor 2334 013 in Canada. It marked the band's comeback after a brief disbandment, and peaked at number 5 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, making it their highest-charting album in the US, and has been certified
176-552: A freelance writer after a story he wrote about the death of a woman in New Jersey was published by New York magazine. He was among the first dedicated rock critics. He was asked to take over the dormant music column at Esquire , which he began writing in June 1967. He also contributed to Cheetah magazine at the time. He then became a leading voice in the formation of a musical–political aesthetic combining New Left politics and
264-668: A gold record by the RIAA . In addition, the single "Empty Pages" spent eight weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 , peaking at number 74. The album was marginally less successful in the UK, reaching number 11 on the UK Albums Chart . In late 1968, Traffic disbanded, with guitarist Dave Mason leaving the group for the second time prior to the completion of the Traffic album. In 1969, Steve Winwood joined
352-530: A psychedelic rock group and diversified their sound through the use of instruments such as keyboards (such as the Mellotron and harpsichord ), sitar , and various reed instruments , and by incorporating jazz and improvisational techniques in their music. The band had early success in the UK with their debut album Mr. Fantasy and non-album singles " Paper Sun ", " Hole in My Shoe ", and " Here We Go Round
440-477: A record producer and executive), and their debut single " Paper Sun " became a UK hit in mid-1967 (#4 Canada). Their second single, Mason's psych-pop " Hole in My Shoe ", was an even bigger hit (#4 Canada), and it became one of their best-known tracks. The band's third single, " Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush ", was made for the soundtrack of the 1967 British feature film of the same name . Their debut album
528-947: A B+ or higher to be a personal recommendation. He noted that in practice, grades below a C− were rare. In 1990, Christgau changed the format of the "Consumer Guide" to focus more on the albums he liked. B+ records that Christgau deemed "unworthy of a full review" were mostly given brief comments and star marks ranging from three down to one, denoting an honorable mention ", records which Christgau believed may be of interest to their own target audience. Lesser albums were filed under categories such as "Neither" (which may impress at first with "coherent craft or an arresting track or two", before failing to make an impression again) and "Duds" (which indicated bad records and were listed without further comment). Christgau did give full reviews and traditional grades to records he pans in an annual November "Turkey Shoot" column in The Village Voice , until he left
616-660: A B.A. degree in English . At college, his musical interests turned to jazz , but he quickly returned to rock after moving back to New York. He has said that Miles Davis 's 1960 album Sketches of Spain initiated "one phase of the disillusionment (in him) with jazz that resulted in my return to rock and roll." He was deeply influenced by New Journalism writers including Gay Talese and Tom Wolfe . "My ambitions when I went into journalism were always, to an extent, literary", Christgau said later. I am interested in those places where popular culture and avant-garde culture intersect. As
704-708: A bona fide American institution. For music writers, his year-end essays and extensive 'Dean's List' are like watching the big ball drop in Times Square ." These are Christgau's choices for the number-one album of the year, including the point score he assigned for the poll. Pazz & Jop's rules provided that each item in a top ten could be allotted between 5 and 30 points, with all ten items totaling 100, allowing critics to weight certain albums more heavily if they chose to do so. In some years, he often gave an equal number of points to his first- and second-ranked albums, but they were nevertheless ranked as first and second, not as
792-440: A closet ' American Woman ' fan" (from Christgau's review of the 1983 Police album Synchronicity ). "Calling Neil Tennant a bored wimp is like accusing Jackson Pollock of making a mess" (reviewing the 1987 Pet Shop Boys album Actually ); and " Mick Jagger should fold up his penis and go home" (in a review of Prince 's 1980 album Dirty Mind ). In 1978, Lou Reed recorded a tirade against Christgau and his column on
880-533: A concentrated, fragmented prose style featuring layered clauses , caustic wit, one-liner jokes , political digressions, and allusions ranging from common knowledge to the esoteric. Informed by leftist politics (particularly feminism and secular humanism ), his reviews have generally favored song-oriented musical forms and qualities of wit and formal rigor, as well as musicianship from uncommon sources. Originally published in his "Consumer Guide" columns during his tenure at The Village Voice from 1969 to 2006,
968-458: A contributing editor at Rolling Stone (which first published his review of Moby Grape 's Wow in 1968). Late in 2007, Christgau was fired by Rolling Stone , although he continued to work for the magazine for another three months. Beginning with the March 2008 issue, he joined Blender , where he was listed as "senior critic" for three issues and then "contributing editor". Christgau had been
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#17328726643751056-464: A critic, I want to achieve a new understanding of culture in both its aesthetic and political aspects; as a journalist, I want to suggest whatever I figure out to an audience in an entertaining and provocative way. —Christgau (1977) Christgau wrote short stories, before giving up fiction in 1964 to become a sportswriter and later, a police reporter for the Newark Star-Ledger . He became
1144-506: A double live album and DVD released in 2005, documents the band's 1994 reunion tour. The four original members of Traffic were inducted for their contributions in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 15 March 2004. Winwood, Capaldi, Mason, and Stephanie Wood (standing in for her late brother Chris) all attended the ceremony. Winwood and Capaldi took part in the induction performance, but were joined by Dave Mason performing his song 'Feelin' Alright' for
1232-530: A leading progressive rock band. 1973's Shoot Out at the Fantasy Factory and 1974's When the Eagle Flies were further top 10 successes for the band in the US, and were both certified gold, though neither sold well in the UK. In 1974, the band broke up again. Steve Winwood went on to a successful solo career, with several hit singles and albums during the 1980s. Jim Capaldi also had some minor solo hits in
1320-420: A little interest in pop music, they're a treasure." While regarding the early columns as "a model of cogent, witty criticism", Dave Marsh in 1976 said "the tone of the writing is now snotty–it lacks compassion, not to mention empathy, with current rock." Fans of Christgau's "Consumer Guide" like to share lines from their favorite reviews. Wolk wrote, " Sting wears his sexual resentment on his chord changes like
1408-666: A long time he's been called the 'dean of American rock critics'", wrote New York Times literary critic Dwight Garner in 2015. "It's a line that started out as an offhanded joke. These days, few dispute it." Christgau married fellow critic and writer Carola Dibbell in 1974 and they have an adopted daughter, Nina, born in Honduras in 1986. He said that he grew up in a " born-again church" in Queens but has since become an atheist . Christgau has been long, albeit argumentative friends with critics Tom Hull , Dave Marsh , Greil Marcus and
1496-469: A lot of white guys in their 60s waving the flag for Lil Wayne 's Da Drought 3 , especially not in the same column as they wave the flag for a Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard / Ray Price trio album, an anthology of new Chinese pop, Vampire Weekend , and Wussy ..." Christgau reflected in 2004: "Rock criticism was certainly more fun in the old days, no matter how cool the tyros opining for chump change in netzines like PopMatters and Pitchfork think it
1584-466: A million total sales. Once again, however, personnel problems wracked the band as Grech and Gordon were fired in December 1971 due to excessive drug use, and the month after, Winwood's struggles with peritonitis brought Traffic to a standstill. Jim Capaldi used this hiatus to record a solo album, Oh How We Danced , which proved to be the beginning of a long and successful solo career. The album included
1672-533: A new Traffic album, John Barleycorn Must Die , their most successful album yet. Traffic went on to expand its lineup late in 1970, adding Winwood's former Blind Faith bandmate Ric Grech on bass. After Capaldi lost his infant son to cot death, he stopped drumming and nearly left the band, resulting in an expanded lineup with drummer Jim Gordon of Derek and the Dominos and Ghanaian percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah brought in during 1971 to bolster Capaldi (who moved to
1760-425: A party scene in the 1971 movie by Dario Argento , Four Flies on Grey Velvet . Retrospective reviews of the album have been mixed. AllMusic criticised the vocal sections as "excuses for Winwood to exercise his expressive voice as punctuation to the extended instrumental sections", but made note of how the album took the band's jazz/rock leanings beyond mere jamming. Village Voice critic Robert Christgau said
1848-790: A personal list of his favorite releases called the "Dean's List". Only his top ten count toward his vote in the poll, but his full lists of favorites usually numbered far more than that. These lists–or at least Christgau's top tens–were typically published in The Village Voice along with the Pazz & Jop results. After Christgau was dismissed from the Voice , he continued publishing his annual lists on his own website and at The Barnes & Noble Review . While Pazz & Jop's aggregate critics' poll are its main draw, Christgau's Deans' Lists are noteworthy in their own right. Henry Hauser from Consequence of Sound said Christgau's "annual 'Pazz & Jop' poll has been
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#17328726643751936-638: A press event for the 5th Dimension in the early 1970s. According to Rosen, "Christgau was in his late 20s at the time – not exactly an éminence grise –so maybe it was the booze talking, or maybe he was just a very arrogant young man. In any case, as the years passed, the quip became a fact." When asked about it years later, Christgau said that the title "seemed to push people's buttons, so I stuck with it. There's obviously no official hierarchy within rock criticism–only real academies can do that. But if you mean to ask whether I think some rock critics are better than others, you're damn straight I do. Don't you?" "For
2024-465: A project with Mick Weaver (a.k.a. Wynder K. Frog), the short-lived Mason, Capaldi, Wood and Frog (later shortened to Wooden Frog), they played a few live dates and recorded some BBC sessions, but broke up before releasing any formal recordings. After the break-up of Blind Faith in 1969, Winwood began working on a solo recording, bringing in Wood and Capaldi to contribute, and the project eventually turned into
2112-444: A regular contributor to Blender before he joined Rolling Stone . He continued to write for Blender until the magazine ceased publication in March 2009. In 1987, he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in the field of "folklore and popular culture" to study the history of popular music. Christgau has also written frequently for Playboy , Spin , and Creem . He appears in the 2011 rockumentary Color Me Obsessed , about
2200-508: A role as percussionist/co-vocalist/master of ceremonies). The live album Welcome to the Canteen was released in September and marked the band's break with United Artists Records. It did not bear the "Traffic" name on the cover; the album was credited to the band's individual members (including Mason, who returned for his third and final spell with the band). However, the band logo did appear on
2288-524: A surplus recording from The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys , "Open Your Heart", and the new tracks featured drummer Roger Hawkins and bassist David Hood , from the Muscle Shoals Sound Studio house band. Capaldi soon brought them on board to replace Grech and Gordon. The new lineup (Winwood, Capaldi, Wood, Kwaku Baah, Hawkins, Hood) toured America in early 1972 to promote the LP, and their concert at
2376-463: A three-volume book series, the first of which was published in 1981 as Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies ; it was followed by Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s (1990) and Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s (2000). In his original grading system from 1969 to 1990, albums were given a grade ranging from A+ to E−. Under this system, Christgau generally considered
2464-446: A tie for first. The list shows only his number-one picks. No one in this time and place has the time to sit and listen uninterrupted for sixty minutes to anybody's music. I think Robert Christgau is the last record reviewer on earth who listens to eight records a day twice before giving his opinion on it ... Christgau is the last true-blue record critic on earth. He gave us an A-plus. That's pretty much who I make my records for. He's like
2552-458: Is "hard" to write about in an "impressionistic way", that he is "not at all well-schooled in the jazz albums of the '50s and '60s", and that he has neither the "language nor the frame of reference to write readily about them." This was even while critiquing jazz artists like Miles Davis , Ornette Coleman , and Sonny Rollins ; he said "finding the words involves either considerable effort or a stroke of luck". Christgau has also admitted to disliking
2640-515: Is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became an early proponent of musical movements such as hip hop , riot grrrl , and the import of African popular music in the West. He was the chief music critic and senior editor for The Village Voice for 37 years, during which time he created and oversaw
2728-423: Is arguably one of the two most important American mass-culture critics of the second half of the 20th century... All rock critics working today, at least the ones who want to do more than rewrite PR copy, are in some sense Christgauians." Spin magazine said in 2015, "You probably wouldn't be reading this publication if Robert Christgau didn't largely invent rock criticism as we know it." Douglas Wolk said
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2816-531: Is now." In a broad sense, Christgau says he responds to qualities of "tone, spirit, [and] music", disregarding, for instance, scholarly analysis of artists such as Bob Dylan . He readily admits to having prejudices and generally dislikes genres such as heavy metal , salsa , dance , art rock , progressive rock , bluegrass , gospel , Irish folk , jazz fusion , and classical music . "I admire metal's integrity, brutality, and obsessiveness", Christgau wrote in 1986, "but I can't stand its delusions of grandeur,
2904-534: Is perhaps best known for his "Consumer Guide" columns, which have been published more-or-less monthly since July 10, 1969, in the Village Voice , as well as a brief period in Creem . In its original format, each edition of the "Consumer Guide" consisted of approximately 20 single-paragraph album reviews, each given a letter grade ranging from A+ to E−. The reviews were later collected, expanded, and extensively revised in
2992-535: Is still really intellectually active? It is tremendously flattering and gratifying that there are people who are ready to help support me." Between 1968 and 1970, Christgau submitted ballots in Jazz & Pop magazine's annual critics' poll. He selected Bob Dylan's John Wesley Harding (released late in 1967), The Who 's Tommy (1969), and Randy Newman 's 12 Songs (1970) as the best pop albums of their respective years, and Miles Davis 's Bitches Brew (1970) as
3080-496: The Santa Monica Civic Auditorium on 21 February was recorded in multitrack audio and captured on colour videotape with multiple cameras. The 64-minute performance is thought to be the only extended live footage of the group. It was evidently not broadcast on television at the time, but was later released on home video and DVD. Following Winwood's recovery from peritonitis, Traffic's sixth studio album, Shoot Out at
3168-412: The Voice dismissed Christgau after the paper's acquisition by New Times Media . He continued to write reviews in the "Consumer Guide" format for MSN Music , Cuepoint , and Noisey – Vice ' s music section–where they were published in his "Expert Witness" column until July 2019. In September of the same year, he launched a paid-subscription newsletter called And It Don't Stop , published on
3256-486: The counterculture . After Esquire discontinued the column, Christgau moved to The Village Voice in 1969, and he also worked as a college professor. From early on in his emergence as a critic, Christgau was conscious of his lack of formal knowledge of music. In a 1968 piece he commented: I don't know anything about music, which ought to be a damaging admission but isn't... The fact is that pop writers in general shy away from such arcana as key signature and beats to
3344-561: The murder of John Lennon : "Why is it always Bobby Kennedy or John Lennon? Why isn't it Richard Nixon or Paul McCartney ?" Similar criticism came from Sonic Youth in their song " Kill Yr Idols ". Christgau responded by saying "Idolization is for rock stars, even rock stars manqué like these impotent bohos –critics just want a little respect. So if it's not too hypersensitive of me, I wasn't flattered to hear my name pronounced right, not on this particular title track." Christgau has named Louis Armstrong , Thelonious Monk , Chuck Berry ,
3432-572: The 1970s in his native UK but was less successful abroad. Chris Wood did sporadic session work until his death in 1983. Winwood and Capaldi reformed as Traffic for a final album and tour in 1994. Traffic were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. Jim Capaldi died the following year. Traffic's singer, keyboardist, and guitarist Steve Winwood was the lead singer for the Spencer Davis Group at age 14. The Spencer Davis Group released four Top Ten singles and three Top Ten albums in
3520-473: The 1978 live album, Take No Prisoners : "What does Robert Christgau do in bed? I mean, is he a toe fucker? [...] Can you imagine working for a fucking year, and you get a B+ from some asshole in The Village Voice ?" Christgau rated the album C+ and wrote in his review, "I thank Lou for pronouncing my name right." In December 1980, Christgau provoked angry responses from Voice readers when his column approvingly quoted his wife Carola Dibbell 's reaction to
3608-524: The Beatles , and the New York Dolls as being his top five artists of all time. In a 1998 obituary, he called Frank Sinatra "the greatest singer of the 20th century". He considers Billie Holiday "probably [his] favorite singer". In his 2000 Consumer Guide book, Christgau said his favorite rock album was either The Clash (1977) or New York Dolls (1973), while his favorite record in general
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3696-637: The Canteen . Island Records 314 548 541-2, also includes the previously unreleased tracks "I Just Want You to Know" and "Sittin' Here Thinkin' of My Love". Tracks 4–10 recorded on 18–19 November 1970 at the Fillmore East . Traffic Shipments figures based on certification alone. Traffic (band) Traffic were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in April 1967 by Steve Winwood , Jim Capaldi , Chris Wood and Dave Mason . They began as
3784-458: The Fantasy Factory , released in 1973, met with a cold critical reception, but in sales it was another major hit. It was shortly followed by a major world tour, for which Muscle Shoals keyboardist Barry Beckett was added to the lineup. The double live album On the Road was drawn from this tour. It broke the band's string of British flops by reaching number 40 in the UK Albums Chart . However, after
3872-470: The July 2010 installment would be the last on MSN. On November 22, he launched a blog on MSN, called "Expert Witness", which featured reviews only of albums that he had graded B+ or higher, since those albums "are the gut and backbone of my musical pleasure"; the writing of reviews for which are "so rewarding psychologically that I'm happy to do it at blogger's rates". He began corresponding with dedicated readers of
3960-545: The Mulberry Bush ". Their follow-up self-titled 1968 album was their most successful in Britain and featured one of their most popular songs, the widely covered " Feelin' Alright? ". Dave Mason left the band shortly after the album's release, moving on to a solo career that produced a few minor hit songs in the 1970s. Traffic disbanded at the beginning of 1969, when Steve Winwood co-formed the supergroup Blind Faith . An album compiled from studio and live recordings, Last Exit ,
4048-683: The Replacements . He previously taught during the formative years of the California Institute of the Arts . As of 2007, he was an adjunct professor in the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music at New York University . In August 2013, Christgau revealed in an article written for Barnes & Noble 's website that he was writing a memoir. On July 15, 2014, Christgau debuted a monthly column on Billboard ' s website. Christgau
4136-432: The US as a trio in late 1968, which led to the following year's release of Traffic's next album, Last Exit , one side of which was recorded live. During 1968 Winwood and Wood often played with Jimi Hendrix , and they both appear on The Jimi Hendrix Experience 's 1968 double album Electric Ladyland , as did an uncredited Mason. The band was dissolved by Winwood's leaving in early 1969. His departure went unexplained at
4224-521: The United Kingdom, as well as two Top Ten singles in the United States. Drummer/vocalist/lyricist Jim Capaldi and guitarist Dave Mason had both been in the Hellions and Deep Feeling, while woodwinds player Chris Wood came out of Locomotive . Winwood, Capaldi, Mason, and Wood met when they jammed together at The Elbow Room , a club in Aston , Birmingham . After Winwood left the Spencer Davis Group in April 1967,
4312-415: The album's title, " John Barleycorn ", also showed the musicians attending to a modern interpretation of traditional folk music in the vein of contemporary British bands Pentangle and Fairport Convention . Whereas previous Traffic albums had been dominated by more concise song structures, John Barleycorn saw the group develop into a looser, jam -oriented progressive rock and jazz fusion style, setting
4400-476: The annual Pazz & Jop critics poll. He has also covered popular music for Esquire , Creem , Newsday , Playboy , Rolling Stone , Billboard , NPR , Blender , and MSN Music ; he was a visiting arts teacher at New York University . CNN senior writer Jamie Allen has called Christgau "the E. F. Hutton of the music world–when he talks, people listen." Christgau is best known for his terse, letter-graded capsule album reviews, composed in
4488-434: The back cover. The album ended with a version of The Spencer Davis Group song " Gimme Some Loving ", which became a minor hit. Following the departure of Mason, Traffic released The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (1971), which was a Top 10 American album but did not chart in the UK. It sold over half a million copies in 1972 when it received a gold disc , and was awarded a R.I.A.A. platinum disc in March 1976 for over
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#17328726643754576-406: The best jazz album of its year. Jazz & Pop discontinued publication in 1971. In 1971, Christgau inaugurated the annual Pazz & Jop music poll, named in tribute to Jazz & Pop . The poll surveyed music critics on their favorite releases of the year. The poll results were published in the Village Voice every February after compiling "top ten" lists submitted by music critics across
4664-408: The best rock is treated condescendingly unless it conforms to Christgau's passion for leftist politics (particularly feminism ) and bohemian culture." Marsh named another prejudice of Christgau's to be " apolitical or middle-class performers" of rock music. Christgau has been widely known as the "dean of American rock critics", a designation he originally gave to himself while slightly drunk at
4752-535: The blogging platform Medium . In August 2015, he was hired by Vice to write the column for the magazine's music section, Noisey . In July 2019, the final edition of "Expert Witness" was published. In September 2019, at the encouragement of friend and colleague Joe Levy, Christgau began publishing the newsletter "And It Don't Stop" on the newsletter-subscription platform Substack . Charging subscribers $ 5 per month, it has his monthly "Consumer Guide" column, podcasts , and free weekly content like book reviews. He
4840-445: The column, named as "The Witnesses" after the column. On September 20, 2013, Christgau announced in the comments section that "Expert Witness" would cease to be published by October 1, 2013, writing, "As I understand it, Microsoft is shutting down the entire MSN freelance arts operation at that time ..." On September 10, 2014, Christgau debuted a new version of "Expert Witness" on Cuepoint , an online music magazine published on
4928-616: The departure of Mason hurt Traffic's songwriting on the album, leaving the band to depend on Winwood's "feckless improvised rock, or is it folksong-based jazz?" However, John Barleycorn Must Die was voted number 369 in Colin Larkin 's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000). It was also included in The MOJO Collection: The Greatest Albums of All Time , which described it as "a magnificent album" that provided "a remarkable showcase" for Winwood's gifts. The album
5016-493: The earliest "Consumer Guide" columns were generally brief and detailed, but "within a few years... he developed his particular gift for 'power, wit and economy', a phrase he used to describe the Ramones in a dead-on 37-word review of Leave Home ". In his opinion, the "Consumer Guide" reviews were "an enormous pleasure to read slowly, as writing, even if you have no particular interest in pop music... if you do happen to have more than
5104-639: The email-newsletter platform Substack and featuring a monthly "Consumer Guide" column, among other writings. Christgau was born in Greenwich Village in Manhattan , New York City, on April 18, 1942. He grew up in Queens , the son of a fireman. He has said he became a rock and roll fan when disc jockey Alan Freed moved to the city in 1954. After attending public school in New York City , Christgau attended Dartmouth College graduating in 1962 with
5192-604: The grand finale which also featured Keith Richards, Tom Petty, and the Temptations. The induction lineup was completed by Bramblett on organ and bass pedals, even though he was not one of the members inducted. Tentative plans for another Traffic project were cut short by Jim Capaldi's death from stomach cancer at age 60 in January 2005, ending the songwriting partnership with Winwood that had fueled Traffic from its beginning. Winwood subsequently dedicated The Last Great Traffic Jam "to
5280-588: The last of that whole Lester Bangs generation of record reviewers, and I still heed his words. He gets my vision, and I'm cool with that. But half these people, they read Pitchfork , and they base half their opinion and quotes on that. — Questlove , 2008 "Christgau's blurbs", writes Slate music critic Jody Rosen , "are like no one else's–dense with ideas and allusions, first-person confessions and invective, highbrow references and slang". Rosen describes Christgau's writing as being "often maddening, always thought-provoking... With Pauline Kael , Christgau
5368-618: The man without whom Traffic could never be: my lifelong friend and partner, Jim Capaldi." Dear Mr. Fantasy was a celebration for Capaldi that took place at The Roundhouse in Camden Town , London on 21 January 2007. Guests included Steve Winwood, Paul Weller , Pete Townshend , and many more. Dear Mr. Fantasy featured the music of Jim Capaldi and Traffic, and all profits went to The Jubilee Action Street Children Appeal. Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( / ˈ k r ɪ s t ɡ aʊ / KRIST -gow ; born April 18, 1942)
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#17328726643755456-415: The measure ... I used to confide my worries about this to friends in the record industry, who reassured me. They didn't know anything about music either. The technical stuff didn't matter, I was told. You just gotta dig it. In early 1972, Christgau accepted a full-time job as music critic for Newsday . He returned to The Village Voice in 1974 as music editor. In a 1976 piece for the newspaper, he coined
5544-438: The nation. Throughout his career at the Voice , every poll was accompanied by a lengthy Christgau essay analyzing the results and pondering the year's overall musical output. The Voice continued the feature after Christgau's dismissal. Although he no longer oversaw the poll, Christgau continued to vote and, since the 2015 poll, also contributed essays to the results. Each year that Pazz & Jop has run, Christgau has created
5632-484: The newspaper in 2006. In 2001, robertchristgau.com–an online archive of Christgau's "Consumer Guide" reviews and other writings from his career – was set up as a co-operative project between Christgau and longtime friend Tom Hull ; the two had met in 1975 shortly after Hull queried Christgau as The Village Voice ' s regional editor for St. Louis. The website was created after the September 11, 2001, attacks when Hull
5720-469: The original studio album, digitally remastered on disc one, plus a second disc of bonus material, including more of the Fillmore East concert, with alternate mixes and versions of album tracks. The original LP release of the album had the front cover design on a background consisting of a photograph of burlap . Later LP copies had the design on a grey background. The cover is displayed prominently during
5808-476: The original version of Mason's " Feelin' Alright ", which was later recorded with great success by Joe Cocker and Three Dog Night . Winwood, Wood, and Capaldi wanted to take the group in a different direction, opting for a folk/blues style rather than their earlier psychedelic/eclectic rock sound, while Mason was oriented towards psychedelic pop. Mason also cited discomfort with the Traffic lifestyle. The band toured
5896-481: The quartet formed Traffic. Capaldi came up with the name of the group while the four of them were waiting to cross the street in Dorchester. Soon thereafter, they rented a cottage near the rural village of Aston Tirrold , Berkshire to write and rehearse new music. Traffic signed to Chris Blackwell 's Island Records label (where Winwood's elder brother Muff , also a member of the Spencer Davis Group, later became
5984-540: The records of Jeff Buckley and Nina Simone , noting that the latter's classical background, "default gravity and depressive tendencies are qualities I'm seldom attracted to in any kind of art." Writing in a two-part feature on music critics for Rolling Stone in 1976, Dave Marsh bemoaned Christgau as a "classic, sad example" of how "many critics... superimpos[ed] their own, frequently arbitrary, standards upon performers." Marsh accused him of becoming "arrogant and humorless–the raves are reserved for jazz artists, while even
6072-611: The remaining members opted not to continue the band without him. Traffic's break-up was followed by two compilations from United Artists ( Heavy Traffic and More Heavy Traffic ), both of which only drew from the first half of their output. Steve Winwood embarked on a solo career, while Rosko Gee and Rebop Kwaku Baah joined German band Can . Kwaku Baah died on stage from a cerebral hemorrhage in Stockholm , Sweden in 1983, and Capaldi dedicated his solo album Fierce Heart to his memory. Chris Wood also died that year from pneumonia . All
6160-475: The reunion of Traffic (minus Dave Mason), and a re-launch of the band's career. Mad Shadows would go on to be the title of Mott the Hoople 's second album , also produced by Guy Stevens, and the new Winwood/Traffic album took its title from one of its tracks and became John Barleycorn Must Die . The album featured influences from jazz and blues , but the version of the traditional English folk tune that provided
6248-416: The reviews were collected in book form across three decade-ending volumes– Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s (1990), and Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s (2000). Multiple collections of his essays have been published in book form, and a website published in his name since 2001 has freely hosted most of his work. In 2006,
6336-448: The sessions, leaving most of the album to be recorded by the quartet of Winwood, Capaldi, Wood, and Gee. When the Eagle Flies , released in 1974, was yet another Top Ten album in the US, and moderately successful in the UK. However, a subsequent tour of the US, while successful in terms of ticket sales, was emotionally exhausting for the band. Capaldi later recalled "Rosko Gee and I were the only ones in anything like normal shape. Steve
6424-612: The still living members of Traffic's most recent lineup reunited in 1994 for a one-off tour, after a fan left a voice mail message at Bob Weir 's (of the Grateful Dead ) hotel in Chicago during the 1992 "Scaring the Children" tour, and suggested it would be cool if Traffic toured with the (then Grateful) Dead. Traffic opened for the Grateful Dead during their summer tour. The flute/sax role on
6512-719: The supergroup Blind Faith , while drummer and lyricist Jim Capaldi and woodwinds player Chris Wood turned to session work . Wood and Winwood also joined Blind Faith's drummer Ginger Baker in his post-Blind Faith group Ginger Baker's Air Force for their first album, Ginger Baker's Air Force (1970). At the beginning of 1970, after the demise of Blind Faith, Winwood returned to the studio ostensibly to make his first solo album, originally to be titled Mad Shadows . He recorded two tracks with producer Guy Stevens , "Stranger to Himself" and "Every Mother's Son", but yearned for like-minded musicians to accompany, inviting Wood and Capaldi to join him. Thus Winwood's erstwhile solo album became
6600-469: The term "Rock Critic Establishment" to describe the growth in influence of American music critics. His article carried the parenthesized subtitle "But Is That Bad for Rock?" He listed Dave Marsh , John Rockwell , Paul Nelson , Jon Landau and himself as members of this "establishment". Christgau remained at The Village Voice until August 2006, when he was fired shortly after the paper's acquisition by New Times Media . Two months later, Christgau became
6688-511: The time, even to Capaldi and Wood, but he later said "Because of the way I ended the Spencer Davis Group, I saw no reason why I shouldn't leave Traffic and move on. It seemed to me a normal thing to do." Winwood's comments clash with the fact that the Davis group continued after he left. Winwood then formed the supergroup Blind Faith , which lasted less than a year, recording one album and undertaking one US tour. The remaining members of Traffic began
6776-467: The tone for their subsequent output in the 1970s. The album was reissued for compact disc in the UK on 1 November 1999, with five bonus tracks, including three recorded in concert from the Fillmore East in New York City. In the US, the remastered reissue of 27 February 2001 included only the two studio bonus tracks. Steve Winwood oversaw a deluxe edition that was released on 15 March 2011, featuring
6864-478: The tour Winwood informed the Muscle Shoals trio that he was returning to a smaller lineup more like their original one, and their services were no longer needed. Meanwhile, Chris Wood's problems with drug use and depression were increasing. Rosko Gee was recruited on bass, while Capaldi switched back to drums. The resulting quintet began to record a new album in late 1973, but Kwaku Baah was fired partway through
6952-422: The tour was played by Randall Bramblett , who had worked extensively with Steve Winwood. Mike McEvoy joined the line up playing keyboards, guitar and viola, and Walfredo Reyes, Jr. played drums and percussion. Winwood and Capaldi recorded and released a new Traffic album, Far from Home , with no involvement from the other four members. It broke the top 40 in both the UK and USA. The Last Great Traffic Jam ,
7040-418: The way it apes and misapprehends reactionary notions of nobility". In a 2015 interview, he described heavy metal as "symphonic bombast without the intelligence and complexity, although there's a lot of virtuosity.[...] That music is so masculine in a really retrograde way; I don't like that at all. It seems to me to have a very 19th-century notion of power." He said in 2018 that he rarely writes about jazz as it
7128-403: The web site, especially its high searchability and small interest in graphics, are his idea of what a useful music site should be". In December 2006, Christgau began writing his "Consumer Guide" columns for MSN Music , initially appearing every other month, before switching to a monthly schedule in June 2007. On July 1, 2010, he announced in the introduction to his "Consumer Guide" column that
7216-405: Was Mr. Fantasy , produced by Jimmy Miller , and like the singles, was a hit in the UK but not as big elsewhere, although it did reach number 88 in the US. Mason left the group due to artistic differences just after Mr. Fantasy was released, but rejoined for a few months of 1968, long enough to contribute to seven of ten songs on their second album, Traffic . Released in 1968, it included
7304-581: Was Monk's 1958 Misterioso . In July 2013, during an interview with Esquire magazine's Peter Gerstenzang, Christgau criticized the voters at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , saying that "they're pretty stupid" for not voting in the New York Dolls. When asked about Beatles albums, he said he most often listens to The Beatles' Second Album –which he purchased in 1965–and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band . Wolk wrote: "When he says he's 'encyclopedic' about popular music, he means it. There are not
7392-404: Was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . Previously unreleased studio bonus tracks 4. ("I Just Want You To Know") and 8. ("Sittin' Here Thinkin' of My Love") are solo demos by Winwood. The live tracks, recorded on 18/19 November at the Fillmore East , comprise what was to have been side one of Live Traffic (ILPS 9142), presumably shelved in favor of Welcome to
7480-462: Was having recurrent problems with the peritonitis, and Chris's body was suffering from chemical warfare." Winwood ultimately passed his boiling point, walking off the stage in the middle of what turned out to be the band's final show, in Chicago. The following day he left the tour without a word to anyone, leaving the rest of the band waiting for him at the venue for that night's scheduled performance. Feeling Winwood had been integral to Traffic's music,
7568-426: Was released in 1969. By 1970, Blind Faith had also broken up and Winwood, Jim Capaldi and Chris Wood reformed Traffic, with John Barleycorn Must Die being the band's comeback album. It became the band's biggest success in the United States to that point, reaching number 5. Their next LP, The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (1971), went platinum in the US and became popular on FM radio , establishing Traffic as
7656-468: Was skeptical of the platform at first: "Basically I told Joe that if I didn't have enough subscribers to pay what I made at Noisey by Christmas I was going to quit. I wasn't going to do it for less than that money. I had that many subscribers inside of three days." By May 2020, "And It Don't Stop" had more than 1,000 subscribers. Christgau was ambivalent about the platform at first, but has since found it "immensely gratifying" explaining that, "A man my age, who
7744-477: Was stuck in New York while visiting from his native Wichita . While Christgau spent many nights preparing past Village Voice writings for the website, by 2002 much of the older "Consumer Guide" columns had been inputted by Hull and a small coterie of fans. According to Christgau, Hull is "a computer genius as well as an excellent and very knowledgeable music critic, but he'd never done much web site work. The design of
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