This is the eighth installment of "Highlights from My Vinyl Collection," an appreciation of great music, not necessarily rare finds or expensive imports. This is not about "deleted Smiths singles and original, not rereleased - underlined - Frank Zappa albums," as Rob Gordon so eloquently put it, though a small few select gems might appear every now and again.
Echo & the Bunnymen - Songs to Learn and Sing
While I'm surveying great songs from 1985 through this blog, I might as well highlight albums I bought in 1985, as well. Songs to Learn and Sing is the first "greatest hits" compilation from Liverpool band, Echo & the Bunnymen. I've written before about how 1985 introduced me to a whole new world of music and Echo was part of that new world. I was so green in my knowledge of Echo, that I had no idea this was a "hits" album, nor that they had four entire albums under their belts. I normally avoid compilations, but they become magical when they open up an entirely new catalog to explore. One new song brought me to this album, that being one of my favorite songs that year, "Bring on the Dancing Horses." To me, this track rivaled "How Soon is Now," "Blue Monday," and "People are People" in terms of being one of the best songs of that era. "Bring on the Dancing Horses" even transcends that era, still remaining a personal favorite. But, Songs to Learn and Sing also introduced me to "Rescue," "Do it Clean," "The Back of Love," and above all, "The Killing Moon." I'd say that every song on the album is great, but I suppose that's to be expected from a greatest hits collection. On top of that, there is the incredibly gorgeous cover image, as photographed by Anton Corbijn. That record cover has graced my wall for the last five or so years, and it comforts me every time I look at it.
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