Ranking Records: Aztec Camera - Roddy Frame
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- Опубліковано 16 чер 2020
- If you are unfamiliar with the music of the Scottish singer-songwriter Roddy Frame and his band Aztec Camera, this one’s for you. For those who are already fans, you know what I am talking about. The six albums Roddy recorded under the Aztec Camera name and his four subsequent solo records belong in everyone’s collection.
One of music’s most gifted songwriters and guitarists, there is a variety of sounds and styles on Roddy’s records that all leads back to one thing-solid songwriting.
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www.musiccitymike.net
Great guitarist. One of my biggest influences.
'All I Need Is Everything' is my favorite track off the album Knife. Absolutely, love that track!
Roddy’s the man. Absolute genius as a songwriter and guitarist. Has been since the age of 15.
Thanks for reviewing Roddy Frame. He should be world famous. Such an amazing songwriter.
Roddy Frame = pure genius
I was in the supermarket at Sainsburys, in a long queue to pay. A pretty blonde woman in her 50's was ahead of me. I decided to call my pal about tickets to see Roddy at the ICA and her teenage son answered. He called Roddy Frame, FRODDY RAME, and I was saying down the phone, "It's not Froddy, it is RODDY.. as in Roddy Frame", The blonde lady looked at me and grinned. Turned out she was Roddy's older sister! True story.
I just started listening to some Aztec Camera songs and I gotta say so far I like them. Will continue to listen to more.
Nice little overview of Roddy's back catalogue.
It has to be High Land, High Rain for me as his best album, and all the more remarkable when you discover that most of the songs on the album were written when he was 15/16.
Roddy is still great. Oblivious is still one of the very best 80s songs.
It was distinctive and a unique piece.
Great bass. Great guitar. Fast and melodic at the same time.
It was a different musical genre for the time.
Just a brilliant piece. It still really resonates with me.
I easily could put it on loop for a hour and enjoy it each time.
Roddy Frame is a genius. Thanks for this.
While i was into punk living in East Kilbride back 1983 my sister would play High Land Hard Rain in the room next door , i used to borrow it from her room along with Haircut 100 when she was out , loved the breezy summer vibes of both of they records , as she went off them i got into them along side of eighties bands like The Smiths , Echo & The Bunnymen etc ,,,defo rate Stray second after the debut , one of my 1st CDs back 1990
I met Roddy in the early 80's and became friends with David Mulholland who used to play drums for Aztec camera. That was in the Eaglesham Arms known as the Egg in those days. It snowed hard and David, Caroline and I walked home to East kilbride in silly sandals and a Christmas dress, New romantic/punk style. We hung around with his crew from Westwood. You will hear the lyrics "Westwood to Hollywood" well that is where he was from. If I remember rightly Roddy had asked me out but I said no having fallen for one of his friends Stevie. Roddy started to see a beautiful girl who was a beautiful punk called Carole. His talent is incredible, I would say he is one of the most talented guitarists and he is a humble Scotsman. I still have a couple of Aztec Cameras albums. Needless to say Stevie was shortlived. Watch Roddy jam with Neill Finn.
Thanks for sharing that. He is incredible and I'm sad to not have ever met him. Thanks for the Westwood info - I always thought that odd since Westwood is an area in Los Angeles which really didn't make much sense.
I still have the two Postcard singles from '81, 'Just Like Gold' and 'Mattress Of Wire'. Both are superb and well worth tracking down.
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. Roddy's music became the soundtrack to my teens and twenties. The album 'Stray' is literally seared into my brain!
You are most welcome. I spent a lot of time revisiting his music this year and it was a blast.
It may seem strange with me being from Minnesota, but I've been a huge Aztec/Roddy fan since pretty early on. I had picked up a various artists record way back in '84 or so and they had a song on it. I've been in love ever since. It's hard for me to pick a favorite - it kinda depends on my mood. Lately I've been listening to a lot of "Frestonia". It's a great record for January. Also, those reissues that you have are so nice. Clear & crisp.
Such and underrated artist, Roddy is a genius. Surf is a perfect record imo.
Thank you for this! I've always been a fan of the early Aztec Camera stuff but I am now going to explore further into the catalog.
"Deep and wide and tall" brill pop song! Actually need to check all Aztec/Roddy stuff. Only know Love album thanks to fantastic Somewhere In My Heart single which i love really..😍😍
Dreamland is an incredible album, his best imo. Production is unusual and very interesting, songs are wonderful. The live shows from this era were stunning.
I've been listening to it more and loving tit more! Wish I could have seen one of those shows!
Yeah you can hear a bit of Ryochi Sakamoto who produced the album. Amazing songs. Belle of the Ball is my favorite track.
Luckily, I got to see them on the Love tour in Salt Lake City. Those reissues are beautiful. I've onlly found the last three. The bonus tracks make them an absolute treasures. That VH Jump[ cover I had on an EP back in the day, with great live renditions of Backwards and Forwards and Mattress of Wire. Good video.
DAMNIT....how'd I miss that show? Where did they play? Can you remember the concert date?
You've amazing taste, Mike. Your presentation was so SOLID and professional -- and with with no cuts!!! Just so heartfelt, informative, insightful and accurate.
Btw "Crazy" from FRESTONIA and "Reason For Living"and "Bigger Brighter Better" from THE NORTH STAR are some lesser-appreciated masterpieces (Going on the assumption that just about every song on SURF is a masterpiece, and "White Pony", "English Garden" etc from SEVEN DIALS and "Western Skies", "The Coast", "Marble Arch" and "Day Of Reckoning" and "Portastudio from WESTERN SKIES are as well)
Agree with you about Surf, RF's greatest record. Stray is my other favourite.
I agree - I love Spanish Horses for the way that Roddy Frame plays guitar. Remembering the summer of 1988 when I was working at the Watermill Theatre with a great bunch of actors. Aztec Camera's "LOVE" album was playing all the time, and we'd dance around on the grass like loons. Beautiful music. "It's called Love, and every cruelty will crowd it".
Excellent band, brilliant song writer
Info on a couple of the songs mentioned:
Down the Dip - The dip in the title was a bar "The Diplomat" in East Kilbride (Roddy's home town, just outside Glasgow) that was close to his heart.
Killermont Street - this is where the main bus station in Glasgow is located. People would leave from here when going to places like London etc. hence some of the lyrics in the song.
Agree with the ratings of the AC albums but North Star is easily his best solo album with his 3 best solo songs of Bigger, Brighter, Better....Hymn To Grace and Reason For Living
Thanks much for adding this info! Hope to visit those spots some day.
@@mbodayle I'm a Glasgow native...if you need a tour guide let me know :-)
You are on. Maybe next year I will be over and a Roddy tour of Glasgow would be in order!
@@mbodayle I'd love the chance to show off the city and the places where some amazing music history happened - maybe introduce you to some scottish musical contemporaries of Roddy's that you might not have stumbled across yet.
@@cobwebscavern2994 YES! Post=pandemic I'm there.
Great video MCM; Roddy Frame is an amazing talent, guitarist, vocalist etc. High Land Hard Rain may well be one of the greatest albums ever produced especially when you factor in his age and that it was his first album. Knife, is a great album, but almost impossible to equal the brilliance of HLHR. That said, Love was a very different sound but incredibly well done and total quality. I find Stray to be a drop-off although "Song for a Friend" is fantastic. Dreamland was getting right back on track with Black Lucia and Spanish Horses. Frestonia falls somewhere in the middle for me with Rainy Season being my front runner. For his solo work; I agree that Surf is amazing. When Roddy plays "Surf" live; he adds a vignette of "I can hear music" by the Beach Boys which is absolute magic and can be found on UA-cam. Thanks for spending some time highlighting the music of Aztec Camera and Roddy Frame; well done!
Thanks Rob - much appreciated. Sure hope I get to see Roddy live again as well as some more new music!
Great vid! Dreamland would be first or second on my AC Best List (so lush, pretty, relaxing, like walking through a garden in the park and am pumped to hear there's an entire Ronnie Scott's show on the reissue) but I agree with you that HLHR is up there as well. And I completely agree that Surf is the solo record I listen to the most.
Most of my Roddy education came in the naughts as I only knew Oblivious in the 80s so most of my knowledge of him is via just old school listening to all of the CDs alone at home, mostly minus vids, except Seven Dials which I can't seem to find anywhere. That Ronnie Scott's Dreamland concert isn't on yt either.There isn't much press coverage of him and I see he only visits Twitter about once a year to acknowledge happy birthday wishes from fans.
Great to know he covered VH's "Jump," and I also found his version of Lauper's "True Colors," one of my fave songs, which he does way better than her. Will have to check out all of his other b-sides and reissue bonus songs. I would be interested in knowing the personal issues blocking his recording and touring more if anyone can share that info.
I take that back on two counts. The powers that be posted Seven Dials on yt recently AND I have to say that as I've been dipping into North Star more, it's incredible and would rank it higher than Surf.
Love is definitely an over-hated album. For sure one of his best
Roddy came from the same area of East Kilbride as me , Westwood. He is an absolute genius. Beautiful.
Hi Mike. Really enjoyed listening to this show. Your appreciation for Roddy's music is spot on - it's a great intro for anyone who doesn't know (all) his stuff. I think Dreamland repays coming back to - numerous great tracks, such as the title track or Valium Summer. The North Star is also a beautiful album - Reason for Living is a highlight. As someone commented below, Working in a Goldmine, from Love, is an amazing track. I heard Mick Jones saying that he'd been in hospital, and listening to Love on his Walkman, and in particular Working in a Goldmine, had helped him recover. Something like that.
i've looked roddy up from time to time over the last 10 years to see what he might be doing and there hasn't been much to go on. i'm unaware of any personal problems he's had and prefer it that way. i love all of the aztec camera records and have liked his solo records too but i don't have them anymore. thanks for making this video. you speak perfectly fine about one of my favorite artists.
How Men Are is my all-time fave Aztec Camera song it's simply gorgeous & Love is my fave album
Roddy frame from my home town.. my uncle is close friends with mackey from love and money .. justin from delamtri and guys from bluebells and a band hip sway . i met Roddy multiple times as a kid and the others guys in bands but they were just my uncle's mates friends i was born 19.87 so didn't really no they were famous... but out of them all now i look back and im 37 now i relise how talented this man was very quiet quick sense of humour tho and looking back he was the one with no ego just a chill guy .. but i still listen to his music more so now im older 🙄 man i met that guy he played charity gig for band members child spoke to him but i was a late teens .. now im older i listen to his music 🎶 guys very talented and from Ek aka East Kilbride where a was from .. aztec camera and Jesus and mary chain both bands came out of that small town in the 80s ❤
Any idea what Roddy is doing these days? He's disappeared!
@mbodayle I spoke to a family member the last big gig they were at watching roddy.. was in Glasgow end of 2018 got told its on UA-cam but iv not checked.. then before the pandemic he played a few songs at a charity gig done a few cover songs and a aztec camera songs .. but then covid came along lockdown time flys so his last big official gig I no off that people in my family were there that was 6yr ago now then played at a charity event only played a few songs that was the start of 2019.. but now im interested to find out what roddy is doing now music wise if he will be back out touring.. but yeah 2018 was the last big gig he played in Glasgow kelvin Grove band stand my cousin's and her husband and two kids went .. but yeah I wonder if he will be back out performing talented guy great singer song writer and great guitarist very underrated he's up there with some of the best to come out of the uk 🇬🇧 especially Scotland and the song's still stand today. And he wrote them when he was a teenager 😳 very talented man
Always loved Aztec camera and truly appreciate your cost fan tutti frutti poster …maybe a review on prefab sprout album Swoon …
Wow, thanks man. I only listened to the first two albums: I was a teenager and there certainly was a lot going on musically back then, probably 'cause it was my only focus to find the next band. Thanks for a good reaction to some great music!
Great video, Mike. I find it hard to rank the Aztec Camera albums because they're all so different. Which album I listen to depends where I am (at home, in the car, in the garden) and what kind of mood I'm in. I think that Love is just a perfect pop record. Deep and Wide and Tall kicks it off perfectly. How Men Are is sublime. This album is unashamedly pop, I grew up listening to it and have never grown tired of it. My second favourite album is probably Dreamland. Again, more "pop" than most of his other records, my favourite tracks are the poignant "Sister Ann" (I lost my sister Ann) and melancholy "Valium Summer". Other standout tracks are "Rainy Season" on Frestonia. Oblivious (of course). So many to choose from. Thanks for reminding me.
Thanks Eric. I love Pop and as you say, Love is so perfect. I wouldn't change a thing about it.
Sister Ann is special. I have often wondered if it's about a sister or about a nun. LOL
@@jennifer792 , The Silver Boat by Anne Adams was an inspiration for the track according to RF at a solo show in Edinburgh roundabout '92 😃 fantastic wee intimate gig, got some stuff signed ⭐⭐⭐
I’ve been a fan of Aztec Camera since 1984, great songwriter. High Land, Hard Rain and Knife are the best albums even though Love has 9 flawless songs, some of the best he’s written, the production has dated it a bit. Too many cooks. There’s a box set coming this week from Cherry Red Records, but it’s the Warner years and unfortunately the debut isn’t part of it even though it was WEA in USA, and Rhino in the reissues! Bizarre. Knopfler plays solo on outto of Just Like The USA. I saw him on the Stray tour in 1990, excellent gig. Dreamland is good too. In fact they’re all good. The deluxe editions you have a great I have them all except Love and Knife which are hard to get now.
Good Morning Britain is one of my favorite songs in 90's
One of my all-time favorite artists, though I did "take a break" for about 10 years so those albums ratings suffer. I also added in his solo work to the ratings as well 1) Love 2) HLHR 3) Dreamland 4)Stray 5) Seven Dials 6) Knife 7)Western Skies 8) Frestonia 9)North Star 10 ) Surf
One of the best shows I ever saw of him was December of 1990. Roddy is actually listed as the opening band, and he came out and played like 45 minutes, just him and a guitar and sometimes a harmonica. Then at the end of "his" set, he broke into Jump, and when he goes from acoustic to electric, the band joins him on stage to finish the song and start the "band's" set as headliner.
North Star should be much higher. Here comes the ocean has never been played live . Why ?
Surf and high land hard rain for me
Two awesome LPs!
@@mbodayle really are , I'm a massive Roddy Frame fan , the most underrated artist ever!!!!@
1. Knife; 2. Dreamland; 3. Stray; 4. Frestonia; 5. High Land, Hard Rain; 6. Love.
I can dig it!
He was ranking Aztec Camera, not Roddy Frame solo albums. So I will do it. #1 The North Star. Done.
Did you know Roddy Feame had narrowed the choice of name down to 2 : aztec triangle OR pink camera?
Best Song o think - Just like Gold - never recorded, never released.
2nd favourite - we could send letters.
I did not know that - thanks for sharing.
* I flew from Honolulu to London just to see Roddy Frame.
Nashville to London for me and I hope to get to do it again!
here in san diego they where pretty pop.. especially among the "secret society" which is just a vespa/ mod wanna be scene..and always associated with the colourfield..yep, were were...were...back on board..
Thanks Mike. Uhh, regarding the album LOVE, let’s not forget “Working in a Gold Mine”.
Ouch - of course that deserved a mention!
Appreciate the reply Music City Mike!
Roddy is up there with Paddy McAloon & Neil Finn in my opinion...
Prefab Sprout should have been much bigger.
Love #1, Dreamland #2, Stray #3.
Sakamoto made Dreamland a masterpiece. The Love album, the best. Stray is Frame with backup from the Clash. Knife was a failed experiment with Knopfler.
Aztec camera are grouse!! :)
Imagine my shock and dismay when I thought the interviewer at the beginning was Roddy..
High Land Hard Rain...all the way.
you sound like that kennedy with the speech impediment..just breath dude..no reason to be nervous.just breath..for reals