CL's Favourite Albums: Blue vs Urban Hymns

Addick in SW16

I know that the previous match up was difficult due to the contrasting styles of the two albums, not to mention the twenty year gap between the releases. This is probably worse :-).

Album Name: Blue Artist: Joni Mitchell
Release Year:1971

1. All I Want
2. My Old Man
3. Little Green
4. Carey
5. Blue
6. California
7. This Flight Tonight
8. River
9. A Case of You
10. The Last Time I Saw Richard


Album Name: Urban Hymns Artist: The Verve
Release Year: 1997

1. Bitter Sweet Symphony
2. Sonnet
3. The Rolling People
4. The Drugs Don't Work
5. Catching the Butterfly
6. Neon Wilderness
7. Space and Time
8. Weeping Willow
9. Lucky Man
10. One Day
11. This Time
12. Velvet Morning
13. Come On

I'm very biased here, as I think Blue is one of the most beautiful and honest albums I've ever heard. But what do you think? :-)

Leuth

Blue ffs, Urban Hymns isn't even (The) Verve's best album

McBobbin

I'll go for urban hymns because of "the drugs don't work". Not a massive fan of either album, though I've only recently given blue a listen

Addick in SW16

Blue

Henry Irving

I liked Urban hymns and there a few stand out tracks. I'll give it another listen but Blue is one of the best albums ever, a classic, a thing of beauty, lyrically it's a masterpiece and musically it's genius. All with the divine Joni.

Blue it is.

Johnnysummers5

Blue, and the lovely Joni for me

PragueAddick

I am not sure this lark works as I cannot imagine a big crossover between Joni Mitchell and Verve fans, but there we are. Urban Hymns for me, one of my all time favourite albums ( and a soundtrack to our Wembley playoff Season)

Chef_addick

Urban Hymns for me.

I don't think it works as well putting up albums from such different era's/styles against each other, I did listen to Blue but it's not for my tastes.

Shrew

Blue.

Addick in SW16

Yeah, I see that it is hard to choose between two very different albums from entirely different periods, with very different styles, but I don't think we can find the absolute favourite without some odd match ups.

It could also come down to different tastes in music, which says more about liking a particular type of music than thinking one album is better than the other, which is definitely a flaw in the system.

Henry Irving

I think the contrast makes it interesting and if it wasn't this round it would be the next

Macronate

Urban Hymns.

CHG

Urban Hymns, brings back some great memories.

Powell Is Pleasant

Blue.

seth plum

Blue.

Karim_myBagheri

Blue

MrOneLung

Never heard Blue and don't recognise any of the track names either

sillav nitram

Blue for me and you.

I have to say i've gone right off, Bitter Sweet Symphony ever since ITV started using it for the footy, in fact it now really pisses me orf.

Time to get over to that other thread.

North Lower Neil

All Rise was OK, but Fly By is hugely overrated.

Urban Hymns.

cafcnick1992

I've always thought Bittersweet Symphony was a missed opportunity. It has just a great signature orchestral backing tune, but the dreary voice and endless repetition mean it ends up being a bit crap.

JamesSeed

Blue.
Carey and California are favourites.

JamesSeed

JamesSeed said:

Blue.
Carey and California are favourites.

This thread has got me playing Joni albums for the first time in ages.

Henry Irving

where are @bobmunro and @Greenie ?

bobmunro

Henry Irving said:

where are @bobmunro and @Greenie ?

I'm here.

Urban Hymns is a stunning album with every track a classic, and with Bittersweet Symphony and The Drugs Don't Work amply displaying the genius that is Richard Ashcroft. Every self-respecting music collection should have this album.

So, for me it's a resounding vote for ....... Blue.

Leuth

Nick McCabe >>>>>>>>>>>>> Richard Ashcroft

bobmunro

Leuth said:

Nick McCabe >>>>>>>>>>>>> Richard Ashcroft

That's as maybe - but neither have any place in a music discussion when comparing to the beautiful, supremely talented, gorgeous, irresistible Joni. I love that woman.

Henry Irving

bobmunro said:

Leuth said:

Nick McCabe >>>>>>>>>>>>> Richard Ashcroft

That's as maybe - but neither have any place in a music discussion when comparing to the beautiful, supremely talented, gorgeous, irresistible Joni. I love that woman.

Indeed

Where would we be without the songs that Joni wrote?

Greenie

Blue. Joni Mitchell is folk rock royalty.
This Flight Tonight is a class song, Nazareth did a quality cover.
In this company, who the hell are the Verve?

Leuth

bobmunro said:

Leuth said:

Nick McCabe >>>>>>>>>>>>> Richard Ashcroft

That's as maybe - but neither have any place in a music discussion when comparing to the beautiful, supremely talented, gorgeous, irresistible Joni. I love that woman.

I don't disagree this is a no-contest in her favour! But we're allowed to discuss both acts

Leuth

Interestingly, Verve's song Blue is one of their best

Bangkokaddick

Probably like the last match-up, old gits (Blue) v young punks (Urban Hymns)

But this time around I'm firmly in the old gits' corner, having played Blue in the car a few times recently, whereby Urban Hymns hasn't made its way out of the CD cupboard in years.