Bob Mould's thread o' positivity

His new album is great. I have it, love it, and listen to it very often.

Was never much of a Husker Du, Sugar, OR Bob Mould fan, perhaps cause i never heard all that much of him, but Body Of Song is definitely a great record.

anyone agree? or could i get an even better Bob Mould disc….

Personally, Black Sheets of Rain is my favorite solo record of his.

My question to you is, what songs on Body of Song really get to you? It's a solid record, but if you like that one, you might want to check out his self-titled solo LP from 1996. Body of Song sounds like a combination of a lot of his previous records rolled into one. For me, "Beating Heart the Prize" is absolutely killer, the one song I can play over and over and over again.

I was pleasantly surprised by Body of Song - but I still consider Sugar's Copper Blue the pinnacle of Bob's songcraft. If you haven't already heard it - I am sure you can find it in a cut-out bin or on half.com for almost nothing.

I've always thought his voice was pretty weak, no matter which band he was in.

That being said, I can think of something positive to say about him, oh yes I can. I hope it doesn't sound too gay. How many guys start out as doughy, nerdy 20 year olds, and end up as hunky 45 year olds? Maybe his involvement with the WWE inspired him to get in such good shape?

Originally posted by bearman:

My question to you is, what songs on Body of Song really get to you?

not sure of the song names and numbers really, its in my car and thats where it been so far.

i know i play 3,4,9 and 12 over a lot.


I have Copper Blue and like some of the songs, but this just seems a little more upbeat than i expected.

I do plan on buying another solo disc though, I'll get the one you mentioned…

Originally posted by Xavier Bush, Power Forward:
Maybe his involvement with the WWE inspired him to get in such good shape?

How was he involved if I may ask?

Having everything he has ever released (I am a proud groupie of Mr. Mould and have been since high school), I'll tell you the must-haves (and other die-hard fans would toatlly disagree with this, but screw them):

1) Sugar – Copper Blue
2) Sugar – Beaster (very loud, very angry)
3) solo – Black Sheets of Rain (very dark)
4) You can safely get everything Husker Du did, except for Land Speed Record. Get Candy Apple Grey last. Start off with Flip Your Wig or New Day Rising. Zen Arcade should be up there of course. (One of my personal favorites is Warehouse: Songs and Stories. It's far more complex than people give it credit for, and it's one of those albums that will sink in months later and stay with you for years and years.)

From there you can pick up the self-titled 1996 solo LP, Workbook, and Sugar's File Under Easy Listening. Besides (from Sugar) has some good moments, Poison Years (solo) is only worth it for some decent live tracks. I was not that fond of the Last Dog and Pony Show, so you can skip over that one. Modulate is a good record, but only for the patient and only after you have picked up the other stuff. I also have a soft spot in my heart for his Loudbomb LP, Long Playing Grooves.

http://www.adc.org/index.php?id=2574

Originally posted by Rob_Gee:

Originally posted by Xavier Bush, Power Forward:
Maybe his involvement with the WWE inspired him to get in such good shape?

How was he involved if I may ask?

Bob was a writer for the WWE for a while. He enjoyed it, but was also a ton of work that required a lot of travel and in the end it was a great diversion for him while he took a little time off from making records.

I agree with Bearman's recommendations, although my favorite album is Workbook. However, the caveat here is that it's the album that got me into Mould (I hadn't had any Husker Du, even though I was a huge Replacements fan…usually the two go hand in hand). So, I may have particular and biased love for Workbook as I listened it to it every day for 2 years…

Originally posted by Bags:
I listened it to it every day for 2 years…

well, shit. thats quite an endorsement!

Originally posted by Bags:
I may have particular and biased love for Workbook as I listened it to it every day for 2 years…

that's how i felt about copper blue when i first listened to it.

Workbook is a great LP, but Workbook is to Bags what Warehouse: Songs and Stories is to me. It's just one of those records that clicked with a certain time of my life and I literally couldn't go for more than a couple of days without listening to it from start to finish. I can't quite explain that…but for me, that's what a truly great record will do.

Agreed…Copper Blue got played nonstop as well. That's another album that continues to send chills down my spine every time I hear it, even now.

Originally posted by Venerable Bede:

Originally posted by Bags:
I may have particular and biased love for Workbook as I listened it to it every day for 2 years…

that's how i felt about copper blue when i first listened to it.

file under easy listening for me

I love Candy Apple Grey. That was the first Hüsker Dü album I had. Zen Arcade is also essential, although I don't see the Forum Nice Guy being crazy about that one. Both Sugar albums are great. I like Mould's solo stuff, but I don't know that any one album sticks out. All have at least a couple of great songs.

In high school did an English paper on a song from New Day Rising. I got the new CD haven't played it yet, but really like the packaging.

Was a huge Husker fan, kind of changed directions when Sugar came about, and got back into his recent stuff seeing him at the 9:30.

There was an interview with Bob in Magnet recently. He says that he goes to the gym like every day, he is a gym bum.

LOVE the new disc. It's got a little bit of everything - rock, ballads, dance tunes…If you like any phase of his career, there's something here you'll really like.

My favorite Husker Du records are the "Metal Circus" EP and "New Day Rising". Not necessarily the best ones, but they were my first and they totally blew me away. I still play NDR about once a week or so.

Can't wait for the 9:30 gig next month.

I'm going to see the 2nd night in Chicago and the Philly shows as well. So far it looks like a pretty standard setlist, heavy on Copper Blue, but a fair amount of other stuff from the new record and the Husker Du output. Reports are that it's a VERY solid show.

Originally posted by Xavier Bush, Power Forward:
That being said, I can think of something positive to say about him, oh yes I can. I hope it doesn't sound too gay. How many guys start out as doughy, nerdy 20 year olds, and end up as hunky 45 year olds?

It's almost always the Gay ones, unfortunately for we Straight women. :roll:

On a more positive note, a friend of mine just saw him in London and knows him and tried to talk him into moving there. Bob said no that he loves living in DC too much. So you local Bob fans can take pride in that.