Stills 2
Stephen Stills 2 is shocking to me for a couple reasons. One, it's not
really a folk-rock album like it's often tagged as, and two, it's
*drastically* different from the debut. On Stephen Stills' first album,
it was all about the gospel and blues arrangements. Here? It's more
about implementing a variety of things.
"Change Partners" has a country vibe thanks to the guitar work, but truth be told it's more like a lively and upbeat pop song, and a darn good one at that. Extremely catchy verse and chorus. It's a winner. A CLEAR winner. "Nothin' to Do But Today" is very different, so begins the diversity I was telling you about. I love this song just as much as the opener, but it's mainly the funky rhythm and catchy vocals that carry the entire song. It doesn't NEED anything else either. Now the next song titled "Fishes & Scorpions" includes the kind of vocal melody that I always wanted Stephen Stills to implement because this kind of enchantingly beautiful vocal style just feels so natural for his voice. The guitar solo is borderline space rock, which is surprising. Strange song, but a highlight. Seriously, these first three songs are *awesome*.
"Sugar Babe" has a super positive message in the lush and cheesy lyrics, and that's only a minor distraction (even though I COULD complain about the chorus sounding lazily written, but... it's memorable so I'll leave it alone). The lyrics about the turtles though... UGH! Too much cheese, haha! "Know You Got to Run" has a banjo in the intro, *again* featuring more diverse songwriting arrangements, and the atmosphere contains a subtle western vibe (western as in, cowboys and ghost towns!) Everything about the song is pretty basic, but it's not bad. Bad would be what happened on Manassas.
"Open Street" is the most diversely written song here. I feel confident about this. A bouncy verse melody with a gospel-like atmosphere. Yes the gospel influence from Stills' first album is back again! The handclaps are a nice addition, but... I'm just getting started explaining what makes this song much different from the other ones! The brass section is sort of unnecessary, but it's short at least, however the most surprising part is the piano jam. It's awkward because it sounds off in a few spots, and yet, it's melodic so I don't care. I truly can't say whether it's an unprofessional way of playing the piano or not. I just don't know. In that respect, this song reminds me of David Bowie's "Aladdin Sane". The bongos at the end are a nice finishing touch.
"Singin' Call" is a mellow country-ish song reminiscent of Crosby, Stills & Nash, and the atmosphere is lovely. "Word Game" is the most "What the heck is THIS?" moment on the entire album. It's nothing but a straight forward folk song with extremely angry and forceful lyrics pertaining to... I believe pertaining to a variety of things such as the homeless, and a direct stab at those who are quick to make judgements on other people. Even though the song is based around the acoustic guitar and the melody is delivered in a fairly simplistic way, the focus here is most definitely on the lyrics. It's hard to keep up with them (especially near the end when Stephen Stills just goes totally nuts) but this proves without a doubt that Steven Stills is a fantastic lyric writer.
"Ecology Song" is the albums weak point. It's too brass-heavy and the additional vocals in between the main verse feel clumsily slapped together. It's growing on me though. The lyrics are pretty enjoyable and honest. "Marianne" is some kind of throwback to the 50's with a SPLENDID and very catchy vocal melody. I really don't know if this is a cover song or what. I *think* it is, but whoever did the original, I haven't a clue. The album finishes on a wonderful note with "Bluebird Revisted". This song has the best vocal melody on the entire album, and feels like an exciting folk song to me. Awesome.
Stephen Stills 2 is incredible. A must own.
"Change Partners" has a country vibe thanks to the guitar work, but truth be told it's more like a lively and upbeat pop song, and a darn good one at that. Extremely catchy verse and chorus. It's a winner. A CLEAR winner. "Nothin' to Do But Today" is very different, so begins the diversity I was telling you about. I love this song just as much as the opener, but it's mainly the funky rhythm and catchy vocals that carry the entire song. It doesn't NEED anything else either. Now the next song titled "Fishes & Scorpions" includes the kind of vocal melody that I always wanted Stephen Stills to implement because this kind of enchantingly beautiful vocal style just feels so natural for his voice. The guitar solo is borderline space rock, which is surprising. Strange song, but a highlight. Seriously, these first three songs are *awesome*.
"Sugar Babe" has a super positive message in the lush and cheesy lyrics, and that's only a minor distraction (even though I COULD complain about the chorus sounding lazily written, but... it's memorable so I'll leave it alone). The lyrics about the turtles though... UGH! Too much cheese, haha! "Know You Got to Run" has a banjo in the intro, *again* featuring more diverse songwriting arrangements, and the atmosphere contains a subtle western vibe (western as in, cowboys and ghost towns!) Everything about the song is pretty basic, but it's not bad. Bad would be what happened on Manassas.
"Open Street" is the most diversely written song here. I feel confident about this. A bouncy verse melody with a gospel-like atmosphere. Yes the gospel influence from Stills' first album is back again! The handclaps are a nice addition, but... I'm just getting started explaining what makes this song much different from the other ones! The brass section is sort of unnecessary, but it's short at least, however the most surprising part is the piano jam. It's awkward because it sounds off in a few spots, and yet, it's melodic so I don't care. I truly can't say whether it's an unprofessional way of playing the piano or not. I just don't know. In that respect, this song reminds me of David Bowie's "Aladdin Sane". The bongos at the end are a nice finishing touch.
"Singin' Call" is a mellow country-ish song reminiscent of Crosby, Stills & Nash, and the atmosphere is lovely. "Word Game" is the most "What the heck is THIS?" moment on the entire album. It's nothing but a straight forward folk song with extremely angry and forceful lyrics pertaining to... I believe pertaining to a variety of things such as the homeless, and a direct stab at those who are quick to make judgements on other people. Even though the song is based around the acoustic guitar and the melody is delivered in a fairly simplistic way, the focus here is most definitely on the lyrics. It's hard to keep up with them (especially near the end when Stephen Stills just goes totally nuts) but this proves without a doubt that Steven Stills is a fantastic lyric writer.
"Ecology Song" is the albums weak point. It's too brass-heavy and the additional vocals in between the main verse feel clumsily slapped together. It's growing on me though. The lyrics are pretty enjoyable and honest. "Marianne" is some kind of throwback to the 50's with a SPLENDID and very catchy vocal melody. I really don't know if this is a cover song or what. I *think* it is, but whoever did the original, I haven't a clue. The album finishes on a wonderful note with "Bluebird Revisted". This song has the best vocal melody on the entire album, and feels like an exciting folk song to me. Awesome.
Stephen Stills 2 is incredible. A must own.
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