Back in time

WILCO – Double Album ‘BEING THERE’ Released 30 Years Ago Today

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

29 October 2026

Band: WILCO
Who: Singer-songwriter
Jeff Tweedy‘s combo.

Active: Since 1994 / 11 LPs so far

Album: BEING THERE, 2nd LP, a double one.
Released: 29 October 1996 – 30 years ago today.

Despite its release as a double album, Being There was sold at a single album price as a result of a deal between lead singer Jeff Tweedy and the band’s label Reprise Records.

Tweedy: “I was a later bloomer. I was in my thirties before I even came to terms with
the idea that I was making a living as a recording artist. I was in a punk band for a long
time and thought it was my life.

I was a bass player in a band making fifty dollars a night, paying eighty dollars a month
in rent, making indie records and not getting paid for them, and having this naive sense
f well-being that I would always do this and never have much more responsibility than
that.

I went from that to being a dad and a major-label recording artist who had
the pressure of supporting a family and also making something I felt good
about artistically.”

Pitchfork said: “‘Being There’ flirts with cynicism, but really the mood
is sober, world-weary, adult. Wilco massively improved as both a band
and as songwriters, but the two-disc set is really nothing more than
a marketing scheme.”

Singles.

– OUTTASITE (OUTTA MIND) –

– MONDAY –

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XTC – Wayward British Pop Misfits Released Their 8th LP ‘SKYLARKING’ 40 Years Ago Today

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Significant longplayers from the past

27 October 2026

Band: XTC
Who: The wayward pop outfit (1976-2005 / 14 albums) from
Swindon England, led by singer-songwriter/guitarist Andy Partridge.

Anniversary Album: SKYLARKING
Their 8th. Released on 27 October 1986,
today 40 years ago.

American legend Todd Rundgren produced it. It’s a loose concept LP
about a nonspecific cycle, such as a day, a year, the seasons, or a life.

The title refers to a type of bird (skylark), as well as the Royal Navy term “skylarking”,
which means “fooling around“. It became one of XTC’s best-known albums and is
often regarded as one of their finest albums.

The album’s lyrical themes include love, marriage, and religion.

The original sleeve design was to depict close-up shots of human pubic regions with flowers fitted into the hairs, female on the front and male on the back. Photo sessions were held, but record shops informed the label that they would not carry the album
with that artwork, and so the idea was discarded.

UNCUT Magazine (UK): “The album that ties up everything great
about Swindon’s finest into one big beautiful package of perfect pop“.

Despite the critical praise, it wasn’t a commercial success, peaking at number 90
in the UK and number 70 in the US, where the single ‘Dear God‘ became a college
radio hit.

SINGLES

ALBUM


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AMY WINEHOUSE – 20 Candles Today For Her Second And Final Album ‘BACK IN BLACK’

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayerts from yesteryear.

27 October 2026

The late great voice/songwriter AMY WINEHOUSE (1983 – 2011) had her second
and final album, named BACK TO BLACK on 27 October 2006, today 20 years ago.

It went to #1 in the UK and several European countries.
#2 in the US, #4 in Australia

Winehouse predominantly based the album on her tumultuous relationship with Blake Fielder-Civil, who temporarily left her to pursue an ex-girlfriend. Their brief separation spurred Winehouse to create an album that explores themes of guilt, grief, infidelity, heartbreak and trauma in a relationship.

The Guardian (British newspaper): “Something had happened to Amy Winehouse in the three years that separated her second album from her debut: skinny, covered in tattoos, dressed like a cartoon of a 60s girl-group member, complete with a vertiginous beehive modelled on that of the Ronettes’ Ronnie Spector, she was almost unrecognisable.

The lyrics of its lead single suggested that whatever had happened wasn’t good – no one pleads with you to go to rehab if your life is in perfect shape – but the music was so ebullient you could easily overlook that.

Back to Black offered an update of 60s soul and girl-group pop. Producer Mick Ronson has suggested that his primary contribution to the album was keeping Winehouse out of the pub, but in reality his decision to relocate the recording sessions to Brooklyn’s analogue Daptone studios and employ its house band, the Dap-Kings, was a masterstroke.”

TUTV: Great voice, great tunes, great looks.
Sad story, sad end, sad loss.

Singles.

– REHAB –

More than 741 million streams on Spotify.
More than 431 million views on You Tube.

– BACK TO BLACK –

More than 1,760 billion views on Sportify
More than 1,535 billion views on YouTube.

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MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE Released Their Splendorous Third Album ‘THE BLACK PARADE’ Today 20 Years Ago

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

24 October 2026

New Jersey‘s emo rock giants MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE (2001–2013, 2019–present) released their splendorous 3rd album THE BLACK PARADE on 31 October 2006, today
20 years ago.

The record is centered on the story of a man suffering from terminal cancer known
as ‘The Patient‘, as he nears the end of his life. It has predominantly been considered
an emo, alternative rock, pop-punk, hard rock, punk rock, and glam rock record.

In the years since its release, The Black Parade has been
revered as one of, if not the most important, album in emo.

It peaked at #2 in both the US and the UK.

Entertainment Weekly (US) wrote: “On their third studio album, a musical H-bomb of an effort, the Jersey quintet combine the rock-opera pomp of Queen with the darker, dirtier tones of their screamo past: Call it a Bro-hemian Rhapsody. Even without its broad concept, a dying cancer patient seeks revenge and redemption. Parade stands as one of the most cohesive, engaging rock records of 2006.”

Singles.

– WELCOME TO THE BLACK PARADE –

More than 1,123 billion streams on Spotify
More than 435 million views on YouTube

– TEENAGERS –

More than 1,390 billion streams on Spotify
More than 206 million views on You Tube

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BOB SEGER – His Centerpiece LP ‘NIGHT MOVES’ Came Out 50 Years Ago Today

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

22 October 2026

Detroit-born rock legend BOB SEGER (81 now / 18th albums) released his
triumphant LP NIGHTMOVES on 22 October 1976, today 50 years ago.

It was his 9th longplayer and the first that credited his backing band,
the Silver Bullet Band, although they only perform on five of the nine
songs on the album. The other four features backing by the Muscle
Shoals Rhythm Section.

It peaked at #8 in the US and #12 in Canada.

Rolling Stone said: “Night Moves is the breakthrough he needed, a stellar introduction
to this beautiful loser who finally connects with a mainstream audience. He sounds like
Rod Stewart and write lyrics like Bruce Springsteen. Classic rock ‘n’ roll.”

Singles.

– MAIN STREET –

– NIGHT MOVES –

– ROCK ‘N’ ROLL NEVER FORGETS –

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THE PRETENDERS – 4th LP ‘GET CLOSE’ Came Out 40 Years Ago Today

Posted on by JL

Longplayers from yesteryear

20 October 2026

Band: THE PRETENDERS
Active: Since 1978 / 12 LPs with Relentless
from 2023, as their latest one.

Anniversary Album: GET CLOSE
Their 4th.

Released: 20 October 1986 – today 40 years ago.

The LP was recorded during a particularly transitional period of the band’s career,
with drummer Martin Chambers, who suffered emotional problems, fired temporarily
by frontwoman/songwriter Chrissie Hynde, consisted of a variety of sessions and included multiple personnel.

AllMusic wrote in retrospect: “After three great albums, Get Close sounded
good but not especially striking, and its hit-and-miss approach, with a few great
songs surrounded by lesser material, was something Hynde’s fans would find
themselves getting used to over the group’s next few releases.”

Singles.
Both No. 1 in the US on
the Mainstream Rock Chart.

– DON’T GET ME WRONG –

– MY BABY –

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THE 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS Released Their Debut LP Today 60 Years Ago

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

Band: THE 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS
Who: Psychedelic garage rock legends from
Austin, Texas fronted by renownded vocalist/guitarist
Roky Erickson (1947-2019)

Active: 1965-1969 / 3 LPs

Anniversary Album: THE PSYCHEDELIC SOUNDS OF THE 13TH FLOOR ELEVATORS
Released: 17 October 1966 – today 60 years ago.


Photo: Doug Hanners archive / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · WebP conversion

The album showcases the earliest known use of the word ‘psychedelic‘ on an album title.

The tracks are described as exhibiting a dark, eerie quality. Roky Erickson‘s vocals have been likened to banshee wailing and have been described as sounding like yelping and howling like a man possessed.

Pitchfork in retrospect: “Erickson’s psychedelia was not passive aural wallpapers,
all pretty shapes and colors to listen to while tripping, but an active force of social,
musical, and psychological change.”

SINGLE

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THE HUMAN LEAGUE – British Electro-Pop Bigtimers Released Their Classic Album ‘DARE’ Today 45 Years Ago

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

16 October 2026

Band: THE HUMAN LEAGUE
Who: British electro pop bigtimers who got active in 1977.
They’re still touring constantly with frontman Philip Oakey (71 now)
as the original member. They released 9 LPs.

Anniversary album: DARE
Their 2nd one.
Released: 16 October 1981,
today 45 years ago.

NME said: “This sounds like the first Human League greatest hits collection.
Much more than ABBA or whoever you like, the Human League signify that
deliciously serious, sincerely disposable MOR music can possess style, quality
and sophistication.”

TUTV: Another clear-cut proof of the fact
that delightful pop tunes last for decades.

KEY SINGLE
More than 807 million
streams on Spotify

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PRINCE – Today 45 Years Ago The Late Genius 4th Album ‘CONTROVERSY’ Came Out

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

14 October 2026

The late genial PRINCE (1958-2016) released his 4th LP, named
CONTROVERSY on 14 October 1981, 45 years ago today.

He wrote and produced the entire album, except for one track,
and also performed most of the instruments on the recording.

It peaked at #3 in the US.

Rolling Stone said: “Prince’s first three records were so erotically self-absorbed
that they suggested the reveries of a licentious young libertine. On Controversy, that
libertine proclaims unfettered sexuality as the fundamental condition of a new, more
loving society than the bellicose, overtechnologized America of Ronald Reagan.”

SINGLE

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U2 Released Their 2nd Album ‘OCTOBER’ Today 45 Years Ago

Posted on by JL

Significant longplayers from yesteryear

12 October 2026

Irish rock jumbos released their 2nd album, named
OCTOBER on 12 October 1981, today 45 years ago.

The album was lyrically inspired by the memberships of Bono, the Edge, and Larry Mullen Jr. in a Christian group called the Shalom Fellowship, and consequently it contains spiritual and religious themes. Their involvement led them to question the relationship between the Christian faith and the rock and roll lifestyle, and threatened to break up the band.

Bono: “I remember the pressure it was made under, I remember writing lyrics on
the microphone, and at £50 an hour, that’s quite a pressure. The ironic thing about
October is that there’s a sort of peace about the album, even though it was recorded
under that pressure.

I think October goes into areas that most rock ‘n’ roll bands ignore.
When I listen to the album, something like ‘Tomorrow,’ it actually
moves me.”

TUTV: I’m a sizeable U2 fan but
this album is somehow a bit too
bombastic for my liking.

Singles.

– GLORIA –

– FIRE –


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