77s Message Board | Print: Who would you compare the 77s to?

Posted by audiori on 08-18-2007 at11:49:

Who would you compare the 77s to?

Heres a tough one...

If you were trying to give a friend an example of what the 77s sound like by comparing them to other popular bands and artists - who would you list?

What if you were trying to explain what "Fun With Sound" sounds like?

Of course, they don't sound exactly like anyone else - but are there a certain list of artists or bands that you would put in a similar category musically? If so, reply and list which ones you'd list for each band.

- The 77s:

- Michael Roe:

- 7&7iS "Fun With Sound":

- The Lost Dogs:

Posted by audiori on 08-18-2007 at13:59:

By the way, heres the reason I'm asking.. I'm setting up pages for these bands on a website that asks me for a list of "similar artists". I guess the page recommends them to people based on this information. So, any suggestions would be helpful. Its something we've been asked before but its always hard to come up with a very decent list.

Posted by Marti on 08-18-2007 at15:33:

RE: Who would you compare the 77s to?

quote:

Originally posted by audiori
Heres a tough one...

If you were trying to give a friend an example of what the 77s sound like by comparing them to other popular bands and artists - who would you list?

What if you were trying to explain what "Fun With Sound" sounds like?

Of course, they don't sound exactly like anyone else - but are there a certain list of artists or bands that you would put in a similar category musically? If so, reply and list which ones you'd list for each band.

- The 77s:

- Michael Roe:

- 7&7iS "Fun With Sound":

- The Lost Dogs:

I thought maybe if I answered the question badly, it would at least fuel the discussion with corrections.

The 77s--how do you qualify an enigma? Many of the die-hard fans are unique and eclectic themselves, and enjoy their one-of-a-kind mosaic band. They can cover Zep pretty well, since I heard the original Zep version of "Nobody's Fault but Mine" one day and thought that we'd had a miraculous 77s epiphany at a local radio station for a second, before I returned to reality. I would definitely say that they show a respect through emulation of musicians from a number of different eras and genres, such as Blind Willie, Washington Phillips, the Beach Boys, etc.

For Mike himself, I would say the same thing, the difference being that his solo work slows down on the whole, and can be more introspective. As far as influences go, my perennial favorite, "Hold Dearly to Me" is obviously Dylan-like. Safe as Milk is like a sampler that includes material reminiscent of older folk and country music icons. My son makes tonal and inflection comparisons of his voice to Tom Petty's, but the frustrated English major's frequent use of homonyms and oronyms is his own.

Fun with Sound seems very Beach Boys-influenced to me, with some of the above thrown in around the edges. "City of Refuge" shows some really original thinking--they sort of Zepped that out, too, for lack of better way to put it.

The Lost Dogs is similar (in concept, at least) to the Highwaymen, although I would put some of the song styles into a category with the work of Emmylou Harris or Buddy & Julie Miller.

Okay--now everybody has something to argue, so we can get this going.

Posted by phreaq on 08-20-2007 at06:18:

i hate comparisons... but if forced (this is a band that spans 25 years of recordings - there is going to be a lot of disparity):

77's - comsat angels; rolling stones; tool
michael roe - brian wilson; billy idol; brian eno/brian ferry

Posted by 77 bc on 08-20-2007 at08:12:

quote:

Originally posted by phreaq
i hate comparisons... but if forced (this is a band that spans 25 years of recordings - there is going to be a lot of disparity):

77's - comsat angels; rolling stones; tool
michael roe - brian wilson; billy idol; brian eno/brian ferry

holy crap...phreaq came out of "self imposed exile" for this one???

The 77's remind me of...the 77's.

Michael Roe...well...that's all over the map. From Art Garfunkel to Robert Zimmerman, but mostly, he makes me think of Doctor Love.

The "Fun With Sound" project is in a class of it's own. Incredible stuff, without all of the goofy stuff that Brian Wilson has been known to throw into his production. I still hold it on a level with "Pet Sounds," which was in a league of it's own.

Posted by peawinkel on 08-22-2007 at20:35:

Very difficult assignment due to the versatility of their sound from song to song & era to era.
Early stuff - Rolling Stones & I'm sure other punk bands (but I'm not that versed on that genre)
Mid stuff - Led Zeppelin, Kansas (on Indian Summer) -see what I mean....song to song
Later stuff - I don't know....it seems that at this point their sound has become more unique.

I know....not much help....

Posted by Kit on 08-22-2007 at20:36:

RE: Who would you compare the 77s to?

The 77s:

They are basically a smorgasbord of classic rock. You hear everything from The Beach Boys to The Rolling Stones to The Grateful Dead to Dire Straits to Talking Heads to R.E.M. to U2 to The Police to Led Zeppelin to Velvet Underground to Foo Fighters. All over the freaking place. Ultimately, I don't think there has ever been a "77s sound". But I will say I always thought they were more in their element making moody pop songs.

Posted by Ping Pong Over the Abyss on 08-24-2007 at12:50:

Kit nailed it. Highly eclectic, the 77s ARE their own sound. Cool

Posted by Marti on 08-24-2007 at15:48:

I think everybody's saying the same thing while throwing in different influences--they're music history appreciation class, taking in many different genres and sounding uniquely like themselves doing it. Mike has a distinctive voice, and they're all great musicians.

Posted by peawinkel on 08-25-2007 at09:47:

Dr.'s voice is the most versatile.

Posted by audiori on 08-25-2007 at09:52:

Helpful suggestions - thanks guys. Keep 'em coming if anyone thinks of any others.

This is primarily just so the site can recommend them to other people that might like similar music so it's fine for the list to be all over the place. Its not saying that the 77s or any of these bands sound exactly like this list... more that fans of these artists might also like the 77s.

Posted by Alex on 08-26-2007 at09:49:

Kit nailed it. But I want to give my impressions too.

The 77s are all over the plate. "Hold dearly to me" is more Van Morrison than Bob Dylan to my ears. The guitar in "Go with God but go" reminds me of The Grateful Dead. "Nobody's Fault" and "City of Refuge" are Led Zeppelin rip- offs while "Cold cold Night" sounds so much like the Stones that a Stones fan asked me if it was a rare Stones recording. "Perfect blues" features the Jerry Lee Lewis- style "killer" piano. "Pray naked" and "Woody" are totally weird stuff in between hardrock, jazz and jamsession - beyond comparison to anything else I've ever heard. I think the Funky Crow Thing sounds a little bit like R.E.M.- meets- the- Stones. The "Say your Prayers" CD somehow reminds me a little bit of Simon & Garfunkel's "Wednesday Morning, 3 a.m.". I think FWS has a feel of "Peter Green's grateful dead pet sounds" to it. I think the Lost Dogs are more Traveling Wilburys than Highwaymen, just add in your mind Tom Petty's sideman Mike Campbell on electric guitar.

"That was the Day before (Dr.) Love came to town". That's (almost) what B.B. King sang on U2's Rattle and Hum CD. I consider "88" the ultimate recording of the 77s, and I'd describe it as "Rattle and Hum- era U2 meet the Yardbirds" - there's even a Yardbirds cover on it. Most of the 77s live shows I've heard yet were stunning rock & blues- rock experiences. This includes the Cornerstone 2006 recording.

There must be a gazillion other musical influences and similarities that I don't know and therefore can't name.

Hopefully this is helpful to someone in any way... but in fact I doubt it. Wink

Alex

Posted by waterdog on 11-01-2007 at11:17:

quote:

Originally posted by audiori
Helpful suggestions - thanks guys. Keep 'em coming if anyone thinks of any others.

This is primarily just so the site can recommend them to other people that might like similar music so it's fine for the list to be all over the place. Its not saying that the 77s or any of these bands sound exactly like this list... more that fans of these artists might also like the 77s.

this is just a thought , but maybe have the website list these posted opinions rather than just the band names.

just a thought

Posted by ThePlowman on 11-01-2007 at16:21:

RE: Who would you compare the 77s to?

The most obvious comparison, when considering the 77s, would be Zeppelin. But as everyone above has noted - their sound is so diverse and eclectic, it's impossible to definitively identify them with any one band or artist.

The bittersweet power of their lyrics and music transcends simple comparisons, and sometimes even defies genre placement. A fusion of alternative hard rock/blues/jazz (acid jazz?) and funk-pop are how I would describe the majority of their music. The "Pray Naked" (untitled) album, "Sticks and Stones", "Tom Tom Blues" and "Drowning with Land in Sight" are my fave albums of theirs, to date. These guys are such awesome rockers when they choose to cut loose, but they also create shimmering, incredibly touching ballads with lush, fluid instrumentation.

I've been a 77s fan since the early 80s but only got to see them live once, at the Abbotsford Airport up here in BC, Canada back in the early 90s. I can't wait to hear the new album and see them live very soon.

JM

Posted by Doctor Love on 11-02-2007 at03:26:

RE: Who would you compare the 77s to?

Gosh, I'm 'dead chuffed, man' at all the nice comments, comparisons and kudos here.

I used to compare us to The Pretenders on the Learning To Crawl album, but that was 23 years ago. That remains a great album and I still wish we sounded like that. 'My City Was Gone', anyone? That track is SO cool (Rockpile refugee Billy Bremner and I are twin sons of different mothers on guitar and that brilliiant bass player was borrowed from Big Country, of all places) and we could copy it letter-perfect, but I don't think we coulda ever come up with something as cool as that, especially in 1984 -- that's the difference, 'ya see... I mean, we did other things, but we didn't do that. I wish we had. I'd be sitting pretty about now.

Nowadays I wouldn't know what to say, but to be mentioned in the same breath as The Comsat Angels, Led Zeppelin, The Beach Boys and Bryan Ferry is more than enough for me.

Thanks a lot, everyone!

Posted by drowning on 11-02-2007 at04:15:

waiting for a miracle

ever since I heard waiting for a miracle.... well I think I found one of the scratch bands/early 77's muses...

and yes, now that you mention it - I do hear the learning to crawl references... but in both cases and what I continue to dig about the 77's is there is a uniqueness and a sound all your own that isn't copied or ripped.

many influences, undoubtedly... yet... clearly the sevens.

~f