John Denver had three of the 100 best-selling albums of the 1970’s. To put that in context, it’s the same number achieved by The Rolling Stones, and one more than a singer/songwriter by the name of Bob Dylan. John Denver! I’m not sure if this reflects poorly on the taste-makers of that decade, or if it means that Denver is wildly underappreciated and forgotten in an era of irony. Let’s find out…
THUMBS UP: John Denver is such a benign musical character that working up an active dislike for him is sort of like despising the Muppets or someone’s kindly grandparents. Two songs on this collection stand out, and cannot be denied as musical bellweathers of the 1970’s – ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’ and ‘Rocky Mountain High’. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, those songs – and much of the rest of this album – represent the authentic sound of their times. It might sound like macrame, bell bottoms, and peaceful easy feelings, but John Denver’s Greatest Hits would be one of the most appropriate albums you could pull out of a time capsule from the 1970’s.
THUMBS DOWN: My wife is visibly annoyed with me for having the audacity to drop John Denver’s Greatest Hits on the turntable. In between grunts, snorts, and rolling of the eyes, she has asked me if I’m feeling ok and if I’m depressed. Next she’ll probably be taking my temperature and calling the doctor. I can hardly blame her. Like anything else, good cheer and sunshine can be administered in lethal doses, and John Denver takes happiness to an extremely uncomfortable level. I can appreciate the spirit behind his music, and one or two songs at a time is OK, but an album side? Well, that’s enough to get you banished to the sofa for the night…
[How does John Denver rate with you? Good times or bad flashback? Enquiring minds want to know...]
Tags: Greatest Hits, John Denver
19 September 2008 at 7:26 am |
gotta repect a guy that kills himself by drunk plane driving….
funny thing is i never reach for any of his stuff but when its on i never turn it off and find myself digging it…. couple that with some muppet action and its a go….
all hail JD
19 September 2008 at 7:37 am |
I’m down with Denver. Thumbs up.
19 September 2008 at 7:54 am |
john denver melded folk music and pop music, and in so doing got a lot of people to reacquaint themselves with matters more spiritual and nature-based. that’s quite an accomplishment.
this album — volume two, for that matter — are definitely thumbs up.
what’s more his performance in the film ‘oh, god’ should not be missed.
finally, of all the idiots who were paid a king’s ransom to host tv variety shows and holiday specials, he did so with more accessibility, talent and humanity than any other whom i can recall.
he made the world a better place, even if he overstayed his welcome (musically) by making records another 2 decades since this definite ‘thumbs up’ compilation.
i say at 4:20 today, we sit with some friends “and pass the pipe around” in his honor — a reference to his brilliant ‘poems, prayers & promises.’
19 September 2008 at 7:54 am |
Baseball, Apple Pie, the Flag. You can add John Denver to this list as far as I’m concerned. The P is clearly un-American.
For the nay-sayers I ask the honest difference between John D and James Taylor. For my money, the only artist that is more powerful is Billy Joel.
19 September 2008 at 8:38 am |
I always remember him on the muppet show when I was little.
I think it was before this stage in kermit’s career:
19 September 2008 at 8:55 am |
What Cordell said.
Only five and half hours to go.
19 September 2008 at 9:09 am |
plus he looked exactly like Cousin Oliver….
that’s gotta count fer somthin’ no….???
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbie_Rist
19 September 2008 at 9:19 am |
Ditto Cordell. Even the most vehement JD hater can’t help but tap a foot to Grandma’s Feather Bed.
19 September 2008 at 9:23 am |
To quote a certain ‘hockey mom,’ “Thanks, but no thanks.” To me, he’s just empty calories.
As far as look-a-likes, I always got him and Paul Williams confused. Tell me Little Enos isn’t based on John Denver:
http://www.newsfromme.com/images2/pat1.jpg
19 September 2008 at 10:07 am |
There is not a soul who knows me who would deem me a bright and chipper, probably-loves-John-Denver-kinda-gal. Truth is, John Denver is my “dirty little secret.” This was the first album I bought with my own money. Seen him in concert twice. Yup. Twice. And I cried when he sang “I Want to Live.” Other than my cousin, who was with me at the time, this is the first I have ever revealed that.
My husband groans when I turn on John Denver too. Talking Heads is more his style. But sometimes, I just feel the need for a fix (it’s rare, but sometimes) And when I get it … I get all filled up with “something” that only happens when I listen to JD. Is it positivity? Joy? Glee? Warmth? Dunno. But it is a unique John Denver feeling. Maybe what it would feel like to be on grandma’s feather bed.
19 September 2008 at 11:33 am |
I heart John Denver. His music definitely puts me in a happier place and brings back a lot of great childhood memories. Hawwod pretty much captured exactly the effect his music has on me. Definitely positivity. And wonder. And joy. And that’s o.k. to sing about!
19 September 2008 at 11:44 am |
J.D. always will remind me of listening to him through my dad’s Hi-Fi while he sorted through his saved roaches in the red glass jar.
19 September 2008 at 2:25 pm |
lionel ritchie, in response to the charge that his music was sappy treacle, said’”not if you’re in love, it isn’t.”
questions about the veracity or durability or relevance of music are partly to wholly answered by context as much as content. john denver was a total pop craftsman. there are lots of those, but he was up there. but his songs, depending on your stage of life or circumstances, could mean very little or a whole lot. but they are always there.
when i was twenty seven and really figuring out something profound about my own identity, rocky mountain high kicked my ass. the line about coming back to a place he’d never been before was so correct as i sort of came full circle intrinsically. and who hasn’t been a little crazy as they tried to touch the sun?
in retrospect, his lyrics became more nuanced when his issues of alcohol abuse arose years later. here’s a guy who struggled with spirits and perhaps his own spirit, but his response seemed kind of hopeful, at times insightful, catchy and sweet. nothing wrong with that.
19 September 2008 at 3:50 pm |
my mom was a big JD fan in the 70’s and for better or worse i have “grandma’s feather bed” etched in my brain for eternity. his songs were extremely saccharine, but it was good sing-along for a 6 year old. i hadn’t yet discovered judas priest.
19 September 2008 at 7:20 pm |
I have to admit that I’m stunned by the outpouring of positive responses here. I thought this would be a 50/50 deal, but it’s not even close.
I don’t know about you, but whenever one of these posts go up, I find myself asking “What would Bob say?”
19 September 2008 at 7:51 pm |
This guy is nothing compared to Billy Joel.
19 September 2008 at 9:08 pm |
I’m coming out of my commie pinko cave just long enough to tell you that I’m not opposed to the occasional John Denver song, but the whole album – en mass – is grating to my tender ears.
Those little kids singing scratchily in the background on For Baby/For Bobbie were from my and esbandito’s hometown, but that song remains one of my least favorite on this album.
19 September 2008 at 9:54 pm |
You’re not the one with the problem, your wife is. But she’s a Duke fan, so that can go without saying. Denver is full of win.
19 September 2008 at 10:57 pm |
Wind?
20 September 2008 at 7:48 am |
I only listen to John Denver once every two years, that is, when at my parents for Christmas. Yes, the John Denver Christmas album gets played every Christmas at my parents house and I have no idea why. I’m probably too scared to ask.
Outside of that embarrassing revelation, I have nothing to add to this except that I’m amazed at the strong level of reaction to all this. Makes me yearn for posts about non-controversial figures like Ike Turner.
20 September 2008 at 9:12 am |
Esbandido: Does the John Denver Xmas album make the lobsters stop screaming?
20 September 2008 at 9:16 am |
Criminy. Is this where the conversation veers off into Lobster bisque, tuna salad, and familiar humps?
20 September 2008 at 11:23 am |
Two hours later and I’m still laughing about the lobster comment.
Thanks for blog-love DK…
20 September 2008 at 6:14 pm |
When I was in fourth grade and wearing burnt orange corduroy gauchos (hello, if you were a girl in the 70s, don’t tell me that you didn’t wear gauchos or that you’re unfamiliar with that particular burnt orange color favored by interior decorators and the stylists at Toughskins at the time), I took guitar lessons from Charlene. All the cool kids took guitar lessons from Charlene. While I never learned to read music, I did learn to play and sing along to nearly every song in my John Denver songbook. I serenaded my poor unsuspecting relatives on most major holidays with my own special renditions of “Annie’s Song” and “Thank God I’m a County Boy.” You’ve never truly experienced musical nirvana until a sunburned, redheaded fourth grader in her gauchos belts out, “Ain’t much an ol’ country boy like me can’t hack.”
20 September 2008 at 11:16 pm |
He had some great songs, and a bunch of really bad ones. Unquestionably, an iconic American talent.
21 September 2008 at 9:20 pm |
billy joel is just fine. but an icon he ain’t.
john denver is an icon.
thanks to dk for reminding many of us just that.
21 September 2008 at 9:51 pm |
Thanks to Cordell for suggesting the Great American Smoke Out on Friday!
21 September 2008 at 10:36 pm |
Lobster Bisque Recipe
INGREDIENTS
2 1-lb. cooked lobsters
1 cup lobster stock
4 tbsp. clarified butter
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1 med. minced onion
1 each bay leaf
1 lg. minced carrot
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 tsp. chopped garlic clove
1/4 cup brandy
1 stalk minced celery
2 cups heavy cream
2 tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/2 cup dry sherry
salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Remove all meat and tamalley from lobster shell. Place in bowl and chill. Chop lobster shells as fine as possible. Heat a medium size saute pan until hot and add butter. As butter starts to smoke, add shells, reduce heat and cook shells for 1-2 minutes tossing the shell pie fragments frequently. Add all the minced vegetables and garlic and cook for 5 more minutes. Slowly sprinkle in the flour and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Transfer everything into a 2 quart saucepan and deglaze the saute pan with the sherry adding everything to the saucepan. Heat the mixture until hot then slowly add the lobster stock until the soup thickens. Add the tomato paste, thyme, bay leaf, and paprika.