Two Sides Of The Moon

About

Two Sides of the Moon is the only studio album by Keith Moon, best known as the drummer for The Who. Originally released in March 1975, the album contains original songs written by John Lennon and Harry Nilsson among others, as well as covers of songs by The Beach Boys and The Beatles, and a version of "The Kids Are Alright", originally recorded by The Who. Moon himself plays drums only on three tracks, opting instead to perform only lead vocals; percussion for other songs were performed by Ringo Starr, as well as a score of session musicians, among them actor Miguel Ferrer and prolific drummer Jim Keltner. Moon and Starr also share lead vocals on "Together", mostly a tirade of intentionally bad jokes over a backing track. 2006 saw the release of a Deluxe Edition of the album on compact disc, which included a newly remastered album, alternative mixes, previously unissued material and an entire bonus CD of studio outtakes (among them a version of The Who's "My Generation"). The album's title is a play on Pink Floyd's album The Dark Side of the Moon. Indeed, it extends into a visual pun, as well; the original LP album cover contained a cutout hole that displayed a specific design on the sleeve inside. One side depicted Moon dressed up as a British gentleman with an escort, while the other side displayed his bare backside. Additional review (worth reading): Keith Moon's 1975 solo album Two Sides of the Moon has been described as "the most expensive karaoke album in history," and even as that, it was a colossal failure, the perfect expression of drunken self-indulgence, and it was so fascinatingly bad that it has assumed a certain cult status. But make no mistake, it was a horrible album on all counts made by a brilliant drummer who chose barely to play drums on it (he appears behind the kit on only three tracks) but instead chose to sing, even though he was tone deaf by his own admission. The presence of seemingly every musician then in L.A. at the sessions, an impressive list that included Dick Dale, Spencer Davis, Bobby Keys, Rick Nelson, Harry Nilsson, John Sebastian, Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, and countless rumored others, failed to redeem Two Sides of the Moon. Even taken as kitsch, it sucked. Now Castle Music has released an expanded two-disc deluxe version devoted to this travesty, and fascinating as the carnage is sometimes, an extra disc of outtakes, guide tracks, and studio chatter has simply compounded the blast site of this bomb. Included are two versions of Brian Wilson's "Don't Worry Baby," the single version with Moon singing high and the album version with Moon singing low. They're both awful. Wilson, then in his always-in-pajamas-in-bed phase, reportedly broke down sobbing when he heard Moon's single version of the song, and his tears weren't tears of joy. Moon also slaughters songs closer to home, turning in an ear-shuddering take on the Who's "The Kids Are Alright," then mangles the Beatles' "In My Life" beyond all recognition. The bonus material includes the original Mal Evans mixes that were rejected by MCA (the only smart move MCA made in this whole affair), a handful of Steve Cropper-produced tracks intended for a wisely aborted second Keith Moon solo album, and a whole second disc of false starts, guide vocals (including an interesting John Sebastian guide for "Don't Worry Baby"), studio talk, and backing tracks. Halfway through this second disc there is a 59-second studio jam burst of "My Generation" which amounts to the best stretch of music on either disc. To be fair, Two Sides of the Moon has some historical importance, and serious collectors will no doubt scoop up this bloated double-disc testimonial to keep everything complete, but Moon's true legacy will always be his brilliant, kinetic, and eccentric role as the drummer on those great early Who records. Stick on The Who Sell Out and forgive Moon his solo record. Please.

via Last.fm

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